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CHARADE (1963) (****)

If you know enough about Alfred Hitchcock to recognizes his style, but not enough to know all his films than you could easily think that CHARADE is one of his pictures. This is not a slight against director Stanley Donen (TWO FOR THE ROAD), but his film embraces all that is Hitchcockian. The innocent thrust into dangerous situations. The unexpected humor. Witty dialogue. And Cary Grant.

Regina Lampert (Audrey Hepburn, TWO OF THE ROAD) wants to divorce her husband because he lies to her. Then she returns home from vacation to discover that he has sold all their things and has gotten himself murdered. She goes to his funeral where she meets a trio of shady men — Tex Panthollow (James Coburn, ADDICTION), Herman Scobie (George Kennedy, COOL HAND LUKE) and Sylvie Gaudel (Dominique Minot, THOMAS). She is then called in to the American consulate by CIA agent Leopold Gideon (Walter Matthau, MIRAGE), who explains to her that the men at her husband's funeral and her husband stole $250,000 during WWII and may want to kill her for the money, which she doesn't know it's whereabouts.

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THE MAGDALENE SISTERS (2003) (***1/2)

Based on a true story, the film chronicles the unimaginable treatment of the girls imprisoned in the Magdalene Sisters Asylums of Ireland. The crux of the story revolves around four girls. Margaret (Anne-Marie Duff, ENIGMA) is sent to the Catholic home after she is raped by a cousin. Rose (renamed Patricia in the home) (Dorothy Duffy, film debut) is sent away for getting pregnant. Crispina (Eileen Walsh, NICHOLAS NICKLEBY) is a slow girl who was also sent away for having a child, who is given to her sister. Finally, Bernadette (Nora-Jane Noone, ELLA ENCHANTED) is sent away from her orphanage for no more than flirting with boys.

Sister Bridget (Geraldine McEwan, ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES) is the head of the home and rules over it with sadistic flare. The fact that McEwan was able to infuse some humanity into the character is amazing. The idea is that through hard labor the girls will save their souls from sin… and make a lot of money for the church from the laundry services they provide. The girls are treated like slaves and many stay there for the rest of their lives. Girls who escape and are brought back are brutalized. Some of the nuns subject the girls to sick humiliating games, ruling over them like the girls are subhuman.

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KILL BILL: VOLUME 2 (2004) (****)

A lot of debate has arisen over the splitting of KILL BILL into two parts because it was indented to be one film. Does the film work as two films? Yes. Mainly because they have two different tones. Audiences going into VOLUME 2 thinking they are going to get the same non-stop action as the first film will be disappointed. The first film was closer to samurai and kung fu films, where as the second is closer akin to spaghetti Westerns.

What's so strikingly different about this film from the first is the time it pays to developing the characters. The film starts with a black and white recap of the first film by The Bride (Uma Thurman, GATTACA), reminiscent of old film noir trailers. Then the story flashes back to the massacre at the Bride's wedding rehearsal where we get more background on The Bride, including what she's been doing with her life since leaving the assassin's crew of Bill (David Carradine, TVs KUNG FU). This is the quiet before the storm.

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PERFECT BLUE (1998) (***1/2)

This is the debut film from Satoshi Kon, director of anime features MILLENNIUM ACTRESS and TOKYO GODFATHERS. I'm not a huge fan of the critically acclaimed ACTRESS, but I'd say PERFECT BLUE is on equal footing with the wonderfully whimsical GODFATHERS, which I quite enjoyed. Kon likes to take on a new genre for each of his films and PERFECT BLUE emerges from the land of the psychological thriller. Like in ACTRESS you question why this film is animated, but it doesn't ruin the film.

Mima Kirigoe is a big pop star from a singing trio, who decides to abandon singing and become an actress. Right from the beginning she is stalked by a strange-looking, obsessive fan. Her managers Rumi, a former pop star herself, and Tadokoro disagree with the new direction of Mima's career, starting with a rape scene in a movie, then nude pictures. After awhile so does Mima. Fueling her doubt is a Website dedicated to her called Mima's Room, which seems to know her inner thoughts, pushing her to the edge of insanity. Before too long, she has reached the point where she has a hard time deciding what is real and what is imaginary. Then people around her start to get murdered and she doesn't know if she may be involved.

