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'Ledge' thriller without 
the thrills

Fireside’s 'Viva Vegas' 
is a good bet

WAUKESHA - We have entered the Oscar window - and everyone in Hollywood knows it. FORT ATKINSON - The big band is back, and we are invited on a nostalgic journey to Las Vegas with all its glitz and shining stars.

Teenagers' super powers 
take flight in 'Chronicle’
WAUKESHA - Watching "Chronicle," I was reminded of films like "The Book of Eli" or "Cloverfield" - edgy genre experiments that elevated the monster film and the apocalypse road trip, illuminating in the process an otherwise drab winter at the movie theater.

'Extremely Loud' delves 
into tragedy, endurance
WAUKESHA - Is it appropriate to build a work of drama around the horrifying terrorist acts of Sept. 11, 2001?

Liam Neeson braves the 
elements in 'The Grey'

WAUKESHA - Ever since "Schindler's List," Liam Neeson's career has been an uneven affair. On the one hand, he appears in serious drama, like "Kinsey," and then on the other he has routinely appeared as the gritty, vengeful action star of such thrillers as "Taken" and "Unknown." As a film critic, it's hard to tell nowadays just what Neeson is going to show up.

Devious, delicious 'Haywire'  
perfects the world of mayhem
What’s immediately refreshing - and hypnotic - about "Haywire" is its refusal to waste time or insult the audience.

Mischievous performances 
heighten thrills of 'Tinker Tailor'
To see "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" is to step into a time machine - to return to an era when movies were more confident, elaborate, engrossing and altogether enchanting.

Streep commands screen 
in 'Iron Lady'
All hail, Meryl Streep. In "The Iron Lady," one of the world's greatest actresses returns with one of her most challenging and breathtaking performances. Here she plays Margaret Thatcher, the former prime minister of the United Kingdom, and one of the more polarizing political figures of all time.

Crowe's attempt to maximize 
feel-good story misses the mark
It’s hard to be down on a feel-good holiday movie. There were few titles over the holiday season that were marketed more wholesomely than "We Bought a Zoo." And yet of all the movies I saw during the tail end of 2011, this was the one that left me least satisfied.

Tensions run deep, and so do 
the emotions in 'Dragon Tattoo'
WAUKESHA - There are the movie heroes you appreciate as you follow along from a distance and then those you root for as you see through their eyes. 

Mission accomplished: 
'Ghost Protocol' electrifying
WAUKESHA - As the man who molded the likes of "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille," Brad Bird has become renowned as a filmmaker who can mold eccentric stories around indelible characters. Like all the Pixar productions, his projects were awash in heart.

Camera limitless in 'Tintin'
WAUKESHA - Just when the lackluster 3-D conversions were starting to turn audiences off to the whole concept, here come Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg with two projects that point to a brave new era of lively, liberated 3-D adventures.

'Descendants' unforgettable
WAUKESHA - There’s something telling about the real estate deal at the center of "The Descendants." In this time of underwater mortgages and bleak economic forecasts, Matt King (George Clooney) seems to have it made.

'New Year’s Eve' bland nostalgia
WAUKESHA - Hollywood has used the holidays as an excuse to make stories about movie stars. But in 2011, they’ve done a complete 180-degree shift. We now use movie stars as an excuse to create a story about a holiday.

‘The Sitter’ is for adults only
WAUKESHA - Back in 2003, a dark little twisted comedy by the name of "Bad Santa" snuck into movie theaters the day before Thanksgiving. Throughout the month of December, it became something of a modern cult classic - a tale of a foul-mouthed, alcoholic mall Santa who tells off unsuspecting kids before robbing department stores blind on Christmas Eve.

'Arthur Christmas' sweet 
and silly comedy
WAUKESHA - There's a wholesomeness to "Arthur Christmas" that won me over almost immediately. I was reminded of the 2003 holiday surprise "Elf" - the Will Ferrell comedy that, unlike so many of his vulgar comedies, wore its sweetness on its arm.

Green is gold again with 'The Muppets'
WAUKESHA - There's something wonderfully refreshing about "The Muppets," a big-budget enterprise that is this sweet, sentimental and sincere. The word that kept occurring to me on my way out of the theater was showmanship.

Martin Scorsese surprise: 'Hugo' 
is best 3-D film ever made
WAUKESHA - Back in 2009, I was not one of those critics who minced words about "Avatar." James Cameron promised to deliver the world a 3-D movie that would make us think differently about the art form. And he delivered with a fictional landscape and computer-generated characters that he built from the ground up, with 3-D in mind.

