October 2005
Dream On...
Trust in the power of imagination
THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN **
Steve Carell has been known as something of a scene-stealer over the past few years, playing hilarious supporting roles as the jibberish-speaking news anchor in
Bruce Almighty and the simpleton weatherman in
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. But now, as the main character in
The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Carell finally jumps up to leading-man status and struts his comic stuff. But, just like the successful
Saturday Night Live sketches that were turned into feature films and failed, 90 minutes seem to be just a bit too long for Carell to sustain the funnies in any kind of coherent story. Carell plays Andy Sitzer, a nerdy, mama’s-boy type who rides a bike with rear-view mirrors and works at an electronics store. He is mocked by his fellow employees and virtually ignored by the customers. When a few of the guys at the store want to get together for a poker game, they reluctantly invite Andy along. As the beer is consumed and the cards passed, the sex talk begins. When the guys discover that Andy has yet to do the deed, they take it upon themselves to end his life of celibacy and introduce him to the world of women. The well-meaning friends include David (Paul Rudd), whose girlfriend dumped him two years ago and he’s still hurting, Jay (Romany Malco), who talks of the
beeatches and
hos until his girlfriend arrives, and Cal (Seth Rogen), the friendly tattooed-goateed type that just wants his friend to get laid. However, it’s not until Andy meets Trish (Catherine Keener) that he realizes that true love conquers all—even virginity. There are some very funny moments in the film, such as the chest-waxing scene and the first attempt at trying on a condom. As for the ending, however, you get the impression the ideas had run out by this point. So why not have the cast perform a musical number from
Hair?
German Release Date (subject to change) September 29, US rated R
www.the40yearoldvirgin.com
THE ADVENTURES OF SHARKBOY AND LAVAGIRL IN 3-D **
Writer/director Robert Rodriguez has come a long way from his first feature film,
El Mariachi, which was made in 1992 for a mere $7000 and was distributed by Columbia Pictures for a cool $ 2 million. Alternating between ultraviolent films such as
From Dusk ’til Dawn and
Sin City, and children’s movies like
Spy Kids 1 and
2, Rodriguez has earned the rare distinction of being known as a director who can’t easily be categorized. Yet, his latest effort, which was inspired by an idea from his seven-year-old son, doesn’t live up to his reputation. Rodriguez not only wrote and directed the film, but also took on the cinematography, the editing and the composition of the soundtrack, and it seems to have been a bit too much. The shaky story follows the cute ten-year-old Max (Cayden Boyd), a day-dreamer who doesn’t know he’s dreaming. His teacher Mr. Electricidad (George Lopez) and mother (
Sex and the City’s Kristin Davis) are trying to take his dreams away from him so he’ll grow up faster and meet reality head on. Only his father (David Arquette), a wanna-be writer who’s desperately trying to hold on to his own dreams, can relate to what the boy’s going through and invents two super heroes in the form of Sharkboy (Taylor Lautner) and Lavagirl (Taylor Dooley) to help Max with his hardships. It’s not long before the heroes need Max to help them save the world of dreams from collapsing under the darkness of the class bully (Jacob Davich) on the planet Drool. The rest of the film is simply another take on
Peter Pan and
The Wizard of Oz and the importance of believing in yourself and your dreams. The poorly written script isn’t helped by the over-the-top and mediocre acting from its child stars and cardboard-cut-out adults. Mostly shot in 3-D, with alternating scenes in 2-D, the special effects are embarrassingly amateur, especially in this day and age, when audiences expect more and more for their buck. It’s an important message for children as well as adults to believe in themselves and their dreams, but there are far better ways to get that message across than this film.
German Release Date (subject to change) October 6, US rated PG
www.sonypictures.co.uk/movies/sharkboylavagirl/site
New release on DVD
THE BREAKFAST CLUB ****
If there is a quintessential teenage film of the 1980s this is it. Written and directed by the creator of such teen hits as
Sixteen Candles,
Pretty in Pink and
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, John Hughes reaches his zenith with
The Breakfast Club. Starring the young actors that would later be referred to as the Brat Pack, the film offers a well-tempered mixture of drama and comedy, in which five students are forced together in Saturday detention. There is Brian the Brain (Anthony Michael Hall), Andy the Jock (Emilio Estevez), Claire the Princess (Molly Ringwald), Allison the Basketcase (Ally Sheedy) and John the Criminal (Judd Nelson). Walking into the library at 7 am they have absolutely nothing in common, but through the course of the day they bare their souls and share their common destinies. After 20 years, this brilliant film still rings true, even to the modern-day teenager.
German Release Date (subject to change) October 6, US rated R
www.imdb.com/title/tt0088847
