New to See on DVD!!

There are a couple of fun and interesting movies out on DVD this week, so if you’re looking for what’s new, here are the highlights!

It’s Complicated – A fun adult comedy starring Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin as a divorced couple who embark on an affair with each other.  Steve Martin plays the other man in Meryl’s life.  Just… Good… Actors.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – Terry Gilliam writes and directs a fantastical tale about a traveling theater company that gives its audience much more than they were expecting.  Heath Ledger’s last film project.  His part had to be covered by friends:  Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law.

Disgrace – John Malkovich stars as a Cape Town professor who gets caught up in post-apartheid politics, after having an affair with a student.

Georgia O’Keeffe – TV movie starring Joan Allen as artist Georgia O’Keeffe and depicting her relationship with her husband, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, played by Jeremy Irons.

Five Minutes of Heaven – Drama starring Liam Neeson as former Ulster Volunteer Force member Alistair Little.  25 years after he killed Joe Griffen’s brother, the media arrange a meeting between the two men.  Interesting angle on The Troubles.  

District 13:  Ultimatum – Sequel to the french film.  Damien and Leito return to District 13 on a mission to bring peace to an area controlled by five different gang bosses.  Trying to take care of things before the city’s secret services resort to more drastic measures.

The Descent Part 2 – Shauna Macdonald is back, as Sarah Carter.  This picks up where The Descent left off.  Sarah is distraught, confused, and half-wild with fear, after emerging alone from the Appalachian cave system where she encountered unspeakable terrors.

Mega Piranha – Creature feature from SyFy, starring Tiffany (!), in which a mutant strain of giant piranha escape the Amazon and eat their way toward Florida.

Why We Laugh:  Black Comedians on Black Comedy – Title kind of says it all.  This was a documentary for Showtime, directed by Robert Townsend.

End of Poverty –  Documentary investigating why poverty exists when there is so much wealth in the world.

Milton Glaser:  To Inform and Delight – Documentary about the graphic designer’s influential work and life.

The Buddha – TV documentary on the life of Buddha.

• ‘Ghost Hunters’–Season 5, Part 2
• ‘G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero’ – Season 2
• ‘The Hills’ – Season 5, Part 2
• ‘I Love Lucy’: The Movie and Other Great Rarities
• ‘It’s Garry Shandling’s Show’: The Complete First Season
• ‘The Judy Garland Show’ 4
• ‘Last of the Summer Wine’:  Vintage 1982-83
• ‘Marked’ — Complete Season 1
• ‘Pride and Prejudice’ — Restored Edition
• ‘Rita Rocks’ – The Complete Season 1
• ‘Sherri’: The Complete Season 1
• ‘The Spectacular Spider-Man’: Volume 8
• ‘Survivors’: The Complete Original Series 1975 – 1977
• ‘Survivors’: Complete Seasons 1 & 2
• ‘Tales from the Darkside’ – Season 1 – 3
• ‘Tales from the Darkside’: Season 3

American Idol

I’ll be honest.  I didn’t do a little recap of American Idol this week, because I just got disgusted, during the performance show.  I would watch a contestant and form an opinion, and then the judges would talk, and they would say something totally opposite what I was thinking.  So, I just thought… Hey, I must be an idiot.  What do I know?  Why should I even write my thoughts down? Yes, I have lovely internal conversations with myself.

But, now we know what the rest of America thinks.  And, I’ve talked with a few people who are happy to share the same views as me.  So, here’s my quick, after-the-fact, take on Country Week.

Shania Twain is amazing.  Great songwriter.  Terrific performer.  Nurturing mentor.  I wish her all happiness.  I was not, however, excited that the contestants could only choose from her songbook.  It’s her limited point of view.  But, you know what?  It turned out fine.

I’m just going to say this.  I know Lee has passionate fans, and I’m sure he’s a sweet guy.  I have no doubt that he’s trying, and he has grown. But, he has no stage presence.  He is a one trick pony, style wise.  And, I thought he was terrible, singing out of his range, this week.

Aaron is the same story.  He’s not an artist.  He’s a very good singer.  And, good night, I can’t believe he admitted he sang that love song for his Mom.  It was sweet, and just a tiny disturbing at the same time.

