Comaland
By Lisa Miller
ZOMBIELAND (2009)
*1/2 (Grade C-)
Directed by Ruben Fleischer
Starring Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Amber Heard, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Bill Murray
Sony-Rated R-Horror, Comedy-87 min
In a world overrun by zombies, the unzombified main characters take the names of places in order to avoid becoming too attached to one another. Nerdy teen Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) is only too pleased when the first non-zombie he has seen in days turns out to be well-armed redneck Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson). The two decide to join forces and embark on a cross-country drive.
En route the boy has cause to doubt the wisdom of his new alliance when Tallahassee risks both their lives to forage through a grocery store in search of Twinkies, his favorite snack food. As Columbus watches, mouth agape, Tallahassee brains fat zombies with the banjo on which he's been plucking the theme from "Deliverance." The grocery store's florescent lights emphasize the black-blooded zombie splatter that Tallahassee likes seeing better than a John Wayne movie. It's a fun set up, but it's also the sum total of Tallahassee's underwritten character.
Soon the unlikely duo stumble upon Wichita (Emma Stone) and her younger sister, Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). Columbus, possibly the last teen boy on earth, hopes to lose his virginity to Wichita, possibly the last teen girl on earth. However, since the girls are habitual grifters, they are unable to resist besting their male companions, leaving the lad's fantasy twisting in the wind. This is the one joke that actually improves with each repetition.
The story, a tale about coming of age under difficult circumstances, seems unable to get wherever it's going. A few of its meandering turns, such as one landing the gang at Bill Murray's Beverly Hills mansion, hold promise. Murray briefly appears in zombie make-up, but his chapter ends abruptly, and in a manner that assures us we'd be fools to give a fig for any of the players.
Aiming no higher and a good bit lower than many teen romantic comedies, "Zombieland's" zombies are contrivances meant to create atmospheric humor. However, when some of us find ourselves becoming more interested in the zombies than we are in whether the leads will survive the zombie assault, then "Houston, we've got a problem."
Whip It (2009)
* * * (Grade B)
Directed by Drew Barrymore
Starring Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig, Drew Barrymore, Juliette Lewis, Jimmy Fallon, Daniel Stern, Alia Shawcat, Eve, Zoe Bell
Fox Searchlight-Rated PG-13-Comedy-111 min
In her first role since "Juno" Ellen Page appears as Bliss Cavendar, an indie-rock-loving Texan stuck in a small town, but longing for big city excitement. Her mail-carrier mother (Harden) expects Bliss to compete in local beauty pageants, but the girl secretly journeys to Austin where she auditions for the all-girl roller derby team under the moniker of Babe Ruthless. Accepted onto the team, Bliss learns the ropes and feels sufficiently empowered to redefine her closest relationships. In her directorial debut, Drew Barrymore also appears as one of the derby gals in one of the year's most original comedies.
The Invention of Lying (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade B-)
Directed by Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson
Starring Ricky Gervais
Warner-Rated PG-13-Comedy-100 min
Pudgy Brit comedian, Ricky Gervais, pens and co-directs a comedy about the importance of lying. He shows us an alternate reality seen through the eyes of historical writer Mark Bellison (Gervais). Anna (Garner), the willowy woman Mark hankers for, is incapable of treating him respectfully. After getting his feelings stomped, Bellison is fired from his job and subsequently evicted from his apartment. This leads to Mark's big break, when under great duress, he develops the surprising ability to lie and single-handedly invents religion. Funny in an off-kilter way, "The Invention of Lying" asks, Would we want to go through a day without lying?
Pandorum (2009)
* * (Grade C)
Directed by Christian Alvart
Starring Dennis Quaid, Ben Foster, Antje Traue, Cung Le, Norman Reedus, Cam Gigandet
Overture-Rated R-Sci-Fi, Fantasy-108 min
Two crewmen awaken alone from hyper-sleep aboard a spacecraft meant to transport tens of thousands. With incomplete memories and malfunctioning equipment, the crew search for the source of strange sounds emanating from the ship's bowels. Before long they discover a band of survivors hunted by warriors intent on killing everyone aboard. Soon it becomes clear that the survival of mankind hinges on the crew's actions. As for the cause of this calamity? My money is on a viral infection due to the involvement of zombie king, Paul W.S. Anderson, as a producer. The enormous spaceship provides both plenty of room for gun-toting confrontations, and a claustrophobic setting reminiscent of the underground labyrinth from Anderson's first two "Resident Evil" films.
