Jun 20, 2011
Bruce Willis was best in his years of ‘Die Hard’ mode. In ‘Hostage’, he returns as Jeff Talley, a likable police chief who decides to desk-job-it just a year after a negotiation gone wrong. But when his own family is part of a crooked secondary hold-up, he’s forced back on the streets to do what he does best: win us over with his charming Willis ways to save innocent families and conquer the world! Boston homeboy Jonathan Tucker plays the lead in a trio of corrupt punks, who invade the premises of a top business tycoon (Kevin Pollack) in the Canyon area of Los Angeles. The movie is a roller coaster ride of extreme violence and gut-wrenching decisions thanks to Willis who knows this scenario all too well. He should never do anything but ‘good cop’ because he’s just plain good at it.
Jun 20, 2011
This ain’t your Brothers Grimm. This ain’t your childhood bedtime story, either. “It’s not a fairytale… it’s an adventure,” or so the movie narrates in this opening sequence, though it ends up being a bit too frightening and overwhelming for kids of ANY age. That from the mouths of babes – or at least the babe I was sitting next to – an eleven year old who sat scrutinizing every scene… which is fine. She’s an authority. She’s seen the original. Twice. Voiced by Hayden Panittere, Red Riding Hood is not the demure little girl chugging a basket of jam to Grandma’s house. And Grandma (voiced by Glenn Close) is not a knitting-needle chain-stitching woman rocking agile in her chair. The big bad wolf (Patrick Warburton) is anything but interested in eating her up. He’s a wimp. The irony is that Red is supposed to be from some group called the Sisters (in the hood) but they speak a language far from women’s empowerment. They shout messages at us in light-year speed leaving us exhausted and polluted and checking our watches. The charm that should surface in happily-ever-after is instead pummeled by insult after insult from character to character. They all seem more a mad scientific lab experience erupted over, with Hansel and Gretel (voiced by Bill Hader and Amy Poehler) as the twin Doctor Evils. From the Weinstein Company – who thank God are forgiven for delivering this year’s Oscar winning The Kings Speech, the biggest disappointment by far is the anemic animation. Where’s Pixar when you need them? If you have a naughty child in the house, this is the film to punish them with into absolute nightmares and bedwetting tonight. Two tiaras
Jun 20, 2011
(Rated R, 114 min.)
Opens Jan. 14
From acclaimed director Jane (“The Piano”) Campion comes the story of a young Australian beauty named Ruth (Kate Winslet) who travels to India in search of the exotic through some “guru.”
When her family forces her home, they form an intervention with an American “exit expert” (Harvey Keitel) who will cleanse her of the brainwashed rituals and lure her back to sanity in “just three days.” The young explorer and spiritual pro find themselves in the middle of nowhere, in a place where rules don’t apply and anything can happen. Ruth soon turns the tables on her cult buster, which leads to an all-out test battle of the sexes that provides great character energy, chaos and a very naked Kate Winslet!
Campion continues to find her niche in stubborn women love stories. Winslet shows that there is life after “Titanic” as a sultry, hot, explosive, young and feisty-opinionated female lead.
Jun 20, 2011
Faster than a speeding bullet is the bullet that led to the mysterious death of George Reeves (Ben Affleck) of the 1950s television show “Superman” where (as the movie’s log line says) “living in Hollywood can make you famous, but dying in Hollywood makes you a legend.” Enter Louis Simo (Adrien Brody) a half-ass detective and deadbeat dad, who decides to tackle the newspaper’s headline, after he visits Reeve’s mother (Lois Smith) who doesn’t believe in the media assumption of suicide. The movie weaves evidence of the plausible killers – and would-be imagined scenarios – from his cheap fiancée, Leonore Lemmon (Robin Tunney) to his best friend and lover, Toni Mannix (Diane Lane) wife of MGM studio head honcho (Bob Hoskins). All these people have a motive to see him dead, but there’s never the proof to back up a frustrated Simo’s findings. And interestingly enough, the movie neglects to mention his other two suicide attempts. At first glance, the movie feels like the Oscar nominated “L A Confidential” but soon develops its own standing legs with its witty and softer script by first time writer Paul Bernbuam, brilliant casting, and well-paced but somehow snappy story, even at two hours and sixteen minutes. Affleck and Brody take risks in these roles that really pay off. Affleck as the man of steel who began his career as a Tarleton twin in “Gone With The Wind” before being washed up in “Superman,” while Brody, sort of washed up himself, shuffles around town like an unwanted flea, not the type of roles we’re accustomed to seeing him in. Yet he manages, as does Affleck, to be very likable and a sympathetic underdogs despite their character’s weaknesses. But it’s Diane Lane, who steals the show and will certainly garnish another Oscar nomination. A must see and possibly the best drama of the year to date. Four tiaras.
Jun 20, 2011
(rated PG-13)
It’s the movie that appears to have everything. The perfect mother/daughter date with leads Harrison Ford as a real estate agent turned cop and Josh Hartnett as his squad partner, who can’t decide between aspiring actor or yoga instructor. The two investigate the murder of a rap group. And the rest of the cast is impressive with Lena Olin as Ford’s love interest, Lolita Davidovich as a woman with the tips, Lou Diamond Phillips in full drag, Gladys Knight as a concerned mom and even Smokey Robinson as an L A cabbie. But instead the movie fails on many levels. Attempting to be a “Lethal Weapon” these leads lack any passion for their work. Everytime there’s a serious discussion about the murders, Ford gets a call from a wanna-be house buyer. If he can’t take his work seriously, why should we? It was smart of Ford to do something lighter after last year’s “K19: Widowmaker” but director Ron Shelton who brought us such hits as “White Men Can’t Jump” and “Bull Durham” also brought us “Tin Cup.” This falls into that category.
