Movie of the Day: "Hoop Dreams" (1994)

Our last entry for March Madness is Hoop Dreams, the iconic documentary that every basketball lover and film lover should see at least once in their lives. It followed the day to day struggles of two inner city teens, Arthur Agee and Williams Gates, over their four years of high school as they tried to follow their dreams of playing basketball even as real life drama and every day problems got in the way, as it does for us all. A powerfully absorbing film that made you feel a part of these kid's lives in every respect, and eventually becomes about so much more than the sport they want to be part of. A perfect end to the basketball movies celebrated over the last few days of March.

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REVIEW: "Noah" (2014) Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly. Dir. Darren Aronofsky

Noah is a dark, imaginative, thought-provoking and not so faithful re-telling of the biblical tale everyone's familiar with- but maybe that's not such a bad thing. You may go into this movie wanting a certain kind of traditional epic, and if you do you will likely be confronted with some major challenges to your belief system, especially if yours is a literalist take on popular Bible stories.

Darren Aronofsky is a director who likes to challenge an audience, and usually brings his own, bold ideas into his films, which range from Requiem for a Dream to Black Swan and The Fountain- given that filmography, the tale of Noah's Ark may not be obvious material for him to tackle, but that's likely exactly why he did it. Always a visual filmmaker, the images in Noah are some of its best qualities, which show off desolate landscapes and bleak skies painted in bold, striking colors. There's always something to see onscreen in this version of the story, and that's a good thing, because the approach to the subject matter takes on a harsh, bleak tone that really borders on depressing for much of the running time.

In some ways that's appropriate- in this universe, the Creator is one who reigns punishment and death down upon mankind, and all of it is the fault of weak and selfish humans who must be obliterated for their sins. As someone who's almost entirely unfamiliar with all but the most basic of Bible tales, in this movie God comes across as a real hardass who hates everything he's created. And Noah, as played by Russell Crowe, is a tortured, soul-searching man who must find it in himself to let all of humanity vanquish except for his own family members (and the animals of course, who still look impossible to fit onto that boat), and then goes through an evolution that sees him become first a dagger-wielding maniac and then a drunken bum. Those passages are actually more entertaining than the early slogs through the building of the ark, and Crowe gives a very convincing turn as a sort of anti-hero forced to do God's bidding.

Other elements in the film that no one will be expecting, and some of my favorite things about it were the fantastic and surreal touches, such as the fallen angels who watch out for Noah taking the form of gigantic rock monsters. The leader of the stonehenge gang is voiced by Nick Nolte and they're reminiscent of creatures who might have walked off the set of Lord of the Rings. Other neat moments are the colorful montage of Creation as explained by Noah and the magic inexplicably pulled off by his wife (Jennifer Connelly) and Methuselah (Anthony Hopkins, who else?) The performances are good all around, especially Logan Lerman as Noah's conflicted son Ham and Emma Watson as adopted daughter Ila. But while I liked and appreciated parts of Noah throughout, the film overall was a heavy and quite dreary experience. It may be appropriately so- this an apocalyptic depiction of a vengeful God and his suffering servants after all- but it takes an unpleasant toll on an audience as far as entertainment value is concerned.

* *

Movie of the Day: "Space Jam" (1996)

Today's March Madness movie is Space Jam, from 1996. In it, Michael Jordan, the world's greatest basketball player, teams up with Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes to challenge the invading aliens in Toon Land to a basketball game. This was a lot of fun, but now it works best as a kind of time capsule movie, one that shows you just how massive a superstar Jordan was at the time (in case you don't remember). He was so famous that the movie can easily poke fun at his recent real life stint in baseball before making his dramatic return to the basketball court, and it's not supposed to be played as an inside joke. Everyone was following his every move back then- rarely could one athlete command the whole world's attention like Michael Jordan did when he was on top (sorry LeBron James- there's really no comparison in terms of cultural impact). This one also has cameos from comedians like Bill Murray and Wayne Knight, as well as other famous basketball players from the 90's NBA craze.

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BOX OFFICE 3/28-3/30: 'Noah' Comes On Strong

Darren Aronofsky's Noah was the week's winner, coming in with an above average $44 million, which is pretty good, although the budget was $125 million and the studio will want it to hold on strongly to turn a profit. All the various controversies associated with the film seemed to help sustain interest in it, but it did get a bad "C" Cinemascore from audiences (we'll see if that means anything though, since we know how that worked out for Wolf of Wall Street last Christmas). With Easter coming up it may attract Christian audiences in a big way, if word of mouth isn't too bad in the end. In second place was Divergent, which fell just 51% from last week (a smaller drop than the Hunger Games and Twilight movies), and Muppets Most Wanted took third, also falling just a small amount, to pull in a decent $11 million for a $33 million total. It may hold on to make its budget back in the States, while scoring more overseas to turn a profit in the end.

Mr. Peabody and Sherman took fourth, on its way to a $100 million dollar total, while the real shocker of the weekend was God's Not Dead, which came in fifth but made another $9 million, exactly the same as its debut opening last week. This might turn out to be the big underdog success story of the year so far, as the movie's obviously playing very well in middle America.

Top 5:

Noah- $44 million
Divergent- $26.5 million
Muppets Most Wanted- $11.3 million
Mr. Peabody and Sherman- $9.5 million
God's Not Dead- $9 million

In other news, Frozen just passed Toy Story 3 at the worldwide box office to become the biggest animated movie of all time with over $1 billion, and Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel expanded nationally this weekend, coming in at No. 6 with $8.8 million, and well on its way to becoming Anderson's highest grossing film ever. Next week it's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which has already made a hefty $75 million from overseas markets since opening on Wednesday, and is expected to do huge business here as well. See you then!

