Movie Review: Bourne Ultimatum

By Amy Lamare, August 4, 2007

It is highly unusual for a sequel to pack as much fun, thrills and excitement into its allotted 2 hours as the original film did. It is even more unusual for each film in a series to get progressively better, more fun, more thrilling, more exciting. But that is exactly what has happened with the release of The Bourne Ultimatum (BORN3), the third flick in Matt Damon’s (MDAMO) very successful Bourne trilogy. The key, of course to the mounting excitement rolling through the first two films and on into the third is that our protagonist, Jason Bourne, has never found what he was seeking – his identity.

One of the signatures of the Bourne series is its setting and how vividly it uses the cities it moves through to aid and enhance the action. The Bourne Ultimatum follows in this precedent moving from Moscow to Turin to Paris, London, Madrid to Tangier to Morocco and finally to NYC where Bourne infiltrates the CIA’s black ops Manhattan headquarters.

Director Paul Greengrass (PAULG) who also helmed 2004’s Bourne Supremacy keeps audiences on the edges of their seats with the fast paced narrative and includes the audience in the hunt for Bourne’s true identity. And isn’t that where the success of these films lies? We, the audience, are right there with Bourne never knowing more or less than he does, and therefore as invested as he is in the hunt for his identity.

David Strathairn (DSTRA) plays the head of the CIA’s black ops division, which has changed its name from Treadstone to Blackbriar. He favors quick and total elimination of Bourne. Joan Allen (JALLE), his sidekick in black ops covertness, wants to bring Bourne in alive. She developed a certain fondness for him in Supremacy. Meanwhile, Bourne himself treads the line between coherence and madness with flashbacks to the day he was stripped of his true identity and turned into a killing machine. Too bad they forgot to strip him of his conscious while they were making him into the perfect assassin, eh?

Bourne is determined to find out who he was in this film. To that end he meets up with a journalist in London, played by Paddy Considine (PCONS) who has certain information about Bourne’s career heretofore unknown to him. But ooops, those pesky CIA mandated assassins are on his trail again and he and Considine go on the run. One of the very cool things the filmmakers do in The Bourne Ultimatum is truly show for the first time the extensive surveillance camera system in place in London. The CIA uses the system to track Bourne through the city.

Once they lose the latest assassin, Bourne tracks the source of Considine’s info to Madrid, where he meets up with CIA/Treadstone Operative Julia Stiles (JSTIL). She’s on his side now as she wants out of the CIA, wants a real life and knows Bourne has the skills to get them both out from under the crooked black ops division.

Resolution to the central issue of all three films-Who was Jason Bourne before he handed his life over to the CIA – proves ultimately very satisfying. Without question Matt Damon is Jason Bourne in much the same way that Sean Connery (SCONN) is James Bond and Harrison Ford (HFORD) is Indiana Jones. It is his signature role. And one he has been highly enjoyable to watch playing through three films over seven years.

The Bourne Ultimatum is a fun, action packed, smart, cool film that packs every scene and every shot with adrenaline pumping excitement.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry

By Amy Lamare, July 20, 2007

Lighthearted, thoroughly non-PC laughs abound in I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (INPCL), the new comedy from Adam Sandler (ASAND) and Dennis Dugan, the team that brought you Happy Gilmore and Big Daddy. Co-starring Kevin James (KJAME), Jessica Biel (JBIEL), Steve Buscemi (SBUSC), and Ving Rhames (VRHAM), audiences hardly have a moment to catch their breath before the next laugh rolls on in.

Kevin James plays Larry Valentine, a widowed father of two who makes his living as a firefighter. His partner in fire fighting is Adam Sandler’s Chuck Levine, lothario extraordinaire and Mr. February in the firemen’s calendar. It is quickly established that Chuck and Larry are best friends, but that they also could not be more different from each other. Larry is a family man still mourning the tragic death of his wife a year earlier. Chuck is a ladies man with an over-inflated sense of self. We soon find out Larry, busy dealing with his grief, did not file the paperwork to switch the beneficiary of his pension from his wife to his children before the deadline. As a fireman, he realizes his life is in danger on every shift, and he worries his children will be left without a means of support should he meet an untimely death. Getting married again is the only way to ensure his children are taken care of.

