MORNING GLORY

Photos courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Rachael McAdams tries to turn a major network’s cellar-dwelling television program into a success in the comedy MORNING GLORY.

McAdams is Becky Fuller, a twenty-eight year old jobless Californian who’s seeking employment after falling victim to budget cuts at a local television station. She sends her resume all over the country, and finally lands a call from a network station based in New York. She lands the job of executive producer of the station’s morning show, Daybreak, and hopes to bring the show’s ratings up from the basement to the top.

She succeeds in coercing former nighttime anchor Mike Pomeroy, played by Harrison Ford, to host the show alongside mainstay Colleen Peck. Despite the all-star team, Mike and Colleen don’t exactly see high to eye.

Becky Fuller is the kind of executive producer anyone would like to have working for them, both in and out of the television industry. She’s devoted to her craft, her crew and she’s so naïve and optimistic that pie-in-the-sky dreams don’t seem like pie-in-the-sky dreams.

She’s also a character who deserves a more honed screenplay. MORNING GLORY is as pleasant as pleasant can be, creating a realistic, yet engaging atmosphere for Becky to navigate. It features a uniformly good cast, with Ford as the old curmudgeon anchor, Keaton the bright-eyed, but jaded co-host and Patrick Wilson as Becky’s charming love interest Adam.

All of the pieces are in place for a top-notch comedy, and there are some wonderful moments laced into MORNING GLORY, but writer Aline Brosh McKenna, and director Roger Michell, aren’t confident enough in the characters they’ve developed. MORNING GLORY goes to great ends to establish who Becky and Mike are, that the film’s glossed-over ending feels false and unsatisfying. Not only does Becky deserve a better outcome, but so does McAdams, who carries the film with a light, but big-hearted performance that is truly memorable.

MORNING GLORY has crafted all the right characters, but doesn't have the confidence to have them stay true to their nature.

Grade: C+

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Harry and his friends find life outside of Hogwart’s a lot more difficult in the seventh and final chapter of the Harry Potter series, HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART ONE.

Harry, Ron and Hermione are no longer attending Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and now will be forced to put their schooling into practice. Lord Voldemort, the murderer of Harry’s parents, is dead set on sending Harry and his two friends to the grave, and has assembled the Ministry of Magic to plot the threes doom. Harry, Ron and Hermoine catch wind of the plan and flee to the outskirts where they can hide in isolationism and plot their next move.
Harry, Hermione and Ron have grown up right in front of our own eyes, and so has the HARRY POTTER series. What started as a children’s adventure has turned into a survival test, and the subject matter isn’t for the faint of heart.

In many ways, I’ve come to enjoy the series more as it’s progressed. As a non-Potter reader, I’ve felt out of the loop, and haven’t felt that the series as a whole has filled in the necessary gaps. Yet as the HARRY POTTER series has evolved, the themes and story have grown broader and seemingly more important.

I’ve also become more fond of the characters, of which I’ve spent roughly 15 hours of my life with. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1 is by far the darkest and most adult film of the series, and it benefits from both aspects. Life, death, love and honor are all at stake for our three favorite Hogwart graduates, and you can sense this in nearly every scene. There are times in DEATHLY HALLOWS where I still feel like an outsider looking in, but these are now the exception rather than the rule. Knowing that Harry, Ron and Hermione’s lives weigh in the balance, as does their friendship, and maybe more, HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1 has culminated the Potter series into a film with real human emotion and pathos.

This film, along with THE GOBLET OF FIRE, are the best of the Potter lot.

Grade: B

HEREAFTER

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Director Clint Eastwood delves into the afterlife with his latest drama, HEREAFTER. HEREAFTER features three separate storylines, each focused on the effects of death and what lies ahead.

Marie LeLay is the host of a hot-button French television show, who while on assignment, experiences a traumatic, near-death experience in the midst of a typhoon. Marcus and Jason are adolescent British twins, attempting to keep their family together in spite of their drug-addicted mother, each struck by a sudden tragedy. And lastly, there’s George, played by Matt Damon, an American psychic who’s left the profession for a blue collar job, with the hopes of obtaining a normal life.

