War of the Worlds (2005)
Steven Spielberg tackles a remake of the 1953 George Pal classic with Tom Cruise as Ray Ferrier, a divorced father who has trouble communicating with his children, Robbie (Justin Chatwin) and Rachel (Dakota Fanning from Hide and Seek, and The Cat in the Hat), but an invasion from another planet is the type of thing that brings people together. It appears that aliens had placed their ships under the earth millions of years ago in preparation for this assault. Now they simply need to enter their ships (which they do through lightning bolts from weather effects reminiscent of Independence Day), fire up their engines and emerge from beneath the ground. I will admit there was some initial disappointment when I realized that this version wasn't so much about the war of the worlds, but more about how the alien invasion affects people. So expect more drama here than in something like Independence Day where action was more the rule. But now that I know what to expect, I admire Spielberg's rendition. Ray Ferrier is not a scientist or a jet pilot; he's a dock worker from Brooklyn with probably no more than a high school education; although he does know a little bit about cars. Even his fleeting moment as a hero is more an accident than a plan. Spielberg lets us watch the invasion from an ordinary guy's point of view and that's what works. Don't worry, the kid in you will see some great effects as the aliens march along in their tripod walkers in rows of four and five pulverizing everything and everyone in their way. We also get some close-up shots of people getting pulverized, which only leaves their shredded clothing floating in the air where they once stood. This effect is carried throughout the film, each time seeming even more dramatic as it appears the human race will surely lose this war. One dramatic effect I need to mention, because it happens so fast, is when a crowd is waiting at a railroad crossing for a train to pass. When it does, every compartment in every car is engulfed in flames. Quite terrifying. For part of the film, Ray hooks up with a survivalist (Tim Robbins) who wants to fight the aliens, but Ray isn't a hero nor does he want to be. His goal is to protect his family. As a result, the interaction between these two characters is also not the standard Hollywood scenario, and again that makes for some interesting viewing. One other thing Spielberg does that I don't recall the 1953 version doing is show how the aliens try to make Earth more like their home planet by farming with a rather unique fertilizer. My only complaint is the whole story seems to take place in just a few days and I wish it would have spanned more time. You H. G. Wells fans know how the aliens are defeated, and for that to happen in just a few days seems a bit contrived. Still, this is worth a trip to the theatre, just expect some good drama with your sci-fi action, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Also don't forget to watch for Gene Barry as the Ferrier kids' grandfather and some other homages to the 1953 classic.
The Watcher
Good casting provides the entertainment in this cat and mouse thriller.
The Way of the Gun
Too choreographed and orchestrated, with scene and style stealing. Rent Reservoir Dogs.
Wendigo (DVD/Video)
This 2001 straight to Video/DVD involves a Native American myth about a half-man, half-deer shapeshifting creature that haunts the hills of upstate New York where a family (Jake Weber as George, Patricia Clarkson as Kim, and Malcolm in the Middle's Erik Per Sullivan as Miles) decide to vacation. But the real monster in this film is a hillbilly, white trash character named Otis (John Speredakos) who has it in for George after George accidentally hits a deer with his car and damages its prize antlers. Fortunately, a stranger gives Miles a Wendigo figurine and the actual creature arrives just in time to save the family. Now I'm afraid I've made this film sound better than it actually is. This wasn't a horror or a thriller in my book. Maybe had the hillbilly been given more screen time, it might have saved this film. But what was left were too many scenes of watching people on vacation talk about work, talking on the phone, eating dinner, and the one obligatory sex scene. I was disappointed and bored. Skip this one.
We Were Soldiers
I'll admit, it's been a while since any film has moved me, and after reading some other critics reviews I wasn't expecting much as Mel Gibson leads the Vietnam era 7th Cavalry (Yes, of Custer fame.), now riding helicopters, into their first mission. And they land on an ant hill. It's 600 Americans against 4000 NVA soldiers (reminding me of "Pork Chop Hill," 1959). I tolerated the first act as overblown melodrama, but found myself sucked in bad by the second act. Sure there was plenty of graphic fire fights for us action fans, but the scene that broke me up was when the yellow taxi cabs delivered telegrams to the wives of the soldiers killed in action while the battle was still going on. I'll admit, I lost it. Would this film have carried itself without Mel Gibson, I don't think so, but add great directing, cinematography, and one of the most hauntingly timed musical scores (that included chanting Buddhist monks) to heighten scenes and you have a moving war film that tries to remind us that plenty of good people (American and Vietnamese) died in Vietnam. If you go, bring tissues.
White Noise
Television director Geoffrey Sax's first foray into theaters with White Noise leaves us with a mixed bag. In White Noise we meet architect Jonathan Rivers (Michael "Beetle Juice, Batman" Keaton), his new wife, Anna (television actress, Chandra West), and his son (Nicholas Elia) from a previous marriage. The film's setup shows us a very happy, secure, well-to-do family, which means all hell will break loose. And it sorta does when Anna disappears and turns up dead from an apparent accident, which is dragged on much too long. Enter Raymond Price (Ian McNeice) who tells Keaton that he "hears dead people" in radio static, in particular, Keaton's dead wife, Anna. Yada, yada, yada. Keaton ends up listening to dead people with Price. We get teased with the promise of malevolent spirits, but then the plot switches to Keaton trying to save people his wife tells him about in the static. Then the plot switches to a search and rescue as Keaton tries to save a kidnap victim. Finally, everything tries to come together for a rather bland ending. White Noise is one of those films suffering from identity crisis. Is it a ghost story? A serial killer story? By now I didn't care so the "dramatic" ending had little impact on me as I had already lost interest in Keaton and a plot that never quite takes off in any riveting direction. Wait for this to come to television where it probably belongs.
