In the aftermath of a disaster, Denzel Washington works the evidence.

(Touchstone) Denzel Washington, Jim Caviezel, Val Kilmer, Bruce Greenwood, Matt Craven, Paula Patton, Adam Goldberg, Donna Scott, Elle Fanning, Elden Henson, Erika Alexander. Directed by Tony Scott

Have you ever gotten the feeling that you’ve seen a movie before, even as you’re watching it for the first time? It’s not necessarily something a filmmaker wants their audience to feel, but sometimes there’s no help for it.

It’s Fat Tuesday in post-Katrina New Orleans, and the Algiers ferry bound for the Crescent City is full of sailors and partygoers bound and determined to have a great time. Not too far into the voyage, a car on the ferry explodes, setting off a chain reaction and a second, more damaging explosion and the Ferry goes down to the bottom of Lake Ponchatrain. The catastrophe kills men, women and children in a city which is already reeling from a hurricane that has all but destroyed it.

ATF investigator Doug Carlin (Washington) is called to the scene to determine whether the explosion was a deliberate act. While the FBI, local police and other agencies are squabbling, Carlin – possessed of a cat-quick mind and the ability to instantly see the compelling evidence – quickly determines that the cause of the explosion was, in fact, a bomb, making it a deliberate act of terrorism.

Carlin’s style irritates some of his colleagues, although FBI Agent Pryzwarra (Kilmer) finds him amusing and impressive. Pryzwarra’s boss (Greenwood) agrees and when a burned body washes up onshore in an area that would put it in the water a full two hours before the Ferry disaster, the FBI and Carlin realize that the key to solving this mystery lies with finding out what happened to the beautiful woman (Patton) lying on the coroner’s table. To do this, Carlin is brought into a highly sensitive experiment that may allow a quick-thinking investigator like Carlin a second chance at seeing what really happened, but also change his life forever.

Scott and Washington are reunited for the first time since the two made Crimson Tide and the stylish Scott knows how to use his leading man ably, even though Denzel is getting a little bit long in the tooth for these kinds of roles. The premise of by observing the past being able to affect it is one not new to science fiction literature or movies (heck, “The Twilight Zone” basically made a living on just that kind of conundrum) and in all honesty, Déjà Vu doesn’t add anything new to the dance.

However, Tony Scott is an adept action director and he doesn’t disappoint here, with a chase scene that has the two cars in different time periods, with Washington unable to see the car he is chasing and being guided along by his team back at the appropriately grungy looking lab. The climactic scenes pitting Washington and his love interest against the bad guy (a very un-Christlike Jim Caviezel) are played with appropriate tension. A lot of directors could take lessons from Scott in that regard – it’s not as easy a skill as it seems.

Scott is blessed with a very talented cast, including the criminally under-used Matt Craven as Carlin’s partner – this is an actor who deserves meatier roles – and also reunites Washington with Greenwood, both of whom got their starts on the “St. Elsewhere” television show so many years ago.

To the bad is the one bugaboo that plagues these kinds of time-tripping sci-fi actioners – the tendency for the plot to get muddled and confusing. Scott trumps this by making his characters real and then casts interesting actors to play them – Goldberg is particularly nifty as a science geek, and Patton makes a gorgeous corpse, but also a mighty fine love interest. The resolution seems a bit forced, but then if you think about these things too hard you can get migraines.

I kind of regret missing this in the multiplex, although it looked just fine on our medium-sized bedroom TV screen. To be fair, this isn’t a movie that’s really out to break new ground. It just wants its audience to have a good time, and at that, it’s successful. If you’re looking for something to rent that satisfies your Jones for action, you could do worse than this.

WHY RENT THIS: Some nice action sequences highlighted by some very big booms – gotta love things that blow up real good. The cast is top-notch. The climactic scenes ratchet up the tension.

WHY RENT SOMETHING ELSE: The plot can be hard to follow. While tense, the resolution seems a bit forced and contrived.

FAMILY VALUES: There’s a good deal of violence and some sensuality but otherwise okay for most audiences.

TRIVIAL PURSUITS: While the movie was in pre-production, New Orleans was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, forcing the producers to make a decision to shoot elsewhere, a move that director Tony Scott resisted. In the time that it took to reboot the production, New Orleans had recovered sufficiently to allow shooting there and pre-production resumed, allowing Deja Vu the distinction of being the first movie to film in New Orleans post-Katrina.

NOTABLE DVD FEATURES: The Surveillance Window feature allows the director commentary to be fleshed out with video sequences that may also be viewed separately.

FINAL RATING: 6/10

TOMORROW: Everybody’s Fine

Star Trek – a series of films that I have never actually watched, so I guess I’m part of the target demographic for the reboot. A big Summer Blockbuster, but you know what, actually a very good one. A story based around Spock and Kirk with characters that are engaging (even Anton Yelchin’s Checkov who makes you laugh with his first few lines becomes a rounded character and someone whom you’re with as the film progresses). Eric Bana (of Chopper fame) is also great as the baddie (and his ship is quality).

The film is entertaining enough for you to suspend your disbelief and be a part of the Star Trek world that’s unfolding on the screen.

But, for God’s sake, ENOUGH OF THE LENS FLARE!!!!! Honestly, it’s like someone designing a poster for a Summer Fayre on Word has just noticed the fonts option and made each sentence a different typeface. The director even stood on the side of the set shining torches into the lens to create excess flare. They even put fake flare on the cgi scenes. Enough already!

Let’s just hope that excessive lens flare doesn’t become de-rigeur for a classy shot the same way that a shaking camera has for action.

4 on 5

Info:
Director – J.J. Abrams
Starring – Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Leonard Nimoy, Eric Bana, Winona Ryder, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Bruce Greenwood, John Cho, Simon Pegg, Anton Yelchin
UK release – 8 May 2009

This is a movie that comes loaded down with a ton of baggage but ends up proving, yet again, that seemingly everything J.J. Abrams touches turns to entertainment gold. As the person behind what is easily the best installment of the Mission Impossible franchise and the TV series LOST (to name just a couple of his accomplishments), he clearly understands how to bring you to the edge of your seat. Here, he does it again with a great balance of action, character conflict and humor.

As a new spin on an established franchise, they’ve come up with some genius ways to take it on. First of all, all those other Star Trek movies with William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy? They’ve already happened. See, this new movie follows the familiar characters after an alternate path of time, space and reality has been opened up by some bad guys. Genius, no?

We also see a nod to every cliché we come to expect with a Star Trek. You get Spock’s over-reliance on logic. You get the classic lines from Bones (“Dammit man I’m a doctor, not a physicist.”) and Scotty (“She’s giving you all she’s got.”) You even get the random, unestablished character in the red uniform who almost immediately meets his doom. In different hands, all this could easily make you roll your eyes but it’s handled so deftly, it only makes you root the movie on even stronger.

In this alternate reality, Kirk (Chris Pine) is a rebellious genius who is recruited into Starfleet by Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood). Pike admired Kirk’s father who’s courage in the face of disaster, not to mention the impending birth of his son, opens the movie. Once at Starfleet Academy, Kirk is at loggerhead with Spock (Zachary Quinto) who resents Kirk’s emotional and intuitive approach to problem solving.

When a Romulan ship, captained by Nero (Eric Bana), attacks the planet Vulcan with similarities to the manner that Kirk’s father was attacked at the movie’s opening, all the cadets are called into action. That is, with the exception of Kirk who is secretly brought on board the new ship U.S.S. Enterprise by his friend Bones (Karl Urban). Pike is in command, assisted by First Officer Spock, Uhura (Zoe Saldana), Sulu (John Cho of Harold and Kumar fame) and a 17-year-old Chekov (Anton Yelchin).

So what happens? Nero goes on a seemingly unstoppable a tear against the Federation. Spock and Kirk butt heads. Kirk discovers the rift in the time-space continuum as well as Scotty (Simon Pegg), whose genius is yet to be recognized. You even get a cameo from Leonard Nimoy as…Spock. This movie is a top-flight roller-coaster ride, just hang on and enjoy the intergalactic action.

