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Many
Faceted Jewel HERO: Directed by Zhang Yimou. Written (in Mandarin with English subtitles) by Li Feng, Zhang Yimou and Wang Bin, based on their story. Produced by Bill Kong, Zhang Yimou. Executive producers, Dou Shou Fang, Zhang Wei Pin. Cinematographer, Christopher Doyle. Edited by Zhai Ru and Angie Lam. Composer, Tan Dun. Violin and fiddle solos by Itzhak Perlman. Production design, Huo Ting Xiao, Yi Shen Zhou. Costume design, Emi Wada. Action director, Tony Ching Siu Tung. Staring Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung Man-yuk, Zhang Ziyi, Chen Daoming and Donnie Yen. U.S. releases sponsored by Quentin Tarantino. Miramax Films, 2004. PG-13. 99 minutes.
Zhang Yimou's latest film, Hero, is operatic in scope and passion. A romantic, mythic tale set 2,000 years ago during the bloody reign of a king who would become the first emperor of China, the film un-spools in a labyrinthine narrative style that casts the viewer under its spell. The Qin King (Chen Daoming) is a ruthless tyrant, and provincial resistance to his repressive, warring rule includes a nameless folk hero (Jet Li), who arrives at court to great acclaim. Nameless claims to have vanquished three legendary assassins bent on murdering the king: Broken Sword (Tony Leung), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung) and Sky (Donnie Yen). Hailed as a hero, the nameless warrior is presented to the king, where he tells the story of how he rose from his position as a provincial sheriff. Nameless modestly tells his story in great detail. The king is profoundly interested. The story unfolds as a series of set pieces, and the major characters are introduced, including Moon (Zhang Ziyi), no less a martial arts expert than her master and lover, Broken Sword. Because the king has offered power, great riches and a personal audience to anyone who killed his would-be assassins, he listens intently to the tale. The former village official tells how he outwitted Sky in combat, then how he used Snow and Broken Sword's love for each other to slay them both. Ah, the king says. I think the story goes this way. And he proceeds to tell a more ominous, different story of the same events. At the conclusion of the king's story, the nameless warrior says, you understand some things but not the whole story. And he retells the tale yet again. And so it goes. The legend grows more elaborate and convoluted with each telling and retelling, During the storytelling, a mere 10 steps separate the king from his unknown subject, who sits before him obediently. Rows of candles flicker as they blow this way and that, while king and warrior warily approach the moment of truth in their fateful encounter. There are many film sources for a tale such as this, notably Akira Kurosawa's 1950 Rashomon. In the Kurosawa film, the four conflicting versions of the same story suggest there is no objective truth to be found in the recollection of any story. But the larger objective of Zhang's masterful film is that even a tyrant must acknowledge a true hero when he appears. Director Zhang Yimou is best known in this country for his historical epics such as Red Sorghum (1987), Ju Dou (1990), Raise the Red Lantern (1991) and To Live (1994), as well as his smaller, recent films such as Not One Less (1999) and The Road Home (1999). This is Zhang's first action film. To achieve the film's outstanding look, he called on the talents of some of the great professionals working today. Christopher Doyle's cinematography can be seen in Wong Kar Wai's films, Chungking Express, Happy Together, Ashes of Time and In the Mood for Love, my favorite. Here he has created one of the year's most beautiful films. Production designer Yi Zhenzhou also worked on Chen Kaige's The Emperor and the Assassin (1988), which tells some of the same story as Hero. His work in Hero is impeccable. Costume designer Emi Wada won an Academy Award for Kurosawa's Ran (1985). Hero's principals change to different colors in scenes of importance — an unforgettably vivid red, a soothing pale green and pure white. Composer Tan Dun's music is perfect for Hero's various settings and moods. Tan Dun made an acclaimed appearance at the 2001 Oregon Bach Festival with his brilliant work, Water Passion after St. Matthew. The composer won the 2000 original score Academy Award for Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Hero is now playing at Cinemark and Cinema World. Very highly recommended.
