The Reviewer Asks "What Just Happened"

Barry Levinson's latest film, What Just Happened is a look inside the Hollywood movie machine, with Robert DeNiro as our guide. DeNiro plays Ben, a harried producer, who is trying to juggle 2 diametrically opposed problems on 2 films. One regarding final cut on a film starring Sean Penn with a drug addled, crazed director (Michael Wincott), who is desperate to keep his artistic integrity with an especially violent ending to his film, while the studio executive the ever wonderful (Catherine Keener) demands it be re-shot. Ben has to appease both sides and hopefully will get the outcome he wants. Meanwhile, a film that is about to shoot, has problems of its own, when a Grizzly Adams bearded Bruce Willis will not shave and threatens to destroy the whole production. Not to mention, while all this is happening, Ben is in therapy so that he and his ex wife (Robin Wright) can have a healthy break up.

This is a decent film that shows the life of a Hollywood producer and all his trials and tribulations. The story is based on the memoirs of producer Art Linson (famous for producing Fight Club, one of my favorite films I might add). The great ensemble cast also features John Turturro as a nerve addled agent with a stomach disorder. And Stanley Tucci rounds out the cast as a writer with a story nobody wants to make. Bruce Willis' role as a high maintenance actor, playing against type must've been fun to play. DeNiro of course does a masterful job with subtlety as the juggling producer. Sean Penn, plays Sean Penn, as we would expect, himself. Simple and honest. There are some good comedic moments in the film, especially with Turturro and DeNiro. I give What Just Happened 3 stars and is out now on dvd.

The Reviewer Goes to The Edge of Heaven

The critically acclaimed The Edge of Heaven, which won Best Screenplay at Cannes in 2007 is a beautiful story of forgiveness caught up in human complexity. This interwoven, character driven story. When his father (Tuncel Kurtiz) accidentally kills a prostitute (Nursel Koese), Nejat (Baki Davrak) seeks out the woman's 27-year-old daughter, Ayten (Nurgul Yesilcay), to make amends. Nejat focuses his search in Turkey, but Ayten, part of a closely scrutinized activist group, has already fled to Germany. There she is befriended by Lotte (Patrycia Ziolkowska) who will stop at nothing to defend and help her beloved new friend. All their lives intersect in locations from Germany to Turkey in this emotional provoking drama by acclaimed German director, Fatih Akin. This synopsis doesn't really capture the complexity of this film, as there is so much going on. One of the other great arcs of the story revolves around Lotte's mother (Hanna Schygulla) who goes through the unspeakable and we see her struggle to come out the other side.

Edge of Heaven didn't begin to captivate me, until about a 3rd of the way through and from there, with plot points converging and unforeseen events take shape, that this film really gets a grip on you. The style, the cinematography are wonderful. The film tends to drag in parts and ends rather abruptly for my taste but I can understand why the director chose to finish it at that point, however, if he chose to go a little farther, I think you would have been hearing a lot more about this film. I give The Edge of Heaven 4 stars and is widely available on dvd.

The Reviewer Enters Quarantine

Quarantine, the latest horror film that is shot with the point of view documentary style that is getting popular, feels like a cross between 28 Days Later and Cloverfield. Directed by 1st time studio director John Erick Dowdle. Quarantine is the story of a night in the life of a television reporter and her cameraman who go on a ride along with the LA Fire Department to a call in an apartment building. They respond to a sickly old woman in distress but they soon realize something is terribly wrong and the horror follows with the crew and the apartment dwellers as they are quarantined in the apartment by the CDC and it becomes a matter of survival. The predominantly indepoendent cast is led by the ever entertaining Jennifer Carpenter. Jennifer plays the television reporter Angela Vidal. Everything I have seen her in from The Exorcism of Emily Rose to Dexter shows that she has excellent acting chops and has a fine career ahead of her. She is very natural and relaxed in this role and when all hell breaks loose, we feel her terror. Not to say that there are some other good pieces of acting as well, but not to the caliber as Miss Carpenter.

