How to Watch: “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2″

Published on July 18, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

It’s difficult putting into words how I feel about the end of “Harry Potter,” but this last installment in what has turned out to be an incredibly entertaining movie franchise does everything it’s supposed to – and more. In fact, let me count the ways – and I’ll warn you now, I’m highly emotional over this.

1. Because both parts were filmed back-to-back, there is no break in the story flow, which makes it seem like you just watched the first part, even though it’s been six months since “Deathly Hallows, Part 1” was released. Wow. And I remember thinking then, “Well, at least I have one more movie.” Sniff.

2. You are immediately immersed, picking up where things left off, i.e. Voldemort taking the Elder Wand from Dumbledore’s grave to use to kill Harry, and Harry, Hermione and Ron at Bill and Fleur Weasley’s beach house, where they’ve just buried the beloved elf, Dobby. Harry and his stalwart two best friends must continue their quest to find the Horcruxes – the objects Voldemort has left pieces of his soul in so he can live forever – leading them to find one in Gringotts, in Bellatrix Lestrange’s vault. It’s the first of a series of big action sequences, and it’s awesome. Hermione disguised as Bellatrix to get into the vault is hilarious, especially since Helena Bonham Carter is basically playing Emma Watson. The last remaining Horcruxes are Hogwarts, so off they go.

3. The final, all encompassing Hogwarts battle, in which Harry must finally confront Voldemort, is suddenly looming close. Harry, Ron and Hermione’s reunion with their Hogwarts pals touches your heart, but Hogwarts is now a damp, dismal place under Headmaster Snape. Ah, Snape [more sniffs]… more on him later. By the time Harry figures out what the last two Horcruxes are, Voldemort and the Death Eaters are already coming. It’s go time, but I feel dread just watching them wait for the onslaught.

4. Hermione and Ron finally kiss. It’s immediate, passionate and should probably go down as one of the better cinematic embraces of all time, because we’ve been waiting for it for SO LONG. Emma Watson should get most improved over the course of the series since she started as a precocious 11-year-old who had only auditioned for Hermione as a lark. Now, she – and Hermione – have transformed into confident, beautiful young women. Her best scene overall? In “Part 1,” when she has to erase herself from her Muggle parents’ minds in order to go off on this dangerous quest.

5. Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint have also blossomed into skillful actors. Grint was plucked from obscurity as well, a red-headed moppet who could scrunch up his face like nobody’s business, while the hunt for the unknown young actor to play Harry Potter became national news. Remember how damn cute those three were in the 2001 “Sorcerer’s Stone,” all wide-eyed and innocent? I do. Credit must be given to those “Harry Potter” directors who shaped them: Chris Columbus (“Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Chamber of Secrets”), Alfonso Cuaron (“Prisoner of Azkaban”), Mike Newell (“Goblet of Fire”) and particularly David Yates, who took over the franchise with “The Order of the Phoenix” and stuck with it until the end. God bless him.

6. Snape. As played by Alan Rickman, this complicated character’s true nature – and motivation — is finally revealed in “Deathly Hallows, Part 2.” I’ll admit, this is where I started sobbing, and while many of you who read the book know why I’m crying, some of you don’t, so I won’t spoil it. Suffice to say, the Harry Potter saga has attracted a laundry list of British A-listers, who have added an immeasurable amount of talent and wisdom to the franchise. Thank goodness producer David Heyman never buckled under what had to be some pressure to employ a big-name American actor. Actually, I don’t think author J.K Rowling, who has been involved every step of the way, would have allowed it.

7. I also won’t spoil the ending – who lives, who dies – because these films have appealed to so many people, whether they’ve read the books or not, that it wouldn’t be fair. Big things do happen. Beloved characters do die. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry bears the brunt of all the action and while the final battle may not feel as massive as it does in the book, the 3D effects and cinematography are still fairly impressive. Everyone has their favorite “Potter” movie (mine’s probably still “Prisoner of Azkaban”), but I bet most fans will pinpoint these last two “Deathly Hallows” movies as the pinnacle.

8. Is this really the end? It’s hard to fathom since it’s all still so fresh in my head. But maybe a few months from now or a year from now, it’ll hit me. And I may have to pull out the first “Harry Potter” movie and watch it.

 

How to Get Some Life Lessons from the “Bad Teacher” Cast

Published on July 4, 2011 in Interviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

We all remember a teacher we didn’t like growing up – the one who smelled bad or who hated you just because or was a mean as a snake. But I’m pretty sure we never had a educator quite like Elizabeth Halsey.

