It makes sense that a film based on true crime events from the Bay Area in the 1970s should feel like that era's moody detective dramas. The new film ZODIAC, just out in theaters, captures the look and feel of retro San Francisco through its soundtrack, earthy costuming and some masterful CGI effects. It even references the Steve McQueen classic BULLIT directly. It's a very well-done film and a pretty good excuse to go out to the cinema. But then maybe nothing beats the real thing... We've been upkeeping a display of San Francisco movies in the store — THE CONVERSATION, VERTIGO, ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, TIME AFTER TIME... Plus some lesser-known and more up-to-date treats. It's been on display for a few weeks now, but it has turned into such a fun destination for customers, we think we'll keep it going for awhile.
As for what's new on video, read on...
yours,
team four star
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
SHORTBUS.
Comedy/Drama/Experimental/Music.
Sook-Yin Lee, Paul Dawson, Lindsay Beamish, PJ DeBoy, Adam Hardman.
Directed by John Cameron Mitchell.
* A film that begins with an explicit depiction of auto-felatio is certainly not for everyone. And be warned that this latest from John Cameron Mitchell (creator of HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH) is very explicit indeed. But the truth is, it all feels more frisky than sleazy — sort of like the Good Vibrations of movies. The film weaves a fabric of hip New Yorkers who convene at a carnival-like underground salon called SHORTBUS. It's filled with all sorts of queers and trannies, and at the center is a sweet professional woman who has yet to achieve an orgasm. The film's story lines are loose, and certain sections meander to the point of tedium. But it remains a smart and funny film, and one that achieves moments of poetry amidst all the dildo gags. There is a goosebumpy conversation about the AIDS epidemic held between an old man who claims to be the former mayor of New York and a beautiful young male model. Then there's the primal soundtrack by Animal Collective, not to mention an a capella version of "The Star Spangled Banner" sung heroically by three men in the midst of an oral orgy. We'll just say it's a cheeky rendition. Which brings us to the point of it all: The film is Mitchell's idiosyncratic response to the aftermath of 911, a reaction against violence and a proposal that the revolution may be a sexual one after all. The liberal politics are as explicit as the sex, and the film's critics include The Washington Post: "Mitchell's portrayal of sex as the ultimate vehicle for transcendence, self-knowledge and healing, while conveyed with authentic sweetness, seems shockingly naive."
see also: HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, ANGELS IN AMERICA, 9 SONGS.
............//NEW TITLES//............
CASINO ROYALE.
Action.
Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench, Mads Mikkelsen, Jeffrey Wright.
Directed by Martin Campbell.
* Maybe we were expecting the return of James Bond to be something more satirical. But the producers here apparently believed that a knowing wink could only lead to kitsch. Instead, they have chosen to make a good quality action movie, something you don't see very often these days. The luxurious trappings of 007 still entice: Gorgeous locations — the Bahamas, Montenegro, Venice — somehow make the world seem big again. The beautiful Bond girl and euphemistic come-ons are still at play. There are no gadgets, but there are all sorts of clever references to the Bond canon: This time, for instance, Bond wins his Aston Martin in a bet. One of the startling aspects of this film is that we are made to think about the body count. The Bond character — having just received his license of kill — is made to confront whether his arrogance has stamped out his ethics. Daniel Craig is simultaneously a more brooding and burlier Bond than we've ever seen: With his steely eyes and ape-like physique, he was clearly cast not in reference to the past actors. When asked by a barman, "Shaken or stirred?," he responds, "Do I look like a man who gives a damn?" He does have a suave gait, though. As for that theme song, not so great. Next time, why not commission the internationalist post-punk band Blonde Redhead instead? They'd be perfect.
see also: MIAMI VICE.
THE HOLIDAY.
Romantic Comedy.
Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Jack Black.
Directed by Nancy Meyers.
A LITTLE TRIP TO HEAVEN.
Drama/Thriller.
Forest Whitaker, Peter Coyote, Julia Stiles.
Directed by Baltasar Kormakur.
............//SERIES//...........
MILE HIGH, SERIES 1.
British Soap Opera Series.
............//NEW TO DVD//............
LA BELLE CAPTIVE.
Mystery/Fantasy. France. 1983.
Directed by Alain Robbe-Grillet.
****
****new release list no. 105
Dear friends,
After six years of living in the Bernal Heights area and working with Four Star Video, we (Jamie and Jeremy) are moving to England, to be near Jamie's family and make art.
Our tenure at the shop has been an incredible ride — filled with special memories and also some very challenging times, particularly with the sudden passing of our partner Dave this winter. We leave you all with much gratitude. We have met so many amazing people... Folks who have influenced the way that we see the world, and kids that we've seen grow up from little tots to teenagers. What a trip! You've brought us a lot of smiles. We will remember you forever.
We have, along with Dave's family, sold the shop to an amazing couple, Ken and Amy Shelf. They are our friends, neighbors and customers, and have worked with us on accounting in the past. Ken and Amy both come from solid backgrounds in small business, and are also film buffs. We even carry Ken's feature film, HUMANS BEING, in our shop. Ken and Amy were good friends with Dave for years. (When their son Huckleberry, just days old, made his very first outing from the house, it was a trip down to the video shop to meet Dave!) We all feel that this transition seems like kismet, and that Dave is looking down on us approvingly.
We want to assure you that this has very much been a team effort. Ken and Amy are fully aware of the shop's mission and role in the community. It is with deep relief that we can honestly say we couldn't think of a better match to take the shop into its next phase. Ken and Amy are completely respectful about the things that make Four Star work so well. They are also excited to introduce some new energy to the business — namely, expanding the shop's position as a place for learning about film, and reasserting its commitment to local youth. They are so enthusiastic about the shop's future. We can't wait for you to meet them: They're totally stoked! With Ken and Amy on board, we are confident that Four Star will remain one of the keystone film libraries in the city, as well as a very special place to hang out.
Ken and Amy will be taking over on Friday, March 9. The current staff has happily agreed to stay on. We (Jamie and Jeremy) will be working with the new ownership for a month or so. Then what for us? We will move to England in May, where we will form a civil partnership. (Yes, you can get gay-married in England!) Then, who knows, it's on to the next adventure...
With a big hug,
Jeremy and Jamie
Four Star Video
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN.
Comedy.
Sacha Baron Cohen, Ken Davitian, Luenell, Pamela Anderson.
Directed by Larry Charles.
