"The Thing from Another World" Still Out of This World

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 67 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Thing from Another World (1951) – B&W
Running time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Christian Nyby with Howard Hawks (no screen credit)
WRITER: Charles Lederer with Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht (neither received screen credit); (based upon a story by John W. Campbell, Jr.)
PRODUCER: Howard Hawks
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Russell Harlan (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Roland Gross
COMPOSER: Dimitri Tiomkin

HORROR/SCI-FI

Starring: Margaret Sheridan, Kenneth Tobey, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James R. Young, Dewey Martin, and James Arness

There’s no doubt. As corny as The Thing from Another World can be, it is one of the great sci-fi/horror films of all time, a true classic. I’ve it seen several times, and it remains a favorite of mine. I find it as creepy today as I did the first time I saw it almost two decades ago.

A group of scientists and military personnel at an Arctic research station discover a spacecraft buried in the ice. After accidentally destroying the ship, they manage to recover the body of an alien frozen in a block of ice, which they take back to the research station. During the first night, they accidentally thaw the creature from the ice, and it begins to hunt them.

The Thing from Another World is a film definitely of its time, hinting at the Cold War paranoia in America that was an element of some many sci-fi films, but it is still a creepy thrill, dated as it might seem. I always have a good time watching the research station’s occupants fight for the lives with the most serene attitudes. Everybody is so relaxed and chilled, talking about ordinary things like dating and having a good time with the friends, all the while they’re fighting for their lives. I think it makes us identify with the characters, especially the military guys, as if they were regular folks.

Christian Nyby, a protégé of famed film director/producer Howard Hawks, who produced this film, is credited as this movie’s director. However, many film historians and fans have said that this film bears Hawk’s imprint, so he either directed it in total or in part; at that time, a director of Hawk’s stature would not have directed a sci-fi film because doing so was deemed unworthy of an A-list talent.

Attitudes aside, this is a good movie. It certainly lacks the spectacular intensity of today’s hi-octane action-oriented sci-fi/horror movies, but those who can look beyond that will enjoy this gem.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2001 National Film Preservation Board, USA: National Film Registry

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2011 New York Comic Con to Screen Footage from Marvel's The Avengers

Marvel Studios to Present Exclusive Look At Marvel’s The Avengers at New York Comic Con

Producer Kevin Feige and Select Cast Members to Appear Saturday, October 15th in the IGN Theater – Presented by Sprint!

NORWALK, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--New York Comic Con (NYCC) is proud to announce Marvel Studios, for the first time ever, will participate in this October’s NYCC. Marvel Studios will present a special event in NYCC’s IGN Theater – Presented by Sprint on Saturday, October 15th from 6:30-7:30 PM, a high-profile panel focused on the upcoming feature film Marvel’s The Avengers. Marvel Studios will debut never-before-seen footage from The Avengers, and panelists will include Kevin Feige (Producer), Chris Evans (Captain America), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Clark Gregg (Agent Coulson), and Cobie Smulders (Agent Hill). The Avengers is scheduled for release on May 4th, 2012.

The sixth annual New York Comic Con will take place October 13-16, 2011 at the Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan. NYCC, which attracted 96,000 attendees in 2010, celebrates comics, movies, television, toys, games, and the popular arts from around the planet. Tickets are now on sale via the website http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/, with limited 4-Day tickets remaining.

“I am incredibly honored Marvel Studios has decided to participate in New York Comic Con in such a significant way,” notes Lance Fensterman, Group Vice President for ReedPOP and Show Manager for NYCC. “The center of our show is creating exclusive opportunities for fans to meet their favorite stars and creators. The Avengers presentation is exactly this kind of once-in-a-lifetime event. We’re very excited to be able to host cast and crew from The Avengers and know our fans will be on the edges of their seats. As always, we want to present the very best that the pop culture world has to offer in art and entertainment, and The Avengers panel is at the head of that list!”

