All Movie Reviews For You

Avatar (Theatrical)

2010-02-19T12:56:00.000-08:00

Since his Oscar-winning 1997 film "Titanic," James Cameron has done very little in the way of big-screen attractions. Now in 2009 for 20th Century Fox, he returns to writing and directing with the extraordinary science-fiction/fantasy "Avatar." I would assume that since we haven´t seen much from Cameron in the past decade, he would certainly have his work cut out for him. I would also imagine if you found the one-dimensional narrative in "Titanic" entertaining enough, then you would have no problems enjoying "Avatar."

The story itself is one that has been told far too many times in American culture. I couldn´t stop thinking that just about every Western ever made has told the same story. In fact, Disney´s "Pocahontas" is kind of similar, if not a carbon copy, of the story. What we have is a paraplegic soldier, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), who has the chance to join a science/military experiment on a distant planet, with a group led by Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver). The fine doctor needs Jake to interact with a tribe of alien beings known as the Na´vi, but he will have to do this in an avatar body that looks identical to a Na´vi. The attempt is to get the Na´vi to move from one gigantic tree they live in. Of course, this would be because the attractive, blue fantasy creatures live directly above the mother load of a very valuable mineral, a mineral we know very little about other than it´s worthy enough to turn greedy humans into savages.

Leading the pack of people we love to hate is Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi). Parker is leading the pack of workers to mine the alien planet and will stop at nothing, including the use of military force. Parker´s only concerns are money, power, and obsessive greed. Leading that military coalition is Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), who is by far the most overacted, one dimensional character in the bunch. Colonel Miles is that one character that should have died eight scenes ago but always manages to narrowly escape peril. It´s like when Austin Powers is falling out that window with Robin Swallows and yelling, "Why won´t you die?"

As the story lugs on, you can almost paint in the outcome by the obvious numbers left on the screen. As Jake spends more time in his avatar body, the more he finds a connection within himself and the Na´vi. Naturally, there´s the subtle love angle with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), but certainly not at the domination level of "Titanic." No, this film throws us a common plot with literally no surprises, and uses some very attractive visuals to make us enjoy the taste of that big spoon in our mouth.

The Good:
Hands down, the best thing about "Avatar" are the visuals alone. It´s certainly going to be the drooling joy of anyone fascinated with visual effects and sound. Yes, it will be part of your Blu-ray "show off" editions. Not that there´s anything too original here, as I would say Cameron is just utilizing the visual arts of science fiction and fantasy that have already been around for decades. What we get here is a simple-enough story to paint up some wonderful visuals to stare at. Oh, and let´s not forget things we get to blow up, too.

The Bad:
The bad here is a narrative that has been overcooked far too long. As I mentioned, it´s quite literally "Pocahontas" on another planet. The other nails on the chalkboard for me were the clichéd narrative of the military. I felt the part of the bad guys was so predictable and one dimensional that it was enough to obstruct my perspective of simply enjoying the film. I mean, as a culture in the far future, we still have not got past excessive greed and have not learned anything about humanity? The scientists talk with reason and common sense while the greedy corporations and the military destroy everything in their path. So, for that far into the future, I´m supposed to assume human culture still has not evolved to something a bit more enlightening? Really? Well, I guess you have to have some action somewhere in the movie, and you can always count on a bit of testosterone to provide it. The problem for me is I just wasn´t buying into it.

Also, what groundbreaking effects was I to notice? If you don´t know the CGI industry that well, then you won´t know what to look for. Therefore, as an audience member, all I can do is point at things and say, "Hey, that looks fake." Yes, I realize I mentioned the visuals are the best thing. Nevertheless, the film is marred by subpar effects, or perhaps my eyes have just grown adjusted to spotting it after so many years. Many of the animal creatures look extremely fake, like a marriage of rubber meets plastic on a computer model that took a nap on rendering details. In the days when we could finally tell some plastic spaceships looked like toy models, I´m beginning to find the same of CGI models. However, what "Avatar" has going for it is the style, design, and art in the effects. Everything certainly looks pretty on a visual level, but the blend makes it difficult to decide whether the film wanted to be an animated CGI extravaganza or one dealing with live action.

The Ugly:
The hype for this film has been quite ugly, and I can´t say I found the outcome lived up to it. I´m really happy I don´t have small children because they´d probably want Na´vi dolls for Christmas. Didn´t we have blue play figures back in the eighties? Weren´t they called "Smurfs"? I guess you could say the Na´vi are the taller, sexier version of Smurfs. I mean, they do live in the woods, surrounded by fantasy creatures of all kinds. Nevertheless, a movie that packs hype also comes with after-marketing and the possibility to develop a never-ending franchise.

Closing:
For something that looks extremely well produced, it´s too bad the narrative is just a mediocre affair. I had higher hopes and was curious to see what Cameron could come up with after many years of absence from the blockbuster machine. The way I see it, when you´re checking your watch and nodding off a couple times in the movie theater, things can´t be too good.

Hurt Locker

2010-02-19T12:52:00.000-08:00

There´s nothing quite like an intriguing war film to make you realize you have things just fine sitting at a distance and viewing the true horrors of war. Well, at least you can get a perspective that adds no harm to you physically. After sitting through the nail-biter "The Hurt Locker," I quickly went to my list of careers I would never pursue and added "military bomb squad" to it. To me, any movie that can be equally effective at sinking you into the narrative, keeping you at the edge of your seat, and providing at least a few nightmares afterward does its job pretty well. Director Kathryn Bigelow certainly adheres to telling us a unique story that is not often explored in war films. I mean, seriously, how many war films stand out in your mind that deal exclusively with working in a bomb squad?

Written by Mark Boal and originally released in Italian theaters in October of 2008 (limited U.S.A. release in June, 2009), Ms. Bigelow´s movie takes us on the journey of Officer William James (Jeremy Renner) as he completes his final days of tour in Iraq working as a daring bomb-squad leader. James is assigned to a group with Sgt. JT Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Spc. Owen Eldridge (Brian Geraghty) shortly after the death of its prevous bomb-squad commander, Matt Thompson (Guy Pearce). Throughout the film, we see directly the challenges these men face on a daily basis and the unease we feel as an audience member waiting for a bomb to explode at any given moment. Not only do we deal with bombs, we also experience the dilemma of one being targeted constantly by terrorist enemies. A scene in particular deals with a couple of snipers in the middle of the desert, and it is quite moving and intense. As I mentioned, it´s very effective at keeping you on pins and needles for the entire ride.

Bigelow delivers a narrative that shows us the culture of soldiers fighting in Iraq and the emotional challenges they face just to stay alive. Owen has issues dealing with the fear of death, while Sgt. Sanborn just wants to play it safe and get the job done right. Nevertheless, the main character in the story is William James, or Bill for short. At first, we understand that James has dismantled literally hundreds of bombs and often deals with his skill in an unorthodox way. He´s definitely a rebel and one we feel, initially, we can connect with. However, it isn´t long before we realize the man´s bravery can also be construed as insanity from some people´s point of view. Not to mention, James at times can be quite distant and arrogant to his team members. He refuses to follow protocol at times, thus raising the ire of his colleagues.

To examine how brave or how crazy James is, you will see that when squad members go out to disarm a bomb up close, they must wear a safety impact suit. The suit itself is no guarantee of one´s survival if a bomb goes off too close when wearing one. However, it is part of their protocol and something his team members take quite seriously. Nonetheless, in one disarming case, Bill takes the suit off while only inches away from an explosive death. In his opinion, if he´s going to die, he wants to do it comfortably. Now, in some way I kind of laughed at how fanatical he came across, but considering the risk his character is taking on a daily basis, I can also understand his logic. I mean, if you´re going to risk death in the first place, then the heavy, uncomfortable suit probably makes no difference, anyway.

What director Bigelow makes us take away from this film is an understanding of who we really are inside. As crazy as Bill James is at his task, we take a journey through a character study that shows us a man who realizes what he´s good at and what he knows to be his purpose in life. For me, there were times I felt connected to his challenges, but there were also times I wouldn´t want anything to do with him. He could easily be loved or hated at any given moment within the narrative. Then again, I also think Bigelow was trying to show us that sometimes the path of a hero can be too complex for most people to understand. In the case of where it takes a wolf to kill a wolf, then perhaps "The Hurt Locker" paints a great example of that.

The overall pacing of "The Hurt Locker" feels quite somber in tone, but it is a mild tempo that actually keeps you nerve-racked. At any moment an explosive surprise can happen, and, yes, there are undoubtedly times you see it coming. Granted, the film is not without its predictability, but for viewing it your first time through, it´s certain to keep you on the edge of your seat. The style and look of the film feel quite familiar in tone, but the narrative explores avenues less touched upon. It is an interesting and riveting look at a particular side of war, one that offers plenty of food for thought.

Patty Duke Show, The (TV Series) (DVD)

2010-02-19T12:44:00.000-08:00

In 1963, 17-year-old Patty Duke took the stage to accept a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her dramatic and inspired performance as the blind Helen Keller in "The Miracle Worker." That same year, she cut loose--split, you might say--as a goofy, boy-crazy American teen whose demure, identical cousin from Europe comes to stay with the family. Duke played both a Gidget-type in Patty Lane, and a reserved, almost matronly young woman in cousin Cathy, with well-traveled character actor William Schallert as the father and Jean Byron the mother. Paul O'Keefe played little brother Ross, who was basically there for the cousins to react to and everyone to pick on. I'm sure he's in therapy now.

But seriously, the Sixties were a golden age for sitcoms, and the first season that "The Patty Duke Show" aired, the top TV show in America was "The Beverly Hillbillies." Seven out of the top 10 shows were sitcoms. "The Patty Duke Show" finished at Number 18, ahead of shows like "Gunsmoke," "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color," "McHale's Navy," and "Dr. Kildare." Duke was a cutie and she had charisma--times two, in this show--so drawing a 23.9 share of the audience was really not surprising, given her Oscar star power.

The second season the audience dropped off a bit, though the episodes were just as consistently written and performed. It came in at Number 28. As sitcoms go, it was pretty average, though Duke's perky Patty character brought a nice energy to each episode. What makes it an average sitcom rather than a superior one are the hackneyed plots that seem to be standard-issue for situation comedies. Some of the episodes are even blatant rip-offs of the first season. Produced by William Asher (who gave us "Bewitched"), "The Patty Duke" show relies on the old formulas and hits some of them several times this season too. That they're still entertaining is more a tribute to the cast and dialogue than the formulas themselves.

The draw for contemporary audiences is that this family comedy does a pretty good job of showcasing attitudes and activities from an era that now seems as quaint as a cottage with a white picket fence. And the hair ranges from ducktails to doper-dos. Episodes this season involve building a soap box derby racer, a father-daughter dance, an attempt to join the Peace Corps, and dating so proper that it'll surely strike today's teens and 'tweens as unbelievable. Same with the politeness. But hey, it wouldn't hurt for a little of that to rub off. My kids (ages 12 and 8) have gotten into this show, though the girl likes it considerably better than the boy--for obvious reasons. "The Patty Duke Show" has a real Dear Diary feel to it.

Thirty-six episodes are included on six single-sided discs, housed in three slim, clear plastic keep cases and tucked inside a colorful cardboard slipcase. Here's a rundown on the episodes, as described in a wonderful six-page booklet that's printed on both covers:

1) "The Green-Eyed Monster." Jealousy erupts within Richard when Geoffrey Davis III returns to town and begins courting Patty.

2) "Practice Makes Perfect." Much to the dismay of the Lane family, Patty shows off her lack of musical talent when she decides to take up tuba lessons.

