Review Of “Talk To Me” & “Stardust”

Posted: August 13th, 2007 | Filed under: Cinema, Culture, Ruminations | No Comments »

When it comes to romantic comedies, none are less likely to be criticized while being remembered with fondness than the screwball comedies of seventy years ago.

William Powell and Myrna Loy in the Thin Man series, where a hint of mystery added to the memorable marital banter. Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake in Sullivan’s Travels. Cary Grant. Irene Dunne. Claudette Colbert. Clark Gable, even the tight-sphinctered Katherine Hepburn — those are the names we revere. The banter was fast and loose. And funny. The situations just real enough to pull us in; just distant enough to give us perspective. What could we have loved more than two superstars in love and screaming at each other while standing by the side of the road in middle America?

What brought this remembrance to mind is a scene in the stunning, romantic, fantastic, exhilarating adult fairy tale Stardust. Claire Danes, a star — not movie star, in this film, a real star, like from the sky — lands in a fantasy land just beyond a wall by a British village. Charles Cox seeks her out to bring her to back to the girl he wants to marry as a sign of devotion. Along the way, they . . . you guessed it . . . fall in love. But before that, as they’re trudging through the fantasy land along the road, they argue. And, the bon mots fly fast and furious. It’s as good as Clark and Claudette, I tell ya.

And that’s just one of the pleasures of the dynamically entertaining film which must be seen. There’s a bunch of brothers, the last of which standing shall become king. So, Father King Peter O’Toole gets them to killing each other. After which they become a Greek Chorus following and commenting upon the action in the film.

Michelle Pfeiffer is glorious as an evil witch, who needs to snatch the heart from the star — remember, Claire Danes — to restore the beauteous youth of her sisters and herself.

Which is not to mention Robert DeNiro, who plays a pirate captain with a secret. You shan’t read it here. Too often in the last decade, DeNiro has played against his persona, too often to ill effect. Not here. He is triumphant.

So let’s see. There’s comedy. There’s fairy tale-ish fantasy. There’s the usual special effects that come with that these days, in this case, done with restraint and panache. There’s great acting by great actors. An oft-told story but with a twist. Or three.

Stardust is the kind of mindless but substantial entertainment with substance that movie goers have been longing for. (Okay, maybe that’s oxymoronic, but I’m not changing the sentence.)

This is one keeper of a summertime flick.

* * * * *

Talk To Me is my favorite film of the year. It may also be the best.

On the surface it is the story of Petey Green, a low-life con, who became the leading deejay in D.C. during the civil rights turmoil of the late Sixties. He’s played by the estimable Don Cheadle, whose performance is being heralded as Oscar worthy. Well, it just might be that Cheadle, who has made a career out of stealing movies from more heralded actors, has the same done to him.

Chiwetel Ejiofor plays the station manager who eventually sees something in Cheadle’s character and gives him a break. Then he hooks his star to his find. Ejiofor matches Cheadle acting chop for acting chop.

It’s a great duo performance. Two male actors finding a connection that is realistically portrayed without artifice.

Don’t deny yourself the pleasure of this period piece. It captures the time, and a segment of a major cultural shift in a palatable way that stays true. On display are flawed people, with warts showing, who triumph as best they are able.

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