Review: "Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants"

Based on the original novel by the same name, Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants (PG) tells the coming-of-age stories of four girls during one summer. It starts with the girls finding a pair of jeans that inexplicably fits all four of them perfectly. Going their separate ways for the summer, they take turns wearing the pants for a week, claiming that the pants will tie them together and magically make things happen. Lena (Alexis Bledel) looks for her culture in Greece and ends up finding herself, Tibby (Amber Tamblyn) stays home, makes a new friend, and discovers the meaning of life, Bridgette (Blake Lively) goes away to soccer camp and deals with her mother�s death in her own way, and Carmen (America Ferrera) visits her father and learns of his pending remarriage. This is the surprise feature of the summer. There is something for every age group and gender to enjoy. In a way, this flick reminded me of The Notebook because it is sappy, intelligent, a little too perfect, and simply special. This one is sure to tug on your emotions and leave you smiling. Rumor has it, two sequels are ready to be green-lighted. Don't miss this must-see film of the summer.

Review: "Cinderella Man"

Ron Howard's latest feature film is Cinderella Man (R), which has a pretty strong hold on next year�s Academy Award celebration right now. Of course, we still have six months to go and there will be a lot of competition by the end of December. Still, it is nice to see a golden flick amongst the typical big-budget summer fare (think Seabiscuit). The movie, set during the Great Depression, tells the true story of boxer James J. Braddock (Russell Crowe), who was known for his rags-to-riches fairy-tale life. Crowe gives a strong performance as does Renee Zellweger as Braddock's wife. Paul Giamatti steals the movie with his role as Braddock's manager. It is an uplifting film that is guaranteed to pull at your heartstrings and make you root for the underdog. At the same time, the pacing isn't always steady making the movie feel long. It is a stellar picture but far from perfect.

Review: "Madagascar"

The most recent feature to come out of the Dreamworks studio is Madagascar (PG). The computer animated movie about a group of animals that escape from Central Park Zoo and end up in the wild is a laugh riot. The voices behind the characters include Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, and Jada Pinkett Smith. Many of the best jokes will either go over kids' heads or be entirely inappropriate but teens and adults, especially those up on pop culture, will go wild for this flick. The penguins and lemurs are hands-down the hippest characters in the film. I love this movie!

Review: "The Longest Yard"

Adam Sandler's newest flick is The Longest Yard (PG-13), a remake of a 1974 Burt Reynolds film by the same name. Reynolds returns in a new role for this one and Chris Rock also joins the cast. It is all about a former football star who ends up in prison and is ordered to develop and train a football team of cons. It is a satisfying movie but there is nothing special about it. It is worth a watch if you need a quick sports-flick fix.

Review: "Kicking & Screaming"

Will Ferrell's latest flick is Kicking & Screaming (PG), a family comedy. The movie uses a child�s soccer season to focus on a grown son�s relationship with his competitive father (Robert Duvall). The funniest scenes come from Mike Ditka but the movie overall is moderately humorous. Ferrell becomes excruciatingly annoying in the final stretch of the movie, but the rest of the flick makes up for it.

Special Review: "Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge Of The Sith"

Not so long ago, in this very galaxy, people lined up outside of movie theatres to see an intergalactic adventure from the mind of George Lucas. It is no surprise, then, that when tickets went on sale for sixth and final installment of his saga, people waited in line for a week before the first showing just to get a good seat.

At 12:01 am on May 19th, audiences were treated to the first public showing of Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge Of The Sith (PG-13). Tickets for these showings were sold out almost immediately after being released. Approximately 600 people lined up outside of the Cine Capri at the Harkins Scottsdale 101 theatre one full week beforehand.

This installment focuses on the events that lead Anakin Skywalker, played by Hayden Christensen, to the dark side. Fans of the saga know that Anakin is the evil Darth Vader and the father of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. Therefore, most of the suspense is lost and no real surprises are offered. Still, seeing the motivations behind the action is fascinating.

The first scene features a long, boring fighter jet sequence that delivers nothing new. The first 90 minutes of the flick is generally tedious with a lot of dialogue pulling it down. This dialogue that tries to be Shakespearian is overly simplistic and far from poetic, therefore the film gives off a lackluster feeling. However, a few select scenes help keep things moving steadily. One is a comical elevator scene involving R2D2. More stimulating, though, is the scene in which Obi-Wan Kenobi, played by Ewan McGregor, does battle with General Grievous, who skillfully handles four light sabers at the same time.

