Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Juno


Fox Searchlight
ALLISON JANNEY,
Ellen Page and J.K. Simmons star in "Juno."

‘Juno’ well-written story of teen pregnancy
If you saw little Ellen Page in the film "Hard Candy" a few years ago, you were not only riveted by the storyline, that of a pedophile with the tables turned, but the performance of young, feisty actress.
At 21 years old and a little wisp of a thing, if Page wasn't famous, she would probably be carted until she is 70.
She stars as a smart, witty 16-year-old old, Juno MacGuff, or “the Crime Dog,” as the local pharmacist calls her in the film "Juno."
The film opens in a drug store because, you see, Juno is on her third pregnancy test, hoping the first two were wrong.
Page's Juno had the bad luck to capitulate to her boyfriend's wishes and that's all it takes. Her boyfriend, Beeker, is played by Michael Cera, who you may remember from the raunchier "Superbad." When she suspects pending motherhood, she pulls the offending chair the deed was done on into the yard.
Page is wonderful as the smart, in-control, sassy and witty Juno, whose speech and articulation is far beyond that of the normal teen movie. But then, teen movies don't rise to best-picture status.
There are many priceless scenes in this film. One is when Juno and her best friend, played by Olivia Thirlby, break the news to her father and stepmother, played by J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney.
The scene is tense but tinged with humor. When Juno senses parental disappointment, she pipes up with, "If it's any consolation, I have heartburn that's radiating to my kneecaps."
There are tons of well-written scenes with exceptional dialog.
Juno decides to give the baby to a rich, yuppie couple, played by Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. Garner's character is solid, she knows she wants a baby. She is ready. But you can sense a problem with Bateman. We learn he is more of a big kid who dreams of still being a rock star and enjoys watching super-gory movies.
Throughout the film we see a track or cross-country team running by, an apparent metaphor for the quickly passing world.
Cera is great as the sometimes forgotten current or ex-boyfriend who seems at a loss through it all. We see him running around a track, his life in an endless circle.
Toward the end of the film, the Page character talks about what a great guy Bleaker is while not even trying, for which he poignantly replies, "Actually, I try really hard."
Page was also nominated for best actress.
This film has a realistic feel to it and while filmed in Canada, the plot takes place in a real place, Minnesota, instead of New York or Los Angeles.
It's a sweet story you will remember and the Blu-Ray transfer is glorious. If you purchase the film, the Blu-Ray version and one standard version include a second disc. The disc includes a digital version of the film. Insert the disc into your computer, install software and the serial number of the film and the movie appears on your computer. You can also put the film on your iPod or Zune. This won’t work with the one-disc standard version of the film.
This is one movie you will want to see, if you haven't already. If so, it's time for a second look.
Juno • Directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody • Runtime 96 minutes • Rated PG for theme, sexual situations and language • 4 stars out of 4
This appeared in the Star Beacon Weekender on May 2, 2008

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Rescue Dawn


DIETER (CHRISTIAN Bales) snakes through the jungles of Thailand in "Rescue Dawn."

'Resue Dawn' tells of life as POW

“Rescue Dawn” opens with a bunch of Vietnam soldiers watching a film about how to survive if shot down over the jungles.
Their knives are their friends. Learn how to catch water in leaves and drink it.
One of the soldiers offers a comedic commentary to the film, which is reminiscent of those high school health films.
The story turns deadly when one laughing soldier, Lt. Dieter Dengler, is shot down over Laos and taken prisoner by the North Vietnamese.
Dieter, played by Christian Bale, is tortured. He’s asked to sign a document denouncing the U.S. He refuses.
At one point, he is a victim of waterboarding. A Vietnamese soldier points a gun at his head and fires, narrowly missing his ear and making him go deaf temporarily.
Based on a true story, it was written and directed by Werner Herzog, best known for the epic film “Fitzcarraldo.”
Soon, he becomes a prisoner of war, eating a taste-tempting diet of worms and maggots to stay alive.
Dengler and his fellow prisoners fight to survive. They are shackled at night, until Dengler pilfers a nail and uses it to spring them each night.
His fellow prisoners are an eclectic bunch. Concentration-camp thin Gene (played by Jeremy Davies), insists there are peace talks going and if they sit tight, the war will soon be over.
There’s also Duane, played by Steve Zahn, who feels all is lost.
Dengler becomes the leader of the group. He tells of being born in Germany during World War II. He decided he wanted to be a pilot after an American bombed his village and gave him a sort of look as he went by. The boy’s home may have been destroyed, but that’s when he decided to be a pilot himself.
Times get tougher in the camp. The guards are getting meaner because there’s no food. Dengler decides something must be done to escape.
The problem is the bigger prison is the jungle and it is unforgiving.
The target date for escape is July 4, but circumstances move it to July 3.
The escape attempt doesn’t go well. The men are so emotionally drained, they perform poorly. The POW survivors quickly are reduced to the Bale and Zahn characters.
Zahn’s character is stabbed to death by local tribesman and the Bale character is the last one remaining.
It ain’t over yet, though. A waterfall, the snakes, the bugs, the villagers all put up a challenge for Zale.
When copters fly by, he waves his arms at them. They ignore him. He burns a village to attract attention. They shoot at him.
This is a by-the-book examination of life as a POW. You feel for these guys.
The jungles do look beautiful, so very green, on the Blu-Ray transfer.
If your Netflix list is getting long, this would be a good one to schedule for Memorial Day weekend, to get an idea of what these guys suffered.
Read more viper columns at videoviper@blogspot.com.
RESCUE DAWN
• Rated PG-13 for some sequences of intense war violence and torture
• Runtime 126 minutes
• Directed by Werner Herzog
• 3 stars out of 4 stars
This appeared in the Star Beacon Weekender on April 25, 2008.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Into the Wild


EMILE HIRSCH as Chris McCandless in "Into the Wild."

