Film uses science, not religion, to debate Darwin


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With nothing but a projector screen and folding chairs, the tiny Embassy Auditorium of the Davidson Conference Center is a far cry from the 50-foot-high IMAX theater where Darwin’s Dilemma was originally scheduled to be screened. Even though the California Science Center recently backed out of its contract to host the film’s Los Angeles premiere, […]

Documentary becomes Jackson’s final curtain call


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This is not a film about Michael Jackson’s life; his eccentricities and tribulations are never addressed. Neither is this film about his death; not once did it mention Jackson’s untimely end. This film is simply a compilation of segments of rehearsal footage for his then-upcoming concert, This Is It. And the film, more concert than […]

Ideologies collide in search for religious truths


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Renowned author and self-described atheist Christopher Hitchens goes toe-to-toe with conservative evangelical pastor Douglas Wilson in a new documentary, Collision. The film tracks Hitchens and Wilson through a series of debates held across the United States as they debate the question: “Is Christianity good for the world?” Interspersed with grainy candid footage of the two […]

The second coming of the horror genre


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In Antichrist, a self-disemboweling fox utters the phrase, “Chaos reigns.” Director Lars von Trier makes sure it really does, by illustrating every brutal detail necessary on screen and demonstrating just how horrifying chaos can be. The movie stars Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg as He and She, a couple whose young son falls to his […]

‘Stan Helsing’ a helpless victim of its own absurdity


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The film Stan Helsing, written and directed by Bo Zenga, prominently displays the words “A Parody” in the opening credits, which leads one to believe that the movie will, in fact, be an acceptably humorous spoof. It’s supposed to poke fun at the horror genre, which has been done repeatedly (Scary Movie 1, 2, 3, […]

Muay Thai action outshines minimal plot


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Ong Bak 2: The Beginning proves that ridiculously awesome and awesomely ridiculous are not interchangeable. Although grand orchestrator Tony Jaa does a striking job with art design and skull-crushing action, the story and one-dimensional characters leave the film soundly in the latter category. It bites to be an overthrown prince. It burns to be captured […]

Colorful remake pales in comparison


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Welcome to the newest installation of computer-generated animation. Recall the 1980s when American kids would gather around the television to watch Astro Boy, a popular crossover series from Japan that featured a little robot boy with a heart of gold and the ability to kick some poetic justice. Decades later, Astro Boy is back with […]

Suspense film leaves viewers unsatisfied


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Word on the street is that after seeing Paranormal Activity, Steven Spielberg returned to the studio with the DVD in a trash bag. He claimed the door to his bedroom locked by itself after he watched the film. Was it the ghost of Orson Welles, still upset over Spielberg’s adaptation of War of the Worlds? […]