JUDY'S CREAM OF WHEAT

JUDY'S CREAM OF WHEAT. 

My friend Ed Walters brought this to my attention, a mock commercial for Cream of Wheat featuring Judy Garland and Liza Minelli. This is an affectionate spoof of the larger-than-life lady and her intense dramatic style (both of acting and singing) and I confess I find it hilarious and have watched it over and over again. (You never know what will strike your funny bone!) 

This was put together on youtube by a group called the Punchy Players, who have done quite a few of these spoofs, some more successful than others; this is one of their best. The voices are done to perfection by Jeff Marquis, who co-wrote the short with producer Chris Tassin. Marquis gets across the essence of the ladies personalities as well as Garland's unique singing style.

You can watch the video here. 

Verdict: Lots of fun! ***. 

BUZZ

BUZZ: THE LIFE AND ART OF BUSBY BERKELEY. Jeffrey Spivak. University Press of Kentucky; 2010. 

In this well-written and interesting account of Busby Berkeley, we learn that the man responsible for so many knock-out and eye-popping production numbers in vintage musicals was not a choreographer in the classic sense, but came up with often startling ideas to incorporate into -- or overpower -- the song and dance routines. Berkeley also directed numerous films, including Forty Little Mothers and Babes on Broadway. 

Whatever the man's sexual orientation, Berkeley avoided MPs in the red light district by dressing in drag; his first wife considered him a mama's boy and most of his marriages did not last long; and early in his career he eagerly took the role of a campy queen in a Broadway show. Who knows? 

His personal life had other problems, including a propensity for drink. After three trials Busby was acquitted of vehicular manslaughter in the deaths of three people. His defense team argued that regardless of his inebriation at the wheel, a tire blow-out caused the accident. (But a sober driver might have been able to handle the car after the blow out.) While some of the people who worked with Busby had positive things to say about him, others considered him a rather vile and unpleasant individual. 

Frankly Buzz will not have you admiring the man but it does help you to admire his artistry, which is well-documented in this informative and engaging tome. 

Verdict:  Solid bio of a influential and creative Hollywood figure. ***1/2. 

BEAUTIFUL: THE LIFE OF HEDY LAMARR

BEAUTIFUL: THE LIFE OF HEDY LAMARR. Stephen Michael Shearer. St, Martin's; 2010.

This excellent biography scrutinizes the life and career of one of the world's most beautiful women, Hedy Lamarr, who was an Austrian-born Jew and came to the U.S. before the outbreak of WW2. She caused a sensation with a nude scene in the German-language Ecstasy, then made her first movie in Hollywood with Charles Boyer as her leading man: Algiers. Lamarr may not have been an acting genius but she was talented, and gave some perfectly convincing performances in many of her movies, which included The Strange Woman, Samson and Delilah, Crossroads, and White Cargo wherein she famously played the sexy Tondelayo. As for her private life, she had six unsuccessful marriages which had an emotional and financial cost on her and her husbands, numerous boyfriends, and in her later years was immersed in several lawsuits -- in addition to her repeatedly claiming that her expensive jewelry had been stolen -- and more than one arrest for shoplifting. Without the "protection" of the studio system, Lamarr got involved in often disastrous foreign productions, and playing Joan of Arc in Irwin Allen's Story of Mankind did her no good whatsoever. She also got a reputation for being "difficult" at times. Her last film was The Female Animal in 1958, in which John Gavin was replaced by George Nader, who was a better actor. Lamarr got back in the spotlight in her later years when it was revealed that she and composer Georges Antheil had developed technology that eventually led into the creation of cell phones and the like. (For more on this, see the documentary Bombshell.) Lamarr had two natural children, and adopted one boy that she didn't have much to do with in later years. Lamarr was furious about the publication of her ghost-written autobiography, "Ecstasy and Me," failing to vet the book and discovering it portrayed her as a nymphomaniac who had sex with both men and woman. (Shearer states that no evidence of lesbian affairs has ever been uncovered, not that any sophisticated person would care.) Beautiful is a well-researched, very well-written biography that is understanding of its subject without glossing over any of her flaws. Shearer is also the author of the similarly worthwhile "Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life." "Beautiful" would make a good mini-series, if only there was a modern-day actress would could play Lamarr!

