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MANAGEMENT

Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Steve Zahn, Woody Harrelson, Fred Ward and Margo Martindale

Directed by: Stephen Belber

Rated R for language

By John Delia

There is a very quirky romantic comedy on the screen called Management and I liked it a lot. The characters are charming, interesting and real (even a little crazy and pathetic). The film treats with a sense of imagination that we sometimes forget that exists.

The movie centers on Mike Cranshaw (Zahn) and Sue Claussen (Aniston) who have a chance meeting when Sue on a sales trip to Arizona takes a room at a hotel owned by Mike’s parents. On a lark or complete desperation to meet someone, Mike brings a bottle of wine to Sue’s room. A little frightened at first, Sue feels Mike means well and the two strike up a conversation brining out their enigmatic desires they did not realize existed. When Mike takes a trip to Maryland where Sue works, his stalking charm puts a damper on their relationship and Mikes dream. But that only triggers Mike’s determination to conquer love.

I love the acting by Aniston and Zahn and the chemistry between them, even though their characters are questionable at times. You just have to let your imagination prevail on this one so you can enjoy the strange romantic relationship between the two. Zahn takes Cranshaw and shows how oppressed the man is by parents that never let him see the world. Having no notion of how to find a true love and then grasping at straws to make it happen is moving yet bizarre. In return we get a great performance from Aniston as a woman who has been stripped of her sense of purpose and we find Claussen falling for this weird and wonderful man.

The direction by Belber makes the film work by taking the bizarre story and making his two stars provide us with this couple that becomes entwined on a chance meeting. He makes his camera work for him with angles that give us a closer look into the sole of the couple. Although there are some abrupt scene changes, the damage that they do is not enough to dispel the believability of the storyline.

The film has been rated R for language, but also has brief sexuality so take this into consideration when deciding to take immature youngsters to see the film.

FINAL ANALYSIS: A good date flick that should create a lot of dinner talk following it. (3.5 of 5 stars)

X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Dominic Monaghan, Ryan Reynolds, Taylor Kitsch, Will.i.am, Lynn Collins, Kevin Durand, and Daniel Henney

Directed by: Gavin Hood

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, and some partial nudity

By John Delia

With a resounding YES! Wolverine slashes his way into theatres and I loved the film for the storyline, non-stop action, excellent direction, seamless CGI and cinematography mix, exceptional acting and much more. If you love action adventure films that pull no punches, then X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a must see. Guys, get ready for pumped up adrenaline levels. For the girls who are not afraid of a lot of carnage, there’s a cool love story.

The film opens with a sequence of Wolverine as a youngster, the death of his parents, and his participation along with his brother Victor (Schreiber) in wars from the Civil War to Desert Storm. Do not come late to the film or you will miss an amazing opening. I was like watching clips from The Patriot, Saving Private Ryan and Platoon to name a few.

This chapter of X-Men deals with Wolverine (Jackman) and how he got involved with the diabolical William Stryker (Huston) who is putting together an unbeatable fighting team to safeguard America. Wolverine resists the killing he is ordered to do and flees the fearsome team of super-combatants. We find Wolverine on a mountaintop sharing a cabin with Kayla (Collins) with whom he falls in love. But, the storm is brewing between a US General and Stryker because of the abundant deaths by the team causing a falling out. Taking matters in his own hands, Stryker makes a move to consolidate all the mutants, including Wolverine. When he attempts to bring in Wolverine against his will using his brother, a battle for supremacy begins.

The use of amazing cinematography combined with seamless CGI takes the X-Men to new heights in bringing comic book characters to life on the big screen. Very realistic, powerful and seemingly indestructible the mutants put on a great show. Direction by Gavin Hood, who although doesn’t have a big track record, is incredible bringing the stellar cast together and controlling their creativity in order to make the film brilliant. His ability to see how computer graphics mix just right to create the mutant powers realistically, shines in this film.

To tell you more about the film may hurt the experience, but I will add that the film is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, and some partial nudity so be aware of this when allowing immature pre-teens to see the film.

