|
MOVIE
LISTINGS
| NEW
VIDEO RELEASES
MOVIE
REVIEW ARCHIVE
| THEATER
INFO
Dumb
and Dumber
Dim bulbs light up the
runway.
By Lois
Wadsworth
ZOOLANDER: Directed by Ben Stiller.
Written by Drake Sather, Ben Stiller and John Hamburg. Story by Drake Sather and
Ben Stiller. Produced by Scott Rudin, Ben Stiller and Stuart Cornfield. Cinematography,
Barry Peterson. Production design, Robin Standefer. Editor, Greg Hayden. Costumes,
David C. Robinson. Music, David Arnold. Starring Ben Stiller, with Owen Wilson, Will
Ferrell, Christine Taylor, Milla Jovovich, Jerry Stiller and Jon Voight. Paramount
Pictures, 2001. PG-13. 89 minutes.
 |
|
Hansel (Owen Wilson)
and Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller), fashion models.
. |
|
To get in the mood to review this silly movie set in the world of
high fashion, I sucked in my cheeks, raised my eyebrows, furrowed my forehead and
opened my eyes wide in an intense, almost panicky, questioning gaze. If I could have
spoken at that moment, my voice would have sounded like the snooty, pseudo-Euro accent
affected by my model, Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller). I write "my model,"
but Derek has been named three times Male Model of the Year and belongs to us all.
A truer fashion insider has not been seen on the runway since celebrity
fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi entertained us in Douglas Keeve's 1995 marvelous documentary,
Unzipped. Mizrahi earned the label "tart-tongued," bestowed on him
by L.A. Times film critic Kenneth Turan, but so does Zoolander's arch pronouncement:
"I'm pretty sure there's more to life than just being really, really good looking,
and I plan on finding out what that is."
Often when I go to review a movie, I have to make a number of trips
to the Internet to bring in a few, usually crappy quality photographs, but this time
Paramount Pictures sent me my own personal copy of "The Derek Zoolander Calendar,"
with photos by Frank Ockenfels, which I plan to put on my office wall as soon as
I take down all my Film Festival posters. My favorite picture is for October. Derek
looks like one tough hombre in a spotted 10-gallon cowboy hat, a fur jacket, tight
brown leather pants and his famous Blue Steel expression. This Absolute Cowboy is
shown with a trio of white-faced Hereford cattle to show that he knows where leather
comes from.
Also in this movie is Hansel (Owen Wilson), who's at first Derek's
rival but later they make up and become friends. Hansel is almost as smart as Derek,
but two such beautiful male models in the same movie is intellectual overkill. A
message to the studio: I know you also created a model "portfolio" by photographer
Frank Ockenfels for Hansel, but did I get one? No!
And Will Ferrell of "Saturday Night Live," who is no
slouch as far as dressing is concerned, plays a very convincing bad guy named Mugatu.
A fashion first that was supposed to be in the movie was an "M" for "Mugatu"
cut out of the butt of Farrell's pants, but costume designer David C. Robinson just
never got around to it.
A funny movie that restores vanity to its primary place in the
pantheon of today's fashion gods, Zoolander is now playing at Cinemark and
Cinema World. Highly recommended, and I'm not kidding.
Wannabe
Soprano
Misadventures with the
mob.
By Lois
Wadsworth
MADE: Written and directed by Jon
Favreau. Produced by Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn. Cinematography, Chris Doyle. Editor,
Curtiss Clayton. Music, John O'Brien and Lyle Workman. Production design, Anne Stuhler.
Starring Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn, with Peter Falk, Famke Janssen, Sean Combs,
Vincent Pastore and Mckenzie Vega. Artisan Entertainment, 2001. R. 95 minutes.
 |
|
Writer, director
and co-producer Jon Favreau as Bobby in Made.
. |
|
Critics whose reviews I've read -- Elvis Mitchell (The New York
Times), Ella Taylor (LA Weekly), Peter Keough (Boston Phoenix)
-- go out of their way to cut a lot of slack to Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn for
Made, which is one of the worst movies I've seen this year. There are only
two explanations: Either these usually tough-minded critics genuinely enjoyed the
movie or Favreau and Vaughn are good guys and they want to support even their efforts
that fail. These critics note a long string of movies and filmmakers who inspired
Made, everyone from Cassevetes to Scorsese and Tarantino. This may soothe
the sensibilities of those fans who really wanted to see Swingers II, but
bad homage is just tacky.
