T2 Trainspotting

The original Trainspotting may have been the absolute last movie you would have expected--or even desired--to see get a sequel. So on the surface, this film's existence makes no sense. But director Danny Boyle and company are smarter than that, and that superficial judgement disappears almost immediately once this new venture gets going. Indeed, the viewer soon realizes that he's watching not only a legitimate story in its own right, but one that serves as a logical continuation and conclusion to the first movie's tale. In fact, the original is all over this sequel, with inter-cut scenes from twenty years ago informing the story as it unfolds today. In less skilled hands, that might have been distracting, if not a painfully obvious safety net--but here it works, in a big way, and the technique helps make this piece an interesting meditation on the passage of time, on who and what we are, and if there is such a thing as destiny. That's enough of a portfolio to make this flick worth the ride.

Dark Shadows

I don’t know; this Depp-Burton thing may have run its course. Not to say that this is a bad movie, but at certain points in this picture you get the impression that maybe someone else, singly or in a pair, could have brought something better to this revision of the old TV show. There are good moments here, some nice satire of the period (a good idea not to set the action in current times), but by the end the filmmakers have gone overboard; a little too much trying, not enough just leaving it alone and letting it be. You want to applaud effort, but not so much effort that it gets in the way.

Plunkett & Macleane

Never let it be said I have no sticktoitiveness. This film languished in my "to be seen" database for at least a decade before I finally stumbled across it on one of the cable channels. Fortunately, it's a period piece, so falling out of date was impossible. And the story--a disaffected pair of young men in 1700's England turn to (literal) highway robbery to get a leg up in the world--has continual appeal, made more so by the jaunty production and good performances seen here. The ending may be a little obvious, but it's always a kick to see the rich get robbed by the poor, so it all balances out. Give it a look when you're in the mood for a bawdy tale of amoral days of yore.

Melinda and Melinda

Two divergent and competing story lines feature smug, pretentious, rich New Yorkers vs....smug, pretentious, rich New Yorkers. Perhaps that wasn't the wisest choice. But this one has problems from the ground up. The movie presents a concept story, one that may have merit in its own right, but all concepts take place within a context, here that context really works against the tale(s). The Architectural Digest interiors, the profoundly elite lives and professions of the cast, the insular feel of the presented milieu--all are distracting and work to hamper the viewer's appreciation of the philosophical puzzle being put on display. Worse still, the stories have their own share of weaknesses: the dramatic events seems shallow and unimportant, the comedic turn comes across as bland, unfunny and lacking in true wit. Both threads suffer from weak, stilted writing, and feel artificial, flat, and too "inside" to appeal to most viewers. Top it all off with the violently unfunny Will Ferrell pretending to be Woody Allen--a tired act we've seen before, and done better by better actors--and the movie comes up short in every facet. This film would have been an inferior effort from a first timer; from writer/director Allen, it's a disaster.