Review: "Transporter 2" Offers Good Fight Scenes, Little Else

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 141 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Transporter 2 (2005)
Running time:  88 minutes (1 hour, 28 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of violent action, sexual content, partial nudity, and brief language
DIRECTOR:  Louis Leterrier
WRITERS:  Luc Besson & Robert Mark Kamen (based upon characters created by Luc Besson & Robert Mark Kamen )
PRODUCERS:  Steve Chasman and Luc Besson
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Mitchell Amundsen
EDITOR:  Walter Mauriot, Christine Lucas Navarro, and Vincent Tabaillon
COMPOSER: Alexandre Azaria

ACTION/MARTIAL ARTS/THRILLER

Starring:  Jason Statham, Alessandro Gassman, Amber Valletta, Katie Nauta, Matthew Modine, Jason Flemyng, Keith David, Hunter Clary, Shannon Briggs, François Berléand, and Raymond Tong

Transporter 2 is a 2005 French action thriller from director Louis Leterrier and maestro Luc Besson and stars Jason Statham in the title role.  It is a sequel to the 2002 film, The Transporter.  In Transporter 2, mercenary Frank Martin is in Miami, Florida where he is implicated in the kidnapping of  the young son of a powerful U.S. government official

Transporter 2 is set in Miami, Florida.  There, ex-Special Forces operative, Frank Martin (Jason Statham), lives in retirement, but is still providing services as a transporter.  Martin is a professional driver with almost-supernatural driving skills in a supa dupa car who can transport anyone or anything – no questions asked.  For the past month, Frank has been the driver for the wealthy Billings family, driving young Jack Billings (Hunter Clary) back and forth to school.

When Gianni (Alessandro Gassman), a powerful gun-for-hire and criminal operative, has Jack kidnapped, Frank rushes to the rescue.  However, Jack has been injected with a deadly virus as a ploy to poison his father, Jefferson Billings (Matthew Modine), and in turn spread the deadly virus, killing Mr. Billings’ government and business associates.  Frank defies and eludes the FBI, who believes that he is behind the plot, while he tries to uncover Gianni’s master plan and stop a disastrous epidemic.

There was no reason for a sequel to 2002’s The Transporter, other than that it was an international box office hit.  Transporter 2 is not as good as the first, mainly because the original had Frank Martin in a romantic entanglement that was the humanizing element of the film against its manic martial arts-inspired fight sequences and unrelenting gun violence.  Corey Yuen, the director of the first film, is back for Transporter 2 only as the fight choreographer, and while his successor, Louis Leterrier, benefits from Yuen’s work on the fight scenes, Leterrier didn’t inherit anything else from the original.  Thus, Transporter 2’s fight sequences are excellent in keeping with the spirit of The Transporter, but there just ain’t no soul.  I was only mildly entertained with this as a movie, but I bet electronic games fans would get a kick out of this as a video game.  We shouldn’t buy tickets to the cinema to see a flick and get instead a video game.  The child character, Jack Billings, could have been the soul of this film, they way the love interest was in the original, but Jack is just the object that starts the ball rolling towards a series of violent, supernatural, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon/Hero martial arts fight scenes.

Jason Statham has a nice film personality, but this time he wears Frank Martin as if he’s just a video game character and Transporter 2 is just the latest installment in a video game franchise.  If you waited to see the first film on home video, it would only be right to wait for Transporter 2 on DVD and home video, as it is inferior and should not be honored with the movie ticket purchase you didn’t give the first film.  This might sound nerdy and pretentious, but Transporter 2 is a pedestrian fight movie with great fights, but the kind of story that shows up in made-for-cable action movies.

5 of 10
C+

Revised: Thursday, September 3, 2015


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint syndication rights and fees.

Review: "The White Countess" Does Not Quite Capture Old Merchant Ivory Magic (Remembering Natasha Richardson)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 131 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The White Countess (2005)
Running time:  136 minutes (2 hours, 16 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some violent images and thematic elements
DIRECTOR:  James Ivory
WRITER:  Kazuo Ishiguro
PRODUCER:  Ismail Merchant
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Christopher Doyle (director of photography)
EDITOR:  John David Allen
COMPOSER:  Richard Robbins

DRAMA/HISTORICAL with elements of romance

Starring:  Ralph Fiennes, Natasha Richardson, Vanessa Redgrave, Hiroyuki Sanada, Lynn Redgrave, Allan Corduner, Da Ying, and Madeleine Daly

The subject of this movie review is The White Countess, a 2005 period drama from director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant for their Merchant Ivory Productions.  This is the last film produced by Merchant, who died during production of the film.  Written by Kazuo Ishiguro, The White Countess is set in 1930s Shanghai and focuses on a blind American diplomat and a young Russian trying to support members of her dead husband’s aristocratic family.

A traumatic political event took the lives of both his wife and son, and a second one killed his daughter and blinded him.  Now, 40-something, disenchanted, ex-U.S. diplomat Todd Jackson (Ralph Fiennes) lives a lonely life amid the political turmoil of 1930’s Shanghai, and dreams of owning a gentleman’s club – the kind that he can still see in his mind and quite unlike the hotels and clubs in which he currently languishes.

However, his life changes when he crosses paths with Countess Sofia Belinskya (Natasha Richardson), a widowed Russian countess living in impoverished exile with her in-laws and her daughter.  Where once she lived the life of nobility, now, she accepts sordid jobs to support her family.  When fortune strikes and gives Jackson the means to open his bar, he names it The White Countess, and convinces Sofia to accept a job as the club’s hostess.  But will he have the strength to admit his love before a coming Japanese invasion of Shanghai separates them forever?

The team of director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant are known to the film world as Merchant Ivory Productions and have produced such Oscar-winning and Oscar-nominated films as A Room with a View, Howard’s End, and Remains of the Day.  The Indian born Merchant (who also directed films) died in May of 2005, and The White Countess was his final collaboration with James Ivory.  The film is quiet and lacks the grandeur of the better-known Merchant Ivory Production like Howard’s End.  It’s very low key, and dialogue moves the narrative.  It’s almost as if The White Countess is more a historical epic made for television than it is a work for the cinema.

Ralph Fiennes and Natasha Richardson give strange, quiet performances.  Fiennes is as usual quite good, and Richardson is mysterious and detached.  One would think that the two couldn’t have any chemistry, but their facial expressions and subtle physical movements give their characters and their relationship a deeply evocative tone.  They essentially define this slow moving, but classy period piece, as all the other actors seem to follow their tranquil acting.

In fact, there are a number of fine supporting performances including a rare appearance in the same film by famous acting sisters, Vanessa Redgrave and Lynn Redgrave (real life mother and aunt respectively of Natasha Richardson), in small but well-done roles.  Hiroyuki Sanada gives an excellent turn as the mysterious Mr. Matsuda, who establishes the film’s exotic, but politically volatile setting, 1930’s Shanghai.  The White Countess may seem overly serene at times, but the impeccable cast makes it a good choice for fans of fine acting and Merchant Ivory films.

6 of 10
B

Saturday, June 17, 2006

Updated:  Tuesday, March 18, 2014

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Thank You for Smoking" is Too Glib (Happy B'day, Aaron Eckhart)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 229 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Running time:  93 minutes (1 hour, 33 minutes)
MPAA – R for language and some sexual content
DIRECTOR:  Jason Reitman
WRITERS:  Jason Reitman (based upon the novel by Christopher Buckley)
PRODUCER:  David O. Sacks
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  James Whitaker (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Dana E. Glauberman
COMPOSER:  Rolfe Kent
Golden Globes nominee

COMEDY with elements of drama

Starring:  Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello, Cameron Bright, Sam Elliot, Katie Holmes, David Koechner, Rob Lowe, William H. Macy, J.K. Simmons, and Robert Duvall, Kim Dickens, Adam Brody, and Todd Louiso

The subject of this movie review is Thank You for Smoking, a 2005 satirical comedy written for the screen and directed by Jason Reitman.  The film is based on the 1994 novel, Thank You for Smoking, by author Christopher Buckley.  Thank You for Smoking the movie follows the tobacco industry’s chief spokesman as he spins and disseminates information on behalf of cigarettes, while trying to remain a role model for his twelve-year-old son.

