Tape (DVD)
Richard Linklater, known for directing films that take place over a one-day period (SLACKER, DAZED AND CONFUSED, BEFORE SUNRISE), magnifies that concept even further with TAPE. Adapted from the Stephen Belber play, TAPE takes place in a Lansing, Michigan hotel room, where two old friends reunite ten years after graduation. Vince (Ethan Hawke), a lackadaisical fire fighter who pays the rent by selling pot, and John (Robert Sean Leonard), a self-assured filmmaker whose debut feature is set to screen at the Lansing Film Festival, greet each other with smiles and hugs. But as their conversation becomes more personal, Vince brings up an old grudge from the past, which confounds John. Vince is convinced that on the night before graduation, John date-raped his ex-girlfriend, Amy (Uma Thurman), and he won`t rest until John tells him what really happened. Eventually, John admits the truth, evoking a shocking response from Vince. John must finally confront the demons from his past. When Amy arrives at the hotel room and joins the old friends, she detonates the explosive situation, accusing both Vince and John of being selfish, heartless cowards, which they actually are. Shot on digital video all in one location, TAPE is a character study that features strong performances by all three leads.R"
Director: Richard Linklater
ACTORS: Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, Robert Sean Leonard
American Psycho (DVD)
A cunning indictment of the materialism of the 1980s, AMERICAN PSYCHO is Mary Harron`s (I SHOT ANDY WARHOL) and Guinevere Turner`s (GO FISH) deft interpretation of the dark and violent Brett Easton Ellis novel of the same name. Christian Bale (VELVET GOLDMINE) plays Patrick Bateman, the personification of the me culture of Ronald Reagan`s 1980s. Imprisoned in an inane corporate existence fueled by status symbols, small talk, and gossip, Bateman begins a bloody reign of terror on nearly all that cross his path. The film`s gray and navy mise-en-scene is filled with chilly, vacant streets, hard-edged skyscrapers and cold interiors flecked with the latest technological gadgets and designer flourishes. Mary Harron`s camera glides through these spaces with the undisturbed detachment of a shark. Bale is a razor sharp Bateman whose cool, predatory grace is only matched by the equally indifferent corporate world in which he lives. Even during its most hideous scene, when a naked, chain-saw-toting Bateman goes on a screaming rampage, AMERICAN PSYCHO manages to project a cold indifference that has terrifying undertones. Harron`s film is a frightening denunciation of a consumer culture gone amuck with greed, materialism and a lack of nearly any charity whatsoever.R"
Director: Mary Harron
ACTORS: Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Reese Witherspoon, Samantha Mathis
Simone (DVD)
Viktor Taransky (Al Pacino) is a washed-up director. The beautiful Nicola (Winona Ryder), has just walked off the set of his last film, and the head of the studio--who also happens to be his ex-wife (Catherine Keener)--has just cancelled his contract. Just as a virtually hopeless Taransky is left wondering what is wrong with Hollywood, inventor Hank Aleno (Elias Koteas) presents him with a bombshell: a virtual actress. Created from computer code, Hank`s invention--deemed S1M0NE from the abbreviated Simulation 1 and morphed into Simone for the masses--is beautiful, talented, and breathtakingly real. Soon, Taransky is editing Simone`s image into his films and creating masterpieces. He devises elaborate schemes to make Simone appear to be human, all the while masterminding her every move. As Simone becomes an international superstar, a bewildered Taransky is left to wonder how real Simone actually is and how much power she has over him. But his attempts to sabotage her career only drag him further into the media frenzy that his creation attracts. Written and directed by Andrew Niccol (GATTACA), S1M0NE proves to be an interesting and insightful look at the movie business and the star-hungry media.PG-13"
Director: Andrew Niccol
ACTORS: Al Pacino, Catherine Keener, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Jay Mohr, Rachel Roberts
Blind Light (VHS)
Edie Falco (THE SOPRANOS) stars in this daring drama from the minds of Pola Rapaport and Wolfgang Held. Falco plays Diana DiBianco, a photographer who is scouting locations in Capri, Italy. While there, she falls under the spell of Alex Munthe (Per Myrberg), a mysterious scientist who is literally blinded by his obsession with the sun. Challenging and profound, BLIND LIGHT features music from Laurie Anderson, Van Morrison, Peter Gabriel, and many more.NR"
Director: Pola Rapaport
ACTORS: Edie Falco, Per Myrberg
Fast Food, Fast Women (DVD)
Writer-director Amos Kollek (SUE) tackles the neurotic, fragile, fast-paced world of New York City in FAST FOOD, FAST WOMEN, a bittersweet comedy that shows just how difficult it is to find love in modern times. The revolving story focuses on Bella (Anna Thomson), a waitress who is on the verge of her thirty-fifth birthday and trapped in a winless affair with a popular Broadway producer. Her mother sets her up with Bruno (Jamie Harris), an unpublished writer who is forced to drive a cab in order to support his newly inherited two children. Also thrown into the mix are Paul (Robert Modica), a sensitive middle-aged man who finds himself falling in love with the simple, kind Emily (Louise Lasser), and Seymour (Victor Argo), Paul`s friend who has become infatuated with Wanda (Valerie Geffner), a beautiful, educated exotic dancer. In trying to outthink their situations and make sure everything proceeds smoothly this time around, the characters react against their better judgments, shooting themselves in the foot in the process, which threatens to ruin the fairytale ending that everyone so desperately wants. Kollek`s film is an entertaining, though at times excruciatingly painful, viewing experience, due to the honest but misguided actions of its characters.R"
Director: Amos Kollek
ACTORS: Anna Thompson, Jamie Harris, Victor Argo, Louise Lasser, Robert Modica
