I Love You Phillip Morris,Going the Distance, The Ref and other CHRISTMAS Themed Movies

It is easy to see why the outrageous, quirky and amusing film I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS has been kept on the shelf for over a year by the studio--they just didn't know how to promote it, and they were scared that the "in your face" sexuality would be a problem for the general public. YES and YES, but as for sophisticated film-goers, this is a treat. Based on a true story, the larger than life Jim Carrey stars as a married, church-going family man, but when he survives a spectacular car crash, he decides to come WAY out of the closet and become a GAY man. When his new gay lifestyle becomes too expensive, he resorts to fraud and ends up in prison, where he quickly falls for the sweet blond queer boy Ewan McGregor. The rest of the film shows the length to which he tries to keep this relationship together, and in the money, which leads to wilder and more complicated scams, returns to prison, escapes, and more scams, etc. The manic comic energy is exhilarating at times, and sometimes it wears you out, but the film is NOT DULL, and does NOT pull punches when it comes to the sexual relationship of the two. A bit broad at times, I liked Carrey's chutzpah and commitment to the role, and McGregor, who has the quieter "straight man" role is quite charming. You haven't seen anything like this before. GRADE------B

GOING THE DISTANCE is a trifle from this past September that I saw on an airplane last week, and it still wasn't very good. Drew Barrymore and Justin Long play would be lovers who must struggle to keep their relationship going when she moves back to San Francisco from New York for a job opportunity. They rack up a lot of miles (I hoped they had signed up for frequent flyer programs) trying to keep their relationship fresh and important. Really, I didn't care, because the film has little plot and features every predictable cliche about long distance relationships that you've ever heard of. GRADE------- D+

It played at SIFF and then for a brief week just as I was going on vacation, so I missed writing about LEAVING, a French film notable for the luminous performance of the intense Kristin Scott Thomas, who plays a middle-aged woman seriously smitten with an illegal worker (the hunky Sergi Lopez) from Spain who has been hired by her husband to remodel the basement apartment. So smitten, in fact, that she suddenly leaves her husband and teen aged children to take up life with him, and of course her husband does all he can to make her financial life miserable to force her to return. We've seen this before, but never with such fascinating actors, and Ms Scott-Thomas keeps us riveted through to the tragic ending. GRADE-----B

I also missed writing about MARWENCOL, a documentary about a man who, after he becomes seriously beaten, begins creating tableaus out of Barbie and Ken and GI Joe dolls that reenact scenes from World War II military conflicts, and then photographs them. These photos have become an artistic sensation, and the film raises the questions of "What is art?" and "What is reality?" for this mentally challenged artist. This would make an interesting double bill with the recent EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP, which I found even more disturbing. GRADE---B

Every year my wife and I enjoy the brilliantly witty acerbic comedy THE REF (1994) in which a cat burglar played by Denis Leary takes as his hostages a bickering couple in small town suburbia, played with GREAT timing by Judy Davis and Kevin Spacey. The entire film is set on Christmas Eve, with five more family members coming over for dinner and a delinquent son home from military school, who has just blackmailed his teacher......There is a lot of meaty plot points, and amusing characters, and very funny lines, both irreverent and poignant, and we laugh out loud a lot. This is one of the great Christmas themed movies of all time (for adults, due to some very rough but funny language) and a good antidote to the treacly sweet Christmas crap that keeps boring you to death this time of year. GRADE------A-
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Here's a list of some of my favorite Christmas themed films--and all are available on DVD----

IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1942) is still the top, and it seems to get better than ever with age.
FROZEN RIVER (2008)--a single mom tries to raise Christmas money by--human trafficking!?
THE REF (1994)--cat burglar must deal with funny dysfunctional family to escape police.
THE LION IN WINTER (1968)--Katherine Hepburn and Peter O'Toole as Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II who fiercely fight over a successor in a brilliantly funny script about Christmas Eve survival, with Anthony Hopkins and Timothy Dalton.
MEET ME IN ST LOUIS (1944) --It covers a lot of seasons, but there's a wonderful Christmas scene where Judy Garland sings "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
MIRACLE OF 34TH ST (1947)--very sentimental and charming, with Natalie Wood as the skeptical child learning about love and truth and Santa.
THE APARTMENT (1960)--cynical yet heartwarming Billy Wilder comedy-drama with Fred McMurray, Jack Lemmon and Shirley McLaine features a long segment set at Christmas.
A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1938 and 1951)--still the best versions of the Dickens tale,with the later one starring the very effective Alastair Sims the best.
SINCE YOU WENT AWAY (1944)--this home front film set in WWII covers several years, but has some very effective scenes set during the holidays.
ABOUT A BOY (2002)--a self absorbed bachelor (Hugh Grant, of course) becomes involved with a lonely boy whose mother is chronically depressed in this unique comedy-drama set during the holiday period.

The above films are a solid Grade A . Below are some great films I'd rate a B+

LOVE ACTUALLY (2003)--a big cast and multiple story lines has many falling in love during the holiday season in London, with some memorable characters portrayed by Bill Nighy as an aging rock star looking for one more hit, Emma Thompson as a betrayed wife, and Hugh Grant (again) as the Prime Minister.
THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER (1941)--Monty Wooley stars as an acerbic, eccentric man who breaks his leg and must stay at the home of Bette Davis over the holidays, driving everyone crazy in this amusing story.
BRIDGET JONES DAIRY (2001)--Renee Zellwiger, Hugh Grant and Colin Firth, with several comic scenes set at the holidays--check out the Christmas sweaters!
MEET JOHN DOE (1941)--Sentimental but interesting Capra film with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck--lots of social commentary, with emotional climax set on Christmas Eve.
BAD SANTA (2003)--outrageously profane and at times very offensive, this is not for the faint of heart, but there are many funny moments as an alcoholic, criminal Santa (Billy Bob Thornton) tries to set up a series of department store robberies with his black elf, but becomes sidetracked by young boy who still believes in Santa. Disgusting and amusing and poignant, this is one-of-a-kind.
HOME ALONE (1990)--the first and best (with three sequels) has an eight year old mistakenly left alone at Christmas while the rest of the family flies off to Paris, and he must fight off some clumsy burglars who have targeted his house. Macaulay Culkin is terrific as the child.
MIXED NUTS (1994)--a very odd black comedy set on Christmas Eve in a suicide hot line center has some laughs and quirky moments--hit or miss, but every time I see it, it grows on me. Stars Steve Martin, Madeline Kahn, Rob Reiner Adam Sandler, Jon Stewart, Rita Wilson, Juliette Lewis and others.

Others worth checking out---THE BISHOP'S WIFE (1947) with Cary Grant, THIS CHRISTMAS (2007) with large black family coming together with problems and love, THE NATIVITY STORY (2006)--a serious, reverent depiction of the birth of Christ, and POLAR EXPRESS (2004) but only on the big screen with the eye-popping (at the time) 3-D effects, which made it seem a lot better.

Not films, but A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS gets me every time, and MR MAGOO's CHRISTMAS CAROL is a lot of fun.

I know I've missed a few--send me an email or comment if you have a neglected Christmas film.


COMING SOON-----THE TOP FILMS OF THE DECADE-----and in early February---the TOP FILMS OF 2010--just in time for the Oscars.

