I did not know this before watching, but in addition to being both a musical legend and a genius, James Page is a real gent as well. And wouldn’t Sir Jimmy Page just sound really nice?

First off, even though this is adorably animated, this movie is full of adult themes and not recommended for kids.

Second, this movie is full of adult themes, from alcoholism to atheism to mental illness to sexuality, all through the unblinking lens of an under-mentored 8 year old girl. And that’s where it gets its heart.

A gritty web of tension from start to finish, half this film is shot in slomo, with gorgeous camera work, and it crackles. How do you survive hopeless situations with your morality intact? Bits of Trainspotting and Guy Ritchie are the icing.

“Every minute counts.”  This film is “stop and smell the roses” taken to a literal level.  The characters are great – like in Extract, normal folks blown up just a little bit, each one given enough depth so you can warm up to them.  You’ll have to be able to tolerate a fairly pervasive nudity theme – at one point I was wondering “Am I watching Choke”? – but the protagonist, as well as the film, has a heart of gold.  And a beautiful unique style.  I won’t say any more, check it out.

Another (non-)romantic comedy worth mentioning is “(500) Days of Summer” and of course you should see it, it’s mostly the camera fawning over Zooey Daschanel, what is not to love?  What a guilty pleasure.  But don’t bother with the Coen Brothers’ latest, A Serious Man – seriously, guys?  Cut the art house b.s. and get on with excelling again.

Jason Bateman stars, so I love it. But beyond that, Mike Judge has this great ability to create characters similar to people you know, at the edges, and blow them up, but just a little, maybe 10 or 20 percent. So they flavor the movie without sidetracking it. There are about a dozen good ones in this sleeper.

At times too close to reality for comfort, the laughter in this one was a bit strained. But that’s its charm, too. Globalization here we come! A nice easy primer on Indian culture that turns into a romantic comedy. And there’s music and dancing, too, of course. One thing’s for sure – I am heading to Udipi for lunch this week!