Disturbia

FLICK A mildly successful thriller, Disturbia presents what would otherwise be a creepy Peeping Tom and positions him as the hero of the ‘hood. When we first see Kale (Shia LeBeouf) he is on a fishing trip with his father, in the big, beautiful openness of nature. Their bonding is literally turned on its head when the car Kale is driving flips over, leaving him the lone survivor of the accident. A year after the death of his father, Kale is clearly distraught. Sentenced to house arrest for popping a teacher in the head, he must wear an ankle bracelet that limits him to 100 feet from the house. Kale’s working mother (Carrie-Anne Moss) attempts to make the uninspired teen productive by taking away his Xbox and iPod privileges. Ever resourceful, Kale finds solace in voyeuristic activity by keeping binoculars handy and watching the comings and goings of people in the block. His favorite activity, ogling at sexy Ashley (Sarah Roemer), is disrupted as he’s tormented by the neighborhood kids (they love their flaming poo bags) and thinks he’s stumbled upon a possible serial killer in their midst. But are his suspicions real or just imagined? The title serves to represent not only Kale’s changing state of mind but also what lies underneath the suburban landscape where he lives.
LeBeouf is very likeable and his confident performance easily carries the movie. The attempts of director D.J. Caruso to pay homage to Hitchcock’s Rear Window lacks the suspenseful subtleties of that classic and, though making good use of camera phones, gets lost when updating the material to accommodate the teen target audience. The set-up is solid but there are no surprises as it eventually dissolves into predictaburia. My Score: 6.5 out of 10.

Paris Je T’Aime

FLICK If you like attending shorts programs at film festivals, or have a little ADD, Paris Je T’Aime is sure to satisfy. The charming melange consists of 18 films by 20 internationally known filmmakers, which are approximately five minutes long and each set in a different area of the City of Light. The films in this mosaic appear unconnected but they actually create a portrait of a city with many perspectives. The shorts contain a variety of tones, with some having universal themes and others distinctly French, such as The Triplets of Belleville animator Sylvain Chomet’s live-action romance with two mimes.
There is a potpourri of well-known names turning in stellar performances, like American actors Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gena Rowlands Elijah Wood and Willem Dafoe, and French actors Fanny Ardant, Gaspard Ulliel and Juliette Binoche. Directors are as varied too, like Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven, and, pulling double duty, actor Gérard Depardieu. Some films are more successful than others like the Coen brother’s comedy featuring Steve Buscemi as an unlucky tourist waiting for a train in a Paris Metro station. Alexander Payne presents Margo Martindale (currently seen in FX’s "The Riches") as a Denver letter carrier narrating the experiences of her life-altering vacation in French with a typically American accent. Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run) uses tricky speed photography to convey the mistaken romantic outcome of a blind student (Melchior Beslon) and his girlfriend (Natalie Portman). Craven sets Rufus Sewell and Emily Mortimer in a cemetery with the ghost of Oscar Wilde. And Gurinder Chadha comments on perception as a teen boy looks beyond religious and racial stereotyping. There are also scenes depicting a divorced couple, a drug deal and vampires. One dud was Alfonso Cuarón’s baffling story featuring Ludivine Sagnier and an almost unintelligible Nick Nolte. Overall, the film is charming and creates enough emotional highs to say Paris, I love you! My Score: 8.5 out of 10.

ROMAIN DURIS

FLICK Do you enjoy watching good performances whether the film is great, average or a stinker? If so, then check out the some of films highlighted here starring Romain Duris, an amazing, chameleon-like French actor with a growing resume of remarkable movies. Born on May 28, 1974, Duris wasn’t looking for fame when a casting director noticed him standing in front of a Paris high school.
I was first introduced to him in the internationally popular romantic-comedy from 2002, L’auberge espagnole (The Spanish Apartment). Here he plays French student Xavier who moves to Barcelona to study economics and shares an apartment with six other students, all from different countries. In the light-hearted sequel Russian Dolls, Xavier is following his dream to become a writer. Duris pulls off the typically difficult role appearing as an apparent womanizer but actually learning about, while searching for, love. In the end he realizes that like Russian (or nesting) dolls, you have to date them all until you find the last one.
Duris soars higher as Thomas in the accomplished The Beat That My Heart Skipped (see my review here at mariomoves), convincing us that he is an animalistic thug working for his father and equally sensitive to rediscover his interest in playing classical piano, as his mother did.
The closest he’s come to making an American film is the Merchant-Ivory film, Le Divorce, (co-starring another French actor to look for, Melvil Poupaud). With his hair most Medusa–like, even more wild and noodley than the New York Times magazine cover (posted on the left), Romain shows off his sex-appeal as Yves who is having an affair with Kate Hudson’s character, Isabel. In one scene he sings a snippet of the song "Money Makes the World Go ‘Round" from Cabaret and his playful style makes it easy to see him someday in the lead role of the MC in that musical.
I’m looking forward to catching up with another film from 2002, 17 Times Cécile Cassard. Director Christophe Honoré has assembled 17 short films to tell the story of Cécile, unable to deal with the death of her husband. Duris shows his versatility in a supporting role as Matthieu, a gay man who becomes romantically involved with Cécile.
Follow this link to watch a video from the film, titled "Pretty Killer", as two share a sexy slow-dance with a third. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nTryJX7cn4&NR=1

The hair gets special treatment again as Romain plays the comedic playwright and actor in the upcoming summer release Molière. Check out the whimsical trailer: http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony/moliere/trailer/

Though his physical looks change in almost every film, it’s the subtleties he emotes as well as the twinkling eyes and infectious smile that combine to make Duris one of the most electrifying international actors working today.
Bon anniversaire, Romain!

Black Book

FLICK Paul Verhoeven, director of Basic Instinct and Total Recall, has taken the skills he honed in Hollywood back to his homeland, Holland, for the first time in 20 years to create a slick, fast-paced, and at times irreverent, WWII film. Based on true accounts, the story centers on Rachel (played with perpetual intensity by Carice von Houten), a Dutch Jew, once a popular singer now waiting for the war to end. When her safe-house is bombed, she is rescued by a young boy but must then go undercover, changing her name to Ellis de Vries and seeking revenge against the Germans in a harrowing non-stop series of narrow escapes and betrayals. Verhoeven doesn’t shy away from nudity, reminding us that he also directed Showgirls, by presenting Ellis as a hotsi-totsi Nazi performer. There is no time for character study as she must do anything to survive, including dying all regions of her hair blond in order to get closer to and deceive, among others, high-ranking officer Müntze (Sebastian Koch, who was equally engaging in The Lives of Others). Traditional good-guy/bad-guy clichés are annihilated here, but the sensational, over-blown sex and violence threaten to overtake any genuine emotions that could be conveyed. The framing device, initially showing Rachel teaching on a kibbutz, serves to remind us that there will be a sigh of relief after she meanders from one perilous moment to the next. But you might be breathless after witnessing the ambitious 145 minutes of unrelenting tension. My Score: 7 out of 10.

