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T
CHARLIZE THERON
 THE
BRAZILIAN JOB: Mark
Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Jason Statham, Seth Green, Mos Def (Directed
by F. Gary Gray; Written by David Twohy; Paramount)
Wahlberg, Theron, Statham, Green
and Def--the slick, stylish quintet of thieves who thrilled us with
their bravado in 2003’s “The Italian Job”--are
set to thrill us again, this time by pulling a red-hot heist in
Rio de Janeiro. All they need is a director who can whip up the
smart combination of humor, action and sexiness that made crime
pay the last time around. And presumably that’s what they’ve
got, since this sequel is being masterminded by F. Gary Gray, the
man in charge of the original caper. Actually, the “original”
was a remake of 1969’s “Italian Job,” directed
by Peter Collinson and starring Michael Caine, Noel Coward, Raf
Vallone, Rossano Brazzi and Margaret Blye. And that was good criminal
fun, too. Opening date to be announced
EMMA THOMPSON
 BRIDESHEAD
REVISITED: Matthew Goode, Hayley
Atwell, Ben Whishaw, Emma Thompson, Michael Gambon (Directed by
Julian Jarrold; Written by Jeremy Brock and Andrew Davies; Miramax)
This is as good a time as any
to revisit Captain Charles Ryder, the stylishly disenchanted protagonist
of Evelyn Waugh’s 1946 classic seriocomic novel. Toward the
end of World War II, Ryder (played by Jeremy Irons in a memorable
1981 British TV miniseries and now played by Matthew Goode) is stationed
at Brideshead, a sprawling castle that was once home to the Flytes,
an aristocratic Catholic--and exceedingly sinful--family. Ryder’s
wartime assignment stirs memories of a long-ago time spent with
the mad, mad residents of the castle, including Lord and Lady Marchmain
(Michael Gambon and Emma Thompson) and particularly siblings Sebastian
and Julia (Ben Whishaw and Hayley Atwell), one an eccentric who
became Ryder’s good drinking buddy and the other a beautiful,
married neurotic who became his illicit lover. Ryder, by the way,
never felt guilty about cheating on his own wife, since he knew
that she was caught up in her own little world of sexual deceit.
Now Playing
JOHN TRAVOLTA
 THE
TAKING OF PELHAM 123: Denzel
Washington, John Travolta, James Gandolfini, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Alex
Kaluzhsky (Directed by Tony Scott; Written by David Koepp; Columbia)
One of the most entertaining and terrifying
thrillers of 1974 was Joseph Sargent’s “The Taking of
Pelham 123,” which was adapted by Peter Stone from John Godey’s
novel. Here’s how New York Times critic Nora Sayre described
the story line in her rave review: “Four highly efficient
hoods hijack an IRT subway car and hold eighteen people hostage
for a million dollars; if the city doesn't pay within an hour, one
hostage will be shot a minute. The Transit Authority, the Police
Department, the Mayor and his colleagues all go into frenzied but
coordinated action, while the film cuts most expertly between the
stalled car and its passengers, the T.A. Command Center, Gracie
Mansion, and the city streets.” With director Tony Scott and
screenwriter David Koepp in charge, we will once again be hurried
along on a harrowing trip through the jangly streets and dark tunnels
of the Big Apple. Denzel Washington will try on the role of the
cool transit cop played by Walter Matthau in the original, John
Travolta inherits Robert Shaw’s role of a sadistic hijacker,
and James Gandolfini--on leave from Jersey--is the panicky Mayor
of New York. Opens 6/12/09
FOR GUY FLATLEY'S 1976 INTERVIEW
WITH JOHN TRAVOLTA, click
here.
FOR A COMPLETE ALPHABETICAL LISTING OF STAR
TURNS, CLICK HERE.
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