Friday, November 18, 2011

Grace Is Gone

  • Though 2007 saw a flood of Iraq-related films, GRACE IS GONE takes a different approach from many of the others. Unlike REDACTED and LIONS FOR LAMBS, this directorial debut from screenwriter James C. Strouse (LONESOME JIM) doesn't focus on the conflict itself. Instead, the drama looks at how the death of a female soldier affects her family at home. John Cusack (1408) is Stanley Phillips, a hus
In one of his most acclaimed performances, John Cusack makes an astonishing transformation as Stanley Philips, a sad, disconnected man unable to tell his young daughters their mother, a soldier, has died in Iraq. Instead, he takes the girls on a road trip, where their innocent charm helps him rediscover a healing joy he thought he'd lost forever.Unlike previous Iraq War films, the poignant directorial debut from writer James C. Strouse (Lonesome Jim) uses the conflict as starting point rather th! an subject. Early in the proceedings, Stanley (John Cusack) finds out his wife has been killed in the line of duty. The bespectacled disciplinarian decides not to tell his daughters right away. In his younger days, Stanley tried to serve his country, but poor eyesight dashed that dream, and now he's a superstore manager. The sort of middle-American conservative rarely seen at the art house, Stanley believes in his president. That doesn't alleviate his pain. Putting on a brave face, he asks his oblivious girls for their greatest wish. Eight-year-old Dawn (Gracie Bednarczyk) exclaims, "Enchanted Gardens!" With that, they hop in their SUV and drive from Minnesota to the Florida theme park. Twelve-year-old Heidi (Shélan O'Keefe) knows something is wrong--her dad isn't the spontaneous type--but she doesn't know what it is. En route, they visit Stanley's brother, John (Alessandro Nivola), who offers some insight into their bottled-up father. By the end of the trip, Stanley figur! es out how to break the news, in the process becoming a real p! arent. A fter winning the Audience Award at Sundance, Clint Eastwood, Cusack's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil director, gave the soundtrack a jazz-oriented overhaul. In tone, it's almost too refined for the blue-collar world Strouse depicts, but never distracting. More importantly, Grace Is Gone features Cusack’s finest performance to date. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Heaven

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Mel Gibson's Apocalypto (Widescreen Edition)

  • All Movie Guide - As the foundation of the Mayan civilization begins to crumble, one man's previously idyllic existence is forever changed when he is chosen as a sacrifice needed to appease the gods in director Mel Gibson's mythic, end-times adventure. The Mayan kingdom is at the absolute height of opulence and power, but leaders are convinced that unless more temples are constructed and m
From Mel Gibson, director of THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST and the Academy Award®-winning BRAVEHEART (Best Director, Best Picture, 1995) comes the thrilling historical epic APOCALYPTO. This intense, nonstop action-adventure transports you to an ancient South American civilization, for an experience unlike anything you’ve ever known. In the twilight of the mysterious Mayan culture, young Jaguar Paw is captured and taken to the great Mayan city where he faces a harrowing end. Driven by the power of his love ! for his wife and son, he makes an adrenaline-soaked, heart-racing escape to rescue them and ultimately save his way of life. Filled with unrelenting action and stunning cinematography, APOCALYPTO is an enthralling and unforgettable film experience.'Forget any off-screen impressions you may have of Mel Gibson, and experience Apocalypto as the mad, bloody runaway train that it is. The story is set in the pre-Columbian Maya population: one village is brutally overrun, its residents either slaughtered or abducted, by a ruling tribe that needs slaves and human sacrifices. We focus on the capable warrior Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood), although Gibson skillfully sketches a whole population of characters--many of whom don't survive the early reels. Most of the film is set in the dense jungle, but the middle section, in a grand Mayan city, is a dazzling triumph of design, costuming, and sheer decadent terror. The movie itself is a triumph of brutality, as Gibson lets loose hi! s well-established fascination with bodily mortification in a ! litany o f assaults including impalement, evisceration, snakebite, and bee stings. It's a dark, disgusted vision, but Gibson doesn't forget to apply some very canny moviemaking instincts to the violence--including the creation of a tremendous pair of villains (strikingly played by Raoul Trujillo and Rodolfo Palacias). The film is in a Maya dialect, subtitled in English, and shot on digital video (which occasionally betrays itself in some blurry quick pans). Amidst all the mayhem, nothing in the film is more devastating than a final wordless exchange of looks between captured villager Blunted (Jonathan Brewer) and his wife's mother (Maria Isabel Diaz), a superb change in tone from their early relationship. Yes, this is an obsessive, crazed movie, but Gibson knows what he's doing. --Robert Horton

Beyond Apocalypto

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More films directed by Mel Gibson

Apocalypto soundtrack by James Horner

Stills from Mel Gibson's Apocalypto (click for larger image)








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