THE 3 LITTLE PIGS

Original title Les 3 p'tits cochons
In French with English subtitles
Drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Claude Legault: Mathieu Quintal, bill collector
Guillaume Lemay-Thivierge: his younger brother Christian, Tae Kwon Do instructor
Paul Doucet: Remi, the eldest of the three brothers
France Castel: their mother Lucille
Isabel Richer: Mathieu’s wife Geneviève
Julie Perreault: Christian’s live-in girlfriend Hélène, a policwoman
Sophie Prégent: Remi’s wife Dominique
Mahée Paiement: Josian, one of Mathieu’s collegues
Marie-Hélène Gendreau: Karine, student of Tae Kwon Do
Marie-Laurence Moreau: Valerie, one of Remi’s friends

REVIEW
This film should not be confused with the children’s story of the same name. Walt Disney brought to the screen an animated version of the classic tale about learning from the mistakes of others. This movie is about making mistakes and not learning anything from others.

With some failed attempt at humour it tries to justify the infidelity-related mid-life crisis two of the brothers are experiencing. Yet it goes to great lengths to show them engaged in their sexually explicit liaisons. No doubt the “voyeurs” in the audience will appreciate this attention to detail. In fact it panders to the lower tastes and desires of those who enjoy watching X rated movies on the big screen.

Instead of putting so much effort in to producing a porn movie, they could have spent more time getting better actors. Certainly not everyone is gifted with thespian talents but frankly I’ve seen better acting in high school plays than what Mahée Paiement can do.

CLASSIFICATION
for brief violence, nudity, language and scenes of sex.

P.S.
Calling someone “un cochon” in French is more than describing the person as a pig. It is a derogatory term and implies that he or she is a really dirty, scummy, filthy, undesirable person. In this case the title of the film is most apropos.

THE YACOUBIAN BUILDING

Also know as: Omaret Yacoubian
Drama
In Arabic with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
Erected in downtown Cairo in 1934, the Yacoubian apartment building was one of the largest, most luxurious edifices of its day. Over the years, however, the building fell into disrepair, and the rooftop dwellings that had been used as servants' quarters were rented out to the destitute and downtrodden. Thus the edifice named for its Armenian builder came to represent a cross-section of Egyptian society.

Pasha was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, typically granted to governors and generals. Although the word now serves as a non-hereditary title, English speakers have commonly used Pasha as if it formed part of a personal name, as for instance in Zaki Pasha.

LE is the abbreviation for livre égyptienne, French for Egyptian pound. It is also referred to as EGP. Currently 100 EGP = US$17

A Copt is a native Egyptian Christian. Copts are one of the oldest Christian communities in the Middle East. According to ancient tradition, Saint Mark introduced Christianity to the Egyptians shortly after the ascension of Christ during the reign of the Roman Emperor Nero. Although integrated in the larger Egyptian nation, the Copts have survived as a distinct religious community forming today between 10 and 20 percent of the native population.

Upper Egypt is the narrow strip of land that extends from modern-day Aswan to the area just south of Cairo.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Adel Imam: Zaki Pasha, a wealthy bachelor
Essad Youniss: his sister Dalawt
Khaled El Sawy: Hatem Rasheed, a newspaper editor
Nour El Sherif: Haj Azzam, wealthy owner of an upscale car dealership
Mohamed Imam: Taha El-Shazli, the son of the building’s janitor
Hind Sabry: his girlfriend Buthayna (or is it Bosnaina?)
Bassem Samra: a handsome young soldier
Yousra: Christine, French songstress in an upscale restaurant

REVIEW
The length of the movie (almost 3 hours) will no doubt be a deterrent to many considering going to see this wide-ranging view of secular life in modern-day Cairo. My guess is only those who are native to the country or have visited it (I’ve been twice so I guess I qualify on that count) would have the patience to hang in to the end, as there is no evidence of any attempt at serious editing.

Since the plot involves the lives of the building tenants, there’s always something happening so it jumps from one to another and like any good soap-opera, that keeps your interest high.

CLASSIFICATION
for some sexuality and violence.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
The soldier is wearing a white T-shirt under his pyjamas but a few minutes later when he removes the top of his pj’s somehow the T-shirt has disappeared.

While Taha is being pursued he exits the park and bangs into a panel truck. The camera view shifts from outside to inside the truck and now he’s at least 10’ away from the truck.

When Zaki and Buthayna are returning one evening to his apartment, although it is quiet dark you can see the name of the building on the left-hand side over the entrance to be the Regent Hotel.

P.S.
Typically the streets of Cairo are teeming with people, cars, buses, trucks (even donkeys) as would be expected of a large metropolitan city with a population of some 16 million. Personally I’ve never seen a street in Cairo that has that “just washed look” . I think the producers have sanitised the city somewhat.

