This week's premiere (s)
photo: Tatrafilm
Collateral - Crime thriller by Michael Mann. In what is perhaps only the second movie (apart from Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia) to utilise his God-given talent, Tom Cruise plays Vincent, a cold-hearted bastard. A scruffy, gray-haired assassin, he pays Max, a taxi driver (Jamie Foxx), to drive him around to five different places so he can do his work. Max soon realises the nature of his passenger's work, however, and is particularly disturbed and compelled to intervene when he discovers that one of Vincent's jobs is Annie (Jada Pinkett Smith), an earlier fare with whom the cabbie got along quite well. Cruise is reportedly up to the task of playing the cold-hearted bastard, but it's apparently Foxx who's really worth watching. With this and a starring role in the timely Ray Charles biopic coming up, this appears to be his breakout year.
photo: Continental Film
Intermission - Comedy drama by John Crowley. Before becoming a part of the Hollywood scene, Colin Farrell was in Ireland, the setting for this crime caper. Farrell plays Lehiff, a criminal who's vigorously pursued by Detective Jerry Lynch (Colm Meaney), who in turn is vigorously pursued by a TV news crew. Lehiff's friend John (Cillian Murphy) and his girlfriend Deirdre (Kelly Macdonald) have decided to spend some time apart. After Deirdre quickly begins dating an older man, Lehiff and John conspire to sabotage him. And then there are some amusing mishaps that presumably intertwine all the major characters. Well, at least Farrell and Macdonald are pretty. But, more importantly, Meaney's always a joy to watch.
Other movies playing
photo: Tatrafilm.jpg
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (Vybíjaná: Choď do toho na plné gule) - Comedy by Rawson Marshall Thurber. Is there anything more entertaining than other people's pain? The game of dodgeball presumes there isn't. And so comes Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, which blends the sadistic glee of the sport most people outgrow after adolescence with the brand of comedy most of them also outgrow at around the same time. Vince Vaughn plays Peter LeFleur, the owner of a small gym threatened by the bullying Globo Gym. In an attempt to save his gym from hostile takeover, Peter organises his motley crew of friends to challenge Globo's owner (Ben Stiller) to a winner-takes-all dodgeball match.
Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid (Anakonda 2: Honba za krvavou orchideou) - Action horror by Dwight Little. 1997's Anaconda, which depicted a team of filmmakers who went into the jungle in search of a lost tribe but instead found a giant maneating snake, was notable primarily for its odd cast: Jennifer Lopez, Jon Voight, Ice Cube, and Owen Wilson. Its new sequel, by contrast, is notable for having no actors worth noting. It seems that a large pharmaceutical firm has learned that, deep in the jungle of Borneo, there lives a rare black orchid that can lead to immortality. So the company sends in a team to obtain it. Unfortunately, the jungle also contains a number of anacondas that seem rather attached to the rare flower: It has exponentially increased their size and strength. And, oh yeah, they like to eat humans.
Prepared by Jonathan Knapp
