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American Women's Club of Hamburg  Film Reviews -- December 2005Reviews by members of the AWC Film Group of films slated to open in Hamburg in December 2005.
(Becky T) Opening December 1, 2005 This docu-drama by Zola Maseko takes us to Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1951. Nelson Mandela has begun to demonstrate against the political situation there. British editor Jim Bailey publishes Drum Magazine with the help of a motley crew of local journalists such as Henry Nxumalo and Cam Themba, as well as German photographer Jürgen Schadeberg. They spend much time drinking bootleg whiskey, womanizing, and listening to music in local pubs in Sophiatown, a liberal township where residency passes are not required and anyone may own property. An old woman tells Nxumalo that her son has disappeared into a work camp called Harmony. He disguises himself as a worker and investigates the conditions there. This leads to his career as investigative journalist, interacting with gangsters, spending time in jail, and reporting on the planned razing of Sophiatown for a new development which would enrich the politicians. In 1955 Nxumalo is knifed to death on the street for his efforts. The film isn’t perfect, e.g., we never know why Drum Magazine’s editor changes his emphasis from gossip and superficial sexy girls to dangerous disclosures. There is a side plot in which Cam provokes society to date a white girl. However, it is important to know that these people really lived and were part of South African history. Considering present day journalists who regurgitate the party line for profit, a brave and incorruptible journalist who dies for his beliefs is a rare and costly phenomenon. Schadeberg went on to become an internationally-known photographer, working and exhibiting his work around the world, including in Hamburg where he had an apprenticeship at the Deutsche Presseagentur (dpa). In 1979 he taught in New York City and in 1980 in Hamburg. He has returned to Johannesburg where he and his wife still live. Drum Magazine closed down in 1965.
(Patricia R) Opening December 1, 2005 Just Like Heaven takes a fun jab at the art of disengagement – both physical and emotional. With a curious blend of superficiality and disingenuousness, emotional disengagement allows caring doctors not to care, loving spouses not to love, compassionate conservatives not to be compassionate and Christians not to act like Christ. Star Trek fans could only admire Mr. Spock’s ability to be so cool under fire – but at the price of having no emotions whatsoever. It took a near death experience to literally put the life back into Elizabeth, a workaholic E.R. doctor played by Reese Witherspoon (Legally Blonde, Sweet Home Alabama). For the last three months she has been in a coma after a car accident and becomes partially awakened only when she sees the new tenant in her apartment put a wet glass on her coffee table – how dare he!! David, played by Mark Ruffalo (My Life Without Me, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), spends the next few days trying to get rid of this unwelcome ghost, after first convincing himself that he was not just seeing things and losing his mind. But he soon falls in love with this lost spirit and helps her slip back into life as well as back into her own body. The chemistry works between them and the happy ending is believable. A life without real emotional and physical attachment is no life at all. However, if you find yourself squirming in your seat due to the message hitting too close to home, then take note. Start judging a book more for its contents than for its cover. Or, in other words, stop talking the talk and start walking the walk. It’s worth the risks to live a more honest and more engaged life. Trivia Notes: Reese Witherspoon spent the first four years of her life in Wiesbaden as her father was a military surgeon and was stationed there with the Army Reserves. Mark Ruffalo’s film career was going nowhere until he hooked up with playwright Kenneth Lonnegan and became a hit in New York in the play This Is Our Youth. He then was the male lead in Lonnegan’s film in 2000 You Can Count On Me, and his future in film was set.
