Robert Carlyle

DVD Round Up, Oct. 30, 2009: ‘Sauna,’ ‘The Tournament,’ ‘The Butcher’

BrianTT — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:00:00 -0600

CHICAGO – Many editions of the DVD Round-Up have featured a different genre and focus for each title within it. This week seems a little more thematically linked as we have a trio of foreign horror films and a few more independent films than usual. Of course, there has to a holiday comedy to spice things up.

Consider this column informational with synopsis, tech specs, and special features info for titles that might go otherwise unnoticed, but if you’re looking for more critical opinion, we covered “Sauna” when it played at the EU Film Fest, “Medicine For Melancholy” when it was available on IFC Direct, and “Nothing Like the Holidays” when it played in theaters.

“P” and “The Tournament” were released on October 20th, 2009

“The Butcher,” “Medicine For Melancholy,” “Nothing Like the Holidays,” and “Sauna” were released on October 27th, 2009

“Nothing Like the Holidays”

Photo credit: Anchor Bay

Synopsis: “John Leguizamo (Ice Age, Moulin Rouge!), Freddy Rodriguez (Six Feet Under, Bobby), Debra Messing (Will & Grace, The Starter Wife), and Alfred Molina (The Pink Panther 2) lead a hilarious ensemble cast in this humorous and heartwarming holiday story that is “laugh-out-loud-funny and downright touching.” (MoviePictureFilm.com)

It’s Christmastime in Chicago, and the far-flung members of the Rodriguez family are converging at their parents’ house to celebrate the season. During the course of this eventful week, traditions will be celebrated, secrets revealed, old resentments forgotten, familial bonds re-affirmed and the healing power of laughter will work its magic. Nothing Like The Holidays is a “heartfelt” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times) gift for the whole family.”

“Nothing Like the Holidays” stars John Leguizamo, Freddy Rodriguez, Debra Messing, Alfred Molina, Luis Guzman, Melonie Diaz, Vanessa Ferlito, Jay Hernandez, and Elizabeth Pena. It was written by Alison Swan and Rick Najeira and directed by Alfredo de Villa. The film runs 98 minutes and is rated PG-13. It is presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and accompanied by a Dolby Surround 5.1 audio track.

Special features include “Nothing Like a Family: Cast Reunion,” Audio Commentary by Actor/Producer Freddy Rodriguez, Director Alfredo de Villa, and Producer Robert Teitel, Bloopers, and Theatrical Trailer.

“The Tournament”

Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

Synopsis: “Every seven years, thirty of the world’s most deadly assassins face off against one another for an outrageous cash prize. There’s only one rule: kill or die. As dozens of wealthy gamblers watch via closed-circuit TV, a city is overrun by brutal assassins - all aiming to be the last one standing. Starring Ving Rhames (Mission Impossible films), Kelly Hu (X2: X-Men United) and Robert Carlyle (Stargate: Universe), The Tournament is an explosive, action-loaded thriller where the winner takes all”

“The Tournament” stars Ving Rhames, Robert Carlyle, and Kelly Hu. It was written by Gary Young, Jonathan Frank, & Nick Rowntree and directed by Scott Mann. The film runs 95 minutes and is rated R. It is presented in a matted widescreen transfer and accompanied by an English Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track.

Special features include…nothing.

“Medicine For Melancholy”

Photo credit: IFC Films

Synopsis: “Wyatt Cenac (of The Daily Show) and Tracey Heggins star in this love story about two African-American twenty-somethings, their one-night stand, and a revealing day-after in rapidly gentrifying San Francisco - a city with the smallest proportional black population of any other major American city. In his internationally acclaimed and award-winning debut feature, writer/director Barry Jenkins creates a tender yet resonant tale of sex, race, bicycles and modern urban life that became one of the most significant hits of the festival season and remains perhaps the most talked-about independent film of the year.”

“Medicine For Melancholy” stars Wyatt Cenac and Tracey Heggins. It was written and directed by Barry Jenkins. The film runs 88 minutes and is not rated. It is presented in an enhanced widescreen transfer and accompanied by an English Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track.

