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Reviews
Fireproof (2008)
It taught me something about my own marriage
This movie is in the same honest, non-glitzy, straightforward style of its predecessor from the same team, "Facing the Giants," a film I loved. It tells the story of a marriage headed for dissolution, which is turned around when the husband makes a commitment to God and his wife. Kirk Cameron is a revelation (and if you saw him as a cocky sitcom star in "Growing Pains" in the late 80s/early 90s you will be amazed) as the fireman husband who gets respect everywhere but at home, and has never asked himself if he deserves it. At the urging of his father, he agrees to take forty days before seeking divorce, and work through a book called "The Love Dare." This book offers a new suggestion for deepening the love relationship to be followed every day, together with short, related Bible verses. At first Cameron's character just goes through the motions, but as time goes by, helped by his parents and a fellow fireman, his love is transformed and renewed. Is it to late to reach his alienated wife?
Uplifting but real, the movie will inspire many married people to commit more deeply to their marriages. Truly worthwhile.
Annapolis (2006)
Not as bad as reviewed/Parent notes
"Annapolis" is a well-intentioned movie that is just a little bit confused and, thus, confusing. It's not sure if it's about the town vs. gown conflict in the blue-collar riveter trying to make it as an officer, the loner learning to accept help from others, or the underdog training for the big boxing match. You need a scorecard to tell who's an older midshipman entrusted with training the plebes and who's a commissioned officer. And that doesn't even begin to address the numerous irregularities that even a civilian must notice in how the movie's academy is run, how the personnel interact, etc. More research next time! It's also the single most derivative piece of film-making I've ever seen. It has parts lifted shamelessly from "Rocky", various young-men-in-the-military flicks such as "Top Gun," and and even (in the parent in the audience at the Big Sporting Event scene) Disney's recent "Ice Princess." The dialogue is pretty leaden, too. And one complaint about the production design - the bright, beautiful Annapolis campus comes across looking claustrophobic and gritty. Could this have something to do with the production's being filmed in part at Girard College in Philadephia?
All that said, there are one or two good things to be said about the movie. First of all, the lead actor James Franco, and some of the supporting cast, notably Vicellous Shannon as a weight-challenged plebe, do communicate some humanity and hold one's interest. Secondly, although there's the profanity one might expect in a military environment, there's no nudity or promiscuity, and the violence stays pretty much in the ring. There are good lessons taught about trust, cooperation, patriotism, leadership, striving to better oneself, and never giving up. Parent alert (spoiler warning): one character attempts suicide by jumping out a window, but recovers and vows to make the most of his second chance.
The Island (2005)
Action, Acting and Food for Thought
Is it the writing? The acting? The message? Whatever the reason, I found myself caring right away for the two leads in this involving tale. We first meet Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson as docile members of an idyllic futuristic society. Once the stage is set, the pace picks up as the true nature of their world is revealed, and they take steps to save their own lives and bring justice to their community. White-knuckle chases on every imaginable type of vehicle are anchored by the pair's convincingly rendered transformation to emotional maturity.
A sweet love story, a thrilling action picture -- what more could you ask for? Actual thought! In a world facing ethical decisions involving human embryo research, the film's message that, however created, human beings are human beings, is powerfully communicated.
Parental warning: This film contains extremely violent scenes, almost all necessary for the communication of the message of the movie, but disturbing - even, in the case of a young mother and of Michael Clarke Duncan's character, heartbreaking. This film is NOT for children.
First Daughter (2004)
Surprisingly Good
Having witnessed the disaster that was "Chasing Liberty" I had no expectations for "First Daughter" but the cast soon had me thinking differently. From the radiant Katie Holmes in the title role, to the charming, low key performances of Michael Keaton and lovely Margaret Colin as her parents, and especially the rugged Marc Blucas as the love interest, the film offered charm, humor and romance that somehow felt real. A very pleasant surprise.
Parents' caveat: though the protagonist's romance is chaste, her roommate's many are less so, though she admits her views on love are "messed up." Ultimately, she opts for true love. There is also a scene where Holmes' character goes to the campus medical center for a "birth control appointment" throughout which she earnestly explains that it's not for her and that she's just there to make her boyfriend jealous.
King Arthur (2004)
Just a BIT of Historical Accuracy, Please!
For a film purporting to be the real story of King Arthur, this offering is rife with historical inaccuracy.
The Romans are shown abandoning Britain at the same time as Arthur's coming to power, and his climactic battle against Saxon invaders (presumably, the Battle of Mount Badon). In reality, the last Roman legionary left Britain sometime between 406 and 409 A.D., while the Battle of Mount Badon has been dated between 495 and 520 A.D.
Arthur is portrayed as a Christian, but as an adherent of Pelagius, a lay monk who came to prominence as a writer, then as a heretic, in the early 5th Century Rome. Because Pelagius was known by the nickname "Brito" or "Britannicus" he is believed to have come from Britain. The film depicts the heresy of Pelagius as a belief that all men are equal. In reality, his teachings had nothing to do with the equality of man, centering, rather, on original sin and grace. Also, the film hints that Pelagius was killed for his beliefs, when, in reality, he was tried by more than one church council and released, never executed. He left Rome and is believed to have traveled east, as did most of his followers. Thus, historians can find no evidence that he ever returned to Britain and discount the possibility that Arthur was influenced by him.
Lastly, the film paints (no pun intended for these decorated warriors) the natives of Britain as uniformly pagan, another inaccuracy. In fact, Christianity was brought to Britain by Roman traders in the first Century A.D. and accepted by many. By the sixth century it was definitely in its ascendancy, dominating most towns and spreading out into the countryside.
Considered exclusively on its cinematic merits, the film offers a strong performance by Clive Owen in the title role. One might wish, however, that the producers had spent a little extra money to hire a dialect coach to rid Mr. Owen of his working class accent. While it worked splendidly in his role as a prisoner/gardener in the neglected "Greenfingers," it lacks the distinction and authority required of a legendary king. Keira Knightley was undeniably attractive as a warrior Briton, who, despite a lack of armor of any kind, emerges improbably unscathed from the film's battles. (Parental caveat: their love scene is too intense for children.) And it is a service to rescue Arthur from the late-Medieval setting into which popular imagination tends to place him and correctly return him to the immediate post-Roman era. Other bright spots are an interesting battle staged on ice, and the ever-moving music of Hans Zimmer.
Otherwise, the film shortchanges the viewer on character development, inexplicably reducing the pivotal Merlin to a dirty-faced near-prop with a peculiar accent, and script clarity. (One scene about immuring -- Whom? Monks? Pagans? Ascetics? -- is not only bizarre but virtually incomprehensible.) In all, it seems a rehashing of better films, including "Arthur" director Antoine Fuqua's 2003 "Tears of the Sun," "Gladiator," and, of course, the wonderful "Braveheart."
Walking Tall (2004)
PARENTS BEWARE!
I made the mistake of taking my action-fan son to a preview of this film, expecting something along the lines of the Rock's last film, "The Rundown." I was horrified to encounter extremely explicit scenes involving exotic dancers, and very sick, scarring violence. Naturally, in a film starring The Rock, people aren't going to sit around drinking tea -- that's a given. But in previous films the violence was limited, and in better balance with other elements of the film. This film, which is extremely short, by the way (around an hour and fifteen minutes!), was long on shock (sex and violence) and short on story, character development and logic. The Rock is a very watchable screen presence and deserves better than this flawed vehicle. If you decide to go, however, DO NOT BRING THE KIDS!