Rick's Flicks Picks on AWN

It has taken me far too long to come around to the work of Ramin Bahrani. Ever since his MAN PUSH CART was released in 2005, he has been a favorite of critics. Inspired by the Iranian film TASTE OF CHERRY, this drama is the best film of 2009.

Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) is a Senegalese immigrant who drives a cab in North Carolina. One night he picks up William (Red West, COOKIE'S FORTUNE) who promises him $1,000 if he will take him to the remote mountain Blowing Rock in 10 days. Solo is an inquisitive fellow who quickly surmises that William plans to kill himself. The perpetually positive cabbie makes it his mission to convince the old man not to end his life. He does so with simple kindness. He takes William to the movies and even finagles him into staying at his house with his wife Quiera (Carmen Leyva) and stepdaughter Alex (Diana Franco Galindo).

The title comes from a William Ernest Henley poem. Nelson Mandela found it inspirational as he languished for years in a small prison cell. To summarize the theme of the poem Henley rejects negativity in the face of whatever fate might throw at him. He closes – I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul. At one point in Clint Eastwood's new film, Mandela gives the poem to Francois Pienaar, the beleaguered captain of the South African rugby team, to inspire him to inspire a nation.

When Mandela (Morgan Freeman, MILLION DOLLAR BABY) was elected president, South Africa was still divided over apartheid. His chief goal was the help mend the wounds of the past. He kept many of the government workers from the previous administration. Against the wishes of his own security head Jason Tshabalala (Tony Kgoroge, HOTEL RWANDA), he even kept many of the secret service officers that once rounded up the freedom fighters who now serve as government officials.

With PUBLIC ENEMIES now on DVD and Blu-ray, This Weekend's Film Festival honors the eclectic work of Johnny Depp. The versatile actor has played a notorious gangster and a notoriously bad filmmaker. He has played a drunken pirate and a man who like to play pirate. He launched his career as an oddball with magic fingers. Enjoy the work of one of the best actors working today.

PUBLIC ENEMIES is a cops and robbers tale that pits Depp's charismatic John Dillinger against Christian Bale's by-the-book Melvin Purvis. As I said in my original review, "Depp is cool and precise as Dillinger. He’s a man oozing with confidence. The risk is what makes it fun." Like so many great men, his weakness is women. Depp shows the killer's soft side when he's with his #1 girl Billie Frechette, played by Oscar winner Marion Cotillard. Dillinger relished in outsmarting and flaunting his ways to the police. He treated the common man kindly because that allowed him to walk among them. Between daring escapes, shootouts and other outright "death wish" behavior, Dillinger lives for the thrill of the moment. In a crucial scene, Dillinger meets Purvis for the first time. Depp is at the top of his game as he explains to the cop about the bloody business they're in. He tells the lawman that if he can't stomach it he should find another occupation. This crime drama shows how each side must continue to adapt to stay ahead of the other. In the end, Dillinger loses because his way becomes obsolete and it forces him to bend the principles that have kept him safe for so long.

Straight romances have a tough time reaching over to male audiences. This is part of the stroke of genius behind director Jerry Zucker and Oscar winning writer Bruce Joel Rubin's GHOST. The film balances between romance, comedy and thriller elements, keeping the narrative easily accessible to both genders. It's a grand fantasy romance wrapped around a crime mystery, supported by a great comic relief character.

Sam Wheat (Patrick Swayze, DIRTY DANCING) and Molly Jensen (Demi Moore, ST. ELMO'S FIRE) have just moved in together. Between their relationship and his new promotion, he is worried that his life is going too well. One night, a botched mugging leads to his death. But as is the case with ghosts, they have unfinished business on Earth and Sam is determined to get to the bottom of his murder, which doesn't seem like a simple robbery when the mugger Willie Lopez (Rick Aviles, THE STAND) turns up at his apartment. He tries to contact Molly and his best friend Carl Bruner (Tony Goldwyn, THE LAST SAMURAI) but can't warn them. He eventually goes to con artist psychic Oda Mae Brown (Whoopi Goldberg, THE COLOR PURPLE), who ends up being the real thing, for help.

A seminal film in the career of Tim Burton, it established the filmmaker as an auteur. The unique fable also made a movie star of Johnny Depp and established a filmmaker and actor collaboration that has been a creative windfall since. The title character has been a pop culture icon.

A lonely inventor (Vincent Price, HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL) creates a young man from spare parts. Before he was able to give Edward (Depp) real hands to replace his scissor fingers, the old man dies, leaving Edward all alone. Peg (Dianne Wiest, BULLETS OVER BROADWAY) is an Avon saleswoman in an Easter egg colored suburb. Desperate for new clients, she visits the mysterious mansion of the inventor and is taken by the shy, scarred Edward. She takes him home and tries to make him feel at home, but Edward is not prepared for the modern world and the scuttlebutt his presence creates.

With three films under his belt, Jason Reitman has emerged as a director worth getting excited about seeing his latest. THANK YOU FOR SMOKING skewered the tobacco lobby. JUNO put a quirky spin on teen pregnancy. Now during the worst recession since the Great Depression, he brings us a story about a downsizing expert. The fact that he makes us sympathize with him is remarkable.

Ryan Bingham (George Clooney, SYRIANA) is a veteran of the outsourced downsizing trade. He spends most of the year on the road. He loves it. He's not big on commitment. In an executive hotel lounge, he meets Alex Goran (Vera Farmiga, NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH), a fellow frequent flyer who gets turned on by his airline reward cards. But when Ryan goes back to the Omaha office, his boss Craig Gregory (Jason Bateman, STATE OF PLAY) introduces hot shot recent college grad Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick, TWILIGHT), who has a plan to slash costs by cutting face-to-face firings and replacing them with tele-canning over the Internet. Ryan's way of life is about to end.

