PICK OF THE WEEK
From Paris with Love
This ludicrously entertaining, wall-to-wall action film stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers as James Reece, a methodical guy who wants to be a Special Ops agent. He gets his big chance when Charlie Wax (John Travolta) blows into town to stop a terrorist cell. Charlie takes charge from his first scene and doesn’t let go. And Travolta has great fun in the loose cannon role—mouthing off to anyone and everyone, shooting up everything in sight (even while sliding down a pole) and taking absolutely no prisoners in the process. He tells James to “roll like a secret agent man,” which for Charlie, means head to the top of the Eiffel Tower and snort some of the coke in the vase James is carrying. From Paris with Love eventually gets down to business and reveals its “big twist,” but perceptive viewers will have seen this one coming early on in the film. It doesn’t matter. The actions scenes have verve—even when the violence is offscreen and bodies keep dropping like flies down a circular stairway. Director Pierre Morel keeps things moving along efficiently, pausing to allow James to stop and wash the blood off his face and give audiences a necessary breather. The film only missteps in the last five minutes where things get too ridiculous, followed by a scene of the guys playing “who’s got the bigger gun.” As for the expected nod to Pulp Fiction it’s regrettable, but forgivable.
ALSO OPENING
44 Inch Chest
A tough and taut British film opens with the song “Without You” playing—oddly, not ironically—over the aftermath of a violent confrontation. The film sets its measured tone effectively. Colin (Ray Winstone) is the man listening to the music. He is coping with the fact that his wife Liz (Joanne Whalley) is leaving him for another man. Emotionally paralyzed, he seeks help from his friends, an aging rogues’ gallery that includes Archie (Tom Wilkinson), Old Man Peanut (John Hurt), Mal (Stephan Dillane) and the queer Meredith (Ian McShane). The gang kidnap Liz’s man, Loverboy (Melvin Poupaud) with the intention of killing him—or at least making him suffer, depending on Colin’s whims. While the set up is great, 44 Inch Chest however, goes nowhere, becoming less an action film than an actor’s showcase. At least the dialogue crackles as the men pepper their poetic speech with slang and profanity that Mamet quality to it—tough, profane, and repetitious. And there are some great speeches, such as Meredith’s monologue about love, or the recounting of the story of Samson and Delilah, complete with film clips.The acting is, as expected, top-notch. McShane is absolutely fantastic—incredibly seductive and sinister here. It’s impossible to take one’s eyes off him when he’s in frame. Hurt is great cast against type as a wily tough guy, and Winstone is characteristically superb as a man forced to make an unpleasant choice. These actors inject a bit of flourish to the stagy proceedings. Alas, the other cast members are underused—never having enough to do during their limited screen time. (Poupaud never even gets the chance to speak). Yet the ultimate problem with, 44 Inch Chest is that despite all its strengths, it will likely confound viewers once a character (to use a Mamet-ism) starts to “crack out of turn.” The film’s flat ending is almost a cop out after the intense confrontation leading up to it.
Dear John
Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried play the young lovers in this adaptation of the Nicolas Sparks novel about a soldier and his girlfriend. Perfect for girlfriends to see while their boyfriends watch the SuperBowl.
District 13: Ultimatum
A disappointing sequel to the popular Parkour actioner, District B-13. Not only does this installment feature less of hunky David Belle (a shame in itself), but because it just is not nearly as good nor exciting as the first film. Damion (Cyril Raffaelli) is a cop who goes undercover—in the film’s best sequence—as a tranny Asian prostitute to bring down a drug kingpin. Kicking, punching and head-butting drug dealers as well as the thugs who protect them, this nifty if overlong episode is fun, even if things get silly when he uses an original Van Gogh as a weapon. Yet all this action is just a preface for the real plot, which kicks in (no pun intended) after a bunch of untouchable cops shoot some police officers and dump the victims in the dangerous District 13—which causes a riot. They also frame Damion to keep him from thwarting their plan of ruling the city. Enter Leito (Belle) who gets handed the incriminating evidence against the crooked cops, and then breaks Damion out of prison so they can stop the bad guys together. For the few impressive scenes of the Belle jumping from building to building—one leap is especially breathtaking—District 13: Ultimatum will barely satisfy audiences who want to see fit shirtless hunks acting fleet with/on their feet. But the film’s theme of corrupt cops trying to level the slum/ghetto only to be bested by a “We Are the World” gang of warlords, is as tired as the stunts such as Damion and Leito driving a car through a government office. District 13: Ultimatum tries to do more and go further than its predecessor, which is admirable, but ends up stumbling.
Frozen
Three skiers are stuck on a chair lift in this thriller.
The Last Station
Oscar nominees Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren star as Leo Tolstoy as his long suffering wife in this adaptation of Jay Parini’s novel.
AroundPhilly Staff