As portrayed by Cameron Diaz, Elizabeth is a very, very bad junior high English teacher indeed. She drinks, smokes, curses and has absolutely zero interest in teaching anyone anything. In fact she’s only doing the school thing because she needs to find another sugar daddy pronto, setting her sights on the new, filthy rich substitute Scott Delacorte (Jason Timberlake) and deciding she needs a boob job to get him. That’s it. That’s her motivation through the whole movie.

Directed by Jake Kasdan (Orange County), the rest of the hilarious cast is rounded out by Forgetting Sarah Marshall funnyman Jason Segel, The Office‘s Phyllis Smith and Dinner for Schmucks actress Lucy Punch. They all gathered one bright Sunday morning in Los Angeles for a press conference to talk about the meaning of Bad Teacher.

On playing someone with such wrong self-image values:

Cameron Diaz: “Obviously, if I felt I could get somewhere by having bigger boobies, I would have done it by now. For her, it’s everything. It’s called hard economic times, ever heard of this? You couldn’t get a millionaire like you could three or four years ago before the crash. It’s an investment. Even Suze Orman would have been like, ‘Girl, five year plan.’ To get what you want, you have to have a goal. And for her, it’s to invest in her business of finding sugar daddy. It was fun to make fun of it.”

On making Elizabeth likable, despite all the flaws:

Diaz: “I read 30 pages into the script thinking, ‘There’s no way I’m playing this character. How can I redeem her? This is a horrible person.’ But then 10 pages more, I was like, ‘Uhh, I think I like her!’ By the end, I was like, ‘This is amazing because I don’t have to apologize.’ And that’s the beauty of this script, such a breath of fresh air. Usually you spend the last 20 minutes of the film apologizing for the first hour and a half because you can’t own up to what it is. In life, you don’t have epiphanies and just change your life. It happens but it’s not the norm. I just think at the end she slows down the train a little so she can jump off and climb on the train going the opposite direction.”

On Elizabeth and Scott’s dry humping scene (yes, you heard correctly):

Justin Timberlake: “Nothing wrong with a jean jam. And collectively, I think we all felt a responsibility to those young people who are buying tickets to other movies and sneaking into ours. It’s a public service announcement to safe sex. No one got pregnant with their jeans on.”

Diaz: “That’s pretty much the only message in the movie that we are proud of. If we are going to be role models in ANY way, we should at least offer a jean jam.”

On SNL changing Timberlake’s life:

Timberlake: “I grew up with SNL as an institution. It is part of the humor and chemistry I had with father, who let me stay up and watch it with him. I came from a divorced family and I didn’t get to see my father a lot, so it’s something we shared and is special to me. Just a huge fan of the show. And to be honest, I’m here at this press conference because of SNL. I have no doubt in mind about that. I owe getting a shot to be in Bad Teacher directly to Lorne Michaels and SNL. I’m not a five-timer yet, only hosted four times, but just to be there and rock out with all I got. And can I just say… that really IS a thoughtful Christmas gift.”

Jason Segel: “I’ll join the five-timer club when I host SNL FIVE MORE TIMES.”

On the fact women behaving badly is so funny these days:

Diaz: “Women have always behaved badly. Maybe more so than men. Any of my friends, if I tell them what women really talk about, they’re like ‘lalalaalalaalala’ and plug their ears. They can’t take it. But I think now, these kinds of films, everyone can laugh at them. I mean a male could have played this role and it would have been just as funny.”

Timberlake: “As a male who likes the dirty things women say, I think funny women have been around forever. Carol Burnett, Madeline Kahn. There’s always been genius female actors in comedy. I also think we live in an age where technology has afforded a generation who look at the world in a more crass way. The Internet is a really strange place to be. Like Cameron said, that’s the coolest thing about this movie, that a male actor could have played the role but it’s great to see a female do it and do it as well as Cameron does it.”

Segel: “I feel like the boob story would have had to change a bit.”

On the cast chemistry:

Timberlake: “After the first week of rehearsal – and orgy – it all kind of came together.”

Jake Kasdan: “It wasn’t that hard. We just really funny people to play every single part. The material was great… it wasn’t that hard.”