(Becky T) Opening December 1, 2005 This Jewish comedy about the Dalinsky family in Barcelona begins with 27-year-old Leni coming home for a holiday. She introduces her finance Rafi to her mother Gloria, her older sister Tania, and Tania’s little daughter Paula, as well as to her younger brother David and her grandfather Dudu. The head of the household, Ernesto, is still at work. Problems begin when they learn that Rafi is Palestinian. He is also helpful, and, when trying to defrost the soup, he lets it fall from the kitchen window down many stories to the street below where it strikes a pedestrian. Tired of waiting and suspecting an infidelity, Gloria, Leni, Tania and Rafi set out to find Ernesto at work. Paula calls from home to announce that Dudu is dead. On and on it goes from one gag to the next on topics of narcissism, bratty children, a house pet, prostitutes, terrorists, Palestinian-Israeli relationships, orthodox Judaism, intolerance and Jewish mothers. Written and directed by Teresa de Pelegrí and Dominic Harari, Seres Queridos (the original Spanish title) is a cross between Alles auf Zucker (by Daniel Levy which won the 2005 Lola – German Oscar – for best film) and that old German TV series, The KlimBim family. If neither of those rings a bell, think: situation comedy slapstick. It is generally humorous enough, although some jokes wear thin, e.g., brother David monitoring politically correct Jewish behavior during the Sabbath (which he drops like a hot potato in favor of Confucianism when a pretty Asian girl enters his life). Some jokes can be anticipated, and I’m not giving anything away when I say that Ernesto, of course, is the victim struck down by the frozen soup or that, yes, grandpa’s gun does go off. The soundtrack by Charlie Mole is surprisingly subtle with Spanish and Israeli music at appropriate times. The prize for “New Trick in a Film” goes to Leni, who tucks her toothbrush under her naked left breast until she is ready to brush her teeth. In the end, to quote the Beatles, “love is all there is,” and only one question goes unanswered: Where is the baby duck? This film won Audience Choice at the 2004 Locarno film festival.
(Becky T) Opening December 1, 2005 This film by Dutch director Albert ter Heerdt was a big hit in The Netherlands when it originally opened almost two years ago. Abdullah and his young Moroccan friends dream of getting rich quick. They contemplate robbing a bank or even better going to Hollywood. “Think of all the films about 9/11; they’ll need lots of Arabic actors for those.” Their second biggest topic is sex, which occurs mostly in their imaginations since they have so far resisted arranged marriages. They loiter in their cars, talk on the phone and enjoy a life without responsibility. Losers themselves, they feel free to judge others. Abdullah’s brother is married to a Moroccan wife but can’t resist a policewoman with whom he works. Abdullah’s sister lets herself out of an upstairs window to meet her Dutch boyfriend who is willing to be an accomplice in divesting her of an unwanted virginity. The comedy is fast-paced with throw-away lines, but the topic of Eastern emigrants in Western city has been said before in East is East or Bend It Like Beckham or Ae Fond Kiss. This film, which played at the 2004 Berlinale, has taken a long time to come to Hamburg. Must has happened since then, such as the murder of Dutch filmmaker and enfant terrible Theo van Gogh, which would throw a new light on the subject matter – a film which might not even be possible in Holland today. That alone is a good reason to see it.
(Kirstan B) Opening December 8, 2005 As with most classic children's literature, it is hard to find someone in my generation that hasn't at least heard of the seven Narnia books from C.S. Lewis. They were read aloud to me by my mother as a child, and the theory is that this is one series that should be read three times in life: as a child, a young adult, and a mature individual. Additionally, an intentional religious/Christian allegory is a strong part of the success of the novels for millions of its readers. The director of Shrek, New Zealander Andrew Adamson, was awarded the honors of producing/directing/screenwriting The Chronicles of Narnia and turned to Richard Taylor's Weta Workshop (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) to bring the wildly imaginary creatures to life. Thus, my expectations for The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe were extremely high. Narnia comes through on almost every level. It stays true to the book. It beautifully visualizes the creative Narnian world. The CGI work is seamless and the magical beasts are Weta-perfect (a tad "Orcan"). The battle scenes are appropriate for children in the sense that they are not gory, but successfully portray strong conflict. The cast was solid. With so much going for it, why did I find myself less-than-engaged in the story, the one sure thing? When four siblings are evacuated from Blitzkrieg-ed WW2 London to the safer countryside estate of an old professor, they find a portal to an enchanted world through a storage wardrobe. Mr. Tumnus, the loveable faun