The Regular Moviegoers Critic

'Safe House'

2012-02-10T18:06:00.000-08:00

'Safe House' (R) (2 STARS)

Written by David Guggenheim
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Actors: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Vera Farmiga, Brendan Gleeson, Sam Shepard

"Safe House" has some cool, well directed car chases and shootouts and it has Denzel Washington. What it doesn't have is a soul or any interesting characters or a story I could get into. It also has a plot twist I saw coming in the first five minutes. There are no surprises here and this is a Washington character that he makes appealing with his charisma but a character I expected more fireworks from. The trailer for this movie makes the cooly named Tobin Frost, played by Washington, seem to be a badass but I kept thinking "Training Day". Tobin Frost is supposed to come off as a cold, mean killing machine and he is but ironically I felt no real danger coming off the character.

Tobin Frost is a rogue CIA agent who has a tape that contains incriminating evidence against the agency. Tobin frost is captured and brought to a safe house which is an apartment that is really made up to be like a fortress. The agents bring him into the safe house manned by Matt Weston who is played by Ryan Reynolds. Matt is craving dangerous assignments and hasn't been given any good opportunities. Frost is brought to his safe house to be tortured and something will happen to drag Weston into the case.

The movie seems like one long chase scene and it has a plot I found dull so the car chases and shootouts became repetitive to me and I lost interest half way through. I expected more of an intense battle between Frost and our hero Matt Weston and I felt I didn't get it. Ryan Reynolds is a very good actor and I like him especially in dramatic roles. I just have seen this character before and it comes off one note thanks to the screenplay which is too political for an action movie like this.

The movie makes political speeches and I have seen this story done to death. Denzel Washington deserves a character with more bite but as usual he makes the mundane more intersting so if you like him I say maybe give this movie a chance. It's funny that before this movie I saw the trailer for the new "Bourne Identity" reboot and I think "Safe House" is a dull copy of those movies. The fights and car chases are good in "Safe House" but they are pale copies of the fights and chases of the Bourne movies.

P.S. For better movies than "Safe House" try all the Bourne movies, "Green Zone", "Training Day" and "The Pelican Brief".

'The Vow'

2012-02-10T17:28:00.000-08:00

'The Vow' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writers: Abby Kohn, Marc Silverstein and Jason Katims
Director: Michael Sucsy
Actors: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Scott Speedman, Jessica Lange, Sam Neil

Romantic comedies have been terrible lately save for the occasional "500 Days of Summer" and now you can add romantic dramas to the list. Ever since "The Notebook" we are getting sappy tearjerkers and there is nothing wrong with that. That is if the movie earns it's tears and our emotional connection to the characters. "The Vow" continues in the tradition of movies like "Dear John" and "The Last Song". Thank you Nicholas Sparks for this onslaught of boring trifles! These are silly, drawn out, so polite, dull movies that have no pulse. "The Vow" is based on a true story but I feel that the real life story probably had let's just say more life to it.

The first half hour of this movie is horrible but actually "The Vow" settles down after that and gets better and then it just lays there.
There are some beautiful uses of the wonderful city of Chicago here and Rachel McAdams outshines everyone, without her I would have walked out half way through. McAdams and Channing Tatum are Paige and Leo who get married after the most lackluster portrayl of wooing I have ever seen in a movie.
We see how they get together after the movie starts out with a tragic accident. A truck plows into their car and Paige flies out the front window in an awful and tasteless slow motion shot. Paige wakes up in the hospital and can't remember her past life and thinks Leo is her doctor, a scene that made me laugh.

The movie then gets a little better as Paige gets out of the hospital and Leo tries to make her fall in love with him all over again. It will be a tough assignment and even though I didn't believe anything the movie told me for a second McAdams makes it work. The second half is tolerable but the movie gets so dull and goes through the motions with plot developments that are so predictable and goofy. They involve Paige's parents played by Jessica Lange and Sam Neil who plays the requisite evil and meddling father. How the parents treat Paige and Leo after the accident is not believable for a second. Oh and there is the old boyfriend of Paige's before her and Leo played by Scott Speedman and boy what a boring character.

Rachel McAdams is actually the only actor pulling her weight and that is because her character seems to be the best written one. Which brings me to Channing Tatum who I like and I think is under rated. The only thing is these movies are not meant for him. He is woefully miscast and it is not his fault. I like Tatum in movies that require action and comedy or romantic movies that have something extra like the surprisingly good "Step Up". He was the best thing about "The Dilemma" and looks great in the new "21 Jump Street" movie which requires action and comedy. With "The Vow" and "Dear John" he just stands there and mopes and whispers and looks all doe eyed. I wanted to wake him up but I had to wake myself up first.

P.S. I do love the opening shot of Paige and Leo exiting The Music Box Theatre on a snowy night though. Better movies than "The Vow" are "The Notebook" and "Step Up".

'The Innkeepers'

2012-02-09T12:35:00.000-08:00

'The Innkeepers' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written and Directed by Ti West
Actors: Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, Kelly McGillis, George Riddle, Lena Dunham, Alison Bartlett

"Halloween", "Rosemary's Baby", "Carrie", "Psycho", the 1974 version of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre". These are some of my favorite horror movies of all time. They had one thing in common and that was character development, patience, story telling skills, charisma, character and minimal gore. Even many would be surprised to remember that Tobe Hooper's "Chainsaw Massacre" and John Carpenter's "Halloween" actually are not that gory. In 2009 director Ti West made my favorite horror movie of the last two decades "House of the Devil". It was a flawless throwback to the movies I mentioned above and a perfect recreation of an early 80's horror movie that was better than any horror movie that came out in the 80's. I say all this becuase I have gotten heat for my 4 star review of the wonderful "House of the Devil".

Horror buffs who have seen House should agree on my statements and if you have not seen it and grew up in the 80's a huge smile will spread on your face and stay there throughout as you watch it. Now Ti West has made one of the best ghost stories of the last few decades that is such a huge step up from those horrible Japanese ghost movies and their weak American remakes that have popped up in the last ten years. "The Innkeepers" does take it's time, moves slow and is not as great as "House of the Devil" but it is a lot of goofy fun, actually has a great amount of good scares and will make you smile. I loved it because it takes it's time to develop some good, likable characters and tells a story instead of bludgeoning us to death.

It has what all good ghost stories should have and that is that contagious spirit of huddling around a campfire and having someone telling you a ghost story as your eyes pop out of your head. "The Innkeepers" has a no name cast with a return of an 80's actress in Kelly McGillis (Top Gun). It is set in a dilapidated hotel that is about to be closed down for good. There are two young workers that are working there on the last week. They are Claire and Luke and they love telling and exploring ghost stories and urban legends. There are only a few people staying at the Inn this one night and one is an old TV actress who is now a medium played by McGillis. There is also an old and creepy man who comes in to check in the same room he stayed at when he was a young man even after the Innkeepers tell him the floor the room is on is now closed.

Not much happens in the first 45 minutes and I mean nothing as in the instant gratification gore and scares horror movie goers expect now. Though it is funny to me that the "Paranormal Activity" movies are the same way but they are more popular and people don't mind. The "Saw", "Hostel" crap is now over and movie goers want a story and "The Innkeepers" has a fun one. There is also the classic horror basement in this hotel but it is the best use of a basement in a horror thriller since the 2000 masterpiece "Zodiac".

The first 45 minutes were fun to me and kept my intereste because Sarah and Luke have so much passion, energy, goofiness and are such well written characters. The movie does a great job setting up the story, the atmosphere and finally we care about the characters. Sara Paxton and Pat Healy are great in their roles and McGillis is very good and makes a triumphant return.

After setting up the solid story the movie finishes the job like an effective horror movie should. It starts to get spookier, scarier and more fun as the movie comes to it's sensible horror movie ending. I jumped a few times and as everyone makes a visit to the basement I actually got goosebumps. I know what I like and the horror genre is a hard genre to crack and I know I really like this movie and want to see it again. Ti West has done such an incredible job with "House of the Devil" and this movie that I think he will become a major future force in horror movie making. He doesn't belittle the genre with extreme gore, doesn't objectify women and doesn't hammer us with dumb stuff that all the latest horror movies have given us. Wait till he gets his hands on a big budget horror movie, I can't wait!

P.S. Don't get me wrong, I like gory horror movies also and "The Re-Animator" and the 1982 version of "The Thing" are also two of favorite horror movies. I am actually talking about the slasher movie genre that has gotten so incredibly horrible lately and that is not the type of movie "The Innkeepers" and "House of the Devil" are. Amen!

'Chronicle'

2012-02-03T17:14:00.000-08:00

'Chronicle' (R) (3 STARS)

Written by Max Landis
Directed by Josh Tank
Actors: Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, Michael B. Jordan, Ashley Hinshaw

"Chronicle" shouldn't be this good but that is what I love about movies, the ones that come out of left field, surprise you and get the job done. This is one of those lost and found footage movies where a video shows up of events that happened in the past. "Cloverfield" is an example of this but "Chronicle" blows that movie out of the water! The movie also has the device known as the hand held camera that shakes and sometimes that is annoying. Here not so much because the director Josh Tank does a great job controlling the camera more. Also the story is very compelling and effective so you forget about the hand held camera.

"Chronicle" tells the story of Andrew and Alex who are cousins. One day they hook up with popular high school classmate Steve and they all go to a party together. They wander out in the back and find a deep hole in the ground like something big crashed into it. The movie never explains what this thing is but we kind of see it and we can guess from there if we want. What is down there is not the point and that is the first thing I liked about "Chronicle". There are no real answers, just an effective, scary and engrossing thriller.

The movie has touches of "Carrie" in it as the boys discover they can move things with their minds. First they will use it for fun and to mess with people but then there is a moment and incident and things start getting serious. Andrew has some problems at home and he is one of those shy kids who gets picked on a lot at school and always carries around a video camera filming everyone. Andrew's situation will also change things drastically and the movie will turn into a battle of good vs. evil.

"Chronicle" turns into sort of a twisted version of a superhero movie and it is way better than "The Green Lantern", the last Spiderman movie and the last X Men prequel. Then "Chronicle" has some effective chills and thrilling moments with it's telekenisis angle just like "Carrie". I was happily surprised by how good this movie looks in the effects department with it's low budget. It just proves that the lower the budget the better the horror/thriller and superhero movie is. I also think the movie is very well written and the Andrew character is very interesting and I love his friendship and relationship with his cousin Matt that I thought was deep and touching.

"Chronicle" is delightfully dark with some better than expected special effects that are scary. This movie could have been so cheesy and could have stepped so wrong but it is solid and much better than most of the teenage centered movies like this. I had a fun time and I cared about the characters. There is a charming and energetic performance by Michael B. Jordan (Friday Night Lights TV show) as Steve. He deserves to be a star and I found his performance captivating. "Chronicle" has the goods and it delivers them without any cute tricks. It is perfect for what it's trying to be and I think people will be surprised how solid it is and how much they like it.

'The Woman in Black'

2012-02-03T15:56:00.000-08:00

'The Woman in Black' (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Writer: Jane Goldman based on the novel by Susan Hill
Director: James Watkins
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Ciaran Hinds, Janet McTeer, Misha Handley, Roger Allam

"The Woman in Black" is a throwback to those old British haunted house/ghost stories that were not particularly scary but very creepy. "The Woman in Black" looks breathtaking and that house is beautiful, the art direction is impeccable. Looking at this bleak, grey movie you can actually feel the cold, damp air hitting you in the face. The scare quotient in this movie isn't high for I really was never scared but I had fun watching it and it held my interest throughout.

Daniel Radcliffe, now done with Harry Potter, is solid as Arhur Kripps who is a young Victorian lawyer. He is sent to a haunted house in North England to settle the affairs and go over some papers belonging to it's now dead occupant. That occupant's children had died in that house thus it is haunted. Arthur stays in town and then winds up staying in the house as many things pop out at him including a woman in black and a plethora of children.

The movie is no great shakes in the scare department for I jumped maybe once and could predict when the scares would come. There is a lot of slow tracking shots over Radcliffe's shoulder and then something will jump out at him. It is like going on a haunted house ride and that is why it is fun. It is definitely an old school British type movie with weird characters and towns people staring at Arthur because he is an intruder don't you know. There is also the creepy house which looks damn great here and and the proper looking but dead little girls who are now ghosts.

Radcliffe is good here and I love the supporting actors here especially the wonderful Ciaran Hinds and Janet McTeer fresh from her Oscar nominated turn in "Albert Nobbs". They have a delightful and creepy and weird scene when Arthur comes to their house for dinner that was a lot of fun. Again I love the look of this movie and I reccomend it on the big screen to see the house and the creepy outside on the big screen. "The Woman in Black" is not really scary (This week's "Chronicle" is actually scarier) but it is an effective mood piece that will have you creeped out. Oh and I love the just right and perfect ending which fits this kind of movie well.

'The Grey'

2012-02-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

'The Grey' (R) (3 STARS)

Writers: Joe Carnahan and Ian Mackenzie based on the story "Ghost Walker"
by Mackenzie
Director: Joe Carnahan
Starring: Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo, Dallas Roberts, Joe Anderson

I didn't expect to get a deep meditation on death and what we think about when we confront it in a commercial Hollywood movie like "The Grey". This is actually a heavy movie that is thoughtful but also has great scares and performances. I know one thing, I have a deep respect and new understanding of wolves. I used to think they were pretty and graceful animals but I was dead wrong. The new face of the middle age action star (taking over for Mel Gibson) Liam Neeson is back in prime form in this engrossing movie on nature, death and some bad ass wolves.

Liam Neeson plays John Ottway who is an oil worker and he travels by plane with his co-workers to Alaska. The plane crashes and half of the men die but there are 7 survivors. They will probably not be found because the plane is in pieces, they are in the middle of nowhere and they will have to survive. The men have different personalities and they will have to now watch each other's backs. Oh and I forgot to mention there are a plethora of wolves and they are animals and have no conscious. They will attack without mercy and now the workers need to survive not only the severe weather but also wolves who see these men as dinner.

Tbe wolf attacks will make you jump out of your seat multiple times and Liam Neeson again is a hero we can easily identify with. He is getting really good at his action thing but this is a movie that is a little deeper than "Taken" and "Unknown". There is some good writing here and we get to know a lot about these men. This is not just a thrill ride, each man thoughtfully talks about their lives and loved ones as they face death. The stuff with the wolves is very well done, effective and it will get under your skin. The supporting actors are some of my favorites including the under rated Dermot Mulroney, Dallas Roberts and Frank Grillo. They all have distinct personalities and that is more than I can say for most action movie thrillers these days.

The photography and location work are very effective here and Joe Carnanhan is becoming a very good action director. There is a wonderful scene dealing with a cliff and a steep drop that is very thrilling. "The Grey" is nothing special but I was surprised by it's strong look at death and confronting the end. We have seen plane crash/survivor stories before as in the true life story "Alive". Though there is a somewhat fresh look at survival here with great scares, great acting and Liam Neeson as the quiet hero which he is getting so good at.

P.S. If you see this movie you have to stay until the end of the credits. There is an added scene that is very interesting, let me know what you think about it here or on facebook.

'A Separation' (11)

2012-02-02T16:34:00.000-08:00

'A Separation' (PG-13) (11) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Written and Directed by Asghar Farhadi
Starring: Peyman Moadi, Leila Hatami, Sareh Bayat, Shahab Hoseini, Sarina Farhadi

Sometimes we forget that other cultures, other religions and other countries go through the same things as our county when dealing with the dissolution of a marriage. "A Separation" is a movie from Iran and it is one of the best movies I have ever seen dealing with a fractured marriage. All the characters are people we can identify with and there are no bad guys here just misunderstandings and deceit based on misscommunication. This is such a rich movie because it is not just about a marriage but it deals with children, the convoluted court system in Iran and morals.

This is an extremely intense movie and there is a lot of dialogue but I couldn't keep my eyes off the screen at any moment. You will not catch your breath because of the drama that is presented in a brisk and dramatic pace. Nader and Simin are a married couple that are drifting apart and they decide to get a divorce. They try to end the marriage in court but it won't allow them to get a divorce. They then decide to have a trial separation and it affects their 11 year old daughter Termeh. Nader has a father with Alzheimers that he has to take care of and Simin is tired of taking care of him. She wants to leave Iran and as she tries to leave Nader hires a woman to take care of his father as a caretaker.

This new caretaker makes a huge mistake and neglects the father for a hour or so. Nader comes back home enraged and tries to push her out the door and what happens next we will not see. The caretaker Hodjat claims she fell down a flight of stairs and now has had a miscarriage because of the fall. Nader claims he did not know she was pregnant and just wanted her out of his house. Hodjat's husband did not know of Hodjat's new job so when he is confronted with this shocking news he becomes enraged. They take the case to a court in Iran as Hodjat's husband Razieh presses charges and Nader might be charged for murder and go to prison.

I really wanted to refrain from spilling out too many details of the plot but I feel it is neccesary. This movie has a lot of levels and it doesn't label anyone good or bad. All the characters have legitimate reasons to be angry and no one person is absolutely correct. All we know is that the daughter Termeh is the one that gets the brunt of all this confusion. Slyly we see her heart breaking and in a final scene we are brought to tears in one of the most perfect endings of a movie I have seen.

People might be frustrated by the ending and not understand why some of the characters do what they do. Please do not skip this because you don't want to visit another culture that is supposed to be our enemy. We as Americans and Iranians go through the same emotions and frustrations in our lives and this movie is very engrossing and powerful. The emotions are similiar and I learned a lot about the court system in Iran. There are many frustrating things about it when pertaining to this story but of course America's court system has the same problems. Justice, I find justice is just as skewered and imperfect in America as it is in Iran.

"A Separation" also has wonderful performances and Peyman Moadi as Nader is incredible, subtle and effective. This is a performance that could have easily been nominated for an Oscar as did Damien Bechir for "A Better Life". It is a complex role and Moadi strikes all the right notes. Also Sarina Farhadi as Termeh is great and she is very good at showing her heart breaking in a natural way. The movie is brilliantly written and tautly directed by Asghar Farhadi. I would love to see his next movie and movie goers who don't frequent Iranian movies and see this will want to check out more movies from this country. "A Separation" deserves it's Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination and should have been the 10th movie nominated for Best Picture. It is one of the most powerful and engrossing movies of 2011.

'We Need To Talk About Kevin'

2012-01-27T18:13:00.000-08:00

'We Need To Talk About Kevin' (11) (R) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Writers: Rory Stewart Kinnear and Lynne Ramsay
Based on a novel by Lionel Shriver
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller, Jasper Newell, Rocky Duer

When a child does something unspeakable and cruel should we blame the parent? When should a parent be strict with their child and when should they be understanding and loving? Can a child just be so evil and helpless that even any type of parent can't make good out of the situation? Those are the questions I have been struggling with long after I have seen the haunting, uncomfortable and powerful new drama "We Need To Talk About Kevin". What we have here is an unflinching, no holds barred study on parenthood and evil with an unforgettable, amazing performance by Tilda Swinton!

