'Vision' reviewed

Barbara Sukowa as Hildegard von Bingen, with Heino Ferch, in the historical film Vision.

>>>>>It's been a while since I felt up to writing. I've been suffering with a sinus infection for seven weeks. Besides having a runny nose, it's played hell with my seasonal allergy, which should have been over by now, and it also triggered my dormant asthma. The first two meds didn't work so this week I'm on three meds that are kicking ass. I'm seeing an improvement every day so wish me luck. I want to enjoy the holidays while I'm off from work.
>>As far as the arts, I've seen two movies in the theater. Meanwhile I keep buying DVDs faster than I can watch them. I only get them if there's a good sale. I do trade in most of them when we go to Portsmouth. My rule is: It doesn't matter if the movie was good or bad, it's will I watch it again? If the answer is no, then it's adios. I've already started a bag for our next trip which will probably be in the spring since our winter weather is unpredictable.
>>If you go to Barnes & Noble, check out their Criterion section. These editions of classic and foreign films ( and recent films too) are for serious film buffs who want the 'scholarly' commentaries and supplements. B&N finished their half priced Criterion sale and I bought a lot of them since their regular prices are $30 - 80. To me they are worth every penny. I have a few still coming in the mail. Check out Criterion's website. I've made some comments there under John C.
http://www.criterion.com/

>>I saw the new Harry Potter which was good but more of the same and bigger in scope. The second half will be released in the spring. All these Potter movies blur together in my mind as I can't tell you which one was which.
>> An outstanding film was Vision, a German film about Hildegard Von Bingen, a twelve century German nun who was a mystic, a composer, an author, and an amazing person in general. Read about her life and watch the trailer here: http://www.zeitgeistfilms.com/vision/
>>This is another of those historical films that make you feel you're living alongside the characters. They lived in harsh times governed by their religious leaders as well as their secular ones. Headstrong and determined to follow her divine path, Hildegard learned to play by society's rules and bend a few in getting her way. My wife has read some of her works

including those on medicine and science, and we have CDs of her music.

>>Again don't be scared off by reading subtitles. We're waiting for the DVD as this film is worth revisiting. This is an important work about the struggles of following your faith and placing your fate in the hands of God. Barbara Sukowa, who's not well known in this country but has done memorable work in Europe, delivers an austere but powerful performance. Although the film may seem slow moving, this pacing is needed to savor every bit of decor, costumes, music, and debates among Hildegard's allies and opponents.

'The Concert' Reviewed

Alexei Guskov and Mélanie Laurent in The Concert, a comedy about an orchestra that reassembles for a performance. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-concert/51102/main

Last Sunday (11/14) we drove up to Portsmouth NH for our last trip of the year. I've been suffering for almost a month with what I thought was a lingering head cold. My wife wasn't sure if I was fit for the trip but as she said, I would go to Portsmouth if I was on my deathbed. I'm on my second medication (the first antibiotic did nothing) for what appears to be a stubborn sinus infection. My nose kept running and I wasn't sure if I had the flu or a bad reaction from the recent flu shot. Since my wife & son didn't catch my malady, that ruled out having a cold or a contagious condition. So far the new medication seems to being working to dry me up. It's been a slowwww process but I'm improving.....
>>We did our usuals in Portsmouth and stayed downtown at our favorite inn. The off season greatly reduced rates is a plus. At my favorite store Bull Moose Music, I traded in three bags of CDs & DVDs to get $155 in store credit. I used most of it on new purchases and still have some left for the next trip which will probably be in April. It's hard to plan winter trips because of the weather.
>>Seeing a foreign film was the excuse for our trip.... as if we needed one. The Concert is about a Russian orchestra conductor who was banned from his job during the Brezhnev years for defending Jewish musicians and now works as a janitor in the same place, the Bolshoi Orchestra. When he intercepts a fax requesting.... damn I'm too tired and congested to write a plot summary so here's the one from Wikipedia: "A former world-famous conductor of the Bolshoï orchestra, known as "The Maëstro", Andreï Filipov had seen his career publicly broken by Brezhnev and now works cleaning the concert hall where he once directed. One day, he intercepts an official invitation from the prestigious Théâtre du Châtelet. Through a series of mad antics, he reunites his old orchestra, and flies to perform in Paris and complete the Tchaikovsky concerto interrupted 30 years earlier. For the concerto, he engages a young violin soloist with whom he has an unexpected connection."
>>Much of the humor evolves from the Russians speaking fractured French and enjoying themselves in Paris, perhaps too much as you would expect after living in their drab homeland and now tasting freedom. There's topical issues about the changing political scene and the new Russian millionaires who can buy everything, including one who thinks he's a good musician and buys a seat in the orchestra by financing their trip. The 'connection' between Andrei and the young violinist is revealed through his voiceover and flashbacks during their performance and it's not what you first think it is.
>>Besides you getting to hear the entire concerto played, the films ends on a happy note as it deserves. Even the Russian who banished Andrei has a change of heart and comes to everyone's aid to prevent a fiasco onstage. Besides the good performances from everyone who seem right due to proper casting, Melanie Laurent is appealing as the young violinist and I forgot she played the theater owner in Inglorious Basterds. Like that film, The Concert demonstrates the director's clever touch in mingling comedy, satire, and seriousness to the film's advantage and the audience's pleasure as everyone around us laughed in the right places and applauded at the end.

'RED' reviewed

From left, Bruce Willis, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren in RED. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/red/10020540/main

It's been a while since I posted a new entry because I haven't seen any films in the theater since the previous posting. I've been watching a lot of DVDs that keep piling up due to good sales. I found a website that offers mostly old foreign films with low prices: http://germanwarfilms.com/index.htm The video & audio quality varies but at least I get to see classics and rare films that are sometimes not available anywhere. Like a 1935 German production of Joan of Arc. Check out my review, the second one, of Das Madchen Johanna on IMBd: http://www.imdb.com/
>>Also Barnes & Noble is currently having a half price Criterion sale so I've been stocking up on them. Maybe some day I'll post some reviews of worthwhile films.Next week we're off to Portsmouth NH for our last trip of the year and we'll see a French film which will be posted later.
>>I've been fighting a head cold for almost two weeks but I was well enough to catch last Sunday's matinee of RED. The previews promised an action comedy with good actors. Bruce Willis has grown in ability over the years. Although he made it big with the Die Hard franchise and other action films, he's not afraid to take small parts in small films that stretch his acting ability. I always knew he was going places since coming to attention in the TV series Moonlighting way back when and I plan to get the DVDs. He's a shrewd judge of picking parts in small films that get financed due to his box office clout.
>>RED is an acronym for 'Retired Extremely Dangerous.' Willis plays a retired CIA agent who becomes the target of a hit squad as well as others who were connected to a past event in South America discovered by an investigative reporter who was killed for her snooping. He enlists some former agents who help him crack the mystery.
>>And what a team of helpers. John Malkovich as a gun happy wacko.. a terminally ill Morgan Freeman who wants to go out in a blaze of glory... and the ladylike Helen Mirren who is another expert with weapons. Just watching her tote a gun is worth the price of admission. Their camaraderie after years of separation is one of the best parts of this film. Add scene stealer Brian Cox as a Russian agent who comes to their aid and you have quite a team of actors who never upstage each other. Everyone seems to understand the intent of the film as a nice combo of action and verbal & visual jokes.
>>Yeah Willis gets the crap kicked out of him in a fight with Karl Urban who played Dr. Spock in the recent Star Trek film. Damn I forgot that was him and he's good here too as their nemesis. Anyhow you know Willis always comes out the winner but this doesn't spoil your enjoyment. Throughout the story Willis uses persuasion as well as his deadly skills in assisting his friends and dispatching his enemies. He knows how to use one line zingers with good deadpan delivery.
>>If you enjoy Willis films and want to see him hold his own against some heavy hitters including Richard Dreyfuss and Ernest Borgnine who's 93 (!!), this one's for you. This sly comedy interrupted by plenty of gunfire & explosions is droll enough to keep the story moving along at a nice pace and the audience laughed in the right places. There's a few surprises and plot twists that add to the fun and I should mention two romances, one old & one new, but I'll let you find out who they are. If anything you learn from this film is, retirement isn't what you think. There's still a lot of life left in these 'old' folks.

'Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky' reviewed

Mads Mikkelsen and Anna Mouglalis play the lead characters in Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky directed by Jan Kounen. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/coco-chanel-and-igor-stravinsky/1435845/main

A few weeks ago we enjoyed another overnighter in Portsmouth NH. Our excuse for the getaway was to see this French film. We wanted to stay again at The Hampton Inn but the extra discount we used in July was not available. My wife mentioned we should inquire about the Comfort Inn where we stayed years ago and is located near downtown. This hotel had a much cheaper rate and we were not disappointed in the accommodations that included a free breakfast buffet. I enjoyed using the heated pool and Jacuzzi before we retired for the evening. When we checked out, we were given a 20% discount coupon with no expiration date for our next stay.
>>>We shopped before the seeing the Sunday 4:00PM matinee. I traded in two bags of CDs & DVDs at my favorite downtown store for $95 which was quickly used on items from my wish list. Bull Moose Music offers the best bargains on new & used merchandise. Their prices for Criterion DVDs are unbeatable and I found two I wanted and I had a tough time not buying more. The rest of the trip followed the routine mentioned in other blog entries.
>>>As for the French film, we were not disappointed too. Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky is a good companion piece or more like a sequel to Coco Before Chanel, an earlier blog entry, but made with different actors who are just as good as those in the first film. Even the previous film's handsome production is matched or surpassed here. It's too bad Audrey Tatou didn't reprise her role but Anna Mouglalis, an actress/model, is very good playing a not too much older Coco here who is more self-confident with her growing success.
>>>The story begins with the recreation (as we would imagine) of the disastrous 1913 premiere of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring. The composer is ably played by Mads Mikkelsen who most people know as the villain in Casino Royale and a soldier (unrecognizable) in Clash Of The Titans. Mikkelsen is another actor who seems to melt into his roles. Coco, still mourning the loss of her tycoon lover, is in the audience observing the rioting ticket holders clashing with the ballet's defenders. A few years later she meets Igor who is down on his luck. She is attracted to his genius and offers to be his patron by letting him with his family live on her estate. Before you know it (as if their constant eyeballing wasn't a giveaway), the romantic sparks fly....
>>>The details of their portrayed affair is speculation so some artistic license is permitted. Their love scenes are displayed on the graphic, artsy side with various camera angles & movements. Mrs. Stravinsky is aware of their coupling that her husband won't confirm or deny and wants him and their children to leave Coco's generosity or captivity, depending on how you look at it. Their affair ends when Igor makes a callous remark comparing their talents, too good to be repeated here and spoil it for you. The rest of the story shows their slow departing and later life. Some reviewers thought the film lost steam here but we disagree. There's always interesting visuals to keep you from being bored.
>>>During the story we see enough depiction of their creative processes. Showing a composer at work is usually lackluster but Igor dabbling at the piano searching for the correct notes surrounded by luxury is contrasted with Coco's pragmatic working methods. She's always in control and her body language speaks volumes. I said it before and I'll say it again: The French know how to make the best costume/period films so rich with details where you believe history is living & breathing before your eyes and never dull. And all the performances here are convincing and rewarding.

>>>The preview here shows what to expect in the story's lavish recreation of a bygone era and seeing the film on the big screen was worth a trip up north. Call this one Clash Of The Titans 2 starring two giants with egos & temperments to match, one from the world of fashion and the other of music.

'Eat Pray Love' reviewed...

Xavier Bardem wooing Julia Roberts. watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/eat-pray-love/27799/main?icid=movsmartsearch

This movie is based on a best-selling memoir I haven't read and not any time soon. My wife read it and wanted to see the movie version so it's only fair we saw it together since I drag her to a lot of films she wasn't sure she would like. I could count on one hand the men in the audience during the Sunday matinee we saw it. Eat Pray Love is a cross between a chick flick and a travelogue but that could be an unfair capsule summary since I did enjoy it.
>>Looking back on it two weeks after we saw it has given me more time to evaluate it. It's a pleasant diversion about a woman (Julia Roberts) who's trying to 'find herself' after a divorce from her nice, handsome, but dull husband (Billy Crudup). Her new relationship with an aspiring younger actor (James Franco) also finds her unsatisfied so she decides to travel the world to find self-fulfillment. Along the way she meets people in three countries who want to help her.
>>The Italian scenes are the best ones, filled with local color and close ups of mouth watering plates of food that will make you hungry before you leave the theater. These warm scenes of local cuisine and camaraderie are contrasted with the starkness of India where she joins an ashram for spiritual enlightenment. Lots of praying & chanting this time. and the food's not as good. Here she meets a well-meaning but cranky American (Richard Jenkins) who badgers her to get over herself but he's no role model since he still carries a lot of emotional baggage that made him flee to India.
>>Julia's final journey ends in Bali where she meets a shaman (imagine a real life Yoda in attitude & size) and a woman healer who offer more advice and teach her to think about helping others than helping herself. She has the chance to find real love with Xavier Bardem playing a divorced Brazilian businessman. He's what every woman would want but poor Julia can't decide if finding real love instead of finding herself is the answer... as if you need to be a rocket scientist to decide... The only suspense, for a lack of a better word, in the film is will she make the right choice. You want to scream at the screen and say 'Enough of this! Get over yourself and marry him!'
>>This is a mildly amusing film with nice scenery and the humor is low keyed but hearing Julia talk about finding herself over & over and everyone giving her advice whether she wants it or not was a bit tiresome, and it made its length of 2 hours & 11 minutes seem longer. Her character is not a bad person, only too hard on herself . She does help the shaman and healer but she's almost one note to the point of boring as the other characters and native scenery become more interesting as the film plods along.
>>Eat Pray Love will induce a craving for Italian food but not for self-fulfillment. On a different note, our parish priest during last week's sermon thought it was almost blasphemous for Julia's character to move away from her Christian religion to try other ones in search of God. That's a topic for another discussion and probably more interesting than the film.

'Salt' reviewed

Angelina Jolie as agent Evelyn Salt. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/salt/37107/main

Salt's previews promised a big budget, kickass action/spy thriller starring Angelina Jolie. I enjoy these kind of revved up movies where you can turn off your brain and enjoy following the twisting narrative that usually ends with a surprise you should not see coming. Here Jolie plays a CIA agent named Evelyn Salt who is accused by a top Russian defector of being a spy who will kill the Russian president while attending a funeral in NYC. When she flees after his interrogation by her to warn her husband their lives are in danger, she is assumed guilty and goes on the run.
>>And what a run it is! She's clever, agile, good with disguises, and inventive in making use of any object to create a weapon. The action scenes and split second escapes are as tense and well choreographed as those from a James Bond film. These stunts are physically impossible but this is what you expect in this kind of film and its makers never fail to deliver. The action never lets up except to provide info we need to follow the story line.
>>Only one co-worker (Liev Sheiber) believes Jolie is innocent and he cannot persuade the others but is forced along to join the hunt from Washington DC to NYC. Can he be trusted to save her? What really matters is Jolie innocent, or a Russian mole, or a patsy duped by a conspiracy that's not yet revealed? The answer is finally revealed through flashbacks and conversations about previous incidents we witnessed. The revelation of the villain (I'm not saying here that it's Jolie; go see the film to find out.) caught me off guard because there were enough ambiguous plot points to sidetrack me. You had to briefly think back to connect the dots to find the answers.
>>People seem to like or hate Jolie depending on their view of her personal life. If you like Jolie, you will be swept along with the story. She's the best female action star around and comes across as Lara Croft without the self-serving smirk and with James Bond's survival skills. You really need to suspend your sense of disbelief to accept her as capable of doing anything but hey, it's only a movie that's meant to entertain. Bond movies are unrealistic too but never fail to satisfy audiences.

