Printer-Friendly
Email this Story
Post a Comment (0)
Widescreen
In this race, no one wins: The world has changed. The future has corporations running the prisons and they are out to make money on the backs of their inmates. In "Death Race," Warden Hennessey (Joan Allen) has found a new driver, Jensen Ames (Jason Statham). It just so happens he has just been convicted of murder and is off to her prison. Go figure.What could have been a clever idea for a film turns into a waste of screen time. Statham and Allen are left to careen through a pile of crashing cars, blood and craziness.
This film seemed more interested in car crashes and death (oh yeah ... the title is "Death Race") than in any kind of character development.
After a summer filled with successful action films that crossed the finish line, "Death Race" brings the summer to a crashing halt.
D+
' DDE_LINKDeath Race DDE_LINK'
Universal Pictures
Director: Paul W.S. Anderson
Cast: Jason Statham, Joan Allen, Ian McShane, Tyrese Gibson
Rating: R for strong violence and language
Run time: 89 minutes
One joke, not enough laughs
Where would a former Playboy bunny go to find a place to live, a job and a party? A sorority house of course.
In "The House Bunny," Shelley (Anna Faris) is a Playboy bunny who is too old for the mansion; she just turned 27.
Shelley can help Zeta house become popular. Zeta gives Shelley a place to live. It's win/ win.
Sure, this is a throw-away film at the end of summer. That doesn't mean I didn't laugh. Anna Faris' dumb blonde routine gets old very quickly and the one joke routine runs out of steam.
Despite this being a movie that I would call all about one joke, I laughed at times. The ladies are beautiful -- the rest is just fluff.
C
'The House Bunny'
Columbia Pictures
Director: Fred Wolf
Cast: Anna Faris, Colin Hanks, Emma Stone, Kat Dennings
Rating: PG-13 for sex-related humor, partial nudity and brief strong language
Run time: 97 minutes
Only a one-hit wonder
Rainn Wilson (Dwight from "The Office") stars as Robert "Fish" Fishman in "The Rocker." He lost his chance at stardom when his band, Vesuvius, dumped him to get a record deal. Now after moving in with his sister's family, he is offered the chance of a lifetime, to get back in the game with his nephew's high-school band, A.D.D.
Wilson is funny when he is allowed to roll with things. Unfortunately, the film surrounding him is uneven. The script can't get a direction and seems to want to be everything to everyone.
Instead of being a legendary icon like the Stones, "The Rocker" is simply a one-hit wonder that just spends a little time on the charts before fizzling out.
B-
'The Rocker'
20th Century Fox
Director: Peter Cattaneo
Cast: Rainn Wilson, Christina Applegate, Teddy Geiger, Josh Gad, Emma Stone
Rating: PG-13 for drug and sexual references, nudity and language
Run time: 102 minutes
You must be logged in to post a comment.