Swinton plays Eva who is the mother of Kevin and we can't tell what kind of parent she is and that is one of the movie's strengths. She is married to Franklin who is played by the amazing John C. Reilly. Kevin is seen in the movie in three different stages in life as a toddler, a 6 year old and then a teenager. Kevin seems troubled and he also seems to have a strong dislike of his mother. The movie never explains what is really wrong with Kevin and I loved that. There are no easy answers in this movie and there shouldn't be. This is not a movie that wraps everything up in a bow. This is one of the most haunting and unsettling dramas I have seen in a very long time.

Kevin also treats his father with more respect and the father is more clueless to what is going on with Kevin. As most mothers spend more time with their child we see Eva trying to reach out to her child but to no avail. Does Kevin not connect with his mother emotionally because Eva isn't loving enough and is a bad, ineffective parent? It is hard to figure that out in this movie and I think that is why the movie is so haunting, effective and unsettling. The movie is told in a fractured narrative and sometimes the movie is shot in a distracting way but I think that is the movie's aim, to make us feel confused and emotionally off guard. As Kevin grows into being a teenager we think he might have matured a little and we hope that Kevin and Eva might have gotten closer to each other but we are wrong. There is a powerful and chilling scene where 6 year old Kevin gets sick and something changes in his attitude towards his mother and when he gets better there again is a complete 180.

It turns out that Kevin is still emotionally detached from life and his mother. Does he seem detached from life because he was brought up with too little love and support from his mother? The movie builds up to a shattering and haunting tragedy and now we are even coming up with more questions and conflicted feelings. There is a powerful scene at the end between mother and son where we might get answers. That scene will not give us anything and it is the coldest and most haunting scene I have ever seen in a drama like this. I will not give away the tragedy that comes about at the end of this movie because I didn't know about it and find that the movie will be more powerful for you if you like bleek and despairing dramas that hit hard.

Tilda Swinton is an unique actress and she is incredible here playing what I imagine would be a very tough role. It is one of the best performances of the year by far and it is a travesty she was overlooked for an Oscar nomination. This is not mainstream Hollywood filmmaking and I think it is too bold for the mall type theatre crowd. Swinton has a tough task and she looks in a state of shock through a lot of the movie but there are moments that she creates that are all right choices for an actress and they are masterful and subtle. This is a beautiful performance and Tilda Swinton is one of our best and most unique actresses we have, she is a treasure in my opinion.

John C. Reilly has been playing characters in a lot of comedies lately but he also shows what a great, serious actor he can be. The three actors playing Kevin at different ages are all solid and it is a tough role for all of them. This movie could have come off as silly and unintentionally funny and awkward. It does not, in fact it comes off the exact opposite, powerful, chilling and uncompromising. I have read a certain review of this movie that says that this movie is shot like a horror movie and that it comes off silly like a remake of something like "Problem Child", the horrible comedy with John Ritter. I disagree strongly, this movie never makes a false move and yes it is a horrific movie and horrible, evil things will happen so maybe that is why it seems like it was filmed like a horror movie.

This provocative and troubling movie would be a great movie to debate about and to talk about in groups long after you see it. It will bring up questions on what kind of parent is Eva and is Kevin pure evil or is he troubled because his parents didn't raise him up right and didn't give him enough love. This is not the feel good movie of the year and it is heavy stuff but I want to see it again and again to see if I can come up with answers. I would love to see it with a group and then have a discussion after. I think this is a movie everyone should see and it strongly ties in to what is happening to teenagers these days with the various shootings and killings going on in our World. I can't shake this movie or Tilda Swinton's performance off. "We Need To Talk About Kevin" is one of the most powerful and sad movies I have ever seen and one of the very best movies of 2011.

'Albert Nobbs'

2012-01-27T17:00:00.000-08:00

'Albert Nobbs' (11) (R) (2 STARS)

Writers: Gabriella Prekop, John Banville and Glenn Close
Based on a short story by Istvan Szabo based on a short story by George Moore
Director: Rodrigo Garcia
Starring: Glenn Close, Janet McTeer, Mia Warsikowska, Brenda Fricker, Brendan Gleeson, Aaron Johnson, Pauline Collins, Jonathan Rhys Meyers

"Albert Nobbs" has the look right and the acting is wonderful but why did I feel no emotional connection to the characters or the story? Glenn Close is great as Albert Nobbs who is really a woman pretending to be a man in 19th century Dublin. She works as a waiter in a hotel and has to dress and act like a man because a woman would never be hired as a waiter in those times. Also she doesn't have enough money to survive and a woman has to do what a woman has to do.

There have been many so called "Drag" movies where either a man dresses up as a woman or a woman dresses up as a man. The two best are "Victor/Victoria and "Tootsie" of course and "Albert Nobbs has big shoes to fill. It is better than the dreadful "Mrs. Doubtfire" but I felt that the movie was too timid, polite and dull in stretches. The movie needs more fire to match it's performances. It might be the fault of the director Rodrigo Garcia but also the screenplay needed tinkering. It has one character that has a lot of screen time but I thought messed with the flow of the movie.

Albert takes a fancy to a maid in the hotel played by the beautiful Mia Warsikowska. Her name is Helen and Helen starts to feel an attraction to a drifter who comes upon the hotel and maneuvers into a job there. That drifter is overbearing and thinks Albert can be used to get Helen and him to America. As he starts to feel hatred towards Albert I felt the character just set a different tone to the movie. The rest of the movie has some sweet moments and the tone of the movie is light and that drifter character is weak when the others come off stronger. Also the main love story and the direction of the movie just meanders to an unsatisfactory ending.

The movie starts to build and then just fizzles in the end. The movie is based on a short story that was an Off Broadway play in 1982. I had reviewed a movie based on a play called "Carnage" a week ago. I have the same problem with "Albert Nobbs" that I had with "Carnage". "Albert Nobbs" feels fake, stagy and there is just no depth or juice to the movie. So what you are left with is the wonderful performaces and Glenn Close actually doesn't give the best performance in the movie.

Glenn Close is very good here but I felt too much pulling back in her approach to the character sometimes. She does a solid job but I have seen this type of character played stronger. I do like her subtle approach but I thought Mia Warsikowska is the under rated performance here and the best. The very talented actress from "Alice in Wonderland" and "The Kids Are All Right" steals the movie away fom everyone with a strong, charming and natural performance of grace and humor. Also Janet McTeer is great as Hubert Page who is another woman pretending to be a man. Mcteer is playing the same type of role but I think she is better than Close. I hate to say this but I don't think Glenn Close deserved her Oscar nomination.

"Albert Nobbs" is just too safe and pretty and even the financial woes of the period don't come through strong enough. It is for an older movie going audience and before I am branded an ageist I mean it is for older audiences who only see a couple of movies a year. I wanted a stronger love story and a stronger look at the repression of women in that time. The weak subplots, the movie's listlessness and weaker charcters just get in the way. "Albert Nobbs" means well but just doesn't make a strong enough impression on me.

P.S. For better movies than "Albert Nobbs" that deal with some of the same issues check out "Norma Rae", John Lithgow wonderful in "World According to Garp", "Victor/Victoria" and of course "Tootsie".

'Haywire'

2012-01-20T18:24:00.000-08:00

'Haywire' (R) (3 STARS)

Writer: Lem Dobbs
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Gina Carano, Channing Tatum, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, Bill Paxton, Mattheu Kassovitz

"Haywire" is what a successful genre movie should be. For those who love action movies, spy movies and martial arts sit down with me and let me tell you about this wonderful present to you all. It is about time that I feel that a whole action franchise can be made about a kick ass female action star! Gina Carano is a retired MMA fighter and she is quite an action movie find, she kicks major ass! The fight scenes in "Haywire" are crisp, clean, beautifully choreographed and fun to watch. After "Haywire" you will hear a lot of young men and boys sighing and a lot of females cheering. I have never seen so many men get their ass kicked by a woman in a movie ever.

Gina Carano has major screen presence as super spy Mallory who in a wonderful opening scene is told by some mysterious man to come with him. Then you have the first of many awesome fight scenes as Mallory dispatches her first man. We then learn why Mallory is wanted as she is set up by her agency and a hit is put on her. I will not spoil all the plot machinations but I was really happy with this story and the fights. I have been complaining lately about all these lastest action movies that you can't follow in either the action scenes or story. "Haywire" has fights that are clearly choreographed and easy to take in and a story that is simple but fun and easy to follow. This is all I am asking for from my action movies. "Mission Impossible" and now "Haywire" have got the job done, this isn't brain surgery Hollywood!

I am loving what independent maverick Steven Soderbergh has done with his career! Along with movies like "Oceans 11" he has made specialized genre films and unique movies like this one and "The Girlfriend Experience". He has not just gone the safe Hollywood route, he tries different and risky projects. This is brave territory making an action movie with a female at it's center that could fall on it's face and bomb. What he does with "Haywire" is make a wonderful action movie that could have been made in the 70's as part of a kick ass double feature at a Drive-In theatre.

Gina Carano does a surprisingly solid acting job, she has charm, is tough, sexy and man can she kick butt! I admit I am now hooked and I hope she makes more action movies, she is hot! I have been screaming for a major female action star for years. There are so many stock, thankkless roles for actresses while men get to have all the fun. I hope this is a new trend for I miss the old days of Ripley from "Aliens" and "Thelma and Louise" and I am talking 80's and 90's here. This is a great action movie and not only will men eat it up women will have a cathartic experience as they see a woman beat the crap out of bad men! Should I dare say this is a great date movie? Hmmm.

'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close' (11)

2012-01-20T17:46:00.000-08:00

'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close' (11) (PG-13) (1 STAR)

Writer: Eric Roth based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer
Director: Stephen Daldry
Starring: Thomas Horn, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Max Von Sydow, Viola Davis, John Goodman, Jeffrey Wright, Zoe Caldwell

I know there can be a great movie made out of the 9/11 tragedy and it has been proven by the powerful "United 93". There has always been a debate on what is too soon for there to be a movie made from this awful tragedy. It has been over ten years so I think it has been enough time. Though if movies like "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" get made then maybe there shouldn't be any movies about 9/11 ever. This is a manipulative, offensive and phony movie and I sat stone faced throughout until I laughed a few times. The movie is based on a best selling book and if the movie is faithful to the book then shame also on Jonathan Foer who wrote the novel.

The movie tells the story of Oskar Schell who is an 11 year old boy who is believed to have Asperger's Syndrome. Oskar has lost his father to the 9/11 tragedy and oh he also finds out his grandparents survived the Holocaust. So you have the filmmakers not only using 9/11 to manipulate us with a bad story but also using the Holocaust. I wouldn't mind the filmmakers using both these dark subjects to tell it's story if it was a smart movie that didn't feel like someone was forcing me to cry to a cheap story. When a movie gets to me emotionally I can start to cry and I have cried during a lot of movies. I didn't feel at any moment during this movie any concern or emotion to any characters or the story so trust me this movie is lame.

Oskar's father when he was alive had Oskar doing certain tasks out in the city and if Oskar may have Asperger's then isn't it cruel for the father to give him these tasks? Anyway after Oskar's father dies jumping from a building Oskar finds a key he left in an envelope with the last name Black on it. So Oskar then goes out into the city again to find out what this key is for and does it involve his father. So Oskar searches and runs into many city dwellers that are all weakly and shallowly written. There is no character development here at all and I actually found Oskar annoying and sorry to say the child actor playing him, Thomas Horn, is a weak young actor.

Oskar then meets a mute street person played by Max Von Sydow and what a shamless tool and character for the writers to come up with. The mute man has a dark back story and I am surprised the writers didn't give him cancer also. The movie just piles on all these phony moments that are implausible and could never happen in real life. So you can see what made me mad here, you are using 9/11, the worst tragedy this country has encountered, to give us such false moments to get us to cry.

Then the movie gets worse in the last half hour. Oskar writes a letter and sends it to all the people he has met on his journey. He thanks them for helping him on his quest and all these people have lost close ones to the 9/11 tragedy. Then we get a montage of all thse people reading the letter and crying. How arrogant is this movie to think that all these people who have lost family members should drop everything to make them care about this one boy and his father? We never have met half of these people reading the letter so how are we supposed to feel for anybody?

If you love Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock don't expect them to be in it that much. Hanks is in it for 5 minutes total and John and Jane Schmo could have played these characters in their sleep. So now you have Hanks and Bullock to use as more manipulation to see this insulting movie. There are so many great child actors these days in movies so I do not apologize for saying that young Thomas Horn as Oskar is over acting here and he annoyed the heck out of me. The movie ends with a howler of a scene that made me roll my eyes and gag. We find out who the key belongs to and Oskar and this person have a pointless, embarassing and fake emotional scene.

This is one of the phoniest, most maudlin and unintentionally funniest movies I have seen in a long time! The writing is manipulative and terrible and none of the characters have any depth. I also have a burning question to ask about this movie. If Oskar went out by himself in New York City on his journey don't you think he would encounter trouble or have had his life threatened or maybe be mugged? Not in this movie's fake and phony New York City. Congratulations to Stephen Daldry the director who also directed the manipulative and horrible "The Reader". Along with "Patch Adams" and "I am Sam" you have made one of the three worst tearjerkers in film history!

P.S. I forgot the most insulting thing about this movie, showing in slow motion people jumping from buildings as the planes hit. What a cheap and manipulative and just plain wrong trick!

P.S. For movies like this that are much better you can watch anything actually. Seriously, "United 93" is still the best movie made about 9/11 so far and it is powerful.

'Contraband'

2012-01-19T17:19:00.000-08:00

'Contraband' (R) (rental)-

Writer: Aaron Guzikowski based on movie "Reykjavik-Rotterdam"
Director: Baltasar Kormakur
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Kate Beckinsale, Giovanni Ribisi, Ben Foster, JK Simmons, Diego Luna, Lukas Haas

"Contraband" is one of those movies that you find while flipping through stations on cable. You stop and watch it because you are a fan of Wahlberg and a lot of movie fans are. You stop because it looks like a neat, little crime, heist movie. You finish watching it and in the morning you don't remember anything about it. It was entertaining while you watched it as long as you don't think about it too much after and with "Contraband" you won't. I am not saying it is a weak or bad movie, I did like a lot of it and I like that it had somewhat of a brain and was complicated but it isn't memorable.

The plot would not make sense if I explained it fully and I would give away some of the twists. Let's just say Mark Wahlberg plays a former criminal who tries to go legit but crime tries to pull him back in! His brother-in-law has screwed up a cocaine drug heist and the bad guy in charge wants him or Wahlberg's character to play. Then this psycho bad guy brings Wahlberg's character's family into it and threatens them. The wife is played by Kate Beckinsale and I like her but anyone could have played this role. There are two bad guys, one that is weak and over the top and played with a screeching accent by Giovanni Ribisi. The other one is played by one of my favorite new actors in Ben Foster. Foster brings subtle evil and intensity to his bad guy, Ribisi overacts and comes off goofy instead of threatening.

I like Wahlberg in this movie as I always like him in everything. He is a very likable guy and I rooted for him here even though I didn't get totally into the movie. I love the Mark Wahlberg of "The Fighter" a lot and if light, "B" movies like this make Wahlberg get the green light on deeper movies then "Contraband" is alright by me. "Contraband" has some good shootouts, dialogue and chase/fight scenes. It has a likable Mark Wahlberg and a very effective and deeply acted bad guy in Foster. I also absolutely love the location work of New Orleans and Panama City. Mark Wahlberg movies always have great location work and the gritty location work here seems like another character. So when you are watching cable one night and "Contraband" comes on check it out.

P.S. Better crime thrillers and Mark Wahlberg movies than "Contrband" which you can watch on DVD with "Contraband" are "The Fighter", Michael Mann's "Thief", "Heat" and "Collateral".

'The Iron Lady'

2012-01-19T16:51:00.000-08:00

'The Iron Lady' (PG-13) (rental)

Writer: Abi Morgan
Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Starring: Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Alexandra Roach, Harry Lloyd, Olivia Colman, Richard Grant

I noticed something while watching the Margaret Thatcher biopic "The Iron Lady". Meryl Streep gets taken for granted even though she gets heaps of praise all the time. I noticed that we sometimes think we see Streep acting but during her latest performance I noticed she dissapears into her characters. My mother told me this the other night before I saw this movie and now it is crystal clear. Meryl Streep gives a lived in performance that is amazing and sometimes I found her to be unrecognizable and that is how masterful she is here. I just wished the movie lived up to her performance.

When Streep played Julia Child in "Julia and Julia" great as she was I still could see Streep in the performance and I could see her acting. She is much better here because I couldn't see her acting at all. Right from the first frame she totally immerses herself in the character and Streep the actor is gone. The movie itself is another matter because I learned nothing new and the device of telling the story here is awkward and annoying. Writer Abi Morgan and director Phyllida Lloyd jump back and forth showing the older, retired Thatcher and the younger college, career bound Thatcher. Then we jump to Prime Minister Thatcher dealing with the Falkland Wars. The movie jumps around too much and while I am not a big fan of the straight narrative approach this movie should have stayed put and gone in chronological order.

I could never get into the story of this movie for I am not that interested in or a huge fan of Thatcher or British politics. I wanted to be surprised and to learn something and all I learned is that Streep is a fantastic and lo and behold I already knew that. Meryl Streep is incredibly great in this role and I was also surprised at the look of the older Thatcher, how real Streep looked and how well she acted in those scenes. Old age make up and actors growing old in film is usually hammy and awkward. Though I cringed at the way the movie uses that old living charcacter talks to a dead character device. The movie has a fragile, older Thatcher talking to her dead husband Dennis played by Jim Broadbent. Those scenes, and there are a lot of them, distract from the story.

So if you love Meryl Streep I guess you should go see "The Iron Lady" but don't expect a weighty or powerful film. I felt nothing while watching except pure joy in watching Streep. I guess that is enough for you to see it, just to see Streep give another amazing performance and I think her best in years. So if you are a Meryl Streep fan you should go see it and she will be nominated for and even might win the Oscar. If you are not a big political movie fan or you couldn't care less about Thatcher you should skip it. This would be a great movie to watch next to my favorite Streep performance as Karen Silkwood on DVD so you can marvel at the wonderment of Meryl Streep.

P.S. For better Meryl Streep movies and better political bios check out "Silkwood", "Sophie's Choice" and "Kramer vs. Kramer". Political bios like the wink, wink Bill Clinton bio movie "Primary Colors" or "Nixon" would be great also.

'Carnage'

2012-01-18T14:37:00.000-08:00

'Carnage' (R) (2 STARS)

Writers: Roman Polanski and Yasmina Reza based on play "God of Carnage"
Director: Roman Polanski
Starring: Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, John C. Reilly, Christoph Waltz

There is a feeling among critics that movies based on stage plays fail most of the time because they are always too stagy. Some movies don't open up the story enough to leave it's stage confines. I have not seen the play "God of Carnage" but I have heard that it is faithful to the stage play and that the only scenes that is independent is it's opening and closing shot. The film deals with two couples of parents who meet after one of their kids had struck the other kid in the face with a stick during a fight. They meet in one of their apartments and the movie doesn't leave that location.

