Groovy Movie
Selector
January 20th, 2000
by Max Power
MAGNOLIA -
Film prodigy Paul Thomas Anderson,
Writer/Director of Hard Eight and Boogie Nights hits three
for three with his newest electrified movie. It’s too long (three
hours), it’s all over the place, it’s crazy, and it’s wonderful.
Mixing multiple storylines and amazing actors, Anderson shows that he is
not only a son of the Scorcese school of filmmaking, but also becoming
one of its better student-teachers. Lending their talents to the mix are
Tom Cruise, in one of his best roles in years, the ubiquitous Julianne
Moore, Jason Robards, and Anderson regulars: William H. Macy, John C.
Reilly, Philip Baker Hall, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
THE CIDER HOUSE RULES -
Based on John Irving’s 1985 novel (and
written by him for the screen), Rules is the story of Homer Wells
(Tobey Maguire), an orphan who was raised in a Maine orphanage by the
kind Doctor Wilbur Larch (Michael Caine.) Homer meets a young woman (Charlize
Theron) who has come with her boyfriend to get an illegal abortion by
doctor Larch. As Homer gets to know her, they fall in love. The film is
a complex play on abortion, right and wrong, incest, love, rules, and
choices. Well directed by Lasse Hallstrom, the Swedish director of My
Life As A Dog and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, but a
little lacking in depth of characters.
SNOW FALLING ON CEDARS
-
People will probably go see this film
thinking it’s supposed to be The Cider House Rules. Two
unfortunately similarly titled films out at the same time. Better see Cider
because comparatively speaking, it’s the better of the two. Based on
David Guterson’s novel and directed by Shine’s director,
Scott Hicks, the film (beautifully shot, but overly-toyed with) stars
Ethan Hawke as a reporter in the 1950’s who is covering a court case
about a Japanese man on trial for murder in the Pacific Northwest and
the racism that was abundant against the Japanese in America before,
during, and shortly after WWII. Sadly, the film loses its focus as it
rambles to different time spans and tends to be too quiet for two long.
Great visuals and scenery aren’t enough to keep you too interested.
THE HURRICANE -
Denzel Washington gives a striking
performance that deserves many awards and much attention. Washington
plays the real-life Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter, a middleweight boxer
in the 1970s who was thrown in prison for a murder that he didn’t
commit. Unlike some of the trailers show, the film isn’t a boxing
film, it just happens to be about a boxer. Washington injects such truth
and honesty into his character that he can convey emotions with the
simplest gestures. Dealing with racism, the court system, sanity-or the
losing of it, isolation, and public perceptions, the film goes a long
way in giving us a solid piece of adult entertainment. Director Norman
Jewison (…And Justice for All, Moonstruck, Fiddler on the Roof)
is back in top form (especially if you realize his last film was Bogus).
GIRL, INTERRUPTED
-
Having looked forward to seeing this
movie and be able to compare the local sites filming sights to what the
film had, I have to say it wasn’t enough to keep my attention. Aside
from wonderful performances by Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie, the
script and static direction left much to be desired in this story
concerning two young women in a mental hospital. Director James Mangold
follows up his well-done debut film, Copland, but fails to create
enough emotional depth within the various caricatures that inhabit the
hospital. Decent, not great. The acting by the two leads is why it’s
worth watching.
NEXT FRIDAY
-
From someone who truly liked the first
installment, 1995’s Friday, I was a little worried that the
sequel (without Chris Tucker) would disappoint me. Yes and no. While
missing the down and dirty small budget fun style that the first film
had, Next tries to become fresher by changing the locations to a
better neighborhood and all the problems that Craig (Ice Cube), will
face in this nice part of town as he hides out from the bad guy (Debo)
who terrorized Craig and his neighbors in the first movie. Sometimes
funny, other times tired, the jokes get stale too quickly. This is the
kind of film that works well on video when you can get a bunch of
friends together in order to just have fun and watch a silly film.
SUPERNOVA
-
Coming from talented producer (the Alien
series), and director (Wild Bill, The Warriors, 48
Hours) you might expect more from this rip-off of every
out-in-space-with-aliens rip-off. Unfortunately, this film, even with
its good cast (Angela Bassett, James Spader, Lou Diamond Phillips),
fails to achieve anything more than the same old stuff that we have seen
over and over again. A crew on a spaceship receive a distress signal and
go to investigate it in deep space. I think you can figure out the rest.
But if all you want is mindless escapism, then this is the film for you.
TOPSY TURVY
-
Hailed as one of last year’s best
films, Mike Leigh’s new movie does indeed rank up there. Already, the
film has won Best Director and Best Film from the National Society of
Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle Awards. Taking place
in the late 1800s in London, the film chronicles the troubles faced by
Gilbert and Sullivan as they decide that it is time to come up with a
new, more adult musical (The Mikado.) Leigh (Secrets &
Lies, Naked, Life is Sweet), straying from his
all-too-real laser-slices of life style of his other works, creates a
wonderful atmosphere of creativity and drama that is theatre. While not
a mainstream moneymaking film, it is a treasure to be found (if you can
find it).
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