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11:59
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
An award-winner at last year’s Kansas International Film Festival,
11:59 is the first feature from filmmaker Jamin Winans. While
it possesses the exasperating flaws of many a debut, it also demonstrates
that this newcomer has real promise.
Independently made in Denver on a shoestring budget, 11:59 is
a mind-bender. Is it a science fiction opus, a political thriller, the
story of a reluctant psychic or the tale of a man going mad? Whatever
it is, Winans isn’t telling.
Raymond Andrew Bailey stars as Aaron Doherty, a cameraman for a big city
television station news department. In the opening sequence, we see him
and reporter Lisa Winder (Laura Fuller) in hot pursuit of a story lead
that their fiery producer, Adele (Liz Cunningham) has provided.
A suspected child murderer is running (literally), chased by police helicopters.
Aaron and Lisa get to him first and Aaron, camera in hand, corners him
while he professes his innocence. “I’ve been setup”
is his claim.
Because Aaron’s dogged persistence got his station the scoop, he
gets Adele’s profuse praise. She wants him to meet corporate suits
that’ll be visiting the next day.
Trouble is, Aaron never shows up to meet them…or to photograph
the suspected killer as someone guns him down on the courthouse steps.
Where was he on the most important day of his professional life?
Aaron wants to know that, too. It seems that he’s missing 24 hours
of his life. After hitting a disco on Monday night, he passes out and
wakes up in a rural wheat field on Wednesday.
Frustrated and confused, Aaron hitches a ride back into the city and
tries to put together the puzzle of his missing day. He tells Adele the
far-fetched details about what happened, but she’s unsympathetic
and he’s too stubborn to get help.
Winans (reportedly a film school dropout) obviously knows a lot of cinematic
tricks and can’t wait to show them off. He uses a lot of tricky
hand-held camera movement, quick cross-cutting, flashbacks, foreshadowing
and symbolic magic realism. His technique is often a lot more interesting
than the story he’s come up with.
The movie also suffers a bit from some awkward dialogue delivered by
actors who don’t always have the skill to artfully pull it off.
While sincere, the performances have little nuance making them seem one-dimensional.
While Winans’ 11:59 leaves us dangling, its visuals are
intriguing. Perhaps it is a harbinger of good things to come. (No MPAA
rating) Rating: 2.5 (Posted 4/21/06)
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American
Dreamz
Reviewed by Deborah Young
Writer/director Paul Weitz seems to be trying hard to create a clever
comedy. In 2004, he wrote and directed In Good Company, a moderately
smart comedy that examined corporate culture and corporate America’s
fixation on youth. The film had some funny moments and a definite viewpoint.
But it lacked the resonance of a cult classic like Office Space,
which managed to be hilarious and capture some truths about the sources
of working stiffs’ frustrations.
Now Weitz has turned his attention and his pen to America’s obsession
with celebrity. American Dreamz tells the story of the host of
a television show that’s reminiscent of the wildly popular American
Idol with a focus on two of the contestants.
Weitz tips his hand early in the movie. After breaking up with his girlfriend,
host Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant) meets with his staff to discuss the selection
of participants for the upcoming show season. "Bring me some freaks,”
he says in the same matter-of-fact tone that would be used to ask for
another piece of toast.
On their freak search, the show’s staff discovers a ruthlessly
ambitious small-town girl, Sally Kendoo (Mandy Moore), and a show-tune
singing Middle-Eastern man named Omer (Sam Golzari). Sally seems willing
to exploit anything or anyone to become a star. Omer has been sent to
America as part of a terrorist sleeper cell, but when he discovers his
cousin’s stage and sound system, he can’t resist his desire
to sing. Fortunately for Omer, the staff of the American Dreamz
show happens by while he’s singing.
Omer’s character opens a path for the secondary storyline, which
involves a plot to kill U.S. President Staton (Dennis Quaid). Weitz appears
to be satirizing the Bush administration here, with results that are sometimes
hilarious. President Staton discovers newspapers and becomes obsessed
with them. He stays in his pajamas for weeks reading newspapers and books,
to the dismay of his vice president (Willem Dafoe), who wants the president
to continue to be a dumb puppet.
The funniest aspects of American Dreamz are Quaid’s facial
expressions of sheer helplessness and confusion, Omer’s over-the-top
performances and the terrorists’ fascination with the same American
luxuries and cultural tastes that they denounce. Unfortunately, Weitz
botches the attempt to really say something of lasting significance. (PG-13)
Rating: 2.5 (Posted 4/21/06)
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The
Sentinel
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Take a look at any TV police series that’s aired in the last 25
years and chances are that director Clark Johnson has helmed some episodes.
Among his credits are The Shield, NYPD Blue, Sleeper
Cell, Third Watch, Homicide: Life on the Streets,
Law & Order and The Wire…just to name a few.
That workmanlike record has provided him the cachet to try his hand at
feature films. His first effort, 2003’s S.W.A.T. was, oddly
enough, based on a TV police series. It was a garden-variety action flick
that stretched credibility a bit. (Colin Farrell took a licking and kept
on ticking in a way that would have impressed The Terminator.)
Clark’s second feature effort shares something in common with all
of his other work. It is slick, efficient and competently mounted.
While The Sentinel isn’t a police drama, per se, it deals
with intrigue in the Secret Service. It’s a political thriller that
has lots of detective work and shoot-‘em-up action… so it
isn’t such a stretch from Clark’s typical oeuvre.
