Paradise (2013)

Paradise is one of those movies that tries to talk about religion and us trying to find ourselves back. I think Juliane Hough did a pretty good job even Russell Brad was pretty good. Holly Hunter (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice & The Incredibles) also has a small role as her mother and Octavia Spencer. It's not a perfect movie it's pretty small in run time and pretty slow but that doesn't mean it's a 4.9 kind of a movie it hit some of the right buttons and it had 1 or 3 laughs and i enjoyed for what it was besides there are worse movies out there for sure like Cake with Jennifer Aniston. I give Paradise a 7 out of 10 it was pretty good.

I wasn't expecting much from this movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. Not only did it hit home for a friend who was in a similar disfiguring accident, but the characterizations were refreshing and inspired. Bravo to all the main actors, you took me on your journey and I was not disappointed. My only criticism is I would have like to see a bit more of what became of the characters after the events of the movie, or at least Lamb. It shows her tacking up postcards, of her on a plane, her words that she wanted to help people...but was left vague..I would like more details. My friend thinks she blew all her money helping "Amber", I think she had plenty left. An exact dollar amount was never mentioned. "millions" I believe was as close as they came. I think she still had plenty more with which to travel the world. Overall though, I definitely recommend.

Julianne Hough (Safe Haven,Rock of Ages) stars here as Lamb, who has survived a small plane crash, which killed her fiancé, but left her disfigured with burns all over her body. She along with her mother (Holly Hunter) and father (Nick Offerman) belong to an ultra orthodox Christian sect, where things like dating, dancing, smoking, drinking, or even cutting one's hair are prohibited.After Lamb wins a multi-million dollar settlement from her accident, she decides to renounce God in front of her church members, in the small town of Blakesley, Montana. She has decided to travel to Las Vegas with the intent of trying all the things she's been denied all these years. In Vegas, she meets William, a bartender in the rather rundown Hi-Lo Room. William is ably portrayed by Russell Brand, who adds quite a bit of comic relief to the film. Also, she meets Loray, a not so great singer played by the wonderful actress Octavia Spencer, who's also a friend of William's. Together they take a liking to Lamb and act as her "guardian angels", so she doesn't go too far over-the-top in her experimentations.It all seems like a decent premise with a strong cast. However, the film to me seems to bog down in clichéd melodrama and just never rings true. It also, for whatever reason, seems to be going down a checklist of ethnicities to make sure there's a remark made about each one of them. Additionally, the movie misses few opportunities to show us Lamb's disfigured skin. Finally, one scene in which Lamb gives a large amount of money to a prostitute in a club restroom seemed, to me, totally ridiculous.Overall, I thought the film had its' moments but they were outweighed by non-believable and clichéd plot elements. A disappointment from the writer and director Diablo Cody (Juno, Young Adult), in my opinion.

'PARADISE': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)Screenwriter Diablo Cody makes her directorial debut with this comedy-drama about a religious young woman who leaves home for the first time to find herself, after losing her faith in a plane crash. Cody also wrote the film which stars Julianne Hough, Russell Brand, Octavia Spencer, Holly Hunter and Nick Offerman. The movie, like all of the films Diablo Cody writes, of course centers on a strong female character that's facing some kind of a life crisis and also struggles with morality verses immoral behavior. It definitely delivers what Cody is known for (and good at) in the way of story, character development and dialogue but it's lacking in the way it delivers those things in cinematic form. In other words Cody's directing is amateurish but it is her first attempt at it.Hough plays 21-year-old Lamb Mannerhelm. Lamb shocks her extremely religious and conservative parents (Hunter and Offerman) when she renounces God in front of her church and leaves town (for the first time) to head to Vegas. She recently survived a plane crash, in which she burned a large percentage of her body, so now she's given up her faith and wants to experience the normal life she thinks she's been missing out on. When she arrives in Vegas she's treated like an outcast by almost everyone she meets (due to the conservative way she's dressed, her attitude and her plane crash scars) but befriends a bartender named William (Brand) and a lounge singer named Loray (Spencer). They take a liking to Lamb because of her uniqueness and positive spirit and help her on her adventure. The movie was originally called 'LAMB OF GOD', which would have made a much better title (I think).Diablo Cody is one of my favorite film writers; I love her stories, characters and overall writing style (I also really like her style as a person). Her films seem to often have really positive messages also (as well as really strong and likable heroines). This film definitely has a good message about family and friends as well as faith and religion. It also tells a great story about being yourself and not caring what people think about you. Like I said it's only real problem is Cody's inexperience in directing; it's a little clunky at times and doesn't seem to know how to end. The performances are all great in it though and one of my other big film heroes (besides Cody) is Russell Brand. He's recently became a big political hero of mine and I like all of his film characters. He's hilarious and he also plays really lovable and well intentioned misfits as well (he lights up this film every time he appears on screen). I'm not sure how much of his brilliant dialogue is due to his amazing improvisation skills or Cody's genius writing but they make a great team and almost make up for the lack of skill in Cody's directing. It's definitely a worthwhile filmgoing experience, if you're a fan of Cody or Brand or are just looking for a positive and uplifting film!Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSU_hwOQSWQ