‘Mr. Fox’ adaptation not so clever (2.5/5)

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Starring: George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman.
Directed by: Wes Anderson.
Rating: PG for action, smoking and slang humor.
Running time: 1 hour, 27 minutes.

“Fantastic Mr. Fox?” Not so fantastic.

To say this movie is quirky is far beyond an understatement. It’s hard to expect anything else from director Wes Anderson, but maybe I was biased going in.

Not many people know about writer Roald Dahl’s work beyond the “Chocolate Factory,” so it doesn’t surprise me (but does sadden me) that most movie goers will see this film without reading or even knowing about the book.

And I guess in this day and age I should just accept the fact that few people read. But when a director takes what he touts as being one of his favorite books and totally changes it? That’s when I start getting annoyed. “Creative license” only takes you so far, Mr. Anderson.

My brother jokingly suggests that I should just stop reading — or at the very least stop watching adaptations. But with so few original movies nowadays, it’s almost impossible not to see an adaptation (especially when you write a weekly review column!).

Also, many people I’ve heard who enjoyed this film were Wes Anderson film fans from the start, and not Roald Dahl fans. Or they had simply not read the book and therefore had no idea how dramatically the plot and characters were altered.

Although “Fantastic Mr. Fox” didn’t irk me nearly as much as “Where the Wild Things Are,” it still makes me question directors’ motives and thought processes during writing and filming.
But, back to the film.

“Fantastic Mr. Fox” is about a fox (voiced by George Clooney, one of the few reasons to actually watch the movie) who steals from the properties of three local, and notoriously “evil,” farmers — Boggis, Bunce and Bean. Having been stolen from just a few too many times, the farmers decide to hunt and kill Mr. Fox, Mrs. Fox (Meryl Streep), son Ash (Jason Schwartzman) and nephew Kristofferson (Eric Chase Anderson).

The stop-motion filming used in “Fox” gives it a unique feel, but at times makes you wonder if you could have achieved the same result with the money you spent on the movie ticket.

An enormous hindrance to the movie is Mr. Fox himself. The leading character is selfish, arrogant and a plain brute to his son. Clooney’s voice can charm you only so much.

The only good change Anderson made to the book was the development of Mr. Fox’s son, whom the movie names “Ash.” Without Ash, this movie would have been a total disappointment. Granted, this development would have been unnecessary if you actually cared about Mr. Fox, but lacking any kind of emotional connection with the main character, Ash will have to do. You’ll find yourself wading through Mr. Fox’s scenes in the hopes that his son will soon make an appearance.

Another reason to dislike this movie? The pure random inclusion of Kristofferson. He adds nothing to the plot and is more of an unwilling rival to Ash than anything the audience should be interested in. And for a “deep” character, he’s awfully flat, hinging his entire being on yoga and naiveté.

In an effort to be edgy, Anderson also felt the need to taint a perfectly good children’s book with having the characters insert the word “cuss” as a not-so-subtle reference to a variety of swear words. I’m not always an angel when it comes to speaking, but this seemed like a desperate attempt to get a couple of chuckles from the adults or to give the teenagers a brand new catchphrase.

In short, if Twentieth Century Fox truly wanted a film version of “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” Wes Anderson should never have been let anywhere near it. If you haven’t read the book, you may be able to give the movie a decent chance. But for those who loved Dahl’s heroic fox, this is an adaptation you won’t want to see.

2.5 of 5 stars

‘Devil’ — fun, but superficial (3/5)

The Devil Wears Prada

Starring: Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt.
Directed by: David Frankel.
Rating: PG-13 for some sensuality.
Running time: 1 hours, 39 minutes.

Looking for a fun little chick flick? “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006) is it, but not much more.

The movie itself is actually great, but it’s what they left out that plummets this movie back into the realm of typical.

“Prada” follows the course of Andy Sachs’ (Anne Hathaway) assistant tenure under the indomitable Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), editor-in-chief of Runway, the nation’s leading fashion magazine.

Andy makes no mistake — she doesn’t fit into this world of makeup, dressup, overbearing stress and 10-inch waists. But, as she tells Miranda at her interview, she’s smart.

After landing the job, Andy struggles to keep up in the fast-paced life of fashion and New York City, only to realize that her best efforts aren’t good enough. She seeks help from a fellow assistant, the conceited and pompous Emily (Emily Blunt), and from the magazine’s creative director, the harsh but kind-hearted Nigel (Stanley Tucci), but eventually realizes that the only person who can help her at her job is herself.

Andy undergoes a physical transformation to better fit in to the crowd of Runway and to show Miranda her serious intentions, and it isn’t long before she begins a mental and emotional change as well, sending her life careening into a pile of trendy handbags and designer scarves.

One aspect that David Frankel absolutely nailed was the casting. Every actor was sublime in her role. Meryl Streep simply is the boss from hell, but she also brings a sense of depth to Miranda that makes her seem like a real person rather than a horrific compilation of everything awful in a superior. Too, Anne Hathaway is the perfect go-to actress for a naive girl who undergoes a transformation.

The movie’s absolute scene stealer, however, is Emily Blunt. I had seen her before in “The Jane Austen Book Club,” and I look forward to a long and productive career from her.

One of the movie’s central themes of women in the workplace was insightful and refreshing.


Throughout high school and college, and now with my first “real” job, I have always been a work-oriented girl — and, through trial and error, have learned how work and life can never be truly separated. “Prada” shows the integration of life and work, and how one must be careful to not allow one to overcome the other.

In “The Devil Wears Prada,” the movie manages to capture an abhorrent work environment and yet keep the tone of the film light and fun. But, in doing so, many things fell by the wayside.

The most noticeable issue (as could be expected in a movie regarding the fashion industry) is weight. Nigel tells Andy that her size 6 is now considered a “size 14,” and there are countless insinuations about her size being a detriment throughout the script, including Miranda flat out calling her “fat.”

The movie addresses clothes as being a superficial element, but barely brushes on the absurd and unhealthy weight loss that so many in the industry feel forced to do. And even Andy celebrates becoming a size 4 near the end of the movie. With so many people, even those in the film’s target audience, struggling with weight issues and the feeling of self-consciousness, this should have been a point of higher value.

Too, the reconciliation between Andy and her boyfriend seemed lacking. Andy’s boyfriend, Nate, had a greater presence than I was expecting — up until the end. In fact, here her other friends who had been made to seem important in Andy’s life and as sources of love and support are inexplicably missing as well.

But, for its weaknesses, “Prada” was a fun watch and offered some neat insights into the fashion industry.

3 of 5 stars