Kung Fu Hustle.....five stars

Excellent! That's next on my list of movies... :thumbsup:

For my movie, I'd like to review...Star Wars episode III.

Utter and complete crap. I read the reviews. This one is much darker, better plot, put together fairly well. This is the one, one reviewer said, that Star Wars fans had been waiting for. I would have been disgusted had I shelled out $8 to go see it in the theater.

The only redeemable feature in this movie were the scenes with Palpatine. That's it. Well, and the visuals. The visuals were amazing, but sadly Lucas couldn't shine this turd up enough. The banter was between the characters was very, very bad. The characters (poor pensive Mr. Christensen and not-sure-what-emotion-to-convey Ms. Portman) were just terrible. I actually got up to do some laundry during their first full scene together.

The plot was a bit better, I guess. Although the ending was incredibly stupid... If Palpatine and Vader were so damn dangerous, why in the world did Yoda and Obi-Wan take them on by themselves....alone? These are the last two known Jedi left, right? Why risk the Order at all? Go together and take them apart....together. Auck!

So...the fight scenes were nice....Palpatine was fantastic, but neither good enough to save this dung heap. 3/10

Go scrub your eyes with a toothbrush. You'll have a better overall experience and you'll smell...really, really good.

The Aristocrats.
Warning: This movie isnt for everyone. If you dont like dirty jokes stay away, as far away as you possibly can.

With that said I like dirty jokes and this one is DIRTY :)

If you dont know its a movie about a joke. Well not really, you see what is about is how different comedians tell one joke. The joke in and of itself isnt that funny even, its the individual comedians that make it funny (or not...). I never thought I'd say this but Bob Sagat (yes Full House's Bob Sagat) was fucking hillarious. I was actually happy from time to time when one of the comedians wasnt funny because it gave my mouth a for a few seconds. Yes it is that funny.

9/10 one of the funniest movies I've seen in a loooong time.

RedEye. Supposed to keep you on the edge of your seat, but it followed the same format as 'bad guy captures a relative and forces good guy to do something or else bad guy will kill relative'. But the lead actress Rachel McAdams is absouletly stunning. In this particular movie I think she beats Natalie Portman as the all time hottest screen chick. Worth my dollar at the dollar movie theater.

RedEye. Supposed to keep you on the edge of your seat, but it followed the same format as 'bad guy captures a relative and forces good guy to do something or else bad guy will kill relative'. But the lead actress Rachel McAdams is absouletly stunning. In this particular movie I think she beats Natalie Portman as the all time hottest screen chick. Worth my dollar at the dollar movie theater.

Doom. It sucked ass! Worse movie of the year. Lacked plot and acting. Bad, bad, bad movie. Good video game, just a bad movie.

I just saw Jesus is Magic (Sarah Silverman's somewhat one woman act/stand-up). It is more of a live stand-up than a traditional movie, but since I saw it in the movie theater, then I guess it qualifies. I found it funny as heck, similar to The Aristocrats. You have to have the stomach for her kind of humor, though. If you watched and liked The Aristocrats, then this is in the same vein. As to a more traditional movie, I watched Elizabethtown before seeing Jesus is Magic. Elizabethtown is the most convoluted, trite, and clichéd romantic comedy I have seen in a years. It also proves that Orlando Bloom is the second coming of Keanu Reeves, a pretty boy who gets by on just that: looks alone.

Batman Begins

Excellent movie. A little frenetic at first, but once the ball was rolling and the story settled down a bit... Just a fantastic movie.

Batman is the single greatest comic book character...ever*. It bodes well that the franchise is now in the hands of someone who knows what the hell to do with it.

*Well, except maybe Superman. We'll find out how well that franchise holds up once we see what Singer has done to it. /crosses fingers

looks like i'm the 1st to post this review:

History Of Violence
well the story is good. random small town with regular ppl, normal american family having fun all happy. then 2 radom bad guys are killing random ppl in random towns eventualy get to the same place as the family. they go in the Diner where tom(vigo mortensen) works. they try to rob the place but tom is a crazy fucker and he kills em both. then some days after, some random dudes walks in and thinks tom is someone else. theres more to the story but i dont want to ruin it for you.

now this is what i have to say: the actual violence is fucking insane!! you see everything... BUT: theres maybe 10min of action in the movie. the rest is just plain talking or tom and his wife/2kids talking or w/e.... it's pretty lame that it takes 40min to get to any action. and the ending sucks.

5/10 just cuz the action parts were really fucking nice.

Bewitched

As much as I enjoy looking at Nicole Kidman, it couldn't offset having to put up with Will Farrell. IMHO, possibly the worst and most annoying actor in the history of film.

Undead
****/*****
It's a low budget zombie movie from Australia, that is a laugh riot. It's cheesy (intentionally so) and reminicent of '50's horror flicks (but a hell of alot more gruesome). So much fun.

