Stranger Than Fiction

Stranger Than Fiction

3 Stars

I always welcome the notion of a career comedian steps out of his element and turns to drama. It’s done well for the likes of Jim Carrey in “The Truman Show”, Robin Williams in “Good Will Hunting” and Jamie Foxx in “Ray”. We’re able to add Will Ferrell to that list, who takes a break from his usual goofy, over-the-top shtick to take on a toned down and more serious role in Marc Forster’s (“Finding Neverland”) new film “Strange Than Fiction.”

Ferrell plays Harold Crick, a lonely IRS agent who lives a simple and menial life until he starts hearing a woman’s voice narrating his life. He decides it’s not schizophrenia, as the voice isn’t communicating to him, it’s just talking about him and what he does, and seeks out help from a literature professor (Dustin Hoffman) to help him figure out what the narrator means by “imminent death.” After the pseudo-soul searching he’s forced into, he changes his life so as to live it to it’s fullest before his death.

It’s a comedy of sorts. There are plenty of jokes in Zach Helm’s script to keep it light, but it’s still a somber piece that keeps the audience hooked by having us trying to figure out the end just as much as Crick is. And through the scenes involving Emma Thompson’s writer character Kay Eiffel, you become entrenched with the life and outcome of Crick.

Ferrell is of course the star, and he is able to prove to audiences that he is more than a “frat-pack” goofball. His emotional and subdued performance is gold and I can only hope that he does more dramatic work in the future.

I have yet to come across a performance of Hoffman’s that I don’t like. Sure some are better than others, but I’ve enjoyed them all. This is one of his average ones, and certainly won’t be one that will be spoken of at an Academy Awards or AFI tribute to him, but seeing a good actor work isn’t something that should be passed up. Maggie Gyllenhaal is still doing a balancing act between independent features and major studio productions. Here she plays the love interest of Crick, and while I don’t dislike her as an actor, she has yet to do a major studio film where she’s really good. She handles the smaller, edgier fair much better and until she finds a stronger voice, should stick to those for a while.

And that’s pretty much how the whole film goes. There is no wow factor to it. Hoffman, Thompson, Queen Latifah and Gyllenhaal, all competent, capable actors give middling performances in an intriguing film, but goes the route of the Hollywood happy ending, rather than the shockingly depressing ending. There’s almost a wink and a nod to the movie in relation to Eiffel’s book in a scene between Hoffman and Thompson. It’s ok but not great. And Thompson says she’s comfortable with ok, and explains her rationale behind it. It seems like the writer, director, actors and producers settled on ok, rather than trying for great. It works as an ok film. But that’s ultimately all it is, Ferrell’s award caliber performance aside.

Borat: Cultural Learnings of American for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

4.5 Stars

“Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” not only has one of the longest titles recent cinematic history, but it’s also one of the funniest and most offensive films I’ve seen. And I love it.

Borat Sagdiyev (Sacha Baron Cohen) is Kazakhstan’s top television reporter, and he’s sent to America with a film crew to learn about American culture, and bring his findings back to his beloved homeland, with the hopes of bringing Kazakhstan into modern cultural relevancy. He is naïve in the way of American manners, decency and political correctness, saying or doing whatever comes to mind, and has clearly never heard the phrase “when in Rome.” The people he interacts with are either offended by what he does or oddly accepting. It’s like when adults interact with a three year old who does something wrong. They turn their heads and say “oh, isn’t that precious.” But Borat isn’t content with that; he has to take it to the point of offensiveness.

The hilarity is that the joke is on us. He isn’t making fun of Kazakhstan, as they’re government believes (they event went so far as to taking out a four page ad in the New York Times denouncing the film). He is making fun of American ignorance. He goads people into saying things on camera that makes them look stupid or bigoted. In the South, at a rodeo, he gets one of the riders to admit that America should to make homosexuality punishable by death. In New Mexico, he hitches a ride with some fraternity boys from California, and gets them to say that everyone should have slaves, and women are beneath men.

He doesn’t trick them by asking them leading questions. These are candid conversations with the subjects. It could be construed as a trick, since it is Cohen in character, but I would hardly feel any sympathy for the subjects, as they were being honest in their bigotry. That and laughing at the clueless is just good old fashioned fun.

Cohen has proven himself to be one of the finest comedic actors of our time in just about everything he does. His devotion to his craft is unrivaled. He never broke character when he was doing his television show, “Da Ali G Show.” In the movie he never breaks character. In the weeks and months leading up to the premiere of the film, he would only appear in character, in order to keep the illusion and the joke going. He really makes his subjects, and at times the audience, believe that he is, in fact, a Kazakh journalist.