3) "Simon Says." Anger fills the halls of the high school after Patty's new advice column for the school paper goes from helping couples to breaking them up!

4) "Patty, the Organizer." To win more household privileges, Patty spearheads a new union: UAFUM, the United Association for Unprotected Minors.

5) "Patty, the Pioneer." To defend the honor of "spoiled teens" everywhere, Patty volunteers to live the life of a pioneer for one week, but the lessons learned from her experience come a little harder than she expects.

6) "The Boy Next Door." When a cute boy moves in next door to the Lanes, a bitter war is waged between the two identical swooning cousins.

7) "Patty, the People's Voice." The democratic process becomes tough for Patty and Cathy when they come to realize that the candidate running for office against Martin's boss is actually the better choice.

8) "The Greatest Psychologist in the World." Patty uses her keen skills in psychology to convince her parents to let her attend the Harvard prom with Sue Ellen's cousin, Rip.

9) "Patty and the Peace Corps." Excited about the prospect of helping a third-world country, Patty lies about her age and joins the Peace Corps. There's just one problem: her parents don't know!

10) "How to Succeed in Romance." When Cathy falls for the shy new boy at school, she asks her much more outgoing cousin for advice. Meanwhile, the shy boy, Christopher, is getting advice from Richard about Cathy. With all this "helpful" advice, can the two teens ever get together?

11) "Block That Statue." Cathy enamors the high school football hero, but she just isn't interested. What can she do?

12) "This Little Patty Went to Market." On discovering all the money to be made in the stock market, the entrepreneur in Patty decides it's time to form her own marketing company: Patty Lane, Inc.

13) "Best Date in Town." When her father's called out of town on an important newspaper assignment, Patty is left disappointed--and dateless--for the eagerly anticipated father-daughter dance.

The Diary of Anne Frank

2009-06-24T18:24:00.000-07:00

Many, many years ago I watched "The Diary of Anne Frank" in elementary school. The years have passed and I cannot remember what grade this took place. While I cannot recall which teacher was responsible for introducing me to this sorrowful tale of the atrocities of Nazi Germany during the second World War, I can recall thinking how horrible it must have been to live in seclusion and not be able to make a sound during the day and in constant fear of being taken away by ´evil´ men. The film is now fifty years old, which is a good number of years older than myself and I do know that it was already fairly old when I had first seen the film. Truth be told, I have not watched "The Diary of Anne Frank" since I had done so for educational purposes and the screening of this film a couple decades later was almost as if I had been watching the film for the first time.

Directed by George Stevens and adapted for the screen by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, "The Diary of Anne Frank" is based upon the writings of young Anne Frank that had been discovered upon her fathers return to the location where they had been kept in secret for a couple years before being arrested and taken into custody into the Nazi death camps. There has been some argument as to the legitimacy of Anne Frank´s diary, but much of the controversy has been from the very same people who will argue that the Holocaust did not happen. I have always been of the mind that Anne Frank´s writings do tell the story of what happened to the young girl and her family. The film did not win the Academy Awards for Best Director or Best Picture and its screenplay was not even nominated, but "The Diary of Anne Frank" is, in my opinion, more of a necessary education than entertainment.

The film begins with Otto Frank (Joseph Schildkraut) returning to the office building where he and his family had remained hidden for two years and given the diary pages by Miep Gies (Dodie Heath) that his daughter Anne (Millie Perkins) had kept during the time before being taken to concentration camps. Otto had owned the office building and was the sole surviving family member of the war. The man breaks into tears at gaining ownership of his daughter´s written words and the film quickly moves into telling the story of the diary when Otto, his wife Edith (Gusti Huber), daughters Margot (Diane Baker) and Anne lived in hiding. They are joined by friends Hans van Daan (Lou Jacobi) and his wife Petronella (Shelley Winters) and their sixteen year old son Peter (Richard Beymer). Later, a family friend and dentist Albert Dussell (Ed Wynn) joins them in the secret rooms of the office building.

Anne is the central character and a lot of time is spent showing her relationships with those that had inhabited the cramped upper floors of the office building. She had a very cold and distant relationship with her mother, but was quite close to her father. The dynamics of Anne´s relationship with her parents are touched upon as are those with the van Daan family (whose last name was changed for the film). Anne did not get along with Hans and Petronella, as they looked upon Anne as a nuisance and she did not appreciate some of the things done and said by her father´s friends. However, Anne did have a romantic relationship with Peter that began with the two teenagers barely on speaking terms in the beginning as the shy Peter stayed away from Anne´s advances, but their claustrophobic living conditions eventually brought them together. This romantic relationship is a central theme in the film and one of the strongest subplots.

Young actress Millie Perkins was not the first choice to portray Anne Frank. Susan Strasberg had portrayed Anne in the popular play that had inspired the film, but she declined to continue to role in front of the cameras. Twentieth Century Fox turned their attention to popular child star Natalie Wood, but Wood did not accept the offer either. Audrey Hepburn was the same age as Frank and had survived Nazi occupation in the Netherlands as well. She was the actress whom Otto Frank had wanted to portray his daughter, but she did not want to relive the events of her teenage years in occupied territory and turned down the role. Perkins did not have the star power of either Wood or Hepburn, but the young actress showed the spunk and character of Anne Frank and the teenage starlet carried the film nicely on her young shoulders.

As the story continues, the hardships of the family are revealed as they struggle to survive with only enough rations that can be obtained with three ration cards and to be completely silent during the day when workers and customers inhabit the floors below their hiding place. Much time is spent during the frames of "The Diary of Anne Frank" to show how they passed the time during the day or to give a sense of what panic would transpire if an errant noise was made. Admittedly, this does not make for the most exciting film experience, but this was an essential part of young Anne Frank´s story and needs to be shown on screen. I am far more content that the filmmakers didn´t overlook some of the things that made survival difficult by zeroing in on only the exciting elements of Anne´s diary.

The supporting cast is nicely cast and while only Schildkraut and Huber made the transition from stage to screen, all comfortably fit into their character´s skins. Veteran actress Shelley Winters took home one of the film´s three Academy Awards for her performance and Ed Wynn was nominated for Best Support Actor. The film is a drama that relies on emotion to succeed and each actor and actress convey the stress and fear that each of the captives had to live with in their daily lives. "The Diary of Anne Frank" does move through the events rather quickly, but at three hours in length, the film could not have afforded to be any longer and the actors used in the picture all do their best with the amount of screen time they are given as the sparse and cramped sets also do not provide them any distractions from their performances. In a film where performances are essentially all there is; the actors perform wonderfully.

George Stevens was nominated for Best Director and "The Diary of Anne Frank" earned a nomination for Best Picture. "Ben-Hur" would take home both Oscars in these categories, but the black and white "The Diary of Anne Frank" is a solidly made film that tells an important and emotional message through limited sets, a small cast and a modest budget. Some stock footage is used to help tell the events of World War II that transpired during this time and a few occurrences could be seen in the streets outside of where the Franks were kept hidden, but most of this film takes place in the confined spaces of the office building. The sets are cramped and minimal and the vast majority of the film takes place in either silence of limited dialogue as the family had to keep silent and could pass the time only with conversation. There wasn´t a lot to work with and the filmmakers did an admirable job in keeping this three hour film interesting.

"The Diary of Anne Frank" is a powerful story that may not be a technical masterpiece, but the story that is told is important for others to learn. There is a reason this is almost standard curriculum in education. I can´t remember what year I watched the film, but I tend to think it was either sixth grade or during middle school. Regardless, I remember sitting around the old VCR and television and watching this film and remembering how this was my first lesson on the Holocaust and I was shocked that people had to live like this. For this reason alone, "The Diary of Anne Frank" is required viewing material. The film took some liberties in bringing the story to the big screen, but it tells Anne Frank´s story wonderfully through the film´s actors and Steven´s vision. This film isn´t perfect, but this film is something that should be watched at least once in everyone´s life.

Mr. Troop Mom (DVD)

2009-06-24T18:23:00.002-07:00

You may recall the Michael Keaton film, "Mr. Mom," where Keaton played a husband who's unemployed and manages the household while his wife is out working. Here, in the 2009 release "Mr. Troop Mom," George Lopez plays much the same type of guy, only this time he's a widower trying to deal with his thirteen-year-old daughter and her wilderness team. Different times, same idea.

Now, you might wonder if a story about a middle-aged man and about 800 very cute, early teenage girls out in the wild would produce a situation in somewhat questionable taste. But nope. Nothing here to fuel a Palin-Letterman controversy. "Mr. Troop Mom" is a Nickelodeon original TV movie, so squeaky clean the MPAA gave it a G rating, something usually afforded only to Disney and Pixar cartoons.

The trouble with most "family" movies, though, is that the term is a misnomer. It seems to me that good family movies should interest both children and adults, movies like the aforementioned Disney and Pixar animations, "Mary Poppins," "The Parent Trap," or "Spy Kids." Yet most filmmakers really aim their family pictures at young children, with parents obliged to put up with the films while their youngsters enjoy themselves. So it is with "Mr. Troop Mom," a film aimed squarely at families with kids, the specific appeal primarily to girls in the ten-to-fourteen year-old range. If you're an older teen or adult, I make no promises. I found it all rather bland and antiseptic but totally without offense.

Stand-up comic and TV sitcom star George Lopez co-produced and stars in "Mr. Troop Mom," another of the actor's attempts to bring wholesome entertainment and a non-stereotypical Hispanic image to movies and television. It might seem odd, then, that the movie should contain an almost nonstop string of other stereotypes and clichés, until you recognize that for children, the stereotypes and clichés probably aren't trite or overused at all.

Lopez plays a widowed lawyer, Eddie Serrano (no coincidence, I'm sure, that his real-life spouse is Ann Serrano), with a thirteen-year-old daughter, Naomi (Daniela Bobadilla), to care for. Naturally, as with almost all movies aimed at this age group, parents are either absent, invisible, or in this movie barely tolerated by their offspring. Naomi thinks her dad is completely clueless, something only encouraged by the impudent au pair, Catalina (Elizabeth Thai), an Asian woman whose Dragon Lady attitude and difficulty with the English language make her one of the movie's more unabashed stereotypes. Of course, we can see the movie's message coming in the first few minutes: Parents and their children must share common interests and mutual respect if they are ever to love one another fully. Eddie must show that he can "connect" with Naomi, or he'll lose her to...whatever.

Eddie is a flamboyant lawyer whose shenanigans no judge would actually allow in a courtroom, but, hey, it's television. In court Eddie is a winner, but at home he's losing his daughter's favor, and he knows it. So, with the daughter's annual Wilderness Team competition coming up, and the team's chaperone having a baby in his living room (I kid you not), Eddie volunteers to escort Naomi's team to the Spring Action Classic at Hulka Rock, a summer camp in the mountains. Even though Eddie's idea of roughing it in the wild is lighting the barbeque in his backyard, he decides this is the only way to show his daughter he can be a real parent. You can pretty much guess what comes next.

When he, his daughter, and three other girls arrive at Hulka Rock, he finds himself the only guy there, amongst what appear to be young girls from all over the state come to compete in various tag-team competitions. His daughter's team is the Killer Bees, and a rival team from Naomi's school is the Wasps. Wouldn't you know that the Wasps would be catty, snobby, WASPish cheaters, chaperoned by a pushy blonde mom, Denise (April Amber Telek), who's single and putting the moves on Eddie? And wouldn't you know that the head honcho of the camp, Ms. Hulka (Jane Lynch), would be a tough-as-nails martinet and that her assistant counselor, C.C. Turner (Julia Anderson), would be a sweetheart charmer?

Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women (Theatrical Release)

2009-06-24T18:23:00.001-07:00

Mark Twain once famously advised aspiring writers, "Don´t say the fat lady sang. Drag her onstage and make her sing." Over the years, that quote has been simplified for creative writing students to just this: Show, don´t tell.

Writer Harriet Reisen and director Nancy Porter do both in a new film biography of Louisa May Alcott that´s been making the festival rounds. "Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women" is based on a forthcoming book by Reisen, a former fellow in screenwriting at the American Film Institute. Without a doubt, this film is the most effectively dramatic biography of a public figure that I´ve seen. Viewers aren´t just told about the life of this famous American writer; they relive it, through a talented cast that acts out segments and gives "interviews" to the camera.

The general public will get a chance to see "Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women" on December 28, 2009, when it airs on PBS as part of the American Masters series. The awards it´s been winning confirm the film´s wide appeal: Grand Award at the Providence Film Festival, Audience Choice at the Cape Code Filmmaker Takeover, Best Feature Doc at the L.A. Reel Women Festival, and Best Family Feature at the Garden State Film Festival.

As much as I´ve enjoyed the American Masters series and its biographies of actors, artists, writers, and musicians, the talking heads and archival material can feel like a straitjacket for filmmakers . . . and audiences. Even the Ken Burns effect--slowly panning or zooming in or out of a photograph--can get old during the course of a feature-length film. Most recreations have failed because they´re sparingly done, poorly cast and directed, or so clumsy that they just seem cheesy. But "Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women" gives us liberal, well-conceived dramatizations throughout, making them as dominant as those talking heads that are also featured. What´s more, there´s none of the usual take-yourself-too-seriously austere narration that so often accompanies literary biographies. Louisa May Alcott and her family are brought to life with dignity, but also humor. All of the dialogue that´s used comes from journals and letters, and that lends an authenticity and unabashed forthrightness that´s uncommon in films like this.

"I don´t enjoy writing moral pap for the young," an adult Louisa May Alcott says directly into the camera, as if talking to an interviewer (or interloper). "I do it because it pays well."

Reisen gives us an intelligent script that doesn´t skimp on humor. Sometimes, it´s the material itself; other times, it´s the way that the screenwriter arranges it. When, for example, an older Alcott recalls her third birthday party at which she was coached to give the sweet treats to her guests, since there weren´t enough to go around, this exchange follows, with each character "interviewed" separately presented in quick juxtaposition:

Louisa May Alcott: "My first lesson in the sweetness of self-denial."
Bronson Alcott, her father: "The whole celebration gave much pleasure."
Louisa May Alcott: "Birthdays are always dismal times to me."

Bronson Alcott (Daniel Gerroll) was a thinker but not much of a businessman. At one point, the family lived in a basement apartment on the fringes of the worst slum in Boston. Louisa May felt an obligation to help lift her family out of poverty--especially her hard-working and long-suffering mother, Abigail (Dossy Peabody)--since her father apparently couldn´t do it and often depended on the kindness of strangers. When we´re told that Louisa May begins to sell her writing to Godey´s Ladies Book, Graham´s Magazine, and The Gazette, Louisa May comes on-camera again, positively dripping with the driest humor: "I think that, though an Alcott, I can support myself."

At first it´s a little jarring to have running commentary and interviews with long-dead family members and early biographer Ednah Cheney interspersed among the usual talking-head interviews with Alcott scholars and museum heads, but the casting is so perfect and the acting so wonderful that you quickly accept the premise. Other than Hal Holbrook´s Mark Twain, I can´t think of another literary figure that´s brought so realistically to life. The adult Louisa May Alcott is played by Elizabeth Marvel, who goes through a full range of emotions throughout the course of this film, from wry humor to heartfelt tears. Viewers may know Marvel from her ongoing role as Officer/Detective Nancy Parras from "The District" (2000-04), or as the warehouse realtor in "Synecdoche, New York." She´s a three-time Obie winner who seems absolutely comfortable as Alcott, and because of that we also feel comfortable.

John Lennon and The Plastic Ono Band: Live in Toronto '69

2009-06-24T18:21:00.000-07:00

I´m sure I don´t have to explain who John Lennon was or how he was a member of one of the greatest and most successful rock bands of all-time, the Beatles. Nothing lasts forever though and the group eventually went their separate ways. Still, their impact on pop culture can still be felt today despite being thirty years removed from the height of Beatle-mania. "The Simpsons" have made numerous references to the group and their work while MTV Games will soon be releasing the hotly-anticipated Beatles version of "Rock Band."

On September 13, 1969, the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival was held at Varsity Stadium packed with an audience of about 20,000 people. Organizers were able to book an all-star line-up of performers that included Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bo Diddly, Chuck Berry, Alice Cooper, and the Doors who were the headlining act. Organizers had hoped to the Beatles would be able to play, but the band declined. However, John Lennon was interested and his set during the festival marked the first time a Beatle would strike out on his own. Taking place only weeks before the release of Abbey Road, the Beatles´ final album record, the Toronto Revival also signaled the end of an era. Lennon along with his wife, Yoko Ono, formed the first incarnation of their Plastic Ono Band, a nebulous title associate with whatever musicians were on hand. In this case, the band included bassist Klaus Voorman, drummer Alan White, and Eric Clapton on guitar. While the actual concert was twelve hours in length, this film (originally released under the title, "Sweet Toronto") focused mainly on Lennon´s set. The film itself was directed by D.A. Pennebaker who also documented the Monterey Pop Festival as well as directing concert films for diverse artists such as David Bowie, Bob Dylan, and Depeche Mode.

The DVD opens with a brief interview with Yoko Ono who discusses the origins of the Plastic Ono Band and how they got the name. The answer to the latter involves a bizarre story about Yoko wanting to form a band of plastic boxes. The film gets off to a rousing start with Bo Diddley ripping through a performance of his eponymous hit, "Bo Diddley." The song is intercut with backstage footage of the other artists as well as Lennon´s arrival via motorcade. From there, we watch Jerry Lee Lewis singing "Hound Dog" and Chuck Berry with "Johnny B. Goode." Next, Little Richard (sporting the pompadour to end all pompadours) tickling the ivories with an excellent of "Lucille."

As Lennon and his associates take to the stage, the former Beatle simply notes they´re just going to play songs that they know. The Plastic Ono Band hadn´t done any rehearsals and really the whole idea was a very spontaneous deal. Lennon´s set included several cover songs as well as a few new numbers. Lennon begins with Carl Perkins´ "Blue Suede Shoes" followed by Barrett Strong´s "Money (That´s What I Want)," which the Beatles had famously covered on their second album, With the Beatles. Next comes "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" and a song off the Beatles´ White Album, "Yer Blues." Lennon rounds out the night with two singles that would be released under the Plastic Ono Band banner, "Cold Turkey" and "Give Peace a Chance." Unfortunately, that is not the end. Things literally end on a sour note when Lennon utters the dreaded words, "Yoko is gonna do her thing now." I´m sure Ono is a very nice lady, but she should not be within a million miles of a microphone. Ono provided back-up vocals earlier in the night, sounding like a starving seal begging for a sardine. Even that was a trying experience, but her lead vocals are beyond the pale. We are subjected to Ono´s wretched warbling against grinding guitar feedback on the final two numbers, "Don´t Worry Kyoko (Mummy´s Only Looking for Her Hand in the Snow" and "John, John (Let´s Hope For Peace)." If there is anything good to be said about this horrid performance, there are at least some priceless looks on the face of Eric Clapton as Yoko screeches into her mic. All I have to say is, John must have really, truly loved this woman.

Princess Protection Program (DVD)

2009-06-24T18:20:00.000-07:00

You've heard of witness protection programs? Well, apparently there's an International Princess Protection Program, and it exists solely for the purpose of rescuing, relocating, and ultimately restoring threatened or deposed princesses to their thrones. The program--so extensive that headquarters is like the subway during rush hour and different princesses are in various stages of "make-overs"--is funded by the world's royalty. And that's the part that makes the most sense.

Because the idea is as far-fetched as the school for superheroes we saw in "Sky High," you need to swallow the whole fantasy hook, line and sinker if you're going to enjoy this made-for-TV Disney Channel film, which debuts on television June 26 and comes to DVD four days later. Even more high-concept than the PPP is the pairing of two Disney stars, Demi Lovato ("Camp Rock," "Sonny with a Chance") and Selena Gomez ("Wizards of Waverly Place"), who, we learn on one of the bonus features, have actually been close friends since a shared experience appearing on "Barney & Friends." So you have two sitcom "princesses" in a movie about ONE princess. Which one gets to be royalty? Well, they didn't choose by age, because Gomez is roughly a month older than her friend, each of whom grew up in Texas. And they didn't choose according to who had Disney seniority (if such a thing can be said about a couple of 17 year olds), because Gomez broke in with the House of Mouse on a 2006 episode of "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody," while Lovato made her Disney debut with "Camp Rock" (2008). Maybe they went by ratings. "Camp Rock" made the biggest splash since "High School Musical," and Lovato was also performing with the Jonas Brothers as a special guest. That makes her a pop princess too, and a contender for the crown in this film. In addition, "Sonny with a Chance" is tied with "American Idol" for TV's #1 spot and the #1 scripted program in the tween demographic. Or maybe Gomez is as nice as the character she plays and just said, "No, really, you can have the tiara."

Gomez plays the tomboyish Carter Mason, who helps out with her father's bait shop and is normal insomuch as she wants the best-looking guy in school to like her. But popular mean-girls Chelsea (Jamie Chung) and Brooke (Samantha Droke) nudge her out of the picture. Then Dad (Tom Verica) gets called away to business again. Turns out the bait shop is just a cover. His real job is with the PPP, and his latest assignment takes him to the teensy-weensy island nation of Costa Luna, where Princess Rosalinda (Lovato) will soon be crowned queen. But during coronation rehearsal an ambitious general from a neighboring small island nation attacks the palace with his men and imprisons Rosalinda's mother, Princess Margaret (Talia Rothenberg). Mason effects a dramatic rescue (I'm not spoiling a lot, since all this happens in the first 10 minutes) and before you can say "crawdads" he's springing Princess Rosalinda and bringing her back to Lake Monroe, Louisiana to live with them as Carter's "cousin" from Iowa. But she has a thing or two to learn about catfish and (eeww) worms.

Predictably, the bulk of the film plays with the idea of "being a princess" that has fascinated the Disney marketing people for years now. What makes a princess? Do you have an inner princess inside you? That's exactly the sort of thing that occupies the thoughts of tweens and younger girls who love movies like this. And "Princess Protection Program" ought to be a hit with that target audience. Gomez and Lovato are likable, and both function well within the constraints of the familiar teen formula involving popular and not-so-popular kids. Writer Annie DeYoung ("Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board") throws in a nice princess twist, too: Anyone can be a princess in America, right? Yep, if she gets enough votes to become a homecoming princess, or better yet, Homecoming Queen.

The humor--mild, though it is--comes from situations involving "Rosie's" acclimation to the life of a commoner. She has a hard time grasping the concept of a shared bedroom with Carter, she waits for people to serve her, and she asks the most popular boy in class (Nicholas Braun) to give up his seat for her. Rosie holds up the lunch line--"I like to talk to my staff in their native tongues," she says, upon which an exasperated Carter says, "They're not staff, they're lunch ladies--and we won't even talk about bowling. But when it comes down to mean girls versus cousins, well, it's a sisterhood that can't lose, and just desserts be ripe with humor. How funny is it? I have a seven-year-old Disney princess at home and an 11-year-old hater of all things princess. But my son even liked "Princess Protection Program" for the simple reason that it was funny.

