Directed by: Peter Hedges
Starring: Steve Carell, Juliette Binoche, Dane Cook
Rated: PG-13 for some innuendo.
Parental Notes: Beyond teens getting away with speaking to their parents in a way some adults might not appreciate and a bit of innuendo, this film doesn't have anything objectionable for teens/tweens.
"Dan in Real Life" is a fairly standard male-character-centric romantic comedy, with the standard foibles and charms of its genre well in place. You've got the hapless hero, who is sweet and charming but flawed enough that he's single and gets into plenty of humorous scrapes that a more logical person would avoid. There's the impossibly wonderful love interest, whose only flaws are plot devices. There's the sprawlingly large family with humorous bad habits. Ultimately, there isn't much here that we haven't seen before. But "Dan in Real Life" is well-executed and has the advantage of the charming Juliette Binoche and Steve Carell as its leads.
Dan (Carell, "Evan Almighty"), a widower, is a parenting and family advice columnist who is up for syndication. His column is beloved by many, many readers, but he has a little trouble taking his own advice. His eldest daughter, Jane (Alison Pill, "Dear Wendy"), desperately wants to learn to drive, but Dan is afraid she might get hurt and won't allow it. Fifteen-year-old Cara (Brittany Robertson, "Frank") is utterly passionate and determined to be a lot closer to her boyfriend than Dan would like, and his disapproval only strengthens her resolve. Fourth-grader Lilly (Marlene Lawston, "Flightplan") is the one he gets along with the best, but by the end of the movie she's mad at him too.
Dan and the girls head up to his parent's sprawlng home for the family Thanksgiving. By the time they arrive, the girls are mad enough at him that his mother (Dianne Weist, "Dedication") sends him out in the morning for newspapers, telling him to get lost for a while. While out, he meets Marie (Binoche, "Breaking and Entering") and they have one of those conversations that is the start of something big. He gets her number, even though she warns she's in a new relationship with someone. When Dan comes home and starts telling his family all about her, he is cut off by the discovery that she is already there -- she's dating his brother Mitch (Dane Cook, "Good Luck Chuck"). Hilarity ensues as Dan and Marie agree to hide their mutual attraction and try to throw themselves into the reunion activities. Pretty soon Dan is alienating his family and behaving like a buffoon.
There's no doubt where things will end up, of course, only how many twists and turns the plot will take to get there. This being a comedy, everything gets tied up with a neat bow at the end, which will feel either forced or comforting, depending on your mood. Carell and Binoche both have wonderfully light touches, which makes the somewhat heavy-handed script far more enjoyable than one might expect. Carell appears happy to inhabit his role gently, rather than thrashing about like Ben Stiller or another humiliation comic might. Binoche seems to float gently through her role, being French and beautiful and mysterious.
Ultimately, "Dan in Real Life" is a romantic comedy, with all that entails, so if you are on the hunt for that sort of thing, it is right up your alley. If you aren't, then it's not, so steer clear.
Directed by: David Slade
Starring: Josh Jartnett, Melissa George, Manu Bennett, Danny Huston
Rated: Rated R for strong horror violence and language.
Parental Notes: This is not a movie for children. It features torture, brutal violence, and loads of scary, scary vampires.
"30 Days Of Night" is an idea which has great potential but mediocre execution, much like the plan of its villains. They are a group of vampires who have come up with the crafty idea of taking over a town so far north that it spends a month each winter without any sun at all. Good idea, but the vampires are greedy and sloppy, and frankly get better than they deserve out of the ending.
The film begins shortly before the final sunset for the month. Some townsfolk who can't stand the long dark are leaving, and many homes in town are boarded up. Sheriff Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett, "Resurrecting the Champ") and his deputy, Billy (Manu Bennett, "The Condemned") are looking into a strange series of crimes -- a pile of burned satellite phones, a vandalized helicopter, and a pack of murdered sled dogs. They find a strange loner in town (Ben Foster, "3:10 to Yuma") who raves about "them" being on the way. He seems violent, so they lock him up. Eben's estranged wife Stella (Melissa George, "The Amityville Horror") is also in town, as she missed the last flight out. There's no other way out of town, as Barrow is surrounded by 80 miles of roadless wilderness, and apparently no airplanes can land when it's dark out.
