Blogcritics Author: Neil Miller

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Movie Review: Grindhouse

Neil Miller — Fri, 6 Apr 2007 05:32:20 EDT

I have a new theory: every movie should begin with a scene involving a scantily clad Rose McGowan and a stripper pole. That would really take the sting off of films like Norbit. Where did this theory come from, you may ask? It came from the fact that I just got back from screening Grindhouse, the homage to 70s and 80s exploitation flicks. It is co-directed by Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. Just think about this concept: two directors with very loyal fan bases making a three hour long double feature packed full of blood, boobs, and bad dialog. What about that doesn’t sound like fun?It starts with an intelligently designed warning to the audience that some reels of the film are missing. Thanks to the MPAA, I’m sure that besides the fact that it works with the Grindhouse theme of the films, there were some missing parts. Mark my words though; it will make for one hell of a DVD release.The first of the two directors to bring their films to the table is Robert Rodriguez (Sin City) with Planet Terror. It tells the story of a deadly virus released by the military (and a very creepy Bruce Willis) that turns an entire town and eventually the world into walking zombies who eat people’s brains. There is also a vigilante badass with serious ninja skills played by Freddy Rodriguez (Six Feet Under) who is in love with a girl who has a sweet shotgun for a right leg, played by the aforementioned Rose McGowan. That’s all you need to know about the plot, as it is pretty simple from there.What this film, and most other films from the exploitative genre for that matter, lacks in plot it clearly makes up in style. Be prepared for loads of sickening gore and plenty of creative killing. In any zombie movie it isn’t always about how gross your zombies look, but how intelligently you find ways to kill them off. The highlight here is a scene in which those who have survived the virus are rolling down a dark road in a huge tow truck plowing down zombies. It just goes to show that the exploding zombies bit has not yet lost its flavor. Rodriguez’s flair for the dramatic and subtle ability to make even the most disgusting movie moments funny shines through, giving audiences reasons to close their eyes and keep them open all at the same time.Once you are done with film number one, you get to relax right? Not in the least. This, in fact is what I would easily call the best part of the entire experience - and I do consider this film an experience, one that must be had in the company of other die-hard fanboys and fangirls. Tarantino and Rodriguez enlisted a few of their friends to make some fake trailers to match play during the intermission. Rob Zombie (The Devil’s Rejects) is first up with a trailer for Werewolf Women of the S.S.. It is about, well, werewolf women created by the Nazis. While fun, it doesn’t hold a flame to the next two trailers, the first of which is for a movie called Don’t Scream directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead). Once you see the trailer you will not only know not to scream, but you also will have a clear understanding of what else you should not do. The final trailer is from Eli Roth (Hostel). Eli delivers the ultimate trump card of a trailer with Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is about as depraved and absurd as a horror trailer could possibly get, and it just works so well.The final segment is Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, which stars Kurt Russell as a former stuntman turned psycho pervert who stalks hot girls and kills them with his car. While Kurt Russell is every bit of a badass that he was as Snake Plisskin back in the day and the car chase scenes are intensely satisfying, it does seem that Mr. Tarantino gets in his own way a bit. As is his style, there is plenty of dialog between small ounces of action. Normally that works, but in this case it really drags the film out. Death Proof also feels a little bit too polished to be paired up with Planet Terror, but that is ultimately the beauty of the double feature; you get two great films that are so different, and yet there are equally as fun.In the end, the verdict must be that this film is one hell of an experience when seen in a theater. In fact, it may turn out to be this generation’s Rocky Horror Picture Show. Use caution, though; this is not a film for the weak stomached mainstream audience of America. Use this simple equation to determine whether this is a movie for you: If you don’t have any interest in seeing this film already, watch the trailer. If that doesn’t get your blood boiling and have you on Fandango buying your ticket less than three minutes later, then you may want to pass. For those fanboys and fangirls out there, the ones who are revved up about this delicious double feature, rest assured the payoff is grand; Grindhouse is everything you want it to be and more.Final Grade: B+

Neil Miller is a 23-year-old film critic who lives and works in Columbus, Ohio. He is a member of the Central Ohio Film Critics Association. His musings about the world of film (and other various topics) are on display at his blog, The Columbus Movie Guy. He is also the co-founder and managing editor of Film School Rejects.

