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This Weeks Movie Reviews: The Black Dahlia Directed by Brian De Palma. Written by Josh Friedman, based upon the novel by James Ellroy. Cinematography, Vilmos Zsigmond. Music, Mark Isham. Starring Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart, Scarlett Johannson, Hilary Swank and Mia Kirshner. Universal Studios, 2006. R. 121 minutes. Are we still a willing audience for film noir — or, for that matter, a Brian De Palma film? De Palma, a member of the New Hollywood generation that includes Scorcese, Coppola and Spielberg, hasn't made a great film since Carlito's Way (1993). One would think that film noir, with its emphasis on corruption and the reassuring power of cigarettes, would suit the director of Scarface (1983), given his taste for suspense and tough-as-bullets protagonists. But De Palma seems confined rather than liberated by the noir mode, and The Black Dahlia disappoints on a number of levels. Read more...
The Heart of the Game Written, directed and filmed by Ward Serrill. Produced by Serrill and Liz Manne. Music, The Angel. Narrated by Ludacris. With Bill Resler, Darnellia Russell, Joyce Walker and the Roosevelt High School Roughriders girls' basketball team. Miramax Films, 2006. 97 minutes. PG-13. Ward Serrill began filming the Roosevelt Roughriders, a Seattle girls' basketball team, seven years ago, when they'd just gotten a new coach. Sleepy-eyed and round-bellied, UW tax professor Bill Resler came to Roosevelt with a love for basketball and a different attitude. In his first season, the coach changed everything: He dismantled the offense. He opted for a full court press for the whole game. He told his players to be a pack of wolves (later, they're a tropical storm and a pride of lions): "Look them in the eyes!" He put his girls through grueling drills and workouts, making them stronger, faster and tougher than their opponents. And he created the "inner circle," removing parents and even himself from the scene when it came time to work out personality conflicts and solve problems. Read more...
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