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Saturday, Jul 26, 2008
The Movie Page
For independent films covered in Beyond the Multiplex, visit the Beyond the Multiplex directory page.
Haiku Tunnel- A low-budget office comedy crackles with self-conscious jabs at the life of a corporate drone.
Hairspray- John Travolta is no Divine. And this shiny musical just doesn't have the crazy, messy charm of John Waters' original.
Hancock- This story of a seriously flaked-out superhero shows us the limits of Will Smith's superpowers.
Hannibal- Both repugnant and boring, the grisly, disgusting new Hannibal Lecter thriller is likely the worst film of this year -- and quite possibly the next. Where to dig in first?
Happily Ever After- This French movie about adultery captures the intoxicating -- and terrifyingly complex -- essence of marriage.
Happy birthday, Leni Riefenstahl- Hitler's favorite filmmaker turns 100 -- and still says she didn't do anything wrong.
Happy Endings- Lisa Kudrow, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Bobby Cannavale have their moments, but it's Tom Arnold we really feel for in this contorted little picture.
Hardball- It has two strikes against it -- sappy formula movie starring Keanu Reeves -- but it's not as bad as it could be.
Hardware Wars": The movie, the legend, the household appliances- An obscure Bay Area filmmaker launched an empire in 1977. No, not that one. Fluke Starbucker, Oggie Ben Doggie, Ham Salad and Princess Anne-Droid are back in a "special edition" of the original Lucas spoof.
Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay- This good-natured sequel might not be as endearing as the original, but it's still much more than another stoner comedy.
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle- Bathroom humor and stoner jokes aside, this teen-pleasing, stereotype-challenging road movie has a lot to say about race in America today.
Harrison's Flowers- Lifetime goes to the Balkans in a shamefully botched weeper about an American woman's search for her missing photojournalist husband.
Harry Potter and the art of screenwriting- Michael Goldenberg talks about the pleasures and pitfalls of adapting "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" for the big screen.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire- Harry and his friends are growing up, but this latest Potter film may leave you struggling with your own childhood demons.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix- Patches of magical beauty rescue this sprawling adaptation of the fifth book in J.K. Rowling's beloved series.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban- Hippogriffs, Dementors and Harry, oh my! Director Alfonso Cuaron finally decants the essence of J.K. Rowling's work and brings us one of the greatest fantasy films of all time.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"- The long-awaited movie is faithful to J.K. Rowling's book, but the fantasy isn't very fantastic and the evil just isn't dark enough.
Hart's War- Put Bruce Willis and this bewildering World War II movie in front of the firing line.
Harvard Man- James Toback's sex, drugs and basketball movie would be better if it stuck to that.
Has success ruined America's friendliest filmfest?- No! Bring on the Tex-Mex, tequila and oddball movies -- Bigfoot! Bong jokes! Even a few big stars! -- that make South by Southwest so fun.
Hating Hollywood- Even in the year of the art film, failing to appreciate what movies do best is just as dumb as sneering at subtitles.
Heading South- This movie -- about older white women paying for sex with beautiful young Haitian men -- is bound to get under people's skin.
Head in the Clouds- Penelope Cruz stars with real-life couple Charlize Theron and Stuart Townsend in this frippery romanticizing the fight against fascism.
Head of State- Chris Rock for president? Well, maybe. Just don't let him direct another movie.
- Head On
- The displaced lovers in this vital, moving Turkish-German romance are a little bit rock 'n' roll -- and have their own sense of country.
Heartbreakers- A sexpot farce starring Sigourney Weaver and Jennifer Love Hewitt hits just the right note between naughty and raunchy.
Hearts in Atlantis- Pretty pictures wash an ominous Stephen King story with bland nostalgia. Anthony Hopkins stars as the creepy stranger.
Heaven- Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi are doomed lovers on the lam in this fiercely romantic collaboration between "Run Lola Run" director Tom Tykwer and late art-god Krzysztof Kieslowski.
- He conquered the World Trade Center
- "Man on Wire" and its daredevil star thrill Tribeca, but Mamet's "Redbelt" is a jiu-jitsu pratfall. Plus: Is Brecht still relevant?
Hedwig and the Angry Inch- John Cameron Mitchell's cross-dressing musical buzzes with the feel of real rock 'n' roll.
Heist- David Mamet sucks all the joy out of a venerable genre in his latest staccato, cliché-ridden crime story.
Hellboy- A dazzling comic-book movie that doesn't lose sight of its characters, or its "Passion"-worthy moral underpinning.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army- The fanciful, witty follow-up to "Hellboy" is so beautiful, you may forget it's a "special-effects" movie.
He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not- "Amelie" star Audrey Tautou leads a French thriller about a cute stalker. Spoiler: She's really crazy this time.
Here's looking at you, "Kid- Is 4-year-old Marla Olmstead a painting prodigy or the instrument of a hoax? "My Kid Could Paint That" asks fascinating questions about art, family and journalistic ethics.
Hero- It took the slow boat from China, but Zhang Yimou's dazzling martial-arts epic has finally come to American movie theaters. It was well worth the wait.
- Heroes of Katrina, ghost of "Gonzo
- An electrifying Katrina documentary blows the doors off at Sundance, and Hunter S. Thompson returns from the dead to eviscerate ski-resort Hollywood reptiles.
He sings the cinema electric- The director of "Memento" discusses the mind-bending trickery in his latest film, "The Prestige," what he thinks of being called the new Hitchcock, and how movies restore mystery to our lives.
