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Guess Who

Posted on March 15, 2005 at 7:12 am

B
Lowest Recommended Age: Mature High Schooler
Profanity: Some strong language
Nudity/ Sex: Many comic sexual references
Alcohol/ Drugs: Drinking, including drinking in response to stress, characters get tipsy
Violence/ Scariness: Comic scuffle
Diversity Issues: A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters: 2005

Karl Marx once wrote that “history repeats itself, the first time as tragedy, the second as farce.” That must be how the earnest drama Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner got remade as this silly comedy.

Nearly 40 years ago, the original version was a serious drama, a little heavy-handed, but endearingly sincere. It was considered a provocative, even daring, statement about what we used to call “civil rights” issues.

But times have changed, and this film is generic slapstick rather than social commentary, closer to a remake of Meet the Parents than it is to its purported original source. Its truer source is Abie’s Irish Rose, the popular Broadway play of the 1920’s about an Irish Catholic girl and her Jewish boyfriend and the zillion romantic comedy culture-clash copy-cats ever since, from “Bridget Loves Bernie” to My Big Fat Greek Wedding. That may be good news as a reflection of how far we have come as a society; it’s not such good news for movie-goers looking for something worth watching.

In the original Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, directed by Big Issue-friendly director Stanley Kramer, the beloved only daughter of a passionately liberal white San Francisco couple brings home a man she has just met and plans to marry almost immediately. He is a widower, he is older, and he is black. He is also a doctor with a brilliant record of international humanitarian works and, played by Sidney Poitier, he is just about perfect.

The focus of the movie is the way the couple, reform-minded newspaper editor Spencer Tracy (in his last role) and feisty art gallery owner Katharine Hepburn have to confront the concrete consequences of their heartfelt but abstract liberalism.

And it turns out that some of the black characters (referred to in the movie as “Negro” or “colored” — this was quite a while ago) are not very happy about the impending nuptials, either. The mothers of the couple are on the side of love and optimism, but both fathers oppose the marriage on the grounds that society will just make it too hard for them. After a lot of intense conversation, Tracy’s character concludes that, “You’re two wonderful people who happened to fall in love and happen to have a pigmentation problem.” Love will conquer all.

This very loose remake directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan (Barbershop 2: Back in Business) reverses the situation. Now it’s the white boyfriend (co-producer Ashton Kutcher) who describes himself as “pigment-challenged” and who must get the approval of the black girl’s father (co-producer Bernie Mac). It’s all just an excuse for a series of silly situations and conflicts as Simon lies to Percy about his participation in sports and Percy lies to a co-worker, describing Simon as a basketball-playing graduate of Howard University who knows Bill Cosby and Jesse Jackson. There are also some other half-hearted attempts at plot developments that are around long enough to be annoying but not long enough to get resolved. Percy takes Simon to race go-carts and Simon tries to keep everyone from finding out that he quit his job. And Percy decides to sleep in the back-breaking fold-out bed with Simom to make sure there’s no hanky-panky going on with his daughter. But you know they’ll find an Ebony-and-Ivory bond by the big party at the end.

No one does choleric better than Bernie Mac and it is always fun to see him get steamed. Kutcher manages to stay out of Mac’s way (and his own) and Zoe Saldana (The Terminal, Drumline) shows warmth and sweetness as Theresa. Kellee Stewart as Theresa’s sister gets to show more sass and sparkle, especially when she explains how Theresa’s relationship with Simon improved her own life. The movie would have been much more fun if she had been the fiancee, and perhaps if we got a look at Simon’s family as well. Instead, we get unfunny scenes with Mac and Kutcher (they get tipsy and dance together!) and at an all-women party (they get tipsy and trash men!). And the prospect of a “Meet Simon’s Family” sequel.

Parents should know that the movie has some sexual humor, including jokes about masturbation, cross-dressing, and gays. A character asks “What’s the sex like?” and there is some discussion of what white men’s sex organs look like. There is humor about racism, including a list of racist terms for white people. A great deal is made of the fact that Simon and Percy share a bed (as a way of making sure that Simon and Theresa don’t sleep together) and end up cuddling.

Families who see this movie should see if anyone can remember a time when it was actually illegal in some states for people of different races to get married. Every family should read the Supreme Court decision that invalidated those laws as unconstitutional. It is shocking today to realize that the laws were in place until that decision was issued in 1967, the same year as the original Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. The very-apt name of the landmark case is Loving v. Virginia. There is a movie about the real-life couple behind the court case, Mr. and Mrs. Loving, starring Timothy Hutton and Lela Rochon. Families who see this movie should talk about the jokes Simon told. Which made fun of white people and which made fun of black people? They should also talk about their own family reactions to marriages that cross racial, religious, or other kinds of lines.

Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Father of the Bride.

D.E.B.S.

Posted on March 12, 2005 at 6:29 pm

C+
Lowest Recommended Age: Mature High Schooler
Profanity: Some strong language
Nudity/ Sex: Heterosexual and homosexual references and situations
Alcohol/ Drugs: Drinking, smoking
Violence/ Scariness: Comic, action-style spy story violence
Diversity Issues: A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters: 2005

Four top spies are staking out a meeting between a ruthless Russian assassin and the world’s most notorious international criminal mastermind. One of the spies redirects the sound equipment to eavesdrop on the conversation of a fellow spy who is breaking up with her boyfriend. The she peers down at the targets and says, “I have that sweater, but in taupe!”

Yes, in this movie the good guys and the bad guys in this movie are all girls, and when I say girls, I mean knee socks and tiny plaid skirts and consulting about boyfriends while ducking grenades, tucking guns into chic little backpacks, and lip-synching love songs pretending a broomstick is a microphone.

This is Josie and the Pussycats crossed with Charlie’s Angels, Agent Cody Banks, Get Smart and Saturday morning cartoons. Except with lesbians.

It turns out that the SATs have a special extra test embedded within, a test to find those high school seniors most skilled at lying, cheating and killing. Those girls (apparently no boys qualify) are recruited into the top-secret spy school, D.E.B.S. The four top students are after notorious super-criminal Lucy Diamond (Jordana Brewster). But when Amy (Sara Foster), who achieved the only perfect score in history, confronts her, the confrontation is complicated by some undeniable romantic attraction.

“Why is it I can hold the whole world hostage but I’m scared to go on one stupid blind date?” Diamond asks her sidekick. “Because love is harder than crime. Now go knock ’em dead. But not really.”

This now makes the third bad movie in a row for the delightfully talented Meagan Good and the second for Foster. The talents of the magnificent Holland Taylor and Michael Clarke Duncan are also woefully underused. This could be a cute short film (as it originally was). It runs out of steam and ideas after about 20 minutes and that’s giving it an additional 10 minutes’ grace just because the girls are so fetching in a Britney Spears “Hit Me Baby One More Time” era sort of way.

Parents should know that the movie has some mature material for a PG-13 including same-sex sexual encounters (nothing more explicit than kissing) and action-style violence (no one hurt). Characters drink and smoke and use some strong language.

Families who see this movie should talk about the kinds of movies it parodies.

Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy Saved! and But I’m a Cheerleader!, both with mature material, and spy spoofs like Our Man Flint and Top Secret.

The Upside of Anger

Posted on March 11, 2005 at 7:55 pm

B+
Lowest Recommended Age: Mature High Schooler
Profanity: Very strong language
Nudity/ Sex: Explicit sexual references, non-explicit sexual situations
Alcohol/ Drugs: Characters smoke and abuse alcohol, teens smoke marijuana
Violence/ Scariness: Tense confrontations, some hitting
Diversity Issues: None
Date Released to Theaters: 2005

Parents should know that this movie has central characters who abuse alcohol as a way of coping with — actually as a way of not coping with — their problems. They also smoke, use frequent bad language, and behave in an irresponsible manner. The movie includes teen drug use and a sexual relationship between a teenager and a much older man. A strength of the movie is its sympathetic portrayal of a gay character.

Families who

Millions

Posted on March 5, 2005 at 4:41 pm

A-
Lowest Recommended Age: Kindergarten - 3rd Grade
Profanity: Some mild language
Nudity/ Sex: None
Alcohol/ Drugs: Smoking
Violence/ Scariness: Theme of loss, some mild peril
Diversity Issues: None
Date Released to Theaters: 2005

A bag of money literally falls from the sky and lands on Damian (Alex Etel). It’s just the most recent of a series of events that call into question everything he thought he know. He has recently lost his mother, moved into a new house, started a new school, and been visited by saints. He believes the money has come from God, and he knows the money has to be used very quickly because in just a few days England is switching from the old currency to the Euro.

Parents should know that the movie deals with some mature themes, including the loss of a parent. The focus of the plot is stolen money and it raises a number of significent issues that families will want to explore. There is tension and peril and the bad guy threatens the children. Characters smoke (including a saint) and do some social drinking.

