Art House
The Silence
Unrated
1998, New Yorker
A film like director Mohsen Makhmalbaf's transcendent, coming-of-age drama The Silence confirms that the New Iranian cinema is the most poetic of all current film movements. For his first movie since 1996's Gabbeh, Makhmalbaf tells the story of Korshid (Korshid Normatava), a 10-year-old blind boy who works as a tuner for an instrument maker. In the small village of Tadzhikistan, Korshid experiences life through his other senses. He revels in the everyday occurrences that most people take for granted. But when he is locked outside his workplace, Korshid's ability to fend for himself is put to the test.
Like many Iranian films, The Silence is a simply told story, centered around a child protagonist. Its portrayal is intentionally idyllic. Invigorated by its stunning photography (courtesy of cinematographers Ebrahim Ghafori and Reza Sheykhi), The Silence achieves the status of film art. It's astounding how Makhmalbaf is able to make a basic drama so awe-inspiring. (Grade: A)
Fists of Fury
Body Weapon
Unrated
1999, Tai Seng
Despite its over-the-top, kung fu fighting and a pretty female protagonist (Angie Cheong), director Aman Chang's erotic thriller Body Weapon never lives up to its comparisons with the soft-core cult favorite, 1992's Naked Killer.
Some martial arts training and a little black dress is all newlywed cop Ling (Cheong) needs to seek revenge on the psycho-thugs who brutally raped her. In a vigilante drama like Body Weapon, it's inevitable that Ling fights alone.
Body Weapon takes itself too seriously for a film built around a pulpy blend of gore, profanity and nudity. Its comic-book plot stumbles every time the kung fu action screeches to a halt. (Grade: D)
Art House
The Gift
Rated R
2001, Paramount
In director Sam Raimi's clumsy thriller, Cate Blanchett fails to generate much suspense as the film's heroine, a small-town psychic caught-up in a murder mystery. Katie Holmes is handed a thankless role as a country-club diva who falls prey to Blanchett's predictions. Raimi never manages to make much sense out of The Gift's supernatural story. Only Hilary Swank, playing an abused wife, and Keanu Reeves as her violent husband, provide any dramatic thrills. (Grade: D)
And the rest
The intentionally moronic antics of late-night cable access hosts Wayne Campbell (Mike Meyers) and Garth Algar (Dana Carvey) turns out to be the rare Saturday Night Live skit that transfers well to big-screen comedy. Wayne's World and its equally silly sequel Wayne's World 2 (Paramount) makes full use of its non-stop sight gags, glib catch-phrases and sex-obsessed heroes. Both films give Meyers and Carvey plenty of comic support. Rob Lowe steals the first film as a sleazy TV executive. In the sequel, Kim Basinger earns the biggest laughs as a conniving vamp named Honey Hornée. But Meyers and Carvey deserve the loudest applause for making their sketch characters worthy of feature-length status.
