Generally, when most people think about cowboys, images of the macho Marlboro man are conjured up. The rugged riders out on the plains. It is probably rare that a person thinks of these men and picture them walking off into the sunset hand in hand…with each other. But that is exactly the subject matter that director Ang Lee tackles in his superb movie, Brokeback Mountain.

Based on a short story by Annie Proulx published in New Yorker magazine, Brokeback Mountain tells the tale of two men, Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar (played, respectively, by Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger). The movie takes place in Wyoming in the summer of 1963, where the two men meet up while working together on a sheep ranch.

The two form an easy friendship despite their different personalities. Jack’s vibrant and wide-eyed demeanor is in stark contrast to Ennis’s brooding yet tender nature. Despite their differences the two are drawn to each other. They bond as they work side-by-side, sharing stories of their lives and their loves. To the surprise of both men, they find themselves irresistibly attracted to each other. They take comfort in each other realizing a sense of completeness that has up till then eluded both of them. What follows is a heartbreakingly beautiful love story, with a poignancy that touched me deeply.

It’s impossible to write about this movie without applauding Heath Ledger’s portrayal of Ennis. Although he speaks very little throughout this movie, what he lacks in dialogue he makes up for with one of the most soulful performances I’ve ever seen. Playing the tormented Ennis you literally feel his anguish as he goes on to marry a woman, knowing full well that Jack is his one true love. Ledger is already being heralded as next year’s darling at the Oscars and rightfully so.

Gyllenhall’s performance is equally good as Jack. Your heart aches for him as you feel his absolute unconditional love for Ennis and his naïve hope that one day they will be able to be have a future together.

Ang Lee, known for his gripping character studies in such movies as the Ice Storm and Eat Drink Man Woman, succeeds once again in producing a film you can’t take your eyes off of. Besides the compelling relationship between Jack and Ennis, the backdrop of the dramatic mountainous landscape of Wyoming is simply breathtaking.

It is unfortunate that because of the homosexual content in this movie some people will simply not watch it. That is a tragedy because Brokeneck Mountain isn’t just a “gay cowboy movie”. To dismiss it as such is an insult to everyone involved with the making if this film. It’s a movie about unrequited longing and loneliness. A movie about the rapture of finding your soul mate and taking shelter in their love. It is a movie about being human and raw and vulnerable, regardless of sexual orientation. Its theme is universal and it’s a movie not to be missed.

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Steven Spielberg, renowned director of Schindler’s List and the most prominent Jew in the world of film has done it again. Munich is a film of courage for Spielberg. He’s set himself between the Palestinians and the Israelis and covered decades of terrorism in the final product.

The film begins with the reenactment of the terrorism that took place at the 1972 Olympics in Munich. Lynn Cohen, who plays Prime Minister Golda Meir is shown with her cabinet, telling them that there is no chance for peace because of the tragedy. She says, “Forget peace for now.”

Munich is based on a book by author George Jonas, who, in 1956, was a freedom fighter and who now is a conservative political writer who lives in Toronto, Ontario. Spielberg has done and excellent job turning facts written in the book into real emotions and religious beliefs.

Avana, a former bodyguard of Meir is played by Eric Bana. He is the leader of the secret squad that is out to seek revenge on the terrorists. They officially do not exist and have a go-between by the name of Ephraim, who is played by Geoffrey Rush. The fact that they are paid under the table and not known to exist makes the audience wonder why, because Israel is out for revenge and they definitely want that fact known. They make their killings more dramatic by using bombs instead of guns.

Avener’s team consists of himself and four others. They travel under assumed names and carry false passports. One of the team is an expert in forged documents, one if an expert at disarming bombs, one is the trigger man and the other is the person that gets rid of all the evidence after a revenge killing.

The most exciting parts of the film is when there are assassinations taking place. Spielberg has the suspense down pat. It reminds us of Hitchcock’s talent.

The audience holds it breath as Avener and his team wait for a small girl to leave for school before phoning her father. An explosive device has been connected to the telephone. What Avener and his team has failed to notice is that the little girl has returned to the house and she is the one who answers the phone. The team scrambles to prevent the device from exploding. I won’t mention what happens as this will ruin the suspense if you haven’t seen the movie.

