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NEW RELEASES

CHARLOTTE FILM SOCIETY Movies begin this Friday at the Manor and continue the following Friday at Movies at Birkdale. Call 704-414-2355 for details.

* CRIMSON GOLD Working from a script by internationally renowned director Abbas Kiarostami, Jafar Panahi (whose previous film The Circle was a past CFS offering) has made a movie that's remarkably incisive in its examination of the gulf between the haves and the have-nots. What's startling about this feature (loosely based on a true story) is its Iranian setting, bringing a global perspective to a problem that often feels like it's the exclusive property of the United States. Hussein (Hossain Emadeddin) is a portly pizza delivery guy who's barely making ends meet, yet because his job takes him into homes and neighborhoods far above his social standing, he gets to witness firsthand how the other half lives. Smacked at every turn by the excesses of the upper class -- and made to feel inferior by snooty jewelry store employees and even the cops -- Hussein eventually decides to commit an act that he hopes will make his life more comfortable. This criminal undertaking (and the fates of all involved) is revealed within the first 10 minutes of the movie; the rest of the time is spent detailing the petty humiliations and daily mundanities that propelled Hussein to make this ill-advised lunge for a piece of the pie. Crimson Gold may not seem especially remarkable as it unfolds, but its cumulative power will smack viewers with all the force of a rattlesnake to the cheek. 1/2

* Also: A major award winner in Israel, BROKEN WINGS () tells the story of an overworked widow and her equally put-upon teenage daughter, both of whom are doing their best to keep the family together. The latest from director Hector Babenco (Kiss of the Spider Woman), CARANDIRU (1/2) relates the true tale of a Brazilian prison known for its squalid conditions; this is a movie where the parts are better than the whole, with some gripping sequences set inside the prison walls forced to make room for lackluster flashbacks showing how the inmates landed in jail in the first place. And THE FIVE OBSTRUCTIONS () is another snatch of innovation from Dogville director Lars von Trier; here, the controversial control freak convinces reclusive Jorgen Leth to remake his own 1967 short film The Perfect Human five times, on each occasion guided by restrictions that von Trier himself imposes. It's pretentious as hell and probably shouldn't work, but damn if the experiments didn't keep me watching.

CURRENT RELEASES

ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY Aimed squarely at the open-mouth-breathers who turned Dumb and Dumber and Big Daddy into hits, Anchorman is the movie as litmus test -- specifically, how much Will Ferrell is too much Will Ferrell? As a chauvinistic news anchor in 1970s San Diego, Ferrell gets to wear ugly clothes, make silly faces, and lust after the ladies, but unless you hold the opinion that the actor is a comic genius worthy of Chaplin or Tati comparisons, then this sort of obnoxious oafishness gets stale quickly. There are a handful of inspired moments, but these clever bits seem almost accidental in the midst of so much kitsch. 1/2

BEFORE SUNSET Richard Linklater's 1995 Before Sunrise was about two college-age kids who meet in Vienna, spend the night talking (and loving), and then go their separate ways. Before Sunset continues their story: Unfolding in real minutes (about 80 of them), this finds American Jesse (Ethan Hawke), now an author, and French Celine (Julie Delpy), an environmental activist, crossing paths in Paris nine years later. Superior to its predecessor in every way, this lovely film does an exemplary job of conveying the manner in which the freedom and naivety of youth inevitably fall by the wayside, leaving only cherished memories, present regrets, and the rigor mortis of a future that can only be avoided by those willing to take risks. Hawke and Delpy have never been better, and the ending is letter-perfect. 1/2

THE BOURNE SUPREMACY Taken together, both Bourne films feel like consecutive episodes of a mildly entertaining television drama that can't touch Alias in its attempts at trickery and, more importantly, character development. Here, Matt Damon's ex-CIA assassin Jason Bourne is even more tight-lipped than before; without girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente, former co-star reduced to cameo player) to bounce off, he's a rather one-dimensional figure, going through the motions as he tries to find out who's framing him for murder. The good stuff mostly comes during the first half; as the film progresses, the mystery slackens rather than deepens, and the movie culminates with a sloppily edited car chase that goes on for so long that I had to be reminded: Was Matt Damon playing Jason Bourne or Sheriff Buford T. Justice? 1/2

CATWOMAN Only time will tell if this dud will become a camp classic on the order of Myra Breckinridge or Plan 9 From Outer Space, but for now, it will have to content itself with being the best bad movie of the summer. Halle Berry struggles gamely as a mousy murder victim who's resurrected as Catwoman, a leather-clad, whip-wielding dominatrix who looks like the star attraction on an S&M website. The early sequences are deadly dull, but once Berry suits up, the movie enters MST3K territory and never looks back. Ultimately, it's impossible to ascertain what's most laughable: the chintzy effects, the leaden dialogue, or villainess Sharon Stone's attempts to out-vamp Faye Dunaway's similar turn in Supergirl. In any event, cat lovers will be horrified by this film -- does PETA handle defamation suits?

THE DOOR IN THE FLOOR Based on a sizable chunk of John Irving's A Widow for One Year, this outwardly melancholy but inwardly hopeful movie stars Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger as children's book author Ted Cole and his wife Marion, silently suffering parents who, years later, are still unable to cope with the deaths of their two teenage sons. Their grief is impacted by the arrival of Eddie (Jon Foster), a young man who's been hired for the summer to apprentice under Ted but who ends up spending more time in the sack with Marion. The "coming of age" angle involving Eddie is the weakest part of the story; far more potent are the sequences in which Bridges (terrific), Basinger (touching) and/or young Elle Fanning (as their daughter) illustrate the difficulties in holding together a family when obligations are in arrears.

