Movie Reviews from Creators Syndicate

Stiller-Downey Movie a Bungle in the Jungle for 08/16/2008

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

"Tropic Thunder" is a thunderous bore. And that's despite stuff blowing up all over the place and the manic antics of Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and particularly Jack Black.

This indulgent film is about a bunch of pampered actors who've come together to make a "Rambo"-like picture set during the Vietnam War. For realism, there are choppers and blood and limbs torn ...

Updated: Sat Aug 16, 2008

Rainn Wilson's 'Rocker' plays with all the familiar comedy cliches for 08/22/2008

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The journey from "School of Rock" to "School of Schlock" took just five years, which is nearly as long as some of the more interminable scenes in "The Rocker" seem to last.

In 2003's "School of Rock," a well-intentioned but slight comedy, Jack Black starred as a slobbish, wannabe rock star who uses his job as a fifth-grade substitute teacher to for ...

Updated: Fri Aug 22, 2008

'Death Race' Revs up the Bloodshed for 08/23/2008

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

"Death Race" is one of those movies where the title truly says it all. Not like "Kung Fu Panda," for example, where the film is about a panda that learns kung fu, but ends up finding himself and gaining self-confidence.

No, "Death Race" is literally 89 minutes of racing and fighting that both add up to a death toll you wouldn't believe.

The film, base ...

Updated: Sat Aug 23, 2008

Complex, Thoughtful 'Traitor' Carried along by a Solid Cast for 08/29/2008

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700

The kaleidoscopic designs at the start of "Traitor" hint at the complexities to come. In this international thriller, it's not easy to sort out heroes from villains, or to know if faith is saving or destroying the world.

The ambiguity begins with the lead role of Samir Horn. Luckily, Samir is portrayed by Don Cheadle, who brings gravitas and humanity to a character that could b ...

Updated: Fri Aug 29, 2008

The Germs' frontman abused drugs, embraced violence and pioneered punk rock for 09/05/2008

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Nearly 28 years after his death at age 22, L.A. punk rock pioneer Darby Crash begins to get his due in the biopic "What We Do Is Secret," which, like its tormented antihero, covers too much ground in too little time.

The film attempts to convey, in a mere 92 minutes, not only the forces at play (more like at war) inside the Germs' star-crossed singer's drug-addled brain, but al ...

Updated: Fri Sep 05, 2008

Talented Cast of Woeful Remake is Made Small by Their Limited Roles for 09/12/2008

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Women, schmimmen. That's my capsule review of "The Women," a veritable estrogen tsunami that will have most men rushing to the next screening of "Death Race" for testosterone relief.

OK, so it's not really that bad. In fact it's fairly innocuous — more akin to sitting under an estrogen-misting machine while listening to piano-and-vibes jazz. Written and directed ...

Updated: Fri Sep 12, 2008

A Man About 'Town' for 09/19/2008

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Despite two over-before-you-know-it scenes of violence, "Ghost Town" is a ghost tale without shudders, screams or gore. The chills come from watching director David Koepp try to revive a genre that, if not dead, already has been measured for a coffin.

In the post-Judd Apatow world, can anyone resuscitate the raunch-free romantic comedy?

The answer is yes, although co-wri ...

Updated: Fri Sep 19, 2008

'Flow' Details Worldwide Water Woes for 09/20/2008

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Irena Salina's documentary "Flow" begins by comparing the Earth to a human body. Both are roughly 70 percent liquid, both maintain life via a circulatory process (rivers equals arteries), and both can become very sick if their streams get polluted.

Then, to drive the point home, Salina shows us a Bolivian waterway turned blood-red due to slaughterhouse drainage.

Most of ...

Updated: Sat Sep 20, 2008

Keira Knightley Delivers Depth to a Troubled 'Duchess' for 09/26/2008

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0700

It's no surprise that "The Duchess," a film about an English royal beauty famous for her trendsetting style, is a visual treat. It features lavish costumes, opulent interiors and lovely views of pastures and 18th-century mansions.

But "The Duchess" is more than eye candy. With soap-opera sensibility and contemporary flair, the film — based on Amanda Foreman's bi ...

Updated: Fri Sep 26, 2008

Anti-religion Fervor in 'Religulous' is Over the Top for 10/06/2008

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

She laughed.

I had invited Cheryl Hall to the screening of "Religulous" to get a faith-based reaction to comedian Bill Maher's diatribe on the divine. Hall's credentials: longtime member of the United Methodist Women and faithful San Diego churchgoer whose husband teaches a weekly Bible study class.

Surely, she would be offended at roasting religion as if it were a Holly ...