Alamar, Social Network, Love and Other Drugs, more BB

A lot has been written about SOCIAL NETWORK by others as well as myself, but I want to add that this is the film to beat for the year end awards so far. I took my wife to see it on the last day of operation of the now closed Uptown Theatre on lower Queen Anne. I shall miss the Uptown because it was never hard to find parking nearby (unless there was a major event at the Seattle Center), never terribly crowed, had a nice urban neighborhood feel to it and was the closest and easiest "in town" theatre to reach for me--and right on the (single) bus line for me. I hope someone else can take over this fine theatre with three screens and get better programming for it. Seemed like they were always showing second runs and low key foreign films, and they were all held over for weeks and weeks. But as for SOCIAL NETWORK, the characterizations and actors continue to fascinate on second viewing, and the script is so sharp and literate and delivered at the fastest pace possible, that you marvel at the cleverness of it all.
GRADE-------A

Part documentary, part reality film, all dreamy ALAMAR floats by like a beautiful reverie. A young boy who lives in Rome with his mother, spends his first summer with his Mexican father and grandfather on a house built on stilts on a coral reef island off the coast of Mexico, and discovers the joys of swimming, boating, fishing, and watching a bird eat insects off the floorboards of this humble shack--in other words, communing with this lovely watery-world. He takes to it effortlessly and with great enthusiasm, and it is a pleasure to watch him discover the joys of nature. The film is unstructured--no plot to speak of, with only a little talking (subtitles), and at times the uncertain camera movements moving with the waves or in the boat can make you a little sea-sick, but if you are patient, the ethereal film becomes quite moving and affecting. GRADE-----A-

LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS benefits from having two very attractive leads (Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway) cavorting in the nude many times during this love story/sex story/disease-drama/comedy film set in the 1990-s. (They made a nice, effectively hostile married couple in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN.) Unfortunately, the film wants to be all things to all viewers, so it throws in some vulgar sex jokes, dreary disease of the week cliches, satirical jabs at the medical drug industry, and unconvincing social commentary, and introduces characters only to never have them show up again. This is probably the last film of the recently deceased Jill Clayburgh, but after her first brief scene, she disappears completely from the film. It is watchable, thanks to the leads, and if they'd kept the film edgy, with the sex, nudity and relationship angles, which are the strongest aspects, then it would be much more satisfying. GRADE-----B-

The following were viewed on DVD from the library.......
The recent independent Mexican film SIN NOMBRE (2008) was quite a revelation to me. A lot of characters are introduced early in the film, but the film narrows itself quickly to a young man who is trying to break away from the violent gang life he leads when his girlfriend is callously killed by the gang leader, the newest, younger member still a child who he has pulled into the gang world and who is to become his downfall in powerful ironic terms, and a young girl who is trying to escape the poverty of Guatemala by traveling north to the United States with her father and uncle, and who finds a dangerous attraction to this ex-gang member. These characters all come together throughout the film at various times, and it makes for a fascinating socio-ethnic collision with very intense, sobering moments. The reality seemed so vivid that it's hard to believe that many of these characters were played by first time locals. GRADE------A-

A beautiful actress tries to hide her Jewish director husband from the Nazis in the basement of his theatre during occupied Paris in the low key film THE LAST METRO (1980). The film, directed by Francois Truffaut, seemed to romanticize the occupation, with many situations that could have been intense softened by humor or mugging or the glib actions of the theatre group. The final scene was particularly odd--it seemed to tack on a fairy tale ending to what could have been a tragic ending. Still, the film has some charm and interest, especially when the leads are the beautiful Catherine Deneuve and dashing Gerard Depardieu (about 100 pounds ago.) GRADE-----B

THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER (1941) is a curious film, beautifully photographed in black and white, and with a great soundtrack by Oscar winner Bernard Hermann (who did many of Hitchcock's great films) and featuring a terrific supporting role for Walter Huston (as the Devil Scratch). It's the story of a struggling farmer who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for some wealth and good fortune, but later comes to regret his decision. I was into this story all the way until the end, which features a not-so-convincing speech by the Daniel Webster character, and I didn't buy it. Still, oddly entertaining and well worth watching. GRADE-----B

One of Brigitte Bardot's most famous films, the once scandalous ...AND GOD CREATED WOMAN (1956) seems a bit tame by today's standards, but as usual, I found BB to be believable and enchanting as a young "wild" bride who causes havoc among her husband, his older brother and her would be older lover. This is the third BB film I've seen in the last two weeks, and in each she has some peek-a-boo nudity and some extended (!) dance scenes--in this one she dances with wild, sexual abandonment in front of all three men for what seems like 5 minutes, until finally her husband steps up and slaps some sense into her. Not too politically correct, but very watchable. GRADE------B-

Since I was in college, I occasionally have had what I call APOCALYPTIC dreams--where the world is on the brink of disaster and there I sit watching it all happen, helpless to do anything about it. Many films have exploited this theme, especially the recent 2012 where the whole world is destroyed while one (lucky?) family manages to avoid death dozens of times over while all around them are sent to fiery deaths. My dreams have witnessed the atomic mushroom explosion and cloud, the moon plunging to the earth, a fireball rolling towards me, the fall from a tall building, and many variations. Unfortunately, there are NO SPECIAL EFFECTS in the Stanley Kramer film ON THE BEACH (1959) which starts when the world has already killed off the northern hemisphere with massive nuclear attacks, and the resulting poisonous cloud has killed off everyone and is slowly making it's way to Australia, where Gregory Peck and Ava Gardener must decide whether or not they want to fall in love before they die. (He's lost his family in the US while he was in a submarine in the Pacific, and she's a drunk who's never known love). Ava's friend "Julien" has also never been in love (and possibly gay--played well by Fred Astaire) but has ambitions to be a winning race car driver (!!!!!) and submarine Lt. Anthony Perkins must deal with a young wife who can't face the reality of their grim situation. The premise is VERY SERIOUS to these characters, and there are no laughs in the story---it is handled without the hint of camp. I found it intriguing, but it made me think that I wish the story had been a bit more----LURID ? LIVELY ? SENSATIONAL ? It's thoughtful, but I missed the giant mushroom cloud heading their way. GRADE-------B-

CLIENT 9, TODAY'S SPECIAL, plus Jane Pittman, Old Maid, Sex and City II and Brigette Bardot!!

Top of the week is a cracker-jack of a documentary--CLIENT 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer--and before you think you know all you need to know about this movie, the tag line, which is quite accurate, reads "You don't know the real story..." To his credit, Spitzer, who is interviewed thoroughly in this film, takes full responsibility for the sexual escapades he became involved in, which ended his political career as New York governor. But the big picture paints a whole other side of the story. He started out as NY attorney general and became obsessed with stopping the rampant corruption and carelessness with which Wall Street did their business. He sued many financial companies for bad business practices--this was several years before the fall of Wall Street firms that led to the crippling effect on our current economy---and he had many successful results. When he became governor of NY he alienated many powerful (mostly Republican) people, and guess what!?--they all seemed to have a finger in his fall from grace. There are many telling moments as the heads of AIG and other institutions gloat over his disgrace, all the while stealing BILLIONS of dollars at the expense of the average American tax payer, you and I. It seems that the masses and the media care more about the sex lives of those in power, than the outrageous greediness and fraud that is perpetrated upon us by the rich and powerful of Wall Street. This film made me angry and disgusted. GRADE--------A-



When a young chef is bypassed for promotion at his high end restaurant, he quits and ends up helping out at his father's run down, greasy-spoon east Indian restaurant, and by doing so, finds his cooking inspiration and a girlfriend to boot. This is a very familiar story, with every plot point predictable from the onset, and the actors play it very broadly. While it's heart is in the right place, most of the jokes fall flat and the film lacks energy. TODAY'S SPECIAL doesn't live up to it's title. GRADE-------C+

The new thriller starring Russell Crowe, called THE NEXT THREE DAYS, is a major disappointment. The plot is the main culprit, since the film starts off with the arrest of his wife (Elizabeth Banks) but we aren't sure what for until later in the film, and that confuses us from the start. Then we never know what really happened until the very end of the film, and by that time I didn't really care. Here is an ordinary man whose wife is in prison for murder--somewhat of a mild-manner Everyman, who manages to track down and interview a famous felon who managed to escape from prison many years ago and is happy to spill the details (!?!) and then decides to break his wife out of prison because he loves her so much (?!?). The plotting didn't make much logical sense to me. He ends up paying a deaf motorcycle hoodlum (!?) to create new passports for his family, and creates a whole map with pictures and charts on the kitchen wall of his plan. (Apparently he had no friends or family who would drop in to visit, even though he has a son in elementary school who must have been suspicious, and he acts strangely towards his in-laws--but they must never go to the house, either.) And don't get me started on the scene where he single-handedly steals money from a meth-lab house BY SETTING THE HOUSE ON FIRE (!!!!!!!!!) and then tries to be heroic by pulling a drug dealer out of the flames and putting him in his car (!!!!!!) When the break out plan does start into motion, he seems to turn into James Bond, with everything seeming to fall his way. I didn't buy it for a second. The drama is manipulated in every possible manner (suspense, drama, tears, love), sort of like the ickiness I felt when I watched director Paul Haggis' earlier film CRASH in 2005. Sometimes his writing works as in CASINO ROYALE and MILLION DOLLAR BABY, but when he's off, he's really off. GRADE-------D+


