Jeff Bridges

The Old Man – XIV & XV

  • Title: The Old Man – XIV & XV
  • IMDb: link | link

The Old Man - XIV & XV

The final two episodes of The Old Man‘s Second Season shake things up again. Dan Chase (Jeff Bridges) attempts to make a deal with Suleyman Pavlovich (Rade Serbedzija) agreeing to take responsibility for the Russian’s actions for a cure and cash to disappear. However, when that fails, it falls on Harold (John Lithgow) convincing his ex-wife to step-in and then it falls on Julian (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Zoe (Amy Brenneman) to finish the job. The season ends with Pavlovich dead and the mine back in control of the locals and Dan and Zoe enjoying a moment of peace which, it turns out will be short-lived.

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The Old Man – IX & X

  • Title: The Old Man – IX & X
  • IMDb: link | link

The Old Man - IX & X

Episode IX catches up with Angela (Alia Shawkat) since her abduction. We see her learning the truth about her biological parentage and some antagonistic back-and-forth dialogues with Faraz Hamzad (Navid Negahban) including one where the pair attempt to murder each other. What’s surprising is the turn that happens afterwards with Angela being invited into the family and the shift in focus from what her abduction means to these core characters to what it means for the region.

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The Best Movies of 2010

This wasn’t a year to wow you. 2010 may have been somewhat of an off year for movies, but there are several quality films that hit theaters this year which are worth noting. A couple things struck me as I was putting together this list. First, how actresses stepped up huge this year. Whether in lead or supporting roles, it was a year dominated by the performances of the fairer sex. And second, 2010 was a year of raw emotion, almost visceral, brought to screen. You might argue that one or two of my choices didn’t have elaborate plots, but each delivered on an emotional level.

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True Grit (2010)

  • Title: True Grit
  • IMDB: link

More than four decades ago John Wayne won an Academy Award for his performance in True Grit as the drunken U.S. Marshall hired by a young woman to track down the man responsible for killing her father. It would be the first, and only, time the actor would take home an Oscar.

Deciding to remake the film, the Coen brothers went back to the original novel by Charles Portis to give us their reinterpretation of the story. The result is the brothers most mainstream film to date: a traditional western filled with strong performances and splashes of the filmmakers’ trademark wit.

The film begins and ends with the narration (provided by Elizabeth Marvel, who plays the character in later scenes) of Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld), who at the age of 14 travels to collect the body of her recently deceased father and hire a bounty hunter to track down his murderer (Josh Brolin).

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Stick It

  • Title: Stick It
  • IMDb: link

stick-it-poster

Once you realize the film isn’t going to be Bring It On and accept for being what it is (which is both more and less) you can really enjoy yourself.  The movie contains the same level of writing but as Jessica Bendinger takes the place behind the camera this time you get a more emotional, intelligent, and well-rounded film that if not quite as funny still provides some great one-liners and humorous moments without going for all the easy jokes.

Tough chick Haley Graham (Missy Peregrym) gets into the trouble with the law and is sent away to a gymastic camp run by Burt Vickerman (Jeff Bridges).  Haley isn’t exactly welcomed with open arms because of her past experience where she quit the gymnastic team during competition losing them all a shot at the gold.  Despite a mountain of talent her disrespect for how the sport is run and past experiences make it hard for her to get back on the horse and train with the other girls (Vanessa Lengies, Nikki SooHoo, Tarah Paige).

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