Comedians, musclemen appearing at theaters

Comedians, musclemen appearing at theaters

JAKARTA (JP): Two Hollywood musclemen (one Austrian, one
Belgian) go head-to-head with their new action flicks.

Here's the lineup of movies currently playing at local
theaters, with reviews and grades by Rayya Makarim (RM), Oren
Murphy (OM) and Tam Notosusanto (TN).

Bowfinger. Screwball comedy; starring Steve Martin, Eddie
Murphy and Heather Graham. Directed by Frank Oz.

Small-time film director Bobby Bowfinger (Martin) receives the
script of his dreams and sets out to make a film with no money, a
production crew that includes his dog and starring one of the
biggest action stars in Hollywood, the paranoid Kit (Murphy). The
one hitch is that Kit has no idea he is in the film. Bowfinger
finds plenty of ingenious schemes to make Kit an unknowing star
in his film, and delivers lots of laughs in the process. (Grade:
B+ by OM)

Deep Blue Sea. Shark movie; starring Saffron Burrows, Thomas
Jane, LL Cool J, Michael Rapaport, Stellan Skarsgard and Samuel
L. Jackson. Directed by Renny Harlin.

After a couple of flops, Harlin, the director of box-office
hits Die Hard 2 and Cliffhanger, returns with this Jaws-
meets-The Poseidon Adventure spectacle. Intelligent sharks (don't
ask) at an off-shore underwater research lab go berserk and start
chomping on scientists as these unfortunate humans make a mad
dash to the surface. Cool J's lovable, Bible-spouting cook
lightens the movie a bit, but the graphic dismemberment scenes
and the sight of those still-wiggling body parts will guarantee
you nightmares. (Grade: B- by TN).

End of Days. Action-thriller; starring Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Pollak, Robin Tunney, Miriam Margolyes and
Rod Steiger. Directed by Peter Hyams.

Satan has his own way to celebrate the new millennium:
coupling with the Chosen Virgin (Tunney) to give the world a
brand new Rosemary's baby. Ex-cop Schwarzenegger must stop him to
prevent an untimely Armageddon. The movie is rich in pyrotechnics
but less so in excitement. And Byrne is not as gripping as his
Usual Suspects costar Kevin Spacey in his portrayal of the devil
incarnate. But it's sort of fun seeing Arnold being thrown around
the room by the overweight, middle-aged woman played by
Margolyes. (Grade: C by TN).

The Faculty. Teen sci-fi horror; starring Elijah Wood, Josh
Hartnett, Famke Janssen, Robert Patrick, Salma Hayek and Piper
Laurie. Directed by Robert Rodriguez.

Students at a suburban high school suspect their teachers are
actually aliens. Hmm, isn't that what most kids think of their
teachers? After spoofing horror movies, screenwriter Kevin
Williamson (Scream) now takes a stab at the sci-fi genre with
this fresh film where the evil aliens are healthy (they drink
more than eight glasses of water a day), and heroin is the
substance that saves the human race. However, our censor board's
apparent aversion to nudity makes the climactic showdown between
man and alien rather confusing. (Grade: B- by TN).

Inferno. Action; starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Pat Morita,
Larry Drake and Vincent Schiavelli. Directed by John G. Avildsen.

As if emerging from a Lucky Strike commercial, Van Damme, with
his tank top and cool motorcycle, rides into an isolated desert
town to rid the innocent citizens of a gang of despicable,
unwashed hoodlums. With the numerous explosions and large body
count it's pure Van Damme, but nothing an Oscar-winning director
like Avildsen (Rocky) should have been involved with.
(Grade: C- by TN).

Nightwatch. Thriller; starring Nick Nolte, Ewan McGregor,
Patricia Arquette, Josh Brolin and Lauren Graham.

A student takes on a part-time job as a nightwatchman at a
morgue at the same time a serial killer is on the loose. Strange
things start happening while he's working, and as more murders
occur all the evidence seems to point at him. The film is
effective in evoking a sense of fear and paranoia with the use of
close-ups and the eerie setting. A quite enjoyable suspense
thriller. (Grade: B by RM).

The Thomas Crown Affair. Caper movie; starring Pierce Brosnan,
Rene Russo, Denis Leary and Faye Dunaway. Directed by John
McTiernan.

Thomas Crown (Brosnan) is a wealthy businessman who
masterminds the theft of a US$100 million Monet from New York's
Metropolitan Museum of Art. Catherine Banning (Russo) is an
insurance agent who is determined to retrieve the painting by any
means. A battle of wits between the two slowly develops into more
complex emotional ties. McTiernan directs action films (Die Hard,
Predator), not romantic ones. Thus, besides the opening and
closing scenes, the middle-section of the film drags into
sentimental mush. (Graded B- by RM)