Spielberg has timed his movie well, as there is a lot going on between Israel and Palestine at the present time. Everyone seems to be interested in who is right and who is wrong. The director could not have known his movie would be released at the same time that Sharon and Peres were seeking a way to make peace between their factions.

Spielberg has done an excellent job with this movie. It’s a thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout. If you enjoy a good political thriller, you won’t want to miss Munich. It’s haunting, effective and has turned the facts that are inarguable into something that is up for debate. Don’t miss it!

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If you enjoyed Cheaper By the Dozen, you’ll love the sequel. Though sequels are not always what they’re cracked up to be, this one is great.

Steve Martin plays Dad Baker, who is affectionate to his family and it comes through as realistic affection, not a lot of sappy goo. Bonnie Hunt plays the mother and puts on a great performance managing her brood. Alyson Stoner plays daughter, Sarah, who is entering adolescence and her performance is brilliant. The scene of love’s first kiss comes off so well that it will take you back in time to your first kiss. The scene is tastefully done with elegance and the innocence and shyness of youth.

Dad and Mom Baker decide to gather their clan together for the final fling of the summer at a rented cottage on Lake Winnetka. Unknown to Dad Baker, his high school nemesis, Jimmy Murtaugh has built “The Boulders,” a fabulous home directly across the lake from the cottage. The two men take up their rivalry where it left off years before. At a Fourth of July clambake, Jimmy shows off in his usual annoying manner. Mayhem sets in when the fireworks are inadvertently set off early and destroy everything within range.

Sarah falls in love the moment she sees Eliot Murtaugh, who played by Taylor Lautner and Eliot feels the same way about her. Sarah thinks she’s not pretty enough for Eliot and begins to experiment with makeup. The results are catastrophic.

Cheaper By the Dozen 2 takes us back in time to our early teens. It shows how sensitive thirteen year olds really are. One very heart warming scene is when Sarah’s older sister, Lorraine shows her how to properly apply makeup for a girl her age. Sarah is transformed into a beautiful young woman and the scene is done so well that it touches the hearts of the audience.

Surprisingly, Jimmy’s new wife, Sarina, who is played by Carmen Electra, is very nice. The audience has to wonder how she ever got hooked up with Jimmy. She loves all eight of her step children, is pretty and sexy and is well liked by Mom Baker. Sarina intervenes when husband, Jimmy, goes on his ego trip and puts him in his place, which delights all viewers.

If you want to take the entire family to a movie, take in Cheaper By the Dozen 2 because it is the one to see. It is much better than “The Family Stone,” or “Yours, Mine and Ours.” Cheaper By the Dozen 2 shines and is great family entertainment. Highly recommended.

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Fun with Dick and Jane is a remake of the 1977 comedy by the same name that starred George Segal and Jane Fonda.

The new version stars Jim Carrey as Dick, who’s an executive at a mega corporation. He gets promoted to vice president of communication just in time for the company’s stock to plummet to next to zero. It is he who has to appear on cable tv to tell the stockholders that they have lost everything.

Jane, his wife, is played by Tea Leoni. Tea is a travel agent, but when Dick gets his big promotion, she decides to resign and does so one the same morning as Dick’s company takes the fall.

Instead of the couple looking at the bright financial future that they were when Dick got his promotion, they are not looking at a bleak existence. They are literally broke. Their savings are gone, their retirement fund is gone and all that they own is being repossessed faster than they can blink their eyes. This includes the lawn. The landscaping company sends men to literally roll up the sod and take it back.

Dick decides that he will find a job and goes out to numerous job interviews, with no success. It seems that all the employers that matter have seen his company’s fall from grace and Dick’s performance on cable tv. No one wants him to work for their company.

Dick and Jane decide to take up a life of crime to allow them to maintain the lifestyle to which they are accustomed. At first the couple takes up petty thievery. Then they get greedy and decide to turn to bigger and better things. That’s when everything goes wrong.

The fall from grace of Dick’s company is very much likened to the fall of Enron. In the first place, Dick’s company was built on the premise of lies. Richard Jenkins and Alec Baldwin do a great job of playing characters who remind the audience of Enron’s Jeffrey Skilling and Kenneth Lay.

