Forget the reality, go for the challenge

RAY BUFFER

In “The Forgotten,” Julianne Moore plays Telly Paretta -- a mother

who is tormented by the memory of her eight-year-old son Sam’s death

in a plane crash 14 months ago.

While recovering from her loss, and her subsequent estrangement

from her husband Jim (Anthony Edwards), she is informed by her

psychiatrist, Dr. Munce (Gary Sinise), that she is suffering from

delusions. Her son never existed, he says, and she is fabricating

memories of him.

Stunned, she tries to find evidence of Sam’s existence -- photos,

videos and scrapbooks. It is all gone.

Telly suspects she has gone insane until she meets Ash Correll

(Dominic West), the father of one of the other plane crash victims.

Together, they embark on a search to validate the existence of their

children, reclaim their sanity and uncover what is really going on.

The film is directed by Joseph Ruben from a screenplay written by

Gerald DiPego. Both Ruben and DiPego do a satisfactory job. Allow me

to first say that one has to focus more on the entertainment quality

of this film than attempt to make it fit into “reality” in order to

appreciate and enjoy “The Forgotten.” There are many choices, timings

and startling occurrences that may stretch the threshold of one’s

suspension of disbelief, but I enjoy a film that at least attempts to

expand my imagination.

Moore brings class and quality to the film. The gritty, gray world

of Brooklyn and the varied neighborhoods located under the Manhattan

Bridge overpass serve as a perfect set for this genre-leaping jaunt.

Some may find the story to be complex and difficult to follow,

others will have guessed the ending after the first few minutes or

simply from the previews. As a popcorn movie, I recommend seeing the

film in theaters. The message of “the power of a mother’s love” is as

stirring as the musical score by James Horner. There is suspense,

thrills and mystery.

Though it may not be the topic of discussion among all your

friends for weeks to follow, it will keep you guessing and

entertained while in the theater, which is more than a lot of films

so far this year have done.

* RAY BUFFER, 34, is a professional singer, actor and voice-over

artist.

‘Shaun’ good, but could’ve eaten more

There was a time in the 1970s when I feared traveling to Japan

because of the frequent attacks by radioactive monsters. I’m now

concerned about travel to the U.K. because of their recurring

problems with flesh eating zombies.

First, there was “28 Days Later,” and now there’s “Shaun of the

Dead,” a movie that bills itself as “an everyday tale of life, love

and the living dead.” I love the idea of a romantic comedy set in the

middle of an urban zombie crisis, and this is a funny movie, but

“Shaun of the Dead” really could have and should have been much

better.

When “Shaun of the Dead,” is its strongest, it’s absurd and

hilarious. Shaun (Simon Pegg) and his roommate Ed (Nick Frost) never

allow the current life and death zombie crisis to affect them.

Neither of them can tell the difference between a commuter mindlessly

stumbling through daily life and a zombie staggering toward them in

search of a meal. When Shaun and Ed finally figure out that the

people in the backyard are the living dead, their first concern is to

prioritize which vinyl LPs can be used as projectile weapons.

Prince’s “Purple Rain” is a keeper, but the “Batman” soundtrack is OK

to throw.

Problems crop up when the script wanders away from the funny stuff

and tries to seriously explore the characters and their predicament.

In a low budget, no frills comedy, every action should be related to

getting a cheap laugh. I expect to see people eating human entrails

in a zombie movie, but these scenes needed to happen without changing

the movie’s harebrained tone.

There’s about 20 minutes worth of material that we don’t need at

all. Although there are precious moments involving Shaun’s mother and

stepfather, these laughs didn’t need five minutes worth of dialogue

as a setup. The romantic story between Shaun and his girlfriend

Dianne (Lucy Davis) is also both funny and miserably dull. Dianne

helps soften Shaun and make him likable, but this plot line uses way

too much nonhilarious time to explain their relationship.

Overall, this is a really funny movie. It works for its niche

audience, but you have to love “Night of the Living Dead” to get into

the spirit of this kind of humor. It takes a special relationship to

make this kind of movie work as a weekend date flick. The subject of

eating human flesh is great dinner conversation for some, but grounds

for a rescue call for others.

The story’s ultimate resolution is the most unique take I’ve seen

on the zombie movie since George Romero went to a shopping mall.

“Shaun of the Dead” needs another round of edits, and you have to do

a certain amount of work to make it through the painfully slow

beginning, but once it gets rolling, it’s a lot of fun.

* JIM ERWIN, 40, is a technical writer and computer trainer.