As previously announced, Marvel will also be bringing high profile comics guests to New York Comic Con including Joe Quesada, Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment, Axel Alonso, Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief, and notable Marvel creators Jason Aaron, Matt Fraction, Kieron Gillen, and Stuart Immonen.

“Marvel’s The Avengers” is the Super Hero team up of a lifetime, featuring iconic Marvel Super Heroes Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow. When an unexpected enemy emerges that threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury, Director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins.

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson, and directed by Joss Whedon “Marvel’s The Avengers” is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series “The Avengers,” first published in 1963 and a comics institution ever since. Prepare yourself for an exciting event movie, packed with action and spectacular special effects when “Marvel’s The Avengers” assemble in summer 2012.

“Marvel’s The Avengers,” is presented by Marvel Studios in association with Paramount Pictures. The film is being produced by Marvel Studios' President, Kevin Feige, and executive produced by Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Jon Favreau, Patricia Whitcher and Louis D’Esposito. Marvel Studios’ Jeremy Latcham and Victoria Alonso will co-produce. The film will be released May 4, 2012.

For further information about all ReedPOP shows and activity, please visit Lance Fensterman’s blog, http://www.mediumatlarge.net/. Convention organizers note that many more guests will be announced over the next few weeks leading into the show and fans should keep their eyes on NYCC’s website and blog for additional comics, entertainment and anime announcements.


ABOUT MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT:
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing. For more information visit http://www.marvel.com/. Super Hero(es) is a co-owned registered trademark.

ABOUT REEDPOP:
ReedPOP is a boutique group within Reed Exhibitions which is exclusively devoted to organizing events, launching and acquiring new shows, and partnering with premium brands in the pop culture arena. ReedPOP is dedicated to producing celebrations of popular culture throughout the world that transcend ordinary events by providing unique access and dynamic personal experiences for consumers and fans. The ReedPOP portfolio includes: New York Comic Con (NYCC), Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) East & West, Star Wars Celebration V, New York Anime Festival (NYAF), and UFC Fan Expo. The staff at ReedPOP is a fan based group of professionals producing shows for other fans, thus making them uniquely qualified to service those with whom they share a common passion. ReedPOP is focused on bringing its expertise and knowledge to world communities in North America, South America, Asia and Europe.

Review: "Tom and Jerry & the Wizard of Oz" is a Twister of Fun

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 80 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz (2011) – straight-to-video
Running time: 59 minutes
DIRECTORS: Spike Brandt and Tony Cervone
WRITER: Gene Grillo (based upon characters created by L. Frank Baum and William Hanna and Joseph Barbera)
PRODUCERS: Sam Register (executive) and Spike Brandt (supervising) and Tony Cervone (supervising)
EDITORS: Kyle Stafford and Damon P. Yoches
ANIMATION STUDIO: Yearim Productions Co. Ltd.

ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY/
ADVENTURE/FAMILY

Starring: (voices) Grey DeLisle, Joe Alaskey, Michael Gough, Rob Paulsen, Todd Stashwick, Frances Conroy, Laraine Newman, Stephen Root, and Kath Soucie

Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz is a 2011 animated direct-to-video film starring the famous cartoon cat and mouse duo, Tom and Jerry, and produced by Warner Bros. Animation. Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz basically takes the 1939 MGM film, The Wizard of Oz, and rewrites the movie so that Tom and Jerry (who began as MGM cartoon characters) are right along side Dorothy, Toto, the Wicked Witch of the West, and the rest of the characters from the beloved film.

Life is simple on the Gale farm. High-strung Dorothy (Grey DeLisle) lives with her Auntie Em (Frances Conroy) and Uncle Henry (Stephen Root), three farm hands, and her cute dog, Toto. Tom and Jerry are not only helpers on the farm, but they are also Dorothy’s companions. When Toto gets in trouble, Dorothy gets a little panicky, so Auntie Em asks Tom and Jerry to keep an eye on her.

