Union County - Carolina Weekly Newspapers

the reel deal
by Sean O’Connell
“All About Steve” is a hit-and-miss comedy with a workable premise but a half-baked script.
You get the impression that director Phil Traill and screenwriter Kim Barker presented their
star, Sandra Bullock, with a cornucopia of completely random ideas, then prayed she could
magically produce the proverbial silk purse. And she almost does; the ever-talented actress
earns sweat-equity points by injecting goofy humor and heart into an otherwise flat comedy.
But the bandages Traill uses to hold his busted set pieces together are all too visible.
Bullock plays mousy Mary Horowitz, an eccentric and painfully shy crossword puzzle
creator who falls head over trashy red boots in love with Steve, the handsome network news
cameraman whom she meets on a blind date. It helps that Steve looks like Bradley Cooper,
easygoing star of this summer’s hit “The Hangover.” But after a brief tryst in the back of a van
(which teases some of the broad physical comedy this film will attempt), Steve ditches Mary
for a handful of assignments that keep him on the road. Too bad for him, Mary follows.
Traill’s resumé is populated with failed sitcoms like “Worst Week” and “Kath & Kim.” He
treats the oddball situations in Barker’s script like individual episodes of a loosely connected
story. (Barker also wrote Robin Williams’ “License to Wed,” another comedy with inspirational
schemes but no strong thread to bind them together.)
As Mary doggedly pursues Steve and his story-chasing colleagues – played by Thomas
Haden Church and Ken Jeong – she encounters a hostage situation at a Tucson dude ranch;
joins protestors voicing support for a three-legged baby born in an Oklahoma hospital;
befriends an artist (DJ Qualls) who carves celebrity faces into apples; dodges a cicada-filled
tornado in Texas; and, last but not least, plunges down a Colorado sinkhole that has swallowed
a gaggle of hearing-impaired children on their way to a carnival. Trust me, I’m as
baffled by that string of events as you are, and I’ve actually seen the film.
If there’s a reason to check out “Steve,” it’s Bullock, who’s endearing even when playing
an intentionally obnoxious character. Mary’s the polar opposite of the frigid, corporate tyrant
Bullock test-drove in this
Grade: HH out of 4
MPAA Rating: PG -13 for sexual content including innuendos.
Cast: Sandra Bullock, Bradley Cooper
Genre: Comedy
Studio: 20th Century Fox
‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’
Before Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Oprah
Winfrey, Roseanne Barr and the ladies of “The
View,” there was Gertrude Berg. And without
Berg’s pioneering contributions to the entertainment
industry, those other, more recognizable
pillars in the entertainment hall of fame
might not exist.
Aviva Kempner’s fascinating “Yoo-Hoo,
Mrs. Goldberg” is a thesis project dedicated
to one of show business’s earliest triple threats
who, at the turn of the 20th century, served
as writer, producer and star of a groundbreaking
radio program. By tapping into her everyday
experiences as a Jewish immigrant on the
streets of New York, Berg created Molly Goldberg,
a sympathetic Mensch who leaned out
her brownstone window and welcomed thousands
of Americans into her fictional home
each week. Over the years, the ambitious
Berg brought Molly across multiple platforms,
performing the character on television, in theaters
and, eventually, on the big screen.
Just how influential was Berg? “All in the
Family” creator Norman Lear credits her
Grade: HHH out of 4
MPAA Rating: Not rated
Cast: Gertrude Berg, Norman Lear
Genre: Documentary
Studio: International Film Circuit
Tune in to WBTV News 3 every Friday morning during the 5 o’clock hour for Sean’s weekly movie review segment and read his reviews at www.unioncountyweekly.com.
Page 16 • Sept. 4-10, 2009 • Union County Weekly
‘All About Steve’
summer’s “The Proposal,” an
insecure outsider who chats
incessantly, hoping the noise
will cover up her loneliness.
