The Insider

The true story surrounding CBS's 60 Minutes interview with ex-tobacco executive Jeffrey Wigand (played by Russel Crow) who, despite signing a confidentiality agreement upon his termination, took the higher moral ground, risking everything to expose the extreme corruption, lies and underlying health hazards hidden by a powerful business based in greed and dishonesty.
60 Minutes producer Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino) is the ideal reporter, operating under a strict code of ethics and doing anything to make certain his promise stays true in an otherwise flexible field. Can these two unlikely moral champions successfully take on the ugly world against them? Watch to find out! A well acted, frightening story of good versus evil that makes you question which side America is set up to foster.

Worth Watching
3.5 out of 5
Buy this Film: The Insider

Plot: 4
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack:3 Buy the Soundtrack
Overall: 3.5

All About My Mother

This Spanish film by Pedro Almodovar is at once very strange and very ordinary. As typical with the popular director's (in the credits he is simply referred to as ALMODOVAR) works, All About My Mother is saturated with bright colors. It is something of a high production soap opera - full of obvious tragedy, melodrama, and thick emotions - but his subject matter, and treatment of it, is unusual. A Madrid mother returns to Barcelona after her eighteen-year-old son is killed and seeks out her old transvestite/prostitute friend, who leads her to a tainted nun with whom the mother shares a peculiar mutual friend. The characters are mostly unsubtle deviants: transvestites, transgenders, bisexuals, prostitutes, drug addicts, and surgical creations; but they are, for the most part, unabashed, if not proud, with regard to their societal status. The film contains continual references to the play A Streetcar Named Desire, and, not surprisingly, its outlandish characters all seem a little too theatrical. It is, in the end, a bizarre but sincere homage to motherhood and femininity.

WORTH WATCHING
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3

Mahanagar (The Big City)

This Satyajit Ray film addresses issues involved in the modernization of societal roles of the sexes in India. The film concentrates on the personal difficulties of one family as their financial situation forces the daughter-in-law/wife/mother out of her traditional role in the home and into the work place. The father is furious, mother disappointed, husband humiliated, and the child confused.

The wife is very good at her job of door-to-door saleswoman and as she rakes in the cash her husband's life falls apart - very much like the patriarchal system itself. Out of work, the husband is jealous and suspicious of his wife, and while worrying about her he entirely ignores his father, who embarks on a shameful quest to collect money from his former pupils under the pretext of being neglected by his son. The movie ends on a hopeful note, with both bread winners jobless, the husband and wife equal at last and happy about it. Another not-to-be-missed, entertaining classic.

WORTH WATCHING
3.5 out of 5

Plot: 4
Imagery: 4
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3.5

Rescue Dawn

Werner Herzog's venture into Hollywood is an extension of his documentary Little Dieter Needs to Fly, which retold the story of a German-born American pilot who was shot down over Laos before the Vietnam War "officially" started. While in the documentary Herzog had the real Dieter return to the place of his capture and relive his terrifying experiences, Rescue Dawn employs high-paid actors. It is still undeniably Herzog, however, full of brutality, tension, and realism (Herzog is famous for doing anything to achieve the desired effect). While trailers of the film show a great deal of explosions and excitement, the film itself mostly portrays a group of malnourished captives whispering their plans for escape. After crashing in the jungle, Dieter is taken to a camp where he meets other prisoners, some of whom are steadily descending into madness. Little Dieter Needs to Fly offers a little more insight into the man and his peculiar mind, but the dramatization is an unsensationalized study of madness, hunger, and the limits of human endurance - some of Herzog's favorite themes.

WORTH WATCHING
3.5 of out 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 4
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3.5

Spirited Away

This film, framed with a standard child escapist scenario, is a stunning, inventive adventure from director Hayao Miyazaki. A young girl wanders from her parents (who are gorging themselves on food) and suddenly finds herself in a different, parallel world, full of bizarre creatures and mysterious happenings. Combining Peter Pan-like fantasy with Japanese lore, the world sprouting from Miyazaki's fertile imagination contains a healthy amount of oddity and grotesqueness. Certainly, the film may be seen simply as entertainment, but there is commentary behind the fantastical situations, as in the presence of a greedy, ghostlike No Name monster that will do anything for attention and then devour those who have fed its desire (The black hole of consumerism? A needy, lonely weird kid?). The girl is endangered by a witch/bath house manager who steals her employees' names (and thus their identities) binding them into her service - perhaps a good message for anyone entering into a dismal corporate career. The animation is excellent and the story manages to breathe life into the old, well-used plot of a child lost in an imaginary world.