Just make sure you don’t hit play until you’ve gone to bathroom and have a drink and snack handy because you won’t want to hit pause for anything.

This is not heady material but is as good as a popcorn movie gets. I give this a solid grade A.

Director Alex Proyas, helmer of such cult favorites as “Dark City” and “The Crow”, steps into the Hollywood limelight with his first attempt at a mainstream Hollywood blockbuster.

“I, Robot” chronicles the life of Detective Del Spooner (Will Smith) who has a techno-phobic view of the world’s newest appliance, a life-like robot created by the world’s leading technology giant US Robotics. A link in Spooner’s past is linked to his phobia of the automaton movement sweeping the nation. According to US Robotics, there will be eventually 1 robot to every 5 humans.

Spooner is called to the offices of US Robotics when a leading scientist (James Cromwell), with a secret link to Spooner, has apparently committed suicide. His death seems to have mysterious circumstances which could link to a robot. With man’s complete trust in the new robot technology, it seems too ludicrous to every one except Spooner.

As the mystery deepens, Spooner unravels the very fabric of the robotic giant, locks horns with CEO Lawrence Robertson (Bruce Greenwood) and learns more about his automated enemy with the aid of scientist Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan). Through the course of these events he may learn more than he could ever imagine.

It is hard to defend a film like “I, Robot” but I am going to try. For sci-fi purists, Isaac Asimov’s legendary work about the robot and how he will intricate into our society has filled the minds of readers for over 50 years. But the similarities between the film presented here and his work are few and far between. Kind of like last week’s release of Jerry Bruckheimer’s “King Arthur”. Both films take sacred subject matter and re-invent it with a new twist. I would have to say that “I. Robot” is better in a lot ways.

At the core of “I, Robot” beats the soul of Asimov as his 3 laws regarding robots are sacredly left intact and the film does abide by them. Also a lot of the characters have similar names to the people in the text. It is almost like taking Star Trek’s “prime directive” and some of the now classic characters and setting them in a new idea of the future. The core is left intact but in some ways it has been updated and refreshed.

The story, special effects and extremely zealous direction, however, all seem to be brought forth by the collaborators who cobbled this film together. There are influences of “Robocop”, “Short Circuit”, “Blade Runner” and even the classic comic-book series “Magnus: Robot Fighter”. Each of these robot influences echo back to what makes “I Robot” so intriguing, a joy to watch and memorable.

Sure the story does have a lot of sci-fi influences and clichés aside from robot films including “Star Wars” and “Planet of the Apes” but don’t these benchmark sci-fi films influence everything coming down the turnpike these days. It even has the classic sci-fi cliché of the social outcast claiming there is an invasion coming except no one believes him. But that is not what should bring us into the film.

You really need to give credit to director Alex Proyas because it is his magic as a filmmaker that holds this film together. He knows where to play it straight and where to let his lead actor bring on the charm. Also you really have to admire the man’s technical ability. His brilliant inter-laying of robots into the photography is astounding. Proyas is an A-list director in the making and “I, Robot” shows that he can deliver a big Hollywood film.

I also give credit to Will Smith who starts out being very unapproachable with his character but as the film goes we really become fond of his hero. Smith’s Spooner does have a lot of his previous sci-fi heroes inter-laced into Spooner but it comes off as more of a homecoming than an annoyance.

In some ways I think Proyas had something to do with that especially in the chase down scene towards the beginning of the film. It almost felt like “Men in Black” again.

As for Smith’s co-stars, Cromwell’s Lanning is a throwaway character used mainly for effect, Moynahan is timid and sometimes robot-like but it is a sturdy performance and Greenwood is menacing and a good match to face off against the rebellious Smith.

The reason I was so fond of “I, Robot” is because for once it was a summer film that didn’t apologize for trying to be entertaining. The special effects, the performances and the direction are all what people want to see in the summer and this film is loads and loads of fun. It is a great giant popcorn film with a light layering of message.

My only small problem with this film was that it is supposed to be set in Chicago in 2035. I didn’t buy it but if it was 2135, then maybe.

Sure the film doesn’t pave new ground but why does every film have to. It is pure summer fun and what is wrong with that.

If you want Asimov and sci-fi purism then you can always read the novels. Stop apologizing and most of all stop belly-aching, just give the film a chance. If you like science fiction films and want to be remembered how much fun they used to be then this picture is the perfect ticket for you.

4.25 out of 5

So Says the Soothsayer.

The “Star Trek” DVD/Blu-ray release party was at the Griffith Observatory in LA. The sequel is still being written by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman so nothing is known regarding plot and what characters will be in it. J J Abrams still isn’t sure if he will direct it.

Fans seem to want Khan to be in it, but I’m not sure if I do. I think they should go with an all new story with new villains. However, if Khan is in it then Nestor Carbonell (the awesome Bat Manuel in The Tick, the mayor in The Dark Knight and Richard Alpert in Lost) appears to be the favourite to play him.

Most of the cast attended the Blu-Ray launch party and MovieWeb managed to speak to Nimoy (Spock) and Bruce Greenwood (Captain Pike).

First up was Leonard Nimoy:

“I am very happy with the direction J.J. took this particular film. He has a great cast, and he’s in great shape. I was fortunate enough to work with an exceptional group of actors, and the fans really seemed to enjoy the film.” Nimoy went on to say, “I don’t think there is room for me to return in a sequel. I don’t think they need me. I am happy to see Zachary continue on with the role. I don’t believe a second film would benefit from me being a part of it. If J.J. asked me to come back, I would consider it. But I don’t think it is necessary, nor do I think that is part of J.J.’s plan.”

“I know they’re writing the film right now, but I’m not sure if we’ll see Pike or not,” Greenwood said. “He was mainly there to bring Kirk aboard the Enterprise and it’s hard to say if he’ll be popping up in the sequel.”

Greenwood also spoke about his history with the series and what he learned from his predecessors who played Captain Pike in the past.

“I did go back and look at Jeffrey Hunter’s performance in the original series,” Greenwood said about his preperation for the role. “This is obviously a very different kind of Star Trek, but it was nice to see the history of the character unfold.”

Would you want to see Captain Pike or Spock return in the sequel? How about Khan?

What story or characters do you want to see?

Eric Bana gives Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto some hair care tips.

(Paramount) Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Eric Bana, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Bruce Greenwood, Leonard Nimoy, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Ben Cross, Winona Ryder, Chris Hemsworth, Jennifer Morrison, Rachel Nichols, Faran Tahir. Directed by J.J. Abrams

Even icons from time to time must reinvent themselves, if for no other reason to remain relevant in changing times. That is even more true for those having to do with the future.

The Federation starship U.S.S. Kelvin is investigating strange readings at a black hole. To the surprise of the ship’s captain (Tahir), a gigantic spacecraft of unknown design emerges from the singularity and without any provocation at all, opens fire on the starship, crippling it. The captain is forced to come aboard the unknown ship and is escorted to its captain, a Romulan named Nero (Bana),  who proceeds to ask the Federation representative some rather odd questions, the strangest being what stardate is it. The answer drives Nero berserk and he murders the captain and once again opens fire on the Kelvin.

The second-in-command (Hemsworth) orders an evacuation of the doomed Kelvin, paying special attention to his wife (Morrison) who is in labor. He intends to join her, but the ship’s automated functions are out of commission, and they are needed to gain critical time for the crew of the Kelvin to make their escapes. He realizes with sickening horror that he must remain aboard to run the ship manually. The young lieutenant saves his crew by ramming the dying starship into the unknown spaceship, crippling its weapon systems and propulsion. The name of the young hero? George Kirk.

Years later, his son James (Pine), born the day of his death, is adrift in Iowa, drinking in dive bars, picking up every woman he can and generally just lashing out at the world. While attempting to pick up a pretty Starfleet cadet named Uhura (Saldana), he gets jumped by a number of cadets, holding his own for awhile before getting his tush handed to him until Captain Christopher Pike (Greenwood) stops the fracas and clears the bar. He talks to the young Kirk about his father, and the difference he made to the 800 lives that were saved by his sacrifice and invites Kirk to join the Academy.

