Caliann Reviews

Blaze You Out (2013)

Handsome first feature beautifully portrayed

[8/10 · 19 August 2013]

BLAZE YOU OUT is a handsome first feature by directors Mateo Frazier and Diego Joaquin Lopez and their talented cast and crew. Set in northern New Mexico, the film is a masterful tapestry of stunning landscapes and human drama. Life would be normal in this Latino and Native American town except for the evil - a cunning drug-dealing matriarch (Elizabeth Pena) and her seductively twisted son, Whitey (brilliantly portrayed by Mark Adair-Rios). But they go too far when Whitey doggedly pursues Alicia (Melissa Cordero), a witness to one of his murders. With ferocious determination, Alicia's sister, Lupe (portrayed by the talented Veronica Diaz-Carranza) recruits her friends who invoke their own courage and mystical forces to save themselves and their cultures from extinction. Superb cinematography and editing, visually rich lighting -- huge production value. Well done.

Nanking (2007)

Superb

[10/10 · 16 February 2007]

I saw the film at Sundance as part of a packed house for a third or fourth screening. I've seen the story of Nanking depicted before but never with the confidence I had that this was how it really was. It was like watching three Shindlers save the Chinese, and Spielberg's Shoa, all rolled into one perfect film. A panel of actors speak the lines from letters and diaries of European/American witnesses and Chinese and Japanese survivors tell their stories themselves on film. It's not just a narrator interpreting the events - it's the voices of the people who were there. The story line is well honed accompanied by stills, 16 mm smuggled out by one of the foreigners, and the actors provide voice for the foreigners. It is an incredibly moving and informative film. I sat next to two couples, two Japanese American men married to Chinese American women. One wife had seen the film the night before, and our night she brought everyone else back with her. I spoke with one of the husbands and he said that out of scale of 5 he gave it a 7. For the rest of the week I ran into others who saw the film and everyone said that they thought it was the best documentary they had ever seen in their lives. I totally agree.

Miami Vice (2006)

Impressive and engaging

[8/10 · 29 July 2006]

I loved it. Lean mean scripting and even better sound editing. Technically impressive all the way around. To me one Mann's most creative. It gets a 10 on the "have to pee" test -- when you can't find a moment in the film that doesn't matter, you gotta hold it. And I did.

I'm not a fan of Colin Farrell but he's beginning to grow on me. And while it seems most people judge the size and quality of the role by how many words come out of the actors' mouths, Foxx and Li were masters in the unspoken. Also not a big fan of hand held riffs but Mann kept it to a minimum so it did what it's good at, creating emphasis and urgency. And I think the story fit the bill. The jargon and accents sometimes made it hard to follow, but I never lost track of the plot or wondered what the movie was about.

The overall look and feel of the film was riveting -- its immediacy, granularity of night scenes, Mann used just about every trick in the book to enhance his film without flaunting his virtuosity. But the sound editing and score blew me away. You've got to love a guy like that. He's a master who got out of the Hollywood mold and did his own thing. And yeah, this ain't your daddy's VICE.

Stealth (2005)

Terrific Action Flick

[8/10 · 30 July 2005]

STEALTH was under-marketed to the most reliable demographic and is nevertheless a terrific action film. Buff bodies, including EDI's, never looked so good and acted so well with so little to say. Plus, it has superb visuals (with a prowling eye every bit as interesting as the explosions), fresh twists on clichéd expectations, and excellent character development and story (for an action flick). Any film that has the audience pulling out hankies because a wingman who's a PLANE sacrifices itself to save two fellow pilots, has got something going for it -- a lot more than "The Island" which was just a hair less stupid than "War of the Worlds."

War of the Worlds (2005)

Tom Cruise doesn't save the world, but in this flick, he saves the producers' butts

[5/10 · 30 June 2005]

There were 9 people at the 4:10 pm screening on Thursday (opening day 2), on a overcast blustery day in Minneapolis. Two of the people got on their cell phones in the middle of the second act, and they weren't telling their friends how great the show was. I yelled at one and he left. If it weren't for Tom Cruise doing the best acting he's done in years, I would have left, too.

