Tower Heist

Film Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Victims Turn Tables on Con Man in Murphy-Stiller Buddy Comedy

By the time Wall Street titan Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) was charged with running a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme, it was already too late for the authorities to find the fortune that he had ostensibly hidden in offshore accounts. As a condition of being released on bail before trial, he was ordered kept under house arrest in his luxury penthouse at The Tower, an exclusive high-rise located on Central Park West.
While this development might have prevented the arrogant embezzler from becoming a fugitive of justice, it simultaneously left him surrounded by some of those he’d swindled. For, not only had he stolen from the wealthy, but he had also talked the staff at The Tower into trusting him with all the assets in their pension fund.
Consequently, the callous con man’s victims include building manager Josh (Ben Stiller), Lester the doorman (Stephen Henderson), Enrique the bellhop (Michael Pena), Odessa the housekeeper (Gabourey Sidibe), Charlie the concierge (Casey Affleck) and bankrupt, fellow resident Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick).
Reluctant to let Shaw walk away with their money, the group hatches a plan to take the law into its own hands, upon learning that the remorseless embezzler has stashed about $20 million in cash somewhere in his condo. After all, as employees, they certainly have intimate knowledge about and unusual access to the inner workings of The Tower, although they will still need the help of a real crook, since none of them have ever cracked a safe before.
So, Josh enlists the assistance of Slide (Eddie Murphy), a motor-mouthed petty thief he’s occasionally encountered on the street. Once Slide joins the conspiracy, the only remaining hurdles involve first gaining access to an apartment guarded by the FBI, and then robbing it right under the nose of the accused who’s restricted to the premises, 24-7.
This is the promising premise of Tower Heist, the latest buddy comedy directed by Brett Ratner. While the teaming of Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller doesn’t come close to matching the inspired, screen chemistry of Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan in Ratner’s Rush Hour trilogy, the talented twosome nevertheless manage to generate enough laughs, with the help of a colorful support cast, to make you forgive the fact that the crime caper grows increasingly improbable the further the film unfolds.
A funny, if farfetched, revenge fantasy for folks bilked by the likes of Bernie Madoff.

Excellent (3.5 stars)
Rated PG-13 for profanity and sexuality.
Running time: 104 Minutes
Studio: Universal Pictures

Five Star Day

Film Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Skeptic Test Reliability of Astrology in Serendipitous Romance Drama

Jake Gibson (Cam Gigandet) is eagerly anticipating enjoying a great birthday after reading a horoscope which predicts nothing but the best for Aquarians. Unfortunately, the rosy forecast turns out to be totally inaccurate as everything that could possibly go wrong does go wrong over the course of a bitterly-disappointing, 24 hours.
From a plumbing problem in his apartment to having his car stolen to getting fired, Jake can’t catch a break. Even when he returns home from work unexpectedly early, he catches his girlfriend in the arms of another man.
Feeling duped, the suddenly-skeptical birthday boy decides to conduct his own study to assess whether astrology is reliable or simply pseudoscientific nonsense. And the research will simultaneously help him pass his course in Ethics, the last class standing between him and a college degree.
In order to determine if when and where you’re born is really a predictor of one’s fate, Jake uses hospital records to learn the identity of everyone who, like him, was born at St. Joseph’s around 10:30 PM on February 6th, 1982. After coming up with exactly three names, Sarah Reynolds (Jena Malone), Wesley Henderson (Max Hartman) and Yvette Montgomery (Brooklyn Sudano), he proceeds to go to great lengths to track them down the trio for a friendly tete-a-tete.
But Jake soon learns that finding folks is one thing, getting them to talk to a stranger with a weird agenda is quite another. For naturally-suspicious Sarah is a hardened, bartending single-mom with an abusive ex always lurking in the shadows. Meanwhile, Wesley is a struggling, saloon singer facing a serious health issue, and Yvette has her hands full between her family and a job counseling troubled teens in the ‘hood.
Nonetheless, Jake refuses to be denied and his yeoman effort is the sum and substance of Five Star Day, a sweet, serendipitous drama written and directed by Danny Buday. Provided you are willing to swallow a silly premise which has the protagonist crisscrossing the country in search of his long-lost nursery mates, the picture proves to be a pleasant enough diversion, not for its examination of astrology but rather on account of the love story which blossoms between gentlemanly Jake and damsel-in-distress Sarah.
A romantic reminder of less-enlightened times when asking a woman her sign was actually a viable pickup line.