Wicked City
This Japanimation's plot, weird aliens, graphic sex and action would be
too hot for an "X-File." Worth a look if you're interested in discovering
the genre.
Willard
From one of my favorite television writer/director teams, Glen Morgan and James Wong (Millennium, Space: Above and Beyond, and The X-Files, for which they created the "Peacock family") comes the re-imagined version of Willard (a remake of the 1971 version starring Bruce Davidson, Elsa Lanchester, Ernest Borgnine, and Sandra Locke in the main roles). I mention the former cast because, as you can see, we're talking some heavy hitters. This new version is essentially the same story. Willard is a meek momma's boy being tormented by a sadistic boss who's dying to fire Willard, but for a promise he made to Willard's deceased father, the former partner of their business. Willard ends up befriending the rats in his basement (his only friends) and teaches them some neat tricks involving tearing things up. You can probably see where this is going . . . and that's exactly where it goes. So expect no surprises here. And while this version doesn't flaunt any major Hollywood names, it doesn't need them (I doubt they actually helped the original), because Crispin Glover (as Willard) steals the show. He is fantastic. The new Norman Bates! I couldn't take my eyes off him wearing his dead father's clothes and the greased black hair parted down the middle that kept him physically and mentally in his sick, secluded pathetic world. Think of a cross between his former character George McFly (Back to the Future) and Renfield (the madman from the 1931 Dracula). Unfortunately, Glover is all that's working for this film. Sure, the rat scenes were cool. You saw the best one in the preview, when the elevator empties of rats surrounding Willard. But there weren't enough of these scenes to make it worth while. Still, some of you might enjoy this at a theater, but most should probably wait for the rental.
Windtalkers
John Woo takes us the "other" World War II as Sgt. Enders (Nicolas Cage) is ordered
protect "the code" at all costs in the form of Navajo Windtalker, Pvt. Yahzee (Adam Beach). But haunted by the loss of his previous patrol, Enders doesn't know if he'll be able to follow orders. Christian Slater offers a pleasing co-starring role as another soldier ordered to protect a Windtalker, Pvt. Whitehorse (Roger Willie). Director John Woo lets the action take a back seat to the drama in this one. Yes, the explosive action is there, as well as the horrors of the war with Japan, but it remains in the background of the drama and never reaches the shock level of "Saving Private Ryan," or the heart tugging of "We were Soldiers." Don't get me wrong. This is a good film, with a good solid story and decent acting. It just never seemed to peak.
Wolf Creek
Australian director Greg Mclean takes us, two young British tourists (Cassandra Magrath as Liz, Kestie Morassi as Kristy), and their Australian companion (John Jarratt as Mick) on a holiday through the Australian outback. But after stopping at Wolf Creek National Park (a giant hole in the ground) their car won't start. All seems lost until a kind stranger (Andy McPhee as Bazza) "happens" upon them and offers to tow them back to his place where he has the parts needed to fix their car. Of course, the kind stranger turns out to be a lunatic who captures and tortures travelers, and now he has our trio. First let me say that this film took almost an hour to get started. Up to that time we are on the road trip which, if you've seen the Australian Outback on TV can be quite boring (at least to me). I'll assume the director was trying to get us to cozy up to the travelers. Whether he accomplishes that will be up to the viewer. I became impatient. After they are captured, the tension does pick up. The torture is kept more to "what if" than visual and the carnage is reduced to quick camera pans of previous rotting victims. Although there was one scene that was actually quite startling, due more to its surprise happening. There were some interesting turns in the plot (in terms of who will survive and who will escape) that I did not see coming, but my biggest complaint was the ending. This is another of those "based on a true story," slasher films, and while I realize the writers take liberties with the story, the films epilogue portrayed the Australian legal system as totally inept, which was very unsatisfying if it was true.
Wrong Turn
Alan B. McElroy, the writer of 1988's Halloween 4, returns with a straight-forward formula hack-n-slash thriller about five friends (including "Buffy"'s Eliza Dishku and "Six Feet Under"'s Jeremy Sisto) and a stranger ("Ghost Ship"'s Desmond Harrington) lost in the backwoods of West Virginia meeting a family of inbreds who add new dimension to the term "road kill." Soon it's run for your lives as the city folk try to escape their cannibalistic hunters. I don't know if two films can be the start of a trend (Wrong Turn and House of 1000 Corpses) but it looks like we're returning to the days of gore. Again we have a film that graphically depicts the carnage. And again we have the backwoods family preying on the city folk. But having been through the previous slasher trend of the 1980s, it's good to see the genre returning (call me demented). You want family values? I'll give you family values: Saw-tooth, One-eye and Three Fingers (Wrong Turn), and Mother, Otis, Baby, and Tiny Firefly (House of 1000 Corpses) are definitely families with values. There's something refreshing about the tried and true nightmare of a hack-n-slash flick. So if you yearn for the slasher genre, don't miss "Wrong Turn." It will make you cringe, give you the creeps and keep you out of the woods. It's good to be home again.
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