Later, a terrible tornado transports Dorothy and Toto to the Land of Oz where they go on an adventure to the Emerald City. Tom and Jerry were also transported to Oz. Reminded of their promise to watch over Dorothy, Tom, Jerry, and the plucky Tuffy the Munchkin Mouse (Kath Soucie) race to protect Dorothy from The Wicked Witch of the West (Laraine Newman), who, of course, wants Dorothy’s ruby slippers.

Because of its repeated showings on television beginning in 1956, The Wizard of Oz is one of the most famous movies ever made. I frequently include it in my lists of the 10 best films ever made, so you might think that I would consider Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz practically sacrilegious. I don’t. This animated film is simply like a side story to the original film, except in this case, the original film has been transformed into animation.

Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz is funny, and the scenes with Tom and Jerry range from comical to surreal, and the surreal elements make this little movie really fit with the original. The animation is quite good, and the backgrounds, sets, and colors are even better; this is just a pretty film for start to finish.

The voice performances are excellent, especially Laraine Newman as the Wicked Witch of the West. Newman deftly channels Margaret Hamilton, who voiced the Witch in the 1939 film. In fact, the other actors who give voice to the cartoon versions of the original film’s characters come close to sounding like the actors who played them. Tuffy, a character from the original Tom and Jerry cartoon shorts, always annoyed me, but here, as Tuffy the Munchkin Mouse, he is delightful.

If you like Tom and Jerry or want a good animated movie for young viewers, you will not go wrong with Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz.

7 of 10
A-

Thursday, October 06, 2011

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2011 BFI London Film Festival Begins Wednesday, October 12th

SHORTLISTS AND JURIES ANNOUNCED FOR BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS

DAVID CRONENBERG & RALPH FIENNES TO RECEIVE BFI FELLOWSHIPS

London – 4 October 2011: The 55th BFI London Film Festival is delighted to announce the shortlists and juries for the 2011 Festival Awards, supported by MontBlanc, which will take place at LSO St Luke’s on 26 October.

At this year’s ceremony, the BFI will bestow its highest honour, the BFI Fellowship, on David Cronenberg and Ralph Fiennes. The original and provocative Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg is internationally renowned for films exploring the darker impulses and inner lives of his characters. His distinctive films have gone beyond the science-fiction genre and have had a powerful and enduring influence on contemporary filmmakers. His impressive list of credits includes The Fly, Videodrome, Scanners, Naked Lunch, Crash, Eastern Promises, The History of Violence and premiering at this year’s festival, A Dangerous Method. David Cronenberg said "This is a monumental, in fact overwhelming, honour, and my being the first Canadian to receive it makes it all the sweeter. British cinema has been a potent inspiration for me, and to be associated with this particular group of filmmakers is tremendously exhilarating."

Ralph Fiennes is one of Britain’s pre-eminent actors, who has achieved a singular career in which he manages to command equal respect among theatre-goers, lovers of art-house film and audiences for international blockbusters. With Coriolanus, featured in competition in the Berlin Film Festival 2011 and selected as a Gala screening in this year’s LFF, he has made a bold and critically well received transition to film directing. In addition to his portrayal of Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter films, his extensive acting credits include The End of the Affair, The Reader, Strange Days, Spider, Quiz Show, The English Patient, The Constant Gardener and Schindler’s List. Ralph Fiennes said “I’m extremely honoured and delighted to be given this fellowship by the BFI”

The Best Film Award, presented in partnership with the festival’s headline sponsor American Express, celebrates original, inventive and distinctive filmmaking in the festival. The initial shortlist was drawn up by Artistic Director Sandra Hebron and the programming team, and will be judged by the Oscar-nominated director John Madden, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Gillian Anderson, the BAFTA-winning writer and director Asif Kapadia, Oscar-nominated and BAFTA-winning producer Tracey Seaward, writer Andrew O’Hagan and the Turner Prize-nominated YBA and film director Sam Taylor Wood OBE.