There is nothing wrong with a movie that will stay in one place and nothing wrong with a screen adaptaion of a stage play being stagy. As long as the acting is great, the story compelling and the dialogue intriguing all is good. One of my favorite movies is the screen adaptation of "Deathtrap" from 1982 which was all set in a writer's house. I have seen "Deathtrap" with Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve over 50 times and I can recite all the dialogue. So a confined adaptation can be rewarding because that movie had great dialogue, twists and an expert use of that film's location.

"Carnage" has great acting and some priceless one liners but the movie never really gets going until it is too late. The last half hour really gets nasty and great but suddenly it is over and I was disaapointed. This movie has such a great cast and such a great premise I felt cheated when the movie abruptly ends. The movie's characters to me all seemed selfish, stuck up and boring people. There is nothing wrong with that and the movie wants to get nasty and wants to show up these characters and how mean and selfish they are. I do get what this movie is trying to do to us and why the story is set in one claustrophobic location. The movie is trying to make us uncomfortable as we try to laugh at what is unfolding but I didn't laugh as much as I wanted to.

All four actors are very good with Jodie Foster and John C. Reilly as the parents of the victim and Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz as the parents of the kid who struck the other child. To me John C. Reilly and Christoph Waltz come off the best. Foster and Winslet yell too much and a lot of movie goers will be put off by what seems like stage type acting. That is one of the reasons the movie felt stiff and fake to me and when you see a movie you don't want to feel like you are watching a play. There are some really good verbal attacks and a great running joke about the Christoph Waltz character always using his cell phone and interrupting conversations. There is also a lame running joke that deals with the Winslet character vomiting.

There are scattered, great insults and one liners but a lot of the dialogue to me was weak. I was bored in the first half but I started to like the second half but when I got comfortable the movie was over. This is a movie that would be better to wait for on DVD but I also fear a lot of people will hate this movie. These are not characters people will like and I felt after awhile they were beginning to annoy me even though I love all the actors. They are all really good but I wanted more intensity, more nastiness and I just wanted plain more.

P.S. For those who love priceless acting, twists and turns, nastiness, scares, chills, grand guigonol, laughs and intensity from a movie adaptation of a stage play netflix 1982's "Deathtrap" with Christopher Reeve, Michael Caine and Dyan Cannon. It is one of the best and most fun times I have ever had in a movie and a better adaptaion than "Carnage".

'Pariah' (11)

2012-01-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

'Pariah' (R) (11) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written and Directed by Dee Rees
Starring: Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Pernell Walker, Aasha Davis, Charles Parnell

"Pariah" is the type of movie you don't see anymore and it is refreshing, extremely well acted and bold. There used to be movies that dealt with young black women trying to grow up in a quickly changing World. Heck I don't even see these types of movies dealing with white or hispanic girls either. There used to be some strong movies like this in the 80's and now with "Pariah" we get something even more rare. A movie that deals with a young black woman who is a lesbian and has to struggle with the the task of coming out to her parents. You have to treat a movie like this in the right way without any false moves and "Pariah" is almost perfect.

"Pariah" is a very sensitive and quietly powerful movie with some incredible acting that might fly under the radar. The captivating and wonderful Adepero Oduye plays Alike or Lee who has totally accepted her lesbianism. She hangs out with her best friend Laura and they frequent a lesbian strip bar located by a liquor store. Her mother suspects that her daughter is a lesbian so she tries to set her up with a friend's daughter from church to be a different influence on Lee. Her father is a police officer and he is blind to his daughter's sexual orientation because she is Daddy's little girl. The story of "Pariah" is dealt with in a sensitive and thoughtful manner and that is where it gets it's power.

The greatness of this movie starts with the acting and it is not only just the incredible performance by Adepero Oduye. Oduye is a revelation and she is natural and fierce showing how vulnerable she can be but also how strong she can be. It is a commanding performance and you never see her acting, it is a lived in performance. Another revelation is the performance by Kim Wayans of the famous comedy family The Wayans. Kim Wayans has given some great comedic performances in the televison classic "In Living Color" but she proves she can be an amazing dramatic actress as well with her great performance here. There is a scene at the end of this movie between mother and daughter that broke my heart due to Wayan's and Oduye's powerful performances.

There are also great supporting performances by Pernell Walker as Lee's best friend Laura. They strike up a believable friendship and Walker is also a natural. Laura is a lesbian also and she has her own powerful scene as she visits the mother who left her and her sister on their own when Laura came out that also broke my heart. I also think Charles Parnell is a real find and very solid as Lee's father Arthur and Lee and Arthur also have a powerful and touching scene near the end.

"Pariah" reminds me of the movie "Precious" in it's frankness and thoughtfulness. It is not as forceful as "Precious" but in it's own quiet way it is almost as great. It is a different type of coming of age and settling in your own skin movie but just as important. This is a movie that is a must see for any young girl struggling with her sexual identity as for any teenage girl actually. It is also one of the best movies of the year and something everyone should see.

'In the Land of Blood and Honey' (11)

2012-01-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

'In the land of Blood and Honey' (R) (11) (2 STARS)

Written and Directed By Angelina Jolie
Starring: Zana Marjanovic, Goran Kostic, Rade Serbedzija

Angelina Jolie is a very smart actress and political activist and she makes a sturdy and impressive directorial debut with "In the Land of Blood and Honey". I like the look of the movie and the acting and Jolie proves she could be an amazing director. I just wanted a stronger love story to counter balance the repetitive rape scenes and bombings. I wouldn't mind all the grim scenes because the subject matter is stark and sobering but I felt the main story lacked strength to strike a good balance.

"In the Land of Blood and Honey" is set during the Bosnian War in the mid 90's and has a promising and convoluted love story set amid the conflict. Ajla and Danijel are first seen at a night club in Bosnia when an explosion goes off as they are dancing close to each other. This is before the war starts and their relationship is halted. Danijel is fighting for the Serbs and Ajla is a Muslim and is hated by the Christian Serbs. Danijel is one of those Serbs and their growing love will be tested by Danijel's loyalty to the other side.

Angelina Jolie does a great job capturing the ugliness and tragedy of this senseless war. Her directing is assured and completely focused but it is her writing of the story that lets her down. There are a lot of rape scenes as a movie capturing this war should have. So many Muslim women were raped and many women, men and children were needlessly shot dead. This is a war movie that is in the mold of "Schindler's List" which was a brutal movie. The difference was that "Schindler's List" had an amazing and powerful story in the middle of the carnage. "In the Land of Blood and Honey" lost my interest quickly because I felt Ajla and Danijel's love story grew tiresome to me so that all the kill shots and rape scenes had the same effect on me. You need a story to grab on to if you are dealing with subject matter like this.

I also did not learn anything about the Bosnian War from this movie and there are no explanations for why there was all this senseless rape and killing. This movie also needed something like "Hotel Rwanda" with a main character we believed in and something to explain why this conflict was happening. The acting by Zana Marjanovic and Goran Kostic is very good but their characters kind of bored me after a while. Angelina Jolie has a very promising future career as a director, she has the chops. Sadly her first film needed better writing and more firepower. Saying that I do hope to see Jolie direct another movie very soon.

P.S. For better types of movies like this you should check back on Steven Spielberg's iconic and powerful "Schindler's List", "Hotel Rwanda" and "United 93".

'The Adventures of TinTin' and 'War Horse'

2011-12-30T19:06:00.000-08:00

'The Adventures of TinTin' (PG) (2 STARS)

Writers: Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish based on comic strip
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Andy Serkis, Nick Frost, Simon Pegg, Toby Jones

I didn't think the great Steven Spielberg would fall in the latest movie trap! My latest pet peeve gets stirred up again with the cold and too busy "The Adventures of TinTin". This is another movie with cardboard characters I didn't care about and endless action scenes that were all over the place. I am shocked for Steven Spielberg is usually focused even if he makes something lame like "Hook". The latest trend of animated films not sitting still for a minute to develop characters or a story has crippled Spielberg. In the press Spielberg has told us that he made this movie in the spirit of "Raiders of the Lost Ark". This is far beneath that movie and Spielberg shouldn't have even directed it.

I get why he has mentioned Raiders when speaking of TinTin for this tries for that same sense of adventure and non stop action as TinTin looks for buried treasure. This is a movie based on a comic strip series I had never heard about until now and I don't have a desire to go find it and read it. TinTin is a boring character and his cohorts are I guess Pirates but they would be kicked out off any ship that any of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" characters would be on. The movie is like one extended chase as TinTin and others flip, crash, swordfight and hit each other. None of the action scenes are clean, effective or thrilling. Even "The Goonies" (which I was reminded of watching this) was a thrill ride compared to this. This is an action, adventure movie wirth no thrills or suspense.

I think the major blame should go to the stop motion animation genre that creeps me out. That is where the faces of the people have eyes withdrawn and don't look animated but look deformed. That style of animation here has improved a little bit from the weird looking "Polar Express" and "A Christmas Carol". I am just not into that style of animation and I am definitely not into this boring, messy and cold lackluster movie.

P.S. For better movies than TinTin check out again "The Goonies" and the first "Pirates of the Carribean" movie. Also I was reminded of the Spielberg produced "Young Sherlock Holmes" from 1985 which is much more fun!

'War Horse' (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Writers: Lee Hall and Richard Curtis based on novel Written By Michael Morpurgo
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, Peter Mullan, Niels Arestrup, david Thewlis, Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, Celine Buckens

All filmmakers are influenced by certain legendary directors from Hollywood's past. You can tell that Steven Spielberg was greatly infleunced by the great John Ford with his latest "War Horse". Those who don't know John Ford might find this movie corny and it is but I was entertained. This is not Oscar caliber but it is old fashioned, grand entertainment and it is like they used to make them. This is a movie full of cliches and a lot of dialogue you could hear if you watched an old Ford movie. But if you love horses you'll fall in love with this and if you don't you might be bored.

"War Horse" tells the story of young Albert whose parents own a farm that is in danger of being foreclosed. His father Ted drinks and his mother Rose is a loyal wife and mother. Albert's father buys a horse at an auction and Albert becomes close to the horse. Ted sells the horse to the Army to be used for battle in World War I so he can get the money to pay the land's owner. When Albert enlists in the Army he tries to track down his horse. From then the horse takes over as the main character that we will follow through on a journey and that is good because Albert is not that interesting of a character.

What you have in this movie with a huge heart is a lot of war movie cliches and a horse story that will remind you of "The Black Stallion". The horse is beautiful and I had fun watching the horse and his adventures in war. The movie pulls at your heart strings and I guess lately that is wrong. With this movie and last week's "We Bouight A Zoo" I can't understand the backlash this movie is getting from certain critics. Seriously critics, it is time to get the collective sticks out of our butts. I had some problems with this movie but sometimes you have to go with the flow and let the movie wash over you and have fun. There is terrible corn (New Year's Eve) and there is good corn like "War Horse".

The movie is beautiful to look at, Spielberg takes care and shows a lot of heart and warmth with his direction. The horse is amazing and sometimes you will scratch your head trying to figure how they filmed some scenes without hurting the horse. The human characters are sometimes cliches and not many are memorable but I loved Emily Watson as the mother and Tom Hiddelston will make some women's hearts swoon as an English soldier. One of my favorite moments in the movie that captivated me and took my breath away concerned a grandfather and his granddaughter who take part in the horse's journey. I wish they were in the movie longer and Niels Arestrup as the grandfather has a beautifully acted scene and his dialogue is the only time in the movie I felt like real people were talking. Plus Celine Buckens as the granddaughter is a natural and young girls will love this segment as should everyone else.

"War Horse" is a charming and very fun time at the movies and like I said if you love horses this won't dissapoint. I did have another little problem which are the war and battle scenes. They are really all well filmed but sometimes I found them lackluster though I do love a particular scene where the horse is hurt and in danger. Spielberg has made two war movies I am not a big fan of in "Saving Private Ryan" and "Empire of the Sun". They both have great battle scenes but their war stories I found too cliched and corny. I think "War Horse" could have done better in dealing with the war stuff but I will take this movie over "Ryan" and "Empire" any day. Most importantly this is a beautiful love story between a boy and his horse and in that way it is a winner.

'A Dangerous Method'

2011-12-28T15:51:00.000-08:00

'A Dangerous Method' (R) (2 STARS)

Writer: Christopher Hampton based on novel "A Most Dangerous Method" By
John Kerr
Director: David Cronenberg
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Viggo Mortensen, Keira Knightley, Vincent Cassel, Sarah Gadon

Director David Cronenberg's career has been full of indelible and shocking moments in most of his films. My favorites are "A History of Violence" and "The Fly" but I could never get into a lot of his movies. Half of them are full of images so gross and shocking that they take away from their weak stories. For example I am not a big fan of "Dead Ringers" or "Naked Lunch" because there were images that I think took away from their promising stories. That is why I was surprised that with his latest "A Dangerous Method" I wanted not necessarily shock moments but more of a pulse.

The movie has gotten great reviews but I could never get into the story of how psychologists Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud worked together to help patient Sabina Spielrein overcome her hysteria. Maybe it is just me but I was bored by a lot of this movie and I expected more intensity. This might be Cronenberg's nicest, quaintest movie but strangely I want the old Cronenberg back. I think there are moments that have potential but I wanted more intensity, the movie is too polite. Even when Jung starts spanking Sabina as part of the cure for her problem it felt to me like it was no big deal.

I like the acting in this movie and Viggo Mortensen gives a very interesting performance that works. Also Michael Fassbender continues his hot streak with another excellent performance and what I like about him is that each of his performances this year are all different types of characters and that is rare. This year each of his performances are in a different type of genre and again he is going to be someone special. Now I had a slight problem in the beginning with Keira Knightley's performance which I found clashed with the movie's tone. At first her performance is shrill and over acted but once she settles down half way through she rebounds.

"A Dangerous Method" has great art direction, costumes and a great look to it but I never got immersed in the relationship between Jung and Freud or Jung and Sabina. I found a lot of the exploration of Jung and Freud's methods a lot of mumbo jumbo and it is jargon I found boring. I guess I might be guilty of going for the "Good Will Hunting" and "Ordinary People" look at psychoanalysis. I am not a big psychology fan unless it has to deal with murder or depravity I guess. I was curiously uninvolved during "A Dangerous Method" and I am not saying avoid it because it might satisfy moviegoers who like deep thought with their movies. I usually like a deep movie but this time I couldn't get into the story.

'The Artist'

2011-12-23T21:04:00.000-08:00

'The Artist' (PG-13) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Written and Directed By Michel Hazanavicius
Starring: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, Penelope Ann Miller, James Cromwell, John Goodman, Ed Lauter, Missy Pyle, Malcolm McDowell

This has been an unique year for showing that the love of the history of film can be a powerful thing. First Martin Scorsese gave us a valentine to the early birth of cinema with "Hugo" and now comes the brilliant "The Artist". I loved this movie more than words can say for it's loving look at the golden age of silent film. It is a beautiful looking, perfectly acted movie with a period detail that is flawless and breathtaking. I fear this will have the same effect it had on me only for movie goers that are into film history or silent film. I do have faith that it will delight, entertain and put a huge smile on everyone's face. "The Artist" is why we go to the movies, to fall in love with cinema all over again.

"The Artist" gives us the story of silent film star George Valentin, an actor in the mold of Douglas Fairbanks Sr. George is a huge star who acts in a lot of movies and one day he bumps into an ordinary woman from a crowd of fans. Her name is Peppy Miller and after that bump Peppy goes to some auditions for movie extras. Before you know it she becomes a movie star on her own and George is smitten with her. I will not give much more away for this movie is so great because of it's surprises. I can tell you there is a scene stealing dog named Uggie and that the dawn of a new age of movie called "The Talkie" will change George's career and life.

"The Artist" is a mix of a number of silent film genres including comedy, melodrama and love story. I guess there is backlash for this movie because it is said to be superficial with too many tonal shifts. I disagree and loved every facet and moment of this valentine to silent film. WIith this and my earlier review of "We Bought A Zoo" why can't critics get the so called stick out of their butts? Anyway I was with this movie every step of the way. I loved the beautiful black and white photography, the music, the pitch perfect acting and the pristine period detail. I was amazed by every perfect article of clothing, every piece of furniture and the flawless recreations of all kinds of silent movies.

The director is Michel Hazanavicious who has only made a couple of french spy spoof movies and I was not prepared for this masterpiece of his. He nails everything right here and if you showed this movie to an audience and you didn't tell them it was made today I swear you could make them think this was a real silent movie from the 20's. All the things I mentioned about all the flawless recreations are due to Hazanavicious's care, heart, precision and dedication to detail.

The acting is also amazing and Jean Dujardin is an actor I had only seen once in one of those french spy spoof films. His acting is flawless and he has to run the gamut of emotions including happiness, failure, sadness and depression and does a wonderful job. The real find here is Berenice Bejo as Peppy who amazed me with her grace, beauty, comic and dramatic precision. She is also easy on the eyes and brings an effortless charm to the role, you will fall in love with her. She reminds me of Marion Davies who was a major silent film actress. Dujardin's and Bejo's facial expressions and the way they capture every emotion without speaking is amazing and the reason they will both be nominated and might even win an Oscar. There are also great performances by Penelope Ann Miller, James Cromwell, John Goodman and that dog who was fantastic.

I think this movie might get backlash for not really producing any deep love or any emotional connection to the story and the characters. I think that view is completely wrong and I hope it doesn't happen. This is a beautiful movie to look at with a story that got to me and made me fall in love with the movie and fall in love with the power of movies all over again. I actually went back in the theatre to see this movie twice to confirm that I loved this movie and heck if I didn't even love it more the second time!

"The Artist" is a throwback to the magic of old movies and the golden age of cinema that makes all the crap I have seen this year dissapear. It is funny to think that the upcoming Oscar telecast will go back to old school Hollywood and will be hosted by Billy Crystal. I say this because don't be surprised if "The Artist" wins Best Picture, Actor, Actress and Director at this year's Oscars.

'We Bought A Zoo'

2011-12-23T20:05:00.000-08:00

'We Bought A Zoo' (PG) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Aline Brosh McKenna and Cameron Crowe
Director: Cameron Crowe
Starring: Matt Damon, Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church, Patrick Fugit, Colin Ford, Elle Fanning, Angus MacFayden, Maggie Elizabeth Jones

I am stunned lately by the cold hearts of critics who just can't relax and have fun with a movie. Not every movie released in December has to be prestigious Oscar bait. There are movies that tug at your heartstrings, sometimes shamelessly, that just win you over with their charm. "We Bought A Zoo" is a return to form for writer, director Cameron Crowe and it might be corny but I bought it hook, line and sinker and I choked up a lot and loved it. Let me honor Joel Siegel here and proclaim "I Bought This Zoo!"

Part of that charm and unabashed entertainment is due to Crowe's care and heart and to a lot of charming and good performances. Matt Damon is great and very likable as Benjamin who is a widdow with a young daughter and a pre teenage boy. Ben quits his adventure writing job and is dealing with his son's dark artistic drawings and his acting out in school. Ben wants a change in his life and he looks for a new home to buy. He finds one with a lot of land but it turns out to have an old dilapidated zoo in the backyard. Half of the Zoo's staff is gone but a few are left behind looking for guidance including Kelly who is the head animal keeper.

