Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 08 June 2000

We start off meeting Al (Prinze Jr) and Imogen (Stiles) in the future and we have nothing but flashbacks into the past as the pieces of the story fit together.  They meet, they fall in love, everything is perfect.  Then things change, they drift apart, Imogen moves away and both succumb to depression.  What happens next?  Provided you have a double-digit IQ, you’ll know.

These characters are nothing but cardboard cutouts.  They have no “human” qualities and are nothing but rich, spoilt brats.  Prinze Jr and Stiles are terrifyingly boring together and the entertainment (if any) comes from the supporting cast with notable entrances from Monk (Zak Orth) and Eddie (Shawn Hatosy).

One observation.  The couple first meet and share a romantic moment in Central Park.  Why are movies filled with so many clichés?  In Mission: Impossible 2, they continually showed the Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge and Centrepoint Tower.  Directors continually use the same backdrops and icons in every film these days and it is tiring.  To use another example, how many movies have you seen set in France that doesn’t feature at least one shot of the Eiffel Tower?

If all this were true, the first place I’d be heading to in New York would be Central Park.  Surely I’d meet my true love in the most romantic circumstance and maybe even see a couple of wild police chases.  Apparently, everything that happens in New York happens around Central Park.

The teen-romantic genre is in dire need of a facelift and I can’t believe that Miramax would attach their names to this project.  It was obviously designed as a cheap money-spinner but was a major disappointment at the U.S. box-office.  Finally, the public have spoken.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 08 June 2000

As if all those previous successes weren’t good enough, Norton has branched out with his directorial debut in Keeping The Faith, based on a screenplay by Stuart Blumberg.  We are introduced to Jake (Stiller), Brian (Norton) and Anna (Elfman) as 6th graders and “bestest friends”.  That is until Anna moves away with her family during the 8th grade.

Ten years pass and both find themselves in a career neither expected - Brian is a catholic priest and Jake is rabbi.  Both are still best friends and are setting up a karaoke bar for senior citizens as their gift to the community.  They are also very popular at their respective congregations and life is running smoothly.

Enter “Anna Banana” who returns to New York on business and wants to rekindle their friendship.  Anna is still as beautiful as ever and stirs feelings Brian and Jake had long forgotten.  Something is going to give...

Keeping The Faith is a very entertaining romantic comedy and gives the genre new life.  The most positive aspect of the film are the performances and connection between Norton, Elfman and Stiller.  They work wonderfully together, create many humorous moments and in a rarity for romantic films - they talk like real people.  Check for some smaller cameos from Anne Bancroft, Holland Taylor and even Milos Forman (the director of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Amadeus and The People Vs. Larry Flynt).

This is also a credit to the screenplay and Norton’s direction which shows just how talented he is.  The New York backdrop is beautifully captured through the camera lens (particularly in a scene between Stiller and Elfman on a riverside pier whilst at dinner).  Norton also uses close ups of characters to great effect.

Clocking in at just over two hours does hurt the film.  The final 30 minutes could have been summed up in less than half that time and been better for it but given there are so many wonderful moments in this film, I am willing to forgive.  There are so many “laugh out loud scenes” that start right from the opening credits and don’t let up.

Have you ever heard the one about the priest and the rabbi?  If you haven’t, make sure you do - it’s a good laugh.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 08 June 2000

George is content in England - he his proud of his religious heritage, owns a small fish and chip shop and is a respected member of the community.  Trouble brews however when he sets up another two of his sons for an arranged marriage without consultation and the two brides-to-be are not exactly what you call “beauties”.

Ella wants no part of this but George is very determined and wants his children to marry within their religion in tradition with his ancestors.  It’s a ticking timebomb and when the two sons find out, the family disintegrates.

Winner of the British Academy Award for best British film of 1999, East Is East is a supreme mix of drama and comedy that hits all the right notes.  It begins as a riotous comedy but as the film develops, a darker layer is revealed (ala American Beauty).

Puri and Bassett turn in two of the best performances seen all year.  Puri is wonderful with his Pakistani accent and must set a cinematic record for the number of uses of the word “bloody”.  Bassett, with similarities to Brenda Bleythn’s character in Secrets and Lies, plays the quiet wife who you just know will break out of her shell and stand up to her husband.