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THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1992) (***1/2)

How faithful this adaptation is to the James Fenimore Cooper novel I do not know. The plot for the most part is a standard romantic adventure. Hawkeye (Daniel Day-Lewis, GANGS OF NEW YORK) is a white man raised by Indians, who falls in love with Cora Munro (Madeleine Stowe, BAD GIRLS), the oldest daughter of British colonel Edmund Munro (Maurice Roeves, TV's DAVID). Or course like most great romances, their needs to be a love triangle so we get shady British officer Duncan Hayward (Steven Waddington, SLEEPY HOLLOW), who loves Cora, but she does not return the same feelings.

Cora, Duncan and Munro's younger daughter, Alice (Jodhi May, THE HOUSE OF MIRTH), fall into grave danger and Hawkeye, along with his Indian brethren Chingachgook (Russell Means, BUFFALO GIRLS) and Uncas (Eric Schweig, TOM AND HUCK), rescue them, leading Hawkeye to fall in love with Cora to the dismay of Duncan. It's pretty standard stuff really. But what makes this film so good is the detail.

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OPEN RANGE (2003) (***1/2)

When Kevin Costner is good (i.e. DANCES WITH WOLVES, FIELD OF DREAMS) he can be great. But when he's bad (i.e. THE POSTMAN), he's awful. Costner proves himself with his film, making a solid Western in the classic sense. The film has something to say about the effects of violence, especially war, on a man's psyche.

Costner plays Charley Waite, a quiet cowboy, who has been working for Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall, THE APOSTLE) for more than a decade. Boss Spearman is kind and wise, but he's cautious about strangers. Working with them is the childlike big man Mose (Abraham Benrubi, TV's ER) and the young Hispanic rookie Button (Diego Luna, Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN). When Mose goes to town for supplies and is jumped by locals, Boss and Charley want to make their presence known to the men that threaten them, which include crocked Irish landowner Denton Baxter (Michael Gambon, GOSFORD PARK) and corrupt sheriff Poole (James Russo, THE NINTH GATE). In the meantime, they get Doc (Dean McDermott, A COOL, DRY PLACE) and Sue Barlow (Annette Bening, AMERICAN BEAUTY) to fix up Mose. Charley has an instant attraction to Sue. When tragedy strikes, Boss and Charley ride into town for their revenge.

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INTOLERABLE CRUELTY (2003) (***1/2)

The Coen Brothers have displayed their unique sense of style in their films like RAISING ARIZONA, BLOOD SIMPLE and FARGO. They often skirt the line between black satire, film noir and screwball comedy. CRUELTY is probably their most accessible mainstream film and conjures up the best of Hollywood's Golden Age screwball laugh-fests.

Miles Massey (George Clooney, O' BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?) is L.A.'s top divorce lawyer. They teach a class on his pre-nup agreement at Harvard Law School. He's a conniver and a cheat; no case is too difficult to win. Rex Rexroth (Edward Herrmann, CAT'S MEOW) has been caught red-handed cheating on his wife, Marylin (Catherine Zeta-Jones, TRAFFIC), who wants to take him for everything he's got. She's a pro at this sort of thing, having her own go-to private eye named Gus Petch (Cedric the Entertainer, BARBERSHOP). However, she underestimated the skills of Miles Massey, who wins. But that's just a set back for Marylin. Next up for this seductress is naïve very-Texan, oil man Howard (Billy Bob Thorton, SLINGBLADE). The poor sap is just a tool for Marylin to get back at Miles. She doesn't like to lose.

