‘Valkyrie’ well worth your time (4/5)

Valkyrie

Director: Bryan Singer
Cast: Tom Cruise, Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy
Running Time: 2 hours, 1 minute
Rating: PG-13 for violence and brief strong language.

Tom Cruise. Scientologist. Crazy guy who jumped all over Oprah’s couch. And, oh yeah, an actor.

Cruise had the unfortunate luck of being pigeon-holed as a crazy man rather than being seen as a good actor. Apparently, one cannot be both.

Yes, he’s got a “different” religion and may be a bit eccentric. Can we get over it now?

Despite his oddities, Cruise hits his mark dead-on in “Valkyrie,” directed by Bryan Singer (“X-Men,” “Superman Returns”) and written by Christopher McQuarrie (”The Usual Suspects”) and newcomer Nathan Alexander.

The under-estimated “Valkyrie” recounts the true assassination attempt of Adolf Hitler led by Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg (Cruise) on July 20, 1944.

Singer does well to downplay Hitler’s character and give the majority of screen time to developing von Stauffenberg and his cohorts. While some may feel disappointed about a German-centric WW-II era movie with scenes of Hitler being few and far between, it actually lends to a more realistic perspective. After all, the majority of Germans, and even of the Nazi Army, would have seen Hitler only in bits and pieces. The real power behind Hitler, both in reality and in the movie, was his incorporeal presence in everyday German life, made notable when von Stauffenberg witnesses his two young children, presumably members of the Hitler Youth, marching and saluting.

Along with Cruise, the star cast includes notable actors such as Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson and, oddly, Eddie Izzard (whom I have a difficult time taking seriously with images of the stand-up comedian’s eye makeup and flashy outfits).

When von Stauffenberg loses a hand and an eye during a British raid in Tunisia, he is taken back to Germany where he is recruited by General Henning von Tresckow (Branagh), whose recent assassination attempt went awry, into the German Resistance.

During a secret meeting of the Resistance, von Stauffenberg discovers that there is no plan following Hitler’s assassination.

Operation Valkyrie was a method to be used in the event of a national emergency which would ensure Nazi control. The Resistance, under von Staffenberg’s direction, redrafts the plan in order to use it against Hitler and seize control.

A weak point in “Valkyrie” is that Singer does not give the audience time to decipher who is who in the convoluted plot. Stauffenberg and Hitler are, appropriately, readily identifiable, as are a few other players, yet many names and roles become lost.

Too, Singer decided against having the multinational cast use German accents, rather encouraging them to use neutral ones for clarity, sacrificing historical accuracy for an easier-to-follow (in terms of listening, anyway) film.

While the first half of the two-hour movie is steeped in quick introductions that become lost in translation, the second half is well worth the wait. The assassination attempt itself is a gripping scene and the final hour passes by quickly.

While many will balk at the idea of watching a movie where they “already know how it ends” — and, frankly, if you don’t already know that Hitler survives you should probably be picking up a book instead of watching movies — the movie is not about a “surprise ending.” Cruise’s character, along with the other plotters, is caught in a question of loyalty: Leader, or country? The movie garners its interest from gaining another perspective on Hitler and the war. And, what’s more, it’s based on a true story, leaving you to wonder what you might be capable of in the same situation.

4 of 5 stars

‘Taken’ not so original (3/5)

Taken

Rated: PG-13 for violence, disturbing thematic material, sexual content, some drug references and language.
Running time: 1 hour 32 minutes

As far as action movies go, “Taken” hits right about on par. Starring Liam Neeson (“Star Wars,” “Schindler’s List”), Maggie Grace (“LOST,” “Jane Austen Book Club”), and Famke Janssen (“X-Men,” “Rounders”), the recognizable cast aids a lackluster script.

Director Pierre Morel makes his American Blockbuster premiere in this film about retired CIA agent Bryan Mills (Neeson) who seeks his missing 17-year-old daughter Kim (Grace) after she is kidnapped by sex slave traders in Paris.

Mills’ former work as a “preventer” for the CIA (mentioned but not defined by Mills) gives reason for his overprotectiveness of his estranged daughter and convenient knowledge of tracking and martial arts. Yet this role is used as an explanation and is left at a superficial level. His group of friends and connection with French officials shallowly penetrates Mills’ past life, yet leaves the vast majority obscured.