Confessions of a Shopaholic (DVD)

2009-06-24T18:19:00.000-07:00

At one point in this romantic comedy from director P.J. Hogan ("Muriel's Wedding"), the heroine turns to her boss/love interest and says, somewhat shocked, "You speak Prada?" They were shopping together, and she was clearly thinking he wasn't up to speed. Curiously, that's what I thought about "Confessions of a Shopaholic" (2009). Compared to "The Devil Wears Prada" (2006), it feels like a cheap knock-off. It's not as smart or fashionable, and there's just something about anything "aholic" that's a little sad and pathetic--two things that make it difficult for an audience to be charmed by or identify with her.

I've never read the series of books by Sophie Kinsella that inspired this film, so I can't say whether something was lost in translation. And in fairness, Confessions of a Shopaholic did come out in trade paperback in 2001, two years before Lauren Weisberger's novel, The Devil Wears Prada. But the main character in "Shopaholic," Rebecca Bloomwood (Isla Fisher, "Wedding Crashers"), is more annoying than endearing. Whether she's as written in the novel, as altered in the script by Tracey Jackson and Tim Firth, the result of Hogan's direction, or Fisher's initiative, the character comes across more like Dorothy in a fashion-world Oz than a career woman with a dream . . . and an addiction that at first feeds the dream, then starves it. She's just a little too Gomer Pyle wide-eyed for someone who's been in New York for five years, and a little too clueless about journalism for someone who's been working in the field for that same length of time. Heck, I have interns who come across as being more professional and knowledgeable. That's my chief complaint about this film. I'm one of those rare males who actually likes romantic comedies, and I was ready and willing to be swept away by this one. But the main character was too damned annoying to land any sort of job, much less the boss (yes, there's a little of "Bridget Jones' Diary" in this film as well).

Rebecca wants to land a dream job with Alette magazine (run by Alette), something she's fantasized about since she was 14. But she loses out to an internal hire who's more glam and more bam when it comes to playing the game. Suze (Krysten Ritter) treats poor little Rebecca with an "Ugly Betty" disdain, but Rebecca learns that there's a job opening at a sister publication, Successful Saving, and that once you get your foot in the door you can move to Alette. Of course, Rebecca knows nothing about saving. En route to the interview she was captivated by another sale and decided to purchase a green scarf . . . using a combination of cash and five different credit cards. Yes, she's maxed out, and owes more than $16,000. Unable to make payments, she's dodging a tenacious bill collector named Derek Smeath (Robert Stanton). How much of a shopaholic is she? When her card is declined and she has to have that scarf, she runs to the nearest hot dog vendor, pushes to the front of the line, and offers to write a check for all 90-some hot dogs if he'll give her the cash back she's short to buy her precious scarf. The next man in line gives her the $20. And, no surprise, he turns out to be Luke Brandon, the editor at Successful Saving with whom she's to have her interview. In this fantasy world, borrowing $20 from a stranger to buy a scarf for a sick aunt and then being caught in a lie is, combined with a demonstrated lack of finance knowledge, enough to land her the job. Apparently Brandon thinks she can be the Carrie Bradshaw of personal finance.

Friday the 13th, Part 3 (Blu-ray)

2009-06-24T18:18:00.000-07:00

The thing is, I always feel sorry for poor old Jason by the end of these movies. I mean, he goes around all through the stories omniscient and omnipotent, killing off people right and left, and then he gets his comeuppance when he confronts one last, helpless, screaming young female, who does him in. Seems kind of unjust.

After Paramount found two low-budget gold mines in "Friday the 13th" (1980) and "Friday the 13th, Part 2" (1981), they decided to give it another try in 1982 with "Friday the 13th, Part III," this time in 3-D. Apparently, the studio remembered all those three-dimensional pictures from the 1950s, like WB's "House of Wax" and Universal's "Creature from the Black Lagoon," and decided to adapt the process for their own modest little movie. Fortunately, on this Blu-ray disc Paramount offer the film in both versions, 2-D and 3-D, so if the 3-D approach and the 3-D glasses bother you, as they did me, you can watch the film in a more traditional format.

"Part III" is pretty much the same as its predecessors: At a remote, woodsy location on Crystal Lake, a maniacal killer, Jason Voorhees (Richard Brooker), murders a group of young people in various gruesome ways. Director Steve Miner, who helmed the previous film, adds nothing new or innovative to the formula. We start with a flashback to the ending of "Part 2," and then we move on to a new batch of youngsters spending the weekend at a small ranch on the lake, apparently near the campgrounds where the two earlier slaughters took place. The bunch includes the all usual stereotypes we've come to expect: the two leads, a girlfriend and boyfriend (Dana Kimmell and Paul Kratka), a designated nerd (Larry Zerner), a pair of hippies, and several other beautiful people. The faces change; the characters remain the same. In the movie's only meager attempt at diversity, there is also a trio of biker hoods who momentarily terrorize the youngsters (Nick Savage, Gloria Charles, and Kevin O'Brien). Guess who gets it first?

Also as usual, we get a slew of red herrings, a common trait of Miner and his screenwriters in these films. They fake us out so many times with false scares that when they actually want to frighten us, we're immune. Composer Harry Manfredini replays his anticipated "Psycho" and "Jaws"-inspired soundtrack music, which by now has become trite but remains one of the best parts of these things. And the casting director continued to find young performers who were wonderfully cute people and woefully bad actors.

Random questions: Didn't Volkwagens have safety glass by the 1970s and '80s? Doesn't Jason have anything better to do than lurk around other people's cabins? Is an old country barn really the best location for a killing spree? If the filmmakers were going to tone down the blood and gore, as they did here, shouldn't they have replaced it with greater tension and suspense? If they were going to rip off other horror movies like "The Shining" and their own "Friday the 13th," shouldn't they have done it more creatively?

Well, at least Jason gets his hockey mask in this one and doesn't have to wear that silly sack on his head anymore. And, as in all good horror movies, you can't keep a good monster down. Shoot him, stab him, hang him, burn him, or bury him, he always comes back for more. It doesn't mean we have to come back, though.

Deep Blue Sea (DVD)

2009-06-24T18:17:00.000-07:00

There is little time to come up for air in Renny Harlin's "Deep Blue Sea," but not because it is such an engaging story or rich with characters that draw you in. The film is extreme, silly, loud and entertaining--all things that make it worth watching. Throw together three eight-thousand pound Mako sharks with a desperate scientist, a capable but down-on-his-luck grease man, a sharp-mouthed yet religious cook, plus Samuel L. Jackson, and you have one of the more poorly made yet fun to watch disaster films in recent memory.

Upon its release, "Deep Blue Sea" was billed as simply a "Jaws" rip-off. This was not surprising, as Steven Spielberg's 1975 classic sits atop the man-versus-killer-animal film pyramid. In reality, I don't think "Deep Blue Sea" is trying to rip off "Jaws" (although, if you have seen the endings in first three "Jaws" films, you may notice some unique similarities). It seems to go after another Spielberg layout instead: "Jurassic Park."

Think about it in these terms: Each film has an older, wealthy fellow (Richard Attenborough in "Jurassic Park," Samuel L. Jackson in "Deep Blue Sea") who invests in a scientific project (bringing dinosaurs back to life in "Jurassic Park," genetically engineering Mako shark brains to harvest proteins and cure Alzheimer's disease in "Deep Blue Sea") despite a few criticisms from dissenters, only to have everything go wrong amidst a slew of special effects and general chaos. The significant difference between the films is that "Jurassic Park" works because of, among other things, strong characters and a quality script. "Deep Blue Sea," while entertaining, falls short in both regards.

Harlin's filmography provides some insight into why "Deep Blue Sea" doesn't work on these levels. The Finnish director's prior works include "A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master," "Die Hard 2," "Cliffhanger," and the colossal bomb "Cutthroat Island." What sticks out about Harlin's work are explosions, stunts, and near-death experiences (plus actual death experiences for some characters), not engaging dialogue, rich scripts, or deep characters that you find yourself rooting for or against as the films progress. If films were reviewed just on the things Harlin's work tends to be very good at, I might call "Deep Blue Sea" a valuable volume to consider adding to a DVD library. Unfortunately, films need more, and as a result this one lacks in a number of key areas.

The stars of "Deep Blue Sea" are without question the Mako sharks that take over research station Aquatica as it floats off the Mexico coast in the Pacific Ocean. They quickly proceed to bully its human inhabitants into lots of dark hallways, wet labs, and elevator shafts before flooding it. Never mind the awkward sexual tension between Dr. Susan McAlester (Saffron Burrows) and Carter Blake (Thomas Jane), or the comical yet somewhat hypocritical actions of Sherman "Preacher" Dudley (LL Cool J). These sharks steal the show, and rightfully so. There are plenty of avenues Harlin and writers Duncan Kennedy, Donna Powers and Wayne Powers could have gone with character development. In fact, each character has a few hints dropped about him or her that make viewers wonder more. What did corporate executive Russell Franklin (Samuel L. Jackson) "smuggle" to serve two years in jail? What about Blake (Jane), a self proclaimed "shark wrangler" and bad boy with a bad background? We get a taste of each man's past early on, but nothing more. Probably because nothing had exploded yet and no one had been eaten. As "Deep Blue Sea" progressed, I found myself wanting to see more of these sharks in action. If you are patient enough to watch from beginning to end, you won't be disappointed in them. The stunts, special effects and action scenes all hold their own, but the same can't be said for any of the film's human participants.

Like any decent movie where characters battle adversity, there are soapbox speeches woven in throughout, each intended to motivate and inspire others to action. It seems as though each main character gives one, and they vary in degree of credibility. But Franklin's (Jackson) is the winner in one of the film's best, yet hardest to believe, moments. In fact, this particular scene acts as a microcosm for the rest of the film: a brief, yet loud, violent, and entertaining adventure.

Biography: Barack Obama

2008-08-10T01:46:00.001-07:00

This is a review of two simultaneous releases from the Biography Channel: "Barack Obama" and "John McCain." Each program is 47 minutes long. The review has been cross-posted to be listed under each title.

Ann Coulter calls him B. Hussein Obama. Fox News likens his oratory style to Chairman Mao and Hitler, though in a fair and balanced way. But just who is Barack Obama? According to this puff piece from Biography, he´s just a plain old-fashioned family guy like you and me.

You probably know the story by now, and if you do you aren´t going to learn much more from this program. Obama is the son of a mixed marriage couple, Barack Sr. from Kenya and Kansas-born Ann Durham who met at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. You have probably heard through sound bites that Barack´s father left his wife and son which is true, but the more detailed version is that he returned to Kenya to work as an economist, ironically (considering his son´s campaign rhetoric) working for an oil company. He had a brief reunion with Barack Jr. before returning to Kenya once more and dying shortly after an automobile accident at the age of 46.

Ann Durham remarried and the family moved to Indonesia. In the warped universe of Fox News, this is where Obama attended a madrasah though the reality-based term for it is simply a school. To further complicate the picture, Obama then went back to Hawaii to live with his maternal grandparents then moved to Los Angeles and eventually New York, Chicago and Boston, logging significant time in just about all the blue-state capitals. He moved to Boston to go to Harvard where he became the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review.

Race is such a strange concept, a social construct with no biological basis. Obama is identified as Black presumably because his skin is dark, and because of our need to categorize people by race. Certainly Obama has identified with the African-American community through school and community work, and the identification appears to be both a boon and a potential negative in the current presidential race. Regardless, it is a testament to the shifting cultural norms that a man with a black father, a white mother and the middle name Hussein can be the nominee of a major political party in America.

