Franklin Flicks

Julie Taymor’s Beatle-infused musical extravaganza delights visually, but fails intellectually. She uses thirty-three Beatles songs to concoct a story about the frenzied times of the 1960’s. The story centers on Lucy and Jude, whose names are just the start of the unsubtle references to Beatles songs. The thin plot neither propels the film, nor takes away from it. If you sit back and enjoy the ride, DO NOT THINK, then the film will astound you. It impresses visually from use of giant puppets to the crazy colors. It’s Moulin Rouge set in the 60’s.

Alias, Season 3

"Alias," the other cult television show by J.J. Abrams (the other being LOST), took a turn for the weirder in season 3. Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) wakes up to find herself in Hong Kong – without the memory of how she got there or of the last two years. This premise carries throughout the season, thus giving one of the most creative, fantastical spy shows ever a very deep philosophical question to chew on: who are we? Sydney travels the world in an attempt to discover the answer. Along the way she discovers the love of her life is married to a suspicious blonde, is thwarted by the shady group known as the Covenant, and understands a little more about herself. This season delved further into the mythology of Rambaldi set up in the previous two seasons. While wholly implausible and odd, the show provides an modern take on the issues of family, trust, and self-discovery.

An Inconvenient Truth

Rating: R

Al Gore’s documentary focuses on one of the most political issues out there: global warming. However, Gore believes it shouldn’t be a political issue, but a human issue. For those who still have qualms about global warming, this should squash them. Gore presents his beliefs with scientific data. It becomes a horror film as you watch the devastation of the air and the receding glaciers. In my opinion, everyone needs to watch this movie so we can know the truth.

Atonement

Rating: R

Based on Ian McEwan’s bitter novel, the movie cannot stand up to the power of the written word. Headlined by James McAvoy and Kiera Knightley, the movie is a bit of a clunker, dragging on - even through what should be adrenaline-pumping scenes. The story’s center – the lie a little girl tells- seems off. The heart-wrenching ending, which when I read it reduced me to tears, failed to inspire any sort of emotion in me. READ THE BOOK!

Casablanca

Rating: PG

Is there a movie out there more romantic and classic than Casablanca? Set WWII in Morocco, Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman dazzle audiences with their deft performances. Bogie is Rick, the American who “sticks his neck out for no one” and Bergman (Ilsa) is his ex-lover, now married to a man who needs Rick’s help. Rick becomes conflicted once Ilsa offers herself in exchange for her husband. Heroism wins out in the end, as it always used to in old Hollywood and the movie boasts one of the greatest ending lines ever “...this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

The Chorus

Rating: PG-13

This feel-good movie was nominated for Best Foreign Film in 2004 and certainly deserved it! The story follows a failed musician-turned-school-prefect who begins a job at a school for troubled boys. He is welcomed by watching the school janitor get his eye cut with broken glass: a foreboding welcome. The boys quickly realize this man is not to be taken lightly; he will prove himself a valuable ally against the cruel headmaster. And although he believes music has left him, he finds the boys willing students. He teaches them to believe in themselves through his chorus.

Curse of the Golden Flower

Rating: R

If you are looking for some good old-fashioned melodrama and intrigue, pop in this Chinese import. The Tang Dynasty rulers carve out a plot worthy of General Hospital, but with prettier sets. The vibrant palace contains a mentally ill Empress, a lustful Crown Prince, a well-beloved 2^nd Prince, a quiet but devious 3^rd prince, and an evil Emperor. The Empress weaves a tangled web to ensure her son (the 2^nd prince) the throne. This results in disaster and bloodshed. The huge title scene makes the Lord of the Rings’ Battle of Helm’s Deep seem tiny...(Subtitled)

Evan Almighty

Rating: PG-13

Steve Carrell reprises his role from "Bruce Almighty" in this overblown sequel. Evan Baxter has recently been elected to Congress and moves his family to Virginia. One night he gets on his knees to pray to God for help to change the world. Well, God hears him. Unexpected things begin to happen - animals start following him, the number 614 is everywhere, wood appears on his grounds - and Evan becomes "NY's Noah." However, it is not Carrell, but Morgan Freeman and Wanda Sykes who carry the film with their fantastic delivery and energy. All in all, a good film for the family.

Flags of Our Fathers

Rating: R

In Flags of Our Fathers, Clint Eastwood attempts to answer the question “What makes a hero?” His answer, summed up in an epilogue-like ending, is ordinary people. Based on the book of the same title, the movie centers on the flag raisers of Iwo Jima. Told in a series of flashbacks, Paul Haggis’ script delves into the repercussions of the iconic photo of the raising. The most interesting and well-developed character is Ira Hayes, played phenomenally by Adam Beach. Ira, a Native American, has difficulty with playing the hero and the lies they have to tell. Overall, "Flags" is a good movie, although a tad overlong.

Quote:

“I can’t take them calling me a hero. What I did was try not to get shot.”