>>After struggling last week through Inception, Salt was a welcome relief on a hot summer's day. It all makes sense at the end unlike Inception ... at least to me... once you briefly thought back to mercifully few flashbacks and coversations about recent incidents to connect the dots to provide answers. Director Phillip Noyce who helmed 1999's The Bone Collector featuring Jolie in one of her first starring roles in a big feature (second billing to Denzel Washington) knows how to keep the pace moving fast enough to pull you through the story's bumpy ride.

July Vacation in Portsmouth NH

Seeing Joan live was a treat.

Amanda Seyfried in Letters to Juliet. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/letters-to-juliet/37890/main?icid=movsmartsearch

Vanessa Redgrave & Amanda Seyfried.

I was on a much needed two weeks of vacation during July. However it didn't start off well as I was called driving home on Friday/my last day of work and had to return for two emergencies that kept me there for over three hours. I worked one morning to cover for my backup who had an appointment he couldn't postpone. I was able to catch up on paperwork so I wouldn't have a ton waiting for me when I return. Meanwhile there was the usual phone calls about problems I fortunately could solve from home.
>>Last week we got away for a two night stay in Portsmouth. The weather was in the mid 80's and a bit on the humid/roasting side. It didn't stop us from doing our usual activities. I won't bore you with them since they're covered on older blog entries. DVD/CD/book shopping... lobster dinners.... sightseeing....
>>We stayed at a Hampton Inn next to the mall where there's a huge Barnes & Noble and it's a five minute drive to downtown where hotels are $200+ this time of year, even our favorite old Sise Inn. Because I paid ahead and used my AAA discount, we got a room with 2 beds and a free breakfast buffet and cocktails & snacks at 5:00PM. for $153 - taxes included. I prefer to stay downtown but we're watching our money. No free breakfasts at the big two and the inn has a continental one but no pool. The last time we stayed at the Hampton Inn was about 7 years ago with our son JR and his buddy/our neighbor Adam. It's a good place with a huge heated indoor pool. So we have to pay a few bucks for parking downtown and the inn has a shuttle van if we needed it.
>>Sunday night we saw Joan Armatrading in concert at The Music Hall downtown and a film the next night. Weather was in the high 80's so we wanted to go to the beach Monday afternoon. We went to the concert at 7:30PM at The Music Hall. A singer/songwriter named Jamie McLean opened for Joan. He was talented, pleasant, but unmemorable. This is not to knock him but he sounded like any other singer/songwriter strumming a guitar and we passed on buying his CDs he was hawking in the lobby. He played for over a half hour and announced that Joan would be coming out soon. By 8:40 still no Joan and I was tired/impatient/cranky/ while waiting. At 8:45 she came out with her band and stood motionless in front of the audience with a big grin that got larger with the mounting applause. It was worth the wait as she played for almost two hours including a two song encore and all was forgiven.
>>She charmed the audience with her banter between songs and playfully chided us for not waving during a song while she rocked the place with her three piece band (bass, keyboards, drums). She replayed part of the song for us to wave as she doesn't take no for an answer. Joan switched between four guitars demonstrating her skills. We were seated in the fifth center row of the balcony where we had a good view of the stage with no heads blocking our sight. She played most of her hits and several songs from her new/20th CD, This Charming Life, pictured above. She's been around for thirty years and will be sixty this year but you would never know it from her performance. She had us singing & clapping along and up on our feet with the up tempo numbers. You can see & hear the title track and some of her old songs on her website: http://www.joanarmatrading.com/ and more on You Tube. The video gives you a good idea of what she's like onstage. On the new CD she played all the instruments except for the drums. Here she was supported by fine musicians who were given chances to shine with solos.
>>The next afternoon we went to a nearby beach but my splashing around in the water was interrupted by a warning about a coming thunderstorm. So we left the beach and returned to our hotel to use the pool and Jacuzzi. At night we returned to The Music Hall to see a movie. On an earlier entry I mentioned how I became friendly with an employee who selects the films. He's booked some of my recommendations and a while ago I wrote to him asking what he will be showing the night after the concert since the schedule was empty at the time. He planned to show Letters to Juliet which we haven't seen.
>>The film can be described as a pleasant but predictable chick flick but I enjoyed its relaxing warmth and good natured humor. No heavy thinking demanded. Amanda Seyfried from Mama Mia plays Sophie an aspiring writer on a trip to Italy with her fiance. While he's too preoccupied with his business interests, she meets a group of women in Verona who pen answers to letters left for Shakespeare's Juliet asking for advice on matters of the heart. Sophie discovers an old letter from an Englishwoman named Claire who jilted her lover Lorenzo fifty years ago Sophie answers Claire's letter and as you would expect, Claire comes to Italy seeking Lorenzo.
>>Vanessa Redgrave is wonderful as the widowed Claire. I swear she gets better with age. Here she's warm, wise, and funny in a role you don't don't usually see her perform as she allows Sophie to join her on her search. Christopher Egan plays her accompanying, priggish grandson who feels she's wasting her time and he's constantly at odds with Sophie, the dreamer & romantic. Halfway through the film you can guess the ending but the movie ends the ways you want it. Call it contrived... corny... sentimental... but what's wrong with that? The audience was pleased and so were we.
>>The Italian scenery is a treat and Franco Nero, who was Redgrave's lover during the making of 1971's Camelot and has been married to her for the last several years, plays Lorenzo. He's aged well too. Seyfried is sweet and funny. This is a romantic comedy that delivers what it promises. When it comes out on DVD, we'll show it to Mom, another Italian who at 92 is getting too wobbly to take to movies.

'Inception' reviewed

A dreamscape from Christopher Nolan's Inception. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/inception/36931/main

Don't be fooled by the preview. Inception looks like a promising sci-fi thriller and I read some interesting articles about the making of it. We saw this film today and after the first ten minutes, we lost track of its serpentine plot. I'll give a reward to anyone who can offer a plot summary.

>>Let me try. Leonardo DiCaprio and his hi-tech gang use their sleep-induced brains to enter the dreams of corporate bosses to learn their secrets to sell to their rivals. This time he's hired to plant an idea or 'inception' in Cillian Murphy's head so his client Ken Watanabe can use to his advantage. It's never been done before and Leo jeopardizes their mission by bringing his own baggage of guilt feelings over his wife's suicide into the plan. An intriguing premise that unfortunately spins out of control for the characters and the audience.

>>This film was overly complicated with all sorts of dreams within dreams within dreams scenes that were hard to follow and where one started and one ended, your guess is as good as mine. All the money is up on the screen but for what purpose? Leonardo and the rest of the cast are good enough but they had the advantage of the director explaining the story to them. Ken Watanabe's soft spoken accented English is hard to understand. I'm not sure how the story ended and the rest of the audience exiting didn't say a work except for me who complained loudly without anyone contradicting me. We left the theater feeling weary instead of entertained.

