Top Five Films of 2011

Well, another year at the movies has come to an end. Hollywood's 2011 slate brought us some hits (Captain America, Midnight in Paris, Super 8), some misses ( The Conspirator, Cowboys & Aliens, The Rum Diary) and a few welcome surprises ( The Artist, Rango, Rise of the Planet of the Apes).

As it turned out, we didn't have to wait until December for worthwhile films to appear; they thankfully arrived steadily throughout the year and made braving the local theater a relatively enjoyable experience. Below are my picks for the five best of 2011.

1. The Artist
2.The Descendants
3. Win Win
4. Midnight in Paris
5. Hugo


Honorable Mentions: Drive, Moneyball, Rango, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Puss in Boots, War Horse and Warrior.



Thanks for visiting the site this year. I hope you enjoyed at least some the of the essays and reviews. I certainly enjoyed bringing them to you. Happy New Year!

Top Five Blu-rays of 2011

From the stellar restorations of The Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur to the extra-laden editions of Citizen Kane and the The Star Wars Saga, Blu-ray really came into its own in 2011 and sent a crystal-clear message to consumers that there really is no better way to experience their favorite movies at home than in glorious high definition. Looking for something to spend that new gift card on? Below are my picks for the year's five best-looking releases.


1. The Ten Commandments Paramount Home Video (see review 4/15/11)
2. Ben-Hur Warner Home Video
3. The Sweet Smell of Success Criterion Collection
4. Citizen Kane Warner Home Video
5. Lolita (single-disc release) Warner Home Video

Honorable Mentions: The Killing Criterion Collection; Three Amigos HBO Home Entertainment ( yes, you read that right) and Tron Legacy Walt Disney Home Entertainment





Friday: Top Five Films of 2011

Top Five Albums of 2011

It was actually a pretty satisfying year for music. Classic artists returned with a vengeance in 2011, delivering some of the most diverse and memorable collections of their careers.

In addition to worthwhile efforts from The Cars, Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M. (their last as it would turn out) and Social Distortion, five "old friends" delivered highly enjoyable albums that, as luck would have it, ended up being the best of the year. You'll find them, in order, below. Seek each one out, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.


1. How To Become Clairvoyant Robbie Robertson
2. So Beautiful of So What Paul Simon
3. In Dreams Stevie Nicks
4. Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns John Hiatt
5. A Treasure Neil Young International Harvesters


Merry Christmas!


12/28: Top Five Blu-rays of 2011
12/30: Top Five Films of 2011

Blu-ray Review: The Rocketeer

It's pretty apparent when Marvel Studios needed a director for this summer's Captain America: The First Avenger, someone who could successfully meld highly stylized action with a period setting while maintaining the character's core ideals and heritage, they looked no further than Joe Johnston and his immensely entertaining 1991 film The Rocketeer.

Based on the late Dave Stevens' beloved series of graphic novels, The Rocketeer unfolds in 1938 Los Angeles and tells the story of test pilot Cliff Secord (Billy Campbell) and his crotchety mechanic Peevy (Alan Arkin) who find a mysterious rocket pack after it's stashed in of their planes by a local hood fleeing the Feds. It seems L.A. gangster Eddie Valentine (Paul Sorvino) had the device stolen from one Howard Hughes (Terry O'Quinn) at the request of his employer, Hollywood leading man Neville Sinclair (Timothy Dalton).

It's unclear what Sinclair wants the rocket for but he demands Eddie and his boys retrieve it. That doesn't prove too difficult as Cliff can't help drawing attention to himself when he's forced to strap on the jet pack and rescue a distressed pilot at a nearby air show. Soon Valentine, the Feds and a brutish enforcer of Sinclair's are all in pursuit of Cliff and Peevy. It's not long before Sinclair seduces, then kidnaps Cliff's actress girlfriend Jenny (Jennifer Connelly) in a bold, final attempt to flush out the heroic flyboy and deliver the rocket to his nefarious masters.

The Rocketeer is a smart, stylish and fast-paced adventure that hearkens back to the Saturday-morning serials of the '30s (think Raiders of the Lost Ark) and the comics of Dick Tracy, and, dare I say, Captain America. The entire cast is excellent and composer James Horner provides a heroic, soaring score that ranks among one of his best.

Newly released on Blu-ray for its 20th anniversary by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, The Rocketeer is quite impressive in glorious 1080p and a considerable upgrade over its 1999 non-anamorphic DVD. Presented in its native 2.35:1 aspect ratio, colors are rich and nicely textured, especially the day exterior shots at the airfield. This edition claims to be a digital restoration but I didn't notice much over-cleansing or DNR on display here. Film grain is maintained throughout but it's natural, never distracting. In all, a very nice presentation.

The Blu-ray features a robust English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track and both dialog and music are clear at minimal levels.

Extras include, wait, there are no extras. Disney has basically duplicated the 12-year-old DVD and provided nothing but a trailer (a crude-looking, standard-def one at that). This film wasn't an overwhelming success when it was initially released but it has developed a pretty loyal following. It wouldn't have needed much: maybe a look-back documentary or a Joe Johnston commentary track. With a $26.50 list price, this has to be one of the worst 20th-anniversary editions I've ever seen.

After 20 years, Joe Johnston's The Rocketeer remains one of the best comic-book adaptations ever, a perfect companion to Captain America: The First Avenger. While the Blu-ray looks and sounds great, it would have been nice if Disney could have shown a little more respect and given it the special edition it deserves.

The Rocketeer (1991)
Digitally Restored 20th-Anniversary Blu-ray
Released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Dec 13, 2011
SRP: $26.50
Running Time: 109 minutes
AVC Encoded @ Average 30 MBPS.
Technical Specs: Video: Anamorphic 2.35:1; Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio
Video: A
Sound: A
Extras: F
Worth the Upgrade Over DVD: Yes

Blu-ray Review: Horror Express

I have to admit I'd never heard of Horror Express until the Blu-ray was announced a few months ago. I'm a huge fan of both Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, have sought out most of their Hammer and Amicus horror endeavors on DVD over the last dozen years or so. Whether they're battling each other in films like the Horror of Dracula or pooling their considerable resources in tales like The Hound of the Baskervilles, there isn't a screen duo around with better chemistry or devotion to their craft. So just the prospect of an unseen scarefest featuring the two aboard a turn-of-the-century transcontinental train was all the incentive I needed to hop on board.

Directed by Spanish filmmaker Eugenio Martin, 1972's Horror Express opens in China circa 1906 and tells the story of Sir Alexander Stanton (Lee), a British anthropologist who's seeking transport of a mysterious unearthed creature aboard the Trans-Siberian Express. While arguing with the station manager over passage, Stanton encounters fellow scientist Dr. Wells (Cushing) who's also seeking a spot on the train for himself, an assistant and his vast collection of specimens. The two are cordial but it's obvious they aren't friends, more like competitors.

Before boarding, a local thief is found dead next to the crate housing Stanton's discovery, his eyes boiled over white. When Stanton convinces the train's inspector (Julio Pena) that the crate contains nothing more than fossils, the voyage gets under way, but it's not long before the creature escapes and more bodies with hard-boiled eyes begin piling up. As Stanton and Wells investigate, they learn the creature is wiping its victims' brains clean of knowledge and transferring itself between passengers in an attempt to flee the train and ultimately this world.

Like most European horror films of the '70s, Gothic atmosphere and shock value supersede character and story in Horror Express and as a result it's not the best work Cushing and Lee have ever done. Both, however, exhibit their trademark professionalism and genuinely seem to enjoy playing off one another. The film is well paced and features several eclectic characters (played mostly by stars of Spanish cinema), none of whom is more amusing than the Russian Cossack officer played by Telly Savalas who shows up an hour into film and hams it up with such vigor he should have two slices of rye bread on either side of him.

Newly released on Blu-ray by cult-film distributor Severin Films, Horror Express sports a new 1080p transfer that's quite satisfying, especially on a larger 16:9-enhanced screen. Source color is pretty muted in this film so don't expect eye-popping clarity, but the 1.66:1 presentation is smooth and devoid of any distracting debris for the most part and makes for a pleasant viewing experience. (Note: I also tested the included anamorphic DVD and the image is fairly comparable to the Blu-ray, albeit a bit softer.)

Both the Blu-ray and DVD feature a Dolby Digital 2.0 audio track and dialog along with composer John Cacavas' memorable score are crisp at minimal levels.