Each of these characters grapples with their fate and the great beyond.

Always prevalent, but never expressly so, nearly all Clint Eastwood directed films have a certain synchronicity to them. Never so much so than HEREAFTER. Although Marie, Jason and George each share a commonality, we sense that there are greater forces at work.

The events that unfold in writer Peter Morgan’s script could have played out as melodrama or schmaltz, but under Eastwood’s careful touch, HEREAFTER serves as a thoughtful meditation on three lost souls. Marie, Jason and George all experience the pain and hardship of loss, be it through death, personal relationships or their profession, but underneath their anguish lies a sense that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

Morgan’s screenplay is well-orchestrated, Eastwood’s touch on-the-mark, and the performances by the three leads are convincing and emotionally rewarding. Cecile de France as Marie, Frankie and George McLaren as Marcus and Jason and Damon as the aforementioned George, all convey their levels of despair appropriately, and each in different ways. Through their performances we explore grief and redemption in humanistic and reflective ways.

Eastwood again serves as his own composer, adding a layer of soulfulness with his simplistic, yet haunting score.

HEREAFTER is a moving and contemplative exploration of what lies ahead when our souls move on.

Grade: B+

DUE DATE

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifianakis find themselves headed to Los Angeles via the roadway, instead of the airway in the buddy comedy, DUE DATE.

Downey’s Peter is scheduled to fly to LA, returning home to his pregnant wife Sarah, who’s scheduled for a C-section in a matter of days. Galifianakis’s Ethan is headed to Hollywood, in hopes of becoming an actor. Ethan’s father has recently passed away, and Ethan is now inspired to live out his dream.

After Peter and Ethan accidentally switch bags, and Ethan spiritedly uses the words terrorist and bomb aboard their flight, Peter and Ethan find themselves on the no-fly list. Ethan rents a car and plans on driving to Hollywood, but Peter, minus his seized wallet, license and credit cards, has no way to get there, until Ethan offers him a ride.

DUE DATE, as most critics have aptly dubbed it, is a modern day version of PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES. The set-up, mismatched pair and even events along the road, make DUE DATE an unmistakable homage to the Martin-Candy holiday classic.

Where DUE DATE errs, and PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES succeeded was in its humanity, or in DUE DATE’S case, lack thereof. Both Downey and Galifianakis are playing magnified extensions of their typical on-screen personas, with Peter as the extremely arrogant, self-absorbed elitist, and Galifianakis as the clueless, obnoxious fool. There are a substantial amount of laughs, due in large part to the tandem’s talents, but many laughs are lost due to the unlikable nature of Peter and Ethan.

Writer-director Todd Phillips, of OLD SCHOOL and THE HANGOVER fame, knows comedy and many of the film’s memorable moments capitalize on the absurdity of the situation and the two men involved. When the outlandish moments stop, we’re left with a snob and an idiot, and Phillips and a collection of co-writers create half-hearted back-stories in an effort to drum up empathy for our leads. It doesn’t work.

DUE DATE had all the makings of a laugh-out-loud romp, but it’s often hard to laugh at two men you’d leave stranded on the side of the highway.

Grade: C

LET ME IN

Photos courtesy of Hammer Film Productions

A dangerous young girl befriends her neighbor, an outcast boy in the horror film LET ME IN.

The film is the American remake of the well-received Swedish horror film LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. Oskar and Eli are now Owen and Abbey, two kids who meet on the playground outside their apartment complex. Abbey warns Owen that they shouldn’t become friends, but the two’s exclusion from other children leads to a bond and friendship between the two.

Owen is bullied at school by his classmates which leads to his torment, but Abbey has a unique problem, she’s a vampire. Abbey’s father does her dirty work for her, sneaking out at night to provide Abbey with the necessary life blood.
This vampire remake retains many of the chills as the original, but instead of an overtly cautionary tale about teen angst, anger and cruelty, it is more of a straightforward thriller with a rich subtext.

The revamped script, written by Mark Reeves, who also directs, stays true to the Swedish film, with very few differences. The one change, and a welcomed one, is the torment felt by Abbey’s father played by character actor Richard Jenkins.