But, the film itself is ok. Cliched in many respects and the jerky camera style does not agree with me. I am getting bored with the genre of the camera as primary witness to the terrible events that unfold and therefore it is us, the viewers who are active participants in the chaos that ensues. At least what I liked better about Quarantine than Cloverfield is that both the terror and the interplay with the characters are given equal treatment. Fore those that love the genre, you will really enjoy this film, otherwise, watch 28 Days Later again, it's just that much better. But, keep your eyes out for Jennifer Carpenter going forward, she's terrific. I give Quarantine 2.5 stars

The Reviewer Gets Religulous

Religulous, the new documentary by Larry Charles and Bill Maher brings Bill Maher on a quest for knowledge about a subject that he is very passionate about debunking...religion. Religions of all types, but primarily Christianity. I am a fan of Bill Maher, so I enjoyed this film. many religious people are outraged by the film (what a shock) but I do think if you look at it objectively, Bill Maher is going to many different places around the world and simply asking questions about religion and why religions should be believed. My main critique is that sometimes he launches into his pretentious holier than thou pontification that gets boring if it goes too long.

From the Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida to the Holy Land in Jerusalem, with stops at the Vatican, Amsterdam and even a trucker's chapel in Raleigh, North Carolina, Bill Maher explores the nature of religions and also looks to support his hypothesis that religions are dangerous institutions that should be stopped. From some of the people he was speaking to, he certainly has a point. His main targets are Christianity and Islam. Judaism gets some flack, but for the most part, I felt like they were given a pass. One of my favorite moments was at the Vatican, speaking to a zany priest, who actually was of the opinion that a lot of what we are led to believe is untrue, it's a great interview. Other highlights were his take on Scientology and Mormonism. It's also good to check out the deleted scenes because Bill and Larry found some pretty off the wall folks who believe anything from Presidents Bush 1 and 2 being part lizard to a pretty scary anti abortionist. Maher is preaching to the choir and I doubt he will convert many non atheists but it is entertaining and he does bring up legitimate points about some of the prominent religions of the world. I would've like to have seen eastern religions also explored as well. Religulous gets 3 stars.

The Reviewer Loved Changeling

Once again, Clint Eastwood gives us a thought provoking and deeply emotional film. The Changeling. It was much better than I expected. A true story of an LA woman in the late 1920's, who's son is kidnapped and the LAPD decides to substitute another child and demonstrably makes the woman believe it is her son, despite her protestations. Angelina Jolie does a great job as the mother, Christine Collins in an emotionally gut wrenching role. I loved how she was living out her imaginary circumstances. Powerful stuff. John Malkovich portrays the Rev. Gustav Briegleb, who is on a crusade to bring the LAPD's corruption and wrong doings to light. I heard many reviews citing that character is being manipulative and using Christine Collins for his own gain. Not sure of the actual story, but in the film, I disagree with that assessment, I think the Reverend was portrayed as a hero and the lone voice in the wilderness that would listen to Christine Collins and do what he could to help. Malkovich is as fine as ever.

As for the LAPD, excellent performance by Jeffrey Donovan as the cold and heartless Captain Jones, who torments Christine Collins. Primarily a television actor, Donovan was very good as a man you love to hate. Colm Feore, portrays Police Chief Davis in a somewhat lesser role but did a decent job as well.

The sub plot to Changeling is equally riveting. A kidnapped Canadian boy forced to helping a serial killer slay children and somehow this all gets enmeshed in the Christine Collins story. I was impressed by Jason Butler Harner as Gordon Northcott. I have never seen him before. Another predominant television actor, but he has good chops and I enjoyed his performance.

And of course the film would be nowhere without the talents of Clint Eastwood. Time and again, he keeps showing us what a remarkable film maker he truly is. As an actor's director, I would love to work with him some day, if I am fortunate enough. Changeling is hard to imagine being a true story, considering all that goes on in the film. I am surprised it has gotten little Oscar recognition, especially Angelina has been practically written off in pre Oscar balloting. But, she excellent and a lot better than Kate Winslet in The Reader. I give Changeling 4 Stars. Check it out.

