WHAT'S YOUR NUMBER, 50/50, MY AFTERNOONS w/MARGUERITTE, Tucker and Dale VS Evil, Detective Dee & Mystery of Phantom Flame, Happy Happy, Hedgehog

I didn't see much new last week, but a lot of films have opened that I saw a while back, so there is much to recommend this week.

I saw THE HEDGEHOG a second time, and still find it to be a superb, thoughtful drama on loneliness, coming of age, second chances and the dangers of judging a book by its cover. This time, the role of the concierge (the symbolic hedgehog of the title )seemed so much more important than the difficulty of the 11 year old girl's pending suicide, and it is underplayed perfectly by the French actress Josiane Balasko so that I held my breath at some of the moments that define her life, in spite of having seen this film before. GRADE-----A

Next up is a charming, but not too sentimental, French film with the incomparable Gerard DePardeau entitled MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGAURITTE, and the title says a lot, but not all there is. He is a simpleton who lives next to his aging mother, and he has a lovely girlfriend and a plain yet satisfying life, and then he meets the lonely old woman on a park bench, who teaches him how to read (understand) classic novels. It's the perfect film to watch sipping mint tea on a dreary day. You'll be pleasantly warmed and surprised at the direction the film goes in. GRADE------A-

For lovers of CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000) and the like, you won't want to miss DETECTIVE DEE and the MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME, a lively cross between stylish kung-fu epics and Sherlock Holmes mysteries with a dab of science fiction, filmed with lush sets and visual effects and carefully paced so that even when things get a little wild and unbelievable, the film is ravishing to the eye. Extremely entertaining. GRADE---------B+

The new film 50/50 is based on a true story of a young man who feels fine but discovers he has serious spinal cancer. The comedy/drama is well intentioned, and may hit a nerve with those who have struggled with cancer. I found the film rather vague, and in the month since I saw it, it has nearly evaporated from my mind. Still, it is easy to watch, and the actors are all fine. GRADE---------B-

A rowdy, possible midnight cult movie called TUCKER AND DALE VS EVIL, is the outrageous comedy that spoofs films which take place in a cabin in the remote woods, where teens are offed by hillbilly maniacs with chain saws. In this case, the "maniacs" are merely two nice guy drinking buddies on a long weekend trip to fix up their remote woods cabin, and the teens are vapid, silly creatures who leap to the wrong conclusions, and often to their own self-inflicted, grizzly deaths. It is a clever hoot, and does not overstay its welcome. GRADE------B

The Norwegian film HAPPY HAPPY is an odd, cheerful film in spite of dealing with the unhappy marriages of two couples who live in the deserted countryside. Scenes of infidelity, sexuality, child cruelty, and loneliness are amusingly presented, and framed by a Norwegian quartet singing gospel and pop songs from the 50's and 60's as a counterpoint. Quirky, but fun. GRADE---------B

The new sex comedy WHAT'S YOUR NUMBER? suffers poorly in direct comparison to the recent BRIDES MAIDS, with which it shares several passing plot devises (upcoming wedding, the heroine has just lost her job and most recent boyfriend, etc) but the biggest disappointment is that the lengthy previews (which I thought were quite promising) not only give away EVERY SINGLE PLOT POINT AND JOKE, but the preview also contains most of the major laughs, so that every time a new scene or scenario begins, you already know the punch line/trajectory. Too bad, because there is a clever idea--Anna Faris plays a modern woman who has slept with 20 men--way too many she realises, and tries not to go over that number because a magazine article has said that more than that means a strong likelihood that she will never end up in a permanent relation, so she tries to look up her past boyfriends to see if they have changed or if maybe NOW they will connect better. Helping her is her hunky (and frequently nude) neighbor Chris Evans, and of course we all know where this plot is headed. Faris is watchable--she has an odd, imperfect oval face--not a beauty, but her perky personally carries her far. Just wish I'd seen this one sight unseen. GRADE--------C+

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October is a busy month for FILM FESTIVALS in the area. Coming up I'll be seeing films from the 70MM Films at CINERAMA, Asian FILM FEST, VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (VIFF) and LGBT Film Festival. I recently went to the SPANISH FILM FESTIVAL at SIFF Cinema and saw 2 interesting films.

