Clear Brilliance in Invisibility

Now You See Me, Now You Don't
Directed by Attila Szász
Extreme Films



As a reviewer for a cinema blog still in its infancy, I was recently blessed with the opportunity to screen a Hungarian film currently making the rounds in a variety of film festivals. The winner of 12 awards, such as Best Short Film (Harlem International Film Festival), Best Narrative Short (Ojai Film Festival), Best Foreign Language Short (Oxford International Film Festival) and Best Director (Newport Beach Film Festival), Now You See Me, Now You Don't is a brilliant film that runs about 30 minutes. Yes, you read that correctly, THIRTY MINUTES. In a cinematic world full of drawn-out films that sometimes carry on for close to three hours, Attila Szász takes a fraction of that time to weave a tapestry of family relationships that draws you into a world of trust/mistrust and connect/disconnect...and it's a world you're devastated to leave when you do.



Now You See Me, Now You Don't is, on the surface, the tale of Mom, Dad, and son, Alex. Alex (Vitéz Ábrahám) plays around the house while Mom (Dóra Létay) boils water in the kitchen, preparing dinner. She scolds her husband (Ernõ Fekete) over the phone and chastises six-year-old Alex when he plays too closely to the stove. When Dad comes home from the lab, he brings something with him. The next morning, Alex is invisible. Mom becomes furious with Dad for involving their son with such an experiment and relationships begin to shatter.



The performances by Létay and Fekete are masterful portrayals of people whose marital connection has fractured. Létay is simply heartbreaking as the mother doing her best to care for her son and Fekete is unforgettable; you feel Mom's pain instantly and completely despise Dad for being so distant. These thirty minutes are a rollercoaster ride from which you can't possibly tear your eyes or soul. Aside from being riveted to the screen throughout this exceptional story, I was also dazzled by the filmmaking itself. The use of flowing sunlight and deep shadows is simply astonishing and the movement of the actors through the house is so natural and fluid, it's as if they're dancing across the screen.

Inspired by the birth of his own son, Attila Szász uses the film to express some of the emotions he has experienced in his role as a father and cites the reaction of the audience as one of the film's greatest achievements. "I was hoping to evoke some emotions in the audience, to see if I could push the right buttons," he recently told me. "The reaction to the film is overwhelming; I'm still shocked at the people's feedback. It's a spooky thing to see that your audience react almost exactly the way you were hoping for." This first-time filmmaker's greatest achievement, in this reviewer's opinion, is a film so beautiful and awe-inspiring that I had to replay it the second it ended.



Produced in 2005, Now You See Me, Now You Don't is one of the greatest films you haven't seen....yet. It continues making the rounds of various film festivals around the world until the end of the year, and hopefully, Szász adds, it will be available on iTunes for download soon. Until then, you can check out clips on the film's official MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/attilaszasz. You can also order the DVD from Spiritual Cinema Circle (http://www.spiritualcinemacircle.com/) - you have to subscribe to become a member, but then you can order the DVD from the back catalogue. (Trust me, this film is well worth it.)

They say good things come in small packages. Now You See Me, Now You Don't is one of the smallest, and best, films I've ever seen.

Belly Laughs from Shattered Hearts

Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Directed by Nicholas Stoller
Universal Pictures

Judd Apatow and his buddies have become the comedic heavy hitters du jour in Hollywood over the past couple of years. It’s gotten to the point that even fringe members of his clique are getting their shot at the box office. The latest “favor to friends film” from the Apatow camp comes from Jason Segel who most of you will remember from the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother. Segel’s connections to Uncle Judd go all the way back to one of the best television series that nobody watched, Freaks and Geeks. His most recent collaboration with Apatow came from last summer’s comedic hit, Knocked Up. Now Segel scripts and stars in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, a quirky romantic comedy with great performances, a touch of over-the-top nastiness, and quite a few more laughs than I expected, given the subject matter.

Segel plays Peter Bretter, a lazy musician who loves sweatpants and couch surfing. He makes a living writing the score for a television crime drama which stars his girlfriend, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell from Heroes and Veronica Mars). Peter is satisfied with the rut he’s managed to stay in for the past five years until Sarah dumps him for a hot British pop star (comedian Russell Brand).

On the advice of his stepbrother Brian (Bill Hader from SNL), Peter decides to go to Hawaii to try to get his mind off his troubles but, as luck would have it, Sarah and her new boyfriend are staying at the same hotel. While wading through the self loathing mire, Peter meets Rachel, an employee of the hotel played by Mila Kunis (That 70's Show) and starts to pursue her romantically. Imagine every single uncomfortable situation that this scenario can produce, and you have the crux of the film.

