Movie/TV Reviews

Speed Racer

Susan Granger’s review of “Speed Racer” (Warner Bros.)

If you’re into high-octane car racing, trippy Japanese anime and awesome visuals, this is spectacular family fare.
Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch of “Into the Wild”) is obsessed with racing. Despite the death of his adored older brother, Rex, who was presumably killed in an accident years earlier, the sport is a family passion. His dad (John Goodman) runs an independent racing team with the moral (and culinary) support of his mom (Susan Sarandon) and to the delight of his 11 year-old brother, Spritle (Paulie Litt), along with his pet chimpanzee, and Speed’s perky, helicopter-pilot girl-friend, Trixie (Christina Ricci).
When Speed’s recruited to join ultramodern Royalton Industries, he refuses, infuriating its owner (Roger Allam), who maintains that money rules and the biggest races are ‘fixed’ with the finishing order planned and controlled. If Speed won’t drive his Mach 5 for Royalton, the family business is in jeopardy, along with his life. After preliminary skirmishes, Speed teams up his one-time rival, mysterious Racer X (Matthew Fox of “Lost”) who is working with a secret law-enforcement agency. The 91st Annual Grand Prix turns out to be a showdown with corrupt big business.
On their first writing/directing collaboration since the “Matrix” trilogy, Andy and Larry Wachowski spent $120 million – and every penny shows in the 2000+ edgy, vibrant, candy-colored, kaleidoscopic visual effects. They’ve invented a new process of combining CGI with live action, utilizing perspective control that allows two images to be in focus at the same time. Designed by ‘carchitects,’ their World Racing League is an acrobatic, full-contact motor sport, described as ‘Car-Fu,’ automotive martial arts.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Speed Racer” is an intense, adrenaline-pumping, unstoppable 8 – and don’t forget the sleek Hot Wheels tie-in toys, including 1,500 action-figures.

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A Previous Engagement

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “A Previous Engagement” (Buccaneer Films)

As Oscar Wilde said, “The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.”
So when Julia Reynolds (Juliet Stevenson), a Seattle librarian, talks her staid, jigsaw puzzle-obsessed husband Jack (Daniel Stern) into taking a vacation on the Mediterranean island of Malta, she has a secret agenda. Twenty-five years earlier, she made a date there with her first love, Alex (Tcheky Karyo). When the sexy Frenchman, now the editor of a literary magazine in Montreal, not only shows up but vows she’s still his one-and-only true love, Julia is faced with an aching dilemma. Should she leave her family since her two grown daughters have unexpectedly have shown up for the memory of an idyllic romance? And what will happen to unsuspecting Alex when he finds out?
Cleverly written and insightfully directed by Joan Carr-Wiggin (“Honeymoon”), it’s deliciously unpredictable, an emotional roller-coaster ride
or as Julia astutely observes, “If people knew who their mothers really were, the world would end.”
Juliet Stevenson (“Truly, Madly, Deeply,” “Bend It Like Beckham”) is magnificently fearless and desperately funny, striking not a single false note in a highly combustible mixture of emotions. Tcheky Karyo (“The Good Thief,” “The Patriot”) performs with cagey humor and dazzling delicacy, while Daniel Stern (“Home Alone”) is slyly surprising and voraciously smart. As an opportunistic divorcee, Valerie Mahaffey (“Desperate Housewives”) is a radiant comedienne.
Amped by a sensational ‘buy-it-now’ soundtrack that’s perfect for baby boomers, on the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “A Previous Engagement” is an irresistible 8. It’s the rarest of all things: an intelligent, sophisticated romance with real meat on its bones. You’ll leave the theater with a smile on your face and an answer to the question: Is that all there is?

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dvd/video update

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s dvd/video update for week of Friday, May 2nd