Ricky (Vaughn) is an obnoxious jerk who skews any emotional commitment
you might make to the somewhat more sympathetic Bobby (Favreau), but both are seriously
flawed. Self-absorbed Ricky has no redeeming characteristics, while Bobby tolerates
his friend's unpleasant behavior disorder in order to not be friendless himself.
The opening scene says it all. The two men are in a boxing ring fighting, but their
performance is so lackluster that even the patrons of the fight are bored. Although
later there are a couple of bare-knuckles slugfests between them that have some juice,
the chemistry between these two throughout is subdued.
When we see Bobby and Ricky again, they're working construction,
or rather Bobby's working and Ricky is standing around with attitude. Max (Peter
Falk), a mob-connected guy who likes Bobby, will give them a different job providing
Ricky keeps his mouth shut and stays out of trouble. They're to go to New York where
a driver named Jimmy (Vincent Pastore) will take them to meet their contact, Ruiz
(Sean Combs).
In an attempt to add some gravity to the film's lightweight storyline,
Favreau sets up a domestic scene for Bobby that shows he's as dim-witted as Ricky.
His girlfriend, Jessica, is a lap dancer and stripper who works for Max; she has
a daughter, Chloe (Mackenzie Vega),who gets her only parenting from Bobby. You can
see where Favreau wanted to go here, but it doesn't work.
Turns out Favreau made Made after being on "The Sopranos,"
where he picked up Pastore, who played Big Pussy on the show until his character
was eliminated. Trust me, Made bears no relationship to cable's best show,
any hour of which is more rewarding a film experience than this. Opens Friday, Oct.
4 at the Bijou.
OPENING
OR RETURNING:
Films open the Friday following date of EW publication unless
otherwise noted.
Come and See (USSR, 1985): Videohound's Golden Movie Retriever
says: "War has rarely been rendered in such a vivid, utterly grim manner.
Outstanding achievement from Soviet director [Elem] Klimov." Not rated. At 7
pm 10/9 in 122 Pacific Hall, UO. Free.
Gummo: Controversial film by Harmony Korine (Kids)
contains disturbing images of atrocities sought by disaffected teens in a dead end
town. At 8 pm 10/5 in 180 PLC. $2 students, $3 general public.
Joy Ride: Scary road trip about a practical joke turned
lethal stars Paul Walker and Steve Zahn, who play brothers, and Leelee Sobiesky.
John Dahl directs. R. Cinemark. Cinema World.
Little Big Man (1970): Arthur Penn's movie stars Dustin
Hoffman, Faye Dunaway and Academy Award winning supporting actor, Chief Dan George.
A somwhat comic retelling of fact and myth about the Battle at Little Big Horn. Excellent
film. PG. At 7 pm 10/10 in 180 PLC. Free.
Made: The Swingers team is at it again. Jon Favreau
directs, writes and co-produces with Vince Vaughn in this tale of two goofy guys
trying to break into the mob. Also stars Peter Falk and Sean Combs. R. Bijou. See review.
Max Keeble's Big Move: Seventh grader Alex D. Linz thinks
he's moving in a week so he concocts sweet revenge against classmates, only to discover
that the family's not moving after all. Oops. Directed by Tim Hill. PG. Cinemark.
Cinema World..
Megiddo: Actually this Christian film about Armageddon should
be subtitled Omega Code 2. The Dallas Morning News reviewer wrote:
"You'd just about have to give movie cameras to monkeys to make a film worse
than [this.]" Brought to you by Code Productions, which is also responsible
for other movies from the religious right, Carman and The Omega Code.
PG-13. Cinema World.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975): Re-release of famous
comedy about the Arthurian legend directed by Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones stars
Gilliam, Jones, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Graham Chapman. Brilliantly
manic and gruesome. A cult classic. PG. Bijou.
Pearl Harbor: An over hyped WWII drama that critics have
correctly drubbed and audiences largely ignored. Director Michael Bay and producer
Jerry Bruckheimer's $135 million WWII epic stars Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett and Kate
Beckinsale. Forgettable. PG-13. Movies 12. See review.
Serendipity: Destiny has them meet by chance in a department
story, and fate parts them right away. Now it's 10 years later, and John Cusack and
Kate Beckinsale try to find each other again. Directed by Peter Chelsom (Town
& Country). PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World.
