The Librarian:
Quest for the Spear

Moving from the ER to the library proves hazardous to Noah Wyle's health, as he must face the forces of evil

	The Librarian: Quest for the Spear
	Starring Noah Wyle, Sonya Walger, Kyle MacLachlan, Jane Curtin and Bob Newhart
	Written by David Titcher
	Directed by Peter Winther
	TNT
	Premieres Sunday, Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. ET/PT

By Kathie Huddleston

lynn Carsen (Wyle) is a brilliant lifetime student who, after earning 22 degrees, wants to do nothing more than continue learning. Unfortunately, his latest professor thinks Flynn should get out in the world and live life. When the professor signs off on his latest degree six months early, Flynn finds himself in the unfortunate position of looking for a job.

In the middle of a frustrating job search, Flynn receives an invitation to interview for a job at the Metropolitan Public Library. It's the one job that seems perfect for him, and he happily heads off to his interview. However, when he arrives, he finds dozens of others patiently waiting in line. When he finally gets his turn, he's hired after a bizarre interview and is introduced to Charlene (Curtin) and library head Judson (Newhart).

Judson introduces Flynn to the nature of his job as the librarian and tells him he is now charged with protecting the greatest treasures of history, which are secured deep below the library building. After following Judson through layer after layer of security, Flynn finds himself in the presence of the Ark of the Covenant, Pandora's Box and Excalibur.

Thrilled at the prospect of being surrounded by all that history, Flynn arrives for his first day on the job to discover Judson knocked unconscious. The library has suffered a break-in by thieves who appear to know the inner workings of the library's security system. Flynn, Judson and Charlene discover that the thieves are members of the evil Serpent Brotherhood and that they have absconded with one of the three portions of the Spear of Destiny, a holy relic that gives its owner control over the destiny of the world.

Now there's only one thing to do. Judson tells Flynn he has to go after the two missing pieces of the Spear and get them to safety before the Brotherhood can get their hands on them. The fate of the world rests in the new librarian's hands whether he's ready for the job or not. Armed only with a book of clues written in a dead language that no human on Earth knows how to read, Flynn sets off to stop the bad guys and save the world.

More than just a Raiders wannabe

TNT's action-adventure movie The Librarian: Quest for the Spear is Raiders of the Lost Arc lite, but it still manages plenty of substance. The film is filled with action, good performances and a light comic touch. The silliness quotient never ruins the entertainment value, largely due to Noah Wyle's refreshing performance as Flynn.

Wyle, a veteran of the much more serious-minded ER, fills Flynn with a childlike enthusiasm that gives The Librarian a charming and endearing quality, allowing us to sit back and enjoy the ride. Jane Curtin, Sonya Walger and Olympia Dukakis offer plenty of wonderful backup, with Bob Newhart and Kelly Hu giving standout performances. It makes you wonder why we don't see Newhart and Hu in more films. Only Kyle MacLachlan gets short-sheeted by the script, as the one-dimensional Big Bad.

As for David Titcher's screenplay, along with the witty dialogue and humorous situations, there's plenty of National Treasure-esque preposterous plotting to keep the story moving. If, for example, the bad guys have one piece of the Spear, why take a chance and lead them to the other pieces instead of hunting down the one stolen piece? The answer, of course, is that retrieving the stolen piece wouldn't make much of a story. Despite the tangled web of plot holes, the action whips from one scene to the next so quickly you hardly notice them.

The Librarian isn't about logic. It's about solving obscure ancient clues, hunting for treasure and saving the world, even if it means putting the world in danger to do it. Beyond that, it's about 75-year-old Bob Newhart trouncing a bunch of nasty bad guys, Walger and Hu lending a whole new dimension to the term catfight as they clash over Wyle's nerdish Flynn, and enjoying the wide-eyed sense of wonder Wyle brings to his role.

The biggest problem The Librarian: Quest for the Spear faces, besides the name, is TNT's promotion of the film. Ignoring the comic tone and going straight for a boring action promotion, TNT is selling The Librarian short. It's a charming romp and far more than just another Raiders wannabe. —Kathie

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Also in this issue: The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Harsh Realm—The Complete Series DVD and The Hazing DVD

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