Hey, Academy voters! Don't forget ...- Salon critics make last-minute ballot suggestions for Oscar -- actors, writers, songs and more
Hidalgo- This so-so western starring Viggo Mortensen and a very attractive horse never quite hits its stride.
Hide and Seek- Bugs, dolls, a house cat and your time are brutally wasted in this Robert De Niro-starring supernatural thriller.
High Crimes- Ashley Judd as a knocked-around military wife brightens what might be the most entertaining big movie this year. (Not like that's saying much.)
- Highlander: Endgame
- "Don't worry. The drugs will kick in momentarily."
Hip-hop's murky whodunit- Nick Broomfield's dishonest film "Biggie and Tupac" solves nothing about the rap world's most notorious murders.
Hissy fit- Is the upcoming "Snakes on a Plane" another sign of Hollywood's demise or a triumph of the blogosphere -- or both?
Hitch- Despite this romantic comedy's considerable flaws, Will Smith wins our hearts as a "date doctor" who counsels men in the ways of love.
- Hobbits and courtesans and David Lynch, oh my!
- Movies from Sweden, France and some very weird imaginations enthralled us in 2001.
Holding out for a hero- Ben Affleck? Matt Damon? Johnny Depp? Those guys aren't action stars -- they're pussies! Next up: Moby does Dirty Harry and James Bond goes gay.
Hold the fries- Morgan Spurlock, the man behind the film "Super Size Me," talks about eating nothing but McDonald's for 30 days straight and how he feels about Big Macs now.
Holes- Aided by Sigourney Weaver and Jon Voight as evil grown-ups, this adaptation of the beloved children's book crackles with un-Harry-like life.
Hollywood blows it -- again- The first chapter of the Hannibal Lecter trilogy, "Manhunter," is still the best.
Hollywood Ending- Woody Allen grows old ungracefully as a blind, neurotic babe-magnet filmmaker (who remains the center of the world).
Hollywood Homicide- Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett team up -- and fight the bad guys on kiddie bikes! -- in this amusing cop movie about the murder of two rappers.
Hollywood kicks the habit- In the scorching new film "Traffic," director Steven Soderbergh captures the hypocrisy -- and tragedy -- of the nation's unwinnable war on drugs.
Hollywoodland- Ben Affleck plumps up and adds weight to this picture about the mysterious demise of "Superman" star George Reeves.
Hollywood swinging- Driven by the marvelously sexy Frances McDormand, "Laurel Canyon" is wreathed in a golden haze of rock 'n' roll sensuality and glorious L.A. sunlight.
Honey- This hackneyed hip-hop dance flick boasts some flashes of inspiration -- and a smokin' Missy Elliott. But we're still waiting for the great rap musical.
Hotel- Mike Figgis' star-packed project on the Hollywoodization of the world is either brilliant or a mess. Regardless, he's one of the signature filmmakers of our era.
Hot Fuzz- This action-packed comedy proves that smarts and silliness aren't mutually exclusive.
House of Fools- Andrei Konchalovsky's first masterpiece in 20 years is a wrenching melodrama set amid the Chechen civil war. And Bryan Adams is in it. Really.
House of Sand and Fog- Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley are brilliant in this brutal, tragic (and slightly overheated) saga of the darkest of American nightmares -- real estate.
House of Wax- Not even Paris Hilton's acting is very scary in this middling slasher flick.
- House on Haunted Hill
- The deleted stuff, including a corporate shark in Manolo Blahniks, is the best thing about this silly horror remake.
- How did Harold and Kumar get to Gitmo?
- And how did they end up getting high with the Leader of the Free World? The makers of "Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay" fill us in at a SXSW round-table interview. (A Salon podcast)
How does it feel to be America's blow-job queen?- In their HBO movie "Monica in Black and White," documentarians Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey riff on Lewinsky, celebrity and the tough questions.
How I Killed My Father- Bergman meets Hitchcock on Freud's couch in a dazzling, pitch-perfect intellectual thriller from French director Anne Fontaine.
Howl's Moving Castle- Hayao Miyazaki's latest animated tale may spirit away his many fans. Others, alas, may find themselves altogether unmoved.
How to Deal- Young women actually have sex! At least they do in this refreshing coming-of-age tale of teen love and angst, starring Mandy Moore and the marvelous Allison Janney.
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days- A mean-spirited romantic comedy turns nice -- just when it should get nasty.
How to make a movie, in seven easy steps- Play Ping-Pong. Know your animal anatomy. And hire my brother.
Human Nature- Hairy women! Trained mice! Dry humping! The second movie by "Being John Malkovich" writer Charlie Kaufman is even weirder than his first.
Hurray for Indiewood!- Al Gore and "Little Miss Sunshine" shone brightest at the box office. But which indie films did we warm to the most?
Hurricane Al- The new documentary about Al Gore's crusade against global warming brings the notoriously awkward politician into focus as a human being -- but leaves unanswered the question, "Will he run?"
- Hurricane Katrina is not over
- The filmmakers behind the Sundance documentary "Trouble the Water" talk about finding their story and the continuing struggle with Katrina.
Hustle & Flow- The summer's steamiest film brings us a hip-hop dreaming hustler we just can't keep our eyes -- or ears -- off of.
DVD Releases
- Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo (7/29)
- Shine a Light (7/29)
- The Band's Visit (7/29)
- The Counterfeiters (8/5)
- My Brother Is an Only Child (8/5)
- Rent DVDs with Netflix
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"Brideshead Revisited"
By Louis Bayard -
"The X-Files: I Want to Believe"
By Stephanie Zacharek -
Critics' Picks
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Scully have I loved
By Rebecca Traister -
"Step Brothers"
By Stephanie Zacharek
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