Shaun of the Dead

Shaun of the Dead - ****

Whenever a British comedy makes its way to North American theatrical markets, I'm always excited to check it out for a two reasons. First, it's always refreshing to check out films that are made outside the North American mainstream, which those of us who live in the continent are completely overexposed to, and grow tired of before long. Second, when a movie is successful enough to be taken out of Europe and thrown in to the sharktank with other North American movies, there has to be a damn good reason. With Edgar Right's Shaun of the Dead, the reason is simple: it's really, really good. As opposed to the two dimensional and overly childish satires generally produced in Los Angeles, this film is witty, sharp and consistently hilarious, all the while delivering an acceptable amount of horror and gory action sequences. The cast is filled with British TV actors such as Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Spaced), Lucy Davis (The Office) and Dylan Moran (Black Books), not exactly an A-list cast from an exposure perspective. However, for the purposes of this film, a cast of up and comers is perfect; everybody delivers solid performances, and the film benefits. Thumbs way up.

Coffee and Cigarettes

Coffee and Cigarettes - ***1/2

If one were to judge the Jim Jarmusch film Coffee and Cigarettes purely in relation to it's time of production, it could be considered a collossal disappointment. The movie was filmed over a 17 year period, in the form of several different short films. The product of this massive effort is a film that is perplexing. At points, the poignancy and realism is awestriking, more specifically in the scenes involving RZA, GZA, Bill Murray, Tom Waits, Iggy Pop, Alfred Molina, Steve Coogan and Cate Blanchett. Others, including the ones featuring Vinny Vella, Joe Rigano, Alex Descas, Isaach De Bankolé and Renee French, are flat. Still, the overall product is very worthy of admittance, making this an altogether enjoyable feature. Thumbs up.

Team America: World Police

Team America: World Police - ***

It is a rare occasion that a film so low brow could also be so politically relevant, but Trey Parker's Team America is one of those rare occasions. According to writers Parker and Matt Stone (That's My Bush, South Park), their research for this film consisted of watching CNN, and mocking whichever celebrity that presented his or herself to be an "expert" on the political climate of America. As per usual, Alec Baldwin was one of the perennial favorites, but the inclusion of Sean Penn angered the "hollywood bad boy", who accused the boys of encouraging people to be "irresponsible". Whether presenting a even handed hatchet job on people in general or using ones celebrity to advance political beliefs despite a lack of qualification (Sean Penn, for instance, has a degree in Speech and Auto Mechanics) is more "irresponsible" is one argument, but you can see that the intention of this film is not to influence the vote, but to entertain an politically ambiguous audience. The humour is (as I said) ridiculously low brow, and a lot of the humour is more based on effective vulgarity, but it's very entertaining on a purely salacious level. Not near the best movie made this year, but one of the most enjoyable. Thumbs up.

Napoleon Dynamite

Napoleon Dynamite - ***1/2

Unlike many comedies that satisfy and then dissipitate from memory within hours, there are several bits in this movie that continue to stick with me. Among them some of the dialogue between Napoleon and Pedro, as well as an interesting training session featuring Diedrich Backer, and a Jamiroquai fueled dance sequence. The Napoleon Dynamite character is a one note joke played very well by Jon Heder, but the fresh view of high school suburban life is enough to make this very enjoyable. Interesting comparison; Haylie Duff appears in this film, while her sister Hilary appeared in Cinderella Story. Suddenly Haylie's decidedly less public career doesn't seem so disappointing in comparison. Anyway, thumbs up to a film that's entertaining if a bit flawed.

Taxi

Taxi - **

From the director who brought you Barbershop, Taxi is an action comedy starring SNL alum Jimmy Fallon and renaissance woman Queen Latifah. What this film really is, however, is another one of those movies that manage to go 90 minutes without one original moment. Almost devoid of completely devoid of real "action", the movie relies on its comedy, and even that isn't very good. At some points I got the Bad Boys II vibe, at others Fast in the Furious, but mainly I got the sense that my intelligence was being insulted. Jennifer Esposito hasn't stopped being hot though. So I guess that's one bright side. Thumbs down.

Alfie

Alfie - ***

From director Charles Shyer comes Alfie, a modern reinterpretation of the classic Michael Caine film that was nominated for 5 Academy Awards in 1967. This time around, Jude Law plays the role of Alfie Elkins, and this must be his third movie in less than three months to see release. This is a truly multidimensional character, and Law plays it soundly. Susan Sarandon also gives a noticeably good, if less crucial performance as the man eating Liz. The acting is solid, and the writing is tolerable; the only problem with this movie is its pacing. It feels as if they tried to accomplish too much in the first half, and the second seems rather short winded. There is a period of about 20 minutes that drags, and this is mainly because of the dramatic shift in tone halfway through the movie. However, this wickedly funny romantic comedy is sure to entrance the fairer sex on its romantic end, and captivate the male audience with the bevy of beautiful women. A flawed comedy that succeeds enough to warrant recommendation. Thumbs up.

