The Stab: Funnier than you might think with potentially good intentions and a duo of charming leads, but the humor is furiously forced and misses more than it hits, before the narrative concludes in complete disarray.
The film opens on a scrawny, squirmy guy speaking directly into the camera. He presents a silver heart-shaped box to an unknown party in a lame attempt to convey his affection. His plea is pathetic, his image slimy and sleazy, and the overall effect is uncomfortably repulsive. Sure, we feel sorry for him, but God save whoever is on the receiving end of this display. This is Kirk, our protagonist and the one whose causes we’re supposed to champion in this film. Thankfully, Kirk redeems himself on the nerdy charms of his awkwardness and good-natured demeanor, ...Continue Reading
Spoiler alert! There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq! Believe it or not, this bit of knowledge immediately dispels more than half of the intrigue found in Green Zone, a severely misguided excursion that ultimately delivers on none of its expected fronts.
Matt Damon plays Roy Miller, a U.S. Army officer on the hunt for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq in the wake of the U.S. invasion. After following verified intelligence to abandoned toilet factories and empty warehouses, he begins to suspect that something is not right—that our intelligence sources are, perhaps, not all they’re cracked out to be. Miller begins his own investigation of sorts, ignoring orders from his superiors and cooperating with competing intelligence officials on his quest for the truth.
But the “truth” he is searching for comes as no surprise ...Continue Reading
During the movie-going doldrums of January, a teenage rom-com emerges a cut above the schlock. It’s not a prolonged stint of anarchy as you might be—as I was—expecting. Instead, it’s got a quirky pulse and, for awhile at least, a deliciously nerdy vibe.
Michael Cera is his typical pillow-pasty self—only this time there’s no will to conform or even, for awhile at least, to reform. Of course, he’s still not “getting any,” even as his screen mother (Jean Smart) beds a revolving door of greasy guys and her ex-husband (Cera’s screen father, played by Steve Buscemi) enjoys a busty young blonde.
When Cera’s love-starved Nick Twisp meets the wistful Sheeni Saunders, played by ravishing newcomer Portia Doubleday, a wonderful depiction of young love and a delirious celebration of geekdom commence. They share in high-brow hobbies and ...Continue Reading
The year 2009 opened on a sad note in Harford County with residents still mourning the death of prominent, longtime school superintendent Jacqueline Haas. Before the year was over, Harford County would lose two other wellknown female leaders – former delegate Joanne Parrott and Harford County Councilwoman Veronica Chenowith.
It was also a year of contradiction. Even as President-Elect Barack Obama slowed his inaugural train ride through Edgewood in January to wave and thank a thousand or so supporters, there were a thousand or so more Harford County residents who fought tooth-and-nail in September to prevent President Obama’s live address to be shown to their children during the school day.
Bel Air High School was demolished and Fallston Library was spared from closure. Art Helton survived another political scandal in Aberdeen while Harford County’s delegation to the Maryland General Assembly played a furious and humiliating game of musical chairs in Annapolis.
• The Twilight Saga: New Moon
• An Education
• The Blind Side
• Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Summit)
The Stab: A satisfying second chapter to the Twilight saga, improving on its predecessor in every way possible. Even with a scant narrative, the film gushes with dark romance and flights of fancy.
New Moon brings a new beginning and a major upgrade to the Twilight franchise. Director Chris Weitz fills in the critical cracks of the first film created at the clumsy hands of Catherine Hardwicke.
The first entry’s restricted perspective and seasick framing are replaced by expansive lensing and an epic scope. Effects are sharper, clearer, and more convincing. Instead of cheesy baseball montages, we get chiseled boys transforming into massive wolves.
The writing is more rhythmic and intuitive, expunging the improvised ramblings of the first installment. The actors also prove more proficient. ...Continue Reading
The Stab: A poor excuse for filmmaking lacking in virtually every department. Even sequences of grandiose Earthly devastation are dim and dull. With a two-and-a-half hour runtime, this isn’t a movie: it’s torture.