Siobhan was the other singer in my bottom three.  I’ve already written about why she bothers me.  She doesn’t sound natural, when she sings.  She seems to be a lovely spirit.  And, if she continues with music, she will have devoted fans.  But, she is gone, because she is an acquired taste, a niche artist. 

Casey was very good. 

Michael was very good.  And, isn’t it interesting that everyone didn’t think the guys would be able to shine singing songs written by Shania.  It just goes to show you, a good song lyric translates!  I almost loved Michael’s performance, but he didn’t have enough of a break between the beginning of the song (“It’s not so bad, I’m not that sad…”) and the hook.

And, I thought Crystal’s performance was very good, too.  The judges seemed to punish her for doing something light and fun.  If she was a big artist, that song could be an encore song, one of the ones (like Sarah McLachlan’s Ice Cream) that is just a feel good singalong.  I did feel a bit sorry for the boyfriend though.  Ooof!  🙂

Anyway, we’re down to five, for Frank week.  I have an idea in my mind about how things are going to go.  Here are the songs the kids have to choose from:

• All or Nothing At All
• All the Way
• Anything Goes
• As Time Goes By
• Blue Moon
• Blue Skies
• Come Dance with Me
• Come Fly With Me
• Come Rain or Come Shine
• Fly Me to The Moon (In Other Words)
• I Get A Kick Out of You
• I Love Paris
• I Only Have Eyes For You
• I’ve Got a Crush On You
• I’ve Got the World on a String
• I’ve Got You Under My Skin
• In The Still of the Night
• In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning
• It Had to Be You
• It Was a Very Good Year
• Just One of Those Things
• Love and Marriage
• Love is Here to Stay
• Love Walked In
• My Funny Valentine
• My Kind of Town
• My Way
• New York, New York (From “On the Town”)
• Night and Day
• One For My Baby
• Pennies From Heaven
• Put Your Dreams Away
• Someone to Watch Over Me
• Somethin’ Stupid
• Strangers in the Night
• Street of Dreams
• Summer Wind
• That’s All
• That’s Life
• The Best is Yet to Come
• The Good Life
• The Lady is a Tramp
• The Way You Look Tonight
• They Can’t Take that Away From Me
• What Is This Thing Called Love
• Witchcraft
• You Do Something To Me
• You Make Me Feel So Young
• You’re Getting to Be a Habit with Me
• Young at Heart

And, I’m looking forward to spending some time with Harry Connick, Junior, next week!!

Movie Review: The Back-Up Plan

VERY soft opening for The Back-Up Plan, last weekend.  Reviews were very mixed, but I did see some big critics who HATED it. 

I really wanted to like it.  I talked to Alex O’Loughlin about the movie over a year ago, I think.  And, this was Jennifer Lopez’ big return to film, after a 5 year absence.  Both of their characters in The Back-Up Plan are very likeable.  She is a successful businesswoman who has decided she’s done waiting for Mr. Right and a family.  She goes ahead and gets inseminated.  That day, she bumps into Stan, a gorgeous funny guy who has his own farm (note the cheese, above) and dreams of owning a sustainable food shop.  He pursues her, she resists.  All sorts of clumsy, weird things happen along the way.  Honestly, these characters and their relationship is really interesting.   It’s all the other junk the filmmakers put into play that I found distracting and distasteful and unbelievable.  For instance, Zoe has an upscale pet store with a couple of interesting employees who have realistic questions about her and for her, but we barely see them.  Instead, we’re subjected to a strange single mother’s group that is stereotypical and offensive.  It’s like the writer and director are trying to straddle a line between a sweet rom-com, like Sweet Home Alabama, and something more crude, like Knocked Up.  There were so many likeable and believable story threads that were just dropped, in favor of the gross out scene or something silly that just didn’t make sense for the characters.  I didn’t hate it, because I liked the leads, I was just really disappointed and not satisfied.  I give The Back-Up Plan a 6 out of 10.

New in Theaters!

Quite a variety of different movies to choose from, new in theaters, this weekend.

I wasn’t sure what to make of The Losers, from the trailers.  It looks like some cartoony-comedy.  But, the description says Action/Adventure/Drama/Mystery/Thriller, so I don’t know how funny it’s going to be.  The draw, for me, is one Jeffrey Dean Morgan.  Helloooo!  The draw for the guys, aside from the action/adventure part, is Zoe Saldana.  She is gorg.  Chris Evans and Idris Elba are also very easy to look at.  They all play members of a CIA black ops team that gets betrayed and left for dead.  Of course, they’re not going to take THAT lying down!  The Losers is rated PG-13 for PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence, a scene of sensuality and language.