Jenkins has made a name for himself playing honorable dads, and in LET ME IN, this portrayal is even more challenging. In spite of Abbey’s father’s actions, there’s a certain nobility, and dare I say obligation, in dad’s gruesome work. It’s a credit to Jenkins that we emphasize with him.

Like the original, LET ME IN benefits from two terrific child performances. Chloe Moretz, of KICK ASS fame, plays Abbey straight, as a repressed, but loving girl. The fact that Abbey is a vampire burdens her, but Moretz doesn’t play it to superficial effect, treating it more like a form of supernatural abuse that plagues her.

Equally impressive is Kodi Smit-McPhee as Owen. Smit-McPhee follows up his performance in THE ROAD with another angst-ridden role. Smit-McPhee physically embodies the schoolyard victim, but also conveys his outward trepidation and inward anger terrifically.

As mentioned before LET ME IN is more of a horror-thriller than the original, and although there are some frightening moments, the horror is also where the film’s biggest misstep occurs. An over reliance by Reeves utilizing CGI drains some of the drama out of this fearful tale.

Although not quite up to the standards of LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, LET ME IN is still a cut above films in its genre.

Grade: B-

BURIED

Photos courtesy of Antena 3 Films

Ryan Reynolds finds himself six feet under in the Middle East in the claustrophobic thriller BURIED.

As the title eludes Reynolds’ Paul, a contractor working in Iraq, is trapped under ground in a casket after being ambushed by a group of Iraqis. Paul is left with a lighter, a cell phone and a couple of glow sticks, but little hope of returning above ground.

BURIED takes experimental cinema to the next level. Several films have taken enclosed or secluded confines to dramatic effect from 12 ANGRY MEN to PHONE BOOTH to OPEN WATER, but none more challenging than turning a roughly eight by four by two foot box into the entire setting for a suspense thriller.

Amazingly enough BURIED works, even if there are a few liberties taken to pull off the proceedings. Reynolds is the lone actor in the film, with voice talent provided by a handful of actors, and he delivers a genuine performance full of frustration, despair and anger. Reynolds typically plays confident, often cocky, individuals. As Paul it was refreshing to see the young actor have everything stripped from him, and essentially work from scratch. Without the benefit of acting off another, Reynolds is forced to react to a dire situation, possible outcomes, government bureaucracy and a few voices.

BURIED director Rodrigo Cortes takes advantage of Chris Sparling’s script that provides a generous number of situations despite the confined setting. These situations, at times contrived, but often necessary, give BURIED enough substance to substantiate a full-length runtime.

BURIED digs deep enough into Paul’s predicament thanks to a creative script, skillful direction and a solid lead performance.

Grade: B-

WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS

Photos courtesy of 20th Century Fox


Gordon Gekko gets a second chance on the market in Oliver Stone’s sequel, WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS

Michael Douglas, reprising his Oscar-winning role from the original, is Gekko, a financially successful, but morally bankrupt Wall Street trader who has just finished an eight-year prison sentence for money laundering and fraud. His return to society is welcomed by the press, with the release of Gekko’s new book, “Is Greed Good?”, but not by his estranged daughter Winnie, played by Carey Mulligan.

Winnie hasn’t forgiven dear old dad for his selfish ways, particularly the impact its had on their family. Winnie has moved on, and is now engaged to Jake, another Wall Street player, who finds Winnie’s father to be an intriguing figure to say the least. After attending a speech by Gordon, Jake decides to get to know his future father-in-law.


Of all the words to describe Oliver Stone films, pandering and tame are two which I never thought I’d use, but these two are the best to describe WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS.

In spite of some of Stone’s cinematic failures, his films have always provoked, entertained or both, but this sequel falls as flat as the Dow Jones average in late 2008. In addition to Stone’s lackluster direction, the film fails due to a script which merely regurgitates headlines from the financial collapse two years ago. Boardroom meetings, behind-door conflicts and market floor mayhem encompass the screenplay, but little seems at stake since the outcome is already known.

