"POINT OF VIEW"

X-3: The Last Stand
Starring Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen
Written by Mike Dougherty and Dan Harris
Directed by Brett Ratner


I often think to myself, “Damn, I wish I was a mutant”. I mean honestly, who wouldn’t want to be a mutant. The ability to shoot fire or ice from your hands, the ability to change the weather, the ability to move metal with simple hand gestures, and tell me, who the hell wouldn’t want to have Adamantium claws spike out of their hands when they got angry. Nobody. So that is why X-Men 3: The Last Stand is so relatable and in turn enjoyable.

In the third and supposedly last installment of the X-Men film franchise, we definitely get our money’s worth ($107 million at the box office in 3-days, a Memorial Day weekend record high). X3 is packed from start to end with special effects filled action sequences that look like our favorite Saturday morning cartoon come-to-life and appearances by all our favorite mutants. In an early scene where some young X-Men are being trained by veteran X-Men, Storm (Halle Berry) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), the sequence looks like something from a James Cameron movie (not Titanic) and even gives us a glimpse of a Sentinel (fan-boys and girls will know what I am talking about). Being a mutant has always carried the sub-text of being an outsider or more specifically like being gay or being an immigrant from another country, so the plot in X3 which revolves around the idea that there is now a cure for being a mutant is bound to anger a few mutants and people as well. And it has definitely ticked off one particular mutant named Magneto (Ian McKellen), who also happens to lead a band of bad-ass mutants called the Brotherhood. Let’s just say they are not as peaceful as Charles Xavier’s (Patrick Stewart) X-Men. With that being said, a war soon breaks out where good mutants who believe in the good of mankind square off against the bad mutants who believe in the extinction of mankind or as they like to call them, “Homosapiens”. If you are a fan of the X-Men from the comics and cartoon series, you will also be thrilled to see the Jean Grey/Phoenix storyline be played out.

As I mentioned before, X3 is suppose to be the third and last installment in the series, so when I heard that Brett Ratner was directing instead of Bryan Singer -- I kind of freaked out a little. Nothing against Brett Ratner, Rush Hour and Rush Hour 2 were a lot of fun and I am sure Rush Hour 3 will be too, but this is the X-Men we are talking about here! Bryan Singer brought the X-Men to the big-screen with such grace and care (I can’t wait to see Superman Returns, and not just because I am a huge fan of Superman) and to hear that he wasn’t going to be in charge of the final chapter was a little alarming. Have no fear though, Mr. Brett Ratner did not mess anything up. The movie still keeps the integrity that Bryan Singer built in the first two X-Men films and manages to do so with a bang. The cast is also filled with an extensive list of talented actors such as Anna Paquin (Rogue), Famke Janssen (Jean Grey), Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), James Marsden (Cyclops), Shawn Ashmore (Iceman), and Vinnie Jones (Juggernaut) -- just to name a few (I am not kidding).

X-Men 3: The Last Stand is filled with justified and satisfying action and it contains a message that is thought provoking. X3 is definitely the best 2006 summer movie so far and an honorable end to a wonderful superhero film series. Bravo!


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: Lots of action and X-Men fans will not be disappointed.

The Bad: Strays a bit from the comic book and cartoon storyline.

The Law: Join the Last Stand and check out X3.

"LAWFUL EVENTS"

I think I got bitten by a bug. I now have flu-like symptoms. Was it a real bug, or the love bug from watching Mr. & Mrs. Smith? Is there any hope for hopeless romantics...



Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
Starring Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Vince Vaughn
Written by Simon Kinberg and Directed by Doug Liman


If I ever get married, I want my marriage to be just like the one Mr. & Mrs. Smith have. It is so hot, even when it is not. Sure Brad and Angelina look wonderful and sure even wonderful looking people can have boring marriages, but the key is they have chemistry. Without chemistry, there is no hope. Well, baby, let me tell ya -- this movie has chemistry. From its photogenic cast to its writer and director -- this movie has wild baby-making chemistry.

