Sleepwalk With Me - Review

Sleepwalk With Me
(2012 - September 10)
Comedy
1 hr. 30 min.

Rated: PG-13 some sexual content and brief language
Grade: C+

Directors: Mike Birbiglia, Seth Barrish
Writers: Mike Birbiglia, Joe Birbiglia, Ira Glass, and Seth Barrish (screenplay)
Stars: Mike Birbiglia, Lauren Ambrose , Carol Kane and James Rebhorn | See full cast and crew

"I'm going to tell you a story, and it's true....I always have to tell people that." So asserts comedian-turned-playwright-turned-filmmaker Mike Birbiglia directly to the viewer at the outset of his autobiographically inspired, fictional feature debut. Birbiglia wears his incisive wit on his sleeve while portraying a cinematic surrogate. We are thrust into the tale of a burgeoning stand-up comedian struggling with the stress of a stalled career, a stale relationship threatening to race out of his control, and the wild spurts of severe sleepwalking he is desperate to ignore. Based on the successful one-man show, Sleepwalk With Me engages in the kind of passionate and personal storytelling that transfigures intimate anguish into comic art. -- (C) IFC

Winner of a 2012 Audience Award at Sundance, comedian Mike Birbiglia wrote, directed and stars in this sincere and occasionally humorous film, based on his off-Broadway show and bestselling book.

Sleepwalk With Me is the brain-child of Mike Birbiglia, a stand-up  comedian who amazingly uses almost no profanity in his act. The film is co-written with Ira Glass (the host and producer of National Public Radio's "This American Life") and with Birbiglia's brother Joe, Sleepwalk With Me is based on Birbiglia's life, specifically dealing with his sleepwalking problem and his relationship troubles. In the film Birbiglia, narrates the events from his own humorous viewpoint. He presents himself as a likeable, vulnerable, cuddly Teddy Bear like character, and in comparison to most comics today, I guess I could accept him as such.

Much credit for the success of the films goes to Ambrose, who brings heart, warmth and humanity to her role. Most of these self promoting projects have a major flaw, that being the male lead who invariably is a egotistical man-child who somehow (through his own casting influence) is in a relationship with a beautiful, smart woman who is way out of his league. However, Ms. Ambrose makes their relationship credible, where you could actually visualize this couple staying together despite Matt being such a sad sack dolt. It's takes half of the movie before anything really gets going and the drama of the relationship begins to take over the story; the first half is stuck in the aimlessness that is Matt's life and career. It takes way too long to establish the characters.

The critics have been generous in their praise of this film. They talk about how likeable Matt is and what a good guy he is. I see it a little differently, this is their situation: Matt Pandamiglio (Mike Birbiglia) is dating Abby (Lauren Ambrose), who he loves and has been with for eight years. They’re intent on buying a house, moving together, doing all these “couple” things, and relatives are constantly encouraging them to get married, particularly after Matt’s sister's wedding. Matt’s unsure of a lot of things, though, one of which is most certainly marriage, which he doesn’t see as anything he’d really want. Sure, as long as he is getting all the benefits of marriage without actually making a commitment to the relationship, yeah, what a great guy. Abby is his doormat, she wants to get married but doesn’t want to force Matt into it, pathetically, she bides her time not wanting to hurt his feelings. Carol Kane and James Rebhorn very ably play Matt's parents Linda and Frank and, although Frank's repeated use of God's name as an expletive was quite annoying. 

After eight years of indecisiveness and knowing that Abby wants to marry and start a family but unwilling to step up to the plate, Matt starts to feel trapped and the stress materializes as something a bit strange: he starts sleepwalking, he’s actually acting out his dreams, this is known as REM behavior disorder. This is a very dangerous condition for a person to go through he is told, some sufferers have actually killed their own loved ones while in their sleep. Matt’s isn’t that serious he says, yet he jumps out of a two-story window at a motel and does himself some serious mischief.

