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44
8 W omen
A fabulous cast of buxom French
women fill the rural 1950s mansion of Mar
cel and Gaby (Catherine Deneuve). But
when the beloved (or is he?) patriarch is mur
dered, which of the eight resident babes is
responsible? Sapphism abounds in director
François Ozon’s (Water Drops on Burning Rocks)
pastiche of colorful musical scores, dark comedy
and back-stabbing accusations. Although Ozon
continues his habit of inserting inappropriate
material for the genre, anticipating Deneuve
getting it on with her gorgeous foil (Fanny
Aidant) is worth the price of the ticket.
— Lisa Bradshaw
Phillippe), JAP girlfriend (Claire Danes) and
questionable mentor (Jeff Goldblum). An incred
ible debut for writer/director Burr Steers.
—Jim Radosta
M o o n l i g h t M il e
A young woman’s murder leaves her fiancé
(Jake Gyllenhaal) in the painful position of help
ing her parents (Dustin Hoffman and Susan
Sarandon) grieve while beginning the inevitable
process of detachment. Unfortunately, the touch
ing moments are outnumbered by vague dialogue,
awkward silences, unrealistic situations, a tedious
realty subplot and a nauseating court
room scene.
a career after
Dawson’s Creek
goes off the air
in this satire
about homy col
lege students—
including the impossi
bly gorgeous lan Somerhalder
(Life as a House) as a gay hottie— based
on the Bret Easton Ellis novel. Writer/director
Roger Avary (Killing Zoe) creatively interlocks all
of the characters and isn’t afraid to blend smart
dialogue, candid sex and disturbing violence.
dud, bottom of the bag
only if you’re really hungry
good effort, pass the salt
-J R
<£§>
get the big tub o’ com
-J R
<£%><&>
ntmmm, tasty!
S e c r e ta r y
H eaven
R ed D rag o n
Heaven is hell. Cate Blanchett certainly
looks good as a bald-headed bomber, and her
puppy-eyed boytoy Giovanni Ribisi is equally
fetching. But they’re trapped in a ponderous
movie that tries vainly to inject pathos into
its tired tale of lovers on the lam. Blanchett
completists and fans of Euro-angst are Heav
en’s only hope.
— Gary Morris
I g b y G oes D o w n
A sort of counterculture coming-of-age story
about a juvenile delinquent (Kieran Culkin,
channeling Robert Downey Jr.) and a bunch of
other unique, complex characters who come in
and out of his messed-up life: his caustic mother
(Susan Sarandon), despicable brother (Ryan
The Hannibal Lecter franchise
miraculously is redeemed thanks to
director Brett Ratner (The Family
M an), producer Dino De Laurentiis
( Barbarella ) and a stellar cast, includ
ing Ralph Fiennes’ terrifying perform
ance as the titular serial killer. Sure,
some of the Profiling 101 dialogue
seems awfully familiar, but if you con
sider this is a prequel, technically all
that stuff we learned in The Silence of
the Lambs has yet to happen.
—JR
T h e R ules of
A t t r a c t io n
Finally— a
movie about
B/D/S/M that
doesn’t play it for
comic relief or as a
freaky perversion
(such as the recent
awful queer film
festival offering
Luster). Maggie
Gyllenhaal and the
constantly under
rated James Spader
are Oscar-worthy
as a secretary and
boss respectively
crossing the
boundaries of the professional. A s she learns
to do it right, he struggles with notions of the
immoral. You’ll keep waiting for the film to
screw it all up, but it never does. See it.
W h it e O l e a n d e r
A teen girl (Alison Lohman) enters the
ridiculous foster care system after her murderous
mom (Michelle Pfeiffer) goes to jail. Surprisingly
unsentimental for an Oprah Book Club adapta
tion, director Peter Kosminsky’s film is filled
with memorable characters and strong perform
ances, especially Robin Wright Penn and Renée
Zellweger as two flawed guardians. How
refreshing to see a chick flick that isn’i
polluted by Hollywood fakes like San
dra Bullock and Ashley Judd!
—JR
James Van Der Beek proves he might have
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This is a clothes-off workshop for all men ready to
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Electric Sct'tool
S a tu rd a y A
Sunday
503-493-9421
❖
Bridges Vocal Ensemble
Portland's semi-professional gay & lesbian singing group
singing hot jazz and other styles of music
is looking for
a few good men
now arranging auditions
fo r tenors and basses
November 2 - 3
w w w .bodyelectric.org
This is your opportunity
to shine in a
fun environment!
Some choral performance
experience desirable
All ages welcome
503 - 242-1675
bridgesvocalensemble@yahoo.com • http://community.oregonlive.com/cc/bridges