Movie of the Day: "Love & Basketball" (2000)

Another great basketball movie for today is this romantic drama from 2000, which stars Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps as childhood sweethearts who go on to become a couple as young adults, while both figuring out how to pursue their respective basketball careers. One of the few sports movies ever to focus on a female athlete's quest for success, both in her professional and personal life (tellingly, it was also directed by a woman, Gina Prince-Bythewood), and the chemistry is terrific between Epps and Lathan.

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Movie of the Day: "Glory Road" (2006)

Due to March Madness, we'll be posting some great basketball-centered movies over the next few days, and this feel-good story from 2006 is the first. The sports movie in general tends to follow a now cliched formula of overcoming obstacles on the way to gaining unprecedented success, but this one really moved me, and as it pertains to college basketball, it couldn't be more appropriate. Based on the true life story of the team that changed the sport by integrating college basketball in the 1960's, Josh Lucas stars as the coach of the small school of Texas Western, and Derek Luke is one of the star players of the 1966 season. It's a heartwarmer.

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TRAILER: "Begin Again"

The new film from the writer/director of Once, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year, and is now set to come out in July. Keira Knightley (who does her own singing) and Mark Ruffalo star in this movie, which got ecstatic reaction from the Toronto crowd and was picked up by Harvey Weinstein, so it definitely has potential. Looks to me like it will depend on how good the music is, much like Once did:

TRAILER #2: "Jupiter Ascending"

The second trailer for the fairly ludicrous looking Jupiter Ascending, the new Wachowski sibling's movie coming out in July. I don't know about this one- maybe there's a chance it could be good, but it might have been a good idea to have Channing Tatum lay off whatever accent it is he's supposed to have in this, don't you think?

TEASER: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"

Michael Bay's dreaded Ninja Turtles movie has a trailer out today, and those CG turtles could not possibly look any creepier. Ick. If this franchise has to continue, I'd way prefer the dudes in the costumes from the original 90's version. Everything else looks like typical Michael Bay- CG action galore, if you like that sort of thing.

TRAILER #2: "Edge of Tomorrow"

New trailer for Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in the sci-fi thriller, Edge of Tomorrow, coming out June 6th. Looks like it might be interesting, and with director Doug Liman (Go, The Bourne Identity) at the helm, it at least has potential to be something noteworthy. Kinda seems like Emily Blunt is starting to get typecast as "the girl" in weird sci-fi movies though, with The Adjustment Bureau, Looper, and now this:

REVIEW: "The Past" (2013) Berenice Bejo, Tahar Rahim. Dir. Asghar Farhadi

Asghar Farhadi is proving himself to be a mesmerizing and expert storyteller. After 2011's Oscar-winning A Separation, he's now crafted the masterful The Past, a story of family drama and hidden secrets that come to light, bringing forth new revelations and mysteries among a troubled set of individuals. Much like A Separation, when key parts of the story are revealed, it only sets in motion events that continue to play out in unexpected ways, keeping the viewer guessing until the very end as to what may ultimately occur.

Farhadi is an excellent screenwriter, skilled at putting in place the atmosphere and set-up for a convincing personal drama, only to draw you into a complicated web of intimate relationships and feelings that make you feel a part of the action in surprising ways. The Past deals with the story of a woman (The Artist's Berenice Bejo) who has children from a past marriage, is living with her new boyfriend and his son, and is receiving a visit from her most recent ex-husband (Ali Mosaffa), who moves in with the makeshift family while in town to finalize divorce proceedings from Bejo. Already, you can see that this is highly melodramatic material- but unlike Pedro Almodovar, a contemporary of Farhadi's whose specialty is melodrama and high camp, Farhadi takes this subject matter and plays it deadly serious. We get to know each and every one of his characters, from the woman and her lovers, to their children and friends, and we experience up close their fears, hopes, pain and sorrow.

Bejo's teenage daughter is the first family member to be exposed as hiding a mysterious secret, and her anger at her mother's newest marriage manifests itself in crying fits and disappearances, which Bejo drags both her fiance and ex-husband into. But it all unfolds with precision and workmanlike efficiency. We begin to see where Farhadi's taking us as we meet each new character along our established character's journeys, and eventually it all makes sense as it heads toward a conclusion that in retrospect seems inevitable. The films this director is making are personal stories about the mysteries of human nature, and contemporary ones about the way people live today in Iran, France, and wherever else his next film might be set. The actors are held on guard by their director, never let off the hook to reveal too much in their performances, never more emotion than what's absolutely necessary at any particular moment. This is a man running a tight ship, in total control of his actors and screenplay, for the ultimate benefit of his viewing audience.

The Past may not be in the same league as A Separation, because in that film the stakes felt much higher, and the character's destinies ultimately seemed not to be in their own hands. Here we are dealing with affairs and backstabbing, and the film all rests on the personal choices of its protagonists. It's harder to escape the sense of melodrama, but it's dealt with in a high class, highly efficient, even suspenseful manner. It's no easy task to mine suspense out of intimate family drama, but Asghar Farhadi is a major talent, whose natural storytelling sensibilities make it look easy. I can't wait to see what he does next.

* * * 1/2

Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "The Freshman" (1925)

Harold Lloyd was one of the great silent comedians of the 20th Century, and even though Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton are more well known and revered among today's film scholars, Harold Lloyd was actually the most popular star during his time and the biggest box office attraction. You can see why in his films, where he plays the nerdy, socially awkward stumbler, but that awkward relatability helps his persona to hold up sometimes even better than the other two. And he was just as funny- watch The Freshman, one of his best movies, to see why; it's just as hilarious as ever. Lloyd had influences on everyone from Woody Allen to the Marx Brothers.

Trailer for the restored edition: