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BATMAN AND ROBIN

It's really a shame that Evita did not bring about the predicted resurgence of interest in big budget Hollywood musicals. Joel Schumacher should really be directing elaborate song and dance numbers, because that is where his true talents (and interests) seem to lie. He should not, however, under any circumstances be allowed to helm another alleged action/adventure film. He lacks the slightest understanding of how to maintain suspense. He also has no idea of how to properly shoot a fight scene - which is surprising, since shooting a dance number is a similar challenge. Come to think of it, maybe Schumacher should stick to music videos, teen idol movies, and gay porn.

Not that Schumacher's direction is the sole reason that Batman and Robin is a disappointment - much like the later entries in the Superman series, it appears that no one involved in the production has the slightest idea what the character is all about. In an effort to keep up audience interest, they think all they have to do is pile on more costumes, more giant sets, and more characters - in fact, the title should really be Batman and Robin and Poison Ivy and Batgirl and Mr. Freeze and Alfred and Bane. They think that comic book source material demands camp, juvenility and glitter. What they really need is a script with depth and substance. The only scenes that even approach any involvement are tainted - such as when Bruce Wayne (George Clooney) and his lifelong friend Alfred (Michael Gough) share a few moments of compassion, only to have the mood ruined by the revelation that Alfred is afflicted with the phony "McGregor's Disease".

Admittedly, the fourth Batman film is not as big a bomb as the previous entry, Batman Forever (an embarrassing mess which concerned itself almost solely with the Riddler's unrequited crush on Bruce Wayne). Actually, individual elements are often quite entertaining: Arnold Schwarzenegger adds both menace and pathos to his role as Mr. Freeze, who holds Gotham City hostage in an attempt to extort funds to save his dying wife. Batman and Alfred continue to struggle with the presence of Robin (Chris O'Donnell, doing his best to recall Burt Ward) in their lives. Uma Thurman makes a good Poison Ivy, adding shimmer to the role of a relatively unknown member of Batman's Rogues Gallery. The problem is that none of these intriguing facets is fully explored before a less compelling facet tries to wrestle away the spotlight. Do the producers really expect us to swallow Alicia Silverstone's overnight transformation from schoolgirl to Batgirl? Or the fact that super-strong villain Bane (who snapped Batman's spine in the comics) can break through walls but can't break Robin's neck when he gets his hands on it?

No, they believe that when watching a movie based on a comic that the audience wants a living cartoon in which Robin can break through a door and leave a hole in it shaped like his logo (conversely, the Batman TV cartoon does an excellent job in maintaining the proper atmosphere). But they're wrong, and we can only hope they'll learn that some day.

MRS BROWN

I didn't expect much from this BBC production - details from the pages of British history usually bore me. But this is actually one of the oddest love stories of all time.

Judy Dench (GoldenEye's M) plays Queen Victoria Regina, retiring from public life after the death of her husband Prince Albert and burying her heartbreak in endless pointless ritual. When Albert's old servant John Brown is summoned to the household to see to the Queen's pony, the headstrong Scots highlander can't bear the situation, and quickly sets forth to cut through the crap. At first his manner angers the queen, but then he gains her trust and affection. Actor and comic Billy Connelly is brilliant in the role of Brown, who may boast of currying the Queen's favor in a bid for growing power and influence, but all the while he becomes more and more paranoid and obsessed with her safety.

While perhaps too leisurely in the telling, Mrs Brown is one of those rare British period films that succeeds in bringing its subjects to life.

MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING

Has it happened to you? You meet somebody really special. You have a few Big Bad Moments, maybe a wild fling or even an extended affair. But then one of you pulls away and asserts that what they really want is friendship. Most of the time this means goodbye, but sometimes that friendship really continues - you share secrets and laughs and comfort one another when there's trouble. And in the back of your mind you think that somehow there'll always be a chance for the two of you, at the bottom of your heart a real love for them grows.

And then the day comes when you think you're going to lose them forever.

You can't breathe, your head pounds, and you think your chest will explode in torment. All that buried emotion smashes through the barriers and you realize that you're madly, desperately in love with your best friend. At the worst possible time.

This is the situation that Julia Roberts finds herself in as her old flame and best friend Dermot Mulroney announces his intention to marry perky, pretty and perfect Cameron Diaz. It's curiously unmined territory, but mined brilliantly as a fluffy romantic comedy. Roberts is better than she's ever been, gorgeous and naturally funny in a period when so many gorgeous woman are trying to be funny on TV. But what's more: she's alive, and I don't think I've ever seen her this way - she usually seems like she's standing in for the actress who should really have her roles. Here, your drawn along with her, even when she's plotting the ultimate heartbreak for the world's most perfect couple for her own selfish ends.

Actually, her Machiavellian plans don't reach the wacky, Lucille Ball-like screwball level they're looking for here - they really only amount to a few deft lies and manipulations, like her attempt to make Mulroney jealous by passing off her gay friend George as a fiancee (a shining performance from Cemetery Man Rupert Everett that overcomes the 'gay friend' cliché). After all, Julia would surely lose our sympathy if she did anything really nasty to the dreamy couple. This sidestep is the films only real flaw, easily overcome by its rich humor, a bittersweet but realistically inevitable ending, and the abundant charm of the cast.
½

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