Jarhead - liked it alot.. great movie about soldiers life.. dont expect typical war film
Get Rich or Die Tryin - well i liked it cuz i like 50cent but it was entertainin.. worth a peek if nothin else to do..

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
Upon first seeing this DVD I noted that I thought that Traveling should have two L's. Other than that, I'd have to say there wasn't too much wrong with this little tear jerker. I thought it tried to deal with too much in too little of a space, and that because there were 4 stories that were indended to be quite deep it robbed each of them because the viewer does not get the chance to feel any real sympathy for the characters. I'm sure that they could have had two or three sisters and just dwelled on their stories. I felt that the acting was average...the Hispanic girl was the worst of the bunch, and the blonde soccer player a close second. Alexis Bledell of Gilmore Girls fame benefits from having the most screen time before coming to this film, and tries unsuccessfully to win the hearts of the viewers with her rags to riches story.
I might have missed a few points here or there, but that was because my wife was crying through the whole thing.

6/10

Mirrormask
****/*****
It's the new movie from the Jim Henson studio, written by Neil Gaiman, and directed by Dave McKean (the artist who did all the covers for the run of Gaiman's Sandman series). If you get the chance I highly recommend going to see it.

Walk the Line. Awesome! Mostly a love story about Johnny and June Carter. Phoniex in some parts looked just like Cash. Good acting. I even got a little teary eyed at some parts..........shut up!

Bewitched

Meh, very Hollywood. Not good, not bad, just average. Nicole as a blonde doesn't work for me for some reason.

I've seen two movies very recently, and I'll start with the bad one...

Kingdom of Heaven...I don't know where to start with this movie, because it was bad on every level...
Ridley Scott ruined Hannibal, he ruined Gladiator, and he ruined Kingdom of Heaven. Not that he had much to start with...I have a longstanding disrespect of this director and I think it was cemented with this trash filled film. They tried to make it seem that the Crusades were fought between friends over lofty idealism that neither side believed in. They were so afraid to take a stand because of the sensitivity of the subject, given it's hot-buttonedness even today, especially with the American presence in the Middle East.
The script sucked, the acting was fair, the action scenes were already done, and better in Braveheart, and the message of the film was soft and unconvincing. And then to top it off, no boobies.
1/10

Finally, a good one...

Walk the Line I went in to this film a little trepidaciously. See, I hate Joquain Phoenix. I find his acting to be awful. He made Gladiator an even worse movie with his awful acting, and Ladder 49 was, well, Ladder 49. BUT, and it's a big but, this film helped change my feelings about Mr. Phoenix. I have to admit, he did a really good, convincing portrayal of the Man In Black. The story was convincing, it sucked me in from the start, and I felt for the characters deeply. Reese Witherspoon finally earns her acting wings in this movie, proving that she's capable of more than Legally Blonde mediocrity.
This movie has direction, it flows smoothly, and it succeeds. My criticisms are as follows. This movie is the clone of last years Oscar winner Ray, with a white guy instead of a black guy. I also felt that the story line of Johnny and his father wasn't given any closure, but that's minor.
This movie is very good, and very close to being great, but I rarely dole out "greats".

8/10

The Constant Gardener.

There's been a few arguments had over this one. I personally thought it was a quality film. To one side of me are those who claim it is a 'great film' with whom I disagree, and on the other those who assert that it was a complete festering pile of crap with whom I also disagree.

As a thriller the movie worked quite well, though the minor subplot involving his wife's possible dalliances was a little laboured and overwrought in my opinion. The central plot was compelling enough as it was to make the film entertaining.

The real value I thought, was that Meirelles was able to make a profound point regarding human values without becoming a didactic preacher. The poverty and corruption, mindless and ubiquitous tragedy of Africa aren't thrust into our faces and waved like a prize, but are simply there, under the story as a plausible setting for what is essentially a political thriller.

The performances were brilliant, I haven't been this impressed with Ralph Fiennes since Schindlers List, and Rachel Weiss was suprisingly superb also.

A Bittersweet Life

There's not that much to say about this one, other than it is the best movie I've seen this year!
If any of you have seen OldBoy - and loved it, this is the one to see.

Another Korean masterpiece.. 9.5/10 :thumbsup:

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

I find it interesting who films try to use the title as part of the dialog. And Carry is over-acting at his best. And an original plot too.

AWESOME/AWESOME!

Mr. and Mrs. Smith.

Super cheesy action/explosion movie. I enjoyed my time watching it, but it didn't leave me with much at all. Angelina Jolie was nice on the eyes, and the acting was decent.

I'm pretty simple minded as far as entertainment goes, I like just about anything. I'd say this one was worth the rental.

Mean Girls - It's Jawbreaker minus the murder. Lacet Chabert is hot though (strike that comment if she's not legal yet...)

Cinderella Man -

I keep giving Russel Crowe a chance, because he impressed me once, with that movie about the cigarette company...the one time he was actually good. But the problem is that he peaked then... and hasn't improved since....

