Anonymous
(Starring Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave, Sebastian Aermest, Rafe Spall)
Disaster-flick director Roland Emmerich is not a scholar. He's just pretending to be one for the deliciously silly, costume melodrama. Especially in this last century, academic debate has heated up over whether Will Shakespeare wrote his own stuff. Now the director of Independence Day and 2012 puts forth this overwrought and nearly impossible conspiracy theory. The surprise here is that the goofy film is actually pretty good.
Ifans is the Earl of Oxford, an orphan gentry raised by controlling Puritans. They also influence Queen Elizabeth (Redgrave). Ifans has always wanted to write plays to counter the power of the Puritans. So he uses Shakespeare (portrayed as a total boob by Spall) as his nom de plume. Much backstage drama ensues, lightly tied to The Bard's actual history.
Details sometime overwhelm this soap opera; the first few minutes are all-out confusing. The costuming and sets, however, are extraordinary, and the actingâ┚¬â€Âespecially the underrated Ifansâ┚¬â€Âis delightfully over the top.
The tale turns ridiculousâ┚¬â€Âparticularly, tragically Greekâ┚¬â€Âbut it's just sick enough to be entertaining. That's a good thing, because the script confuses King John III for John II, and they get the order of the plays wrong, ignoring the fact that Shakespeare was writing for almost a decade before this story starts. But then, Emmerich is not an expert. He still does a commendable job transitioning from destroying our planet to ably presenting this pantaloon-and-corset affair.
The Big Year
(Starring Steve Martin, Owen Wilson, Jack Black)
This feathery film is supposedly about people passionate for bird watching. Yet it wastes a lot of hot air before we get to get to know the lead characters or pick their brains about their favorite subject. In some cases, we never even know why these three men love birds. They are passionate about spotting the most species in a year, but their one-upmanship with each other overshadows everythingâ┚¬â€Âmeaning it could be competitive stamp collecting or championship leaf pressing.
In the early 1900s, someone at the Audubon Society suggested a friendly contest for the most avian species spotted in a year. So, avid birdbrains plan their big year, racking up debts, travel miles and elaborate strategies to beat each other out. Impoverished loser Black and tycoon Martin are trying to oust champion Wilson, who previously set what seems to be an unreachable number.
There are shining moments of insight, but these are too little too late. When these lovely scenes happenâ┚¬â€Âdeep into the filmâ┚¬â€Âthey only show us what we've been missing from the beginning: character development and focus on our feathered friends.
Despite amazing actors and sumptuous scenery in every shot, we don't care about the birds or the men watching them. These three seem more interested in their pointless, macho-free competition. It's this uninteresting cage The Big Year can't seem to break out of.
Footloose
(Starring Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough, Miles Teller, Dennis Quaid, Andie McDowell)
People lining up to see this remake of Footloose understand that the core story is extremely corny; a sleepy burg bans public dancing to protect its children from unspeakable evil. What audiences may not expect is that this version is both appropriately reverent to the beloved 1980s original and somewhat updated to modern times.
After losing his mom to leukemia, orphan Wormald rolls from Boston into small-town Georgia to live with his uncle's family. What he finds is a community in grief, upset over the loss of five young kids after a drunken dance. The town council has banned boogying. So rebel Wormald challenges the ordinance written by reverend and overprotective father Quaid. In the meantime, Wormald also woos the preacher's misbehaving daughter Hough.
Many of the iconic original songs are here, often remixed or updated. The dancing is particularly fantastic, energetic and even organic. Wormald, a talented backup dancer for Justin Timberlake, and the other kids don't quite have the acting chops. Quaid, McDowell and the other adults pick up the slack here.
Less easy to buy is the Disney-fied racial Utopia that this small town represents, one whereâ┚¬â€Âeven though dancing is illegalâ┚¬â€Âso many kids can bust a move. Each one of these teenagers loves country, 80s tunes, and hip hop to equal effect. Even harder to buy is that a town could be so backwards in the age of the internet and iPhones. Next, they'll ban horseless carriages and scissors with pointy ends.