Verdict: Excellent bio! ****. 

UNCLE BOB

Bob Opel

UNCLE BOB (2010). Director: Robert Oppel.

Bob Opel was the man was streaked the academy awards in front of 70 million viewers. He was also an advocate for sexual freedom, a gay activist, a performance artist in the counter-culture San Francisco art scene, and a murder victim at the age of forty. Shortly before his death, he put on a show called "The Execution of Dan White" after the murderer of Harvey Milk and George Moscone got off with only five years due to the infamous "twinkie" defense. An interesting documentary could have been made about Opel (who dropped one "p" from his last name), but instead the director -- Opel's nephew, Robert Oppel -- seems more interested in putting himself in the limelight. Interspersed with some file footage are reenactments starring the younger Oppel standing in for his uncle. Whatever his commitment to sexual freedom or gay rights, Opel was certainly an exhibitionist, not in the sense of someone who exposes himself to schoolgirls, but in his obvious need for attention (a need certainly provided by his streaking stunt). Uncle Bob explores but doesn't confirm the notion that the academy was in on the joke (with David Niven's famous line about the streaker's "shortcomings" being written before the show), and it never even makes clear if Opel was gay, bisexual or what. A woman who is interviewed is referred to as Opel's "girlfriend," but whether this was romantic or if she was merely a "fag Hag" bff is never made clear, and Opel's boyfriends are never mentioned. In any case, Opel opened a gallery of male homoerotic art featuring the work of Tom of Finland and Mapplethorpe, and published a homoerotic magazine as well. Opel is shown talking to Divine, John Waters, and others, as well as appearing on the Mike Douglas show, where the bland host sings a medley of songs putting the word "streak" in the lyrics. Opel was apparently killed by robbers who entered his shop looking for drugs and money, but young Oppel tries to make a case for a conspiracy theory that falls flat.

Verdict: If you can take a colorful subject like this and still make a dull documentary, you're not doing it right. This film probably should not have been made by a relative. *1/2.

DARIO ARGENTO

DARIO ARGENTO. James Gracey. Kamera Books; 2010.

This interesting book looks at the oeuvre of Italian giallo  specialist Dario Argento, beginning with his work on The Bird with the Crystal Plumage and on to the appropriately named Giallo. Gracey is obviously a big fan of Argento's but he can also see the man's flaws and can readily confess that Phantom of the Opera is "an absolute mess of a film." Gracey divides the discussion of each movie into general comments on the production; the pictures'  themes; notes on its technical style; and the verdict on each movie. There are also sections on Argento's work for television and the films that he has produced, such as Demons. He recognizes Deep Red as one of Argento's most memorable films and also admires Trauma much more than others do (I think Trauma is easily the equal of Deep Red.)  Although there are times this sort of resembles a term paper, for the most part Dario Argento is a worthwhile, informative, and well-written study of a flawed but talented director's career and work. Contains an insert of black and white and color photographs.

Verdict: Recommended for fans of Argento. ***.

THE SLASHER MOVIE BOOK

THE SLASHER MOVIE BOOK. J. A. Kerswell. Chicago Review Press; 2010.