* Rude, lewd, totally offensive and kind of amazing, BORAT is unlike anything you've seen before. (Especially the homoerotic naked chase scene!) BORAT combines the slapstick social critique of Groucho Marx or Peter Sellers with the balls-out gags of the JACKASS crew. You probably know the set-up by now: As Borat, a cut-rate TV presenter from Kazakhstan, Sacha Baron Cohen visits America and interviews a bunch of ignorant fools, who are then edited to look even dumber. A rodeo cowboy is revealed to be homophobic, a high society gathering is full of hypocrites, a bunch of frat boys are misogynistic, and so on. Is Cohen's objectivity questionable? Surely. Is it unfortunate that the very real nation of Kazakhstan gets portrayed as a backwater? Yes. However, the broader point is to draw a comparison between a country generally regarded as unsophisticated and the uglier realities lurking within the world's most powerful nation. And ultimately whether or not the jokes are mean-spirited is kind of a moot point: This is a satire, as in making fun. P.S. Your DVD appears as if it is a bootleg. It was designed that way: The jokes here extend all the way to the packaging.
see also: >JESUS IS MAGIC, >BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE.
............//NEW TITLES//.............
BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN.
see above: "release of the week."
FAST FOOD NATION.
Comedy.
Wilmer Valderrama, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Greg Kinnear, Luis Guzmán, Bobby Cannavale, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Ashley Johnson, Paul Dano.
Directed by Richard Linklater.
............//SERIES//............
SOUTH PARK, SERIES 9.
Animation/Satire Series.
............//FAMILY//............
PETER PAN. (PLATINUM EDITION.)
Classic Disney Animation.
****
****new release list no. 104
Predictably, Sunday's Oscar ceremony was pretty boring and very draining. We can't believe Ellen didn't make her entrance in a MARIE ANTOINETTE wig. The best part was that 'sound effects choir.' Pretty impressive. It was also cool to see Alan Arkin win for his supporting role in LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. Hey, if you liked him in that, we recommend him in another quirky comedy from a few years back, THE SLUMS OF BEVERLY HILLS. Customers are always asking for "something funny, not too heavy, not intense..." Here's your tip: Try THE SLUMS.
If you missed the ceremony but want to get in on the celebrity ogling, we recommend the reports, blogs, podcasts and slideshows compiled by The Guardian UK. Hadley Freeman's fashion commentary is pretty funny, and she's right: It's super cute to see the Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN boys reunited. They're already the old school of the new Mexican cinema! By the way, we've got a display featuring all of the previous films by the Oscar-nominated directors Alfonso Cuaron (CHILDREN OF MEN), Guillermo del Toro (PAN'S LABYRINTH) and Alejandro Inarritu (BABEL) up at the front counter for you to browse.
Viva,
Four Star.
P.S. A very fond farewell to Sara. A Bernal Heights native and longtime Four Star clerk, Sara is leaving us to devote herself more fully to the local Muslim community and her linguistics studies. Sara filled our days with music and food and poetry and laughter and more food, and her presence will be very missed by us all. Sara still lives in the neighborhood, so you should still be seeing a lot of her around Cortland Ave. Big love, Sara!
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
STRANGER THAN FICTION.
Comedy/Drama/Fantasy.
Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Queen Latifah, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson.
Directed by Marc Forster.
* Meta-fiction has long been an area of interest for the esoterically-inclined, so isn't it about time that somebody nabbed the genre for, say, a Will Ferrell movie? Here, Ferrell plays an IRS Agent who realizes his life is being chronicled by a narrator whom only he can hear. She is a nearly forgotten author, struggling to complete her latest book, unaware that her protagonist is alive and uncontrollably guided by her words. Fiction and reality collide, and things get heated when Ferrell figures out that this particular authoress always ends her stories with a tragic death. Obviously, we're reminded of the screenplays of Charlie Kaufman (ADAPTATION, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND). But most critics contended that this film stands up pretty well on its own. Empire magazine wrote, "It might be Charlie Kaufman lite, but this is a great date movie for the discerning — smart, ingenious and heartwarming."
see also: ADAPTATION.
............//NEW TITLES//............
A GOOD YEAR.
Romantic Comedy.
Russell Crowe, Albert Finney, Marion Cotillard, Archie Panjabi.
Directed by Ridley Scott.
HEART OF THE GAME.
Documentary/Sports.
Directed by Ward Serrill.
JOURNEY TO THE END OF THE NIGHT.
Drama/Thriller.
Brendan Fraser, Mos Def, Scott Glenn, Catalina Sandino Moreno.
Directed by Eric Eason.
* Not an adaptation of the ironical epic by Louis Ferdinand Celine, this simply takes that book's title and tacks it onto a typical modern-day thriller. It's the story of a father and son separately plotting to escape the desolation of their lives in the lurid underworld of Brazil's sex industry. Good cast, though.
see instead: CITY OF GOD.
STRANGER THAN FICTION.
see above: "release of the week."
TENACIOUS D: THE PICK OF DESTINY.
Comedy/Music.
Jack Black, Kyle Gass.
Directed by Liam Lynch.
TIDELAND.
Drama/Fantasy.
Jodelle Ferland, Janet McTeer, Brendan Fletcher, Jennifer Tilly, Jeff Bridges.
Directed by Terry Gilliam.
............//NEW TO DVD//............
ELEGY OF THE LAND.
Documentary Shorts. 1977-1988.
Directed by Alexander Sokurov.
* This DVD compiles two early short films from the talented director of RUSSIAN ARK. From Facets: "Both of these moody, melancholy works emphasize the significance of the Russian land to its people on an almost spiritual level." MARIA serves as a requiem for a hard-working peasant woman as well as a lament over the loss of a way of life —after she died, her secrets and work methods died with her. THE LAST DAY OF A RAINY SUMMER, shot in 1978 on a collective farm, captures the daily routines of a community whose lifestyle was fading even as it was being chronicled.
see also: THE GLEANERS AND I.
THE EMPEROR'S NAKED ARMY MARCHES ON.
Documentary/War. Japan. 1987.
Directed by Kazuo Hara.
****
****new release list no. 103
Happy Chinese New Year!
Hey parents, we'd like to point you to this week's new release FLUSHED AWAY — a collaboration between Aardman Animations (which has brought you amazing stuff like WALLACE & GROMIT and CREATURE COMFORTS) and the studio behind SHREK. Our kid customers have also been going ga-ga over the CHARLIE AND LOLA cartoons from England. Sweet! Also, we've recently expanded our 'Retro Kids' selection. That's where you'll find episodes of THE ELECTRIC COMPANY and SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK, old Disney movies starring Hayley Mills, and stuff like FREE TO BE YOU AND ME, BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS and CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG.