Conveniently, New York City has just enacted a civil domestic partnership law that Larry seeks to take advantage of. He convinces his friend Chuck, they’d be “homos on paper” only and the two set off for City Hall to make it legal. Yes, it seems like a thin plot device to go from grieving heterosexual widow to civil union with your best same sex friend. The chemistry between James and Sandler makes an improbable scenario work.

The pair soon finds themselves under investigation to determine the legitimacy of their union. Jessica Biel enters the story as their gorgeous attorney, whom Sandler falls for-but of course Biel thinks he is gay and so he must settle on being her girlfriend only. Steve Buscemi is deliciously creepy as an investigator convinced Chuck and Larry are trying to defraud the City with an illegitimate domestic partnership. High comedy ensues when the two very hetero men take on the mannerisms of stereotypically homosexual behavior.

At times throughout this film I was laughing so hard I snorted. Uncontrollably. It. Is. That. Funny. One evening, after a costume ball, Sandler’s Chuck gets into it with some anti-gay protesters. Suddenly his picture is splashed all over the front page of the newspapers. Sandler and James thrust into the gay community and held up as poster boys for discrimination against Gays and Lesbians is your classic fish out of water tale. Of course this does not do much to help relations down at the firehouse. All the firemen instantly believe that Chuck and Larry are a legitimate couple, whereas fire chief Dan Aykroyd knows they are pulling a swindle on the pension people and it does not sit well with him.

Sandler does one to two films per year and has proven to be quite savvy at choosing his projects. In 2006, Sandler’s Click grossed $137.3 million. In 2005 The Longest Yard grossed $158 million. In 2004, 50 First Dates grossed $120.9m. And in 2003, Anger Management grossed $135.6 million. Look for Chuck and Larry to make a similar amount.

Cameos by Richard Chamberlain, Dave Matthews and Lance Bass are worked to great advantage and many laughs. All in all, I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry is a leading candidate for funniest film of the year, and Rob Schneider (RSCHN) has a lot to do with that.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

By Amy Lamare, July 11, 2007

Disclaimer: I am a self-confessed, self-admitted, Harry Potter freak. So there was basically no way on earth I was not going to enjoy Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (HPOT5) when I was lucky enough to attend an advance screening Monday night. But I didn’t just like it, I loved it! It blew me away! It had me on the edge of my seat the entire time – and I read the book so I knew what was going to happen. This fifth installment in the wildly popular series of films based on the wildly popular J.K. Rowling novels is the best film to date.

I won’t go so far as to say this is the Greatest Movie Ever Made, because, well, for one thing, no one would believe me and that would be just ridiculous. Right? Right. Let’s just say I was not the only one practically skipping out of the theatre in my best Luna Lovegood impersonation while exclaiming to my brethren in Potter-mania how fantastic this film was.

David Yates helms this one, which takes a decidedly darker, grittier turn while also managing to stay true to the spirit of the first four Potter films and their legions of fans. All together, the first four films have earned $3.5 billion in theatrical release beginning with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in 2001.

Film opens on a dry, parched English summer with cousin Dudley and his moronic friends bullying Harry in a desolate playground. A storm rolls in fast, too fast, and Harry and Dudley run for cover in a tunnel just as two Dementors, the ghastly, ghostly guards of Azkaban, the wizard prison, attack Harry and Dudley. Harry produces the Patronus spell which served him so well in his duel with Voldemort at the end of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and makes quick work of both Dementors. Dudley is dumbfounded, not knowing what the hell happened as Muggles cannot see Dementors. Luckily, Mrs. Figg, a neighbor on Privet Drive comes into the tunnel to help Harry get Dudley home. Harry tries to hide his wand and Mrs. Figg tells him to keep his wand out, they might come back. Harry comes to learn that Dumbledore asked her to keep an eye on him.

Harry arrives back at his Aunt and Uncle’s house where the situation hasn’t improved and he’s still being treated like an unwelcome houseguest. Soon, a missive arrives from the Ministry of Magic and, well, I don’t want to give too much away to those who haven’t read the books before seeing the movies – but all is not right in the world-neither the Magical world, nor the Muggle world.