This condition is obviously linked to his personal problems, even if it’s never explicitly mentioned or psychoanalyzed. The structure of Sleepwalk With Me is that of a documentary but has the ebb and flow of a narrative film. The actors are essentially reenacting everything that happened to Mike Birbiglia during this difficult time of his life. It’s clever filmmaking, whether or not it is true that a lot of the things that are in the film actually did happen to him. The stand-up bits are intermixed in with the narrative  occasionally cutting to Mike driving in his car (his parent's car) talking about his life which is sort of interesting since the personas he gives off throughout the story vary. He’s confident and composed in present day beginning of the film, he's nervous, unfocused and jittery in his early comedy gigs and in his early bits with Abby.  During his evolution some of his stuff really isn’t funny, it’s just lame observations, and some of that is mildly amusing. Those lame bits are of course used to counteract his other bits from his more evolved persona. There are some prominent comedians in supporting roles, faces whom you may not be able to name but whom you will likely recognize, and there are some new faces to provide some laughs.

Mike Birbiglia at work on the Set

Mike Birbiglia won't be the comedian for everyone but Sleepwalk With Me is a great vehicle for him. Filmmakers often mirror their own lives, channeling real emotions to make the content on screen feel extremely personal. As far as I know, everything in the movie is factual: emotionally, his sojourn through life and love with his girlfriend and the inability to hurt one another; and physically,  he actually did need 32 stitches in his legs after falling out a window, not to mention all the bumps and bruises inflicted to his head and body; and mentally, his sleep disorder that he may still be experiencing, at the end of the film there is a bit where he zips himself up in a sleeping bag and puts on mittens on his hands.

Unfortunately the film is not quite as interesting and certainly not as clever and funny the trailer suggests. Nor is it as great as the critics say it is, in the end it is an OK, even pleasant, film that will soon be forgotten.

Cast

Mike Birbiglia   Lauren Ambrose
Mike       Abby

 Carol Kane       James Rebhorn

Linda        Frank

The Mine - Review

The Mine
(2012)
Thriller
1 hr. 35 min.

Rated: PG13 some scary images, brief language
Grade: C+

Director: Jeff Chamberlain
Writer: Jeff Chamberlain
Stars: Alexa Vega, Reiley McClendon and Saige Thompson | See full cast and crew

Five school friends seek adventure on Halloween night by exploring a legendary haunted mine, only to discover to their horror that the ghostly rumors may be true.

The premise for this Utah-made film, The Mine, is a tried and true Halloween thriller/horror formula, very familiar but also very effective.  Even though it could have and should have gone a little further than it did, I still give it a thumbs up for what it is attempting to do, provide a 'Family Friendly' Halloween horror experience and does, for the most part, accomplish it's goals.

Writer-director Jeff Chamberlain eschews the “Hollywood establishment" morals asserting that a movie can attract a teenage audience and entertain them without all the blood, gore, foul language and sex so prevalent in such films. There is some brief language but no 'f' words nor are religious names used as expletives. Yeah!
The Mine, relies on Hitchcock-style techniques and suspense to create the adrenalin rush scares and to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. In one scene that will give any claustrophobic the creeps, the teens wriggle their way into a tiny tunnel in the dark, dank mine, not knowing what is at the other end or if there is an end, or if the tight squeeze will narrow to the point of trapping them (it gives me the creeps just writing about it, remembering how not that long ago some friends did this very thing at another location in Utah and one of the guys got stuck with his head down and his feet up and his friends couldn't pull him out. Efforts were made to rescue him but he died before he could be pulled free. Gross! What a horrible way to die.) The creepy moments in The Mine are earned, the film doesn't rely on the the standard jump-scares (accompanied by a blast of loud jarring music).

Basically five small town college-age friends plan a Halloween night together at the site of a supposedly haunted, abandoned mine. Alpha male, ex-jock Brad, promises the girls that they're not actually going inside they'll just sit around the fire roasting marshmallows and smores and talking, but when it starts to rain he convinces them to inside the mine until the storm passes. Soon, the group of five becomes four, and then three, and so on and so on. 

The main theme or the story revolves around Brad’s relationship with his girlfriend, Sharon, and her best friend Laurie (Brad's ex-girlfriend) and his resentment that Laurie has escaped their small-town life to attend college at Stanford. It is this background story that enables the filmmakers to develop stronger characters than you usually get in this genre. Although there are not as many scares as one would expect or that should be they are earned without all the usual slasher type gore, and there are some surprising twists and turns at the film's climax.