The Back-up Plan is a romantic comedy about a woman who has given up on finding the right man to start a family with.  Jennifer Lopez plays Zoe, who just decides to have a baby on her own, gets inseminated, then… meets potentially the right man, of course.  Alex O’Loughlin plays Stan, and he’s adorable and sweet.  Quite a few of the sidekicks, like Anthony Anderson and Eric Christian Olsen are great.  But, this movie doesn’t know whether it wants to be a sweet romcom or something like Knocked Up.  As much as I laughed, I also rolled my eyes at stupid stuff.  The Back-Up Plan is rated PG-13 for sexual content including references, some crude material and language.


Oceans is the latest documentary feature from the Disneynature studio.  Just in time for Earth Day, since nearly 3/4s of the Earth’s surface is covered with oceans, we should probably check out what’s under the surface.  There have been movies about what goes on in the ocean before, but the technology just keeps getting better and better, so this is a way to the latest in underwater imagery.  Oceans is rated G.

City Island is about a family whose members all keep their lives quite separate from one another.  Everything is thrown into turmoil, when Dad, played by Andy Garcia, who is a corrections officer, brings a young ex-con home.  Julianna Margulies, Steven Strait and Emily Mortimer star.  City Island is rated PG-13 for sexual content, smoking and language.

Mother is a film, in limited release, out of South Korea.  The main character lives a quiet life, providing herbal remedies to neighbors.  Her adult son lives with her and is accused of murdering a young girl, in their neighborhood.  She takes it upon her self to investigate his guilt or innocence.  Mother is rated R for language, some sexual content, violence and drug use.

New to See on DVD!

This is a big week for movies on DVD!  I am shocked at how many big ones are coming out so quickly.

Avatar – I can’t believe this is coming out on DVD, already!  It’s still in theaters!  And, in the theater and in 3-D is the best way to see the James Cameron behemouth.  Sam Worthington plays a paraplegic marine who is assigned to a unique mission on a populated moon, named Pandora.  The message is heavy handed, but the effects are incredible.
 
The Lovely Bones – So sad.  People loved the book by Alice Sebold and hated the movie by Peter Jackson.  I’m still not sure how you can “like” a story where a predator brutally rapes and kills a 15 year old girl.  But, Saoirse Ronan is beautiful, as Susie Salmon.  And, Stanley Tucci is brilliantly disturbing as Mr. Harvey.  I would have preferred more time spent developing Susie’s family in the aftermath.

Crazy Heart – Jeff Bridges carries a pedestrian movie about a washed up musician who finds inspiration in a doomed romance with a music journalist, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal.  Worth a rent to hear Colin Farrell really sing.

The Young Victoria – It’s a wonder that we still find so much cinematic inspiration for the English monarchy.  Is it because they had better clothes than our early presidents?  Emily Blunt plays Queen Victoria in the turbulent first years of her rule and the beginnings of an enduring romance with Prince Albert, played by Rupert Friend.

Deadly Impact – Sean Patrick Flanery and Joe Pantoliano star in this action thriller about a police officer with a painful past who returns home to help the FBI track down a tricky assassin.

Summer Hours – French film about siblings who gather at their family’s summer home, after their mother’s death.  They are torn between wanting to break with the past, do as their mother wished, and holding on to childhood mementos.

Mammoth – One of those interwoven stories films, with Gael Garcia Bernal and Michelle Williams as a married couple.  He tries to make changes to his life, while on a trip to Thailand.  In New York, his family copes with a Filipino maid.  In the Phillipines, the maid’s family struggles.

Peacock – There’s a mystery, involving a small town bank clerk and a train accident in rural Nebraska.  Ellen Page, Cillian Murphy and Susan Sarandon star.

44 Inch Chest – Black comedy or crime drama?  You decide.  Power lineup, with Ray Winstone, Ian McShane, John Hurt, Tom Wilkinson, Stephen Dillane.  Old buddies help their friend plot the kidnapping of a guy he thinks is sleeping with his wife.

The Horse Boy – Documentary about a family that travels through Mongolia to try to get help for their autistic son.

Cheech and Chong’s Hey Watch This! – Documentary about Cheech and Chong’s “Light Up America” reunion tour.

