|
|
||
New movie reviews Date published: 11/12/2009
"DISNEY'S A CHRISTMAS CAROL" (PG) HH STARRING: JIM CARREY, GARY OLDMAN, COLIN FIRTH, ROBIN WRIGHT PENN, BOB HOSKINS RUNNING TIME: 96 min. This is worth seeing, though only because it's such an amazing piece of technology that makes grand but grimy Londontown come alive in a dazzling 3-D way. It's a shame that there's not more life or joy in it, as director Robert Zemeckis sticks so closely and moves so quickly with this well-known Dickens tale that there's little room for emotion of any kind. The decision to use Jim Carrey for so many roles, from Scrooge to the three ghosts that visit him, doesn't help, as other actors might have at least created some variety. Carrey seems to have been kept on a short leash in his approach to voicing Scrooge, making him grouchy enough, but never really adding much of that Carrey fun and craziness. We have to experience the depths with Scrooge for the ending to have much power. But it feels like so much of this is cold and depressing, true to the serious tome it interprets, that's it's no joy to see. Thankfully, there are scenes where Scrooge and his ghostly guides zoom through the sky or whirl along snowy paths in this magnificent digital 3-D animation. And the ending, of course, creates a few merry moments. But youngsters and even their parents may find there aren't enough of them to make this a palatable family Christmas treat. The problem may be that this isn't really a family-fun choice for a Christmas flick. It would be much better as a live action film with serious actors to convey a serious subject, than a Disney 3-D whirl marketed as a joyous Christmas tale. Rated PG for scary sequences and images. [RF, RA, M] "THE BOX" (PG-13) H STARRING: CAMERON DIAZ, JAMES MARSDEN, FRANK LANGELLA RUNNING TIME: 115 min. Your first clue that this isn't a serious picture with a serious moral dilemma at its core is that this wreck of a picture stars Cameron Diaz and James Marsden, neither of them serious, heavyweight actors. Your second is that they use the biggest cop-out on the planet--higher power aliens are behind this mess--to explain this "press the button, get a million bucks" process that leads to dead bodies.
Date published: 11/12/2009
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
|
|
|||||||||||||||
