Movie Reviews By Diana

Review: 'The Oranges' Is Like a Bag of Apples

How do two families handle a marital affair involving a father and his best friend's daughter? With kettle corn, Christmas carols, and a whole bunch of shenanigans.

“Sex.  Betrayal.  Scandal.  Make yourself at home.”  That is the tag line on "The Oranges" film poster.  What it should read is, “Kiss.  Hug.  Makeup. If affairs were this easy, everyone would be having one.”  I expected a serious, true-to-life indie about relationships and family. "The Oranges" is nothing more than a Hollywood comedy with sub-par acting and a story line laden with humor that completely overshadows the serious issues in the film. The Wallings and Ostroffs have been living next door to one another for several years in suburban New Jersey on, wait for it, Orange Drive.  When 24-year-old daughter Nina Ostroff (Leighton Meester) returns home after a five-year absence, she sparks up a relationship with David Walling (Hugh …

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And a Movie

Clooney Goes to Washington in ‘The Ides of March’

George Clooney directs and co-stars in a solid thriller of political disillusionment with an all star cast.

No matter what day it is on the political calendar, election season is never far away. The instant a politician is elected to office, the next party seems to kick off simultaneously. How does one maintain their sanity, let alone their integrity, in the midst of such madness? How long does it take for a fresh-faced idealist to become an embittered cynic? And how much is one willing to compromise in the name of a cause? These are the questions lying at the heart of Beau Willimon’s acclaimed play, Farragut North, which loosely based its sordid tale on the 2004 campaign of Howard Dean. The Ides of March is director George Clooney’s adaptation of Willimon’s play, but there’s little that’s political about it. Instead of painting a sprawling …

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And a Movie

‘50/50’ Delivers Genuine Catharsis

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen are well-paired in this cancer-beating comedy.

There is simply no actor in modern American cinema more likable than Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He has what Heath Ledger had: An inherently magnetic appeal, a complete disinterest in star-making marketability and a thirst for taking risks with projects he truly believes in. Though these risks have gotten him involved in a few misguided messes, they have nearly always paid off.  It would be easy to claim that Gordon-Levitt’s portrayal of a 27-year-old fighting cancer in 50/50 is the best of his career. Yet the truth is that ever since he left “3rd Rock From the Sun,” the actor has been turning in Oscar-caliber work in a wide variety of diverse roles. From the audacious teenage noir of Brick and the thrilling suspense of The Lookout, to the …

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And a Movie

Brad Pitt Brings A-Game to ‘Moneyball’

Bennett Miller turns story of statistics into first-rate crowd-pleasing entertainment.

At the end of the day, it’s all a money game. Political campaigns, movie productions and sports teams all operate on the same basic principle. Talent is bought and sold to the highest bidder, yet what if talent was confused with mere popularity and appearance? What if the entire system that judged marketable success was entirely misguided? These are the questions asked by Oakland Athletics manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) in the opening scenes of Moneyball, which marks the third feature-length directorial effort of Bennett Miller (Capote). After being ordered by his superiors to accept his team’s small market status, Beane strives to think outside the box. He latches onto the unconventional philosophies of Yale grad Peter Brand (Jonah Hill…

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And a Movie

‘Apollo 18’ Milks Genre for Maximum Suspense

Gonzalo López-Gallego’s sci-fi thriller offers new take on 'found footage' formula.

When a new mainstream blockbuster isn’t screened for critics, it’s usually a sure sign that the studio has no confidence in the film’s merit. Apollo 18 has all the earmarks of being the sort of mediocre time-waster relegated to the quality dumping ground of early September. One can imagine the filmmakers reciting their pitch for the producers at Dimension Films. “It’s Paranormal Activity in space!”  And yet, Apollo 18 is one of the most pleasant surprises in recent months: a genuinely effective thriller that’s unlike anything audiences have seen before. Instead of copying the styles of past shaky-cam shockers, Spanish director Gonzalo López-Gallego (in his English-language debut) puts his own indelible spin on the increasingly fascinating …

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And a Movie

Spook Meter Low for ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’

Guillermo del Toro’s visual oversaturation in horror remake takes away from the suspense.

