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Director: Peter Weir

Starring: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, James D’Arcy, Max Pirkis, Edward Woodall, Chris Larkin, Jack Randall.

This swashbuckling masterpiece was nominated for ten Academy Awards but had the misfortune of being swept aside in all but two categories by a tough field that included the final Lord of the Rings and Mystic River. Director Peter Weir gave us this grand, and impressive, action epic that features wonderful cinematography, clever, and interesting, scenes of ship life and naval battle tactics. The characters are well-written and the simple story is augmented by excellent subplots.

Russell Crowe is Captain Jack Aubrey, a seasoned, and determined, English captain during the Napoleonic Wars, who finds himself in a personal, and prolonged, battle with a wily French Captain with a superior ship. There is a strong ensemble cast that includes Paul Bettany (Crowe’s co-star from A Beautiful Mind) as the ship’s doctor and Jack’s friend, as well as an amateur naturalist.

Master and Commander is far and away the best contemporary high seas film out there and if you have missed it, its not too late. Whatever, Russell Crowe’s tendency for cell phone pitching and temper tantrums, this guy picks good movies and this was one in a string of six straight excellent projects of his.

Director: Oxide and Danny Pang

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dylan McDermott, Penelope Ann Miller, John Corbett, Evan & Theodore Turner

Hollywood gives us a haunted house story, or two, every year. There are enough of them to fill an entire subdivision with tall, creaky, old mansions. This makes it difficult for new entries to find a way to distinguish themselves from the others. Still, I never mind a decent thriller to get those goose bumps popping up. The Messengers relies on pop-up thrills and a decent ending delivered by a strong cast, but still never manages to stand out from the pack

Jess is a teenage girl moving with her parents (McDermott and Miller) and little brother from Chicago to a rundown farmhouse in the country. At first the only real problem is some pretty aggressive local crows, but in no time at all, it becomes apparent that not all of the problems are outside. Jess soon suspects that the previous residents didn’t all leave, but can’t get anyone else to believe her (Wow, never heard of that before). The story progresses from there in a pretty familiar manner.

The Messengers is acceptable as a dark, Friday night couch-cuddling choice, or for people who loved movies like Cold Creek Manor, An American Haunting, the Amityville series, etc.. It is generally neither better nor worse than previous works in the area so if they were your kind of flicks, then fire this one up for more of the same.

Director: Clint Eastwood

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, Jay Baruchel, Mike Colter.

Clint Eastwood sure has this moviemaking business down. It seems like everything he does gets more attention than a stripper at a bachelor party. Million Dollar Baby is a Paul Haggis screenplay based on a work by former boxing cut man, F.X. Toole. It is a predictable, formula story, lifted by well-written characters with fantastic performances. It won four academy awards, including best picture. It was overrated upon release, but it is a very good movie.

Hilary Swank got her second Oscar with only her second nomination as she plays Maggie Fitzgerald, a waitress from a white trash background, shows off some amazing abs and even more amazing determination, in her efforts to convince Frank (Eastwood) to train her as a boxer. Frank, a tough, experienced, boxing gym owner and trainer, eventually agrees despite secret pain of his own. Watching, and helping, all this unfold, is Eddie Dupris, Frank’s good-naturedly, sardonic janitor, played by Morgan Freeman in an Oscar winning performance. Look for a wonderful performance in an interesting role by Jay Baruchel as ‘Danger’.

This is an interesting, if emotionally manipulative, drama that stole the 2004 Best Picture Oscar from Ray. Still, it seems like every movie that Clint Eastwood and Paul Haggis collaborate on is bound for greatness. This is a boxing movie, but it manages to transcend the genre, in much the same way as Cinderella Man and Raging Bull.

Director: Chris Noonan

Starring: Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson, Barbara Flynn, Bill Paterson, Matyelok Gibbs, Lloyd Owen.

Miss Potter is a period romance with Zellweger again playing a woman who believes that love and marriage have passed her by. The acting is strong and the characters are engaging. The story starts out light, but the mood takes a surprising swing into some dark territory for awhile, which is a little unusual for a Zellweger choice, but it does land in more familiar territory soon enough.

