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• THE ARTIST (PG-13) Rims today
do not come as precious or charming
as Michel Ha^anavic|EUS % silent Golden
Globe winning Oscar frontrunner. A
silent film that is all about talking, The
Mist of title refers to matinee idol
George Valentin {Golden Globe winner
Jean Dujardin, who absolutely must be
a silent film star Hazanivirius recently
thawed from ice), who finds it difficult
to transition from silent films to talkies,
unlike rising star Peppy Miller (Golden
Globe nominee Berenice Be}o). But
Miller has a crush on Valentin that pre
dates her stardom, and will do every
thing she can to help the despondent
one-time star. Like an unearthed gem,
a long-lost silent relic. The Artistis at
once wholly familiar yet completely
foreign. Its a foreign language film
without a language. Naturally, being
silent, the score by Ludovic Source
plays as important a role as the actors.
(It'll be a pity if the Vertigo controversy
harms its award potential.) It is truly
lovely, complementing every scene
' without overpowering any of the actors'
apfopos mugging.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (G) 1991.
Disney rereleases the first animated
feature Jo be nominated for a Best
Picture Oscar usinn the fancy new 3D
technology that is all the rage right
now. Based on the classic fairy tale.
Belie falls in love with Beast (voiced by
ice Castles' heartthrob Bobby Benson),
who just so happens to be a cursed
prince. The terrific voice cast includes
Jerry Orbach, David Ogden Stiers
and Angela Lansbury. Winner of two
Academy Awards (Best Score and Best
Original Song).
CARNAGE (R) Go ahead and hashtag
Roman Polanski^ new film “First World
Problems.’ Two New York couples,
Penelope and Michael Longstreet
(Golden Globe nominee Jodie Foster
and John C. Reilly) and Nancy and
Alan Cowan (Golden Globe nominee'
Kate Winslet and Christoph Walt2),
hold an anti-productive summit after
a playground light between their sons.
Yasmina Reza and Polanski update
Reza's play (or the big screen, and the
lour main actors have a ball yakking
(in more ways than ora;) about their
marital and parental woes.
CONTRABAND (R) How much
cooler would this flick have been
had it recounted the tale ot Bill and
Lance, two lonely, shirtless soldiers
blasting their way to the Aliens lair
to the sounds of Cinemechanica?
Much, much cooler. Alas, Contraband
is merely a standard, occasionally
thrilling heist flick starring the “always
reliable for this sort of action* Mark
Wahtberg.
THE DEVIL INSIDE (R) After a strong
opening sequence depicting the police
investigation of and fake local news
stories about a 1989 triple murder,
The Devil Inside becomes just another
found footage horror (tick, this one
insinuating itself to be toe documenta
tion of a young woman, Isabella Rossi
(Fernanda Andrade), seeking toe truth
about her mother's tragic exorcism.
Two priests, Ben and David (Simon
Quarterman and Evan Hetmuth), assist
Isabella in freeing her mother, but
again, toe results lead to a tragedy, ail
captured on film by documentarian/
cameraman, Michael (lonut Grama).
This popular, easy-to-fake horror
subgenre has seen worse entries (last
ysafe snooze-test Apollo tfy, but The
Last Exorcism was a more successful
faux-meotary Exorcist.
DOUBLE INDEMNITY 1944. Cine is
heating up toe cold winter nights with
a Classic Film Noir Series featuring
Hollywood classics screened from
increasingly precious 35mm prints.
Based on a story by James M. Cain, a
housewife (Barbara Stanwayck) plots
her husband's murder with an Insur
ance salesman to collect toe life insur
ance payout, resulting in one of toe
first of the film noir genre.
DRIVE (R) D r ive slides through toe
alleys and side streets of its criminal
Los Angeles with the precision, skill
and style of its nameless Driver (Ryan
Gosling). Stuntman by day, getaway .
man for hire by night toe driver
slides his leather driving gloves on
and gets his bumpers bloody when a
cute neighbor (Carey Mulligan) with
a litiie tyke runs afoul of some local
foughs. Gosling must hail Irom 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.