At first Kirk is reluctant to join Starfleet but eventually relents. On the shuttle ride to San Francisco, he meets an irascible divorced physician who is joining Starfleet to rebuild a career that had been essentially stymied in his divorce. The medico’s name is Leonard McCoy (Urban).

Already at the academy is a young half-Vulcan named Spock (Quinto). Tormented by young Vulcans for his half-human ancestry, Spock elects to follow the Vulcan disciplines of logic and dispassion of his father Sarek (Cross) with the blessing of his compassionate mother Amanda (Ryder). Despite this, Spock elects to decline admission to the Vulcan Science Academy (the first Vulcan ever to do so) and join Starfleet. After graduating from the Academy, he devises the notorious Kobiyashi Maru test, the infamous “no-win” scenario.

In the meantime, a brash young Ensign Kirk is blowing through the academy in a mere three years, still picking up women wherever he goes including a beautiful young Orion ensign (Nichols) who has come up with a rather ingenious solution to Spock’s test, landing him in hot water with the Academy dons. Unfortunately, an emergency comes up that relates directly to Kirk’s past, one that will bring all the disparate elements and characters together and forge together a crew that is destined to become a legend, while a man from the future (Nimoy) holds the key to the lives of Spock and Kirk.

The Star Trek franchise has been in decline for several years now, with an over-saturation of product that eventually seemed somewhat formulaic in many ways. Star Trek reboots the franchise with the original characters as seen through fresh new eyes. Director J.J. Abrams balances a delicate line of maintaining the spirit of the original series while adding additional elements of action and epic scope. Thus his new re-imagining of Star Trek will please not only hardcore Trek fans but also more general audiences.

Electing to go with a cast of young actors while steering clear of big name actors (Bana as Nero is the most recognizable face in the show other than Nimoy, and Bana is nearly unrecognizable in any case), and they come through in spades. All of the major crew members (Cho as Sulu, Pegg as Scotty and Yelchin as Chekov, as well as Urban and Saldana) have extremely pivotal scenes and establish their characters nicely.

Much of the success of Star Trek rests on the shoulders of the two leads, and they pull through splendidly. Pine captures the essence of James Tiberius Kirk without the quirks and mannerisms of William Shatner. He nails the bravado, the charisma, the independence and the compassion of Kirk but at the same time manages to render him human and fallible. Like Shatner’s Kirk, he is rash and sometimes prone to egotism, but at the heart of him is his brilliant intuition and willingness to risk. Pine takes an epic character and makes him accessible.

Quinto, best known as Sylar on the hit TV show “Heroes” makes a marvelous Spock. He radiates icy calm that masks the boiling inferno below the surface. Spock is heavily conflicted but chooses not to come to terms with his conflicting natures; instead he subverts his more human aspects in favor of the Vulcan stoicism. Quinto also has an uncanny resemblance to Nimoy as a young Spock, and fills the boots more than adequately.

There are plenty of breathtaking special effects, not to mention some intense action sequences, the best of which is a parachute jump onto a drilling platform high in the atmosphere of Vulcan. Visually, this is a movie that will rock your world.

But is it Star Trek? That’s the question most Trek fans were hoping to have answered. I have to say, yes and no. The original television series in many ways was less action-oriented than this is. Yes, there were plenty of fistfights, phasers set on stun and epic space battles in the original, but the themes had to do with things that were important to series creator Gene Roddenberry; man’s inhumanity to man, racial tension, drug abuse, gender inequality and the supreme waste and ultimate uselessness that is war. Here, we are being re-introduced to the characters that the producers hope to rebuild the franchise with and the movie is more about that than taking on issues.

However, the foundation has been laid and hopefully in the future we’ll see stories more in tune with the high bar that Roddenberry set. Given the outstanding box office returns the movie had, it is inevitable that there will be at least one or two more installments in the movie series if not more. The action and special effects will get the bodies in the door; the characters will bring those bodies back for more. Abrams has hit a home run with the new Star Trek. Now, the question becomes can he do it again?

WHY RENT THIS: Breathtaking special effects and heart-pounding action sequences drive the movie. Young actors bring established characters back to life with fresh perspectives. Pine makes a fabulous Captain Kirk and could be a future star.

WHY RENT SOMETHING ELSE: The overall tone that Trek-haters despised is still present here.

FAMILY VALUES: Some scenes of brief sexuality and some violence; also there is a nightmare-inducing creature during the Delta Vega sequence. Otherwise, fit for most young audiences (but not for the very teeny tiny).

TRIVIAL PURSUITS: The seven years gap between this movie and Star Trek: Nemesis is the longest in the franchise history.

NOTABLE DVD FEATURES: There are three different home viewing versions of this so far: a single-disc DVD which is essentially just the film, a 2-disc Special Edition DVD which contains some deleted scenes including Abrams’ take on the Klingons, and a 3-Disc Blu-Ray which contains a humongous number of featurettes, as well as a 360 degree view of various Enterprise and Romulan sets. There is also a feature on Gene Roddenberry’s legacy.

FINAL RATING: 8/10

TOMORROW: Disney’s A Christmas Carol

Martian 8 - A personal project of creature/character designer Neville Page. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Like many Sci-Fi fans, creature/character designer Neville Page sat in a darkened movie theater when he was a child and watched in anticipation as the opening credits for the original Star Wars feature film began to roll. Having seen the adventures of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo and Chewbacca, his mind wandered in a direction that would forever change his life.

“I began to wonder what people did in order to make a movie like that,” recalls Page. “I didn’t understand that they went to school to learn how to be creature designers, sculptors or artists for that matter, and could then go work in films. Then, however, I began to collect all sorts of Star Wars magazines – I was really addicted to the film – and in one of the magazines there was this article on [make-up artist] Rick Baker. When I saw a picture of him with a lump of clay and a sculpting tool, it suddenly occurred to me that, ‘OK, people actually do this stuff,’ and that’s where my interest [in the craft] first began.”

When he was 17, Page moved to Hollywood and, after trying his hand at acting and stand-up comedy, enrolled in the Art Center College of Design where he studied industrial design. “I did that for several years, but all along I craved to work in films,” says the designer. “The more seasoned I became as an industrial designer, it became more apparent that if I wanted to make monsters and do animatronics, it would require a huge career and lifestyle change.

“At that point I thought, ‘Well, that dream is dead,’ but the very next day, literally, something happened that changed my mind. Colleen Atwood, who’s a major costume designer, was working next door to my studio on the Steven Spielberg film Minority Report. A buddy of mine had left his keys there and she stopped by my studio to drop them off. Colleen noticed that my business partner, Scott Robertson, and I do industrial design, including helmets, and she needed a helmet for a police costume. That’s when she asked, ‘Hey, do you guys want to work on some film stuff?’ and I haven’t stopped since. You can’t plan something like that. It’s like sitting at a cafe and being ‘discovered.’ You can only hope you’re in the right place at the right time, and mine was my buddy forgetting his keys.

Squidleyflat - a personal project of Neville Page. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

X2, The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe, The Hulk, Cloverfield and James Cameron’s Avatar are just a few of the big screen projects that Page has worked on. “With Avatar I was kind of stretching my skills at creature design,” he says. “James Cameron is a very specific guy and you can just imagine how many portfolios were being thrown his way when it came to his movie. Four people were selected, myself being one of them, and I thought, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. There’s a mistake here, because I don’t have much of a portfolio.’ I had a lot of industrial design stuff, but I guess that’s what Jim wanted. He wanted a very different take on a creature design and I’ve told him many times since then how incredibly grateful and indebted I am to him because he allowed me almost a year to become educated in what he needed to be the best, well-thought out creatures in film. So he afforded us the time to really do it right.