Brad Pitt (Ocean’s Twelve) plays John Smith, a professional assassin with killer skills and killer looks. Angelina Jolie (Tomb Raider) plays Jane Smith, also a professional assassin with killer skills and killer looks. So naturally these two “killers” hook-up while they are each on an assignment in Columbia (how romantic) and eventually get married. Their relationship is hot at first: wild sex, dancing, long walks and gazes -- but like all things hot, they seem to cool off once marriage is introduced into the equation. Although due to their intense chemistry together (it is no wonder Brangelina was formed) I still think they are hot even when the filmmakers are trying to convey that John and Jane have lost their spark and are now your typical married couple that doesn’t have sex, doesn’t talk, and keeps way too much bottled up. But moving on, we are suppose to believe these two human aphrodisiacs are bored with each other and their marriage, that is until they find out that they are each secretly assassins. Now what marriage wouldn’t get a little kick with that kind of news. Sure John’s cover of being a successful construction contractor was kind of hot and sure Jane’s cover of being a CEO of a computer systems company was kind of hot too -- but assassins, now that is flaming hot. This is where the movie kicks into high gear, aka, here comes the guns!

With Doug Liman at the helm, a director who has proved he can do action just as well as he can do relationships with hits such as The Bourne Identity and Swingers -- Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a perfect balance of humour, action, and sexually charged energy. Written by Simon Kinberg (xXx: State of the Union), the movie is filled with some great banter and explosive scenarios. In one scene, John flexes and tells his wife, “Come to daddy...” and in return, Jane kicks her husband into a glass cabinet and responds with, “Whose your daddy now?”. Hot! With appearances by Vince Vaughn, as John’s romantically cynical friend Eddie, and Adam Brody (The O.C.’s Seth Cohen), as a lippy target, Mr. & Mrs. Smith never ceases to entertain. The movie even ends with a super-shootout in a giant Wal-Mart type store, now who wouldn’t fantasize about doing that with their wife or husband?

Mr. & Mrs. Smith is quite simply an entertaining movie. It’s got laughs, action, and even romance. It’s got something for the guys and it’s got something for the girls, making it either the perfect date or non-date movie, depending on how you look at it I guess, hehehe.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: This movie is sexy fun.

The Bad: You’ll wish you were married after the movie.

The Law: Make a date with Mr. & Mrs. Smith!

Crazy/Beautiful
Starring Kirsten Dunst, Jay Hernandez, Bruce Davison
Written by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi Directed by John Stockwell


Ah, to be a teenager again. The angst, the pressures of education, and of course love. To be a teenager and in love has got to be the most painful and joyful experience a person can have, well, besides giving birth I guess. Crazy/Beautiful is a solid teenage drama full of cliches, but lucky for us, also full of some great performances by youngsters Kirsten Dunst (Bring It On) and Jay Hernandez, in his feature film debut. For a guy who was discovered by a talent agent in an elevator, Jay Hernandez is quite the powerhouse of an actor, displaying a strong soul and wild charisma -- something rarely seen in young actors.

Jay plays Carlos Nunez, a poor latino that leaves his house at five in the morning in order to catch the bus to school, where he applies himself 110% and plays for the school football team as well. Jay has his sights set on doing well in school and then joining the prestigious Annapolis naval academy, unlike all the spoiled and well-off kids that spend their days goofing around. Carlos wants to make something of himself and make his family proud, but whenever anybody thinks they have it all planned out -- along comes the girl. Kirsten Dunst is Nicole Oakley, the daughter of a congressman and professional party-girl. She is young, flirty, and seems to have a knack for getting into trouble. You could say that Carlos and Nicole are exact opposites. Ding! We all know what that means, don’t we? Nicole and Carlos find themselves attracted to one another. The poor latino and the rich white-girl, aww, how cute. See what I mean by cliche? But wait a second, there is more to this movie than just that.

First things first, I want to note that the cinematographer, Shane Hurlbut, did an excellent job in creating the atmosphere of two people falling in love. The mood lighting in the scenes where Carlos and Nicole form a friendship and slowly fall for each other are perfect and totally capture the raw energy of teenage love. John Stockwell (the writer of Breast Men, if you can believe that) also does a good job in capturing the awkwardness of growing up and falling in love -- and that is where the magic of Crazy/Beautiful is found.

