disappointing...never quite made it To the Wonder

I was taken in by the promise of life and love across cultures. She, a free spirited Parisian (Olga Kurylenko), fell in love with a very attractive American (Ben Affleck). Their early attraction was evident on train journeys and in beautiful countryside. It was sensitively filmed and very believable. I quickly recognised what could have been am amazing relationship. I was curious as to why she would move to a souless new suburb somewhere in deep Oklahoma. Sadly, after almost 2 hours, I was no closer to any understanding. This film floated from unrealistic bliss to deep unhappiness without a single insight apart from some isloated lines of poetry spoken to us and a mirrored story of societal sadness echoed by the desolate Catholic priest played by Javier Bardem. So sad, such a lost opportunity to really explore those exciting themes of love and loss...

on the edge of my seat...watching Argo

I had heard good things about a crazy CIA plan to make a movie that would never really happen, in order to get 6 Americans out of Iran, during the infamous hostage period of history (1979). As with any history, the version we heard was a western one - with a short summary about the overthrow of the Shah and the general unhappiness in the population - not really enough to understand anything about what really happened or why... but we do know that the US embassy staff were not going to be rescued from the power of the population. So this is a version of a true story based on the individual genius of Tony Mendez, played and directed by Ben Affleck. Strangely, having won a Bafta, the cinema was full, even for a late start. But the plot was convincing and the political games played by the conservative CIA were truly believable - it was only the squeaky clean ending that made you realise this was intended for the mass audiences...