>>Inception surely needs repeated viewings to comprehend it but not so soon after wallowing through two & a half hours of this bloated special effects extravaganza. And it seemed longer than that! Confusion would be a better title for this mess. Save your money and rent 1984's Dreamscape, which this movie resembles and is much better.

>>Fans of this movie wrote defenses in newspapers and one online buddy explained the premise to me. I understood it but I still think Inception was overly complicated to the point of confusion. We agree to disagree.

'The Last Airbender' reviewed

Noah Ringer in The Last Airbender, based on the Nickelodeon animated series. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-last-airbender/36563/main
M. Night Shyamalan's last three movies were critical and box office failures. His career suggests his first film and biggest hit The Sixth Sense was just a fluke but we don't want to think cruelly of him as he still able to get financial backing for his projects. It's because his films aren't expensive to make and they probably break even or make a tiny profit from DVD & cable sales and foreign theater tickets. Here's his latest opus and I'm sorry to say it's a big disappointment again. It made plenty of money during its July 4th opening weekend despite the harsh reviews. We saw it because the previews promised a spectacular kung fu fantasy in 3-D.
>>The film is based on a Nickelodeon cartoon series I've never seen so I can't compare them. As a film it's draggy and repetitious and could use better martial arts sequences. The plot concerns a young boy named Aang who's the lost Avatar needed to prevent the Fire Kingdom from conquering more kingdoms. He can 'bend air' to create forceful winds as weapons, and he's aided by a female 'water bender' and her brother who convince him that he's their last chance in defeating their enemy and develope his other powers. Dev Patel , the hero of Slumdog Millionare, is sorta wasted as a scowling Fire Nation prince who needs to capture Aang so he can use the boy's powers as a means to win back his father's favor.
>> The dialogue is what you expect in these kinds of films with pseudo-Eastern philosophies only it seems to go on and on as if you didn't understand the simplistic explanations the first time. The production design is attractive on the big screen and the appropriate musical score helps but not much to compensate for this ponderous bore. The fighting scenes are lackluster for this type of story and when it's over, our feeling was 'EH.' As for the 3-D, if you blinked you would have missed it. The film was only converted to 3-D and not as good as other conversions like Alice in Wonderland and Clash of the Titans. I'm guessing the producers thought this would help at the box office since they knew the film might be another Shamalama dingdong turkey. Either way, paying extra for so-called 3-D is a ripoff.
>>This expensive movie will probably do OK until word of mouth catches up with it. The kids in the audience seemed to enjoy The Last Airbender if being quiet during the showing and exiting the theater is a positive sign.... unless they were as numb struck as us. It also suggests a sequel but don't hold your breath waiting.... Last Airbender indeed?

'Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work' Review

Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/joan-rivers-a-piece-of-work/10024268/main?icid=movsmartsearch

Love her or hate her, you have to admire Joan Rivers for being a survivor. She's had her share of personal and professional disasters that would have defeated most of us. Yet she's still here and working hard at 77. This new documentary covers everything you need to know about her tumultuous life. There's the usual interviews with people who know her best and the best segments are with Joan. You see her warts and all as cameras followed her for a year. Although there's plenty of info packed into 90 minutes, you wish it was longer.
>>Her comedy is a matter of taste. If you think she's obnoxious on TV, seeing her live is another matter. I remember my parents seeing her show years ago in Atlantic City and telling us how filthy she is in person. In fairness to her, that's true about many comedians you know only from TV. Recently a co-worker walked out of Everybody Loves Raymond's Brad Garrett show at a local casino because of his coarse language. Be prepared to hear Joan during a club date tossing out four letter words along with some gross jokes. It's shocking but funny.
>>She's candid about her triumphs & tragedies including her husband's suicide. She survived because she's a tough businesswoman who looks out for number one but is also generous to her friends and performs charity work. She lives in a lavish NYC apartment comparable to Versailles and is entitled to it because she earned it.
>>She's hard on herself too and hates not to work. How many of us can say that? Included here is her triumph on TV's Celebrity Apprentice. She hates looking old and her excess of cosmetic surgery makes her look like she's wearing a Daisy Duck mask. She's candid about her vanity and can afford to please herself. How many of us can do that? Long live the Queen of Comedy!

'Robin Hood' Review

Russell Crowe and Kevin Durand in Robin Hood, directed by Ridley Scott. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/robin-hood/33539/main

I doubt there is anyone who doesn't like the 1938 version of Robin Hood with Errol Flynn & Olivia de Havilland looking their best filmed in glorious Technicolor. How could you not enjoy hissing at the nasty villains Basil Rathbone & Claude Rains? And lets not forget those spectacular fights and acrobatics aided by a stirring music score. All other versions of the Robin Hood myth pale in comparison. So now we have director Ridley Scott's big blockbuster and it doesn't disappoint.
>>Scott is known for his visual strength with classics like the first Alien and look how Blade Runner has influenced the production design of many futuristic sci-fi films. Scott's Kingdom of Heaven about the Crusades was good but not a big hit but making it gave him the experience for directing another medieval story that involves the same time period.
>>So how does his Robin Hood differ from the rest? Actually it's more a prequel to the familiar myth we know by heart. Here a band of Crusaders lead by an archer named Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe) pose as messengers returning to England with the crown of the dead King Richard the Lionhearted. Robin steals the sword of the dead Sir Robert of Loxley and passes himself off as the late knight. Loxley's widow Marion played by a feisty Cate Blanchette allows him and his friends to keep up the pretense since there never was any real love between her and her husband and she needs their help running the estate. She's good in these strong lonely women roles; catch her in a similar role in the underrated western The Missing with Tommy Jones. Watch for the wonderful Eileen Atkins as the crafty Eleanor of Aquitaine, the mother of both kings and a real scene stealer without chewing up the scenery and her fellow actors. Kevin Durand as Little John and Scott Grimes of TV's ER as Will Scarlet offer comic relief as some of the later named Merry Men.
>>Meanwhile the new vain King John (Oscar Isaac) raise taxes and squeezes his subjects since the Crusades have bankrupted the country. There's also treachery as the heavy Sir Godfrey sides with the King of France to invade the weakened country. Godfrey is played with high caliber scowling evil by Mark Strong who easily filled these roles in Sherlock Holmes, Stardust, and to a lesser degree in Young Victoria. It's up to Robin to save to the country and Cate's estate from the tax collectors. Crowe's performance never overshadows the scope of the film or his fellow actors in a scene. Obvious comparisons will be made to Gladiator but that's not a bad thing...
>>There's plenty of action and big battle scenes that need to be seen on the big screen as well as the period sets and costumes. The story unfolds slowly over two hours as takes its time for us to savor the visual details. We weren't bored and don't let some negative reviews hamper your enjoyment. This film is really about how Robin Hood became the legend and cries out for a sequel. Because of the under whelming box office return for a picture that cost almost $200 million to make (and yes the money is up there on the screen), it will probably break even due to worldwide sales. I don't expect to see a sequel soon..... if ever.

