PHOTOS
Jeff Boam
Opening This Weekend
The Box
Cameron Diaz, James Marsden
The mind behind modern cult classic Donnie Darko pretty much had the pick of the H’wood litter after his bizarre, time-tripping, debut feature turned heads in the film biz, so Richard Kelly chose to follow up with an overlong, star-studded, post-apocalyptic comic book romp called Southland Tales. The sci-fi fantasy barely made a blip on the box office radar. Warner Brothers, however, saw fit to invest in Kelly’s latest, a Twilight Zone throwback called The Box. In this ‘70s-set PG-13-rated thriller, Diaz and Marsden star as an unhappy couple who are gifted with a mysterious box that brings enormous wealth … but only at a deadly cost. The Plus: The players. Kelly pulled much talent for Southland Tales (Sarah Michelle Gellar, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Justin Timberlake, Seann William Scott) because of Donnie Darko; that trend continues. Diaz (What Happens in Vegas, My Sister’s Keeper), Marsden (X-Men, 27 Dresses) and Frank Langella (hot off of an Oscar nomination for Frost/Nixon) check-marked The Box. The Minus: The scuttle. Southland Tales was a hot mess, which gives credence to the possibility that Kelly is a one-pump Charlie.
Disney’s A Christmas Carol
Voices of Jim Carrey, Bob Hoskins
Second only to Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Charles Dickens’ novella A Christmas Carol is the literary work that has received the most big-screen treatments. Disney is hoping that audiences have room in their hearts for one more. In this 3-D G-rated all-animated version directed by Robert Zemeckis, Carrey pulls quadruple duty, voicing Ebenezer Scrooge and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future. Christopher Lloyd provides the voice of Marley’s Ghost while Robin Wright Penn, Colin Firth and Gary Oldman also provide their pipes. The Plus: The players. Carrey is good at making audiences laugh (Bruce Almighty, Yes Man) and has done well-regarded family friendly work before (Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events). Also, Zemeckis is an Oscar winner (Forrest Gump) with an audience-friendly resumé to beat the band (Who Famed Roger Rabbit?, Back to the Future). The Minus: The medium. For better or worse, Zemeckis has been down this computer-animated road before (The Polar Express, Beowulf) and though the SFX work has gotten better, there has come the critical backlash that the characters look far from lifelike and Beowulf’s lackluster B.O. grosses may reflect this.
The Fourth Kind
Milla Jovovich, Elias Koteas
After several small but noticeable parts in memorable productions (Chaplin, Dazed & Confused), Jovovich achieved a star status with the release of the sci-fi comedy-actioner The Fifth Element. With the blockbuster video game adaptation Resident Evil and its sequels, she cemented this status again and again (Apocalypse) and again (Extinction). With the forthcoming Resident Evil: Afterlife scheduled to bow in 2010, Jovovich has the clout to headline projects like The Fourth Kind. In this PG-13-rated thriller, a psychologist (Jovovich) discovers unsettling evidence of alien abductions in small-town Alaska. The Plus: The genre. Though it doesn’t use a faux documentary style, The Fourth Kind does tease moviegoers with a “based on real events”-type fervor. Such trappings helped to get otherworldly phenomenon Paranormal Activity into a lofty B.O. position. The Minus: The players. This is director Olatunde Osunsanmi’s debut … after cutting his teeth being an assistant to filmmaker Joe Carnahan and writing the screenplay to Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassins’ Ball. The concept sounds a little too high-fallutin’ for a first-timer to pull off.
The Men Who Stare at Goats
George Clooney, Ewan McGregor
In this R-rated comedy based on true events, a reporter (McGregor) investigates a shadowy figure (Clooney) claiming to be a member of a secret U.S. military faction (Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges) that specializes in psychic warfare. The Plus: The players. Come Oscar time, Clooney proves to be an ace in the hole so far as nominations go (Good Night, And Good Luck; Michael Clayton). Add in acclaimed screenwriter Grant Heslov as director plus a slew of respected actors (McGregor, Spacey, Bridges) and H’wood has a potential awards front-runner. The Minus: The odds. But the nominations don’t necessarily turn into actual awards or huge box office grosses.
