Kung Fu Panda

Jack Black is hilarious. It's as simple as that. His shtick may get old in some settings, but when he's got a setting to twist it a little bit from his worn out Tenacious D persona I find him extremely entertaining, and Kung Fu Panda does a great job of channeling his energy into a clumsy, kung-fu-obsessed noodle soup chef-apprentice.

Dreamworks Animation has a somewhat checkered history. Where Pixar seems to create unique characters, Dreamworks trades almost exclusively on translating a recognizable actor into some type of animal -- Mike Meyers in Shrek, Will Smith in Shark Tale, Seinfeld in Bee Movie -- and quite frankly those were all pretty useless. But when they hit the mark, as with Jack Black, or Woody Allen in the hysterical Antz, it's a joy to watch.

The animation easily outdoes all their earlier attempts, with fantastic fog-shrouded and exagerated oriental landscapes and beautiful creature design. I would be happy to watch the movie with the sound off for the facial expressions alone, although the brilliant casting choices of Black, Dustin Hoffman, and James Hong would make that a shame. The choreography of the fight scenes is wild, and quite creative. The story is good, if not too surprising, and the ending has a very satisfying zen aspect to it. Great for kids, but also fine fare for those who are fans of the new breed of animated film like Emperor's New Groove that are designed to appeal to adults as well.

Visioneers

Employees of the Jeffers Corporation, the biggest, friendliest company in the world, salute each other each morning with a friendly middle finger, happily complete their work handed down from Level 4, and dutifully ignore the fact that people around them are exploding from pent up frustration.

In a wonderfully twisted modern fairy tale with more than a touch of Brazil, the perils of boredom and facile distraction are presented as very real, and very fatal. The story follows the head of one division of the Jeffers Corp as he starts to realize that his life is not everything he thought.

There's a hint of Indie bareness under the surface, but it's totally excusable since the plot is just so damned original. Perfectly understated, perhaps even slow at times, but never boring. There are a few really great visual moments, and plenty of social commentary against everyone and everything. Don't expect jokes, or car chases, or anything resembling modern Hollywood's traditional output. But Visioneers is great anyway.

It's Hard to Be Nice

A low-level crook in Eastern Europe tries to go straight, to the dismay of his wife, friends, and cohorts.

Surprisingly relaxed considering the number of times the main character is beaten up, the film is a sometimes-funny look at the difficulties in breaking peoples perceptions. While the plot doesn't have a particularly strong arc, the gradual progression of the main character is fun, as are the vain and comically pompous side characters. The movie finds a lot of dry humor in the culture of the city that would be hard to replicate if the story were set anywhere else.

The cinematography is gritty and realistic, and the direction lets the actors stay understated but still seem strong as the focus. And although the pacing feels very laid back, there are enough twists that it stays interesting throughout. In the end, definitely worth seeing.

Choke

It's hard to imagine how Choke could be any better. Based faithfully on a story by one of my favorite authors (Chuck Pahlaniuk), staring an actor and actress I love (Sam Rockwell and Anjelica Huston), with good direction and a good soundtrack.

Vincent is a sex addict, who makes some extra money on the side by choking himself in restaurants and taking gifts from the people who save him. His mother is an aging freedom fighter hippie, who has a secret about Vincent's father. And the details as the plot unfolds are uniquely Pahlaniuk.

Unfortunately it's no Fight Club. The slick production and relentless energy are absent, which is a shame since they were so much fun there, even though they wouldn't really fit here. Instead, the film takes a leisurely stroll through dirty, gritty, faded reality and the people who inhabit it. Of course there's the humor that always ends up in his work, and it translates quite well to the screen. So while there's a vague sense that maybe the movie could have been just a bit more, it's still one of the better ones for this year.

The Great Buck Howard

Few things make for a good plot like abject failure, and The Great Buck Howard delivers spectacularly. John Malkovich, perfect as always, brings warmth and compassion to the character of an aging and nearly forgotten mentalist playing to half-full houses in Akron Ohio and similar out of the way venues around the country.

That's just a supporting character, albeit a large one. The lead is a law school drop-out who hires on as Buck's assistant in search of adventure and a way to break in to show business. The character is well played, and provides a good anchor for the story to balance Buck's posturing ("My good friend George Takei, who played Sulu on The Star Trek").

The premise at least is autobiographical for the writer/director, and the care taken in the script shows it. It's not a fast movie, but the pleasure is in watching the characters grow, rather than a driving plot. And with these actors, it works quite well.

Mad Detective

Perhaps mistakenly billed as a "buddy comedy" on the SIFF website, Mad Detective oscillates between nervous laughter, gruesome insanity, and tense mystery.

The main character is a brilliant but disturbed detective, who sees inner personalities as physically distinct people and solves crimes by re-enacting the actions of the victims in obsessive detail. Fired from the police force and re-enlisted by his one-time partner to help with a stale case involving a murdered officer, he is in danger of losing control again.

The film is beautifully shot but intentionally dark and gritty to the point of being depressing. The characters are all extremely flawed, and quite well played. I found the plot a bit convoluted, but the journey is a hell of a lot of fun, especially when the hero is simultaneously confronting seven physical personalities of a suspect.

While the comedy is quite good, the dramatic aspects are better than I expected. The main character has plenty of sadness in his past, and it's played quite well. And maybe it's just me, but the overarching theme of failure brought everything together brilliantly.

Kiss The Bride

There's a tired old adage, "Why do gays want to marry? Haven't they seen how miserable married people are?" The same question should have been asked of a director who aspires to make a "gay movie" which contains all the worst elements of every low quality romantic comedy of the past thirty years.

Kiss The Bride is a dismal train-wreck of a movie. Inane writing and cringe-worthy jokes are only made worse by poor acting. Sadly there are a couple decent jokes buried in the midst, but they are more than overshadowed by the in your face, "We're gay, hey, look at us, see how gay we are! We're being gay!" attitude conveyed by so many characters. Any character who plays one facet to such extremes is next to intolerable, and to have literally dozens of them is mind-numbing.

Michou d'Auber

Another confession: I have never seen a movie starring Gerard Depardieu until this one. And now I want to go see what I've been missing.

Michou is a Muslim boy of Algerian descent who is left in the French foster care system when his father can no longer support their family. He's taken in by a woman from a small town where most of the residents are extremely prejudiced, including his ex-army foster father (the movie is set during the presidency of Charles Du Gaulle and the Algerian war for independence). The woman changes the boy's name, dyes his hair blonde, and hijinks ensue.

A story that might be hackneyed is kept fresh by clever writing and a terrific cast. And plenty of drunkenness, fistfights, and infidelity offset the touching family moments, although not enough to overwhelm the sweetness of the film. Overall, an understated French comedy that is well worth seeing.