Body of Lies (**)

Anyone else get the feeling Warner Bros. brass threw a board meeting and just decided to say, "Let's take a couple box office names, I don't know, say Leonardo DiCaprio and team him up with Russell Crowe maybe. Yeah! And let's throw them in a pressure cooker script written by, hmmm... how about that guy that wrote "The Departed"? I like it, I like it! Oh, I know and let's get Ridley freakin' Scott to direct it! It can't possibly go wrong." Ok, I admit it... that's not fair. The truth is, the film is entertaining and I didn't hate it, I just didn't love it and especially when you take into account that with said names attached it better be damn good. It wasn't, it was ok. Maybe my own expectations let me down as expectations inevitably do but even that being said it's hard for me to say anything more flattering than the film was just ok, and just ok isn't good enough with the likes of DiCaprio, Crowe, Scott and "The Departed" scribe, William Monahan. The more willing you are to suspend your disbelief the more you will like the film, hence, my critique.

Now that I got that off my chest I feel a surprising amount of relief, as if I just blasphemed. Here's the good news and I'll gladly admit my admiration for Leonardo DiCaprio. I firmly believe he is one of the finest actors of his generation. He has proven time and time again, with his consistency and willingness to dive head first into character, his ability to carry a film and it is reflected in his Box Office star power. Hardly his finest work but still this film is no different as he is his rock solid self playing CIA operative, Roger Ferris, who is working in Jordan searching for terrorists. Despite working solo locally anyway, Ferris still somehow manages to get suspiciously close to the film's version of Osama Bin Laden, Al-Saleem (Alon Aboutboul). All the Intelligence gathered by Ferris is reported back to his Boss, Ed Hoffman, played casually by a plump Russell Crowe, who is sitting comfortably back in Langley, Virginia. It's almost comical as Ferris struggles through brutal beatings, explosions, gun fire and even rabid dogs between Jordan and a couple other countries while simultaneously Hoffman strolls through life with his ear piece in, wearing a bath robe searching for leftovers in his fridge or grocery shopping with the only problem seeming to be playing Mr. Mom as he takes his kids to their Soccer game.

The more Ferris learns, the more dangerous things become as he concocts an entire Alliance simply by smooth talking and arranging things and people to look as if they are what and who he says they are. The deeper he goes the more the tension mounts and Ferris finds himself looking to the dapper and no nonsense Hani Salaam, the Chief of Jordanian Intelligence, for help, even though he can hardly trust Salaam himself not to mention what Salaam would do to him for his own dishonesty. Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Mack Strong plays Salaam brilliantly as he teeters between mad man and nobility and the scenes between him and Leo are by far the best scenes of the film.

In an ironic twist, Ferris, who has managed to avoid Medical attention after all the explosions and beatings he narrowly survives he is forced to go for rabies shots after suffering a dog bite on his calf. Of course, this is where he meets the object of his affection in his nurse, Aisha (Golshifteh Farahani). Predictably, this relationship comes back to haunt him later as he now has feelings for someone other than himself.

It would have been nice to see more of DiCaprio and Crowe on screen together as they are really only in 3 or 4 small scenes together despite the entire script having them on their cell phones with one another. It appeared as if Crowe just cashed this one in, there just wasn't much to him and I suppose that to may have been by design as the Yang to Leo's Ying. I could have also done without seeing Leo survive the most unlikely of explosions, car accidents, beatings and narrowly being riddled by gunfire. At the end of the day you have an action movie cut more from the cloth of "Commando" than "The Departed." I suppose that's a bit harsh as well, but who gives a shit, nobody's reading this anyway.

The Visitor (**1/2)

Richard Jenkins gives an Oscar worthy performance as the gentle and soft spoken, grief-stricken Professor Walter Vale in this small but powerful film written and Directed by Tom McCarthy, the busy character actor who has the same credits for 2003's critically acclaimed "The Station Agent".

Walter, mid-50's and recently widowed, makes his home in Connecticut but has a 2nd apartment in New York where he travels for a business conference to present a paper he is no deservedly credited for writing. Upon his arrival into his apartment he is quickly surprised to realize that a young couple has made it their home. As it turns out, a mistake made by a mutual scheming acquaintance trying to make a buck, which has now created this uncomfortable situation. Walter generously offers his place to stay for the night to Syrian, Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and his girlfriend Zainab (Danai Gurira), from Senegal. The immigrant couple makes a modest living as she sells homemade jewelry while he plays the African drums, which catches the eye of the music loving Walter, his late wife was a renowned pianist. Tarek's charm and infectious personality warms Walter up to him enough to take drum lessons despite the skeptical yet respectful Zainab. As each strum on the drum pounds the greater the admiration for one another grows.

On the surface, it's a simple story of an unlikely friendship formed due to the unfortunate circumstances they find themselves in. What lies beneath is a very deep heart tugging relationship that hits you from many different angles between the dynamics of boyfriend to girlfriend, brother to brother, friend to friend, Mother to Son once Tarek's mother (Hiam Abbass, who gives a truthful and moving performance) from Michigan enters the piece, Daughter-in-Law to Mother-in-Law and any other combination of the aforementioned possible as the film delves deep into the harsh reality of a post 9/11 United States and it's struggles with illegal aliens and possible deportation. Emotions run deep regardless of what side of the fence you are on and regardless of the black and white views of the Government and illegal immigration, the story here isn't as much about rules and regulations is it is about being a human being and where the heart decides what is right or wrong.