Kelly is played by Scarlett Johansson and I haven't seen her this relaxed and glowingly beautiful since "Lost In Translation". She has an effortless grace as Kelly and she is also charming like Damon. Ben's daughter is that standard cute kid that has all these one liners but she is a winner. I didn't learn a lot about the zoo staff characters but all the actors are charming and they care about the zoo which is all I care about. Of course Ben and Kelly have a great chance to become a couple and there is an underlying sexual attraction there.

A lot of the plot is predictable but one of my rules is that a movie can still be great even if it is predictable. I know when I am being manipulated but I did tear up a few times during the movie so obviously it got to me. Cameron Crowe has got to my heart numerous times with my favorite teen movie of all time "Say Anything", "Jerry Maguire" and "Almost Famous". I have seen "Almost Famous" about 50 times and every time I cry throughout the entire movie. Crowe knows how to get to your heart and he knows how to pull your strings but he is so great at it. A lesser talent than him could have make Zoo maudlin. Crowe's movies can make you choke up and your heart soar without you knowing it and that's why he is such a great writer and director.

"We Bought A Zoo" is not up to par with Crowe's greatest films but it is a major step up from his last "Elizabethtown". I love the acting here, the animals, Thomas Haden Church as Ben's brother and I love the film's heart and humor. Critics are lambasting it for shallow writing, characters and manipulation. Sometimes you have to go with the flow and get caught up with the story and I did here. This kind of movie is why I invented the theme of my blog. If you want to see an entertaining, charming movie that will make you laugh and maybe even cry then ignore the stuffy critics. My blog is for movie goers who don't mind having their heartstrings pulled and just want to see a good movie. This might be a guilty pleasure and people will give me hell for it but it is my guilty pleasure, maybe it will be yours.

P.S. This would be an ideal movie to take the family to and I wish the previews would promote that but there isn't a singing chipmunk in it, there is a monkey though and a lion, a tiger....

'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' (11)

2011-12-22T16:30:00.000-08:00

"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' (11) (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Steve Zaillian based on the trilogy of novels Written By Stieg Larsson
Director: David Fincher
Starring: Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Stellan Skarsgard, Christopher Plummer, Joely Richardson, Robin Wright, Steven Berkoff

In the arts there is a feeling that movies adapted from books are never as good as the books. There is also a feeling that American movies adapted from foreign movies are never as deep or great as their foreign counterparts. I think it is all foolish and I don't care. Acting carries the day in David Fincher's adaptation of the first in a trilogy of books by Stieg Larsson. I have not read the books but I have seen the Swedish original so I wasn't surprised by the story in anyway at anytime. That is the drawback I think but does that mean I didn't like the American version better or at least equally?
I do think that moviegoers that love the original will be set back by the opening credit sequence with the jazzed up Trent Reznor version of Led Zeppelin's "The Immigrant Song" and that amused me.

Well I will report to you that I like both versions equally though the acting is better in Fincher's version. Knowing the story already, even with Fincher's tweaks, I wasn't enamored by the story this time. I didn't see that much of a difference. I do love the relationship between Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander better in this version. That is due to the amazing, powerful and quietly intense performance by Rooney Mara as Lizbeth. I do love the original performance by Noomi Rapace but I was knocked over by Mara's performance. Her and Daniel Craig have great chemistry that keeps building and when Lizbeth saves him in the end I was cheering.

The Lizbeth character to me ranks up there with Ridley from "Aliens" and Clarice Starling from "The Silence of the Lambs" as three of the strongest women characters in books or movies and my three favorites. Rooney Mara has a sure handle of the role and does it justice. I never thought the Mikeal character was that interesting, Lisbeth makes him a better man. Daniel Craig does a very good job but Mara's give and take with Craig make the characters more special. I don't need to explain the plot to most of you and Fincher makes little changes but not enough that I noticed them that much. I think I love the Lisbeth character better than the story. The story is just pretty much your average serial killer type story.

Rooney Mara gives a breakout performance and like Elizabeth Olsen in "Martha Marcy May Marlene" she will become one of our best actresses. She reigns in the performance and is always quietly intense and gives her the power she should possess. She might seem an abused woman who can't do anything about it but we know she can kick major ass. Mara gave a small memorable performance in "The Social Network" and now seeing her in this movie I am extremely impressed by her range. In the original Swedish movies I really liked the first movie but didn't care for the next two. I think there is a better chance that if there are more American movies that they have better potential because of Rooney Mara and her chemistry with Daniel Craig.

David Fincher is one of my favorite directors and I was wondering why he would make this retread but I am glad he did. The filmmaking is better in this version with the beautiful cinematography and subtly beautiful score by Trent Reznor. Fincher made what I think is the definitive serial killer movie in "Zodiac" which might be my favorite movie in the last 11 years. Fincher has added style to this movie but despite what critics say he gives it an extra special push and depth. A lesser director might have turned this into a cheap serial killer movie rip off of the original movie.

There is another outstanding performance here by Stellan Skarsgard (Breaking the Waves). He plays a nefarious and evil man but he plays the character with respect. He is subtle and finds a way to crawl under your skin and during the movie you can never see him tipping his hand and he is effective. David Fincher's "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" is not better than the original movie but some things are better. There is better acting, more chemistry between Lizbeth and Mikael and the movie looks better and draws you in with it's artistry and subtle intensity.

'Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol'

2011-12-21T18:45:00.000-08:00

'Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol' (PG-13) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec based on television series by
Bruce Geller
Director: Brad Bird
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, Simon Pegg, Michael Nyqvist, Anil Kapoor, Josh Holloway, Tom Wilkinson, Ving Rhames

Lately with the crappy vanity projects like "Sherlock Holmes" and "New Year's Eve" being lazy and overly complicated I thank the heavens for "Mission Impossible". Please don't try to impress me with being clever and throwing all this junk at me. "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" has a simple plot, exciting action scenes and a show stopping scene on Dubai's tallest building. The action scenes are clean without slow motion goofiness like the "Sherlock Holmes" movie. Tom Cruise also knows now what kind of Blockbusters to make unlike all the movie stars in "New Year's Eve".

"Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" is a very fun time at the movies with a plot that might be old hat but is easy to follow. Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt who now has a new team of partners. They are involved in a bombing at the Kremlin and are being framed for it. The bombing involves a terrorist named Hendricks who has codes that can trigger nuclear bombs so Russia can destroy the World. Ethan and his team are joined by a new member, an analyst played by Jeremy Renner. There are a lot of cat and mouse games with the terrorist to wrestle the codes away from him and all these chases are cleanly directed without the clutter of most of the latest Hollywood Blockbusters.

The supporting cast working with Tom Cruise is a very attractive group including Simon Pegg, the beautiful Paula Patton and Jeremy Renner is a good addition half way through as the mysterious analyst. Pegg is very good comic relief and Patton is beautiful and engaging. Also Renner would be a good substitute if it is true he could take over for Cruise in later installments. There is also a nice turn by Anil Kapoor from "Slumdog Millionaire" as an Indian businessman who has information on the codes. The villain is played by Michael Nyqvist from the Swedish version of "Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" and he is not a totally memorable bad guy but his plan is evil enough.

I liked the foot and car chases but the moment that is on it's own worth the price of admission is the scaling up, down and sideways on the tallest building in the World. Cruise does his own stunts and you can tell but man am I surprised he didn't kill himself. Having vertigo I am glad I didn't see this in IMAX even though I bet it is awesome in that format. I just think seeing it in Imax would have made me pee in my pants. I know you want the scene as realistic as possible but at a certain point Mr. Cruise should use a stunt double for his own safety. I appreciate his sacrifice and I love the direction of the scene by Brad Bird. It is a breathtaking and incredible action set piece. Bird has only directed animation like "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille" but I was impressed by his life action direction.

"Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" is definitely better than the last two Mission films which I can't remember anything about. It is also one of the best action movies in awhile even though this year has been weak in that aspect. I also think that the James Bond movies better step it up based on the last one because this movie trumps it. It is a great time at the movies, Cruise is back after a little slump and it is a great popcorn movie. It doesn't have a lot of depth but compared to the latest over stuffed action thrillers these past years it delivers the goods in a fast paced, smart and enjoyable way.

'New Year's Eve'

2011-12-17T22:45:00.000-08:00

'New Year's Day' (PG-13) (1 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Katherine Fugate
Director: Garry Marshall

"New Year's Eve" is a holiday, romantic comedy on the heels of the same filmmaker's "Valentine's Day". I would like to first congratulate the filmmakers on something before I tear them up for what I call "New Year's Evil". "The same writer and director made "Valentine's Day" and that movie is "The Godfather" compared to "New Year's Evil", I mean Eve.

Now I can't even write a full review of this pathetic comedy so I will make some bullet points because this movie doesn't deserve my time on a review, I have to go watch Pro Wrestling now anyway which is actually smarter and more artistic than "New Year's Eve".

Oh and Pro Wrestling has better acting! "Ouch!"

1.) Congratulations to Garry Marshall, you have gotten the worst performance I have seen Robert Deniro ever give on screen.

2.) Deniro plays an elderly man who I guess is dying from cancer but I have never seen a more hokey, false and exploitative depiction of a man dying from cancer. Going through a death in the family due to cancer in real life recently this subplot made me sick to my stomach plus Deniro's direction he was given is pathetic.

Now let's have some fun:

3.) I know the filmmakers are trying to make Michelle Pfeiffer look like a timid, plain Jane but did you have to make her look mentally challenged? I have never seen a worse use of Michelle Pfeiffer ever on screen, even "Grease 2".

4.) There is zero chemistry between Pfeiffer and Zak Efron in one of many half assed written subplots.

5.) Ashton Kutcher and Lea Michelle have zero chemistry but at least one of only say 3 good moments in this movie belong to Lea Michelle singing "Auld Lang Syne". Lea Michelle's voice is stronger than Celine Dion's and equal to Barbra Streisand and she has charisma but being paired with the one note smirking Kutcher is career suicide.

6.) Congratulations to Katherine Heigl, you are annoying, obnoxious, over acting and nails scratching on a chalkboard bad again.

7.) Jon Bon Jovi has beautiful blue eyes but his acting is stiffer than a board. You are a great rock star so continue singing only or get charisma and acting lessons.

8.) Hilary Swank has won two Oscars but what a shallow, dumb and worthless role she was given here, the person in charge of the big New Year's Ball dropping. What an insult to an award winning actress and the make up artist who did up Swank, Heigl, Sarah Jessica Parker, Lea Michelle and Michelle Pfeiffer should be blacklisted from the make up artist's association if there is one. I have a little advice, less make up please.

9.) I guess this movie was filmed in New York with the sponsorship of Nivea but I swear it was really filmed in Canada. I have seen many New Year's Eve celebrations and ball droppings in New York on television and the celebration here looks cheesy and not anywhere close to the real thing.

10.) I used to love Sarah Jessica Parker but now I can't stand her and this movie explains why.

Besides Lea Michelle there are a few things I liked here keeping this from getting my famous Zero star review:

There are so many sappy, amateurishly written and horrible love stories in this movie but the only touching and real moment comes at the end with Halle Berry. She plays a nurse who after her shift gets dressed up in a killer dress and goes to a television to have a beautiful talk via satellite with her husband who is stationed in Iraq.

I also loved a subplot with Seth Myers and Jessica Biel and yes Seth Meyers gives the best performance in this movie! They play a couple whose wife is preganant and they are battling another couple to have the first New Year's baby. Myers is really funny, the writing is not half bad and I really think Jessica Biel is the most under rated actress today with one of the best bodies in Hollywood and here she is pregnant. Also Sofia Vergara steals this movie away from everyone, she is very funny, charming and sexy! Oh and finally Garry Marshall has now joined Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner in the old men who should never direct a movie again club.

P.S. I feel I am being too rough and hateful here but really I am sick and tired of these false, horrible romantic comedies and I am choking on them. Can someone please make a great romantic comedy soon!

'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'

2011-12-16T19:12:00.000-08:00

'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' (R) (3 STARS)

Writers: Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan based on novel by John LeCarre
Director: Tomas Alfredson
Starring: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds, David Dencik

When I was a tennager I wanted to be a spy, a secret service agent or a C.I.A. Operative so badly. I thought it would be super fascinating, exciting and dangerous and I could save lives and kill bad guys. I imagine most spy work is how it is portrayed in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" the new cold, brainy and intriguing spy thriller adaptation of one of my favorite writers John LeCarre. The movie is very slow and complicated and very realistic for I have heard a lot of spy work is not car chases, guns and killing bad guys. I assume it has to deal with long converastions and readings of long, thick documents.

There is a lot of talk and little action in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" and that is the way it is supposed to be. It captures perfectly the smoky rooms filled with older spies who have seen it all talking about exotic locales. In an early scene we are in one of these rooms as we see a master, veteran spy named George Smiley. He is a reserved man with glasses who is about to retire. Thoiugh there is some unfinished work to be done for it is discovered that there is a mole in the British intelligence working for Russia. Most of this movie will be a lot of talk, some twists and spy machinations.

This is a very slow moving film and it is very cold but it is fun to see such a wonderful cast of British actors who are some of our best. It is fun to follow the story that is like a maze and sometimes you can't follow it and you get confused but isn't that what you should expect? I just enjoyed watching the change of pace, studied performance of Gary Oldman as George Smiley. I also love watching John Hurt, Ciaran Hinds, Mark Strong and Colin Firth go to town with charasmatic character performances. Gary Oldman is so reserved and subtle that he is almost in danger of being blown over. That is why I loved his performance because I am so used to seeing him go nuts and playing evil guys. I also particularly love Mark Strong here and he is becoming one of my favorites and Toby Jones does sniveling guys better than anyone.

This is not a movie that you will fall in love with or embrace. I wish it had more humor and a little more of a quick pace. Sometimes I did love how slow it was so I could catch up with it. It is a very smart movie just like LeCarre's books were. I didn't read this particular work but I used to read a lot of his books and they are filled with a lot of background, talk and description. This movie is faithful to the book and I am amazed at how much of the long book they fit in two hours. I just wish this was a movie in two parts or a mini series so it could cover more. Though I was glad this movie was made and it makes me want to do what all good movies make me want to do, see it again.

'Sherlock Holmes:A Game of Shadows'

2011-12-16T18:24:00.000-08:00

'Sherlock Holmes:A Game of Shadows' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writers: Michele and Kieran Mulroney
Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Jared Harris, Rachel McAdams, Stephen Fry, Kelly Reilly

One of my first reviews on this blog was the original Sherlock Holmes movie and here I still am writing a review of it's sequel much later. In my review of the original I might have under rated the movie. I gave it a rental reccomendation because I loved the interplay between Robert Downey and Jude Law but thought the movie was too long, loud and lackluster. Now with "Sherlock Holmes:A Game of Shadows" I don't even have the the funny Downey/Law dynamic. This is a very long and boring movie and it does nothing to build on the Holmes character.

To me the original movie's story was thin, weak and too convoluted with a villain that hardly showed up. Though Robert Downey was great and funny as Holmes as was Jude Law as Watson. They were much better than the movie and Guy Ritchie's obnoxious direction. I got really tired of the slow motion, overly cut fighting scenes and explosions. Now with the sequel we have a better story but I now got bored with Downey and Law who both seemed cut off from each other. I laughed at their dialogue in the original but never cracked a smile during this pointless sequel.

The sequel has a story that has more depth than the original's plot but is again too convoluted. I also was very dissapointed in the villain here Professor Moriarty who is not as evil as the Moriarty from the older Holmes serials. Jared Harris who plays Moriarty has been more interesting and more evil in other things like TV's "Fringe". That is the fault of the screenplay which also gives us lame "Pink Panther" rip off disguises for Downey including a lame drag costume. This stuff was done much better in movies like "Victor/Victoria". There is also a thankless role for the wonderful Noomi Rapace (Girl With the Dragon Tatoo)who makes no impression here.

"Sherlock Holmes:Game of Shadows" has lost it's franchise's personality and all that is left is it's weak story, villain and it's overkill of slow motion and explosions. I know one thing, I will not review or even think about seeing a third Holmes movie. Two strikes and you are out in my opinion when it comes to movies.

P.S. Much better movies like this are another Holmes movie from the 70's "The 7% Per Cent Solution" and I like the original Sherlock Holmes movie much better.

'Shame'

2011-12-02T15:47:00.000-08:00

'Shame' (NC-17) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Abi Morgan and Steve McQueen
Director: Steve McQueen
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, Nicole Beharie, James Badge Dale

"Shame" is a thoughtful and intense drama about sexual addiction and I have never seen a movie like this on the subject matter. I have never seen this much truth, frankness and maturity in a movie about sex. It is also a pleasure to see a major actor and future movie star grow before our eyes. Co-writer and director Steve McQueen along with Abi Morgan have made a smart, emotionally deep and haunting character study. I keep thinking back to movies like 1972's "Last Tango in Paris" (which I dislike). "Shame" is more current but also way more thoughtful and powerful than that over rated so called classic.

"Shame" deals with the sexual addiction of Brandon who is played by the red hot Michael Fassbender. Brandon's life is full of picking up women and having meaningless sex with them. He always has computer porn at the ready on his laptop computer. One day his sister Sissy comes in to town and crashes at Brandon's apartment. They seem estranged and Sissy seems emotionally fragile and Brandon feels she is a distraction to his life but really to his addiction. Sex is always on the mind of Brandon and he seems to be incapable of having a deep relationship with a woman.

"Shame" could have gone wrong in so many ways but I was touched and happy that Steve McQueen and Michael Fassbender treat this story with respect and maturity. There is not one false scene and no unintentional laughs like many movies that deal with this subject have. The acting is all wonderful and again the breathtaking Carey Mulligan adds to her power as an actress as Sissy. The movie is very dark and slow moving but rewarding and intriguing. I love the musical score and the pitch perfect cinematography. Though what makes this movie special is the smart writing and the amazing and vulnerable performance by Michael Fassbender.

Michael Fassbender will easily become the new star coming out of Hollywood but with "Shame" he proves he is already an award ready actor. Fassbender is subtle, brilliant and in the emotional scenes we see his heart breaking. He also shows the emptiness in Brandon's soul. His scenes with Carey Mulliagan are perfection and they work wonderfully off each other, we really feel they are brother and sister. Fassbender is extremely good looking but he is also a smart actor that shows us just enough vulnerability mixed with sex appeal. This is not a sexy movie and it shouldn't be and that is why it is powerful. I also think the movie ends on a perfect note. This is an amazing character study and writers Abi Morgan and McQueen are very smart and they never cheapen the material.

Michael Fassbender started getting noticed with performances like the one he gave in "Inglorious Basterds", "300" and "X Men:First Class". What really made Fassbender stand out is another amazing character study, the 2009 movie "Fish Tank". If you haven't seen that drama which is one of the best independent films of the last decade check it out. Another amazing performance Fassbender gave was in director McQueen's own "Hunger" based on Bobby Sands. Fassbender lost a lot of weight for that movie and his performance is completely powerful. Watch both "Fish Tank" and "Hunger" if you like Fassbender because with those movies and "Shame" you will see why he will become an amazing actor and star. He is wonderful in "Shame" and I wouldn't be surprised if you hear his name mentioned at awards time. Also writer, director Steve McQueen has a lot of talent. His movie "Hunger" was too dark and tough for me to watch but now with "Shame" I believe he has the goods.