Pioneering
Surfboarders RIDING GIANTS: Documentary . Directed by Stacy Peralta. Written by Peralta and Sam George. Produced by Agi Orsi, Jane Kachmer, Stacy Peralta. Executive producers, Nathalie Delest, Franck Marty, Laird Hamilton. Original music, Matter. Edited and co-produced by Paul Crowder. Director of photography, Peter Pilafian, with action photography by Don King (Hawaii), Sonny Miller (Hawaii), Grant Washburn (Mavericks). Featured surfers Greg Noll, Jeff Clark, Laird Hamilton. Sony Pictures Classics, 2004. NR. 101 minutes. If the title isn't plain-spoken enough, this is a movie about big-wave surfing, more specifically about the surfer phenomenon and the fabulous, fearless pioneers of the sport from its roots in Polynesia to global wave-seekers. Some sequences are simply breath-taking both for the daring of the surfer and the sheer size and violence of elemental water rising to Herculean heights. But the most striking thing about the film is its beauty. Riding Giants is a film of bewitching grace and sublime delight as well as athleticism of the highest order.
Stacy Peralta's earlier documentary film about skateboarders, Dogtown and Z Boys, is one of my favorite nonfiction films, in part because of how doggedly he pursues and shows the spirit of the young guys who created the sport. Likewise, Peralta's sense of why surfing is worthy of serious consideration as a sport drives him to look beneath surfing's rebellious and pleasure-seeking surface to the more solitary and spiritual values at its true core. The three athletes who are featured in the film speak to these values in their own words. Greg Noll was surfing's first personality. He wore loud, striped shorts and stood proudly on his board, his arms outstretched. Noll began surfing in California and visited Hawaii for the first time in 1954. By late 1957, Noll led the way to the unridden big waves of Waimea Bay. Later he turned to publishing surf magazines, making and selling surfboards, and after riding one last, giant wave at Makaha Point Surf in 1969, he gave up surfing. Today Noll looks like a happy, satisfied man. Another Californian, Jeff Clark, began surfing near Half Moon Bay in 1967, when he was 11 years old. When he turned 17, Clark discovered the big waves nearby at Maverick's, each wave 10 to 12 feet high. He tried to interest other surfers for 15 years. During those years, Noll rode Maverick's big waves alone. He called himself "the Lone Ranger" to Surfer magazine, which wrote about Maverick's in 1992. The secret was out, which attracted great Waimea surfers Ken Bradshaw and Mark Foo. We're introduced to Laird Hamilton, now acknowledged to be surfing's greatest big-wave rider, when he was a youngster, hanging out in the surf in Hawaii. Hamilton's ambitions extended not only to mastering surfing but also to competitive paddleboard racing, sailboarding and kite-boarding. Hamilton, Buzzy Kerbox and Darrick Doerner revolutionized surfing by being towed into the 25-foot waves at North Shore's outer reef called Backyard Sunset. First using a speedboat, then later a personal water craft (PWC), Hamilton jumpstarted tow-in surfing. Hamilton found a Hawaiian surf spot called Peahi on the north shore of Maui for the performance art he perfected — riding giants, waves as high as 40, 50, even 60 feet. Chock full of interesting interviews, the history of surfing, and the time-based revolutions in surf-board technology, Riding Giants is a documentary film that will enthuse even the least athletic among us, in part because it is a thrilling spectator sport. Armchair surfing is no substitute for the real thing, but watching these giant waves and the small humans who brave them is a visual epiphany for the viewer. Riding Giants opens Friday at the Bijou. Very highest recommendations.
