Oscar winner hits DVD market this week
By Bruce R. Miller Journal staff writer | Posted: Sunday, March 09, 2008
This week, it's the return of the Killer B's.
In addition to "The Bee Movie," Jerry Seinfeld's aptly named cartoon, the DVD list includes "The Mod Squad" and "Love, American Style," two icons of cheese.
Toss in "Dan in Real Life," a disappointing romance with Steve Carell and Juliette Binoche, and "August Rush," an implausible look at lost love and the week seems March Mediocrity, right?
Ah, but if you haven't seen "No Country for Old Men," the film that won this year's Oscar for Best Picture, you'll realize all is not lost.
While the Coen Brothers' film (which nabbed four statuettes including Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem) has a weak ending, it's pretty intense for a good 90 minutes.
Surprisingly violent, the adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel follows a West Texas good ol' boy (Josh Brolin) as he comes across a drug deal gone bad. Bodies are strewn on an open field; a satchel of money is just ripe for the taking. He nabs it, then brings it home unsure where to stash the treasure. His conscience bothers him, however, when a wounded man asks for water so, late in the night, he returns to the scene to fulfill the request. There, he's spotted by drug dealers and forced to flee for his life. The chase is one of the year's most exciting but it's hardly without consequence.
The Coens have given him an adversary (Bardem) who's seemingly unstoppable. Like a horror film bad guy, he can't be defeated. Even when he's injured beyond belief, he bounces back, performs self-surgery and vows to get even. Easily, the character could be viewed as a metaphor for the encroaching drug trade but there's something about Bardem that makes it anything but blood simple.
As in "Fargo," the Coens get plenty from the landscape. They don't accentuate a dialect (though the characters are right out of "The Last Picture Show") but they do enjoy the quirks that come from the time period (it's 1980), the landmarks and the threat that exists.
Brolin is a fine leading man - pulling us into his pulse-pounding journey like Janet Leigh in "Psycho." Bardem, though, is the film's fulcrum. Without his menacing demeanor (and oddball haircut), we wouldn't feel the terror quite as fully. He's like a giant lumbering into town, determined to win any showdown. It's "High Noon" in a contemporary setting.
As a sheriff determined to bring an end to the manhunt, Tommy Lee Jones walks a fine line. The Coens frame him neatly, using his shadow in two instances to say plenty about the man's growing sense of dread.
While "No Country for Old Men's" ending is cryptic, it isn't so disappointing that it negates everything that precedes it. Instead, it challenges its viewers to rethink all that has transpired and weigh the consequences. Like most good films it doesn't' disappear the minute the credits begin rolling. This is one disturbing movie that will stay with you for days.
Also: 'Bee Movie'
"The Bee Movie" is a virtual hive of puns.
Everything from Sting to Sue Bee is here in its rich, thick glory. Thank Jerry Seinfeld, who made this animated film his first big post-"Seinfeld" project. Inspired by Al Gore, no doubt, he suspects global balance rests on the wings of bees.
Without bees, there'd be no flowers, crops or honey. They're like slaves of man, forced to work until they drop. Bee farms resemble graveyards. Humans (like actor Ray Liotta) are nothing more than profiteers.
The enlightenment comes after Barry (voiced by Seinfeld) visits a florist named Vanessa (Renee Zellweger). She gives him a taste of the sweet life and lets him see just how good humans have it.
The two bond better than graham crackers and honey and decide to join forces to even the playing field. Unfortunately, a not-so-busy bee isn't a happy bee. Plenty falls apart (including the Tournament of Roses Parade) and Barry is forced to regroup.
Directed by Simon J. Smith and Steve Hickner, "The Bee Movie" doesn't drone on. It frequently gives us a bee's eye-view of the world and buzzes through a host of one-liners. Bee Larry King works at BeeNN, of course. "Hive at 5" airs the latest bee news. "The Princess and the Bee" is a logical fairy tale. Barry buzzes through the puns so quickly, he's like Seinfeld doing observational humor. He gets in some pretty good digs, too (when Vanessa has to pilot a plane, he convinces her it's easy: "Isn't John Travolta a pilot? How hard could it be?") and doesn't miss an opportunity to be a bit bawdy ("I've got to go drain the old stinger").
"The Bee Movie," though, is much better than the product placement it seems forced to embrace. Unlike "Shrek the Third" (which looked like a big ad for a mall's worth of merchandise), it doesn't live to serve the advertisers. It's a clever view of life, willing to think outside the hive.
Also:
TV: "Bats: Human Harvest"; "L'il Bush," season one; "Exalted," season one; "Fvie Days,"; "Love, American Style," season one: "Mod Squad," season one; "My Boys," season one; "South Park: Imaginationland"; "Stargate: Ark of Truth"; "Tin Man"; "Wiggles"
Movies: "And Justice for All"; "August Rush"; "Bachelor Party 2"; "Bobby Deerfield"; "Daisy Kenyon"; "Hitman"; "Lake of Fire"; "Nancy Drew"; "Sleuth"; "Summer Palace"
In addition to "The Bee Movie," Jerry Seinfeld's aptly named cartoon, the DVD list includes "The Mod Squad" and "Love, American Style," two icons of cheese.
