This movie should be on the “must see” list of any aspiring actor's list of films in which the characters embody what acting is all about. Mickey Rourke as Randy “The Ram” Robinson delivers the performance of his storied career. He makes the viewer feel every ache and pain he feels after a wrestling match as he shuffles and snorts and pumps himself full of drugs and pain killers. Randy knows he is over the hill but he knows that there is no way he can leave the ring. Setting aside the fact that he is well past his physical prime, Randy is a slave to the adulation of the fans who bestow heroic status on their favorite wrestler and expect them to deliver bloody entertainment every time they step in the ring.
In spite of the violence in the ring, there is a vein of compassion in the portrayal of professional wrestlers who in contrast to their vicious bloody bouts have a genuine camaraderie among themselves and are really concerned with not injuring each other. They choreograph their bouts and display real affection toward those who have accorded “star” status like “The Ram”.
Following a heart attack Randy decides he cannot continue the wrestling life and tries to reconcile himself to a life without the bouts and the fan adulation. He tries and fails to get together with a daughter with whom he has little previous contact. He also tries to establish a relationship with Cassidy (Marisa Tomei), a dancer in a topless club who has a daughter and is trying to give up the life. For awhile Randy even begins to believe that the relationship might really work.
But in the end, knowing the possible consequences, money and the lure of the spotlight drive Randy back to the ring for the ultimate wrestling match.

To appreciate this movie properly you need to put yourself in a 1950's frame of mind when the paradigm for the American Dream was a strong husband in a steady but not necessarily fulfilling job, a dutiful maternal wife with unfulfilled dreams of her own, two well behaved children, (one of each), a lovely home in the suburbs, and car. This is the life Frank (Leonardo di Caprio) and April (Kate Winslet) Wheeler, after giddy full-of-dreams courtship.
But the Wheeler's seemingly idyllic life begins to fray at the edges as the realization that the dreams of an adventure and travel filled life will never come to pass in the doldrums of the suburbs. Their marriage is also becoming stale and routine. And so it is that April devises an escape that will allow them to leave their suburban life behind. April will find work in Paris and Frank will be free to find himself (whatever that is) and they will live happily ever after. Initially Frank is reluctant to go along with the plan but with April's cajoling he finally agrees.
But the fates intervene. Frank is offered a promotion and financial benefits which lead him to question his decision, procrastinating in handing in his resignation. April finds she is pregnant and the escape to Paris is becoming a fantasy. April sees her pregnancy as the main obstacle to fulfilling their dream and decides to take her own course of action with tragic consequences.
I find it hard to see that today's woman would be so submissive and not see that Frank is really a spineless, unambitious lout content to gab with his buddies and carry on an affair with a willing but not too bright secretary. In today's scenario, April would have handed him his walking papers and gone to France with the kids.
In the role of the disenchanted wife, Kate Winslet again shows that she is becoming the premier actress of her generation. It is a fitting addition to a body of work which has had a wondrous diversity of women in crisis. Winslet's skill even extends to making Di Caprio a competent dramatic actor. If there is a knock against this film it is that it is a downer and its viewing during the holiday season seemed out of place.

Clint Eastwood is without doubt a force of nature. At age 78 he continues to display the virtuosity, diversity, and craftsmanship as an actor and director that he has shown throughout his storied career. Can you honestly think of anyone else in Hollywood who can command as much respect for a body of work.
In this movie Eastwood inhabits the role of Walt Kowalski like a second skin. A curmudgeonly Korean War veteran, recently widowed,, he continues to live in his home in an neighborhood that is becoming increasingly racially diverse. When a young Hmong man, Thao (Bee Vang) from next door attempts to steal his prized Ford Gran Torino as a gang initiation, Walt thwarts his attempt and faces down the gang that threatened Thao. In doing so, Walt becomes a hero to the Hmong community and Thao's mother insists that Thao atone for his misdeed by working for Walt. Walt's initial distrust is allayed by the youngster's willingness to learn and his attitude. So Walt decides to “man him up” by getting him a job in construction and in some of the funniest sequences in the film, learn how to talk man to man.
Little by little Walt's attitude toward his exotic neighbors begins to change as he interfaces with the neighbors next door who see him as their protector from the vicious Hmong gang that plagues the neighborhood.
It's debatable if Eastwood intended to make movie with a message, but there is unquestionably a sub-text that tolerance has two sides.

Everyone, I am sure has said to him or herself at one time or another, “if at age 20, I knew what I know now at age 60 or more”. Ron Howard's movie gives us one way to look at that scenario.
Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt) is born old and becomes younger as the story progresses. His birth results in his mother's death and his father, torn with grief and aghast at the seemingly deformed infant, deposits the newborn child on the steps of an old folks home. The child is adopted by Queenie (Taraji P. Henson) and by the inmates of the home. Far from becoming an AMA case, Benjamin's strange regression to youth is accepted by everyone. He goes through the usual childhood, all the while growing younger.
Brad Pitt as Benjamin shows his chops as actor and with the help of some excellent CG work makes us believe in and emphasize with the character. You are drawn into his psyche as he accepts his condition and opens himself to all the experiences that cross his path. Pitt is excellent in the roll and inhabits the character of Benjamin in a masterful portrayal.
Cate Blanchett as Daisy is Benjamin's first and last love. They met initially when Daisy as a child comes to visit her grandmother. Daisy goes on to become a ballerina until an auto accident ends her dancing career. They meet again when they are about the same age and discover their love for each other. But of course Daisy is growing older and Benjamin is getting younger. And thereby hangs the story.
Almost a character in itself, is Ron Howard's direction. Set in New Orleans the tempo is as slow and easy, perfectly suited to the telling of legend. Adding to the ambience is the soft focus of the photography which adds a touch of mystery to the screen images.

In pre-World War II Germany an adolescent boy Michael Berg (David Kross) gets involved with an older woman, Hanna Schmitz (Kate Winslet), a street car conductor. Their torrid lovemaking sessions are preceded by Michael reading to Hanna from his school assignments and other classics. As the summer ends, Hanna is given a promotion and she realizes she must end the relationship. So she packs up and leaves without a hint of where she is going. Michael is devastated and heartbroken by her departure.
Several postwar-years later Michael, now a law student, witnesses a trial of alleged war criminals and discovers that the main defendant is Hanna who stands accused of the death of 300 Jewish prisoners in a fire. She is accused of having written the report of the tragic incident. Michael tells his professor that he may have evidence that may exonerate Hanna and his professor tells him he has an obligation to disclose the information. But Michael, still haunted by her seeming betrayal of his love, cannot bring himself to do it and consequently Hanna is sentenced to life in prison.
His anger diminishes with time and in an effort to assuage his guilt begins to send audio tapes of readings to Hanna which she puts to good use and teaches herself to read and write. While Michael never has any contact with her other than the tapes, Hanna is aware that it is Michael. When the time comes that probation will set her free, Michael is asked to sponsor her release and Hanna for a short moment considers that they actually resume their friendship, that hope is dashed when they meet face to face.
What gives this movie its resonance is the excellent performances by Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, and David Kross as the young Michael Berg. Winslet is haunting as a woman seeking only to survive and yearning for some measure of beauty in her life. Ralph Fienes skillfully portrays a man whose guilt torments him even as he tries to purge his guilt. But the performance of David Kross as the love -stricken “kid” in the throes of an affair that will haunt for the rest of his life is heart of the film.

You may be tempted, considering the travails of the Catholic church with its priesthood, to think of this movie as story about exposing a potential pedophile priest. But it is a good deal more than that. It is the story of Sister Aloysius (Merle Streep) and her struggle to reconcile her unbendable belief in faith and discipline which she struggles to instill in the students of the parochial school of which she is principal.
Sister Aloysius is increasing uncomfortable with the attentions that Father Flynn (Peter Seymour Hoffman) is giving the boys in the school and in particular the one black youth who is having trouble acclimating to an all white school.
Sister Aloysius enlists a novice teacher, Sister James (Amy Adams), in her cause and asks her to to be alert for any suspicious activity between Father Flynn and boys in the school. Sister James' naïve sensibilities cause her to view some seemingly innocent incidents between Father Flynn and the young man in question as being something potentially inappropriate. When Sister James reports them, Sister Aloysius' suspicions are immediately and irrevocably confirmed. Sister Aloysius confronts Father Flynn and vows to have him exposed or have him leave the parish.
Despite his protestations and explanations of purely plantonic relationship with the boy, Father Flynn recognizes that he cannot the power of innuendo and delivers his final sermon on the subject of intolerance.
Merle Streep brings an Oscar worthy performance to her role as Sister Aloysius. She is fierce and unyielding in dedication to the protection of her students. But she is compassionate and protective toward her sisters who have become infirm. Phillip Seymour Hoffman brings to his role a sense of the confusion and disbelief that his actions could be so maliciously misconstrued and that he facing force of nature in Sister Aloysius against which he cannot prevail.

There's a saying “There's nothing new under the sun” and it certainly applies to this movie despite its plethora of Hispanic super stars. Its generic formulaic Chicago Puerto Rican family shouts, fights, suffers, reconciles, and celebrates Christmas home coming like every other family in this genre.
Alfred Molina is Edy Rodriquez, patriarch and bodega store, who has a secret. His suspicious wife Anna (Elizabeth Pena) harbors suspicions that Edy is cheating on her. Mauricio (John Leguizano) is the eldest son who is a successful New York lawyer married to Sarah, a career oriented headhunter who also happens to be Jewish. Marissa (Melonie Diaz), the middle child is struggling actress chasing the elusive dream of stardom on television. Back from a tour in Iraq is Jesse (Freddy Rodriquez) haunted by the death of a buddy. And finally, the court jester, cousin Johnny (Luz Guzman). Oh, and I almost forgot there is Roxanne (Vanessa Ferlito) Jesse's ex-sweetheart, now married and a mother.
Put these characters in a room with plenty of coquitos and beer and stir well. The result is a movie that will do well to last out the current Christmas season.

In my younger days I looked upon the President of the United States as giant among men. I saw men like FDR, Eisenhower, and Kennedy as persons who had my trust to lead the nation. But Richard Nixon's resignation made me realize that president's are fallible humans and have feet of clay.
Memories flooded back as I watched Frank Langella as Nixon seek exonerate himself from the Watergate scandal that drove him from office. His portrayal of the deposed president plumbs the depths of despair for his legacy and illuminates the motives which lead to his undoing.
Just as illuminating is Michael Sheen's portrayal of David Frost, a light weight talk show host, who sees the proposed interview with Nixon as his ticket to credibility as a TV journalist capable of meaningful probing questions.
The interview itself is portrayed as a matter of wits, pitting the master politician whose ability to turn the most probing questions into his agenda is without peer. Against this master is the talk show host used to interviewing second rate celebrities who sees himself as the instrument of the public trial Nixon never had.
There are no car chases or near death escapes. But there is a palpable suspense as each man spars with words seeking to achieve his own ends. Nixon, initially masterfully controlling the discourse, and presenting his case to turn public attitudes toward his achievements in office. Frost, on the other hand desperate to justify his case to make this trial and get the ex-president to admit to wrong doing.
See this movie by all means. It illustrates a historical incident which in some respects may have the forerunner of the view of presidential powers as interpreted by the current administration.