Plot

Brad and his small-town friends decide on an overnight Halloween adventure with a visit to the “haunted” Jarvis mine. The past and present intersect as the five young adrenaline junkies defy the angry spirits of a family murdered exactly one hundred years ago.

Brad has organized the trip as a last-ditch attempt to hold onto relationships that are on the verge of dissolving as the young people go their separate ways. He plans to stay in “Happy Valley” and he sees those closest to him slipping away. Laurie his ex-girlfriend is moving on to medical school and brings her brainy friend Ethan (from India) to the party. Sharon is Brad’s current flame, but she wonders if he still has feelings for Laurie.

Jimmy is the loveable jock and Brad’s longtime sidekick. He’s along for the wieners and soda, and because well, he always goes where Brad goes.

Once in the mine, bad things happen and Brad’s best-laid plans go awry, leaving the adventurers trapped without escape. But are their misfortunes purely accidental? Are there supernatural forces at work? Or does a monster lurk in the darkness?

As one “accident” follows another, the friends begin to doubt their rational thoughts, with terrifying results.

  

Just when you think you’ve figured out THE MINE, it presents plot twists and turns that surprise and amaze you. One by one you’ll learn most –but not all of the secrets of the friends, as well as…of THE MINE. -- From The Mine's official website

In this video writer-director Jeff Chamberlain revisits the mine with his daughter and Ben Hansen of The Si-Fi Channel's "Fact or Faked".

Cast

Alexa Vega                Reiley McClendon       Saige Thompson
 Sharon                                Brad                               Laurie        

             Charan Prabhakar    Adam Hendershott
         Ethan                                  Jim

Chasing Mavericks - Review

Chasing Mavericks
(2012)
Drama
1 hr. 55 min.

Rated: PG
Grade: C+

Directors: Michael Apted, Curtis Hanson
Writers: Kario Salem (screenplay),
Jim Meenaghan (story),
Brandon Hooper (story)
Stars: Jonny Weston, Gerard Butler, Abigail Spencer and Elisabeth Shue | See full cast and crew

Chasing Mavericks is the inspirational true story of real life surfing phenom Jay Moriarity (played by newcomer Jonny Weston). When 15 year old Jay discovers that the mythic Mavericks surf break, one of the biggest waves on Earth, is not only real, but exists just miles from his Santa Cruz home, he enlists the help of local legend Frosty Hesson (played by Gerard Butler) to train him to survive it. As Jay and Frosty embark on their quest to accomplish the impossible, they form a unique friendship that transforms both their lives, and their quest to tame Mavericks becomes about far more than surfing. Chasing Mavericks was made with the help of some of the biggest names in the surfing world, and features some of the most mind-blowing real wave footage ever captured on film. -- (C) Official Site

Having never surfed a day in my life, I am as one might surmise, a fish out of water when it comes to discussing the authenticity of this film's surfer experience. For a dyed-in-the-wool surfer's opinion of this film check out Matt Pruett's review of Chasing Mavericks over at Surfline.com. Since was never much of a swimmer, and of course living more than six hundred miles from the nearest ocean becoming a surfer was was merely a dream that was never going to come to fruition. About the best I could hope for was to dream about how exciting, how cool, how Zen-like, how ego inflating it would be to shoot the curl of the monster  waves, hanging ten, with everyone watching from the beach. That would be totally gnarly dude! Yeah, like that would ever happen. Meanwhile back at the theater, the question is...how good of a movie is Chasing Mavericks? The simple answer is, its an average movie, not a bad movie but certainly not a great movie either.

.