Michael Douglas (Traffic) stars as veteran Secret Service agent
Pete Garrison. Something of a legend among his peers, Pete once took a
bullet for President Reagan. (The movie opens with footage of the attempted
assassination of Reagan…a move that some viewers will undoubtedly
find offensive.)
Pete’s reputation is about to take the hit, however. The murder
of an agent (played by Johnson) sets into motion an investigation that
shows that, for the first time in the Secret Service’s 144-year
history, they have a mole. Someone is out to kill the President from the
inside.
Keifer Sutherland (TV’s 24) plays David Breckinridge,
another agent who tries to put the pieces together. He and his beautiful
new partner Jill Marin (Eva Longoria from TV’s Desperate Housewives)
put the pieces together and discover that all of the evidence points to
Pete as the main suspect.
Pete could probably have defended himself against the charges except
for one complication. He’s been having an affair with the president’s
wife, played by Kim Basinger (Cellular), and had to lie about
it during a polygraph test.
Naturally, Pete has to flee the authorities and attempt to solve the
mystery himself and the save the President.
Admittedly, Clark and screenwriters George Nolfi (Ocean’s 12)
and Gerald Petievich (Boiling Point) create a real sense of paranoia.
The Sentinel does a competent job of maintaining our interest
and keeping us guessing.
But there is nothing inspired or unusual here, so the film never quite
shakes the TV feel. It is, in other words…workmanlike. (PG-13) Rating:
3 (Posted 4/21/06)
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Friends
With Money
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
One should give credit where credit is due. If a movie is well acted,
well written and thoughtful, the filmmakers deserve a pat on the back.
So be it. Friends With Money qualifies for the kudos. Unfortunately,
it’s also annoying, pretentious and terribly self-satisfied. So
much for kudos.
Jennifer Anniston (Rumor Has It) leads a solid acting ensemble
in this low budget, independent entry. It’s the story of a single,
working class woman named Olivia (Anniston) and her three rich married
girlfriends in Southern California.
A former teacher, Olivia is now working as a maid, a development that
her posse can’t quite come to grips with. Franny (Joan Cusack from
Ice Princess) offers to pay for counseling. She may need it herself,
as she and her husband perpetually overindulge their children.
Jane, played by Frances McDormand (North Country), just thinks
Olivia needs a swift kick in the pants. This criticism is from a woman
who has stopped washing her hair and whose husband may be gay
Christine (Capote’s Catherine Keener) is a bit more sympathetic,
but she’s having enough problems dealing with her crumbling marriage
to a jerky screenwriter be too worried about Olivia’s situation.
The friends meddle in Olivia’s life, fixing her up with a personal
trainer, played by Scott Caan (Into the Blue). He turns out to
be a louse, tagging along as Olivia cleans people’s houses. He’s
there to snoop around, have sex with Olivia and pick up a few extra bucks
for “helping out”.
When things go wrong with him, Olivia finds another man, a poor, over-weight
slob named Marty (Bob Stephenson from Thumbsucker) to hook up
with. They are an unlikely pairing and their relationship seems tacked
on by the screenwriter in an attempt at amusing quirkiness. (Revelations
about Marty resemble something out of How to Marry a Millionaire.)
Writer/director Nicole Holofcener (Lovely and Amazing) certainly
has a talent for writing sharp dialogue and assembling a crack acting
ensemble. If this movie is any indication, however, she needs to expand
her horizons a bit and get out of pity-party mode. Friends with Money
comes off like the work of someone who desperately needs to get some new
friends of her own.
If your idea of a good time is sitting around and listening to rich people
whine and complain about their problems, then Friends With Money
is just what you’re looking for. The rest of us are busy enough
with problems of our own. (R) Rating: 2 (Posted 4/21/06)
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Marilyn
Hotchkiss Ballroom Dance and Charm School
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Filmmaker Randall Miller is best known for light, lowbrow comedies like
Class Act, The Sixth Man and Houseguest, as
well as numerous TV entries. He’s also known for a 1990 short subject,
Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dance and Charm School.
The short told the story of a kid named Steve (Elden Hensen from Lords
of Dogtown) who, in the early ‘60s, was forced by his mother
to attend the titular institution. While there, he became infatuated with
a girl named Lisa.
Miller has retained the footage of that short and incorporated it into
and expanded feature set in 2005, using the original footage for flashbacks.
Steve, played as an adult by John Goodman (Beyond the Sea),
is trying desperately to keep a promise that he made to Lisa way back
when. When still kids, they vowed to meet at Miss Hotchkiss’ class
on the fifth day of the fifth month of the fifth year of the new millennium.
Seriously injured in a car wreck on the way to meet Lisa (whom he hasn’t
seen in 40 years), Steve asks the man who stopped to help him to go and
meet Lisa in his stead. Frank (The Full Monty’s Robert
Carlyle) reluctantly agrees.
But Frank has his own baggage. He’s still grieving from his wife’s
suicide and has become a bit of a recluse. His experience with the dance
school changes his life forever.
This high-concept comic drama is calculated to tug at our heartstrings,
and it occasionally succeeds, thanks mainly to the first-rate cast.
The ensemble includes a couple of Oscar winners, Marisa Tomei (My
Cousin Vinny) and Mary Steenburgen (Melvin and Howard),
who are joined by Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters), Sean Astin (The
Lord of the Rings), Donnie Wahlberg (Annapolis), Adam Arkin
(Hitch), Camryn Manheim (TV’s The Practice), Sonia
Braga (TV’s Alias), David Paymer (In Good Company)
and Danny DeVito (Be Cool), just to name a few. Whew. (Hensen,
now an adult, also appears in a brief contemporary role.)
