AIRPLANE! (1980). Since 1977’s hilarious The Kentucky Fried Movie wasn’t a box office hit upon its original release (its reputation was made on the midnight movie circuit), this next picture by the comedy team of Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker was the one that basically rewrote the rules of screen comedy. It was the closest that cinema had ever seen to a live-action interpretation of Mad magazine, with its endless succession of movie parodies, puns and non sequiturs. The film’s blazing humor may have been tempered by endless attempts over the years to capitalize on its success (The Naked Gun being the best of the imitators), yet it retains its winning charm. Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty essay the leading roles as the passenger and flight attendant who must land a crippled aircraft after the pilots contract food poisoning, yet it’s the wily veterans — Leslie Nielsen, Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack and Peter Graves (“Have you ever seen a grown man naked?”) — who prove to be the MVPs. Airplane! has been reissued in a new DVD package subtitled “Don’t Call Me Shirley!” Edition; among the extras are audio commentary by Abrahams and the Zuckers, a trivia track, and deleted scenes.
Movie: Rating: ***
Extras: Rating: ***
THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN (2005). The most unexpected surprise of the summer, The 40-Year-Old Virgin mixes honest sentiment and raunchy humor in a manner that’s more satisfying than in just about any comparable modern comedy, including the recent smash Wedding Crashers — in fact, not since There’s Something About Mary has a movie combined these disparate elements so seamlessly. Displaying a spark of comic invention in small roles in Bewitched, Anchorman and Bruce Almighty, Steve Carell catches on fire here, playing a sympathetic character that he created with director Judd Apatow (both men are credited with the screenplay). Carell plays Andy, a man-child who sports an impressive collection of comic books and action figures, rides a bicycle to work every day, and never has even come close to knowing the joys of a relationship, let alone the attendant carnal pleasures. His three co-workers at the electronics store (Paul Rudd, Romany Malco and Seth Rogen) make it their mission in life to hook Andy up; he eventually bumps into a few prospects, the most promising being Trish (excellent Catherine Keener), a divorcee with three kids and a flailing Internet business. The 40-Year-Old Virgin runs almost a full two hours — even longer (by 17 minutes) on the unrated DVD cut — and normally, that’s a suicidal length for a comedy of this sort. But in this case, Carell and Apatow use the time wisely, developing the Andy-Trish romance at a believable clip and also turning Andy’s three buddies into fully formed characters rather than the one-note sidekicks we’re accustomed to seeing. DVD extras include audio commentary by various cast and crew members, a gag reel and behind-the-scenes featurettes.
Movie: Rating: *** 1/2
Extras: Rating: ***
MR. & MRS. SMITH (2005). Based on the countless scenes in which Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie strip down to their undergarments, it’s clear that there isn’t an ounce of flab on either of those beautiful bodies — it’s just too bad the same can’t be said about the film itself. Brad and Angelina make a hot couple in this summer smash, and they gleefully throw themselves into this chaotic action flick in which the sharp dialogue too often gets drowned out by the incessant explosions and automatic weapon fire. The People Magazine perennials play John and Jane Smith, a suburban couple who have grown bored with each other over the six years they’ve been married. But what they don’t realize is that they’re both skilled assassins working for competing agencies; once this tidbit of information gets out, each is suddenly forced to try to kill the other. Mr. and Mrs. Smith begins promisingly, with Simon Kinberg contributing a script that’s full of wry observations about the level of secrecy that’s inherent in most marriages, and how the stakes might be raised exponentially when the spousal subterfuge occurs between people who kill for a living. But the movie’s pacing is damaged by Doug Liman’s occasionally lackadaisical direction, and once the emphasis shifts from the characters to the hardware they employ, it becomes just another noisy spectacle that cops out with a crowd-friendly ending instead of the more downbeat finale that would logically follow the climactic set piece. DVD extras include audio commentary by Liman, Kinberg and other crew members, three deleted scenes and trailers.
Movie: Rating: ** 1/2
Extras: Rating: **
MUST LOVE DOGS (2005). Many of the elements that have made the contemporary romantic comedy such a grueling (and formulaic) experience are present in Must Love Dogs, and yet the movie nonetheless will work for those willing to surrender themselves to its dreamy passion. The film’s success begins and ends with its leading players, and yet it’s important not to undervalue director Gary David Goldberg’s script (adapted from Claire Cook’s novel), which adds some interesting quirks to a familiar framework. Diane Lane plays a recent divorcee who takes a chance on meeting single men who contact her through an Internet dating service, while John Cusack co-stars as one of her prospective suitors. Over the course of the film, they date and dally with other people, yet they find themselves repeatedly drawn to each other. Elizabeth Perkins (as Sarah’s sarcastic sister), Christopher Plummer (as their suave dad) and especially Stockard Channing (as the dad’s girlfriend) excel in key roles, yet the movie firmly belongs to its stars: Lane as a warm and empathic woman who’s generous to a fault and Cusack as a sensitive guy who watches Dr. Zhivago incessantly. You either buy into this fantasy or you don’t — me, I happily wallowed in it. DVD extras include additional scenes and a gag reel.
Movie: Rating: ***
Extras: Rating: **
This article appears in Dec 21-27, 2005.