This movie is, however, a very worthwhile film for younger children and teens. It promotes valuable life lessons. Lessons like doing things the safe way is the right way. That seemingly impossible things can be achieved through determination, dedication, perseverance and hard work. It's not loaded with foul language, gratuitous sex or bathroom humor. That in and of itself makes Chasing Mavericks deserving of a positive nod. It is unfortunate that the script, directing and performances are predictable stereotypes. Most reviewers have been critical and made reference to the Karate Kid parallels. Beyond that, it is difficult to know how faithful the script is to the real life events in the lives of Jay Moriarity and his mentor Rick 'Frosty' Hesson. There is truly no suspense here. We know going in (even if we are unfamiliar with Jay Moriarity) that there is no doubt that the little 8 year old boy, who is miraculously saved from a watery grave by Frosty Hesson, is not only going to learn to surf and is going to do it very well. We also know that he will conquer the big mythological waves known as Mavericks. I mean, why would anyone bother to even make a movie about this little boy unless he was going to succeed.

There are some side story asides that are never fully explained and don't really go anywhere nor do they do much to advance the story. The real joy of the film comes from the waves themselves and the surfers that live to brave them. The cinematography is stunning and the waves are the true, varifiable stars of the film.

Jay wipes out at Mavericks

Jay Moriarity's iconic Mavericks drop, May 1995.

The sad irony of Chasing Mavericks and Jay Moriarity's life is that he spent so much time and effort with Frosty Hesson learning how to safely conquer the Mavericks at the tender age of 16 only to tragically lose his life seven years pushing the limits of his body. He died one day prior to his 23 birthday, June 15, 2001, in the Indian Ocean off the coast of the island Lohifushi in the Maldives, drowning in an apparent diving accident. He was in Lohifushi for an O'Neill photo shoot, when he went free-diving alone and never returned. A search party recovered his body late Friday night. Moriarity left behind his wife Kim Moriarity, they had been married less than one year.

Free-diving with mono fin

Free-diving is a form of underwater diving that does not involve the use of scuba gear or other external breathing devices, but rather relies on a diver's ability to hold his or her breath until resurfacing. Examples include breath-hold spear fishing, free-dive photography, apnea competitions, and to some degree, snorkeling. The activity that garners the most public attention is the extreme sport of competitive apnea in which competitors attempt to attain great depths, times, or distances on a single breath.

Jay was well loved and respected in the surfing world.

“People will forget what you say and do, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Jay touched so many people and he tried to leave everywhere he went just a little bit better. When people were around him, they felt the love and sincerity. Jay used to love to look for the gnarliest looking person he could find, make eye contact with them and smile. He came from a place of love in his heart and would use it to break down barriers with other people. ‘Live Like Jay’ doesn’t mean you have to be a tough, big-wave surfer. Jay knew that, even for him, that would eventually end. It means find out what you’re here for and follow it. Be true to yourself and treat others well.” -- Kim Moriarity

Jay Moriarity

Mark Foo

Jay Moriarity

The Jay Moriarity wipe-out was the initial event to catapult Mavericks into the international surfing scene. Lest one assume that these are not truly dangerous waves, just four days after Jay's infamous wipe-out, Hawaiian Superstar Mark Foo drowned at Mavericks when he got a late takeoff into a 18-foot wave. Sadly no one was aware that Mark never surfaced after his wipeout. A few hours later Foo's body was found washed toward the shore, floating just under the water surface with a piece of his surfboard still attached by the leash to his ankle. It is assumed that he was either knocked unconscious or got entangled in his 'leash', preventing him from surfacing. However, the actual cause of his death has never been determined. The loss of such a great surfer at Mavericks, brought these waters further into the spotlight as one of the worlds most challenging spots to surf.

Gerard Butler was nearly taken down for out for good when things went awry while filming a scene for Chasing Mavericks in California’s Half Moon Bay when a dangerous surf break knocked him off his board and pinned him underwater. Gerard was dragged across the rocky sea floor before a jet-ski riding patrol-man was able to rescue him.

Cast

 Gerard Butler         Jonny Weston

Frosty Hesson                 Jay Moriarity

Elisabeth Shue        Abigail Spencer         Leven Rambin

 Kristy Moriarity             Brenda Hesson               Kim Moriaity  

Cloud Atlas - Review

Cloud Atlas
(2012)
Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi
172 min.

