The Norwalk Web Site, Norwalk, CT - Movie Reviews


	Norwalk hosts 3 movie theaters in town - the Sono Regent 8 (tickets and showtimes), Royale 6 (tickets and showtimes) and Garden Cinema, along with the Maritime Aquarium's IMAX theater, and there are a number of other theaters within a 20 minute drive, including theaters in Stamford, New Canaan, Wilton, Bridgeport and Fairfield. The Norwalk Web Site is proud to present "Shadow Reviews", Robert Sodaro's column of selected movie reviews. Please let us know what you think, and if the reviews are helpful. We look forward to hearing from you. Current Reviews: Iron Man 2 Sex and the City 2 The A-Team Get Him to the Greek The Karate Kid Splice Twilight Grown Ups Iron Man 2 Rated PG-13 (125 Minutes) Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Paul Bettany, Samuel L. Jackson, Sam Rockwell Directed by: Jon Favreau Well, summer blockbuster, action/adventure funnybook-to-film season is here, Iron Man 2 blew into theaters this past weekend, and if initial reaction to this gleaming superhero franchise holds, it will become the first big hit of the season. To be sure, the path of this particular flick is no surprise, still, that doesn't diminish the edge-of-your-seats thrills and action that rock this film from beginning to end. It is some six months after Tony Stark has gone toe-to-toe with Iron Monger and declared himself to the world to be Iron Man. This film actually begins with a flashback of Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), son of Anton Vanko (Yevgeni Lazarev), who assisted Tony's dad, Howard (John Slattery) in the creation of the ARC-tech that powers Tony's heart and the Iron Man suit). The elder Vanko always blamed the elder Stark for his misfortune and ultimate deportation from the US back to Russia, and now his son wants to extract vengeance upon the son of his father's ghosts. As far as Tony is concerned he is still living on the high that only a brilliant, playboy, multi-billionaire industrialist, who is also an Iron-clad superhero can. Still, not everything is coming up roses for our protagonist; apparently the material that is powering his heart is slowly killing him, a situation that he hasn't shared with any of his colleges, including his secretary, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). He is not only giving away portions of his vast wealth and extensive holdings, but Stark Enterprises is no longer manufacturing weapons, so Tony has kicked off a year-long expo to develop new tech to improve the world. As it turns out, Tony is just following in the steps of his dad - who we get to meet in an old promotional footage (where he is looking like a cross between Walt Disney and Howard Hughes), promoting his vision of Futureworld - even as Tony himself is still torn between his hedonistic, playboy self, and his altruistic side as he attempts to solve the problem of his blood's dangerously elevating toxicity. Still, the real action starts when Vanko Jr. (powered up as Whiplash), dramatically inserts himself into the Monaco race in which Tony has replaced his own driver so that he can drive the formula One car. Vanko spectacularly slices up several cars only to be stopped by a powered up Iron Man who takes him down in a wicked-cool Transformer-like armor that pops up out of Tony's briefcase. Vanko is then rescued from prison by Justin Hammer (a Stark-wannabe munitions maker), who offers Vanko access to his own wealth and tech, only to have Vanko - but that would be, you know, telling. Suffice it to say that this installment of the Iron Man film mythos is every bit as exciting and entertaining as was the first installment. The flick is aided and abetted by the return appearance of Sam Jackson as Col. Nick Fury, head of SHIELD, as well as the introduction of Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanov, the Black Widow - a sexy and very capable SHIELD operative. Plus, we'd be remiss if we didn't tell you that you once again need to sit through all of the credits (yes, all of them), to catch a glimpse of the next "Easter Egg" as Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) heads into the American SouthWest to discover what can only be. Top Sex and the City 2 Rated R (147 Minutes) Starring: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon, Chris Noth Directed by: Michael Patrick King There’s an old joke about a women’s store where they could go and buy the man of their dreams. It was five floors, each with an increasing level of desirable man. However, the rule was that you could always go higher; to "pick a better man" as it were, but you couldn’t return to a lower floor. The first floor had guys who were good-looking, but can’t commit, the second floor has good-looking guys who commit, but can’t get a job. Floor three has good-looking guys who commit, but can’t hold a job. The fourth floor has good-looking guys who commit, and are financially well-off. Women who went to the store would get to the fourth floor, and figure that the men on floor #5 were even better, only when they got there they found