The number one film this week is Jodie Fosters Panic Room. The first film in three years for the secluded actress. She only chose to do this film because most of the filming took place indoors. Foster plays a recently divorced mom named Meg, whos husband left her for a much younger woman. Which is voiced by Nicole Kidman whom was first slated to star but an ankle injury during filming of Moulin Rouge ruined her chances. Fosters character experiences many physical battles and the character is a very middle age woman.

This is Jodie Fosters film from the start and the varying degrees of entertainment largely depend on her characters actions. They range from intense to stupidity and her character loses believability somewhere towards the end of the story. This is consequently when the films loose and dull story bogs down a bit.

The story begins when Meg and her daughter move into a enormous west side home in New York city. This home incorporates a panic room from the previous owner that houses a large array of surveillance cameras, medical equipment and something special, many millions of dollars. Meg doesnt know this of course and that very first night, the thieves are already in the house. This all takes about twenty minutes to happen and the pacing is very slow, but some stylish camera work saves the audience from boredom. All of this is courtesy of the experienced and talented director David Fincher.

Fincher is skilled and could handle a much more complex and emotionally deeper film like his 1995 and 1997 movies Seven and Fight Club, respectively. Panic Room does come with some gorgeous and very lengthy camera movements and shots, that incorporate seamless special effects in them. These are his patented Fincher film techniques that really make the movie thrilling and dark to look at in every corner. But once the audience gets past the beautiful cinematography, film techniques, and acting all that is left is a lame story. At least Panic Room doesnt really last long, running time is about 100 minutes.

The movie just feels a lot longer and one reason is because of casting of the thieves in the film. They range from stupid like Dwight Yoakam and Jared Leto to the inspirational and weird looking Forest Whitaker as a desperate and lonely heist man. Leto and Yoakam are a joke on screen and their presence almost rips the heart out of the great Whitaker performance. Fincher has a knack for getting good actors, so why did he pick these to inexperienced and ill equipped actors.

Panic Room will no doubtedly please American audiences that crave anything from Fincher or especially Foster. Still, this movie doesnt live up to the expectations of the creators and expect a huge drop off in box-office after word of mouth gets out. A stylish visual treat that only goes skin deep, wait to watch it at the cheap theatres.

 

 

Wesley Snipes is the daywalker in this impressive follow up to the 1998 blockbuster, Blade. Snipes and director Guillermo del Toro make the sequel just as, or more exciting, than the first incredible film. The film incorporates a comic book and video game visual feel that looks original and extraordinary. The movie moves briskly and incorporates many plot twists and character changes. Blade II lives up to the original and more, and it all begins with the director Del Toro.

Del Toro is a master of vampire pictures. His original movie was the Mexican cult favorite Cronos (1994). That film gave back the ruthlessness and unadulterated evil that vampire films had been lacking for years. He brings his take on vampires into Blade II and it gives the film something original that it would not have had with any other director. Del Toro is also developing Blade 3 and many other American films in the next few years. He is a young and prolific director, with an unprecedented eye for the visual.

Wesley Snipes is Blade once again and brings some more emotions to this dark but moral hero. As Blade, Snipes barely removes his sunglasses, but he can still show the audience his relentless brutality and heart towards the vampires and the new enemy. Blade even gets a love interest, Nyssa, played by the lovely Leonor Varela, but the relationship is not full blown because she is part of the ruling vampire nation. Snipes is by no means a good actor, but this role was made for him and he does an admirable job.

The new film has an intriguing story twist that probably made the project easier to greenlight for New Line studios. It begins a few years after the last film left off with Blade and the vampire nation teaming up to defeat a new evil, the reapers. Reapers are creatures that feed nightly and have few weaknesses, unlike vampires and humans. It takes the collective efforts of all three enemies to make this screenplay click, and all characters are fleshed out beautifully and have absorbing depth.

Still, even with these awesome characters, Blade is a dark action film at its heart, and Del Toro and company produce exciting and lighting fast action. The camera moves insanely quick and fighting scenes are inter cut with cool special effects. The only problem is that the viewer can tell when it is CGI Snipes fighting and the real thing, but it just gives the film a more fantasy look to it. Del Toro took advice from action veteran James Cameron (Terminator, True Lies) to help him film his first action picture. Del Toro took this and made his own action film that is very distinctive in todays mainstream action market.

The only problem with this film is it may be too bloody and disturbing for a huge audience. The movie is much more graphic than the original and the story is a bit more mysterious. This film is something different and unique that will not appeal to all comic book or action fans, but something that should still be seen. Only the real fans of Blade might like this movie, but it still remains quite a personal and big budget achievement for Mexican director Guillermo del Toro.