Headline Bella’s Back and Still Torn between Two Supernatural Suitors
There’s really not much reason for me to go on at length about this third (of four) installments in the review-proof Twilight series, given that
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
the diehard fans of the franchise are second only to Harry Potter’s in terms of brand loyalty. The movie is based on the Stephenie Meyer best seller which in turn was ostensibly-inspired by Emily Bronte’s gothic novel “Wuthering Heights.”
At the point of departure, the end of senior year is fast approaching at Forks High School. But where valedictorian Jessica (Anna Kendrick) is concentrating on practicing her graduation speech, her good friend Bella (Kristen Stewart), our human heroine, basically still finds herself torn romantically between vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson) and werewolf Jacob (Taylor Lautner).
After un-grounding his, ever-clueless Police Chief Charlie Swan (Billy Burke), gives his blessing for her to date the latter, but she instead flies to Florida with the former in order to visit her mother. The messy love triangle starts to take an emotional toll Bella on after she secretly accepts Edward’s marriage proposal while subsequently allowing her relationship with Jacob to escalate from platonic to physical.
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Adorable Orphans Charm Diabolical Villain in Heartwarming Animated Adventure
Despicable Me
Despite the fact that the title character at the center of Despicable Me might sound a little bit like Shrek, don’t let any superficial similarities discourage you from catching this equally-delightful animated adventure. Yes, at first blush, its ugly antihero is reminiscent of the much-beloved ogre, but it doesn’t take long for this variation on the theme to blossom into a thoroughly original persona.
Gru (Steve Carrell) is a hook-nosed hunchback with a vaguely Transylvanian accent who has singlehandedly ruined the otherwise idyllic slice of suburbia where he resides. Everyone on the block has learned to give the gruesome-looking misanthrope a wide berth; after all, his house is not only painted black but surrounded by a dead lawn. Plus, whenever he ventures into town in his road-hogging, jet-propelled tank, he tends to cause minor disturbances, like when he used one of his inventions to freeze everyone on line in front of him at the local coffee shop.
None of Gru’s intimidated neighbors have any idea that he’s secretly a megalomaniac poised to hatch an elaborate heist from his basement laboratory with the help of a loyal army of miniature minions. And why is he bent on world domination? Because he’s frustrated with being only the second most evil villain around, right behind the diabolical Vector (Jason Segel) who has just stolen the Great Pyramid at Giza and replaced it with an inflatable replica. Gru hopes to eclipse his competition and become #1 by using his latest invention, the shrink-ray gun, to make the moon disappear.
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BIG BUDGET FILMS
Grown Ups (PG-13 for profanity, male rear nudity, crude humor and suggestive material) Buddy comedy about five former teammates (Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, David Spade, Kevin James and Rob Schneider) who, in honor of their recently-deceased basketball coach, reunite for the first time in years to runamuck over the 4th of July weekend at the same lake house where they celebrated winning a championship as kids. With Maya Rudolph, Salma Hayek, Tim Meadows, Maria Bello, Steve Buscemi, Norm Macdonald and Gary Busey.
Knight and Day (PG-13 for violence and brief profanity) Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz reunite for the first time since Vanilla Sky for this action comedy about a Plain Jane from the Midwest who unwittingly goes on a blind date with a dashing international spy only to become embroiled in a globetrotting adventure where they must prevent a piece of technology holding the key to infinite power from falling into the wrong hands. With Maggie Grace, Peter Sarsgaard, Viola Davis and Paul Dano.
INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS
Dogtooth (Unrated) Dysfunctional family dramedy about a trio of siblings (Aggeliki Papoulia, Mary Tsoni and Hristos Passalis) confined since birth on an isolated country estate who as teenagers start to rebel from their mind-controlling parents (Christos Stergioglou and Michelle Valley) in response to the powerful pangs of sexual awakening. (In Greek with subtitles)
Restrepo (R for violence and pervasive profanity) Afghan War documentary, co-directed by Sebastian Junger (The Perfect Storm) and Tim Hetherington, chronicling the year they spent embedded with a platoon engaged in daily deadly combat with the Taliban.
Wild Grass (PG for mature themes, smoking and mild epithets) Serendipitous romance drama, directed by the legendary Alain Resnais (Hiroshima Mon Amour), revolving around a married man (Andre Dussollier) who falls in love with the dentist (Sabine Azema) whose stolen wallet he finds. (In French with subtitles)
Woody & Pals Reunite in Revival of Beloved Animated Franchise
Toy Story 1 and Toy Story 2 are such beloved screen classics that fans of the franchise were understandably worried whether the latest installment would measure up, given the decade which had intervened in the interim. But everyone can breathe a collective sigh of relief, for this eagerly-anticipated sequel is every bit as enchanting as the earlier offerings. The movie is the product of another inspired collaboration between Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, and is well worth the additional investment to enjoy their latest generation of CGI technology in 3-D.
Directed by Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc.), the film features a storyline which sensibly reflects a passage of time since the previous episode. Thus, we have an almost-grown protagonist in Andy Davis (John Morris) who, at 17, is preparing to leave home for college. As he packs, he’s prompted by his mom (Laurie Metcalf) to pick which of his personal belongings he wants to keep, and which he wants her to toss in the trash.
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High Seas Saga Sends Slacker from Brooklyn to Jamaica
Wah Do Them
Max (Sean Bones) is a slacker from Brooklyn who’s been squandering most of his time between skateboarding and playing soccer. The only positive things in the struggling musician’s life are his beautiful girlfriend, Willow (Norah Jones), and the trip they plan to take together with the pair of tickets he won for a Caribbean cruise to Jamaica.
The naïve narcissist gets an unanticipated surprise when she breaks up with him just a couple of days before they’re supposed to set sail. So, he retreats to a local watering hole to soak his woes in booze while crying on the shoulders of his best buddies. Then, when none of them takes him up on the offer to replace Willow, Max still decides to take the vacation alone anyway.
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