the children first encounter (endearingly portrayed by James McAvoy), introduces us to the history of the 100-year freeze placed upon Narnia by the emotionless white witch, Jadis (wow to Tilda Swinton). The good "energy", in the form of Aslan the Lion (honey-voiced Liam Neeson), has been gone for years and Jadis rules the land with an underlying fear of an ancient prophecy predicting four humans breaking her ice spell and ruling Narnia as kings and queens. This ensues the good vs. evil theme between Aslan and Jadis, played out through the personalities of the children. Since the first book was released in 1950, cinema has been tapping this vein in every fantastical way (Star Wars, LOTR, Harry Potter, etc.). After years of clipping action, the clean, beautiful Narnian world comes across so tame that it practically sleeps. Which is why this movie (Walt Disney Pictures) may be just the ticket for children but a flatline for adults who have been over-exposed to Luke, Frodo and Harry triumphing over sinister forces more ruthless than an selfish white witch with a fabulous costume designer. My advice: read your children the book first, then see it on the big screen. Second Opinion by Osanna V Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media bring us a delightful film version of the first book of C.S. Lewis' famous chronicles, directed by Shrek director Andrew Adamson. Adamson also co-wrote the screenplay with Ann Peacock, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. The Pevensie children, Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley) have been sent to the home of Professor Kirke (Jim Broadbent) during World War II, to be safe from the Blitz. It is a rambling, stately house with large gardens and countless nooks, crannies and rooms to explore. One day, whilst playing hide and seek, Lucy climbs into a large old cupboard full of fur coats. As she pushes her way deeper in, she suddenly finds herself in a snow-covered forest, standing by a lamp post. This is where she meets Mr. Tumnus (James McAvoy), a faun, and learns that she has strayed into the magical world of Narnia, which is under the endless winter (without ever reaching Christmas) spell of the self-proclaimed queen, the White Witch Jadis (Tilda Swinton). After a delightful tea with Mr. Tumnus, Lucy returns to her brothers and sister and is amazed to discover that no time has passed since she left. Unfortunately, her siblings do not believe a word of what she says; even Edmund, who also found his way into Narnia where he encountered the White Witch and tasted some of her delicious Turkish Delight, claims that Lucy is only pretending. One day, however, all four children are forced to use the cupboard to hide from the Professor's strict housekeeper, and then the adventure truly begins. Legend tells that Narnia will be freed from its endless winter when two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve arrive to hail the return of the mighty lion Aslan (voice Liam Neeson) and overthrow the evil queen; yet Edmund has tasted the White Witch's Turkish Delight and convinces himself that she is good, while Aslan must be bad. He betrays his brother and sisters, setting the stage for tragic events that will lead to the need for an ultimate sacrifice... Disney's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a family movie which follows the original story very closely. The film is carried, on the one hand, by the well-rounded performances of the children. In particular, Georgie Henley as Lucy is a real discovery: her timing and expressiveness are spot on. On the other hand, the special effects, magical creatures, make-up and costumes courtesy of Sony Pictures Imagework, KNB EFX Group, Inc., and New Zealand's WETA Workshop, set an excellent balance with their creation of the magical world of Narnia. In spite of the hefty battle scenes (where I honestly did not notice the lack of blood!), it is a kid movie, though certain passages may be difficult for very sensitive children – unless they know the book and how it ends.
(Mary W) Opening December 8, 2005 Based on the second novel by Charles Bukowski of the same name, the central character, Henry Chinaski, is Bukowski's alter ego. Chinaski (Matt Dillon) writes as much as he can between drinking, women and gambling. He has a tough time keeping a job mostly due to his drinking, women and gambling. A kind of relationship develops between him and Jan (Lili Taylor), but she begins to dislike the new style he adopts after a winning streak at the track. He decides to move on, leaving her with a pile of money. Then he loses his day job, his gambling partner and his winning streak. But he still writes. Looking for a bed at his mom and dad's house, an immediate argument sends him back to the streets. Chinaski hangs out with Laura (Marisa Tomei) and her eccentric rich friends, but dumps them as well. He runs into Jan again who is working at a hotel. They pick up their relationship where they left off. As he continues to write, a letter from a magazine arrives at his old rooming house. Probably only fans of Bukowski will appreciate this slow, rather predictable, walk on the mild side.
