theCLog

WHAT JUST HAPPENED
**1/2
DIRECTED BY Barry Levinson
STARS Robert De Niro, Bruce Willis

From Sullivan’s Travels and Sunset Boulevard to S.O.B. and The Player, I’ve always been a sucker for movies about the movie business, since the inside-Hollywood info at the filmmakers’ disposal tends to reach the silver screen in a raw, uncut form that allows every blemish to be tantalizingly exposed and even magnified. What Just Happened, however, is only partly successful in its attempts to wallow in the wickedness of the motion picture industry, as a scattershot screenplay by veteran producer Art Linson (adapting his own memoir) perpetually keeps losing sight of the important targets. (more…)

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HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
***
DIRECTED BY Mike Leigh
STARS Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan

Any movie character who bears even the slightest resemblance to Robin Williams’ insufferable Patch Adams deserves no less a fate than being simultaneously electrocuted and beheaded at film’s end, yet here’s writer-director Mike Leigh bucking the odds by bringing us such a person yet somehow keeping our collective wrath in check. (more…)

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Eastwood changes genres … again

By Matt Brunson

CHANGELING
***
DIRECTED BY Clint Eastwood
STARS Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich

Like Mystic River and Flags of Our Fathers, Changeling is good, not great, Clint Eastwood, although as far as emotional resonance is concerned, the latest from the consummate director certainly reverberates more strongly than either of those other features. (more…)

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By Matt Brunson

ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO
**1/2
DIRECTED BY Kevin Smith
STARS Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks

The latest from writer-director Kevin Smith is always likable even if it isn’t always inspired. As he proved with Chasing Amy (still the Citizen Kane of his output), Smith can deftly pull off the proper mix of sweet and funny and raunchy; in this case, though, only the “funny” clears all hurdles, as the “sweet” is of the standard variety while the “raunchy” often overwhelms the picture. (more…)

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On Nov. 26, Focus Features’ new film Milk, the story of California’s first openly gay politician starring Academy Award winner Sean Penn, will hit box offices.

Had you heard?

A story on MSNBC.com reports that Focus Features is deliberately keeping the film as under wraps as possible, keeping it out of high-profile film festivals and heavily restricting media screenings to avoid partisanship. Their dilemma? “How to accommodate the gay-rights angle the core audience expects while appealing to mainstream filmgoers who might not be immediately moved to see a movie about the subject.”

One example of those filmgoers: At a recent Vegas test-screening for a middle-class, straight audience, several senior citizens tried to leave after a gay love scene in the early moments but couldn’t because they were trapped in the middle of a row (near Focus production chief John Lyons, in fact). The seniors eventually said they were happy that they stayed, but, like independent voters in an election contest, these are the viewers Focus must woo.

Curious? Here’s the trailer:

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Here are Creative Loafing’s star ratings for all reviewed movies playing in the Charlotte area through Thursday. See this week’s issue for select reviews and our Web site’s archives for all reviews.

Body of Lies - ***

Burn After Reading - ***

The Dark Knight - ****

Death Race - *1/2

The Duchess - *** (more…)

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PRIDE AND GLORY
**
DIRECTED BY Gavin O’Connor
STARS Edward Norton, Colin Farrell

The award for the year’s most generic title thus far handily goes to Pride and Glory, a moniker so instantly forgettable that, in just a few short weeks, folks will be remembering the film as Honor and Justice or Law and Order or Cops and Crooks or, with apologies to Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment. (more…)

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It’s been nearly a month since Paul Newman passed away, yet he continues to weigh heavily on my mind. He was a great actor, a great humanitarian, and a great liberal (he once described his placement on Richard Nixon’s notorious “enemies list” as his “greatest achievement”). (more…)

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Following is a list of some major DVD releases debuting today. For a complete list, go to www.amazon.com.

Cash for Kenya: Live in Johnstown, PA - Johnny Cash

Casino Royale (1967) - Peter Sellers, David Niven, Woody Allen

Casino Royale (2006) - Daniel Craig, Eva Green

Family Guy, Vol. 6

Flight of the Red Balloon - Juliette Binoche

The Incredible Hulk: The Complete Series - Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno

The Incredible Hulk (2008) - Edward Norton, Liv Tyler

Looney Tunes: Golden Collection, Vol. 6

The Man From U.N.C.L.E.: The Complete Series - Robert Vaughn, David McCallum

Missing - Jack Lemmon, Sissy Spacek

The Strangers - Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman

Warner Gangsters Collection, Vol. 4 - Edward G. Robinson, Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis

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Here are Creative Loafing’s star ratings for all reviewed movies playing in the Charlotte area through Thursday. See this week’s issue for select reviews and our Web site’s archives for all reviews.

Body of Lies - ***

Burn After Reading - ***

The Dark Knight - ****

Death Race - *1/2

The Duchess - ***

Eagle Eye - *1/2

The Express - **

Hancock - **1/2

Journey to the Center of the Earth - **

Mamma Mia! - **

Max Payne - *

Miracle at St. Anna - **

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - *

Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist - **

Nights In Rodanthe - **

The Secret Life of Bees - ***

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - *1/2

Tell No One - ***

Vicky Cristina Barcelona - **1/2

W. - **

Wall-E - ***1/2

Wanted - **1/2

The Women - **

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