Columbus Alive Deep Focus Film Fest Announces Schedule for '07

Neil Miller — Thu, 5 Apr 2007 18:29:36 EDT

Just like last year, on April 19 the city of Columbus, Ohio will be in Deep Focus. Earlier this week Melissa Starker, the assistant editor of Columbus Alive!, announced this year's film line-up.At last year's festival we discovered Brick, which turned out to be one of my personal favorite films of the year. This year, we get a full slate of great films to whet your appetite. Here is the full schedule with some event info to boot:Opening Night Gala: WaitressFrom the late actress-turned-director Adrienne Shelley comes a funny, charming fable about a small-town waitress (Keri Russell) whose joys and frustrations come out through her amazing pie-making abilities. Ohio premiere. Screening Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m. Join us after the film for a gala party at TBD Tavern.After the WeddingThe creative team of Susanne Bier and Anders Thomas Jensen return to the Deep Focus Film Fest with this Danish Oscar-nominated drama, in which Mads Mikkelsen (the heavy in Casino Royale) portrays an orphanage worker in India forced to return home and face his difficult past. Columbus premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 5:45 p.m.Air Guitar NationWords can't describe the singularly thrilling experience of Alexandra Lipsitz's hilarious yet respectful documentary, following the first American contestants to compete in the World Air Guitar Championship in Finland. Screening Friday, April 20, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 6 p.m. Join us after the Friday show at the Lodge Bar, when local air guitarists will face off to win an actual guitar.Broken EnglishZoe Cassavetes makes her filmmaker debut with this romantic comedy in which Parker Posey's thirtysomething New Yorker starts reevaluating her romantic expectations, right about the same time a possible Mr. Right appears. Ohio premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 3:15 p.m.Dare Not Walk AloneJeremy Dean uses amazing, never-before-seen archival footage of racial clashes in St. Augustine, Florida, America's oldest city, to spotlight the role the town played in the passage of the Civil Rights Act and take a hard look at the legacy left behind. Ohio premiere. Screening Friday, April 20, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 5:30 p.m.Family LawFrom Argentine filmmaker Daniel Burman comes a lighthearted look at a successful man who finds that with the responsibilities of new parenthood comes a need to grow up and develop more respect for his own father. Columbus premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 8:30 p.m. Join our sister publication Fronteras after the film for a Latino dance party at Sugar Bar.FidoThe Matrix's Carrie-Ann Moss and Billy Connolly star in this terrific, retro zombie comedy about keeping up with the Joneses when most of the planet has been taken over by the undead. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 10:15 p.m.Maxed OutThe subject of a recent Nightline segment, James Scurlock's documentary examines America's ever-increasing debt, the predatory practices of credit companies, and the personal fallout. Columbus premiere. Screening Friday, April 20, at 9 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 5:45 p.m.PaprikaSatoshi Kon's eye-popping anime feature centers on a device built to enter another person's dreams, but which ultimately has the power to punch holes in the fabric separating dreams from waking life. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 8 p.m.Closing Night Selection: The Hip-Hop ProjectExecutive produced by Bruce Willis and Queen Latifah, this inspiring documentary captures a New York City program that channels teens' true-life experiences into powerful hip-hop wordsmithing. Columbus premiere. Screening Sunday, April 22, at 7:30 p.m.World's Best CommercialsThis crowd-pleasing program presents award-winning ads from the Cannes International Ad Festival. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 6 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 4 p.m.Also being featured at the Fest is three days of Modern Classics, favorite films that are celebrating anniversaries. Friday will showcase Moonstruck, starring Cher and Nicolas Cage, as well as Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion. Saturday will feature Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind and two more films to be named later. And finally on Sunday, the readers of Columbus Alive chose Remember the Titans for the Sports Film Spotlight.So as you can see, it is quite a menu, full of assortment and delicacies from all over. Personally, I am most excited about Air Guitar Nation, but there is definitely something for everyone.Tickets have been on sale since March 29 at the Arena Grand Box Office and can be purchased online. For updates, trailers, and more, take a look at the Deep Focus website. I will have full coverage of the festival right here on Blogcritics and at The Columbus Movie Guy as well.