This is a movie with no twists, no surprises, nothing that hasn't been offered in a movie about boxing before. What? A movie about a comeback? A down and outer fights his way back to the top, literally, overcoming all kinds of difficulties... Fighting for his kids and wife... and for himself...?

Come on?! Are we still making movies with these tired cliches and themes? I like Ron Howard, I really do, but I was very disappointed with this effort.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

5/10

I was forced to watch, "To Wong Foo, thanks for everything, Julie Numar," by a girl and I must say I liked it. Wesley Snipes in drag is just funny. The movie had a good plot, it was funny and touching. Don't tell anyone I watch it, ok!

"When a straight man puts on a dress and goes on a sexual kick he is a transvestite. When a man is a woman trapped in a man's body and has a little operation he is a Transsexual. When a gay man has way too much fashion sense for one gender he is a drag queen."

Bubba Ho-tep
7.5/10
Wonderful movie, especially if you like Bruce Campbell :) It was hilarious and campy, just as it should be, but a nice little story as well :) The DVD features are great by the way - it has an audio commentary by "Elvis" as if the Elvis in the movie isn't really him, but he is nonetheless alive and watching and commenting on the movie :lol:

Daoust, I haven't seen Cinderella Man, nor am I particularly interested in seeing it, but I'm wondering: are you aware that the movie is based on a true story? Rocky is cliche, Cinderella Man just is. (That said, I don't care for that era or that subject in movies, so I don't plan on seeing it any time soon.) And just curious, since you made an earlier comment about Ridley Scott, what about Blade Runner and Alien? Granted, I agree most of his movies suck (although I disagree about Gladiator, but I do think it's a bit overrated), but with movies like Alien and Blade Runner under his belt, I'm not sure if it's fair to say he didn't have much to start with.

I've seen two recently, both have disappointed me :/

Citizen Kane:
For its time, the technical shots and techniques used were amazing, but overall, that's the only main point I can concede to it. It was a good movie, yes. But I surely don't find it anything unique and spectacular, nor consider as one of the best movies of all time.
Plus, I knew the ending, since some classmate spoiled the story outloud, [you know what i mean if you've seen it] assuming everyone in class saw it.

rating 7/10

Magnolia:
Paul Anderson tries hard to capture the essences of human interaction, I give him credit for that. But, the interactions between characters often were and it just didn't come off that well.

Plus, the ending was a total washout, IMHO.

rating: 5/10

Star Wars III - 7/10
Enjoyable movie. Good enough to call itself a "Star Wars" movie, unlike episodes I and II. The cinematography is so breathtakingly beautiful that I'd recommend the movie just so you can enjoy the visuals. The personal combat sequences are also excellent. The story was a bit confusing and never uplifting or eye-opening, but it was by no means dull. The acting was solid. You should see this eventually if you are a fan of action or sci-fi movies.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith - 9/10
This was a fantastic action comedy. To me it seemed like The Incredibles meets Undercover Blues. I laughed out loud. The female lead is hot. The fighting was enthralling. The plot surprised me. This is one of the few movies I have ever been happy to watch twice.

King Kong
9 out of......10
---------------------------
that "1" that I didn't give the movie
was because Jessica Lange didn't
show her breasts.
catdAMN I love Jessica Lange's breasts.

Oops, forgot to post in here after watching Alfie (with Jude Law).
6/10
The first half or so was great...light-hearted and funny. It would have done well to stay that way instead of inserting a moral into the story. What I would have liked to see was a fun comedy about a playboy and the messes he gets himself into and how he gets out of them, etc etc. What I got was a heavy ending teaching the audience that it's no good to be a playboy and it'll make you end up lonely. Nonetheless, it was still entertaining and Jude Law played the part well :)

Now, getting up-to-date...
El otro lado de la cama (The Other Side of the Bed)
7.5/10
Fun little Spanish movie about two couples/sets of friends who are cheating with one another. I had no idea, before watching it, that it was actually a bit of a "musical" and I think it would have been better without the few musical numbers it had, but on the other hand they were light-hearted and entertaining, much like the movie overall. Where Alfie failed, this movie succeeded - I didn't want to be taught a lesson about the consequences of cheating with the partners of friends, and it didn't try to teach me one. It was just a cute, fun movie :) Definitely worth seeing if you don't mind a few silly musical numbers, like European relationship comedies, and aren't opposed to watching a movie with a couple of really hot female leads ;) (One of which is Paz Vega, from Lucía y el sexo (Sex and Lucía))

Les Diaboliques - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046911/
[in french, with english subs] [1955][B-W]

This French flick here is the quinessential murder mystery. The director wastes no time developing the story, and grabs you in immediately and the entire 116 minutes are used wisely. The last scene - [no spoilers] was breathtaking and I seriously was freaking out and scared.

Best movie I've seen in quite some time [year?!]...And was also courtesy of the local public library.