The Reviewer Checks Out The Reader

Former Nazi SS officer learns that reading is fundamental. That should be the tag line for The Weinstein Brothers Oscar nominated film: The Reader, featuring Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes. It is the story of an emotionally constipated man, Michael Berg (Fieenes), who cannot open up to anyone and it is all because of an affair he had with an older woman, Hannah Schmitz (Winslet) when he was 15 and she broke his heart. The affair was torrid and in between sex romps, the boy would read to the woman and it acted as a kind of aphrodisiac for her. The affair lasted one summer in the late 1950's in W. Germany. The film than moves on to the meat of the story, when several years later, the young man goes to law school and he is taken on a field trip to see a trial of former SS guards from Auschwitz who are on trial and it turns out Hannah is one of the guards on trial and he is shocked. With Hannah's fate in the balance, will she make a decision to protect her pride rather than her life. Michael has information that could affect the outcome of the trial and will he use it to protect his long lost love. These are the supposed harrowing questions that we should be made to care about. But I for one did not.

I was bored watching this film. There's no guts to it. The courtroom scenes were slow and contrived. Too much talking. I can only say Director Stephen Daldrey is to blame. Film is a visual medium afterall. I can go on but I'll just finish the review discussing the acting. I was uninspired by Kate Winslet (who is a very good actress) and after all the Oscar talk about her being a shoe-in to receive the Oscar for Best Actress for this performance, I couldn't wait to see ho much better it had to be than Revolutionary Road, which I believe she should've been nominated for instead (also a boring film by the way). I felt she didn't really believe in her character. Her accent was uninspired and at times she would give a glimpse of emotion but it was fleeting, particularly one scene in the courtroom. Granted this is a provocative role, especially with the sex scenes with the young Michael but her character, like Michael is stunted emotionally. I didn't feel she had much going on underneath to make her stoicism palatable. Neither did I find Ralph Fiennes (another excellent actor) performance all that good either. Actually, the only actor I enjoyed watching was Lena Olin who plays a Holocaust survivor. Bruno Ganz who plays Michael's law professor was equally disappointing. I usually like Bruno's work, but I felt like he was indicating and forcing his lines. So, we have a pretty sound cast, in a wasted effort. The whole film feels contrived and emotionally manipulating due to its subject matter. Once again, we have a film that forces German guilt on to us. I have a strong feeling about this, after vacationing in Berlin last spring and seeing how much the Germans still berate themselves for the war. The nation should be prescribed Prozac in my opinion. The Holocaust was a tragic, horrible and an unthinkable blight on humanity , but the fact that substandard films about this subject continue to be revered by the Academy virtually every year grows tiresome to me. The fact that The Dark Knight or even The Wrestler was passed over for The Reader is ridiculous. I give The Reader 1.5 stars. I am hoping Meryl Streep gets Best Actress next week.

The Reviewer Treads Carefully on Frozen River

Nominated for 2 Oscars including Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress, Melissa Leo, Frozen River is probably a film you haven't even heard of until recently. It's a small independent film that took home the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance last year. It's the story of 2 single mothers struggling to survive any way they can in the cold winter in Massena, NY, on the Canadian border.

Melissa Leo plays Ray, a single mother of 2 boys after her gambling addict husband abandons them and taking their money for a new trailer home. Lila is a widowed Mohawk, whose baby boy was kidnapped by her mother-in-law a year ago. They both have limited opportunities to make a living, until a chance meeting between the 2 women leads to an illegal venture to make extra money by smuggling illegal immigrants from Canada across the Reservation into the states. Things seem to be working out for the women, who become bonded in their experience, until one last run could cost them everything.

Frozen River is a gritty story with some good performances. Melissa Leo performance as Ray is Oscar worthy but not the best performance from an actress I have seen this past year (my money is going for Meryl, but I'm sure Kate will get it). Misty Upham, plays Lila. She's a hardened lady who has no love for "Whites" as she calls them. The actors who play Ray's boys are ok. I am giving one a break, as he is like 5 or 6. There were some uncomfortable moments for me watching these 2 women struggle, especially one particular run across the frozen river. There is the requisite foreshadowing in the film and you can tell what is coming but, the film didn't break down into hackneyed drama. My only gripes were; I didn't really buy the connection between the mother and older son and some of the convenience that occurred when just showing up to transport illegals to the same place seemed pretty easy. Otherwise, it's a solid film. The film is ably directed by Courtney Hunt.

I recommend Frozen River, as it is a unique compelling story and give it 3.5 stars.