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Director: Roger Mitchell

Starring: Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts, Rhys Ifans, Tim McInnerny,
Gina McKee, Emma Chambers, Hugh Bonneville

Knotting is flawed, but pleasing romantic comedy with a clever premise wrapped into a script by English screenwriting luminary Richard Curtis (Bridget Jones, Bean, Blackadder, etc)that has both amusing lines and some unconvincing character actions that hurt the overall effect, but still leave director Roger Mitchell with his finest film, thanks to some surprising little style ideas of his own and wonderful performances by a strong cast. Grant delivers his lines with his usual fantastic self-deprecating style and Roberts glows in a role that she suits her perfectly.

In Knotting Hill, Hugh Grant is William Thacker, the owner of a small book store who finds himself meeting a world famous actress played by the world famous actress, Julia Roberts. Against all odds, the two begin a quirky on-again, off-again romance, while William is supported through this buffeting experience by a wonderful, offbeat bunch of friends. The movie features some funny little glimpses into a movie star’s life and touches upon issues of fame, which might explain some of the character behaviours that I found unconvincing.

Knotting Hill is entertaining light fare that is lifted above the average film in this genre by an intriguing premise for anyone who ever daydreamed about meeting a movie star and having a relationship begin just like they were real people! Imagine that! It’s funny, sweet and I have watched it more times than I can admit and still retain the right to enter men’s locker rooms.

Director: John G. Avildsen

Starring: Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue, Martin Kove, William Zabka

Rocky director John Avildsen shows once again that he knows how to make audiences stand up and cheer, with this warm and charming screenplay by Robert Kamen, who would go to write such works as Gladiator and The Fifth Element. Memorable characters wonderfully portrayed have turned this gentle drama about a young man who learns life long values from a reluctant karate instructor into a classic. Macchio seems awkward with the physical aspects of his role, but this adds to his underdog persona, and there is some great, often imitated dialog (Wax on. Wax off, sound familiar?) and even some pretty cool martial arts scenes, all wrapped up in a believable story with some good 80’s tunes.

High Schooler Daniel Larusso (Macchio, who was 22 looking 17) has just moved to the land of sunshine from Newark, but meeting a cute girl, Ali (Elisabeth Shue) also gains him an enemy in her karate expert ex-boyfriend, Johnny (William Zabka) and all his Cobra Kai buddies. Life is rough for young Mr. Larusso until he is rescued by the elderly caretaker of his building, Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita in a career role), who besides being pretty handy with bonsai trees, turns out to be a little Okinawan ninja too. Who knew? Soon Mr Miyagi is using old time training methods to prepare Daniel to stand up to the bullies at the upcoming All Valley Under 18 Karate Championship. Can he do it?

The Karate Kid and its immortal characters have become an often spoofed comedy target, and for two simple reasons. Its good and its as memorable a motion picture as any you are likely to see. It did spin off a series of deteriorating sequels that got worse and worse, but the first pic is first rate.It looks a little dated now, but with an excellent classic story and a stellar script, this one is still worth taking a shot at.

Director: Marc Forster

Starring: Khalid Abdalla, Atossa Leoni, Zekeria Ebrahimi, Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada, Homayoun Marshadi, Shaun Toub

German director, Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, Monster’s Ball) has done an outstanding job turning David Benioff’s screen treatment of Khalad Hosseini’s best-selling novel into one of the pre-eminent films of 2007. The story is strong, and though it does get intermittently slow, it is still engaging and moving, throughout. The acting is nothing short of flawless and enhances the film, immeasurably. The direction is stellar, particularly in the creation of settings from Kabul in the late 70s, and then the stark contrast two decades later. Subtitles are used for much of the dialog, but the added viewer effort is worth it.

The story here is that of Amir, and is split into a period when he is a child (played by Zekeria Ebrahimi) in Afghanistan just before the Soviet invasion, which forces his father (Homayoun Marshadi) to take him and leave the country. Left behind is their servant, Rahim (Shaun Toob) and his son, Hassan (Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada) who was Amir’s closest friend, until the shame and guilt of an unfortunate event came between them. Amir and his father end up in America, where an adult Amir (Khalid Abdalla), has put Afghanistan behind him, taken a wife and written a novel, when his past suddenly comes rushing back to him with one phone call.

The Kite Runner is an excellent drama about human relations and how they are impacted by events of the world around them. For those who are comfortable with subtitled films, this is a must see, with the same kind of appeal, and greater impact than Namesake from 2006. For those of you, who never watch subtitled motion pictures, why not?