As we know from the end of the fourth film, Voldemort is back. The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, refuses to believe this and he and his minions have led a smear campaign against Harry and Dumbledore all summer to strip them of all credibility. Basically, things are shaping up exactly as they did fourteen years prior when Voldemort first rose to power and recruited his army and went on the horrific killing spree that led him to be referred to as ‘He Who Shall Not Be Named.’ The Ministry of Magic refuses to acknowledge the possibility of Voldemort’s return.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and the gang head back to Hogwarts for the year to find out the Ministry of Magic is taking an active hand in shaping the curriculum at the school. This new curriculum does nothing to prepare the students for what Harry knows is coming – a showdown with evil personified. Luckily, Hermione, Ron and Harry have an idea.

Ahhh, my love for Harry Potter shows here all too much. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the longest book in the series to date at a robust 870 pages, whereas the movie version is the shortest yet at 138 minutes. Basically, if I keep typing, I’m not only going to give away the entire plot, I’m going to rival J.K. Rowling at her most verbose in word count.

It’s a good movie. Nay, it’s a great movie. Go see it.

All the usual characters are back and in fine form, especially Alan Rickman (ARICK) as Professor Snape and Gary Oldman (GOLDM) as Sirius Black. Newcomer Evanna Lynch is delightful as Luna Lovegood as is Imelda Staunton ((ISTAU) as the Devil in Pink, Dolores Umbridge.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is great fun from beginning to end. I can’t wait for the next one!

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Miss Potter

By Amy Lamare, June 19, 2007

What is it about Renee Zellweger (RZELL) that inspires casting directors to tap her to play characters from Britain? First Bridget Jones and now Beatrix Potter. Surely there was an English actress who could have played the beloved author of ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit.’

Miss Potter strives to tell the story of this Victorian era author using the same style and tone as Finding Neverland with the life of JM Barrie. While it is similar in content and structure, Miss Potter fails to resonate as strongly with audiences.

As played by Zellweger, Beatrix Potter comes across as the Bridget Jones of Victorian England. She’s independent, single, and more than a little eccentric. She is also looked down upon by her mother but championed by her father. All her life Beatrix has been thought of as being a bit off, and her dear mama doesn’t let her forget all her supposed shortcomings easily – not even when she becomes a famous author and can buy and sell her parents many times over. Mom still sees her as weak and defective.

Its not just Mom who tries to undermine our dear Beatrix. She is also harangued by all the blue blooded unattractive suitors thrust in her path and must face reticence from publishers for her “bunny book.”

Finally one editor, played by Ewan McGregor (EMCGR) takes a shine to Beatrix and her kids story. In fact he takes such a shine to her that the two fall in love, enraging the nouveaux riche Potters. They feel Norman is beneath them and send their adult daughter away for three months in the hopes that she will get over her infatuation with her newly affianced beau.

The couple is wrenched apart alright but not as the Potters had hoped. The story takes a bit of license with historical facts, but that does not detract from the overall film. Director Chris Noonan does a serviceable job with his first feature gig since helming 1995s Babe.

All in all the film plays out with a considerable towards Finding Neverland. Even the film’s device of having Beatrix’ drawings of her animals come to life as she speaks to them has a bit of Neverland’s flavor to it.

The film’s running time is swift, coming in at under 90 minutes. All in all Miss Potter is a sweet but forgettable film.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Nancy Drew

By Amy Lamare, June 13, 2007

Nancy Drew (NDREW) has been popular with generations of young readers. The sassy and practical girl detective has been a role model for young girls since the 1930s. My generation grew up with Pamela Sue Martin as Nancy in the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mystery Hour in the late 70s. Now a whole new generation of girls are being introduced to the resourceful sleuth with Emma Roberts (EROBE) in the titular role. Yes, she hails from those Roberts’ – Daddy Eric and Aunt Julia (JROBE) are no doubt proud of their little Emma.

