Review: The Stangers

Masking Fears

Today, audiences just can't get enough of the horror franchises out there. Unfortunately, I do think it is in a rather sad and pitiful state as audiences expect to be thrilled with senseless violence and gore, particularly flooding in from the Saw enteries and Eli Roth's grotesquely horrible Hostel films. To be honest, the thought of a low key thriller like The Strangers, that doesn't rely on a heavy dose of blood on the left and shameless nudity on the right sounds like an intriguing gesture to the American public to invite them into something new and creative. However, you have to put your ear up closely to the door, and you'll hear what that idea ends up being: just noise.

Writer-director Bryan Bertino's first feature film moves slowly in its first act to unravel the tale of a couple, James (Scott Speedman) and Kristen (Liv Tyler) whose plans for a romantic evening have gone sour, very sour, and are forced into James's old cottage to spend the night there. Soon, a young woman knocks on the door and asks for someone that isn't there. She leaves, but we all know that it doesn't stop there. No, she returns in a mask along with two other companions as they begin their barrage of terror on the innocent couple.

Being a first time director, there are times when I was impressed with Bertino's craft of this film. His unconventional first act of slowing the pace to allow for character development is an interesting hand, and there are also moments when he lets the film's own atmosphere create the suspense instead of relying on the cheap tricks of the trade (scary music, cheap pop ups). However, for every step forward Bertino takes to create something better, he takes about three steps back with something else. In those first few introductory moments, the camera has the unsettling jarring motion as if presented in one of those overused "docudrama" formats. Bertino would have us believe that these moments are to let us get to know the characters so we can care about them later, but his approach is like the friend who tries to pay a compliment who is smiling all the way through it. You can't trust what they're saying, and we can't trust Bertino's method as well, especially when he also uses heavy shadow lighting from his cinematographer Peter Savo. And despite some good acting from Speedman and, in particular, Liv Tyler, they are working with material that doesn't work with them back.

There's one moment when a frightened Tyler is hiding out in a barn and she hears noises of her tormentors closing in. After a while, I thought to myself, "They're just making noise out there; they aren't doing anything!" Truthfully, that describes the entire film. The whole thing just makes noises without any real threat behind it. Some moments do grab us, but they quickly recede into familiar horror movie territory. Still, I put faith in Bertino and think that a future attempt at a film will go better. Until then, make yourself a stranger to this picture. ** / ****; GRADE: C

Review: Indiana Jones & The Visitor

Whip it Good

So the wait is finally over. After nearly a twenty-year hiatus (nineteen, to be exact), Indiana Jones puts on the beaten fedora and takes out the whip for one last ride. At least we all assume it will be one last ride because we all know it should be. Indy could go on all of the adventures the world can offer but will still get closer to the point where he needs to hang up that whip for good. Still, his latest adventure proves to us that one last crack is enough for us to be entertained by his popcorn action adventures.

Directors Steven Spielberg and George Lucas return as collaborators on the fourth and final entry entry to the Indiana Jones saga (at least the final one starring Harrison Ford). Ford returns, of course, as the iconic hero. Now taken out of the 1940s time frame and battling the evil Nazis, who later became almost comedic foils by the end of the trilogy, Dr. Jones is in the fifties where the new enemies are the Russian communists. Cate Blanchett dons a brunette wig and hammy accent as Irina Spalko, an Eastern scientist who specializes in the paranormal. Also joining the crew are Ray Winstone as a flip flopping agent, John Hurt as an eccentric professor, rising star Shia LaBouef as Indy's new greasy sidekick with a twist of his own, and returning Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood from the the first Indy adventure Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The plot details are worth much explanation. This is because the plot wants to become so out of the ordinary that I don't feel an explanation is the right thing to do. I have to admit, that even for an Indiana Jones movie, its dealings in the supernatural and even extra-terrestrial seem a little bit of a stretch. Granted, after twenty years one needs to reach a bit further, but the old school biblical explanations of the first and third entries were enough to carry those films. Still, there is a wonderful sense of adventure and excitement that runs through many scenes, even if they sometimes are overplayed.

Spielberg, on the other hand, seems like he's playing by the numbers in this film, and at times it lacks the stamina of the previous entries. All of the sets and action scenes are all reminiscent of the earlier entries and many don't try to reach beyond what the others did, except for the practical cinematography from Spielberg's recently used camera man Janusz Kaminski.

One of the few things that manages to put a smile on the face is the many references to the past films. When a series gets this old, it has no choice but to poke fun at itself, and when we get shots of the golden ark or hear conversations that refer to Denholm Elliot's Marcus Brody or Indy's father (while Connery refused to participate in the film, he does make a photographic appearance), a little recognition of a series that still has a little life is appreciated.

I still give credit to the filmmakers for attempting to breath freshness into the series, and it does work some of the time. However, major plot pieces, and an unsatisfactory ending does hinder the film. It certainly isn't the best in the series, which will always be held by the first entry, but at least we can say that it is better than Temple of Doom. *** / ****; GRADE: B.







Visiting Ours

The market for independent movies has substantially grown in the past few years. Many of them have become more complex than the custom silent, black and white student film into ones that try to tackle on pressing issues and important subjects. As much as this film tries desperately not to fall into the latest niche of indie movies, it ends up doing it. It's a terrible mistake coming from a film that had the potential to become a sweet story with its leading character playing wonderfully at the center.

The story follows well known character actor Richard Jenkins as a Connecticut college professor who must go out to New York to deliver a speech on an essay he's not particularly proud of. While he resurfaces in his long-ago apartment, he finds more than just moldy furniture. Inside are Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and Zainab (Danai Gurria), two illegal immigrants that have fled to the United States and have taken refuge in his apartment. However, instead of panicking and worrying about the degradation of American jobs and enterprise, Jenkins's Walter invites them to stay. That's when we get a barrage of friendly scenes between the two that then allow Walter's character arch to develop.