Meanwhile, the grown-up shelves are filling up with Oscar nominees. As one of our regular customers put it, "The Academy members have returned their DVDs!" As for the encroaching Academy Awards, we have to say that we've become all to skeptical about an awards ceremony that is not dictated by film critics nor audience members, but industry insiders who have a vested interest in exactly what kind of film should win. Way too many awards go to the heavy-handed and the mediocre. So this year, we'll just be watching for the fashion.
love
4star.
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
THE PRESTIGE.
Drama/Thriller.
Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Scarlett Johansson, Michael Caine, David Bowie.
Directed by Christopher Nolan.
* Yes, it's the season of magic movies. And the producers of THE PRESTIGE were pretty stupid to let their little gem get released after both THE ILLUSIONIST and Woody Allen's SCOOP (which also stars Hugh Jackman and Scarlett Johansson). The thing is, THE PRESTIGE is the superior film of the bunch, and it'd be a shame for you to miss it just because you're all tricked out. Think back to THE ILLUSIONIST: Do you remember any magic? Or just a mildly entertaining Hollywood yarn? THE PRESTIGE, by contrast, is intoxicating from its first breath, and full of magic tricks that will haunt you for days. The lead actors are supremely easy to look at, and supported by none other than Michael Caine and David Bowie. The plotline follows two young magicians whose rivalry is bitter and violent. The twists are unexpected and enigmatic. Christopher Nolan, who previously directed MEMENTO and BATMAN RETURNS, may manipulate his audiences, but in his case, you don't seem to mind, you just go along for the ride. Because what a ride it is. "You want to see it again the second it's over," wrote Peter Travers in Rolling Stone. As for the magic, THE PRESTIGE takes a sharp angle — magic as both show biz trickery ripe for demystification, but also a real phenomenon obtainable through radical science. This one's a wower.
see also: THE ILLUSIONIST, SCOOP.
............//NEW TITLES//............
AMERICAN HARDCORE.
Music Documentary.
Henry Rollins, Flea, Ian MacKaye, Moby, Matthew Barney.
Directed by Paul Rachman.
BABEL.
Drama/Thriller.
Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael Garcia Bernal, Rinko Kikuchi.
Directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu.
* Winner of the Golden Globe for Best Picture and nominee for the Oscar as well, BABEL reads kind of like an international version of CRASH. The format — multiple stories intertwining through fate and coincidence — has become an audience favorite. Though this set-up was once championed with great elegance by directors like Robert Altman, it now suffers when employed as a forced conceit. BABEL is one of those films that lets you know how very important it is, which can be kind of alienating. Most people will think that BABEL is good enough. But good enough to win?
see also: 21 GRAMS, TRAFFIC, CRASH.
C.R.A.Z.Y.
Comedy/Drama/Gay Interest. Canada. (French language.)
Directed by Jean-Marc Vallee.
FLUSHED AWAY.
Animation.
Voices by Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellan, Jean Reno.
Directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell.
* Talk about potty humor: This animated feature is about cute little creatures stuck in sewage pipes. While a collaboration between Aardman Studios (WALLACE & GROMIT) and Dreamworks (SHREK) sounds great at first, you begin to worry when you ponder it shifting towards the SHREK side of things. Unfortunately, this film is done in GGI rather than claymation, meaning it'll loose some of WALLACE & GROMIT'S hand-touched charm, but this is still a must for animation geeks.
see also: WALLACE & GROMIT: THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT.
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
Comedy/Independent.
Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Jennifer Coolidge, Fred Willard.
Directed by Christopher Guest.
* "People want more pageantry, more red carpets," says a character in FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. "Is there anything wrong with that?" Christopher Guest and his merry crew (who put together BEST IN SHOW and WAITING FOR GUFFMAN) tackle the territory of an independent film production that begins to garner Oscar hype. The film-within-a-film is called "HOME FOR PURIM," a kind of "BIG FAT JEWISH WEDDING" mixed with the American film classic THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES. The timing of this release couldn't be better: With next Sunday marking the Oscar festivities, why not a little pre-show satire? The usual ensemble cast is joined here by cameos from folks like Ricky Gervais and Sandra Oh. And while our expectations were low after Guest's last endeavor, A MIGHTY WIND (which was just sort of a muffled fart), we were pleased to find a lot of spot-on improv and laugh-aloud one-liners here.
see also: THE FILMS OF CHRISTOPHER GUEST.
A GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTS.
Crime Drama/Independent.
Robert Downey Jr., Rosario Dawson, Chazz Palminteri, Dianne Wiest, Channing Tatum.
Directed by Dito Montiel.
KEEPING MUM.
Comedy. England.
Rowan Atkinson, Kristin Scott Thomas, Maggie Smith, Patrick Swayze.
Directed by Niall Johnson.
MAN OF THE YEAR.
Comedy.
Robin Williams, Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, Jeff Goldblum.
Directed by Barry Levinson.
OPEN WATER 2: ADRIFT.
Thriller.
Directed by Hans Horn.
* Jamie got a case of the giggles when he read the tagline for this film: "Fatigue. Hypothermia. Death." What more could you want from a video rental?
see also: OPEN WATER.
THE PRESTIGE.
see above: "release of the week."
SHUT UP & SING.
Music Documentary.
The Dixie Chicks, Rick Rubin, George W. Bush.
Directed by Barbara Kopple & Cecilia Peck.
* Who would picture a bunch of hipster queers standing around a San Francisco shop — with their eyes glued to The Dixie Chicks? But that’s exactly what happened when we first put this documentary on in the store. We laughed along with big mouth Natalie (man, can that girl eat!). We were appropriately grossed out by the redneck types who hated on her band after her off-the-cuff comment about George W. Bush. We came together and discovered that maybe we’re Dixie Chicks fans! It’s nice to watch a movie about musicians who are not self-destructive and self-pitying, but feisty and optimistic. This film is also an eye-opener in its footage of PR and media types in the brainstorming stage — here, responding to a large-scale public slander campaign. P.S. Our in-store screening prompted all of the remaining copies to rent out! So we put on BEDTIME FOR BONZO instead.
see also: THE U.S. VS. JOHN LENNON.
LA VIE PROMISE.
Drama. France.
Isabelle Huppert, Pascal Greggory.
Directed by Olivier Dahan.
............//SERIES//............
MI-5, SERIES 4.
British Espionage Drama.
THE RUTH RENDELL MYSTERIES, VOLUMES 1 - 3.
British Detective Drama.
............//NEW TO DVD//............
GANDHI.
Biography/Drama. 1982.
Ben Kingsley, Candice Bergen, John Gielgud, John Mills, Martin Sheen.
Directed by Richard Attenborough.
* Won 8 Academy Awards including Best Picture.
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS.
