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The Wrestler is the tragic story of Randy 'The Ram' Robinson who in the 80’s had rock star status in the square circle. Forward way too fast two decades and the bleach blond tresses are still long but the career is not yet he just can’t leave the limelight no matter how dim it’s getting. Health problems brought on by artificial performance enhancers make the retirement decision for him and  the question becomes can he resist the lure of risking everything to reliving a 20 year old epic moment or settle into something like normalcy and forge a relationship with two women who are the only things that give his life meaning. Cassidy (Marisa Tomei) is an aging lap dancer and Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood) is his estranged daughter both of whom have severe reservations about making a commitment to such a loose cannon. No one does a better job of playing down and out edgy fringe characters than Mickey Rourke but he tops himself here as Randy. He should get some kind of award just for being so ripped and ditto for Marisa Tomei who through extensive pole routines leaves no doubt that she is in fabulous shape. The Wrestler may take down one or two nominations during the upcoming award season.

Revolutionary Road is the suburban Lave It to Beaver address of the Wheelers, Frank (Leonardo DiCaprio) and April (Kate Winslet). Revolutionary Road is also a metaphor for the path that they decide to take as salvation from their mediocrity. April is having a tough time coming to terms with a failed acting career that never was. Frank has followed the family tradition of settling for a boring office sales job with benefits like an occasional dip in the steno pool. They cope with non stop alternating between Marlboros and bourbon (double during pregnancy) until April suggests a bohemian life in Paris. In 1955 this is as foreign to their friends and associates as the country they plan to flee to and travel plans run into jeopardy with unexpected surprises at work and on the home front. Katy Bates is wonderful as Helen Givings the Real Estate agent they just can’t shake and whose son John (Michael Shannon) on occasional furlough from psychiatric care proves to be the most lucid character on screen. DiCaprio and Winslet give their usual stellar performances and this time look like a genuine long term couple with kids. Unfortunately that’s probably a bit too real for most people in an extended relationship. As for stifling social mores of 1950’s America, Revolutionary Road might be revealing if TV’s Mad Men hadn’t already travelled down that road so extensively. 

Also out this weekend:
Bride Wars (Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway )
The Unborn (Gary Oldman)
The Grocer's Son

Defiance unlike the former fictional westerns of the same name is the harrowing true survival story set during the Second World War of a group of Jews who in 1941 eluded the Nazi ghettos near Belarus by literally heading for the hills. After returning to their bucolic village just after it was wiped out by the SS, four brothers who knew the woods intimately (having taken flight there more than once just a few steps ahead of the law) made tracks for the safety of their forest familiar only to find others not so adept at roughing it also hiding out. They came to rely on the Bielski brothers especially Zus (Liev Schreiber) and Tuvia (Daniel Craig) to stay alive. From this small beginning and with Tuvia as reluctant figurehead, soon more refugees joined the clan which began taking on a paramilitary vibe. As the numbers began to swell politics became something to deal with which sometimes lead to harsh discipline and eventually brother rivalling brother. Defiance is an amazing story but at 2 hours and 24 minutes it does take a little too long to tell. The more amazing span of time is how long this compelling story took to come to light which it now finally has thanks to the grandchildren of the principals.
 
Notorious charts the rise of a sheltered, chubby kid from Brooklyn born Christopher Wallace (Christopher Wallace Jr) who by the time of his well publicised and untimely demise had turned his hip hop moniker of Notorious B.I.G. into almost a household name. I’ve never been a total fan of this music genre but like many, posthumously I found likeable moments in Biggies work. Like many I had a misconception of his gangsta lifestyle which is now in perspective as is BIG’s relationship with Tupak Shakur, Suge Knight, L’il Kim and especially Sean Combs (a.k.a. Puff Daddy, a.k.a. Puffy, a.k.a. P. Ditty, a.k.a. Ditty) played by Derek Luke. I always thought that Combs was a Notorious protégé but it turns out he was Biggy Small’s mentor. On screen neophyte Jamal Woolard, who has a history of playing the character as a cartoon voice over, positively nails the role of the flawed and rotund rapper. Quietly outstanding too is Angela Bassett as Voletta, Christopher’s long suffering mom. Not for easily offended as the oedipal expletive is liberally used among other words of a four letter nature, still Notorious is more than an enlightened biopic caught up in the east coast/west coast animosity of the ‘90’s - it’s a noteworthy tale of redemption.

Paul Blart: Mall Cop is an idea ripe for a lampoon. I mean who hasn’t run into someone doing security that’s all puffed up on his own deluded self importance. Here Paul Blart is not so much self aggrandising as serious since he has a medical condition that prohibits him from passing any law enforcement physical so he’s doing the next best thing. He’s a single dad who lives with his daughter Maya (Raini Rodriguez) and doting mother (veteran Shirley Knight) so he’s written off as a loser by most people save for Amy (Jayma Mays) a fetching mall boutique proprietor with tweety bird lovability but thanks to Veck (Keir O'Donnell who looks like a poor mans Christian Slater) a new mall recruit he gets an opportunity to shine. At mercifully only 90 minutes it actually delivers a few good laughs making it slightly better than expected but that’s still not saying much. By the title alone this movie lowers expectations for nothing more than a lame cookie cutter comedy. Expectations are not raised much with Kevin James starring as Blart as he may tip the scales at the better part of a tonne but as a leading man is pretty light weight. He does show some impressive athleticism for a guy that size but even sporting a 70’s porno star moustache doesn’t generate a lot of sympathy for this basically unlikeable character.
Last Chance Harvey stars Dustin Hoffman (nominated for a Golden Globe for this performance) as Harvey Shine a New York jingle writer whose broken dream of being a jazz musician is just one of a lifetime of disappointments he visibly carries. With his career hanging by a thread he’s off to England where his estranged daughter Susan (Toronto’s Liane Balaban) is about to get married. While in London his dismal life gets even more pathetic until his chance meeting with a fellow sad sack Kate Walker (Emma Thompson - also nominated for a Golden Globe for this performance). Their ever strengthening connection juxtaposed against the mix of new and historic architecture that is modern London is romantic and the story is as sweet as peaches and cream - but alas also as predictable.

 Also out this weekend:
Hotel For Dogs
My Bloody Valentine 3D

Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis) is the biggest box office draw in French history. Who knew that the northern area close to the English Channel is considered the Newfoundland of France? Nowhere does that prejudice manifest itself more than within the southern sphere of influence for Philippe Abraham (Kad Merad). He’s a post office executive itching for a transfer to the Riviera but due to misconduct is banished to the northern outpost of Bergues which his friends and family are convinced is just steps away from the Arctic Circle. His wife Julie (Zoe Felix) cannot even bear the thought of living there so he goes alone, commuting south on weekends with tales of brutish residents and inclement weather. That’s because his wife will not believe the truth which is that the town is quaint, the weather is temperate and he likes the idiosyncratic people. One of them is the lovelorn, motherly smothered Antoine - as charming as Bergues itself and played by Danny Boons who also wrote and directed this funny homage to his actual roots. The lie actually has an unctuous effect on the relationship of Philippe and his wife but when Julie decides to steel herself and join her suffering husband he has to face his new friends and let them know what he’s been saying at home and face the consequences of their reaction. This is in French with subtitles so if you decide you don’t like reading, Will Smith is working on an Americanized version which will undoubtedly have a bigger budget but could not possibly have more heart.

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans has nothing to do with moss and tundra but a lot to do with blood lines both genetically and in great globs on the fortress floor. In this prequel to the first Underworld films Bill Nighy is back as Viktor the ruthless king of a vampire coven living their long ago medieval lifestyle. Kate Beckinsale is out of the picture so to speak but another raven haired British beauty Rhona Mitra is here to fill her shoes (as well as skin tight leather) as Viktor’s sabre toothed, sabre rattling daughter Sonja. Also returning in a departure from Oscar nominees Frost/Nixon and The Queen is Michael Sheen reprising the role of Lucian a unique lycan who is only a part time werewolf unlike the other bountiful lycanthrope inhabiting the kingdom. Viktor has kept Lucian enslaved and weakened since his mutant birth and has used his blood to infect mortals thus creating an army of lycan to do battle against the really bad werewolves. This keeps the protection money rolling in from mortals living nearby. All is an uneasy calm until it is discovered that Sonja and Lucien are doggone lovers. This Underworld was put under wraps by Sony Pictures with no press screenings which is usually an admission of junk. That’s really not the case because outside of some less than convincing CGI the only thing that sucks is the dinner menu for characters that are brought to undead life by the star power involved as they really sink their teeth into their parts as well as the parts of their victims.

Inkheart is a fictitious book of fiction at the heart of this fairytale with heart whose theme is predicated on the ability of a select few to be able to literally lift characters off the page by reading text aloud. Silver tongues is how they are referred to by those animated thusly and Mo Folchart (Brendan Fraser) is one such reader. It becomes apparent that he was unaware of his ability until much too late after too many characters had been fleshed out on earth.  Most of the resurrected characters are from the fantasy novel Inkheart and most rather like the new surroundings making them reluctant to go back. This has sent Mo on a nine year search with daughter Meggie (Eliza Bennett) in tow to find a copy of Inkheart since the unfortunate outcome of bringing these characters to life is that they are replaced between the pages by earthlings. Because of this the rare out of print novel is where Mo’s wife now resides. Dustfinger (Paul Bettany) is one Incendiary character who does want to go back which precipitates the adventure we go on here. He orchestrates Mo's kidnapping to force a rereading back home to Dustfinger’s wife Roxanne (Jennifer Connelly who like other acting masters here must have a lot of faith in the project to settle for such a limited part). Along the way Aunt Elinor Loredan played by a scene stealing Helen Mirren joins the chase as does Inkheart author Fenoglio (Jim Broadbent). The premise works for the most part certainly enough to hold parents attention while viewing this kid safe film although it may be a litte too intense for very young ones.

The Class stars Francois Begaudeau as teacher Francois Marin the lead character from his 2006 autobiographical novel of the same name. Looking like an authentic documentary we spend a year in his classroom of tough Parisian fourteen year old kids of diverse ethnic background and already expressing their own individuality. While some of his fellow faculty are despondent with the daily grind of mouthy attitude Marin deals with the adversity heroically – turning it inward on itself and using it as a tool to inspire learning. The Class is a riveting To Sir With Love for the new millennium with race roles reversed with not all endings happy. All of the kids portraying themselves are terrific as is Begaudeau in a screenplay that he also wrote and which won the Palm D’Or at Canne France in 2008, ironically the first French film to do so in 21 years.

The Uninvited is a filmed on Bowen Island remake of the spooky 2003 South Korean film A Tale of Two Sisters. That would normally be enough to make me wish that I was uninvited to the premiere screening but when you toss in an Oscar nominated acting craftsman like David Strathairn and red hot Elizabeth Banks whose performances get stronger every time out we get a passable melodrama. They play Steven and Rachel a spring-going-on-summer/ fall-going-on-winter couple shacked up in a comfortable but secluded waterfront property complete with a rebuilt boathouse. He’s a successful author and she’s the former nurse for his ailing wife who died in a mysterious boathouse inferno and when she was alive she and Steven had two daughters, Anna and Alex. Anna (Australia’s Emily Browning) was left mentally unstable by this tragedy and has spent a lengthy time under psychiatric care. We catch up with everyone as Anna is finally released to a joyous reunion with Alex (Arielle Kebbel who gets all the best lines) but a chilly reuniting with Dad’s trophy nurse. Anna’s vivid and foreshadowing nightmares and hallucinations lead the sisters to believe that Rachel murdered their mother and they set out to destroy her. Rachel on the other hand seems to have her own sinister agenda. The comparison might be uninvited but The Uninvited tries building to a Sixth Sense climactic aha moment – and almost succeeds.

Also out this weekend:
New in Town
Taken
Ballast
Caesar and Cleopatra
Love Me Again

The Pink Panther 2 has Steve Martin reprising his homage to Peter Sellers and his 60’s buffoon character Inspector Jacques Clouseau. Although most of the action takes place in France, French accents are optional. Emily Mortimer as Clouseau’s clumsy love interest almost gets a pass but John Cleese as Chief Inspector Dreyfus doesn’t even try (something his predecessor Kevin Klein might have taken to heart) and a couple of  karate kids who take on Kato-esque roles need not have tried. Martin puts his own professional spin on Seller’s patented French accent that sounds authentic but really isn’t. Here the poly carat pink diamond with the panther shaped flaw, touted as the object of Gallic pride is among artefacts like the Shroud of Turin and the Magna Carta heisted by a master criminal known as the Tornado. Clouseau is tapped to head an international group of sleuths to retrieve the stolen treasures. Of course this plot is a flimsy excuse to showcase a lot of silliness and physical comedy – some of which is lame but a lot of which gets hearty laughs from young and old. The Pink Panther 2 may get critical rough ride for too much silliness but isn’t that what historically the franchise has succeeded on? Not to mention the career of Steve Martin.

He's Just Not That Into You has one of the key elements that I’m not usually into – an all-star cast. So when I see Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore, Scarlett Johansson, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Connelly, Justin Long, Kris Kristofferson, and even Kevin Connolly as part of this entourage I immediately wonder how bad is this going to be? The truth is not bad at all. As a mater of fact it’s great! None of the above plays the central character. That job goes to the relatively unknown fresh faced Ginnifer Goodwin as Gigi who is dangerously predisposed to planning her trousseau the moment any guy pays the slightest attention to her. This leads her from one disaster to another until she runs into Alex (Long- really hitting his stride as a romantic lead) a player bartender who takes pity on her and becomes her dating coach. Swirling around all this is a daisy chain that includes Beth (Aniston) who can not get enough of a commitment from Neil (Affleck). His best friend Ben (Yes Man’s Bradley Cooper) is married to Janine (Connelly) but he’s having an affair with Anna (Johansson) who is also stringing along Conor (Connolly) who just happens to be Alex’s roommate. Mary (Barrymore) is hooked up to a lot of these characters but mostly serves to lampoon on line dating. Like most romantic comedies the ending is predictable but crisp writing makes this date movie easy to get into.

Nurse.Fighter.Boy. Three words separated by periods that quickly identify the characters involved in this tender drama. Clark Johnson is Silence a has been fighter that never was with a cool name, reduced to bare knuckle brawling at illegal street fights. While getting patched up after one such brawl he meets Jude (Karen LeBlanc) a Jamaican nurse with a matronly radiance and a killer secret. She’s the single parent of Ciel (Daniel J. Gordon) and they rent a dingy Toronto inner city house with a Narnia-like closet. Ciel is an early teen with whom she has an almost mother/daughter relationship exacerbated by Ceil’s androgynous appearance. Inside however he’s all man with a talent for voodoo which works well on Silence but fails him when it comes to the one he loves the most. Toronto’s Charles Officer who wrote and directed the film is ingenious with his cinematic character and plot development. That along with fine performances makes Nurse.Fighter.Boy. One.Interesting.Film

Push is a sci-fi story about individuals with paranormal powers trying to stay one step ahead of a shady agency that wants to use their powers for nefarious gain. Hey wait a minute, isn’t that the premise for TV’s Heroes? Well uh, yes it is. Anyway, here those with telekinetic powers are movers and watchers can see the future. There are even those who can scream so loud that they cause fatal bleeding from the ears. They don’t seem the have a nickname but Fran Dreschers sounds appropriate. The most dangerous of all are the Pushers who can control people’s thoughts and Henry Carver (Djimon Hounsou) is one Pusher who long ago went to the dark side. Inspired by the Nazi’s who in the 1940’s tried to use these gifted souls to form a super army, other nations have had similar ideas. Henry is with a government body called The Division currently experimenting on captured paranormals aiming at chemically booting their abilities but few survive. When Kira Hudson (Camilla Belle) does survive and escapes with the bolstering serum The Division guys chase her to Hong Kong, the hiding place of Nick Grant (Chris Evans) whose father was a former Carver victim. He’s been avoiding The Division ever since but when a precocious thirteen year old watcher named Cassie Holmes (Dakota Fanning) talks him into finding Kira before Carver does it puts Nick on a collision course with his past. Action fans won’t be disappointed with Push and the unique Hong Kong settings are fascinating but it doesn’t take a clairvoyant to figure out where the final push ends up.

Coraline (Dakota Fanning) – not to be confused with Caroline (which invariably happens) is a bored pre-teen whose family has just move into the main floor unit of a somewhat rural heritage character home appropriately complete with a witch hat roof. In this computer generated animation (also screening in 3D) she’s cute as a button which is not really to her advantage since buttons become a real hazard for her. Her only hope for companionship is a mangy cat and the landlord’s flaky grandson so she takes to exploring the creepy old house they live in. She discovers a short wallpapered over door that opens to a brick wall by day but a portal t a parallel world by night – a world where mom and dad have nothing but quality time to spend with her, cats can talk and neighbours hold Busby Berkley type shows. Oh yeah and everyone has buttons for eyes just like the mirror image doll that Coraline has received. Eventually she realizes that the grass isn’t really greener on the other side but when her other mother (Teri Hatcher) morphs into her real personae (truly frightening with only one or two degrees of separation from the animation to the real Hatcher) Coraline understands that she is a prisoner. When she finally escapes she realizes that she must return one more time to rescue her trapped parents but escaping a second time isn’t so easy. Maybe a little intense for the very young Coraline is good family fun that may have you converting buttons to zippers when you get home.

Confessions of a Shopaholic is a screen adaptation loosely based on the best-selling novels on the topic by Sophie Kinsella. Amy Adams clone Isla Fisher is captivating as Rebecca Bloomwood, a New Yorker damaged as a child from being dressed by her mother (Joan Cusack) in sensible shoes as well as other dowdy but equally terminally durable apparel. At twenty five she subconsciously lashes out through the miracle of credit cards to become the ultimate power shopper but in this timely scenario everything (including her career) crashes for her just as it’s time to pay up and she’s left scrambling for employment while staying one step ahead of the collection agency. Naturally her ultimate goal is to work for a high fashion magazine but can only land a gig with one of its subsidiaries – a financial rag headed by Luke Brandon (the dreamy Hugh Dancy). There her jones for consumerism provides unique analogies to explain high finance to the common person which makes her the toast of that publication. Her uncontrollable addictive personality however gets her wishing for a refund. Fisher gets big name support from John Goodman, John Lithgow, Kristin Scott Thomas, Julie Hagerty and even Lynn Redgrave in a cameo, probably delighted just to be part of a Disney film. And why not? Lately they’ve done marvellously entertaining films and this is among them. Confessions of a Shopaholic won’t take long to get you hooked.

Friday the 13th scheduled its opening day on the fist Friday the 13th of 2009 which is a lucky coincidence – not so lucky or course for anyone paying to see this remake – but if it didn’t open on Friday the 13th then the title would have nothing to do with the actual film. Camp Crystal Lake is again the scene of the crime(s) where in 1980 (the year of the original movies carnage) young Jason Voorhees is mentally scarred after witnessing his deranged mother’s decapitation. Fast forward to today and the former summer camp is long ago deserted which doesn’t inhibit a quintet of hikers (some bent on raiding a mythical grow-op) who set up their tents there for the night. As usual anyone having sex gets dispatched in a gruesome fashion. Since pretty much everyone is having sex Jason doesn’t take long to go to work although at first his unexplained hideous face is covered by burlap. It’s not till later that he adopts his trademark homage to Jacques Plante. At first with only enough victims to count on one hand it seems like the film will be mercifully short. However one of the five has a brother Clay Miller (Vancouver immigrant Jared Padalecki) who won’t give up the search despite opposition from the locals and a preppy rich kid with a cabin on the opposite side of the lake. He and an SUV full of surprisingly mult-ethnic hangers are invading the lake for a party weekend but you know that hangovers will be the least of their headaches. It’s hard to imagine after so many years and so many sequels that there is a groundswell of demand for a return to square one of the franchise. This go round motives are non existent save for having an excuse for non stop slice and dice with a side of skewering, but if you really are a fan of this genre you might forgive that and enjoy the roller coaster juxtaposing of humour and terror. And of course it does set itself up for a sequel.

Also out this weekend:
Wendy and Lucy
Billu Barber

Cadillac Records takes us back to Chicago in the’50’s and the genesis of Rock and Roll. Leonard Chess (Adrien Brody) was a colour blind nightclub owner with a passion for rhythm and blues. After he opened the legendary Chess records he would reward his label stable who achieved success with a new Cadillac – and what a stable: Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Willie Dixon, Little Walter, Chuck Berry and Etta James. Being successful at a time when this vibrant art form was openly referred to as “race” music was not easy. Temper that with some pretty volatile musical personalities and the job got even harder. Voiced over by Cedric the Entertainer (as Willie Dixon), Muddy waters is the focal character faithfully resurrected by Jeffrey Wright. Beyonce Knowles sizzles as Etta James and Mos Def completely captures the sly affable legend Chuck Berry. Cadillac Records is an absorbing perspective on the people responsible for influencing so many performers (mostly from Britain) who later achieved huge success by emulating these musical pioneers.

The International stars Clive Owen as Louis Salinger, a rumpled Interpol agent who reluctantly came to that organization from Scotland Yard. We meet him in liaison with the FBI and Eleanor Whitman (Naomi Watts) from the NYC District Attorney’s office. While in Germany closing in on a small arms money laundering scheme Salinger’s FBI partner comes to an untimely end which almost turns out to be the end for their case. For Salinger it’s déjà vu all over again as he is suddenly revisiting the cause of his departure from “The Yard”. As he and Whitman try to pick up the pieces a sinister plot unfolds involving a banking entity less concerned with cash than with geo-political manipulation. As these two get closer to the truth it becomes apparent that less and less people are really interested in the truth. Then there become less and less people due to a mounting body count that climaxes in a heart stopping gun battle at New York’s famed Guggenheim museum. Watts again gets to work with Eastern Promises star Armin Mueller-Stahl who as Wilhelm Wexler again plays his trademark soft spoken but sinister poppet master who eventually is Salinger’s key to unravelling the bad guys but at the cost of becoming a bad guy himself. With action ricocheting across Europe and the Atlantic it begs the question, with so much international intrigue why isn’t The International more intriguing?