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This was a busy week for DVD's and some TCM selections. Now over 25 years old, the made-for TV film THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MISS JANE PITTMAN (1974) still holds up incredibly well, especially the career capping performance of Cicely Tyson, who won the best Actress Emmy for her role as a woman's remarkable life from age 12 as a slave through age 110. The final simple scene in front of the courthouse is one of the most memorable moments captured on film in any medium, and has haunted me since I first saw it on TV long ago. It still carries a big BIG punch. GRADE-----B+


An early Bette Davis film I'd never seen turned out to be an excellent example of the soap opera/three hankie melodrama---THE OLD MAID (1939)--and that year was what many consider to be the golden year of Hollywood films. (Great films from 1939 include GONE WITH THE WIND, GOODBYE MR. CHIPS, STAGECOACH, DARK VICTORY, NINOTCHKA, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, MR SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON, and the amazing WIZARD OF OZ.) Add THE OLD MAID to that incredible line up. Davis and Miriam Hopkins play cousins who compete for the affections of the same man--a rivalry which spans many years. The biggest fireworks seem to come on the day of some important event--usually a wedding, where some lurid secret must be revealed at that very moment---just minutes before the ceremony!!!!! Set in the 1860's-thru the turn of the century, this story based on the Edith Wharton novel, is an engrossing, and entertaining bit of Americana. GRADE------B+

I think the recent SEX AND THE CITY II (2010) got a bum rap when it opened to scathing reviews last May during SIFF, so I missed it then. I realized early on that the (very) few laughs in the first half hour were actually very serious--the opening scenes features an over-the-top gay wedding, complete with a full men's chorus and Liza Minnelli, but in lieu of the current political (gay marriage) climate, it is actually rather enlightening as the characters reflect on love and marriage and change. The film seems to reposition itself into out and out drama by the end. Fans of the TV series were bound to be disappointed by the lack of smart, shocking sex comedy antics, and I know I had to reset my expectations differently, but I think there were some very clever, sly, shocking and moving moments in the story that sees the four best friends reconnecting in a trip to Abu Dhabi and discovering that their lives had all changed drastically. Their shallowness becomes truly appalling to themselves, as they grapple with restrictive customs of the Middle East and issues dealing with their changing bodies and more adult relationships. Do I wish there were more laughs? Sure, but I was never bored, and the writers keep the faith by exploring sides of the women we didn't really get to see on TV. Except maybe Samantha, who's still a wanton slut obsessed with sex. Yeah. GRADE------B

An early, episodic George Stevens film, ANNIE OAKLEY(1935) features a sparkling Barbara Stanwyck as the most famous sharp shooter in the world, who joins Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and has a romantic relationship with another sharp shooter. The Wild West show seemed portrayed very authentically. Another charming bit of Americana. GRADE-----B

I saw my first two Brigitte Bardot films this week. The first is a comedy mystery called COME DANCE WITH ME! (1959) which has Bardot joining a dance studio to try to solve the murder of her husband's blackmailer. The plot is nothing special, but Bardot is a revelation to the uninitiated. There are several homosexual characters that are treated with natural grace, so it comes as a bit of a shock when some nasty stereotypes are dragged out towards end of the film. GRADE-----B-

An earlier Bardot film, NAUGHTY GIRL (1956) aka MAM'ZELLE PIGALLE has a younger teen Brigitte staying with a famous entertainer friend of her father while he's away, and she innocently wrecks havoc on all concerned. She is delightfully charming, the best thing in the film, and clearly a star in the making. GRADE------C+

Cary Grant and Betsy Drake (who were married at the time) star in a sentimental comedy called ROOM FOR ONE MORE (1952), about a kind hearted couple who keep adopting kids and pets. Grant keeps complaining that he can't get any (sexual) attention because their house is full of five kids, a large dog, and a litter of kittens, and that running joke becomes rather tiresome, but I have to say that it seemed very true! GRADE------C+

Wasteland, Unstoppable, Morning Glory, Boys Are Back

The best documentary at SIFF last May was an amazing film that illustrates how art can affect and possibly change the lives those who make it and view it. In this case, the art can empower the people living at the bottom of society. WASTELAND chronicles Sao Paulo born artist Vic Muniz (now living in Brooklyn) as he goes back to Sao Paulo to a land fill dump, and creates some astonishing works of art out of the garbage that is collected there, with the help of some local garbage collectors and sorters. The film has great emotional power as it shows how subjects become overcome when they realize that even their humble lives can have great beauty and dignity. The film doesn't flinch or sugar coat--there are some tragic ramifications, too, as it raises that decades old question--if you offer a poor, disadvantaged person a way out of the ghetto through art (or acting or a taste of some sort of celebrity, etc.) then how responsible are you to keep them out of poverty? Indeed, how do you keep them out of poverty without supporting them totally? GRADE--------A

UNSTOPPABLE is a runaway train thriller starring Denzel Washington, and it works about as well as this situation can work itself out. Fortunately, the camera work is not as chaotic as other thrillers (the dreadfully jerking camera work drove me crazy in the recent FAIR GAME and BOURNE films) and the actors are all game. It is a popcorn movie--loud enough to drowned out the chomping of kernels, but smart and swift enough to keep most people from feeling the need to chomp in the first place. Satisfyingly and realistically grounded. GRADE-----B

The script is witty and fast, and the leads, especially Diane Keaton and Harrison Ford add some charming gravitas to the familiar story of a young naive girl (a flighty and sweet Rachel McAdams) who gets a dream job as an executive producer for a struggling early early morning TV talk show in NYC and struggles to raise it up in the ratings. The film, MORNING GLORY actually gets better at the half way mark, when she tries to convince the higher executives and her cranky co-hosts (Keaton and Ford) to try to lighten up and stop taking things so seriously, and there is a lot of humor in seeing these old pros try to be civil while acting like fools for the cameras. We do know where it is all headed, however, but it is an easy watch.
GRADE-------B-

The remaining films of the week are all from the public library's DVD collection. Released just last year, THE BOYS ARE BACK (2009)stars Clive Owen and was directed by Australian Scott Hicks who created the wonderful SHINE over 10 years ago. Based on a true story and book, the film creates a world where a widowed man must build a relationship with his young son after the death of his wife and then also with his older teen son who lives in England with his ex-wife. He does this by giving them a lot of freedom, and things don't always go very well. There is a strong sense of sadness and grieving in the early part of the film, but the film centers on the love and humanity of this damaged family, and transcends the circumstances of losing a loved one. The two sons are played with extraordinary skill by two unknowns and the film looks gorgeous, with beautiful scenery of southern Australia. The music is moving and technically this is one quality movie-- an under appreciated GEM...... GRADE-------A-

Samuel Fuller's NAKED KISS (1964) is a lucid, sometimes lurid melodrama of an ex-prostitute who is trying to go good in a new small town, but of course, many folks, especially the town cop who beds her when she first arrives, think she can never change. The opening scene is most memorable, as a bald woman pummels a drunken man unconscious with a very large and heavy purse. This is our first glimpse of the heroine, played with striking authority by Constance Towers, who reminds me a great deal in this film of the beautiful,icy cold but humane presence of Tippi Hedren (THE BIRDS and MARNIE). Towers has appeared on quite a number of TV shows over the years (including Perry Mason, Young and the Restless and Frasier just to name a few, and currently she's a regular on General Hospital) but this film and Fuller's SHOCK CORRIDOR (1963) are her most memorable films. She is so watchable and likable in this potboiler that it is a shame she hasn't made it bigger in movies. This is the performance of her life and she will mesmerize you. GRADE------B+

The British spy thriller THE QUILLER MEMORANDUM (1966) reminds me of other classy, down and dirty (and subtle) spy films from mostly the 1960's which include IPCRESS FILE, FUNERAL IN BERLIN (both with a young Michael Caine as spy Harry Palmer), and THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD and others, which were sort of an antidote from the glossy, noisy Ian Fleming/James Bond extravagances. George Segal is in Berlin trying to find the headquarters of the continuing neo-Nazi presence of this post WWII city, and a dashing Max Von Sydow is his nemesis, with Senta Berger and Alec Guiness in support. Intriguing, if a bit underwhelming, with an economical script by Harold Pinter. GRADE-----B.