Movie Review: Meet the Robinsons

Neil Miller — Tue, 3 Apr 2007 17:29:34 EDT

I will never be able to escape from the fact that I grew up a Disney kid. No I didn’t watch The Mickey Mouse Club (and it’s a good thing too, otherwise that Britney Spears affair I had would have started at an inappropriate age), but my grandmother did have a collection of hundreds of Disney animated movies on VHS. Remember VHS? It was so cool in it’s heyday.But the world of Disney animation has come a long way since the days of watching VHS at Grandma’s house. They have gone from killing off Bambi’s mom and making me cry to being forced (for some Godawful reason) to make The Jungle Book 2. But despite the recent shortcomings of Disney’s own animation studios they can lay claim to owning Pixar, the company responsible for such animated powerhouses as The Incredibles and Finding Nemo. The man behind Pixar’s success, animation genius John Lasseter, is now the Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney Animation, the company that is the remnant of what was once the greatest empire of imagination in the history of film, and he is looking to get Disney’s animation department back on track, Pixar style – and with Meet the Robinsons, they seem to have a great start.Meet the Robinsons is the story of Lewis, a young brainiac who was left on the doorstep of an orphanage as a baby by his mother. After struggling to find a family to adopt him, Lewis decides to invent a machine that will allow him to draw memories of his mother out of his brain so that he can go and find her. While his machine seems to be the answer to all of his problems, his plans are thwarted by a mysterious Bowler Hat-wearing guy from the future who travels back in time to steal Lewis’ machine to try and pawn it off as his own idea. Hot on the trail of the Bowler Hat Guy is Wilbur Robinson, a wannabe detective who also happens to have a time machine. In pursuit of the Bowler Hat Guy, Lewis and Wilbur return to the future where Lewis meets the Robinsons, learns a bit about family, and ultimately discovers a lot about himself.The story is simple enough, but that is not what is really great about this film. This is one of those flicks that, in classic Pixar fashion, was made to look stunning, especially in 3D. The animation is smooth and detailed, creating vast landscapes that were meant for the big screen. I had the privilege of seeing this one in 3D, which was a real treat. It is a movie that would jump out at you in 2D, but it really comes to life when seen as it was meant to be seen.One surprising thing about this flick is the lack of major celebrity voices. In fact, the most recognizable name in the entire credits is Angela Bassett who voices Mildred, the keeper of Lewis’ orphanage. This is something that is a true throwback to old Disney animated classics and a welcome departure from the Pixar model of big name voices. It just goes to show that while the acquisition of Pixar has certainly rubbed off on Disney, there is still some of that old Disney flair for those of us who remember films like The Lion King and The Little Mermaid. And while Meet the Robinsons may not be the second coming of the great Disney movies that I remember from Grandma’s house, it is certainly a step in the right direction.Final Grade: B+

Movie Review: Blades of Glory

Neil Miller — Mon, 2 Apr 2007 20:50:44 EDT

Somewhere it is happening. It is most likely occurring on a college campus somewhere, and it involves that guy we all know. Somewhere that guy is walking up to some random girl and spouting, “I don't know how to put this but I'm kind of a big deal. People know me. I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany.” Why do I know this is happening? Because that is the power of a great Will Ferrell comedy; it stays with you long after you leave the theater. It stays with some longer than others, but the one-liners always stick. And as much of a fan as I have been of these movies (Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Elf, etc.) I have always been wondering when Will Ferrell is going to cross the line and go from dumb funny to just plain dumb. I had thought Blades of Glory would be it, but as Ron Burgundy would say “You are sadly mistaken, my friend.” Ferrell stars alongside Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) as two World Champion figure skaters who are stripped of their medals and banned from competition for life after fighting like two kindergarteners on the podium while receiving their medals. Upon being banned they are both tossed from the spotlight and left to fend for themselves in the real world. Three and a half years later their paths cross again, and with the help of their coach (played by Craig T. Nelson), they find a way to compete by becoming the first ever all-male pairing.It is the simple story of two rivals, two polar opposites who are forced to work together to get back on the ice and live out their dreams. Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) is the hot shot, a sauced up sex addict who uses improvisation to win over the throngs of figure skating fans around the world. Jimmy MacElroy (Heder) is the boy wonder, raised by his adopted father to skate with grace and perfect technique. When combined, the two are more than just a figure skating pair, they are a ticking time bomb of hilarious shenanigans just waiting to explode all over any audience.And that is exactly what happens. This duo, led by comedic titan Will Ferrell, explodes with some of the most raucous fun that you will ever see in a movie about figure skating. With every quip and every snide jab, Ferrell’s delivery is razor sharp and always on time. As with many of his characters in the past, Chazz Michael Michaels takes over the film, leaving everyone else to just start the joke so that he can slam it home. Jon Heder fills the role of set-up man well, playing the naïve, snotty elitist to Ferrell’s freeloading, flatulent sex-machine. He ends up as the butt end of many hilarious moments, but that is how they write movies like this – it is Will Ferrell’s show, and that’s what we love to see.Along with Heder, the rest of the supporting cast just pours on the laughs. Craig T. Nelson is just funny to look at with long hair and a penchant for death defying skating tricks, Nick Swardson absolutely steals the film as Jimmy MacElroy’s creepy stalker and The Office’s Jenna Fischer sizzles as Jimmy’s love interest. Real-life couple Will Arnett and Amy Poehler also add some laughs as the severely over the top incestuous brother-sister skating pair out to destroy Michaels and MacElroy. And on top of it all, some of figure skating’s elite names show up to lend a hand -- Nancy Kerrigan, Sasha Cohen, and Scott Hamilton all pop up at some point. But of all the celebrity cameos, it is TV announcer Jim Lampley who steals the show with lines like “They put the bone in Zamboni.” I mean, how can you go wrong with that? In the end it all adds up to one hilarious ride through the incredibly uncomfortable world of man on man figure skating. If you are a Will Ferrell fan, then this is an easy choice. Ferrell shines with an awesome supporting cast and a subject that just bleeds humor. Every crotch-grabbing lift, every razor sharp one-liner, and every shot of Jenna Fischer in a teddy will have you laughing your ass off and coming back for more. If you dig Will Ferrell in all of his comedic glory, then Blades is a movie that you won’t want to miss this weekend.Final Grade: A