The extras are relatively engaging and include a spirited introduction by Fangoria editor Chris Alexander, new interviews with Eugenio Martin and John Cacavas and a 1973 feature-length audio interview with Peter Cushing that plays like a commentary track while you watch the film.

Horror Express may not be Cushing and Lee's finest hour, but if you're a fan of the two or enjoy atmospheric European horror films, it isn't a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Horror Express (Spain, 1972)
Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack; Released by Severin Films, Nov 29, 2011
Running Time: 97 minutes
Video Specs: Anamorphic 1.66:1/ AVC Encoded @ Average 17 mbps
Audio Specs: English Dolby Digital 2.0; Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0
SRP: $29.98 ($17.99 @ Amazon.com)
Picture: B
Sound: B
Extras: B

Film Review: The Descendants

Like picking up a new book or album from a favorite artist, I instinctively know I'm going to enjoy a new Alexander Payne film regardless of who's in it or what it's is about. I know that the director of such films as Election, About Schmidt and Sideways will take me on a unique, relatable journey filled with flawed, morally challenged characters entrenched in uncomfortable yet enlightening situations.

Based on Kaui Hart Hemming's 2007 novel The Descendants, Payne's fifth feature tells the story of Matt King (George Clooney), an Oahu attorney and land-rich descendant of Hawaiian royalty trying to keep his head above water amid competing family crises. First his wife is in a coma, the product of a terrible boating accident. Second, he and his vast tribe of island-dwelling relatives are haggling over who to sell their valuable patch of beach-front property to.

When the doctors inform Matt that his wife will never wake up and that he should make arrangements for family and friends to say their goodbyes, he enlists the help of his two daugthers - 10-year-old Scotti (Amara Miller) and 17-year-old Alexandra (Shailine Woodley) - to help break the news. Matt hasn't exactly been what you'd call a dedicated and doting father and during one of his clashes with Alexandra it's revealed his wife was having an affair. Matt can't fathom this and sets out with his girls to find and confront the man. In the process he learns a little bit about himself and his children.

As he did with the beckoning open road in About Schmidt and the bucolic Santa Ynez Valley in Sideways, Payne uses the soothing locales of Honolulu and Kauai to temper the chaos enveloping his characters and story. One minute you're on a cliff looking down at a lush beach shot, the next you're witnessing someone about fall into the abyss. Payne's common theme is quite clear: no matter where the paradise, crazy abounds.

Clooney gives one of the finest performances of his career in The Descendants. His Matt King, while successful and respected, is a vulnerable soul, deeply hurt by his wife's betrayal and unsure what awaits he and his daughters after her death. Clooney repeatedly places Matt on the fringe of that aforementioned abyss and gives him the courage to pull himself back in. Definitely an Oscar-worthy portrayal for an actor who just seems to get better with age.

20-year-old Shailine Woodley is excellent as Alexandra, rebellious at first but really the glue that holds Matt together, and Beau Bridges, Nick Crause, Robert Forster, Judy Greer and Matthew Lillard offer wonderful supporting roles that easily make it one of the best ensemble casts of the year.

The Descendants continues Alexander Payne's run of honest, engaging and extremely identifiable dramedys that never fail to tell us a little bit more about ourselves, whether we like or not.

Film Review: Hugo

One wouldn't think the acclaimed director of such films as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Good Fellas and The Departed would have much interest in telling a kid-friendly fable of a 1930s-era orphan boy living in a Paris train station. But once you realize said fable centers around French film pioneer Georges Melies, the juxtaposition makes perfect sense.

Based on Brian Selznick's 2007 young adult novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Martin Scorsese's 22nd feature opens on a breathtaking panoramic shot of downtown Paris and quickly takes us inside the hustle and bustle of the city's sprawling locomotive depot.

From behind one of its many towering ornate clocks, we spy 12-year-old Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) eying an elderly shopkeeper's (Ben Kingsley) wind-up toy mouse. As the shopkeeper nods off, Hugo sees his opening and springs into action through the catacombs of the station and soon is standing before the napping merchant ready to snatch his prize. As he reaches, the shopkeeper awakens, grabs Hugo and demands he empty his pockets of all the other items he's stolen from the man in the past.

Amongst the pilfered gears and gadgets is a notebook containing sketches of a mysterious mechanical man Hugo and his clockmaker father had been fixing before the elder Cabret's death. The shopkeeper demands to know who drew the sketches and when Hugo refuses to answer, absconds with the notebook telling the boy he's going to burn it.

A terrified Hugo follows the old man home and soon he's enlisting the help of the shopkeeper's goddaughter Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz). Matters are complicated when Hugo discovers a key that hangs around Isabelle's neck fits the mechanical man. Investigating further, the pair come to realize the aging shopkeeper is actually visionary silent-era filmmaker and inventor Georges Melies, long thought dead since the end of World War I.

It seems Melies fell out of favor after the war and to survive was forced to live the remainder of his life in obscurity behind the counter of his depot shop. With the help of an admirative film scholar, Hugo and Isabelle set out to prove to Melies that he and his extraordinary creations still matter.

Scorsese is right at home in Selznick's world. Working with frequent cinematographer Robert Richardson, he embraces the period and setting whole-heartedly, employing all his considerable visual talents to dazzle us with the sumptuous details of the Paris station and its lovable, bumbling characters.

But it's his depiction of Melies' early life and films (including the seminal A Trip to the Moon) that truly makes Hugo a Scorsese picture. These images beautifully capture the birth of cinema and the sense of awe and wonder early films must have instilled in turn-of-the-century audiences. They reminded me of ones found in 2004's The Aviator and are clearly the product of someone deeply in love with the art of motion pictures.

Hugo is still a family movie at its core, though, and there's enough action and humor to keep the kids sufficiently entertained through its 127-minute running time. I saw the film in 2D and can only imagine all the treasures jutting out at you in 3D.

Butterfield and Moretz have nice chemistry as Hugo and Isabelle and Ben Kingsley infuses Melies with the perfect balance of intensity, warmth and creativity. Emily Mortimer and Christopher Lee provide nice supporting work as fellow station shopkeepers and Sacha Baron Cohen is marvelously effective as the weaselly station inspector.

Martin Scorsese's Hugo is a delightful valentine to imagination and the art of cinema and should inspire and enchant audiences for years to come.

Blu-ray Review: American Graffiti

My mom loves to tell the story of the first film I ever saw in a movie theater: I was three and my parents plopped me down in an aisle seat, handed me my own Coke and popcorn and anxiously waited for all hell to break loose once the lights went down. Instead, I sat there still as a board for the next two hours, quietly eating my snacks and staring wide-eyed at the mesmerizing, larger-than-life images before me. That film was American Graffiti.

Needless to say George Lucas' 1973 valentine to the smalltown culture of his Modesto, California youth remains a very personal film to me. But its appeal goes beyond just being my inaugural movie-going experience. Graffiti perfectly captures a time and place that most anyone can relate to: that crossroads between youth and adulthood where you can either step out from the comforts of home and begin a new journey of self-discovery or retreat back into the familiar embrace of loved ones, fond memories and routine.

It's September 1962 and four friends are facing a rite of passage. Steve Bolander (Ron Howard) and Curt Henderson (Richard Dreyfuss) are spending their last night in town before heading back east for college. Steve is a popular jock raring to get out and feels the need to shed all teenage attachments, including his cool car and high-school sweetheart Laurie (Cindy Williams); Curt is a scholarship kid who suddenly isn't sure he's ready to leave home; he's more interested in revisiting the past and tracking down a mysterious blonde (Suzanne Somers) who's been blowing kisses at him from a white Thunderbird. Terry "Toad" Fields (Charles Martin Smith) is the pimply-faced dork of the group who suddenly gets a shot of courage when he inherits Steve's car and picks up a fresh-faced girl (Candy Clark) walking home; and tough guy drag racer John Milner (Paul Le Mat), worshipped by all three, is quickly realizing his stint as a local legend is coming to an end.

All the principles give endearing, career-sparking performances and Mackenzie Phillips, Bo Hopkins, Wolfman Jack and Harrison Ford provide memorable supporting roles.

Graffiti arrived at the tail-end of the counterculture in America. Disenchanted by the Vietnam War and Watergate scandal, people were ready to revisit the simpler times of their youth (the sock hops, the muscle cars and neon-lit diners) and flocked to the film in droves. One component that made it so appealing was the film's use of classic radio hits of the era instead of a traditional symphonic score.

