Military epic, uplifting documentary to light up silver screen this weekend
A military epic (“Tears of the Sun”), a heartfelt comedy (“Bringing Down the House”) and an uplifting documentary (“Amandla! A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony”) are the major titles arriving on this pre-St. Patrick’s Day weekend. The new motion pictures (with release dates subject to change) scheduled to open today at a theater near you include:
– “Amandla! A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony”: The importance of music as a revolutionary tool that helped to end apartheid in South Africa is chronicled during this PG-13 documentary, which took nine years to complete. News footage, musical performances and interviews with artists such as Hugh Masekela intertwine in this uplifting 103-minute tribute to the men, women and children who stood up to oppression by using music to communicate their plight to the world and to battle their oppressors at home. Lee Hirsch made his directing debut.
– “Bringing Down the House”: Steve Martin (“Bowfinger”) and Queen Latifah (“Chicago”) co-star in this fun-to-watch PG-13 comedy about a conservative suburbanite who makes a date on the Internet and discovers that the woman just escaped from prison. Certainly the premise is broader than a knock-knock joke, but the 105-minute picture works due to the heart and soul the gifted Latifah puts into the project. It’s also helped by Martin’s humorous turn as an uptight white guy who grows as a human being once he learns to get down and enjoy life.
Eugene Levy (“American Pie”) and Joan Plowright (“Widow’s Peak”) co-star. Adam Shankman (“The Wedding Planner”) directed.
– “Open Hearts”: During this unrated import, a young chef (Sonja Richter) finds her world shattered when her lover (Nikolaj Lie Kaas) is struck by an automobile and left paralyzed.
The woman behind the wheel feels so guilty about the incident that she agrees to help care for the disabled man. Soon after, the lives of the characters become more intertwined when the driver’s doctor/husband starts visiting the couple and becomes attracted to the young woman. Susanne Bier (“The One and Only”) directed the 114-minute tale.
– “The Safety of Objects”: The members of four upscale families struggle to make sense of their relationships and blindly hide behind materialistic goods rather than seeking true happiness during this 120-minute picture, which is rated R and adapted from a collection of short stories by A.M. Holmes. The ensemble cast includes Glenn Close (“Fatal Attraction”), Dermot Mulroney (“About Schmidt”), Patricia Clarkson (“Far From Heaven”) and Robert Klein (“How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”). Rose Troche (“Go Fish”) directed.
– “Tears of the Sun”: Bruce Willis (“The Sixth Sense”) plays a Navy SEAL leader dispatched with eight elite commandos to rescue a physician (Italian actress Monica Bellucci of “Brotherhood of the Wolf”) trapped in a war-torn area of Central Africa. Once at the location, Willis and his men must decide whether to blindly follow orders and only save the doctor or to risk their careers and lives and also rescue the villagers who are under her care and will be massacred if left behind.
Willis produced the R-rated picture under his company, Cheyenne Enterprises Productions, and Antoine Fuqua (“Training Day”) directed.
‘Fassbinder’ films at Ritz
“The Films of Rainer Werner Fassbinder,” a series presented by home-entertainment company Wellspring, begins today at the Ritz Theater chain in Philadelphia.
Three of the films directed by the late German filmmaker and being screened are:
– “The Merchant of Four Seasons” (1971), a slice-of-life character study of a fruit vendor who’s trapped in an unhappy marriage, melts down emotionally and drinks to numb his feelings.
– “Ali: Fear Eats the Soul” (1974), a romantic melodrama about a woman who marries an Arab guest worker more than a decade younger than her and then faces the insults of her neighbors.
– “The Marriage of Maria Braun” (1979), a story of a penniless German woman who watches as her husband goes off to war and later to prison and then struggles to build a fortune after World War II.
To find out the location of the Ritz theater screening the films, show times, admission prices and other information, call 215-925-7900 or go to the Web site www.ritzfilmbill.com.
At the buck$ office
The combination of action superstar Jet Li and rapper-turned-actor DMX delivered a knockout punch at the box office last weekend.
“Cradle 2 the Grave,” their fast and furious R-rated film, easily took the No. 1 spot, grossing more than $17 million.
The top 10 films last weekend were:
1. “Cradle 2 the Grave” ($17.1 million)
2. “Old School” ($13.9 million)
3. “Daredevil” ($11 million)
4. “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” ($10.1 million)
5. “Chicago” ($8.1 million)
6. “The Jungle Book 2” ($6.8 million)
7. “Shanghai Knights” ($4.8 million)
8. “The Life of David Gale” ($4.4 million)
9. “Gods and Generals” ($2.8 million)
10. “The Recruit” ($2.6 million)
Coming Soon!
Major titles tentatively scheduled to open March 14 include: Frankie Muniz in “Agent Cody Banks,” a family comedy about a teenager working as a CIA operative; Benicio Del Toro and Tommy Lee Jones in “The Hunted,” a thriller about the quest to find a deadly assassin; and Crispin Glover in “Willard,” a remake of the vintage horror favorite about a young man who controls an army of ravenous rats.
(Lou Gaul is film critic for Calkins Media. He can be reached at lgaul@phillyBurbs.com.)