Hereafter, Fair Game, Life As We Know It, Jolene

Clint Eastwood keeps churning out a movie a year, and they are predictably smooth, entertaining, engrossing and watchable. This is equally true of his latest film HEREAFTER, which despite the fact that there are a lot of this type of topic on TV and theatre and movies (think MEDIUM, The MENTALIST, The SIXTH SENSE to name just a few), Eastwood makes this film very serious and contemplative, and because it is so well acted and produced, our attention is held raptly for the whole two hours. Afterwards we might complain that we've seen it all before, but at the time it works well. There is a particularly rapturous and frightening early segment that is awesome in its technical skill and special effects---a tsunami hits an Indonesian coastal village---but the rest of the film is more concerned with feelings of loss and loneliness, and sadness permeates most every scene. GRADE------B

There is a good, complex political story in FAIR GAME (a lame title) by director Doug Liman, which is based on the true story of Valerie Plame, the ex-CIA spy who was outed by the Bush administration in retaliation for articles written by her husband writer Joe Wilson about the lack of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and the political lying and coverup. Unfortunately, the film is nearly undone by a busy camera style that feels like the camera-person is a 12 year old dyslexic boy filming while on roller skates. Watching such a film makes a lot of people nauseous and can give you a headache. It is certainly annoying, and instead of creating tension (the plot has plenty of that anyway) it makes you want to escape to the exit. Fortunately, the plot has a lot of surprises and irony, and the actors, especially leads Naomi Watts and Sean Penn create a very human side to these protagonists. GRADE--------B

I kept avoiding SECRETARIAT because it seemed to be promoted as a generic Disney-fied film, and I was partly right. (I saw it this week because AMC theatres have now added early matinees before noon on Fridays in addition to Saturdays and Sundays for just $5 and I was desperate to see something to show my support. I ended up with a PERSONAL, PRIVATE screening, and enjoyed myself for it.) The film plays like a very safe, gentrified version that many Disney dramas fall in to. But the story is very engrossing, and the ace in this film is Diane Lane's strong performance as a wife and mother of four who against the odds (and her husband's wishes) takes over her dying father's horse ranch and raises and trains the remarkable big red horse who went on to win the very rare triple crown of horse racing. A colorful near-hammy performance by John Malkovich is also quite entertaining, and by the end I was won over. GRADE------B-

LIFE AS WE KNOW IT is a predictably plotted comic filming of a sad and serious subject. When a young couple dies in a car crash, they leave the care and upbringing of their baby to their best single friends---two people who tried to date once, disastrously, and who now hate each other. They are forced now together to raise this one year old. Thankfully, Kathrine Heigl (Grey's Anatomy) and Josh Duhamel (TV's Las Vegas) are charming together and create some interest in the obvious plot trajectory. GRADE---------C+

One of the first creators of the Seattle International Film Festival, director
Dan Ireland's latest film was screened several years ago at SIFF, and has just now started opening around the country. To be fair, the film has almost faded from my memory and I have not seen this latest version which may have been tweaked or reedited, but what I remember most was that the film seemed to be a hodge podge of adventures as the young main character called JOLENE (played nicely by newcomer Jessica Chastain) grows up from her teen years from a neglected orphan to a manipulative young adult, the result of abusive relationships and an unloving family base. The most distinctive episode has her under the care (in prison) of a lonely guard (Frances Fisher) who has sexual designs on her, and later she becomes involved with a Las Vegas mobster, with tragic results. The film ends enigmatically. I didn't really care too much about her. Yes, it was a hard knock life, but she is also portrayed as an amoral, mixed up human being who makes a lot of bad choices, too. The film was a let down for much of that SIFF audience, who mostly walked out in stunned silence, even though the film makers were present in the audience. GRADE------C

This week the DVD choices were not so hot. My wife and a good friend Curt are both fans of THE LONG LONG TRAILER (1954) which is based on a popular novel at the time, but played to me like an extended version of an I LOVE LUCY episode, where Lucy and Ricki get married and leave for an extended road trip/honeymoon pulling a very (dangerously) long trailer across the country. There are the typical jokes about trying to control a trailer that large (can't pull over easily, can't stop too fast, can't back it up without some catastrophe, etc), and Lucy has a hobby of loading up on canned goods in the already overloaded rig, as well as collecting huge rocks (mini boulders the size of sea turtles) that add tons of weight. I don't think I laughed once, but smiled a few times. Strictly for lovers of I LOVE LUCY. GRADE-----C+

A film noir that seemed rather flat to me was CRISS CROSS (1949) with a strong cast including Burt Lancaster, Yvonne de Carlo and Dan Duryea. It is very watchable (especially de Carlo, who I haven't seen much of except for The Munsters), but raised a lot of red flags for me, and the ending (Shakespearean, with everyone lying dead) left me feeling rather tired instead of inspired. GRADE------C+

Guy Ritchie's film before SHERLOCK HOLMES(2009)--- which plays like another version of LOCK STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS--is called ROCK N ROLLA (2008)which features some amusing performances by Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkenson and Tom Hardy. But is it just me or has he remade the same film some 4 times now. (Also see REVOLVER and SNATCH.) London gangsters with strong accents, lots of humor amidst the violent outbursts, plenty of gun play, plot twists, revenge, murder, torture and corruption and a scene or two of kinky sex. Seen it all before, Guy. Let's try a different genre. (In fact, SHERLOCK HOLMES 2 is coming soon.) GRADE------C+

A British film that was hardly released, CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA (2005) wants so hard to be a BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM or BRIDE AND PREJUDICE or THE WEDDING BANQUET, but it is most definitely not in every aspect. When a young man returns from medical school he moves in with his male lover and his aunt and cousin. Immediately his East Indian family plans for him to get married to a long time family friend, and arranges a wedding party. The young man is so passive that he cannot tell his family that he is gay, so ends up going along with the plans so as not to hurt any one's feelings (?!--what about his boyfriend?!) There are a couple of funny characters, including the abrasive, drunken auntie, her precocious daughter, and the grandmother who loves to give the evil eye to the auntie. After several amusing twists, the truth comes out in a potentially very moving scene, but the film is so poorly filmed and photographed and leisurely directed that even that scene is blown. If ever a film needed to be remade, this one could be improved about 200 percent. GRADE--------C-

R.E.D, Conviction, Last Train Home plus more Dickens

LAST TRAIN HOME is a fascinating documentary about the eye opening mass holiday migration that nearly all of China takes at the same time--like what happens to a lessor degree in the Christmas holiday season in the US, but in China most factories close down for the two week period, and most everyone wants to go home to visit family since so many workers have left their families to find work in the city. Of course, there are never enough seats on the planes or trains to accommodate everyone at the same time, and this causes lots of emotional stress and a great expense of time and money just to spend what may end up to be a few days with their family. (If ever a country needed to space out their vacation time for workers, this is the one.) The film follows a family trying desperately to board an overcrowded train, and having to spend several days at a very packed train station waiting for room--it seems to be every man for himself. Then when they finally get to their destination, the stress of living apart takes it's toll, especially on the young kids, who resent living with grandparents apart from their parents. It's an emotional roller coaster of a film. Grade-----B

An action popcorn movie, easy to watch with some great moments by the actors including Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, John Malkovitch and Mary Louise Parker, the film R.E.D (which stands for Retired Extremely Dangerous) soon disappears from memory within hours after viewing. The setup has the FBI trying to terminate a retired agent (Willis), but of course he's too good for them in spite of the 25 to 1 odds. He sets out to recruit some other ex-agents to find out why this is happening and discovers that the corruption comes from very high up. The bullets fly, there's lots of running around the country, and far-fetched plotting. Forgettable fun.... Grade-----B-

Two-time Oscar winner Hillary Swank seems to do her best work playing down home, lower class characters (such as her winning performances in BOYS DON'T CRY and MILLION DOLLAR BABY) and she is the main attraction here. In CONVICTION, based on a true story, she spends nearly twenty years trying to free what she believes to be the unlawful incarceration of her beloved brother for murder, going so far as to become a lawyer during the process. It is an intriguing story, but the film making is routine, making it feel more like a quality made-for-TV drama than a theatrical release. The story and the actors keep you interested, however. Grade-----B-

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The following eight films were shown as part of the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival held last week at several theatres. Three of them I saw screened at SIFF last May. But since they may not get anymore of a release than festivals, I'm writing about them as possible DVD rental options, since most were quite good.