Training Day: Directed by Antoine Fuqua, this cop show features
a rookie nark (Ethan Hawke) who spends his first day -- a trial by fire -- with a
rogue senior officer (Denzel Washington). With Scott Glenn, Eva Mendes. Snoop Dogg,
Dr. Dre, and Macy Gray make cameos. R. Cinemark. Cinema World.
CONTINUING
American Pie 2: Same cast -- Chris Klein, Jason
Biggs, Mena Suvari, Seann William Scott, Eddie Kaye Thomas -- but a different director,
J. B. Rogers, and a super-secretive writer, Adam Herz. R. Cinemark.
Bridget Jones' Diary: Renée Zellwegger plays the
neurotic but witty Londoner on the prowl for a man. Hugh Grant's her boss, and Colin
Firth is an old friend. All three give excellent performances, especially Zellwegger.
Sharon Maguire's directorial debut. Script by Helen Fielding, Andrew Davies and Richard
Curtis. Funnier on second viewing, this smart, good-hearted romp is highly recommended.
R. Movies 12. See
review.
Bubble Boy, The: Comedy about immune deficient boy who falls
in love with the girl next door who builds a mobile bubble suit to pursue her. Directed
by Blair Hayes, film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Swoozie Kurtz, Marley Shelton. PG-13.
Movies 12.
Cats and Dogs: An inside look at pet wars at home while
grown up people are at work. Kitty (Sean Hayes, voice) has grandiose plans other
critters want to stop. Live-action comedy directed by Larry Guterman also features
animatronic, computer-generated action. PG. Movies 12.
Deep End, The: Scott McGehee and David Siegel's excellent
thriller stars the fabulous Tilda Swinton as a resourceful suburban housewife. Jonathan
Tucker plays her gay son, whom she's trying to protect, and Goran Visnjic is a blackmailer
who falls for her. Highest recommendations. R. Bijou. See review.
Don't Say a Word: Based on Andrew Klaven's novel, film is
about a child psychiatrist (Michael Douglas) who tries to save his daughter from
a kidnapper by getting critical information from a disturbed patient. Gary Fleder
directs. R. Cinema World. Cinemark.
Extreme Days: Growing up is hard. Four friends since
childhood try out all the extreme sports before settling down. PG. Cinemark.
Fast and Furious, The: Undercover cop (Paul Walker) infiltrates
gang-like LA street racing teams in Rob Cohen's action-adventure that also stars
Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez (Girlfight). PG-13. Movies 12.
Glass House, The: Psychological nightmare stars Leelee Sobieski
as an orphaned girl (and her brother) taken in by her parents' best friends(Diane
Lane and Stellan Skarsgard. PG-13. Cinemark.
Hardball: Keanu Reeves plays a soft-spoken baseball coach
for an inner city middle school who helps the team come together. PG-13. Cinemark.
Cinema World.
Hearts in Atlantis: Anthony Hopkins and Hope Davis star
in Scott Hicks' late-1950s adventure drama. Written by William Goldman, based on
Stephen King's novel. PG-13. Cinemark.
Jurassic Park 3: Sam Neill reprises his role as paleontologist
Grant. Joe Johnston directs. Grant takes a rich adventurer (William H. Macy) and
his wife (Téa Leoni) for a fly-by of the forbidden island. Lots of dinosaurs!
PG-13. Movies 12.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider: Angelina Jolie plays the video
game action heroine, and Simon West directs. Also stars Jon Voight and Iain Glen.
PG-13. Movies 12.
Legally Blonde: Reese Witherspoon plays a LA natural blonde
who goes to Harvard Law School to persuade Warner (Matthew Davis) that she's the
one for him. Directed by Robert Luketic. Also stars Selma Blair, Victor Garber, Holland
Taylor, Jennifer Coolidge and Luke Wilson. PG-13. Movies 12. See review.
Musketeer, The: Action adventure based on Alexandre Dumas
classic is directed by Peter Hyams stars Catherine Deneuve, Mena Suvari, Stephen
Rhea, Tim Roth and Justin Chambers. Xin Xin Xiong, choreographer of Once Upon
a Time in China, orchestrates fight sequences. PG-13. Cinemark.