A Serious Man
Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind
Writer/directors Joel and Ethan Coen solidified their star with Best Picture, Best Direction and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar wins for 2007’s No Country for Old Men. In the Coens’ latest, the ‘60s-set R-rated dramedy A Simple Man, a Midwestern physics professor (Stuhlbarg) struggles to find clarity in the universe when his rather normal life starts to unravel. The Plus: The players. A no-name cast aside, the Coen Brothers have given audiences some of the most compelling comedies of the last 20 years (Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?). The decent reviews received by last year’s Burn After Reading only strengthens this record. The Minus: The odds. But they have also churned out their share of poorly received comedies as well (The Hudsucker Proxy, Intolerable Cruelty, The Ladykillers).
Now Playing
Michael Jackson’s This is It
Michael Jackson, Kenny Ortega
Just weeks ago, your reviewer and his girlfriend were at a friend’s house for an intimate dinner party, the guest list for which included an accomplished film editor, a renowned musician and a celebrated playwright among its numbers. After dinner, we all retreated to the parlor and watched a DVD of The Carol Burnett Show. One particular episode featured a musical performance by The Jackson Five from 1974 and everybody in the room fell slack-jawed, speechless and dumbstruck at how — despite their hard-hoofing sweat and ability — no other sibling/performer could even come close to matching the standout singing and dancing talent of young Michael Jackson. These accolades were not borne out of the recent wave of Jackson mourning that adorned every magazine cover and comprised every TV news program in the wake of his death in late June — surely, these media-conscious working artists were unaffected by such Barnum. No, it was simply a matter of witnessing pure, raw musical ability. Period. With the exceptional This Is It, itself under fire by the uninitiated as a gratuitous piece of Barnum, the realization of this talent comes full circle. Admittedly, this doc was not the grave-robbing piece of money-grubbing pop culture that your reviewer was expecting.
This PG-rated documentary, which was compiled from behind-the-scenes rehearsal footage, gives moviegoers a rare glimpse into The King of Pop’s once forthcoming sold-out London arena comeback tour. The parameters of the doc (initially, the footage was not intended for release, which doesn’t allow for any narration or much of a natural flow) make it flawed so far as a neat-n-tidy presentation goes. Considering that director Kenny Ortega gives moviegoers nearly two hours of amazingly entertaining footage culmed from only four months and 80 hours of footage, however, it’s downright amazing how nearly perfect this “concert film” actually is.
Jackson emerges as a driven perfectionist with an awe-striking musical ability. Iconic smash hit (“Man in the Mirror”) after iconic smash hit (“Beat It”) is bested by decadently Babylonian set pieces that may have made this the single greatest concert experience. Ever. The songs are not lip-synced (granted, Jackson doesn’t belt them out either as he was conserving his voice for the performance dates), which betrays an unfettered emotion and seriousness previously unseen by audiences. Indeed, for an artist who lived as far away from the public eye as humanly possible, this footage makes Jackson remarkably accessible.
It smartly avoids addressing Jackson’s sordid past as much as it does his deification. The caricature that had informed Jackson’s recent controversial life (sexual abuse allegations, financial problems) ebbs away naturally as Jackson proves how he became the MTV Generation’s biggest star. The doc doesn’t have the crushing timely impact of the murder scene from The Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter, but it does have timeliness. It doesn’t have the defining benchmark performances from The Band’s The Last Waltz, but it does have great performances. It doesn’t have that almost intimate backstage-at-the-greatest-concert-ever feeling that comes from watching The Monterey Pop Festival, but it does have intimacy. Then again, it had never intended to be seen. Period. Bottom line: Don’t stop ’til you get a glance.