This thick, heavily illustrated trade paperback looks at the slasher film genre: Friday the 13th, Freddy Krueger, Halloween, Jamie Lee Curtis, and so on. There are chapters on pre-Psycho horror movies; Italian giallo films; German-made multiple murder films based on novels by Edgar Wallace; British and American Gothic films; "The Golden Age of the Slasher" from 1978 to 1984; and slasher films from other countries in the eighties, nineties, and afterward. In addition to notes on the usual suspects, I came across quite a few movies I had never seen or heard of before. I didn't agree with everything in the book, of course. For instance, Kerswell writes of Psycho: "Equating transvestism with mental illness seems to date the film," but the sequence with the psychiatrist at the end goes to pains to make it clear that Norman Bates was not a true transvestite. But The Slasher Movie Book is more concerned with the later slasher outcrop than anything else, and does as good a job as anyone of knowledgeably surveying the scene. The book is chock-full of movie stills and posters.

Verdict: If you dig this sub-genre, the book is engaging and interesting, if a little gross,  to look at. ***.

AND SOON THE DARKNESS

Karl Urban in a tense moment

AND SOON THE DARKNESS (2010). Director: Marcos Efron.

"You think a 'relationship' is when you get the guy's last name."

In this remake of 1970's And Soon the Darkness, two young American women go on a bicycle trip through Argentina and encounter death and danger. Blond Stephanie (Amber Heard) and brunette Ellie (Odette Annabel) run into the wrong people when they go to a bar and the latter encourages the interest of a sleek would-be lover boy. They are rescued by Michael (Karl Urban of The Loft), who claims that he is searching for his missing girlfriend, but whose behavior can be considered odd. When Ellie disappears from an isolated spot where she wants to sunbathe, Stephanie desperately contacts a strangely disinterested police officer, Calvo (Cesar Vianco). And Soon the Darkness goes in its own direction from the original film, has some interesting twists, and basically changes into a chase film for the final quarter. The performances are good, with Heard and Vianco being especially notable. Pretty theme music.

Verdict: So-so remake of superior British thriller. **1/2.

ALL GOOD THINGS

ALL GOOD THINGS (2010). Director: Andrew Jarecki.

David Marks (Ryan Gosling) is considered the fucked-up son of real estate man, Sanford Marks (Frank Langella). One good thing in his life seems to be his wife, Katie (Kirsten Dunst), who discovers that he's becoming increasingly moody, distant, and violent. One day Katie simply disappears and is never seen again. Then bad things happen to two of David's friends, Deborah (Lily Rabe), who may have been blackmailing him, and Malvern Bump (Philip Baker Hall). All Good Things is, of course, a thinly-disguised look at the life, times and literal trials of Robert Durst, widely believed to have been responsible for the deaths and or disappearances of at least three people. Ryan Gosling [Fracture] and Kirsten Durst [Spider-Man 2] give very good performances, as do Rabe and Hall, and Frank Langella [Diary of a Mad Housewife] nearly walks off with the movie in one of his best roles. But while All Good Things holds the attention, it is also a bit obvious and stilted, and probably not as fascinating nor entertaining as true-crime shows that have focused on Durst, such as Dateline. Jumping back and forth in time only makes the picture confusing at times.

Verdict: Acceptable crime drama but nothing special. **1/2.

MEGA PIRANHA

Paul Logan 

MEGA PIRANHA (2010 telefilm). Writer/director: Eric Forsberg.

Down in Venezuela genetics scientist Sarah Monroe (Tiffany), for utterly unaccountable reasons, has helped create a species of "sturdier" piranha fish. Naturally, these fish escape from the lab and begin to wreak havoc along the Amazon. Worse, the fish keep getting bigger and bigger -- at one point they're large enough to take down a battleship! -- and it develops that they can live in fresh water as well, letting them rampage in the ocean and attack Miami. Secretary of State Bob Grady (Barry Williams) assigns Jason Fitch (Paul Logan) to track down and destroy the piranha which, understandably, takes some doing. Although mostly played straight, Mega Piranha is a zany, somewhat amusing monster flick with competent acting, cheesy FX, and a degree of suspense, and you have to see a host of giant piranha literally leaping out of the water to believe it. On the other hand, there's a little too much running around by the principles, mostly consisting of scenes of Monroe and Fitch being chased by angry Venezuelan authorities, and the pace -- which is generally pretty fast -- begins to drag. David Labiosa is fine as Colonel Antonio Diaz, however, and the movie is fun in a limited way. While gruesome at times, it is never as vomitous as its obvious inspiration, Piranha 3D. There is no real attempt at characterization in the movie -- no surprise given the Syfy Channel's usual offerings.