As Vice-President of the Academy of Tobacco Studies, Nick Naylor (Aaron Eckhart) is the main lobbyist and primary spin doctor for Big Tobacco.  Naylor is on a mission to make the country forget the dangers and health risks of smoking cigarettes.  However, his mission gets tougher with health advocates and the opportunistic Senator Ortolan K. Finistirre (William H. Macy) determined to put a new poison label (in the form of an image of the skull & bones) on cigarette packs.  Naylor goes on the PR offensive with a strategy to get big Hollywood actors to smoke on screen, as the movie stars of yesteryear did in the Golden Age of Hollywood movies.  Nick enlists, Jeff Megall (Rob Lowe), a Hollywood super-agent, to help him get smoking on screen again.

However, Nicky’s newfound notoriety does not go unnoticed by Big Tobacco’s head honcho, The Captain (Robert Duvall), who gives his blessing to Nick’s Hollywood plan.  Nick’s activities also get the attention of a beautiful, young investigative reporter, Heather Halloway (Katie Holmes), who is willing to use her body to get Nick to tell her his secrets.  Even with a busy schedule, Nick still finds time to hold forth with two comrades – two other lobbyists for industries also facing public backlash: Polly Bailey (Maria Bello) of the alcohol industry and Bobby Jay Bliss (David Koechner) of the gun industry.  Together, the three of them are the Merchants of Death or M.O.D. Squad.  Nick’s also a father, and he’s trying to remain a role model to his young, impressionable son, Joey Naylor (Cameron Bright), who thinks his dad is a god, but Nick’s ex-wife, Jill Naylor (Kim Dickens), isn’t sure a tobacco lobbyist is the best dad material.

Jason Reitman, the son of famed comedy director, Ivan Reitman (Animal House, Ghostbusters), has a more cerebral approach to film comedy than his father, and that’s clearly evident in the clever, offhand satire, Thank You for Smoking, which Reitman adapted from the novel by Christopher Buckley.  The film comes across as a savage satire of the tobacco industry, but Reitman directs the film with such elegance that Thank You for Smoking sometimes comes across as glib and soulless.  In his attempt to impale Big Tobacco, and also throw sand in the face of shallow Hollywood, opportunistic big media, and shameless Congress, Reitman’s movie ends up gabby and has no real villains.  This is a satire that comes across as if it’s teasing its targets rather than criticizing them.

While Thank You for Smoking holds up the characters and subject matter for detached scrutiny, the cast isn’t afraid to get down and dirty.  The actors take delight in revealing the characters for all their oily selfishness.  They’re all out for their own interests, and what little guilt they feel merely adds a light pungent flavor to the characters.  The best performance is delivered, of course, by Aaron Eckhart as the film’s protagonist/quasi-villain, Nick Naylor.  A character actor who can play an amazing range of lead characters, Eckhart gives Thank You for Smoking its gift of gab.  Eckhart’s screen chemistry with Cameron Bright, the young actor who plays Nick’s son, Joey, is supernaturally real.  It’s like a real father and son duo.

Eckhart humanizes Naylor, and makes the viewer like him and want to engage him.  Thank You for Smoking is well-written and well-directed (considering the inexperience of the director), and the technical aspects are pretty good.  But it’s Aaron Eckhart who makes Thank You for Smoking something more than just another satirical film essay.  He makes it memorable.

7 of 10
B+

Monday, November 06, 2006

NOTES:
2007 Golden Globes:  2 nominations:  “Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy” (Aaron Eckhart)

Updated:  Wednesday, March 12, 2014


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

------------------------

Review: "Tsotsi" a Familiar Tale from Another Place

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 168 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Tsotsi (2005)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  South Africa and the U.K.; Languages:  Zulu, Afrikaans, and others
Running time:  95 minutes (1 hour, 35 minutes)
MPAA – R for language and some violent content
DIRECTOR:  Gavin Hood
WRITER:  Gavin Hood (based upon the novel by Athol Fugard)
PRODUCER:  Peter Fudakowski
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Lance Gewer
EDITOR:  Megan Gill
COMPOSERS:  Paul Hepker and Mark Kilian
Academy Award winner

DRAMA

Starring:  Presley Chweneyagae, Terry Pheto, Kenneth Nkosi, Mothusi Magano, Zenzo Ngqobe, Zola, Rapulana Seiphemo, Nambitha Mpumlwana, Jerry Mofokeng, Ian Roberts, Percy Matsemela, and Thembi Nyandeni

The subject of this movie review is Tsotsi, a 2005 South African drama adapted for the screen and directed by Gavin Hood.  The film is based on the 1980 novel, Tsotsi, from author Athol Fugard.  “Tsotsi” is apparently a slang word in Johannesburg, South Africa that can be translated to mean “thug.”  Tsotsi the film follows six days in the violent life of a young Johannesburg gang leader.

Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae) is a ruthless hood living in an impoverished township in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he leads the trio of miscreants that make up his gang.  One night he shoots a woman (Nambitha Mpumlwana) in a well-to-do suburban neighborhood and drives off in her car, but he discovers that he isn’t alone.  The woman’s infant son is in the backseat, so he grudgingly takes the infant to his humble abode.  Through his efforts to care for the baby, Tsotsi (his nickname is urban slang that loosely translates to “thug”) rediscovers compassion, self-respect, and the capacity to love, but he still struggles with his old ways.

Tsotsi won the 2006 Oscar for “Best Foreign Language Film of the Year” as a representative of South Africa. The film is sturdy and earnest, and maybe a little too melodramatic in its too obvious determination to spend a yarn of moral redemption.  Still, the film is powerful and the emotions run deep and are raw, primarily because of the lead character’s hardened criminal life.  It’s kind of hard to be sympathetic towards Tsotsi because his decisions lead to the murder of an innocent man and the wounding of several others.

What makes Tsotsi rise above preachy, well-meaning social drama is that this is basically a familiar tale, but set in an unfamiliar place with strange and exotic characters.  In that way, Tsotsi engages the viewer to discover a new way of looking at a familiar premise.  The performances are good, though not great.  Presley Chweneyagae, however, is a solid actor and carries the film like a veteran movie star.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2006 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win: “Best Foreign Language Film of the Year” (South Africa)

2006 BAFTA Awards:  2 nominations:  “Best Film not in the English Language” (Gavin Hood and Peter Fudakowski) and the “Carl Foreman Award for Most Promising Newcomer” (Peter Fudakowski-producer)

2006 Golden Globes:  1 nomination for “Best Foreign Language Film” (South Africa)

2007 Image Awards:  1 nomination: “Outstanding Independent or Foreign Film”

Monday, August 07, 2006

Updated:  Thursday, March 06, 2014

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

---------------------

Review: "Cry_Wolf" Worthy of Attention

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 149 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Cry_Wolf (2005)
Running time:  90 minutes (1 hour, 30 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for violence, terror, disturbing images, language, sexuality, and a brief drug reference
DIRECTOR:  Jeff Wadlow
WRITERS:  Jeff Wadlow and Beau Bauman
PRODUCER:  Beau Bauman
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Romeo Tirone
EDITOR:  Seth Gordon
COMPOSER:  Michael Wandmacher

HORROR/THRILLER/MYSTERY

Starring:  Julian Morris, Lindy Booth, Jared Padalecki, Jon Bon Jovi, Sandra McCoy, Kristy Wu, Jane Beard, Gary Cole, Jesse Janzen, Paul James, Ethan Cohn, and Michael Kennedy

The subject of this movie review is Cry_Wolf, a 2005 horror film and murder mystery from the team of Jeff Wadlow and Beau Bauman.  The film focuses on eight high school seniors at a posh boarding school whose lies catch up with them after they create a fake serial killer prank.

Tossed out of his old school, Owen Matthews (Julian Morris) arrives at prestigious Westlake Prep where he falls in with the school’s unofficial and self-appointed “liar’s club.”  Playing on the fear caused by a young woman recently found murdered in the woods, the friends decide to expand the reach of their game beyond campus.

They create an online rumor that the girl’s slaying is just the latest in a long line of killings by a serial killer known as “The Wolf.”  Owen and Dodger (Lindy Booth), a female student that he likes, even create an M.O. for The Wolf and describe the kind of victims he prefers to murder after his initial kill, in this case, the girl he supposedly murdered in the nearby woods.  However, the club bases the victims on the people they know – each other.

After journalism teacher Rich Walker (Jon Bon Jovi) admonishes him about the dangers of online predators and spreading fear on the Internet, Owen regrets personally sending the initial Wolf rumor into cyberspace.  Worse still, someone calling himself “The Wolf” starts sending Owen threats via email and one of the liar’s club turns up missing.  Owen and his friends don’t know where their lies end and the truth begins.  However, campus officials consider the eight friends to be troublemakers, with Owen the ringleader and the one destined for expulsion.  So when the gang cries for help, everyone else views the distress as another hoax perpetrated by bad youths.  Nobody believes a liar, even when they’re telling the truth – perhaps, the real Wolf is stalking them.

