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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 31, 2012)
Arts & Entertainment Movies Opening This Week — November 2, 2012 BIG BUDGET FILMS Flight (R for drug and alcohol abuse, nudity, sexu- ality and an intense action sequence) Denzel Washing- ton stars in this legal thriller about a hero pilot who tries to hide his alcohol addiction with the help of a defense attorney (Don Cheadle) after miraculously crash- landing a crippled co m mercial airliner by fly- ing the plane upside-down. With John Goodman, Melis- sa Leo and Kelly Reilly. The Man with the Iron Fists (R for profanity, drug use, graphic sexuality and gory violence) Gangsta’ rapper-turned-actor makes K AM ’ S C APSULES Movie Reviews by Kam Williams his scriptwriting and direc- torial debut while starring in this martial arts saga, set in 19th C. China, about a hum- ble blacksmith who invents an assortment of elaborate weapons for the defense of his adopted hometown when the town is invaded by an army of assassins search- The Man with the Iron Fists Page 6 The Portland Skanner October 31, 2012 ing for a fabled treasure. With Russell Crowe, Lucy Liu, Pam Grier, Rick Yune and Jamie Chung. Wreck-It Ralph (PG for crude humor and mild vio- lence) John C. Reilly plays the title role in this animat- ed comedy about a computer game villain who makes the most of an opportunity to play a good guy after escaping to a neighboring video arcade game. Voice cast includes Sarah Silverman, Jane Lynch, Dennis Haysbert, Mindy Kaling, Ed O’Neill and Adam Carolla. INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS The Bay (R for profanity, bloody images and disturb- ing violence) Oscar-winner Barry Levinson (Rain Man) directed this gruesome hor- ror flick about the chaos which erupts in a quaint Maryland town in the wake of an ecological disaster. Featuring Kristen Connelly, Jane McNeill, Christopher Denham and Michael Beasley. Bones Brigade (Unrated) Skateboarding retrospective recounting the Eighties exploits of a half-dozen Cal- ifornia teens who transformed the sport from a horizontal to an omni-direc- tional endeavor. With Stacy Peralta, Tony Alva, Ben Harper and Tony Hawk. Vamps (PG-13 for vio- lence, sexuality, profanity and drug use. Alicia Silver- stone and Krysten Ritter co-star in this horror come- dy about a couple of club-addicted party girls who have to hide the fact that they’re vampires while dating up a storm around Manhattan. Cast includes Richard Lewis, Sigourney Weaver, Malcolm McDow- ell, Marilu Henner and Wallace Shawn. This Must Be the Place (Unrated) Sean Penn stars in this revenge flick as a retired rock star living off his royalties in Ireland who crisscrosses the American heartland to track down the Nazi war criminal (Heinz Lieven) that had tortured his recently-deceased father at Auschwitz. With Frances McDormand, Judd Hirsch and David Byrne. (In Eng- lish and Hebrew with subtitles) Café de Flore (Unrated) Double-stranded meditation on love, one, set in present- day Montreal, the other, in Paris in the Sixties. The for- mer revolves around a DJ (Kevin Parent) torn between a girlfriend (Evelyne Brochu) and his ex-wife (Helene Florent), while the latter is about an overpro- tective single-mom’s Vamps (Vanessa Paradis) devotion to a son with Down Syn- drome (Marin Gerrier). With Alice Dubois, Michel Dumont and Linda Smith. (In French with subtitles) The Details (R for pro- Washington and Laura Lin- ney. Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters (Unrat- ed) Shutterbug biopic chronicling the career of a photographer famous for This Must be The Place fanity, sexuality, drug use and brief violence) Macabre comedy about an estranged couple already in crisis (Elizabeth Banks and Tobey Maguire) whose troubles only escalate when a family of raccoons invades their backyard. Supporting cast includes Ray Liotta, Kerry taking surreal snapshots of American suburban life. High Ground (Unrated) PTSD documentary about a team of Iraq and Afghan War veterans who were led by a blind guide on a per- ilous trek to the 20,000 foot-high peak of the Himalayas