All of the performances are top notch. Segel plays the self-deprecating card with just enough pathos to make him more interesting than you’d expect. Kristen Bell looks great as Sarah and makes her character likeable despite all our inclinations toward regarding her with disdain. One breakout role is Brand's turn as Aldous Snow, the over the top Bono-esque laid back, cause laden rocker who is fond of leather pants and sex with anything with two legs and breasts.



As good as the rest of the cast is, the true gem of this movie is Mila Kunis who has never appeared more gorgeous (easily overshadowing Bell in the looks department) and creates in Rachel a free spirited island girl who is hard not to fall in love with, even from the audience. Even the most pretentious independent filmgoer can’t help but cross his fingers for a clichéd happy ending for this lovely rebound girl.

As far as the laughs go, this film has them in spades and, while there is a bit of the old “grossout” stuff, most of the laughs come from cast interaction. I will issue a warning, however - we’ve got full frontal nudity here, and not from any of the lovely ladies in the cast, so be prepared! Also, don’t blink or you might miss Apatow alum Paul Rudd as a flaky surf instructor who steals just about every scene they give him. I offer my kudos to first time director Nicholas Stoller who proves that he has the comedic timing thing totally under control.



Who can’t identify with the concept of being unceremoniously discarded by someone you love? Hell, even Jennifer Aniston got kicked to the curb by Brad Pitt! When I got destroyed by a girl I once though I would marry, I was so useless, I couldn't listen to any music other than Alice Cooper, lest I be reminded of my sorrow. Man, was I ever pathetic! Forgetting Sara Marshal brings back those memories but in a way that makes us laugh at how ridiculous we can be in the face of heartbreak. As long as you aren't hours removed from your own Dear John (or Dear Jane) moment, it's hard not to be entertained by this film.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall is now in theatres.

Bust out your shoe phones, everyone!

Get Smart
Directed by Peter Segal
Warner Bros. Pictures

Ah, yes, summer. That wonderful time of year when the beaches are crowded, the clothing is minimal, the ice cream flows like rivers, and the Hollywood studios toss out a veritable cornucopia of sequels, adaptations, and remakes (I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Saving Private Ryan 2). So, let's see, what's on the previewing slate today? Ah, it's an updated version of the great 60's TV show, "Get Smart".



For those who don't remember (or were in the pre-zygote phase at that time), "Get Smart" was a send-up of the spy genre that had become ridiculously popular during the height of the Cold War; some guy named Connery made a couple of spy films around that time, I think. Anyway, the TV show focused on Maxwell Smart, a dim-witted (yet exceptionally effective) agent for CONTROL, a spy organization that did constant battle with the evil forces of KAOS, led (somewhat) by the evil Siegfried. Smart's companions at CONTROL included, among others, a robot that could best be described as gullible and a lovely (and highly-skilled) partner, Agent 99, who eventually becomes his wife. This was a great comedy, mainly for two reasons: 1) Don Adams (who you children-of-the-80s might know better as the voice of Inspector Gadget) was a brilliant comedian, and portrayed Max with a deft mix of confidence and slapstick humor; 2) One of the head writers was Mel Brooks. Enough said.

Therefore, since Mr. Adams has sadly passed on, and Mr. Brooks is focusing more on Broadway at the moment, I'm looking at the movie release with a little hesitation. Nevertheless, there are several things about the movie that pique my interest. For starters, if any person alive today would play the role of Maxwell Smart, it would have to be Steve Carell. Just look at his portrayal of Michael in The Office: very self-assured, yet sublimely oblivious to the fact that he has no control over the situation at hand. Also, Alan Arkin was a solid choice to play the Chief (it seems Mr. Arkin has reached that age where every role he is offered is to be the boss of some government organization... maybe it's just me), and adding in The Rock... oops, sorry... Dwayne Johnson as another CONTROL agent (...or is he??) can provide for some extra physical comedy that wouldn't work right with Maxwell Smart. It appears, from the early trailers, at least, that there is a fair amount of action (it is still a spy movie, after all), but it doesn't let the explosions override the laughs, which is always a good thing.