This year’s shortlist is:
360, Fernando Meirelles, UK/Austria/France/Brazil
THE ARTIST, Michel Hazanavicius, France
THE DEEP BLUE SEA, Terence Davies, UK
THE DESCENDANTS, Alexander Payne, USA
FAUST, Aleksandr Sukurov, Russia
THE KID WITH A BIKE, Luc & Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Belgium/France/Italy
SHAME, Steve McQueen, UK
TRISHNA, Michael Winterbottom, UK
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN, Lynne Ramsay, UK/USA

The award for Best British Newcomer is presented in partnership with Swarovski and honours new and emerging film talent, recognising the achievements of a new writer, producer, director, actor or actress. This year’s jury comprises the BAFTA-nominated actress Anne-Marie Duff, actor Tom Hollander, producer and director of the National Film and Television School Nik Powell, Oscar-nominated and BAFTA-winning producer Andy Harries, Radio 1 and Channel 4’s Vue Film Show presenter Edith Bowman and Oscar-nominated and BAFTA-winning producer Stephen Woolley. Jury chair Andy Harries said "Tomorrow's UK film business is all about the young and exciting talent that is emerging today. There's loads of it and the annual London Film Festival remains a brilliant showcase for really great new actors, directors and producers to shine.”

The shortlist for Best British Newcomer is:
Nick Murphy, Director, THE AWAKENING
Tinge Krishnan, Director, JUNKHEARTS
Candese Reid, Actress, JUNKHEARTS
Nirpal Bhogal, Writer/director, SKET
Aimee Kelly, Actress, SKET
Tom Cullen, Actor, WEEKEND
Chris New, Actor, WEEKEND
D.R. Hood, Writer/Director, WRECKERS

The Jury for the prestigious Sutherland Award, presented to the director of the most original and imaginative feature debut in the festival includes Turner Prize nominee Phil Collins, producer Andrew Eaton, director Joanna Hogg, BAFTA-winning director Peter Kosminsky, actress Saskia Reeves, Hugo Grumbar, managing director (International) Icon UK Group, and film journalist Tim Robey. Peter Kosminsky said “I'm absolutely thrilled to have been asked to join this year's Sutherland Jury by the BFI. The support of the BFI London Film Festival is a vital lifeline for new filmmakers struggling to achieve visibility in a crowded cinematic world. I am delighted to play a small part in assisting new talent to break through in this way”.

The previously announced Sutherland shortlist is:
CORPO CELESTE, Alice Rohrwacher, Italy/Switzerland/France
ETERNITY, Sivaroj Kongsakul, Thailand
HERE, Braden King, USA
THE HOUSE, Zuzana Liová, Czech Republic
LAS ACACIAS, Pablo Giorgelli, Argentina/Spain
LAST WINTER, John Shank, Belgium/France
MICHAEL, Markus Schleinzer, Austria
MOURNING, Morteza Farshbaf, Iran
SHE MONKEYS, Lisa Aschan, Sweden
SNOWTOWN, Justin Kurzel, Australia
THE SUN-BEATEN PATH, Sonthar Gyal, China
WITHOUT, Mark Jackson, USA

Joanna Hogg said “'I love the BFI London Film Festival. It's a thrill and a privilege to be judging The Sutherland Award.”

The Grierson Award for Best Documentary, a partnership between the Grierson Trust and the Festival, recognises outstanding feature-length documentaries of integrity, originality, technical excellence or cultural significance. The Award is presented in commemoration of John Grierson. Two-time BAFTA winner Adam Curtis will chair the jury, which also includes documentary filmmaker Kim Longinotto, Mandy Chang of the Grierson Trust, and Charlotte Moore, Head of Documentary Commissioning at the BBC.

