THE ITHACAN

Author offers satirical perspective on film industry

By Harry Shuldman, Staff Writer • March 23, 2007

Had Groucho Marx been commissioned to write “The Idiot’s Guide to Hollywood,” his efforts might have turned out something like “Bambi vs. Godzilla,” David Mamet’s informative though absurd take on the movie business. Mamet, for lack of a less irritating phrase, is a literary triple threat. Author of 50 or more plays, screenplays and books,…

300 Spartans paint the silver screen red

By Jeff Morganteen, Sports Editor • March 22, 2007

Director Zack Snyder’s “300” is a video gamer’s wet dream. Blood-drenched and viscerally eye-popping, the film is almost all action, all the time, with some sex scenes thrown in for good measure. Put plainly, this movie has enough testosterone pumping through its veins to be banned from the MLB for life. Why Hollywood didn’t cash…

Bullock attempts to make up for latest thriller’s recycled plot

By Thomas Pardee, Staff Writer • March 22, 2007

Sandra Bullock's new headlining project “Premonition” isn't half as bad as some elitist critics might suggest. There are even moments in this nonlinear thriller — which survives almost solely on Bullock's raw charisma — that are actually downright, well, thrilling. Linda Hanson (Bullock), the film’s protagonist, is a confused woman. She answers the door one…

Chris Rock spins old comedy in wrong direction

By Ben Tietz, Staff Writer • March 22, 2007

“I Think I Love My Wife,” the new film starring, co-written and directed by Chris Rock, seems to adhere to the American idea that European art equals legitimate art. If a film is in a Romance language and is devoid of all the fancy trappings of Hollywood, in many people’s minds, it is above derision.…

Film expands classic coming-of-age novel

By Miranda K. Pennington, Senior Writer • March 22, 2007

“Bridge to Terabithia,” if the previews are to be believed, is a fantastical Narnia-esque tale of two young adventurers discovering uncharted lands inhabited by fierce and benevolent CGI creatures who take them away from their ordinary lives. Fortunately, previews lie. In reality, the film tells the story of a girl, Leslie Burke (AnnaSophia Robb), who…

Gripping crime drama ‘Zodiac’ kills and thrills

By Garrett Stiger, Contributing Writer • March 8, 2007

Fans of director David Fincher’s visceral thriller, “Seven,” will find few similarities between it and his latest, the pensive “Zodiac.” The film is based on the real-life serial killer that terrorized the San Francisco Bay Area during the ’60s and ’70s. “Zodiac” begins familiarly enough. A young couple celebrates the Fourth of July on lover’s…

Jim Carrey suspense film is miscast and complicated

By Shaun Semanyk, Contributing Writer • March 8, 2007

Despite director Joel Schumacher’s best efforts, “The Number 23” is an ambitious but muddled failure. The screenplay is structured after the “23 Enigma,” which states that all significant events, names, dates and times are somehow connected to the number 23. The movie is a clever enough psychological thriller about a book with the ability to…

Cop antics translate well to the big screen

By Harry Shuldman, Staff Writer • March 1, 2007

Too crass to be labeled a satire of American law enforcement and too hilariously absurd to be written off, “Reno 911!: Miami” is this century’s equivalent to the Keystone Kops. The only difference is Charlie Chaplin sports hot pants, Buster Keaton does blow and Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle gets Tasered by an underage hooker. “Reno 911!:…

Street-smart woman transforms elder’s life in ‘Venus’

By Miranda K. Pennington, Senior Writer • March 1, 2007

Though not the first film to examine a relationship made inappropriate by age, education, culture or class background, “Venus” may be the first to avoid settling on a single interpretation. The lustful fascination Maurice (Peter O’Toole) has with Jessie (Jodie Whittaker), an uncultured teenage urchin, is, from the outset, disturbing and creepy. The film approaches…

‘The Astronaut Farmer’ flies to outer space

By Ben Tietz, Staff Writer • February 28, 2007

In a time of pop-culture-happy, snarky entertainment that masks any message behind a preening above-it-all attitude, “The Astronaut Farmer” is a welcome relief. Directed by Michael Polish from a screenplay written by Polish and his brother, Mark, “The Astronaut Farmer” is one of the most recent corny films. But that is its primary charm. Charles…

Impressive cast couldn’t save ‘Ghost Rider’

By Harry Shuldman, Staff Writer • February 22, 2007

As if “Daredevil” and “Elektra” never happened, writer/director Mark Steven Johnson has been allowed on the set of yet another superhero film. This time, he works his fractured magic on Marvel Comics’ hell-spawned biker series, “Ghost Rider.” One could argue that Johnson had strikes against him with “Daredevil” because of the absurd story. Admittedly, a…

Daring crime drama depicts story of real-life FBI agent

By Ben Tietz, Staff Writer • February 22, 2007

In “Breach,” Cooper plays Robert Hanssen, the FBI agent who was arrested Feb. 18, 2001, for leaking billions of dollars worth of government secrets to the Soviet Union. Cooper conveys evil thoughts that the film’s script only hints at, and he does this without a more well-known actor’s histrionics and showboating. Cooper uses silence far…