After seeing Tim Roth whine his way through Reservoir Dogs (so
you got shot in the stomach, walk it off already), it's always been a
dream of mine to watch a two-hour movie about him getting tortured.
But like most dreams, it turned out the wanting was better than the
having. 2007's English-language remake of Funny Games is a
dark, distressing thriller, but its attempts at realism, grotesque as
they are, don't make for very great fiction.
On a lakefront vacation, Roth and Naomi Watts are accosted by Michael
Pitt and Brady Corbet. Hostages in their own home, the couple and
their young son are forced to play a series of cruel games by their
captors.
Meanwhile, director Michael Haneke is playing something of a game with
us. Home invasion movies usually play on our anxieties, tweaking us
with images of ordinary people suffering through graphic violence (the
best kind of violence). Then we get to feel all safe and snuggly when
the family righteously shoves the bad guy's hand into a sausage
grinder.
Funny Games is not that kind of movie. Perversely, all its
violence takes place just outside the frame, almost like it's daring
us to be upset at not getting to see people getting brutalized. It's a
lot like Lucy repeatedly yanking that football away from Charlie
Brown, only instead of a football it's a shotgun blast to the face.
And with Roth crippled right off the bat, there isn't much chance for
the good guys to fight back or do much of anything besides get driven
slowly insane by Pitt and Corbet, who provide most of the movie's
appeal. Quietly threatening, with affects so flat you could slide them
under a closed door, the two playful young psychopaths are about as
creepy as demented murderers come.
Good thing they've got so much screen time. Other than some
interesting camera work, there isn't much entertainment to be had
here. In some ways more of an experiment (or an outright accusation)
than a movie, Funny Games makes a strong point, but ends up
doggedly determined not to enjoy itself. Sure, in real life it might
not be good times to be taken prisoner in your own home, thoroughly
assaulted, and threatened with death, but since when weren't we
allowed to have fun watching it happen to someone else?
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'Fright Night' sucks (blood)
'Fright Night' sucks (blood)
Younger audiences, those unfamiliar with the original or that hate the twaddle of Twilight will likely like Fright Night . Hey, no Twilight vegan, goody-two-shoes crap here. At least this vampire sucks.
Unfortunately, so does much of his movie, and in more ways than one.
Before we get to the bad news, the good news. This vampire and his spawn are the real deal. Colin Farrell's Jerry never took a course in sulking 101. He doesn't sigh or pout over unfulfilled love. This guy is a bloodsucking, babe hunting, cold-hearted, pitiless villain like vampires of old.
Sounders owner weighs in on club
Sounders owner weighs in on club
Sounders FC trained Tuesday with two high-profile fans looking on: majority owner Joe Roth and former goalkeeper Kasey Keller.
'Big Miracle' not so big, but miraculous
'Big Miracle' not so big, but miraculous
You can legitimately call Big Miracle the feel good movie of the year.
Never mind that the year isn’t very old. It is hard — however — not to like an “inspired” by a true story flick about saving endangered whales.
An inspired John Krasinski — from TV’s The Office — anchors the movie and leads an equally inspired cast of who’s who actors. Best known are Drew Barrymore and Kristen Bell. Supporting them are Ted Danson, Tim Blake Nelson, Dermot Mulroney and others.
'50/50' guaranteed to win you over
'50/50' guaranteed to win you over
Is there anything better than going to the theater and being wildly surprised by what you just saw?
Well, yes. Of course there is. What kind of sad life are you living where a really good movie is actually the best thing in your life? Seriously, get a puppy. They poop all over, but have you ever heard a 3-pound dog try to growl? They sound like Barbie's motorboat. Um, not that kind. The kind that floats on water. Forget it.
Still, if a surprise classic isn't the same as making out with a barista or scoring the worldwide track record on Bowser's Castle, it's still good enough to make you feel like a better person for the whole drive home until you find what that stupid puppy's done to your carpet and revert to being just as beaty as ever. Still, you want a really, really good drive home? Go see 50/50 .
Tri-City chef continues to grow spice business
Tri-City chef continues to grow spice business
KENNEWICK -- Jason LaBarge repeatedly says, "I don't want to be known as a spice salesman."
And yet, the seasoned Tri-City chef is starting to make a name for himself with LaBarge Gourmet Spices.
Throughout his career, the graduate of Kamiakin High School and Portland's Western Culinary Institute worked in kitchens where the staff would create meat rubs. But the idea for his spice rub business only came to him a couple of years ago when he was executive chef at Meadow Springs Country Club in Richland.
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