Movie reviews: 'Holy Rollers' and 'Living in Emergency'

August 17, 2012 at 9:08PM
Jesse Eisenberg in "Holy Rollers"
Jesse Eisenberg in "Holy Rollers" (Margaret Andrews/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

"Holy Rollers"

Ever-appealing Jesse Eisenberg ("Zombieland") stars in this fact-based tale of Orthodox Jews recruited as drug smugglers. A seriocomic tale of innocence corrupted, the story tweaks Eisenberg's puppy-dog naivete as he leaves his sheltered religious neighborhood for the neon Sodom of decadent Europe. His character, Sam Gold, evolves from a nerdy pawn who thinks he's transporting "medicine" into a nervy player. Sam's loyalties are divided, and his upbringing is never far from his mind. The film is slight, but Eisenberg is a deadpan delight. View showtimes. (Rated R.)

  • Colin Covert

    "Living in Emergency"

    The dangerous, exhausting and frustrating work of Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders, or MSF) is compellingly documented in "Living in Emergency," which focuses on recent work by four volunteer doctors in Liberia and Congo. The film is less an attempt to glorify these humanitarians than to immerse us in what they are up against. Supplies are short; electricity is iffy; there are hostile military forces nearby; the line of patients is endless. With limited resources, the MSF is compelled to fly from crisis to crisis, and there is never any real closure. The film shows us the anger and disbelief of those left behind. View showtimes. (Unrated.)

    • Walter Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle
      "Living in Emergency"
      "Living in Emergency" (Margaret Andrews/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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