Writer-director Don Roos’ new film asks the burning question: how long can an audience watch a group of people it doesn’t care about?
Ultimately pointless exercise in guerilla filmmaking finds two vacationing divers stranded at sea after a miscount by a criminally lax scuba crew. The grainy, at times pixilated, digital footage adds to the realism (the actors really were at sea with sharks) but filmmaker Chris Kentis lacks the experience to sustain the suspense for the full running time.
After sports movies, Kevin Costner is most at home on the range. Here, the actor-director returns to the territory that won him an Oscar with mixed results. From the vistas to the gunfights, the film is beautifully shot and wonderfully acted by Robert Duvall and a well-restrained Annette Bening, but the story of the ranchers versus the free-grazers is surprisingly one-sided.
Tony Jaa takes his rightful place as heir to the throne of Jet Li and Jackie Chan. This entry – heavy on violence, light on plot – is no better than the best of Li or Chan – and that’s pretty good.
An ironically underdeveloped script strands Robin Williams in one of his finest dramatic performances as a shy Photo Lab clerk who becomes obsessed with one of his clients.
Another high-concept low-delivery extravaganza from X-files vets Glen Morgan and James Wong (‘Final Destination’). This time around, martial arts master Jet Li duels his parallel universe-hopping doppelganger for reasons that could have been a lot more interesting than they turn out to be here.
There may actually be a good story about Mexico and its treatment as a playground for so many warring factions somewhere in the finale of Robert Rodriguez’ ‘Mariachi’ trilogy, but beneath the blood, dust and bullets, I’ll be darned if I can find it.
Spaghetti western master Sergio Leone turns his eye toward an American gangster epic spanning 50 years with surprisingly positive results. The first 3 of the 4 hours fly by thanks to beautiful locations and superlative acting, but unlike the gun-slinging standoffs of his westerns, this tale has no payoff.
Over-the-top Korean adaptation of a Japanese comic centers on a man imprisoned without explanation for 15 years. Director Chan-wook Park keeps the suspense going for as long as possible right up to a remarkably telegraphed would-be ‘twist’ ending.
Steven Soderberg’s remake of "Ocean’s Eleven" succeeds in one fashion. It faithfully recreates the pointlessness and lack of suspense of the original.
