THE CARD PLAYER

THE CARD PLAYER (aka Il cartaio/2004). Director: Dario Argento.

A maniac who kidnaps women wants to play poker with the police with the stakes being the life of the woman he holds captive, all played out over the Internet. Rome police inspector Anna Mari (Stefania Rocca) and John Brennan (Liam Cunningham) from Interpol are the team trying to find the women and stop the "card player;" they enlist the aid of a young poker expert named Remo (Silvio Muccino). The Card Player is different from a lot of Argento's shockers in that it's a fairly straight-forward crime thriller, which boasts a tense, exciting climax on the train tracks. It is also a lot better than some of the other films Argento made during this later period. Some Argento fans -- gore geeks -- hated it because it wasn't gruesome enough.

Verdict: Absorbing and suspenseful for the most part. ***.

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (2004)

Gerard Butler as the Phantom

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (2004). Director: Joel Schumacher. 

In 1870 A mysterious figure known as the Phantom (Gerard Butler) haunts the Paris Opera, where the lead soprano is the unpleasant diva Carlotta (Minnie Driver). The Phantom, however, much prefers the singing of Christine (Emmy Rossum), a young soprano with whom he is falling in love, and he will do anything to insure that she replaces Carlotta on the stage. Christine has another suitor, a viscount named Raoul (Patrick Wilson), whose presence is an irritation to the Phantom. The Phantom eventually kidnaps Christine and takes her to his vast, watery, underground labyrinth beneath the opera house ... 

Emmy Rossum and Patrick Wilson

The Phantom of the Opera is the film adaptation of  Andrew Lloyd Webber's very popular musical, which blends together various styles such as pop, rock, and operatic pastiche to tell its story. Although other versions of this famous tale have made up new reasons for the Phantom's disfigurement, this version sticks to the original notion that the Phantom -- or Eric -- was deformed since birth, 

The Pairs Opera

Phantom is handsomely produced and well-acted by Rossum, Wilson, and Butler, as well as Driver and a host of excellent character actors. Influenced by everyone from Puccini to Sondheim, Webber's score includes such memorable ditties as "Music of the Night," "Prima Donna," the title tune, "Point of No Return," "Wish You Were Here Again," and others. "Masquerade" is presented as an exciting full-fledged production number. Rossum has a lovely non-operatic voice, and while Butler is hardly a great singer, his voice works very well for the Phantom. 

Phantom of the Opera could have been a campy mess -- there are only occasional touches of camp --  and it will not work for everyone. But I found it absorbing and colorful and often melodious, with outstanding scenic design. A death trap sequence in the underground wherein the Phantom tries to kill Raoul is well-handled as well. 

Verdict: Very good adaptation of a highly successful and macabre musical. ***1/4. 

EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING

EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING. (2004). Director: Renny Harlin. 

In 1949 Cairo a younger Father Merrin (Stellen Skarsgard), who has temporarily given up the cloth due to events of WW 2, investigates the archaeological dig of a church that has been built over a temple of human sacrifice – where sinister things, of course, begin to happen. This is a classy production, well-directed by Harlin, and strikingly photographed by Vittorio Storaro (witness that stunning pulled-back shot of the crosses during the prologue), but despite some exciting moments and powerful images (a dead baby pulled from its mother's womb covered in bugs), it's almost a complete misfire. For one thing, there's too much going on in the screenplay, which incorporates native uprisings, sandstorms, and even Nazis without a clear focus on anything. The actual exorcism, which isn't that well-staged (and looks as silly as ever), is dragged in for the final moments, giving the picture no real climax or pay off. The derivative flashback, showing how Merrin had to choose ten people for the Nazis to kill (a couple of little children are shot in the head to persuade Merrin to choose), overpowers the rest of the story, which seems trivial in comparison. The fixation on hyenas (which tear one poor boy apart in an effective if disturbing sequence) remind one less of The Exorcist and more of The Omen trilogy. Add to all this the fact that Skarsgard is a somewhat bland leading man in this and you have a film that is rather boring even at its busiest. Ben Cross shows up for about two minutes in bookending sequences and is completely wasted (he would have been much better as the lead). A lot of hard work and talent went into this; it's a shame it was all for nothing. 

Verdict: Unfortunate. **.

THE GRUDGE

THE GRUDGE (2004). Director: Takashi Shimizu. Written by Stephen Susco. 

In an attempt to have another smash hit like The Ring, Columbia has taken another Japanese horror film and come out with an American remake – although it still takes place in Japan with some transplanted Americans. Sarah Michelle Gellar is the nominal heroine who becomes embroiled in a frightening ghost story when she fills in for a home care provider who's disappeared. She sees spooky visions of a little boy who is central to the mystery. Apparently there was a murder-suicide in the house, and the evil that lives within is reverberating outward to ensnare anyone who comes into its invisible web. A workable if unoriginal idea is given mediocre execution that all but spoils the movie; it also has a much less interesting storyline than The Ring. Although there are a number of creepy moments, they are also rather silly, and the whole movie is quite predictable and, at times, illogical. Prosaically filmed, there are absolutely no surprises to The Grudge. The ghostly little boy is generally too helpless and cute-looking to be very scary. Bill Pullman appears as a man who commits suicide sometime after seeing the child and he isn't bad. Gellar, on the other hand, isn't much of an actress. She seems to have little future beyond bad movies like this. 

Verdict: Why horror films have a bad name. *

SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW (2004). Director/writer: Kerry Conran.

This is an unfortunate attempt to recreate the excitement and craziness of the old Republic serials with some high-tech effects and computer imagery (so much of it that the movie almost resembles a cartoon). The movie takes place not in the future but circa World War Two, and features a battle between the heroic Sky Captain (Jude Law), a Blackhawk-type mercenary, and the evil Dr. Totenkopf, who attacks New York City with giant robots, and forces scientists to create strange animals (including, inexplicably, an elephant shrunken to the size of a stuffed toy). Totenkopf's plan is to build a space ark that will take his animals off into the cosmos while the Earth itself is vaporized. Helping Sky Captain is the intrepid reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) and – in what amounts to a bit – female pilot Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie). Giovanni Ribisi is the captain's pal and associate Dex, who is kidnapped at one point. Although there are some fine FX and interesting scenic design and a few exciting moments (including the climax on the space ark) Sky Captain is never as entertaining as any of those old Republic serials, and both continuity and story are stilted, to say the least. Law is better in the heroic part than one would imagine, and Paltrow is also good as his partner-in-peril. The tongue-in-cheek script has some amusing moments, but after awhile its cliches become wearisome. In an improbable bit of stunt casting “Sir Laurence Olivier” is billed as Dr. Totenkopf, although the character turns out to be dead and is only seen as a withered corpse. Did the producers use Lord Olivier's voice? Who cares? Nothing could make this production particularly memorable.

Verdict: As expected, there were no sequels. *1/2.