Director: Seth Gordon

Starring: Billy Mitchell, Steve Wiebe, Robert Mruzek, Roy Shildt, Adam Wood,

The King Of Kong is a surprisingly engrossing documentary about the battle between two very different men, to be recognized as the world’s greatest Donkey Kong player (if you don’t know what Donkey Kong is, then skip the rest of the review, this film is not for you). Director Seth Gordon doesn’t appear on film, but has created an entertaining feature packed with quirky characters that fill the seriously competitive video game world.

Billy Mitchell is introduced at the beginning of this documentary as the undisputed, untouchable, and barely mortal master of Donkey Kong, an incredibly difficult and frustrating game that has a little Mario character dodging barrels on his way to rescue a kidnapped princess. Mario’s world seems to have a lot of missing princesses. Odd. Anyway, introduced next is Steve Wiebe, frustrated musician, teacher, and father, who wants to usurp Billy the Kong emperor, and take the high score record, assuring his legacy for all time. We are treated to interviews with the two competitors, their families, friends, and other video game experts, as the story keeps us in suspense about who will emerge as the one and only King of Kong.

I never liked Donkey Kong much, preferring more violent and ‘realistic’ games like Punchout and Spyhunter, and I found the idea of a documentary about a bunch of guys begging for wedgies, and well-acquainted with the inside of a closed locker, to hold little interest for me. I was wrong (no need to alert the media. Its not that unusual). This is a similar idea to films like Spellbound (teenagers vying for the national spelling title) and Word Wars (Scrabble), but is more appealing than both. If this review has peaked your interest, then you are likely to enjoy this journey into a world where any score less than a million just isn’t good enough.

Director: Franc Roddam

Starring: Michael Biehn, Matt Craven, Luca Bercovici, Patricia Charbonneau, Raymond J. Barry,

This fabulous film is one of the best mountain climbing movies ever made, surpassed only by the Imax film, Everest. Look for absolutely, stunning mountain cinematography and breathtaking climbing scenes that make other movies of this type look like Saturday morning cartoons. This is not all it has to offer, however. There are excellent characters placed in a simple, but complete, storyline that climbs steadily to a razor-sharp third act that will have you gripping your armrest and clenching your teeth.

Michael Biehn is Taylor Brooks, a cocky adrenaline-addicted lawyer who lives life on the edge. His friend, and climbing partner, Harold Jamieson (Matt Craven), is the opposite. He is a staid family man who climbs for the high of triumph and accomplishment, despite the concerns of his family. The story takes off when these two get the chance to join an expedition to climb the world’s second highest mountain, K2. Unlike virtually every other climbing movie, this one has no stalking killers or explosions, just the real danger of being in sub-zero temperatures, out of the reach of any help, in an area where you are slowly dying from lack of oxygen. It doesn’t need bullets to be life threatening. There are a few little weaknesses here and there (there is no way first time death zone ascenders would leave oxygen behind!), but the strengths more than compensate.

This is a truly impressive action/adventure movie that lets us have a glimpse into the techniques, motivations and realities of a dangerous, but fascinating obsession that has drawn humans since we first saw those majestic peaks poking through the clouds.

Director: Peter Jackson

Starring: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Colin Hanks, Andy Serkis, Evan Parke, Jamie Bell

I guess the Lord Of The Rings trilogy left Peter Jackson a little out of practice at making a 2-hour movie. This mighty remake tips the time scales at just over 3 hours (and that is not even the extended edition). The characters are strong and the acting is solid, particularly by the three stars. The effects are impressive, but Jackson showcases them in actions scenes that often go on too long and strain credibility, even for a movie of this type. Predators only hunt the easiest prey to kill and only when they are hungry – you don’t see lions trying to catch bull rhinos, or every antelope on the Serengeti do you? Nature rule, Daniel-san, not mine. However, if it is action you love, and you don’t need every niggly, little detail to fit, then this movie serves it up; tons at a time.

For the first hour, this is the story of a down-on-her luck vaudeville performer named Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) and a make-his-own luck movie producer named Carl Denham (Jack Black). Denham pulls together a hasty expedition/escape to a mysterious island where he wants to shoot his next picture. Once they bump into the island, the action flies fast and furious and larger (much larger) than life, as the story that we are all familiar with really begins. Jackson manages to tell the tale with some humour and tenderness and enriches the traditional tale by giving Kong a lot of personality.

