Djonn Reviews

Nancy Drew (2007)

Maybe not perfect, but surprisingly well executed

[8/10 · 16 June 2007]

As a grownup in my mid-40s, I am not even close to any of "Nancy Drew"'s key demographics, but I was pleasantly surprised by the film this afternoon; so, I could tell, were the pair of sixtyish silver-haired ladies down the row from me. The older man who left the theater just ahead of me specifically praised the film to the 20-ish female usher (who said she'd seen the film the previous evening and quite liked it).

More to the point, however: In the row just ahead of me, there were nine -- count them, nine -- ten-year-old girls lined up next to each other, passing popcorn and hot dogs and candy back and forth and giggling through the previews.

Once the film began, they promptly settled down to watch....

....and didn't so much as peep till the closing credits began to roll.

This is not a perfect film; it doesn't quite pay off its high school subplots, it's not quite confident enough of its own tone, and its thugs are just a hair too far over toward critically inept at times. But the adaptation of the source material is essentially respectful, the plot hangs together fairly well, and it treads deftly between the sins of excessive cheesiness and excessive modernization. Last but not least, Emma Roberts carries the movie with startling grace -- Josh Flitter's superb timing notwithstanding, this is Roberts' movie, and she pulls it off beautifully. Her Nancy Drew is very much the direct ancestor of Kristen Bell's Veronica Mars, and the film is also a lineal descendant of Jodie Foster's early and underrated "Candleshoe".

In today's marketplace, it's a rarity: a family movie that respects its viewers' intelligence. As such, it won't be to everyone's taste -- but for what it is, it is the best movie of its kind in decades.

The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)

A Brittle Grade of Steele

[7/10 · 19 August 1999]

Is this a worthy remake of the McQueen/Dunaway film? I can't say; I haven't seen that one. Is it a new film classic? Probably not. But is it a reasonably entertaining high-class caper picture? Definitely.

Pierce Brosnan is as elegant and charming as ever as Thomas Crown, though one could wish for a bit more of the impish mischievousness that came through on the Remington Steele series of old. Rene Russo is attractive and clever as Catherine Banning, the high-powered insurance investigator recruited to look into a daring and dramatic museum theft. No one else makes much of an impression -- with the odd exception that the police detective loosely partnered with Banning reminds one of Remington Steele's sometime nemesis, LAPD's Inspector Jarvis.

When the film is concentrating on the art thefts, it's crisp and ingenious, though not entirely unpredictable. Elsewhere, it sometimes falters. The sexual chemistry between Crown and Banning is only about 60% "there" -- one can see the attraction, but not quite understand why it's working. And the core characters are not as well-defined as they should be, especially Russo's Banning -- a flaw in the script rather than in the actors' performances.

All in all, it's a fairly lively and watchable picture, but it doesn't realize its full potential either as a caper movie or as a Brosnan vehicle. The Bond movies have given Brosnan a good chance to show his "edge"; what's been left largely unexploited is his talent for romantic comedy. The Thomas Crown Affair doesn't give viewers enough of this lighter Brosnan; hopefully, future ventures will do more.

The Iron Giant (1999)

Best SF picture of the year -- maybe the decade

[9/10 · 19 August 1999]

Forget STAR WARS, ignore THE MATRIX, skip DEEP BLUE SEA. The best science fiction picture of 1999, bar none, is this quiet and well-rendered story of a boy and his robot.

The animation is good if mostly understated -- technical highlights are the opening starfield and storm at sea, as well as the sequence in which the Iron Giant finally shows its full range of abilities. But what shines is the writing. Brad Bird and Tim McCanlies have produced what may possibly be the best screenplay ever written for an animated feature film. As good as a few of the Disney features have been, and as good as Fox's recent ANASTASIA was, this is better. Add a solid, effortlessly smooth ensemble of voice performances, and you have a story that viewers will remember and return to with pleasure.

Look for THE IRON GIANT on awards ballots -- and not just for animated films or SF movies. The term "classic" is overused, but this is a movie that deserves the label.

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

Ingenious but flawed

[7/10 · 4 August 1999]

WARNING: SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

This was a very cleverly made movie that suffers most from the limits of its own creativity. The actors deserve enormous credit for their work -- the directors somewhat less, for seemingly falling in love with the gimmick and not stitching together the raw footage with a better-developed structure.

Some of the extra-filmic Blair Witch background lore needed to make it into the movie proper; the hauntings don't make sense without it. There are a couple of severe idiot-plot problems: why, oh why, do these three college kids not simply follow the creek, which has to come out someplace, and so escape the woods? And why do Heather and Mike succumb to Horror Cliche Disease and go straight into the Creepy House From Nowhere, there to split up and ensure their imminent doom? (They should have followed the inevitable path to the house down the hill into town.)

