This winter break brought us movies of all shapes and sizes. From Spielberg and Scorcese to Clooney's directorial debut, there's a lot to sift through and I'm ready to break it down for you. But first, I must provide one caveat in regard to a couple of notable absences. I did not see \The Hours"" or ""Chicago."" I had two reasons for not seeing these movies. First and foremost, I didn't want to. Secondly, all of my theatergoing was with my brother, and something about ""The Hours"" and ""Chicago"" just doesn't scream male bonding. With that said, let's get to the movies.
At the head of the class for this winters shows is ""About Schmidt."" Sure, it's not fast-paced, light-hearted fare and it takes a somewhat condescending view of middle America, but ""About Schmidt"" is a world-class exercise in character-driven filmmaking. Jack Nicholson delivers one of his greatest performances ever, commanding the screen effortlessly, with tremendous humor and subtlety.
Director Alexander Payne, whose last effort was the overrated ""Election,"" makes all the right decisions, capturing impressive visuals from Nicholson's scenic road trips and making brilliant use of voiceovers. Adding in strong supporting performances by Kathy Bates and Dermot Mulroney, ""About Schmidt"" was simply outstanding.
On the more mainstream-minded side of things, ""Catch Me If You Can"" was an absolute gem. Leonardo DiCaprio shows versatility, depth and genuine cool to a degree that I certainly never thought he could, while serving as anchor to a really fun story. Tom Hanks comfortably slides into a supporting role, while Christopher Walken shines in the role of DiCaprio's father, capturing the depth of his character with a smooth confidence that never fully hides his fear and vulnerability. The way this mirrors his conman son is just one of the thoughtful treatments of the story that prevents ""Catch Me If You Can"" from degenerating into nothing but cheap thrills.
