By Désirée I. Guzzetta

THE INCREDIBLES (2004)
Pixar Animation Studios/Walt Disney Pictures

The Incredibles is a little more adult than previous Pixar fare, but has enough Disney-ish goodness for the children. In fact, despite the nearly two-hour running time, the small kids in the audience I saw it with sat in rapt attention, even during the parts I thought were slow (which were thankfully few).

The Incredibles tells the story of Bob Parr, a.k.a. Mr. Incredible (who is super-strong), and how he and all the other "supers"--the word regular folk use to refer to super-heroes--are driven out of the super-hero business because of rising litigation. It costs a lot of money to be a super because of all the collateral damage rescuing people in distress and catching criminals causes, you know.

Bob, who is married to Helen, a.k.a. Elastigirl (who can stretch and flatten her body), winds up working in insurance, where he's supposed to be denying claims, but because of his good nature, he lets the claimants in on insurance tricks that allow them to get their money, much to the chagrin of his officious boss. The sight of the hulking Bob crammed into a tiny cubicle is one of the funniest gags in the film.

Back home, Helen takes care of their three kids, Dash (who has super-speed), Violet (who can turn invisible and also make force fields), and baby Jack-Jack (who appears to have no special abilities). She tries hard to keep the kids from using their powers, which isn't easy. Both she and Bob miss their time as heroes.

One day, Bob gets a request for the return of Mr. Incredible that he can't resist. What starts as a series of super-hero missions turns into something more sinister with the arrival of a new super-villain, Syndrome. Will the Incredibles be able to stop Syndrome's dastardly plan before it's too late?

The Incredibles is funny and touching thanks to a great script, which is no surprise, given director Brad Bird's previous film, The Iron Giant, a work that never fails to jerk a tear or 10 out of me. The vocal characterizations are also great, especially Bird as Edna Mode, who designs the supers' costumes and is one of the funniest animated characters ever created--and who bears a passing resemblance to Linda Hunt which may or may not be intentional; Craig T. Nelson as Bob/Mr. Incredible and Holly Hunter as Helen/Elastigirl; Samuel L. Jackson as Frozone, a super-hero pal of Bob's; and Jason Lee as Syndrome, who is effectively menacing and crazy.

The animation, while not as rich as Pixar's previous film, Finding Nemo, is still head and shoulders (and guts!) above the competition. The animation especially shines in the thrilling action sequences (which are thankfully plentiful).

The film is preceded by a cute musical short, "Boundin'"; the end credits also have some comic-book-style animation worth watching.

Written & Directed by: Brad Bird
Starring the Voices of: Craig T. Nelson (Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible), Holly Hunter (Helen Parr/Elastigirl), Samuel L. Jackson (Lucius Best/Frozone), Sarah Vowell (Violet), Spencer Fox (Dash), Elizabeth Peña (Mirage), Jason Lee (Buddy Pine/Syndrome) John Ratzenberger (Underminer) and Dominique Louis (Bomb Voyage)
Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Rated: PG

One Incredible Official Site

THE GRUDGE (2004)
Columbia Pictures

The Grudge is a spin on the hoary haunted house tale, with a vengeful spirit that can leave its house to follow the objects of its curse to their homes, offices, and presumably wherever else they go. This American remake, like the remake of The Ring, compares favorably to the original Japanese film, and in some respects, it's better because it's more coherent. However, it still jumps around in time and still leaves unanswered questions, such as, Why isn't the vengeful spirit anchored to the house like other spirits are? How does one end the curse? And just what is the angry spirit saying to Emma (Grace Zabriskie) that drives her insane before she dies?

Sarah Michelle Gellar gives an understated performance as Karen, an American girl who works as a home caregiver and gets cursed simply by stepping into the house. Karen takes some initiative to research the place and find out what happened there that has resulted in the curse, especially after witnessing Emma's harrowing death, but it becomes increasingly clear to her that she's as doomed as all the others the spirit has targeted.

The remake has some changes from the original film which give the story of the curse more substance, but screenwriter Stephen Susco takes out two of the original stories and adds in one about a professor (Bill Pullman) that doesn't seem all that necessary. The unfortunate consequence of all the changes is that some of the original's very arresting images (the spirit pouring out of the toilet stall, for instance) are gone, though some new images created in their stead will linger disturbingly in the mind--or scar it forever, depending on your level of squeamishness.

The Grudge is geared mostly to teens, many of whom were squirming in their seats at the showing I was at. Director Takashi Shimizu (who also directed the original) shows that he has great potential; he just needs an actual plot to help him along. Despite the changes mentioned above, the film continues to feel more like a series of horrific set-pieces instead of a full-on story, and is plagued by having more cheap shocks than genuine scares. However, the genuine scares will make the hairs on the nape of your neck stick straight out. I just wish there had been more of them to make the film seem like less of a chore to sit through.

The original Japanese cast is very effective--Yuya Ozeki makes Toshio particularly freaky. Unfortunately, Jason Behr, Clea DuVall, and William Mapother are largely wasted in minor roles. Fortunately, Gellar is able to carry her parts of the film admirably, which helps.

Apropos of nothing, Ryo Ishibashi, who plays Det. Nakagawa, played Shigeharu in another Japanese horror film, Audition, which I'd recommend seeing instead of The Grudge. It's slow and it shifts in time the way The Grudge does, but the creepy parts of it still haunt me, unlike The Grudge, which I would have forgotten if I didn't review it.

Director: Takashi Shimizu
Screenwriter: Stephen Susco, based on Takashi Shimizu's screenplay "Ju-On: the Grudge"
Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar (Karen), Jason Behr (Doug), KaDee Strickland (Susan), Clea DuVall (Jennifer), William Mapother (Matthew), Grace Zabriskie (Emma), Bill Pullman (Peter), Ted Raimi (Alex), Yuya Ozeki (Toshio), Takako Fuji (Kayako), and Ryo Ishibashi (Det. Nakagawa)
Running time: 1 hour, 36 minutes
Rated: PG-13

For extra chills, get cursed at the official website, which is a little scarier than the actual film!

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