'Clash of The Titans' Review

Sam Worthington as Perseus. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/clash-of-the-titans/36930/main

I have fond memories of the '81 version. Although the special effects might look dated by today's standards, to me the best part of the movie was the fun watching Sir Lawrence Olivier as a crafty Zeus toying with the lives of mortals while protecting his half-human son Perseus played by Harry Hamlin (who went on to star in TV's LA Law) and outwitting his fellow and notable Olympians including Claire Bloom as Hera, Maggie Smith as Thetis, and Ursula Andress as Aphrodite. And who could forget Ray Harryhausen's wonderful stop-motion animated creatures. This was his final film and his Medusa was the crowning achievement in a long career including The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad and Jason & The Argonauts. Watch the preview: http://www.videodetective.com/movie_trailer/CLASH_OF_THE_TITANS/movie_clip/P00183052.htm
>>The previews for this new version prepared us for a high tech extravaganza filmed in 3-D. There were a few story changes. I guess Anthony Hopkins or Ian McKellen were busy so Liam Neeson was hired to play a dour Zeus who's upset because the mortals below don't respect the gods and need to be taught a lesson. He does well enough but he doesn't have the charm or humor of Olivier's old rascal. Instead of plotting against his goddesses, this Zeus is pitted again his brother Hades played by a mannered Ralph Fiennes who seeks revenge for being banished to the Underworld. The rest of the gods seem to be window dressing as they take a back seat to the feuding brothers. Avatar's Sam Worthington replaces Hamlin minus his flowing locks. In a interview Worthington said the filmmakers deliberately avoided the earlier hairy look. This Perseus is rather sullen and hates the gods who killed his adopted family. He refuses his father's help and offer to become a god in Olympus. He has no time for a story book romance with the Princess of Argos whose peril forces him to save her and her city from Hades's wrath.
>>The same creatures (and some new ones) from the first film are here but are computer generated to have more movement and the film's bigger budget allows for more spectacle. The film was converted into 3-D and really doesn't add a lot to the visuals. It's like watching through a Viewmaster but with movement. A throbbing music score accompanies the action. If you like these sword & sandal fantasies, you should enjoy this one. The reviews have been mostly negative but this Clash is a big hit. It's nowhere as bad as they said.

'The White Ribbon' Review & Portsmouth NH

Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-white-ribbon/38469/main?icid=movsmartsearch

It's been almost six months from our last trip to Portsmouth NH. We needed a good reason for another jaunt so we checked the schedule at The Music Hall for April. Michael Haneke's acclaimed German film The White Ribbon was playing the Sunday after Easter Sunday. An added reason was that our favorite inn downtown, which is a quick walk to the theater and our frequented stores, had an off-season rate that was almost half of the highest/summer price. So we made reservations and departed at 7:00AM. Before we left town, we stopped to get the newspapers to read in the room (Sunday is not Sunday without my NY Times), and coffee for the ride.
>>The drive was uneventful and relaxing. Instead of going directly into Portsmouth, we took the route through Seabrook and the Hamptons so we could eat at our favorite Breakfast place in Hampton and hit certain stores. At a small book store I traded in a bag of audio books on CD for a book about the rock group Cream and Martha got the Shutter Island paperback since we saw the movie. We stopped at Dress Barn to get Mom a belated 92nd birthday gift (the store has a large selection of petite sizes for Mom & Martha; I sat in the car reading the papers). The weather was sunny and at 70 degrees.
>>We got to the Sise Inn http://www.siseinn.com/index.html about 12:15PM but it was too early to check in. So we parked there and walked downtown for some serious shopping. I carried two bags of DVDs & CDs to trade in at my favorite shop, Bull Moose Music. I got $95 of store credit and browsed for two hours. I found almost everything on my short wish list and a few surprises: 1. A Criterion edition of A Christmas Tale, an acclaimed recent French film about a dysfunctional family's reunion: this film was on the top of my list. 2, A double CD of Joan Armatrading's hits (She's playing in Portsmouth in July so there's another trip planned.) 3. A DVD Armatrading concert 4. The Essential Philip Glass CD -used. 5. a Robyn Hitchcock CD/DVD concert. 6. A used DVD documentary about Roman Polanski. 7. A used DVD documentary about Robert Evans, a film producer. 8. A DVD called Gods & Monsters with Ian McKellen playing James Whale who directed the first two Frankenstein movies. All good prices and I still have $7 of credit left for another visit.
>>Martha met me at 2:15 after her shopping and we checked in at the Inn. We unpacked and rested until it was time to go to the theater to catch the movie's 3:30 showing instead of going to the 7:00 one. There's a nearby cafe/bakery that has a special offer: two movie tickets & $29 worth of food for $40. http://www.popoversonthesquare.com/menu/bakery.html
>>The White Ribbon was nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar and rightly so. The story takes place in a German village before the outbreak of WWI. This seemingly peaceful town becomes riddled with strange occurrences. A doctor is injured when his horse is tripped by a hidden wire. The Baron's son is kidnapped and beaten. The doctor's son who's mentally challenged is almost blinded. Other acts of cruelty involve animals but in both cases, we only see the aftermath of the violence. It's enough to keep you thinking about the reasons for them. Why are certain people chosen?
>>On the surface the adults and children seem respectable but the young school teacher has his suspicions as to who is causing the incidents and confronts the pastor (who doesn't practice what he preaches) for answers. The movie slowly unwinds for almost two & a half hours as incidents keep you offguard. It was filmed in color that was desaturated to achieve an eerie effect like looking at old photographs or a silent movie with sound. There's no movie score except for people singing and playing instruments. All this created an unsettling effect as you begin to question each character. A remarkable film worth seeing again. Imagine Village of the Damned without the sci-fi but that's not really accurate. It's creepy in a different way that sneaks up on you. Some reviewers have noted that the film shows how these people could later evolve into Nazis and I can see that here.... Here's a good article about the director and his film:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/movies/01klaw.html?_r=2&scp=2&sq=the%20white%20ribbon&st=cse

>>When Martha first heard about this film, she didn't want to see it because she read about violence done to children & animals. The violence is not explicit except in a few brief scenes and she couldn't stop talking about the movie for days. One of the ushers talked to us about it giving her own theory about the plot. We went to the cafe for a light dinner capped off with Indian Pudding with a dollop of vanilla ice cream (a New England treat) and returned to our comfy room to later watch Celebrity Apprentice.
>>After a deluxe continental breakfast buffet (included) downstairs in the Inn, we checked out and drove to the nearby mall to the big Barnes & Noble. I'm happy I bought my items downtown because the French film DVD and the Armatrading CD were $10 more at B & N. I bought an audio book and Martha bought two books. We browsed in a few other stores and at Ocean State Job Lot I found the DVD for Starting Out In The Evening for $2! I reviewed the movie in an earlier entry. We headed to Al's Seafood in NorthHampton for twin lobster dinners (two one-pounders, great fries, and coleslaw for $19.95 - a real deal.)
>>A few months ago we heard about a fire on the boardwalk at nearby Hampton Beach http://www.hamptonbeach.com/ so we wanted to see the damage. The sunny, breezy beach had a few kite flyers and the waves were pounding the sand. We walked to where there was a block containing a favorite gift shop but all that was destroyed and in the process of being knocked down behind a fence. We headed for home after spending two relaxing days and less money than usual.

'A Prophet' Review

Tahar Rahim and Niels Arestrup in A Prophet. Watch the preview: http://www.sonyclassics.com/aprophet/

OK OK I saw another foreign film. I love foreign films and it's my blog sooooo..... No this one isn't a religious film; the title is explained during it. A Prophet has won many awards and rave reviews, and you should not miss it. This acclaimed French prison saga is gritty, brutal, and will keep you glued to your seat: The Mrs. was reluctant to see it but later admitted it was very good. Besides that she speaks French fluently and appreciated it more than me.