Pretty soon the sun is down and people start turning up dead. Screams and gunshots are heard. The cell tower goes silent, and the power to the town is cut off. Before long, the townsfolk discover that whatever is after them isn't slowed down by bullets, and Eben's teenage brother suggests vampires. That's confirmed once Eben finds a survivor of an attack, complete with pointy teeth and a refusal to go down 'til his head is chopped off. Eben and Stella lead a small group of survivors into hiding to try and wait out the night.
The broad strokes of "30 Days of Night" are solid. The setting is convincingly created (aside from a few shots where there really ought to be steam coming out of the actors mouths), he special effects are gruesomely realistic, and the acting is more competent than the material really calls for. The pacing is good, too, starting out with a bit of tension building before leading up to a cat-and-mouse hunt punctuated by horrible violence.
Where the film starts to fall apart for your humble reviewer is in the details. The vampires are suitably frightening in appearance, with long, claw-like fingernails, odd facial features, and mouths full of sharp teeth, but they have a tendency to shriek like ring-wraiths at seemingly random moments, which is more comedic than terrifying. They also are thoroughly wasteful, spraying most of their prey's blood everywhere (even using it as grooming material) rather than consuming it and killing off the vast majority of the townsfolk immediately rather than rationing them. There are wide jumps in time, from Day 7 to Day 18 to Day 28 with little clue as to what has happened in between, and the final big fight against the vampires takes place less than a day before the sun comes up again. Why our heroes couldn't just hole up in the virtually impregnable building they find on the edge of town and wait for the sun to come up is not at all clear.
In terms of gut-churning, tense horror, "30 Days of Night" provides that in spades (though occasionally broken by unintentionally hilarious moments like the vampires' melodramatic shrieking). The monsters take pleasure in tormenting their victims, and there is plenty of screaming and spraying of arterial blood. When our band of survivors is in hiding, there is the constant tension of wondering when they will be found. In that regard, the film provides well, and if you are a horror buff who's more forgiving of the small problems than I am, you will almost certainly enjoy it.
Written and Directed by: Tony Gilroy
Starring: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Syndey Pollack, Tilda Swinton
Rated: R for language including some sexual dialogue.
Parental Notes: This is not a movie aimed at kids. Most preteens and teens will probably be fine with the violence and sexual content, but they may not be captivated by the story.
Such meticulous care has been taken with everything from the writing to the casting to the performances of "Michael Clayton" that the film is nearly flawless. A quiet, brooding character study which happens to have the plot of a legal thriller, it may be a bit of a slow burn for those looking for a quick action flick. But if you're tired of the slapdash flicks Hollywood has been turning out lately, this will not disappoint you.
Michael Clayton (George Clooney, "Ocean's Thirteen") is a "fixer" for a massive law firm. While some see him as a miracle worker, his true nature is, in his own words, that of a janitor. He tidies up the messes clients of his powerful firm have made, like leaving the site of a hit-and-run. He misses his courtroom days, but is far too good at his job to be allowed to do anything else for the firm. Clooney is accumulating gravitas as he ages and loses some of his pretty-boy good looks, and his slightly jowly handsomeness serves him well in the role. Clayton is old and tired, and running low on options. He has a gambling problem, both with back-room poker games and with people: he gambled that opening a bar with his brother was a good idea and would give him something to fall back on after his law career ended, and he lost. Now, even after the contents of the bar have been auctioned off, he owes a shady character $75,000.
