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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 22 August 2004

Another superhero has arrived to save the day.  Back in 1944, a young baby found his way into this world from a portal which was opened into another universe.  That baby was raised by Professor Trevor Bruttenholm (Hurt) and has he has now grown into a being with superhuman strength who seemingly cannot be killed.  Played by Ron Perlman, he is Hellboy.

The Professor, Hellboy and another sci-fi creature known as Abe Sapien head an undercover FBI department.  Joining this unit is Agent John Myers (Evans), a fresh graduate who doesn’t know what he is getting himself into.  When he asks of the point to it all, the Professor replies with “there are things that go bump in the night, Agent Myers… and we are the ones who bump back.”

Of course, keeping Hellboy’s identity hidden from the public is an ordeal in itself.  The world isn’t ready to know that such aliens exist on their planet and FBI official Tom Manning (Tambor) is running out of excuses to explain the many unusual sightings of a large red creature roaming the streets.  Unfortunately for Hellboy, he isn’t one who enjoys being hidden away and now that he has an outside love interest in Liz Sherman (Blair), he’s more eager than ever to sneak out of the top secret FBI headquarters.

For Agent Myers, his initiation will become something he will soon not forget.  An evil presence has arrived on the scene who are determined to reopen the mysterious portal and allow those from a long distant universe to invade Earth.  Hell is about to break loose, so to speak.

It’s a rather intricate storyline and you’ll need to pay close attention during the opening half hour or so to understand the backgrounds to these characters.  There’s a few details I am still a bit sketchy on so may wait for the video for a closer look.  On the positive side, this superhero caper isn’t like most others.  Hellboy is very casual and has an acute sense of humour.  The romance angle is also interesting and I found myself empathising with several characters.  Not quite as good as the new Spider-Man series but well up there.

A sequel has already been commissioned for a 2006 release with director Guillermo del Toro and star Ron Perlman returning.  Del Toro is one of a bunch of great Mexican directors finding an audience in America.  If you’ve seen either 1997’s Mimic or 2001’s Blade 2, you’ll be familiar with his previous works.  He’s speciality is the thriller genre and given the dark edge to Hellboy, he’s in his element here.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 15 August 2004

To each their own, but I am tired of actor Will Smith.  The guy has talented which was evident way back in 1993 when he gave the best performance of his career in Six Degrees Of Separation.  Now, Will Smith has become his own stereotype.  Each new character he plays has the same personality – that of a laid-back yet righteous individual who has a broad range of zingy one-liners.  To refresh your memories, think back to Bad Boys, Bad Boys 2, Men In Black, Men In Black 2, Wild Wild West, Enemy Of The State, Independence Day…

I, Robot begins with a murder.  Police detective Del Spooner (Smith) is asked to investigate the apparent suicide of friend Dr. Alfred Lanning (Cromwell).  Lanning was the leader in robotic science and has ensured that almost every American household now has a robot to serve them in their home.  He also developed the three central laws of robotics – a robot cannot injury another human, a robot must obey another human and a robot must protect its own existence.

Spooner has always been sceptical of robots and thinks Lanning’s death was no accident.  In Lanning’s room at the time of his death was a rather unique robot going by the name of Sonny (voiced by Alan Tudyk).  Sonny is now Spooner’s lead suspect but police chief John Bergin (McBride) wants nothing to do with this theory since it completely contradicts the three laws.

Following through with his investigation regardless, Spooner finds he is being hindered by the head of Lanning’s robotics company, Lawrence Robertson (Greenwood).  Something is being covered up with the help of new friend Susan Calvin (Moynahan), Spooner’s prepared to put his life on the line to solve the riddle.

Of course, Spooner’s life is never really on the line.  He extricates himself from one perilous situation after the other and you don’t have to be a mindreader to know he’s going to come through unscathed.  What could have been an interesting look at the power of robots turns into a cheap action adventure with a silly finale.  2001: A Space Odyssey this ain’t.

In the director’s chair is Egyptian born Alex Proyas who directed The Crow and another personal favourite of mine, Dark City.  He’s an exceptionally talented director but may have succumbed to conservatism of Hollywood here.  It’s certainly not as adventurous as his previous works.

There’s a scene in which Robertson talks to Spooner following which Spooner sneezes and utters the line “sorry, I’m allergic to bullshit”.  Well sorry Will Smith, but I am too and I, Robot left me sneezing well after leaving the theatre.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 21 August 2004

In a quiet Southern American town, Marva Munson (Hall) is an opinionated woman who regularly attends church and lives her life by the good book.  Her husband passed away many years ago but she remembers him fondly by talking to large painting of the man which rests atop the fireplace.  Her latest gripe has her complaining to the Sheriff about a neighbour playing their hip-hop music too loud.  She’s talking about “songs with the titles spelt all funny.”

There’s a knock at the door and introducing himself is Professor Goldthwait Higginson Dorr (Hanks).  There was a sign in the home’s front yard advertising a room to let and Dorr would like to accept the offer.  Miss Munson’s only stipulation is that she is looking for a quiet tenant.  Dorr will humbly oblige but informs her that he is a member of a gospel band and wondered if she had a wood cellar in which they could rehearse.  The answer is yes and on discovering this, Dorr mutters to himself “this looks promising”.