The film doesn’t take advantage of opportunities to land Dick and Jane in the center of a political comedy. Instead, there are too many wigs, too much slapstick and too many false beards during the couple’s robbery attempts. Late in the movie, the executive played by Alec Baldwin tries to move his money out of the country. It’s too little and much too late.

Though Fun with Dick and Jane is not a sensation, it may be pleasing to those who haven’t seen the original 1977 version. It’s a mediocre attempt at a remake and I predict it will not make great money at the box office.

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Directed by Rob Reiner, Rumor Has It, has all the qualities to make it in the movie world-great actors and a great storyline.

Jennifer Anniston plays the role of Sarah Huttinger. Sarah is engaged to be married and suddenly finds herself unsure of who she is, based on a slip of tongue from her grandmother, Katherine, played by Shirley MacLaine.

When Katherine lets it slip at Sarah’s sister’s wedding that Sarah’s mother almost didn’t get married, Sarah begins to put the pieces together. Knowing that at the same time her mother had run off with someone else, a rumor started about a young woman running off with a young man who had been seduced by her mother. This rumor turned into a book and eventually became a film, “The Graduate”. Sarah believes the rumor to be based on her family and she sets out to find out what really happened.

With Shirley MacLaine as Sarah’s grandmother, Katharine, the movie is hilarious and she plays the part to extreme. Katharine only wants to protect everyone from hearing the truth about what happened with her daughter and their “common” lover. However, Sarah pushes on and discovers more than what she expected.

What Sarah discovers is Beau Burroughs, played by Kevin Costner. Beau not only slept with Sarah’s mother, but also her grandmother. Sarah tells Beau that “Maybe every girl in my family has to sleep with you.” Beau states to Sarah, “Well, I don’t know if they have to, but they certainly have.” To Sarah, Beau represents excitement and adventure and she, too falls under his spell.

This movie is hilarious and is a must see. While the character of Sarah is not quite as interesting as “the book Sarah”, Shirley MacLaine does an outstanding job of the playing the “Mrs. Robinson” of the film. If you remember “The Graduate”, which was nominated for seven Oscars and won Best Director, you’ll follow this movie with excitement and get caught up in the story of Sarah, her husband-to-be, Jeff, played by Mark Ruffalo, her grandmother, Katharine, and of course, Beau, the “family lover”.

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Based on C.S. Lewis’ timeless classic, The Chronicles of Narnia tells the tale of four young siblings — Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter — during World War II. In an attempt to protect the children from the Nazi bombings in urban England, they are sent to an estate in the countryside to safely ride out the war.

It is within the confines of this house that the children happen upon a wardrobe while playing a game of hide and seek. What they find in this wardrobe is a portal to the magical world of Narnia. The children enter this strange world filled with otherworldly creatures. There they discover what was once a peaceful land that is inhabited by centaurs, dwarfs, and other friendly talking beasts.

But Narnia is under the spell of the evil White Witch, Jadis. Jadis has cursed the land to eternal winter. The children, with the assistance of the noble Lion King, Aslan, work to break the witch’s spell and restore Narnia to the peaceful and enchanting place it once was.

For the most part, Narnia doesn’t disappoint. It stays true to the book in terms of plot and characters. The one problem I do have with movies such as this is that the Narnia you see on screen could probably never live up to the Narnia one has pictured within their own imagination after reading the book. While I felt that emotionally the movie still struck the right cord, it just did not, and could not ever, match the vision I’ve held of Narnia since I first read the book as a child.

The other problem I had with this movie is that, it’s supposed to be geared towards children, yet, quite frankly, I would think twice before bringing children to this movie, as some of the scenes are fairly scary and violent.

On a related note, I must also say that when “blue screen” technology and CGI effects were first seen in movies they seemed cutting edge and awe inspiring. Maybe I’m just becoming jaded, but to me these special effects nowadays just seem to be anti-climactic and overused. Just my two cents.