This remake suffers from an identity crisis. Emma plays Nancy straight – as if she is the lead character in a film aimed at children. But the rest of the production aims for Scooby Doo and Brady Bunch levels of camp that play better to an adult audience. Nancy seems much younger and more naïve than her teen counterparts, yet she is savvy enough to foil a burglar (played by Chris Kattan (CKATT)) soon after she moves to Los Angeles with her father.

Nancy’s father, played by Tate Donovan, is an attorney who relocates to Los Angeles and tasks Nancy with finding a home for them. Nancy of course gravitates towards a mansion in the Hollywood Hills with its own mystery attached to it. Never mind that Nancy gave old Daddy Dearest her promise to cut out all the super sleuthing when they left River Heights. The house they move into has a spooktacular history – an aging starlet was killed there and her murder has never been solved – of course. You half expect her to call Fred, Daphne, Velma and Shaggy for help on this one, so didactic is the manipulation of this part of the plot.

The wardrobe department oddly chose to dress Emma in Pamela Sue Martin’s old costumes. Or at least it seems that way, as Nancy’s retro look is at odds with the styles of the other teens around her. I happened to find this odd device comforting, having grown up with the 1970s Nancy Drew, but must wonder if it will make any sense to younger audiences.

The suspension of disbelief is critical to adults who want to enjoy this film. Sure, it’s improbable that our oddly dressed teenager has the detective skills to outwit the LAPD, LAFD and a myriad of adults including her father and teachers. But the fun in the whole mystique of Nancy Drew has always been her ability to stumble upon the answers to her mysteries and make it seem like part of her plan all along. Just go in and enjoy it for what it is – a fun summer flick featuring a young actress who gets more time on the silver screen than in the tabloids.

Nancy Drew opens in wide release on June 15, 2007.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Ocean’s 13

By Amy Lamare, June 9, 2007

The beauty of Ocean’s 11 and Ocean’s 13 (OCEN3) lies in the simplicity of their execution. Ocean’s 12 failed simply because it became too complicated. Each member of the team is assigned a task. A relatively simple task. It is the coming together of each of those tasks that makes the complicated crime both possible and perfect. If each man does his job, the plan’s execution should be simple. Ergo, 1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1+1=13. Simple. Complicated. Brilliant. Fun.

The film opens with shots of our gang enjoying the high life after their European heist. Most notably, loveable Reuben (Elliot Gould) is on the roof of a new Casino with business partner Willy Bank, played by Al Pacino (APACI). Bank is a notoriously corrupt Vegas businessman, but Elliot decided to put his trust in him because they were both “old enough to have shook Sinatra’s hand.” (Apparently, Sinatra is the Pope in this scenario. Oh wait, I’m from Vegas, he IS the Pope.) Unfortunately, Willy Bank screws Elliot over, who goes into a catatonic shock.

This pisses Danny Ocean and his crew off. And like the Hulk, you don’t want to make Danny Ocean unhappy.

So the gang goes off to Vegas to defraud Willy on the opening night of his casino, called “The Bank.” Since it’s scheduled to open on July 3 the team swiftly concocts a plan that is stunningly complex in its simplicity. If they are to sabotage the opening of The Bank, they need to hit Willy where he lives.

Fortunately for Ocean and the gang, Willy is so concerned with winning another Five Diamond award for the hotel that he is easily distracted. Carl Reiner impersonates a hotel critic to evaluate the soft opening for Five Diamond consideration. Meanwhile, the real critic, played by David Paymer (DPAYM), is beset by all kinds of horrors and mistreatments. “Don’t let the bed bugs bite” is what they should have told him upon check in.

In the first 20 minutes of the film we see the plot come together. Down in Mexico, Scott Caan (SCAAN) and Casey Affleck (CAFFL) are at work on their parts of the plan. Sabotage the dice (make them magnetic) and lighters (used to make the dice flip at will). While they are doing that, Brad Pitt’s (BPITT) Rusty plays a hairy hippy specializing in geology who shows up in Bank’s office to tell him that his Casino is vulnerable to a sizable earthquake and urges him to keep a seismometer on his desk to monitor the earth’s rockin’ and rollin’. Now the crew has a camera in their target’s office.