Very Good (3 stars)
Unrated
Running Time: 97 minutes
Studio: Breaking Glass Pictures

Top Ten DVD List for November 8th

by Kam Williams

Headline: Top Ten DVD List for November 8th

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2


Blue Velvet – 25th Anniversary Edition [Blu-Ray]


Band of Brothers: The Pacific – Special Edition Gift Set


The Sleeping Beauty


Mr. Magoo: The Television Collection [1960-1977]


The Human Resources Manager


Law & Order: The Complete Series


The River Why


The Change-Up


Alleged


13

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

DVD Review by Kam Williams

Headline: Harry Potter Franchise Finale Arrives on DVD

Unless author J.K. Rowling decides to extend the spellbinding saga, which isn’t entirely out of the question, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is slated to bring down the curtain on the magical adventures of the boy wizard and his Hogwarts School classmates. Directed by David Yates (HP 5, 6 & 7), this installment picks up right where the last one left off, namely, with Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) and his pals, Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), resuming their quest to find the rest of Dark Lord Voldemort’s (Ralph Fiennes). “Horcruxes.”
Diehard Potterheads undoubtedly already know why gaining possession of the wizard weaponry known as the “Deathly Hallows” (the Resurrection Stone, the Elder Wand and the Cloak of Invisibility) is so critical to the success of the seek-and-destroy mission to vanquish the merciless Voldemort. Nonetheless, uninitiated “muggles” need not be familiar with the inscrutable lexicon to appreciate the fact that what’s about to unfold is a classic showdown between the forces of good and evil over the fate of the world.
As for special effects, this episode features a profusion of captivating action sequences ranging from the heroes’ daring escape from a subterranean inferno on the back of a fire-breathing dragon to an epic, high body-count battle on the campus of their alma mater. Once the dust settles, however, what’s ultimately more memorable than the climactic clash of the wands is the update by way of postscript relating intimate details of developments in the protagonists’ personal lives.
After all, they’re almost like family after maturing in front of our very eyes since they were adolescents, so it’s only natural that we’d like to know how they turned out as adults. A fitting capstone on a fabled film franchise for the ages!

Excellent (4 stars)
Rated PG-13 for frightening images and intense violence.
Running time: 130 Minutes
Distributor: Warner Home Video
Blu-Ray/DVD Combo Pack Extras: Ultraviolet digital copy, a conversation with J.K. Rowling and Daniel Radcliffe, deleted scenes, and featurettes entitled: “WB Studio Tour London -The Making of Harry Potter,” “The Goblins of Gringotts,” “The Women of Harry Potter” and “Maximum Movie Mode.”

Kam's Kapsules: For movies opening November 11, 2011

OPENING THIS WEEK
Kam's Kapsules:
Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun
by Kam Williams
For movies opening November 11, 2011


BIG BUDGET FILMS

Immortals (R for graphic violence and a sex scene) Action fantasy, steeped in Greek mythology, about a lowly stonemason (Henry Cavill) picked by Zeus (Luke Evans) to assemble a band of intrepid warriors for a bloody showdown with a rampaging, ruthless titan (Mickey Rourke) who has declared war on humanity. With Isabel Lucas, Stephen Dorff, John Hurt and Freida Pinto.

J. Edgar (R for profanity) Clint Eastwood directed this warts-and-all biopic starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role of J. Edgar Hoover, the legendary director of the FBI. With Josh Lucas as Charles Lindbergh, Jeffrey Donovan as Bobby Kennedy, Gunner Wright as Dwight Eisenhower, and Christopher Shyer as Richard Nixon.

Jack and Jill (PG for sexuality, crude humor, profanity, violence and smoking) Slapstick comedy about a happily-married family man (Adam Sandler) who is dreading his passive-aggressive, twin sister’s (also played by Sandler) annual Thanksgiving visit. Ensemble includes Katie Holmes, Al Pacino, Shaquille O’Neal, Regis Philbin, Tim Meadows and Dana Carvey.


INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS

11-11-11 (Unrated) Psychological thriller about a best-selling author (Timothy Gibbs) who moves to Barcelona to recover from the loss of his family in a house fire set by a fan only to learn that the number 11 is fated to remain his unlucky number forever. With Wendy Glenn, Michael Landers, Denis Rafter and Salome Jimenez.

