Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Those waiting for that break-up prohibition to expire can now submit as many pink slips as you wish. And, if you’re looking to drown your sorrows or start life anew, your best best this week will be to check out Undefeated. If you’re just looking to get depressed, you might want to check out Michael. If you’re looking for someone with dimmer prospects than yourself, there’s always Nicolas Cage reprising his role as mediocre actor in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, a film so unwanted, critics weren’t even invited to a pre-screening. Have kids or looking for a nice trip through a fantastical world of tiny people living? Check out The Secret World of Arrietty. Viewing, commence!
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance: This film already has a few things going against it. First, it’s a sequel to a 2007 movie that tanked. Granted, Spirit of Vengeance is supposed to be a darker and more accurate adaptation of the Ghost Rider comic book, but making it darker doesn’t necessarily make it better. Second, it stars Nicolas Cage, who will do pretty much anything to add to his collection of shrunken heads, dinosaur skulls and castles. Third, this flick opens today, and no one has been allowed to screen it yet, which puts it right on par with One for the Money. In film, the phrase “no news is good news” does not have the same positive connotation.
The Secret World of Arrietty: Charming, sentimental, and based on Mary Norton’s The Borrowers, The Secret World of Arrietty weaves the mystical tale of a tiny, fourteen-year-old girl who lives in the recesses of someone else’s home. As the lives coexist under one roof, Shawn, a boy who comes to stay at the home encounters Arrietty, and a friendship blossoms. Surely, there’s an examination of differences and acceptance, but the smoothly saccharine narrative should make this much more than child fodder.
Undefeated: For everyone who was a fan of Friday Night Lights (the NBC program, not the movie) – and the one person who wasn’t — Undefeated is the documented reality the Dillon Tigers. Only this time, it’s set in Memphis and centered on the Manassas Tigers’ 2009 football season. For the decade prior, they were the perennial laughing stocks of their division, but after the arrival of former high school football coach, everything changed. Inspirational, encouraging, and deeply touching, Undefeated adds to the genre of sports-as-a-microcosm-of-life cinema.
Michael: I’m thrilled that the antithesis to the campy John Travolta / angel film of the same title has been released, and for that reason alone, I’d like to check this out. However, what’s the first adjective that comes to mind when you find out that Michael is an insurance salesman holding a ten-year-old boy hostage in a basement? I’m going with disturbing, haunting, and sadistic. Maybe it’ll have a happy ending. After all, it’s the first film from director Markus Schleinzer – a former casting director of Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon. Oh.