This movie bring us a dark, humorless James Bond (Daniel Craig) driven by equal parts of the need to avenge the death of his girlfriend, Vesper, in “Casino Royale” and sense of guilt for his part in her tragic death and his belief in her betrayal. At the same time Bond is still the true patriot in the service of MI5 under the direction of “M”, the unflappable Judy Dench. The villain in the piece is slimy Dominic Green (Mathieu Amalric) who heads up an environmental corporation whose goal is to gain control of the world's natural resources starting with the water supply in Bolivia (Don't ask).
The requisite eye candy is Camille (Olga Kurylenko) who is seeking her measure of vengeance for the murder of her family by a Bolivian general who is seeking wealth and power through alliance with the nasty Mr. Green. All of these elements are tossed together and interspersed with chase sequences which keep the plot from totally falling apart.
The movie opens with a car chase through tunnels on a coastal. Then there an acrobatic foot chase, an airplane vs helicopter sequence, and so on and so forth. But though exhilarating and well photographed they hardly make up for a flimsy plot line. Bond fans may be partially satisfied with these sequences which are a hallmark of the series.
What seems to be missing in the current Bond is a sense of playfulness in the midst of the mayhem. And one other thing --- Where are the gadgets!!!

It's hard not to like Poppy with her infectious grin and ditzy way of talking. Sally Hawkins does a star turn in portraying this free spirited 30 year old who accepts who she is lets nothing upset her path through life.
Essentially this a plot less movie that follows Poppie as she has fun with her girl friends, teaches school, takes flamenco lessons, has a fling with a boy friend, and takes driving lessons. It's this latter activity which really brings fun and a bit of pathos to the film.
Scott ( Eddie Marsden) is Poppie's slightly off center driving instructor. Their sessions in the car are truly comedic masterpieces as Scott rants and raves about the establishment while trying to teach Poppie to drive while she patters away in an effort to get him to lighten up. With each session Scott gets more and more vociferous, incendiary, and increasingly obsessed with Poppie until she realizes that the situation is getting out of hand and dismisses him.
This is as close to anything really unpleasant in the movie. Not that Poppie is totally unaware or naïve about the world around her. She is able to discern a problem with one of her students and take steps tp help him. She senses the deep seated anger in Scott but ultimately knows that is beyond her help.
Poppie will never make anybody's best dressed list but her kookie flair for fashion is truly her own and just helps project her personality. She is everybody's girl friend and someone you can put at the top of your friend's list.

Georgina (Keira Knightly), becomes the Duchess of Devonshire under a contract that she is to receive a substantial sum of money and status if she is able to produce a male heir to the Duke of Devonshire (Ralph Fieness). But only girls result from this union and the Duke become increasingly disaffected with Georgina's failure to birth son and begins to have affairs with other women leaving her to find solace in becoming fashion maven and an outspoken political activist.
Perhaps the movie can been seen as portrait of the place of women in 18th century England. They had no power or status except through the position of the husband in the hierarchy. Georgina dared to fight the system but ultimately she had to give in and do what she could with her life within the constraints imposed on her by the social mores of the day or give up her children to follow her heart. So in the end, she succumbed and lived out her days in threesome with her husband and his mistress.
Georgina was an ancestor to the late Princess Diana. So maybe that rebellious streak in the late princess is a genetic carryover from the once Duchess of Devonshire.

The best way to view this movie, in my opinion, is to check your brain at the door before you enter the theater.Otherwise it is liable to explode from the car chases, falling cranes and miscellaneous exploding things in a herky-jerky camera style that will have you dizzy by the end of the movie. Then too, there is the implausible plot involving a super computer that has hatched a plot to assassinate the entire leadership the United States in one massive explosion.
As the story goes, the computer named “Eagle Eye” has been compromised by an anonymous source seeking to destroy the US. Eagle Eye is omniscient and knows everything about everybody and everything. Presumably it is the key the security of the nation because not only can it ferret out secrets of individuals but it can assess terrorist threats to national security. But ala HAL of “2000” it has been reprogrammed to cause serious harm.
The instruments chosen to carry out the footwork of the plot are two hapless citizens. Jerry Shaw (Shia LeBeouf) a career slacker, and Rachel Hollowman(Michelle Monaghan) a single mom whose son happens to be a trumpet player in an elementary school band which is to play the “Star Spangled Banner” at gathering of President, his Cabinet, and both Houses of Congress.
Also factor into the plot the development of an explosive compound whose force is enough to blow up three football fields from a fragment the size of a diamond locket. Unknowingly Jerry and Rachel are to deliver this bomb to the right place at the right time. Heroically chasing them are Agents Zoe Perez (Rosario Dawson) and Thomas Morgan (Billy Bob Thornton).
My suggestion is that you wait for a cold winter night with nothing else to do and rent the DVD.

Once you know it's a Coen Brothers movies you know you will travel some unexpected and often bizarre paths in the plot. While nowhere near as somber and hopeless as "No Country for Old Men" it none the less makes you think about how unpredictable life can be especially when peopled by stupid people and inept bureaucracies. That said, expect some excellent performances by a high caliber cast enjoying the opportunity to exercise their comic chops.
The story revolves around Linda Litze (Francis McDormand) who is driven by a desire to have plastic surgery which she believes will revitalize her romantic yearnings. When her dim-bulb co-worker Chad (Brad Pitt) finds a computer disc with what appears to be intelligence information, she is convinced that the data is valuable and might bring a large reward from certain parties. Turns out the disc was generated by Osborne Cox (John Malkowitz) who is writing his memoirs after being summarily fired from his job as a CIA analyst and is totally worthless.
Added to the complications is Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney) a philandering paranoid US Marshall who is having an affair with Cox's wife (Tilda Swinton)and just about any other women he encounters, including Linda Litze. This latter affair will have dire consequences for Chad while seeking out the author of the computer disc.
In the meantime the CIA has gotten wind that something is happening which they should take steps to determine. But they are totally befuddled and committed to covering it up before anybody gets wind of it.
And so they do in unexpected ways and in doing so provide the means for Linda to get her plastic surgery. So it's kind of happy ever after.

This movie should be on the “must see” list for all women to see, especially those who look to the anorexic, airbrushed images of unblemished females that appear in the slick pages of fashion magazines and on the cinema screens. Director Darryl Roberts takes us into the of world fashion, cosmetology, and plastic surgery which begs the question “Where have all the real women gone?”.
The film opens with a lithe ultra-sexy young model striding in that characteristic swivel hipped model's runway walk to the plaudits of fashionistas gathered there. Then it is revealed that this is a twelve year old child who has morphed into a sex symbol fulfilling her own fantasy and abetted by her equally ambitious mother. Gerren Taylor's rise and fall in the world of fashion modeling around is the framework around which cosmetology, plastic surgery, and illnesses like bulimia and anorexia are part and parcel of the narcissistic drive to become a “beautiful person”.
Director Robert interviewed dozens of people in his search for reason that women, especially, are driven to seek such levels of perfection. Billions and billions of dollars are spent on all the accoutrements that go toward emulating the latest fashion trend in dress or makeup. Those dollars are the engine that make it unlikely that the anything will really change. Director Robert's best advice is to look beyond the surface and find the beauty within.
Gerren Taylor, at thirteen, found that her uniqueness had vanished when she grew an inch here and an inch there. It was a shock to find herself no longer in demand and it took some time to recover and revert to being a teeny bopper again. Perhaps her story may make another young girl pause before seeking to become the next super model.

There is a feeling throughout this movie that it is a treatise depicting how a devout Muslim can also be a patriotic American. The premise is that Samir Horn (Don Cheadle) has gone under deep cover in the Middle East to get to the inner circle of terrorists who plan a plan to strike at the heartland of America. But there is a FBI task force led by Roy Clayton (Guy Pearson) chasing him that believes that he has gone over to the other side and is now a traitor. While imprisoned in Yemen, Horn is befriended by Omar (Said Taghmaoui) who has dedicated himself to Jihad and the killing of Americans.
Horn finds himself more and more in a crisis of faith when faced with the taking of lives to serve the greater good and the success of the mission. His Muslim beliefs are difficult to reconcile with task assigned to him by the terrorist group leadership. So he finds himself named a “high value” target by the FBI and suspect by the Muslim terrorists if he does not complete the task of arming a group of suicide bombers who will blow themselves up simultaneously across the Mid-West.
The movie moves along at a good pace with not too much time given over to character development. For example, one never gets insight into why Omar is so selflessly committed to his undercover role without the possibility of recognition or recompense. The scenario seems to imply that it is enough to be true to the tenets of your faith. But isn't that how saints are made?

Pity the poor travel agent who next tries to sell a client on a train trip from Beijing to Moscow on the Transsiberian railroad. Not only is the scenery a monotonous vista of snow and endless forests but the train is crowded, smokey, noisy and the attendants are surly and decidedly unfriendly to tourists.
In this environment Roy and Jessie (Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer) hope to rekindle their marital spark after a stint in China working for their church. They find that their cabin mates are a mysterious and well traveled couple Carlos and Abby (Eduardo Noriega and Kate Mara) who are not exactly what they claim to be. After a stop Roy misses the train and Jessie is left to wait for him at the next stop. Under the pretense of showing Abby a deserted church, Carlos makes a play for her with tragic consequences.
Enter Grinko (Ben Kingsley) a Russian narc who is on the trail of drug mules who are smuggling heroin in to Russia. But you know immediately that he is not exactly on the square, so the last third of the film becomes a predictable chase, hostage, escape, chase scenario which seems to be generic to all drug related films.
For the most part most the film is entertaining, but don't look for it to last too long on theater marquees.

If you are into movies that are irreverent, raucous, and politically incorrect this movie is your summertime treat. Dana Marshaz (Steve Coogan) is a Tucson high school drama teacher who is in danger of losing his class because of funding cuts in the school district budget. Dana is still chasing stardom after mediocre acting stints in seldom seen commercials and a few extra parts in movies. As drama coach his stage productions have been not exactly stellar rehashes of second rate movies.
His world begins to go into a tail spin when he finds his drama class filled with less than interested kids from Tucson barrios and he is told that drama is being cut from the school curriculum after the current term. Add to that the news that his wife Brie (Catherine Keener) is leaving and is pregnant and he is not the father.
What to do? Have no fear. The barrio kids come to his rescue and not only urge him to finish his play but also find the venue to stage the production after they are locked out of the school. With youthful energy, enthusiasm, and ingenuity (channel Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland musicals) they convert an abandoned warehouse into a theater.
Two cameo type roles worth mentioning are Elizabeth Shue as herself, an actress turned nurse, and Amy Poehler, as a brash ACLU lawyer who turns the controversy over the play's irreverent and ribald content into a first amendment case.