Beautifully filmed in a Peruvian coastal fishing village, the Spanish film UNDERTOW tells the story of a young married family man with a child on the way, but he also has a secret lover--a sensual male painter/artist who is viewed with suspicion by the locals. Half way through, the movie takes a surprising turn towards the supernatural, but manages to become a heartfelt and moving love story about tolerance, acceptance and the importance of loyalty. Grade----A-

Documenting the likable comedians and singers from New Zealand, THE TOPP TWINS: UNTOUCHABLE GIRLS tell the story of how twin girls born on a farm grew up to be the famous country/pop/folk singers and entertainers (and they yodel, too!) that they are today.
They are also fierce, but charming activists, fighting racism, sexism, global warming, nuclear proliferation and homophobia. And, yep, they are both lesbians, too. Delightful, funny and informative. Grade----A-

EYES WIDE OPEN (from Israel, in Hebrew with English subtitles) is a very thoughtful and intense drama set in Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox community. A butcher with a wife and children finds repressed homosexual feelings coming to the surface when he hires a handsome young outsider as his assistant. His happiness is quickly conflicted by the pressures of the insidious conformity that the community imposes on anyone who does not live according to the majority laws of their religion and responsibility. Beautifully acted and directed. Grade-----A-

SASHA (Germany/Croatia) is a young handsome teen living with his immigrant Croatian family in Cologne and trying to hide his sexuality from his girlfriend and parents, but when his sexy piano teacher announces that he is moving to Vienna, SASHA must make some big moves of his own. This comedy-drama is quite delightful as a wacky family farce, amusing romantic (mis) adventures, coming out drama, and showing the difficulties of trying to live someone elses dream. Grade-----B+

Oh, those Spanish twenty-somethings. A young man gets jealous of his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend, so he decides to befriend the new boyfriend to stay close to his ex. Since she doesn't want him back, that is his PLAN B (from Argentina). The film moves very slowly as they get to know each other, and is surprisingly contemplative in it's theme of how carefully thin the line can be between homo and hetro sexual proclivities It also explores bi- and ambi- sexual natures in very subtle ways. It is interesting, but you will need a lot of patience to get through some of the long takes, some of which include gratuitous crouch shots. (It plays like the Spanish version of the French JEANNE DIELMAN. Or is could have been made by Ming-liang Tsai-- the director of GOODBYE DRAGON INN and THE HOLE and THE RIVER--but not as insightful or fascinating.) Grade----B-

From Tunisia and France comes a film called THE STRING, about a young man who returns after the death of his father, from France to his family estate in Tunisia. His well meaning mother (it's been a long time since we've seen Claudia Cardinale....she looked and seemed more like a grandmother than mother) wants him to marry but he has other plans, mainly the handsome handy man employed at the estate. It's exotic and watchable, as the family members struggle with tradition and change and open sexuality, but I wish it had a bigger punch to it. Grade-----B-

A DIFFERENT KIND OF LOVE (from Czech Republic) is a short 60 minutes, but quickly paced film (with too much herky-jerky camera movements for my taste) about a married woman's discovery of her gayness. Her husband is not too happy with her affair with another teacher at her school, and does and says a lot of typical mean things that we have seen before in other movies about infidelity---these things would have been said even if she was seeing a man instead of a woman. Perhaps that is what is so interesting about this film. The actors are quite natural and likable, and the tension between the characters feels real. Grade----B-

From the Bahamas comes CHILDREN OF GOD, an exotic and sumptuous-looking film of an interracial love between two men--an introverted white artist and a sexy, irresponsible black man, but their ethnic differences hardly matter in this ambitious but pointless, convoluted plot. Things get complicated when the black man's mother and his girlfriend (!) show up unannounced. There's also a sub plot where a preacher's wife is spear heading a political anti-gay crusade on the island--her own marriage is troubled by the preacher who has given her a venereal disease because he's on the "down-low." Not very subtle stuff here. Grade-----C

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On DVD this week was an eight hour BBC version of Charles Dickens MARTIN CHUZZELWIT (1994) with Paul Scofield and Tom Wilkenson. While not as delightful and eyeopening as the recently reviewed LITTLE DORRIT, this intriguing and in depth version was satisfying as drama and for it's cast of wacky, memorable characters. Every actor seemed to really capture something funny or unique about their character's personality. Grade------B+

Superb early story of John Lennon: Nowhere Boy

You don't have to be a Beatles fan or know anything about music to enjoy and be moved by the new film biography based on the early teen years of John Lennon called NOWHERE BOY. The universal story is a theme anyone can relate too. Raised by his stern aunt, the brilliant Kristin Scott-Thomas, the young John finally meets his erratic, flawed mother after 10 years. As played with fascinating skill by Anne-Marie Duff, we know why John is eager to integrate himself into this new family. As the film progresses, we see his interest in music evolve and his
rebellious nature develop. The film has some interesting moments that Beatles fans will recognize as the inspiration to certain songs, but mostly the comic yet moving story plays out as an excellent coming of age/leaving home saga with terrific casting. Aaron Johnson, who starred in last springs KICK-ASS is spot on as the young Lennon--this is a breakout role for him. GRADE------A-

DVD rentals from the library round out the rest of this weeks viewing. Based on the true story of Thailand's most famous kick boxer, BEAUTIFUL BOXER (2004) tells the unusual story of a poor young boy who feels that he is born to be a woman. His winnings from being a kick boxer help feed his family and ultimately fund his sex-change operation. The lead actor Asanee Suwan is very physical and emotional in the role (this is his first acting role--he's a boxer in real life) and is quite compelling. He won the Thai Best Actor award for his role. Despite what could have been a lurid telling, the film is laced with very dramatic scenes punched up with a lot of humor, and the feeling of authenticity in the fighting scenes. GRADE--------B

It took me nearly an hour to realize that I had already seen STEALTH (2006), a French, Polish, Swiss production that leaves a lot of questions and unresolved relationships in its wake. When a young gay French man discovers that his great grandfather may have been Polish, he becomes obsessed with everything Polish, to the point of dumping his boyfriend and trying to marry a Polish nanny staying in France to give her citizenship. When his unhappy sister "kidnaps" him for a road trip to Poland, he rediscovers his sexuality and other family heritage histories. The tone varies between comedy, tragedy, drama and farce, and the actors, while mostly good, seem betrayed by a script that can't decide what, exactly, it is trying to say about love, sex, family, heritage, and road trips. GRADE---------C+

James L. Brooks has made a lot of great films, including AS GOOD AS IT GETS and BROADCAST NEWS, but he has a miss-step with the comedy-drama called SPANGLISH (2004), which like STEALTH (above) has a tone that is all over the map. There is a decent idea here, which involves a newly emigrated woman from Mexico being hired as a housekeeper to an afluent L.A. family of eccentrics. The problem is that this family is so dysfunctional and at odds with each other that the housekeeper seems like the only sane/normal one. And she doesn't even speak English for the first hour of the film. I admired the energy Tea Leoni brings to the neurotic wife (of cook Adam Sandler), but she is so annoyingly contrary to the rest of the family's values and style that it is easy to hate her. The Sandler character is so laid back and obtuse to other issues that you want to slap him. Add to that the chaotic pantomiming and struggle for them (and us) to understand the Spanish only speaking housekeeper (Paz Vega) that the film becomes quite exasperating. Only the bemused, drunken "grandma" Cloris Leachman remains unscathed, and becomes, as a supporting character, the only one to root for in the film. GRADE------C

Let Me In: new "cult" classic? plus Never Let Me Go, Freebie (not classics)

Two years ago, the Swedish vampire film LET THE RIGHT ONE IN became a minor hit (for a foreign language film) in the US--and the rights were immediately snapped up for an American remake. The GREAT news is that the new film, LET ME IN is just as good as the original--in fact, some of the plotting makes more sense, and many of the scenes are shot for shot the same. When it first screened at SIFF several years ago, no one really knew anything about it, but it clearly was not what anyone expected. In fact it transcends it's subject matter, and even festival goers who do not like horror or "vampire" films were quite moved by the story which involves a 12 year old boy who is being ignored by his estranged parents, becoming involved with a young girl who has been 12 years old for quite a while. The film doesn't cheat on the classic vampire lore, but it creates a moody, fascinating story that is involving, creepy, satisfying and sympathetic towards its three main characters, although some may complain that the final scene aboard the train leaves more questions than answers. I wish that the producers could have taken the clue from the original on how to promote this new version better. The current picture on the poster of a child making snow angels just doesn't have the emotional depth or edge that the new picture delivers. I would urge you to give this one a try, even if you think you won't like it. This film gets under your skin and may haunt you for months.
GRADE------ B+

