Another Earth

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: At the moment we discover another parallel Earth, a teenage girl (Brit Marling) drunk drives into a family of three, killing the wife and young son. When she gets out of jail, 4 years later, she tries to apologize to the surviving husband (William Mapother), and ends up becoming his maid instead, giving them an opportunity to get to know each other.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Brit Marling, William Mapother, Jordan Baker, Flint Beverage, Robin Lord Taylor, Kumar Pallana, Diane Ciesla

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! Not since Birdie (1984) has a film that just barely holds my attention become an instant indy classic based 100% on the conclusion.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Did you laugh during Winter's Bone? Because this is just a repeat of that cold, dark tone, with a vastly different plot.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Gasp, yes. Empathize, yes. Cringe, yes. Cry? It's almost too depressing for that simple of an emotion.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It won two special prizes at Sundance. Why do you think I went to see it?

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Brit Marling, much like Jennifer Lawrence, is a beautiful blond playing a low class dirty tough chick. Unlike Jennifer Lawrence, Brit Marling fails at hiding her beauty in this role. But I can definitely see why everyone was talking about her after Sundance. She's an A-lister in the making. William Mapother also breaks out in this role, although I personally wasn't nearly as impressed with his acting or his beauty. (And a lot of the time I was distracted by looking for similarities between him and his cousin Tom Cruise (maiden name "Mapother"), of which there are plenty.) Special mention to Jordan Baker, in the tiny role of Brit Marling's mom, because she reminds me of Diane Keaton, and on Another Earth, could've had her career.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Mike Cahill makes his directing debut with this incredibly Sundance-y looking film. The Winter's Bone influence works well enough, but on more than one occasion, he uses dissolves in a way that reminds me of a cheesy 1970s Steely Dan Video.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Brit Marling and Mike Cahill, who have collaborated before and I assume are dating (this is how rumors get started), write a slow, quiet, and somber movie with enough poignant dilemmas to keep your attention until the Inception-like ending, which puts the whole story over the top.

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: I know this is terrible to bring up, but I'd like to take wagers on how many months Brit Marling can make it in Hollywood without getting a boob job. I don't normally notice this through clothes, but she's the most flat-chested actress I've seen since Selma Blair. I'm giving her 2 more flat chested movies, and by the 3rd, I'm expecting to see a C-cup. So, I guess that adds up to about 9 months. Come on, you love me because I'm honest!

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: Another Earth Trailer

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The Lincoln Lawyer

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: Based on a best-selling novel by Michael Connelly, The Lincoln Lawyer is a procedural drama with thriller elements about a slick lawyer (Matthew McConaughey), who works out of his Lincoln Town Car, and specializes in getting guilty criminals off the hook. But when you mess with a lot of guilty people, sometimes it can come back to bite you in the ass.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, William H. Macy, Josh Lucas, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, Bob Gunton, Frances Fisher, Bryan Cranston, Trace Adkins, laurence Mason, Margarita Levieva, Pell James, Shea Whigham, Katherine Moennig, Michael Pare, Michaela Conlin, Reggie Baker

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! I never watch Law & Order, but I imagine that if I were a fan of it, it would be because it's a lot like this.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: There are some charming character interactions, but none of the laughs are out loud.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Marisa Tomei and McConaughey play a divorced couple on opposite sides of the law who spend a lot of free time together and seem to enjoy sharing a daughter. So, yeah, it kinda makes me cry that they can't just work it out.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Best Television Movie Not Playing on Television.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Nobody even tries to stretch beyond their limits, but sometimes that's what makes them just right for the roles they've been assigned.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Shaky hand-held camera, gritty minimalistic lighting, in-camera zooms... everything about the style and feel of this film looks completely independent, except for the presence of Matthew McConaughey.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: It's not the most original structure ever put to film, but the moral dilemmas are interesting, and trying to figure out the main character's thinking keeps you glued to your seat. That said, this could just as easily be the pilot episode of a TV series. A good one, though.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: The Lincoln Lawyer Trailer

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City Island

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: The father (Andy Garcia) of a dysfunctional family discovers the son he never told anyone he had (Steven Strait) in the jail he works at. So he decides to bring him home, and that's what causes all of the family's secrets to suddenly crash into their lies.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Andy Garcia, Julianna Margulies, Steven Strait, Ezra Miller, Dominik Garcia-Lorido, Alan Arkin, Emily Mortimer, Carrie Baker Reynolds, Hope Glendon-Ross

