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MONDAY MOVIE MEME

Molly looked around for a weekly meme about movies and did not have any luck. So therefore she decided to start her own! Andy will play along as well - hopefully you will too. Go to your blog and create your own post on the topic, linking back to us in your post, then come back and leave a link to your post here in our Comments section. If you don’t have a blog, just share your response in the Comments section.

This week's movie topic is all about Confusing Plots...

June is Sandy's month here at the Monday Movie Meme. Our beloved blogger over at You've GOTTA Read This is on vacation in Poland visiting family but didn't want to miss out on the movie posts she loves so much. So she offered to set the themes for the remainder of this month so she could create her posts in advance before she left and schedule them while she is gone. Plus, she finally gets first dibs on movie selections! Her first theme is all about confusing movie plots. Now, I don't mind a plot that makes you pay attention and think. But what I do mind are plots that leave you more confused at the end than when you started. We watched one such doozy this weekend, highlighted below. Hop on over to Sandy's blog to read the full theme explanation, share on your blog movies that make you go hmmmmmmm, and link back here so that others can find you. And don't forget to visit your fellow participants!

• The Good Shepherd (2006) - I knew nothing about this plot going in. I only knew that Matt Damon played the starring role. The cast was All-Star and it was directed by De Niro. Sign me up! It appears that I would have been better served knowing more about the history of the CIA going in. From what I have read on message boards since viewing the movie, those that are fans of and familiar with the history of the CIA evolution and involvement in the Bay of Pigs enjoy this film tremendously. The rest of us, not so much. There are lots of intricate plot threads, unanswered questions with lots of shadowy implications, and after almost three hours I still couldn't put it all together. I'm not sure if this was supposed to be commentary on Damon's character and the path his life takes or a history of the CIA through his eyes or just an espionage tale. Maybe all three. Problem was, I couldn't follow any of those pieces clearly enough to appreciate any of them.
  
  I thought Damon's acting was rather blase because his character was so rigid throughout. De Niro was not a big presence. William Hurt was good as always, but off screen too much. Angelina Jolie was on screen a bit much, but her transformation from vibrant to worn down was nicely done. Alec Baldwin hammed things up a bit per usual, meaning I couldn't take him completely seriously. Joe Pesci's brief scene was well done but also nothing entirely new for his typical roles. I didn't even realize Timothy Hutton was in this film until the credits rolled. John Turturro was good with the few lines that he was given - most of his role was standing around or beating up a Russian. Michael Gambon was quite good in his screen time - too bad there wasn't more of it. I most enjoyed Tammy Blanchard who is new to me, in the love interest role of Laura. She lit up the screen. Seriously - this cast was mammoth. The plots never ending. Read up on a brief history of the CIA and then watch this film. Otherwise, you'll likely be as confused as I was. Andy fell asleep before De Niro hit the screen - then woke up for the very end. I wouldn't recommend that approach either.

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