Movieline Online

THE FLICK: It’s hard to make a case for the Harry Potter films being underappreciated. I mean, after all, they’ve topped a billion dollars in box-office revenue around the world. That’s a whole lotta appreciation, by anyone’s standard. Still, from a critical perspective I’ve always had the feeling that the Potter films were lost in the flotsam and jetsam of summer and holiday release schedules. They received overwhelmingly positive notices, but never earned respect as lasting cinematic achievements, which I’ve no doubt they will be judged 20 or 30 years hence. Case in point, the fourth adventure of J.K. Rowling’s boy wizard, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, furthers the evolution of a film franchise that’s remarkable for both its consistency and innovation. Harry is growing up, and he’s dragging the series with him. Director Mike Newell has to deal with teenage hormones in addition to the usual parade of visual effects, in a story that has Potter and his pals facing not only the ve...

THE FLICK: John Ford had as much hand in shaping American culture as he did reflecting it through the lens of a camera. His films captured the idealized community spirit of a burgeoning country and projected it into cinematic history so successfully that it’s Ford’s vision of events we recall most clearly. His accuracy might be questionable, but his intentions were always honorable; a description which fits his first exercise in Americana, Young Mr. Lincoln starring Henry Fonda, to a tee. Rather than deliver a staid version of Lincoln’s latter-day accomplishments set against a suitably patriotic backdrop, Ford chooses to follow Abe as a struggling lawyer, a man of the people with a gift for language and a well-timed joke. Indeed, Lincoln may be the ultimate American in Ford’s lexicon, a man of words and action, who’s as comfortable with his fists as he is with the law. No other figure in the director’s films, not Ethan Edwards in The Searchers, not Ransom Stoddard in The Man Who Shot L...

THE FLICK: Fans far more obsessive than me could likely put Atragon in some sort of historical perspective. Classic Japanese sci-fi and kaiju eiga in particular, inspire that sort of in-depth research. But you can probably figure out if the film is of interest to you just by perusing these simple facts: it’s directed by Ishiro Honda, produced near the height of Toho’s creative power (1963), and features a rare appearance by Manda. If you thought “Honda,” “Toho” and “Manda” were foreign car manufacturers stealing American jobs, then move on to the next review. For the rest of us, Atragon is one of those near mythological films that, thanks to Media Blasters’ new release, adds another volume of Japanese sci-fi that’s been incomplete for far too long. And even if the actual cinematic experience itself might be lacking (there’s not a whole lot of miniaturized destruction or monster mashing on display), the collectible region of your brain should be in pleasure overload. Once again, Japan i...

THE FLICKS: When it comes to “creature features,” movie critics can be just plain brutal. Other than Alien (which received its fair share of bad press when it was released...only later becoming the 500-pound gorilla of monster movies), the genre is often unfairly convicted without a trial – not to mention a jury of its peers. Such is the case with recent additions Creep and The Cave, two (admittedly) flawed films that still have a great deal to offer discerning fans of things that go bump in the dark. Why bother to lump both movies together, besides the fact that you’ll run into the titles alphabetically under the “horror” section? Well, they both take advantage of the horrors genre’s greatest asset; a tool filmmakers have been using since the days Roger Corman had to find a way to make his $20 monster costumes actually look frightening. They trap their expendable characters somewhere tight, cramped and out-of-the-way. Then they turn off the lights. Creep comes with a low-budget “video...

THE FLICK: Although it has all the trappings of a typical genre film, La Scorta proves to be much more slippery than its logline would lead you to believe: four reluctant cops assigned to protect an upstart Judge and his family from the constant threat of the local Mafioso. And while Ennio Morricone’s score would have you believe this is a homegrown take on The Untouchables, director Ricky Tognazzi surprisingly avoids action scenes at every opportunity, preferring to create an atmosphere of constant paranoia and imminent danger. So much so that when something “explosive” actually does happen, the impact is at once tragic and cathartic. A descendent of the poliziotteschi – in spirit, if not execution, since the film shuns the standard exploitation elements that made such 70’s Italian fare so viscerally enjoyable – La Scorta follows its main characters with a loose, unstylized approach. Each member of the “escort” has their backstory...family, friends, something to humanize these working...

