Secret Agent Gal Movie Reviews

The Insider: Russell Crowe fights Big Tobacco in real-life thriller *****

 

A whistleblower (Russell Crowe) forces Big Tobacco to reveal the dangers of cigarette smoking in the fact-based thriller The Insider (1999).

With non-stop suspense, the film follows tobacco scientist Jeffrey Wigand (Crowe) and CBS news producer Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino) as they create a 60 Minutes expose. Wigand faces death threats and loses his job and family. Bergman challenges the network and legendary newsman Mike Wallace (Christopher Plummer) to air the segment despite litigation.

Director Michael Mann’s film is in the spotlight this week as five tobacco companies filed a lawsuit in federal court Tuesday. They are challenging part of the 2009 law which imposed federal regulations on the tobacco industry. The F.D.A. has mandated that they print graphic warning images on cigarette packages as of September 2012.

The Insider is an iconic look at American journalism. Like All the President’s Men (1976), it explores moral dilemmas in journalism and in life with outstanding character development and pacing. The relationship between a journalist and his source is intimately explored.

Wigand reluctantly tells his story and is sued by Big Tobacco for breaking a confidentiality agreement. Bergman assures Wigand that he is making a tremendous difference by speaking out. According to HealthNews.com, “Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mixture of more than 7,000 chemicals and compounds, of which hundreds are toxic and at least 70 cause cancer. Smoking causes more than 85 percent of lung cancers. . . . One in three cancer deaths in the U.S. is tobacco-related.”

A whistleblower on the edge of nervous exhaustion, Wigand cannot ignore the serious public health hazard. Before speaking with Bergman he warns a tobacco company executive about “ammonia chemistry.” He’s incredulous when the company chooses profit over safety.

Crowe’s acting is raw and fully dimensional, foreshadowing his Oscar-nominated portrayal of Dr. John Nash in A Beautiful Mind (2001). Wigand loses virtually everything: his career, his reputation, his wife and children, and his home.

Crowe becomes the consummate hero as The Insider never flinches from looking at personal agony and danger. Wigand rails against Bergman. “I have to put my family's welfare on the line here, my friend! And what are you puttin' up? You're puttin' up words!” he shouts.

 

Pacino is a pit bull here as Bergman fights to air the 60 Minutes interview. “You pay me to go get guys like Wigand, to draw him out. To get him to trust us, to get him to go on television. I do. I deliver him. He sits. He talks. . . . Is it newsworthy? Yes. Are we gonna air it? Of course not. Why? Because he's not telling the truth? No. Because he is telling the truth.”

Privately, Bergman worries that his source has sacrificed in vain. His wife (Lindsay Crouse) prompts him to re-examine his personal and professional values. Forced to take a leave from work, Bergman walks along the beach near his vacation home. Ocean waves roll in. It’s a timeless image of a man with all the perks of success pausing to breathe and re-evaluate his career. This is one of Pacino’s many memorable characters, reminiscent of Lt. Vincent Hanna in Heat (1995) and Arthur Kirkland in … And Justice for All (1979).

Plummer portrays Mike Wallace as ego-driven and power-hungry, a journalist whose will to investigate powerful special interests is compromised. Plummer conveys charisma and gravitas as the 60 Minutes star. Wallace objected to how he was portrayed when the film was released.

Diane Venora (who played Al Pacino’s wife Justine in Heat), gives a brief but moving performance as Liane Wigand. Philip Baker Hall plays legendary investigative journalist turned CBS executive producer Don Hewitt. Hewitt died in 2009.

Finally the full interview appears on 60 Minutes, but only after The New York Times reveals CBS’ financial motives to suppress the story. The Wall Street Journal clears Wigand’s name after a tobacco industry smear campaign. Wigand reveals that the manipulation of ammonia causes addiction as nicotine is more rapidly absorbed into the lung. This boosts its affects on the brain and central nervous system, he said.

Mann wrote the excellent screenplay with Eric Roth. Dante Spinotti’s cinematography is superb, especially during a scene where a suicidal Wigand sits alone in a hotel room. In a panoramic shot, the mural-covered walls swirl around the hero. Music is used as dialogue to convey deeper meanings.

The Insider was nominated for seven Oscars including Best Picture, Best Actor (Crowe) and Best Director. Wigand went on to teach high school science and was nationally recognized for his work in the classroom. Bergman became a producer for the PBS show Frontline. He’s also a professor at the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley.

If you like The Insider, you might enjoy: Page One: Inside the New York Times; The Soloist.