Overall the performances in this movie were wonderful. Tilda Swinton, (from The Beach), turns in a truly hateful performance as the evil Jadis. Equally good was veteran actor, Liam Neeson, playing the majestic Lion King. The children were also surprisingly good considering their acting experience was fairly limited.

In general, I would recommend this movie as a good holiday outing. Despite some reservations about young children finding the movie too scary, the Chronicles of Narnia should have you leaving the theater feeling satisfied.

Did you find this move as enjoyable as I did? Let me know what you think by adding your comment below.

Maybe there’s a group of people dedicated to Sarah Jessica Parker and at the same time hopelessly enraptured by the dysfunctional family at Christmastime theme that could possibly make this dog a hit. I’m harder to please. I actually look for (and encourage) originality, crisp writing, great characters and interesting and unexpected plot twists. This movie is lacking in all of those departments.

In fact the only thing I can say in defense of this film are that the actors are talented enough to have made a very professional although boring movie. If you haven’t seen almost every character, every conflict and every resolution before, you have missed a lot of movies – almost all of them better than this one.

Sarah Jessica Parker said in a recent interview that she didn’t take this role because she was trying to portray an anti-Carrie character to get away from being typecast into the type of roles she played on Sex In The City. She merely took the role because she thought the script was terrific and the chance to work with the other talented actors in the cast was something she couldn’t pass up.

She should have. In the company of other, more experienced film actors Parker comes across as over the top, too cloying, too fake and too easy to please at the end. She plays the role of Meredith Morton, the uptight fiancé of Dermot Mulroney brought home to meet his family for the Christmas family celebration. Instantly, actually before they even meet her, the entire family hates her which doesn’t make sense as the Stones are educated liberals full of compassion for the handicapped and underprivileged people in the world – just not uptight fiancés.

As for the rest of the family, you’ve seen them all before. Just once I wish someone would raise their hands at a pre-production meeting and say something like, “Uh, boss, my character’s the same one I played on such and such and the same one that was in such and such. Can’t we come up with something a little bit different for me to say or do or be in this film?” But no.

Apparently, the size of their paychecks is equal to the amount of guts it would take for one of them to actually say something like that to a successful producer, director or writer. They must think, well, maybe the lighting guy will save this turkey, or perhaps, maybe it will look better on film than it sounds right now. Wrong. This isn’t a horrible mistake of a movie, not with the talent in the cast and the high quality production values, its just that we’ve seen it all before, done better and it wasn’t all that great to begin with.

Trust me, in twenty or thirty years some new cast of great actors will not be pressing their agents to remake this movie. Once around the block with the Family Stone is more than enough.

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Anybody truly in love with Mel Brooks’ original classic or the subsequent Broadway adaptation will be thrilled to hear that this remake more than lives up to its predecessor.

Knowing beforehand that there would be no reason to remake a brilliant, hysterical movie unless they could do it justice, the cast and crew worked together to make this adaptation even funnier than the original and that’s really saying something. I am personally such a fan of the original that I watch it several times each and every year when I am lucky enough to stumble across a showing on cable. To this day, many years after the original was made, the original still makes me laugh and the anticipation of my favorite scenes still keeps me on edge.

My initial reaction upon hearing of the remake was, well, dread. I feared that a bumbling attempt to remake what already worked would destroy the original in my eyes. I thought the money guys were in control of the creative process once again as has been the case in so many remakes through the years. But not this time, I am happy to report. This time they’ve actually improved on the original – and that’s really saying something.

The cast of Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Uma Thurman, Will Farrell and Roger Bart as directed by Susan Stroman are so uniformly blended with their characters that the movie literally zips along flawlessly from start to finish leaving the audience almost in tears from so much laughter.

The music numbers are really to die for. If I had one complaint about the original it would be that the music numbers were given short shrift budget wise and screen time wise as they were secondary to the comic antics and desperation of the two main characters. And with their humorous take on Nazis, they were so outrageous that too much might have been considered overkill. But here, the Broadway show “Springtime For Hitler” is every bit as impressive an undertaking as it should have been in the original and it is truly hilarious. Nobody but Mel Brooks could make a humorous, sympathetic Adolf Hitler work so well. Others have tried – none have succeeded.