THE FLICK: Based on the novel by John Le Carre, the weightier flip-side of “lit-lite” espionage authors like Robert Ludlum, The Constant Gardener is a film that’s easy to walk away from. There’s no Bond-esque opening action scene. In fact, there are no action scenes, period, by Hollywood standards. None of the characters are particularly likeable or even sympathetic for much of the running time. And the script does all it can to keep you at a distance from the truth behind its political plotting until the film is almost half over. Yet, it’s all a set-up. Like a cinematic con game, when director Fernando Mierelles pulls the big switch-a-roo, you never see it coming. And by the film’s few final shots, the audience has gone through the same emotional ringer as lead character Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes), who re-discovers his wife’s moral piety (and marital fidelity) only after her death. An unlikely couple from the start, Justin’s marriage to Tessa (Rachel Weisz) seems to take a backseat...

THE FLICK: Filmmakers love formulas. It gives them a starting point, a built-in audience, a category on the shelf at Blockbuster. But it’s films like The Desert of the Tartars that leave a more lasting impression, leading the viewer down an unfamiliar path and covering their tracks behind them. It’s both a frightening and exhilarating experience, challenging what we expect from cinema and how we feel about ourselves. Lt. Drogo enters the military with great expectations, only to find himself stationed at a remote outpost on the edge of the desert where he and his fellow officers stand guard against an enemy force none of them has ever laid eyes on...a mythical army of Tartars rumored to exist somewhere in the wasteland beyond. With no armies to fight and no challenges to face, the soldiers lose themselves in rules, regulations and the drudgery of daily life along with fantasies of their own military success against a conquering force that may or may not exist. Filling out its cast with...

THE FLICK: As a sub-category of the horror genre, “exorcism” is a tough idea to franchise. Unlike other creature features, the act of possession doesn’t allow for much innovation or variation. The cinematic experience has essentially been limited to a girl tied to a bed spouting vile invectives at a team of holy men; a challenging scenario to re-invent even by the most creative screenwriter’s standards. This spiritual showdown, however, is inherently dramatic, and ever since the original Exorcist dozens of Hollywood producers have been circling the carcass, picking at the flesh of Friedkin and Blatty’s text, in an attempt to replicate its success. The Exorcism of Emily Rose combats the pitfalls of familiarity in a two clever ways. First and foremost, writer/director Scott Derrickson’s film presents itself as a courtroom drama with a screenplay that could have been condensed to fit quite nicely into any number of procedural TV shows in Neilsen’s top ten. And secondly, it plays the old “...

THE FLICK: There are two ways to approach a review of The Brothers Grimm: as a conventional summer movie starring “movie stars” Matt Damon and Heath Ledger...or as film by Terry Gilliam, the distinctive director of such films as Brazil and Time Bandits. The real tragedy is no matter which perspective you choose, they both end up with the same mixed results. As with Tim Burton and Sleepy Hollow, conceptually this seems to be a case where filmmaker and material are perfectly matched. Gilliam’s best work revolves around fairy tale imagery presented with a uniquely chaotic charm, featuring characters caught between a dream world and the corrupting influence of reality. And thematically The Brothers Grimm is a logical addition to this oeuvre. But in execution, the film is simply a shell of digital effects, set design and unintelligible accents – a Gilliam knock-off that just so happened to be directed by the man himself. After an insultingly brief prologue, we meet brothers Will and Jake 15...