Fired Up is the name of a cheerleading camp that annually overtakes the dorms of an Illinois University campus for 3 weeks of pompom perfecting. The program is called Fired up instead of just Cheerleader Camp because it’s not as funny when they’re chanting C-C as opposed to cheering F-U in unison. If this level of comedy tickles your funny bone then you’ll get along fine with this film. Here two high school seniors Nick Brady (Eric Christian Olsen) and Shawn Colfax (Nicholas D'Agosto) are finding that being straight “A” students and the two top player players on the high school football team is still not landing them enough female attention. The thought of 300 nubiles in lettered uniforms attending this yearly workshop is an embarrassment of riches that Nick and Shawn find irresistible so they fraudulently join the rah-rah team with an eye on copious easy action despite protests from Carly (Sarah Roemer), the cheer captain who sees through their libido driven plot. This along with her being “pre-engaged” to a college boy would seem to make her unattainable but you know the sparks are going to fly sooner or later between her and one of our two shagmeisters. As a matter of fact there are a lot of things you know will happen in this predictable comedy. There’s sight gags with clumsy set ups and montages with high energy taught bodies just when the story starts to lag. Still, kudos’ to Juliette Goglia (the only cast member who looks like a teenager, because she is the only cast teenager) as Poppy, Shawn’s scheming, scene stealing sister and D'Agosto’s whose fired up delivery of inappropriate yet hysterical one liners makes the film bearable and will probably draw audiences back to pick up what they missed.

Also out this weekend:
Stone of Destiny

Che Pt 1 and 2 is a labour of love for Benicio Del Toro who is his usual masterful self portraying the Argentinean revolutionary icon Ernesto “Che” Guevara. Unfortunately it’s also very laborious for audiences. It’s broken up into two films which may be screened with an intermission at twice the price or released in sequence. Either way it represents four and a half hours of time that moviegoers will have to budget for. Part one is the rise of the revolution in Cuba where Che was Castro’s right hand man and eventually a USA media darling (although even in the fifties and sixties one questions the genius of a doctor disabled by asthma that chain smokes big fat cigars).  Part two is Che’s attempt to export revolution to the rest of Latin America. We pick up after the Motorcycle Diaries left off however despite some impressive cinematography the point of this epic celluloid duo is elusive other than maybe to point out that the whole of the Guevara/Castro ensemble was probably greater than the sum of its parts. Perhaps this is merely an homage to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Cuban revolution but director Steven Soderbergh could have told the tale in a lot less time. Like Guevara’s revolutionary ideas the movie too is a hard sell.

Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience does not represent a “D” grade each for Nick, Joe and Kevin Jonas (I think I hate the fact that I am now familiar with these teen heartthrobs on a first name basis). To be fair the grade is probably closer to a B-. The 3D concert (which outnumbers the dimensions of their belief system by 2) filmed over two days last August In Anaheim is spliced between footage of a hectic race through New York on the day of a record release that unlike previous recordings is particularly well received. Also edited in are moments from an appearance on Good Morning America and a cheesy staged helicopter rescue from frenzied fans and Big Apple gridlock. The end result leaves the impression of a day in the life a la Hard Days Night. Thankfully they’ve pledged their hormone wracked bodies to celibacy until marriage so they are focussed enough to weather the day. Complete with one off songs from Demi Lovato and Taylor Swift. the same fingers that sport their purity rings pluck out tunes which are harmless and somewhat infectious although not all that recognizable. Something tells me decades from now there won’t be an Across The Universe based on the music of the three sons of the Evangelical Reverend Jonas.

Also out this weekend:
Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li
 
Cassandra’s Dream is the name of a long shot horse which is used to christen a pre-owned sailboat. The boat is the proud new possession of two British brothers who are out to beat the odds, each in his own way. Ewen McGregor is Ian, clearly the more grounded of the two. The boat turns out to be his in with Angela (Hayley Atwell) a budding actress he wants to impress but his real dream is to escape the inevitable fate of taking over his father’s struggling restaurant. Colin Farrell is brother Terry who with a job as a mechanic and steady girlfriend Kate (a subdued pre Happy-Go-Lucky Sally Hawkins) is the less ambitious of the two but suffers chronic stress dues to a gambling addiction. His luck at games of chance runs out about the time that Ian is ready to make a move and the only salvation for both is rich, philanthropic uncle Howard (Tom Wilkinson) whose globe trotting is about to land them a visit. However his promise to bankroll the brothers’ future comes with some heavy duty strings attached which leaves the siblings to deal with a moral crisis which Ian deals with far better than Terry. Cassandra’s Dream is a rare drama for Woody Allen who as usual manages to draw big names to a small budget film which turns out to be an actor’s workshop as much as a tidy tale. Perhaps unlike the dreams of the mythical Cassandra, predictions of this films reception were believed and wide release was wisely held up until it could ride the coat tails of a big success like Vicky Christina Barcelona.

Watchmen is a vivid recreation of a popular and critically acclaimed series of graphic DC comics published from 1986 to 1987. The action is still mid 80’s but in an alternate reality to the one on record where Richard Nixon is into his fifth term heading an administration that has outlawed costumed vigilantes. The cold war has been kept in check by Dr. Manhattan, formerly Jon Osterman (Billy Crudup) until as the result of a reactor accident in the 50’s he was turned into an indestructible, shape shifting mass of blue nuclear charged plasma in human form. After breaking up with his latest paramour Laurie Jupiter (Malin Akerman) a second generation superhero who goes by Silk Spectre II (Carla Gugino is the old school Silk Spectre), Dr Manhattan sets up shop on Mars leaving the world’s balance of power in limbo and teetering on the brink of nuclear annihilation. Laurie as we find out has a connection to Edward Blake (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) another old school superhero known as The Comedian. Blake’s murder causes a former costumed crime fighter Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) to illegally suit up again with a mask distinguished by more shifting blotches than a McDonalds employee. Rorschach’s investigation also brings Nite Owl II aka Dan Dreiberg (Patrick Wilson) out of retirement. Dan by the way is friends with Laurie and they get cosier and cosier as the plot thickens along with the copious gore from the frequent no holds barred action. Fans of the series will thrill to the faithful reproduction through eye popping effects and remarkable costuming. Familiar Vancouver faces pop up constantly since this was filmed at the Bloedel Floral Conservatory and The soundtrack will bring a smile to fans of all time favourites - but watch out man, Watchmen is not a film for kids or sensitive people.

One Week features Vancouver’s Joshua Jackson the star of the successful paranormal series Fringe on the Fox Network, although here the non stop narrative makes it a bit more like Pushing Daisies.  Co-starring is Toronto’s Liane Balaban (last seen in Last Chance Harvey and ironically again playing a bride to be) as his fiancée Samantha Pierce. Jackson plays Ben a Toronto teacher who has spent his short adult life settling rather than taking chances. When a cancer diagnosis announces that his adult life is about to get very short indeed he follows the “Go West” advice rolled up in the rim of his Timmy Ho’s double double cup. He buys a classic Norton motorcycle, leaves his baffled intended behind and sets out for parts not east. The sights he sees are a manifest of Canadiana but the touching part is the fallout from the lives he touches on his journey to Tofino. The story is moving in more ways than going from the world’s largest hockey stick to the world’s largest tee-pee and anyone watching would be hard pressed not to love this country after spending two hours with One Week.

The Green Chain is that part of a sawmill where cut lumber is sorted. Here it’s a metaphor for the line-up of arguments on both sides of the green issue regarding forest management in B.C. The drama starts with a soliloquy from Ben (Scott McNeil) a small town logger and ends with a diatribe by Jenni (Jillian Fargey) his waitress wife. In between we get a take on the issue from Dylan and Abigail (Babs Chula and Brendan Fletcher) a couple of radical environmentalists as well as Brett (Tahmoh Penikett) a forest fire fighter, John (August Schellenberg) a first nations industrialist, and Leila (Tricia Helfer) a gas-headed Pam Anderson-like B movie star, deluded enough to think that parachuting in from LA for a cheesy photo op is in no way opportunistic. All sides of the issue are thoughtfully addressed and with donations from the profits of this film being made to the Stanley Park fund, surprisingly the environmental movement comes up on the short side of the sympathy scale here. The performances are convincing but with extensive dialogue basically being dictated from talking heads from a documentary style point of view, like an actual green chain one’s focus is easily distracted. At least with the movie you’ll have a better chance of having kept all your fingers by the end of the day.

Miss March is the first big screen project for "The Whitest Kids U Know", internet darlings who managed to wangle their own cable network show of sketch comedy. Actually only two fifths of the comedy troop are represented, Trevor Moore who is like Emu Phillips after 25 espressos playing Tucker Cleigh a Playboy magazine loving horn dog whose best friend forever is Eugene Bell played by Zach Cregger. Eugene is the libido opposite of Tucker but at the insistence of his girlfriend Cindi Whitehall (Raquel Alessi) is about to break his vow of abstinence on prom night. An accident at a very non-dry grad party leaves him in a coma until Tucker coaxes him back to consciousness with an unorthodox procedure involving a Louisville slugger. By now it’s four years later and Eugene’s world is completely changed. His parents have left town and the very chaste Cindi is the March Playboy centrefold. This precipitates a cross country rescue mission to the Playboy mansion which is expedited by bad blood following a severe chewing out by Tucker’s girlfriend Candace (Molly Stanton). It took a while for me to get a good laugh from this film which I saw with my son, a “Whitest Kids” fan. Although there were more laughs (almost exclusively involving genitalia) and Hef has greatly improved his acting chops since House Bunny, Junior was a little disappointed. He chalked it up to unreal expectations but I assured him that I had no expectations yet still thought it could have been better.

Race to Witch Mountain is a fantastic non stop chase, and having a mountain as the final destination it ironically stars The Rock (Dwayne Johnson). He’s Jack Bruno, a Vegas cabbie trying to get on the straight and narrow after doing a stretch for his work providing muscle and being a wheel man for a local mob boss. Too bad his old boss isn’t ready for him to retire. Life really gets complicated when two teenagers, Seth (Vancouver’s Alexander Ludwig) and his sister Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) invade his cab giving some hinky directions in robotic syntax. Their strange lexicon isn’t persuasive but the wad of cash they’re waving around is. It turns out that the kids are on a mission from another world and not only do they have the feds on their case but yet another alien with a Terminator mentality is also stalking them. What are the odds that the teen’s space craft would crash land just outside of Vegas when it’s lousy with geeks attending a UFO convention? Pretty good if you believe in the chaos theory like Dr. Alex Friedman (Carla Gugino), a convention guest speaker who ends up teaming with Jack and the kids to get them to Witch Mountain. Failure by the way is not an option as the fate of the world depends upon it. Race to Witch Mountain is Disney remaking Disney with a rehash of two previous movies from the ‘70’s - and yes of course it sets itself up for a sequel. That by the way will probably get made because despite a few flaws in the plot flow this is a pretty exciting family film that’s not too intense for anyone.

The Last House On the Left is the remake of an identically named 1972 thriller. I never saw the original which I think is what a lot of producers are counting on lately as they try to cash in on previously good ideas with an inferior reworking. I’m not sure of the quality of the original but it would have to be pretty impressive to outshine this retrofit and if you love films that make you squirm this is one of the most intelligently done ones of that genre to come along in a while. A pastoral lake cottage owned by Dr. John Collingwood (Tony Goldwyn) and Emma (Monica Potter) his beautiful nurse wife is the location for a bad weekend getaway with Mari (Sara Paxton) their teenaged daughter. Great pains are taken to show that Mari is a speedy swimmer so you just know that’s going to come in handy eventually. Mari and townie friend Paige (Martha MacIsaac) inadvertently get mixed up with a crew of criminals headed by an escaped con named Krug (Garret Dillahunt) who leave the girls for dead in the woods and take shelter during a deluge at the Collingwood cottage where mom and dad slowly discover the truth about their creepy guests. Tension builds in unique ways and not so much in the cliché endless light footed on edge sneaking around corners only to have someone jump out from a spot just passed. Death scenes are graphic as is one of chilling sexual molestation - which seems gratuitous at first but goes to the character of Krug thus making his comeuppance one that should have the theatre cheering.

The Necessities of Life is another riveting insight into the traditional Inuit lifestyle that stars Natar Ungalaaq, so memorable in 2001’s award winning Atanarjuat. This time he plays a Baffin Islander named Tiivii. If the ‘50’s in Canada seems an archaic time imagine what that decade was like in the barren arctic. Tiivii lives a nomadic lifestyle on the tundra with his wife and two daughters living in a tent and hunting caribou with a rifle - his only modern convenience. When the medical ship that pulls in periodically finds that he has a respiratory problem that requires him to be institutionalized he’s ferried to a sanatorium in Quebec City. At first he’s despondent because of the isolation brought on by such a totally foreign environment but when kindly nurse Carole (Éveline Gélinas) has a sick and orphaned French speaking Inuit boy named Kaki (Paul-André Brasseur) transferred to Tiivii’s ward for treatment he finally has a Rosetta stone to unlock the mysteries of his new surroundings. Through kindness on both sides of the language barrier differences become understood and lifelong friends are made. Some of those lives are longer than others. Maybe not so much a necessity of life but this movie certainly adds a few pleasant moments to life.

Also out his weekend:
Owl and the Sparrow
Pontypool

Duplicity has Julia Roberts and Clive Owen who are both pretty good (and pretty) in a caper flick that unfolds like Mr and Mrs Smith meet Ocean’s 11. Owen seems to be the go to guy for spooks having trouble holding down a spy gig because like in the recent (and also underachieving) International he plays an ex-MI6 agent named Ray Koval who years ago while with the agency was burned in the field by Claire Stenwick (Roberts) a CIA operative. Now they’re still both in the cloak and dagger business but at a more competitive level – corporate espionage. Ray is a newcomer at a pharmaceutical company headed by Richard Garsik (a justifiably over the top Paul Giamatti) while Claire has been spying for some time in the employ of Garsik’s arch rival Howard Tully (Tom Wilkinson as always with the perfect amount of aplomb) and as the flashbacks pile up we wonder are they really in collusion to defraud their employers and most importantly can they trust one another. Tony Gilroy is a man with impressive credits and he wrote and directed Duplicity. However outside of a rollicking slow-mo donnybrook between Garsik and Tully the film is duplicitous for leading one to believe that he is about to be engaged by an intriguing spy thriller. Perhaps it should be named Disappointing

I Love You, Man follows the well trodden Hollywood formula to a tee but with a surprisingly fresh and original theme. Paul Rudd is Peter Klaven an L.A. Realtor engaged to Zooey (Rashida Jones) and a man with big developer plans as soon as he sells his ace listing, the somewhat gaudy home of Lou Ferrigno (playing himself). A bevy of tight friends surrounding his intended comprised of  Hailey (Sarah Burns) and Denise (Jaime Pressly) make Peter realize that he doesn’t have any close buds of his own. This sends him off on a search for a BFF enlisting the help of his gay brother Robbie (SNL’s Andy Samberg), his mom Joyce (another SNL alumnus), his dad Oswald (an even more than usually underutilized - but still outstanding - J.K. Simmons) and even Barry (Jon Favreau) Denise’s disagreeable husband. But it’s not until he by chance meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel) at an open house that he hits pay dirt. Unfortunately the frankness of the unkempt Sydney puts a strain on the perfect relationship between Peter and Zooey. Thanks to the proven comedic chops of Rudd and Segel and their treatment of a pretty funny script albeit based mostly on bodily functions this is an enjoyable accompaniment to an early spring tub of popcorn.

12
Polytechnique
RiP: A Remix Manifesto

Knowing is what you should do better prior to entering a Nicolas Cage movie as normally with him you can expect a hairpiece as obnoxious as the film it appears in. There’s no exception here other than it starts with some unpredictable promise. Cage plays John Koestler a hard drinking physics prof but attentive single father to his pre-teen son Caleb (Chandler Canterbury, annoying at first but he grows on you). Professor Koestler gets into the action half a century after a time capsule buried at Caleb’s elementary school is opened. Lucinda Embry (Lara Robinson who also plays Abby, Lucinda’s granddaughter) is one of the kids in 1959 assigned to make a picture for a future student but instead pencilled in a series of numbers. That ends up with Caleb who lately seems to be affected by the same inaudible chatter that used to haunt Lucinda. John soon discovers that the numbers are not random but correspond to every major cataclysmic event in the past 50 years save for two and he sets out to avert the inevitable. Along the way he hooks up with Lucinda’s daughter Diana (Rose Byrne) and her daughter Abby, also privy to hearing that strange chatter apparently originating from the same mysterious guys as back in the 50’s. We’re treated to some eye popping special effects but they can’t shore up the degenerating preachy plot. And I still don’t know how those weird guys could predict the future. Then again how did I know this catastrophic film would be a minor catastrophe?

Crossing Over is the first really worthwhile Hollywood drama of 2009. In a series of vignettes that eventually all interlock we’re introduced to Max Brogan (Harrison Ford) a jaded but thorough California immigration officer who uncharacteristically helps Mireya Sanchez (Alice Braga) a Mexican alien whose young son is left stranded following her arrest. After returning the lad to his grandparents he spends personal time in a futile attempt to find Mireya. Meantime agent Cole Frankel (a refreshingly impressive Ray Liotta) is eliciting sex for a green card from Claire Shepard (Alice Eve) a hot but illegal Aussie actress, while her pal Gavin Kossef (Jim Sturgess) is trying to scam a green card on religious grounds. Cole’s wife Denise Frankel (Ashley Judd) is an immigration lawyer trying to defend Taslima (Summer Bishil, impressively sympathetic playing someone very hard to like) a 15 year old Muslim whose outrageous high school essay has put her whole family at risk. In the same detention centre as Taslima and being held indefinitely is another of this lawyer’s clients, a very young African girl that Denise wants to adopt. Eventually Claire’s best laid plans begin to unravel when her forgotten plan “A” of buying a fake green card falls apart with the brutal death of the guy paid to forge that paperwork. He turns out to have an unsavoury connection with the stringent Middle Eastern family of Hamid Baraheri (Cliff Curtis), coincidentally Brogan’s heroic but flawed partner. Crossing Over is a modern fable about the American immigration policy in a post 9/11 world and like all fables there’s a moral here - be careful of who you want, you just might get them.

Sunshine Cleaning has the feel (but with much less charm) of the similarly monikered Little Miss Sunshine right down to casting Alan Arkin in a supporting role as the family patriarch. Here he’s Joe Lorkowski a semi-retired low level hustler living in Albuquerque and the father of two grown thirtysomething daughters. There’s the lost cause Norah (Emily Blunt) and the more grounded Rose (Amy Adams) who nowadays isn’t as promising as she was not too long ago as the high school head cheerleader dating Mac (Steve Zahn) the captain of the football team. She’s still dating Mac but with a difference - he’s now a police detective married to someone else. Rose has to try to support her hyperactive eight year old son Oscar (Jason Spevack) as a cleaning lady and she’s just not making enough money. A tip from Mac gets Rose and Norah into the lucrative business of cleaning up grizzly crime scenes and life starts getting sweeter until Rose’s prideful behaviour causes an irreparable rift between the siblings. Although Sunshine Cleaning may feel a bit like Little Miss Sunshine it probably won’t clean up as much at the box office or during next years award season.

Monsters vs. Aliens
The Haunting in Connecticut
The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins
The End of the Line
12 Rounds
24 City

Fast and Furious not only describes the expected action but also the speed with which producers have re-issued new instalments of this franchise. This is the fourth since 2001 which really doesn’t allow for a lot of lag time between productions. This series has to be the best thing to happen to the career of Vin Diesel. Although he was absent from the middle two films he’s part of the complete original cast reprising their roles, he as Dominic Toretto. Paul Walker is back as FBI agent Brian O'Conner. Also back are Michelle Rodriguez as Dominic’s love interest Letty and Jordana Brewster as his loyal sister Mia. Basically picking up where the original movie left off it’s not long before gloom and revenge (Diesels only two dimensions) cast a pall over the action when Letty ends up murdered and a powerful drug lord named Campos appears to be responsible. It turns out that Campos is also the FBI’s most wanted and O’Connor is under pressure to make that collar. Despite their bad blood Dominic and Brian reluctantly team up to get close to their mutual target. Somehow in all of this there’s an excuse for a heart stopping high tech car chase about every ten minutes. Predictable? Definitely. Exciting? Fairly. Why again? Money. These movies pull in an astonishing amount of cash which explains the accelerated release rate.

Fanboys takes a comic deep dip into the ultimate in geekdom i.e. rabid fans of Star Wars and Star Trek. If you get nothing else from this romp you’ll walk away knowing there is no honour among these terminal virgins. Hapless Star Wars fans have no use for Trekkies (now preferring to be called the less offensive Trekkers) and the feeling is mutual. With countdown clocks set to tick off the days until the release of Star Wars I, in small town Ohio circa 1999 three Star Wars worshippers – Windows (Jay Baraschel), Linus (Chris Marquette) and Hutch (Dan Fogler) - are reunited at a Halloween party with Eric (Sam Huntington) a Federation commander who has lost his religion. Differences are set aside when it becomes apparent that one of them won’t survive until the movie release date and they plan a trip to the George Lucas Skywalker Ranch in San Francisco to steal a pre-release copy of the flick. Along the way there’s the usual road picture hijinks highlighted by a pathetic dust up at the statue of James T. Kirk in his legendary home town. They also secure help from Carrie Fisher playing a matronly nurse, a game William Shatner as himself and Kristen Bell as Zoe who uncharacteristically turns out to be the love interest of NOT the most likely of the quartet to attract women. Let’s hope this film doesn’t end up biting the audience hoped will feed it.