ONCE

FLICK Rock-musical is a label I heard someone use to describe the charmingly modern, romantic film Once. There is remarkable guitar playing, but it’s not hard rock music. There is singing but no one is bursting into song, and there are no choreographed dance numbers. What it does have are two actual singer-songwriters from Dublin playing characters named Guy and Girl, who meet and make beautiful music together – literally and figuratively. Guy (Glen Hansard, a member of the Irish group The Frames) sings and strums his guitar on the streets hoping to make a few bucks and get a big recording break while still repairing vacuum cleaners for his dad. Czech immigrant Girl (Markéta Irglová) sells flowers, plays piano and is instantly drawn to Guy. John Carney's slight script is balanced by his understated directing style, which perfectly complements the two leads as they develop an intimate friendship and become collaborators. Though they are each in the midst of other relationships, it is the interwoven, heartfelt songs that set the tone and reveal what is unsaid. That the actors are relatively unknown also lends realness to the overall simplicity. This modest indie film is quite the opposite of a traditional Hollywood musical – the antithesis of Dreamgirls or Rocky Horror Picture Show – which gives it originality, sincerity, and makes it so likeable. My Score: 8 out of 10


MUSIC
Live performances and videos of songs from Once can be found at FoxSearchlight http://www.foxsearchlight.com/once/


My favorite songs from the film:
“When Your Mind’s Made Up” http://content.foxsearchlight.com/videos/node/1845
“Falling Slowly” http://content.foxsearchlight.com/videos/node/1702

LOST – Through the Looking Glass

TELEVISION The writers and producers really delivered on this season finale with lots of action, resolutions and, of course, they can’t help but raise many more questions.

There were several things that should have tipped me off that we were watching Jack in scenes of the future. The first thing I noticed was his newer RAZR cell phone. What confused me were the references to Christian Shepherd, as if he were still alive. (Jack said: "Get my father down here. If I'm drunker than he is, you can fire me!") But if you notice the name of the funeral home, Hoffs/Drawlar is an anagram for Flash Forward. Also, the episode title refers not only to the hatch, and Charlie looking through the window at Mikail, but looking ahead to the future. Jack is a complete mess in the future: he is depressed for something that went down on the island, and as a result he’s willing to jump off a bridge, drinks too much and is dependant on pain killers. Apparently Oceanic has given the survivors a Golden Pass to fly anywhere, which Jack uses every Friday night not only as an escape but wishing he would crash and get back to the island – and not to mention the free drinks. His final words of the episode are: "We have to get back!" Jack is now perceived differently, having been referred to as a hero twice – once incorrectly for saving the woman on the bridge, and the other presumably for getting everyone off of the island. His realization that they should have stayed when confessing this to Kate parallels what Locke has been wanting all along. And who is Kate anxious to get back home to – a husband or perhaps a child?

It’s time to mourn Charlie, who did die a hero. He could have saved himself from drowning in the hatch, but then it would have meant that Claire and Aaron wouldn’t be saved. It’s funny how the writers used the tune to “Good Vibrations” as the code for the key pad, as well as referencing the underwater blast. Charlie’s last good deed was alerting Desmond that it was Not Penny’s Boat. I wondered how she magically happened to appear on that particular monitor at that particular moment. And that filthy one-eyed Mikhail better be dead this time!

Hurley was a hero too, driving that mini-van and running over an Other giving Sayid a chance to snap someone’s neck. Bernard wimped out when giving away the castaways' location, and lived up to his “I am a dentist, I am not Rambo” line to Rose. But Sawyer has no remorse when shooting the surrendering Tom, in the name of Walt. Sawyer has changed and become darker since killing Cooper, and now calls Kate, Kate, instead of Freckles.

Questions & Comments

• Both Locke and Jack have failed suicide attempts.
• Jack’s ex, Sarah, is pregnant. But why would she care enough to go to the hospital then refuse to take him home?
• I loved how Rousseau was always first in line to lead the castaways to the radio tower. It was touching but at the same time uncomfortable to see her meet Alex, and that Rousseau's first words were to ask her to help tie up Ben.
• How did each castaway get a backpack? Wouldn’t they have had luggage?
• Richard was to take people to the Temple. What Temple?
• Kate sees Juliet kiss Jack – on the lips!
• Greta and Bonnie were thought to be in Canada. Why Canada?
• If Penny doesn’t know Naomi, how does Naomi know who Penny is?
• Ben tells Jack that he's going to have all of the people on the island killed, and that Naomi is not who she says she is. She is a Bad Guy and a representative of people who want to find the island. That's very mysterious. She gets shot by Locke. (And Rousseau elbows Ben in the face!) Locke also tells Jack that he's not supposed to make the call. Jack speaks with someone on the radio. Who is on the boat?
• How far into the future was Jack’s flash forward?
  

Below are a few comments referring to the screen captures found at this site: http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/

• In one, Jack is sitting in his room with lots of maps. Is he trying hopelessly to get back to the island?
• Close-up of a portion of Jack’s ripped newspaper article shows it’s from Los Angeles and says that a man was found dead, seemingly in New York, with the first letter of the first name J. The second letter looks like either an “a” or an “o,” which could mean it’s likely to be John Locke or James Ford, but why would no one but Jack attend their viewing or funeral?

Here are the links to interviews with Michael Emerson and William Mapother from the morning before the episode aired:

Michael Emerson, AKA Ben http://www.prestonandsteve.com/audio/580.mp3

William Mapother, AKA Ethan http://www.prestonandsteve.com/audio/581.mp3

It’s going to be a long eight months before the next episode airs in February!

