AltWeeklies Wire
Code Unknown
Dick merely assumes accusations of of a "fascist" system are true and never really makes the case for them.
Washington City Paper |
Mark Jenkins |
09-18-2006 |
Reviews
Perils of Famenew
Despite Ben Affleck's surprising star turn, Hollywoodland doesn't sparkle.
Eugene Weekly |
Molly Templeton |
09-18-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Allen Coulter, Hollywoodland
Tony Jaa Wants His Elephants Backnew
All that fighting without mercy gives The Protector the depth of the average porn movie, with about as much care given to story and plot.
Eugene Weekly |
Jason Blair |
09-18-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Prachya Pinkaew, The Protector
Gonzo Gearheadnew
Ron Mann's Tales of the Rat Fink is an ebullient survey of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth's life that revs along with the zest a souped-up hot rod.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Ron Mann, Tales of the Rat Fink
An Anti-Love Storynew
Jan Svankmajer's creepy-crawl slowly becomes one of the most mordantly beautiful of the director's films, an asylum-set anti-love story with mobile body parts and splashy theatrics.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Jan Svankmajer, Lunacy
Lovers Quarrelnew
You could say Paul Haggis' script for The Last Kiss is something of a Garden State redux, but Zach Braff's character here is less fanciful, less melodramatic, and far more prone to doing the thoughtless things men tend to do.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: The Last Kiss, Tony Goldwyn
Landscapes of the Heartnew
The House of Sand is a quintessentially moderate art film: panoramic and symbolic, epic in scope, technically accomplished, and miraculously acted by the mother-daughter team of Fernandas Montenegro and Torres in showy dual roles.
Austin Chronicle |
Marrit Ingman |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Capering in the Caymansnew
Lacking purpose or thoughtful complexity, Frank E. Flowers' film, starring Orlando Bloom and Bill Paxton, is an overly ambitious mess.
Austin Chronicle |
Toddy Burton |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Frank E. Flowers, Haven
Gosling Goes for Realismnew
Ryan Gosling's bleakly hopeful turn as crack-addicted teacher Dan in Half Nelson is matched by the smoldering realism of newcomer Shareeka Epps.
Austin Chronicle |
Marc Savlov |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Half Nelson, Ryan Fleck
Fallout in the Ranksnew
Far from being just one more documentary wishing to expose alternative truths about the war in Iraq, Foulkrod's film instead airs some of the hard-won truths learned by American soldiers.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Familiar Playsnew
The Rock's moral football tale is a pleasant surprise: a swift, sure-footed, and gritty melodrama that plays to the strengths of its formula and elicits empathy for its kids.
Austin Chronicle |
Marrit Ingman |
09-17-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Gridiron Gang, Phil Joanou
A Grand Martial Arts Finale
Jet Li's Fearless isn't just a martial arts movie; it is a truly great one.
Tags: Ronny Yu, Jet Li's Fearless
Gifted-Class Malaisenew
This film's thoroughly bland characters are living thoroughly empty lives in thoroughly generic environs (the set decoration -- Naguib Mahfouz book here, Apple laptop there -- is subtly sinister in its glib "hipness").
Orlando Weekly |
Jason Ferguson |
09-15-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: The Last Kiss, Tony Goldwyn
Jackie Chan Passes the Torchnew
With The Protector, 30-year-old martial-arts mastermind Tony Jaa bests his own sensational Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior, the 2003 film that brought the fearless fighter Western recognition.
Orlando Weekly |
John Thomason |
09-15-2006 |
Reviews
Tags: Prachya Pinkaew, The Protector
Two New Neo-Noirsnew
We compare and contrast The Black Dahlia and Hollywoodland.
Orlando Weekly |
John Thomason |
09-15-2006 |
Reviews