At his best Dario Argento weaves thrillers that not only keep us guessing with ingenious twists, they end leaving the audience thinking about the ramifications of what transpired. The director takes the signature ultra-violent death scenes of the Italian giallos and gives them artistic flare. In this outing, Argento comments on how art and reality collide.

Peter Neal (Anthony Franciosa, DEATH WISH II) is an American writer who is very popular in Europe. Upon a tour promoting his latest book, he gets a letter from a killer inspired by his work. With his dedicated assistants Anne (Daria Nicolodi, DEEP RED) and Gianni (Christiano Borromeo, HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK), Paul starts his own investigation into the murders. This worries his literary agent Bullmer (John Saxon, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET). He must also deal with the likes of his bitter ex-wife Jane (Veronica Lario); Tilde (Mirella D’Angelo, THE POPE MUST DIE), a lesbian journalist, who questions the sexist undertones of his novels; and TV interviewer Christiano Berti (John Steiner, MARAT/SADE), who is a huge fan of his work.

Each act of this unique thriller is like a different movie. It starts as a portrait of an alcoholic then becomes a kidnap drama and closes by flipping roles and dripping with dark irony. At 144 minutes long, the film doesn't move at the fast clip of a typical thriller, but director Erick Zonca's patient measured pace, matching the slow and skewed perspective of a drunk, is perfect for its antihero, brought to life selflessly by Oscar winner Tilda Swinton. A performance that in a just world would earn her another Oscar.

Swinton (MICHAEL CLAYTON) plays Julia, a party girl who isn't really fazed when she wakes up in strange places. Her AA sponsor Mitch (Saul Rubinek, BAADASSSSS!) has a nuanced relationship with her. He's certainly attracted to her, but he doesn't want to sleep with her because he knows that she needs a friend right now not a lover. Julia can't understand his feelings because for her sex is a weapon and love is a myth. She's not a very sophisticated woman and the booze just makes her dumb.

This thoughtful, joyous production has brought class back to Disney feature animation whether it's hand-drawn or CG. Directors Ron Clements and John Musker (THE LITTLE MERMAID) have gone back and captured the essence of the studio's past and made a new film that moves them into the future as well.

Tiana (Anika Noni Rose, DREAMGIRLS) has dreamed of owning her own restaurant her whole life. However, as a poor girl from New Orleans, she has to work multiple jobs to save up the money. She is the polar opposite of her friend Charlotte (Jennifer Cody), a pampered "Southern princess" who just wishes on a star for her prince to come. Then one day her prince does arrive. Prince Naveen (Bruno Campos, TV's NIP/TUCK) is a charming jazz lover who has been cut off by his parents. In comes Dr. Facilier (Keith David, PLATOON), the voodoo doctor. He sees Naveen and his disgruntled manservant Lawrence (Peter Bartlett, TV's ONE LIFE TO LIVE) as the perfect opportunity to steal Charlotte's money and take over New Orleans.

Many have been divided about the screen adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's award-winning novel. As a two hour production, the film doesn't capture the epic despair of the novel, but the film does capture the existential poetry of a parent's fear for their children. No film can capture the power of McCarthy's uniquely powerful sparse writing style. There isn't a filmic equivalent. All films based on complex novels have to focus on the main themes, and John Hillcoat's THE ROAD does this movingly.

The world has been destroyed by an undisclosed disaster. All animals and planets have died. The few humans that remain roam the land searching for food. Some have banded together and turned to cannibalism. A man (Viggo Mortensen, A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE) and his wife (Charlize Theron, MONSTER) have a boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee, THE KING) in this world. The father promises to do anything to protect the child, but the woman has lost all faith in this cruel world.

It's nomination for an Academy Award, the first time ever for an animated feature, was more than just a testament to the quality of the film, but also a celebration of the return of Disney animation. The 1990s were a new Golden Age and this was one of their new masterpieces.

Belle (Paige O'Hara, ENCHANTED) is a book worm who doesn't fit into her provincial life. Her father Maurice (Rex Everhart, SUPERMAN) is an inventor who might have created the one device that might give him the fortune and respect that he has been eluding him. The town hunk and egotist Gaston (Richard White) wants to marry Belle because she is the most beautiful girl in town. Belle of course wants something more from her husband than simply good looks. On the way to the fair, Maurice stumbles across the castle of the Beast (Robby Benson, ICE CASTLES), a young prince who was transformed into a hairy creature for slighting an enchantress. In an effort to save her father, Belle trades herself for her father's freedom.

It has been said that the only person to fear is an unloved one. Precious Jones (Gabourey "Gabby" Sidibe, film debut) is sixteen and is about to have the second child by her mother's boyfriend, who is also her father. She lives at home with her mother Mary (Mo'Nique, SOUL PLANE) who belittles her at every turn and treats her like a servant. She's obese and practically illiterate. She's ridiculed for her appearance simply walking down the street. She's been beaten down by life so hard that she barely speaks.

Then she is given an option to attend an alternative school, where they will prepare her to take her GED. Her teacher, Ms. Blu Rain (Paula Patton, HITCH), isn't some miracle worker teacher. She's just the first person in Precious's life to care even a bit. In class, the students write about themselves and their lives. Ms. Rain encourages them to think. Mrs. Weiss (Mariah Carey, WISEGIRLS) is Precious's social worker. She's a woman who has probably heard a thousand stories like Precious's, but something about this sad girl really touches her.