Gomorrah along with Sodom are biblical cities synonymous with unrepentant sin. While Sodom traditionally gets top billing, here the second banana stands alone because it sounds so much like Camorra, an organization definitely defined by unrepentant sin. The Camorra is the pervasive crime syndicate that has been engrained into the daily fabric of life in Italy around Naples and Caserta and the copious carnage from its struggle for power is out of control. From the book by Roberto Saviano and with cinematography as gritty as the subject matter we meet a litany of characters (played by unknown but terrific actors) touched in one way or another by this violent lifestyle. Don Ciro is a bagman who distributes hush money to families of jailed gangsters until he finds he has to change allegiance. Toto is a thirteen year old grocery delivery boy with dreams who finds the lifestyle irresistible until he has to make a terrible choice. Only slightly older are Marco and Caro two inadequate punks with enough misguided hubris to think they are clever enough to do their own thing. Joining the white collar crime wing is Roberto, a college grad making his bones by illegally disposing of toxic waste. And then there’s Pasquale, a tailor who after being horrifyingly rebuffed for aiding some upstart Chinese clothiers manages to survive but only by doing like Lot leaving Gomorrah – leaving everything behind and never looking back.

Also out this weekend:
Adventureland
8 X 10 Tasveer
In the Night Garden
Tale of a Yellow Bike
The Pool

Hannah Montana: The Movie successfully brings the Miley Cyrus ‘tween TV hit from Disney to the big screen in a typical inoffensive, happiest-place-on-earth manner. The Hannah Montana alter ego has altered the ego of Smiley Miley Stewart (Cyrus) who has started to believe her own hype so that the wig and make-up barely distinguish the two personae. It looks like the charade that allows Miley to pursue her performing dream and still lead a normal life is having a meltdown so her dad Bobby Ray (Billy Ray her real dad) decides that a Tennessee intervention is in order. He sequesters the 16 year old on Grandma’s farm until she’s had time to tone down the attitude and in the process she rediscovers her roots and the boy next door (Lucas Till). When the town needs help to maintain the integrity of its character Hannah is pressed into service to put on a show which causes complications. The Miley Cyrus charm translates well to the big screen although the senior Cyrus is guilty of pedestrian acting. The story is predictable and generic but wholesome and the music is not only infectious but occasionally actually moving. If I had to entertain a female aged 6 to 12 we could both take some enjoyment from this film although me not nearly as much as her.
Observe and Report has Vancouver’s Seth Rogen hopping down the gross-out trail again this Easter weekend as Ronnie Barnhardt, a man with no filters. He constantly laments the foot dragging by management to allow firearms for guards at the mall where he is head of security (which by the way gives you an idea of the calibre of his underlings if he represents a step up). He lives with his mother (Celia Weston who perfectly deadpans all the best lines) and has a crush on the vacuous blonde in cosmetics, Brandi (Anna Faris who gives a clinic on vacuous blondeness). When a mall crime wave of perverts and thieves hits hard Ronnie gets involved in a turf war with Detective Harrison (Ray Liotta) which causes Ronnie to push back with an invasion of cop territory. Being released so soon after Paul Blart: Mall Cop might lead you to believe that 2009 is the year to lampoon shopping centre security but by comparison Observe and Report is a lot edgier and funnier – with a caution. This comedy treads as lightly as it can around the topic of its principal character having a bipolar disorder but there are still times when that reality makes things feel like they’ve gone too far. That’s my observation, duly reported.

Two Lovers stars Joaquin Phoenix as Leonard Kraditor a timid Jewish New Yorker with an ability to make people laugh when he’s finally comfortable with them but who also carries a lot of pain that makes him prone to suicide. Despite this and living at home with his parents he has managed to capture the affections of two beautiful women. Sandra Cohen (Vinessa Shaw) is the daughter of a family business associate who is clearly the sensible choice and probably would have been save for a chance meeting with Michelle Rausch (Gwyneth Paltrow). Michelle is obviously nothing but trouble being partial to chemical recreation and involved already with Ronald Blatt (Montreal’s Elias Koteas) a married man. However Leonard is powerlessly infatuated and long before they’re fully involved he finds himself sneaking around and hiding the truth about Michelle from his parents Ruth (Isabella Rossellini) and Reuben (Moni Moshonov). Phoenix who has done some odd things lately most notably his announced plan to leave film and pursue a career as a rap artist. Whether he did this project before or after that big announcement, Two Lovers fits into his litany of oddities – not that it’s bad, just odd.

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh stars relative newcomer Jon Foster as Art Bechstein and he holds his own surrounded by veterans Nick Nolte, Sienna Miller and Peter Sarsgaard. In the mid 80’s after getting a business degree, Art plans a mindless summer in a minimum wage job while taking a securities course so that he can parachute into a cushy job provided by his uncle. His dad (Nolte) runs a thriving business but since he’s a gangster he doesn’t want Art to get involved in the fairly dangerous family affairs. Art’s aimless plans are proceeding better than expected as co-worker Phlox Lombardi (Mena Suvari) turns out to be a boss with benefits but all goes out the window when he meets a swinging couple, the beguiling Jane Bellwether (Miller) and Cleveland Arning (Sarsgaard).This odd three way eventually leads Art to depths that his father had tried to steer him clear of. The Mysteries of Pittsburgh won’t give you any insight into why the Steelers win so many Superbowls. Since these kids were all introduced through a big coincidence involving Art’s former college room mate Momo (Omid Abtahi) - a Middle Eastern Muslim with a taste for pills and Vodka - a set up is always in the back of your mind. Once the truth about that is revealed the only other mystery to solve is why bother with this movie? 
Dragonball: Evolution
Shall We Kiss
Cherry Blossoms

17 Again takes us back to 1989 and introduces us to high school senior Mike O'Donnell (heart throb Zac Efron) who with the trophy girlfriend and basketball scholarship is all set for a bright future. The court lights dim quickly when his best girl Scarlett (Allison Miller) announces she’s pregnant and when he does the honourable thing college takes a back seat. Fast forward to the present and Mike (now sometimes Canadian Matthew Perry) is a bitter man in a dead end job with a nearly finalized divorce from Scarlett (now the real Mrs Judd Apitow Leslie Mann) and alienated from his two children Alex (Sterling Knight) and Maggie (Michelle Trachtenberg). A nostalgic trip back to his alma mater spins into a transformation to the teenager that he once was but in the time he currently lives in. Thankfully back in the day he befriended Ned Gold (Thomas Lennon) the nebbish and bullied team water boy who since graduation has capitalized on his geekyness and converted it into big cyber bucks. Now it’s payback time as he poses as  Mike’s father so he can enrol again in senior year at their old school which is now where his kids are getting an education (not always positive). He has to adapt to rejuvenated hormones but his life experiences come in handy for advising his un-self assured son as well as his daughter about to throw away her future for an unworthy jock. Things get uncomfortable when his charm builds an attraction with not only his daughter but soon to be ex-wife. 17 Again Is your typical time travel tale re: someone getting a do-over of a critical life juncture that could have gone better. Although the concept is generic there are some refreshing steps along the way.

State of Play is an American adaptation of a 6 part British TV mystery thriller. True to the original a high minded politician railing against government collusion with the private sector is suddenly thrust into a sex scandal. Looking suspiciously set up by his corporate adversaries his natural enemy, the press, come to his rescue. Ben Affleck is the straying US congressman Stephen Collins and Russell Crowe is Cal McAffrey his former college room mate and now a crusty, junk food addicted reporter at a struggling Washington rag. One can only hope that the chunky Russell Crowe made this immediately after his portly role in Body of Lies otherwise the necessary yo yo dieting makes one more curious about the state of his heart. McAffrey’s even crustier boss Cameron Lynne (Helen Mirren) is under pressure to publish cash grabbing headlines and assigns McAffrey to collaborate with Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) an annoying blogger from the encroaching online department. When Congressman Collins’ other woman Sonia Baker (Maria Thayer) conveniently dies in a subway mishap we see through the course of investigations that the long suffering Mrs Collins (Robin Wright Penn) isn’t suffering all that badly as she too is having an affair. The body count doesn’t stop at Sonja and with its increase comes a decrease in the certainty of who is guilty as the story twists and turns to its surprising end. Google State of Play and you get “a conference series put on by the Institute for Information Law & Policy at New York Law School which deals with the intersection of virtual worlds, games and the law” – all in all a definition synchronous with this pot-boiler.

Also out this weekend:
Crank: High Voltage (Jason Statham and Amy Smart)
The Education of Charlie Banks
Hunger

Sugar is about Miguel “Sugar” Santos (instantly endearing newcomer Algenis Perez Soto) a twenty year old from the Dominican Republic with a howitzer arm who dream of playing baseball in the USA. His dream seems at hand when he gets called up to a fictitious Midwestern double A team but gets pitched a dose of reality when faced with the competition of working up through the minors before making it to “The Show”. At first he deals well with the pressure but then has to deal with a crisis of confidence - all the while he’s treated with such abundant kindness by people that he can barely communicate with and whose culture for the most part is a complete mystery to him. Sugar is a savoury and bitter sweet tale.

Earth is the premiere documentary released from Disneynature, the first new Disney-branded film label to be introduced in 60 years. This mash-up of absolutely stunning camera work seems to be in search of a theme, which it finds to a point. The spectacular natural beauty and savagery of our planet is in abundance although euphemistically expressed in the trite context of a human nuclear family. Although touched on occasionally, environmental issues are really a back beat which is odd since much has been made of the movies release on Earth Day. Also noteworthy is the affiliation with the BBC on this project and indeed it seems to be a reworking of a nature series that minus the basso profundo narration of James Earl Jones has already been broadcast on British TV. Disney has promised to plant a tree in honour of every moviegoer who sees the film in its opening week – thankfully that press release arrived by email and not in an envelope

The Soloist is a story based literally on today’s headlines, or at least by-lines if you want to get technical. Star Jamie Foxx will probably be remembered at the next far away award season for his portrayal of Nathaniel Ayers which will be a testament to his outstanding performance (yet another) a the child prodigy at Julliard poised to make a mark on the world with his cello until his brain synapses started crossing wires and mental illness set in. We meet him relocated in Las Angeles and living on the street where he gives concerts in the park on a two string violin under the stony glare of Beethoven’s statue. This is also where Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) meets Mr Ayres. Lopez is a newspaper columnist always hungry for a scoop and finds in Nathaniel not just one but a series of articles that are insightful and therapeutic as they serve to bring Ayres in off the street while applying a lot of political pressure to address the issue of LA’s population of some 90,000 indigents. The articles also inspire an unlikely concert as the two become friends. It seems odd that such a compelling story would find it necessary to force humour with uncomfortable sight gags (emphasis on gag) inspired by urine from a variety of species and even odder that such a story expressed by wonderful actors could leave you unmoved emotionally.

Tulpan is a young woman in Kazakhstan who we never really get to see and whose role is minor yet significant. Asa is a young man back from a stint in the navy which is diametrically opposed to his barren landlocked home on the Kazakh Steppe. On his return he must share a tent with his sister and her nomadic family since he can not become a shepherd on his own – he must be married. Such is desert life on the wind blown Steppe. The comedic veneer of the movie shows Asa’s repeated marriage proposals to Tulpan but the real story is the insight into the lifestyle which, outside of a very few modern conveniences, is virtually the same feudal system that may have existed for millennia. As fascinating as this is one is further knocked out by the cinematography and its stunning recording of the starkly beautiful Steppe typography and the reality of creatures that eke out a living on it.

Fighting
Channing Tatum and Terrence Howard Obsessed
Beyoncé Knowles
Hansel and Gretel

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past might suggest some slight plagiarism of Charles Dickens. Well, there’s nothing slight about this delightful bit of thievery which amounts to A Christmas Carol with sexual tension added. Matthew McConaughey is Connor Mead, an unapologetic hedonist who has scrooged over a litany of female conquests. When he makes a wintry return to his childhood home to act as best man for his kid brother Paul (Breckin Meyer ) he’s visited by the ghost of Uncle Wayne (Michael Douglas) his playboy uncle and surrogate father who warns him that he’ll be visited by three ghosts on the eve of the wedding. Coincidentally Jenny Perotti  (Jennifer Garner) the maid of honour to his about to be sister in law happens to be an old flame that plays a major role in Connor‘s past, present and future trip down mammary lane. There are a few flaws like the brides father Sergeant Volkom (Robert Forster) as a Korean War vet would more likely be her grandfather and Jenny and Sandra (Lacey Chabert) the bride being so close is too much of a coincidence. Still, on more than one occasion the film pokes fun at itself and although it doesn’t presume to improve on a classic there is some sharp dialogue that adds to the fun. You don’t need a poltergeist to point the way this film is going to end up or for that matter whether it will do well at the box office.
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Lemon Tree very pretty to quote Trini Lopez, and further the lemon flower is sweet but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat – especially if the Israeli National Security team says so. A West Bank lemon orchard that has for generations been the source of income for one Palestinian family is currently run by a widow Salma Zidane (Hiam Abbass such a sympathetic, stoic beauty in The Visitor and once again here) who has the misfortune of having the new Israeli Defence Minister take up residence next door. When the National Security goons decide that the lemon grove is a perfect cover for a terrorist’s attack they fence it off and close it down. Even though compensation is offered that strikes a sour note with Salma who proceeds with a valiant legal fight that goes all the way to the Israeli Supreme Court and becomes a political scandal along the way. Similar to the Hollywood backlash to WMD’s and the last 8 years of Republican rule, this is yet another cinematic event from Israel that is sympathetic to persecuted Palestinians. Like the Americans, Israeli film makers make lemonade when they get lemons.
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X-men Origins: Wolverine
Anvil! The Story of Anvil
Bart Got a Room

STAR TREK (technically Star Trek 9) I think would have left the original TV creator Gene Roddenberry quite delighted were he still with us today. Although his widow is also gone she lives on in this movie as the voice of the onboard computer. Also living on is the career as Mr Spock of Leonard Nimoy although it’s a chore doing the math that has an antique Spock in the same dimension as young Spock played by Zachary Quinto. James T Kirk is now played with almost insufferable hubris by Chris Pine. He’s an Iowa juvenile delinquent running wild without much parental guidance since his father George (Chris Hemsworth) died heroically fighting a band or rogue Romulans lead by Nero (a nicely psychotic Eric Bana). Kirk has a penchant for jumping headlong into fights he can not possibly win which only starts to pay off when he’s goaded into joining star fleet by Capt. Christopher Pike (Canada’s Bruce Greenwood). There Kirk not only encounters neophyte cadets Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and Hikaru Sulu (John Cho), he also becomes fast friends with a grumpy young doctor named Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban) and eventually ebullient engineer Montgomery Scott (Simon Pegg,). Much as Kirk tries to make time with Nyota Uhura (Zoe Saldana) She’s hooked up under the radar with a crew member who also doesn’t start off well with Kirk - Mr Spock. Differences have to be put aside however when the fate of the universe depends upon it. This is a marvellous prequel to the original series which save for some flight deck electronics it’s very true to. One other welcome addition that tops off the relentless action is fun they boldly go to where no Star Trek has gone after.

TYSON
MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS
LYMELIFE
ADORATION

ANGELS & DEMONS is the precursor to Dan Browns Da Vinci Code and has Tom Hanks again under the direction of Ron Howard but mercifully mullet free reprising his role as super symbologist Robert Langdon. Where the Da Vinci Code got bogged down in over explanations, this time Howard gets it right. Here anti matter is a long way off from propelling the Enterprise to warp speed but in a subterranean European cyclotron it gets manufactured in heretofore unheard of quantities thanks to the work of the hot (for a physicist) Vittoria Vetra (Ayelet Zurer). Although minute it is so volatile it could take out a small European state which is exactly what a radical and ancient group of technocrats known as Illuminati plan to do to the Vatican as a way of humiliating the Catholic Church at its most vulnerable. The pope has died and the college of cardinals is sequestered to elect a new pontiff and the Illuminati have kidnapped their prime candidates and plan to brutally sacrifice them as a build up to wiping out Vatican City. Camerlengo Patrick McKenna (Ewan McGregor) is the past Pope’s right hand man and needs to take action which is why Langford is called in. Adding to the tension and intrigue is the ever sinister yet immutably soft spoken Armin Mueller-Stahl as Cardinal Strauss who is constantly admonishing the young Camerlengo while appearing to have a Papal agenda of his own. Intense action against the splendour of that warehouse of glorious gems from antiquity known as the Vatican makes Angels and Demons a heavenly mix of hell bent action but without the controversy that stoked the media frenzy over the DaVinci Code it may not ascend to the top of the box office.

IS ANYBODY THERE? is a coming of age film with a twist as the coming of age is not only an entry but also an exit. Edward (Bill Milner) is a mid 80’s 10 year old resentful of his parents newest vocation as it has put him out of his former bedroom. He acts out a lot because they’ve taken to offering long term care for the aging in their rural home. This is actually a mixed blessing for Edward since he has a morbid curiosity with death and the constant passing of residents gives him ample opportunity to experimentally explore the afterlife. One such passing provides a vacancy for new resident Clarence (Michael Caine) a retired magician with less than magical baggage. Clarence is slowly losing his faculties but for now is lucid most of the time and those moments are filled with resentment and remorse. With two bodies full of such venom living in  close proximity it doesn’t take them long to clash. As Clarence and Edward gradually warm to each other tensions build between Edward’s mother (Anne-Marie Duff) and father (David Morrissey) over Ena (Thelma Barlow) a hired care giver. Is Anybody There? is this spring’s midseason Midland marvel as every year about this time we get a heart warmer from somewhere in suburban Britain. Although the film has a certain charm it may not be so much a question to the afterlife as it is about the theatre audience.

FIERCE LIGHT: WHEN SPIRIT MEETS ACTION explores inner motivations that attempt to induce change peacefully. It argues that it is a growing global phenomenon and rather grandiosely asserts that it was responsible for Barack Obama getting elected. Acclaimed Canadian documentarian Velcrow Ripper was originally inspired by the death of a fellow film maker covering the repression of Mexican peace marches and went off on a tangent from there. Using as a constant reference an urban garden in Las Angeles that was a municipal olive branch granted following the Rodney King riot, worldwide non violent protests are explored from Martin Luther King to South Africa’s Desmond Tutu. The LA epicentre is relevant as it was turned into a vibrant market garden by under privileged east LA-ers only to have the city sell it to land developers. This fostered passionate protests that caught the attention of Hollywood and managed to cobble together some big money to reverse the process. Although you question the symbiotic public relations motivations behind spotlight seeking movie stars, the courageous commitment of non celebrities is consistent whether it is truly for civil rights or a misguided cause.

TERMINATOR SALVATION extrapolates once more the original 1984 movie that turned Arnold Schwarzenegger into a superstar and yes - he’s back - albeit for only a cameo and only via some superimposed CGI tricks. Where the original had a cyborg time travel to the present to kill Sarah Connor this Terminator terminus is in 2018 where we meet Sarah’s son John (Christian Bale) as a freedom fighter for the Resistance fiercely combating the artificially intelligent computer Skynet that mass produces machines designed to wipe out humanity. We’re also introduced to Marcus Wright (Aussie Sam Worthington) a former death row inmate whose last memory is being sweet talked into donating his body to science by Dr. Serena Kogan (an unhealthy looking Helena Bonham Carter). Thanks to a botched raid on a Skynet installation by Connor and company Marcus is revived from the suspended animation that followed his 2003 execution. The first person Marcus meets is teenager Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin already a blockbuster vet this year as Pavel Chekov in Star Trek) who of course is John Connors future father. This makes him #1 on the Skynet most wanted list with John Connor running a close second.  Meantime that raid did net the Resistance secret information with the potential to turn the tide in the war with the robots which lately has been going very much the way of the machines. Terminator Salvation may just be the salvation of this fatigued franchise that at this point is 4 movies deep with more on the drawing board.

THE LIMITS OF CONTROL is a potpourri of stylish film making that takes us into the heart of spaghetti western country where we meet yet another no name drifter in the modern day played with sullen subtlety by Issach DeBankolé. He has assignments in Spain that are as abstract and enigmatic as that country’s most famous artist, Picasso. With a litany of international superstars taking on cameo roles who spout philosophical soliloquies to the stone faced stranger before getting down to business are John Hurt, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton and Gael Garcia Bernal. Our anti hero who is meticulous with espresso orders is a series of paradoxes; doing dirty business yet having a taste for modern art, classical music and packing tailored suits that tend to always blend into the colour scheme of his changing surroundings. Our well dressed phantom is passed off from one contact to another with cryptic descriptions of his next contact and a matchbox to exchange containing either a coded message or a handful of diamonds, however one incident severely tests his own steely limits of control.

RUDO Y CURSI
NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN
DANCE FLICK

UP is the latest animated treat from Pixar and their first in 3D (where available). The hysterical trailers have been running for months but no hints of motivation are given for Carl Fredricksen (a fine welcome back for Ed Asner) a grumpy old man using a monstrous battery of helium filled balloons to float his character home in the city on a jungle safari accompanied by an ersatz boy scout named Russell (first timer Jordan Nagai plucked from a casting call). What unfolds is a tender story that starts in the early part of the 20th century when the Hindenburg and daredevils like Charles Lindberg capture the global imagination and Ellie (Elie Docter) a plucky, adventurous girl just out of her baby teeth befriends young Carl a chubby, shy but otherwise like minded boy. They become inseparable for life after puppy love turns to the real thing but alas in the new millennium the once shy boy is the first to be left alone. The balloon relocation is a natural progression from their joyous life together and Russell the stowaway, although living with his own melancholy, is just there trying to earn a merit badge. Waiting at their South American destination is some wondrous intrigue featuring exotic birds, talking dogs and betrayal by a childhood icon, Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer). Pixar continues its tradition here of providing animation with universal appeal that might be a little unsettling to the very young but still should elevate Up, high on any movie goers list of films to see this summer.

THE BROTHERS BLOOM is a romantic comedy about Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) and Bloom (Adrien Brody) two brothers who mature from boyhood to manhood with only each other to trust as they grow up being shunted from one foster home to another. When their chronic delinquent behaviour leaves them without even that option they discover the confidence game as a handy means of survival. Life as con men serves them well until they hit thirty something. By then they’ve gained Bang Bang a cute, diminutive, enigmatic and asexual Asian partner with a talent for incendiary devices, and lost Blooms ardour for the life of a grifter. Stephen talks him into one last mark – Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz) – a New Jersey heiress who led a totally sheltered life before being orphaned just as she reached the age of consent. The ruse proceeds brilliantly until Bloom falls for Penelope but when he reveals all she wants to play along as she finds thrilling this con game that often involved The Curator (Robbie Coltrane) and the untrustworthy Diamond Dog (Maximilian Schell). Logically drivers ed is missing among the many “hobbies” she picked up while in adolescent seclusion but others like slight of hand and musicianship serve her well for fitting in. Weisz brings an endearing innocence to her role and unknown Japanese standout Rinko Kikuchi as Bang Bang is a treat. There are stunning locations and very amusing visual gags that unfortunately fizzle out too soon. As for the two brothers, their likeability never really reaches full bloom.

