Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Rio Hayward All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Brennan Camacho Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Blake Rivera If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

jenfritz37 I have watched this film more than a dozen times. It resonates with me personally. Sure, there's a love-triangle element at the center of the movie, but I more so enjoy the development and transformation of Mirabelle. Most any woman can understand the internal growth a serious heartbreak can bring on. The transition from girl wearing blinders lusting for romance despite the alarms, to woman appreciating an honest reciprocal relationship and seeing past harmless idiosyncrasies. I enjoy the film. What's wrong with a lovely happy ending?

Vonia Any serious reader knows that the book is usually better than the film. It is the rare exception that even holds its own. Rarer still are the films that are on par or better than the book. Shopgirl is one of these. There are a couple reasons why I think this is so. One, Steve Martin. The genius behind the writing for both the novella and the screenplay. Since he wrote both, the two are actually very similar. Steve Martin plays Ray Porter, the older love interest for conservative, somewhat innocent Mirabelle. (The response she provides when her bold and vindictive co-worker tries giving her tips on how to use men really says it all: "I am from Vermont.") He perfectly plays the awkward older man that truly does not want to hurt the younger beautiful girl, but he is wise only in the ways of courting and treating a girl in materialistic ways. When it comes to matters of the heart, he is as lost as a needle in a haystack. He also does a few voice-overs in the film, all direct quotes from the book. Here are some of my favorites, the ones that best exemplify Martin's impressive understanding of both the female psyche and the dynamics of relationships. "A woman needs to be held, even if it is with someone she does not care about. Protective hormones are released, and the amount of hormones released depends on the degree to which she is held. The first and best is the complete surround. He wraps you in both arms, whispers how beautiful you are. Second best is the 'arm around.' He is next to you but with one arm around you. The third is he's next to you on his elbow, but he rests his hand on your stomach and looks at you. Fourth is you snuggling up to him with your head on his chest, while he looks away into space. But when the first best happens, you feel completely, wonderfully like a woman." "Mirabelle Buttersfield moved from Vermont hoping to begin her life. And now she is stranded in the vast openness of Los Angeles. She keeps working to make connections, but the pile of near misses is starting to overwhelm her. What Mirabelle needs is an omniscient voice to illuminate and spotlight her and to inform everyone that this one has value, this one standing behind the counter in the glove department and to find her counterpart and bring him to her." Mirabelle: Are we going in? Jeremy Kraft: Go in? Oh, no. I just thought we'd look at it. Mirabelle: So. . .we would just sit here, then? Jeremy Kraft: Yeah, or walk around. This place is called City Walk. It got eight out of ten in my date book. It's not called "City-Go- and-See-a-Movie". Tickets are, like, ten bucks too, so. "Some nights alone he thinks of her, and some nights alone she thinks of him. Some nights these thoughts occur at the same moment and Ray and Mirabelle are connected without ever knowing it." "How is it possible, he thinks, to miss a woman whom he kept at a distance so that when she was gone he would not miss her. Only then does he realize that wanting part of her and not all of her had hurt them both." Two, Claire Danes. I have never really been awed by her in her more famous roles. Perhaps that was the problem, though. She does best in subtle roles. In an understated way, she brings magic to the character and her story. Three, the visual representation was a great medium to convey the striking contrast between Ray Porter's rich lifestyle and the careless, scattered, unrefined circumstances Jeremy Kraft chooses. Pair these with the world Mirabelle Butterfield inhabits, which is somewhere between the two, and we have the basis of the story. Roger Ebert has written a review that echoed my thoughts almost entirely, so to minimize redundancy, here are what I deem to be our thoughts: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/shopgirl-2005 I am not a huge fan of Jason Schwartzman, but here he was not as excessive as he usually is, doing well as a loser of a guy not well versed in the ways of treating a girl who eventually learns the error of his ways (during a road trip with a band while he listens to self-help audio books) and redeems himself with his girl. With Steve Martin's soothing voice-overs, the gorgeous shots of Los Angeles, a few hilarious awkward scenes balancing the more serious and sentimental ones, the overhead shots where the camera floats above Mirabelle's apartment and then drifts inside, there was a playful and whimsical feel to the film, even mystical at times. I am sure most viewers were not as impressed by this film as I was because they wanted more to happen. Unfortunately for them for missing out- but fortunately for Steve Martin and me- we know that less is often more.

studioAT Very much trying to be the next 'Lost in Translation' this Steve Martin penned film (from his own novella) is an OK if not spectacular film that boasts a good performance from Claire Danes if nothing else.It was the lack of pace that made me lose interest in this film. Lots of smart dialogue that went nowhere fast. It also falls into the trap of being a little clichéd in places too.As I previously mentioned, everyone involved gives good performances but this film is one of those that never quite translated to me as a viewer.If you like any of the main three actors perhaps you'll enjoy it though.

lottta This might be the best American movie I've seen in a while. Has this specific atmosphere which makes it quite slow, and yet not boring. The cast is pretty good. Steve Martin is great in his role, but Claire Danes is even better in her role of young shop girl at Saks, but also an artist trying to find some meaning in her life, or love. Martin plays Ray, older rich man, who is attracted with this young woman who seems to be in her own world, or just lonely. But he is lonely, also. And seeking for something, but that is not love or closeness. They get involved, but it doesn't end well because of his fear of closeness. Characters seem quite quirky, but also real and like they are telling us there are many depressed and lonely people or weird people (character played by Jason Schwartzman), but why not give them a chance? I really don't know why it is so low rated, but believe me, it is worth of watching.