(Rita P-S) Opening December 8, 2005 Arne Birkenstock’s documentary intersperses his film which focuses on the lives of contemporary Portenos, as natives of Buenos Aires are known, with what we are told to be tango standards. Roberto, Marcela and Yolanda’s lives intersect at a tango dance hall called “la Cathedral “ Roberto is a feisty 71-year-old retired professional tango dancer who has lived his life to the fullest, but he lost $100,000 thanks to the corralito, as the Argentinian bank loan default crisis is known in Argentina. Marcela is his lovely 20-year-old dancing partner who teaches tango but cannot even earn the price of a pair of dancing shoes. Yolanda is a working single mother with four children aged 7 to 19 trying to keep her family sheltered. She reckons with the loss of her home if she cannot keep up with the mortgage. While we watch Roberto live out his days by dancing, drinking mate and calling in debts from friends, Marcela prepares to emigrate to Paris where she hopes earn at least a living as a dance teacher. What makes the film particularly noteworthy is the story of Yolanda. She will emigrate to Spain and has no illusions about working as a maid. It is the only way to keep her house. Her eldest daughter will go to school and act as head of household until mom returns. Stripped to their core, tango lyrics convey the uncertainty or pain caused by personal, material, or political events beyond one’s control. The films juxtaposes musical performances with daily tableaux. Faced with unrequited love or government betrayal, Portenos tend to seek solace in a “cathedral” to dance. Yet unlike other Argentine films of the 1940s and 1950s, there is nothing staged about the performances filmed or recorded. While the singers do their best to convey the emotion behind the lyrics, the musicians’ performances take the prize. Their fervor makes the dancers’ eloquence almost overkill. These musicians would have demonstrated equal passion playing before an empty audience. Birkenstock’s film evokes a present day Buenos Aires, of the working poor. Gone are the pampas and belle epoque villas usually associated with Buenos Aires. However, we are never told what makes these particular 12 tangos special. Just for balance it would have been helpful to have a potential émigré that at least stood a chance of succeeding abroad, for example, untenured professors or small businessmen. In the absence of additional detail, we do not know if only single, divorced or unmarried people are the hardest hit by the corralito. A vignette focused on a married couple with kids would have added veracity to his portrayal. But perhaps Birkenstock thinks a broader historical and economic context would detract from a film centered on the roots of uses of a musical form evoking the “gold of love and the silver of dreams.”
(Adele R) Opening December 8, 2005 The documentary film by Jens Schanze, his thesis for the School for Television and Film in Munich, explores the memories of his mother and father (who were born in 1933 and 1931) of his mother’s father, a high functionary of the Nazi Party in Schlesia (now Poland) from 1933 until 1945. Neither he nor his four sisters actually knew their grandfather, who died in 1954, except in the stories and descriptions from their mother who always referred to her father as “that good man”. In many families in Germany after the war, the children remained silent, never daring to confront their parents with uncomfortable questions about the Nazis or personal responsibility during those years. As time went by, those families often preferred to believe that Nazis and especially those who knew of, or actually committed, terrible crimes, somehow came from other families or were limited to only a very few. But as history has made perfectly clear, the Nazi Party was not made up of a few murderers on top supported by a loyal army and some oblivious followers. The National Archives holds the NSDAP membership cards of over ten million men, many of whom knew well of the concentration camps and even conspired to promote Nazi annihilation policies. Jens’ grandfather was one of them. His job was to give speeches to the coal miners of Schlesia, as quoted by newspaper accounts of the time, on the evils of the Jews and right of Hitler and Germany to conquer the world. Jens Schanze’s film is noteworthy for the gentleness and love with which he confronts his mother with her father’s past. Patiently, but insistently, he uncovers a family trauma which has lain buried and silent for 60 years. The young director and his camera team accompany Frau Schanze and her husband on a trip back to Naurhode, Poland, her childhood home until 1945. The reactions brought up by the emotional confrontation with the truth for both his parents and his siblings are the basis of this fascinating film, moving many of the audience at the screening, myself included, to tears. It is without doubt, an excellent and important contribution to Germany’s reconciliation with its past. (Osanna V) Opening December 15, 2005 Elijah Wood (Frodo in The Lord of the Rings), Eugene Hutz and