a sign stating that there were no men on Floor Five, and that floor was just there to prove that women were never satisfied. Interestingly enough, nowhere is this bit of irony more painfully evident than in Sex and the City 2, a movie that is so staggeringly out of tune with contemporary mores and standards that this over-blown throwback to a time that only existed on TV appears as if assembled in some self-indulgent, myopic alternate universe. Truthfully, this reviewer never saw the TV show; we did however watch the first film and felt that that it was also an overblown travesty that had no basis in any form of reality. At the conclusion of that initial film, the gals all apparently got what they each had been chasing throughout the course of the series. Carrie (Parker) married her long-time beau, Big (Noth), Miranda (Nixon) and Charlotte (Davis) both end up married with children, and Samantha (Cattrall) becomes the high-powered agent she always wanted to be. However, with the opening of the second film (after the garishly flamboyant gay wedding that includes a performance by Liza Minnelli), the sequel finds them all unhappy with the "sameness" of their lives. From the outside looking in, it is unconscionable to think how these extremely privileged women, who have so much, can be depressed with their lot in life. And yet they are, proving the truth of the story at the beginning of this review. Oh yeah, the rest of that story is that a "man’s" store opened across the street from the woman’s store. The first floor offered up women who drank beer and put out. No man ever went past the first floor. Skip this film and take in something clever like The Losers. Top The A-Team Rated PG-13 (117 Minutes) Starring: Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, Liam Neeson, Sharlto Copley, Patrick Wilson Directed by: John Singleton OK, I’m willing to admit that my initial position was that the film A-Team was going to suck bigtime. I was wrong (and I’m big enough to admit it). However, after viewing this film, I‘m prepared to say that not only was this film quite good, but that it was actually better than both The Losers, and the original A-Team TV show. Yeah, that’s right, I said it. It’s better than the original A-Team TV show. I say that because, well, the TV show was full of all the ‘80s excess that could be shoe-horned into a one-hour TV show. As you recall, the show followed the daring exploits of a colorful team of former Special Forces soldiers who were set up for a crime they didn’t commit. Going "rogue", they utilize their unique talents to try and clear their names and find the true culprit behind the crime that they were accused of. So, if you, like me, are thinking that this sounds suspiciously like the set-up for The Losers, then you have just won yourself a kewpie doll, because, yeah, it is exactly the same film, only in this film, the actors aren’t smirking their way through their performances because what is actually happening on-screen has no real value (as in the aptly-titled Losers). Here, we see a group of Special-Forces Rangers meet — under less than auspicious circumstances — then actually run the op that gets them busted into federal prisons, then break out and attempt to clear themselves of the bogus charges. To be sure, there is an air of lightheartedness to the whole thing, but there is none of the mugging for the camera that is so rampant in Losers. Here you actually believe that the lives of these men are on the line. The A-Team TV show also had an air of silliness to it, but again, that is not the case here. Not only do we (or at least this reviewer) finally learn "Face’s" (Cooper) real name (Lt. Templeton 'Faceman' Peck) which finally makes sense to me, but we also learn what the "B.A." in B.A. Baracus stands for, plus B.A.’s character (Quinton "Rampage" Jackson) was nowhere near the boisterous cartoon character as played by Mr. T (and we finally learn why he was so afraid of flying). Needless to say, if you are a fan of the TV show (or were massively disappointed by Losers), then you’ll really enjoy this flick. Top Get Him to the Greek Rated R (109 Minutes) Starring: Jonah Hill, Russell Brand, Elisabeth Moss, Rose Byrne, Colm Meaney Directed by: Nicholas Stoller If you are up for a film that combines the best elements from The Hangover, This is Spinal Tap and Superbad, then this is the uproariously entertaining flick for you. The premise is simplicity itself; music geek and all-round nebbish Aaron Greenberg (Hill) is married to a woman whom he loves and adores, and is working at his wet-dream job, a music promoter for a happening LA record label, and he has been handed a career-making assignment. He has been instructed to fly to London in order to escort a rock god to L.A.’s Greek Theatre for the first-stop on a $100-million tour. The only problem, the rock-god in question, Aldous Snow (Brand), is years past his prime, and his last album - African Child - was universally panned and was a crashing disaster that virtually ended his (up to then) rather brilliant career. Still, Aaron is a