Explorations: Sidebar Reviews: Recent Attractions, 2nd quarter 2006

OK, good comments first. The voice acting was great—no, awesome. The animation was impressive.

Even though the "songs" were actually fun for a musical, they were better left out. And, for the most part, it does seem faithful to the book. Howevah, the film was a sour experience for me because of the bratty, unavoidably bad performance of Dakota Fanning (whom I have liked before).

Her character's insolence ended up one of the main themes of the story: if you're a jerk to your parents about saving an animal who just happens to end up winning universal acclaim, they should apologize to you. Needless to say, I don't think my kids will be watching this one. 2 3/4 stars.

(**)

This movie is such a heartfelt exploration of women's lives, it's hard to believe it was written by a man. Based on a true story about a lovely girl who struggles with diabetes — and crazy townspeople — in a Southern town, this one will require a box of tissues for most any female viewer. Hilarious in parts, with great acting from Sally Field, Julia Roberts and (surprise!

) Dolly Parton. 3 1/4 stars. (***)

Idealistic teacher takes on troubled high schoolers.

No, it's not Dangerous Minds. This one has a true story, a much better actress (Hilary Swank), even better music, and more realism. Sure, it's still cheesy here and there, but for the most part, Hilary captures the naivete of her main character, and we still get a thought-provoking lesson on the difficulties of inner-city minority life.

And that's worth it. 3 1/4 stars. (***)

Though this started out as an over-the-top British comedy (think: a marriage of Guy Ritchie and a spoof), its second half quickly turned into the most bizarre experience I've ever had in the theatre.

The plot: a London cop is so good that he's putting the police force to shame. So they move him to the countryside, where he begins to smell trouble. Hilarious, yes.

Wild, yes. POE, oh yes. Not for the faint of 'art.

3 stars. (***)

One of the most brilliant films made by the ingenious Jean-Pierre Jeunet (who also directed The City of Lost Children and who's helming next year's adaptation of Life of Pi). It's the story of a curious girl who becomes a curious young woman, bent on affecting others' lives — for good or for mischief.

One of the most luscious, whimsical, imaginative, fun-loving movies ever made. 4 stars — at least. (****)

Bunuel is one of the most acclaimed directors of all time—and one of the strangest.

I remember seeing bits of this film on Schaeffer's How Shall We Then Live movie, but I don't think he realized that Bunuel was agreeing with him about the human condition. On the surface, it's a fairly shocking premise: a mild-mannered housewife becomes intrigued by her discovery that a friend from her circles has become a prostitute. Through negative example, this POE film reaffirms both marriage and morality through a captivating, sometimes dreamlike tale.

3 1/2 stars. (***)

You could call this lovely realist masterpiece by Vittorio de Sica a kind of artsy Harry Tonto. An aging man, barely scraping by on his pension, faces being thrown out when he gets too far behind on his rent.

The one thing that keeps him going is the love of his scruffy mutt, Flike. Beautifully restored, and genuinely moving, especially in the film's final scenes. 4 stars.

(****)

This Grand Jury Prize winner of the 2002 Sundance festival comes to us from writer-director Rebecca Miller (yes, her pops is Arthur; and now her husband is Daniel Day-Lewis). Three women, three stories, no resolutions. But despite the low-grade image quality, the unpolished stories, and many no-name actors, this film has an engaging, real quality to it.

I was reminded in a way of Paul Auster. Worth it? Ah, probably not.

3 stars. (***)

Keane, the recent British trio sensation, has been called "Coldplay with pianos" (since they are piano-based instead of guitar-based). I've only heard a few songs of their first album, and this second one took me a week or so to get into it, but it's now one of my favorites on rotation.

Wonderful, wonderful alternative sound, brilliant/mature lyrics, and catchy hooks. My faves: "Hamburg Song," "The Frog Prince," "Leaving So Soon," "Atlantic," ..

. aw heck, I love all of em! (****)

A great, great album by Joni Mitchell, that wonderful singer-songwriter with the smoky voice.

She decided in this album to make a song cycle that traces the progress of a relationship. And her arranger evidently decided to take orchestration lessons from John Williams and then do him one better. Astonishingly beautiful.

