Shoot the Piano Player

Charlie was a once successful concert pianist who now plays in an out of the way dive in Paris. One day his ne'er-do-well brother comes stumbling into the joint, asking for his help in eluding two con men he's double crossed. Now mixed up in this mess, the reticent Charlie must ward off the bumbling crooks while protecting his kid brother Fido and romancing the beautiful cocktail waitress Lena. "Shoot the Piano Player" was legendary director Francois Truffaut second outing, and was one of the early film's of the French New Wave, clearly having been inspired by recent American crime pictures of the time. The film is a remarkable free flowing work, veering seamlessly from comedy to tragedy to romance to slapstick and back around again. Charles Aznavour is great in a dour performance as Charlie, playing a character who strongly resembles Truffaut. Marie Dubois is very beautiful and affecting as the cocktail waitress who has long had Aznavour's eye and Daniel Boulanger and Claude Mansard are an absolute hoot as Ernest and Momo, the bungling criminals. In trying to gauge my responses to this movie, I realized I had run the gamut. In this visually beautiful film, Truffaut has constructed a wild genre mashup that is simultaneously funny, touching, and seemingly effortless.

Earth Days

With the heightened consumerism and population boom following World War II led to the first time in our history when serious concerns were raised over the state of the environment. With the publication of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring in 1962, a general awareness was beginning to be raised and the environmental movement was founded. Through the foundation of Earth Day, to Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter's conservationist efforts of the 1970s, to the publication of such cornerstones as The Limits to Growth and Paul R. Ehrlich's The Population Bomb, key events are examined by nine key founders of the movement, who also lend their expertise as to what has not been done and where we need to go. "Earth Days" is a thoughtful and well made documentary that does a wonderful job of documenting past events and presenting its ecocentric viewpoint. I don't consider my an environmentalist, but I appreciated both the approach and the argument of this documentary.

Fonda on Fonda

Henry Fonda was an actor who brought a relatable sincerity to the screen, playing roles that carried truth that people could identify with. In this retrospective, his daughter Jane lovingly reflects on her personal relationship with him and takes us through his classic films, which includes "The Grapes of Wrath", "The Lady Eve", "Fort Apache", "12 Angry Men" , "Mister Roberts", "Once Upon a Time in the West", and "On Golden Pond". Other family members including wife Shirlee and son Peter, as well as collaborators and friends James Stewart, Sidney Lumet, and Katharine Hepburn share their warm thought and remembrances of the actor as well. Whenever I watch a Henry Fonda picture, I never get the sense that he's putting on airs and get the feeling that I am watching the genuine article. According to testimonies here, it seems like that assessment isn't too far off the mark.

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

On April 21, 1865 a train departed Washington, D.C. carrying the body of Abraham Lincoln. He would meet a grieving nation on the journey to his final resting place of Springfield, Massachusetts. At the same time, his assailant John Wilkes Booth and a conspirator hid tired, injured, and cold on the banks of a Maryland river, trying to stave off the biggest manhunt in the history of the United States. What possessed Booth, a young, handsome, and successful man to take the life of the President so shortly after the terrible and bloody Civil War had ended? "The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln" is a fascinating documentary that describes events surrounding the first presidential murder in our history, as well as insight into Booth's motives. The film is wonderfully assembled by director Barak Goodman, and the film is given wonderful narration by Chris Cooper. With this film, the exceptional task is achieved of blending the intriguing of true crime programming with the somber and elegiac tones surrounding the demise of one of our nation's foremost figures.

Note: Some of this material was presented earlier this year in Robert Redford's "The Conspirator", a reputable historical rendering.

To Have and Have Not

An American running a fishing charter in the Caribbean Isle of Martinique romances a young lounge singer and reluctantly becomes involved with the French Resistance. "To Have and Have Not" is Howard Hawk's adaptation of what he thought to be Ernest Hemingway's worst novel. Scripting with William Faulkner and Jules Furthman, the story is sleepy and in more ways than a few resembles "Casablanca". However, the film is largely of note due to it being the debut of Lauren Bacall and the beginning of her relationship with Humphrey Bogart. The two sizzle on screen together and the film is pretty remarkable in that we are watching what is probably a record of the two falling in love. There are other meritorious elements in the picture as well. Bogart is great as usual, Bacall is extremely sultry, and Walter Brennan is a hoot as Bogie's first mate. There are some good musical numbers between Bacall and Hoagy Carmichael as well. "To Have and Have Not" is a laid back picture, yet a curious one and entertaining at that.

Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided

One of the main reasons that makes Abraham Lincoln such a fascinating historical figure is how unlikely he was. Lanky, rural, and lacking sophistication and formal education, who would have thought he would be the man to lead our country through its darkest hours? The same applies to his wife Mary Todd Lincoln, independent, intelligent, unstable and an equally unlikely first lady. Their tumultuous yet loving story is told in this remarkable six part series which follows the couples early years in Kentucky, to their political days in Springfield, IL, to the White House, the Civil War, and the triumphs and tragedies which beset both of them. Director David Grubin wonderfully assembles the stock photographs and historian interviews and the film is given tremendous narration by David McCullough. Abraham Lincoln was one of our foremost leaders leaders thanks to his determination, resolve, eloquence and perhaps most importantly, the support of his loving wife Mary.

Psycho

After a tryst in a hotel room, a dissatisfied young woman returns to her job and impulsively steals $40,000 from her employer. Exhausted and on the run, she stops for the night at a vacant hotel off the old highway and makes the unfortunate acquaintance of Norman Bates, the young and effeminate hotel manager with mommy issues, to put it lightly. Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" is one of the most referenced and most influential films in the history of  the cinema. A masterwork if there ever was one, every shot and beat is carefully calculated by The Master is a work of sheer precision. Containing great performances from Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh as well as Bernard Herrmann's unforgettable, pulsating score, "Psycho" is a hair raising knockout which hardly any subsequent imitators have been able to replicate. The shower scene is arguably the most famous sequence in history, but consider these other definitive moments: the parlor scene between Perkins and Leigh in which she presses some wrong buttons and his vulnerability surfaces . Martin Balsam falling down the staircase after having his face slashed. "Mrs. Bates" delivering her eerie closing monologue. "Psycho" is a film that knows exactly what its doing and plays out brilliantly like a perfectly orchestrated medley.

Cachao: Uno Mas

Israel 'Cachao' López was an Afro-Cuban jazz musician who's influence was so great he has been called the Latin Louis Armstrong. In this documentary, we learn of Cachao's life through family and friends, as well as interviews with the man himself, shortly before his passing in 2008. The film sort of plays like Cachao's music, free flowing and unstructured, as we hear musings on the man's musical stylings and cut away to a recent concert in San Francisco. Cachao's life was incredible to say the least. Born into a musical family and trained in the classics, he developed an improvisational style that caught fir in his native land. Fleeing the country when Castro took power, Cachao found both success and then hardship in America until he was rediscovered late in his career thanks to actor/musician and fellow countryman Andy Garcia, who is featured prominently in the film as well. "Cachao: Uno Mas" is a loving portrait of an immensely gifted musician who also comes off as a genuine person.

The Ides of March

The Presidential Democratic Primary has come down to the state of Ohio and candidate Mike Morris (George Clooney) is looking like a lock for the nomination. With his passionate, long time aid (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and a talented and idealistic young staffer (Ryan Gosling), all they needs to win is the seemingly assured endorsement of a local Senator (Jeffrey Wright). However, the advocacy may come at a higher price than expected, and that along with a rival campaign head (Paul Giamatti), an ambitious reporter (Marisa Tomei), and a sexy young intern (Evan Rachel Wood) are about to give the young campaign manager a crash course in dirty politics. Watching the Clooney helmed "The Ides of March", I was surprised by how lackadaisical the directing was, considering the stylish nature of his other films. I also found the screenplay to be not as sharp and biting as I expected. The star studded cast is in fine form though and Gosling, who is having a career year, carries the film nicely. Clooney seems like a politician to begin with and always seems like he's selling something, making him ideal for the lead here and Hoffman and Giamatti are great in fiery, cutthroat roles. Tomei has a good role here as the tough talking reporter as does Wood as the intern trying to mask her vulnerability. The film does kick itself into gear and the last half is exceptional, but I often found myself reminded of Mike Nichols' "Primary Colors", another film about an idealistic campaign staffer who becomes disillusioned with his hypocritical boss. That was told in a more cynical, scathing fashion which really showed the ugliness of party politics.