THE FLICK: Director Peter Jackson describes The Frighteners as his “transition” film; namely because it falls between his early New Zealand horror imports and the worldwide phenomenon of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. And that’s a pretty accurate appraisal of his first studio effort. For despite attracting a big time star (Michael J. Fox) and major Hollywood involvement (producer Robert Zemeckis), The Frighteners is a movie that heads off in so many different directions it ends up pulling itself apart at the seams. That’s not to say that the individual story strands are uninteresting. The film’s teenage serial killers (Dee Wallace Stone and the uber-creepy Jake Busey) are a continuation of the themes explored in Heavenly Creatures, albeit this time from beyond the grave. And lead character Frank Bannister (Fox), a supernatural con man who teams up with a trio of ghosts, represents the sort of high concept comedic riff Zemeckis is famous for. But layered atop one another, the tone of th...

EMPIRE: TV will often get a case of “Hollywood envy,” hopping on the bandwagon to try its hand at big-budget spectacle, usually in the form of a much-hyped mini-series “event.” Empire was network TV’s answer to Gladiator and Troy, a four-hour re-telling of the assassination of Julius Caesar and the rise of his successor, Octavious, a naïve pretty boy under the protection of Rome’s greatest gladiator, Tyrannus. I have no idea if history is presented properly here, but surprisingly, it’s a whole lot of fun! Sure, there are some corners cut in the battle scenes (computer generated legions are replaced by trees and plenty of fog), but the plot chugs along with a contagious energy and just enough gory gladiatorial combat to keep you from changing channels (or switching discs, as the case may be). Empire is smart enough not to get bogged down in politics, unlike the similar HBO show, Rome. This is old-fashioned adventure in an almost serialized format, just simplistic enough not to be insult...

THE FLICK: Get ready to hear this sentence a lot over the next few weeks: “Sky High is way better than you’d expect!” That’s because this clever teen movie / comic-book hybrid came on the heels of all the Incredibles hype and disappeared in a black hole when it hit theaters, a fate that was criminally unfair for a film this entertaining. The ad campaign was partly to blame – pitching the flick as something that might have shown up on The Disney Channel, not a feature film. Or maybe it was just the image of Kurt Russell in that silly looking super suit. But Sky High is a silly movie. And it embraces everything that a geeky middle-school (or middle-aged) comic book fan loves with genuine enthusiasm; a superhero-coated shell around a traditional teen flick fresh off the John Hughes assembly line. Only instead of the jocks and the nerds we have “heroes” and “sidekicks,” a student body separated by superpowers instead of raging hormones. Yet beset by the same angst and crises that every tee...

KING KONG: For anyone born after 1970, Dino De Laurentis’ version of King Kong is most likely the definitive version. Sad but true. And while it doesn’t hold a candle the original (where’s all the damn dinosaurs?), there are still some moments that rise above the overall embarrassment. Director John Guillermin stages Kong’s crash through the natives’ wall with considerable skill and effect while composer John Barry’s score is suitably bigger than life. Jessica Lange, as the object of Kong’s overtly sexual attention, comes off as the dumbest blonde in history while Jeff Bridges sports a Grizzly Adams beard...presumably to disguise his identity. But the big letdown is the film’s special effects (which Dino bragged would put the original to shame) made up mostly of Rick Baker in an ape suit along with an even worse-looking mechanical version. Even so, the film is endearingly goofy and the location photography gives it an epic scale even if the execution is second-rate. Extras include a th...

THE FLICK: Even if one ignores the technological achievements, the astounding box-office numbers, the unfathomable influence on filmmakers then and today, King Kong is still one hell of an entertaining movie. It is the very heart and soul of the modern blockbuster, relentlessly paced, extravagantly produced and expertly executed. And one of the few “genre” films that has earned the respect of normally standoff-ish critics and snobby audience types. Finally, after what seems like an eternity waiting for the film to hit DVD, you get to find out why. There’s no need to rehash plot points, here. Kong has evolved beyond a cinematic creation to a cultural touchstone. But if you haven’t seen it in a while, you forget just how ingeniously producer Merian C. Cooper one-ups the story time after time, conducting the film like an orchestra leading up to a deafening crescendo as Kong tumbles from the top of the Empire State Building. My favorite moments (you can’t talk about a movie like Kong witho...