The one casting decision I'm rather unsure about is Anne Hathaway as Agent 99. Don't get me wrong, she is a fine actress who has very good comedic timing, and quite easy on the eyes, too. The issue I haven't isn't so much about her playing Agent 99 per se, it's more about the chemistry she might have with Steve Carell. Remember a couple of paragraphs back where I mentioned that Smart and 99 get married? Well, I'm having a little difficulty imagining any believable romantic tension between the two characters when the actors portraying them are nearly 20 years apart in age (granted, Don Adams and Barbara Feldon were 10 years apart, but it wasn't so noticeable a gap). I think that Carell and Hathaway will play off each other well comedically as partners, but part of the charm of the sitcom was the dual relationship between the two leads, so it might lose a little something in the big-screen translation. Come to think of it, it does seem that a lot of the agents for CONTROL are really young, as in "After work, I'm heading over to the kegger at Sigma Nu" young; perhaps that's to show just how out-of-place Max is at the start. But those are just minor gripes - for the most part, the casting is pretty much spot-on; I'm just waiting to see how they all interact and just how closely they adhere to the original storyline.

All in all, it looks like a pretty good adaptation of a great show. It doesn't quite reach the level of sharp, witty dialogue that the original did (again, it's nigh impossible to replace the mind of Mel Brooks), but it does retain the overall silly-yet-bright sense of humor that made the show so great. Toss in some intriguing action sequences (including a fight mid-skydive), some fun cameos (Bill Murray, anyone?), and some old favorites from the show for nostalgia purposes (Hymie the Robot, the shoe phone, etc.), and it looks like an action/comedy that could provide plenty of entertainment this summer.

Get Smart will be released in theaters on June 20. Don't miss it (by that much!)

Sorry, I couldn't help it.

Bringing Down the (Movie)House

21
Directed by Robert Luketic
Columbia Pictures

The Sting, Ocean's Eleven, Casino, Rounders...now 21 takes its rightful place in the echelon of gambling/Vegas movies. Based on a true story, 21 regales its audiences with the story of a team of MIT students who learn how to count cards and win big in Sin City. Tops of the box office for two weeks in a row before being knocked out by the Prom Night remake (oh, those fickle high schoolers and their horror movies), this flick is highly entertaining, wonderfully cast, and makes you want to hop a plane to stay a night or three in the Hard Rock Resort and Casino...or perhaps Planet Hollywood...maybe the Riviera...(Wow...lots of money put up for product placement in this one, folks.)

Jim Sturgess stars as Ben, an MIT student whose only goal in life is to go to Harvard Medical School. Being an average-middle-class-math-genius, he's short of funds and needs a scholarship. Meeting with a Harvard prof, Ben realizes he has to "jump off the page" in order to beat out the 70-some-odd applicants for a free ride to Harvard Med. Simultaneously, Ben and his buddies, Miles and Cam (Josh Gad and Sam Golzari) worry that they don't have much going on in their lives, save for a 2.09 competition in robotics. After a fateful day in an advanced math class far above this English teacher's head, Ben is invited to a card-counting team meeting led by his professor, Micky Rosa (the brilliant Kevin Spacey). It seems Ben has found the life experience he's been searching for.



This small group of MIT students learn to count cards, signal opportunities, and play off each other and exercise their rights to bring down the house in Vegas every weekend. Aside from the attraction of lots and lots of money (gotta pay for med school!), Ben is drawn into the team by Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth) and joins Choi (Aaron Yoo), Fisher (Jacob Pitts), and Kianna (Liza Lapira) in a fast-paced world of high rollers, night clubs, comped suites, and limousines. However, as we all know, Vegas doesn't like to lose and on the case is Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne) and his colleague Terry (Jack McGee). Before they are completely replaced by facial recognition software, Cole and Terry are doing their best to squelch the big winners and are breathing down on the team's necks.

Sturgess's performance is believable to a point - you can relate to his need for money, but his arrogance gets the best of him at times and the characterization becomes a clichéd rags-to-riches performance. Bosworth plays simple support and really doesn't have much energy here. Yoo is hysterical as Choi, that friend we all know and love who enjoys swiping everything that's not nailed down in hotel rooms. Fishburne is wonderful as Cole Williams, and when he puts those thick rings on to show those dastardly card-counters he means business, you cringe with the poor victim. The prize of this film, though, is Spacey.



As Rosa, Spacey is the professor you want to have in class - who knew math teachers could be so charismatic? Aside from that, he plays a mentor, a friend, a businessman - and he's very much in control. Rosa has so many sides to him you get as lost trying to count his characteristics as trying to watch those cards with the MIT counters. Spacey can do no wrong as far as I see it and he certainly does not disappoint in 21.