Co-writer/producer Beau Bauman and co-writer/director Jeff Wadlow’s offbeat horror flick, Cry_Wolf, creates a novel twist on slasher films.  The atmosphere is good – occasionally creepy and will sometimes put you on the edge of your seat.  A quirky suspense thriller, Cry_Wolf has so many interesting twists and turns, quiet a few of which would make sense in the real world.

The film’s major problem is, of course, Bauman and Wadlow’s script.  They try something different and their concept is good.  One thing that works is the dialogue and interpersonal dynamics between the high school age characters; it’s sharp, witty, blistering, and dead-on.  However, the tense relationship between Owen and his father (played by Gary Cole with a bad English accent) is treated like stock footage.

The script’s big slip up is on the characters themselves, all of which come across as limp or wispy.  Some, like Owen and Dodger, are very interesting, but the screenplay is so focused on genre trappings and putting a unique spin on said genre that it doesn’t have time for the kind of rich character play Owen and Dodger both need and deserve.  The rest of the participants are intriguing, but are ultimately (or technically, as it turns out) just body count fodder.

That makes Cry_Wolf like so many other scary movies, soft on script even when the story concept is exciting.  Still, there is something to be said for trying something new.  At the end of the day, Cry_Wolf says that there is something scarier that the unknown killer in the dark.  It’s the people we think we know, people with something to hide and scores to settle for the wrongs they think their friends, colleagues, and associates have done them.  How far they willing to go and whom they’re willing to manipulate to balance the accounts can chill to the bones.

6 of 10
B

Updated:  Sunday, February 09, 2014


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Stealth" Has Plenty of Cool Moments (Happy B'day, Richard Roxburgh)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 123 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Stealth (2005)
Running time:  121 minutes (2 hours, 1 minute)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense action, some violence, brief strong language, and innuendo
DIRECTOR:  Rob Cohen
WRITER:  W.D. Richter
PRODUCERS:  Mike Medavoy, Laura Ziskin, and Neal H. Moritz
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Dean Semler
EDITOR:  Stephen Rivkin
COMPOSER:  BT

SCI-FI/ACTION/THRILLER with elements of war

Starring:  Josh Lucas, Jessica Biel, Jamie Foxx, and Sam Shepard, Joe Morton, Richard Roxburgh, David Miller, and Wentworth Miller (voice)

The subject of this movie review is Stealth, a 2005 science fiction and action thriller from director Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious, xXx).  The film follows three pilots, who are part of a top-secret military program, and their struggle to control an artificial intelligence used to operate a robotic stealth aircraft.

Lt. Ben Gannon (Josh Lucas), Kara Wade (Jessica Biel), and Henry Purcell (Jamie Foxx) are three Navy pilots deeply ensconced in a top-secret military program that tests the next generation in fighter jets, the Talon.  The trio tests their Talons in preparation for strategic air strikes against terrorists and their leaders, and the strikes have to be dead perfect in order to absolutely minimize collateral damage, i.e. civilian deaths.  However, the pilots are saddled with a fourth jet; called EDI (voice of Wentworth Miller), the jet is unmanned, and is instead run by an artificially intelligent computer.  After being struck by lightning, EDI really develops a mind of its own and begins choosing its own targets.  Gannon, Wade, and Purcell must stop EDI before he/it starts a world war.

Rob Cohen, the man who directed The Fast and the Furious and xXx, brings us Stealth, and if The Fast and The Furious and Top Gun had a sci-fi baby, Stealth would be it.  Although the script by W.D. Richter borrows heavily from films such as the aforementioned Top Gun and also 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stealth is pure fun, packing all the eye-popping, adrenaline-rush, video game style action movie thrills of Cohen’s earlier films.  The dialogue is lame, and the acting is suspect, very much so at the beginning (don’t look for Jamie Foxx to come anywhere near the magic of his Oscar-winning performance in Ray); however, by the time we reach the middle of the film the cast is deep into action movie mode, spouting lines of intense dialogue and emoting just the way they should for a military thriller.

Stealth may be a throwaway summer action blockbuster, but like films such as Con Air, Face/Off, and Cohen’s other hit action flicks, this movie delivers, and it looks great on the big screen.  The jet flight sequences and battle scenes are thrilling; if you really dig such movies, this is a must see on the big screen.  Some may say that Stealth plays lightly with the consequences of dropping bombs on civilian populations and jets shooting missiles down from the sky, but this vicarious thrill is some of the best fun one can have at war games with nothing more than your eyes and neck strained or hurt.  Think of this as The Fast and the Furious of near future air combat, and sit back and enjoy the ride because Stealth can cure most any need for speed.

7 of 10
B+

Updated: Wednesday, January 01, 2014

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Unleashed" is Brutal (Happy B'day, Bob Hoskins)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 74 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Unleashed (2005) – USA title
Running time:  102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong violent content, language, and some sexuality/nudity
DIRECTOR:  Louis Leterrier
WRITER:  Luc Besson
PRODUCERS:  Luc Besson, Steve Chasman, and Jet Li
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Pierre Morel
EDITOR:  Nicolas Trembasiewicz
COMPOSERS:  Neil Davidge, Massive Attack

DRAMA/MARTIAL ARTS/CRIME

Starring:  Jet Li, Morgan Freeman, Bob Hoskins, and Kerry Condon

The subject of this movie review is Unleashed, a 2005 martial arts and crime film from writer Luc Besson and director Louis Leterrier.  The film was a French, British, and American co-production and was originally released under the title, Danny the Dog, but released in the United States as Unleashed.  The film centers on a man who has been enslaved by the mob since childhood and trained to act like a human attack dog, but who one day escapes his captors and attempts to start a new life.

On and beneath the mean streets of Glasgow, Bart (Bob Hoskins) destroys those who won’t pay their debts to him.  The fiery gangster has a nearly unbeatable weapon he uses to encourage debtors to pay him what they owe, one he also uses to put would-be rivals in their place.  This secret weapon is Bart’s enforcer, Danny (Jet Li), a martial arts fighter of near supernatural ability.  Danny has been kept a prisoner, for all practical purposes, by his “Uncle Bart” since he was a boy.  “Danny the Dog” wears a collar and lives the simple existence that Bart has crudely and cruelly fashioned for him; Danny can’t even remember his origins.  When Bart pulls his collar off, that’s the signal for Danny to attack, and he will either maim or kill – always as Bart dictates.

However, a chance encounter with a soft-spoken, blind piano tuner, Sam (Morgan Freeman), offers Danny a chance to find out what kindness and compassion are.  When a gangland coup inadvertently frees him, Danny finds his way back to Sam and begins to live with the kindly old soul and his daughter, Victoria (Kerry Condon).  They open their home and hearts to him, but the past comes knocking back into Danny’s life.  Now, he has to fight the mob to protect his new family and keep from returning to his old one.

Luc Besson is the French director of flashy action films such as The Fifth Element, but he has also produced a number of martial arts inflected films, including The Transporter franchise.  He went directly to the Hong Kong source for his Jet Li vehicle, Danny the Dog, known for its American release as Unleashed.  [I do not know if this film was re-edited and shortened by a few minutes, in addition to the name change, for its U.S. release.]  Unleashed is one of the few really good English-language martial arts dramas to hit the screen since Bruce Lee’s films in the early 1970’s.  What makes this film a solid and compelling production in which the drama is equal to the martial arts sequences is having two fine dramatic actors:  Morgan Freeman, who is arguably the best American actor working today, and Bob Hoskins, a superb character actor who is too often an afterthought.

Freeman does his wise old black man routine, but this time with a twist.  Sam is a man of culture with impeccable taste.  He is a man who savors life, and his other senses so deeply drink of life that it is as if he weren’t blind.  Kind yet vigilant, he is the ultimate father figure – protector and encourager.  Hoskins gives his Bart many flavors.  On one hand, he plays the gangster as a petty and petulant hood looking for his share; on the other hand, he is all too human in his cruelty.  There isn’t a whiff of the supernatural or paranormal about what Bart does; he is just a bad man.