The movie has the dreaded NC-17 rating that kills box office appeal but this is not a movie that screams blockbuster anyway. The games that the Motion Picture Ratings Board plays with this rating disturbs me and it is the dumbest things in Hollywood. I always find it weird that the Ratings Board takes it easy on violence but is skittish on sex. I always laugh at and think that Hollywood has no problems with torturing and decapitating women (Yes "Saw" movies I am looking at you) but having sex with women is just not right and has to be more strictly rated. It is not like "Shame" is wall to wall sex and pornographic acts. Also I think movie goers will be too caught up in the story and Fassbender's performance to care. "Shame" is an example of how a NC-17 rated movie can be a classy and great thing.

"Shame" is a heatbreaking and haunting movie and it got to me more than I expected. There are wonderful scenes of emotion, acting and there is a complete understanding of it's subject matter. An example of an amazing couple of scenes starts with a very funny and brilliant line of dialogue that if you don't pay attention you will miss it. It leads to Brandon asking a beautiful co worker to dinner. The woman is sweetly played by Nicole Beharie and it is s captivating dinner scene. This might be the first woman in a long time that Brandon can connect to but for more than sex. It ends with a sad and powerful scene that emotionally railroaded me. If you love excellent acting and thoughtful character studies "Shame" is one of the best movies of 2011.

'The Muppets'

2011-11-24T00:44:00.000-08:00

'The Muppets (PG) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Jason Segal and Nicholas Stoller
Director: James Bobin
Starring: Jason Segal, Amy Adams, Chris Cooper, Rashida Jones, Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Gonzo, Animal, Rowlf, Walter

In the late 70's on Saturday nights as a child I could never miss an episode of "The Muppet Show". At 6:00 each Saturday night I had to experience the magic of my friends the Muppets. In 1979 I went with my mother, sister and grandmother to watch their first movie "The Muppet Movie". As I experienced the Muppets larger than life on the big screen my eyes were popping out of my head and I had a huge smile on my face. Also when I saw Kermit riding a bicycle I became ecstatic. The Muppets made me laugh and they made me feel comfortable. I am happy to say that the new relaunch of the Muppets captures that old magic.

The Muppets made a few fun, charming and entertaining movies but in the late 90's they lost their groove. The charmless and horrible "Muppets in Space" and "A Muppets Christmas Carol" robbed us of what was so wonderful about all the Muppets. They took their distinct personalities away and gave them boring characters to play. The new Muppet movie has been written and made with love and respect by people who love them as much as I do. Actor Jason Segal and Nicholas Stoller have written a smart, very funny and enchanting Muppet movie that is second in greatness to the 1979 original.

The movie opens with a magical, catchy and fun opening musical number and that energy is kept up throughout the whole movie. Jason Segal plays Gary and Gary has a brother named Walter who looks like a muppet but alas he is not. I love the introduction of Walter as a new Muppet character and he wins us over right away. The old "Muppet Show" and the early movies were great mostly because kids and adults could equally enjoy them. Adults could appreciate the smart humor that the show's writng provided and kids could identify with the characters. I mean has there ever been a more beautiful love story then the one between Kermit and Miss Piggy?

"The Muppets" actually has the same plot as "The Blues Brothers" and now you know what I mean by why adults love the Muppets. Segal and Stoller do such a wonderful job at keeping that respect, love and smart, self aware humor that the old Muppets gave us. Gary and Walter and Gary's girlfriend Mary go to find Kermit the Frog so they can get the Muppets back together again since they are huge fans and miss them. After they find Kermit all four go on a road trip to get the band back together again. The Muppets have to save their old studio from a rich and evil oil baron who wants to destroy the studio. Then you get the old let's put on a show plot to save the studio.

The beauty of "The Muppets" is that the plot doesn't really matter. What matters is the humor, the way we love the characters and see them as friends. The musical numbers here are all wonderfully done and memorable. I also love the energy and sunniness of Amy Adams (a brilliant masterstroke in casting) and Jason Segal. Amy Adams would make a perfect Muppet in her own right and there is a great scene where Gary sees his Muppet counterpart and it looks exactly like Jason Segal.

"The Muppets" made me smile throughout the entire time. I laughed constantly, tapped my toes during the great musical numbers and choked up during the re singing of "The Rainbow Connection". This is the most fun I have had at the movies in a long time. Some of the cameos in this movie work and some don't but I really don't think we go to see these movies for the Hollywood stars, we want the Muppets! I also love Rashida Jones (Parks and Recreation) and her performance as a mean television studio head. It is a very funny performance and I love how she interacts with Kermit and the other Muppets. The old magic of the Muppets is back in a major way and I am deeply grateful to Jason Segal for bringing them back with respect and love.

'Hugo'

2011-11-23T23:51:00.000-08:00

'Hugo' (PG) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written By John Logan based on the novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret By Brian Selznick

Director: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Emily Mortimer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Jude Law, Christopher Lee

What a breath of fresh air "Hugo" is and leave it to Martin Scorsese to make one of the best children's movies in ages. For the last few years I have been complaining about how most children's movies dumb it down for kids. The way most of these movies have to be frantic and throw things at you every few minutes is starting to piss me off. Scorsese has made a beautiful movie that is the best kid's movie since "Where the Wild Things Are". It is also the best use of 3D in a live action movie since "Avatar".

Martin Scorsese knows that a young mind is ripe for knowledge and that children are not stupid. He also loves movies and wants us to know how much he loves them and wants us to discover why. He knows that kids don't need movies that always are trying to impress you with multiple special effects and non stop action. Kids will sit still and watch a movie that takes it's time to simply tell a story without theatrics. It might sound amazing to people but kids read books (I know it is shocking!) and "Hugo" is like reading a great book. That may be due to it being based on an award winning novel. It is also a beautiful looking movie with well written characters.

"Hugo" tells the story of Hugo Cabret, a boy in Paris in the 30's who has recently lost his father. Hugo lives in a train station and has taken over his father's job of running the huge tower clock at the station. In a breathtaking opening tracking shot that only Scorsese can do we travel through this station as the camera glides along. Just picture a lighter version of the Copacobana tracking shot of "Good Fellas". Scorsese knows how to use 3D the right away which is to enhance the picture instead of throwing crap at us. This movie is captivating to look at from the first frame to the last.

Hugo tries to take care of himself after his father passed away by stealing pastries and eluding capture from a determined police inspector. He is also caught stealing from a merchant in the station who owns a toy store. He is stealing mechanical parts for a automaton his father was starting to build. The merchant's name is George Melies and if you are a film lover and student you will know who he is. Some kids today will not know who he is but they should and that is the power of "Hugo". The movie is a great teaching tool for film lovers who don't know the origins of movies. Again I think kids will be fascinated by this material and the movie also is awesome eye candy.

George Melies was an early film pioneer and a magician that used his magic skills to make movies. He was one of the first film makers and he made hundreds of movies and he is one of the inventors of special effects. "Hugo" brought back memories of when I was a kid and I discovered the power and joy of movies. Hugo Cabret goes to see a lot of movies and he befriends a girl who has never seen a movie. I love an early scene where Hugo takes his friend Isabelle to her first movie. It is pure magic and it captures how wonderful it is to experience anything wondrous for the first time.

"Hugo" is a beautiful looking movie that makes sure that it takes it's time to let us soak in the atmosphere. We get to follow the story with no distractions and no bells and whistles. The movie ends with a captivating montage of Melies films with beautiful images. The performances here are all great and subtle here. Asa Butterfield is wonderful as Hugo and Chloe Grace Moretz is also equally great here as Isabelle. There is also an great performance by Ben Kinglsey as Melies and I absolutely love Sacha Baron's performance as the police inspector. He takes what could have been a cartoonish role and makes it a touching performance with some effective and sly humor.

"Hugo" is enchanting and the only drawback to me of the movie is that the first hour does meander sometimes. I think some scenes should have been cut out or shortened. If some of those scenes could have been cut back you would have a movie that is absolute perfection. It is a movie that is delightful to look at and if you love movies and the history of them you will fall in love it. I am afraid that a lot of parents and kids will dismiss this movie because it isn't fast enough. That would be sad because I think all kids should see this as should adults who love movies. Movies are supposed to entertain us but they can be a magical learning tool. "Hugo" is an enchanting, beautiful and charming movie and decades from now could be a new classic.

'My Week With Marilyn'

2011-11-23T22:56:00.000-08:00

'My Week With Marilyn' (R) (3 STARS)

Written By Adrian Hodges based on the diaries of Colin Clark
Director: Simon Curtis
Starring: Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh, DominicCooper, Julia Ormand, Judi Dench, Dougray Scott, Emma Watson

Marilyn Monroe is an iconic figure and a one of a kind star and only an amazing actress from our time could capture her magic. Michelle Williams is my favorite actress right now, no exceptions. She can take a shallow and light movie and make it soar. Her performance of Marilyn Monroe is dead on perfect, so much so that I thought an earlier Marilyn Monroe performance piece in this movie was a real life clip of Marilyn Monroe. It is actually Williams as Monroe and her performance is pure magic just like Monroe herself. I wish the movie was as equal as her flawless performance.

No one has captured Monroe's life force as much as Williams does here and I predict nobody will equal her in any future Monroe film. We have seen the Marilyn Monroe story before but "My Week With Marilyn" concentrates on a certain period in Monroe's career when she acted with Laurence Olivier in "The Princess and the Showgirl". That movie which came out in 1957 was directed by Olivier and Sir Laurence had a very difficult time with Monroe's lack of professionalism. Her low self esteem and lack of acting skills hindered her performance in the movie. The movie is based on diaries of Colin Clark who was a film assistant. Colin was in charge of comforting and looking after Monroe and he fell in love with her.

The character of Clark is a bore to me and I was not interested in all in him. Broadway actor Eddie Redmayne plays Clark and his performance is good but his character is not memorable. You want to identify with Clark because he gets to be so close to Monroe but I just didn't get him. That is okay because Williams is so great here it doesn't matter. This is her show and her performance trumps everything else in the movie. Kenneth Branagh is also very great here as Olivier and there is good support by Julia Ormand as Vivien Leigh and Judi Dench. I loved the look at the filming of the movie and the way that Monroe always frustrated Olivier but I found the Clark fueled love story boring.

So it is a mixed bag for me here but I will reccomend you see this instead of my first inkling to say wait util DVD. You will not see a better performance, save for a few others, by Michelle Williams this year. She will get award recognition so I really think you should see this at a matinee show. Michelle Williams is incredibly pitch perfect as Monroe and it is a performance you must see. She not only looks like Monroe but she captures her moves, sex appeal and little girl lost personality. I have seen this side of Monroe before in other biographical Monroe pictures so I don't think the movie offers anything new about her. Though I will say as a movie lover I like the behind the scenes look at the making of a movie. I also absolutely love the performance of Michelle Williams which is pure gold.

P.S. Williams is on a major roll here and that is why she is my number one favorite actress right now. Coming on the heels of her amazing performance in one of the best movies of last year "Blue Valentine" she again is incredible in this very light, sometimes frustrating movie.

'The Descendants'

2011-11-18T18:43:00.000-08:00

'The Descendants' (R) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Writers: Nat Faxon, Jim Rash and Alexander Payne based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings

Director: Alexander Payne
Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Matthew Lillard, Robert Forster, Amara Miller, Judy Greer, Beau Bridges, Nick Krause, Michel Ontkean

Maybe it is the Hawaiian setting but I felt really at ease and satisfied during the perceptive and wonderfully acted family drama "The Descendants".
This is a movie that has grown on me hours after I have seen it and I can't get it out of my head. This is a simply told but touching drama that is laid back and that is it's greatest attribute. You also have two of the best performances of the year in Shailene Woodley and George Clooney. This movie could have been an annoying, sappy "Terms of Endearment" rip off but this is one of the best family dramas I have ever seen and it might be better than "Terms".

George Clooney again knocks it out of the park as Matt King whose wife is on life support after a boating accident. His wife is in a coma and not getting better and Matt has to go tell family members and break the news to his two young daughters. His oldest daughter Alexandra is estranged from Matt and had a fight with her mother before the accident. I will not be spoiling the movie for you because it is in the trailer but Matt's wife Eliazabeth was cheating on him. He wants to find the guy she cheated with and of course Matt doesn't really know what he will do when he sees him.

Also Matt's family has owned land in Hawaii since the 1800's and there might be a sale of the land by Matt and his many couisins. So Matt has a lot on his mind especially with raising his daughters. This material is all handled smartly with no big, pronounced scenes of melodrama. The movie is leisurely paced and that is good because we can soak in the scenery of Hawaii and get to know the characters well. I always felt that the dialogue sounded real. This is a great look at family and it's struggles and it is an emotional film that sneaks up on you. The movie has honest emotions, humor and great performances.

It is also one of the most realistic looks at family and a father and his daughters and that credit mostly goes to the performances of Clooney and Shailene Woodley. I have said it before but George Clooney never looks like he is acting. He is likable here as he always is and he is so natural and cool. I have never seen an actor charm us with his easy nature and delivery more than Clooney has since James Garner. Shailene Woodley is even better at being natural than Clooney and it is such a wonderful performance. She has created a real teenage girl and she also doesn't look like she is acting. These are two subtle and moving performances and both actors made me love their two characters.

There is also an easygoing and great bunch of supporting performances from Judy Greer, Robert Forster, Amara Miller as the younger daughter Scotty and a funny turn by Nick Krause as Sid who is a friend of Alexandra's. I also was amused by the performance of Matthew Lillard as the man Elizabeth cheated with. Lillard used to be an obnoxious actor in so many bad comedies but here he is fantastic, a performance that can jump start a better career.
The Hawaii setting also helps this movie and the movie does some great things with it's Hawaiian locations. I felt like I really was in Hawaii and I felt a kinship with this family.

By the end and well after I have seen this movie I find it actually flawless. This is a much superior family drama than almost every one I have seen in decades. It ranks right up there with "Shoot the Moon" and "Ordinary People" as my three favorites. George Clooney just keeps getting better and he can do no wrong lately. Also Shailene Woodley is going to be a major actress just like Jennifer Lawrence and Hailee Steinfeld and she will become better and bigger than Steinfeld. You can expect to see her at Academy Award time.

The writer and director of "The Descendants" is the talented and smart Alexander Payne. He has written two wonderful and classic comedies in "Election" and "Sideways". Payne lost his way a little bit with "About Schmidt" in 2004. I like that movie but it is not as memorable and great as "Sideways" and "Election". Now with "The Descendants" he is back on the top as one of the best writers in Hollywood. Part of the easy going nature of this movie is due to Payne's patience and great story writing just like he accomplished with "Sideways".

"The Descendants" is a beautiful movie that choked me up near the end and it creates honest tears instead of yanking it out of us with histrionics. There are so many scenes that are handled the right way with truth, beauty and emotion. There is an amazing, beautiful and powerful scene at the end credits. It is simple but one of the most postive and life affirming endorsements for family that I have ever seen and it is also a very happy way to end this wonderful drama. "The Descendants" is easily one of the best movies of the year.

'Jack and Jill'

2011-11-18T17:06:00.000-08:00

'Jack and Jill' (PG-13) (1 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Adam Sandler and Steve Koren
Director: Dennis Dugan
Starring: Adam Sandler, Adam Sandler, Katie Holmes, Al Pacino, David Spade, Tim Meadows, Nick Swardson

I am getting a little disturbed and mad at Adam Sandler lately. Does he really think we are this stupid? Just because his last disastrous movie made $100 million dollars I think he believes he can make more lazy and terrible unfunny movies. Maybe I am in the minority, I hope not, but am I the only one that is finding Adam Sandler movies embarrassing lately? I am the only one that thinks his only really funny movie since "Happy Madison" was "You Don't Mess With the Zohan". That was a fun movie where Sandler was playing a character but now he plays himself, an arrogant jerk just like he is in real life if he thinks his last two movies are that funny and fun for us.

I go back to "Zohan" because the best Adam Sandler movies are where he plays some sort of a character. That list is "Zohan", "Happy Madison" , "Punch Drunk Love" and to many but not to me "The Waterboy".
With his latest and this year's earlier, cringe inducing comedy "Just Go With It" he has hit rock bottom. In "Jack and Jill" Sandler plays Jack and his twin sister Jill. Jack is a television commercial producer who is trying to get Al Pacino to do a "Dunkin Donuts" commercial. Jack can't stand his obnoxious sister and she is over staying her welcome past the Thanksgiving holiday. Though when Al Pacino gets a crush on Jill and won't do the commercial if Jill leaves, Jack decides to use Jill to get Pacino in.

The Jill character in this movie is made out to be a punching bag for all the movie's jokes. The bad thing is Sandler playing in drag is so awkward and the performance is like nails on a chalkboard. He doesn't even pass as a plausible woman. Now the set up with Al Pacino could have been funny and clever but of course it comes off as dumb and not in a good way. The only two times I laughed was during a throwaway line delivered by Pacino about his surprising lack of Oscars. The other time was also due to Pacino as we see him acting in a play and there is s a funny bit with a cell phone.

The rest of the jokes are meant to abuse Jill and I know that Sandler is really doing this to himself but that doesn't make it funny. If you think the Jill character on a toliet as bathroom sounds are thrown at us for three minutes is funny then please see the movie. Now there have been dumb Sandler movies that have been great, hey I even defended "Grown Ups" which compared to "Jack and Jill" is "The Godfather" (sorry about the Pacino reference). The problem is "Jack and Jill" is lazy, boring, badly directed, acted and amateurish. Also I am glad that Katie Holmes is married to Tom Cruise so she can just do thankless wife roles like she has here.

The only inspired moment of this movie is at the end credits where Pacino raps during his "Dunkin Donuts" commercial. There I saved you $11 bucks, you can just catch this on cable and watch the end credits only. "Jack and Jill" is one of the worst comedies I have ever seen along with Sandler's "Just Go With It", congratulations Adam!

P.S. I want the old Adam Sandler back! "Happy Madison" is an extremely funny movie and that was such a long time ago.

'Melancholia'

2011-11-17T15:16:00.000-08:00

'Melancholia' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written and Directed By Lars von Trier
Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Alexander Skarsgard, Kiefer Sutherland, Brady Corbet, John Hurt, Stellan Skarsgard, Charlotte Rampling

I have never seen the impending End of the World depicted so serenely and as beautiful as it is depicted in "Melancholia". Writer and Director Lars von Trier is back at the top of his form after many years with this contemplative and haunting drama. This is a companion piece to the other amazing spiritual drama this year "The Tree of Life". You also have a realistic and powerful look at depression and a career best performance from Kirsten Dunst.

"Melancholis" starts out at the wedding of Justine and Michael in a rented mansion. The wedding is being paid for by Justine's sister Claire and her husband John. Justine is played by Kirsten Dunst who is an actress that keeps getting better and should make her mark here for greatness. Justine and Michael look very happy but at the wedding reception we learn all might not be well. Justine is going through deep bouts of depression and at the reception things go from bad to worse as she acts out her depression. Also as the wedding is going on a mysterious planet is about to run into the Earth.