You see, there’s more to Professor Dorr than his impeccable manners and eloquent dialogue suggests.  His “band” doesn’t know the first thing about music.  They plan on using the Miss Munson’s cellar for something far more interesting, and far more profitable…

Brothers Joel and Ethan Coen are exceptional filmmakers.  Anyone who knows me will often hear me raving and recommending my favourite of their many films, Fargo, which was released back in 1996 and won two Academy Awards.  Others Coen films I have admired include The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou? and Intolerable Cruelty.  They are two of the most original screenwriters of the modern era which is why it comes as a surprise to see them making this picture.  You see, this is not an original idea.  It is a remake of a 1955 film of the same title starring Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker and Peter Sellers.

The 2004 version of The Ladykillers begins slowly and perhaps too much time is spent on the introductions of both Miss Munson and Professor Dorr.  Still, you can’t help but laugh at some of Dorr’s ridiculous one-liners.  I’m not convinced Hanks is the right man in this role but Irma P. Hall is certainly the woman to play Miss Munson.  When the film premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the jury (led by Quentin Tarantino) awarded Hall a special prize for her performance.  She so brutally forthwith in her responses and her stubbornness will remind many of their own grandmothers.

If you can remain content throughout the opening half, you’ll enjoy the final payoff in the closing half.  The film steps up a notch and the inventive quirkiness of the Coen brothers shines through again.  It’s not their best film, but enjoyable nevertheless.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 11 August 2004

Since the turn of the century, our own Nicole Kidman has dazzled us in Moulin Rouge, The Others, The Hours, Dogville and Cold Mountain.   Sadly though, The Stepford Wives will prove to be a rare blot on the otherwise impressive resume.

Joanna Eberhard (Kidman) was once a high-flying, well-paid television executive.  That was until she was fired after a few controversial television show ideas.  Looking to escape the big city, Joanna and her husband Walter (Broderick) have moved to the easy living town of Stepford to start a whole new life.

It’s a beautiful town filled with beautiful people but for Joanna, something isn’t quite right about Stepford.  The wives are all meticulously dressed and serve their husbands with unbridled devotion.  There are never any arguments and no wife seems bothered by the fact her husband spends much time hanging out with the other guys at a secret clubhouse.

Now for a major spoiler alert.  If you haven’t seen the film and plan on doing so, please read no further.  What follows this introduction is one of the biggest plot flaws of the year and I am flabbergasted to see it escape the cutting room floor.  It turns out, that the women of Stepford are robots.  In one scene, we see Matthew Broderick and Nicole Kidman descend into a room where she herself will have her brain/memories implanted into a Kidman look-alike robot.

Here’s where we have problems.  Firstly, where does the real Kidman go if she is turned into a robot?  Secondly, once the plan is “foiled”, how come the women at the party transform back into themselves when the computers in the control room are smashed?  Are they robots or are they humans with mind controlling chips in their brains?  The film seems to tell us both which is complete nonsense.

It’s a solid cast with Bette Midler, Glenn Close and Christopher Walken working along side Kidman and Broderick.  We don’t see Midler on screen very often and I enjoyed the scenes she shared with Kidman.  They help build the film’s intrigue in the early stages but as the plot plans out, you realise there’s not a lot to it at all.  It’s a very basic story which doesn’t seem to tell us anything.

According to the Internet Movie Database, many scenes were re-shot and subplots were changed following poor test screenings.  From my own opinions of the final product, I don’t think the changes made much of a difference.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 August 2004

There’s not much too it really – it’s a pure and simple good vs. evil story.  The Rock plays Chris Vaughn, a man who is returning home for the first time in eight years.  He grew up in a small Washington town but left to pursue a career in the U.S. Army.  Now, he’s just looking to find work at the town’s old mill and to catch up with close family and long forgotten friends.

Unfortunately, the “old mill” is now closed and the town’s main source of revenue comes from a newly built casino.  The casino is run by Jay Hamilton Jr (McDonough), a childhood friend of Vaughn who seems to be doing rather well for himself.  Vaughn soon understands why when he sees a croupier rigging a craps game and a subsequent fight breaks out between him and the numerous security guards.

On going to the sheriff to press charges against the guards, Vaughn finds the police very uncooperative.  You see, it’s Jay who is running the town and he will continue to do so thanks to his generous donations / kick-backs to the local authorities.  After Chris’s young nephew overdoses on illegal drugs received from the security guards, Vaughn decides to take matters into his own hands.  He becomes the town’s police chief, appoints best friend Ray Templeton (Knoxville) as his deputy, and begins a campaign to bring down Hamilton’s casino and drug empire.

At less than an hour and a half, it’s an ideal length for a movie of this genre.  It’s just fun action and things are trivialised with useless subplots or long winded scenes.  There’s plenty of fighting, an endless stream of bullets, and an ending sure to leave a satisfied look on your face.  The Rock isn’t the most accomplished actor in the world and he isn’t going to win any Oscars (I hope) but here’s a role he is suited to.  If you’re a fan of him, expect to enjoy Walking Tall.