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! Cute, cute, cute! This indy comedy is surprisingly complex underneath its simple exterior.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Ezra Miller, who will undoubtedly remind you of a cuter and younger Justin Long, has most of the good lines.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: It's moving, but more in the way that makes you smile. That said, you may actually laugh at the thing that makes Andy Garcia throw up.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Julianna Margulies would be an obvious choice for next year's Spirit Awards, if only because she plays a convincing working class New York matriarch, but between now and a year from now, I'd be surprised if anyone remembered to nominate her. On the bright side, the film did win the Audience Award at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: You wanna learn about acting? Watch the audition scene in this movie. It's cringe inducing, then bad, and that's when we get to see how good Andy Garcia really is. And by the way, Ezra Miller, who I already mentioned above, is going to be a huge star.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: This is the kind of independent comedy that most first time filmmakers only wish they could have made. Of course, Raymond De Felitta has directed at least five films already, so perhaps that's not a very nice comparison. For anyone involved.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: The most impressive thing is the way they argue. Right when they say they can't tell somebody something, they let it all out, in your face, here's the whole f-ing truth, now you deal with it!

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/city-island/37115/trailers

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Amreeka

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A Palestinian woman (Nisreen Faour) and her son (Melkar Muallem) move to America to escape the oppression of being held prisoners in their own land, only to encounter a new level of racism in their new country, which has just overthrown Saddam Hussein and declared war on Iraq.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Nisreen Faour, Melkar Muallem, Hiam Abbass, Alia Shawkat, Jenna Kawar, Selena Haddad, Yussuf Abu-Warda, Joseph Ziegler, Andrew Sannie, Daniel Boiteau, Brodie Sanderson

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. It's a decent depiction of anti-Arab sentiment in America, and it almost manages to draw you in.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Culture Clash is always a little bit funny... Especially when it involves White Castle Burgers.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: What these people are going through, just based on the color of their skin, is heartbreaking and it should make you cry. But the film never goes for any real tear-jerking moments, and so, it doesn't.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, which had a lot to do with why I wanted to see it. Now that I have, I understand why it didn't win.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Oh, those people were actors? If it hadn't been for the presence of Maeby from Arrested Development, I never would have known.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Very simple and very fine.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: It's an interesting story, and it's done very well, but I've seen it done in more gut-wrenching ways.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/amreeka/

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Wendy and Lucy

(Guest Review by Russ)

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: While some might describe this as the sobering account of a young woman’s life, as misfortune and bad luck conspire to leave her destitute, I would describe it as the Michelle Williams-loses-her-dog movie.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Michelle Williams, Will Patton, Lucy the Dog, Wally Dalton, Larry Fessenden, Ayanna Berkshire, Will Oldham

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Stop! This is sort of an ‘anti-movie.’ It has no plot to speak of, no character arcs, and no real conclusion. It truly is 80 minutes of watching Wendy (Michelle Williams) look for her lost dog (Lucy) in some depressing Oregon blue-collar town where pretty much nothing else happens. I’d be willing to bet that Michelle Williams’ home movies have more dramatic thrust than this collection of images and sounds. And higher production values as well.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: No. But after the movie was over, we laughed a lot at our friend Brian’s impersonation of Wendy looking for her dog. He just put his hoodie up and wandered around calling out: “Lucy!... Lew!... Lucy!” I counted even a few strangers laughing. They, too, had clearly seen the film.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Yes. It will make you weep for the current state of indie films. Because when boring, pointless pieces of of film like this are not only getting made, but also getting released, it kind of justifies why most of the independent film making companies closed up shop last year. Independent film is dying. But if this is what passes for independent film, maybe it deserves to die.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It has already won Best Film and Best Actress (Michelle Williams) from the Toronto Film Critics Association. It’s nominated in the same categories for the Spirit Awards. After seeing it, I can honestly say that Canadians have no taste and filmmakers should be insulted if they get nominated for a Spirit Award.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Thanks to filmmaker Todd Haynes, a mutual friend of the director and Michelle Williams, all parties were able to convince her to sign on-- proving once again that old Hollywood adage: it’s not what you know, but who you know. I can’t think of a single good reason why Williams would do this project, unless she was craving an award from the Toronto Film Critics and had a psychic premonition that they’d vote her the winner. I mean, she’s fine, but like I’ve said before, in my review of Deception, she deserves much better parts. Anyway, to talk about acting in an anti-movie is like answering a question about editing while watching America’s Funniest Home Videos: oxymoronic.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: This anti-movie at least adheres to a few well-worn rules when making a low-budget indie that’s meant to be depressing: open on an overcast day as a train moves through a rail yard. Check. Now move to a meandering overly-long tracking shot of the star in which you can’t really make out that it’s the star. Check. Cover that with someone humming a pointless tune and we’ll go ahead and pretend that’s the score. Check. I’m beginning to wonder if there was even a director behind the camera because it all seemed like a collection of security-camera images that caught Michelle Williams roaming around Oregon looking for her dog in real time for 80 minutes. Are you still reading this?

