Dann chats with Drew Barrymore; Moore breaks little new ground

Drew talks, Take One

I sat down with the effervescently cute Drew Barrymore at Chicago's Metro club for a quick chat about her directorial debut, the rollerblading babes movie "Whip It," opening today.

"Were you old enough to remember anything that Steven Spielberg did on the set of "E.T." that might have helped you as a director?" I asked.

"The food fight scene is an homage to him, because we had this awesomely fun food fight when we were in the commissary while filming 'E.T.'," Barrymore said. "He told me, 'Never act your character. Be your character.' That was the most valuable lesson I ever learned about acting.

"I found my tribe on this set. I thought this set is so safe and full of joy, it feels like a family. I realized if you don't have a family, you can make your own. That set of 'E.T.' was where the 'Find Your Tribe' theme came into being and why it's on the ('Whip It') poster."

More Dann & Raymond

Join me and film historian/novelist Raymond Benson as Dann & Raymond's Movie Club presents "She Turned Me Into a Newt!" It's part two of the greatest comedies ever put on film. Clips include "The Nutty Professor," "A Shot in the Dark," "M*A*S*H," "Ghostbusters," "Annie Hall" and others. Free admission, It's at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Schaumburg Library, 130 S. Roselle Road, Schaumburg. (847) 985-4000. Go to www.stdl.org.

'Capitalism'

"I refuse to live in a country like this!" Michael Moore declares, "and I'm not leaving!"

In Moore's ingeniously provocative, amusingly muckraking, obnoxiously hilarious, shamelessly showboating doc "Capitalism: A Love Story," the filmmaker takes on the dark side of America's financial force with pugnacious effrontery.

This movie is so wild and over-the-top in its denunciation of the evils of capitalism that it stands to become a fiscal version of "Reefer Madness."

Moore tackles the outrageous acts of banks bailed out by taxpayers. He reveals how big companies secretly buy life insurance on their employees, so companies collect a bonus when a worker gets killed or terminally ill.

He names names, too.

"Capitalism" doesn't break much new ground in Mooreland. It's another anger-powered rant at the status quo and a call to arms for the proletariat to rise up against corporate abuse and hypocrisy.

Some of Moore's antics (shouting at CEOs to come down from their offices to be arrested by the filmmaker) smack of contempt for his audiences' sophistication. Roping off corporate offices with crime-scene tape does create a memorable visual.

The doc reaches its comic zinger zenith when Moore drags out clips of Jeffrey Hunter as Jesus in "King of Kings," but his socialistic share-the-wealth bromides have been replaced by capitalistic sound bites.

Moore inserts a TV clip of Glenn Beck shouting, "I want all my pie!" at just the right moment to sound just like that snotty kid who wouldn't share anything back in kindergarten. Does anyone really want to be that kid?

"Capitalism: A Love Story" opens today at local theaters. Rated R for language. 127 minutes.

Drew talks, Take Two

"What sets you apart from other film directors?" I asked.

"I don't work with a monitor, I stand right next to the camera," Barrymore said. "It's just a personal thing. ... Everyone's process is different. I just think something gets lost in translation when you're 20 feet from where the action is going on and you're watching your movie on a TV screen! You'll have plenty of time to do that in editing.

"I like to do improv, or like, change a line reading, or try things while the cameras are rolling. An actor has such an ability to change line readings if he does them three times in a row. The most magical things start happening."

Uma, Uma, Uma!

Actress Uma Thurman, who sliced her way through Quentin Tarantino's two-volume action film "Kill Bill," will open the 45th Chicago International Film Festival with her bittersweet comedy "Motherhood," 7 p.m. Thursday at the AMC River East 21 Theater, 322 E. Illinois St., Chicago.

The actress and the film's writer/director, Katherine Dieckmann, will be at the opening where the actress will also receive the festival's Career Achievement Award.

Director John Woo, actors Willem Dafoe, Ben Foster and Martin Landau are scheduled to appear at the fest, along with more than 145 movies, through Oct. 22.

Opening night tickets cost $150 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com or (800) 982-2787. Go to chicagofilmfestival.com for details.

'The Boys Are Back'

Tough guy Clive Owen goes moist and squishy on us in Scott Hicks' poignant and problematic domestic drama about Down Under sports writer Joe Warr, who periodically receives child-rearing advice from the imagined spirit of his deceased wife (Laura Fraser).

Joe not only raises his 6-year-old (Nicholas McAnulty), but his imported rebel teen son (George MacKay) from a previous marriage. Joe loves his boys, but doesn't really want to be the daddy, resulting in a home life reminiscent of "Animal House."

"You drink too much and you live like a pig!" says Emma Booth's available and comely single mother, who likes Joe.

They never get together as you'd expect, but how could they with Mom's spirit hovering over Joe, willing to advise him on all aspects of his life?

"Boys Are Back," adapted from Simon Carr's 2001 memoir, opens today at the Century Centre and River East 21 in Chicago, and the Evanston CineArts 6. Rated PG-13 (language). 100 minutes.

Drew talks, Take Three

So, I asked the actress, what's your obsession with comic actor Andrew Wilson, who plays the roller derby coach in "Whip It"?

"He's my good luck charm," Barrymore said. "He's in every movie I've ever (produced). He's super funny and he's really smart. He's one of the most fun actors to work with."