Renee Zellweger is Beatrix Potter, the author of “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”. Her preference for drawing and writing, over the usual distractions of upper class ladies of the 19th century marks her as different. The movie begins with Miss Potter searching for a publisher for her children’s story. She finds a publisher and Norman Warne (Ewan McGregor), also somewhat socially awkward, becomes her editor. Their relationship grows, as does her success. This was extremely rare for a woman in the restrictive male-dominated society of Victorian England.

Beatrix Potter fans, period piece purveyors and Jane Austen fans will find this drama to be enjoyable. The historical aspects add to the story. The quirky Potter’s relationship with her own created characters adds an unusual element to the story that some will appreciate and others will tolerate. Overall, it is an average effort.

Director: Steve Bendelak

Starring: Rowan Atkinson, Emma de Caunes, Willem Dafoe, Max Baldry, Karel Roden

Mr. Bean is back to give us ninety minutes of nonsense that is mainly dependent upon physical comedy. This, the second Bean movie, is more European than the first. The movie starts out weak, but does get better as it goes on, though the humor is more likely to elicit a chuckle than a laugh, even among Bean fans, which I admit I am not.

The man with a thousand faces starts out here by winning a trip to Cannes in a church raffle. On his way to the legendary beaches of the Riviera, he ruins the day of a few people before accidentally separating a father and son on their way to Cannes. The hero then tries to help the poor boy, Stepan (Baldry) re-unite with his father and soon has plenty of problems of his own, before he meets an aspiring actress named Sabine (de Caunes) after disrupting American film director, Carson Clay’s (played by Dafoe) film efforts. There is a chicken chase, an opera performance, and a film festival premiere, but most of all, there is constant Bean idiocy and camera mugging that has gained Atkinson millions of fans all over the world.

This film was not to my taste, but my companion, who was a Bean fan, suggested that four stars would be a fair rating. Her assessment, notwithstanding, I went lower than that. Not only because I didn’t get too many laughs out of this one, but also because I didn’t see any uproarious response from the crowd, which I would expect included a good number of Bean fans. So, there it is. Bean fans will probably enjoy it, while their companions will probably feel like they are proving their loyalty/love/friendship, etc. by going along.

Director: Bruce A. Evans

Starring: Kevin Costner, William Hurt, Demi Moore, Dane Cook, Merg Helgenberger, Danielle Panabaker

It’s true. While watching this movie you may just start glancing around to make sure that you don’t see leg warmers and big hair and be relieved once you confirm that you haven’t been plunged back to 1985. This dark, suspense film has a cast that would have cost a lot more 20 years ago when Costner and Moore were a couple of the biggest stars on the planet, but it is still a pretty good flick today. It has some interesting twists on the millionaire-psycho angle that seems pretty popular this year, and has some pretty good surprises. You do have to swallow some far-fetched coincidences, but that’s the genre.

Kevin Costner is a rich businessman who seems to lead a perfect life, except for fighting an addiction to killing people (everyone has some issue to deal with, right?). His dark side is represented by William Hurt, who plays a character named Marshall that only Mr. Brooks can see and hear. Things get more complicated when he is spotted plying his hobby. The witness, Mr. Smith (Dane Cook) wants something unusual in return for his silence. Instead of money, he wants to be taken along to watch Mr. Brooks’ next killing. This is kind of like The Mechanic meets Apt Pupil. Thrown into the mix, is Demi Moore’s driven police detective character, Tracy Atwood, who is after the elusive ‘thumbprint killer’, though I’m not sure her subplots were really necessary.

This is like a cinematic 80s adventure, but it is wrapped in a pretty good suspense flick that’s different enough to be interesting and familiar enough to be comfortable. The experienced cast does a good job and fans of the genre should be pleased with the result.

Starring: Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Kristen Johnston,

Director: Marc Lawrence

It’s true. I have an undiagnosed eighties addiction which this movie masterfully played upon in its first few minutes, putting me into a favorable state of mind. How diabolically clever of them! This was a surprisingly, charming film with some clever dialogue and a pretty decent story helped out by Hugh Grant’s easy charm and Drew Barrymore’s girl-next-door appeal.

Hugh Grant is Alex Fletcher, a key member of an 80’s pop group living in the shadows of his past when an opportunity to reclaim some lost glory arrives. The only hitch is that he has five days to write a new hit song, and has no one to take up his former partner’s task of writing the lyrics. Enter a mysterious plant caretaker named Sophie Fisher (Drew Barrymore) with a hidden, natural talent as a lyricist. This movie is full of Grant’s usual snappy one-liners and is a charming romantic comedy that even offers some insight into songwriting. You guys know my weakness for writing-related things. Anyway, I digress; back to the review.