“27 Dresses” is an amusing chick-flick with Katherine Heigl as a perennial bridesmaid who can’t find her own happy ending until she meets a cynical newspaper reporter (James Marsden). It’s a fluffy, frivolous indulgence for those who still enjoy the occasional wedding fantasy.
Adapted from the first book in Phillip Pullman’s sci-fi series, “The Golden Compass” involves a 12 year-old orphan girl (Dakota Blue Richards) who lives in an alternate world under the guardianship of icily manipulative woman (Nicole Kidman) who transports her to the frozen Arctic to find her adventurous uncle (Daniel Craig). It’s light on plot and heavy on CGI, particularly a spectacular showdown between two armored polar bears.
Like “Stomp the Yard,” the Canadian-made “How She Move” showcases another exhilarating urban dance form, starring Ruta Wesley as an energetic Jamaican who joins the all-male “Jane Street Junta.”
Aside from its incongruous title, “What Would Jesus Buy?” is Rob VanAlkemade’s funny and informative examination of the American commercialization of Christmas.
For kids, ages 6 and up, I highly recommend Trevor Romain’s “If You Don’t Take Care of Your Body, Where Else Are You Going to Live?” which issues a fitness challenge, along with his “Cliques, Phonies & Other Baloney,” “Taking the ‘Duh’ Out of Divorce,” “Bullies Are a Pain in the Brain,” “Facing Fear Without Freaking Out,” “How to Do Homework Without Throwing Up” and “What on Earth Do You Do When Someone Dies?”
PICK OF THE WEEK: In French with English subtitles, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” is the story of how 43 year-old Jean-Dominique Bauby, editor-in-chief of Elle France, suffered a stroke and was left almost entirely paralyzed yet dictated a best-selling memoir, communicating only by blinking. It’s a testament to the indomitable human spirit.

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Made of Honor

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Made of Honor” (Columbia Pictures)

This romantic comedy is the first feel-good date movie of May.
Tom (Patrick Dempsey) and Hannah (Michelle Monaghan) have been platonic best friends since college – when he accidentally stumbled into her bed wearing a Bill Clinton mask, intending to seduce her roommate ‘Monica.’ Back then, he invented the ‘coffee collar,’ the paper sleeve that’s made him a millionaire.
Ten years later and still commitment-phobic, Tom’s into sport sex, seducing a different woman every week, never spending consecutive nights with any of them. But Sundays he always spends with Hannah – until a business trip takes her to Scotland, where she meets a hunky, irresistible nobleman, charming Colin McMurray (Kevin McKidd), who sweeps her off her feet and into one of his four castles. The realization that he’s going to lose Hannah jars Tom into the realization of how truly compatible they are and how much he loves her. Heartbroken, he’s determined to woo Hannah back and stop the wedding before she’s gone forever – even if that means enduring the wrath of her bridesmaids and competing in the Highland Games.
As one of today’s most popular leading men, Patrick Dempsey (“Enchanted”) delivers a cleverly roguish performance, and Michelle Monaghan exudes beauty and grace. Admittedly, Adam Sztykiel, Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont’s screenplay is superficial and predictable, albeit from the male perspective, but Paul Weiland’s engaging direction handles the formulaic plot with frothy, improvisational flair. And Weiland’s supporting cast – Kevin McKidd, Sydney Pollack, Kathleen Quinlan – couldn’t be better, nor could his choice of idyllic Dunvegan Castle on the Isle of Skye.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Made of Honor” is an exuberant 8. Boasting three (count ‘em) weddings, it’s a delightful, audience-pleasing, fun-filled fairytale of laughter and love.

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Iron Man

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Iron Man” (Paramount Pictures/Marvel Studios)

What happens when a hip, new superhero appears? He attacks corporate amorality, skewering the military/industrial complex, and changes the geo-political landscape. Too bad he can’t run for President.
When arrogant billionaire playboy/weapons manufacturer Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is in Afghanistan demonstrating his company’s new Jericho missile, he’s kidnapped by insurgents who bomb his convoy. Awakening in a cave, he learns his life has been saved by doctor (Shaun Toub) who implants an electromagnetic device to keep the shrapnel from piercing his heart. While the terrorist leader, Raza (Faran Tahir) demands that he replicate a Jericho out of spare parts, Tony secretly makes a high-tech suit of armor and escapes, looking a bit like the Michelin Man. But his life has been changed.
Back in his Malibu mountaintop mansion, he’s determined to stop making armaments and use his knowledge to wreak vengeance on his captors and save humanity, much to the surprise of his manipulative guardian/mentor (Jeff Bridges), loyal assistant (Gwyneth Paltrow), military liaison (Terrence Howard) and an investigative reporter (Leslie Bibb).
While the making-of-a-superhero story is formulaic, by assembling a high-caliber cast, headed by gifted Robert Downey Jr., director Jon Favreau (“Elf,” “Swingers”) elevates the superhero concept, making it hip, augmenting the imagery with metallic touches from “Iron Giant” and reminiscent tinges of the reclusive lifestyle of Howard Hughes. And credit production designer J. Michael Riva and cinematographer Matthew Libatique for convincing us that there’s really a man with a soul propelling that special effects suit.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Iron Man” is a nifty 9. Make no mistake, though. It’s Robert Downey Jr., having triumphed over his substance abuse battle, who puts the pedal to the metal and scores the freshest new franchise going.

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Deception

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Deception” (20th Century-Fox)

What a waste of talent and money! Burdened with the ineptitude of commercials director Marcel Langenegger, this forgettable wannabe thriller fizzles.
It begins with corporate auditor Jonathan McQuarry (Ewan McGregor) working late in the conference room of a prestigious Manhattan law firm. An amiable attorney, Wyatt Bose (Hugh Jackman), pops his head in the door and introduces himself. Eventually, they’re sharing marijuana and male bonding. Wimpy, socially awkward Jonathan opens up to confident, gregarious Wyatt, admitting, “I see life, literally, passing me by.”
They meet for tennis, then for lunch in Central Park, where they accidentally swap cell phones just before Wyatt jets off to London on a business trip. Answering Wyatt’s cellphone opens a decadent new world for lonely Jonathan when a woman’s voice seductively inquires, “Are you free tonight?”
The cellphone contains “The List,” the conduit to an upscale sex club where anonymous members meet for “intimacy without intricacy.” After timid trysts with some randy Wall Street executives (Charlotte Rampling, Natasha Hensridge, Maggie Q), Jonathan falls for a mysterious woman (Michelle Williams) whom he can only identify by the initial “S” from the letter on her key ring and is gradually drawn into manipulative Wyatt’s lethal web of treacherous financial intrigue; it’s a slick blackmail scam that grows increasingly preposterous as time goes by.
Written by Mark Bomback (“Live Free or Die Hard”), the clunky concept must have seemed far better on paper to attract actors of this magnitude who soldier on despite the ludicrous plot twists and total lack of eroticism. So when does enigmatic become incoherent? In the hands of an inexperienced director. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Deception” is a devious, implausible 2, a deadly, duplicitous dud.

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Then She Found Me

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Then She Found Me” (ThinkFilm)

Straight from the heart, without restraints, Helen Hunt’s directorial debut is a fresh, funny, fascinating emotional journey.
Raised in a traditional Jewish family, April Epner (Hunt) is a 39 year-old New York primary schoolteacher whose biological clock is ticking so loudly that she can think of little else. An adoptive child herself, she is determined to conceive, much to the chagrin of her immature husband Ben (Matthew Broderick), who deems their marriage a mistake and confesses to an affair.
Obviously distraught and vulnerable at his betrayal, April encounters amorous Frank (Colin Firth), the recently divorced father of one of her young students, who cautions her, “Don’t do anything until you’ve slept. Don’t let anybody try to set you up with anyone.”
To add to April’s confusion, after her adoptive mother dies, a woman purporting to be her birth mother suddenly introduces herself. It’s Bernice (Bette Midler), the brassy host of a local morning TV talk show. Self-deprecating April is skeptical but curious, particularly when Bernice claims that actor Steve McQueen was her father. And then the real romantic complications begin.
Loosely based on a novel by Elinor Lipman and adapted by Alice Arlen, Victor Levin and Hunt, there’s vivid, nuanced storytelling with deft, intelligent dialogue laced with a sense of humor that is both defensive and revealing. Hunt’s graceful direction flows naturally and easily, giving the story an understated authenticity.
The deftly chosen, altogether believable ensemble cast is superb, plus there’s a surprise Salman Rushdie cameo as April’s obstetrician, along with Edie Falco and Janeane Garofalo as Bernice’s celebrity guests.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Then She Found Me” is a stylish yet deeply sensitive 7, lifting your spirit. No one will come away without a smile.

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Baby Mama

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Baby Mama” (Universal Pictures)

With every magazine extolling “baby bumps” and the awareness of thirtysomethings that their biological clock is ticking, there’s no question that this romantic comedy is timely.
And perhaps I expected too much when two of the funniest comediennes from “Saturday Night Live” – Tiny Fey and Amy Poehler – teamed up with writer/director Michael McCullers and producers Lorne Michaels and John Goldwyn.
Businesswoman Kate Holbrook (Tina Fey) has always been so focused on her career at Philadelphia’s Round Earth Organic Market – catering to her New Age guru boss (Steve Martin) – that she never considered having a family. But now that she’s ready, apparently, her uterus isn’t. Discouraged about adoption, she turns to Chaffee Bricknell’s (Sigourney Weaver) maternal ‘outsourcing’ agency that teams her up with a ‘gestational assistant’ or surrogate, scheming Angie Ostrowiski (Amy Poehler). Or, as Kate’s wisecracking doorman (Romany Malco) dubs her, “the baby mama.”
But Angie’s saddled with a sleazy, duplicitous common-law husband (Dax Shepard) whom she eventually leaves – and moves in with Kate. They’re a female “Odd Couple”: Kate’s an obsessed perfectionist, while Angie’s a junk-food gobbling slob. To add to the confusion, Kate’s falling in love with a local fruit juice-bar owner (Greg Kinnear), a single father. Of course, eventually, everyone discovers what the non-traditional concept of ‘family’ is really all about.
While seasoned as the writer of two successful “Austin Powers” pictures, Michael McCullers, who once shared a “SNL” office with Tina Fey, could have used a more experienced comedy director; this is his first feature film – and it shows, not only in the pacing but in the woefully weak third act. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Baby Mama” is a wry, satirical 7. It’s just not as hip as I was hoping.