Updated: Mon Oct 06, 2008

'The Secret Life of Bees' is a Competent if Uneven Tearjerker for 10/17/2008

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

As a novel, "The Secret Life of Bees," isn't an obvious tearjerker. Sue Monk Kidd's best-selling book about 1960s South Carolina is slow and subtle, filled with multidimensional characters and compelling civil-rights issues. But for the big screen, with an all-female, mega-Hollywood cast that includes Dakota Fanning and Queen Latifah, director Gina Prince-Bythewood engineered it to pr ...

Updated: Fri Oct 17, 2008

Stone's Take on Bush: Good ol' Boy out of his League, Away From his Buds for 10/24/2008

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Oliver Stone's “W.” isn't wicked. It's wild and pretty wonderful.

Who would've thought the notorious director of “JFK” and “Nixon” could temper his partisan politics to fashion an evenhanded film that's funny, fascinating and frightening?

“W.” takes the man seriously. Stone doesn't make that claim, but simply produces an engagingly cinematic story of a good ol' boy with profound f ...

Updated: Fri Oct 24, 2008

'Zack and Miri' Make a Dud for 10/31/2008

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

"Zack and Miri Make a Porno" isn't pornographic. It's just dirty in a juvenile kind of way.

Kevin Smith, director of the sublime "Clerks" flicks and the amusing New Jersey cycle of "Mallrats," "Chasing Amy," "Dogma" and "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back," teamed up with Seth Rogen and lost his way.

Rogen is the unlikely mov ...

Updated: Fri Oct 31, 2008

'School' Spirit for 11/01/2008

Sat, 01 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0700

To say you don't like "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" is to say you don't like candy. Or babies. Or puppies.

There's just no way to resist the movie's candy colors and pretty teen stars. Even its formulaic songs have a way of burrowing into your heart after awhile.

Everything about "High School Musical's" big-screen debut is bigger and better than its prev ...

Updated: Sat Nov 01, 2008

Escape Artists: 'Madagascar' is a Hoot for 11/07/2008

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

I must admit, I was a little confused at the start of "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" as I hadn't seen the original. And unless I missed something while trying to take notes in the dark, I never figured out the Madagascar angle.

But I did figure out that this movie is a continuation of a story about four friends — a neurotic giraffe named Melman (David Schwimmer); Gloria, a ...

Updated: Fri Nov 07, 2008

How to Describe 'Role Models'? Hmmm, Stop me if You've Heard This One ... for 11/08/2008

Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Forking over $10.50 to see "Role Models" is like paying for a 2009 Mustang and getting a 20-year-old model with rebuilt engine, new paint job, CD player and GPS system. A fun ride with nifty accessories, but at these prices don't we deserve something new?

The five people credited with the story and script have crafted some good lines and two solid characters. But they assembled ...

Updated: Sat Nov 08, 2008

Jackson Joins Mac in a Film Epitaph Fit for a King of Comedy for 11/10/2008

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

"Soul Men" is soul food for the heart, and the multiplex.

Let's say it: You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll come out of the theater humming "I'm Your Puppet."

Bring a hankie. Bernie Mac, so funny, so talented, died last August at age 50 from pneumonia. "Soul Men" serves as a grand epitaph for a man who emerged in "The Original Kings of Comedy" ...

Updated: Mon Nov 10, 2008

'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' is Poignant, Enlightening for 11/14/2008

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

The soundtrack has a feeling as carefree as the boys running through the opening scene of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas." They're on their way home from school, running through the streets with their arms extended, pretending to be airplanes. It's easy to remember doing the same thing yourself.

Then, the tempo changes as perfectly timed edits take you from the streets to a ho ...

Updated: Fri Nov 14, 2008

'Quantum of Solace' Barely Worthy of Rich 007 History for 11/17/2008

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

For James Bond aficionados, "Quantum of Solace" is a quantum leap into mediocrity, a rip-off of pictures like "The Bourne Ultimatum."

It's lazy filmmaking that relies on familiar car (plane and boat) chases and things exploding at the expense of story and character.

Where did the great hero go, the one from Sean Connery in "Goldfinger" to Daniel Craig ...

Updated: Mon Nov 17, 2008

Pattinson Brings to the Screen an Edward One can Embrace for 11/21/2008

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

When it comes to "Twilight," the question isn't whether the teen vampire movie is any good, but whether the hero, Edward Cullen, is as magical as we want him to be. Because, let's face it, the four-part book series by Stephenie Meyer has such a devoted following that every "Twilight" lover will want to see the movie. Twice. No matter what.

What's most important, then, ...

Updated: Fri Nov 21, 2008