To me the curse is mine, only because it is taking me far longer than I first imagined to post all the archival reviews from years of newsletters. Hopefully, it’s not a curse to my wonderful (though small) reader base. This archive update, at least, comes quicker than the gap between the first and the second. The new films added are from the first part of my newsletter that went out on Aug. 13, 2004. It’s a collection of good films, even some very good films.
Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

The best move this courtroom drama does is stay out of the courtroom for most of its running time. The final court proceeding doesn’t even make an appearance. Director Steven Soderbergh (SEX, LIES & VIDEOTAPE) and writer Susannah Grant (IN HER SHOES) find a way to have the revelatory happy ending that is a staple of this kind of film without a judge ruling innocent or guilty and a courtroom full of people jumping to their feet. These moves make the story about the investigation and not the theatrics. It gives it heart.

The film takes its title from its central character, Erin Brockovich (Julia Roberts, MYSTIC PIZZA), a poor single mother who provokes with her blunt statements and skimpy clothing. After a car accident, she hires lawyer Ed Masry (Albert Finney, TOM JONES) to represent her. Following the court case (one of only two courtroom scenes), Brockovich pressures her way into a job at Masry’s firm. She is assigned a real estate case, which includes medical records. Wondering why the two are connected, she looks into the case more and discovers that in Hinkley, California PG&E have been contaminating the groundwater with chromium 6, which is causing the residents to have numerous and varying health problems. Turns out, the power company has been covering up the problem and Brockovich makes it her mission to make them pay.

Read the rest of this entry »

Having missed THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY in the theaters, I recently caught it on DVD, finding it to be one of the best films of 2007. The Cannes Film Festival winner from director Ken Loach deals with the Irish Republican Army’s rebellion against the British in the 1920s and the subsequent civil war. Wanting to encourage people to see the film, I felt it was a good idea to build this week’s lineup around the film. So I picked four additional films that feature the IRA. Some deal with the freedom fighters/terrorist (depends on your point of view) more directly, however all five films are fascinating tales.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

I remember the reaction to this shocking film when it first came out. It became a lightning rod for debate. The big secret has become common knowledge, however I will still avoid revealing it in this review. After 15 years since its release, there are younger viewers who may still be innocent in their film history to not know the twist. Having not seen the film until after learning the secret, the impact of the film wasn’t ruined, however I can only imagine the shock for those lucky enough to go into the film unaware. I wouldn’t want to ruin that for anyone, because the twist is amazingly handled and can only add to the freshness of the first experience if unknown.

The story begins as British soldier Jody (Forest Whitaker, THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND) is lured into a kidnapping trap by IRA member Jude (Miranda Richardson, SPIDER). The IRA wants to trade Jody for one of their members who is under interrogation. Fergus (Stephen Rea, MICHAEL COLLINS), a humane IRA soldier, is assigned to watch Jody and over a few days the two men develop a friendship. Jody asks Fergus to visit his girl Dil (Jaye Davidson, STARGATE) in London if he is eventually killed. This opening sequence concludes in a very unexpected and ironic way. Following this, Fergus ends up in London going by the name Jimmy. He finds Dil, who works as a hairdresser by day and a singer in a pub at night. Fergus/Jimmy protects her from an abusive boyfriend, soon developing a romantic relationship with her. His secret of kidnapping Jody weighs on his soul, but he will find out that Dil has her own secrets as well. Fergus/Jimmy wants to protect Dil, but his violent past will come back to haunt him.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

Including this film, I have only seen two of the four full-feature films that actor Sean Penn has directed. While the thriller THE PLEDGE left no real lasting impression on me, INTO THE WILD has stuck in my mind for days after seeing it. Penn adapted Jon Krakauer’s bestselling non-fiction tome with great depth and passion. It’s a project that come Oscar time could be shined upon brightly. It deserves it; it’s one of the best films of the year.

Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch, LORDS OF DOGTOWN) was an idealistic, determined and selfish young man, who gave away all his savings to Oxfam, burned his ID and hit the open road. Changing his name to Alexander Supertramp, Chris partly abandoned a chance to go to Harvard Law as a form of rebellion against the lies of his conservative, warring parents Walt and Billie (William Hurt, ACCIDENTAL TOURIST & Marcia Gay Harden, POLLOCK). We get a perspective on his troubled home life from the voice over of his younger sister Carine (Jena Malone, SAVED!). Chris’s goal is to venture out into the complete wilderness of Alaska, following the inspiration of his literary heroes Jack London, Henry David Thoreau and Leo Tolstoy. His first significant encounter is with the hippie travelers Rainey and Jan (Brian Dierker & Catherine Keener, THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN), but leaves them when he begins to feel like a third wheel. Along the way he will work on a farm for Wayne Westerberg (Vince Vaughn, SWINGERS). There is a hint of romance when he meets a teenager named Tracy (Kristen Stewart, ZATHURA) at a hippie commune. Later, he develops a friendship with the kind old man Ron Franz (Hal Holbrook, 1980’s THE FOG), who teaches him leatherwork.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

This Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or winner looks at the activities of the Irish Republican Army during the 1920s. Titling the film after a 19th century song that became a symbol of the Irish Republican movement, British director Ken Loach brings his longtime writing collaborator Paul Laverty’s ironic screenplay to intriguing life as he balances between the characters and the intellectual underpinnings of the story.