Worth Watching
3.5 out of 5
Buy this film: Spirited Away

Plot: 3
Imagery: 4
Originality: 4
Soundtrack: 3 Buy the Spirited Away Soundtrack
Overall: 3.5

Big Deal on Madonna Street

This 1950s Italian criminal caper comedy classic is perhaps best described to America's modern audiences as a low-tech Oceans 11. Played by an all-star pretty boy cast, the bumbling amateur thieves are believable, simpatico characters. Their aim, set on a pawn shop safe, is easily shaken by women, food, and poor planning. As the storyline progresses it becomes clear that these are not hardened criminals but lazy, childish men who prefer playing an absurd, delinquent game - even if it is likely to amount to nothing - over a day or hour of real, honest work - a well known attitude staple of Italian culture. Through the adventures of the protagonists' planning, relationships are created and the men's ineptitude as swindlers is highlighted - but, of course, the deal must go down. Big Deal on Madonna Street is a light and fun watch, a must see for criminal comedy enthusiasts.

Worth Watching
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 2
Overall: 3

Chop Shop

With shaky, raw camera work and non-professional actors, this independent film about a brother and sister struggling for an existence in a rough New York neighborhood definitely has an air of realism. But the very things that give it its edge may be its downfall - the acting is barely passable at times, and the story lacks a strong thread, perhaps limited by inadequate resources and talent. The subject matter is honest but not particularly original - a young, hardworking boy fends for himself in the big city, begging for work and selling candy on the subway until he manages to find odd work (and housing) at a chop shop. Soon his older sister comes to live with him and work in a taco truck, and the two of them dream up a solution to their dependency and poverty. Chop Shop offers a melancholic, candid look at a strained sibling relationship, but its potential for insight and emotional power is not quite fulfilled.

Worth Watching
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 2
Originality: 2
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3

The Last King of Scotland

Instead of focusing on the atrocities perpetrated by the Ugandan regime of Idi Amin, this film tells the surreal story of a young Scottish doctor who unwittingly forges a relationship with the megalomaniac but charismatic dictator. Driven by rash idealism, the doctor abandons a family practice to work in the third world, by chance finding himself treating Amin, before long he is irreversibly entangled in the uncertain world of Ugandan politics and civil war. By avoiding graphic images of the genocide, or hardly referring to it most of the film, the viewer experiences the Scotsman's amazingly limited understanding of the situation around him. While surely altered and magnified by Hollywood, the premise of this story is intriguing, and Forrest Whitaker successfully brings to life the infamous Amin's childish insanity.

Worth Watching
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3

Standard Operating Procedure

Errol Morris's newest documentary is an effort to shed some light on the infamous Abu Ghraib scandal, in which American soldiers stationed at the prison photographed themselves and others engaging in 'questionable' tactics with the Iraqi prisoners. Relying heavily on the actual still photographs, this film is more visually disturbing than Morris's The Fog of War, but it likewise tries to achieve an understanding of incidents that until now have been seen mostly through the popular media. Interviews with soldiers, supervisors, a military advisor, and others collectively retell the story of the abuses, but also call into question the military's 'handling' of the situation (coverup) and its double standards with regard to acceptable behavior. It is difficult to sympathize with some of the convicted soldiers, as their actions seem to have been the result of extreme ignorance, stupidity, and disregard for human life - but one must remember that soldiers are trained to exhibit those very qualities, and the film attempts to show their actions in light of the horrific conditions of Abu Ghraib. One of the more outrageous aspects of the scandal, which is not examined too deeply in the film, is the military's ambiguous distinction between a 'criminal act' and 'standard operating procedure,' where the given examples of both, to my mind at least, seemed undoubtedly criminal. It gives the impression that the military's attitude is that anything goes until someone finds out - so the only thing that separates these Abu Ghraib soldiers from others all over Iraq is that their photos went public, not that their behavior was abnormal. It is a glaring example of the superficial 'self-correction' that is so typical of corporations or hierarchical systems such as the military: even though orders had been given, however unclear, it was the bottom level participants who took the fall, while other guilty parties were never even mentioned, let alone incriminated. For a more in-depth experience, Morris collaborated on a book of the same name.