This year’s shortlist is:
BERNADETTE: NOTES ON A POLITICAL JOURNEY, Lelia Doolan, Ireland
BETTER THIS WORLD, Katie Galloway, Kelly Duane de la Vega, USA
THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975, Goran Hugo Olsson, Sweden/USA
DRAGONSLAYER, Tristan Patterson
DREAMS OF A LIFE, Carol Moley, UK/Ireland
INTO THE ABYSS: A TALE OF DEATH, A TALE OF LIFE, Werner Herzog
LAST DAYS HERE, Don Argott & Demian Fenton, USA
WHORES’ GLORY, Michael Glawogger, Austria/Germany

On chairing the Best Documentary category, Adam Curtis said “It is a great privilege and I am really looking forward to watching all the films and I am also hoping that somehow the films will help me make a bit more sense of what is happening in the world at the moment because frankly not much else on television or the cinema is doing that at present”.

About the BFI
The BFI is the lead body for film in the UK with the ambition to create a flourishing film environment in which innovation, opportunity and creativity can thrive by:

• Connecting audiences to the widest choice of British and World cinema
• Preserving and restoring the most significant film collection in the world for today and future generations
• Investing in creative, distinctive and entertaining work
• Promoting British film and talent to the world
• Growing the next generation of filmmakers and audiences

The BFI London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival champions creativity, originality, vision and imagination by annually showcasing the best of contemporary world cinema, documentaries, shorts, animation and experimental film. The BFI London Film Festival is a highly regarded and anticipated event in Europe's cultural calendar, attracting leading international filmmakers, industry professionals and the media together with large public audiences to London for a two week showcase of the best in contemporary world cinema.

Last year's Festival hosted 201 feature films and 112 short films from 68 countries including 34 world premieres. There were 629 filmmakers in attendance, drawing the highest ever audience attendance of over 132,000 filmgoers. The Festival opened with the European Premiere of NEVER LET ME GO and closed with the European Premiere of 127 HOURS.

http://www.bfi.org.uk/
www.bfi.org.uk/lff

Social Media

Keep in touch and share the Festival experience on Twitter and Facebook:
Facebook Event: Invite your friends and fans to the official Facebook event: http://on.fb.me/ouciUj
Facebook: Share your coverage on our official page: http://www.facebook.com/londonfilmfestival
Twitter: Tag your tweets with #LFF or drop us a line @BFI

Image Entertainment Acquires Bernie Mac Documentary

Image Entertainment Acquires I AIN’T SCARED OF YOU: A TRIBUTE TO BERNIE MAC

A Full Galaxy of Stars Share Thoughts on the Beloved Comic

CHATSWORTH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Image Entertainment, Inc. (OTCQB: DISK) has acquired the North American home entertainment and digital rights to I AIN’T SCARED OF YOU: A TRIBUTE TO BERNIE MAC. The film, set to be released on Image’s One Village label, chronicles the life and career of a true “king of comedy” and includes exclusive footage of early, never-before-seen performances. The announcement was made by Image Entertainment’s Chief Acquisition Officer, Bill Bromiley.

“Bernie Mac was taken from us much too soon,” said Bromiley. “This film reminds us of his comic brilliance and viewers will be able to share in the enormous affection his friends, family and coworkers have for him by way of their candid, intimate interviews.”

I AIN'T SCARED OF YOU: A TRIBUTE TO BERNIE MAC traces Bernie Mac’s unique performance style and tireless pursuit of comedy that broke through racial and class barriers, enabling his ascension to club, television and film stardom. The film’s title comes from Mac’s first appearance on Def Comedy Jam where he took the mic and immediately exclaimed to the audience 'I Ain't Scared of You!' turning their boos into cheers. Instantly, this sharp-tongued Chicago native with a heart of gold won over millions of fans.

Directed by Robert Small and executive produced by Small and Rhonda McCullough, I AIN'T SCARED OF YOU features exclusive footage of early, never-before-seen performances, courtesy of Mac's friends and family. Additional footage includes his better-known work, such as the Kings of Comedy Tour, “The Bernie Mac Show” and several of his feature films.