Diaz: “It was comedy marksman, precision. Pull the arrow back, slow the breath down and shoot. Bullseye! You had to be like that with the fast paced comedy. Jake would come up and give me notes and then wouldn’t say anything to Jason, and Jason would say, ‘So just be as awesome as I was last time?’ [Segel looks at Kasdan and nods]”

Segel: “I’m just super good at this. When you’re in a cast like this, there’s a sort of mutual admiration society element to it, especially when you are off camera, sitting in awe, watching great comedians do their thing. That’s when I feel the luckiest and also the most humble, working with people who are actually amazing at what you profess to do.”

On having memorable teachers:

Segel: “I’d like to give a shout out to my high school drama coach. He changed my life. Right before I left high school, my last high school play before I met Jake [looking at director Jake Kasdan] and started working on ‘Freaks and Geeks,’ wow, 13, 14 years ago? Anyway, my drama school told me, ‘Don’t forget, the best actor in the world is out there stuck doing dinner theater somewhere, so don’t ever get arrogant, thinking you are entitled to this.’ It stayed with me this whole time.”

Timberlake: “I had a teacher in 7th grade who told me to have more realistic goals than being a songwriter and that my school work was suffering. And I like to say to her, and you can quote me on this: Suck it.”

Phyllis Smith: “All of my teachers were exactly like Elizabeth. So that’s they way I am.”

Opinions on the public education program:

Timberlake: “Man, we’ve got to figure out how to pay our teachers more. They are like our surrogate parents away from home. In doing these interviews and hearing you guys ask us about having “bad teachers” – which I get, it’s a natural question – I’ve come to realization the teachers I remember the most were the ones who taught me life lessons rather than just trigonometry. They have such a huge responsibility and under appreciated and underpaid.”

How to Watch: “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”

Published on June 20, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Step 1: Go ahead and pop this Penguin treat. The Jim Carrey comedy is the kind of brain friendly family entertainment perfect for a summer movie.

Step 2: Add penguins. Seriously, you could be watching the worst movie ever made and if they happen to stick in an adorable penguin, suddenly the film isn’t so bad. Based on a 1938 children’s novel, the Mr. Popper’s Penguins story is simplicity to the point of formulaic. Popper (Carrey) is a workaholic real estate whiz who specializes in getting people to sell their old properties so he can tear them down and build shiny new buildings. Popper has an ex wife (Carla Gugino) and two kids (Madeline Carroll and Matthew Perry Cotton) he doesn’t pay a lot of attention to. Wait, is this sounding a little like Carrey’s other comedy Liar, Liar? Yes, but unfortunately not quite as funny.

Step 3: Don’t fight the penguins. Things start to change for Popper when his late father, a professional adventurer who was never home when Popper was a kid, leaves him six “souvenirs,” aka Gentoo penguins from the Antarctic. Suddenly, Popper’s pristine co-op Manhattan apartment turns into a happy fun place for the flightless fowl, who also begin to take over Popper’s life – for the better. His kids love the little rascals – Loudy, Stinky, Lovey, Nimrod, Bitey and our favorite, Captain – and want to spend more time with dad, as does the ex wife. Of course, his career suffers, but well, it should, right? Popper has to take a hard look at himself, right?

Step 4: Learn something from the penguins. Mr. Popper’s Penguins is about as predictable as it gets, which would have been fine if Jim Carrey has been more on top of his game. He really needed to tap into his good old zaniness as Popper. There are a few choice moments – especially with the penguins, because let’s face it, you gotta have SOME kind of crazy Carrey comedy with those little cuties – but it wasn’t enough; you really crave his facial contortions and wacky impressions. Maybe Carrey is getting tired of all that. I hope not.

Step 5: Let the penguins work their magic. The rest of the cast all do a serviceable job supporting the main players. And yes, I’m talking about the Gentoos. They completely steal the show. What is about penguins that make us all go “Awww”? From the incredible documentary The March of the Penguins to the animated Happy Feet, these lovable creatures are simply cinematic naturals. Mr. Popper’s Penguins uses the real deal for most of the movie (and they DON’T TALK), with only a few up close “reaction” shots generated by computer animation. The winged actors are incredibly smart and as long as you had some kind of fish on your person, you could get them to do just about anything. Apparently, Carrey bonded with his co-stars by literally having fish in his socks. He admits in the press notes he has an obsession with penguins, saying it is physically impossible not to be happy around them. “They are like puppies, times ten!” I wholeheartedly concur. All in all, Mr. Popper’s Penguins will certainly delight the kiddies, but their parents might wish for a tad more Carrey irreverence.

