March 27, 2009 - The Austin Chronicle

C ALE N D AR ( COMMUNITY SPORTS ARTS FILM MUSIC) L I STI NGSSiegfriedSiegfried (1924) D: Fritz Lang; with Gertrud Arnold, Margarete Schön,Hanna Ralph, Paul Richter, Theodor Loos. (NR, 100 min.) Movies and Music. Thefirst part of Lang’s Die Nibelungen epic will screen with a live musical accompanimentby the Calm Blue Sea. @Alamo Ritz, Sunday, 7pm.Audience of OneAudience of One (2007) D: Michael Jacobs. (NR, 88 min.) A Pentecostalpreacher receives a vision from God to make a biblical film epic. This documentary(which premiered at South by Southwest Film 07) follows him as he leadshis congregation in this grandiose endeavor that is underwritten with very littlebut faith. @Alamo Ritz, Monday-Tuesday, 7:30pm; Wednesday, 7:15pm.CONFESSIONS OF ASHOPAHOLIC D: P.J. Hogan; with Isla Fisher,Hugh Dancy, Krysten Ritter, Joan Cusack, John Goodman,John Lithgow, Kristin Scott Thomas, Robert Stanton, LeslieBibb, Julie Hagerty, Fred Armisen, Christine Ebersole,Wendie Malick, Lynn Redgrave, John Salley. (PG, 104 min.)The girl can’t help it: The shopaholic character,Rebecca Bloomwood (Fisher), may be the inventionof Sophie Kinsella’s bestselling novels, but onscreenthe character appears to be an immaculate conceptionborn of Bridget Jones and the ladies from Sexand the City. Many have rued the luck of Confessions’unfortunate release date, worrying that the film’scelebration of conspicuous consumption occursjust as our national consumption has fizzled intoanything but conspicuous. That’s hardly the problemwith Confessions of a Shopaholic, however. No, theproblem nipping at the designer heels of Confessionsis not the state of the economy but, rather, thefilm’s predictability. What distinguishes this moviefrom other interchangeable Renée Zellweger/KateHudson/Sandra Bullock career-girl rom-coms is theluminous presence of Isla Fisher. With her tiny frameand massive screen charisma, Fisher commands thisfilm with the akimbo aplomb of a seasoned screwballcomedienne. (02/20/2009) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★★■Barton Creek SquarewCORALINE D: Henry Selick; with the voices ofDakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Dawn French, JenniferSaunders, Ian McShane, John Hodgman, Robert Bailey Jr.,Keith David. (PG, 100 min.)Just as 3-D is heralded as the newest old trickin the cinema showman’s grab bag, along comesCoraline – the first animated stop-motion featureto be created in 3-D – to remind us that therecan be more than mere gimmickry in the soupedupimagery. Writer-director Selick (James and theGiant Peach and Tim Burton’s The Nightmare BeforeChristmas) again demonstrates his unparalleledmastery of the phantasmagoric image. Selickadapted Coraline for stop-motion screen puppetsfrom versatile author Neil Gaiman’s prize-winningyoung-adult novel. The storyline is a classic “grassis always greener” fable that perfectly reflects achild’s provenance of whims and fears. Particularlyat the end, when the ghosts of missing childrenenter the picture, Coraline may prove unsuitablymacabre for the youngest viewers. Yet your childrenand you are unlikely to see a film anytime soon thathas more of a handmade feel – a value unto itself.(02/06/2009) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★★★■Dobie, Tinseltown North, Tinseltown SouthTHE CURIOUS CASE OFBENJAMIN BUTTON D: David Fincher;with Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Julia Ormond, Taraji P.Henson, Tilda Swinton, Jason Flemyng, Jared Harris.(PG-13, 159 min.)It’s quite a feat, really, to have stretched F. ScottFitzgerald’s slender, unsentimental curio into athree-hour-long – very long – motion picture aboutBenjamin (Pitt), who is born with the arthritic creakof an old man and proceeds to age in reverse.Everything that was sharp in the original text hasbeen rounded and buffed; Fitzgerald’s cynical eyetoward humans’ fleeting attractions, and attractiveness,has been junked for a love story – you knowthe kind – that spans decades of rising hemlinesand missed opportunities. Screenwriter Eric Rothtransposes the action from antebellum Baltimore toArmistice Day in New Orleans (which accommodatesan ineffective framing story involving HurricaneKatrina). The problem with this kind of episodic (un)coming-of-age tale – as with Roth’s previous Oscarbait, Forrest Gump – is that too often, transitions,major life decisions, feel unmotivated. Fincher is amaster craftsman, to be sure, but I didn’t buy thisstory for a second. (12/26/2008) – Kimberley Jones★★ Movies 8DEFIANCE D: Edward Zwick; with Daniel Craig,Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, Alexa Davalos, Allan Corduner,Mark Feuerstein, Tomas Arana, Jodhi May. (R, 137 min.)Defiance is the true story of the Bielski family,three Jewish brothers who, in 1941, escaped intothe forest of their native Belarus to elude capture bythe Nazis, set up a small ad hoc village, and endedup saving more than 1,200 Jewish lives through daringrescue raids and armed resistance. The story,in other words, is pure Hollywood gold, full of opportunitiesfor stirring speeches, ethical quandaries,lessons about tolerance and humanity, and violenceagainst Nazis. Zwick (Glory, Blood Diamond) hasspent his entire career struggling to find the balancebetween opposing impulses – the sentimentalist’sdesire for emotional-historical heft and the artist’sfascination with conflicted humanity – a strugglethat’s all over Defiance. Standing in for the firstimpulse is composer James Newton Howard, whonever met a tender moment he didn’t want to choketo death, but representing the second, thankfully, areCraig and Schreiber, who are more interested in psychologicalambivalence than unblemished heroism.