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April 9-15, 2009
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Adventureland
See full screen review on page 61. Rated R. At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square.
 Antonio Gaudi (1984)
Teshigahara’s camera takes us over, under, around and into buildings and a park in Barcelona, Spain designed by Catalan architect, ceramist and sculptor Antonio Gaudi. Teshigahara suggests the influence of Romanesque churches and monasteries on Gaudi designs, as well as the caves and crags of Montserrat. Almost every line of Gaudi’s is curved, and there are virtually no surfaces without texture. With little narration, the film takes us through Casa Vicens, projects for the industrialist Eusebi Guell, Casa Batllo, Casa Mila and the Barcelona landmark, the unfinished Templo de la Sagrada Familia. Not rated. At Boulder Public Library. — BPL Film Program
Ballerina
In the grand tradition of Ballets Russes, feeling as if a Degas painting had come to life, comes filmmaker Bertrand Normand’s portrait of five St. Petersburg ballerinas from the Mariinski Theatre, formerly known as the Kirov. They range in age from promising student graduating to the corps de ballet to soloist to star and to retired star attempting a comeback. Russia’s pre-eminent dancers — superstars such as Nijinsky, Baryshnikov and Pavlova — established the reputation of Russian dancers as the best in the world. The dancers profiled in Ballerina are uniquely individual, tough, insightful and exceptionally talented; onstage they reveal no hint of the sweat, pain and hard work of the rehearsal studio. From Swan Lake to Romeo and Juliet, from the backstage studio to performing on stages around the world, Ballerina captures the sublime beauty of ballet, in all its resplendent glory. Narrated in English. Not rated. At Starz. — Denver Film Society
Between Love and Goodbye
Love makes the world go round. At least that’s what Marcel and Kyle believe, until they suddenly discover that love can alternatively flip the world upside-down. When certain elements are set into motion, they tend to stay in motion. If tampered with, they can spin out of control. Marcel and Kyle are in love at first sight, and even though they can’t legally marry, they will find a way to make it work. French Marcel marries their lesbian friend Sarah so he can stay in the USA with Kyle. Together they can overcome any obstacle, hurdle any barrier. Together they cannot be stopped. Enter Kyle’s sister April, a former prostitute. She needs a place to crash, but for how long? Taking a quick dislike to Marcel, April methodically drips poison into their happiness. But where Marcel sees a conniving woman with a not-so-hidden agenda, Kyle only sees his sister — in need. And how do you choose between family and the love of your life? Why should you have to? Love isn’t pure after it’s been tainted. Our perfect couple falls headlong into possessiveness, jealousy and rage, trapped in the tangled emotions found in that space between love and goodbye. Just how far will one of them go to put a stop to the madness? Not rated. At Starz. — Denver Film Society
Bigger Than Life (1956)
“Roid rage” was not yet part of the vernacular when director Nicholas Ray (of Rebel Without a Cause fame) made this feature, based on a true medical-mystery story about a man who experiences wild mood swings after becoming dependent on cortisone, the experimental cure for his heart malady. James Mason’s startling, malevolant portrayal of an everyman’s Jekyll-and-Hyde dissolution was further elevated by Ray’s use of the new Cinescope widescreen technology. Not rated. At International Film Series. — IFS
Che
Steven Soderbergh’s two-part Che is a methodical if coolly romantic portrait of the most familiar 1960s T-shirt icon outside the peace symbol. Though not without its faults, this is Soderbergh’s most interesting film in years, defiantly eccentric and absorbing at its best. Both parts focus obsessively on guerrilla strategy and grassroots process. You don’t learn much about Ernesto “Che” Guevara, played by Benicio Del Toro, except how he may have interacted with his fellow rebels while struggling toward revolution. No MPAA rating (intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content). At Starz. — Michael Phillips
The Class
This fantastic film takes place in a working-class, multi-ethnic Parisian middle school, where an unruly world of conflict, frustration and joy comes to life. Francois Begaudeau plays a version of himself; he taught in a Paris middle school and wrote a book about it, and The Class distills that book into a year in the life of a teacher and his combative, highly stimulating students. A documentary approach is the key to the film’s success, with real students playing characters, some based on themselves, some not. In French, with English subtitles. Rated PG-13 (language). At Colony Square. — Michael Phillips
Crips and Bloods: Made in America
In Crips and Bloods: Made In America, renowned documentarian Stacy Peralta (Dogtown and Z Boys, Riding Giants) examines the story of South Los Angeles and the gangs that inhabit it. Blending gripping archival footage and photos with in-depth interviews of current and former gang members, educators, historians, family members and experts, Peralta brings his trademark dynamic visual style and story-telling ability to this often-ignored chapter of America’s history. Hard-hitting, yet ultimately hopeful, Crips and Bloods: Made In America not only documents the emergence of the Bloods and the Crips and their growth beyond the borders of South Central, but also offers insight as to how this ongoing tragedy might be resolved. Produced by NBA superstar Baron Davis and narrated by Academy Award-winning actor, Forest Whitaker. Not rated. At Starz. — Denver Film Society
Duplicity
Last seen together in Closer, Julia Roberts and Clive Owen play dueling corporate spies caught up in a cross/double-cross plot that starts coiling around itself like a snake. And, of course, there’s time for a little romance between the two stars. Duplicity is pure artifice, without any moral reckoning or higher intentions. Mainly it’s a classy excuse to hang out with Roberts and Owen and their wardrobes for a couple of hours. Rated PG-13 (language and some sexual content). At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square. — Michael Phillips
Fast & Furious
See full screen review on page 61. Rated PG-13. At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square.
