MOVIE NEWS AND REVIEWS

The latest Hollywood Movies, Film Festivals, Cleveland, OH Theater Showtimes & More

The arrival of "The Wizard of Oz" in Cleveland on August 18, 1939, was billed as a major entertainment event. "At Last It's Here!" screamed a huge ad in The Plain Dealer. "Amazing sights to see!"

The Tornado: "Actual photographs of the inside of the tornado that whirled Dorothy to a land more excitingly real than life itself!"

Munchkinland: "A whole city in miniature populated entirely by hundreds of midgets gathered from 42 cities in 29 states!"

Flying Monkeys: "Most amazing camera effects since 'San Francisco'!"

Startling Balloon Ascent: "Up in the stratosphere! What lies beyond the stars? See the glistening Emerald City, the wonderful Palace of Glass!"

Clearly, despite the onslaught of exclamations, the point had not been made. There was additional information about a "Horse of a Different Color," "9,200 living actors," and "trees that talk and throw apples."

Personally, they had me at flying monkeys.

Continue reading "From "The Wizard of Oz" to "Gone with the Wind," 1939 may have been the greatest year ever for American films" »

Knowing

Nicolas Cage

Summit Entertainment

An MIT professor (Cage) pieces together clues from a mysterious string of numbers and realizes something really bad will happen soon. His conclusions sound crazy, but at least he admits it, which helps the film's believability factor. This gripping disaster flick stays suspenseful until the flat ending, making the whole numbers thing pointless. It made $79 million at U.S. theaters. PG-13, 121 minutes. Grade: B+. Extras: B. In stores Tuesday.

Continue reading "'Knowing,' 'Kath & Kim,' 'Lonely are the Brave': DVD releases for July 7" »

"Mr. Hulot's Holiday"

Not rated. 90 minutes.

Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque kicks off its Cinema with a Smile series at 1:15 p.m. Sunday with a screening of the slapstick classic "Mr. Hulot's Holiday." It's an appropriate summer seaside respite directed by and starring Jacques Tati (in French with subtitles from 1953). Other gems coming in the next two months: "The Philadelphia Story," "His Girl Friday," and "Duck Soup." 11141 East Blvd. in University Circle. More info: cia.edu/cinematheque. -- Clint O'Connor

Continue reading "'Mr. Hulot's Holiday': Movie pick for July 5, plus Also Playing capsule reviews for July 3-9" »

Karl Malden, who died Wednesday at 97, became an actor in the theater. That's where he mesmerized audiences with his portrayal of workaday Mitch in the original 1947 Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire."

He became one of the screen's most durable and dependable supporting players in Hollywood. That's where he won the Oscar for the 1951 film version of "A Streetcar Named Desire."

But Malden--at the unlikely age of 60 -- became a top-billed star on television. That's where this actor known for his intelligence and painstaking preparation played veteran police detective Mike Stone for on ABC's "The Streets of San Francisco" (1972-77). It's also where he mentored a young actor named Michael Douglas.

On the big screen, Malden regularly lent heavy-duty support to heavyweight stars. Take a good look at his work as Mitch in "Streetcar" or as fearless Father Barry in "On the Waterfront" (1954) or as the villainous Sheriff Longworth in "One-eyed Jacks" (1961).

Continue reading "Karl Malden: Hollywood's great and dependable supporting actor" »

I love Woody Allen's work and I like his new film, but moviegoers should be strongly cautioned: "Whatever Works" is a work in progress.

It's a throwback to Allen's glory days of the 1970s -- paranoid, neurotic New Yorker rails at the absurdity of the world while snagging a beautiful woman -- but it's not fully formed. Some of the scenes look like workshop rehearsals for a play that needs lots of rewrites.

The alluring enticement of "Whatever Works" is that Allen has hired "Curb Your Enthusiasm" curmudgeon Larry David to play a version of himself, or his movie persona. David is the aptly named Boris Yellnikoff, a self-proclaimed genius who hates pretty much everything.

Continue reading "'Whatever Works': Woody Allen revamps an old script to team with Larry David" »

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The family of Karl Malden, the Academy Award- and Emmy-winning actor, says he has died at age 97.

Malden's family informed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences of his death on Wednesday. Malden served as the academy's president from 1989-92.

He made his screen debut in the 1940 movie "They Knew What They Wanted," and was praised for his role as Mitch in the 1951 classic "A Streetcar Named Desire."

His greatest fame came as Detective Mike Stone in the 1970s TV series "The Streets of San Francisco," in which he co-starred with Michael Douglas.

Malden also was a pitchman for American Express in a series of commercials airing over 21 years.

The "Ice Age" animated movies have always been about giving moms, dads and kids a few hours of innocent laughs. "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs," the third chapter in the series, continues that mission with an enjoyable tale heavy with adventure, visual treats and lessons about the importance of family.

And, it's available in 3-D.

The two previous movies -- 2002's "Ice Age" and 2006's "Ice Age: The Meltdown" -- were about a motley gang of animals banding together for survival. This movie, borrowing a page from the old "lost world" tales, takes our heroes from their familiar frozen world to a terrifying land where dinosaurs rule.

Continue reading "Third 'Ice Age' movie stays true to the past" »

"Mr. Hulot's Holiday"

Not rated. 90 minutes.

Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque kicks off its Cinema with a Smile series at 1:15 p.m. Sunday, July 5 with a screening of the slapstick classic "Mr. Hulot's Holiday." It's an appropriate summer seaside respite directed by and starring Jacques Tati (in French with subtitles from 1953). Other gems coming in the next two months: "The Philadelphia Story," "His Girl Friday," and "Duck Soup." 11141 East Blvd. in University Circle.

I sat down to watch "Cheri" expecting it to be another "Dangerous Liaisons," one of my favorite guilty-pleasure movies. Both were directed by Stephen Frears, and both are dramas about beautiful people behaving badly in another century.

Unfortunately, "Cheri" waters down "Dangerous Liaison's" deliciously caustic and satiric voice. This new film has a frivolous tone, lent by a bouncy soundtrack and annoying voiceover, that's incongruous with the heart-wrenching things the characters go through. We don't know whether to share the characters' pain or snicker at it.

The costume weepie is set during France's belle epoque, a gilded age before the ravages of World War I. It was a time when courtesans (that's a high-class hooker) were rich women who wielded great influence, although they were ostracized by polite society.

Courtesan Lea de Lonval (Michelle Pfeiffer, who looks ready to leap into her old catsuit at any minute) has had a magnificent career. But she's approaching the age when no one will want to pay for the cow or the milk.

Continue reading "Love story in 'Cheri,' with Michelle Pfeiffer, suffers from movie's lighthearted tone" »

Hopefully you'll be swimming, sunning, parading, picnicking or otherwise outdoor-engaged for your Fourth of July weekend fun.

If, however, you find a little indoor down time and are looking for American Independence-Revolutionary War movies to inspire and entertain, you should be aware of one fact: There aren't many.

Hollywood has largely ignored the seminal event in America's history. Though there's an endless array of films about World War II, the Civil War and the Vietnam War, there's but a handful about the Revolutionary War (1775-1781). Mel Gibson made the stirring "The Patriot" in 2000, with Heath Ledger and Jason Isaacs, about a farmer reluctantly drawn into the war after his son is killed. But that's about it for the past decade.

Al Pacino's "Revolution" was such a huge turkey in 1985 that it had studios singing the red and white blues. Critic Leonard Maltin said at the time "only a half-dozen or so films have dealt more than superficially with the Revolutionary War. Thanks to this mega-bomb, it may be 2776 until we get another one."

Continue reading "Patriotic movies to celebrate Fourth of July" »