Fantastic Mr. Fox (Movie Review)

As daring as it might seem for director Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums) to switch gears and take a crack at an animated film for the first time, adapting a best selling children’s book from a legendary author is arguably the bigger gamble. Or so you would think. Read More

Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant (Movie Review)

The minute a genre becomes popular, Hollywood does its very best to milk it.  To squeeze every last dime out of our pockets.  And it will continue to do it as long as there continues to be an audience for it.  Let’s take ‘SAW’ as an example.  This week, the franchise releases its 6th installment with numbers 7 & 8 already on the way.  Let us remember that the first film hit theaters in 2004. Can they crank them out or what?

However, what seems to be all the rage these days are vampires. They’re everywhere: movies, TV shows, books, toys and on Halloween in every costume party in America.  To what do we owe this resurgence? Why the public obsession with a corpse supposed, in European folklore, to leave its grave at night drink the blood of the living? I have my own opinions about it but Hollywood could care less so long as we keep opening up our wallets.

For those that haven’t yet had their fill, this week you’ll have the option of seeing Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant, but do so at your own risk.  The film, based on the popular series of books by Darren Shan, will do little to excite the average viewer.

Here’s the gist: A 16 year-old unknowingly breaks a 200-year-old truce between two warring factions of vampires. Pulled into a fantastic life of misunderstood sideshow freaks and grotesque creatures of the night, he vanishes from the safety of a boring existence, and puts at risk his relationship with his best friend to fulfill his destiny.

Think of Cirque du Freak as the vampire version of ‘Harry Potter’. Unfortunately, the magic just isn’t there.  A supporting cast that includes mexican actress Salma Hayek as ‘the bearded woman’ doesn’t even manage to spice things up. I will say however, that John C. Reilly (Step Brothers, Walk Hard) who plays Crepsely – The vampire who mentors young Darren and shows him how to develop his vampire abilities – shows his acting range and takes on a role we rarely see him in.

Unless you already a diehard fan of the books, I advise to stay away from the film.  The characters are dull and uninviting. You will leave the theater without a care in the world and a few dollars poorer.

One final note: Isn’t actor Chris Massoglia the spitting image of a young Ralph Macchio (The Karate Kid)?

Where the Wild Things Are (Movie Review)

The night that ‘Max put on a wolf suit and started doing one shenanigan after another’ marked the moment in my childhood when I let my imagination run wild. I’m referring to the boy in that fantasy book written by Maurice Sendak, who later finds himself in a forest ‘Where The Wild Things Are.’
 
When I found out that the filmmaker Spike Jonze (Adaptation, Being John Malkovich) had the intention of adapting a classic of children’s literature to the big screen, I was easily excited. However, the great expectations that came along with the making of the film were enough to worry me. How loyal would the film be to the book? And most importantly, how would they stretch out a story of just a few pages so that it would work as a movie?
 
For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, the book is about a boy named Max who gets sent to bed early for his bad behavior. But he ends up escaping to a forest where he is accompanied by a family of wild creatures. As is traditional in children’s books, ‘Where The Wild Things Are’ has a moral to its story, but I remember it mostly for it’s surrealist world. Something Jonze’s film also succeeds at, but regrettably as a movie ‘Where The Wild Things Are’ falls short.
 
Here’s the problem: the film doesn’t have enough plot to push the story forward. Since the book is short, Jonze has no choice but to come up with something to further develop the movie. However, the filmmaker doesn’t risk quite enough to make things interesting. Instead he opts to show us filler – like extended sequences of Max playing with his monsters. And that’s just not filmmaking. Although the costuming, the special effects and the wonderful soundtrack do an amazing job of bringing the book to life, the captivating moments are rare. Simply put, the book would have been better served as an exceptional short-film.
 
‘Where The Wild Things Are’ is one of the all time classic bedtime stories, but when it also puts you to sleep in the movie theater, that’s not a good sign.

More Than A Game (Movie Review)

Rated: Not available.
Release Date: 2009-10-02
Starring: Kristopher Belman, Brad Hogan
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country: USA
Official Website: http://www.morethanagamemovie.com/

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For ‘Sportcenter’ junkies like myself, More Than a Game will feel like one of those pre-game packages leading up to the final game of a championship series.  The ones that sum up the obstacles the players have overcome to reach the summit of their sport. The ones that delve into their personal lives, recounted by their family, friends, coaches and the journalists that have tracked them.  Tragedy.  Redemption.  All so that when we next see these athletes on the field or on the floor they are human to us once again.  All done to make the ‘game’ that much more compelling.  After all, what would sports be without a narrative?

Avid basketball fans out there will certainly be quite familiar with this documentary having lived through, just a few years ago, LeBron James’ meteoric rise to NBA superstardom.  Of course, the story they got was written by the media: ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and virtually every newspaper across the country.

For those that don’t follow sports at all, the story goes that five talented young high school basketball players from Akron, Ohio including future NBA star LeBron James are coached by a charismatic but inexperienced player’s father and together embark on an improbable nine-year journey from a decrepit inner-city gym to the doorstep of a national high school championship. 

Along the way, the close-knit team is repeatedly tested — both on and off the court — as James’ exploding worldwide celebrity threatens to destroy everything they’ve set out to achieve together.

What director Kristopher Belman does, is turn this documentary into a compelling coming of age film that expands on the boys’ friendship and their loyalty in the face of great adversity.  Easily, this movie could have been fictionalized and either turned into ‘Hoosiers’ (Gene Hackman) or ‘Coach Carter’ (Samuel L. Jackson) to ham up the ‘underdog’ story.  Thankfully, the risk wasn’t taken and the story is told through the players’ own words.  Nevertheless, the movie never feels quite as honest as it should be and I couldn’t help but think that more than anything, it’s a gift to LeBron’s former teammates as they finally get the recognition they deserve.

