BY LOIS WADSWORTH
Girls Just Want
CALENDAR GIRLS:
Directed by Nigel Cole.
Written by Juliette Towhidi and Tim Firth. Produced
by Suzanne Mackie, Nick Barton. Cinematography,
Ashley Rowe. Production design, Martin Childs.
Editor, Michael Parker. Executive producer, Nik Powell.
Music, Patrick Doyle. Starring Helen Mirren (Chris)
and Julie Walters, with John Alderton, Linda Bassett
(Cora), Annette Crosbie (Jessie), Penelope Wilton
(Ruth), Ciaran Hinds (Rod), Celia Imrie (Celia), John-
Paul Macleod and Philip Glenister (Lawrence).
Touchstone Pictures, 2003. PG-13. 108 minutes.
N
o surprises here. If you’ve seen the
trailer or the television ads, you
already know a proposal comes
before a civic-minded group of British
women who belong to the W.I, (short for
Women’s Institute). Two club members,
Chris (Helen Mirren) and Annie (Julie
Walters), propose to put out a calendar to
raise funds for a local hospital. They want
W.I. women to pose for the calendar doing
things typical Yorskshire Dales women do
— baking bread, playing piano, arranging
flowers, knitting — butt nekkid. Well that’s
a twist, even if Annie does try to dress it up
a bit with the more acceptable and arty
sounding “nude.”
The proposal generates heat from the
conventional chairwoman and others. But
Chris and Annie won’t allow the group’s
concerns to rule out their idea. After all,
they put up with deadening lectures on
broccoli for the sake of tradition, why
shouldn’t the more strait-laced among them
take off their corsets for art?
The movie gets laughs out of the idea
that a bunch of women aged 50 or older
posing nude is really wild. Right here in
OPENING OR RETURNING:
Along Came Polly: Ben Stiller plays
Reuben, a hapless husband whose bride
dumps him. Then he meets up with a child-
hood friend, Polly (Jennifer Aniston). Also
stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Hank
Azaria, Bryan Brown and Alec Baldwin.
John Hamburg directs. PG-13. Cinema
World. Cinemark.
Creature from the Black Lagoon: In 3-D!
The 1954 classic monster film mixes scien-
tific discovery with legend. New print, com-
plete with 3-D glasses tuned to bring out its
best. Shows with Hentai (Japanese erotic
anime). Two weeks only; Jan. 9 -11 and Jan.
16-18. Bijou.
In the Cut: This film came and went very
quickly last year. Catch it early, because it
may not be here only briefly. In Jane
Campion’s psychological thriller, Meg Ryan
plays a lonely woman who becomes
involved with a tough homicide detective
investigating murders in her neighbor-
hood. Also stars Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer
Jason Leigh, Nick Damici. Highest recom-
mendations. R. Movies 12.
Matrix Revolutions: Keanu Reeves,
Laurence Fishburne and Carrie-Anne Moss
are back for the third (and final?) Matrix
episode. Written and directed by the
Wachowski Brothers. Produced by Joel
Silver. R. Movies 12.
Teacher’s Pet: Talking dog Spot wants to
become a “real boy,” and mad scientist
Ivan Krank, tries to make it possible.
Nathan Lane is Spot’s voice, Kesey
Grammer is Krank’s. PG. Cinemark. Cinema
World.
Torque: Biker Cary Ford (Martin
Henderson) returns to see his girlfriend,
Shane (Monet Mazur), but they get caught
up with some bad bikers. Also stars Adam
Scott, Ice Cube, Jay Hernandez. PG-13.
Cinema World. Cinemark.
Win a Date with Tad Hamilton: Kate
Bosworth, Topher Grace and Josh
Duhamel star in this teen romance comedy
directed by Robert Luketic. PG-13. Sneak at
7 pm on 01/16 and 4 pm on 01/18 only.
Cinemark.
Films open the Friday following EW
publication date unless otherwise
noted. See archived reviews at
www.eugeneweekly.com
CONTINUING:
Big Fish: Tim Burton’s film about a son
(Billy Crudup) who tries to figure out his
father’s (Albert Finney) life through the
wild stories he’s told. Also stars Ewan
Lane County, a game dozen
men from the Long Tom
Grange made their own nudie
calendar, while raising money
for Junction City schools,
hard-hit by budget cuts. (See
EW cover photo, Dec. 31,
2003; story, p. 5.) There’s
something downright whole-
some about men and women
of a certain age being willing
to show a little skin for charity.
