Pierce Brosnan

Film Review: More is Preferred in ‘Love is All You Need’

PatrickMcD — Fri, 10 May 2013 19:07:41 -0400

CHICAGO – Creating the lofty name for this film, “Love is All You Need” – from a translation of its original title, “Den skaldede friser” – is intently ambitious considering its source is a lyric from one of The Beatles most famous songs. The film has its moments, but cannot sustain itself in a stew of high drama and mixed emotions.

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Pierce Brosnan lends his star power to a Danish, Swedish, Italian, French and German produced film, and actually is one of the main characters to get caught in the web of the conflicting emotions in the plot. He is supposed to be a man in mourning for a long passed first wife, but his sophistication as a wealthy business man and still-good-looking James Bond air makes this character trait extremely unlikely. However, he meets a woman who is struggling with her own problems, and it turns out they are both going to the wedding of his son and her daughter. Through a bunch of hard to fathom circumstances, the wedding becomes secondary to Brosnan’s pursuit in his definition of love. What this film really needs is a more coherent narrative flow.

Brosnan is Philip, who has lost his wife years ago in an automobile accident, and owns a food distributorship in Copenhagen. He has let his son Patrick (Sebastian Jensen) borrow the villa he owns in Italy for the son’s marriage to Astrid (Molly Blixt Egelind). Astrid’s mother Ida (Trine Dyrholm) is going to the wedding, but without her husband. He has flown the coop and now shacks up with an accountant from his job. This occurs right at the point while Ida is waiting for diagnostic news regarding her breast cancer, and right before the wedding.

Everyone gathers for the wedding, including Astrid’s father, who not only brings his new conquest but announces they’re engaged. Also arriving to stir trouble is Benedikte (Parprika Steen), the bawdy and obnoxious ex sister-in-law of Philip. Patrick and Astrid are ready to take the vows, but between their unrevealed secrets and Philip’s sudden attraction to Ida, they’ll need to first take care of the wedding guests.

“Love is All You Need” continues its limited release in Chicago on May 10th. See local listings for show times and theaters. Featuring Pierce Brosnan, Trine Dyrholm, Molly Blixt Egelind and Sebastian Jessen. Screenplay by Anders Thomas Jensen. Directed by Susanne Bier. Rated “R”

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Love is All You Need”

Philip (Pierce Brosnan) has Eyes for Ida (Trine Dyrholm) in ‘Love Is All You Need’
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Love is All You Need”

Blu-ray Review: Insulting, Miscast ‘I Don’t Know How She Does It’

BrianTT — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:15:54 -0500

CHICAGO – “I Don’t Know How She Does It” could have been just another misogynistic (you would never see “I Don’t Know How HE Does It”…the very title implies sexism) alleged comedy but it goes well beyond that partially because it features one of the worst screenplays of 2011 but also because it is easily one of the most miscast movies ever made. I liked HBO’s “Sex and the City” (not the movies) but Sarah Jessica Parker simply fits this role about as well as Gene Hackman would fit in the co-lead role of the sixth “Fast and the Furious” movie. She’s awkward, uncomfortable, and never once believable. It’s nearly fascinating like a car crash. Instead, it’s just awful.

Blu-ray Rating: 0.5/5.0

A stunning portion of the first act of “IDKHSDI” consists of lead character Kate Reddy (Parker) trying to turn her store-bought pie into something that looks homemade. Seriously, these are the characters in this film’s concept of serious problems — how other mothers look at their bake sale offerings. And someone thought this was dramatically weighty enough to be a movie. It should have been called “I Don’t Know How She Can Be So Shallow.”

As for Parker, she brings way too much Carrie Bradshaw to a role that needed to be an “Everywoman” in order to work in the slightest. Carrie wasn’t an everywoman. She wore the newest fashions, dated gorgeous men, and traveled in incredible social circles. People wanted to be her or her friends. She carries way too much of that character into this one, making her miscast in the entire film. The true shame is that there are some seriously talented people in the supporting cast, including Pierce Brosnan, Christina Hendricks, Olivia Munn, and Busy Philipps. We’re used to people like Kelsey Grammer and Seth Meyers slumming in bad comedies but even this one feels below their pay grade.