The one disappointment, however, is the length of the movie. Just minutes over two hours, 21 slows down about halfway through and it takes a while to pick up the pace to the climax of the film. The high-energy of the casino scenes are riveting, but the slow Boston scenes make the time crawl by. Once you finally arrive at the climax, though, these characters come into full swing and it's a great ride to the end. Shave about half an hour off this one and you've got one fantastic picture.

21 is a winner -- and as anyone who knows gambling knows... winner, winner, chicken dinner! Double down and take a friend to see this flick before it's out of theaters.


21 is playing in theaters now.

There Will Be Rentals

There Will Be Blood
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Paramount Pictures



It’s a magical time of year for film lovers. The theatres are full of movies that aren’t quite meaningful enough for Oscar consideration and aren’t quite spectacular enough to be part of the Blockbuster spring and summer seasons. It is during these months that cinephiles like me look to DVD releases to fill my deep need for an entertainment fix.

It’s a commonly known fact that most studios release their Oscar hopefuls late in the year so that they can be fresh in the minds of the Academy judges (and the movie going public) when the awards start getting picked early the following year. Now that it is April, these films are starting to pop up in your favorite retail establishment in DVD form. This week, among the must-see-because-I-couldn’t-find-the-time-to-get-to-the-theatre-last-Christmas flicks to drop is the epic There Will Be Blood.



The film garnered no less than eight academy nominations this year, taking home two (Best Actor for Daniel Day Lewis and Best Cinematography for Robert Elswit). Based loosely on the highly political 1927 novel Oil by Upton Sinclair, There Will Be Blood follows the life of Daniel Plainview a self proclaimed “oil man” on his quest to become the most powerful supplier of black gold in California. We shadow Plainview on his quest from 1898 until sometime in the 1930s. Each step he takes is fraught with danger, greed, deception, and uncertainty.



Watching Lewis’ portrayal of Plainview, it’s easy to see why he was granted the golden statue. Long sequences without any dialogue force all the actors to create meaning from gesture and expression rather than delivery of lines. Lewis is a master silent thespian and the first 18 minutes of the film are a testament to this. Pay close attention.



As a fan of Paul Dano’s from the recent films Fast Food Nation and Little Miss Sunshine, I was looking forward to seeing what he could do with the role of Eli Sunday, a young preacher who (as the trailer portrays) is at odds with our protagonist. Although I found the character well written, and perhaps existing as a metaphor for greed and corruption within the religious community, Dano’s portrayal seemed to be a bit over the top and at times turns what should be serious into something very silly.

The supporting cast did their best to keep up with Lewis and Dano but, aside from Dillon Freasier adequate depiction of Plainview’s young ward, there aren’t any impressionable performances to speak of, which is unusual in an event picture like this. Normally, I’d expect to see at least one or two short sequences where an actor gets to bear his or her chops and “steal” a scene (think Meat Loaf in Fight Club or Steve Carell in Bruce Almighty). Oh well.

Despite the film clocking in at two and a half hours, I never felt the weight of its length, but then I always did love historic epics. This isn’t one of those movies you can pop in while you have drinks with friends on a Saturday night. There Will Be Blood has strong performances from the leads; brings the inference, irony, and shocking moments; and has enough meaning to make Webster’s Dictionary jealous. If that sounds appealing, buckle in, grab a coffee, and rent this DVD – there will be entertainment.

There Will Be Blood is now available on DVD

Potentially Ruin-ing my movie-going experience

The Ruins
Directed by Carter Smith
DreamWorks SKG

Written by Scott B. Smith, The Ruins was the huge horror novel of 2006. I first heard of it through my dedicated reading of Stephen King's Entertainment Weekly column. When King says a horror book is worth reading, I run out and take a look. In fact, my favorite column of his all year is the Top Ten Books of the Year...books he's read that year, not necessarily published that year. It's how I found No Country for Old Men and This Book Will Save Your Life, to cite some examples. So off I went to check out The Ruins. I was hesitant when I read the book flap, but trusting his opinion, I bought it and read it...

...and HATED it. I read a good chunk of the book before I discovered what the source of horror was and was okay for a while -- supernatural, perhaps? Maybe ancient Mayan ghosts or something...but no. I was exceedingly disappointed in the "horror" as I'll call it so as not to give things away and forced myself to finish the book. It simply got worse for me.