Rated: R violence, language, sexuality/nudity and some drug use | What parents need to know
Grade: C+

Directors: Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Writers: David Mitchell (novel), Lana Wachowski, Andy Wachowski, Tom Tykwer
 (written for the screen)
Stars: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent,  Susan Sarandon, and Hugh Grant | See full cast and crew

Cloud Atlas explores how the actions and consequences of individual lives impact one another throughout the past, the present and the future. Action, mystery and romance weave dramatically through the story as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero and a single act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution in the distant future. Each member of the ensemble appears in multiple roles as the stories move through time. -- (C) Warner Bros.

Cloud Atlas is an epic adventure drama movie written and directed by Lana and Andy Wachowski and Tom Tykwer. It was adapted from the 2004 novel of the same name by David Mitchell. With a budget of $102 million (financed by independent sources; Warner Bros also paid $15 million to acquire the film's North American rights), Cloud Atlas is one of the most expensive independent films of all time.

After their directing debut in 1996 with Bound, the ever ambitious Wachowskis have been blowing minds (or at least trying to) since they hit the 'Big Time' with their second film The Matrix. Well, they're back...and their intentions are the same in Cloud Atlas. The film premiered Sept. 9th, 2012 at the 37th Toronto International Film Festival, where at its conclusion it received a 10-minute standing ovation. Since it's official opening, Sept. 26, the reviews have been mixed -- some say it's an awe-inspiring work of visual and emotional daring, while others say it's muddled, pretentious, and overlong. 

Cloud Atlas is a series of interconnected vignettes that follows a variety of characters across centuries. The premise is that seemingly small actions and events have monumental repercussions. While the novel tells the stories in chronological order the filmmakers have decided to jump all over the map, flashing back and flashing forward with total abandon. The pundits agree that Cloud Atlas is a singular film, but while some are thrilled by its monumental scope and big ideas, others say it's too undisciplined and disjointed to realize its outsized aims. Here is a sampling of what the critics are saying:
Yeas

"one of the most ambitious films ever made"... "Even as I was watching Cloud Atlas the first time, I knew I would need to see it again. Now that I've seen it the second time, I know I'd like to see it a third time...I think you will want to see this daring and visionary film...I was never, ever bored by Cloud Atlas. On my second viewing, I gave up any attempt to work out the logical connections between the segments, stories and characters." - Four out of four stars, Roger Ebert

"an intense three-hour mental workout rewarded with a big emotional payoff. [...] One's attention must be engaged at all times as the mosaic triggers an infinite range of potentially profound personal responses." - Variety 

"It is so full of passion and heart and empathy that it feels completely unlike any other modern film in its range either measured through scope of budget or sweep of action. - MSN Movies, James Rocchi

"one of the year’s most important movies". - The Daily Beast
 

"utterly, wonderfully epic". - Inside Movies

"You will have to decide for yourself whether it works. It’s that kind of picture. [...] Is this the stuff of Oscars? Who knows? Is it a force to be reckoned with in the coming months? Absolutely." - Michael Cieply of The New York Times

Nays

"I'll grant that the film has many layers. All of them are terrible". - New York Post, Kyle Smith
 

"unique and totally unparalleled disaster"..."[its] badness is fundamental, an essential aspect of the concept and its execution that I suspect is impossible to remedy or rectify". - Slant Magazine reviewer Calum Marsh

"The result is maddening, exasperating, occasionally exhilarating -- and mostly boring". - Christian Science Monitor, Peter Rainer

"Sumptuous visuals and audacious acting, but the quasi-profound message of cosmic connectedness isn't worth all the trouble". - Rafer Guzman, Newsday

"The most disappointing film of the year". - Boston Phoenix, Peter Keough

 

"Men play women. Women play men. Blacks play whites. An Asian plays a freckled Victorian. Bad accents flourish. And Hugo Weaving, whether he's a he, she, or ridiculous hoodoo leprechaun, is always the villain". - Metro Times (Detroit, MI), Jeff Meyers

"At 163 minutes, Cloud Atlas carries all the marks of a giant folly, and those unfamiliar with the book will be baffled." - The Guardian

Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 60% of critics have given Cloud Atlas a "fresh" rating based on 158 reviews, with an average of 6.5/10. The consensus at the site from the collected reviews is "Its sprawling, ambitious blend of thought-provoking narrative and eye-catching visuals will prove too unwieldy for some, but the sheer size and scope of Cloud Atlas are all but impossible to ignore".

