‘Basic’ lacks from top to bottom, ‘Head of State’ is smart,

funny

‘Basic’ is basically awful

“Basic” is a military action film that takes place in the jungles

of Panama on “The Day of the Dead,” and is a movie with many drug

overtones.

It involves an Army Ranger unit that has suffered several deaths

in a wild shooting episode. A military interrogation team is called

in to sort out the details of the deaths.

Tom Hardy (John Travolta), a former Ranger who left the military

under unclear circumstances, is called in to help with the

interrogation. The leader of the team is Capt. Osborne (Connie

Nielsen), who plays a frustrated female officer in an overwhelming

male bastion. She is unhappy when she loses control of the

investigation to Hardy.

Each person questioned during the investigation has a different

story, which is amplified by flashbacks to the original jungle event.

Samuel L. Jackson is cast as Sgt. West and plays him in typical

Jackson fashion.

The plot is somewhat convoluted and difficult to follow because of

the many characters involved in the jungle shooting.

The character development is sparse, and the ending is ludicrous.

Bottom line -- a weak effort from otherwise well-respected stars.

At times, it feels as if they just phoned it in.

* ELAINE ENGLAND lives in Newport Beach and owns a gift-basket

business she operates out of her home.

‘Head of State’ offers commentary, humor

“Head of State” is the funny Chris Rock film many moviegoers hoped

he would make.

Like Richard Pryor before him, Rock intricately weaves social

commentary into his humor. However, fans of Mr. Rock will have to

wait for his version of “Live on the Sunset Strip” or “Blazing

Saddles” (Pryor was a co-writer with Mel Brooks), as “Head of State”

is an imperfect film with glimpses of what could have been.

In “Head of State,” the presidential and vice presidential

candidates of an unnamed party are killed when their campaign planes

crash into each other less than two months before the election.

In searching for an expendable replacement candidate, party

heavyweight Sen. Bill Arnot (James Rebhorn) decides to “throw” the

election and select an obscure Washington, D.C. alderman, Mays

Gilliam (Rock), whose only claim to fame is his saving a cat from a

burning building. Of course, Gilliam has no chance of winning, but

the unnamed political party will undoubtedly score political points

for selecting an African American as its candidate.

The movie and campaign begin in earnest when Gilliam realizes that

he should not be constricted by what is acceptable to the nation’s

centrists, but should actually stand for something. It is only after

a head slapping by his cousin, a Chicago bail bondsman named Mitch (a

grossly underused Bernie Mac) does Gilliam’s campaign start in

earnest.

The film aspires to the heights scaled by Robert Redford’s “The

Candidate” and Warren Beaty’s “Bullworth.” However, Rock is betrayed

by the overall strength of the material. When the film ventures into

standard movie cliche territories -- the jilted girlfriend, the

laborer with the heart of gold (jeez, who will make a better First

Lady?), etc., the film becomes rather flaccid.

On the other hand, when Rock and the movie focuses its resources

on wicked political satire does the film run on all cylinders.

Highlights include a commentary during which Gilliam asks how crack

cocaine can be cheaper than prescription asthma medicine. In another

inspired turn, Gilliam’s opponent’s campaign motto is “God Bless

America and no one else.”

Rock is probably one of the best visible comics-political

commentators around. While this first attempt (“CB4” doesn’t count)

at having a large creative hand in a film was a tepid and irregular

affair, the flashes of brilliance can only create an anticipation of

better projects ahead.

* ROB OROZCO is an attorney with Morris, Polich & Purdy. He lives

in Newport Beach with his wife and two cats.