Teen dramas and comedies are a dime a dozen, but well-executed ones are a rare find. Typical of adults, they always seem to get them wrong. They either make teenagers appear like horndogs looking to get laid at every corner or like sugary Barbies with only prom concerns on their minds. To see teenage characters that actually feel and display real emotions based on plausible situations is quite refreshing. Yeah, Carlos is focused on his future, but he also wants to feel like a kid for once. And yeah, Nicole lives in a nice house and has pretty looks, but she also deals with the pains of having a deceased mother and a step-mother that doesn’t accept her as her own. Which is why they find each other. Nicole deals with her pain by living life on the edge and Carlos is already on the edge, so he hangs on way too tight. This story of boy meets girl goes beyond the conventions and instead shows us why it was so important that boy and girl needed to meet.

Any moviegoer can pretty much guess how the story is going to end, and can probably see a few of the situations before they arise, but what they won’t expect is a movie with more than it appears to offer on the surface.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: A fresh and insightful look at teenage love.

The Bad: Some cliched scenes, but isn’t life a little cliched.

The Law: Don’t make the mistake of misjudging this movie like a teenager -- check out Crazy/Beautiful.

"LAWFUL EVENTS"

I literally ran through the halls of my high school this past week. They say there is no such thing as time traveling, but when I traveled through the halls of my junior high and visited my old locker -- let me tell you, it felt like I was 14 again and life never felt better.



"POINT OF VIEW"


The Da Vinci Code
Starring Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen
Written by Akiva Goldsman and Directed by Ron Howard


Do you remember those puzzle/coloring books you used to waste away those lazy afternoons with? Well, The Da Vinci Code is kind of like one of those books. Adapted from the immensely popular bestselling book from Dan Brown, comes a lengthy but quite entertaining piece of work. That is if you are interested in the subject matter. Back to those puzzle/coloring books -- if you were a kid that hated doing puzzles and coloring and preferred playing with GI Joes instead -- then The Da Vinci Code probably won’t be that appealing to you either.

The superfilmmaking team of Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind) and Brian Grazer (also A Beautiful Mind) bring us this entertaining thriller that has been getting its fair share of bad reviews and yells of blasphemy. Calm down -- that is what I say. It is a movie. A form of entertainment. People are more intelligent than given credit for and are able to form their own decisions on things. The movie will not threaten the state of religion and it will not brainwash anybody into doing anything they don’t want to. What it will do is raise discussion about the origins of Jesus Christ and provide the audience with one hell (excuse the phrasing) of a thriller. Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump) is wonderful as the long-haired American symbologist, Robert Langdon and Audrey Tautou (Amelie) is equally as entertaining as Sophie Neveu, a French cryptologist and granddaughter of a murdered curator of the Louvre, who obviously had a secret he was willing to die for. Together they both outrun the police and the likes of an extremely creepy monk named Silas, played by Paul Bettany (totally fits the rumors that he will be the Joker in the next Batman film) who belongs to a religious society known as Opus Dei (think of priests with knives, willing to kill for the big guy in the sky) all the while trying to figure out what the big secret is that so much blood has spilled to hide.

Considering that The Da Vinci Code is a book with a lot of references to points in history and religion, you can pretty much expect some heavy exposition -- but Ron Howard did an excellent job with this. With the help of some nifty special effects and his talented cast, what could have been a very boring movie is actually quite intriguing (Again, please note that if you hated history or going to church on Sundays, chances are you will still hate it now). Sir Ian McKellen is awesome as Sir Leigh Teabing and once again steals another iconic character to be his own (McKellen is also Magneto in the X-Men films and Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings franchise -- nerds rejoice). Alfred Molina and Jean Reno also lend their familiar faces to the mix, grounding the movie and giving it another wonderful layer.

If you are still a little borderline about seeing The Da Vinci Code based on your worries that it may be a little “wordy” -- I can assure you it also has its fair share of crash-bang car chases, jump-out-of-your-seat shocks, and plenty of blood and gunfire to satisfy even the most cynical critic.