Ultimately, the movie turns on the chemistry between the two main characters Max Bialystock, the desperate Broadway producer, and Leo Bloom, the mild mannered, neurotic accountant who discovers that the key to financial success on Broadway is to produce a huge failure and here the chemistry works on every level. Just as in the original with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder, the comic tension and timing between Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick is every bit as sharp if not more so.

This might be the very first remake that I really have no complaints about even though, as I said, the original is truly one of my all time movie favorites. This remake might actually be so fresh and funny that it could end up right next to the original on my all time favorites list. For people who have never seen the original I envy you the experience of this fresh remake. For those of you who have, like me, seen and enjoyed the original, have no fear – your time and money will be will spent watching this movie as well.

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Yours, Mine and Ours, starring Dennis Quaid and Renee Russo is a remake of the 1968 movie starring Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. Let’s just say that after seeing the 1968 movie, there’s no need to see the 2005.

Basically, the problem with this movie is its predictability. There is almost nothing in the movie that can not be predicted. For example, when on the sailboat, Frank, played by Dennis Quaid, tells everyone to be careful of the boom, otherwise someone might get knocked in. Guess what? Someone gets knocked overboard. Not only that but who couldn’t predict that two large families thrown together by marriage wouldn’t get along?

As for combining two families, with a total of eighteen children, in today’s world, it would be impossible not to be poor. Yet these people have a live-in housekeeper, Dad has an office, Mom has an art studio, and of course, none of the eighteen children are going without. Just a little unrealistic!

As for the premise of the movie, it’s the reunion of two high school sweethearts, who after seeing each other a couple of times, decide to get married without even consulting their children. He has eight children and she has ten. Once they are married, it, of course, has the never-ending story of the two sets of kids not liking each other or messing up the house or getting into trouble.

Beyond the fact that the Yours, Mine and Ours is predictable, it will catch a few laughs. After all, you’ve got Dennis Quaid and Renee Russo playing Dad and Mom, and Linda Hunt playing as the housekeeper. Maybe not as good as the 1968 Lucille Ball version, but it will provide you with some entertainment.

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Zathura is a spin off of Jumanji, but one that will take you on a great adventure.

When two brothers, Danny and Walter Budwing, ages 6 and 10, are left under the care of their older sister, Lisa, they find themselves bored to death. Lisa isn’t at all vigilant because she prefers spending her time in bed with her iPod. When Danny and Walter get into a fight, Danny hides in the dumb waiter. Walter, thinking it would be great fun to scare the wits out of Danny, sends him to the basement. Once there, Danny, played by Jonah Bobo, comes across an old board game and begs Walter, played by Josh Hutcherson, to play it with him. After much coaxing, Walter agrees.

Zathura is a metal contraption that sparks the boys’ interest. They wind it up, push a button and watch a little car race around the track of the game. When it stops, the game gives out a card that Walter reads to Danny. “Meteor Shower: Take Evasive Action.” As Walter speaks, the meteor shower starts, bursting through the ceiling and plunging through the floor. The boys try to avoid the meteors, but the magic of the film is that the meteors actually avoid the boys. Though the living room is thrashed completely, the boys go unscathed.

Zathura, very similar to Jumanji, is based on the book by Chris Van Allsburg, who also wrote the Polar Express. Zathura is the only board game ever made that can take its players into outer space. The allure of the film is very evident during the meteor shower when Danny and Walter don’t receive as much as a scratch when the living room is totaled. Even when they open the front door and find they’ve been transported to outer space, they are able to breathe without the assistance of oxygen tanks and space suits.

Danny and Walter take turns playing Zathura, just as they would playing any other board game. One card reads, “Shipmate Enters Cryonic Sleep Chamber,” which puts Lisa, who is entering the upstairs bathroom, into a frozen state of immobility. Other cards produce humungous alien lizards, an attack from spaceships, a frightening robot that has glowing red eyes and an unwelcome visit to a black hole.

Zathura is an adventure that will thrill kids of all ages. The boys are faced with real problems that need an almost immediate solution. Danny and Walter are the heroes of the film and do an excellent job entertaining their audience. Zathura is a must see for all those who loved Jumanji. Don’t miss it.

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