When I saw the movie trailer, I was annoyed. All I heard in '06 was how fabulous this book was and the hype continued into 2007 with the paperback copy. NY Times bestseller and all, this book was on the fasttrack to Hollywood. Being the resident horror geek - which you might've noticed by now - I felt it my duty to check out the film.

The Ruins stars Jonathan Tucker as Jeff, Jena Malone as Amy, Shawn Ashmore as Eric, and Laura Ramsey as Stacy. These four college-aged friends leave their Mexican-paradise hotel on their last day to visit some ancient Mayan ruins not on the tourist maps. They hear of it from a very nice German guy named Mathias (Joe Anderson) and with a sixth, Dimitri, off they go into the wilderness to search for an archaeological dig where Mathias's brother has supposedly disappeared. Once they reach it, they encounter locals - supposedly Mayans...this is never answered - who attack them. In the chaos, Dimitri is killed and the rest of the bunch scurry to the top of the temple for safety. This is where all the horror takes place. It's difficult to review a horror movie when part of the kitsch is to surprise you with what the cause actually is. You've seen the trailer which shows something going after the two girls and something moving inside Stacy's head (at the very end of the trailer). Unfortunately, this movie looks a LOT better than it truly is.

What works for the film is that Smith adapted his own novel - that always helps when making a book into a film. However, he took quite a few liberties and quite a few things are changed. Did it improve the story? Not for me. The major issues are the same and visually, this is a squirmy movie. The gore isn't the kind of gore you'd expect...especially from the sources here. It certainly will make you react, though. The acting is good, especially from Tucker, whom I've decided is really underrated. He was very good in The Black Donnellys and in an early episode of Masters of Horror called "The Dance of the Dead" (co-starring Robert Englund!), as well as the new version of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Surprisingly, Jena Malone didn't irritate me as much as she usually does (maybe because I keep mixing her up with Kristen Stewart) but that could be because Laura Ramsey's character was really, REALLY annoying. Ashmore and Anderson were simply supporting characters and they did very little to actually support much.

My issue with this film is that I can't decide if I disliked it because I hated the novel or because the adaptation really did nothing to improve it. Probably a little of both. In general, I was bored - and not just because I already knew the story, either. Mystic River is one of many books adapted very well to film and I was riveted to Clint Eastwood's vision of it. I'm very interested to know what the average viewer thought of The Ruins so I can get an objective feel...I thought it was boring, and goofy (the cause of the "horror" mind you, is just ludicrous to me), and even the gore didn't faze me. Please comment and let me know if my voracious reading habits have finally Ruin-ed moviegoing for me...at least for this particular film.


The Ruins is playing in theaters now.

Float Like A Butterfly, Sting Like "...The Champ."

Resurrecting The Champ
Directed by Rod Lurie
Starring Josh Hartnett and Samuel L. Jackson
Yari Film Group
PG-13

Legend Vs. Reality.

I've never been a "huge" fan of the boxing films. I think Rocky was a well-told story, but transforming it into a franchise was the mistake of Stallone's career, or was it Demolition Man? I admired Raging Bull for its ruthless and unforgiving shooting style - the subject matter and nature of the Marciano character, not so much. Ali was not made for my generation, but it further solidified Will Smith's range and impressed me. I appreciated Cinderella Man because it was a period piece and reflected well for the time. All of these pictures provide a beautiful backdrop of the sport, but focus entirely on elements other than knockouts and concussions. Resurrecting The Champ shares the same sentiment.



I remember the days when Hartnett graced the covers of Teen Beat Magazine and every girl in your high school homeroom had a picture of him in their locker or on their notebooks. I bet they thought he'd keep doing films like The Faculty and Halloween: 20 Years Later. Thank the celluloid Gods they were wrong. He's cranking out performance after performance superbly with pictures like Lucky # Slevin and Wicker Park.

And Samuel L. Jackson has finally been given the opportunity to trade in his lightsaber for a pair of boxing gloves. No longer will the social stigma of his appearance in the Star Wars films as Mace Windu disrupt his ascension into the acting greats.

Kathryn Morris, Alan Alda and even a small cameo by Peter Coyote round out an extraordinary cast, each adding a layer to the mix of Erik Kernan's (Hartnett) predicament. Fathers and Sons: this film shows you what a father would do to gain the admiration of his son, not the other way around, which makes this the diamond in the rough of the year. I could taste an Oscar nod for Samuel L. Jackson in between sips of my diet soda.

"A writer, like a boxer, must stand alone. The truth is revealed, and there's nowhere to hide."

Resurrecting The Champ hits video shelves on April 8th.