By Dave Montalbano

After the 9/11 attacks, B.B. King performed in the Pompano Amphitheater. The old Blues Boy was an appropriate anecdote to the healing process. By acknowledging pain and suffering, one could move forward toward redemption and hope. This Sunday, B.B. King brings his blues craftsmanship to Washington D.C. for the annual National Memorial Day Concert on PBS, joining regular hosts Gary Sinise and Joe Mantegna.

Each year, this bipartisan presentation honors all four branches of the American Armed Forces. There will be a tribute to the children of war, and the World War II generation will be acknowledged. These emotional tributes often require Kleenex for the viewer. Yet, this is a life-affirming program and should not be missed this Sunday night on our local PBS station.

On a lighter note, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides had the strongest opening of any movie released in 2011. This Walt Disney Studios franchise opens strong but fades toward a philosophical climax involving the Fountain of Youth. Given Florida’s connection to the Fountain of Youth in Saint Augustine, much local lore could have been included in this salty tale.

Given the complexity of the original trilogy, On Stranger Tides takes a minimalist approach and keeps the focus on Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp). Taken prisoner by the Royal Court of King George III (Richard Griffiths), Captain Jack is reunited with an old ally, Gibbs (Kevin McNally), and his arch nemesis, Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush).

Captain Jack escapes and eventually swabs the deck of the Queen Ann’s Revenge,  a voodoo-enchanted ship captained by the notorious Blackbeard (Ian McShane).  Having survived his beheading in the Carolinas, Black-beard is on a quest for eternal life by drinking from the Fountain of Youth.

Lacking the charisma of Captain Davy Jones and Barbossa, Blackbeard is a disappointing villain. Blackbeard’s saving grace is that he has a beautiful daughter (Penelope Cruz), a swashbuckling former nun whose youth was corrupted by one Captain Jack Sparrow. Whether dancing a tango or sword fighting, the chemistry of Depp and Cruz keeps On Stranger Tides afloat.

Given the last shot of the post credits sequence, expect Pirates 5 to continue the relationship between Angelica and Captain Jack. Expect Geoffrey Rush to return, because the on-screen feud between Barbossa and Captain Jack is fun to watch. Hopefully, the next Pirates will include more time on-deck and less time landlocked.

By Dave Montalbano

Thor is your typical Saturday Matinee Marvel Comic flick. In the mythical realm of Norse gods, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is the belligerent pretty prince of King Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and Frigga (Rene Russo).

On the day it is to be announced  that Thor will be named heir to the throne, mischief arises from a dreaded enemy. Fearing that his father lacks the gravitas to confront this ancient enemy, Thor,
his brother Loki (Tom Huddleston) and a team of brawling buddies venture to the underworld to banish the threat. The battle is a stalemate and King Odin banishes Thor from the kingdom.

Thor plummets into the New Mexico desert. The fallen god meets Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), an astronomy professor, and Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard), master researcher of military technology and mythological lore.

As Thor is humbled by nerdy humans, King Odin is backstabbed by a trusted advisor and the kingdom is assaulted by a phantom menace.

Who will live? Who will die? These questions are answered in this movie, and Thor will return next summer in the highly anticipated The Avengers, which also features Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Sargent Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).

Directed by Kenneth Branaugh, Thor is a halfway successful movie. While it contains some shots of visual beauty, the scenes on Thor’s native realm are unrealistic. The fights, the battles and the action sequences rely too much on attention deficient disorder editing, making the story hard to follow.

Thor thrives in the New Mexico desert. Raised on royal and pampered dining, Thor easily accepts the joys of pancakes and coffee in a small desert diner.  Given the outdoor action in daylight, the action sequences are easier to follow. Thor is given his cowboy moment when he confronts a mighty adversary during a Main Street showdown.

For those seeking more serious fare, My Perestroika opens tomorrow. With English subtitles, this documentary interviews the last generation of people who were socialized and educated under Soviet influence.

Given that most of the interviewees are my age and younger, it is fascinating to see their point of view.

The Russian citizens remember their childhood conformity with fondness. While the interviewees reflect upon the fakery of the Soviet system, My Perestroika focuses upon personal responsibility and carving out an individual identity.

By Dave Montalbano

AdventuresOfCinemaDave.com

Finishing my book, The Adventures of Cinema Dave in the Florida Motion Picture World, forced me to confront the many things I have accumulated. The last chapter presents a plan to eliminate the artifacts of my life, which is similar to the dilemma Will Ferrell’s character faces in Everything Must Go.