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CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS (2003) (****)

Two things have to come together to make a good documentary a great one -- skilled and dedicated filmmakers that know what questions to ask and who to ask them to and serendipity. This film has both. The film chronicles the lives of the Friedman family, whose patriarch was convicted of child molestation along with his youngest son. It was one of the most famous such cases in American history. What the filmmakers lucked into with this documentary is that the oldest son, David, filmed and video recorded many family meetings even after Arnold, the father, and Jesse, the son, were arrested.

The film unblinkingly peers into the turmoil that this family went through. We get glimpses of Arnold as a funny, happy-go-lucky kind of guy, but after the charges were brought against him, he becomes a quiet, meek guilt-ridden lump. Elaine, Arnold's wife, seemed to love her husband before the charges, but old buried issues boiled to the surface and she quickly wrote him off. This betrayal by his mother created great anger and resentment in David, who sees his father through rose-colored glasses and sees his mother through cloudy resentment. Seth, the middle child, didn't even participate in the film, which adds to the story's mystery and makes the reading of the affects on the family more complex. Jesse, the youngest son, seems the most resolved about the situation and the most honest about the way he views both his father and mother. The last family member interviewed is Arnold's brother Howard, who is very emotionally scarred by the scandal. A revelation about Howard late in the movie adds a whole new wrinkle to him and his brother.

Blogs

READ MY LIPS (2002) (***1/2)

By Rick DeMott | Saturday, February 14, 2004 at 10:32am

This French thriller is a film that Alfred Hitchcock would have loved. Ordinary people thrust into extraordinary events. The frumpy Carla (Emmanuelle Devos, FORGET ME) is a secretary at a construction firm. She is partially deaf – able to read lips though. The men at the office ridicule her behind her back. They have a knack for always discarding their coffee cups on her desk. Overworked – one day her boss tells her to hire an assistant.

The employment agency sends over newly released convict, Paul (Vincent Cassel, IRREVERIBLE), who has no office skills whatsoever. At first repulsed, but strangely intrigued, Carla hires Paul and quickly gains a feeling of authority, finally having someone under her. In a way identifying with Paul's outcast persona, she helps Paul get a place to live. When a colleague steals a project she has been working on for three years, Carla asks Paul for some help. This "criminal" act starts Carla and Paul exchanging favors for favors, leading to Carla reading the lips of gangsters to find out when a bag of laundered money is coming in so Paul can steal it.

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BATTLE ROYALE (2000) (****)

By Rick DeMott | Saturday, February 14, 2004 at 12:01am

This film from Japan was an international sensation. It was a controversial one as well. I saw it by getting an all-region DVD from Korea off e-Bay for Christmas. But I am now seeing it at some indie rental outlets for rent. I've been waiting two years to see this film and it was well worth it. Simply explaining the plot will explain the controversy.

It's set in a near future Japan where adults have lost all faith in the morals of the teen generation. As a way to keep the youth as a whole in line, they have instituted a new act where one ninth-grade class a year is chosen to participate in Battle Royale. The 42 students must kill each other off one by one until only one teen survives. If you don't kill, a collar around your neck will explode, killing you.

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FOR YOUR EYES ONLY (1981) (***1/2)

By Rick DeMott | Saturday, February 14, 2004 at 12:01am

This may be the most underrated Bond movie of the series. It's easily the most realistic and one of the most thrilling. I can't yet say if it's Roger Moore's best, but it's a huge step up from his first outing in the miserable LIVE AND LET DIE. But we'll get back to Moore later.

The film starts off by acknowledging ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE, which was the first non-Connery Bond film and the one where Bond gets married and his wife is murdered. In the beginning of this film, James Bond visits his wife's grave, which adds an emotional pull to the film that sometimes Bond films lack. The first sequence where Blofeld controls Bond's helicopter is humorous and a wonderful wink from the filmmakers that this entry in the series is killing off the silliness and excess that had been building up.

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CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000) (****)

One of the best films of 2000, this is the kind of film that you love to watch over and over again. That's saying a lot for a subtitled film. Director Ang Lee (ICE STORM) brought to life a Chinese kung-fu move with heart and emotion. I had to twist my wife's arm to go see this in the theater. It's now one of her favorites and she let out an audible, "wow," in the theater when the first character effortlessly takes flight.