DOUBLE TAKE is an initially fascinating experimental film that unfortunately just doesn't jell. By using vintage clips and ads and an Alfred Hitchcock look-alike, the director tries to patch together a thin plot which has Hitchcock meeting his doppelganger (double), and then tries to conjecture that some of Hitchcock's films (with occasional clips) are influential in the Cold War maneuvers. It is all stretched pretty thin. Go see a Hitchcock film instead. GRADE-----C

A one-concept-idea, the new film THE FREEBIE is (what should have been) a 12 minute short film that has been stretched into 85 dreary minutes. A young happy couple talks themselves into giving each other a one time evening where they each can go have a one night stand (sex) with any one else with out feeling guilty or having to explain, etc. The execution is (of course) harder than it seems, and the next day (of course) is filled with remorse and regret. BLAH BLAH BLAH. GRADE------C-

The new film called NEVER LET ME GO, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro, who also wrote REMAINS OF THE DAY, wants to haunt you, too, but I found it to be too mild and obscure. The actors are well cast and the photography and the music are lovely, but the plot, about children raised to be organ (and other body parts) donors doesn't feel right. This is set in the mid 1970's to mid 1990's---where is the rebellion, the sense of righteousness, the social protest? Why do all the characters act so unimpassioned and docile? The film raises questions and red flags at every turn. Even the subplot of jealousy and a misdirected love triangle feels uninspired. I could hardly wait for the film to be over. GRADE-------D+

Back in 1974 when the Worlds Fair was held in Spokane, I went with my parents for a weekend stay. While they were sleeping in the motel bed next to mine, I watched for the first time, and on the late show-- IMITATION OF LIFE (1959) and sobbed so hard that my mother woke up and asked what was the problem. When I told her it was a movie on TV she just shook her head and went back to sleep. I have to say that I cried and cried all over again this past week. This glossy version of the Fannie Hurst novel has got to be one of my favorite tear-jerkers of all time, the it's a lot of fun to watch. Lana Turner has never been better, and John Gavin, Robert Alda, and Sandra Dee are all terrific as her two lovers and her daughter. But best of all is Juanita Moore who plays the good-hearted black woman who works for Turner and must deal with her selfish troubled daughter who tries to pass for white. GRADE------A-

On the same DVD is the first version of IMITATION OF LIFE (1934) which features Claudette Colbert and Louise Beavers. Instead of wanting to become an actress which Lana Turner was so good at, Colbert starts selling a pancake mix based on Beavers recipe. Obviously in the 30's the portrayal of black and white friends was more carefully orchestrated. When they make it rich, they both live in the same townhouse mansion, but Beavers and her daughter live downstairs in the basement and Colbert and daughter live upstairs. (In the 1959 version, the mansion is quite large--they have their own wing.) There's a great emotional scene which has them parting, with one ascending and the other descending in the same frame. Beavers daughter also tries to pass for white, and the scenes carry a dangerous feeling of racial hatred. It is most interesting to compare the two pictures. Even though they both have the same story arch, the approach and emotional result is quite different yet effective in both versions. I didn't cry watching this version, but found it to be quite fascinating for its socio-economic milieu and for what-at the time- must have been a very provocative theme. GRADE-----B

Released just one year after the shocking success of Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO, gimmick master and hack director William Castle tried to cash in with HOMICIDAL (1961), the picture with a "fright break," which was 60 seconds of a heart beating and clock ticking to allow frightened people to exit the theatre before the "shocking" ending. The film moves very slowly and oddly--the first murder seems to come out of nowhere, and then there's an hour before things pick up again. The murderess seems so completely psychotic that is seems strange that her boyfriend and their friends don't pick up on the problems much earlier. The finale is surprising, although my wife and I both made a comment half way through that surprised us by actually being true!!!!!! Interesting in an odd, stilted sort of way. GRADE------C+

I didn't remember much about the original movie version of SLEUTH from 1972, except that I thought that Laurence Olivier and Micheal Caine were both very good actors. The remake version of SLEUTH (2007)stars Caine in the Olivier role, and Jude Law as the younger man. It has been modernized and set in a cold stylized British country mansion, and the dialogue is pithy and sharp. The plot is basically a word game between the two characters over the older man's wife, that could turn deadly at any time and I was not emotionally engaged, but found it to be watchable. GRADE-----C

Grade "A" films for week: Social Network, Cell 211, and Life and Death of Col. Blimp

It's always a good week when 3 of the 8 films viewed rate an A- or better, and this past week was pretty good.

The first scene from the SOCIAL NETWORK, a new film by David Fincher (FIGHT CLUB) and writer Adam Sorkin (WEST WING), features the future creator of Facebook being dumped by his angry girl friend, mostly because he is inconsiderate, clueless and arrogant, and when she is done he angrily runs back to his dorm room and blogs lots of lies about her and vents his anger at women in general by creating a "vote for the most beautiful student" by comparing two different coeds and having each (mostly) male vote between the two on what becomes a very quickly popular web site. Subject matter aside, the scene is quite startling for several reasons. The first is that the characters talk incredibly fast--double time or maybe even triple time--and you must struggle to keep up to the college jargon and the ideas that are being tossed back and forth. Second is that you know exactly why this young man is being dumped even though he is unaware--you'd dump him yourself if you were in her position. And thirdly, the scene packs in more humor, wit, sarcasm, and drama than many films have in their whole 90 minute screenplay. The good news for the viewer is that this energy and sparkling dialogue keeps right on going, with ups, downs, double-crosses, sarcasms, genius outbursts, crazy parties, betrayal, sex--well, it may not be your college life or mine, but it makes you feel that it should have been. This is an amazingly smart, funny-tragic film, and even if you can't always follow the comupter-eze lingo, it is wonderfully intelligent and entertaining. It could be the movie of the computer-age decade. GRADE----- A-

One of the top films of this year's SIFF, and winner of the Best Actor award, CELL 211 from Spain, starts off with a bang, as a new prison guard, on his first day, is left behind on his prison tour just as the prison inmates begin a violent riot to protest conditions. He must convince the inmates that he is indeed a violent criminal, because if they suspect that he is a prison guard, he will be tortured, used for ransom, and/or killed. As you can imagine, things become very intense very quickly, and the film is very high on sustained tension and drama, with some horrific plot twists and ironic plot resolutions. GRADE-------- A-

I saw two films from the Spanish Film Festival last weekend, and both were well made. The first was RABIA, about a young couple who fall in love. She works for a rich couple as a maid in a huge mansion on the outskirts of town, and he is a short tempered construction worker. When he accidentally kills his foreman, he hides out, unbeknownst to his girl friend, in the attic of the mansion where she works, using the second phone line to call her at work, and stealing food from the kitchen when no one is around. She is pregnant, and lots of tension develops from this scenario---will he make himself know to her, will she be fired for being pregnant, will he be discovered by the couple or their family....?????? As tragic love stories go, this one kept me involved until the melodramatic ending. The second film, called AFTER was about 3 young forty-somethings who have been friends for a while and get together for a night of drinking, drugging, dancing, sex and talking, and then more drugging. The story is told three times from the three different points of view to include their lives outside of this one particular night. I kept thinking that these broken characters should really be over this type of careless behavior by now, and it was rather disturbing watching them self-destruct. GRADE for RABIA------B and for AFTER----B-

The new documentary WAITING FOR SUPERMAN tries to take on the exhaustive subject matter of EDUCATION in general, and ends up focusing on quality "charter schools" --in particular, how sad and frustrating it is for the small amount of kids to get accepted by them. The final 30 minutes is especially grim, as it shows the humiliating lotteries that will pick the small 5% of qualifying kids that can attend these special schools. The first 60 minutes are all over the map with charts and graphs that try to indite principles, teachers, the government, parents, racism and other issues as the reason kids are failing so much. These are ambitious topics to be crammed into 120 minutes--and there is a lot of information here, but the final effect for me was depressing and chaotic exhaustion. GRADE------- B-

