title: "Secondhand Lions"
starring: Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, Haley Joel Osment, Kyra Sedgwick, Nicky Katt, Josh Lucas, Eric Balfour
genre: dramedy
Don't let Haley Joel Osment's cracking voice stop you from enjoying this movie. It's only an annoyance that shouldn't take away from a fun, fresh and antsy coming-of-age dramedy that hits home with its messages of love, family and storytelling. Osment, who starts off with a squeaky pitch, plays Walter, a teen who's abrubtly abandoned by his dysfunctional mother (Sedgwick) and thrown to live with his more dysfunctional uncles, Hub (Duvall) and Garth (Caine). There's also a backstory, a myth that surrounds Walter's two uncles: they may or may not be in possession of a great load of wealth. Osment (who's way past his cliched "dead people" phase) springs and jumps as Walter; he's a spiritful youth who trembles under the weight of his two uncles' behavior, which is odd, humored, and intermittenly malicious. But as you get know Hub and Garth along with Walter, well, maybe they just ain't that bad. Kudos to Duvall, who makes the movie with his offbeat role; it's one of the best of the year. "Secondhand Lions" isn't for everybody; teenagers probably will howl at Walter's awkward puberty, and others will just be plain bored. But if you give it a chance, these "Lions" are howling good, for the whole family. grade: B+
cool scenes: Hub fight with teenagers
look for: Eric Balfour, who's a second generation John C. Reilly. He's in everything, but everybody ignores him.
out there:
"Matchstick Men": Nicolas Cage gives a good performance as Roy Waller, an obsessive-compulsive con artist, who suddenly has to take care of his daughter (Allison Lohman). His partner, Frank (Sam Rockwell), is a smooth operator, and Cage and Rockwell make a good cinematic tag team. Directed by Ridley Scott, this unobstrusive spinning tale is full of twists, but only turns a couple of times. grade: B
coming up:
"Scary Movie 3"
"Mystic River"
"Kill Bill, Vol. 1"
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