MY LIFE IN RUINS is a cute double entendre for the disappointing career of a North American educator who unable to get a job in he chosen profession becomes a Greek tour guide. Once again exploring her Hellenic roots is Winnipeg’s lovely Nia Vardalos of My Big Fat Greek Wedding fame here playing Georgia the overqualified tourist wrangler who can barely even hang onto that job. In a gorgeous jaunt through stunning landmarks that accentuate the cradle of democracy we meet a bus load of visitors from hither and yon but mostly America who come for the atmosphere but would really prefer to be at the beach. It doesn’t take long for Georgia’s schoolmarm attitude to alienate the entire passenger manifest whose defacto ringleader is Irv (Richard Dreyfuss), a retiree with a warm sense of humour. Eventually the uptight site seeing leader loosens up especially after she gets it in gear with the hunky bus driver Poupi (Alexis Georgoulis) and her charges become less obnoxious as the days and kilometres roll by. Vardalos got some high end production help from Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson (Wilson also appears in a cameo role) and although it sometimes plays like a Love Boat episode there is a certain charm to this not unamusing armchair travelogue.

EVERY LITTLE STEP is a more fascinating documentary than you would expect about the audition process for the 2006 restaging on Broadway of A Chorus Line. The show originally opened on a shoe string off Broadway in 1974 and by the time it closed down it was the longest running production ever on the Great White Way and remains in 4th place on that list to this day. That musical which won multiple Tony awards and a Pulitzer for the book was the original “work shopped” production. With a stroke of genius originator Michael Bennett sequestered a hand full of dancers in a room along with copious amounts of wine and a reel to reel tape deck. He rolled hours of mylar while the hoofers took turns at telling their show biz heartbreaks. Along with music form Marvin Hamlisch these stories were refined into the production being staged around the world today. Rare footage from the 70’s production is interspersed with scenes from the recent eight month audition process in front of long time Bennett collaborator Bob Avian and other original cast members which started with 3000 applicants and sifted down to 17. The result is an often tender build up of tension that is quite compelling. Imagine a whole season of American Idol and Dancing With the Stars boiled down into ninety minutes Talk about your one singular sensation.

Drag Me To Hell

The Hangover is a take no prisoners comedy (well, some were taken prisoner come to think of it). With plans for a bachelor party to end all bachelor parties Doug Billings (Justin Bartha) a groom to be heads to Vegas for one last naughty weekend prior to a lifetime of marital bliss with two of his best buddies - the henpecked dentist Stu Price (Ed Helms) and playboy Phil Wenneck (Bradley Cooper) – but saddled with Alan Garner (Zach Galifianakis), Doug’s creepy impending brother in law. After one night in sin city three quarters of the gang come to in their trashed luxury suite sporting various abrasions and contusions with a Bengal tiger in the bathroom, a baby in the closet, a police cruiser waiting in valet parking but no Doug and no memory of the past 18 hours. With the help of comic veterans like Jeffrey Tambor and Heather Graham the trio tries to fill in the blanks that landed them in this confusing morning after the night before that evidently involved the real Mike Tyson, an effeminate Asian gangster and a new bride for one of our heroes. Oscar Wilde it’s not but the laughs that hang over will be remembered for a while.

Land of the Lost is a big screen adaptation of a long ago TV series that was rejuvenated in the early ’90’s. Where it may have a nostalgic aspect for original viewers, as a stand alone movie it’s just plain silly. Will Farrell gambled and lost on this movie playing Dr. Rick Marshall who with much debatable hubris expounds his theory to an incredulous Matt Lauer (in a bad career move) that manipulation of sub atomic particles by a Tachyon amplifier can induce teleportation to a parallel dimension. With the aid of star struck academic Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel) he heads to the most likely spot for teleportation which turns out to be in the center of a fourth rate New Mexico amusement park. Joining them on their passage is the red necked carney Will Stanton (surprising stand out Danny McBride). On their arrival they meet a missing link named Cha-Ka (SNL’s Jorma Taccone) with whom Holly curiously can communicate, a nastier than normal T-rex with a glass ego and zombie-esque lizard-like creatures called Sleestaks. Unfortunately they also misplace their Tachyon amplifier which is bad news because not only is it their ticket back but also holds the salvation of the universe. All this left me lost – lost as to how Holly can speak Neanderthal, lost on how a T-Rex can understand English but mostly feeling the loss of the time watching this film.

Easy Virtue is an adaptation of a Noel Coward play that has not been put to celluloid since 1928 under the direction of Alfred Hitchcock. While at that time it would have been a contemporary film, now it’s a period piece. Of note is Colin Firth who no longer seems to be tapped for roles as a lady killer but is cast here in a more mature role although with patience we see that he still has some moves. He plays Mr. Whittaker a distant and less than lordly lord of an English country manor. Kristin Scott Thomas plays his haughty wife and they are the parents of two conspiratorial daughters Hilda (Kimberley Nixon), Marion (Katherine Parkinson) and likeable son John (Ben Barnes). Their stately stagnation is thrown into disarray when John surprises them with his new bride who is an abomination to Mrs Whittaker for a litany of reasons but mostly because she’s an American. She was previously married and horror or horrors has a career – as a race car driver. Her name is Larita played by Jessica Biel who seems a lightweight choice for such a meaty role. With typical pithy Noel Coward banter the Whittaker women make life insufferable for Larita who for her part stands her ground yet all the while tries to fit in.
Also out this weekend:
O'Horten

DEPARTURES is an internationally acclaimed Japanese film that won many honours before taking the best foreign language Oscar at this years Academy Awards. This film is so gorgeous that politics aside and strictly on merit it should have been considered for best picture against what was offered in English as it could have given Slumdog Millionaire a run for its money. Tugging at the heart of the film is the sacred Japanese tradition of Nokanshi which makes an art form out of the undertaking profession. Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) is a Tokyo cellist who must sell his beloved axe when his orchestra folds and move back into his parent’s house in the sticks with Mika (Ryoko Hirosue) his sweet understanding wife. Her tenderness is tested however when Daigo finds work by answering a want ad for departures place by “coffiner” Ikuei Sasaki (Japans answer to Buster Keaton, Tsutomu Yamazaki) At first Daigo and Mika thinks it has something to do with the travel industry but when Mika eventually finds out the truth she gets totally creeped out at the though of him constantly touching dead people. Daigo however can’t let the new job go – at first because of the easy money but later because of the awe he feels for the craft he is perfecting, a craft that allows him to finally excel artistically - and little does he know it will bring closure to a painful chapter in his past. The emotionally compelling story augmented by unusual and spectacular scenery along with artistic cinematography all combined are real departures from the usual Hollywood fare.

AWAY WE GO is the story of a pregnant couple’s search for the right environment to raise their impending child. Burt Farlander is an insurance underwriter played by John Krasinski who translates a lot of the level headed charm he’s so famous for in The Office but it’s spiced with a touch of looniness that he inherits from his flaky ex-hippy parents  Gloria (Catherine O’Hara) and Jerry (Jeff Daniels). He adores his wife Verona De Tessant (Maya Rudolph) and always seems to be able to say just the right thing to humour his often sullen better half. When Jerry and Gloria pull up Colorado stakes just prior to the new arrival Burt and Verona feel abandoned and venture to the cities that various friends and families call home in search of the perfect nesting ground. Through Phoenix, Tucson, Miami, Madison and Montreal they hear through characters played by the likes of a priceless Alison Janney and Maggie Gyllenhaal as a whole earth airhead what they do NOT want to adopt in the way of child rearing. Although Verona’s background motivation is incomplete, Away We Go is a low budget comedy with a big budget of wit.

IMAGINE THAT should do much to take the albatross of bad movies past from around the neck of Eddie Murphy. He’s teamed up with just about the most adorable child actor to come along since Dakota Fanning and his sometimes infantile shtick has found a compatible match. She is Yara Shahidi playing Olivia the daughter of Evan (Murphy) a commodities broker constantly upstaged in front of clients by the neo nutty first nations psycho babble of his recent arch rival Johnny Whitefeather (a seemingly miscast but ultimately spot on Thomas Haden Church who never the less rises to the challenge). Evan is so wrapped up in climbing the last few rungs up the corporate ladder that his family takes a back seat - that is until he discovers that Olivia’s imaginary friends have a crystal ball view of the stock market. Their playful ventures to seek havens for venture capital start the bonding between father and daughter. There’s a certain freshness to the script and a minimum of clichés that are so easy to fall into with this type of family fare and they resisted adding the compulsory love interest for Evan which leaves the story to develop fully between father and daughter. A palatable movie starring Eddie Murphy – imagine that!

Also out this weekend:
THE TAKING OF PELHAM 123

THE PROPOSAL has Vancouver’s Ryan Reynolds in yet another romantic comedy this time teamed up with the queen of romantic comedy, Sandra Bullock. Their keen comic timing works well off one another for the first half of this generally well written and for the most part well paced story. Bullock as Margaret Tate is the boss from hell who has cracked New York’s glass ceiling as a shaker at a large publishing company. Reynolds as Andrew Paxton is her simmering lackey who maintains his role as a sycophant in hopes of one day moving up to a job as an editor. Although Margaret has made herself indispensable to her American employers the American Government finds her dispensable as a Canadian with an expired visa. The irony for Reynolds being a Canadian working in the USA aside, Margaret flashes on the solution and orders Andrew to marry her. However, far from being the answer to her prayers it’s actually the answer to his as he starts leveraging his new found position of power. The tables really start to turn on a trip to Alaska for the 90th birthday party for Grandma Annie (the always game Betty White). Although at this point things degenerate to a series of clichés here we meet the parents Grace (Mary Steenburgen) and Joe (Craig T. Nelson) and it become clear why Andrew would stand for the abuse he’s taken for so long working under Margaret. Of course with a romantic comedy called The Proposal you know there’s a double meaning, half of which has nothing to do with business.

YEAR ONE is a biblical spoof about Zed (Jack Black) and Oh (Canada’s Michael Cera), two ancient hunter-gatherers (trades that neither excel in) who are banished from their tribe only to step into the pages of Genesis. As they slip in and out of slavery they have comedic run-ins with Abraham (Hank Azaria) and his son Isaac (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) as well and Abel (Paul Rudd) and his sleazy brother Cain (David Cross) not to mention their dad Adam played by the brains behind this sophomoric story, Harold Ramis. Another heavy hitter behind the scenes here is producer Judd Apitow who has produced better, still with Black’s impeccable comic timing and Cera’s hilarious trademark stuttering asides (which still have not gotten old) they make most of the comedy work. However gearing biting biblical satire to a crowd that quite probably is at least influenced if not true religious believers could be a mistake. Despite exemplary past offerings from Apitow, Black, Ramis and Cera the sum of the parts is greater than the whole here and the makers of Year One might want to go back to square one.

SUMMER HOURS. Those lazy, hazy memories that we are most nostalgic about usually spent at a perennial retreat at that time of the year when the living is easy. For one French Family in this well made movie it’s the country estate of the brood’s matriarch Hélène (Edith Scob) who inherited the house and it’s collection of art treasures and priceless furniture from a favourite uncle. Hélène is the mother of two sons Frederic (Charles Berling) and Jeremie (Jeremie Renier) and one daughter Adrienne (Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche). We meet the extended family reunited from all parts of the globe for Hélène’s summer birthday which turns out to be her last. The dispersal of her estate will bring back painful memories for adult children who have had to deal with the division of inherited assets especially when there is a difference of opinion regarding liquidation. Not only do the trio of survivors get to know and respect their differences, they also learn something about the French taxation system not to mention heritage legislation. They also learn a deep dark secret regarding their dearly departed mother.

Also out this weekend:
VICTORIA DAY
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN

MY SISTER’S KEEPER is another stunning acting triumph for the mature beyond her years Abigail Breslin. Also commendable in an acting stretch is Cameron Diaz who plays Sara Fitzgerald, an iron willed mother who abandons her successful law career to devote full time care to her oldest child Kate after her diagnosis of leukemia at a very young age. Kate has survived at least 10 years longer than expected thanks to her younger sister Anna (Breslin) who was genetically engineered by her parents to be the perfect match for Kate for whatever medical procedure prove necessary. However when Kate requires a kidney transplant the 11 year old Anna pulls in the reins and sues her parents for “medical emancipation” so they can no longer use her as a perpetual vault of sibling spare parts. Lost during all this infighting is middle child Jesse (Evan Ellingson) who is largely ignored at the expense of the symbiotic sisters and this causes a sidebar of teen angst. Also noteworthy is Sofia Vassilieva as Kate the stricken child who delivers a believable sunny disposition for her character whose daily challenge is just to survive. The story is emotional but not synthetic and rather than being an upgrade of a disease-of-the-week TV movie, there are complicated ethical issues on both sides of the argument so that it becomes difficult to point out the bad guy.

CHERI is the pet name of the character played by Rupert Friend, a foppish early 20th century spoiled late teen. He is so named by his mother’s friend Lea de Lonval (Michelle Pfeiffer). Both women know each other from long gone days in the theatre. Both now keep themselves in the manner to which they have become accustomed by manipulating the stock market although their venture capital came from manipulating men. Mother is Madame Peloux (Kathy Bates) clearly to whom the years have not been as kind as to Lea. The affection between Cheri and Lea drifts into a summer/winter love affair that stretches into 6 years but comes to an abrupt stop when Madame Peloux has designs on grandchildren resulting in an arranged marriage for Cheri that doesn’t involve Lea. Despite pining for one another, neither will let on their sense of loss to the other. Cheri is so popular a story in France it was filmed for TV three times after the original movie from 1950 but Anglicized it loses something in the translation. En Francais Cheri is a term of endearment but here it’s a bit of a misnomer no matter whom it applies to since none of the characters are very endearing.

LITTLE ASHES is an obscure line from an obscure poem that adds even more confusion to this befuddled movie. Current Twilight heart throb Robert Pattinson is not quite up to the stretch of playing Spanish surrealist Salvador Dalí. Although his is the most famous character portrayed he turns out not to be the central character. The focal point turns out to be Federico García Lorca (Javier Beltrán) the legendary but persecuted Spanish poet who was a voice of dissent during a time of Spanish repression in the early part of the 20th century. Although much is made of the long time on-again-off-again relationship between the two as Dali gets more eccentric and Lorca gets more intense, this is no Brokeback Madrid. It’s a little like watching paint dry and not in an abstract way.
 
THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE is the latest Steven Soderbergh film about a high end call girl whose claim to fame is offering not just sex but the true experience of having a girlfriend even if it is one of fantasy and not reality. Ironically many of her clientele complain about being hamstrung by the economic downturn but still have funds to pay for her service. Her name is Chelsea (crossover adult film star Sasha Grey) and despite her vocation she has a live in boyfriend Chris (Chris Santos) who is OK with her career choice, no doubt because of the high style that it allows them to live. Other than her clients Chelsea has been faithful to Chris for nearly a year but she’s tempted to give it all up for one very persuasive customer. Meantime she uses all the online virtual tricks to promote herself into mini celebrity status, but like celebrities of any genre there are always people ready to take deadly aim at the pedestal they find themselves put upon. The Girlfriend Experience is a stylish slice of New York life in a mock documentary format  that pulses to a soundtrack heavy with street musician’s music.

WHATEVER WORKS is a cliché that often concludes an erudite tirade by sixty something New Yorker Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David) which is ironic since he has nothing but contempt for anything cliché. We find this out when the cranky curmudgeon in a weak moment allows Melodie St. Ann Celestine (Evan Rachel Wood) a destitute southern woman, sanctuary in his loft and ends up mentoring her. Although you pray it won’t happen a summer / winter relationship blooms but it’s not as creepy as you might imagine and the unlikely couple end up married. Running counter to what you’d expect she doesn’t really soften his nihilistic resolve but he on the other hand has a subtle fatalistic effect on her. Thing really get interesting when Melodie’s separated parents Marietta (Patricia Clarkson) and John ( Ed Begley Jr) show up separately only to find their Christian moral repression severely challenged by the Big Apple. Whatever works is a hyperventilation fix for fans of the prodigious Woody Allen and Larry David effortlessly transposes all his neuroses from Curb Your Enthusiasm to this latest offering from the writer/ director. Why it took so long for these two to work together is a mystery as they could be twins. Perhaps they are just way too similar to have worked together but collaborating here really works so, whatever!

Public Enemies introduces a new millennium audience, probably for the first time, to household names that were criminals with rock star status almost a century ago. This new audience didn’t have the benefit of The Untouchables every week but thanks to MTV might appreciate the allure of the gangsta lifestyle to an oppressed population. During The Depression years and the early days of the FBI the majority of people were ghettoized so they might appreciate that the Robin Hood antics of bank robbers like Baby Face Nelson or Pretty Boy Floyd fostered some hero worship. Of course since the days of the real Walter Winchell’s staccato TV voice over of the work done by Elliot Ness et al we’ve learned that J. Edgar Hoover was a mama’s boy who wore dresses to séances so here played by Billy Crudup he’s not so heroic. That’s left to Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) a righteous G-man without a lot of legal teeth but under orders from Hoover to use whatever means imaginable to capture public enemy #1 - John Dillinger (Johnny Depp). The film has a meticulously authentic look and clearly Hollywood expected great things judging by the small parts played by big names like Giovanni Ribisi, Channing Tatum, Leelee Sobieski and even Diana Krall as a torch singer. Depp is his usual treat to watch work and Bale is believable in his role but outside of Dillinger's love interest in Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard) and his souring relationship with the remnants of Al Capone’s gang not much new in the way of character is fleshed out. That gets set aside to make room for an over abundance of gunplay to satiate a restless MTV generation so ironically that may imply that the public is the enemy of this film. At least they inspired a cool soundtrack.

Moon takes the career of Sam Rockwell to astronomical heights as he completely carried this interesting little film not once but twice and ironically in both instances as a character named Sam. From an idea by Duncan Jones (son of David Bowie) who also directs this low key sci-fi thriller we’re stationed on the dark side of the moon in the distant future when the earth’s primary energy source is Helium 3 and as luck would have it the lunar surface is lousy with it. Sam is the sole inhabitant at an automated mining station coming to the end of his three year contract with a large earthly conglomerate. Communication with home has been interrupted for some time but Sam has GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey) the unctuous robot computer to take care of all his needs until his stint is up. When a field accident leaves Sam nearly dead he’s rescued by a stranger from nowhere also named Sam who is his mirror image. The two eventually discover that their situation is nothing to be over the moon about. Rockwell is fantastic facing off against himself yet with subtle personality differences and Spacey lives up to his last name as the voice of GERTY revisiting the same assuring tone as HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey. What’s different is that here the computer is the one with the conscience and man is the monster.

Also out this weekend:
Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

Bruno as fans (or victims) of Da Ali G Show know is the fictitious Austrian host of the most popular TV fashion show in a German speaking country that is not Germany. Like Borat and Ali G, Bruno is evil spawn from the fertile mind of Sacha Baron Cohen who has turned outrageously unacceptable behaviour into an art form that is universally embraced. He takes outrageous to a new level here, the prime example being that without even knowing the star’s real name, guessing his religion is no mystery - as a matter of fact it’s quite uncomfortably in your face. When things go out of fashion for Bruno at home he decides to become an American celebrity and heads to Hollywood. He’s immediately ditched by his gay lover and things disintegrate from there as his various dreams of celebrity and curing his homosexuality slowly deteriorate. This film is directed by Larry Charles who gave us Religulous and it shows. The plot of course is merely a means to string together a collection of pompous charlatans and raging bigots candidly making fools of themselves and Cohen’s genius for inventing new ways to facilitate this is what will draw audience throngs who embraced Borat back into theatres to see what he’ll get up to this time. In the end Bruno is a story of survival in that it is amazing how Cohen has consistently eluded murder with his edgy behaviour.

Also out this weekend:
Food Inc
I Love you, Beth Cooper
Valentino: The Last Emperor

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince doesn’t do much half way but even clocking in at just under two and a half hours it’s still impossible to completely detail the brilliant plotting outlined in the book by J.K. Rowling. However it does deliver gloriously the gist of this sixth voluminous tome in the Potter series. Here the three Hogwarts buds - Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) - are older, wiser and a lot less innocent. As full blown teenagers their hormones rage in counterpoint to the gloomy storm brewing as the unseen Lord Voldemort grows in strength. Headmaster Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) is starting to lose his grip in the magic underworld and relies on Harry to uncover the origins of that Dark Wizard via the newly installed Professor Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent). At the same time Harry has also taken upon himself the investigation of the suspicious behaviour of his eternal nemesis and ever more powerful Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton). With all this adventure, keeping up with schooling is a challenge but that gets mitigated for Harry by a text book riddled with annotations from a former student known only as the Half Blood Prince. Of course the door is left open for another chapter (actually two even though there is only one more book left to bring to the silver screen) but unlike the litany of sequels we normally see each year to capitalize on the previous year’s box office smash, this time it’s the natural progression of the original books. This is not quite a stand alone movie for the uninitiated but it is a stunning visual for those following the movie series and a delightful augmentation for the hard core book fanatics.

Waterlife is a bit of a misnomer since it documents the mortification of 20 per cent of the world’s fresh water, a large part of which rests in Canada. Using CSI-like graphics the producers outline a criminal juggernaut of desecration of The Great Lakes. Belugas in the St Lawrence are getting cancer at an alarming rate and the reason starts in Lake Superior where the Edmund Fitzgerald is a small disaster compared to the slow death that it along with Lakes Huron, Michigan, Erie and Ontario seem to be heading towards. If only pollution were the extent of the problem, but with the unnatural introduction of lamprey, zebra muscles, Asian carp and other species with no natural predators there seems to be no way to stop these creatures from wiping out indigenous aquatic animals. With a thoughtfully moving soundtrack Waterlife is a beautifully told story about a very ugly situation.  

