Monster House

Seen 21 July 2006 at AMC Boston Common (Disney Digital 3D)
* * * * (out of 5)

Starting from a kid’s horror perspective, “Monster House” has everything going against it. It’s done in CGI, which means things aren’t going to be realistic, so that reduces how scary they can really be. It’s also done via motion capture, which “Polar Express” demonstrated as being very lifelike movements, but sacrifices were made via the more or less soulless human characters. And it’s in 3D, which means… OK, no, that just kicked ass.

What’s cool about Monster House is that it overcomes a lot of those challenges, and also provides a pretty fun narrative that ought to keep kids – and adults – engaged. There are also moments that might scare the crap out the younger kids, which is cool, because that’s a hard thing to achieve. And it looks gorgeous. I only have a few, small complaints about the film, but nothing that detracted seriously from my enjoyment.

DJ (Mitchell Musso) lives across the street from Mr. Nebbercracker (Steve Buscemi), the crotchety old man of his town. He’s worse, though, because his house is old, creepy, and alive. Yeah, alive. It eats people, animals, tricycles, or any random objects that might happen to land on the lawn. When his best friend Chowder (Sam Lerner) loses a ball to the house – and later witness the house REALLY come to life – they team up with local Girl Scout Jenny (Spencer Locke) to unravel what’s really going on, and put an end to the carnivorous domicile.

It’s silly, it’s cute, it’s completely ridiculous, but I’ll be damned if they don’t work it. It’s very hard to make an animated film scary, especially when the people are very much not realistic, but they pull it off here by making the house a legitimate threat. It’ll eat ANYTHING – cars and people included – and isn’t afraid to let adults see it, like a normal kid’s horror villain. There’s also a sense of anxiety, because the “monster” extends to the lawn and trees as well; there are some great moments when the house lures people in by having the lawn slowly consume the “BEWARE” signs the owner posted.

Read the rest at HBS!

The Great Yokai War

Seen 9 July 2006 at the Brattle
* * * * (out of 5)

Takashi Miike has a distinctive track record. Previous to this, I’ve seen “The Happiness of the Katakuris” and sections of “Ichi the Killer,” while repeatedly dodging my brother’s attempts to get me to watch “Audition.” Miike is one messed-up guy, and if you want weirdo, freaked-out horror, he is certainly the guy to go to. So it’s only natural that his latest work is a kid’s movie.

Well… MOSTLY a kid’s movie. There are sections here and there that I predict would sufficiently freak out preteens in the US. Part of why that happens is that Miike, in all his freakiness, is somehow able to bounce between cute and cuddly and mildly disturbing at the drop of a hat. Seeing a major character – and one of the few traditionally cuddly creatures – get dropped into a vat of boiling goo and reemerging as a killing machine might rub some kids the wrong way, but that’s how The Great Yokai War works: Miike sends his young hero into a nightmare’s nightmare, and forces him to fight his way out.

Tadashi Ino (Ryunosuke Kamiki) recently moved with his mother and grandfather out to the country after his parents got divorced, leaving his father and sister in the city. Tadashi is a small kid, and not at all used to country life, so he gets picked on somewhat viciously by the other boys in his new school. During a traditional parade and ceremony in the village he is “bitten” by the Kirin, making him the new Kirin Rider. The traditional duties of the Rider involve heading up the nearby mountain to retrieve a sword from the Great Goblin that guards it. He gets freaked out on his way up the mountain, and hitches a ride to go home. Suddenly, the bus is “attacked” by a whole plethora of freaky creatures and things. He comes to learn these are the yokai, peaceful creatures from Japanese mythology who are being threatened by an evil demon (Natsuhiko Kyougoku) and his accomplice (Chiaki Kuriyama). They plan to turn the yokai into evil killing machines, and use them to take over Japan (and presumably the world). The Kirin Rider, now Tadashi, has always been the one to maintain this balance, and he is prophesized to come to the yokai's rescue again.

The most striking thing about the film is the creature design. There’s some CG here, but the vast majority of the yokai are guys in crazy suits. Miike’s strength lies in his ability to sufficiently alarm the audience upon the initial appearance of these creatures, right in line with Tadashi’s reaction (but maybe without the screaming).

Read the rest at HBS!

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Seen 9 July 2006 at AMC Fenway 13
* * * * (out of 5)

Dead Man's Chest had a big pair of shoes to fill. Somehow, the memory of the first film proves to be both a blessing and curse for Ol' Captain Jack Sparrow and gang. This is a film that really wants to exist on its own, but demands made by the bookends of the series dictate a little too much for the middle child. Still, it's very entertaining for 3/4ths of the running time, and it made me want the third installment out now. I say mission accomplished.