(****)

Some brilliant stuff is happening in this album, the solo effort of Frou Frou's lead singer (you've heard them if you watched Garden State). To be honest, I've only listened to the 30-second snatches of songs on itunes, and downloaded "Hide and Seek," which seemed to be the best one. But I've been enjoying the snatches!

3 1/2 stars (***)

A beautiful CD, a brilliant failure, and evidence of a talented singer-songwriter. This is the guy you thought was Dave Matthews when he sang, "I'm fif-teen years for a moment." There are some great songs here, and then there are some other songs, too.

My favorite: "If God Made You," half love song, half doxology. (***)

Billie Holliday is a wonderful singer. I was a little surprised to read in the liner notes, "though she was not blessed with a magnificent instrument.

..", which I suppose is one way of describing her charcoal voice.

But she makes you feel comfortable, and I always thought she was earlier in the twentieth century as a result of her sound. Holliday was the most significant influence on Frank Sinatra, and she's at her best when she's singing the slow ballads (like "God Bless the Child" and "The Man I Love"). But there are some songs that are really not worthy to be on a "best" collection, and many reviewers were upset that the disc didn't include her standard "Strange Fruit.

" (***)

A dreamlike myth, for children of all ages. A singer of tales falls into danger when the kingdom is overtaken by the Usurper and the land becomes overrun with Tookesheims. Who will save them?

Perhaps the princess? (***)

OK, probably the most briliant, loveliest, most powerful novel I've read in a long, long time. This is Foer's second novel, after Everything is Illuminated.

I must confess, after I read a naysaying review of Foer's books, I hesitated to read his work. Foolish, foolish. (****)

One of Piper's newest, this 200-pager ends up as a sort of compilation of most of his previous ideas (future grace, desiring God, and so on).

I thought the opening chapters (his spiritual upbringing) and the last chapter (Making Most of Christ from 9-5) were the best. (***)

A gripping book that tracks the journey of Lewis's heart and soul after the death of his wife. Bitter at times, brilliantly blessed at others.

A short read, but one of the better things that Lewis wrote, in my opinion. (****)

Buechner is probably my favorite Believing writer (fiction or non-fiction). got an pre-press copy of the book for me, probably at one of those book conferences he goes to.

Thanks! This is a collection of some of his more famous "sermons" from over the course of his lifetime. "The Magnificent Defeat," his talk on Jacob's wrestling with God is, I was surprised to learn, one of his earliest sermons, from soon after he finished graduate school.

I am just getting into the first third of the book, but I am confident this will be one of my favorites that I will turn to again and again. (****)
This post will get us caught up to last quarter. I'll add separate posts on the Cineaste Spot reviews, but I'll wait until the end of third quarter to add the current reviews.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Tim Burton, 2005) **
The film was all about Charlie, so I guess it's only appropriate that should be about Willy. Going the route of its second-cousin adaptation , become. As with all Tim Burton's films, this one was visually glorious.

But I've got to admit that though Depp is one of my favorite actors, I didn't really fall for his Midwestern Michael Jackson. Maybe it's just me. It was a little too weird.

Fun moments, but perhaps not sustained enough to recommend the film.
Just the facts, ma'am: 1. Clive Owen is quite a fine actor.

2. OK, and so are Denzel and Jodie. 3.

Spike Lee, well...

he's an interesting guy.
This film had a lot going for it, and yes, it is quite enjoyable and suspenseful. Just don't count on the end giving you enough payback.

A crowd of twenty-something guys behind us were moaning, That CAN'T be the END!! But before that, you're pretty much on the edge of your seat.

Seinfeld, Season 1 ***
We are Seinfeld fans. For some of you, that will inexplicably not be good. For others of you, ya know exactly what we're talking about.

OK, that being said, neither of us had seen the first season. Let us say it leaves much to be desired. But all the makings of their hilarity are there, especially the trademark pauses, body language, and Jerry's stand-up commentaries.

Funny stuff. Just not as good as they got.
Sliding Doors (Peter Howitt, 1998) **
This film succeeds at being both uninteresting and a downer.

