Poll: Film Weekend Vote!
Employing the power of "we are wiser than me" - I might have some time this weekend, so which film(s) should I go see?
Note: at least two of these are located at an inexpensive cinema a decent bike ride away, so could make for an athletic double-feature.
Poll Films-SF, 21Sep07
In the Valley of Elah
Drama, 02:01 minutes, Rated R
This second feature by Paul Haggis (“Crash”) is a harrowing psychological drama about post-traumatic stress disorder dressed up as a murder mystery. The formula is a good one. Tommy Lee Jones gives one of the great performances of his career as Hank Deerfield, a Vietnam vet and former military police sergeant in search of his son who is missing after serving in Iraq. Charlize Theron appears as a tough-talking detective and Susan Sarandon is perfect as Deerfield’s utterly bereft wife. Haggis’ shout-out to Americans ducking the bad news about Iraq may have been a tad polemical, but it raises profound and disturbing issues about our war on terror. -- T. Straus, SF Chronicle
Across the Universe*
Musical, 02:11 minutes, Rated PG-13
Moviegoers who lived through the events depicted in this Beatles-themed musical are likely to find parts of the movie a bit goofy. But the movie succeeds on sheer catchiness, and Julie Taymor piles on enough visual extravaganza to conceal the fact that there isn’t much of a story. It’s also a great way to introduce the Beatles to the younger generation, which has been hearing the words in TV commercials, supermarkets and soft-rock stations - but may have lost the meaning and context of the lyrics. -- P. Hartlaub, SF Chronicle
*possibly better left to a date, at a future date.
The Brave One
Suspense/Thriller, 02:02 minutes, Rated R
Jodie Foster and Terrence Howard give powerful performances in this vigilante thriller, and Neil Jordan directs with great style and a fluid camera. If only their talents were in service of a better vehicle than this retread of “Death Wish,” with Foster in the Charles Bronson role of a victim of violence who starts packing heat. Howard plays the detective trying to figure out who’s killing off bad guys before the police can get to them. Foster seduces him with her voice, much as she does listeners of her arty radio show during which she quotes D.H. Lawrence and Emily Dickinson to justify her actions. It’s all a tad pretentious, but compelling nevertheless.
-- R. Stein, SF Chronicle
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
Documentary, 01:19 minutes, Rated PG-13
The entertainment value in Seth Gordon’s impressive new documentary doesn’t come from poking fun at his video game geek subjects. Instead, he shows how much we all have in common with two men battling for a high score on the 1980s arcade dinosaur Donkey Kong. Kong kings Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe prove that a battle of internal politics can break out anywhere - even a frozen-in-time strip mall arcade called “Fun World.” -- P. Hartlaub, SF Chronicle
The 11th Hour
Documentary, 01:33 minutes, Rated PG
If you’re a half-awake Bay Area resident who acknowledges the existence of climate change, then you’ll be nodding in the amen choir during most of “The 11th Hour.” If you still doubt that the planet’s ecosystems are dying, then buy a ticket to this documentary, which is narrated and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and features dozens of talking-head interviews. Yet the film also offers something for those who acknowledge the dire warnings: hope - in the form of ideas about how to change. The film dares to raise the question that few are ready to confront: How do we change our voraciously consumptive culture? Or, as industrial engineer Ray Anderson says in the film, “For every truckload of product with lasting value, 32 truckloads of waste are produced.” J. Garofoli - CinemaSource
No End in Sight
Documentary, 01:42 minutes, Rated NR
Charles Ferguson’s Iraq documentary is so balanced that it’s possible for people to come away with different opinions as to whether the United States should have gone in and whether we should leave now. Yet everyone will come away in agreement that the Bush administration botched every aspect of the invasion and occupation, and in ways that are shocking. The film is made up of interviews with former Bush administration officials and career military people, not campus radicals or bloggers, but their assessment couldn’t be more withering. This is a powerful portrait of a nightmare on the ground and of the catastrophe of failed leadership. -- M. LaSalle, SF Chronicle
Note: at least two of these are located at an inexpensive cinema a decent bike ride away, so could make for an athletic double-feature.