Harvard Beats Yale
An extraordinary retelling of one of the most famous college football games in history, filmmaker Kevin Rafferty’s (The Atomic Café) documentary combines rare footage of the wildly unpredictable 1968 game with unguarded, politically charged recollections from the original players. The two squads, both of which entered the contest undefeated, included a Vietnam vet, as well as members of both paramilitary and antiwar groups; at Harvard, the team also included actor Tommy Lee Jones (who reminisces about his roommate Al Gore), while Yale’s star quarterback Brian Dowling became the inspiration for B.D., the jock character in Garry Trudeau’s “Doonesbury” comic strip. As Jones puts it, “ideas were flying around like bullets” — as becomes clear by the end of the film, this was a social experience that resonated well beyond one Saturday afternoon on the playing field. Not rated. At Starz. — Denver Film Society
The Haunting in Connecticut
There’s not much wrong with the house in this movie that a little WD-40 couldn’t cure. Everything creaks, including the dialogue. This so-so horror flick, supposedly based on a true story, bumps along from low-grade scare to scare, and it’s not lousy, mainly because Virginia Madsen prevents it from being so. It offers the requisite “jump” bits, and director Peter Cornwell manages some evocatively grisly images of long-ago mortuary activity and necromancy and PG-13-level nastiness. Rated PG-13 (some intense sequences of terror and disturbing images). At Flatiron. — Michael Phillips
I Love You, Man
This minor but enjoyable entry in the boy-man comedy genre stars Paul Rudd as a heterosexual L.A. real estate agent engaged to be married but short on straight-up male companionship in general and a best man for his wedding in particular. Along comes a sometime investment whiz (Jason Segel) living the life of a Venice Beach slacker. How these two meet and bond leads to much engaging time-wasting. Rated R (pervasive language, including crude and sexual references). At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square. — Michael Phillips
Ink
As the light fades and the city goes to sleep, two forces emerge. They are invisible except for the power they exert over us in our sleep. These two groups battle for our souls in our dreams. Through good dreams one force supports our hopes and gives us strength. Through nightmares the other force leads us toward desperation.