The program briefly touches on a few controversies in Obama´s life such as his admitted drug use in college, but mostly soft-pedals a heroic image of the man. We hear from his friends and family what a great guy he is, and hear nothing from his critics. There´s not much surprising information offered here. The only thing I didn´t know about was Obama´s visit to Kenya and his reunion with his father´s family.

The McCain documentary is every bit as much of a propaganda piece as the Obama program. The show plays willingly into John McCain´s image as "The Maverick." Even when talking about his troubled time in school (both high school and the U.S. Naval Academy), he is portrayed as a romantic rebel like James Dean. Like George Custer, McCain graduated near the bottom of his class, and apparently didn´t give a damn about him.

Reno 911: The Complete Fifth Season

2008-08-10T01:45:00.001-07:00

For its first few seasons "Reno 911" was a show that was consistently at the top of my "must watch" list. The antics of the inept members of the Reno Sheriff's Department seemed to deliver an endless supply of great gags and hilariously inappropriately funny moments. But now in its fifth season, the humor well seems to have dried up, probably due to its writers returning to it far too often for the same joke. Yeah, the entire Sheriff's Department of Reno, Nevada, is full of idiots; we get it. While it was funny for a couple of years, they had better think of something new if they're going to bother to return for a sixth season.

"Reno 911," a blatant parody of Fox's long-running "Cops," first appeared on the cable channel Comedy Central back in the summer of 2003. Created by Thomas Lennon, Kerri Kenney, and Ben Garant, "Reno 911" garnered a considerable amount of interest from comedy fans. Which is not surprising considering this was a show from three of the founding members of the group responsible for the greatest sketch comedy show of all time, "The State." In addition to creating the show and writing the basic plot outlines (most of the script is improvised), the three comedians also star as Deputies Travis Junior (Garant) and Trudy Wiegel (Kenney), and Lieutenant Jim Dangle (Lennon). Five other deputies round out the cast, but the majority of the show rests upon the shoulders of the three creators, who appear in most of the scenes. Of the remaining regular cast, the true standout is Cedric Yarbrough as Jones, the force's lone black male deputy. His comedic timing is impeccable as proven in the Season Three episode "…and the Instillation is Free."

The best part of "Reno 911" has always been the actors and comedians who are cast as criminals, suspects, or victims. Easily the best and most beloved recurring character/cast member is Terry, the moronic male hooker who talks like a Valley girl... er, boy… er, girl? And is portrayed to perfection by Nick Swardson, one of the best comedians working today. Terry is constantly getting caught attempting to solicit sex, and while the locations may change one thing does not: Terry's always on skates. In addition to Swardson, several other "name" jokesters have appeared on the show: dork god Patton Oswalt, the great Paul Rudd, Zach Galifianakis, VH1's Michael Ian Black, Brian Posehn, George Lopez, and many more. Even the gambler himself, Kenny Rodgers, showed up for a couple of episodes in an early season.

Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds 3-D Concert

2008-08-10T01:25:00.000-07:00

Even if you don't have a little girl or a 'tween who has a crush or wants to be like her, you have to know who Hannah Montana is. After all, when the "Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus Best of Both Worlds Concert" opened across the country, shows sold out within a half hour, and parents were exhibiting all sorts of crazy behavior just to try to snag tickets--something we really haven't seen since the Beanie Baby and Cabbage Patch Doll madness. Tickets were reportedly going for as much as a thousand dollars, and radio stations held all sorts of promotions to basically see just how far parents were willing to go in order to please their little Disney princesses. And if you couldn't get a ticket, well, you could stand in line again when the film version of the concert opened over Super Bowl weekend and set a new record by pulling in $29 million.

She's a phenomenon, really, and when you listen to Miley Cyrus sing or talk behind the scenes and realize how much it echoes the Jonas Brothers, who opened for her on this arena tour, you begin to understand that this is all part of the grand Disney princess philosophy. Miley talks about how grateful she is to Disney and fans for "allowing me to live my dream," while the Jonas Brothers are always talking about "livin' the dream." But in so doing, and emphasizing in their music and their appearances what a fine line separates them from their audiences, they're also selling the dream, in a way. They're rock princesses and princes, and boy, are the commoners adoring.

"Hannah Montana" is really a well-done television show, and so I had high hopes for this concert as well. Cyrus's dad, Billy Ray ("Achy Breaky Heart") seems like a down-to-earth guy and the whole family seems pretty well grounded. The TV show didn't feature overprocessed or dubbed singing, and so I was hoping the same would hold true here. And amazingly, it does. What we see is Miley, without too much make-up and singing her own songs, not just lip-synching. After some particularly athletic strutting, jumping, or dancing she's as out-of-breath as anyone, and takes a few shortcuts on the songs to make allowances. Yet, her voice doesn't falter. She's got that Tennessee twang, but she's proud of it, and the songs in this concert stay well within her natural range, affording her a comfort zone that really goes hand-in-hand with her down-home personality.

The stage is massive, with a runway that goes into the crowd and two ramps that go up toward the back of the stage on the left and right, and a giant monitor in the middle. Surprisingly, Cyrus's band is considerably older than she, including background singers Candice Accola and Kay Hanley, but maybe that's part of the Cyrus family plan for keeping her grounded and out of trouble. Stacy Jones handles drums and acts as musical director, Jamie Arentzen and Jaco Caraco do a nice job of playing a lively guitar that complements rather than competes with their star's singing and choreography, Mike Schmid is on keyboards, and former Billy Ray Cyrus bassist Vashon Johnson completes the band. Three arenas are thanked in the credits: Energy Solutions Arena, Scot Trade Center, and the Honda Center.

But make no mistake about it: the audience for this concert is 'tweens and younger. Parents will find it's not so bad to watch it with their kids, but it's not designed for them. Still, if you consider that pop icons are role models, there are far worse ones to have than Miley Cyrus. This is a tame and squeaky clean concert that still manages to be frenetic and fun. Kenny Ortega ("High School Musical") had the idea for this concert and did the choreography, and unlike the Vanity Fair spread, everything here is done in good taste. There's nothing your eight-year-old aspiring rock-star couldn't see or try herself.

Even as far as the glitz goes, it's kept pretty basic. Yes, there are a few pyrotechnics, but nothing like we often see in major arena concerts, and there's no attempt on Cyrus's part to vamp it up. After all, Mom and Dad are in the audience. Half of the songs she performs with her Hannah Montana blond wig, while the rest are with her natural, long curly hair. Curiously, there's no persona split and no recognition of the two "characters." It's as if the Hannah look were just part of the costume changes.

Though the Jonas Brothers opened for her, they appear on this film in the middle, brought onstage to do one song with Miley ("We Got the Party") and then taking over while she grabs some air backstage, doing "When You Look Me in the Eyes" and "Year 3000" with their own band. The rest is all Hannah/Miley onstage, intercut with behind-the-scenes footage that shows here interacting with family, the Jonas Brothers, and the extraordinarily large number of crew members backstage that help to put on a major show like this. There are a few nice moments, where we see Miley freaking out over a moment when guys almost drop her and she wants to abandon the routine, while her mother stands firm and says it's not going to happen again, trust your dancers, Ortega has made the necessary adjustments so their hands are on you at all times. Or we see her snapping photos of herself and various cast, just like any young girl might have done if they had gotten to wander those backstage corridors. We also see Ortega teaching her a microphone trick, and later, when Joe Jonas does the same trick she turns to Kenny and says, "You taught him that trick????" We see her father talking about how he likes her music because it's "real," with the example being a song she wrote about her grandfather who passed away, a song she performs in the concert. But perhaps the best clip shows fathers decked out in high heels and competing in a race to win four tickets to the concert. That could have been a bonus feature all by itself.

As far as the song list goes, there's not really a stinker among them, and that includes the choreography as well as the musical performance. Here's a rundown on the songs, some of which appear in clips rather than onstage:

"We Got the Party"
"Rock Star"
"Pumpin' up the Party"
"Mickey"
"I Got Nerve"
"Let's Dance" (Miley co-wrote this one)
"Ready, Set, Don't Go" (Billy Ray's song about his daughter)
"Life's What You Make It"
"Just Like You"
"Old Blue Jeans"
"Nobody's Perfect"
"Best of Both Worlds"
"Who Said"
"We Got the Party" (with the Jonas Brothers)
"When You Look Me in the Eyes" (Jonas Brothers only)
"Year 3000" (Jonas Brothers only)
"Start All Over"
"See You Again" (Miley co-wrote)
"Right Here" (Miley co-wrote)
"I Miss You" (Miley co-wrote)
"Girls Night Out"
"If I Were a Movie"

In one of the songs Cyrus pays a kind of mild tribute to Madonna, where she dances with people dressed in Spanish attire. But that down-home look holds true here too, with Cyrus eschewing the high heels other dancers wear for the number and sporting athletic shoes. She does, after all, need them in a concert like this. In perhaps the most fun number, she and the backup singers and female dancers come out in Fifties'-style jackets and knee socks and skirts, looking a bit like roller derby queens, as they belt out "Girls Night Out." But all of the songs will have young viewers up and dancing along. It's a solid concert, and a solidly edited production that does a nice job of incorporating behind-the-scenes footage so that it comes at a time when Cyrus would be taking a natural breather and her band would maybe do a song without her. It all feels pretty organic, rather than an interruptive blend of documentary footage and concert tape. For that, credit director Bruce Hendricks. Nice job.

Camp Rock [Extended Rock Star Edition]

2008-08-10T01:24:00.001-07:00

Formulas aren't all bad. Every genre has them, and with "High School Musical" Disney all but created a new type of film, one they're going to use as a template until the public tires of it or until the formula stops working. In a way, that's no different from a football team that runs a set offense. Whether you're fans or the opposition, you pretty much know what's coming. It all boils down to how potent the potion--how good are the people, and how effective is their execution?

"Camp Rock," which aired as an original Disney Channel movie, was so heavily hyped that I was almost afraid to watch it. It was being pre-sold as this year's "High School Musical" (complete with product tie-ins), and that can raise some pretty high expectations. Then again, while "High School Musical" featured a cast of unknowns, "Camp Rock" had at least one thing going for it: this was to be a vehicle for the popular 'tweentastic singing group the Jonas Brothers. Surprisingly, the Brothers don't dominate the film. It's lead singer Joe Jonas who's this year's Zach Effron, paired opposite this year's Vanessa Hudgins, a little-known actress named Demi Lovato ("As the Bell Rings," "Split Ends").

Apart from Lovato's big smile, which seems to have the same kind of on/off switch as John Edwards', she carries herself with the kind of innocence and self-effacing honesty that has come to characterize Disney heroines as of late. In "Camp Rock" she plays a wannabe pop star named Mitchie Torres, whose parents can't afford to send her to a swanky camp that trains performers--though there's not a whole lot of teaching that ostensibly goes on at the camp. I think there are just two scenes in the entire film where students are actually in class. Mostly, it's a place to bond with kindred spirits, singing and dancing and playing music the way the kids always did in "Fame."

At first Mitchie is told "no," she can't go, and like a good Disney role model she just takes it in stride. No tantrums, no begging, no negotiating. And the next thing you know, her caterer-mom is telling her she's going to Camp Rock after all. Mom agreed to work as a cook at the camp in exchange for the deep discount that would allow her daughter to attend. The one catch is that Mitchie also has to log some hours in the kitchen.

