I know that some of you are wondering "But wait, didn't I just get issue 5 in the mail???" You're right, you did--but I wanted to get the next one out quickly so that for once a movie in it would actually still be in the theatres when my review was published. (Now I know some of you are thinking: "It's about time!") So, let's get on with it:
On screen:
STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT: This, as most of you probably know, is actually the eighth Star Trek feature, and the first to star only the cast of the Next Generation TV series (the last one, Star Trek Generations, had both Next Generation and "classic" characters). It is essentially just an extended-length episode of the NextGen series, although not at all bad for that, and an especially satisfying experience for those long since seduced by the whole Trek mythos such as myself. This time, Jean-Luc Picard (played, as ever, by the inimitable Patrick Stewart) and his intrepid crew once again face the Borg, an insidious cybernetic life/robot form able to "assimilate" other intelligent life into its hive-like colony. Intent on taking over the universe and converting them into the "perfection" that status as a mindless half-robotic drone entails,
the Borg travels back into time to a crucial moment in Twentieth-century Earth history. This time-travel bit, along with other aspects of the plot, is a bit too convenient, and robs the story of a good bit of punch (a problem that seems very common among science-fiction adventure-epics). It also disappointed me that the Borg ended up having a leader; I thought that they were actually more interesting without one. On the plus side, Stewart's acting, to be blunt, is better than that of William Shatner any day of the week! Visually, there isn't much here besides the usual set of slick special effects anyone who watches TV recognizes. This is excepting the first ten minutes, which totally blew me away. I like most of the NextGen cast, but my favorite besides Stewart is Brent Spiner, who plays the earnest and likable android Data (and who has a prominent role in this film, by the way).
SWINGERS: New indie director John Favreau plays his own lead, Mike, one of the legions of young actors who descend on Los Angeles intent on making it big. He and his friends (who seem to act as a kind of Greek chorus of wit, macho bluster, and unsolicited advice) lead each other on a seemingly ceaseless romp through a series of L.A. bars, parties, and retro fantasies. The goal of all this is to get Mike to forget his longtime girlfriend and find another "beautiful baby" (the men's term for young, attractive women--I am not making this up). If all this doesn't sound hysterical, I assure you that it is, from beginning to end, and I think it is mainly because of Favreau's unerringly real dialogue. (Its realism, I noticed, is like that of Clerks in that it sounds like genuine human speech and not like the endless setup-and-putdown-and-setup-and-putdown that one hears on TV situation comedies.) An unusual feature of the cinematography and costuming is almost as funny: as in Metropolitan, so much of what everyone says and wears is so retro that you sometimes find yourself wondering when the film takes place! Unlike Metropolitan, however, it's a grab bag: 50's clothes, hair and cars, 60's and 70's music, and 40's dance styles. My only big complaint is this: for reasons I can't explain without giving it away, the ending doesn't really work. (Besides Favreau himself, I have to give some acting credit to Vince Vaughan, playing Mike's smoothest friend, Trent.) By the way, this movie is a good example of why I don't like trailers; the preview for this movie gave away several of the best jokes.
On tape:
LAMERICA: Italian director Gianni Amelio's 1990 work Open Doors is a masterpiece of hope. Lamerica, his most recent film, isn't quite of the same caliber, but the two share a lot of good traits in common: a concern about justice, a knack for creating multifaceted characters, and above all a great feeling for both the endless frailties and the ultimate worth of humanity. It's 1991, and the Balkan country of Albania is digging itself out from under 40 years of repressive Communist rule. The impoverished Albanians long to go to Italy for a better way of life, inspired by insipid Italian TV programs making their way across the Adriatic. Into this world come a pair of Italian shysters out to cheat their government out of international-development money; needless to say, they get a lot more than they bargained for. As in Open Doors, there is an old man with crucial surprises up his sleeve; at his hands, one of the cheats learns a thing or two in plot twists that seem reminiscent of Rainman. The viewer is left with a powerful reminder of the unquenchability of hope for a better life that the immigrant embodies, a notion symbolized by that perennial goal of the hopeful, America (from which, as you may have guessed by now, the movie derives its title). See it.
LONE STAR: This is the first John Sayles film I've ever seen, and I had no idea what I was getting into! Suffice to say, it begins with the unearthing of a corpse, and then digs up the lives of seemingly everyone in the small Texas border town in which it is set. I can't tell you more than this, because it would make this newsletter about 19 pages long. Sayles' real achievement is in actually keeping interest in a plot this labrynthine, although it helps that there's a murder mystery underneath all the twists and turns. It also helps that the acting is generally good--there are scenes of real power, and Kris Kristofferson is actually not too bad (and has wicked fun) as the town's old sheriff, a vicious, corrupt racist. On the negative side, I had been warned about Sayles' on-the-sleeve liberalism; it occasionally gets overbearing (even to a liberal like me!) but doesn't interfere too much. You should see it, but be warned that you may need a chart and notes to follow it; the ending, I should add, is a bit of a turnoff.
BEAUTIFUL GIRLS: The worldview of this cynical romantic comedy can be summed up in eight words: "If you want men to commit, good luck." All by itself, that wouldn't be especially interesting; luckily, new director Brad Demme manages to create a circle of friends human and personable enough that we stay with them through the proof. He gets worthy performances out of actors both excellent (Timothy Hutton and Mira Sorvino) and mediocre (Annabeth Gish). Three garner the most interest; foremost is Hutton, who plays a cocktail-lounge piano player finding himself in a curious friendship with the 13-year old next door (played by Natalie Portman, a terrific Winona-Ryder-in-training). Matt Dillon is a blue-collar man trying to make up his mind between his too-patient girlfriend (Sorvino) and his old flame from high school, who, unfortunately, just happens to be married now. Then there's Rosie O'Donnell, who talks tough and tells them all off, and Uma Thurman, who makes them all look foolish drooling over her. Unfortunately, they (and the story's other women) get too little screen time, a fact which uncomfortably echoes the sexism of many of the male characters.
Finally, a few non-movie recommendations: I recently had the opportunity to see an episode of the much-missed TV drama My So-Called Life on video tape and really enjoyed it. Also, if you ever get the chance to see the Mystery Science Theater episode in which they're ridiculing Space Travellers (an old science-fiction movie with Gene Hackman and Gregory Peck), see it, especially if you've seen 2001: A Space Odyssey. That may have been the longest sustained laughter that ever befell me while sitting in front of a TV set.
Enjoy the holiday season and have a great 1997!
Tony