The Contenders
By
Anthony
Kusich
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The Aviator
  Director:  Martin Scorsese
Some critics may scoff that this is "Scorsese Lite," but I found the auteur's take on Old Hollywood
to be imaginative, lively, and soaring.  (It is only marred by a useless courtroom showdown in the
final third, but that's easily forgiven.)  Cate Blanchett, as we all knew she could be, is mahvelous as
Katharine Hepburn, and the rest of the day players add a bit of that old Tinseltown sparkle that's
disappeared with the days of the studio system.  Additionally, Howard Hughes's flight scenes -- and
one very memorable crash -- are filmed with a dual sense of excitement and wonder that just isn't on
display in today's pictures.  And the two-toned color scheme of cinematographer Robert Richardson
is nothing short of mesmerizing.
  My grade:  B+
  Screened:  December 17
Finding Neverland
  Director:  Marc Forster
A period piece that has all the emotion, costumes, and arch that you'd expect, but nothing truly
lasting.  In this slightly fictionalized take on the life of Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie, Johnny Depp
admirably acquits himself as the playful author, but the film remains in a pleasant but unremarkable
stasis until the final reels, when the filmmakers turn on the waterworks full blast.  Kate Winslet, as
the widowed woman Barrie befriends, and Freddie Highmore, as her precocious son, are perfectly
cast, if simplistically characterized, and contribute to the movie's success as more of a literary family
film than a studious study of its subject.
  My grade:  B
  Screened:  December 4
Return to reviews...


Short Reviews as of December 31st, 2004
Hotel Rwanda
  Director:  Terry George
The blatant randomness of hate is on display in Terry George's very necessary "Hotel Rwanda."  As
the world (and the U.S. in particular) continues to turn a blind eye to the horrors of genocide in
Africa, thousands and thousands die without even a voice to cry out in unspeakable anguish.  The
film has its flaws to be sure -- such as Sophie Okonedo's well-played but stock role of supportive
wife and the seemingly edited-for-time scenes with Joaquin Phoenix -- but the power and hope of
the sufferers simply cannot be forgotten.  How arbitrary is this death cause?  Scores are dying so
that a past system of inequality can be leveled, in effect leveling the entire nation as well.
  My grade:  B
  Screened:  December 12
Million Dollar Baby
  Director:  Clint Eastwood
Like the thrill of a prize fight, Clint Eastwood's sterling boxing drama takes unexpected turns and
rewards the patience and emotional import of the viewer.  But it's more than a boxing drama; it's
about the connections between people who feel that there are only a scarce few on this earth that can
truly understand and complement them.  Eastwood the director has grown sturdier with age, but
Eastwood the actor reveals shades and layers that he rarely shows onscreen.  It's a tremendously
warm performance, and one that will stand as one of the legend's best.  Hilary Swank, finally proving
she's no one hit wonder, nearly matches him in intensity, though hers resembles an internal fire of
hope and determination that simply cannot be doused.  "Million Dollar Baby" is a class act all the way.
  My grade:  A-
  Screened:  December 21
A Very Long Engagement
  Director:  Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Jeunet has handsomely mounted an art film about the horrors of war.  The performances are strong
and the emotion is real, but what ultimately prevents the film from truly taking off are the director's
trademark "eccentricities" -- or what I would refer to as micromanaging.  Split-second flashbacks,
incessant narration, and an overstuffed roster of characters detracts from what is a very romantic
and mournful tale.  (The stories of a grieving mother who "adopts" an amnesiac veteran, or of a
woman who attempts to conceive her sixth child to get her husband out of the service, could be
made into features of their own, but are summarized in quick 3-minute parables here.)  There's no
escaping the dynamic sweep of the story, however, and even if the distance from point A to point B
is a bit cluttered, "Engagement" is rife with vivid imagery about a love that war can't destroy.    
  My grade:  B
  Screened:  December 24
Bad Education
  Director:  Pedro Almodovar
Turning down the kooky melodrama only slightly, the Spanish auteur has crafted an absorbing,
noirish romance about the mysterious bond between two men who share a painful childhood secret.  
Gael Garcia Bernal stars, in two wildly different roles, as an aspiring actor who wants the role of a
drag queen in a movie he's written about his life.  As the film dips into that movie-within-the-movie,
secrets are revealed, identities become crossed, and all sorts of Almodovarian sexuality begins to
froth.  Piecing together the picture's parts is a rewarding task, and one well worth a second or third
look.    
  My grade:  B+
  Screened:  December 27