There's no good reason to pay money to see this trite and predictable film except for the performance of Anna Farris as Shelley Darlingson, an ex-Playboy mansion bunny, who is the epitome of every dumb blonde joke you have ever heard. Minus her performance the movie would be a strong candidate for the worst movie of the year. But that is not to say it doesn't come close.
After being abandoned on the steps of an orphanage, Shelley survives an ugly duckling childhood to become a curvaceous but dim-bulb blonde whose body is her passport to a life of glamour and ease at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Manor. When a rival for centerfold fame contrives to get Shelley ousted from the Manor, Shelley finds herself out in the cruel cold world of normal people. But wonder of wonders, she stumbles into an unlikely job as house mother to the ZETAs, a group of nerdy fashion-deprived coeds, who are in danger of losing their sorority house and college affiliation unless they can attract new pledges.
But Shelley finds her calling as a somewhat untraditional house mother and with wide-eyed naiveté gives the nerdy sisters a make-over and turns them into mini-bunnies in her own image while giving them lessons on how to attract the opposite sex. Of course the way to saving the sorority is not without obstacles but Shelley and her charges are able to overcome them and save the sorority.
The main comment I heard leaving the showing was “cute”. If that's enough for you then, enjoy!

Rainn Wilson delivers a somewhat over the top performance in this movie as Fish Fishman a rocker drummer who is dumped by his band Vesuvius on the cusp of their getting a lucrative recording and performance contract. For twenty years thereafter Fish drifts along drowning in self pity for the lost opportunity to be his most cherished dream to be a full blown rock star. His opportunity comes along unexpectedly when his nephew’s band is suddenly minus a drummer and in desperation turns to Fish to help them fulfill a gig at the high school prom.
Internet technology helps the group A.D.D. when their on line practice sessions featuring a naked Fish suddenly bring them worldwide notoriety and creates a market for their music. Fish is ecstatic and is fully determined to live out his fantasy about the excesses of the rock star life that characterized the rockers of his generation. But he does not understand the rest of band does not necessarily buy into that life style and their parents certainly do not. When opportunity gives the band an opening act to his old band Vesuvius, Fish gets to see what his life would have become as an over the hill rock and roller.
While Wilson for the imbues his role with humor and a certain amount of pathos, I could not get out of my head that he channeling Jack Black, Will Ferrer, or Jim Carrey who have of late portrayed similar characters, lovable losers who ultimately win over the girl or whatever.

This movie is long, sacchrine, almost soporific treatise on the ability of faith to cure hitherto incurable illnesses or disabilities. Henry Poole (Luke Wilson) has been diagnosed with an incurable disease which will bring about his death in an unspecified but certain time. He buys a house in the neighborhood where he grew up to spend his remaining days near the home where grew up. But his self pitying alcoholic life exit is detoured when his neighbor Esperanza (Adriana Barraza) sees the image of Christ in a botched stucco job on the wall of Henry's house. Over his protestations that it is not a miraculous image, Esperanza gets him to agree to have the local priest Father Salazer (George Lopez) to have the bloodlike substance that issues from the wall analyzed.
Word spreads about the seemingly miraculous image and pilgrims begin coming to see and be healed. And sure enough a young girl with inch thick glasses suddenly gets 20-20 vision after touching the image. Also the six year old daughter of the attractive next door neighbor suddenly begins to speak after a year of not speaking. Henry suddenly finds himself in a crisis of faith with this evidence of miraculous happenings which he cannot explain.
I don't think it spoils the ending to tell you that Henry, after an agonizing scene during which I silently kept exhorting him to “touch the cotton picking wall”, finally finds himself cured and all is right with the righteous Esperanza and more importantly with the pretty single mom next door.

Maybe I should have had a snoot full of that “Pineapple Express” weed that supplies the main ingredient of the plot in this movie that is only slightly removed from infantilism. Seth Rogen as Dale Denton, an inveterate user of the weed, not only wrote the show but serves as second banana to James Franco aka Saul Silver, Denton's spaced out drug dealer and accomplice in this mess of a movie.
Briefly the so-called plot has Denton being a witness to an execution of a Chinese gang member by local drug king pin and a crooked lady cop played by Rosie Perez. That having happened the rest of the movie is given over to Denton and Silver trying to get away from two dim bulb hit men who have their own issues to work out. Some where along the line a Chinese drug lord and his minions get involved in the chase and the last twenty minutes or so are a “shoot 'em up bang” in an isolated barn which also happens to be a hydroponic marijuana greenhouse. The gunfire and hand to hand combat seem to go on interminably but as you would expect Denton and Silver manage to escape the “the big bang” and are forever thereafter to be weed buddies.
Truth be told, James Franco's turn as the spacey drug dealer is the best part of the show. His performance helps make the movie more tolerable.

Just what this movie is all about is anybody's guess. Quentin Tarantino's latest effort tries mightily to recreate the old grind house flicks of the thirties and the legend of nasty macho bikers who lived free and easy according the code of “beer, bikes, and booty. Before the film ends the highways somewhere between California and Arizona are littered with smashed motorcycles and dead bodies and you will have had your voyeuristic fill of bare breasted biker babes who seem to congregate in shabby saloons that cater to testosterone laden bikers. I had a feeling throughout that I was watching a “B” movie that would have been better in black and white and soundless. The sound track was so annoying and the acting so over the top that no sound was needed to convey the action. I wouldn't spend good money to see this movie but I am sure it will play well to the sophomoric age levels that like their humor on the stupid side.

In 1974 Philippe Petit, a Frenchman, walked a wire strung between the twin towers of the World Center in New York City. This documents the feat and illuminates the man who accomplished this unbelievable feat. And more than that, it reveals the incredible effort made by his support team who helped plan the event and performed an amazing logistical piece of work in setting up the apparatus to accomplish the wire walk.
Petit's obsession to do the wire walk between the towers began the moment he discovered that the towers were to be built. With no experience he built a high wire platform to practice on and when he felt ready he tackled the task of wire walking between the spires of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris and a couple of bridge spans. But the ultimate goal was the Twin Towers and as construction approached finality Petit and his cohorts began the task of surveying the field of action and developing the skills to pull off the endeavor.
Normally documentaries lack a feeling of tension as the story unfolds. But this film has one on the edge from the beginning to the end. One feels the stress that Petit's friends go through as they wrestle with the possibility that death could be the outcome and whether they are strong to support his dream regardless.
When Petit finally steps out on the wire between the towers and his own fears are allayed as he knows he has conquered and a big smile comes on his face, there is almost an audible gasp of relief from the audience.
Naturally the police are not quite as enchanted as Petit taunts them by walking back and forth on the wire just beyond their reach. When Petit is finally arrested and booked the arrest reason reads simply “Man on Wire”.

As the final credits rolled a screen pop up heralded the news that mummies had been discovered in Peru. I hustled out of the theater hoping that it was all a mistake and the mummies were really only a commercial for Band-Aids. I do not think the movie fans could take another mummy bomb like “The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor”.
Brendan Fraser is back as the mummy chaser, Rick O'Conner and Maria Bello subs for Rachel Weisz as his wife. Since the O'Conners have somewhat retired, their adventurous son Alec (Luke Ford, who badly needs acting lessons) has decided to continue the family penchant for uncovering long dead bodies. Seems young Luke has discovered the tomb of Emperor Han (Jet Li) who got himself and his army turned into clay statues some two thousand years ago for offing the lover of Zi Juan (Michelle Yeoh).
The O'Conners are lured out of retirement to return a sacred diamond to China which also happens to be the key to bringing Emperor and his minions back to life reconquer China and eventually the rest of the world. But Zi Juan's daughter Lin (Isabella Leong) enlists the O'Conners, parents and son, to keep the diamond out of the Emperor's hands before he reaches the spring of eternal life and reconstitutes himself.
I would go on with the plot but I got lost somewhere along the way when some Yetis showed up as good guys and then there was something to do with Shangri-La which got lost in the translation. So suffice to say the Emperor Han's ambitions are literally shattered and the world is safe again.
Except -- there is mummy trouble brewing in Peru!

What are the odds that a presidential election could come down to one man's vote to determine the future of United States. “Swing Vote” presents the case of how it could conceivably happen and how one person in the unlikely town of Texico, New Mexico could be the instrument of casting New Mexico's five electoral votes for one presidential candidate or the other.
Bud Johnson (Kevin Costner) is that man and his preteen daughter Molly (Madeline Carroll) is the politically precocious force which finally gets Bud to take responsibility for his actions when he is given a chance to revote because of a machine failure. His turnabout after a basically slacker life style working a chicken processing plant and drinking beer with his old school buddies seems a bit too slick as he becomes the symbol for the American working class. But I guess the story had to have a happy ending.
But the story is also about the American political process. Bud is immediately lionized by both parties seeking to influence his vote with huge parties and one on one meetings with each of the candidates. Naturally, the media descends on the small town like a swarm of locusts, each network reporter trying to outdo the other in finding a scoop. Even the candidates themselves find that are being swayed by the often offhand remarks made by Bud to modify their positions on certain issues to cater to some interest groups.
In the end the candidates turn out to be honorable men who, to their credit, recognize that they are being manipulated by their campaign managers whose motives are guided by their own egos and the desire to win at any cost. So maybe you might want to put away your disbelief and enjoy the movie as satire on the state of politics in America.

This will be the toe tapping feel good movie of the summer and a welcome relief from the action heavy dramas which have permeated the season so far. The music, the scenery, the joyous ambience will make you want to take the next boat to the Greek islands.
Meryl Streep as Donna the proprietor of a hotel on the island of Karakadakis steals the show with her surprising ability to belt out a song alone and with ex-partners Rosie (Julie Walters) and Tanya (Christine Baranski). Their version of “Dancing Girl” will have you dancing in the aisle.
And who would have thought James Bond 007 could carry a tune without chop socking a villain, but Pierce Brosnan as Sam Carmichael, a once lover of Donna, holds his own in a couple heartfelt duets with Donna. Come to think everyone in the cast must have been hired for their ability to sing and dance.
But briefly to the story. Donna's daughter Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is getting married and wants her here to fore unknown father to give her away. But she discovers that there is a possibility that any one of three of her mother's past lovers could be her father. So without her mother's knowledge she invites all three to the wedding thinking that if she sees them she will intuitively know who is her father. Of course, this doesn't happen and the fun begins.
If liking ABBA's music dates you, so be it. But you'll be tapping your feet to the infectious beat just like everyone else in the theater. One more thing, do not leave when the final credits roll. There is real treat in store!

This is a well-written, well-directed, well-cast, well-acted coming of age story about a young Manhattan teen age pot dealer and his psychiatrist who takes his fee out in weed. Josh Peck as Shapiro and Ben Kingsley as Dr. Squires, his shrink, make their friendship real as each learns life lessons from the other. As with many indie films it is slow paced and deliberate which puts it as odds with the high action films that characterize summer cinema releases.
Shapiro has been dealing drugs through his high school years in order to build a fund for his college years. Now at graduation he faces the greatest change in his young life as he contemplates giving up the drug dealing and going off to college. His confidant is Dr. Squires with whom he exchanges dope for counseling and advice. Dr. Squires himself is dealing with a mid-life crisis with a wife he no longer loves and the freedom he enjoyed as a young man. So Shapiro and Dr. Squires become partners and embark on an adventuresome night where Dr. Squires has a sexual encounter with Union (would you believe Mary Kate Olsen) and get themselves arrested for disturbing the peace.
Shapiro gets involved with Dr. Squires' step daughter Stephanie (Olivia Thrilby) who intiates him sexually but ultimately rejects him as a passing affair. Dr. Squires and his wife mutually agree to divorce and the good doctor finds possible solace in free-spirited Elanor, one of Shapiro's dope customers, who shares the Doctor's love of rock.
So in the end both men turn the page and are able to move confidently with their lives. Whether or not this movie catches on mainstream is open to question. But overall it is a quality film and you will not regret it.