Biography/Drama. 1966.
Paul Scofield, Wendy Hiller, Orson Welles, John Hurt, Susannah York, Vanessa Redgrave.
Directed by Fred Zinnemann.
* Won 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture.
****
****new release list no. 102
Hey folks,
We were shocked and heartbroken to hear of the passing of Cayce Lindner, a filmmaker, musician, teacher, father and friend. Cayce was a Four Star loyalist until he decamped to the East Bay a couple of years back. He was the kind of customer whose enthusiasm and curiosity about all types of cinema made us feel proud to do what we do. He leaves behind his lovely wife and two young children. This has been a very difficult tragedy for us to process. Right now, we are simply hoping that Cayce has found peace.
To learn more about Cayce's music and his most recent band, Flying Canyon, you might start here.
Goodbye, Cayce.
This week is loaded with big movies, as the industry takes advantage of the stay-in season and the approaching Academy Awards. We look forward to seeing you around the shop, and we'll try to pass on our impressions of those films we've found to be worthwhile.
Take care,
Four Star.
..............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**..............
THE U.S. VS. JOHN LENNON.
Documentary.
Directed by David Leaf & John Scheinfeld.
* In a week that includes the release of Scorsese's bloodbath THE DEPARTED and Coppola's aristocratic induldgence MARIE ANTOINETTE, our choice to single out this release may seem a little subjective: We've opted for an independent documentary about a couple of pacifist rockers instead. On its own merits, however, THE U.S. VS. JOHN LENNON is an intriguing and iconoclastic little film. Yoko Ono fans will be pleased to see that her 'dragon lady' image was indeed undeserved: In every frame she appears in, she comes across as earnest, somewhat shy, and smart. Definitely a little weird — but never bossy or manipulative. In his archival footage, Lennon is a little full of himself (one elongated segment deals exclusively with his scandalous statement that The Beatles are "bigger than Jesus.") But his determined belief, augmented by Ono's creative savvy, that artists can bring positive change to the world feels optimistic and contagious. If the evidence that the pair was being monitored by the FBI feels handled with paranoia or exaggeration, it also undeniably offers a scary perspective on the precariousness of free speech in America. One thing: What's up with the interviewees' make-up? The filmmakers have got everyone from Noam Chomsky to Angela Davis to Gore Vidal looking like escapees from a mad cosmetics counter trainee. That is one make-up artist that should never, ever work again!
see also: THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED.
.............//NEW TITLES//.............
THE CAVE OF THE YELLOW DOG.
Drama. Mongolia/Germany.
Directed by Byambasuren Davaa.
CROSSING THE BRIDGE: THE SOUND OF ISTANBUL.
Music Documentary. Turkey. (English, German & Turkish languages.)
Directed by Fatih Akin.
THE DEPARTED.
Crime Drama.
Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Walhberg, Vera Farmiga.
Directed by Martin Scorsese.
* It's nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture, and garnered nearly universal critical acclaim. So what exactly elevates Scorsese's gangster movie from the pack? More than anything else, it's the confidence with which Scorsese holds his viewfinder. THE DEPARTED is composed with agility — beautifully shot and scored with bands like The Pogues rather than your typical movie soundtrack music. Details like these make a difference, and in this way the film harkens back to the '70s heyday of action films wrought with deliberation and grit. It is, formally, a solid achievement. The drawbacks: Jack Nicholson is almost unbearably smug in his bad guy role, as if he thinks of the whole thing as a joke. (Just watch him ham up the "I smell a rat" bit and you'll know what we mean.) And the film is so very, very, very violent. And we mean VIOLENT. While many critics have labelled it a new American crime classic, others weren't so impressed: The Charlotte Observor wrote that it "feels like an exercise by a Scorsese clone who has tackled the master's themes — without his energy and economy of style." A diplomatic New Yorker replies: "This merrily vicious and violent Martin Scorsese film about cops and gangsters in Boston will never haunt your sleep, as TAXI DRIVER and RAGING BULL do, but it will keep you excited and amused for well over two hours."
see also: GANGS OF NEW YORK.
FRATRICIDE.
Drama. Germany. (Turkish, Kurdish & German languages.)
Directed by Yilmaz Arslan.
F**K.
Documentary.
Bill Maher, Ron Jeremy, Janet Jackson, Billy Connolly, Eddie Murphy, Justin Timberlake, Ice-T, Pat Boone, Janeane Garofalo...
Directed by Steve Anderson.
* From the studio: "A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use."
see also: THE ARISTOCRATS.
HALF NELSON.
Drama/Independent.
Ryan Gosling, Shareeka Epps, Anthony Mackie.
Directed by Ryan Fleck.
* This independent drama, much like the recent release SHERRYBABY, starring Maggie Gyllenhaal, depends on the weight of a lead performance from a promising young actor. He would be Ryan Gosling, who swooped an Oscar nomination in a year of credentialed contenders from Leonardo DiCaprio to Forrest Whitaker. Gosling plays an inspiring teacher in an inner-city school who, just to break free from the usual formula, also happens to be a crack addict. Gosling's soulful eyes — which garnered attention in films like THE NOTEBOOK, THE BELIEVER, THE SLAUGHTER RULE and THE UNITED STATES OF LELAND — suggest an emotional complexity that sets him apart in a field that's become overcrowded with emptyheaded beefcakes.
see also: SHERRYBABY.
HOSTAGE.
Drama/Thriller. Greece/Turkey. (Greek & Albanian languages.)
Directed by Constantine Giannaris.
INFAMOUS.
Biographical Drama.
Toby Jones, Sandra Bullock, Sigourney Weaver, Gwyneth Paltrow.
Directed by Douglas McGrath.
* When two movie studios each had a Truman Capote biopic ready to unleash right at the same time, how exactly did decisions get made? Whatever happened, it was last year's CAPOTE that was first out the gate. It won rave reviews and an Oscar for Philip Seymour Hoffman in the title role. Would things have been different if this film was released before or simultaneously? The Hollywood Reporter: "Gives you the unique opportunity to see how two sets of filmmakers can take exactly the same story, make extremely tough though different choices in emphasis and tone and achieve brilliant movies."
see also: CAPOTE, IN COLD BLOOD.
LIKE FATHER LIKE SON.
Drama/Thriller. British Made-for-TV Movie. England.
Robson Green.
Directed by Nicholas Laughland.
MAN ABOUT TOWN.
Comedy/Action.
Ben Affleck, Rebecca Romijn, John Cleese.
Directed by Mike Binder.
MARIE ANTOINETTE.
Biographical Drama.
Kirsten Dunst, Marianne Faithfull, Steve Coogan, Judy Davis, Jason Schwartzman.