The chief problem arises when Mitchie runs up against "the diva of Camp Rock"--the daughter of a Grammy-winning country singer named Tess Tyler (Meaghan Jette Martin), who sets the standard for "cool." Other kids' parents are record execs, conductors, and musicians of some kind, and so it just kind of seems natural for Mitchie to blurt that her mom is president of HotTunes TV in China. That lie is all it takes for her to be brought into Tess's circle of friends/flunkies, and set up the film's eventual crisis.

Meanwhile, boy-group Connect 3 is in the news because lead singer Shane Gray (Joe Jonas) has done something raffish again to make headlines, and he's been sent to Camp Rock--which is run by his Uncle Brown Cesario (Daniel Fathers)--to teach a class and get his head straight. He's also conned into cutting a record with the winner of this year's Final Jam, the big talent show that signals the end of camp. Of course, all the campers know he's a rock star and treat him like one, when all he's looking for is someone who'll treat him like a normal person. One day he hears the voice of a girl singing and playing piano. He's charmed by her, but by the time he goes inside, the girl is gone. So in a plot that combines Prince Charming's search for the girl who fits the glass slipper and Prince Eric's search for the girl with the beautiful voice, he lets it be known that he's looking for the girl with "the voice."

Good thing, because while Camp Rock is situated on the shores of a gorgeous northwoods lake, when Joe jumps into the lake to escape yet another group of "not the ones" who torment him he ends up being the only one in the film to take advantage of the location. Otherwise, the camp could have been situated anywhere, because no one rides horses, goes boating, or takes advantage of the great outdoors except to watch a Connect 3 performance lakeside and another one at night with a bonfire in the background.

Like "High School Musical," each of the stars need good friends to keep them grounded (or get on them when they veer off-course) and that function is provided by Caitlyn (Alyson Stoner) and Joe's musical buddies Nate (Nick Jonas) and Jason (Kevin Jonas). Though Sharpay-I mean, Tess-conspires against Mitchie, you know that like the star of "High School Musical" she's going to get her moment in the spotlight.

The formula's pretty clear, but there's one remarkable difference between "Camp Rock" and "High School Musical." "HMS" was played with some pretty over-the-top characters and comedy, whereas "Camp Rock" is a little more reality-based and low-key. That's refreshing, actually, especially if you've seen a bunch of Disney Channel sitcoms. Here, the parents are normal, the camp leader is normal (but witty and personable), and even counselor Dee La Duke (MTV's Julie Brown) tones it down a bit so she's not a caricature. And both young stars do a fine job of making you believe their situations. Add a talented young cast that includes Jasmine Richards, Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, Jordan Francis, and Roshon Fegan, and you've got a formula that works because of casting and execution. These kids pull it off, and they seem to have fun in the process.

Small Back Room, The: The Criterion Collection

2008-08-10T01:22:00.000-07:00

Let´s make a movie about a bomb expert. But we need a hook. Oh yeah, he´s crippled and, yeah, he´s an alcoholic too.

This premise could be the set-up for many different kinds of films depending on the storytellers: a gross-out comedy from the Farrelly Brothers ("Oh man, I´m so wasted, I can´t even tell which wire is bl… BOOM!"), a sexually charged melodrama from Douglas Sirk ("Why are my bombs always going off too soon?"), or even a film starring Nicholas Cage (cue sad-eyed puppy-dog face.)

Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger opt instead for a small-scale character study, though with a dash of that Sirkian sexual melodrama stuff thrown in for good measure.

Sammy Rice (David Farrar) works for a weapons research group with tenuous connections to the war-time government. Under the auspices of Dr. Mair (Milton Rosner), Sammy and his team advise the military about new technologies. One day the very proper Captain Stuart (Michael Gough) comes looking for Sammy. German planes have been leaving behind deviously disguised bombs which go off when picked up, and British citizens (including children) are dying as a result. Sammy, like any good citizen, promises his assistance but the story gets a little more complicated from there.

Sammy´s professional veneer barely covers up the seething rage and insecurity inside. He has a badly injured leg (presumably related to his explosive profession, though we are never told) and it has greatly diminished his sense of masculinity. His devoted girlfriend Susan (Kathleen Byron) tries to bolster his esteem, but her tender ministrations sometimes only make him more depressed. It is possible his injuries have damaged more than just his leg though, once again, we are never given any details.

"The Small Back Room" was filmed in 1949, but set in 1943, which meant that while the setting was fresh in everyone´s memories, audiences still had a few years to create some distance and enjoy the film as an entertainment rather than as another chronicle of life in war-time England like Powell and Pressburger´s "A Canterbury Tale" (1944). The director/writer duo who took dual credit on their films were on as hot a streak as is imaginable: "49th Parallel" (1941), "One of Our Aircraft is Missing" (1942), "The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp" (1943), "A Canterbury Tale" (1944), "I Know Where I´m Going!" (1945), "A Matter of Life and Death" (1946), "Black Narcissus" (1947), and ´The Red Shoes" (1948). It was a decade of output virtually unmatched in film history: a film per year, each of which can reasonably be described as a masterpiece.

On this lofty scale, "The Small Back Room" can´t help but come off as a modest disappointment. It also marked the end of their remarkable run. With the exception "Tales of Hoffman" (1951), Powell and Pressburger would not match their success of the 1940s, though Powell struck gold on his own with "Peeping Tom" in 1960.

"The Small Back Room" is more modest in scope than any of the other 40s films except perhaps for my personal favorite "I Know Where I´m Going!" It is a film about a man who has lost his confidence and needs redemption. But Sammy is not a simple victim who earns the audience´s sympathy. He´s self-absorbed, whiny, and occasionally cruel to those who show kindness to him, especially Susan. His alcoholism explains some of it, but quite frankly he needs a little more of that stiff upper-lip British stoicism to get him through the day. A bum leg is a bum deal, but it´s a thin excuse for wallowing in misery at the bottom of a bottle.

xXx: State Of The Union

2008-08-07T12:03:00.000-07:00

A little of this and a little of that adds up to a lot of nothing in "xXx: State of the Union."

You've got the Rambo trope in play, where a highly skilled but rogue military man (Ice Cube) is seemingly pitted against the world. But who are these guys that the baddies have recruited, and why doesn't the rest of the world seem to notice they're running amok? It's also a little muddy why Cube's character, Darius Stone, ended up in prison for 20 years while his superior (Samuel L. Jackson) only got some facial scarring from the same mission.

You've got "The Dirty Dozen" and "The Rock" thing going, where Stone is sprung from prison in order to do a crucial covert job--which basically amounts to stopping the bad guys, led by a former Navy Seal and current Secretary of Defense (Willem Dafoe). Anything more than that is either hard to figure out, or hard to fathom. ("Triple X? Sounds like a porno star," Darius says, and that's about as close to an explanation of these agents as we get.).

You've got the plot by higher-ups to control the government that we've seen in countless movies--even in comedies like "Dave." But a single outfit using tanks to take out the "liberal" president (Peter Strauss) during a high-profile event like a State of the Union address? Come on!

You've got the action-film formula happening--which amounts to roughly 30 crashes, fiery explosions, bursts of gunfire, and narrow escapes per minute. But who has time to count? It's like a strobe light blipping across your consciousness, with the main problem being that none of the action is pointedly connected to logical plot developments. We're talking major disconnect! There's hardly time for us to care about the characters.

You've got the James Bond tongue-in-cheek puns and one-liners going--big surprise, since Lee Tamahori also directed the less than quintessential "Die Another Day." And speaking of Bond, though they seem more token here, there are even a few big-breasted Bond-type girls, neither of which leaves us terribly shaken or stirred.

And you've got the blaring hip-hop soundtrack mixed with an original score that makes you feel as if your whole TV room is going to start jumping and thumping on its hydraulic system, designed to make us "get" that everything this new xXx guy does is super-cool.

But I'd swap that hoppin' soundtrack in a minute for a script and direction that would give the engaging Ice Cube a little room, so that the big guy's gigantic charisma could do its thing. As it is, Cube glides through this with no time to express anything but the wooden lines that he's had to memorize. The cumulative effect of these action film clichés and stock characters is a mish-mash that's somehow as tedious as it is inane. Action should be more exciting than this, even with a plot that limps along.

From the opening attack on an underground NSA headquarters in Virginia, when we see guys in sort of alien-Ninja suits crashing through the horse ranch facade, your brain has to start dealing with synapses the size of canyons. Perhaps the biggest is the unlikely pairing of former Navy Seal commandos with a Homeboy Chopping Network. Or, as Darius says (I kid you not), "The fate of the free world is in the hands of a bunch of hustlers and thieves."). After leaping onto a waiting helicopter to break from prison, suddenly they have to go into hiding already (but isn't the good government behind them?) and Darius takes them to the old neighborhood, where they try to get help from an extensive chop shop operation. They trade in their souped-up GTO for a monster truck that looks as if it could roll over tanks . . . and spaceships, for that matter.

I found my mind wandering throughout the film, bored by even the special effects, which seemed more noticeably artificial to me than even much earlier films like "Independence Day." Put the same effects in a "Star Wars" film and everything would look fine, but we're not talking about an alternate reality here. Though Tamahori says in a "making of" feature that he likes real time for action, it still seemed as if he relied way too much on sped up or slowed down filming in order to blur the crucial moment in a stunt or FX, or to hide the seam between live-action stunts and CGI. And when we do see things more clearly--as when Darius' Cobra goes airborne and lands on railroad tracks--it looks more like a video game than a movie illusion. With not even the FX to hold my attention, I found myself not caring about the action and wondering when Ice Cube is going to land a role that showcases his talents.

In one of the extras, Cube calls "xXx" a younger and hipper, cooler Bond, and so it's clear why Tamahori was brought onboard. But the problem with Bond films has always been to get the tone right--to strike a balance between the realistic and the comic or cartoonish aspects--and when you get right down to it, Tamahori failed to get everything in synch. The actors seem to struggle with tone, never quite getting exactly how much tongue they're supposed to insert in cheek. There are also knockout lines that mirror the famous Bond puns administered as a coup de grace ("Hillbilly, you need to lighten up," Darius says, as he flicks his Bic and sets the fellow aflame) and exaggerated action stunts, but they intrude on our sense of the action and reality rather than "bond" with it to create a tongue-in-cheek universe. When, for example, Darius hits a ramp in a twin-engined inflatable boat that zooms at a height that's unbelievable times 10 onto a bridge, he crashes onto traffic and amid explosions and slo-mo people catching on fire he strides away as if walking into a Dunkin' Donuts to grab a bite. Tamahori needed to decide whether he was making a mostly action film with comic moments or a comic-book style film with moments of realistic action. As is, "xXx: State of the Union" is somewhere in the middle, and that only adds to the muddle.

Felon

2008-08-07T12:02:00.000-07:00

In one of the bonus features, writer-director Ric Roman Waugh says he didn't want to glorify gangs in his prison film, "Felon." That he doesn't is refreshing. So is Waugh's insistence on making an honest film rather than a gritty one. He did his homework, and he showed the results to inmates who said he got it right. But if it speaks to inmates because of its accuracy, filmgoers on the outside will no doubt respond the "what ifs" that "Felon" inspires.

What if you woke up in the middle of the night and heard an intruder downstairs in your home? What if, checking on your child, you noticed that the man actually entered through the little boy's bedroom. What would you do? Would you dial 911, as an officer says he should have done, or would you grab that baseball bat under your bed and try to defend your family? And when the man shoves you to the ground in your own kitchen and runs out the door, what would your impulse be? Would you pursue him? And in the heat of the moment, if he reached in his pocket and turned around to face you and you shouted for him to stop and he didn't, would you swing that bat?