I’d have to say the best moment of staying in character was the fight in the hotel Borat had with the producer Azamat Bagatov (Ken Davitian). They take it from the room, down the hall, into the elevator, through the lobby and crash a Mortgage Bankers conference in a ballroom, never breaking character. It is pure dedication, and I have never laughed so hard in my life.

The mockumentary gets bogged down by an actual (and very thin) plot. Originally the documentary Borat was shooting was to stay only in New York City. But he falls in love with Pamela Anderson after seeing an episode of “Baywatch” and decides he has to travel to California to marry her. It’s an obvious “deus ex machina” that sets the action in motion, but is totally unnecessary. The Pamela Anderson meeting wasn’t really that funny when compared to the rest of the film, and the cross country travel could have been easily explained another way.

But silly plotlines aside, it’s one of the smartest and most intriguing comedies in a long time. I really can’t remember a movie where I laughed this hard, at least not since 2003’s “Bad Santa.”

The Santa Clause 3

The Santa Clause 3

1 Star

I refuse to acknowledge the sequel rule. The rule that states all sequels are inherently inferior to their predecessors. There have been plenty of sequels out there that have far surpassed the original that just prove the theory wrong. But then there are films that completely prove that theory right. “The Santa Clause” was a perfectly nice movie when it came out 12 years ago. “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause” was just terrible, and almost a disservice to the memory of the original.

Santa (Tim Allen) has to deal with life as a newlywed with a baby due right around Christmas time (his obvious busiest time of the year), and his wife, Carol (Elizabeth Mitchell) yearning for familial company that isn’t an elf. Santa decides to invite Carol’s parents (Alan Arkin and Ann-Margret) up to the North Pole to keep her company. This poses the problem of hiding the fact that he’s Santa for the duration of the stay. And did I mention that an ornery Jack Frost (Martin Short) is trying to take over Christmas for financial gain?

The cast is fortunately able to work with what they’re given (which isn’t much). I’m always entertained by the underrated Allen. Mitchell is experiencing a thrust in popularity lately, mostly due to her impressive role on the new season of “Lost”, but she’s always been somewhat of a hidden gem of a character actor, and is finally getting some recognition. Arkin, in my opinion, was the real joy of this film. He’s always funny, and a treat to watch on film. He’s got this old school comedic timing that’s reminiscent of Sid Caesar, and it’s interesting to see how that plays off the younger comedic generation comedic in Allen, and then further down to the younger performers playing the elves.

But cast performances aside, I’m not entirely sure what is more insulting to me as a viewer. Is it the poor writing on a pure mechanical level or is it the fact that it hypocritically scolds us in a “holier than thou” manner while being completely unoriginal, and doing so poorly at it? If I look at it on the pure mechanical level, it is technically two full stories. One stretches the course of the entire film, and the other is awkwardly implanted in the middle. In the pure mechanical sense of narrative writing, it should have been broken into two separate films.

The first one being the annoying plotline of Jack Frost trying to steal Christmas away from Santa. It sounds like a rejected Rankin/Bass special from the 1970’s. The all too sweet and simple dialogue seems to downplay the talent (however immense or minute) of the adult actors onscreen, and makes it somewhat painful to endure as an audience member.

The second plotline was borrowed directly from “It’s A Wonderful Life”. Replace “I wish I’d never been born” with “I wish I’d never been Santa Clause” and you’ve got it. The only problem is that Santa/Scott isn’t trying to learn a lesson. There’s no lesson to be learned or taught. And this cycles back to this film as a whole being an insult to the viewers. It tells the audience that the spirit of Christmas is what’s important, not the monetary or material gain. But if a third and unnecessary “Santa Clause” film isn’t a desperate grab at the pocketbooks of parents, I’m not entirely sure what is.

There are a plethora of really good holiday films out there for everyone to enjoy. They’re better, and they have a better message. In the next two months you’ll be inundated with holiday programming on television and in the video stores. Find something other than this. There’s even another Christmas movie coming out in two weeks. You’ll do better with that. “The Santa Clause 3” is just a mess of a film.

The Prestige

The Prestige

4.5 Stars

Very rarely does a film tell you exactly what’s going to happen within the first five minutes. And it’s one in a billion that the movie still keeps you on the edge of your seat right up until you say “Oh my god” at the end. Such is the new thriller “The Prestige”.