10/10

[next up: Hitchcock's 39 steps]

My Best Friend's Wife
3.5/10
This movie about two friends who decide to swap wives in an effort to have one last bit of fun before fully succumbing to the "normalcy" of adult life had potential, but ultimately failed to meet it. John Stamos did a fine job in it - which probably wasn't very difficult for him if you know anything about what his marriage to Rebecca Romijn was like ;) - and the actor playing his best friend was pretty decent as well, but the women were simply not particularly great actors in this movie (although, pretty attractive :p). I must say though, I do appreciate that the movie was not overly preachy and presented a relatively even-handed picture.

Romper Stomper
8.5/10
Great Australian movie starring Russell Crowe before he was particularly famous (in fact, this is the movie that got him noticed by American movie-makers). The depiction of Australian Neo-Nazis, violently fighting against asian immigrants, was rather disturbing. In some ways, it had a bit of the feel of a Shakespeare tragedy, especially with regards to the relationship between Russell Crowe's character and his best friend.

We just saw The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe last night. It was good, although jj thought that they were trying to rip off LOTR. I love the story and I think that it stayed pretty close to the book although I don't remember the ending of the book too well. It's been a few years. The little girl that plays Lucy it too cute for her own good and gets quite annoying in the movie. The characters, at least the good guys, are likable enough to root for and the bad guys are evil enough to hope they lose.

I would give this movie an 8/10. I usually don't like magical mystical battle type movies so that is a good rating for me :)

YES! A great great flick. That scene where she walks in the hallway near the end, towards the bathroom, in the dark spooky hallway is IMHO one of the best ever made in cinema.

The Abyss (Special Edition)
8.5/10
Sometimes I need a reminder that James Cameron doesn't suck ass (see: True Lies, Titanic, Solaris), and since onodrim and I hadn't seen The Abyss yet, tonight we did :) Very good movie, although there were a few moments - especially during expressions of love - that I saw weakness in James Cameron's writing, but it was nothing compared to some of the other crap he's done ;) AND, it was made up for by the fact the rest of the movie was great. The ending managed to pull off a message while not feeling forced or preachy, which was very nice.

EDIT:
Just realized I forgot to put in...
Army of Darkness
7/10
GREAT, funny movie with Bruce Campbell that everyone should see. Don't think my rating of 7/10 is a bad thing - I just naturally give more serious movies higher ratings. This isn't your ordinary comedy though - in fact, categorizing it is pretty difficult. It's a tongue-in-cheek horror movie, and it is absolutely hilarious. Everything about it is great yet terrible all at once, and Bruce Campbell is in top form.

Lord of the Rings
RATED @ 11/10

*sigh*
ya know...I ain't never been queer for a movie but goddamnit....

I got the trilogy for Christmas and I suppose that you can rate each movie seperately
but after time...
I say no.
NO.
It is ONE movie.
Fellowship-Towers-Return...It is as Tlkein would have wanted.
And when you see them all together and when you see the love that went into the making of the movie....well...lets just see what the next two Pirates of the Caribbean
films look like.

Very last I sought out deliberately (it was on cable) was Paris, Texas (1984) with Harry Dean Stanton. Great intersting blues soundtrack (Ry Cooder), and a pace that is the exact opposite of an action movie. If you like slower movies about the things life and love make you do, a movie you can really chew on, this one is it. It has a very 80s feel to it (complimentary, of course).

The Exorcism of Emily Rose............boooooooooooooring!!! :|

King Kong. 7/10. Worth seeing, entertaining, but not without its problems.

I've seen a lot of movies lately, but the most recent was Munich. I really liked it. I wans't born when the 1972 Olympic massacre happened, so I honestly don't know that much about it. This movie really doesn't deal that much with what happened, but with a fictionalized version of what happened next. The Israeli's decide to assassinate all of the conspirators in the massacre. It was interesting to see the changes in the main character's (played by Eric Bana, I thought he did a great job) personality as he goes about his job of assassinating. It was a little long, but other than that I loved it.

Primal Fear

Don't know if you guys remember this one or not...it was Edward Norton's breakout performance (and the reason i became one of his fans!).

The movie freakin' rocks! I don't normally like movies that are really pure drama, but i really enjoy this one. The plot is amazingly written, and Edward Norton and Richard Gere's perfomances are flawless.

Check it out if you haven't seen it...or at least read a review for it to get a idea of what it's about and then past your judgement on whether it's something that interests you or not.

