Superman Returns
By Larry Anklewicz
Thursday, July 6, 2006
Look! Up in the sky! Its a bird! Its a plane! No, its Superman Returns!
The oldest and most popular superhero returned to the screen recently in Superman Returns. I have to admit that I got a warm, fuzzy feeling when John Williams Superman Theme came through the speakers at the beginning of Superman Returns. The man of steel was back and it felt great.
I went to see Superman Returns at an Imax theatre with several scenes showing in Imax 3-D. What a great experience!
The story line of Superman Returns wasnt a great surprise. In many ways, it is a rehashing of the original Superman movie. Even some of the lines are the same.
In this case, Superman has been away for five years, investigating the possibility that some remains of his home planet may have survived its destruction. He returns to Earth in the same way he arrived originally, in a fireball that crashes into a field near Martha Kents farm.
He goes back to Metropolis and finds Lois Lane living with another man and with a young son. At the same time, Lex Luther goes on another rampage, acquires some kryptonite, and plots to destroy Superman. Of course, Lex is defeated in the end, but this part of the story is terrific.
The action scenes in this film are superb. The special effects have come a long way since the original Superman movie and they flow into the film seamlessly.
There is very little emphasis on Clark Kent or Clarks relationship with Lois, except that he seems upset to have lost her. Most of the attention centres around the confrontation between Lex and the man of steel and how Lex uses Lois to get to Superman.
Brandon Routh does a very good job in taking over the cape and tights. He looks enough like Christopher Reeve to make this a smooth taking over of the reins. And several of the actors from the Superman TV series have cameo roles in this film.
In addition, the ending is straight out of the original Superman movies.
So all Superman fans, this is a film not to be missed. Ive seen it once, but I expect Ill see it one or two more times before the film hits DVD.
Starring: Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey, James Marsden, Parker Posey, Frank Langella, Sam Huntington, Eva Marie Saint, Marlon Brando, Kal Penn.
Leonard Cohen: Im Your Man
This documentary/tribute concert is a homage to Leonard Cohen and his music and poetry. We learn a lot about Leonard Cohen, the writer and composer, and about Leonard Cohen the man. But the outstanding feature is the wonderful renditions of Leonard Cohens music.
The producers went to Australia and filmed a tribute concert to Cohen, with some extraordinary renditions of his songs by such artists as Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Bert Orton, Linda Thompson, and others. Then they sprinkled the concert with interviews with Cohen and such Cohen fans as Bono and Rufus Wainwright.
The results are remarkable. At the end, Cohen does his own version of Tower of Song, backed by U-2.
This film is worth seeing just for the concert segments. When it comes out on DVD, Ill be lining up to get my copy so I can play the musical selections over and over again.
Recent DVDs
Eight Below
Inspired by a true story, this adventure film will entertain the entire family.
Set in Antarctica, the film tells the story of a team of sled dogs who are left to fend for themselves when the people in a scientific station are forced to leave in a hurry. Jerry, their handler, keeps trying to mount a rescue mission and when he finally is able to return, he finds that the dogs have banded together to survive the harsh conditions.
The DVD features such extras as an optional directors commentary, a number of deleted scenes, a behind the scenes featurette, as well as two extra audio commentaries.
Starring: Paul Walker, Jason Biggs, Bruce Greenwood, Moon Bloodgood.
Lady & The Tramp: Scamps Adventure
A new group of characters and many of those beloved dogs from the original film get together for this new, direct to DVD adventure. New songs and great animation make this a film that will be welcomed into everyones home.
The bonus features include Junkyard Games, the Hide & Seek Game, a featurette about the making of this sequel, an audio commentary by the filmmakers and three classic Disney shorts.
Starring the Voices of Scott Wolf, Alyssa Milano, Jodi Benson, Chazz Palminteri, Bronson Pinchot, Jeff Bennett, Cathy Moriarty.
Imagine Me & You
This comedy takes a bit of a twist in its story about love and marriage. Rachel is marrying the man of her dreams, but on her wedding day she meets someone else and she becomes a little confused by her emotions, especially since her new love is another woman.
Starring: Piper Perebo, Lena Headey, Matthew Goode, Anthony Head.
Sister Roses Passion
Sister Roses Passion is a documentary about a remarkable woman.
Sister Rose was an 85-year old nun who was a professor at Seaton Hall University in New Jersey. She was a leader in trying to mend relations between the Catholic Church and the Jewish community. She took on the church establishment and her Ph.D. dissertation was instrumental in getting the Church to officially announce that the Jews should not be blamed for killing Christ.
Sister Rose was also a leader in making the teaching of the Holocaust part of the school curriculum in New Jersey and in other parts of the United States and never stopped working for better relations between Catholics and Jews.
The DVD has a number of powerful bonus additions, including a discussion between Sister Rose and other nuns about Church/Jewish relations; a clip of the films receiving an award at the Tribecca Film Festival; 10 out takes; and a clip of an interview done by the director, Oren Jacoby on the Charlie Rose Show.
Sister Rose passed away recently, but this DVD will help keep her memory alive and hopefully will further the work she spent her lifetime doing.
Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock N Roll
A marvelous documentary about Rock N Roll legend and innovator, Chuck Berry. The film was made in 1987, on the eve of Berrys 60th birthday and includes interviews with Berry, Bo Diddley, Little Richard, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and other friends and family.
In addition, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Linda Ronstadt, Etta James and others participate in a concert by Berry to mark the occasion and we get to see the magic of Chuck Berry actually performing live on stage.
The result is a magical film that has been restored and has had lots of bonus material added. In fact, the DVD comes in 2-disc and 4-disc versions. And although Ive only had an opportunity to see a few of these features, Im looking forward to getting into all of the material that has been included.
This is a magnificent tribute to one of the great pioneers of Rock N Roll.
Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story
Tommy Douglas was a giant of Canadian politics. His commitment to social justice and the common man, earned Douglas the love and respect of the Canadian public.
Douglas brought in many innovations while Premier of Saskatchewan and then after he entered federal politics--universal health care, 8-hour work day, government funds for the arts, and much more.
This DVD contains over three hours of bonus features.
Puppets Who Kill Season Two
The second season of the Comedy Networks popular show, Puppets Who Kill, is now available on DVD. This 2-disc set contains all 13 episodes with new commentaries by Rocko the puppet and Dan Redican, as well as footage of the stars on Canada AM.
|