It seems almost a sacrilege to pan a Steven Spielberg movie, produced by Kathleen Kennedy, and co-written by David Koepp, but here it is:

Cruise plays an immature, smart-ass, working-class father who, against impossible alien odds, saves his kids (and himself) and delivers them back to his estranged and pregnant wife married to another man, who by the way also survives with elderly in-laws in a devastated Boston brownstone.

In the process, Cruise' love for his incredibly stupid and unpleasant children grows him uncommonly good sense and makes him a man even his kids and ex-wife can admire.

One has to hand it to Cruise. He hits every emotional beat and gets it out there for the camera and makes it believable. He's the best thing about the movie. He's as good as he's ever been. Possibly better because it is his talent alone that gives the film any emotional validity. Dakota screams and looks scared a lot but surely her acting range is better than that. And the dialogue they give her is unworthy.

As for the rest of the film, it is one ludicrous scene after another, of overly familiar alien machines, and unbelievably stupid and, thank goodness, quite unrealistic crowds of humans.

Take for example the neighborhood of people gawking at SOMETHING IN THE SKY -- something ominous and like nothing they've ever seen before. Most people I know would have been running to their TVs, or at least their radios, to find out if anyone else knew what this was. Only when electrical zaps start hitting the ground all around them, do they start to run.

But not the folks around the corner, gathered around a big cold hole in the center of a street, that rumbles and cracks all the way up the sides of buildings. They back up a little, but continue to stare at the hole, even as the crater enlarges toward them. They don't get the heck out of there until this gigantic, obviously alien, machine is already halfway out of the ground. Now where in the world would you find a non-extinct population so devoid of a sense of self preservation?

Later, Army gunners and tanks head up a hill toward a sky bright with distant fires and destruction. And who are the idiot throngs following our brave young men in uniform up that hill? Well, Cruise' son. But by this time in the film we already think he's a jerk. However, when a big alien machine chews up our troops and tanks and rises in all its glory over the top of the hill, only then do the throngs of dummies turn tale and head the other direction.

Here Cruise does the best he can trying to save his idiot son by leaving his little girl standing alone by a totally denuded stick of a tree. Even as he sees his young daughter being dragged way by well meaning strangers, he hesitates, reluctant to leave his dopey son who says something inane like, "I have to see this for myself. You have to let me go." In your dreams so stupid.

It goes on and on, right down to the unexplained reason for bloody roots, up to the very end when these wimpy, apparently vulnerable aliens inside the tripod machines succumb to our microbes and RPGs. Why the heck didn't they use bombs and RPGs to get these guys in the first place? Clearly they were just little soft aliens inside metallic shells. Surely our American military -- nay, the World's military -- could have beaten these puny creatures. I'm sure the reasons were more obvious on radio.

After seeing this film, it's clear why Cruise is jumping on Oprah's couch and driving his fans nuts with Katie-mania. It's not because he's lost his mind. His scheme is actually brilliant. What better way to divert attention from, and lower expectations for a movie in which he alone is the only thing that truly shines?

Batman Begins (2005)

A Better Batman

[7/10 · 15 June 2005]

I attended the 6:35 pm showing Wednesday (opening) night at a suburban multiplex in Minneapolis. It was a very sparse audience of mostly 50 to 60-year old men, some of whom had dates of equal vintage, which seemed like a very odd audience for this type of film. Perhaps it was the day and hour, but it certainly wasn't the audience I expected.

Though better than the most recent "Batmans," this visually impressive actioner fell a little short.

In this prequel we learn how Batman came to be, starting with a nightmare. Stuck in an Asian prison at the base of a glacier encrusted peak, Batman-to-be Bruce Wayne awakes from a flashback of his childhood, where he fell down a well and was terrified by swarms of bats. Orphaned when a common thief kills both his parents, Bruce embarks on a personal journey for seven years. Inter-cut with his former cosseted life as the only child of a doctor mogul, is the quest of this current young man, living among criminals in order to understand how their minds work so that he may someday vanquish evil. Now imprisoned for some criminal act, he rather quickly frees himself, lured to the aerie of Ra's al Ghul.

