Rick's Flicks Picks on AWN

Woody Allen's first masterpiece (and I don't feel insecure in the least calling it that) truly declared himself as a mature filmmaker. While the film is hilarious, Allen put character first instead of laughs, the opposite of his previous films. It beat STAR WARS for the Best Picture Oscar. While I consider STAR WARS the most influential film of my childhood, the win of Allen's intelligent comedy is a sort of last hurrah for a type of Hollywood film that died from the first blast of that Star Destroyer flying across the screen. In a dash to appeal to the lowest common denominator, ideas need to be simple and witty references can't refer to Balzac only ball sacks.

Alvy Singer (Allen) is a neurotic comedian from New York. He even admits to being a walking stereotype, a kvetching Jew from Manhattan. He is paranoid and a hypochondriac. But he's witty and charming. Despite all his hang-ups he has a confidence that's attractive. He's trying to come to terms with his break-up with Annie Hall (Diane Keaton, SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE). Annie is neurotic herself. She's a bit flighty, but full of energy and curiosity. Alvy seems to be attracted to smart women, but not ones smarter than him. But then ironically, he gets hung-up on them not being as smart as him. You can quickly see why dating Alvy can be exasperating.

Peter Jackson has stated that Ralph Bakshi's animated rendition of THE LORD OF THE RINGS was his first introduction to J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy tale. The epic animated feature (132 minutes long) brought to the screen the first and half of the second books in the trilogy. The screenplay was crafted by Tolkien scholar Chris Conkling and touched up by fantasy expert Peter S. Beagle (THE LAST UNICORN). The tightly written story doesn't feel like it's missing a moment from Tolkien's epic world. But the film is hindered by stylistic choices that feel more budgetary than artistic and a screenplay that does get too tight for its own good.

Little hobbit Frodo (Christopher Guard) is called upon to tackle a grand mission. His uncle Bilbo (Norman Bird) has given him possession of the One Ring, which holds enormous power. But its power quickly corrupts the one who hold it, making the highly innocent hobbit the perfect ring bearer. Wizard Gandalf (William Squire) tells Frodo to take the ring to Mount Mordor where the fires can destroy it. However, numerous forces of evil begin to descend on Frodo and his traveling mates Sam (Michael Scholes), Merry (Simon Chandler) and Pippin (Dominic Guard). At a tavern, the rider Aragorn (John Hurt, THE ELEPHANT MAN) takes the hobbits under his wing to add their mission. Along the way they will be joined by Gandalf, elf Legolas (Anthony Daniels, STAR WARS), dwarf Gimli (David Buck) and conflicted warrior Boromir (Michael Graham Cox). But evil will split up this fellowship and lead Frodo and Sam to head out on their own where they meet the scheming Gollum (Peter Woodthorpe).

Michael Moore made this film available on the Internet for his fans for free. And that is whom the film is for. It chronicles Moore's 2004 "Slacker Uprising" tour of college campuses in election battleground states. Though for some it might create the same unsettling feeling like being a Patriots fan and watching the 2007 season highlight reel, the film does have some of the qualities that make a good concert film enjoyable.

Moore heads out on the road to get young people to vote. The events feature musicians, comedians and actors. Some of the highlights include a performance from Eddie Vedder and a funny, raunchy routine from Rosanne Barr. We watch clips of Moore defending his 2004 film FAHRENHEIT 9/11 and rally the faithful to kick Bush out of the White House. However, the most interesting parts show the problems the tour ran into. Pro-Bush and religious groups show up at various cities to disrupt the show. After a Christian group screams out the Lord's prayer, Moore asks them, "What would Jesus bomb?" Moore can't help taking more pokes at the Right, including a hilarious montage of various tour protesters who come off as less than the brightest bulbs in the pack.

After a week hiatus, the buzz meter is back. There is some interesting stuff that popped up over the past few weeks. Still awaiting release word on Steven Soderbergh's CHE and Clint Eastwood's GRAN TORINO. Bubbling with excitement for that first THE ROAD trailer. Below are the films picking up momentum.

Losing Steam
New trailers for films like BEDTIME STORIES, SOUL MEN and SMOTHER show that they never had steam to start with. No one is talking about CROSSING OVER, not a good sign.

