Sahara
Ah, Matthew McConaughey. You thrilled us in Dazed and Confused. Dazzled us in A Time to Kill. Bored us in Ed. Then came back in romcom form with The Wedding Planner and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. And now you build on your action resume (U571, Reign of Fire) with this, a Clive Cussler adaptation that the original author disavows. Say what you will about Wooderson, but he refuses to be pigeonholed. In fact, this fall he's doing the Faust thing with Al Pacino in Two for the Money.
Also receiving a paycheck in this middling actioner are character actor stalwarts Steve Zahn, Delroy Lindo, and William H. Macy, who proved that he'll do anything after starring in Jurassic Park III. Normally having these three actors in the same film would be cause for celebration. In this case, it just makes it easier to play Starcrossed.
Includes commentary by McConaughey and director Breck "Yes, my dad is Michael but don't hold that against me" Eisner.
Monster-in-Law
What happens when you put Jane Fonda together in a movie with Jennifer Lopez? Not much, apparently. This didn't quite reach the Meet the Fockers financial heights that execs probably had in mind when they cast Fonda to play the titular tyrant. It got about the same reviews, though.
And if you need to see Michael Vartan or Wanda Sykes, get Alias or Best of Chris Rock respectively. You'll be much happier.
Actually, the extras might be worth it. The commentary has the director and Sykes, who of all the actors listed, probably has the funniest and most interesting insights on production. Each lead gets their own featurette. Fonda's is predictably entitled, "Welcome Back, Jane Fonda!" but sadly doesn't involve her teaching inner city youth. J-Lo's is (do you want to guess before you read it?) "Keeping it Real with Jennifer." The best title since "Kicking it with Byron Allen." And finally Michael Vartan gets the featurette into which clearly the most thought went when deciding on a handle - "Vartan, the Man!" I can imagine the round table on that one:
"How about 'Vartan, the Pan!'"
"No, no. Vartan, the Can!'"
"No, but save that one for J-Lo. I've got it. 'Vartan, the Tan!!' Get it? Cos' he has a tan. I least I think he does. Hey, Shirley, get Vartan's agent on the phone. Find out if he's got a tan or can get one before we shoot."
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Article comments
1 - Eric Berlin
Great job on this as always, David! The original version of Sahara was about 100 times better, of course. And the "real" Sahara, starring Bogart, is just about my favorite WWII-era film. I hate that they stole the name with this new schlocky looking thing.
2 - visualsimplicity
No love for Nip/Tuck - Season 2?
3 - David Dylan Thomas
I'll be honest. I've been afraid to watch "Nip/Tuck." I'm sure it's an excellent show, but scalpels near faces (or other parts) make me skittish. However, this is another good example of well-timed, catch-up-before-the-new-season-starts release strategy. "Lost" will be pulling the same move next week, I believe.
4 - deekay
The people are right about the puppies and terrorists and House. It's a great show for Hugh Laurie's performance and the character of House alone, but it's also got incredibly sarcastic and witty dialogue, interesting stories, great supporting characters, and puppies.
Well, there might not be puppies, but everything else is true.