2012

Written by Pirata Hermosa

Jackson Curtis (John Cusack) is an author, a very unsuccessful author who has written only one book that sold slightly more than 400 copies. His wife, Kate (Amanda Peet), grew tired of having her husband go through life with his head buried in his laptop, so she took the two children Lilly (Morgan Lily) and Noah (Liam James) and left him.

Still not having grasped the reality of the situation, Jackson carries on oblivious to his situation and ends up driving a limousine to support himself and his writing habit. When he is late picking up his kids for a camping trip to Yellowstone National Park, he has no clue of what incredible journey he is about to begin.

Three years previous, geologist Adrian Helmsley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) brought forth some Earth-shattering news. The recent increase of solar flares has been bombarding the planet with a high concentration of Neutrino particles, and much like a microwave, those particles have been heating up the planet’s core. While this is a normal occurrence, the intensity and irregularity of the solar flares is going to heat up the core so much that the Earth’s mantle is going to liquefy, the continents will shift, and the world will be flooded.

With no other course of action, the leaders of the United Nations have enacted an emergency plan for survival centered around a hidden shipyard in China. However, this plan only incorporates the rich and the powerful while leaving the rest of the population completely in the dark about the upcoming tragedy.

When Parker arrives in Yellowstone he attempts to take his kids to one of his favorite spots. But the lake that he once knew is no longer there and rising steam and dead animal carcasses is all that remains. The U.S. government picks the three of them up and escorts them off the premises as they have declared it unstable.

Shortly afterwards he runs into crazy old Charlie (Woody Harrelson) who ends up being a conspiracy nut broadcasting over the airwaves about the upcoming catastrophe and the government cover up. At first Jackson dismisses the man, but the more he hears about his story, the more he begins to realize that he is speaking the truth.

The entire time that he is piecing things together, earthquakes have been hitting cities all around the globe. When a large crevasse opens up in L.A. and swallows his neighborhood grocery store, he realizes that he must react. Quickly chartering a plane and rushing to his wife’s home, he gathers up his family along with his wife’s new boyfriend Gordon (Tom McCarthy) and races back to the airport in the limo. During the entire trip back, the ground is disappearing behind them, gobbling up anything in sight. Buildings are crashing all around them and the ground is pitching and heaving.

Finally they reach the airstrip to find the pilot crushed by a gas pump. Thankfully, Gordon has taken a few flying lessons as he gets the plane off the ground, does a few aerial acrobatics and flies them off to Yellowstone. Jackson needs to contact Charlie because he has a map to where the government has been hiding the survival ships. For the rest of the film the family is working their way towards China by any means necessary in the hopes that somehow they will be able to get aboard and survive the apocalypse.

If you’re looking for a cerebral film, then you certainly aren’t going to enjoy this film. As a matter of fact, you need to check your brain at the door and take it for what it is. If you give too much thought about how a relatively inexperienced pilot can fly through a narrow space as buildings are crashing and falling down above him, how a man can drive a limousine through a building, or if you can really jump a motor home over a 20-foot chasm, you’ll be walking out soon after it starts.

The basic idea of a man trying to save both his family and reconcile his relationship with them at the same time has been done many times over. In fact, there really isn’t anything new about the story at all. It’s very predictable and they keep managing to escape from one preposterous situation into the next, kind of a like a never-ending chase scene where they’re being chased by natural disasters. If you had to classify it, it would be one of those mindless summertime popcorn films.

With that being said, if you can keep your mind focused on the visual aspects of the film, watching the Earth being destroyed by earthquakes and tsunamis, you can probably have a fun time. The action is continuous and it doesn’t really feel like it is 2-1/2 hours long.

IGOR

Written by Fantasma el Rey

Igor is a fun little tale of a hunchback who yearns to be more than an evil scientist’s assistant and with his knack for invention he may well be the first. Along with two of his creations, he sets out to prove that even an Igor can be equal and more than just a “switch puller.” In 87 minutes we get the whole story told in a nightmarish Tim Burtonesque fashion, have a few laughs, and smile as Igor makes his mark in the dark world that he lives in.

Our hero Igor (John Cusack) is an Igor because he was who born hunchbacked in the land of Malaria, dooming him to serve evil scientists pulling switches, doing the manual labor, and being all around lackeys. Igors aren’t born with these “skills,” so they must learn them through longs hours of schooling. The art of switch pulling; slurred, accented speech; and a “yes, master” degree are just a few things an Igor must excel at. Our Igor is different and determined to change it all. He himself is a brilliant inventor and is the one who makes most of his evil scientist’s, Dr. Glickenstein (John Cleese), ideas work.

With the death of Glickenstein, Igor and his sidekicks Brain (Sean Hayes), a somewhat robotic brain in a glass jar, and Scamper (Steve Buscemi), a rabbit that is now immortal thanks to Igor, jump on the opportunity to enter the annual evil science fair under the guise of the deceased evil scientist’s last invention, which is really Igor’s. And Igor’s invention is…a giant female version of Frankenstein’s monster that he has brought to life to do evil and win the fair. The only problem is that his creation, who dubs herself Eva (Molly Shannon), has an evil bone that fails to activate, causing her to want to become an actress. She is also caring, loving, and not at all evil, to Igor’s horror.

From there we get the same old song and death dance of how the reigning science-fair champ, Dr. Schadenfreude (Eddie Izzard), steals Eva, claims her as his own invention, and attempts to do away with Igor. All the while the good guys chase the bad and race against the clock to save the lady monster that Igor is now quit fond of. By the end, all is well as Igor saves Eva and reveals the true story behind how the once happy, sunny land of Malaria became a “storm cloud filled,” dark evil place. Igor also achieves his grand goal of breaking the hunchback barriers and has become, along with all other Igors, accepted as equals among the people of Malaria.