Jet Li is the star, and even Jet fans like myself must face up to the fact that Li isn’t a great actor when he has to speak English.  He is, however, a great performer regardless of the language he speaks.  Those all-around, all-star abilities that a movie star must have – a blend of the physical, the mental, and the spiritual – he has.  Li lights up the screen every time he’s on, and he always draws attention to himself, no matter how many good actors may be on screen with him.  A human dynamo, Jet Li is truly a martial artist and a film artist.

Unleashed is quite good, but falters in the end – letting the drama whither on the vine so that Li and his adversaries can have their big, final confrontation, and what a confrontation it is.  The film plays at being an epic, but Besson’s script can’t be bothered with developing conflicts and motivations; we’re here to see Li fight and the script focuses on giving us that.  Watching that final battle makes me wonder when Li is going to get his “Crouching Tiger,” but in the meantime, we can enjoy Li’s best English language effort… yet.

7 of 10
B+

Saturday, April 15, 2006

Updated:  Saturday, October 26, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

-------------------------

Review: "Boogeyman" Didn't Have to Be a Disappointment (Happy B'day, Sam Raimi)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 21 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Boogeyman (2005)
Running time:  86 minutes (1 hour, 26 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of horror and terror/violence, and some partial nudity
DIRECTOR:  Stephen Kay
WRITERS:  Eric Kripke, Juliet Snowden and Stiles White; from a story by Eric Kripke
PRODUCERS:  Daniel Carrillo, Hans Jurgen Pohland, Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Bobby Bukowski
EDITOR:  John Axelrad
COMPOSER:  Joseph LoDuca

HORROR/MYSTERY/THRILLER

Starring:  Barry Watson, Emily Deschanel, Skye McCole Bartusiak, Lucy Lawless, Tory Mussett, Robyn Malcolm, Charles Mesure, Philip Gordon, and Andrew Glover

The subject of this movie review is Boogeyman, a 2005 horror film from director Stephen T. Kay.  A take on the classic fear of a “monster in the closet,” this film focuses on a young man who is still haunted by a childhood terror that has affected his life.

Boogeyman was co-produced by Sam Raimi (director of The Evil Dead and three Spider-Man films), and also yielded two direct-to-DVD sequels. Actor Barry Watson, who was one of the stars of the long-running television series, “7th Heaven,” plays the lead character in Boogeyman.

A young man named Tim Jensen (Barry Watson) is traumatized by events he believes happened in his childhood bedroom.  His memories tell him that as an eight-year old boy he saw the boogeyman (Andrew Glover) come out of his closet and steal his father (Charles Mesure) away from him.  Now years later, after his mother’s (Lucy Lawless) funeral, he returns to his family home to face his fears that may be either a monstrous entity stealing away those he loves or the figment of his sick mind.

Boogeyman is lightweight entertainment, but sometimes it’s a gooseflesh raising, edge-of-your-seat, horror movie, even the cheesy bits, of which there are many.  Quick cuts from one shot to another, bumps in the night, slamming doors, knocking from behind locked doors, closets, and walls, lots of night scenes, and day scenes that look like night scenes are on the menu for this film.  There is even a shot of the footsteps of an unknown person who may be the (gasp) boogeyman, but still horror movie buffs, even the most difficult to please, will find a few moments of genuine fears and thrills.

However, Boogeyman tries to be mystery story about a child abductor, a psychological horror film, a monster movie, a family melodrama, etc.  It finally adds up to a scary movie that abruptly runs out of gas after trying on the rags of just about every horror sub-genre.  It’ll leave you asking what happened.  The screenwriters and director are too coy and too cute by a mile, so the result of their creative efforts is a film barely worth a rental.

3 of 10
D+

Updated:  Wednesday, October 23, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

----------------------

Review: "The Devil's Rejects" a Different Kind of Crime Flick

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 79 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Devil’s Rejects (2005)
Running time:  101 minutes (1hour, 41 minutes)
MPAA – R for sadistic violence, strong sexual content, language, and drug use
DIRECTOR:  Rob Zombie
WRITER:  Rob Zombie (based upon his characters)
PRODUCERS:  Mike Elliot, Andy Gould, Marco Mehlitz, Michael Ohoven, and Rob Zombie
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Phil Parmet (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Glenn Garland
COMPOSER:  Tyler Bates

HORROR/CRIME/ACTION/THRILLER

Starring:  Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie, William Forsythe, Ken Foree, Matthew McGrory, Leslie Easterbrook, Geoffrey Lewis, Priscilla Barnes, Dave Sheridan, Ken Norby, Lew Temple, Danny Trejo, Diamond Dallas Page, and Tom Towles

The subject of this movie review is The Devil’s Rejects, a 2005 horror thriller and crime film from director Rob Zombie.  The film is a sequel to Zombie’s 2003 film, House of 1000 Corpses.  In the new film, the villains of the first movie are now seen as anti-hero types on the run from the law.

The Firefly Family or, as they call themselves, The Devil’s Rejects, a band of sadistic killers, wake up one morning to find their isolated farm hideout ambushed by the vengeful Sheriff John Quincy Wydell (William Forsythe) and a posse of his deputies.  With guns blazing, only Otis B. Driftwood (Bill Moseley) and his sister Baby Firefly (Sheri Moon Zombie) escape the barrage of bullets unharmed.

The duo hide out in an isolated desert motel waiting to be joined by another murderous relative, the killer clown, Captain Spaulding (Sid Haig), killing whoever stands in their way or angers them.  However, as the body count soars, Sheriff Wydell, seeking revenge for the Rejects’ murder of his brother, George Wydell (Tom Towles), decides to take matters into his own hands and begins a private and violent war against The Devil’s Rejects outside the jurisdiction of the law.

The Devil’s Rejects is Rob Zombie’s sequel to his controversial 2003 indie hit, House of 1000 Corpses.  Rejects is structurally better in terms of narrative flow and writing, and Zombie sprinkles his cast with a collection of character actors known either for their roles in violent action movies or for their cult status in TV and film.  Among them include Priscilla Barnes, who is best remembered as “Terri Allen,” the third and final blonde roommate on the popular late 70’s/early 80’s television sitcom, “Three’s Company,”  and Ken Foree, who was “Peter,” one of the four human survivors trapped in a shopping mall in the original 1978 Dawn of the Dead.

In fact, Zombie designed his film to look like one of those violent crime thrillers that were synonymous with 70’s cinema.  Even going back to the first film, this franchise was as much Deliverance as it was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  The film’s opening sequence, a bullet-laden shootout, is as good as any Hong Kong crime film and is as intense as the big shootout in Michael Mann’s Heat – though much shorter.  Zombie’s film is silly, sadistic, and unabashedly subversive.  While the film and its characters’ antics (both the “hero” and the “villains are brutal and vicious assholes) get old after awhile, Zombie doesn’t commit the same flawed, artistic pretensions he did in House of 1000 Corpses.

His film is gloriously and rebelliously a bloody, gore-laden, crime film about bad-asses headed for a showdown.  There are a few scenes and sequences in this film that true film fans cannot and must not miss.  Those who can take the buckets of blood, F-bombs (several hundred), and atrocious murders will find The Devil Rejects a welcomed respite from the highly-polished polished movies that currently pass for Hollywood’s version what a gritty crime flick is.

6 of 10
B

Monday, April 17, 2006

Updated:  Sunday, October 20, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Sky High" is Not That High (Happy B'day, Danielle Panabaker)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 131 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Sky High (2005)
Running time:  102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – PG for action violence and some mild language
DIRECTOR:  Mike Mitchell
WRITERS:  Paul Hernandez and Bob Schooley & Mark McCorkle
PRODUCER:  Andrew Gunn
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Shelly Johnson
EDITOR:  Peter Amundson
COMPOSER:  Michael Giacchino

FAMILY/FANTASY/SUPERHERO/ACTION/COMEDY

Starring:  Michael Angarano, Kelly Preston, Lynda Carter, Danielle Panabaker, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Bruce Campbell, Dave Foley, Steven Strait, Kevin McDonald, Cloris Leachman, and Kurt Russell, Khadijah (Haqq) and Malika (Haqq), Patrick Warburton (voice), Dee-Jay Daniels, and Kevin Heffernan

The subject of this movie review is Sky High, a 2005 superhero family film from Walt Disney Pictures.  Set in a world where superheroes are a common thing, Sky High follows a young superhero who struggles with being a normal teenager and with following in the footsteps of his parents, the world’s greatest superhero duo.

Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano) is the teenaged-son of Steve (Kurt Russell) and Josie Stronghold (Kelly Preston), who also happen to be the world’s greatest superhero duo, The Commander (Russell) and Jetstream (Ms. Preston).  Will is about to enter the freshmen class of Sky High, the first and only high school for kids with super powers.  The problem for Will is that puberty has not brought about the onset of any powers, so not only does he have to deal with the typical high school problems:  bullies, cliques, and teachers, but he also has to deal his father Steve, who has very high expectations for his son – a son who has no super powers.

The superhero teaching method at Sky High divides the students into two groups, “Heroes” and “Sidekicks.”  Not having any powers gets Will into the latter group, but he fits right in because his loyal childhood friend, Layla (Danielle Panabaker), is also a Sidekick.  However, Will still has to deal with his intimidating gym teacher, Coach Boomer (Bruce Campbell), and Warren Peace (Steven Strait), the son of a villain his father locked up long ago, and Peace, who can generate fire, plans on taking out his frustration about his father on Will.

Will does eventually find his powers, but it goes to his head.  His ego is much inflated when Gwen Grayson (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), a popular senior and head of the senior prom committee, chooses him as her prom date.  A dark villain, however, lurks somewhere in the shadows, seeking revenge against The Commander and Sky High, and Will just may be the key to the villain’s success or the savior of Sky High.

Sky High is in the tradition of the Walt Disney family films situated in fantastic settings or featuring characters that unwittingly encounter magic or the fantastic – films like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and The Shaggy Dog, or even Disney’s My Favorite Martian, their mid-90’s film version of the fondly remembered TV show.  In fact, Sky High’s special effects are still on the level of My Favorite Martian.  Both Sky High’s concept and final product are basically the kind of thing we’d get from The Disney Channel, but with a bigger budget and with the cast made of actors best known for their film roles, even if most of them are character actors, cult figures, and B and C-list stars.

That is much of the film’s charm – it’s cast.  Some critics and the Walt Disney Company’s publicity has described this as a cross between the Harry Potter series and the Disney/Pixar animated film, The Incredibles, but Sky High lacks the engaging characters and enthralling storytelling of the former and the spectacularly genuine superhero fantasy of the latter.  Basically, Sky High is a cheapie version of superheroes; it lacks the grandeur of classic superhero comics like the Fantastic Four, X-Men, Superman, and Spider-Man (which is something The Incredibles had), all of which have themes similar to Sky High.  The script doesn’t pave any new paths in the sub-genre of high school films, but instead follows the same road as most pedestrian fare set in high schools.  The plot is so predictable that you can see the happy ending and discover who the villains are before the midway point of the film.

However, Sky High (as stated earlier) has a good cast, and it has a good player in its lead character, Will Stronghold, superbly played by Michael Angarano in the teen-angst/awkward teen mode that dominates Disney Channel TV shows and television movies.  Angarano can play it all:  awkward, shy, bold, confident, jerk, hero, loyal son, and friend; he gives Will Stronghold the kind of dimension a lead character needs to sell a film to an audience.  Look for small, but nicely comic roles by “The Kids in the Hall” alums Dave Foley as The Commander’s old sidekick, All American Boy, and Kevin McDonald as Mr. Medulla, the science teacher with the big head that holds a giant and super smart brain.  On the other hand, Kurt Russell and Kelly Preston as Will’s parents are cardboard cutouts with only a few moments where they seem like real parents.

Overall, Sky High is a light, funny fantasy film in the tradition of G and PG-rated family fare that Disney does so well – perfect for the kiddies and grown folks who take this light-hearted fare for what it is.

6 of 10
B

Updated:  Thursday, September 19, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Elektra," Well, It's Better Than "Catwoman"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 10 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

Elektra (2005)
Running time:  97 minutes (1 hour, 37 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for action violence
DIRECTOR:  Rob Bowman
WRITERS:  Raven Metzner, Stu Zicherman, and Zak Penn; from a story by Zak Penn (based on movie characters created by Mark Steven Johnson and comic book characters created by Frank Miller)
PRODUCERS:  Avi Arad, Gary Foster, and Mark Steven Johnson
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Bill Roe
EDITOR:  Kevin Stitt
COMPOSER:  Christophe Beck

SUPERHERO/ACTION/THRILLER

Starring:  Jennifer Garner, Goran Visnjic, Kirsten Prout, Will Yun Lee, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Terence Stamp, Natassia Malthe, Bob Sapp, and Colin Cunningham with Jason Isaacs

The subject of this movie review is Elektra, a 2005 superhero film starring Jennifer Garner in the title role.  The film is based on the Marvel Comics’ character, Elektra, created by Frank Miller.  Elektra is a spin-off of the 2003 superhero movie, Daredevil, and Stan Lee, co-creator of the Daredevil character, is an executive producer on this movie, as well.  The new movie focuses on Elektra as she tries to protect a single father and his young daughter after being hired to kill them.

After dying in the 2003 film Daredevil, Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner) is alive and kicking in her own comic book based film, Elektra.  Elektra ain’t by no means great, but it’s far better than the lumbering, big budget blunder that was Daredevil.  And while Elektra isn’t worth a trip to the theatre for most moviegoers other than comic book fans and admirers of Ms. Garner’s figure, it’s worth a view of DVD.

The sai (a martial arts weapon) enthusiast Elektra is now an assassin for hire, and The Hand, the order of dark ninjas who trained Elektra and revived her from death, have hired her to kill Mark Miller (Goran Visnjic) and his daughter Abby (Kirsten Prout).  Abby is the “current generation’s” treasure, a gifted martial artist who can change the balance between good and evil.  Elektra is drawn to Abby and refuses to killer her, choosing to protect her and her father from The Hand.  Elektra’s refusal of The Hand’s contract and her subsequent interference sets The Hand’s master assassin, Kirigi (Will Yun Lee), and his quartet of dark super ninja after the trio.  Elektra seeks help from her first teacher, the blind sensei Stick (Terence Stamp), in hopes that he will take Abby and Mark off her hands.  Stick, however, has other plans, and forces Elektra to defend the girl and discover her own better nature, including dealing with her mother’s death and Kirigi’s part in it.

Elektra is a mildly entertaining action, superhero fantasy film with some nice fight sequences.  But even those action scenes ultimately seem forced and overdone; maybe it’s because only the fight scenes can save what is otherwise an exceedingly dry faux drama.  The acting is poor.  Terence Stamp is woefully miscast as Stick, and Goran Visnjic barely seems alive as Mark Miller.  Kirsten Prout’s Abby only elicits sympathy when the script places her in extreme danger.

A star on the hit television series, “Alias,” Jennifer Garner’s film career is mostly miss, except for a nice turn in 13 Going on 30.  There are moments in this movie when she assumes a pose as Elektra and looks like a clumsy, wall-eyed poseur.  Ms. Garner even walks as if she just learned that she has a nice ass, but still hasn’t quite got the rhythm using it in a provocative walk down pat.

Still, this film has some nice moments, and the fight scenes (which feature lots of wire-fu) are pretty good for an American film production.  To bad one of the (over extended) fight scenes uses CGI bed sheets as an obstacle for the hero.  It makes you wonder what the filmmakers were thinking.  It’s the eye-rolling stuff like this that ultimately hamstrings Elektra.

5 of 10
C+

Updated:  Friday, August 23, 2013

The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "King's Ransom" is Funnier Than I Expected (Happy B'day, Anthony Anderson)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 138 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

King’s Ransom (2005)
Running time:  95 minutes (1 hour, 35 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for crude and sexual humor and language
DIRECTOR:  Jeff Byrd
WRITER:  Wayne Conley
PRODUCER:  Darryl Taja
CINEMATOGRAPHERS:  Robert McLachlan with Daniel Villeneuve
EDITOR:  Jeffrey Cooper
COMPOSERS:  Luce Gordon and Marcus Miller

COMEDY/CRIME

Starring:  Anthony Anderson, Jay Mohr, Kellita Smith, Nicole Ari Parker, Regina Hall, Loretta Devine, Donald Faison, Leila Arcieri, Brooke D’Orsay, Jackie Burroughs, Lisa Marcos, and Charlie Murphy

The subject of this movie review is King’s Ransom, a 2005 comedy from New Line Cinema.  Starring Anthony Anderson, the film follows a despicable businessman who arranges his own kidnapping as a way to trump his gold-digging wife’s plans for his money, only to see the plot go awry.  King’s Ransom was poorly received by professional film critics, but I like it anyway.