Be forewarned this is a dark, dark movie. From the opening credits there is a atmosphere of gloom and foreboding that permeates the film. Gotham City is under siege by the denizens of organized crime which have taken over the Gotham City. Into this climate a new super criminal, The Joker (Heath Ledger) has offered to help the crime hide their cash and help them get rid of their super hero nemesis, Batman, aka Bruce Wayne.
When a new idealistic District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is elected, Batman (Christian Bale) joins forces with him, his assistant Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaul) and Lt. James Gordon (Garry Oldman) to round up all the malefactors and lock them up in the Gotham City jail.
But they are not prepared for the machinations of The Joker, a psychopathic caricature of pure evil with a painted face and a red slash for a mouth. The Joker is a totally amoral being who has no compunction about blowing up buildings and people with a joyous cackle. The Joker's motivation has nothing to do with money. Power is his trip and he delights in the game of outwitting Batman at every turn.
But underlying all the car chases, blood and gore, and buildings blowing up is a disturbing question of human morality. The Joker is getting his kicks from pushing the envelope of personal integrity and honor. He is challenging Batman to see how far he will go before he gives in to the forces of darkness and descends to the level of amorality of The Joker which will prove that given the proper circumstances any one can be corrupted.
To say anything more might take away from your enjoyment of the film which is definitely a “must see”.
But I must tell you that the last section of the film got a little murky and confusing and it was very difficult follow the action. But don't let that stop you. Go see for yourself.

I am totally ambivalent about this movie. I neither liked nor disliked it. I kind of sat there for two hours waiting to see what other fantastical thing they would ask me to believe next. First, there is this red-skinned mutant muscleman from some unknown planet named Hellboy (Ron Perlman)y who sports horns and carries a huge six shooter. Then there is his girl friend Liz (Selma Blair) who is a walking cigarette lighter. If that's not enough, there is lizard-like buddy, a phantasm who lives in metal suit, and even some human beings. And these are just the good guys!
On the side there an evil prince of underworld kingdom that long ago ceded the surface of the earth to the humans and took to the underground. The evil prince has it in mind to resurrect the “Golden Army” a shiny collection of countless mechanical robots who once decimated all who faced them. The prince sees the realm of humans as his sovereignty.
So that sets the plot for the story that rambles on as Hellboy searches through the underworld, fighting various and sundry weird monsters as seeking to confront the ambitious prince. He goes into the netherworld through a portal of troll market which is apparently under one end of the Brooklyn Bridge.( Note: If you believe that I can arrange to sell the bridge to you.)
Well, you can predict the end, well almost. Hellboy saves the world and in the process gets some surprising news from Liz which will guarantee the life of the franchise.

Dr. Hunter S. Hunter was no doctor, neither MD nor PhD. He bought a Doctor of Divinity from an Internet site and thought it added a certain gravitas to his name. And in some respects this name masquerade reflects a life long struggle to be known and respected. His early claim to fame was his participatory journalistic book on California's Hell's Angeles. From there on he went on to write for Rolling Stones magazine, film, and television. His political writings were particularly effective in changing the view of nominees or high office. They spawned a school of writing called “Gonzo” which brooked no quarter when attacking their victims in print. Thompson was the architect of Senator Muskie's downfall in his presidential bid.
In spite of his obvious writing skills, Thompson never made any money. He was addicted to drugs, guns, and women. His editors were never sure what he would come up with on assignment or whether he would make the deadlines imposed on him. He railed and ranted about the hypocrisy of life in America and especially about the failures of the political system. In the end he took his own life with one of the guns he was so fond of.
Whether you see this film or not will pretty much depend on your personal knowledge of Thompson and his place among the writers of his time. His “Gonzo” style of writing lives on to a lesser degree in today's investigative reporting. But it does not come close to having the same effect.

I might have rated this movie higher if I did not have to strain my credibility to accept the premise on which is based. It starts out as possibly a comedy about a being with enormous strength and the ability to fly. Hancock (Will Smith) is loser hero who seemingly cannot cope with powers he has and prefers to sleep on park benches and drown his angst with magnum bottles of whiskey. Occasionally he performs a heroic act which more often results in massive destruction of property. So while the citizens of Los Angeles (where else?) sometimes applaud his heroic stature they are more turned off by the havoc he wreaks while saving a life or apprehending bad guys.
Just how Hancock got his powers is shrouded in mystery with only an allusion to the movie “Frankenstein” which seems to make no sense. But Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), a public relations expert, decides to make Hancock a personal project and give him a makeover which will enhance his image with the public and make him a heroic icon capable of changing world for the good. And that's when the movie goes serious and takes a hard left turn into the realm of fantasy.
Seems that Ray's wife Mary (Charlize Theron) is not exactly the suburban wifey she appears to be. Without giving a away the plot suffice it to say she has a secret kinship to Hancock which is never fully explained.
Best I can say is that if you are a Will Smith fan, go see this movie by all means. It is not by any means one of his better efforts.

If you are looking for fun and action, this is a movie for you. To be sure there are some scenes that strain credulity but they are easy to believe if you get into the spirit of the action. Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) is wimpy accountant who hates his job and big mouthed obese boss and can't even keep his girlfriend from cheating on him with his best friend. His life is a dismal failure.
But it changes radically when he kidnapped and informed by his captors that he is the son of a highly skilled killer who was a member of a society of assassins who have operated super secretly for a thousand years and is currently led by Sloan (Morgan Freeman). Initially highly dubious, Wesley is finally convinced when he finds he can shoot the wings off flies and bend a bullet around an object to hit a target behind it. I told you would you have to take some things in the spirit of the movie.
Sloan convinces Wesley that he only has the skills to avenge his father's murder at the hands of another assassin. So he is given over for boot camp training to the sexiest drill instructor ever, Fox (Angelina Jolie) who puts him through enough torturous exercises to put Abu Grahib to shame. When Wesley is fully indoctrinated he sets out to accomplish his task of avenging his father's death. There are car chases, building explosions and much gun shooting. Enough to satisfy the most avid action fan.
Go see this movie. Take my word, you will enjoy it.

There is very little I can say to recommend this movie. It is idiotic, inane, sophomoric, and any other adjective one can think of to describe a cinematic waste of time. To be sure it will probably rake in money from those Mike Meyer fans who share his twisted sense of humor (it must be a Canadian thing).
At its best it is a primer for synonyms to describe the male genitalia. Just about every gag (and I mean gag!) has something to do with this subject.
Mike Meyer takes on the persona of Guru Pitka, a Caucasian guru trained by a crosseyed Guru Tugginmypudha (Ben Kinglsey). Pitka's obsession is to surpass the number one guru, Deepak Chopra.
To do this he is convinced that he must find a way to appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show. His chance comes up when he is hired by the owner of the Montreal Maple Leafs, Jane Bullard (luscious Jessica Alba) to help the Leaf's star, Darren Roanoke (Romany Malco) resolve his romantic conflict which is seriously affecting his hockey game. Seems his girl friend, Prudence (Meagen Good) has taken with the Sacramento Kings goalie Jacques Grande (Justin Timberlake) whose physical endowments are without equal.
Enough said. Wait for this flick to appear in the cut out bins of the local video store and then ignore it!

For those that were fans of the original “Get Smart” TV series, this movie has to be a big disappointment. For those who never saw the original it will probably fall into the category of semi-comical action films that have populated our cinemas of late and will probably enjoy in that context. The campy tongue-in-cheek feeling of the TV series seems to be completely missing from the film and replaced by a kind of yuppified attitude and banter replete with the requisite car chases and blown up buildings that define today's action genre.
Steve Carell as Maxwell Smart is a bit too slick to channel Don Adams and Anne Hathaway a bit too glamorous as Agent 99. What's probably missing from the whole thing is the Mel Brooks zaniness that characterized the TV series where the improbable becomes probable in an unpredictable and comical fashion.
The plot, if you need to know, is that KAOS, the bogeyman agency of the series, has obtained a nuclear bomb and plans to set it off in Los Angeles during Presidential visit. Newly promoted to Agent 86, Maxwell Smart is paired with Agent 99 by CONTROL chief Alan Arkin. So 86 and 99 immediately hie themselves off to Moscow in search of Sigfried (Terence Stamp) the chief KAOS bad guy who will ultimately detonate the bomb at Disney Hall in the heart of Los Angeles.
As I said in the beginning, if you never viewed the original on TV, you will probably enjoy this movie. But if you remember the original, it is a letdown.

Right at the outset I need to tell you that I was never a fan of comic books although my kids did their part to help build the industry. Every trip to the grocery store resulted in more comics to add to their trove. Captain Marvel, Spiderman, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, were household words in our domicile. But their fantastical powers that enabled them to vanquish the evil monsters who threatened the world were too much for my pragmatic sensibilities.
But I have to admit I enjoyed "The Hulk". It moved along with rollicking fun from beginning to end and never let up and even had surprise stinger at the end. But I would have to say that much credit for a likeable film was due to excellent performances by Ed Norton as Bruce Banner, aka "The Hulk"; Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, Bruce's love interest and helpmate; William Hurt as General Thunderbolt, Betty's father and architect of the program that produced "The Hulk"; and Tim Roth as Emile Blonsky, an overachieving super soldier who hankers to become the next “HULK".
For those who do not know the story, Bruce Banner is infected with a blood protein, which under certain conditions which he sometimes cannot control, transform him into huge man type monster with super human strength. Bruce escapes his confinement and General Thunderbolt musters his troops headed by Captain Blonsky. But Bruce manages to evade them and find Betty who helps him find another scientist who has been communicating with him. Captain Blonsky also finds this scientist and forces him to give him a double dose of what made the “Hulk” and becomes “The Abomination”, essentially “The Hulk” on , steroids. There is a final monumental fight in the streets of New York City. Streets get torn up, building toppled, cars thrown about, and in the end you know who will win.
Go see this movie. Marvel Comics has found its way to the big screens. I look forward to the day when all the superheros will be in one movie and they will collectively eliminate all the evils of the world.

This is one of the most lethargic films I have seen in a long time. In a story where the main premise is the competition for a choice job, one would think some sparks between the main characters would be generated and give life to the struggle to win the position.
But it just does not happen and Doug (Seann William Scott) and Richard (John C. Reilly) as the assistant manager aspirants to the job as managers of a new store do their low key best to impress “The Board” that will make the final decision. Each has a strong motive to win the job. Doug needs the extra money to buy a house and has over extended himself financially to do so. Richard is trying to put behind him the dope smoking habit which plagued his previous job. But neither it seems is willing to go all out and outthink and outpace his competition. They seem to be stifled in their creativity by the company rules and culture in which all decisions are relegated to the all powerful “Board”.
To be sure there are some funny moments and some attempts to introduce conflicts and dirty tricks but in the end one is left with two nice guy wusses who in my estimation could no more manage a lemonade stand much less a super market. So I am let with this assessement --- given the choice between seeing this movie or watching grass grow. Choose the grass!