Bernie’s daughter conducted many of the revealing interviews with his co-stars, colleagues and friends including Anthony Anderson, Tom Arnold, Angela Bassett, Bill Bellamy, Cedric the Entertainer, Don Cheadle, Cameron Diaz, Mike Epps, Andy Garcia, D.L. Hughley, Warren Hutcherson, Samuel L. Jackson, Ali LeRoi, Je’niece McCullough, Rhonda McCullough, Carl Reiner, Chris Rock, Zoe Saldana, Kellita Smith, Steven Soderbergh, Joe Torry and Camille Winbush. All filmed after his untimely passing, the interviews have a distinctively retrospective point-of-view and paint a vivid picture of who Bernie Mac was as an actor, comedian, husband, father and friend.


ABOUT ONE VILLAGE ENTERTAINMENT
Launched in 2007, One Village Entertainment, a division of Image Entertainment, is devoted to the development, production and acquisition of feature films, comedy specials, stage plays, documentaries and music content targeting the African-American consumer and urban market. The programming is distributed across multiple platforms including theatrical, broadcast, Blu-ray™/DVD and digital streaming and downloading. Among the more than 50 titles that carry the One Village imprimatur are live stand-up performances featuring Kevin Hart and Charlie Murphy, documentaries 2 Turntables and a Microphone: The Life and Death of Jam Master Jay and Soulmate, and the feature films American Violet starring Oscar-nominee Alfre Woodard and the acclaimed theatrical romantic comedy Russ Parr’s 35 & Ticking. Bestsellers in the One Village line also include the stage play productions What My Husband Doesn’t Know and Love in the Nick of Tyme by David E. Talbert, who is described by Variety as "the acknowledged kingpin of urban musicals."

ABOUT IMAGE ENTERTAINMENT
Image Entertainment, Inc. is a leading independent licensee and distributor of entertainment programming in North America, with approximately 3,200 exclusive DVD titles and approximately 340 exclusive CD titles in domestic release and more than 450 programs internationally via sublicense agreements. For many of its titles, the Company has exclusive audio and broadcast rights, as well as digital download rights to over 2,100 video programs and approximately 400 audio titles containing more than 6,000 individual tracks. The Company is headquartered in Chatsworth, California. For more information about Image Entertainment, Inc., please go to http://www.image-entertainment.com/.

Review: Young Casts Makes "THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE" Work (Happy B'day, Guillermo del Toro)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 150 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

El Espinazo del Diablo (2001)
The Devil’s Backbone – U.S.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Mexico and Spain
Running time: 106 minutes (1 hour, 46 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence, language and some sexuality
DIRECTOR: Guillermo del Toro
WRITERS: Antonio Trashorras, David Muñoz, and Guillermo del Toro
PRODUCERS: Agustín Almodóvar and Bertha Navarro
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Pedro Almodóvar and Guillermo del Toro
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Guillermo Navarro
EDITOR: Luis de la Madrid
COMPOSER: Javier Navarrete

DRAMA/THRILLER with elements of mystery and fantasy

Starring: Fernando Tielve, Iñigo Garcés, Eduardo Noriega, Marisa Paredes, Federico Luppi, Irene Visedo, and Junio Valverde

Set during the waning days of the Spanish Civil War, The Devil’s Backbone is the story of Carlos (Fernando Tielve), a 12-year-old orphan who is the latest arrival at Santa Lucia School. The School is an imposing stone building that shelters orphans of the Republican militia and Red politicians and also children left behind by their parents because of the civil war. There are, of course, dark doings at the school, involving the usual suspects of sexual intrigue, secret murder, and hidden gold. It is Santi (Junio Valverde), the ghost of that secret murder victim, who holds the key to the story’s resolution and to justice.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro, who has had movie hits in the United States with such fantasy comic book adaptations as Blade II and Hellboy, The Devil’s Backbone is in the fine tradition of Spanish and Latin American storytelling that allows for ghosts and the spirits to play an active part in real world drama. The film is an expertly crafted thriller and poignant drama that is as scary and as intense as traditional horror films and manages this while being a quiet character drama.

