I Do ... Until I Don't
⋆⋆½ out of four stars
Rated: R for sex and profanity.
A first-rate cast gives the gooey romance "I Do ... Until I Don't" a boost in flavor and fun. The lineup includes Ed Helms, Mary Steenburgen, Paul Reiser, Amber Heard, Wyatt Cenac and Dolly Wells, with each performer adding their own brand of silly seasoning to the mixture.
That's critical, because on other levels, writer/director Lake Bell's examination of marriage does little to go past the norm. But Bell uses the various combinations of characters to keep the story fresh and make a plot that has been a staple of Hallmark movies for years come across with some extra layers of depth, warmth and humor.
Bell also stars, playing Alice, the loving wife of Noah (Helms). Alice and Noah run a business selling window blinds. Their good life begins to suffer because of financial problems with the business and failed efforts to start a family. Furthermore, Alice is worried that Noah has feelings for her younger sister, Fanny (Heard), who lives a Bohemian lifestyle with Zander (Cenac).
All of this comes out when a documentary filmmaker (Wells) comes looking for subjects for her latest film exposé that will show how marriage is an archaic notion. Alice and Fanny agree to be part of the filming along with Cybil (Steenburgen) and Harvey (Reiser), a couple who have been married so long they may be reaching a point where an escape clause in a marriage contract sounds good.
This is an old-fashioned love story — which might sound like an insult these days. But, in this case, it's just the opposite.
Rick Bentley, Tribune News Service
Unlocked
⋆⋆⋆ out of four stars
Rated: R for violence and profanity.
With its unexpected story and businesslike filmmaking, "Unlocked" proves to be a satisfying action thriller featuring one of the most exciting female action stars: Swedish actress Noomi Rapace. She plays Alice Racine. Don't let her placid facial expressions fool you; Alice can hurt people very badly if given a good enough reason.
Alice is a former CIA interrogator who is still reeling from her failure to stop a 2012 attack in Paris. She's called back to duty to investigate a suspected plot to unleash a biological attack in London. But soon the question becomes not what kind of information she can produce, but who exactly is asking her to produce this information.
Veteran director Michael Apted has stacked the cast with all-star players, including Orlando Bloom, Michael Douglas, Toni Collette and John Malkovich. Everyone around Rapace is colorful and over the top, which allows her to give the spare, neat performance at which she excels and perfectly fits the character.
It's the kind of efficient and physically powerful performance that recalls Matt Damon in the "Bourne" franchise. In fact, it would be a welcome treat to watch the Alice Racine chronicles, as she travels around Europe taking out terrorist cells with her combination of interrogation and combat skills.
Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service