One action movie stereotype that “Taken” would have benefited from diverging from was that of “highly trained, deadly killers” having the aim of Dick Cheney. Shootouts that should realistically end within seconds become drawn-out affairs. Government corruption, too, is another that Morel latches to, yet their unpunished behavior makes it seem more as a device to reel in the audience rather than as a legitimate plot point.

While still a film amateur, Grace does an excellent job in her role and Morel would have done well to use her more. The film is about Mills’ journey rather than Kim’s, yet more time spent fleshing out Kim’s character would have drawn the audience even more into the action. Despite this, the scene of her kidnapping is the film’s shining moment and is enough to hold the audience to the end.

Morel seems to have caught the sequel bug as rumors circulate in which Bryan Mills’ character is said to return. When is enough enough? The film does not necessitate a “part two” and will more than likely suffer from another.

Overall, “Taken” was a typical ticking-clock plot with cookie-cutter characters, but its short running time and modestly suspenseful scenarios will keep fans of the genre entertained before becoming lost in the sea of similar movies.

3 of 5 stars

‘Benjamin Button’ falls flat (3/5)

 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Starring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji Henson.
Directed by: David Fincher.
Rating: PG-13 for brief war violence, sexual content, language and smoking.
Running time: 2 hours, 46 minutes.

Director David Fincher (“Fight Club,” “Zodiac”) takes on an ambitious task in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”: Capturing the alienation and perplexity surrounding a man who ages backward. Fincher and screenplay writer Eric Roth (“Munich”) put forth incredible efforts that, unfortunately, fall flat of their potential.

The movie — now out on DVD — is based on a short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. “The Great Gatsby” author was allegedly influenced by Mark Twain’s quote, “Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of 80 and gradually approach 18.” Fincher adapts a more plausible, tender scenario than Fitzgerald’s talking, bearded, 5 foot 8 inch “baby,” in part due to the sensitivity and introspection portrayed by Fincher’s Button, played by Hollywood superman Brad Pitt.

“Benjamin Button” tells the story of a child who is born with the ailments and appearance of an elderly man. When Button’s mother dies in childbirth, his father abandons him on the steps leading to a nursing home. There the infant is found by Queenie (Taraji P. Henson) and Tizzy (Mahershalalhashbaz Ali), a couple who works at the home. Unable to have children herself, Queenie takes the baby in against Tizzy’s wishes and raises him as her own.

Button has the same tendencies and personality as a person of his respective age but with an appearance resembling the opposite end of life’s spectrum.

When prepubescent, yet feeble-looking Button is introduced to a girl near his biological age, Daisy (Elle Fanning), they develop a fast friendship which draws reprimands toward Button from Daisy’s grandmother, who is unaware that Button is merely a few years older than her granddaughter. This encounter prompts Queenie to tell her adopted son that people just won’t understand him.

As Button ages, thus appearing gradually more youthful, he sets out to travel the world on a tugboat. Despite his journeys, he never forgets Daisy, who grows to become an accomplished ballerina. Their meetings at various points in time highlight the effects of Button’s aging on himself and those around him.

A main component missing from the story is the lack of questioning Button’s circumstance, which is at times mourned but seems simply accepted overall. In fact, many of the characters are unaware of Button’s condition. Here Fincher and Roth missed an opportunity to solidify the film’s themes beyond that of aging. Even Button’s father, Thomas (Jason Flemyng), who makes brief and unsatisfactory appearances, is a character who lacks believability.

Along with Button’s father, Daisy’s daughter Caroline (Julia Ormond) is flat and irritating, at times begging the question of what were they thinking? These are not the only characters to suffer from inaccurate casting. Cate Blanchett’s inherent composure makes her an unrelatable adult Daisy. The character’s connection with Button is lost as Blanchett and Pitt seem to compete against each other on the screen.

Despite the erroneous cast, Taraji Henson fully deserved her nominations for best supporting actress as the practical, faith-driven Queenie.

Although “Benjamin Button” won 14 various awards and was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, it seems that the critics were too busy caught up in the superficialities of the film (the stars, the director, the cinematography and makeup) to notice the dead and dreary substance. The film that sets out to examine and challenge preconceptions about life turns out itself to be rather lifeless.

But while the movie may not be deserving of the hype it received, its fresh plot and the admirable performances by Henson and Pitt make it a movie to consider watching. The themes are timeless and the serene cinematography noteworthy. It has an oddly hopeful quality that may be the source of its appeal.

3 of 5 stars