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Now in Cinemas: Reviews for September 27, 2007
Reviews: Stardust, Grindhouse. Opening: Gympl
published 27.09.2007 | comments (0) | log in to post comments
Reviews by Jason Pirodsky
for Expats.cz
A sprawling comic-fantasy adventure, Matthew Vaughn´s Stardust entertains due to the multitude of left-field elements Neil Gaiman throws into his story, even though the basic plot is disappointingly obvious from the get-go. Still, things are reasonably well-handled by director Vaughn (Layer Cake), who brings together a number of characters and dangling plot threads into a reasonably coherent 2 hours. The story, from Gaiman´s graphic novel, borrows elements from all over the fantasy and sci-fi genres, but the light-hearted nature of the film, which often delves into full-fledged comedy, most noticeably brings to mind Rob Reiner´s The Princess Bride. Fantasy fans should be pleased.
Witches, ghosts, princes, and a fallen star traverse a multitude of dimensions as our story begins with young Tristan (Charlie Cox), who sets out to win the heart of unsympathetic Victoria. His plan? To track down a fallen star and bring it back to her. Little does he realize that the fallen star is actually a woman, Yvaine (Claire Danes), and she possesses two things that a variety of other characters are searching for: her heart will bring eternal youth to a trio of witches headed by Michelle Pfeiffer, and the ruby around her neck will grant the kingdom of dying emperor Peter O´Toole to one of his heirs, who seem to be killing each other off with alarming ease. Might Tristan realize Victoria´s true nature and fall in love with Yvaine? Could he actually be a prince and future king? You´ll know after a curiously straightforward prologue which leaves little to the imagination and little mystery to the remainder of the film. The supporting cast helps significantly: Pfeiffer makes for a terrific witch, and Robert de Niro is a lot of fun in an all-too-brief turn as a transvestite (?) sky pirate (even if the role seems intended for Robin Williams). O´Toole lends some gravitas to his dying king, and Ricky Gervais steals a couple scenes with his usual shtick. The leads, however, leave something to be desired; Cox is just OK, lacking the charisma of a true swashbuckling hero, and Danes, with her over-the-top facial contortions, is pretty awful as the fallen star, in stark contrast with her recent compelling turn in Evening. Flick is never really all that great, but a diverting and fun experience nonetheless.
Note: film is screening in a Czech-dubbed version on most Prague screens, but it´s playing in English (with Czech subtitles) at Palace Cinemas Slovanský dům and Villages Cinemas Anděl.
***
At long last, after being separated into 2 movies for its initial release, cinema-goers in the Czech Republic can finally see the Tarantino-Rodriguez double-feature Grindhouse the way it was originally intended to be seen: a single 3+ hour experience. An ode to the drive-in exploitation days, film presents Robert Rodriguez´ longish-but-fun splatterhouse zombie flick Planet Terror first, followed by Tarantino´s dead-on authentic grindhouse send-up, Death Proof. Interspersed between the films are hilarious, note-perfect fake movie trailers from Rob Zombie, Edgar Wright, and Eli Roth; my favorite: Roth´s unbearably funny Thanksgiving. While the artistic merits of the film(s) can be debated, the double-feature experience unquestionably delivers the goods, and perfectly achieves what it set out to do: faithfully re-create that old Grindhouse feeling.
Check out my reviews for the individual features here:
Planet Terror
Death Proof
Note: film is ONLY screening at Palace Cinemas Slovanský dům, and only once per day, at that.
for Expats.cz
A sprawling comic-fantasy adventure, Matthew Vaughn´s Stardust entertains due to the multitude of left-field elements Neil Gaiman throws into his story, even though the basic plot is disappointingly obvious from the get-go. Still, things are reasonably well-handled by director Vaughn (Layer Cake), who brings together a number of characters and dangling plot threads into a reasonably coherent 2 hours. The story, from Gaiman´s graphic novel, borrows elements from all over the fantasy and sci-fi genres, but the light-hearted nature of the film, which often delves into full-fledged comedy, most noticeably brings to mind Rob Reiner´s The Princess Bride. Fantasy fans should be pleased.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Witches, ghosts, princes, and a fallen star traverse a multitude of dimensions as our story begins with young Tristan (Charlie Cox), who sets out to win the heart of unsympathetic Victoria. His plan? To track down a fallen star and bring it back to her. Little does he realize that the fallen star is actually a woman, Yvaine (Claire Danes), and she possesses two things that a variety of other characters are searching for: her heart will bring eternal youth to a trio of witches headed by Michelle Pfeiffer, and the ruby around her neck will grant the kingdom of dying emperor Peter O´Toole to one of his heirs, who seem to be killing each other off with alarming ease. Might Tristan realize Victoria´s true nature and fall in love with Yvaine? Could he actually be a prince and future king? You´ll know after a curiously straightforward prologue which leaves little to the imagination and little mystery to the remainder of the film. The supporting cast helps significantly: Pfeiffer makes for a terrific witch, and Robert de Niro is a lot of fun in an all-too-brief turn as a transvestite (?) sky pirate (even if the role seems intended for Robin Williams). O´Toole lends some gravitas to his dying king, and Ricky Gervais steals a couple scenes with his usual shtick. The leads, however, leave something to be desired; Cox is just OK, lacking the charisma of a true swashbuckling hero, and Danes, with her over-the-top facial contortions, is pretty awful as the fallen star, in stark contrast with her recent compelling turn in Evening. Flick is never really all that great, but a diverting and fun experience nonetheless.
Note: film is screening in a Czech-dubbed version on most Prague screens, but it´s playing in English (with Czech subtitles) at Palace Cinemas Slovanský dům and Villages Cinemas Anděl.
***
| ||||||||||||||||||
At long last, after being separated into 2 movies for its initial release, cinema-goers in the Czech Republic can finally see the Tarantino-Rodriguez double-feature Grindhouse the way it was originally intended to be seen: a single 3+ hour experience. An ode to the drive-in exploitation days, film presents Robert Rodriguez´ longish-but-fun splatterhouse zombie flick Planet Terror first, followed by Tarantino´s dead-on authentic grindhouse send-up, Death Proof. Interspersed between the films are hilarious, note-perfect fake movie trailers from Rob Zombie, Edgar Wright, and Eli Roth; my favorite: Roth´s unbearably funny Thanksgiving. While the artistic merits of the film(s) can be debated, the double-feature experience unquestionably delivers the goods, and perfectly achieves what it set out to do: faithfully re-create that old Grindhouse feeling.
Check out my reviews for the individual features here:
Planet Terror
Death Proof
Note: film is ONLY screening at Palace Cinemas Slovanský dům, and only once per day, at that.
***
Also opening: Gympl (showtimes | IMDb), the latest film from director Tomáš Vorel (Skřítek). Pic focuses on the conflict between old and young generations, following a group of high school students & graffiti artists. Screening with English subtitles at Villages Cinemas Anděl. Please see my full review HERE.
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