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Hyper
Reality
Reliving
Derry's tragedy.
BY
LOIS WADSWORTH
BLOODY SUNDAY: Written and directed
by Paul Greengrass, from the book Eyewitness Bloody Sunday
by Dan Mullan. Produced by Mark Redhead, Don Mullan, Paul Myler. Executive
producers, Pippa Cross, Arthur Lappin, Jim Sheridan, Rod Stoneman
and Paul Trijbits. Cinematography, Ivan Strasburg. Editor, Clare Douglas.
Music, Dominic Muldoon. Production design, John Paul Kelly. Costumes,
Dinah Collin. Staring James Nesbitt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Declan Duddy,
Mike Edwards, Nicholas Farrell, Gerard McSorley and Kathy Kiera Clarke.
With Allan Gildea, Gerard Crossan, Mary Moulds and Carmel McCallion.
Paramount Classics, 2002. R. 110 minutes.
 |
|
IVAN
COOPER (JAMES NESBITT).
|
At times, you forget Bloody Sunday is a
re-enactment of events of that took place long ago. The hyper-realistic
filmmaking of writer, director Paul Greengrass and producer Mark Redhead
shows what happened on January 30, 1972. You experience the gut-level
feeling of being in an unmanageable, chaotic crowd with live shots
zinging through the streets. You feel hunted and terrified. Bloody
Sunday cinematically depicts documentation from survivors of what
was to have been a peaceful march for civil rights.
Bloody Sunday was the first of Northern Ireland's
troubles that questioned the image built in the mainstream media about
British occupation of Derry's civilian population. Although professional
and amateur audio and video footage showed soldiers firing on and
killing unarmed protesters in the streets that day, the formal report
of the government inquiry whitewashed the military's culpability,
swearing they were fired on first. The decision to bury Bloody Sunday
loosed armed, dangerous troops with a mission no less bloody-minded
nor devoted than the IRA "hooligans" or "terrorists" they battled
for another 30 years.
There's a lesson here: Many illusions died that day.
In January 1998 the British government launched a
new, formal inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday, at the behest
of Prime Minister Tony Blair and based on "new evidence." At the inquiry's
official web site (www.bloody-sunday-inquiry.org.uk), read the description
of the new evidence: 36 bundles of evidence, each comprising approximately
129 volumes, including 12 volumes of photographs. Also, 30 audio tapes,
61 videotapes and 1,700 witness statements.
Greengrass and Redhead's even-handed, cinema-verité
style suits the subject perfectly. Hand-held camera, ambient sound,
raggedy radio noise and fast cuts move the viewer deeper into the
chaos that surrounded the day's decisions. Because the film is not
a polemic but rather a bid for reconciliation and justice, it does
not take sides. To impartially tell the story of a 10,000-person,
largely peaceful march confronted by 3,000 armed British troops in
Derry that one day, the filmmakers chose "to focus on four main strands,
two from each side of the conflict, all focusing on individuals under
particular pressure," Redhead wrote.
The four individuals include Gerry Donaghy (Declan
Duddy), a 17-year old Catholic lad recently released from prison,
now in love with a Protestant girl and eager to stay out of trouble.
His opposite is a young British paratrooper (Mike Edwards), who had
been dropped into Derry with his anti-tank platoon. He's worried about
his gung-ho buddies, fresh from the IRA conflicts of Belfast and rarin'
to go.
Brigadier Patrick MacLellan (Nicholas Farrell) was
placed in charge of the operation by his commander (Tim Piggott Smith).
MacLellan had problems with the plan and ongoing advice from every
direction, but he finally gave the order that sent the Paras into
the crowd.
The leader of the non-violent, civil rights march
in Derry, and the film's lead character, is politician Ivan Cooper
(James Nesbitt). A Protestant who was elected Member of Parliament
to represent mid-Derry, Cooper believed in the non-violence of Gandhi
and Martin Luther King. In that spirit, he organized marches to peacefully
protest the Special Powers Act, which gave the British the right to
"go to a person's home, arrest them and intern them without any trial,"
as Cooper himself wrote in the production notes.