The biggest problem with is that the movie lacks credibility. It might
as well have been a full-blown musical given the strange, alternative
universe that it has created for itself.
Goodman is given the thankless job of narrating the flashback sequences…with
the lower half of his body crushed by the accident. He tells the lighthearted
tale of his encounter with his childhood sweetheart while obviously awaiting
the grim reaper.
There is an uncomfortable eeriness in Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom
Dance and Charm School where Miller and company had obviously hoped
for sweetness. (PG-13) Rating: 2.5 (Posted 4/21/06)
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The
Wild
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Okay, stop me if you’ve heard this one.
There’s this computer-animated movie about a lion in the New York
Zoo. He and a group of his funny animal buddies escape the zoo, stowaway
on a steamship and head for Africa. Then one of them is mistaken for a
god and worshiped by a group of native animals, climaxing in a big, choreographed
production number. Trouble is, they’re going to sacrifice some of
our heroes to their deity. Our animal friends then must figure out how
to get back home to the safe confines of the zoo before they’re
all killed.
Sound familiar? If you said, “I know that one. It’s the plot
to the DreamWorks film Madagascar that came out last year,”
you’d only be half right. It’s also the plot for Disney’s
second attempt at a feature length CGI cartoon (Chicken Little
was the first) without Pixar. (There’s got to be a plagiarism suit
in there, somewhere.)
The Wild was (if you believe the studio line) in the planning
stages before Madagascar. If so, they should have spent less
time on the animation and more time on the incredibly lame script.
While the technical aspects of The Wild are stunning (Madagascar’s
visuals seem awkward by comparison), the screenplay is an amalgamation
of clichés, ham-fisted slapstick, familiar characters and plot
contrivances.
Keifer Sutherland (TV’s 24) lends his voice to Samson,
the lion king of the zoo. He regales his young son, Ryan (Greg Cipes from
TV’s Teen Titans) with stories of his heroics in the wild.
All the while, he’s trying to give his son the confidence to find
his own roar. But Ryan is insecure and doesn’t think he has what
it takes to be his father’s son (shades of The Lion King!)
and runs away. Samson and his friends take after him in hot pursuit.
The talented voice cast gives it the good college try, but they can’t
quite overcome the script’s inadequacies. Jim Belushi (TV’s
The World According to Jim) is a streetwise squirrel in love
with a giraffe (Janeane Garofalo from TV’s The West Wing).
British comic Eddie Izzard plays a Koala named Nigel and Richard Kind
(TV’s Curb Your Enthusiasm) rounds out the animal clique
as an addle-brained anaconda. William Shatner (TV’s Boston Legal)
is the bad guy, a wildebeest named Kaza, who wants to be at the top of
the food chain.
The Wild may seem like an example of déjà vu,
but it’s really just Hollywood standard operating procedure. When
you don’t have a good idea of your own, go with someone else’s.
(G) Rating: 2 (Posted 4/14/06) |
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Scary
Movie 4
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Back in 1980, Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker created a new
film genre with the zany movie send-up, Airplane. They stretched
a series of sight gags, non sequiturs and puns, previously the realm of
TV sketch comedy, into a feature-length satire.
Sequels followed, as well as new franchises that included the Naked
Gun and Hot Shots movies. Their work inspired many others,
good and bad. (See the recent Date Movie for an example of the
genre gone terribly wrong. It takes talent to pull off this kind of thing.)
Among the admirers/imitators of Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker were the Waynan
brothers. Their horror movie parody, Scary Movie, was as much
homage to Airplane as it was a movie satire.
After two successful outings, the Wayans’ turned the reigns of
the Scary Movie series over to the guys that inspired it. David
Zucker directed, and frequent collaborator Pat Proft and Craig Mazin aided
in the screenplay. It was the funniest (and least crass) Scary Movie
so far.
Now comes Scary Movie 4, directed by Zucker with a screenplay
by Jim Abrahams and Mazin. It employs the same tried-and-true formula
for success. They pick popular contemporary movies and skewer them through
a fast-paced barrage of gags. They throw a lot of ideas against the wall,
and many of them fall flat. The ones that stick, however, make Scary
Movie 4 a funny, lowbrow popcorn flick that should please anxious
fans.
Anna Faris (Waiting) is back as our naïve heroine, Cindy
Campbell. She gets a job nursing a disabled woman at a haunted house that
sits next door to the home of dockworker Tom Ryan (Craig Bierko from Cinderella
Man). This setup allows the filmmakers to work elements of The
Grudge, War of the Worlds and Saw into a single
plot.
But those aren’t the only targets. Brokeback Mountain
and Million Dollar Baby are among the mainstream titles that
get a work-over.
Many stars appear in brief cameo roles (some unaccredited) including
Charlie Sheen, Shaquille O’Neal, Mike Tyson, Bill Pullman, Carmen
Electra, Anthony Anderson, Cloris Leachman, Michael Madsen, Regina Hall
and even Dr. Phil. And, of course, you couldn’t have a Z/A/Z movie
without Leslie Neilsen, who appears as an addlebrained president.
While the movie is a bastion of bad taste and will certainly not appeal
to everyone’s sense of humor, there is an undeniable and pervasive
sense of fun in Scary Movie 4. Can’t wait for the sequel.