Much worse than the miscasting is the stereotypical misogyny. Women prepare for bake sales. Men take clients to strip clubs. Women worry about when their kids get to school. Men don’t notice when they’re out of toilet paper. Really? Sigh. What year is it? 1960? This would have looked outdated then. It’s just an awful, horrendous, laugh-free script. I don’t know why they made it.

I Don’t Know How She Does It
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company

Synopsis:
Trying to balance work and family is a non-stop juggling act for Kate Reddy (Sarah Jessica Parker). As a determined Boston-based finance executive, she devotes her day to her job and her night to her adoring husband Richard (Greg Kinnear) and their two young children. In between conference calls, meetings, deadlines, and her daughter’s school bake sale, Kate manages to survive on a daily basis. But when she gets handed a major new account that will require frequent trips to New York, and Richard also wins the new job he’s been hoping for, both will be spreading themselves even thinner. Complicating matters is Kate’s charming new business associate Jack Ablehammer (Pierce Brosnan), a handsome executive whose unexpected emotional support becomes a source of refuge.

Special Features:
o A Conversation with Best-Selling Author Allison Pearson

“I Don’t Know How She Does It” stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, Christina Hendricks, Kelsey Grammer, Seth Meyers, Olivia Munn, Jane Curtin, Busy Philipps, Sarah Shahi, and Jessica Szohr. It was written by Aline Brosh McKenna and directed by Douglas McGrath. It was released on Blu-ray and DVD on January 3rd, 2012.

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

TV Review: A&E’s ‘Bag of Bones’ Feels Empty

PatrickMcD — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 14:12:06 -0500

CHICAGO – A&E’s “Bag of Bones” is a mess. There are elements that work but a source material that doesn’t exactly translate to the mini-series form along with a mediocre script by Matt Venne and generic direction by Mick Garris add up to an experience that’s disjointed and inconsistent. There was a time when a Stephen King mini-series was an event – “The Stand,” “It,” even “Storm of the Century” – but what’s so disappointing about “Bag of Bones” is how inconsequential the whole thing feels.

Television Rating: 2.0/5.0

King’s “Bag of Bones” trods well-worn ground for the author. Once again, the protagonist is a writer, creative block plays a part, and, of course, there must be ghosts. The book has its moments but is also overly familiar for fans of the writer’s best work. What was most interesting about the novel was not the King cliches that were being trotted out once again but the feeling that the writer was getting even more personal, crafting a story not about someone else but using his own writer’s block as a jumping off point. The result was a novel that sometimes felt blocked itself, one that moved haphazardly at times but was also sometimes a fascinating look into the mind of its author.

Bag of Bones
Photo credit: A and E

As you might imagine, writer’s block is pretty hard to convey to cinema or TV. Venne & Garris get the external elements of “Bag of Bones” – they get big scares, nightmarish visions, and loud music beats to make you jump on a cold Sunday night. They don’t, at ALL, get the internal ones. The book was built around the inner workings, dreams, and loss of a man. It wasn’t a traditional ghost story, and yet Venne & Garris seem bored when they’re not allowed to play with their bag of haunted house tricks. The characters of “Bag of Bones” get lost under the emphasis on increasingly intense dream sequences. Believe it or not, another man’s nightmare aren’t that scary for a viewer. King never really intended them to be – “Bag of Bones” is not at all a book meant to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up – but that’s all the adaptation focuses on.

Bag of Bones
Photo credit: A and E

Pierce Brosnan carries much of the weight of the mini-series as its lead, celebrated author Mike Noonan. In the book, his wife Jo (Annabeth Gish) died of an aneurysm but the feeling that Garris & company wanted to “pump up” the book starts early as she’s instead hit by a speeding bus in the TV version. Mike holds the dying Jo in his arms and later learns that Jo was pregnant when she died. This revelation throws Mike as he’s been told he can’t have children and so he wonders if his wife was seeing someone on the side, perhaps when she went to restore that creepy old house on Dark Score Lake. After dreaming of the house a few times, Mike decides to move there for a bit, work on his book, and ask the locals if Jo ever had a male companion at the local diner.