Boris Leskin give excellent performances in this unusual “road trip” movie, based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, with screenplay and direction under the command of Liev Schreiber. Jonathan Safran Foer (Wood) is an obsessive collector of his Jewish family memorabilia – anything from a pebble retrieved from an uncle’s shoe to his grandmother’s false teeth. When his collection is enhanced by a photo of his grandfather side by side with an unknown woman, standing in the heart of a vast wheat field, his curiosity is piqued. He discovers that the picture was taken in the Ukraine and, according to family legend, that the woman was instrumental to his grandfather escaping to America at the beginning of the war. He feels he owes her a debt of gratitude and sets out to find her. In Odessa, an old man (Leskin) and his grandson Alex (Hutz) run a business helping “rich Jewish Americans” find their family heritage. Jonathan is their latest customer. Together the three set off in an old Trabi in search of a mysterious village no one seems to have heard about. The cultural differences between the main characters – each quite fascinating and removed from any kind of clichés – gives rise to moments of subtle humour and thoughtful insight as well as simply comic situations. Threaded between all this is plenty of symbolism along with a growing awareness of the tragedy that, in fact, unites all three protagonists. Everything Is Illuminated is hardly your typical, riotous, tragicomic road trip movie; however, it drew me in from the very first scene with Elijah Wood’s intense gaze through large, heavy framed glasses. All three leads were excellently played and full of life. It is a story about remembering or, better said, not forgetting or denying.
(Shauna K) Opening December 15, 2005 Holiday spirit becomes holiday spite when Everett Stone (Dermot Mulroney) brings his uptight girlfriend Meredith (Sarah Jessica Parker) home for the holidays. The Stone family, far from being perfect itself, does not believe she is the right girl for their beloved Everett and is instantly aligned against Meredith. The harder she tries to fit in and win their approval, the more mistakes she makes and the more she alienates herself from her possible future in-laws. To make matters worse, the Stones absolutely adore Meredith’s younger sister Julie (Claire Danes), who is summoned to the scene by Meredith for some much needed emotional support. But Everett’s love interest isn’t the only issue the Stone family is facing on Christmas. The charismatic mother of the family, Sybil Stone (Diane Keaton), is terminally ill. In fact, every member of the family seems to be facing an issue of some sort or another. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a film more jam-packed with sensitive topics. A "feel good" Christmas movie The Family Stone is not. The Family Stone, directed by Thomas Bezucha, is heavy and emotional. Not only are the characters within the film forced to look inward, the audience is as well, thereby stirring up much emotion throughout its entirety. And only this cast could have pulled that off. Indeed the exceptional performance of the entire cast, and of Diane Keaton in particular, is what makes this film.
(Karen P) Opening December 15, 2005 Robert (Mark Umbers) and Meg (Scarlett Johansson) Windermere are newlyweds vacationing at a high-society resort on the Italian Riviera of Amalfi. For the most part, they are the talk of the town, because they are truly in love and Mr. Windermere married an outsider – an American. The aristocratic society, having nothing better to do than party and interfere, targets the young Windermeres as fair game. Lord Darlington (Stephen Campbell Moore) takes a fancy to Meg’s innocence and preys on her naivety. The seductive and clever Mrs. Erlynne (Helen Hunt) is no better and endeavors to confront Meg with undisclosed information that would damage her image of her past. To cover her bases, Mrs. Erlynne is secretly making rendezvous with Robert and Lord Augustus (Tom Wilkinson). The twists and turns of the whimsical gossip trail has left Meg shocked and disappointed at her husband, not to mention his arrogant friends. To avoid further humiliation, Meg crosses the scandalous trail that brings closure for everyone, including the disappearance of The Fan. Director Mike Barker and screenplay writer Howard Himelstein have developed a rather stylish adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s play, Lady Windermere’s Fan. Barker explained to the audience during the Hamburg Film Festival that Shakespeare and Wilde are his two role models in storytelling because they have produced some of the most creative works, and their efforts always share a message. He explained that Wilde’s message in Lady Windermere’s Fan is that gossip destroys lives. He noted that this is one tragedy that we can choose to avoid by learning to respect one another more so that we build-up and encourage, not destroy. Barker’s choice for the cast, the setting and the music all worked well together for his 1930s period-piece adaptation.
