Four very different new movies are up for review, and in their own way, "Whatever Works," "Food, Inc.," "Cheri" and "Public Enemies" all offer a reason, even if it's only a small one, to drop into your neighborhood theater.
After making three films in London and one in Spain, Woody Allen returns to his beloved New York City with "Whatever Works," a solid comedy about a misanthrope who discovers that it is possible to find a balance of happiness and hate, although the road might be dotted with many, many pitfalls. Good things take time, and in the case of curmudgeonly Boris Yellnikoff, good things will take the assistance of a lively female firecracker from Mississippi.
Yellnikoff is played to perfection by Larry David, who pulls off some talking-to-the-camera monologues that are sublime. Boris is a nuclear physicist who was almost nominated for a Nobel Prize. He divorces the wealthy woman who was his soul mate because he didn't think he deserved such luck. He fails at a suicide attempt.
Living in a ratty walk-up in Chinatown, he earns pocket change teaching children who annoy him how to play chess. Into his life comes a feisty, twentysomething southern lass named Melanie St. Ann Celestine, played by the delightful Evan Rachel Wood. Through some very smooth and believable mechanics of the easy-to-enjoy plot, the two end up living together. Trust me, it is not prurient or creepy or untenable.
After a drop-dead gorgeous Brit (Henry Cavill) and Melanie's mother and father (Patricia Clarkson and Ed Begley Jr.) show up, all of the characters will shed layers of their personalities and find new levels for enjoying life.
"Whatever Works" takes some delicious turns. I think of Allen's movies as wonderful short stories. This one is often hilarious and always clever. Filled with small surprises and large laughs, Allen's screenplay is a breath of fresh air. Due especially to the egregiously vulgar and smarmy Judd Apatows of the world, today's crass motion picture comedies wallow in a cesspool of their own making. It's a pleasure and a relief to have Allen going in the opposite direction. I relish his intelligence and wit, and I'm truly grateful that he continues to make movies for grown-ups.
"Whatever Works" is beautifully acted -- there could be some Oscar acting nominations in the future (Clarkson is glorious) -- and it makes it a joy to celebrate one simple word. That word is: smart.
I don't need to write too much about the documentary "Food, Inc." Go see it. Often alarming and always informative, the film explores the fascinating and frightening way food makes its way to your table.
You are aware of bullies in the corporate world. Well, the corporate world controls most of the food you buy. Director Robert Kenner is unafraid to take on people in power. If you think that the American food supply is safe or that farmers are dwelling in a postcard land of milk and honey, think again.
Kenner uses excellent interviews with authors Eric Schlosser ("Fast-Food Nation"), Michael Pollan ("The Omivore's Dilemma"), parents of children who died from E. coli, farmers afraid of a certain Big Brother chemical company, and ranchers trying hard to deliver safe food to consumers. The movie utilizes expert background footage, such as hidden-camera looks at slaughterhouses, and it takes a hammer to genetically modified seeds, which find their way into a lot of what you eat.
"Food, Inc." is a straightforward feature with a specific point of view. Unlike Michael Moore's expert work, Kenner doesn't inject himself into the proceedings. He doesn't need to. His material is strong enough not to need enhancement. Step-by-careful step, Kenner unleashes a broadside that is both brave and daunting. You'll never look at food in supermarkets or restaurants the same way again.
"Cheri" is a cheerful bauble of a film based on two books by the iconic French writer Colette. Set in Paris during the Belle Epoque, the whimsical movie follows the merry life of a courtesan named Lea De Lonval, played to the hilt by the utterly beautiful Michelle Pfeiffer.
She has a lot of money and lives in the lap of luxury. Men and the families of young men have paid her very well for her services, which are basically to provide companionship, sexual delights, or in the case of an angelic lad named Cheri, an education in the finer points of pleasing a woman, which includes a lot of sex. As directed by Stephen Frears ("The Grifters" and "The Crying Game") and written by Christopher Hampton, "Cheri" floats along like a pleasant dream.
The colorful, comic, costume melodrama stars Rupert Friend as the mop-topped son of Madame Peloux (Kathy Bates), a close friend of Lea's, who is twice his age. Mother Peloux's instructions? She wants her son to marry a rich girl, so it's Lea's job to make sure he knows what to do in the sack.
Alas, something unexpected rears its little head. Cheri and Lea fall in love with each other. That's not the way anybody planned this bit of sexual tutoring. Whose heart might be broken? See this thoroughly enjoyable movie to find out.
"Public Enemies," which follows the exploits of legendary bank robber John Dillinger, is no "Bonnie and Clyde," not that it has to be. Where "Bonnie and Clyde" is a lyrical masterpiece of love and violence, "Public Enemies" is a standard action picture with some good moments.
We never care about Dillinger, which may be due to the fact that Johnny Depp, who plays the machine-gun toting gangster, doesn't wrap himself around the part. Characters, even evil ones, need to be both hot and cold. You need to see both sides of them. Depp is all glossy sheen. There's no depth from Depp.
The film plays like a walk through a museum. After we meet the characters, we don't get to know much about them. It isn't just Depp who delivers acting with little heart. With one exception, the entire cast comes across a touch drab and maybe even stiff.
We understand that FBI man Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) is obsessed with Dillinger. We realize that J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) is a conniving man who plays politics. And we see how gangsters pit one gang against another. What we don't get is a reason to care about these characters. The screenplay by director Michael Mann and Ronan Bennett and Ann Biderman lacks memorable dialogue. It also mishandles the introduction of Frank Nitti.
One person stands out, and it's best actress Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard as Dillinger's girlfriend Billie Frechette. In the powerful scene during which she's beaten by a misguided cop, I thought, "Give her the best supporting actress Oscar now."
The movie is based on the book "Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34" by Bryan Burrough. What we know from it is that Dillinger was a very nasty man. It seems that the people connected with the film were afraid to show too much of the nastiness.
"Public Enemies" was shot using high-definition digital, not film. There are moments when things look flat and lifeless. Digital photography is like music on CD. It doesn't capture the natural warmth of film just as a compact disc doesn't have the resonance of a vinyl record. Right now, digital cinematography has not passed the test. Film is, in fact, better, especially for action movies when things are moving fast and furious on screen. Digital may have failed "Public Enemies."
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | July 7 2009 |