As you would expect from a film titled The Da Vinci Code, the film is filled with plenty of mystery and plenty of twists. It is fun. It really is. Check it out -- try and solve the mystery with Robert Langdon or just sit back and watch it all unfold -- regardless, just go see it. If your brain goes numb, at least it will be from the intelligence of the film and not its stupidity -- like so many other summer films out right now.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: It is geek, but oh-so chic.

The Bad: Be prepared for some history class moments.

The Law: Read the book, watch the movie, and use your brain at the theater for once. See The Da Vinci Code!

"POINT OF VIEW"


Baby Boy
Starring Tyrese Gibson, Ving Rhames, Snoop Dogg
Written and Directed by John Singleton


Growing up is hard enough as it is, but growing up as a young unemployed blackman in a John Singleton movie is even harder. John Singleton, the youngest and only African-American director to be ever nominated for an academy award for best director for his brilliant work on Boyz N the Hood, gives us the story of Jody, aka Baby Boy.

Tyrese Gibson, a talented musician/actor in his feature film debut, displays his acting talents in his portrayal of Jody, a twenty-year-old African-American who is still lives with his single-mom, even though he is the father of two babies of his own from two different mothers. Jody is at the point in his life where he needs to grow-up, or so he is told by just about everybody in his life. But just like every twenty-year-old, Jody believes that he is already a man and knows everything there is to know about the world. His “boy”, Sweetpea, played by Omar Gooding (the brother of Cuba Gooding from Singleton’s Boyz N the Hood and of Jerry Maguire fame), is a fellow much like Jody who spends his days being a slacker and befriending women. Jody gets to play all day and pretty much all night -- that is until he runs into some literal growing pains.

Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction), is absolutely perfect as an ex-thug who dates Jody’s mom and tries to fill the father-figure void in Jody’s life, showing and telling him what his life could turn out like if he doesn’t start changing his ways. Then Yvette (Taraji P. Henson), the mother of one of his babies starts to feel a little underappreciated and demands Jody show her the kind of love that she shows him or else. Tack on a mean looking jailbird who wants a piece of his woman (played by the ever-so menacing Snoop Dogg) and a few other minor setbacks like finally getting forced out of the nest and getting dumped by the woman he loves, and aww, it looks like our Baby Boy is going to grow up.

One might think that after the numerous amount of “black” films that have been released since the rise and fall of gansta rap, that this film will be just another one of those films where punk-kids run around shooting each other, acting like P.I.M.P.s and then end up getting shot before the credits roll -- but if you think that, then you are sorely mistaken. Baby Boy could easily have been one of those movies, but this movie was done by John Singleton. John Singleton shows us this world on the surface, but his talent is revealing a world underneath that we all can relate to, even if we didn’t grow up in Crenshaw. This is where Baby Boy differs from all the other “black” films. The relationship between a mother and a child who is entering manhood, the relationship of a woman who loves and believes in the father of her child, the relationship between two men trying to grow up right with so much wrong around them, and the relationship between a boy who talks like a man and a man actually being a man -- are all things that make this film a winner.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: A touching look at a boy becoming a man and the choices he makes to get there.

The Bad: Contains a few cliches, but easily overlooked with the display of some really solid performances.

The Law: Be a man and go see Baby Boy.

"POINT OF VIEW"


Hollywood Homicide
Starring Josh Hartnett and Harrison Ford
Written by Robert Souza & Ron Shelton and Directed by Ron Shelton


There is a scene in Hollywood Homicide where a gangster falls from the top of a tall building and lands into a large metal container labeled, “Hollywood Waste”. That container is definitely the place this movie should be in as well. It is definitely Hollywood and it is definitely a waste. A waste of time, talent, and money. True to its title -- this movie really is Hollywood Homicide.