Primal Fear is one of those movies that I think is terribly underrated, and mostly because of Ed Norton's performance. He took that movie to a whole different level. Very good. (And it doesn't hurt that it takes place in my home-city of Chicago :D)

Anyway,
Kissing Jessica Stein
7/10
Nice little movie :) I definitely enjoyed it, but I'm still not sure if I like the ending or not. It was a good ending, don't get me wrong, just not sure if it's the ending I wanted :p *shrug*

Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean anything because, as much as I love Chasing Amy, I *hate* the ending to that movie - it pains me every time! This one at least doesn't pain me :)

40 year old virgin

8.5/10
-very funny, some great one liners. The character wasn't quite as consistent throughout the movie as I though he should be...and the ending was ind of weird. I'd recommend it though if you were looking for a laugh or a good ice-breaker/date movie

<u>Fantasia</u> (1949) and <u>Fantasia 2000</u> (1999).
I ordered them for my own Winter present. They are as good as I remembered.
When one realizes the first appeared shortly after the end of WWII, a presentation like none before it, it is more understandable why it failed. It was years before its time. Disney's vision to make it a constantly changing selection of shorts is an idea with great appeal to those of the Digital Age. However, a second incarnation in <u>Fantasia 2000</u> flopped as well.

The selections that now compose <u>Fantasia</u> are benchmarks in animation and fine choices of popular music; <u>Fantasia 2000</u> displays the advance in 60 years of animation with brighter colors and clearer images.

I would recommend this for anyone child or adult. It is an excellent introduction to Classical music for children, or even some adults. I felt the thrill of being young again in a world of imagination and possibility.

Crash 5/5

Not at all what I expected and this is a good thing. When I knew it had to deal with racism I was expecting another movie that hedges the topic and is just painful to watch because of a flimsy plot. This movie was excellent. The characters were strangers, but somehow encountered each other in strange, yet ordinary, ways. It dealt with the issues straight on and didn't worry about being PC. There were many big stars in this film and when I saw Sandra Bullock in the credits I thought "Oh no, I hate her". Her role was great and it was refreshing to see her used in this way. This movie will make you laugh, cringe, cry, and feel about every emotion you have. It will also make you think about why you felt those emotions which is always the sign of a good movie. I recommend it to everyone.

Shopgirl... 7/10.

Entertaining and great camera work, but... eh.

Crash

Wonderful film. A must see.

Batman Begins

8.5/10

I was really impressed with this movie. Everyone I had spoken to had good things to say about the movie, and it didn't disappoint. It was a little slow in the beginning, but after that, my full attention was on the movie the rest of the time. I especially loved the scene with Batman and scarecrow.

HP: Goblet of Fire

If I had not read the book - 10. Granted, book 4 was almost twice as large as book 1 and things have to be left out, lest we bring rations and sleeping bags to the theatre. But there were some important sections left out.

So, I give it a 7/10.

Grizzly Man

I was impressed by this movie. I was onMetacritic.com and saw the premise. I then went to the video store and picked it up, not really knowing what was going to happen.

It is a documentary (my favorite genre, btw) about a guy who spends his summers up north in Alaska "Saving Grizzly Bears". This guy films them, studies them, and interacts with them. Over a hundred hours of film were used in the making of this documentary.

Spoiler: See, the thing is, this guy dies, at the hands of a grizzly bear. The movie tells you that at just about the start. You are left with a haunting feeling every time you see him in the same frame as one of these massive beasts. He talks to them like they are his children, he nicknames them, he goes around and gives presentations to school children for free. I am impressed with this guy, but at the same time, when you hear him talk and give his narrative on camera, there is something wrong.
He doesn't sound like a biologist, or a reputable person studying wildlife or making a documentary. The filmmaker (some German guy, with a cool accent) is doing a posthumus study on the man, and by necessity the bears are included.
At the end of the film, you see that this Grizzly Man is really mentally disturbed, and his manic ramblings about the National Park Service or outfitters show that he is walking on the edge, as if living with Grizzly Bears doesn't prove his insanity already.
The film does not discuss how this guy needed to "Save The Bears" and actually shows that this guy did more harm than good! I was very surprised that I didn't feel at all sorry for him when they talked about him dying. I think he was trying to be Jane Goodall or something, and just didn't pull it off.

10/10

Have I already done City of God? Can't remeber, and don't care(I saw it again recently). Amazing movie, beautifully filmed. Watch it with the subtitles, portuguese sounds very nice.
10/10

The Producers

I thought it was a great film that had my girlfriend and I laughing the whole time, while keeping us amazed at moments. I love both Lane and Broderick and was anxious to see how this movie went. My only regret was in sitting directly behind a group of about 5 guys with their dates... those guys making it obvious that they had no idea it was going to be either smart or a musical.

Narnia:LWW 10/10

Holy shit, that was a good movie. When Lucy's in the wardrobe and you first see the pine needles I was made happy. I have some minor complaints, like the almost complete absence of blood (but it's a children's story, so that's fine) and Aslan's voice (but no one was going to satisfy me, I have no idea what he sounds like in my head) and clearly those aren't significant. Brilliant translation of the book. I look forward to Prince Caspian and especially Dawn Treader.

The Dukes of Hazard 1/10

Pure garbage. Bad acting by the brothers, although Jessica Simpson is easy on the eyes, she's a bad actress. Didn't like who they cast as Roscoe. It was just painful.

The Island 9/10

This one got bad marks by a lot of critics. I loved it. Great Sci-Fi action, cool plot. Good acting. I'll for sure watch it again.