Hot young actor Ryan Reynolds stars as an American working in Iran who is kidnapped and BURIED alive in a coffin, and has air and phone service for just 90 minutes to try to negotiate a ransom of a million dollars for his life. The whole film is set in the coffin, using light from his cell phone and a cigarette lighter only, and I kept wondering what cell phone company he was using because it had excellent, clear, multi-functioning, WORLD WIDE service that took forever to wear out, and where does one get a cigarette lighter that will last for an hour and a half with a giant flame like that?!?
Otherwise, the film is a gimmick and a rather tiresome one at that, but Reynolds gives it his all and the film does create some tense, claustrophobic moments. GRADE-------C+

Top pick for the DVD's this week was an excellent British film THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP (1943) from directors Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger who co-directed an impressive list of films including I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING, THE RED SHOES, STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN, and PEEPING TOM among others. This one covers the period from the Boar War through WWII, and during this 50 year period, charts the career and life and marriage and politics of Colonel Blimp, played with amazing skill and great humor by the remarkable Roger Livesey. Deborah Kerr delightfully plays three different women during his life, and Anton Walbrook charmingly portrays his faithful German friend. At times sentimental, funny, witty and dramatic, this three hour film is a magnificent character study of a staunch British soldier who has a hard time adjusting to "modern" times, and is the perfect example of the type of film that "they just don't make them like this anymore." GRADE------- A

Apparently one of Robert (AMC) Osborne's favorite films of the forties, ROADHOUSE (1948) left me feeling rather non-plussed. Ida Lupino plays the "singer" brought in by the psychotic Richard Widmark to draw in the crowds, but she falls for Widmark's best friend Cornel Wilde. Celeste Holm rounds out the foursome. The plotting was unconvincing, especially when Widmark frames Wilde for stealing the ROADHOUSE receipts. Lupino has a sexy, gravely singing voice and introduces the standard song "AGAIN"---and the cast is definitely the reason for seeing this film, but by the end I was rolling my eyes. GRADE-------C

The Town, Bran Nue Dae, You Again, Catfish

Best for the last week would be the new film by director/actor Ben Afleck, based on true stories from Boston's Charlestown region, known as a breeding ground for armed robberies. The film is called THE TOWN and concerns itself with a gang that robs banks and armoured cars. During one bank robbery, a gang member kidnaps a young woman, later lets her go, then has second doubts about whether or not she knows anything concrete that could incriminate the gang. The gang leader Ben Afleck determines to contact and befriend her-- of course, he falls for her and there is some tension whether or not she can or will implicate him. In the meantime a police detective has determined that this is the gang doing all the recent robberies and assaults, but needs more solid evidence to move in for the arrest. The film moves along in spite of some holes in the plot, and is entertaining and compelling with the tension developing between the two story lines. A very worth while effort, with special notice to Jeremy Renner from THE HURT LOCKER as the unpredictably violent gang member who is getting out of control, and Rebecca Hall as the young woman, innocently falling in love with the wrong guy. GRADE------B

There is finally a musical version of a big Australian stage play hit from 1990 that is one of the top films from Down Under, and it is called BRAN NUE DAE (BRAND NEW DAY). I saw it screened at the last edition of SIFF, and it was a complete and utter delightful surprise. Here is a pop musical singing/dancing film where nearly all the characters are Aboriginal ("There ain't nothing I'd rather be, Than an Aborigine....") with some big laughs, smart lovable characters and memorable pop tunes---and some sharp political jabs at the white man taking over all the Aboriginal land, and other injustices. But the tone is definitely light weight and you can be assured that a happy ending will see every one's dreams come true. GRADE------B

CATFISH is an odd name for what is basically a reality documentary exposing how easy it is to commit fraud on the social Internet networks like Face book. Over several months, a young man falls in love with what he thinks is his soul mate half way across the country, and learns about her younger artist sister, her beautiful mother, and the charmed life they lead. Then he (and his film making friends) decide to pay the family a surprise visit. There are enough red herrings (he says early at one point--"For all I know she could be a man" at the other end of the computer...) that when the truth starts to come out, we the audience are not terribly surprised, but more horrifyingly saddened at the lengths to which both the filmmakers and the 'family' have behaved. It is a sad film for all parties, and yet with exposure comes some liberating truths. Things are unexpectedly righted by the end. It's a sharp commentary on our e-world obsessions. GRADE-------B

I wish that the new comedy this week had been edgier, nastier, sharper, wittier and more fun, but YOU AGAIN is just a little lazy in all categories. Still, there is some fun with Sigourney Weaver oozing her way through the "heartless rich bitch" role, and Kristin Chenoweth has some odd amusing moments as a perky wedding-planner. Newcomer Kyle Bornheimer is over-the-top brilliant as a jilted lover who is not over it at all, and of course, the amazing Betty White delivers her lines with wicked aplomb. Kristen Bell does what she can as the geeky girl whose beloved brother is about to marry the meanest girl from her high school past, but the other characters, especially the men, barely register. It's an easy to watch, "popcorn" comedy, however, and I admit I enjoyed much of this guilty pleasure. GRADE---------B-

Girl Who Played w/Fire, Little Dorrit, Late Marriage Top Week

The only new movie for me this week, which I've wanted to see for a month, but has only been playing at the inconvenient (for me) Egyptian Theatre on Capital Hill in the evenings only, just opened at the local Majestic Bay in Ballard. It is the second film in a trilogy and is called THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE. It is not quite as effectively shocking as the original THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (see earlier blog), because mainly we've adjusted to the sights of sexual abuse and violence, and now understand the motivation of the lead character. That is not to say that horrible things do not occur in this exciting part two; indeed, there are many shocking revelations and plot twists, but I managed to predict a couple of them this time. The film is made with great energy and cleverness, and has the depth of a great novel behind it. The actors have great conviction, and the technical aspects are first rate. There is already Oscar buzz for GIRL/TATTOO and based on the first two films, Noomi Rapace could be a leading contender for the Best Actress race. GRADE-----B+

The library produced a wonderful surprise--a DVD rental of a BBC movie/mini-series LITTLE DORRIT (2008) which is nearly 8 hours long, and appeared on Masterpiece Theatre in the US, winning 7 Emmys including Best Mini-Series, Direction and Writing out of 12 nominations. It is a stunning and immensely sprawling entertainment that is well written, produced and acted--quite possibly the BEST (and most complete) version of a Dickens novel ever made, David Lean's version of GREAT EXPECTATIONS(1946) notwithstanding. LITTLE DORRIT is not well known, and is considered to be one of his most difficult and lesser known novels--it is certainly one of his longest, so that the 14 episodes on this DVD become an ideal way to experience this ambitious story. Set partly in a debtor's prison, partly concerned with government bureaucracy, and partly set in Venice and other Italian settings, the film expertly juggles several subplots and more than a dozen major characters as it tells the tale of a poor girl who is born in prison, but in typical Dickens manner, becomes socially exalted, with a lot of sarcastic and amusing scenes showing the hypocrisies of poor and rich alike. There is a lot of mystery, deep dark family secrets, several reversals of fortune, some broad humor, horrifying drama, several romances and a dozen unforgettable characters (played with great aplomb by great British stalwarts including Matthew Macfadyen, Tom Courtenay, Bill Paterson, Andy Serkis and others) that deserve to be remembered along with the likes of Scrooge, Tiny Tim, David Copperfield, Pip, Miss Haversham, and dozens of others. If you've never read LITTLE DORRIT as a novel before, this film is the perfect way to experience it. (My only minor complaints--why does Mr. Dorrit's room at debtors prison seem so--too?--large?---and the final hour seems rather rushed, with some plot revelations given short emotional shift. Still......) GRADE------A !!!