As we return to the Caribbean, we find the ruins of Elizabeth (Keira Knightly) and Will's (Orlando Bloom) wedding. A new meanie has entered town in the form of Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander), an official for the East India Trading Company, infamous for branding any pirates they happen to run into. Beckett tells Will that both he and Elizabeth have death sentences for assisting in Captain Jack Sparrow's (Johnny Depp, in the role he will forever be known for) escape, a crime that is itself punishable by death. The only way out of it is for Will to hunt down Sparrow, and make a deal with him - a pardon and a commission as a privateer for the Trading Company in exchange for that crazy compass of his that doesn't point north. So off Will goes (and later, Elizabeth as well) to find him, but Jack has problems of his own. It seems that the only way Jack ever acquired the Black Pearl was by selling his soul to Davy Jones (Bill Nighy), the undead ruler of the sea, and now Davy is looking to collect on the contract. In addition, Will finds that his father, Bootstrap Bill (Stellan Skarsgard), found his way onto Jones's crew... which would either help or hinder his mission to find Jack.

It takes most of the first hour for Pirates to get its sea legs. The introduction of Jack is far too drawn out, and takes up way too much time for a sideplot. The reason his entrance into the first film was so memorable is that it was so simple and unfortunate, but the way Jack was handling it gave you a great idea of what kind of pirate and/or man this guy was. This felt like they were trying way to hard, and trying way to hard to be goofy when there was no need for it.

That's a common theme here, actually. This is a much more serious film, but it doesn't realize it until too late into the runtime. As opposed to just a direct threat to Elizabeth, now EVERYONE has a sword to their throats, and the situation is much more dire. That explains why Depp's Sparrow isn't quite as quirky or insane this time around - he's very much invested in this adventure. His soul is at stake. That in itself helps to bring Sparrow a bit more down to earth, which some people will like because it makes him more human, and some people will hate because... well... it makes him more human.

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The Devil Wears Prada

Seen 7 July 2006 at AMC Fenway 13
* * (out of 5)

I must have had a bad night on Friday, because I don't remember how I wound up in this theater. I think it had something to do with Johnny Depp in black eye liner, and me being trampled by the eighty-four million people who wanted to see him on opening night. Somehow in the confusion, I ended up in a Meryl Streep film. And for a solid hour, that didn't bother me. And then they decided to change the rules, and make it inconsistent and preachy. Funny how that ruined my experience.

It's a cute little film with a cute little premise. Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) is fresh out of college with a degree in journalism and a head full of ideas. When she moves to New York City, she takes the only job she can get - working as the assistant to Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), the fashion czar ruling over Runway magazine with an evil-yet-perfectly-accessorized eye. After one day being scrutinized by Miranda and her fellow assistant Emily (Emily Blunt), Andy is ready to quit, but she buckles down and insists on doing the job well, because one year working for Miranda is a blank check to any job in publishing she could want. So she sticks with it, slowly moving into the fashion world... and surviving. But the rest of her life starts to suffer, as her boyfriend and friends begin to see a change in the practical, down-to-earth Andy they've always loved. Oh heavens! Whatever will she do??

I'm cool with this film being painfully cute. That is the goal, and it accomplishes that goal. And for the first three-quarters of the near-two hours, it's tolerable, even chuckle-worthy at times. The best parts of this film come from two situations. The first, while boring after awhile, gives Stanley Tucci a chance to steal scenes, and there's nothing wrong with that...

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A Prairie Home Companion

Seen 4 July 2006 at AMC Loews Boston Common
* * * * * (out of 5)

I admit that it was odd watching a film about the fictional last performance of a show with the history of “A Prairie Home Companion,” considering that I’ve never heard a minute of the show. One would think that would lessen some of the gravity and weight the film might have otherwise held. Luckily, Robert Altman is really, really good at telling character-based stories and Garrison Keillor really, really knows about what he writes.

The film follows the perspective of Guy Noir (Kevin Kline), the private eye-turned-head of security for the show, which broadcasts from the Fitzgerald Theatre in St. Paul, Minnesota. Unfortunately, a broadcasting company from Texas has bought the theater, and plans to turn it into a nice new parking lot, evicting the show from its home, and presumably from the airwaves all together. On this last performance, a number of strange and unique events occur, but the show goes on, as it had since 1974. We see the live broadcast interspersed with backstage moments and conversations between castmates as they slowly move toward the idea of doing something else with their lives.

I give a whole lot of credit to Garrison Keillor for this one, because only he could really capture the proper tone of this thing that he had built from the ground up. In addition to playing himself, Keillor has populated the stage with coexisting versions of his ever-present characters - Noir, Dusty and Lefty (Woody Harrelson and John C. Riley), and Keillor himself - the old-timey singing Johnson Sisters (Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin), and a full assortment of guest performers and techies, many played by current cast members of the program. He’s blended them in a way that allows you to very easily follow everyone without any need to know anything about their previous lives. All you need to know is that this show is important to them, and its death is a sad occasion. From there, the relationships and conversations will carry the rest.

Read the rest at HBS!