AWCH Film Reviews -- May 2006

(Osanna V) Opening May 4, 2006

Tom Cruise returns as agent Ethan Hunt in a further instalment in the Mission Impossible series. Bad guy Owen Davian, is played by this year's Academy Award winner Philip Seymour Hoffman. The movie is directed by J.J.Abrams, with a script by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci.

Ethan Hunt is in love and has just become engaged. Of course, his girlfriend Julia (Michelle Monaghan) has no idea about his real professional back-ground. He could get away with that because in recent years he's been more involved in training agents than working in the field. That all changes when his star student, Lindsey (Keri Russell), is caught during an operation against Owen Davian, a merciless and cruel dealer in arms, secret weapons and God knows what else. Hunt takes on the mission to rescue Lindsey, because he feels personally responsible; but the exercise soon escalates into a non-stop action fight against time, that puts any plans he may have for the white-picketed family home life in serious jeopardy.

As far as action movies go, it can't get much better than M:i:III. The story, however, is one of those ones with enough questionable red herrings and cross information to leave the viewer confused and not quite sure what it was all about. What we do know is that Ethan Hunt is, once again, saving the world; against what is unclear, we only get to know that its code name is "Rabbit Foot".

Even more than the previous two, Mission Impossible III moves away from the original flavour of the TV series. Everything focuses around Hunt and the roles of the rest of the team are more watered down than ever. Even so, as mentioned, if it's action you want, this is definitely worth seeing.

(Becky T) Opening May 4, 2006

Catherine (Gwyneth Paltrow) sleeps through her 27th birthday on her front porch. She is waiting for sister Claire (Hope Davis) to arrive from New York so that both can attend the funeral of their father Robert (Anthony Hopkins). In flashbacks we learn that while Claire was “having a life” on the East Coast, Catherine was playing nursemaid to their schizophrenic father at home in Chicago. He was a genius mathematician who peaked in his twenties and then slowly “went nuts” as Catherine said. As his illness progressed, she curtailed her studies at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, to cook his spaghetti and praise his gibberish which he imagined still to be mathematics. Hal Dobbs (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a graduate student looking for a breakthrough mathematical proof in Robert’s 103 scribbled notebooks. He does make a discovery.

Director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) adapted the film about “love, commitment and trust” from a play by David Auburn. This explains the relatively simple sets and the lack of real action. Once you realize that you are watching a filmed play, you can stop fidgeting about “where does all this lead?” and just enjoy the supremely good and subtle text and appreciate the interaction between four main characters, all perfectly cast. Paltrow is amazing as a young woman who has had to be the adult in the family, who is herself a genius mathematician and who believes that she, too, has inherited the family schizophrenia. Sister Claire almost steals the show as the “sane” sister who compulsively makes lists and wants to take Catherine back to New York. Her manner and accent (in the English version) remind me very much of Lisa Kudrow in Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion. Hopkins is perfect as the spaced-out Dad who says, “Crazy people can’t ask the question ‘Am I crazy?’” and Gyllenhaal is fine as the student who begins with ulterior motives and then falls in love.

(Isabel S) Opening May 4, 2006

The story of Sabah is about a woman in her forties confined to her mother's care in their home in Canada. Sabah is a Muslim Arab. All her life she has been living strictly according to her morals and values which her family and her religion have forced upon her. But one day after her afternoon swim in a community pool she “accidentally” meets a handsome Canadian. Shortly thereafter all her values are put into question and her life as she once knew it will change forever.

Sabah, a romantic comedy which deals with religious and social expectations, gives an interesting look into the life of a middle-aged Muslim single woman living in western culture. Unfortunately the comedy and acting did not meet my expectations but nonetheless it is a fun movie and the music was great.