Also out this weekend:
The Hurt Locker
Katyn
The Girl From Monaco

Orphan, not to be confused with he chilling 2007 offering The Orphanage, is laughably predictable. This was clearly fortified by the audience laughter experienced while watching this well constructed string of clichés. In a strong performance Vera Farmiga is Kate Coleman a fragile recovering alcoholic who feels the need to fill the void left by a still born child even with two subsequent well adjusted kids – a teenage son Daniel (Star Treks young J.T. Kirk Jimmy Bennett) and Max (Vancouver's Aryana Engineer) a hearing impaired grade school daughter. She and her supportive husband John (Peter Sarsgaard at his Peter Sarsgaarding best) decide that adopting a child about the right age will be the appropriate therapy and take in a seemingly perfect but somewhat peculiar 11 year old girl of Russian extraction named  Esther (eerie newcomer Isabelle Fuhrman). Before long she’s terrified her new siblings and alienated her adoptive parents from one another. On the verge of a nervous breakdown Kate manages to piece together Esther’s hidden past which explains her uncommon talent, wisdom and ruthless behaviour. Orphan is from the director who brought us House of Wax starring Paris Hilton and in that tradition may leave your wallet feeling somewhat orphaned.

G Force is the latest Disney offering where the G stands for Guinea Pigs – three to be exact Juarez  (Penélope Cruz), Bucky  (Steve Buscemi) and the scene stealing Blaster (Tracy Morgan) with one more named Hurley (Jon Favreau) to be added later. In a 3-D mix of CGI rodents and live actors, they’ve been assembled by scientists Ben (Zach Galifianakis) and Marcie (Kelli Garner) as a crack covert FBI team and are joined by Speckles (Nicolas Cage) a mole with serious computer chop. Despite their abilities in quite literally tight spots the brass wants to downsize the unit and their recent failure to nab the megalomaniacal Saber (Bill Nighy) seals their fate. Relegated to a discount pet store they must make an escape using their covert wiles and regroup in order to save the world from death by cappuccino maker. G Force doesn’t delight with the usual force of a Disney “G” rated film which is contrary to the company’s usual success in that area lately. It’s safe for wee ones but accompanying adults expecting another Bolt might be sighing “G- Whiz”.

500 Days of Summer - the name would imply about a year and a half in a tropical destination. Actually it refers to all of the days of a relationship between Summer Finn (the captivating Zooey Deschanel) and Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt – seen last year as a literal loose cannon in the Canadian thriller Kill Shot and formerly Tommy from 3rd Rock now all grown up and stretching his acting wings). This quirky comedy bounces back and forth along the 500 day timeline so that the love affair appears like a sine wave rather than the bell curve that it is. Set in a rarely seen Las Angeles of classic architecture and public transit the two principals meet while working for a greeting card company. From a cold start things heat up but at a critical point the temperature causes a fast flame out. Kudos to Geoffrey Arend and Matthew Gray Gubler as buddies McKenzie and Paul who flesh out more facets of the male romantic dynamic, although Chloe Moretz as wise teen sister Rachel is a little annoying. This is the movie for those who want to know how guys think – oblivious to subtle signals and refusing to believe when a woman says it’s over. 500 Days of Summer is a chick flick for guys.

The Ugly Truth has heavily promoted its dazzling stars Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. Although Butler’s biggest money maker is as the lead six pack in 300, lately he’s really shown his chops doing comedy both edgy and romantic. Here he’s kind of both as Mike, a TV host with a complete lack of a feminine side who does a salty cable men’s advice show in the nose bleed section of the broadcast spectrum. Heigl makes another good choice here in her transition from TV to movie star playing Abby, the tightly wound producer of a local network affiliate newsmagazine with high ideals and low audience numbers. She’s mortified when her boss hires Mike to do a segment on the show and her blood temperature escalates in proportion to his skyrocketing ratings. The lovelorn Abby accepts a challenge from Mike that he’ll quit if his advice doesn’t snare Colin (Eric Winter) a handsome doctor who just moved into her complex. Under his tutelage Abby’s rage cools but as she gets lucky in love Mike realizes she’s changing his attitude towards women in general and one woman in particular. The Ugly Truth is ironic from the casting of Heigl and Butler who between them don’t possess an ounce of ugly right through to where the native Glaswegian in a more than passable neutral North American accent admonishes her for doing a bad Scottish brogue. The truth is that this movie delivers a delightful ball of summertime cotton candy distraction.

Also out this weekend:
Humpday

Funny People indeed has a lot of funny people, most of them playing themselves like
 Paul Reiser,  Norm MacDonald,  Sarah Silverman, Ray Romano – pretty much anyone in stand-up comedy who doesn’t have a picture deal right now – even James Taylor not known for any sense of humour at all is pretty funny here. These real comedians are fictitious contemporaries of George Simmons played by Adam Sandler playing an Adam-Sandler-type Hollywood goldmine thanks to a series of goofball movies. He’s currently getting back to his roots doing stand-up but at one club he encounters Ira Wright (Vancouver’s Seth Rogen) and offers him a job as joke writer and personal assistant. Ira can’t believe his luck at not only being able to kiss his day job goodbye but also to get some bragging rights to lord over his only slightly less pathetic room mates Leo (Jonah Hill) and Mark (Jason Schwartzman – who also gets soundtrack credits). Ira is there to hold George’s hand through a life threatening medical crisis which opens the door for morbidly side splitting tirades on death from his pals in the biz but when the coast is clear George has an epiphany and determines to win back Laura (Leslie Mann) the one that got away. Slight problem - she’s married to Clarke (Eric Bana) and has two daughters. The kids by the way are Mann’s real life children Maude and Iris with husband Judd Apitow who wrote and directed the picture and as usual hired all his regulars to work on it.  Sandler did himself a solid by hooking up with Apitow (his former room mate) and his crowd because they make him look pretty good. Meantime Apitow clearly has a lot of clout, not only because of the nepotism but also insisting that the film run almost two and a half hours despite studio objections. He may give us a lot of Fully People but no one is laughing at him.

Fifty Dead Men Walking brings back the excellent Across the Universe star Jim Sturgess in a markedly different role (even though he does “sing” so to speak) but again one from a different generation. Here he becomes Martin McGartland, a Belfast delinquent thanks in large part to the sectarian segregation that brought about the class struggle so incongruous to the rest of the world that smouldered in Northern Ireland for decades and came to a head in the seventies and eighties. His felonious dealings leave him even less enamoured with the police than the consensus at the time that the Garda were acting in lock step with the British government. However one high ranking cop named Fergus (Ben Kingsley) managed to recruit him to spy on the IRA at great danger to not only Martin but to his new young family. His work inspired McGartland’s 1999 book and also saved 50 men from certain assassination. Although subtitles would have been nice to translate the accents that are as thick as mutton stew, Canadian writer/director Kari Stagland brings us a gripping biopic with enough suspense and grit to delight even the most cynical who grumbles about Telefilm Canada wasting tax payers money.

The Stoning of Soraya M. is an infuriating film. That it is based on a true story is completely galling. In the mid 80’s Iran had settled into a theocracy where mullahs were the law. Soraya (Mozhan Marnò) the mother of four in a rocky, remote village is trapped in a loveless marriage. Her abusive husband Ali (played with soulless gravity by Navid Negahban) wants to divorce her and marry a 14 year old girl but when Soraya refuses to be cut off with no support Ali accuses her of adultery, a crime punishable by death. By blackmailing the town cleric (Ali Pourtash) Ali gets a guilty verdict in a trial with no judge or jury and attended only by men so that the defendant has no chance to plead her case or face her accuser. So called justice is immediate so within an hour and with none of the sheer brutality lost by the film makers, she is buried up to her waist and stoned to death by her friends, neighbours and most sickeningly of all blood relatives. Like many such abominations around the world this too would have gone unnoticed except that Soraya’s aunt Zahra (Shohreh Aghdashloo) was able to relate her story to French journalist Sahebjam Freidoune (James Caviezel) who turned it into a 1994 best seller. The film opens with a quote from Iranian poet Hafez - “Don’t act like the hypocrite who thinks he can conceal his wiles while loudly quoting the Koran” - wise words written in the 14th century. Too bad that after 700 years they’re still being ignored.

Also out this weekend:
Aliens in the Attic

A Perfect Getaway starts with a clever double entendre for a title and keeps the double talk coming right through to its twisted ending. In a corner of that paradise known as Hawaii two newlyweds Cliff (Steve Zahn) and Cydney (Milla Jovovich) are honeymooning in the 50th state and elect to take an overnight hike to a pristine but secluded beach. On the way they meet a couple of couples, one nasty - Kale (Chris Hemsworth) and Cleo (Marley Shelton) and one nice – kinda – that’s Nick (Timothy Olyphant) and Gina (Kiele Sanchez). Either of these newfound fellow hikers could be the psychopaths responsible for the recent murder of a bride and groom on a nearby island. Sounds pretty cheesy but it’s not. The tension is relentless but not jarring and unlike other such thrillers people are not systematically offed in geometric progressions of numbers and gruesomeness and in direct proportion to their sexual promiscuity. Here we manage to get away from that perfectly.

Julie and Julia reunites last years Oscar nominees for Doubt Amy Adams and Meryl Streep – sort of. They never actually share the screen together because they’re living in dimensions 50 years apart but connected by a love of French Cuisine. Julia (Streep) is legendary TV gourmet chef Julia Child while Julie (Adams) is Julie Powell, a thirtysomething woman trapped in a stressful post 9-11 job. Outside of her almost always supportive husband Eric (Chris Messina) her only solace is churning out good eats in the kitchen. To placate her inner frustrated writer, she starts a blog outlining her self imposed one year deadline to cook every recipe in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. This 2002 exercise was turned into the book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen. Meantime, in addition to her legendary cook book Child also wrote her memoir My Life in France about her days after WW 2 as the wife of Paul Child (Stanley Tucci), an American diplomat stationed in Paris where her culinary interest originated. Writer/Director Nora Ephron seamlessly juxtaposes the two stories and offers a comedy of non stop genuine laughs. In a way it’s good that the two actors never share the screen as it would be difficult to say who would steal the scene but if betting were necessary it would be Meryl Streep who literally becomes Julia Child. She serves up such depth to a character that we all thought we knew and introduces someone you would love to have dinner with – and not just because she’s doing the cooking.

Soul Power documents an important part of rock music’s chronology that amazingly has been shelved for 35 years and only came to light when researchers were looking for footage for the 1996 documentary When We Were Kings. In 1974 Don King wasn’t the oily, obnoxious crook many today claim him to be but a promoter with the genius and vision to combine a heavyweight title fight and music festival and then talk a tin pot African dictator into financing it. The country was Zaire and the fight was between champion George Foreman and underdog challenger Muhammad Ali. That documentary showed the profound effect that visiting his roots had on Ali. Here too the champ expresses his feelings while also charmingly poking white America in the eye but he was not the only African American so moved. Just prior to the title fight the music festival featuring among others The Crusaders, Miriam Makeba, BB King, Bill Withers, The Spinners and the piece de resistance James Brown. Seeing these chart toppers of their day immersed in their heritage and interacting with their ancestral cousins (and sometimes Ali himself) is quite moving. And then there are the amazing performances of these legends in their prime. Don’t be tempted to wait for the DVD release. This is something that should be enjoyed in front of a theatre screen and sound system for maximum sonic enjoyment.

Thirst is kind of a Korean True Blood, the hit HBO vampire series but you’d never guess it during the first half hour of the movie. Sang-hyeon (Kang-ho Song) a troubled priest in the largely non catholic Korean peninsula. His faith is self defeating as it lacks the miraculous power that he envisioned having as a man of the cloth. After nihilistically volunteering to act as a human guinea pig for a vaccine against EV, a viral infection with no cure, he returns home as the only survivor of the experiment to a messiah’s welcome. He later figures out that he was transfused with vampire blood (of curious extraction) and worse, realizes that the EV syndrome returns unless his undead side gets fed. Luckily most of his work is doing palliative hospital care so there is a ready supply of fresh haemoglobin. When he revives a terminal childhood friend, that family welcomes Sang-hyeon into their home where his friend’s wife Tae-joo (Ok-vin Kim) turns out to be a kindred spirit and that bond leads to a torrid affair. However once she joins him as a creature of the night it become apparent that she is not as innocent or persecuted as she lets on. Thirst looks to answer the question “will a latent human sociopath turn into a sociopathic vampire?” It’s also a little self indulgent logging in at what feels like longer than 130 minute leaving viewers feeling as drained as many of the victims but like Let the Right Oen In, this is another interesting although more polished example of another culture adopting and adapting the vampire legend.

Also out this weekend:
GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra

District 9 starts two decades after an alien ship has stalled above one of the world’s largest cities and as one sympathetic talking head scribe points out, it did not happen over some American city - but curiously says it rightfully happened over Johannesburg South Africa. The irony becomes apparent when after 20 years some one million extra terrestrials rescued from the drifting mother ship are sequestered in District 9, a squalid shanty town a la the shameful Apartheid days. Billed as a humanitarian exercise the hidden agenda is corporate lusting over the other worldly arrivals confiscated weaponry which is superior but does not function if the operators DNA originates on earth. One of the first characters that we meet is Wikus Van De Merwe (South Africa’s outstanding Sharlto Copley) who goes from channelling Peter Seller in The Party to channelling Sigornay Weaver at her exosuited, bitch-slapping best. He’s a low level exec with the evil arms company called MNU that seems to have privatized law enforcement. Wikus is given the job of moving the alien concentration camp to a more remote location but in discovering that the alien’s have their own secret agenda he’s infected with a virus that starts to morph his DNA into theirs. After escaping vivisection by his current masters, Wikus joins forces his new brethren in hopes of being cured. Written and directed by Johannesburg’s Neill Blomkamp just 11 years after graduating from Vancouver Film School's 3D Animation and Visual Effects program makes this movie accomplishment all the more stunning. District 9 is this years Cloverfield and then some. It’s a Sci-Fi masterpiece that makes most alien-among-us movies look like Plan 9 from Outer Space.

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard is another clear indication that a vacation is long overdue for the loveable but played out Will Farrell. He only has a bit part on screen but as one of this movie’s producers had a big part in subjecting us to this bare minimum comedy. Another misstep is hiring Jeremy Piven as the leading man. His charming delinquent guy works in Entourage and other TV ensemble comedies does not have enough heft to carry a big screen production. Here he plays Don Ready, a super salesman with no moral compass who heads a take-no-prisoners sales team (Ving Rhames, Kathryn Hahn and David Koechner). They crisscross the USA as hired guns for desperate retailers with cratering bottom lines. It’s not until he gets an SOS about Selleck Motors in California from Ben Selleck (James Brolin) who has a hot daughter that unbelievably the edges of Don Ready start to smooth out. The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard is blatantly missing something from the title - hard to watch

Spread is an art imitating life story since it stars Ashton Kutcher who seems amply qualified to portray Nikki as he’s a guy who lives in praise of older women. However when he finally moves into their “spread” Nikki reverts to his role as hedonistic player while maintaining gigolo service to his primary. Poor Nikki, to be saddled with such irresistible good looks! We meet him between sugar mamas but that does not last long as he soon sweet talks his way into fresh digs in the posh Hollywood hills home of  Samantha, an a-type lawyer played by a very buffed Anne Heche. This go round however he gets more than he bargained for, not only from his new benefactor but also from Heather (newcomer Margarita Levieva), a hot waitress who may be more his age but is also uncomfortably close to his style. Looking to see hard bodies doing the wild thing? Then Spread is for you, but if you want something more substantial than just simulated sex then this will leave you unsatisfied. Personally I felt punk’d.

The Time Traveler's Wife is the odd romance between Chicago’s Henry DeTamble and Clare Abshire that owes a lot to Canadian talent. Young Henry and young Clare are played by two BC kids - Alex Ferris and Brooklynn Proulx respectively - while London Ontario’s Rachel McAdams is Clare.  Eric Bana plays Henry the fourth dimension adventurer and Clare is his real time significant other – some times doubly significant.  She’s visited by him at various times through her life from the age of 11 and he always has something to impart about her future but when the time comes for their lives to actually intersect it’s Clare who does the explaining. As their courtship progresses so do Henry’s disappearing acts which by the way always leave him naked in his destination dimension and it’s always a crap shoot as to what generation of Henry will return to Clare. Still, life is good together for a time until Henry’s unpleasant future becomes apparent. Even more distressing is that despite his affliction he can’t use time travel to change events, not even the tragic auto accident that he witnessed as a boy that claimed the life of his mother. I’m a fan of both Bana and McAdams so it was surprising to see less chemistry between them than in a Petri dish of distilled water. Even though it’s adapted from a very popular novel, The Time Traveler's Wife made me want to go back in time and get back the two hours I spent watching it.

Ponyo (Noah Lindsey Cyrus) is the name of a goldfish with aspirations of changing species so as to be with Sosuke (Frankie Jonas) a five year old boy with a marine background. In this Japanese animee Anglicized by the Disney folks Sosuke’s father is a ship captain so he’s mostly left with his mom and his imagination at his remote seaside hamlet. Ponyo is the progeny of a sea goddess and Fujimoto (Liam Neeson) a human who has turned his back on humanity and who labours at reverting the oceans back millennia so that evolution can start again. Ponyo’s playful curiosity and inherited magic upset Fujimoto’s plan and throw the sea into turmoil putting Sosuke’s family and neighbours in peril and then taking him and Ponyo for a fantastic adventure. Already hugely popular in its native Japan but recast here with the voices of Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Cloris Leachman, Lily Tomlin and Betty White, Ponyo is a colourful, imaginative and gentle family journey into the animee art form.

Adam is Adam Raki (Hugh Dancy), A New York Asperger's Syndrome savant with a maximum education and minimum social skills. He’s orphaned at 29 when his father dies which for most men would be no problem but Adam is left virtually rudderless. Thankfully his father’s surviving army buddy Harlan (Frankie Faison) is there for support but he can only do so much. More help arrives (although bewildered at first) when Beth Buchwald (Rose Byrne) a cutie about Adam’s age moves into his building. Things start looking up even though she comes with her own set of emotional baggage. Can you guess what happens next? Of course you can. Aside from being a sharp acting exercise for Dancy and a make work project for Amy Irving (not aging gracefully) and Peter Gallagher as Rebecca and Marty, Beth’s snooty parents, we’ve seen this before. As a matter of fact biblical Adam saw this before.

Also out this weekend
Bandslam

In the Loop is an offshoot of the British TV series The Thick of It, but it stands alone as a wickedly sharp comedy. Also standing alone is Peter Capaldi playing Malcolm Tucker, almost the only character from the original 2005 series. He’s a political whip from the British Prime Ministers office with a tongue as acrid and razor sharp as his weasely features. He’s always in a fury but he’s on fire here because of Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) a mouthy new cabinet minister who’s in over his head. Simon’s recent off the cuff remarks about military options draws Malcolm’s ire and an invitation to the UN and even the halls of the White house. Along the way they interact with a big cast of hacks, flacks and bagmen from both sides of the Atlantic but particular kudos go to James Gandolfini (in his finest role since Tony Sopprano) as the dove Gen. George Miller and his sometimes paramour Karen Clarke (Mimi Kennedy) a pressurized career politician. It becomes clear that Simon’s loose lips are being used to drag America and anyone else who wants to tag along into a military incursion a la Iraq. This movie not only left me smiling and impressed but also anxious to get in the loop for the TV series.

Inglourious Basterds has Quentin Tarantino getting back to his glory days as a Hollywood wunderkind. Here he takes us to 1944 and occupied France where there are two stories on a collision course. One has Mélanie Laurent (ingénue Shosanna Dreyfus) a Jewish woman who after narrowly escaping extermination inherits a Parisian cinema where the opportunity to strike a crushing blow to the Third Reich drops in her lap. The other scenario involves a team of pre-D-Day special ops running renegade sorties behind enemy lines. Their leader is a blood thirsty and somewhat ghoulish Lt. Aldo Raine played by Brad Pitt revisiting his Benjamin Buttons southern drawl. Germany’s Col. Hans Landa is the glue that holds these two parts together. He’s the Nazi Jew Hunter with a prim disarming smile that brings to mind the placid grin of a viper before it strikes. He’s played with Gestapo gusto by Christopher Waltz, an Austrian actor currently unknown but won’t be for long since this role already won him best actor at Cannes and may again at next years Oscars. His methodical, tension filled interrogation of his prey before he strikes is a testament to Tarantino’s writing which snaps from hysterically funny to brutally gruesome in the blink of an eye. It also does violence to the facts, but then again it’s the way we’d like to have history turn out - just the way Hollywood would tell it.

Shorts is a series of short films that tells the tale of a rainbow coloured rock that grants wishes to residents of Black Falls, a ticky tacky suburb where all of the friends and neighbours  work for Black Inc. which manufactures the Black Box, a utility that can do virtually anything. It’s the brainchild of Mr. Black (James Spader) a tyrannical captain of his underlings. He has two children, Cole (Devon Gearhart) and Helvetica (Jolie Vanier) who delight in bullying Toe Thompson (Jimmy Bennett) a friendless pre teen who becomes the primary owner of the magic rock even though it falls into the hands of just about everyone else in town. Adding to Toe’s tension is his home life where sister Stacey (the always intriguing Kat Dennings) is a pain and his mother (Leslie Mann) and father (Jon Cryer) are de facto arch rivals at Black Inc. thanks to Mr. Blacks plans for expansion. Shorts is short at 89 minutes, but with the agoraphobic scientist Dr. Noseworthy (William H. Macy) plus his nose picking son Nose Noseworthy (Jake Short) along with a trio of trouble making brothers Loogie (Trevor Gagnon) Lug (Rebel Rodriguez) and Laser (Leo Howard) tossed in with aliens and giant man eating boogers it will delight the young while a somewhat entertaining story will keep the parents who brought them amused.