Recently released on Blu-ray by Universal Home Entertainment, American Grafitti truly benefits from the high-definition format. Newly remastered and presented in its native 2.35:1 aspect ratio, the film sparkles anew in glorious 1080p: the neon, the gloss on the cars, everything just pops against the nighttime setting. Film grain is preserved, no DNR on display here, and it maintains the film's period look perfectly. It's definitely an upgrade over the 1998 DVD.

The Blu-ray features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track and both the dialog and music are crisp at minimal levels.

Extras include two of Universal's proprietary U-Control features that you can access via small icons as the film is played: a picture-in-picture video commentary by George Lucas and The Music of American Graffiti which instantly identifies what classic song is being played. Additional material includes a 78-minute making-of documentary, screen tests and a theatrical trailer, all carry-overs from the 1998 DVD.

With its sweet reminders of yesteryear and universal themes on growing up, American Graffiti envelops you in a soothing blanket of nostalgia and Americana you just can't help but want to snuggle up against, regardless of what decade you grew up in. It's truly comfort food for the eyes as well as the soul.


American Graffiti (1973)
Remastered Special Edition Blu-ray; Universal Home Entertainment
Running Time: 113 minutes
BD-50; VC-1 Encoded @ Average 30 MBPS
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0; French DTS Surround 2.0 Mono
SRP: $26.98
Picture: A
Sound: A
Extras: A -
Worth Upgrading Over DVD: Yes

9/11: A Day We Will Carry For The Rest Of Our Lives

It started out like a normal enough Tuesday. The alarm went off at 5:30 AM PST, my wife (then girlfriend) got up first, as she always does, then about 10 minutes later I rolled out of bed and headed for the shower. As the hot water slowly brought me back to life, I thought about my pending day. At that time, I was a marketing manager for a small travel publisher in Southern California and my schedule on the 11th of September 2001 was fairly light: a 9:30 AM production meeting with the rest of the time set aside for working on our forthcoming 2002 product catalog. As I had spent most of that summer traversing the country on business (Washington D.C., Chicago, stretches of Route 66, California Gold Country in 100-degree heat) I welcomed a quiet, uneventful day in the air-conditioned office.

As I stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel, my wife poked her head inside the bathroom, handed me a cup of coffee and said: " A plane has crashed into the World Trade Center.” I put on my robe, and headed out to the living room where the Today Show was on TV. The top of the North Tower was full screen and a smoking, ragged hole was cut across the width of the structure. There were no visible flames or wreckage, just eerie, smoky blackness. The current report was that possibly a small aircraft, a Cessna or a Piper Cub, had lost control and slammed into the building. As it was shortly before 6AM in California, I remember thinking at least it was still early and no one was probably in the building yet. The image remained the same for several minutes. There was no sense of urgency or panic by any of the on-air reporters at that time. It just seemed like a terrible accident, nothing more.

I went back into the bathroom and continued getting ready for work. About 10 minutes later I walked back into the living room for an update and the South Tower was now ablaze after being struck by another aircraft at 6:03 AM PST. Reports were coming in from eyewitnesses that these were large planes, possibly airliners. The on-air reporters' voices now crackled with anguish and panic. It all had become suddenly clear: America was under attack.

My wife and I, stunned and a bit confused, forgot about getting ready for work, eating breakfast, anything really, and sat down on the couch to watch this nightmare unfold before our eyes. The screen now contained two horribly damaged, iconic symbols of American might standing side by side. Flames were now visible eating through the interior structure of both towers. Tattered paper and debris filled the surrounding air, floating listlessly to the ground. People could be seen inside hanging out windows and waving white flags. The time stamp in the corner of the Today Show broadcast read LIVE 9:20 AM EST or thereabouts and for the first time it dawned on me that the workday had already started in New York and that the towers were full of thousands of people.

Reports were now coming in that two passenger jets, both out of Logan Airport in Boston and bound for cross-country destinations, had possibly been hijacked and that they were the two aircrafts that had plowed into the towers. I remember feeling a sudden sense of dread and vulnerability at that second, like some indescribable evil has just sat down beside me. Then at roughly 6:40 AM PST reports begin to filter in that the Pentagon had just been struck by a low-flying aircraft. Soon there was a split screen of the towers and one side of the DOD headquarters engulfed in flames. My only thought was: My God, what was happening?

This unbelievable, chaotic image would not change for the next 20 minutes or so. Reports were now coming in that this was possibly the work of Osama bin Laden. Then, at approximately 7:00 AM PST, our eyes glued to the screen, the South Tower began to fall, going straight down in a cloud of ungodly smoke as if it were strapped to an express elevator. My wife and I both let out a gasp of horror and the pit that had slowly formed in my stomach over the last hour quickly tightened and suddenly a flood of sorrow filled my heart. The resulting cloud of ash and debris that engulfed the entire area was unlike anything I ever witnessed in my lifetime. It was a wonder the North Tower was still standing.

That thought didn't last long as the the North Tower plummeted to the ground approximately 28 minutes later, now doubling the unfathomable destruction below. I had only seen pictures of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945. I was now witnessing our own Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Smoke, fires and people caked in ash, screaming, filled the screen for the next hour. In that time, reports came in that United Flight 93 out of New Jersey had crashed in a rural Pennsylvania field, most likely hijacked as well. The FAA had halted all civilian air traffic, ordering everything still in the air to land immediately. Four planes had now been used to kill thousands on American soil. I had heard the word terrorism for decades but didn't really know what it meant until that day. Was it over or was this just the beginning?

It was getting close to 9:00 AM PST and my wife and I knew we had better get into work. We reluctantly dressed and carpooled the seven miles to our offices (we worked about a block away from one another at the time). As I walked into my area, the atmosphere was unusually quiet. A few people were visible talking, but for the most part the place was eerily quiet for 9:30 AM, people no doubt hunkered down in their offices or cubes perusing the Internet for new information. I sat down and did the same, ignoring my scheduled production meeting. I felt like I had been struck in the gut repeatedly. I was anxious and found myself letting out deep breaths to release the tension. I stayed in my office for most of the day, talking maybe to a handful of co-workers in that time as they walked by. Not one of them discussed business. The phone rarely rang and when it did I picked up and found it hard to hold in my contempt for people who actually wanted to talk about travel products.

10 years later, my anxiety and contempt may have quelled, but a day hasn't gone by that I haven't thought about the fateful events of that Tuesday morning. I am reminded every time I travel, turn on the TV and hear a report on Afghanistan or Iraq, look at the clock at precisely 9:11 or scan expiration dates at the supermarket. And every time I see pictures or video of the planes slamming into each of the towers, it's like I'm seeing it for the first time. I stop and again my heart floods with sorrow. Every time. And while hopefully one day the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq will end, I know the others things won't and I'm all right with that. Never forget.

25 Years of Stand By Me

I wasn't supposed to like Rob Reiner's Stand By Me. I was 15 going on 16 in the summer of 1986 and had little interest in seeing a movie about a bunch of 1950s-era 12-year-olds slogging through the backwoods of Oregon in search of a dead body, even if it was based on a Stephen King short story. I had hated The Goonies and Explorers the previous summer, quickly writing off both as unfunny, borderline intolerable kiddy fare. I was more interested in testosterone-infused action movies like Top Gun, Aliens and Raw Deal.

Maybe it was the overwhelmingly positive reviews. Maybe it was the enticing R rating. Whatever the case, I relented and dragged my butt to the local five-plex one sultry August afternoon and instantly fell in love with four goofy tweens.

Stand By Me opens on a middle-aged man (Richard Dreyfuss) sitting quietly in his car along a deserted stretch of road. Deep in thought, his eyes pass to an obituary of a man fatally stabbed. As he begins to narrate the story of the first time he saw a dead human being, we're transported back to the small town of Castle Rock, Oregon, circa 1959.

It's the Friday before Labor Day and 12-year-old Gordie Lachance (Will Wheaton) is making his way to the tree house he and his friends have been hanging out at all summer. After gaining access with the secret knock, we meet Chris Chambers (the late River Phoenix) and Teddy Duchamp (Cory Feldman). Both are tough-talking, cigarette-smoking misfits, a stark contrast to Gordie's quiet and reserved demeanor. Soon the pudgy, dim-witted Vern Tessio (Jerry O'Connell) arrives and asks the trio if they want to go see a dead body. It seems Vern's older, equally doltish brother and a buddy know where to find the remains of a missing local boy who disappeared earlier in the year.