2 DAYS IN PARIS

Drama, comedy
In English and French with English subtitles

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Adam Goldberg: Jack, an American interior designer
Julie Delpy: Marion, a professional photographer
Marie Pillet: her mother Anna
Albert Delpy: her father Jeannot
Alexia Landeau: her sister Rose

REVIEW
According to the end credits the movie was Directed by, Written by, Principal Female Cast Member played by, Co-produced by, Original Music by, Film Editing by, and Still Photography by Julie Delphy. Obviously someone with great talent but in my opinion when someone has more than one principal role in the making of a movie, it tends to be something less than the sum of its parts.

For example the editing is sometimes choppy and if the Director were not the person doing the editing that probably would not be acceptable. Another example: there are times the dialog seems totally improvised (not necessarily a bad thing mind you) but if the writer and Director were not the same person there would be a rewrite of the script then a reshoot to give it that “polished” look of a full production movie. And of course Delphy’s own performance suffers at times because she is directing herself and does not have that independent assessment of her acting.

Having said that, it’s not a bad movie at all. Playing on the troubles any couple encounters when they have different value systems (such as their relationship with an “ex”) or if family gets involved in their relationship there are lots of poignant moments along with really funny things that act as a countermeasure.

CLASSIFICATION
for sexual content, some nudity and language.

P.S.
This is a real family affair. The supporting cast are Delphy’s real mother, father and sister.

ARCTIC TALE

Documentary

BACKGROUND
The moustached and long-tusked walrus is most often found near the Arctic Circle, lying on the ice with hundreds of companions. These marine mammals are extremely sociable, prone to loudly bellowing and snorting at one another, but are aggressive during mating season.

Walruses use their long tusks for a variety of reasons, each of which makes their lives in the Arctic a bit easier. They use them to haul their enormous bodies out of frigid waters and to break breathing holes into ice from below. Their tusks, which are found on both males and females, can extend to about three feet and are, in fact, large canine teeth, which grow throughout their lives. Male walruses, or bulls, also employ their tusks aggressively to maintain territory and, during mating season, to protect their harems of females, or cows.

REVIEW
Partially funded by The National Geographic Society, the movie has amazing close-ups of wild animals and incredible underwater photography. The narration comes across more as a story-telling session rather than the more staid informative narration generally used in other documentaries. To keep it “family-friendly” there are no gory scenes nor anything particularly disturbing.

There are quite a few amusing moments (both visual and from the comments) along with a lot of interesting facts including those offered by the kids during the end credits.

CLASSIFICATION

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

Comedy

BACKGROUND
The Simpsons is animated American sitcom seen on the Fox television network. As a satirical parody of the “Middle American” lifestyle the show is set in the fictional town of Springfield and lampoons many aspects of American culture, society as a whole and television itself. It debuted on December 17, 1989 and is currently the longest running American sitcom. Time magazine named it the 20th Century’s best television series.

PRINCIPAL VOICES
Dan Castellaneta: Homer Simpson, safety inspector at a nuclear power plant
Julie Kavner: his wife Marge
Nancy Cartwright: their 10-year old son Bart
Yeardley Smith: their 8-year old daughter Lisa
Harry Shearer: Homer’s neighbor Ned Flanders

REVIEW
Even newbies to the Simpsons will find this entertaining as there are lots of laughs by way of old fashioned slapstick, pointed satire, ridicule, sight gags, wise-cracking dialogue and one-liners. There are a few crude jokes but generally speaking it’s pretty much above that.

The targets this time are inept government, religion and environmentalists. And Homer of course.

CLASSIFICATION
for irreverent humor throughout.

STARDUST

Fantasy romance

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Charlie Cox: Tristan, a 18-year old Englishman
Sienna Miller: Victoria, a rather vain young lady
Henry Cavill: big bully Humphrey
Claire Danes: the walking-talking fallen star Yvaine
Peter O’Toole: the king of Stormhold
Michelle Pfeiffer: the not so ugly witch Lamia

REVIEW
After half an hour I had enough and walked out. What transpired I think is all pretty silly. Here’s what I saw so you can be the judge:

Tristan falls in love with the prettiest maiden in the village (what else is new?) who is betrothed to the town-braggart (surprise) but will marry the new guy if he fetchs her a falling star (now that’s true love) which turns out to be a even more beautiful girl. But an ugly witch wants to snatch her heart out so she (the ugly witch) will gain immortal beauty and now Tristan has all kinds of problems.

CLASSIFICATION
for fantasy violence and some risque humor.

TALK TO ME

Biography

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Chiwetel Ejiofor: Dewey Hughes, Program Director for radio station WOL-AM
Don Cheadle: prison DJ Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene
Taraji P. Henson: his girlfriend Vernell Watson
Martin Sheen: E.G. Sonderling, station owner
Cedric The Entertainer: on-air personality Bob Terry aka Nighthawk

REVIEW
Some of the things that transpired when Petey goes on the air for the first time demand a certain amount of credulity to accept. And possibly his girlfriend was not quite so ebullient as portrayed. But apart from these minor issues this fact-based movie has a lot going for it.

As starters it is entertaining with more than a few amusing moments. The performances of the three lead actors are all first-rate and the story is one few of us are familiar with. One note of caution though: the profanity might make some people uncomfortable.

CLASSIFICATION
for pervasive language and some sexual content.