Also out this weekend:
The Cove
The Timekeeper
Post Grad

Taking Woodstock is based on the book by Elliot Tiber which claims that the iconic music and arts festival in upstate New York in August of 1969 almost didn’t take place for lack of a one dollar permit. As per the book Tiber calls himself Elliot Teichberg (Demetri Martin) an ambitious but quite young town councillor in Bethel New York who already had the required permission slip and invited peace festival wrangler Michael Lang (Jonathan Groff) and his often very un-hippie like entourage to hold Woodstock on his ticket in his town instead of the originally planned Walkill. Then from the confines of his parents broken down motel he brokered a lot of deals for Lang with the often hostile locals. Of particular interest is that none of the legendary musicians who performed are featured in this movie which is okay because an almost better show went on behind the scenes. For instance Max Yasgur (a perfectly toned down Eugene Levy) was unlike the man who took to the stage to “God bless you all” for having “three days of nothing but fun and music”. It turns out that he was a pretty shrewd businessman and not “just a farmer”. Liev Schreiber as Vilma the cross dressing head of security is a stretch but Emile Hirsch as Billy provides a composite of the disenchanted Vietnam veterans of a war that was probably the definitive galvanizing factor which made this gathering such a focal point for a generation and the culmination of a turbulent decade. There’s also the volatile but tender story of Elliot’s relationship with his impossible parents especially his domineering mother Sonia (Imelda Staunton with a different kind of evil that is still every bit as potent as her Dolores Umbridge character in Harry Potter). Taking Woodstock is a masterful tug of nostalgia from master director Ang Lee who in this uncharacteristic comedy manages to capture the texture of one of the most memorable baby boomer power demonstrations which attempted to put love back into the world at the end of the tempestuous but invigorating sixties.

Paper Heart features barely known stand up artist Charlyne Yi as someone denying the existence of romantic love yet trying to get some understanding of what it is. To do this she and her producer Nicholas Jasenovec pack a film crew across the USA in the dead of winter doing interviews about different perspectives on love. This “documentary” supposedly takes on a life of its own when Judd Apitow gangster Michael Cera takes an interest in Yi and she begins to have feelings for him. Any legitimate cuteness gleaned from this is negated by the fact that Cera and Li actually began a relationship long before this film even got underway. Looking at the credits we see that Jasenovec is really played by actor Jake M. Johnson and he’s not the only character who turns out to be a portrayal and not a real person. Yi doesn’t fancy herself as a comedienne but rather an artist and musician and her providing the soundtrack is somewhat of a testament to that. Giving talking heads some much needed embellishment provided by animation of bailing wire and sack cloth dolls on paper mache sets might also give credence to Yi’s creativity except they are credited to someone else. Paper Heart probably looked a lot better on paper but on screen it looks like a calculated ruse that was a quick fix for some stranded footage in need of cohesion.

Also out this weekend:
The Final Destination
Halloween II

Lorna's Silence is a dreary story of intrigue from Belgium. Lorna (Arta Dobroshi) works at a laundry but her home life is not nearly so mundane. For starters she has an associate named Fabio (Fabrizio Rongione) who acts like a pimp and whose vocation as a taxi driver is clearly a front. She dreams of opening a café with her boyfriend Sokol
(Alban Ukaj) who is sweet enough when he’s not talking like a terrorist. All this seems incongruous since she’s married to a heroin addict named Claudy (Jérémie Renier) but what slowly comes to light is that her marriage is a sham and everyone is using Lorna, especially Fabio. He’s in the people smuggling business and all plots lead to facilitating the immigration of a wealthy Russian. Unfortunately the most efficient way to accomplish this is with Claudy dying of an overdose, something that doesn't sit well with Lorna even though she is indifferent to him at first. Eventually the reason for Lorna’s silence becomes apparent, just like the rest of the questions that this film poses – until everything grinds to a halt in an ending that no one can explain.

Gamer is a fresh take on the fantasy of a brutal, hedonistic future. Gerard Butler plays Kable, one of many human participants in an interactive on line shooting gallery called Slayers. With brain cells altered via nano technology their every move is controlled by a gamer and in Kable’s case it’s Simon (Logan Lerman), a 16 year old video whiz and pay-per-view superstar. So why would Kable or anyone else volunteer for this kind of dangerous subjugation? Because as convicted murderers they can earn freedom by surviving the requisite amount of sojourns into lead filled mayhem. We find out that Kable has a history with Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall) the game’s inventor whose fortune has easily surpassed that of Bill Gates thanks to Slayers and its less dangerous predecessor - in which by the way Kable’s wife Angie (Amber Valletta) is an economic slave performing all manner of debaucher at the behest of Gorge (Ramsey Moore) a gamer as repulsive as he is obese. Also featured are John Leguizamo who is effective in a throw away role, Kyra Sedgwick as Gina Parker Smith a sympathetic reporter from a vacuous TV magazine show and Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges as a helpful revolutionary hacker. Considering how far we we’ve come since Pong not to mention advances in nano technology and the current escalation of available TV violence on demand, this scenario is eerily plausible. That along with the texture of the cinematography make this a better than average action movie which is topped off with and ending that has a wicked twist, both figuratively and literally.

Also out this weekend:
Extract
All About Steve
Cold Souls
Enlighten Up!

Whiteout has Manitoba subbing for the sub-continent of Antarctica where there are a litany of ways to die in the cold – and that’s just in the summer! That said, not many stay over the winter but a multiple murder mystery is threatening six months of darkness for a US Marshal named Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale) along with her pal Dr. John Fury (Tom Skerritt) and Robert Pryce (Gabriel Macht) a UN cop who materializes suspiciously fast after the first corpse is chiselled from the ice. Carrie is the most traumatized by events since she volunteered to oversee this godforsaken post in hopes of coming to terms with a recent harrowing and deadly debacle in Miami and all of a sudden has to find a serial killer somehow connected to the cargo of a soviet transport plane that crashed near the South Pole in 1957. The action is long on clichés and short on stimulae as the remaining out posters, one of whom is quite possibly the killer, brace themselves for an impending perfect snowstorm that creates whiteout conditions where one can not see more than six inches in front of their face. Even with Beckinsale doing a hot shower striptease, whiteout conditions might have been preferable for watching this movie.

9 is the latest easy to take full length animated creep out produced by Tim Burton. This is a new take on a post apocalyptic world which started as a film school project for Shane Acker that not only got him an “A” but also an Oscar nomination for “best animated short” in 2006. In one of the few animated features to be release with a PG 13 rating, 9 (Elijah Wood) is the number on the back of a confused doll that comes to life in a world of desolate destruction. He finds out from other rag dolls numbered like him that there was a conflict between man and machines where mankind came up short. When one of their number (so to speak) is captured by a raptor-like machine he sets out to rescue him and in the process meets #7 (Jennifer Connelly) a renegade from the core group headed by (of course) #1 (Christopher Plummer). #1 wants to continue laying low but #9 and #7 gradually convince the others they have to fight back to elude annihilation and disarm the now self propagating machine which #9 innocently reanimated. Speaking of animation, it is stunning but that is not enough to totally engross. Clocking in at a seemingly longer than 79 minutes, even with contributing voices from Martin Landau, John C. Reilly and Crispin Glover, 9 really only rates a 6.

Also out this weekend:
I Can Do Bad All By Myself
Sorority Row
Unmistaken Child

The Informant! Stars Matt Damon as a real life character named Mark Whitacre. He’s a doughy thirty something compulsive liar from his business ethics all the way up to his obvious hairpiece. At the beginning of the ‘90’s he was senior biochemist for the food giant Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and his revelations of price fixing in the company lead to a five year stint working undercover for FBI Special Agents Bob Herndon ( Joel McHale) and especially Brian Shepard (an uncharacteristically nebbish Scott Bakula) gathering wire tap information to cement a case against his superiors. All along he insists that his motives are nothing but noble but as it turns out there is an agenda there. In any event his evidence was instrumental in making one of the biggest anti trust cases in US history stick. Director Steven Soderbergh does a masterful job of turning a crime drama into an episode of Leave It to Beaver with cheesy music and perfect casting of sit com veterans like Tony Hale and Melanie Lynskey not to mention cameos by both Tom and Dick Smothers. The there is the hysterical non stop ADD like voice over by Damon as he systematically makes fools of the G-Men and the legal profession. Be informed, this film will make you laugh.

 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs on the surface seems more like the chance of a turkey. With supporting roles voiced by Anna Faris, James Caan, Andy Samberg, Benjamin Bratt, Neil Patrick Harris, Al Roker and (unmistakeably) a scene stealing Mr. T it’s a simple concept really. Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) a nerdy scientist invents a device that turns water into food. The concept is so simple you’d never believe that it would have such side splitting results. The key seems to be that nothing was over thought and dummed down to appeal to a median age of nine. Here funny is funny so it stays in! What a delight to have such an entertaining family film kick off the fall movie releases with meaty asides mixed with some poignant yet non preachy lessons on tolerance for young and old alike. As our needy nerd Flint says “I’ve got a diem to carpe” , so does this film and it probably will. With stunning and innovative computer generated animation the forecast looks like it has a chance for a long rein (rain) at the top of the box office.

Love Happens stars Aaron Eckhart as Dr. Burke Ryan a self help guru whose book seminar training help the bereaved attain closure. His mission is inspired by a dark moment 3 years in the past with the accidental death of his wife. His avocation takes him reluctantly to Seattle (sometimes played by Vancouver) where for the first time his heart starts to beat again thanks to a florist named Eloise (Jennifer Aniston) but he annoyingly pushes her away just as she starts felling a connection. Pathetic writing sets up a lot of hack psychobabble with Br Burke and his converts. There are a few laughs but clichés and silly set ups make it hard to empathise with any of these characters which is too bad because Aniston and Eckhart are really likeable actors. Love Happens isn’t quite the cliché we’re all familiar with but that familiar phrase is a more apt title for this film.

Also out this weekend:
Bright Star
Jennifer's Body
Black

Surrogates takes us into the future where although the automobiles have a 2009 streamline the drivers are definitely a throwback to a younger day. In this world crime and violence have gone the way of polio thanks to the technical expertise of a robotics company that provides everyone with a younger, more vivacious copy of themselves through which they can live vicariously from the comfort of a stylized lay-z-boy. Of course there are those who see these surrogates as an abomination and set themselves apart in “no machine” zones. One such Illinois ghetto is under the spell of a charismatic leader called The Prophet (Ving Rhames).  Tom Greer (Bruce Willis) is a Chicago detective with personal baggage who is put in charge of the first homicide in living (?) memory. When his surrogate gets crucified (literally) chasing the number one suspect into no-machine-land the real Greer has to get off the couch and do some actual leg work that uncovers some very high up corruption. Surrogates is entertaining but not as much as it could be. The CGI that shaves 30 years off of Willis is interesting but as a mystery the secret is out within 45 minutes. There’s some cool action sequences here but the Terminator 3 director is stingy with them so action fans may want to substitute another movie for this one.

Pandorum is a mental malady undefined in the dictionary that is like cabin fever to the power of ten where despair brought on by isolation causes violent psychosis. There are hints of it aboard a hulking space ship adrift in the firmament but for the most part that’s a latent defect and the current patent problems are clearly more dangerous. It’s centuries in the future and with the earth population running up exponentially the world is running out of stuff. Life on a distant planet appears hospitable so this good ship is on a pilgrimage to that brave new world. This involves an extended period of suspended animation and we meet corporal Bower (Ben Foster) as he comes to only to find the ship in less than shipshape. There’s no power other than intermittent burst and there doesn’t seem to be anyone else on board. Bowers memory is spotty from the long sleep and when Lt. Payton (Dennis Quaid) also comes out of hibernation he’s not much clearer on details. Bower starts a long walk to the reactor room to try to get the juice flowing but on the way runs into the real menace – slimy cannibalising but under explained creatures who are mutants of former fellow crew members. Bowers quest is aided by Nadia (Antje Traue no doubt an obligatory German actor in this Deutschland production). She’s a hot biologist cum ninja who is able to fill in a lot of blanks for Bower. Pandorum is a nice try for a low budget film but its audience may be isolated which could cause despair for the producers.

Trailer Park Boys: Countdown to Liquor Day brings to an end one of the longest fake documentary shoots ever. After the 6 year run of the well received maritime comedy came to an end in 2008 this big screen extrapolation is probably the last time up for Ricky (Robb Wells), Julian (John Paul Tremblay) and Bubbles (Mike Smith). As usual this one starts with the trio making parole but with different agendas. While Bubbles aspires no further than reuniting with his kitties, Ricky dreams of getting his grade 12 which will open the door for him to do “pretty much anything” and Julian plans to expand his inherited trailer in Sunnyvale into an auto shop thanks to his prison training. Unfortunately Mr Lahey (John Dunsworth) and his assistant and life partner Randy (Patrick Roach) have boarded up their former homes and opened up a shiny new trailer park close by that is perfect in every way except one - no sewer system. To install one he has to make a deal with Julian who will have none of it and stubbornly goes ahead with his expansion plan. When that fails the boys have to pursue other options, all of which are followed by the non stop film crew who also document the clean and sober Lahey as he drifts back into alcoholism and Bulbbles’ trials in reuniting with his cats. Peripheral characters in this movie have dropped off save for J-Roc (Jonathan Torrens) whose wigger persona gets even sharper. Like the previous movie it does stand alone from the cable series but it doesn’t really stand out. It is more of the same however for those jonesing for one more hit off of the TPB’s.

Also out this weekend:
Fame
Dead Snow
Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone

The Invention of Lying written by and starring Ricky Gervais, takes us to a parallel world that looks suspiciously like any town USA (right down to the green backed legal tender) where telling anything but the truth is inconceivable. As a matter of fact being brutally honest overtakes every conversation so instead of polite banter people say exactly what is on their minds and then some. This is funny but it gets old fast. With subtlety Gervais delivers more than we usually get in the way of emotion. That gets mixed in with his trademark, easy to take British deadpan that has worked well in the cable show Extras. He plays Mark Bellison, a TV script writer which is a tedious profession is a world devoid of fiction. Television watches here only see actors reciting scripts based on history that despite being on another world is remarkably similar to life on earth. Unfortunately for Bellison he must write about the black plague years which isn’t a ratings magnet and he gets fired. That’s the least of his worries however as his mother is terminal and he can’t make a go of it with Anna McDoogles (Jennifer Garner) who is attracted to Mark even though she is clearly out of his league. Everything changes when Mark discovers that he can say things that are untrue which proves to be a powerful thing in a world devoid of guile. For the most part Gervais keeps logic fairly consistent in this abstract scenario but then veers off to make a bewildering comment about religion. He also gives credence to a personal axiom – beware of  comedies with an all star cast of cameos. In this 100 minute film that feels longer we have cameos by Tina Fey, Jason Bateman, Christopher Guest and an uncredited Edward Norton along with minor supporting roles from Jeffrey Tambor and Rob Lowe. Sometimes my axiom is wrong but I’d be lying if I said that was the case here.

 Whip It re-immerses us in the world of women’s roller derby, the roller skating contact sport that fizzled in the 1970’s but apparently is making a resurgence in the cultural watershed of Austin Texas. Canada’s Ellen Page makes another solid career choice (although this one probably won’t garner any Oscar nominations) playing the mousey high school sophomore Bliss Cavendar in the Lone Star State hick town of Bodeen. Despite urgings from her mother Brooke (Marcia Gay Harden) to be a beauty pageant queen Bliss discovers she has the chops (literally) to be a standout in this fairly seedy sport even though she has to lie about her age to do it and competes without her parent’s knowledge. Not only does she find an avocation by strapping wheels on her feet, but she also finds a more sympathetic “family”. This is a pretty funny comedy thanks to some whip smart writing by Shauna Cross (who also penned the novel) but also due to an endearing cast. That includes Alia Shawkat and Jimmy Fallon who should give up his night job because as 'Hot Tub' Johnny Rocket he’s clearly a better comic actor than talk show host. Sporting cute but menacing monikers like Maggie Mayhem, Bloody Holly and Smashley Simpson are Kristen Wiig (another SNL alumnus) along with Juliette Lewis and Drew Barrymore who takes a small part on screen but a big part off screen as director of the film. For the most part Barrymore does this pretty well whipping up a lot of charm interspersed with the right amount of action.

Also out this weekend:
The Boys Are Back

Capitalism: A Love Story is the latest skewering from writer-director Michael Moore which is assembled with his usual efficient prompting of infuriation. Put to the lie this time is the belief that the American Dream is only attainable through the current established capitalistic system. What is strongly suggested is a systematic erosion of the middle class by the very wealthy (mostly banks) that started with Reganomics and climaxed with the recent collapse of world economies. Mixed with sometimes rare archive footage dating back to FDR’s New Deal Moore makes a persuasive case but as usual gets bogged down with his own goofy antics played for the camera but futile at getting results. The film is unnecessarily long with anecdotes like a section regarding private prison corruption that relates but the point could have been made without it. Despite running long Moore can still be accused of not being thorough as he refutes a popular right wing link made between God and capitalism using Catholic clergy exclusively as spokesmen – this hardly seems balanced and how much credence do they have these days? Usually gloom and doom documentaries end on an up note giving some sort of light at the end of the tunnel. That is the case here but it’s not very settling. Still if you’re looking for a non apologetic explanation of the mess we’re in financially this is a blunt breakdown that will make you cry and laugh at the same time.

Zombieland is not to be confused with Adventureland even though they both revolve somewhat around amusement parks and both star Jesse Eisenberg as a virginal but horny co-ed. Here he plays Columbus who we meet sometime after a mutation of the mad cow virus infected a fast food patron which caused a pandemic that turned continental USA into Zombieland. Because of his anal personality Columbus may not have it going on with the ladies but he couldn’t be more organized and has itemized all the qualities needed to survive a nation of flesh eaters which are amusingly proved true time and again. Although a student in Texas he’s decided to head to Ohio to see if mom and dad have avoided the undead. En route he teams up with the reluctant Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a red neck with a hair trigger temperament and a jones for Hostess Twinkies. That blatant product placement is the only hiccup in this ghoulish funhouse. Our unlikely duo change course to a west coast carnival after meeting “sisters” Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). This is not for romantic reasons (lets hope not, Breslin is maturing beautifully but she’s still just a kid) but because the girls scammed Columbus and Tallahassee out of their vehicle and guns. Not once but twice and they want retribution. This film has splatters and laughs that come in equal measures and often, making it a ride that won’t zone out audiences to their own mental Zombieland.

Couples Retreat again casts Forgetting Sarah Marshall star Kristen Bell in a tropics set comedy. Here she’s Cynthia the wife of tightly wound Jason (Jason Bateman). Infertile loins has put a strain on their marriage to the point (or should that be power point) where divorce is one of only two options left to them. Through a series pf charts and graphs they convince their friends that their only viable salvation is a package deal to an island oasis somewhere in equatorial azure blue waters. Their friends make up two stable couples - Dave (Vince Vaughn) and Ronnie (Malin Akerman) along with Joey (Jon Favreau) and Lucy (Kristin Davis) plus newly divorced Shane (Faizon Love) and his barely legal, high maintenance trophy girlfriend Trudy (Kali Hawk). Fun and frolicking in the sun and surf are waylaid however when mandatory couples counselling is foisted on not just Jason and Cynthia but all four couples. French tough guy Jean Reno has shown a real flair for comedy lately and is perfect as host Marcel the psycho-babbling relationship guru. As part of a busy year John Michael Higgins and Ken Jeong are brief standouts as daybreak therapists, likewise British comedian Peter Serafinowicz playing Stanley the saccharin yet serpentine concierge. The real threat though is Colin Baiocchi as Dave’s son Kevin who steals every scene he’s in like s’mores from a vacant confectionary. Despite flagrant placement of American products in a clearly foreign (probably French) location, writer Favreau comes up with some funny and original set ups but more importantly hits a lot of “aha” and “oh yeah” moments for anyone in a long term relationship.

A Serious Man is more brilliance from Joel & Ethan Coen the brothers who won best picture for No Country for Old Men in 2008 and like that film this will leave you with the expectation of a follow-up sequel that will not likely be forthcoming. That and implausible but life altering car crashes are about the only similarities. Where “Old Men” was gritty and violent this hysterical and insightful study of Jewish guilt and forbearance under persecution isn’t so serious After a curious opening sequence that, thanks to the Jefferson Airplane, comes full circle just as curiously in the end we meet Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg, excellent in his first lead role) a square, early middle aged Midwestern physics professor in swinging 1967. He lives in a somewhat anti-Semitic suburb where his hot neighbour is prone to torturing him by sunbathing in the nude. His unemployable brother Arthur (Richard Kind) is camped on his couch and his kids steal from him and each other for drugs and plastic surgery. Add to that his churlish wife Judith (Sari Lennick) is planning to run off with Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed) an unappealing much older man who insists on being patronizingly civil to Larry. At his college where he has to dodge bribes and lawsuits from an overseas student Larry is eagerly awaiting word about his tenure which seems in jeopardy because of someone’s anonymous poison letter campaign. Any man would see red in the face of this kind of degradation but Larry is resigned to acceptance. If I kept kosher I might be a little less confused about what transpired but what I’m most curious about is how many children of Israel are like me and long to see A Serious Man again just for clarity.

It Might Get Loud is mandatory viewing for any guitar aficionado that is worth his or her salt and for everyone else it’s a fascinating background sound check of three of rock’s greatest axmen. In 2008 on a spartan sound stage with subdued lighting, Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) The Edge (U2) and Jack White (White Stripes, the Raconteurs) sat on comfy sofas and occasionally jammed between discourses on guitars and careers. Interestingly this meeting represents only a fraction of the footage but it’s the hub at which three fascinating careers meet. The real story is told in either pre or post production as each gives up some tasty morsels about music and their bands that are now institutions. Music fans will delight in voluminous and unique footage that includes a fifteen year old Jimmy Page aspiring to be a biological researcher while interviewed on a TV talent show or The Edge pointing to the high school bulletin board where Gerry Mullins put up a note looking for the future U2 members or White in concert furiously oblivious to his blood spattered fingers and fret board. This trio represents the three ages of rock and roll with Page being the senior level (he hardly looks the part to represent “old age”) The Edge being middle age and White being youth and exuding the cocky hubris that the other two seem to have outgrown. How this particular triad was chosen from a world of standout guitarists is a mystery but the selection proves to be bountiful.

