Liars and Saints

  Nicole Holofcener's third major film--"Friends with Money"--is like her "problem play." It's the one that doesn't really work. It's the one that earned just *qualified* praise from Roger Ebert. If you've seen "You Hurt My Feelings," then you recognize certain recurring sources of interest. Holofcener likes when a couple experiments with brutal honesty; for example, a man might tell his wife that her "ass looks fat." And the wife might say, "I'm not sure I needed to hear that. Just because you believe something, you need to say it? Do you need to hear that your breath stinks?" Holofcener also likes to consider well-intentioned behavior that actually seems to be destructive. In her new film, a son complains that his mother once demanded an inflated grade on a term paper. ("You're welcome?" says the mom. And the boy says, "I earned the bad grade I'd received. I needed to just accept that bad...

 A favorite movie of mine is "Capote." One thing it reminds me of us is an apparent quote from Bob Fosse: If you're a dancer, you have to use every part of your body. The way you hold your fingers, or move your shoulder, or nod your head: Each moment should be a conscious decision, and the moment should help to create a mood. Philip Seymour Hoffman is dazzling in his big movie, not just because of his Oscar-reel scene at the end, but also because of his silences, his laugh, and even the way he breathes just before addressing a crowd. People forget that Catherine Keener also earned an Oscar nomination for this movie, and I like to try to locate the moments in the script she might have especially admired. In a way, the script feels like a Nicole Holofcener piece (and it's interesting that Holofcener has moved away from of-the-moment contemporary-setting work, in the last few years). Keener has a great opening; she watches a porter praising "Breakfast at Tiffany...

  My family has a tradition at Christmas, a "rom com" weekend. My niece chooses one--then her uncles follow suit. This year, my niece picked "Love Actually," which had some surprises. (I'd seen it many years ago.) Keira Knightley was so lovely! The Laura Linney stuff is so sad! I replied with "Walking and Talking," which I've probably blabbed about before -- and I'll just keep blabbing, and blabbing, until I die. Nicole Holofcener made her big debut with this film, and in the ensuing decades, she has continued to be "a name." In fact, the NYTimes just mentioned that she ought to score a screenplay Oscar nomination this year -- for "The Last Duel." Before "Insecure," before "Yellowjackets," Holofcener's "Walking and Talking" pointed a spotlight at a thorny friendship between two women. The women haven't found their footing. One is training to be a therapist, and she pays so little attenti...

Some other thoughts on this fun book: *A thesis is that "marriage" and "work" -- as institutions -- were in crisis, in the America of 1999, and that this crisis was reflected in "Being John Malkovich," "American Beauty," "Office Space," "Election," and "Eyes Wide Shut," among other films. Fair enough. But when are marriage and work -- as institutions -- *not* in crisis? *Though "Being JM" was widely seen as the Movie of the Year, it did not earn an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. (Keener did, for Best Supporting Actress.) You can now find "Being JM" on some of the Greatest Films of All Time lists. *P. T. Anderson said, when making "Magnolia," that "family is the vein you want. Open that vein, and everything spills out." Tom Cruise was favored as a Best Supporting Actor winner--but the ultimate (boring) choice was Michael Caine, for "The Cider House Rules." ...

Yesterday, dismayed, I considered my local movie options. "Green Book," a movie by a man about men. "Roma," a movie about a woman (I think!) by a man. "A Star Is Born," a movie half-concerning a female stereotype, made by a man (and a movie I've seen already). And the sequel to "Wreck-It Ralph," a cartoon about a man, made by men (or, more likely, by robots, having been designed by a committee of men). Can we give all the Oscars to women this year? Best Picture: "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" Best Actress: Melissa McCarthy in "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" Best Director: Heller, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" Best Supporting Actress: Jamie Lee Curtis, "Halloween," tied with Vanessa Kirby for the new "Mission: Impossible." Best Script, Adapted: Holofcener, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" Best Actor: Kathryn Hahn, "Private Life." Best Supporting Actor: Catherine Keener, "Enough Said,...