Michael Jackson’s This Is It (2009)

O Masterpiece

X Excellent

O Good

O OK

O Mediocre

O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / October 30, 2009

Named after what he intended to be his final concert tour, Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” is a behind-the-scenes musical documentary that was filmed between March and June of this year.

Like many documentaries, it has talking-head interviews and archival reel, but the majority of the film is rehearsal footage of the preparation for the never-to-be concert series. Introductory screen titles tell us the film is “for the fans.” Indeed it is. Jackson’s devotees will revere its revealing intimacy.

Although his untimely death precluded the realization of the aptly named concerts, the title “This Is It” ironically suits this filmic remnant better than it could have represented the tour. Since echoes of the concert’s conception are immortalized by the film, fans still get to see what Jackson’s final tour would have been like — and perhaps an even vaster audience will now see these performances.

If I counted correctly, “This Is It” features 16 live performances, which have been seamlessly spliced together from multiple rehearsals for each song. (This is evident from Jackson’s varying attire during each performance.)

Ranging from Jackson 5-era tunes to some of his most recent songs, the film’s set includes “Human Nature,” “Smooth Criminal,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “I Want You Back,” “I’ll Be There,” “Thriller,” “Beat It,” “Black or White,” “Earth Song,” “Billie Jean,” and “Man in the Mirror,” just to name a few.

Jackson’s smooth-as-wet-glass vocal quality is reproduced as beautifully as it is heard on his records. And the revolutionary dancer’s movements are as hypnotic to watch as fire, while we wonder how this 50-year-old convulses and contorts just as nimbly as he did when he was half that age.

The best parts of the film are moments when the benevolent singer humbly coaches his cast and crew.

“This Is It” is rated PG. It has some suggestive choreography, provocatively dressed dancers and costumed ghouls that might unnerve younger viewers.

Jackson’s life was unexpectedly and permanently abbreviated on June 25. Like many swooning and brooding artists before him, Jackson was dismissed and relegated to sideshow obscurity until his death exalted his work anew. One cannot help but feel a sense of loss while watching this film, knowing that it is the last we have of this exquisite entertainer. An artistic giant has fallen; a gentle genius has been stilled.

Directed by Kenny Ortega

Michael Jackson

Documentary 112 min.

MPAA: PG (for some suggestive choreography and scary images)

Paranormal Activity (2009)

O Masterpiece

X Excellent

O Good

O OK

O Mediocre

O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / October 23, 2009

Never have I experienced such a buzzing audience as when I left the theater after watching “Paranormal Activity” — a truly scary, must-see horror film that has become something of a cultural phenomenon.

Entirely set at a San Diego home, the startling events depicted in “Paranormal Activity” span a three-week period in the fall of 2006.

Something awful has been terrorizing Katie ever since she was 8 years old. She doesn’t know what it is, but she knows it wishes her harm.

Katie’s plucky boyfriend, Micah, is determined to solve her problem by setting up a camera and filming their everyday routine — including their sleep — in hopes of capturing some footage of the unexplainable occurrences that have been troubling her.

Similar to “The Blair Witch Project” and “Cloverfield,” the movie itself — or what we’re shown onscreen — consists only of the subject matter recorded by Micah’s camera. This intriguing technique draws us into the film as too-close-for-comfort onlookers, placing us in the presence of the characters’ peril.

Also, the film’s documentary-style appearance and its actors’ naturalistic performances lend “Paranormal Activity” a convincing air of reality.

Of course there will be naysayers who won’t think this film is frightening. No doubt some viewers will even be bored by its absence of gore, violence, sexuality, nudity, and yes, plot.

But it is the film’s stark simplicity that provides its power. “Paranormal Activity” taps into universal, deep-seated childhood fears, like “What was that noise?” and “What happens around me while I’m asleep?”

Micah’s constant filming allows us to hear “the things that go ‘bump’ in the night” and see some visual manifestations of paranormal activity. As with M. Night Shyamalan’s “Signs,” “Paranormal Activity” is a movie in which what we hear — and imagine — is much scarier than what we see.