In only his 2nd film Directing, MCarthy is already showing his admiration and ability to tap into human emotion, like most actors turned directors his films seem to be a magnificent character study with multiple layers of love, pain, grief, fear and courage. His screenplay is likely to get the attention of Academy voters and earn him a well deserved nomination, that is of course if enough eyeballs see it. It's a small art house film with a limited release and it's buzz will mostly be wrapped around a terrific performance by Jenkins but if enough word of mouth get around this is the very kind of film the Academy recognizes in the ever competitive Original Screenplay category.

"Slumdog Millionaire" (***1/2)

I've always been a fan of Danny Boyle's films and I'm in the camp that thinks he isn't quite getting the credit he deserves for his vast array of well made films. I admire the diversity of his career with his directing grace in such films as "Shallow Grave", "The Beach", "A Life Less Ordinary", "28 Days Later" and "Millions". Talk about avoiding being pigeon-holed. He masterfully went from the dark and raunchy world of drug addiction (Trainspotting) to the horror genre of flesh eating zombies possessed by rage and fueled by killing (28 Days Later) to the ever touching and heartfelt joy ride of two little boys adventures after finding tons of money in "Millions", one of that years best films. The man can tell a story of any genre and once again he proves it with what will not only likely be one of this year's best films but it very well may steamroll it's way to Best Picture if the amount of pre-Oscar buzz generating around it is any indication.

"Slumdog Millionaire" is a thrilling rags to riches story set in India centered around Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) as a contestant on the Hindi version of "Who Wants to be A Millionaire?" Jamal, a driven and resilient young man that grows up far to fast has become a solo traveler having parted from his brother and the other street pals that once accompanied him. He originally uses the show as not a means for fame or fortune but rather as a platform to find, Latika (Freida Pinto), the girl he loves that has also been pulled from him. Due to the shows popularity and her interest in it, Jamal knows that it would be the perfect opportunity for her to see he is, in fact, alive and to find him, as he has no idea where she is or if she is even alive. It just so happens that along the way he keeps answering the questions correctly, thus thrusting him into not only the countries spotlight but an unforeseen and dangerous life threatening position of being accused of cheating by the shows Security and scandalous Host. This leads to his being tortured for his in depth explanations of how he could have possibly known all of the correct answers. In his explanations there in lies the fast paced exhilarating pace of this incredible journey of survival that takes Jamal form the slums of Mumbai as an orphan to the grand stage and only one question away from wealth and ultimately freedom from the extremely cruel and poverty laden streets. As each question is answered the live action flashbacks of his explanations to his captors illustrate how it was a part of his tumultuous journey and a key moment in the telling of the story by the scarring effects it had on his life, the answers were not merely remembered but rather burnt into memory based on the terribly brutal circumstances and horrible things he has already endured in his young life.

The film felt very much along the lines of the great Brazilian film "City of God" in it's tragic survival tale of youth violence on the poverty stricken streets. Patel gave a strong performance as the film's protagonist, Jamal and his love interest is equally well crafted by newcomer Pinto. "Slumdog Millionaire" is an excellent film that is sure to get serious consideration for Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay and the music is as thrilling as the action sequence keeping your eyes glued to the screen and your butt on the edge of your seat. Will Danny Boyle finally become a household name? If so it will be because he deserves it.

"Burn After Reading" (**)

Oh those zany Coen Brother are at it again in this whacky film about what happens when two entirely different worlds are juxtaposed. Almost as if it were two different movies forced to unite as one. In one world you have the serious no nonsense world and the delicate confidential memoirs of CIA agent Osborne Cox that has recently been fired for Alcoholism, played masterfully by the unconventionally great, John Malkovich, colliding with the other which is a goof ball world of two imbeciles that work together at a Health Club portrayed in an almost slap stick, yet convincing (if that even makes sense) manner by Brad Pitt and Frances McDormand.

In this twisted yet conveniently intertwined story we witness the absurdity that is the Coen Brothers genius of even attempting to combine these worlds. It basically revolves around the dimwitted spunky Fitness Trainer Chad Feldheimer (Pitt) and his equally dimwitted but far more insecure colleague Linda Litzke (McDormand) and their quest for money and anything to improve their lives. Linda seeking love and a sense of self worth, clearly illustrated by her mission to have tons of cosmetic surgery and her online dating and sexcapades in an attempt to remedy her depression. Chad, being his jovial self just seems to be seeking the adrenalin rush of masterminding and pulling off his extortion plot of what he thinks is highly confidential and valuable information on computer discs left at the gym, that turn out to be those of Osborne Cox (Malkovich). Hence, the meshing of the serious and the screwball worlds.

