Grade: C —Steven Rea, MCT
THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO This docu-dramatic account of dehumanization is told entirely from the perspective of British nationals of Pakistani heritage held prisoner at the American military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Grade: C+ —Carrie Rickey, MCT
STRANGERS WITH CANDY The central joke in the sporadically amusing parody of ’70s “AfterSchool Specials” – 20 minutes of good material stretched to feature length – is that it takes place during school hours. The film weds the shapeless ramble of a Rodney Dangerfield monologue with the outcasts-are-in assumption of a John Waters movie.
Grade: C —Carrie Rickey, MCT
NACHO LIBRE If Rocky wore tights and a mask, said “Si!” instead of “Yo!” and had a skinny sidekick with more teeth than a mule, well, he’d be Nacho Libre – the earnest hero played by Jack Black in the goofball Mexican wrestling comedy of the same name. Nacho Libre, that is.
Grade: B —Steven Rea, MCT
WASSUP ROCKERS Focusing on a group of Los Angeles high schoolers who talk casually about gang wars and rocket their boards around the barrio, the film follows Johnny (Jonathan Velasquez) and his six buddies in a dawn-to-dawn odyssey from their run-down neck of the woods to the tony enclaves of Beverly Hills.
Grade: B+ —Steven Rea, MCT
THE BREAK-UP Though the Vince Vaughn-Jennifer Aniston vehicle is marketed as a romantic comedy, this war of nerves is a mostly melancholy saga about a prickly pair who would rather play head games than house. Comic support comes from Jon Favreau and Judy Davis.
Grade:C —Carrie Rickey, MCT
WORDPLAY A composite portrait of the estimated 50 million Americans weekly – including Bill Clinton, Bob Dole and Jon Stewart – who clear the cobwebs from their mental machinery by completing a crossword.
Grade: C+ —Carrie Rickey, MCT
WAIST DEEP Tyrese Gibson plays a reformed gangsta trying to rescue his kidnapped son in this shabby and shapeless action mess.
Grade: C- —David Hiltbrand, MCT
CLEAN Maggie Cheung stars as a junkie rock-star widow trying to go straight and regain custody of her little boy. Nick Nolte is the granddad who has the kid, and is understandably reluctant to let him go. A quiet, keenly observed portrait of addiction, with brilliant performances from Cheung and Nolte, under the direction of French filmmaker Olivier Assayas.
Grade: B+ —Steven Rea, MCT
THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT A misunderstood loner with a lead foot (Lucas Black) is shipped to Tokyo, where they conduct their street races a little differently. The car culture translates well to Japan, but the Fast and Furious franchise is out of gas.
Grade: C —David Hiltbrand, MCT
THE KING Gael Garcia Bernal stars in this biblically themed noir about a young stranger, just out of the Navy, who comes into a Texas pastor’s world and upends it, in dark and devilish ways. With William Hurt, Pell James and Paul Dano – all of whom are terrific. Chilling and compelling stuff.
Grade: C+ —Steven Rea, MCT
RUSSIAN DOLLS In this sequel to L’Auberge Espagnole, filmmaker Cedric Kapisch drops in again on the Xavier, the pouting Parisian writer who struggles at both love and writing.
Grade: B —Steven Rea, MCT
THANK YOU FOR SMOKING Mercilessly funny satire about a tobacco industry lobbyist (Aaron Eckhart) unapologetically selling his wares, and, perhaps, his soul. Based on the Christopher Buckley novel, with William H. Macy, Maria Bello, Robert Duvall and Katie Holmes.
Grade: B+ —Steven Rea, MCT
WATER Deepa Mehta’s exquisite tale, set in 1938 at the dawn of modern India, frames a young girl’s struggle for freedom with that of Mahatma Gandhi seeking India’s independence from England. In Hindi with English subtitles.
Grade: A —Carrie Rickey, MCT
THE LAKE HOUSE An enjoyably sudsy romance starring a moody Keanu Reeves, a broody Sandra Bullock, and the titular structure – a jewel box of glass and steel perched on stilts over Lake Michigan. There’s just one little wrinkle: a wrinkle in time. Kate (Bullock), a doctor, lives in 2006, while Alex (Reeves), an architect, exists in 2004.
Grade: B —Carrie Rickey, KRT
Comment