Cooper does everything he can to keep the march peaceful,
including desperately trying to turn the marching thousands onto a
safer side street rather than the ambush point, ringed with soldiers
fighting rock-throwers. He failed. In a profoundly understated performance,
Nesbitt show how little good intentions are worth when the dogs of
war ravage the streets. Nesbitt, who became friends with Cooper during
the filming, notes that Derry "bears witness" every day to the events
of 1972 and that "Ivan never marched again because he felt that what
happened that day was hijacked by terrorist organizations."
Back to Top
Rapper
Road
Gritty
musical menace.
BY
LOIS WADSWORTH
8 MILE: Directed and
produced by Curtis Hanson. Written by Scott Silver. Produced by Brian
Grazer. Executive produced by Carol Fenelon, James Whitaker, Gregory
Goodman, Paul Rosenberg. Cinematography, Rodrigo Prieto. Production
design, Philip Messina. Costume design, Mark Bridges. Editor, Jay
Rabinowitz and Craig Kitson. Starring Eminem (Marshall Mathers), with
Kim Bassinger, Mekhi Phifer and Britanny Murphy. Also Evan Jones,
Omar Benson Miller, Eugene Byrd, De'Angelo Wilson, Taryn Manning,
Michael Shannon and Anthony Mackie. Universal Pictures, 2002. R. 111
minutes.
Jimmy Smith Jr. (Eminem) has just split up
with his girlfriend, Janeane (Taryn Manning), leaving her his car.
Rabbit, as his friends call him, feels pretty low. He really dreads
having to go back to Detroit's seedy 'burbs to live with his sexy,
single, alcoholic mother, Stephanie (Kim Bassinger), in 8 Mile Motor
Courts. (8 Mile is the road that divides mostly black, inner city
Detroit from its mostly white suburbs.) We get a clear picture of
how marginal Rabbit's life is when he changes shirts next to a dumpster
in an alley, and we realize he carries his clothes with him in a black
garbage bag.
 |
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MEMBERS
OF THE THREE ONE THIRD CREW: RABBIT (EMINEM) AT THE WHEEL; FUTURE
(MEKHI PHIFER) FRONT PASSENGER; CHEDDAR BOB (EVAN JONES), CENTER
BACK; AND DJIZ (DE'ANGELO WILSON).
|
But his dreadlocked pal, Future (Mekhi Phifer), persuades
him to participate in the verbally aggressive battle of the rappers
at his club. Offstage, Jimmy sweats it out. In this predominantly
black club, black rappers are notoriously territorial. When Future
hands Rabbit the microphone following the vicious rhyming rants of
his rival from the Free World, Papa Doc (Anthony Mackie), Jimmy chokes
up. Humiliated, he heads home.
In this young male culture, screwing up's really bad.
Word gets around fast, and by the next day everybody knows Rabbit
couldn't perform at the club. Later on when Rabbit's clueless buddy,
Bob (Evan Jones), shoots himself in the leg, worse than the pain is
Cheddar Bob's fear of the cruel, relentless teasing he'll have to
take. No one exactly teases Rabbit, however — he's not that
kind of guy. But every rival rapper in town uses the facts of Rabbit's
life — his freeze-up, living in a trailer, dependent on his
mom for transportation — to insult him at every opportunity.
The first time Rabbit spots Alex (Brittany Murphy),
he wants to get to know her. Because he's such a wound-up, ticking
bomb there's hope that a little love might loosen him up. But no.
Alex is at least as ambitious as Rabbit and equally determined to
get out of Detroit, whatever the cost. For a perky, reckless gal the
obvious way is to sleep her way to the top. Alex sees something in
Rabbit that tells her he will be a big hit when he makes the right
connection. They have steamy sex in the manufacturing plant where
he holds down a repetitive, tedious day job. But each of them is too
focused on getting out of Detroit to cultivate a relationship.