THE FLICK: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a very good film. Keep that in mind as I shed some crocodile tears over the fact that it could have been an absolute masterpiece had director Tim Burton gotten his hands on the material when he was in his prime. As it stands now, it’s his best work since the first half of Sleepy Hollow and equal to the 70’s Gene Wilder version in almost every way (except for the Danny Elfman-composed “Oompa Loompa” songs, which awkwardly stop the action and sound like Oingo Boingo B-sides). Meanwhile, Johnny Depp continues to prove that if a script calls for an endearing freak as the main character, he’s the man to call. Purportedly sticking much closer to the book (I could pretend that I’m familiar with Roald Dahl’s work, but I’d rather not be turned into a blueberry), this version opens in storybook fashion with Charlie and his poverty-stricken but close-knit extended family struggling to eak out a living. Charlie dreams of finding one of Willie Wonka’s...

THE FLICK: As the rather shoddy cover art on the new collector’s edition DVD implies, George Pal’s The War of the Worlds was the Independence Day of its time. All action, spectacle, blinding light and booming sound, it was the invasion film that subsequent B-movie producers aspired to create but never achieved. Working from H.G. Welles novel (which set the action in Victorian London and accessorized the alien ships with tentacle-like legs), Pal expertly transposed the story into ‘50s American culture and emulated the newsreel docudrama success of Orson Welles 1938 radio broadcast. And while Pal, the producer who made sci-fi respectable with When Worlds Collide and The Time Machine, gets most of the accolades, he shares credit here with director Byron Haskin and a team of effects technicians that deliver otherworldly destruction on a grand scale. From the first appearance of the alien ship, a snake-like appendage poking out of a glowing meteor, War of the Worlds creates a tangible menac...

DOMINION: PREQUEL TO THE EXORCIST – The Hollywood equivalent of a “do-over,” director Paul Schrader’s version is the one that was shelved and re-shot by director Renny Harlin as Exorcist: The Beginning. Now premiering on DVD, it’s an interesting film that emphasizes character over scares, but not nearly enough to compete with the ’73 original. Father Merrin (Stellen Skarsgard), haunted by a WWII tragedy and suffering a crisis of faith, discovers a buried church in the wilds of Africa, the unearthing of which unleashes a wave of evil that pits the native population against the visiting British troops. Schrader’s film focuses much more on Merrin’s personal demons, as opposed to the flashier, up-tempo version turned in by Harlin that streamlined the story almost to the point of incomprehension (although it still looked beautifully eerie). It’s a noble effort, but the Merrin character is so bland that secondary players steal most of the scenes. The finale – featuring an asexual demon float...

THE FLICK: George Romero has dodged the “horror director” label for most of his career, as have many other industry folks behind and in front of the camera. Likely because it’s not a genre that commands the sort of professional respect (or golden statuettes) that come to those working in costume dramas, exposes on the mentally ill or even the odd romantic comedy. When you work in horror (even accidentally, as is the case with Romero), your work is rewarded only by the fans and as far as the industry is concerned you’re only good for one thing...making more horror films. But there’s an upside. Horror fans are some of the most enthusiastic folks you’ll ever meet. I mean, when was the last time you saw a Pretty Woman convention? And as connoisseurs of the macabre, these same fans will watch almost anything by their favorite contributors to the genre. Hence, Season of the Witch, which contains only marginal supernatural elements and very few scares, still earns itself a full-fledged collec...

TARZAN: Special Edition – Although only a moderate hit with the kiddie crowd at the time of its release, this Disney adaptation may adhere closest to the spirit of Edgar Rice Burrough’s original ape man novels...if you forget about the touchy-feely Phil Collins songs, that is. Visually, Tarzan is one of the studio’s most lush and organic efforts of the modern era, set against a jungle backdrop that is almost prehistorically beautiful. Tarzan himself moves with an athletic grace that could never be realized outside of animation, while the action scenes are nothing short of astounding! One can’t help but wonder what kind of masterpiece might have developed had the marketing folks not required Rosie O’Donnell’s voice as his wisecracking monkey sidekick. Oh well, it’s still a sight to behold and Minnie Driver does a bang up job with portrayal of Jane as the exuberantly naïve love interest. This new edition includes a remixed soundtrack, music videos, point-n-click games, plus deleted scene...