(Becky T) Opening May 4, 2006

Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae) leads a gang of South African street kids called Boston, Butcher, and Aap in petty thievery. Their crimes culminate in a stabbing on a subway train. They won’t be discovered, but still their deed leaves them sober and serious, except for Tsotsi who, full of swagger, leaves the gang behind and hi-jacks a car which happens to have a baby in the back seat. From here on the film could be called A Man and a Baby. He accepts the responsibility and cares for the child whom he names David. He coerces a young mother to breast feed it. As a “father” he reflects on his own bereft childhood, his dying mother, his brutal father, and his tortured pet. He shows the baby the sewer pipes where he sought shelter and lived as an orphan after running away from home. While Tsotsi is becoming human and benign towards mankind, the police and the parents (well-to-do black people) are searching for the evil kidnapper.

This film won best foreign-language film at the 2006 Academy Awards, the first from South Africa to do so, although another South African film, U-Carmen eKhayelitsha, won best film at the 2005 Berlinale. Director Gavin Hood and his lead actor Chweneyagae attended the German premiere at Hamburg’s Abaton cinema and answered questions. The word “Tsotsi” is street language for a gangster, crook or member of a gang. In South Africa there are 11 languages, and the colloquial slang is a mixture of several of them. Hood wrote the script based on a book published in 1979 (written much earlier in 1961) by playwright Athol Fugard. The original book contained sketches of various characters; Hood put them together into one story (although the individual stories can be picked out in certain cases, e.g., the beggar with no legs, Teacher Boy and his sermons on “decency and respect” ) and modernized the story to fit today’s South African shanty towns. It was filmed in Soweto and Johannesburg. Hood had his camera man concentrate on close shots directly into the faces of the actors. Although many of the actors are well-known in their own country and have studied and worked abroad, Presley Chweneyagae grew up in a shanty town not unlike the ones depicted in the film. His mother saved him from a fate similar to his film character by introducing him to a community theater when he was only six. This is his first film, although he just finished a successful run playing the lead in Hamlet in the South African State Theater. In Tsotsi he conveys very well the three personalities of one person: aggressive, shy and silent, and very cool. It’s interesting to compare this film with the Belgian L’Enfant which won first prize in Cannes 2005, as it, too, is about a young man and a baby, although with a different background and different resolution.

(Geysa W) Opening May 11, 2006

According to a myth that fear sprouts wings, the Vikings set off to learn fear since flying has its advantages. Chief Maulaf plans to conquer the realm from the air as soon as he has learned to fly. He assembles a group of warriors and they break off to kidnap the world’s worst coward to teach them fear. The scheming charlatan Kryptograf, who secretly plans to upset the chief and come into power himself, joins the party, as does is son Olaf. Olaf makes up for low intelligence with an overabundance of muscles and dreams of his reward: the hand of the chief’s daughter, Abba, in marriage. Abba, pretty, young and self-confident, joins in disguise as they go from the snow-encrusted regions of the north to the mild, southern country of the Gauls.

Meanwhile, Majestix, chief of the Gauls, is in his famous sea-caressed village, where the inhabitants have always been able to resist the Roman legions, and who are well-known for their love of partying and rough-housing. His nephew Grautvornix visits them from Lutetia (which much later will be renamed Paris). This spoiled and wimpy city boy is supposed to be turned into a fearless warrior. Asterix and Obelix take on this impossible task. The youth has his head in the clouds and is more interested in dancing and hip hop than courageous clashes with wild animals from the woods or with the Romans. For him everything is too provincial and boring. Grautvornix takes his leave and Obelix gives him a Hinkelstein as a souvenir. His flashy sport car collapses under the weight of it and Olaf, that mentally challenged Viking, awaiting in the bushes, thinks that his time has come. He mistakes Grautvornix for the long-sought Grand Master of Fear and captures him.

Grautvornix’s carrier pigeon SMS returns to the village; Obelix recognizes the danger and promises to retrieve the boy. He and his faithful dog Idefix follow the Vikings into their raw, uninviting realm and come upon the Grand Master of Fear at a banquet, who is not amused, having been disturbed during a rock performance.

Abba is also angry. As an emancipated woman, she refuses to let herself be married away, especially not to stupid Olaf. Abba and Grautvornix have romantic inclinations and decide to marry in the land of the Gauls. The Vikings finally learn the meaning of fear, when the troubadour Trubadix sings, causing the Northerners to suffer excruciating nausea and they flee in panic. Fear has got hold of them. But they still can not fly.