When one of the best lawyers at his firm strips off his clothes during a deposition and runs naked through the snow, Clayton is called in to settle him down and soothe the ruffled feathers of the client. The lawyer is his good friend Arthur (Tom Wilkinson, "The Last Kiss"), who has bipolar disorder and has stopped taking his pills. He is, he informs Clayton, "Shiva, the God of Death." Wilkinson shines in this role of a man who is vibrantly sure he is doing the right thing and hoping that by doing so, he can turn his life around and do good for a change.
Arthur was the architect of a massive effort to defend biochemical company U-North in a massive class-action suit which alleges that one of their pesticides is deadly to the farmers who use it. Things do not look terribly good for U-North. The deeper Clayton looks into Arthur's case, the more disturbing things he turns up and the less inclined he is to do his janitorial duty and sweep it all under the rug.
Standing in his way is the new chief legal executive for U-North, Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton, "Chronicles of Narnia"). She is a good lawyer, but a little too determined to win, even in the face of her company's wrongdoing. Crowder gradually slips more and more across the line of what's right until she is making decisions and giving orders that clearly terrify her. Swinton was fabulous in "Narnia" as the thoroughly wicked White Witch, but here she turns in a more subtle performance as a woman who bit by bit begins to wobble as she walks the tightrope between just doing her job and being actively evil.
This is the directing debut of star screenwriter Tony Gilroy (the three Bourne movies, "Proof of Life," "Armageddon"), who also wrote the screenplay. Gilroy's taste in directing runs more to the quiet and subtle, which suits his script perfectly. He's aided by cinematographer Robert Elswit ("Syriana," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Magnolia"), whose shots are moody without being pretentious. Everything in this film is carefully crafted to reward audience members who pay attention.
"Michael Clayton" is a thoughtful and well-crafted. It's a top-notch film made by a top-notch team, and not to be missed by anyone who likes movies with character development and well-crafted scripts.
Directed by: David L. Cunningham
Starring: Alexander Ludwig, Frances Conroy, Ian McShane
Rated: PG for fantasy action and some scary images.
Parental Notes: This film is safe for just about all kids, though those who are passionate fans of the books may want to skip it.
Susan Cooper's novels have a quiet but passionate fan base. It's to be hoped that "The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising," the new film loosely based on one of her most popular stories, will draw more fans to the novels. It shows few other redeeming qualities. It isn't terrible, but it isn't all that good either; it is a waste of both a talented cast and a novel worthy of a better adaptation.
Young Will Stanton (Alexander Ludwig, "The Sandlot 3") has relocated with his family to England. Will has all the problems that a nearly-14-year-old would have: his five older brothers give him a hard time about everything, his parents don't understand him, he has a crush on a girl way out of his league. His little sister idolizes him, but she is a lone friend in a large family of less-than-ideal folks.
Will also has an unusual problem: starting on his fourteenth birthday, he begins exhibiting unusual powers. Then family friend and well-to-do town leader Miss Greythorne (Frances Conroy, "The Wicker Man") and her butler Merriman (Ian McShane, "Hot Rod") inform him that he is the Seeker, the last of a group of immortal warriors and a predestined hero who must find the six Signs and unite them in only five days so that he can battle the Rider (Christopher Eccleston, "Doctor Who"). If Will fails to find all the signs or to use them properly to defeat the Rider, the world as we know it will end and the forces of darkness will reign.
Most of the actors seem to be going through the motions rather than practicing the art and craft of acting. Ludwig does a passable job as a frustrated teen in over his head, but does not quite ring true as a foreordained hero. Conroy and McShane's considerable talents are just visible through the workmanlike script. Eccleston is properly menacing as the Rider, even when the evil being is disguised as a harmless country doctor, but his heart doesn't quite seem to be in it (this may be because, as he's said in interviews, he regards most of the classic fantasy books as children's stuff).
"The Seeker" has a some very basic goofs. A kitten is rescued midway through the film and makes several appearances leading up to the climactic confrontation, whereupon it disappears entirely. The audience is left to speculate whether it survived the destruction or not. Our hero, who is supposed to be a beacon of the forces of good, destroys thousands of dollars' worth of property as a way to "express himself," as Miss Greythorne puts it and never shows signs of guilt. This sort of thing is easy to fix, and the same lack of meticulousness permeates the film.