The first was called 80 DAYS about childhood friends who rediscover each other nearly 60 years later, when both are in their 70's. One woman has been married to the same man for over 50 years, and her life has been predictable and filled with drudgery--her husband seems to ignore her existence. The other woman is a lesbian who is about to lose her brother. They meet as they are caring for the sick at the local hospital, and slowly, their loneliness and memories create a strong bond between them. The married woman becomes troubled by her growing sexual attraction to her friend. The film starts out leisurely, but builds considerable drama from the situation, and features a startling resolution in the final scene--just the simple expression on a face that ends the film. Watch for this Basque language treasure on Netflix. GRADE-------B+

The second feature I saw was called KIDNAPPED but a better title might be HOME INVASION or NIGHT OF TERROR. On the first night a family moves into their new home, three men (who worked for the moving company that helped them move) break into their home and terrorize the couple and teen daughter for money. The film takes place mostly in long single takes and real time (like Hitchcock's ROPE-1948), and there are many effective, brutal scenes of violence. But as the film progress, about half way through, you realize that things are only going to get worse-- the violence becomes more brutal and intense, and the film loses it's momentum. The film ends with some over the top violence, and a mean cruel cheat of an ending that curdles in your throat. GRADE--------C+

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Just a couple DVD films this week. Up first is an excellent Czech film directed by the great Oscar winner Jiri Menzel (CLOSELY WATCHED TRAINS-1966.) In the film I SERVED THE KING OF ENGLAND (2006), the young Czech hero dreams of becoming a millionaire during the years leading up to WW2. He gets his big chance when he meets a Hitler-loving fraulein who pulls him, humorously, into the Nazi world, where he works at a baby-making clinic! Despite some questionable political unpleasantness, the film manages to be raunchy, erotic, comic and profoundly dramatic in equal measures. A real treat. GRADE---------A-

The next is a dark film noir called THE KILLERS (1946) which featured Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Edmond O'Brien and Albert Dekker, based on a short story by Hemingway. The excellent Lancaster, in his film debut, is killed in the early scenes, and the film flashes back to find out who he was and why he is killed. It's an intriguing set up and a worthy film noir. GRADE----------B

I saw director Derek Jarman's arty SEBASTIANE (1976) at a SIFF midnight screening 35 years ago, and mostly remembered the copious male nudity and moody lyricism provided by the lush photography and scenery and synthetic music (by Brian Eno.) Those things still impressed me this week. It's an interesting take on the martyrdom of St. Sebastiane, who was persecuted and killed mostly for being a Christian Jew, but possibly (according to this film) for ignoring the sexual advances of his lusting leiutenant. Oscar winner Tilda Swinton (MICHAEL CLAYTON-2007) started her career by starring in 5 or 6 of Jarman's later films (but not this one)--they all feature queer themes, sex, nudity, and politics, but none are more effective, possibly, than SEBASTIANE. GRADE-------------B

DRIVE, CIRCUMSTANCE, Straw Dogs plus Colin Firth in PRIDE & PREDJUDICE

High on visuals and mood, the would be noirish film DRIVE is interesting to watch and modestly successful as a piece of Hollywood entertainment. There are, however, a few bumps along the way, with mostly some illogical plot devices causing the viewer to think "REALLY?" and a few scenes caused audience members to laugh out loud, at the film, not with it. Ryan Gosling is pleasant to watch, if somewhat of an enigma as a Hollywood stunt driver in the movies....he also works as a mechanic in a garage....and still finds time to hire himself out as an extremely good getaway driver for criminals who preform robberies while he sits with the engine running, watching his watch that he has strapped onto the steering wheel. (?!?) Yes, he's a busy man, but he is lonely, and lusting after his single with child neighbor. After several dates he finds out that her husband is getting out of jail soon (!?!---no kidding---wouldn't the fact she's still married be something she could have told him on or before the first date?????!!!!) Things really kick into action when he tries to help (!?!) her husband rob a pawn shop (?!?) and things not only go bad, as is usually the case in such films, but a major can of worms puts his life in serious danger. Carey Mulligan (THE EDUCATION) is the girl, Bryan Cranston is his "unlucky" mechanic boss, and Albert Brooks and Ron Pearlman play the really bad baddies--telegraphed from the early scenes. GRADE---------------------B

A slick film that shows that young people in Iran know how to party, sex, drink, drug and mess it all up just like American kids, CIRCUMSTANCE is distinguished by the novelty of taking place in repressive Tehran, and it also adds tension showing the start of a forbidden romance between two young Iranian women. It is a solid film, and in spite of some familiar youthful themes, there are some scenes, especially the family betrayals, that really stick with you. GRADE----------B

