"LAWFUL EVENTS"

I seem to be pissed off at everything this week... So here are some lyrics from Linkin Park's Breaking the Habit:

I don't know what's worth fighting for
Or why I have to scream
I don't know why I instigate
And say what I don't mean
I don't know how I got this way
I know it's not alright
So I'm breaking the habit
Tonight



"POINT OF REVIEW"


The Ice Harvest
Starring John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen
Written by Richard Russo & Robert Benton
Directed by Harold Ramis

I hate John Cusack. He is a talented actor/writer who will always be loved by millions of females for his portrayal of Lloyd Dobler and seems to be able to take on challenging roles and Hollywood ones in the same breath. Why do you make it so hard for the rest of us, John?! As you can tell, I don’t really hate John Cusack -- but hey, it got your attention didn’t it? Much like The Ice Harvest, it will get your attention at first, but then things won’t live up.

The Ice Harvest is suppose to be a dark comedy set in Wichita about a pair of scummy fellows who manage to embezzle two million dollars from a bunch of heavies on Christmas Eve -- and with names like Harold Ramis and John Cusack attached, it certainly got my attention. Based on the cynical book of the same name by Scott Phillips, the movie never seems to find its cinematic footing and like walking on ice, it slips and slides in and out of some great scenes and some bad scenes. John Cusack plays scummy fellow number one: a mob lawyer by the name of Charlie Arglist, who opens the movie with a very nice monologue that really sets a wicked tone for the movie, unfortunately a tone that is not consistent. Billy Bob Thornton is equally as cool (teaming up with his Pushing Tin co-star Cusack again) as Vic, a pornographer who appears to be the brains of the whole scheme. Thornton and Cusack are magic together; the dialogue sounds snappier and more high brow when the two are talking, but unfortunately we don’t get enough of the two. The movie is trying hard to be cool in the way that dark comedies can be, but it never quite gets it right. Harold Ramis of Ghostbusters fame and the director of the hilarious Groundhog Day is a talented filmmaker, I am sure, but he just can’t quite keep this ship on course. Instead of using Cusack and Thornton to their fullest, he strays and makes us spend 40% of the movie with Cusack and Oliver Platt (I mean, for God’s sake, Oliver Platt?!), who plays a drinking friend of Arglist’s who happens to be married to his hot ex-wife and seems to be having some marital problems, why, we don’t really ever find out. Connie Nielsen is hot as usual as a strip club owner, but unfortunately her acting is not. Beside a master thespian like Cusack, you gotta step up your game and she did not. She was cold. In fact, beside all the strippers we see in the numerous strip clubs in this movie, she is cold there as well. Come to think of it, there really isn’t much going for this movie besides Cusack. He is really at the top of his game here, displaying his natural charm, wit, and dark innards, but unfortunately his talents are wasted in a vehicle that is only sub-par. With a runtime of an hour and twenty-nine minutes, the film felt long. Get the drift? I am sure the cast and crew really, really, really, wanted to make a kick-ass movie -- it’s just too bad they failed.


THE RUNDOWN:

The Good: John Cusack gives one of his best performances.

The Bad: Uneven movie with bad pacing and bad direction.

The Law: Rent on DVD to check out John Cusack’s awesome performance and some cool extras.