HEROES – How to Stop an Exploding Man, Chapter 23

TELEVISION The big explosion in the sky was not a bird or a plane, but was the effort of a newly elected politician saving the world – or at least New York City. It was very cool to see big brother Nathan show up in the nick of time to scoop up Peter, taking him into the sky to explode while also restoring faith in his brother that he can do the right thing. Though Peter should be able to regenerate and survive the blast, we don’t really know if Nathan died or escaped. And this was all done in spite of Mama Petrelli, who didn’t mind sacrificing one of her sons for the other’s political success.

Peter not only used Parkman’s hearing power for the first time but learned he could envision the past, courtesy of Simone’s wheelchair-bound father, Charles, who was vague about the extent of his powers. Peter must have inadvertently absorbed his power while caring for him. Charles points out that Peter will succeed because he has a good heart and loves unconditionally.

Claire used her heart and quick thinking when jumping out the window to escape Mama Petrelli. A nice moment when she ends up with her father, who we learn has the first name of Noah.

Niki walks in on Candice and thinks it’s Jessica. But Niki needed the broken pieces of the mirror to see it was not herself. After kicking Candice’s butt, Niki hugs Micah, again looks into the mirror and sees only one image of them. And how cute was it to see the Micah and Molly meet up, as the next generation of heroes!

Ando was trying to be a hero, when he goes to slice up Sylar, but Hiro had to become a real hero by saving his buddy and transporting him back home. My favorite line of the night was when Ando says to Hiro: “You are bad ass!”

When we first see Sylar, he is painting an image and controlling his visions in a way that Isaac could not. I regretted seeing Parkman get shot with his own bullets - stopped, then reversed toward him - by Sylar, but if Peter has Parkman’s power, do we need him anymore? Parkman looked as if he was still breathing when taken away in the ambulance, so he’ll probably still be around. Hiro shows up with his mighty sword and stabs Sylar, who propels Hiro backwards only to have Hiro teleport himself away while in mid-air! A bloody Sylar falls to the ground and appears dead. But in a final moment, like Keyser Soze disappearing into the scenery, he was gone! There were many possible-deaths in this episode, but nothing concrete.

As we end Volume 1 of our story, the ever-present cockroach climbs out of a manhole, and then Hiro is back in 1671 Japan!

"Official unofficial fan site" run by the show's creative team includes news, interviews, gallery and forum. http://www.9thwonders.com/

Kitchen Confidential

TELEVISION While many shows are now on a break for the summer, Kitchen Confidential is an appetizing treat to fill your TV hunger pangs. Based on the best-selling memoir by chef Anthony Bourdain, the sitcom centers on the recovering carouser Jack Bourdain delectably played by a bright blue-eyed Bradley Cooper. His character is renamed Jack, most likely because his antics are more frantic than the witty sarcasm of the author – and his looks are more savory, too. Attempting to leave his partying lifestyle behind, Jack is given a second chance to succeed as a head chef at Nolita, a New York restaurant owned by the palatable voice-of-reason, Frank Langella. The vibrant supporting cast, as the kitchen crew and wait staff, easily create a mélange of obstacles for Jack in a fast-paced service space, plus add enough laughs to decorate the scenery like the delicious pastries at dessert time. Jack’s proficiency as a chef is almost in direct correlation to the amount of sex he has, meaning it’s flavorsome and abundant. One of my favorite highlights on the disc’s menu is episode four, titled “French Fight,” featuring Cooper’s former Alias co-star Michael Vartan, serving up a comical performance as a rival French chef who battles Jack in a game of one-upmanship after stealing an original recipe and offering it at his café. Only four of the 13 ordered-episodes aired before Fox 86d it. Since each episode runs approximately 22 minutes, watching the full-season on DVD is like ordering tapas – a variety of small bites to tickle the taste buds.

Jindabyne

FLICK Jindabyne is a small rural town in Australia, relocated after it was drowned by the rising waters of the Snowy River. This dismal location sets the tone for the compelling film based on the Raymond Carver short story "So Much Water So Close to Home." (This also served as the basis for one of the stories in Robert Altman’s film Short Cuts.) In the opening scene, an Aboriginal woman is stopped in her car on a lonely road by one of the local men. The next time we see her, her corpse is found floating face down in a secluded river by four working-class men on a fishing trip. Instead of immediately reporting it to the police, they tie her leg to a tree so she won’t float away, and wait until their weekend trip is over before revealing their discovery. Since we basically know how the crime was committed, this situation sets up moral issues raised not only by the community but by Claire, (the intensely engaging Laura Linney) a woman in a strained relationship with her husband, Stewart (Gabriel Byrne), who is also one of the fishermen. When she learns of the men’s decision, questions arise as to whether they would have behaved differently had the dead woman been white, or a man instead of a woman. The themes of race, gender and culture are exposed as Claire (meaning sees clearly?) attempts to make amends with the community while trying to make her friends see how the community views them. Linney’s heartfelt yet gripping performance stands out as a woman trying to stay afloat despite the tension rising around her. The understated pacing and cinematography presented by director Ray Lawrence (Lantana) is meant to ensure attention will be paid to what seemingly starts out as a thriller but ends as a meditation on relationships, social values and consequences. Screened at the 2007 Philadelphia Film Festival. 123 minutes, Australia. My Score: 8.5 out of 10.

LOST – Greatest Hits

TELEVISION this exciting episode was a great set-up for the two-hour season finale next week, and drew me much closer to Charlie than before. I liked how Charlie’s back story was really his five happiest memories, or the “greatest hits” of his life. In his second favorite moment, we don’t see Desmond this time, watching him sing “Wonderwall” by Oasis, but we do get another island connection. The woman he saves outside Covent Garden is Nadia, Sayid’s girlfriend. And in memory #3, his DS ring, stands not only for Drive Shaft but for Dexter Stratton, a great-grandfather on Charlie’s mother side. I have no idea why that name was chosen but there must be some significance and will probably be referenced again down the line, right?

Again, we get what is supposed to be another reality check from Naomi. She tells Charlie that she knows him as the rock star that died in the plane crash, that there was a huge funeral, and a successful “greatest hits” record was released.

Charlie tells Hurley that he can’t join them because he’s too big for the boat – then gives Hurley a big, fat bear hug.

We finally find out what that ever-present cable leads to – the Looking Glass hatch. But what does the cable lead to on the island? And does the island power the hatch or does the hatch power the island? According to Desmond’s vision, Charlie will drown in the hatch and as a result, Claire and Aaron will be rescued in a helicopter. When Desmond and Charlie row out to sea, using the cable as a guide to the hatch, Charlie is determined to sacrifice himself and whacks Desmond in the head with an oar to insure he doesn’t interfere. What I’m wondering is whether Desmond is telling the truth since this is probably the first time that we don’t get to see Desmond’s death vision of Charlie. Perhaps, again he will be the one to save Charlie from the women-with-guns in the hatch.