>>Malik (Tahar Rahim), a young man of Arab descent, is sentenced to six years in prison. He wants to survive by following the rules but he soon quickly learns that's not the case when Cesar Luciani, the Corsican crime boss, takes an interest in him. The 'godfather' makes him an offer he can't refuse: It's 'kill or be killed.' If Malik doesn't kill an sequestered informer about to testify in a trial, Malik will be disposed of by Cesar's henchmen who protect their boss. Although Cesar is a fellow prisoner, he also controls guards and lawyers outside of prison who fear his all reaching power. Niels Arestrup gives a frightening performance as Cesar who takes a 'fatherly' interest in Malik by fostering his criminal education but he can change instantly into a vicious monster when he feels disobeyed or threatened.

>>Malik is a quick learner who caters to Cesar's whims but has an agenda of his own. He wants to be his own boss and make the evil system work for himself. When Cesar arranges for Malik to run errands when he's allowed one day a week out of prison to work, Malik uses the time to run his own drug deals. He's playing a dangerous game by pretending to show his jailers he's obeying their rules and to make Cesar think he's working exclusively for him. Can he ever break free of Cesar's stranglehold? How long can he keep up this deadly game is what propels the story.

>>Fans of the Corleones, Scarface, and other gangsters will be won over by this powerful film if they get over reading subtitles.There's lots of violence and murders but the camera never dwells on it, only enough to get its point and jolt you. Actually the story has a happy ending. A Prophet is about two & a half hours and you won't want to miss a minute of it. See for yourself...

'Alice In Wonderland' Review

Johnny Depp, Mia Kasikowska, and Anne Hathaway in Tim Burton's Alice. Watch the preview:
http://www.moviefone.com/movie/alice-in-wonderland/33073/main

There's been several film & TV versions of the Lewis Carroll classic. I don't have a favorite one and I doubt this version will be it. This is not to say Tim Burton's adaptation is bad. Actually it's pretty good if you're not expecting it to be faithful to the book. It's also pretty good as a movie on its own and a treat for the eyes. Alice was originally shot in 2-D and converted to 3-D. Not filming it in 3-D like Avatar was probably a good idea because the special effects here are minimal and don't distract from the glorious costumes and sets. There's enough depth of vision in most scenes to satisfy anyone's craving for 3-D. If you remember owning a Viewmaster as a kid and were amazed by its optical effect, the visuals here will bring back pleasant memories.

>>Since Johnny Depp is the star with above the title billing, his character is built up to give equal time to Alice played by Mia Wasikowska who reminds me of a younger Uma Thurman. In this version she's older but that's explained later and the plot also works in the Jabberwocky from another Carroll work. As one reviewer explained, if children are going to use the movie as the basis for a book report instead of reading it, they should expect a failing grade. The story has a feminist slant but that shouldn't bother the guys.
>>Depp is as good as usual and the rest of the actors follow his lead in keeping with the story book/fairy tale quality of the film. Helena Bonham Carter as the evil Red Queen is marvelous too. Her every explosive gesture and expression is just right as the counterpoint to Anne Hathaway's cool White Queen. Danny Elfman, Burton's usual composer, offers the proper music for this kind of movie. You'll marvel at the floating antics of the Cheshire Cat voiced by Stephen Fry and you'll easily recognize Alan Rickman from the Harry Potter films as the Caterpillar.

>>This delightful movie is a monster hit that exceeded the filmmakers' expectations. No matter your age and even if you don't care for this kind of movie, you will be soon won over by its charm, sense of wonder, and humor.

'The Ghost Writer' Review

Ewan McGregor in The Ghost Writer, directed by Roman Polanski. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-ghost-writer/32030/main

Roman Polanski is still in the news with his ongoing legal troubles. We forget that he is a gifted film-maker. Chinatown and Rosemary's Baby are classics of their genre and still worth repeated viewings. Since his flight to Europe in 1977 to escape sentencing from morals charges, his output has been erratic. Without the American studio system that fostered these two films, he's been forced to work with lesser support although actors like Harrison Ford and Johnny Depp crossed the Atlantic to work with him with mixed results in Frantic (Ford) and The Ninth Gate (Depp). His version of Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles (shortened to Tess since most people have trouble pronouncing or spelling the novel's title), which I haven't seen since its release in 1979, is a good costume pic filmed in France substituting for England. Memories from his childhood escape from the Nazis helped with directing 2002's Holocaust drama, The Pianist, and earned him a Best Director Oscar. Like Woody Allen whose questionable morals made him scorned by many for falling in love with Mia Farrow's (his live-in lover) adopted daughter, Hollywood does forgive or ignore biography and recognizes talent with awards.

>>Polanski's new film is a political thriller that's been getting good reviews. Ewan MacGregor plays a writer coerced into helping a former prime minister (Pierce Brosnan) finish writing his memoirs after his ghost writer's body is found washed up on a beach. When certain facts about his subject's college days contradict those in a secret file hidden by his predecessor are found in his room sparks his curiosity, he begins to question the circumstances of his predeceasor's death. Besides dealing with his arrogant subject who's also facing war crimes charges and his shrewish, controlling wife (Olivia Williams), our writer begins on a dangerous path to seek the truth which might be hidden in the uncompleted manuscript. He's also not discreet as he blabs too much to Brosnan's enemies who feed his hunger for more evidence. He's way in over his head but too naive to know it.

>>This film is slow moving as builds up in suspense. You need to pay attention to the details that finally make sense at the conclusion. Good performances by all.

'Shutter Island' Review

Mark Ruffalo and Leonardo DiCaprio in Shutter Island, directed by Martin Scorsese. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/shutter-island/31787/main

This is the fourth collaboration between Scorsese and DiCaprio. The preview says it all and to say more about the plot will be a spoiler. All I'll say is that I preferred a different ending but this one was dictated by the logic of the story. The movie is well done but was a downer for me. See for yourself.
>>DiCaprio is becoming a fine actor who chooses his projects well and works with good directors and never draws attention to himself by overshadowing his fellow actors. He's very good here stretching himself in this difficult role. Ben Kingsley and Max von Sydow add the right sense of menace to the eerie doings while the other actors are more than capable rounding out the story.
>>Scorsese again proves why he's one of our best directors although here he's a bit hampered by the plot but compensates by using every possible trick to round out this intricate detective thriller. Good music and sound effects heighten the suspense and atmosphere. Pay close attention to the last fifteen minutes where everything is explained and if the conclusion satisfies you.

'The Wolfman' Review

Which one is he now? Benecio Del Toro stars as The Wolfman. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-wolfman/25526/main

This movie has been getting mixed reviews as one expects with a horror film. It's praised for the impressive Victorian production values complimented by dark, moody photography as well as Danny Elfman's score heightening the suspense and thrills. Some reviewers carped about the story line but I think the plot remained faithful to the genre and should not be attacked for it. You can't vary too much from a standard formula without losing its essence. The Wolfman's troubled production history may be part of the reason why reviewers think the plot was disjointed but we didn't notice any obvious plot holes.
>>Anthony Hopkins' character added a twist to the expected doings but I won't spoil it here. Benicio Del Toro at first appears miscast as an Englishman and Hopkins' son, but a portrait of his late dark-haired mother shows where he inherited his looks. And his un-English accent is explained as him growing up in America. Emily Blunt who looked and sounded fine as 'the Young Victoria' (reviewed here) is well cast again as another pretty, independent gal with quiet fortitude standing up against her opponents, this time a werewolf and his hunters instead of politicians (although there's not much distinction between a werewolf and a politician since both have dual lives - i.e. John Edwards, a current example - and will bleed you in different ways....). It's a hoot to see Geraldine Chaplin as a gypsy woman who knows who's responsible for the rash of killings. Art Malik as Hopkins' Sikh servant is wasted in too brief a role.
>>The Wolfman is gory with lots of blood amid the flying limbs & heads. But what else do you expect in this kind of movie? The earliest versions toned down the gore which was mostly done off screen but today's audiences want to see more. If you're on the squeamish side, this movie is not for you.

