Promised Land

Promised Land - Dir. Gus Van Sant (2012)

Socially conscious dramas have long been a staple of Hollywood. Promised Land, written by stars Matt Damon and John Krasinski, is certainly attempting to evoke the classic works of Frank Capra along with Bill Forsyth's Local Hero. The movie touches upon several hot button topics, but primarily focuses on hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," the controversial process of mining natural gas from underground rock layers.

Steve Butler (Damon) is a top sales rep for Global Crosspower Solutions and in line for a promotion to VP of Land Management. Before settling into a cushy office gig, Steve's superiors task him with securing the drilling rights in McKinley, a small farming community hit with hard times. Butler feels he is the right man for the job because he grew up on a farm in Iowa, which went into a downward spiral following the closure of the local Caterpillar plant. Butler and his partner Sue Thomason (Frances McDormand) have their entire strategy mapped out, including driving into town in a weathered pick-up truck and dressing in down-to-earth denim. Many of the locals have been anxiously awaiting their arrival others are easily swayed with the promise of lucrative payouts and improved schools.

Everything seems to be in the bag for Global Crosspower until a low-key town meeting at the high school gym. Frank Yates (Hal Holbrook), a former engineer turned high school science teacher, raises his concerns that the fracking could contaminate the town's water and soil. Soon, Dustin Noble (Krasinski), a fervent environmentalist, arrives with evidence that Global caused irreparable damage to his farm in Nebraska.

Though they try their best to be even-handed, it's clear Damon and Krasinski are strongly opposed to fracking. Damon's beliefs were strong enough that he initially planned to direct Promised Land, before handing the reins to his Good Will Hunting director Gus Van Sant. Van Sant handles the film with a gentle hand and captures the beauty of the rural landscape with a solemn tone. The acoustic folk rock and ethereal score by Danny Elfman add to the old fashioned atmosphere. A montage of life in McKinley acts as a forlorn tribute to the heartland of America, which has been hit hard by the economic crisis. One character bluntly raises the fact that there are no drills in Manhattan and the gas company has arrived solely because they are poor and desperate.

Damon and Krasinski forget a few basic rules of screenwriting. Rather than tell a good story and allow their message to flow forth naturally, they hammer home their ideology on the shaky back of an inconsistent script. Steve Butler is meant to be a confident hotshot, yet he's completely thrown off his game by the sudden opposition of Yates and Noble. You'd think he had enough experience to deal with any arguments in an intelligent manner without throwing a tantrum. A vital twist in the third act is too convenient and hackneyed not to induce eye rolling.

Credit goes to the stellar cast for preventing the film from falling further into ham-handed moralizing. Damon and McDormand turn in fine performances in spite of their underwritten characters. Old pro Hal Holbrook lends an extra layer of gravitas to every one of his scenes. Rosemarie DeWitt is also terrific as an elementary school teacher being romanced by Butler and Noble. She's made a habit of these strong supporting roles in good (My Sister's Sister) or bad (The Watch, The Company Men) flicks. Titus Welliver has a quiet turn as the owner of the wonderfully named "Rob's Guns, Groceries, Guitars, and Gas," who has amorous intentions towards Sue.

The art of cinema can be educating and entertaining, but Promised Land fails on both accounts. Mary Poppins always said a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. In this case, you'll leave with nothing more than a sour taste in your mouth.

Rating: ** (*****)

We Bought a Zoo

We Bought a Zoo - Dir. Cameron Crowe (2011)

The holidays are usually a great time for Hollywood to unleash schmaltzy, family friendly entertainment to the masses. This past Christmas was no different with the release of Steven Spielberg's War Horse and Cameron Crowe's We Bought a Zoo. Both directors had been incognito for several years, but have returned with a vengeance.

Crowe wrote and directed one of his most critically acclaimed films in Almost Famous, based on his experiences as a teenage journalist for Rolling Stone. However, Vanilla Sky, his remake of Alejandro Amenabar's Open Your Eyes, met with mixed reactions and his rom-com Elizabethtown was a critical and commercial flop. Crowe's recent output includes a documentary on Pearl Jam and one on Elton John and this drama based on Benjamin Mee's memoirs, We Bought a Zoo: The Amazing True Story of a Young Family, a Broken Down Zoo, and the 200 Wild Animals That Changed Their Lives. A columnist for the Guardian, Mee, purchased the troubled Dartmoor Wildlife Park in 2006, which he ran with his wife (who later passed away from a brain tumor), brother, two children, and mother.

