“Appaloosa”
Axon Films
2008
“Appaloosa,” although flawed, delivers when it comes to dishing out expected gun-toting action, as well as cool methodical one-liners you’d expect from a modern western.
Ed Harris, who directs, produces and stars, puts the film together in such a way that it is difficult to say if the flick’s unorthodox linearity is deliberate, or if it just suffers from poor pacing. The movie starts with a bang, as the leader of a gang of outlaws who control the town guns down a sheriff and his deputy. This is where the new lawmen, Ed Harris, a socially awkward misfit, and Viggo Mortensen, his reserved and more “sensitive” partner wielding a superfluously large shotgun that talks for him, come in.
Neither Harris nor Mortensen are able to capture the same color and charisma as the scoundrel played by Russell Crowe in last year’s “3:10 to Yuma,” nor is their relationship as interesting as the bond that develops between Crowe and Christian Bale. Perhaps this is where the movie most notably doesn’t hold up, as there is only so much you can do with a story that revolves around the escort of a prisoner to the gallows – the premise of both flicks.
The characters might not be as fleshed out in this movie. Nevertheless, there are enough beautifully composed shots of Ed Harris with the sun behind his head and stark shadows dancing across his withered face, with his icy blue eyes still managing to show through, that it still manages to resonate as a bad-ass, high-noon cowboy movie. – Ezra Salkin
“Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”
Mandate Pictures
2008
Based on the novel by Rachel Cohn, “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist” is a romantic comedy that doesn’t leave you asking yourself why you just paid $9 to see it. With a talented young cast including Michael Cera, who you might recognize from “Juno,” along with Kat Dennings from “Charlie Bartlett,” the two play teenagers going through the awkward fazes of the end of relationships.
While there are some things you may wonder, like how the heck do high school kids get into clubs in New York City, the film is endearing and gives quite a few good laughs. The trailer doesn’t give away all the funny scenes like some usually do, and the supporting cast is just as entertaining as the main characters, with Ari Graynor stealing the screen in quite a few moments. It’s a great date movie, and is even worth checking out just for the good laughs. – Myrriah Gossett
“The Uprising”
by David Serota
If you’re a political junkie and yet are tired of the perpetual squabbling of the campaign, “The Uprising” may be your fix. Not only will you indulge in some high-brow, sociological education, but Sirota engages you in the content with tons of pungent satire (I found his disdain towards the mundanity of Dallas particularly amusing).
He concentrates on the reemergence of populism in American politics and how people at the grassroots level are empowered through its proper application. Sirota would argue that “change” isn’t just trite rabble reiterated by Obama on a persistant basis, but is also now a shift in the status quo due to the mobilization of unsatisfied citizens. Perhaps by using some of the stratagem introduced in this book, those hordes of ground troops around campus that have been appearing out of every caliginous alley with voters registration cards will extend their enthusiasm past election day. – Terra Henderson
