Posted Aug 8th 2008 12:02PM by Christopher Campbell
Filed under: Drama, Romance, Theatrical Reviews, Cinematical Indie, Samuel Goldwyn Films
I'm not partial to overtly subjective reviews, yet I can't seem to find any better way of relating my response to Isabel Coixet's latest film,
Elegy, an adaptation of Philip Roth's novel "The Dying Animal," which follows the romance between a college professor and his much younger former student. First, though, a note of appropriateness: early in the film, this professor, the Roth regular David Kepesh, who previously appeared in the novels "The Breast" and "The Professor of Desire," is lecturing about how literature, specifically Tolstoy's "War and Peace," will be appreciated differently by a reader at different points in his or her life. In ten years, for example, it may seem like a new book entirely.
Perhaps in ten years, then, or more likely in thirty, I will be able to watch
Elegy again and have a new perspective. Maybe I will be able to relate to Kepesh, here portrayed by
Ben Kingsley, when I am in my sixties and have similarly lived and experienced as much. Yet the fact that Coixet's film is so depressing makes me almost hope that I never actually live so long to find out. I should have known, what with the filmmaker's past films, such as
My Life Without Me, with their gray atmospheres and dreary dealings with illness and death. While appearing on the outside to be a sexy drama about how one lecherous old man discovers love,
Elegy is on the inside really just a slow, uninteresting depiction of a selfish fool who possibly too-late realizes that he's grown old before he's actually grown up.
Continue reading Review: Elegy
Posted Aug 6th 2008 3:02PM by Jette Kernion
Filed under: Drama, New Releases, Warner Brothers, Theatrical Reviews
I figure I'm about 20 years older, at least, than the target demographic for
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2. I understand that there are some movies where I'll always feel a little old or out of touch, because they're just not made with me in mind, no matter how good or bad those movies are. Fortunately, I had no trouble empathizing with the four young women who are bound to friendship through their magical bifurcated nether garment -- more so than I did with the
Sex and the City gang, who are much closer to my age.
Like
Sex and the City,
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 works better if you know the characters already through their previous appearances, because you're already emotionally invested in them. I hadn't read the young-adult novels by Ann Brashares, but my sister, who is a big fan, filled me in and we determined that this movie is based mostly on the fourth book in the series, with a few changes, so even if you've read the books you get some surprises.
Continue reading Review: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2
Posted Aug 6th 2008 2:03PM by James Rocchi
Filed under: Action, Independent, Theatrical Reviews, Quentin Tarantino, Miramax
Hell Ride is a deliberate, calculated throwback, referencing and recycling the cheapie bike-sploitation flicks of the '60s and early '70s as a band of burly brothers roar, rage and ride their way through the American Southwest on a rampage of revenge. Written by, directed by and starring
Larry Bishop,
Hell Ride thrums and roars with attitude; problem is, the drive shaft components of plot and character and logic just aren't there, meaning that even when Bishop hits the throttle, the roar and rattle can't hide the fact nothing's really happening.
Hell Ride revolves around a cycle gang known as The Victors, led by Pistolero (Bishop), with the tuxedo-shirt clad The Gent (
Michael Madsen) riding on his right and recent inductee Comanche (
Eric Balfour) an up-and-coming lieutenant in the organization, on his left. The Victors are trying to take care of business -- although what business it is they're in is never quite explained -- and the only thing interfering with that is Pistolero's obsession with righting the wrong done decades ago to Cherokee Kisum (Julia Jones), slain on the 4th of July in 1976. The Gent and Comanche are rubbed the wrong way by Pistolero's campaign of retribution, especially with the Six-Six-Six'ers and their kill-crazy leader Billy Wings (
Vinnie Jones) edging in on Victors turf. ...