One of the delicious twists in this installment is the inclusion of former adversary Terry Benedict, played by Andy Garcia (AGARC), who bankrolls the heist. This enables Don Cheadle’s (DCHEA) Basher to buy a giant drill – the one used to carve out the French side of the Chunnel – and start drilling beneath the Casino in an effort to make that earthquake prediction come true. Other members of Ocean’s crew, such as Bernie Mac (BMAC), infiltrate the Casino’s staff to corrupt from within.

Last but not least, Linus (Matt Damon (MDAMO) is charged with the seduction of Bank’s sharp #2 gal, played by Ellen Barkin (EBARK). He is posing as the manservant of the wealthy Mr. Wang, played by the group’s Shaobo Qin. They do it all to restore Reuben to health, wealth and vitality.

Steven Soderbergh (SSODE) both directed and lensed (using his nom de camera “Peter Andrews”) and the resulting images are sumptuous to behold. Ocean’s 13 is a light and fun film for summer audiences, full of the fun and banter we’ve come to expect from the franchise.

Ocean’s 13 opens in wide release on June 9, 2007.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: License to Wed

By Amy Lamare, July 4, 2007

License to Wed (LSWED) stars Mandy Moore (MMOOR) and The Office’s John Krasinski (JKRAS) as Sadie and Ben. They play a winsome couple who meet at Starbucks, date, fall in love and get engaged. This all happens in the first 10 or so minutes of the film. Ben wants to run away and marry in a tropical locale, but Sadie caves to the wishes of her blue-blooded family and the couple agrees to marry in the same church her parents were married in. So far so good, right?

We are then introduced to Robin Williams’ (RWILL) Reverend Frank and his sidekick, Choir Boy, played by Josh Flitter. Rev. Frank has declared himself at war with the rising divorce rate and in order to better equip the couples he’s been asked to marry, he requires they complete his marriage preparation course. The film stops making sense at this point. Reverend Frank has Sadie and Ben jump through hoops so ridiculous we cease to care one whit about their characters and begin to wonder what drew the two of them together in the first place.

Rev. Frank’s marriage preparation course seems to be designed specifically to break Sadie and Ben up, as he does everything but take a crow bar and pry them apart. Sadie inexplicably morphs into a mindless drone who drinks in Reverend Frank’s heresy like it is the elixir of life. Ben stands around and watches and begrudgingly goes along with it. Robin Williams, as usual, infuses his character with so much manic energy that all you can do is sit and watch as the train wreck unfolds.

Reverend Frank and Choir Boy, as played by Williams and Flitter, are like a Mafia Don and his henchman. Their subversive techniques should be studied by the CIA. A ban on premarital sex is one thing, animatronic twins another, wire tapping their phones to better fuel the flames of miscommunication is something else altogether illegal.

Look, the basis for the entire propagation of the romantic comedy as a genre is when our characters “meet cute” and get to know each other. Inevitably there will be some big misunderstanding that will threaten the foundation of their love, but it lasts fifteen minutes, is resolved and everything is all lovey dovey once again.

The filmmakers of License to Wed made a huge miscalculation when they took the entire raison d’etre of the romantic comedy and boiled it down to the first ten minutes of the film, leaving audiences with the ninety or so minutes of the uncomfortable tension, will they or won’t they make it part of the story.

Mandy Moore and John Krasinski make a cute screen couple but it is a shame they didn’t have better material to work with. License to Wed is neither romantic, nor comedic.

License to Wed comes to theaters on July 3.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Georgia Rule

By Amy Lamare, May 12, 2007

It’s not that Georgia Rule (GARUL) is a bad movie. It isn’t. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy it. I did, I think. It’s just that well- trailers would lead us to believe Georgia Rule is a comedy. The presence of director Garry Marshall (GAMAR) solidifies my assumptions that this is a broad, lighthearted comedy about strained familial relationships.

It is. And yet it isn’t. It is a film about strained familial relationships. It has some comedic moments. The overall tone of this movie though, and the family secret at the heart of the strained familial relationships is dark and uncomfortable and at times tedious.

