Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013, April 16, 2004, Page 44, Image 44

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and
D eath
of a
S erial K iller
Documentarian Nick Briximfield’s follow­
up to 1992’s Aileen Wuirmos: The Selling of a
Serial Killer focuses on the final days of the les­
bian prostitute depicted in Monster. This grip­
ping film, which opens April 16 at Hollywood
Theatre, is rich in detail (she gave up a baby
boy for adoption in 1971 and was briefly mar­
ried to a septuagenarian), but the most fasci­
nating insights come from the subject herself:
Desperate to die and on the brink of insanity,
she suddenly claims to have killed seven johns in
cold blood, not self-defense. It’s a sad final chap­
ter to a life plagued by violence and injustice.
— Jim Radosta
C onnie
and
C arla
N ia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding)
and Toni Collette ( Muriel's Wedding) are dinner
theater singers hiding out from gangsters by
disguising themselves as drag queens. Screen­
writer Vardalos was bom to doctor T V comedy
scripts, hut 90 minutes o f bland sitcom execu­
tion grate, as do the weightless Important Mes­
sages. Unless you don’t already know that gays
and drag queens are human beings deserving of
respect, you can miss this one.
— Christopher McQuain
D ogville
Danish director Lars von Triers follow-up to
Dancer in the Dark is also a contemplation of the
horrors experienced by a woman (Nicole Kid­
man) at the hands of moralistic, hypocritical
residents o f a small American town. This time,
however, he’s lowered the depressive-martyrdom
factor and upped the ambiguity by leading
everything to an unexpected, disturbingly grati­
fying conclusion. Opens April 23 at Cinema 21.
— CM
< C £> <&> <££>
Python (Eric Idle) and Absolute­
ly Fabukrus (Joanna Lumley).
Serve with zero advertising.
Why Miramax buried this
lighthearted and often funny
film is a mystery, hut those
fond of fairy tales will want to
give Ella a proper viewing.
— Andy Mcmgels
<!& <& <££><& > K ill B ill : V olume 2
Fans of the first installment may be dis­
appointed at the sequel’s less ambitious fight scenes,
hut KB2 has its own, different virtues. Characters
are a hit more fleshed out (Michael Madsen’s bril­
liant psycho hick is a high point), and the wacky
speeches by evildoers as they torture their victims
are longer. Ignore the maudlin touches and the
misogyny and enjoy Quentin Tarantino’s gleeful
cinemagic— and his too-obvious foot fetish.
— Gary Morris
T he P unisher
Those who felt the Batman films were too
subtle in their homoeroticism will welcome The
Punisher. Marvel Com ics’ gun-toting antihero is
played by Tom Jane and his abs, which get enough
close-ups to warrant their own screen credit. The
slim plot also features torture and fights that look
like they were choreographed by C olt Studios.
— AM
E lla E nchanted
13 G oing
Take 10 parts Shrek, fold in five parts Cinderel­
la and Clueless. Mix well, then separate anima­
tion, leaving live action and CGI special effects.
Sprinkle in supporting roles from vets of Monty
on
30
This female version o f Big transforms an awk­
ward girl growing up in 1987 suburbia into a
bottom of the bag
<Q$> <&> only if you’re really hungry
{$ > <&> good effort, pass the salt
mmmm, tasty!
<&> £$><& <$><?> get the big tub o ’ com
powerful magazine editor (Jennifer G am er of
T V ’s Alias) living in modern-day Manhattan.
Although it has adorable moments and a nos­
talgic soundtrack, the film fails to milk the for­
mula for all it’s worth. A nd it’s a shame to see
indie hottie Mark Ruffalo ( You C an Count on
Me) squirm his way through a boyfriend role
that’s far beneath him.
-J R
T he U nited S tates
of L eland
Ryan Gosling helms the cast o f a film that
will blow your mind about an enigmatic young
man who murders a little kid, seemingly for no
reason. T he story by first-time writer/director
Matthew Ryan Hoge is at times heavy-
handed but manages to give a riveting
peek into the mind and motivation of
a very likable killer.
—JB Rabin
ip
vigésimo
aniversario
ster City Associa
Portland, Oregon 97214
tcodemayo.org
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