Fame (2009)
* * (Grade C)
Directed by Kevin Tancharoen
Starring Kelsey Grammar, Debbie Allen, Charles S. Dutton, Megan Mullally, Kay Panabaker, Bebe Neuwirth, Naturi Naughton, Asher Book, Kristy Flores, Paul Iacono, Paul McGill
MGM-Rated PG-Musical-107 min
Betting that an update of the 1980 film is ripe for a new generation, the setting for this version remains NYC's prestigious High School for the Performing Arts. Kelsey Grammar, Debbie Allen, Charles S. Dutton, and Bebe Neuwirth appear as instructors and administrators of the school, founded in 1948, to fulfill academic requirements while training promising students in dance, music and drama. Emphasis on drama, since plenty of high school melodrama ensues. The question is, given the numerous films covering teens as they train for fame released in the years since 1980, will the remake get much notice? At worst, it functions as a showcase of young talent that you may not see on "American Idol."
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
* * * (Grade B-)
Directed by Phil Lord Chris Miller
Voiced by Anna Faris, Bill Hader, Bruce Campbell, James Caan, Andy Samberg, Mr. T, Bobb'e J. Thompson, Benjamin Bratt, Neil Patrick Harris, Al Roker, Lauren Graham
Sony-Rated PG-Animated, Family-90 min
Based on a popular, but slim children's book, the story is expanded and outfitted with new characters for its feature film adaptation. Most residents of an impoverished seaside town are only eating the sardines that are canned there, until Flint Lockwood (Hader) invents a machine that turns water into food. Soon, Hamburgers, pancakes, spaghetti and pizza rain from the sky three times a day. However, in a complication Flint could not foresee, both his machine and the food grow inordinately large. Though fixing the problem sounds as easy as turning off the machine, Mayor Shelbourne (Campbell) insists it be left on to satisfy tourists stuffing the town's coffers. The first animated film from Sony since "Surf's Up," parents are advised to feed the kiddies before bombarding them with realistic depictions of all their favorite edibles.
Love Happens (2009)
*1/2 (Grade C-)
Directed by Brandon Camp
Starring Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart, Sasha Alexander, Martin Sheen, Dan Fogler, Judy Greer
Universal-Rated PG-13-Drama
Jennifer Aniston pairs with Aaron Eckhart for a romantic dramadey set in Seattle. Dr. Burke Ryan (Eckhart) has written a hugely successful self-help book for those confronting pain and loss. However, secretly the doctor has been unable to get past the death of his wife. Attending Ryan's Seattle seminar, Eloise Chandler (Aniston) wants to let go of her own painful past in order to embrace her budding floral shop business. When the pair meet, romantic sparks fly, but both are unprepared to take a chance. Stuck in an implausible storyline, this admittedly cute coupling ought to attract a following from the over-30 chick-flick crowd. Perhaps due to the success of "Sex and the City," Universal hopes female patrons will come out in sufficient numbers to put this film in the black.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Movie Review 10-1-09
Warner Brothers Keeps This One Ice.
By Lisa Miller
WHITEOUT (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade B-)
Directed by Dominic Sena
Starring Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Tom Skerritt, Columbus Short, Alex O'Loughlin, Shawn Doyle
Warner-Rated R-Thriller-101 min
The desolate but powerful landscape of the Antarctic looms before us in the opening scenes of "Whiteout." We see it from a Russian cargo plane where an onboard battle causes the plane to crash on the ice. Fast-forward 50 years and we're in the present day at the McMurdo Research Station. The facility, an oasis in an unforgiving landscape, is viewed through the eyes of U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale). Carrie enters the shelter swaddled in her hooded parka and walks through a maze of corridors, passing rooms where dozens of researchers toil, talk, and eat.