Paparazzi

Paparazzi - **

This film is the ultimate conundrum. While it's obvious that fans enjoy their sadistic violence and revenge movies, who other than a celebrity really identifies with the almost sadomasochistic revenge on a group of stalkarazzi? The second film of the year from Mel Gibson's Icon Productions fails to live up to either the hype or the quality of its first. While both "The Passion of the Christ" and "Paparazzi" are both liberal in their use of violence ("Passion" even more so), this movie has neither an audience nor a clear sense of good and bad. I'm not sure, but I believe this movie sends the message that stalking and causing a celebrity to get in a near fatal crash is bad, and yet the vengeful murder of 3 people as a result is somehow good. Putting the moral and marketability issues aside, there's something to be said for writing that doesn't lose all of its creativity slightly beyond the halfway point. There were elements of this film that were very creative, but beyond the 45 minute mark it gets as blunt as the object the main character uses for his final murder victim. Now it's not to say there weren't good elements to the movie. Dennis Farina, Cole Hauser and Robin Tunney are all solid in their roles, and some of the action sequences are a guilty pleasure. However on an overall level, this movie has too many negatives and too few positives. Thumbs down.

Shark Tale

Shark Tale - ***

After watching this movie last night I was unable to understand the negative reaction to it. This comedy is one that I enjoyed thoroughly, even if it wasn't brain surgery. Then it finally occurred to me while looking through the critics reviews; people had misappropriated expectations. Critics were expecting another Finding Nemo; what they got was not even for the same audience. Shark Tale may be billed under the premise of a children's movie, but the content really doesn't back up the reputation. There's a ton of pop culture references that wouldn't resonate with children in the least, but I think this makes it a perfect movie for parents with children. While there's plenty of the classic children's lore, there's also that intelligence factor, which hits adults with a funny line whenever the plot starts to slide a bit. Flawed, but good comedy. Thumbs up.

The Day After Tommorow

The Day After Tomorrow - ***

This is a movie that rides almost entirely on its hefty special effects budget, but somehow the end result is entirely enjoyable. The combination of Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sela Ward, Ian Holm and Emmy Rossum ensure that the acting is more than up to scratch; especially the underused yet strong performance of Holm, who plays Terry Rapson, the scientist who along with Quaid's Jack Hall is responsible for discovering the storm in it's early stages. Now, a lot of the discussion regarding this movie is in criticism of its unlikely premise, and perhaps the detractors are correct in this right. However, since seeing a movie always requires a suspension of disbelief, the average moviegoer is bound to be enthralled with this action packed and amazing looking thriller. Thumbs up.

Being Julia

Being Julia - ***1/2

It is a great challenge to make a period piece that remains entertaining throughout, especially when that movie doesn't happen to involve a war. Being Julia instead focuses on an early 20th century English actress having a nervous breakdown. Annette Benning stars as Julia Lambert, the ultra talented English actress in a businesslike marriage with Michael Gosselyn, played by Jeremy Irons. Instead of a breakdown of the plot, I think there's too much to be said for Benning's performance in the film. She is truly brilliant in this role, and if her spot on performance doesn't earn her an Oscar nomination, there's something wrong with the voting Academy. The rest of the film is perfectly enjoyable, and the musical numbers are just as good as one could expect to see in the seemingly endless number of musicals from the past few years, but it's clear that Benning's performance is what elevates it. On screen Annette Benning plays an actress with a phenomenal gift. After watching the movie, it's clearly a case of art imitating life. Thumbs up.

I Heart Huckabees

I Heart Huckabees - ***

When movies involve wide sweeping satire, they walk a fine line between wit and sacrilege. In my opinion, Saved! overstepped that line, and managed to alienate America's largest religion. With I Heart Huckabees, David O Russell takes a satirical look at the world of existentialism, and creates a wide variety of the archetypical characters used in movies that revolve around this often overlooked school of thought. To portray these characters, an exceptional cast including Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin, Jason Schwartzman, Mark Wahlberg, Jude Law and Naomi Watts. These actors elevate the film greatly, even in moments that are thin on actual content. The screenplay is often brilliant, yet dull at other points, and the film runs 5-10 minutes too long. I also felt as if there were a few moments in which the existentialist was mocked more than likely deserved, although their is an applaudable amount of discussion regarding the topic within the film. All in all, while a few moments were less than flawless, I Heart Huckabees is a rewarding drama/comedy that warrants a viewing for anyone who wants to be entertained without having their intelligence insulted. Thumbs up.