After returning from a game of hurling, Damien (Cillian Murphy, BREAKFAST ON PLUTO) and some of his friends are accosted by British soldiers. It is the law that the Irish cannot congregate in groups even for sport. The incident turns violent and afterward Damien’s older brother Teddy (Padraic Delaney, TV’s THE TUDORS) urges the young doctor to join the Irish Republican Army. We watch as he trains and engages in the IRA’s guerilla-style war against the British forces. Once a treaty is signed, the brother’s find themselves on opposite sides — Damien on the anti-treaty IRA and Teddy on the pro-treaty Irish Free State. During the course of the story, Damien will have his morality tested in the face of the cause.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

Following the lackluster box office performance of GRINDHOUSE, The Weinstein Co. flirted with several ways to make extra cash off the project. In several European countries, PLANET TERROR and DEATH PROOF were released separately. Now on DVD in the U.S., we get the extended cut of DEATH PROOF, which screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

Unencumbered from the spoofier PLANET TERROR, the opening of DEATH PROOF plays scarier than the theatrical release. The slower set-up doesn’t feel like a crawl coming after the lightning speed of Robert Rodriguez’s film. Director Quentin Tarantino sets up his characters well, taking his time to build tension as the villain Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell, EASCAPE FROM NEW YORK) stalks his prey.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

Based on the award-winning THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN comic book series, this animated direct-to-DVD feature earns its PG-13 rating. It was produced and co-written by Bruce Timm, who brought BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES to TV. Like that superior series, this movie has a mature quality, but that’s not to pigeonhole it into the “adult” animation category, which so often includes forced “edgy” content. The maturity of the material comes from its more emotional character driven side, as well as its violence. This quality is what made BATMAN a series that could attract children, who could grow up and return to the series not wondering what their younger selves were thinking.

The story begins with Superman (Adam Baldwin, SERENITY) in a relationship with Lois Lane (Anne Heche, 1998’s PSYCHO) as Clark Kent is heading off to Afghanistan on assignment. Lex Luthor (James Marsters, TV’s BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) is running his LexCorp as corruptly as ever. During an illegal mining operation, his men dig up an alien spacecraft and inadvertently unleash Doomsday, a virtually indestructible killing machine. Superman races to confront the beast and, as a result of his unprecedented beating, dies.

Read the rest of this entry »

Check Out the Trailer

Sam Raimi broke out as a director with his cult horror flick EVIL DEAD and went on to bring the SPIDER-MAN franchise successfully to the big screen. However, his most mature and accomplished film came with this simple thriller that turns out to be anything but simple. With two Oscar nominations for Scott B. Smith’s screenplay and Billy Bob Thornton’s supporting performance, A SIMPLE PLAN is not only one of the premiere films of 1998, but the 1990s as well.

Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton, ALIENS) is a happily married man whose wife Sarah (Bridget Fonda, POINT OF NO RETURN) is expecting their first child. He works at a farm feed shop and still has to look after of his unemployed older brother Jacob (Thornton, SLING BLADE). One night on the way home with Jacob and his brother’s best friend Lou Chambers (Brent Briscoe, MULHOLLAND DR.), they find a crashed plane in the woods. Inside they discover a bag with more than $4 million. After some hesitation, Hank agrees to hold onto the money until they feel that no one will come looking for it, then split it up and move out of town. In contrary to the title, the money will create great problems within the threesome, as well as from outside forces.

Read the rest of this entry »

With the extended edition of Quentin Tarantino’s half of GRINDHOUSE racing onto DVD this week, I felt I’d turn This Weekend’s Film Festival over to him. His DEATH PROOF is a badass car chase flick. Within it, he has his characters gush over three films that fall into that same category, which are all featured in this week’s lineup. I’ve also included a road movie that doesn’t feature cars, but motorcycles. If it weren’t for this film, the anti-establishment road movie wouldn’t even exist. So gas up your tanks for This Weekend’s Film Festival — it’s an adrenaline ride for all the cinematic grease monkeys out there.

Read the rest of this entry »