Quick Takes: "Rock of Ages", "Jiro Dreams of Sushi", "Haywire", "The Godfather"

"Rock of Ages" (***)

Directed by Adam Shankman

I teased this property feverishly in reference to Tom Cruise's film-owning performance as Stacie Jaxx, the rock star icon who serves symbolically to represent the dying light of rock and roll. What this film quite fervently and ridiculously protests is that while the time of rock and roll may be past, it is certainly not dead. Adam Shankman is the cinematic spokesperson for people foolishly chasing their dreams, having directed "Hairspray" and a couple episodes of "Glee", even. He's covered plenty of varying ground cinematically, given that most of his films do hold his staple gullible optimism against logic branding.

This film genuinely speaks for Shankman trying to find a leg into different, perhaps something darker waters, while sticking to his fun-seeking code. "Rock of Ages" does find its way into the story through a small town girl and a city boy, both of which are seeking stardom, but the music and adult characters take the baton from there. Tom Cruise is the exceptional piece of insane devotion that gives this film such a strong beating heart, but Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, and Paul Giamatti['s mustache] all nail their high-on-rock-fumes comic beats perfectly. File this one in the growing pile marked "shouldn't work, but joyously does!"

"Prometheus" marks end of arrival for Michael Fassbender

I always feel robbed when an indie film star finally hits a stride of mainstream hits, and very quickly ceases to be mine. Michael Fassbender wasn't a cinder of non-existence at the start of last year, having had plenty more than memorable roles in the few years prior. His winning single-chapter stint in "Inglourious Basterds" was my first brush with the transformative actor, playing a charismatic connoisseur of cinema. Indeed he has taken in cinema of a rather wide branch, from his less known, but far more devastating work on films like "Hunger" and "Fish Tank", Fassbender is now one of the latest exciting commodities in mainstream film.

"Prometheus", which released recently to high buzz followed by declining critical and box office returns, does mark a certain climax in terms of this massive arrival party for Fassbender. It seems all too appropriate, given he's playing a corporate robot of massive intellectual properties who defies rational behavior to achieve his goals. The fact that Fassbender has had such a dynamite reception as of recent is some kind of oddity, though he has honestly been silently paving the way for a boom of activity that rushes him into the public interest. His work in mainstream cinema actually goes all the way back to 2007.

Box Office Update: Surge from the "Underworld"

This was a weekend of massive drops that somehow managed to keep up with the pace last weekend had set. The returning films undertook massive drops, as to be expected after a holiday weekend. The greater wealth was spread amongst the films on the opening slate. "Underworld: Awakening" was quite obviously the strongest debut, benefiting from the critics being away at Sundance, and therefore not coming in on a wave of hate. Same can be said for "Red Tails" as well, which did not fare well with critics, but did solidly with audiences. "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"s expansion yielded some small gains, but if the film fades out of mind by next week, don't be surprised. It could turn out to get a surprise heap of Oscar nods that push it to greater success, but don't count on it.

For Your Anticipation: Thank You

Steven Soderbergh is one of those directors who has nothing really brilliant to give anymore. He is more or less going through the motions at this point, pushing out films at a clip that doesn't allow for deep study. That's not necessarily a bad thing. The man has a very noticeable style about how he does things, but you would think that that would go towards something more. "Haywire" isn't going to last in memory beyond March, but I don't deny my interest in it as nothing more than a solid action piece, but why all the stars. Michael Fassbender seems to have more important things to do with his time then... you know... die.

Films to See in 2012: January

We're now straight out of 2011, and you know exactly what that means. It means we're stuck with a month of January, which is the most pathetic month of the year. People just stop trying to make good movies, and that's sad. I suppose they're making room for people to catch up with the Oscar films of this year, but for us film addicts, it's not a fun time for new releases. The first weekend of the year always provides us something in the way of awful horror thrillers, this year being in the form of "The Devil Inside". I'm worried that people might actually see it. This seems to have the exact same plot as "The Rite" from last year, except without Anthony Hopkins. I wouldn't know for sure, as I try to keep a general distance from either film.

Is it worth noting that one of the best films coming out this month is a 3D re-release of "Beauty and the Beast"? Not the Jean Cocteau film. The Disney version that was inexplicably nominated for Best Picture. Also releasing that week is Queen Latifah's "inspirational family film", as it's described in the trailers, "Joyful Noise", or more appropriately titled "Just Noise". Add to that a Mark Wahlberg action film called "Contraband" and you might be able to expect a half decent weekend at the box office this month. And I would be prone to saying it drops off from there, but it doesn't quite.