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The
Really Big Universe THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY: Directed by Garth Jennings. Screenplay by Douglas Adams and Karey Kirkpatrick, based on the book by Douglas Adams. Produced by Nick Goldsmith, Jay Roach, Jonathan Glickman, Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum. Executive producers, Douglas Adams, Robbie Stamp, Derek Evans. Cinematographer, Igor Jadue-Lillo. Production design, Joel Collins. Editor, Niven Howie. Costume design, Sammy Sheldon. Music, Joby Talbot. Starring Martin Freeman, Sam Rockwell, Mos Def, Zooey Deschanel, Bill Nighy, with Warwick Davis, Richard Griffiths, Anna Chancellor, Alan Rickman, Helen Mirren, Stephen Fry, Thomas Lennon and John Malkovich. Touchstone Pictures, 2005. PG. 108 minutes. I first heard Douglas Adams' inventive, irreverent sci-fi classic, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, on KLCC, which ran the show (possibly the BBC version) as a serial over consecutive weekends during the late 1970s. My daughter and I loved it, The great voices and sound effects were creative and unusual, and if we missed one week, we just picked it up the next. I haven't read Adams' well-loved books, and I imagine the time is well past when I might, but I respect his iconoclastic, generous and humorous vision. Adams died of a heart attack in May 2001 at age 49, after completing a second draft of the screenplay for the film.
I don't know what to call the yet unnamed genre this unusual film falls into. It's a non-ironic human comedy brewed with intelligence. Warped sci-fi hardware provides the opening for absurd play and mischievous philosophy. At least two of my favorite movies from last year, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I Heart Huckabees, exhibit similar characteristics but substitute time-travel and existential psychology for Hitchhiker's deep space travel. In films such as these, plot plays a less acute role than in more straightforward narratives. Characters may look alien, such as the Vogon Jeltz (Richard Griffiths), a lumbering, thick-skinned super-clerk whose human aptitude for ensuring that all acts are authorized and signed in triplicate is regrettable but true. Think of him as your inner control freak. Conversely, characters may look human such as Ford Prefect (Mos Def) but come from the vicinity of Betelgeuse. Perhaps because Ford has spent 15 years on Earth as an out-of-work actor, he seems warmly human. The two for-real humans, Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman) and Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), meet on Earth and meet again in space, or rather on the spaceship Trillian shares with her new beau, Zaphod Beeblebrox (Sam Rockwell). Zaphod passes for human, at least at first. He dresses like a time-warped rock star but has a contemporary ego that is Dubya-like. He hails from Betelgeuse Five and is the President of the Galaxy. Turns out Zaphod and Ford Prefect are double first-cousins or something complicated like that. Other characters worth noting are Humma Kavula (John Malkovich), a former rival of the President's who brings out his worst — a second head (in place of his neck), which is as close to egoistic malevolence as the story gets. Zaphod makes a promise, but Humma keeps Z's extra head just in case. Slartibartfast (Bill Nighy) is an engineer who really likes to design new planets. Marvin (Warwick Davis) is a Genuine People Personality Robot. Marvin is depressed. Like I said, some of aliens are humorously human-like. The narrator is voiced by Stephen Fry, while Helen Mirren is the Voice of Deep Thought. Thoroughly entertaining, Hitchhiker's Guide may have been de-thorned by Disney to get a PG rating, but it is not stripped of its core goodness. The worst punishment any monster comes up with is pretty mild: The condemned must listen as a Vogon recites really bad poems. Suitable for all ages but smart enough for parents and other adults, the film is highly recommended. It's now playing at Cinema World and Cinemark.
The
People Fight Back KUNG-FU HUSTLE: Written, directed and produced by Stephen Chow. Co-writers Tsang Kan Cheong, Lola Huo, Chan Man Keung. Producers Chui Po Chu, Jeff Lau. Executive producers Bill Borden, David Hung. Action choreographer Yuen Wo Ping; Sammo Hung. Cinematography, Poon Hang Sang. Production design, Oliver Wong. Editor, Angie Lam. Visual effects supervisor, Frankie Chung. Costume design, Shirley Chan. Composer, Raymond Wong. Starring Stephen Chow, Yuen Wah, Leung Siu Lung, Yuen Qui, Dong Zhi Hua, Chiu Chi Ling abd Xing Yu. With Chan Hwok Dwan, Lam Tze Chung, Tin Kai Man, Jia Kang Xi, Funk Hak On, Feng Xiao Gang, Huang Sheng Yi, Lam Suet. Sony Pictures Classics, 2005. R. 95 minutes.