Det. K.C. Calden and Sgt. Joe Gavilan, two buddy cops played by Josh Hartnett (Pearl Harbor) and Harrison Ford (Air Force One), try their best to live up to all the classic buddy-cop duos of the past, but fall shamefully on their pretty faces. Lethal Weapon, 48 Hours, and even Bad Boys all had wonderful duos, but then again they also had decent scripts as well. Written by Robert Souza (an ex-LAPD cop of 25 years turned screenwriter/producer) and by the director of this mess, Ron Shelton (White Men Can’t Jump) -- you would think that something fairly decent would come out of these two brains. But nope, the only thing this movie contains is a dire need for Shane Black (Lethal Weapon) to come along and slap everybody silly for trying to duplicate his genius. On paper, Hollywood Homicide actually sounds like it could have been a potential hit. It has all the right ingredients: big stars, a great premise filled with action and laughs, and even a director with a good track record (Shelton also directed hits like Bull Durham, White Men Can’t Jump, and Tin Cup). But as this movie proves, just because you have the right ingredients and formula for a hit movie, it doesn’t mean you will have a hit movie. Oh, how Hollywood producers would love to have that to be true.

Hollywood Homicide has two great leading men in Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett, but unfortunately the words coming out of their mouths are about as entertaining as playing video games with no screen. Two Hollywood Homicide cops investigate the murder of a rap group with events and characters based on real life situations regarding the whole east and west coast rap thing. That sounds pretty good doesn’t it? A cast with names such as Bruce Greenwood, Isaiah Washington, Master P, Lou Diamond Phillips -- that sounds pretty good also, doesn’t it? The two main characters are even a little quirky with Hartnett’s character wanting to be an actor instead of a cop and Harrison Ford’s character being a cop and a real estate broker on the side. Pretty cool? Yeah, you would think so -- but again, no! It is not good. Now, I have been pretty harsh on the writer and director of this mess of a movie, but I guess I should also rag on the cast a bit as well. The cast of Hollywood Homicide should all be in a commercial for sleeping pills rather than in an action/comedy, since it appears that they are all aimlessly daydreaming through the movie. You can practically hear them thinking in their heads, “The paycheck is in the mail...”.

This movie hurts. And it hurts talking about this movie. I usually write reviews that are approximately 800 words long, but I am sorry, I just can’t talk about this movie anymore. In closing, the most important words regarding this movie would be: Don’t watch it.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: The movie does end after a long and tedious 116 minutes.

The Bad: Too many things to mention with only 24 hours in a day.

The Law: Stay as far away as you can from this movie.

School of Rock
Starring Jack Black, Joan Cusack, and a Bunch of Talented Kids
Written by Mike White and Directed by Richard Linklater


Boy, I would have loved to have had Jack Black for a teacher back in elementary school. The long recesses, constant goofing off, the laughs... With School of Rock we kind of get a glimpse of what that would have been like.

Jack Black (Shallow Hal) plays Dewey Finn, a wannabe rock n’ roll star whose kept the dream alive maybe a little too long. Slightly overweight and still mooching a bed in his friend’s apartment, Dewey never comes up with the rent and spends his time rockin’ with his band in sleazy clubs. Kind of sounds like a loser, doesn’t he? Well, at least he’s got passion, unlike his ex-rocker roommate, Ned (Mike White), who has sold out to “the Man” and is now a yuppie substitute teacher with a nagging girlfriend (played nicely by Sarah Silverman). However, after getting kicked out of the band he helped form, that passion still does not pay for the rent at the end of the day, which leads Dewey to “borrow” his friend Ned’s identity and take a job at a prep school. It is the perfect plan -- substitute for a couple of weeks, make enough money to pay for the rent, then continue on making the rock n’ roll dream come true. Easy, thinks Dewey -- that is before he meets “the kids”.

On arrival at the prep school, Dewey meets the school’s tightly wound principal, portrayed by the always talented Joan Cusack, and his class of kids. Dewey’s idea of a lesson plan is to basically let the kids have recess and lunch throughout the day. As long as the paycheques come rolling in, nothing else matters. But then Dewey discovers that some of his kids seem to have certain musical talents he could use, like say, for a rock band. The School of Rock is formed.