Verdict: You can't keep a good piranha down! **1/2.

DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON ONE

DOWNTON ABBEY Season One. 2010. Seven episodes. Created and [co-] written by Julian Fellowes.

The male heir to the British estate, Downton Abbey, is lost on the Titanic in 1912. Since Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), and his wife, Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) have no male offspring, and the heir must be male, Cora and her oldest daughter, Mary (Michelle Dockery) are faced with the prospect of losing a fortune. Haughty Mary has two sisters, the comparatively plain Edith (Laura Carmichael), who is basically treated like crap by the rest of her condescending family, and budding feminist Sybil (Jessica Brown Findlay), who tries to help one of the ambitious maids get a job as a secretary. The new heir is a cousin named Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens), and everyone hopes that he and Mary will make a love match and solve all of their problems, but things get a little complicated. Matthew has a mother, Isobel (Penelope Wilton), who proves an irritant to Crawley family matriarch, the Dowager Countess Violet (Maggie Smith), although on occasion they have the same goals. Violet forms an alliance with Cora.

In the meantime, there's drama amongst the servants as well. The new valet, Bates (Brendan Coyle) is not only lame, but has an unsavory history. He has raised the everlasting ire of Thomas (Rob-James Collier), who had hoped to get his job, and who teams with the sour Sarah O'Brien (Siobhan Finneran) to scheme to get rid of him. [More on Thomas in a bit.] Sarah mistakenly believes Cora plans to replace her as personal maid and wreaks a terrible vengeance. The butler Mr. Carson (Jim Carter) and head maid Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan), run the household with the help of cook, Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol), who is losing her sight; young William (Thomas Howes), who is losing his mother; and Daisy (Sophie McShera), who has a hopeless crush on Thomas. Then there's the "radical" chauffeur Branson (Allen Leech), who talks politics with Sybil. 

Downton Abbey is handsomely produced and well-acted for the most part. Smith sometimes overdoes the cutesyness of her character, and McGovern, while not a bad actress, simply seems miscast and uncertain of how to proceed. The show begins quite reasonably, but in the second episode turns into a slightly absurd soap opera when it introduces a handsome young Turkish character who dies in unexpected circumstances not much later, suddenly turning Downton into Dynasty. Much more problematic is the character of Thomas, who is gay, and while the actor wisely doesn't play him too stereotypically [aside from arched eyebrows and the occasional pursed lips], it's hard not to notice that Thomas is like an old-fashioned nasty "faggot" being fairly horrible to everyone. Gay characters are welcome in programming, but surely Fellowes could have come up with a less odious creature than this, whose inclusion even seems homophobic. [Not that all gay characters have to be perfect, of course, but this man's evil doesn't quite seem divorced from his homosexuality.] Another odd thing is that some of the characters talk "wisely" about Thomas as if it were the 21st century and not 1912! Why the hell would the unsophisticated cook know of his sexual orientation -- in 1912 no less!

Aside from that, let's get real about Downton Abbey. Its main strength is simply that it's entertaining. It's not really great drama, and it will push the envelope of credulity if it will get people watching. Taken with a grain of salt, Downton Abbey is fun if nothing else. And it does have some marvelous and memorable sequences to be fair [such as Violet being selfless regarding her prize roses].

Verdict: Proof that the British can dumb things down just as well as the Americans when they want to, but it does hold the attention. ***.

WHITECHAPEL Series 2

The dour if appealing cast of Whitechapel

WHITECHAPEL Series Two. 2010. British mini-series in three segments.