The Conquest (Unrated) Political biopic chronicling the rise to power of France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy (Denis Podalydes). Cast includes Florence Pernel as First Lady Cecilia Sarkozy, and Bernard Le Coq as Jacques Chirac. (In French with subtitles)

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (Unrated) Brazilian crime thriller, set in Rio de Janeiro, revolving around a high-ranking prison official (Wagner Moura) called upon to clean up police corruption in the wake of a riot during which some inmates were executed. With Irandhir Santos, Andre Ramiro and Maria Ribeiro. (In Portuguese with subtitles)

God’s Fiddler (Unrated) Reverential biopic about Jascha Heifetz (1901-1987), a violin virtuoso considered one of the greatest classical musicians of all time.

The Greening of Whitney Brown (PG for brief profanity) Fish-out-of-water comedy about a spoiled ‘tweener (Sammi Hanratty) who learns a big lesson about what really matters in life with the help of a horse after her family moves from Philly to the country because of financial woes. With Brooke Shields, Aidan Quinn, Keith David and Kris Kristofferson.

Into the Abyss (Unrated) Werner Herzog directed this Death Row documentary based on a series of interviews with relatives of the victims of a triple murder as well as the killer, a week before the 28 year-old condemned man was scheduled to fry.

Melancholia (R for sexuality, profanity and graphic nudity) Denmark’s Lars von Trier directs this apocalyptic adventure about a couple of squabbling sisters (Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg) who put their sibling rivalry on hold when a fast- approaching rogue planet threatens to collide with Earth. Cast includes Kiefer Sutherland, Charlotte Rampling, John Hurt and Stellan Skarsgard.

Second Chance: The Martha Marie Preston Story (BOOK REVIEW)

Second Chance: The Martha Marie Preston Story
by Martha Marie Preston
Quintrell Public Relations
Paperback, $15.95
144 pages
ISBN: 978-0-615504292

Book Review by Kam Williams

“I had finally run out of options… There I was. Locked in a tiny jail cell, staring into space and wondering how my life had come to this: A forty-year sentence for a drug crime.
Not long ago, I was a respected, churchgoing, pillar of the community, contributing to the less fortunate and living a life of luxury. It never dawned on me that the double life I was leading—upstanding citizen, by day, and drug conspirator, by night—would come to such an abrupt, disastrous end.
And yet it had… My future seemed bleak... But that’s not where my story ended. It’s actually where my life began… This book is about a second chance.”
-Excerpted from the Introduction (pg. iv)

Martha Marie Preston was born in an eastern section of Houston, Texas known as Royal Terrace on April 9, 1949, the 7th of 12 children. She was raised by her divorced-dad from the age of 8 on, after her mother, without explanation, decided to abandon the family.
In the absence of a maternal figure, Martha turned into a rough-and-tumble tomboy, due to being teased mercilessly about her hair (“Ragmop!”) and skin color (“Midnight!”) by kids in the neighborhood. Preferring to hang out with the boys, she walked around topless until the age of 11 when her breasts began developing.
At 14, Martha lost her virginity to a friend of one of her older brothers, and she ended up pregnant fairly soon thereafter. And she was both married and divorced by 17, as growing up fast was par for the course in her neck of the woods.
Martha opened a diner and then a nightclub to provide for herself and her daughter, Cheryl, and quickly discovered that she had a knack for business. Regrettably, she also allowed selling cocaine to become part of the operation, a decision she would come to regret when it eventually led to her downfall despite making millions of dollars and owning a Rolls Royce, a suburban mansion and other trappings of success.
Convicted by a jury of her peers and sent up the river in 1998, Martha became suicidal and bottomed-out behind bars before being Born Again and rededicating her life to Jesus Christ. Ultimately, through faith and the power of prayer, she was granted parole well before the completion of her 40-year sentence.
This cautionary tale about a fall from grace and ultimate redemption unfolds blow-by-blow style in Second Chance: The Martha Marie Preston Story. The warts and all memoir is a real page-turner you’ll probably read in one sitting, given the author’s heartbreaking honesty while reflecting about the pitfalls of living life in the fast lane.
As gritty and as forthcoming an autobiography as you’re ever apt to encounter.

