More Big Budgets
By
Anthony
Kusich
 Main Page
Anchorman
   Director:  Adam McKay
Will Ferrell is a great talent in search of great material.  He had it (mostly) with "Old School," but in
this inspired but overworked effort, just as many jokes fall flat as evoke laughs.  The comedian has
created a very funny character -- part lush, part louse, part party animal -- that is left floundering
amid a collection of one-note supporting performances that are only intermittently funny.  Some
hilarious sequences -- such as the all-out war among the entire area's news teams -- ensure that the
movie's never boring, but I went to see "Anchorman" because I wanted to laugh out loud repeatedly,
not to be merely entertained.  
   My grade:  B-
   Screened:  July 9
The Village
   Director:  M. Night Shyamalan
It takes "The Village" to best elucidate the strengths and weaknesses of Shyamalan's filmmaking.  
Shepherding uniformly lush cinematography, music, and production design from his collaborators
has always been a strong point.  These technical achievements in turn contribute to an aura of dread
that's sustained through nearly the entire film; the mere rustling of leaves can keep you guessing and
suspecting.  Bryce Dallas Howard also comes through big-time in her first major role, portraying
fragile innocence and determination with substantial conviction.
   And now the weaknesses:  stilted dialogue (that sounds even more wooden with a 19th-century
filter on it), too much reliance upon The Twist, and the feeling, even more so now than before, that
the film's resolution is paramount to its exposition.  The ending(s) in "The Village" didn't bother me
too much, but I can see why the film community is worried about Shyamalan's next project with
cautious hope.          
   My grade:  B
   Screened:  August 1
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Short Reviews as of September 2nd, 2004
The Bourne Supremacy
   Director:  Paul Greengrass
Finally...a sequel that's better than the original.  While "The Bourne Identity" wasn't a bad movie, it
was rather lifeless.  (I think I even nodded off a few times.)  A series of random action sequences, a
quasi-confusing plot, and Julia Stiles do not an entertaining thriller make.  Stiles is back this time
around, but she -- and the rest of the cast -- turn in stronger performances that heighten the
genuinely suspenseful mood that Paul Greengrass brings to the table in what we can now officially
dub the Summer of Paranoia (see also "The Manchurian Candidate" and "The Village").  A major
drawback, however, is choppy editing and the falling-off-the-table cinematography.  I like seeing
what's going on in a film, not just witnessing a blurry barrage of color with loud sound effects.  
   My grade:  B
   Screened:  July 25
Collateral
   Director:  Michael Mann
What is with the critical acclaim that this movie is earning?  It's pretty awful.  The pic's only
redeeming elements are Jamie Foxx and some cool nighttime videography.  Otherwise it's as bland as
Tom Cruise's ridiculously colored hair.  A hitman in a Gucci suit that sticks out in a crowd like a
sore thumb?  Pseudo-metaphysical dialogue coming from a confessed murderer?  A ridiculous
nightclub scene with extras running about like headless chickens for ten minutes as the Cruise Face
whips itself into angry mode?  Please.     
   My grade:  C+
   Screened:  August 7