Any fantasy film worth its salt these days has decent special effects, and "The Seeker" comes through here. There are beautiful images of the Rider spreading darkness, of Will traveling through time, and so on. Unfortunately, director David L. Cunningham ("After...", "The Path to 9/11") is overly fond of snazzy camera work, which sometimes makes it difficult to stay engaged in the film enough to enjoy the effects.
Ultimately, "The Seeker: The Dark is Rising" is a disappointment. A classic young adults' novel has been turned into a mediocre film which bears little resemblance to the book whose title it partially bears.
Written and Directed by: Sean Penn (based upon the novel by Jon Krakauer)
Starring: Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn
Rated: R for language and some nudity.
Parental Notes: There isn't much in the way of violent content, aside from some footage of hunting. Scenes depicting the slaughter and cooking of wild animals might upset children, however, and there are shots of the meat being consumed by maggots that are far from pleasant. There's a bit of non-sexual nudity, as well.
In 1990, Chris McCandless walked away from his law school trust fund and his family, and he headed into the wild. Two years later, hunters found his body in the bus he'd been using to camp in Alaska's Denali National Park. "Into the Wild," Jon Krakauer's book about McCandless' life, has been adapted by Sean Penn into a beautiful, thoughtful movie that narrowly escapes pretentiousness and rekindles the debate about McCandless: was he wise beyond his years, a brave adventurer leaving our toxic civilization behind to live off the land? Or was he a fool who committed suicide by ignorance?
The film "Into the Wild" begins as Chris (Emile Hirsch, "Alpha Dog") is graduating Emory University and tracks his cross-country odyssey before heading up on his fateful trip to Alaska. Hirsch plays Chris as a charismatic, idealistic young man, an early twenties misfit determined to escape society as much as he can. The portrayal works, and it's hard not to take as strong a liking to the passionate young man as the folks whose paths he crosses do.
There's Rainey (Brian Dierker) and Jan (Catherine Keener, "Friends With Money"), a couple of older hippies whose relationship is on the rocks until Chris helps them sort it out. There's Ron Franz (Hal Holbrook, "Shade"), a retired leather worker whom Chris shakes out of his closed-up life. There's Wayne (Vince Vaughn, "The Break-Up"), a genial grain elevator owner who employs Chris for a little while. Everyone who meets Chris seems to love him, and they're all sad to see him go.
Chris uses the name "Alexander Supertramp" while on his peregrinations, and takes pains to keep out of touch with his family. He manages to leave so bare a trail that even the private investigator they hire to find him loses the track partway across the country. The strain of his disappearance takes a toll on his parents (William Hurt, "The Good Shepherd," and Marcia Gay Harden, "The Dead Girl"). His sister Carine (Jena Malone, "Lying") is more content, knowing that he is doing what he must to make himself happy.
Penn shoots much of the film is glorious wide angles, bringing us a sense of what Chris must have seen as he trekked across this vast nation. There are wide open skies, often marked by jet trails, and tall mountains begging to be climbed. All this brings a romantic feel to the film, in spite of McCandless' inglorious end.
"Into the Wild" is a film as uncompromising as its subject. Chris' final weeks are shown in stark detail -- his difficulties finding food and his inability to ford the river between his camp and civilization bring him to a more and more skeletal condition. Ironically, had he brought a topographical map with him, he would have known there was a hand-cranked basket available a few miles up the river which he could have used to ford the water. Of course, had he known it was there, his obsession with subsistence living would likely have pushed him further away from his camp location so that it would not have been an option.
It is to be hoped that this film will serve as a cautionary tale as well as an inspirational one; Alaskan rangers tell stories of young men like McCandless, driven by dreams and idealism to vanish into the cold, brutal wilderness. While "Into the Wild" likely will not deter these young folk from their course, one might hope that McCandless' end will give them ideas for coming back out alive.