Justine's sister Claire is estranged from Justine mostly because Claire is tired of how Justine is acting and not doing anything about her depression.
Claire is played by Charlotte Gainsbourg and I really think she is a great actress not many know of. The look of "Melancholia" is breathtaking with it's beauitful images of this planet that is on a crash course for Earth. This is the most beauitful movie I have ever seen dealing with armageddon.
Lars von Trier has always had a sure command of the camera and here he does his best work since 1996's "Breaking the Waves" which is one of my all time favorite movies.

Lars von Trier has become self indulgent since his 1996 masterpiece and hit rock bottom a few years back with his "Antichrist". That movie was self important and was written because von Trier was mad at the World and dealing with depression. The disgusting and unnecessary images in "Antichrist" even made me want to walk out of the theatre. This time von Trier deals with the subject of depression in a thoughtful and measured manner. The screenplay is well written and there is no self indulgence anywhere. We have seen many disaster movies dealing with the End of the World that want to scare us. This time it is dealt with in a beautiful and haunting way and meshes well with the story of Justine.

Kirsten Dunst gives her best performance of her career so far as Justine and it is a subtle, graceful and powerful performance. I love how the screenplay sees Justine as hopeless in the beginning but by the end she might be the bravest person out of everyone. There are good supporting performances by Kiefer Sutherland, Alexander and Stellan Skarsgard and John Hurt. Also good is Charlotte Rampling as Justine's mother and we can see how Justine got to be the way she is by how her mother is.

The images of "Melancholia" are beautiful and the story is thoughtful and keeps getting better as the plot unfolds. Lars von Trier has bounced back with a movie that I found moving if not transformed by. His "Breaking the Waves" was like a religious experience for me and I cried for hours after I saw it and I am not religious at all. Both "Waves" and "Melancholis" are what I call spiritual movies and they look at life in a sober way but they are both entertaining. "Melancholia" has been compared to this year's "Tree of Life" and I love both. I am partial to "Tree of Life" excluding it's first half and last half hour. "Melancholia" makes it's own statement and it is an unforgettable and beautiful movie with an unforgettable performance by Kirsten Dunst.

P.S. I am very proud of Kirsten Dunst and I look at her great performances in movies that I love. When Dunst was just a child she did an amazing job in 1994's "Little Women". I also loved her performance in the heartbreaking "Virgin Suicides". Now with "Melancholia" Dunst has grown up into an amazing actress.

'J Edgar'

2011-11-12T12:59:00.000-08:00

'J Edgar' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written By Dustin Lance Black
Director: Clint Eastwood
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Judi Dench, Josh Lucas, Josh Hamilton, Geoff Pierson, Lea Thompson

Sometimes a certain director of movies can handle subject matter better than most. Looking back at the career of Clint Eastwood, the director, I must say he is the only film maker that could have done justice to "J Edgar". This is a unique film maker who is one of the best women's film directors who can tell a story from any viewpoint. I say this because the subject matter of "J Edgar" deals with sensitive subject matter that is provocative and in the wrong hands could have been a melodramatic mess. Eastwood and his amazing lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio have made "J Edgar" a powerful and touching movie. I didn't know what to expect but I thought this would be a cold, political movie and I was wrong.

To me Clint Eastwood was the first modern film maker to give the Western a chance at presenting strong women characters in 1972's "The Beguiled". He made a slyly feminist movie wrapped up in a revenge, "Dirty Harry" movie "Sudden Impact" with Sandra Locke as a woman who finally takes control and gets revenge on men who raped her and her sister. He gave us a remarkable adaptation of a bad book "Bridges of Madison County" where he showed women could be beautiful without being glamourous. He also gave us one of the strongest female characters I have seen in the past decade with his masterpiece "Million Dollar Baby".

I mention all this again because Eastwood and writer Dustin Lance Black have presented a touching and beautiful love story between two men. We all know the rumors of J Edgar putting on a dress and being a closeted homosexual. I can just imagine someone like Oliver Stone (no offense to Oliver) or a lesser film maker making this movie a lurid and perverse movie. "J Edgar" tells the story of the legendary lawman who became the head of the FBI. It goes behind the scenes showing us how J Edgar Hoover was admired, shunned, reviled and respected by his peers. We also meet his partner in law enforcement and companionship Clyde Tolson. J Edgar lived with his contolling and respected mother most of his life. The movie shows us the inner workings of the FBI and Hoover's command of it plus we see his home life and relationship with Clyde.

J Edgar and Clyde were inseperable after a while and would go on vacations together and have lunch everyday together. They would form a complicated friendship and relationship. The movie does a wonderful and measured job of showing how J Edgar struggled with his sexual urges and feelings towards Clyde. What seems like a cold and simply told story of the government and J Edgar turns into a touching and powerful love story. There are scenes that could have turned into unintentionally funny moments but the writing is so smart and beautiful and Eastwood's direction is serious and just right.

The movie has great writing and direction but I can't say enough about Leonardo DiCaprio's performance as J Edgar. It might be his best performance of his career and we are talking a wonderful career here. He could have made J Edgar a one dimensional, cold character but Leo makes us care for J Edgar when many people in his life didn't. He had his mother, his loyal secretary, played well by Naomi Watts, and Clyde and that was all. There are some heartbrweaking and beautiful scenes between DiCaprio and Armie Hammer as Clyde that are extremely well written and careful. Many actors could have tried to imitate J Edgar and make him a caricature but DiCaprio makes him a memorable and human character.

I have told you about how the movie portrays Hoover and his relationship with Clyde but I also found the movie fascinating with it's look at J Edgar's crime fighting. There is a compelling, well directed and written segment dealing with the kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh's baby. There is a great moment where Clyde calls Hoover out on his exaggeration of how he nabbed some legendary criminals. There is some interesting and sometimes funny scenes where Hoover talks about the files of Eleanor Roosevelt, Nixon and other important political figures and celebrities. The look of the movie is also just right and the music subtle and effective. The supporting acting is great by solid actors such as Judi Dench as J Edgar's mother and Josh Lucas as Lindbergh and as I mentioned before Armie Hammer and Naomi Watts.

J Edgar is not a person I would have really wanted to spend time with, he could sometimes be cold and difficult. Though what Eastwood, Dustin Lance Black and Leonardo DiCaprio have done is made J Edgar a character we care about and are fascinated with. This is a tough character to make us love and the depiction of Hoover and Tolson's relationship is powerful stuff and also one of the most honest depictions of love I have seen in a major Hollywood film release. "J Edgar" is one of the best movies of 2011 with one of the best performances of the last decade by Leonardo DiCaprio.

P.S. I would definitely see this movie again for Leo's performance but I will honestly admit that this would be a tough movie to fully embrace and watch again soon and others will feel the same way. I do think it is a movie worth revisiting and don't get me wrong I stand by my review. I do think this is a great movie.

'Immortals'

2011-11-12T12:01:00.000-08:00

'Immortals' (R) (1 STAR)

Writers: Charles and Vilas Parlapanides
Director: Tarsem Singh Dhandwar
Starring: Henry Cavill, Mickey Rourke, Stephen Dorff, Freida Pinto, Luke Evans, Isabel Lucas, John Hurt

What is it with film makers that are trying to adapt Greek Mythlogy? Everyone who attempts it has totally screwed it up. I am a huge fan of Greek Mythology, was crazy about it in school. That may be why I am such a stickler but with the lame "Troy", horrible remake of "Clash of the Titans" and now the ugly and sick loser "Immortals" I am getting annoyed. You have to go back to the cheesy but super fun 1981 original movie "Clash of the Titans" to get satisfaction.

"Immortals" reminds me of my least favorite movie of all time, David Lynch's sorry "Dune". At least "Immortals" is beautiful to look at to a point, until the 100th decapitation and impaling. "Dune" looked like someone threw a huge bag of dirt at the screen every hour. "Immortals" is beautiful to look at sometimes with it's mountains, cliffs and the only great scene in the first five minutes. That scene shows a group of slaves lined up in several rows with a long pipe through everyone's teeth. "Immortals" has some great sets and CGI but the story is lame, the acting is horrible save for a few performances and the movie gets extremely tedious. You can take a turd and cover it with gold but it really is still a turd.

A lot of the movie isn't coherent and doesn't make sense but here it goes. Henry Cavill plays a peasant named Theseus who gets recruited by the Gods, including Zeus, to battle King Hyperion. Hyperion wants to rule the World and attain a magical bow and arrow with super powers. Theseus is helped out by Stavros and a few warriors plus some Gods who look like they walked out of a drag queen show. The costumes are cool but I swear Lady Gaga was the art director and choreographer. Some of these costumes can be seen at any burlesque show. There are so many fight scenes with no logic and you can't follow any of it. It is beheading, testicle smashing, impalings and then wash, rinse and repeat. At the hour mark I was sick and tired and pissed off at all these dismemberments.

Mickey Rourke is the only actor that is good and is at least looking like he is into the movie even though he is playing the villain from "Ironman 2" without the accent. Henry Cavill screams a lot but he looks good and has star potential. I hope his next big hero role as Superman ( a movie I have been waiting 30 years for) works out better for him. This is a movie that depressed me with all it's killings. The sets I guess look awesome and the costumes silly and fun but a campy movie like 1980's "Flash Gordon" ( a guilty pleasure of mine) is 50 times better at half the budget at it's costumes and special effects. The only movie goers I think that will like this are 13-18 year old geek science fiction fan boys. All I thought of after I saw this was that the two Greek brothers who wrote this should have their Greek citizenship revoked.

For better movies than "Immortals" try everything else (just kidding). Oh let me start with the much more dazzling and coherent "300". That is an exciting movie in "Immortals" style that is 50 times better at telling a story and looking beautiful. Also the 1981 version of "Clash of the Titans" and one of my favorite bad movies, 1980's "Flash Gordon".

'Anonymous'

2011-11-11T09:57:00.000-08:00

'Anonymous' (PG-13) (rental)

Written By John Orloff
Director: Roland Emmerich
Starring: Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave, Rafe Spall, Edward Hogg, Joely Richardson, David Thewlis, Xavier Samuel, Sam Reid, Sebastian Armesto

"Anonymous" is an interesting movie at best and after a frustrating, confusing and lame first hour it settles down. I actually did not like the first hour but in the second hour I strangely got into it. "Anonymous" could have been directed by Oliver Stone for it gives us a conspiracy I can't quite believe. The movie looks beautiful, it may be the first Costume Epic that uses CGI effects. The movie was directed by schlockmeister Roland Emmerich, more on him later. "Anonymous" has two great performances, a great look and some fun soap opera drama in the second half.

"Anonymous" tells us that the iconic writer William Shakespeare actually didn't write all his poems, plays and stories. The movie tells us that it was really Edward Devere, The Earl of Oxford, who at the time of Shakespeare was involved with Queen Elizabeth I and the Essex Rebellion aimed at the Queen. There is some good political intrigue in the movie but there are too many characters to introduce in the beginning and too much boring exposition. At the 1 hour and 10 minute mark the political stuff gets heavily mixed with the fact that many figures were involved in the cover up of who really wrote Shakespeare's work.

I did get more into the movie in the second half, the part that dealt with the Earl and Shakespeare, played well by Rafe Spall. The movie starts to get fun and wipes out the lameness of the beginning. The movie has a goofy charm mixed with some heavy drama dealing with the Queen. Rhys Ifans is good as the Earl but I really loved the performances of Vanessa Redgrave as the Queen and Edward Hogg as Robert Cecil. Hogg is delightfully dramatic and Redgrave is of course awesome, I wouldn't be surprised if she gets nominated for an Oscar.

Those three performances are worth seeing and if you can get through the frustrating beginning you might love the bravado of the end. There is I admit some great drama and some funny lines in the second part. The movie looks great, beautiful to look at so if you love Shakespeare you might really like the movie. I would say wait for cable or DVD especially if you have HD and a big screen television.

I also find it funny that Roland Emmerich who gave us the over rated "Star Wars" rip off "Independence Day" and the silly "2012" made this movie. To me he is a weak director who has never really made a good movie. He makes a lot of schlock like a modern day Dino De Laurentiis. Here he is trying to make a prestigious, Oscar like epic which is very funny to me and that is something that is a huge pet peeve with me but "Anonymous" is his best movie to date.

P.S. For a better movie on Shakespeare check out Academy Award winner for Best Picture "Shakespeare in Love" which rightly beat out "Saving Private Ryan". Also for conspiracy films I abslolutely love "JFK" and can watch it over and over.

'Like Crazy'

2011-11-09T15:53:00.000-08:00

'Like Crazy (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Writers: Ben York Jones and Drake Doremus
Director: Drake Doremus
Starring: Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence, Alex Kingston, Oliver Muirhead, Finola Hughes, Charlie Bewley

There is an instant attraction between high school students Jacob and Anna. In a very sweet scene in the beginning of the movie Anna writes a letter to Jacob telling him that she likes him and at the end of the letter writes "I am not nuts". Anna is played by a great new actress named Felicity Jones and she is a delight here as Anna. She is a very beautiful young woman and she makes Anna a memorable character. Anna is very sweet as is Jacob who is played by Anton Yelchin.

"Like Crazy" is effective to me because it captures young love naturally and truthfully. Anna is British and is now living and going to school in America. Her visa has expired for awhile now so when her and Jacob start falling in love with each other there will be an obstacle staring them in the face. Anna goes home for the summer and when she tries to return she is stopped by Immigration. She can not re-enter America because of her abuse of her travel visa. All love affairs will face obstacles like this and a lot of relationships are long distance. This is a heartbreaking movie and that is great because all love can be heartbreaking.

This is why the movie worked for me up to a point. I had some problems with the pace of the movie and some too cute moments. I do love and embrace the wonderful performance by Felicity Jones. She nails everything about this love struck young woman who goes through a lot of growing pains well. I liked Yelchin as Jacob but I found his performance slightly weaker than Jones's. I do like how they capture conversations between the two that were mostly improvised by the actors. They do a good job with the dialogue and this movie reminds me of "Before Sunrise" though half as good as that wonderful movie.

I wasn't bowled over by "Like Crazy" but I love Felicity Jones's performance and I like how the movie captures real love. Jacob and Anna's relationship will be tested like all real relationships are. When Anna is in England and Jacob is in L.A. they will become slightly estranged from each other. We know real life long distance relationships will go through this so I admire the frankness and reality of the story. Each person will get involved with others but of course Jacob and Anna's love will conquer any obstacle like that. Of course they will wind up back with each other if their love is that strong.

As a whole I can't fully embrace this movie but I love little moments. I love when Jacob meets Anna's parents played by Alex Kingston (TV's ER) and Oliver Muirhead. I love in a couple of scenes the interaction between Jacob, Anna and the parents. You can tell Anna's parents love Jacob and I love the father's and mother's reactions to him. Compare that to the dinner the parents have with another man that Anna is with when she separates with Jacob. You can tell that the parents don't have the same love for this guy that they did for Jacob. "Like Crazy" nails true, young love very well and Felicity Jones is a revelation.

'A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas'

2011-11-04T16:47:00.000-07:00

'A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas' (R) (3 STARS)

Writers: Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg
Director: Todd Strauss-Schulson
Starring: John Cho, Kal Penn, Elias Koteas, Neil Patrick Harris, Danny Trejo, Tom Lennon, Amir Blumenfeld

You get what you expect from a Harold & Kumar movie in the third installment "A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas". These are not super brainy movies and you get everything here that you get in the other two movies. There is the requisite drug humor, Neil Patrick Harris again stealing the movie and a lot of nudity. I just don't think you need to pay the extra fortune on the 3D, it isn't needed here. This is a very dumb movie but I laughed a lot. Compare this to "Tower Heist" which tries to be a big, exciting comedy and I will take this one. This doesn't try to be anything that it isn't supposed to be.

This would be a great companion piece to "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation". Harold and Kumar are very likeable characters and this is kind of a funny, warped Christmas movie. Simply it is about how Harold and Kumar's friendship has weakened and how the search for a Christmas tree brings them closer and back in each other's arms. Awwww! Of course this is a vulgar comedy that is better than the second H & K movie. There are jokes involving a toddler on drugs, Harold and Kumar turning into Claymation characters and sex with a mobster's daughter.

This is not a great comedy but I laughed enough times and smiled a lot. It works because Harold and Kumar are charming and Neil Patrick Harris again is priceless and steals the movie. All I can say is if you like this kind of comedy you should like this movie. It might not be up to the low standards of the first movie but it works in my opinion.

P.S. Speaking of vulgar, warped Christmas classic comedies my favorite is "Bad Santa" and of course everyone likes "NL Christmas Vacation".

'Tower Heist'

2011-11-04T16:16:00.000-07:00

'Tower Heist' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writers: Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson
Director: Brett Ratner
Starring: Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Matthew Broderick, Alan Alda, Casey Affleck, Tea Leoni, Gabourey Sidibe, Judd Hirsch, Michael Pena

Heist movies are the type of movies where you can hire an all star cast of Hollywood heavyweight actors. Eddie Murphy would be a perfect choice to join a big cast for a heist movie. Eddie Murphy has been wasted most of his career from the early 90's save for "The Nutty Professor" movies. There was a certain period of time when Eddie made a bunch of horrible family/kid's movies. For comedy Eddie hasn't been given a screenplay that matches his rapid fire wit since the 80's leaving off with "Coming To America". "Tower Heist" will not get the job done for it is a complete waste of it's great cast and Eddie.

"Tower Heist" is a movie that is in the same spirit as the recent George Clooney "Oceans Eleven" movies. It has a big heist at the center of it's plot, an all star cast of comedic talents and it even has Casey Affleck. The Ocean movies were clever even though it got weaker as the sequels rolled out. The original had a witty script and a heist that seemed plausible and was fun. "Tower Heist" has a plot that at first seems plausible and it starts out as a nice, light comedy.

The movie deals with a high rise apartment building modeled after The Trump Tower and with it's many employees. It is headed by the manager played by Ben Stiller and there are a few other workers played by Michael Pena and Csaey Affleck. A Wall Street tycoon resides in the high rise and he is played by Alan Alda. The tycoon, modeled after Bernie Madoff, has swindled money, through pensions, from it's employees. The manager recruits some of the employees and another resident who was evicted played by Matthew Broderick. He organizes them to steal a fortune from the tycoon who has a fortune that is locked in a safe. They are not career criminals so they find a street criminal played by Murphy to help them.

In the beginning the film works thanks to Stiller and the nice laid back evilness of Alda's tycoon. Alda is great here as is Stiller, Broderick and Murphy but only because they are always good. The problem is they are funny in small doses due to the weak screenplay. There are some funny bits but with Stiller and Murphy I expected fireworks. There are really no inspired, laugh out loud funny moments. It is especially troubling because I have been waiting for years for a very funny Eddie Murphy comedy. Stiller has made a couple of them so why can't someone write a great comedy for Murphy? It is great to see that Eddie is back to being the old Eddie with his rapid fire dialogue delivery and attitude. The problem is the movie only gives Murphy too few scattered moments to be very funny.