Adapted from a play written by Ayub Khan-Din, the screen version of East is East is a touching production that is deserved of the critical acclaim it has been receiving.  Breaking fresh ground, it’s a change from the tiring, similar screenplays that have been circulating the cinemas in recent weeks.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 01 June 2000

Whilst on vacation in Sydney, Ethan is drafted for another “save-the-world” assignment.  A trusted agent, Sean Ambrose (Scott) was given the assignment of guarding a scientist who had a very valuable chemical concoction in his possession.  When Ambrose kills the scientist and takes off with the luggage, Hunt is called in.

His mission (if he chooses to accept it, of course) is to track down Ambrose, discover the importance of the concoction and deal with it accordingly.  He can select two agents to work with him but a mysterious seductress by the name of Nyah Hall (Newton) must accompany him.  Her significance is revealed when Ethan is told that she is a former flame of Ambrose and will be used a bait to lure him from hiding.

I won’t spoil much more of the thin plot for those who do care what happens.  In similar vein to the original, the script for Mission Impossible 2 defies all logic.  It’s hard to believe that someone was paid for putting these words on a page.  Their perfect prose and poise had all the marks of a Shakespearean performance.  The characters have take themselves way too seriously with the exception of Hopkins (who is hardly seen).  If you’re going to have such a zany plot, at least a few laughs could have been thrown in.

There is a scene where no less than 6 men fire upon Hunt in a relatively open laboratory for a period of fifteen seconds and yet he cannot be hit.  Why can’t someone come up with something more interesting than that?  This raises two questions.  Firstly, if Ethan is the world’s leading spy, how does he put himself is such a dangerous situation?  Secondly, if Ambrose is one of the world’s leading villains, why can’t he hire henchman with some experience is shooting a gun in an accurate fashion.

Irrespective of the story, the action scenes in the film are shot and edited brilliantly.  Cruise and Scott performed a great deal of there own stunts and the blend between what is really them and what is a stunt double is unnoticeable - a credit to director John Woo (Face/Off).  However, the final action scene is flimsy and looks strikingly similar to the fights I see watching WWF wrestling on TV.  A very ordinary film score was turned in from Hans Zimmer which is a surprise having praised him last month for Gladiator.

Sydney was used as the backdrop for the film with the familiar landmarks of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House and even Royal Randwick racecourse receiving exposure.  Even AMP got a nice plug for appearing on top of Centrepoint Tower during the film.  Could it be any more commercial?

For me, the most irritating aspect of this mission (and there were a lot of them) was most every scene between Cruise and Newton.  There is clearly no romantic connection.  Cruise plays some sort of tough, smart-arse who knows everything and Newton does nothing more than wear revealing outfits and walk slowly around like a spaced out mute with a pole shoved up her.

There was a rumoured fall out during the film between Woo and Cruise and after seeing the finished product, I understand why.  Despite appearances, I feel both aren’t happy with what’s currently screening at cinemas across the globe.  It’s a far cry from the original TV series and it’s time this series is put to rest in the grave it has already dug for itself.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 08 June 2000

This version sees seven new pieces combined with one surviving from the original - The Sorcerer's Apprentice featuring Mickey Mouse.  To open is a rather boring piece with a just a bunch of funny colours and shapes which was followed by another slow segment involving whales.

The two highlights were the depression number (played to Gershwin’s Rhapspdy in Blue), and the story of The Steadfast Tin Soldier featuring music by Shostakovich.  To end was a bewildering finale about death and rebirth that didn’t do anything for me.

Children aren’t going to be dazzled by this given the recent advances in animated stories.  It is no longer 1940 and today we see creative stories told with sensational animation (e.g. The Lion King, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, and Antz).  From the opening credits to the start of the closing credits, a mere 63 minutes passes by making it by far the shortest film I think I’ll see this year.  That is usually a bonus when taking hyperactive kids to the cinema but I feel many will have had enough after only half-and-hour.

The film has two serious flaws.  Firstly, Hollywood celebrities telling stories of how each piece was created segment all the musical numbers.  Angela Lansbury, Steve Martin and Bette Midler ramble on with frivolous details that serve little point.

Secondly, and most importantly, in the United States this film was screened only in 3-D at Imax cinemas.  For Australia, it has been adapted back into 2-D for the smaller screen and this is a tragedy.  You can tell from watching the film that it would make superb viewing in 3 dimensions because of the great mix of foreground and background images.

Enjoy it for the music but don’t expect much more from Fantasia 2000.  Save your money for the more elaborate animated creations coming soon to a cinema near you.