Archaeology Film Fest, Best of 2003: Films include Cave of the Glowing Skull; Ground Zero: Sacred Ground; and Kalahari Family. Films start at 12 noon, Sept. 4, at the Bijou. $6. Cookout: Comedy directed by Lance Rivera stars Tim Meadows, Eve, Ja Rule, Farrah Fawcett, Jennifer Lewis, Danny Glover and Queen Latifah. PG-13. Cinemark. Paparazzi: Drama thriller directed by Paul Abascal stares Cole Hauser as a celebrity bent on revenge against a persistent photographer he holds accountable for a family tragedy. Also stars Dennis Farina, Daniel Baldwin and Robin Tunney. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Riding Giants: Film about history of surfing, interviews with surfers, the time-based revolutions in surf-board technology. a film of bewitching grace and sublime delight as well as athleticism of the highest order. NR. Bijou. See review this issue. Uncovered: The War in Iraq: Directed by Paul Greenwald (Outfoxed), this documentary focuses on reliable counterterrorism experts speaking out the Bush Administration's push for the war in Iraq. NR. Cinema World. Vanity Fair: Mira Nair's version of William Makepeace Thackeray's classic novel. Stellar cast includes Reese Witherspoon as Becky Sharp, with Eileen Atkins, Jim Broadbent, Gabriel Byrne. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Wattstax: Legendary 1973 concert film in its first-ever national broadcast. Includes amazing performances by Isaac Hayes, Albert King, Rufus and Carla Thomas, the Staple Singers and Richard Pryor. On 9/7 on OPB. Check listings for time. We Don't Live Here Anymore: Directed by John Curran from two novellas by Andre Dubus, the film chronicles the marital discord in two marriages. Stars the outstanding Mark Ruffalo as Jack, the narrator; Laura Dern as Jack's wife; Naomi Watts as Jack's lover; and Peter Krauss as her husband. A.O. Scot of The New York Times said, "An uncanny suspense ripples through the movie," which he called "marital film noir." R. Cinema World. Wicker Park: Josh Hartnett stars in this psychological drama as a man caught in an obsessive search for a woman (Diane Kruger) who disappeared. Also stars Matthew Lillard and Rose Byrne. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Films open the Friday following EW publication date unless otherwise noted. See archived reviews at www.eugeneweekly.com
CONTINUING: Alien vs Predator: The scary monsters from earlier film franchises duke it out on Earth. Wow! PG-13. Cinemark. Anacondas: Hunt for the Blood Orchid: Horror thriller set in a jungle in Borneo where scientists travel down a river looking for a rare orchid said to the be the source of a youth-preserving serum. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Anchorman: Subtitled "The Legend of Ron Burgundy," this comedy stars Will Ferrell as an unctuous, untalented newscaster who's a legend only in his own mind. Funny moments. Recommended. PG-13. Online archives. Around the World in 80 Days: Jackie Chan and Steve Coogan star in this remake. PG. Movies 12. Bourne Supremacy, The: Paul Greengrass (writer, director of Bloody Sunday) directs Matt Damon as assassin Jason Bourne in the second installment of Robert Ludlum's espionage thrillers Also stars Joan Allen, Brian Cox, Julia Stiles, Kurt Urban and Franka Potente. One of the summer's best films. Highly recommended. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. Collateral: Michael Mann's thriller stars Tom Cruise as an LA hitman and Jamie Foxx as his taxi driver, who's surprised to discover he's a hostage. Together, they're like fire and ice, feeling and nothingness. A character study in action, the film is one of the best movies of the year. Very highest recommendations. Don't miss. R. Cinemark. Online archives. Corporation, The: Documentary directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott, is a professional work about the powerful forces and resources that today's corporations wield. It's a call to educated activisim. Highly recommended. NR. Bijou. Online archives. Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story: Social rejects save their local gym from gentrification in this goofy comedy directed by Rawson Thurber and starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Christine Taylor and Rip Torn. Inspired lunacy recommended for your summertime enjoyment. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Exorcist: The Beginning: The backstory to the 1973 blockbuster commences in 1940s Africa with a disillusioned Father Merrin's (Stellan Skarsgard) first meeting with the demon Pazuzu. The film was bedeviled, too. It ran through directors John Frankenheimer and Paul Schrader before Renny Harlin came in and basically reshot the whole shebang. Also stars James D'Arcy and Izabella Scorupco. R. Cinemark. Garden State: Zach Braff wrote, directed and stars in this funny, resonant romantic comedy, which co-stars Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard and Ian Holm. Braff and Portman help the film get to a truth about what it is to be 20-something in the early years of the 21st century. Highest recommendations. R. Bijou. Online archives. Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban: Brilliantly directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), now teenagers, return to Hogwarts, where they confront an escaped prisoner, Sirius Black (Gary Oldham), who poses a great threat to Harry. They must also contend with the Dementors, who are sent to protect them from Black. PG. Movies 12. Online archives. Hero: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi and Donnie Yen star in this rousing martial arts epic. Set in a war-torn China at the violent dawn of the Qin dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, three opponents plan to assassinate the king, but one loyal subject stands in their way. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. See review this issue. I, Robot: Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow) directs Will Smith as a police detective investigating a crime thought to be perpetrated by a robot. Also stars Bruce Greenwood, James Cromwell, Chi McBride and Bridget Moynahan. Based on Isaac Asimov's classic sci-fi stories. Recommended for its strange ambiance. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. King Arthur: Excellent cast includes Clive Owen, Keira Knightley, Stellan Skarsgard, Stephen Dillane, Ray Winstone, Ioan Gruffudd. Directed by Antoine Fuqua and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, this revisionist history, action adventure is Open recommended for its performances. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Manchurian Candidate, The: Psychological thriller stars Denzel Washington as an ex-career officer disturbed by his experiences in Desert Storm. Liev Schreiber plays a former squad sergeant, now a vice-presidential candidate and son of a powerful senator (Meryl Streep). An especially fine performance from Jeffrey Wright as a damaged vet suffering hallucinations. Very highest recommendations. R. Cinemark. Online archives. Napoleon Dynamite: Jared Hess' indie comedy stars Jon Heder as a high schooler, who lives in Idaho with his grandmother. The Village Voice says, "the film is an epic, magisterially observed pastiche on all-American geekhood, flooring the competition with a petulant shove." PG. Cinema World. Notebook, The: Nick Cassavetes directs Gena Rowlands, James Garner, Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. Depicts real first love, with a great performance by McAdams. Recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Open Water: Chris Kentis directs this thriller based on real events. A couple get left behind by a scuba diving group, in the middle of a shark-filled ocean. Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis spent 120 hours in the water with real sharks to make this movie. R. Cinemark. Princess Diaries 2 Royal Engagement: Anne Hathaway is being groomed to be queen of Genovia, but she has to land a husband before she can be crowned. Garry Marshall directs. Julie Andrews costars. G. Cinemark. Shrek 2: Mike Myers returns as Shrek, Cameron Diaz is his new wife, Princess Fiona, and Eddie Murphy's his sidekick, Donkey. Now the newlyweds face Queen Lillian (Julie Andrews) and King Harold (John Cleese). Fairy godmother (Jennifer Saunders), Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) and the ferocious Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas). Sequel is so-so. PG. Movies 12. Spider Man 2: Peter Parker aka Spidey (Tobey Maguire) returns as a college student by day who still loves Kirsten Dunst and a superhero when needed against his new nemesis, Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina). Sam Raimi directs. Excellent film! See it. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. Stepford Wives, The: Frank Oz directs Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler, Christopher Walken, Faith Hill and Glenn Close in this updated comedy-thriller about a perfect, 1950s-era community. Recommended for its entertainment value. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2: PG. Cinemark. Suspect Zero: As murder victims pile up, the FBI sends two agents against a killer who taunts them with his ability to get into the minds of his victims. Directed by E. Elias Merhige, film stars Aaron Eckhart, Ben Kingsley and Carrie-Anne Moss. R. Cinemark. Troy: Wolfgang Petersen directs ancient Greek tale of war between Troy and Sparta. Stars Brad Pitt. R. Movies 12. Online archives. Village, The: M. Night Shyamalan's new suspenseful film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody, William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver. PG-13. Cinemark. White Chicks: Comedy about FBI agents who go undercover as high school debutantes to investigate a kidnapping ring. Stars director Keenen Ivory Wayans, Shawn and Marlon Wayans. PG-13. Movies 12. Without a Paddle: High-speed comedy adventure stars Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard as clueless adventurers who go into the Oregon wilderness in search of lost treasure. PG-13. Cinemark.
