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    New in Theaters: Hail, Caesar!, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies & More

    Just as the winter weather abandons us for weirdly sunny days, the seasonal slog at the cinema has lightened up as well. Oscar nominees, Coen brothers, and reconsidered classics are all worth a look this weekend. There’s also a new Nicholas Sparks movie, which is exactly what you think it will be.

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    Hail, Caesar

     

    Coen brother films can be brilliant (No Country for Old Men, A Serious Man), or not (The Ladykillers, The Hudsucker Proxy), but they’re always crafted with interesting ideas. Hail, Caesar! offers a few too many of those ideas and not enough places for them to take root.

    The setting is Hollywood’s “Golden Age,”when Hail, Caesar! is the new epic being produced by Capitol pictures, and starring their biggest asset, Baird Whitlock (George Clooney). Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) is the square-jawed, no nonsense Capitol studio “fixer,” which means he’s the one dealing with kidnappers who are demanding $100,000 for Whitlock’s safe return.

    But there’s more.

    Crisscrossing situations combine for a madcap romp that homages various classics of the era, including musical numbers recalling Gene Kelly, Esther Williams, and Roy Rogers. The Coens’ writing is as witty and eccentric as ever, but save for two specific bits, rarely more than amusing.

    Famous faces (Channing Tatum, Tilda Swinton, Jonah Hill, Ralph Fiennes) come and go quickly, all beautifully framed by esteemed cinematographer Roger Deakins, but the parade of glorified cameos only makes the film’s eccentricities seem more disconnected.

    Still, Hail, Caesar! is a fine looking swing that just misses. Beneath all the old Hollywood glamour is familiar Coen territory: faith, folly, finding your purpose and just trying to live a good life. They’ve done it worse, but they’ve done it better.

    Grade: B-

     

    45 years

     

    If you were surprised to see the name Charlotte Rampling in this year’s Oscar nominees, 45 Years will justify that recognition in a hurry.

    It only takes a few scenes before you realize the subtle depth Rampling brings to her role as Kate Mercer, a woman on the verge of celebrating 45 years of marriage to her husband, Geoff (Tom Courtenay). As their big anniversary party approaches, a bombshell is dropped: Swiss authorities have recovered the body of Geoff’s old girlfriend Katya, five decades after she fell into a crevasse while the two were hiking.

    Though plans for the party move forward, the couple struggles with the effects of this sudden revelation. What binds two people together for a lifetime? How easily can those bonds be shaken to the core?

    Rampling and Courtenay are simple perfection, creating a lived-in chemistry that is utterly authentic. Half-hearted smiles and brief glances can be deafening, and director Andrew Haigh confidently allows these small moments the space they need to cut deeply.

    45 Years may speak softly, but it compels you to listen hard, and sends you home from the party with a shattering final shot that may not leave your head for days.

    Grade: A-

     

    Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

     

    Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – there’s not a lot of grey area there. If you’ve always wanted to see Lizzie Bennet (Lily James) prove her inner badassedness with a katana to an undead skull, you can’t go entirely wrong here.

    In 2009, writer Seth Grahame-Smith found himself with a surprise success in his novel, co-written by Jane Austen (whose original text is firmly in the public domain).

    Director Burr Steers adapted the novel, keeping the violence mostly off screen and the blood to a relative minimum, preferring to focus on the heaving post-fight-scene bosom. Burr seems unclear on the film’s audience. He’s unsure just how much action to pack into an Austen narrative, fuzzy on the amount of blood that’s appropriate to the tale, blurry on the balance of levity versus seriousness versus gore.

    Lucky for him, this is a very proven story of delayed gratification and all the longing that accompanies it. Plus, zombies. It’s hard to go wrong here, and for the most part, PPZ doesn’t go too wrong. It’s an entertaining if uninspired retelling of a retelling of a tale you’ve heard, read, and seen a dozen times. But this time, Lizzy Bennet’s packing heat, which just seems right.

    Grade: C+

     

    Also opening this week in Columbus:

    • ARABIAN NIGHTS VOLUME ONE: THE RESTLESS ONE (NR)
    • ARABIAN NIGHTS VOLUME TWO: THE DESOLATE ONE (NR)
    • ARABIAN NIGHTS VOLUME THREE: THE ENCHANTED ONE (NR)
    • THE CHOICE (PG-13)
    • CONVERGENCE (NR)
    • THE MONKEY KING 2 (NR)
    • RABID DOGS (NR)

    Reviews with help from George Wolf.

    See a full set of movie reviews on MADDWOLF and listen to Hope’s weekly horror movie podcast, FRIGHT CLUB.

    Looking for more film events in Columbus? CLICK HERE to visit our Events Calendar.

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    Hope Madden
    Hope Maddenhttps://columbusunderground.com
    Hope Madden is a freelance contributor on Columbus Underground who covers the independent film scene, writes film reviews and previews film events.
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