In a way, The Devil’s Backbone is very difficult to categorize, it could be classified as a drama, thriller, mystery, or horror film. The characters are important to the film, but the school’s haunted atmosphere (even more so than the ghost) and its aura of misery are as important. The film would clearly fit into the fantasy genre, but it is firmly grounded in characters with real world needs, feelings, desires, and thoughts. In the end, the most important thing about the film is that it is simply a good story.

Early in the movie, the adult characters seem as if they’re going to control the show, but in the end, it is the young actors who shine. And it’s not so much that one juvenile actor dominates (although individual young characters have the larger parts than others), it’s the youthful cast as a whole that makes this story work on so many levels, as everything from a crime drama to haunted campfire tale.

8 of 10
A

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Review: "The Good Shepherd" is Overstuffed and Stiff (Happy B'day, Matt Damon)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 65 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Good Shepherd (2006)
Running time: 167 minutes (2 hours, 47 minutes)
MPAA – R for some violence, sexuality, and language
DIRECTOR: Robert De Niro
WRITER: Eric Roth
PRODUCERS: Robert De Niro, James G. Robinson, and Jane Rosenthal
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Robert Richardson, ASC (DoP)
EDITOR: Tariq Anwar
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/HISTORICAL/THRILLER

Starring: Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Alec Baldwin, William Hurt, John Turturro, Billy Crudup Tammy Blanchard, Kier Dullea, Michael Gambon, Martina Gedeck, Timothy Hutton, Lee Pace, Joe Pesci, Eddie Redmayne, John Sessions, Oleg Stefan, and Robert De Niro

The Good Shepherd is the first film Robert De Niro has directed since 1993’s A Bronx Tale, which was his directorial debut. The film, which is partially fact-based, examines the early history of the CIA.

It’s 1939, and Edward Wilson (Matt Damon) is a sharp-minded Yale student and patriotic American. His keen sense of discretion, the value he places on secrecy, and his commitment to honor earns him the attention of Yale’s infamous secret society, Skull and Bones. His acute mind gets him recruited to the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor to the CIA, and he serves his country during World War II. After the war, he becomes one of the founders of the CIA, and his decision to play a part alters his life even as he helps to shape the most powerful covert agency in the world.

Wilson is loyal to his country, but he begins to feel the job eroding his ideals and filling him with distrust because, as he’s so often told, he can’t really trust anyone. Meanwhile, his stoic personality and reticence about saying much shuts his wife, Margaret (Angelina Jolie) out of his life and starves their marriage. Wilson’s steely dedication also doesn’t do much for his relationship with his son, Edward Jr. (Eddie Redmayne), who wants to follow his father into the murky world of the CIA.

De Niro certainly demands your full attention with The Good Shepherd, and he gives the viewer so much to mull over. The problem with this film is that it is an epic PBS, Masterpiece Theatre-like, mini-series squeezed into a quarter hour short of three hours. De Niro’s narrative, like the script by Eric Roth, lumbers through domestic and international intrigue with an occasional stop at Edward Wilson’s way-unhappy home, yet neither Wilson’s covert work nor his home life get the fair treatment they need.

In Roth’s script, characters come and go like ghosts, and a quarter century of history darts by as we go back and forth in time. Nothing really sticks, and if it weren’t for some memorable moments (the brutal murder of a gay British spy and the senses-shattering end of another spy via a plane), The Good Shepherd would be an entirely cool exercise. The acting is fair to good, but Edward Wilson is too stiff and unemotional, and Matt Damon, who is best when he’s animated, a man of action with a plan, plays Wilson as a robot.

Is The Good Shepherd about loyalty, or is it about how a select group of men create and perpetuate the myth of foreign boogeymen as a justification for the careers and the existence of their organizations? It could be both, but likely we’ll remember The Good Shepherd as a film about a man who walks through his life and history as if he were a ghost. Everyone sees him and acts as if he were alive, while he acts as if he were dead. Both sides are only half right.

5 of 10
B-

NOTES:
2007 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Art direction” (Jeannine Claudia Oppewall – art director and Gretchen Rau and Leslie E. Rollins – set decorators)

Monday, April 16, 2007

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