The first Whitechapel series [or season], also known as The Ripper Returns, was popular enough with British audiences for the cast to return in a second, and then a third, series of episodes about cops in the Whitechapel district of London solving particularly difficult and bizarre crimes. In this a series of especially vicious attacks and murders remind crime historian Buchan (Steve Pemberton) -- the "ripperologist" from the first series -- of the Krays, the two real-life brothers who savagely ran a crime empire decades before. Deputy Investigator Chandler (Rupert Penry-Jones) thinks Buchan may be on to something while gruff Deputy Sergeant Miles (Phil Davis) warns Chandler not to assume they've got another case with ties to the past. Then they discover that there are two living twin brothers whose mother claims are the sons of one of the Kray men, whose sperm was made available to her when the Kray in question told her he wanted heirs. They hold the Whitechapel underworld in its grip, even try to kill cops, but are they really related to the Krays? The series holds the attention and is quite well-acted by all, including newcomer Sam Stockman as young Kent, with exemplary work from Davis, Pemberton, and the very appealing and baby-faced Penry-Jones. However, the writers often confuse neurotic tendencies with characterization, there's a little too much intrigue in the department, and the show is arresting without being entirely convincing.

Verdict: Never quite believable but entertaining in spite of it. **1/2.

RICHARD MATHESON ON SCREEN

RICHARD MATHESON ON SCREEN: A History of the Filmed Works. Matthew R. Bradley. Foreword by Richard Matheson. McFarland; 2010.

While perhaps not a household name like Stephen King [whom he influenced], Matheson has secured a reputation among genre fans for his works "The Shrinking Man" [filmed as The Incredible Shrinking Man], "I Am Legend" [three disappointing film versions so far], "Hell House" [filmed as The Legend of Hell House], among others, including numerous short stories, and his screenplays for The Night Stalker, Roger Corman's Poe adaptations such as Pit and the Pendulum, and other horror-fantasy works. Matheson's non-genre contributions include The Morning After telefilm, with Dick Van Dyke as an alcoholic, and De Sade starring Keir Dullea. Like King, Matheson's first prominent novel became a highly popular film, and there has been a synergistic relationship between his film and literary work ever since. Bradly looks not only at the films whose screenplays were written by Matheson, but also at the film adaptations of his work that were written by himself and others. His book is bolstered by interviews with and comments from Matheson himself and others who worked on the films. In addition to being an excellent reference source, Richard Matheson on Film creates an interest in many of Matheson's print and film works, and also serves to illustrate the often maddening twists and turns that occur during the knotty path from book to movie, as well as the disasters that often result when one person's vision doesn't jell with another's. Ironically, one Matheson movie [which he scripted from his novel "Bid Time Return."] that has become a cult item is Somewhere in Time, probably because of John Barry's evocative score, as Jeannot Szwarc's direction is mediocre at best. Even if you're not as enthusiastic about Matheson's work as Bradley is -- and he doesn't rave about everything -- you''ll find this book a good, entertaining and noteworthy film study. Illustrated.

Verdict: Exhaustive and informative. ***1/2. 

LOVE CRIME

LOVE CRIME (aka Crime d'amour/2010). Director: Alain Corneau.

Isabelle (Ludivine Sagnier) is assistant to Christine (Kirstin Scott Thomas), who gleefully takes credit for the former's work and justifies it by saying they're a "team." Ah, but when Isabelle goes behind her boss' back to get the credit she deserves on another project, Christine is livid and does her best to humiliate her. It doesn't help that both women are involved with the same man, Philippe (Patrick Mille). Now this is when the story should start to rivet the audience, but instead it turns into a slow, predictable non-thriller during which the viewer knows all the answers before the police do. Anyone expecting a study of diabolical revenge -- as Love Crime was promoted -- should look elsewhere. It's also hard to get into a battle of wits between two characters when one of them is dead throughout much of the movie. With its incredibly inept policemen -- among other reasons -- the movie is never believable. (A large part of one character's alibi is that she was at the movies, but the cops never suspect she might have walked out of the theater instead of watching the picture -- huh?) It's hard to understand why this picture got such rave reviews, especially from supposedly knowledgeable critics who should have known better. One reviewer even thought this was an excellent example of film noir -- what? Although the acting is good, the one-dimensional characters and lack of music don't help at all. It's also hard to understand why director Brian De Palma thought enough of the film to do an American remake, the upcoming Passion, which will hopefully be a lot better. There have been several telefilms about harried assistants getting even with miserable bosses that were a lot better and more visceral and energetic than this.