Q: How is the story/script?

A: There is none. There were opportunities for dramatic story-telling set forth, but each of them was promptly avoided like the plague. Wendy could have gone off the rails and gotten angry, or confronted someone a number of times, but the writers simply defused each dramatic opportunity with a character who doesn't stand up for herself. This anti-movie is supposed to be a mediation on our times and economy. How responsible are we for each other? What is the American Dream in 2009, and does it still really exist? Those are truly interesting themes. None of which have any resonance in Wendy and Lucy. I did feel for Wendy – probably because of Michele Williams. But the character is pretty much an idiot.

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: Did I mention that this is not a movie?

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzMP6jQ5Txc

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Battle in Seattle

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A fictional retelling of true events, Battle in Seattle follows an organized group of peaceful rioters, as they stand in protest with tens of thousands of other, against the World Trade Organization, which is meeting in their hometown for five days. Unfortunately, when the police begin attacking them, things don't stay peaceful for long.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Martin Henderson, Michelle Rodriguez, Woody Harrelson, Charlize Theron, Andre Benjamin, Ray Liotta, Rade Serbedzija, Joshua Jackson, Connie Nielsen, Channing Tatum, Jennifer Carpenter, Ivana Milicevic, Isaach De Bankole, Tzi Ma

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! Selfishly, I want to send you all to this movie just in case you don't already know what the WTO is doing to put commercialism ahead of both the individual human being and the environment that sustains us. Not only that, but certain heretofore unnamed world powers within the World Trade Organization (take a lucky guess who) use their position to suppress the rights of Third World countries, keeping them in a constant state of bankruptcy, which in comparison, makes our own financial crisis seem not so bad. So please take my impure intentions into consideration before you rush out to see this one. But do me a favor, if you decide to skip it, at least try to do a little personal research on the WTO.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Andre 3000 has a couple of funny moments. But none of them are quite as funny as the fact that he has a four digit number in his name.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: You'll probably cry more by doing your research on the World Trade Organization-- another well intentioned group, turned evil in the face of greed.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: After the film, I sat through the first 5 minutes of a Q & A with writer-director, Stuart Townsend, during which he mentioned that they're releasing the film now because it's, "After the Summer Blockbuster season and before Awards Season." So clearly they're not expecting any.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: If you can get past Martin Henderson's New Zealand accent coming in and out of his attempt at an American one, and if you can get past Michelle Rodriguez's one-note, angry-at-the-world act, and if you can get past Connie Nielsen's spontaneous turn from caricatured bitch on wheels of a news reporter, who will do anything for a story, to a suddenly compassionate supporter of human rights... Whew-- that's a lot to get past... But my point is Andre Benjamin is delightful in all his optimism, Channing Tatum, in a very small role, gives one of his most naturalistic performances to date, and Rade Serbedzija is spot on-- so long as you can get past the fact that he's playing a French man, but when he gets angry, he curses in his native language: Yugoslavian?

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Stuart Townsend, who's never directed before, does a surprisingly good job of seamlessly interweaving actual documentary footage of the events with newly shot fictional footage, involving his made up characters. He will direct again.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Also during the Q & A, Townsend mentioned that his objective was to inspire audiences to demonstrate, and to anger people into action. While I was angered, I left the theater feeling more hopeless about the individual's ability to make a difference, than I felt inspired to try it. On the other hand, it's sad that it took an Irishman to stand up and make a statement about an American historical event, that most of us here aren't even thinking about... So maybe I should at least be inspired by him.

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Trouble the Water

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A Documentary about one couple's struggle to survive Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Kimberly Rivers Roberts and Scott Roberts, with their friends, family, and neighbors from the Ninth Ward of New Orleans.

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. While the strength and courage of the protagonists inspires a renewed faith in human resilience, this social interest story relies too much on the infamous Hurricane for its emotional pull, causing the scope to feel more like a piece for 60 minutes, and less like a theatrical release.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Michael Brown, the head of FEMA at the time, has a pretty funny expression on his face when a newscaster calls him out for doing nothing.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Is it even possible to make a film about Hurricane Katrina without a few deeply moving moments?