“I’m a huge fan of doing the research and understanding the subject matter, which includes buying animal bones and things of that nature to better understand a creatures’ physiology, and Jim really dug that we were coming in fully armed with all this knowledge. You can’t pull the wool over his eyes. He’s bright on all levels, and it was our goal to help crack the design nut. There were occasions where I would present an anatomical solution to a problem that would genuinely impress Jim. That’s a good day at work! Jim is a strong man who knows what he wants, and if you’re strong enough to survive that, you come out a better person and definitely a better designer, that’s for sure.”

While still working on Avatar, the designer took on yet another new creature challenge in J.J. Abrams’ Cloverfield. “When I met with [producers] J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles to discuss Cloverfield, I knew nothing about the project other than J.J. said, ‘I want to make a monster movie,’” says Page. “They explained to me that this film was a big experiment as far as how they were going to shoot  it, with handheld cameras and not a whole bunch of other cameras set up for secondary or tertiary shots. They also explained that the overall budget was next to nothing.

“For whatever reason, J.J. won me over because of his passion for the work and his loveable personality. I thought, ‘I don’t know quite what it [the film] is either, J.J., but sign me up.’ The hardest part of  Cloverfield, though, was that I was also in my last five or six months of Avatar, and the last months of any project are the toughest because you have to deliver all the final elements. I told myself, ‘I’m working with James Cameron and J.J. Abrams simultaneously. Am I the luckiest man in the world or what? You’ve got to make this work, Neville, no matter what.’”

Up close and personal with the Cloverfield creature. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Another angle of the Cloverfield creature. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Clearly, Abrams was pleased with Page’s contribution to Cloverfield because he subsequently asked him to provide creature effects and much more for the new Star Trek film. “I was tasked with two creatures right out of the gate, which were the ones on the ice planet Delta Vega,” notes the designer. “J.J. was very specific about what he wanted; he wanted one of the creatures to be red because it would look cool and be a great contrast to the white snow. The second thing he wanted was for it to have several eyes just so it was kind of freaky and scary. J.J. also wanted the creature to have a month that was extremely off-putting, not because you’d be afraid of being bitten by it, but that it might touch or dribble on you.

“If you study enough about biology and animals you can kind of reverse engineer a number of things into a plausible organism. That’s where it’s helpful to have a pretty broad understanding of several different animals as well as zoology and physics, because you’ll be able to take some really wacky concept and make it work by having all these other reference points. So I didn’t have much trouble with the color of the red creature because there are plenty of things in the ocean that are red, such as crabs, lobsters and the Humboldt squid. The creature is actually a cross between a crab and a squid, and it wasn’t necessarily that I thought of that as a means to hybridize something, but this thing just evolved to a point where it started to look like that. So I thought, ‘I can reference those two animals and tap into a little bit more of their physiology.’

“There are those who question the red color, but the important thing to remember is that this creature is most comfortable in the water, much like a squid would be. It only breaks through the ice for the occasional desperate feeding. That was my rationale, and it actually does make sense; animals do occasionally breach or leave their normal habitat when they’re incredibly hungry. However, there have been a lot of fans of the film that really objected to the fact that it was red, but when you know what its origins are, then it potentially makes sense.

“The fact that this creature doesn’t have fur is also another [deliberate] choice. A lot of whales don’t have fur, but rather excess blubber. It might sound as if I’m justifying things, but I’m trying to explain the fact that it’s an alien planet, so anything should go. But we have a critical Earth audience looking at the movie, some of whom saying, ‘I don’t know if I’d buy that [creature] because it’s red, doesn’t have fur and it’s skinny.’ Well, crabs somehow get away with it, and so do lobsters. There’s no fur on a lobster, so who’s to say that this creature isn’t some sort of hybrid endo-exo-skeletal thing. The most important thing for J.J. is that he just wants it to be cool for the moment so people enjoy the ride. My job is to make sure that it [the creature] is viable enough so fans and other people who may scrutinize it don’t feel insulted or gypped. But I must ask, why does no one question the survivability of the passengers on a ship that leaps instantly to warp speed? It’s all simply entertainment.”

The Polarilla creature from Star Trek XI. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Those who saw the Star Trek film and also, coincidentally, have an aversion to insects, probably had to look away when Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) is tortured for tactical data by Captain Nero (Eric Bana) of the Romulan mining ship Narada, and forced to swallow the mind-controlling bug. Page was the brains behind the look of that particular creepy crawly.

“That little bug was kind of an homage to the earwig that was in [the second Star Trek film] The Wrath of Khan, in that something bug-like is being put inside you that’s going to mess with your mind,” he says. “I felt it would have been far creepier to put it into an orifice that you wouldn’t normally put something in, but we were limited to orifices that were PG [rated],” jokes Page. “So ears and nostrils would have been it. I just thought that putting it in the mouth was, maybe, more like eating it, and not as unnerving.

“We did our level best to make it look upsetting, but I think most people are so bug-phobic that just having a bug near someone’s mouth was frightening enough. I really did want this one to be more like an earwig, which is why I made the tail earwig-like. J.J. was very specific, though, about wanting these claws and little tentacles that would make it look as if it has the capacity, once inside the body, to engage with the spinal cord or lower brainstem.

“So the design challenge was partially just arriving at the appropriate esthetic, but on top of that, we knew that we didn’t have the funds to do a full digital effect and that it had to be a practical on-set one. That meant we had to have something we could actually control animatronically, and that dictated a certain kind of body mass to fit the electronics into. A Japanese gentleman, in fact, made a robot that was tiny enough, or should I say microscopic enough, to go inside a rubber version of our bug. That’s what you see on-screen, this little remote-controlled bug on the end of barbecue tongs. It was quite incredible.”

Fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation are well aware that its Klingons as well as Romulans looked very different from those seen in the classic Star Trek series. An effort was made in Star Trek: Enterprise to explain the change in the Klingons’ appearance, and the same thing was done in the new Star Trek movie with regard to the Romulans, including Eric Bana’s Nero.

“The Next Generation Romulans had the V-shaped prosthetic on their forehead, but in the original show, they had absolutely no prosthetics,” explains Page. “So we had to come up with a way to justify how it is that over time, some of them developed the V and others did not. For that, I worked with Joel Harlow, who did a lot of the make-up for Pirates of the Caribbean, and was the head make-up artist for the Romulans specifically. The idea I had involved a bald head and therefore shaving it completely, but in order to convince Eric Bana of this, we needed to do a make-up test first. We didn’t have the budget to hire another actor or a model for this, so I ‘donated’ my head to the cause. We would shave my head, Joel would then do the make-up test on me, and if J.J. liked it, we would move forward and create the look for Eric.

“As far as the concept of getting that V-shape to work, I went with tribal scarification,” continues the designer. “If you scar yourself over and over again in the same place, over time it turns into a keloid mass. I thought it would be interesting if we could use that to create the natural V justification. So we put together an array of designs that Harlow sculpted to replicate that look, and we had a number of tattoo and hair ideas as well. In the end, what you see in the movie is not unlike the basic concept that I wore in our presentation to J.J. The final design, however, has more character nuances in it; there’s a scar on Nero’s face, because I always liked the idea of chopping his ear off to make it look like he’s even half of the Romulan he used to be. Ultimately, J.J. decided to make it more of a bite that Nero probably got while he was imprisoned with the Klingons.”

The original scarring went through a bit of a metamorphosis before filming began, but Abrams liked the design that Page first tested, so much so that he asked him if he would like to play a Romulan in the film. The designer wasted no time in accepting the offer. “I joke with people that that was my plan all along as a child, that I wanted to be a movie star. However, I had a whole different way of achieving that. It would be through the backdoor. I’d study design for years and work and work and then finally get my break while testing the make-up. It was a very strategic and circuitous path,” he says with a laugh, “but now that I am a huge celebrity, wasn’t it all worth it? Although J.J. did say, ‘Keep your day job.’ What could he have meant?

“Seriously, the best part about doing it was two-fold. I had to go through the make-up process many times, including having to wear full scleral contact lenses. They aren’t just the small lenses that cover the iris, but the ones that extend over the eye in all directions. I can’t stand the idea of contact lenses, but I thought, ‘If I’m going to be designing this stuff for people, I should at least know what I’m asking them to subject themselves to.’