Special features include the trailer and “Director’s Notes: An In-Depth Interview with Barry Jenkins at the London Film Festival”.

“Sauna”

Photo credit: IFC Films

Synopsis: “A chilling horror film, Sauna explores the space between Christianity and paganism. The year 1595 - a long and brutal war is finally over. Brothers Knut and Erik - who are part of a commission marking the border between Finland and Russia - commit a terrible sin as they leave a young girl to die a horrible death. As the commission crosses the uncharted swamp, the girl returns to haunt them. Weary men find solace from the nameless village and find a sauna - the sauna where all sins are washed away. Seeking forgiveness the brothers step in…”

“Sauna” stars Ville Vertanen, Tommi Eronen, and Viktor Klimenko. It was written by Iiro Kuttner and directed by AJ Annila. The film runs 84 minutes and is not rated. It is presented in a 2.35:1 widescreen transfer and accompanied by a Finnish/Russian Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track.

Special features include the film’s trailer.

“P”

Photo credit: Palisades Tartan

Synopsis: “While growing up in rural Thailand, a young orphan girl, Dau, is taught magic by her grandmother. But when her grandmother falls sick, Dau is lured to Bangkok to find work so that she can buy medicine. She finds herself working in a go-go bar, and her journey from naïveté to maturity is swift. She uses the magical skills her grandmother taught her to her advantage, but in doing so makes enemies within the bar. As her magic gets darker, and the consequences increasingly horrific, she gradually loses control, and something evil takes over. ”

“P” was written and directed by Paul Spurrier. The movie runs 110 minutes and is not rated. It is presented in anamorphic widescreen and accompanied by a Thai Dolby Digital Audio 5.1 track.

Special features include Directors Audio Commentary, “Behind the Scenes,” “Soi Cowboy Go-Go Bars” Featurette, Rawang Music Video, Production Photos, and Original Theatrical Trailer.

“The Butcher”

Photo credit: Palisades Tartan

Synopsis: “Told entirely through two POV video cameras, The Butcher throws you into the middle of chaos and death: a handful of people have been abducted and lie bloodied and bound on the floor of a rotting slaughterhouse. Nearby, a team of snuff film producers are discussing their gruesome handiwork: torturing their captives to death, one by one.”

“The Butcher” was written and directed by Kim Jinwon. The movie runs 75 minutes and is not rated. It is presented in anamorphic widescreen with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio and accompanied by a Korean Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 track.

Special features include Alternative Ending, Behind the Scenes Photos, Storyboard Sketches, and the Original Theatrical Trailer.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV Review: ‘24’ Searches For ‘Redemption’ With Prequel to Season Seven

BrianTT — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 14:24:46 -0700

CHICAGO – After a delay that lasted well in excess of a year, “24” returns to FOX this Sunday, Nov. 23, 2008 from 7 to 9 p.m. with a two-hour “special event” (they used to just be called “TV movies”) called “24: Redemption”.

The prequel to season seven of “24” intends to bridge the gap between day six and seven for Jack Bauer and set the plot in motion for what promises to be an interesting reboot of a show that hasn’t been on the air in almost two years.

The 2008 writer’s strike delayed the seventh season of “24” by an entire year. The show, which has never aired under anything but the George Bush presidency, now faces a brave new world when Jack Bauer starts another ticking clock in early 2009.

The writers of this prequel “event” are keenly aware that not only has their show been off the air for a lifetime in the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately world of television but also that they need to appeal to an audience that’s preparing for the much-debated “change” that has been promised by new president elect Barack Obama.

Obama will be the man in the Oval Office for nearly all of season seven of “24”.

While it may or may not carry over to the upcoming season of the show, there’s an interesting new dynamic at play in “24: Redemption”. The trademark “torture first; ask questions later” attitude of “24” has been replaced (at least in this prequel) by a more idealistic world view with a hero who saves the day and a new president who promises change.

