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Connecting
with Discontents THE STATION AGENT: Written and directed by Tom McCarthy. Produced by Mary Jane Skalski, Robert May and Kathryn Tucker. Cinematography, Oliver Bokelberg. Editor, Tim McArdle. Music, Stephen Trask. Production design, John Paino. Starring Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson and Bobby Cannavale. With Paul Benjamin, Raven Goodwin, Richard Kind and Michelle Williams. Miramax, 2003. R. 90 minutes.
One of the heartier films of the season turns out to be about three lonely people who discover that loneliness is a lot easier to bear if you have good friends around. Writer and director Tom McCarthy's unique comedy blends in equal measure the sadness that each individual carries and the tolerance for differences that develops among companions. An uncommon film about ordinary people, The Station Agent deserves to be on everyone's calendar for the holidays. Fin McBride (Peter Dinklage) loves trains. He works in a crowded store full of model trains, The Golden Spike, where he makes and repairs trains for customers. But one day the store owner, Henry Styles (Paul Benjamin), drops dead, and Fin inherits a train depot and station house in Newfoundland, N.J. Fin, a dark, handsome man born with dwarfism, moves to this place in the middle of nowhere. The film unfolds through the relentless gift for gab of the irresistible, goofy Cuban guy who runs the hot dog and coffee stand in his parking lot. Joe (Bobby Cannavale), who's pitching in for his ailing father, is tenacious with his multifaceted offer of friendship. Willing to overlook Fin's countless rebuffs, Joe knows he will eventually wear him down. And so it is. Joe's needs are as real as Fin's. Independent as Fin is, and as reluctant to make friends, even he can't resist the grieving Olivia (Patricia Clarkson), especially after she almost runs him over and brings a peace offering to his place. And what does she mean when she notices Fin's home-made cigarette and says, "I once slept with a man who rolled his own"? Olivia is a painter, still undone by the loss of her son two years earlier. Two other local characters are Emily (Michelle Williams), the sweet but sexy librarian, who's attracted to him; and Cleo (Raven Goodwin), a schoolgirl who learns about trains from him. Fin chooses to relate directly to Cleo, perhaps because she asks him so many good questions about trains. Everyone in the community wants something from the dignified Fin, who discovers to his own surprise that he wants something from them. The delicate negotiations friendships require are no different for the people in this movie as they are for you and me. And you can see why everyone of them wants to be close to Fin — they have seen the intelligence and cheekiness up close and want it in their lives. Now at 4 feet 5 inches tall, Drinklage was born with a genetic mutation called achondroplasia, which left him with a normal-sized head and torso, but short arms and legs. After the first few minutes of the film, I forgot about Fin's size, because Drinklage is so present in the moment, with his feelings his wit, and a defiant, sexy charm. I hope other film directors, like McCarthy, recognize Drinklage's talent and write or adapt roles for this good-looking lead actor. The movie won the dramatic audience award as Sundance 2003, and the select audience I saw it with seemed to think it was as wonderful as I do. Highest recommendations. The Station Agent opens Wednesday, Nov. 26 at the Bijou. Don't miss.
Haunted Mansion: Eddie Murphy stars in Rob Minkoff's (Stuart Little) ghost comedy, with Jennifer Tilly, Don Knotts, Terence Stamp PG. Opens Wed. 11/26. Cinemark. Cinema World. Missing, The: Ron Howard directs Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones as an estranged daughter and father in this Western set in 1885 New Mexico. Blanchett, seeking to avenge her daughter's (Evan Rachel Wood) kidnapping, reluctantly joins forces with her despised old man. Hopefully, one of the season's better films. R. Opens Wed. 11/26. Cinemark. Station Agent, The: Tom McCarthy's film about three people with nothing in common except their solitude was a surprise hit at Sundance 2003. Stars Peter Dinklage, who takes up residence in a rural town's old train depot and gets to know neighbors Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale. Acclaimed performances by Dinklage and Clarkson. Great advance press. Opens Wed. 11/26. Bijou. See review this issue. Timeline: Richard Donner directs screen adaptation of Michael Crichton's novel about archaeologists on a dig who time travel back 600 years to rescue their teacher, trapped in 14th century France. Stars Paul Walker, Frances O'Connor, Billy Connolly, David Thewlis. PG-13. Opens Wed. 11/26. Cinemark. Cinema World.
