Movies I Watched in November, Part 2

Continuing the rambling recap of movies I watched last month...

Christopher Nolan's science fiction epic wasn't perfect by any means, but it's always nice to see someone actually swinging for the fences as opposed to filling in the same old blanks, and every so often, "Interstellar" managed to deliver that sense of wonder you get so rarely in movies. At the end, I thought Nolan had lost his way and was going to deliver some sort of corny "love finds a way" rationalization for the whole time tripping factor, but thankfully there was a sort of scientific explanation for the twists, and though it might be complete nonsense (I can't tell -- it's pretty high science, in every sense of the word) in a case like this, effort counts for a lot. In my non-Batman Nolan ranking, I'd stick it under "Memento," "Inception" and "The Prestige," but it's in the same ballpark and definitely worth a look -- just be sure to see it on the biggest screen you can possibly find.

The highest compliment I can give this movie is that, about halfway through, I honestly had no idea where it was going next, much less how it was going to end. Based (extremely loosely) on the X-Men two-parter of the same name, it managed to live up to my fond memories of those Byrne/Claremont/Austin issues while added several wrinkles of its own. (By the way, here's how fondly those issues are remembered -- I know, without checking online or having read them in a quarter century, that they appeared in issues 141 and 142*) I have no idea how this movie would play to a civilian, but as a longtime X-Men fan who hasn't read an issue since the 1980s, I thought it was top-notch. My one complaint? Quicksilver was such an interesting character, and so well used, effects-wise, that it couldn't help but be disappointing when I realized he wasn't coming back for the rest of the movie. I'm curious to see if he'll be as compelling in the next Avengers movie, with a different design and different actor bringing him to life.

The final extra-long wrap-up episode of an HBO series probably only counts as a "movie" in the loosest possible sense of the word, but I wanted to take this space to recognize what an excellent series "Hello Ladies" was and how nicely the final installment wrapped everything up in a neat little bow. Stephen Merchant used to be the behind-the-scenes collaborator with whom Ricky Gervais brought "The Office" and "Extras" to life, but in view of this series' excellence it's apparent he was -- at the very least -- a full partner. "Hello Ladies" combined the cringe humor that made "The Office" a landmark series with the sort of unabashed heart that made the characters more than just jokes. Merchant was just right as the lovelorn coder trying to find a gorgeous girlfriend in modern L.A., and Christine Woods matched him perfectly as the friend you (spoilers for anyone not expecting this) knew he'd eventually hook up with. Strange to see her here, so friendly and fun, at the same time she was appearing on "The Walking Dead" as the creepy cop at the end of her rope. Acting!

It's hard for me to review a movie like this. On the one hand, there's certainly nothing wrong with it -- it looks great, the vocal talent is strong, the action is well-staged and the animation is flawless. But on the other hand, it doesn't break any new ground, it hits all the usual family-oriented superhero beats and even the big twist isn't hard to predict. I suppose it's the inevitable result of the success of modern animation -- the bar has been raised so high that for anything to stand out, it's going to have to really be amazing. Still, there are worse ways to pass 102 minutes, and it'll keep your kids out of trouble. 
This, on the other hand, remains a pretty amazing movie, mostly for the way it manages to walk the very fine line between spilling the beans on the guy in the red suit and treating the characters in the movie like sensible adults who live in something resembling the real world. At it's heart, "Miracle on 34th Street" is a sharp screwball comedy spoofing big music, commercialism, politics and bureaucracy. Surprising that Edmund Gwenn doesn't get top billing on the poster above, considering he's just about the best screen Santa in the history of film, but you can see how 20th Century Fox was pushing this as a romantic comedy rather than a Christmas movie. (It originally opened on May 2, 1947, believe it or not.) My two favorite scenes? Naturally, the moment when Santa speaks to the little war orphan girl in her own language gets me every time, but one I like even better is near the end, when the hearing has ended and Kris Kringle has been ruled to officially be the real Santa Claus. He and Maureen O'Hara meet on the steps of the courthouse, and she invites him over for dinner. He begs off politely, reminding her that it's Christmas Eve, and she apologizes for forgetting that he might be busy. It's a small scene, but it illustrates how well the movie never comes right out and says whether Santa is real -- but by the end of the movie, everyone, including the characters and the viewers, are willing to believe that's the case.

Up next: The end of the November recap, with yet another theatrical release, two movies from the long-forgotten "Whistler" series and a genuinely terrible blockbuster.

*Nerd!