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June 22, 2007
Golden Door
(out of four)
Virtually everything Americans know about Ellis Island they've learned from the movies, and virtually all those movies were American. Golden Door offers the other side of the story, the one that ends at Ellis Island instead of beginning there. This version tells of a family of Sicilian immigrants who aren't quite sure they want to become Americans — and a country that isn't sure it wants them either.
Hollywood's favorite Ellis Island myth is the one about families whose names were changed when they became citizens. No evidence of any such practice exists, but Golden Door raises a distressing variation on the same theme, as masses of tired, poor and huddled foreigners check their cultural identities like so much unwanted baggage at the gates. "Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" Lady Liberty cries in her poem, "The New Colossus."
Continue reading "Golden Door"
Posted by Peter Debruge at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
June 15, 2007
Day Watch
(out of four)
Like Russia's answer to The Matrix and Lord of the Rings trilogies, Day Watch offers the second chapter in an epic battle between the forces of Light and Dark, the result of which is a gaping gray area where nothing much makes sense. That's right in keeping with Timur Bekmambetov's original Night Watch, a contemporary vampire story that served as a jaw-dropping sampler reel for Russia's special effects houses, virtually all of which worked on the film.
Posted by Peter Debruge at 10:34 AM | Comments (0)
June 08, 2007
Surf's Up
(out of four)
Just when parents managed to calm their tap-dancing tots, along comes another animated penguin pic — this time featuring South Pole fowl who surf. Like last year's Happy Feet, Surf's Up tells the story of a cuddly outcast who dreams big, much to the consternation of his flock, only this time, the personal journey is captured in the form of a mockumentary, complete with virtual crew and "handheld" cameras. Every bit as entertaining as the early Christopher Guest efforts, Sony toon is well positioned to ride the wave of penguin popularity to success this summer.
Continue reading "Surf's Up" at Variety.com
Posted by Peter Debruge at 10:28 AM | Comments (0)
Hostel: Part II
(out of four)
Gorehound Eli Roth reasserts his position as leader of the "splat pack," an unofficial fraternity of directors dedicated to topping one another's stomach-churning antics, with Hostel: Part II. His ultra-grisly pics may be an acquired taste, but Roth seems more than happy to feed auds' appetites for hardcore horror, taking three European tourists on a detour through his Slovak killing factory. In this twist-filled sequel, the real shocker is just how smart and satisfying such degradation can be. There's no question Part II outgrosses the original Hostel in the blood-and-guts department, and savvy spin should do the same financially.
Continue reading "Hostel: Part II" at Variety.com
Posted by Peter Debruge at 10:22 AM | Comments (0)