An international team under the direction of Stefan Fjeldmark and Jasper Møller created a wonderful cartoon film, a masterpiece supported by modern animation techniques. Everything is perfect from the individual characters and the music to the German voice-overs. Each small detail is lovingly created and the message of the film: generational conflicts and international understanding come across subtly and professionally. (translated by Becky T)

(Becky T) Opening May 11, 2006

Ten-year-old Sharon (Jodelle Ferland) falls into trances and mumbles the words “Silent Hill.” This is a town in West Virginia and she and her foster mother Rose (Radha Mitchell) set off in the car to find it. Along the way Sharon disappears and Rose arrives in an uninhabited ghost town which burned 30 years ago, and seems to burn still as white ashes fall like snow to fill up the streets. For the remainder of the film Rose searches for her daughter. She finds police woman Cybil, as well as a beautiful hag named Dahlia (Deborah Kara Unger) (who looks so much like Grisabella in CATS, that I expected her to belt out “Memory”) and a fire-and-brimstone-preacher-type named Cristabella. After struggling with creatures such as Red Pyramid, the Grey Children, the Armless Ones, the Janitor, the Cockroaches, and the Dark Nurses, Rose finds Sharon and learns the secrets of Silent Hill.

The film is made from a successful series of video games by the same name from Akira Yamaoka of the Konami company. French director Christophe Gans changed the video game’s main protagonist from a man to a woman (Rose); otherwise, he tried to convey the same atmosphere of four dimensions: Silent Hill of the 70s, SH of today, SH in the fog, and SH in darkness. I was never aware of these four spheres, which is probably why I was surprised at the ending and surprised that playing video games might come in handy for film reviewing. It’s worth sitting through the film’s bunch of nonsense, just for the grand finale staged in a church, when the action picks up and the evil-doer gets her just punishment.

(Kirsten G) Opening May 11, 2006

Writer/director Noah Baumbach (Mr. Jealousy, Kicking and Screaming) presents a semi-autobiographical tale in The Squid and the Whale, a film about divorce and its devastating effects on a family. Baumbach’s alter ego is Walt Berkman (Jesse Eisenberg of Roger Dodger), the older son of self-centered professor Bernard (Jeff Daniels) and aspiring writer Joan (Laura Linney). Walt idolizes Bernard, while younger son Frank (Owen Kline, son of actors Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates) identifies more with Joan. The family has held together shakily despite a rocky few years, but when things finally come to a head on an ordinary day in 1986 and Bernard and Joan announce they’re separating, the boys’ lives unravel. The rest of the film shows their struggles to adapt to their new existence and accept their parents in this new, rather unflattering light.

The Squid and the Whale won numerous awards in 2005, including directing and screenwriting awards for Baumbach at Sundance and Best Picture from the American Film Institute. Daniels and Linney were also nominated for Golden Globes; and indeed, the best aspect of this film is the acting. All four of the leads are brilliant: Eisenberg and Kline are completely believable as children uprooted by divorce, and Daniels and Linney manage to make the audience care about their characters despite their numerous non-endearing traits. However, I felt the film was lacking a reason for being; although it presented a realistic slice of life (and was probably cathartic for Baumbach), at the end I was left wondering what Baumbach was trying to say. Overall, I came away with the understanding that divorce is a whale of an upheaval but little other insight into how to get through it.

(Alyssa C) Opening May 18, 2006

In a vacuum, The Da Vinci Code would be a pretty “ok” suspense-thriller – not great, but not terrible either. However, the film doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s part of a much larger phenomenon involving an internationally best-selling book, several lawsuits and even a call for a boycott from the Vatican. Amid all of this hype, there is little doubt that the movie will triumph at the box office, but this will be in no way on its own merit. Even with its star-studded cast and acclaimed director, Ron Howard, the film version is a few brushstrokes short of a masterpiece.