What scares us at a very young age tends to fester in our subconsciousness well into our adulthood. For 9-year-old Guillermo del Toro, no film was more nightmare-inducing than John Newland’s 1973 TV movie Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. That film starred Kim Darby (aka Mattie Ross in 1969’s True Grit) as a woman terrorized by malicious goblins inhabiting the mansion she inherited from her grandmother. The picture was in the classic tradition of haunted house thrillers that exploit audiences’ fear of unknown noises emanating from shadowy corners of a seemingly empty room. Seen today, the dated makeup and prosthetics look like they belong in a Twilight Zone episode, but it’s clear why this film left such a lasting impression on del Toro and …

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And a Movie

‘Glee: The 3D Concert Movie’ Sanitizes Stars

Glorified big-screen advertisement for hit show preaches to the choir.

“Please, save your money,” begged cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) in the trailers for Glee: The 3D Concert Movie. “This thing sucks.” Turns out Sue’s words weren’t far from the truth. Though I wouldn’t go so far as to say the film “sucks,” it isn’t worth the inflated price of admission. Unlike Michael Jackson’s posthumous documentary, This Is It, this feature-length advertisement for the Fox Network’s hit show doesn’t seem like it will extend past its limited two-week engagement in theaters. Though I’ll confess that I’m not an avid watcher of Glee, I was fortunate enough to catch its promising pilot back in 2009. The show’s exuberant spirit and impassioned championing of arts programs immediately reminded me of my own …

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Dinner

Wilde & Greene a Delightful Hodgepodge

The atypical mall food court has some growing pains but offers worthy made-to-order fares.

After more than a year of construction, Wilde & Greene is open at Westfield Old Orchard Mall in Skokie and it was worth the wait. Just don’t expect it to be a new food court. The structure of Wilde & Greene will be familiar to anyone who has dined at foodlife in Chicago’s Water Tower Place. Patrons enter and are given a card, which is swiped when ordering food or drinks at any of the restaurant’s 16 stations. At the end, the cashier uses the card to determine to resulting tab. They also add in a 10 percent gratuity, which is an unpleasant surprise given it's a counter service restaurant. A server finds customers a place to sit, flipping a placard from available to reserved, which also indicates not to clear the table as it remains in use. …

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‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ Triumphs

Andy Serkis and Weta Digital work their magic on ‘Apes’ remake.

Everyone loves a good underdog story. It’s impossible to resist rooting for a protagonist who triumphs over adversity by standing up to a system that intends to crush him. In terms of summer blockbusters, this formula often pits humans against an endless assortment of foes, many of whom are decidedly alien.   But like James Cameron’s Avatar, Rupert Wyatt’s ungainly titled franchise reboot Rise of the Planet of the Apes requires audiences to root for the downfall of mankind. Both pictures are cautionary works of science fiction featuring motion capture heroes created by Weta Digital, the New Zealand-based effects company responsible for the marvelous creatures in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. Without the lifelike animation of …

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‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’ Proves Futile to Resist

Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling shine in this uproarious feel-good comedy.

There are few American actors as inherently lovable as Steve Carell. He has the physicality of a modern everyman, the sweetness of a child and the mischievously toothy grin of an overgrown seventh-grader. Nearly all of his characters exude an inner decency that allow their flaws to become endearing rather than insufferable. It’s impossible to regard Carell as little more than a comedic punching bag.  Glenn Ficarra and John Requa’s wonderful new comedy, Crazy, Stupid, Love, gives Carell the best film role of his career since 2005’s game-changer The 40 Year Old Virgin. That picture had the distinction of being the first in a series of Judd Apatow-produced efforts that married crowd-pleasing raunch with uncommonly relatable characters. Virgin…

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