While staving off the exhaustion that must come with increasingly intense nightmares, Mike stumbles into the life of Mattie Devore (Melissa George), a single mother whose husband went crazy, as many around the lake seem to do. Mattie’s father-in-law (William Schallert) has been slandering the mother of his granddaughter in an effort to get the girl (Caitlin Carmichael) for himself. Meanwhile, Mike has detailed visions of a blues singer named Sara (Anika Noni Rose), whose story may offer insight into his current dilemmas.

Brosnan is good here, proving himself a consistently engaging dramatic lead yet again. He still doesn’t quite get the credit deserved outside of James Bond and Remington Steele. The fact is that he’s always interesting and was a good choice for this material. The rest of the cast is a bit less memorable, although I’ve always liked George and wish she could find the right weekly TV vehicle for her talents. Jason Priestley also delivers in a few scenes, as does the always-good Matt Frewer. Gish and Rose feel a bit wasted.

“Bag of Bones” is the kind of piece cluttered with enough plot — Sara’s story, Mattie’s story, Mike & Jo’s story, the lake – that it probably couldn’t have been squeezed into one night merely because of its abundance of arcs but it also doesn’t have enough atmosphere to maintain what is ultimately a three-hour running time. It’s bloated with jump cuts, repetitive dreams, and some weak dialogue. Venne and Garris simply don’t have the delicate touch it takes to bring a piece like this one, a story free of massive set pieces like “The Stand” or “It,” to the screen. The result is a bag that’s filled with characters and plot arcs but nothing that really matters in the end.

“Bag of Bones” stars Pierce Brosnan, Melissa George, Annabeth Gish, William Schallert, Caitlin Carmichael, Jason Priestley, Matt Frewer, and Anika Noni Rose. It was adapted from a book by Stephen King by Matt Venne and directed by Mick Garris. It plays on A&E on Sunday, December 11th, 2011 and Monday, December 12th, 2011 at 8pm CST both nights.

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

Film Review: Sarah Jessica Parker in ‘I Don’t Know How She Does It’

PatrickMcD — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 17:22:44 -0400

CHICAGO – She produced and starred in one of the great TV-to-film franchises of the last 15 years. She has made millions in endorsements for the fashion industry. She is married to a prominent celebrity who once played Ferris Bueller. Regarding Sarah Jessica Parker, “I Don’t Know How She Does It.”

Rating: 1.5/5.0

That exclamation regarding Parker’s achievements is also the title of her latest film, where Ms. P trades “Sex and the City” for Mommy guilt in the city. This is based on a novel by Alice Pearson, which can be characterized as “upper middle class porn.” It’s not enough to have the double income, childcare help and a high-level job, there has to be a pink-covered literary tome and film version extolling those traits as either marvelously difficult or the second coming of motherhood. Both book and film require a squelching of the gag reflex (both in choking and humor).

Sarah Jessica Parker is Kate, who is introduced in a bizarre documentary style, worshiped for her ability to have two children, a husband AND a well-endowed job at a financial institution (obviously set before “too big to fail”). Part of the documentary has the perfect, stay-at-home mothers (represented by a work-out queen played by Busy Phillipps) dumping on the working mother. Kate travels at lot, leaving her husband Richard (Greg Kinnear) to deal with the home front, which causes questioning and guilt. Kate also makes lists in her head, leaving behind the energy-enhancing sleep that most likely caused the market meltdown.

After coming up with a new financial product (which suspiciously seems like a 401K), she must put in even more hours, which leaves her rival Bunce (Seth Meyers) on her six-inch heels, her associate Momo (Olivia Munn) at her bidding and her best friend Allison (Christina Hendricks) flexing her ample bosom in admiration. When Jack Abelhammer (Pierce Brosnan), the banker associated with the potential new fund, starts revealing a crush on our heroic Mom, the balance of home, work and life just added another wrinkle, next to the stain on her blouse that she hilariously can’t have cleaned (because she has no time!).