Delightful. That's the other D word I wanted to put in the sub-headline, although it is the last adjective I would have chosen to describe my reaction to the first half-hour of Kung Fu Hustle. First, a little background. A friend took me to my first Hong Kong action movie in San Francisco in the mid-1980s. It was the real thing: buckets of blood, gang fights, extreme brutality. We left the theater in the Castro after a few minutes, because the violence made me sick. In Kung Fu Hustle's early scenes, I feared I'd wandered into a similar situation, but this time I stayed. I'm glad I did, because after the bloody, gang warfare set-up, the fun begins and builds to a finale so over-the-top it made me giddy. Like a Road-Runner cartoon, Kung Fu Hustle spares its protagonist no humiliation. The good guys (you will eventually recognize who they are) take many beatings from the bad guys, the dreaded Axe Gang, a late 1940s style group which wears dark suits and ties and affects a hip attitude. The film's artful confusion begins when a loser named Sing (Stephen Chow) practices extortion on the denizens of Pig Sty Alley, an urban neighborhood with no future. Sing and his sidekick (Lam Tze Chung) attract the Axe Gang's attention, but they also stir up the Alley's people, who are not the simple citizens they appear to be. From the tailor (Chui Chi Ling), the landlord (Yuen Wah), the landlady (Yuen Qiu) to the Coolie (Xing Yu) and a noodle maker, these mostly older people are ferocious freedom fighters who keep a low profile on purpose. When roused, they fight like hell. The winding tale of Sing's misfortunes and good fortune has its beginning in childhood. A group of bullies are teasing a little girl, and Sing stands up for her. So, they beat the daylights out of him, taking particular pleasure in peeing on the boy and his Kung Fu instruction manual. The old man who sold the boy the book had said Sing was "the one." With the legend in place, we wait in vain a long time for Sing to become the Kung Fu master he must be. Meanwhile, the dapper leaders of the Axe Gang grows ever more ruthless, finally springing from the madhouse a secret weapon to use against the people of Pig Sty Alley: The Beast (Hsia Liang, aka Bruce Leung). Beast's technique embodies the sinuous beauty of the martial arts, but he is a formidable foe. In a memorable contest with the landlady and landlord, the three of them form a visually dynamic human puzzle-ball from which none can easily exit. The joys to be had from Stephen Chow's spectacular homage to the genre are not fleeting. I enjoyed his send-up more than any of the recent martial arts movies I've watched, such as Hero and House of Flying Daggers. The slapstick comedy routines remind me of the first film of the genre I really loved: Tsui Hark's 1986 action comedy, The Peking Opera Blues, which the Bijou brought to town. For Kung Fu Hustle, Chow employs Peking Opera's choreographer, Poon Hang Sang, who doesn't miss a flying bullet or a woman runner with curlers in her hair. Great, fun-filled film, Kung Fu Hustle gets my very highest recommendations. Now playing at Cinemark, catch this one once or twice. It might get better and better.
OPENING
OR RETURNING: Carter Family, The: Will the Circle Be Unbroken (2003): Documentary directed by Michael McNamara plays on American Experience on PBS television, 5/9. Check local OPB listings for time. Crash: Paul Haggis (Million Dollar Baby) wrote, directed and produced this urban drama set in Los Angeles, which looks at the complexities of racial tolerance in contemporary America. Stars Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, William Fichtner, Brendan Fraser, Terrence Howard, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillippe and Lorenz Tate. R. Cinema World. Cinemark. Diarios de Motocicleta (Motorcycle Diaries, 2004): In 1952, Ernesto Guevara de la Serna (Gael García Bernal) and pal Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna) take a motorcycle trip through the poverty and natural wonder of Latin America. Che Guevara, who had become famous from his association with Fidel Castro, was murdered at the hands of Bolivians in the pay of the CIA a few years later. Highly recommended. R. Plays at 7 pm on 5/11 in 180 PLC, UO campus. Free. Online archives. Draughtsman’s Contract (1982): Peter Greenaway’s intense mystery thriller stars Anthony Higgins, Janet Suzman, Anna Louise Lambert and Hugh Fraser. R. Plays at 7:30 pm on 5/10 in 177 Lawrence, UO. Free. House of Wax: “Prey. Slay. Display.” Elisha Cuthbert, Chad Michael Murray star, Jaume Serra directs, and Paris Hilton’s in it. R. Cinemark. Cinema World. Kingdom of Heaven: Set in the 12th Century, this epic Crusades film is nearly as long (138 minutes). Directed by Ridley Scott (Gladiator), it stars Orlando Bloom, Liam Neeson, Jeremy Irons and Eva Green. R. Cinema World. Cinemark. Million Dollar Baby: Clint Eastwood, who directed, produced and composed the music for this film, co-stars with Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman in this story of a spunky fighter, a reluctant trainer and an ex-boxer who looks after the gym. One of 2004’s best films. Very highest recommendations. 