FINAL ANALYSIS: The most explosive, enjoyable and entertaining action flick of the year. (5 of 5 Palm Trees)

MONSTERS VS ALIENS

Voices of: Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Rainn Wilson, Paul Rudd, Kiefer Southerland and Stephen Colbert

Directed by: Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon

Rated PG for sci-fi action, some crude humor and mild language

By John Delia

Between seeing the trailer and going to the screening of Monster’s VS Aliens I had a lot of doubt about the animated film, including a storyline that looked a lot like The Day the Earth Stood Still, animation that seemed lifeless and a little skeptical about the highly touted InTru 3D, but you know what, I was proved wrong. The film is a monster hit from its very funny beginning to the explosive big finish.

Susan Murphy (Witherspoon) is unwittingly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk on her wedding day and mysteriously grows to nearly 50 feet tall. The military lead by General W.R. Monger (Southerland) jumps into action and Susan gets captured and put into a secret government compound. There, she is renamed Ginormica and held along with a ragtag group of Monsters: the brilliant but insect-headed Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D. (Laurie); the macho half-ape, half-fish, The Missing Link (Arnett); the gelatinous and indestructible B.O.B. (Rogen); and the 350-foot grub called Insectosaurus. Their confinement is cut short, however, when a mysterious alien robot lands on Earth and begins storming the country. In a moment of desperation, The President (Colbert) is persuaded to enlist the motley crew of Monsters to combat the alien robot and save the world from imminent destruction.

The fun in this film comes from the actors who voice the characters. Witherspoon makes a very funny Susan as she aimlessly finds herself among some very weird characters that are ordinarily very disgusting to her. The hilarious dialogue combined with great animation reminded me of the comedy that won the hearts of Shrek lovers. I love B.O.B. played by Rainn Wilson, a blob of gelatin that thinks he’s indestructible. Whenever he thinks he has proved his strength something seems to prove him wrong. In a very funny scene he makes the move on a Jello desert.

The film is filled with comical blunders, prate falls and cleaver dialogue that keeps rolling with the creators parodying the 50’s monster films like The Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman, The Blob, The Monster From The Black Lagoon and others. Much like Shrek that lampooned much of the fairy tales brought to life by Disney, this seems to be the start of a new franchise for Dreamworks.

The 3D effects are awesome when combined with IMAX. The depth of field and the wild stuff coming at you are great, but more importantly; the clarity of the projected image is astounding.
The movie is Rated PG for sci-fi action, some crude humor and mild language.

FINAL ANALYSIS: See Monsters VS Aliens, it’s a monster of a movie. (5 of 5 Palm Trees)

SUNSHINE CLEANING

Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn Clifton Collins, Jr., Mary Lynn Rajskub and Jason Spevak

Directed by: Christine Jeffs

Rated R for language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use

By John Delia

Although I expected a comedy after seeing the trailer, Sunshine Cleaning surprised me with a wonderful little drama that is memorable and captivating. The acting by Adams and Blunt takes top prize for best chemistry as the two bounce off each other in ways that make you laugh and cry at the same time. If you like films like Juno and Little Miss Sunshine, then this dramatic comedy is for you.

Rose Lorkowski (Adams) was once a high school cheerleading standout and was headed for a dream life, then came reality. A down and out cleaning lady for a local service, Rose has succumbed to a mundane life with her father Joe (Arkin) and sister Norah (Blunt) as her only family support. Add to this that her get-rich-quick scheming father and her sister can’t keep a job, while her son keeps getting kicked out of school for inappropriate behavior. One day after making love to her married ex-boyfriend (Zahn) he comes up with a suggestion that she can clean up crime scenes for a living. After getting Norah to join with her on the idea the two start making great strides and the family sees new hope. When the business takes a turn for the worse however, Rose and Norah have to face some very tough decisions.

The acting is the key here to the film’s success. Adams and Blunt really make a plausible duo in this slice of life drama that is unfortunate yet uplifting. The two even look a lot alike so they really fit the family profile. Their character’s personalities, however are totally opposite, while Rose is level headed, Norah is lamebrain and awkward. I really loved the two as they try to run a business that gets too much for them and finally gets out of hand.

In support, both Zahn and Arkin are superb. Zahn plays a local cop who has to visit the bloody crime scenes that need a lot of clean-up where he comes up with the idea for Rose’s business. Arkin provides the comic relief with the wild sales schemes he comes up with to make money for the family. The shrimp caper stands out as one of the funniest scenes of the film.

The movie is rated R for language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use so take this into consideration when viewing the film.