• EXTREMELY LOUD AND
INCREDIBLY CLOSE (P6-13) This
adaptation of toe Jonathan Salran
Foer novel could have devolved into
Stage 4 Pay ft Forward-level emotional
manipulation. Instead, the 9/11 tear-
jerker. directed by three-time Academy
Award nominee Stephen Daldry (Billy
Elliot, The Hours and The Reader), only
reaches Stage 2. Young Oskar Schell
(“Jeopardy“sKids Week Champion
Thomas Horn, making a striking
acting debut) tries to make sense of
his fathers death on 9/11. His dad,
Thomas (Tom Hanks, in quite possibly
his most saintly role to date), used to
send Oskar on city-wide expeditions to
help the boy conquer his social inhibi
tions. The final quest requires Oskar
to traipse around NYC in search of a
lock lo fit a mysterious key. Of course,
the journey to solving this mystery
is more important than the solution
itself. Impressive performances from
toe young Horn and the older Max
von Sydow keep toe film from drown
ing in its own sorrows. Appeal ances
from Viola Davis. John Goodman and
Jeffrey Wright are welcome, but Sandra
Bullock merely gets her tears on as
Oskar's grief-ridden mom. Everything
should be fine so long as audi
ences simply expect the good movie
Extremely Loud is. as opposed to the
awards bait it fails to be.
THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS
(NR) 1950. The Kress Film Series
continues with tors dramatization
of a dozen vignettes from toe life of
St. Francis and toe religious order
he founded, directed by Roberto
Rossellini. Perhaps best known as
lover of Ingrid Bergman and father of
Isabella Rossellini, the Italian neoreai-
ist directed Rome, Open Citymd was
nominated for toe Academy Award tor
Best Writing for 1946's Palsan The
Flowers for St Francis screenplay was
cowriitcr by Rossellini collaborator, the
legendary Federico Fellini.
FOOTLOOSE (PG-13) Lets go ahead
and dispel any thoughts that toe Kevin
Bacon starrer is somehow above being
remade. What Hustle & f/ow filmmaker
Craig Brewer has done in remaking the
seminal '80s flick is impressive. Brewer
relocates toe dance banning town of
Bomont from Oklahoma to Georgia,
adding another film to Brewer's resume
of intriguing cinematic stories about
the New South.
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON
TATTOO (R) Stieg Larsson may have
created Lisbeto Salander, but David
Fincher and the bold Rooney Mara *
have made her a big-screen icon. (No
offense to Noomi Rapace's Lisbeto,
but Marais movie is loads better.)
Fincher dangerously retains LarssonS
wicked, violent European sexuality for
Hollywood^ adaptation of the first book
in the Millennium Trilogy.
THE GREY (R) January is ending; it
must be time for another Liam Neeson
actioner. The formerly acclaimed
actor has almost completed his
transformation into an English Denzel
Washington, whose filmography is fill
pi Paxton)? One of several other gov
ernment employees (Michael Douglas,
Antonio Banderas)? C-Tatez (Channing
Tatum)? The actions cool, the visuals
even cooler (think toe euro-class of
The American but more muscle) and
CaranoS hot (and surprisingly up to
toe dramatic task). That audiences are
giving Haywire a rare D+ CinemaScore
is baffling. These same audiences
bestowed A-S on both Contraband and
toe latest Underworld, two action mov
ies that together do not equal toe film-
making or star power of Haywire. When
Soderbergh doesn't connect with audi
ences (see the'Clooney-led Solaris), •
he REALLY doesn't connect with audi
ences. (Note: I dug Solaris loo.)
• THE IRON LADY (PG-13) As a
fan of all things British, The Iron Lady
should have been more appealing to
me, but toe clumsy construction by
director Phyllida Lloyd (Mamma Mia.)
and writer Abi Morgan sink it Mery!
Streep may not be a revelation (she
cannot be; the highest level of acting is
expected of her), but her Golden Globe
winning and sure to be Oscar nomi-
Wow! I can’t believe David Bowie just birthed a baby!
ing up with inconsequential paychecks
jobs. A! least Joe Carnahan (Hare, The
A-Team) is writing and directing this
tale of an Alaskan drilling team strug
gling to defeat a pack of wolves hunt
ing them after their plane crashes in toe
wilderness. With Dermot Mulroney and
James Badge Dale ("The Pacific’).
HAPPY FEET 2 (PG) Mad Max cre
ator George Miller may not be able to
get a new entry in his post-apocalyptic
Outback franchise off the ground, but
he was able to continue his singing
dancing penguin series. Sadly. I was
underwhelmed by the first film, so l
have little interest in a 3D sequel about
tap-dancing penguin Mumble (v. Elijah
Wood). Now a father, Mumble must
help his son, Erik, find his place in the
Emperor Penguin world while facing a
new threat with his friends and family.
Featuring the voices of Robin Williams,
Pink and other famous folks.
