|
Video: Behind the times
By STEVE PERSALL, Times Film Critic
 |
[Twentieth Century Fox]
Reigart (Gene Hackman, center) communicates with a downed aviator, while planning a daring rescue mission with, from left, the carrier commanding officer (Tom Mooney), Rodway (Charles Malik Whitfield) and O'Malley (David Keith) in Behind Enemy Lines. |
© St. Petersburg Times
published April 25, 2002
Video: New releases
Behind Enemy Lines (PG-13)
Lt. Chris Burnett (Owen Wilson) is a Navy flyboy whose showboating ways make him witness to an ethnic cleansing massacre in Bosnia. His aircraft is shot down by Serbian forces, stranding him behind enemy lines. Gene Hackman plays the crusty admiral who plans a rescue attempt, even though he doesn't appreciate Burnett's cavalier attitude.
First impressions: "Behind Enemy Lines is where war movies were headed before Sept. 11, with military action used as a casual excuse for just another wisecracking rule breaker . . .
"(The movie) may appeal to moviegoers desiring to see U.S. troops kick anyone's butt right now. Yet, for a movie capitalizing on America's renewed patriotism, there is a notable lack of U.S. flags on display. Nobody comments on American values or the kind of bravery Burnett never achieves . . . Behind Enemy Lines is behind our enemy times."
Second thoughts: But this movie certainly makes a cool U.S. Navy recruiting commercial, doesn't it?
Rental audience: War movie buffs who aren't picky.
Rent it if you enjoy: Top Gun, reruns of JAG.
My First Mister (R)
Albert Brooks plays an uptight 49-year-old clothing store manager who hires an ill-tempered teenager (Leelee Sobieski), then falls in love with her. Not funny like Brooks' usual efforts, this is a character study of two loners discovering each other, then themselves.
First impressions: "Sobieski does what she can with the role of Jen, a goth kid defined by multiple piercings, heavy black eyeliner, a copy of Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar, bedroom candles galore and brooding metal on the stereo. But hey, she's a creative doom-and-gloom teenybopper, constantly writing her own eulogies and looking at the world through the wrong end of cute little binoculars . . .
"There are lessons to be learned, and first-time director Christine Lahti makes it her duty to underline, underscore and drive home every truth from Jen's so-called life. The resemblance of this film to the vastly more appealing and accomplished Ghost World may be only coincidental. Anyone seeking a funny, insightful examination of such a May-October relationship is advised to skip Lahti's debut in favor of the latter." (Philip Booth, Times correspondent)
Second thoughts: If a movie lands in theaters and no one is there to see it, does it make a noise?
Rental audience: A niche too narrow to identify.
Rent it if you enjoy: Lolita without the sex.
'Hoo-rah' to this career
Al Pacino, who turns 62 today, is a cultural icon for his portrayals of gangsters, a bank robber and a whistle-blowing cop.
Few actors ever started film careers with as much dynamic success as Al Pacino. All actors dream of that role of a lifetime that makes them cultural icons, flesh-and-blood landmarks of an era and role models beyond that. Pacino had three such performances within the first five years of his movie career.
One of those early 1970s portrayals, as New York City detective Frank Serpico, was so influential that another budding icon -- John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever -- even had Pacino's poster on his bedroom wall, inspiring "Tony Manero" to ultimate coolness. We don't want to think about how many CEOs learned management styles from Pacino in the Godfather flicks, or how many criminals seek celebrity like his bank robber in Dog Day Afternoon.
Pacino celebrates his 62nd birthday today. All we can say is "Hoo-rah!" (borrowing a catch phrase from his Oscar-winning role in Scent of a Woman, of course). Here's a list of suggested Pacino highlights to mark the occasion:
The Panic in Needle Park -- Pacino's first movie (not counting a walk-on role in 1969's Me, Natalie) cast him as a heroin junkie living off the street and his girlfriend (Kitty Winn). The film's gritty style and Pacino's performance made some viewers believe it was a documentary.
The Godfather Trilogy -- Okay, so part III was a mistake. But Michael Corleone is one of the most compelling and quotable characters in Hollywood history.
Scarecrow -- Finding a copy of this elusive film in a closeout bin was a thrill recently. Gene Hackman's star was also rising when he teamed with Pacino as hobos on an episodic road trip to Pittsburgh. One of the great overlooked films of the 1970s.
Serpico -- Based on a true story; Pacino played a straight-arrow cop blowing the whistle on corrupt colleagues. This one made him a superstar.
Dog Day Afternoon -- A bank robbery goes wrong, and a crook becomes a folk hero, until the public discovers what the heist was supposed to finance. Even people who don't know what "Attica" means remember Pacino's character screaming the word for TV cameras.
And Justice for All . . . -- You may have noticed this list is chronological and, yes, we're skipping that race-car disaster Bobby Deerfield. Pacino got back in gear with an Oscar-nominated performance as a lawyer suffering from bouts of conscience.
Scarface -- Pacino's cocky turn as a Cuban immigrant turned cocaine kingpin is one of the most enjoyably over-the-top performances ever on screen. You don't want an introduction to Tony Montana's little friend.
Sea of Love -- An underrated murder mystery with a sensual streak provided by Ellen Barkin. Pacino plays a lonely cop whose dabbling in personal ads may make him the next victim. Look for John Goodman in an early, impressive supporting role.
Dick Tracy -- Another Oscar nomination for Pacino, playing the grotesque hoodlum Big Boy Caprice, who's tailed by Warren Beatty's title cop. Recently spruced up for DVD release.
Glengarry Glen Ross -- Pacino joins a great all-male ensemble (Jack Lemmon, Kevin Spacey, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin and Alec Baldwin) and chews into David Mamet's profanely perfect story of real estate deals and desperation.
Scent of a Woman -- Lousy movie, but it finally won Pacino an Academy Award, so it's worth noting.
Donnie Brasco -- Pacino returns to cinematic crime as a Mafia hanger-on getting too close to an undercover FBI agent (Johnny Depp). Part of the film is based on the King's Court gambling scandal in Pasco County in the mid 1970s.
The Insider -- A producer for 60 Minutes (Pacino) persuades a former tobacco executive (Russell Crowe) to expose unethical practices in the industry.
Back to Weekend
© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111
|
