Film Blurbs 10-21-2009
Unattributed film synopses indicate movies not yet reviewed by HW staff.
Indicates films of particular interest
Opening
Amelia A soaring biopic chronicling the life of Amelia Earhart, the brazen pioneer of the aviation movement who disappeared while attempting to circumnavigate the world. Hilary Swank, who bears a striking resemblance to Earhart, stars, alongside Richard Gere as Earhart’s husband.
Astro Boy Based on the Japanese manga franchise of the same name. Freddie Highmore is Astro Boy, a young, computer-animated robot who looks freakishly like Bob’s Big Boy (maybe it’s his day job). Watch as he soars through the futuristic world of Metro City in search of his father’s acceptance.
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant When a traveling freak show–think Cirque Du Soleil on acid–rolls into town, one teenager trades in his Top-Siders for a pair of vampire fangs. Based on a series of books by Darren Shan called The Saga of Darren Shan.
Ong Bak 2: The Beginning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon meets Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within in this martial arts spectacle set in ancient Thailand. Two words: Heee Ya!
Paranormal Activity Cue the X-Files soundtrack. A camera captures the demons, ghosts and goblins that plague a suburban couple’s home in this mockumentary horror film–think Blair Witch Project–that premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival.
Saw VI Yes, you already saw it–pun intended–five times, though if that wasn’t enough, watch as Jigsaw, the meticulous, masked villain, performs his usual shtick: slicing, dicing and mincing his way through human flesh.
Continuing
The Boys Are Back See review on page 21.
Capitalism: A Love Story Especially after the timeliness of Bowling for Columbine and the necessity of Fahrenheit 9/11, Moore taking on the broad and complex nature of our economy seems obvious and simplistic. And it’s also a subject too complicated and all-encompassing to be covered in a two-hour movie. –Ryan Senaga
Couples Retreat Four couples retreat to a tropical island resort to undergo couples therapy, resulting in a series of comedic shenanigans. No, it’s not the premise for another VH1 reality television show, just another bro-tastic dude fest featuring Vince Vaughn.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs Forecast: Kiddy flick with a chance of nostalgia. This animated adaptation of the famous children’s book has all the raining sausages and drizzling pizzas you could possibly stomach, but beware–they’ll be coming at you in 3-D, too!
Fame If you thought regular high school was bad, cue the stage lights and watch the drama unfold at the New York City High School of Performing Arts. A modern spin on the 1980 Oscar-winner of the same name.
The Invention of Lying To tell the truth, only the first third of this overrated, overstretched comedy is above average. –Bob Green
Law Abiding Citizen Clyde Shelton, played by Gerard Butler, turns out not to be such a law-abiding citizen after discovering that one of the criminals who murdered his wife and daughter has escaped persecution. Butler says “fuck that shit”–300-style–and takes matters into his own hands.
The September Issue A look at fashion’s Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine and muse for The Devil Wears Prada. Watch Wintour give birth to her five-pound baby, aka the September 2007 issue, which clocked in at 840 pages.
The Stepfather A boy returns home after serving in the military and suspects something’s a little “off” about his new stepfather–like he’s a psychopathic serial killer out for blood (or something). A remake of the 1987 horror film of the same name.
Surrogates By the end of its laughably bad FX and even dumber logistics, you realize it would have worked better as a Mike Judge or Judd Apatow comedy. –R.S.
Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3-D A double feature staring Buzz Lightyear and co., who made their debut way back in 1995, and the sequel that inconceivably turned out to be even better than the original. This go around, get even closer to the plastic figurines in Disney Digital 3-D.
Where the Wild Things Are See review on page 20.
Whip It Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, which stars Juno’s Ellen Page and an ample serving of girl power! Page, who’s secured her role as America’s favorite tomboy, plays a rebellious teenage girl who trades beauty pageants for the roller derby.
Zombieland Some people will want to avoid this like the zombie plague. It’s their loss. As one of Columbus’ rules states, we should enjoy the little things, and there are a lot of little moments to enjoy in this horror/comedy/road movie. –Dean Carrico
Doris Duke Theatre
Honolulu Academy of Arts, 900 S. Beretania St., $8 general, $7 seniors/students/military, $5 Academy members, [honoluluacademy.org], 532-8768Egon and Dönci (Hungary, 2007) Egon, an amateur rocket scientist (sound vaguely familiar?) and his overfed cat Dönci, receive a simple, yet serious message from outer space: take care of the environment. A computer animated childrens flick where characters communicate via mime.
Tue 10/27, 1pm, 4pm & 7:30pm.
Jerichow (Germany, 2008) An intricate, haunting portrait of a love triangle between an ex-soldier, a Turkish businessman and his restless wife that takes place in a desolate town in East Germany. An official selection at both the Venice and Toronto film festivals.
Wed 10/21, Thu 10/22 & Sun 10/25, 1pm, 4pm & 7:30pm. Fri 10/23, 1pm & 4pm.
Movie Museum
3566 Harding Ave. #4, $4 members, $5 general, 735-8771When Do the Girls Show Up? (Italy, 2005) When two teenage boys–one rich, the other poor–start the Joy Spring Quartet, the girls show up, creating a wedge between the two friends. Will the group survive despite their differences? The jazz soundtrack, by Riz Ortolani, won a David di Donatello award.
Thu 10/22, 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm & 8:30pm.
Fados (Portugal/Spain, 2007) A documentary about fados, a style of heartbreaking torch songs born in the slums of Lisbon, Portugal in the 1820s. Dramatic musical performances leave a searing impact. Winner of a Cinema Writers Circle Award for Best Documentary.
Fri 10/23 & Mon 10/26, 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm & 8:30pm.
Eden (Germany/Switzerland, 2009) A poetic comedy for foodies about a misanthropic, maniacally obsessed chef who finds a muse in Eden, an unhappily married waitress. A zesty, comedic delight of a romance brews.
Sat 10/24, 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm & 8:30pm.
Oyster Farmer (Australia/U.K., 2004) When wages from his oyster-farming gig aren’t enough to support his ailing sister, Jack robs an armored vehicle and sends the money to himself. The package ends up in the river, resulting in a thrilling, comedic goose hunt.
Sun 10/25, 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm & 8:30pm.
Hawaii International Film Festival
Dole Cannery Stadium, 735 Iwilei Rd., thru Sun 10/25, $10 general public, $9 students, seniors, military, children, $8 HIFF members and groups of 10 or more, [hiff.org], 697-2463.
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