“So seeing the sculptors interpreting my designs and then seeing the make-up applied step-by-step was, for me, not only fun, but also a wonderful education in the hope that I do more work like it. The other get part was getting to be on the other side of the camera. I’ve been around long enough to know what that’s like as a designer, but being ‘an actor’ on-set and watching them direct me and everyone else was another amazing learning experience.”

Caudal luring - a personal project of Neville Page. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Carnivor glow - a Mattel concept illustration. Photo courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page

Besides Star Trek, Page’s other recent work includes Watchmen and Tron 2.0, the sequel to the 1982 Sci-Fi film Tron. “I started off designing a bit of everything [for Tron 2.0] with everyone else, but I quickly gravitated towards the costumes,” he says. “From there, I ended up moving from the art department to costumes and developing the hero and specialty costumes. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do but it’s a hard thing to break into because it’s a totally different department.

“I recently came back from Vancouver where I watched some of the shooting [for Tron 2.0] and, my God, it looks really good. From the last script I read, I think it’s going to be an interesting film with some neat twists, and aesthetically it’s looking phenomenal. It’s right up there with James Cameron’s Avatar in terms of delivering really fresh and new imagery on-screen. If you watch the original Tron now, it’s important to note what a major achievement that it was then, and at the helm of it all was Steve Lisberger. He was the original director and conceiver of Tron and one of the producers for the new movie. Lisberger is very involved in the production and it was cool to see him and the new director, Joe Kosinski, brainstorming. It’s one of the more exciting projects I’ve ever been on.”

While some people who work in film and/or TV might take it for granted, Page sees his involvement in the business as very much the opposite. He is also happy for the chance to give back something to audiences. “When I sat watching Star Wars as a kid, my parents were going through a divorce, and the movie was an amazing escape for me,” he says. “It’s sad to say that R2D2 was my therapist at age 12. Having said that, whenever I meet someone who is moved by something I’ve done in the same way I was moved by Joe Johnston [Star Wars effects illustrator/designer] and Ralph McQuarrie [Star Wars production illustrator], that’s when it really hits home that what you do is relevant. And it’s such a priviledge to be able to do that.”

Steve Eramo

As noted above, all photos courtesy of and copyright of Neville Page, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

DVD Top 10.
Bestsellerliste der Woche
von Illuminati bis State of Play

Illuminati:
Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) entdeckt Beweise, dass die mächtigste Untergrundbewegung der Geschichte, ein uralter konspirativer Geheimbund, den man als ‘Die Illuminati’ kennt, wiederauferstanden ist. Kurz darauf wird er damit konfrontiert, dass die katholische Kirche, der zutiefst verhasste Erzfeind der Illuminaten, einer tödlichen, existenzvernichtenden Bedrohung ausgesetzt ist…

Nachts im Museum 2:
Seine Tage als Museumswärter sind passé: Larry Daley ist als Erfinder nutzloser Dinge erfolgreich, kehrt jedoch ins Museum zurück, als er erfährt, dass die seinerzeit zu Leben erwachten Ausstellungsstücke in den Keller des Smithsonian in New York verfrachtet werden sollen. Ruhe ist allerdings auch dort nicht angesagt, weil auch die mystische Tafel von Akhmenrah, die den Exponaten Leben einhaucht, versehentlich zum neuen Ausstellungsort transportiert wurde. Nun bricht dort das Chaos aus, und Larry muss für Ordnung sorgen…

Slumdog Millionär:
Glauben Sie an das Schicksal? Für Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) ist es der größte Tag seines bisherigen Lebens. Nur noch eine Frage trennt ihn vom 20 Millionen Rupien-Hauptgewinn in Indiens TV- Show ‘Wer wird Millionär?’

Der Womanizer:
Der Junggeselle Connor Mead (Matthew McConaughey) gehört zu den Typen, die drei Freundinnen den Laufpass geben. Gleichzeitig. Per Telefonkonferenz. Auf der Hochzeitsfeier seines Bruders hat er also nur ein Ziel: Er will die einzige Brautjungfer herumkriegen, die er bisher irgendwie übersehen hat. Doch der Geist seines verstorbenen Onkels Wayne (Michael Douglas) – der Connor beigebracht hat, die Frauen zu wechseln wie die Hemden – verfolgt ein ganz anderes Ziel…

Star Trek – Die Zukunft hat begonnen:
James T. Kirk ist ein rebellischer Hitzkopf im amerikanischen Niemandsland, der nie den Tod seines Vaters bei einem Angriff eines romulanischen Raumschiffs verkraftet hat. Nach einer seiner Prügeleien fordert ihn Captain Pike, einst ein Freund seines verstorbenen Vaters, auf, der Sternenflotte beizutreten. Dort macht sich Kirk zunächst keine Freunde, bis ihn eine Mission zwingt, endlich Verantwortung zu übernehmen: der Romulaner Nero bedroht Vulkan, den Heimatplaneten von Kirks späterem Weggefährten Spock…

Transformers 2:
Nachdem Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) die Welt mit Hilfe der gutmütigen Autobots vor den bösartigen Decepticons gerettet hat, freut er sich auf ein normales Leben. Als er aufs College geht, lässt er nicht nur Freundin Mikaela (Megan Fox) zurück…

X-Men Origins: Wolverine:
Hugh Jackman schlüpft wieder in die Rolle, die ihn zum Superstar machte: Wolverine – der Mann mit den unverkennbaren Stahlklingen, bemerkenswerten Selbstheilungskräften, ruppigem Charme und einer gehörigen Portion trockenem Humor. ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ erzählt die Vorgeschichte Logans mit Augenmerk auf seine mysteriöse Vergangenheit, seine komplexe Beziehung zu Victor Creed (Liev Schreiber) und das ominöse Weapon X-Programm. Der Zuschauer erfährt, wer Wolverine wirklich ist…

Duplicity:
CIA-Offizier Claire Stenwick (Julia Roberts) und MI6-Agent Ray Koval (Clive Owen) standen früher im Geheimdienst ihrer Regierungen. Derzeit haben sie in die Privatwirtschaft gewechselt, um mit lukrativen Verträgen das meiste aus dem Kalten Krieg herauszuholen. Beide jagen jeweils für ihre Bosse Tully (Tom Wilkinson) und Garsik (Paul Giamatti) einem milliardenschweren Patent nach. Keiner ahnt, dass sie eine heimliche Affäre und eigene Pläne haben…

Männersache:
Tagsüber arbeitet Paul (Mario Barth) in einer Berliner Zoohandlung und abends an seiner Karriere als Komiker. Zugegeben, seine Auftritte laufen mies… bis Paul anfängt, Witze über seinen besten Freund Hotte (Dieter Tappert) und dessen Freundin Susi (Anja Kling) zu reißen. Auf einmal läuft es auf der Bühne: Pauls Gags über Hottes Beziehungsgeschichten, nicht enden wollende Shopping-Orgien von Susi und den Pärchen Kaffeeklatsch bei den Schwiegereltern sind ein Renner…

State of Play – Stand der Dinge:
Ein junger aufstrebender Politiker und ein Washingtoner Enthüllungsreporter finden sich mitten im Epizentrum einer Reihe von Morden wieder, die nur scheinbar nichts miteinander zu tun haben. Der Kongressabgeordnete Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) ist Hoffnung und Zukunft seiner Partei – ein aussichtsreicher und ehrenhafter Newcomer, unter anderem im Vorsitz des Komitees für Verteidigungsausgaben…

Weitere Informationen, auch Top 100 Liste, erhalten Sie hier

Mao’s Last Dancer is based on the best-selling autobiography by Li Cunxin.

