This is a slice-of-life indie film (set in the mid-sized city of Gloucester, MA) centering on several executives working for GTX, a fictional manufacturing company that has had some heavy lay-offs. It was written/directed by John Wells (ER, Mildred Pierce, The West Wing, etc.); Maria Bello (also from ER) has a role in the film as a shrewd businesswoman. Though it focuses on white, upper-middle class men, I could relate to it on several levels.
Glen McClary (Tommy Lee Jones), Sally Wilcox (Maria Bello), and others discuss lay-offs
Old friends James Salinger (Craig T. Nelson) and Glen McClary (Tommy Lee Jones) have built GTX from the ground-up, but Salinger, the president, wants to trim costs in order to raise profits. McClary feels like he’s going about it the wrong way; he also feels guilty for benefitting from the rise in company stock. Sally Wilcox (Bello) handles the lay-offs, which come as a shock to Robert Walker (Ben Affleck), a top sales exec (w/ MBA) who’s worked for the company for 13 years (all of his career).
Bobby (Ben Affleck) & his wife Maggie (Rosemarie DeWitt)
Bobby drives a Porshe, lives in a beautiful house (beside a golf course), and has a lovely family. However, he’s reluctant to share the bad news with his family (including parents), or rely on them for support. Bobby thinks that he can get a job right away, but turns out to be wrong (you’ve been there). Bobby’s understanding wife, Maggie (Rosemarie DeWitt), goes back to work as a nurse. She urges him to cut back on costs, but he exclaims: “I need to look successful!” When you don’t have a job, you feel anxious, depressed, irritable, and- perhaps this is more so for males- useless.
Gene McClary (Tommy Lee Jones) & Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper)
Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper, one of my favorite character actors) is let go in the second round of lay-offs; he takes it very hard. He worked his way up from the factory floor (where he installed parts on ships) and is pushing 60. One of his daughters is in college (Brown, no less) and the other is eager for her school’s senior trip to Italy. His wife suffers from headaches and doesn’t seem like much of a helpmeet. Phil tells Gene: “My life ended and nobody noticed.”
Jack Dolan (Kevin Costner) & Bobby
When his brother-in-law Jack Dolan (Kevin Costner, in a low-key but pivotal role) offers Bobby a job with his small carpentary business, Bobby quickly rebuffs him. That’s not the type of work he sees himself doing (been there, too). After a few months of disappointment, Maggie reminds him that they can’t pay the mortgage. Bobby has to swallow his pride and make some uncomfortable decisions.
What drew me to this film is it’s ensemble cast. I thought Cooper, DeWitt, and Jones performed their roles especially well. Affleck and DeWitt have good chemistry in their scenes. Most of the situations are very relateable. Bobby is still a lucky guy, even without the trappings of success.
Tyrion (to his sister, Cersei): You love your children. It’s your one redeeming quality- that and your cheekbones.
Lord Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish (Aiden Gillen) threatened by palace guards at Cersei’s command
Baelish (after telling a not-so-subtle tale to the queen): Knowledge is power.
Cersei: Power is power.
Lady Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) meets with King Renly Baratheon in Highgarden
Catelyn: There’s a king in every corner now.
King Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) gets slapped by his mother, Cersei
Joffrey (to his mother, Cersei, after she slaps him): What you just did is punishable by death. You will never did it again. Never.
Jeor Mormont (to Jon): You want to lead one day? Then learn how to follow.
Episode 2: The Night Lands
Janos Slynt: (angrily) Are you drunk? I won’t have my honor questioned by an imp! Tyrion: I’m not questioning your honor, Ser Janos. I’m denying its existence.
Samwell Tarly (John Bradley) befriends Gilly (Hannah Murray), one of Krastor’s daughters/wives
Sam (to Jon re: Gilly): I can’t steal her. She’s a person, not a… goat.
Ser Davos Seaworth, “The Onion Knight” (Liam Cunningham), forms an alliance with charming smuggler, Salladhor Sam (Lucian Msamati)
Salladhor Sam (to Mattos, Davos’ son): I’ve been all over the world, my boy, and everywhere I go people tell me about the “true gods.” They all think they found the right one.