Amelia
Hilary Swank, Richard Gere
In this PG-rated biopic better suited as a cable Movie of the Week, the flights and loves (Gere, Ewan McGregor) of larger-than-life aviatrix Amelia Earhart (Swank) make her a global phenomenon. Swank and Gere embody their roles splendidly, but never generate the sparks necessary for an on-screen romance that spans the breadth of the movie. In the hands of director Mira Nair, they are never at a loss for beautiful trappings. Perhaps, Amelia’s greatest strengths lie in the few Oscar boxes that it doesn’t check off. Coming in less than two hours, this breezy biopic feels anything but epic. Also, all involved managed to render Earhart’s life with a family-friendly PG rating and NOT make it feel cloyingly unreal. Still, perhaps because of this, it comes off more as a filmstrip than hard-hitting biography. Bottom line: Plane average.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Voices of Bill Hader, Anna Faris
In this PG-rated animated adaptation, an inventor (Hader) tries to solve a food shortage and inadvertently causes food to fall from the sky in abundance. It tries to pull a Pixar, making a smart cartoon that both kids and adults can enjoy, but misses the mark on both. The smart-alecky zingers are above kids’ heads, but below the standards of their parents, meaning many of the jokes end up in the ether. The blame falls on a half-baked script. The screenwriters put together gags that hold promise but never fully deliver. For example, a monkey wears a device that audibly voices his simple thoughts, but — aside from saying his name, Steve — the punchline never comes. The end product is occasionally fun but never out-and-out funtastic. Bottom line: Bad weather report.
Couples Retreat
Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau
In this PG-13-rated comedy, four couples (Vaughn, Malin Akerman; Favreau, Kristin Davis; Jason Bateman, Kristen Bell; Faizon Love, Kali Hawk) embark on a journey to a tropical island resort only to find that their group-rate vacation comes at the high cost of therapy. While hungry younger actors, Vaughn and Favreau once wowed your reviewer as a modern-day Matthau and Lemmon in Swingers and (to a lesser degree) Made. Together again with less to prove, these now-established H’wood players give audiences a comedy that’s more Ritz Brothers than Marx Brothers — humorous, but far from their personal best. They stand and deliver standard fluff (she loves me, she loves me not) with tired gags (hi-jinks in a tropical paradise) and a tidy ending, coloring-by-numbers where once they colored outside of the lines. Bottom line: Beat a hasty retreat.
Paranormal Activity
Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat
In this R-rated doc-style thriller made for less than $15,000, a suburban couple (Featherston, Sloat) becomes increasingly disturbed by a presence that comes in the middle of the night, so they try to catch it on video as they sleep. Brimming with scarily good material that matches the inventiveness of the gimmick, Paranormal Activity gives so many thrills with such little popcorn extravagance that it would scare the bejesus out of The Blair Witch. Writer/director Oren Peli more than just comes up with a winning premise — he truly sells it through. Thanks to a slow build-up, an ample investment in the characters (and authentic performances) and a damn frightening payoff, the audience buys every frame crook, line and sinker. Moviegoers become every bloody bit as terrorized as those on-screen. Bottom line: Too cool for ghoul school.
Saw VI
Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor
This God-awful R-rated horror flick finds homicidal maniac Jigsaw (Bell) being succeeded by a rogue cop (Mandylor) who inflicts more grizzly life-or-death puzzles on victims — with the FBI hot on his trail. Your reviewer has heard of whack-a-doodles who get their jollies by watching car accidents … he just hasn’t met the crazies yet. Saw, a franchise that works off pretty much this same principle, makes up for its boring fifth entry by giving masochistic viewers violence so gob-smackingly brutal that the MPAA should be tortured for not giving Saw VI an NC-17 rating. The writers now find themselves selling through some knee-slapping bullshit involving a copycat killer, but they ran out of new torture devices. No matter … they have recycled some past tortures and simply ramped up the puerile violence to a nauseating degree. Bottom line: See. Saw. Soused.
Where the Wild Things Are
Catherine Keener, Max Records
In this PG-rated adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s book, a rambunctious and sensitive boy named Max (Records) escapes to a mysterious island full of strange creatures (voices of James Gandolfini, Forest Whitaker) where he becomes king. Director Spike Jonze delivers a film so organically rich and ferociously imaginative that it feels like it could have been made in the ’70s when maverick filmmakers were given creative control from the studios with a keys-to-the-asylum kind of wild abandon. Your reviewer can’t remember a film in recent memory that better illustrated the thrills and pills of being a kid — and he means illustrated. From the frenetic opening shot, Jonze gives filmgoers a kids’-eye view of the high emotions and feral energy that boils down to adolescence. Bottom line: Makes your heart sing.