• ‘The Bill Cosby Show’ – Season 2
• ‘Bump in the Night’ – The Complete Series
• ‘Drawn Together’ – The Movie
• ‘Emily of New Moon’ – Season 1
• ‘The F Word’ – Series 4: Uncensored
• ‘Falcon Crest’ – The Complete 1st Season
• ‘Frontier Circus’ – The Complete Series
• ‘Heartland’ – The Complete 1st Season
• ‘Hercules: The Legendary Journeys’ – Season 1 (Universal)
• ‘Hi-5’ – Season 4
• ‘Huckleberry Finn and His Friends’ – The Complete Series
• ‘Merlin’ – The Complete 1st Season
• ‘My Fake Fiance’
• ‘Perry Mason’ – The 5th Season, Volume 1
• ‘Relic Hunter’ – Season 1
• ‘Transformers’ – 25th Anniversary Edition: Seasons 3 & 4
• ‘Whispering Smith’ – The Complete Series
• ‘Xena: Warrior Princess’ – Season 1 (Universal)

 

Theatre: August: Osage County

If you feel like you need to temper your raging spring fever, try a night of melodramatic theater at Playhouse Square!  August: Osage County opened this week and runs through April 25 at the Palace Theatre. 

First off, you should know that I love theater, and not just the candy coated musicals.  I dig Shakespeare and serious plays.  I was nervous going into the theater, when my friend, Linda, said, “I hear this runs two and a half hours long.”  I was like, what?  I don’t have that much time to give tonight!  Then, the gal in front of her turned around and said, “No, it’s three PLUS hours long, with two intermissions!”  Linda and I made a silent pact to leave during one of them, if we weren’t enthralled.

We stayed.

August: Osage County is a new play, written by Tracy Letts.  Set in an area outside Tulsa, Oklahoma, it’s about a family coming together and ripping apart.  Secrets are kept and revealed.  I used the word melodrama to describe it.  That’s probably not the word the playwright would use, but in my mind, it’s a show that throws every possible horrible thing at the audience:  death, addiction, incest and Mothers who drive you crazy.  And yet, the pace is fast, the energy level is high and, most importantly, the acting is superb.  Estelle Parsons is the loony mother of the bin.  Shannon Cochran is powerful as oldest daughter, Barbara.  There were moments in the show that were so gripping, I had goosebumps. 

That said, I walked out of there drained.  So, be ready for that kind of experience.  I felt I could have trimmed a good half hour from the script, without losing any drama or characterization.  And the language is beyond foul, for no apparent reason.  I mean, before and away from kids, I have cursed like a sailor.  But, most people aren’t like that with their families.  And, I know this family is dysfunctional.  But, there is also a big deal made of the fact that they love to read and are teachers of the English language.  It just took me out of the story a little.  If things were clean in the beginning and got worse as things descended into insanity, maybe I’d buy it a little more.  Anyway, that part bugged me.  Just wanted you to know, before you go!

Casting side note:  Whether you want it to be him or not, creeper Steve, Karen’s fiance, is played by GREG from All My Children!!  (Laurence Lau)

New in Theaters!

Since the temperatures decided to poop out on us, right before the weekend, you might be at a loss about what to do!  Of course, there are some excellent theatre offerings, Indians and Cavs, family functions…  This is a great weekend to see a movie.  Lots of quality things, in 3-D even, in theaters!  Here’s what’s new.

At first glance, Death at a Funeral looks like another one of those family comedies, where there are a million people, a bunch of interlocking stories and issues, serious situation, mayhem ensues.  But, critics are really getting behind this one.  It’s probably because Chris Rock is hilarious.  Tracy Morgan, Luke Wilson, Keith David, Danny Glover, Regina Hall, Zoe Saldana, Peter Dinklage (do you think he plays someone who’s angry???) all add to the fun.  Death at a Funeral is rated R for language, drug content and some sexual humor.

Kick-Ass looks like it could be amazing or fall horribly short of its goal.  I am looking forward to hearing some reviews.  As always, if you see a movie, and you want to talk about it, call between 2p and 7p, 216.578.1065.  Aaron Johnson plays an average Joe high school kid who likes comic books and ends up fashioning his own character.  Then, he takes to the streets, as Kick-Ass.  The attention he receives spawns other would-be heroes, played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Nicholas Cage.  Kick-Ass is rated R for strong brutal violence throughout, pervasive language, sexual content, nudity and some drug use – some involving children.