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, which I can't help but think was a pity award for having to go through that whole deadly Hurricane thing. But as far as awards they do deserve, Kimberly Rivers Roberts' original rap songs are the highlight of the film, and I would love to see her follow in the footsteps of Three 6 Mafia at the Oscars.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Despite the devastating circumstances, Kimberly and Scott Roberts always seem to keep smiles on their faces-- which is at once the thing that makes them so likeable, and the thing that makes the film less dramatic than it should be.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: The majority of the footage is shot by the primary subject, Kimberly, on a camera she bought for $20, and the production quality suffers severely from this choice. But if you can get past the shaky-cam, you'll get a first hand point of view look at what it was like, from someone who was actually there, rolling tape.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: There are so many interesting stories that came out of this National Disaster, that it's a shame to focus only on this small one. But if you are going to hone in on one couple's (albeit fascinating) experience, you have to delve deeper into their personal relationships with each other, and those around them, as they weather the storm. You have to find some personal conflict that comes out of it. But in this doc, the only true conflict comes from the struggle of Man against Nature... And, of course, Man against the U.S. Goverment-- but everybody's struggling with that.

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Traitor

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: Samir Horn (Don Cheadle) is definitely a traitor. But is he a traitor to the United States or to the terrorists?

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Jeff Daniels, Neal McDonough, Said Taghmaoui, Archie Panjabi, Aly Khan, Alexandra Castillo, Raad Rawi, Lorena Gale

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! Even when you think you know whose side he's on, you don't. This double-agent, spy thriller will keep you constantly second guessing yourself.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: There is one good laugh, well into the third act, and it's really a strange thing to laugh at.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Maybe if you're a religious extremist.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It's certainly that kind of a film.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Don Cheadle hits all the right levels as he carefully navigates the line between innocent and guilty, never quite giving away which category he falls into.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Jeffrey Nachmanoff's camera constantly moves in exciting ways, often showcasing original angles, all without distracting you from the story line.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: It starts out like a run of the mill terrorist movie, but it steadily ramps up with every frame, becoming constantly more suspenseful as it draws to an end that actually has a point.

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: Even as the movie jumps from location to location, the editing is seamless. And the second-unit aerial shots of Chicago make you want to go there more than any other Chicago-based movie I've seen.

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The Dark Knight

(Guest Review by Russ)

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: After Gotham City has been rid of most of its crime, a new nemesis comes to town to spice things up and make Batman’s life (Christian Bale) hell again. His name is The Joker (Heath Ledger).

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Nestor Carbonell, Eric Roberts, Cillian Murphy, Anthony Michael Hall

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! Biggest box-office opening in history… fastest film to $200 million (5 days)… Proof that if you like Batman or just super-hero movies in general, chances are very good that this one will give you a thrill.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Despite a character called, ‘The Joker," the film's not really built for humor. But he is the funniest thing going in this piece, especially when he's blowing up hospitals.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you truly believe in a world where a man dressed like a bat might save your life one day, you might shed a tear or two. You might also consider signing yourself up for psychotherapy.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Technical awards notwithstanding, this movie could land a Best Film nomination based on the box office records it's set (see Titanic). And if you haven't heard the deafening buzz about Heath Ledger’s performance, you're probably wearing noise-cancelling headphones.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Because of your headphones, I am forced to tell you that Ledger’s reinvention of The Joker is mesmerizing and terrifying in its authenticity, while also striking the perfect tone for a comic book movie. Bale – once again – makes Batman perfectly angst-ridden, and Gyllenhaal is an improvement over Katie Holmes (which not only isn't saying much, it's saying absolutely nothing).

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Visually striking, but Christopher Nolan shoots a lot of the action sequences in close-ups, rendering them sometimes hard to follow. They are still an improvement over Batman Begins.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Full, maybe overly so. The script deals with big themes – specifically the psychology of hero vs. villain; and how both can live inside one person. It never talks down to the audience, it’s not dumb and for those reasons alone it stands above most comic book films. But at 2.5 hours the movie feels as long as it is, which it probably didn’t need to be. At times it has a bit of a split personality; focusing not only on The Joker, but also the Aaron Eckhart character of Harvey ‘Two-Face’ Dent-- a storyline which could've been steamlined.

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: Time for another eulogy... Much has been made of Heath Ledger’s performance in this, and it's one thing that lives up to the hype. He’s actually better than the movie, which is saying a lot since the film is very good. After Brokeback Mountain, this is yet another stellar performance that will leave audiences wondering what other fascinating characters Ledger might have sprung on us had he not passed away shortly after making The Dark Knight.

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