| ALL THE QUEEN'S MEN Rating:  Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky Producers: Marco Weber, Phil Alden, Rainer Virnich Writer: David Schneider Director of Photography: Wedigo von Schultzendorff Cast: Matt LeBlanc, Eddie Izzard, James Cosmo, Nicolette Krebitz, Udo Kier, David Birkin Visit the IMDB page for full cast & crew. |
 |
Review by: Kim
Justice
10/20/02
You know when three writers have worked on a film's story alone -- and a fourth person is brought in to write the actual script -- that something isn't right, and it's not necessarily the writer who wrote it that's wrong. Sometimes trying to get it right so many times (even though it's a good story) doesn't necessarily mean the venture is a good investment. And so, despite a unique, inspired by a true WWII story plot, interesting characters and a fun cast, All the Queen's Men will not make you leave the theaters trumpeting the day that film was invented.
It's WWII, and cocky American Steven O'Rourke (Matt LeBlanc) is behind enemy lines attempting to steal an enigma machine, a typewriter look-a-like that the Nazis are using to code their messages. When he's nearly completed his mission, O'Rourke runs into some British soldiers who destroy the enigma machine (for one hilarious reason) and arrest O'Rourke for fighting them to save it.
As O'Rourke does his time in a British military prison, he's recruited by the Brits to go back into Nazi Berlin to steal another enigma machine. Only this time, there are a couple provisions that must be met. First, he has to go in with a team including Archie (James Cosmo), a veteran who's only seen combat in the newsreels, Johnno (David Birkin), a naive code breaker who's also a combat virgin, and Tony (Eddie Izzard), a transvestite who'd rather use rouge than rifles. And second, the machines are being constructed in a factory staffed entirely by women.
That's right, it's soldiers in drag attempting to save the free world from Nazi occupation. The hopeless quartet is aided by a German librarian named Romy (Nicolette Krebitz), whose home above the library is stacked with books meant for burning.
All the Queen's Men manages to hit just the right tone for this kind of film. Not too serious, yet not so comical that the inspired-by-a-true-story aspect is lost. Eddie Izzard is fantastic as usual, as is Udo Kier (Dancer in the Dark, My Own Private Idaho) as the Nazi General who likes big women. I had high hopes for LeBlanc (robbed of the Emmy, I tell you), but I'm still not ready to buy him as a tough action hero. I don't know if he's trying to distance himself as far as possible from Joey (his character on "Friends" for all you cave-dwellers), but it's not working for me just yet. His comedic turns in the flick, however, allow his acting talents to shine a bit more.
As with most men-as-women films, there is the usual montage of learning how to walk, put on makeup, etc. Yawn. Thankfully, it doesn't take up much screen time. And, just like Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, these men look nothing like women, even in a stuffed bra and 40s-era dress. This, I assume, is why most of the film doesn't even take place in the factory. Smart move on the filmmakers' parts, since the actual mission isn't all that interesting.
This movie is no Tootsie, don't get me wrong, but it does merit a viewing. It was a good time, and these days, a good time is always welcome. So check it out with the knowledge that golden men will not be handed out, but a few good laughs surely will. In other words (just to overstate) All the Queen's Men is for people who like to go to movies, not psycho film junkies who speak only of the cinema.
(A Strand Releasing release. Opens
in limited release on October 25.)
Agree? Disagree? Talk about it in our message boards.
|
|
|
|
|