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film
Down to the Bone
people who meet by chance in a Mexican bar.
This is for sure not a feel-good movie for a nice
Although they have nothing in common, they are
Sunday afternoon. Avoiding stereotypes and cliches,
drawn together, and we follow their journey through
the indie feature film debut of writer/director Debra
several countries and even more margaritas, ending
Granik realistically portrays Irene’s (Vera Farmiga)
with a nice twist. Moving, witty and entertaining with
struggle to raise her sons, hold her marriage together,
great support from Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis.
keep a job and not to let a cocaine addiction take over
Opens Jan. 13. A
her whole life. She eventually realizes that she needs
—YPB
new film follows a group of men who track down and
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to check herself into a rehab center and that the road
to survival will be long and rocky. Opens Jan. 6 at
Hollywood Theatre. A
Munich
Based on true events, Steven Spielberg’s ambitious
—Yvonne P Behrens
End of Suburbia:
Oil Depletion and the Collapse
of the American Dream
murders of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer
Olympics in Munich. Flashes of cinematic genius
punctuate the film, most notably the bombing and
This depressing yet revealing documentary, which
shooting scenes that are disturbingly artful in the vein
traces the origins of overconsumption back to post
of The Godfather. But the characters are not
World War II nuclear families, provides ample evi
particularly engaging, and the emotionally manipula
dence that the days of cheap oil could be over by the
tive climax all but cancels out the reflective mood that
end of this decade—and that our lives will be changed
anchors the rest of the movie. For a more convincing
forever as a result. Plays Jan. 13 to 15 at Fifth Avenue
lesson on this subject, rent the Oscar-winning docu
Cinemas. B
mentary One Day in September. B -
—SB
—-Jim Radosta
Music from the Inside Out
Fun with Dick and Jane
Are we having fun yet? Not really. Jim Carrey and
Daniel Anker (Scottsboro: An American Tragedy)
Tea Leoni replace George Segal and Jane Fonda in this
spent five years filming this wonderful documentary
uneven update of the 1977 comedy about an upward
about members of the world-class Philadelphia
ly mobile couple who turn to crime when the hubby
Orchestra and their love of music. Ensemble perform
loses his posh job. The remake gets off to a strong start
ances are interwoven with the stories of individual
with a sharp satire of an Enron-like corporation that
musicians, who play everything from bluegrass to sal
suddenly folds and leaves its employees with incredi
sa. Even if you don’t like classical music and don't play
bly shrinking pension plans. But when it comes to the
an instrument, this film is an entertaining look at a mix
slapstick robbery sprees, there are numerous misfired
of different music styles. Opens Jan. 6 at Hollywood
jokes for every genuine chuckle. C +
Theatre. A
—YPB
—Stephen Blair
The New World
Loggerheads
This lovely drama tells three intertwining stories,
Like other Terrence Malick films, this historical
each taking place around Mother’s Day in North
drama features gorgeous cinematography and poetic
Carolina. An HIV-positive drifter (Kip Pardue) arrives
voice-over narration. But unlike his 1970s master
in a small coastal town to watch over the endangered
pieces, Badlands and Days of Heaven, his latest effort
loggerhead turtles that nest there. His mother (Tess
has a preachy tone that’s hard to stomach, and much
Harper) is tom between devotion to her gay son and
of the dialogue is flat-out corny. In keeping with his
her preacher husband. Meanwhile, a lonely woman
recent clump of crappy performances, Colin Farrell
(Bonnie Hunt) mourns the child she gave up for adop
lacks charisma as John Smith, the Brit who woos
tion years ago. Opens Jan. 13 at Hollywood Theatre. A-
Pocahontas amid warfare between English settlers and
-JR
Native Americans in 1607 Virginia. For all its beauty
and epic grandeur, the picture never fully engages. And
The Matador
Written
and
to the dismay of gay men everywhere, Pocahontas
directed
by
Richard
Shepard
(Oxygen) and co-produced by and starring Pierce
doesn't belt out “Colors of the Wind” in this version of
the story. Opens Jan. 13 B-
—SB
Brosnan, this movie is a hitman comedy about two
1------ y-
■
I 1 I
Rumor Has It...
“I’ve always thought
Mrs. Robinson was the
most interesting charac
ter in The Graduate,"
says a character in this
lackluster
sorts)
sequel
(of
to the seminal
1967 classic. The same
can be said of Shirley
Maclaine, who is the only
sign of life here as the
Pasadena matron
who
presumably inspired the
Kip Pardue (left) and Michael Kelly star in Loggerheads.
character. C
—Floyd Sklaver ©