Hoover's facade hinders 'J. Edgar'
WAUKESHA - Expert in its craftsmanship but curiously bland in its delivery, "J. Edgar" is one the least memorable "big" movies of the year.

Adorable: Best way to 
describe ‘Happy Feet Two’
There’s really no other word to describe "Happy Feet Two" than adorable. 

Striking visuals elevate ‘Immortals’
WAUKESHA - Tarsem Singh is probably the best movie director you’ve never heard of. And while his new gods-and-swords blockbuster "Immortals" is not exactly one of the year’s best films, here’s hoping that it gives Singh a bigger platform from which to wow a whole lot more film lovers.

Old is new again with the Muppets
WAUKESHA - When I was growing up - think mid-’80s here - there was nothing more hilarious than the Muppets. I can still remember the VHS tape that my parents made, stretched to maximum capacity with the EP recording speed, upon which I was able to watch 1979’s "The Muppet Movie," 1981’s "The Great Muppet Caper" and a TV holiday special. This was all in one sitting - over and over.

Adam Sandler skews juvenile
WAUKESHA - I came of age with Adam Sandler films, so I understand the appeal. Once upon a time, before I had seen the classic comedies or understood the humor essentials of timing and nuance, I thought slapstick like "Happy Gilmore" and buffoonery like "Billy Madison" was how it was done.

Hollywood’s worst drag comedies
WAUKESHA - For a Hollywood comedian, it’s often the surest path to a laugh: Don a wig, slip into a dress and slide into some high heels.

‘In Time’ is exciting thriller 
with bevy of smarts
WAUKESHA - Director Andrew Niccol is fascinated by the rules that govern society.

'Puss In Boots' revives spirit of 'Shrek'
WAUKESHA - Just when you thought that the “Shrek” franchise had been drained of all novelty and creativity, here comes “Puss In Boots” - a surprisingly limber and energized continuation of the green ogre’s fractured fairy tales.

Chemistry trumps story in 'Tower Heist'
There’s no denying the infectious chemistry that director Brett Ratner has brought to his latest comedy-thriller, “Tower Heist.”

'Musketeers' does 
disservice to classic tale
There's so much silliness on display in "The Three Musketeers," such mindless zaniness, that something feels decidedly out of place about this latest adaptation.

'Anonymous' is a literary thriller
As far as cinematic wonders go, "Anonymous" may take the prize for the most delightful film surprise of 2011.

‘Footloose’ revival is both 
reverential, meticulous
A competent, jubilant and faithful revival of the original pop hit, Craig Brewer’s "Footloose" is every bit as sunny and euphoric as we expect. It’s a modern crowd-pleaser worthy of the crowd-pleaser of old.

'Gershwin and Friends' 
steps back in time
'The Skylight Opera Theatre had to adjust its schedule this season to accommodate the illness of Leslie Fitzwater, the vocalist who was scheduled to reprise her Edith Piaf show following the Christmas season.

'Wrinkle' will stimulate imagination
"A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle has been a controversial book since it was published in 1962.

Sister act makes 'Nunsense' 
good-natured fun
When Dan Goggin started his line of greeting cards, featuring a wisecracking nun, little did he know that several years later his character would evolve into "Nunsense," the second-longest-running off-Broadway musical.

Singin' the praises
WAUKESHA - With another dazzling year in area theaters, it is hard to single out the best of the best.

'Next to Normal' gives 
powerful glimpse of mental illness
MILWAUKEE - "Next to Normal," a rock musical now showing at The Milwaukee Repertory Theater, has won its share of awards in 2009 and 2010.

Milwaukee Rep peaks again with holiday favorite 'A Christmas Carol'
MILWAUKEE - Charles Dickens' most staunchly popular work is a novella he wrote in six weeks - "A Christmas Carol," a piece that has been adapted into every possible form.

Sunset's premiere of 'Annie' 
movin' and groovin' musical
ELM GROVE - As soon as I realized that Ray Jivoff was directing "Annie" at the Sunset Playhouse, I knew we were in for a treat. I've seen many plays directed by him, and all are successful. He's one of those directors who can motivate pe

‘Candy Canes’ will raise 
your holiday spirit
WAUKESHA - The Waukesha Civic Theatre has once again put its creative talents together to present "Candy Canes and Holiday Carols."

LCP reprises holiday staple: 
‘A Christmas Story’

HARTLAND - The birth of "A Christmas Story" by Bob Clark was a somewhat serendipitous event.

Chamber's 'Heroes' 
a moving tribute to veterans
"Hero" is a tough word to define. It's a very subjective term. But we seem to need them to inspire us and move us forward to emulate them.

