Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
I appreciate it when people take the time to write in about any film. The Lovely LA didn’t think I’d want a review of HOLES, but I’m hearing nice things about it. There’s a lot of fans of the book. Of course we want a review of it. Here’s what she has to say about two upcoming films:
Greetings.
My roommate and I were given a pass for an advance screening of "Johnny English" a week ago, and coming from a family that enjoys "Mr. Bean," I jumped at the chance to see Rowan Atkinson's latest feature flick. Unlike "Bean," it's not based on his famous character, but the same style still applies.
Atkinson plays the title character, a bumbling spy who is relegated to office work until the entire British spy force is wiped out by a well-placed bomb. His first assignment, to protect the crown jewels, is of course a failure, and he must find out who stole them and prevent a plot by a French businessman to take over the throne of England.
The show is almost stolen by his sidekick, whose name escapes me. The poor guy not only puts up with English's blundering but manages to still act humble. Of course there's the "Bond girl," played to perfection by Natalie Imbruglia, and the spy boss, "Pegasus," who takes English off the case after he accuses the bad guy, who also happens to be very affluent and influential. The plot follows the usual formula as they look for evidence, have a romantic interlude, reach a big action climax... I wasn't really surprised by anything except for the fact that I still liked it despite its predictablility.
The humor is your basic sight gags and physical comedy, and I enjoyed it despite my rather tame tastes in comedy. I must commend the crew as well; the movie was fun to look at and listen to. I hope that Atkinson will continue to turn out movies every few years. They are the perfect opportunity to turn off your brain and enjoy the fun.
I was also invited to an advance screening of "Holes," produced by Disney and Walden Media. It's based on the book by Louis Sachar that won the Newberry Medal, the Nobel of children's books.
The movie co-stars Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Patricia Arquette, and (my favorite) Dule Hill, but the main character is a boy named Stanley Yelnats IV, played by Shia LaBeouf. Stanley is sent to Camp Green Lake, a desert juvenile prison, for a crime he didn't commit. The boys there are forced to dig a hole in the dried lake each day on the principle that "If you take a bad boy and make him dig holes every day you make him a good boy." But the warden (Weaver) is actually searching for a buried treasure.
The movie is probably a bit confusing for anyone who hasn't read the book, as it flashes back to several different time periods. Each of the main characters and plot points are intricately woven together by their pasts. For example, Stanley's "dirty rotten no good pig stealing great-great-grandfather" got a curse put on the family which causes them to have bad luck, and the warden's grandfather and the old town school teacher are part of the reason that the lake dried up, as well as Stanley's great-great-grandfather's bad luck. And poor little Zero, played by Khleo Thomas, fits into it all somewhere....
Seeing as I'm about to graduate with my elementary education degree, I may be a little biased. But I feel the author did an amazing job of tying everything together, and the actors brought it believably to life. Just pay close attention so that it doesn't leave you scratching your head at the end.
~LA
Thanks. Keep us in mind if any more passes come your way, LA.
"Moriarty" out.
