August 2001 Volume 82 Number 8 "serving the protectors"
Edited by John Ballantyne

Enemy at the Gates

This lavish war epic is set during the famous 1943 Battle of Stalingrad, which marked the turning point of World War II.

Up until then, Hitler’s forces had managed with little effort to overrun Europe. At Stalingrad, Nazi Germany suffered its first major defeat at the hands of the Soviet Red Army.

The hero of this film is based loosely on the legendary young Russian sniper Vassily Zaitsev (Jude Law), who achieved almost mythical status during the war.

In this story, Soviet political officer and propagandist Danilov (Joseph Fiennes) discovers Vassily’s amazing talent as a sniper and builds him into a national hero. A painful love-triangle ensues when he becomes Vassily’s rival for the affections of a young Russian woman soldier, Tania (Rachel Weisz).

Also featured in the film is Bob Hoskins as Nikita Khrushchev, who as top political commissar at Stalingrad was made responsible for defending the city at any cost. (After the war he went on to succeed Joseph Stalin as Soviet dictator).

The cost in terms of human lives of defending Stalingrad was exceptional. Over a million Soviet troops - many of them unarmed and inadequately trained - were ordered to throw themselves in suicidal attacks against the German positions. If they hesitated or tried to flee, they risked being shot by Russian security forces blocking their retreat. Thousands were executed for supposed desertion or treason.

However - fortunately for the Allies - the Battle of Stalingrad resulted in Germany suffering her most catastrophic defeat ever. Two of her entire armies - the Sixth and Fourth Panzer - were practically obliterated. This led eventually to Germany’s defeat by the Allies and her unconditional surrender.

Mullet

In this recent Australian production, Eddie (Ben Mendelsohn) returns to his coastal NSW home-town after a three-year absence and deals with love, loneliness and tangled family ties.

Excellently scripted and directed by David Caesar, this feature has been acclaimed as one of Australia’s best films so far this year.

Dr Dolittle 2

Eddie Murphy stars as the doctor who can talk to animals in this uninspired sequel to the blockbuster 1998 comedy.

Like its predecessor, the film’s story-line owes little to Hugh Lofting’s character of the English village vet. There are a few good belly-laughs and clever special effects, but overall the film sags.

One US reviewer has asked: “Have scriptwriters become so lazy that they can’t think of anything funnier than a bear sitting down on a toilet to take a dump?”

Shrek

This charming animated film, about an ogre who rescues a princess, uses a good mixture of humour and realistic special effects.

Voices include Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz.

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider

Video game character Lara Croft is brought to life in this non-stop action film. Angelina Jolie is excellent in the starring role. But the story is somewhat lacking and is certainly not up to Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Down To Earth

A young black comedian accidentally dies before his time in a bus accident. With no room for him in Heaven, he’s sent back to Earth in another person’s body (a rich older white man) whose wife and mistress want to kill him.

This is a traditional Hollywood story-plot along the lines of Here Comes Mr Jordan and Heaven Can Wait.

Stars Chris Rock and Regina King.

Invisible Circus

The year is 1977. A San Francisco teenager, Phoebe O’Connor (Jordana Brewster), has just left high school but is discontented with life.

She is haunted by the memory of her sister Faith (Cameron Diaz) who took her own life in Portugal only six years earlier.

Faith was a popular and beautiful young woman, and her death is a mystery to all who her knew her.

Against the wishes of her mother (Blythe Danner), Phoebe travels to Europe to follow Faith’s path and discover what might have happened to her.

In Paris, she meets Faith’s ex-boyfriend, Wolf (Christopher Ecclestone), who reveals that Faith was part of a radical group in Berlin and participated in a string of bank robberies, but was then dumped by the group.

The Pledge

Gus Holmgren is about to retire as chief of police in a small town in the American mid-west. A little girl has been found brutally murdered near the town. He makes a solemn oath to her mother that he will catch the killer.

Stars Jack Nicholson and Sean Penn.

Evolution

This amusing science fiction spoof has its moments, but it somehow fails to exploit the comic potential of its material.

Stars David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Seann William Scott and Julianne Moore.

Driven

Set in the world of car racing, this story is about a young driver given guidance by a retired driver. It has some fine racing sequences (and also, inevitably, quite a lot of product placement). But, lacking either a strong plot or main character to hold it all together, it lacks a certain amount of suspense.

Stars Sylvester Stallone and Burt Reynolds. Directed by Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2, Deep Blue Sea).

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