Martin Scorsese turns his lens to the psychological turmoil behind the cultured, mannered society of Edith Wharton’s bygone late 19th-century New York in The Age of Innocence (B+). Daniel Day-Lewis and Michelle Pfeiffer are standouts in this parlor game of longing, brilliantly edited and judiciously paced. It’s as gorgeous as Marty’s films are usually gritty.
Director John Glen, who has made a career out of taking the final gasps of life out of creaky James Bond film entries in the late ’80’s, originally cast Timothy Dalton but found an even more bland leading man named George Correface to play the title character of Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (D+). Like the Niña, Pinta and Santa Maria, this vessel is undeniably wooden. Even Marlon Brando can’t muster a glimmer of interest as a high inquisitor. This “Columbus for Beginners” wouldn’t even make a good mini-series if you split it up into episodes. This won’t be playing soon in a classroom near you.