Movie Review: Shooter

Neil Miller — Mon, 2 Apr 2007 16:01:51 EDT

There are a few things that you always need to have if you are going to make a decent American vigilante action movie. You must have a hero, filled to the brim with idealism and armed with a degree in kickin’ ass and taking names. You must also have at least one hot leading lady, and you earn bonus points for tastefully putting her in position to be half-naked through most of the film. And finally, without question there must exist plenty of gunfights and explosions to keep the audiences entertained in between the aforementioned partial nudity. These three elements never fail to give Average Joe Moviegoer his money’s worth, and it appears that director Antoine Fuqua has figured that out. Fuqua’s latest directorial effort is Shooter, starring Mark Wahlberg as Bob Lee Swaggert, an ex-Marine sniper who is jaded towards the government after losing his friend in a battle that should not have happened. Of course, like all heroes who lose their best buddy in the first scene, he retires from active duty to become a woodsman in a nondescript mountain range with his dog. His peace does not last long, as he is called upon by a shady Colonel (a very lispy Danny Glover) to foil a plot to shoot the President from over a mile away, a distance that Swaggert is more than capable of covering with his rifle. Of course, it turns out that the Colonel has lured Swaggert into a plot in which he gets framed for murder and is forced to go on the run. If it sounds cliché, that's because it is cliché. But just because a movie has a few clichés doesn’t mean it can’t be successful – remember those three must-haves.One of the first must-haves that this film delivers with emphasis is the hot leading lady, courtesy of the recently over-exposed Kate Mara. She couldn’t pull off the cute, nerdy girl in Full of It, which released earlier this month, but she does do quite well as a down-home Kentucky girl who sits around the house in a white cotton t-shirt, sans bra. Her character fits into yet another cliché that can be overlooked – remember the buddy that our hero lost in the first scene? That is his widow. You do the math from there.Vigilante flick necessity number two is that you must have plenty of bullets flying and bombs exploding or else your audience will have to dig deep into your story, and you don’t want that. Shooter racks up a decent body count, finding ways to kill off bad guys (and a few good guys) in believable yet entertaining ways. Some of the coolest shots in the film are delivered either through the scope of a rifle or at the receiving end of the shot. There are also some pretty slick pyrotechnic moments when our hero is fighting back against “the man,” and he is forced to make bombs that would raise even MacGyver’s eyebrow.And finally, in order to make this whole thing work you have to tie it together with a hero that can personify the American spirit, spit in the face of the institution and take down three guys with two bullets in his torso all at once. Thankfully Mark Wahlberg comes through on all accounts. Coming off of a great supporting role in The Departed is reason enough to cause speculation about his ability to carry an entire film. But while his Departed co-star Matt Damon is stuck as the leading man in the borefest that is The Good Shepherd, Wahlberg gets to grow some trashy facial hair and shoot the arms off bad guys from 1000 yards. Let’s face it: some guys can do action, and some can do drama. Some can even do both. Mark Wahlberg is quickly becoming the latter.And yeah, the film is filled with clichés and it does get a bit preachy and political at times, but all that can be easily overlooked. Kate Mara is hot, Antoine Fuqua has a keen eye for violence, and Mark Wahlberg is becoming an undisputed acting powerhouse – what more do you really need? Final Grade: B+