The film opens with Li (Chi Cao) arriving at Houston, Texas, then flashes back to 1972. Here Li is an 11-year-old in the Shandong province of China. The country is floundering under Communism; his family are peasants, and there is hardly enough food to go around. Life is hard when there are seven children to support. His Dia (his father, played by Wang Shuangbao) tells his the parable of a frog stuck in a well who longs to escape to the beautiful world beyond. Li feels as though he, too, is a frog stuck in a well. His life changes when representatives from the Beijing Dance Academy come to his school. The representatives almost leave, but the young teacher points out Li at the last moment. This twist of fate drastically changes his life. He progresses through the try-outs and wins a full scholarship to the school. He has been given an amazing opportunity, and he is a hero in his village, yet young Li doesn’t want to leave his family, especially his beloved Niang (his mother, played by Joan Chen). She helps him see how lucky he is and that this is his great chance to escape the poverty – to escape the well. Li initially hates the academy, and he longs for home. Eventually, though, he finds the enjoyment in ballet.

I don’t want to give away too many plot points, though you will already know the story if you have read the book or seen the trailer (why must they always ruin the movie with the trailer?!) This is an amazing, almost unbelievable story about fate and triumph and family and love – a true rags-to-riches.

The dancing, choreographed by Graham Murphy, is simply spectacular, and it doesn’t completely take over the storyline, which should please more sceptical members of the audience. The actors are all adequate but there are no stand-out performances here. Kyle MacLachlan and Bruce Greenwood are the most recognisable cast members. Mao’s Last Dancer had a seemingly decent budget but it was actually quite small if you take into account the sheer breadth of the story. Beresford’s decision to shoot in Sydney instead of Houston may not bother most members of the crowd but it annoyed me, especially because the building used for Li’s house in Houston is actually in my suburb. The crowd scenes obviously had about 20 extras, and there is one really bad sequence with a warrior shooting an arrow…I laughed out loud, and it wasn’t supposed to be funny. The film is quite clichéd, and the suspenseful moments aren’t particularly suspenseful.

I’ve read the book, so comparisons are unavoidable. I would have to have liked to have seen more screen time dedicated to his early days with his family and also at the dance academy. In the book you really got a chance to know and love the family, but the opening of the film moves extremely quickly. I just felt there was way too much time dedicated to his time in Houston, which is arguably the least interesting part of his life story. The film begins in a non-linear fashion, going back and forward between China and America, but then becomes linear somewhere along the way. This bothered me. Jan Sardi said that they started the film in America because they thought they would alienate audiences if the first 20 minutes of the film was entirely Chinese. I wouldn’t have minded. As it is, the structure of the opening forty minutes or so is quite jarring.

I don’t think this story has been taken to its full potential. This could have and should have been an incredible film, because Li Cunxin’s life has been incredible. Mao’s Last Dancer falls a little flat, which is so unfortunate. However, it is still a really enjoyable film, and the emotion is really there, particularly between Li and his parents. I was so moved by the ending, I absolutely bawled my eyes out in the last few scenes, I seriously did.

The film has taken more than $13 million at the box office in Australia so far, the highest grossing Australian film of the year at the local box office. I think this just shows that Australian films can be successful when they deal with universally themes, rather than stories with very narrow appeal (they are usually either dark drug dramas or stupid comedies). This is a film that the whole family can really enjoy, and the cultural diversity ensures a wide audience. I’d recommend this film to anyone, but you should also read the book afterwards because there is so much more to love about Li Cunxin that isn’t touched on in the movie. I wish this had been an even better film.

My rating:

Je sais qu’en ce moment je ne suis pas trés présent sur le blog because déménagement, mais cela ne ma pas empécher de tester le Blu-Ray du Space Opéra de ce début d’année.

Eh bien je peut vous dire que j’attendais un blu-ray avec une bonne image et un bon son et côté bonus droit à quelques commentaires et un petit making of. Et bien je me suis bien tromper pour les bonus car de ce coté la je fût trés agréablement surpris.

Perso je ne suis pas un fan de la série originel mais le film de J.J Abrams est tellement bien fait qu’il devrait même plaire aux novices.

Donc comme pour le film qui fût une bonne surprise, ce blu-ray est l’une de mes sortie préférer en cette fin d’année.

Q: How many ears does Captain Kirk have?
A: Three. The left ear, the right ear, and the final frontier.

On Saturday evening, Jed and I went to MarkJ’s house, where his brother supplied the latest Star Trek movie. It was an amusing, entertaining film, and if you think I’m only saying that because I don’t know MarkJ’s brother well enough to slag off his taste in movies, I appreciate your dilemma. You’ll have to use your discretion. Sorry.

Star Trek 2009 is a reboot of the Star Trek franchise, telling the back-story of the crew and the series of flukes via which James Tiberius Kirk comes to be captain of the Starship Enterprise.

No idea what the plot is about. It involves a fleet of Romulans. I’m not sure why the producers didn’t choose more compelling intergalactic villains for the franchise premiere – for example, the horny-headed Klingons; or the terrifyingly ridiculous-looking and inalienly strong Gorn. But there you go.

Anyhoo, the Romulans pootle around the universe applying impressive special effects to planets. Apart from that, even Eric Bana’s freakishly small head fails to make the Romulans look the least bit threatening. They have no exoskeletal anomalies, no surplus proboscises, no multiple recessed jaws; they are even a standard Caucasian colour. Although their blood is greenish-yellow, there isn’t half enough of it splattering about the set.

I suppose they do have impressive cranial tattoos – but then so do lots of people – I mean, it’s hardly chillingly blood-crawling.

Q: How many Star Trek landing party members does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Only one, but the extra red-shirt will die in the attempt

The movie introduces Kirk as a foetus, and unfortunately the character does not appear to mature in any measurable way throughout the course of the movie apart from a rudimentary mastery of his motor functions. Impossible as it may seem, Chris Pine’s incarnation of Kirk made me wistfully yearn for William Shatner.

Even Uhura, embarking on her mission to boldly sleep her way to the top, keeps Kirk firmly at bargepole’s length. Which tells you all you REALLY need to know.

But since you asked nicely, I will of course tell you more.

Kirk is so whiny and boisterously annoying, you want to ground him until he reaches adulthood – about 20 years. The only new life forms he is interested in seeking out are the female variety (demonstrating a disturbing fetish for bottle-green redheads).

Q: Does Kirk become the first cadet in the history of the Academy to outwit the Kobayashi Maru Simulation with his blistering intelligence and encyclopaedic knowledge of Klingon war strategy?
A: No, Kirk CHEATS.

Q: Following his suspension from the Academy, does Kirk unexpectedly disguise himself as the First Officer and blag his way on board the USS Enterprise?
A: No, he is smuggled aboard by his friend.

Q: Does Kirk detect a Romulan trap using his powers of deduction and encyclopaedic knowledge of Romulan war tactics?
A: No; by pure chance, he overhears Uhura talking about it in her underwear (although the fact that he recalls the information at all with Uhura clad only in her underwear is undeniably admirable).

Even worse, Kirk’s bravery does not translate to skilled combat.

Q: When a Romulan is stamping on Kirk’s fingers as the rest of him hangs from the edge of a drilling platform, does Kirk lunge for his assailant’s ankle and pull himself back onto the platform while simultaneously hurling the Romulan to his death?
A: No, Sulu saves Kirk’s dangling ass with a timely sword thrust.

Q: When another Romulan is in the process spanking Kirk with nothing more than his fists and a big sneer, does Kirk distract him with a talking newt before bludgeoning the Romulan’s head to a fine paste with his thumbs?
A: No, he pulls the Romulan’s own gun on him.

And this is the permanently pubescent person chosen to explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations and boldly pilot the USS Enterprise where no man has gone before.

In fact, the only positive character attribute exhibited by Kirk is a totally unfounded bravery.

Well, Kirk might be brave, but so is Rambo, and I wouldn’t hand the reins of the Starship Enterprise over to him.

Although I would if the only alternative was Kirk.

The vaunted friendship between Kirk and Spock is made possible only by virtue of Spock’s paucity of emotion.

For some reason, the story features two Spocks. Obviously, this is a good thing – but replacing Kirk with Spock altogether would have been better still.

Spock’s ears appear to have been ‘modernised’ into immobile wax sculptures on either side of his head. Why? WHY? What was wrong with Spock’s original aural devices? I’ll tell you what: NOTHING. Spock’s ears used to be sublime perfection: those delicate pinnacles of silicon pointiness that looked like they might fly off into the control console at the slightest hint of turbulence; that, when you flicked them with your index finger, made a satisfying thwippety thwippety sound that resulted in a cochleal orgasm.

