Movies
The
Mask of Zorro
(TriStar Pictures). The latest version of the
swashbuckling legend makes critics wax nostalgic for the era "when boyish
adventure films still had their innocence" (Janet Maslin, the New York
Times ). This time an aging Zorro (Anthony Hopkins) passes the mask to
Antonio Banderas. Unlike campier predecessors, this movie about the Mexican
Robin Hood is said to offer impeccable stunts and a genuinely witty screenplay.
But the Village Voice 's Michael Atkinson calls the acting "generally
lifeless, [with the] contrived feel of a Thanksgiving Day parade." (Here's the
official Zorro site.)
Saving Private Ryan
(DreamWorks SKG). The hype commences, with
critics pronouncing Steven Spielberg's World War II epic "a movie of staggering
virtuosity" (Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly ). Reviews dwell on
the gory 25 minute opening battle scene, emblematic of Spielberg's new
obsession with verisimilitude: "[O]ne of the greatest, most appalling things
ever done in movies" (David Denby, New York ). Applause also goes to
Spielberg for bucking war movie typecasting with Everyman Tom Hanks and such
unmacho hunks as Matt Damon and Edward Burns. Only Variety 's Todd
McCarthy notes that the premise--the Army expends ridiculous resources on a
dubious rescue mission--is "far-fetched." (Join an online chat about Saving Private Ryan .)
There's Something About Mary
(20 th Century Fox). The
Farrelly brothers' latest slapstick is said to hark back to the screwball
romances of the 1940s: The Dumb & Dumber directors temper their
repulsive humor--which includes gags about a mangled penis and the mentally
retarded--with a touching love story. The plot: A sleazy private eye (Matt
Dillon) falls for the woman (Cameron Diaz) he's paid to track down by a nerdy
writer (Ben Stiller). Most critics agree with
Slate
's David Edelstein
that the Farrellys' "tenderness [and] joy in all things scatological, rendered
outrage spurious." Others are disgusted by the "sophomoric frat-house jokes"
(Rex Reed, the New York Observer ). (See the official site.)
Music
Hello Nasty
, by the Beastie Boys (Grand Royal/Capitol). The
wise-ass rappers' first album in four years is taken as evidence of a new
sophistication. Entertainment Weekly 's David Browne calls the album "a
sonic smorgasbord in which the Beasties gorge themselves with reckless
abandon," sampling everything from Stravinsky to Tito Puente. Critics also like
their combination of high-minded lyrics about Tibet and the environment with
highbrow inanities about Postimpressionist painters. (Critics favorite line:
"I'm the king of Boggle, there is none higher/ I get 11 points off the word
'quagmire.' ") (Check out the Hello Nasty chat site.)
Book
Lucky Bastard
, by Charles McCarry (Random House). An ex-CIA
agent's thriller about a skirt-chasing spy's ascent to the presidency is deemed
"Primary Colors written with imagination" (Christopher Lehmann-Haupt,
the New York Times ). Although critics praise McCarry's entertaining
prose and quirky characters, they focus more on the similarities between the
sexaholic protagonist and Bill Clinton. None other than Dick Morris complains
in the Weekly Standard that the book "becomes a porn novel," with its
heavy focus on presidential sex. (See what the publisher has to say about
Lucky Bastard.)
Theater
Twelfth Night
(Vivian Beaumont Theater, New York City). Mixed
reviews for Oscar winner Helen Hunt's turn as a Shakespearean: Is she
delightfully down-to-earth or simply banal? The London Guardian 's Joanna
Coles says her presence is "so obvious a gimmick to draw in those who don't
normally bother to see the Bard that it's almost insulting." Unanimous praise
goes to The
Madness of King George director Nicholas Hytner's
staging of the gender bender, which breaks with the recent trend of
interjecting gay subtext into the play. The consensus: Twelfth Night is
"the greatest of Shakespeare's romantic comedies" (Ben Brantley, the New
York Times ).
Television
Drudge
(Fox News Channel; Saturdays, 9 p.m. ET/PT). Internet
gossip Matt Drudge milks his newfangled celebrity, debuting a half-hour
political chat show. Most critics use the occasion as another opportunity to
bash him for his "blatant bias and outrageous exaggerations" (Robert Bianco,
USA Today ). Others regret that Drudge is less than telegenic and fails
to deliver the dish his promos promised. Still others, such as Entertainment
Weekly 's Ken Tucker, predict the unpredictable Drudge, a "refreshingly
snarky news anchor," will shake up political television. Here's the Drudge Report, which
spawned the TV show. And here are Chatterbox 's musings on Drudge.
Recent
"Summary Judgment" columns
July
15
Tina! --The Tina Brown
Years;
Art --"Unknown Terrain:
The Landscapes of Andrew Wyeth";
Movie -- Small
Soldiers ;
Movie -- Lethal
Weapon 4 ;
Movie -- Buffalo
66 ;
Music -- Embrya ,
by Maxwell;
Music -- Car Wheels on a Gravel Road , by Lucinda Williams.
July
8:
Movie -- Armaggedon ;
Movie -- Henry
Fool ;
Death --Roy Rogers;
Book -- Explaining
Hitler: The Search for the Origins of His Evil , by Ron Rosenbaum;
Book -- Someone
Else's House: America's Unfinished Struggle for Integration , by Tamar
Jacoby;
Book -- Bridget
Jones's Diary , by Helen Fielding;
Performance Art -- The Return of the Chocolate Smeared Woman , Karen
Finley.
July
1:
Movie -- Out of
Sight ;
Movie -- Smoke
Signals ;
Movie -- Dr.
Dolittle ;
Movie -- Gone With
the Wind ;
Art --"Bonnard";
Book -- Suits Me: The
Double Life of Billy Tipton , by Dianne Wood Middlebrook;
Book -- The Notebooks of Don Rigoberto , by Mario Vargas Llosa,
translated by Edith Grossman.
June
24:
Movie -- The X
Files ;
Movie --100 Years, 100
Movies (AFI);
Movie -- Mulan ;
Art --"Charles
Ray";
Book -- Walking With
the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement , by John Lewis, with Michael D'Orso;
Book -- Ship of Gold:
In the Deep Blue Sea , by Gary Kinder;
Book -- A Beautiful
Mind , by Sylvia Nasar.
--Eliza
Truitt