Which is quite an accomplishment. Despite the presence of two Gwyneth Paltrows, the script insists on claiming (1) all men are ruthlessly evil — even the ones who really seem good, and (2) it really doesn't matter what decision you make — your life is going to stink anyway. Wow.

All that from a film that was merely claiming to show you parallel universes of what could happen in a person's life. Eesh.


The Palm Beach Story (Preston Sturges, 1942) ***
This Preston Sturges screwball comedy is pretty funny.

An inventor's wife divorces him, and a mysterious man gives them each money to head down to Palm Beach to finalize it. Along the way each of them becomes entangled until they're in quite a mess. I'm not a big Joel McCrea fan, but Claudette Colbert, Mary Astor and Rudy Vallee should have you in stitches, let alone the hilarious script.

Quite a bit of the film's locales are window dressing, but there's a great scene on a train filled with drunken wealthy hunters.


The Phantom of the Opera (Joel Schumacher, 2004) **
I never knew it would take Joel Schumacher to help me appreciate Baz Luhrmann. And I sincerely I hope I'm catching some of you before you waste any time with this one.

Yes, I know it's risky having me (a non-fan of both the musical form and this musical in particular) rate this film, but allow me to list my complaints:
1. There's a reason they don't let actors do their own singing
2. The pacing was evidently done by the editor of The Young and the Restless
3.

Recitative needs to stay on stage, and in another language. Otherwise, we realize how fake and boring it really is.
4.

Lighting is an important part of cinematography.
5. A movie about demonic possession tends to get depressing
6.

Baz Luhrmann must be very talented, since I spent the whole time saying to myself, If only Baz had directed this!
Please, please..

.trust me on this one. I'm giving it 2 stars only because the production design was interesting and the flashbacks and intro were actually quite good.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape (Lasse Hallstrom, 1993) ***1/2
Yes, I know you can't tell from his adolescent films, but Leonardo DiCaprio is a fantastic actor. He picked up a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his role in this film as an 18-year-old mentally retarded boy. Wow, was he good!

The film is written by , that wonderful man who also wrote . This is a film about a small-town Texas young man (played by Johnny Depp) who must live with a retarded brother and horribly overweight mother when what he really wants to do is see the world.




Anger Management (Peter Segal, 2003) *
Ever seen a tragically awful film?

Well, add this to the list of films to stay far, far away from. Alison and I tend to an aversion for contemporary comedies, but we thought this had some things going for it, particularly its cast (Jack Nicholson, Adam Sandler, Luiz Guzman, John Turturro, Marisa Tomei). Well, I feel fairly confident in stating that the only good thing in the whole film is part of a scene in which Jack accompanies Adam singing I Feel Pretty.

Otherwise, they tried everything in the contemporary comedy book: running gags, sex jokes, the unexpected twist, and so on. Nothing worked. Please, for your own good, stay away.

Silkwood (Mike Nichols, 1983) **
Despite the presence of cinematic superstars and (who were both awards-nominated for the film, this plane never left the ground. Based on true events, this film acts like it's going to be Erin Brockovich, but just when it starts to go somewhere (finally!), the credits roll.

Oh well.




Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (Guy Ritchie, 1998) ***
This is directed by Guy Ritchie, the Britisher who went on from this smash hit to make its sequel Snatch. This is similarly witty (freeze frames voice overs), clever (twisting plots that lap and overlap), and over the top (heaps of profanity and plenty of violence).

Paradise Now (Hany Abu-Assad, 2005) ***
I would normally post a foreign-language film like this under Cineaste Spot, but this is really the kind of film that can and should have a broader audience. Set in Palestine and Israel, this story follows two close friends who are asked to undertake a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv. It forces each of them to struggle through their beliefs about life, problems and solutions.

The film is a beautiful portrayal of life within the conflict of Israelis vs. Palestinians, and of the reason why only Christ will ever be able to solve the conflicts there. Highly thought-provoking and moving.

Safe (Todd Haynes, 1995) ** 1/2
I've been interested to see this film ever since I saw director Todd Haynes's follow-up, . Needless to say, this is a similar film in some respects (lonely homemaking wife under strain) but far different in others (this one focuses on the bizarrities of the environmental wacko community). It's rather slow, and even though Julianne Moore is tremendously talented, the film can tend to be unengaging.