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The Insider     1999  /  R  /  2 hours, 35 min

Cast Overview:  Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, Christopher Plummer, Michael Gambon, Diane Venora, Bruce McGill, Philip Baker Hall, Lindsay Crouse, Gina Gershon

Director:  Michael Mann

Genre:  Thriller, Drama, Biography

 

The Help: women speak out, cross color lines in Deep South drama ****1/2

 

Women unite when a black maid (Viola Davis) tells her story to a young, white journalist (Emma Stone) in The Help, a drama set in 1960’s Jackson, Mississippi. Based on Kathryn Stockett’s novel of the same name, Tate Taylor’s film is made vivid by an impressive, diverse female ensemble cast.

The Help looks selectively at the segregation era in the Deep South, stepping gingerly around the land mines of racial hatred and violence. While wife beating is mentioned, and the assassination of civil rights activist Medgar Evers is reported on television, this film is about women: boss ladies and maids, saints and sinners, competitors and collaborators. Among them are quiet leaders.   

Oscar-worthy performances abound. These movie legends and young talents clearly cared about the project and shared a rapport that is evident on-screen. Taylor, who adapted the screenplay, employs a lively pace and an upbeat tone even as anger ferments. He takes a big risk by using humor to upend fear and separation.

The maids earn 95 cents per hour with no Social Security benefits. The boss ladies live in beautiful mansions, play cards and gossip as the help raise their children and do the housework.  

Aibileen Clark (Davis) first agrees to help Skeeter Phelan (Stone) with her housekeeping column for the Jackson Journal. When Skeeter tells her she’s writing a book from the perspective of black women, Aibileen is speechless. Stone (Easy A) is outstanding as an earnest young reporter who remains true to herself. Allison Janney plays Skeeter’s anxious mother. Mary Steenburgen plays a profit-minded publisher.

 
 
 
Aibileen’s wisdom has been honed by indignity and tragedy. A writer at heart, she journals every night. Skeeter travels secretly to Aibileen’s kitchen to interview her for the controversial book. Aibileen can barely speak about her own son, who died after he was denied prompt medical attention following a work accident.

Oscar nominated for her supporting role in Doubt, Davis captures the soul of understatement. Aibileen is stoic and polite, a churchgoer who genuinely lives by Christian principles. Her best friend Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) speaks out loudly. “We livin’ in hell,” she tells Skeeter. “Trapped.” Spencer delivers a breakout performance.

Minny’s boss Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard, bracing and relentless here) is crusading for a Home Health Sanitation Initiative. Blacks are ordered to use separate, outdoor bathrooms where they work. When Minny dares break the rule out of necessity, she’s promptly fired. She has no choice but to work for the town’s social outcast Celia Foote (Jessica Chastain, marvelously batty in this role). Chastain and Spencer forge a fascinating dynamic of respect and momentary equality. Sissy Spacek plays Miss Hilly’s senile, defiant mother. Cicely Tyson is regal as Skeeter’s mammy Constantine.

There’s a “Real Housewives of Jackson” feel to The Help that’s soon transcended. Aibileen’s voice is central. “No one ever asked me what it feeled like to be me. Once I told the truth about that I felt free.” When Elizabeth (Ahna O’Reilly) scolds her daughter harshly, Aibileen has the girl repeat a positive message that just might sustain her: “You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”

"I know those women,” Viola Davis told ComingSoon.net. “Those women are very specific in my history. My aunt Joyce, my mom May Alice, my grandmother . . . . I didn't even have to search. I could just have emotional recall."

The Help ends on several feel-good notes. When a crisis rocks the community, a host of women step forward to share their stories. This is the film’s transformative moment. Social change begins where it always must: within each of us.

 If you like The Help, you might enjoy:  Precious; The Blind Side.

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The Help     2011  /  PG-13 /  2 hours, 17 min

Cast Overview:  Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Allison Janney, Chris Lowell, Sissy Spacek, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Cicely Tyson, Mike Vogel, Anna Camp, Aunjanue Ellis, Mary Steenburgen, Ahna O’Reilly, Eleanor Henry, Emma Henry

Director:  Tate Taylor

Genre:  Drama, Period Piece

 

Missing Pieces: Mark Boone Junior kidnaps his way to love ****

 

Kidnapping meets romance in the indie psychological drama Missing Pieces. Director Kenton Bartlett’s feature debut asks big questions and answers them with mind-bending originality. I want to feel something real. I want to feel happy. Why is this happening? It's now streaming online.

Missing Pieces investigates the brink of wholeness. Impressively crafted on a low budget, it’s a tale of dissolution and survival, a sly mix of Criminal Minds and the spiritual genre.

