In-Flight Movies

The last movie I saw on the big screen was The Hunger Games and prior to that, The Help in 2011 with Nang Lani in San Diego.  I don't watch a lot of movies these days but I did see my share of more recent releases during the flights to/from the US back in February.  Here's the roundup.

Another Earth. I read a writeup about this award-winning indie file and was glad to see it on the list of in-flight movies.  Interesting and thought-provoking idea.  The ending was a cliff-hanger that left me with a lot of questions but I really liked it.

Crazy Stupid Love.  I had no idea what this movie was about but I chose it because of Steve Carrell.  I thought it might be a light-hearted comedy similar to Date Night and should work to counteract the seriousness of Another Earth.  I was right for the most part, but this had some emotional moments, too.  An unlikely twist at the end where it got all crazy but it was pretty good.

New Year's Eve.  We've seen quite a few of these ensemble cast movies in recent years (Love Actually comes to mind) and they're almost always a good bet for positive stories.+ Bon Jovi.=)  I saw the trailer for this movie a long time ago but thought that I would never get to see it.  New Year is are always a hectic but hopeful time, probably moreso if you are in New York where the Times Square.  The annual ball drop made for a nice backdrop to this amalgamation of different stories.

Moneyball.  I was intrigued by Moneyball after reading a SAS article about how a sports team manager applied analytics to team selection to address his salary budget constraints.  It's based on a true story, from the book written by Michael Lewis about the Oakland Athletics.  Brad Pitt plays Billy Beane for which he was nominated for an Oscar.  My curiosity was piqued and this was an easy choice.  I really enjoyed it because it showed how practical OR can be.  And I like sports movies in general, especially with underdogs winning in the end.

My Week with Marilyn.  We all know Marilyn Monroe, but do we really know her?  This movie is based on a brief encounter with Marilyn Monroe by Colin Clark, while filming The Prince and the Showgirl.  I picked this movie just because I wanted to know more about the enigmatic and troubled actress.  Michelle Williams was superb in this role and at some point you forget that she was only playing Marilyn.

The Descendants.  I was introduced to this movie on Oscar night and they mentioned how well George Clooney played an atypical role.  The gist: George Clooney's character finds out about his wife's infidelity while she was in a coma.  Not a happy movie but sometimes we need to see something that makes us think about more serious things, albeit vicariously, and not just for entertainment.  On that note, this was a really good pick.

Tower Heist.  Comedy again.  This is a story of disgruntled employees who decide to rob the owner of the building they used to work for.  It was ok.

So, this brief catch-up on movies made me realize that I must have missed a lot of good ones in the last few years.  On the other hand, they also do not matter a lot especially in light of other priorities.