|
"This is my friend Harry Allen. He's married. He likes his wife.
It can happen." The wit belongs to Richard (Pierce Brosnan), a confirmed
bachelor whose outlook on life changes when Harry (Chris Cooper) introduces him
to his beautiful young mistress, Kay (Rachel McAdams, under platinum blond
locks). Harry wants to leave his wife, Pat (Patricia Clarkson), for Kay, but
doesn't want to hurt Pat with the pain of a divorce. So while Richard plots to
woo Kay from Harry, Harry decides to murder Pat. Set in the postwar '40s of
middle-class affluence, the plot could easily twist into a '50s noir of cheating
husbands and seductive sirens and the comforts of suburban life corrupted by
lust and greed. Ira Sachs directs it as a wry comedy of manners, with a
naturalistic style and cool sepia tones that evoke a yesteryear of lives lived
in restraint and self-suppression. Cooper's performance is quietly
heartbreaking, the man who has everything hiding his disappointment and
frustration under a smile of weary resignation, while Clarkson hides hers under
a façade of dispassionate logic. What begins as a cool, wry noir transforms into
a mature and introspective conversation about love, marriage, and happiness in
relationships. Sachs provides great commentary, a real filmmaker's talk
about inspirations and aspirations and the practical details of how to get
there, and discusses working with all of his collaborators. Also features three
alternate endings, one of them quite elaborate and full of levels and
revelations on the way to a classically unforgiving noir ending. Available in
standard DVD and Blu-ray.
|
|
 |
| Then She Found Me |
|
Helen Hunt makes her directorial debut with this comic drama of
a 39-year-old schoolteacher who just wants to start a family. Not that she's
getting a lot of help from her husband (Matthew Broderick), who leaves her
months after the marriage, and her biological mother (Bette Midler), a
pathological liar who suddenly shows up in her life. Colin Firth co-stars as a
single dad whose warm presence is the only hope in her life as she races her
biological clock. It's "an exceptionally deft and self-assured debut" and "a
smart, subtle and seriously funny dramedy," in the view of Variety critic Joe
Leydon, who observes that the "comedy always remains rooted in sharply and
warmly observed reality." Features commentary by producer/director/star Hunt
(who begins by confessing that she listened to "a lot of commentaries like these
& and I actually learned a lot that I ended up using"), an 11-minute
"making-of" featurette, and 15 minutes of promotional interviews with the stars.
Available in standard DVD and Blu-ray.
|
|
|
 |
| The Promotion |
|
Seann William Scott and John C. Reilly are assistant managers at
a supermarket chain who compete for the manager's position of a new store. Don't
expect the usual outrageous antics of an American farce. This is a low-key war
of wills, less about dirty tricks and comic sabotage than the subtle shift in
their otherwise generous impulses under the pressure to succeed. Director Steve
Conrad, who scripted "The Pursuit of Happyness," quite effectively creates a
backdrop of white-collar aspirations to the American dream, but the satire lacks
edge and the character conflicts never quite come to life. Jenna Fischer and
Lili Taylor co-star. Features commentary by writer/director Conrad and producers
Jessika Borsiczky Goyer and Steven A. Jones, a making-of featurette, deleted
scenes and outtakes.
|
|
|
 |
| Outsourced |
|
Josh Hamilton plays a Seattle call center manager sent to India
to train his replacement when his entire division has been outsourced in this
cute but predictable and conventionally colorful culture-clash comedy. Initial
resistance to his quirky new crew gives way to embracing their culture and even
falling in love with his most promising student (Ayesha Dharker). It's pretty
soft as satire and soggy as cultural insight, but it's a pleasant little
travelogue with a likable cast. Features commentary by director John Jeffcoat,
an interview with the director, behind-the-scenes footage and storyboards.
|
|
|
 |
| Reprise |
|
Joachim Trier reaches back to the stylistic creativity and
narrative freedoms of the French new wave for this freewheeling drama about two
best friends whose lives diverge in a turbulent ride up and down the roller
coaster of success in Oslo. Phillip (Anders Danielsen Lie) hits the big time
with his first novel, and it's all downhill from there. The happy-go-lucky Erik
(Espen Klouman-Hoiner) has a slower start and a harder road getting his
decidedly less audience-friendly tome on the shelves. Trier sends the film back
and forth through time, through idealized flashbacks and fantasy futures, and
down cinematic flights of stylistic celebration. Includes featurettes and
deleted scenes. In Norwegian with English subtitles.
|
|
|
|
|
Sean Axmaker is a film critic for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, a DVD
columnist for MSN Entertainment and a contributing writer for GreenCine.com,
Turner Classic Movies Online, Parallax View and Asian Cult Cinema, among other
publications. Find links to all of this and more on his shamelessly
self-promoting blog.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Get Smart! Please!In honor of bumbling Maxwell
Smart, a brief history of our favorite clueless detectives On the RocksWith 'Iron Man' and 'Hancock' featuring
heavy-drinking protagonists, we reflect on the most memorable drunks in movie
history UnclassicsThough they may be listed among the
greatest films of all time, these 10 movies deserve to be
downgraded | |
| | |
|
|
Hotmail
Messenger
My MSN
MSN Directory