‘Into the Wild’ beautiful, thoughtful film

How often do you think during a movie?
I don’t mean thinking about will the boy get the girl, will the bank heist be successful, will the androids or the humans win.
I’m talking about thoughts on what are we doing with our lives, are material things so important, is the quest for money and power and glory worth the effort?
“Into the Wild” will get you to think about the decisions in your life.
The film is based on a true story, that of Chris McCandless.
He’s played remarkably by Emile Hirsch.
Chris and his sister, Carine, played by Jena Malone, grew up in a home with constant bickering and yelling between their parents, played by Marcia Gay Harden and William Hurt.
The film opens with Chris’ college graduation and his proud parents. Sister doubles as narrator, too. A nice touch.
Sean Penn directs.
The McCandless family is well off. It appears the parents hope to make up for his turbulent childhood by buying him a new car.
Chris doesn’t want a new car. His beater vehicle is just fine.
The new graduate is really a throwback to the 60s. He rebels against the materialism of his parents.
Instead of getting a job and making gobs of money to make them proud, he vanishes.
Chris not only doesn’t want a new car, he abandons the beater. Talk about someone who opposes materialism, he burns his money. He walks off with a backpack that includes a tent and leaves the world he has known.
Meanwhile, his parents know nothing about his disappearance and decide to visit him at his apartment. Imagine their shock when they learn he’s been gone for months. Their letters had been returned and hoarded by daughter Carine.
The disappearance of their vagabond son has a profound effect on the parents. They stop their arguing. They become sullen. They become distraught.
Meanwhile, life isn’t bad for Chris McCandless.
He takes the occasional odd job, but mostly sleeps in his little tent at the beach, hangs with aging hippies and walks past the most beautiful scenery you ever want to experience.
Chris meets retired military man Ron Franz, played oh so beautifully by Hal Holbrook, who happens to be 83.
Ron befriends the boy. They talk about things that matter. Despite the age differences, they become friends.
Ron takes it upon himself to give the younger man some advice. He needs to find himself. He needs to buckle down and find a job.
But Chris is happy and Ron, who lost his son and daughter years ago in an accident, spends most of his time in his house and does leather work in his garage.
It is Chris who hands out advice. Ron must get out more. Meet more people. Experience life.
In one beautiful scene, Ron suggests when Chris returns from a planned trip to Alaska, perhaps Ron would adopt him as his grandson.
More gorgeous scenery in Alaska as Chris takes off to live by himself. He has a gun to shoot game and little else, finding an abandoned bus with a stove to live in.
There’s little dialog as the film flips between life in Alaska and his life heading to Alaska.
As I noted earlier, this film is based on a true story and his family cooperated in its production.
It’s a movie about people with values, ideas, some substance. This is rare in filmdom. Why wasn’t this at least nominated for best picture?
It’s the type of movie the Academy of Arts and Sciences loves to spotlight.
If “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” can win best picture, “Into the Wild” should at least be considered!
Holbrook was at least nominated for best supporting actor.
Sean Penn has truly matured when it comes to his work with film.
One sad note. This film was released in the HD-DVD format as well as standard DVD. With the demise of HD-DVD, the film wasn’t distributed too widely in that format. As beautiful as this picture looks, it should be readily available in some high-definition format.
Oh well, maybe some day we can see it in Blu-Ray.
Read other Viper reviews at videoviper.blogspot.com.

Into the Wild
• Directed by Sean Penn
• Runtime: 148 minutes
• Rated R for language an nudity
• 4 stars out of 4
This appeared in the Star Beacon Weekender April 18, 2008.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Gone Baby Gone


Miramax
CASEY AFFLECK and Michelle Monaghan in "Gone Baby Gone."