 

How to Watch: “X-Men: First Class”

Published on June 6, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Step 1: Find the mark. X-Men: First Class is first rate. It’s definitely the best in the X-Men franchise, but prequels can be tricky. In the X-Men series, there have been two – Wolverine, which takes a look at how Logan (Hugh Jackman) becomes the knives-for-fingers badass mutant we know and love, and now X-Men: First Class. I thought Wolverine missed the mark a bit, but that is not the case with First Class.

Step 2: Hit the mark. In it, we see how Charles “Professor X” Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik “Magneto” Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender) meet as young men in the 1960s. Xavier, who comes from a lonely aristocratic upbringing, hones his telepathic and mind control abilities as an Oxford graduate student, specializing in gene mutation. Along the way, he also meets a young girl named Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), a fellow mutant who has the ability to shape shift and will later become the enigmatic Mystique. Erik, on the other hand, is a Holocaust survivor who uses his power to control magnetism to seek revenge on those Nazis who killed his family and experimented on him — especially one Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon), a particularly nasty former Nazi-sympathizer scientist who turns out to be a mutant himself.  Xavier, Erik and Raven end up joining a secret sect of the CIA, along with a few other young special recruits, including brilliant scientist Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult) who eventually becomes The Beast. Together, these mutants form the First Class of X-Men, guided by the wisdom of Xavier, the brute force of Erik and non-mutant help from CIA Agent Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne). They try and stop Shaw and his mutant lackeys from starting a nuclear war under the guise of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Did you know that whole thing was perpetuated by mutants? I sure didn’t.

Step 3: Mark your territory. The retro First Class feels almost like a James Bond flick, with Shaw hiding out in his submarine “lair,” surrounded by his minions, including January Jones as yet another ice queen, telepath Emma Frost, who can quite literally turn her female form into a diamond. There’s also a guy (Jason Flemyng) who looks like a demon and can teleport objects through another dimension and another (Alex Gonzalez) who creates whirlwinds. There’s a stripper (Zoe Kravitz, daughter of Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet) with insect wings who shoots fireballs out of her mouth, and a dude named Darwin (Twilight’s Edi Gathegi) whose body can adapt to any adverse environment. For me, that’s the beauty of the X-Men movies; everyone has a different unique ability or superhuman power, which makes it endlessly fascinating to watch. And First Class has some great mutants.

Step 4: Cast X-cellently. The film is also bolstered by the acting talents of McAvoy (Wanted) and Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds). In order for First Class to work, it was essential to find the right actors to portray pivotal characters Professor X and Magneto as younger men because we had to believe they would end up as the powerhouse adversaries Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen. McAvoy and Fassbender handle it beautifully. There’s such tragedy in Erik’s past, and Fassbender nails that intense anger and deep pain which turns into an overall hatred for humans, while McAvoy displays Xavier as rather cavalier at first, only to see him grow stronger as a true educator – and leader. The young Lawrence, who nabbed an Oscar for her performance in Winter’s Bone, more than holds her own as the conflicted Raven, who thinks she wants to be normal. Bacon serves well as the villain – and there are numerous choice cameos from a variety of well-known character actors (and a few surprise ones as well).

Step 5: X marks the spot. Finally, I must tip my hat to director Matthew Vaughn. As a protege of director Guy Ritchie, Vaughn has only helmed four films so far, including the taut British gangster flick Layer Cake and highly enjoyable Kick-Ass — and continues to show considerable skill with First Class. Of course, he did have some help from producer Bryan Singer, who directed the first two X-Men movies and has always fully understood how to bring these comic-book characters to life. So, with Vaughn, they once again capture the story’s innate conflict of a being a mutant, between wanting to be like everyone else and embracing their own unique abilities even if they seem threatening. I so want more X-Men movies, but I’m afraid nothing might be able to top this one.

How to Watch: “Bridesmaids”

Published on May 16, 2011 in Movies and Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Step 1: Begin by chuckling. Bridesmaids might not be the best comedy ever, but there are some individual scenes that will leave you in a heap on the floor.