There he undergoes ninja training by Ducard (Liam Neeson) who spews aphorisms more akin to Steven Segal than the Dalai Lama. Much mumbo jumbo later, Bruce Wayne evolves into a skilled killing machine, only to reject the role of executioner of bad guys, and membership in the elite League of Shadows, the position for which he was groomed. He burns down al Ghuls house and returns to Gotham to fight evil on his own.

Constructing his Batman persona and superstructure with the aid of his wise and loyal butler, Alfred (charmingly played by Michael Caine), Bruce Wayne becomes Bat-man because it symbolizes a fear he has conquered. As he reacquaints himself with Gotham he eventually finds that his father's company, its legacy chairman, most of the Gotham police, and Ra's al Ghul are all tied into the dirty workings of Gotham's king of corruption, Carmine Falcone. When Falcone has the man who murdered Wayne's parents killed to prevent him from testifying against Falcone, Bruce confronts him for fostering corruption. It is then Bruce quickly learns that insulting Falcone only puts those he loves, Alfred and his childhood girlfriend, Rachel, at risk. The conflicts between all parties are satisfactorily entangled in a heinous plot to destroy Gotham, and is then skillfully unraveled by Batman with truly impressive action sequences.

But it only gets fun after a long 55 minutes into the film when Bruce finally gets a handle on himself. Until then the film is a bit tedious. But when the super toys roll out the basement of the Wayne corporate office building, the thrills are non-stop. Morgan Freeman plays a wonderful cameo as purveyor of cool technical gadgets, including one helluva Batmobile.

Unfortunately, many of the bons mots of the film are lost to poor enunciation on Bale's part. While Caine, Neeson, Oldman, Freeman, Holmes and just about everyone else in the film speaks clearly, Bale lets the words sort of fall out of his mostly open mouth. Only after he dons the slick iconic body armor of Batman does Bale close his mouth and enunciate. Hard to believe the oral transformation was part of the movie's dramatization, but one can only hope.

While most of the dialogue is workman-like, spare, and to the point, it becomes almost ludicrous when the characters presume to say something "deep." Most notable are when Neeson, early on, delivers his melodramatic utterances, and, toward the end when Holmes proffers the truly incomprehensible gibberish about the Batman person who she loved and might someday see again. On a more positive note, Holmes put in a genuinely adult dramatic performance, which suggests a successful transition from TV darling to serious big screen actress.

Cinderella Man (2005)

Emotionally draining

[8/10 · 15 June 2005]

The screening I went to in mid-May 2005 was attended with great anticipation by a mixed demographic in downtown Minneapolis. Graced with an award winning cast (Russell Crowe, René Zellweger, Paul Giamatti), CINDERALLA MAN is clearly a film made with great care by master producers (Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Penny Marshall), director (Ron Howard), and screenwriters (Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman). And yet, when the film ended, I had the sinking feeling that this pedigreed and worthy film was going to be a box office disappointment. Often billed as SEABISCUIT with two legs, this film indeed is a similar inspirational tale about how individual conviction and perseverance can prevail against overwhelming odds to emerge victorious, just as we and our Nation survived the depths of the Great Depression. In this case, the character of the man that was Jim Braddock, his unwavering support by a manager and wife who believed in him, were finely drawn and superbly executed by exceptional actors. The journey of the man, his tenacious hold to personal and professional principles, could not have been depicted better. The boxing action shots, the set design, the deft outline of Braddock's adversaries – poverty and physical danger – were clear and convincing. Despite all this, my concern at the end of the movie was that it was depressing, rather than uplifting. It went so deep that I was emotionally washed out at the end and even a good ending didn't make me right. Perhaps it has a little to do with my personal concern with the present American economy that made me wonder if the Great Depression could ever happen again, and what if it did. I knew it wasn't a film I'd be recommending to my friends for a fun evening out. The other concern I had while watching the film, was that I didn't know enough about this man Braddock and his family during the good days. The film opens with Braddock a winner, and very shortly thereafter the black clouds roll in and the majority of the movie is the dark story about a man from whom we have no expectation who turns out to be a great man. Perhaps it would have been good to spend a little more time showing us how Braddock first made it to the top, and how he became a little cocky, and then how he weathered the great storm with principles intact despite being severely tested. If any fault can be given at all to the design of the story telling, this would be it -- That short shrift was given to background on Braddock, his little human failings and his relationship with his wife, before their mettle was tested.