The film begins with the termination of the 16-year career of Nick (Ferrell). Despite being a champion salesman, Nick has a problem with alcohol and blackouts.  When he returns home, the locks have been changed and his personal items have been left on the lawn by his future ex-wife. When his car is repossessed and his credit card
is blocked, Nick becomes trapped on his own front yard.

With enough petty cash to purchase beer, Nick sits on his front yard and spies on his new pregnant neighbor across the street, and hires Kenny (Christopher Jordan Wallace) to watch his lawn when he needs a potty break. Despite coping with his situation, Nick is harassed by his neighbor (Stephen Root), who contacts code enforcement. Fortunately for Nick, Detective Garcia (Michael Pena) is a sponsor from Alcoholics Anonymous.

Once Nick becomes stuck on the front lawn, Everything Must Go had the potential to become a boring bomb of a movie. Yet, director Dan Rush’s unfussy camera work allows the viewer to meet and greet Nick and his neighbors. Particularly affecting is Nick’s relationship with Kenny.

Despite his success as over-the-top characters in movies like Talladega Nights the Legend of Ricky Bobby and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Ferrell gives his most controlled performance. As an alcoholic salesman, he has many opportunities to overact, but the actor never gives in to the temptation.  This discipline pays off in the stark setting because the comedy becomes more humane.

This film is based on a short story, Why Don’t You Dance? written by Raymond Carver, who died of cancer in 1988. Posthumously, Carver’s work has produced two award nominated motion pictures on DVD, Jindabyne and Short Cuts.  Short Cuts features an all-star cast and is directed by the late Robert Altman. Carver’s voice is strong in all three motion pictures.

For people seasoned by life, we realize that we make situations out of our control. It is how an individual acts that defines their behavior and character.  Everything Must Go features a personal journey with humor and truthfulness.

By Dave Montalbano

AdventuresOfCinemaDave.com

Forget last summer’s girlie man movies like Prince of Persia: the Sands of Time and Sex and the City 2, with Fast Five’s opening gross of $86 million, the Summer 2011 blockbuster season has begun!

Currently screening at the Museum of Discovery’s IMAX, Fast Five has the energy, action and humor expected from a Summer Blockbuster.

While some of the action sequences have a taint of Attention Deficient Disorder editing, the stunt work, car chases and heists are well-directed. The climactic fight between Dwayne (the Rock) Johnson and Vin Diesel does not disappoint, but it is the quiet moments that will resonate … in particular, when Vin Diesel’s outlaw character reminisces about going to church with his father and the Sunday afternoon barbecues for the neighborhood.

Written and directed by Max Winkler, Ceremony is the kind of movie that most filmmakers don’t make anymore. Children’s writer Sam (Michael Angarano) tricks his friend Marshall (Reece Thompson)  into driving to Eastern Long Island. What is first promoted as a youthful road trip becomes a journey toward obsession. Sam wants to disrupt the wedding of the love of his life, Zoe (Uma Thurman).

Given that Sam is in his twenties and Zoe is in her forties, Ceremony is an odd movie with allusions to F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jonathan Ames. Angarano’s Sam makes the convincing transition from fake Marlboro Man look-a-like to that of man-child who finally becomes an adult. There is much situational humor.

Also opening this weekend is Werner Herzog’s 3-D documentary The Cave of Forgotten Dreams. Best known for his intense films like Fitzcarldo, Aguirre: The Wrath of God and Grizzly Man, Herzog obtained exclusive access to film inside the Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc Cave of Southern France, believed to include the oldest pictographs on earth.

The Caves of Forgotten Dreams is a beautiful and approachable film. Herzog, who also narrates, brings a childlike joy through his grandfatherly German accent. The visuals are exceptional and the stories told about the artifacts are life-affirming.

Opening this weekend at the Movies of Delray will be 100 Voices: A Journey Home, winner of the Audience Award at the 16th Annual Palm Beach International Film Festival. This documentary celebrates song and faith as a group of Cantors travel to Poland to sing.

There is so much to do this Mother’s Day weekend, make the most of it!

By Dave Montalbano

AdventuresOfCinemaDave.com

Scream 4 opened two weeks ago with disappointing box office results. It is a sequel that was 11 years in the making to the original Scream trilogy, which had already suffered from the laws of diminishing returns. In this film, Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) returns to her hometown, the site of the original murders and the death of her mother. Sidney is in town to promote her self-help book.