* HAYWIRE (R) The narrative goes
a little haywire, leaving the impres
sion that an exposittonai scene or two
are missing, but toe athletic, graceful
action choreography skillfully executed
by MMA fighter and former American
Gladiator Gina Garano and captured
on camera by the always surprising
Steven Soderbergh knocks out ail its
current action competitors. Black ops
agent Mallory Kane (Carano) is burned
by to8 head of toe private agency
for which she works, a skeezy guy
named Kenneth (well-played by Ewan
McGregor). Mallory mbst clear her
name, but who'can she trust? Ht,* dad
naied portrayal of Margaret Thatcher
goes beyond mere impression. Too
bad the film wastes far too much of its
sub-two-hour running time on toe later
years framework.
JACK AND JILL (PG) Adam Sandler
must have thought the fake movies
from Funny People had real potential to
have signed on for this pitiful comedy
where he plays both Jack Sadelstein
and his twin sister, Jili. They ksy to toe
entire one-joke movie is that Sandler
makes ap ugly woman.
JOYFUL NOISE (PG-13) You can
almost hear the studio executive
wheels turning for this godly 'Glee'
knockoff. A church choir from Small
Town, GA heads lo a national competi
tion with new director, Vi Rose Hill
(Queen Latifah), squaring off against '
G.G. Sparrow (Dolly Parton), toe widow
of toe recently deceased former direc
tor (briefly and poorly played by Kris
Kristofferson). Plenty ol other minor
melodramas—'Vi’s 16-year-old daugh
ter Olivia (Keke Palmer) falls for G.G.’s
rebellious grandson, Randy (Jeremy
Jordan); another choir member finds
love.. .twice; while others face financial
hardships due to the current economic
downturn—engulf the group as they
prepare some new numbers in order to
win the national crown.
KISS ME DEADLY 1955. Cirte is
heatihg up toe cold winter nights with
a Classic Film Noir Series featuring
Hollywood classics screened Irom
increasingly precious 35mm prints.
Last week was Raymond Chandler’s
Philip Marlowe; this week, Mickey
SpillaneS Mike Hammer is on the case
in Kiss Me Deadly, toe second in Cine's
series. Hammer (Ralph Meeker) is
pulled into a deadly, potentially lucra
tive case after picking up a hitchhiker,
who winds up dead. Directed by Robert
Aldrich (The Dirty Dozen).
LE HAVRE (NR) Four-lime Palme
d’Or nominee Aki Kaurismaki (Drifting
Clouds, The Man Without a Past and
Lights in the DusK) wrote and directed
this comedic drama of an African boy
(Biondin Miguel) and toe aging shoe
shiner (Andrp Wilms) who takes him
into his home in toe port city of Le
Havre. This Palme d’Or nominee won
Cannes’ FIPRESCI Prize and was nomi
nated for four European Film Awards
(Best Rim, Best Director, Best Actor
and Best Screenwriter).
MAN ON A LEDGE (PG-13) Don’t
confuse this crime thriller with the
tremendous documentary Man on
Wire. Sam Worthington stars as Nick
Cassidy, a suicidal ex-con needing to
be talked down by police psychologist
Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks). Oh,
by the way, toe biggest diamond heist,
like, ever is going on at the same time.
Coincidence? This flick, whose trailers
are woefully underwhelming, is director
Asger Left's first fiction feature.
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE-GHOST
PROTOCOL (PG-13) Mission:
impossible is that rare franchise that
. has actually gotten better with each
new Installment and in inverse propor
tion to its megastar's popularity. Tom
Cruise had few peers in 1996 when the
weak, original M:/opened; now he's
more often a punchline, albeit a badass
punchline who does many of his own
death-defying stunts, like climbing the
outside ot toe world's tallest building.
THE MUPPETS(PG) Cowriter-star
Jason SegelS reboot of Jim Henson’s
lovable puppets is built with his obvi
ous love and understanding of what
made their 1979 film debut so special.
Gary (Segel), his puppet brother Waiter,
and Gary's longtime girlfriend, Mary
(Amy Adams), travel to LA., where they
discover a plot to destroy toe Muppet
Theater by oil tycoon Tex Richman
(Chris Cooper). Together, they help
Kermit reunite the old gang—Fozzie,
Miss Piggy, Gonzo, et al.—to put on
a telethon in order lo raise the money
needed to buy back the property.