The Polar Express (2004)

3-D IMAX impressive

[7/10 · 13 June 2005]

Having seen POLAR EXPRESS only in 3-D IMAX I can't comment on the complaints about "dead eyes" and other technical disappointments of the 2-D version. What I can say is that as an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed the tyke tale and oooh'd and ahhhh'd along with all the other kids in the audience. In 3-D, the eyes were strikingly real and expressive, right down to the nuanced squints, the mottled colors of the iris, reflections off the cornea, and apparent depth of the anterior chamber of the eye. The most notable technical achievement was the translation of subtle body movements that elevated the animation from cartoon to simulation. The application of motion-capture technology succeeded and the many producers who spent tons of money on this film should be praised rather than nitpicked to death by those expecting to see real people marching around on screen. To me, the subtleties captured in this technical tour de force are a huge advance and someday will be recognized unequivocally as such, without all the carping. On the other hand, the story could have been written better, edited more aggressively, tighter, less of the floating ticket, more about the sad poor kid in the caboose -- that is, there could have been better character and story development. They got a little too caught up in the techie tricks. But no matter what your age, there's plenty of entertainment if you just relax and let your imagination ride on the POLAR EXPRESS.

Alexander (2004)

Oliver Stone's Alexander

[7/10 · 13 June 2005]

Given 5 hours I'm sure the Master would have vanquished complaints of time warp, blessed us with fewer monologues and more comprehensive character development. However, Alexander is what it is -- and somewhat less than it could have been. To convey the enormous reach of young Alexander's conquests, their impact on the conquered as well as the conquering, Stone uses monologue narration via Anthony Hopkins (Ptolemy) as he used him in NIXON, and Costner in JFK -- to array the facts, and ask the key questions. No one can create these larger than life portraits and still serve the facts and the gaps better than Oliver Stone. However, if one can't accept how Stone does his work, then they may as well pick another flick. But, if one enjoys feasting on spectacle, Stone's rendition of the battle at Gaugamela is astonishing, with his aerial shots, swish pans, stuttering cuts of an army of individuals, with the eerie guttural sounds of who-knows-what that make the gut turn and the skin crawl. All this said, even though Stone says that Colin Farrell "became Alexander," he perhaps was too fine a rendition of the bi-sexual conqueror. He voice wasn't low enough. He wasn't muscled enough. His face wasn't fierce enough. And of course that's the point. But I needed to see a young Russell Crowe conquering the world on Bucephalus. Finally, Irish accents and Jolie's ludicrous lilt designed to clarify the distinction between Greeks and Macedonians wasn't worth the distraction.

National Treasure (2004)

Treasure Indeed

[8/10 · 13 June 2005]

With critics hanging crepe weeks before, I didn't expect much from the opening weekend for NATIONAL TREASURE. But when one walks into a theater on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis in winter and sees the place packed with kids and gray hairs, you know something good is up. Nestled in my comfy stadium lounger, I leaned back next to three dads and four sons behind a couple older than whatever. And for the next 130 minutes, I didn't sleep a wink. In fact, while I'd heard the script had been re-sculpted many times, my only conclusion is "who cares." The action, the innuendo, the fantastical story line were all in keeping with the action-adventure genre and a jolly good time was had by all. One critic on CNBC had said that the action was good, the story was good though fantastic, and the acting was good, but it just wasn't a good film. Just goes to show you how becoming a professional critic addles the brain, numbs the senses, and results in bad reviews.