Veteran fighter Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat, ANNA AND THE KING) is about to retire and he has given his legendary sword, the Green Destiny, to Sir Te (Lung Sihung, EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN). It also allows him to reunited with his childhood friend, Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh, TOMORROW NEVER DIES), who is employed as a guardian. Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien have long loved each other, but have kept their feelings repressed. Jen Yu (Ziyi Zhang, RUSH HOUR 2) is the Governor's daughter, who is engaged to marry a man she does not love. Secretly, she is being trained in the Wudan martial arts by thief and murderer, Jade Fox (Pei-pei Cheng, THE LEGEND OF BLACK MASK), who killed Li Mu Bai's master.

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GINGER SNAPS (2000) (***1/2)

This Canadian teen horror film played some festivals in the States, but never got any true theatrical release. The film went straight-to-video in 2001 and has slowly garnered a cult following thanks to the Internet. There is a good reason for this; it's the very smart horror film.

The story follows the Fitzgerald sisters – Brigitte (Emily Perkins, IT) and Ginger (Katharine Isabelle, FREDDY VS. JASON) – whose fascination with death has led them to become outcasts in their community. They stage gruesome death photos and disavow anything girly. They are even late in getting their periods and dread the day they come, thinking they will change into everything they hate. Recently, dogs of their town have been turning up mauled to death. One night, the girls find the culprit – a werewolf, which attacks Ginger. Slowly, the teen starts to go through a transformation, unleashing the animal inside. The original werewolf was smashed by a van, driven by a young drug dealer named Sam (Kris Lemche, EXISTENZ). As Ginger strikes up a relationship with a punk kid named Jason (TV’s NOAH), Brigitte talks with Sam about the werewolf and how to cure someone who has been bitten. Rounding out the cast is the girls’ clueless, caring, but ultimately kooky mother Pamela (Mimi Rogers, GUNG HO).

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MONSTER (2003) (****)

The buzz for this film is electric. It's based on the true story of "America's first female serial killer" Aileen Wuornos. It is a low-budget independent film from a first time feature director Patty Jenkins. If you haven't heard of it yet, you will. The main reason for this is Charlize Theron (CIDER HOUSE RULES). She plays Wuornos in a performance that is mesmerizing and brutally real. If she does not win the Oscar, they should discontinue the award forever.

Many people say they didn't even know it was she. With make-up and adding some 20 pounds, the slim, blonde model transformed into a trailer trash female straight from central casting at THE JERRY SPRINGER SHOW. A lot of people didn't think she had a performance like this in her from her past work as "the girlfriend" -- they just weren't paying attention. If you watch her performances as the "girlfriend," they are all different. She truly never gives the same performance twice. Check out her performance in THE DEVIL'S ADVOCATE to see some of what she can do. Theron embodies Wuornos in everyway. Watch her eyes – she is the character.

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THE LAST SAMURAI (2003) (***1/2)

In general, the reviews of this film have been positive. It has made a few top ten lists for 2003. However, the negative reviews for the film always bring up that the movie depicts a white hero coming in to save a minority group. I can see how this opinion is being formed. However, these critics are missing the bigger point.

The story follows decorated Civil War and Indian War fighter Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise, MAGNOLIA) as he is hired to help train the new Japanese military in the ways of the West. Algren is a drunk and has been squeaking out a living by doing gun demonstrations on tour. The Japanese "soldiers" he is supposed to train are peasants and farmers, who must go up against the highly skilled samurai. Even with guns, the Japanese soldiers are no match for the samurai. In the battle, Algren is taken prisoner, because the samurai leader Katsumoto (Ken Watanabe, U.S. debut) is interested in knowing his enemy and respects the fighting spirit in Algren. Katsumoto places Algren in the care of his sister Taka (Koyuki, U.S. debut), who was the wife of one of the samurai Algren killed. Through his time in the samurai village, Algren learns about the code of honor these people live by and is haunted by the Indian massacres he participated in.