The only person Rabbit really cares about is Lily
(Chloe Greenfield), the little girl who lives with his mother —
his child? his sister? — who is smart and who loves him a lot.
If he did not have Lily as an anchor, who knows whether Rabbit would
have the drive to pursue a career or not.
Autobiographical to a degree, 8 Mile works
for Eminem, just as the whole of his pop persona does. He doesn't
reveal a great range of emotion; his voice is not really memorable.
But when he's around, you're not looking anywhere else. Challenging
to the hip-hop impaired but worth the work, 8 Mile is recommended
for its portrait of inner city life and the raw doggedness required
to escape its net. Now playing at Cinemark.
Back to Top
OPENING
OR RETURNING:
Films open the Friday following
date of EW publication unless otherwise noted. See
archived movie reviews.
Ballad of a Soldier
(USSR, 1959): Directed by Grigorii Naumovich Chkukhrai. A young soldier
WWII refuses a hero's medal but takes leave to visit his mother and
immerse himself in life's pain and joy. Nominated 1961 Academy Award
for best story and screenplay. At 7:45 on 11/20 in 115 Pacific Hall,
UO. Free.
Bloody Sunday: Brilliant dramatization of the
Northern Ireland riot that festered for over 30 years, creating atrocities
on all sides of the conflict. A powerful bid for peace and reconciliation,
the film experience is shattering. Stars James Nesbitt, it's written
and beautifully directed by Paul Greengrass. Very highest recommendations.
R. Bijou.
Closet Land (1990): Stylized political allegory
failed to persuade critics. Woman writer is tortured because her children's
books are deemed subversive. Stars Madeleine Stowe and Alan Rickman.
R. At 7 pm on 11/20 in 110 Fenton Hall, UO. Free.
Das Experiment: Award-winning fiction film
from Germany about a psychological experiment that involves role-playing
in a prison-like situation that turns too realistic. Stars Moritz
Bleibtreu (Run Lola Run), directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel.
NR. LateNite Bijou.
Everybody's Famous: Flemish film. R. At 7 pm
on 11/15 in International Lounge, EMU, UO campus. Free.
Four Feathers, The: Surely the only reason
to remake this old racist chestnut about the imperialistic Brits in
the Sudan, 1898, is to give Hollywood hunk Heath Ledger something
to do. Kate Hudson may help, as well as Wes Bentley and Djimon Hounsou.
Directed by Shekhar Kapur (Elizabeth). PG-13. Movies 12.
Frida: Salma Hayak plays Frida Kahlo, the feminist
painter and wife of Mexico's great muralist and painter Dieogo Rivera
(Alfred Molina) and lover of Leon Trotsky (Geoffrey Rush). Directed
by Julie Taymor . R. Cinemark.
Half-Past Dead: Steven Seagal viloent action
movie directed by Don Michael Paul. As undercover FBI, Seagal tries
to stop intruders from murdering a Supreme Court Justice and a death
row inmate in Alcatraz. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark.
Harry Potter: Chamber of Secrets: Again directed
by Chris Columbus, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint)
and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) try to uncover a dark force terrorizing
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. G. Cinema World. Cinemark.
In the Heat of the Sun: In conjunction with
art exhibit "Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: China's Cultural
Revolution." At 7 pm on 11/15 in Studio One, Hult Center. Free.
Men with Guns: John Sayles' political drama
based on Guatemalan civil war and uprising in Chiapas A doctor (Federico
Jose Luppi ) goes in search of his medical missionary students, joining
with assorted personalities along the way. With Damián Delgado,
Dan Rivera González and Mandy Patinkin. Not rated. At 7 pm on
11/17 at Grower's Market.