Sideways (2004)

Whiny Winey

[7/10 · 13 June 2005]

Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor have again skillfully created a small world victimized by one miserable character and his flaws. Beloved by critics, this well constructed adaptation is a snapshot week about how Miles, a failed writer and anal retentive loser, gets a really great girl. Imperfect humans like Miles, crippled by their own strain of decency, rain negativity on other unsuspecting characters, miraculously reform, then snap back like rubber bands to their own counter-productive ways. Judging by both its critical and popular acclaim, SIDEWAYS is indeed a success in this human work-in-progress "casting away of crutches" genre. However, a 124 (albeit well-executed) minutes about dysfunctional relationships is not worth my $8.00. I'd rather go out and eat nails. What did I like? I liked Mile's monologue on coaxing a finicky Pinot Noir grape into a world class wine. However, I've drunk Pinot Noir. Pinot Noir is one of my favorite varietals. But to me, Mile's is no Pinot Noir.

House of Flying Daggers (2004)

Historical Chinese Opera

[8/10 · 13 June 2005]

Zhang Yimou once again demonstrates his command of operatic drama in this spare but sumptuous tale of Tang Dynasty romance. Unfolding his color-drenched palette, Zhang unveils layer after layer of romantic intrigue complicated by the larger struggle between a Robin Hood band of rebels, House of Flying Daggers, and the corrupt Tang government. Gorgeous Japanese-Taiwanese actor Takeshi Kaneshiro as Tang officer Jin, must gain the trust of Mei, the beautiful blind daughter of Daggers' assassinated chief. Jin helps Mei escape prison in hopes she'll lead him, and the Tang regional constable, to the new leader of the Daggers. The plan is to assassinate the new leader and bring the House of Daggers down for good.

However, en route to the Daggers' northern hideout, Jin falls in love with Mei. The adventures and plot twists that ensue rival Shakespeare with its fascinatingly absurd complexity. From situation to situation, the stakes are raised, one is never quite sure what the next scene will hold. On plot alone, this operatic romance conjures La Traviata, is as satisfying and tragic as Verdi. Surely the Italians have nothing on the Chinese when it comes to wrenching melodrama.

But beyond story, Zhang Yimou imbues his storytelling with exotic color, with bamboo forests, with soldiers from a time who used more wit than technology to fight and vanquish foe. Forget the laser -- flying daggers, arrows, and sharpened bamboo shafts are all you need in this ancient China fantasy.

The Aviator (2004)

Q-u-a-r-a-n-t-i-n-e meets Rosebud

[10/10 · 13 June 2005]

Enter with an open mind and you'll be richly rewarded with Scorsese's meticulous rendering of Howard Hughe's genius and its demise. But don't expect to fall into a comfortable narrative drama. THE AVIATOR is more like CITIZEN KANE, almost a newsreel that conveys the power of a brilliant man driven by his own vision against all odds.

Despite this stark and challenging frame, Scorsese and his wonderful team, including set designer Dante Feretti and a score of talented actors, still is able to convey Hughes' fragile humanity as he struggles to control the delusions and paranoia that eventually destroy his life. At the end of the movie, one mourns for Hughes as one mourned for Kane -- the loss of one man who labored a lifetime to overcome a childhood trauma and achieved great things.

Of course Scorsese's film is more than that. He coaxes a magnificently mature and nuanced performance out of Leonardo DiCaprio, and may even win him an Oscar. Cate Blanchette as Kate Hepburn at first seems excessive, until her veneer begins to peel away -- again a tribute to Scorsese's skill as a director, and Blanchette's bountiful acting abilities.

The three hours went quickly as one fabulous scene and set replaced another. The vintage clips of HELL'S ANGELS interspersed with new footage are, alone, worth the price of admission. Without giving away the ending, go see the old planes fly.

Don't miss seeing this wonderful film on the big screen. It's a masterpiece.