Bored and eager for one last summer adventure, the four grab their sleeping bags and set out to claim the body and become heroes. Little do they know, Vern's brother and his gang, led by the menacing Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland), have the same idea.

What sets Stand By Me apart from similar films of it kind is the honest complexity of its characters. These four boys aren't one-dimensional brats without worries and witticisms to spare: they're damaged, frightened kids unsure of what awaits them once they step out from the fading twilight of childhood.

Gordie has lost his older brother, is ignored by his parents and thinks his natural ability as a storyteller is a waste of time; Chris knows he'll never be able to shake his "bad seed" reputation and is destined to live a crappy life in Castle Rock forever; and Teddy, with his deformed ear and obsession with war, lives in the shadow of his "loony," institutionalized father.

We all know kids like these, grew up with them. And while I can't say I used the "F" word at 12 as frequently as these guys do (the film is rated R solely for language), they all have such an easy, natural relationship with one another, you can't help but want to go back and spend a lazy summer afternoon discussing the physical attributes of Annette Funicello with them.

Both Wheaton and Feldman shine as Gordie and Teddy, displaying remarkable range for performers their age. One minute they're ensconced in childlike goofiness, the next they're baring their soul in a raw outpouring of emotion.

The standout here, though, is Phoenix. This may be Gordie's story to tell but it's Chris Chambers who is the steady hand and wise-beyond-his-years conscience of the group. Just 14 years old at the time of filming, Phoenix masterfully breathes a quiet toughness and vulnerability into Chambers, molding him into a truly one-of-a-kind character we'll remember forever. (Such was Phoenix's talent that he would earn an Oscar nomination just two years later for Sidney Lumet's Running on Empty. )

The real praise, however, should be reserved for actor-turned-director Reiner who took four virtually unknown, mainly inexperienced kids and elicited these incredible, indelible performances, forging a timeless coming-of-age film that speaks as strongly today about youth and finding your place in this world as it did 25 years ago and will 25 years from now.

There's a line at the end of Stand by Me that has always stayed with me: "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?" Indeed.

Stand By Me is available on 25th-Anniversary Blu-ray and Special Edition DVD.

Five Autumn Films Worth Falling Over

Well, the book has just about closed on yet another Hollywood summer. It was an interesting one to say the least. We had some hits (Super 8, Captain America), some misses (Tree of Life, Green Lantern, Cowboys & Aliens) and a few welcome surprises ( Midnight in Paris, Rise of the Planet of the Apes).

But now, as the days grow shorter, the kids head back to school and the sequels and superheroes are returned to the toy chest until next year, Hollywood takes off its beer-can-sipping hat, slips on its awards beret and begins a four-month-long process of trotting out a cavalcade of smaller, more original character-driven films that will hopefully translate into, fingers crossed, Oscar gold.

Nearly 100 films will jockey for your attention from now until the end of December. Below are five that look the most intriguing (at least to me).

The Big Year ( Oct 14) - Steve Martin, Owen Wilson and Jack Black star as participants in a cross-country rare-bird-spotting competition. The premise sounds like a snoozer, I know, but with these three involved it has that kind of Christopher Guest/Wes Anderson vibe I just can't resist.

J. Edgar ( Nov 9) - If you caught Leonardo DiCaprio's masterful portrayal of Howard Hughes in 2004's The Aviator, you know his turn as the legendary father of the FBI should be nothing short of mesmerizing. And with Clint Eastwood calling the shots, prepare to hear about this film until at least the end of February.

The Descendants ( Nov 23) - Alexander Payne's first film since 2004's Sideways stars George Clooney as a Hawaiian tycoon whose life begins to unravel after learning his coma-stricken wife was having an affair. Payne is a master of melding drama and comedy into truly original, unforgettable films. Can't wait.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo ( Dec 21) - The trailer for David Fincher's adaptation of Stieg Larsson's worldwide bestseller is electrifying to say the least. That's good news as I found the novel's premise compelling but quickly grew tired of Larsson's laborious prose.

War Horse ( Dec 28 ) - A Spielberg-directed World War I drama featuring a John Williams score. Do you really need to know more?

Five more that look promising: Gavin O'Conner's Warrior ( Sept 9), Bennett Miller's Moneyball (Sept 23), George Clooney's The Ides of March (Oct 7), Martin Scorsese's Hugo (Nov 23) and Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tintin (Dec 23).

Going Ape: A Look Back At The Planet of the Apes Saga

With Fox's Rise of the Planet of the Apes opening today, I thought it might be fun to look back at the original five-film saga that thrilled sci-fi-hungry audiences from 1968 -1973. (We'll leave out the 2001 Tim Burton-directed reboot, as for the life of me I can't remember a thing about it.)

Yes my valued readers under 20, there was actually a complete Apes franchise before most of your parents had completed grade school. If they didn't see it in theaters, they probably discovered it the same way I did: through videocassette, Saturday-afternoon TV and questioning why all the Halloween aisles were filled with ape masks.

Below you'll find all five tales in order of release. Read on and you'll have something to dazzle Mom and Dad with at the dinner table, in between texts of course.

Planet of the Apes (1968): Based on French novelist Pierre Boulle's 1963 novel Monkey Planet, the first and best Apes film stars Charlton Heston, in all his machismo glory, as astronaut George Taylor who travels forward in time and crash lands on a planet where humans are ruled by apes. Befriended by two chimpanzee scientists, Zira and Cornelius, Taylor ultimately learns he has returned to Earth some 2,000 years in the future. A true classic of sci-fi cinema.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970): Sure it's hard to follow a classic, but this was the best they could come up with? Another astronaut crash lands on Ape Central in search of Taylor, befriends Zira and Cornelius and finds a group of humanoids living underground worshiping a nuclear missile. Heston makes a cameo but it's not enough to save this unwatchable turkey, the worst of the saga. The budget was cut in half just before shooting and it shows: with the exception of Zira and Cornelius, every ape looks like it's wearing a store-bought mask.

Escape From the Planet of the Apes (1971): My favorite behind the original and a return to form for the franchise. Zira and Cornelius escape their home world before it is destroyed and travel back to present-day Los Angeles where they are received as celebrities. While there, Zira gives birth to a son who becomes the target of a nefarious government advisor. Loads of humor and a shocking ending make this a film worth revisiting.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972): The darkest and most violent of the saga. 20 years after the events of Escape, apes have become conditioned servants in human society. Tired of their abuse and oppression, Zira and Cornelius' son, Caesar, organizes his simian brothers and leads a revolt against the government. A frighteningly effective episode, made even more so at the time by the social and racial strife of the early '70s.

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973): The final film of the series takes place 27 years after the events of Conquest and finds human society laid waste by the war with the apes and nuclear fallout. Caesar has forged an ape civilization that attempts to harmoniously co-exist with human survivors. That all becomes threatened, however, by a band of well-armed mutant humans looking to take their revenge on Caesar and eradicate apes once and for all. A satisfying, thought-provoking conclusion to the saga.

Film Review: Cowboys & Aliens

Cowboys & Aliens asks an intriguing question: how would the gunfighters and settlers of the Old West, with their primitive weapons and philosophies, fare against advanced invaders from another world?

Based on Scott Mitchell Rosenberg's 2006 graphic novel, Cowboys opens on a stranger (Daniel Craig) as he awakens in the Arizona desert circa 1873 with a nasty gut wound and a strange metal contraption around his wrist. He's barely able to soak in his predicament before three unsavory types arrive on horseback, mistake his new bracelet as a wrist-iron and assume he's of value to the law. Faster than Billy the Kid on his best day, the stranger dispenses of the men, pilfers their weapons and clothes and heads for a nearby town on the horizon.

That town is a small mining hamlet called Absolution and it doesn't take long for the stranger to publicly humiliate a smarmy brat named Percy Dolarhyde (Paul Dano) and catch the attention of Sheriff John Taggart (Keith Carradine). Taggart recognizes the stranger as one Jake Lonergan, a notorious killer and bandit, and promptly locks him up, with the help of local woman Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde), to await transfer to the federal marshal. Lonergan can't remember a thing about his past, including how he came about his fancy new hardware.

