“Maps” Fascinated with Off-Track Characters

 

It’s a bit of an understatement to say that David Cronenberg’s Maps to the Stars is not for everyone but that’s par for the course where the director’s work is concerned. Always one to speak his mind, good box office be damned, the filmmaker has built his reputation on pushing viewers to the edge with his extreme visions of man’s consciousness being consumed by technology (Videodrome, eXistenZ), the long term effects violence has on individuals and society (A History of Violence, Eastern Promises) and run-of-the-mill obsession (Dead Ringers, M. Butterfly).

The irony of the film’s title becomes obvious once we meet the characters and determine they have no direction at all. Spinning in their own private worlds, incapable of moving away from events in their past and refusing to look themselves square in the face and deal with their problems, these are people who’ve allowed themselves to be deluded where their true nature and worth is concerned. This is hardly exclusive of Hollywood yet the spotlight it brings to their troubles makes it all that easier, though we openly deny it, to revel in the schadenfreude of the situation. After all, isn’t that what celebrities and Tinsel Town are for?

Moore’s Honesty Sustains “Alice”

 

Alice Howland (Julianne Moore) knows that she’s living on borrowed time. She’s well aware of what fate awaits her having been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and seeing those whose minds have been ravaged by it, their vacant eyes disconnected from the past and unable to interpret the present. She jogs and watches what she eats, the care she’s devoted to her physical health now a cruel joke as she will no longer be able to consciously enjoy her later years, instead imprisoned by them, fated to be a burden to her family. Alice is fully aware that she will soon become a member of the living dead and despite precautions she may take to prevent this, she knows there’s nothing see can do about it.

Perhaps the most haunting moment is the one that showcases Moore’s ability in the best light. Well aware of what lies ahead of her, Alice records a short movie on her computer, leaving simple instructions for her future self to follow if the direst of circumstances occur. Months later, she does find it and at this moment, Moore’s skill is on full display as we see Alice, addled and confused, gazing at her past self, fully lucid on the computer screen. How far the character has fallen is driven home in an instant as Moore creates an indelible moment that fully captures the tragedy of Alice and the millions of others that fall victim to horrors of Alzheimer’s.

“Son” fails to Cast a Spell

 

Sometimes, bad movies happen to good actors. Such is the case with Sergey Bodrov’s Seventh Son, an adaptation of the first book in Joseph Delaney’s The Last Apprentice series and likely the last. That’s too bad because as YA literature goes it’s better than most as the central relationship in the 13 book series – that of the Spook Gregory and his apprentice Tom Ward – continues to develop and ground the stories in a humanistic way that most books of this sort lack. Son hints at this friendship but fails to fully develop it, instead relying on a rote fantasy narrative brought low by its predictability and lackluster special effects.

Of course, that’s not from lack of trying on Moore’s part. A consummate professional all the way, she tries to find something distinctive about Malkin but fails to make the character nothing more than your standard witch that can turn into a dragon. However, it must be noted that she really rocks her Goth wardrobe. As for Bridges, I spent nearly the entire running time of the film trying to figure out how to describe his odd voice. If you can imagine Sean Connery speaking with a mouthful of cotton, that’s a rough idea of what the actor sounds like. Bridges’ vocal choice is a distraction throughout and I got the sense that maybe he thought he was making a comedy instead of a period fantasy. The actor and the movie both wear out their welcome, as Son winds up being a long, dull haul rather than a rousing adventure.

Lawrence’s Conviction saves Overlong “Mockingjay”

When last we left our heroine, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) had just thrown the country of Panem into turmoil by disrupting the latest edition of the Hunger Games. Instead of being a symbol of oppression for the masses, this nationally televised event has served as a platform for rebellion, which is based in District 13, a section of the country that had supposedly been wiped off the map.

However, this military-based society built a massive underground city where its leader, President Coin (Julianne Moore) has been waiting for a sign to move against the capital. She gets it in Katniss, who, having been shuttled to 13, is hesitant to help. She fears that anything she may do to foster revolution will result in harm being done to her boyfriend Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), who she suspects is being held against his will to push forward President Snow’s (Donald Sutherland) agenda.

As with the first two entries in the series, Lawrence is the straw that stirs the drink here. Her unwavering conviction in the role of Katniss is obviously infectious as her peers in the film up their game whenever they share the screen with her, while the actress is never in danger of being overshadowed by the veteran members of the cast. She manages to invest a sense of urgency in the film that it otherwise lacks.

And while it might not be fair to say that her efforts alone make this overlong episode bearable, I would be hard-pressed bringing to mind a scene from Mockingjay where she wasn’t front and center.

For a full review, go to: http://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/local/2014-11-20/chuck-koplinski-stars-conviction-saves-overlong-mockingjay-pt-1.