Mark Boone Junior (Memento; Batman Begins; Sons of Anarchy) is fascinating as David Lindale, a man whose life implodes after a head injury. With his mind and emotions fractured, he poignantly struggles to win back his exasperated ex-girlfriend Delia Greenly (Melora Walters). Soon his actions take a disturbing turn.

David seems gentle, but we don’t know what he’s capable of. Recovering from an accident, he has stopped taking his medication. While making his rounds as a delivery man, David meets Maggie Anderson (Taylor Engel) and Daylen Gordon (Daniel Hassel). With the sure insight of a damaged human being, he immediately recognizes that the two are missing pieces of their lives, too.

Using sparse, strong dialogue, Bartlett (who also wrote and produced the film) weaves in excerpts from a self-help tape. These represent David’s efforts to heal and to reclaim his life. The effect succeeds with preachy truisms like, “The only way to be happy is right here in this moment.” Loneliness becomes tangible.

David devises a plan: observe love. The world becomes his laboratory. If he can isolate two people and provide them with the right questions and instructions, can he reproduce the formula for happiness and love? Boone Junior reveals the monster within all of us.

Constant cuts to different lives and characters obscure the narrative. The logistics behind David’s grand experiment stretch belief. The harrowing journey runs a bit too long. Still this is a film worth seeing for its rich storytelling, challenging and original premise, and compassionate vision.

 

A turning point is reached when David realizes, “I need to give more.” He approaches Delia again.

Boone Junior creates an arresting portrait of despair and hope that anchors the film. Walters (Boogie Nights; Magnolia; Big Love) convinces as an aggravated woman who knows when it’s time to give up. Engel and Hassel debut with fine performances as Maggie and Daylen discover themselves and each other under extreme conditions.

Cinematographer Jonathan Arturo uses the camera in a full, free way that captures small, personal worlds in the context of sweeping, natural landscapes. Longing, fear and anger are evoked with a beautiful, understated color palette. Several scenes come to life like Andrew Wyeth paintings. Filmed primarily in Birmingham, Alabama, Missing Pieces was also shot in Colorado, South Dakota and Utah.                 

Richey Rynkowski (orchestrator assistant on Black Swan) creates original music that resonates and adds dimensionality.

Missing Pieces is a cry from the depths, a demand for answers from a seemingly indifferent Universe, a creepy trek towards self-actualization and love.

 If you like Missing Pieces, you might enjoy:  The Ledge; The Perfect Host; The Tree of Life.

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Missing Pieces     2011  /  NR /  1 hour, 57 min.

Cast Overview:  Mark Boone Jr., Melora Walters, Daniel Hassel, Taylor Engel

Director:  Kenton Bartlett

Genre:  Indie, Psychological Drama, Suspense

Captain America: The First Avenger ***

 

Imagine a stirring marvel comics movie where a violent bully breaks away from his boss Hitler and threatens the entire free world. A scrawny, heroic American boy risks his life in a secret experiment. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) emerges a muscular Mr. Universe with superhero powers. His mission: to track down the demonic Red Skull (Hugo Weaving).

Now imagine watching the entire movie wearing dark shades. Captain America: The First Avenger, sets up next year’s comic book feature The Avengers.

The story is exciting at first. World War II is underway. Hitler wins victory after victory. Rogers, a gaunt asthmatic with a brave spirit, is turned down by the Army. He applies again and again. When research scientist and former Nazi Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci, fascinating here) spies Rogers at the World’s Fair in Queens, New York, he sees great potential.

“Do you want to kill Nazis?” Erskine asks Rogers. “I don’t want to kill anyone,” Rogers replies. “I don’t like bullies.” The scientist recruits him for a top-secret training program. Rogers will become the first of a new breed of super soldiers. “Why me?” Rogers asks. A weak man knows compassion, Erskine tells him. Skeptical Col. Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones, very good here) must admit that lightweight Rogers has loads of bravery and character.

A gray pall covers the entire 2-D version of Captain America. The movie is so visually dull that its story grows lackluster. Reviewers who saw the 3-D version have complained about an even darker effect. Too bad director Joe Johnston didn’t take a cue from Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight), who married noir with occasional daylight. Johnston’s film isn’t noir, though. It’s just gray.

 

Transformation is overshadowed by special effects. Captain America loses energy in its second half. Repetitive action, stiff formality and a disconnected feeling among cast members don’t help. Oh, for the heart and pizzazz of Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man! Absent is the rich character and interpersonal sparring of the X-Men: First Class!

Johnston (Jumanji; Jurassic Park III; October Sky) could have filmed Captain America in black and white. This would have been more interesting and lively. He does capture beautiful 1940’s detail here.