MOVIE
THEATERS Bijou
Art Cinemas Regal
Cinemas Cinemark
Theaters
NEW
RELEASES ON VIDEO Alfred Hitchcock Signature Collection: Eight of these 9 films have not been released previously, and they are real classics. DVDs available as a set or separately. Films include Dial M For Murder (1954) with Grace Kelly, Ray Milland. Foreign Correspondent (1940) with Joel McCrea, Laraine Day, Herbert Marshall, George Sanders, Robert Benchley. Suspicion (1941) with Cary Grant, Joan Fontaine. The Wrong Man (1956) with Henry Fonda, Vera Miles, Anthony Quayle. Stage Fright (1950) with Jane Wyman, Richard Todd, Marlene Dietrich, Alastair Sims. I Confess (1953) with Montgomery Clift, Anne Baxter, Karl Malden. Mr. And Mrs. Smith (1941) with Carole Lombard, Robert Montgomery. Strangers on a Train (1951) with Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman. Previously released. Brothers in Arms: The Story of the Crew of Patrol Craft Fast 94 (2004) Documentary on John Kerry and his crew in Vietnam. The Burning Bed (1984) Farah Fawcett, Paul Le Mat, Richard Masur. Telefilm. (MGM). Chihuly: Gardens and Glass (2003) Documentary. Glass master Dale Chihuly's work. Shows work created for Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago that was installed among the urban conservatory’s plants. Clerks 10th Anniversary Edition (1984) Dir.: Kevin Smith; Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson. Three-disc set, with lots of extras. Creation of the Universe, The (2004): Documentary. Features Nobel Prize-winners Carlo Rubbia, Murray Gell-Man and physicist Stephen Hawking. Great Adaptations: Classic literary adaptations include DVD editions of David Lean's Great Expectations and Oliver Twist, Peter Brook's Lord of the Flies, Ernest B. Schedsack and Merian C. Cooper's The Most Dangerous Game. Judgment at Nuremberg Special Edition (1961) Directed by Stanley Kramer, the stellar cast includes Spencer Tracy, Judy Garland, Burt Lancaster, Marlene Dietrich, Montgomery Clift, Kaena: The Prophecy (France, 2004) CG-animated adventure features voices of Kirsten Dunst, Richard Harris, Anjelica Huston. The Martian Chronicles (1980) One of my favorite sci-fi films of all time, Ray Bradbury’s fascinating stories come to life. Directed by director Michael Anderson, film stars Rock Hudson, Bernadette Peters, Robert Beatty. Punisher, The: Marvel comic book character Charles Bronson (Thomas Jane) pursues with a vengeance after his family is murdered. Also stars John Travolta and Laura Harring. R. Wattstax: 1973 remastered concert documentary is being released at same time as the PBS presentation on Sept. 7. Includes original version "Rolling Down a Mountain," performed by Isaac Hayes and many other specials. Next Week: Angels in America, Baadasssss! (How to Get the Man's Foot Outta Your Ass) (2004), Heir to an Execution (2004), Home on the Range, Jersey Girl, The Ladykillers, Man on Fire, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, The Simpsons Gone Wild, THX 1138: The George Lucas Director's Cut (1971), Watermelon Man (1970), and Young Adam (2004).
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