The Fountain

Rating: PG-13

The Fountain is a visually-appealing concoction of what passes for art these days. The Buddhist-inspired storyline, while endlessly intriguing, is just not well-crafted. Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz (both highly entertaining) portray a couple - the same couple - in three different eras. He searches for a cure for death, but in the end realizes there must be death in order for life. Of course, this thought doesn’t hit him over the head - it hits us there instead.

Gone Baby Gone

Rating: R

There are two reasons to see this Oscar hopeful: Casey and Ben Affleck. Casey is a force, fully arriving on the Hollywood stage, while Ben sits in a director’s chair for the first time. The film centers on an abduction of a little girl named Amanda but it often veers off into other avenues. It deals with complex moral issues, but it never gives definite answers. While complicated, its end provides much satisfaction and topic for debate. Less known heading into it, the better.

Invincible

Rating: PG

Little Marky Mark is all grown up and playing a hometown hero in this sports biography. Vince Papale (Wahlberg), a diehard Philadelphia “Iggles” fan and bartender, receives the chance of a lifetime when new coach Dick Vermeil holds open tryouts. Against all odds, Vince makes the cut and even survives training camp, no thanks to his teammates. While the film follows a Cinderella-like pattern, it’s hard to resist cheering on Papale as he claws his way through life - the adversity of the team, girl troubles, family issues. Yet I dare you to remain seated as Papale scores his first touchdown!

Letters from Iwo Jima

Rating: R

To complement the American perspective of Flags of Our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima centers on the Japanese who defended their island of Iwo Jima. Letters is the tighter, better executed one and it features much finer acting, centered by Ken Wantabe. Eastwood’s direction does not seem so meandering, but concise. As the battle nears, the Japanese leaders clash, causing disarray, leading to the loss of the island. As the cliché goes, there are two sides to every story and Eastwood presents the lesser-known one beautifully. (Subtitled)

Little Miss Sunshine

Rating: R

I've never seen a family quite so dysfunctional, odd, or real. Olive Hoover (Abigail Breslin) gets a call one night telling her that she is going to the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant in California. The only way to get there is to bring the entire family: the workaholic father, stressed mother, silent brother, suicidal uncle (hilarious Steve Carell), and the druggie grandpa. Though you know Olive could never compete with the child beauties, your heart goes out to the girl with the big dreams and brain. While this film wasn't "laugh out loud funny" like the critics promised, there are painfully funny moments. Don Williams Jr. stated "our lessons come from the journey, not the destination" and this film proves it.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Rating: PG-13

Peter Jackson’s epic tale of hobbits, elves, men, and darkness is set in J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy world, Middle Earth. The tale centers on Frodo Baggins, a hobbit, played by Elijah Wood. He inherits a ring of power from his uncle and is told he must destroy it. However, to destroy it means to journey into the land of evil: Mordor. This first installment of the trilogy lacks the emotional punch of the latter ones, but Jackson delivers a beautiful film about the beginnings of the loss of innocence.

Marie Antoinette

Rating: PG-13

This candy-colored confection of a film received mediocre reviews from the critics, yet I beg to differ. It chronicles the life of a frivolous, teenaged Queen of France, played to perfection by Kirsten Dunst. Marie Antoinette was thrust into a royal court, very different than her own, and a marriage to a bumbling Dauphin, captured by Jason Schwartzman. The film follows through until the beginning of the French Revolution. Visually Marie Antoinette stuns with gorgeous costumes and delectable scenery. It sublimely captures the essence of teenagers with too much time and money.

Mean Girls

Rating: PG-13

Tina Fey’s sharp script is unflinching in its portrayal of teenage girls. Lindsay Lohan is Caty, an outsider, newly arrived from Africa, trying to find her niche in a high school. She makes friends with a bunch of self-proclaimed weirdos. Caty begins to infiltrate The Plastics - the most popular girls in the school (led by Rachel McAdams’ manipulative character). However, Caty finds she has bitten off more than she can chew and becomes “one of them.” Along the way, she fails math purposefully to gain a boy, loses friendships (but later gains them back), and finds she can be a little Plastic, but can remain true to herself.

A Mighty Heart

Rating: R

This true tale of journalists Mariane and Danny Pearl is heartbreaking, yet somehow encouraging. In 2002, Islamic terrorists kidnapped Danny. Mariane, pregnant, spent weeks attempting to find him. She enlisted the help of journalists, intelligence agencies, and anyone else who could provide information. Again and again their leads turned to dust. Ultimately, Danny was discovered dead, beheaded. Angelina Jolie gets back to her acting roots, reminding audiences of why she won an Oscar. Her performance was real, from her sad smile to her cries of anguish – you felt everything she did. The taut film captures the confusion, pain, and the anxiety of the search for Danny Pearl.

Music and Lyrics

Rating: PG-13

Hugh Grant is a washed-up ex-eighties pop star. Since everything old is new again, a modern day mega-pop star enlists his help to write a new hit single. The only glitch is he can’t write lyrics. One day while working on the song, his plant caretaker, Drew Barrymore in a familiar role, spouts out a lyric so good, he can’t help but notice. From that point on, the two work their hardest to create a hit - all the while falling in love. It’s a predictable movie, but incredibly cute. Plus Hugh Grant dancing in tight pants is a sight not to be missed!

