THE GHOST WRITER

Roman Polanksi loves exploring fear and claustrophobia, and these elements are present -- omnipresent, actually -- in The Ghost Writer. This is a combination political drama and mystery.

Ewan MacGregor plays a ghost writer (his character is never named, so let's call him the Ghost) who gets a seemingly ideal assignment: ghost-write the memoirs of Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan), former Prime Minister of Britan now living in Cape Cod. Mike McCarra, the last person to work on the memoirs (and a friend of Adam's), either committed suicide or drowned accidentally. So the Ghost has to go to Cape Cod and take up where his predecessor left off.

Things become menacing almost instantly -- the Ghost is mugged and a manuscript he is carrying is stolen on his way home after getting the job -- and soon become more complex at Adam Lang's home. Ruth Lang (Olivia Williams), Adam's wife, seems extremely bitter and upset with him. Amelia Bly (Kim Cattrall) is Adam's assistant and possible mistress. Adam himself is quite mercurial, charming and relaxed one instant, angry and defensive the next. And his home is filled with security, leaving the Ghost feeling watched.

During the assignment, the news comes that Adam Lang is being charged by the International Court for war crimes, specifically an illegal kidnapping of terrorism suspects so they'd be turned over to the C.I.A. for torture. There's Professor Paul Emmett (Tom Wilkinson), who shares a past with Adam Lang. There's Rick Ricardelli (Jon Bernthal), a former political rival of Adam's who may be behind his being charged. And there are suspicious circumstances that come to light about Mike McCarra's death.

The strength and weakness of The Ghost Writer is its sense of dread and menace. There are times the "clues" that something bad is going on are heavy-handed: Characters comment that something doesn't make sense or just seems wrong. At the same time, there seems to be a tangled web of deception and lies that has been in place for years that the Ghost is always scrambling to understand. The acting is very good (Brosnan has relatively screen time, but his presence is always there) and the setting -- a rainy, isolated island -- works well to reinforce the Ghost's sense of being trapped and disconnected. The Ghost Writer is a clever exercise in justified paranoia.

Overall grade: B+
Reviewed by James Lynch

Miss Potter (2006)

Before Harry Potter was all the rage, Beatrix Potter, author of the Peter Rabbit Tales, was THE Potter. In fact, a short century ago, she was developing into the most popular children’s author of all time. In the film Miss Potter, Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor ably help recreate this fascinating tale.

Beatrix Potter (Renee Zellweger) comes from a well to do British family. Rather than getting married as society and family expected of a proper young lady, she spends her time coming up with stories and watercolor illustrations to accompany them. After selling some of her images to greeting card companies, she pitches her idea to a book publisher. The two senior brothers of the publisher push her off on their "new to the business" little brother Norman Warne (Ewan McGregor) to basically get him out of their way. What results is a series of books with worldwide sales that would make even JK Rowling proud.

The other side of the plot shows us the romance between the author and her publisher in 1902. Needless to say, the world was a much different place back then. Seeing the courtship, from a bygone era, complete with chaperon, and with letters, not phone calls and instant messages puts our current era of instant communications into a new focus. Miss Potter also touches on the author’s devotion to the Lake District of England, and its eventual preservation through her land purchases and bequests after her death.

Miss Potter is not only a delightful film, but it is also great insight into a very popular author. Renee Zellweger, with her British accent still ready to go after Bridget Jones's Diary (and its forgettable sequel), does a great job with the role. Miss Potter is a pleasant look into both this popular author, and England at the turn of the century for all ages.

Overall Grade: A-