(PG-13) Rating: 3 (Posted 4/14/06)
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Sophie
Scholl
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Only recently has the highly regarded German cinema attempted to grapple
with the most difficult aspects of the country’s history. For the
most part, they’ve left critical cinematic examination of the Nazi
era to outsiders.
Downfall, an impressive 2004 production that took an unflinching
look at the last days of Hitler, was among the very best films of the
year. The recipient of numerous international film awards, Sophie
Scholl has more than a little in common with Downfall. Not
only is it a painstaking production that aims its criticism straight at
the heart of the destructive Third Reich philosophy, but it also features
actress Julia Jentsch.
Jentsch plays our title character, a college student who was a part of
the “White Rose” underground resistance group. They distributed
anti-Nazi pamphlets that demonstrated a growing angst in the German populace.
They were critical of the war effort and questioned the need to expend
so many lives.
No, not everyone marched in lockstep with Hitler’s views, but many
were too afraid to speak out. When you consider what happened to dissenters,
it isn’t too hard to understand their reluctance to air their views.
As the film begins, our heroine and a handful of her comrades are secretly
printing out leaflets on reams of hard-to-find paper. They mail many of
these critical essays, but are short of envelopes and postage. Sophie’s
brother, Hans (Fabian Hinrichs) decides that the remainder should be distributed
by hand.
Naturally, his friends see this as a dangerous move. Hans’ zeal
overcomes their concerns, and he and Sophie decide to disseminate the
leaflets on the college campus the next day. They wait until everyone
is in class and the doors are closed before ascending three floors to
set the papers out. In a moment of childlike impulsiveness, Sophie knocks
a stack of the papers down three flights to the foyer below.
Naturally, a janitor spots this paper flurry and Sophie and Hans are
captured. They’re brought before the local authorities for prosecution
as traitors.
What follows is a lengthy dialogue between Sophie and her accusers. At
first, she lies to protect herself and others. When the evidence becomes
overwhelming, she fesses up. Her philosophical conversations with authorities
provide a compelling and fascinating debate. Screenwriter Fred Breinersdorfer
and director Marc Rothemund have reportedly based their work on recently
released police reports, transcripts and actual testimony.
Much of the criticism of Sophie comes from those who believe that she
should keep quiet during wartime and that criticizing the government during
such a crisis amounts to “demoralizing the troops”.
Sadly, Sophie Scholl’s 60-year-old story has undeniable
resonance for contemporary audiences. (PG) Rating: 3.5 (Posted 4/14/06)
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Thank
You for Smoking
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
In a telling moment from the new satire, Thank You For Smoking,
the head of the Academy of Tobacco Studies says, “We don't sell
Tic Tacs. We sell cigarettes. And they're cool, available and addictive.
The job is almost done for us.”
But even so, the tobacco industry struggles with an increasingly negative
image. They need a sharp, erudite spin-doctor who can minimize the damage
done by do-gooders and health nuts. That’s where Nick Naylor (Aaron
Eckhart) comes in.
In this smart and sassy new comedy, audiences are invited into Naylor’s
“bizarro” world of inverse morality. We find ourselves rooting
for a guy who could justify selling his grandma to Al Qaeda.
Based upon the cheeky novel by Christopher Buckley (son of conservative
pundit, William F. Buckley), Thank You For Smoking marks the
filmmaking debut of Jason Reitman, son of director Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters).
While the genes are obviously good, the younger artists demonstrate a
gift for clever sarcasm that their fathers must surely envy.
The movie begins with Nick appearing on an episode of the TV gabfest,
The Joan Lunden Show. One guest is a teenage boy suffering from
cancer, allegedly the result of smoking cigarettes. In an artful twist
of logic that would make Fox News anchors envious, Nick calmly asserts,
“It's in our best interests to keep Robin alive and smoking. The
anti-smoking people want Robin to die."
Thus, we begin to understand Nick’s unapologetic universe. His
best pals are known as the MOD (Merchants of Death) squad. One is Polly
(Maria Bello), a mouthpiece for the alcohol industry and the other is
Bobby Jay (David Koechner), a NRA spokesman. This trio of Washington lobbyists
meets regularly to share their shameless trade secrets.
Nick’s archenemy is Sen. Ortolan Finistirre (William H. Macy),
an activist who wants to put a picture of skull and crossbones on each
pack of cigarettes. Nick is generally able to deflect the senator’s
efforts through obfuscation (the cheese from Finistirre’s home state
clogs people’s arteries ... no worse than cigarettes).
But problems arise for our hero thanks to a beautiful reporter named
Heather Holloway (Katie Holmes) who sleeps with Nick and learns his secrets.
Naturally, she includes them in a newspaper exposé about Nick’s
efforts on behalf of Big Tobacco.
Eckhart, who played a similarly smarmy character in In the Company
of Men, gives a wickedly sharp performance, and a first-rate cast
that also includes Robert Duvall, Rob Lowe and Sam Elliot provides able
support.
Artfully skewering our epidemic hypocrisy, Thank You For Smoking
hits the satiric bull’s-eye. (R) Rating: 4 (Posted 4/7/06) |
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Lucky
Number Slevin
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Have you ever heard of the “Kansas City Shuffle?” As Bruce
Willis explains it in the convoluted crime thriller, Lucky Number
Slevin, “It’s when they go left, you go right.”
Got it?