(01/16/2009) – Josh Rosenblatt★★★ Tinseltown SouthDOUBT D: John Patrick Shanley; with Meryl Streep,Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis,Joseph Foster II. (PG-13, 104 min.)Shanley adapted his Pulitzer- and Tony Awardwinningplay, Doubt, for the movies and also choseto direct the film. The cast he gathered is peerless,but unfortunately, the actors don’t all behave asthough they’re performing in the same movie. Acollection of acting styles, from the broad to thecontained and the exacting to the unrestrained,creates an unevenness of tone and interpretation.Streep plays Sister Aloysius, the unwavering principalof the St. Nicholas school, into whose dominioncomes the new young priest, Father Flynn (Hoffman).The ensuing struggle between the two over moralityand power carries with it all the baggage of Catholictradition and hierarchy, as well as the period’s secularstrife between men and women. It’s a cerebraltug-of-war for the viewer, a struggle that’s made onlymore opaque with the film’s closing line of dialogue.Meanwhile, storms suddenly stir up outside, andlightbulbs repeatedly burst in Shanley’s effort tocinematically underline the pent-up emotions within.(12/26/2008) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★ ArborDUPLICITY D: Tony Gilroy; with Clive Owen, JuliaRoberts, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Giamatti, Denis O’Hare,Thomas McCarthy. (PG-13, 125 min.)A longtime screenwriter of lean and mean actioners,such as the Bourne trilogy, who made hisdirectorial debut with 2007’s terrifically malevolentMichael Clayton, Gilroy is still trafficking in schemingand double-dealing, but he makes a bid here forsomething brighter, in the wink-and-a-smile traditionof Ocean’s Eleven or Out of Sight. Owen is a very fineactor, but when stripped of his signature menace,he has a slack, dopey look about him. He plays RayKoval, an MI6 agent who butts heads with a CIA opnamed Claire Stenwick (Roberts, with whom Owenshad more compelling chemistry in Mike Nichols’acidic Closer). The overlong film plays fast and loosewith timelines, so I will say very little about the plotitself. Gilroy zings the film with tantalizing bits of82 T H E A U S T I N C H R O N I C L E MARCH 27, 2009 a u s t i n c h r o n i c l e . c o mabsurdity, but too often he returns to his darker,more ponderous instincts, which has an enervatingeffect on a film that lives and dies by its fleetness offoot. (03/20/2009)– Kimberley Jones★★★■Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek, Alamo DrafthouseVillage, Barton Creek Square, CM Cedar Park, HillCountry Galleria, CM Round Rock, Southpark Meadows,Highland, Gateway, Metropolitan, Tinseltown North,WestgatewGRAN TORINO D: Clint Eastwood; with ClintEastwood, Bee Vang, Ahney Her, Christopher Carley,John Carroll Lynch. (R, 116 min.)Nick Schenk’s Gran Torino screenplay wasn’twritten with Eastwood in mind as the film’s starand director, but you’d never guess that was thecase, so comfortably does the film fit the laudedfilmmaker and icon’s public persona and body ofwork. Eastwood’s performance as Walt Kowalskiperfectly caps his long career as an actor. As director,Eastwood’s usual economical yet efficaciousstyle marks the film, but it is his performance thatis really the heart of this show. Still lithe and tautin his movement, Eastwood nevertheless allows hisaging body to sag in places and fail him on occasion.Eastwood also finds the humorous aspects of thecharacter – heard often in the instinctive growl thecharacter directs toward all annoyances, be they hisown money-grubbing family members, gangbangers,or the neighborhood priest. Eastwood plans to goon making more movies, but it’s doubtful any will beas satisfying a career culmination as Gran Torino.