(Rita PS) Opening December 15, 2005 The ape is back and more appealing than ever. Peter Jackson’s film does the impossible. It makes the love story between a huge ape and a lovely woman believable at a gut level. There are more touchingly romantic scenes between Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) and the agile King Kong than between her official love interest, the playwright Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody). How can a kiss aboard a tramp steamer compare with ice sliding with KK in Central Park or making faces atop the Empire State Building? What greater love than that of someone, even an ape, willing to die for you? As Carl Denham, Jack Black is excellent as the obsessed film director, albeit one whom circumstances force to trade art for schlock and commercial success. The story has lost none of the allure of the tried and true tale of an assorted bunch of seekers on a voyage into the fog despite the unnecessary references to Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and some cliché characters like the noble and erudite first mate and the alcoholic and gay cook. Much of the second hour, due to the amount of footage dedicated to raptors, dinosaurs, and other creeping evils terrorizing our crew, adds nothing. The story of a filmmaker on a crusade for art, an unknown actress hoping for a break and the last of a dying breed is appealing enough. Giant worms and scorpions don’t add anything to the story and detract from the narrative. See the film but keep your eyes closed for the gooey, icky bug scenes. (Alyssa C) Opening December 22, 2005 Part documentary, part music video, part tribute: Be Here to Love Me tells the life story of songwriting legend Townes Van Zandt. Director Margaret Brown has pieced together interviews with family members and friends, famous singers including Willie Nelson, Steve Shelley (from Sonic Youth), Lyle Lovett, Guy Clark and Kris Kristofferson, and plenty of footage of Townes himself to create this touching biography. Stories of his manic depression, alcoholism and drug addictions could have provided Brown with plenty of material for a scandalous memoir. Alternatively, she could have found hundreds of people to tout his talent, like Steve Earle, who famously said, “Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world. And I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that.” Instead, however, this film is much more subtle. The director treats both his tragedy and his genius in a very matter-of-fact fashion with neither justification nor glorification. Still, the end result is a portrait of a man’s life, and therefore in no way void of sentiment. The use of Van Zandt’s own music as a soundtrack throughout the film packed an extra emotional punch. Even for those who are not folk/country music fans, Van Zandt’s story is an interesting one, and it is artfully told by Brown.
(Kirsten G) Opening December 22, 2005 Director Roman Polanski, whose last film, The Pianist, scored an Academy Award nomination, now aims for a younger audience with a new adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist. Here, we first meet orphan Oliver (Barney Clark) as he is being brought to his new home at a workhouse. After barely enduring some misfortunes there, he runs away to London, where he is noticed by young pickpocket the Artful Dodger (Harry Eden), who brings Oliver into his gang led by Fagin (an almost unrecognizable Ben Kingsley). Oliver seems destined for a life of petty crime until by chance he meets Mr. Brownlow (Edward Hardwicke), who offers a chance for something better. But can Oliver escape from the clutches of Fagin and his evil partner Bill (Jamie Foreman)? Although Polanski has said he wanted to direct Oliver Twist because he wanted to make a film his children could watch, I’m not sure Twist is appropriate material for young children. The film is well-made, with interesting cinematography and evocative sets that certainly pull you into the drabness of lower-class London, and Barney Clark is engaging as the always-beaten-down-but-forever-cheerful Oliver. But the film lacks one very important element: emotion. While I certainly felt sorry for Oliver and the other boys, the only character I really invested in was the unfortunate Nancy (Leanne Rowe), and that was not enough to bring the story to life for me. Perhaps if Polanski had put a more unique twist on this often-adapted story it would have made a more lasting impression.