For the first time, Crowe isn't the sole credited writer. He rewrote the screenplay originally penned by Aline Brosh McKenna, who also adapted The Devil Wears Prada and I Don't Know How She Does It. Crowe transplants the story from foggy England to sunny Southern California and casts Matt Damon in the role of Benjamin Mee, a writer who has just lost his wife to cancer. Benjamin is left alone to care for his young daughter, Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones), and teenage son, Dylan (Colin Ford). Dylan deals with the death of his mother by drawing gruesome pictures in art class and is eventually expelled for stealing.

Looking for a change, Benjamin quits his job and purchases an 18-acre farmhouse outside the city that actually houses a ramshackle zoo. The zoo is maintained by a skeleton crew led by the spunky Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson) and is home to a variety of species including tigers, peacocks, a lion, and a depressed grizzly bear. Rosie predictably falls in love with the place while Benjamin sees it as a new adventure, but Dylan hates it there, despite a budding romance with Kelly's shy cousin Lily (Elle Fanning). Kelly isn't enthusiastic either, seeing the new owner's lack of knowledge and experience as a severe detriment. Benjamin has to mend his broken family and rally everyone together in order for the zoo to pass inspection. Can they pull it off or will the zoo be shut down forever?

If you have any doubts in your mind, then We Bought a Zoo must be the first movie you've ever seen. Crowe sticks to a well-worn formula with characters drawn in broad strokes. Rosie is precociously precocious and Dylan is the typical angry and brooding adolescent. The supporting characters are similarly thin with Angus Macfadyen as the angry Scotsman, John Michael Higgins as an unctuous zoo inspector, and Almost Famous lead Patrick Fugit as the guy with a monkey. Seriously, that's his character, he has a monkey.

Music has always played an important role in Crowe's films. Aside from a serene score by Sigur Rós frontman Jónsi, Crowe's soundtrack selections are way too obvious, just as obvious as a subplot involving a tiger with failing kidneys that's meant to echo Benjamin's spousal loss. Tom Petty's "Don't Come Around Here No More" comes on when Dylan gets kicked out of school while a rain soaked montage is set to "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" by Randy Newman. "Don't Be Shy" by Cat Stevens becomes the theme for the awkward and budding romance between Dylan and Lily, which comes close to replicating the iconic love stories of the 80's that Crowe became famous for.

We Bought a Zoo has some strong points. Matt Damon is infinitely likeable in the lead role, Elle Fanning gives another solid performance, and Thomas Haden Church injects some much needed wit as Benjamin's brother. You'll definitely get a warm and fuzzy feeling thanks to cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto (21 Grams, Brokeback Mountain), who gives the film a bright, sunny sheen. However, it doesn't feel like a Cameron Crowe movie. There are no "You had me at hello" or John Cusack holding up a boom box moments. In the end, We Bought a Zoo is an innocuous little picture that might have aired on the Disney Channel on a lazy weekend afternoon.

Rating: ** (*****)

Contagion

Contagion - Dir. Steven Soderbergh (2011)

Steven Soderbergh is one of the few filmmakers working today who rarely repeats himself. He is as comfortable at making big Hollywood spectacles like the Ocean's series as he is with idiosyncratic low-budget projects like Bubble and The Girlfriend Experience. He's also delved into film noir in The Good German (one of my favorite films of 2006) and straight out action in the upcoming Haywire. With diseases of the week like Mad Cow, H1N1, SARS, and bird flu constantly making headlines, it appears to be the perfect time for an epidemic movie.

Contagion begins on Day 2 as Beth Ernhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow), an executive with a mining corporation, returning to her home in Minnesota after a business trip in Hong Kong. She's looking worse for wear to which she blames on jetlag. Soon, she collapses on her kitchen floor, foaming at the mouth and going into convulsions. She dies shortly at the hospital to the horror of her husband, Mitch (Matt Damon), who demands answers, but gets none. Beth isn't the only victim as a socialite in London, a businessman in China, and a student in Tokyo all die from this mysterious new disease. This new virus, dubbed MEV-1, is a strain researchers have never encountered before and they struggle to create a cure as millions are infected.