Directed by Sofia Coppola.
* Sofia Coppola's maddening, visually dazzling spectacle attempts to draw some sort of connection between the ignorance of the French aristocracy and the punk rock ethic. The results are mixed, at best. The Toronto Globe and Mail wrote, "Here's one thing about MARIE ANTOINETTE: It sure is easy to watch. And here's another: It's even easier to forget." Rent this one for the costumes.
see also: TRISTRAM SHANDY: A COCK AND BULL STORY.
MUTUAL APPRECIATION.
Comedy/Independent.
Directed by Andrew Bujalski.
THE QUIET.
Drama/Thriller.
Elisha Cuthbert, Camilla Belle, Edie Falco, Martin Donovan, Shawn Ashmore.
Directed by Jamie Babbit.
SO GOES THE NATION.
Documentary.
Directed by Adam Del Deo & James D. Stern.
............//SERIES//...........
GOLDEN GIRLS, SERIES 7.
Retro Comedy Series.
............//FAMILY//............
DORA THE EXPLORER: MUSICAL SCHOOL DAYS.
............//NEW TO DVD//............
BROTHER.
Crime Drama. Russia. 1997.
Directed by Aleksei Balabanov.
THE BUTCHER BOY.
Comedy/Drama. Ireland. 1997.
Stephen Rea
Directed by Neil Jordan.
THE FILMS OF KENNETH ANGER, VOLUME 1.
Experimental/Gay Interest/Shorts Collection.
GINGER AND FRED.
Comedy. Italy. 1986.
Giulietta Masina, Marcello Mastroianni.
Directed by Federico Fellini.
THE LONELINESS OF THE LONG DISTANCE RUNNER.
Drama/British Retro. 1962.
Tom Courtenay.
Directed by Tony Richardson.
****
****new release list no. 101
Nice! A big fat release week, with new films from everyone from Michel Gondry to Clint Eastwood to Zhang Yimou.
But before we get to the list, we want to say a special thank you to the former Potrero Hill customers who have been coming by our Cortland Avenue shop. You all have been terribly understanding about the inconvenience, and absolutely fantastic to have around Bernal Heights. Are we going to have to build a parking lot or what?
And lest anyone worry about the saturation of renters, we assure you that we'll be stocking plenty copies of each movie to go around! Don't forget to take advantage of the reservation system by calling us in advance.
love,
****
.............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP.
Comedy/Fantasy/Independent. (Spanish, French and English languages.)
Gael Garcia Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Alain Chabat, Miou-Miou.
Directed by Michel Gondry.
* Much like the director Wes Anderson, the continental eccentric Michel Gondry stays true to his inner child, creating a world that feels both familiar and new. His special effects are charmingly hand-engineered, and he lets his imagination run without restraint. In THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP, handmade stuffed animals come to life and toy instruments are capable of altering time. The danger is that such gorgeously indulgent whimsy can outstrip narrative and character. This film is basically about a boy trying to get a girl. The boy is Gael Garcia Bernal, playing an immature dreamer. The girl is his pretty, slightly frumpy neighbor (the charming French star Charlotte Gainsbourg). Their playful rapport is enough for the boy; the girl would rather grow up a bit and have a French kiss. Outside of their archetypal Parisian walk-up, the bulk of the action takes place in the boy's workplace — a dreary office where his mom has landed him a mundane job illustrating calendars. Bernal's performance is quite something: He flaunts a talent for physical comedy, and has a unique ability for being winsome but not effete. He is definitely a new generation movie star. The film itself is largely comprised of a sequence of cool-looking visual bits, and Gondry (who used to direct music videos) flops when he attempts to weave these scenes together into a meaningful whole. This film feels loose, like everyone involved was having a laugh. Still, it retains a thematic integrity: A study of the fine line between whimsy and irresponsibility. And it's a lot of fun.
see also: ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, RUSHMORE.
............//NEW TITLES//............
AFTER INNOCENCE.
Documentary.
Directed by Jessica Sanders.
* The Portland Oregonian: "Powerfully explores the struggles faced by those whom DNA testing has exonerated after years behind bars." The Village Voice: "Both riveting and disturbing." The New York Times: "Calm, deliberate and devastating, Jessica Sanders' documentary AFTER INNOCENCE confirms many of the worst fears about weaknesses in the American criminal-justice system."
see also: THE THIN BLUE LINE.
FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS.
Drama/War.
Ryan Phillippe, Jesse Bradford, Barry Pepper, Jamie Bell, Paul Walker.
Directed by Clint Eastwood.
* Clint Eastwood has assembled a cast of pin-up boys to honor and debunk the mythological American "heroes" at Iwo Jima. Explains The Village Voice: "To an extent, FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS is to the World War II movie what Eastwood's UNFORGIVEN was to the western — a stripping-away of mythology until only a harsher, uncomfortable reality remains." The companion piece to his Oscar-nominated, Japanese-language LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA (which is not yet released on DVD).
see also: UNFORGIVEN.
FLICKA.
Drama/Family.
Tim McGraw, Maria Bello, Alison Lohman.
Directed by Michael Mayer.
THE GATHERING.
Horror.
Christina Ricci, Ioan Gruffudd.
Directed by Brian Gilbert.
THE GRUDE 2.
Horror.
Sarah Michelle Gellar, Amber Tamblyn, Edison Chen, Jennifer Beals.
Directed by Takashi Shimizu.
HARVEST TIME.
Drama. Russia.
Directed by Marina Razbezhkina.
HEADING SOUTH.
Drama. France.
Charlotte Rampling.
Directed by Laurent Cantet.
HOLLYWOODLAND.
Mystery.
Adrien Brody, Diane Lane, Ben Affleck, Bob Hoskins.
Directed by Allen Coulter.
* A detective story based on the mysterious death of TV's SUPERMAN, George Reeves, in 1959. The Chicago Reader: "The period details and performances are uniformly superb (Bob Hoskins is especially good as MGM executive Eddie Mannix), and the major characters are even more complex than those in CHINATOWN."
see also: THE BLACK DAHLIA, WHERE THE TRUTH LIES.
I AM GUILTY.
Drama. Germany.
Directed by Christoph Hochhäusler.
RIDING ALONE FOR THOUSANDS OF MILES.
Drama. China.
Ken Takakura.
Directed by Zhang Yimou.