Episode 3: What is Dead May Never Die
Ser Loras Tyrell, the “Knight of the Flowers” (Finn Jones), & Brienne of Tarth (Gwendolyn Christie) after their fight- she won
Margaery Tyrell: Loras! Highgarden! [Loras knocks his opponent’s shield away, then the flail. The other knight charges at Loras, grabs him by the waist and knocks him to the ground. The crowd boos in disapproval. Loras’ opponent opens his visor and holds a dagger near his unprotected face.] Loras Tyrell: I yield! I yield! [Margaery sits down, disappointed at her brother’s defeat. The winning knight stands and sheathes the dagger. Loras stands and quickly moves away from his opponent.] Renly Baratheon: [claps his hands] Well fought! Approach. [Loras removes his helmet. His opponent approaches Renly and bows.] Renly: Rise. Remove your helm. [The knight rises and removes the helmet. Catelyn and the rest of the crowd are surprised to see it is a woman.] Renly: You are all your father promised and more, my lady. I’ve seen Ser Loras bested once or twice, but… never quite in that fashion. [Loras is visibly annoyed to hear that.] Margaery: Now, now, my love. My brother fought valiantly for you. [Renly smiles at his queen.] Renly: That he did, my queen. But there can be only one champion! Brienne of Tarth, you may ask anything of me you desire. If it is within my power, it is yours. Brienne: [bows gracefully] Your Grace, I ask the honor of a place in your Kingsguard. [The crowd gasps, for this is unprecedented request.] Loras: [quietly] What? Brienne: I will be one of your seven, pledge my life to yours, and keep you safe from all harm. [After long moment of silence, Renly answers:] Renly: Done! Rise, Brienne of the Kingsguard. [Renly claps his hands, and Margaery joins him. The crowd applauds, but rather feebly. Brienne stands.]
Varys (to Tyrion): Power resides where men believe it resides. It’s a trick. A shadow on the wall. And a very small man can cast a very large shadow.
Episode 4: Garden of Bones
Tyrion: What kind of knight beats a helpless girl? Meryn Trant: The kind who serves his king, Imp! Bronn: Careful now. We don’t want to get blood all over your pretty white cloak. Tyrion: Someone get the girl something to cover herself with. [Sandor Clegane (The Hound) gives Sansa his cloak.] Tyrion: (to Joffrey) She’s to be your queen. Have you no regard for her honor? Joffrey: I’m punishing her. Tyrion: For what crimes? She’s not fighting her brother’s battle, you halfwit. Joffrey: You can’t talk to me like that. The king can do as he likes! Tyrion: The mad king did as he liked. Has your uncle Jaime ever told you what happened to him? Meryn: No one threatens His Grace in the presence of the Kingsguard! Tyrion: I’m not threatening the king, Ser. I’m educating my nephew.
[to Bronn] Tyrion: Bronn, the next time the Ser Meryn speaks, kill him. [Back to Ser Meryn] Tyrion: That was a threat. See the difference?
King Renly (Gethin Anthony) meets with King Stannis (Stephen Dillane), his older brother
Melisandre (very seriously): You should kneel before your brother [Stannis]. He’s the Lord’s chosen- born amidst salt and smoke. Renly (amused): “Born amidst salt and smoke.” Is he a ham?
Episode 5: The Ghost of Harrenhal
Harrenhal (reputed to be haunted)
Tyrion (to Bronn): The king is a lost cause. It’s the rest of us that I’m worried about now.
Episode 6: The Old Gods and the New
The royal entourage on the streets of King’s Landing
Tyrion (to Joffrey): We’ve had vicious kings and we’ve had idiot kings, but I don’t know if we’ve ever been cursed with a vicious idiot boy king!
