THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PYJAMAS (2008) ★ ★ ★
Director: Mark Herman
Slickly produced drama about a Nazi commandant’s son who strikes up a friendship with a Jewish boy in the concentration camp his father oversees. There are some good performances here, but the glossy, overlit style gives it a TV-movie feel. Perhaps it would have benefited from a grittier approach.
VERDICT: A Hesitant See It
BOTTLE SHOCK (2008) ★ ★ ★ 1/2
I was totally surprised by this movie, which centers around the birth of Napa Valley’s wine industry. Bill Pullman is Jim Barrett, a man struggling to keep his vineyard afloat, with help from his hippie son, Bo (Star Trek‘s Chris Pine). Alan Rickman is the French wine snob who journeys to California to sample the region’s offerings. Great stuff.
VERDICT: See It
