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(0 votes, average 0 out of 5)
Written by Gregg Shapiro
Jun 30, 2011
Ryan Reynolds stars in “The Green Lantern.” – Photo: Courtesy
‘Beginners’
Written and directed by Mike Mills (“Thumbsucker”), “Beginners” stays with you long after it has faded from the screen. Based on Mills’ own experience with his late father, who came out as gay following the death of his wife, “Beginners” takes a non-traditional approach to telling a non-traditional story and succeeds on every level.
Oliver (Ewan McGregor), an artist with relationship issues, has already come to terms with his father Hal’s coming out in his 70s when he learns that Hal is dying of cancer. Around the same time Oliver meets actress Anna (Mélanie Laurent), who could either be the best possible thing for him or the worst. It’s well worth watching Oliver, Hal and Anna make their way through the challenging landscape. A
‘Midnight In Paris’
Not as near-perfect as “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” Woody Allen’s latest, “Midnight In Paris,” finds a way to meld many of the elements of Allen’s best work (the past, as in “Bullets Over Broadway,” with modern romantic comedy, as in “Annie Hall”) to create a delightful, humorous, picturesque and entertaining movie experience.
Beginning in Paris at daylight, with beautiful shots that wouldn’t be out of place in Condé Nast Traveler, Allen’s return to form features self-described “Hollywood hack” Gil (Owen Wilson) and his chilly fiancée Inez (Rachel McAdams) in Paris with her stuffy, Republican parents. Gil is smitten with the city and Inez is not. Things take an unexpected turn when, after wandering the streets of Paris all day, Gil finds himself lost at the stroke of midnight as the modern cars on the street are replaced by vintage models. Gil climbs into a classic Peugeot and is transported to a party at Jean Cocteau’s, where he meets Zelda (Alison Pill) and F. Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), and later finds himself talking to Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll), who offers to show Gil’s novel manuscript to Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates).
Out on the street, however, Gil is back in the present day. But the next night, Gil recreates his experience, whisked off to Gertrude and Alice’s, where he meets Picasso (Marcial Di Fonzo Bo) and the painter’s mistress Adriana (Marion Cotillard). And so “Midnight In Paris” goes, back and forth in time, from the present to the 1920s, making for a neat and sweet little package. A-
‘Super 8’
If you’re willing to overlook the formulaic nature of J. J. Abrams’ summer blockbuster “Super 8” and fork over the extra bucks to see it in IMAX, then you might find yourself entertained. But, if a movie that combines influences ranging from Stephen King’s “Stand By Me” to Steven Spielberg’s “E.T.” and to Abrams’ “Cloverfield” is too much for you, then you’re probably better off seeing something else at the multiplex.
Beginning on a somber note at the funeral of Joe’s (Joel Courtney) mother, who was killed in a factory mishap, “Super 8” doesn’t linger long on the down side. Joe’s best buddy Charles (Riley Griffiths) is a budding filmmaker, and with his Super 8 camera in hand, he goes forward with plans to make a zombie movie in the kids’ Ohio hometown in the late 1970s.
Disobeying the wishes of his shut-down sheriff father Jack (Kyle Chandler), Joe meets up with his friends Cary (Ryan Lee), Preston (Zach Mills), Martin (Gabriel Basso) and Alice (Elle Fanning) to begin filming Charles’ movie, well past his bedtime. But just as they are in the middle of a shot they witness their science teacher Dr. Woodward (Glynn Turman) drive his pick-up truck onto the train tracks and intentionally derail a freight train.
Pretty soon the military has arrived at the crash site and then strange things begin to happen. Metal objects and materials begin disappearing, as well as many of the town’s dogs, not to mention a few of its citizens.
So as not to spoil the element of surprise, suffice it to say that Dr. Woodward has been connected to a mysterious alien force for several years and the military secret-keeping machinery is in full effect. That is, until a bunch of kids uncovers the truth.
Fun, fast-paced, loud (although not as loud as “Thor”) and surprisingly touching, “Super 8” is just that, super. B+
‘Cars 2’
Of all the Disney/Pixar flix, the first “Cars” was completely lost on me. A blatant attempt to get the NASCAR crowd into the theater, gay men were not the target audience.
But with their sites set on expanding that fan-base, “Cars 2” not only touches on (or brushes past) acceptance but also goes international (London! Paris! Tokyo!). It shakes (not stirs) in some James Bond and ultimately goes gunning for big oil. Really? In a Disney/Pixar movie? Sadly, yes. Before you know it there are enough bullets flying and explosions happening to make it feel like a Michael Bay movie. Looks like someone’s been huffing gasoline. “Cars 2” = four flat tires. At least the vacation-themed “Toy Story” toons short was entertaining. C-
‘The Green Lantern’
I’m not a comic book reader (although I am married to one), but I would hope that they are as offended by the inconsistent super-hero movie franchise as I am. “Thor” “thucked” and the bilious “The Green Lantern” isn’t much better. The most science fiction-like of the recent spate of comic book adaptations, “The Green Lantern” tells the tale of how hotshot pilot Hal (Ryan Reynolds) came to become one of the harnessers of emerald energy, a member of the Green Lantern corps and a wearer of the ring.
Chosen by the ring itself, following the death of a corps member at the ruthless hands of escaped villain Parallax (voiced by Clancy Brown), Hal at first resists then takes his rightful place. But Parallax isn’t Hal/The Green Lantern’s only problem. He has to deal with competitive romantic interest Carol (Blake Lively), not to mention nebbishy scientific genius Hector (Peter Sarsgaard), who undergoes his own horrifying transformation when infected with a Parallax space virus.
Short on substance (and shirtless Reynolds) and long on less than special effects, the only thing green here is the money that will be raked in (or maybe lost) at the box office. D