After decades of being "that guy" in the movies, it's nice to see such a wonderfully underrated actor like Jenkins getting the chance to shine here. It's a predictable kind of a character, but Jenkins invests so much that he does make us care about every action that is going on in his life. Even when his changes in character can be seen clearly as they approach, we still enjoy watching them because of how much Jenkins puts into him. The rest of the cast works only so-so, playing off of Jenkins. The only other noticeable character is Tarek's mother, played by Hiam Abbass. She is subtle in her acting and never piles onto what could have been a hammy supporting role.

After making an impressive debut five years ago with The Station Agent, writer-director Thomas McCarthy does little here to make his film special. Every move he makes in this film are all predictable styles of previous independent filmmakers, and after a while it gets a little tiresome. One would wish that McCarthy would just try to feel out the story without letting that indie style of filmmaking take over for camera angles and predictable editing cuts. The only exception I find that breaks out of the indie world is the transcendent score from Oscar-winner Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, which has an indie feel to it but also recognizes that this film is also about bigger things.

Those bigger things, however, end up hurting it in the long run. McCarthy has turned the film into an overbearing political message about how America's post-9/11 policies on immigration are unjust and need to be fixed. I don't feel that's the right approach to this story, and after an obligatory shot of a freeway sign that protests: "Support our troops by bringing them home," it made me realize how liberally slanted this film was. By the end, it became less about a film that focused on a sincere, character driven story and more of a political message directed mainly towards Republicans. I wish McCarthy had enough faith in his story to let the characters develop the message themselves without piling it on in the script.

Everyone knows that this is Jenkins movie, and everyone will see it for him. I certainly did, and I'm glad I did so. He is the shining light of a film that wants to shroud itself in a political message. That is unfortunately a wrong choice. The story itself can be powerful, but it gets muddled in the socio-political setting. Hopefully Jenkins is enough to let this film provide a great time. *** / ****; GRADE: B.

Review: Speed Racer

Sound and the Fury

This film has a lot more in common with William Faulkner's classic novel, titled above, than one might expect. However, I doubt that Faulkner would have imagined a duo like the Wachowski brothers helming an adaptation of anything he's written. Truthfully, they probably haven't either. The brothers prefer to work in their highly visualized world in which their imagination can't seem contained. It worked with the first Matrix outing, and for some parts of its successors. In some points of Speed Racer, that style works behind the scenes of some big failures. But, there might be something underneath the slick paint job, and that is a good ride.

Everyone remembers the famous (or infamous) Japanese cartoon that was imported to the United States in the mid '60s. The Wachowskis have now "matrixed" the cheaply made cartoon and have attempted to put a plot behind it. Speed, played by a rather bland Emile Hirsch, is seen as a hyperactive, ADD ridden young boy in his early days who translates that impulsive energy into racing, particularly after his brother Rex was killed in a fatal accident. Speed likes to keep racing in the family, as his Mom (Susan Surandon) and Pops (a wonderfully campy John Goodman) head their clan along with Spritle and the chimp. Then, after a big win at a race, the sponsors try to lure him onto their team, and the CEO of the Royalton Company (Roger Allam, who hammed it up good in the Wachowskis scripted V for Vendetta) sparkles the charm in his eyes before pulling the rug out from under him about the real, dirty side of racing.

What that side is, anybody could care less. The film's plot devices of stock trading, company mergers, fixed races and Korean pop sensation Rain are only there to pad up the films two hour and fifteen minute running time (about forty-five minutes two long). As soon as Allam starts his lecture to Speed about everything, the 10-year-old boys' ears will tune out, along with everyone elses. This story doesn't need exposition after exposition because the source material certainly didn't require that. However, when the film does recognize where it needs to be, in the world of its candy colored visuals and stylized racing scenes, it goes full throttle. I have to hand it to the Wachowskis and their visual effects team for going all out with the effects while not letting the visual style overpower the senses. Every race is an eyeful, but there is never a sense where the computer enhanced features are wearing thin. There is also an added bit of excitement whenever Michael Giaccino's zippy music features an underscoring of the original Speed Racer theme song.

An interesting aspect of the film, and sometimes a very annoying one, is how the Wachowskis' screenplay operates. Much like Faulkner's novel, every scene seems to have no sense of time. It prefers to weave in and out of storylines and subplots as soon as a new thought enters a characters mind. That writing style impresses at first, but quickly gives way when a dragged out second act causes the acting to be sucked out. Hirsch gave an impressive turn last year for Sean Penn's Into the Wild, but his deadpan expressions are too great to ignore. Also, the littlest family member reminds me a little too much of Ron Carey from Mel Brooks's High Anxiety, and the chimp is just as annoying. The script tries hard to make some substance out of this premise, but whether it's the self-congratulating lines of encouragement ("It's art what you do out there") or the very lame jokes ("Ninja? More like a Non-ja!"), it never really succeeds. The vision of the directors overpowers here.

Sometimes an overtly visual style only creates a loud and opinionated atmosphere that just can't be contained on the screen (look to Julie Taymor's Across the Universe as an example), but for some reason, the Wachowskis have found a way to place this style on the screen without losing something in the process. Well, most of the times that happens. Sometimes, the Wachowskis adhere to the phrase "style over substance," where they keep the camera and backgrounds moving continually even during a mundane conversation. Still, everybody tries their best to work within the green screen world while trying to go beyond the Star-Wars-like acting. If your brain switches during any part of this film, you're going to realize that all of this is insane. However, I'd advise you to let the 10-year-old boy out and let him yell, "Go, Speed Racer, Go!" **1/2 / ****; GRADE: B-.