INTERVIEW - Midnight Movies

f ilm ‘Sky Captain’ harkens back to classic cinema

Paramount Pictures

Remaining steadfast in the face of a worldwide robot invasion, Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie) defends planet Earth alongside Sky Captain (Jude Law) and his men.

Politics panned in Sayles’ new satire

By NIYAZ PIRANI

Daily Titan Staff

Dickie Pilager wants your vote and this fall at the box offi ce, you should give it to him.

“Silver City” is a movie with two intertwined storylines working to get writer/director John Sayles’ political opinion across to the audience.

In the fi rst story, Dickie Pilager (Chris Cooper) is racing to become the governor of Colorado, but because Pilager is not on the bright side, he becomes the face behind a criminal real estate deal called Silver City.

In the second story, Danny O’ Brien (Danny Huston), a private investigator hired to fi nd the identity of a washed-to-shore fi eldworker, tries to piece together a murder that he believes is somehow connected to Silver City and Pilager.

As the movie develops, the focus is mainly on O’Brien’s discovery that Silver City is being used as a toxic waste dump that drains into a huge lake.

Through this discovery, O’Brien is able to link together the missing pieces into what becomes a futile fi ght against corruption in the government.

“Silver City” ends in an anticlimatic fashion, which ultimately is the most effective way for Sayles’ criticisms of politics to be heard.

In spite of its independent status and limited release, “Silver City” showcases a cast of wellknown actors including Thora Birch, Richard Dreyfuss, Daryl Hannah, Kris Kristofferson, Tim Roth and Billy Zane. But the highlight of the fi lm is Cooper’s portrayal of Dickie Pilager.

Whether intentional or not, Cooper’s performance is comparable to the real life George W. Bush. Cooper uses ambiguous speeches to confuse his adoring public in the same fashion that President Bush is often accused of. The fi lm never evolves into a suspense, drama, comedy or crime story but the genre-escaping story mixes all of these elements together to create a serious fi lm with hilarious and intelligent jokes that any fan of political satire would enjoy.

By LAURA BEYER

Daily Titan Staff

First-time fi lm director Kerry Conran gives a new look to sci-fi movies with his debut, “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.” With dream-like backdrops and fuzzy vintage-style fi lming, “Sky Captain” plays like a 1930s classic sci-fi movie.

The story follows Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow), a reporter for the New York Chronicle who discovers that famous scientists have gone missing as old fl ame Sky Captain (Jude Law) fl ies through the sky fi ghting off mysterious giant robots invading the city.

The two pair-up to fi nd the elusive Dr. Totenkopf (archived images of Laurence Olivier) who has taken the scientists to complete a project started 20 years prior.

Franky Cook (Angelina Jolie) and Dex (Giovanni Ribisi) help Polly and Sky Captain fi nd Dr. Totenkopf and the missing scientists using the latest hi-tech gadgets such as ray guns and planes that nose dive into the ocean and become underwater vessels.

Polly and Sky Captain travel to far-off lands such as the Himalayas, the mythical Shangri-La and Dr. Totenkopf’s hidden island inhabited by various strange animals.

The giant robots and gadgets made me remember the feeling of fantasy euphoria that I experienced the fi rst time I saw “The Empire Strikes Back” on the big screen. Like “Empire,” there is no sex or foul language and minimal violence, making this the ultimate family movie.

By ANGELA DAWSON

Entertainment News Wire

Actress Katie Holmes has wholeheartedly sought fi lm roles that are a far cry from the sensitive and caring Joey of “Dawson’s Creek.” She played a bohemian city girl in “Pieces of April,” an emotionally distraught college student in “Abandon” and the other woman in “Phone Booth.”

Having demonstrated her range, Holmes is comfortable enough to play the nice girl again in the romantic comedy “First Daughter.”

Its pre-election release may boost the fi lm’s prospects at the box offi ce, thanks to the emergence of fi rst daughters Jenna and Barbara Bush, who have adopted more visible public roles lately in support of their father’s re-election campaign.

Holmes plays Samantha Mackenzie, the dutiful daughter of career politician John Mackenzie (Michael Keaton). Eager for independence, she enrolls at a California college. But distancing herself from Washington doesn’t mean she can escape the shadow of her father, or the Secret Service agents assigned to protect her.

Trying to fi t in with the other freshmen proves tougher than a

‘Dawson’s’ darling becomes a ‘fi rst daughter’ in her latest venture

The romantic tension between Polly and Sky Captain is much like that of Princess Leia and Han Solo – just enough to warm your heart but won’t make you regret bringing your 7-year-old.

At 29 years old, Conran was granted $60 million and an all-star line-up for his fi lm, which was originally just a script and a computer program with actors’ images transposed onto the screen. Reminiscent of the classics, the cinematography and scenery are decadent.

The fi lm is complete with action and more action, and the special effects are visually pleasing.

The dialogue is nothing to write home about, but if you like sci-fi movies, “Sky Captain” is a must see.

receiving line at a White House reception. Yet Samantha manages to strike up a sweet romance with a helpful residential adviser who may be something other than what he says he is.

Holmes watched hours of videotape and read articles about the Bush twins and previous presidential offspring to help portray her character.

“You sort of start to appreciate the level of their fame and how much pressure they really are under and how their lives for a certain amount of time are not their own,” she observes. “They have to uphold this certain image, and that can be very hard for their souls and a bit oppressive.”

Entertainment News Wire Katie Holmes, of “Dawson’s Creek” fame, stars in “First Daughter.”

Holmes actually met President Bush and First Lady Laura Bush when she hosted a 2002 concert special on TNT called “Christmas in Washington.”

“I got to introduce them,” she recalls. “They were very nice. It was amazing to meet them, regardless of your feelings about where the candidates stand. There’s such an amazing energy when you meet the president of the United States. It kind of takes your breath away.”