'Crazy Heart' Review

Jeff Bridges and Maggie Gyllenhaal in Crazy Heart. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/crazy-heart/1441169/main

If Jeff Bridges doesn't get a well-deserved Oscar for his performance in this film, then he will get it for being overdue for one. Either way he will earn it for Crazy Heart. Has he ever been bad in a role? I hardly think so. The plot will remind you of other films about an entertainer on the skids in need of a comeback and finds salvation usually through the love of a good woman. Some parts are predictable and others are surprises. The ending seems a bit pat but because Bridges' character is so likable even with all his faults, you want the movie to end on a happy note. It's not an entirely happy ending as such is life but it's an acceptable one for those who followed his ups & downs.
>>Bridges plays Bad Blake, a washed-up alcoholic country singer who travels the country playing third rate bars and sleeping with customers. His patient but supportive manager wants him to write songs for his former protege who is now a big star played by Colin Farrell, a real casting surprise and unbilled. He finally agrees to open for Farrell at a concert. Farrell sincerely want to help him but will Bridges' pride get in the way? Bridges begins an affair with a younger reporter/single mother played by Maggie Gyllenhaal (also nominated for a Best Supporting Oscar) with a cute toddler and we hope him getting involved with this couple will reform him.
>>Everyone including an old friend played by Robert Duvall wants to help but it's up to Bridges to first help himself. The music is good here even not for Country fans and it's a treat to watch Bridges, an acceptable guitarist according to the Mrs., perform songs. A small film with enough laughs due to Bridges and stays away from the maudlin.

'The Last Station' Review

James McAvoy with Christopher Plummer. Watch the Preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-last-station/1392634/main?icid=movsmartsearch

One should never rely on reading only one review to decide if you plan on seeing a movie. This is also true for a book, CD, TV show, etc. It's better to seek out several opinions but as I always say, go see what interests YOU and not others. It's what YOU think that really counts. You can still learn a lot from a good AND a bad review. Here's a bad review of The Last Station from The NY Times. Scroll down the review to read the reactions of viewers who didn't agree with the critic: http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/12/04/movies/04station.html

>>After reading this review, I was expecting to see a scenery-chewing contest. Since seeing the movie I can understand what the critic was implying. I almost expected to see no scenery left at the conclusion. It's a good period piece with performances overwrought at times but they work when you are dealing with characters based on real people who were larger than life and prone to explosive emotions. Maybe everyone here involved thought they were making 'Great Art' and let restraint fly out the window. During the closing credits you can see footage of the real characters.

>>However you feel about this movie, I guarantee you won't be bored. Production values evoke pre-revolutionary Russia and the actors from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean look comfortable in their roles and costumes although Mrs CV picked up on James McAvoy's Scottish accent. Helen Mirren, the only lead with Russian ancestry, continues to show us why she's a great actress. Her 'mad' scenes' are attention grabbers. Christopher Plummer, who I saw years ago twice on stage, continues to show us why he's a great actor as Count Tolstoi. who becomes the target of his wife's rages. She's concerned he's giving away their financial security to a peacenik movement and believes everyone around her is against her. Her paranoia (perhaps with good reason) drives her husband away on his final journey. These two have been nominated for Oscars. Since Mirren already has one, and Plummer is long overdue, I'm betting he'll win.
>>Those interested in the Count's last days should check out this site: http://linguadex.com/tolstoy/

'The Young Victoria' Review

Emily Blunt as the new Queen of England. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-young-victoria/29106/main?icid=movsmartsearch

This is a good film for fans of costume dramas. Most of us only know of Queen Victoria in her later years as a frumpy white-haired widow who reigned from 1837 to 1901. The term 'Victorian' refers to 'typical of the moral standards, attitudes, or conduct of the age of Victoria especially when considered stuffy, prudish, or hypocritical.' If anything the young Victoria (Emily Blunt of The Devil Wears Prada) is portrayed nothing like that here. We see this pretty princess rebelling against her claustrophobic upbringing and refusing to be the pawn of her mother, the Duchess of Kent (Miranda Richardson) and her controlling advisor, Sir John Conroy (Mark Strong from the current Sherlock Holmes and Stardust. He plays these villainous parts well). She learns quickly who serves her best interests and her country.

>>There's also time for Victoria to find love with the right husband who shares her views. Her first cousin, Albert from Germany (Rupert Friend from Cheri), is sent to England by his uncle, the King of Belgium who wants Albert to court her as a way to unite their countries for his political advantage. Those plans change as the two young people slowly fall in love where she learns to accept Albert's advice instead of the self-centered people around her. A postscript tells us they raised nine children during their twenty married years cut short by Albert's death from Typhoid.
>>From what I've read in college history classes about the real Victoria, this film follows the facts for the most part except for a scene near the end that is part invention but good dramatically to give the story a boost. For a good read, check out Wikipedia's biography of this remarkable woman: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_of_the_United_Kingdom

>>Feast your eyes on the costumes and scenery. Emily Blunt continues to amaze me with being so different in each new role; she's becoming a chameleon of actors. Good performances by all including Jim Broadbent as a dotty King William whose death places Victoria on the throne, although the film is on the chatty side which is needed to explain the political plotting. We took Mom with us and I think the film's verbosity put her to sleep although she swears she was awake during the entire time.
>>Sarah Ferguson, the former wife of Prince Andrew, is one of the producers, and certainly knows about what really goes on in royal households. I'm sure her input added some flavor to the story.

'The Book Of Eli' Review

Denzel Washington in The Book Of Eli. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-book-of-eli/30184/main?flv=1

Your first reaction to the previews will have you thinking The Book Of Eli is a Mad Max clone. That's true in a superficial way as we have a lone warrior surviving through a post-catastrophic world sparsely populated by creepy bad guys ruled by a warlord who takes advantage of his village. This version has the expected fights and chases across the wasted landscapes but perhaps not as spectacular as in the Mel Gibson movies as there's more plot and character development here. And a few plot surprises at the end worth waiting for.
>>Denzel Washington plays the loner donned with sunglasses and enough weapons to be a one man army. He's quite handy with them and warns his attackers before showing his skills. Of course they don't believe him since they outnumber him. The body count continues to rise during the plot as all he wants to do is be left alone as he travels to the west coast in search of a rumored civilized area still in existence. When the village's leader played by Gary Oldman, who always has a great time chewing up the scenery as a villain, learns Denzel possesses a Bible, he wants it for his own purpose. It's been thirty years since the world-changing disaster and there is no more organized religion and no Bibles left in this new bleak world. The educated Oldman's goal (no schools to teach reading and that makes him powerful) is to restart religion with himself as its head as a means to spread his control over the scattered pockets of population. Now the chase begins for the elusive book...
>>The stylized photography creates an ashen, barren look for the film that lets you concentrate more on the story and its characters. Denzel's character will remind you of watching a samurai film with Toshiro Mifune, a man of few words who makes up for them in action. Oldman is always wonderful to watch as his contrast in acting styles and as an opponent. Jennifer Beals (How many years has it been since Flashdance?) is touching as Oldman's blind wife at the mercy of his alternating tenderness and sadistic rages. The real casting surprise is Mila Kunis from TV's That 70's Show where we know her from her comic turn as the spoiled, bossy Jackie. She's good here in a dramatic role as Beals' daughter who escapes Oldman's tyranny to join Denzel who doesn't want a partner on his mission but eventually earns his trust and teaches her survival skills.
>>Consider The Book Of Eli a thinking man's version of The Road Warrior with a dose of religion but not preachy. See it if only for Oldman who's always good in anything... and that goes for Denzel too.