If you don’t, it probably doesn’t matter. Lucky Number
Slevin is something like a cartoon, anyway. You’re not supposed
to take it seriously enough to worry about details. And yet, it is one
of those movies that will elicit conversations that start with, “Now,
what happened to such-and-such ... and why?”
Josh Hartnett (Sin City) stars as a young man who is having
a bad day. He finds himself the victim of mistaken identity and this unfortunate
coincidence will probably mean that he will soon be killed. Bummer.
Slevin (Hartnett) is staying in a friend’s New York apartment when
the next-door neighbor, Lindsey (Lucy Liu from Charlie’s Angels)
drops by for a cup of sugar. Noticing his broken nose, she asks what happened.
“Bad luck comes in threes,” is his reply. He lost his job,
was forced to move out of his apartment, found his girlfriend in bed with
another man and got mugged. (Okay, that’s four things, but who’s
counting?)
But things only get worse for Slevin. He’s picked up at his friend’s
apartment by hoods who think he’s the other guy. He winds up in
front of a mob boss named, appropriately, The Boss, played by Morgan Freeman
(Million Dollar Baby). Since he owes over $90 thousand in gambling
debts, he’s asked to complete a task. Kill the son of a rival gangster,
and everything will be square.
The rival gangster is known as The Rabbi (Ben Kingsley from Oliver
Twist), so called because; well ... because he’s a rabbi. To
add to his woes, a world-class hit man called Mr. Goodkat (Willis) is
following him, as is a NYPD detective, played by Stanley Tucci (Shall
We Dance).
If all of this seems contrived and convoluted, it is. This is the kind
of high concept melodrama that lives and dies by its twists and turns.
For the most part, screenwriter Jason Smilovic (TV’s Karen Sisco)
covers his tracks. While his story is very far-fetched, he seems to have
skillfully filled in the plot holes.
Director Paul McGuigan (Wicker Park) takes a page out of the
Tarantino handbook, and has fashioned an artfully nasty, morally questionable
opus.
The supporting cast is first-rate, and Hartnett manages to throw off
the tongue-in-cheek dialogue without embarrassing himself.
In the end, it doesn’t really matter whether or not you understand
what happens in Lucky Number Slevin. It’s twisted, decadent
fun. (R) Rating: 3 (Posted 4/7/06)
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Take
the Lead
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
Fans of last year’s feel-good documentary Mad Hot Ballroom
know about a program that allows kids in New York public schools to take
dance lessons and display their moves in a yearly competition. While that
movie focused on junior high kids, a new dramatic feature steps up to
the high school level.
Take the Lead stars Antonio Banderas (The Legend of Zorro)
in a movie “inspired by” (oh, be careful with those two words)
the true story of dance teacher Pierre Dulaine.
In this dramatic re-imagination of Dulaine’s story, the former
professional dancer decides to freely offer his services to the “worst”
kids (that is, those who are sent to detention) at an inner city school.
A brief scene in which Dulaine witnesses a kid vandalizing a car is the
only hint we have at his motive.
After brief resistance by the skeptical school principal, played by the
always-reliable Alfre Woodard (TV’s Desperate Housewives),
Dulaine is allowed to try to reach these problem kids. He is thrown into
the lion’s den, a basement storeroom where detention is held.
Of course, the kids initially balk as his “corny” moves and
outdated music. But, as in any formulaic Hollywood script, he wears down
their resistance. They come to appreciate the “old school”
dancing and add a bit of their own hip-hop style.
While there are plenty of groan-inducing clichés in Take the
Lead, there is also a positive vibe that helps the movie overcome
the trite, stereotypical elements of the script.
The attractive cast helps, too. Banderas is dashing, as always, and the
kids are a likable bunch. The reluctant dancers include Rob Brown (Coach
Carter), Dante Basco (Biker Boyz), Yaya DaCosta (TV’s
America’s Next Top Model), Laura Benanta (TV’s Starved),
Jenna Dewan (Tamara) and Jon Ortiz (Narc).
Take the Lead is the first feature film from veteran music video
helmer, Liz Friedlander, who has worked with artists like Blink 182, R.E.M.
and Babyface. It is, therefore, somewhat surprising that the movie is
as traditional as it is. None of the style and flash of MTV is evident
here.
And where’s the dancing? While there are plenty of moves, one can’t
help but think about TV’s Dancing With the Stars when witnessing
the film’s climactic competition. There is so much quick-cutting
that we really can’t tell whether or not any of these dancers are
any good.
But, why gripe? Take the Lead achieves its modest goals. It’s
a sweet movie with its heart in the right place. The message: Kids + dancing
= Good. Kids + neglect = Bad. (PG-13) Rating: 3 (Posted 4/7/06)
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Benchwarmers
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
As an eight-year-old, one’s sense of humor tends to gravitate to
the scatological, the lowbrow and the violent.
Benchwarmers, a new comedy produced by Adam Sandler’s
company, Happy Madison, unashamedly panders to the eight-year-old in all
of us. If giving someone a wedgie is your idea of a laugh riot, then Benchwarmers
is right up your alley.
Alan Covert and Nick Swarsdon (Grandma’s Boy), two men
better known for their acting than their writing, are responsible for
the sophomoric script. The director, Dennis Dugan (Big Daddy),
is also a thespian that has moved behind the camera. This is obviously
a case of the Peter Principal at work.
It should be made clear that Benchwarmers is a bad movie in
every conceivable way. The screenplay is utterly moronic, the direction
is amateurish and the acting is over-the-top. There is absolutely no way
that this movie should work.