The evils of steroid use among professional athletes have been all over the newsprint media and the TV airwaves have carried the seemingly interminable questioning of pro ball players by suddenly incensed congressmen who decry the dissolution of our favorite sports. “It's un-American” they declaim from the hallowed halls of Congress as if this was the first they had ever heard of performance drug use and as if it were undermining the entire moral structure of the United States.
But these wise gentlemen seem to not understand that “Bigger, Stronger, Faster” is the catchphrase that drives almost every facet of American life where competition is a fact of life be sports, business, or academia. You must accept this credo if you are to be successful in any form of endeavor.
But few make it to the top and this is a true story of a family whose three sons, Chris, Mark, and Mike Bell set out to achieve their goals and two of them, Mark and Mike, succumb to the lure of performance and body building pharmaceuticals. Chris forgoes the drug route and tries to succeed without steroids but none the less uses natural vitamins.
The movie offers no solution other than the congressman's pontification that we must “level the playing field” - whatever that is supposed to mean. Performance enhancement has been a fact of life in all sports and will continue to be so as long as money and self glorification are the ultimate goals. Chris, with his denial of drugs, may be the best success story after writing and directing this movie. His brothers on the other hand continue their self delusion that glory is just around the corner as long as they continue to build up their physiques.

One would think this movie was a natural for Will Ferrell and indeed his name appeared in the opening credits as a producer. It's narcissistic. somewhat dense protagonist seemed to be right his alley. Instead we got Danny McBride as Fred Simmons, the egoistic, under talented proprietor of a Tae Quan Do school who brow beats his students and harbors a obsession with Chuck “The Truck” Wallace a long haired movie practitioner of the martial arts. Try he might, McBride just does not have the comedic chops to carry off the role.
This is not say that the movie is a total flop. There is a basic comedic theme throughout as Simmons tries to imbue his sometimes clunky students with the mystique of the martial arts. His obsession with his job brings about strained with his slutty wife who is cheating on him with her boss and fools himself by initiating a non-reciprocated flirtation with a cute new student.
While the star may not be a standout, there are some supporting roles which bear mentioning, Juan- Carlos Guzman as Carlos, the chubby teacher stand-in, and Ben Best as Chuck the Truck.

If you are an Indiana Jones fan you will like this film. It's vintage “Indie”. No better nor worse than those that preceded but fun none the less. The pity is that we had to wait three years to see Harrison Ford reprise his fedora clad role as the professor/adventurer Indiana Jones and Karen Allen as his feisty girl friend, Marion Ravenwood of “Raiders of the Lost Ark”.
Added to the mix, maybe as continuation of the franchise, is Shia LeBeouf as Henry Jr. motorcycle riding, knife wielding offspring of Indie and Marion. Cate Blanchett, in black page boy do and slinky black body suit, appears in an unusual role for her as the occult seeking Nazi who chases Indie and his friends across the mountains and jungles of South America.
My daughter compared the movie to a jungle ride at a Disney theme park and I tend to agree. While at times the plot seems to get fuzzy there is another whiz bang chase through the jungle, through countless tunnels and caverns, over roaring waterfalls and precipitous cliffs. Enough certainly to keep one interested to the somewhat sappy end. The story line concerning a search for a crystal skull which belongs to some extraterrestrial beings often gets a little murky but I wouldn't be to critical. After all, it's all in fun and the stars seem to be having high good time in their roles.

Richard Jenkins is a face you have seen in countless movies and never did his name register in your consciousness, but you will remember him after this movie. His screen persona is perfect the role of Walter Vale, an economics professor in a small Connecticut college where he has taught the same course of twenty years. His wife, a talented pianist, has passed away and he lives alone trying to fill the void in his life by trying to learn to play the piano and trying to work on a book.
On trip to New York City where Walter maintains an apartment, he finds that a couple, Tarik (Haaz Sleiman) a Syrian musician, and his girl friend Zainab (Danai Guirra) a Senegalez jewelry maker,both illegal immigrants have been living in his apartment. Feeling sorry for the couple's plight, Walter invites to stay with him until they are able to find other lodgings. Walter becomes fascinated by Tarik's prowess with the drum and the joy and energy he gets when he plays. Tarik convinces Walter that he can share the experience and teaches Walter the rudiments of drumming.
More and more Walter gets involved in the couple's life and begins to find his isolation beginning to dissipate. It becomes more so when Tarik is arrested and sent to a detention center in danger of being deported. Mouna (Hiram Abass), Tarik's mother, comes to New York to see what has happened to her son. Her quiet demeanor and devotion to her son make a deep impression on Walter and he resolves more earnestly to help get Tarik released. But in the end it is to no avail.
Jenkin's portrayal of Walter will touch you your heart as he discovers a life beyond the ivy walls of his teaching in the joy of drumming and the satisfaction of finding persons whose lives he can share even if it is for just a short time.

Normally I turn a jaundiced eye on chick flicks but I must admit that I enjoyed this one. That being said, the movie is a rehash of several other movies with similar plots, true love hidden under the guise of friendship until the relationship is threatened by the possibility of marriage to the wrong person. But Patrick Dempsey as Tom, a wealthy skirt-chasing New Yorker, carries it off well and brings a sense of fun to the party.
Michelle Monagham is Hannah, Tom's college girl pal, an art curator who is looking for a real long term commitment which she finds during an assignment in Scotland when a red haired virile Scot lord rides into her life while she is stuck on the road behind a herd of sheep. In now time she becomes engaged to Colin McMurray (Kevin McKidd) whose family is deeply ensconced in Scottish tradition and not only makes world famous Scotch whiskey but also lives in fabulous picturesque castles.
Tom suddenly realizes his feelings for Hannah are more than pal-like when she asks him to be her “Maid of Honor” as her best friend. That's enough for Tom to determine that he has to somehow sabotage the proceedings and win the girl back. It's not giving away the story but you know that everything turns out for the best in the end.

“Baby Momma” can't be other than funny most of the time. Not with such talented comedy stars as Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in the lead roles. But it is Steve Martin as a flaky owner of a new age Whole Foods type grocery chain that walks off with the comedy trophy. While the plot is somewhat predictable the cast including Greg Kinnear and Maura Tierney carry it off with creditable charm.
Kate Holbrook (Fey) is an over achieving VP of Development with Barry's (Martin) Corporation. A thirty plus single woman Kate feels the need to conceive a child to fill what she feels is a void in her life without the requisite man in her life. After exploring all the options of artificial insemination and adoption she gets hooked on the possibility of using a surrogate to carry her embryo. Her choice is Angie Ostrowiski (Poehler), a less than cultured blue collar bimbo,whose slacker boy friend has figured a way to work a scam and get rich.
At first Kate and Angie have trouble reconciling their life styles but eventually the impending birth of the baby bring them together, at least temporarily, because Angie's pregnancy is not all it seems to be. But in the end everything gets resolved, maybe a little to patently.

Just what Al Pacino is doing in this mess of a movie is anybody's guess. As Dr. Jack Gramm Pacino is a forensic psychiatrist with the FBI whose testimony was instrumental in convicting a serial murderer who is scheduled to die in few hours as the movie starts. Bodies start to show up with the crime scene signature of the convicted killer. By some convoluted rationale that I never got Gramm is given 88 minutes to live before the killer will have his revenge for Gramm's alleged perjured testimony.
Gramm is convinced that the killer is responsible despite the fact that he is behind bars and on death row. So he sets out chasing a cross the Seattle landscape cell phone attached to his ear to find the copycat perpetrator. Hair flying and seemingly always running he debunks an uncounted number of red herrings that keep him from discovering the truth. Somehow you get the feeling that he knows what the ending will be and he is just marking time without investing any real demotion in the character.
My advice --- there are many better movies out there to spend your money on!

At long last in 2008 a movie that really touches the heart and leaves you with a good feeling as the end credits roll. The story of the Young@Heart chorus, comprised of folks from sixty to ninety years of age, reveals how music can lift the spirits beyond daily aches and pains and the camaraderie that transcends mere friendships when their voices are raised in, of all things, the rhythms of rock and roll.
The chorus based in Northhampton, Mass. has traveled the world and been acclaimed for their energetic performances of music from rock bands like Coldplay, Jimi Hendrix, Talking Heads, and the Clash. They may not be the best singers but their enthusiasm is infectious and generates foot stomping and standing ovations wherever they perform. Particularly touching is one sequence when one member, complete with oxygen tank, sings a heartfelt solo dedicated to his best friend passed away just a few days before the performance.
As a practicing octogenarian and amateur musician myself, I can relate to these folks who love music and performing. I recommend this film to everyone, especially for those who may view the so called golden years as simply simply a prelude to the grave.

For all you fans of martial movies what could be better than Jackie Chan and Jet Li in the same film and both on the same side. Never mind that the plot takes you to a world of fantasy where these kung fu masters fly about the landscape as they vanquish the hordes of villains that attack them. And an added treat for the kung fu aficionados there is mano a mano sparring match between Chan and Li which should satisfy even the most fanatic fans.
No one can claim this is a great movie. But it is good, energetic, and visually entertaining. The story is about a young man, Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarro) in Boston who has great interest in the martial arts. During one of his visits to Chinatown shop where he rents DVD's the proprieter is attacked and almost killed by some local hooligans. Old Hop (Jackie Chan) tells Jason that he has been chosen to return a gold staff to ancient China to free the mystical Monkey King who has been turned stone by an evil War Lord. So Jason passes through a magic portal that transports him to the past where he encounters Lu Yan (Chan), a wine imbibing kung fu master, Golden Sparrow (Yifei Lin), a dart throwing expert, and the Silent Monk (Jet Li) a cerebral kung fun master. Together they set out to Moutain Of Five Element to take on the evil War Lord and liberate the Monkey King (Li).
'While the film does not rise to the level of “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, it is fun to watch.

Mr. Hobbs (Michael Caine) is the night janitor at the most prestigious and powerful diamond firm in London and the in world. In his nightly peregrinations he has devised a scheme to open the safe and steal all the diamonds the firm has amassed. To this end he needs to enlist the help of Laura Quinn, a highly paid staff negotiator who is in a position to get the necessary combination of the safe that holds the diamonds.
It seems that Mr. Hobbs has a motive for robbery that goes beyond the mere acquisition of the diamonds but is based on a desire to wreak vengeance for a perceived wrong. Laura Quinn is drawn into the plan because she has been passed over for promotion many times and is in danger of being fired. Thus she is amenable to getting a measure of revenge and at the same time setting herself up financially.
The story moves along at nice pace through the first two thirds of the movie but as it begins to expose the mechanics of the theft and the subsequent investigations the plot twists begin to get in the way and the pace gets a bit ponderous. Michael Caine makes the janitor/diamond thief believable and Demi Moore, looking more her age in forties wardrobe, also turns in a nice performance. But overall the film would have benefited from a some faster paced editing.

