KING OF CALIFORNIA

KING OF CALIFORNIA LOOSES THRONE

The worst part about this movie is that it could have been done so much better. I'm not a fan of Evan Rachel Wood who plays Miranda, the daughter of a recently released mental patient. But I can't fault her for a dissapointing script. Michael Douglas is Charlie, her father, who has been in a mental institution for the last few years. Now Charlie wants to find burried treasure. Again, given what they had they did the best they could with it. I can't tell if it was the script or directing or Douglas, but his character was stereotypical at best. His performance gives crazy a bad name. It was also unbelievable that his daughter would let him go off on a tangent, indulge his thoughts and then a few minutes later play the protagonist who is to be the "reasonable" one. I just didn't buy it.

Not a Pick: The script and writing could have made this magical, but it wasn't.

HE WAS A QUIET MAN

HE WAS A QUIET MAN SPEAKS LOUDLY

This is a dark, unpredictable film. We have seen this behavior before (going postal) where the fed up, over worked and under paid worker bee decides to take out a few co-workers before shooting himself. Because we know this happens, it is hard to watch a film that brings light to this behavior, that being said, it was done in a very nice light. Bob (Christian Slater) is that worker bee and he takes a lot of crap from a lot of people. He isn't outgoing or good looking (and yes, they managed to make Christian Slater look terrible) and he is a bit of a loner. There is a shooting at the company where he works and he is involved, in one way or another. This is where things get complicated. There are three, yes, three alternate endings to this movie. Some things are explained while others just keep us guessing (while others sit through and watch it again with the director's comments trying to find meaning or intent). There is no way to predict this film's path because it pulls the rug out from under you and before you can sit up in your chair they do it again. The lines between reality and fantasy are so blurred that you can't even tell that there are any lines. Elisha Cuthbert and William H. Macy add to the star power of the movie and do a fantastic job. Slater is perfect as Bob not only in his appearance and the way he holds his body, but also with the subtle gestures that kept him from going too far over the top in this role. It is a very interesting movie and frustrating at the same time because there is no definitive answer. Like the real-life shootings, I guess there is no answer anywhere.

Pick: Well done film and interesting to watch, but slightly maddening to keep score.

EAGLE VS SHARK

EAGLE VS SHARK IS AN EVEN MATCH
It would be too easy to compare this film to NAPOLEON DYNAMITE from 2004. Both movies have off-beat characters; but school is out and it's time for the real world in New Zealand. This is an usual love story. Lily (Lauren Horsley) looks forward to lunchtime at her job at a burger joint so she can glance, and perchance take the order of the object of her desire, mall worker, Jarrod (Jemaine Clement). Lily crashes his costume party as a shark and he is the eagle; "I almost came as a shark actually, but then I realized an eagles slightly better." One thing leads to another and she agrees to go back with him to his home town for his confrontation with an old high school bully. While he prepares for the showdown (using numchucks and sweet moves) she gets to know his family and weaves a quiet thread that links them all together, whereas time and circumstances have pulled them apart. This is a sweet and simple love story and Lily is sweet and simple in a mature way. There is more to her than meets the eye and she proves to be strong. Jarrod is hilarious to watch because he is so earnest and serious about his endeavor. The film is beautiful, New Zealand is beautiful, and the stop-motion animation is different and fun. It's an easy comparison to ND, but there is so much more depth and insight in this movie.
Pick: A sweet and smart film, fun and lighthearted with some dramatic overtone.