Verdict: More like one of your lesser Lifetime movies than Double Indemnity. **.

GRIPPING CHAPTERS: THE SOUND MOVIE SERIAL

GRIPPING CHAPTERS: THE SOUND MOVIE SERIAL. Ron Backer. BearManor Media; 2010.

Did you know that the Green Hornet was actually a descendant of the Lone Ranger [both characters were created for the radio by the same people]?  This is one of several interesting factoids that fill Gripping Chapters, a fond look back at the wonderful cliffhanger serials by an obvious admirer. There are looks at cliffhangers from various sources, comparing the serial with the original (comic, radio show, work of fiction, pulp story etc,), as well as chapters on types of cliffhangers and "cliffovers" [where somebody or something goes over a cliff], stock footage and bloopers, familiar faces in the serials, prominent directors, and so on. There are lots of illustrations as well. The best thing about the book is that I learned about quite a few movie serials that I was unfamiliar with [and I thought I had a list of every one ever made, poor fool I!] Although movie serials died out in the 1950's, it's wonderful that they are probably more widely seen than ever, thanks to DVDs. Thanks to this book, I can catch up with even more of them. 

Verdict: Anyone who loves cliffhanger serials ... ***

DEATH KAPPA

DEATH KAPPA (2010). Tomo'o Haraguchi.

When a young Japanese woman's grandmother is killed by drunken, speeding revelers, a kappa, or water goblin, who loves cucumbers comes forth to get even with them. Later, when a gigantic monster called Hangylas attacks the city, the kappa grows to humongous size and takes it on. It's hard to tell if this movie is a deliberate parody or just utter schlock. The light-hearted tone is at odds with scenes of flying severed limbs and heads. Shaky camera movements, and no real improvement in effects since Godzilla of the fifties.

Verdict: atrocious. O stars.

BURLESQUE

BURLESQUE (2010). Writer/director: Steve Antin.

"How many times have I held your head over the toilet bowl while you threw up everything but your memories?"

Small town waitress Ali (Christina Aguilera), with the usual show biz dreams, makes her way to L.A. and discovers a club called Burlesque run by Tess (Cher), a world-weary long-time performer. Tess can't pay her bills, and her ex (Peter Gallagher) wants her to sell out to the smarmy developer, Marcus (Eric Dane). Meanwhile Ali is befriended by Jack (Cam Gigaridet), a bartender at the club who helps her get a job there, even as she earns the enmity of jealous Nikki (Kristen Bell), a top-billed performer on the skids. Ali stops waitressing at Burlesque once Tess hears how well she can sing, and she begins a affair with Jack who already has a fiancee -- and, frankly, who the hell cares? Initially colorful and entertaining, Burlesque is so utterly superficial, the characters so one-dimensional, that after awhile it just becomes boring -- a long rock video we've all seen before. Cher sings two dynamic numbers, the title tune and "The Last of Me," while Aguilera, a solid professional, also struts her considerable stuff in more than one number. The eternally un-aging 65-year-old Cher looks fine and acts well, but had she and the film acknowledged her senior citizen status [not that that means she can't look sexy] it might have made for a movie with a little more substance. The other actors, including reliable Stanley Tucci as the club's gay manager, are all fine. When all is said and done, this is really Aguilera's movie, with Cher in a supporting role.

