Undescribable Perfection

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

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.

Leave it to the award winning screenwriter of Juno to write a comedy about a burn victim. Paradise is about Lamb, a highly sheltered young woman who was raised under strict religious values by her family in small town in Montana. A traumatic plane crash leaves most of her body severely burned, she later gets a large settlement of money from suing the plane manufacturer. The movie begins with lamb announcing that she will not give any of her new found riches to the church as originally planned but will go out to Las Vegas and start to enjoy life. When she arrives at sin city Lamb become friends with a female lounge singer, (Octavia Spencer) and an amorous British bartender (Russell Brand). Together they help Lamb check off things from her "Bucket List of Sin" in the city that never sleeps.I must be clear that I am a Diablo Cody fan, I have been since the beginning when she wrote her novel Candy Girl, about her experiences as a stripper. What makes Paradise unique is that this is the first feature Diablo Cody wrote and directed. I had to check this movie out and watched it keeping that in mind. This movie, Paradise was made on a lower budget then the previous films she wrote. It was shot digitally, not on film but I feel this did not take anything away from the story because it was so funny and well written.The witty dialogue in this film is what you would expect from Diablo Cody. It is the kind of humor that makes you laugh and then laugh louder when you think about it more. This writer's use of voice over is also a strong element. Cody said that this voice over was an after thought, conceived while they were editing. This narration helped carry us through the story, I am glad they added it. By the time I reached the films ending it was clear that this movie was more than just your run of the mill comedy. Diablo Cody paid attention to every detail, she foreshadows things nicely and it shows.How well did this accomplished screenwriter do as a director? The movie looked good and showed off a different side of Las Vegas. The camera movement was motivated and supported what was going on in the scene, something first time directors can have trouble with. In a recent KCRW radio interview Diablo Cody said that being a full time mother and a director was too much, that she does not want to direct again. She did a great job. Maybe someday when her kids are older she will changer her mind and take the director's chair again. If Paradise is any indication, her fans will still be there. I know I will.Review written by Curt Wiser, writer director of the thriller Cam-Girl (aka Web-Cam).

As someone who is a major fan of Diablo Cody's I wasn't entirely let down. But I also wasn't fully satisfied either. Cody's directorial debut lacks a sort of flare that Juno and Young Adult have. This is not a bad movie, it's just not what I expected from someone with such talent. The acting was great but the supporting characters could have used a little more back story. I'd say that it is still worth the watch. There's some funny one liners and the plot is something new and refreshing. The good news is, when Diablo finally finds her directing niche, it will hit the nail in the head. With a little more practice, Cody will definitely coin another fantastic film. Overall, not her best work, but also a hell of a lot better than most of the garbage that's being made today. Go watch it!

This could have a great movie based on the cast alone - Holly Hunter, Nick Offerman, Octavia Spencer & Russell Brand. It could have capitalized on Juliana Hough's singing talent in one or two scenes. The opening scene of a girl with a serious crisis of faith, gave a hint of a comedy to come. No such luck. When sheltered country girl Juliana Hough decides to leave her small religious community after surviving a horrible accident and go to Sin City to experience life's naughty pleasures, there's a premise (Don't let those previous fool you!) that this could be funny. It's NOT. The first sign of this is when she makes offensive comments about Muslims...and shortly later, about Jews. Not funny, just racist. During her travels, she meets a charming bartender played by Russell Brand & a disillusioned lounge singer played Octavia Spencer, and I hope things will pick up. In fact, I hoped I'd hear Octavia & Julia sing together by the end of the movie. Nope. Russell Brand's witty commentary is not enough to save this dreary movie. Octavia is relegated to dispensing dime store wisdom. There isn't much of a plot. It's not funny. It's not moving. In fact, it's rather contrived. At one point, I thought I was watching one of those Christian movies, and I'm still not sure I wasn't. But one thing is for sure: I was terribly disappointed in such a waste of a great cast and a potential for a great movie plot.