Three Recent Viewings

OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies (2006). Jokes usually don't translate very well, but this little parody of a popular French spy series fares better than you might suppose. I won't burden you with the details of the plot, which are beyond absurd; just know that this is to the French what Austin Powers was to the English and Americans. **1/2














Bottle Shock (2008). This David and Goliath story tells of how a small Napa Valley winery beat the pants off their snobby French competition in a taste-off in 1976. It's long on pretty pictures of vines and California hills and short on story and interesting characters. Really, all we care about is the taste-test--The Judgment of Paris. Spare us the love triangle, the prodigal son subplot, the twitty Englishman fumbling around SoCal, the speeches from the self-righteous, Mexican-American with supernatural taste-buds (I paraphrase: "You people, you think you can buy your way into making great wine? You've got to have it in your blood, man!"). Chris Pine, who makes a fine smart-alecky Captain Kirk makes a pretty good smart-alecky prodigal son here but for the awful wig they make him wear. Why do filmmakers insist on wigs? **



Rocknrolla (2008). Directed by Guy Ritchie. If he'd never made Snatch and Lock Stock I probably would've liked this more. It's clear that Ritchie's intention after the misfire of Revolver (and whatever that movie with Madge was called) was to return to the darkly humorous Brit gangster world he inhabited so well in the earlier movies. However, this just seems like a retread of Snatch--the plot has the same circular structure as Snatch, but in this case a priceless (and never seen) painting stands in for Snatch's bazillion carat diamond. One could almost substitute the casts part for part--except for the one principal female part Thandie Newton plays: she's a Russian mobster's accountant, chic, cool, smart, and sexy as all get-out (Pencil skirts! Yowza!). Gerard Butler plays the hunk of haggis who gets to sleep with her. Ach! **1/2





Ciao,
CD