Poll Films-SF, 21Sep07
Drama, 02:01 minutes, Rated R
This second feature by Paul Haggis (“Crash”) is a harrowing psychological drama about post-traumatic stress disorder dressed up as a murder mystery. The formula is a good one. Tommy Lee Jones gives one of the great performances of his career as Hank Deerfield, a Vietnam vet and former military police sergeant in search of his son who is missing after serving in Iraq. Charlize Theron appears as a tough-talking detective and Susan Sarandon is perfect as Deerfield’s utterly bereft wife. Haggis’ shout-out to Americans ducking the bad news about Iraq may have been a tad polemical, but it raises profound and disturbing issues about our war on terror. -- T. Straus, SF Chronicle
Musical, 02:11 minutes, Rated PG-13
Moviegoers who lived through the events depicted in this Beatles-themed musical are likely to find parts of the movie a bit goofy. But the movie succeeds on sheer catchiness, and Julie Taymor piles on enough visual extravaganza to conceal the fact that there isn’t much of a story. It’s also a great way to introduce the Beatles to the younger generation, which has been hearing the words in TV commercials, supermarkets and soft-rock stations - but may have lost the meaning and context of the lyrics. -- P. Hartlaub, SF Chronicle
*possibly better left to a date, at a future date.
Suspense/Thriller, 02:02 minutes, Rated R
Jodie Foster and Terrence Howard give powerful performances in this vigilante thriller, and Neil Jordan directs with great style and a fluid camera. If only their talents were in service of a better vehicle than this retread of “Death Wish,” with Foster in the Charles Bronson role of a victim of violence who starts packing heat. Howard plays the detective trying to figure out who’s killing off bad guys before the police can get to them. Foster seduces him with her voice, much as she does listeners of her arty radio show during which she quotes D.H. Lawrence and Emily Dickinson to justify her actions. It’s all a tad pretentious, but compelling nevertheless.
-- R. Stein, SF Chronicle
Documentary, 01:19 minutes, Rated PG-13
The entertainment value in Seth Gordon’s impressive new documentary doesn’t come from poking fun at his video game geek subjects. Instead, he shows how much we all have in common with two men battling for a high score on the 1980s arcade dinosaur Donkey Kong. Kong kings Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe prove that a battle of internal politics can break out anywhere - even a frozen-in-time strip mall arcade called “Fun World.” -- P. Hartlaub, SF Chronicle
Documentary, 01:33 minutes, Rated PG
If you’re a half-awake Bay Area resident who acknowledges the existence of climate change, then you’ll be nodding in the amen choir during most of “The 11th Hour.” If you still doubt that the planet’s ecosystems are dying, then buy a ticket to this documentary, which is narrated and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and features dozens of talking-head interviews. Yet the film also offers something for those who acknowledge the dire warnings: hope - in the form of ideas about how to change. The film dares to raise the question that few are ready to confront: How do we change our voraciously consumptive culture? Or, as industrial engineer Ray Anderson says in the film, “For every truckload of product with lasting value, 32 truckloads of waste are produced.” J. Garofoli - CinemaSource
Documentary, 01:42 minutes, Rated NR
Charles Ferguson’s Iraq documentary is so balanced that it’s possible for people to come away with different opinions as to whether the United States should have gone in and whether we should leave now. Yet everyone will come away in agreement that the Bush administration botched every aspect of the invasion and occupation, and in ways that are shocking. The film is made up of interviews with former Bush administration officials and career military people, not campus radicals or bloggers, but their assessment couldn’t be more withering. This is a powerful portrait of a nightmare on the ground and of the catastrophe of failed leadership. -- M. LaSalle, SF Chronicle