huge fan of Aldous, and is willing to make a go at it, just to bring his musical hero back into the limelight. The real problem is that epitome of rock-star over-indulgence (picture all surviving Rolling Stones plus Keith Moon, and the fictional Spinal Tap all rolled into one – on steroids. Needless to say, Aaron is something of a virgin in this area, and just well might be out-matched, in this paring, but Aaron, will do whatever he can to get Aldous to the Greek. OK, so that’s the set-up, but it is the delivery that really makes this classic screwball farce truly work. Brand (who was irritating in Forgetting Sara Marshall), delivers a pluperfect performance as the addle-brained British rocker who has spent one too many seasons with a spoon up his nose and his head up his own arse (the opening bit listening to him explain about African Child is wet-your-pants funny). Meanwhile, Aaron is (despite his size and scruffy beard) a cute, cuddly teddy bear, who is beyond naïve. In fact, in the world of party ‘til you drop, he is as much of a novice as Aldous parties like he invented the sport. The two of them together make a most excellent buddy team, which will keep you laughing and entertained all the way through the film. Top The Karate Kid Rated PG (140 Minutes) Starring: Jackie Chan, Jaden Smith, Taraji P. Henson Directed by: Harald Zwart In 1984 we met Daniel Larusso (Ralph Macchio), and his single mom, Lucille (Randee Heller), who relocated to California from the Midwest only to discover Martial Art bullies, the ever lovely Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue) and the ever inscrutable Mr. Kesuke Miyagi (Pat Morita). Well, it is just over a quarter century later and (courtesy of Will Smith’s personal fortune) this classic film has been given a new lease on life, and no, it is not yet another sequel to this flick, but a remake from the ground up. It is 26 years later, and we get to do it all over again, only this time, instead of white-bread middle-American High-schooler heading to Cali, we have a 12-year-old African American from Detroit named Dre Parker (Smith), and his single mom (Taraji P. Henson). Now 12-year-old Dre could've been the most popular kid in Detroit, but his mother's latest career move has landed him in China. Talk about your fish out of water. Needless to say Dre immediately falls for a cute gal he meets in the park (who winds up being one of his classmates Mei Ying - and of course the feeling is mutual - but cultural differences make such a friendship all but impossible. Even worse, Dre's very obvious feelings make an enemy of the class bully, and kung fu prodigy, Cheng. With but a single Occidental friend in a very strange land, Dre has nowhere to turn. Eventually he makes a connection to his building’s maintenance man, Mr. Han, (Chan) who is secretly a master of kung fu and becomes persuaded to teach young Dre. As their lessons progress, Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not so much about punches and parries, but maturity and calm. Eventually, Dre realizes that facing down the bullies will be the fight of his life. What makes this film work so well (on some levels, better than the original) is that Dre is so completely out of his element, and not just a kid transplanted from the Midwest, but across the world. The film does hit on all cylinders and connects with the audience, even though it does forego the classic "Wax on/Wax off" mantra. Still all of the principals are given deeper stories and character motivations than in the original, which only serves to deepen the experience of this wonderful film. Top Splice Rated R (104 Minutes) Starring: Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley, David Hewlett, Delphine Chanéac Directed by: Vincenzo Natali Clive and Elsa are both superstar genetic engineers doing bleeding-edge work specializing in splicing DNA from different animals together in order to create incredible hybrids that can then be harvested for their incredibly high-end pharmaceutical dollar value. Now they're right at the precipice of a new discovery, and with the corporate suits breathing down their necks to come up with that new "it" drug, they risk it all and choose to utilize human DNA in a hybrid that will risk their professional careers, but could just very well revolutionize all science and medicine in the process. Unfortunately, the company funding their research not only forbids it but shuts down their research. Clive and Elsa secretly take their boldest experimentation underground - risking their careers by pushing the boundaries of science to serve their own curiosity and ambition. The result of this malfeasance of science is Dren, an amazing, strangely beautiful creature of uncommon intelligence and an array of unexpected physical developments. Initially, Dren exceeds their wildest expectations, however, as she grows and learns - at an accelerated rate - her very existence begins to threaten to become their worst nightmare. Well, that is the official line on this one-note knock off of Species (a better-made and, quite frankly, more