The proposition behind "Felon" is that many people would react exactly the same as Wade Porter (Stephen Dorff) did on the night that changed his life. Though Wade swings for the man's shoulders, the intruder ducks, so that instead the bat cracks his skull as if it were a melon. End of intruder; beginning of story. In short order Wade is charged with second-degree murder and hauled off to jail, where he's given a jump suit and is jumped for no apparent reason by a man screaming about wanting to make him his "bitch" just nine minutes into the film. You think, at that moment, oh great, another watch yourself in the showers prison flick, but Waugh stays on the periphery of that nonsense and instead concentrates on those what ifs. What if it were you who was imprisoned after a situation like that, accepting a plea-bargain that gives you a three-year sentence, and on the bus ride to prison you witness a stabbing and end up being handed the weapon and told what to say and do. What's your impulse? Do you play along? Do you tell the guards? Do you play it cagey until you get the lay of the land?

Because the point of view is mostly Wade's, continues to prompt those "what if" questions in our own minds, which is how "Felon" solicits our unlikely empathy. After all, this is a decent fellow who's suddenly thrown in with the dregs of society, a bunch of thugs who collectively have every tattoo from all the parlors on the West Coast. It could have been you . . . or me. "Felon" succeeds because it downplays the clichés and really explores the hypothetical premise so that viewers can participate in a frighteningly vicarious way.

Then there's Val Kilmer. If I didn't see the cover art and deduce which actor was which, I never would have picked Kilmer out. He's a big guy in this film with horn-rimmed glasses and a neatly trimmed goatee and mustache to go along with the requisite tattoos. He plays John Smith, a lifer who killed multiple times and who has a reputation for inciting riots at every prison he's been sent to. But thankfully that reputation and the clichés that go along with it are checked at the door when he checks into this new prison. Instead, when he's assigned to share a cell with Wade, we get an uneasy friendship that develops between the men, and that friendship factors into the outcome.

The Legend of the Shadowless Sword

2008-08-07T10:56:00.000-07:00

Ever since the relatively recent successes of Asian swordplay epics like "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," "Hero," and "House of Flying Daggers," we have seen more such movies come and go. Now, from the newly rejuvenated South Korean film industry comes this 2005 entry, "Muyeong geom" ("The Shadowless Sword," "Superfighters," or the DVD title New Line have given it here, "The Legend of the Shadowless Sword"). Although it has its moments, compared to the finest the genre has to offer, "Shadowless Sword" is ordinary at best.

As with most of these things, the tale takes place in the ancient past, and characters and events appear based on myth and legend. Therefore, expect not only a good deal of sword fighting and arrow shooting but the usual assortment of beautiful women, good and bad, a dashing hero, a venomous villain, and various hangers on, all jumping, kicking, running, dancing, and flying through their scenes in highly choreographed fantasy ballets.

The star of the show is a lovely young woman named Yeon Soha, played by Yoon Soy. I am going to use the names of the characters as they appear on the keep case because the names appear differently in the movie's closing credits, differently again in the disc's featurettes, and differently once more at IMDb. English translations can be hard on Asian names.

Anyway, Yeon is a First Officer in the country of Belhae's military and a top warrior around 927 A.D. It's at that time that we take up the story, about a year after the Georan army invaded Belhae, captured its capital, and started systematically killing off its royal family. There is only one Prince of Belhae left, Dae Jung Hyun (Lee Seo Jin), and he's in hiding. Yeon's job is to find the Prince and return him safely to Belhae to lead his people against the evil Georans. Fortunately, she's very good at her job.

Hot on the Prince's tail and eager to assassinate him is the Killer Blade Army, a group of traitors to Belhae who are now in the employ of the Georans. Their leader is Gun Hwa-Pyung (Shin Hyun Joon), who, along with his deadly, cold-blooded female sidekick Mae Youngok (Lee Ki Yong), heads out to assassinate the only surviving Prince.

The plot, then, is about Yeon and the Prince trying to get back to Belhae before Gun and Mae and their Killer Blade cohorts can find and eliminate them. Not as easy as it sounds, though, since the Prince doesn't want to return to his homeland, nor does he want to get killed. The story line allows director Kim Young Jun ("Bichunmoo" or "Flying Warriors") a chance to exercise a little imagination in creating a wealth of preposterous, though overly familiar, action sequences.

OK, the first thing you have to do is get over the movie's rather ponderous title, as well as the business of the "Killer Blade Army." To suggest that these names might be just a little corny would probably upset fanciers of the genre, so let's just say you have to have a certain predisposition toward overwrought melodramatics to appreciate the goings on, even in the naming of things.

On the plus side, the movie has all the usual pageantry and busyness on screen that one expects of such movies, although the budget wasn't quite big enough, it seems, for massive armies, whether they're CGI or otherwise. Still, the film is colorful, and the director moves the action along at an acceptable pace. There is rarely any lallygagging with romantic entanglements or interpersonal relationships. Mostly, we find a little talk here and there to establish character backgrounds and to explain what's happening at any given time, and then it's on to the next fight sequence. What's more, the scenery, costumes, and landscapes are attractive, and the cinematography is appealing. So, the movie is quite nice on the eyes.

On the minus side, once beyond the scenery, costumes, and landscapes, there isn't much more than the sword fighting, and that gets old fast, especially when the movie doesn't present it any more creatively than we've seen it done dozens of times before. I mean, how often have we watched the supercool hero (or heroine) turn his or her back on the villains, outnumbered five or ten or twenty to one, strike a pose for a moment, wait for their advance, and then wipe them out with a few kicks and swats? I guess we can thank "Enter the Dragon" for popularizing the trend.

Joe Louis: America's Hero...Betrayed

2008-08-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

He was the great American hope, the first African American boxer to fight for the title in nearly thirty years. He was charismatic and strong, a hero to an entire race of people before he became a hero to a country. He served his country in wartime. He fought Adolf Hitler´s chosen boxer twice. He cavorted with numerous women. He was the first black golfer in a Professional Golfing Association event. He broke down walls and then faded into obscurity thanks to the same country he served. His name? Joe Louis.

Leave it to HBO Sports to showcase the boxer born Joe Louis Barrowman. After all, this is the premium cable channel which brought us the harrowing "Sand and Sorrow," the simultaneously hopeful and heartbreaking "Coma" and a plethora of other documentaries meant to shed light on an overlooked aspect of our lives. The public knows the name Joe Louis. Perhaps from Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, home of the Red Wings. Maybe they know him from his epic fight against German Max Schmelling in 1938 (avenging his first loss-to Schmelling-two year earlier). What "Joe Louis: America´s Hero…Betrayed" does, though, is provide a comprehensive history of the fighter, from the first bout in 1934 through his tragic death in 1981.

The lions share of the emphasis is placed on Louis´s impact on the African American community, as it should be. Using stock footage of fights and press conferences, still photos and current interviews, HBO Sports provides as comprehensive a look as it can at the man and the myth. To hear poet Maya Angelou wax on about the way people responded to Louis is a wonder to behold. Consider this: Louis was given a set of rules to live by, owing to the race riots following the last black heavyweight champion of the world claiming the belt. For instance, he could not raise his arms in victory on a white opponent or have a picture taken with a white woman.

What may come as a shock to most people is the overt racism leveled at Louis, outside of the rules imposed on him. Sports writers used different adjectives to describe his race. They go by in newspaper clippings, probably the docs funniest moment (for the sheer number of nicknames, not the actual names). Among them: the Brown Bomber, Dark Destroyer, Black Lightning, Sepia Socker, Chocolate Soldier…you get the point. These are newspaper men finding a way to integrate latent racism into their supposedly objective stories.

Against the backdrop of segregation and the looming World War II, listening to accounts of communities hanging out their windows for a small sliver of radio coverage…to understand what this singular man meant to so many people across the country. There is a palpable sense of history unfolding before our eyes when Charlie Rangel (D-NY) and Bill Cosby, among others, revel in Louis. An added layer comes in the form of Jimmy Carter as he recounts his father allowing black neighbors to listen to the broadcast. Louis, it turns out, wasn´t just a hero for his community. He became a hero for the entire country.

If there can be one criticism of the doc it is this: with the vast resources of HBO Sports and its parent company (and even Time Warner), the usual parade of sports personalities are left on the sidelines. Where is Bob Costas or Ahmad Rashad or Stuart Scott or Bryant Gumbel? It is absolutely important to have writers from the time recount their memories of Louis, but there is a stark dividing line between the interviewees. The writers are, nearly to a man, white while everyone else is black. There is no need to have this dividing line. You can bet in a doc on Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods, all of these people would be put in front of the camera. And since it can be successfully argued that Louis is important than either of those men in the greater social context, I felt strangely let down in the end.

The Last Winter

2008-08-06T10:52:00.000-07:00

Filmmaker Larry Fessenden has happily shunned the Hollywood system to make films exactly the way he wants to. His past feature-length efforts "No Telling," "Habit," and "Wendigo" were horror films with themes of ecological awareness and class struggles. His latest work, "The Last Winter," continues along those same lines. Despite writing the script in the earlier part of the decade, the film´s messages about oil and energy still remain topical. Arguments about global warming and oil drilling may play an integral part in the film, but "Last Winter" never gets preachy at all.

"The Last Winter" begins with a mock promo by North Industries as they prepare to drill in the untapped Northern Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in the Alaskan wilderness. The man they put in charge of the project is Ed Pollack (Ron Perlman). Gruff and no-nonsense, Pollack is a company man through and through. In order to put a friendly face on the controversial project, North Industries also brings in two environmental consultants, James Hoffman (James LeGros), and his assistant Elliot Jenkins (Jamie Harrold). Of course, Pollack and Hoffman butt heads on various issues. The major problem comes from unseasonably high temperatures that have made vital ice roads impossible to transport heavy drilling equipment across. Hoffman warns against going through with the project while Pollack could care less. Their schism is widened when Pollack returns to their Alaskan post after five months at company headquarters. He learns that his second-in-command and ex-girlfriend, Abby Sellers (Connie Britton), is now shacking up with Hoffman.

However, ideological disagreements are not the main conflict in "The Last Winter." Strange occurrences begin when the station´s intern, Maxwell (Zach Gilford), wanders off into the middle of nowhere with his radio switched off. When he returns, he rants about something trying to get them. One night, Maxwell is found dead in the snow after wandering off once more without his clothes on. When another team member begins mentally breaking down, Hoffman warns Pollack to pack up and evacuate the station. Hoffman grasps at straws in coming up with theories about "sour gas" emanating from the melted permafrost. Pollack refuses to buy into Hoffman´s cockamamie hypotheses and the results are predictably disastrous. The station loses power and people begin dropping like flies. Hoffman and Pollack are forced to brave the elements in search of help at the nearest town miles away.

The film´s snowy setting will definitely remind you of John Carpenter´s "The Thing." Both movies are about a small, isolated group under attack from something otherworldly. "Last Winter" also has a touch of "The Twilight Zone" with its messages about Mother Nature fighting back and "Evil Dead" with the supernatural threat lurking somewhere out in the wilderness. However, "Last Winter" just isn´t able to put all those ingredients together to create a strong, final product. The film takes a long time to really get going. We´re about fifty minutes into the movie before the spookiness really kicks off.

Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin' with the Godmother

2008-08-06T10:50:00.000-07:00

The infamous Medellin Cartel led by Juan David Ochoa, Pablo Escobar, Jorge Luis Ochoa, José Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha and Carlos Lehder was responsible for the huge influx of cocaine trafficking during the early 1980s. This billion-dollar criminal enterprise served as the inspiration behind fictional productions like "Scarface" and "Miami Vice," but the remarkable true story chronicling how Miami became the cocaine capital of the United States is told in director Billy Corben's 2006 documentary, "Cocaine Cowboys."

Riding on the success of the film, Corben followed up with a sequel to the cult hit in 2008 with "Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin' with the Godmother." This time, he presents the intriguing tale of how a young crack dealer named Charles Cosby worked his way up the narcotics ladder and into the bed of notorious cocaine baroness, Griselda "The Godmother" Blanco. It wasn't long before Cosby had taken over the reins of her vast criminal empire while she was stuck behind bars serving a twenty-year sentence in prison.

Cosby had been first introduced to the drug underworld in 1984 when his friend "Banana" had become one of the pioneering crack dealers in Oakland's Brookfield Village. Banana took the teenager under his wing by showing him the ropes of how to turn powder cocaine into crack (which the documentary provides the actual ten-step process) and put him to work making upwards of $300-$500 a day selling the product around town. Soon, rival gangs started entering the picture for a piece of the powdery pie, though, and competition became so fierce that the number of drive-by shootings and robbery-homicides skyrocketed. One of the unfortunate victims happened to be Cosby's mentor Banana, forcing Cosby to flee and lay low for a while in Fresno with his entire bankroll of thirty grand stuffed in his pocket.

After about a year, Cosby was running low on cash so he didn't have much choice but to return home to Oakland and go back to business. It was around this time that he caught a broadcast on the news covering Griselda Blanco's arrest by DEA Agent Bob Palombo. Cosby was immediately fascinated with the Colombian billionaire and how the "Cocaine Queen" made her fortune by literally making it snow in Miami.

Cosby would never forget seeing Blanco on television, and in 1991, fate finally told him to write her a letter. The letters quickly turned into phone calls, and shortly thereafter the two of them began having a serious relationship. Charles even befriended her youngest son, Michael Corleone (that's right, he's named after Pacino's character in "The Godfather"), and filled in as a surrogate father to the boy. This impressed Blanco so much that she welcomed Cosby into the fold of the family and even trusted him enough to run things on the outside making him a multi-millionaire in a matter of months.

I haven't actually seen the first film, but I can say that the level of detail that went into "Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin' with the Godmother" is simply outstanding. Cosby leaves virtually no stone unturned as he covers everything from their early years to the peak of his reign through a non-stop narrative. Even when he takes a short break from speaking, the flow of information resumes with testimonies by hit man Jorge "Rivi" Ayala, DEA Agent Bob Palombo, Sgt. Al Singleton, former Cosby associates, plus others. Corben also supplements the film with a whole scrapbook of photographs, letters, and Cosby's personal video diaries dating all the way back to the 1980s that adds layer upon layer of quality to the documentary.

Another nice touch was how the film reenacts the scenes of sexuality and violence using graphic novel-style animation. The artwork is simple but stylish, and most will agree it was the ideal way to visually re-create some of the more hard-core parts of the story. This tactic conveniently breaks up the longer interview segments, and I personally feel that going the route of using actors would have only chiseled away fragments of the film's validity.

Privilege

2008-08-04T23:45:00.001-07:00

Four years ago, all but impossible to see a Peter Watkins´ film unless you happened to catch a rare print at a museum or repertory screening. Forget DVD, many of his films weren´t even available on VHS. Oliver Groom and Project X (in cooperation with New Yorker for the USA release) have performed an extraordinary service over the last several years in correcting this outrageous situation. They have now released either as main features or as extras all eight of Watkins´ films from 1959-1974 as well as "The Freethinker" (1994). Add in First Run Features release of Watkins´ latest (and nearly greatest) film "La Commune" (2000) and suddenly the bulk of Watkins´ work is now available to anyone with a Netflix account or the spare change to buy some truly great DVDs.

It´s hard for me to believe that just a few years ago I had never seen a Peter Watkins´ film. Each new release has been a revelation. I consider Watkins one of the greatest living directors, and I consider the release of his films over the last several years to be the single most important event in the DVD universe over that timeframe.

"Privilege" (1967) is the newest Project X release, and it´s an oddity in the Watkins´ oeuvre. It´s his only studio pic, filmed for Universal during that brief period when "art movies" were considered hot commodities that could reach a mainstream audience, an almost inconceivable thought today. Watkins also usually serves as writer/director but in this case he works from a script by Norman Bogner from a story by John Speight.

Watkins´ career has, in large part, involved an ongoing critique of the mass media´s role in distorting information and shaping culture. In "Privilege" Watkins depicts a (very) near-future in which the British government works directly with the media to create a pop sensation known as Steven Shorter (Paul Jones, the first singer for Manfred Mann). Steven Shorter is not just a pop singer, he is the pop singer: in the film we see no evidence that anyone else still exists as competition. Steven Shorter has become the singular obsession of an entire nation, which is precisely what the Ministry of Culture has planned. Steven is a powerful tool designed to distract an entire generation of kids from thinking about nasty things like politics or protests, and to focus on gossip and shopping instead.

Steven is a rebel with a bit of a violent streak because his marketers have calculated that this will rope in the kids and make them more receptive when Steven suddenly repents his "youthful indiscretions" and implores everyone to conform. Unfortunately, there´s a fly in the ointment in the form of Vanessa Ritchie (super model Jean Shrimpton in her only film role), an artists commissioned to paint a portrait of Steven. She strikes up a halting and occasionally passionate romance with the tragic superstar that eventually prompts him to rebel against his keepers who are then forced to scramble to maintain the status quo.

The most obvious influence on "Privilege" is Leni Riefenstahl´s "Triumph of the Will." Watkins uses the aesthetics from Riefenstahl´s nauseating yet beautiful propaganda film as the model for the Steven Shorter rallies staged by the British government, even with goose-stepping officers lining up with hands raises stiffly towards the sky. This would be provocative even today, but just twenty years after the end of WW2 it must have been truly offensive to some, and at least in part explains why the film fared so poorly at the box office and was seldom seen again after its initial run except on college campuses.

First Olympics, The: Athens 1896 (TV Miniseries)

2008-08-04T23:43:00.000-07:00

"The First Olympics: Athens 1896" was a TV mini-series aired in May of 1984 just before the Summer Olympics were held in Los Angeles. Staying relatively close to the facts, it tells the story of how the modern Olympics were revived. We get early back-and-forth sequences that focus on men from the United States, Greece, and Australia, which makes you think that the multiple weave will continue. But after David Ogden Stiers is introduced as the Princeton professor of classical studies who was asked by the fledgling International Olympics Committee to recruit an American team, the focus shifts to the formation, training, and point-of-view of that team, which was blended mostly of Princeton and Harvard athletes. Why a non-athletic professor? Because he knew what these strange events were all about, and could help the young athletes figure out how to compete based on ancient texts and drawings of Olympians from centuries ago. The one disturbing thing? The athletes were all naked.

As TV mini-series go, this one is a little slow off the starting block. Part of it is that the screenplay veers here and there, not certain where to go, while the recruitment process occupies far too much air time. Even at that, I still found this period mini-series more watchable than "Chariots of Fire," which, like "The English Patient," could be shown continuously on large screens outside of malls to dissuade young people from congregating and causing trouble. Shown in two parts, this 248-minute mini-series has a thankfully brisker pace, and while the scenes occasionally lapse into clichés (as when an Irish lad from the rough part of Boston informs his mother he made the team, she's in her sickbed and remarks, of course, something like "The saints be praised!"), the story and the exploits of this first American team eventually become as compelling as the Olympic "moments" and profiles of athletes we see each year on TV coverage of the games. In fact, you could say that the structure of this screenplay is that it strings together a number of expanded Olympic profiles, followed by the events and podium shots of the winners.

As they train, the Americans tick off a chalkboard that compares European records for events with their own best times and distances. Part of the charm of this series is that it recreates a time when there was no instantaneous communication--no television or Internet that would show them how things were done. We watch them experiment with different techniques for each sport, rather than having an expert come in and show them how it's done, or rather than being able to see on television the winning style. In fact, these guys trust the ancient texts so much that they construct their own hurdles and pole vault based on those antiquarian drawings. And things like the discus and shot put they take a picture to a local blacksmith, who crafts them out of iron. Later, that pays dividends when the Americans finally get to Greece (where this was partly filmed) and realize that the "real" discus and shot put are considerably lighter. It's the equivalent of a baseball player taking practice swings with a heavy metal donut on the bat, and it makes the Americans able to excel.

David Caruso ("N.Y.P.D. Blue") anchors the American team and this production with his performance as James Connolly, the feisty Irishman from the poor side of town who mixes it up with his upper-crust classmates. His character is a cliché, but it's no matter. We're seeing so many things as if for the first time that you almost believe he's an original, and everyone to follow is the stock character. Other cast members include Hunt Block, Alex Hyde-Whihte, Benedict Taylor, Edward Wiley (as the American coach), Edwin Flack (as the Australian runner), and Nicos Ziagos (as the Greek who was forced to run the marathon for his country because as a soldier he was declared AWOL).

Jupiter Love

2008-08-04T23:42:00.000-07:00

Editor's note: This is the last review Sam will post at DVD Town. It's on to grad school and film studies for him, and we wish him well and thank him for the work that's he's done for us. JP

I´m always perplexed when watching the end credits of a film that purports to be independent yet has a lengthy list of production people. Many are the ways to define independent, I suppose, but in my mind, the Australian drama "Jupiter Love" is an example of real independent cinema.

It´s a crap film, but that´s beside the point at hand. Point is, when the credits roll, there are only a few names--stars Michael Andre and Nikka Kalashnikova (thank heaven for cut and paste) who also wrote, produced, shot, edited, directed and lit the whole thing. A couple of other folks loaned them cars and gave other minor assistance. It´s admirable that these two conceived and executed a full-length motion picture, even if the result is 80 minutes of nauseous sight and sound.

Andre stars as Chromosome Y and Kalashnikova as Chromosome X. That in and of itself is noteworthy. It suggests that these people are not fully developed characters, but rather pawns for a didactic game. Indeed, Y and X are less individuals so much as the two sexes stripped bare of any personality, conscience, wit and all those other traits that make us human.

I suppose that could be taken as a sort of compliment, that Andre and Kalashnikova are reaching for a deeper truth about human interaction, but when Y is pure id from the word go (his first few lines of dialogue are all animal noises), it doesn´t make for a compelling character to watch, especially since Andre´s acting is amateurish.

Kalashnikova fares better as a character and as a performer. We get a sense of who she is--an artist on her way to her first solo exhibit--before Y enters the picture and begins to ram her car. From that point on it´s less about these two individuals and more broad, ineffectual commentary on the sexes.

The DVD back cover says that "Jupiter Love" is an "allegorical descent to the raw nerve of male sexual-psychosis," which to me is nonsense dressed up as pseudo-psychological babble. True enough, the dialogue in the film mostly amounts to long-winded, improvised rants from Y and cackling from X. I counted exactly one instance of subtle commentary: a piece of art from X that shows a woman´s nipple stretched to a point. There´s something to chew on: an image that juxtaposes sexuality and violence. It´s far more interesting than a kooky lead character shouting "Why won´t you love me?" for several needlessly long scenes.

Since Y begins to bump X´s car by the 10-minute mark, I wondered how the remainder of the film would play out. The answer is that it plays basically the same scene several times over. For reasons that aren´t explained, X frequently drives long, dusty backgrounds where Y always manages to find, chase and generally harass her. It makes for a tedious viewing experience.