Within moments of Sidney’s book signing, a body is found in the trunk of her car. Sheriff Dewey (David Arquette) is called to investigate. Proving to be as incompetent as ever, Sheriff Dewey watches the body count rise as the ghost face killer murders the neighborhood cool kids. Feeling bored and neglected by living in a small town, Dewey’s wife, Gayle (Courtney Cox), becomes inspired and begins investigating the murders.

Scream 4 is an improvement over of Scream 3. The self-conscious humor about horror movie clichés remains. The biggest flaw with each successive Scream flick, the body count gets bigger and bigger. This makes the surviving characters from each film as indestructible as horror movie icons, while victims become anonymous. As he has done in the past, director Wes Craven strives for deeper meaning, but the superficial characters and plot by numbers mars any serious discussion about violence in the media.

One fun subplot of the Scream franchise is the creation of the fictional Stab movie-within-the-movie series that comments on the exploitation of horror films. This subplot is used in Tambien La Lluvia (Even the Rain), a Spanish movie that comments on the exploitation of the poor in Bolivia.

Humanitarian movie producer Costa (Luis Tosar) is shooting a biopic about Christopher Columbus and his exploitation of Native Americans. He and his director Sebastian (Gael Garcia Bernal) choose Bolivia because they can find cheap help. As they mock Columbus’ religious motivation, the production team is blind to their own treatment of their poverty-stricken employees.

Unlike the blatant slice-and-dice action of Scream 4, Tambien La Lluvia  presents passive-aggressive horror inflicted upon the poor. While filming their Columbus opus, the crew learns that a mean corporate entity plans on privatizing the water supply. This backstage drama is played out against the production of the motion picture. Unlike the solid conclusion of Scream 4, Tambien La Lluvia concludes upon lyrical symbolism that is more meaningful.

By Dave Montalbano

Franc D’Ambrosio (R) and Sharon Brooks, director of education, Broward Center for the Performing Arts.

www.AdventuresofCinemaDave.com

In the past month, Franc D’Ambrosio has worked in South Florida on at least three occasions — between business trips to California, New York and the Midwest.

Besides holding the record for being The Phantom of the Opera on-stage longer than anybody, D‘Ambrosio  portrayed Al Pacino and Diane Keaton’s son in The Godfather Part III, in which he sang the opera  Cavalleria Rusticana and “Speak Softly Love,” the famed “Love Theme from The Godfather.

When asked about a potential Godfather IV, D’Ambrosio said, “There has been discussions recently. I’d love to do it and will free myself from the concert schedule. Coppola is a genius.”

While he admitted that the set was ‘tense’ at times, D’Ambrosio stated that it was a thrilling experience.

“On my first day, I show up on the set and watched Al Pacino and Andy Garcia doing a scene. Al is such a method actor, we were only Anthony and Dad. Even off the set, I called him Dad and he called me Anthony.”

After viewing The Godfather Part III,” Luciano Pavarotti took interest in D’Ambrosio and he became Pavarotti’s apprentice. This is a tradition that D’Ambrosio has continued by teaching Master Voice Classes worldwide, including a recent stop at Broward Center for the Performing Arts.

For a nominal fee, D’Ambrosio listened to six singers, age 15 to middle aged. With each instruction, each student presented a stronger, more authentic performance. When class ended, D’Ambrosio stayed after school to work with additional students.

“A performance is not about you, but giving to the audience. That is what the people want and it is my job to provide that experience.”

Like his mentor Pavarotti, D’Ambrosio taught more than vocal technique. Pavarotti once said, “Franc, if you have to stop living to sing, stop singing.”

D’Ambrosio stressed this point further.

“I spend little time with high maintenance people. Life off-stage is full of adventure, not drama. I stay with good friends and drink good wine. I don’t let my mind get ahead of me, and I am careful about sleep.”

Beyond success in movies, opera and Broadway, D’Ambrosio explained his motivation.

“When you do what you love, it gives you energy. My Catholic faith is the center of my life, focusing on putting God first and nothing else … that’s how I live, to live for happiness and peace.”

Happy Easter, dear readers!