Brothers Jonathan and Christopher Nolan (writer and director, respectively) team up again for the first time since 2000’s “Memento” to adapt Christopher Priest’s novel about two magicians in the late nineteenth century, dueling for supremacy. Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) start their careers as audience plants for an aging magician. After the untimely death of Angier’s wife, which he blames Borden for, the two separate and challenge each other for best entertainer in London. As they progress the challenge further and further, it begins to get dangerous for the two men, both sustaining sever injuries.

Angier has greater means at his disposal, enlisting the help of his manager Cutter (Michael Caine), assistant Olivia (Scarlett Johnasson) and famed physicist/engineer Nikola Tesla (David Bowie). But Borden is craftier; having the most magnificent trick that Angier just can’t figure out.

Nolan is one of the most intriguing directors of this generation. His films unfold in a way that’s conducive to the actual plot of the movie. “Memento” was told backwards, so we had the same feeling of being lost as the main character. In “The Prestige”, Caine explains the structure in the form of a magic act. First act is the pledge, the set up the exposition, as with any story. The turn is where we see that there’s something more to the story than meets the eye. And the titular prestige, that’s the payoff, the wow factor. And it’s an amazing payoff. They tell you to expect the unexpected, but you’re still fascinated and glued to your seat.

The film is presented in a very dark and sinister manner, which accentuates the escalating duel between the magic men. It’s the same tone Nolan brought to the resuscitated “Batman” franchise.

It’s a supremely talented cast that Nolan was able to put together, everyone at the top of their game. Jackman is the real stand-out, breaking away from his action persona he’s carved for himself and taking on a demanding dramatic role that showcases his true talent. Bale continues his impressive streak as one of the top actors of this generation. He has this intense screen presence that very few others have and is just mystifying. You could see it in “American Psycho” and “Batman Begins”, his performance is what really made those films, and helps propel this one. But I can’t forget the scene stealer in Bowie. He plays the role of Tesla very dark and restrained, giving him this air of creepiness.

I can’t wait to see what the sibling auteurs do with future projects (including a “Batman Begins” sequel), but if their tried and true track record holds, we’re in for a cinematic treat.

The Departed

The Departed

5 Stars

Martin Scorsese’s new crime drama “The Departed” cements the Irish mob’s takeover of the crime entertainment monopoly from the Italian mafia. With Jack Nicholson at his best since 1992 and Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio giving the performances of their careers, it’s hard to deny the sheer power exuded on screen by these three fine actors.

Frank Costello (Nicholson) is Boston’s top crime boss. The Special Investigations Unit of the Massachusetts State Police in Boston has been assigned to take him down. Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) is sent deep undercover to gather all the information he can on Costello and his organization. The only people who know of his true identity are his two supervisors. Costello meanwhile has planted a mole, Colin Sullivan (Damon), inside the SIU to keep him one step ahead of the law. But being so entrenched in the lies and deception is beginning to take its toll on the two young men.

This is Scorsese’s best film since 1990’s “Goodfellas”. There’s always been a brutality to his films, and in his nearly 40 year career as a director, it doesn’t get any more violent than his saga of two undercover agents on the opposite sides of the law. What’s even more intriguing about all the violence and bloodshed is that quite a bit of it isn’t shown on camera. Costello walks out from the backroom of a bar drenched in blood, obviously having just done some serious dirty work. It keeps the air of mystery about Costello going around. You don’t know what he did, but you know it was big, bad and dirty.

Noted Russian author and playwright Anton Chekov once said that if they see a gun onstage in the first act, the audience will expect it to go off by the third. This emphasizes an attention to detail that Scorsese utilizes to make everything in his entire world, the one he created for his movie, to be expertly planned out. From the café Costigan fights the mafia in to the FBI guy sitting in on the SIU meeting. Everything means something. It makes for a much more engrossing, multi-layered film.

I could go on and on about Jack Nicholson. But come on, it’s Jack Nicholson. How do you think he did? The three people that really warrant the most praise are younger actors Damon, DiCaprio and Vera Farmiga, who plays the love interest of both Costigan and Sullivan. They steal the spotlight from consummate and seasoned veterans Nicholson, Martin Sheen and Alec Baldwin. Pay particularly close attention to DiCaprio. He’s fully shed that pin-up boyish look from the late 90’s and has this brooding, angsty maturity as Costigan that brings his tortured character to life.

One could argue that this just adds to the deterioration of American society. That it’s a glorification of violence and crime. With criminals being seen as idols to be worshipped while cops should be seen as oppressors. But looking at the cadre of violent and crime worshipping movies that have come out in the past 20 years, this one would hardly register. It’s the most entertaining film of the year, and one the best. It’s definitely one to watch come awards season.