Word of Lonergan's capture gets back to Percy's father, Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford), a powerful rancher and Civil War veteran, who supposedly had a cache of gold swiped by Lonergan and his gang sometime back. As Dolarhyde and his men ride into town to procure Lonergan from the law, strange lights descend from the night sky and begin snatching up people, including Taggart and Dolarhyde's son, while laying waste to everything in their path. It's about this time that Lonergan's bracelet begins to light up and soon he's blown a hole through his cell and using the device to bring down a huge, insect-looking ship flying overhead.

As the invaders flee, it becomes obvious to Dolarhyde and the remaining citizens of Absolution that they're going need Lonergan and his special weapon if they're ever going to see their abducted loved ones again. All Lonergan cares about, however, is finding out about his past.

It's surprising with all the talent behind the camera - director John Favreau, producers Ron Howard and Steven Spielberg - how pedestrian and uninspiring Cowboys & Aliens is. Fantastical elements aside, you've seen this movie and its characters a hundred times before. The script is standard and predictable, quickly replacing its brief bits of humor with one dull exchange after another. And when the aliens finally reveal themselves, they look like rejects from Cloverfield, Super 8 and every other alien-invasion flick of the last five years.

Craig is compelling as an Old West gunslinger, providing a quiet, untapped menace that would be fun to explore in a more original endeavor; Ford delivers his lines in his now-trademark growl and seems to be finding his character as if at a table-read instead of in front of the camera.

The premise asks an intriguing question indeed. Unfortunately, the answer Cowboys & Aliens provides is neither fresh nor of consequence to either genre.

Top 5 Super-Hero Films

With Captain America: The First Avenger opening today and thousands descending upon San Diego this weekend for Comic-Con, I thought it appropriate to showcase some of the best super-hero films over the years.

What makes a good super-hero film? Well, the character first and foremost: is he or she's story engaging enough to carry their own movie? Second, the villain: you need an adversary just as compelling as your hero. Finally, you need the right crew: having a great character and villain means nothing if you don't have the right director, actors and composer to pull things together and deliver a truly memorable, timeless piece of entertainment. Below are five that have all of the above and then some.

1. Superman: The Movie (1978) - 33 years after first believing a man could fly, the father of the modern super-hero film remains the gold standard. The setting and effects may look a bit dated but it's still the best due to four simple ingredients: Richard Donner, Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman and John Williams. These guys working in concert could have made Ernest Goes to Camp an Oscar winner.

2. The Dark Knight (2008) - Christopher Nolan's second Batman feature is much more than a great super-hero flick, it's a multi-tiered crime epic in the tradition of Michael Mann's Heat and Brian DePalma's Scarface. Heath Ledger provides a wholly original, chilling take on the Joker and Christian Bale is simply the best Caped Crusader ever.

3. Iron-Man (2008): John Favreau's tale of egocentric weapons manufacturer Tony Stark who escapes death and grows a conscious with the help of a super-charged suit of armor is an adrenaline-fueled blast from start to finish, mainly due to Robert Downey Jr.'s charismatic, pitch-perfect performance as Stark. Having Jeff Bridges as the heavy doesn't hurt either.

4. The Rocketeer (1991) - Joe Johnston's adaptation of Dave Stevens' beloved comic about test pilot Cliff Secord who finds a rocket pack and uses it to battle gangsters and Nazis in 1930s Hollywood is pure cinematic gold, a throwback to Saturday-morning serials of yesteryear (think Raiders of the Lost Ark). The entire cast - Billy Campbell as Secord, Alan Arkin as Peevy, a voluptuous Jennifer Connelly as Betty and Timothy Dalton as the nefarious Neville Sinclair - is absolutely first rate. James Horner's soaring score only helps make it that much more of a classic.

5. Batman (1989) - Ok, I'll probably take some flack for including this in the top five but if you were between the ages of 5 and 55 in the summer of '89, chances are you saw and least somewhat admired Tim Burton's dark reimagining of the Batman legend. Sure Michael Keaton was a bit stiff as Bats and we could have done without the comedic stylings of Robert Wuhl, but the film's pure visual splendor, coupled with Danny Elfman's brooding score and Jack Nicholson's over-the-top performance as the Clown Prince of Crime are enough to to warrant a return to Gotham every few years.

If I could pick five more: 6. X-Men 2 (2003); 7. Superman II (1981); 8. Spider-Man 2 (2004); 9. Hero at Large (1980); 10. Batman Begins (2005)

Newly Renovated Village Theatre Sparkles on Coronado Island

The wife and I just got back from a quick little jaunt to San Diego. One thing we like to do while down there is cross the bridge over to Coronado Island. You can't beat spending a summer evening browsing Bay Books, strolling the grounds of the Hotel Del and enjoying a relaxing dinner at the Rhinoceros Cafe (ask for the dill-crusted salmon, my favorite for nearly 20 years).

I can't imagine visiting the island and not spending time outside or at least next to an open door with the sea breeze gently kissing your face. Well, that is until I took a gander at the newly renovated Village Theatre on Orange Ave.

Shuttered for more than a decade, the 64-year-old movie theater has staged a comeback thanks to Vintage Cinemas of Los Angeles and Coronado's Redevelopment Agency. This is more than a fresh coat of paint and adding new seats. $3 million has been spent to take the the theater from one screen to three; digital sound and 3D projectors have been added; and renowned theater designer Joseph Musil, whose work includes the El Captain Theatre in Hollywood, helped develop the Art Deco interior before his passing last year.

Stepping inside, a long, vintage concession stand greets you on the left and the inviting Art Deco lobby, complete with pleated, red-velvet benches and vased flowers, beckons you toward the the three theaters in the back. The one theater I was able to peek in was beautiful: red-velvet, high-back chairs arranged in a semi-circle around the screen, a grand red curtain protecting its secrets; neon, three-dimensional murals (designed by Disney muralist Bill Anderson) depicting Coronado treasures like the Hotel Del adorned each of the side walls. Made me want to run back for a bag of popcorn and stay for the flick.

The only visible complaint would be the marquee: it’s digital and while beautiful too, it doesn't provide showtimes, just graphics on the three films. To see what time something is playing, you have to physically go up to the box office where the times are posted on a small sheet of paper. Kind of frustrating when there’s really no place for a quick stop on busy Orange Ave.

Where you saw a movie used to be as important as the movie itself. Theaters used to be majestic and unique. They had ornate chandeliers and cozy balconies, Wurlitzer organs pumping out live music before shows and velvet curtains that didn't rise until the lights went out. It wasn't just a business, it was an art form.

In this age of cookie-cutter multiplexes that emphasize quantity over quality, it's nice to see the Village Theatre buck that trend and bring back a sense of grandeur to seeing a movie outside our homes. This is a theater worthy of your time and something the people of Coronado should be very proud of.

For more information and pictures, visit http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/2552

Five 4th of July Flicks Worth A Bang

Ah, the 4th of July: summer; independence; celebration. Some pretty potent, universal themes. Perfect ingredients for a movie, actually. Looking for something to do between barbecues and firework shows that captures the mood of the season? Try one of the flicks below, five of my favorites. Enjoy the weekend.


1. Jaws (1975) - 36 years after its initial release, Steven Spielberg's classic about a man-eating shark terrorizing a small New England island over the 4th of July remains the perfect summer matinee. For best results, you're going to need a bigger screen. (Available on DVD)

2. The Patriot (2000) - Before he went nuts, Mel Gibson starred as a soldier turned farmer who takes up arms once again during the onset of the American Revolution to avenge the murders of his sons. A little too long but extremely entertaining. John Williams' inspiring score doesn't hurt either. (Available on DVD/Blu-ray)

3. Independence Day (1996) - You couldn't escape Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin's alien-invasion epic in the summer of '96. Ignore the laughable characters and inane dialog and focus on things blowing up and you'll have a pretty good time. (Available on DVD/Blu-ray)

4. Blown Away (1994) - Boston cop Jeff Bridges battles mad-bomber Tommy Lee Jones. Throw in Forrest Whitaker as a wise-ass rookie cop, Lloyd Bridges as a crusty mentor to young Bridges and a rousing finale set to the 1812 Overture and you've got a nifty little thriller. (Available on DVD)

5. Roller Coaster (1977) - George Segal (yes, George Segal) plays an amusement park safety inspector battling a mad bomber looking to blow up a new coaster during its grand opening on the 4th of July. A bit dated but still effective; a precursor to 1994's Speed. (Available on DVD)

Film Review: Super 8

I have long considered Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial the bookends of my childhood.