Q: How can you improve on that?
A: You can’t.

Terrific movie; well worth a watch.

VERDICT:
8/10 Pointed Fingers

A powerful, poignant movie about coping (and not coping) with grief and what it takes to move on from personal tragedy.

The Sweet Hereafter is about a lawyer that’s hired to represent a Canadian family who’s daughter was paralyzed after surviving a bus accident that took the lives of nearly all the town’s children. To bolster his case, the lawyer makes his rounds to all the said childrens’ parents in hopes that they will jump on his bandwagon to sue the bus manufacturer, all the while struggling with the troubled relationship he has with his own daughter, one that is rendering him utterly helpless.

It had been a long time since I first saw this movie but it wasn’t until I came across David Schleicher’s review of it that I was remember how damn good this was. A refresher was in order. And while it didn’t exactly carry the emotional weight that it did the first time around – probably because I knew what was coming – there aren’t a whole lot of movies that handle this kind of subject matter with such insight and humanity as The Sweet Hereafter does. Maybe Ordinary People, but that’s about it.

I feel ashamed that this is the only movie I’ve seen by director Atom Egoyan, because the guy sure knows how to tell a story from both a visual and literary standpoint. Maybe it’s just how Canada looks naturally, but the scenery in this movie is absolutely beautiful. It’s stark, it’s empty, and it’s immense, and it all complements the feel of the story quite naturally. Egoyan has also written a fantastic script and taken some fascinating liberties in adapting it from the novel it’s based off of. And even though I haven’t read the book, the liberty I’m talking about has to do with a parallel that Egoyan draws between the childrens’ deaths and the story of the pied piper leading the children out of Hamelin. You have to see it to get it, but the point is that it’s brilliant.

But the thing Egoyan does best here is that he maintains a much-needed sense of subtlety throughout it all. The biggest pitfall he could have fallen into here would have been to beat his audience over the head with what he was trying to say and try to provide his audience with answers where there are none, and he evades it by evoking this sense of unspoken tension and anger amongst the townspeople, letting them sort their issues out in the ways they see fit rather than try to manufacture it into a melodrama of sorts. Thank God he didn’t do that.

The acting is also very good on behalf of the entire cast for the most part. Most of the townspeople are actors I’ve never seen before or since, but two individuals really stood out to me. The first is Ian Holm (aka: Bilbo Baggins) as the lawyer. He’s a damn good actor and it wasn’t until his performance here that I really started to notice. Really intense and very…honest at the same time.

The other actor is Bruce Greenwood – who I only know as Captain Kirk’s superior officer in the latest Star Trek movie – as one of the townspeople trying to get on with his life after losing his wife to cancer and his two kids in the accident. He does a great job here and is easily the most interesting and affected person to watch.

Very good soundtrack, too. Again, perfectly complements the feel of the movie and it’s not often that the lyrics of the song choices actually reflect the kind of emotion being conveyed through the script. Really, really impressive.

And in case you were wondering, no, this is not a true story. The accident itself is based off actual events that occurred in Texas, but everything else is fictional. Nonetheless, there’s something here everyone can relate to even if you’ve never experienced loss in such extreme circumstances as these. The heart of this story isn’t so much about the accident itself, what caused it and who’s to blame, but rather everything that comes after and how drastically the town has changed as everyone tries to pick up the remaining pieces of their lives.

It goes without saying at this point, but this is one heavy movie that you need to be in the right mood to fully appreciate. That’s hardly a complaint, more a heads up than anything else. So if you’re looking for a good drama that leave you moved, The Sweet Hereafter is a very well-made, emotional powerhouse of a movie for those interested.

Any movie set in the claustrophobic confines of a submarine will take on a terror aspect by virtue of that alone; Below takes that concept to a new level. It’s a unique story, well told, well acted, but lacking that zip I like in my spookshows.

I’d never heard of Below until it landed on my DVD shelf. But when I saw that it stars Bruce Greenwood of Star Trek, I popped it in right away. Bruce is cool. He’s Canadian, eh? He’s Canadian and he played JFK. That’s pretty cool.

In Below, Captain Pike himself plays the interim commander of a U.S. submarine during World War 2, taking the post after something happens to the captain. While on patrol, the sub picks up three survivors of a torpedoed British hospital ship, and the sudden presence on board of a nurse, played by Olivia Williams, an actress who doesn’t get anywhere near the amount of work she should. When the Americans realize one of the “British” survivors is actually an injured German POW, conflicts arise.

So far, typical sub movie. But then voices start echoing throughout the steel belly of the sub. Crewmen start glimpsing things in the shadows. And people start to die.

Below was directed by David Twohey and was produced and written, in part, by Darren Aronofsky. Great movie? No. It’s a bit slow, a little quiet, and the darkness makes it hard to follow — as do the lookalike actors playing the crew. I had trouble telling Generic White Guy No. 1 from Generic White Guy No. 4 sometimes. Greenwood and Williams are solid throughout, though, and they really carry this film.

I was listening to Horror Etc. a few weeks back, and co-host Tony mentioned finding Below in a discount bin somewhere. That’s the way to go with this movie, folks. It’s a fine film, but not something you’re going to want to pay a lot for — or keep.

Bruce Greenwood (Star Trek) and David Walliams (Little Britain) are to join Steve Carell, Zach Galifianakis and Paul Rudd in Dinner for Schmucks, the Jay Roach-directed comedy for Paramount, DreamWorks and Spyglass.

Variety have the news that Walliams will play a Swiss banker that Tim Conrad (Rudd) and his Fender Financial cohorts hope to impress as a potential investor. Greenwood plays the role of the billionaire, Fender.

According to Collider this is a remake of the 1998 French film called “The Dinner Game,” written and directed by Francis Veberm.

The original film focused on a weekly gathering held by a Paris publisher, where his friends were challenged bring the most worthless guest they can find to dinner. The new version stars Steve Carell, who plays an “extraordinarily stupid man who possesses the ability to ruin the life of anyone who spends more than a few minutes in his company.”

NOTA : 8 RECOMANDAT

Download subtitrare Star Trek

Trailer Star Trek :

Nel 2009 il grande J.J.Abrams (“Alias”, “Lost”, “MI:3″) ha diretto l’ultimo epico episodio della saga dell’Enterprise.
La storia è una sorta di prequel e si colloca cronologicamente alla nascita di James T.Kirk quindi a cavallo tra la “Stagione Classica di Star Trek” ed “Enterprise” ( i Trekkers saranno di certo più precisi di me).

In pratica vediamo la nascita dell’equipaggio della mitica NCC-1701 e di come si conobbero il capitano Kirk, Spock, Sulu, Cechov, Uhura, il Dottor McCoy e Scotty. Il tutto sullo sfondo del destino di due mondi ben noti nell’universo creato da Gene Roddenberry, Vulcano e Romulus.
Della storia non voglio rivelare molto soprattutto a chi vuole la sorpresa non rovinata. Posso dire che chi, come me ha amato la serie classica (e successive) ed i personaggi, non rimarrà deluso, anzi. Sia l’aspetto fisico che il carattere di ogni ruolo sono molto simili all’originale e se stupiscono alcuni rapporti tra i personaggi stessi che, nella serie del 1966, non esistevano o erano solo accennati, si rimane piacevolemente affascinati e divertiti ed interessati soprattutto dal contesto a noi familiare più che allo script.
Ritengo che la storia infatti non abbia nulla di eccezionalmente nuovo o particolare ma a tenere viva l’attenzione sono l’affetto per il machismo di Kirk, la nonchalance logica di Spock, il bisbetismo di Bones, la giovialità di Scotty. In questo film è stato anche dato un certo spessore a Cechov, Sulu e soprattutto Uhura, cosa assai rara nella Tos (serie originale).
Non mancano l’ironia, l’eroismo ed il messaggio di fratellanza tipici di Star Trek per cui questa pellicola non deluderà i fans e potrà piacere (senza entusiasmare magari) anche a chi non ha mai visto le orecchie appuntite di Spock sul proprio teleschermo (possibile?). ^__^
Gli attori sono bravi e cosa non semplice, simpatici nel render omaggio agli attori del passato a cui assomigliano senza diventarne parodia.
Chris Pine è Kirk, Zachary Quinto è Spock (ed anche Leonard Nimoy fa la sua parte…), Bruce Greenwood è il Capitano Pike e Zoe Saldana è una conturbante Uhura mentre il cattivo di turno, Nero, è un irriconoscibile Eric “Hulk” Bana.