CONTINUING: Brother Bear: Disney tale of young man who is transformed into a bear and his adventures in the great Northwest. He picks up a bear cub and runs into a pair of misguided moose, or is that meese? Six new songs from Phil Collins, including one with Tina Turner. G. Cinemark. Bubba Ho-Tep: Written and directed by Don Coscarelli, based on a Joe Lansdale short story, film stars Bruce Campbell as Elvis Presley and Ossie Davis as John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Elvis and JFK are residents of an East Texas nursing home who join forces to dispatch an Egyptian mummy who sucks the soul from fellow patients. NR. Bijou. Online archives. Cat in the Hat, The: Mike Meyers stars as the outrageous feline who visits a couple of kids and wreaks havoc in the house while mom's away. Live-action comedy based on beloved Dr. Seuss book. Most parents and many kids can recite it by heart. With Alec Baldwin, Kelly Preston. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star: Sam Weisman directs David Spade in his role as a 35-year old out of work actor who hires a family so he can relive his childhood and finally grow up. With Mary McCormack, Jon Lovitz, Craig Berko, Rob Reiner. PG-13. Movies 12. Elf: Jon Favreau directs. Accidentally transported to the North Pole when he falls in Santa's bag, a human child grows up to be Will Ferrell, and a little disturbed that he doesn't resemble the other elves. With the help of Mr. Claus (Ed Asner) and his chief assistant (Bob Newhart), he sets out for New York in search of his biological father (James Caan). With Zooey Deschanel and Mary Steenburgen; Jon Favreau directs. PG. Cinema World. Cinemark. Fighting Temptations, The: Cuba Gooding Jr. plays an ad exec who inherits money only if he conducts a rural gospel choir. Co-stars Beyoncé Knowles. Musical comedy directed by Jonathan Lynn. PG-13. Movies 12. Finding Nemo: Pixar's computer-animated fantasy of two Clownfish, Marlin and his son Nemo, who get separated in the Great Barrier Reef. Written and directed by Andrew Stanton (A Bug's Life), with voices by Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Willem Dafoe, Geoffrey Rush, Allison Janney. Very highly recommended. G. Movies 12. Online archives. Good Boy: Doggie sci-fi comedy stars Liam Aiken as a dog walker who finally gets a dog of his own, Hubble (voice by Matthew Broderick), only to discover he's really an alien agent from the Dog Star Sirius. PG. Movies 12. Gothika: Halle Berry plays a criminal psychologist who blacks out and comes to accused of murdering her husband (Charles Dutton). Now she's a patient in his hospital. Directorial debut of Mathieu Kassovitz. Also stars Penélope Cruz, Robert Downey Jr., Bernard Hill. R. Cinema World. Cinemark. Intolerable Cruelty: The Coen brothers comedy about L.A. divorce attorney Miles Massey (George Clooney), who falls for gold-digger Marylin Rexroth (Catherine Zeta-Jones). Also stars Geoffrey Rush, Cedric the Entertainer, Billy Bob Thornton, Edward Herrmann and Richard Jenkins. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life: Angelina Jolie stars as action heroine Lara Croft who saves the world, again, from unspeakable evil. Directed by Jan De Bont, also stars Gerard Butler and Noah Taylor. PG-13. Movies 12. Looney Tunes: Mixed animation/ live action directed by Joe Dante, starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, Steve Martin, Timothy Dalton, Joan Cusack, Heather Locklear. PG. Cinemark. Cinema World. Love Actually: Written and directed by Richard Curtis (Bridget Jones's Diary), this romantic comedy stars Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Keira Knightley, Martine McCuthcheon, Bill Nighy. R. Cinema World. Cinemark. See review this issue. Master and Commander The Far side of the World: Peter Weir brings the late Patrick O'Brian's best-selling nautical adventures to the screen with Russell Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey and Paul Bettany as Dr. Stephen Maturin, ship surgeon and naturalist. Set during the Napoleonic Wars. Highest recommendations. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Online archives. Matchstick Men: Ridley Scott directs this tale of a couple of grifters working small-time cons, until personal issues arise. Stars Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell, with Alison Lohman and Bruce McGill. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Matrix Revolutions: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne and Carrie-Anne Moss are back for the third (and final?) Matrix episode. Written and directed by the Wachowski Brothers. Called the most violent film ever made. Produced by Joel Silver. R. Cinemark. Mystic River: Directed by Clint Eastwood; written by Brian Helgeland, based on the novel by Dennis Lehane, this tragic masterpiece stars Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney and Emmy Rossum. Very highest recommendations. R. Cinemark. Online archives. Open Range: Kevin Costner directs and stars with Robert Duvall in traditional Western about a corrupt cattle baron (Michael Gambon) who forces the cowboys to fight. Annette Bening's performance