Regarding the women in the Looking Glass, one of whom is named Greta, I thought this was a bit of a stretch but worth mentioning. Greta is the diminutive form of Margaret, a name which means 'pearl.' Saint Margaret is the patron saint of expectant mothers. http://www.lostpedia.com/wiki/Greta

The very first thing we saw in the episode was Karl, running to the boat and rowing frantically to warn the castaways about Ben’s plan to attack a day early. Did Ben change his plan because he was unnerved by the Jacob and Locke meeting, or unbeknownst to us, could he have been tipped off about the castaway’s retaliation?

When Jack tells the castaways that he has a plan, a very pleased Danielle Rousseau blows up a tree, demonstrating how they will thwart the Others. Can’t wait to see her in action in next week’s finale! It was nice seeing the long-lost Bernard, who just so happens to be a sharp-shooter, and his wife Rose, who cracked me up when saying she almost likes the almost-optimistic Jack better since he’s been back. And here’s to Sayid for forcing Jack to be a leader and take their people to a safe hiding place.

I hate getting into this because I can't wrap my head around the reasons why, but I’ve read rumors that Young Ben’s friend Annie is Kate. We didn’t see Annie in the second half of Ben’s back story. Perhaps she was taken away and doesn’t remember, or she could be Ben’s mole. Kate and Annie both like Apollo candy bars and in Kate's first flashback episode, when the farmer finds her in his barn, she introduces herself to him as Annie. It has something to do with the aging-on-the-inside-not-on-the-outside theory, sort of like Richard. And in the beginning of season three, Ben has dinner with her on the beach. Here is just one link to this theory. http://www.freewebs.com/tyco815/

This site always has nicely detailed close-up shots from the episode. http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/

Tonight, after a 75-minute “Grey’s Anatomy,” ABC is airing “Lost: The Answers,” a recap of the series with producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, exploring questions that have yet to be answered. This special will also air in the hour preceeding the season finale on Wednesday, May 23.

The Fountain

FLICK If you’re looking for a cosmic trip with cool effects and a meditative, heartfelt story, then The Fountain is for you. Though the film spans a thousand years – the 16th century, the present and the 26th century – this is not the sci-fi film that is being promoted in press releases and commercials. Writer-director Darren Aronofsky shows that he is a motion picture artist and has created a poetic, metaphoric film about love, life, death. The three parallel stories are not told in chronological order, but rather abruptly leap around in the three centuries. The engaging Hugh Jackman starts out as Tomas, a Spanish conquistador in search of the Tree of Life (or fountain of youth) at the request of his queen, played by Rachel Weisz. Jump forward to the present and Jackman is medical scientist Tom Creo, (the last name is Spanish for “I believe”) determined to develop a cure for the disease threatening his beloved wife Izzi (Weisz) who is writing a novel, which is actually the first part of the story. Flash 500 years to the future and a bald-headed Jackman is literally floating in air. (Quoting A.O. Scott in the NY Times: “Ms. Weisz, if I’m not mistaken, has turned into a tree.”) Aronofsky is more focused on contrasting subtle ideas about the secret of life told with stunning images, recurring motifs, and striking cinematography. Though the emphasis on the visual forces the characters into secondary significance, it’s their intangible love transcending time and space, which is of most importance. (2006) My Score: 8 out of 10.

HEROES – Landslide, Chapter 22

TELEVISION Things are moving pretty fast towards next week’s season finale. And most of our heroes are meeting up in New York. There were four possible deaths in the episode. Linderman shot DL, who was actually still alive and suddenly appeared from behind to shove his hand inside of Linderman’s head, killing him. DL probably is not dead since we saw Sylar with his power in the future. But the future we saw may be changed. And it could change several more times!
Too bad Linderman could only heal and not regenerate himself like Claire. But he did heal Nathan’s wheelchair-bound wife---but not before giving us info on Papa Petrelli, saying he had great powers but gave up. I wonder what they could have been. Maybe it had more to do with the controlling Mama Petrelli putting him down than giving up. We’ll see.
It’s kind of funny that Molly is the location-tracking system that HRG and Matt were looking for. Will Matt realize that she is the same girl he rescued in Chapter 2? I cracked up when Jessica said to Matt: "Didn’t I throw you out a window?" But what I didn’t see coming was HRG shooting Thompson.
It’s voting day here in Philadelphia, so how coincidental it was to see Micah change the voting machines, making Nathan win by a landslide! Micah’s comment to Candice about her eating habits made me realize that she is probably not the pretty brunette we’ve seen and is probably more like the plump African-American woman she turns into later on.
Hiro called Nathan a villain, but he didn’t realize that it was Sylar he saw in the future impersonating Nathan. It was fun watching Mr. Nakamura, George Takai, teaching his son Hiro how to wield a sword and defend himself. But what happened to Ando? He certainly can’t save the future. Hiro hopefully will save him but I don’t think Hiro is tough enough to fight Sylar.
Sylar, using the name of the deceased Isaac Mendez, tipped off the cops and Agent Hanson of the location of Ted, who was then arrested. Sylar later flipped over the police van, opened the back door and saw Ted still strapped to his seat and conveniently hanging upside. I get so creeped out when Sylar magically slices the heads open, as he did with Ted. (Did you see the promo with a bloody Peter Petrelli?) But Sylar seems to have no remorse, especially since his mother isn’t around to create guilt. And he looked very pleased with his newly acquired power as he stood on the building overlooking the city. Still, I’m not sure that there will still be an explosion, and definitely don’t think the future will be the same as we’ve already seen.

NBC just renewed "Heroes" for a 24-episode second season, plus a separate six-episode show detailing character backgrounds, called "Heroes: Origins."