Mauro (Michel Joelsas) is whisked away by his parents to go live with his grandfather in Sao Paolo while go "on vacation" What Mauro doesn't know is that his parents are dissidents from a tyrannical dictatorship that existed in Brazil in 1970 and are fleeing arrest. As his parents drop him off in Jewish enclave in Sao Paolo an ambulance is taking his grandfather off after succumbing to a heart attack in his barber shop. An elderly Shlomo (Germano Haiut) finds himself a reluctant guardian of the youngster and subsequently the neighborhood become a surrogate family.
Mauro finds his obsession with the Brazilian soccer team headed by the world famous Pele which is in contention for a third straight win in the World Cup, is shared by the his playmates and by the entire neighborhood. Somehow this sustains him through lonely days ahead especially since his father promised to return to watch the final match with him.
This is a well written and directed movie. We a treated to a fragment of life which shows the humanity in how strangers can become friends when reacting to the travails of a youngster who has been dropped in their midst.

One morning Frank Allen (Ryan Reynolds), an efficiency expert and lecturer, sets out for work late after discovering his wife Susan (Emily Mortimer) turned the clock back as a protest against his obsession with living at the demands of a ticking clock. Things begin to go wrong almost immediately as he misses the ferry and arrives at his lecture late. Later he is picked up in the hotel bar by a voracious blond who tries to seduce him in his room. As he runs away from this situation he gets involved in an auto accident with a pregnant woman in labor. When he gets her to a hospital he is assumed to be the father and things quickly go from bad to worse when the hospital tries to locate him by calling his home.
Now add to this the final straw. His doctor tells him that he could not have possibly fathered his 7 year old daughter. With that news the swift downward spiral begins. Having been kicked out of his home he moves to motel and begins to decry his previously ordered life and begin to act on impulses like buying a red Harley motorcycle and trying to make out with the voracious blonde who contributed to his down fall in the first place. In his depression he continues to make lists that were his way of ordering his life. Now his lists include suicide, killing his wife, killing his best friend, and so forth.
If you can believe that a seemingly intelligent man can sink such depths in such short order you may be inclined to believe the plot of this movie. Actually I might have been more sympathetic if the movie had it ended thirty minutes earlier when his wife was prepared to reconsider. But that did not happen and the whole thing got dragged out in what seemed to me an effort to lengthen it by adding silly coda.

Lawrence Wetherhold (Dennis Quade) is self-absorbed university professor who life is consumed by his ambition to get his book published and become head of the English Department. His family, which has become increasingly dysfunctional following the death of their mother, consists of Vanessa (Ellen Page), an ultra precocious seventeen year old who chases a perfect SAT score which can assure acceptance at prestigious university. Vanessa's older brother, James (Ashton Holmes), has his own issues and aspires, beknownst to his father, to be a poet. And to further add to family disfunction there is Chuck Wetherhold (Thomas Haden Church) , Lawrence's brother by adoption, who has no visible means of support and seems perfectly happy with his life.
Lawrence's self-absorptive life begins to bring conflicts into his otherwise orderly existence as he romances a former student Janet Hartigan (Sarah Jessica Parker), now an emergency room doctor who treats him after an accident. Also Lawrence finds that his book has been accepted for publication after much editing which the publishers feel will provoke controversy and thus generate more sales. Add to this Lawrence decides to throw his hat in the ring to be the next head of the English Department.
All of these elements come together to make an entertaining movie about people who like find ourselves with similar conflicts and situations that we must resolve to everyone's satisfaction. The casting was excellent and I had a feeling I could relate to them with one exception. Sarah Jessica Parker seemed out of place in this. Her cutesy “Sex in the City” did not fit the role of compassionate physician.

You have seen this movie in any number of permutations, with different leading actors, and different locales. The good cop, whose heart is pure but his tactics questionable, the rogue cop or cops whose motives and ambitions are driven by greed and a desire for power combine to make story which is more or less predictable.
Keanu Reeves is Detective Tom Ludlow, a bright star in an elite police unit headed by Captain Jack Warner (Forest Whitaker) who is using Ludlow's successes as a stepping stone to promotion in the police hierarchy. Ludlow is unaware of the machinations of Warner until the bloody assassination of his former partner causes him to reexamine the evidence and discover that all is not what it seems and that there may be an underlying conspiracy and that he may be the patsy. With help of a young detective nicknamed Disco (Chris Evans) he sets out to get answers and revenge for his ex-partner's killing.
To be sure there is lots of gunfire and action but in the end it is not enough to raise this movie to the level of many other films of the same genre. But it is entertaining enough for a Saturday night viewing and a bag of popcorn.

Somewhere out there is a good story to be told about the early days of professional football and about the Neanderthal types who played the game for the sheer pleasure of committing mayhem on each for little pay and many aches and pains. But this is not that movie. George Clooney as leading actor and director just doesn't get the job done in either role.
Clooney as Dodge Connelly, an over the hill coach/quarterback for the Duluth Tigers, finds that the team and indeed the entire professional football league is in danger of folding because of diminishing gate receipts. So Connelly devises a scheme to enlist Ivy League football hero Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski) who has also been hailed as a World War I military hero. Predictably, revenues rise and professional football is apparently saved but for a couple of compications.
First, feisty Lexie Littleton (Renee Zellweger) a hotshot Chicago Tribune reporter is assigned to ferret out the truth about Rutherford's war record. And secondly, a commissioner has been appointed to oversee the football league and set standards for conduct on the field and for financial integrity.
While Ms Zellweger, she of the eternally pursed lips, and Clooney try mightily with the dialog bon mots of their characters that are meant to evoke the brassy talk of the “Roaring Twenties” they just do not generate make a connection. Overall the movie seems to be missing a certain rhythm that moves it forward and makes it a coherent whole.

Winning at 21 (Black Jack) can be hazardous enterprise if you have aspirations to beat the game with a card counting system. Technically card counting is not illegal but the Vegas casino owners will make life extremely difficult for those who indulge in card counting for profit. They have spent much time and money to make sure card counters are identified and discouraged.
But a team of brainiacs from MIT with computer like minds under the aegis of Professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey) have been systematically winning huge sums of money using a system developed by the professor in his younger days. Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess), a math wizard and aspirant to the prestigious Harvard medical school, is recruited by Rosa who promises easy money and a glamorous life apart from his weekday student affairs. Ben, of course, needs $300,000 after being accepted by Harvard Medical and but there is a possibility he can get a full scholarship if he can impress his interviewer that he has a life experience essay which will “blow him away” and thus separate Ben from all the other aspirants who have similarly impressive resumes.
In spite of himself and contrary to his original plan to quit when he has reached his monetary goal, Ben finds that the fun and glamour of being treated as a high roller by the casinos has seduced him and his new found arrogance has led to ignore the Rosa's rules and he suffers the consequences for insubordination. All of this time the team's winning ways have not gone unobserved. Cole Williams (Lawrence Fishbourne) has been tracking them with particular interest in Rosa who has known from an earlier time.
So Ben winds up with nothing and in danger of washing out of MIT and Harvard Medical. But, of course, the story can't end there. After all Ben committed no crime and shouldn't suffer for his indiscretions but should go on to become a respected physician. But you knew that would happen!

Sergeant Brandon King (Ryan Phillips) returns from a tour in Iraq with some of his squad and home town friends to a hero's welcome expecting to end his military service and settle back into his former life in Brazos, Texas. But that is not to be as many returning veterans are beginning to discover. In this movie director, co-writer Kimberly Pierce explores how the traumatic experiences on the front lines continue to haunt these returning soldiers and cause a disassociation with their families and friends which they cannot explain. They also face the fact that they cannot leave the military because the administration has deemed them necessary to continue their enlistments because of the dearth of experienced troops, so called “Stop-Loss”.
When King learns that he has been “Stop-Lossed”, he rebels, goes AWOL and heads for Washington D.C. where he plans to plead his case to his state senator. Along the way he becomes aware of other veterans who have opted to run and are either continually on the run, sometimes with their families, or with the help of sympathetic and well-paid abettors running across the border to Canada. King returns home to find his two best friends have made their own choices neither of which is acceptable to him so he opts to go to Mexico. But there is in him still a deep sense of patriotism and a feeling that he cannot abandon his men who look to him to bring them back safely. And so the final scenes show him going through the bus that is taking them away, touching many on the shoulder as symbol of reassurance.
There will be other films still to be made about this, in my opinion, needless war but in all probability they will dwell on battle scenes and gore. While actual footage of the conflict gathered from soldiers camcorders and cell phones are intercut into the footage, it is a film with little bombast but a surprisingly warm and hopeful movie about human relationships in time of war.

Newbie director Patricia Riggen has brought her first feature length film to the screen in what feels like an extended telenovela. Perhaps what may be most notable about this cinematic effort is the struggle Ms Riggen went through to bring it to fruition, struggling with a myriad problems to self-finance despite being a woman and a Mexican. Ms. Riggen recounted her struggles at a Q and A session after a pre-screening of the film.
But that effort is not what the movie about. It tells an all too common story of a young Mexican illegal immigrant, Rosario (Kate del Castillo),working in the United States and separated from her nine year old son whom she had to leave with her mother in Mexico while she tries to raise enough money bring him to the States. When the grandmother dies unexpectedly the young boy Carlitos (Adrian Alonso) decides to try to go to Los Angeles to rejoin his mother. Along the way he is almost sold to a potential pedophile, evades an immigrant raid, finds his long lost father who fails him, washes dishes in a roadside restaurant, and joins up with a reluctant side kick Enrique (Eugenio Derbez) who initially dislikes him but ultimately becomes a sort of surrogate father figure. There is also an extended cameo appearance by America Ferrera as amateur “coyote” who tries to smuggle Carlito into the United States under the back seat of her minivan.
With all this drama going on there is little suspense. Everything seems to be telegraphed in advance of the happening. But the best part of the film is the performance of Adrian Alonso who carries off his sort of “Superboy” character with a maturity that you might not expect from a youngster. He is ably supported by an excellent performance from Eugenio Derbez in his first dramatic role.

Forget about putting this movie in any kind of historical, geographical, or anthropological context. It takes so many liberties with history that that it gets downright laughable at times. By far the best parts of the film are the CGI sequences involving battle scenes and mammoths charging across the landscape.
As for the story it involves a hunky hunter D'Leh (Steven Strait) who loves Evolet (Camille Belle), a blue eyed escapee from a massacre of her tribesmen by “four-footed devils”, actually Hun-like bandits on horseback. When the bandits attack D'Leh's tribe and make off with Evolet and others, he and a couple others set off to find and free them. They chase the bandits through snow fields, tropical forests, and bleak deserts until they reach the city where the bandits dwell under the rule of an albino dude who is served by a bunch of whining eunuchs. Apparently the bad guys have been capturing people and putting them to work on what resembles the biggest pyramid in the world. Evolet however has a different fate awaiting her. She is slated to be married to one of the bandits.
In the meantime D'Leh has assembled an army of spear carrying Africans who rally to his cause to free the slaves who are building the pyramid. There's ensues a lot of screaming, lance piercing, mammoth's stampeding and other mayhem but D'Leh achieves his objective, saved Evolet and returns to his tribe. All of this apparently foretold in a legend. Now you know the story so you can skip the movie!