Continue reading Review: Hell Ride
Posted Aug 5th 2008 9:03PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Sony, Theatrical Reviews
(No, I'm not stoned. It's just that Pineapple Express opens today (8/6), but my review was published over a week ago. This reprint is brought to you by Cinematical's Recycling Division. We care about wasted bandwidth.)I won't get into the precise reasons, but my friends always seem to think I'm going to LOVE the next big "pot comedy." They chuckle and assume such silly things despite the fact that the only real pothead comedies that I truly enjoy are
Up in Smoke,
Next Movie, and a large portion of the
Harold & Kumar misadventures. Frankly I'm of the opinion that most pot comedies
feel like they were written by someone very stoned, and let's just say that writers don't
always do their best work when they're extra-baked. (They might THINK their stuff is hilarious, but usually it's not. That's just the weed talking.) Oh, you'll definitely find a few cannabis-caked giggles in
Half-Baked,
Grandma's Boy, and
Smiley Face -- just not enough to sustain a whole movie, if it's me you're asking.
So it is with much pleasure, enthusiasm, and recently-applied Visine that I offer you
Pineapple Express, which just may be the
Casablanca of Pot Comedies. Or perhaps it's more like
When Ultra-High Harry Met Super-Stoned Sally, but either way
Pineapple Express showcases some of the funniest "weed culture" insights since the arrival of Richard Linklater's fantastic
Dazed & Confused -- which I wouldn't call a full-bore "pot comedy," but it sure isn't shy about passing those joints around. Best of all, while
Pineapple Express will absolutely appeal to both the casual and committed pot-smokers, it's also just a very funny buddy comedy / action flick parody that comes bearing the very unique stamp of director
David Gordon Green.
Continue reading Review: Pineapple Express
Posted Aug 2nd 2008 11:03AM by Nick Schager
Filed under: Documentary, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews
A non-fiction inquiry into the toxic ramifications of the U.S.'s obsession with female beauty, Darryl Roberts'
America the Beautiful certainly doesn't lack for a worthy topic, nor for endless avenues of investigation. Choice subject matter, however, only gets a film so far, and the director's everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach to tackling the myriad ways that women are beset by unreasonable and/or dangerous body-image ideals ultimately does as much harm as good.
Roberts is well-trained in the Michael Moore school of documentary filmmaking, using a personal story - his break-up with a potential wife over superficial qualms with her looks - as the impetus for a wide-ranging analysis of the modeling industry, the cosmetics trade, magazine advertising, the field of plastic surgery, and, for good measure, a tragic tale of bulimia to cap things off in suitably wrenching, cautionary-tale fashion. His strategy is to cram in as many facts and tidbits as 105 minutes will allow in order to present an overwhelmingly damning case against our cultural priorities. Frustratingly, though, his film is sometimes overwhelming less because of its convincing conclusions than simply because of its mountain of cursorily handled arguments.
Continue reading Review: America the Beautiful
Posted Aug 1st 2008 9:03AM by James Rocchi
Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Disney, Theatrical Reviews, Politics
It must be a horrible, wonderful thing to be a movie star in this modern age -- rewarded and yet tightly caged by the public's perception of you. Stay within the expectations of the ticket-buying public, and you're likely (or, more accurately, more likely) to not fall off the public's radar; at the same time, that gilded cage must, at some point, feel more and more like a prison. I mention this in talking about
Swing Vote because
Kevin Costner manages a somewhat nifty trick in his performance as Bud Johnston, a New Mexico ne'er-do-well who, thanks to a close-fought election and a voting machine error, gets to pick the next president. Oh, sure, we all do that on voting day -- but, due to a electoral college tie and a tie in New Mexico, it turns out Bud's vote will be the deciding one. For, well, everyone. Before this is established by Jason Richman and Joshua Michael Stern's screenplay, though, we get a sense of Bud -- and, at first, Bud seems like another in a long line of Kevin Costner likable rascals from
Bull Durham's Crash Davis to
Tin Cup's Roy MacAvoy. But Bud is something more interesting -- a man whose charm can't quite cover up the holes in his soul. Bud's a drunkard. Bud's lazy. And if it weren't for his daughter Molly (
Madeline Carroll), Bud would be even more adrift and frayed. Early, Bud tells his civic-minded daughter that " ... voting doesn't count for a goddamn thing." Bud's the kind of guy who's wrong a lot -- and he knows it -- but, thanks to the gentle contortions of
Swing Vote's plot, never more so than now.