The Nanny Diaries

Rating: PG-13

This fluffy film attempts to show something about the effects of lazy parents but it never becomes the biting satiric commentary of our times that it could have been. It is a gooey film with a feel-good ending, but there is almost too much sweetness in the middle. Annie, the Nanny (haha), played by Scarlett Johansson, loves anthropology and yet somehow ends up as a nanny to a wealthy New York family. She takes this summer job to escape from her future and ends up with a family with a great child they barely acknowledge; they are too busy with themselves. Along the way, she falls in love with the little boy she’s not supposed to get attached to. In the end, it lacks bite and wit – or maybe I am just asking too much from my fluff movies.

Possession

Rating: PG-13

Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart star in this romantic drama which chronicles the search for the connection between two nineteenth century poets. The film choppily cuts back and forth between the two lover poets and the modern soon-to-be lovers. However, you find yourself wishing the movie settled on one particular couple, preferably the poets. Paltrow and Eckhart lack the chemistry costars need to pull off a romantic film. One thing the film is, luckily, is the thing it should be: romantic.

The Queen

Rating: PG-13

Helen Mirren is Queen Elizabeth the Second of England. Her son Charles’ ex-wife, Princess Diana, is nothing more than a simple nuisance to her - until Diana’s untimely death. All of England - and the world - mourns this loss, but the royal family refrains from issuing any statement. The prime minister, Tony Blair (wonderfully played by Michael Sheen), attempts to convince the Queen to acknowledge Diana’s death and her people’s mourning. This film brilliantly blends fact and fiction to portray a power struggle between a monarch and her people.

Ratatouille

Rating: PG

Pixar has done it again! It takes a lot of guts – and a lot of imagination – to make a movie this cute about a subject so disgusting. The story focuses on Remy, a rat who loves gourmet food. One day, by chance, he ends up in a 4-star restaurant, where he is discovered and taken away to be killed. But the chef cannot do it. Somehow, the two are able to communicate (this IS a kid’s film) and become best friends. It’s a heartwarming tale of acceptance and friendship.

Rushmore

Rating: R

Putting a Wes Anderson film into a few sentences is a tall task. Rushmore is a private academy; here 10^th grader, (Jason Schwartzman) falls in love with a teacher. In a sweet, but misguided attempt to win her love, he contracts a fellow student's father (Bill Murray) to build her an aquarium. This move promptly gets him sent away from his beloved academy and teacher. He just is not himself away from Rushmore. There is so much more to this parfait of a film. Just rent it and surrender to the bliss of a Wes Anderson production!

Sense and Sensibility

Rating: PG

Who says Jane Austen can’t be sexy? In this brilliant adaptation by Ang Lee, the Dashwood family comes to life centered with performances by Emma Thompson (Elinor) and Kate Winslet (Marianne). These two sisters experience all sorts of ups and downs both in romance and in family situations. A sudden loss of fortune puts a damper on Elinor’s budding love. And Marianne’s choice of men certainly is questionable as she fawns over a young greedy man while ignoring the attentions of a slightly older, but very sensible army colonel (the always brilliant Alan Rickman). As this is Jane Austen, you know the boy will get the girl, but in this film, the journey is, in a very simple word, fantastic.

Sleeper Cell

Rating: PG-13

This highly engrossing Showtime miniseries follows an FBI agent, played by Michael Ealy, as he infiltrates a sleeper cell in LA. At first, I was wary about the show, unsure of its motives. As the series continued, the writers’ empathy and the actors’ brilliance, particularly Oded Fehr, both wove together intricate, absorbing plots. You see the daily life of Islamic terrorists, albeit skewed through television’s lens. It becomes apparent just how easy it is for them to do their “work." Altogether, it is television as it should be: intelligent, thought provoking and entertaining.

Stranger than Fiction

Rating: PG-13

I am not a Will Ferrell fan, but his performance in this film won me over. His sad-sack character lives his life doing nothing else but working as an IRS agent. One day while brushing his teeth, he hears a woman’s voice who seems to be narrating his life. The mysterious voice turns out to be an author (Emma Thompson) who is indeed writing his life - and perhaps his death. Along the way, he falls in love with a baker (Maggie Gyllenhaal) who shows him how to let loose. My complaint is the ill use of Queen Latifah: for a such a funny lady, she wasn’t in the movie enough.

Waitress

Rating: PG-13

This confection of a tale has both a tart and gooey center. Keri Russell is perfection as Jenna, a pie creator and waitress in Adrienne Shelly’s final film. When Jenna finds herself pregnant, she finds herself in a bind; her controlling husband is not pleased. She begins an affair with her doctor, who later inspires her to change her life completely. This is a woman empowering film, with strong female leads who have the courage to change their worlds.

About Michelle

Michelle graduated from the Gloucester County Institute of Technology and is a member of the library's Young Adult Book Discussion Group. An avid movie buff, Michelle also enjoys the performing arts and reading. She attends Gloucester County College.