It may be a little early to start thinking about the worst films of the year. But I'm putting a big asterisk beside this one so I forget it. Will Ferrell has outdone himself in this totally inane and sophomoric movie. His comedic chops are beginning to wear a little thin as he mugs his way through this disaster.
Jackie Moon (Will Ferrell) is faded rock star who has used his career earnings to buy the Tropics, an ABA basketball team in Flint, Michigan. Moon has barely kept the team viable by virtue of wacky promotions, a bevy of skimpily clad cheerleaders, and completely inept NBA wannabees. When the league announces that the ABA will be absorbed into the NBA, Moon is incensed that the Tropic are not among the four teams selected to be merged. With much histrionics he convinces the other owners to make the selection based on the standings at the end of the season. To this end Moon picks up Monix (Woody Harrelson), a former Boston Celtic who is on his way out. Monix convinces Moon that he should coach the team and Moon should handle the promotions.
I guess you can probably write the rest of the script on your own without any further information from me.

The story of how Anne Boleyn (Natalie Portman) literally lost her head over her ambition to become King Henry VIII's (Eric Bana) queen is a familiar on so there is no surprise of how the story ends. But the movie might be better considered as a morality tale about the behind the scenes machinations of the Boleyn family under the aegis of the infamous Duke of York (David Morrisey) conspire to gain social status, wealth, and influence. The instruments of these ambitions are the comely daughters Anne and Mary (Scarlett Johanssen). Initially it is Anne who is to presented to the king as a potential mistress in order to provide him with a male heir and insure proper succession to the throne. Seems King Henry's queen has been unable to provide that vital need.
But King Henry's eye falls on Mary and in spite of her being married, insists on her joining the court and in the course of time makes her his mistress and the family fortunes are substantially improved. But the liaison does not sit well with Anne who believes Mary poached on her territory. Their enmity causes Anne to be exiled to the French court. Mary becomes pregnant but her condition forces her to be cloistered until the child is born and consequently unavailable to the king. As Henry's eye, begins to roam the Duke of York, concerned that their plans are waning, summons Anne from her exile where she has learned how to use her feministic wiles to achieve her ambition to become queen.
The King, at first amused, then intrigued, goes totally “gaga” over Anne and her rejection of his advances. So besotted is he that he divorces his Queen over the protests of the Catholic Church and breaks off the religious authority of the Pope to form the Church of England. Henry installs Anne as his queen and in short order she becomes pregnant, hopefully to produce an heir to the throne. But the child is a girl and Anne in her distress initiates an incestuous relationship with her brother to try to produce a boy. When the affair is discovered the ending is inevitable. Anne and her brother are beheaded and when last seen Henry is getting cozy with another noble lady.
Mary marches in to the royal quarters and takes Anne's daughter off to her home away from the court. That child will later become Elizabeth I who will rule over what has been call England's Golden Age. Thus ends this saga in the lives of the Tudors, not exactly a family to emulate.

There is a bit irony in this movie about an Egyptian police band made by an Israeli director and an Israeli cast considering the current state of political sensitivity between Israelis and Arabs. The fact that it depicts the Israelis and Arabs coming together in a civil and friendly manner has raised hackles in the Mid-East and caused the movie to be banned in several Arab countries.
Just what could be objectionable in anyone's eyes is beyond my comprehension. What director Elan Kolien has created is a film about an event that could have happened anywhere any time. It deals with human relationships in an honest and humorous way which will surely charm you.
The Alexandria Police Band is on its way to a concert inaugurating an Arab culture center in Israel. But because of language problem they wind up in the wrong town where they will have to spend the night before they can get transportation to the right city. Lieutenant Colonel Tawfig Zacharia (Sasson Gabal) finds himself reluctantly needing to rely on the inhabitants of this isolated town for accommodations for his band members. Dina (Roni Elkabetz) the attractive sexy café owner offers along with one of her customers to harbor them for the night. Dina zeros in on Tawfig as a target for her seductive wiles but his sense of dignity and duty prevent him from taking advantage of the moment. The interplay between these two characters is one of truly human moments as they reveal things about their lives that they may not spoken to others.
There are no car chases, no gun play, no blood spattering, nor special effects in this film. It's just a slice of life which could happen anywhere. It will leave you with a warm feeling that maybe you have known people like those in the movie.

Question: How many Jack Black's does it take to make a Jack Black Movie. Answer: None. Just take the last movie, change the wardrobe, give him a new sidekick, and give him another implausible inane script and let him mug his way through with patented eyebrows. When Black is not the prime character in a movie he has shown he does have some real acting chops. But when he is the main character his film persona does not change from film to film. He remains the same annoying doofus who ultimately perseveres in spite of himself.
In this movie Jerry (Jack Black) gets magnetized while trying to sabotage a local power plant. When he visits his friend Mike (Mos Def) who works in a video shop owned by Mr. Fletcher (Danny Glover). The magnetized field on Jerry's body causes all the VHS tapes in the shop to be erased. Mike, who has been left in charge of the shop in Mr. Fletcher's absence and is understandably frantic about losing long time customers who still view VHS tapes. Jerry convinces Mike that they can replace the tapes by producing their own home made videotapes and convincing the customers that they are legitimate because the tapes have been “swedened” (don't ask!). To their surprise the neighborhood takes to the tapes and everyone wants to participate in the movies.
In the meantime powers that be have told Mr. Fletcher that there are plans to tear down the shop and he will have to relocate unless he can bring the building to code a matter of $60,000. Also the movie companies have gotten a court order to destroy all the homemade tapes due to copyright infringement. But be assured Jerry is up to the challenge and enlists the neighborhood in one last effort to make a move that will raise the money to save Mr. Fletcher's shop. Does that bring a tear to your eye?

Generally I have a fondness for British comedies, but this movie just did not compare with Simon Pegg's past efforts in "Shaun of the Living Dead" or "Hot Fuzz". Maybe it is just me but I could not escape the impression that the script had been “Americanized” somehow, maybe dumbed down.
Simon Pegg as Dennis, an inveterate loser, runs out on his bride-to-be Libby (Thandy Newton) on their wedding day because he can not bring himself to make this final commitment. Apparently his entire life has been a series of lost opportunities because of his failure to follow through and finish anything he engages in. When Dennis discovers that Libby has taken up with Whit (Hank Azaria) an American businessman and marathon runner, he determines that he wants to win back Libby's affections and also the admiration of his young son.
So with the help of his friends he sets out to train for the London Marathon, not so much to win but just to prove to Libby and everyone else that he can finish what he sets out to do. And so as they say, much fun and pratfalls ensue. There are some funny sequences but much of the humor seems forced and juvenile. We can hope that Pegg's next effort will be better written.

At 12 noon the President of the United States is gunned down and a bomb is set off at a public appearance in Spain. Eight times during the next hour and a half the movie rewinds to 23 minutes before that to detail the actions of each of the principals involved the assassination attempt during those critical 23 minute. These included a secret service agent who has been re-activated, an American tourist whose videotape provides a vital “aha” moment, a gaggle of terrorists, a mother and daughter caught in the bombing, and the President of the United States.
Thomas Barnes (Dennis Quaid) has been reactivated to the President's Secret Service detail following an earlier incident when he was wounded protecting the President. When the shots ring out and the bomb explodes Barnes immediately sets out to find the people responsible. A video camera carried by Howard Lewis (Forest Whitaker) leads to the location where the shots were fired and the chase is on. Each time as the bomb explodes we are taken back 23 minutes in time (shades of “Groundhog Day”) to how the terrorists implemented their plan and what precautions the Secret Service took to protect their charge.
But no movie of this genre is complete without the obligatory car chase. And all things considered this one is not bad if overly long. But a friend who viewed the movie with me commented that he had never seen a “Chevy” that could withstand that kind of punishment. Maybe that speaks to the credibility of the whole premise of the movie.

The fact that this movie is being released on Valentine's Day should give you pause if you are adverse to soggy saccharine stories that have an adorable precocious pre-teener, an about to be divorced but devoted daddy, and bevy of attractive ladies who have shared romantic liaisons with daddy dear in the past. But save the hankies there is not much to cry over, Indeed by the end of this overlong film you begin to wonder if men are really so dumb when it comes to women.
Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds) is inveigled by his ten year old daughter, Maya (Amber Breslin), to tell her the story of how he met and married her mother who has just filed divorce papers. So Will tells how he left Emily (Elizabeth Banks), his high school sweetheart, in Madison, Wisconsin and moved to New York City to fulfill his dream of becoming a political VIP. Along the way he gets involved in sort of romantic interlude with a free spirited sprite, April (Isla Fisher), who drifts through life with the prevailing winds. Then there is Summer (Rachel Weisz) who is having an affair with her sexagenarian professor Hampton Roth (Kevin Kline). Will and Summer have a fling until Roth has a heart attack that causes Summer to end the affair.
After hearing the story the precocious Maya, with the wisdom of the very young and in the interest of a happy ending, deduces who among these diverse women will make her daddy happy. So she becomes a “Deus ex machine” and makes it happen. But then you knew it would happen!

In the year 2002 in far off Afghanistan a young taxi driver left his village in his shiny new taxi to deliver four passengers to the a nearby city. He was never seen alive again by his family. The story this film documents is one that has become all too familiar on the news from the war fronts of Iraq and Afghanistan. Be warned that images used in the film are violent, gruesome, and revolting in the extreme.
Dilawar is the smallest at 5' 3” of his family so instead of working the fields as his older bigger siblings he opts to drive a taxi as his contribution to the family welfare. That this youngster could possibly be involved in terrorist activity was inconceivable to is family and friends. But that is what he was accused of when he was detained following an terrorist attack. Dilawar was sent to Bagram Detention Center where he was subjected horrific interrogation techniques to extract intelligence that the interviewers thought he possessed. In five days Dilawar was dead from the beatings sustained in the interrogations. His death was described as resulting from natural causes.
Several enlisted personnel were tried and convicted of charges contributing to the death of Dilawar. Their defense was that they were not told of what the limits of their interrogation techniques were. They were told to get intelligence information out of their prisoners in the most expeditious manner. The movie makes the point that only enlisted men were adjudged guilty. Not a single officer in charge of these troops was ever accused of allowing the interrogation techniques to be used. The path of non-guilt and the battle of semantics over what constitutes torture goes right through the highest levels of government to include such officials as Donald Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales and others who maintain that the war allows the executive branch unlimited powers.
Perhaps the strongest message we should garner from this film what war can do to our soldiers who are in a war they don't completely understand, who immersed in a culture foreign to their own ideals, who are taught to consider their enemies as lower forms of life, and who are encouraged to vent their frustraion on those whom they are interrogating.