The former arrived at the beginning, the same year as Star Wars, and opened my eyes to the magical possibilities of movies. The latter came at the end, closing out an extraordinary five-year period that included such films as Superman, The Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark.

All were highly imaginative, extremely influential tales that not only fostered my love of storytelling but lit the fuse for what would become a lifelong passion for cinema. I revisit these films more than any others and am always on the lookout for new ones that recapture that special time and place, that sense of awe and wonder.

J.J. Abrams' new film Super 8, a nostalgia-drenched tale of movie-loving kids tracking a creature terrorizing their small Ohio town, is a throwback to those iconic films of the late '70s and early '80s, a long-lost first cousin of both Close Encounters and E.T. No surprise really, as one S. Spielberg is a producer.

Appropriately set in 1979, Super 8 follows a handful of junior-high-age friends, newly paroled from school for the summer, as they try and finish their homemade zombie movie in time for a fast-approaching film festival. Charles (Riley Griffiths) is the film's pudgy writer and director; his best friend Joe (Joel Courtney), still reeling from the loss of his mother the previous winter, handles the make-up; mouthy Cary (Ryan Lee, channeling a young Jack Earl Haley) is a borderline pyromaniac and of course is in charge of effects; Alice (Elle Fanning), the lone girl of the group, is the lead actress and the object of both Charles' and Joe's affection.

Late one night while filming a scene at the local train station, the group watches in shock as a pick-up truck intentionally hops the track and plows headfirst into an oncoming freight train. The ensuing derailment and explosion scatters boxcars and debris for miles, including thousands of odd, multi-tiered cubes, one of which Joe quickly pockets. Amid the wreckage they find the pick-up's battered driver, the junior high's science teacher Dr. Woodward (Glen Turman, who also played the ill-fated science teacher in the Spielberg-produced Gremlins); Woodward, while pointing a gun at their heads, tells them to run and forget what they saw.

The train turns out to be a mysterious military transport under the command of taciturn Air Force Colonel Nelec (Noah Emmerich); soon hundreds of soldiers have descended on the site, retrieving the strange cubes and searching for something that appears to be missing.

It not long before that something begins wrecking havoc on the town: dozens of dogs are reported missing; whole engine blocks are being stripped from neighborhood cars; people, including the sheriff, are just up and vanishing; and if that wasn't enough, all those cubes begin making a beeline for the downtown water tower.

While Joe's sheriff's deputy father (Kyle Chandler) begins his own investigation, the kids begin to realize the answers just may be on that roll of film they shot that fateful night.

Steven Spielberg calls Super 8 J.J. Abrams' first real film (his previous features include reboots of the Mission: Impossible and Star Trek franchises); Actually, this is J.J. Abrams' first Steven Spielberg film. Everything - the pacing, photography, the us-against-the-government storyline - is a blatant homage to Spielberg's classic alien-contact films. There are scenes that are exact duplicates of ones found in Close Encounters and E.T. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I sat there giddy as a kid watching a movie that easily could have been a missing 1979 middle act.

And while the comparison to those two films will undoubtedly be the focus, it shouldn't overshadow Abrams' talent as a filmmaker. His command of story, expert direction of a young cast and ability to dazzle an audience visually may remind us of a certain bespectacled, bearded gentleman, but they are the inherent traits of a born craftsman, one that will undoubtedly enchant moviegoers for decades to come.

Super 8 returns that special sense of awe and wonder to the screen, recapturing a time and innocence that anyone who remembers falling in love with movies can relate to.

30 Years of Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark

It was May 1977 and friends Steven Spielberg and George Lucas were vacationing on the beach in Hawaii together, each one seeking refuge from rigors of Hollywood filmmaking. Lucas was avoiding the opening weekend of a little space adventure called Star Wars. Spielberg was in post-production on Close Encounters of the Third Kind and mulling future projects, possibly a James Bond film.

 Lucas, seeing the opening of a lifetime, told Spielberg he had an idea of something like a Bond film only better, an action-adventure in the old tradition of the Saturday- matinee serials they both had grown up with as kids. It would take place in the '30s and feature a globetrotting archaeologist-adventurer, Indiana Smith, as he battled the forces of evil in search of the lost Ark of the Covenant. Lucas actually had an entire series in mind and called them his Raiders films. 

 Spielberg loved the concept, agreed to direct the film and both he and Lucas began developing the project over the next few years. As things progressed, Spielberg would go on to direct the ill-fated 1979 WWII comedy 1941 and Lucas began focusing his attention on the sequel to his now hugely popular Star Wars film, 1980's The Empire Strikes Back. 

 Finally, four long years after that initial conversation on a Hawaiian beach and featuring a fedora-wearing, whip-cracking character now called Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark arrived in theaters on June 12, 1981. I was 10 years old at the time and the theatrical one-sheet poster said it all: "From the creators of Jaws and Star Wars." I loved Star Wars, was still reeling from emotional revelations of The Empire Strikes Back the previous summer. I had just secretly caught Jaws on cable and was wonderfully scared to death. And as if I needed further incentive, it starred Harrison Ford, Han Solo, my boy. Needless to say when my Dad picked me up on opening weekend and asked what I wanted to do, "See Raiders of the Lost Ark "were the only words that fell from my lips. 

 From the the retrieval of the idol inside the Peruvian temple to the fateful opening of the Ark one hundred minutes later, Raiders is a relentless thrill ride stuffed to the gills with one outlandish, heart-pounding sequence after another: the shoot-out in Marion's tavern; the chase through the streets of Cairo; the unearthing of the Ark inside the snake-infested Well of Souls; the fist fight with the German mechanic next to the Flying Wing; Indy taking on the German army aboard the cargo truck. Simply put, Raiders of the Lost Ark is the greatest action-adventure film of all time.

 It's hard to imagine anyone but Harrison Ford playing Indy (Tom Selleck was Lucas and Spielberg's first choice but he couldn't get away from Magnum P.I. Somehow I just can't see Tom's mustache staring out under the brim of that fedora). Ford elevates the character beyond a one-dimensional action hero, infusing it with the perfect balance of charm, wit, ruggedness and vulnerability, making Indy's credo of "making this up as I go" utterly engaging and completely relatable. 

 Karen Allen shines as Indy's feisty former flame and "partner" Marion Ravenwood, John Rys-Davies provides just the right amount of levity as Jones' sidekick Sallah and Paul Freeman and Ronald Lacey are devilishly fun as Indy's villainous foils Rene Belloq and Major Arnold Toht.

 And then there's John Williams' rousing, iconic score, probably his best behind Star Wars and E.T. Williams' music is a living, breathing character, perfectly in sync with every bit of action and just as intrical to the story as any of the principals. Take the score away and I'm probably not writing this piece thirty years later.

  Raiders became the highest-grossing film of 1981 and would go on to earn $380,140,454 worldwide throughout its nearly two-year theatrical run. It spawned three highly successful sequels, a Disney attraction, action figures, video games, comics and countless imitations.

 Yes, it's hard to believe it's been thirty years since George Lucas and Steven Spielberg caught lightning in a bottle and introduced one of cinema's most iconic characters in one of the most entertaining and often-revisited films of all time, the gold standard of action adventures. The things Saturday-matinee dreams are made of.

Film Review: Midnight In Paris

It's been five years since Woody Allen ditched his once-beloved New York City and began making what could loosely be called theatrical tourism commercials for various countries around Europe. England, Spain and now France have all partially underwritten the majority of the Oscar-winning filmmaker's last seven films, primarily because Allen is more popular in Europe than the U.S., but also to help showcase the continent to prospective visitors.

Some have been fresh, welcome surprises ( Match Point, Vicky Christina Barcelona), others overly contrived, tired retreads (Scoop, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger). Frankly after six European-set films, I was ready for Woody to immigrate back to New York. That was until I saw his new film Midnight in Paris.

Paris tells the story of Gil Bender ( a better-than-usual Owen Wilson), a successful Hollywood screenwriter on vacation in Paris with his fiance Inez (the always-fetching Rachel McAdams) and her parents (Kurt Fuller and Mimi Kennedy). Gil is writing a novel and wants to ensconce himself in the romance of the Paris literary scene in the 1920s. Inez would rather shop and visit the tourist attractions with also-in-town American friends Paul and Carol (Michael Sheen and Nina Arianda).