Transporter, The: Corey Yuen directs, Luc Bresson
produces and co-writes this crime thriller starring Asian star Shu
Qi and Jason Statham. PG-13. Movies 12.
Undisputed: Walter Hill's boxing drama about
a heavyweight champ who goes to prison stars Wesley Snipes and Ving
Rhames. R. Movies 12.
CONTINUING:
Austin Powers in Goldmember:
Third time is charmed as Mike Myers comes back in multiple roles as
Austin Powers. With Michael Caine and Beyoncé Knowles. Directed
by Jay Roach. Mini-Me takes the cake! PG-13. Movies 12. Online
archives.
Banger Sisters, The: Susan Sarandon and Goldie
Hawn play 1960s-era rock star groupies who get reacquainted in Bob
Dolman's comedy. Great performances from Hawn, Geoffrey Rush and Eva
Amurri. Highly recommended. R. Movies 12. Online archives.
Barbershop: Sweet-natured comedy about a day
in the life of a south side Chicago barbershop stars Ice Cube, Cedric
the Entertainer, Sean Patrick Thomas, Troy Garity, Eve. This movie
makes you feel good. Recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives.
Eight Mile: Set on the gritty streets of Detroit,
Curtis Hanson's greatly anticipated film stars Eminem in his first
screen role, Kim Basinger as his mom. Also, Brittany Murphy, Mekhi
Phifer and Taryn Manning. R. Cinemark. Cinema World. See review
this issue.
Fast Runner, The (Atanarjuat, 2002):
Zacharias Kunuk directs the first feature film in 80 years about the
Inuit people of northern Canada. It's based on a traditional Inuit
folk epic. Very highest recommendations. R. Bijou. Online archives.
Femme Fatale: Brian De Palma's thriller stars
Rebecca Romijn-Stamos as the mysterious wife of the American ambassador
to France. Antonio Banderas plays the freelance photographer who learns
about her past. R. Cinemark.
Ghost Ship: Steve Beck's horror film about
an ocean liner missing since 1935 that turns up in the Bering Sea.
Stars Julianna Margulies, Gabriel Byrne, Ron Eldard and Isaiah Washington.
R. Cinemark.
I Spy: CIA super agent (Owen Wilson) and undefeated
boxer (Eddie Murphy) hate each other at first sight, but they have
to track down a missing stealth bomber. PG-13. Cinemark.
Igby Goes Down: Burr Steers' directing debut
is this excellent tale of a smart teenager (Kieran Culkin) whose wealthy
mother (Susan Sarandon) makes life difficult. He runs away to New
York, where he connects with all the wrong people and the one right
one (Claire Danes). Love this movie! Highest recommendations. R. Bijou.
Online archives.
Jackass: The Movie: Based on the MTV series,
more dangerous and silly stunts. R. Cinema World. Cinemark.
Knockaround Guys: Four wannabe Mafiosas —
Vin Diesel, Seth Green, Barry Pepper and Andrew Davoli — follow
instructions from John Malkovich and Dennis Hopper) but manage find
lots of trouble on their own. R. Movies 12.
Lilo and Stitch: Animated Disney comedy about
Lilo, a lonely Hawaiian girl, and her small, ugly dog named Stitch.
PG. Movies 12.
Master of Disguise: Dana Carvey plays Pistachio
Disguisey, a waiter who turns into whatever he thinks of next. PG.
Movies 12.
Men in Black 2: Jay (Will Smith) drags a reluctant
Kay (Tommy Lee Jones) back into the agency with the mission of "Protecting
the earth from the scum of the universe." Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld.
PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives.
Moonlight Mile: Brad Silberling directs this
semi-autobiographical film about a young man (Jake Gyllenhaal) who's
adopted by the grieving parents (Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon) of
his girlfriend who was killed. Then he falls in love again. With Ellen
Pompeo, Dabney Coleman, Richard T. Jones and Holly Hunter. R. Cinemark.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding: It's about the 30-year
old, unmarried daughter (Nia Vardalos) in a passionate but demanding
Greek NY family, who meets the man she to marry (John Corbett), but
he isn't Greek. This sweet romantic comedy entertains. Run-away independent
hit of 2002!. Recommended. PG. Cinema World. Cinemark. Online archives.