Jane Fonda (JFOND) is Georgia, grandmother to Lindsay Lohan’s (LLOHA) Rachel. Felicity Huffman (FHUFF) is Lily, daughter to Georgia and mother to Rachel. Georgia has a set of rules she lives by, such as “Do not take the Lord’s name in vain, Georgia rule;” and hence, the title of the film. Lily fled the small Idaho town she grew up in and embarked on a life of alcoholism with brief respites to have Rachel and marry a wealthy San Francisco attorney. Cary Elwes (CELWE) plays Arnold, husband to Lily, step-father to Rachel.

You still with me?

Film opens on Lily and Rachel having a fight in Lily’s Mercedes on a lonely mountain road near the Idaho state line. Rachel exits the car in a huff. Lily drives off, leaving her 17-year-old daughter on a deserted highway in the middle of nowhere. Alone.

Rachel is being delivered to her grandmother Georgia in Hull, Idaho for some perceived offense she perpetrated against her mother and step-father. Nature of said offense is never made clear, but becomes less important as the true nature of the familial relations unfolds.

Rachel is discovered sleeping beneath the “Welcome to Idaho” sign by local boy Harlan and is deposited into the convertible of grandma’s buddy Simon for transportation into Hull. Harlan is played by Garrett Hedlund (GHEDL) and Simon is played by Dermot Mulroney (DMULR).

Once she arrives at her Grandmother’s house, we learn that Grandma has secured a summer job for Rachel as the receptionist in Simon’s bustling small town vet office. Harlan is both a Mormon and a virgin. We watch and wince as Rachel asserts her sexuality with unnatural ferocity.

Then there’s the revelation that explains Rachel’s behavior, banishment and ballsy moves. She takes it back. Then no, ooops, it really is true. We are tugged back and forth so many times on this issue that we, like Rachel, are not sure what is the truth and what is a lie. We, like Rachel, begin to wonder, if you tell a lie often enough, does it become the truth?

Grandma Georgia finds out the secret. Mama Lily comes rushing to Idaho. Much liquor is drunk and many fights are had but it is these scenes between Fonda, Huffman and Lohan that make up for the downright schizophrenic nature of the rest of the script. Once the women band together to right the wrongs that have happened both in the recent and distant past the film gains strength and momentum and purpose.

Overall, audiences are likely to feel misled by the advertising as film is very dark and at times uncomfortable to view. Evoking this visceral reaction in audiences is director Marshall’s specialty-though usually he plays it for laughs, not melodrama. Georgia Rule is a decent pic. Not great, but worthwhile enough for the performances of the three leading women.

The film opens in theaters on Friday, May 12.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: Dreamgirls

By Amy Lamare, May 1, 2007

Adapting a smash Broadway show with an iconic soundtrack is hard enough. Adapting it in such a way that a former nobody is a newly minted Oscar winner – well that is a rare feat indeed. Then, once you’ve accomplished all that-add in a Golden Globe win for Best Picture and box office grosses topping $100 million and you’ve got one singular sensation known as Dreamgirls.

Oh sure, the cheese factor is high, but that is the beauty of the musical -one expects, no, one demands a certain level of cheese. Based on the 1981 Broadway musical rumored to be loosely based on the rise of The Supremes, this flick is a party from the opening note to the closing bars. The producers put all the right ingredients together, stars Beyonce Knowles (BKNOW), Jamie Foxx (JFOXX), Eddie Murphy (EMURP) and newcomer/erstwhile American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson have the presence and chops (both acting and signing) to bring this story to life, and Oh, let’s bring on the mad genius who adapted 2002’s Chicago for the big screen – Bill Condon -to write and direct.

Was there ever any doubt the producers had a hit on their hands?

Foxx plays Curtis Taylor, a car salesman in Detroit who turns talent manager to exploit; er I mean promote the vocal talents of neighborhood gal Jennifer Hudson, only to push her aside in favor of her skinnier, prettier, infinitely more marketable friend Beyonce. Only, you know, with two hours of story exposition and justification in there before the inevitable happens.

Seriously though, real life history shows that Donna Summer was brought in to replace her heavier, dowdier, childhood friend Florence Ballard. In the real world, it was Barry Gordy, not Jamie Foxx who perpetrated this injustice.

