Reese Witherspoon, Gabriel Byrne, James Purefoy, Eileen Atkins, Rays Ifans, Romola Garai
Watching Becky Sharp maneuver her way through society's ranks in England in the early decades of the 19th century, a disapproving matron sniffs, "I had thought her a mere social climber; I see now that she's a mountaineer."
It's a perceptive line, but it gives this movie's Becky (Witherspoon) more credit than she deserves. The Becky of William Makepeace Thackeray's classic 1848 social satire, upon which this visually sumptuous if less than spellbinding film is based, was a conniving, calculating vixen, one of literature's most morally challenged heroines. In this version by director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding), a kinder and gentler Becky prevails. Trying to break through the upper crust of England's social strata, she does indeed occasionally act in ways that won't win her a Girl Scout badge for good conduct, but she's more likely to stamp her foot in pique than on the toes of others. The script does her a disservice by turning her into Becky Not So Sharp.
Despite her watered-down character, Witherspoon—aside from an incongruous Bollywood-esque dance sequence in which she has to make like an exotic Sally Rand—performs with intelligence and verve, though one never has a sense of her character aging. Playing her dashing but luckless husband, Purefoy displays industrial strength sex appeal and strong acting chops. (PG-13)
DRAMA
Johnny Messner, Kadee Strickland
Here's how you can tell the difference between this serpent tale and its 1997 predecessor Anaconda: There are multiple hungry snakes now and no Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Owen Wilson or Jon Voight (see opposite page) trying to avoid getting chomped. There's no overlap between the two movies—if you don't count a totally recycled plot. Once again there's a boatload of attractive twenty-and thirtysomethings heading up a waterway only to be menaced by a slimy scale-covered creature. In the case of Anacondas, many of'em.
It all plays out as you'd expect, with a few expendable folks meeting nasty ends and one of the group turning out to be a traitor. The hero, an American captaining a rundown boat in Borneo, is played with roughhewn bravado by Messner, an obvious honors graduate of the Bruce Willis School of Tough Guy Acting. Major complaint: African-American actor Eugene Byrd, portraying a computer whiz, is asked to overdo the frightened bit to such an egregious extent that one keeps expecting him to burst out with, "I don't know nothing 'bout birthin' babies, Miz Scarlett." (PG-13)
HORROR
Napoleon Dynamite
This quirky, slight comedy features a dorky teenage hero whose idea of a smooth come-on line is to ask a classmate if she's drinking one percent milk because she thinks she's fat. He then assures her that regular milk would be okay. (PG)
Hero
Spectacular fight scenes and voluptuous visuals are the highlights of a soaring martial-arts drama set in ancient China. Jet Li and Maggie Cheung star. (PG-13)
Open Water
A vacationing couple, left behind by a dive boat, find themselves alone in the ocean—except for circling sharks—in a chilling thriller. (R)
Collateral
Director Michael Mann scores with a stylish, almost thoughtful thriller about a hit man (Tom Cruise) and a cabby (Jamie Foxx) he forces to be his driver during a nightlong killing spree. (R)
Jon Voight
From his breakthrough in Midnight Cowboy to an Oscar for Coming Home, Jon Voight, 65, has always had more fun playing the bad guy. He gets that option as an egomaniacal media mogul in the comedy Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2.
ON REAL BABY GENIUSES We're all baby geniuses who've forgotten what we knew, I remember when I was a little boy, like 3 years old, I really identified as an artist. If anybody had engaged me in serious interaction in painting, I would have been very focused.
ON PLAYING WITH GENIUSES' COSTARS I'm kind of a silly villain. I'm really an idiot. I had this funny accent, and I'd say, "I'm going to get you! There's nobody who can stop me, watch out!" The kids just got it that I was a goofball.
ON WORKING OPPOSITE GODDAUGHTER SKYLER SHAYE I'm very proud of her. She's always been around films, and she had the opportunity to be in this, and she's lovely in it. There's even a little kissing scene in it. It's so sweet. She calls me "Godfather." You'd think eventually she'd tire of it, but she hasn't.
ON RECONCILING WITH DAUGHTER ANGELINA JOLIE I'm hopeful for a turn-around very quickly. I'm crazy about her. I love her. My son [James Haven] just did a short, Rent-a-Person, and one serious drama, Breaking Dawn, and I'm excited about that. Obviously you always want your parents' approval, but they're really rich pieces. I love to be with my children.
ON HIS POLITICS I'm not involved in negative bashing of our country and President. I'm a patriot and deeply connected to the men and women in uniform sacrificing for our country to protect us.
ON SLOWING DOWN I don't really take time off. I have a lot to do in my head and things to accomplish. It's imperative to get to it as much as I can now. I'm a bit of a workaholic, but I enjoy myself when I'm in that phase.
Movie:
The Punisher (Lions Gate, $27.98)
An ex-FBI agent (Tom Jane) whose family was ordered killed by a Florida drug lord (John Travolta) seeks vengeance in a solid if undistinguished film based on the Marvel comic book series. Let us amend that: Every time brawny Jane doffs his shirt—the guy worked out daily for months to prepare for his part—our opinion of the movie goes way up.Extras: The bonus features shine. Along with two deleted scenes, there are well-produced, informative featurettes focusing on the making of the film, the stuntwork and how the Punisher evolved as a comic book character. (R)
Movie:
Man on Fire (Fox, $29.98) In a violent suspense drama, Denzel Washington plays an alcoholic ex-CIA operative badly in need of redemption, which he finds guarding the young daughter of a Mexican businessman. When she is kidnapped, he is determined to rescue her. There are terrific performances by Washington and Dakota Fanning, his pint-size costar, but the movie overstays its welcome and turns seriously bloody. Extras: Darn few, besides satisfactory audio commentaries, including by a charming, giggly Fanning and director Tony Scott. He says Fanning wasn't fazed by Washington's insistence on staying in character off-camera because, as she told him, "I worked with Sean [Penn in I Am Sam]."
Movie:
Raising Victor Vargas: Special Edition (Columbia TriStar $24.96) A lovely, low-budget romantic comedy about teenagers. The ones here just happen to be growing up poor and Hispanic in Manhattan. Extras: Convivial commentary by director-writer Peter Sollett, his cowriter and most of his young cast, plus an earlier short that led to Victor.
- Contributors:
- Leah Rozen,
- Julie Jordan.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