HAROLD AND KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE Harold and Maude Go to White Castle might have been a better bet, but this is nevertheless a gross-out comedy with a difference -- it tosses some sharp social satire into the usual mix of amiable dopeheads, repulsive rednecks and homosexual bit players. And instead of making its lead characters typical morons like Bill and Ted, this gives us two smart kids in mild-mannered Korean-American Harold (John Cho) and rebellious Indian-American Kumar (Kal Penn). The plot is lifted from the Cheech and Chong playbook, as Harold and Kumar spend a Friday night getting high and then deciding their munchies can only be satisfied by White Castle burgers. The crass humor only works sporadically, but the movie's knowing digs at the casual racism witnessed by the pair provide it with a whiff of added subtext. 1/2

I, ROBOT "Inspired" by Isaac Asimov's book, this delivers the goods as a zippy piece of sci-fi pulp. Will Smith stars as Del Spooner, a detective in 2035 Chicago who's convinced that a scientist has been murdered by one of his own robot creations. Only thing is, robots are programmed not to harm humans -- ever -- and Spooner's suspicions are dismissed as prejudice and paranoia. This recalls a couple dozen futuristic flicks from our collective past (Blade Runner, Minority Report, you name it), but director Alex Proyas (The Crow) still manages to give the film a distinctive look. And even if Asimov's deep delving into the complexities and contradictions inherent in these artificial beings is only given lip service, the movie works as a compelling murder-mystery. And the robots are out of this world.

LITTLE BLACK BOOK Brittany Murphy trots out so many adorable tics during the course of this film that she ends up making Meg Ryan in Sleepless In Seattle seem as dour as Anne Ramsey in Throw Momma From the Train. Better to focus on the excellent performances by Holly Hunter and Julianne Nicholson, the primary reasons that this mean-spirited comedy can be tolerated at all. That the film centers around one of those reprehensible trash-talk TV shows of the "My grandmother is a hooker" variety immediately signals the sort of crowd this is targeting -- it's feeble stuff, with Murphy as a TV show producer whose peek at her boyfriend's Palm leads her to suspect he might be cheating on her. Hunter is stellar as usual, while Nicholson almost humanizes this otherwise nasty tale.

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE Granted, this isn't a masterpiece like the '62 edition, which still reigns as one of the finest thrillers ever made. Yet in most other respects, this is that rare remake that paves its own way without exploiting or cheapening its predecessor. No longer a Cold War product, this finds the action updated, with Denzel Washington as an army officer who realizes that a former comrade (Liev Schreiber), now a politician running for his party's Vice Presidential slot, might be the unwitting pawn of a major corporation (Manchurian Global) that's trying to seize control of the country. The film's topicality can't hurt -- this could easily have been called The Halliburton Candidate -- yet director Jonathan Demme's principal goal is to produce a taut, efficient thriller. On that score, he succeeds.

METALLICA: SOME KIND OF MONSTER Documentarians Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky (Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills) filmed hundreds of hours of footage in an attempt to piece together a movie about Metallica, the world's most successful heavy metal band. But rather than just serving as a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the group's "comeback" album St. Anger, the piece is instead a captivating exploration of how the members of the band -- lead singer James Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich, guitarist Kirk Hammett and producer (and fill-in bassist) Bob Rock -- dealt with internal bickering and outside conflicts on their way to producing a hit album. The Napster controversy is given short shrift, but in most other ways, the picture allows us exposure to musicians in a manner that's raw and real.

SPIDER-MAN 2 It was a given that the long-awaited Spider-Man movie, released in 2002 after a 39-year gestation period on the comic book page, would make millions even if its hero had been played by John Travolta sporting his Battlefield Earth dreadlocks. But director Sam Raimi's surefooted adaptation turned out to be a phenomenal success with both audiences and critics, thereby raising the bar for its sequel to a stratospheric level; luckily, they don't screw it up. S-M 2 isn't as accomplished -- or even as enjoyable -- a movie as its predecessor, but it's a more ambitious one, with Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) coping with personal problems while the villainous Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina) tears up the town. Despite a few flaws, this offers enough thrills and humor to qualify as sparkling summer entertainment.

THUNDERBIRDS For those not into trivial pursuit, Thunderbirds was a British TV series from the 60s in which the characters were all played by marionettes. This pointless update replaces the wooden dummies with human actors, though one would scarcely notice the difference. The show focused on billionaire astronaut Jeff Tracy and his sons, constantly saving the world with the help of their nifty spaceships and submarines. Here, Jeff (Bill Paxton) and the boys are largely tossed aside -- with the focus shifting to the younger cast members, this qualifies as nothing more than a blatant Spy Kids rip-off. It's troubling that the villains are all ethnic or ugly, but maybe I'm reading too much into a film that, by every other indication, contains the depth of a petri dish that's already filled to the rim.

THE VILLAGE There's a reason Alfred Hitchcock didn't write the vast majority of his movies: He knew his forte was directing, and he left the scribbling to others. M. Night Shyamalan would do well to learn from The Master. As a director, he has a distinct visual style, and this thriller about a town whose surrounding woods are filled with monsters includes scenes that shimmer with an eerie beauty. But as a writer, he's becoming a parody of himself: Eager to top the climactic twist of The Sixth Sense, he has masterminded three subsequent movies in which the "gotcha!" endings seem to be the only reason for their existence. This one isn't really worse than Unbreakable or the silly Signs, but Shyamalan's carny act already feels like it's decades old -- it's a shame, because some good ideas are squandered in a muddled piece that ends up duping itself.

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