Meet the Fockers (2004)

High Quality Vintage Comedy

[9/10 · 13 June 2005]

You won't walk out of the theater any smarter than when you walked in, but you'll have fun.

In this sequel to MEET THE PARENTS, the WASP parents of Gaylord "Greg" Focker's fiancée visit Focker's Jewish folks. And the "fish out of water" humor begins as the fiancée's intensely anal former CIA father comes face to face with an entirely different way of life. While all ends in a predictably happy ending, it's the bumps along the rocky road to matrimony that make this film an entertaining show.

By the way, I had no idea Barbra Streisand was in such great shape, and when was the last time you saw her in a lousy movie? Exactly. This is a well honed and well executed funny sequel. And it's way better than Christmas WITH THE KRANKS.

However, the potty jokes get a little old, and they keep popping up throughout the entire film. So if you hate that kind of humor, it's not going away in the first ten.

Of all the attributes of this comedy, I'd say the best part was seeing all the terrific actors seem so real. Except for excessive mugging on DeNiro's part, Hoffman, Streisand, Stiller, Blythe Danner, and Teri Polo all seemed amazingly like real people despite the zany situations.

Flight of the Phoenix (2004)

High concept, low execution

[6/10 · 13 June 2005]

It's pretty sad when you find yourself rooting for the movie and none of its characters. The premise, a plane-load of jig-saw puzzle characters forced to survive in a desert, was drained of its gritty potential by scribe tricks meant to keep the action going. It's hard to believe pros like Scott Frank and Edward Burns completely sacrificed character driven action to the other kind -- and didn't even succeed at that!

The film begins well enough when cynical "shut it down Towns" (Quaid) unexpectedly arrives in his big plane to evacuate a fired crew from a failed test drill oil well site in Mongolia. Right off the bat the crew leader, Kelly (Miranda Otto) takes it out on Towns, establishing the "hate" part of their "love hate" relationship. Towns' more than just cynical, he's arrogant, and bad judgment has him flying into a treacherous storm that ends with the plane and all its motley characters stranded in the Gobi so far off course no one's gonna look, and no one's gonna care. Great CGI aerials and crash sequence.

However, what should then have become a boiling cauldron of humans on the edge, instead turns into one dumb move after another. Not to mention that for no good reason people choose to lounge and crawl around in the blazing sun instead of sticking mostly to the shade.

Can't recommend this movie, which is too bad, because Quaid is such a nice guy and not a bad actor.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)

Quirky Yellow Submarine

[7/10 · 13 June 2005]

Expecting nothing because of poor reviews, I actually enjoyed LIFE AQUATIC. Engaging lethargy and truth seem to be Murray's new acting hallmark, as in LOST IN TRANSLATION and THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS. In fact, AQUATIC is easier to assimilate than TENENBAUMS as the scenery's exotic (fake and real), the sets are novel (rooms in his ship are shown in a cutaway view, the rooms stacked on top and next to one another), and Murray, Huston, Wilson and Blanchett as well as Dafoe and Gambon are swell actors to watch in action.

Murray plays Steve Zissou, a caricature of Jaques Cousteau. His recent movies have been flops, no one will stake him to his next exploration, and his wife (Huston) is bored and takes a vacation in her ex-husband's villa. Then, unexpectedly a young man who might be his son enters Zissou's life, reinvigorating him emotionally and financially as the kid has an inheritance that floats the next exploration. And off we go on Zissou's quest to catch the shark that ate his pal.

In one of the final scenes, it all comes together when Zissou finally catches up with the elusive Jaguar Shark. He and his team watch the glittering creature swim in and out of view from their little submarine. It's the end of a long quest as well as a long emotional journey for Zissou. He asks, "Do you think he remembers me?" Then you realize what the movie's all about - a man's need to feel connected to other human beings, NOT a FISH. It all boils down to being recognized, remembered, and someone else giving a damn.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)

Now That's Entertainment!