The film ominously informs us from the beginning that the footage we’re watching has been provided by the couple’s families and the police department. It also keeps emphasizing that the unseen force’s malevolent tormenting will continue to escalate in severity — which it does. Knowing the incidents will increasingly get worse inflicts a profound sense of dread upon us.

So, if you only see one movie in theaters this Halloween, see “Paranormal Activity” — but avoid its spoiler-filled trailers. And if you want to rent a good movie for the spooky season, rent Michael Dougherty’s “Trick ’r Treat” (2008).

Directed by Oren Peli

Katie Featherston / Micah Sloat

Horror 86 min.

MPAA: R (for language)

Where the Wild Things Are (2009)

O Masterpiece

X Excellent

O Good

O OK

O Mediocre

O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / October 16, 2009

Writer-director Spike Jonze has somehow taken the abstract concept of childhood and remarkably projected it onto the silver screen. His new film, “Where the Wild Things Are,” is based on the much loved, 1963 book of the same name, by Maurice Sendak.

Though it will be unpopular, I must note that Sendak’s book is another overrated, under-plotted children’s book, much like “Goodnight Moon,” whose affection among adults likely comes from nostalgia rather than literary impact.

In other words, there’s not much story in the book’s 40-some pages to adapt into a feature-length film. But Jonze and his co-writer, Dave Eggers, have provided an example of a filmic adaption that’s still successful, despite having scarce source material.

As in the book, an unruly kid named Max (Max Records) misbehaves wildly before dinner, which incites a conflict with his mother (Catherine Keener). Max is scolded — and in his estimation — banished. His feelings of alienation lead the feral, wolf-suited boy on an adventure where he sojourns in another land, a place where he fits in, where the wild things are.

It is on this undomesticated island that the film’s magic happens. The characters of Max’s new world are patterned after his everyday relationships, much like “The Wizard of Oz,” where Dorothy’s acquaintances, friend or foe, have counterparts back in Kansas.

These thematic parallels of Max’s life are surprisingly poignant. The film is skillfully subtle in the way it represents the boy’s psyche through the circumstances of his wild kingdom, repeatedly calling to mind the introductory plot line that preceded them. This exceptional storytelling technique imitates the manner in which aspects of our lives sometimes show up in our dreams.

Though “Where the Wild Things Are” is rated PG and is considered a family movie, it’s probably not suitable for young children. My fatherly recommendation would be for ages 8 and up, depending on the child. This film is not always warm and cuddly; in fact, it has violent, menacing sequences and portrays a child with serious behavioral problems.

Perhaps most notably, “Where the Wild Things Are” has a bizarre and affecting undercurrent that I can only describe as a longing, melancholy ache that left me with a remnant of sadness. Maybe what stayed with me was the film’s uncanny ability to peer into the minds of children, illustrating their fears, vulnerability and need for validation.

Directed by Spike Jonze

Max Records / James Gandolfini / Catherine Keener

Fantasy 101 min.

MPAA: PG (for mild thematic elements, some adventure action and brief language)

Couples Retreat (2009)

O Masterpiece

O Excellent

O Good

O OK

X Mediocre

O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / October 9, 2009

Even if you aren’t a film buff, you’re probably already familiar with Peter Billingsley, the debuting director of “Couples Retreat.” He played Ralphie, the boy who wanted a Red Ryder BB gun in “A Christmas Story.” Unfortunately, Billingsley’s first feature-length movie is essentially four bad romantic comedies shoehorned into one.

Dave (Vince Vaughn) and his wife, Ronnie (Malin Akerman), are your typical, busy parents. Their hectic lives and mischievous boys leave them little time for each other. Joey and Lucy (Jon Favreau and Kristin Davis) have been anxiously awaiting their daughter’s departure for college, so they can get a divorce. Shane (Faizon Love) is already divorced but still devastated over losing his wife, so he distracts himself with the companionship of a 20-year-old named Trudy (Kali Hawk).