It's a Wonderful Life

"It's a Wonderful Life" arrives on television every holiday season with the certainty of cookies and milk, and is met with both fondness and weariness alike. Revisiting this ageless classic, I was taken in and captivated as always, but I was also surprise at how dark the film is in spots, a quality not always associated with the work on first thoughts. Released in 1946, this is still essentially a film about the depression, made by Frank Capra, a director who perhaps most typifies that decade. It opens with celestial beings representing God and St. Peter receiving prayers of desperation for the sake of a despondent George Bailey. Summoning a bumbling angel, the two higher beings take him through the selfless hayseed's life where all of his personal dreams and ambitions are sacrificed for the good of the people in the small town. Faced with the prospect of jail on Christmas Eve, the angel gives George a chance to see what life would have been like had he never been born. For Jimmy Stewart, "It's a Wonderful Life" represented what I suppose you could call a composite of his career, featuring the wide eyed good natured performance indicative of his early work as well as the darker, tortured soul roles that defined much of his latter roles. His transitional work here is remarkable, and he is surrounded by such a great supporting cast: Donna Reed is sweet as his wife Mary and Thomas Mitchell plays another great drunk in Uncle Billy. Henry Travers is excellent as Clarence the angel, and Lionel Barrymore has some of the best scenes as the despicable Mr. Potter. "It's a Wonderful Life" is a film I gladly revisit whenever it presents itself, and is one of the most affecting and captivating movies ever crafted.

Bears of the Last Frontier

For "Bears of the Last Frontier", a program for the PBS "Nature" series, naturalist and bear expert Chris Morgan embarks on a 3,000 mile journey to study the magnificent creatures. Beginning in a southern Alaskan coastal area densely populated with brown and black bears, Morgan then moves on to see bears foraging in Anchorage, and then further on to the northernmost point of the continent to observe polar bears. I found Morgan to be an engaging guide through Alaska bear country and his camera gathers some spectacular footage as well.

Brighton Rock

A British gangster is killed by a rival, better connected syndicate and Pinkie Brown, a ruthless upstart hood, is assigned along with his fellow goons to rough up the perpetrators. However, before Pinkie goes to far and bludgeons one to death under the boardwalk, the victim has his picture taken with an accomplice and an innocent young waitress. Now Pinkie aims to seduce the young girl not only to retrieve evidence, but to possibly silence her forever and carry out his own death wish. "Brighton Rock" is a flawed film that I found myself enjoying in spite of itself. The novel by hard boiled writer Graham Greene is not given a good treatment by writer/director Rowan Joffe, and many developments seem rushed and lacking credibility. The feel of the movie is right though, and Joffe's dark palette helps give the film an ominous neo-noir quality. The actor's are incredibly good as well. Up and comer Sam Riley is menacing as the heartless hood and Andrea Riseborough is scary in her naivety as the young waitress who falls madly and blindly in love with Riley. Old pro Helen Mirren is so good here as the restaurant owner who fights to save the young girl, and John Hurt is good as well in a lesser role as a local bar owner and love interest for Mirren. Despite not being able to buy many character choices and developments, I found myself enjoying this film, especially towards the end which wraps up like a bow, nice and twisted.

Catching Hell

Steve Bartman deflecting a foul ball from the reach of Moises Alou in the 2003 NLCS 

In 2003, it appeared that the Chicago Cubs would be able to lift the curse that had plagued their team from 1908. The had a stellar pitching staff, potent bats, and were up 3-2 in the NLCS at home against the Florida Marlins. Then while winning 3-0 with one out in top of the 8th, a foul ball was hit toward the left field wall which looked playable for outfielder Moises Alou, until it was swatted away by fan Steve Bartman amidst a sea of fans also attempting to catch the ball. The Cubs proceeded to implode, lose the game and the following one, ending the Cubs World Series dreams and making Bartman a scapegoat and the target of death threats. In "Catching Hell", director Alex Gibney studiously dissects this incident, as well as the Bill Buckner error in game 6 of the 1986 World Series, and questions why such foibles among a series of others get pinpointed and used as a target by fans and the media. Through interviews with Bill Buckner and fans and security personnel at the Bartman game along with members of Chicago and Boston media, we get a greater sense of how these incidents went down and how the mythology behind them was perpetuated. Gibney ("Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room", Taxi to the Dark Side") is one of the few documentarians who understands how to make his material palatable to viewers and his presentation here is absolutely fascinating. Though it is an extension of and not an actual part of "ESPN's 30 for 30" series, "Catching Hell" is the most accomplished of the group and the first that I would deem warranted for a theatrical release.