2004 Academy Awards for best picture, Eastwood director, Swank actress, Freeman supporting actor. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Monster-in-Law: Jane Fonda and Jennifer Lopez duke it out in this comedy directed by Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde). Also stars Michael Vartan and Wanda Sykes. PG-13. Sneak at 4 pm on 5/8. Cinemark. Muslims or Heretics: Documentary film about the struggles between moderate and radical Islamist forces in Bangladesh. Discussion with Naeem Mohaiemen, director of the Disappeard In America project, at 4 pm on 5/9 in Knight Library, UO. Free. Power of Nightmares, The: The Rise of the Politics of Fear: At 7:30 p, pm 5/9 pm Cozmic Pizza. Free. Return2Sender: Star Timmy O’Neill and director Peter Mortimer present for screening at 7 pm on 5/5 in 177 Lawrence. $9 general public/$7 UO students. Ring 2: Sequel to Gore Verbinski’s remake of Hideo Nakata’s 1998 Japanese horror film is directed by Nakata this time. Naomi Watts stars again, seeking the truth behind a videotape that kills people who watch it. Rated PG-13 for violence/terror, disturbing images, thematic elements and language. PG-13. Movies 12. Short Cut to Nirvana: A Pilmgrimage to the Kumber Mela: This celebratory festival is held every 12 years where the Ganges and Yamuna rivers meet. It brings together 70 million devotees and spiritual leaders. Documentary by Maruizio Benazzo and Nick Day. Bijou. Sky Blue(South Korea, 2003): Said to rival the best of Japanese animé, Moon Sang Kim and Sunmin Prk’s post-apocalyptic, sci-fi film “is part love story and part Greenpeace eco-rant,” according the Bijou. Stephen Holden (NYT) noted: “Blue sky and sunshine are distant memories.” NR. LateNite Bijou. Torpedo Bombers (Russia, 1976): Semyon Aranovich’s film is set in 1944 during the Nazi invasion of a small Russian community. Contains aerial documentary images. At 7 pm on 5/10 in 115 Pacific, UO. Free. Films open the Friday following EW publication date unless otherwise noted. See archived reviews at www.eugeneweekly.com
CONTINUING: A Lot Like Love: Ashton Kutcher and Amanda Peet are opposites who keep running into each other over the years after an initial disaster. Are they friends or is this love? Directed by Nigel Cole (Calendar Girls). PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Amityville Horror, The: Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George star in this psychological horror about a family’s dream home turned nightmare. A remake of the 1979 blockbuster and based on a true story, this suspenseful film directed by Andrew Douglas is sure to chill you. R. Cinemark. Are We There Yet?: In Brian Levant’s new movie, Ice Cube takes his recently divorced girlfriend Nia Long’s two kids on a road trip from Portland to Vancouver, BC, on New Year’s Eve. Jay Mohr plays his best friend. PG. Movies 12. Aviator, The: Martin Scorsese’s 169-minute film about lover, aviation pioneer and eccentric billionaire industrialist Howard Hughes stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Hughes, with Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Alan Alda, Frances Conroy and Ian Holm. DiCaprio and Blanchett are brilliant, and Scorsese makes the film his own. Very highest recommendations. 2004 Academy Awards to Blanchett; Robert Richardson, cinematography; Sandy Powell, costumes; Thelma Schoonmaker, editor. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Beauty Shop: Hair stylist Queen Latifah leaves a posh salon with shampoo girl Alicia Silverstone to open her own shop. Also stars Alfre Woodard, Mena Suvari, Andie MacDowell and Djimon Hounsou. Directed by Billy Woodruff. PG-13. Movies12. Boogeyman: Horror, terror and violence await you as Barry Watson, Emily Deschanel and others confront the boogeyman. PG13. Movies 12. Constantine: Stars Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, Shia LeBeouf, Tilda Swinton, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Djimon Hounsou and Peter Stormare. An epic set in a world of demons and angels. Hmmm. Based on comic, Hellblazer. R. Movies 12. Downfall(Germany, 2004): 2004 Academy Award nominee best foreign language film. Oliver Hirshbiegel and Bernd Eichinger’s memorable, claustrophobic impression of events in Adolf Hitler’s bunker 60 feet below the German Chancellery in Berlin, 1945, is set during the last days when Russia’s Red Army approached the city center. Stars Bruno Ganz as Hitler, wiith Alexandra Maria Lara, Juliane Kohler. Complex, morally complicated and riveting film. Highest recommendations. R. Bijou. Online archives. Fever Pitch: The Farrelly brothers direct a Lowell Ganz screenplay based on a Nick Hornby novel about a fanatic Red Sox fan (Jimmy Fallon) who may have to choose between the team and a woman (Drew Barrymore) he loves. PG-13. Cinemark. Guess Who: Bernie Mac stars as the father of Zoe Saldana, who brings her boyfriend, Ashton Kutcher, home, and he’s white! Comic retake on the 1967 Sidney Poitier movie. PG-13. Cinemark. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: Irreverent sci-fi comedy based on the late Douglas Adams’ cult novel follows the adventures in space of the most ordinary man in the world, Arthur Dent (Martin Freeman). Dent and his best friend (Mos Def) barely make it off the planet before it is demolished to make way for a hyperspace freeway. Directed by Garth Jennings, film also stars Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel, John Malkovich, Warwick Davis, Helen Mirren, Thomas Lennon, Anna Chancellor, Alan Rickman and Bill Nighy; with Stephen Fry as the narrator. PG. Cinemark. Cinema World. See review this issue. Hotel Rwanda: During the Rwandan massacres of 1994, a hotel manager named Paul Rusesabagina offered refuge to more than 1,000 Tutsis fleeing rampaging Hutus. Directed by Terry George, film stars Don Cheadle, with co-stars Sophie Okonedo, Joaquin Phoenix, Nick Nolte. Three 2004 Academy Award nominations: Cheadle, best actor; Okendo, supporting actress; original screenplay. Very highest recommendations. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Interpreter, The: Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, and Catherine Keener star in Sydney Pollack’s assassination-threat film set inside the actual United Nations building in New York. Kidman is a UN interpreter; Penn’s a Secret Service agent. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Online archives. Kung-Fu Hustle: In pre-revolutionary China, a small-time thief aspires to belong to an underworld gang. Stephen Chow’s satiric send-up of kung-fu movies has garnered positive reviews. LA Weekly calls it a “slapstick martial-arts masterpiece.” R. Cinemark. See review this issue. Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events: The misadventures of three orphans who fall into the hands of an evil count are popular with children and adults. Jim Carrey stars, with many co-stars. Directed by Brad Silberling. PG. Movies 12. Man of the House: Tommy Lee Jones stars as a Texas Ranger whose job is to protect cheerleaders who witnessed a murder. Action comedy directed by Stephen Herek. PG-13. Movies 12. Meet the Fockers: Jay Roach follows Meet the Parents(2000) with Ben Stiller’s bride and inlaws to-be Teri Polo, Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner meeting his rather eccentric parents, Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand. Culture clash writ small. PG-13. Movies 12. Millions: Directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) and written by Frank Cottrell Boyce, this enjoyable fantasy about two brothers who discover a satchel full of money, then find different ways of spending it. Recommended. PG13. Bijou. Online archives. National Treasure: Directed by Jon Turteltub and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, adventure stars Nicolas Cage searching for treasure George Washington hid during the Revolutionary War. Sean Bean plays his British rival who’s anxious to score the treasure first. PG. Movies 12. Phantom of the Opera, The: The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical is brought to the screen by Joel Schumacher, starring Emmy Rossum, Gerard Butler and Patrick Wilson. Under Schumacher’s insipid direction, kitsch dominates. 2004 Academy Award nominations for original song, art direction and John Mathieson cinematography. PG13. Movies 12. Online archives. Pizza Girl, The: Local film written and directed by Brian S. Murphy follows a pizza delivery driver (Amy Wray) as she establishes relationships with people on the outside of our overly mediated culture of consumption. Entirely produced by local residents. Bijou. Racing Stripes: A farmer (Bruce Greenwood) and his daughter (Hayden Panettiere raise a baby zebra to become a champion racer. Live action, computer animation. Voices: Frankie Muniz, Dustin Hoffman, Whoopi Goldberg, Snoop Dogg. PG. Movies 12. Robots: Chris Wedge’s amusing tale of a robot lad who dreams of being an inventor. This creative world of mechanical beings is never dull because these endearing, pieced-together, talking tin cans convey comfort and safety. Voices by Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry, Robin Williams, Mel Brooks, Amanda Bynes, Stanley Tucci, Greg Kinnear. Not preachy, but a good teaching tale about differences. Warmly recommended. PG. Cinemark. Online archives. Sahara: Penelope Cruz, Matthew McConaughey and Steve Zahn team up to look for a long-lost Civil War battleship that protects a secret cargo. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Sin City: Based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller and directed by Miller, Robert Rodriguez (and “special guest director” Quentin Tarantino), film stars a host of players including Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Elijah Wood, Bruce Willis, Benicio Del Toro, Clive Owen and Josh Hartnett. Highly recommended for style. R. Cinemark. Online archives. XXX: State of the Union: Samuel L. Jackson takes on the role of the agent who needs a new face (Ice Cube) he calls XXX to track a military splinter group led by Willem Dafoe. The group’s planning to overthrow the government. Directed by Lee Tamahori. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. MOVIE
THEATERS Bijou
Art Cinemas Regal
Cinemas Cinemark
Theaters
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