The real drama isn’t the market of course, but rather the personal relationships between Winnie, Jake and Gordon. This character-driven triangle doesn’t fare much better. Mulligan, who was terrific in last year’s AN EDUCATION, isn’t given much to work with. Her Winnie is sharp and determined, but is left with little to do but complain about the ill-effects of having Gordon as a dad. There’s little development of Gekko as a character, since it’s a reprised role, but for those who missed the first film 15 years ago, little is offered. That leaves us with Jake, whom the film is really centered around. LaBeouf’s Jake is already enamored with making money and trading, so his allure towards Gordon seems more natural than dramatic.

In spite of all the possibilities a WALL STREET sequel would have in our current state of affairs, Stone leaves several stones unturned, and somehow turns MONEY NEVER SLEEPS into a grand bore.

Grade: D+

THE TOWN

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.


A Boston bank robber begins to mend his ways after falling for one of his victims in the thriller THE TOWN.

Ben Affleck co-writes and directs THE TOWN, and also stars as bank and armored car robber Doug MaCray. Doug has been raised in Charleston, MA, the bank robbery capital of the world. Doug’s mother left the family when he was little, and Doug’s father, a thief himself, has raised Doug in the same mold.

Doug and his fellow thieves knock off a bank, but unlike their other robberies, Doug’s friend Jimmy elects to take a hostage. The hostage, Claire, is the assistant bank manager. After the heist, Jimmy thinks its a good idea to monitor Claire, and make sure she doesn’t squeal. Doug insists he’ll see that doesn’t happen, but he has alterior motives.

THE TOWN sounds a lot like an old-time western, and this modern-day thriller feels just like one. Affleck, and co-writers Peter Craig and Aaron Stockard, establish the brains, brawns and bravado of both the good guys and the bad, so much so, that the lines between the two become blurred. Yes, we know that Doug and his childhood chums are on the wrong side of the law, but our sympathy for Doug, and the blind tenacity of FBI Agent Adam Frawley provide us with enough rooting interest to hope Doug finds his way out of a very sticky situation.

Affleck, much like actor-director Clint Eastwood, seems to have found a home behind the camera. His acting career has been hit and miss, but his directorial eye, and knack for establishing tone, setting and distinct characters, are making the GOOD WILL HUNTING alum a talent at delivering gutsy and real material.

As Affleck demonstrated with his directorial debut, GONE BABY GONE, and does so again with THE TOWN, he seems to get the most out of his performers. Not only is Doug one of Affleck’s better roles, but he also pulls terrific performances out of Jeremy Renner as Jimmy, Pete Postlethwaithe as smallbit crime kingpin Fergie and Rebecca Hall as Claire.

THE TOWN is a riveting thriller, delivering an updated Beantown western in the form of a crime drama.

Grade: B+

SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD

Photos courtesy of Universal Pictures

A Generation Y man meets the girl of his dreams, but must battle her former love interests to win her heart in SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD.

Michael Cera is the aforementioned young man, and title character, who desires the heart of Ramona Flowers, a young woman he meets at a party. Ramona’s beauty, style and allure makes Scott fall in love with her at first sight. Winning over a girl’s heart isn’t the only obstacle Scott faces, as he must fight off Ramona’s seven exes before he can become a potential number eight.

SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD is based on a comic book, and writer-director Edgar Wright captures the style and attitude of the medium. The film is drenched in pop culture, from video game to television references, but instead of serving as its backdrop, the style and attitude more or less dominates the film’s narrative.

Each ex of Ramona’s serves as another level of a video game that Scott must win to advance to the final ex, or stage of the game. The film is an odd-mix, part romance and part action comedy, neither of which completely work. Each ex encounter provides a portion of the action comedy, but doesn’t provide a greater understanding of who Ramona is, by glimpsing into her past affairs.

The battles Scott has with Ramona’s exes serve as a momentary jolt to a film severely lacking in chemistry. Cera is fine, as is Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Ramona, but together the two don’t work. The differences between their characters makes the romance seem like a stretch, and Wright never allots enough quality time between the two to develop the tough-sell romance.

The talented Wright becomes overly indulged in the spirited, but redundant encounters between Scott and Ramona’s former boyfriends, and girlfriend. Instead of using the battles as a springboard to develop Ramona, and Scott and Ramona’s romance, Wright goes for stylized, yet superficial moments filled with action and so-called comedy.

SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD substitutes style for substance, and delivers an underwhelming romance and action comedy.

Grade: C

THE AMERICAN

Photos provided by Focus Features

George Clooney begins to have second thoughts regarding his profession in the thriller THE AMERICAN.

Clooney is Jack, an assassin who travels across the globe to perform his assignments. Jack’s most recent job in Italy, just like all of his other hits, forces Jack to remain in proverbial isolation from others. While in Italy, Jack begins a relationship with Clara, a prostitute. What begins as a standard call-girl, client affair leads to a romance, and one which may compromise Jack’s latest job.

An independent, solemn, and yet thrilling character study, THE AMERICAN has been packaged as a standard thriller with Clooney at the helm. The fact that the film reached the top of the box office for it’s first week of release is a testament to Clooney’s star power and a successful ad campaign.

Although THE AMERICAN isn’t exactly what it appears, it is an intriguing and understated film about the disconnect between man and his surroundings. Jack’s violent escapades lead him across the map in search of his latest hit, visiting exotic and beautiful locales, women and cultures, none of which can be truly appreciated by the killer. Jack’s assignments don’t appear to be the most important thing in his life, but the only thing in his life.

Clooney portrays Jack as a cold and distant soul, not immune to life’s wonderments, but rather detached and frightened of the affect it may have if he chooses to embrace them. This makes for a compelling and often overlooked theme, but one more suited for an actor with a sharper edge. Although Clooney’s Jack is an engaging character, benefiting from the actor’s natural star power, the dark and distant side seems like too much of a stretch for one of Hollywood’s most eligible bachelors.

The film was directed by Anton Corbjin, who has an eye for both natural and human landscapes. By capturing the allure of both, THE AMERICAN creates a substantial atmosphere, one that even Jack comes to appreciate.

Grade: B-

LOST: Season Six

Photos provided by ABC Studios
I still find myself watching the last ten to fifteen minutes of the LOST series finale. I've probably watched it a dozen times or so. The portion I'm talking about is when our fractured, flawed, but ultimately heroic Jack Shephard finally embarks on the moment we've been waiting six years for, the moment when he opens the casket of his deceased father Christian.

I'm not repeatedly watching this moment because I'm looking for a hidden goose egg, or greater thematic significance. I watch the waning moments of this epic adventure because I find the closure of LOST to be enriching, profound and most of all, comforting. The conclusion LOST came to was an unworldly one, one which is conciliatory without compromising.

Although LOST was always a terrific science fiction mystery, adventure, puzzle, romance, thriller and drama, more than anything, to me it was an experience, a particularly engrossing and absorbing spiritual one.

Religious symbolism, is revealed both explicitly and implicitly. The construction of a church on The Island, a prayer shared between survivors of the crash of Oceanic 815 or a conversation surrounding Doubting Thomas and his significance are ways that LOST wore its spirituality on its sleeve. The implicit nature of its spirituality was more engrossing. John Locke's faith in the island and his deep philosophical discussions with Jack made television's most engaging series what it was. Although these central characters constantly debated issues of science versus faith, free will versus destiny, all of the series other participants also struggled with life's complexities and found reconcilation by finding their great purpose in this world.

Many were disappointed with LOST's final season, and although I wasn't completely blown away by all of the series conclusions, LOST: Season Six did return the series to where it began, a character-centric program where those who once were lost have now been found. Many LOST fans discarded the alternate reality, or flash sideways, where we witness the survivors lives following the detonation of Jughead (in the season five finale). In a time where fans were demanding answers, LOST elected to dig deeper into the characters themselves, acknowledging the demons our survivors were still battling, but in a slightly different light. Although Kate, Jack, Sawyer, Sayid, Locke and the others still had problems to reconcile, they were much more aware of these obstacles and equipped to handle them.

On The Island, the writers revealed several answers, some more substantial and satisfying than others. We discovered who Jacob and The Man in Black were, how Richard obtained eternal life, what the whispers were, and why Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley and the others were brought to The Island. Some viewers weren't satisfied, questioning the strength and validity of the answers, while other viewers demanded further explanation.