Skylight creates festive 
sounds with 'Music Man'
MILWAUKEE - Sometimes even a con can be conned. That is the lesson inherent in the Meredith Wilson's wonderful "Music Man." Wilson, who composed this long-lasting musical, set the scene in his own beloved Iowa at the turn of the last century. It is hard to see anyone but Robert Preston as Harold Hill, but Norman Moses makes his 50th appearance at Skylight Opera Theatre very memorable in his dream role. 

Next Act Theatre's 'Sylvia' 
is dog-gone good
A.R. Gurney is a prolific playwright whose works are frequently accessible in the area.

‘Fireside Christmas’ ignites spirit
FORT ATKINSON - The Fireside Theatre in Fort Atkinson outdid itself with its Christmas show this year.

Masters of song and dance come to life
MILWAUKEE - Put two extraordinary musicians together - a phenomenal pianist and a song and dance man - and one is in for a mesmerizing treat.

Bouvelard recaptures Oscar Wilde’s witty comedy
Oscar Wilde’s witty comedies are always fun to re-experience. The dialogue is ever clever as he questions the superficial values and masks of propriety and respectability that dominated Victorian society.

Love prevails in 'Marvin's Room'
WAUWATOSA - Playwright Scott McPherson's "Marvin's Room" collected an array of awards in 1992, a play which he later converted to film, but he died before the film was released in 1996.

'The Tavern' is unique theatrical experience
WAUKESHA - When one hears the name George M. Cohan, most of us think of Broadway musicals and memorable patriotic songs such as “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” “You’re a Grand Ole Flag,” or “Over There.”  

Child pursues dream in 
First Stage production
It is rare to meet the playwright and the woman who inspired her to write the play now showing at First Stage Children’s Theatre, but we were given that privilege following the performance of "Don't Tell Me I Can't Fly." 

Has-been celebrities clash in 'Gorgons'
A steady stream of vitriol scorches our ears as two frustrated has-been stars excoriate each other for 90 minutes. Melodrama? 

Rep's 'Lombardi' gives 
legendary coach his due
MILWAUKEE -Vince Lombardi's coaching style and success with the Green Bay Packers made him a legendary figure in the hearts of Wisconsin sports fans.

Op'ry' script misses the mark
HARTLAND - When one has become accustomed to high-quality community theater, the expectations can work against a given production.

Sunset’s ‘Prelude’ tale 
of how love strikes quickly
WAUKESHA - "Prelude to a Kiss" at the Sunset Playhouse is a fantasy and a romance, and maybe those two words are more related than we think at first glance.

First Stage reaches back 
with ‘Seussical’ reprisal
MILWAUKEE - To celebrate its 25th anniversary, First Stage Children’s Theatre has reprised "Seussical" in its musical form.

Civic Theatre's 'Smoke' 
a rollicking good time
Picture a small town, a tiny Baptist church (67 in attendance last Sunday), an ardent minister who can quote from the Bible with frequency and vigor and a traveling singing group (The Sanctified Sanders Singers) about to arrive to impress the locals.

'Dining Room' creatively done
HARTLAND - A.J. Gurney is an impressive playwright. His plays usually incorporate a mix of humor and pathos, and his manner of presenting his story is often a bit unconventional.

High-stepping 'Seven Brides' back
FORT ATKINSON - "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" is a typical 1950s musical - lots of dancing, a few showstoppers, romance and a goodly measure of improbability hidden beneath the glitz. But it's fun and, I suspect, will continue to entertain the masses for many years to come.

Rep portrays Lunt, Fontanne 
as ideal stage couple
MILWAUKEE - Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne’s personal lives (if they even had one) seldom intruded upon their famed stage life.

'Of Mice and Men' pits 
characters against adversity
SPRING GREEN - If you want a mix of magic, witches, spirits, half-human creatures, along with a heavy dose of betrayal and, of course, an idyllic romance, step up to Shakespeare’s most fantastical play - "The Tempest."

Misc. 

Wisconsin artist takes 
music world by storm
It’s not every day that The New York Times magazine extols the virtues of northwestern Wisconsin, or that Vanity Fair publishes a photo gallery of a music star lounging in the backwoods of Eau Claire.

A fond farewell to one of television's greatest characters
For any serious fan of "The Office" - the American version of the "The Office," that is, which has been airing on NBC ever since 2005 - this marks something of a bittersweet week.

Bright future for local child star
WAUKESHA - Mallorey Wallace is living her dream, one that she envisioned at the modest age of 5.

 


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