In emphasizing period detail and computer-generated effects, the director neglects character development. Often lacking are the complexities of authentic interpersonal tension (achieved so well in X-Men: First Class). The rapport between Evans and his love interest, training officer Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), feels forced and underdeveloped.

Evans creates a strong, brave, soft-spoken hero (combining shades of Superman and Clark Kent). Sebastian Stan plays his best friend Bucky Barnes. Weaving (Agent Smith in The Matrix trilogy) is fun to watch as dastardly Red Skull, a power-hungry villain almost incoherent with hatred.

Red Skull is backed by an army of robo-soldiers who make up the Nazi research group Hydra. “Hail, Hydra!” they cry. “If you cut off one head, many will grow it its place,” a dying spy warns Captain America.        

A twisted reference to the tree of life symbol (a tree that joins heaven and earth) is shown as an invasive, sinister “Tree of the World” emblem for Hydra.

Why mask the red, white and blue with unrelenting gray? The choice reflects America’s widespread national cynicism. A languishing economy, natural disasters and terrorist acts have made such cynicism popular. Captain America is doing extremely well at the box office.

Promising inspiration, Captain America doesn’t deliver. Thankfully, this marvel comics movie ends with a dash of hope. Samuel L. Jackson reminds us that this tale merely sets up the future adventures of The Avengers (2012). Starring will be Evans, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Jackson as Nick Fury, and many more. The Avengers is being directed by Joss Whedon.

If you like Captain America, you might enjoy:  X-Men: First Class; Thor; Iron Man 2.

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Captain America     2011  /  PG-13  /  2 hours, 4 min

Cast Overview:  Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Toby Jones, Neal McDonough, Derek Luke, Ken Choi, Stanley Tucci

Director:  Joe Johnston 

Genre:  Comic Book, Adventure, Fantasy

 

A Better Life ****1/2

 
 

A gang-bound son explores honor with his illegal dad in Chris Weitz’s drama A Better Life. In a rare drama told from the blue collar perspective, Demian Bichir is outstanding as Carlos Galindo, a Mexican illegal in East Los Angeles.

The best actors convey much with their eyes, facial expressions and movements. Bichir (Che; Weeds) paints desperation, patience, wisdom and confusion. From these contradictions emerges a decent and hard-working gardener who lives in the United States illegally. Frequent close-ups of Bichir propel the drama.

In his day-in-the-life existence, Carlos works long hours and sleeps on the couch. He shares a few minutes of quality time with his son Luis (Jose Julian). The man lives to work, scarcely realizing when it’s Saturday. Carlos wears the same jacket throughout the movie, but he is clean. Their meals aren’t homemade, but they are filling. Luis’ mother is gone, but it’s not until late in the film that her absence is explained.

Luis shows growing interest in the gang members he meets at school. His girlfriend Ruthie (Chelsea Rendon) is related to a few of them. Since his father has little money for Luis’ needs, the gangs’ wealth and social standing are enticing. An early death in the streets is sure to come with that wealth. Weitz portrays the gang members as human and even cautious about recruiting Luis.

Julian gives an excellent, understated performance, especially during a scene in a police station where his future seems inevitable. When Luis gets suspended it’s “no biggie,” he tells his father. The boy considers making a wrong choice for the right reasons just as his father did.  

Weitz shows an America of the affluent who are happy to look the other way and employ reasonably priced yard workers (who happen to be uninsured). Carlos and Luis seem invisible in society-at-large. In one scene Carlos rides home from work, surveying many cultures and ages mingling on the L.A. sidewalks. His sense of belonging and his isolation are palpable.

 
 

Contemporary American features often show immigrants in moral struggles.  Ben Kingsley gave a powerhouse performance as an Iranian suburbanite in House of Sand and Fog. In The Godfather, Part II, Robert De Niro plays Vito Corleone, a Sicilian immigrant in New York City’s Little Italy. Ramin Bahrani expertly explores moral complexity. In Man Push Cart, a former rock star from Pakistan becomes a coffee cart vendor in New York City. In Goodbye Solo, a Senegalese immigrant attempts to dissuade an old man intent on jumping to his death.

Prosperity drives these characters. Carlos’ turning point comes when his friend insists that he buy a truck which he cannot afford. Carlos doesn’t even have a driver’s license. A truck is a necessity though. Without it, he must wait for hours in a crowd to compete for day jobs. Carlos finally appeals to his sister, who raids her family’s savings on his promise to make good, succeed and repay her someday.