Getting' Buzzed
10) Body of Lies (Oct. 10)
Finally a trailer that makes some sense of what this Ridley Scott film is about. Expectations are low, but the full trailer has at least made me want to see it.

Ever since it opened the Cannes Film Festival, Fernando Meirelles' BLINDNESS has been getting love it or hate it reviews. The premise has the world going blind and the infected are put in a closed-off hospital. One might expect allegories for seeing people for who they are and not what they look like. But the story, based on José Saramago's novel, tackles much harsher, bleak and nuanced issues than simple racism, ageism and the like. I haven't seen a mainstream non-horror film go to such dark places before. I foresee many expecting a simple thriller, walking out, demanding their money back. But for the more thoughtful and/or strong-willed viewer, this devastating and powerful film will have you talking for days.

With the release of IRON MAN on DVD, This Weekend's Film Festival takes a look at the best superhero films of all time. At least the ones on DVD thus far. THE DARK KNIGHT would certainly be at the top of the list, but I wouldn't want to send Fest attendees to the theaters for the fourth or fifth time. However, Batman does make an appearance on the countdown. So does a reluctant hero. A super-powered family does as well. And my spider sense tells me that your friendly neighborhood web-slinger makes the list too. So sit back and enjoy the ride. Let the countdown begin.

My fifth choice might be the most controversial choice, because of its selection over other beloved superhero pics. Outside of Ang Lee's underrated HULK, M. Night Shyamalan's UNBREAKABLE is possibly one of the most ponderous superhero films ever made. Set in a very real world, the story follows average security guard David Dunn (Bruce Willis) after he is the only person to walk away unharmed from a train crash. Comic book obsessed Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), who suffers from a disease that makes his bones very fragile, is convinced that David has superhuman abilities. But David, whose life is in shambles, doesn't want to believe that he is destined to be a real life superhero. With a moody tone, Shyamalan crafts a mystery around what special powers David might possess and whether he is ready to accept them. As I said in my original review, "[The tone] adds a strange tension to the film that piques the viewer’s curiosity. It makes us reluctant about believing that this crazy notion is true. The tone creates the perfect skepticism that this story needs." For its uniqueness alone, UNBREAKABLE deserves to be mentioned among the best in the superhero genre.

M. Night Shyamalan followed up his monster success on THE SIXTH SENSE with this moody take on the superhero origin story. How many days were you sick last year? How many sick days have you taken in the past three years? After walking away from a train crash without a scratch, David Dunn (Bruce Willis, DIE HARD) starts asking these questions. Is there something special about him that he has never noticed?

Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson, PULP FICTION) thinks so. Price has a disease that makes his bones extremely fragile. Breaks happen often. As a child the other kids teased him with the name Mr. Glass. He has been looking for someone like David his whole life. His mirror opposite. David doubts that he is anything more than a security guard. His marriage to his high school sweetheart Audrey (Robin Wright Penn, THE PRINCESS BRIDE) is nearing its end. He was on the train coming back from another failed interview in New York. He's feeling anything but special. But his son Joseph (Spencer Treat Clark, GLADIATOR) becomes obsessed with the idea that his dad might be a real life "superman."

So my little baby sister is getting married. It's time to celebrate at Rick's Flicks Picks. So weddings and love are the themes of This Weekend's Film Festival. Some are satirical. Some are romantic. We get looks at love and marriage from the U.S., Australia, U.K. and India. This is a lineup for romantics and cynics alike. It celebrates all the ups and downs of making it to that Big Day. And for each film I'll send out wishes for every bride.

We start this week with a classic. The original 1950 FATHER OF THE BRIDE takes a satirical stab at weddings from the point of view of Spencer Tracy's sarcastic Stanley T. Banks. His daughter Kay (Elizabeth Taylor) is getting married to a man he doesn't even know. And he has trouble dealing with losing his little girl, while the wedding bill rises and all his role becomes is the bill payer. As I said in my original review, "Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett truly deserved their nominations for best writing, screenplay… Wedding conventions are tackled with wonderful wit, which balances the frank sentiment." Tracy is magnificent in this Oscar-nominated performance in which he perfectly balances the humor and the heartfelt emotion. All fathers who are close to their daughters and visa versa will find this film special in the way it portrays with honesty the bond between a dad and his little girl.