I never saw the original Sam Peckinpah version of STRAW DOGS released in 1971, but from reports, I've heard this is a pretty faithful remake, with some minor changes (set in Mississippi instead of England, and the husband's profession is now screenplay writer instead of Dustin Hoffman's mathematician). I didn't enjoy watching this film--the deck, or rather decks, are so stacked that it felt like dramatic reenactments of the Jerry Springer show. James Marsden and Kate Bosworth play a Hollywood couple who relocate to her old hometown and become terrorized by some local rednecks and become involved in a local conflict involving what seems like a mentally unstable young man. It is obvious from the opening scenes as they drive through this poor, small southern town in their Jaguar (!) that Kate has had a very wild reputation with some members of the old high school foot ball team--yet she still acts like a tease to them (knowingly undressing in an open window, and jogging through the woods in a skimpy pair of short shorts and a shear braless top--wet look indeed-- and barefoot, of all things....). She can't seem to stop looking longingly at her old beau, yet has the audacity to complain to her new husband that the local boys are "licking her body with their eyes" and when he suggests, patiently, that it might help if she wore a bra while jogging, she explodes in infantile anger that he is not on her side. The film is inflammatory and rather unlikely, especially in the extremely violent confrontational sequence that ends the movie. It is technically effective, but to build such a story on such intense cliches---all the women seem to be provocative sluts, and all the men are drunken redneck losers--that the climax seems more a relief than give much dramatic satisfaction. Discussions I heard about the early version praised the themes of aggression vs patience, intellect vs fear, and justice vs hatred---all themes missing here. GRADE---------C-

DVD selections--------------------------

One of my favorite musicals is LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (1986) with Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Steve Martin, Vincent Gardenia and the fearless Bill Murray. Every cast member is well cast and the Supreme-like singing group adds to the wacky and campy fun. Nerdy Seymour finds love and success when he discovers Audrey II--a man-eating plant from outer-space, but finding the food supply to keep this plant alive--human blood--becomes very difficult. The film is flooded with stylish, 1950's fashion and set design, the songs are doo-whop delightful, but it is the performances that really impress me every time I see it. Moranis as the nerd, Greene as his would-be (if she wasn't "dating a semi-sadist")girlfriend, and especially Steve Martin as the sadistic dentist and Bill Murray as a masochistic patient keep me laughing every time. It is a delightful, funny, campy treat. GRADE-------------A-

The first Blu Ray DVD I purchased to play on my new Blu Ray machine was PRIDE & PREJUDICE (1995) with Colin Firth and Jennifer Elhe, which I never saw when it appeared first on A&E over 15 years ago. I had just seen (and been impressed by)Elhe in CONTAGION a few nights before, and had been wondering what had become of her. An IMDb check reveals that she must just disappear into her roles, as I've missed her this past year in such high profile movies as THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU and THE KING'S SPEECH. Of course, I've loved and watched Firth for many years, and this version of P&P is a wonderful showcase for these two fine actors. It also looked FABULOUS on Blu-ray--the colors popped, the details were clear and crisp, and the story--all 5 1/5 hours of it kept me transfixed. The recent Hollywood version (2005)with Keira Knightly was quite good, too, as is the 1940 version with Greer Garson and Lawrence Olivier, but this one had the time and patience to really fill in all the details. GRADE------------B+

When I first saw it in 1973 as the second feature to something unmemorable, I thought that THE LAST OF SHEILA was one of the most clever, witty, bitchy, entertaining murder mysteries I'd ever seen. Over 35 years later, it still is. The excellent cast includes James Coburn as the millionaire who invites 6 close friends on board his yacht for a week, for some mysterious parlour games, Richard Benjamin as a struggling script writer, James Mason as a down on his luck director, Dyan Cannon as a thinly disguised Hollywood agent based on Sue Mengers, a sympathetic Joan Hackett as Benjamin's alcholic wife, Raquel Welch as a starlet and Ian McShane as her publicist husband. This time the butler did NOT do it, but you'll have a hard time figuring out just who did it and why and how. GRADE--------B+

Last but certainly not least this week is the recent Michael Caine film HARRY BROWN (2009) which handles revenge in a much more intelligent manner than STRAW DOGS above. He is a retired military pensioner who is fed up with the drug dealing and harassing that normal folks must put up with in the English projects in which he lives. He gets drawn into some violent situations, and it is very interesting how he gets out of them. Realistic and compelling. GRADE--------B

HEDGEHOG (at last), THE DEBT, CONTAGION, and a surprising WARRIOR

After sitting on the shelf (?) for over a year, the excellent French film THE HEDGEHOG that played at SIFF 2010 and won best picture then has finally opened in Seattle. Based on the popular novel THE ELEGANCE OF THE HEDGEHOG by Muriel Barbery, this moving adaptation seemed to be well liked by fans of the novel. It tells the story of a young, would-be suicidal 11 year old girl, who is disappointed by life in her luxury Parisian apartment and is determined to end it all by the time she is 12. She discover es her father's old video camera and begins to record and discover things she's never noticed before, particularly the frumpy concierge, who loves to read, harbors a secret library, and loves dark chocolate while reading with her cat on her lap--along with other passions. When the mysterious Mr. Ozu moves in upstairs, his exotic Japanese manners and apartment design stimulate the girl and the concierge to form a fulfilling friendship. It's an intriguing and delightfully amusing film, made even more memorable by the shockingly sad but ultimately uplifting ending. GRADE---------A