Chad and Linda see the files as being worth a small fortune thus solving all their problems when in reality they are nothing more than Cox's memoirs that he has chosen to write to spite the CIA for what he feels was his wrongful termination, despite his wife Katie's (Tilda Swinton) objections. Cox ignores his wife and her crude and condescending ways and writes them anyway as clearly their marriage is in shambles based on the fact that she is having an affair with the charismatic and overly ecstatic, Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney), who is happily married himself. Frankly, everything Harry does is happily and that includes his invention that I won't spoil here but it's definitely funny and happy that he keep covered and stored away in dark basement as if he were a Mad Scientist. He also seems to have no problems doing a little internet dating of his own to satisfy his raging sex drive and wouldn't you know it, Linda and Harry connect online which quickly leads to a rendezvous bringing the twisted and intertwining story full circle.

Of course, there are other things going on here and different characters that play fabulous parts, namely J.K. Simmons as the CIA Chief, and all kinds of physical comedy to go with the clever and humorous script itself. Not my favorite Coen Brother's film by any means and I can't even say that I really was even a big fan of this one but I can say with no uncertainty that regardless of whether or not this effort worked it was definitely a creative effort and well worth seeing if for no other reason than to see this unlikely ensemble converge talents and the absurdity of merging these worlds.

"Australia" Review (***)

If Baz Lurmann's "Australia" were nothing more than a visually stunning epic film it would be still be worth the watch, despite it's 2 hour 45 minute run time. There's so much more to it though as it takes us on a swooping epic adventure from 1939 to 1942 Australia incorporating action, adventure, comedy, tragedy and even fantasy with a good old American western tale that eventually evolves into a war scene as well as the obvious love story at it's core. Granted the crowning achievement of this ambitious epic is clearly the Art Direction, Costume Design and Cinematography of these gigantic scenes, many of which are CGI lead although it takes little away from the landscapes and imagery. The CGI is obvious but it doesn't get in the way or take away the beauty of the scenes and shots in the least. Sure there are holes in the story and the story shouldn't be mistaken as an educational or historical account of a pre-World War II cattle driven Australia but if an exhilarating action adventure epic tale with a heart is what your looking for than buckle up and enjoy the ride.

The story begins with Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman) traveling to Australia to get her husband to return with her back to England. Upon her arrival she is met by The Drover (Hugh Jackman), who is a chiseled iconic cowboy that epitomizes the definition of hero along the like of John Wayne. The Drover will escort her to her husband, who is there in the Outback to see to their large plot of land and cattle ranch, Faraway Downs.

Trouble ensues as the local cattle tycoon King Carney (Bryan Brown) attempts to purchase Faraway Downs properties and 1500 head of cattle with a modest offer at best with greedy intentions of monopolizing the cattle market. In a take this offer or else manner handled mostly by his less than trustworthy henchman Neil Fletcher (David Wenham) they begin making life difficult for those involved with Lady Sarah and Faraway Downs. Most notably a young 10 year old boy, Nullah, magnificently portrayed by Brandon Walters who received the prestigious dream credit for any actor breaking onto the scene... the "and Introducing Brandon Walters as Nullah" credit. Lucky devil, but he deserved it. He really was the heart and soul of the film and it's impossible to not get warm and fuzzy when you see his affinity for the classic song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."

Walters role was crucial as not only does he carry the story but he narrates it as well, as Nullah, in the cutest accent which must be the combination of Aborigine and Australian based on the "half-cast" or "creamy" label for those with mixed parents are known. Nullah, his mother and another Aboriginal woman help to take care of Faraway Downs but they must keep Nullah hidden, as being a half-cast is cause to be removed from your family by the government to be used for what was deemed to be useful services to the white community, essentially slaves. They came to be known as "The Lost Generations" in real world Australia. Of course, The Drover, being the epitome of hero that he is, on more than a couple occasions shows he stands firmly for equal rights and not only refuses to tolerate such racism but uses physical force when it's laws of "No Blacks" are being enforced. Unfortunately, it's due to a previous agreement between Faraway Downs and the local authorities that has kept Nullah safe as opposed to lack of knowing he exists. Clearly the leverage that King Carney and Neil Fletcher plan to use to their advantage.

And off the story and adventure goes as The Drover and his Aboriginal sidekick must lead the cattle drive across the Outback with the disadvantage of using the inexperienced help of the 5 people that keep Faraway Downs functioning. The film is interesting in that it will be loved or loathed in that the first Act sets the tone in it's score and acting performances to that of "Swiss Family Robinson" but after the dramatic first plot point hits the stakes are raised in all aspects considerably as the entire theme and tone of the film seems to evolve into a more dramatic and serious feel to that of first "The Searchers" onto the third Act and "A Bridge on the River Kwai" and eventually as a whole "Gone with the Wind." By the end of Act II there are clear struggles that must be overcome as well as specific goals for each character to achieve and it captivates your attention as you eagerly wait to see how things transpire in the cheesy and somewhat predicable Act III that completes this swooping epic tale.

After it's all said and done I found myself days later still thinking about the journey this film takes you on and how ambitious and enormous the story really is. This is always a good indicator that it was a good film, despite the ability to poke holes in it.