* For lovers of great world cinema comes the newest from acclaimed director Zhang Yimou — a road movie and story of family reconciliation set across China's heartland. The Washington Post: "It's a masterful little film, and, thanks to Zhang's seasoned hands, it's subtly heartfelt but never manipulative." Entertainment Weekly: "Ken Takakura, a great rain-creased oak of an actor, delivers a quietly massive performance." Salon.com: "This new picture will reach only a few devoted American spectators. That's too bad, because once you get used to the apparent flatness and emotional reserve of this picture, it's a sad, slyly comic tale of family trauma and reconciliation that packs a wallop."
see also: THE STRAIGHT STORY.
RUNNING WITH SCISSORS.
Comedy.
Joseph Cross, Annette Bening, Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, Evan Rachel Wood, Alec Baldwin, Gwenyth Paltrow.
Directed by Ryan Murphy.
* Based on the gay coming-of-age memoir by Augusten Burroughs, who tends to be popular with fans of David Sedaris. The Village Voice: "Like the book, this deadpan celebration of neurosis makes a valiant effort to repress its comedy — which of course makes it funnier." New York Post: "While Murphy never manages to make this crazy quilt dramatically credible, he does hit the mark for laughs and has written some juicy scenes for his excellent cast." The Toronto Globe and Mail: "Wears a deep and sophisticated shade of black."
see also: THE SQUID AND THE WHALE, TADPOLE, ROGER DODGER.
THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP.
see above: "release of the week."
TRUST THE MAN.
Comedy.
David Duchovny, Julianne Moore, Billy Crudup, Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Directed by Bart Freundlich.
UNKNOWN.
Mystery.
James Caviezel, Greg Kinnear, Bridget Moynahan.
Directed by Simon Brand.
............//FAMILY//............
CHARLIE AND LOLA: THREE.
BBC Children's Animation Program.
CINDERELLA III: A TWIST IN TIME.
Disney Animation Feature.
****
****new release list no. 100
It's kind of a shame that our hundredth new release list, which should have been a celebration, is like a total bummer instead. We're reeling from the closure of 18th St. shop. We're feeling a huge loss for our friends and neighbors in Potrero HIll. And, frankly, we're exhausted. So we're going to keep the list very simple.
We hope y'all come by soon and spend some quality time with us at the Cortland Avenue shop. We plan on giving it so much love.
One more bit of sadness: Dana, Blas, Erin and Davey, we're going to miss the heck out of you. Someone offer these guys a job!
yours,
4star.
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
THE MOTEL.
Comedy/Drama/Independent.
Jeffrey Chyau, Sung Kang, Jade Wu.
Directed by Michael Kang.
RED DOORS.
Drama/Independent.
Tzi Ma, Jacqueline Kim, Elaine Kao, Freda Foh Shen, Kathy Shao-Lin Lee.
Directed by Georgia Lee.
* It's a quiet week, but we thought it was pretty neat that two independent films about Asian-Americans stand as the most acclaimed of the mix. Both take place in the American suburbs. RED DOORS tells the story of the Wongs, a bizarrely dysfunctional Chinese-American family living outside of New York. Ed Wong has just retired and plots to escape his mundane life. However, the tumultuous, madcap lives of his three rebellious daughters change his plans. The San Francisco Chronicle: "A gentle, pleasant film about people you genuinely like." In THE MOTEL, 13-year-old Ernest Chin lives and works at a sleazy hourly-rate motel on a strip of desolate suburban bi-way. Misunderstood by his family and blindly careening into puberty, Ernest befriends Sam Kim, a self-destructive yet charismatic Korean American man who has checked in. The Onion: "Like the best independent films, THE MOTEL realizes that life is made up of minor pleasures and tiny epiphanies, not sweeping character arcs or big dramatic moments."
............//NEW TITLES//.............
CATCH A FIRE.
Drama/Thriller.
Tim Robbins, Derek Luke.
Directed by Phillip Noyce.
FLYBOYS.
Action/Drama/War.
James Franco, Jean Reno.
Directed by Tony Bill.
THE LIVES OF SAINTS.
Drama.
Sophia Loren, Fab Filippo, Kris Kristofferson.
Directed by Jerry Ciccoritti.
OPEN SEASON.
Animation.
Voices by Martin Lawrence, Ashton Kutcher, Debra Messing, Billy Connolly.
Directed by Roger Allers, Jill Culton and Anthony Stacchi.
****
****new release list no. 99
Are you awaiting the day when movies will be simply transmitted to your brain and projected from your thumbnail? The New Yorker recently ran a lengthy editorial about our new film viewing habits. In it, David Denby details how he attempted to watch BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN on a 7-inch portable DVD player, and PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN on a 2-inch i-Pod screen. His angle is refreshingly anachronistic: He longs for the days when one would submit to a cinema screen rather than awkwardly attempt to cozy up to a tiny machine.
However you watch your movies, here's a little bid for quality filmmaking rather than an emphasis on ultra-convenient viewing opportunities. We love movies — real movies that tell a worthwhile story. The other day, our staffer Rhodes reminisced about the first time he saw Herk Harvey's CARNIVAL OF SOULS. The sound was garbled, he reckoned, and the print had been through the wars. But it was worth the extra effort: The thing he remembers most is the film itself, which he loved.
yours,
team four star.
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED.
Documentary.
Kirby Dick, Becky Altringer, Kevin Smith, John Waters, Kimberly Peirce, Atom Egoyan, Maria Bello, Darren Aronofsky.
Directed by Kirby Dick.
* Last week — just ahead of the DVD release of this film — the MPAA issued a vague announcement regarding forthcoming changes in its film ratings process. Have they caved in to pressure? Certainly, it's a testament to how convincingly this film has portrayed the organization as clandestine, opaque, nepotistic and subjective. The documentarian Kirby Dick puts a lot of emphasis on the MPAA's repressed sexuality, compared with slackness when it comes to violence. And the film takes a fun, guerilla-like turn when he hires a sweet-natured private investigator to help investigate the MPAA board. Namely, they attempt to penetrate the guarded anonymity of its members — which only seems fair considering that no public group is monitoring this organization's actions. As Dick and the private dick follow the MPAA board members by car and attempt to contact them by phone, their amateur-like enthusiasm is contagious. Humble yet feisty, THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED recalls the muckraking heyday of Michael Moore.
see also: THE CELLULOID CLOSET.
............//NEW RELEASES//.............
COCAINE COWBOYS.
Documentary.
Directed by Billy Corben.
THE GUARDIAN.
Action/Drama.
Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher, Sela Ward.
Directed by Andrew Davis.
JESUS CAMP.
Documentary.
Directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady.
* Of this documentary about the children of Evangelical Christians, one user on imdb.com posted: "This film made my hair stand on end and I came away from it thinking that the adults in it ought to be indicted for child abuse. These children are being intellectually immobilized in the name of goodness and purity. We can only hope that some of these children get some exposure to reality later which will help them live productive and caring lives as people who can accept the world's diversity. The prospects are not good."
see also: HELL HOUSE, THE DEVIL'S PLAYGROUND.
