Screen Scenes

“21 Grams”
Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu
Focus Features

Following his critically acclaimed 2000 release “Amores
Perros,” Mexican director Alejandro González
Iñárritu has seamlessly translated his unique,
multilinear narrative technique into an astonishing
English-language film starring Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro and
Naomi Watts. As in “Amores Perros,” the story revolves
around the perspectives of three individuals all haunted by a
tragic accident. The film also once again combines the talents of
screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga and cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto.
Arriaga’s postmodern, fractured storytelling style easily
could have become an exercise in confusion if not for his efforts
to make careful, deliberate choices about revealing what the
audience needs to know and when they need to know it. To call
Prieto something of a marvel would be an enormous understatement.
Comfortable in warm, muted suburbia as much as washed-out, harsh
prison cells, Prieto boldly and deftly breaks rules that other
cinematographers would describe as hard and fast. His willingness
to try camera angles that seem to be expressly designed to cause
discomfort is as thrilling as it is nauseating, and film buffs
should find many of his choices revelatory. The brilliant Watts
manages to hold her own opposite the always-formidable Penn by
letting her character’s anguish wash over her like a wave.
The actress portrays grief not as a series of emotional outbursts
but as a state of uncertainty, a vacuum of feelings that comes from
barely being alive. Apart from González
Iñárritu’s tendency to cut unnecessarily to scenes
of floating fall leaves ““ stark visuals abound in this film,
making shots like these redundant and boring ““ the filmmaker
has created what is without a doubt one of the most exciting new
films of the year. -Sommer Mathis

“National Lampoon’s Thanksgiving
Reunion”
Directed by Neil Israel
Premieres Sunday, Nov. 23, at 8 p.m. on TBS Superstation

Who doesn’t love National Lampoon? “Animal
House.” The “Vacation” series. Even “Van
Wilder” is funny ““ if you’re drunk enough. Well,
go ahead and get liquored up, but it won’t make
“National Lampoon’s Thanksgiving Reunion” any
better than what it is: a sub-par made-for-TV movie featuring
B-list actors and a cliched, hackneyed script. This is not to
insult the talent. Bryan Cranston is very funny as Hal on
“Malcolm in the Middle,” and Judge Reinhold was
perfectly enjoyable in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”
The entire cast works hard, doubtlessly trying to emulate the much
funnier “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.”
The film just plays like a really bad, long sitcom that tries in
vain to wrap everything into a nice, “family is all that
matters” conclusion. Reinhold plays Dr. Mitch Snider,
“anesthesiologist” to the stars, who has a Hollywood
mansion, a wife obsessed with spinning, and two self-involved
children. One day he gets a letter from his cousin Woodrow
(Cranston), a backwoods hick, inviting him and his family for
Thanksgiving dinner. Off go the Sniders in their Mercedes SUV to
visit the other Sniders, who live a far less glamorous life in some
hillbilly town. Isn’t it hilarious? The two families have
nothing in common! There are complications and arguments, and
eventually the doctor realizes no matter how weird these people
are, they’re still his family. It’s more interesting to
contemplate how many beers it would take to actually make this
thing watchable. If you’re looking to see how a family
Thanksgiving possibly could be worse than yours, then by all means
check this out. Otherwise, just skip this trash and go rent
“Animal House” for the 37th time. – Johanna
Davy