About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 2011)
Some releases may not be showing locally this week. • indicates new review 50/50 (R) Cancer is scary and depressing Hs.even scarier and more depressing when it happens to a young person So how is Jonathan Levine's second tilm so darn tunny and uplifting'? Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Seth . Roqen. Anna Kendrick and screenwriter Will Reiser are how Don't oe tooled by its mild-mannered "Disease of the Week appearance, this film, loosely based on screenwriter Reiser's own struggles to beat cancer, is like Terms of Endearment for 20-somethings 2046 (R) (2004) A thematic sequel to Wong Kar-Wai's Days of Being Wild and In the Mood for Love. 2046 stars Tony Leung (Infernal Affairs) as Chow Mo-wan whose affairs with several dif ferent women span hundreds of years Wong Kar-Wais fantastical romance was nominated for the Cannes Film Festivals Palme d'Or and won 22 other international awards (it was nominated for 30 more') Tne film is screening as part of Cine's Fall Director Spotlight Series Introduction by UGA Film Studies Professor Chris Sieving ► AVERY HAROLD & KUMAR CHRISTMAS (R) Six years after the doped duo's adventures in Guantanamo Bay Harold and Kumar (John Cho and Kat Penn) get into the 3D Christmas spirit after Kumar burns down Harolds father-in-laws prized Christmas tree This tragedy sends them on a night-long search for the perfect tree that involves Neil Patrick Harris and shooting Santa Claus Ttie trailers are making sure to push the high quotient of sex and violence, especially during Sunday's NFL games on Fox AMERICAN GRAFFITI (PG) 1973 George Lucas shot to superstardom and gained the clout needed to produce Sfar Wars, with this successful low- budget tale of 60s teen nightlife which essentially means lots of cruising, drag racing and drive-ins. Lucas' cast is like a night sky overflowing with future stars Harrison Ford. Richard Dreyluss, Ron Howard. Cindy Williams and Suzanne Somers all appear, however brief Along with Young Frankenstein. this film is one of the few my mother force-fed me during my formative youth, forever forging my cinematic soul in unbreakable stone ANOTHER HAPPY DAY (R) This Lynn who is thrust into some familial dynamics during a weekend wed ding at her parents' Annapolis estate Ezra Miller, soon to be seen in We Need to Talk about Kevin, won the Hamptons International Film Festivals Breakthrough Performer Award Writer- director Sam Levinsons feature debut won the Sundance Film Festival's Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award and was a nominee for the Grand Jury Prize With Kate Bosworth Demi Moore. Thomas Haden Church. George Kennedy and Ellen Burstyn. APOLLO 18 (PG-13) Have you ever watched a boring school doc about the moon and thought all that was missing were some scares 9 That assessment sums up Apollo 18 pretty well. Boring and in need of some scares Three astronauts embark on a classified mission to the moon and discover something deadly This newest entry in the found footage subgenre has all the weaknesses of its predecessors— shaky, blurry camerawork poor lighting, lots of dead air—plus some cardboard American Heroes as potential vies and not a lick of scares The found footage genre has never lent itself well to action, but the lazy', glacially paced Apollo 18 makes the Paranormal Activitys and Blair Witch Pro/ect look like action-packed sprints COLUMBIANA (PG-13) 1 young woman (Zoe Saldana) after witness ing her parents’ murder as a child j n Bogota grows up to be a stone-cold assassin. COURAGEOUS (PG-13) The technical skills of director Alex Kendrick and the folks (they are from Albany) behind Sherwood Baptist's latest evangelical epic have vastly improved since fheir breakthrough hit, Facing the Giants On a completely technical level, you’d never know you were not watching a Hollywood production about four law enforcement officers forced to face themselves as men and fathers after a tragedy CRAZY. STUPID. LOVE (PG-13) What a crazy, stupid idea 1 Write a mature comedy script Cast pretty tal ented, appropriately aged stars Direct them with care, humanity and simplic ity Who would ever think those actions would