However, some think this is the cat's meow. To each its own, I guess.

Match Point (Woody Allen, 2005) ***1/2
Woody Allen is a remarkable fellow, with extraordinary range for a writer-director.

His newest has drawn comparisons to , for obvious plot similarities. But even though this film has its wonderfully awful moments, it also has some throw-away boring scenes. Part of the problem is not-quite-interesting in a very -type role.

The story builds with inevitable escalation to some alarmingly tense morality play. Quite thought-provoking, with its own sense of beauty. Careful: some POE.

Fun with Dick and Jane (Dean Parisot, 2005) **1/2
Jim Carrey has his moments, and because he does, his films are as unpredictable to anticipate as Punxutawny Phil's shadow. We thought we were going to dislike , and we loved it. We thought we were going to like this one, and it just didn't push our buttons.

Some funny scenes, yes. But the value of this film is its gutsy, explicit jab at Enron, WorldCom, and the other big companies that crashed their staff. As with all family-friendly films, this one involves breaking the law in order to bring about order again.

Plenty of smiles, but overall, this one takes itself too seriously.

That Touch of Mink (Delbert Mann, 1962) **
A silly movie, as in not that funny. Cary Grant is one of my most favorite comedic actors, but he was straining with this role.

He's a rich businessman who just happens to strike up an awkward relationship with a struggling girl. The unfolding of the story is the expounding of just how awkward their relationship is. She's modest, and he's not.

Yes, there are funny moments. But I hope you're not reading this, Melinda (or Nathan). We were wondering what this one was doing in the stack with the other classics?

The Bourne Identity (Doug Liman, 2002) ***
As opposed to what I had thought, we really enjoyed this one. Matt Damon, that loveable chap, realizes that he hasn't the foggiest who he is. So it's odd, to him, when he realizes his greatest talents seem to be espionage and killing people.

Weird, huh? On the way, he falls in with Franka Potente (any Tykwer fans out there?) and they run from the bad guys and anyone else they're not sure of.

..basically, they just run from everyone, but it's a lot of fun.

A Place in the Sun (George Stevens, 1951) ***1/2
This is one of those old weepers, but most people wouldn't even know that it was based on Theodore Dreiser's classic novel An American Tragedy. All-round good guy ends up going bad when he becomes a two-timer; first, he obliges a girl working near him in a factory with a relationship, and then he falls for Elizabeth Taylor in one of her earlier roles (i.e.

, she's still pretty). I'm of the opinion that Montgomery Clift is James Dean with a hangover, but his morosity and Liz's radiance matched up pretty well. The film is a striking--and I mean striking--comparison to Woody Allen's recent film Match Point.

Has anyone else seen both of these? Several great scenes, but ultimately, kind of depressing.


Bringing Down the House (Adam Shankman, 2003) *
This is not worth watching.

Steve Martin is often funny. Queen Latifah is actually an interesting actress from time to time. But not in this movie, dear friends, not in this movie.

Crassness, inanity, and plot holes like Swiss cheese abound.



Veronica Guerin (Joel Schumacher, 2003) **
After watching this, Alison and I agreed that this would be an ideal film to use in a screenwriting class -- as a bad example. It had been such a long time since we had seen such a noticeably weak script.

But yes, we tolerated it because we are great admirers of Cate Blanchett's acting. Which acting saved this celluloid from complete ruin. If you'd like to see a good Irish film, watch something by .

Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee, 1989) ***
I'm not a huge Spike Lee fan, even after a half dozen or so of his films. However, this one (supposedly his early masterpiece?) is quite interesting: as it traces the hottest day of the summer in -like real time, it also works through genuine issues of race-relations in our era.

Not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, and not of interest to all. But interesting.


The United States of Leland (Matthew Ryan Hoge, 2004) ***1/2
A compelling indie with a great cast and a great story.

This film chronicles the relationships of several troubled people who are trying to find meaning in their lives. The center of the story is Leland, who is jailed for a shocking incident, and his prison teacher (played by Don Cheadle), who treads the line between trying to help the boy and taking advantage of his story for a new novel. This film has excellent messages, and should resonate powerfully with believers.

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