One night, after consuming too much wine and not wanting to go out dancing with the others, Gil goes for a walk on the rain-soaked backsteets of Paris and promptly gets lost. At the stroke of midnight, an immaculately maintained 1920s-era automobile pulls up and whisks Gil off to a party underway at a local bar. Everyone there is dressed in full twenties regalia, Cole Porter is playing piano in the back and soon F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston and Allison Pill) are introducing themselves. Skeptical at first, Gil quickly becomes a believer when the Fitzgeralds introduce him to Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll). The two hit it off immediately and soon Gil is asking Hemingway to read his novel. Hemingway declines but says he'll take a copy to Gertrude Stein. Gil leaves the bar to fetch his manuscript and as he turns back to confirm where they'll meet, the bar has been replaced by a contemporary Laundromat.

Of course Gill is right back at the same spot the next night and soon he's hobnobbing with Stein ( a perfect Kathy Bates), Salvador Dali (Adrian Brody), Pablo Picasso and his sexy muse Adriana (Marion Cotillard). It's not long before Gil is falling for the magic of Paris and questioning his future with Inez.

This is Allen's most enchanting and entertaining work in years. The script, the characters, everything seems fresh and full of life. It reminded me of one his best films, 1984's The Purple Rose of Cairo where a character jumps off the silver screen and follows a woman home. That film had a sweet, magical quality and it's marvelously on display here once again.

There certainly are enough enticing locales to call Midnight in Paris a theatrical tourism commercial (it made me want to book a flight as soon as I got home). What elevates it above that is simply a great story in the hands of one of the world's truly great filmmakers. If you're going to make them like this, Woody, you can stay across the pond for a little while longer.

Blu-ray Review: The Big Country

I'm a sucker for a good Western and they don't come much bigger or better than William Wyler's 1958 epic The Big Country.

Beautifully photographed in Technirama (a higher-resolution alternative to Cinemascope) and featuring more stars than a clear prairie night, The Big Country tells the story of Jim McKay (Gregory Peck), a former ship captain who heads out west to meet his fiance Pat's (Caroll Baker) rancher father Major Henry Terrill (Charles Bickford). Pat hopes McKay will get a feel for the land and decide to settle there.

A bowler hat-wearing fish out of water, it doesn't take long before McKay's resolve is tested by the local boys, first by chronic troublemaker Buck Hannassey (Chuck Conners) and then ranch foreman Steve Leech (Charleton Heston). Not one for petty violence or proving his worth before a crowd, McKay takes the high road, much to Pat's dismay.

Looking to find his way on his own terms, McKay becomes smitten with a valuable piece of land owned by Pat's childhood friend Julie Maragon (Jean Simmons) and soon finds himself in the middle of a bitter feud over water rights between Major Terrill and fellow rancher Rufus Hannessey (Burl Ives in a Oscar-winning performance).

Newly released on Blu-ray by 20th Century Fox as a Walmart exclusive, the high-def Big Country is a vast improvement over its faded 2001 DVD release. Presented in its native 2.35:1 aspect ratio and featuring a 2007 Academy Film Archive-restored print, the disc offers rich, detailed colors that once again return the vivid, expansive Technirama photography to its previous glory. The sprawling ranch, the bright blue, cloud-infused skies and the perilous trek through the canyon never looked better, especially on a 47" screen.

There is a fair amount of grain visible throughout, especially during the opening credits, but it never really distracts. Also present is an occasional digital fluttering at the top of frame but you really only notice it if you take your eyes of the action. While not a restoration in the class of the recent Ten Commandments disc, this transfer is a welcome one and should not disappoint.

The Blu-ray features an English Mono DTS Master Audio track. Dialog is clear at minimal levels for the most part. I think I found myself only raising the volume a couple of the times, mainly during interior scenes.

Extras include a vintage five-minute making-of documentary narrated by Jean Simmons, a TV spot and theatrical trailer.

The only complaint, more an observation really, is that the disc has no menu screen. The film starts up immediately and only displays the extras and scenes icon when pressing the pop-up menu button. You also can't toggle between the three extras. You watch one, return to the film and then press the pop-up button again for the next extra. At just $10, I guess you get what you pay for.

The Big Country remains one of my favorite Westerns, a lasting tribute to the genre and the grand widescreen epics of the '50s and '60s. Fox's new Blu-ray is a worthy, inexpensive upgrade over the 2001 DVD and only helps boaster my admiration for this classic film.

The Big Country ( 1958 )
Restored Blu-ray Disc, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Running Time: 165 minutes
50GB Dual Layer; AVC Encoded @ Average 32 MBPS; English Mono DTS Master Audio
SRP: $10 ( Walmart Exclusive )
Picture: A -
Sound: B
Extras: C
Worth Upgrading From DVD: Yes

Film Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Hard to believe it's been nearly 10 years since the original Pirates of the Caribbean film sailed into theaters. That first voyage was a refreshing surprise, a rousing, humor-laced adventure anchored by Johnny Depp's unforgettable, Oscar-nominated portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow. It became a worldwide phenomenon and made sitting through that 48-year-old Disney ride cool again.

Unfortunately what followed were two tired, self-indulgent sequels, each one more vexing and overbloated than the next. (Do we really need a three-hour-long pirate movie?) So it was with great trepidation that I signed on for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. I'll be honest: the only draw was seeing a pirate movie in 3D.

On Stranger Tides, loosely suggested by fantasy writer Tim Powers' eponymous 1987 pirate novel, opens with our old friend Captain Jack (still played with a glint in his eye by Depp) attempting to "creatively" secure the release of his old first mate Gibbs ( played by Kevin McNally) before he's hanged by the British. After an elaborate escape is defused, Captain Jack is brought before King George (played by Richard Griffiths) as it's come to His Majesty's attention that Jack knows the path Ponce de Leon followed to the mythic Fountain of Youth. (Remember his magic compass from the previous films?) It seems the Spanish have mounted an expedition of their own and King George wants to beat them to it. All Jack has to do is provide the location to the king's expedition leader, someone Jack is intimately acquainted with, one Captain Barbossa (played by Geoffrey Rush).

Another elaborate escape later, this one successful, Jack begins assembling his own crew to challenge the Spanish only to learn someone else calling themself Jack Sparrow has already gotten a head start. The impostor is soon revealed to be the exotic Anjelica (played by the always-captivating Penelope Cruz), a former flame of Jack's who just so happens to be first mate to the nefarious Blackbeard (played with devilishly fun by Ian McShane). Blackbeard has his own selfish reasons for finding the fountain and soon Jack is drugged and brought aboard the zombie-crewed Queen Anne's Revenge as it makes way to intercept the Spanish and Barbossa.

Free of Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, director Gore Verbinski and the insipid trilogy storyline from the previous two films, On Stranger Tides, at a mere two hours seventeen minutes, is a much-leaner, faster-paced pirate movie. Director Rob Marshall (Chicago, Nine, Memoirs of a Geisha) is seemingly an odd choice to helm an adventure film but somehow he pulls off an engaging, enjoyable film that not only keeps you vested in the story but the characters as well. And frankly, the 3D effects make it a better film. From swords, snakes, jungle vines and mermaids, you're immersed in the pirate life like never before and it's truly a fun place to be.

While not as fresh as the original, Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides is a welcome return to form for one of cinema's most iconic characters and proves to be a great way to spend a summer afternoon.

Moms Know A Few Things About Movies, Too

Everyone have a good Mother's Day yesterday? My wife and I took the moms out for brunch and then back to the house for a few games of bingo. My wife promptly won all three games and after my mother-in-law left busted, the three of us convened to the living room to relax and watch a little TV.

We came across Smokey and the Bandit just getting started on Encore. Or at least I thought it was Smokey and the Bandit. That's what the on-screen guide said. Who was I to argue? Granted I hadn't seen it in at least five years but all the right elements were there: Burt, Sally, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, the black Trans-Am. Mom wasn't buying it, though. Now she hadn't seen the original in at least 30 years, probably since the two of us saw it in the theater back in 1977, but she was adamant it was the 1980 sequel. "It's the second one, she argued. "They didn't show how Burt and Sally met."

"Their past history is implied," I shot back, the know-it-all pop-culture guru that I am. "It's the first. The second one had the elephant and Dom DeLuise in it."

So we watch for another 10 minutes or so and the elephant shows up. "See," my mom cooed, "it's the second one."