In this high-concept visual thriller, part It’s a Wonderful Life and Sin City, John and his daughter Emma are thrust into a fantastical dreamworld battle between good and evil where the most precious elements — love, loss and redemption — are at stake. At Starz. — Denver Film Society
Knowing
Nicolas Cage plays a man privy to the details of upcoming disasters — when, where and how many people will die. Until it jumps the tracks into self-righteousness, Knowing can be as unnerving as the best episodes of The Twilight Zone. This slice of disaster porn dabbles in faith and doubt and has no patience for fence-sitters. And by the way, isn’t Cage due to make a high-quality film one of these days? Rated PG-13 (disaster sequences, disturbing images and brief strong language). At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square. — Christopher Borrelli
Monsters vs. Aliens
DreamWorks’ animated 3-D feature is blessed with a high-concept title and Seth Rogen’s serenely dense line readings in the role of a genetically altered tomato gone wrong. But much of the project went wrong somewhere, along with the tomato. The script piles on the mayhem and forgets the funny. To add insult to a paucity of jokes, the look of the picture is cold and oddly flat. This story of imprisoned monsters and rampaging aliens centers on a woman (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) who is creamed by a meteor that turns her into a giant. Rated PG (sci-fi action, some crude humor and mild language). At Flatiron, Century and Colony Square. — Michael Phillips
Pumping Iron (1977)
In 1972, 2009 Conference on World Affairs participant George Butler was given a photo assignment by Life magazine to cover the Mr. Universe Contest in Baghdad, Iraq. Intrigued by what he saw, Butler spent the next few years following the scene of this obscure sport, including a then-unknown Austrian named Arnold Schwartzenegger. Not rated. At Boulder Public Library. — BPL Film Program
Race to Witch Mountain
Benign yet assaultive PG mayhem — it’s a neat trick if you can pull it off. The Walt Disney Co., determined to remake every live-action feature in its canon, brings us a frenetic update of Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) in which Dwayne Johnson reunites with The Game Plan director Andy Fickman. The premise — alien kids with special powers try to get back home — echoes the original, but this hopped-up remake lays on the X-Files paranoia. The charismatic Johnson helps make it work. Rated PG (sequences of action and violence, frightening and dangerous situations, and some thematic elements). At Flatiron and Century. — Michael Phillips
The Reader
Kate Winslet stars in the film version of Bernhard Schlink’s 1995 novel about a 15-year-old West German boy who, in 1958, embarks on an affair with a 36-year-old trolley conductor with more on her mind, and in her past, than she admits. The novel was hugely popular as well as controversial worldwide and an Oprah’s Book Club selection besides. However, it needed a different set of interpreters to make any emotional sense of it on screen. Even in the scenes dominated by Winslet, you never quite believe the way anything unfolds. Rated R (some scenes of sexuality and nudity). At Chez Artiste. — Michael Phillips
Slumdog Millionaire
Slumdog Millionaire, winner of this year’s Academy Award for best picture and seven other Oscars, is a ruthlessly effective paean to destiny, leaving nothing to chance. Every arrow plucked from director Danny Boyle’s quiver takes aim at the same objective: to leave you exhausted but wowed. An 18-year-old (Dev Patel) in the former Bombay, India, is suspected of cheating his way to national fame on the Hindi version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? Rated R (some violence, disturbing images and some language). At Flatiron and Esquire. — Michael Phillips
Silent Light
The physical is rendered spiritually meaningful by the storytelling of director Carlos Reygadas in his drama about a rural man in northern Mexico. Chihuahua’s desolate spaces form the dramatic natural backdrop for the story of a Mennonite’s crisis of faith in his religion and himself after he commits one of the cardinal trespasses. Winner of the Jury Prize at Cannes in 2007. Not rated. At International Film Series. — IFS
Sunshine Cleaning
Amy Adams and Emily Blunt play sisters who start up an unlicensed crime-scene cleanup business. They’re haunted by the suicide death of their mother; for them the biohazard removal biz is a way of processing their grief, and bringing to survivors the comfort they themselves seek. Certain narrative events are more about dramatic convenience than the mess of real life. But it helps to have actresses as vibrant as Adams and Blunt around. Director Christine Jeffs loosens the plotting as best she can, letting the interactions breathe. Rated R (language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use). At Century, Colony Square and Mayan. — Michael Phillips
Taken
Liam Neeson plays a former CIA spook whose clandestine career bled into his home and led to a divorce. After sex traffickers kidnap his daughter in Europe, our hero has 96 hours to save her, and he wastes no time karate-chopping his way through every mime and baguette peddler in France. The movie overheats quickly, but Neeson and the filmmakers manage to make the Charles Bronson-style simplicity work. Rated PG-13 (intense sequences of violence, disturbing thematic material, sexual content, some drug references and language). At Flatiron. — Christopher Borrelli
Videodrome (1983)
Can visual images have a viral impact that transform us into monsters and, indeed, change the fabric of our society? It’s not such an outrageous premise when you consider that the Pentagon recently met with the producers of the hit show 24 to ask them to tone down the torture when they noticed that new recruits (and avid watchers of that show) had sadistic tendancies. Rated R. At International Film Series. — IFS
The Wrestler
This film spends 105 minutes grappling at the edge of camp, cheap laughs and cliches. Yet the way it’s handled by director Darren Aronofsky and especially by Mickey Rourke — who really should have gotten an Oscar for his portrayal of Randy “The Ram” Robinson, a steroid-addled sweetie in tights — it stays honest and keeps on fighting. An aging, down-on-his luck pro grappler, The Ram has heart problems, but The Wrestler does not. It’s sincere, violent, sentimental, predictable and extremely effective. Rated R (violence, sexuality/nudity, language and some drug use). At Boulder Theater. — Michael Phillips
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