Step 2: Then starting giggling. We all know how excruciatingly funny SNL alum Kristen Wiig can be, but up to this point, she’s only had well-placed supporting roles in feature films. Now with Bridesmaids she makes her first foray into leading lady status — and god bless her, she does it the right way, by surrounding herself with equally funny people she has worked with before, including her old SNL pal Maya Rudolph. Wiig plays Annie, a down-on-her-luck 30-something who suddenly finds herself maid of honor for childhood best friend Lillian (Rudolph). Annie is game — at first. Then she meets the other bridesmaids: the co-worker (Ellie Kemper), the cousin (Wendi McLendon-Covey), the soon-to-be sister-in-law (Melissa McCarthy) — and Helen (Rose Byrne), the Ms. Perfect wife of Lillian’s fiance’s boss, who regularly outshines, outpays, outmaneuvers and basically outdoes Annie in every way. Of course, this drives Annie mental, and she quietly starts having a nervous breakdown. It’s pretty damn funny to watch.

Step 3: Really get a good laugh going. Wiig handles her starring role outrageousness with aplomb, even if it rises a little bit too over the top. But then again she co-wrote Bridesmaids with another old friend, Annie Mumolo, so the action – and the laughs – spring from a deep friendship. We already know about Wiig and Rudolph, but Wiig also did sketch comedy at the L.A. Groundlings Theater with Mumolo, McCarthy (Mike and Molly) and McLendon-Covey (Reno 911). There’s a simple ease to the comedy in Bridesmaids because these ladies have all known each other for years – and most likely peed themselves silly through most of it. Even Kemper (The Office) has major improv experience and fits right in. The only novice to the group is Aussie actress Byrne (Damages), who manages to hold her own quiet nicely. Besides, she isn’t supposed to be the funniest woman in the room. No, those honors would have to go to McCarthy, who literally grabs every single scene she is in and wrestles it to the floor – and for once, what she says in the trailer is only the tip of the hilarious iceberg.

Step 4: Start snorting. As for the male counterparts in the film, they do take a back seat. Still, Jon Hamm is fairly priceless as Annie’s vain f**k buddy (one of the stranger sex scenes I’ve even seen), while Irish actor Chris O’Dowd is a sweet antithesis, a down-to-earth cop who falls for Annie and tries to help her out of her pity party. The biggest male influence, however, would have to be producer Judd Apatow, who gave Wiig one of her first standout feature film gigs in Knocked Up. He didn’t direct Bridesmaids (that would be TV director and longtime Apatow friend Paul Feig), but Apatow’s touches are everywhere.

Step 5: Fall about the place. So, why isn’t Bridesmaids the funniest comedy of all time? First, that’s a tall order to fill. Second, there are moments when the story starts to sag, especially when Annie just keeps hitting the rock UNDER rock bottom. For me, it’s a bit tiresome. But as I write this and remember those scenes that made me weep with laughter (like the one where they all have food poisoning, trying on bridesmaids dresses), everything else fades away. Seriously, I haven’t laughed that hard at comedy in a long time. And I cannot WAIT for the DVD! I’m hoping they have a blooper sequence to end them all.

How to Watch: “Water for Elephants”

Published on April 27, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Step 1: Step in. The Water is a little too tepid but at least the Elephant steals the show.

Step 2: Remember the book is usually better. Based on the bestselling novel by Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants is a romantic tale set in the 1930s Depression about the demise of a traveling circus. It centers on the dashing young veterinarian student Jacob (Robert Pattinson), who has his whole life ahead of him until a tragedy sends him on a journey of self discovery. He jumps onboard a train one evening and unexpectedly joins the Benzini Bros. Circus as the in-house vet, ingratiating himself with the cast of colorful characters, including the circus’ ringmaster August (Christophe Waltz) and his lovely wife, and star of the show, Marlena (Reese Witherspoon). Not surprising, Jacob falls for Marlena the minute he sees her calming down her team of beautiful horses – and Marlena is a little smitten, too. But then there’s the whole matter of August, who we quickly realize has big-time anger and jealousy issues, with a cruelty-to-animals streak as an added bonus.

Step 3: Read “tepid” in graph 1. Athough I haven’t read the book, I imagine the seemingly forbidden love blossoming between Jacob and Marlena plays well on the page. Unfortunately, it’s not translated onscreen. Sparks are definitely not flying between Pattinson and Witherspoon, and while they are pretty to watch, they’ve each had much better chemistry with other movie partners. Waltz is charming, intimidating and downright scary once again, but after seeing him win an Oscar for basically playing the same heavy in Inglourious Basterds, it might be time for the Austrian actor to spread his wings and show American audiences he can do so much more.