Families who see this movie should talk about what they would do if they got a lot of money that didn’t belong to anyone else

Robots

Posted on March 5, 2005 at 1:00 pm

A
Lowest Recommended Age: Kindergarten - 3rd Grade
Profanity: Brief crude language
Nudity/ Sex: Bathroom humor, mild sexual humor
Alcohol/ Drugs: None
Violence/ Scariness: Cartoon-style tension and peril
Diversity Issues: A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters: 2005

Just like its endearing hero, Rodney Copperbottom (voice of Ewan McGregor), this movie is assembled from hand-me-down parts but it has so much heart that it is transformed into something irresistibly fresh and downright adorable.

One of the hand-me-down parts is the country boy with a dream in the big city. There’s the classic underdog story, too, with the (literally) scrappy outsiders fighting for their rights against the rich and powerful and snobbish. Of course there’s a love story or two. And that real-life special effect Robin Williams. Just as in Aladdin, animation is the only way to give him a physical persona that can keep up with his avalanche of wisecracks and personas. Mel Brooks makes his animation character debut and it is worth seeing the movie just to hear him say the words “titanium tuchas.”

There is humor ranging from groan-worthy visual and verbal puns to low-down slapstick and subtle satire. And some roller-coastery excitement, snappy wisecracks, and music that will make you want to get up and dance. There’s a nice moral that goes beyond the usual “be true to yourself and achieve your dreams” theme of most movies for kids. There’s even a cameo appearance by that greatest of all metal men, the Tin Woodsman. It all comes together in a story that works on every level, with something for every age, with a story that is not just heartwarming but meaningful.

Brilliantly imagined by illustrator William Joyce, this movie takes place in an all-mechanical world where even the pets are robots and even the fire hydrants and mailboxes are “alive.” This movie is going to keep people glued to their DVDs, because every single shot is filled with fabulously imaginative detail, every bit of it adorably witty, wonderfully fantastic, and perfectly logical. If physics doesn’t work this way, it should.

Rodney arrives after 12 hours of labor — that’s how long it takes his robot parents to assemble him from a kit. They are loving and devoted but not wealthy. As Rodney grows up, he is assembled from hand-me-down parts, including one embarrassing year with a torso that once belonged to a teenaged girl cousin. Rodney dreams of being an inventor and making life better and easier. His hero is Bigweld (voice of Mel Brooks), who urges everyone to come up with ideas to solve problems. He welcomes new ideas at his big corporation. His slogan is, “You can shine no matter what you’re made of.”

But by the time Rodney arrives to show his invention, Bigweld is gone, replaced by Ratchet (voice of Greg Kinnear), the new president of Bigweld industries. Ratchet doesn’t want to help anyone. Pressured by his mother (voice of Jim Broadbent), he decides the company will no longer provide parts to fix old robots (“outmodes”). They will make money by making perfectly good robots feel bad about themselves so that they will order unnecessary upgrades. Their slogan will be, “Why be you when you can be new?”

So Rodney and his friends have to find a way to bring back Bigweld and make the world safe for the mutts and oddballs, especially the ones with a dream of making things better.

As often in animation, the actors provide pleasant but not very distinctive voices and the comedians steal the show. Williams, Brooks, and Jennifer Coolidge (as the appropriately-named “Aunt Fanny”) are the highlights. But the star here is the design, as much a part of the story as the plot and the characters.

Parents should know that the movie has cartoon-style peril and violence with some thrill-ride-ish special effects. Characters use some crude school-yard language and there are some potty jokes, including an extended fart joke sequence, and some mild sexual humor, including jokes about cross-dressing and “fixing” a dog.

Families who see this movie should talk about the difference between the two mottos. The “outmodes” are made out of pieces from other machines. Which ones do you recognize? How do Rodney’s and Ratchet’s ideas about helping people differ? Why doesn’t Crank want to try and what changes his mind? What’s the difference between Bigweld’s and Ratchet’s views on what a corporation should do? Why did Rodney say that the most important thing his parents gave him was believing in him? Who can you help by believing in them? If you could be an inventor like Rodney, what would you like to invent? Families might like to learn about the history of inventions and becoming an inventor.

Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy Monsters, Inc., Ice Age, and A Bug’s Life. They will also enjoy the marvelous books by William Joyce, especially Santa Calls, Dinosaur Bob, A Day with Wilbur Robinson and Rollie Pollie Olie. Older family members might like to read the play “R.U.R” by Karel Capek, who invented the term “robot.”