Dreamgirls

FLICK The audience went wild with applause after most of the musical numbers when I saw Dreamgirls in the movie theater. I’m trying to imagine this happening in people’s homes around the country when they watch the newly released DVD. This mostly faithful adaptation of the Supremes-inspired Broadway musical features a crowd-pleasing cast, including Beyoncé, Martin Lawrence, Eddie Murphy, and Oscar-winner Jennifer Hudson. The severity of Beyoncé’s character Deena, based on Diana Ross, is a nice contrast to the sincerity of the other girls, and is exactly how one would imagine Ms. Ross to behave. Hudson offers a bravura performance as the disheartened Effie in her "introducing" movie role and easily makes the signature song, "And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going" her own. Murphy and his pompadour steal the show as the splashy James 'Thunder' Early, loosely based on and infused with the personalities of James Brown and Marvin Gaye. The toe-tapping songs express the characters' feelings and are very suitable for a Broadway stage but they don’t imitate the Motown sound, which would create the sincerest form of flattery. On the other hand, this is justified as it parallels the Dreams selling out their signature sound to obtain the American dream, not easily accessible to African-American artists in the 1960s. The sets and costumes are period perfect. The fast editing works cinematically to create excitement and movement but this also creates distance and a lack of closeness to the engaging characters as there is no time to focus on their facial expressions. The medium creates the difference. When watching live performers on stage, you can look in their eyes while they're standing in front of you, belting out a song or shedding a tear, to make a connection. Overall, these are minor faults as this entertaining musical has glamour, romance, and is a sweet dream. My Score: 8 out of 10.

Monster-in-Law

FLICK You might think it demented to poke fun at mom on Mother’s Day, but the high concept, one-dimensional film Monster-in-Law turns scary into a lot of fun. Jane Fonda, starring in her first film in 15 years, plays the "monster" of the film and will make you scream---with laughter. Having just lost her talk show hosting job to a younger woman, Viola (Fonda) freaks out when her beloved only son, Dr. Kevin Field (Michael Vartan) proposes marriage to good girl Charlie (Jennifer Lopez), a temp who does everything from cater-waiter to walking dogs. Feeling threatened and unwilling to lose him too, Viola enlists the help of her reluctant assistant Ruby (a zinger lobbing Wanda Sykes), and pulls out all the stops to keep the lovers from marrying. Most times the script calls for Fonda to be a one-note outrageous mad woman and go over the top, like when she is given too many tranquilizers and falls asleep in her dinner, or literally in a bitch-slapping contest with Lopez. Maintaining a strong presence while having never played a character this extreme, Fonda has lost none of her comic timing and does her best Jekyll and Hyde while looking fabulous in designer fashions. Though Vartan only has to walk though like Prince Charming and flash a smile, Lopez strains to bring up her end of the sexual chemistry with him. She has her work cut out for her in scenes sparring with Fonda. Her lack of acting strength shows, and Lopez is best when playing it simple and taking a back seat. But overall this is a romantic-comedy, which has no time for dealing with serious issues. Totally predictable but exceedingly likable, Monster-in-Law is one film you wouldn’t want tamed. (2005) My Score: 6.5 out of 10.

Georgia Rule

FLICK If my mother had literally put soap in my mouth and annoyingly trumped my decisions by saying Georgia rule (or actually Anna rule) when growing up, I’d probably be as messed up as Felicity Huffman’s Lilly in Georgia Rule. This film about three generations of women centers mostly on rebellious Rachel (Lindsay Lohan) who grew up in San Francisco and is sent by her mother, Lilly, to spend a summer with grandmother Georgia (Jane Fonda) in the small rural town of Hull, Idaho. Georgia rigidly runs her house with a tight fist, serving meals only at specific times and disallowing swearing. When she uses the F word it shows her character has almost as many contradictions as the unfocused script. Garry Marshall can’t resist directing a comedy without raising heavy topics like alcoholism and possible child sexual abuse by a stepfather. When Rachel drops her bomb, it’s jarring and comes out of nowhere, disrupting the light pacing of the film that had preceded. The actresses are given moments to show they’re good enough to handle the directorial and writing inconsistencies. Lohan’s off-screen bad-girl reputation gets a run for its money as Rachel covers all aspects of being smart, bratty, and a femme fatal. In her first film since the Oscar-nominated Transamerica, Huffman skillfully walks the tightrope of confusion, intently sincere when trying to decipher the lies from the truth and then lashing out in a drunken frenzy. Fonda, who reminded us of her super talent in her moderate 2005 comeback film Monster-in-Law, continues to have a strong screen presence, but at times looks uncomfortable as the motherly, and grandmotherly, tyrant with a soft spot. Marshall rules don’t apply here, but keep an eye out for these three ladies, as it’s impossible to think that they’ll end up in another mess like this again. My score: 4 out of 10.

Away From Her

FLICK Sarah Polley, recently seen acting in the delightful theater-satire “Slings & Arrows” airing on Sundance Channel, makes an impressive directing debut with Away From Her, a perceptive and subtle film, contrasting the heart and mind. This somber character study adapted from the Alice Munro short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain" concerns the effects of Alzheimer’s on a 44-year marriage. Julie Christie gives a thoughtful and heartfelt performance as Fiona, a woman in her 60s strong enough to go cross-country skiing but unable to fight the disease. When Fiona puts a frying pan in the freezer, it not only shows her mental deterioration, but symbolizes her nourishing marriage turning cold. Her husband Grant, played with equal sincerity by Gordon Pinsent, has a more difficult time adjusting to Fiona’s condition as she enters a nursing home and must wait 30 days before visiting. As he fades from her memory, he watches helplessly as Fiona bonds with mute and wheelchair-bound Aubrey (Michael Murphy). Grant meets Aubrey’s wife Marian (Olympia Dukakis), a severe woman who becomes an outlet for him to cope with his loss and express emotions. Polley makes good use of the brisk and snowy Canadian setting to illustrate Grant’s ongoing struggle, staying overly clothed with sweaters and coats to keep the embers of passion burning inside. Away From Her will tug at your heart in ways you won’t forget. Screened April 15 at the 2007 Philadelphia Film Festival. My score: 9 out of 10.

LOST – The Man Behind the Curtain

TELEVISION This episode had so much going on and was incredibly detailed. I’m trying to keep this brief, but so many of the scenes have great significance that it’s hard not to mention them. We learned a lot, and had a few very, scary moments.

I thought Ben had really “lost” it, when talking to an empty chair. Locke thinks he‘s crazy, but Ben says he’s just too limited to see. Locke turns to walk out and hears a voice saying “help me.” Ben doesn’t. Then windows break, the lantern falls to the floor, and Ben is thrown against the wall. Pretty freaky!