In King’s Ransom (a kind of loose take on the 80’s comedy hit, Ruthless People), Malcolm King (Anthony Anderson), the owner of King Enterprises, is a successful and wealthy man, worth millions of dollars, but he’s also an A-#1-asshole and jerk.  He’s made a lot of enemies, from overworked and under-appreciated employees to his soon-to-be ex-wife, Renee King (Kellita Smith).  He is very concerned about his messy and likely expensive divorce, in which he may have to give up at least half of his wealth to Renee, so he devises a plan to keep his money out of her hands.  With the help of his mistress, Peaches Clarke (Regina Hall), Malcolm plots his own kidnapping in order to secure a fictitious ransom of $10 million – money he can keep away from his wife.

Malcolm, however, isn’t the only one with kidnapping him in mind.  Bitter that she wasn’t made a vice-president at King Enterprises, long-suffering employee, Angela Drake (Nicole Parker), cooks up a half-baked kidnap plot, but a dimwitted, down-on-his-luck, local bumpkin named Corey (Jay Mohr) is also plotting to kidnap Malcolm.  And it wouldn’t be a three-ring circus if Renee, with the help of her tongue-tied lover, didn’t have her own snatch and grab Malcolm plan go awry.

King’s Ransom was nearly dead on arrival when it opened in theatres this past spring, and it, of course, received awful reviews from movie reviewers.  However, the film is a comical and occasionally side-splitting laugher full of dumb jokes, bawdy humor, and low brow comedy, which is was likely deliberately written to be.  King’s Ransom is not great slapstick (and the timing seems a little off), but it works because the cast tries like heck to make it funny.  They succeeded; King’s Ransom is funny as hell.  I must repeat: it’s dumb, dumb, dumb again, but it’s supposed to be dumb, but funny, and it’s hilarious.  An urban comedy, it’s three times better than Soul Plane, but not as good as the Barbershop movies or Malibu’s Most Wanted.

Anthony Anderson is a great comic actor.  He’s as good as members of the so-called Frat Pack like Vince Vaughn and Jack Black, and is way better than Owen and Luke Wilson, but he won’t get the kind of primo movie parts they do.  He’s just a funny guy, and his acting credentials show even in a simple-minded film like this.  Almost all the cast shines, particularly Charlie Murphy (Eddie’s brother and a supporting player on “The Chappelle Show”), but Regina Hall stands out amongst the supporting players.  She is superb at playing character roles in comedies.  I hope that like Anderson, her skin color doesn’t keep her from getting at least one meaty comedy role per year.

6 of 10
B

Updated:  Thursday, August 15, 2013

------------------------

Review: "Derailed" Seems Unnecessarily Dark (Happy B'day, RZA)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 98 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Derailed (2005)
Running time: 108 minutes (1 hour, 48 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong disturbing violence, language, and some sexuality
DIRECTOR: Mikael Håfström
WRITER: Stuart Beattie (based upon the book by James Siegel)
PRODUCER: Lorezno di Bonaventura
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Peter Biziou
EDITOR: Peter Boyle
COMPOSER: Edward Shearmur

CRIME/DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Clive Owen, Jennifer Aniston, Vincent Cassel, Melissa George, Addison Timlin, RZA, Tom Conti, Giancarlo Esposito, Denis O’Hare, and Xzibit

The subject of this movie review is Derailed, a 2005 British-American thriller and crime drama. The film is based on the 2003 novel, Derailed, from author James Siegel. Derailed the movie focuses on a married business executive and his mistress who are being blackmailed by a violent criminal.

Successful advertising executive Charles Schine (Clive Owen) misses his commuter train one day, which lead to a chance encounter with Lucinda Harris (Jennifer Aniston), a seductive financial advisor, on a later train. Charles is having trouble at home. He and his wife, Deanna (Melissa George), are a bit at odds, and their daughter, Amy’s (Addison Timlin), Type-1 diabetes puts a tremendous strain on their finances and marriage. Thus, Charles is responsive to Lucinda’s magnetic attraction, and before long cocktails and lunches turn into an impromptu romp at a seedy hotel.

However, a brutal criminal, Philippe LaRoche (Vincent Cassel), breaks into their hotel room and derails their fun, and the illicit liaison becomes a nightmare world more violent and dangerous than Charles could ever have imagined. Unable to confide in his wife and friends or speak to the police, Charles must battle the violence, deception, blackmail, and crime as the life he once knew becomes something unimaginable.

Derailed starts off so slowly and dully that I thought the movie would never recover, but the film’s second half is a kick in the gut. It’s an old-fashioned hard-boiled, noir-ish, romantic, crime thriller, in the vein of Against All Odds. The film isn’t as well written or directed as such A-list romance and crime movies as Fatal Attraction or Basic Instinct, nor will Jennifer Anniston’s performance be as well remembered (if its remembered at all) as the actresses in the aforementioned films.

Owen and Aniston have zero screen chemistry. Owen is a decent actor, but doesn’t quite seem to fit inside the skin of this role; he’s better as a “heavy” or dark type. He doesn’t at all come across as a vulnerable businessman type (an ad exec of all things), but he does fit the part for the second half of the film. Aniston is a small screen actress. It’s clear to me (at least) that she is one of the luckiest actresses alive. She’s not an incredible beauty, and she is a one-note actress – at best – and thus getting parts way beyond her skill. In fact, Aniston don’t have strong dramatic chops, and as it stands she can’t carry a lead role in a drama. This screen pairing nearly kills Derailed.

However, Vincent Cassel as the supernaturally deceptive and wicked LaRoche is fantastic. Now, he is an actor, and he gives this film a superb lift, turning a disastrous movie about an unlikely affair into an edgy crime thriller that keeps surprising the viewer with its nastiness. Rappers RZA (the Wu-Tang Clan) and Xzibit also add some spicy malevolence and grittiness that seems right off mean streets of big city America. If not for Cassel, RZA, and Xzibit, Derailed would have died on the vine simply by the hands of its director, writer, and stars.

5 of 10
B-

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Updated: Friday, July 05, 2013

--------------------

Review: Didn't Want to Stay for "Stay"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 68 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux


Stay (2005)
Running time: 98 minutes (1 hour, 38 minutes)
MPAA – R for language and some disturbing images
DIRECTOR: Marc Forster
WRITER: David Benioff
PRODUCERS: Eric Kopeloff and Tom Lassally
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Roberto Schaeffer
EDITOR: Matt Chesse
COMPOSERS: Asche & Spencer (Tom Scott and Thad Spencer)

DRAMA/THRILLER with elements of horror, fantasy, and sci-fi

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, Ryan Gosling, Bob Hoskins, Janeane Garofalo, Elizabeth Reaser, and B.D. Wong

The subject of this movie review is Stay, a 2005 fantasy drama and psychological thriller from director Marc Forster. The film focuses on a psychiatrist who attempts to prevent one of his patients from committing suicide, while his own grip on reality slips.

A New York psychiatrist, Sam Foster (Ewan McGregor), inherits a secretive and highly unusual young man bent on suicide as his new patient. His name is Henry Lethem (Ryan Gosling), and he is capable of making bizarrely accurate predictions about the future. Henry announces to Sam that he is planning on committing suicide at midnight the coming Saturday – the day of his 21st birthday. After Henry disappears, Sam is desperate to find his patient before he offs himself, but his investigation begins to have reality-shattering effects on him.

Manhattan, where Sam lives, begins to transform into a constantly and wildly shifting dreamscape, and the deeper Sam tries to go into Henry’s subconscious, the more it changes the rational world for Sam. His search for Henry is also causing havoc in Sam’s relationship with his girlfriend, Lila Culpepper (Naomi Watts), a former patient of Sam’s who tried to kill herself. It isn’t long before both Sam and Lila are wondering where Sam ends and Henry begins.

Stay has some big names behind it. Director Marc Forster directed Halle Berry to an Academy Award in 2001’s Monster’s Ball, and his last film, Finding Neverland, earned several Oscar nominations including a Best Picture nod. The cast includes some heavyweights – Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts, and a star-in-the-making – Ryan Gosling. In this film, Ryan definitely shows that something that has him marked as a movie star, a quality actor, and a matinee idol.

However, audiences will find Stay to be either fascinating or dull. It’s really a riff on Ambrose Bierce’s famous short story, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” and the 1990 thriller, Jacob’s Ladder. The visuals are dazzling on a few occasions and quite inventive and imaginative most of the time. However, most of the time Stay also seems like an ambitious if not pretentious film from a talented novice, which means the director makes clever visual choices that still amount to a haphazard narrative. Only the film’s last ten minutes redeem everything that came before it, and that’s disappointing.

