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Show Jtember 6, 2007 9 'Mr. Brooks/ a charmer from the darker side New moves Free classes prep dancers for the anniversary BY STEVE SALLES Standard-Examiner movie critic K evin Costner hasn't exactly been lighting up the box office the past few years with his good-guy routine, so he makes a bold, calculated risk to take on a bad-guy role. A very bad guy. In fact, his character in "Mr. Brooks" is addicted to killing, but he plans it so carefully that the Portland police — specifically Detective Tracy Atwood (Demi Moore) — don't have a clue who he is. By day, Mr. Earl Brooks is a prominent businessman, even nam Man of the Year by the chamber of commerce. He has the cookie-cutter wife, played all clueless and girliegirl-like by the usually toughminded Marg Helgenberger, of "CSI," and a lovely daughter, Jane, just home from college. He also has this hard-toget-used-to-at-first alter ego Marshall (William Hurt), who talks Earl into killing even though he shows signs of having an intense religious guilt for his actions. They carry on full conversations, but soon you realize that their dialogue is only going on in EaiTs head. Earl has kept Marshall at bay for a couple of years, but now the urge has returned and he guns down a couple while they're in the middle of making love. In his haste, he neglects to close the curtains (as cautious -r 1 W6' as he is, that's a huge mistake), and a pervert across the street (Dane Cook) has been taking pictures of the love scene now turned murder scene. Rather than turning Brooks in, the pervert, calling himself "Mr. Smith," decides to blackmail the killer — not for money but to be allowed to go along on his next murder. There's a creepy side story about Moore's detective character going through a messy divorce from a much younger man. And Dane Cook seemed like an odd choice for the psycho killer in training. Where it works is with the interaction between Costner and Hurt as they systematically plan each murder, reason out the next steps and even seem to be having fun with it. Also, having a sympathetic killer like Costner was a new and unusual twist. You're not exactly rooting for him, but maybe deep down you are. That makes you feel as disturbed as he is, so it's easy to get pulled into the drama. ' There are a few "Oh, brother!" moments, but the filmmaker waded through them without hesitation. Bravo to Costner for having the courage to take on such a troubled role. It will be interesting to see if his fans agree by showing up. So, "Mr. Brooks" was better than expected, but it's very dark for a Kevin Costner movie and may be a tough sell. Pratfalls, old bits fall short of 'Pink Panther' legacy BY STEVE SALLES Standard-Examiner movie critic I 'm sorry! I tried, but I just can't do it. I enjoyed Peter Sellers in the "Pink Panther" movies, and the idea of someone trying to duplicate his efforts is basically mission impossible — even for a talent like Steve Martin. For the most part, this new "Pink Panther" is simply a series of tasteless old bits that are cringingly not funny. It's all dumb setups and tired punch lines for an eternityfeeling 90 minutes, with Martin sweating bullets to make it into something more. Given the choice between a kick in the crotch and seeing this movie again, I'd take the kick, from an NFL punter wearing lead boots. This story takes us back before the bumbling French police officer Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin) was promoted to inspector. A famous soccer coach has been murdered, and his mas- . sive Pink Panther diamond ring is missing. Chief Inspector Dreyfus (Kevin Kline) wants an idiot detective to be the point man in the case, so that Dreyfus can secretly go around him and solve the crime himself to win glory and a coveted Medal of Honor citation. He calls for the infamous Clouseau, makes him an inspector and assigns him to this high-profile case. Clouseau is given a driver, the no-nonsense Gendarme Ponton (Jean Reno), Top, instructor Margene Anderson lines up the men and the women for basic cha cha lessons. More than 50 couples took advantage of the free dance class hosted by the 75th Services Division. Above, Maj. Craig Punches dances with his daughter Marion. Above, from tennis shoes to dance shoes, all were welcome to learn some fancy footwork. Left, Maj. Craig and Carrie Punches listen to instruction while they practice good form. Master Sgt. David and Diana Buettner couldn't stop smiling as they learned new steps. O•O Photos by BETH YOUNG StandardExaminer O•O O who must have lost a bet in order to appear in this film. The international singing sensation Xania (Beyonce Knowles) was the coach's girlfriend and should be a suspect, but Clouseau is so taken by her that he doesn't dare ask her the tough questions. However, he's apparently not enamored enough as he fumbles with a Viagra pill and ends up destroying a hotel bathroom. Nicole (Emily Mortimer) is the typical school marm/secretary who dotes on the new inspector. She must have been in on the same bet with Reno. Gone are the usual antics between Clouseau and his not-so-faithful housekeeper Cato. In their place are quick smackdowns, as Reno constantly beats Martin to the punch and the comedian's standard retort is, "Good one." I do give Martin credit for having the stamina to run around this movie like a chicken with his head cut off, but when was that ever funny? It was the arrogance of ignorance that made Sellers so memorable. Here it's just mindless pratfalling, smoking crotches, flatulence jokes, bike crashes and clown cars. I must admit smiling as Martin and Reno try to infiltrate a fancy party by pretending to be wallpaper — that almost got a chuckle. Otherwise, I was dumbfounded. That's not to say the theater was silent. People were howling all around me. I just wish they had passed whatever they were smoking to me, so I could have joined them. |