Bill Buckner (rear right) chases the ball he booted in the 1986 World Series

Fright Night

A young teen begins to suspect that his recently moved in next door neighbor is a vampire, much to the disbelief of his aloof mother, oddball best friend, and virginal girlfriend. When the neighbor becomes a formidable threat, the teen tries to enlist the help of a cowardly British host of a late night monster television program to put the foe down and save the lives of all those close to him. "Fright Night" is a moderately enjoyable 80s camp flick bolstered by the performances of two of its stars, Chris Sarandon as the hunky and menacing vampire and Roddy McDowall as the TV host, both of whom are humorously enjoyable in their roles. The film is not helped however by William Ragsdale in the lead playing the teen, whose performance is irritating borderlining on unwatchable. Additionally, the final showdown is clunky and unsatisfying, dominated by cheesy gross out effects, and terribly overlong. Still, "Fright Night" is somewhat fun campy fare and superior to the remake released earlier this year.

Zelig

In the fast moving Roaring 20s, one of its forgotten celebrities was Leonard Zelig, a human chameleon who would take on the appearance of anyone he was near near to. In this "documentary", we see Zelig's rise to fame and watch him fall in love with Dr. Eudora Fletcher, the determined psychiatrist who attempted to cure his condition. "Zelig" is a humorous and surprisingly touching concept film from Woody Allen. As a nod to "Citizen Kane" in what must have been an inspiration for "Forrest Gump", Allen employs the same 1920s fantasy used in "Midnight in Paris" as he inserts himself and Mia Farrow in grainy newsreel footage of the era. Gordon Willis's Oscar winning cinematography is beautiful and seamless, and its fascinating and sometimes very funny to see Allen interact with the likes of Babe Ruth, Charlie Chaplin, Bobby Jones, Pope Pius XI, and Hitler. Allen's scattershot humor indicative of his early films is also used to good effect here and it is also amusing hearing modern intellectuals such as Saul Bellows and Susan Sontag comment on Zelig's life. "Zelig" may be a funny concept stretched out to feature length, but it is still a fascinating and humorous experiment.

Killer Elite

When the mentor (Robert De Niro) of a British special ops agent (Jason Statham) is kidnapped by an oil sheik, the agent must spring into action and eliminate the three agents of a secret assassination agency who murdered the skeik's sons. After the first killing, the secret agent's mission becomes clear the leader of the secret squad (Clive Owen) and the two begin to play a cat and mouse as the truth behind the mission unravels. I think the studio's thinking with "Killer Elite" was throw three big stars at this thing and hopefully the audience won't notice they've got nothing to back them up. The leads are pretty good here (why won't De Niro stop committing himself to crap) but the filmmakers themselves don't even believe in the material. You can actually sense them getting bored with the down scenes as they itch for the next shoot 'em up action sequence, and during those sequences I was checking my watch.

Road to Nowhere

A young, cinephile director tells the story of his latest production to the film's writer. Filming a true crime story, the director hires a beautiful and mysterious actress to play the lead, who is a dead ringer for the character she is playing, and with whom he begins to become obsessed. As the shooting locations bring him from England, to Italy, to Tennesse, the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur and the director seems to get sucked into the steamy and treacherous plot of his film. "Road to Nowhere" is independent filmmaker Monte Hellman's first film in 22 years and is an alternately fascinating and frustrating film. Including elements that are not explained or do not make sense, and given extended shots to insignificant actions that add a surreal element, the movie is maddening to a Lynchian sort of way. Yet, the parts we can grasp or that seem to make sense are extraordinarily engaging. "Road to Nowhere" is a film that doesn't always make sense and doesn't even seem to want to. Regardless, even if the title is apt, I was taken for a ride anyway much in the same way as Hellman's "Two-Lane Blacktop".

