Cuba Gooding, Jr., Beyoncé Knowles, Mike Epps, LaTanya Richardson
This broad comedy about a man whose life changes when he joins a gospel choir won't have viewers shouting "Halle-lujah!" Despite the appeal of several toe-tapping musical numbers, the upbeat Temptations is a workman like effort offering few surprises and taking zero risks. It's Sister Act minus the nuns' habits and sass.
Gooding, still the most hyperactive man in show business, mugs as an oleaginous corporate climber who, after losing his job in New York City, returns to his small Georgia hometown for his aunt's funeral. Intending to stay there only temporarily while ducking Manhattan creditors, he reluctantly takes over the directorship of the local church choir and begins courting a sultry roadhouse chanteuse (Knowles).
As a small-town honey wise to the city slicker's lines, Knowles is gorgeous but mistakes attitude for acting. Not surprisingly, the pop diva is most effective when singing, though the film never gives her a tune with which to blow the roof off, which is what viewers keep hoping for and Temptations sorely needs. (PG-13)
COMEDY
Jason Biggs, Christina Ricci, Woody Allen, Danny DeVito
The only surprise in this latest wisp of a Woody Allen movie is that Allen, who wrote and directed it, doesn't appear as the Woody Allen character. That familiar role is taken on, somewhat tentatively, by Biggs. He stars as Jerry Falk, a spindly young comedy writer who wears glasses and adores old jazz singers. Allen plays Falk's 60-year-old mentor, who prods the younger man into taking control of his own life.
Else seems to have nothing on its mind other than championing the need to assert oneself, whether against Nazis, parking-space bullies or vile girlfriends—the last being Falk's problem. His live-in love (Ricci) is a charmless whining actress who won't sleep with him and criticizes him relentlessly. The sooner he and we say "Adios," the better. (R)
COMEDY
Haley Joel Osment, Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, Kyra Sedgwick
"Lookee yonder," drawls Duvall, sitting on the porch of a ramshackle house in the middle of barren Texas fields and motioning toward some barely discernible movement in the distance. It's a good thing Duvall has such an honorable career behind—and, one assumes, ahead of—him, because a few more Hee Haw-worthy "lookee yonder"s like that one and we'd be smelling country ham.
At least he's using a Texas accent, which is more than one can say for the English-born Caine, who otherwise does lovely work playing Duvall's brother in this soft-boiled family film. The two grudgingly take in a 14-year-old great-nephew (Osment; see page 74) after his mom (Sedgwick) dumps the kid. First, though, in a bit of clumsily shoehorned exposition, she tells the boy that the old coots are rumored to have spent 40 years in the Foreign Legion and have wads of money hidden away. Find the dough, she instructs.
Osment has hit that awkward age for maturing child actors. Here he relies on widening his eyes to saucer size at his uncles' stories of overseas adventures and letting his orbs go moist when it looks as if he might be parted from the rascally geezers. (PG)
COMEDY-ADVENTURE
Adrien Brody
His stolen kiss with Halle Berry notwithstanding, Adrien Brody, 30 and this year's winner of a Best Actor Oscar, knows how to keep his lips to himself. He plays a ventriloquist in the new comedy Dummy.
ON WHERE HE KEEPS HIS ACADEMY AWARD "Well, I don't have a mantel. But it's on the armoire [in my apartment] in L.A. Only in America can a guy from the neighborhood [Queens] work hard and achieve that kind of recognition."
ON "THE AMAZING ADRIEN," HIS OLD MAGIC ACT "I used to do children's parties. I was 11 and I loved being able to pull the wool over the adults' eyes. It was my first introduction to acting because a lot of it was showmanship."
ON LEARNING VENTRILOQUISM "I had about two weeks. It was me and the dummy and pages of dialogue. My mom [photographer Sylvia Plachy] would come over and I'd be laying in bed with this little wooden puppet. It must have been strange to watch."
ON BEING LABELED THE NEXT ROBERT DE NIRO "I'm a big fan. I sat down with him for drinks [two weeks ago]. He offered to give me advice if I ever needed any. It was really lovely."
ON BERRY CALLING HIM A "WET KISSER" "I was just very enthusiastic."
Casa de los Babys In director-writer John Sayles's worthy, if small-scale, drama, six American women trade life stories at a Latin American hotel while waiting to adopt babies. (R)
Mambo Italiano
A big, fat, unsubtle ethnic comedy about an Italian-Canadian family dealing—poorly—with an adult gay son. (R)
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