The Campaign - 2 smiles

“The Campaign,” starring Will Farrell and Zach Galifianakis as North Carolina candidates going head-to-head in a congressional election, prefers silly jokes and sight gags to a truly penetrating satire of partisan politics. Although it does possess a bit of topicality in the form of Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow as two super-wealthy, sweatshop-owning brothers who try to rig the election by infusing a Super PAC with loads of money. Their name? It’s Motch (which rhymes with Koch. Get it?).

The movie opens with Farrell’s character, a vapid smoothie named Cam Brady getting ready to address his adoring fans. His topic is ‘America, Jesus and freedom,’ and it’s his three-word answer to every question. Cam has won every election because he had always run unopposed, but this year, the Motch brothers have selected Marty Huggins (Galifianakis) to run against him. Marty is happily married even though he walks with a mincing gait, owns two pugs and talks with a high-pitched lisp. Typically, their campaign devolves into an absurd war of character assassination with novice Marty being advised by the sinister Tim Wattley (Dylan McDermott). Both Farrell and Galifianakis are good and I appreciated that this is one Farrell movie that isn’t all stupidity (although there is some). Because Uggie, the Jack Russell terrier from The Artist makes a cameo and the pugs are cute, this movie isn’t a total loss. But there’s still a sense that “The Campaign” missed a chance to be smarter and more stinging. 9/14/12

The Cold Light of Day - 1 smile

The fact that “The Cold Light of Day” opened with no advance critics’ screenings and minimal marketing should be enough warning that this movie is pretty awful. But when you look at the cast, Bruce Willis, Sigourney Weaver and Henry Cavill (the next Superman), you’d think that this would be a fairly decent actioner. It’s not. It should have gone directly to DVD. And the most ominous thing about this movie is the lead, Henry Cavill, is flat, unconvincing and, at times, down right irritating. While he’s paired with Willis, he’s okay, but once he’s forced by circumstances to go solo, he doesn’t have enough screen presence to create any interest in what happens to him.

Cavill is Will Shaw, the oldest son of Martin (Willis) and Laurie (Caroline Goodall), who is visiting Spain for an annual sailing vacation with his family. Will’s relationship with his father is strained, but he decides to stick around despite financial troubles back home in San Francisco. Will swims ashore and when he returns, he finds the boat empty and his family gone. A visit to the local police station reveals that some kind of conspiracy is afoot. Martin appears out of nowhere to help Will escape from the corrupt cops, then reveals that he’s really a CIA operative. He has 24 hours to deliver a briefcase to terrorists or they will kill his family. His first stop is to visit Carrack (Weaver), his longtime partner, who is, of course, crooked. The script doesn’t make much sense other than it’s an excuse to keep Will running. At one point he’s chased by the group that kidnapped his family, Carrack and her henchmen and the cops. And, for the most part, a frantic, clueless Will makes for an annoying protagonist. And don’t get me started on the title, which usually has some connection to the contents of the movie. Wait for “The Light of Day” to be on cable. Then you can switch when you lose interest. 9/8/12

Premium Rush - 3 smiles

See “Premium Rush” for the adrenalin-inducing scenes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s bicycle messenger character maneuvering through New York’s busiest streets at up to 50 mph, not for the rather contrived plot. Director David Koepp wisely keeps our attention focused on Wilee (Gordon-Levitt) and his colleagues as they dodge cars, taxis, school buses, pedestrians, baby carriages and other looming obstacles. And Koepp adds stylistic touches, such as Wilee’s multiple split-second visions of the outcome of any given maneuver: If he goes this way, he hits a pedestrian. If he goes that way, he gets hit by a taxi. But if he goes a third way, he’s clear. Wilee’s last assignment of the day is to get an envelope from Nima (Jamie Chung), who works at Columbia Law School, where Wilee used to be a student. Within minutes of securing the envelope, Wilee is approached by a stranger who identifies himself as a school official and attempts to reclaim the package. The stranger is actually a corrupt NYPD detective Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon at his menacing best). When Wilee refuses, Monday chases Wilee all over town even though you have to wonder how Monday in a car manages to keep track of Wilee on a bike.

In a less interesting subplot, Wilee has a rivalry going with fellow bike messenger Manny (Wole Parks). Each considers himself the hottest biker around and both are interested in co-worker Vanessa (Dania Ramirez). Gordon-Levitt spends nearly the entire movie on his bike, which makes for dynamic sequences through traffic-choked streets and I’m sure if you know New York, you’d appreciate it even more. So in spite of improbable events and far-fetched plot points, like a flash mob of bike messengers ready to help Wilee, it’s easy to enjoy this end-of-summer actioner.  8/24/12