Reaching her own room, Stetko removes her parka and five layers of clothing leaving her clad in undergarments when something unsettling happens. The camera becomes a voyeur, peeping at Beckinsale's backside from behind as she leans over to turn on the shower, continuing to leer, both in close up and through a fogged shower door, until someone lets himself into her room. It's Carrie's friend and colleague, Dr. John Fury (Tom Skerritt). His familiarity baffles us when we see Stetko don her robe, and join him in her room for a rather dry discussion.
The viewer is uncomfortable long before murder rears its ugly head, but we can't quite put our finger on the source of this vexation. Are Carrie and John simply good friends, or are they something more? The fog enveloping their connection never lifts. Based on the graphic novel by Greg Rucka and Steve Lieber, the screenplay adaptation by the Hoeber and Hayes brothers becomes tangled in forced psycho drama, disturbing its claustrophobic mood.
Stetko's troubles begin after a Russian is found dead on the ice. Though she had planned to turn in her badge, Stetko is asked to investigate the death, hopefully averting an international incident. And just what is a warm girl like Stetko doing in a cold place like this? Through a series of flashbacks to her previous U.S. Marshal career in Miami, the film discloses that Stetko has fled to the ends of the earth to escape bad memories.
Inorganic character development will injure a story every time, and "Whiteout" is no exception. Beckinsale portrays Stetko as perfectly grounded in reality and free of vices. She is clear thinking with a Sherlock Holmesian turn of mind.
The film suffers from too many expository patches that fail to bridge its storytelling gaps, however, the action is fairly intelligent. Tension mounts when the station is evacuated in advance of an incoming whiteout, leaving only five people in the facility -- one of them the killer. The shivery landscape is Stetko's most formidable opponent and several outdoor sequences are jaw clenching.
It's a tribute to the strength of its premise that "Whiteout" remains engaging despite its numerous character missteps. Warner Brothers Studio has treated this little thriller shabbily, virtually blacking out the press while doing no advertising to speak of. Therefore, it shouldn't surprise anyone that "Whiteout" barely registered at the box office. Since it's likely to have a short theatrical run, fans of adult thrillers ought to hurry.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade B-)
Directed by Phil Lord Chris Miller
Voiced by Anna Faris, Bill Hader, Bruce Campbell, James Caan, Andy Samberg, Mr. T, Bobb'e J. Thompson, Benjamin Bratt, Neil Patrick Harris, Al Roker, Lauren Graham
Sony-Rated PG-Animated, Family-90 min
Based on a popular, but slim children's book, the story is expanded and outfitted with new characters for its feature film adaptation. Most residents of an impoverished seaside town are only eating the sardines that are canned there, until Flint Lockwood (Hader) invents a machine that turns water into food. Soon, hamburgers, pancakes, spaghetti and pizza rain from the sky three times a day. However, in a complication Flint could not foresee, both his machine and the food grow inordinately large Though fixing the problem sounds as easy as turning off the machine, Mayor Shelbourne (Campbell) insists it be left on to satisfy tourists stuffing the town's coffers. The first animated film from Sony since "Surf's Up," parents are advised to feed the kiddies before bombarding them with realistic depictions of all their favorite edibles.
Love Happens (2009)
* * (Grade C)
Directed by Brandon Camp
Starring Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart, Sasha Alexander, Martin Sheen, Dan Fogler, Judy Greer
Universal-Rated PG-13-Drama
Jennifer Aniston pairs with Aaron Eckhart for a romantic dramadey set in Seattle. Dr. Burke Ryan (Eckhart) has written a hugely successful self-help book for those confronting pain and loss. However, secretly the doctor has been unable to get past the death of his wife. Attending Ryan's Seattle seminar, Eloise Chandler (Aniston) wants to let go of her own painful past in order to embrace her budding floral shop business. When the pair meet, romantic sparks fly, but both are unprepared to take a chance. Stuck in an implausible storyline, this admittedly cute coupling ought to attract a following from the over-30 chick-flick crowd. Perhaps due to the success of "Sex and the City," Universal hopes female patrons will come out in sufficient numbers to put this film in the black.
