Mini Reviews
The Strength Of Water (out now) is a New Zealand movie which centres on a young boy struggling to cope with the death of his twin sister. There's little-to-no tension and the supporting characters are woefully underdeveloped. Grade: C+.
Where The Wild Things Are (out Dec 3) is about a young boy named Max who runs away from home and finds himself in a fantasy world filled with emotional monsters. Max is anointed their king but it turns out being a leader isn't as easy as he thought. Director Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich) describes it not as a kid's film but rather a "movie about childhood". An apt description and we can all relate. Grade: A-.
The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (out now) looks at the lives of Jools and Lynda Topp, a yodeling, folk singing comedy duo to come out New Zealand. This is pure, joyous entertainment. I had a smile on my face the whole time. Their songs are terrific but we also see some of the great work they've done in their roles as political activists. This is the year's best documentary. Grade: A.
Cold Souls (out now) is reminiscent of Being John Malkovich. Paul Giamatti plays himself and undergoes a revolutionary medical procedure where his "soul" is replaced with that of a Russian poet. It's all for a stage role. Unfortunately, his original soul goes missing and he ends up going to Russia to find it. It's fairly original and has my recommendation. Grade: B+.
The Informant (out Dec 3) is all wrong. Based on actual events, it tells the story of a highly paid executive who becomes an informant for the FBI - exposing his company's fraudulent activity. Matt Damon (who I usually like) was not a good choice for the leading role. It needed someone more subdued, less likeable. The final 10 mins are ok but that's it. Grade: C+.
Paranormal Activity (out Dec 3) is a legitimately scary horror flick (a rarity I know). Shot for just $150k, it centres on a couple who hear strange noises in their house at night. They buy a video camera and leave it on while they sleep to see if there's anything peculiar. Whilst I'm pretty desensitized to such things, a shiver went down my spine on more than one occasion. You must see this. Grade: A-.
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs (out Nov 25) is a zany kids comedy about a nerdy inventor who creates a machine that makes it rain food. I'm taking the middle ground on this one. I liked some of the voices (e.g. Mr T, Andy Samberg) but it's a limited storyline and there's only so far you can take it. Grade: B.
New Moon (out now) sees Bella dumped by Edward, her vampire boyfriend. Can the distraught Bella pick up the pieces and move on with her life? The film got bogged down in a sea of melodrama. There's too much brooding and not enough action. The acting was pretty wooden too. I did like the film's look and the performance of Kristen Stewart. Grade: B-.
The Invention Of Lying (out Nov 26) is a Ricky Gervais comedy about a guy who lives in a world where he is the only person who can tell a lie. Think of the possibilities. The opening 20 minutes are fantastic but the novelty wore off as the film progressed and the religious finale didn't make much sense to me. Grade: C+.
Amelia (out now) is about the famous aviator, Amelia Earhart, who tried to become the first person to fly around the world in 1937. Hilary Swank is nice the leading role but the story is told in a very ho-hum manner. Not a lot of excitement until the final scenes. Grade: C+.
Amreeka (out Nov 19) is a nice story about a mother and son who immigrate to the United States from Palestine and find that their new life isn't as promising as they hoped. Grade: B+.
