The Secret In Their Eyes (Movie Review)
04.16.2010 | By Jack Rico |
04.15.2010 | By Jack Rico |
We all know the phrase “Keeping up with the Joneses,” and so does first time writer/director Darrick Borte, who has used that as the basis for his debut, called (appropriately enough) The Joneses. The subject matter is simple enough: Borte has elected to highlight modern society’s materialistic and status obsessions while at the same time postulating how out-of-control marketing campaigns have become. In a sense, consumers have become like children – see something, want something. Credit card debt is out of control because people can’t restrain their buying impulses. However, despite a brilliantly cynical premise and a delicious start, the film eventually wilts like a lily left out in the noonday heat. Like too many satires that start out with santoku-sharp edges, the blade dulls because the filmmakers don’t hone it as the third act approaches. A desire to be likeable and perhaps appealing to mainstream audiences causes The Joneses to fade before eventually imploding. The biggest gaffe: a late-inning sermon delivered by David Duchovny. The problem has less to do with his preaching ability than with the recognition that the message would be better left unsaid. Is Borte so uncertain of his skill that he has to spell out everything letter-by-letter? Whatever happened to subtlety?
At first glance, the Joneses appear to be a perfect family: father Steve (David Duchovny), mother Kate (Demi Moore), son Mick (Ben Hollingsworth), and daughter Jenn (Amber Heard). But since this is a movie, there’s no such thing as a “perfect family” and, despite the beautiful house, the expensive furniture, and the luxury cars, there are issues in this paradise, as becomes apparent when Jenn tries to slip into Dad’s bed one night. It turns out these four are actually employees of a corporation called LifeImage and have been seeded into this neighborhood to show off the good life to their neighbors and get them to buy the products LifeImage represents. The couple next door, Larry (Gary Cole) and Summer (Glenne Headly), fall for it hook, line, and sinker – but there’s an issue. Larry doesn’t make enough money to finance all the purchases and he soon finds himself drowning in debt – not exactly a unique situation in modern-day American society.
I’m a little uneasy about the film’s message regarding corporate amorality and greed. It’s not that I don’t think corporations sometimes cross lines in their marketing campaigns, but personal responsibility has to come into it, and that’s not something the film addresses. Blaming escalating personal debt on corporate practices is offering a scapegoat for a lack of fiscal restraint. According to The Joneses, when people get in over their heads in debt, it’s because of a company’s selling practices, not because of a lack of self-control on the part of consumers who should be watching their bottom line. These aren’t high school students caving in to peer pressure. Yes, the issue of “keeping up with the Joneses” is a problem in modern day America, but to put all the blame on the people marketing and selling the products is to overlook a major part of the issue.
That being said, the manner in which the film begins and the way it gradually reveals the truth about its protagonists is smart and savvy, and the satire of marketing is on-target more often than not. What’s being postulated by this film isn’t far from reality. Is it that much different to use product placement in movies and television shows than it is to use a real-life variation of the same thing? (In what I assume is an example of in-your-face irony, Borte uses a fair share of such placements in this movie, the most obvious of which is for a car I won’t name here.)
Solid performances from David Duchovny (in a cleaned-up version of his Californication character), Demi Moore (defying age), Ben Hollingsworth, and Amber Heard can’t save the movie when the screenplay goes as limp as a noodle and turns into a long string of clichés. It’s sad, really, because the movie begins with so much promise. It has its share of amusing moments but, in the end, The Joneses feels like a satire that never blossoms because of a fear of becoming too dark. It’s a missed opportunity that will have The Joneses struggling to keep up with its mid-April multiplex competition.
04.14.2010 | By Jack Rico |
I was just sent this press release for the new Cantinflas box set coming out on May 11th. Sony is distributing it and we’re talking about it. After my exclusive scoop on Oscar Jaenada playing Cantinflas on the biopic movie, the buzz on Cantinflas has officially started! Read More
04.14.2010 | By Jack Rico |
It is now official. Spanish actor Oscar Jaenada, who will be starring in Warner Bros. The Losers this year, has been tapped to play Mario Moreno, Mexico’s most famous comedian, in the biopic Cantinflas. My source, who is directly involved in the casting of the film, has confirmed the choice for the lead. Read More
04.8.2010 | By Jack Rico |
‘La Mission’ is by far one of the best feel-good movies of the young year. The charm and warmth of its ensemble cast sets it apart from the rest of the films I’ve seen of 2010. Benjamin Bratt delivers what I consider the best performance of his career, and even though Ben’s writer/director brother, Peter Bratt’s direction doesn’t raise eyebrows, the script holds an allure that is contagious and genuine.
‘La Mission’ is the story of Che Rivera, played wonderfully by Benjamin Bratt, a San Francisco bus driver respected in his Mission district barrio for building beautiful low rider cars, yet feared for his tough and machismo ways. A reformed inmate and recovering alcoholic, Che’s path to redemption is tested when he discovers that his pride and joy– his only child, Jesse (Jeremy Ray Valdez) is gay. In a homophobic rage, Che violently beats his son, disowning him. Out of pride, Che loses his son – the “best friend he’s got†– and once again loses himself. Emotionally broken and vulnerable, Che is left isolated and alone. In a cathartic moment on the mean streets of the Mission, Che realizes that his patriarchal pride is meaningless to him, and that in order to maintain it, he has sacrificed the one thing that he cherishes most – love.