Step 4: When all else fails, buy an elephant. No, the real star of Water for Elephants is Rosie, a 53-year-old female elephant who joins the Benzini Bros. as a last-ditch effort to boost the show’s profile. Played by a movie veteran elephant named Tai, the gentle giant certainly has more charisma with its star players than they do with each other. Witherspoon trained with Tai for three months before filming started and you can see the natural affinity the two have for one another. The same goes for Pattinson, who Tai unmercifully flirts with on — and apparently off — screen (and why shouldn’t she?) The film could have benefited from more elephant scenes.

Step 5: It’s got the look. Water for Elephants looks fantastic, I’ll give it that. Director Francis Lawrence, who helmed such visual treats as Constantine and I Am Legend, creates a vibrant, brutal world of a 1931 circus, especially on the train, with all the performers and workers and animals jammed together. Bygone traveling circuses are something to be marveled, with their rich history. It’s the unpredictability and danger and wonderment of it all, and Lawrence taps into that succinctly. It’s just a shame the romantic elements couldn’t have been more powerful and meaningful, instead of dragging down the film. I was totally ready to swoon over Pattinson and Witherspoon. Oh well.

How to Watch: “Born to Be Wild”

Published on April 12, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Step 1: Go, IMAX! The brilliant IMAX technology works its magic again with the fascinating and heartwarming nature tale Born to Be Wild.

Step 2: Start with a dedicated idea. This documentary, narrated by the always good Morgan Freeman, follows the efforts of two animal activists. In the lush rainforests of Borneo, world-renowned primatologist Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas has set up a compound where she nurses orphaned baby orangutans, whose mothers have been killed, usually by some form of deforestation. Then across the rugged Kenyan savannah, celebrated elephant authority Dame Daphne M. Sheldrick  does the same thing with baby elephants, whose mothers have been killed by poachers. These women and their trusted teams rescue, rehabilitate and return these incredible animals back to the wild — and we get to watch with wonderment on how they do it.

Step 3: Love the orangutans. Born to Be Wild is only 40 minutes, but in that time you get to know the characters intimately. With Dr. Galdikas, we see how her mostly female team bonds with the orangutans. Adult orangutans are generally solitary creatures but as babies, they cling to their mothers, rarely ever touching the ground. In the compound, these expressive primates wrap themselves around their human surrogates and grow to love them as much as if they were monkeys themselves. Dr. Galdikas also keeps in touch with some of the adult orangutans she has raised, who are now happily surviving in the wild. In one scene, she shares a bowl of noodles with one.

Step 4: Love the elephants. With Dame Sheldrick, her team is mostly male, and they, too, form close attachments with the baby elephants. Elephants are far more social than orangutans and only feel truly comfortable when they are surrounded by other elephants and their human friends. Most rescued baby elephants have been traumatized when they are brought into the camp, having witnessed their mothers killed and shunned by the male elephants, so it takes a lot of TLC to get them to trust the humans. In fact, each handler assigned to an elephant sleep with their charge so to make the animal feel safe. Then when it comes time for the elephants to go back into the wild, Sheldrick takes the elephants to an even more remote location, where the animals stay for another three years. In that time, adult elephants – who were raised by Sheldrick but are now living in the wild – come back to this camp and actually help rehabilitate the younger elephants so the transition goes smoother. It still kind of brings a tear to my eyes.

Step 5: Go, IMAX… again! The best part is watching Born to Be Wild in an IMAX theater. Filmmaker David Lickley apparently had a time of it getting all that equipment into these remote places, especially in Borneo, but the captured images are truly breathtaking and spectacular. Adding the 3D element is also a must. At one point, one of the orangutans looks close enough to touch. I complain about all the friggin’ 3D movies out there and having to wear those glasses, but when in an IMAX theater, the technology still astounds me.

Step 6: Be an animal lover. If you’ve ever thought about leaving the comforts of society and going into the wild to study and help animals, Born to Be Wild will definitely urge you in that direction. There is something so selfless and amazing in seeing people dedicated to preserving natural wildlife – and focusing on such adorable animals as orangutans and elephants is just a plus.

How to Watch: “Soul Surfer”

Published on April 12, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Step 1: I’m afraid to say something negative about the Christian-based Soul Surfer for fear of going to hell. So I won’t.