Movie Review: The Lookout

Neil Miller — Mon, 2 Apr 2007 14:35:23 EDT

In The Lookout, Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues his trend of breaking away from being that kid from 3rd Rock From the Sun and moving towards being a serious dramatic presence on the silver screen. It is a trend that really began back in 2004 with his stunning performance in Mysterious Skin and continued quite nicely in 2005 with Rian Johnson’s indie sensation, Brick. Levitt is quickly establishing himself as an actor with serious range and a keen eye for great roles in smaller films. This time around he takes on writer Scott Frank’s directorial debut. Frank, an established screenwriter (The Interpreter, Flight of the Phoenix and Minority Report are among his credits), tells the story of Chris Pratt (Levitt), a promising young man whose life is all but taken away from him after a horrific car accident caused by his own carelessness. Years removed from the accident, Chris is forced to live with the fact that he was responsible for the deaths of two friends and his own injury, a head trauma that left him without the ability to put events into sequence. Chris spends his days going to therapy and his nights cleaning the floors at a small town bank, the latter of which makes him a perfect target for a group of bank robbers, lead by Gary (Matthew Goode). Gary preys on Chris, using his hopeless situation and the charms of Luvlee (Isla Fisher) to convince Chris to join their plot to rob the bank.This is one of those films that has taken me a while to warm up to, but I can honestly say that the more I think about it, the more I really did enjoy it. It came out of SXSW this year as the movie to watch and while it may not gather major box office receipts going up against the Will Ferrell ice skating romp Blades of Glory, it is definitely worth a look. Joseph Gordon Levitt is quickly becoming a favorite of critics and fans alike. His performance in Brick was absolutely phenomenal and his performance here is something along the same lines. He is very carefully carving out a niche for himself by taking roles that are a little more off-the-cuff and require range – something that he possesses in volumes.Alongside Levitt are some equally as strong performances, particularly on the part of Jeff Daniels, who plays Chris’ blind roommate Lewis. His look reminded me eerily of Jeff Bridges as “The Dude” in The Big Lebowski, only less drunk and more blind. Daniels lends a tasteful air of comedy to an otherwise dark plot. Matthew Goode is also very solid as Gary, the smooth talker who lures Chris into a web of deceit. He has an edge about him that we first saw shades of in Match Point, an edge that is more fully realized in this particular role.What binds it all together is the script by writer/director Scott Frank. While it is a somewhat formulaic and predictable thriller, it never ceases to be engaging. Even though logic tells us how Chris’ journey must end, we are still interested in sticking around to find out exactly what happens. The dialog is razor sharp, the characters are rich and did I mention that Isla Fisher plays a former stripper turned contract whore? That by itself is enough reason to see this flick if you are like me. If you aren’t like me, then you will find plenty of other reasons to catch The Lookout, and while I don’t think it lives up to the mammoth hype from SXSW, it does not fall short of being entertaining.Final Grade: B-