2012 is just as the ancient Mayans predicted: an earth-shattering, cataclysmic event unleashing untold horror and agony upon the entire human race. I hope my creative license to use hyperbole is appreciated, even if I won’t be using it here.
In the year 2012, solar flare storms bombard the Earth. The core melts, and the Earth’s crust begins to shift. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis abound, destroying the world as we know it.
The film alternates its focus between diplomatic preparations before the coming crisis, and one family’s struggle to survive the global disaster. One perspective is just as stupid as the other.
As patriarch of the fleeing family, John Cusack wears his embarrassment over ...Continue Reading
The Stab: Rich with style and substance. Moves slowly but holds strong. A must-see for serious filmgoers.
This darkly ironic comedy will make you go “huh” a lot more than “ha ha”—unless you are one to find humor in another’s misery. Larry Gopnik is steadily losing the reins on his life despite his own best intentions. He must care for his inert, socially stunted brother. His tenure hangs in the balance between weakening social stability and the bribes of a failing pupil. His wife Judith prepares to leave him for the pharisaical Sy Ableman, who continually assures Larry that he’s “going to be fine.” Sy echoes the urgings of Larry’s Jewish faith: that everything will work out and he should simply bide his time. But Larry feels imprisoned by inaction and uncertainty. The Coen Brothers hold back nothing as they simultaneously ...Continue Reading
The film adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s beloved story Where the Wild Things Are is ambitious, built from a mere eighteen illustrations and ten (grammatically-flexible) sentences. Sendak promotes childhood escapism from a world of increasing anxiety, and Spike Jonze’s film vibrantly honors this spirit.
The world weighs heavily on Max, our rambunctious young protagonist. He is dismayed by sibling rivalries, the shortcomings of single parenting, and even the impending explosion of our Sun. The film successfully and even quite elegantly portrays these issues with the detached curiosity and naiveté of a child.
Max is a little boy, and he just wants to be a little boy. He wants to build snow forts, jump on tables, and growl at passers-by. A trip to the family practitioner would probably yield a prescription for ADD medication. Society seems to be working against Max, and his place in our world feels elusive to him.
Three sets of slackening spouses pack up and ship off to “Eden,” a tropical marriage rehab resort, to try to strengthen their holy unions. Actually, only one couple, played by a frigid Jason Bateman and Kristen Bell in business-class chic, hopes to rediscover marital bliss. The others attend at the promise of paradise and to round out the discounted group rate.
Of course, Vince Vaughn and Malin Akerman have lost a sense of each other in the day-to-day, and Jon Favreau can barely stifle a shudder at the sight of his wife, played by Kristin Davis (the feeling is mutual for Davis). A newly-separated Faizon Love also tags along with a fly-fab barely-legal to provide pratfalls, racial stereotypes, and old-guy-with-a-young-gal jokes a-plenty. So rest assured: this should prove a learning experience for everyone.
“Eden” is gorgeous, with crystal blue waters and spotless skies. Upon ...Continue Reading
“I think that I shall never see / A poem as lovely as a tree.”
American writer Joyce Kilmer penned these now ubiquitous words nearly a century after the demise of English poet John Keats. Perhaps Kilmer should have better studied the forefathers of his art. During his tragically short life, John Keats drew upon the inevitable forces of nature for poetic inspiration, crafting pieces to stand the test of time, as natural and, yes, as lovely as the seasonal chromatic changes of leaves on a tree. In her latest film “Bright Star,” visionary filmmaker Jane Campion brilliantly captures and explores the raw power behind Keats’ poetry—the mélange of love, nature, and instinct that his most prolific works would exemplify.
The aesthetic values alone provide reason enough for distinction. Cinematographer Greig Fraser offers breathtaking views of England’s natural landscape, lighting each frame with the suggestion of a heavenly aura. Scenes and locations ...Continue Reading