Over at Metacritic the film's current score is 55 out of 100, indicating 'mixed to average' reviews.

Now what have I said in the past? If the Film Festival circuit and critics faun over a film and call it 'important'...beware of your money and time.

Cloud Atlas is indeed epic in scope and style with a stellar cast but not much else. Yes, Cloud Atlas is an epic alright...an epic mess that takes itself way to seriously!

The trailer is far more interesting than the movie itself which is tortuously long at 2 hours and 52 minuets. Each actor takes on multiple roles, playing each gender and various ages. While an interesting proposition it is distracting, drawing undue attention to itself becoming a guessing game of who is that behind the wigs and makeup. (Lana Wachowski was born Laurence "Larry" Wachowski, ya' think maybe that had something to do with the role assignments? In an interview she/he confessed proudly that, in fact, it did.)

Bad makeup and accents abound and as the actors attempt to disguise their voices from one character to their next, it harder and harder to  understand their dialogue them making the film even more difficult to follow. Then there is the post apocalyptic dialect that is so artificial and annoying, it doesn't work, and I can't let them get away with one of my pet peeves, sutpididty. I'll give just two examples out of many:

1 - Hanks is carrying a child in his arms and is confronted by savages on horseback out to kill the both of them. Facing the horsemen just yards away, he runs and miraculously can out run the horses child in arms for what seems like a mile or more.

2 - The gay lovers in a china shop start breaking the china and figurines at first by throwing them on the floor but progress to tossing them in the air. Suddenly the room is raining down pieces of china.

I was a bit generous in my grading of this film because it is at times bold and inventive and beautiful but the problem is none of those qualities survives the length of the film. Honestly, I think the only viewers that will 'love' this film would have to be hardcore fans of the novel.

The Plot

Well in all reality there is no plot but here are the six fables:

1 - In the 1840s on a voyage through the Pacific Islands, a young American (Jim Sturgess) falls prey to a scheming doctor (Tom Hanks) who is poisoning him slowly to get at his gold but is saved by the efforts of a stowaway slave (David Gyasi).

2 - In the 1930s, an ambitious English youth (Ben Whishaw), on his musical quest for fame, is hired as a musical scribe to a crotchety composer (Jim Broadbent).

3 - In the 1970s, an investigative reporter (Halle Berry), working in San Francisco, is tipped off by a scientist uncovering the truth about a nuclear power plant and soon finds life her life in jeopardy.

4 - In the present day, an unscrupulous London publisher (Broadbent) is confined to an old-folk’s home by his brother (Grant).

5 - In 2144, in the glittering city of Neo-Seoul, a female fabricant (Doona Bae) is cloned to work in the food industry but when she is show her fate rises up against the system that bred her.

6 - Finally, a post apocalyptic primitive forest dwelling tribe, surviving on an island "106 winters after the Fall”, are visited by a superior people, who arrive in a sort of hovercraft/aqua-spacecraft that glides across the ocean.

Now, if you are the type who draws a conclusion as to how the smooth vessel from fable #6 echoes the creaky, tall ship of fable #1, then perhaps Cloud Atlas may be just your kind of movie. Fans, like critic Roger Ebert, will find a need to see the film over and over, in order to savor the plethora of connecting links through time and their New Age, shall we say, beauty and wisdom yadda, yadda, yadda. 

The modern publisher, in fable #4, while on the train is reading a manuscript subtitled “A Luisa Rey Mystery,” and Luisa Rey is the name of the California reporter from fable #3 and she had a little friend, an inquisitive kid, in her apartment building who, we now realize, has grown up to be a writer of mysteries and uses her name for his heroine, and the nuclear whistle-blower who assisted her, was first seen, decades before, in bed with the young musician, and so on, ad infinitum...or ad nauseam (if you're seeing it like me).

