Gary Wolcott's "Mr. Movie" column has appeared in the Tri-City Herald since 1992. The Tri-City native now lives in Portland, Ore., and watches about 250 movies each year. This member of Portland's association of movie critics, Far From Hollywood, believes movies are made to be seen on theater screens and should be seen there and not on television screens. Have a question for Mr. Movie? Click on "Add Comment" below. Mr. Movie has joined Twitter. Follow him here.
Hows this for unique. A sports movie without a lot of sports action.
Brilliant. The tension of whether the team wins or loses comes from watching the faces of the coach and fans and not from a series of staged, slow-motion last-minute heroics.
Soccer is the game. The Damned United is based on the true story of Brian Clough, who is considered by many fans to be Englands greatest ever coach. Or thats what writer Peter Morgans screenplay suggests.
Michael Sheen (The Queen) portrays Clough as an arrogant self-promoter, and the story is centered around Cloughs 44-day failure as coach of one of Englands top-tier soccer teams. Flashbacks tell you how he got there and what happened after.
The Damned United is directed by Tom Hooper, who did seven episodes of the award-winning HBO TV series John Adams. His story-telling skills are superb. But Hooper gets lots of help from Morgan, whose unique writing style managed to make the Queen of England, David Frost and Richard Nixon interesting.
When you can do that, you walk on water. And this one is brilliant, too. The Damned United is a damned good movie.
Mr. Movie rating: 5 stars
Rated R for language and some mature themes. It opens Friday, Nov. 27 at the Carmike 12.
5 stars to 4 1/2 stars: Must see on the big screen
4 stars to 3 1/2 stars: Good film, see it if it's your type of movie.
3 stars to 2 1/2 stars: Wait until it comes out on video.
2 stars to 1 star: Don't bother.
0 stars: Speaks for itself.
The tale part of Dolphin Tale is a stretch. A big one. Here’s the truthful part of the story. Winter is an actual dolphin whose tail was irreparably damaged by a crab pot and had to be removed. The tail was replaced by a prosthetic designed by a team and not a crusty but wise old African-American engineer.
'My Week with Marilyn' elevates Michelle Williams' career
As a snapshot of history, My Week with Marilyn is fascinating.
Take that thought another step into good movie territory, and My Week with Marilyn isn’t that great. It’s not bad, but this is not a story that will wow you.
What does grab your attention are the great performances that dot its landscape and will have you leaving the theater jaw agape.
Sometimes, producers make movies just for the accolades.
Here’s the formula. Grab a major talent and throw something together. Wait to release it until the end of the year. Do the release with lots of hype. The buzz sells everyone on the idea that the picture is the next best thing.
When you land a Meryl Streep to play a role in whatever you toss together, then the buzz gets an extra kick. Critics in Los Angeles and New York screen it first. They rave about her acting, and the extra kick gets an extra kick.
'The Lion King' in 3D crowning achievement for animation
Hans Zimmer’s rich, dirt deep score and the Elton John/Tim Rice songs and stunning animation literally transport you from theater seat to the plains and jungles of Africa.
A story packed with clever lines and colorful characters created and written by a staggering sum of 29 writers make The Lion King — in some circles of life — the all-time animated feature king.
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