It seems like The Joneses has a little mystery behind it.  David Duchovny, Demi Moore, Amber Heard and Ben Hollingsworth are the Joneses, a seemingly perfect nuclear family, new to the neighborhood.  Little by little, their new friends begin to realize something more sinister is up.  The Joneses is rated R for language, some sexual content, teen drinking and drug use.

Killing Kasztner is a documentary about Israel Kasztner.  He was a Hungarian Jew who negotiated with Adolf Eichmann for the lives of thousands during the Holocaust.  Later, he was tried for war crimes.  Killing Kasztner is not rated.

Theatre: Bill W. and Dr. Bob

FusionFest is going on at Cleveland Play House this week.  I’m not sure what all that entails.  It’s a bunch of new works in theatre and dance and music.  You can find out more about it here.

The part of FusionFest that I’ve seen is terrific.  When Cleveland Play House announced its 2009-2010 Season, I was most excited about the play, Bill W. and Dr. Bob.  It’s based in Akron and chronicles the formation of Alcoholics Anonymous.  Sounds like a dry kind of show, but I assure you, it’s entertaining and interesting, due in large part to fantastic performanced by the leads, Sean Patrick Reilly as Bill and Timothy Crowe as Dr. Bob. 

I was a little taken aback, at the start of the show, when Reilly steps into a spotlight and says, “Hi, I’m Bill, and I’m an alcoholic…” or something like that.  And, a good portion of the audience responded, without a moment’s hesitation, “Hi, Bill!”  I knew I was in for an experience a little above the normal theatre. 

Bill W. and Dr. Bob was written by the brilliant novelist and Harvard Medical School faculty member, Dr. Stephen Bergman and a clinical psychologist, Janet Surrey.  So, you can expect a real breakdown of the process of developing this fellowship that became AA.  The actors give the show its soul.  The cast is small, with a couple of actors taking on multiple supporting roles. 

Cleveland Play House has added performances, and if you can get to it, I highly recommend Bill W. and Dr. Bob.  Yep, tough subject matter, but you are rewarded with some insight.  And chances are, you’ve known someone who is a friend of Bill.  These guys have saved countless lives, just trying to save themselves.

Movie Review: The Runaways

Ahhh, the 70s.  For me, in middle America, it was a time of 3/4 length sleeve baseball t-shirts and bell bottoms, polyester and frustration that my hair wouldn’t fall into a straight smooth wedge cut.  I was listening to pop music and dancing to Soul Train. 

On the west coast, things were more glam, with platforms and straight leg jeans.  Watching the new movie, The Runaways is fun, because they do capture the essence of that time.  Girls were taking this idea of women’s liberation and pushing the envelope.  An unsupervised teen named Joanie Larkin held on to a guitar that her Dad gave her and pursued big dreams of an all-girl rock band.  Her story, along with Cherie Currie’s memoir, Neon Angel, are combined to form The Runaways, which is the name of Joanie’s band.  She became Joan Jett, who teamed up with dodgey producer and promoter, Kim Fowley.  They recruited Cherie and the other girls and shot to fame.  But, this success story is also a cautionary tale, with 15 year old girls on their own, with raging hormones, unscrupulous adults and lots of drugs and booze available.  I got to talk to Cherie Currie about those days, but I wish I could talk to her again, now, after the movie.  There are so many more things I’d like to know.  The book, Neon Angel, is compelling, but painful to read.  The move, The Runaways, is compelling, but painful to watch.  If you didn’t know that much of what happens is true, you’d say it’s unbelievable.  I was interested in the story.  The performances are excellent.  I’ve never been a huge fan of Kristen Stewart, because she seems to play the same character, over and over.  But here, it’s almost as if she’s channeling Joan Jett, and the portrayal is uncanny.  Dakota Fanning is almost unrecognizable as Cherie Currie.  Michael Shannon is creepy to the extreme as Kim Fowley.  This trio elevates the movie above After School Special dialogue.  It’s the quiet scenes that stay with you:  the band, in the back of a limo, after a long tour, looking old beyond their years; Joan, in the bathtub, crafting lyrics.  Great story, some great performances, but the script and the storytelling fall short.  I give The Runaways a 7 out of 10.