July 23, 2008 10:41 AM
What I'm watching (movies)
One way to stay cool during his long hot summer is to go to the movies. Here are a few flicks I've managed to catch:
The Dark Knight: The greatest comic book movie since the invention of the genre? Probably not, but still a roller coaster ride of darkness. Lots of explosions, lots of dark exposition and powerhouse performances from the late Heath Ledger as The Joker and Aaron Eckhart as Harvey "Two-Face" Dent. I have a friend who's already seen this film three times, which at 2 hours and 40 minutes per showing, is an entire work day. I wish it were shorter, and I'm not entirely sold on Maggie Gyllenhall as Bruce Wayne's love interest. Still, it boasts that Lord of the Rings final hour where you repeatedly think it's about to end and it serves up yet another spur to the storyline.
Iron Man: At least four people told me this was the best comic book movie they'd ever seen. Which means I have four friends in serious need of therapty. Still, until Batman came along, it offered the summer's bigest bang for the buck, with Robert Downey Jr. as billionaire industrialist Tony Stark, who is captured by Muslim rebels and forced to improvise. They want him to build them a rocket; he builds himself a super hero suit. Gwyneth Paltrow shines as his assistant Pepper Potts, but Oscar-nominee Terrence Howard is wasted in the role of a military attache. Also, I was a bit thrown by the geopolitical plot about arms sales. Kinda deep for a comic book flick.
Journey to the Center of the Earth, 3-D: Brendan Frasier is a college geology professor and Josh Hutcherson is his surly 13-year-old nephew. They travel to Iceland in search of Josh's long lost father, and with the help of a climbing guide they descend into a volcano. Well, descend is the wrong word: The floor collapses and they plummet toward the center of the earth. This is a good film for slightly older kids (say 10 and up), with its dinosaurs and trippy scenery. The plot is minimalist (although Jules Verne's book actually becomes a plot device rather than simply the basis for the plot). Also, I thought the 3-D gave it a kick it might otherwise lack. Flying fish come right at you, and a scene where Josh must balance on a string of floating rocks is excellent.
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