Continue reading Review: Swing Vote
Posted Jul 31st 2008 10:02PM by Jette Kernion
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New Releases, Universal, Theatrical Reviews
I haven't seen the previous two movies in the
Mummy series, although people have recommended them to me as rollicking old-fashioned action-adventure movies, from the same Saturday-afternoon-matinee roots as the
Indiana Jones series -- not exactly brain teasers, but good silly fun. The good news is that if you too haven't seen the preceding movies, you can watch
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor without fear of getting confused or lost or not understanding the recurring characters. The bad news is that regardless of whether you've watched the other films, the third
Mummy entry is a headache-inducing mess that piles on unimpressive special effects to stretch a slight and often incomprehensible storyline.
The movie begins with an extended backstory: the history of the Dragon Emperor from thousands of years ago, in which a ruthless tyrant (
Jet Li) bargained with an infamous witch (
Michelle Yeoh) in his ambitious drive to seek immortality. The backstory, narrated in a manner befitting the History Channel, goes on for far longer than necessary. (
Hellboy II did this so much better and faster, and with cool puppetry too.) It's a full 10 minutes before the story begins and we encounter the leads from the previous
Mummy films, Rick O'Connell (
Brendan Fraser) and his wife Evelyn (
Maria Bello this go-round), who have retired from the action business and are trying to lead humdrum lives in the English countryside.
Continue reading Review: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Posted Jul 28th 2008 9:03PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Sony, Theatrical Reviews, ComicCon
I won't get into the precise reasons, but my friends always seem to think I'm going to LOVE the next big "pot comedy." They chuckle and assume such silly things despite the fact that the only real pothead comedies that I truly enjoy are
Up in Smoke,
Next Movie, and a large portion of the
Harold & Kumar misadventures. Frankly I'm of the opinion that most pot comedies
feel like they were written by someone very stoned, and let's just say that writers don't
always do their best work when they're extra-baked. (They might THINK their stuff is hilarious, but usually it's not. That's just the weed talking.) Oh, you'll definitely find a few cannabis-caked giggles in
Half-Baked,
Grandma's Boy, and
Smiley Face -- just not enough to sustain a whole movie, if it's me you're asking.
So it is with much pleasure, enthusiasm, and recently-applied Visine that I offer you
Pineapple Express, which just may be the
Casablanca of Pot Comedies. Or perhaps it's more like
When Ultra-High Harry Met Super-Stoned Sally, but either way
Pineapple Express showcases some of the funniest "weed culture" insights since the arrival of Richard Linklater's fantastic
Dazed & Confused -- which I wouldn't call a full-bore "pot comedy," but it sure isn't shy about passing those joints around. Best of all, while
Pineapple Express will absolutely appeal to both the casual and committed pot-smokers, it's also just a very funny buddy comedy / action flick parody that comes bearing the very unique stamp of director
David Gordon Green.
Continue reading SDCC Review: Pineapple Express
Posted Jul 27th 2008 11:02AM by Nick Schager
Filed under: New Releases, Theatrical Reviews
Mobile, Alabama is home to America's oldest Mardi Gras celebration, founded in 1703. What makes it truly unique, however, isn't its longevity but, rather, its composition, as the city's celebration is, in fact, two celebrations: one for Caucasians, and one for African-Americans. An overt vestige of the South's legacy of segregation, these dual Mardi Gras festivities provide a stark view of the intractability of racial prejudice. Yet Margaret Brown's
The Order of Myths is less a vitriolic critique than a considerate, despairing depiction of the intractable sway exerted by long-held, unpleasant traditions. And unpleasant they most certainly are, having crept into the very fabric of Mobile life to an extent that, in most cases, neither African-Americans nor Caucasians are willing to wholly decry this separate-but-equal arrangement, content to chalk it up to the accepted, and acceptable, way things are. Accepted it unquestionably is. But as Brown's shrewd doc makes clear through tight editorial juxtapositions, telling snapshots, and refusal to belittle or disparage her sometimes-repugnant subjects, acceptable it most certainly is not.
