Following are mini-reviews of some of the latest movies at the iTunes Store.
Safe House
It's always a treat to watch Denzel Washington on-screen. Like John Travolta, he's a sympathetic good guy (as Washington is in almost every movie) and a great bad guy (he won an Oscar for going evil in "Training Day").
Washington plays a bit of both in "Safe House" as Tobin Frost, a rogue CIA agent who's captured and taken to a "safe house" in Cape Town, South Africa, run by rookie agent Matt Weston (a very solid Ryan Reynolds). However, during Frost's interrogation a mini-army of mercenaries break into the safe house and kill everyone except Frost and Weston. They end up on the run playing a game of cat-and-mouse with their pursuers, as well as a game of mental cat-and-mouse with each other as secrets, double and triple crosses are exposed.
Written by David Guggenheim and directed by Daniel Espinosa, "Safe House" is an entertaining popcorn flick with some brutal, quickly edited fight scenes, frenetic car chases, some unbelievable turns (Weston is really, really good for a rookie agent), and a handful of surprises. There's nothing really new about the film, but it delivers the action goods — and the Washington/Reynolds interplay elevates the film above many others of its ilk.
Rating: 8 out of 10
Chronicle
The "found footage" film, which made "Cloverfield" unique a couple of years ago has gotten old and tired. However, "Chronicle" trotted it out again, but at least with a fresh take and offering what may be the most believable film ever about people developing superpowers.
Three high school friends — the perfectly cast Dane DeHann (who bears more than a slight resemblance to a young Leonardo DiCaprio), Alex Russell and Michael B. Jordan — gain extraordinary abilities after making an incredible discovery. However, they find their lives spinning out of control and their bonds of friendship fraying as they're tempted by their darker sides.
Actually, the "found footage" aspect of the film is a bit distracting, particularly some of the silly attempts to explain exactly how/why some scenes were filmed. That aside, "Chronicle" is a smart, engrossing look at what might happen if real people developed the ability to fly, move things with their minds, etc.
There are some funny and light-hearted moments in "Chronicle," particularly in the early part of the film when our protagonists (don't call them superheroes; no one ever dons capes or tights) delight in their growing powers. But as
Peter Parker discovered, "with great power comes great responsibility," and the film ends on a bittersweet note that the fine cast, great script and newcomers Josh Trank and Jay Alamino deliver elegantly.
"Chronicle," a mid-level hit made on a minor budget, beats most of the mega-budgeted flicks at their own game (I'm talking about you, "Green Lantern," "Ghost Rider," "Catwoman," etc.) — making us believe in a world where people gai
n superhuman abilities and making us care what happens to them.
Rating: 8 out of 10
The Woman in Black
If anyone doubted Daniel Radcliffe was more than Harry Potter, his stage work and "The Woman in Black" has dispelled that notion. As a young widower and father in this minor hit film, he's miles away from his iconic role. He's got a fine career ahead.
In "The Woman in Black," he plays a young lawyer who travels to a remote village in England where there's a house that's home to a vengeful ghost who's terrorizing the villagers.
Old-fashioned and stately, "The Woman in Black" is spooky but not jump-in-your-seat scary. The mystery of the ghost isn't that mysterious, but writers Susan Hill and Jane Goldman and director James Watkins go for chills rather than gore, and you have to admire them for that.
Radcliffe holds the film together with ease and grace, and there are goosebumps along the way. Unfortunately, the filmmakers have to go for the obligatory "twist ending," which deflates much of the effect and emotional impact of all that's gone before.
Rating: 6 out of 10
