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THE HOAX There's a fleet-footed exuberance to The Hoax that suits the film just perfectly. Although based on a true story, the picture displays a freewheeling style that's more attuned to the rhythms of Richard Gere's performance than any sort of somber veracity. Gere stars as Clifford Irving, the author who in the early 1970s convinced the bigwigs at McGraw-Hill that he had landed an exclusive interview with reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. There was absolutely no truth to the boast, but with dollar signs dancing in their eyes, the publishing house accepted Irving's flimsy evidence as proof, a decision that resulted in the company handing over an incredible sum for publishing rights. Gere has always excelled at playing amoral yet charming creeps, and he strikes gold once again; while attempts on the part of scripter William Wheeler (adapting Irving's tell-all book) to imbue the character with some degree of sympathy fall flat, Gere is skilled enough to nevertheless add some complex shadings. Also memorable is Alfred Molina, sweating up a storm as Irving's nervous accomplice in the scam. With its allusions to Richard Nixon and Watergate, Hallstrom and Wheeler firmly establish the timeframe of their film. Yet if anything, the movie feels more like 2007 than 1971, given that fraudulent writers (like Stephen Glass) have proliferated in recent years and "identity theft" has become a commonplace expression. The Hoax might be intended as a cautionary tale, but in today's climate, it stands a better chance of emerging as an inspirational training film. ***
THE LOOKOUT Hollywood is never at a loss for rising stars, but far too many prove to be the products of media saturation or studio backing rather than any discernible talent (James Franco, for starters). But Joseph Gordon-Levitt is shaping up to be the real deal. Television viewers might remember him as the kid on the sitcom 3rd Rock From the Sun, but since then, he's been delivering memorable performances in feature films as varied as 10 Things I Hate About You, Mysterious Skin and Brick. He's at his most impressive in The Lookout, which marks the feature directorial debut of screenwriter Scott Frank (Minority Report, Get Shorty). Gordon-Levitt plays Chris Pratt, a former high school hockey star whose life was shattered after a car accident (his fault) killed two friends and disfigured his girlfriend. Now suffering from a faulty memory, Chris works as a janitor at a minimum-security bank and rooms with a blind man named Lewis (affable Jeff Daniels). Frank does such a distinguished job in creating the character of Chris Pratt -- and Gordon-Levitt is so touching in the role -- that it's a shame the movie turns into a typical heist flick that runs rampant with all the expected clichés: the smooth-talking roughneck who can erupt in violence at any moment, the silent henchman, the nice-guy cop who's at the wrong place at the wrong time, etc. Whenever Frank turns his attention toward the robbery, the film goes slack. But as long as he keeps his camera firmly focused on Chris Pratt and his inward journey, he insures that The Lookout is at least worth a peek. **1/2
THE NAMESAKE If color didn't exist, then Mira Nair would have to invent it. The director of Monsoon Wedding and Mississippi Masala locates not only the visual schemes in her material but the thematic and emotional ones as well; this in turn results in films that examine both individuals and their cultures from a variety of revealing angles. The Namesake, based on Jhumpa Lahiri's best-selling novel, is her latest triumph, marred only by a frenzied attempt to pack too much story into one two-hour movie. Set over the course of several decades, the film begins with the arranged marriage of Ashima (Tabu) and Ashoke (Irrfan Khan), who leave Calcutta for a new life in New York. They eventually have a son, who's named after Ashoke's favorite author, Russian writer Nikolai Gogol. But as Gogol (Kal Penn) gets older, he struggles not only with his name (which he comes to loathe) but also with the differences between his parents' traditional ways and his own decidedly Yankee sensibilities. Bollywood stars Tabu and Khan are excellent as Gogol's concerned parents, and the filmmakers' devotion to their shared story is so compelling, in fact, that it's disappointing when the couple starts to lose significant amounts of screen time to Gogol's odyssey. This isn't intended to diminish Penn's work -- on the contrary, the Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle star ably demonstrates that his dramatic chops are as finely honed as his comedic ones. But the material involving culture and generational clashes isn't nearly as fresh as the love story being related through foreign eye. ***