Osmosis Jones: Directed by Bobby and Peter Farrelly with
others, this live action/animated comedy goes inside the body to the sites of the
most yucky sites. Stars Bill Murray, Molly Shannon and the voices of Chris Rock,
David Hyde Pierce and Laurence Fishburne. PG. Movies 12.
Others, The: A haunted Victorian mansion, a rigid and icy
mother (Nicole Kidman) and two special kids who see things makes this one of the
scariest movies made, critics say. Directed by Spanish filmmaker Alejandro Amenábar
with style, it's very highly recommended. PG-13. Cinemark.
Planet of the Apes: Re-imagining of the 1968 original by
filmmaker Tim Burton has great makeup and quicker-witted, stronger apes who act more
like real ones. Tim Roth walks away with the show as the menacing chimpanzee who
wants to kill all humans. Stars Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Clarke
Duncan, Paul Giamatti and Tim Roth. PG-13. Movies 12. See review.
Princess Diaries, The: Directed by Garry Marshall, this
comedy about a S.F. teen who finds out she's a princess stars Anne Hathaway, Hector
Elizondo, Julie Andrews, Robert Schwartzman and Heather Matarazzo. G. Cinemark.
Rush Hour 2: Brett Ratner returns to direct Jackie Chan
and Chris Tucker as detectives who travel to Hong Kong, LA and Vegas looking for
a master criminal. Also stars Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, The Road Home).
PG-13. Cinemark.
Scary Movie 2: The Wayans brothers' sequel to last year's
genre spoof, with Keenan Ivory Wayans directing brothers Marlon and Shawn (who also
wrote the script). The bros, trapped inside a haunted house, enlist the help of James
Woods, exorcist. R. Movies 12.
Score, The: This Frank Oz action movie stars Robert De Niro
as a career criminal who breaks his own rule to take an unknown (Edward Norton) as
partner on a heist. Also stars Marlon Brando, Angela Bassett. Great acting. R. Movies
12. See review.
Shrek: Computer-animated fairy tale (by DreamWorks' Pacific
Data Images, makers of Antz) stars Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz
and John Lithgow. Entertaining and funny for kids and grown-ups. PG. Movies 12. See
review.
Spy Kids: Robert Rodriguez (El Mariachi) directs this youth-oriented
tale about superspies (Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino) who leave the life to marry
and have a family. When they're kidnapped, only their kids can save them. PG. Movies
12.
Zoolander: In his first foray in directing since The
Cable Guy, Ben Stiller also writes and stars in this comedy about a male model
brainwashed into taking on a secret mission. With Owen Wilson, Christine Taylor and
Milla Jovovich. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. See
review.
MOVIE
THEATERS
Use the links provided below for specific show times.
Bijou
Art Cinemas
Bijou Theater 686-2458 | 492 E. 13th
Regal
Cinemas
Cinema World 342-6536 | Valley River
Center
Springfield Quad 726-9073 |
Cinemark
Theaters
Movies 12 741-1231 | Gateway
Mall
Movies before 12:30 are Sat. Sun. only. $1.50 all shows all days.
Cinemark 17 741-1231 | Gateway Mall
NEW RELEASES
ON VIDEO:
Releases subject to change. Available the Tuesday following date of
EW publication, sometimes sooner:
Bridget Jones' Diary: Renée Zellwegger plays the neurotic but witty Londoner
on the prowl for a man. Hugh Grant's her boss, and Colin Firth is an old friend.
All three give excellent performances, especially Zellwegger. Sharon Maguire's directorial
debut. Script by Helen Fielding, Andrew Davies and Richard Curtis. Funnier on second
viewing, this smart, good-hearted romp is highly recommended. R. See review.
Cirque du Soleil, The Journey of Man: Outstanding work by
the Canadian troupe, this presentation of the stages of humanity through a Universal
Child is accomplished through colorful costumes, light and music. The New York
Times notes: "At its most evocative, you really do feel you've stumbled
into an enchanted realm." G.
Godfather, The: Only on DVD, this three-film collection
in a five-disc set includes director Francis Ford Coppola's commentary and three
hours of bonus material. Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, James Caan,
Robert De Niro, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Diane Keaton, Andy Garcia. Spendy at $105.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937): Disney classic now
available on DVD. G.
Next week: Angel Eyes, Cats & Dogs and Star
Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.
Back to Top
Table of Contents
| News | Views | Arts & Entertainment
Classifieds | Personals
| EW
Archive
|