Not a bad movie, a bit formulaic at times in its story which is a good one with its message to stand out, be yourself, and do what’s right, set perfectly in a dark land with monsters of all types. Placed well in the movie are some goods lines about that very subject. One from Igor himself is “I tried to be someone different but the world wouldn’t let me.” I love that line as well as Eva’s delivery of “Better to be a good nobody than an evil somebody.” Brilliant.

While some of the animated characters seemed recycled from Burton’s “Nightmare Before Christmas,” the cast does a fine job in their voice work. Cusack as Igor is great and Steve Buscemi’s voice is perfect for Scamper, whose attempts to do himself in are filled with sarcasm and wit. Izzard as the villain is also good as is Shannon, and through the film we get to hear from Christian Slater and Arsenio Hall as well as Jay Leno. DVD extras include audio commentary by director Tony Leondis, writer Chris McKenna, and producer Max Howard as well as an alternate opening sequence that doesn’t work as well as the chosen opener.

Igor may be too creepy for some children while other little creepy kids may come away with a spine-tingling good time with a message. As for the adult chill-dren and creepy sorts who find laughs and entertainment in the things that go bump in the night, it provides some evil laughs and a dark smile much along the lines of television classics The Addams Family or The Munsters.

GRACE IS GONE

Written by Hombre Divertido

The loss of a loved one is an isolating experience, and having an actor of John Cusack’s talents playing someone in that situation can actually work against you.

In Grace is Gone, Cusack plays Stanley Phillips, father of two, manager of a Home Store (think Home Depot), frustrated patriot who could not get into the military because of his eyesight, and husband to Army Sergeant Grace Phillips. When Stanley is informed that his wife has been killed in Iraq, he must now tell his two daughters (Gracie Bednarczyk and Shélan O'Keefe). Faced with this daunting task, he avoids the situation and takes his daughters on a road trip.

The actors’ performances are solid, and that is what makes this film so challenging. It is difficult for the rational person to understand and relate to the irrational thoughts and actions of someone who has suffered such a tragedy, and thus it takes too long to get to know these people. Little assistance is provided by writer/director James C. Strouse, who gives us too little insight into the family. We don’t know Stanley or his daughters, and never get to meet his wife. We are simply left to watch Stanley struggle.

The film achieves one level and sustains it throughout the film. At 92 minutes, more depth could have easily been provided. This film should be relatable and possibly even a comfort to those who have suffered through similar situations, but since that tragic-stricken group is in the minority of the viewing audience, better-rounded character development would have better served the audience.

The Special Features on the DVD include “A Conversation on Grace” which includes interviews with Strouse, Cusack, and others involved in the film. Unfortunately many goals of the film are discussed, most of which were not accomplished. Also included is “Inspiration For Grace is Gone” which profiles a real family that suffered a similar tragedy. Had the actual film given us this much depth into the family, it would have been a far superior film.

Recommendation: Though the performance of Cusack is solid, it is difficult watching this character make what seem to be bad choices, when so many bad choices were made behind the camera. This film is simply too one dimensional to recommend.

The soundtrack which features music by Clint Eastwood is worth a listen.

1408

Written by Jámon Y. Huevos

Mikael Hafstrom’s 1408 gets to take a seat of honor next to The Shining as the second of two truly great haunted hotel movies to spark from the mind of Stephen King. John Cusack plays Mike Enslin, the author of two books of haunted hotel reviews. Having separated from his wife after the untimely death of their daughter, Enslin would like nothing more than to believe in the afterlife; unfortunately, he’s never seen any proof. That all changes when he spends the night in room 1408 at New York City’s Dolphin Hotel.

John Cusack cannot receive enough accolades for his taut performance of the heart-broken Enslin. Eighty percent of the film is Cusack in a room by himself and he pulls it off in amazing style. It’s Cusack’s own genuine humanity that shines through so many of the characters he portrays, and Enslin comes off as witty, smart, funny, and sad in a rich and multi-dimensional performance. You just want to hang out with this guy; however, you do not want to hang out in room 1408.

Room 1408 is spectacularly haunted. The screenwriters and director refuse to cut the audience apart with cheap thrills. Even when they have something jump out of the shadows, you feel like those moments were earned because of the more subtle terrors filling the screen for most of the movie. The horror starts slow and then builds and builds. Every possibility is loaded into that room, from ghosts and gruesome murders to fire and ice. This is one roller coaster that is ninety percent slow movement up a long hill, ripe with tension and fear, and ten percent gut-wrenching drop. It’s all about timing and special effects, and the editors and artists work some great magic.

There is one sour note in 1408, and it is very sour. Samuel L. Jackson is an empty hole of acting nothingness in the center of this film. 1408 finally proves that unless Jackson is being shot at, he should stay home in bed. Virtually everybody else in the cast is able to hold their own against Cusack’s magnetism. Of special note are Mary McCormack as Enslin’s wife and Jasmine Jessica Anthony as Enslin’s daughter. Jackson, on the other hand, tries to act entirely with his eyebrows and a straight-edge speaking cadence. This makes his performance look like two caffeinated inch worms frolicking atop a single piano note. It’s an interesting visual, but there ain’t nothing there.

1408 does exactly what it sets out to do, send shivers down your spine with an intelligent story. I’m not sure it could have worked without John Cusack in the lead; he is the perfect everyman. That aside, 1408 is a smart psychological drama with some great bumps in the dark.