“I Don’t Know How She Does It” opens everywhere September 16th. Featuring Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, Christina Hendricks, Kelsey Grammer, Seth Meyers, Olivia Munn, Busy Phillipps and Jane Curtin. Adapted for the screen by Aline Brosh McKenna from the novel by Alice Pearson. Directed by Douglas McGrath. Rated “PG-13”

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “I Don’t Know How She Does It”

Working Mom: Sarah Jessica Parker as Kate and Pierce Brosnan as Jack in ‘I Don’t Know How She Does It’
Photo credit: Craig Blankenhorn for The Weinstein Company

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full review of “I Don’t Know How She Does It”

Video Game Review: Updated ‘Goldeneye 007’ For Nintendo Wii Misfires

BrianTT — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 14:57:56 -0500

CHICAGO – Most of us who are old enough to have spent many of our formative hours playing “Goldeneye 64” often point to the title as one of the most memorable shooting games in history. Personally, I spent much of the time I should have been studying in college massacring my friends on the legendary Nintendo 64 game. Like most people of my age group, I was completely psyched for the 2010 reboot of the timeless game. It just makes my disappointment all the more painful.

Video Game Rating: 2.5/5.0

Let’s get this out of the way first — games that require quick hand-eye coordination like fast-paced shooters were not designed for the Wii-mote & nunchuk control system. As much as I wanted to make it work and as accomplished as some Nintendo Wii shooting games have been (“Resident Evil 4,” “The Conduit,” rail games like “House of the Dead: Overkill” and “Dead Space: Extraction”), the foundation of “Goldeneye 007” is deeply-flawed. The game tries to replicate the fast pace of PS3 or Xbox 360 games but when you’re constantly trying to find your bearings and merge movement with the control stick with the direction you’re aiming with the Wii-mote, it can ruin your good times. You’ll quickly move to the Classic Controller or go buy one if you don’t have one already.

Goldeneye 007
Photo credit: Nintendo

Once you figure out the best way to control the damn game, it’s a recapturing of the joy of the original experience, right? Well, not really. The story and level design have been understandably recrafted for a new era, including Daniel Craig replacing Pierce Brosnan as 007, which is not that big of a problem, but most of the alterations in storytelling fall flat. Perhaps the best example would be that Tina Turner’s theme song has been redone by Nicole Scherzinger of The Pussycat Dolls. That about says it all. Even Scherzinger would probably admit she’s a downgrade from one of the most legendary programs of all time. And it’s a problem when every element that feels new feels like a step down.

Perhaps the biggest problem with “Goldeneye 007” is how far shooters have come since the original title. Playing the old N64 game as it was originally released would allow for retro forgiveness of its flaws but “Goldeneye 007” wants to compete with modern shooters and everything here has been done better not just before but recently. The level design is generic and the enemy A.I. is horrendous, even for Wii. The graphics are sub-par and the levels simply blur into each other after awhile. The splitscreen available for local multiplayer looks particularly horrific. Visually, the blurry title looks practically incomplete at times.

Of course, no one really remembers the single-player campaign of “Goldeneye” as much as they do the endless multiplayer bouts and if there’s a redeeming quality of “Goldeneye 007” it’s once again in that section of the title. Playing locally is almost impossible unless you have a 70-inch TV as the split screen is ineffective but the online multiplayer is effective, especially when compared to other Wii games. This console was simply not designed for multiplayer shooter games, so it works with that in mind. It’s not going to replace “Call of Duty: Black Ops,” but the square peg fits relatively well in the round hole.

There’s a chance that our expectations could have never been met by a 2010 Wii version of “Goldeneye.” Times have changed, gamers have adapted, and we expect more from shooters than we did in 1995. The classic “Doom” has made its way to XBLA and perhaps that was the route for “Goldeneye” that would have worked better because this version feels like not a reboot or a restart but that other dreaded “re-” word — remake.