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MYSTIC RIVER (2003) (***1/2)

This film perplexes me. The hype is high and it may not have lived up to my expectations. Every year there is a critical sensation that just doesn’t blow me away like all the reviews say it will. Maybe over time, this film will resonate more, once it’s distanced from the hype. But that's not to say I didn't like the film, which is fueled by powerful performances and a harrowing crime story.

The story deals with how tragedy often reaches from our pasts and taints our futures. Dave Boyle (Tim Robbins, SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION) was abducted when he was an adolescent as his friends Sean (Kevin Bacon, FLATLINERS) and Jimmy (Sean Penn, DEAD MAN WALKING) watched. Over the years, the three friends grew apart. Jimmy went to prison and has been married twice. His daughter Katie (Emmy Rossum, SONGCATCHER), with his first wife, is the love of his life. His new wife, Annabeth (Laura Linney, YOU CAN COUNT ON ME), complains that he needs to remember that he has two other daughters. Dave is plagued by what happened to him, unable to reconcile it in his mind. Sean has become a homicide cop and is estranged from his wife who calls him but doesn’t speak.

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FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963) (***1/2)

The second Bond film is considered by many to be the best. It ups the ante from DR. NO and Sean Connery has truly grown into the character. This entry introduced Desmond Llewelyn as Q, the inventor of all of Bond's nifty gadgets. It also starts some of the contrived conventions of the series, but ultimately it balances between the straightforward style of the first film and the superhero elements of later installments.

This time around the plot is far more complex, which makes it more engaging than DR. NO. The evil enterprise SPECTRE plans to ignite a war between the U.S. and Russia, so they can take control of the world in the aftermath. Russian agent Tatiana Romanov (Daniela Bianchi, ALWAYS ON SUNDAY) thinks she is doing a mission for Russia, but she is really being set up by SPECTRE. Her orders are to allow Bond to steal a Russian decoder, and once Bond is killed, his theft will be revealed starting WWIII. However, SPECTRE didn't anticipate the true sexual appeal of James Bond, who easily makes Tatiana fall in love with him. Bond's sexual prowess is definitely pushed more over-the-top than in DR. NO, however Tatiana isn't totally helpless, often helping Bond in crucial moments.

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BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM (2003) (***1/2)

By Rick DeMott | Wednesday, January 14, 2004 at 12:01am

Gurinder Chadha has followed up her wonderful film WHAT’S COOKING? with this delightful crowd pleaser about an Indian girl named Jess (Parminder K. Nagra, TV’s ER) who just wants to play soccer. The plot is standard “girl fights tradition to do what she wants” kind of story. What sets this film apart is that it has heart and real pathos. The characters are fleshed out and the action of the story occurs naturally.

Jess gets caught playing soccer and her father (Anupam Kher) and mother (Shaheen Khan, CAPTIVES) forbid her from playing. In a lesser film, this would be the big second act conflict that propels the film to an inevitable end. However, this film has Jess continue to defy her parents over and over again, much like a real teenager. She is spotted playing in the park by Jules (Keira Knightley, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN) who invites her to play for her female team, which is coached by ex-men’s player Joe (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, TITUS). Those three form an unusually believable love triangle.

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BAD SANTA (2003) (***1/2)

To call this movie a black comedy is being kind. It’s a coal black satire of the holiday season. I hardly ever notice cursing in movies now, but this one even pricked up my ears. Maybe it's the context of something innocent like Santa, but this film even shocked me. These are not complaints; they are the biggest compliments I can give this film.

Willie (Billy Bob Thornton, SLING BLADE) is a foul-mouthed alcoholic safe-cracker, who works with a black dwarf named Marcus (Tony Cox, FRIDAY). Every year they pose as Santa Claus and his elf at malls. On Christmas Eve, they rob the mall and live off their ill-gotten gains for the next year. This time around Willie ends up meeting a kid named Thurman (Brett Kelly, OUT COLD), who is an absolute hopeless loser. He starts to cling to Willie hoping that Santa will give him a present for Christmas. At first Willie doesn’t want to have anything to do with the kid, but ends up staying at his house.

