Reel Critics

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Reel Critics column features movie critiques

written by community members serving on our panel. ‘Mickey’ is funny

fish-out-of-water tale

“Mickey Blue Eyes” can be summed up in one word -- “Noilamgyp” -- that

is, “Pygmalion” in reverse. If you can picture it, it’s kind of like

Eliza Doolittle training ‘ol Henry Higgins to become a street thug. But

here the premise is an English gentleman being submerged into the New

York mafia culture -- and it is funny.

Michael Felgate (Hugh Grant), a proper English gentlemen who owns

Cromwells, the second-most-popular auction house in New York City,

becomes engaged to marry his beloved girlfriend, Gina Vitale (Jeanne

Tripplehorn) who, unbeknownst to Michael, happens to be the daughter of

one of the leading area mobsters -- Frank Vitale (James Caan). After they

are engaged, Michael becomes sucked into mob life by becoming the

unwitting recipient of “favors” which of course he is obligated to repay.

In the course of this fiasco, Michael is forced to take on the

identity of “Mickey Blue Eyes,” a fictitious Chicago hoodlum. In several

hilarious scenes, Frank trains Mickey in the ways of the mob and their

trademark lingo (‘Heeey ... Fuggedabauddit’ -- try that with a British

accent). In short, Grant is brilliant in this very funny

fish-out-of-water tale.

BRADLEY KIRK, 32, is a Corona del Mar resident and civil litigation and

estate planning attorney.

Can’t keep a ‘Stiff Upper Lip’ during this film

How many times have we seen corseted English beauties drinking tea and

eating scones? How many gentlemen have we seen being noble and

chivalrous? Well don’t expect much of that in the new Edwardian parody,

“Stiff Upper Lip.”

This movie has five main characters. The first is heroine Emily

(Georgina Cates), a 22-year-old unmarried upper-class woman. Agnes

(Prunella Scales) is the family matriarch and Emily’s aunt, who’s on a

mission to find her niece a suitable husband. Edward (Samuel West) is

Emily’s dimwitted older brother. Cedric Trilling (Robert Portal) is

Edward’s friend from school and the man Aunt Agnes has chosen to be

Emily’s suitor. And finally there is George (Sean Pertwee), a rabbit

skinner who has been hired by Aunt Agnes as a servant to carry English

sod around as the group travels to Italy and then to India.

Much hilarity ensues in these two countries as Emily tries to decide

between upper-crust Cedric and low-class George. Meanwhile Edward and

Cedric start to share their emotions and feelings. Aunt Agnes, oblivious

to almost everything, has her own awakening in India with Horace the tea

merchant (Peter Ustinov). As the group returns to England, things really

liven up and build to a very funny ending.

I really enjoyed this movie. You don’t have to have seen all the

Merchant/Ivory films to get the jokes. There is plenty of laugh-out-loud

humor here. In fact, the one thing you won’t be able to do is keep a

“Stiff Upper Lip.”

HEIDI BRESSLER, 35, is a hairstylist and Costa Mesa resident.

Brooks makes Hollywood ‘Muse’ into good clean fun Albert Brooks has

long been known for making offbeat independent films that usually find a

small but loyal following. “The Muse” may be his breakthrough film,

finally capturing a larger audience with his pointed satire of the

culture and politics of Hollywood’s major movie studios.

Brooks again plays a lovable loser, this time a frustrated

screeenwriter unable to duplicate his past success. Very quickly he is on

the receiving end of a steady stream of insults and bad news from his

agent and studio boss. While the situations create laughter for the

viewer, Brooks is left stunned, looking like a deer caught in the

headlight. Brooks becomes a West Coast Woody Allen: always confused,

baffled by unfolding events and overwhelmed by forces beyond his control.

The surprising Sharon Stone comes to this rescue. She is perfectly cast

as the mysterious and aristocratic woman who claims to be a true muse,

compete with a Greek god lineage. Brooks’ attempts to please the muse and

extract inspiration from her provides for many great comic scenes.

Intriuging cameo appearances from some of Hollywood’s most famous

players add to the humor and irony of the situation. Though full of wit

and satire, “The Muse” is not bitter, and happily remains a movie with a

heart and no foul language.

There are a few big belly laughs in this movie, but its real charm is

in the continuous small ripples of laughter that come with each unfolding

moment on the screen.

A simple comedy on the surface, this film quietly deals with deeper

issues that affect all our lives, from the nature of happiness to the

source of human creativity. A delightful 90 minutes at the movies.

JOHN DEPKO, 48, is a Costa Mesa resident and a senior investigator for

the Orange County Public Defender’s Office.