develop into the summer's most charming wide release 9 Only almost everyone who doesnt greenligh! studio projects Steve Carell stars as Cal Weaver, whose wife. Emily (Julianne Moore), suddenly bombs him with a divorce pronouncement that leads him to a local bar where Cal meets inveter ate womanizer Jacob (Ryan Gosling) While Cal the nice guy is learning to objectify women. Jacob the man-whore is falling for law student Hannah (Emma Stone) DOLPHIN TALE (PG) I am not a sucker for sentimental animal mov ies Were I. then I am sure Dolphin Tale would have fit the bill. A lonely 12-year-old. Sawyer (Nathan Gamble), rescues a dolphin (real tail-less dol phin. Winter, as herself) caught in a crab trap With the help of a marine vet (Harry Connick Jr ), his daughter (Cozi ZuehlsdorH) and a doctor who special izes in prosthetics (Morgan Freeman). Sawyer helps save the dolphin by fashioning a fake appendage DRIVE (R) Drive slides through the alleys and sidestreets of its criminal Los Angeles with the precision, skill and style of its nameless Driver (Ryan Gosling), called the Kid by his boss/ handler. Shannon (Bryan Cranston, BTW why aren't you watching “Breaking Bad' yet 9 ) Stuntman by day. getaway man lor hire by night, the driver slides his leather driving gloves on and gets his bumpers bloody when a cute neighbor (Carey Mulligan) with a little tyke runs afoul of some local toughs Gosling must hail from an alien world filled with cool because he's certainly more so than any other actor working today (besides maybe George Clooney... maybe) His near silent Driver says all he needs to with a single look that says whatever the recipient needs to hear Director Nicholas Winding Rein (The Pusher trilogy. Bronson. Valhalla Rising) cre ates an L A that would make a younger Michael Mann jealous, were it lit a little more bluely; Cliff Martinez's pulsing electronic score would sound at home in Manhunter. The odd cast mixes well An against type, eyebrow-less Albert Brooks digs into his straight from Elmore Leonard former B-movie producer turned small time gangster. Drive’s leading the race for my favorite him of 2011 FOOTLOOSE (PG-13) What Hustle £ f/ow filmmaker Craig Brewer has done in remaking the seminal '80s flick is impressive Brewer relocates the dance banning town of Bomont from Oklahoma to Georgia, adding another film to Brewer's resume of intriguing cinematic stories about the New South Ren MacCormack (Kenny Worrnald, looking like he transferred from Rydell High) migrates south to live with his aunt and uncle (Kim Dickens and scene-stealing Ray McKinnon, an Adel native and Oscar winner) There he runs afoul of Rev Shaw Moore (Dennis Quaid). who instituted the dancing ban after his son died in a car accident, and woos Moore's beautiful, troubled daughter. Ariel (Julianne Hough, 'Dancing with the Stars’) Brewer's movie has a nice rhythm and does the South more justice than any other major Hollywood release FRIGHT NIGHT (R) This remake of the 1980s horror comedy classic is good. It's better than good, even. Former geek Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin), who is dating lithe hottie. Amy (Imogen Poots). has hit the high school lottery until his old friend “Evil' Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) confides that Charley's strapping new neighbor. Jerry (Colin Farrell), is a vampire When Ed disappears. Charley starts investigating Scon enough, he's fighting a 400-year-old vamp with the help of a Vegas stage magician. Peter Vincent (the oh. so wonderful David Tennant) Practically everything, old and new. works in the updated Fright Night FROM THE BACK OF THE ROOM (NR) The Riot Grrrl movement ol the mid-'90s didn't start, nor did it end. female involvement in DIY punk. This documentary chronicles the part women have played in the musical movement over the past 30 years and boasts interviews with women ages 17-40. including Kathleen Hanna ol Bikini Kill and Le Tigre, Slade ol Tribe 8. Cynlhia Connolly (the author of Banned in DC). Dyanne from Harum Scarum. Allison of Bratmobile and Party Line and many more GARBAGE WARRIOR \NR) The epic story of radical Ea.thship eco- architect Michael Reynolds, and his light to build olf-the-grid self-sufficient communities. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 (PG- 13) It's over The final battle rages over the and through the hallowed halls of Hogwarts as Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermione (Emma Watson), Ron (Rupert Grint) attempt to end Voldemort's (Ralph Fiennes) evil reign HP7.2 is filled with blood, death and violence yet is still lit for the entire family (besides the littlest ones) THE IDES OF MARCH (R) Based on a play, George Clooney's new political drama definitely has some shades of a Redford film An idealistic staffer. Stephen Myers (Ryan Gosling), learns to play dirty politics ton the campaign trail of a hot. new presidential candi date (Clooney, pulling double duty) It remains to be seen whether or not Clooney's new picture can set the pace for the early Oscar front runners With Paul Giamatti. Phillip Seymour Hoffman Evan Rachel Wood, Mansa Tomei. Jeflrey Wright and more. • IN TIME (PG-13) Based on its incredibly entertaining science-fiction concept, In Time could have rivaled Source Code for the year s most excit ing new sci-fi film. In the near future (that oddly enough looks like the past), time is money. A tew people have a lot. most people don't have near enough. In the ghettoized time zones, poor people run everywhere, never sleep late and are always looking at the clocks, tattooed on their arms in glow-m-the-dark green The wealthy are ensconced in their high rises in the safety of immortality. When poor guy Will Salas (Justin Timberlake) is gifted a century, he is forced to go on the lam as the worlds law enforcers, the Time Keepers led by Inceptions Gillian Murphy, are hot on his tail Fortunately, he has the daughter (Amanda Seyfried) cl one of the richest men in tow The flaws in this disappointing film lie not in the high concept but in the poor storytelling. Several massive plot holes and geographic inconsistencies could be overlooked, but the film loses its momentum when writer-director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca) decides to make the dead end-ish Bonnie and Clyde/ Time Bandits angle the A-storyline LITTLE GIANTS (PG) 1994 Former football star Kevin O'Shea (Ed O'Neill) is the elite coach ol a peewee football powerhouse Kevin's little brother Danny (Rick Moranis) takes excep tion when his skilled daughter, Becky “Icebox' O'Shea (Shawna Waldron), is rejected by her uncle solely because she's a girl. Together, Danny and Becky put together a team to take on Kevin's Cowboys for the town's sole spot in the state peewee football playoffs THE MIGHTY MACS(G) In the early 70s. Cathy Rush becomes the head basketball coach at a tiny, all-girls Catholic college Though her team has no gym and no uniforms and the school itself is in danger of being sold, Coach Rush looks to steer her girls to their first national championship. MONEYBALL (PG-13) Based on Michael Lewis' bestseller, director Bennet Miller's follow-up to the Oscar winning Capote actually makes base ball statistics interesting Oakland As General Manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) attempts to build a championship ballclub through On Base and Slugging Percentage rather than traditional scouting Does it work? Anyone famil iar with Major League Baseball already knows the answer, but the film, adapted by screenwriting superstars Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin OUR IDIOT BROTHER (R) Is there anyone as charming as Paul Rudd 9 (I'm not actually asking, the answer is clearly no.) As beatific, honest and kind to a law-breaking fault Ned. Rudd beams and “aw. man’ s his way through a twee indiecom from former Lemonhead Jesse Perelz (he also directed The Ex) Our Idiot Brother glides lazily along on the heavily hirsute Rudd's massive charisma and little else family drama stars Ellen Barkin as MOVIE LISTINGS Schedules often change after our deadline. Please call ahead. CINE (706-353-3343) check website for show times Drive (R) 5:15, 7:30 (W. 11/2 & Th. 11/3) American Graffiti (PG) 5:30, 8:00 (F. 11/4) Psycho (R) 9:45 (W. 11/2 & Th. 11/3) Restless (PG-13) 5:00, 7:15. 