In Calendar Girls, the
women who agree to pose
GIRLFRIENDS: CHRIS
make quiet, poignant admis-
(HELEN MIRREN) AND
sions to each other about their
ANNIE (JULIE WALTERS.
private lives, which gives the
project heart. And the money
scenes with her husband, but thanks to the
will go to bring comfort to leukemia
heavy-handed script and direction, we in
patients, family and staff at the local hospi-
the audience knew what was going on long
tal, in memory of Annie’s recently deceased
before Ruth did.
husband, John (John Alderton), a fine char-
Chris and Annie present the opposite
acter who expresses a wry humor and
problem. They are in so much of the film it’s
appreciation of beauty that lasts.
easy to miss the subtleties in their long-lived
The trouble with reviewing such a slight
friendship. So when their relationship gets
film is that I might leave nothing for the
in trouble, it’s hard to know what strengths
reader or viewer to discover. On the sur-
each will call on to work out what’s gone
face, the film seems to be about the calen-
wrong between them. Show, don’t tell.
dar for John, but actually it’s about relation-
In both cases, the actors and the audi-
ships. Had the filmmakers understood this
ence could handle much more complexity
as deeply as some of the actors did, we
with ease. Real life is tough. Every issue
might have all been surprised.
has many sides. Why simplify friendship
One of the best small roles is that of
or marriage? Women who come to see the
Ruth (Penelope Wilton), who discovers the
film may be over 50, but that’s no reason
hard way what is missing in her marriage.
to gloss over the reasons life is worth liv-
Ruth’s story should have included more
McGregor, Helena Bonham Carter, Danny
DeVito, Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman and
Steve Buscemi. Truly wonderful film; high-
est recommendations. PG-13. Cinema
World. Cinemark.. See review this issue.
Brother Bear: Disney tale of young man
who is transformed into a bear and his
adventures in the great Northwest. He
picks up a bear cub and runs into a pair of
misguided moose, or is that meese? Six
new songs from Phil Collins, including one
with Tina Turner. G. Movies 12.
Calendar Girls: Spunky members of a
woman’s club in Yorkshire, England poses
naked to raise money for medical research
after one’s husband gets leukemia. Stars
Helen Mirren, Julie Walters and John
Alderton. Based on a true story. Nigel Cole
directs. PG-13 Cinemark. See review this
issue.
Cat in the Hat, The: Mike Meyers stars as
the outrageous feline who visits a couple
of kids and wreaks havoc in the house
while mom’s away. With Alec Baldwin, Kelly
Preston. Reviewers don’t recommend. PG-
13. Movies 12.
Chasing Liberty: In this young adult
romantic comedy, Mandy Moore plays the
only child of the US Prez, and Matthew
Goode is the Brit she meets in Europe who
helps her escape from her Secret Service
agents. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World
Cheaper by the Dozen: Steve Martin and
Bonnie Hunt play the parents of 12 chil-
dren, including Piper Perabo, Hilary Duff
and Tom Welling. Directed by Shawn Levy.
PG. Cinema World. Cinemark.
Cold Mountain: Anthony Minghella’s
adaptation of Charles Frazier’s Civil War
best-seller stars Jude Law as a wounded
Southern soldier walking home across the
mountains, Nicole Kidman as his pre-war
sweetheart, and Renee Zellweger as a
young drifter who teaches her to farm and
survive. Elegaic. Excellent performances,
beautiful film. Very highest recommenda-
tions. R. Cinema World. Cinemark. Online
archives.
Elf: Jon Favreau directs and Will Farrell
stars as an elf who doesn’t look like the
other kids, er, elves. The big elf searches
for his biological father (James Caan) in
New York. PG. Movies 12.
Haunted Mansion: Eddie Murphy stars in
Rob Minkoff’s (Stuart Little) ghost comedy,
with Jennifer Tilly, Don Knotts, Terence
Stamp PG. Cinemark.
In America: Jim Sheridan’s memoir of liv-
ing in New York in 1981 with his wife and
two daughters is a heartfelt film that stars
Samantha Morton, Paddy Considine, Sarah
Bolger and Emma Bolger. Highest recom-
mendations. PG-13. Bijou. Online archives.