Continue reading Review: The Order of Myths
Posted Jul 27th 2008 9:02AM by Jeffrey M. Anderson
Filed under: Documentary, Music & Musicals, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews
In May of 1970, Neil Young quickly wrote a song called "Ohio," hotly responding to the Kent State shootings, during which the National Guard killed four students and wounded nine others. He recorded it with David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, who had just come off a hit record from the previous year, and the song peaked at #14 on the pop charts. Over the years, Young has recorded several such protest and/or political songs, including 1967's "For What It's Worth," 1970's "Southern Man" and 1989's "Rockin' in the Free World," which slyly took a stab at then President George H. W. Bush by mentioning his campaign speech staple "a thousand points of light." Young is now in his 60s and once again something pissed him off to the point that he has gone back to the recording studio. This time though, there's no beating around the bush (so to speak). No more messages hidden inside innocuous song titles. This time we get "Let's Impeach the President."
Continue reading Review: CSNY Déjà vu
Posted Jul 26th 2008 9:03PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Horror, Lionsgate Films, Theatrical Reviews, ComicCon
Easily the best Clive Barker adaptation since the first Hellraiser film, Ryuhei Kitamura's The Midnight Meat Train is so absolutely a "horror fans only" experience that I'm not surprised that Lionsgate wants to give it only a cursory theatrical release before dumping it into DVD. I do not mean that as a knock on the film. As a matter of fact, this is certainly one of the most effective horror films of the year -- but man, oh man... it would be a really tough sell on 1,200 screens. It's kind of an unfair catch-22 where certain horror movies are concerned: if you "go dark," dabble in grimness, and don't cater to the under-18 crowd, then there's a good chance your "hardcore" horror movie will debut on DVD (at best) or, like The Mist and The Ruins, arrive in theaters very quietly.
But let's hear it for the filmmakers who still insist on pushing the envelope, giving the horror fans something dark and challenging, and focusing more on mood, atmosphere, and scares more than in catering to the widest audience possible. Frankly, if The Midnight Meat Train hits only 100 screens (which is Lionsgate's current plan), I'd take that as a compliment paid to the movie: This is not a mainstream horror flick. If all you know of horror films is stuff like Prom Night, consider yourself warned.
Continue reading SDCC Review: The Midnight Meat Train
Posted Jul 26th 2008 1:02PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Comedy, Theatrical Reviews, Fandom, ComicCon
.jpg)
Considering how much trouble Kyle Newman's
Fanboys has withstood in its travels to the multiplexes, I pretty much expected the flick to be an amiable mess. It's been widely reported that the comedy was plagued by multiple reshoots, numerous release date changes, and a producer who (at
least temporarily) wanted to suck the heart and soul right out of the flick. So as I walked into an early preview of Fanboys at San Diego Comic-Con, I was hopeful -- but frankly I wasn't expecting a big winner. But hey, aside from a few flat stretches here and there,
Fanboys actually has a lot to offer: Strong chemistry among four funny young actors, a "road trip" conceit that flows along quite smoothly, and more Star Wars references than you hardcore geeks will know what to do with. So what I expected to be a big fat mess of a movie turned out to be pretty dang fun -- quadruply so if you happen to be a Star Wars fanatic.
The story is as simple as a road movie needs: Inspired by the unfortunate news that one of their pals is dying of cancer, three hardcore Star Wars geeks decide to travel from Ohio to California, break into Skywalker Ranch, and steal an early print of
The Phantom Menace, which isn't due to hit theaters for another six months. (Yes,
Fanboys is a period piece: It takes place in 1998.) Sure, that's a pretty broad and silly idea on which to hang a whole movie -- but
Fanboys isn't really about logical actions and realistic adventures: It's about four Lucas disciples who get into a series of odd misadventures as they trek* across the country to steal themselves some Star Wars.