The 300 Controversy: Fact vs. Fiction

Neil Miller — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 15:13:33 EDT

Everyone with a blog and a dream thinks they are a pundit these days.Political pundits are paraded about on CNN and FOX News daily to rant and rave about one side or the other. Film critics, myself included, are pundits in their own right. The only difference is that we play within the politics of Hollywood, a world that is arguably less detrimental to society and usually less serious. I mean, who can say that talking about an exit strategy for Iraq is anything comparable to Katie Holmes' exit strategy? We get to talk about the disturbing, depraved world of celebrity and the schlock that gets put in front of moviegoers everywhere. Real pundits, well, they talk about more important things - or so I'm told.Another thing that real pundits get more of than the pundits of the silver screen is hate mail. Despite the fact that readers will get very angry when I torch the latest Sandra Bullock movie because I "just don't get it," the amount of hate mail I get cannot compare to that of, say, Rush Limbaugh - and deservedly so.But there are those issues that cross over, uniting the world of film with the world of politics, bringing more angry people into the mix. Lets take, for example, an article that I wrote about two weeks ago, titled "The Anti-300 Debate?" It referred to a petition that was put forth by an Iranian doctor who said that the recently released film 300 was both historically inaccurate and "fraudulent and distorted, and its broadcast guarantees the violation of undeniable international legal rights." My rebuttal, as a member of the film community, was simply that it is "just a movie," a spectacle created for the mindless enjoyment of college kids everywhere who revel in simple themes like insurmountable odds, gratuitous female nudity, and comically gory action. I couldn't understand how someone, anyone, could be so offended by a simple film. But I had obviously spoken too soon, as I seemed to have awakened a segment of my readership that I didn't even know I had.In just 12 days the article received over 110 comments, something of a small wonder considering this is my personal blog, a site that attracts less than 1,000 visitors per day. It became apparent then, and even more so when I read an article in Newsweek by Evan Thomas, that this was a broad and heated political issue. I realized that there must be a better way to explain my side of this issue without resorting to the fact that film is film, it is a work of art completely in the hands of the filmmaker, and it has no responsibility to be historically accurate. That would obviously not do anything to calm the storm around this issue. I devised a list of statements made about this issue, both from comments on my site and themes from various news sources, in an attempt to find out what is fact, what is fiction, and what has been left on the table.So, without trying to sell myself as a pundit who knows anything about politics, I humbly present my take on the controversy around 300, a bit of fact vs. fiction:300 displays the Persians as a brutal, heinous people who would enslave all of Sparta to expand their Empire.Fact. There is nothing false here, the Persians are the bad guys. There are ogres, giants with saws for arms, and a God-King who dresses like Elizabeth Taylor and stands eight feet tall. Rarely have we seen a more comic exaggeration of an evil army. But from my perspective, you have to look at it all in context. The story itself is being told through the eyes (or eye, due to the fact that he only has one) of the Spartan Dilios, played by David Wenham. It is apparent at the outset of the film that he is telling this fantastic tale to a group of young soldiers, most likely to ready them for battle, a common practice among military leaders. Therefore if you are paying enough attention to the story you can easily see that this is not exactly how things went, but rather the hyperbolic ramblings of a leader trying to rally his troops.This film is historically accurate. Fiction. The film itself is by no means historically accurate. There was a Battle of Thermopylae, there did exist a King Leonidas and a Xerxes the Great, but I assure you it didn't go down in the same manner that has been put onto film by Director Zack Snyder. In fact, the film is nearly a frame-by-frame reflection of the graphic novel written by Frank Miller, which was based on how Frank himself saw the battle happen in his own mind after viewing a film (The 300 Spartans) in 1962 which is based on the actual battle. The overall story is true, but the specifics, as you would expect in this long winded game of telephone, have been modified a bit.Author Frank Miller's politics lean to the right.Fact. It is no secret to fans of Frank Miller that he sports some "post-9/11 conservatism." As Evan Thomas pointed out, he is working on a new graphic novel that pits Batman against Al Qaeda. There are also several cultural themes within the film, including the notion that "freedom is not free" and the fact that Leonidas goes against the will of both the law and the Spartan council in going to war. For a lesser educated America, these look like political statements ripped right out of our own headlines, when in reality they were themes that existed way back then as well - unfortunately for us, they are still around. So I can see where there would be concern that some of the American audience would be led to believe that there are parallels between Leonidas and President Bush, between the Persians and terrorists and between the ephors (the grotesque Spartan elders) and Vice President Cheney... Actually, I made that last one up just to keep things light. Moving on...The U.S. government secretly funded this film in order to further their anti-Iranian agenda.Fiction. Someone really did say this to me in one of the aforementioned articles of hate mail. This is one of those things that would be hard to believe, even if proven to be true. When talking about the U.S. government and the majority of Hollywood, we are talking about two polar ends of the political spectrum. Also, the film was produced by Warner Brothers, a seedling of AOL Time Warner, which is a company that isn't necessarily in the President's bedroom closet (as far as I am aware). If we were talking about a movie put out by 20th Century Fox, owned by News Corp., then we'd have a completely different story on our hands.Historically Persians were a civilized and innovative people.Fact. Based on both previous knowledge and research that I have done based on this debate, I can honestly say that the Persian culture has contributed a great amount to modern day religion, human rights, education, and medicine. Cyrus II the Great was credited with the first documented universal declaration of human rights. Persians were the first to systematically use alcohol in medicine. Zoroastrianism, a religion that came from Persian culture, had a great impact on Judaism, which in turn had great influence on both Christianity and Islam.Also, as far as the film 300 goes, the Persians weren't depicted all that poorly. Yes, there were the weird ogres and beasts, but in comparison to some of the things that were depicted about the Spartans (i.e. the fact that they threw away weak babies), they were not that uncivilized.People are making this out to be an unnecessarily larger issue than it should be.Fact. This is the overwhelming truth of the entire argument, but you already knew that. It is sad that in this period of humanity, a time when we would consider ourselves to be more intellectually advanced than the civilizations of 480 BC, that we would see a work of cinematic art such as this be used to further political agendas on both sides. An Iranian newspaper published this headline: "HOLLYWOOD DECLARES WAR ON IRANIANS." I mean, come on people. Do I possess such a higher sense of logic that I can see that this movie was not intentionally created to ignite more tension between the United States and Iran?I will agree that this film doesn't help our two cultures understand each other, and it may even create undue prejudices for ignorant and uninformed moviegoers, but we cannot say that this is all a great conspiracy. In the grand scheme of things, if influential pop culture figures like Zack Snyder, Frank Miller, and Warner Brothers CEO Alan Horn are going to be leading us into yet another unnecessary and unsubstantiated conflict in the Middle East, then what purpose does the current administration serve? My only hope is that President Bush doesn't see this flick until he is well out of office, because if it is the propaganda that people say it is, then he is the target demographic, and needless to say we would all be in a lot of trouble.