And Jason and Cynthia (Jason Bateman and Kristen Bell) have had trouble trying to bear a child, which has caused a major rift in their marriage, to the point that they’re also considering a divorce — a plot line that is decidedly not comedic material. When Jason and Cynthia convince their friends to attend an exotic retreat, the eight of them hope for a paradisiacal getaway. But their group vacation has a difficult design of built-in relationship counseling.

It is precisely these counseling sessions (and the reruns of these unpleasant discussions again with their friends) that oddly drag this otherwise brightly colored, picturesque movie into the doldrums of a dull drama. Because “Couples Retreat” is hardly funny — at all — its filmmakers seem to hope that supplying lots of sun-bathed bodies of male and female beauties will sufficiently entertain us.

The movie’s capable cast is an ensemble of generally funny, likable actors who are given little to work with in the way of plot and dialogue. Favreau and Vaughn’s hardships are mostly self-inflicted, however, since they wrote this movie, along with Dana Fox.

Filmmaking requires the hard work of numerous collaborators. I don’t dismiss their efforts lightly. But from a consumer’s standpoint, “Couples Retreat” is an example of apathetic customer service, the cinematic equivalent of a carelessly thrown-together fast food hamburger whose pickles are stacked vertically beneath a bun that’s sliding off in ketchup.

Even though I won’t endorse “Couples Retreat,” there are other movies playing locally that I recommend, such as “Zombieland,” “Surrogates,” “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs,” “All About Steve” and “Whip It.”

Directed by Peter Billingsley

Vince Vaughn / Jason Bateman / Jon Favreau

Comedy 107 min.

MPAA: PG-13 (on appeal for sexual content and language)

The Invention of Lying (2009)

O Masterpiece

O Excellent

O Good

X OK

O Mediocre

O Avoid

Review by Jason Pyles / October 2, 2009

Each movie exists as its own self-contained universe. Some movie worlds are much like our own, while others are fantastical realms, far removed from reality as we know it.

And occasionally we’re shown places — like the one where “The Invention of Lying” is set — that are mostly familiar, except for some sort of unusual twist. For example, this devious romantic comedy takes place in a world where lying doesn’t exist yet. There has never been deceit, flattery, fiction or dishonesty of any kind. No one has ever “said something that wasn’t.”

Ricky Gervais (“The Office”) plays Mark Bellison, a seemingly unexceptional person who endures daily, verbal assaults, thanks to the candor of his acquaintances. Mark works as an unpopular screenwriter at Lecture Films, a production company whose nonfiction movies consist of a person sitting in a chair, recapping historical events.

He goes on an awkwardly straightforward date with a woman he has long admired, but Mark’s charming intelligence isn’t enough to interest Anna (Jennifer Garner), who’s carefully searching for a moneyed mate from a gene pool that can yield physically attractive offspring.

So far, so good. “The Invention of Lying” gets off the ground with this intriguing premise, a concept that’s akin to Jim Carrey’s “Liar Liar” and “Yes Man.”

Initially the movie is uncomfortably insightful in its ability to reveal just how often we can be unintentionally deceitful in everyday situations, such as the common “How are you?” — “I’m fine,” greeting sequence. But for comedic effect, these characters aren’t able to withhold unpleasant remarks; they seem compelled to confess every thought, regardless of its hurtfulness, without flinching.

One day Mark stumbles onto the invention of lying, which he wields to his advantage in a world where everyone believes anything he says.

What I’ve described thus far provides the basis for smart humor (such as blatantly honest advertising campaigns), as well as some distasteful jokes concerning bodily functions and sexual behavior.

But just when “The Invention of Lying” starts to get repetitive with its one trick — namely, terrifying truthfulness — it reveals ulterior skulduggery: This movie is also a pernicious satire on religion, especially Christianity.

Indeed, this film could have had the alternate title, “The Invention of Religion,” because that’s another creation of Mark’s, suggesting that faith is fabricated. Though this mocking theme is set forth in the guise of a satirical comedy, I suspect some religious-conservative moviegoers may not find “The Invention of Lying” one bit funny.

Directed by Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson

Ricky Gervais / Jennifer Garner / Rob Lowe

Comedy 100 min.

MPAA: PG-13 (for language including some sexual material and a drug reference)