When the truck is stolen, honor and future are at stake. In one very uneasy scene, Carlos gazes mutely at a police officer, unable to ask for help. The emergency gives father and son a chance to bond. How Carlos pursues the thief demonstrates a gentle fairness. Gabriel Chavarria plays Ramon.

A Better Life is a pleasant surprise coming from Weitz, who is known for mediocre The Twilight Saga: New Moon. Weitz also directed About a Boy with his brother Paul.

The film’s predictable ending gives a sense of “huddled masses,” a seemingly endless stream of people who head to America to improve their chances and their children’s opportunities. Eric Eason wrote the script based on a story by Roger L. Simon.

The socio-political story is simplified here. Weitz sidesteps hot button issues including controversial state measures to punish Mexican illegals. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but Weitz could have reached for even more in this film. Certainly his cast was capable of handling it.

If you like A Better Life, you might enjoy:  Goodbye Solo; Man Push Cart; Welcome.

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A Better Life    2011  /  PG-13  /  1 hour, 38 min

Cast Overview:  Demian Bichir, Jose Julian, Dolores Heredia, Joaquin Cosio, Chelsea Rendon, Nancy Lenehan, Tim Griffin, Gabriel Chavarria

Director:  Chris Weitz

Genre:  Drama

 

The Double Hour ****

 

When a hotel maid sees a guest leap to her death, her own identity fractures in the romantic thriller The Double Hour (La Doppia Ora). Giuseppe Capotondi's first feature film flashes back and forward with shadowy twists and genuine passions that dovetail perfectly.

Known for his music videos, Capotondi expertly crafts intrigue in the tradition of Hitchcock, Scorsese and Polanski. He’s a director to watch as he joins a new generation of psychological thrill-weavers including the Coen brothers, Christopher Nolan, Juan Jose Campanella and David Fincher.

A robbery. A coma. An old priest. A red bedspread. The action unfolds in Turin, Italy, yet it’s already happened. The future is uncertain – or is it? The director creates a landscape of furtive glances, secrets, lies and surprises. Vivid recollections may be real – or not. There is violence, but the film does not rely on it. Suspense is based firmly on direction, acting and editing. By the final scene, it all makes sense.

Russian actress Ksenia Rappoport achingly portrays Sonia, the hotel maid who goes speed-dating to forget the grisly suicide she witnessed. Guido (Filippo Timi of Vincere), a widowed, former cop now running security at a secluded mansion, is the last man she meets that night. He’s handsome, soft-spoken and honest, a far cry from the others. The two continue their conversation in an evening stroll along the riverfront. Both Rappoport and Timi won awards at the 2009 Venice Film Festival for their stirring, enigmatic performances.

 

A double hour, Guido tells Sonia, is the moment when hour and minute are identical. When a digital clock at the opulent mansion displays 23:23, Guido praises that magical time when wishes can be made and granted. As the plot unravels, several double hours mark turning points for the pair.

Capotondi cleverly manipulates man-made and naturalistic details to build suspense. Guido shows Sonia the long-distance mic that he uses to detect intruders. He has recorded afternoons of bird song at the estate too. Guido offers to create a relaxing, sensuous DVD just for Sonia.

Lending fascination are Antonia Truppo as Sonia’s co-worker and friend Margherita; Giorgio Colangeli as the old priest; Gaetano Bruno as the thug Riccardo, and Michele Di Mauro as persistent detective Dante.

The Double Hour was filmed on location in Carmagnola, Turin and the Piedmont region of Italy.

Outstanding writing by the team of Alessandro Fabbri, Ludovica Rampoldi and Stefano Sardo makes The Double Hour a modest gem where everyday life holds drama and yearning. Guido Notari contributes superb editing.

If you like The Double Hour, you might enjoy:  Shutter Island; The Ghost Writer; The Secret in Their Eyes.

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The Double Hour     2009  /  NR  /  2 hours, 18 min

Cast Overview:  Ksenia Rappoport, Filippo Timi, Antonia Truppo, Gaetano Bruno, Fausto Russo Alesi, Michele Di Mauro, Lucia Poli, Giorgio Colangeli

Director:  Giuseppe Capotondi

Genre:  Thriller, Crime Thriller, Romance, Mystery, Foreign Film

Language: Italian with English subtitles

The Perfect Host ****1/2

 

Do we ever really know someone? Emmy and Tony Award winner David Hyde Pierce stars in a twisty, stylish crime thriller The Perfect Host, now playing on demand before it opens in theaters. Aussie director-writer Nick Tomnay’s fascinating romp explores misleading appearances and the jagged edges of personal psychology.