The real answers to me were the ones which the characters arrived at within themselves, many of which were revealed on The Island and in the flash sideways. This is what LOST was all about. Whether it was Jack discovering his faith and finding the ability to let go, Kate accepting the consequences for her actions, Sawyer learning to forgive himself and love again or Desmond finding a measure of self worth, these self-realizations provided the show with its heart and purpose.

The flash sideways revisited our characters internal struggles, but also hinted at the sideways' real existence. Nearly all season six episodes included a sideways story, and each revealed a clue to where the characters were operating. To discount the importance of the sideways is to discount what LOST is really all about.

LOST: Season Six had a difficult task, attempting to satisfy all of its fans. This would be a difficult task for any series, but particularly tough for a series which was many different things to many different viewers. It was many things to me: a brilliant mystery, a science fiction adventure, a series of romantic epics and even, at times, a funny and comical escape. Yet most of all, LOST was a spiritual experience, where misguided souls found themselves and something greater. In this respect, LOST: Season Six ended on just the right note, a melancholy, hopeful and ultimately comforting ride into the light.

Grade: B+

LOST: Season Six is now available on Blu-Ray and DVD.

WINTER'S BONE

Photos provided by Roadside AttractionsA young woman attempts to salvage her home and family by locating her father in the drama WINTER’S BONE.

Ree is a high-school age teenager, probably seventeen or eighteen, one who isn't concerned about prom or even final exams, but rather keeping a roof over her family’s head and food on the table. With her father missing, and mother bed-ridden, Ree serves as the head of the household, scraping up food where she can, and teaching her young brother and sister how to survive as best as they can.

Ree and her family’s major obstacle is retaining possession of their house. Ree’s father was incarcerated, posted bond with the family’s home and then fled. The authorities have notified Ree that if her father isn’t found in a week, the city takes over her family’s home. Ree sets out on a quest, determined to find her father.

It’s not often that films cut to the core of basic human necessities, but WINTER’S BONE does, serving up a drama that’s equally thrilling and moving.

Desperation is at the core of WINTER’S BONE, and is expertly presented by director and co-writer Debra Granik. The time period could be present day or fifteen years ago, and although the film is set in the Ozarks, it could easily be set in the West, Midwest or great Northeast, as the essence of Ree’s world is that of rugged, quiet despair, where the adults run amuck in illegal activity and the children seem like an afterthought.

Building this odd, eerie and plausible atmosphere is no easy task, but Granik’s accomplishment not only sets the tone, but ends up delivering quite a dramatic punch. Granik’s steady direction is essential, but would be for naught if it wasn’t for a brilliant lead performance by newcomer Jennifer Lawrence.

Only 19-years old, Lawrence is completely in command and assured as Ree. Conveying a deep determination, tough attitude and street savy, Lawrence creates a modern day heroine. Her performance places everything in context. Some of the actions and reactions by her family members and acquaintances could have moved the film in a dark, almost sadistic place, but through her convincing portrayal, we accept the unusual encounters as status quo for Ree.

Lawerence’s performance is one of the best of the year, and the film is too.

Grade: B+

DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS

Photos courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Paul Rudd attempts to win a contest at the expense of Steve Carell in the comedy DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS.

Rudd’s Tim is a financial analyst striving to climb the corporate ladder. After Tim woos the higher-ups with an innovative pitch, he’s invited by the company founder Lance Fender to a secret dinner for idiots. Everyone invited to the party is to bring their own idiot, with the participants attempting to top one another with the foolish guest of all.

Tim, due in large part to his girlfriend's coaxing, is going to decline the invitation, but then Barry stumbles across his path. Tim hits Barry with his car while Barry is attempting to salvage a dead mouse in the middle of the street. You see Barry isn’t just saving a mouse’s body for preservation, but for presentation. Barry collects dead mice, dresses them up in costumes and poses them in various landscapes. As Tim sees it, his meeting with Barry can’t be mere coincidence.

DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS sounds like a twisted comedy where no one is left unscathed. The contrary is actually true. DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS has it’s occasionally outrageous moment, but more often than not plays it safe comically.

