Metro Pulse Online: Movies, Past &Amp; Future

Armed only with his mysterious mental connection to the feral minds of studio executives, the Movie Guru reveals just how good or bad this week's new releases will be:

Basic (R)
Samuel R. Jackson is a "legendary" army Ranger drill sergeant (uh, how does a drill sergeant, even a Ranger, achieve mythic status?) who disappears, along with a bunch of his cadets. John Travolta is a DEA agent (uh, why does a Drug Enforcement Agent care what happens to a platoon of Ranger trainees?) who investigates.
Prediction: On the up side, you've got Travolta and Jackson, so good together in Pulp Fiction, as the principles. On the downside, you've got John McTiernan, who unleashed last year's abysmal Rollerball on an unsuspecting public, as director. Bad outweighs good. Avoid it.
The Core (PG-13)
Scientists find out that the Earth's molten core is about to stop spinning, which would mean the total destruction of all life on the globe's surface. More scientists are recruited to descend into the Earth's core and detonate a nuclear bomb in a desperate attempt to keep the core spinning.
Prediction: With some good actors (Hillary Swank, Aaron Eckhart, Stanley Tucci), a sense of humor, and a measure of homage to classic disaster flicks of yore (Crack in the World, The Poseidon Adventure), all of which this film is rumored to have, The Core could become a modern B-movie classic.
Head of State (PG-13)
Does the plot really matter? Okay, okay: A Democratic presidential nominee suddenly dies. Through some strange magic, a humble alderman (Chris Rock) is selected as replacement. The humble alderman then selects his brother (Bernie Mac) as his running mate.
Prediction: Chris Rock is a funny, funny guy. Sooner or later, one of his films has got to reflect that.
Open Hearts (R)
A Dutch import about a newly engaged couple whose planned life together is brutally changed when the husband-to-be is paralyzed in an accident. His anger and self-pity drive his fiancee away. She in turn seeks solace from an understanding but married doctor. Complications ensue.
Prediction: Sounds like the stuff of soap operas, but reviews have been solid on this one. Emotionally honest, highly charged drama, not melodrama. Expect to leave the theater drained.

High Stakes

It really wasn't a big surprise when Sarah Michelle Gellar announced recently that this year would be her last year starring in the TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series worked great as a metaphor for teenage girls growing up in the world and as a fun sci-fi adventure show. But with Buffy and her friends all grown up after saving the world countless times from unspeakable evil, the symbolism is getting tired and the action stale.

Creator Joss Whedon may retool the series with Gellar's departure, but I doubt the show will achieve the greatness of earlier seasons. A friend of mine has a theory that the third season of any television series is the best, because the writers and cast have hit their stride but aren't yet bored.

The theory appears to hold true for Buffy. The 22-episode third season, which was released on DVD in January, focuses on Buffy's senior year in high school as she tries to accept who she is and struggles to get over her first love—a good vampire named Angel, whom Buffy had to kill in season two. (Angel comes back from the dead, so to speak, as a good guy.) We get perverse, humorous takes on teen runaways, loyalty, social outcasts, authority, the prom, and graduation day.

And the villains are usually hilarious. The key baddie in season three is Sunnydale's mayor, who is preparing to ascend into demonhood during the graduation ceremony. He's aided by sexy slayer-turned-bad, Faith. The DVDs also offer the usual candy of commentary from the producers as well as interviews. The fourth season of Buffy is due out in June, but season three is likely the peak of the series.

For those who can't get enough Buffy, there's the first season of Angel, which was released in February. A spinoff of Buffy, it is a much darker series, featuring Buffy's ex-lover fighting supernatural evil on the mean streets of L.A. And following the third-season-is-best rule, the first season is uneven, as it struggles to find its own tone and place. Some of the shows are of the monster-of-the-week variety. But by the season's conclusion, it shows plenty of promise. Buffy guests in a few episodes, and when the two finally put their romance behind them, Angel begins to develop its own mythology.

—Joe Tarr