We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)
written by: Lynne Ramsay
produced by: Jennifer Fox, Luc Roeg and Bob Salerno
directed by: Lynne Ramsay
rating: R (for disturbing violence and behavior, some sexuality and language)
runtime: 112 min.
U. S. release date: December 9, 2011 (limited) and January 20, 2012 (wide)
DVD/Blu-ray release date: May 29, 2012
I’m no child psychologist, but I’ve never really believed that there’s such thing as a “bad kid”. It seems more like a term used to label and file away a challenging or difficult child, than a way to better understand him or her. While I may not subscribe to such a view, there’s no denying how these bad seeds have had a noticeable presence in the movies. From the demon boy of “The Omen” to the petulant boy maniac of “Problem Child”, creepy or bratty boys (moreso than girls, for some reason – hmm) have always been around in cinema. Such an observance demands more indepth examination than you’ll find in this review. “We Need To Talk About Kevin” has yet another malevolent boy for the big-screen – in this case, as an unsympathetic antagonist to an equally unsympathetic protagonist – his mother.
This Week on DVD & Blu-ray (05-29-12)
Chernobyl Diaries (2012)
written by: Oren Peli, Shane Van Dyke and Carey Van Dyke
produced by: Oren Peli, Brian Witten and Bradley Parker
directed by: Bradley Parker
rating: R (for violence, some bloody images, and pervasive language)
runtime: 88 min.
U.S. release date: May 25, 2012
It’s not a good sign when a) a movie doesn’t screen for critics and b) there are no advance screenings until the night before its official release date. Nothing states “this movie sucks” and “don’t waste your time” more clearly than that one-two punch. I want to say that in learning this, I’ve been able to steer clear of such an omen, since rarely has any film with such a pattern ever turned out to be good, watchable, or at the very least – pain-free. That’s obviously not the case with “Chernobyl Diaries”. I should’ve known from similar viewings of past duds, such as “Skyline” and “My Soul To Take“, that the latest horror flick from filmmaker Oren Peli (responsible for the successful “Paranormal Activity” series), would effortlessly fall into the same company. It was either morbid curiosity or questionable optimism that found me in a less-than-packed theater (theater #13 to be precise), subjecting myself to horrible acting, awful dialogue, and worst of all, a stupid and insulting story.
written by: Wendell Mayes (screenplay) and John D. Voelker (story)
produced by: Otto Preminger
directed by: Otto Preminger
rating: none
runtime: 161 min.
U.S. release date: July 1, 1959
DVD/Blu-ray release date: February 21, 2012
The famous opening title sequence for Anatomy of a Murder was designed by graphic designer Saul Bass, and uses cut-out animation of a crudely drawn dismembered body interwoven with a brisk jazz score over the credits. It has a very modern feel to it (as does the film’s poster, also designed by Bass), and signals this as a very modern film for 1959. Director Otto Preminger has always been known for pushing the envelope in his movies (Bass had also designed a similar credit sequence for Preminger’s earlier controversial film “The Man with the Golden Arm”), and here he again courted infamy with frank discussions of divorce, violence and sexuality. Preminger intuited that this was the beginning of the end for the blissful post-war era of America, and the start of a darker, more open time for the country, and with this film, he cemented his legacy as one of the finest film directors ever.
The Dictator (2012)
written by: Sacha Baron Cohen, Alec Berg, David Mandel & Jeff Schaffer
produced by: Sacha Baron Cohen, Alec Berg, David Mandel, Jeff Schaffer, Scott Rudin & Dan Mazer
directed by: Larry Charles
rating: R (for strong crude and sexual content, brief male nudity, language and some violent images)
runtime: 83 min.
U.S. release date: May 18, 2012
“The Dictator” taught me one thing about my moviegoing – just because I occasionally laugh out loud, doesn’t mean I walked away from a good movie. Not that this comedy, which reunites actor Sacha Baron Cohen (who also co-writes and co-produces) with director Larry Charles (“Borat” and “Bruno”), is out to educate viewers, but that’s really about all I could take away from my viewing experience. Cohen has already established his brazenly offensive humor, subjected audiences to his racist, sexist, and lewd comedy that often includes wink-wink social and political commentary. His two previous films with Charles benefited from a loose improvisational feel which incorporated uncomfortable shocks, but “The Dictator” plays it safe with a lazy screenplay that primarily pokes fun at Middle Eastern stereotypes and perceptions. While there are some hilarious moments, the movie winds up feeling like a series of comedic skits patched together with overplayed jokes. The endlessly played trailers and TV spots may have shown some promise, but it seems like efforts to stretch this material out to feature-length have fallen flat.
This Week on DVD & Blu-ray (05-22-12)
The Criterion Completist – Tiny Furniture (2010)
written by: Lena Durham
produced by: Kylie Martin, Alicia Van Covering and Alice Wang
Directed by: Lena Dunham
rating: unrated
runtime: 98 min.
U.S. release date: November 12, 2012
DVD/Blu-ray release date: February 14, 2012
In a 2006 short film by video artist and filmmaker Lena Dunham called “Pressure”, Dunham and two of her friends sit on the floor of a library and listen as one of the girls describes the onset of a female orgasm, comparing it to a sneeze. After they leave, Lena sticks a finger in her nose, wiggles it around, and then sneezes. The end. Extend scenes like this into a feature-length film, and you have Dunham’s breakthrough feature, “Tiny Furniture”.