The Men Who Made the Movies: Howard Hawks

Howard Hawks is one of those directors whose resume is so hard to recall because it is so versatile. Consider these classics and their genres: "Bringing Up Baby" and "His Girl Friday" (screwball comedy), "Sergeant York" (war), "To Have and Have Not" (romance/adventure), "Red River" and "Rio Bravo" (western), and "The Big Sleep" (noir). In this documentary, as Sydney Pollack narrates, Time's Richard Schickel takes us through Hawks' incredible films as the great director himself is interviewed. Listening to him, Hawks really is a compelling, authoritative figure. A hard, tough man he also comes off as intelligent and modest, rejecting claims of greatness from adoring French auteurs and asserting that he only filmed what he thought worked. "The Men Who Made the Movies: Howard Hawks" is a fascinating and insightful look into a legendary director's career.

Rio Bravo

After shooting an unarmed man during a melee at the saloon, the brother of a wealthy rancher is taken into custody by the local sheriff John T. Chance (John Wayne). Having only his drunk deputy (Dean Martin), a crippled old codger (Walter Brennan), and a talented young sharpshooter (Ricky Nelson) on his side, Chance must fend off the mounting threat set to spring the rancher's brother from the jail before the U.S. Marshals arrive to haul him away. With its leisurely pace, character development, and leisurely asides, Howard Hawks' "Rio Bravo" plays more like a good play than it does a typical Western. The film contains a great performance from The Duke, who shows a really surprising and endearing softer side here (don't get me wrong, his character his still tougher n hell). His supporters are very fine as well. Dean Martin is excellent as the self-hating drunk and has many of the films best scenes. Walter Brennan is a hoot as the cantankerous trigger happy old coot who watches the jail. Angie Dickinson is extremely sultry and appealing as the card cheat who wins Wayne's heart. Hawks' approach to the material is really brave and what makes it work. The film is long, about 2 hours 20, but that gives his characters room to breathe, as we get to know them, and allows for wonderful scenes that you wouldn't think would work, such as well Dino and Nelson sing a duet in the jailhouse. "Rio Bravo" is a great film that offers a little bit of everything we love about the movies.

The Lives of Others

In 1984 East Berlin the formidable secret police force, commonly referred to as the Stazi, kept surveillance on thousands of its citizens to root out political dissidence. One of these officers, a cold and determined veteran is assigned by a friend to keep tabs on a loyalist playwright who was at first thought to be above suspicion. However, as it appears his mission was created out of ulterior motives and he becomes more and more engrossed in the writer and his girlfriend's lives, he along with his target begin to gradually and surreptitiously change their allegiances. "The Lives of Others" is a thoroughly engrossing film from German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck that won the 2007 foreign film Academy Award. The film provides a scary historical context of a policing state and focuses on this fascinating story of three idealists being steered away of their beliefs. The story is compellingly told in a minimalist directorial fashion that generates extreme tension and compulsive watchability. There are great performances from Ulrich Muhe as the surveillance officer, Sebastian Koch as the writer, Martina Gedeck as his ingenue girlfriend, Ulrich Tukur as Muhe's colleague, and Thomas Thieme as the despicable minister. "The Lives of Others" is an excellent film with a great plot, excellent character development, and tense scenes that doesn't overplay its hand.

50/50

A likable 27 year old living a normal ordered life receives a cancer diagnosis and begins to deal with an overbearing mother, a cold girlfriend, a kind but greenhorned grief counselor, and his caring yet opportunistic best friend. Directed by Jonathan Levine from a screenplay by Will Reiser which is said to be based on personal experience, "50/50" seems to be awfully standard issue, offering a buddy film which cranks up the emotions when the gravity of the disease worsens. And yet, the routine story is elevate by a gifted cast led by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in a another fine performance playing a young man whose life is so ordered he won't even drive or jaywalk out of safety concerns until he has this proverbial wrench thrown into life. Gordon-Levitt brings credibility to the role as he plays a seriously distressed man damnly trying to conceal his terror. Seth Rogen is funny and endearing, something he hasn't been in awhile and Bryce Dallas Howard is good as the self-centered girlfriend who doesn't no how to respond to the disease. I liked scenes involving JGL's interaction with older cancer patients played by Philip Baker Hall and Matt Frewer, and the best scenes in the film involve the great Anjelica Huston as his mother, and Anna Kendrick as the sweet therapist. "50/50" is enjoyable, but I expected more out of it (the cinematography is not particularly inspired). Still, the cast is wonderful and gives weight to the lackluster material.