Thankfully, Kiefer Sutherland never looks into the camera and says: “Mr. president, yes we can.” It’s still a dark and brutal program, but there has clearly been a creative reassessment of the show. It’s the kind of self-awareness that could resurrect a series that looked like its popularity might be sliding away with Bush and Cheney’s ever-plummeting approval ratings.

Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
Photo credit: Kelsey McNeal, FOX Broadcasting

The sixth season of “24” ended with Jack Bauer once again alone and without support. The seventh season picks up four days later with Jack in front of a U.S. Senate subcommittee. He’s forced to answer for his controversial past conduct and “24: Redemption” is meant to bridge those two Jacks.

Robert Carlyle as Carl Benton in “24: Redemption”.
Photo credit: Kelsey McNeal, FOX Broadcasting

In the years since season six, Jack has been wandering the globe while finding himself in the fictional country of Sangala, Africa where he works with a special-ops pal named Benton (Robert Carlyle) in a boys’ school.

Of course, no one has worse timing than Jack Bauer. He just happens to be at the school on the same day that a sadistic warlord (Tony Todd) is planning a bloody coup and needs some “little soldiers” to help with the mass murder.

Jack is literally on the road out of town with a backpack over his shoulder when things get serious. He is once again drawn into an international crisis. One minute, he’s off to save the next African village and literally 10 minutes later he’s dodging a rocket launcher.

It’s the classic Bauer dilemma: help out and face the government official (Gil Bellows) trying to bring Jack back to the U.S. for justice or turn his back on innocent children. It’s no contest for our man Jack.

While “Redemption” may be a “24” with no counterterrorist unit (CTU), it hasn’t lost any of its distrust for government and its officials. Gil Bellows is definitely smarmy enough, but even he doesn’t touch just a few minutes with Jon Voight.

Voight is licking his lips at the scenery he plans to chew in season seven as an American businessman who may have ties to terrorism (and a certain bloodthirsty warlord in Sangala). All of this happens to be going down on the day that president elect Allison Taylor (the great Cherry Jones) is taking over residence in the Oval Office.

The scenes between Jones and Powers Boothe’s outgoing president Noah Daniels have a riveting parallel to reality with the two even comparing the new leader’s “idealism” and the old one’s “cynicism”. Daniels delivers the line that President Bush probably wishes he could say to Barack Obama: “Let’s talk after you’ve been sitting in my chair for a while.”

The concept of one government inheriting not only the problems but also possibly the underhanded dealings of the previous one could add a new creative energy to a show that was seriously lacking it in season six. The casting of Jones makes one wonder if the producers of “24” thought Hillary Clinton was the more likely winner on Election Day.

President elect Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones, right) meets with U.S. President Noah Daniels (Powers Boothe, left) before her inauguration in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
Photo credit: Greg Gayne, FOX Broadcasting

Jones and Boothe are spectacular, but “24” has and will always belong to Kiefer Sutherland who doesn’t miss a beat stepping back into Bauer’s well-worn shoes.

“24: Redemption” has an unusual supporting cast in that it introduces some new players for season seven, features several actors who will only be in “24: Redemption” and doesn’t include many of the regular faces (like Mary Lynn Rajskub or the returning Carlos Bernard).

That said, perhaps it’s appropriate that with the exception of Jones’ few scenes we’re reintroduced to “24” with a movie that features Sutherland front and center. If anyone is going to carry the show back from the worst season in its history, it’s going to be Jack Bauer. In the end, “24: Redemption” is really just prologue and back story for what’s to come in season seven.

However, judged as a standalone “event” (as FOX likes to describe it), it comes up a little short. The action in Sangala is too predictable (Bellows, in particular, might as well be twirling a curly-cue mustache as he’s such a stereotypically slimy bad guy) and the pile of coincidences that can sometimes bring down the show hurts the believability of the action in the nation’s capital.

The president elect’s son (Eric Lively) gets involved with the drama surrounding what’s happening in Africa in a way that doesn’t feel plausible at all (which is saying a lot for this show). The real-time structure is stretched as far as it ever has been.

While “24” has always been a program that requires an intense suspension of disbelief, “24: Redemption” seems to need more than average. For a country that recently voted for change, “24: Redemption” seems to be going in the right direction but may not have gone far enough to not look like a Bush-era relic.