It’s a film that’s more intent on warming the heart than chilling the soul. Considering the source material, a dark French comedy titled THE DINNER GAME, and the prospects for ruthless fun, DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS isn’t a bad film, just a missed opportunity.

There are laughs to be had, particularly the interaction between Tim and Barry. Although Rudd and Carell have worked together before in THE 40-YEAR OLD VIRGIN, DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS is a match made in heaven for the two, pitting Rudd’s sensible, every man nature with Carell’s deadpan, goofball antics. The two’s chemistry is dead-on, I only wish the screenplay would have been equally effective.

The same can be said of the direction, from skillful comic director Jay Roach. Roach’s films, including the AUSTIN POWERS and MEET THE PARENTS franchises, have run the gamut from uncomfortably to outrageously funny. DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS is neither, falling more towards mischievous when malicious is called for.

Grade: C+

INCEPTION

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.Leonardo Dicaprio steals ideas at the request of major corporations in writer-director Christopher Nolan’s latest INCEPTION.

DiCaprio’s Cobb steals ideas, with the assistance of a handful of colleagues, by infiltrating his victims’ dreams. Cobb and crew find secure locations where their victims, and themselves, can be lulled to sleep, while each is attached to the same unique machine where each can enter the victim’s dream. Within the dream, Cobb and his associates steal a thought or concept from the dreamer and provide it to the corporation they are working for. Cobb’s latest job requires him to perform the contrary, instead of stealing an idea, he’s going to plant one. This is called inception.

In addition to this extremely difficult, nearly impossible task, Cobb is plagued by his deceased wife Mal, who continues to appear at inopportune times in his and others dreams.

Examining dreams is far from unexplored territory, but the level of depth, execution and complexity has never before been projected as in INCEPTION. The film is a mind-bender, not only mixing illusion and reality, but digging further into the subconscious than most films dare to dream.

It’s said that Nolan worked ten years on the screenplay, and needless to say, a mere two and a half hours isn’t enough time for a viewer to fully appreciate, understand or explore the intricacy of INCEPTION. As complex as it is, it’s a credit to Nolan that INCEPTION is relatively easy to follow, even if it’s not completely comprehensible.

The general framework is that of a heist movie. Cobb and his crew are going to plant a thought in the heir of a major energy company’s mind, and attempt to get out before he recognizes what they are up to. This standard framework around a dense concept is further aided by the angst and depth of Cobb.

As with all Nolan films from MEMENTO to THE PRESTIGE to THE DARK KNIGHT, his protagonists carry a lot of dark emotional baggage. Cobb is haunted by the memory of his wife, and guilt-ridden by his estrangement from his son and daughter. By accepting this last job, Cobb believes it’s his ticket home to his family. DiCaprio is again on top of his game. Performing in a role eerily similar to Teddy Daniels from Martin Scorsese’s SHUTTER ISLAND, DiCaprio again reveals a man who’s tough, intelligent and aggressive exterior is merely a shell incasing a troubled and hurt soul. The remainder of the cast, including Ellen Page, Michael Caine and Joseph Gordon Levitt, is solid, but almost inconsequential.

INCEPTION is all about the layers of philosophical, thematic and narrative depth, and centering these aspects around a deeply complicated character. Watching INCEPTION once allots you an engaging and entertaining head-trip. To completely derive maximum enjoyment, I’d imagine at least two more trips are required.

Grade: A

TOY STORY III

Photos courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures

Woody, Buzz, Mr. Potato Head, Rex, Jessie and the rest of the gang are back in the saddle again, this time attempting to avoid a permanent trip to the attic or the dreaded trash heap in TOY STORY 3.

The gang’s owner Andy, now a young adult, is preparing to leave for college, but dear old mom has issued an ultimatum. The toys have three options: college, the attic or the trash. Woody makes the college cut, but the rest of the toys are stashed in a garbage bag for the attic. The problem comes, and so does the plot, when Andy’s mom mistakes the garbage bag full of toys for trash.

It’s up to Woody to save his friends from their refuse destination, and back to Andy’s old stomping grounds.