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Forbidden Kingdom

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Forbidden Kingdom” (Lionsgate/Weinstein Co.)

The gimmick is that Hong Kong action stars Jackie Chan and Jet Li team up for the first time – but is that enough to warrant such a muddled martial arts fantasy?
It all begins as a bullied teenager, Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano), is forced to become involved in the robbery of an elderly pawnbroker (Chan) in South Boston. As he’s fleeing from local thugs and toting a mysterious golden staff, he’s magically transported to China’s Middle Kingdom. Lost and bewildered, he’s befriended by Lu Yan (Chan), a wisecracking, perpetually drunk martial arts master who identifies Jason as the “the seeker” who is destined to fulfill the ancient prophecy and begins training him in fighting skills so that he can return the staff to its rightful owner, the immortal Monkey King (Li), who has been imprisoned by a tyrannical Warlord. Joining them on the long, arduous trek to the Jade Palace is orphaned Golden Sparrow (Liu Yifei), who is determined to kill the evil Warlord, and the fearless Silent Monk (Li), who also becomes Jason’s teacher. From time to time, they’re harassed by a wicked white-tressed, whip-wielding, bounty-hunting witch (Li Bing Bing).
As Jason’s physical prowess improves, so does his self-confidence, which he’ll need when and if he can ever “return home.”
Screenwriter John Fusco and director Rob Minkoff deliver a fusion smorgasbord with a smattering of “The Wizard of Oz,” combined with “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” topped with a fillip of “Rush Hour” and “The Karate Kid.” It’s generic enough to give anyone cinematic indigestion, followed by repetition-induced sleep, despite the impressive efforts of cinematographer Peter Pau and choreographer Woo-Ping Yuen.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Forbidden Kingdom” is a tedious, butt-kicking 4, filled with cliché-ridden, chop-schlocky action.

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Prom Night

Movie/TV Reviews / Susan

Susan Granger’s review of “Prom Night” (Screen Gems/Sony Pictures)

With its impressive box-office tally, this remake of the slasher thriller “Prom Night” has put some bite back into the horror genre although, surprisingly, the violence has actually decreased this time ‘round in order to get that coveted PG-13 rating.
Bridgeport High School senior Donna Keppel (Brittany Snow of “Hairspray”) lives with her aunt and uncle (Jessalyn Gilsig, Linden Ashby). As shown in flashback, three years earlier, as she hid under the bed, her parents were butchered by Richard Fenton (Johnathon Schaech), a psychopathic teacher who’s obsessed with her. Now fiendish Fenton has escaped from a maximum security prison.
Unsuspecting Donna is looking forward to spending prom night with Bobby (Scott Porter of “Friday Night Lights”) and their friends (Dana Davis, Collins Pennie, Jessica Stroup, Kelly Blatz) who have booked a stretch limo and a suite at the Pacific Grand Hotel for their own private ‘after prom’ celebration which is crashed by the knife-toting killer, trailed by a dim-witted cop (Idris Elba).
Veteran TV director Nelson McCormick (“Prison Break,” “CSI”) makes his directing debut, working from an inane script by J.S. Cardone (“The Covenant”). It’s tepid fare with a vacuous cast, particularly when compared with the previous 1980 version featuring Jamie Lee Curtis as the scream queen.
The only memorable line of dialogue is delivered by Brianne Davis, as nasty Crissy, who disses her prom date, noting: “If he were any dumber, I’d have to water him.”
And it’s truly unfortunate that Johnathon Schaech (“That Thing You Do”) lumbers around looking like a demented Forrest Gump. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Prom Night” loses its bloomin’ corsage with an easily forgotten 2. Or, as another critic cryptically remarked, “Many people in this picture actually died of boredom.”

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