While I could criticize many aspects of the film [such as the bad guys’ convoluted motivation (slightly different from the book), the awkward flashbacks to ancient holy wars and personal memories, the utter lack of chemistry between the leading characters, or the downright stupid dialogue (with the possible exception of Teabing, played colorfully by Ian McKellen)], the biggest disappointment came in the form of the heroine, Sophie Neveu, for which the fault lies most probably with screenwriter Akiva Goldsman and not actress Audrey Tautou. In a movie whose plot supposedly centers on the search for and redemption of the “sacred feminine,” one would expect to see a strong female character, if not an outright goddess! Instead, poor Sophie is useless throughout much of the film, sadly offering no more than a pretty face opposite Robert Langdon’s (Tom Hanks) frumpy academic persona. Worse, the attempts at portraying her as Jesus-like (when she gives the drug addict money and later “heals” Langdon’s claustrophobia) are simply laughable. What happened to the code-cracking, smart-as-a-whip DCPJ agent from the book who took us along with her on an emotional, punch-packing journey of discovery?

However, the fundamental story of Dan Brown’s brilliant novel remains in tact, and so all is not lost. In this modern day Grail quest, we visit some of Europe’s most famous and fascinating historical landmarks. Professor Langdon’s character introduces us to the intriguing world of ancient symbols, and we get a crash course in art history and Grail legend from Sir Teabing. The riddles divulge their solutions quite cleverly, and best of all, the plot provides plenty of fodder for religious and historical debate. The film has some points uniquely in its favor as well. For example, Hans Zimmer does a remarkable job building and sustaining the suspense with his original score. Some of the computer-generated graphics illustrating how Langdon’s mind ticks were also well done. However, the film moves extremely quickly, thereby missing much of the substance which makes the book so great. Perhaps the film should have been called The Da Vinci Code Lite?

(Becky T) Opening May 18, 2006

Armin is a young man who lives at home, supported by loving parents who want the best for him, the “best” being a job. His two older brothers also prop him up for success, but he fails on every count. He can’t even join the army, because the third son in a family is exempt from military service in Germany. His muddles through various job interviews (the only really funny scenes in the film), loses his girlfriend to another, and fantasizes about being the sex slave of a biker gang. Late at night he discovers a corpse in a parked car. It was murder and he pockets a clue. Newspapers give the unknown killer and people who claim to be the killer (called falsche Bekenner in German), great attention, something lacking in the life of Armin. In the end he deposits his stolen clue in a police office, is arrested and driven off to jail in a cloud of glory. Newcomer Constantin von Jascheroff, who plays Armin, reminds me of another German actor, Robert Stadlober, when he first hit the screen as a young man, and not only because they are both blond. This is a first film by director Christoph Hochhäusler which might shed some light on real Bekenner (confessors) and why they commit crimes for their 15 minutes of fame, such as, Mark David Chapman who murdered John Lennon.

(Shelly S) Opening May 25, 2006

From Neil Jordan, the director of The Crying Game, comes another wonderful and surprising story about a transvestite cabaret singer in the 70’s: Patrick Bradent (child played by Conor MvEvoy, adult by Cillian Murphy). Born in 1958, he grows up in a small village in Ireland, raised by a foster mother who is a hard woman and owner of the local pub. His parents are the village priest Father Bernard and his mother was Bernard’s housekeeper, whom he raped. Patrick’s mother hit the road soon after the birth. Patrick likes women’s clothes and as a teenager, glam rock and mascara. Finally in the 1970s he moves to the big time of London to become a male transvestite prostitute. He constantly tries to imagine his mother, and realizes at an early age that he is different. He is also quite lucky to have a gang of three unusual friends who accept him the way he is and the feeling is mutual.. The story works on several layers with the base theme of trying to belong and being loved for who you are. Cillian Murphy is absolutely gorgeous and it is hard to believe that she is a man. The costumes are great and the story is certainly a winner!

(Rita PS) Opening May 25, 2006

Films about families and growing up feature either the family from hell or the shiny happy family. This film deserves the prizes it has received from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and the Toronto Film Festival. Frankly it should be required viewing at your next Thanksgiving dinner, guaranteed to make parents and children of all ages from 14 on laugh, cry and maybe forgive.