Kal Penn: The “A Very Harold & Kumar 3-D Christmas” Interview

with Kam Williams

Headline: From Hollywood to the White House and Back to the Big Screen

Born Kalpen Suresh Modi in Montclair, New Jersey on April 23, 1977, Kal Penn graduated from the Freehold Regional High School District's Performing Arts High School, attended the Governor's School for the Arts, and received a degree from the prestigious School of Theater, Film and Television at UCLA. He recently returned to acting after a two-year sabbatical during which he served as an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement.
During his tenure with the Obama Administration, Kal served in a variety of roles, including that of the President’s Liaison to the Arts Communities, Young Americans, and Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders. He has been an Adjunct Professor of Cinema, Sociology and Asian American Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, too, and is currently pursuing a Graduate Certificate in International Security at Stanford University.
Kal is currently reprising the role of Kumar he made popular in "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle" and its follow-up "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay." His other notable feature film credits include Mira Nair's film "The Namesake," based on the best-selling novel by Pulitzer Prize-winner Jhumpa Lahiri; "Van Wilder" and its sequel, "The Rise of Taj"; "A Lot Like Love" and "Superman Returns."
In terms of TV, Penn is widely recognized for his role as Dr. Lawrence Kutner on the critically-acclaimed series "House," although he also appeared regularly on season six of "24" and guest-starred on the hit series "Law & Order: SVU." And earlier this year he joined the cast of "How I Met Your Mother” as a therapist-turned-boyfriend.
Here, he talks both about acting and about taking a break from his career to work for President Obama.

Kam Williams: Hi Kal, thanks so much for the time.
Kal Penn: Of course, Kam. How’re you doing?

KW: Fine, thanks. Since I’m from Princeton, I was wondering whether you still have any connections to New Jersey.
KP: Oh, are you really? Yes I do. My folks are in Jersey. And I have a lot of friends and other family there. So, I try to visit as much as possible.

KW: I‘d like to get right to readers’ questions, because I have a lot of ground to cover, between your acting career and your work in the Obama Administration. Kristopher Seals asks: What do you enjoy most about making a “Harold & Kumar" movie, and are you ever confused by fans with your iconic character, Kumar?
KP: [Laughs] Sometimes, I am confused with him. It sort of depends on who is approaching me. I would really say my favorite thing about making another “Harold & Kumar” is coming back and working with old friends again: John Cho… Neil Patrick Harris… and Jon [Hurwitz] and Hayden [Schlossberg], the guys who wrote all three films.

KW: Lisa Loving says: There is undeniably a subtle thread of politics running through "Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo," one of my favorite movies of all time. How have your politics impacted your acting career?
KP: Hopefully, they haven’t at all. I like to keep them very separate. In fact, I would disagree with Lisa in that I don’t think Guantanamo Bay was political at all. At least that wasn’t the intention. The aim was just to make people laugh, Democrats, Republicans, and everyone in between. We just hope everybody has a good time.

KW: Judyth Piazza would like to know: What is the most important lesson you learned from working in the White House?
KP: Patience.

KW: Yale grad Tommy Russell asks: How much freedom did you have to implement your own ideas while working in the Obama Administration?
KP: The point of serving your country is not to do your own thing or to go rogue, but to work as part of the process. Having a chance to work on President Obama’s agenda was really remarkable, especially when it came to things like access to education, increasing Pell Grants and bringing folks home from Iraq. Those were the sort of things I was working on, and I was very happy to contribute in that way.

KW: Tommy has a follow-up: What would be your dream role?
KP: Oh, wow! My dream role? In many ways, I feel like having the opportunity to play Gogol in “The Namesake” really was my dream role in many ways.

KW: Mirah Riben asks: Have you seen The Ides of March, and if so, how close was the movie to your experience working on the 2008 presidential campaign?
KP: Sorry, I haven’t seen it yet.

KW: Mirah also asks: Has President Obama measured up to your expectations and hopes for the country?
KP: He has exceeded my expectations.

