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The L Word -- The Complete Second Season
 The
second season of The L Word is steamier than ever, with the
hot and bothered ladies enthusiastically overdramatizing every
nuance of lesbian relationships. This season gets an extra
injection of star quality with guest appearances from Ariana
Huffington, Sandra Bernhard, and a hilarious turn from Camryn
Manheim as an aggressive movie producer. While the DVD allows
for over 11 hours of self-indulgent addiction, the extra features
are mostly a fluffy bunch of marketing promos. Viewers will
skip right over the sweepstakes, cast bios, and the self-congratulatory
showcase of fan mail about how the show has the power to change
lives. A silly game of hypersexed Balderdash gets the cast
giggling, but none of them ever steps out of character in
a series of "On the Record" shorts that tackle such
in-depth topics as Mia Kirschner's emotional journey of cutting
her hair. Some cast commentary, or even a blooper reel, would
have been better choices to endear the cast to its fans. --
Sarika Chawla
Ma Mere
Be forewarned: Don't rent Ma Mere (My Mother) and expect
a sentimental I Remember Mama update. Based on the novel by
the late philosopher/provocateur Georges Bataille, Oedipal
Wrecks might have been a more fitting title. The great French
actress Isabelle Huppert (The Piano Teacher) adds yet another
depraved character to her resumé as a debauched mother
who encourages her sulking teenaged son (Louis Garrel, The
Dreamers) to experiment sexually, which includes public sex
with her friend while she watches and eventually participating
in a menage a trois with her. The material is beyond icky,
the sex is joyless, the characters are generally unlikeable,
and the usually compelling Huppert seems to be sleepwalking,
but the brooding (and frequently nude) Garrel's off-kilter
good looks -- he could become his generation's Jean-Paul Trintignant
with the right role -- make the film worth a look. Bonus features
include an alternate ending and an interview with director
Christophe Honore, who defends Bataille against his reputation
as merely a Sade-esque enfant terrible. --
Jeremy Kinser
Mysterious Skin
Based on the novel by Scott Heim, out director Gregg Araki's
harrowing and haunting Mysterious Skin details two young men
trying to exorcise the effect of childhood sexual abuse from
their lives in very different ways. Araki garnered his best
reviews to date and as a detached gay teen hustler, Joseph
Gordon-Levitt (Third Rock From the Sun) is a revelation. He
neatly avoids stereotype in a brave performance that, in a
just world, should alter the course of his career. Bonus features
include an audio commentary by Araki, Gordon-Levitt and costar
Brady Corbet, interviews with the director, cast, and Heim,
and readings from the original novel by the two stars. --
Jeremy Kinser
Zona Rosa
If you see only one documentary about Mexico City's strippers
this year, make it Zona Rosa, directed by Dan Castle (The
Visitor). If it sounds to you like I am damning with faint
praise, then you've just won yourself a lap dance; Zona Rosa
teases the imagination, but ultimately fails to deliver the
goods.
The documentary centers on Christian Miranda, a 20-something
stripper at Mexico City's El Antro dance club. He's an interesting
guy: He's got a wife he's divorced from, kids, and lives with
his mother, who describes him as being more like a brother
than a son. Most of this we get through sit-down interviews,
which make up the bulk of the movie. A few years back, this
kind of documentary was standard -- a few scenes of strippers
taking it off dubbed over with tripod-shot question and answer
sessions. With the advent of reality TV and genre-busting
films like Tarnation, we expect a little bit more nowadays
and Zona Rosa's glacial pace and inexplicable photo montage
interludes will test the patience of all but the most dedicated
viewer. -- Japhy Grant
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