Janeane from Des Moines
Film Review by Kam Williams
Iowa Housewife Weighs Options in Presidential Race Docudrama
How do you get the Republicans vying for the presidential nomination to appear in a movie which might not show them in the most flattering light? You might have a nondescript, middle-aged actress pose as a Tea Party conservative during the lead up to the Iowa caucus, a time when the candidates generally make themselves available to valuable voters.
That was the inspired idea of filmmaker Grace Lee, who followed around Janeane Wilson (Jane Edith Wilson) with a camera at the State Fair where it was relatively easy to approach the likes of Michelle Bachmann, Mitt Romney, Herman Cain, New Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Ron Paul. Pretending to be unemployed, uninsured, suffering from breast cancer and in danger of losing her home, the desperate protagonist sobbed while asking each of the Republican hopefuls how they planned to help someone like her.
The upshot is a gotcha docudrama that's a cross of Borat and Michael Moore which captures some of the candidates as plastic, some as somewhat sympathetic. The only problem with Janeane from Des Moines is that it feels a bit dated, as it is arriving in theaters a little late since, at this point, we really care more about Romney's responses than any of the also-rans.
Although his callous "Corporations are people" comment is included here, he proves to be about as patient as one might expect of a polished politician with bigger fish to catch. And even though he knows how to escape the clutches of a very clingy constituent, you come away feeling he's actually acting just as much as Janeane, who becomes disenchanted with the whole lot by film's end.
The futile search for a presidential candidate who cares about the average person's everyday concerns, a quest leading frustrated Janeane to conclude that her only option is to pull the lever for Obama in November.
Very Good (3 stars)
Unrated
Running time: 78 minutes
Distributor: Wilsilu Pictures
To see a trailer for Janeane from Des Moines, visit
Vulgaria
Film Review by Kam Williams
Raunchy Sex Comedy Fails to Live Up to Its Billing
This movie opens with a parental warning giving folks ten seconds to leave the theater because what you're about to watch is wild, raunchy, irreverent and politically-incorrect. Yet nothing could be further from the truth. So much for truth in advertising!
Yes, Vulgaria does revolve around a prurient plotline, but the way in which it is executed is totally tame. In 25 words or less, this picture is about a down-on-his-luck film producer (Chapman To) who decides to try to pay off his debts by shooting a remake of a classic skin flick. And the cash-strapped Wai Cheung even offers an aging porn star (Shaw Yin Yin) the lead role in the project by promising to use special effects to place her head on the body of an attractive, young body double.
Unfortunately, Vulgaria proves to be a dialogue-driven tease which drags on and on with tons of titillating talk without ever getting around to displaying any of the eroticism contemplated by its kinky producer (Ronald Cheng) with a vivid imagination. To make matters worse, unless something gets lost in the translation from Chinese, all of this supposed sex comedy's lame attempts at humor also fall flat.
A transparent, bait-and-switch disappointment strictly for suckers.
Fair (1 star)
Unrated
In Cantonese with subtitles
Running time: 93 minutes
Distributor: China Lion Films
To see a trailer for Vulgaria, visit
Argo
Film Review by Kam Williams
Espionage Thriller Recounts Diplomats' Daring Escape from Iran
On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the walls of the U.S. Embassy in Teheran, taking 52 Americans hostage with hopes of exchanging them for the recently-deposed Shah. What ensued was a 444-day ordeal which would last long after the despised despot died in exile without standing trial.
While that drawn-out standoff continued to occupy the world's attention as front-page news, almost no one knew that a half-dozen Americans had managed to steal away unnoticed during the assault and taken refuge in the home of the Canadian Ambassador, Ken Taylor (Victor Garber). And the discovery of their whereabouts by the rabidly anti-Western, Khomeini regime would have undoubtedly triggered another international incident.
So, they surreptitiously contacted the CIA which assigned their rescue to Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck), an exfiltration specialist with a perfect record of freeing captives from such perilous predicaments. Agent Mendez proceeded to hatch an attention-grabbing scheme that was the antithesis of the sort of clandestine operation one might expect of a spy.
His high-profile plan involved creating a cover for the stranded diplomats by making a movie that was actually nothing more than a CIA front. First, he enlisted the assistance of a veteran Hollywood executive (Alan Arkin) and an Oscar-winner (John Goodman) sworn to secrecy, to lend an air of authenticity to the ruse by posing as the picture's producer and makeup artist, respectively.
Figuring, "If you want to spread a lie, get the press to sell it for you," they launched the project at an elaborate press conference attended by actors in gaudy costumes. The media fell for it hook, line and sinker, and soon Tinseltown was abuzz about Argo, an upcoming sci-fi set to be shot on location in Iran. Truth be told, Mendez would be the only person venturing on the dangerous mission to Teheran where the film's tone shifts from flip and lighthearted to stone cold sober. Upon arriving at the ambassador's house, the hero hands the six Americans newly-prepared passports with fresh identities as members of a Canadian film crew.
The tension rapidly ratchets-up in intensity as the ever-vigilant Iranian authorities close-in just as the diplomats make their escape to the airport where the slightest slip during an interrogation could mean the difference between life and death. An edge-of-your-seat thriller not to be forgotten at Oscar time!
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated R for profanity and violent images.