Last Samurai: Edward Zwick directs. In
Japan, US Civil War hero Nathan Algren
(Tom Cruise) trains the Emperor’s troops in
the way of the gun as they take on the last
samurais.
Algren is captured by
Katsumoto (Ken Watanabe) and falls under
samurai traditions and codes of honor. R.
Cinemark.
Looney Tunes: Mixed animation/ live
action directed by Joe Dante, stars Bugs
Bunny, Daffy Duck, Brendan Fraser, Jenna
Elfman, Steve Martin, Timothy Dalton,
Joan Cusack, Heather Locklear. PG. Movies
12.
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King:
Peter Jackson completes Tolkien’s trilogy
on film, and the result is stunning. Stars
Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin,
Ian McKellen, Billy Boyd, Orlando Bloom,
Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett. In parallel stories
Frodo and Sam make it to Mount Doom as
the warriors of Middle Earth under the
leadership of Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen)
fight the final battle against the forces of
the evil Sauron. Very highest recommen-
dations. Brilliant! Cinema World. Cinemark.
Online archives.
Love Actually: Written and directed by
Richard Curtis (Bridget Jones’s Diary), this
romantic comedy stars Hugh Grant, Liam
Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Alan
Rickman, Emma Thompson, Keira
Knightley, Martine McCuthcheon, Bill
Nighy. Good fun. Highly recommended. R.
Movies 12.
Master and Commander The Far side of
the World: Peter Weir brings the late
Patrick O’Brian’s best-selling nautical
adventures to the screen with Russell
Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey and Paul
Bettany as Dr. Stephen Maturin, ship sur-
geon and naturalist. Set during the
Napoleonic Wars. Highest recommenda-
tions. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives.
Mona Lisa Smile: Julia Roberts is an ide-
alistic teacher and nonconformist at
Wellesley in the 1950s. Julia Stiles, Kirsten
Dunst and Maggie Gyllenhaal are her stu-
dents. Mike Newell directs. PG-13.
Cinemark. Cinema World.
My Baby’s Daddy: Three friends from the
hood discover their girlfriends are all preg-
nant at the same time. Now they have to
grow up to become daddies. PG-13.
Cinemark.
Paycheck: Based on a Philip K. Dick sci-fi
short story and directed by John Woo, film
stars Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman Aaron
Eckhart, Paul Giamatti, Colm Feore,
Michael C. Hall. PG-13. Cinemark.
Peter Pan: Directed by P.J. Hogan, movie
stars Jason Isaacs, Jeremy Sumpter,
Richard Briers, Olivia Williams, Lyn
Redgrave, Ludivine Sagnier and Rachel
JAAP BUITENDIJK. TOUCHSTONE PICTURES, 2003.
To Have Fun.
ing. “Sex and the City” allows Miranda’s
wedding and Samantha’s bad news to
come in the same half-hour episode. We
get it, OK? Women enjoy women charac-
ters who are as complicated and multi-
faceted as they.
This film is slight but not completely
inconsequential. In an age of action, spe-
cial-effects films geared to the young male
demographic, any film about women’s lives
should be welcomed. But with such a tal-
ented cast, we expect the best. We get little
flashes of the real thing here, especially
from the amazing Mirren and Walters. But
not nearly enough.
Entertaining but not enlightening,
Calendar Girls is playing now at Cinema
World and Cinemark.
ew
Hurd-Wood. PG. Cinemark.
Radio: High school football coach (Ed
Harris) shocks a Southern town by taking
on a mentally challenged youth (Cuba
Gooding Jr.) and developing a decades-
long friendship with him. Also stars Alfre
Woddard and Debra Winger; directed by
Mike Tollin. PG. Movies 12.
Scary Movie 3: Horror spoof satirizes
movies such as The Ring, Signs, The Matrix
Reloaded, Eight Mile. Stars Anna Faris,
Charlie Sheen, Denise Richards, Eddie
Griffin and Queen Latifah. Directed by
David Zucker. R. Movies 12.
School of Rock: Faking it as a substitute
teacher, wild guitarist Jack Black turns ele-
mentary musical prodigies into a high-volt-
age rock band. Directed by Richard Linklater,
it also stars Joan Cusack, Mike White and
Sarah Silverman. PG-13. Movies 12.