plausible flick). This very unbelievable hack-job follows right in the footsteps of the previously-mentioned Species, but never quite rises to the level of actually interesting. Anyway, if you did have a hankering to see this flick, resist it, and rent Species instead. Top Twilight Rated PG-13 (120 Minutes) Starring: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Billy Burke, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser Directed by: Catherine Hardwick OK, I don't have to tell you that Twilight is the hottest film series on the planet amongst teen aged girls and their dreamy-eyed mothers. Too bad it is also a poorly-written, badly-acted, piece of fluff that violates it's very own premises, that is to say, it quite simply does not take itself seriously. The actors all practice what I like to call the David Carusso style of acting, that is to say, they don't deliver their lines, they don't emote or act them (Hell, it is pretty clear that they don't even believe their lines). What they do is strike a pose, and pontificate them. Needless to say, they are simply not as interesting to watch, or as multi-faceted as Carusso. Hence, they are merely cardboard cutouts, not worthy of our attention. Having said all of that, this film actually is better than its two predecessors, because in this film the primary characters are actually given some (albeit shallow) depths of character, some thin sliver of background onto which they can pin their performance, and our potential suspension of belief. Also working for this film are a number of better action sequences with wolves, vampires and, well, bad vampires who have come to town stalking Bella (what with teen vampires and werewolves pining over this girl, and "bad" vampires looking to kill her, you have to wonder what all the hubbub is, as she is hardly more than a cipher on-screen). Needless to say, as this reviewer's son commented, calling this film "better" is sort of like saying Darfur isn't quite as bad as the Holocaust. Still, in spite of all the heavy breathing and mythic creatures of the night, the film is still paper thin, as the actors seem to still squander the story with their lackluster performance. Even though they are a month away from graduation, no one seems to attend school; the pretty-boy male werewolves never wear shirts (and in one humorous moment are called on it by Edward). Also, while the action sequences do raise the pulse rate of the film, whenever a vampire dies, they unrealistically are turned into a lifeless mannequin (perhaps so as not to offend the delicate sensibilities of the teeny girls who are attracted to this sort of sappy pap). So, in spite of the actual forward movement of this film, the deeper insights into the characters, and yes, even the action sequences, none of the characters in this film show any life. They are all heavy breathing lifeless zombies who shuffle through their meaningless lives attempting to find meaning, and searching for some sort of motivation to prove that they deserve our attention, and finding none, simply shuffle forward through to the next useless and meaningless thing in some vain hope for someone to find something interesting about them. Truly, watching a chess game would be not only more interesting, but more exciting by far. Top Grown Ups Rated PG-13 (102 Minutes) Starring: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider, David Spade Directed by: Dennis Dugan In grade school, Lenny Feder (Sandler), Eric Lamonsoff (James), Kurt McKenzie (Rock),Marcus Higgins (Spade), and Rob Hilliard (Schneider) all played basketball together. They were the only team that ever won a State Championship for their school. It is now some 30-odd years later, and they are getting together at the funeral of their beloved coach. From there they determine to spend the weekend together, with their wives and children. Needless to say that not only does the weekend go somewhat differently than they way they thought it would go, but the adults all learn something about life, and their kids (all dysfunctional in some fashion or other) also learn what it is like to be a part of something larger than themselves. To be sure, an Adam Sandler film is very often very much like most other Adam Sandler films, and this one is (mostly) no exception, with Sandler getting all of his friends roles. Still, this one was entertaining enough, with just enough silliness, balanced with the appropriate amount of "Family Entertainment Value" to make it worth going with your own family. Not the best, nor the worst, but just right for a fun night out. Top All Shadow movie reviews are copyright © 2010 Freelance Ink, All rights reserved. Reviews cannot be reprinted without specific, written permission from the author. Robert J. Sodaro has been writing professionally for over 20 years. During that time, his movie reviews and articles have appeared in numerous publications; currently his reviews appear on the Web here, at Popthought.com, and in print in MoreSugar. The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Norwalk Web Site.