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FROM DUSK TILL DAWN (1996) (***1/2)

Directed by Robert Rodriguez (DESPERADO) and written by Quentin Tarantino (PULP FICTION), this horror crime film bubbles over with cool. It plays out in two distinct parts — the first is a kidnap story and the second is a vampire yarn. Though completely different, Rodriguez brings a unifying style to the two halves and Tarantino writes the in a dramatic way where "good guys" and "bad guys" must come together to conquer a common enemy. Oh, and it's cool as hell… but I already mentioned that.

Seth (George Clooney, O' BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?) and Richard Gecko (Tarantino, DESPERADO) are escaped bank robbers trying to flee to Mexico. Bumps happen along the way mainly due to the extremely unpredictable and unstable behavior of Richard. The Gecko Brothers end up taking hostage the Fuller family, which includes ex-minister Jacob (Harvey Keitel, THE GREY ZONE), teenage daughter Kate (Juliette Lewis, CAPE FEAR) and his Chinese son Scott (Ernest Liu, THE WESTING GAME). They end up at the Titty Twister bar where the management turns out to be blood-sucking vampires.

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WORKING GIRL (1988) (***1/2)

In the role that made her, Melanie Griffith (LOLITA) as Tess McGill has never been better. The role allows her to use the sexpot type she played prior to this film, while crafting a much fuller character.

The story follows go-getter Jersey girl McGill as she gets a job as a secretary for no-holds-barred businesswoman Katharine Parker (Sigourney Weaver, ALIEN). McGill knows a great deal about finance, but she doesn't look or sound the part. After Katharine gets stuck in the mountains after breaking her leg skiing, Tess learns that Katharine had stolen one of her own ideas that Katharine poo-pooed earlier. Tess then assumes Katharine's identity and takes her business idea to Jack Trainer (Harrison Ford, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK) at a competing firm.

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OWNING MAHOWNY (2003) (***1/2)

This character study about a man with a severe gambling addiction continues to prove that Philip Seymour Hoffman is one of the best actors working today. Based on a true story about a bank employee who took his employer for $10.2 million, Hoffman sinks into this role completely. He never goes for effect, because like any addict his highs are muted by his addiction. It takes a bigger and bigger risk to even get him to blink.

Hoffman's Dan Mahowny is determined that if he gambles long enough he will be able to pay back all his debts, which he has accrued from gambling. At the bank he is promoted to assistant manager in charge of loans, which he starts making out to himself. His unassuming appearance and nerdy charm allow him to cover up his deceptions. But his gambling has gotten so bad that his bookie Frank (Maury Chaykin, HOSTAGE) cuts him off, because Mahowny starts making impulsive bets just to place a bet. Even bookies have to draw a line on how much they'll take someone for their money. Mahowny has a girlfriend named Belinda (Minnie Driver, CIRCLE OF FRIENDS), who worries and really cares about him, but when he invites her to Vegas with him she finally can't overlook his erratic behavior.

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ALL THE REAL GIRLS (2003) (****)

David Gordon Green is quickly becoming a director to watch. His only other film GEORGE WASHINGTON was one of the best films from 2000 and I eagerly await his version of the Pulitzer Prize award-winning novel CONFEDERACY OF THE DUNCES. Again he deals with young characters, this time in their late teens and 20s. ALL THE REAL GIRLS is a simple love story constructed with complex characters.

Paul (Paul Schneider, GEORGE WASHINGTON) is a notorious ladies man in his small working class North Carolina town. He starts dating Noel (Zooey Deschanel, ALMOST FAMOUS), the younger sister of his best friend Tip (Shea Whigham, TIGERLAND), who of course doesn't like the idea when he finds out. Noel has just returned from boarding school and Paul notice how she has grown up. They've known each other their whole lives and they approach this next step in the relationship with thought and idealism. But unlike so many other screen romances, the two lovers have other people in their lives that make a difference. The supporting cast is not just there to serve the plot.

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