Come to think of it, my feelings on the film are a lot like the relationship I have with the athletes I follow.  I Don’t quite buy into the image they create for themselves but somehow still find myself rooting for them.  

Jennifer’s Body (Movie Review)

Rated: R for sexuality, bloody violence, language and brief drug use.
Release Date: 2009-09-18
Starring: Diablo Cody
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Film Genre:
Country: USA
Official Website: http://www.jennifersbody.com/

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‘Jennifer’s Body’ is a failure on so many levels: as a horror film, a comedy and its acting, but it does manage to be a good teen film due to Diablo Cody’s authentic and irreverent script and dialogue. It is so sumptuous that I haven’t been this excited to HEAR just dialogue since her first work in ‘Juno.’

The premise is simple yet loses its path many a times. When small-town high school hottie Jennifer (Megan Fox) is possessed by a hungry demon, guys who never stood a chance with her, take on new luster in the light of Jennifer’s insatiable appetite.

Oscar award winning screenwriter Diablo Cody is a teenager trapped in a woman’s body. Her uncanny way to capture and tap into the teen angst of today is an onerous task that she pulls off effortlessly… once again. Nevertheless, there is no excuse for some of the tawdry moments the movie provides. Its pacing, in particular, lacks a natural rhythm, the acting is descent at best and Megan just doesn’t bring it; she’s not good enough to carry the movie. The film overall struggles with a sense of identity. It doesn’t know whether it wants to be campy or a little less flamboyant, but it never finds the right balance. It’s never truly scary or funny. If you’re going to see the film in theaters just to get off on Megan Fox, there are other ways to do it, such as waiting for it on DVD in 4 months

Watch out for the lesbo scene, it might just shock the horror from you.

Taking Woodstock (Movie Review)

Rated: R for graphic nudity, some sexual content, drug use and language.
Release Date: 2009-08-28
Starring: James Schamus
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Film Genre:
Country: USA
Official Website: http://www.filminfocus.com/focusfeatures/film/taking_woodstock

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I’ve always felt that Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee can do anything.  A director as versatile as they come, Lee refuses to be pigeonholed to any one genre and be restricted by the technological challenges of a film.

Think about this: Lee has gone from the experimentation and liberalism that defined the 1970s (Ice Storm, 1997), to the adventures of a young woman in feudal China (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000), to the biggest and baddest hero of the Marvel universe (Hulk, 2003) to an Oscar award winning cowboy drama (Brokeback Mountain, 2005).  How’s that for range?

But fearlessly stepping out of your comfort zone has its risks. Lee has made his share of forgettable movies and with ‘Taking Woodstock’ he maybe adding to that list.

Based on the memoirs of Elliot Tiber, the comedy stars Demetri Martin as Elliot, who inadvertently played a role in making 1969’s Woodstock Music and Arts Festival into the famed happening it was.  When his parents are in danger of losing their dumpy motel in the Catskills, Elliot offers it up to the festival promoters to generate some much needed business. 

In the end however, the film is about the peculiar relationship with his overbearing parents.  The rock n’ roll, the drugs, the mud slides, and everything else we’ve come to know about Woodstock plays second fiddle and is ultimately nothing more than a backdrop, a setting for what is otherwise a family drama with very little at stake. 

Regrettably, something about the performances doesn’t seem as sincere as some of the others we’ve seen in other movies set in that time period.  But I won’t pin all the blame squarely on the actors.  Mr. Lee stumbles but doesn’t fall.

Post Grad (Movie Review)

Rated: PG-13 for sexual situations and brief strong language.
Release Date: 2009-08-21
Starring: Kelly Fremon
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Country: USA
Official Website: Not available.

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Art & Copy (Movie Review)

Rated: Not available.
Release Date: 2009-08-21
Starring: Gregory Beauchamp, Kirk Souder
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country: USA
Official Website: http://www.artandcopyfilm.com/

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Walking out of the theater I couldn’t help but think to myself “I can’t wait to sell this movie to our readers!”

More than just a history lesson on 20th century advertising, Art & Copy is the story of some of the most influential creatives of our time. Ones that have profoundly impacted our society and shaped our everyday lifestyle. That is, if we are to define ‘lifestyle’ as the site where consumer culture and individual identity intersect.

In his latest effort, Director Doug Pray (SURFWISE, SCRATCH, HYPE!) introduces us to the artists and writers that exploded onto the scene during advertising’s heyday or the “creative revolution” of the 1960s.  And chances are that you, over the last few decades, whether you like it or not, have fallen victim to the people featured in this film: George Lois, Mary Wells, Dan Wieden, Lee Clow and Hal Riney.  We may not recognize their names but we’ve certainly heard from them: “Where’s the Beef?”, “Got Milk?”, “Just Do It”, “Think Different” are just a few of the slogans that have swayed us throughout the years.

Most might ‘sell’ Art & Copy as the ‘behind the music’ of advertising or as an addendum to the ever so popular AMC series ‘Madmen’.  And while it is true that fans of the show will most certainly get a kick out of meeting the real life versions of their Madison Avenue heroes, Art & Copy is ultimately an inspiring documentary that explores the power of creativity, not just to sell a car to a customer or a president to a nation, but to problem solve.  As George Lois puts it: “The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality, overcomes everything.”