Adaptation (DVD review)

Adaptation (2002) starring Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper. Directed by Spike Jonze. Apparently this movie is not for everyone, but it is one of my favorite movies of the past decade. Based on Susan Orlean's book "The Orchid Thief," it is one of those rare films that reflects the screenwriting process in intimate detail. Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman made the script about the process of adapting this plotless book to the movie screen. It is partly about him, partly about Susan Orlean, and partly about the orchid thief himself, a strange character who is definitely the most interesting thing about the book and the movie. Cage, Streep and Cooper all deliver top-notch performances. Grade: A

The Aviator (DVD review)

The Aviator (2004) starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett. Directed by Martin Scorsese. Length: 2 hours 50 minutes. "The Aviator" was nominated for a best-picture Oscar, and Blanchett won Supporting Actress for her turn as Kate Hepburn. Nevertheless, this is a so-so biographical picture about famed billionaire recluse Howard Hughes. DiCaprio, in the title role, doesn't convincingly age over the 20-some years covered by the movie. His portrayal of Hughes's early symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder is a little over-the-top. There are some enjoyable cinematic moments, mostly of airplanes being built or in flight. But overall it's three hours spent in a questionable cause. Grade: B

Nightingales (book review)

Nightingales: The Extraordinary Upbringing and Curious Life of Miss Florence Nightingale (2004) by Gillian Gill. This book's greatest strength is also its weakness. It is so thoroughly researched that reading it becomes a chore. Although the subject is fascinating -- Florence Nightingale and her life in Victorian England, told in great detail -- it's not an easy read. For anyone who is up to it (fast readers have an advantage here), it is rewarding. The section dealing with Miss Nightingale's nursing activities during the Crimean War is of particular interest. Grade: B

Kinsey (DVD review)

Kinsey (2004) starring Liam Neeson, Laura Linney. Interesting, slightly episodic story of Alfred Kinsey, the famed sex researcher, his family and colleagues. Frank treatment of sexual subject matter might make this unsuitable for any but the most mature teens. Grade: B

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (DVD review)

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) starring Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson. Directed by Martin Scorsese. Burstyn won an Oscar for Best Actress in this well-told tale of a woman trying to make her way in the world after her husband dies. This film might be considered a period piece by now as it portrays the early days of the women's movement. Also features performances in minor roles by a very young Jodie Foster and Harvey Keitel. Grade: B+

In Good Company (DVD review)

In Good Company (2004) starring Dennis Quaid, Topher Grace, Scarlett Johansson. I saw this movie in the theater when it first came out, and I liked it better on second viewing, in the living room. The main relationship in the film, between Quaid and Grace, works well. Grace plays a young hotshot brought in by a mega-corporation to take over the business Quaid works for. It's a nice snapshot of American society and corporate excess. Grace and Johansson are supposed to be a couple in this film, but it's a little hard to believe. He's supposed to be older than her, but she seems by far the more mature member of the pair. It's hard not to think of him as the kid in "That '70s Show." Grade: B+

Lost and Delirious (DVD review)

Lost and Delirious (2001) starring Piper Perabo, Jessica Pare, Mischa Barton. Lesbian melodrama set at a girls' boarding school is notable for Perabo's performance and for early appearances by Pare and Barton, now both starring in popular TV series. Unfortunately the resolution is lacking in impact. Grade: B-

Enduring Love (DVD review)

Enduring Love (2004) starring Daniel Craig, Samantha Morton. Promising opening scene about a runaway hot-air balloon degenerates into tedious thriller involving a madman who pursues the protagonist, sort of remotely like "Fatal Attraction." Grade: C