Whoa - what a week for new releases! You've got your touching feel-good film, your stylistic druggie cult-classic, your kung-fu fighting, and your sex appeal. If ever there was a weekend to spend in the theaters, this is it.
Pay It Forward
Directed by: Mimi Leder
Starring: Haley Joel Osmet, Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt
We all fell in love with the pint-sized super-talent Haley Joel Osmet in the role that got him an Academy Award nomination as the little boy in The Sixth Sense. Osmet, who once played Murphy Brown's child Avery on the television series and Forrest Gump's child in the blockbuster movie, returns to the screen opposite Helen Hunt and Kevin Spacey. With a starring cast like that, and supporting cast members like Jon Bon Jovi, Angie Dickinson and Jay Mohr, Pay It Forward is a formula for success.
The story follows social studies teacher Eugene Simonet's (Kevin Spacey) seventh grade class as they are assigned to look at their world and fix what they don't like. Trevor McKinney (Osmet) takes the assignment to heart, and puts Simonet's idea of "paying it forward" into action. "Paying it forward" is the idea that if you do something nice for three people, and each one of them does something nice for three more people, good deeds expand exponentially around the world... and one person can start it. Trevor starts big, by trying to fix up his single mother (Helen Hunt) with his physically scarred teacher. It is the little things he does, like giving a homeless man a place to sleep and shower, that attract the attention of the press and pitch "pay it forward" to the world. Directed by Mimi Leder (The Peacemaker, Deep Impact), the film is bound to be full of clever camera movements as well.
Requiem for a Dream
Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans
Following the success of his 1998 low-budget release Pi, director Aronofksy offers his audience an equally artistic and unexpected film, Requiem for a Dream. Depending on your tastes, you will either love or hate this film... and unfortunately for Aronofsky, the average movie-goer will probably hate it. Comparable to Magnolia in artistic vision, critical acclaim and audience rejection, Requiem will immerse its audience in multiple story lines punctuated with a unique visual style.
The plot, if it could be called that, involves Harry (Jared Leto) and Tyrone (Marlon Wayans), two drug dealers looking for the perfect deal. Simultaneously, we follow Harry's mother Sara (Ellen Burstyn) and her own addiction to television and diet pills. The stories converge in an unforgettable climax that is not for the faint of heart. Pay close attention to the cinematography, as Aronofsky uses fast and slow motion, split screens and innovative cutting to replicate the druggie experience.
The Legend of Drunken Master
Directed by: Lau Kar Leung
Starring: Jackie Chan, Wing-Fong Ho, Mack Houghton, Chin Kar Lok
Don't try this at home. It's a Jackie Chan movie, enough said. His name alone conjures up images of fantastic stunts and awe-inspiring agility. In 1979, Drunken Master made Jackie Chan famous and now, 21 years later (and none the worse for the age, we might add), Chan returns to his roots. Wong Fei-Hong (Chan) is a fighter whose abilities increase ten-fold when he's drunk. How can this movie go wrong? Chan films have never before suffered from their loose plot structure. In fact it's all part of the show. So go for the spectacular stunts and hand-to-hand combat. In case you're interested in the story, though, Chan stars as a specialist in a fighting style called Drunken Boxing who stumbles on a group of Chinese helping the British to ship valuable artifacts out of China. This second installment in the series was originally released in 1994, but this is the first time the film will be on screens in the US.
Bedazzled
Directed by: Harold Ramis
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Elizabeth Hurley
We always knew Elizabeth Hurley was the devil. How else could she snag a hunk like Hugh? Sure, being a supermodel didn't hurt her chances any. Now, she's paired with Canadian cutie Brendan Fraser for Bedazzled, one of the best-looking movies of the year; definitely of the week.
In a modern take on an idea that originated with Christopher Marlowe's Dr. Faustas, Fraser plays a geek who sells his soul to the devil, played seductively by Hurley who prances around in "cute" and barely there outfits, the embodiment of temptation. In exchange for his soul, she gives him seven wishes, among which is included a hamburger and the chance to be a basketball star. Entertaining and harmless, it looks like a fun flick for distraction, but nothing substantial. Unless you count it as proof that models really are evil....
