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This Weeks Movie Reviews: American Dreamz Written, produced and directed by Paul Weitz. Also produced by Rodney Liber, Andrew Miano. Cinematography, Robert Elswit. Music, Stephen Trask. Starring Hugh Grant, Mandy Moore, Sam Golzari, Dennis Quaid, Marcia Gay Harden, Willem Dafoe and Chris Klein. Universal Pictures, 2006. PG-13. 107 minutes. There is nothing subtle about writer-director Paul Weitz's new film, which aims to send up a gutsy, broad handful of American culture — in particular, the presidency, the War on Terrah and the ongoing obsession with reality TV, particularly that one show on which people sing their hearts out. No, everything here is painted in broad strokes: The deep orange tan and glossy smile of Sally Kendoo (Mandy Moore), a corn-fed all-American "American Dreamz" contestant; the love would-be terrorist Omer (Sam Golzari) has for show tunes; the good ol' boy simplicity of President Staton (Dennis Quaid), who used to drink too much and thinks his mom only wanted him to run for office to prove to his ex-prez dad that any idiot could win. With Willem Dafoe doing a creepily passable Dick Cheney and Hugh Grant in lovable self-loathing mode as "Dreamz" host Martin Tweed, Weitz's movie is overloaded with talented actors at the mercy of a sluggish screenplay that goes for the obvious more often than the biting or humorous. Read more...
The Sentinel Directed by Clark Johnson. Written by George Nolfi. Cinematography by Gabriel Beristain. Music by Christophe Beck. Starring Michael Douglas, Kiefer Sutherland, Kim Basinger, Eva Longoria, Blair Brown and Martin Donovan. Twentieth Century Fox, 2006. PG-13. 108 minutes. Pete Garrison is a lion among Secret Service kittens. According to The Sentinel, Garrison (Michael Douglas) took a bullet for Ronald Reagan, which makes him close to untouchable in his department. If movies teach us anything, however, it's that heroes suffer the trappings of fame in equal measure with fame's rewards. To put it delicately, Garrison's personal life isn't heroic. He has a weakness for other men's wives. Read more... |
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