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Jess (Parminder K. Nagra) quickly changes from her
soccer clothes into a sari in order to make her sister's
wedding in the culture clash drama Bend It Like
Beckham.
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Two worlds-apart characters -- a teenage Indian girl from London and a smarmy, skirt-chasing Manhattan publicist -- provide some much needed jolts after a long winter of dismal movies. It's worth noting that both roles are brought to life by new, noteworthy faces who generate 10 times more sparks than recent efforts from veteran celebrities Bruce Willis, who stars in the cliché-ridden military actioner, Tears of the Sun, and John Travolta, the wise-cracking lead in the convoluted military thriller, Basic.
In filmmaker Gurinder Chadha's fun loving, coming-of-age romance Bend It Like Beckham, Parminder K. Nagra stars as Jess Bharma, a young soccer fanatic who hides her spot on a competitive girls team from her strict, disapproving parents. Jess is the type of real-life character absent from most Hollywood features, and Nagra's performance provides everything we want in a movie heroine -- strength, intelligence, strong self-esteem and beauty. Jess' Indian ethnicity is integral to Bend It Like Beckham's life-affirming theme of following one's dream despite the obstacles. It's also a colorful bonus that separates Nagra from the pack of present day Hollywood teen actresses who tend to blur together.
White-hot leading man Colin Farrell is in every scene of director Joel Schumacher's fast and furious sidewalk thriller, Phone Booth. Farrell's blustery presence and swaggering charisma make the film unforgettable. He plays Stuart Shepard, a fast-talking agent who appears to have all the trappings of success -- stylish clothes, a fawning assistant and celebrity clients -- until you scratch beneath the waxy veneer and realize that he's all talk with no real clout.
Shepard is part of the mobile phone generation, but he regularly uses a phone booth on the seedy corner of 53rd Street and Eighth Avenue to call an aspiring actress (Katie Holmes) he wants to bed. Shepard's wife (Radha Mitchell) regularly checks his mobile phone records, so the phone booth is more about maintaining the girlfriend's anonymity than convenience. The adage that starts Phone Booth's roller coaster drama is that passersby can't help answering a ringing pay phone. When Shepard answers, the voice at the other end threatens to shoot him if he puts the phone down and leaves the booth. The voice, brought to creepy life by actor Kiefer Sutherland, proves he's serious by shooting a nearby man on the sidewalk in front of Shepard's eyes. Shepard is trapped in the phone booth by the mysterious sniper, and the arriving police accuse Shepard of the shooting. For the first time in his life, the over-confident Shepard does not know what to do.
Deceit is the common theme between Bend It Like Beckham's girl soccer player and Phone Booth's philandering publicist although each character uses their lies for vastly different reasons. Only one film in this April double bill offers what I would describe as a happy ending, but both deliver plenty of enjoyment.
The "Beckham" in Bend It Like Beckham is British soccer legend David Beckham, the player Jess loves and emulates. Nagra is forthright, fresh and engaging as the strong-willed Jess. Lanky Keira Knightley plays Jules, the tomboyish leader of the Hounslow Harriers soccer team. Jules is the player who recruits Jess to the team and jumpstarts the film's drama. Together, Knightley and Nagra make an appealing pair of friends. They laugh, practice and compete for the attention of the team's handsome coach (Jonathan Rhys Meyers). Their scenes together are easygoing and completely believable. In fact, much of what sparkles about Bend It Like Beckham can be attributed to Nagra and Knightley's complementary performances.
On the soccer field, Jess has lower status than the male players. At home, the key decisions belong to her parents. Yet Bend it like Beckham is too playful a film to be labeled as a feminist drama. Chadha was born in Kenya to a Punjabi family who relocated to London. So Chadha is well versed on the subject of culture clashes. Chadha wisely brushes aside the politics and ethnic stereotypes playfully and easily in Bend It Like Beckham. She clearly treats the film's themes of gender and family with warmhearted humor, and it turns out to be a good move.
Jess's mother (Shaheen Khan) wants her to learn how to cook authentic Indian food and her older sister (Archie Panjabi) is focused on her elaborate wedding. Only Jess' father (Bollywood star Anupam Kher) understands the importance of his daughter's dream to play soccer professionally.
Jonathan Rhys Meyers' handsome coach adds a jolt of romance to the story, but Chadha keeps the emphasis on the issues of family, race, gender and culture. Like Bhaji on the Beach, Chadha's wonderful first film, Bend It Like Beckham is also a movie about the life of Asian women in contemporary Britain. Her recent film, What's Cooking?, tells the story of four diverse Los Angeles households celebrating Thanksgiving, but it lacks Bend It Like Beckham's joyful spark.
Chadha worked as a BBC news reporter and a documentary filmmaker, and Bend It Like Beckham benefits from her knack for realism. Beckham's matter-of-fact photography (courtesy of cinematographer Jong Lin) perfectly matches its simple story (written by Chadha, Guljit Bindra and Paul Mayeda Berges). There are times when the film resembles a low-budget home movie, but you're having too good a time to complain. With Beckham, Chadha has made moving story of young love and accomplishment. Bend It Like Beckham flaunts its feel-good vibe openly, and Nagra and Knightley are the primary reason for its success.
Farrell's recently played opposite Al Pacino in the espionage thriller The Recruit and starred as a comic book villain in the action movie Daredevil, but it's Phone Booth that best takes advantage of his good looks and street savvy charisma. He's the most exciting new male face around, and Phone Booth shows he can support an entire film on his shoulders.
A gritty streetscape filled with strip bars and rundown hotels is where Shepard finds his life in chaos. Schumacher captures the seediness perfectly, and there is little doubt that this Midtown Manhattan street corner is an extension of Shepard's own sleazy personality. Phone Booth is a smart, adult thriller, and it confirms Schumacher as one of contemporary Hollywood's most puzzling filmmakers. He makes awful films -- Batman Forever (1995), Batman and Robin (1997) and Dying Young (1991); guilty pleasures like The Lost Boys (1987) and Flatliners (1990) and solid dramas like A Time to Kill (1996). Basically, you never know what to expect from him.
Schumacher has worked with Farrell before, casting him in his excellent Vietnam drama, Tigerland. Still, Phone Booth qualifies as Farrell's breakout film, and I give Schumacher credit for spotting the actor's talent.
The reliable Forest Whitaker brings some appreciated depth and emotion to the thrills as a police captain who wants to get to the bottom of the sidewalk chaos. Katie Holmes makes full use of her round, innocent face as the neophyte actress unaware of Shepard's background. Only Radha Mitchell comes off as clichéd, as the devoted wife who stands by her man. Kiefer Sutherland's performance revolves around his creepy voice, and his dry tone and edgy demeanor is frightening.
Veteran filmmaker and screenwriter Larry Cohen wrote Phone Booth and he makes good use of every one of the film's 80 minutes and its intimate, pay phone location. There is not one wasted scene in the fast-paced film.
By Phone Booth's satisfying climax, where Cohen unloads one last surprise, one that's even believable, it's clear that the film belongs to Farrell. He's a fast talker and his boyish enthusiasm is perfectly matched for the role.
Farrell's smarmy publicist and Nagra's girl soccer player have little in common as characters, but they both can claim credit for the first truly notable films of 2003. Phone Booth and Bend It Like Beckham are standouts, and Farrell and Nagra's arrival comes not a moment too soon.
Bend It Like Beckham CityBeat grade: A.
Phone Booth CityBeat grade: A.
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