Win Win (2011)

☻ ☻ ☻ Win Win (2011). Lawyer Mike Flaherty's (Paul Giamatti) life is pretty much a disaster. His legal practice is in bad shape. And the local high school's wrestling team, for which he's a volunteer coach, is looking forward to another season of losses.

So when the opportunity to become the paid legal guardian of Leo Poplar (Burt Young), a man he barely knows, Mike simply grabs it without question. 

The arrival of Leo's grandson, Kyle (Alex Shaffer), obliges Mike to let his wife, Jackie (Amy Ryan), into the secret of the guardianship. But things begin looking up again when Kyle's talents as a wrestler emerge.

Then Leo's estranged daughter, Cindy (Melanie Lynskey), shows up making demands and lets the cat out of the bag.

Can Mike redeem himself and save Leo and Kyle from a scheming drug addict. Or is Mike the schemer who's about to get his comeuppance?

Mike (Paul Giametti), trying to do what's right for whom?

Mike has dug himself into a big hole. But where others turn to blamestorming and win-lose solutions, Mike's solution is win-win. But the moral to this story is there's a cost to be paid for straying off the straight-and-narrow.

I enjoyed watching Kyle worm his way into the hearts of Mike and Jackie's family. It was interesting to compare Mike's ethics to that of his contemporaries and then to see his reaction after being caught misbehaving. I believe Mike found a win-win solution, despite the cost.

Speaking out:

  94%/90% rottentomatoes.com (21 May 2011*)

  7.9/10  imdb.com (21 May 2011*)

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Note

* Date of web access.

Water for Elephants (2011)

☻ ☻ Water for Elephants (2011). A light-weight Depression-era circus-themed romance, complete with a toothless lion, fat lady, Polish pachyderm, and sadistic ringmaster.

Ivy League veterinary student Jacob (Robert Pattinson) takes to the rails after the automobile death of his parents. As luck would have it, he's hitched a ride on a circus train, and he soon parlays himself into the job of circus vet. 

It doesn't take long before he falls in love with the star performer, Marlena (Reese Witherspoon). The two share a love of animals not shared by Marlena's husband, evil ringmaster August (Christoph Waltz). It's only a question of time before they're found out and the inevitable occurs.

For one of those hot days when a movie in an air conditioned theatre is just what you need. Something that's not too taxing on the brain cells. No moral ambiguity here -- the baddies are evil and cruel and the goodies are worth rooting for.

Based on Sara Gruen's bestseller Water for Elephants.

Speaking out:

  60%/78% rottentomatoes.com (17 May 2011*)

  7.0/10  imdb.com (17 May 2011*)

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Note

* Date of web access.