BUT ... strangely, Benchwarmers is a pleasingly silly enterprise that
very well may make you laugh even while you’re dissing it.
Three Saturday Night Live alums, Rob Schneider, David Spade
and Jon Lovitz, are joined by Napoleon Dynamite star Jon Heder
in a story about nerds (go figure) who form a baseball team.
Gus, Clark and Richie (Schneider, Heder and Spade) are three geeky adults
who happen upon a youngster named Nelson (Max Prado) who is being picked
on by some bullies at the local ballpark. After rescuing the young lad,
they discover that Nelson’s dad, Mel (Lovitz) is a billionaire.
Mel makes the trio an unusual proposition.
In an attempt to strike a blow for nerds everywhere, Mel suggests that
they form a three-man team to take on little league teams in a baseball
tournament. The winner gets a bells-and-whistles stadium all their own.
Mel hires Reggie Jackson to coach the hapless guys, and they perform
better than one might expect. (Parents will love the fact that, as a part
of their training, Jackson has them smash mailboxes with baseball bats.)
Gus, Clark and Richie become Internet stars as word spreads of their exploits.
They inspire nerds everywhere ... until word leaks out that Gus may have
been a bully as a child.
The supporting cast from Benchwarmers includes nasty coaches
(Craig Kilborn, Tim Meadows), sports figures (Bill Romanowski, Dan Patrick),
babes (Molly Sims, Rachael Hunter), and other SNL stars (blink
and you’ll miss Sandler and Norm MacDonald).
While Benchwarmers is admittedly imbecilic, it accomplishes
a remarkable feat. If you are still in touch with that eight-year-old
in you, it will make you laugh ... a lot. (PG-13) Rating: 2.5 (Posted
4/7/06)
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Find
Me Guilty
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
The operative question is this: Can Vin Diesel be a serious actor?
The action star, best known for films like Pitch Black, XXX,
The Fast and the Furious and the comedy, The Pacifier,
was in at least one noteworthy drama, Saving Private Ryan. But
his contributions to Ryan were minimal. So the question still
stands.
Diesel attempts to stretch his acting muscles with Find Me Guilty,
a courtroom drama inspired by actual events. To further legitimize his
efforts, the director and co-writer of this project is none other than
the legendary Sidney Lumet (Serpico, Network, The Verdict, etc.)
The story involves the infamous trials of the Lucchese crime family in
the late 1980s. (Much of the courtroom dialogue was reportedly culled
word-for-word from actual court transcripts.) The feds tried twenty defendants
together under the RICO (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization)
Act. If the government could find one of them guilty, then all would be
guilty as co-conspirators.
One defendant was Giacomo "Jackie Dee" DiNorscio (Diesel),
a drug dealer for the mob. Already in prison for a previous crime, Jackie
Dee had had enough of lawyers. Facing years in prison anyway, he decides
that he’s got nothing to lose…so he’ll serve as his
own lawyer.
While the judge (Ron Silver) is reluctant, he concedes to let Jackie
Dee defend himself. The co-defendants, including mob boss Nick Calabrese
(Alex Rocco) and his lawyer (Peter Dinklage), are leery. If Jackie Dee
screws up, they all go down.
Their fears seem well founded as Jackie Dee turns into Shecky Green whenever
he stands before the jury. He seems more interested in getting a laugh
than making his case. (“I’m not a gangster,” he quips,
“I’m a gag-ster.”) Skirting contempt of court on numerous
cases, Jackie Dee nearly sinks things for his co-defendants, his life-long
friends and family.
While Lumet strives for realism, this drama is at its core, a comedy.
That makes it similar to some of his best work. While it never reaches
the “dramedy” heights of his comparable movies (Dog Day
Afternoon, Prince of the City), it is a reenactment of the
events that is both engaging and realistic (Diesel’s wig not withstanding).
The supporting cast is solid, with Dinklage (the dwarf best known for
his work in the film The Station Agent) an unruffled standout.
Annabella Sciorra has a brief but memorable turn as Jackie Dee’s
ex-wife, Bella.
But the movie rests on Diesel’s broad shoulders, and he plays the
role like an amiable teddy bear…an approach that fits.
So, the question remains; Can Vin Diesel be a serious actor? If this
courtroom flick is our only measure, then the jury is still out. (PG)
Rating: 3 (Posted 3/31/06)
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Ice
Age 2: The Meltdown
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
When the computer animated feature Ice Age debuted in 2002,
it grossed over $176 million at the box office, establishing 20th Century
Fox as a real player in a field previously dominated by Disney/Pixar and
Dreamworks.
When a movie becomes such a phenomenon, a sequel is inevitable. Happily,
like Toy Story 2 and Shrek 2, this one is on a par with
its predecessor. Director Carlos Saldanha, who co-directed the original,
manages to recapture the magic.
Ice Age told the story of an unlikely group of animal friends
that fate bonds together as they attempt to save a human child and return
him to his family. This group faces further peril in the sequel, as our
heroes flee the impending meltdown of a glacier that will cause their
entire valley to be deluged.
Manny, the Mammoth (Ray Ramano), his pals Diego the Saber-toothed tiger
(Denis Leary) and Sid the Sloth (John Leguizamo) warn their counterparts
about the upcoming disaster. To make matters worse, Manny is despondent
because he believes that he may be the last of his species.