It speaks to the actress’s
unquestionable versatility
(and likeability) that Mary
Gertrude Berg
for inventing the modern-day sitcom. Long
before Winfrey tossed her weight around
the consumer world, Berg hawked products
and forced boycotts when advertisers didn’t
play ball. She was the first person to win the
Emmy Award for Best Actress, and after witch
hunters targeted potential Communists in her
cast during the 1950s, Berg took the fight to
Washington, D.C.
Whether intentional or not, Kempner
also has crafted a timely documentary. As
“Yoo-Hoo” points out, one of Berg’s accomplishments
was bringing comfort and hope
to Americans struggling through the Great
Depression. Even today, we could use a little
Goldberg wisdom in our lives. In Berg’s honor,
lean out your window and tell a friend to see
this informative documentary while it’s playing
locally. q
by Sean O’Connell
sean@unioncountyweekly.com
Our “Rewind” column reviews home
video titles available for rent or purchase
that hit the shelves in the past few weeks.
‘State of Play’ (Blu-ray)
“State of Play,” Kevin Macdonald’s intelligent
thriller about a grizzled newshound
(Russell Crowe) unearthing a dirty political
scandal, scored a fair share of unflattering
headlines at the time of its release. The film’s
underwhelming box-office take ($37 million
domestic gross) had movie columnists questioning
whether Hollywood should continue
to make adult-oriented dramas like “Play” and
the similarly overlooked star vehicle “Duplicity”
– with Julia Roberts and Clive Owen – if
audiences won’t support them in the theaters.
It’s a legitimate query. And as a follow-up,
I’d like to know what chased people away? My
best guess would be that the film’s rippedfrom-the-headlines
plot didn’t appeal to
patrons who go to the movies to escape the
kind of harsh realities “Play” dispenses. But
Macdonald’s feature, based on the BBC miniseries
of the same name, contains just about
every other element movie audiences should
want when they pay to see a film.
Start with the multilayered screenplay
that’s hammered out by a trio of precise
storytellers: Matthew Michael Carnahan
(“The Kingdom”), Tony Gilroy (“Michael
Clayton,” the “Bourne” trilogy) and Billy Ray
Sandra Bullock (left) and Bradley Cooper
remains a believable character, even as Traill and Barker saddle her with a series of unbelievable
situations.
What bothers me most? That Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s shrewd and savagely scripted Best
Picture winner “All About Eve” will play neighbor to the slapdash “Steve” on video store
shelves for years to come. q
REWINDREWIND
(“Shattered Glass”). But then
Macdonald hands the story –
about a congressional intern’s
apparent suicide and its link
to a larger conspiracy involving
homeland security – to a
veritable who’s who of awardworthy
actors. And everyone’s
solid, from Oscar winners
Crowe, Ben Affleck and Helen Mirren to
prestigious role players like Robin Wright
Penn, Jeff Daniels, Rachel McAdams and
Jason Bateman. You know a film is maxed out
on talent when Oscar nominee Viola Davis of
“Doubt” accepts a brief cameo as a coroner.
“Play” is a busy thriller, but one that moves
swiftly through newsrooms, dark alleys and
political chambers packed with worried power
brokers. It raises interesting discussion points
about the relationships between the media
and the law, but remembers its purpose as a
white-knuckle thriller (a memorable standoff
in a parking deck will get your pulse racing).
Universal’s Blu-ray is a bit of a bust, however.
It makes you wonder if the studio lost faith in
the film after it’s disappointing theatrical run.
The visual transfer isn’t spectacular, with nighttime
cinematography dissolving into mud. Also,
Macdonald’s cast speaks in hushed tones and
whispers, and their lines are further muffled by
the disc’s low audio mix.
Deleted scenes and a “Making of” reel pad
the supplements section, while two features
exclusive to Universal’s U-Control include
picture-in-picture interview clips and access
to information on Washington, D.C. locations
used for the film. q
HHH out of 4 / MPAA rating: PG-13
www.unioncountyweekly.com