Surf’s up in ‘Blue Crush’; ‘Possession’ gets to the heart

‘Blue Crush’ hangs 10 when it comes to fun

Forget computer graphics and fancy special effects, move over

“XXX” and “Spider-Man,” Mother Nature has come to town in bona fide

action, no technical enhancement necessary. With “Blue Crush,”

director John Stockwell provides the end-of-summer thrill ride

everyone needs, no matter what coast you live on. Even this

Oklahoma-grown girl was mesmerized by the genuine excitement that

only God can provide in the 30-to 40-foot waves captured by this

summer fantasy flick that nicely delivered and wasn’t overdone.

Our journey begins with Anne Marie (Kate Bosworth) experiencing

the bumpy reefs of life. The answer to all her problems would be the

fulfillment of her life’s dream, to become a sponsored professional

surfer. Although the story line is basic, it didn’t turn into a

typical teeny-bopper flick. It offered an almost perfect balance

between exhilaration and anxiety: As Anne Marie rides the waves,

wanting to overcome her fear from an almost fatal accident, she is

also facing the whooshing and crashing of a life that she must keep

together before everything comes tumbling down.

Our heroine must protect her sister, reconcile their relationship,

take care of the bills, mend a hurting friendship, fall in love,

tackle monster waves and in that, win the Pipe Masters competition

all in the matter of a week. Fortunately, the barrage of problems to

solve only becomes time filler for a surprise ending and the 20

minutes of eye candy courtesy of the white shores of Maui. The

audience thoroughly experiences what it looks like, sounds like and

feels like to be in a 60-ton tunnel of water.

Stockwell’s combination of killer waves, hard-core surfer chicks

and phenomenal camera action will blow your mind. But you must know,

to truly and fully experience “Blue Crush,” a trip to the theater is

required!

“Blue Crush” is rated PG-13 for sexual content, teen partying,

language and a fight.

* DeANDRA RICH is a novice screenplay writer in Costa Mesa who

hopes to one day turn Ebert and Roeper into Ebert and Rich.

‘Possession’ makes critic reevaluate LaBute

After viewing Neal LaBute’s latest film, “Possession,” I was

completely amazed. This is not at all what I had expected from the

writer/director of “Your Friends and Neighbors” and “In The Company

of Men.” Those films are characterized by a biting, misanthropic

sensibility. But “Possession” is to LaBute what “The Age of

Innocence” was to Martin Scorsese: a visually elegant and literary

tale with an almost swooning romanticism -- a thinking man’s

“bodice-ripper,” if you will.

Brawny American literary scholar Roland Michell (Aaron Eckhart),

on a fellowship in London, is doing research on the writings of Queen

Victoria’s poet laureate Randolph Henry Ash. He stumbles upon Ash’s

letters to an unknown woman that hint at a more than platonic

friendship. Intrigued, Michell “borrows” the letters from the British

Museum in a quest to uncover the real story behind this man,

supposedly a model of marital fidelity.

The trail leads him to a 19th century feminist writer, the

beautiful Christabel LaMotte, and ultimately to a haughty British

professor who’s an expert on the author and also a descendant, Maud

Bailey (Gwyneth Paltrow).

We learn that Michell has sworn off relationships with women, but

not why. And from her icy manner, we can infer that Maud is

suspicious of men, love and certainly of this brash American who

dares to challenge her knowledge of the past. Sounds like a match

made in movie heaven to me.

The film skillfully weaves the stories, past and present, of these

people as the layers of what really occurred between Ash (Jeremy

Northam) and LaMotte (Jennifer Ehle) delicately unfold. The Victorian

era story is the real centerpiece of the film, and these two actors

convincingly play lovers whose passions are fueled by their

imaginations and beautifully phrased letters.

Paltrow and Eckhart, while uncommonly attractive for academics,

are less compelling in their “I-want-you-but-no-we-mustn’t” roles as

written.

Still, “Possession” is worthwhile viewing and a wonderfully

crafted story. Now I cannot wait to read the prize-winning novel by

A.S. Byatt.

“Possession” is rated PG-13 for sexuality and some thematic

elements.

* SUSANNE PEREZ lives in Costa Mesa and is an executive assistant

for a financial services company.