For those thinking that this is a Latino film, it is not. It never felt like one. It is just an American story about a specific subculture of people, in this case Chicanos, going through issues in their neighborhood of Mission, San Francisco. That they happen to be of Latino descent is irrelevant. Anyone, of any background can enjoy this film. It’s actually as American as it gets. My view of America isn’t ‘Leave it Beaver’ or ‘Father Knows Best,’ it’s this movie.
The story’s genuineness and humility pierces right through the screen. Its simplicity should not be taken as a defect, but should be viewed as its strength. Some of my favorite movies possess some of the simplest stories I’ve seen such as Vittorio De Sica’s ‘The Bicycle Thief,’ Giuseppe Tornatore’s ‘Cinema Paradiso’ and Michael Radford’s ‘Il Postino.’
You’re going to fall in love with this film – the characters are easy to like and the vibe is cool. This is a movie that comes from the heart and it’s those projects that stay with you long after you left the theater.
04.7.2010 | By Jack Rico |
The new action comedy ‘Date Night’ unites two of the funniest comedians in Hollywood in their peak form – Tina Fey and Steve Carrell. Too bad the script wasn’t as funny they are in their respective TV shows. It really is all about the writing. Some jokes worked, other didn’t, therefore it felt choppy and inconsistent. The leads and cameos, by well known stars, were by far the highlights and the action sequences were mildly entertaining. Overall, not a bad film, but it could have been better.
The premise is very empathic. A case of mistaken identity turns a bored married couple’s attempt at a glamorous and romantic evening in New York City, into the most thrilling and dangerous night of their lives. Mark Wahlberg guest stars as a security expert that helps them in their plight. James Franco and Mila Kunis do a cameo as a drug dealer named Taste and a stripper called Whippit, known as ‘The Tripplehorns’, amongst others. The scenes in which they were in were by far the most electric and laugh out loud funny.
Fey is one of the most charming, yet sexy comediennes I have ever seen. Her television show ‘30 Rock’ exudes the best of what she has to offer. Carrell’s brand of sentimental comedy has come into its own and its visible here. His self deprecating sketches really connect. Regretfully, Date Night doesn’t showcase their complete arsenal of comedy. Some secondary roles like ‘Gossip Girl’s’ Leighton Meester, Taraji P. Henson, were underutilized and I ask why even have them there? They’re strong presences on camera.
The script, by Josh Hausner, looks influenced by scads of films such as Doug Liman’s ‘Mr. And Mrs. Smith,’ Hitchcock’s ‘North by Northwest’ and Martin Scorsese’s greatly underrated ‘After Hours.’ All wonderful films that have established directors attached to them. Not really the case here with director Shawn Levy. He lacks the technical skill and magic to create something last long after you’ve left the theater.
Towards the end, the movie delivers more action than the beginning, including a fun car chase sequence that is over the top. It’s these moments when you feel that the movie lunges from one big moment to the next and it never takes sufficient time to create a consistent pattern of action or comedy. It’s a mix that was good, not great.
All in all, go see it and have fun. Fey and Carrell is a comedic dream team that amuse and entertain, sort of the way Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn did in films like ‘Holiday’ and ‘The Philadelphia Story’.
04.2.2010 | By SBC Staff |
To the left of you is the official trailer to The Expendables. This is the movie that Sylvester Stallone has been working on for almost 2 years. I love the concept… unite the most prolific action stars from the 80’s in one movie. For people over 30, that’s like the dream action movie!! Well we have the final trailer and it has some cameos you’re gonna love. Check it out and get pumped!
Here’s the full synopsis just in case you’re wondering: (spoiler alert)
“The Expendables“ is a hard-hitting action/thriller about a group of mercenaries hired to infiltrate a South American country and overthrow its ruthless dictator. Once the mission begins, the men realize things arent quite as they appear, finding themselves caught in a dangerous web of deceit and betrayal. With their mission thwarted and an innocent life in danger, the men struggle with an even tougher challenge one that threatens to destroy this band of brothers.
Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) is a man with nothing to lose. Fearless and void of emotion, he is the leader, the sage and the strategist of this tight-knit band of men who live on the fringe. His only attachment is to his pickup truck, his seaplane and his team of loyal modern-day warriors. His is a true cynic who describes what he does as removing those hard to get at stains. The team behind him is made up of Lee Christmas (Jason Statham), former SAS and a savant with anything that has a blade; Yin Yang (Jet Li), a master at close-quarter combat; Hale Caesar (Terry Crews), who has known Barney for ten years and is a long-barrel weapons specialist; Toll Road (Randy Couture), a skilled demolitions expert and considered the intellect of the group; and Gunnar Jensen (Dolph Lundgren), a combat veteran and an expert in precision sniping who struggles with his own demons.
When the mysterious Church offers Barney a job no one else would take, Barney and his team embark on what appears to be a routine mission: overthrow General Gaza (David Zayas), the murderous dictator of the small island country of Vilena and end the years of death and destruction inflicted on its people. On a reconnaissance mission to Vilena, Barney and Christmas meet their contact Sandra (Giselle Itie), a local freedom-fighter with a dark secret. They also come to learn who their true enemy is: rogue ex-CIA operative James Monroe (Eric Roberts) and his henchman Paine (Steve Austin). When things go terribly wrong, Barney and Christmas are forced to leave Sandra behind, essentially giving her a death sentence. Haunted by this failure, Barney convinces the team to return to Vilena to rescue the hostage and finish the job he started. And to perhaps save a soul: his own.