WORTH WATCHING
3.5 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3.5

Charulata

Satyajit Ray's film about a lonely, upper-class wife of a newspaper editor, set in British-run India during the late 19th century, is an intricate look at the effects of neglect and repressed desires. As her husband pours all his attention into his political publication, Charu - a lover of literature - develops a relationship with her husband's young cousin, an idealistic, flirtatious writer. The film contains nothing too radical by today's standards, considering our obsession with shock and graphicness, but in some ways that is a relief - within the conservative social setting the relationships are no less real, and the conflict develops with revealing subtlety. While the film seems very slow at times, the viewer's boredom ought to allow for greater empathy for the constantly idle life of the lonely Indian housewife. Fans of the soundtrack to Wes Anderson's Darjeeling Limited will recognize the director/composer Ray's beautiful title theme.

WORTH WATCHING
3.5 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Soundtrack: 4
Originality: 3
Overall: 3

Vitus

Vitus, a Swiss film about a young genius and his struggles to accept his unique situation, was a nice surprise. Instead of getting too bogged down in the pressures of expectations the film follows a triumph of wills and though certain scenes are a bit slow the plot moves fluidly through the two hours with enough twists to keep it interesting. The clearest comparison is to Wes Anderson's Rushmore - the young outcast prodigy protagonists of both films are in love an older woman and generally view adults as ridiculous - but the films differ in style. Vitus leans more on the realistic and serious with real piano virtuosos playing the roles of young and preteen Vitus, while Rushmore with Jason Schwartzman is partial to ironic humor. The talent of the young actors alone would make Vitus worthwhile but the story pulls its own weight and is worthy of your time.

Worth Watching
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Soundtrack: 3 Buy the Vitus Soundtrack
Originality: 3
Overall: 3

Eldorado

The basic premise of this low budget film is not particularly original or compelling, but it manages to escape the cliches of road trip discovery stories thanks to its subtlety and roughness. When a lonely mechanic comes home to find a burglar hiding within his house, he spares the deadbeat, cowardly intruder and tries to send him on his way, only to wind up driving him all the way to his destination. The story unfolds into a road voyage through the Belgian countryside (which, based on its landscape and lifeless pit stops, could easily be mistaken for some desolate section of the American middle), where the two encounter a series of odd characters who assist them in various ways. The film never shows too much, gives space to important emotional moments, and uses sometimes raucous, sometimes eerie music (from reverb-heavy surf guitar to Devendra Banhart) to compliment the dark, wet forests and empty farmlands through which they travel. Despite the string of bizarre occurrences and strange - if not demented - characters, the film is surprisingly real and honest - a refreshing escape from the mass of sentimental, false-hope-laced productions out there.

WORTH WATCHING
3.5 out of 5
Buy this film: Eldorado

Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 4
Soundtrack: 3
Overall: 3.5

True Lies

We caught this classic Schwarzenegger film on cable in a cheap Saigon hotel room. An explosion-packed, action-centered romantic comedy awesome-fest complete with chase scenes and tangos: a sure thing if you're looking for mindless entertainment. Schwarzenegger, a spy who has hidden his profession from his bored wife, Jamie Lee Curtis, must save both his dying marriage and his terrorist-plagued country. With an excess of quotable one-liners this film is bad enough to be good.

WORTH WATCHING
3 out of 5
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Plot: 4
Imagery: 2
Originality: 2
Soundtrack: 2 True Lies Soundtrack
Overall: 3

Burn After Reading

It is clear that there is no message in this film - that is, it is a closed bit of pure entertainment, not meant to provoke or inspire. That's not a condemnation, because it never presents itself as anything different. A couple Coen brothers veterans (George Clooney, Frances McDormand) mix with other Hollywood big names (Brad Pitt as an obnoxious gym employee) to assemble a ridiculous cast of characters whose collective idiocy drives this story of betrayal and mishap along. This film lacks the sinister atmosphere of No Country for Old Men and Fargo; nor is it as brilliantly strange as The Big Lebowski. Within the beginning and final Earth zooms is a quirky, amusing tale with enough startling escapes from predictability to maintain interest - but after, as the title suggests, you may as well dispose of the memory.