I was all set to think that Ben was pulling strings to make things fly around the house and throwing his voice until I came across this screen shot of a man sitting in the chair. I totally didn’t see this when watching. So who is this guy?
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a262/scot732/LostPic6.jpg

Jacob and other photos from the episode are here.
http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/

Ben shows Locke a pit full of bodies, which looks like Auschwitz. It’s the remains of the Dharma Initiative. Then suddenly, Ben shoots Locke, and demands to know what Jacob said to him. Why didn’t Ben hear and what does Jacob need help from? Locke was still breathing when we last saw him, which is a good thing. Someone suggested that since Locke was shot in the lower left, it could have been a fatal kidney shot, but Locke doesn’t have his left kidney anymore. I'm guessing he's not dead.

Baby Benjamin Linus: The first thing we learned is that Ben’s mother died during childbirth and that he was born in Portland, not on the island. Horace and Olivia, who are part of the Dharma Initiative, were in Portland when they rescued baby Ben and his parents, Emily and Roger Linus. Also, Richard and Ethan, who we now know are Hostiles, invited Juliet back to Portland to join the research team. Actually they were "Not in Portland," right? What's up with Portland?

Young Ben (who kinda looks like Harry Potter) is living with a father who doesn’t want to be a janitor/Work Man, likes his Dharma beer, never remembers his son’s birthday and blames him for his wife’s death. Young Ben has visions of his mother. She tells him not to run through the sonar fence, because it’s not time yet. Later, we see Young Ben disable the sonar fence (the combination is 54439) and run off into the woods, looking for his mom. He hears those mystical voices, the whispers, then runs into Richard.

Young Ben & Richard meet in the woods. When Ben says his mom died, Richard asks if it was on the island, and if he sees his mom. What is the significance of seeing the dead? Since Ben expresses that he doesn’t want to go back to the camp, Richard tells Ben that if he’s patient, he can eventually join the Hostiles. Later, when Ben is with his father in the van, he says that he had to use a lot of patience when dealing with him.

Richard didn’t look like he aged much from the time they met, and Ben actually looks older than Richard in the present time. I think it was mentioned that the Hostiles age inwardly, when Ben was talking with Juliet about the condition of a pregnant woman.

Big Ben: It’s another birthday, and as Ben leaves the house, he puts one wooden doll of the two he got from Annie into his bag. Ben has grown up to be a Work Man for the Dharma Initiative like his father. When Ben and his father go for a ride in the mini-van to the mesa, the song “Shambala” by Three Dog Night is playing, just as it was during Hurley’s back story when he was driving the same van. So now we know who Roger Workman is, the dead body Hurley found!

Ben repeatedly checks his watch as it approaches 4pm, knowing that this is the time of the takeover. He puts on a mask, and releases the gas in the van, killing his father. When he returns to the camp, there are many dead bodies on the ground. He closes Horace’s eye lids. Then Richard and the other Hostiles come out, having succeeded in destroying members of the Dharma Initiative. So it’s confirmed that the Hostiles are the Others, but what was their motivation for the takeover?
Notables:

• Ben’s hands were shaking when telling Locke that he answers to Jacob. Was he really that nervous or is something else going on?


• As they near Jacob’s house, Locke notices some kind of dust or sand surrounding it. What is that stuff? Is it protection or could it be something that becomes part of the black smoke?
• Ben tells Locke to turn off his flashlight because Jacob doesn’t like technology.


• The island greeting is Namaste! This is an Indian greeting, and literally means “I bow to you.”
• Annie gives Young Ben an Apollo candy bar. She also gives him a male and female wooden doll, representing them, for his birthday.


• Naomi asks the castaways: “don’t you people want to be rescued?”


• I’m with Sun, before she hears the tape. I think Jack has good intentions and wouldn’t want any of the castaways to be hurt. But he is just coming across like a smug jerk.


• If Richard recruited Young Ben, how did Ben become the so-called leader of the Others?
• Olivia is now a science teacher, and during the class, a prior volcanic eruption on the island is referenced. Could this have had an affect on the natives living there?


• Horace tells Roger that they are having problems with the natives. The Dharma Initiative supposedly went there in peace. So what were the exact problems, why did the Hostiles need to kill them and was the Dharma Initiative actually to blame?


• LOST TO END IN 2010: There will be three more shortened seasons of 16 episodes each. The episodes will air consecutively, repeat-free, from February to May. I'm gonig to hate waiting eight months for a new episode!

Waitress

FLICK Like the varieties of pies displayed in the film, Waitress is a luscious pastry that is both tart and appetizing. Reminiscent of Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, but told with a touch of fantasy, there are three waitresses, played by Keri Russell, Cheryl Hines (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”), and writer-director Adrienne Shelly, who work in a diner and are looking for love. The focus of the film is on Jenna, played by Russell, who has a twinkle in her eye that helps balance the serious and lighter moments. Like the delicious fillings within the wide assortment of unusually-named pies baked by Jenna and sold at the diner (one being "I Don't Want Earl's Baby Pie"), she has a sweet heart, but struggles to escape the confinements of her life. Baking pies is an expressive and creative way for the pregnant Jenna to deal with the abuses she suffers from her husband Earl (Jeremy Sisto) and the frustrations of the unattainable Dr. Pomatter (Nathan Fillion), the captivating but married obstetrician with whom she’s having an affair. As the crusty old man who owns the diner, Andy Griffith takes a liking to Jenna and offers her perspective and possibilities. Like her pies, it’s what’s inside that counts. And Jenna’s charm is irresistible and bubbling to the top. Screened closing night at the Philadelphia Film Festival, April 18, 2007. My Score: 7.5 out of 10.

The sad story behind the film is that actress-director-screenwriter Adrienne Shelly was murdered on November 1, 2006, two months before her film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In her memory, a non-profit organization, The Adrienne Shelly Foundation, was created to support projects by female filmmakers and lend other means of assistance. Visit the website at the link below.

http://www.adrienneshellyfoundation.org/

HEROES - The Hard Part, Chapter 21

TELEVISION Hiro and Ando find Isaac’s dead body at the newly inhabited Sylar apartment. Sylar knows they’re there, and can hear their heartbeats. But Hiro performs a quick escape and they move several doors down, watching and following Sylar to his mother’s home. When Hiro eventually meets Sylar face to face, you knew that Sylar was going to moves those eyes. Hiro can’t kill him so performs his disappearing act again. He doesn’t want to be a killer like Future Hiro, but it’s what he must become. Sylar breaks Hiro’s sword, but Future Hiro’s sword shows no signs of breakage. This is most likely the result of Hiro spinning right round (like a record baby, right round, round, round) through time and space.

