Frida (2002)
Starring Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina.
Directed by Julie Taymor.
Kilgore rates it: 6 (out of 10)

Frida is a biopic of Frida Kahlo, the mustachioed Mexican-Jewish painter, communist, bisexual, amputee, morphine addict, and bedder of elderly exiled Soviet Leon Trotsky. Kahlo painted lots of grotesque and angst-filled self-portraits, and the film tries and mostly succeeds in connecting her grotesque work to her pain-filled life, concentrating mostly on her relationship with her philandering husband, the muralist Diego Rivera, as well her crippling in a trolley accident and the stillbirth of her son.

Salma Hayek does a wonderful job in the title role, (I guess -- I never met Frida Kahlo.), and has real chemistry with Alfred Molina, who also turns in a fine performance as Rivera, who was apparently the greatest mack-daddy ever. Hayek's breasts may well win Best Supporting Actor. I probably would have rated this movie higher, except I've never much cared for Frida Kahlo's art, and I wasn't much interested in finding out why she created it. Admirers of Kahlo's work will enjoy this film immensely, though.

Old School (2003)
Starring Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell, and Vince Vaughn.
Directed by Todd Phillips.
Kilgore rates it: 7 (out of 10)

Old School, an Animal House rip-off, (a fraternity full of party-hearty misfits has crazy misadventures while waging wacky war against a crusty old dean), was co-written and directed by Todd Phillips, who also co-wrote and directed Road Trip, the American Pie rip-off, (young attractive people have crazy misadventures while having sex and getting their precious bodily fluids all over each other). Todd Phillips' next two co-writing/directing projects are -- I'm not kidding -- movies based on the television series Starsky & Hutch and The Six Million Dollar Man. Um, Todd? Try thinking up something original, please.

Old School is actually pretty funny, although the laughs are ridiculously front-loaded into the first half of the movie, during which genuinely funny gags fly rapid-fire off the screen -- most notably Will Ferrell's hilarious streaking scene. I would have rated this movie higher if it could have sustained the pace, but the second half of the movie slows down considerably with the gags becoming more forced and less funny.

+posted by Lawrence @ 1/21/2004 02:47:00 PM