For those of us growing up in the 1970s, David Bowie, Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones provided the soundtrack to our first concert, first date, and first use of a blow-dryer. In fact high school would have been unbearable without the moral support of Bowie’s anti-hero hymn, Space Oddity. CRAZY brings those memories right back. We face those years and sartorial challenges through the prism of The Beaulieus: Gervais (Michel Cote) and Laurianne (Danielle Proulx) and their five sons: Christian, Robert, Antoine, Zac and Yvan, whose initials give the film its title. Christian is the second oldest and resident nerd with acne and glasses; Robert is the spoiled first-born child gone very wrong; Antoine is the taciturn jock with the buzz cut; Zachary is the beautiful conflicted hero; and Yvan is the baby who grows up faster than expected upon finding the body of one of his brothers.

At first glance we could be watching a much funnier and more meaningful “My Three Sons.” However, the camp family scenes serve only to frame the real film. Zac is growing up in a world where Mom stayed at home and did charity work when not making meals and Dad earned the money and was the cool parent. In this world washing Dad’s car was a privilege. What American or Canadian doesn’t remember washing the car with Dad in the driveway while checking out the neighborhood boys and girls? We know Zac is Dad’s favorite because Dad gives him room to experiment with girls in his bedroom and teaches him how to drive. Of course, their special relationship starts to flounder with the onset of puberty and Dad’s expectations of what a boy should be or do. CRAZY dwells on just how difficult it is to mature and still like your parents.

CRAZY also does a fine job of both skewering excessive devotion and demonstrating its life affirming role for believers. Catholics in the audience will appreciate numerous references and catholic teen fantasies about a “grooving Xmas Mass.” Patsy Cline fans will enjoy her crooning as leitmotif to Zac’s relationship with his father and harbinger of major plot turns. And everyone that has ever struggled with his or her sexuality will admire Vallee’s warm and tasteful rendition of coming of age and coming out.

(Kirstan B) Opening May 25, 2006

In recent times, when Hollywood wastes no extra investment in finding fresh material, they just fall back on remaking old movies, much to the dismay of most. Is it playing on nostalgia to lure moviegoers back to the cinema (perhaps the appeal of Bewitched was a warm fuzzy feeling from a childhood fascination with twitching noses and magic?...Don't start me on the arrogance of producers who think they can beat Peter Sellars' Inspector Clouseau....) Remakes run rampant, so the other route is to dig up old children's books and adapt just about any material into a feature film. With a ho and a hum, I pulled my kids to see the preview of Curious George, not expecting much after seeing Ron Howard massacre The Grinch live-action adaptation from the Dr. Seuss book and holiday cartoon.

From the opening credits of George playing with his jungle friends, your feet start tapping to the Hawaiian beat tunes of Jack Johnson. You smile, because you know from the first scene that this is a sweet and charming transition from book to screen. George, the curious chimpanzee (not an actual monkey as he has no tail) looks like he did in the book first published in 1941 from H.A. Rey and wife Margret Rey, perhaps with a slightly rounder and more "animated" face, but it suits him well. The other main character is Ted, a.k.a.The Man in the Yellow Hat (voiced exceptionally well by comedian Will Ferrell),whose jump from illustration to animation is not just accurate in sketching and shading, but he now has a name, and a love interest Maggie (voice of Drew Barrymore, which is too distinctive to believe as any character other than Drew Barrymore). Additionally, he acquires more dimension in the form of a Ross-like (Friends) academic personality, which is more malleable and less parent-like than the Man in the book series.

In the pre-politically correct days, George was captured because of his curiosity of the yellow hat, but now he follows Ted from a tropical expedition in Africa to a ship bound for New York of his own free will. There is a plot, albeit a humble, simple one, but a nice frame to build for the monkey-in-the-big-city antics we know are coming. Especially cute is the story of how Ted got his distinctive yellow suit and why he has it on all the time.