Movie Review: Premonition

Neil Miller — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 15:48:20 EDT

In Premonition, Sandra Bullock plays an apathetic housewife whose world is turned upside down when she finds out that her husband has been killed in a terrible car accident. To make matters worse, she wakes up the next day to find out that the accident has not yet happened, that it was only a premonition. After seeing this film I believe that I, too, have had a premonition. What did I see in the future? I saw that this film will draw in a decent audience this weekend at the box office, then proceed to disappoint it.Why is such a good turnout expected? Simply because there are plenty of ladies out there who are either tired of seeing nothing but family comedies (a la Wild Hogs) and blatant guy movies (300) filling their local Cineplex. And when they see that Sandra Bullock is starring, they immediately associate that with a sappy romantic storyline. Sadly they are in for a rude awakening when they discover that the closest this film gets to romance is the near rekindling of flames lost through years of stale married life between Bullock’s Linda and her soon-to-be-dead husband Jim (played by Nip/Tuck’s Julian McMahon).Now the lack of romanticism in this flick is not quite enough to steer audiences away, as it is being marketed as a psychological thriller about being able to see into the future and make moral decisions based on those future events. The only problem there is the fact that in order to successful execute a decent thriller, you must be able to lead your audience down a path, surprise them and then at least explain what the heck is going on by the time the credits roll. This is where Premonition fails miserably, with an ending that is not even worth spoiling because it is so bad. It is one of those movies that, when the credits do finally arrive, you are forced to look at the screen and say “Huh?”And it is not bad enough that the ending had to make absolutely no sense, the entire rest of the movie has to follow suit. The story takes place over the course of a week (Sunday to Saturday), but the days are lived out of order by Linda. One day she wakes up and it is Thursday, the next day she wakes up and it is Monday. This is not altogether an uncommon way to tell a story – in fact it is a unique premise with the potential to be very interesting if done well. The only thing that can go wrong is that if you are not consistent, your story falls apart. In the case of Premonition, if you take all of the days and separate them, then put them in the right order, they would make absolutely no sense. Certain plot points never quite connect from one scene to the next, causing us to become detached from the story and annoyed with its inconsistencies – and that just doesn’t make for a fulfilling night at the movies.In the end there really isn’t a way for me to stop people from seeing this flick no matter how certain I am that they will be disappointed. It is a simple suspense flick absolutely devoid of a payoff – unless you consider utter confusion and a stale taste in your mouth to be a good payoff for a Sandra Bullock movie.Final Grade: Premonition is in theaters on March 16, has a running time of 110 minutes and is Rated PG-13 for some violent content, disturbing images, thematic material and brief language.

Movie Review: I Think I Love My Wife

Neil Miller — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 10:13:19 EDT

Chris Rock thinks he loves his wife. To top that, he also has the delusion that he has what it takes to make his fans love him for more than just being a comedian. He is under the impression that he is also a good writer and director – a thought that has him headed for disaster. That potential disaster is a little film called I Think I Love My Wife, which coincidentally was written, directed by, and stars the iconic comedian as a bored married man who is no longer intimately acquainted with his wife and it is starting to get to him. Rock plays Richard Cooper, a successful financial broker with a wife (Gina Torres), two lovely children, and all the problems that every married man is faced with – a monotonous routine and worst of all, no sex. The no sex part is something that Richard was learning to deal with, that is until the day that Nikki (Kerry Washington) popped into his life. The old flame of a close friend, Nikki comes to Richard with the need for a job reference and a penchant for being a home wrecker. She is outgoing, uninhibited, and sexy from head to toe. And on top of that she begins to show some interest in Richard, something that is the ultimate fantasy of any bored married man. Nikki’s only problem is that she is a bit over-the-top with her desire for Richard, to the point where you begin to remember that she is a fictional character – because we all know that in real life, hot young women are just not that into stale husband-types.This over-the-top characterization, in conjunction with Chris Rock’s exceedingly energetic brand of comedy creates a movie that plays out more like campy sitcom than a silver screen comedy. That makes sense considering that the two guys who wrote it, Chris Rock and Louis C.K., are both knee-deep in their own popular television sitcoms. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the film goes through a bit of an identity crisis. It is easy to see that the minds behind this film wanted to make a more serious satire about the woes of marriage and the temptations of fate. But instead they get scared that maybe their audience won’t buy that, causing them to reach for laughs instead of writing an intelligent flick.The film does get some laughs however, thanks to leading man Chris Rock’s natural ability to be funny no matter what the situation. Steve Buscemi also lends a hand in the comedy department as Richard’s philandering business partner. Sadly though, a few laughs here and there aren’t enough to make this a good choice on any level. Chris Rock is funny, yes. And I will buy every comedy CD he ever puts out. But thanks to I Think I Love My Wife, the next time I see his name next to the words “written and directed by”, I may just look for something else. Final Grade: I Think I Love My Wife is in theaters March 16, has a running time of 90 minutes and is Rated R for pervasive language and some sexual content.