It's also mildly odd that there's no sexual/physical chemistry between the characters, especially after Josh disappears and Heather and Mike are left to each other. I am NOT talking about casual nookie or horizontal tango-ing here, but the sort of bonding-under-stress that frequently occurs in crisis situations such as that in the film.

Criticisms notwithstanding, there's a lot to like about the movie (provided you can see it in a properly darkened theater; it *really* needs the blackest possible black to work at its best). But it's not quite the groundbreaker the hype suggests.

Inspector Gadget (1999)

A feature film made for TV?

[5/10 · 25 July 1999]

INSPECTOR GADGET is neither a turkey nor a swan. Call it -- hmmm, maybe a robin.

It's hard to figure out how a movie with so many gadgets and SFX (and the effects are actually pretty good) could turn out so thoroughly bland, but GADGET manages it. "Bland" certainly describes Matthew Broderick's performance, which energizes only when he's playing his evil robot double. Joely Fisher and Michelle Trachtenberg are a little livelier as scientist Brenda Bradford and Gadget's niece Penny -- but not much.

The writing is bland, too, with more classic-Disney platitudes than any live-action Disney comedy has used in decades. There are rare moments when it develops a faint sparkle, mostly when it's breaking the fourth wall (the Gadgetmobile remarks partway through on this being a Disney movie), but nobody's really made an effort to put any sort of spin on the standard hero-girl-evil genius plot. What saves it from utter boredom are the gadgets, which are consistently crisp, inventive, and used to very good effect.

Truth is, though, that this isn't really a theatrical feature film; it's a Wonderful World of Disney TV-movie that someone has accidentally released to the big screen.

Muppets from Space (1999)

Platinum belt. With an unlimited line of credit.

[8/10 · 18 July 1999]

The Muppet franchise has mellowed a bit with age. MUPPETS FROM SPACE doesn't have the level of frenetic insanity that occasionally marked the original syndicated MUPPET SHOW, and it's neither as edgy as, say, the latest Mike Meyers movie nor as fast-paced as an Indiana Jones yarn.

But even if it's a little on the laid-back side, its heart is very much in the right place. In some ways, this is a direct spiritual sequel to the original MUPPET MOVIE, focusing this time on Gonzo's origin story rather than Kermit's. Where the first film spoofed the "road" comedies and Westerns, this one spoofs CE3K and MiB (but not, as the title might suggest, the Star Trek or Star Wars franchises).

It's lighter on the zingy one-liners than MUPPET MOVIE, and longtime Muppet fans will probably be a bit frustrated at the soundtrack, which relies almost entirely on borrowed and guested songs rather than musical performances by the Muppets themselves. (Note: if you peeked at the soundtrack album listings first, be advised that "I'm Going to Go Back There Someday" is NOT in the film. Should be, darnit, but isn't.) But there's some inspired silliness involving lab rats and a wonderfully zany infiltration of a Secret Government Installation.

All in all, what's here is a very warm and watchable comedy of a kind that's increasingly hard to find in theaters these days. And Miss Piggy's karate is still as dangerous as ever. I'm looking forward to the next Muppet film already. (How about a spy spoof, guys? "My name is Frog, Kermit the Frog.")

A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)

Something's Rotten In /D/e/n/m/a/r/k/ Italy....

[6/10 · 3 July 1999]

If Shakespeare had been a cinematographer, this version of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM would rate very high. Unfortunately, the film's visual lushness can't compensate for a great number of flat performances, and Shakespeare's language too often doesn't get the treatment it deserves from the players.

One severe problem is that it's much too hard to tell the actors apart -- an important consideration in a crossed-couples comedy. Lysander and Demetrius look too much alike, as do Hippolyta and Helena. This would make less of a difference if the roles were acted or spoken distinctively, but that's not the case here; too many lines are simply tossed off with little thought. Of the assorted lovers, only Calista Flockhart's Hermia is consistently identifiable at a glance, and not surprisingly emerges as the strongest presence among the romantic cast.

Kevin Kline as Bottom, however, is outstanding -- at once broadly comical and carefully nuanced. His fellow mechanicals are easily more watchable than the various lovers (if you last saw Max Wright in the TV sitcom ALF, you're in for a pleasant surprise).

The faerie folk are a mixed lot. Stanley Tucci's Puck is an above-average turn, and Titania is played fairly well, but Oberon is a cipher -- not least because he's almost always shot from the neck up, while lying flat on something or other. Not the actor's fault, this, but a truly bizarre cinematic choice that makes no sense whatsoever.

It *is* mostly a good-looking film, the weird close-ups and some unnecessarily odd-looking faeries notwithstanding. But the ensemble can't come close to matching the energy of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, and that's a near-fatal problem for genuine Shakespeare. And it's telling that Kline's Oscar-caliber turn arguably ought to be nominated as Best Actor, not Best Supporting Actor -- he's that good, and everyone else is that tepid.

It's worth matinee prices for Kline, or a video rental for the chance to use stop-motion and ogle Titania's court, but that's about all.