FINAL ANALYSIS: A very good film for those that like slice of life films. (4.5 of 5 Palm Trees)

KNOWING (Running Time: 122 min; Rated: PG-13)

Reviewed by Denise Castillón

Your Entertainment Ticket.Com

KNOWING, with its spectacular disaster sequences, is an exciting apocalyptic science fiction, action-thriller, -at least for the first half of the film. Later, the story’s progression changes course, and the resulting hokey-ness loses its captivated audience.

The remaining half of “Knowing” introduces more underdeveloped characters and a confusing avalanche of genres - extraterrestrials, supernaturalism and religion. But, then, the film’s director, Alex Proyas (I, ROBOT, THE CROW), has a reputation of delivering visually stunning action thrillers, in where he, usually successfully, incorporates fanciful mythologies to camouflage a faulty script.

Widowed father and science professor, John Koestler (NICOLAS CAGE), lectures his MIT college students on Randomism versus Determinism. He, himself, believes that “shit happens”, that is until his young son, Caleb (CHANDLER CANTERBURY), brings home a number-filled letter from his school’s fifty year-old time capsule. The professor discovers it is a coded predictor of major disasters. After the last two of three catastrophes are realized, John researches the school girl who wrote the prophecies, and finds her last living relative, Diana Wayland (ROSE BYRNE) and her daughter. Together, both families embark on a race to save their lives from the remaining prediction of global devastation.

Starring Academy Award® Winner Nicolas Cage (National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Leaving Las Vegas), Rose Byrne (FX’s Damages, 28 Weeks Later) and Chandler Canterbury (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).

Directed by Alex Proyas. Story by Ryne Douglas Pearson. Screenplay by Ryne Douglas Pearson, Juliet Snowden and Stiles White. Produced by Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch. Released by Summit Entertainment

DVD’s IN THE NEWS

By Al McGhee

BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA March 3, 2009: Beverly Hills Chihuahua is now on DVD and at local stores. The canine comedy follows the adventure of Chloe (Drew Barrymore) a diamond-clad pooch from Beverly Hills gets lost when while on vacation in Mexico. Being a Chihuahua helps her along since it’s the national dog of Mexico. Papi (George Lopez) an amusing Chihuahua who’s crazy about her heads to Mexico to find her. While there Chloe gets help from Delgado (Andy Garcia). Its Disney at it’s best as show by the huge box-office it got when it opened in theatres.
The DVD’s bonus features include Deleted Scenes, Blooper Scooper, Legend of the Chihuahua” Animated Short and Feature Audio Commentary by Director Raja Gosnell.

AIR BUD Special Edition March 3, 2009: The original Air Bud is now on DVD. The movie that started it all gets a chance to show off again. When Josh Framm, a 112-year-old boy, finds himself in a new city with no friends, he’s too shy to try out for the basketball team, However, while practicing one day he meets Buddy, a runaway golden retriever who surprises him with his ability to score baskets. The two become friends and later teammates in this cunning release from Disney.
The DVD’s bonus features include Dog-U-Commentary with The Buddies and the Original Theatrical Trailer.

HAPPY-GO-LUCKY March 10, 2009: The Golden Globe Award Winner for Best Actress in a Motion Picture-Comedy or Musical, Sally Hawkins is featured in this funny upbeat comedy about a schoolteacher whose unstoppable optimism guides her life. Bubbling forth with giggles, laughter and jokes, life’s a bowl of cherries, even when she comes across a few pits. Whether it’s a cranky driving teacher or a fiery flamenco instructor, Poppy emphases life on the Sunnyside of the street.
The film has bonus features including Behind The Wheel of Happy-Go-Lucky, Happy-In-Character and Audio Commentary By Director Mike Leigh. The film is a Miramax release.

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS March 10, 2009: The movie drama is based on a best selling novel by John Boyne. Eight year old Bruno has to move away from his Berlin home when his father a high ranking officer in the German Army during WWII gets relocated to a small rural area just outside a concentration camp for Jews. Lonely and bored Bruno takes walks exploring the woods nearby. On one trip he sees a boy behind a fence and starts to communicate with him. When his parents find out about his friendship with the boy, things take a turn for the worse.
The Bonus features include Deleted Scenes, Friendship Beyond The Fence Featurette and Feature Commentary by Writer Director Mark Herman and Author John Boyne. The film is a Miramax Release.