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Movies
‘Mr. Popper’s Penguins’
by Tim Ross
movies@matthewsminthillweekly.com
NOW SHOWING IN
Matthews-Mint Hill
InvIte you and your faMIly to an advance screenIng
thURsday, JULy 7, 6 p.m. at RegaL stonecRest
Movie Passes
After a two-year absence, Jim Carrey is back
in theaters with a comedic spin on a morality
tale in “Mr. Popper’s Penguins.”
Loosely based on a children’s book by the
same name, “Mr. Popper’s Penguins” is about
a grown-up who needs to remember to be a kid
again. That’s a change for Carrey, who’s made
so many films about being a big, rubbery-faced
kid in a grown-up world. Carrey handles the
change in a somewhat competent way, making
this a somewhat competent movie.
While it’s true that Carrey has tried to reinvent
himself in more thoughtful films such as
“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” he’s
rarely done comedy without going over the top
– way over the top.
Popper is a highly motivated and successful
real estate broker in Manhattan who rose
to prominence by rebelling against the wanderlust
habits of his world-traveling father and
embracing the brick-and-mortar life of wealth
and privilege. But somewhere along the climb
up the corporate ladder he lost sight of what
was important and his marriage to Amanda
(Carla Gugino) disintegrated, as did his relationship
with his kids.
He resents his father, who was never
around, and has insulated himself with money
and ambition. When Popper’s father dies, he
receives a crate in the mail and out pops a
penguin. Another crate arrives soon after with
multiple penguins and Mr. Popper finds himself
frozen out of his comfortable existence.
The kids, Janie (Madeline Carroll) and Billy
Grade: HH out of 4
MPAA Rating: PG for mild rude humor
and some language
Cast: Jim Carrey, Carla Gugino, Angela
Lansbury
Genre: Comedy
Studio: 20th Century Fox
‘Buck’
(continued from page 25)
Jim Carrey (left) and a penguin
(Maxwell Perry Cotton), are fascinated and
delighted by their father’s new pets and new
attitude. The apartment may be freezing, but
Mr. Popper is thawing and becoming the dad
his father never was to him.
There are moments when he achieves
enough gravitas to sell his lingering angst over
his relationship with is father while keeping
the film funny and spirited.
And effects are successful as the penguins
dance, cavort and cause all sorts of trouble
without looking animated or enhanced with
CGI.
Clark Gregg, who pops up in films a lot
lately, plays a zookeeper bent on getting the
penguins in his hand. He and Gugino are the
closest thing to co-stars in this ensemble film,
but it’s an ensemble that’s solely just to support
Carrey. The rest of the cast is underused,
especially Angela Lansbury as a restaurant
owner who resists Popper’s overtures to buy
her property. Jeffrey Tambor, Phillip Baker
Hall and David Krumholtz appear as well, but
this is Carrey’s movie to, well, carry.
“Mr. Popper’s Penguins” manages to have
moments of tenderness and heart even while
being a formulaic comedy. Like the flightless
penguins, he doesn’t quite soar but the film
has a lot of laughs and a few warm smiles to
offer amidst all the ice. q
‘Cars 2’
(continued from page 25)
To be eligible for Two (2) admiT-Two passes, send a self-addressed, sTamped envelope To:
MATTHews-MINT HILL weekLy | ATTN: Zookeeper | 10100 pArk CedAr drIve, suITe 150 | CHArLoTTe, NC 28210
MATTHEWS-MINT HILL WEEkLy cANNoT guArANTEE THAT ALL ENTrIES WILL rEcEIvE A MovIE pASS, AS quANTITIES ArE LIMITEd.
oNE ENTry pEr HouSEHoLd. WHILE SuppLIES LAST. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.
ScrEENINg IS ovErbookEd To ENSurE cApAcITy. SEATINg IS NoT guArANTEEd. No pHoNE cALLS, pLEASE.
www.Zookeeper-Movie.com
in theateRs FRiday, JULy 8
Page 26 • June 24-30, 2011 • Matthews-Mint Hill Weekly
His knowledge and style of teaching have
garnered him many fans. One of those fans is
Robert Redford, who starred in and directed
“The Horse Whisperer.” He calls Brannaman
“The real deal.”
“He was able to do things that the hired
trainer couldn’t do,” Redford says.
Some people save all year to be able to attend
one of Brannaman’s clinics. There, they learn
how to see the horse as a creature with feelings
and intelligence. They learn how to see
themselves as an extension of the horse, and
vice-versa. Horseback riding should be more
mental than physical, Brannaman said.
Aside from the beautiful scenery in this
88-minute documentary, the real richness of
“Buck” lies in the lessons we see through this
window into the trainer’s career.
“If you don’t have any guts, if you don’t
have any ‘try,’ you’ll be lucky to be ordinary,”
he said.
“Buck” shows a man with an intriguing personal
story who’s anything but ordinary. Horse
lover or not, you’d do well to see him in action
in this film. q
connection behind the stories they bring to
life. “Cars 2” seems more like fabricating a
story and less like hanging out and telling one
the way its predecessors have.
Having said that, it’s still a beautiful film
to look at and the usual Pixar attention to
detail is in full order. The bad guys are Gremlins,
Yugos and Pacers, some of the more vilified
cars in automotive history. Every design
detail of every vehicle is fastidiously drawn
and the one-line jokes come fast, furious
and relentless. Unfortunately, Lasseter and
screenwriter Ben Queen fall a bit too much
in love with the one-liners and fail to avoid
the potty jokes that are the staple of lesser
films.
“Cars 2” is a heck of a ride, but not one
that values the notion of forgetting the destination
and focusing on the journey, which
was the charm of the original “Cars.” Given
Pixar’s track record for great sequels it’s a
bit of a surprise, but given Lasseter’s penchant
for making his films from personal
and heartfelt source material, perhaps it
shouldn’t be. q
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