Ian Holm

[7] In 1950s New Jersey, two Italian brothers struggle to keep their restaurant open as a rival eatery woos their clientele. Part of the problem is a philosophical rift between the brothers, played by Stanley Tucci and Tony Shalhoub. Tucci wants to give the public what they want, while Shalhoub wants to elevate their palettes. As their relationship fractures and the business hangs in the …

[3] A Jew and a Christian compete in the 1924 Olympics, both running in the name of God and adversity. I’m sorry to say I just couldn’t give a shit. I couldn’t empathize with their motivations. They feel God when they run. Good for them. It would at least be nice if the two competed against one another in the third act, but they don’t. …

[8] Director Hugh Hudson (Chariots of Fire) delivers an emotionally compelling adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ vine-swinging legend. The first half of the movie, depicting Tarzan’s childhood up through his discovery by an Austrian explorer (Ian Holm), outshines the last, but the movie still works well overall. Christopher Lambert (Highlander) does a good job bringing out the extreme pathos of a character caught between two …

[5] Ewan McGregor and Cameron Diaz star in this odd-ball romance from director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire). McGregor plays a janitor whose just been fired and Diaz plays a rich girl rebelling against her father (Ian Holm). McGregor kidnaps Diaz, Diaz suggests they extort her dad for ransom money, and the two begin to have feelings for each other. Meanwhile, the angel Gabriel (Dan …

[6] A provocative film about the real Alice in Wonderland, who at 80 years of age begins recollecting her memories of author Lewis Carroll. Through flashbacks with Carroll (played superbly by Ian Holm) and in twisted fantasy sequences featuring creations from the Jim Henson Creature Shop, Alice slowly comes to terms with something she never realized before — that Carroll loved her. And I don’t …

[3] I want to be nice to this movie because so many of my friends adore it. But I’ve pondered this review for over a month and can’t put it off any longer. I don’t like this movie. Like, at all. I’m not even sure how to review the damned thing. Did I enjoy watching it? No.  Do I appreciate it? Parts of it.  Peter …

[6] Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films are among my very favorites of all time, so The Hobbit is doomed to suffer in comparison. If you’re not a devoted fan of Middle Earth, the first half of An Unexpected Journey will probably feel a bit cumbersome. Jackson should have trimmed 20 or 30 minutes (starting with the oddly wooden cameo performances from Ian Holm …

[9] Martin Scorsese directs Leonardo DiCaprio in this biopic of Howard Hughes, the billionaire aviator, filmmaker, and playboy whose considerable ambition was tragically counterbalanced by his mental illness. The Aviator opens with Hughes’ mammoth, three-year-long production of the aerial battle movie Hell’s Angels and his budding romance with Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett). He makes considerable advances in the field of aviation and challenges the movie …

[10] Peter Jackson (Dead Alive, The Frighteners) embraces the Herculean task of bringing Tolkien’s supreme fantasy to the silver screen, and hits a home run. The Fellowship of the Ring gets the trilogy off to a strong start, as Frodo Baggins and his companions set off to destroy the One Ring.  Jackson is faithful to the source material while masterfully balancing action, horror, heart, and …

[9] Ian Holm gives a career highlight performance in this Atom Egoyan adaptation of Russell Banks’ novel. Holm plays a lawyer who travels to a snowy, rural town to incite a lawsuit after a bus crash robs the community of its children. Naturally, no one trusts Holm at first, but the more he digs, the more secrets are uncovered, and the more the community unravels.

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