is warm and real. With Abraham Benrubi, Diego Luna. Recommended. Movies 12. Online archives. Pirates of the Caribbean: Non-stop adventure directed by Gore Verbinski stars Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley. Depp sashays, Rush dissembles, Bloom fences and Knightley swashbuckles. Depp and Rush's over the top performances are great. Recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Radio: High school football coach (Ed Harris) shocks a Southern town by taking on a mentally challenged youth (Cuba Gooding Jr.) and developing a decades-long friendship with him. Also stars Alfre Woddard and Debra Winger; directed by Mike Tollin. PG. Cinemark Runaway Jury: Gun manufacturer's explosive trial stars John Cusack, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, Rachel Weisz. PG-13. Cinemark. Rundown, The: Peter Berg directs Seann William Scott, The Rock, Rosario Dawson and Christopher Walken in this adventure about a kingpin's son who disappears in the Amazon in search of a valuable artifact. PG-13. Movies 12. Scary Movie 3: Horror spoof satirizes movies such as The Ring, Signs, The Matrix Reloaded, Eight Mile. Stars Anna Faris, Charlie Sheen, Denise Richards, Eddie Griffin and Queen Latifah. Directed by David Zucker. R. Cinemark. School of Rock: Faking it as a substitute teacher, wild guitarist Jack Black turns elementary musical prodigies into a high-voltage rock band. Directed by Richard Linklater, it also stars Joan Cusack, Mike White and Sarah Silverman. PG-13. Cinemark. Seabiscuit: A has-been racehorse becomes America's Depression-era success story, along with jockey Tobey Maguire, trainer Chris Cooper, and owner Jeff Bridges. Written, directed by Gary Ross based on Laura Hillenbrand's best-selling non-fiction book, also stars Elizabeth Banks, William H. Macy. Highest recommendations. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Secondhand Lions: Haley Joe Osment is sent to his great uncles' rural Texas farm, where the city boy has much to learn. Robert Duvall and Michael Caine may have been bank robbers. Written and directed by Tim McCanlies (writer, The Iron Giant). PG. Movies 12. Shattered Glass: Hayden Christensen plays The New Republic staff writer Stephen Glass who wrote heavily fictionalized stories and then lied about it. Peter Sarsgaard plays his editor, Chloe Sevigny a duped co-worker. Highest recommendations. PG-13. Bijou. Online archives. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Remake of Tobe Hooper's1974 horror classic is directed by Marcus Nispel, music video guru. Backwoodsy killer clan runs amok. Stars Jessica Biel, Eric Balfour and Andrew Bryniarski as Leatherface. R. Cinemark.
MOVIE
THEATERS Bijou
Art Cinemas Regal
Cinemas Cinemark
Theaters
NEW
RELEASES ON VIDEO Bruce Almighty: Jim Carrey, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Aniston star in this tale of a at TV reporter, who has a really bad day, rages against God and receives more than he expected. PG-13. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968): The tale of an oddball inventor who takes his children to a fantasy land in his old car. Written and directed by Ken Hughes, with Roald Dahl co-writing, it stars Dick Van Dike, Benny Hill, Sally Ann Howes. G. Chuck Close: A Portrait in Progress (1999): Documentary profile of artist Chuck Close who paints huge images from Polaroid prints. Directed by Marion Cajori. Fellini: I'm a Born Liar (2003): Documentary profile of film director Federico Fellini, with Terence Stamp, Donald Sutherland, Roberto Benigni and Italo Calvino. Directed by Damian Pettigrew, shot in 1993, near the end of the director's life. Clive James wrote after Fellini's death that his "individuality resided in his being able to see what was universal about himself." Man on the Train: Patrice Leconte's excellent character-driven film stars French icons Johnny Hallyday and Jean Rochefort as men with nothing in common, who meet in a small town and almost exchange identities. Film gives us a glimpse into that private place where our secret dreams live. Very highest recommendations. R. Pirates of the Caribbean: Non-stop adventure directed by Gore Verbinski stars Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley. Depp sashays, Rush dissembles, Bloom fences and Knightley swashbuckles. Depp and Rush's over the top performances are great. Highly recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. To Live and Die in LA Special Edition (1985) DVD includes documentary, deleted scene, and alternate ending to director William Friedkin's film starring Willem Dafoe, William L. Petersen, John Turturro, Dean Stockwell, John Pankow, Debra Feuer, Robert Downey. William S. Burroughs: Commissioner of Sewers: Documentary on controversial poet William S. Burroughs. X-Men 2: The next link in the evolutionary chain? Directed by Bryan Singer, stars Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Halle Berry, Famke Janssen, James Marsden and more, lots more. PG-13. Next week: Assassination Tango; Bad Boys 2; Darling; The Navigators; They Drew Fire; and Wuthering Heights. |
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