Punch-Drunk Love: Paul Thomas Anderson's comedy
about an LA businessman (Adam Sandler) who blindly follows a woman
he loves (Emily Watson) to Hawaii. Also stars Luis Guzman and Philip
Seymour Hoffman. Highest recommendations. R. Cinemark. Online archives.
Ring, The: Gore Verbinski finds a solid cast
in Naomi Watts (Mulholland Drive), Chris Cooper and Brian Cox
for this remake of Hideo Nakata's 1998 Japanese horror film. PG-13.
Cinema World. Cinemark.
Road to Perdition: Sam Mendes directs this
fathers-and-sons drama set in Chicago during the Depression. It stars
Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Tyler Hoechlin, with Jude Law, Daniel Craig,
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Stanley Tucci and Liam Aiken. Beautiful cinematography,
powerful drama. R. Movies 12. Online archives.
Santa Clause 2: Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) begins
looking for the perfect Mrs. Claus, because if he doesn't get married
by Christmas Even, he'll stop being Santa forever. G. Cinemark. Cinema
World.
Serving Sara: Matthew Perry. Elizabeth Hurley
and Bruce Campbell star in Reginald Hudlin's romantic comedy. Also
stars Cedric the Entertainer and Vincent Pastore. PG-13. Movies 12.
Spider Man: Tobey Maguire stars in Sam Raimi's
film and makes Spidey a comic book superhero we can all appreciate.
Also stars Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin, Kirsten Dunst as the
girl, James Franco, Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris and J.K. Simmons.
Highly recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives.
Sweet Home Alabama: Andy Tennant directs the
fabulous Reese Witherspoon in this comedy about a hot fashion designer
who returns to the South to get a divorce from scruffy hubby #1 (Josh
Lucas) so she can marry rich Patrick Dempsey. PG-13. Cinemark.
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. See
archived movie reviews.
Berkeley in the Sixties: Documentary about
the free speech movement at UC Berkeley in the 1960s. DVD includes
two hours of previously unreleased material.
Cirque Du Soleil: 3-disc DVD includes the troupe's
fabulous performances of Journey of Man, Dralion and
Quidam.
Fast Food, Fast Women (2001): Louise Lasser,
Anna Thomson star in this questionable comedy about neurotic women
and food. The New York Times called it "trivial and uninvolving."
R.
Price of Milk, The: The NY Times called
it "a terminally whimsical contemporary fairy tale set in New Zealand
farming country." Written and directed by Harry Sinclair. PG-13.
Reign of Fire: After a slumbering fire-breathing
critter wakes up, all hell breaks loose, and the world descends into
Medieval times. Matthew McConaughey comes as savior, Christian Bale
is fire chief. Rob Bowman directs. Violent. PG-13.
Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron: Animated
Western adventure with the voices of Matt Damon, James Cromwell and
Daniel Studi is an action picture, not a comedy. Co-directed by Kelly
Asbury and Lorna Cook. G.
Sunshine State: John Sayles' film about the
unsightly over development of Florida and the effect it has on a community
historically both black and white. Great cast headed by Angela Bassett
and Edie Falco. Recommended. PG-13. Online archives.
Virgil Bliss: Basically a Western set in Brooklyn,
Clint Jordan plays Virgil Bliss, a man who falls for a local woman
(Kirsten Russell), who doesn't want to give up her vocation as a prostitute.
Written, directed and produced by Joe Maggio, the film garnered critical
respect. NR.
Next week: Contempt, Ice Age, I All Starts Today,
Lovely and Amazing, Medea, Men in Black II, Solaris (1972), Undisputed
and War and Peace (1968).
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