This interweaving narrative is the author Mitchell’s, however as I noted earlier, his story lines in the book follow one another in chronological order but in the film, thanks to the the Wachowskis and Tykwer, they are tangled like a plate of lo mien noodles, with the 'genius' idea that there would be no loitering in any one period of time or on any singular character from any of the six fables. The tone of the film gets the same treatment, we flip flop from the farce and whimsy of old folks escaping from a prison like retirement home, to the glittering, sterile, severity of Neo-Seoul, an Orwellian utopia of corporate conformism. This Wachowskis’ created world, like that of the Matrix series, is an oppressive society where every character must, without fail, regardless of circumstances, maintain an emotionless poker face. 

The morphing of actors becomes sort of a cruel joke on Jim Sturgess, whose eyes and features have been rediculously reshaped to make him look Asian, the brave and noble Hae-Joo Chang. Changing a cacausian face to look Asian is an iffy proposition whenever it is tried. It usually fails and it sure as heck didn’t work for Mr. Sturgess, it creeps beyond an embarrassing makeup job into the realm of insult. When  actors criss-cross continents, centuries and races as Tykwer and the Wachowskis have demanded of their cast there is often a price to be paid.

Hanks, early on, is a grizzeled old shaman from the primative future covered in scars and tattoos, he later appears with a tacky beard, a gold chain and a bad accent as a vengful Irish writer, who throws a cocky, pompus critic off of a balcony at a party.

Hugo Weaving has been seen in drag before and as a drag queen daddy in Pricilla Queen of the Desert he was 'fabulous!' and he's at it again in Cloud Atlas as a busty, menacing, no nonsence nurse Noakes.

Granted, some of these transformations work and are fun but the problem with most of these morphings, regardless of their bold conception or how eagerly they were played, the inevitability is that they draw attention to themselves. When the credits roll and reveal all the roles, no matter how brief, that each of the actors played there were incredulous laughs, hoots and applause from the audience, admttedly, some surprized me. There is Jim Broadbent, for example, in the background in a scene clad in white sci-fi robes that you simply would never have noticed. Your headline actors also playing extras, it's a clever gimmick but at best is still a distraction from the film itself.

Cloud Atlas as a whole should (none of the fable segments would stand alone as as a viable fim on in its own merrit), and perhaps could, be made into a good, possibly great film, but this is a muddled mess.

Cast

Tom Hanks                    Jim Broadbent                     Halle Berry 

Hotel Manager                Native Woman              Captain Molyneux

Isaac Sachs                    Vyvyan Ayrs                      Jocasta Ayrs

Dermot Hoggins         Timothy Cavendish                 Luisa Rey      

     Zachry                    Korean Muscian                  Indian Party  

  Cavendish Look-a-Like Actor      Prescient 2                          Guest                      

                                                                                 Ovid
                                                                                              Meronym             

 Hugo Weaving                      Xun Zhou                         David Gyasi

Haskell Moore                       Talbot                             Autua     

                      Tadeusz Kesselring           Hotel Manager                  Lester Rey                             Bill Smoke                       Yoona-939                       Duophsyte 

Nurse Noakes                        Rose                                                

Boardman Mephi                                                                                 

Old George                                                                                  

Ben Whishaw                   James D'Arcy                     Jim Sturgess

     Cabin Boy               Young Rufus Sixsmith          Adam Ewing  

Robert Frobisher           Old Rufus Sixsmith       Poor Hotel Guest

   Store Clerk                   Nurse James                   Megan's Dad

  Georgette                       Archivist                        Highlander

    Tribesman                                                           Hae-Joo Chang

                                                                                 Adam

                                                                                   Zachry Brother-in-Law

    Hugh Grant                      Susan Sarandon

Rev. Giles Horrox             Madame Horrox

Hotel Heavy                       Older Ursula

   Lloyd Hooks                    Yusouf Suleiman

Denholme Cavendish                    Abbess          

Seer Rhee                                          

Kona Chief                                         

Keith David                       Doona Bae

Kupaka                             Tilda  

   Joe Napier                  Megan's Mom

      An-kor Apis             Mexican Woman  

   Precient                        Sonmi-451

                                         Sonmi-351

                                                                                    Sonmi Prostitute