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Movies this weekend: Seabiscuit & Camp
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 25, 2003
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 25, 2003
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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Seabiscuit finally opens, after two years of reading about the plucky horse, with Oscar winners, nominees, and hopefuls in the production. Reiterating Gothamist's thoughts from earlier this week about the film, it's a very handsome adaptation (highlights being the cinematography, the race sequences, and William H. Macy), but a little bloodless at times, more reverential than rigorous - which may be a function of the adaptation process, though not always - yet certainly better than most of the Hollywood dreck out there now. The most fascinating thing might be the coordination and choreography of horses, humans and cameras.
David Edelstein of Slate feels there should be more Seabiscuit in Seabscuit. Roger Ebert liked, but not loved, it. Jami Bernard of the Daily News thinks the movie "get it right."
For something not produced with the words "Oscar bait" written all over it, but rather with "A fun, joyful experience," go see Camp. Set at a summer musical camp for teenagers, where Stephen Sondheim is God or at least Godot, and "honest-to-God straight boys" are catnip to both the boys and girls, Camp is a little cliche ridden but the performers and singing elevate it to something more honest and hilarious. The movie website is a bit weird, but one cool thing is that there are full length versions of some of the movie's showstopping songs available for listening, as well as clips from other songs.
Kenneth Turan of the L.A. Times says, "The singers know why they're there, we know why we're watching, and, for a moment at least, everything is right with the world." Gothamist on Camp earlier, when we saw it at New Directors/New Films.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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