In the vein of Traffic and other hyperlink films, Contagion juggles an all-star cast and a myriad of plotlines. Matt Damon is the emotional core as the everyman just trying to survive after losing not only his wife, but his stepson as well. He takes the role of overprotective father to the extremes as he attempts to shield his teenage daughter, Jory (a strong screen debut by Anna Jacoby-Heron). Laurence Fishburne appears as Dr, Ellis Cheever, the head of the CDC who attempts to contain the disease and public opinion. He is stymied in his efforts by Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law), a hostile blogger who turns sentiment against the government with his conspiracy theories while pushing a holistic cure. Behind the scenes, he's secretly profiting from the manipulated demand.

Soderbergh eschews genre conventions by taking a clinical and procedural approach to the subject matter rather than a sensationalistic approach. Shot in a cold, gray color palette, Contagion deals in the mathematics and hard facts of the outbreak, showing how quickly the virus would spread, the fatalities, and even the harsh realities of how long a vaccine would be distributed. No surprise, if you're not rich and/or white, you're kind of screwed. Expected imagery such as hospital wards filled with sick patients and mass graves appear in Contagion, but Soderbergh shoots them in a nonchalant manner. He is more interested in the minutiae. As MEV-1 spreads through touch, the camera lingers on ordinary objects such as door knobs, credit cards, and a bowl of complimentary peanuts. The mundane aspects of the virus make it all the more frightening, Just as Jaws made you afraid to go in the water, you might not leave the house without sterile gloves and a breathing mask after watching Contagion. The way in which basic services break down is also chilling. Delivery of essential supplies ends when the teamster unions call it quits. Doctors and nurses walk away from their jobs for fear of becoming afflicted. Also, don't bother calling 911. When Mitch tries to call after spotting armed men, he is answered with an automated message. "You have selected regicide. If you know the name of the king or queen being murdered, press 1 now!"

Soderbergh and screenwriter Scott Z. Burns (who also wrote The Informant!) don't get on a soapbox by launching into tirades about government or the pharmaceutical industry. The majority of characters are portrayed on an even keel. Dr. Cheever is an honest though flawed official while members of the military and Homeland Security are shown as folks just trying to do their job. Yet, the bad apples are still present. As the CDC's Dr. Erin Mears, Kate Winslet is forced to deal with bureaucrats who are more concerned about budgets than treating the ill. Looters and rioting are par for the course. There is also an underlying indictment against the rapid rise of global industrialization, another virulent plague striking modern society. I won't spoil the ending, but the fact that a multinational corporation inadvertently causes the catastrophe is something to chew on.

Not all the storylines in Contagion are winners. Law's Krumwiede feels out of place with the docudrama approach of the film. His storyline is meant to symbolize how disinformation and panic are just as contagious as any pathogen, especially in an era where social media has so firmly integrated into the way we live. But, his character is handled in a very cartoonish manner. He has crooked teeth, for goodness sakes. The only thing missing is a handlebar mustache. Blogging is handled in an outdated manner as if the script had been written four or five years ago. Krimwiede loudly proclaims that print media is dead when a paper is dismissive of his findings. There is a wonderfully clever line spoken by Elliot Gould (as a research scientist) when he rebukes that blogging is just "graffiti with punctuation."

Marion Cotillard is also given the shaft as a doctor from the World Health Organization dispatched to Hong Kong to track down the path of the MEV-1. She is later kidnapped by a colleague who is desperate to receive the vaccine for his rural village. Cotillard is only given a short amount of screen time and then disappears for most of the picture until it's convenient to remember she's still around.

Soderbergh has assembled an impressive cast where even the smallest supporting roles are played by actors of note such as Gould and John Hawkes as a janitor at the CDC's headquarters. Damon and Winslet give two of the most stirring performances in the film. Paltrow's time is short. She doesn't even survive the trailer. However, her early death puts the audience on alert that nobody is safe, no matter how famous they are. Ironically, the best performance in Contagion belongs to an actress who isn't as well-known as her colleagues. Jennifer Ehle, who played Geoffrey Rush's wife in The King's Speech, has won rave notices (and deservedly so) for a scientist working tirelessly to develop a cure.