“24: Redemption,” which airs on FOX, stars Kiefer Sutherland, Robert Carlyle, Cherry Jones, Jon Voight, Tony Todd, Gil Bellows and Powers Boothe. The two-hour event airs on Nov. 23, 2008 at 7 p.m. CST.

Flip through our high-quality, 22-image slideshow for “24: Redemption”.

Read our interview with “24” star Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe O’Brian).

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Slideshow: 22-Image Gallery For ‘24: Redemption’ With Kiefer Sutherland

BrianTT — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 16:50:58 -0700

CHICAGO – This 22-image slideshow contains official press images for the new TV film “24: Redemption” (previously named “24: Exile”), which stars Kiefer Sutherland, Gil Bellows, Robert Carlyle, Cherry Jones, Powers Boothe and Jon Voight. The prequel to the seventh season of “24” airs on Nov. 23, 2008 at 8 p.m. EST or 7 p.m. CST on FOX.

“24” jump-starts its seventh season with a two-hour, real-time special movie that airs on Nov. 23, 2008. Set and shot entirely in Africa, “24: Redemption” stars Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer who is forced to battle an international crisis with mentor Carl Benton (Robert Carlyle).

Meanwhile, the U.S. prepares to inaugurate new president Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones). Set a few months before day seven will officially begin for “24,” “24: Redemption” also introduces two characters who will be integral to that season’s plot: Frank Tramell (Gil Bellows) and Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight).

You can click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through this slideshow or jump directly to individual photos with the captioned links below. Unless otherwise noted on an individual photo, all photo credits for this slideshow belong to Kelsey McNeal and the FOX Broadcasting Company.

24redemption1: Captured in Africa exhibit: “24” producer Michael Klick captures Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) performing a stunt while filming “24: Redemption,” which airs on Nov. 23, 2008 on FOX. Photo credit: Michael Klick
24redemption2: Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer in “24: Redemption,” which is the two-hour special “day-seven prequel” airing on Nov. 23, 2008 on FOX.
24redemption3: Gil Bellows as Frank Tramell in “24: Redemption”.
24redemption4: Robert Carlyle as Carl Benton in “24: Redemption”.
24redemption5: Captured in Africa exhibit: Unit photographer Kelsey McNeal captures a behind-the-scenes look at Kiefer Sutherland (right) and Siyabulela Ramba (left) while filming “24: Redemption”.
24redemption6: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland, center) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”. Robert Carlyle is also pictured on right.
24redemption7: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption8: U.S. State Department officer Frank Tramell (Gil Bellows, right) tries to convince Carl Benton (Robert Carlyle, left) that Jack must return to the U.S. in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption9: Robert Carlyle as Carl Benton in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption10: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) forms a bond with the children at an orphanage in South Africa in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”. Siyabuela Ramba is also pictured on right.
24redemption11: Robert Carlyle as Carl Benton in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption12: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption13: An international crisis ensues in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption14: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption15: Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) battles an international crisis in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption16: U.S. State Department officer Frank Tramell (Gil Bellows, left) tries to convince Jack to return to the U.S. in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”. Also pictured is Robert Carlyle on right.
24redemption17: Jon Voight as Jonas Hodges in “24: Redemption”.
24redemption18: Jon Voight as Jonas Hodges in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption19: President-elect Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones, right) meets with U.S. president Noah Daniels (Powers Boothe, left) before her inauguration in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”. Photo credit: Greg Gayne/FOX
24redemption20: Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight) attends the presidential inauguration in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”.
24redemption21: President-elect Allison Taylor is sworn in as president of the U.S. in the special two-hour prequel event “24: Redemption”. Photo credit: Greg Gayne/FOX
24redemption22: Captured in Africa exhibit: “24” producer Michael Klick used his infrared camera to capture Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) on the run while filming “24: Redemption”.Photo credit: Michael Klick

Read our full “24: Redemption” review by critic Brian Tallerico.

Read our interview with “24” star Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe O’Brian).

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com