King Kong: 5 out of 10

I was going to list why I rated it the way I did, but I read a review on IMDB that, while a little harshe, pretty much summed up the things I disliked about the film.

Memoirs of a Geisha,

3/10

While the actual concept of telling the Geisha story was interesting, the movie itself was way drawn out. It was slow and almost made me feel lethargic.

And what about that ending?! holy hell. You wait for the entire movie for some kind of resolve and come the end of it, you get none.

It's interesting as a documentary, definitely not for sitting down with popcorn and raisinets

On NetFlix I got Mel Brook's History Of The World Part I for me and my boys over the last weekend

One of my boys and I laughed our asses off
The other boy wondered what planet we were from

Wedding Crashers. Suprised me and entertained the hell out of me. I guess you just have to be in the right mood.

7.5 out of 10.

Memoirs of a Geisha. 8 out of 10

I missed my calling.

Swordfish - 8/10

I know I am behind the times on this :)

I actually enjoyed it a lot. I dislike John Travolta as an actor usually, but it worked here.
I thought it was funny the big deal I had heard about Halle Berry's breasts in this movie. Yeah, you see them, but I thought it was done in a way as not to see overtly sexual nor distasteful.

garden state - 10/10

top notch film, really enjoyed it alot, a must see imo!

See, I completely disagree with this actually. To me, it was just tacked on for the sake of it being there. It reminded me of a bad 80's teen movie with breasts being thrown in randomly for no apparent reason other than to have breasts visible. A gimmick, and a bad one.

Anyway,

Session 9
8/10
Made by the same guy that did The Machinist, this movie is definitely interesting and entertaining. Overall, I would say it is very good. It is aesthetically and thematically similar to The Machinist, but it has more of an ensemble cast and a less open ending.

I liked that it did stick so closely to the book. SO and I also noted the complete lack of blood. The battle scenes were really well done. I seriously enjoyed this movie and look forward to the others as well.

Doom. I'll give it a 5/10. I was expecting more out of a movie that had so much potential. Not enough action at all.

Just saw King Kong this afternoon.

A solid remake all around. Jackson doubled the length of the film from the original 90 minutes to 180, but the best thing I can say for it is it doesn't feel like a three hour film. I walked into the theatre wondering how he could possibly stretch the plot into three hours and I walked out wondering the same thing; as in, it didn't feel like three hours had passed, because the film was quite engrossing.

It was predictably action intensive, but the Hollywood Hobbit put the extra time to good use by developing the characters a good deal more than they were in the original, causing the end result to resonate quite a bit more on an emotional level.

Having said that, there were a few moments that provoked a raised eyebrow on my part...

Spoiler: For one, there was the fight with the three Tyrannosaurus Rex's on Skull Island, where we saw what I can only describe as 'Kung Fu Kong'. Seriously, I didn't think gorillas could pull off a shoulder throw so effectively. Also, the slow-motion/blur effects seemed a bit overused - at points I think it would have been wiser on Pete's part to simply trust the skill of his actors to convey the necessary emotion. This was also a quibble I had with Lord of the Rings, in that he used CG effects where none were really necessary; most notably in Bag End, where a CG shadow filled the room behind Gandalf. I should think Sir Ian McKellan could pull off the necessary presence without the special effects; after all, he was knighted for a reason.

So all in all, a few minor quibbles with an otherwise great film. I was pleasantly surprised by Jack Black's performance; I was a bit ambivalent about him in a semi-serious role, but he managed to pull it off quite effectively. Early in the film, I actually thought he might steal the whole show, but I ended up being wrong on that count; Kong definitely commanded the attention for the greater part of the picture. At no time did I lose my suspension of disbelief; the acting and CG work were both good enough to actually convince me that the characters really were interacting with a 30 ft gorilla. I can think of no higher praise.

I give it a 9/10.

November - starring Courtney Cox

This little gem of a film was given some attention at Sundance, but appears to have slipped off most peoples radar, and I don't know why. Well, I do, sort of... because it's actually good film.

It's dark, it's mysterious, it messes with your head... The film follows Cox's character through one day, November 7, a day in which the main characters boyfriend is killed in a botched convenience store robbery... Cox's character tries to find understanding and deal with the grief of losing her loved one. The film seems to not be linear, not following any real connected stream, it seems to bounce back and forth, but over the same day.

The viewer is left asking a lot of questions as the film progresses: Is all this real or imagined? Is all this happening on the same day? Is there a mysterious murderer? Is Cox the murderer?

It turns out all the questions are answered in the last 30 seconds of the film. Everything makes sense to Cox, and everything makes sense to the viewer now.

All in all, I realized I liked this film a lot. I liked that I watched this movie and didn't think of "Monica" once. Cox shows some real depth and acting ability.

I give this movie 8/10 which from me is a glowing endorsement.

