The Sunday Drive: 5/1/11

3. Hanna
Joe Wright's latest is a vast departure from his previous works, yet retains the director's deft hand for painting glorious, beautiful imagery. Hanna, which features a sterling performance by Saoirse Ronan, is a visceral, thrilling story about a young girl raised from birth to be a killer.There's still time to check it out so don't miss it if it's near you.
2. Water for Elephants
Reese Witherspoon has never looked more gorgeous or more like a movie star than she does here in Francis Lawrence's charming adaptation of Sara Gruen's popular novel. An old style romance set in the heart of the Great Depression, Robert Pattinson stars as a college student fleeing from his past and joining a struggling traveling circus. Christoph Waltz stars as the volatile ringmaster running the show, while Witherspoon is the star attraction. I have some issue with the chemistry between Pattinson and Witherspoon, but there's no denying the way the film captures the magic of those old circus acts and the majesty of the animals.

1. Fast Five
It's not often that the fourth sequel is better than the original. Fast Five revs up it's engines and barrels us into the summer by amping up the stakes, introducing new characters as well as bringing back all of our old favorites for the most exciting adventure yet. If there's one movie you see this week it has to be Fast Five, and do yourself a favor and stay after the closing the credits.

DVD Pick of the Week: Blow Out
For my money no other film captured a man's spiraling paranoia better than 1981's Blow Out. Brian De Palma's exquisitely crafted, frantically shot thriller stars John Travolta as a sound engineer working on a movie who suddenly finds himself in hot water when he records the "accidental" death of a major political figure. One of the chief complaints about the film is that De Palma is a bit too indulgent with his camera, that the flashiness of it is a distraction from the story. I disagree wholeheartedly with that idea. Hopefully it's something De Palma discusses in the commentary provided on this new Criterion release, conducted by filmmaker Noah Baumbach.