[10/10 · 11 June 2005]

I caught the 6:25 and 7:20 shows at a local suburban multiplex. It was showing on two screens and they were packed. The audience applauded at the end. Personally I thoroughly enjoyed everything about the movie. First, who can complain about well shot close-ups of two such charming and physically appealing stars? Second, the riffs on marital verbal and non-verbal repartee were hilarious and on the nose. Take for example the passionate love-making post house-busting shoot-out. A little over the top, perhaps, but who hasn't felt that overheated hormone rush following a physical altercation with one's lover? Best sex ever, right? And in this case the scene even made literary sense -- one could see the original spark re-ignite the Smith's dormant passion for each other. It plays to the main themes of the movie -- why does marriage fail, and how to jump-start a stale one. "War of the Roses" was not so insightful. Third, the action was well choreographed, especially the Smith's pas de deux with guns during a shoot out in the final 10 minutes. This film has nothing to do with the other couple failures (Ben and Jen in "Gigli;" "Kidman and Cruise in "Eyes Wide Shut") which were flawed films, plain and simple. "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" is a genuinely entertaining action flick with smart writing, superb cinematography and editing, and two talented stars who know their material and can communicate the emotional nuances of love with sarcasm, irony, and humor. Not to mention the splendid chemistry between them. Brad and Angelina seemed to genuinely at least like each other. This film has nothing to do with what's wrong with Hollywood and the current box office slump. A film or two like the Smith's might in fact, be Hollywood's salvation.

Monster-in-Law (2005)

Fonda's still got it

[2/10 · 4 June 2005]

Bravo to Jane Fonda, who successfully navigated a monstrous role fraught with career-killing booby traps. Kudos to her pluck and care in making an over-the-top role as a mentally unstable, domineering maternal psycopath, plausible. However, despite otherwise credible acting skills, I just could not buy Jennifer Lopez playing a goodie-goodie two-shoes fighting for her true love. In this case her real life marital events inevitably tainted this viewer's ability to suspend disbelief. Even her transformation into a calculating hussy mano à mano with her monster-in-law-to-be was not enough to make Lopez' character believable, especially when she reverts back to her goodie-goodie self minutes before walking down the aisle. And Michael Vartan - whoa. Does he need Jennifer Garner kicking ass nearby to make him seem like a guy with a Y chromosome? Of the three leads, he, most of all, should take more care in his choice of roles as his wimpy turn in this flick withers his leading man potential. Overall this miserable movie owes its critical bricks to a one trick premise and a mundane and predictable script. The film owes its box office success to Jane Fonda's still-strong star power and Jennifer Lopez' solid fan base. These two women are the reasons why the film made a disgusting amount of money despite the fact that it is a very horrible, painful movie to endure. Even wonderful Wanda Sykes was diminished by supporting character clichés. The only thing that kept me in my seat was waiting to see how Jane Fonda was going to save the next bad page of script.

King of the Corner (2004)

"The Big Chill" -- Part Deux

[8/10 · 4 June 2005]

A small gem of a film. Succinct, well acted and very well directed. It's "The Big Chill" twenty-five years later, portrayed with wry Jewish humor. A must see for all Baby Boomers and their kin. Peter Riegert assembles a wonderful cast (including Isabella Rosselini, Eli Wallach, Jake Hoffman - yes, Dustin's kid, Rita Moreno, and Eric Bogosian) and crew to shoot this $400,000 flick in 20 days on 16 mm blown up to a wonderfully textured 35 mm movie that fills the screen with $5 million worth of production value. Riegert and his colleagues take the time to tell the story of an ordinary man, a man we all know, at what seems like the end of his career. They make us feel his pain and his passions blessedly conveyed with irony and humor that first makes us wince, then laugh out loud with relief. At the very end, they decide to give the old buzzard a break, and all of us reason to hope that somewhere out there, there's going to be a third act after all. Call it "Big Chill" part three. By the end of the film we're confident that the end ain't that near after all, that old dogs can learn new tricks, and that there's still a lot more life to live for all of us born just after the end WWII. When the time comes for the true end of our era, let's all hope that it's Riegert and friends telling us our final tale.