Separation anxiety is nothing new for the old toys. In the original TOY STORY, Woody felt as if Andy had replaced him with Buzz, in the sequel some of the toys are yard sale or donation casualties and in TOY STORY 3 almost everyone feels as if they've been left for good.

Despite the repetitive theme, TOY STORY 3 feels fresh because it launches the toys into the new world of Sunnyside, a day care center that isn’t as pleasant as it seems. Just when you think you’ve seen all the colorful characters the TOY STORY series has to offer, the third installment serves up that many more. Two of the newest characters, from Sunnyside, are also the most memorable, with Lotso, a worn, and cute teddy bear with a dark past, and Ken, Barbie’s beau, who provides the film with the most laughs, and a wardrobe montage for the ages.

The voice work is again impeccable, with Michael Keaton as Ken, Ned Beatty as Lotso and all of the returnees not missing a beat. The film isn’t as efficiently paced as the first two, but it almost makes up for it with two of the series most emotional scenes. The gang has faced some serious odds in the past, but nothing like the third’s climax, one which really pulls at the heart strings.

TOY STORY 3, like all Pixar pictures, is a riveting adventure and comedy for children, and a whole lot more for their parents.

Grade: B+

KNIGHT AND DAY

Photos courtesy of New Regency PicturesTom Cruise is a loose cannon who finds some excess baggage in the form of Cameron Diaz, on his plane flight in the action-adventure KNIGHT AND DAY.

Cruise is C-I-A operative Roy Miller, an agent who has apparently gone rogue after obtaining a self-sufficient and everlasting energy source off the black market. Diaz is June, the unassuming passenger aboard Roy’s flight. She’s headed for her sister’s wedding, but during the flight, after making a quick stop in the powder room, returns to find all of the flight’s passengers, with the exception of Roy, dead.

With Roy and June as the lone survivors, Roy’s foes believe that June must be complicit in Roy’s plans.
With Cruise and Diaz in the lead roles, and the film in an accomplished director’s hands like James Mangold, one would expect for KNIGHT AND DAY to be a breezy, lightweight, sometimes thrilling slice of entertainment for adults. It’s breezy and lightweight, but KNIGHT AND DAY also becomes enamored with CGI oriented action scenes, one’s which aren't bad, but also aren’t particularly good, and end up stripping away the chemistry that Cruise and Diaz have together.

Each moment between Roy and June is cut short by a high speed chase, a slew of bullets or the watchful eye of the Central Intelligence Agency. These two characters aren’t allotted any quality time together, so there’s little stake in their fate. It’s a shame because KNIGHT AND DAY returns Cruise to the role of movie star. After some admirable attempts at more serious films, Cruise’s Roy is a return to the charismatic role that made him a household name. Diaz is also good, creating a charming and naïve, but still smart and strong woman to counteract Roy’s natural instincts.

KNIGHT AND DAY’s effects-driven adventure is an upgrade from the incomprehensible 2009 films like TRANSFORMERS 2 and TERMINATOR: SALVATION. Ultimately though, KNIGHT AND DAY is more disappointing, since the participants are much more interesting, but are given less time to interact.

Grade: C

Paul's 2010 Fearless Oscar Predictions

OK, so it's been nearly a year since I've posted anything on my blog, and now that I'm finally posting something, I'm still being lazy. Instead of typing out my selections, I've decided just to scan them in (you can view them by clicking on the scanned image above).

I will say this has been a pretty predictable Oscar season at least if you're an Oscar predictor, or Oscar pool participant. There may be some surprises tonight, but for Oscar pool sake, most are consensus selections/predictions.

Here's to UP and UP IN THE AIR, my two favorites from 2009, pulling a few upsets, but I just don't see it. I have UP down for two wins (Animated Feature and Score), and UP IN THE AIR winning Best Adapted Screenplay.

The most interesting races seem to be in these categories: Original Screenplay, Foreign Language Film, Film Editing, Sound Editing and Mixing, and the biggest prize for the evening, Best Picture. Although many of the major categories seem decided, the biggest seems like a toss-up right now.

Good luck Steve Martin, and especially Alec Baldwin. Hopefully Baldwin is better live than on his daughter's answering machine.