Where the Wild Things Are is an adaptation of Maurice Sendak's acclaimed 1963 children's story of the same name. The fact that it was filmed in 2006 and took till now to be released because of differences of opinion between the Director and Warner Bros. doesn’t bode well for the picture. Twelve year old Max Records is terrific as Max, a lonely kid with a vivid imagination. He runs off from home in a bad fitting wolf costume as a way of acting out in protest of mom’s (Catherine Keener) new boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo - with only one line). A convenient sailboat takes him to a remote island inhabited by a ragtag group of gullible but unpredictable monsters. Max uses his imaginative storytelling to concoct a reason for the wild things to make him their king which they do as an alternative to making a meal out of Max.  Remarkably Max’s crazy ideas initially put the island into order and the new king and is subjects spend a lot of time playing at a child like level until dissention creeps into their ranks. In an age of rampant CGI there’s very little of that here which is at once a retro innovation and at the same time a curse. Relying on expert puppetry rather than flashy computer wizardry left this audience member finding it a little hard to believe in the monsters as anything other than guys in goofy heads and hairy suits. One is less engaged emotionally when it looks like you’re watching a football mascot convention.

Law Abiding Citizen features Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler, two high powered stars that square off in a high stakes battle of wits. In his best role for some time Foxx is Nick Rice an ambitious DA who plays the percentages for political gain. He makes a big mistake however when he takes a short cut in a grizzly murder case and cuts a deal with Clarence Darby (Christian Stolte), one of the vicious murderers who wiped out the family of Clyde Shelton (Butler). Shelton, the seemingly victimized victim turns out to be a lot more resourceful than any ordinary man, especially in tense scenes that seem cut out (so to speak) from any one of the Saw movies as Shelton turns into Hannibal Lechter’s smarter brother while he metes (or is that meats) out justice to Darby for the murderer of his wife and daughter. But that’s just the warm-up. Even though he’s soon locked up in a maximum security facility Shelton proceeds to eliminate everyone in the justice system that had a hand in making that deal with Darby. As the bodies stack up Rice has a tough time maintaining his bravado, especially when he realizes he’s being saved till last. Law Abiding Citizen, deliberately set in Philadelphia the City of Brotherly Love and home of the downtrodden US Constitution, is a revenge flick that for a change you can abide seeing.
 
Cairo Time is an uncharacteristic Canadian film in that its characteristics don’t look Canadian. Like Fifty Dead Men Walking earlier this year the setting is foreign as are the principal actors. In this story written and directed by Toronto’s Montreal born Ruba Nadda, Juliette Grant (the always rock solid Patricia Clarkson) is a magazine editor about to rendezvous in Cairo with Mark (Tom McCamus) her diplomat husband for a long awaited stretch of alone time. Tareq Khalifa (Alexander Siddig) is a retired Egyptian policeman and an old friend of Mark’s through work with the UN, who gets Juliette safely cloistered in her hotel room overlooking the Nile. As Marks arrival continuously gets delayed she begins to relieve her cabin fever by exploring the local antiquity that falls under the shadows of the Pyramids but things get dicey as cultures collide. Tareq comes to the rescue and takes on the job of her daily chaperone, however as Marks arrival is repeatedly pushed back Juliette and Tareq move closer and closer. Cairo Time does a nice job of displaying a fascinating, romantic and less violent part of the Middle East in the context of a love triangle where in a totally un-sexual way, Juliette and Tareq must share the guilt of  an unfaithful act towards Mark.

Also out this weekend:
Paranormal Activity
The Stepfather
The Burning Plain

Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant gleans its name from one segment in a twelve volume series of novels The Saga of Darren Shan written by Irish writer Darren O'Shaughnessy. In truth it’s a hybrid of several of the books which all feature Darren Shan here played by Chris Massoglia. He’s a straight A high school teen with one flaw – he’s the complete opposite of an arachnophobe and when he and his pal Steve (Josh Hutcherson) sneak out to go to a freak show Darren gets enamoured with Madam Octa, a monstrous and deadly poisonous spider that belongs to Larten Crepsley (John C. Reilly). When Darren impulsively steals Octa it bits Steve and for the antidote Darren has to promise Crepsley that he will take on the job as his assistant. As the title implies he bit off more than he could chew (or is that chewed off more than he can bite?). As a half vampire he can no longer live at home with mom, dad and two sisters (too tempting as a snack) so his death is faked and he and Crepsley take sanctuary in the Cirque du Freak campground, living with Evra the Snake Boy (Patrick Fugit) as well as the three-ring leader Mr. Tall (Ken Watanabe) and Crepsley’s main squeeze Madame Truska (Salma Hayek still hot after childbirth and sporting a beard). They’re not out of the woods here though and that’s not because they’re camped out in the forest. As revealed in a cryptic conversation between Crepsley and Gavner Purl (Willem Dafoe) there’s a new strain of blood suckers out there called Vampanese. The two solitudes have held an uneasy truce for centuries but that’s about to unravel if an obese power broker named Mr. Tiny (Michael Cerveris) has his way. As a lightweight PG thriller this film is passable Halloween action but lingering constantly is the setup for a follow up hybrid inspired by that original dozen books.

Astro Boy has remained an endearing and enduring character since his inception in 1951 as a Japanese comic book character that spawned cartoons which became the touchstone of today’s anime. Freddie Highmore is the voice of the robot boy with super hero powers caught between the worlds of humans and androids. With doe eyes and Ronald Reagan hair he’s the exact replica of the tragically killed Tobio the son of his creator, the brilliant robot scientist Dr Tenma (Nicolas Cage). He comes from Metro City a place that holds itself aloof – literally. As the earth became less pleasant the city fathers arranged to levitate their metropolis into the sky and over time the rest of the world became a dumping ground for their discarded robot parts. Despite his super powers and capacity for love Tenma finds the robot boy an unbearable reminder of the son whose death he was responsible for. Meantime the mean (all the time) General Stone (Donald Sutherland) lusts after Astro Boy’s power source as a source of power for his new weapons of mass destruction. The boy escapes Stone’s clutches to the world below where robots are held in contempt and where a group of orphans sheltered by Ham Egg (Nathan Lane) accept him as a human but attitudes change when his secret is found out. This latest rendering from director David Bowers who gave us Flushed Away in 2006 features Stunning and exciting CGI animation along with the voices of Kristen Bell, Samuel L. Jackson, Charlize Theron, Bill Nighy and Eugene Levy but unlike his ’06 offering Astro Boy  is not as much fun for adults as it is for kids.

An Education takes us back to 1961 Britain. It’s before England was the prime shaker of the 60's swinging and Jenny (Carey Mulligan making an impressive jump from TV to the big screen) is a bright high school girl of 16 from a middle class straight laced family. Her fast track to Oxford is hijacked when she hooks up with a smooth operator several years her senior. He’s David played by Peter Sarsgaard who has made a career lately out of playing oily, creepy but interesting characters and here is no exception other than sporting a passable London accent. He’s rich and worldly and not only manages to seduce Jenny but also her very protective parents. He also seduces the audience into believing this taboo relationship is somehow OK. All this might seem oppressively tawdry if it weren’t for certain things like the exploration of pre women’s lib and the contrast of women then and now expressed in the attitudes of teachers like Jenny’s stiff Headmistress (Emma Thompson used sparingly but effectively) and the kind Miss Stubbs (Olivia Williams). Then there is the sheer comic relief from Jenny’s father Jack played with scene stealing delight by Alfred Molina. Most compelling however is that it is not a work of fiction but is adapted from the memoirs of journalist Lynn Barber that was published just this past June.

Coco Avant Chanel. Yes we’re talking THAT Chanel, a name synonymous with luxurious chic in the world of high fashion. Gabrielle Chanel the company founder worked right up to her death in 1971 but her high end company was born of humble beginning. She was nicknamed “Coco” by her father who just before the turn of the century abandoned her to a French orphanage. Much later as a young woman she eked out a living as a seamstress by day and a chanteuse in a low rent saloon at night. This movie shies away from historic accusations of Nazi collaboration concentrating instead on her earlier life as it asserts that Chanel was the catalyst for the elision of fashion from the chaste and excessive Victorian dowdiness to comfortable sleek modern lines. Its real focus though is on the love triangle between Coco and two aristocrats, Étienne Balsan (Benoît Poelvoorde) who falls in love with her too late and Arthur 'Boy' Capel (Alessandro Nivola) who incites passion in her yet she could be nothing more than a mistress to either. The always captivating Audrey Tautou is again superb as Coco Chanel whose stubborn courage and ingenuity turned a hat shop into a fashion icon. Hats off to both ladies.

Also out this weekend:
Amelia
Good Hair
Saw VI
The September Issue
Stan Helsing
You, the Living

Michael Jackson's This Is It is an amazing experience. This documentary takes us backstage to see Jackson prepare for his series of sold-out concerts in London’s O2 Arena. Despite ugly post mortem rumours about the King of Pop, Jackson did not look depressed, gaunt, or drug dependent. He did look fit and more notably he looked happy.
Along with his genius at his craft, what comes to the fore is Jackson’s kindness while exerting total control and by osmosis some of his nobility. The consummate professional, Jackson constantly performed like there was a crowd of fifty thousand even though it was only a handful of the cast standing around watching in awe and applauding wildly. While they were dressed down, rehearsal or not Jackson always dressed the part and the result of the above combination is a show as close as you will get to witnessing the completed vision. Speaking of those back up people your heart goes up to them. There are 11 dancers who came from all over the world and survived an audition of 5,000. Among the veteran musicians is 24 year old Australian guitar virtuoso Orianthi Panagaris who was a knockout backing up Carrie Underwood at the Grammies this year and a show stopper working for Jackson. As he said to her “this is your chance to shine” which it was but for her and all the others, on June 25th 2009 that all went away. Veteran director Kenny Ortega whittled hours of footage down to just under two hours and cynics might criticize him for leaving out negative moments but who knows if there are any. In truth this is very one sided and less of a documentary than a labour of love to pay homage to an old friend. If there is anything to be sceptical of it’s the assertion that filming was not for general viewing and only for Jackson’s personal files. They may not have had an agenda now but it seems logical to assume that in the back of someone’s mind there was the vision of a potential future revenue stream. Regardless of plans real or imagined the film provides a cool glimpse at the pre production of sets, animation and amazing make-up. The abundance of  footage also allows several songs in the repertoire (gleaned from an online poll taken of fan favourites) to be flawlessly edited from a variety of takes into a seamless number, giving Jackson fanciers a complete look at what may have been the best concert never staged.
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Amreeka is somewhat biographical for Nebraska born L Word director Cherien Dabis who uses a handful of unknown but superb actors with whom she shares a nationality to tell the story. Most notable is Nisreen Faour  who plays Muna Farah, a beautiful although plus sized West Bank Palestinian single mother working hard in a professional job which allows her to send her son Fadi (Melkar Muallem) to private school. Inexplicably she’s handed the brass ring on receiving an invitation to immigrate to the USA courtesy of a long forgotten visa application. Although reticent to take advantage of the coveted opportunity she begins to examine her actually depressing situation in an occupied territory not to mention the infinitely better future that await her son were she to move. Smoothing the transition is her relative Raghda Halaby (Hiam Abbass, not quite the force here as in The Lemon Tree or The Visitor) who lives in Illinois with her physician husband and three daughters one of whom is the rebellious teen Salma played by Alia Shawkat for once personifying her Arabic roots. Muna’s timing could be better, landing just as the invasion of Iraq is underway and Muslims are treated with suspicion. Even though Muna and the Halaby’s are not Muslims they run afoul of the truly ignorant but fortunately not everyone in the mid west is so unenlightened and the kindness of strangers as well as hope help Muna to a new level of confidence and happiness. Amreeka sounds like a Middle Eastern take on America which is exactly what this film is about.
Also out this weekend:
More Than A Game
The Collector

A Christmas Carol is a fresh take by Disney on the Dickens classic starring Jim Carey taking on eight roles, most notably Ebenezer Scrooge. This go-round uses the somewhat creepy animation technique of “performance capture” pioneered in The Polar Express and further refined as 3D in Beowulf. The 3D here allows the Disney folks to do what they do best – make a fable into a ride. As a ghost story it’s a natural for any excuse to fly and with four poltergeists in total Scrooge is jetted around 19th century London and adjacent rural environs at a heart stopping pace. A warning though, on top of the already unsettling animation the screenplay can get downright scary making it not a natural for the very young. This take on the perennial Christmas favourite needed to be unique which isn’t easy since Disney alone has remade the story three times. Well it does stand out with less of the Cratchets and more in depth Scrooge. Half animated or not, if Carey is not considered for an Oscar for so beautifully and brilliantly carrying this movie then Hollywood is a big fat Scrooge.

The Box is a bloated retelling of a 1970’s short story that became an episode of the rejuvenated Twilight Zone in the 1980’s. Cameron Diaz and James Marsden are Norma and Arthur Lewis, a mid seventies professional couple that even with two incomes have money issues. Their situation changes when they come face to face (or at least most of his face) with lightning strike survivor Arlington Steward (Frank Langella) who offers them a million dollars if they will simply push the button on a wooden box. The catch is that on the completion of the task someone they don’t know will die. There’s also a corollary that they only find out about when they get the cash in that the box will be reprogrammed and the next time the button is deployed it could mean trouble for the Lewis’. The movie starts to show some promise after that but eventually gets bogged down trying to decide what it wants to be with references to alien manipulation and a hint of religion, not to mention veiled misogyny (think Adam and eve and the apple). Richard Matheson, the author of the original short story Button Button was so unhappy with the changes made when it was adapted for television that he took writing credit under a pseudonym. Goodness knows how he feels about this latest take on his work but even he might forewarn that if you’re looking for a good movie, think outside The Box.

The Damned United is a dandy little sports film set in the late sixties and early 70’s. Michael Sheen with his chameleon like talent puts in another stellar personification, this time of iconic soccer manager Brian Clough whose modest greatness could have been exponentially more glorious if it were not for his stubborn need for revenge. Ironically it was the quest for vengeance that inspired him to great feats in English soccer. Early in his career Clough felt he was snubbed by his rival, the much revered Don Revie (Colm Meaney) coach of the mighty Leeds United and Clough swore he would some day bring Revie down. Along with his assistant manager Peter Taylor (Timothy Spall, perfectly cast except for the age) they made a going concern of the severely underdogged Darby FC which lead to Cough’s taking over the reins at Leeds FC. However his continued lust for vindication proved very costly. Probably more of a legend in Britain than anywhere else, his is still a compelling story if only for his brash statements to the media about his opposition that were reminiscent of a young Muhammed Ali. As a matter of fact just when that feeling is strongest they run an actual clip of Ali in his prime demanding that Clough cut it out.

Also out this weekend:
The Fourth Kind
The Men Who Stare at Goats
You Might as Well Live
Everlasting Moments

2012 is when a planetary alignment will instigate the destruction of our planet according to the ancient Mayan calendar - December 21st to be exact, 12-21-12. Flash forward to December 2012 and Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) a US Geologist is discovering that unprecedented solar flares are shooting light particles at the earth’s core which is heating up the crust. He alerts US President Thomas Wilson (Danny Glover) who directs the implementation of a plan dreamed up in British Columbia in 2010. Meantime Jackson Curtis (John Cusack) one of Adrian’s favourite authors who has to moonlight as a chauffeur is trying to reconnect with his two kids on a camping trip to Yellowstone. They find that the military has deemed the park off limits just before meeting the brain fried Charlie Frost (Woody Harrelson) who broadcasts his conspiracy theories out of his dilapidated motor home. Charlie gives Jackson the lowdown on Mayan chronology and the big plan for what world leaders intend to do about it. What follows is a wild ride as Jackson tries to get his kids, Kate (Amanda Peet) his ex and her boyfriend out of harms way while the earth is literally dissolving underneath them. Shot in Ashcroft we’re treated to locals like Blu Mankuma, Gerard Plunkett, Val Cole, Gillian Barber and Beverley Elliott playing off Hollywood a-listers like Oliver Platt, Thandie Newton and George Segal. At 2 hours and 40 minutes normally this kind of corny dialogue and cloying sentimentality might make it seem like the real 2012 will come to an end before this picture does but the stunning special effects make the time fly, most of which is spent perched on the edge of ones seat.

Pirate Radio was a mid 60’s phenomenon in Britain born out of necessity as government was the only source of radio and refused to play Rock and Roll. Enterprising DJ’s turned rusty ships into high seas transmitters and started beaming the demon music without benefit of a broadcast license to a nation of thirsty ears. The appalled government of the time made a vow to shut the renegades down which was difficult since they were technically doing nothing illegal. Then again when has the law ever stood in the way of government purpose? The film is fleshed out by an engaging subplot that involves fictional MP Sir Alistair Dormandy (Kenneth Branagh in a starched shirt perfectly stuffed) and his henchman Twatt (Jack Davenport) trying every political angle to sink the buccaneer broadcasters as they are welcoming to their fold Carl (Tom Sturridge), an 18 year old truant sent by his mother Charlotte (Emma Thompson) to be set straight under the guidance of Quentin (Bill Nighy) an old friend who happens to own one of these ships christened Rock Radio. Philip Seymour Hoffman with the on-air moniker The Count leads a cast of quirky announcers pumping out the best of this pioneering time in the history of rock even though some of the music is non contextual. The scenario set in this brief shining period of high seas romance is a fertile place tailor made to tell a dandy story but maybe there wasn’t much else to say. There are some chuckles but often at the expense of logic and the prime focus is a teenager trying hard for his first sexual experience. Hasn’t that been done before? Isn’t there a better place to do it other than aboard a ship filled with guys sporting bad teeth?

Antichrist ironically stars Willem Dafoe who once took on the controversial portrayal of the messiah in "The Last Temptation of Jesus Christ”. The religious right can relax about this one which doesn’t contain anything that can be misconstrued as blasphemy. Defoe plays opposite Charlotte Gainsbourg as a married couple that remain nameless. “He” is a therapist and “She” is an anthropologist. She is emotionally shattered after the death or their infant son and her husband, being unsatisfied with the psychological help she is getting decides to do the job himself. They come to the conclusion that the most therapeutic place to heal is their cabin in the woods where she regularly holes up to research on medieval persecution of women. Rather than being unctuous, Mother Nature seems to conspire to make things exceptionally gruesome. Kudos to the producers for trying to make a thinking person’s horror film but this one makes you ponder too much while you’re squirming. Antichrist is a movie with a message but I’ll be damned if I can figure it out.

Tetro stars Vincent Gallo, under wraps for too long and in probably his best role since Buffalo 66. He’s Tetro, a nickname that is short for the family name of Tetrosini and the only thing from his family that he has not abandoned in his self imposed South American exile. When his young brother Bennie (Alden Ehrenreich) shows up he has a lot of questions about the family history that Tetro is in no mood to discuss. The one thing that they have in common is their escape from their controlling father Carlo (Klaus Maria Brandauer) a rich and famous New York music maestro. Benny stumbles upon some of Tetro’s coded but stellar writing done as therapy about the time that Tetro hooked up with his beautiful Miranda (Maribel Verdú). Benny deciphers the writing and because of its autobiographical nature he’s finally able to piece together a lot of his past. However the whole truth about his family is perhaps something left in the dark. Tetro also marks a long overdue return for Francis Ford Coppola who still has enough clout to film in black and white for no particular reason. Actually flashbacks are in colour but the scenes in black and white are the most colourful, especially some of the unique Argentine scenery featured.

Also out this weekend:
Gentlemen Broncos
I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell
Inside Hana's Suitcase
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The Blind Side is a spot to the left of a football quarterback that makes the job of a left tackle so important – just ask former Toronto Argonaut Joe Theismann who in 1985 while QB-ing the Washington Redskins was blindsided so hard that it ended his brilliant career. The blind side is clearly also an area of subsidized housing in Memphis that is invisible to residents of tonier suburbs of that Tennessee city. Those projects were the sometimes home of a hulking 17 year old named Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) who almost dismissed a golden opportunity handed to him when he got accepted against all odds into a really good school. Thankfully due to some observant teachers and particularly the kindness of the firebrand named Leigh Anne Touhy (a red hot - actually blonde hot - Sandra Bullock) Michael Oher of the Baltimore Ravens in his rookie year is one of the most punishing linemen in the NFL today. Touhy and her husband Sean (an impressive first effort for country star Tim McGraw) took in an effectively homeless Oher and along with tutor Miss Sue (Kathy Bates) helped him overcome insurmountable odds, no small feat for a behemoth who initially refused to come out of his shell. Based on the true story chronicles in Michael Lewis's 2006 book, the Touhy’s are rounded our by daughter Collins (Lily Collins) and son S.J. (Jae Head) their youngest child and a constant scene stealer. Hard to believe that this wholesome, loving and loveable family should be vetted by the NCAA for their integrity but that’s what happens. Get ready to be blind sided by this sweet movie. Sure it’s predictable, most predictable is the number of times you’ll be reaching for a hankie, which is often. 

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans stars Nicolas Cage in his most recent ridiculous hairpiece playing Terence McDonagh, a homicide detective in The Big Easy with a giant monkey on his back. He has a preference for cocaine which he borrows from the police properties room to keep himself and his hooker girlfriend Frankie (Eva Mendes) living the high life. He comes by his job and his addiction honestly being a second generation cop to an alcoholic father yet a man he can still turn to. Ironically Terence might not be a druggie or a Lieutenant if it were not for an act of valour in the wake of Hurricane Katrina that left him with a new shield but also chronic back pain. Years later the city is still worse for wear and so is our anti hero now trying to solve the execution case of an entire family of illegal immigrants who crossed the wrong drug lord named Big Fate (Xzibit). Almost as frustrating to McDonagh as his mounting debt to his bookie not to mention a mob hit man he’s run afoul of are reluctant witness fearing reprisal, but for a cop who wears a Magnum 44 stuffed under the belt holding up a bad fitting suit, breaking the rules as a means to an end is not something beyond his comfort zone. Nice to see Vancouver’s Fairuza Balk getting a fat role in this picture which director Werner Herzog insists is not a remake of the 1992 Harvey Keitel film Bad Lieutenant even though it’s basically the same premise. He makes this take unique though by juxtaposing the action against a backdrop of a city still trying to recover from devastation - too bad the depth of his actor’s abilities does not come close to matching the depth of the deluge that caused that iconic city’s ruin. 