Parents play such a huge part shaping and influencing their children. The most interesting scenario in this episode was watching Sylar shave and dress more conservatively to go visit his mother. She lives in Queens, collects snow globes, and is the only one we’ve heard who calls him Gabriel. Did you notice the picture of little Gabriel? It looked as if they slapped Groucho Marx eyebrows on the boy! Mother Sylar’s desire for him to be ‘special’, or president, has created a conflict within him. He’s happy to be a clockmaker, but wanting to please his mother seems to have fed his need to gather as many powers as he can (and possibly, becoming president.) But this creates conflict for him as he shows off his powers and wanting to please her by creating a snow globe effect right in the living room. But it results in his mother saying he is damned and ultimately getting stabbed by him with a pair of scissors. We finally see Sylar drawing a picture of the predicted explosion with her blood. Have you noticed that Sylar’s drawing style is different from Isaac’s?

Suresh meets a new hero named Molly Walker, and sees a photo of his sister, who (supposedly) died in 1974, for the first time. Can Suresh actually help Molly with his antibodies? We’re told Molly can stop Sylar. We’ll see about that. She gives Suresh a picture of a drawn star to protect him.

Micah finally caught onto Candice, but was trapped in the merry-go-round of rooms when he tried to escape. Another interesting tidbit was when Micah said he didn’t like Linderman because he smelled. Smelled of what?

Mrs. Petrelli seems to be the one fueling Nathan’s desire to become president, and echoes of The Manchurian Candidate are unavoidable. She says Linderman has cold feet and that the bomb won’t heal the world. She asks him: “Can you be the one we need?”

Funny moment when Claire learns Nathan can fly!

We ended with Peter’s hands glowing as he is taking on Ted’s power. I’m hoping that Parkman will be the only one to blow up during the explosion. I like him less every week and wouldn’t miss him. He has a cool power, but it’s a 50-50 split between the character as a frustrating dingbat and bad acting.

The graphic novel, “Walls” Part 1, at the following link fills in the blanks about how Peter and Niki meet up in the future.
http://www.nbc.com/Heroes/novels/novels_display.shtml?novel=31

Brokeback Mountain

FLICK One can call this the gay cowboy movie, but to label it in this way is limiting and simplifies the extraordinary bond and feelings of the main characters, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist. Oscar-winning director Ang Lee’s adaptation of the short story doesn’t shy away from exposing a culture that punishes men for their longing and sensitivity. Heath Ledger’s thoughtful performance as the inhibited Ennis echoes what his character has seen and has been taught about exhibiting emotions, whether it be towards the same sex or otherwise. It may be that fear of punishment is what ultimately keeps him from true happiness. Without Jack’s forwardness, he would have known none of the passion they shared. Jake Gyllenhaal, as Jack, creates the right balance of lightness and sincerity, which makes his outcome all the more frustrating. Lee's attention to detail adds much poignancy, as in the scene when Ennis, visiting Jack's parents, finds his long lost bloodied shirt in the closet, along with Jack's, on one hanger. We see Jack's shirt overtop Ennis' shirt, but when Ennis takes them home, it is now his shirt enveloping Jack's on the closet door, next to a post card of Brokeback Mountain. The stunning cinematography of the mountainside where Ennis and Jack met and return is most significant. Their love is as vast, beautiful and natural as the never-ending landscape. This is the world that we want them to live in. And it’s this simplicity of the story that has a lasting affect. (2005) My Score: 10 out of 10.

Robbie Williams & Alexis Arquette

MUSIC Robbie Williams is a mean drag queen in his video “She’s Madonna.” Written by the Pet Shop Boys, the song is incredibly catchy, has a hypnotic, pop beat, and I'll probably burn out on it soon – but not yet. Williams straddles both sides of the fence: interviewed while wearing a dress and alternately singing in a sparkly, bright white suit. The dude is quite comfortable singing to men in dresses and those who are in transition. One of those happens to be Alexis Arquette who has a documentary regarding plans for gender reassignment surgery, titled Alexis Arquette: She’s My Brother, which recently premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film chronicles her coming to terms with family concerns and the gay and transgender communities. It’s an A&E production, so it mostly likely will air on that network, but I’m hoping it will open in theaters and other film fests. I’m totally supportive of Alexis and wish her well.

VIDEO: She’s Madonna
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSO-WhOtkpU

GLADD has guidelines for journalists and those uninformed when speaking about people going through gender reassignment. There is a lot of offensive and insensitive stuff being written and said these days. Maybe this will help keep everyone on the same page.
http://www.glaad.org/2007/2007PDFS/AlexisArquetteGuide.pdf

Lucky You

FLICK You might be luckier actually playing Texas Hold ‘Em than watching Curtis Hanson’s two-plus hour Vegas movie that uses high-stakes card playing and side bets to represent life lessons. The winning Eric Bana easily carries the drawn out movie as a compulsive, hard-on-his-luck professional card player. No bet goes unplayed, even when it’s with his card-shark father, a cool Robert Duvall. Both actors display the necessary understated emotional tension that make their scenes the ones to watch. But the worst hand dealt is a terribly miscast Drew Barrymore as a lounge singer and Bana’s love interest, who drags down every scene she is in. It’s too bad she wasn’t cast in Jean Smart’s role, a tournament player who never utters a word. Some scenes go on a bit too long even after the message is clear. Unless poker, or staring at hot and handsome seven-card stud Bana is your favorite spectator sport, this could be a gamble you might not want to take. My Score: 6 out of 10.