All About My Mother: directed by Almadovar

8/10

This movie was good and followed the typical Almodovar formula. It involves tragedy after tragedy, but is interesting to watch the lives of people fall apart. Penelope Cruz is one of the big names in the movie and is very good in it. There are a few places where it doesn't quite make sense and has some gaps, but it gets filled in toward the end. Anyone that like this director should check it out.

Fun with Dick and Jane-

7.5/10

There's not one Jim Carrey movie I haven't enjoyed. I was weary when going to see this because I feel it was hardly advertised and was worried it might be the first JC letdown for me. Once again, however, he delivered and I liked the film. It's definitely not one of his best and actually is more suited for the lower tiers of his work, but still worth seeing IMO. I'd put it in line with Liar Liar, Me Myself and Irene, and Bruce Almighty (which is probably my least favorite of all). I'd recommend checking it out, in theater or not, if you're a true JC fan. ;)

The Fog 1/10

I've seen Solid Mechanics exams that were scarier by far. It wasn't that it was cheesy or anything (that would've made it better!), it was the pacing and everything that was just bland and off. I found myself doing decorative knotwork with my candy strings in the middle of the movie.

Land of the Dead 6/10

It was a solid outing by Romero, and the main characters turned in good performances, but it lacked punch, somehow. There was plenty of gore, but it wasn't horrifying or disheartening like the other ones were. Still fun, though.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Never fails to bring a childlike smile to my face!

Hud

Paul Newman is the greatest. This is downright grim pessimism at its most enjoyable.

watched the movie "waiting"

its got Ryan Reynolds as main star, i only watched it coz i thought van wilder was hillarious and he made that movie :D

this wasnt too bad, alot of 1 liners, and i think most of the jokes were very similar :p

watch this movie if u dont want to think hehe

King Arthur(Director's Cut) 3/10

It was honestly better than I expected, but I expected it to be pretty bad. The historical inaccuracy is about the laziest thing I've ever seen (trebuchets and crossbows in the 5th century?) and the story was dull, although the take on the character of Merlin was sort of interesting and the Keira Knightly "blue and leather" getup might even have replaced Princess Leia in the gold bikini for hot and ridiculous outfits.

I saw Brokeback Mountain. I like it very much -- 8/10

I'm from South Dakota, and the scenes from the open prairies made me miss the Great Plains area very much -- the big sky, lots of solitude, etc.

Heath Ledger was fantastic. In this movie he stands shoulder to shoulder with young Marlon Brando. Great example of acting without much dialogue.

I had a gay cousin in South Dakota, my age, and I thought of him all through the movie. He died in Nevada a few years ago of a heart condition, but he left South Dakota to hide his sexual orientation from his family. The story of these guys reverberated with me.

I saw Underworld Evolution

I give it a 8/10

The only real problem I had with the movie were all the flashbacks back to the first movie. I imagine most people would not like this movie as it doesn't have a whole of anything special going on, but I really enjoy it for some reason.

If you liked the first one then defanitly go see this one. If you didn't really like the first one then stay away from this one because you will not like it either.

"The Forty Year Old Virgin" - 7/10

Pretty funny stuff, but a really funny comedy isn't exactly the thing of legendary film making. Still, I laughed a lot. It was way funnier than Old School or some of the other films produced by the same guy (Anchorman, etc.)

"Saw" - 8/10

Despite the highly unplausible story (which shouldn't matter considering the genre) it was definitely a wild ride. Why did I watch this by myself at night? Some great twists that you'd never in a million years see coming. Is Saw 2 worth a viewing?

Pulp Fiction
10/10

probably my 50th time seeing it. It's my favorite movie.
I wish I could drink a sprite and look as tough as Samuel L Jackson.

Hud

Holy shit Paul Newman is underrated! A lost classic.

just friends 8/10

i actually really enjoyed this movie, although there were a few stupid parts in it, alot of funny times tho which made me laugh alot :D

seemed to go in circles tho

"Fun With Dick And Jane" 8/10

While I'm not a big Jim Carrey fan, I did enjoy this film and found myself laughing out loud with the rest of the half-filled theatre. But I was laughing more at Tea Leoni's character as she tried unsuccessfully to play the "straight-man" to Carrey. The comedic timing was very good, too.

I got a kick out of the mud handprint on Jane's pajama top.

"Terror Firmer" 1/10

Okay, I like my Troma, I will admit it. Troma makes some great B movies. But this has to be one of the worst pieces of garbage I have ever seen. They should have named it "Random scenes stuck together to make a movie". I like my random, but not THAT random. All it was was dick and fart jokes, shit and puke onscreen, and boobs.

If you want to see a good Troma flick then check out "Citizen Toxie". That is The Toxic Avenger Part 4.

Wedding Crashers 7.183765 out of 11.9337

Funny moments. Vince Vaughan was fantastic in his role. I felt it was a good comedy, I laughed.

Hostel

4 out of 10.

Although there were a few inspired moments most of it was unengaging nonsense. If you're going to make a torture film don't torture us with meaningless backstory that just draws out the runtime.

