School of Rock
PG-13
3 Stars
Directed by Richard Linklater
Starring Jack Black, Joan Cusack
School of Rock
PG-13
3 Stars
Directed by Richard Linklater
Starring Jack Black, Joan Cusack
Dewey Finn is an unemployed guitarist whose visions of epic rock glory are dimmed when he’s dumped by his band for his onstage hijinks. His rent dangerously overdue, he poses as a substitute teacher at a posh private elementary school. There he formulates a plan to transform his talented young charges into a rock band to compete in the local Battle of the Bands.
Its script custom built to the specifications of Jack Black’s Tenacious D persona, “School of Rock” should totally satisfy those who know and love Black’s classic rock god shtick. Joan Cusack shines as his uptight foil.
Good Boy!
PG
3 StarsDirected By John Hoffman
Starring Matthew Broderick, Liam Aiken
After saving up his nickels from his dogwalking job, a young boy’s parents allow him to adopt a dog of his very own. He’s startled to find that not only can his dog speak, but is an agent from a dog planet who must convince his leader that dogs have domesticated humans.
Good Boy set its sights on the under-12 crowd and squarely hits its target. While not the Citizen Kane of talking animal movies, it’s cute and very watchable. Corny dog jokes abound, but are balanced with some clever insights about the ways we relate to our furry masters.
Mystic River
R
4 Stars
Directed By Clint Eastwood
Starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon
As kids growing up in a tough section of Boston, Jimmy, Dave and Sean collectively lose their innocence when Dave takes a fateful ride in a stranger’s car.
Twenty-five years later, fate brings them together again when Jimmy’s daughter is found murdered in the streets. Now a cop, Sean seeks to solve the murder before Jimmy can take the law into his own hands. Oscar buzz rightfully surrounds what might be Eastwood’s most ambitious effort to date. Excellent performances are tightly bound by a provocative script that examines the ripple effect violence has upon its character’s lives and society in general.
Wonderland
R
2 Stars
Directed by James Cox
Starring Val Kilmer, Lisa Kudrow
Dramatization of the events surrounding a gruesome multiple homicide that took place on Wonderland Avenue in Hollywood. Set in 1981, it tells the stories of drug addicted former porn star John Holmes and the ill-fated drug dealers he may have set up.
Stylishly shot and featuring strong performances from Kilmer and Kudrow, Wonderland’s attempts to tell its story from multiple points of view come off more disjointed than provocative. True crime fans will probably delight in seeing one of their favorite (and most sordid) Hollywood legends brought to life. More delicate viewers can and rent Boogie Nights instead.
Out of Time
PG-13
2 Stars
Directed By Carl Franklin
Starring Denzel Washington, Gina Gershon
Matt Whitlock is the much-beloved chief of police in Banyan Key, Florida. When the sleepy town is shaken by a double homicide, Whitlock finds himself set up for a fall. As he races to solve the crime, he must outwit Banyan Key’s police force, federal drug agents and his estranged wife, a Miami detective.
Better than average film noir fare, Out of Time doesn’t do much to reinvent the genre, but executes within its formulas in a pleasant enough manner. Tightly directed and adequately scripted, “Time” efficiently escorts its audience through the requisite double-crosses to a tidy resolution.
The Rundown
3 Stars
Directed by Peter Berg
Starring The Rock, Christopher Walken, Sean William Scott
Beck, a “retrieval expert” on the verge of retirement, heads to the Amazon jungle for his last assignment: to fetch Travis, the smart mouthed son of his wealthy employer. However, Travis isn’t quite ready to come home yet, having set his sights on an ancient treasure, and eludes the determined Beck. A local despot also has eyes for the treasure, further complicating Beck’s job.
The Rundown is the kind of straight ahead smash ’em up usually reserved for the warmer months, but most audiences should welcome this unseasonably high-octane action flick. The Rundown firmly establishes The Rock as this generation’s hulking action star. Expect him to run for governor in 2020 or so.