This just becomes a serviceable comedy that goes right through you without giving you any moments you will remember hours after you see it. The biggest crime this movie makes is in giving us one of the dumbest and dullest heists I have seen in this kind of movie. It is very implausible and there is no logical way that they could execute the things they do here. The heist involves a very stupid use of a Ferrari and the "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade". I know that in a movie like this you are supposed to suspend disbelief and just go with it. That would be great if this was a funny movie which it isn't. The plot doesn't even make sense in a fictional, movie way.

So "Tower Heist" has an okay first half followed by a very dumb second half with an unfunny heist to end it. I am just frustrated in Hollywood's use of Eddie Murphy and why this movie didn't live up to his talent. He has been the best I have seen him in ages in this movie but all his scenes don't live up to his energy. The movie also wastes it's large cast and ruins a fine change of pace villain role for Alda. I also found Matthew Broderick also annoying and unfunny. Come on, you have Axel Foley and Ferris Bueller here! "Tower Heist" brings too few laughs and no sense of surprise or intelligence. All you have is priceless Eddie Murphy moments that we needed more of.

P.S. For better heist movies check out the 1960 version and Steven Soderbergh's version of "Oceans Eleven" and the original "Taking of Pelham 1 2 3". For the really funny Eddie Murphy go back to "48 Hours", "Coming To
America" and "Bowfinger".

'Margin Call'

2011-11-03T17:38:00.000-07:00

'Margin Call' (R) (3 STARS)

Written and Directed By J.C. Chandor
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Jeremy Irons, Demi Moore, Mary McConnell, Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker, Aasif Mandvi

"Margin Call" is an intense, well written and compelling movie that couldn't have come out at a better time. It deals with an investment bank and the 24 hours before an impending financial crisis. With the "Occupy Wall Street" movement going on and the financial mess of the banking system we have endured this is perfect timing. You also get great writing, performances and another scintilating and powerful performance by Kevin Spacey. Writer and Director J. C. Chandor has a great career ahead of him just based on his writing. The first hour of this movie is perfection and though the movie slides in intensity near the end this is still a great potboiler.

The investment bank in this movie is portrayed in a real light and the writing seems real. In an effective early scene the bank's executive management has laid off many workers. They include an employee in the risk department played wonderfully by Stanley Tucci. He was working on something explosive and passes it off to a younger employee, Peter. This turns out to be information on an economical crisis that is brewing for the company and might affect others. The looming crisis will go all the way to the top including a bank president played by Spacey and to a British bigwig who controls all the money played by Jeremy Irons.

The movie's look at the cutthroat business of banks, trading and financial moves is fascinating. I loved the look at how all the executives would throw anybody under the bus to get the blame off of them. I loved how much young Peter learns when before he was a small cog in the machine. There is a great running joke where Peter's friend and co worker Seth keeps asking how much all the executives make a year as if his career and life depended on it. The writing here is wonderful and in the first hour I was never bored and I was glued to the screen.

The acting here is excellent and there are some actors who give their best performances I have seen them give in awhile including Demi Moore. There is fine, solid work here by Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Simon Baker and Zachary Quinto. As I mentioned before Kevin Spacey has given another captivating, edge of your seat performance. The way the man has with the delivery of dialogue is spellbinding. At first we don't really get to know what is really behind this character. We don't know if he is a good guy or a bad guy at first but we soon find out due to Spacey's smart performance. It is a fascinating character and a great performance.

"Margin Call" feels right for it's time and it is more powerful for how it mirrors what has happened lately. It is material that might come off as dull but the writing here makes it fascinating and suspenseful. A lot of the characters have a lot at stake here and many lives will be changed and destroyed. It is a movie that will make you think and kind of hit a nerve. It is all anchored by a Kevin Spacey performance that proves he is one of our finest actors. "Margin Call" to me is miles ahead of the over rated "Wall Street" and it's boring sequel.

'The Rum Diary'

2011-11-03T16:29:00.000-07:00

'The Rum Diary' (R) (rental)

Written and Directed By Bruce Robinson
Based on the novel By Hunter S. Thompson
Starring: Johnny Depp, Amber Heard, Michael Rispoil, Aaron Eckhart, Richard Jenkins, Giovanni Ribisi

"The Rum Diary" is another look at the intriguing life of one Hunter S. Thompson. Thompson is an iconic figure in literature and actor Johnny Depp was a friend of his and played him twice in movies based on Thompson's writing and life. Before then Thompson was played by Bill Murray in 1980's "Where the Buffalo Roam", a movie I have not seen. Recently in 1998 Depp played Thompson in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", a movie some loved and some hated. I had a good time with that 1998 version and it is slightly better than "The Rum Diary".

"Fear and Loathing" had energy and a madcap charm. It didn't make sense but it didn't have to because it dealt with Thompson's use of multiple hard drugs. The movie was always in a state of a surreal dream because it was Thompson in a drugged haze. "The Rum Diary" takes place in 1959 when he was 22 and in Puerto Rico when Thompson was more into alcohol and drinking himself into oblivion. This was before he dabbled in drugs and there is one scene where Thompson takes what I believe is acid and trips with his pal Sala. Thompson's alter ego Paul Kemp, played by Depp, is in Puerto Rico to write for a small newspaper. He stays with his friend Sala in a slum like apartment and gets involved with a shady businessman and his wife.

There is not a plot here that is always deep or coherent even though I liked Depp's performance and a bunch of the supporting ones. "Fear and Loathing" was incoherent also but I felt more of a connection there. "Diary" felt cold to me and I always thought it was holding back. It needed more zip and energy and sometimes the movie meanders in the second half. There are individual scenes that were amusing and fun. One involves a scene of Kemp and Sala skipping out on a bill at a dilapidated eatery. A scene like that and a few others stand apart from some of the lazier parts.
The movie's director Bruce Robinson made a madcap movie that has become a cult classic called "Withnail and I" from 1987. That movie had more energy and zip than "Diary" and I wish Robinson brought more of that former movie's spirit to this one.

The movie is not always alive but there are a few things here that make me want to reccomend it to movie goers for a DVD rental. If you like Thompson and his work you will like Johnny Depp's performance and those by Michael Rispoli as Sala and Giovanni Ribisi's funny performance as a drugged out writer who makes guest appearances at the newspaper. I also loved Richard Jenkins as the editor and now I realize Jenkins can do any role and I always smile when I see that he is in a movie. The movie also looks sunny and beautiful and Puerto Rico looks awesome, makes me want to visit. Amber Heard as the wife who Kemp gets involved with is beautiful to look at but the character is weakly written. If you love Johnny Depp and you love light, character driven work you might want to check this out on cable or DVD.

For movies like "The Rum Diary" that are better check out "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" with a better look at Thompson. Also very funny is Bruce Robinson's "Withnail and I" about a vacation from hell.

'Martha Marcy May Marlene'

2011-10-28T16:44:00.000-07:00

'Martha Marcy May Marlene' (R) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Written and Directed By Sean Durkin
Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, John Hawkes, Sarah Paulson, Hugh Dancy

The powerful, unsettling and haunting "Martha Marcy May Marlene" will not be a good time for some movie goers. It is a dark movie and it has an unconventional way to tell it's story and an ending that might frustrate some. I just know that it affected me more than any movie I have seen this year. It also has one of the best performances I have seen by an actress in her first starring role. It deals with a subject I am fascinated with and have studied for decades. I know it's subject matter well and this movie nails it perfectly without one false note.

The subject matter deals with a cult and how it affects our protagonist Martha during her time with the cult and what happens to her after she leaves it. The movie goes back and forth between Martha's stay at the commune where she is taken in and her life after she escapes and lives with her sister. The commune consists of a group of people and it's charismatic leader Patrick. It is a place sorrounded by a a large field and lots of nature. The people in this group make Martha feel wanted and needed. The women and men take turns doing certain chores and the women cook dinner. Strangely for such a bonded community the men eat first and then the women eat dinner after the men are finished.

We first meet the leader of this commune Patrick and he is trying to make Martha feel accepted and comfortable. It seems like Martha is in a place where she is sorrounded by friends and she looks happy. She also gets to take another young woman under her wings and become a teacher and leader. Though in an opening scene that starts the movie off powerfully she was calling her sister and Martha seems scared and unhappy. We learn that Martha is part of a cult but the movie doesn't use the term cult at all. That is because a cult would never call themselves a cult in real life. That would describe their group in a negative light when they see themselves as nurturing. The movie then shows what happens to Martha after her sister picks her up and she has to readjust to a normal life.

The movie flashes back and forth throughout from life in the cult to life with her sister after the cult. It seems that life with her sister after she leaves the cult does not fix Martha and make things better. Was the cult a good place for Martha where she is accepted more than she is from her sister? Where she feels a sense of belonging like part of a family? The movie unfolds in a subtle way at showing how this cult can't possibly be healthy for Martha. The movie doesn't have explosive and dramatic scenes and that is why I loved it. This is an unsettling movie that doesn't have any easy answers but it has a dynamic performance that I will never forget.

Elizabeth Olsen gives a natural, intense and smart performance as Martha and we never see her acting. It is a nuanced performance that feels just right and it will be one of the best performances you will see by any young actress today. Writer and Director Sean Durkin knows his subject matter and his story is carefully told without any false moves. I have studied cults extensively for years and I have been fascinated by the subject. It is a tough subject to portray right and "Martha Marcy" gets everything right. I was impressed on how the movie told a story that was real and that makes it even more powerful.

Cults take naive and young adults, especially young women, who have low self esteeem. It deprives them of protein and fills their minds with thoughts of love and acceptance. That is what a cult preaches but most cults are full of sexual and verbal abuse. What happens to Martha is sad and unsettling. Also just because she leaves the cult and is taken care of by her sister Lucy after she leaves doesn't mean Martha will shake the abuse off easily. Lucy and her husband try to take care of Martha but she will need a more serious type of emotional help.

The scenes that involve the cult can get creepy and they are very scary and not scary in a cheap, shock kind of way. The cult's leader, Patrick, is very good at giving a young woman like Martha false hope. He makes her feel special and beautiful in the beginning but what is he really after? Patrick is played very effectively by John Hawkes who is becoming a very powerful actor. Director Sean Durkin does so well guiding his actors and making his movie feel so real and haunting. The movie's pacing is flawless and the movie is careful not to become phony.

The movie's ending might frustrate some but I felt it was a perfect ending. It made me feel uneasy and got me thinking for hours after seeing the movie. This is a movie that would be perfect to see with a group and have a discussion about. It does what all great movies do which is immerse us into another world that we will never forget. It gives us something to think about and to take with us. It gives us real people and great performances especially one of the best performances I have ever seen by Elizabeth Olsen. I love how the movie and it's ending can shake a person's beliefs and make us think well after the movie ends. "Martha Marcy May Marlene" is a perfect, powerful and haunting movie that I will never forget.

'The Skin I Live In'

2011-10-27T15:45:00.000-07:00

'The Skin I Live In' (R) (3 STARS)

Written By Pedro Almodovar based on the novel "Tarantula"
Director: Pedro Almodovar
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, Jan Cornet, Marisa Paredes

"The Skin I Live In" is pure Almodovar even if it seems in the beginning that it is a departure. The movie sets up it's story and we are not sure where it is going. It gets a little frustrating at first because we are not sure what Almodovar's point is. I know it is an homage to classic creepy horror movies like George Franju's 1960 film "Eyes Without A Face". I also see a little Douglas Sirk type melodrama there. Though as the film settles and we are done watching we get what we figured we would, a classic Almodovar type movie.

Almodovar reunites with one of his early career mainstays in Antonio Banderas. Almodovar and Banderas collaborated on a lot of movies in the 80's and as early as "Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown". They have not worked together since 1990 when they worked on one of Almodovar's weakest movies "Tie Me Up Tie Me Down". I am happy to say "The Skin I Live In" is a better movie then their last one together. Banderas plays a plastic surgeon who has developed a skin that can't burn. He is researching it, he says, for advancements in helping burn victims. There are of course more sinister reasons he is developing that skin. He has a subject who is his guinea pig, a beautiful woman named Vera Cruz.

The movie starts out introducing this plot and it is a good set up. I then felt Almodovar was losing a little control when in the middle he introduces characters like his daughter and another young man his daughter winds up with. I still was compelled by the movie because it is a beautiful movie to look at. I love the location of the house they use and I love the dark tones of the photography. Antonio Banderas has given one of his best dramatic performances in a long time that doesn't involve a cartoon cat. He always underplays what could have become a silly mad doctor type of performance and that makes him scarier and more sinister.

This is not one of Almodovar's best movies and sometimes it seems like an exercise in homage. He definitely knows where to place his camera and how to make his movie look effective still but I was worried where he was going with the story. By the end though I had a big smile on my face because by the end I was satisfied with how all the loose ends of the story were taken care of. The last half hour is very effective and compelling and by the end I knew I had seen a classic Almodovar type soap opera that is a good one if not one of his best.

I love how creepy and sinister the movie is and besides liking Banderas a lot I also liked the performance by the beautiful Elena Anaya as Vera. This is a slight departure for Almodovar in style with the same attention to detail as Almodovar usually has. I like how Almodovar is influenced by many genres of films and filmmakers. In the future I can see another young filmmaker that will make an Almodovar type homage and he will have big shoes to fill.

'Paranormal Activity 3'

2011-10-21T16:30:00.000-07:00

'Paranormal Activity' (R) (3 STARS)

Writers: Christopher B. Landon and Oren Peli
Directors: Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman
Starring: Chris Smith, Katie Featherston, Sprague Grayden,Lauren Bittner, Chloe Csengery, Brian Boland, Dustin Ingram

You pretty much get what you expect from a "Paranormal Activity" movie and by now you would think it would get old. The 2007 surprise smash "Paranormal Activity" was an effective shocker that instead of gore affected us with things that go bump in the night. There are a lot of fans of that movie but also a lot of detractors. The movie was slow in setting up the shocks and that is why I liked it. It built up great suspense and made me a jump a lot, the movie had a flawless use of it's quiet nature.

When the second "Paranormal Activity" came out so fast after the original I groaned. It had to be a terrible rush job but I was surprised at how good it was. At some point you are going to see the same old things you saw in the original. The second movie though did a great job setting up a seperate story that intersected with the original. Now coming into a prequel in the form of "Paranormal Activity 3" I was really groaning. Though what do you know, I liked "Paranormal Activity 3" just as much as the second one if not as much as the original. This time though there will be many more detractors for this go around, some of the execution I agree is repetitive.

"Paranormal Activity 3" takes place before parts 1 and 2 when Kristi and Katie, the main characters in the first 2 were kids. The movie still uses a video camera that is set up to film what happens overnight. Dennis films and his girlfriend Julie is the non believer. Dennis and the girls think there is a presence in their house and little Kristi seems to have an imaginary friend (or is he imaginary?) The movie then unfolds slowly giving us what the first two did, objects moving, dissapearing and a lot of bumps and crashes in the night.

"Paranormal Activity 3" you would think would have the same old types of scares that the first two did and that would be true. What is surprising was how I still jumped in the right places and how much the movie affected me. The makers of all three movies know what they are doing and they do it well. This third movie has more plot than the first two and I think that is an improvement. There is more at stake at the end and I thought the ending, though also familiar, was well done and effective. This is a simple call on this movie. If you didn't like the first two movies stay away, if you did like them you should like the third one.

'The Thing' (11)

2011-10-21T15:43:00.000-07:00

'The Thing' (11) (R) (2 STARS)

Writers: Eric Heisserer and John W. Campbell Jr. based on short story "Who Goes There?"
Director: Matthijs van Heijningen
Starring: mary Elizabeth Winstead, Joel Edgerton, Ulrich Thomsen, Eric Christian Olsen, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kim Bubbs

We are at a moment in the Cinema World where a great percentage of the movies coming out are remakes. My idol Gene Siskel used to proclaim that film makers should remake bad movies and couldn't figure out why they remade great movies. I agree, don't you want to take a weak movie, make it better and become a hero? It sounds right but so many film makers these days want to remake good or great movies and even foolishly classics. If someone remakes a movie like "The Godfather" or "Casablanca" I think the World should end. I did not see the classic 1951 "The Thing" movie with James Arness. I did see the 1982 John Carpenter version and I gave it 4 stars and I saw it recently and it holds up. I love that movie and I came in with trepidation for this prequel and I walked out confirming that feeling.

Now this 2011 "The Thing" is a prequel to the 1982 and not a remake but like last week's "Footloose" this prequel strangely has some of the same scenes and plot points of the Carpenter version. That is a reason I didn't care for this prequel because it is a pale copy of the 1982 movie. Everything in the Carpenter movie was more effective, had better use of special effects and a better directing style. Another reason was that none of the characters in this prequel save for one were interesting. The 1982 version had a killer cast of some of the best character actors ever put on screen. You had Richard Dysart, David Clennon, Keith David, Wilford Brimley, Richard Masur, Donald Moffet. In the update you have some stiff, Norwegian guys like Sven, Hans and Lars played by stiff actors. The only one I was interested in was the character played by hot new actor Joel Edgerton (Warrior).

The lead role in the 1982 version was Kurt Russell who is one of the most under rated actors in Hollywood then and now. Russell was on a major acting roll at this time and he was such a great presence in the 1982 movie. Here the lead is a woman (the only fresh update here) played well by Mary Elizabeth Winstead but the character is a snooze. If you don't care about these people then you really don't care what happens to them. I checked out of this movie at the half way point.

Now is the movie scary, are the special effects cool and does the gross out stuff really gross you out? The movie has a few jolts but it is not really that scary. The special effects are more advanced than in the 1982 movie but I like the effects better in the former. The 1982 version was extremely gory but after a while it numbed you and became funny. The prequel is not as gory and I am sorry but for this kind of movie you got to go for broke. The 1982 movie also had a haunting ending, one of the most powerful endings I have seen in a horror movie. This movie ends up setting up for the 1982 movie in a half ass way and it is anti climatic. This 2011 version of "The Thing" has less bite, less fun and weaker characters than Carpenter's classic.

P.S. Of course in giving you movies like the 2011 "The Thing" that are better I strongly reccomend the 1982 "The Thing" by John Carpenter, just don't watch after eating a bag of candy. Also for a movie with more thrills and suspense and a stronger and much better female lead revisit James Cameron's 4 star classic "Aliens" from 1986.

'Footloose'

2011-10-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

'Footloose' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writers: Dean Pitchford and Craig Brewer
Director: Craig Brewer
Starring: Kenny Wormald, Julianne Hough, Miles Teller, Dennis Quaid, Ray McKinnon, Andie MacDowell, Ziah Colon

When I heard that they were remaking "Footloose" a big smile came across my face. I loved the original movie that made Kevin Bacon a star, it was a lot of fun with great music and energy. I am sad to say my smile turned upside down into a frown with this lackluster remake. Where is the energy of the original? Where is the character development, where is the great music? There are many things wrong with this remake and Blake Shelton's terrible redo of the title song is the least of them.

If you have seen the original and loved it I am pretty safe in saying that you will feel the same way I do about this fiasco. It is not the fault of it's two stars Kenny Wormald and Julianne Hough. They are decent here even though I was distracted by how the film makers make Hough into a dead ringer for a young Jeniifer Aniston. I am not being weird here, Hough looks so much like Aniston in certain scenes. She is attractive, looks good in tight jeans and red boots and has a sexy Miley Cyrus voice. Wormald is okay even though his Boston accent fades in and out. I will be safe here in saying that Wormald and Hough are no Kevin Bacon or Lori Singer, not even close.