Back in the world of Dreamgirls we have Jennifer, Beyonce and Anika Noni Rose as the Dreams, the backup singers for Eddie Murphy – a soul man in the mold of James Brown who is determined to do it his way-by overuse of girls, drugs and liquor. Foxx, driven to make his singers appeal to a wider (aka white audience) replaces Jennifer with Beyonce, a thinner singer who he marries.

The drama, people, is all over this group of singers and hangers-on and their relationships to and with each other. It makes for one hell of a fun ride. If you haven’t had a chance to experience Dreamgirls, I highly recommend you pick it up when it makes its DVD debut on May 1st. If you’ve already seen it, well then no convincing is necessary, your copy is already ordered, isn’t it?

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.

Movie Review: After The Wedding

By Amy Lamare, April 13, 2007

The Oscar nominated film After the Wedding (AFWED) is a well crafted drama about how choices, changes, secrets and revelations affect everything in a person’s life. The dramatic situations and convoluted relationships in this story could have easily turned into a film filled with clichés and examples of the worst of human interaction. Danish director Suzanne Bier handled each individual situation delicately and wove it into a strong film that delights in its unexpected moments of pure humor.

Casino Royale’s Mads Mikkelsen (MMIKK) plays Jacob, a Dane who runs an orphanage in India. He is preparing to return to Denmark to meet a benefactor named Jorgen (Swedish thesp Rolf Lassgard) who has pledged to donate a large sum of money with one caveat: Jacob must come to Denmark to get it. Well our boy Jacob is clearly taking one for the team, as the reason for his reluctance to return to his homeland is a mystery to the audience at this point. The children of the orphanage clearly love Jacob and vice versa. Despite promising his kids that he would return soon, it is obvious there are skeletons in his closet back home.

In Copenhagen we get to know Jorgen and his wife Helene in a touching scene that takes place in the bathtub. He is arrogant, but a bit charming. The director goes far to show this character’s softer side. He is not all big bad billionaire benefactor, he’s a father and husband too, one who is preparing for the wedding of his daughter Anne.

Jorgen informs Jacob that he hasn’t completely made up his mind to donate money and he needs a few days to think about it. He insists Jacob attend his daughter’s wedding. Jacob reluctantly agrees.

The emotional cues and foreshadowing are all heavy handed but still manage to work. We knew in the scenes in India that Jacob had “a past” in Denmark he wasn’t eager to revisit. It does not come as much of a surprise when at the wedding Jacob and Helene recognize each other.

Note that the title of this movie is After the Wedding. These scenes are actually the build up to the meat of the story. The events at the wedding set in motion the maelstrom of revelations, changes and choices the characters face for the rest of the film. No one’s coming out of that wedding the same.

The film is a melodrama but there is something delightful about the bizarre circumstances that force the characters to show real emotion. Like a train wreck, we started off on one course. It seemed this would be an average ride, but it went abruptly off course. How each character gets back on course is fascinating.

After the Wedding does not offer answers or wrap up its story in a neat little ending. Instead it is an exploration of the search for answers, the desire for meaning and truth. What we thought was true, was not. The more noble choice turns out to be the more selfish one. What is responsibility?

Scripter Anders Thomas Jensen knows how to avoid the traps of melodrama — he and Bier previously collaborated on the excellent Open Hearts and Brothers — and how to take the cliches of the genre and use them to further develop the characters.

Bier and d.p. Morten Soborg create an uncomfortable sense of intimacy through the use of extreme close-ups. Feelings of unease are also heightened by many quick shots of trees and flowers in silhouette against the sky, plus Swedish composer Johan Soderqvist’s provides the foreboding score.

Mikkelsen, who played the lead in Open Hearts, makes Jacob a man torn apart by his loneliness and memories of the past, and convincingly portrays the anger beneath his outward calm. Lassgard is also tops, making Jorgen initially unsympathetic but gradually layered. Knudsen is fine and, as Anna, newcomer Christensen holds her own against the three vets.

After The Wedding is currently in limited release.

This work is the property of HSX.com/Hollywood Stock Exchange and Amy Lamare. It is not to be reused, reprinted or stolen under any conditions.