By Dave Montalbano

www.AdventuresofCinemaDave

After being involved with box office duds recently, Redford directs his first historical motion picture about the assassination of America’s first Republican president. The Conspirator opens with the murder of President Lincoln by John Wilkes Boothe. After a national manhunt, Boothe was shot in a burning barn and five associates were arrested and put to trial in a military tribunal. This is the most exciting and energetic portion of the movie.

When the court is in session (in candlelight — in a world without electricity) the pace of The Conspirator slows down and becomes a courtroom drama. Union Civil War Veteran Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy) becomes the public defender of Mary Suratt (Robin Wright), proprietor of the bed & breakfast where the assassination was planned. Surratt invokes the 5th Amendment and doesn’t speak to defend herself. While her actions are seen as a presumption of guilt, her motives are maternal; Surratt wants to protect
her daughter Anna  (Evan Rachel Wood) and son, John (Johnny Simmons), a young man implicated because he was friends with John Wilkes Booth.

As Mary Surratt, Robin Wright will be considered for an Oscar. Her stoic actions are only betrayed by the windows of the soul, her eyes. With his work in Atonement and the new X-Men movie being released this summer, James McAvoy will become a household name in the movies. As Aiken, McAvoy is the film’s narrator and masters a transitional performance. Enjoying the wigs, beards and 19th Century clothing, veteran actors Kevin Kline (as Edwin Staton) and Tom Willinkson (as Reverdy Johnson), sink their teeth into character roles. The new generation of ensemble players, Evan Rachel Wood, Alexis Bledel and Justin Long acquit themselves in this fine, but dark, drama.

• On a lighter note, Bill Cunningham New York is a cheerful documentary about a New York fashion photographer. Cunningham contributes to the Sunday edition of the New York Times  by photographing strangers on the street and noting the clothes they are wearing. From his randomly taken photographs, Cunningham and his assistants review patterns, trends and fads while fashion moguls like Anna Wintour, Annette De La Renta and Mrs. Vincent Astor are interviewed.

• And finally, the last local festival of the season –Downtown Boca Film Festival—held in Boca and Delray, concludes this weekend. For tickets and information, visit www.dbff.us.

By Dave Montalbano

VIPs: Al Zucaro, Yvonne Boice, Richard Jenkins, Randi Emerman and Tristan Rogers at Silver Screen Splash. Photo by Rachel Galvin .

The 16th Annual Palm Beach International Film Festival closed their festival with a triumphant note, boasting sell-outs for international movies that were locally screened. With a solid financial foundation, the core team of organizers has weathered the storm and talks are underway for PBIFF 17.

For those suffering from film festival withdrawal, the inaugural Palm Beach International Women’s Festival begins tonight in West Palm Beach and Lake Worth (through the 10th – www.pbwiff.com). Sharon Gless of Cagney & Lacey fame will be honored. One person PBIWF should considering honoring next year would be surfer champion Bethany Hamilton.

Hamilton was the 13-year-old surfer prodigy who lost her arm to a tiger shark. Through sheer will and determination, Hamilton returned to the sport she loved and, within a year, she was honored by ESPN as the “Comeback Player of the Year.”  Recently turning 21, Hamilton still surfs competitively and published “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board.”

It is an inspirational story, one that Hollywood hucksters could easily turn into a maudlin Hallmark Hall of Fame broadcast. Fortunately for the ticket buyer, great care went into this production. Hollywood has produced a pure family movie that will be remembered for many years to come.

Dennis Quaid and Linda Hunt portray Pa and Ma Hamilton, respectively. These cool parents home school their children, which allows Bethany (AnnaSophia Robb) extra time to practice her surfing. After winning a local surfing tournament, Bethany begins to attack corporate sponsors.

Unlike the buildup for Jaws, the shark attack in this movie is a jarring surprise. The sequence is not sensationalistic like Piranha 3-D, but done with realistic urgency. This sequence, along with the climactic surfing sequences, are edited quite well. One can see the action within the frame on screen and it avoids attention deficit disorder editing.

Top billed AnnaSophia Robb carries this film from beginning to end with a restrained performance. In her scenes with Dennis Quaid, these two actors bring a sense of conviction to their discussion about biblical faith. Soul Surfer is a movie about heart and faith, a film about families and for families. It is also one of the best movies released in 2011.

By the way, April 9-17 is the Downtown Boca Film Fest (www.dbff.com).

By Dave Montalbano

There is just too much happening these days in our cinematic neighborhood!