Step 2: Uplift the spirits. While there’s a fair amount of cheesy dialogue and Lifetime TV sensibilities, the film still touches your heart. Soul Surfer is a biopic about real-life pro surfer Bethany Hamilton, who, as a teenager, overcomes many obstacles after losing her arm in a shark attack. Starting when Bethany (AnnaSophia Robb) is a 13-year-old girl, we see she’s someone with an undeniably kind spirit and boundless energy, growing up in Hawaii with surfer parents (Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt). She learns to surf at a very young age with her best friend (Lorraine Nicholson), and the two eventually find themselves on track to becoming pro surfers.

Step 3: When the shark bites… Then tragedy strikes when Bethany is attacked by a shark while surfing, nearly dying after losing 60 percent of her blood. Now with only one arm, she is determined to go back in the water to surf but finds it very difficult. Bethany almost gives it all up. Yet, with the support of her family and her church youth counselor (Carrie Underwood), she embarks on a humanitarian journey to help victims in the 2004 tsunami disaster — and discovers her own courage to live out her dream of being a pro surfer.

Step 4: Move above the common. What delineates Soul Surfer from a TV movie of the week is, of course, the acting. Quaid and Hunt simply add a certain gravitas to the proceedings as the Hamiltons, who have provided a solid family unit. It’s also nice to see Hunt on the big screen again after a three year absence. Let’s hope to see more of her. Robb, best known for her roles in Bridge to Terabithia and Race to Witch Mountain, has the requisite amount of spunk and determination, while also showing what must have been Bethany’s insecurities and fears. Country superstar Carrie Underwood makes her film debut as the Christian youth leader, and I’m sure she played it pretty close to herself. Nicholson, who is Jack Nicholson’s daughter, does a nice job as the friend who witnesses her best friend getting her arm chewed off by a shark. One thing that sort of bothered me was the way the locals went after the shark and killed it (don’t worry, I’m not giving any major plot points away). It really wasn’t the fish’s fault; he thought she was a seal, like in most shark-to-surfer attacks, so why kill it? Poor sharks. But I digress.

Step 5: Move to Hawaii. Director Sean McNamara comes from kids’ TV (Even Stevens), so while he has a handle on the PG-ness of Soul Surfer, he’s not as good with the surfing sequences — at least not when it comes to using stunt doubles effectively. There are many obvious moments in which you can tell it’s not Robb — and even some laughable times when the actress’ face is superimposed on a real surfer in action. And yet, the special effects to hide Robb’s arm are completely believable. Go figure. Ultimately, though, McNamara captures the true spirit of Bethany’s story, managing to bring a big screen feel to what probably should have been a small screen sports flick. Filming in the gorgeous, lush and extraordinarily beautiful Hawaii also helps. I have to admit I walked out of the theater seriously considering chucking it all in, moving there and running a small sundries shop. I don’t surf, so not too afraid of getting a shark bite — and I can always get Netflix for my movie addiction. Who’s with me?!

 

 

How to Watch: “Sucker Punch”

Published on March 28, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Step 1: Take a look. The uber-stylistic, action-packed  Sucker Punch definitely titillates the ocular senses. I mean, it’s some bad-ass eye candy, no question about it.

Step 2: Try not to have high expectations. This isn’t the kind of film you go see if you want zippy dialogue or a thoughtful drama. It isn’t about great characterizations or a linear story. Sucker Punch does just that – KABAM POW! The story centers on Baby Doll (Emily Browning), a young woman who loses her mother and her baby sister in one fell swoop, and is left with an evil stepfather who has her committed to a mental institution for the criminally insane. This all happens very quickly so we can get to the action. Once there, she meets other young women in similar circumstances — including Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish) and her sister Rocket (Jena Malone), Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and Amber (Jamie Chung). The conditions are rough, of course, with leering guards and abusive orderlies, but there is one kindly doctor (Carla Gugino), who urges the girls to create fantasy worlds in order to help them cope. And boy, do they take this to heart.

Step 3: Here’s where the movie gets a little hard to figure out. Baby Doll arrives at the institution, she sees it at it really is, horrible, but suddenly the surroundings change when the camera zeroes in on Sweet Pea, having a moment onstage in the “break room.” Now, the hospital has turned into a speakeasy of sorts, with all the girls glammed up and forced to be “dancers” in this new milieu, so this guy named Blue (Oscar Isaac) can make money. The girls are indenture servants, so to speak, and while it’s not ideal, they make the most of it. They don’t really like Baby Doll much, at first, but soon she gains their trust when she comes up with a plan to escape. Then things get even weirder when Babydoll starts to dance, going into a semi-trance and transporting herself and the other girls into one stylistic, seriously kick-ass action sequence after another, trying to find certain objects that will help them in their quest for freedom.