Something’s Gotta Give: Directed by
Nancy Meyers. Harry Sanborn (Jack
Nicholson) is a New York music mogul with
a libido much younger than his years. Also
stars Diane Keaton, Amanda Peet and
Keanu Reeves. PG-13. Cinemark. Online
archives.
Stuck on You: The Farrelly Brothers
(Something About Mary) direct this story
of joined twins Bob (Mat Damon) and Walt
(Greg Kinear). Walt convinces Bob to move
to L.A. so he can become an actor. But suc-
cess threatens to drive them apart. Also
stars Cher, Eva Mendes and Seymour
Cassel plus big name cameos. PG-13.
Movies 12.
Twenty-one Grams: Mexican director
Alejandro González Iñárritu’s second fea-
ture has astounded critics. Telling three
linked stories, Iñárritu again works magic
with narrative structure. Sean Penn,
Benicio Del Toro and Naomi Watts, star in a
film The New York Times says reaches a
“Faulknerian idea of old-fashioned grace.”
Also stars Charlotte Gainsbourg, Clea
DuVall, Danny Huston and Melissa Leo. R.
Bijou. Online archives.
Under the Tuscan Sun: Diane Lane plays
writer Frances Mayes in this screen adap-
tation of her best selling book about buy-
ing a run-down villa in Italy and creating a
new life. Escape from real life — beautiful
people, gorgeous scenery, everybody’s got
money. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives.
Underworld: Set in a world where vam-
pires are a clan of aristocratic moderns,
and lycans (werewolves) are a gang of
street thugs, Len Wiseman’s film stars Kate
Beckinsale and Scott Speedman. When
they fall in love, they trigger an ancient
feud. R. Movies 12..
Bijou Art Cinemas (686-2458)
Cinema World 8 (342-6536)
Cinemark 17 (746-5202)c
Movies 12 (741-1231)
NEW RELEASES ON VIDEO
Releases subject to change. Available the Tuesday following date of EW publication, sometimes sooner. See archived movie reviews at www.eugeneweekly.com
Accidental Tourist, The (1988):: Directed by Larry Kasdan, excellent film stars William Hurt, Geena Davis, Kathleen Turner, Bill Pullman. DVD extras include delet-
ed scenes, more.
Bill Maher: Victory Begins at Home (2003): Maher’s one-man Broadway show on his usual subjects — sex, religion, politics. DVD includes Maher’s Q&A with show
patrons. NR.
Cabin Fever:: Four college friends vacation at a remote cabin, but one of them gets very sick, and the others struggle with life and death decisions as their terror
rises. Directed by Eli Roth; stars Jordan Ladd, Rider Strong, James DeBello, Cerina Vincent, Joey Kern, Arie Verveen. R.
Everybody’s All American (1988): Taylor Hackford’s great football film stars Dennis Quaid and Jessica Lange, with Timothy Hutton, John Goodman. DVD extras
include commentary, extra scenes and featurettes on making-of.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico:: Directed by Robert Rodriguez. Antonio Banderas as El Mariarchi, now involved in international espionage. Costars Salma Hayek,
Johnny Depp and Mickey Rourke. R.
Open Range:: Kevin Costner directs and stars with Robert Duvall in traditional Western about a corrupt cattle baron (Michael Gambon) who forces the cowboys to
fight. Annette Bening’s performance is warm and real. With Abraham Benrubi, Diego Luna. Recommended. R. Online archives.
Rules of the Game (France,1939): Jean Renoir’s classic anti-war film takes place at a country estate during a hunting party. A great film by any standards. Stars
Nora Gregor, Paulette Dubost, Mila Parely, Odette Talazac, Claire Gerard. NR.
Spellbound:: Academy Award-nominated documentary feature by Jeffrey Blitz follows eight school kids from around the country as they prepare for and compete at
the National Spelling Bee. Suspenseful, funny and heartwarming, this film’s a real winner. Very highest recommendations for the whole family. G. Online archives.
Next week: Bang Bang You’re Dead, Capturing the Friedmans, Comic Book, The Critic, Le Divorce, Secret Lives of Dentists, A Smile Like Yours, Thirteen.
JANUARY 15, 2004 29