I go to the guide again. Still says Smokey and the Bandit, 1977. No mention of Dom DeLuise. "If it's the second one, where's Dom DeLuise?" I challenge. I think about it a few seconds and say, "Maybe the first one had the elephant."

"Maybe Dom just hasn't shown up yet," my mom innocently offers.

I ignore this comment. Incredulous to the end.

It's getting late and after a few more minutes of watching, my mom says it's time for her to get going. We gather up her goodies, head out to the garage and see her off. My wife and I walk back into the house, sit on the couch and who's on the screen with the elephant - Dom DeLuise.

Always listen to your mother.

Five Films Worth Braving The Cineplex For This Summer

With the release of Marvel and Paramount's Thor, today marks the official start of the summer movie season. While Thor holds as much interest to me as a Tyler Perry film, there are a handful of films arriving over the next four months that do entice me enough to leave the comfy, cellphone-devoid confines of my home theater and brave the local cineplex.

Tree of Life - Terrence Malick, the poet laureate of cinema, returns with just his fifth film in 38 years. This new one starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn appears to be another meditative feast for the eyes. I'd pay to see Malick shoot weddings. (May 27)

Super 8 - I'm a sucker for these period-set, coming-of-age adventures (think Stand by Me ). With master storytellers JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg guiding the way, my sleeping bag is already packed and waiting neatly by the door. (June 8)

Green Lantern - Ever since Spider-man shot his first CG web in 2002, I've been waiting for a Green Lantern movie. He's been one of my favorite super-heroes since the days of the Saturday-morning Super Friends cartoons. C'mon, a ring forged by intergalactic aliens that can enable you to fly and manufacture anything you can think of? Not even Superman can touch that. The story and effects look pretty cool and no, not even Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively can dissuade me. (June 17)

Captain America: The First Avenger - The first comic book I ever bought was a Captain America annual (its' still buried somewhere in my mom's garage). Cap's been kicking evil's ass for 70 years, just as long as Superman and Batman. It's downright embarrassing that it's taken him this long to get his first movie. While not completely sold on Chris Evans as Cap, with Joe Johnston ( The Rocketeer ) directing, this one looks to be an old-fashioned adventure in the spirit of the Saturday matinees of my youth. ( July 22 )

Amigo - Independent maverick John Sayles returns with his first feature in four years. His new one, a drama starring Sayles veteran Chris Cooper and set during the Philippine-American War at the turn of the 20th century, looks to be another richly textured, character-driven gem. I've been a fan of this guy's work since high school. ( August 20 )

Blu-Ray Review: The Ten Commandments

There's no denying the cinematic power of Cecil B. DeMille's 1956 biblical epic The Ten Commandments. With its cast of thousands, breathtaking locales, glorious sets and costumes, then-revolutionary effects and bold VistaVision photography, the grand retelling of the story of Moses and the Exodus remains a lasting tribute to the Golden Age of Hollywood and an important chapter in the history of cinema. But even with all its merits, we just don’t seem to give the film the respect it deserves.

Nowhere is it present on AFI’s 100 Years 100 Movies list. Not once have I heard it mentioned as someone’s favorite or top-ten movie. Maybe it’s the nearly four-hour running time. Maybe we’re just so used to seeing it in bits and pieces on network television every year that it doesn’t even register and as a complete film anymore. Well, after viewing Paramount Home Video's highly touted new Blu-ray release, like a thunderbolt from God himself, I respect The Ten Commandments.

Newly restored in full 1080p for its high-def debut, The Ten Commandments is quite simply stunning to behold. The widescreen-enhanced 1.78:1 presentation fills the screen with the vibrance and clarity of a freshly struck painting. Colors are rich and glossy and keep your eyes constantly moving to soak up every sumptuous detail of a given scene. From its radiant blue skies, ornate palaces and far-stretching sandscapes, Ancient Egypt has never looked so good. Forget whatever Blu-rays you have in your collection. This is your new reference disc.

This is the type of transfer, however, that truly benefits from a large (42" or greater) 1080p screen. If you have a 32" 1080i monitor and are thinking of upgrading from the DVD to the Blu-ray, you might want to wait, as it most likely will not have the jaw-dropping effect I'm talking about.

Commandments is so engaging you hardly notice the once-exhausting 232-minute running time. The film is still spread over two discs (disc one runs approximately 135 minutes and ends at the intermission), most likely to duplicate the theatrical experience and provide the sharpest screen resolution possible.

The Blu-ray features a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track and it provides a nice, immersive sonic experience at minimal levels. Dialog is crisp and Elmer Bernstein's sweeping score never sounded better.

Extras include a commentary track by Katerine Orrison, author of Written in Stone: The Making of Cecil B. DeMille's Epic, The Ten Commandments, a newsreel of the 1956 premiere in New York and theatrical trailers.

The Ten Commandments lives anew in a unforgettable home-video edition you'll want to revisit again and again. Do the family a favor this Easter and instead of watching the tired, old network-television presentation, pick up the Blu-ray and marvel everyone at your Sunday brunch.

The Ten Commandments (1956)
Restored, Two-Disc Special Edition Blu-ray, Paramount Home Video
SRP: $39.99 ($19.99 at Amazon.com)
Picture: A+
Sound: A
Extras: B
Worth Upgrading From DVD: Yes

Sidney Lumet Dead at 86

Legendary film and television director Sidney Lumet, whose distinguished list of credits include 12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon and Network, died Saturday of lymphoma. He was 86.

Lumet directed more than 40 feature films over a career spanning six decades and earned the reputation as a master of gritty, character-driven morality plays, many set in his hometown of New York.

Lumet began his career as a television director for CBS in 1951 and spent most of the next six years directing episodes for nearly a dozen different programs. On the strength of that work, he was offered his first feature assignment in 1957. The film was 12 Angry Men and it garnered him his first of four Academy Award nominations for Best Director. Next came The Fugitive Kind with Marlon Brando in 1960 and after a few more years of television, he committed to features full time in 1962 and never looked back.

At 83, Lumet directed his last film, 2007's Before The Devil Knows Your Dead with Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke. It received some of the best reviews of his career and earned him Best Director awards from several critic associations.

Other notable Lumet films include Serpico, Murder on the Orient Express, Prince of the City, The Verdict, Running on Empty, Family Business and Night Falls on Manhattan.

Film Review: Win Win

With just two previous features to his credit, filmmaker Tom McCarthy has quietly established himself as one of the most original voices in contemporary cinema. Both 2003's The Station Agent and 2007's The Visitor were rich, intimate character studies that wound up on most critics' top 10 lists for their respective years. McCarthy's third film, Win Win, is another such gem, one that will likely extend the tradition of year-end accolades.

Win Win tells the story of small town elder-law attorney Mike Flaherty (played by Paul Giamatti). Business is down for Mike and he's struggling to make ends meet. Out of desperation, and unbeknownst to his family, he agrees to become the guardian of incapacitated client Leo Poplar (played by Burt Young) so he can obtain a $1,500 monthly commission from Leo's estate. Mike, however, has no interest in taking care of Leo and quickly deposits him in the local assisted-living facility.

Mike's plan is soon complicated, though, when Leo's troubled teenage grandson Kyle (played by Alex Shaffer ) appears looking for a place to stay. Apparently Kyle's mother is in rehab and he couldn't stand living with her physically abusive boyfriend any longer. With little choice, Mike takes Kyle back to his place until he and wife Jackie (played by Amy Ryan ) can sort things out.

It's eventually decided that Kyle will stay with the Flahertys until his mother concludes her treatment. Mike coaches the underachieving high school wrestling squad and soon Kyle joins the team and proves to be its savior. It's not long before Mike and Jackie come to like having Kyle as part of the family. That is until his mother ( played by Melanie Lynskey ) shows up wanting to take him back home and assume Leo's guardianship from Mike.

Giamatti wears these type of hapless, imperfect roles like a glove. He's really become the Richard Dreyfuss of his generation, the Joe Smoe everyman we all can sympathize with. Ryan is a riot as the tough but good-hearted Jackie and Bobby Cannavale (Blue Bloods, The Station Agent) and Jeffrey Tambor provide amusing supporting work as Mike's assistant wrestling coaches.

Win Win is considerably lighter than McCarthy's previous two films but it remains just as textured and personal. With this film he's crafted a fresh, entertaining and extremely relatable family dramedy that keeps a smile on your face and never outstays its welcome.