“3:10 to Yuma”Rated ROpened Sept. 7, 2007Three out of four stars
A down-and-out rancher (Christian Bale) signs up to escort a captured outlaw (Russell Crowe) across the wilderness to rendezvous with a prison train?the 3:10 to Yuma. Gunfights ensue.
Both Bale and Crowe give outstanding performances in this remake of the 1957 classic. The only thing they’re missing is a duet: “Rollin’ rollin’ rollin’. Keep those doggies rollin’. Rawhiiiiiiiiide!”
“The Brave One”Rated ROpened Sept. 14, 2007Two out of four stars
Jodie Foster grows a pair of Bronson-sized cojones and takes to the path of vigilante justice following the brutal murder of her boyfriend in this epic revenge-becomes-justice portrayal from director Neil Jordan.
What basically follows is a muddled portrayal of violence and revenge that jumps its own proverbial shark well before it allows the audience any reason to connect with the character. Had the film allowed the audiences a reason to invest in anything, or allowed Foster to eventually work into her role as lady justice (the motivation is weak, and basically unfounded) it may have been better.
As is, “The Brave One” is nothing to write home about.
“Superbad”Rated ROpened August 17, 2007Three out of four stars
Two codependent teens — Seth and Evan — and their nerdy friend Fogel spend a profanity filled night drinking, running from cops, and looking to score. Complications arise when the boys, tasked to score alcohol for a sweet party (read: their ticket to scoring), face an Odyssey-like journey to fulfilling their promises.
Just when we thought the high school sex genre was totally rundown and devoid, “Superbad” swoops in to show there’s nothing a few good jokes, some funk music, and a sucker punch to the face can’t buff to a high shine.
“Rescue Dawn”Rated PG-13Opened Aug. 3, 2007Three out of four stars
We know how it is going to turn out beforehand, as “Rescue Dawn” is being billed as the true story of one of the most daring escapes in history. So the end result isn’t the objective — if you’ll pardon the cheesiness — it’s the journey.
Stories of survival are easy crowd-pleasing fodder, but Werner Herzog has never been one for easy crowd pleasers. In his exploration of American fighter pilot Dieter Dengler’s (Christian Bale) escape from a Vietnam POW camp — which the director already explored in the 1997 documentary, “Little Dieter Needs to Fly” — Herzog is as raw and detail-oriented as ever. He doesn’t go for cheap thrills, but for psychological torment and heartbreaking moments of humanity that emerge from the characters amid the filth and hopelessness of the POW camp.
If you can forgive the awful, spoof-worthy denouement, “Rescue Dawn” is a captivating exploration of survival that manages to avoid most of the “triumph of the human spirit” cliches.
“Across the Universe”Rated PG-13131 minutesTwo out of four stars
The musical has made great strides in the past decade. Gone are the abysmal days of the 70s rock-musical-revival, and in are the credible, genre invigorating modern musicals. Unfortunately, “Across the Universe” does little in advancing the genre. Set against the backdrop of the 1960s what results is a film that feels in many ways like the odd stepchild of the travelogue “Forest Gump” and the flashy “Moulin Rouge.” In the end, a decent film, just not much new.
“Eastern Promises”Rated R100 minutesThree out of four stars
David Cronenberg has had perhaps one of the most up-and-down careers of any prominent director in the game today. Thankfully, “Eastern Promises” is a definite step up from his last endeavor, the horrible, yet critically adored “A History of Violence.” Punctuated by moments of extraordinary brilliance, a great cast and a truly Cronenbergian flair for macabre violence (in stark contrast to the just-plain-silly bloodletting that failed to spark “History”‘s have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too philosophy), “Eastern Promises” indeed shows the promise of a great movie. And yet, curiously, the supposedly “daring” Cronenberg opts for the same convenient excuses and easy plot twists that mainstream films are so often criticized for. A step up, no doubt, but not the instant classic it has been advertised as.
“The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters”Rated PG-1379 minutesThree out of four stars
Christopher Guest films have taken the notion of the preposterous documentary subject and made it commonplace fodder for fictional, humorous narratives. Imagine, however, the thought of a pair of subjects, competing for a goal so preposterous that it could would seem more bizarrely fictional than factual. That, in a nutshell is the basis for “The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters,” perhaps one of the funniest documentaries in recent history. Chronicling one man’s quest to win the all-time high score on the original Donky Kong platform, and the difficulties the reigning champ presents by not even allowing the other the opportunity to compete for the title, “Kong” is a definite must see. Whether as a character study, or bizarre glance into the strange characters that populate the corners of our world, it’s one not to miss.