THE PUFFY CHAIR.
Comedy/Independent.
Mark Duplass, Kathryn Aselton, Rhett Wilkins.
Directed by Jay Duplass.
* An obnoxious indie rock dude embarks on a road trip to deliver a Lazy Boy recliner (just like the one from his childhood) as a birthday gift to his father. His needy girlfriend and spacey brother invite themselves along. This project was probably influenced by the unadorned style of early Jim Jarmusch road movies, though it lacks that director's detatched wit. Instead, you get a youthful solopsism that annoys more often than charms. Other critics gave it way more credit. The Portland Oregonian cooed, "In a film culture in which contrived tomfoolery and overinflated emotions stifle in their effort to provide comedy and romance, something as light and precise as THE PUFFY CHAIR feels like more than an exception; it feels like fresh air." Won the Audience Award at the 2005 SXSW Film Festival, and nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards in 2006.
see instead: STRANGER THAN PARADISE.
RELATIVE STRANGERS.
Comedy.
Kathy Bates, Ed Begley Jr., Neve Campbell, Beverly D'Angelo, Danny DeVito.
Directed by Greg Glienna.
SAW III.
Horror.
Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman.
SHERRYBABY.
Drama.
Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Directed by Laurie Collyer.
* Most Oscar pundits have pinpointed Maggie Gyllenhaal as the 'underdog' most deserving of a Best Actress nomination. Of course, it helps that she's playing a recovering drug addict with a messy, messy life. (The young actor Ryan Gosling, in the forthcoming DVD release HALF NELSON, was her male counterpart this year.) Entertainment Weekly called Gyllenhaal "a miracle of an actress." The New York Times: "What distinguishes the film from its many peers is the quality of Ms. Collyer’s writing — which rarely reaches for obvious, melodramatic beats — and the precision of Ms. Gyllenhaal’s performance." The Onion: "Theirs is a well-worn story that may not need to be told, but they do tell it well."
see also: CLEAN.
............//SERIES//............
HOPELESS PICTURES.
Animation/Comedy Series.
............//NEW TO DVD//............
BORDER RADIO. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Drama/Independent. 1987.
Directed by Allison Anders, Dean Lent and Kurt Voss.
* From Criterion Collection: "Before carving out a niche as one of the most distinct voices in '90s American cinema, Allison Anders made her debut, alongside codirectors and fellow UCLA film school students Kurt Voss and Dean Lent, with 1987’s BORDER RADIO. A low-key, semi-improvised postpunk diary that took four years to complete, BORDER RADIO features legendary rocker Chris D., of the Flesh Eaters, as a singer/songwriter who has stolen loot from a club and gone missing, leaving his wife, a no-nonsense rock journalist, to track him down with the help of his friends (including John Doe of the band X). With its sprawling Southern Californian and Mexican landscapes, captured in evocative 16mm black and white, BORDER RADIO is a singular, DIY memento of the indie film explosion in America."
see also: THE FILMS OF ALLISON ANDERS.
"MONSTERS AND MADMEN:" (FILMS FROM PRODUCERS RICHARD AND ALEX GORDON) (Criterion Collection editions.)
THE ATOMIC SUBMARINE.
Sci-Fi. 1959.
Directed by Spencer G. Bennet.
CORRIDORS OF BLOOD.
Horror. 1959.
Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee.
Directed by Robert Day.
FIRST MAN INTO SPACE.
Sci-Fi. 1959.
Directed by Robert Day.
THE HAUNTED STRANGLER.
Horror. 1958.
Boris Karloff.
Directed by Robert Day.
MOUCHETTE. (Criterion Collection edition.)
Drama. France. 1967.
Directed by Robert Bresson.
****
****new release list no. 98
The cold weather makes for great movie-watching. And when we're not behind the counter or holed up watching DVD's, we're out at the movie theaters!
Here are some of our favorites in theaters now: Almodovar's latest, VOLVER, is as sumptuous and compelling as everyone says. It's a beautiful melodrama filled with gorgeous and special women. Director Stephen Frears concocts an intense microcosmic world in THE QUEEN, about the responses of Queen Elizabeth II and Tony Blair to Princess Diana's sudden passing. Helen Mirren gives a rich performance, her eyes emoting behind a mask of stoicism. It's a performance that, in a strange way, reminds us of Heath Ledger's restraint in last year's BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. The film, the first to treat the subject as far as we know, is masterfully handled. CHILDREN OF MEN is a superb British sci-fi thriller that everyone should see. We saw Four Star alumnus Avi recently, and asked him, "Have you seen CHILDREN OF MEN yet?" "Yep," he chuckled, "that's my kind of movie." An intellectual action movie ripe with careful detail, it is guided by director Alfonso Cuaron's perfectly timed suspense sequences and spot-on performances by Clive Owen, Michael Caine, and breakout actress Claire-Hope Ashitey, who gets our vote for Best Supporting Actress of the year.
There's also an Ernst Lubitsch retrospective playing at the Pacific Film Archive in Berkeley. Along with Preston Sturges and precious few others, Lubitsch made dazzlingly witty comedies back in the black and white days. His sense of style and irony keep the films from feeling dated. Supposedly Billy Wilder had a sign on his office wall that read, "How would Lubitsch have done it?" Take a date, they'll be impressed!
Enjoy,
Four Star.
.............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**..............
LA MOUSTACHE.
Drama/Mystery. France.
Emmanuelle Devos, Vincent Lindon.
Directed by Emmanuel Carrère.
* Yes, this movie really is about a moustache. Or rather, a man who shaves off his moustache and then begins to totally freak out when nobody around him notices. Believe it or not, this was the most highly reviewed film of the week, compared to Hitchcock by both the New York Times and the Chicago Sun-Times, and called "a mini-masterwork" by the Village Voice. It also won the Director's Fortnight award at the Cannes Film Festival. So the moustache is actually a catalyst to a chilling existentialist thriller. Kind of like SIXTEEN CANDLES, where everybody forgets that it's Molly Ringwald's birthday, but French style.
see also: TIME OUT.
.............//NEW TITLES//............
THE COUPLE.
Drama.
Martin Landau, Judy Parfitt.
Directed by John Daly.
EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH.
Comedy.
Dane Cook, Jessica Simpson, Dax Shepard, Andy Dick.
Directed by Greg Coolidge.
GRIDIRON GANG.
Drama/Sports.
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.
Directed by Phil Joanou.
MAY 6.
