Nothing but the Truth

OK, I admit it, last night I rented Bride Wars, pretty much solely because it stars Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson. Because of the two of them, it was watchable and not dreadful, but in the end it was "movie world only" drivel completely out of touch with today's world. At least the one I live in. And while I have no idea exactly when it was produced, agreed upon, etc., for Hathaway, coming after her Oscar-nominated performance in Jonathan Demme's "Rachel Getting Married," it was an embarrassing step backwards (and she also had another stinker, Passengers, that even I won't watch). But she did look lovely. As for Hudson, who didn't look quite as hot as she has previously, I don't know who is giving her career advice, but at this point, the caliber of her movies make her mom's (Goldie Hawn) look like Meryl Streep's. Just one piece of crap after another. Unlike Hathaway, I'm not sure if she's going to graduate to something better. Or even wants to. For the record, I give Bride Wars @@ (out of @@@@@).

But for only another $1 at Redbox -- they'll put Blockbuster out of business even faster than On-Demand -- and for pretty much the same reason as with Bride Wars, only in the case of Kate Beckinsale, I also rented Nothing but the Truth. And that I would give @@@@1/2. And along with last year's Snow Angels, it showed that Beckinsale is finally defining herself as a fine, serious actress in addition to a beautiful one. Unfortunately, hardly anyone's even heard of this movie. It was going to have a limited release late last year and go wider in January, but after opening in New York and perhaps LA, the film's distributor went bankrupt, and so supposedly did Beckinsale's hopes for an Oscar nomination. She probably deserved one, for playing a journalist who is put in jail for not revealing her source, in this fictionalized version of the whole Valerie Plame-Judith Miller-Scooter Libby affair. I didn't, and still don't, understand exactly what happened in real life, but the movie version helped educate me and was excellent throughout. Beyond Beckinsale, strong performances were given by a stellar cast, including Matt Dillon, Alan Alda, Angela Bassett, Noah Wyle, David Schwimmer and Vera Farmiga.

I won't tell anyone not to rent Bride Wars, but to respect yourself in the morning, perhaps balance it out with Nothing but the Truth.