Contagion also features a pulse pounding score from Cliff Martinez, who also composed the synth score for Drive. Throbbing electronic sounds form the backbone of Martinez's music, which will set the view on edge.

As the disease ravages the Earth, populated metropolises give way to desolate urban landscapes reminiscent of a zombie movie. While Contagion has the feel of sci-fi flicks such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers and 28 Days Later, it is an ultra-realistic, post-9/11 version of Outbreak. Contagion is creepy, enthralling, and will certainly skyrocket sales in Purell.

Rating: *** ½ (*****)

The Adjustment Bureau

The Adjustment Bureau - Dir. George Nolfi (2011)

The Adjustment Bureau is a love story set against the back drop of lofty, metaphysical ideas. The film is very loosely based on a short story by Philip K. Dick and deals with the same recurring themes of free will and destiny found in his work.

Matt Damon plays David Norris, a rising star in political circles, who has just lost a bid for the New York state senate due to some embarrassing photos making the media rounds (he drunkenly mooned people in college). David hides in the men's room of the Waldorf Astoria while trying to come up with his concession speech. There, he meets Elise (Emily Blunt), a beautiful dancer hiding out from security after a crashing a party. David is inspired by her candor and free spirit, but fails to get her number before she splits. By pure chance, he pumps into Elise months later while catching the bus to work. He also happens to stumble on a group of mysterious men who have frozen his co-workers in time.

These dapper men dressed in well-tailored suits and fedoras are the Adjustment Bureau and they have been empowered by the "Chairman" to guide mankind on the proper path. Sometimes slight adjustments are called upon to correct the course. Whenever you lose your car keys, spill coffee, or forget to set the alarm clock, blame the Adjustment Bureau. They can also magically use ordinary doorways to travel great distances. The Bureau threatens to reset (lobotomize) David's mind should be attempt to expose or discuss what he's seen. They also tell him he can never see Elise again. As it turns out, David and Elise were never supposed to meet again. Their union was not meant to be and any potential romance between the two will lead to ruin for both parties.

Naturally, David disobeys the ominous warnings of the Bureau to be with his one, true love.

The Adjustment Bureau is entirely beholden to its outlandish premise. There are a lot of silly and arbitrary rules to explain the powers of the Bureau. Most of it won't make a lick of sense if you actually sat down to think about it. Luckily, the film doesn't get too wrapped up in wild concepts, instead choosing to focus on the romance between its leads. Matt Damon is likeable and charming enough to carry the movie as the protagonist. It's not as showy as his roles in True Grit or The Informant, but it’s a strong performance. As his love interest, Emily Blunt is sexy and free-spirited without devolving into the manic pixie dream girl archetype. However, you can pair up to of the most talented actors in the world and it won't amount to a thing without chemistry (The Tourist, anyone?). That isn't the case here as Damon and Blunt work exceptionally well together.

The supporting cast is great as well with Anthony Mackie as a sympathetic member of the Bureau who teaches David a few new tricks and Terence Stamp as a no-nonsense trouble shooter who is eventually called in. To no surprise, Mad Men's John Slattery fits right in with the retro-50's look.

Screenwriter George Nolfi, who worked on Ocean's Twelve and The Bourne Ultimatum, makes his directorial debut and does a solid job. He's helped greatly by veteran cinematographer John Toll, who gives New York City a slick look reminiscent of Inception. Many critics have complained that the stakes of the romance weren't high enough. That their dreams would be shattered was not enough to build dramatic tension. Personally, I found it more than adequate and didn't feel the need for something more melodramatic, such as their kid becomes the next Hitler. The one spot where Nolfi truly stumbles is the anti-climactic resolution. The film builds to an exciting foot chase as David and Elise jump from famous NY landmarks (Yankee Stadium, Liberty Island) with the Bureau doggedly on their trail. From there, it fizzles out as Nolfi scrambles to find a way out and chooses to go with the very definition of a deus ex machina.