THE FLICK: After Joel Schumacher drove the franchise into the ground (but, let’s be honest, there’s were a lot of Warner execs helping him pound the stakes), Batman seemed like a property that was bound to gather dust. That is until Marvel, the rival to DC’s pantheon of do-gooder superheroes, made a decided impact on the box-office with X-Men and Spiderman. Suddenly, Warner seemed to be sitting on a pot ‘o gold (two pots if you include the upcoming Superman Returns). The only problem was how to rectify the previous installments’ nipple fetish, neon-glow aftertaste. The decision seemed to be a fresh start...really fresh. Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins is an origin story, which is ironic considering much of Bruce Wayne’s childhood angst was already covered by the 1989 installment by Tim Burton and whatever was left certainly was touched on by the three sequels. But co-screenwriter David Goyer (a comic book specialist, having helped bring Blade successfully to the screen) chooses to sp...

THE FLICK: The Freakmaker (or The Mutations as it was widely released) is an anomaly in the career of its director Jack Cardiff, better known as the award-winning cinematographer for Michael Powell’s Black Narcissus and The Red Shoes. That such a renowned filmmaker would even consider dabbling on a project that included genetically-altered man-eating plants, a parade of circus freaks, and copious amounts of swinging ‘70s female nudity is mystifying, to put it mildly. But dabble he did. And what may be even more surprising, Cardiff’s cinematic skill didn’t exactly carry over to The Freakmaker’s bottom line. The film, which was also lucky enough to score actors Donald Pleasance and Tom “Doctor Who” Baker, falls squarely in the realm of other cheapie monster flicks of the time such as The Creeping Flesh and Scream and Scream Again; equal amounts guilty pleasure and outdated tedium. Yet the association with Tod Browning’s Freaks, which the script references most directly by recreating the ...

THE FLICK: Unlike his recent remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, producer Michael Bay isn’t treading on holy ground by updating The Amityville Horror. Yes, it was THE haunted house flick of its generation; a pop-culture popcorn flick pre-sold to audiences on the success of a best-selling book based on the “true” experiences of the Lutz family. But we’re not talking about a masterpiece here. The original was about as edgy as a TV “Movie-of-the-Week.” But certain moments (namely the swarms of flies and a demonic smoker’s voice that commanded, “Get Out!”) stuck in the subconscious, combined with that often duplicated but never replicated 70’s film stock style. Even after 3 or 4 piss-poor sequels, the slate was basically clean for Bay to do whatever the hell he wanted. What’s surprising is that he didn’t change much. George and Kathy Lutz find what they think is the bargain of the century, a three-story colonial mansion priced well-below market value. Of course, there’s always a catch. ...

THE INNOCENTS (1961): This darkly adept translation of Henry James classic novel, The Turn of the Screw, stars Deborah Kerr as the fragile first-time governess to a pair of orphaned children who may or may not be possessed by the spirits of an isolated country estate. Director Jack Clayton and cinematographer Freddie Francis paint some of the most beautiful shadows in screen history, while Truman Capote’s script keeps Kerr on the edge of insanity. On the surface, it’s a film of billowing curtains and half-seen phantoms. But Kerr’s descent into a Freudian nightmare of sexual repression is scandalously frightening even by today’s standards. An obvious inspiration on Nicole Kidman’s The Others, it might just be the ultimate ghost story for adults. Both the full screen and correct widescreen version are included along with a vintage trailer.