The title of this movie must be intended to describe the actions of those foolish enough to buy tickets. The ladies will probably feel they get their money's worth for the amount of time Matthew McConaughey spends flexing his pecs and abs. But for the rest of us I don't think it's not enough to make an effort to see the movie.
The story revolves around two treasure hunters Finn (McConaughey) and Tess (Kate Hudson) who are just about divorced but still in love with each other. Tess has moved on to a job aboard the luxurious yacht of multi-millionaire Nigel Honeycutt (Donald Sutherland) and his ditzy daughter Gemma (Alexis Dziena).
Finn, in the meantime, has found a shard of pottery which presumably is from a Spanish treasure ship which sank during a storm in the Bahamas around 1750. Finn gets Tess excited enough about the find to get her to involve Honeycutt and his daughter in the treasure hunt. Of course here would be no fun if it were not for a bunch of bad guys to whom Finn owes a good deal of money and who are determined to get their share of the loot.
There are false clues and more “Aha” moments than you can count. And eventually Finn and Tess locate the treasure and dispatch the bad guy. And of course, Finn and Tess are reconciled. After all they are now 700 million dollars richer.

You've seen this movie before in countless permutations. It's the same old story of an estranged son who finds success outside the family and returns home only to find his parents and siblings are not so impressed by his celebrity. Indeed they persist in treating him like a loser as they did when they were kids.
Martin Lawrence is a TV personality with Jerry Springer-like show which has gained much success and he has become engaged to A personality type winner of a reality show, Joy Bryant, who is determined to parlay their common celebrity into financial and social success. When Lawrence decides to take his fiancé back to his home town on the occasion of his parents 50th wedding anniversary, events do not go as he envisioned.
Firstly there are his siblings, led by a seriously annoying Mo'Nique, who delight in beating him to a pulp at any and all opportunities. Then there a cousin, Cedric the Entertainer, whose enmity stems from a boyhood incident when the winning of the traditional family obstacle race will determine who will escort the Prom Queen to the dance. There are some funny bits in the movie, but for the most part they seem repetitive and after a while I kept watching for the signal that the last reel was coming up.

This is a dark comedy set in an unlikely place in Bruges, Belgium. Two Irish hitmen, Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) are exiled there to escape capture after Ray accidentally kills a young acolyte while assassinating a priest. Ken quickly becomes enchanted with the old city and drags a reluctant Ray around to see the historic buildings and churches.
Ray, on the other hand, is antsy to move on and wracked with guilt about killing the youngster in Ireland. As he wanders the city on his own he runs into an assortment of characters which will play an integral part in the events that follow, a beautiful Belgian girl who tries to rob him, a cantankerous Canadian tourist who punches him in the nose, and racist American dwarf who is making a movie. Colin Farrell has the best role of his career as the conflicted killer.
When Ken is advised by his potty mouthed boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes) of the true reason for the trip he unable to carry out the assignment thus causing Harry to come to Bruges to finish the job. Harry succeeds but at the expense of having to live up to his own credo, a sort of honor among thieves and cutthroats.

Many of us have very little idea of what the life of a standup comedian's life beyond the footlights. So this movie will give some insight of the travails of one-night stands, cold audiences, and the constant craving to be accepted by your peers as member of the select society of stand-up comedy. This movie pulls back the curtain and takes you on 30 day tour of 30 cities under the aegis of Vince Vaughn who conceived the idea.
Three comics who have somewhat made their bones in standup and one who has not as yet quit his day job as a waiter, aided and abetted by Vince Vaughn and other friends set out to do a one night stands in 30 cities in 30 days. The bus starts out in Los Angeles and follows a circuitous route to Chicago which gets re-routed in the face of Hurricane Katrina. Each night it is new city and a new audience. You get to feel the frustrations of each comic as they try to fit their brand of comedy to the audience and you feel their satisfaction when applause signals a reward for their effort.
In between shows as the bus rolls, there a little vignettes which give you some insight into the personal lives of each man and of the struggle each has had in establishing himself in the competitive world of standup comedy. Bret Ernst, John Caparulo, Ahmed Ahmed, and Sebastian Maniscalo are by no means household names in comedy as yet, but maybe this movie will provide them a stepping stone to the movies, a TV sitcom, or HBO special.

There's very little I can say to make this trite movie more palatable even to those who are into chick flics. It echoes almost every "back from the dead" movie that has ever been made. Better that Eva Longoria Parker should stay in Wisteria Heights and be annoying only on the small screen.
If you must know the plot, it's about Kate (Eva Longoria Parker) who is accidentally killed by a falling ice sculpture on the day of her wedding day to Henry (Paul Rudd). Having established herself as a shrew in life she characteristically refuses to listen to her heavenly guide's instructions about her mission. She believes her task is to prevent Henry from finding solace with another woman.
But Henry's sister is insistent on getting Henry out of his yearlong funk and convinces him to seek help from a psychic/caterer (Go figure!) Ashley (Lake Bell). As expected Henry and Ashley become an item and Kate makes her ghostly presence known to Ashley in an effort to break up the relationship. The rest of the story is predictable, the misunderstanding between lovers, the reconciliation, the change of heart, ad infinitum. Do you think it could any other way than with Kate's fading away as Ashley walks up the aisle to marry Henry? Save the tears for a better movie!

I can't find much to praise in this paint by numbers movie which to all intents is an extended episode from the TV series "CSI". The only suspense is in wondering what manner of gruesome death the killer may conceive for his next victim.
Diane Laine is Jennifer Marsh, a super cybersleuth with the FBI, who chases down bad guys who use the internet for their nefarious endeavors. As she and her crew monitor cyberspace they discover a website that is dedicated to streaming out to viewers around the internet world the online death of the killer's victims. The gimmick is that the more voyeurs log on the quicker the victim dies. There is a lot of cyber chatter which only the computer literati will understand but essentially what Marsh keeps telling her superiors is that it next to impossible to find the guy.
But of course you and I know that Marsh will find him with the help of local detective Eric Box, (Billy Burke) who doesn't get the girl in the end, not even a friendly smooch. Too bad, it might have added another dimension to an otherwise predictable film.

A bunch of twentyish friends are gathered in a New York apartment for a surprise party for one of their own, Rob (Michael Stahl-David), who has been given a promotion and will be leaving for Japan to take up his new position. One of the party, Hud (T.J. Miller) is inveigled into documenting the proceedings over his protests that he knows little about operating a camcorder. The honoree is suitably surprised but suffers a falling out with his girl friend as the party goes on. All of which is being recorded on videotape.
In the middle of all of the festivities there is sudden earthquake and the explosions in the distance. The guests immediately vacate the building and find that some unknown force is attacking the city. Everyone runs into the streets seeking to escape the falling buildings and the amorphous monsters that seem to emerge from the earth with ferocious roars and spawning vicious spiderlike offspring with venomous bites.
In all of the confusion and panic Rob loses track of his girl friend and guilt-ridden about abandoning her, defies authorities and sets out to rescue her after getting a cell phone call that she is trapped in a building. He is joined in the effort by Lizzie (Marlena Diamond) and Hud, the amateur videographer, whose camcorder is apparently equipped with a battery with inexhaustible energy.
The cinematic gimmick of using a camcorder to document the travails of Rob and his friends as the traverse the streets and subways of a city under attack by monsters begins to wear thin after the first half hour or so. The constant quirky jerky movement of the hand held camera makes you a little discombobulated at times.
Then there's the monsters who just burst out of the earth with no hint as to their genesis and give birth to little monsters who bear no resemblance to themselves. The only saving grace for this movie, in my opnion, is that it is short!

Without question this movie is a serious chick flick. It's about Jane (Katherine Heigl) whose greatest joy in life is being a bridesmaid at her girlfriends weddings. Secretly she harbors romantic illusions about her boss George (Ed Burns), a successful outdoor magazine publisher. Her life becomes tumultuous when her sister Tess (Male Ackerman), a glamorous model, returns home and immediately sets her sights on George causing Jane have wrenching fit of jealousy as she sabotages her sister's engagement.
In the meantime while engaged in bridesmaiding Jane encounters Kevin (James Marsden), who journalistic beat is weddings. He accidentally finds her datebook and becomes intrigued by her seeming obsession with weddings. He convinces his editor that this could be story that could make the cover of the publication he works for. So he sets out to follow her activities, interview her, and photograph her in the 27 bridesmaid dresses she has amassed.
But as expected there is inevitably a denouement when Jane comes to realize that George is not for her and that Kevin is guy she has been waiting for. So all is resolved in the end and all live happily ever after. Even sister Tess gives up her witchy ways and sees a second chance with George.

It is real treat to see two of Hollywood's illustrious veteran icons, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, together in the same movie and exercising their comedic chops. At the heart of the film is a black and white buddy story which transitions in a predictable way from initial dislike, to bonding over medical prognosis, and a common desire to do things they would like to do before they leave this earth. The latter is the source of the movie's title, “ The Bucket List” --- things you would like to do before you kick the bucket.
Nicholson is Edward Cole an ultra rich hospital tycoon who is diagnosed with terminal cancer and given six months to a year to live. Under his own austerity rules he is paired up in a room with Carter Chambers (Freeman) who has a similar oncological prognosis. As plot demands they initially bristle at each other but later bond over gin rummy. Carter introduces Cole to the concept of the Bucket List to which Cole responds by insisting that they do all the things on the list. His enormous wealth will allow them to go wherever in first class luxury.
The story is predictable but the comedic talents of Nicholson and Freeman keep the movie from being boring. Nicholson especially has a real knack for chewing up the scenery but Freeman holds his own and gives as much as he gets. Sean Hayes as Cole's personal assistant , Thomas, is excellent as the traveling concierge who gets Cole and Carter where they want to go.

“The Orphanage” is a true rarity among horror films --- No Special Effects! You will not get hordes of cockroaches and spiders crawling all over the screen, or walls that morph into slobbering monsters, or cretins chasing their victims with chainsaws and axes. Instead your imagination is challenged to see and hear what the mother in the story is experiencing. There are indeed some creepy moments and a few ghostly presences but you are never quite sure if they are for real or if they exist only in the imagination.
A Spanish woman, Laura (Belen Rueda) moves into an abandoned orphanage where she spent her childhood. She is accompanied by her doctor husband, Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and their adopted ten year old son, Simon (Roger Princep). In addition to many medical problems the child has displays an over active fantasy life where he sees and plays with imaginary friends.
The plan is to provide a haven for special needs children and the house is fitted out appropriately with space for six other children. But shortly after moving in Simon finds some new seemingly imaginary friends and Laura begins to experience strange happenings which only she can sense and in some way related to her life at the orphanage. Then Simon goes missing and is nowhere to be found and there is no clue to his disappearance. After all is done to find the child, the search is terminated but Laura insists that there is still hope of finding Simon and refuses to leave the house despite the entreaties of her husband.
From this point on we see the story through Laura's eyes and experience her anguish and hope as she follows the clues she discovers to find the child. I will not divulge the ending but suffice it to say you will be left wondering if what you witnessed was real or imagined

Movies Reviews for 2006 Screenings

Movies Reviews for 2007 Screenings