Hyde Pierce powers the low budget film’s comedic horror, showing the full range of his incredible acting talent. Best known as neurotic, ever-frustrated Dr. Niles Crane on television’s Fraiser series, Pierce (Nixon, Full Frontal, Spamalot and Curtains) is nice and oh-so-naughty here, transcending metrosexuality as he plays Warwick Wilson, a refined gay man throwing a dinner party.

Just as Niles desperately seeks the love of Daphne, Warwick burns for unconditional affirmation of his own worthiness. “Love me. Love me,” he says during a kinky scene.

Premiering at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, The Perfect Host is a chess game of moves and countermoves. The story turns surreal in a posh, Los Angeles suburban home. The straightforward is suddenly turned on its head. We’re challenged to decide what’s real and what’s illusion. Survival is at stake as “every action has an equal and opposite reaction.”

Also excellent is Clayne Crawford (A Walk to Remember, 24) as John Taylor, an unlucky bank robber on the lam who rings Warwick’s doorbell. John steals a postcard from Warwick’s mailbox, pretending to be a friend of a friend. The crook is in for the surprise of his life. Crawford deepens his character with surprising humanity.

The first plot twist leads to surprising revelations about Warwick, John and Simone (Megahn Perry), the bank robber’s girlfriend. As characters veer into the unexpected, Tomnay skillfully keeps the Hitchcock-like action on track in this darkly funny exploration of human idiosyncrasy.

John Swihart’s original score suits the movie’s many moods and adds to the fun.

 

Grammy winner Helen Reddy, who topped the Billboard charts in 1972 with her women’s lib tune I Am Woman, delivers a strong supporting role as Mrs. Knight, Warwick’s concerned neighbor. Also starring are Nathaniel Parker as Detective Morton, and Joseph Will as Detective Valdez. Morton wants to take a cold case one step further.

The Perfect Host (on Twitter @perfecthost) turns into a who’s who of crime and punishment. Based on Tomnay’s short film The Host, it maintains edgy action and bizarre fascination until the very end.

If you like The Perfect Host, you might enjoy: Shutter Island; The Ghost Writer.

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The Perfect Host     2011  /  R  /  1 hour, 34 min

Cast Overview:  David Hyde Pierce, Clayne Crawford, Helen Reddy, Nathaniel Parker, Megahn Perry, Joseph Will, Tyrees Allen, Annie Campbell, Indira G. Wilson, Cooper Barnes

Director:  Nick Tomnay

Genre:  Thriller, Suspense, Indie

X-Men: First Class *****

 

Calling young mutants everywhere: We need you. Please save our world. Matthew Vaughn’s masterpiece of comic book action, drama and history X-Men: First Class champions being different, proud and loud. It's livelier than its predecessors The Last Stand and Wolverine.

On par with Batman and Superman, this smart, exciting prequel is an instant classic. It captures the spirit and scope of the original Marvel Comics with big talent, engaging story, sci-fi elements and James Bond-like espionage. Vaughn displays his Kick-Ass flair as the X-Men exercise mutant powers.

Freaks as valuable members of society is a major theme throughout the film. Outsiders are the ones who can see beyond the petty, dangerous wars of men. They are the true heroes of humanity. The new X-Men must learn to accept themselves fully to unlock that awesome power. 

Globe trotting, can’t-look-away action is expertly woven around larger-than-life characters. This stylish summer blockbuster has a timeless quality, with action that seems like it's happening today rather than during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

James McAvoy as humanitarian genius Professor X/Charles Xavier and Michael Fassbender as obsessed revenge seeker Magneto/ Erik Lehnsherr headline with an uneasy bromance. They’re the mutant granddaddies who lead and guide a hand-picked crew of young superpowers to battle mutant Nazi megalomaniac Sebastian Shaw/Dr. Schmidt (Kevin Bacon, better than ever).

Professor X's telepathy has given him empathy and a concern for humanity. X-Men have a responsibility to  be better than humans, using their powers to prevent catastrophe and also to lead men on the path of peace and justice. Magneto's rivalry with Professor X arises from his thirst for revenge. He'd rather be right than be happy.

Years after executing Erik's mother, Shaw is now a world threat who wants to exploit Cold War tensions to spark nuclear annihilation. Erik must stop him. “Let’s just say I’m Frankenstein’s monster and I’m looking for my creator,” he says. Bacon has played evildoers before, most notably a child molester in The Woodsman.

Charles teaches his friend to tap into authentic might. “True focus lies somewhere between rage and serenity,” he says. Erik eventually joins forces with Charles and the other X-Men to enhance his own powers.                