3 of 10
C-

Friday, April 7, 2006

Updated: Friday, June 21, 2013

Review: "The Interpreter" Has Mixed Message (Happy B'day, Nicole Kidman)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 5 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Interpreter (2005)
Running time: 128 minutes (2 hours, 8 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for violence, some sexual content, and brief strong language
DIRECTOR: Sydney Pollack
WRITERS: Charles Randolph, Scott Frank, and Steven Zallian; from a story by Martin Stellman and Brian Ward
PRODUCERS: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Kevin Misher
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Darius Khondji
EDITOR: William Steinkamp
COMPOSER: James Newton Howard

DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Jesper Christensen, Yvan Attal, Earl Cameron, George Harris, Michael Wright, Clyde Kusatsu, Eric Keenleyside, Hugo Speer, Maz Jobrani, Yusuf Gatewood, Curtiss I’Cook, and Byron Utley

The subject of this movie review is The Interpreter, a 2005 political thriller from director Sydney Pollack. This is the final film directed by Pollack, who died in 2008 at the age of 73. The Interpreter focuses on an interpreter who overhears an assassination plot and the US Secret Service agent assigned to investigate her allegations.

Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman) is a translator at the United Nations, who accidentally overhears the plot to assassinate an African despot scheduled to speak before the U.N. General Assembly. With the words, “The Teacher will never leave this room alive,” Silvia’s world is turned upside down, as she becomes the target of mysterious thrillers who know she overheard the whispered conspiracy. Still, authorities have doubts about the validity of her story, including Tobin Keller, (Sean Penn), a federal agent assigned to protect dignitaries visiting the U.S. Tobin is eventually assigned to both protect Silvia and to unravel the mystery of the assassination attempt and its seeming connection to Silvia’s past. Will Silvia’s reticence about discussing her past and Tobin’s determination to uncover what he believes she is hiding lead to the assassination of a foreign leader on American soil?

Academy Award-winning director Sydney Pollack’s (Out of Africa) The Interpreter is part contrived melodrama and part riveting suspense story, with the latter winning out to make this a thoroughly entertaining thriller. The characters’ personal histories and tragedies occupy much of the narrative time, and their personality traits both define how their relationship and the mystery of the assassination will be resolved. But that’s mostly window dressing for a rather nice staid, adult thriller. The Interpreter lacks the car chases and has very few gunfights and explosions – the two elements that denote most Hollywood action thrillers meant to draw in teenage boys and young men as much (if not more so) as they are meant to attract older audiences looking for involved drama and quality acting. The Interpreter certainly has evocative drama and both Kidman and Penn are excellent (and award-winning) actors, and while this isn’t their best work, they certainly try to give us something different – just enough to make this more than a run-of-the-mill tense drama.

Every time the film seems as if it will slip into being ordinary, it does something surprising, and while it doesn’t have the intensity that would make it a great film, it does have the smooth charm and the kind of engaging plot that makes it an enjoyable film. The script, co-written by two of Hollywood’s top screenwriters, Scott Frank and Steven Zallian (an Oscar winner for Schindler’s List), is novelistic in its approach to character, situation, and plot. Sydney Pollack uses it to carry us through a complex web of private tragedy, delicate political affiliations, and international intrigue. At the same time, it also gives us a small, but fierce glance at the sectarian violence rampant throughout some of Africa. That’s a lot for your money.

6 of 10
B

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Updated: Thursday, June 20, 2013

-------------------

Review: "Cinderella Man" Ignores the Woman Next to the Man (Happy B'day, Paul Giamatti)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 16 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Cinderella Man (2005)
Running time: 144 minutes (2 hours, 24 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense boxing violence and some language
DIRECTOR: Ron Howard
WRITERS: Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman; from a story by Cliff Hollingsworth
PRODUCERS: Brian Grazer, Penny Marshall, and Ron Howard
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Salvatore Totino
EDITORS: Daniel P. Hanley and Mike Hill
COMPOSER: Thomas Newman
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/BIOPIC/SPORTS

Starring: Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger, Paul Giamatti, Craig Bierko, Paddy Considine, Bruce McGill, Ron Canada, Clint Howard, and Rufus Crawford

The subject of this movie review is Cinderella Man, a 2005 boxing drama and biographical film from director Ron Howard. The film is based on the life of heavyweight boxing champion, James J. Braddock (1935 to 1937), and the movie’s title is taken from Braddock’s nickname.

In 1928, James J. Braddock (Russell Crowe) was an up-and-coming prizefighter. By the early 1930, Jim Braddock was an impoverished ex-boxer – broken-down, beat-up, and as unfortunate and out of luck as so many Americans were who had hit rock bottom during the Depression. Although his boxing career was seemingly over, Braddock and still had a wife, Mae (Renée Zellweger), and three children to support, and to him they were what mattered most. Braddock was unable to pay his bills and eventually had to seek Public Relief (kind of like modern welfare); he even begged for money when things got that desperate.

However, Braddock never gave up on his dream to be a great boxer, even when the Boxing Commission took away his license to fight, and chance brings him a one-time fight. With his manager, Joe Gould (Paul Giamatti), at his side, Jim grabs the success of that fight and pushes his way back into boxing, each success keeping his family with a roof over their heads, food on the table, and light and heat. Eventually, he gets his dream match – a heavyweight championship fight with the reigning champion, the unstoppable Max Baer (Craig Bierko). Now, Jim, considered too old and finished by many in the boxing community, must face Baer, a man renowned for having killed two men in the ring.

Ron Howard’s biopic, Cinderella Man, based upon the real life of Depression-era boxing hero, Jim Braddock, was one of the best reviewed films of 2005, but considering the reviews and the pedigrees of the filmmakers involved, the film was not well attended. That’s a shame because Cinderella Man is one of those proverbial “good movies” of which many people, especially media watchers, complain there aren’t enough. This is actually Howard’s epic film, an ode to middle class values from a man, who as a child actor, played one of the ultimate Middle American children, Opie Taylor on “The Andy Griffith Show” and later played the teenage version of that in Richie Cunningham of “Happy Days.”

Cinderella Man is a film where you can really root for the hero, Jim Braddock. He’s the (not so) little guy battling against doubters, haters, financial misfortune, poverty, unemployment, etc., but he believes in himself. Though his back is often against the wall, he never quits, and he ain’t too proud to beg – if it keeps his family fed and off the streets. Russell Crowe’s performance embodies that plucky American spirit, but he shows something else we Americans really like – grit – the kind of grit it takes to fight the tough times. In fact, Paul Giamatti’s Joe Gould is like that voice inside our heads that keeps pushing us, and just when we think that the voice has left us, it’s back in our corner when it sees that we’re willing to fight out of the bad times. That’s the acting dynamic between Crowe and Giamatti – the hero and the voice of encouragement.

Cinderella Man actually does a few things to keep from being a perfect film. The lighting and cinematography are too murky; everything looks like an Old Master painting covered in soot. The script by Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman is good, but not great. One reason that it isn’t great is because it takes the easy road of turning Renée Zellweger’s Mae Braddock into the little wife at home fretting away for her man. I can imagine that Mae does as much to hold things together for the Braddocks, and Howard and his writers don’t have the imagination to really show her struggle – what she does to support the family unit. Mae is just a prop the filmmakers use when they need to send Jim home for scenes that don’t involve boxing or work.

Ultimately, this is Ron Howard’s Middle American fable, and he uses the elements of cinema to manipulate the audience as much as Steve Spielberg did in films like E.T. the Extraterrestrial and The Color Purple. However, Cinderella Man has many genuine and honest moments that speak to the American family and of the grit it takes for a family to keep it together. That’s enough to make me ignore the warts.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2006 Academy Awards, USA: 3 nominations: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Paul Giamatti), “Best Achievement in Film Editing” (Daniel P. Hanley and Mike Hill), “Best Achievement in Makeup” (David LeRoy Anderson and Lance Anderson)

2006 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Screenplay – Original” (Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman)

2006 Golden Globes, USA: 2 nominations “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Russell Crowe) and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Paul Giamatti)

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

---------------

Review: "The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy" is Inventive, Odd, and Relaxed (Remembering Douglas Adams)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 146 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA/UK
Running time: 109 minutes (1 hour, 49 minutes)
MPAA – PG for thematic elements, action, and mild language
DIRECTOR: Garth Jennings
WRITERS: Douglas Adams and Karey Kirkpatrick (based upon the novel by Douglas Adams)
PRODUCERS: Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum, Nick Goldsmith, Jay Roach, and Jonathan Glickman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Igor Jadue-Lillo
EDITOR: Niven Howie
COMPOSER: Joby Talbot

SCI-FI/COMEDY/ACTION/ADVENTURE

Starring: Sam Rockwell, Mos Def, Zooey Deschanel, Martin Freeman, Bill Nighy, Warwick Davis, Anna Chancellor and John Malkovich, with the voices of Alan Rickman, Helen Mirren, Stephen Fry, Richard Griffiths, and Thomas Lennon

The subject of this movie review is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, a 2005 British-American comic science fiction and adventure film. It is based on the 1979 novel, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, which was written by the late author, Douglas Adams. The film follows the adventures of a man from Earth and his alien companion who is writing a new edition of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.”