9:30 (W. 11/2 & Th. 11/3) 2046 (R) 7:30 (Tu. 11/8) From the Back of the Room (NR) 7:00 (Su. 11/6) Garbage Warrior (NR) 7:00 (M. 11/7) In the Mood for Love (PG) 7:30 (Tu. 11/8) UGA TATE CENTER THEATER (706-542-6396) Little Giants (PG) 8:00 (Th. 11/3) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Pt. 2 (PG-13) 3:00, 6:00, 9.00 (F. 11/4 & Su. 11/6) Accurate movie times for the CARMIKE 12 (706-354-0016), BEECHWOOD STADIUM 1 1 (706 546-1011) and GEORGIA SQUARE 5 (706-548-3426) cinemas are not available by press time. Visit www.flagpole.com for updated times. I am occupying Wall Street! PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3 (R) I cannot think of another horror tnnehise as chronologically interesting Oren Peli's scary 2007 blockbuster occurred last, ending without the typical survi vor. Then, rather than have demonic Katie terrorize some unsuspecting family, the series' creative minds chose to go backwards Consider P4Jthe origin story, revealing the footage, shot in 1988 by their mothers boyfriend. Dennis, that explains why sisters Katie and Kristy continue to be haunted Cattish filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, working from a script by Paranormal Activity 2s Christopher Landon, up the action ante Just plain more happens in PA3. without chang ing the series' less-is-more-scary attitude If the first and second movies scared you, the third will, too. PSYCHO (R) 1960 Alfred Hitchcock's classic chiller, the proto-typical slasher film, set the standard for horror to come, be that good or bad. Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) might seem like the mild-mannered, All-American boy. but Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) would tell you otherwise, had Bates's murderous mother not infamously offed the criminal secretary in a first act shower scene So long as the real thing is available, do not ever watch Gus Van Sant's pointless shot-for-shot remake • PUSS IN BOOTS (PG) Don! judge Puss in Boots by the last two entries in the Shrek franchise. Don't even judge the feline swashbuckler's solo adventure versus the superior initial two Shreks Puss in Boots adopts a more relaxed style, more 'akin to Disney's revamped fairy tales ol old, than Shreks gatling gun tiring non-slop pop culture references. The voice work could not have been better cast for Puss' search for the magic beans of legend, alongside old pal. Humpty Alexander Dumpty (v. Zack Galafianakis). and new flame, Kitty Softpaws (v. Salma Hayek) Antonio Banderas does nothing different from his three Shrek adventures, but he’s doing it without the distracting presences of Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy. Galafianakis is the real standout; his Humpty is the series's first breakout character since Puss Sadly, the drug culture even pervades this children's film with a couple of innocuous, entirely out-of-place, gags With Puss in Boots and early sum mer's Kung Fu Panda 2. DreamWorks has smartly released two of their best animated features in a rare year when Pixar is vulnerable. Thankfully, none of the main characters are green. REAL STEEL (PG-13) The trailer for this Hugh Jackman action movie just screams Rock 'Em. Sock 'Rn Robots: The Movie (which apparenily was in development at one point). Jackman is a struggling promoter of robot box ing, who thinks he has a contender in a discarded bot. He also discovers he has an 11-year-old son. Director Shawn Levy has been on a roll; his last three movies were the high-profile hits, Night at the Museum, its Smithsonian- set sequel and Date Night RESTLESS (PG-13) Academy Award winner Gus Van Sant follows up the incredible Af/7A with this tragic tale of a terminally ill girl (Mia Wasikovfcka), who falls for a boy (Henry “son of Dennis’ Hopper) into funeral hopping. Together, the two encounter the ghost of a Japanese kamikaze pilot (Ryo Kase) Not many big-time directors can balance personal projects (Elephant. Paranoid Park) and crowd p leasers (Good Will Hunting.Finding Forrester) like GVS (who I've finally forgiven for his Psycho remake). With Schuyler “daughter of Sissy Spacek' Fisk. THE RUM DIARY (R) Johnny Depp stars in his second adaptation of a work by the late Hunter S. Thompson. An American journalist. Paul Kemp (Depp), attempts to adjust to island life 10 FLAGPOLE.COM • NOVEMBER 2, 2011