‘Goldeneye 007’ was released and developed by Activision. It is rated T (Teen). The title is available exclusively for the Nintendo Wii. It was released on November 2nd, 2010.

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

Blu-Ray Review: Disney Nature’s ‘Oceans,’ ‘The Crimson Wing’

BrianTT — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 12:11:18 -0400

CHICAGO – Nature films used to be much more common in the days before basic cable. Believe it or not young ones, there was a time before the interwebs and Discover Health when you couldn’t see nature at work outside of museums or a trip to the Antarctic. Rebooting the genre has been a remarkably profitable endeavor for Disney Nature as 2009’s “Earth” made $107 million worldwide and 2010’s “Oceans,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD followed with $68 million.

Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0

Money aside, are movies like “Oceans,” and “The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos,” which was released on the home market on the same day as its theatrical companion, worth your time? Yes and no. There is something marvelous about seeing footage that looks like CGI-created special effects even though it is purely a product of mother nature and Pierce Brosnan has a soothing narrative voice but one wishes “Oceans” would strive for something a bit greater than the sum its notable parts.

Oceans was released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 26th, 2010
Photo credit: Disney

The footage is cool to watch and I understand the need to “dumb it down” for kids to not feel like they’re watching a video in a school classroom but “Oceans” never finds an educational rhythm. Almost all of the footage either falls into the “weird” (strange looking fish), “deadly” (Disney has always loved their circle of life), or “awe-inspiring” categories but the film rarely forms a cohesive whole. There’s a difference between impressive footage and an actual movie and “Oceans” fall too much into the former.

The Crimson Wing was released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 26th, 2010
Photo credit: Disney

Having said that, the footage should definitely be seen in HD. “Planet Earth” can be a bit much for some people, especially the youth and family market targeted by Disney Nature, so “Oceans” should be seen as a healthy alternative: The “light” version of the full meal that is “Planet Earth.” And it has moments of jaw-dropping beauty, especially in HD.

There have been so many wonderful nature-based HD releases (most of them from BBC) that it can be difficult to determine on which scale to judge “Oceans.” I would never choose it over “Planet Earth” but perhaps that shouldn’t be the bar of judgment. When one considers all the brain-dead options for children, it seems counter-productive to get down on a Disney Nature offering like “Oceans.”

Disney Nature also chose to release a 2-disc combo back of “The Crimson Wing,” the story of a Lake in Tanzania and the miracle of nature caught on film. A million flamingos arrive at this lake to continue the circle of life and the filmmakers focus on the journey of one new chick. In many ways, “The Crimson Wing” is more accomplished than “Oceans” because it’s more focused (although the latter features more remarkable footage, having a wider canvas with which to work.)

Is the Disney Nature trend here to stay? With more and more technologically impressive ways to both capture and display the power of nature, it makes sense that we’re seeing more and more Blu-ray releases like “Oceans” and “The Crimson Wing.” They may not be the complete experiences one hopes they would be, but as purely visual marvels, they are both something to behold.

“Oceans” Special Features:
o Living Menus — A Fully Interactive Experience
o Filmmaker Annotations
o “Make a Wave” — Disney’s Friends For Change Music Video Featuring Joe Jonas & Demi Lovato
o Disney & Nature: Preserving the World We Share
o “Deeper in the Ocean” — Select Bonus Videos

“The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos” Special Features
o “Lake Natron Diaries: Behind The Crimson Wing”
o Living Planet: Explore the Earth In A Fully Interactive Experience!
o Filmmaker Annotations
o “The Crimson Wing” Screensaver

“Oceans” and “The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos” were released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 19th, 2010.