Affleck shows other talents in ‘Gone Baby Gone’
When you think of Ben Affleck, you normally think of a guy starring in romantic comedies.
Well, think again. Affleck directs and is the co-writer for the screenplay of the harrowing “Gone Baby Gone.” He doesn’t appear in the film and this is no comedy.
The film is based on a novel by Dennis Lehane and stars Ben’s baby brother, Casey.
Casey plays the slightly wimpy detective Patrick Kenzie, with Michelle Monaghan as Angie Gennaro, his partner in more ways than one. The duo usually handle routine cases, tracking down deadbeats.
They are taken back when they are asked by family members to investigate the high-publicized kidnapping of a 4-year-old girl. Titus Welliver plays Lionel and Amy Madigan is his wife, Bea, apparently worried not enough is being done to find their little niece.
Forget other detective stories, where the gumshoes are polished and professional. These two look lost as they meet up with police, who aren’t happy to have private eyes muscling in on their territory.
But the pair live in the same neighborhood all of their lives. They know the people they are interviewing. Their discussions are peppered with high school references.
There’s a sad if not scary-funny scene in a bar when Kenzie is bullied while seeking information and ends up wacking someone with a gun and walks out, pointing his gun.
Amy Ryan received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress, playing the little girl’s mother.
Her character is all too familiar, the cracked out, doped up mother who spends her time getting high and ignoring her child. We hear of an instance where she keeps the little girl in a hot car all day, having forgotten about her. Mom even becomes a drug runner to help earn her narcotics.
Morgan Freeman plays a retiring cop whose own daughter died tragically and he couldn’t save her.
Ed Harris plays a grizzled officer who takes to drinking and is suspicious of all.
This is another of those films that doesn’t follow the traditional path. Once you think it sways one way, it switches lanes and goes another route, and then another.
There’s suspense piled upon suspense. There’s plenty of violence.
And Ryan’s character is right out of the headlines, a mother oblivious to her duties, who has had her maternal instincts sucked out by her addictions. She plays the part of Mom the best when the TV news cameras are rolling.
The city of Boston is also a character of sorts in the film.
A previous LeHane novel, “Mystic River,” was also effectively made into a motion picture.
It’s a great cast and Ben Affleck, while a novice, does a professional job putting members through their paces.
You won’t always feel easy during this film, but you won’t be bored.
This appeared in the Star Beacon Weekender April 12, 2008.
Gone Baby Gone
• Directed by Ben Affleck, starring Casey Affleck
• Rated R for violence, drug content and pervasive language
• Runtime: 114 minutes
• 3 1/2 stars out of 4

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Waitress


Fox Searchlight

CHERYL HINES, Keri Russell and Adrienne Shelly in"Waitress."


‘Waitress’ tasty as pies that dominate film
“Waitress” is a wonderfully warm and satisfying film, much as the pies that are a profound part of the narrative certainly would be.
The film centers on Jenna, played by Keri Russell. Jenna is married to an immature lout of a husband. She has saved $1,200 toward leaving him. But when the film opens, we, along with Jenna and her fellow waitresses, discover it is a bun — not a pie — in Jenna’s oven.
She concludes it must have happened the time her husband got her drunk, otherwise, she never would have had sex with him.
All of the characters in this ensemble comedy seem so real. They aren’t easily defined, the way people in a less-talented script would be.
Cheryl Hines is Becky, the oldest of the waitresses who shows her inferiority complex by suggesting one of her breasts sags. It doesn’t.
Adrienne Shelly plays Dawn, another waitress who is looking for a relationship. She goes on five-minute dates, so if the potential suitor is a loser, she won’t be sick all night.
Then there’s old Joe, played wonderfully by Andy Griffith. Joe Is a strange guy who is under the impression he owns the diner and gives meticulous instructions for his food. No ice in the water. The tomato on a separate plate.
There’s the restaurant owner, Cal, played by Lew Temple. For the first half of the film, his comments are confined to “Hurry up, there are customers out there” or “let’s get to work.”
But even Cal has more substance than you would think.
Jenna decides to take a pie to her family doctor, the one that delivered her. But she is surprised to find the doctor is semi-retired and a new, young physician, played convincingly by Nathan Fillion, has taken over. She grudgingly gives the new doctor the pie and control of her pregnancy.
The doctor falls in love with the pie and then with Jenna.
Indeed, the pies are a metaphor for art and humanity and expressionism in this film. Jenna’s disposition is reflected in what kind of pies she is thinking of making.
The sour pies are reserved for her husband, Earl, played by Jeremy Sisto, who when he finds out his wife is pregnant, makes her vow not to love the baby more than him.
Whatever ridiculous promise Earl demands of Jenna, she gladly, convincingly, repeats to him, even though we know she loathes the man, even though we wish she would tell him where he can go.
You never know where the film is going to take you and thatís part of the fun. And the colors of the pies, like colors you have never seen before.
The backstory of this film is even more interesting and tragic than the film itself.
The director, Adrienne Shelley, who also played one of the waitresses, was arguing with an immigrant working in a nearby apartment because she said he was making too much noise. This was right after filming had concluded.
He became angry and hit her, knocking her unconscious. Thinking she was dead, he dragged her into her own apartment and strung her up in her shower, making it look like a suicide.
The deception almost worked, except some New York detectives discovered unidentified sneaker prints in the bathroom and traced them to the immigrant. He was charged with manslaughter.
The DVD includes a tribute to Shelly, who was only 40 when she died.
Watching the film, you realize what a talent that was lost in that senseless killing.
Read previous Viper columns at videoviper.blogspot.com.

Waitress
• Rate PG-13 for sexual content and language
• Runtime: 108 minutes
• 3 1/2 stars out of 4

This appeared in Weekender April 4, 2008 in the Ashtabula Star Beacon.