Jun 20, 2011
(rated R, 120 mins.)
Opens March 31
In this somewhat biting romantic comedy, Rob Gordon (John Cusack) is the owner of a semi-failing record store in Chicago where he sells music the old-fashioned way – on vinyl. He’s a self-professed music junkie who spends his days at Championship Vinyl with his two employees Dick (Todd Louiso) and Barry (Jack Black), who by the way, do an outstanding job as his sidekicks.
Although they have an encyclopedia knowledge of pop music and are consumed with the music scene, it’s of no help to Rob whose needle skips the love groove when his long-time Girl Laura (Iben Hjele) walks out on him. (By the way, she’s cute to look at, but just how does she pronounce that name??) As Rob examines his failed attempts at romance and happiness, the process finds him being dragged kicking and screaming into adulthood.
This adaptation of Hornby’s 1995 cult comic novel is strange, quirky, even bizarre sometimes but engrossing at all times. The acting is immediately sympathetic (think loser characters like “There’s Something About Mary”).
Side note: Boston screenwriter Scott Rosenberg did the original script but it was re-written by Cusack and his “Grosse Pointe Blank” collaborators D. V. DeVincentis and Steve Pink, changing only the story’s locale from London to Chicago. And, the writers got to do something most writers do not: Include tunes to weave with their story line. The soundtrack includes 60 musical cues, probably making a CD four-pack which will sell better than the movie’s boxoffice returns!
Jun 20, 2011
(Rated PG-1, 115 mins.)
NOT YET REVIEWED
A happily married, successful female lawyer (Ashley Judd) is shocked to learn that her husband has a hidden past as a classified military operative, and is accused of committing a heinous war crime. She must wrestle with her own doubts about his guilt as she defends him, with the help of a private investigator (Morgan Freeman), in a top-secret military court where none of the rules will apply. Also featured in the cast are Jim Caviezel and Amanda Peet.
Jun 20, 2011
The last thing Emily (Dakota Fanning’s) mother tells her before she dies is “I love you more than anything in the world.” After their life is changed, Emily’s dad, David (Robert DeNiro) takes his daughter to relocate to the countryside, in hopes of forgetting their painful past. Their new home comes with a variety of neighbors who seem to want more than just a cup of sugar. And then there’s Elizabeth (Elizabeth Shue) a lovely woman who tries to befriend both Emily and her dad, but it seems Emily has her own friend, an imaginary one, named “Charlie”. Or does she? Like the “Good Son’ or “Secret Window” the movie is full of hints and set-ups each carefully plotted out and delivered in a well-paced manner. But like those other movies, it is often difficult for an audience to except last minute twists, betraying them by the characters they’ve most grown to love.
Jun 20, 2011
(rated PG, 72 Mins)
Spencer Klein is the voice of Arnold the football-headed-fourth-grader-larger-than-life lead who wants to overthrow Scheck (voice of Paul Sorvino), a corporate mogul who wants to take over the neighborhood with voice of Jennifer Jason Leigh as the voluptuous Bridget. If you’re a fan of the Nickelodeon’s animated franchises, “Hey Arnold! The Movie,” is likely to make you smile. If you’re not, you’ll be left in the dust despite its comic timing and past film references (Men In Black, Mission Impossible etc.). Unlike “Rugrats” which infuses pop-culture references that make the story non-seat squirming for adults, “Hey Arnold” is a drop-them-off-at-the-door movie. But, like “Rugrats” the problem is it comes off not as a big screen extravaganza but just a longer version of the television show.
Jun 20, 2011
The theory of why men are mean to women – which actually means that they secretly like them, is how this movie opens to a chuckling audience full of twenty-something hopeful women, and their gay friends. Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin) is pining over Kevin Connolly, a realtor, but he wants the yoga teacher, Scarlett Johansson. Meanwhile Scarlett meets married guy, Bradley Cooper in the grocery store. His wife is Jennifer Connolly and she’s busy renovating their home. These characters indulge in so much over-analyzing their situations, it’s no wonder they barely have time for a real relationship anyway. And then there’s the ‘but I-want-to-get-married’ Jennifer Anniston, who wonders why Ben Affleck won’t finally marry her after eight years living together. All of these characters’ lives are driven by one person’s perception and another’s interpretation. And the women do a great job of rationalizing men’s faults. But when all these stories weave together, the lesson learned – that the not-so-happy audience knows – is something my mother used to say: If he likes you he’ll call. If he wants to see you, he will. It’s that simple, but it’s also very complicated. And it’s two and a half tiaras