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

Blu-Ray Review: Roman Polanski’s Brilliant Thriller ‘The Ghost Writer’

BrianTT — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 14:13:53 -0400

CHICAGO – Roman Polanski’s name has drawn a lot of media attention in 2010 due to his continued international legal problems but the controversy regarding his real life has overshadowed the fact that he recently made one of the best films of his career, the tragically underrated and straight-up brilliant “The Ghost Writer,” a must-see now that it’s on Blu-ray and DVD.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.0/5.0

Ewan McGregor stars (and gives his best performance since falling prey to curse of George Lucas) as the titular character, a writer-for-hire tapped to help a controversial U.K. Prime Minister named Adam Lang (a perfectly-cast Pierce Brosnan) put the finishing touches on his memoirs. It should be an easy enough assignment — spend a month in a beautiful cottage on an island and give the story of a political figure a personal touch. Of course, they say something about the best laid plans…

The Ghost Writer was released on Blu-ray and DVD on August 3rd, 2010
Photo credit: Summit

Before he knows it, our hero (who cleverly goes nameless throughout the piece, adding to his “ghost” persona) is caught in the middle of an international controversy about Lang’s decisions while in office. Lang is accused of being a war criminal and the press descends on him and his new writer. It’s not long before the P.M. is jetting off to Washington for U.S. support and leaving his ghost with his wife (an excellent Olivia Williams) and his increasing paranoia. You see, the previous ghost writer of Lang’s memoirs was found washed up on the shore not far from the cottage after reportedly driving his car on to the ferry and either committing suicide or accidentally falling to the deadly waters below. But something’s not adding up.

Not only is the death of his predecessor suspicious but the writer is starting to have his doubts about the opening chapter of Lang’s book. The charismatic leader’s recollection of how he went from a non-committal theatre student to a political activist just doesn’t make sense and as our lead starts to put more and more of the pieces together, he also starts to see shadowy cars following him and men tracking his every move.

The Ghost Writer was released on Blu-ray and DVD on August 3rd, 2010
Photo credit: Summit

Far too many films are dubbed “Hitchcockian” without any real understanding of what the term means but this is the film most-deserving of the adjective in a long time. “The Ghost Writer” brings to mind arguably the hardest element of Hitch’s work to mimic which is the master’s incredible skill with the atmosphere of paranoia. Was the previous writer killed? If so, why? And will our hero end up the same way? Polanski realizes that the mood of a piece like this one is far more important than any plot twist and he meticulously turns up the dial on the suspense as the story progresses.

Don’t go into “The Ghost Writer” expecting some sort of revelatory final act like “Shutter Island” (although there are a few great twists) or an action-thriller like “The Silence of the Lambs.” This film is more about the small moments that raise questions in an intelligent viewer’s mind. Instead of traditional thriller tricks, Polanski’s film merely keeps piling on question after question about conspiracies and character motivations until the viewer is just as discombobulated as the lead. We become the ghost, lost in the swirling mist of history and deception.

“The Ghost Writer” is easily one of the most expertly directed films of the year. Working from a novel by Robert Harris, Polanski comes alive in a way that he hasn’t in years, bringing to mind his most creatively-rewarding period from the ’60s and ’70s. It’s meant as no slight to “The Pianist,” but this film reminded me of prime era Polanski works that similarly focused on souls caught in situations beyond their control not unlike “Repulsion,” “Chinatown,” or “The Tenant.” Clearly, with those caliber of films as comparisons, this is one of the best of 2010.

The Blu-ray release of “The Ghost Writer” is a bit disappointing in terms of special features but the video quality is above average. As for bonus material, there are three featurettes that focus on separate elements of the production — the writer, the director, the cast — but they all run around ten minutes and feel like perfunctory talking-head material. The one memorable thing that I took from them was when Polanski claimed that he “makes movies for adults.” If only more people did.

‘The Ghost Writer’ stars Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Olivia Williams, Kim Cattrall, Tom Wilkinson, and Timothy Hutton. It was written by Robert Harris and Roman Polanski and directed by Polanski. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on August 3rd, 2010 and is rated R. It runs 128 minutes.

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

Blu-Ray Review: Silly ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief’

BrianTT — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:05:47 -0400

CHICAGO – The most notable thing about “Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief,” now available on Blu-ray and DVD, is that it probably still holds position as the most horribly-titled film of the year. As for the actual movie, it follows in the footsteps of years of films trying to become the next “Harry Potter” franchise and, comparably, makes out much better than disasters like “Eragon” or “The Seeker: The Dark is Rising,” but that’s faint praise indeed.

