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:

American Splendor (R)
Paul Giamatti plays Harvey Pekar in this bio-pic of the comic book writer's life. In 1976, Pekar distracts himself from his boring job as a file clerk by writing a comic book that stars himself. With illustrations by the likes of R. Crumb and Drew Friedman, the comics reflect Pekar's cynical brand of humor. With Hope Davis as his wife Joyce.
Prediction: Funny! Great! Hope Davis rules!

Cabin Fever (R)
Outbreak meets The Blair Witch Project in this horror flick about a flesh-eating virus that attacks people trapped in the forest. Previews compare it to slumber party cult favorites like Mother's Day and Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
Prediction: There are lots of scary things about the woods—bears, poison ivy, the lack of toilet paper—but a flesh-eating virus? C'mon. I know horror movies aren't the place for reality, but truth is always scarier than a completely improbable fiction.

The Magdalene Sisters (R)
Set in 1960s Dublin, four young women get sentenced by the Catholic Church to the Magdalene Sisters convent/workhouse. Unspeakable brutality and abuse befalls them. Based on testimony, the film was written and directed by Peter Mullan.
Prediction: Hard to watch—the words "grim" and "powerful" turn up frequently—but emotionally affecting if you can handle some discomfort with your art.

Matchstick Men (PG-13)
Roy (Nicolas Cage) and Frank (Sam Rockwell) are small-time cons, but Roy's increasingly bizarre mental state threatens his illegal livelihood. Enter the 14-year-old daughter he's never met (Alison Lohman) and his life changes drastically, maybe for the better. Ridley Scott directs.
Prediction: WB is hellbent on getting an Oscar for this one, promoting it like crazy on television and radio. While Nic Cage is rehashing his adorable neurotic shtick, maybe Sam Rockwell (am I the only person who thought Confessions of a Dangerous Mind was brilliant?) will finally get the attention he deserves.

No Good Deed (R)
Based on the short story "The House on Turk Street" by Dashiell Hammett, No Good Deed stars Samuel L. Jackson as a police detective who becomes the hostage of a motley group of criminals. The leader's girlfriend (Milla Jovovich) becomes intrigued by the cop and starts messing with his head. Is she for real or just playing games? A romantic noir thriller from Five Easy Pieces director Bob Rafelson.
Prediction: No Good Deed premiered at the Moscow International Film Festival in 2002 and has since screened in six other foreign countries. It's just now being released on a limited basis in the States. What gives? And can it be good?

Once Upon a Time in Mexico (R)
Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek return south of the border with Robert Rodriguez, the director who made them stars in Desperado, the 1995 remake/sequel to his low-budget, Sundance favorite, El Mariachi. The saga of the mysterious gunslinger (Banderas) continues with Johnny Depp as a renegade C.I.A. agent who brings El Mariachi out of retirement to assassinate the Mexican president. With Willem Dafoe, Cheech Marin and the film debut of singing superstar Enrique Iglesias.
Prediction: Guns, explosions and hot Hispanic flesh under the baking Mexican sun? Oh, yeah. Robert Rodriguez making a movie that's not about lame kids who think they're spies? Hell, yeah.

Less Is More

It's a mantra that is all but cliché for those with an interest in the genres of horror and the psychological thriller: Less is more. The less blood, the less gore, the less naked flesh, the more the mind has room to conjure its own illusions and dark fantasies. That's why a shadow will always be scarier than a vampire or a madman wielding a hatchet.

It's a shame Lucky McKee forgot that. His May has its chilling moments. But between the unnecessary butchery and predictable and at times unbelievable plot, May collapses under its own weight.

We first meet May as a girl. There she's normal enough, except for the pirate patch she wears to cover a lazy eye. That eyesore proves too difficult a barrier for May. Unable to make friends, May's mother gives her a doll, which becomes her only companion.

Years later, May is a socially backward veterinary assistant. She is still friendless and spends her time sewing clothes and stitching wounded animals back together.

Then May meets Adam and is smitten by his charm, good looks and kindness. Unfortunately, May's apparent hand fetish and interest in bloodletting drive Adam away. After a failed lesbian relationship with a veterinary colleague and an incident where some children break her favorite doll, May snaps in Lizzie Borden meets Carrie fashion.

May has some originality to it. So much so that it could have been spectacular. But May's transformation from stuttering shyness to bloodthirsty psychosis isn't earned. And if you can't predict this film's conclusion an hour early, you're comatose.

For a creepy film that succeeds on all levels, instead pick up The Minus Man. Starring Owen Wilson as a drifting serial killer, this movie keeps you shuddering with what it doesn't tell.

Vann Siegert is a genuinely nice guy. He's not violent (with one exception), he's not a pervert, and he seems concerned with the welfare of complete strangers. He also poisons people at random, for no reason. Unlike May, here it's what's left out that will keep you awake long after the credits have rolled.

—Lloyd Babbit