The Informant (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade C)
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring Matt Damon, Tony Hale, Patton Oswalt, Scott Bakula and Joel McHale
Warner-Rated R-Comedy
Director Steven Soderbergh attempts to channel the Coen Brothers in this parody of a true story. Matt Damon portrays company-man-turned-whistleblower Mark Whitacre. In 1995, Whitacre is a Ph.D. working for Archer Daniels Midland, a Fortune 500 ag-business he accuses of price-fixing. Much of the humor arises from Whitacre's overconfidence. He claims he will be appointed CEO after exposing ADM's errant practices because "The company needs me," and demands the code name 0014 "Because I'm twice as smart as James Bond." The FBI agents (Bakula and McHale) working his case barely manage to stifle their laughs and contain their fears when Whitacre nearly exposes each of his wired sessions. Whether or not Whitacre tried to do the right thing for all the wrong reasons, the film certainly hangs him out to dry -- or does it?
I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)
* * * (Grade B)
Directed by Tyler Perry
Starring Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Mary J. Blige, Gladys Knight
Lionsgate-Rated PG-13-Comedy-133 min
Tyler Perry dons a wig and house dress to reprise his role as the pistol packing grandmother with attitude. After catching teenaged Jennifer and her two younger brothers looting Madea's home, the sassy granny delivers the delinquents to April (Henson), their hard-drinking aunt who wants no part of raising her niece and nephews. April soon reconsiders her commitment to parenting the kids when handsome Sandino (Rodriguez) rents her spare room and offers to help out. Sarcastic Madea provides comic relief while April's neighborhood church showcases a colorful collection of characters. Perry's faith-based message films have been a hit for Lionsgate, prompting the studio to greenlight film adaptations of Perry's library of stage plays with all due haste. At this rate it won't be long before Perry will need new material.
Gamer (2009)
*1/2 (Grade C-)
Directed by Mark Neveldine Brian Taylor
Starring Gerard Butler, Michael C. Hall, Ludacris
Lionsgate-Rated R-Sci-Fi, Action-95 min
Following a lackluster Los Angeles test screening, "Gamer" has been kept under wraps. This ambitious story casts Butler as Kable, a living, breathing person controlled by a nanochip in his brain and forced to fight combatants -- gladiator style -- in the video game "Slayer." Kable desperately wants the freedom he was promised as reward for winning 30 games so he can rescue his wife trapped in yet another video game, "Society." Kable's wife is controlled by a creepy, obese gamer forcing her to explore the seamy underbelly of a dangerous city. Chaotic action relies on many a jump-cuts while the storyline struggles to move the action past bloody confrontations. Michael C. Hall, of "Dexter" fame, appears in a brief role as the game's cruel inventor, but since he and his adversary, Kable barely meet, the "Gamer" hasn't got much "game."
All About Steve (2009)
* (Grade D)
Directed by Phil Traill
Starring Sandra Bullock, Bradley Cooper, Thomas Haden Church, Ken Jeong
Fox 2000-Rated PG-13-Comedy-99 min
Sandra Bullock goes blonde and eccentric for the role of Mary Horowitz, a crossword puzzle constructor. Following a brief blind date with handsome news cameraman Steve (Cooper), Mary becomes obsessed with him. She follows Steve cross country, disrupting his assignments. The film is saved by Church playing self-serving news reporter Hartman Hughes (Church), a blowhard encouraging Mary to follow her heart whatever the cost. Neither Steve nor Hartman could predict that Mary's oddball ways would garner her a collection of fans prompting Steve to take another look at Mary. Wouldn't it be cool if we could push a button to vote for who should get the girl? Why not Church?