Also out this weekend:
Prom Night In Mississippi
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day

Planet 51 is located far across the galaxy where greenish creatures live surrounded by 1950’s kitsch. Also lost in the 50’s is the population’s conception of an alien invasion as they feel it would most certainly involve zombie-factioning of the invaded not to mention body probes. Their concept of the universe goes back even farther - to about the 1750’s. So when Captain Charles T. Baker (Dwayne Johnson), a pretty boy US astronaut lands a lunar module in the suburban back yard of a teen would be Planetarium curator named Lem (Justin Long) and plants a flag by his parents barbecue claiming the planet for Mother Earth, the natives fear the worst. What follows is a fun, fast paced get-to-know-ya as Lem and his pal Skiff (Seann William Scott) help Baker and his rock loving Wall-E like probe get ready for the trip back to earth which is being hampered by the military might of General Grawl  (Gary Oldman) and the brain surgery happy Professor Kipple (John Cleese). In exchange for the help Baker teaches Lem a few secrets of the universe not the least of which is how to win the heart of Neera (Jessica Biel), literally the girl next door. This animated charmer that has a fresh three dimensional look is the first CGI feature from Spain's new Ilion Animation Studios. Animación Española está viva.
Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Saphire features that author (real name Ramona Lofton) in a small role. It also features some impressive work from unrecognizable music industry A-listers Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz in an all too real depiction of the ravages of the soul that can be brought on by resignation to ignorance and despair. “Precious” is the middle name of Harlem’s Claireece Jones (impressive neophyte Gabourey Sidibe) an obese victim of poor nutrition and lack of self respect who in 1987 at the age of sixteen is already pregnant for the second time by her own father. Dad’s not around much anymore but his lingering abuse seems almost mild compared to the constant physical and verbal barraged from her mother Mary (Mo'Nique). This film is truly inspirational thanks to a vivid imagination that dispatches Precious to a happy place when misery comes calling and mercifully she is not someone who falls through the cracks but indeed is someone for whom the system actually works even as the heartbreaks continue to pile up. Also inspirational is the work of comedian and TV talk show host Mo'Nique who dominates every scene she’s in as a completely loathsome person who despite her despicable behaviour that often leaves the audience audibly gasping can still evoke pathos. Come Academy Awards time I’d be surprised if Mo'Nique is not nominated for best supporting female actor even though she should win best female actor honours.  

Ninja Assassin was the darling of this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival and is now in wide release. Korean superstar Rain who was introduced to North America with a breakout role in Speed Racer but is an established sensation in Asia plays Raizo, a rogue Ninja adept at a unique and particularly deadly piece of chain link weaponry. He has broken away from a large clan of mercenary assassins that train under the tutelage of the cruel Sensei Ozunu (Shô Kosugi) in a remote Japanese mountain temple. Because of Raizo’s defection he is as much a target as the victims of the clan’s regular business which by the way lately has been brisk. So brisk that the international cops at Europol in Germany are poking around and soon start giving credence to the incredulous idea of mythical Ninjas causing mayhem. Soon Rain and agent Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris) join forces to stop the killing but the odds seem insurmountable. For fans of action flicks like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon this movie is a field day of furious fists and razor sharp weaponry. The people who brought us the Matrix trilogy are behind the glorious gore splashes ad cool moves in a year that has been slightly devoid of Martial Arts films.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is the quirkiest of the quirky projects that George Clooney gets involved in every year about this time. Usually he’s shooting for an Oscar but this seems more like a pet project – pun intended since it features a host of animated creatures. Joining his voice are those of Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Wally Wolodarsky, Eric Anderson, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe and Owen Wilson with Clooney playing Mr Fox who abandons his chicken coup raiding days when his mate lets him know that they are in the family way. Fourteen dog years later (a cute reference at first but annoying after the umpteenth time) and Mr Fox is in a rut with his newspaper job. When new digs don’t perk him up he decides to get the adrenalin flowing with a final three pronged raid against the farms of Boggis, Bunce and Bean. Unfortunately his little caper puts the whole of the local vermin population in jeopardy when the wily farmers stop at nothing to strike back. Then it’s time to see how fantastically foxy Mr Fox really is and even though he talks a good game he doesn’t seem up to the task. Based on the best-selling children's book by Roald Dahl this jumbled and flat film at least has the retro look that the director was shooting for, done with the painstaking stop action animation  that is somewhat uplifted by the subtle inflections delivered from its excellent cast.

Old Dogs is a very old film in movie years as it features Bernie Mac in a minor role. We’ve lamented his untimely passing since August of 2008 but after viewing this Disney Thanksgiving turkey it’s not hard to see why it sat on the shelf for so long. A beefy Robin Williams who leaves not doubt as to why he required heart surgery earlier this year stars as Dan, a divorcee and the ying to the yang of Charlie (John Travolta). These two fifty-somethings are truly BFF’s being inseparable since grade school. Now New York advertising tycoons they are on the verge of inking the most lucrative deal of their careers along with new protégé Ralph White (Seth Green) when Dan discovers he’s the father of six year old twins from a Charlie engineered liaison with Vicki (Travolta’s real life wife Kelly Preston). Not only that but circumstances insist that for two of their most critical business weeks the two men, neither of whom have any child rearing experience, are stuck with the twins Zach (Conner Rayburn) and Emily (Ella Bleu Travolta). Unlike so many of the truly entertaining family films Disney has produced lately this is a throwback to offerings from Walt’s days featuring lame setups and lukewarm laughs. New tricks from the old dogs are better.

The Road is a “road picture” featuring two guys heading to the beach in hopes of catching a break from daily stress and frigid weather. This however is a “road picture” that does not feature beer bongs and sophomoric sexual encounters. A man (Viggo Mortensen) and his boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee) are refugees from a cataclysmic inferno of unknown origin that has rendered the earth a cold, sterile wasteland. En route to the sea and then hopefully south their focus is like that of today’s homeless – food and footwear but with the added stresses of other survivors who have banded together as rag tag groups of cannibals. Sleep for the father is haunted by dreams of life before the anarchy and of the pastoral beauty he shared with his long gone fragile wife (Charlize Theron) who could no longer take the despair of their post apocalyptic existence. The boy has no such dreams having been born into this stark world. Both wonder if they’ll ever be able to interact again with some of the “good guys” since the line that separates good and bad gets ever blurrier. Also featured but nearly unrecognizable are Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce and Vancouver's Molly Parker in this masterfully told but minimally entertaining film that seems out of place. Usually this type of cinema gets made in booming economic times and not when the world is plunged into the economic equivalent of a nuclear winter. Maybe this is the first tangible sign that the global recession is really ebbing.

Also out the weekend:
The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story
Coopers' Camera

Brothers are Capt. Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire) and Tommy Cahill (Jake Gyllenhaal)
both sons of Hank Cahill (Sam Shepard), a hard nosed retired sergeant from a small, frigid army town. Sam, a second generation soldier married to Grace (Natalie Portman) with two adorable daughters is a great source of pride for Hank who conversely has the same amount of distain for Tommy who never quite measures up. We meet the boys just as Sam is about to be deployed to Afghanistan and Tommy is finally out on parole. In short order Grace gets the tragic news that Sam is MIA but the truth is he’s been taken prisoner by the Taliban. Being of comfort to Grace and the girls is cathartic for the troubled Tommy until Sam returns damaged physically and especially mentally by the horrors of war. Knowing that everyone wrote him off as dead the fragile Sam comes close to the edge accusing Tommy and Grace of getting too cosy in his absence and the evidence seems to prove him right. Susanne Bier gets writing credits here as the film is based on her screenplay for the equally well done 2004 Danish movie Brødre (also called Brothers when release in North America). This Brothers looks like one of those movies that gives it all up in the trailers that run for months before the release date but don’t be fooled. This worthwhile drama offers much more than what meets the preview.

Everybody's Fine stars Robert De Niro who pulls out all his acting chops playing Luddite Frank Goode a recent widower in failing health who we meet sprucing up his suburban home for a family reunion that shortly disintegrates before his antiquated answering machine. Against doctors orders he sets out on an About-Shmidt-like journey to New York, Chicago and Las Vegas to confront his cold shouldered progeny played by Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell. As one by one their distant behaviour accelerates all pathos is with Frank but flashbacks to a much earlier time shows a somewhat controlling father, however this time that is not the reason for the standoffishness. The trailers would have us believe that that this is another light fluffy feel good comedy but that’s not the way it plays out. As you leave the theatre only half satisfied your realize that the point of the film is that there is a reason why some people’s children move as far away from home as soon as they leave the house.

Also out this weekend:
Armored
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee
Red Cliff
Eating Buccaneers

Invictus is a work by 19th century poet William Ernest Henley who because of health issues was himself somewhat of a prisoner. Although it is often quoted it seems to have been tailor made for Nelson Mandela who used it as a constant source of strength during his 30 years of incarceration while South Africa’s apartheid policy was the rule of law. That came to an end in 1991 and by the mid 90’s in the ultimate case of poetic justice, Mandela was established as that country’s leader. In a slight deviation from history the poem was further used by Mandela as inspiration for Springbok, the country’s rugby team to win that sport’s 1995 World Cup. For Mandela this was more than winning a trophy, he had the foresight to realize that a win could galvanize a nation in tatters after a somewhat velvet revolution. Making the dream come true was no easy task – soccer was the sport loved by South Africa’s black majority and rugby was the passion of the Afrikaners. Not only is this a marvellously bone crunching gridiron movie with desperate battling but it also features thoughtful, erudite motivational speeches by one of the true heroes of our time. Morgan Freeman was born the play Mandela (as a matter of fact for years I thought they were the same guy) and as team captain Francois Pienaar a beyond-Borne-buffed Matt Damon sporting an Aryan bleached blonde coif and spot on Jo-berg accent is terrific. Kudos to director Clint Eastwood whose mastery at pushing all the right buttons is so far beyond the spaghetti westerns and those daffy “Any Which Way…” movies that kept people distracted while the real Mandela lamented over Henley’s poem.

Up in the Air stars George Clooney with the suave, rogue personae that he seems born to wear. As Ryan Bingham he is living the dream in a job that would make anyone else suicidal. It entails over 300 days of air travel per year but that’s not the really depressing part. Upon arrival at all those destinations he’s the ice man hired by faltering companies downsizing in a brutal economy. Ryan is unfazed by all this because it means never having to say “I’m committed”. Just when life couldn’t get any sweeter he meets Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga) a fellow jet setting itinerant. While Ryan is airborne with benefits his boss Craig Gregory (Jason Bateman) has discovered the financial benefits of letting the axe fall via the internet thanks to Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick) a twentysomething firebrand efficiency expert with ink barely dry on her magnum cum laude degree. Ryan refused to go into a tailspin without a fight and insists on taking Natalie on the road to ostensibly get a feel for the real job but in reality to somehow mastermind a return to the status quo. A family wedding and the break-up of  a perfectly calculated match factor into Ryan’s wishing for something he should be careful about. Up In the Air is well grounded as a movie for our times with a  jet smooth story line that makes this a pleasant but no necessarily safe journey.

Also out this weekend:
Me and Orson Welles
The Princess and the Frog

Did You Hear About the Morgans? Features a philandering New York lawyer named Paul Morgan (Hugh Grant) on the outs with his wife Meryl (Sarah Jessica Parker) the Big Apple’s go-to Realtor. While negotiating marital peace they witness a murder that lands them in the witness protection program. They’re sequestered in a Wyoming hamlet with Clay Wheeler (Sam Elliott) the town Sheriff and his pistol packin’ wife Emma (Mary Steenburgen). The town’s slow pace is torture for the couple used to measuring time in Manhattan minutes but this eventually aids in healing the relationship. Will it survive however when Vincent (Michael Kelly) the assassin discovers their whereabouts. Did You Hear About the Morgans? is a film you may very well have already heard about although it may have been under a different title – there’s a lot here we’ve found endearing in other movies. What seems to make this ménage-a-sitcom work is High Grant. The irony of his disastrous personal peccadilloes is not lost here and probably gave him something to draw on as an unfaithful husband trying to win back his wife. Sarah Jessica Parker can thank Grant for providing the much needed chemistry not always present for her when cast in a romantic comedy. Also of note are Hamilton Ontario’s fresh faced Kim Shaw as the vacuous Nurse Kelly and another couple equally at odds, personal aids to Paul and Meryl, Adam Feller (Jesse Liebman) and Jackie Drake (Elisabeth Moss) who hold down the ivory tower forts while the two incognito cowboys get homey on the range.

The Young Victoria is a regal trip back to the early 19th century and the beginning of the longest reign of a monarch in British history that lasted through the apex of the empire days for England. Heavy is the head that wears the crown and in this case it was true even before the installation of that bejewelled head gear. Emily Blunt carries the film masterfully as the bullied but headstrong Victoria who despite poor health prior to reaching the age of consent, refused to bow to intense pressure to relinquish power to her mother the Duchess of Kent (Miranda Richardson) and Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong) her manipulative second husband. Victoria’s uncle King William (Jim Broadbent) graciously clung to life until she turned 18 at which point she elided onto the throne. Although she took on the job with great relish she was unprepared and mistakenly fell under the spell of opportunist Lord Melbourne (Paul Bettany). Her stubborn nature that stood her in good stead while sequestered as a minor quickly got her in political hot water not only with parliament but most troubling with her loyal subjects. Thankfully she had two strong allies in Adelaide (Harriet Walter) her Uncles Queen and Germany’s Prince Albert (Rupert Friend). He would come to be the love of her life even though he was subject to some royal intrigue himself from back home. Kudos to a beautifully told and revealing tale from Director Jean-Marc Vallée - ironically from Quebec, a part the commonwealth not famous for monarchists.

Also out this weekend:
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
Avatar

Helen has Ashley Judd returning to Vancouver for the first time since the late 90’s when she spent a lot of time filming in Canada. Like last years Bug she puts on an acting clinic in another film that portrays the dark recesses of minds going off the rails. As Helen she’s a gifted music professor on her second but serenely romantic marriage to the suave David (ER’s Goran Visnjic) who has way more compassion than you’d expect from a lawyer. They share their loving home with Julie (Vancouver’s Alexia Fast) Helen’s teenage daughter from her first marriage until the darkness of clinical depression casts a pall over their perfect relationship. As Helen slips further and further into a catatonic abyss she distances herself from her family at the same time sharing a mental affinity with Mathilda (another Vancouverite Lauren Lee Smith) one of her students who is also psychologically fragile. Perhaps it’s important that films are made to enlighten about a subject easily swept under the carpet and to illustrate that there’s no quick fix for mental illness and the difference that support can make. However as a night out at the movies, the subject of depression can be, well, depressing. 

Broken Embraces stars Lluís Homar playing Mateo Blanco with a curious split personality as he currently prefers to go by his pen name Harry Caine. He’s successful in the film business with an odd affliction for a director / screenwriter – he’s totally blind. He maintains his success with the help of his loyal agent Judit García (Blanca Portillo) and her son Diego (Tamar Novas). When a mysterious Ray X (Rubén Ochandiano) presents himself as a novice screenwriter with an interesting script idea involving great wealth and a betrayed son Harry curiously turns his back on the young man. Although blind he can clearly see that Ray is a touchstone to a time 14 years previous when a fully sighted Mateo was having an affair with Lena (Penélope Cruz) the mistress of Ernesto Martel (José Luis Gómez) a powerful and devious Spanish financial tycoon. Broken Embraces returns Penélope Cruz to her birth country where she always seems to do her best work while speaking her native tongue. In this multi faceted part she’s also reunites with Pedro Almodóvar the director of Volver the role from which she got an Oscar nod in 2007. 

Sherlock Holmes is the most portrayed movie character ever according to the Guinness folks and IMDb lends credence to that with 223 entries to date going back as far as 1908 in listing films and TV series featuring that consultant detective. Guy Ritchie must have felt a lot of pressure to bring new life to the role but he’s helped immeasurably by the superb cast featuring a buffed Robert Downey Jr. as Holmes and the on again off again Jude law very much on again as Dr. John Watson. We hook up with Holmes on the outs with Watson who is about to end their arrangement as roomies and pursue marriage with Mary Morstan (Kelly Reilly). They’ve just sent Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong) to the gallows after being condemned for a series of ritual killings but he survives the hangman’s noose. Holmes and Watson find themselves pressed back into service to aid Inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsan), a policeman of questionable ethics, in the fight against a coven of black arts practitioners bent on reinstating the glory of the British Empire for less than noble purposes. Ritchie’s rendering is brilliant not only for the film’s authentic look but more importantly for de-emphasizing the elementary Holmes - and not just by eliminating the trademark Inverness wool cape coat or the deerstalker hat (although Holmes occasionally sports a stylized Trilbury chapeau). Deductive reasoning takes a back seat to Sherlock’s expertise in martial arts and we see an about face on his aversion to women with the usually shadowy Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams) taking on a major role both intriguing and quasi-romantic. There’s added irony with no hint of Holmes’ penchant for opiates yet Downey being one of Hollywood’s leading enthusiasts for opium derivatives. Thankfully the director of Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels was not obliged to cast Madonna Ciccone as they are no longer married. Reverting to his often staccato editing that made a comeback last year in RocknRolla he’s managed the seemingly impossible feat of making a very old story stand up on strong new legs.
 
Nine is the film version of the stage musical based on the celebrated 1963 classic Italian film 8 1/2 that is still revered today - a loosely autobiographical Federico Fellini film that starred Marcello Mastroianni as Guido Anselmi. This musical is also set in 1963 but the famous yet troubled protagonist is now Guido Contini played by Daniel Day-Lewis. He’s the first to admit he’s no singer yet gamely warbles when needed as the writer/director whose early works are masterpieces but lately has delivered a series of flops and is now suffering a critical creative block. Unfortunately the pressure is on from his producer and the press to deliver genius so he disappears in order to keep everyone at bay while trying to dream up a new script. All the while he has to deal with the real and imagined women in his life that include his long suffering wife Luisa (Marion Cotillard), his hot Latin lover Carla (Penélope Cruz), his leading lady with benefits Claudia (Nicole Kidman) a willing American magazine scribe named Stephanie (Kate Hudson), Lilli (Judi Dench) his costume designer/shrink (who delivers all the best lines) as well as his childhood fantasy, Saraghina (Stacy Ferguson). Also fading in too seldom and out too quickly is a startlingly well preserved Sophia Loren playing Guido’s mother. The performances are spot on but not many of the tunes are engaging which doesn’t generally bode well for a musical. Nine suggests a half step up on the original title but certain eye full delights aside, it ends up being a beat behind.  

It’s Complicated stars Meryl Streep as Jane, a Califonia divorcee who has an affair with a married man around the time of her middle child’s college graduation. The laugh (and a last one at that) is that the married man is her ex-husband Jake (Alec Baldwin) who is now cheating on his current trophy wife Agness (Lake Bell) with whom he used to cheat on Jane. This is sweet music to Joanne (Mary Kay Place),  Trisha (Rita Wilson), Sally (Nora Dunn) and  Diane (Alexandra Wentworth) Jane’s first wives club but old embers are starting to flare with Jake just as a more sensible relationship is brewing with Adam (Steve Martin) Jane’s architect who not only has designs on her kitchen but also on her. Can Jake really let go of his child bride or should Jane start building something new with the architect? Like any affair, anyone can start one but it take a genius to resolve one gracefully and here that’s when these complications get clumsy. Streep and Baldwin are too professional to let this passable script falter and massage some heart laughs but It’s Complicated is not really any more complicated than the dictates of the Hollywood movie formula.
   
A Single Man takes us back to a time when gay men were politely referred to as “light in the loafers”. As for impolite references, here not many come up other than in the faces of neighbours who live across from a suburban house which ironically is mostly glass. It’s the home of George (Colin Firth), a British émigré professor teaching English in California just as the Cuban missile crisis is erupting. He’s recently single because his sixteen year relationship with Jim (Matthew Goode) has come to an abrupt end as the result of a motor vehicle accident. George is despondent to the point of suicide which he plans with caricature gay fastidiousness but keeps getting interrupted by Charley (Julianne Moore) an ex-girlfriend who won’t let go and Kenny (Nicholas Hoult) a student whose ubiquitous cashmere sweater clearly telegraphs a kindred spirit. First time director Tom Ford (who until now was a fashion designer best known for his miraculous turnaround of Gucci in the 90’s) will no doubt get some Oscar chatter for delivering a story with a beautifully ironic ending preceded by excellent performances from Firth and especially Moore.

Also Out this weekend:
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

The Yes Men Fix the World features Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno – yes men for some of the world’s largest corporations who speak on behalf of businesses to millions around the world on matters of urgency to mankind. This is no mean feat since they’re not affiliated with any corporate entity whatsoever. They’re just a couple of pranksters extrapolating the theory of corporations as psychopathic expressed in 2003’s The Corporation and more recently reiterated in 2009 by Michael Moore in Capitalism: A Love Story. Andy and Mike are able go Moore one better in shaming Fortune 500 members on their own turf because they know how to look the part and as yet they’re not recognizable. With surprising ease they set up authentic looking websites for companies like Dow Chemicals and Exxon and wait for requests from news agencies etc. surfing the web looking for spokespeople. Once invited these “Yes Men” then make grandiose promises about how they will clean up the worldwide mess made by the company they allegedly represent. Also surprising is the lack of lawsuits pending against the pair although in press releases that are published verbatim by duped news organizations (themselves part of large corporate machines), spin doctors are quick to vilify Bichlbaum and Bonanno as emissaries of false hope for corporate victims in places like New Orleans and Bhopal. Too bad the people supposedly given false hope don’t feel any animosity since their plight that has been swept under the carpet is swiftly put back in the spotlight. Told in documentary style The Yes Men Fix the World is not really a documentary, it’s more like a long episode pf Punk’d that not only exposes disturbing unbridled corporate evils but also lampoons their high paid PR flacks. Too bad the multinationals don’t spend the money cleaning up their own mess that they pay these guys to deflect their responsibility. That might really help their bottom line.