Arthur Dent (Sam Rockwell) is an ordinary guy having what looks like another bad day, when he discovers that his house is scheduled for demolition to make way for an expressway. Then, his best friend, Ford Prefect (Mos Def), shows up and tells him that Earth is also scheduled for demolition by aliens to make way for a hyperspace expressway. Ford later whisks Arthur into space where they eventually end up on the super space ship, the Heart of Gold, captained by the dim-witted President of the Galaxy, Zaphod Beeblebrox (Sam Rockwell).

Arthur actually encountered Zaphod on Earth before, when the President stole the girl with whom Arthur had just fallen in love, Tricia (Zooey Deschanel). Tricia, now known as Trillian, is also on board, as is a chronically depressed android named Marvin (Warwick Davis with the voice by Alan Rickman). The unusual quintet search for the answers (and the questions) to the mystery of Life, the Universe, and Everything – with The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (voiced by Stephen Fry) as their… well, guide.

First published in 1979, Douglas Adams’ (1952-2001) novel, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, is one of the all-time best selling science fiction novels every published, and perhaps the most popular sci-fi humor book ever. The book became a cycle first known as “The Hitchhiker’s Trilogy,” after the publication of The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (1980) and Life, the Universe and Everything (1982); two more books followed, So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (1984) and Mostly Harmless (1992).

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy began as a radio sci-fi comedy series, and the book series is a non-literal adaptation of the radio series. Hitchhiker’s has also been a British TV mini-series, a stage play, a comic book/graphic novel, record albums, and a computer game. A major motion picture had long been in the planning stages at various times over 20 years with such names as actors Jim Carrey and Bill Murray and directors Jay Roach and Spike Jonze attached to the project.

Finally, in mid-spring of 2005, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy debuted in theatres with director Garth Jennings and co-producer Nick Goldsmith as its filmmaking creative center. Jennings and Goldsmith are the music video directing team known as “Hammer and Tongs.” They directed videos for such musical acts as R.E.M. (“Imitation of Life,” one of my personal favorites as an all-time great music video), Fatboy Slim (“Right Here, Right Now”), and Blur (“Coffee and T.V.”).

Before he died, Douglas Adams wrote the script (a non-literal translation of the books as the books were also not literal translations the original radio show) and added new characters (Humma Kavula played by John Malkovich). Co-writer Karey Kirkpatrick (James and the Giant Peach and Chicken Run) came on to improve the script’s structure and make it more coherent. Not having seen any of Adams’ original script drafts, I can’t say how much or if Kirkpatrick improved on Adams’ work. The film does seem to lack organization and focus, and its plot seems rather inconsequential, but The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is about eccentric characters in odd settings and situations, not so much about plot. A viewer doesn’t have to have read the books, but being familiar with the various source materials may make him and her more open to the film. Hitchhiker’s is basically a film about a great big sci-fi/fantasy misadventure set in a universe of oddities and abnormal beings (except Arthur Dent).

The cast and crew so obviously love what they’re doing and really buy into the little world that they created, and that passes on to the audience. Martin Freeman makes a great Arthur Dent, playing him as a flustered man frustrated with his world being destroyed and not having the girl who is “the one” loving him back. Sam Rockwell and Mos Def make a great alien combo, with the former as a cocky and kooky, gun-slinging lothario and the latter as the best-dressed straight man/wise man in the galaxy. I enjoyed watching them and the rest of the cast, and while the voice actors don’t seem to be straining themselves to perform, they are oddly appealing.

Part Monty Python, part Jim Henson, part Mel Brooks’ Space Balls (with a much bigger budget), and part David Lynch, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is not an interstellar homerun, but it’s the most visually and conceptually daring sci-fi comedy – probably ever. And I really enjoy how unpredictable this film remains, even through repeated viewings.

6 of 10
B

--------------------

Review: "Match Point" Goes for the Fatal Attraction (Happy B'day, Woody Allen)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 92 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux


Match Point (2005)
Running time: 124 minutes (2 hours, 4 minutes)
MPAA – R for some sexuality
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Woody Allen
PRODUCERS: Letty Aronson, Lucy Darwin, and Gareth Wiley
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Remi Adefarasin
EDITOR: Alisa Lepselter
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA with elements of romance and thriller

Starring: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Scarlett Johansson, Emily Mortimer, Matthew Goode, Brian Cox, Penelope Wilton, and Colin Salmon

The subject of this review is Match Point, a 2005 dramatic thriller from director Woody Allen. The film was originally to be set in the Hamptons, but the setting was changed to London because the financing for the film came from sources based in the United Kingdom. Match Point follows a former tennis pro and his volatile relationship with a femme fatale.

Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), a tennis pro who recently left the professional ranks, takes a job as a tennis instructor at a high society social club near London. There, he meets and strikes up a friendship with Tom Hewett (Matthew Goode), the only son of a wealthy family from the British upper crust. Chris also meets Tom’s fiancé, Nola Rice (Scarlett Johansson), this movie’s femme fatale (so to speak) and an American actress struggling with her career in London. Chris also attracts the eye of Tom’s sister, Chloe (Emily Mortimer), who is immediately attracted to Chris. Chloe practically throws herself at Chris, but it has benefits. Tom and Chloe’s father, Alec Hewett (Brian Cox), a very wealthy and highly connected businessman, takes an immediate liking to Chris. Before long, Alec’s connections have landed Chris a cushy business job, and Chris social climbs his way to improved social status and finances, especially for a man who grew up a poor Irish boy. Chris marries Chloe. However, Chris is infatuated with Nola, and they have an affair that lasts even after Tom’s dumps her, and Nola is a very demanding woman. She wants Chris to leave Chloe for her, and Chris begins to wonder if violence is the only way out of his predicament.

Woody Allen earned his fourteenth Oscar nomination for screenwriting (more than anyone else and all of them “Written Directly for the Screen”) with his only film shot entirely in Great Britain, Match Point. Match Point, also his longest film, is almost the typical Woody Allen film except that this is a straight drama with no comedic elements (one of the few times he’s done that and the first time since the late 1980’s). As per usual, there is a philandering husband and a mistress, but the mistress Nola’s rage has an edge to it that a comic narrative would temper. There are class differences among the characters, except the disparity here between the pair of Chris and Nola and the Hewett’s is a chasm. There is an unhappy marriage, except in this film the husband is totally to blame and an idiot. Chloe is great to Chris, and she and her family throw wealth and privilege at him that could have easily gone to someone who was already in Chloe’s social set. Finally, Allen, as always, discusses philosophy in his movie, but in the case of Match Point’s drama, the philosophy isn’t meandering. Chris’ belief that luck is more important than hard work, as important as he believe hard work indeed is, defines this film. There’s no mock comic philosophizing here as there sometimes is in an Allen movie.

The acting is good, but not great. I’ve come to accept that Scarlett Johansson is beautiful (though not “classically” beautiful), and that while she looks good on the screen, she doesn’t have major acting chops. Her best acting is done with her face and not with her voice, in particularly delivering dialogue. She also has zero chemistry with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers in this flick, and their passion has a hollow ring – an almost fatal flaw in the film. Match Point, however, is predicated on some of Woody Allen’s strengths: intimate character drama and constructive dialogue that moves the narrative and reveals character and motivation.

For Woody Allen fans, this is a rare treat – a Woody drama. For everyone else, Match Point is Fatal Attraction with a bit more brains and less glossy exploitation, but it’s still full of tawdry fun.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2006 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Writing, Original Screenplay” (Woody Allen)

2006 Golden Globes, USA: 4 nominations: “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Woody Allen), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Scarlett Johansson), “Best Screenplay - Motion Picture” (Woody Allen)

Thursday, May 4, 2006