LOST – The Brig

TELEVISION Here is a recap, thoughts, and just a few more questions…
We caught up with Locke, starting eight days ago. This flashback form (instead of backstory) is a good storytelling technique that works really well in order to spend time focusing on assorted castaways in other episodes. This was also well done on “Alias,” the other JJ Abrams show.
First question: In the opening shot, we see Locke reading files, then throwing them into the fire. What was that? Could the files we see later be false?
Did Ben really want to humiliate Locke in front of the Others or does he have yet another agenda? It seems like a lot of trouble to run Locke’s dad off the road, kidnap him and bring him to the island just to prove that Locke is not a miracle man. Richard tells Locke that Ben wanted to embarrass him so they wouldn’t think he was special – having been healed. Richard is also the one who passes the file onto Locke and recommends Sawyer. Ben obviously knew that Locke wouldn’t take revenge and kill his dad. But Ben keeps telling Locke that it’s he who brought his dad to the island. What’s up with that?
Having not harmed his dad in front of the Others, Ben picks up his cane and slugs Locke's dad in the neck. Ben then tells everyone that Locke is not who they thought he was. Locke later sees them pack up and leave him behind. Ben says he can join them if he brings his father to them. Why would he want to?
Locke’s dad asks “don’t you know where you are,” later suggesting they are in hell. This is probably just another metaphor, like the Magic Box. I don’t think the writers are going incorporate a hell theory after debunking the purgatory theory. When Locke's dad is talking with Sawyer, he repeats a question Charlie asked in the first episode: "If this isn't hell, then WHERE AHR WE?"
We started off the episode with a little humor as Locke sneaks up on Sawyer who has his pants down taking a leak. Sawyer is reluctant but follows Locke, barefoot, to the brig of a mid-19th century slave ship. Locke then locks him in a room with the man of a thousand aliases, Tom Sawyer being one of them. Sawyer then realizes this is the man responsible for conning his parents and for their ultimate deaths. I think we had some speculation about this but Locke/Sawyer connection and now it’s confirmed. There is a painful look on Sawyer’s face as he strangles TS with a chain. I assume he’s dead, but you never can be quite sure on this island. Though he has reasons for wanting his father dead, Locke is not a killer, which is why he enlisted Sawyer. From the final scene, it seems Locke still wants to be a part of the Others as he lugs the covered dead body.
Rousseau cooly walks in on Locke at the Black Rock, looking for dynamite. What’s she up to? She hears Sawyer banging on the door, but isn't phased by it, never asks, and just turns and walks out. Ha!
Desmond tells Charlie, Hurley and Jin to keep Juliet safe because she’s their way off the island. What does he have in mind?
The Lost Boys are hiding Naomi in a tent, who has a radio that Sayid says is so sophisticated he’s never seen one like it. But they can't send out a signal with it. So either the outgoing signal is being blocked or it’s not so sophisticated. She said Oceanic 815 was found off the coast Bali in an ocean trench four miles deep and all of the bodies were found aboard. Her helicopter took off from a ship 18 nautical miles west of the island (pretty specific.) Her company was hired by Penelope to find Desmond. Sayid asks Desmond if he actually saw her helicopter. Sayid asks all the right questions. Can we believe Naomi or could she be yet another spy for the Others?
No one trusts Jack because of Juliet. When Kate wants to talk privately to Jack about Naomi, he says he’ll talk only in front of Juliet. Does he really have some insight, or playing his own game, or is he being conned? Juliet cryptically says that they should tell Kate (What? What should they tell her??) But Jack says No! Juliet again has that I-am-so-mysterious look in her eyes and that half-smile again.

And I just can’t spend time watching the previews for the next episode. They are cryptic, inconclusive, and sometimes SPOIL the surprises of that episode. But I can’t wait for the next one!

HEROES---Five Years Gone

TELEVISION This was by far the best episode of the season (and should have been posted yesterday). There was so much happening that it’s difficult to put it all down concisely---and way too many questions. Here are a few highlights.

There were many parallels on today’s war on terror and I loved that the US president turned out to be the evil Sylar in disguise. OK, first question: What happened to Nathan Petrelli?

It was funny to hear Ando say to Past Hiro “go talk to yourself.” In one scene, Future Hiro is about to tell Ando that he was killed in the explosion but ding dong Parkman zaps him. Then Peter Petrelli comes in, stops time and takes Future Hiro and Ando away. Very cool. Later, it’s PP who tells Ando that Hiro was obsessed with getting back in time so he could save Ando’s life.

Jessica is now a pole dancer in Las Vegas, and seems to have lost her duality. How did that happen, and how did she and Peter hook up? With his slicked back hair and scar running down his face, Peter says that Sylar is dead, and mentions that Jessica lost Micah and DL, as they watch the TV footage of the devastation. Peter tells her it was he who set off the bomb but the blame was placed on Sylar.

How did Peter get the scar on his face? Was it from the explosion? Linderman had told Nathan in a previous episode that Peter would die the day after Nathan was elected.

Matt Parkman now working for Homeland Security is trying to read Past Hiro’s mind, but can’t. He and Suresh go to Isaac’s loft and see the timeline. I find Parkman to be clueless and a bumbling idiot. Now he’s got power and is still clueless.

Bennett/HRG learns from Future Hiro and Ando that they know Claire is still alive. Parkman wants HRG, who is like a modern day Harriet Tubman working an underground railroad for other’s with powers, to tell him where Claire is. HRG goes to see Claire and tells her to get out there fast. Next thing you know, Parkman is there at the diner to get her, but Claire slips out. YAY!

Claire is going by the name Sandra and has a fiancé. One minute she sees Parkman at the diner and the next time we see her she is at the Petrelli Mansion with her natural father President Petrelli. But the prez is very nice and sweet talking to her, which made me quite suspicious. He tells her he wants to eliminate the competition and doesn’t need any more power especially after her. As she begins to walk away, he stops her with his finger in the air, blood begins to run down Claire’s face as he slices her forehead open and this is when we see him turn into Sylar!

Matt Parkman bursts in and arrests younger Hiro, to take him where they hold the terrorists. Damn that Parkman!

It’s interesting to watch Nathan Petrelli in hindsight, knowing that he’s really Sylar. His conversations with Suresh about the people with powers who are breeding and that the population is fearful, anticipating another Sylar, is really about trying to get rid of those with powers so he can be the most powerful-est!

Nathan/Sylar was trying to be convincing when he says he’s harmless as his flying ability remains a secret.

On the TV: “Round up individuals in a sweep around the country, most successful since the Linderman Act was passed four years ago.”

PP and Future Hiro go to save Past Hiro who is guarded by Parkman and a SWAT team. Suresh is supposed to inject Past Hiro but instead gives it to the Haitian, and Past Hiro is saved. Ando goes running into his arms and they are happily reunited again. Just as Future Hiro tells Past Hiro he will take him back to the right moment in time, filthy Parkman enters and shoots Furure Hiro.

Nathan shows up and pulls PP through the door, but PP knows his brother doesn’t have that ability. Peter knows it’s Sylar, and they get all firey and glowy and start to battle.

It seems that things are hopeless in the future world. Only a Hiro can change it.