The Adjustment Bureau could best be described as Dark City with the creepy goth atmosphere replaced by modern Manhattan chic. Despite a weak ending, the film is worth checking out due to its strong cast and great production values. As Philip K. Dick adaptations go, it's no Blade Runner, but it's way better than Paycheck or Next.

Rating: ** ½ (*****)

True Grit

True Grit - Dirs. The Coen Brothers (2010)

From the Duke to the Dude, the Coen Brothers put their own indelible stamp on the Western in this latest adaptation of the 1968 novel, True Grit, by Charles Portis. Portis's book was previously brought to the screen a year after publication in a film directed by Henry Hathaway with John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn, a surly, one-eyed U.S. Marshal. It was a role that earned Wayne his one and only Oscar.

The Coens' remake goes back to the source material to create a darker film, but one that is not nearly as nihilistic as their previous works like No Country For Old Men, Burn After Reading, and A Serious Man. While Hathaway's film was set in the Colorado Rockies during autumn, the Coens take their story back to the frontiers of Arkansas (though it was shot in New Mexico and Texas) during the cold winter. The Coens' long-time D.P. Roger Deakins skillfully manages to capture the desolation and loneliness of this world. The only way to describe Deakins' cinematography would be beautiful bleakness. It is a harsh world that young Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) finds herself.

Mattie arrives in the town of Ft. Smith to collect the body of her father, who was murdered by a drifter in his employ named Tom Cheney (Josh Brolin). Only 14 years of age, Mattie carries herself with more confidence, and intelligence than most of the adults she encounters. Mattie will need all the stern maturity she can muster as she embarks on a startling rite of passage. By the end of her first day in Ft. Smith, Mattie witnesses the hanging of three men and spends the night in the undertaker's parlor amidst the company of some newly arrived corpses. The next morning, Mattie sets about finding a lawman with "grit" to hunt down Cheney and bring him to justice. To do this, Mattie seeks out the meanest, orneriest cuss around. She finds him in Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) with a patch over his right eye (the opposite of Wayne) and a belly full of whiskey.

Cogburn reluctantly accepts the job to find Cheney who is hiding out in Indian Territory with a band of outlaws led by "Lucky" Ned Pepper (Barry Pepper). However, he draws the line when it comes to young Mattie accompanying him on the quest. Undeterred, Mattie follows to ensure the deed is done joined by another tagalong in LaBeouf (Matt Damon), a Texas Ranger who has hunted Cheney for months for the murder of a senator.

True Grit isn't an outright revisionist film as it is a twist on classic Western iconography. It is grimier and, yes, grittier where the lush visuals of Monument Valley disappear in favor of barren country landscapes and dead trees. The heroes' journey is dotted with the surreal touches that are par for the course in a Coen Brothers film, such as an encounter with a hanging body and a frontiersman in a bearskin. As portrayed by Bridges, Rooster Cogburn gives a whole new meaning to the term grizzled. Yes, Wayne did play him as something of a past-his-prime drunk, but he never lost the trademark swagger that made him a movie legend. With a gruff growl to his voice, Bridges isn't afraid to make his Cogburn look foolish from time to time. He doesn't get the grand entrance like Wayne in Stagecoach or Charles Bronson in Once Upon a Time in the West. The first time we meet Cogburn, his voice bellows from inside an outhouse as he tends to "prior business." But, damn if Cogburn still doesn't look badass with the reins in his mouth riding into a gun blazing showdown with the bad guys ("Fill your hands, you son of a bitch.")

Not to be outdone is Matt Damon, an upgrade from the inexplicable casting of the "Rhinestone Cowboy" crooner, Glen Campbell. Damon's LaBeouf (or as he pronounces it, Le Beef) is a bit of a Southern dandy, clad in jangling spurs and a fringed jacket. A play on the virtuous white hats, LaBeouf is overly sensitive to the jabs of his companions at his overinflated opinion of himself. So too is Brolin's Cheney an atypical black hat. He's more of a coward and a whiner than he is the frighteningly skillful gunhand in the vein of Jack Palance in Shane or Michael Biehn in Tombstone. At one point, an exasperated Cheney pathetically mopes and mutters to himself, "Everything is against me."