By Lisa Miller
WHITEOUT (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade B-)
Directed by Dominic Sena
Starring Kate Beckinsale, Gabriel Macht, Tom Skerritt, Columbus Short, Alex O'Loughlin, Shawn Doyle
Warner-Rated R-Thriller-101 min
The desolate but powerful landscape of the Antarctic looms before us in the opening scenes of "Whiteout." We see it from a Russian cargo plane where an onboard battle causes the plane to crash on the ice. Fast-forward 50 years and we're in the present day at the McMurdo Research Station. The facility, an oasis in an unforgiving landscape, is viewed through the eyes of U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale). Carrie enters the shelter swaddled in her hooded parka and walks through a maze of corridors, passing rooms where dozens of researchers toil, talk, and eat.
Reaching her own room, Stetko removes her parka and five layers of clothing leaving her clad in undergarments when something unsettling happens. The camera becomes a voyeur, peeping at Beckinsale's backside from behind as she leans over to turn on the shower, continuing to leer, both in close up and through a fogged shower door, until someone lets himself into her room. It's Carrie's friend and colleague, Dr. John Fury (Tom Skerritt). His familiarity baffles us when we see Stetko don her robe, and join him in her room for a rather dry discussion.
The viewer is uncomfortable long before murder rears its ugly head, but we can't quite put our finger on the source of this vexation. Are Carrie and John simply good friends, or are they something more? The fog enveloping their connection never lifts. Based on the graphic novel by Greg Rucka and Steve Lieber, the screenplay adaptation by the Hoeber and Hayes brothers becomes tangled in forced psycho drama, disturbing its claustrophobic mood.
Stetko's troubles begin after a Russian is found dead on the ice. Though she had planned to turn in her badge, Stetko is asked to investigate the death, hopefully averting an international incident. And just what is a warm girl like Stetko doing in a cold place like this? Through a series of flashbacks to her previous U.S. Marshal career in Miami, the film discloses that Stetko has fled to the ends of the earth to escape bad memories.
Inorganic character development will injure a story every time, and "Whiteout" is no exception. Beckinsale portrays Stetko as perfectly grounded in reality and free of vices. She is clear thinking with a Sherlock Holmesian turn of mind.
The film suffers from too many expository patches that fail to bridge its storytelling gaps, however, the action is fairly intelligent. Tension mounts when the station is evacuated in advance of an incoming whiteout, leaving only five people in the facility -- one of them the killer. The shivery landscape is Stetko's most formidable opponent and several outdoor sequences are jaw clenching.
It's a tribute to the strength of its premise that "Whiteout" remains engaging despite its numerous character missteps. Warner Brothers Studio has treated this little thriller shabbily, virtually blacking out the press while doing no advertising to speak of. Therefore, it shouldn't surprise anyone that "Whiteout" barely registered at the box office. Since it's likely to have a short theatrical run, fans of adult thrillers ought to hurry.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade B-)
Directed by Phil Lord Chris Miller
Voiced by Anna Faris, Bill Hader, Bruce Campbell, James Caan, Andy Samberg, Mr. T, Bobb'e J. Thompson, Benjamin Bratt, Neil Patrick Harris, Al Roker, Lauren Graham
Sony-Rated PG-Animated, Family-90 min
Based on a popular, but slim children's book, the story is expanded and outfitted with new characters for its feature film adaptation. Most residents of an impoverished seaside town are only eating the sardines that are canned there, until Flint Lockwood (Hader) invents a machine that turns water into food. Soon, hamburgers, pancakes, spaghetti and pizza rain from the sky three times a day. However, in a complication Flint could not foresee, both his machine and the food grow inordinately large Though fixing the problem sounds as easy as turning off the machine, Mayor Shelbourne (Campbell) insists it be left on to satisfy tourists stuffing the town's coffers. The first animated film from Sony since "Surf's Up," parents are advised to feed the kiddies before bombarding them with realistic depictions of all their favorite edibles.
Love Happens (2009)
* * (Grade C)
Directed by Brandon Camp
Starring Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart, Sasha Alexander, Martin Sheen, Dan Fogler, Judy Greer
Universal-Rated PG-13-Drama
Jennifer Aniston pairs with Aaron Eckhart for a romantic dramadey set in Seattle. Dr. Burke Ryan (Eckhart) has written a hugely successful self-help book for those confronting pain and loss. However, secretly the doctor has been unable to get past the death of his wife. Attending Ryan's Seattle seminar, Eloise Chandler (Aniston) wants to let go of her own painful past in order to embrace her budding floral shop business. When the pair meet, romantic sparks fly, but both are unprepared to take a chance. Stuck in an implausible storyline, this admittedly cute coupling ought to attract a following from the over-30 chick-flick crowd. Perhaps due to the success of "Sex and the City," Universal hopes female patrons will come out in sufficient numbers to put this film in the black.
