| Advertise with Java Journal and Save! |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
by Mary K. Morgan - member of the St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association.
21 (PG-13) When six bright, ambitious M.I.T. students need some extra cash, their math professor Mickey Rosa (Kevin Spacey) is right there to help. A Blackjack wiz— as well as an academic — he institutes a clandestine, crash course in Casino 101. For a long, lucky streak it’s the best of both worlds — classes during the week and lavish gambling junkets to Las Vegas on weekends. Sure, sometimes the studies have to be relegated to the back burner, but when the take is well on the way to seven digits, who cares?
The newest recruit to Professor Rosa’s gang of savvy gamblers is young Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess), an aspiring medical student. Sucked into the vortex of glamour, money and prestige, Ben, a quick study, is soon at the top of the card-counting game and his stash of cash is steadily growing. But, remember, it’s a house of cards.
Based on the true story of an escapade that made all the papers a few years ago, the film never hesitates adding an embellished Hollywood touch to reality. Well-cast and cleverly filmed by director Robert Luketic, the mood is clearly high-stakes adventure. The dangerous side of the scheme is personified by the old-school casino security expert, Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne), who brutally enforces the casino’s rule against card counting.
The troupe of students turned serious casino players is a transition that is just short of believable. Perhaps the actual participants were a tad less glamorous and the action not quite as intriguing, but it makes a good story. It remains to be seen if a movie about Blackjack can capture the attention of a nation so focused on poker. It’s a gamble.
Rating: 3
SMART PEOPLE (R) is a witty, intelligent take on what being “smart” really means. Director Noam Murro reminds his audience that being smart doesn’t preclude being dysfunctional. In fact, this collection of characters is off the chart with regard to social discord. Unpleasant memories and gaps in communication strategically dot the landscape leaving the bitter taste of the family’s discontent for the audience to digest in the two-hour span of the film.
Dennis Quaid is well cast as Lawrence Weltherhold, a bitter, burned out professor of Victorian literature, whose career and family life both yield a negative score on the satisfaction scale. With few social skills and even less charm, the emotionally bankrupt Lawrence clumsily embarks on a romantic voyage with an ex-student (Sarah Jessica Parker) that seems doomed from the beginning. His estranged brother, Chuck (Thomas Hayden Church), billed as a loser, seems the only voice of reason in the flock.
Smart People is an engaging, well executed film, but its comedy gets lost in its drama. More depressing than uplifting, I’m not sure it hits its intended mark.
Rating: 3
NIM’S ISLAND (PG) The “Bambi effect” is in full swing in this tale of isolation, imagination and adventure. Following the death of her mother, young Nim (Abigail Breslin) and her scientist father (Gerard Butler) move to an uninhabited island to spend the rest of their days absorbed in biological research. While dad goes on scientific excursions on the ocean, Nim whiles away the hours with her pals, a sea lion, a pelican and a lizard.
On one particular expedition on the sea, a storm prevents Nim’s father from returning and the child is left to her own defenses as severe weather and outsiders invade her island space. And like any bright, twenty-first century child, she turns to the internet for help. And help eventually arrives in the form of Alex Rover, her pulp- fiction hero. Enter author Alexandra (Jodie Foster), who manages to travel to the remote island and find young Nim — but, once there, has little to offer in the way of survival skills or solace.
A children’s story with some high points, it has way too many low spots to be recommend very highly as a good children’s story. The death of the mother during the opening credits is enough to worry most children immediately, and the residual sadness can ruin the story for many. The island paradise is great, but the isolation seems to offer a very lonely existence for a young child.
Rating: 2
UNDER THE SAME MOON (PG-13) is Paula Riggen’s feature directing debut. This poignant film showcases a troubling social issue in a story so compelling as to evoke tears from even the strongest in the audience. A touching tale of a little Mexican boy, Carlitos (Adrian Alonso), and his heroic attempt to travel alone from Mexico to L.A. to find his estranged mother, will capture your heart. All politics aside, the raw emotion involved in Carlitos’ plight sheds a very personal light on a persistent topic of debate — illegal immigration.
Fine performances are found throughout the cast. Authenticity and believability are top-notch. For example, the performance of Eugenio Derbez as an unwilling mentor to the young Carlitos is outstanding. Watch for a cameo from America Ferrara of Ugly Betty fame. Filmed in Spanish with English subtitles, Under the Same Moon loses nothing in translation. A standing “O” was given to the Sundance 2007 premiere of La Misma Luna. And you may just agree with their reaction!
Rating: 3
| April Featured Stories |
|
|
|
|
|