No fooling, this Saturday evening, 90-year-old Ernest Borgnine will romance Ray Romano’s Mama (Doris Roberts) at Cinema Paradiso. Both Borgnine and Roberts will attend the screening of their new movie Another Harvest Moon.

Set in a nursing home, Another Harvest Moon examines the aging process and the effects upon the family. While the subject is serious, life affirming humor rules the day. Besides Borgnine and Roberts, this fine ensemble cast features Piper Laurie, Anne Meara, Cybil Shepherd and Amber Benson. Already there is Oscar buzz for Borgnine’s performance. Besides Cinema Paradiso, Another Harvest Moon will also be screened at the Living Room Theater on the FAU campus.

Besides opening Potiche this weekend, the Living Room Theatre has screened The Human Resources Manager, a foreign film in Hebrew about a bakery in Jerusalem with financial problems. After an employee is killed in a terrorist bombing, the Human Resources Manager is accused of indifference. While he did not really know the individual while she was alive, the supervisor learns to respect the woman in memoriam.

Insidious will open on many screens this April Fool’s Day Friday. From the creators of the original Saw and Paranormal Activity, Insidious is a creepy horror movie made for the fans of the genre. With nods toward Poltergeist, The Sixth Sense and The Exorcist, writer Leigh Whannell and Director James Wan deliver the jolts and laughs required for a film of this genre.

While playing in the attic of their new home, Dalton (Ty Simpkins) becomes catatonic. After visiting medical specialist after medical specialist, the father (Patrick Lambert) learns from his mother (Barbara Hershey) that the solution could have a paranormal answer. Noted Paranormal Psychic Elise Rainer (Lin Shaye) investigates the mystery that involves visiting the astroplane in the 4th dimension.

Don’t let the paranormal mumbo jumbo distract you. Insidious is a triumph of technical artistry over low budget. Instead of overwhelming the viewer with CGI special effects, Insidious contains “old school” special effects, creating a more intimate experience. It proves that stagecraft is alive and well in the motion picture world.

While Insidious, The Human Resources Manager and  Potiche look interesting, meeting Ernest Borgnine and Doris Roberts at Cinema Paradiso this weekend seems an extremely entertaining choice for this April Fool’s weekend. Info: www.fliff.com

By Dave Montalbano

Burt Young kicked off the 16th Annual Palm Beach International Film Festival (PBIFF) last night with a screening of the critically-acclaimed flick Win Win in West Palm Beach. Master of Ceremonies Tristan Rogers returns to the Boca Raton Hotel & Club poolside for the annual gala. This year, character actor Richard Jenkins will receive the Golden Palm Award for his four decades of work in the movie business.

Recently nominated for an Oscar for his work in The Visitor, Jenkins has worked steadily in both television (Miami Vice, Six Feet Under and movies (Hannah and Her Sisters, Eat, Pray, Love) and has worked steadily for both the Coen and Farrelly Brothers in flicks like  Intolerable Cruelty  and  There’s Something About Mary, respectively.

Friday night’s Silver Screen Splash will also feature the music of Grammy Award-nominated producer and song writer Dennis Lambert. Now a real estate agent in Boca Raton, Lambert’s eclectic music was the soundtrack for people who listened to Top 40 radio from the ‘70s to the ‘80s. Lambert worked with Glenn Campbell, Jefferson Starship, The Four Tops and The Commodores. His most memorable song “One Tin Soldier” was in
the iconic ‘70s flick Billy Jack.

The Living Room Theaters (Florida Atlantic University) is the only venue south of Delray  that will be screening festival films. As scattered as this year’s fest is, there are some interesting documentaries and foreign films of interest. Exporting Raymond features the post Everybody Loves Raymond life of producer/writer Phil Rosenthal, who tries to adapt his fictional Long Island family into a Russian sitcom with disastrous, but humorous results.

Shira Piven wrote and directed Fully Loaded, a film about two mothers who try to make sense of a one night stand with a young man, played by Dweezil Zappa. The South Florida premier of Potiche, by writer-director Francois Ozon, reunites Catherine Deneuve with Gérard Depardieu.

Given that PBIFF 16 was considered DOA last year, the core team behind the scenes has managed to keep the festival on life support for another year. Given the historical and cultural standards set in the past, PBIFF deserves the time to right the ship for smoother sailing. Suggestion: show confidence for PBIFF 17 by planning sooner, acknowledge local cinema heroes like Eric the Doorman and schedule the festival back to April.

For more information, visit www.pbifilmfest.org.