Toss in "Dan in Real Life," a disappointing romance with Steve Carell and Juliette Binoche, and "August Rush," an implausible look at lost love and the week seems March Mediocrity, right?
Ah, but if you haven't seen "No Country for Old Men," the film that won this year's Oscar for Best Picture, you'll realize all is not lost.
While the Coen Brothers' film (which nabbed four statuettes including Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem) has a weak ending, it's pretty intense for a good 90 minutes.
Surprisingly violent, the adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel follows a West Texas good ol' boy (Josh Brolin) as he comes across a drug deal gone bad. Bodies are strewn on an open field; a satchel of money is just ripe for the taking. He nabs it, then brings it home unsure where to stash the treasure. His conscience bothers him, however, when a wounded man asks for water so, late in the night, he returns to the scene to fulfill the request. There, he's spotted by drug dealers and forced to flee for his life. The chase is one of the year's most exciting but it's hardly without consequence.
The Coens have given him an adversary (Bardem) who's seemingly unstoppable. Like a horror film bad guy, he can't be defeated. Even when he's injured beyond belief, he bounces back, performs self-surgery and vows to get even. Easily, the character could be viewed as a metaphor for the encroaching drug trade but there's something about Bardem that makes it anything but blood simple.
As in "Fargo," the Coens get plenty from the landscape. They don't accentuate a dialect (though the characters are right out of "The Last Picture Show") but they do enjoy the quirks that come from the time period (it's 1980), the landmarks and the threat that exists.
Brolin is a fine leading man - pulling us into his pulse-pounding journey like Janet Leigh in "Psycho." Bardem, though, is the film's fulcrum. Without his menacing demeanor (and oddball haircut), we wouldn't feel the terror quite as fully. He's like a giant lumbering into town, determined to win any showdown. It's "High Noon" in a contemporary setting.
As a sheriff determined to bring an end to the manhunt, Tommy Lee Jones walks a fine line. The Coens frame him neatly, using his shadow in two instances to say plenty about the man's growing sense of dread.
While "No Country for Old Men's" ending is cryptic, it isn't so disappointing that it negates everything that precedes it. Instead, it challenges its viewers to rethink all that has transpired and weigh the consequences. Like most good films it doesn't' disappear the minute the credits begin rolling. This is one disturbing movie that will stay with you for days.
Also: 'Bee Movie'
"The Bee Movie" is a virtual hive of puns.
Everything from Sting to Sue Bee is here in its rich, thick glory. Thank Jerry Seinfeld, who made this animated film his first big post-"Seinfeld" project. Inspired by Al Gore, no doubt, he suspects global balance rests on the wings of bees.
Without bees, there'd be no flowers, crops or honey. They're like slaves of man, forced to work until they drop. Bee farms resemble graveyards. Humans (like actor Ray Liotta) are nothing more than profiteers.
The enlightenment comes after Barry (voiced by Seinfeld) visits a florist named Vanessa (Renee Zellweger). She gives him a taste of the sweet life and lets him see just how good humans have it.
The two bond better than graham crackers and honey and decide to join forces to even the playing field. Unfortunately, a not-so-busy bee isn't a happy bee. Plenty falls apart (including the Tournament of Roses Parade) and Barry is forced to regroup.
Directed by Simon J. Smith and Steve Hickner, "The Bee Movie" doesn't drone on. It frequently gives us a bee's eye-view of the world and buzzes through a host of one-liners. Bee Larry King works at BeeNN, of course. "Hive at 5" airs the latest bee news. "The Princess and the Bee" is a logical fairy tale. Barry buzzes through the puns so quickly, he's like Seinfeld doing observational humor. He gets in some pretty good digs, too (when Vanessa has to pilot a plane, he convinces her it's easy: "Isn't John Travolta a pilot? How hard could it be?") and doesn't miss an opportunity to be a bit bawdy ("I've got to go drain the old stinger").
"The Bee Movie," though, is much better than the product placement it seems forced to embrace. Unlike "Shrek the Third" (which looked like a big ad for a mall's worth of merchandise), it doesn't live to serve the advertisers. It's a clever view of life, willing to think outside the hive.
Also:
TV: "Bats: Human Harvest"; "L'il Bush," season one; "Exalted," season one; "Fvie Days,"; "Love, American Style," season one: "Mod Squad," season one; "My Boys," season one; "South Park: Imaginationland"; "Stargate: Ark of Truth"; "Tin Man"; "Wiggles"
Movies: "And Justice for All"; "August Rush"; "Bachelor Party 2"; "Bobby Deerfield"; "Daisy Kenyon"; "Hitman"; "Lake of Fire"; "Nancy Drew"; "Sleuth"; "Summer Palace"
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