As a self-proclaimed stickler for keeping movies JUST LIKE THE BOOK, I tried to be skeptical, critical and harsh while evaluating Curious George, but I couldn't help but love it despite the cell phones that get a net in Africa and take digital pictures. In my eyes, Ron Howard redeemed himself with George, Jack Johnson and Will Ferrell. This is what family entertainment should be, so enjoy, but be prepared to spend another 15 Euros for a Jack Johnson CD because you will be singing that theme song all day long, happily.

(Mary W) Opening May 25, 2006

Iraqi Kurdistan director Hiner Saleem looks into how Kurds were treated under Saddam Hussein. He begins in 1988 with Ako (Nazmi Kirik), a husband and father who is forced to join Saddam Hussein’s army and is sent to the frontline of the Iran-Iraq War, where not only does he experience the realities of war, but must suffer abuse because he is Kurdish. Ako is ordered to escort the corpse of a fellow soldier back to his family. Unfortunately, the driver is an anti-Kurd Arab. Perhaps the most intriguing part of the film is when the two decide they should talk about their differences, but then neither knows where to start. For much of the film, however, something was lost in translation.

(Osanna V) Opening May 25, 2006

Antonio Banderas leads a group of young talent in a dance movie directed by Liz Friedlander and inspired by the true story of Pierre Dulaine. Dulaine (Banderas) is a ballroom dancing teacher for the youth of New York's Upper East Side elite. He is charming and leads a life of elegance and sophistication even though he chooses to travel around the city on a bicycle.

One evening, Pierre is witness to a group of youths wrecking a car for no apparent reason. One in particular is so intent on venting his frustration that he does not notice Dulaine watching him. When he does there is a confrontation, but the encounter leaves Dulaine with the seed of a creative idea rather than reporting the youth to the police. He has decided to turn his dancing attention to the city's less priviledged.

As it happens, the owner of the car is the tough, no-nonsense headmistress of one of New York's roughest high schools, whilst the vandal is one of a group of kids sitting in school detention. To the headmistress' disbelief, Dulaine offers to supervise their detention and teach them ballroom dancing at the same time; she doubts he will come back after the first day. Inevitably, the kids are not in the slightest bit interested, preferring their loose hip-hop style to the stiffness of walzes and foxtrots any day; that is, until they watch Dulaine and one of his elite students dance a sizzling tango. Add to that the tempting seduction of a $5000 cash prize in a coming dance competition, and, gradually, both sides come together. Through his teaching, Dulaine also conveys deeper layers of trust and respect; through their hip-hop, the youths introduce Pierre to a different type of dancing energy. In the end, a new form of dance is born: hip-hop ballroom.

If you are an Antonio Banderas fan and if dance movies are just the thing for you, these will be a couple of hours well spent.

(Kara W) Opening May 25, 2006

Stan Lee, creator of Marvel Comics and the X-Men comic series, helps bring his legendary mutant superheroes further to life in this third installment of the X-Men films. This film also includes an all-star cast of returning actors such as Halle Berry (Storm), Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Patrick Stewart (Dr. Charles Xavier), and Ian Mc Kellen (Magneto), as well as many others. Mutants are being threatened by the introduction of a cure injection the government has created to destroy all powers once it has entered the body. Magneto, always fighting for the uprising of all mutants against the humans, declares a war on the humans to destroy their key to the cure injections as well as to make sure that all know that the mutants are here to stay. In past films, the lines between good and evil amongst the mutants have been blatantly clear. However, within this plot, those lines are smudged and blurred, leaving the viewer to interact in their own personal guessing game as the story continues. Previous X-Men will join sides with Magneto while others will contemplate voluntarily accepting the cure injection to ensure the normality that they feel their life has always lacked. The special effects are amazing, as are the fighting scenes. The camera manages to capture the fast moving action without missing a beat, giving a wide view of what’s happening as the events take place. New characters are introduced, some unforgettable while others have only one role and go back into the background. Most movie series tend to bomb after the second film but the X-Men films seem to get stronger. This movie is fantastic to see on the big screen and is highly recommended!