The King of the North, Robb Stark (Richard Madden), plans war strategy
[Robb Stark receives news that Theon Greyjoy has betrayed him and seized Winterfell.] Robb: This cannot be true. Roose Bolton: We’ve had ravens from White Harbour, Barrowtown and the Dreadfort. I’m afraid it is true. Robb: Why? Why would Theon…? Bolton: Because the Greyjoys are treasonous whores. Robb: My brothers… Bolton: We’ve heard nothing of them… but Rodrik Cassel is dead. Catelyn: [angrily] I told you- never trust a Greyjoy! Robb: I must go north at once. [Robb stands and starts to walk out of the tent. Roose Bolton approaches him.] Bolton: There’s still a war to win, Your Grace! Robb: [angrily] How can I call myself “King” if I can’t hold my own castle? How can I ask men to follow me if…? Bolton: [firmly] You are a king! And that means you don’t have to do everything yourself. Catelyn: Let me go and talk to Theon. Robb: There will be no talk. He will die for this! Bolton: Theon holds the castle with a skeleton crew. Let me send word to my bastard at the Dreadfort; he can raise a few hundred men and retake Winterfell before the new moon. We have the Lannisters on the run; if you march all the way back north now, you’ll lose what you gained. My boy would be honored to bring you Prince Theon’s head. Robb: Tell your son Bran and Rickon’s safety is paramount. And Theon… I want him brought to me alive. I want to look him in the eye and ask him “Why?”… and then I will take his head myself!
Episode 7: A Man Without Honor
Tyrion: It’s hard to put a leash on a dog once you’ve put a crown on its head.
Arya: Visenya Targaryen was a great warrior. She had a Valyrian steel sword she called “Dark Sister.” Lord Tywin Lannister: Hm. She’s a heroine of yours, I take it. Aren’t most girls more interested in the pretty maidens from the songs? Jonquil, with flowers in her hair? Arya: Most girls are idiots.
The Prince of the Iron Islands, Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), takes over his former home, Winterfell
Theon: It’s better to be cruel than weak.
“The Kingslayer,” Jaime Lannister (Nicolaj Coster-Waldau), is re-captured by Stark allies
Jaime Lannister: I was sixteen once. I also had to replace someone’s squire on short notice. Alton Lannister [a distant cousin]: Which knight was it? Jaime: Barristan Selmy. The fight against the kingswood outlaws, before your time. Alton: What was he like? Jaime: He was a painter. A painter who only used red.
Episode 8: The Prince of Winterfell
Tyrion (to Cersei): I will hurt you for this. A day will come when you think you are safe and happy, and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth. And you will know the debt is paid.
Lord Varys (Conleth Hill) & Lord Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) discuss war strategy
Varys (to Tyrion): You’re quite good at being Hand, you know. Jon Arryn and Ned Stark were good men, honorable men. But they disdained the game and those who play it. You enjoy the game. And you play it well.
Bronn (Jerome Flynn), bluntly tells his employer/friend, Tyrion (Peter Dinklage), that books won’t help him win a war
Bronn (nodding to an axe in Tyrion’s hand): Do you know how to use that? Tyrion: I chopped wood once. No, actually, I watched my brother chop wood.
Episode 9: Blackwater
Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) & her handmaiden Shae (Sibel Kekilli) watch King Joffrey Baratheon, palace guards, & other men leave for war
Shae: Some of those boys will never come back. Sansa: Joffrey will. The worst ones always live.
Tyrion (shouting encouragment to the Lannister troops): Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let’s go kill them!
Episode 10: Valar Morghulis
Maester Luwin (to Theon): You’re not the man you’re pretending to be.
Catelyn (to Robb re: her marriage to Ned): Love didn’t just happen to us. We built it slowly over the years, stone by stone. For you, for your brothers and sisters, for all of us. It’s not as exciting as secret passion in the woods, but it is stronger. It lasts longer.
Cersei (Lena Headey) drinks and (bitterly) educates Sansa on the realities of being a queen
Cersei (to Sansa): …but this is Stannis Baratheon. I’d have a better chance seducing his horse.
Varys (to Tyrion): There are many who know that without you, this city faced certain defeat. The King won’t give you any honors, the histories won’t mention you, but we will not forget.
Tyrion (to Shae): I do belong here. These bad people are what I’m good at, out-talking them, out-thinking them. It’s what I am. And I like it. I like it more than anything I’ve ever done.
The Dothraki were actually fashioned as an amalgam of a number of steppe and plains cultures… Mongols and Huns, certainly, but also Alans, Sioux, Cheyenne, and various other Amerindian tribes… seasoned with a dash of pure fantasy. So any resemblance to Arabs or Turks is coincidental. Well, except to the extent that the Turks were also originally horsemen of the steppes, not unlike the Alans, Huns, and the rest…
In general, though, while I do draw inspiration from history, I try to avoid direct one-for-one transplants, whether of individuals or of entire cultures. Just as it not correct to say that Robert was Henry VIII or Edward IV, it would not be correct to say that the Dothraki are Mongols.
