The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005)

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (R) - Review

"Must have turned left at Albuquerque"

Tommy Lee Jones stars and directs this South Texas tale of Melquiades Estrada and his numerous funeral rites.  Barry Pepper unwillingly causes the death of said migrant worker Melqy, and when his friend and boss (played by Jones) finds out there is long and slow hell to pay.  Told in flashbacks and differing perspectives, the main drive of the movie is Jones' desire to get his deceased friend back home to be buried in Mexico, and the surprises he finds there and along the way (with Pepper's jingoistic over the top Border cop along for the ride).  Good visuals and natural dialogue attempts at making this a Western art nouveau with authentically morbid Southwest flavor.

6.5 Rashoman Flash Backs out of 10 (GOOD)

Domino (2005)

Domino (R) - Review

"We all fall down."

Director Tony Scott (True Romance) had his editing machine on "Frappe" for Domino, scenes jag by in the quasi-biographical story of a could-be fashion star turned female bounty hunter working in South Los Angeles called Domino.  He paid the real Domino for her true life story, and then had writer Richard Kelley (Southland Tales) to grind it through his bizarro grinder.  The result is a grimy tale about a femme merc, played by Kiera Knightly (Pirates of the Caribbean), a pretty but tough girl known for being underestimated by her colleagues and those she is tracking.  The movie unfolds as a police interrogation about a robbery, from there the scenes ricochet by with inhuman speed which is a Tony Scott film signature that has gotten out of hand.  Mickey Rourke grunts an appearance as the degenerate bail bonds team leader and the cast gets sprinkles of life from Mo'nique or Macy Gray.  However the film is a unmitigated bomb crater due to the pieced together narrative, schizo characterizations and script writing, patently stupid voice over narration, convoluted plot, dreary over all mood and an apocalyptic level of scene cross cutting (especially during the action scenes).  When the final Las Vegas shoot out high atop the Stratosphere occurs and the credits roll, a flood of relief from the visual cortex is likely to occur; the brain can only take so much posturing, screaming, fragmenting, shooting or slumming in one sitting.  

3 Terrible Post 9-11 Foreign National Characters out of 10 (BAD)

Sin City (2005)

Sin City (R) - Review

"Family Values"

A city populated by criminals, victims, prostitutes and macho men.  A neo-noir slugfest of questionable morals exploding onto the screen in black and white (and red and yellow).

Brought to life from the pages of comic-book legend Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez (Planet Terror) directs the maniacs and femme-fatales into a whirlwind of bloody knuckles and smoking barrels.  Based mostly on The Hard Kill and That Yellow Bastard, the film is almost a panel for panel, shot for shot translation instead of adaptation.  The dedication to the look and feel works tremendously, especially with Mickey Rourke and Bruce Willis fleshing out the iconic roles of Marv and Hartigan.  Mickey's role is the linchpin as Marv, a pyscho with a hell of a jaw.  Rourke is perfect for the tremendous tough guy, and the prosthesis bring out his jawline and his brow wonderfully, much like Perlman's make up on Hellboy brought the character to true life.  Meanwhile Bruce is the prototypical sacrificial good cop Hartigan, chasing a demonic politically-protected pervert (one of the most unique villains ever put to paper and somehow brought to screen perfectly by actor Nick Stall and a lot of yellow tinting).  The rest of the cast supports them to a great degree, Elijah Wood playing against type as an unstoppable killer, Rosario Dawson as a S&M leather clad enforcer, Rutger Hauer as a sinful bishop, Benicio Del Toro as a dead sleezeball, the cast really is terrific.  Even Quentin Tarrantino got in on the fun, stepping in to direct a scene or two without breaking style.

A couple of duds should be mentioned however.  Sometimes the green screen limits the action and creates some awkward compositing, and not every member of the cast sparkles.  There can be a wish for more of an intercutting between the stories than the existing one-at-a-time framework.  Having to wait through the half-slog of Clive Owen's Dwight to see the conclusion of Hartigan is a bit of a drag, slipping through the series' true star Marv so early on is a bit of a let down.  As direct of a translation as it is most of the mysoginy and strange femme-power from the book makes it onscreen and won't be everyone's cup of teeth. Still, the rapid highs overshadow it's lows, and Sin City has no place for grey area.  Either you are all in or you are out, and damn the consequences.

8 Hatchet Noses out of 10 (GREAT)

Executive Koala (2005)

Executive Koala - (NR) - Review

"Fab and Furry"

From the minds that brought us The Calamari Wrestler comes The Executive Koala.  A spoof on overdramatic soap operas starring a fuzzy humansized Koala in a suit, Director Kawasaki keeps his modus operandi intact by putting bizarre characters in zany situations that everyone in the cast treats as perfectly normal.  Kooky to the extreme, E.K. is embroiled in a murder mystery with a completly off the wall, out of left field mind bending ending.  Entertainment galore, good animal/man costumes and a splash of violence, Executive Koala may not be everyone's cup of tea.  The humor is straight faced and the strangeness knows no bounds.  For those who revel in that kind of thing, this is almost as good as it gets.

 7 Anthropomorphic Suits out of 10

The Calimari Wrestler (2005)

The Calamari Wrestler (NR) - Review

"8 Tentacles, 1 Heart"

Strange Japanese cinema is alive and squirming.  This buffet of the bizarre serves up deliciously zany costumes, plot points and characterizations.  It's all played extremely straight faced which is most of the fun.  Where else can you see a 8 foot tall squid pro wrestle and then explain his personal problems dramatically to his beautiful girlfriend?  What is the mystery of the Calamari, and who are all these outlandish opponents that our hero must defeat?  One joke movie that works the whole way through, just don't expect anything beyond deep fried junk and you'll be satisfied.

6 Squid Kisses out of 10 (GOOD)