THE FLICK: The conventions of the giallo genre – for all its stalk, slash and kill pleasures – can become a bit tiresome, especially when one accounts for the Italian tendency to ride a good thing into the ground with sequels to remakes of American rip-offs three or four generations deep. So it’s no small surprise that Sergio Martino’s Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key turns out to be a thriller of distinction and class with all the perversions of the best Italian gialli – yet completely unlike anything that came before it. Incorporating a key element from Edgar Allen Poe’s The Black Cat, the film stages almost all its action within the confines of a neo-gothic estate in the Italian countryside, the residence of a has-been alcoholic author (Luigi Pistilli) and his wife (Anita Strindberg), whose marriage has deteriorated into a brutal stage play of Freudian issues and open physical hostility. Into this chaos comes a visiting relative (the lovely Edwige Fenech) who bring...

THE FLICK: It’s been said only a few hundred people bought the Velvet Underground’s first record, but every one of them became musicians. I’m not sure how many people got a chance to see Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead 2 in theaters, but it’s a safe bet the majority of them walked out wanting to be filmmakers. I know I sure the hell did! A bigger-budget (notice I didn’t say big budget) re-imagining of the original Evil Dead, which got a good boost of publicity thanks to a quote from Stephen King, Evil Dead 2 is the equivalent of cinematic anarchy. It breaks every rule in the Hollywood handbook except the most important – keep the audience entertained. Combining Three Stooges slapstick with non-stop gross-out gags, Raimi and his puppet of punishment Bruce Campbell elevate the horror/comedy genre to Citizen Kane standards. The first fifteen-minutes are a deliberate celluloid hazing. The audience is pummeled with visual tricks that don’t seem physically possible. It’s not just steadicam, it’s “shak...

THE FLICKS: As the DVD format digs ever deeper into the burial grounds of the horror genre, there are fewer true “classics” left to be unearthed by pioneering producers. Many fans have made a case for Amando de Ossorio’s Blind Dead series (or at least the first entry) to be enshrined on home video and, for the faithful; Blue Underground’s Blind Dead Collection will likely surpass their wildest hopes. While those unfamiliar with the particular pleasures of 70’s Spanish horror (which includes contemporaries Paul Naschy and Jesus Franco) might want gather a few opinions about this extravagantly packaged box-set, which contains four films, one documentary and a 40-page booklet full of beautiful poster art. Released once before on a now out-of-print Anchor Bay double feature DVD (which included the first two films in the series), The Blind Dead are certainly an acquired taste. While one comes to expect and sometimes inexplicably embrace the flaws inherent in the low-budget Euro-horror, Osso...

KONTROLL: Set in the grimy underworld of the Budapest mass transit system, director Nimrod Antal’s debut feature (which won several major film fest awards) is a spectacularly vivid portrait of a class of citizens who spend much of their time in the dark. Part psycho-thriller, part gonzo comedy, Kontroll feels more alive than most films made in the last 10 years. Working as part of a team of ticket inspectors, Bulcsu (Sandor Csanyi) suffers blackouts that just happen to coincide with a series of murders in the subways. And the non-stop craziness of his job compromises his own fragile sanity as the general population regularly punches, pummels or spits on anyone wearing the red “control” badge. The characters are endearingly and energetically sketched, the action scenes (particularly a suicidal game called “railing”) are dynamically photographed, and the world Antal creates is so complete – from the constant hum of the fluorescent lights to the wind of each passing train – you feel like ...

THE FLICK: Clive Cussler books are beach-reading for men. Shallow, superficial and pumped full of testosterone, they appeal to our inner-jock who dreams of traveling the world, uncovering valuable historical relics and charming women with our masculine indifference to their own exotic temptations. If you thought Ian Fleming’s superspy was an affront to literary logic and feminist ideology, Dirk Pitt is a big ‘ol slap in the face. I say this even though I’ve read nearly all of Dirk’s underwater adventures (until the plots became so ludicrous Cussler had to take on co-authors to shoulder half the blame), and without exception, enjoyed every single one. How can this be? Well, Cussler’s “top-that!” style of writing doesn’t mince words, it gives you one spectacular set-piece after another, stringing together globe-hopping disasters and discoveries with laughable coincidences that somehow seem perfectly plausible in the world of Dirk Pitt and his rough-n-tumble buddy Al Giordino. But in the ...