(* One of the movie's funniest subplots involves an ongoing war between our Star Wars fanboys, and a nasty group of mega-Trekkies -- the most obnoxious one played by a nearly unrecognizable Seth Rogen. As usual, Rogen steals a handful of scenes without breaking a sweat.)
Continue reading SDCC '08 Review: Fanboys
Posted Jul 25th 2008 5:02PM by Kim Voynar
Filed under: Classics, Drama, Gay & Lesbian, Romance, Theatrical Reviews, Cinematical Indie
Some might question whether Brideshead Revisited, the classic novel by Evelyn Waugh, needed to be revisited in a film adaptation; the novel, after all, has been adapted once before in a lengthy and well-beloved British television serial. Fortunately for fans of Waugh's work, this film version of Brideshead, directed by Julian Jarrold (Kinky Boots, Becoming Jane) off a screenplay written by Jeremy Brock and Andrew Davies, is beautifully shot, painstakingly directed, and well worth watching. For the most part, the filmmakers avoid mutilating Waugh's work, although the end result does place a greater emphasis on certain aspects (romance) and limit or eliminate others altogether (the brilliantly written discourses on religion and love that permeate the book).
The film is shot in Castle Howard, also the setting for the miniseries version, and Brideshead itself is a majestic, imposing character that looms over all who encounter it. The screenplay is rather a masterful adaptation; the film handles the compression of years through the storyline with a bit of book-ended time-jumping to both introduce us to the lead characters and close out the story, and Brock and Davies do an able job of whittling the story down to meet the needs of a cinematic experience without losing the feel of Waugh's novel in the process.
Continue reading Review: Brideshead Revisited
Posted Jul 25th 2008 2:02PM by James Rocchi
Filed under: Documentary, Theatrical Reviews, Cinematical Indie, Paramount Vantage
.jpg)
(With
American Teen opening in theaters today, we at
Cinematical are re-running our review from Sundance.)
Nanette Burstein's documentary
American Teen opens not far from John Hughes country, both geographically and artistically: we're introduced, in quick order, to four students at the high school in Warsaw, Indiana, on the first day of class. But while the camera work and voice-over has the glossy fizz of fiction, it's nonetheless a real school, and while the kids we meet all correlate roughly to the archetypal teens of fiction, they're real too. We meet Hannah, the plucky, artsy outsider; Colin, the star athlete with a heart of gold; Megan, the prom queen whose school-spirit high-fives hide an iron fist; and smart, insecure, dorky Jake, all in quick succession. And while part of your mind reels at the clichés -- we're just one Judd Nelson-type away from a straight flush, for heaven's sake -- as Burstein's film unfolds, we realize that if there ever was a place cliché's were true, it's high school.
Continue reading Review: American Teen
Posted Jul 25th 2008 9:02AM by Jeffrey M. Anderson
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New Releases, Theatrical Reviews, 20th Century Fox
Six years have passed since "The X-Files" went off the air after nine seasons; fans agree that it left with a whimper rather than a bang, and ten years have passed since the first and only feature film. So the question of the day is: why a sequel? Why now? But perhaps a better question is "why not?" The fact is that FBI special agents Fox Mulder (
David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (
Gillian Anderson) always had vats of chemistry; they arguably outstripped and outranked any other male-female couple in the history of television. Their pairing was perfect: Mulder believed -- or wanted to believe -- in the supernatural while Scully was a scientist, a doctor and a Catholic who believed in God but looked for reasonable, logical explanations in everything. In each episode, the team was called in to investigate some kind of paranormal activity, and they debated and discussed the various possibilities behind each. In the end, hardly anything was ever proved or disproved.
Continue reading Review: The X-Files: I Want to Believe - Jeffrey's Take
Next Page >
