Screen Scenes:
By Daily Bruin Staff
May 24, 2003 9:00 p.m.
“The Italian Job” Starring Mark Wahlberg,
Charlize Theron, Edward Norton Directed by F. Gary
Gray
“The Italian Job” is a pure popcorn movie.
You’ll surely forget it as soon as you leave the theater, but
you’ll undoubtedly enjoy it while you’re there.
This caper film, a remake of the 1969 Michael Caine film, opens
with John Bridger (Donald Sutherland) and crew pulling off a
massive gold heist in the canals of Venice. The only problem? Steve
Frezelli (Ed Norton) has decided he wants the gold for himself, so
he steals the loot, kills Bridger and leaves the rest of the crew
for dead. A year later, Charlie Croker (Mark Wahlberg) recruits the
rest of the guys to help him steal back the gold. Comic relief
comes from sidekick computer expert Lyle (Seth Green). The
film’s running joke is Lyle’s insistence that everyone
call him Napster because, he claims, he invented the computer
program that roommate Shawn Fanning (seen in a cameo) then stole
from him. “It’s ’cause he stole it from me when I
was napping!” he explains of the program’s name.
The film will also get a laugh out of anyone who’s ever
driven on the 405 Freeway. While none of the characters displays
any real emotional range and the ending is really jaw-droppingly
cheesy, that’s not really important. The focus of the film is
the climactic car chase into the metro station underneath the
Hollywood and Highland shopping complex that are sure to amuse
anyone who’s been underwhelmed by this overblown tribute to
capitalism.
In the end, “The Italian Job” delivers everything it
promises: hot actors, creative action scenes, strategically hip
banter and lots of jokes about L.A. traffic. And really,
complaining about L.A. traffic never gets old.
-Johanna Davy
“Finding Nemo” Starring Albert Brooks, Ellen
Degeneres
When Marlin and Dory are trapped inside of the whale’s
mouth, riding along in a massive wavepool as Marlin pushes against
the baleen, it’s clear just how far Pixar has come along,
achieving a fantastic photo-realism that has been hinted at in
films past, but only now fully realized.
The previous Pixar films have introduced us to worlds that we
think little about, but at least have some familiarity with. We all
had toys in our bedrooms, we all see trees and fields filled with
bugs, and apparently, monster metropolises bear many resemblances
to our own. With “Nemo” we discover whole unseen
landscapes: the inner workings of an aquarium, the East Australian
Current, and of course, the whale’s mouth, massive uvula and
all. It inspires childlike awe in even the most jaded viewer.
In sharp contrast to those fantastic worlds are the charming
nuances of the characters, from the scars on the Aussie sharks to
the simple beady eyes of the seagulls, which one character
describes as “rats with feathers.” But the film’s
success rests squarely on the fins of our two protagonists. Brooks
and Degeneres do marvelous work here, serving as a foundation for
pitch-perfect voice casting across the board, arguably the best
vocal cast for any Pixar film.
There may not be as many snide, adult-themed in-jokes this time
around (the humor that made such a strong impression on audiences
with the first “Toy Story,”) but there is no room for
that winking self-awareness here. This is a film to be absorbed and
enjoyed for all the innocent wonder it inspires.
“Nemo’s” visual feats, combined with a strong
beating heart, is sure to amaze.
-Paul Mendoza