Impressive effort but overdone with a story that is engrossing, but could have used sharper editting and action scenes that are amazing but could have had the same effect with less time and repetition. Oh yeah, and it really didn’t need all those damn creepy, crawly, giant bugs. That is just my squeamish, Nancy-boy opinion, but there it is. This is a strong movie that could have been much, much stronger with a little self-restraint. It is ok to watch once, but much tougher to sit through a second time. Try it. You’ll see.

Director: Peter Berg

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Ashraf Barhom, Ali Suliman, Jeremy Piven.

Collateral and Smokin’ Aces director, Peter Berg gives us his best film, thus far (though I kinda liked Copland a few years back) with this action effort. The story is ok, though the Saudi Arabia comes off looking like war-torn Iraq and the Saudi officials look pretty backward, but it is helped along with some stylish camera work, including sparing, but effective, hand held scenes. The stock characters are right off the action shelf, but the acting and screen presence of the performers adds to them.

The movie starts with a quickie Middle Eastern history lesson during the opening credits and soon moves to a frightening terrorist attack on a foreign workers compound in Saudi Arabia. The casualties include an FBI friend of Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx), which puts him in the revenge fast lane. He bluffs/blackmails his way into an investigative visit with three other team members. The team includes good performances by Cooper and Garner and a pretty irritating Bateman character. The team’s handler is Colonel Faris Al Ghazi (Ashraf Barhom) whose orders are to take them on a polite look-but-don‘t-touch chaperoned tour of the crime scene. The determined Fleury finds a way around that and soon the FBI agents are up to their elbows in evidence and up to their necks in gunfire, and bombings. There is a great car crash scene that marks the arrival of an intense, violent, but very engaging third act leading to a predictable, but effective, Hollywood ending which tacks on some kind of violence-is-not-the-answer message. Too little, too late.

This film is a little reminiscent of Harrison Ford’s Clear and Present Danger, when the enemy of choice was drug lords rather than Muslim extremists. Action fans will enjoy the hard-edged violence and will not have any problem with thin characters and a formula story. In the end, it is pretty good at what it is and will please most of its viewers.

Starring: Barry Pepper, Seth Green, Vin Diesel, John Malkovich, Andrew Davoli, Dennis Hopper

Director: Brian Koppelman, David Levien

Barry Pepper is the son of Mafioso capo, who recruits three friends to help him gain the respect of his legendary father. Things go wrong (surprise, surprise) and the four friends find themselves scrambling to find a missing moneybag with several lives hanging in the balance.
The story is simple, but well written with some very good dialogue and the acting is strong among most of the principals. I found a good balance of story and action and there were some parts that I really enjoyed. This is an early effort by Vin Diesel, made around the same time as his breakout roles in The Fast and the Furious and Pitch Black. He clearly shows his potential as a scene-stealer with powerful screen presence. I love his “500?” speech. The movie is worth seeing just for that.
Some might find the story to be too simple and be bored by some stereotype characters, but they are developed fairly well, and I found these factors to be balanced out by the movie’s strengths. This is a favorite movie of mine, and I think it is very underrated. I can’t kid myself into saying it’s a masterpiece, however. The pieces just come together for me. Maybe they will for you too.

Director: Judd Apatow

Starring: Seth Rogan, Katherine Heigl, Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Jason Segel, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Martin Starr.

Judd Aptow, the mind behind “The 40 year Old Virgin” brings us another story about a guy who has no luck with women, getting lucky with a woman, but when this luck turns into an unplanned pregnancy with a woman he barely knows, the story really starts. It has some laughs and some good dramatic scenes, but really pushes the taste boundaries with very crude language (beyond most movies of this genre) and some pretty graphic visuals. Still, a decent flick overall thanks to quality performances and a decent script.

Katherine Heigl is Alison Scott, an ETV producer out to celebrate her promotion when she meets Ben Stone (Seth Rogan), a funny, but rather unattractive, unemployed loser. Still, through the wonders of alcohol, Ben gets the night of his dreams, followed eight weeks later by the phone call of his nightmares. His one night stand is pregnant (Are we paying attention, kids? It can happen to you.). He is gallant and supportive and the two of them decide to get to know each other and see if a relationship could come out of this awkward situation. Watching all this are Ben’s buddies, who supply alot of the humor here, along with Alison’s sister (played by Leslie Mann, who is Judd Aptow’s wife), and her husband who provide the window into married family life.

An ordinary guy leaps for the clouds and tries to win the heart of a model-quality beauty. Its an old story, but one we never really get tired of. This is not as funny as some others, but still gives a few giggles and tells a pretty good tale. Its worth seeing, but be warned it falls somewhere between a teen sex comedy and a touching chick flick, and you will probably not remember the title two weeks after you see it.