-George R. R. Martin, creator of A Song of Ice and Fire series of books
In Season 1 of GoT, we hear about the Dothraki when Ilyrio (a very wealthy/respected merchant in the city of Pentos on the island of Essos), brokers a marriage between “the great Khal Drogo” (played by American actor Jason Momoa) and the exiled princess from Westeros, Daenerys Targaryen (played by a British newcomer, Emilia Clarke). Her older, controlling, brother Viserys (Harry Lloyd, a British actor best known for Doctor Who and Robin Hood) presents his sister with a diaphanous (almost see-through) gown which she’ll wear for the bride viewing. The girl has no say in the matter, as it’s all been strategically arrranged by her benefactor (Ilyrio) and brother.
Khal Drogo, with his bloodriders (men closest to him/sworn to protect him), ride up to Ilyrio’s house (the palace of the president of Malta) and take a look at (the very scared/worried) Daenerys. “See how long his hair is? Khal Drogo has never been defeated in battle,” Viserys explains to his sister. Daenaerys hesitantly walks closer; Drogo says nothing and rides off just as quick as he came. That is a good sign, Ilyrio reassures the Targaryens.
Drogo and Dany’s marriage is not only the marriage of two people (strangers), but two very disparate cultures, languages, belief systems. Dany hails from Westeros, though she was born in exile. Drogo’s people are horse-worshipping nomads, living in tents, never staying in one place too long. They travel in large packs (khalasars); Drogo commands about 40,000 total (which Viserys thinks will be a great asset to him). Though Dothraki fear “any water that a horse cannot drink,” Viserys thinks he can get 10,000 of these warriors to cross the Narrow Sea and retake the Iron Throne (which he says is his right by birth).
Drogo gives his new wife a beautiful white stallion as a wedding gift. After Ser Jorah Mormont (veteran Scottish actor Iain Glen) reveals the wine merchant’s deadly plan in Ep 7 (You Win or Die), Drogo says he can have any horse he wishes. (Glen appeared on Downton Abbey in its second season as one of Mary’s beaus. You may have seen him in the 1999 miniseries Wives and Daughters.) The Dothraki don’t build, but have one sacred city (Vaes Dothrak), where bloodshed is forbidden. “Don’t let them see you carrying a sword here,” Jorah warns Viserys in Ep 6 (A Golden Crown).
At the wedding (by the seaside), Dany watches the dancing, violence, and other acts w/ horror. In Ep 1 (Winter is Coming), Ilyrio comments: “A Dothraki wedding without at least 3 deaths is considered a very dull affair.” Dany’s face brightens a bit when she meets Jorah, who presents her with some books (“songs and stories from the Seven Kingdoms”). Jorah is a very important character (esp. in S1)- acting as guide/translator/friend to Dany. After he was exiled from his homeland by Lord Eddard Stark for selling slaves, his “expensive” wife went off w/ another man, and Jorah traveled all over. The knight knows the Dothraki language and culture very well.
Daenaerys has other allies on her journey in S1, including a clever young handmaiden named Doreah (played by Roxanne McKee, a Canadian-British model/actress), who Viserys freed from a “pleasure house.” Doreah advises Dany to be more assertive with Drogo in Ep 2 (The Kingsroad). She reassures the hesitant khaleesi: “If he wanted the Dothraki way, he would’ve married a Dothraki.”