Movie Review: 300

Neil Miller — Fri, 9 Mar 2007 12:51:20 EST

Moments prior to screening the film 300 a few days back, only one thing was going through my mind: Please don’t suck! After all of this hype, watching the trailer seemingly thousands of times, writing about the film constantly on various websites and even interviewing director Zack Snyder, I would be truly disappointed if I were forced to set this one ablaze as I have countless films thus far in 2007. But I was comforted when I remembered the words of Zack Snyder, who said of his film, “I wanted to do a movie that when you walked out you were like ‘Fuck! That was awesome!’ And like, you wanna kick some ass.”Upon seeing the film, I am in total agreement with its director – it was awesome! Based on the graphic novel of the same name by Frank Miller (Sin City), 300 tells the story of 300 Spartans lead by their King, Leonidas (Gerard Butler), into the face of an insurmountable invasion at the hands of a million-man Persian army. Despite a lack of support from the Spartan council and a group of creepy elders who communicate with the Gods via a half-naked teenage girl (in a scene that is alluring and tastefully done), Leonidas decides that rather than allow his nation to be conquered into slavery, he must take his best warriors, the Spartan elite, and do what he can to fend off the impending invasion.From there the film explodes into a highly stylized, intense battle royale in which the Spartans, with their flair for battle and their constant arrogance, take on the vast Persian army led by the God-King Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro). The battle scenes themselves are something to behold -- they are pulse-pounding and intense, yet not chaotic. Snyder has found a way to slow down the action enough to show us more without making it look over the top. The result is the most stylish and intensely violent action that you will see all year. It is a film so intense, it makes Gladiator look like a Disney flick. But then again, that is what you could have expected if you’ve seen the trailer at least once.What you don’t expect are the intangibles that Snyder has gotten right in his film. There is more story here than previous Frank Miller book-to-movie adaptations such as Sin City. In addition to the bond between Leonidas and his 300, a sordid plot of political tension also rages back in Sparta between Leonidas’ wife, Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) and the leader of the Spartan Council (Dominic West). In addition to that, Gerard Butler, who is a lesser-known actor here in the States (besides his leading role in The Phantom of the Opera), gives a performance that should catapult him to the top of many people’s A-lists. He does more than just shout to his men prior to an impending surge; he is charismatic, irreverent, and ultimately embodies the vision of a Spartan warrior. I would not be surprised if you see much more of him in the future.And Butler is not the only one who will benefit greatly from this epic film’s impending success. Snyder, whose other notoriety came from his remake of Dawn of the Dead in 2004, has truly taken the action movie genre to a new level. Forget Gladiator, forget Troy, and if you haven’t already, forget Alexander. None of these flicks can hold a flame to 300. And that is saying something. If you are like me, and you hold a place in your movie-loving heart for films that just plain kick ass, then 300 is not to be missed. It is the single most intense cinematic experience I have had in a long time. It is as if the story and the visuals have been ripped directly from the mind of Frank Miller and transposed onto the silver screen without being spoiled by a Hollywood need to be realistic. Not since The Matrix has a film been so innovative that it may change the face of an entire genre, but this one just may do the trick. I hate to be cliché, but there is no other way to say it --no matter how you slice it, this is the film to see in 2007. Grab your Spartan helmet, sword, and shield -- it's time to kick some ass!Final Grade: 300 is in theaters nationwide March 9, has a running time of 117 minutes and is rated R for graphic battle sequences throughout, some sexuality and nudity.