a&e | FILM
MOVIE GUIDE
Edited by Aly Comingore
The following films are playing in Santa Barbara FRIDAY, JULY , THROUGH THURSDAY, JULY . Descriptions followed by initials — DJP (D.J. Palladino) and KS (Kit Steinkellner) — have been taken from our critics’ reviews, which can be read in full at independent.com. The symbol ✯ indicates the film is recommended.
405 State St. (805) 965-9363
223 Anacapa St. (805) 963-9222
FIRST LOOKS ✯ Boyhood
(165 mins.; R: language including sexual references, teen drug and alcohol use)
Reviewed on page 59. Paseo Nuevo/Riviera
Planes: Fire & Rescue (83 mins.; PG: action and some peril)
independent.com/ethics
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THE INDEPENDENT
July 24, 2014
Law and ethics, and everything in between.
4135 State St. (805) (805)967-8282 967-8282
Disney takes an unusually wide, badbanking turn with this sequel to a moderately successful spin-off of a dumb idea Pixar had. First, there were anthropomorphized cars and then a plucky crop-dusting plane named Dusty who nearly dies in a cross-Pacific trip. Here we revisit the flying champion of the world, where airplanes are the dominant species. (There’s even a forest scene where a momma airplane feeds babies in a nest.) Dusty has a problem with his gearbox, which, it turns out, is not a sexual metaphor. Or is it? In short, he can’t fly hard without risking his own death, so he becomes a self-centered creep for a while. Meanwhile, there is a whole other plot introduced that includes Dusty in a crazy scheme to be certified as a firefighter. This splits the action in two, and if there were any 7-year-olds still paying attention, all the technical talk about repairs, firefighting techniques, and following orders will either put them to sleep or turn them into that kid in the theater that keeps asking, What is happening now, Daddy? Too dumb for grown-ups, too complex for wee ones, it’s the kind of movie that almost gets by with beautiful scenery and a bit of wish-fulfillment about soaring through clouds. But mostly it’s a big stall from the company that ought to be working on rebuilding its reputation. (DJP) Fairview (D)/Fiesta (D and D)
✯ The Purge: Anarchy
(103 mins.; R: strong disturbing violence, language)
Reviewed on page 59. Camino Real/Metro
Sex Tape (90 mins.; R: strong sexual content, nudity, language, some drug use)
Sex Tape begins promisingly enough. We follow the college courtship of Annie (Cameron Diaz) and Jay (Jason Segel), a relationship that is built on the foundation of hot, adventurous, frequent (and I do mean frequent) sex. In the first minutes of the film, we watch the couple age, procreate, and advance in their respective careers. The price to be paid for growing up, according to the film, is physical intimacy. In an attempt to reclaim their sex life, Jay and Annie dump the kids off with grandma for the night and use Jay’s new iPad to make a three-hour sex tape in which they film themselves performing every position featured in The Joy of Sex. Annie makes Jay promise to delete the film, a promise he fails to keep, and when the video uploads to his personal iCloud, a remote drive that connects to his several old iPads he has given away as gifts, Jay and Annie must scramble around Los Angeles in a desperate attempt to delete every known copy of their indiscretion. It’s here where the film begins to sputter. What began as a raunchy and heartfelt look at the evolution of intimacy in the lives of married parents quickly devolves into rote slapstick and predict-
able hijinks. Which isn’t to say there isn’t a place for slapstick and hijinks in a sex comedy. I’m pretty sure block comedy is this genre’s lifeblood. But the comedic set pieces, from the dog attack Jay suffers to the break-in the couple stage to the final pratfall-to-end-all-pratfalls to prevent the film from screening at their children’s elementary school, these big events always feel more like filler than actual plot. Jay and Annie, as individuals and as a couple, change little. This film plays it too safe, both with the sexual antics and the emotional lives of its central couple. It’s a diverting ride with charming leads and a strong supporting cast, but in a summer that features comedic heavyweights like Jump Street and Neighbors, Sex Tape fails to pass muster. (KS) Camino Real/ Paseo Nuevo
PREMIERES And So It Goes (94 mins.; PG-13: some sexual references, drug elements)
A self-consumed realtor (Michael Douglas) reaches out to his neighbor (Diane Keaton) for help after his estranged son leaves him with a granddaughter he never knew he had. Fairview/Fiesta The Fluffy Movie (101 mins.; PG-13: suggestive material, sexual references) Stand-up comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias stars in this comedy concert film that features live footage as well as a behindthe-scenes look at Iglesias’s inspirational story. Fiesta Get On Up (138 mins.; PG-13: sexual content, drug use, some stong language, violent situations)
Chadwick Boseman plays James Brown in this biopic about the acclaimed soul singer and his rise from poverty to superstardom. Fairview/Fiesta (Opens Thu., July )
Guardians of the Galaxy (121 mins.; PG-13: intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, some language) Somewhere in deep space, an American pilot finds himself the object of a manhunt after he steals an orb coveted by a villainous extraterrestrial. Arlington (D)/Camino Real (D and D)/ Metro (D and D) (Opens Thu., July )
Hercules (99 mins.; PG-13: epic battle sequences, violence, suggestive comments, brief strong language, partial nudity) After completing the legendary 12 labors, Hercules helps the King of Thrace defeat his tyrannical enemies. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson stars as the demigod. Camino Real (D and D)/ Fiesta (D and D)
Lucy (90 mins.; R: strong violence, disturbing images, sexuality)
Scarlett Johansson stars as a woman who turns on her captors to become a highly evolved killing machine. Luc Besson writes and directs. Camino Real/Metro A Most Wanted Man (121 mins.; R: language)
A Chechen Muslin illegally moves to Hamburg and gets caught in the middle of the international war on terror. Plaza de Oro