filmland / By Rich Cline

Actor! Actor!

State of Play and 17 Again both feature winning performances

(April 23, 2009) Previews

This weekend, the must-see opening for animal lovers is Earth, the feature length film version of the popular Emmy Award-winning TV series Planet Earth. James Earl Jones provides the narration as you follow the migration paths of four animal families. You know how it goes with animal-centric cinema … Are tissues needed? My guess is yes, just in case a cute creature gets annihilated. Rated G. 95m. At the Broadway.

The obvious opening for music lovers to check out is Soloist, a Good Will Hunting-ish story of a classical music prodigy that has somehow wound up homeless on the streets of Los Angeles. Jamie Foxx plays the Juliard-trained musician and Robert Downey Jr. plays the journalist that befriends him and helps him get his life together. The film is based on a book written by L.A. Times reporter Steve Lopez about his real life discovery of incredible talent on Skid Row. Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some drug use and language. At the Broadway.

The action lovers are certainly not left out of the opening bounty. The must-see film for the fight scene freaks is called Fighting. Seriously. Small-town boy Shawn MacArthur is on the streets of New York City, just trying to survive by selling counterfeit goods. Lucky for him, a seasoned scam artist named Harvey recognizes his talent for street fighting. Almost overnight, Shawn becomes a star on the underground bare-knuckle circuit, but that dark world is not so good for his life. Rated PG-13 for intense fight sequences, a sex scene and brief strong language. 104m. At the Broadway and Mill Creek.

Our well-rounded weekend of openings includes the latest stalker thriller, Obsessed. The film stars Idris Elba as Derek, an asset manager who’s got a good life going on because his career is solid and he’s married to a hot lady named Sharon, portrayed by none other than Beyonce Knowles. Too bad Lisa, the new temp at work (portrayed by Ali Larter) is a psycho stalker. Rated PG-13 for sexual material including some suggestive dialogue, some violence and thematic content. 109m. At the Broadway, Mill Creek and Fortuna.

The last opening for this week is definitely for the hip folk. Informers brings writer Brett Easton Ellis’ (American Psycho, Less Than Zero) novel about the Los Angeles of the early 1980s to the big screen. The multi-strand narrative is centered on an array of characters representing both the highs and the lows of LA 80s society. Fittingly, the stars on the bill are Winona Ryder, Mickey Rourke, Billy Bob Thornton and Kim Basinger. Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, drug use, pervasive language and some disturbing images. 100m. At the Minor.

In other movie news, the 42nd Annual Humboldt Film Festival, the oldest student-run film fest in the world,runs through the Saturday the 25th. Thursday brings Tom McPhee (director of American Opera) with a workshop/screening and Documentary Night; Friday has Brian O’Halloran (Dante from Clerks) with a workshop/screening and Narrative (Fiction) Night; Saturday is the final day and will feature the Best of the Fest. O’Halloran’s set to judge the final night of screenings, so be sure to come armed with your favorite Clerks quote to shout at him from the audience. How about “My present girlfriend has sucked 37 dicks”? Get start times and details at humboldtfilmfest.org.

— Emily Hobelmann

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