Verdict: Burlesque leaves no show business cliche unturned. **.

THE KING'S SPEECH

THE KING'S SPEECH (2010). Director: Tom Hooper.

"Bertie," the Duke of York (Colin Firth), who eventually becomes King George the 6th of England, has a stammering problem that is especially noticeable whenever the poor man has to give a speech. In desperation his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) takes him to an Australian speech therapist named Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), who has unusual methods of dealing with the problem. As strong-willed in his own way as the King, he and Bertie seem to become both friends and adversaries as the years progress. This is a superb film, completely absorbing from start to finish, that gives us an insider's view into a neglected aspect of history and does so brilliantly. Firth and Rush are magnificent, and there are also notable performances from Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce as Bertie's brother, Edward, who abdicates, Claire Bloom as Queen Mary, Derek Jacobi as the Archbishop, and others. In addition to the great acting, the film's direction, photography and editing are also all first-class. Deservedly won Best Movie Oscar for 2010.

Verdict: Yes, they can still make great movies. ****.

PREDATORS

PREDATORS (2010). Director: Nimrod Antal.

In this latest film in the Predator series  -- the original film starred Arnold Schwarzenegger -- a group of men and one woman wake up to find themselves falling with parachutes from an unknown aircraft. It also turns out to be an unknown world they're on. The kidnapped humans all seem to have one thing in common: good guy or bad they are tough characters [or "predators"] who are used to killing, and now they find themselves hunted by the same alien species that bedeviled Schwarzenegger and crew in an Earth jungle in the first film. Predeators has superior scenic design, photography and effects work and moves at a fast, suspenseful pace, but it is especially bolstered by the acting and incisive characterizations. Adrien Brody is better than you would expect as the nominal hero, Royce, a mercenary with no sentimental streak, but then Brody seems to be one of those actors who can play just about anything. Alice Braga is fine as Isabelle, a tough soldier who is not without compassion, and Topher Grace scores as the doctor, Edwin, who at first seems out of place with the rest of the group. The supporting cast is also good. Laurence Fishburne plays such an interesting character that it's a shame he gets killed off so quickly. This is slick filmmaking; the only problem is that it all seems a little over-familiar and somewhat predictable.

Verdict: Mostly for Predators fans, who should enjoy. **1/2.

BLACK SWAN

BLACK SWAN (2010). Director: Darren Aronofsky.

This psychological thriller [or whatever you want to call it] with a ballet backdrop features all the usual elements of such movies: a dancer falling for her teacher; jealous rivalries among dancers; and so on, then adds a twist in that the lead character, Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman), who is dancing the role of the swan in a new production of Swan Lake, is mentally unraveling as the date of her debut in the role rapidly approaches. She begins to have strange, sometimes sexual, and often violent hallucinations. Just as the character she portrays in the ballet has a light and dark side, so does Nina, with tragic results. Portman deservedly won an Oscar for her portrayal, and she is the glue that makes the film the riveting twaddle that it is. But despite its good points -- including the fact that it is absorbing and very well acted [Barbara Hershey, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, and Winona Ryder are also excellent in important supporting roles] -- Black Swan is a bit overwrought and occasionally silly, threatening to collapse into [literal] hysterics at any moment. A girl-on-girl sex scene seems to have been thrown in for all the wrong reasons, and does nothing to delineate character. [If the implication is that this is one more indication of Nina embracing her "dark" side, it's a bit regressive, but I suppose it could also suggest she's shedding her inhibitions. But why have a gay sex scene, even a fantasy, without real gay characters? It's like the filmmakers said, "guys won't want to take their girlfriends to a film about ballet, but when they find out it has two chicks gettin' it on...!"] Ultimately, Black Swan holds the attention but its chief appeal is Portman's and the other performances. It's undeniably arresting, but doesn't hold up under close scrutiny.

Verdict: Portman and the rest of the cast deserve kudos. ***.