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Scary Movie 3
Ah yes, the third installment of some of the funnier spoofs to come out in the last decade. This time, the Zucker Brothers (Airplane, Hot Shots, Naked Gun) take over the helm from the Wayans Brothers. Much like the previous films, this is a spoof of recent horror films and popular culture. The Ring and Signs seem to be the primary targets this time around, with a dash of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. There really isn’t much of a plot, as you would expect from a spoof. Aliens are threatening to invade earth and there is a weird little girl coming out of television sets and killing people, but how do the two coincide? That’s basically it. Most of the original cast is back for this one, plus the addition of spoof veterans, Charlie Sheen and Leslie Nielsen, as well as Simon Rex and Jeremy Piven. Of course, there are cameos galore like Pamela Anderson, Jenny McCarthy, and about a dozen rap and hip-hop stars. But is it funny? It is definitely funny with some gut-busting moments, following the Zucker Brothers formula of joke-after-joke attacks, but ultimately, it’s just another sequel to a series that began with an instant classic.
Runaway Jury
Based on a John Grisham novel, Jury is the story of a law office that is shot up by a group of masked assailants. One lawyer in general, played by Dylan McDermott, is shot point blank. His wife takes the maker of the guns that killed her husband and others to court. She hires Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman) as her attorney, while the opposition is headed by the scandalous, conniving Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman). On the jury is a Nicholas Easter (John Cusack), a manager of a video games store with the gift of gab, who can win over pretty much anyone he desires. A mystery woman by the name of Marlee (Rachel Weisz) phones both attorneys, saying she controls the jury and can promise a verdict for whichever attorney coughs up $10 Million. At first dismissive, the attorneys don’t realize how much power over the jury she actually wields. Especially since her boyfriend is Nicholas.
What can you say about a courtroom drama with a cast like this? Top notch acting all the way around carries this film through spells of brilliance and preachiness. There is one scene in particular that’s worth waiting for, which is when Wendell and Rankin have a showdown in the men’s room of the courthouse. It’s been a long time coming for these two acting heavyweights to share a moment like this. The resolve of the film is surprisingly dark, yet hopeful. The loose ends are tied up nicely. While I am personally anti-gun, I don’t like to force my opinions on anyone. I enjoyed this film, but they really pounded home the anti-gun message. Not that I minded, but I am sure there are others that probably felt like they were being treated to a sermon.
Mystic River
This is probably one of the heaviest films I have seen in some time. Sean Penn is Jimmy Markum, a reformed thug and owner of a convenience store in old town Boston, Massachusetts. Jimmy is trying to lead a normal life now that he is married with children, wanting to leave his thug life behind him. His daughter, Katie, ends up missing after partying the night before and, later that day, is found beaten to death. A childhood friend of Jimmy, Detective Sean Devine (Kevin Bacon) is assigned to the case. The list of suspects begins to grow, with Katie’s boyfriend and another childhood friend of Jimmy, Dave Boyle (Tim Robbins) leading the pack. Dave was abducted as a child by two men posing as cops and molested. Ever since then, he hasn’t been the same and almost appears to be insane. When comes home the morning of Katie’s death with blood on his hands, he becomes an even greater suspect. Jimmy and two thug friends from the neighborhood, the Savage Brothers, begin to conduct their own investigation, as the question of whether Jimmy is truly reformed comes into play.
Expect to see this film’s name in many categories at the Oscars, and deservedly so. Director Clint Eastwood should receive a nomination, as should Bacon, Robbins, Penn, Marcia Gay Harden (Dave’s wife) and Laura Linney (Jimmy’s wife). The film will most likely get nominate for Best Picture. It’s that good. An excellent whodunit with some of the best acting that you will see. Run to the theater and see this if you know what’s good for you.
The Cat in the Hat
There was a bit of an uprising by Dr. Seuss enthusiasts over whether Ron Howard’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas was just plain sacreligous to the good doctor’s tome. There has been an even bigger outcry with the latest adaptation of a Seuss classic, The Cat in the Hat. While I didn’t necessarily agree about Grinch, I truly agree with the opinions on Cat. This is the story of a rebellious boy named Conrad (Spencer Breslin) and his goody-two-shoes sister, Sally (the immensely talented, nine-year old Dakota Fanning aka future Oscar winner) that are visited by the giant Cat (Mike Myers) after complaining of boredom. The kids have specific instructions by their hot mother (Kelly Preston, and boy do I mean HOT) to keep the house immaculate, as she is having an office party later in the evening. If the house is not immaculate, her boss (Sean Hayes) will fire her. This becomes a tall order, as the Cat, hell-bent on having fun, doesn’t know the meaning of restraint. On top of that Mom’s boyfriend, Quinn (Alec Baldwin), who’s also their next door neighbor and overall ne’er-do-well, is desperate to ship Conrad off to private school and will do anything he can to make that happen. Threats of sabotage abound.
While I thought the film was funny, I was also turned off by the excessive vulgar humor throughout the film. Now, I don’t want to sound like a hypocrite here, because I do love vulgarity, but it’s just not necessary in the telling of a Dr. Seuss tale. The creators of this film seemed desperate to appeal to adults as much as children, but their only way of working adult jokes into the story was to make them plain-as-the-nose-on-your-face vulgar. Look at smart kids films such as anything put out by Pixar/Disney (Toy Story’s I & II, A Bug’s Life, Finding Nemo), ripe with SUBTLE adult humor as well as hundreds of jokes for the kids. They created the proper balance without resorting to innuendo and toilet humor.
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