Movie Reviews

by Karin Leonard & Daniel Robin

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Ladder 49

With Joaquin Phoenix, John Travolta, Jacinda Barrett, Billy Burke

Entertainment: 4.5 Message: 4

When you think about it, a fireman’s job is absurdly dangerous. And quite to our surprise, this is a gripping, meaningful and passionate tale about the life and times of a busy fire department in Maryland, and one fireman’s personal retrospective while trapped inside a collapsing building. Stellar performances by Joaquin Phoenix and John Travolta add great presence, charisma and believability to the mix. The intensity of battling fires is buffered by gritty humor and great charm. Seen through the eyes and hearts of cast, Ladder 49 simply brims over with humanity, and is a triumph of the spirit (1 hr 55 min).

The Lake House

With Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves, Dylan Walsh, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Christopher Plummer

Entertainment: 3 Message: 3.5

Either light hearted and romantic or deeply metaphoric, this film may have barely enough substance to hold your interest; it doesn’t quite cast enough of a spell to bring you fully along for the ride. Keanu Reeves playing a romantic lead? He almost comes out of his shell and there’s enough chemistry with Sandra Bullock to make this an inspired, if not odd, love story in two “time zones.” Just different enough to catch you by surprise, with some interesting implications, but not magnetic enough to prop open our imaginative possibilities. For anyone harboring a fascination with romantic love, unwilling to let time stand in their way, this may be satisfying (1 hr 45 min).

The Legend of Zorro

With Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Rufus Sewell

Entertainment: 3 Message: 3.5 Warning: extended scenes of violence

Not nearly as riveting as the previous installment (1998, Banderas mentored by Anthony Hopkins), but it nonetheless delivers a fun, flawed and mostly entertaining “PG” ride through an imagined early California. Full of action and adventure, Zorro-style bravado, and sense of moral justice with a few good laughs here and there, the plot is simply ponderous. The story is hacked and dumb. If you loved the Mask of Zorro, this will be irresistible, as the passion of the characters still shines through occasionally (2 hrs 10 min).

The Life Aquatic

With Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Anjelica Huston, Cate Blanchett, Willem Dafoe

Entertainment: 2 Message: 2.5

A great cast and concept gets squandered on a pathetic screenplay and poor execution in this annoying and generally unfunny film. What if the Jacques-Yves Cousteau Society had a few bad years and got washed up? Dry, deadpan humor is Bill Murray’s forte, but this one drowns in its own pomposity and stiffness. It is consistent (consistently mediocre), but never really goes anywhere (1 hr 58 min).

The Longest Yard

With Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Burt Reynolds, James Cromwell

Entertainment: 3 Message: 2.5

Even though it won’t be Oscar material, this remake is true to the original tough-guy themes and it hangs together fairly well. Adam Sandler makes an honest attempt, and there are some good laughs and action, though no real surprises in this reliable crowd pleaser (1 hr 49 min).

Lucky Number Slevin

With Josh Hartnett, Lucy Liu, Ben Kingsley, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman

Entertainment: 2 Message: 1

Unless you wish to spend nearly two hours in a dark room feeling resentful, avoid this organized crime debacle. The plot is irrelevant and the dialogue too mannered and self-important to be taken seriously, so all you get are a few flashy performances and production design. We felt rather, well, unlucky, sitting there, as if all taste and sensibility were suspended during the making of this film. If audiences knew any better, they’d resist the allure of an A-list cast and the stylized coming attractions and hope this thing just goes away. It is an exercise in style, trickery, and violent foolishness with nothing to recommend it. The characters can only win us over if there’s an audience that cares. You won’t (1 hr 49 min).