On their long trek to safety, the trio encounters a couple of mischievous
possums, Crash (Seann William Scott) and Eddie (Josh Peck). Reluctant
to join the pilgrimage, Crash and Eddie consult their “sister,”
Ellie (Queen Latifah). Ellie, you see, is actually a mammoth that was
raised by possums. Naturally, she has no way of knowing she isn’t
a possum.
The animation is first-rate, skillful both technically and in the animators’
ability to create unique characters. Leguizamo’s voice work is particularly
effective, and he’s matched by the clever contributions of Scott
and Peck. Jay Leno is also memorable, lending his voice to a slick street
character known as Fast Tony.
While it is not a musical, Ice Age 2: The Meltdown has a toe-tapping
sequence that features our bone-headed, lisping sloth, Sid. He’s
captured by a sloth tribe that plans on sacrificing him to the lava gods.
The scene evolves into an amusing Busby Berkeley extravaganza.
But the best thing about Ice Age 2: The Meltdown is Scrat (voiced
by Ice Age co-director, Chris Wedge). A saber-toothed squirrel,
Scrat spends the entire movie as a background character in pursuit of
a precious acorn. Fate places plenty of obstacles in his way. It is a
tribute to the animators’ artistic skills and comic timing that
these sequences work so well.
To quote a precocious five-year-old overheard leaving the screening,
“Ice Age is cool”. (PG) Rating: 3 (Posted 3/31/06) |
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Winter
Passing
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
After viewing the quirky drama Winter Passing from first-time
filmmaker Adam Rapp (a writer for TV’s The “L” Word),
one thing can be said for certain: Zooey Deschanel is a terrific actress.
While she’s not classically beautiful, doesn’t possess a
remarkable voice and lacks sex appeal, she may yet become a star. She’s
got one very important thing going for her. She’s not like anyone
else.
The daughter of famed cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (The Passion
of the Christ) and actress Mary Jo Deschanel (TV’s Twin
Peaks), and the sister of Emily Deschanel (TV’s Bones),
Zooey obviously has good genes.
But it is her innate quirkiness — and her ability to make it believable
in each character she plays — that makes her one of a kind. She
can go from low-budget art house fare (All the Real Girls, The
Good Girl) to big budget Hollywood studio fair (Elf, Failure
to Launch) without missing a beat.
Returning here to her low-budget roots, Zooey plays Reese, the estranged
daughter of a JD Salinger-type reclusive author named Don Holdin (Ed Harris).
(Coincidentally, Zooey was named for Salinger’s Franny and Zooey.)
Living as a struggling actress in New York, Reese is offered big bucks
if she can get her father to turn over the publication rights to the letters
he wrote to her late mother. Strapped for cash, she reluctantly returns
to the family home in Michigan to give it a try.
There, she discovers that her father has abandoned the house to a former
writing student, Shelley (Amelia Warner) and a socially stunted wannabe
musician named Corbit (Will Farrell). Living in a ramshackle garage on
the property, Don seems very disinterested in his own health.
In this environment, Reese is like a stranger in her own home. Although
she initially feels resentful and dejected, she slowly warms to these
newcomers as she learns more about them.
Warner is quite good and Farrell effective in a surprisingly restrained
performance. While Harris is always solid, writer/director Rapp hasn’t
given him enough to do. This is a character with no place to go.
While all of these characters are interesting, there is very little dramatic
momentum in the film. There is no real catharsis, no climax. Most of the
conflict is downplayed to the point of tedium. That leaves us with Deschanel
to carry the film.
Luckily, she’s up to the task. Winter Passing is much
like the actress — eccentric, odd, unusual…and strangely likable.
(R) Rating: 3 (Posted 3/31/06) |
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Basic
Instinct 2
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
The 1992 sleazefest Basic Instinct established Sharon Stone
as one of the coldest — and hottest — femme fatales in cinematic
history.
Although pleasurably lurid, Basic Instinct walked a tightrope
of camp. It came close to devolving from a film noir thriller into a hilarious
self-parody. (The next teaming of director Paul Verhoven and screenwriter
Joe Eszterhas would get them to that campy plateau. It was the pricelessly
cheesy Showgirls.)
In Basic Instinct 2, Stone returns as icy heiress and crime
novelist Catherine Davis Tramell. In the opening sequence, she contributes
to the death of a soccer player by driving her car into London’s
Thames River. Perhaps it was because they were having a sexual encounter
at 100 mph. Maybe his death came as a result of having been injected with
a drug that makes one somnolent.
Facing possible murder charges, Catherine is forced to undergo a psychological
diagnosis by a court appointed shrink, Dr. Michael Glass (David Morrissey
from Derailed). The good doctor decides that Catherine has a
“risk addiction.” She can only feel alive when pushing the
envelope. While it certainly makes her dangerous, it doesn’t make
her a killer. The charges are dropped.
Against his better judgment, Michael agrees to take Catherine on as a
patient. Naturally, he finds her sexually attractive. While she has a
frosty demeanor, she’s far from frigid. She captivates him with
the stories of her relentless sexual encounters and her obsession with
death.
Strangely, murders begin happening around London, all with ties to Catherine…and
Michael. Either she is somehow involved or this is one woman with extraordinarily
bad luck.
Screenwriters Leora Barish and Henry Bean don’t stray too far from
the sordid atmosphere of Eszterhas’ original. There is a lot of
sex and lust on display that add to the giddy air of amorality.