Looking for Richard

Richard III is the most performed of all of Shakespeare's works and yet it is a very complex and challenging work that many are unfamiliar with. In "Looking for Richard", Al Pacino examines the play as well as attitudes towards The Bard in America. At the same time, Pacino tries to stage a production of Richard III and while we are shown scenes from the play, we are given a dissection of the scene from Pacino himself, his actors, and various experts on the works of William Shakespeare. Pacino's directorial debut is a fascinating pseudo-documentary that is replete with so many thoughts, insights, and philosophical analyses. Pacino is captivating as he takes us through the play and helps us understand the tale of a deformed, heartless, and power hungry man, as are the many famous faces who also offer acumen such as John Gielgud, Vanessa Redgrave, Kevin Kline, Kenneth Branagh, Alec Baldwin, and Kevin Spacey. I don't mean this as a criticism, because I loved how the film was presented as a juxtaposition, but I would have liked to see the film version of the play as a whole, as Pacino is very captivating indeed as Richard III. "Looking for Richard" is not only an informative film but it is also an example of how to make an intriguing documentary, an art that is lost on many documentarians working today.

Billy Joel: Live at Shea Stadium

Shea Stadium was opened in 1964 in the Queens borough of New York City and was the home of the New York Mets, and for a time the New York Jets. The structure has seen two World Series wins, and also acted as a concert venue hosting the likes of The Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, Led Zeppelin, and The Beatles among others. In 2009 it was set for demolition, and in 2008 a two night concert featuring Billy Joel was slated to close down Shea. Having personally had the pleasure of seeing Joel live in concert, he puts on an immensely entertaining show. With "Live at Shea Stadium" he puts on a lively performance while playing hits such as "Only the Good Die Young" and "You May Be Right" while playing lesser known album tracks such as "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" and "Everybody Loves You Now". Joined on stage by special guests Tony Bennett, Garth Brooks, and Paul McCartney, "Billy Joel: Live at Shea Stadium" is an appropriate sendoff by a master performer.

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Chuck Barris was known as the creator of inconsequential game shows such as "The Dating Game" and "The Newlywed Game", as well as the host of "The Gong Show". In his 1984 titular autobiography, he purported to also be a trained assassin for the CIA, eliminating many of his targets while chaperoning the winning couples of "The Dating Game" while they vacationed in exotic East Berlin. "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" is the wildly outrageous and imaginative directorial debut from George Clooney, in a script that could only have been adapted for the screen by Charlie Kaufman. The underappreciated Sam Rockwell is incredible as Barris, blending moments of humor with scenes of sadness and capturing all of the emotions in between. Drew Barrymore surprisingly has a good role here as Barris' flaky soul mate, and Clooney is in fine form as an operative who recruits Barris. Kaufman's script is engagingly vulgar and bizarre and Clooney handles the direction with such style and panache as both men tap dance the fine line between reality and farce and pull it off swimmingly.

The Way

A choleric California eye doctor receives a call from an inspector from the south of France informing him that his son has been killed in an accident in the Pyrenees on the first day of a spiritual trek to the Spanish coast. Flying over to retrieve the body, he decides to have his son cremated and complete the 800 kilometer journey for him. Along his path, he meets three wounded souls who gradually gain his friendship as they help each other on their arduous physical and emotional journey. "The Way" was written and directed by Emilio Estevez, and strives to be old fashioned and inspirational filmmaking of the highest order ("The Wizard of Oz" is cited as inspiration). In the lead role and working under his son, Martin Sheen delivers a powerful internalized performance, the likes of which typify his best work, and Estevez shows a steady directorial hand, nicely capturing the the European locales along the impressive trail. However, the film is overly sentimentalized and the characterizations of the other cast members come off as trite and smarmy. I'm a sucker for road movies, and there's some really nice footage and a fine performance by Sheen, but in the end this is just schmaltz. For a better film about a long and arduous foot journey released earlier this year, I would recommend Peter Weir's "The Way Back".