Step 4: Play dress up. The actresses all fit their roles nicely, gorgeous and psychosexually charged, all equipped with weapons of choice (Baby Doll loves her some samurai sword).  In Baby Doll’s fantasy, they are a small band of expert mercenaries, easily handling the slo-mo Matrix-esque, acrobatic moves as they take down a series of otherworldly armies, from walking dead Germans, to Lord of the Rings-like creatures to robots. Browning is particularly fetching with her blonde pig tails and false eyelashes, and while it’s hard to tell if she has any acting chops from this performance, she does wield said sword with aplomb. Malone and Cornish probably have the most emotional scenes as the two sisters, and they are capable actresses, while Gugino also makes the most of her 15 minutes on screen. All the men are appropriately grotesque — except for Jon Hamm, who comes in at the last minute as the High Roller.

Step 5: Don’t think about it too hard. The wonderfully fantastical elements of Sucker Punch far outweigh any of the film’s faults. Director Zack Snyder, who gave us 300 and  Watchmen, solidifies his signature stamp on filmmaking — the overly stylized action against the canvased backdrop of greys and blacks splashed with vibrant colors, turning scenes into near works of art. Now, while some feel he hasn’t ever really surpassed 300, I think Synder continues to be a intriguing visionary. I like the chances he takes, even if he fails to engage the audience every time. Sucker Punch is not for the faint of heart, that’s for sure, but it is endlessly fascinating and highly inventive — and well worth a look-see if you want some ultra-cool action.

How to Watch: “Battle: Los Angeles”

Published on March 14, 2011 in Reviews. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Step 1: Battle: Los Angeles is only a mediocre addition to the alien invasion genre.

Step 2: Poor L.A. It’s always getting beaten up either by weather anomalies (Day After Tomorrow), giant meteors (Deep Impact), the Mayan doomsday calendar (2012) – and yes, many alien invasions staking their claim on the City of Angels. Maybe L.A. is always a target in disaster films because, well, this is where films are made, so there’s an affinity. Now count Battle: Los Angeles as one of them.

Step 3: Typical wartime scenario. You know, I was a little disappointed there was never a shot of surfers in the water watching the spaceships drop from the sky into the ocean, like in the poster. Instead, the film starts off introducing a bunch of U.S. Marines who will go on to save the day. There’s SSgt. Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart) who has seen some hard combat in his 20 years and is ready to retire. There’s 2nd Lt. William Martinez (Ramon Rodriguez) who is expecting a baby, has just graduated from officer training and is ready to lead a team. There’s also your garden variety of stereotypical soldiers from the innocent newbie who might as well be wearing a red shirt to the bitter corporal who has it in for Nantz to the kick-ass chick soldier, who is, of course, played by Michelle Rodriguez.

Step 4: Here they come. The TV is blaring reports that a cluster of “meteors” are headed to Earth and that people on the coastline should evacuate. Then as they seemingly crash into the ocean, it’s becomes very clear, very quickly these ain’t no meteors but rather an alien force, intent on taking over our planet by using our water to fuel their machines. Nantz, Martinez and the rest of the unit are sent in, behind the enemy lines, to rescue some civilians caught there — and the film is off and running as the Marines encounter the “hostiles” and try to figure out the best way to kill them while making it back to safety.

Step 5: Find the star. Most of the actors are somewhat recognizable but instantly forgettable, except for Eckhart, who has the biggest profile. He growls a lot and says things like, “Don’t you give up on me! We are going to make it!” You know, the typical war mumbo jumbo. Michael Pena and Bridget Moynahan play the civilians, trapped with kids in their care so there’s THAT element to it as well. Seriously, every banal war/disaster trick in the book is at play in Battle: Los Angeles.

Step 6: The real draw is the action, not the actors. Helmed by Jonathan Liebesman, whose only other claim to fame is The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, the camera takes on that documentary, Black Hawk Down quality, shaky as the soldiers run in and out of buildings and houses. There are a few  intense and worthy action sequences, I will give you that, particularly one on a demolished freeway ramp. And the aliens are sort of a cross between the ones in Independence Day and Predator, making weird sounds so you know they are coming. But ultimately, Battle: Los Angeles just doesn’t offer anything fresh or inventive in this nearly saturated genre. In fact, it made me want to see District 9 again.