Blu-Ray Rating: 2.5/5.0

There are elements of this cluttered family fantasy that work, especially with the polish of HD, but, once again, the super-dull director Chris Columbus has taken a fantasy book and done as little as possible to make it effective as a feature film. The Columbus plan seems to be to cast the right people and merely push the story forward as predictably as possible to please his demo. Young viewers will probably be relatively entertained but even they’re likely to be aware that this story could have had a bit more personality, especially if they’re old enough to drive.

The Crazies was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 29th, 2010
Photo credit: Anchor Bay

The comparisons with “Harry Potter” don’t stop at director (Columbus directed the first two Potter films), genre, or even the fact that the lead character’s names are similar (same amount of syllables and nearly the same amount of letters). Once again, audiences are treated to the story of an outsider who isn’t like the other kids that gets thrown into a major conflict but with swords instead of wands. There’s even a humorous male sidekick and a cute, strong female one to make the Harry-Ron-Hermione comparison more apt. And, just as in the first two Potter films, the biggest strength of this fantasy is in the young actors and what they bring to it, certainly not in what Columbus does by wasting a supporting cast or cluttering his story.

The Crazies was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 29th, 2010
Photo credit: Anchor Bay

Like so many fantasy stories, the tale of “Percy Jackson” is another one of those fables in which the problems of the real world become strengths in a fantasy one. What if your deadbeat dad wasn’t just a jerk but was actually a God? What if your dyslexia hinted that you were a Demigod? What if your mom (Catherine Keener) was with a jerk (Joe Pantoliano) to protect you?

The dark real world of Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) becomes understandable when the awkward kid learns that his mom once had a tumultuous affair with Poseidon (Kevin McKidd). Yes, THAT Poseidon. The God of Water has been fighting with his brothers — Zeus (Sean Bean) and Hades (Steve Coogan). When someone steals Zeus’ lightning bolt, he announced that war will come to Earth if it is not returned in two weeks. Zeus thinks that Percy stole it, bringing his protectors, a Satyr named Grover (Brandon T. Jackson) and a teacher centaur named Chiron (Pierce Brosnan), out of hiding to turn this mere mortal into the warrior that he’s destined to be.

The book by Rick Riordan detailed a world in which the Gods have always been a part of society, right there under our nose. Mount Olympus is accessible through the Empire State Building, but, for the most part, Columbus focuses on his trio of attractive leads — Percy, Grover, and the lovely Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario), the striking daughter of Athena (Melina Kanakaredes). Uma Thurman and Rosario Dawson steal the piece in cameos as Medusa and Persephone, respectively.

The Crazies was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 29th, 2010
Photo credit: Anchor Bay

“Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief” just isn’t as much as it could have and should have been. Uma and Rosario are having a blast but the rest of the cast plays it deadly seriously. Lerman, Jackson, and Daddario are far more charismatic than many of the young leads in recent films of this ilk but that only goes so far when it’s in service of an episodic story that never develops emotional weight or even action pacing.

Films like “Percy Jackson” are naturally enhanced by an HD transfer as they’re so brazenly heavy with special effects to begin with. An English DTS-HD Master Audio track and a 1080p picture makes flaws easier to overlook. But not impossible.

Special Features:
o 10 Deleted Scenes
o “Secrets of the Gods” Featurette
o “Inside Camp Half-Blood”
o “Discover Your Powers” Quiz
o And More!

‘Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief’ stars Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Jake Abel, Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan, Steve Coogan, Rosario Dawson, Melina Kanakaredes, Catherine Keener, Kevin McKidd, Joe Pantioliano, and Uma Thurman. It was written by Craig Titley and directed by Chris Columbus. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 29th, 2010. It is rated PG.