The young “bloodrider” Rakharo (Elyes Gabel) and handmaiden Irri (Amrita Acharia) are very loyal to/protective of their khaleesi. When he lashes out at Dany, Viserys is choked and nearly killed by Rakharo, and forced to walk back to camp in Ep 3 (Lord Snow). Rakharo knows some of the “common tongue” and has an interest in other cultures, as we learn in a nice scene w/ Jorah in Ep 3. “Dothraki do not wear steel dresses,” Rakharo proudly says, referring to armor. Irri is very blunt-spoken, but caring. (Yes, these actors have South Asian roots, as I suspected! Gabel is British Asian and Acharia is Indian/Norwegian heritage. Love to see my desis onscreen…)
In time, Dany learns Dothraki and accepts (most of) her new people’s ways. (She insists on saving the Lhazareen women.) Dany manages to eat the heart of a horse during a crucial ceremony. Drogo is very proud of his wife. Viserys becomes angry b/c he feels she’s getting the respect and love that has been denied to him for so many years. Even after Drogo falls off his horse, and most of the khalasar ride away, Doreah, Irri, and Rakharo stay close to Dany. Jorah tells Dany that “the Dothraki do not honor blood,” like the people of Westeros. She assumed that her child would be their leader once Drogo died.
The Dothraki culture seems like a favorite of many GoT fans, from what I’ve seen! They are violent (“barbarian” seems as apt word), yet straightforward. We see how love grows between Drogo and Dany (Momoa and Clarke had terrific chemistry). They are not ambitious (like a lot of the people in Westeros) and “have no use for money.” They exchange gifts with the merchant society. They take slaves; the Lhazareen (“lamb people”) are looked down upon by the Dothraki, as they are shepherds. We get the sense that Dothraki don’t mix too much with outsiders, which keeps their traditions strong. Dany accepts their ways, because there is no other choice at first, but she grows to admire them, too. Viserys, on the other hand, saw nothing to admire in these people (felt he was superior since he was a Westerosi).
Ned (to his youngest son, Bran): The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword.
Tyrion (to Jon): Let me give you some advice, bastard. Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you.
Tyrion: Well, my brother has a sword, and I have my mind. And a mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone. That’s why I read so much, Jon Snow.
Jon (after presenting his little sister w/ a specially-made sword): All the best swords have names you know.
Arya: Sansa can have her sewing needles. I have a Needle of my own.
Ned (to Jon): There’s great honor serving in the Night’s Watch. The Starks have manned the wall for thousands of years, and you are a Stark. You may not have my name, but you have my blood.
Ned (to Septa): War was easier than daughters.
Sam (to Jon): On the morning of my eighteenth nameday, my father came to me. “You’re almost a man now,” he said, “but you are not worthy of my land and title. Tomorrow, you’re going to take the black, forsake all claim to your inheritance, and start north. If you do not,” he said, “then we’ll have a hunt, and somewhere in these woods your horse will stumble, and you’ll be thrown from your saddle to die. Or so I’ll tell your mother. Nothing would please me more.”
Jon (to other recruits): Sam’s no different from the rest of us. There was no place for him in the world, so he’s come here. We’re not gonna hurt him in the training yard anymore. Never again, no matter what Thorne says. He’s our brother now, and we’re going to protect him.
Jorah (to Daenerys): The common people pray for rain, healthy children, and a summer that never ends. It is no matter to them if the high lords play their game of thrones, so long as they are left in peace. They never are.
Daenerys (finally standing up to her older brother, Viserys): I am a Khaleesi of the Dothraki! I am the wife of the great Khal and I carry his son inside me. The next time you raise a hand to me will be the last time you have hands!
Jaime (to twin sister, Cersei): The boy [Bran] won’t talk. And if he does, I’ll kill him. Him, Ned Stark, the King, the whole bloody lot of them until you and I are the only people left in this world.
King Robert (to Cersei): Someone took her [Lyanna Stark] away from me, and seven kingdoms couldn’t fill the hole she left behind.
King Robert: Sometimes I don’t know what holds it together.
Cersei: Our marriage. (They both laugh ironically.)
King Robert: So, here we sit, 17 years later, holding it all together.
Don’t you get tired?
Cersei: Every day.
King Robert: How long can hate hold a thing together?
Cersei: Well, 17 years is quite a long time. (They drink a toast.)
King Robert (to Lancel re: his armor, which is too small for him): You heard The Hand. Go find the breast plate stretcher. Now!
Ned: The breast plate stretcher?
King Robert: How long before he figures it out?
Ned: Maybe you should have one invented.
Robert (to Ned on his deathbed): I never loved my brothers. Sad thing for a king to admit, but true. You were the brother I chose.
Renly (to Ned): He [his older brother, Stannis] inspires no love nor loyalty. He is not a king. I am.