Drama/Thriller. Netherlands.
Directed by Theo van Gogh.
LA MOUSTACHE.
see above: "release of the week."
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE BEGINNING.
Horror.
Jordana Brewster, Taylor Handley, Diora Baird, Matthew Bomer.
Directed by Jonathan Liebesman.
............//SERIES//.............
DOCTOR WHO, SERIES 2.
BBC Adventure/Sci-Fi Series.
THE STREET.
British Drama Series.
* Anglophiles, rejoice! Here's a new British drama, written by Jimmy McGovern, the man behind the inimitable crime series CRACKER, and starring Jim Broadbent as well as Jane Horrocks of ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. THE STREET revolves around a row of six adjoining houses in a working class Northern suburb. Be forewarned: This is intense stuff. As you might expect of a 'kitchen sink' drama penned by a crime writer, the series plunges headfirst into the most harrowing of situations, overlaid with near-suffocating feelings of isolation. (And a couple of the characters are literally under the kitchen sink in the first scene.) Director Terry McDonough, a veteran of another crime series, WIRE IN THE BLOOD, employs the quick editing style that has become a trademark of recent British TV. It's a shame that this doesn't work for adrama as it does for crime or comedy: The frentic pace can distract from the superb performances and dilute the emotional impact. Still, any Brit TV fan should give these six episodes a shot.
see also: CRACKER.
............//FAMILY//............
GO DIEGO GO: THE GREAT JAGUAR RESCUE!
Nick Jr. Animation Program.
*****
****new release list no. 97
Feeling the little winter blues? Why not go green instead: Try a heaping plate of warm kale. Dana simmers hers in water, and adds a little soy sauce and garlic to taste. Jeremy adds fresh lemon juice and a sprinkle of sliced almonds or wheat germ. Molly Frances, Arthur Magazine's "New Herbalist," recommended this recipe, with a toss of dried cranberries, as a Christmas treat to serve friends: "Tell them you offer this bowl of nutrient-rich greens to open their heart chakras. They will be so overcome by your gesture of goodwill and caring that that marshmallow santa will be thrown to the ground in favor of real nourishment." The holidays may be over, but a friend in need still deserves a little comfort food from your kitchen, no?
Thank you to all customers who nourished our staff this holiday season with homemade granola, homebaked cookies, jars of honey, crab and spinach pasta, and pizza topped with fresh vegies from your backyard gardens. Yum. And a special shout out to young Calvin, who set up a toast stand (like a lemonade stand, but more wintery, and replete with butters, jams, peanut butter et cetera) out front of our Cortland Avenue shop on New Year's Eve. We hope he does it again. Who doesn't like toast?
As for movies, this is a pretty exciting week, with lots of quality escapism on the menu.
Yours,
team four star.
............**//RELEASE OF THE WEEK//**............
QUINCEANERA.
Drama/Gay Interest/Independent.
Emily Rios, Jesse Garcia, Chalo Gonzalez, David Ross.
Directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland.
* In this sweetly unexpected drama, the focus is less on the traditional quinceanera — the Latino celebration of a girl's 15th birthday — and more on the transitional state of the Echo Park neighborhood in L.A. With a deliberate sense of place, the filmmakers situate a compelling family story in an Echo Park that is as populated by hip gays and young industry types as it is by old Latino families and their ornate gardens. The intrinsic conflicts, brought to life by characters who find themselves somewhere between the two cultures, feel fresh and real. The details are totally current: Teenagers communicate by text messages. A lucky girl gets to rent a Hummer limo for her quinceanera. High school girls talk about shopping for cheap 'bling' at Target, though we can spot a new-looking American Apparel store a few scenes later. The stories at hand — we won't tell you much about them — are full of love but unsentimental, played out by engaging actors. Cute stuff, and feels close to home in terms of modern urban living.
see also: REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES, MI VIDA LOCA.
............//NEW TITLES//............
BANDIDAS.
Comedy/Western. France/Mexico/US.
Penelope Cruz, Salma Hayek, Steve Zahn, Dwight Yoakam.
Directed by Joachim Roenning and Espen Sandberg.
BEHIND THE MASK.
Drama.
Donald Sutherland, Matthew Fox, Mary McDonnell, Bradley Whitford.
Directed by Tom McLoughlin.
CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER WOMEN.
Romantic Comedy/Drama.
Aaron Eckhart, Helena Bonham Carter.
Directed by Hans Canosa.
CRANK.
Action/Crime Drama. England.
Jason Straham, Amy Smart, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Efren Ramirez, Dwight Yoakam.
Directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor.
IDIOCRACY.
Comedy.
Luke Wilson, Maya Rudolph, Dax Shepard.
Directed by Mike Judge.
THE ILLUSIONIST.
Mystery.
Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewel.
Directed by Neil Burger.
* Escapism, literally. This movie is like one long magic trick. Set in turn-of-the-century Vienna, it was actually filmed largely in the Czech town of Cesky Krumlov, in Bohemia. It is filled with gorgeous sets and landscapes. The plotline is fun to watch unravel, as is Paul Giamatti's over-the-top performance. The rest of the cast is generally uninspired: Vaguely competent American actors doing vague Austrian accents. Fans of the Victorian Gothic aesthetic will find plenty of props and magic tricks to admire (old theaters and hunting lodges, butterflies, a soul manifesting itself from a floor-length mirror).
see also: SCOOP.
THE NIGHT LISTENER.
Mystery.
Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Rory Culkin, Sandra Oh.
Directed by Patrick Stettner. Based on the novel by Armistead Maupin.
STREET FIGHT.
Documentary.
Directed by Marshall Curry.
............//SERIES//............
EXTRAS.
British Comedy Series.
* From Ricky Gervais, mastermind behind the original OFFICE series, comes this sitcom about working as a film extra. Gervais has humbled himself in more than just occupation, but in persona, as his new character is a bit less clueless but more socially awkward than THE OFFICE's David Brent. Each episode centers around a celebrity guest, the star of whatever film project is at hand. The first episode is Kate Winslet. She offers phone sex advice to a withering female extra, and unwittingly makes fun of a girl with cerebral palsy. A gentle stab at the film business, but it might as well be any heirarchal social situation. You may find yourself grinning at the cleverly observed scenarios more than laughing out loud hysterically. But however you would describe this brand of humor, it's funny stuff. Other guests include Patrick Stewart, Ben Stiller and Samuel L. Jackson. Enjoy!
see also: THE OFFICE, I'M ALAN PARTRIDGE.
............//FAMILY//............
THE SNOW QUEEN.
BBC Family Movie.
Directed by Julian Gibbs.
****
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