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:

Collateral (R)
When offshore narcotrafficers find they are about to be indicted, they do what any good foreign drug cartel would do—hire Vincent (Tom Cruise), a hitman to do some cleaning. Max (Jamie Foxx), an unsuspecting cab driver, is taken hostage in his own cab when Vincent orders him at gunpoint to drive the taxi where he needs to go. The L.A. night gets heavy as the two men become interdependent on each other during a deadly game of cat and mouse with the LAPD and the FBI.
Now Showing: Farragut Towne Square, Knoxville Center, Wynnsong 16, Foothills 12, Tinseltown USA, Halls Cinema 7

The Door in the Floor (R)
Instead of tackling the whole novel, director Tod Williams adapted the first third of John Irving’s A Widow for One Year to focus on the tumultuous relationship between Ted and Marion Cole (Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger), a couple grieving the death of their teenage sons. Their marriage is further complicated by Marion’s affair with Ted’s young assistant, Eddie (Jon Foster).
Now Showing: Downtown West

Little Black Book (PG-13)
Stacy (Brittany Murphy) is a talk show producer happily smitten with boyfriend Derek (Ron Livingston). But when she’s left alone with his Palm Pilot, she starts meddling into his past relationships in a no-holds-barred display of insecurity. She gets support from co-worker Barb (Holly Hunter), but will Derek forgive her trespasses when he finds out? (In a clever media tie-in, you can look up Derek’s fictional exes on Friendster.com.)
Now Showing: Farragut Towne Square, Knoxville Center, Wynnsong 16, Foothills 12, Tinseltown USA, Halls Cinema 7

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster (NR)
An unflinching, uncensored documentary spanning two years in the life of one of America’s most revered and long-lived metal bands. Footage includes the usual studio conflicts plus surprising sessions with a group therapist. Reviewers report that hilarious Spinal Tap-worthy moments blend with intense revelations of a band that, after nearly 20 years together, operates a lot like a marriage.
Now Showing: Downtown West

The Story of the Weeping Camel (PG)
The narrative documentary of a newborn camel rejected by its mother and the life-or-death struggle of a family of Mongolian herders and a mystical musician to reunite the camel family by means of an ancient ritual. Critics swoon at the gorgeous scenery and the film’s fairytale simplicity.
Now Showing: Downtown West

The Story of Dance

Dance lovers will revel in the spectacular choreography of The Company (2003, PG-13), a curious experiment for director Robert Altman and a sort of vanity project for actress-turned-producer Neve Campbell. Overall, the film is the story of a ballet company—performed here by the real-life Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, plus Campbell, a classically trained dancer-turned-actress who came to audiences’ attention via television’s Party of Five in 1994. Campbell’s Ry is an up-and-coming dancer seeking the approval of the artistic director (a pointlessly gruff Malcolm McDowell) and the various choreographers who dictate her success. She has a smidgen of a personal life: a failed relationship with a fellow dancer and a new fling with a chef played by the smirky James Franco.

The narrative is a loose one, given that only a few of the people on screen are actors that have lines of scripted dialogue. Altman’s roving direction leads us from tense rehearsals—injured dancers or those who aren’t up-to-snuff can lose their roles in an instant to another dancer—to tense behind-the-scenes conflicts between the company’s artistic and financial controllers.

Between the fact and fiction, we get a sense of what it’s like to be in the ballet, at least during grueling practice and the exalted performances. Where a dance-heavy film like Chicago favored quick editing to express the energy of dance, The Company prefers full-stage shots that let the dances play out in their full glory. Free from any kind of applied cinematic drama, the dance scenes contain their own artistic narrative and impact. The Joffrey’s first performance is a jaw-dropping modern piece incorporating ribbons attached to the ceiling and floor that are manipulated by the dancers. Later, a dancer floats and flies across the stage in a swing, her gauzy white skirt trailing across the stage like a ghost or a dove. Compared to these beautiful and amazing feats, any silly backstage sniping or weak story line is rendered inconsequential. The dance—more than the concocted story—makes The Company worth watching.

—Paige M. Travis

August 5, 2004 * Vol. 14, No. 32
© 2003 Metro Pulse