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

Touching ‘The Greatest’ With Carey Mulligan Transcends Melodrama

BrianTT — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 11:25:11 -0400

Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – The surprisingly good “The Greatest” opens and closes with two very different car rides — one silent and mournful and one loud and full of laughter; one on the way from death and one on the way to life. They are bookends for a well-performed tearjerker of the kind that mostly transcends its melodramatic set-up to become something genuinely moving.

I’ll admit to being an easy cry at the movies but I have to say that if you’re not in tears at least once during “The Greatest” there might be something wrong with you. It’s a film about being in touch with your grief and viewers should be prepared for an often brutally raw story on an emotional level. It’s not for the melodramatically faint of heart.

Read Brian Tallerico’s full review of “The Greatest” in our reviews section.

The aforementioned opening car ride is home from the funeral of a son, brother, lover, and soon-to-be father. Bennett Brewer (Aaron Johnson, soon to be a star in “Kick Ass”) has been killed in a horrible car accident and left a father (Pierce Brosnan), mother (Susan Sarandon), brother (Johnny Simmons), and girlfriend (Carey Mulligan) in various states of shock. The girlfriend, Rose, also happens to be in another state when she arrives on the doorstep of the Brewer family three-months-pregnant with Bennett’s child.

Through sparse use of flashbacks we see that Rose and Bennett had what could be called a brief fling but also an undeniable love. He admired her from afar for years and finally got up the courage to tell her so just before the most fateful day of his life. Feature debut writer/director Shana Feste wisely doesn’t overplay the doomed romance angle which could have easily turned the film into another Nicholas Sparks wannabe, but we believe that the two young people loved each other.

‘The Greatest’ stars Carey Mulligan, Aaron Johnson, Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon, Michael Shannon, and Johnny Simmons. It was written and directed by Shana Feste. It opened in Chicago on April 9th, 2010. It is rated R.

Continuing reading for Brian Tallerico’s full “The Greatest” review.

The Greatest
Photo credit: Paladin

HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 35 Chicago Passes to ‘The Greatest’ With Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon

HollywoodChicago.com — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:24:33 -0400

CHICAGO – In our latest romance edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 35 admit-two passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of “The Greatest” starring Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon and Carey Mulligan (from “An Education”)!

“The Greatest” also features Aaron Johnson, Johnny Simmons, Kevin Hagan, Miles Robbins, Cara Seymour, Ramsey Faragallah, Colby Minifie, Zoë Kravitz, Portia, Michael Shannon, Dante E. Clark and Ron Scott from writer and director Shana Feste. The film opens on April 9, 2010.

To win your free pass to the advance Chicago screening of “The Greatest” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just answer our question below. That’s it! This screening is on Monday, April 5, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. in Chicago. Directions to enter this Hookup and immediately win can be found beneath the graphic below.

The movie poster for “The Greatest” with Pierce Brosnan and Susan Sarandon.
Image credit: Paladin

Here is “The Greatest” plot description:

An award-winning drama that represents Shana Feste’s debut as a writer and director, “The Greatest” stars Pierce Brosnan and Susan Sarandon as Allen and Grace Brewer. They’re a grief-stricken couple whose family has been pushed to the breaking point by the death of their older son, Bennett, in a car crash.

When a young woman, Rose, (Cary Mulligan) shows up a few months later announcing that she is pregnant with Bennett’s child, the Brewers are forced to take her in. At first, Rose’s presence threatens to tear the family even further apart. Eventually, her interaction with each of the Brewers proves to be the very thing that brings them back together.

“The Greatest” trailer can be watched now below.

To secure your free tickets now, make sure you’re logged into your HollywoodChicago.com account. If you don’t yet have one, you can quickly register here. Having an account with a valid e-mail address is required. Then, simply add a new comment in the form below. In your comment, include an answer to this question:

What silver lining have you found in a tragedy in your life?

Like all Hookups here, this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup is simple: Just submit your comment below and we will award 35 people randomly via e-mail for our “The Greatest” Hookup. Winners need to arrive early as seats are consumed on a first-come, first-served basis. Good luck!

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief/Publisher
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com