Therein lies another uniquely Coen touch to True Grit, the dialogue. Many lines are lifted directly out of the original novel and Portis's idiosyncratic lines feel as if they come right out of Joel and Ethan's playbook. In their vision of the Old West, nobody uses contractions.

True Grit is a rare confluence of talent where the acting, the writing, and the direction all come together to create a fantastic film. Yet, none of that would mean anything if the central role of Mattie Ross was improperly cast. Where Hathaway went with an older actress in the then 20-year old Kim Darby, the Coens discovered 13-year old newcomer Hailee Steinfeld. To use a well-worn cliché, Steinfeld is a revelation, able to convey poise beyond her years. She also displays the same gift of gab possessed by other Coen-created protagonists. Her unwavering logic and firm grasp of language enable her to verbally emasculate a horse trader, who has underestimated this pre-pubescent customer. Mattie's thrust upon adulthood is symbolized when she sheds her schoolmarm black dress and dons her late-father's coat and hat, both of which are two sizes too big for her. Yet, she never sheds her tightly braided pigtails thus maintaining an innocence about her.

Joel & Ethan Coen return to form with a rousing crowd pleaser in True Grit. This is one of the best films of 2010.

Rating: **** (*****)

Green Zone

Green Zone - Dir. Paul Greengrass (2010)

Green Zone is easily the best film of the first half of 2010. It’s an exceptionally rare breed of action film. It’s an action film with a brain, something you don’t see very often.

Based on the non-fiction book, Imperial Life in the Emerald City, by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Green Zone follows the U.S. occupation of Iraq following the invasion and toppling of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Matt Damon stars as Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller whose squad is tasked with the search for Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction. Miller’s searches are fruitless. One location is a playground; another is an abandoned toilet factory. Miller is less than assuaged by his superiors’ assurances that the intel, provided by a source code-named Magellan (an allusion to real-life informant "Curveball"), is thoroughly vetted.

In search of the truth, Miller encounters several individuals that help or hinder him. Among them are reporter Lawrie Dayne (Amy Ryan), an analogue for real-life journalist Judith Miller, who was oft-accused of being a shill for the Bush administration. Miller is also stuck in a tug of war between Martin Brown, the bureau chief for the CIA, (Brendan Gleeson) and Pentagon official Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear). Brown believes in utilizing the remnants of the Iraqi army to enforce order in the country. Neo-con Poundstone believes in playing hardball, weaving half-truths, and installing a glorified puppet to head up the new government.

Of utmost importance is a one-legged Iraqi who goes by the name, Freddy (Khalid Abdalla). He provides crucial information that puts Miller on the trail of Gen. Al-Rawi (Yigal Naor), one of the military's most wanted men. The relationship between Freddy and Roy Miller acts as an obvious parallel to the plight of the Iraqi people. Freddy is a representation of the hope and fear of his nation following the fall of Saddam Hussein. For Roy's part, there's an oblivious nature to some of these emotions. During one sequence, Miller and his men tackle Freddy to the ground, accidentally yanking off his prosthetic leg, because they believed he was escaping with valuable intel. In actuality, Freddy was hauling ass out of there after witnessing a black ops team (led by an almost unrecognizable Jason Isaacs) place hoods over prisoners' heads and herd them into a chopper.

The script by Brian Helgeland is blunt and lacking in nuance. However, the events are compelling enough for you to overlook any nitpicks. The same goes for the acting and the direction. Damon carries the film as the unflappable Miller. He plays well against his former Siamese twin brother (remember Stuck On You?), Greg Kinnear who takes smarmy to new levels.

Yes, Greengrass employs his trademark shaky cam, but it's not as nauseating or disorienting as his earlier work on the Bourne pictures. Teamed with cinematographer Barry Ackroyd (The Hurt Locker), Greengrass brings an immediacy and authenticity to the film. Green Zone feels like you've been dropped into the middle of Baghdad, despite the fact that the movie was shot in Spain, Morocco, and the UK.

Green Zone doesn't purport to be an accurate portrayal of the war in Iraq. Indeed, there is a sense of revisionist history and wishful thinking when it comes to the idea of a righteous soldier exposing the lies of his government. No, the film cements the tenant that it is the soldiers who bravely fight the wars that the politicians create. Perhaps, the most infuriating moment in Green Zone comes when Miller and his men (covered in sweat, sand, and grime) arrive at Saddam's former palace to find American VIPs lounging around the pool. After risking their lives in the desert, they are surrounded by politicians, contractors, and officials drinking margaritas and eating steaks.