This was an satisfying film with enough giggles to entertain and a comfortable enough story to hold my interest and, yes, I’ll admit it; I really like the original songs written for the film. If you are a Hugh Grant fan there is yet another funny fight scene for you. If you are an 80’s fan, you get a retro ride and those just looking for light, romantic comedy will find this one pleasant enough. If its not your thing, then you will likely find it insipid and sugary sweet to the point of vomit inducement.

Director: Jonathan Lynn

Starring: Joe Pesci, Marisa Tomei, Fred Gwynne, Lane Smith, Ralph Macchio, Mitchell Whitfield, Austin Pendleton, Bruce McGill

Comedies are not easy to make. A drama needs a good story, decent acting and quality direction. Comedy needs all of that (and the acting had better be something above decent, too), plus it has to be funny, too. That ain’t easy. My Cousin Vinny gets a little silly in spots, but there are great performances by Pesci, Tomei and Gwynne, who ends up with many of the funniest lines. These performances are helped along by a very good story and are topped with an excellent ending.

Macchio and Whitfield are Billy Gambini and Stan Rothenstein, two college students on their way back to school, when they are arrested for a murder they didn’t commit, in a small town in Alabama. Desperate, and faced with an expensive murder trial, Billy remembers that his cousin, Vinny, is a lawyer. What luck! At least until cousin Vinny (Peschi), shows up looking like a Brooklyn wise guy, with his sexy, but flamboyant fiancee, Mona Lisa Vito (Marisa Tomei in an Oscar-nominated role). It turns out that Vinny Gambini is not quite the experienced and savvy mouthpiece that they had hoped for, but it is up to him to overcome a stickler of a judge played by Gwynne, an experienced prosecutor (Smith) and a load of evidence to keep his innocent cousin from the electric chair.

Humorous, but believable and likable, characters, a great story and clever dialog made this one of the best comedies of the nineties. Fred Gwynne passed away soon after its completion and his fine performance helped make this the great film it is and served as a wonderful addition to his legacy. If you haven’t seen it, see it. If you have seen it, see it again.

Director: Michael Winterbottom

Starring: Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Azfar Ali, Asra Q. Nomani, Denis O’Hare, Irfan Khan

Angelina Jolie plays Mariane Pearl, the widow of Wall Street Journal reporter, Daniel Pearl, who was kidnapped by terrorists in Pakistan. Director Michael Winterbottom uses short scenes to keep up the pace and build a sense of urgency. This works well, though it goes a little flat towards the end. Jolie’s performance is strong and Futterman is good as her husband, whose side of the story is given sparingly in flashbacks.

Daniel and Mariane Pearl are both journalists working in Karachi, Pakistan and Daniel is hoping for one more interview with an Islamic extremist leader, when he vanishes. Mariane leaps into action and is soon in the thick of the investigation. The film has an authentic feel.

This is an effective story with good acting, but it does play a little like a TV movie. Still, it is worth seeing, particularly if you have an interest in the story, or a fan of Jolie’s work.

Director: Davor Marjanovic

Starring: Tony Nardi, Timothy Webber, Tygh Runyan, Brendan Fletcher, Asja Pavlovic, Lynda Boyd, Vanessa King

Well, not too many giggles in this one. This is a dark, depressing, Canadian drama about the daily after effects of war experiences. The acting is solid and the story is good, but the dreariness is relentless, here. I cannot deny a certain hypnotic quality to it, however, that kept me watching although I can’t say I was enjoying it. If you remember Midnight Cowboy, it had a similar kind of dark appeal.

Tony Nardi is Ahmed, a Yugoslavian Muslim living in Vancouver after fleeing the civil war back home. Both he and especially his wife (Pavlovic) are terribly damaged from their experiences in the Europe and their son (Runyan) also struggles with his own issues. When Ahmed crosses paths with a former Serbian soccer player, Djordje (Webber), they are enemies first, but their relationship soon becomes far more complicated, and transfers to their sons as well.

This is a strong drama, but lacks entertainment value. It will be enjoyed by some, but you need to appreciate serious drama or have an interest in the subject matter.