While the original SCOOBY-DOO series has to be looked upon with nostalgia to really enjoy, there is still a charm to Scooby-Doo that people relate to. The series has been remade endless number of times, whether on film, TV or direct-to-video. I must admit that the first DTV, SCOOBY-DOO ON ZOMBIE ISLAND, had a satirical that I enjoyed. But productions like this latest, GOBLIN KING, just harkens back to so many of the bad, cheapo 1980s theatrical 2D animated releases like TOM & JERRY THE MOVIE and THE CHIPMUNKS ADVENTURE. You take established characters stick them in a random string of adventures and throw in some songs to fill up time.

This time Scooby and the gang are at the Coolsville Halloween carnival where they go to see the second-rate magician Amazing Krudsky (Wayne Knight, TV's SEINFELD). To get back at the dog-hating snob, Scooby and Shaggy reveal Krudsky as a fraud — a magician with no real magic powers. Does anyone over five really think they'll find real magic at a Halloween carnival? But I digress. Later Krudsky captures the Princess Fairy Willow (Hayden Panettiere, TV's HEROES) and steals her power in an effort to con the Goblin King (Tim Curry, LEGEND) out of his scepter, which would give him unbelievable magical power. So Scooby and Shaggy have to venture into the spirit world to stop Krudsky and save Halloween. Along the way they'll run into ghosts, goblins, fairies, witches, the headless horsemen, and a talking Jack O'Lantern, who sounds just like Jay Leno.

Less new buzz this week now that the big fall festivals are over. Eagerly awaiting trailers for CROSSING OVER, THE WRESTLER and THE ROAD. Two buzzed about films could be losing steam in a week. The #1 film is charging ahead full speed to the top slots of my fall must see list. Tell me what you think.

Losing Steam
HOUNDDOG is dead on arrival.

Getting Buzzed
7) Synecdoche, New York (Oct. 24)
The full trailer has turned the buzz around for me, but for how long?

6) Four Christmases (Nov. 26)
Trailer is now here. Could be one of the obligatory "my family is crazy" holiday films, but stars Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon have me intrigued. Could be losing steam fast.

Jane Austen has inspired many film and TV productions from straight adaptations to contemporary reinterpretations. When Emma Thompson adapted the scribe, she won an Oscar for her work. In bringing the story to the screen, she found an unlikely partner — Ang Lee, a Chinese director who had never done an English language film before. Along with a stellar cast, the production contains a spark of magic that only comes when we witness well-observed humanity on the screen.

Upon the death of the patriarch of the Dashwood family, the estate goes to the son John (James Fleet, FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL), who was the product of an earlier marriage. His second wife (Gemma Jones, BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY) and her three daughters are left with nearly nothing. As the eldest and most sensible of the daughters, Elinor (Thompson), says they're not even allowed to earn their money. They are forced by John and his conniving wife Fanny (Harriet Walter, BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS) to move out of their home and move into the drab cottage of a relative. The passionate romantic Marianne (Kate Winslet, TITANIC) shoots cruel looks at Fanny, while the youngest daughter Margaret (Emile Francois) runs and hides.

Ed Harris steps behind the camera for the first time since his excellent biopic POLLACK for this screen adaptation of Robert B. Parker's Western novel. This tale of honor and camaraderie is a traditional oater in its tone. While it features some flares of modern frankness, the story never feels like it steps outside of the 1880s era. Fans of Westerns will be reminded of films like MY DARLING CLEMENTINE. Audiences not in love with the genre will find an engaging character piece about two men who have formed a uniquely close bond under life and death situations.

Randall Bragg (Jeremy Irons, REVERSAL OF FORTUNE) is a miner who writes his own rules for himself and his men in the New Mexico town of Appaloosa. After murdering the marshal, the town leaders turn to lawman-for-hire Virgil Cole (Harris) and his partner Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen, A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE). Cole's deal is easy, you turn over the town to him and he'll bring order to it. Before the ink on his contract dries, Cole has gunned down two of Bragg's men for pissing on the floor of the saloon. The showdown of wills between Bragg and Cole soon begins. Then Allie French (Renee Zellweger, BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY) walks into town and fires buckshot right into Cole's heart.