Rating: *** ½ (*****)

Hereafter

Hereafter - Dir. Clint Eastwood (2010)

At the age of 80, Clint Eastwood hasn't shown any signs of slowing down. He may have retired from acting, but his output as director remains prolific. Whenever awards season rolls around, you know a new Eastwood picture will be released. His films have been in varied genres, whether they be crime thrillers (Mystic River), war movies (Flags of Our Fathers, Letters to Iwo Jima), or sports dramas (Million Dollar Baby, Invictus). His next project will be a biopic about J. Edgar Hoover with Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead.

Eastwood ventures slightly out of his comfort zone with Hereafter, a trio of stories centered on death and the afterlife. Eastwood is joined by Peter Morgan, a screenwriter known more for politically charged films like The Last King of Scotland, The Queen, and Frost/Nixon. Morgan was apparently inspired to write the script following the death of a close friend.

Hereafter begins with the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004. French television personality Marie LeLay (Cecile De France) is vacationing in Thailand with her producer/boyfriend (Thierry Neuvic) when the tidal wave hits. She is swept away and nearly killed by a careening automobile. Marie is barely revived, but not before having ethereal visions of white light and ghostly figures. From then on, she has trouble reconnecting with her normal life. She attempts to take time off by writing a book on former French president Francois Mitterrand. Instead, she winds up researching a new book on the afterlife. Her newfound fascination alienates her from her boyfriend and colleagues.

George Lonegan (Matt Damon) was once a psychic of some renown with the legitimate ability to speak with the dead. Imagine him as the kid from The Sixth Sense all grown up. George has retreated from the spotlight, making a modest living as a forklift operator in San Francisco. His brother, Billy (Jay Mohr), keeps trying to convince George that they can both make a lot more money by exploiting his powers. George disagrees, believing them to be a curse, rather than a gift. We see just how these psychic talents interfere with his life when he is introduced to Melanie (Bryce Dallas Howard) at a cooking class. It's a meet cute straight out of the romantic comedy playbook, but the budding relationship doesn't get the chance for a happy ending.

The third storyline is set in London and follows twin brothers Marcus and Jason (Frankie & George McLaren who alternate roles). Marcus depends on the wiser and more mature Jason, who is twelve minutes older, to take care of him and their heroin-addicted mother. When Jason is killed in a tragic car accident, Marcus is placed in foster care and struggles to go on with his life

Eastwood excels at making these types of prestige pictures. He has an old-fashioned sense of storytelling. He is content to give his characters room to breathe and never resorts to superfluous camera tricks. Hereafter marks the first time Eastwood has used extensive special effects. The opening tsunami sequence is a remarkable achievement in CGI that is shot in a very intimate manner. Eastwood shoots this massive natural disaster at a human level by focusing on Marie as she is battered and thrashed about. Eastwood is more concerned about capturing the harrowing emotions of the event rather than creating widespread destruction, a lesson that Michael Bay and Roland Emmerich could learn.

The rest of the film doesn't quite live up to the promise of the start. Cecile De France is wonderful and I admit to having a crush on her since High Tension (just something about a French girl wielding a chainsaw). However, her storyline remains the weakest of the three. The scenes dealing with her disconnect are mundane and fail to convey the existential turmoil she faces. Damon appears in the strongest storyline and he gives a powerful, yet understated, performance. Unlike films such as Babel and Crash, Hereafter doesn't unite its characters through tenuous strands or contrive to intersect its various plots. The storylines run parallel and only converge in the final act. The resolution remains unsatisfying and the convergence of plot threads feels more like an obligation rather than a germane end to the journey. Eastwood is known for his preference to shoot the script's first draft, choosing not to tweak the writer's words. Perhaps, that's exactly what Hereafter needed.

In the end, Eastwood has created a film about metaphysical subject matter that is grounded in a down-to-earth reality. The performances of the cast are good enough to overcome the meandering plots and the occasional bluntness of Eastwood's direction.

Rating: **