(Rita P-S) Opening December 22, 2005 This is an enjoyable film about shiny “happy” people in Pasadena. Any film with a wedding is fun because you get to pull out all those eccentric relatives, tons of alcohol, and wacko family issues. The rumor in this film is that Jennifer Aniston's “mother's mother," played by the always wonderful Shirley MacLaine, is really the original Mrs. Robinson of the film and song. The story is that the real Benjamin Braddock, a.k.a. the Dustin Hoffman character in The Graduate ("real" name is Burroughs?/played by Kevin Costner), is irresistible to three generations of women, albeit for different reasons. This could only happen in Pasadena, “which is what you get when you give people everything they want and leave them alone for 100 years." Jennifer Aniston is coming home from NYC for her little sister's (Mena Suvari) wedding. Jennifer is engaged to Mark Ruffalo but too scared to tell anyone because she is not sure he is THE ONE. Archetypes of the rich and super-rich pepper an otherwise conventional journey to self actualization by Jennifer, a NYT editor devoted to births, weddings and obits. Jennifer's inability to grow up is due to unresolved feelings about her mother’s early death and the lurking suspicion that she is adopted. Kathy Bates is wonderful as the social drinking Aunt Mitsy, dishing intergenerational dirt in her silk pucci muumuu and chunky jewelry at 11 a.m. Shirley MacLaine is a terrific older Mrs. Robinson. She minces no words and appears in full predator mode. Kevin Costner is the grown up Beau Burroughs, college drop-out, internet millionaire with seaside mansion and all the toys. He can’t make a commitment to a company let alone a woman. Then Jen makes a pass at him and presto, the film gets corny. Why I am using the actor's real names? Only Mark, Mena and Kathy earned their check. The film has a good premise, but unfortunately, rather than examine why some people cannot commit, the film takes the easy way out. It was nice to hear Mark Ruffalo say being engaged is not a license to shop around for something better or something like that. My heart fluttered at the “I am a lawyer. Words mean something to me.” but the film stalled in sit-com territory. We get lovely views of Pasadena, San Francisco, Half Moon Bay, Napa, and NYC while Jen sorts out her past, present and future. It appears women have no choice but to marry their best friends or focus on their families, a uniquely American perspective. Where’s the film about real adults getting married for love, lust and responsibility, instead of watering marriage down to advanced "going steady" or "war of the roses"?
(Karen P and Shelly S) Opening December 22, 2005 It is not surprising that this picture won first prize (Golden Bear) at this year’s Berlinale. It is a brilliant production directed by Mark Dornford-May. This adaptation of the opera Carmen was transformed in two ways. Instead of taking place in a Spanish ghetto, Dornford-May brought it to an authentic township in South Africa and translated the opera libretto from Spanish into the native South African Xhosa language. What is remarkable about the Xhosa language is its beautiful range of clicks and wide open vowel sounds which adapt nicely to the range of music in an opera. Every phrase and note sung had an authentic shift that mesmerized the ear to hang on to the next musical bar to be sung. It was amazing to listen to this classical piece being transformed with the freedom of South African dance that seemed to fit perfectly. Karen says; “I was smiling throughout the whole film. It was an automatic reaction.” Shelly adds, “It was wonderful that they kept to the sense of African beauty and did not try to conform to Hollywood norms.” Pauline Malefane (Carmen), who is quite voluptuous, had an amazing sensuality and danced with a sense of enticing liveliness that made this film really stand out from the others in the Berlinale competition.” For more information from the Currents Berlinale Supplement, click here. (Adele R) Opening December 29, 2005 Is this really Woody Allen? After directing 39 films, most of which he also wrote as he did this one, Woody Allen has come up with a total departure from his usual “schtick”: an entertaining, suspenseful thriller along the lines of The