With movies like School of Rock, they have to be careful not to get too overly cutesy or fill themselves with too many “messages” at the risk of making the audience barf. Lucky for School of Rock, director Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused, Slacker) is skilled at making films with messages that don’t seem to have messages. School of Rock also has Jack Black, a high energy actor that totally commits to whatever he plays, giving his characters believability no matter how unbelievable they seem. Yeah, a lot of scenes in School of Rock are “typical” like when the kids slowly warm up to Dewey and when Dewey becomes more mature because of the kids, but in School of Rock they are played out with a lot more fun and zeal. They don’t feel sugar-coated, but instead genuine and humourous. They show-and-tell the audience that music can open minds and that rock music has soul. As much as School of Rock is meant to be a family friendly film, it is also very much a love letter to classic rock. The kids are taught that there is much more than just Christina Aguilera or the latest boy-band. Dewey exposes them to Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Jimi Hendrix. Artists who really show their souls on stage and really rocked in every sense of the word.

School of Rock is a great film to see with your family or just a great film to see, period. It gives us a little history lesson on true rock n’ roll and teaches us that “message movies" don’t always have to be as exciting as fourth period math.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: A great comedy with heart and love for classic rock.

The Bad: May be a little too child orientated for some rockers.

The Law: Definitely attend the School of Rock.

Mission Impossible: III
Starring Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Written by Alex Kurtzman, Robert Orci, J.J. Abrams
Directed by J.J. Abrams


You ever catch an episode of Alias on TV before? Well, if you haven’t -- here’s your chance. Mission Impossible III is essentially a really long episode of Alias and happens to star somebody named Tom Cruise. Yes, we know Tom Cruise is a little wacky as of late with his couch-jumping and Scientology related antics, but that does not deny the fact that the man can make one hell of a summer blockbuster movie. After all, the last two Mission Impossibles both grossed over 200 million at the box office each, and had acclaimed directors (Brian De Palma, John Woo) at the helm. So naturally the third installment should be just as big with J.J. Abrams (Alias, Lost) in the driver’s seat. And big it is.

The movie does not waste any time getting the action started -- opening with superspy Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) tied to a chair begging to the big bad arms dealing villain of this film, Owen Davian (Capote’s Philip Seymour Hoffman) to spare his wife’s life. The audience is then treated to the ever-so-catchy Mission Impossible tune by Lalo Shifrin and off we go to a time and place way before Ethan ends up in the chair predicament. A time where Ethan is a boring Traffic Analyst and engaged to marry a pretty girl named Julia (Michelle Monaghan). Life looks pretty simple now for Mr. Hunt and the world of exploding gum and motorcycling through fire seems like a distant memory. But the movie would not be called Mission Impossible if this were the case. Ethan gets the “phone call” and back we go into Mission Impossible land.

Billy Crudup (Almost Famous) plays Ethan’s new mission director, John Musgrave, who informs Ethan that one of his students, Felicity’s Keri Russell has been captured on a mission where she was doing some spying on our dangerous arms dealing friend, Owen Davian. Of course Ethan wants to save her, but what about his fiancee, what about his new calm and peaceful life, what about the fact that Tom Cruise is getting a little old looking... Well, forget that! We want to see exploding helicopters, violent gunplay, and lots of masks! Can you hear the theme playing in your head? (dum, dum, dumdum, dum, dum)

Of course Ethan can save the world on his own, but how fun would that be? In this installment of Mission Impossible, we meet two new members: Zhen (Maggie Q) and Declan (Jonathan Rhys Meyers). Ving Rhames also returns again as the wise-cracking computer hacker, Luther Strickell.

From this point on the audience is treated to pretty much the same kind of action-orientated fair we have come to expect from a movie titled Mission Impossible and that I am afraid to say is a little boring. But don’t blame everything on the typical special effects laden action, some of the blame lies on the aging Ethan Hunt and the by-the-book directing of JJ. Abrams. The glaring difference between the Ethan Hunt of MI:I and II and the Ethan Hunt of MI:III is that the previous versions of him were not so, shall we say... sensitive. The newest Ethan Hunt is engaged to be married, likes being normal, and long walks on the beach. When somebody goes to see a Mission Impossible movie, we want to see a hero that is just as ruthless as the villain and prides himself on blowing things up with chicks to spare in all countries of the world. J.J. Abrams managed to effectively balance the whole romance and action thing on Alias, but that was a TV show. This is Mission Impossible! I realize that this is J.J.’s feature film directorial debut (the biggest budgeted debut for a rookie film director at $150 million), but I want to see something that doesn’t feel like a television show. J.J. Abrams is a very smart and pop-culture orientated kind of guy, so I know he was capable of something more unique. Now don’t get me wrong, MI:III is a very well executed movie and offers lots of action, a couple of nice twists, and plenty of bang for your buck, but in this day and age -- I think audience’s are expecting a lot more than just that.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: Lots of visually pleasing action sequences.

