District 9
Presented by Peter Jackson, the creator of Lord of the Rings, and directed by Neill Blomkamp, this is a terrific black sci-fi comedy/horror movie. An alien spacecraft is hovering permanently over the city of Johannesburg, and the occupants, who resemble giant prawns, have taken shelter in the city’s ‘District 9’ area. Obsessed with cat food, and living in squalor, the prawns have become an embarrassment to the South African government, and an ambitious civil servant has to move them into a make-shift concentration camp. The movie is funny, but it does turn nasty. Subtly, the movie also makes some astute comments on South Africa’s defunct apartheid policy.
The Damned United
This movie is so much more than just a film about English football. Directed by Tom Hooper and set in 1974, it tells the real life story of Brian Clough, a flamboyant football manager, who took the Derby County football team from the bottom of the ladder to the top. When the managerial position at Leeds Football Club becomes open, Brian is offered this plum job. But, his rampant egotism and blatant ambition does not endear him to the team players; nor does it sit well with the Board of Directors. Brian only holds his coveted position for 44 days. The movie is darkly humorous, as Brian has to re-evaluate his ethics and his principles. Michael Sheen is superb in the role.
Cheri
Adapted from a novel by the French author Colette, brilliant English director Stephen Frears, the maker of Dangerous Liaisons (1988) and The Queen (2006), presents a stunning highly stylized and romantic love story. Set in Paris at the turn of the last century, Michelle Pfeiffer plays an expensive high-class courtesan, aware that her beauty and her profession are nearing their use by date. Michelle embarks on a final love affair, with a dashing but tempe stuous much younger man. The movie skillfully depicts the emotions of a bitter-sweet romance, combined with the inevitable effects of the advent of aging. This is not the first time Michelle Pfeiffer has worked with Stephen Frears. She responds instinctively to his direction, and gives a performance which must be one of the best of her extremely long and successful career.
Up
All of his life 78 year old Carl Fredricksen has fantasized about adventure in the wilds of the South American jungle, but, as fate would have it, Carl was never able to fulfill his dream. Faced with admission into a retirement home, instead Carl ties thousands of balloons onto his house and just floats off to Paradise Falls. Yes, this marvelous cartoon from Disney/Pixar is sad. And, it gets a hell of a lot sadder before its inevitable happy ending, but it does offer wonderful escapist entertainment for the whole family. Edward Asner supplies Carl’s voice, and he gives it much melancholy, grumpy, pathos.
The Shrink
In this movie, directed by Jonas Pate, Kevin Spacey is terrific as a Los Angeles psychiatrist and author with an A-list clientele. His patients include a famous actress, an insecure writer, and an obsessive-compulsive super-agent. Plus, Kevin also has a pro-bono case involving a troubled teenage girl studying movie production. However, Kevin is disillusioned with both his career and his personal life. He worries that he cannot provide the treatment his patients need. The lives of all these people gradually become interwoven, with Kevin acting as the pivotal point. The movie is an absorbing glimpse into some of the emotional scars of Hollywood’s so-called beautiful people.
Tenderness
At the age of 18, a juvenile murderer is released from prison, after serving his sentence for the murder of a young girl. However, a hard-bitten detective, who put the murderer away in the first place, is sure that the young man is a psychopath - a serial killer, who will murder again. The detective decides to keep tabs on the suspect, as the suspect sets out on a seemingly innocent road trip. Actually, at the beginning of the movie it is unclear what the murderer did to his victim, but once that is cleared-up the movie has a sinister and disturbing sub-plot, involving the murderer’s female companion on his road trip. The movie is cold and alienating, and shocking. Russell Crowe, as the detective, gives an agreeably modulated performance.
Spinning into Butter
I was all set to ridicule this movie, being of the opinion that successful TV comediennes do not necessarily make convincing dramatic movie actresses. However, even with her hair dyed brown, to give her some ‘character’, Sarah Jessica Parker is more than adequate in this rather good ‘racist’ drama. Sarah plays the Dean of Students in a starchy New England college, and, when a hate crime explodes on the campus, Sarah is put in a position where she has to examine her own feelings about race and prejudice, while trying to maintain the ‘politically correct’ policies of her college’s administration. Ok, it’s not the greatest movie ever made, but, it’s well written, well directed and well acted. It maintains its interest right through to the surprise ending!
District 13 Ultimatum
This movie is just more of the same. It’s just another French kung-fu action movie from Patrick Alessandrin, with an incomprehensible script by Luc Besson. Even with its stylish photography, flashy editing, and trendy tribal tattoos, there is no disguising the fact that the movie is ultimately boring!