Talented Mr. Ripley. Even the music is not the usual smooth jazz, but opera! And he neither stars in this himself, nor do any of the characters stand in for him – there is not a neurotic mensch anywhere in sight. And to top it off, it is filmed entirely in and around London, rather than New York. But his signature is there: the fairy tale quality of the settings, a moral to the story (some people are lucky, others are not) and the clever but completely improbable ending. Match Point deals with Britain’s uppah clahsses and its would be gate crashers, and it stars British actors mostly unknown to Americans. One exception is the dazzlingly sexy Scarlett Johansson as Nola, an American wannabe actress who wants to marry up. Her counterpart is a clever, talented social climber, Chris Wilton (cooly portrayed by Jonathan Rhys Meyers), who has parlayed his talent into a job as the tennis pro at a swank British club where he soon meets Tom Hewitt (Matthew Goode, so utterly believable in his role as the privileged son that I looked for a title among the credits) and, more importantly, Tom’s sweet, if a bit cloying, sister, Chloe (Emily Mortimer). Tom is engaged to Nola – and Chris is totally in lust from the first minute he sees her. So deranged by desire, in fact, that he subsequently risks the very comfortable life he has managed to marry into, just to be with Nola. Before the film ends, there are two murders. The last half-hour has enough witty twists and turns to remind one that Woody Allen had a hand in this after all, but for the first three-quarters of the film, Allen is out of sight and out of mind. The film is witty, engrossing, pretty – with all its beautiful people, great contemporary art and fabulous dwellings – and thoroughly enjoyable all the way through.
(Adele R) Opening December 29, 2005 Maeve Binchy, a wildly successful Irish romance writer, wrote the book on which the script for this film is based, and like most of her books, the movie is full of clichés and is superficial and predictable. Two women suffer loss: Marilyn Vine’s son is killed in an accident on his 15th birthday in Connecticut; Ria Lynch’s husband (who eventually turns out to be a serial womanizer) announces that he is leaving her to marry his pregnant mistress in a suburb of Dublin. Both women are devastated and uncertain of how to continue their lives. Marilyn Vine (Andie MacDowell) decides she desperately needs a change of scenery and calls Ria Lynch (Olivia Williams), wanting to speak to her realtor husband (Iain Glen) whose business card she has, but as he is no longer there, she tells Ria that she is looking to exchange her lovely big house for an equivalent near Dublin for a couple of months. Ria offers her house on Tara Road, and the deal is made. Ria is off to Connecticut where she gains back self-confidence, is romanced by Marilyn’s handsome brother-in-law (Jean-Marc Barr) and gets a job as a cook. Marilyn finds friends and a suitor in Colm (Stephen Rea) on Tara Road, but remains true to her husband Greg who eventually turns up there. For a brief period of time it looks like Ria will lose her beautiful house on Tara Road because her husband had put it up as collateral for the company he works for and now that company has gone broke. Do I need to tell you that it all turns out wonderfully in the end, after all? Even Andie MacDowell’s brilliant smile, a very believable performance by Olivia Williams and two truly lovely houses are not enough to rescue this clunker.
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Drum 
Just Like Heaven (Solange Du da bist) 
Only Human (Alles was ich an euch liebe, Seres Queridos) 
Shouf Shouf Habibi - Schau ins Leben (Hush Hush Baby) 
The Chronicles of Narnia:
The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe (Die Chroniken von Narnia: Der König von Narnia) 
Factotum 
12 Tangos - Adios Buenos Aires 
Winterkinder - Die schweigende Generation 
Everything is Illuminated (Alles ist erleuchtet) 
The Family Stone (Die Familie Stone - Verloben verboten!) 
A Good Woman (Good Woman - Ein Sommer in Amalfi) 
King Kong 
Be Here to Love Me (Townes van Zandt) 
Oliver Twist 
Rumor Has It (Wo die Liebe hinfällt - Basierend auf einem wahren Gerücht) 
U-Carmen eKhayelitsha 
Match Point 
Tara Road (Ein Haus in Irland) 
Questions?