Spike Lee boxes outside of his directorial weight-class with a war story bogged down by ham-handed smacks of magical realism and over-pronounced examples of racial prejudice. Lee’s muddle of inappropriate camera angles, overemphasized exposition and overall inability to get beyond the scope of his source material makes this cinematic garment seem like it was made with a … [Read more...] about Don’t believe in ‘Miracle’
Hunchback in business
John Cusack is the innocent voice of Igor, a hunchbacked laboratory assistant to the doomed mad scientist Dr. Glickenstein (voiced by John Cleese) in this irresistible animated comedy that’s rooted in the look of early monster movie classics. Unlike every other hunchbacked “Igor” in the dark town of Malaria, this one dreams of creating his own imposing … [Read more...] about Hunchback in business
Phi Beta Crappa
Compared to last year’s Superbad, sophomore director Deb Hagan’s coming-of-age teen sex comedy should be called Superlame. Three high school seniors—a skinny nerd, an obese kid and a clean-cut pretty boy—visit nearby Feldmont University for a three-day weekend and get co-opted by a fraternity of losers to serve as faux pledges in hazing rituals … [Read more...] about Phi Beta Crappa
Terrorist sympathizer
Don Cheadle turns in yet another tour de force performance this time as Samir Horn, a former U.S. Military operative closely connected to a terrorist group committed to executing bombing missions around the globe. Writer/director Jeffrey Nachmanoff crafts a taut thriller that delves deeply into the mindset and methods of a terrorist cell intent on striking ongoing fear into the … [Read more...] about Terrorist sympathizer
Shooting blanks
Directed by Fred Durst (of the band Limp Bizkit), The Longshots is a cookie-cutter feel good kids movie that seems like it was made by some faulty gadget stuck on autopilot. The movie’s plot, about a teenaged girl in Harvey, Illinois that played quarterback on her high school’s football team, is submerged beneath a heavy sheen of slapdash filmmaking. Only Keke … [Read more...] about Shooting blanks