Sexpot Raven/Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) yearns to fit in with humans, hiding her lovely blue scales. Raven sneaks into Erik’s bed one evening. “You want society to accept you, but you can’t even accept yourself,” he chides. Nerdy scientist and Raven’s admirer Hank/Beast (Nicholas Hoult) enhances his freakishness in a botched lab experiment. Finally Raven gets it. “Society should aspire to be more like us.”

Rose Byrne plays adventurous CIA agent Moira MacTaggert who recruits Charles and Raven to join the agency’s new Division of Mutant Powers. Oliver Platt is perfect as a CIA special ops bigwig who must defer to Charles’ leadership if they stand any chance of stopping Shaw.

Rounding out the ensemble are January Jones as Shaw’s accomplice Emma Frost, a call girl and telepathic ice queen. Zoe Kravitz (Angel Salvadore/Wings) breaks a few hearts. Caleb Landry Jones (Cassidy/Banshee) rides ear-splitting sound waves. Jason Flemyng (Clash of the Titans) plays devilish Azazel. Lucas Till shows real leadership as Alex Summers/Havok. Alex Gonzalez plays soulful Janos Questad/Riptide. Edi Gathegi (Twilight) stands up to Shaw as Darwin/Armondo.

A funny cameo by one famous mutant bestows a back-handed blessing on the newest X-Men.

Top notch are John Mathieson’s cinematography, John Dykstra’s visual effects, Chris Seagers’ production design and Sammy Sheldon’s costumes.

If you like X-Men: First Class, you might enjoy:  Comic Book Movies.

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X-Men: First Class     2011  /  PG-13  /  2 hour, 10 min

Cast Overview:  James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, January Jones, Oliver Platt, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Zoe Kravitz, Jason Flemyng, Lucas Till, Caleb Landry Jones, Alex Gonzalez, Edi Gathegi

Director:  Matthew Vaughn

Genre:  Action, Adventure, SciFi, Fantasy, Comic Book

 

You Don't Know Jack ****

 

Dr. Jack Kevorkian: hero or criminal? “Dr. Death” died at 83 today of kidney and heart complications, renewing interest in the award-winning HBO biopic You Don’t Know Jack.

Al Pacino stars as the Michigan pathologist, a bespectacled eccentric who provides physician-assisted suicide to the terminally ill. Kevorkian is revealed as a complex, awkward man with a small circle of loyal friends and relatives. Pacino won both a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his performance.

Kevorkian’s ambition to make his mark on medicine drove him. He had no time for socializing and casual conversation. He insisted on helping others in his own way. The doctor is shown assembling a ghoulish “mercitron” device from scrounged parts that would allow patients to initiate their own deaths.  

Grim and direct, You Don’t Know Jack delves into the fearful minutes before death again and again. Survivors are overcome with grief. Overall, Kevorkian helps 130 patients with cancer, multiple sclerosis and Lou Gehrig’s Disease to take their own lives. In one of the most dramatic moments of the film, family members change their minds in the midst of a suicide procedure. Kevorkian frantically detaches the contraption from the dying woman.

Helmed by accomplished Barry Levinson (Diner; Rain Man), You Don’t Know Jack takes no side in the controversial debate over physician-assisted suicide. Instead Pacino shows us zeal and stubbornness. Kevorkian’s warmth is for ideas. His compassion for others is matter-of-fact. His arguments are serious, convincing and abrupt.

Adding a documentary-like quality, Levinson includes archival footage from Kevorkian’s controversial 1998 appearance on 60 Minutes, where he administered a lethal injection to Thomas Youk. "Somebody has to do something for suffering humanity,” he said. “I put myself in my patients' place. This is something I would want."

Kevorkian was convicted in 1999 of second-degree murder. He was released for good behavior in 2007 after serving part of a 10-to-25 year sentence. In the film Kevorkian justifies his crusade, saying "when the law is deemed immoral, you must disobey it, you must disobey it."  

The prestigious cast brings color to dour, determined Kevorkian. Susan Sarandon (Dead Man Walking) plays Janet Good, the head of the local Hemlock Society who becomes the doctor’s follower. Sarandon is known for her social and political activism.

Kevorkian enlists the help of his friend, scientific supplier Neal Nicol (John Goodman). Danny Huston plays the doctor’s outspoken attorney Geoffrey Fieger. Brenda Vaccaro adds fire as Kevorkian’s sister Margo Janus.

When Janet develops terminal cancer, Kevorkian does not bring up the topic of death until she does. For the first time since losing his mother he feels a terrible personal loss. As Janet begs him to open up, Kevorkian shows a few moments of vulnerability.