Ned: Stannis is a commander. He’s lead many to war, twice. He destroyed the Greyjoy fleet.
Renly: Yes, he’s a good soldier. Everyone knows that. So was Robert. Tell me something. Do you still believe good soldiers make good kings?
Ned: I will not dishonor Robert’s last hours by shedding blood in his halls, and dragging frightened children from their beds.
Samwell (to Jon after the boys get their assignments): Now, listen to me. The old man is the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. You’ll be with him day and night. Yes you’ll clean his clothes, but you’ll also take his letters, attend him at meetings, squire for him in battle, you’ll know everything, be part of everything. And he asked for you himself. He wants to groom you for command.
Baelish (to Ned, while holding a dagger to his throat): I did warn you not to trust me.
Syrio (calmly): What do we say to the God of death?
Arya (very frightened): Not today.
Syrio (facing off against the palace guard w/ his wooden practice sword): Go.
Tyrion (introducing his companion to his father): And here we have Bronn, son of…
Bronn (with a shrug): You wouldn’t know him.
Maester Aemon: If the day should ever come when your Lord father had to choose between honor on the one hand and his family on the other, what would he do?
Jon: He would do whatever is right, no matter what.
Maester Aemon: Then Lord Stark is one man in 10,000. Most are not so strong.
Daenerys: I have never been nothing. I am the blood of the dragon.
Robb (to Jaime): If we do it your way, Kingslayer, you’d win. We’re not doing it your way.
Joffrey: I’ll tell you what. I’m going to give you a present. After I raise my armies, and kill your traitor brother, I’ll give you his head as well.
Sansa: Or maybe he’ll give me yours. (Then Joffrey has a guard slap Sansa hard on both cheeks.)
Lord Commander Mormont: Honor made you leave. Honor brought you back.
Jon: My friends brought me back.
Lord Commander Mormont: I didn’t say it was your honor.
Tom Hooper (just 40 years old) is the British director who brought us these compelling/gorgeous miniseries: John Adams (2008), Elizabeth I (2005), and Daniel Deronda (2002). Though I haven’t seen it yet, he made a big mark with The King’s Speech (2010), which won 4 Oscars. He brings a very well-known, large-scale tale down to a (small) human level. No doubt, the star of Les Mis is American Anne Hathaway, who shed not only 15 lbs., but almost all of her long hair, for the role of Fantine. Oh, and Hathaway can sing, too! Wow… Viewers will want to see more, but she appears in the first third of the film only.
One person who defininitly should not sing is Australian Russell Crowe, I’m sorry to say. His songs are tolerable (unlike that of Gerard Butler in The Phantom of the Opera), but he doesn’t have a strong voice, and is clearly not very comfortable with this element of the film. (I love Crowe-a fabulous actor-but the producers/studio should’ve looked for a more suitable voice. Everyone can’t do any job.) The film seemed to slow down when Javert came onscreen, aside from the swordfighting scene.
Hugh Jackman (another Australian; got his start in theater) stars as Jean Valjean, a man who transforms his life by taking Fantine’s young daughter, Cosette, into his care. Jackman can sing (but you probably knew that already). In the many close-ups, you can see his emotional range. I was pleasantly surprised, and feel that he needs to challenge himself even more with his next film roles (no offence to X-Men fans).
The film gets a jolt of energy when we meet the money-grubbing Thenardiers (played by Brits Sascha Baron-Cohen and Helena Bonham-Carter) and young, idealistic men who call for revolution (led by Enjolras, American Aaron Tveit).
Then the love-at-first-sight thing happens between the teenage Cosette (American Amanda Seyfried) and idealistic Marius (Brit Eddie Redmayne). A few in the audience wanted to see more of Eponine (British newcomer Samantha Barks). Her voice was lovely! (She also worked in theater.)
I felt that Cosette and Marius had good chemistry together; their singing was pretty good, too. However, the film is too long; editing a bit wouldn’t have hurt. Why draw things out that most of the audience already knows about?
Long-time fans of Les Mis are in for a treat- Colm Wilkinson plays The Bishop, the man who gives Valjean the “gift of silver” to “become an honest man.” Wilkinson, an Irishman, played Valjean onstage for many years; his voice is amazing!