WORTH WATCHING
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Soundtrack: 3
Originality: 3
Overall: 3

The Darjeeling Limited

India is undoubtedly the star of this film. The dilapidated landscapes, vibrant primary colors, clutter - even the music is mostly recycled from Bollywood pictures. Following on the heels of the weird maritime adventure The Life Aquatic, Wes Anderson's story of brotherhood and convalescence offers all of the same stylization but much less in the way of originality. The brief cameo by Bill Murray seems to be an admission that the film is lacking something desirable. Truthfully, I was much more intrigued by the hectic opening chase scene than the 'real' plot - that of three brothers from a wealthy family (who haven't been together for a whole year!) joining on an Indian train with a vague mission of healing. Owen Wilson plays his usual self, and Jason Schwartzman is a slightly older asshole than he was in Rushmore - the characters as a whole are much flatter than in Anderson's previous, quirky ensembles. Nevertheless, Darjeeling is a pleasure to the eyes, and has its moments of redemption, thanks in part to good production but also due to the setting.

WORTH WATCHING
3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 4 The Darjeeling Limited
Overall: 3

The Counterfeiters

This partly factual German film focuses on a master counterfeiter (of currency, passports, and seemingly anything else) who finds himself detained and thrust into a Nazi concentration camp during WWII. The cunning protagonist manages to secure himself a position as a camp artist, which frees him from the grueling labor and affords him special privileges. He is transfered to a new camp where he is forced to use his illicit skills - along with a group of other prisoners - for the benefit of his captors. A bit of unsteady camera work lends a slightly more organic, unsettling feel than other Holocaust films (not that the experience of mass genocide is something that can be, or should be desire to be, reproduced). Even so, the film assumes the viewer is somewhat familiar with the Holocaust, focusing less on the misery of life in the camps and more on the struggles between fellow prisoners, their taxing moral dilemma, and their unprecedented attempts at mass forgery.

WORTH WATCHING
Rating 3.5 out of 5
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Plot: 3.5
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3.5
Soundtrack: 2
Overall: 3.5

Tideland

Tideland, director Terry Gilliam's twisted venture into the malleable minds of children, is disturbing - but not in the sense of the gratuitous gore or violence meant to shock in horror films. As in the popular Mexican film Pan's Labyrinth, Tideland juxtaposes innocence and brutality (though less graphically), portraying the distorting effects of violence and tragedy on youth as well as the ability of the imagination to make sense of horror, or escape it. Set amidst eerie, empty wheat fields and dilapidated farmhouses, the film compares the vulnerability of two minds - a young girl faced with death and abandonment, and an older mentally retarded man with fantasies of submarine adventure. Jeff Daniels plays a decent corpse, and Gilliam employs his trademark sideways, disorienting cinematography (as seen in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Brazil, and his other weird films) to create an atmosphere of uncertainty and menace. Full of colorful, strange imagery and bizarre characters.

WORTH THE WATCH
Rating 3.5 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 4
Originality: 4
Soundtrack: 3 Tideland
Overall: 3.5

Frost/Nixon

Ron Howard's film, which recreates the famous interviews with the former president Richard Nixon conducted by British TV personality David Frost, manages to create an atmosphere of just enough uncertainty and tension to somehow distract from the fact that it is a film centered around two people speaking together for several hours. Not surprisingly, the film tries to humanize the "monster," but not at the sake of downplaying his crimes. Nixon is portrayed as a man with a heavy conscience, many regrets, and a deep self loathing, but also a great contempt for his constituents and naivete in regard to other human beings. As the story's climax is the same as that of the actual interviews (the moment where Nixon confesses his "mistakes" to the American people), the film's purpose seems to be to show the unlikely circumstances that led to that point, and therefore shows beyond the two men to their respective teams (continually utilizing a tiresome boxinb analogy) to demonstrate what a collaborative effort is is to either maintain or break down a public image. Perhaps this film would be cathartic to those who actually lived through the pain of Nixon's election and presidency, but I imagine the actual footage would offer a bit more kick than a reproduced version. Either way, it is amazing to consider that Nixon was essentially paid to confess to a crime, and another man earned celebrity for digging it out of him, but justice was never served - a bit of irony that the film touches on but doesn't bother too much with, but which leaves me wondering, "What was the point?"

WORTH WATCHING
Rating 3 out of 5
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Plot: 3
Imagery: 3
Originality: 3
Soundtrack: 2
Overall: 3