The Informant (2009)
* *1/2 (Grade C)
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring Matt Damon, Tony Hale, Patton Oswalt, Scott Bakula and Joel McHale
Warner-Rated R-Comedy
Director Steven Soderbergh attempts to channel the Coen Brothers in this parody of a true story. Matt Damon portrays company-man-turned-whistleblower Mark Whitacre. In 1995, Whitacre is a Ph.D. working for Archer Daniels Midland, a Fortune 500 ag-business he accuses of price-fixing. Much of the humor arises from Whitacre's overconfidence. He claims he will be appointed CEO after exposing ADM's errant practices because "The company needs me," and demands the code name 0014 "Because I'm twice as smart as James Bond." The FBI agents (Bakula and McHale) working his case barely manage to stifle their laughs and contain their fears when Whitacre nearly exposes each of his wired sessions. Whether or not Whitacre tried to do the right thing for all the wrong reasons, the film certainly hangs him out to dry -- or does it?
I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)
* * * (Grade B)
Directed by Tyler Perry
Starring Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Mary J. Blige, Gladys Knight
Lionsgate-Rated PG-13-Comedy-133 min
Tyler Perry dons a wig and house dress to reprise his role as the pistol packing grandmother with attitude. After catching teenaged Jennifer and her two younger brothers looting Madea's home, the sassy granny delivers the delinquents to April (Henson), their hard-drinking aunt who wants no part of raising her niece and nephews. April soon reconsiders her commitment to parenting the kids when handsome Sandino (Rodriguez) rents her spare room and offers to help out. Sarcastic Madea provides comic relief while April's neighborhood church showcases a colorful collection of characters. Perry's faith-based message films have been a hit for Lionsgate, prompting the studio to greenlight film adaptations of Perry's library of stage plays with all due haste. At this rate it won't be long before Perry will need new material.
Gamer (2009)
*1/2 (Grade C-)
Directed by Mark Neveldine Brian Taylor
Starring Gerard Butler, Michael C. Hall, Ludacris
Lionsgate-Rated R-Sci-Fi, Action-95 min
Following a lackluster Los Angeles test screening, "Gamer" has been kept under wraps. This ambitious story casts Butler as Kable, a living, breathing person controlled by a nanochip in his brain and forced to fight combatants -- gladiator style -- in the video game "Slayer." Kable desperately wants the freedom he was promised as reward for winning 30 games so he can rescue his wife trapped in yet another video game, "Society." Kable's wife is controlled by a creepy, obese gamer forcing her to explore the seamy underbelly of a dangerous city. Chaotic action relies on many a jump-cuts while the storyline struggles to move the action past bloody confrontations. Michael C. Hall, of "Dexter" fame, appears in a brief role as the game's cruel inventor, but since he and his adversary, Kable barely meet, the "Gamer" hasn't got much "game."
All About Steve (2009)
* (Grade D)
Directed by Phil Traill
Starring Sandra Bullock, Bradley Cooper, Thomas Haden Church, Ken Jeong
Fox 2000-Rated PG-13-Comedy-99 min
Sandra Bullock goes blonde and eccentric for the role of Mary Horowitz, a crossword puzzle constructor. Following a brief blind date with handsome news cameraman Steve (Cooper), Mary becomes obsessed with him. She follows Steve cross country, disrupting his assignments. The film is saved by Church playing self-serving news reporter Hartman Hughes (Church), a blowhard encouraging Mary to follow her heart whatever the cost. Neither Steve nor Hartman could predict that Mary's oddball ways would garner her a collection of fans prompting Steve to take another look at Mary. Wouldn't it be cool if we could push a button to vote for who should get the girl? Why not Church?
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