(01/09/2009) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★★★ Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek, TinseltownSouthTHE GREAT BUCK HOWARD D: SeanMcGinly; with Colin Hanks, John Malkovich, Emily Blunt,Ricky Jay, Tom Hanks, Steve Zahn. (PG, 90 min.)Disillusioned with law school, Troy Gabel (ColinHanks) drops out to become a writer but takes apaying job as the assistant to the has-been mentalistBuck Howard (Malkovich). Thus begins thisyoung man’s coming-of-age story, a pale journeymade even more flimsy when compared with theintriguing life history of his idiosyncratic employer.Malkovich’s performance in this small film is one ofcontrolled eccentricity, and the character’s offbeatcharm and ineffable oddness add another triumphto the actor’s pantheon of weirdos. The greatestproblem with The Great Buck Howard is that writer/director McGinly shapes the story with young Troyas the protagonist, when the really interestingcharacter is the one for whom the movie is named.Unfortunately, Malkovich’s commanding performancealso accentuates the limits of young Hanks’ actingskills. Troy’s voiceover narration recurringlyinterrupts the film’s enjoyment while it points outlife lessons. Despite the drawbacks, however, TheGreat Buck Howard puts on an unforgettable show.(03/20/2009) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★★■Alamo Drafthouse SouthJust Not That Into You charts a loose constellationof Baltimore residents as they date, marry, breakup, and make up. (Remember The Wire’s ethnicallydiverse, rough-and-tumble take on the town?Welcome to the Bizarro Baltimore, populated bythe White and Whining.) There’s some funny stuffhere that doesn’t involve degrading its female protagonists,and the cast, by and large, is appealing(especially the nicely dry Aniston and Goodwin, whohas the eyes of a mischief-maker). But for everygenuine moment of relationship insight the scriptproffers (and there are a few nuggets of gold), thereare another five wincing examples of female delusionand hysteria. And how come none of these womenappears to have anything to talk about other thanhow to get a man? These are funny, smart, goodlookinggals. Forget getting the man; work on gettinga life. (02/13/2009)– Kimberley Jones★★ Barton Creek Square, Tinseltown SouthI LOVE YOU, MAN D: John Hamburg; withPaul Rudd, Jason Segel, Rashida Jones, Jaime Pressly,Jon Favreau, Jane Curtin, J.K. Simmons, Andy Samberg. (R,105 min.)Looking back a few years from now, we might seethe release of I Love You, Man as the tipping pointof the Golden Age of Bromance, the moment whena trend became a formula, when inspiration becameimitation, and when avid fans became a target demographic.Bromance pioneer Rudd plays Peter Klaven,a real-estate agent living in Los Angeles who seemsto have everything: good looks, a good job, a greatapartment, and a beautiful fiancée (Jones). What hedoesn’t have is male friends. So off he goes to finda best friend and a best man. The joke is that courtingmen for platonic relationships is really no differentthan courting women for romantic ones. In theend, you’ll fall for a guy like Sydney Fife (Segel), whoembodies all the raw, unfettered maleness you’vebeen missing in your metrosexual, monogamous littlelife. (03/20/2009)– Josh Rosenblatt★★ Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek, Alamo DrafthouseSouth, Barton Creek Square, CM Cedar Park, HillCountry Galleria, CM Round Rock, Southpark Meadows,Highland, Gateway, Lakeline, Tinseltown North,Tinseltown South, WestgateLAST CHANCE HARVEY D: JoelHopkins; with Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, EileenAtkins, Kathy Baker, Liane Balaban, James Brolin, RichardSchiff. (PG-13, 99 min.)There’s about a 20-year age difference betweenHarvey (Hoffman) and Kate (Thompson), and he’sa Yank, and she’s a Brit, but otherwise, they aresolidly middle-aged characters who meet and enjoyeach other’s company over the course of a day andthen mutually grab on to what seems to each likea last chance for love. With its thin plot and itstitle character an American abroad in London, LastChance Harvey comes across as something like aBefore Sunrise for the less-than-nubile set. Werethat writer/director Hopkins’ dialogue and visualizationas scintillating as Richard Linklater’s is in hisSunrise/Sunset romances. Of course, the combinedacting brilliance of Hoffman and Thompson couldelevate the hoariest of clichés and turn almostanything they touch golden – and that is most oftenthe case with Last Chance Harvey. These two provea pleasure to watch in tandem, and their work iscomplemented by an outstanding supporting cast.(01/16/2009) – Marjorie Baumgarten★★★■Movies 8HE’S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOUD: Ken Kwapis; with Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore,Ben Affleck, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jennifer Connelly, ScarlettJohansson, Justin Long, Bradley Cooper, Kevin Connolly.THE(PG-13, 129 min.)LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFTD: Dennis Iliadis; with Garret Dillahunt, Monica Potter,Adapted by Abby Kohn and Marc Silversteinfrom the bestselling book of the same name, He’sTony Goldwyn, Sara Paxton, Martha MacIsaac. (R, 109 min.)Although Wes Craven’s 1972 The Last House onthe Left presented familial vengeance as proxy forVietnam outrage, Iliadis’ remake is more concernedwith cranking out suspense by the dollop (whichoften works), and upper-middle-class moralizing(which doesn’t work at all). The script hews fairly