All articles by Jean Oppenheimer – Page 2
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Reviews
Christmas With The Kranks
Dir: Joe Roth. US. 2004.98minsThe holiday-themed comedyChristmas With The Kranks sees itself a big-hearted, slightly sappymovie about family and community, shared values, good cheer and the true spiritof the season. But the story's Stepford Wives-like emphasis ontraditional values and communal approval is enough to make one queasy.Considering the cultural climate ...
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Reviews
Surviving Christmas
Dir: Mike Mitchell. US2004. 92minsAnybody hoping that thecomedy Surviving Christmas might resuscitate Ben Affleck's falteringcareer will be sorely disappointed. The very fact that DreamWorks did notrelease Mike Mitchell's feature in the heart of the season suggests they werehoping for some early holiday good cheer from audiences to buoy its chances.Sadly ...
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Reviews
Around The Bend
Dir/scr: Jordan Roberts.US. 2004. 85mins.For his directorialdebut, screenwriter Jordan Roberts (who was uncredited for his work on RoadTo Perdition) delivers a small, heartfelt family drama in which four malegenerations make a reluctant road trip through America's Southwest and scalethe rocky emotional terrain of their shared past.Around The Bend may fail ...
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Reviews
Cellular
Dir: David R.Ellis. US 2004. 90minsTotallyimplausible from start to finish, suspense thriller Cellular has a silly premise and zero chills, but offers plenty ofaction (without a single explosion) and an easy-to-follow storyline. Given thedearth of good popcorn movies during the past five or six weeks, it may evenmanage to hold ...
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Reviews
In The Battlefields (Maarek Hob)
Dir/scr:Danielle Arbid. Fr-Bel-Leb. 2004. 90minsThe war thatengulfed Lebanon in the early 1980s, turning Beirut from the Paris of theMiddle East into a scarred wasteland of pockmarked and rusting buildings, isonly a metaphor for the chaos and turmoil that most interests the youngLebanese documentary and shorts film-maker Danielle Arbid in her ...
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Reviews
Uncovered: The War On Iraq
Dir/prod: Robert Greenwald. US. 90mins.Lessflamboyant than Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 - and, therefore,perhaps less superficially entertaining - Uncovered: The War On Iraq isa must-see for every American who cares about their country, regardless oftheir political persuasion.While the twofilms reach a similar conclusion - that the Bush administrations statedrationale for war ...
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Reviews
Garfield The Movie
Dir: Peter Hewitt. US 2004.80minsHe is one of the mostrecognisable comic strip characters in the world today - a fat, slovenly,self-satisfied but lovable orange furball named Garfield - and he is the latesttwo-dimensional creature to star in his own live action/computer generatedfilm. But this fat cat won't generate half the ...
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Reviews
Laws Of Attraction
Dir:Peter Howitt. US. 2004. 90mins.Laws Of Attraction travels the well-worn path ofcountless screwball romantic comedies before it. Yet while the join-the-dotsplot is disappointingly devoid of any fresh twists or ideas, the film itselfproves an unexpectedly pleasant diversion, thanks to sparkling dialogue andwinning performances from Pierce Brosnan, Frances Fisher and Michael ...
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Reviews
13 Going On 30
Dir: Gary Winick. US 2004. 97minsA female take on the 1988 hit Big, 13 Going On 30 concerns an insecure 13-year old girl who longs to be a grown up, convinced that adulthood confers automatic popularity, success and happiness. With the help of a little magic dust, she gets her ...
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Reviews
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights
Dir: Guy Ferland. US 2004. 87 minsThe original Dirty Dancing made a star of Patrick Swayze, became one of the surprise hits of the late 1980s and grossed an $163m worldwide. Set in the Catskills in 1963, it introduced a predominantly female audiences to the catchphrase "Nobody puts Baby in ...
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Reviews
Duplex
Dir: Danny DeVito. US 2003. 90 minsThe Lady Killers it ain't, although this latest directorial effort from actor/writer/director/producer Danny DeVito does concern an attempt to bump off a dotty old lady who comes with the flat, as it were. DeVito actually may have been aiming for something closer to his ...
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Reviews
Under The Tuscan Sun
Dir: Audrey Wells. US 2003. 120 minutesA genial, if undemanding, romantic comedy/drama about a divorced woman learning to embrace life again, Under The Tuscan Sun owes a great deal of its appeal to its ingratiating star, Diane Lane. The actress has an inherent likableness that also worked for her in ...
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Reviews
Secondhand Lions
Dir: Tim McCanlies. US 2003. 107minsAny film starring Michael Caine and Robert Duvall as a pair of old codgers can't be all bad, but this family comedy/drama sure tests the audience's tolerance level. Veering between overly broad humour and exaggerated cutesyness, Secondhand Lions lacks any sense of real emotion and ...
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Reviews
Open Range
Dir: Kevin Costner. US. 2003. 138mins.Kevin Costner returns to his directorial roots in this old-fashioned Western, opting for a conventional formality and epic aesthetic over freshness or innovation. More Shane than The Searchers, the film breaks no new ground in terms of story, character or execution. But its unabashedly straight-forward ...
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Reviews
Freaky Friday
Dir: Mark Waters. US. 2003. 97mins.An original remake sounds like an oxymoron, but the new Freaky Friday, Disney's reworking of its own 1976 film, is smart, energetic and loads of fun. Indeed, it is almost as good as The Parent Trap, a 1998 Disney re-make that, not so coincidentally, starred ...
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Reviews
Seabiscuit
Dir: Gary Ross. US 2003. 140 minutesA good film that could have been a great one, Seabiscuit offers a welcome alternative to this summer's bloated action sequels. Based on the best-selling non-fiction book by Laura Hillenbrand, the film recounts the true, Depression-era story of an unprepossessing, knobby-kneed horse who not ...
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Reviews
Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde
Dir: Charles Herman-Wurmfeld. US 2003. 94 minutes Legally Blonde proved a surprise hit when it was released during the summer of 2001, grossing over $96m in the US and a solid but not spectacular $45m internationally. While this flag-waving sequel - being released in the US over the July 4 ...
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Reviews
Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde
Dir: Charles Herman-Wurmfeld. US 2003. 94 minutes Legally Blonde proved a surprise hit when it was released during the summer of 2001, grossing over $96m in the US and a solid but not spectacular $45m internationally. While this flag-waving sequel - being released in the US over the July 4 ...
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Reviews
Hollywood Homicide
Dir: Ron Shelton. US. 2003. 115minsYou can't hit a home run every time you come up to bat, but director Ron Shelton (Bull Durham, Tin Cup, White Men Can't Jump) strikes out completely with his latest film, a buddy-buddy action comedy set not in the world of sports but against ...
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