The Bad: By-the-book directing and has a hero on the brink of retirement. Not very Mission Impossible-like.

The Law: Only accept this mission if you are a fan of Tom Cruise or just want to see things blow-up for a couple of hours.

Must Love Dogs
Starring John Cusack, Diane Lane
Written and Directed by Gary David Goldberg


In order to love “Must Love Dogs” you must first love romantic comedies. If you take guilty pleasure in watching romantic comedies like myself (yes, I am a guy) then you will most certainly find Must Love Dogs a worthwhile watch. Yes, yes -- I know you’re saying that romantic comedies are so predictable and unrealistic and full of baloney -- but I along with a million other people happen to love this kind of baloney.

Gary David Goldberg (writer, Spin City) serves a nice hot platter of John Cusack and Diane Lane based on the popular novel by Claire Cook. John Cusack (Say Anything...) plays Jake, a hopeless romantic who’s fresh off a divorce and longs for the days of romance in the vein of Doctor Zhivago. He builds hand crafted boats that represent a more chivalrous time and hopes that one day they will sail in the hands of someone who loves them as much as he loved crafting them. Played by any other actor, the character of Jake would be utterly unbelievable. However, lucky for movies like this, the world has John Cusack. Females around the world will always know John Cusack best as Lloyd Dobler, the optimistic teen who made an entire generation of girls swoon. So, needless to say that the moment John Cusack steps into a film like this -- the general audience is already behind him to win the girl.

Don’t worry guys. I know a lot of you will end up seeing Must Love Dogs primarily because of the “either you take your girlfriend or you end up not getting any” rule -- but don’t despair for you won’t be left completely out of the picture. Diane Lane. Don’t play dumb, you know her from “Unfaithful” (the movie where she gets naked a lot), plays Sarah, a messed up divorcee looking to get back into the dating game with the help of dating websites (ie. Perfectmatch.com) and a million nagging relatives that won’t let her be single.

Chemistry. The one saving grace for any romantic comedy. Bad script? Bad director? Low Budget? Nothing matters as long your two leads have chemistry and John Cusack and Diane Lane definitely have it. They are absolutely adorable together, but of course you know that they can’t be together right away. Why? Because it’s a romantic comedy, remember?! Lucky for us the movie manages to come up with some great scenarios to keep our star crossed lovers apart. Again, the fun in romantic comedies is always the journey. The misunderstandings, the love triangles, the witty banter -- Must Love Dogs exceeds expectations in all categories.

With the help of a well rounded supporting cast including the likes of Christopher Plummer as Sarah’s womanizing, yet sincere father, to Dermot Mulroney playing the handsome guy who distracts Sarah from fulling giving in to Jake -- the supporting cast does a wonderful job creating a world where everyone is just looking for a little love. Stockard Channing also manages to muster out a few touching moments as one of Sarah’s father’s many women.

Like what “When Harry Met Sally” did for a generation of male and female “best friends” looking for love in the early 90s, Must Love Dogs does the same for the internet dating generation. The film opens and closes with a very When Harry Met Sallyesque type of feel. In the beginning of the film, singles give advice in seemingly candid interviews about the best places to find other singles with acronyms like SWF or DWF underneath them. And in the end we have couples sharing their cutesy stories on how they met. (No, I did not spoil the ending of the movie -- you know what is going to happen.) The film also does a great job of showing us how fun and unpredictable the world of online dating is with all the lies and false profiling that happens daily.

Must Love Dogs will not be the most original film you will see this year or maybe even the next year, but it will be a lot of fun. And hey, what more could you ask from a date?


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: John Cusack and Diane Lane are great, giving this dog of a movie a bone to chew on.

The Bad: It is a romantic comedy like many others before it.

The Law: It’s a great date movie and will surprise you here and there.