'Nine' Review

Daniel Day Lewis & Marion Cotilliard as an estranged married couple. Watch the preview: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/nine/29835/main

In 1982 we took my parents to NYC to see the original cast production of Nine starring the late Raul Julia. I've forgotten much about it so we took Mom to see the film version. A few weeks ago, Mom and I watched an Oprah episode promoting the film. With a cast full of several Oscar winners, Nine looked like it would be good.... until I learned who was the director. Rob Marshall also directed Chicago which I thought was overrated and unworthy of 2003's Best Picture Oscar. That film bombarded your eyes with too much crosscutting as every musical number was fractured into tiny takes. I can honestly say that Chicago gave me a headache unlike the Broadway revival I saw about six years ago.
>>Yes there is a difference between seeing a musical number on the screen and on the stage. However the classic movie musicals of the past used long takes that allowed you to savor their choreography unlike what I call today's MTV style of editing aimed for the impatient video generation whose short attention span wants fast paced razzle-dazzle.
>>Nine's preview looked enticing as the film's look is an homage to 8&a Half, La Dolce Vita, and other 60's Italian films but alas Marshall proved to be up to his old tricks. If you don't know anything about the plot. you might get lost. If you blink, you'll lose the story line as Marshall doesn't believe in long or long enough takes to get your bearings. The plot is based on Fellini's 8&a Half (1963) about a film director facing an artistic dry spell while looking back on his past. This version uses this story with more emphasis on the women in his life.
>>Daniel Day Lewis who inhabits each part he plays is very good as the director Guido. He looks the part and is convincing enough to come across as an unstereotypical Italian. He's not a bad singer if that's his real voice. I suspect Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, and Marion Cotilliard were also dubbed but I could be wrong... The real treat is seeing Sophia Loren as Guido's mother. She's been away from from movies for too long and looks fabulous at 75! She talk/sings her songs as she did years ago in the forgotten film version of Man of La Mancha, another flop adaptation of a hit stage musical. Judy Densch is marvelous as usual as Guido's costume designer who looks after him with a surrogate mother's care. and will surprise you with her showstopping 'Folies Bergere' number. The Blackeyed Peas' Fergie, the only real singer here, does well performing a lusty version of 'Be Italian.'
>> I don't think there is one number that's not marred by choppy editing. It's as if Marshall doesn't trust his instincts and needs to nail your eyelids open so you'll get every point across. or perhaps he's using editing to cover up his cast's lack of singing and dancing abilities. The acting is good enough if you can piece together each actor's role.
>>I seem to recall the stage version ending with a big production number reuniting the cast. Here we get an inkling that ends the film on an abrupt, flat note. But at this point I really didn't care. Nine is a tiring example of style over substance. The reviews have been mixed and its box office is suffering. For a truly negative review which I sorta agree with, read on. You can also find more clips here: http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/12/18/movies/18nine.html?ref=movies

'Daybreakers' Review

Don't let their appearance fool you. These are vampires including Ethan Hawke in center. Watch the preview for a good plot summary: http://www.daybreakersmovie.com/

I'm a fan of vampire films and novels. I still think Bram Stoker's Dracula is the scariest novel I've ever read. So when a new movie about vampires is advertised and the preview looks good, I try to see it in the theater before it goes to DVD. The last one I've seen but only on DVD was Let The Right One In, an earlier blog entry. The preview for Daybreakers looked enticing so I decided to catch a Saturday matinee. I went alone because my wife is getting over the extraction of two wisdom teeth and wasn't interested in seeing fangs and more blood.
>>The story takes place ten years in the future where a mass infection has changed most of the population into vampires while the remaining humans are hunted for their blood. You can't tell who are the vampires except from their yellow eyes, longish incisors, and chalky skin which are downplayed to be not noticeable at first. A chain smoking Ethan Hawke plays a vampire hematologist seeking a substitute for human blood as its scarceness is creating world unrest. He will not drink human blood, an act defying his nasty corporate boss played by Sam Neill whose corporation sells blood milked from captive humans and wants to capitalize on the shortage.
>>Hawke saves some humans on the run and they eventually believe he wants to help them. When he meets Willem Dafoe, a former vampire cured during an accident, he uses him to learn how to duplicate the cure and maybe save the world. Meanwhile Neill enlists Hawke's soldier brother to track them down as he wants no cure found since it would destroy his profitable monopoly.
>>The filmmakers give Daybreakers a steely blue-gray high tech look for night scenes that blends well with the vampires' unsettling appearance. There's plenty of gore but spaced well within the plot. If you think you've seen enough vampire movies with the usual cliches, this one has a few surprises placed amid the action and suspense. The cast is up to the task including Dafoe who offers good support with a few wisecracks that lighten the darkness. This is one well done creepy film for fans of this genre.

'Avatar' Review

Zoe Saldana & Sam Worthington as aliens. Watch trailer #2 for a plot summary: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/avatar/26982/main

Movie fans have been wondering what James Cameron has been doing since 1997's Titanic. That blockbuster is the biggest grossing film of all time. So how does a director top that achievement? Audiences and reviewers will be harsh on any subsequent film he makes... especially if it's a smaller one.... waiting for him to fail... "Oh it's not as good as his others, etc." Cameron knew that and has been quietly working for years on a new film. Publicity has been slowly released about him experimenting on new technology... perfecting 3-D.... something about a sci-fi plot...
>>Well the wait is over and now we have Avatar, a blockbuster that outshines Titanic in every way. Everything you read or heard about it is true. $230 million + was spent creating it and all that money is up there on the screen in full splendor. The box office receipts have already passed that amount since its recent release as word of mouth and glowing reviews keep mounting. The detailed work is eye-popping in 3-D and is used judiciously, not effect for effect's sake. Years ago I've seen 3-D films at the Sony Imax Theater in NYC but they played under an hour and we had to wear these heavy electronic goggles. Avatar uses lightweight glasses which are a relief since the film unwinds over two and a half hours and never drags. Perhaps an intermission would be good for a toilet break and to give our eyes a rest but perhaps Cameron didn't want viewers to lose the story's's momentum. Mercifully the 3-D effects are spaced apart enough for dramatic impact and never overwhelm you to the point of acquiring a headache,
>>The plot will remind you of films like Dances With Wolves and The Emerald Forest where an outsider joins a foreign culture and becomes one of their people... risking his life to defend them against his greedy, ignorant superiors. This time we go one hundred and fifty years into the future to the moon Pandora. Good performances by a newcomer Sam Worthington as a soldier and Sigourney Weaver as a sympathetic scientist (a veteran of Cameron's Aliens; some of the work here will remind you of that film) as the good guys who fight against a buff, gruff Stephen Lang as the gung ho military commander bent on destroying Pandora's ecological/mystical balance in pursuit of a rare mineral wanted by his corporate employers.
>>Expect seeing a world populated by strange creatures and wildlife. Some of the scenes are breathtaking in 3-D as they lead up to the spectacular battle at the film's end. If you never saw a 3-D film, this is the one to see. It doesn't matter if you don't like sci-fi as the story will win you over. Don't be surprised if Avatar outgrosses Titanic. This crowd pleaser is the movie event of the year. You dare not miss it. As enticing as the previews are, it's not the same experience seeing it the way it must be seen on the big screen. Avoid a non 3-D showing.

>>It's been reported that Cameron might make a sequel, possibly two. We know that he's good at making them - Terminator 2 and Aliens although Ridley Scott directed the original Alien. There's been talk for years about a sequel to his True Lies but we better not hold our breath waiting for the one about a ship hitting an iceberg... J/K