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:

Bubba Ho-Tep (R)
Two guys in an old folks home figure out an ancient Egyptian evil is terrorizing Shady Rest, their East Texas retirement home. Elvis (Bruce Campbell) switched places with an impersonator years ago and can't get anyone to believe he's really the King, and Jack (Ossie Davis) thinks he's J.F.K. A film by Don Coscarelli, creator of Phantasm.
Prediction: What a weird twist on the horror movie concept. With Campbell getting such rave reviews for his portrayal of Elvis, it has promise.

Looney Tunes: Back in Action (PG)
Daffy Duck finally gets fed up with that spotlight-hog Bugs Bunny and leaves the Warner Bros. lot along with Brendan Fraser, a recently fired stuntman. They head to the natural choices for a big galoot and a cartoon duck— Las Vegas and Africa—and are pursued by WB executive Jenna Elfman and Bugs. Throw in a mythical Blue Diamond and the rest of the animated WB gang, and you have hijinks guaranteed to amuse an 8-year-old.
Prediction: Some things don't get better with age. Looney Tunes don't.

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (PG-13)
Based on the epic historical novels by Patrick O'Brian, Master and Commander stars uber-masculine Russell Crowe as Lucky Jack Aubrey, the captain of the H.M.S. Surprise, a ship of the British Navy during the Napoleonic wars. When the ship is attacked by the enemy ship Acheron and many of his crew are injured, Aubrey must decided whether to stay and fight an impossible foe or head home. Paul Bettany, who co-started with Crowe in A Beautiful Mind, plays the ship's doctor and Aubrey's advisor Stephen Maturin. Directed by Peter Weir.
Prediction: With so many people already obsessed with these novels, the hype will only grow with Russell Crowe at the helm. Maybe a handful of viewers will even be inspired to read the books.

The Station Agent
Born with dwarfism, Fin (Peter Dinklage) prefers to retreat from the stares of others and be a loner. He follows his one passion, trains, to a nowhere town in rural New Jersey, where he camps out in an abandoned train depot. Despite his efforts to isolate himself, he makes an unlikely connection with Olivia (Patricia Clarkson), an artist, and Joe (Bobby Cannavale), a hot dog salesman who likes to talk.
Prediction: It won hearts left and right at the Sundance Film Festival and from newspapers and magazines worldwide. It will win yours too.

Sylvia (R)
A biopic of Sylvia Plath, the poet who fought insecurity, mental illness and her husband Ted Hughes, whose fame, success and infidelity didn't help her precarious hold on sanity. Gwyneth Paltrow and Daniel Craig play the talented couple whose romantic and devastating relationship ended in her suicide.
Prediction: Although the film is well-cast and lovingly shot, only people as troubled and melancholy as Plath will be able to handle 110 minutes of this bleak story.

Tupac Resurrection (R)
A documentary about the life, music and death of Tupac Shakur, the rapper and actor who gained as much notoriety for his talent as his trouble with the law. The MTV Film contains previously unreleased concert footage, home movies and plenty of narration from Tupac himself, who died in 1996 after being shot in Las Vegas by a still-unknown assailant.
Prediction: Shakur's charisma as a poet and actor make him a great leading man in his own story as well as a commentator on the state of the nation.

Neverwhere is Here

The same year he finished up his groundbreaking comic book series The Sandman, writer Neil Gaiman completed a miniseries for BBC television entitled Neverwhere. Gaiman later adapted the teleplay into the acclaimed novel of the same name. But until recently, most Americans haven't had the opportunity to view the televised version.

Until now. Thanks to A&E Home Video, fans can watch the series as it originally aired, instead of having to track down grainy third-generation bootlegs from eBay.

The six-part series begins as cubicle drone Richard Mayhew (Gary Bakewell) walks down a dark London street with his fiancée. Things are going well until Mayhew blows off the couple's plans to help an injured woman found lying on the sidewalk. That's about the time his life unravels.

Mayhew soon discovers that no one recognizes him. His apartment has been rented to someone else. His coworkers don't notice him. Even his fiancée has no recollection of their time together.

Distraught, Mayhew soon learns of "London Below," a vast city underneath the streets of "London Above." Here Door, the woman he rescued, holds great power and nobility. Mayhew joins Door and her companions on a perilous journey to avenge her parents' death, all the while one step ahead of two peculiar but deadly assassins.

Like a lot of BBC television, Neverwhere is a mixed bag. The production is decidedly low budget and the acting and direction leave much to be desired. In that respect it's a little like watching three hours of videotaped theater.

Even so, there's much in Neverwhere to hold one's interest. Some of the shots of "London Below" are beautiful, shoddy production or no. Brian Eno's atmospheric soundtrack and opening sequences by frequent Gaiman collaborator Dave McKean are also marvelous, and almost single-handedly give the series its eerie feel. And revealing commentary by Gaiman gives an added, behind the scenes treat.

Gaiman's fantasy is always engaging and imaginative. Neverwhere is no exception. If you're looking for a modern tale that's as wondrous as The Wizard of Oz or Alice in Wonderland is, this is it. Still, unless you're a hardcore fan, you might be better off reading the book.

—Lloyd Babbit