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN (R)
Movies like My Week with Marilyn
can be a great deal of fun. Watching
a sound modem actor impersonate a
legendary figure of stage and screen,
like Golden Globe nominees Michelle
Williams and Kenneth Branagh do as
Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier,
respectively, satisfies a primal nostalgia
center of the brain. On toe other hand,
these movies can often come off a
bare step up from Made-for-TV, if even
that tar. Mostly thanks to Williams,
My Week with Marilyn achieves a nice
cruising altitude above television,
which should perhaps surprise seeing
as director Simon Curtis' previous
efforts almost all aired on toe BBC.
ONE FOR THE MONEY (PG -13)
Janet Evanovich's popular Stephanie
Plum comes to the big screen. Newly
divorced and unemployed, Plum
(Katherine Helgl) takes a gig at her
cousin^ bail bond business. Her first
assignment just happens to be a local
cop and former flame (Jason O’Mara of
Terra Nova’). Will it be toe start of a
rranemse tor star nergl, or more proof
toe public is over *GreyS Anatomy’ s
former It Girl? Director Julie Anne
Robinson and most of toe cast are
prime-time players at best.
THE PRINCESS BRIDE (PG) 1987
Rob Reiner’s finest film after This is
Spinal Tap, Bride benefits most from
an acidic yet heartwarming script by
Hollywood legend William Goldman,
who adapted frbm his own novel.
Westfey (Cary Eiwes) risks life and
limb to rescue his love Buttercup
(Robin Wright Penn) Irom the evil
Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon)
Assisted by humongous Fezzik (Andre
the Giant) and vengeful Inigo Montoya
(an unmusical Mandy Patinkin).
Westley must outwit a Sicilian (Wallace
Shawnj^survive the Dread Pirate
Roberts, and escape Irom the Pit of
Despair. A charming, droll love story,
The Princess Bride is truly a fairy tale
for all ages as well as for the ages.
PUSS IN BOOTS (PG) Shrek’s fairy
tale may have moved on to happily
ever after, but Puss in Boots (v. Antonio
Banderas) is still itching for a fight. His
spinoff reveals the swordfighting antics
that led up to Puss meeting up with
Shrek and company. Naturally, this flick
was once slated for a direct-to-DVD
release; will toe cat be able to match
the ogre's blockbuster results? Director
Chris Miller previously helmed Shrek
the Third. Featuring the voices of
Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis 2nd
more.
• RED TAILS (PG-13) Red Tails, a
pet project ot Star Wars creator George
Lucas, succeeds everywhere it should
and fails nowhere that should surprise
anyone. The valor of the Tuskegee
Airmen is every bit as worthy ol patri
otic, big screen fanfare as the flyers o!
Pearl Harbor and the WWI-era Lafayette
Escadrille in Flyboys, and their movie
is every bit the equal of dramatic
lightweight and action heavy-weight
These three aviation-centered war mov
ies are near interchangeable, besides
their single major hooks (Pearl Harbor
World War I and African-American
pilots). A crew of attractive young black
men (including Nate Parker, David
Oleyowo, Tristan Wilds and Ne-Yo) are
led into combat by stalwart veterans
Cuba Gooding Jr. and Terrence Howard
and must battle racism on the ground
and in the air. (The Luftwaffe knew they
were dogfighting with black men.) The
dialogue is tin-eared as previous Lucas
films (the prequels come to mind)
and does not benefit the actors a! all
Still, exciting, jingoistic fervor can
sometimes wear down any foe, even an
enemy script. By Red Tails end it’s near
impossible to root against these great
American underdogs.
SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF
SHADOWS (PG-13) Much like its
2009 predecessor, Sherlock Holmes A
Game of Shadows is a'perfectly forget
table crowdpleaser. Robert Downey. Jr
revisits his hyper-bordering-on-mamc
streettighting master sleuth, this time
tasked with defeating his literary arch
nemesis, Professor James Moriarty
(the appropriate Jared Harris of AMC s
“Mad Men’).
THE SUPER NINJA (NR) 1984 Bad
Movie Night continues celebrating the
cinema^ worst oflenders in 2012 with
a terrible kung tu movie. New York
cop John (Alexander Lou), a secretly
trained ninja, seeks revenge on the
men responsible lor setting him up as
a drug pusher. In his way are the Five
Element Ninjas, a seemingly invincible
clan of killers. All the tropes of kung
fu(n) flicks—bad dubbing, over-the-top
ninja duels, nonsensical narrative—
converge in tois awesomely bad movie
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (R)
The machinations Tinker Tailor Soldier
Spy, the new film from Let the Right
One Ids Tomas Alfredson, may be a
little too (you say dense, I say) murky
lor its own good. Despite the climactic
10 FLAGPOLE.COM-JANUARY 25,2012