Director Michael Caton-Jones (This Boy’s Life, Rob
Roy) shows considerable skill by keeping the silly shenanigans from
becoming too ridiculous. The supporting cast of British acting veterans,
including Charlotte Rampling and David Thewlis, helps, too.
Stone’s acting here consists mainly of steely gazes and sly smiles.
Thankfully, she’s remained fit. The 48-year-old actress looks sensational
in and out of her clothes and one can believe that an otherwise reasonable
psychiatrist might be willing to risk his career for a chance to jump
her bones.
But in the final fifteen minutes, the movie deteriorates into a series
of groan-inducing moments that render Caton-Jones’ efforts utterly
ineffective.
One can sum it up in three words: Basically it stinks. (R) Rating: 1(Posted
3/31/06) |
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Ballets
Russes
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
You’ve got to hand it to the filmmakers behind Ballets Russes.
They really did their homework. As a result, they’ve come up with
a meticulously comprehensive documentary about the groundbreaking modern
ballet troupe.
Or, more correctly, “troupes.” In fact, as the film demonstrates,
the famous dance company was actually comprised of two competing groups.
Skillfully combining talking heads with archival footage, directors Dan
Geller and Dayna Goldfine have fashioned a movie that will serve as an
informative introduction for newcomers and a satisfying overview for ballet
aficionados.
Enormously influential, shaping dance in America and around the world,
the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo was founded in 1932 by impresarios Col.
Vassili de Basil and Rene Blum, a resurrection of an earlier entity founded
by Serge Diaghilev in turn-of-the-century Paris. He attempted to create
a company consisting of émigrés who had fled their native
country during the Russian Revolution.
The company brought together the finest dancers, artists and composers
of the day in a flurry of collaborative creativity. Only in retrospect
can we appreciate the teaming of artists like Henri Matisse and Pablo
Picasso with composers like Igor Stravinsky and Claude Debussy and choreographers
like Leonide Massine and George Balanchine.
The film, scrupulously chronological, moves us little by little through
the development of the companies and the backstage soap opera that accompanied
it. Due to infighting, the company split into two factions, one run by
Massine, and the other (dubbed “The Original Ballet Russe”)
by a businessman, Colonel Wassily de Basil.
Thanks to their extensive touring of Europe, Australia and the Western
Hemisphere…including small towns in Missouri…ballet gained
a foothold in our culture that can still be felt today.
There is a surprising treasure trove of film presented from their earliest
of performances, accompanied by the accomplished narration of Marian Seldes.
But the film works as well as it does because of the reminiscences of
people who had been company members throughout the years. It is quite
amazing to hear the recollections of some spry senior citizens as they
tell of things they experienced over seventy years ago.
The dancers interviewed include “Baby Ballerinas” Tamara
Tchinvarova, Irina Baronova and Tamara Toumanova, as well as Nathalie
Krassovska, Tania Riabouchinskaya, George Zoritch, Frederic Franklin (still
performing at age 90) and Marc Platt, who appeared in a number of Hollywood
musicals.
Their warm reminiscences make Ballets Russes a memorable and
moving history lesson. (No MPAA rating) Rating: 3.5 (Posted 3/31/06) |
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ATL
Reviewed by Russ Simmons
ATL (urban shorthand for Atlanta) is a movie about African-Americans
and roller-skating, and features a cast that includes a number of rap
artists. However, don’t confuse it for last year’s tepid Bow
Wow vehicle, Roll Bounce. This one has a bit more on its mind.
Screenwriter Tina Gordon Chism (Drumline) adapted ATL’s
script from a story by Antwone Fisher (Antwone Fisher). She attempts
to capture an element of the black teen experience that is not exclusive
to the Atlanta scene.
Rapper Tip Harris (also known as T.I.) stars as Rashad, a high school
senior who lives with his uncle George (Mykelti Williamson from Forrest
Gump), a janitor. Since the death of his parents in a car wreck,
Rashad has been playing the role of father figure for his 14-year-old
brother, Ant (newcomer Evan Ross Naess).
Rashad’s plate is full. He works for his uncle cleaning office
buildings, attends school full-time, skates competitively with his crew
(Jackie Long, Jason Weaver and Albert Daniels) on Sunday nights, and tries
to keep his eye on his wayward sibling.
Although Rashad saves money for his little brother’s future, Ant
would rather take the easy way to riches. He becomes the underling of
a small-time drug dealer named Marcus (Big Boi from the hip-hop group
Outkast).
Things are further complicated for Rashad, thanks to a romantic entanglement
with a beautiful skater named New-New (lovely newcomer Laurie London).
Although she hangs out in the underprivileged part of town, she’s
actually a rich debutante, the daughter of a major business mogul (veteran
Keith David). When Rashad discovers her secret, he feels betrayed…and
takes it out on all of his friends.
While many of the plot elements of ATL are straight out of the
“Big Book of Hollywood Clichés,” this one has a refreshingly
honest feel, thanks largely to its affable cast. Director Chris Robinson,
an MTV video veteran making his feature film debut, manages to keep the
camera acrobatics to a minimum, stressing the simplicity of the story.
But the best thing about ATL is its soundtrack. A constant positive
vibe is produced by the underscoring that will undoubtedly produce a lot
of toe-tapping and head-bobbing. The soundtrack CD that this movie will
produce will probably live on a lot longer than the film itself.
Although ATL is relatively forgettable as cinema, it will undoubtedly
find an audience eager for its infectious sound and its undying goodwill.
(PG-13) Rating: 3 (Posted 3/31/06)
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