J.J.Abrams è stato bravo a mantenersi fedele allo spirito ma non ha brillato forse per una storia degna del suo nome, eccessivamente prudente  forse all’idea di allontanarsi troppo dallo stile Trek . Comunque un bel film, non intendo dire che non lo sia.
E’ ovviamente annunciato il sequel sempre diretto e prodotto da Abrams (che dovrebbe dirigere anche MI:4).

Long life and prosper!
Voto: 8 Là dove nessun uomo è mai giunto prima…
Ciao, J

adult Li Cunxin (Chi Cao)

Li Cunxin was born into a very poor peasant family who lived in a rural Chinese province during Chairman Mao’s Cultural Revolution. In 1972 a team of visiting inspectors selected him to accompany them to Beijing to train as a ballet dancer at Madame Mao’s Dance Academy. Despite not seeming to initially have the necessary qualities that are required to become a great dancer, Li eventually honed his skills with such dedication and discipline that he was sent to the United States to dance for the Houston Ballet. Li, who has since moved to Australia, wrote the very popular and acclaimed autobiography Mao’s Last Dancer in 2003, which has now been adapted into a film by Australian director Bruce Beresford (Black Robe, ‘Breaker’ Morant, The Getting of Wisdom). Unfortunately, despite all its potential, the film version of Mao’s Last Dancer is a very pedestrian affair that is only redeemed by its very powerful conclusion.

The biggest problem with Mao’s Last Dancer is that the contrasting in Li’s autobiography about his life in Communist China compared to his life in Texas during the 1980s, comes across incredibly bluntly in the film. What may have originally been a series of considered personal observations translates cinematically into the sensation of somebody screaming at you, “China equals poor! America equals wealthy! Communism is bad and oppressive! Democracy is good and free!” Hence, Li is repeatedly depicted looking dumbfounded at the wonders of American life while the Chinese officials are all suitably villenous. The representation of ideology in Mao’s Last Dancer is incredibly shallow and crude. The exploration of racial and cultural differences are also very clichéd and reducing Li’s early dialogue to pigeon-English is simply embarrassing.

teenage Li Cunxin (Chengwu Guo)

Mao’s Last Dancer suffers in general from poor plotting and direction to the extent that many scenes resemble daytime soap operas. There is even one moment when a character throws themselves onto a bed in melodramatic anguish. The acting is overall not bad considering the limitations of the adaptation and it is always refreshing to see underrated actors Bruce Greenwood and Kyle MacLachlan on the big screen. Chi Cao, who is a trained ballet dancer, plays the adult Li Cunxin. However, although the heavy use of slow motion and various editing techniques in Mao’s Last Dancer want to give you the impression that you are witnessing great dancing; you are not. Unlike the performances in classic ballet films such as The Red Shoes and the more recent 2003 Robert Altman film The Company, the dancing in Mao’s Last Dancer is only adequate.

Yet despite all its very large flaws Mao’s Last Dancer does end on a triumphant note. The film has two big emotionally cathartic ‘final’ scenes and although you can see the heart-string-tugging mechanics of these scenes a mile off, they are executed brilliantly. Mao’s Last Dancer is a very good example of why you should never leave a film early because to do so in this instance would be to miss 20 minutes of truly impressive filmmaking. If only everything that preceded it wasn’t so mediocre.

© Thomas Caldwell, 2009

Read more reviews at MRQE

NO PEOPLE LIKE SHOW PEOPLE: Stratford scene-stealer Geraint Wyn-Davies, currently winning raves for his joyful performance as Bottom in

FOX: on The Hour

Midsummer Night’s Dream, will take his next play out of town before opening in Stratford next summer. He plans to test his one-man show Do Not Go Gentle, by Leon Pownall, about the life of Dylan Thomas, in New York, where he’ll open a limited run this winter … Google, who continue to be two steps ahead of all other search engines, have reportedly snapped up esteemed Toronto Star alumnus Jim Bawden to cover the Canadian television scene. Smart move, guys! But then, that’s what makes Google Google … George Stroumboulopoulos kicks off his sixth

McLACHLAN: Dragon lady

season of The Hour with a 60-minute one-on-one with Michael J. Fox … and yes, that was Sarah McLachlan looking lovely at the CBC Fall Launch. She showed up to cheer on her current squeeze, Dragons’ Den panelist Brett Wilson.

FILMFEST FOLLIES: Now that we’re getting close to the finish line, hot titles emerging from this year’s Toronto International Film Festival include Atom Egoyan’s Chloe, Bruce Beresford’s Mao’s Last Dancer, Rodrigo Garcia’s Mother & Child, Lee Daniels’ Precious,

BONO: at TIFF

Ruba Nadda’s Cairo Time, Tom Ford’s A Single Man, Lone Sherfig’s An Education, Jason Reitman’s Up In The Air, Joel & Ethan Coen’s A Serious Man, and Brigitte Berman’s controversial celluloid portrait of Hugh Hefner. Should be interesting to see who finishes in the money when TIFF prize-winners are announced tomorrow afternoon … stars continue to shine where and when you least expect them to. My spies tell me Jason Reitman devotee Aaron Eckhart slipped in to see Up In The Air last weekend.’Bono showed up for his pal Colin Farrell at the unveiling of Neil Jordan’s Ondine. Geoffrey Rush

CAINE: conversing

came out to cheer for Michael Sheen in Tom Hooper’s The Damned United. And Sam Neill was among the eager onlookers who raised hands to ask questions when Harry Brown hero Michael Caine participated in a 90-minute on-stage Conversation with Seamus O’Regan … and at the initial screening of Lars Von Trier’s AntiChrist, which premiered the first night of the festival, my spies report that midway through the film “someone actually fainted and caused a bit of a scene when they toppled onto the row in front of them, totally alarming those people. Talk about a perfect way to start a film festival!!”

SMITH: great quotes

QUOTABLE QUOTES: “A lot of things have disappeared as I have grown older and a lot of wrinkles and flab have suddenly appeared. But whatever I’ve lost, I still have great legs. As the late actress Kitty Carlisle Hart used to say as she showed her gams at age 90, ‘The legs are the last to go.’ Kitty had a good life motto. She looked at herself every morning in the mirror and said, ‘Kitty, I forgive you!’”

The speaker? Liz Smith, who just keeps wowing us with her wit ‘n’ wisdom on wowOwow.com.

TOGETHER AGAIN (ALMOST): It’s been years since they co-starred at the then Pantages in Phantom Of The Opera, but Colm Wilkinson and Rebecca

GREENWOOD: spectacular

Caine continue to brighten stage and screens. Wilkinson was here this week to promote The Tudors at CBC’s elegant mid-week Fall Launch. In the new season he plays an antagonist who Henry VIII summarily executes. “But they must have liked what I did, because they’ve asked me return as a ghost!” Meanwhile, the glory-voiced Ms Caine is set to headline her own concert show, Raising Caine, next Sunday Sept. 27 at the new Conservatory Theatre … and speaking of dynamic duos, Twin Peaks alumni Kyle MacLachlan and Joan Chen are only two of the reasons why TIFF showstopper Mao’s Last Dancer is such a riveting film. Credit director Bruce Beresford for hiring Bruce Greenwood to play the U.S. choreographer with his own agenda. Greenwood, who delivers a brilliantly nuanced performance,  is spectacularly good. But then, so is the movie. Don’t miss it.

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