Running time: 120 minutes
Distributor: Warner Brothers
To see a trailer for Argo, visit
Here Comes the Boom
Film Review by Kam Williams
Teacher Moonlights as MMA Prizefighter to Save School's Music Program
Scott Voss (Kevin James) is a bored biology teacher at mythical Wilkinson High in Massachusetts, a cash-strapped school suffering from low morale. The apathetic slacker is part of the problem, as he sets a horrible example for his students, between stealing candy from vending machines and always arriving late for class.
During recess, the bored, 42 year-old bachelor makes a habit of flirting with the beautiful school nurse, Bella (Salma Hayek). However, she just as routinely rebuffs his advances with gentle reminders of how often she's rejected each of his requests for a date.
The plot thickens the day Principal Betcher (Gregg German) assembles the faculty in the auditorium to announce his latest budgetary cutbacks. Those money-saving measures not only include plans to eliminate afterschool activities like the debate club and field trips but even the entire music program.
That means Scott's colleague Marty Streb (Henry Winkler) will be callously laid-off right before earning tenure. And to add insult to injury, the dedicated music teacher's firing comes at a time when his wife (Nikki Tyler-Flynn) is pregnant.
This dire state of affairs inspires Scott to prevail upon the principal to preserve his pal's position. But Betcher says he simply doesn't have the $48,000 to pay Marty.
Therefore, Scott, who hasn't wrestled competitively since college, decides to raise the cash by moonlighting in the ring as a Mixed Martial Arts fighter. With the help of Marty and a retired kickboxing champ (Bas Rutten), he proceeds to whip himself into the best shape a middle-aged couch potato might hope for.
So unfolds Here Comes the Boom, a sweet-natured, overcoming-the-odds sports saga combining familiar elements of Rocky (1976) and Nacho Libre (2006). Directed by Frank Coraci (The Waterboy), the star vehicle showcases Kevin James' comic genius at his best, whether he's doing pratfalls in a mask and ill-fitting stretchy pants or futilely wooing the woman of his dreams.
The paint-by-numbers plot inexorably builds to a UFC-sanctioned showdown between Scott and an intimidating adversary (Krzysztof Soszynski) for a purse conveniently matching Marty's salary. Wouldn't it be nice if Wilkinson's student body and school band were on hand in the Vegas arena to cheer for their altruistic teach, and better yet if Bella had a change of heart and also arrived ringside for a kiss at the moment of truth?
Here Comes the Boom? How about, here comes a pat Hollywood tale of redemption where a perennial loser transforms himself into a beloved hero who wins the cage match, saves his best friend's job, and gets the gorgeous girl!
Very Good (3 stars)
Rated PG for sports violence, crude humor and mild epithets.
Running time: 105 minutes
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
To see a trailer for Here Comes the Boom, visit
Prometheus
DVD Review by Kam Williams
Archaeologists Encounter Alien Life Forms in Outer Space Horror Flick
Dateline: Scotland, 2089. While spelunking along the shores of the Isle of Skye, archaeologists Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) and Dr. Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) discover an ancient painting etched into the ceiling of an abandoned cave. The uncanny researchers immediately discern that the primitive picture is an invitation from aliens to visit a moon located in a remote constellation that might very well have been the birthplace of humanity.
Fast-forward a few years and we find the curious couple already en route to LV-233 on a daring expedition to find proof that people were created not by God but genetically engineered by sentient beings from another galaxy. It is unclear how unearthing such evidence will affect the faith of Dr. Shaw, a devout Christian who always wears a cross that was a gift from her late father (Patrick Shaw).
As the spaceship Prometheus approaches its destination, Captain Janek (Idris Elba) and his crew of sixteen are roused from a cryogenic state of hibernation by a doting, concrete blond android named David (Michael Fassbender). Upon landing, however, command of the operation is assumed by Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron), a coldhearted, corporate executive employed by Weyland Corporation whose late CEO (Guy Pearce) underwrote the trillion-dollar mission.
The trip is just a job to the jaded Vickers who is skeptical about what she refers to as "the scribbling of dirty little savages in caves." In fact, she orders the disembarking explorers to refrain from making any direct contact with aliens.
Of course, contact with alien life forms is precisely the point of Prometheus, a high body-count, horror flick directed by three-time, Oscar-nominee Ridley Scott (for Gladiator, Black Hawk Down and Thelma & Louise). At this juncture, the picture proceeds to divide its time between raising probing philosophical questions about the intersection of science, religion and ethics, and gratuitous graphic depictions of body invasion, mutation, and gruesome vivisection.
Although initially conceived as a prequel to Alien (1979), also directed by Scott, the movie was ultimately released as a stand alone adventure. Regardless, this riveting, visually-captivating and thought-provoking sci-fi is well-enough executed to recommend for avid sci-fi fans, even if the heavy-handed, faith-based symbolism ("Where's my cross?" and "After all this, you still believe!") gets to be a bit much.
A thinly-veiled intro to the Alien franchise revising that classic's tagline to suggest: In space, no one can hear you scream, except perhaps God.
Very Good (3 Stars)
Rated R for intense violence and brief profanity.
Running time: 124 minutes
Distributor: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
DVD Extras: Deleted scenes and more.
To see a trailer for Prometheus, visit