The Cave.

Masterful dialogue. Brilliant acting. Exciting, totally non-formulaic thriller with no chance of guessing what was going to happen next. Clever plot twist at the end.

Geh...is my nose as long as Pinocchio's yet?
1/5

Ichi the Killer. 9/10

And here I thought my life was nuts.

from the last few days

Better Luck Tomorrow.... 6/10. A little too MTV, but pretty entertaining.
The War Within... 9/10. Fantastic look inside a terrorist's mind.
Match Point... 4/10. And it only got that many because I got to stare at Jonathan Rhys-Myers' lips. Too predictable.
Underworld: Evolution...8/10. For entertainment value.
Revolver...9/10. I've seen it four times in as many weeks. I'm still trying to get all of the nuances. Amazing.
The Punisher... 5/10. John Travolta at almost his most annoyingest.

The Jerk 3/10

After hearing for so many years how funny the movie was, I could not have been more disappointed. I don't think I laughed once. I've seen Steve Martin be much funnier.

The Matador... effin' awesome. a 10. I hate Pierce Brosnan with a passion but he was so smarmy in this movie that I couldn't help but love him. I thought I had it all figured out and it kept tripping me up. Fantastic. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

A Streetcar Named Desire

It's probably not fair that I watched this movie now, at the age of 26, having grown up on Karate Kid, Young Guns, and the like; pure shit movies that have no artistic or creative qualities, but were made for a huge profit.

You see, I didn't grow up watching the classics. I grew up watching movies whose goal was immediate gratification. Lots of action, very little dialogue. It's the way that most movies are made today. Long scenes of pure dialogue tire the viewer. Generally they need more kiss-kiss-bang-bang...

Streetcar was and is a classic film. I enjoyed Brando's performance even more than Leigh's although I thought they both did great jobs. I thought all the themes and morals of the film were excellent and very neatly packaged.

But I just couldn't help but feel drained 3/4 of the way through the movie...so much dialogue...such looooong drawn out scenes... OKAY WE GET IT! She's going insane...That guys gonna take her to the mental hospital!!!! The scene with Blanche and Karl Malden's character on the deck outside the dance....enough!!! We get it!

Please! Don't stone me yet.

It's not my fault. I grew up on films and I learned to love films who brought about a solid message, with excellent acting and superb scripts in a LOT LESS TIME. I learned on speed movies... I guess I'm an ADHD film watcher.

Trust me, I've seen my fair share of 'dialogue' movies...(the have made some since colour film came out) and there's nothing I appreciate more than a script that sucks you in and leaves you hanging on every word... I guess I just found that Streetcar had too much to say and it took too long to do it...

Okay, you can start throwing......

Streetcar Named Desire 6/10

...now!

The Constant Gardener

Some of this was very good. But something about the film missed for me.
And I think it's that it just wasn't believable.

It's a snow day, so I rented another one...

The Dreamers -
An NC-17 movie that I rented specifically because it was NC-17. About this film, the IMDB says this:

I couldn't agree more...

2/10 (and thats for the full frontal male and female nudity)

Don't worry, I'm not gonna "fl4m3" you..
However, I do recommend you read the play, by Tennessee Williams. Excellent piece of literature.
You really have to pay attention on the stage directions, the music that accompanies the play and why, and how Blanche seems to react in function of these.
The dialogue, you'll see, is much more free flowing and interesting once you've read it and are familiar with the book.

Predator...

Fantastic 80's gun porn!

I can't help but love this freakin movie.

If it bleeds, we can kill it.

"The Island."

Interesting sci-fi plot and the film technique is watchable, esp. Ms. Scarlet Johansson. Better than I expected so I'd give it a 6 outta 10.

(I'm in a generous mood these days! :)

Brokeback Mountain.

Incredible!

I had to drive two hours to catch Brokeback because it wasn't playing in my town. It was well-worth the trip, and it was a very interesting experience.

memoirs of a geisha... not as good as the book. wtf happened to the sister? but the cinematography and acting were exceptional given the amazingly intricate material from the book. 9/10

My movie watching week continues...

Tuck Everlasting
We read the book in my Gr.5 class and so today we watched the movie. This was the book on fast forward, catching none of the beauty, the tone or the message of the book. Instead they turned it into a cheesy romance. Bledell's acting was unconvincing, and for such a stellar cast of supporters, very little was done with them.
The book, which I actually found ended poorly, is still better than the movie by far.

3/10

Broken Flowers

My first Jim Jarmush film. I've already seen Bill Murray play that character...in Lost In Translation, which was a better film. I liked this film as a character study, but it was draggy in many many parts. I also found the end sagged and disappointed.

5/10

Bride and Prejudice (wife's blockbuster online pick that she did no research on). It was an Indian musical that was very vibrant and colorful. Music was good too. Pretty decent if you're in to that type of thing.

Watching Lord of War tonight, I can't wait.