The Israeli film LATE MARRIAGE (2001) turns out to be a provocative, astute and sexy story of a 31 year old bachelor who becomes involved with a 34 year old divorced woman with a child, and when his family finds out, they try to intervene, despite having had no success in arranging marriage to more "more appropriate" women. The film is playful and at times quite graphic in depicting his sexual attraction to the older woman, and it carries some surprising scenes as well as a stinging finale. GRADE------A-

SISTER MARY IGNATIUS EXPLAINS IT ALL (TO YOU) (2001) was shown on Showtime and is available on DVD with an excellent cast that includes Diane Keaton, Laura San Giancarlo, Meg Tilly, Martin Mull and others. It is "opened up" a bit from the long one act play written by Christopher Durang. Keaton plays Sister Mary, who is a bossy and very strict nun who has taught children for many years by terrifying them with her amusing and fanatical theories of faith and God and Heaven and Hell. She meets her match when several older students return 20 years later during her annual Christmas lecture to seek revenge on her hysterical ways. There's a lot of funny gags and lines, mostly criticizing Catholicism and religion in general, and the film turns surreal and horrifying by the end. Keaton seems a bit young for the part but she is game and stays in character quite well. Interesting. GRADE-----B-

I spent eight hours this last week watching the first season of the HBO hit OZ (1997)--set in a maximum security prison and featuring back stories of the inmates, guards and faculty that help to humanize them all in this grim locale. Watching the first episode made me very nervous, and it took me two episodes to realize that this alternate reality is just a gritty, gripping reflection of everyday life, but with in your face violence, sex and melodrama. It is quite addicting after the fourth hour, and I look forward to season 2. It is shocking viewing until one gets use to the characters, who are played by some fine actors including Ernie Hudson, Harold Perrineau, Edie Falco (before THE SOPRANOS), B.D.Wong, J.K. Simmons, and Rita Moreno. GRADE----B-

After OZ I thought it might be interesting to see another prison inspired film---PINERO (2001) is a non-linear biographical story of ex-con and award winning playwright Miguel Pinero, who became famous for turning his prison stint into a powerful play and movie called SHORT EYES (1977). Benjamin Bratt is especially effective as Pinero, who despite his fame and successes couldn't shake his self destructive drug habit and criminal ways, and the cast is very good, including Giancarlo Esposito, Michael Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Robert Klein and Rita Moreno (again--see OZ). Too bad the chaotic style and busy camera work lose sight of the humanity. GRADE-----C+

Get Low and Soul Kitchen

The film that closed this year's SIFF is a minor classic in tall tale telling. Robert Duval is amazing, as usual, as the old hermit in the late 1920's around whom swirls stories of his evil/mysterious/cantankerous ways. When he decides to clear the air, he tries to arrange a funeral party for himself (before he dies--that is, before he will GET LOW), with everyone who ever had a story, true or false, to come tell it--that is if he can get anyone to come at all. It's a juicy set up and the cast couldn't be better--especially Sissy Spacek as an old flame, and the incomparable Bill Murray who can, with the twinkle in his eye and the turn of a phrase, set the audience off in fits of giggles. He plays the funeral director who tries to help set up the "party." It's a pleasure to watch the leisurely but fascinating story unfold. My only complaint is somewhat minor---the sum of the parts is much more satisfying than the mystery's resolution. GRADE------B+

Also opening this week from SIFF----a "comedy" by the director of EDGE OF HEAVEN from several years ago, which I really loved. This new film SOUL KITCHEN is quite different, which is, of course, very good for directors to do, but unfortunately, the comedy is very silly, and consists of each major character doing the most unlikely and bizarre things---well you have to wonder if anyone in this movie has any common sense, and it annoyed me from beginning to end. GRADE-------C- (and I think that's a generous grade.)

At a recent DVD sale, I bought a copy of the slapstick comedy western from 1969--SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SHERIFF! for $2.50! and while it doesn't hold up to the way I enjoyed it when I was 17, it is still a jolly, amusing effort, helped in no small part to the great timing of the wonderful cast--James Garner, Joan Hackett and Walter Brennan. Especially amusing is the running gag of how to keep a cold blooded killer (a young Bruce Dern) in a new prison without any bars on the windows and doors! GRADE-------B

HELL AND HIGH WATER (1954) was directed by the cult favorite director Samuel Fuller, and features Richard Widmark at his peak as the captain of a submarine sent to investigate a possible communist nuclear base on an island in the Arctic. There's a lot of drama, tension, action, and intrigue, and it was entertaining, if hardly electrifying. Widmark's co-star was a newcomer named Bella Darvi, and it may have been her first and last film. She could speak the half dozen foreign languages required for the part, but her English was not very coherent.
GRADE------ B

I've never been a big Frank Sinatra fan, although he's a very decent actor and singer, and my feelings are not changed by seeing the film based on the racy Broadway play called PAL JOEY (1957). Part of my problem was the illogical progression of the plot. In the first scene Joey (Sinatra) is being kicked out of town by being forced on a train by the police. What, no luggage or suitcase? Then he gets off the train, and takes a ferry (!?) to San Francisco--we're told he has NO money---and then of course gets a great job being MC at a nightclub that very night, and then manages to rent a room at a boarding house at 3:00am in the middle of the same night!!!!!!!! The room is next to Kim Novak with whom he lusts after, and must share a bathroom with...... It keeps on like this, so you have to keep swallowing a lot of contrivances. But the interesting part is how you can see that this story was really racy at the time. He meets a rich older woman (Rita Hayworth), and moves in with her as a "kept" man while she bankrolls his dream of owning his own nightclub. All I can think of is, he must be GRRREEEAAATTT in bed. Apparently his character in the play is a lot more abrasive and unlikeable, and there is a lot more sexual innuendo that was trimmed. The best part, however, is the musical score, which features some knock out tunes sung and acted with a lot of flair. They include "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," and "The Lady is a Tramp," and "My Funny Valentine." Thank god for Rogers and Hart. GRADE------B

Part of the JOHN WAYNE Collection I recently purchased was a film called HELLFIGHTERS (1968) which includes a strong cast including Vera Miles, Jim Hutton, Katherine Ross, and Bruce Cabot. The film is timely, in that it is based on a true character who traveled the world putting out oil/drilling fires and spills. I wish he (John Wayne) was around for the recent Gulf
spill. The film is watchable for that reason, but the plot gets repetitious and predictable. GRADE----- C+

The Tillman Story, Cairo Time, The Spoilers, War Wagon

THE TILLMAN STORY is the perfect Labor Day Weekend film--something patriotic and thoughtful and surprising and sad--like the end of summer. This is a documentary about football hero Pat Tillman who gave up a great career in the National Football League in 2002 to join the armed forces going to Iraq and Afghanistan, where he did two tours of duty. He thought this was the right thing to do, but once there he realized that the war was misguided, and became rather critical about the political aspects. In 2004 he was killed by "friendly fire," and declared a hero by the Army, but slowly many aspects of his death became known to his family and there were many revealing instances where the facts were covered up by the Army and the Bush administration. If you think you know the story, you will be surprised, because so much was distorted and covered up and lied about. GRADE------ B+

Another film that played at the recent edition of SIFF is a very gentle mild "love story" of sorts, called CAIRO TIME and featuring Patricia Clarkson, who usually ends up in supporting roles. See her in great form in THE DYING GAUL, PIECES OF APRIL, and THE STATION AGENT, just to name 3 of my favorites. Her co-star is the city of Cairo, and she spends most of her time while waiting to be reunited with her husband, just strolling around the streets and viewing sights of this great city, discovering customs, traditions, moods and cultural importance. Occasionally she is accompanied by a friend of her husband who works in Cairo, and they develop a lovely though platonic relationship. Not much happens, and the feeling of time passing slowly for her is well presented. Cairo looks beautiful and exotic and mysterious. By the end, you will feel you have also been immersed in CAIRO TIME. GRADE-------B-

There is a long and impressive fight scene that ends THE SPOILERS (1942), and I guess that also ends the four other versions of the same story filmed in 1914, 1923, 1930 and 1955. The film is set in Nome Alaska where the gold rush has produced a lawless land where claim jumpers try to take over land worked by others for many months through the efforts of crooked lawyers and judges and violence. This one stars John Wayne and Harry Carey as the original owners of the land, and Randolph Scott as the evil lawyer, and Marlene Dietrich, wearing wildly stunning glitter gowns, is the saloon owner who is attracted to both of them. (And SURPRISE!!! She does NOT sing!) The story was engrossing, and there are a lot of funny lines with double entendres, some of the best from the actress playing the black maid of Dietrich, who is "tired of being mistaken for an Eskimo from Virginia." Fun. GRADE------- B

I realized fairly soon that we'd seen THE WAR WAGON less than a year ago, but it is just lively enough that we didn't bother turning it off. John Wayne plays a man just out of jail on good behaviour who is trying to get back land stolen from him during his jail time, and Kirk Douglas, at times dressed in a tight black leather pant suit (!) is the gunslinger who is hired to kill him, but instead goes to work with him to steal back the gold that has been mined on Wayne's property. There is a lot of tongue in cheek dialogue and fight scenes, and even though there is nothing here that you haven't seen before, it is an easy movie to watch. GRADE----B-