A film about kickboxing brothers is not necessarily going to be on every one's radar, but WARRIOR is a very strong, bruising, emotional film and very compelling. Like the recent films THE FIGHTER (2010) and THE WRESTLER (2008), the sports aspect takes a back seat to the dysfunctional family dynamics that propel the plot. There might be some contrivances in the film, and the film is marred during the first hour by some wiggly hand held camera work, but the story and characters hook you from the start. Nick Nolte is in fine form as the recovering alcoholic father whose drunken violence drove the family--literally--apart. The younger son Tommy took off with his sick mother, who soon dies leaving him alone. He ends up in the Marines. The older brother escapes his father by marrying his young wife and starting a family in another city. There is a lot of angst and anger between them all. Both brothers learned to wrestle and box spurred on by their father when they were young, and when a big purse mixed-martial arts competition comes to the east coast, they both enter for various reasons, unbeknownst to each other. The fighting scenes are kept to a minimum until the end, and there are several climaxes that really pour on the drama. Joel Edgerton plays the married teacher brother, and Tom Hardy plays the ex-Marine, and both are effectively brooding and up to the physical challenges of the roles. The thing that surprised me most was the wracking, rousing emotional conclusion---both physically and mentally--that ends the film. I was shaking so hard (trying to stop the sobbing) that I felt my seat might break loose from the row. GRADE--------B+

A strong, subtle film that tells the story of 3 Nazi hunters in the early sixties and the effects it has on the trio in the present day remains haunting nearly two weeks after screening. THE DEBT features Helen Mirren in the present with a well cast Jessica Chastain (THE HELP) as her younger self who is key to trapping the Doctor of Death in post war Germany, and she becomes sexually attracted with the two men helping her in what seems like a Mission: Impossible situation. As the story from the past is slowly revealed, we see that not all is what it seemed in the beginning, and moral issues add to the suspense that this thriller presents to us. Thoughtful, intelligent, adult entertainment. Also featuring Sam Worthington and om Wilkinson. GRADE-----------B

The new film by Steven Soderberg called CONTAGION has a dynamic subject matter and a first rate cast. A deadly virus pops up in Macao, and before you can sneeze or cough once, the entire world is crumbling and dying in it's wake. Top scientists rush to find a cure (one played with gentle authority by Jennifer Elhe is excellent), and the Center for Disease Control doctors and workers struggle to contain the spread of the virus (including a fine Kate Winslet) while the political side of the CDC (an impressive Lawrence Fishbourne) try to keep a lid on the scare factor and the media. Gweneth Paltrow plays the patient zero (the first to die) and she is quite effective. Less effect is her husband (Matt Damon)who struggles to keep his daughter safe from infection while her horny boyfriend keeps coming around. The film has many creepy effective moments (especially the final shot which finally tells us what happened on Day 1 to start this whole sad tale) but the problem with this film is that it tries to do to much, cover to much information (make sure to cover sneezes, sanitize hands frequently, stop touching your face so much, and stock pile basics early) and rushes from player to player and scene to scene without building much sympathy or effective empathy. I also feel like this is familiar stuff, especially if you've seen or read things like THE HOT SPOT, OUTBREAK, VIRUS, etc where humanity has been threatened with this before. Coming soon is an excellent "virus/end of the world" thriller that recently screened at SIFF 2011 called PERFECT SENSE and starring Ewan McGregor. By keeping the scale small and intimate, the film takes on horrifyingly tragic consequences. It's a small masterpiece. Watch for PERFECT SENSE which just recently opened in Eastern Europe. (?!?) GRADE-------B-
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It is not one of the best James Bond films, but I recently saw on Blu-Ray disc the most recent film featuring an impressive Daniel Craig as 007 in QUANTUM OF SOLACE (2008) and I have to say that it looked GREAT---even better than when I saw it at a theatre. The sound and photography was crisp and clear (even with some muttering British accents) and it opened my eyes to what home-theatre can become if you have the right equipment. The whole finale which takes place in the middle of a desert is underwhelming, but Craig is still one of the strongest Bonds ever (except for perhaps Connery, of course)and I hope they (the producers) keep him around, although I've heard that will not happen. Well, Daniel Craig still has two very intriguing movies coming out this year---DREAM HOUSE and the first in the trilogy---GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO--and the previews for both look compelling. GRADE-----------B-