KW: How so?
KP: The media are mostly interested in generating ad revenue, so they focus on the more divisive and more titillating stories. But the reality is that, behind the scenes, I’ve watched the President fight day-in and day-out for the things that matter to most folks, like jobs, education reform, the needs of returning war veterans, investment capital for entrepreneurs, support for Historically-Black Colleges and Universities, etcetera. That’s been my experience. He’s had some huge successes with much of that agenda, but it’s rarely, if ever, mentioned in the mainstream news. So, I’m actually very proud of the work that he’s done so far, and I believe that he’s going to achieve a lot more, if we elect him to a second term.

KW: What do you think about Occupy Wall Street?
KP: I feel that the sentiment is something that many of us agree with, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the “asks” are from the good folks that are down there.

KW: Wesley Derbyshire was wondering whether you now see any parallels between acting and politics?
KP: [Chuckles] Not really.

KW: Legist/Editor Patricia Turnier asks: Which do you find more challenging: acting or politics?
KP: They’re totally different. You can’t really compare the two. Each is challenging in its own way.

KW: Patricia also wants to know, whether you’d accept an offer to play the lead role of Jawaharlal Nehru in a movie?
KP: I guess it depends on the movie.

KW: Teresa Emerson says: Do you see yourself ever running for political office someday?
KP: I don’t have any plans to run for office. What I love about L.A. and Washington, D.C. is that they’re almost the opposite of each other. L.A. is a very creative space while D.C. is a very cerebral space. So, they’re the ying and the yang in my world. I like them both for their own reasons.

KW: Harriet Pakula Teweles asks: How did acting prepare you for working in the Obama Administration and how did that prepare you to return to acting? In other words, how different is representing and presenting?
KP: The two are completely different. What prepared me for working in the White House were my graduate program in International Security and my time spent teaching at the University of Pennsylvania. They didn’t have much to do with acting, per se.

KW: Documentary film director Kevin Williams asks: How do you think your tenure in the Obama Administration will affect your acting career?
KP: [Laughs] No, again I think they’re totally separate.

KW: Kevin also asks: Why do you think the Harold & Kumar franchise has been so successful?
KP: Because of the fans. I think everyone loves to laugh. The characters are good-natured and have a positive outlook on life. So much comedy nowadays is cynical and based on cutting other people down. What I love about the “Harold & Kumar” movies is that they are more about raising people up. I think the audience appreciates that.

KW: Larry Greenberg says: I was devastated when you died on House. Now that you're back to life, is there any chance I'll get to see you in a zombie film?
KP: [LOL] That sounds like a lot of fun, Larry.

KW: Aleesha Houston asks: When was the last time you treated yourself to a day off just to pamper yourself?
KP: I don’t really do that. When I’m able to take a day off, I’ll spend it with friends and family, or maybe hiking or something like that.

KW: Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone would?
KP: No. [Laughs]

KW: The Teri Emerson question: When was the last time you had a good laugh?
KP: This morning with John Cho. He’s a hilarious guy who always makes me laugh.

KW: What is your guiltiest pleasure?
KP: Oh man, the TV show “Jerseylicious.”

KW: The bookworm Troy Johnson question: What was the last book you read?
KP: “The Heart and the Fist” by Eric Greitens.


KW: The music maven Heather Covington question: What was the last song you listened to?
KP: “Galaxies” by Owl City.


KW: What is your favorite dish to cook?
KP: Grapefruit salad.

KW: Do you eat White Castle hamburgers?
KP: No.

KW: The Sanaa Lathan question: What excites you?
KP: What doesn’t! [Laughs]

KW: Dante Lee, author of "Black Business Secrets, asks: “What was the best business decision you ever made?"
KP: I don’t know.

KW: When you look in the mirror, what do you see?
KP: Myself.

KW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?
KP: World peace.

KW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is your earliest childhood memory?
KP: Christmas.

KW: The Melissa Harris-Perry question How did your first big heartbreak impact who you are as a person?
KP: I don’t really know.

KW: The Judyth Piazza questions: How do you define success?
KP: By happiness, not by what other people say.

KW: What advice do you have for anyone who wants to follow in your footsteps?
KP: Don’t follow in anyone’s footsteps. Definitely create your own. Hopefully, that’s how you define your happiness.

KW: The Tavis Smiley question: How do you want to be remembered?
KP: I want to be forgotten. [Laughs]

KW: Thanks again for the interview, Kal, and best of luck with both “Harold & Kumar” and with working with President Obama.
KP: Thank you very much, Kam, and good to talk to you.