Escape from New York

ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK (1981) - Nov. 30, 2005 (Second Viewing)
Kurt Russell is pretty much the ultimate badass as Snake Plissken, a man who's called in to rescue the president when Air Force One crashes in New York (which has been turned into a gigantic prison). Dark and gritty, it doesn't really feel as dated as most older movies that take place in the future. It's really fast paced, and features some memorable supporting performances from people like Lee Van Cleef and Ernest Borgnine. John Carpenter needs to direct more. ***1/2

Grizzly Man

GRIZZLY MAN (2005) - Nov. 28, 2005
An entertaining documentary about Timothy Treadwell, a man who would make yearly trips into the Alaskan wilderness to live with the bears, until one finally killed him. He thought he was protecting them somehow, though it isn't entirely clear how he thought he was doing this. It's sort of sad to watch him, so enthusiastic about the bears, and yet clearly somewhat insane. ***

Tarantula

TARANTULA (1955) - Nov. 17, 2005
A cheesy but entertaining film about a giant tarantula that terrorizes a small desert town. Not much else to say about this, really. It's pretty much exactly what you'd expect: no more, no less. **1/2

Saw II

SAW II (2005) - Nov. 12, 2005
An entertaining sequel. About a bunch of characters thrown into a house by Jigsaw, one of whom is a grizzled detective's son. Donnie Wahlberg is good as the grizzled detective, but Tobin Bell is the real standout as the sinister Jigsaw. ***

Titanic

TITANIC (1997) - Nov. 8, 2005 (Third Viewing)
I know, sometime after Titanic made about a zillion dollars and was embraced by teenage girls worldwide, it suddenly became that you weren't allowed to like it. Well, you know, there's a reason that this movie made a zillion dollars: it's really good. Both Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet are really good as the ill-fated lovers, as are all of the other performers. Billy Zane essentially steals every scene he's in as Kate Winslet's smarmy fiancee. The movie is well over three hours but doesn't really feel it. And then there's the whole sinking sequence, which is as exciting to watch as anything James Cameron has done. There is the spectacle of the giant ship slowly sinking, and yet it never eclipses or makes us forget about the characters. The special effects hold up really well; there are only a few shots here and there where it is obvious that computers were used. And I don't think there's any other movie - not even It's a Wonderful Life - that chokes me up the way this one does. ****

Zathura

ZATHURA (2005) - Nov. 5, 2005
An enjoyable film about a couple of bickering brothers who find themselves on a cosmic adventure when they start to play an old board game called Zathura. The movie is pretty much entertaining all the way through, and seems to have that universal appeal that'll make it enjoyable for both kids and adults. It did start to drag a bit towards the end, but aside from that it was quite good. ***

Jarhead

JARHEAD (2005) - Nov. 2, 2005
After Road to Perdition, there was really nowhere to go but down for Sam Mendes. While Jarhead was really well acted and well directed, it lacked the kind of emotional resonance that marks the difference between a good film from a great one. It was essentially a series of vignettes revolving around a group of snipers during the gulf war. Some of these were better than others, and I found myself losing interest at times in the midsection of the movie (it probably didn't help that the movie was constantly making me think of Three Kings, a much better film). While there were certain sequences in the film that were really really good, there was also a distinct feeling of unevenness. ***