The most impressive part of the movie is the final hour. This is when Anakin makes his move over to the dark side, courtesy of Chancellor Palpatine a.k.a. Darth Sidious, maniacally played by Ian McDiarmid. The chaotic nature of the events that ensue are purely exciting. Considering this is the best piece of the film, I think it is best not to give away any details about it so that you can enjoy it for yourself.

I have never been a Star Wars fan and this film doesn'’t change that. However, as a huge fan of movies in general, I get a kick out of how these flicks bring audiences to the theatre. I love these big blockbusters simply because they bring people together. That said, this is probably the best selection of the recent Star Wars trilogy. In a way, this is George Lucas'’s opus with a very tragic ending. Still, fans know there in a new hope.

The biggest weakness of each of these Star Wars movies is the lack of a solid plot that gets tied together by the end of each installment. This is not necessary, but it would make the individual films stronger. Nonetheless, part of the charm of these flicks is the familiarity of the concepts and characters, whether that be Yoda, Chewbacca, or Padme Amidala, played by Natalie Portman.

Fans will certainly love this flick and other people may enjoy the special effects and powerful latter half as well. It is a fun ride but I still don'’t see why so many people take the Star Wars saga to heart. However, regardless of whether you are a jedi master, a sith lord, or a normal human being, one thing is obvious after this release - Officially begun, the summer movie season has.

Review: "The Interpreter"

Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman star together in The Interpreter (PG-13), still in theatres. The political thriller directed by Sydney Pollack is about a United Nations interpreter from Africa, played by Kidman, who overhears an assassination plot. Sean Penn is the secret service agent hired to investigate and protect her. The film generates a fair amount of interest and the suspense is done rather well. A scene on a bus is absolutely gripping. The film’'s major weakness is its excess baggage, like unneeded character subplots. While it offers connection points for the two leads, this often slows the film down unnecessarily. Overall, though, this movie is a must-see.

Review: "Mind Hunters"

Mind Hunters (R) is another one of those flicks that was shelved for one reason or another for a few years before the studio decided to release it. It has a decent cast, including Val Kilmer, LL Cool J, and Christian Slater. The plot involves a team of profilers stranded on an island playing out a FBI training scenario when suddenly everything seems a bit too real. We learn that one of the profilers has joined the dark side and has decided to kill off the team members, one by one, using elaborate death traps. It is ridiculous, preposterous, and highly entertaining. It is certainly suspenseful as the action never lets up for even a moment. Full of twists at every turn, this is one fun flick.


On a related side note, if you dislike this movie for its absurdity, yet you are having a hard time waiting patiently for this Thursday’s release of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge Of The Sith, please enlighten me on how light sabers make more sense than the elaborate death traps set up in this flick. I only mention this because some of my fellow critics are panning Mind Hunters based solely on its outrageousness. If you have trouble with the suspension of disbelief concept, your best bet is to avoid movies at all costs. In other words, sit back, relax, and be entertained because while Mind Hunters will never win an Academy Award, I guarantee it will win your attention, tug on your nerves, and deliver more than enough excitement.

Review: "Monster-In-Law"

Jane Fonda returns to the spotlight in the romantic comedy Monster-In-Law (PG-13). She plays the future mother-in-law of Jennifer Lopez. Beyond unhappy that Lopez’s character is about to wed her son, played by Michael Vartan, Fonda plots and schemes to be the worst mother-in-law possible in order to break the couple apart. I was hardly excited to see this flick, mostly because I am not a fan of Ms. Lopez. J-Lo did not work too hard to change my opinion of her, but Fonda’s performance salvaged the film. She is chaotic and vindictive and an absolute delight to watch. Her assistant, played by Wanda Sykes, also provides plenty of laughs. Aside from delivering a modern-classic line about Lopez’s eyes, Vartan is a fairly flat character and severely uninteresting. Overall, it is a fun flick that, while simple, offers enough sweetness and comedy to entertain everybody.

Review: "Crash"

Crash (R) is the best movie of the year so far. Best described as a film that features how the lives of many people collide, it deals with ethnic relationships. Revealing anything more than that would be giving away far too much as this is truely a movie that you have to see. It makes you think and feel unlike any other movie. The movie lacks a central plot that gets tied up in the end but the ensamble feel makes this forgiveable. It is not a film that is trying to teach you something. Instead, it relies on you to make the best decisions about the things you see. It will most likely make an appearance on my Favorite Flicks of 2005 list and I doubt anyone that sees it will be able to ever forget it.