You Don’t Know Jack is an unforgettable portrait of a stubborn pioneer. Physician-assisted suicide is now permitted in Washington, Oregon and Montana.

If you like You Don’t Know Jack, you might enjoy:  Movies About Letting Go.

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You Don’t Know Jack     2010  /  R  /  1 hour, 39 min

Cast Overview:  Al Pacino, Susan Sarandon, Danny Huston, Brenda Vacarro, John Goodman

Director:  Barry Levinson

Genre:  Documentary, Drama, Biopic

 

13 Assassins *****

 

A ritual suicide opens the taut action thriller 13 Assassins. A man disembowels himself to draw attention to a barbaric killer who has been terrorizing the region. Who will be brave enough to take him on? Takashi Miike directs this stirring tale about the way of the samurai.

Lord Naritsugu (Goro Inagaki as a sadist with no conscience), is the Shogun’s half brother who’s about to assume more power.  Naritsugu rapes and kills for pleasure, hacking up bodies like a petulant child. He slaughters not just men, but whole families. With uncanny calmness he slices a husband in front of his wife. A severed head rolls across the floor.

A council of elders convenes and strategy is plotted. Bucking tradition, they summon a samurai leader to intervene and bring about peace. Shinzaemon Shimada (calmly authoritative Koji Yakusho of Shall We Dance?) is called out of retirement. A messenger finds him fishing, lost in contemplation and one with nature. There’s a sense of renewed purpose when the widower agrees to take up his sword again. He recruits a team of samurai to help him.

It was 1844, the end of Japan’s Edo period, a relatively peaceful time when samurai activities were strictly regulated. The waning samurai era is captured in gloomy, dark tones while 13 Assassins pays homage to the honor, daring and discipline of the men eager to sacrifice their lives for a noble cause. The limits of the samurai code, especially its unbreakable code of obedience to a master, are made clear.

Melding art and pop, Miike (Audition; Ichi the Killer; The Bird People in China) is a prolific director who has made 50 feature films over 20 years. This remake of Eiichi Kudo’s 1963 original is loosely based on historic events. Screenwriter Daisuke Tengan crafts outstanding dialogue and action.

Striving to recruit a worthy team, Shinzaemon visits a brothel to enlist his wayward nephew Shinrokuro (rising star Takayuki Yamada). Also joining the mission is handsome master warrior Hirayama (Tsuyoshi Ihara), and explosive experts Horii (Koen Kondo) and Higuchi (Yuma Ishigaki).

Staving off an attack from Naritsugu’s supporters, the group enters the deep forest to ambush him. Along the way they rescue Koyata (Yusuke Iseya), a forest hunter who had been left for dead suspended from a tree. Koyata scoffs at the arrogance of the samurai even as he admires the fighters and itches to join them in combat.

Shinzaemon must match wits with his old sparring partner Hanbei (Masachika Ichimura), Naritsugu’s lead samurai. Even though Hanbei detests his master’s crimes, he follows him without question. Shinzaemon regards his old friend as a fish to catch. He employs kensho, seeing nature without duality, to understand his opponent and himself.

As the 13 men ambush Naritsugu’s well-trained army of 200 in a mountain village, the 45-minute-long battle becomes a macabre dance. An excruciating, intimate bloodbath plays out with occasional lulls. Catching the enemy off guard succeeds. Naritsugu is strangely unafraid, even titillated by the slaughter of his own men. Blood flows and heads roll with grisly realism and subtle, effective CGI.

“Your samurai brawls are crazy cool!” Koyata exclaims. “This is no brawl!” answers a warrior. Koyata is a comical, tree-hugging David hurling rocks at Goliath. He relishes the excitement yet sees folly in the intense killing spree. Iseya recalls Toshiro Mifune’s character in Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai.

 

Dignified camerawork by Nobuyasu Kita, lovely costumes by Kazuhiro Sawataishi and a rousing musical score from long-time Miike collaborator Koji Endo help make 13 Assassins a genre classic.

Tragedy is inevitable as the film ends with a playfully metaphysical reaffirmation of life. Influenced by the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism, the samurai code remains relevant today with its loyalty, devotion, duty, respect and self-sacrifice.

If you like 13 Assassins, you might enjoy:  Unknown; War & Military Movies.

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13 Assassins     2010  /  R  /    2 hours, 6 min

Cast Overview:  Koji Yakusho, Takayuki Yamada, Yusuke Iseya, Goro Inagaki, Masachika Ichimura, Mikijiro Hira, Hiroki Matsukata, Ikki Sawamura

Director:  Takashi Miike

Genre:  Action, Foreign Film

Language: Japanese with English subtitles