Birth

Birth - **

From director Jonathan Glazer (Sexy Beast) comes Birth, the latest attempt by Nicole Kidman to take two steps off the beat and path of her typical role and try something entirely new. This is still a love story of course, but this one differs majorly from the norm; the romantic lead is an eleven year old boy. Putting aside the controversy this has caused (a particular scene in the middle of the movie drew boos from a Venice audience); the film is a mish mashed drag that moves glacially yet still manages to throw its viewers. Some of the film is intriguing, and Cameron Bright is very good in this role. I liked the camera work, and the dull colours set the mood for the dark theme the film would quickly inherit. Nicole Kidman is of course, sufficient in her role. In fact, I can't remember the last time she's been unable to at least slightly prop up any film she appears in. However, this is her second consecutive misstep of the year; first the painfully generic Stepford Wives, now this. Unfortunately despite it's sloth like pace, the movie still manages to be nonsensical, especially when it attempts to be non-verbal and convey everything with an emotion. A massively disappointing, if well directed and acted drama. Thumbs down

Surviving Christmas

Surviving Christmas - **1/2

From the director of "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigalo", Surviving Christmas is also in the vein of the choppy comedies that are charming in one moment and morbid in the next. Ben Affleck delivers one of his most forgettable performances yet as Drew Latham, the eccentric millionair who rents a family for the Christmas holidays to get over his own loneliness. Backing him up are 3 superb actors, James Gandolfini, Christina Applegate and Catherine O'Hara, who along with Josh Zuckerman play the Valco family. Despite an interesting premise and charming moments, this is one of those ambiguous Christmas comedies unsure of what it wants to be. I can't remember one really good laugh throughout the entire film, and the performances are all that hold it together. Thumbs down.

Love Actually

Love Actually - ****

In what is shaping up to be a miserable year for Christmas films, we need only to look back on the DVDs of last year's crops to be reminded of how they are done right. Along with Bad Santa and Elf, Love Actually helped to make last year possibly the best ever for Christmas themed movies, and upon multiple viewings, it continues to impress. From Richard Curtis (who's been a part of nearly everything notable out of the British entertainment industry in the past decade), this is clearly a film to be viewed by romantics and romantics alone. However, once you're drawn in with premise, Curtis' precision filmaking along with an extremely solid core cast make it an infectious treat. The writing is also surprisingly sharp for such an obvious romance, and make each of the specific stories unique. The clear breadwinner of the plots is the one shared between Colin Firth and Lúcia Moniz, which tells the story of a man who comes home to find his wife in bed with his brother, only to move away and eventually fall in love with his Portuguese maid. A real treat, and one of 2003's best movies. Thumbs up.

Before Sunrise

Before Sunrise - ****

Richard Linklater is possibly the most consistent filmmaker around today. It started with 1991's "Slacker", and after "Dazed and Confused" cemented him has a solid veteran filmmaker, "Before Sunrise" made his place at the filmmaking icons table. Starring Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke (who have since appeared as the same characters in two subsequent films), Before Sunrise is the story of two travellers who meet aboard a train, and decide to spend a night together in Vienna to prevent future regrets. In Linklater's traditional dialogue laden style (a style that influenced Kevin Smith to get into filmmaking), the movie is fascinating to hear, much less watch. The two stars are also able to bring the audience into their lives, and as one IMDB user adequately sums up: it "feels more like being with a couple, than a film about them". Thumbs up.

The Order

The Order - **1/2

It's a shame that movies with drawing premises are so often rushed into production without working out the issues that drag down the screenplay, and this is a perfect example. I can't count the multitude of times films steeped in mythology end up being only interesting in premise, and whereas the idea of a secret order of Priests trained to fight various evil forms was enough to warrant a rental alone, what the movie produced was a dual sense of confusion and disappointment. The acting wasn't anything to shake a stick at; Heath Ledger lead the way but even his performance was over the top and in the end unconvincing. Mark Addy (CBS' "Still Standing) was horribly miscast in the role, and Shannyn Sossamon seemed uninspired in all of her screentime. Last time these three actors worked together with director Brian Helgeland it was the fun "A Knight's Tale"; this time around it's just dull and unintentionally goofy. The steam just runs out after 25-30 minutes. Thumbs down.