The movie starts with a great and energetic pre credit sequence set to the original Kenny Loggins song. Then the movie shows us a brutal and effective car crash setting up the story. Those two great opening scenes kept me hopeful that this would work but those two scenes are pretty much all there is that works here. After that the movie slowly goes downhill from there little by little. The movie has pretty much the same plot of the original and is set in the small town of Bomont where dancing is outlawed. It is oulawed because a bunch of high school kids died in a car crash after drinking and partying.

The movie then introduces us to Ren who is sent to Bomont from Boston after his mother dies to stay with his aunt and uncle. Ren's big city ways don't blend in with this small town and it's Reverend. The Reverend Shaw lost his son in the car accident. He sees Ren as trouble especially after Ren starts hanging out with Shaw's daughter Ariel. Ren strikes up a friendship with Willard who was played by Chris Penn in the original. Here Willard is played by Miles Teller whose performance is the only one I really liked in this movie. This fine actor who made such an impression in "Rabbit Hole" a few years back steals this movie and runs away with it!

So let me start with some of the ways this movie is inferior to the original. First of all the Reverend Shaw character here is a step way down from the original movie's. John Lithgow's Reverend had more depth and seemed a more understanding, likable man. Here he is written as just a one note character who has no motivation. He is just seen as a stubborn, joyless man who turns nice in the end just because the screenplay says so. It is not the fault of Dennis Quaid but he never smiles in this movie and I found his character laughable and shallow. The wife of the Reverend in the original had spunk and backbone and was well played by Diane Wiest. Here the wife isn't even in the movie until the end and the role is a spineless, dull one and a thankless role for Andie MacDowell.

Then we have the character of Chuck who here looks 40 and I have no ideal why no one calls the cops because Chuck here looks like a child molester. I know Ariel is rebelling against her father but could she pick a guy who takes a bath and looks somewhat attractive. I don't remember the actor who plays Chuck but his performance is laughable and very bad. Then we have the music and including the horrible Shelton version of "Footloose" the music here sucks. The scene where Ren teaches Willard to dance was so wonderful in the original but here director Craig Brewer and the editor cut it into pieces and it suffers. They can thank Miles Teller for saving this scene with his humor. It is still the best moment in the movie thanks to Miles Teller who is funny and wonderful in this movie.

The movie ends with the fight with Chuck and the final dance and here the final dance is anti climatic and shoddy. I would love to give this movie a 1 star review but Miles Teller bumps this up to a 2 star movie. The more I think of this remake the more I hate it. This has in no way near the energy and likablility of the original. The dancing is clumsy and there is less dancing and music in this "Footloose". Except for Miles Teller there is nothing to really make you go see this movie. It will be interesting to see if this will become a monster smash hit. I think the only audience that will like this will be 12-16 year old girls. For everyone else this might make you cringe and laugh in all the wrong places.

P.S. If you want to see much better musicals or movies with a rock soundtrack I have a list of probably 100 movies better then this bad remake. Let's start with the original "Footloose" from 1984 which is more charming and has more energy and has Kevin Bacon. Also check out "The Commitments" from 1991 which has tons of energy and profanity and one of the best soundtracks I have ever heard. The list could go on for the 2011 "Footloose" is even worse than "Can't Stop the Music" and "Xanadu".

'The Big Year'

2011-10-14T16:00:00.000-07:00

'The Big Year' (PG) (rental)

Written By Howard Franklin
Director: David Frankel
Starring: Steve Martin, Owen Wilson, Jack Black, Rosamund Pike, JoBeth Williams, Brian Dennehy, Diane Wiest, Rashida Jones, Jim Parsons, Anjelica Huston

I was not dissapointed with "The Big Year" because it wasted it's hot, huge all star cast. I was dissapointed because this light comedy didn't make me laugh and I wish the screenplay was written better. I chuckled a few times but I think this movie fails because the comedy is there but this is really a comedy-drama and the drama fails. This is not supposed to be a laugh out loud, jokey comedy and I think it's intended audience will think it is supposed to be that. This is a fluffy comedy about bird watching and loud jokes would ruin it. I am glad this movie didn't make fun of it's characters but this movie is also kind of dull a lot of times.

The movie does center around bird watching which might not make people run right away to the theatre. It would seem a dull subject but with Wilson, Martin and Black you would expect them to elevate the material. All three characters are into bird watching. There is a contest every year called "The Big Year" where the person who spots the most birds in a year wins. All three lead characters strike up somewhat of a realtionship. Owen Wilson is Kenny and he is kind of a jerk though this movie is not mean spirited and Kenny kind of comes off as likable. The other two Stu (Steve Martin) and Brad (Jack Black) are not as competitive as Kenny and they strike up a friendship.

The three men jump on planes to travel a lot to many locations to capture looks of birds and some of the birds haven't been seen in ages. I like how the movie treats this bird chasing as an obsession. I just don't know how anyone who has a job like Brad does can travel so much. Each character has things to deal with at home with their certain relationships. The movie is more focused on stuff like how Kenny's marriage is tested and how Brad is estranged from his father. The movie has light comedy based on characters but the characters needed more depth. I say this because the movie has a lot of drama and most of the drama is cliched and unoriginal. The movie needed a little jolt of energy and maybe even a little parody. Just imagine what this cast and say Christopher Guest could have done with this subject matter like say Guest's "A Mighty Wind" did with it's subject matter.

If you go to this movie and pay $11 for this comedy and expect big laughs you might feel cheated. I think this is a nice movie and to wait on DVD and watch it on a big screen television with no expectations is a better bet. I do like the characters and the acting is solid and what a cast! You have Brian Dennehy, JoBeth Williams, Jim Parson and others. Even if all these great character actors are wasted it is still nice to see them on screen. The cinematography is beautiful and the location work is impressive. I did get attached to the characters a little and some of the comedy was sweet and some of the drama was interesting. I also did find out that Rosamund Pike is a very beautiful woman so that is cool.

I really like the three leading men here and they are good as I always expect them to be. This movie has some moments but it just needs a bolt of energy. I think it would have been better if the movie played up the obsession of bird watching to a more heightened state. Maybe the film makers could have added a smidge of energy here. "The Big Year" is an agreeable comedy but with Martin, Black and Wilson on board I expected the writing and directing not to let them down. This is a movie I reccomend you should check out on DVD or cable.

P.S. For better movies about nature or looks at certain hobbies with more laughs first check out Christopher Guest's sweet and very funny light parody "A Mighty Wind". Also a much better movie blending comedy and nature would be 1981's "Continental Divide" with John Belushi. That movie had a great, solid love story and drama and reminds me of a Katherine Hepburn/Spencer Tracy romantic comedy. That movie also has John Belushi in a great and rare leading, romantic man role. "Continental Divide" also is one of the best uses of the city of Chicago I have seen on film.

'Real Steel'

2011-10-13T16:55:00.000-07:00

'Real Steel' (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Written By John Gatins based on short story "Steel" by Richard Matheson
Director: Shawn Levy
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo, Evangeline Lilly, Anthony Mackie, Hope Davis, Kevin Durand, James Rebhorn, Olga Fonda, Karl Yune

Again I walked into a movie dreading what I was about to see but behold the power of movies. "Real Steel" is a very entertaining movie that gets the job done, kids will eat it up in a good way. I was surprised how I got into this movie hook, line and sinker. The robot fights didn't get to be too much, the father/son melodrama was sweet and there is a nice little love story. The strength of the movie is the interplay between father Hugh Jackman and son Dokota Goyo. Both have good chemistry together and Goyo is great at not being too cloying like most kid actors.

"Real Steel" stars Jackman as Charlie Keaton who is a washed up boxer down on his luck and in deep gambling debt. He is approached by the sister of a woman he dated and had a son with. Charlie doesn't want anything to do with the kid but a certain money proposition changes his mind. The movie is set in the future where human boxing has been replaced with robot boxing. The father and son find an old twisted heap of metal that used to be a robot boxer. They name it/him Atom and fix him up but Atom is known as a sparring bot, small and scrappy but considered weak. The movie is based on a short story that was also a "Twilight Zone" episode.

There is also a love interest for Charlie and her name is Bailey and she shares a boxing gym with Charlie. Bailey is played by Evangeline Lilly (Kate in "Lost") and Lilly is good here, she might have a big screen future ahead of her. The chemistry between Lilly ands Jackman is great and I actually was touched by their relationship and rooted for them to hook up. I also was surprised by how well the relationship between Charlie and Max grows. This could have been insufferable and cloying but there is some good dialogue and scenes between the two. I also think the boxing scenes and the final fight were surprisingly compelling and had me rooting for Atom and Charlie. These are robots and this could have been a soulless Rock Em Sock Em Robots pain in the butt but it is deeper than that.

By the final fight I was swept away in Charlie making a comeback, Atom winning the fight and for Max, Charlie and Bailey becoming a family. Jackman's Charlie is a shallow loser who runs away from conflicts but Jackman does a great job making us like him when we shouldn't. The movie also does a great job at giving Atom a little of a personality. The villianous robot and the owner make a great team of bad guys which helps us root for Atom. So when we get to the final fight we are totally immersed in this World.

The movie does copy a lot of the plot from the original "Rocky" movie with a little "Rocky IV" thrown in. This did not bother me though and a movie that copies off another can be good if it is done with energy and it's own personality. The father/son story reminded me of the 1979 boxing movie "The Champ" with Jon Voight but this is way better, "The Champ" was a horrible and phony movie.

So "Real Steel" is a fun movie that kids will absolutely love and some parents might dig. The movie would not succeed though without the charismatic performances of Jackman, Lilli and Goyo. There is also a nice turn by character actor Kevin Durand as a despicable bad guy who Charlie owes money to. The Atom robot is strangely likable and a movie with countless robot fights could have grown tiresome but they don't. Compare this movie with a piece of crap like the latest "Transformers" movie which has no soul and beats us into submission and you will find something more fun here.

'Take Shelter'

2011-10-07T20:00:00.000-07:00

'Take Shelter' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writen and Directed By Jeff Nichols
Starring: Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Tova Stewart, Shea Whigham,
Kathy Baker, Katy Mixon

"Take Shelter" is a psychological thriller that sneaks up on you. It is pretty straight forward and simple and it builds slowly but after you walk out of the theatre you are shaken. As I am writing this review I can't shake the power of this haunting movie. The movie stars Chicago actor Michael Shannon and the city should be proud of him. He might play a lot of unstable and unsettling characters but he is one of the most intense actors working today. "Take Shelter" is a beautifully shot, acted and directed movie and announces a new major talent in writer, director Jeff Nichols.

"Take Shelter" is a movie that works on you slowly but it is successful in shaking us up by the end. A lot of people will complain that nothing happens in the first hour and a half but there really is a lot going on. Plus you will see two of the best and most effective performances of the year in Shannon and the wonderful Jessica Chastain. This movie is great at showing us a real life small town and it's humble, hard working and struggling people.

The focus is on married couple Curtis and Samantha who have a daughter Hannah who is deaf. Curtis is a foreman at a construction job and works with his best friend Dewart played by Shea Whigham (Boardwalk Empire). Curtis and Samantha are working on getting Hannah an operation and they struggle with bills and debt. Also making things difficult is the fact that Curtis is starting to get nightmares and premonitions of his dog attacking him and a tragic storm that may be coming. Curtis's mother was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic. Does this mean that Curtis is also afflicted with this same diagnosis or is he psychic.

The movie is effective for the fact that it develops the characters, gets us on their side and keeps us guessing. Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain are incredible here at creating real people that we care for. Michael Shannon has become one of my favorite actors and he was my inspiration for my Snavely Awards after his neglected, powerful performance in "The Runaways". He gives a simmering performance of intensity but in the quiet, reflective scenes he is subtle and effective. Jessica Chastain has become a revelation this past year and she gives another stellar performance. Her work here at portraying a loving wife and mother who is being tested is perfection. "The Help", "Tree of Life" and now this movie make her the best actress of 2011 by a mile and she will now become a star.

In the end writer and director Jeff Nichols has made a near masterpiece here and on second viewing I will probably embrace it as one of my favorite movies of this or any other year. The movie is effective because the acting and mood set here sneaks up on us and pulls us in. We are always thinking at every moment if Curtis is really mentally incompetent or if he knows something no one else does. There is a moment late in the movie where Shannon as Curtis explodes in anger and it is extremely powerful. We are so compelled by the emotion and mood set up in the beginning that the anger jolts us.

I just love the look and feel of this movie and I love little things like the natural and beautiful performance by young Tova Stewart as Hannah. This is one of those movies that will get people talking after they leave the theatre much like "Tree of Life" earlier this year did. I think I like this movie even more than I did "Tree of Life". It is more powerful and haunting and I can't shake it from my memory hours after I have seen it. It has powerful performances, a story that subtly moves us and characters that have emotions that feel real. It gets us thinking and it has an ending that I think is perfect, powerful and haunting. The brave movie goer will remember that ending, what transpires before that ending and this family weeks after they walk out of the theatre.

P.S. I would love to see this movie a second time and if I do my 3 1/2 star rating might jump up to 4 stars like my review of "Drive". This is for sure one of the very best movies of 2011.

'The Ides of March'

2011-10-07T19:03:00.000-07:00

'The Ides of March' (R) (Rental)

Writers: George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
Based on Willimon's play 'Farragut North'

Director: George Clooney
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, George Clooney, Evan Rachel Wood, Marisa Tomei, Jeffrey Wright, Max Minghella

I am not a very political person but a juicy, back stabbing political thriller can get me going. I am afraid "Ides of March" didn't get me going enough, maybe because I wanted more back stabbing. "Ides of March" has a killer cast of great actors at the top of their game. The acting alone is worth the price of admission I guess but I would wait until DVD. The movie is sometimes fun but I was in the end dissapointed.

"The Ides of March" is based on a play and at times I felt the movie was a little stagy. It concerns a young and ambitious campaign aide who is helping a popular Democratic Governor get a Presidential nomination. He works for a cynical campaign manager and gets caught in a tug of war with the opposition's manager. When he meets with the other campaign manager a web of intrigue and scandal explodes. There is a great set up with all of this and what a cast! I was licking my lips for some nasty back stabbing and I wound up walking out with my mouth dry.

The story seems recycled from other political movies and real life political scandals. I wasn't really surprised at any of the plot developments and guessed a few. The story just isn't topical enough for these political times. It starts out exciting but becomes dull quickly. With all the incompetent dolts running today for President on the Republican side and all the weird scandals in the past years this movie seems so 1990's. There is nothing here that gets you interested and there are no thrills in this political thriller.

The story is blah but on the other hand the acting is wonderful. This is a dream cast that even outshines the cast of "Contagion". First you have hot Ryan Gosling as the campaign aide Stephen Meyers. This actor has given amazing performances this past year alone and he is a great leading man here. This is the second movie after "Crazy, Stupid, Love" that his acting saves a weak story. Then there are two performances that almost bump this movie up to a total reccomendation. I smiled and became giddy everytime Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti were on screen. They give such electric, powerful character performances here. Hoffman is incredible playing jaded here and Giamatti is delightfully pig headed as the other campaign manager. Their performances make this movie at least exciting and thrilling to watch when they are on screen.

Director George Clooney gives himself a small role here actually as the Governor. The movie belongs to the aides and managers but Clooney here is solid and impressive. He has to have the most relaxed presence on screen of any actor I have ever seen. Even when he is yelling he is as cool as ice and you never see him stretching for effect. Also Evan Rachel Wood, who can be equal to Gosling in acting ability, makes a great impression here. After she leaves the movie you feel her absence. Clooney is a great actor's director and he can get the best out of his actors here. The acting is almost worth it to go out and see this movie but the story undermines their performances.

Again I am not a big fan of political movies and politics and before Bill Maher came along I didn't really care. Lately though I am rather intrigued by the movies and documentaries of the past decade and of the real life political landscape. So "The Ides of March" doesn't work for me because nothing here intrigued me like what is going on now in real life. George Clooney does a great job directing here but his "Good Night, Good Luck" was vastly superior. This movie is like the democrats today. Both are too scared and weak to get down and dirty and give us a real fight.

P.S. I can think of a lot of political thrillers way more exciting than "The Ides of March". Check out Rod Lurie's "The Contender" with juicy performances by Joan Allen and Jeff Bridges. Also better at offering behind the scenes looks at running for office check out the flawless "Primary Colors" with one of John Travolta's best performances. Also "Now Way Out" with Kevin Costner and Sean Young is full of outrageous scandal and it is extremely fun and thrilling.

'Dream House'

2011-09-30T16:46:00.000-07:00

'Dream House' (PG-13) (1 1/2 STARS)

Writer: David Loucka
Director: Jim Sheridan
Starring: Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz, Naomi Watts, Elias Koteas, Martin Csokas

It is a shame when bad movies happen to great people. Director Jim Sheridan has always directed quality projects including one of the best movies I have ever seen in "In America". I don't know how he got involved with a boring drag and laughable thriller like "Dream House". He makes the movie look beautiful with the help of cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (father of Zooey!)
but the screenplay is a joke. Word is Sheridan disowned the movie after losing final cut from the studio but did he read this screenplay?

"Dream House" stars great actors (also wasted here) Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz as a married couple with two little daughters. The father is first seen retiring from his editor's job and then we see him back with his family in their house. The kids start seeing a man in the window and think the house is haunted. Then the father finds out a family was killed there before, the husband supposedly shotting the wife and kids dead. Is the "Dream House" haunted? I will save you the trouble, no the movie advertises it as a horror, haunted house movie but the story turns into a lame murder mystery.

I did expect a haunted house movie and the trailer promises twists and turns and I thought a haunted house. There are three plot twists, the first one I guessed right away because THE TRAILER GIVES IT AWAY! The second one is a laughable twist and the final twist is just lame. There is no suspense here, no character development and when kids are used as props in a thriller when said thriller is pointless it is offensive to me. Anyway this movie is just too stupid, lackluster and lame to care about. The pace is also mind numbingly slow and the plot is so familiar it is just boring. "Dream House" may have been ruined by it's studio but where is the blame for the writer who wrote this terrible thriller?

P.S. The movie was not released to critics ahead of time because Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz didn't want to answer questions about their affair that turned into a marriage. Really? Really! Really? Is this where we have gone to? A movie not released to critics because of a Hollywood scandal? Nice cover there movie studio people. Come on, you didn't release it to critics because the movie is bad.

'Dolphin Tale'

2011-09-29T16:44:00.000-07:00

'Dolphin Tale' (PG) (3 STARS)

Writers: Karen Janszen and Noam Dromi
Director: Charles Martin Smith
Starring: Nathan Gamble, Ashley Judd, Harry Connick Jr., Morgan Freeman, Cozi Zuehlsdorff, Austin Stowell, Frances Sternhagen, Kris Kristofferson

"Dolphin Tale" would be such an unabashed load of phony uplift if it weren't a true story. The strength of the movie is that it all comes across as inspiring and uplifting. I am also such a sucker for dolphins which are my favorite animal. I think it has to do with that they are smarter than most humans though cat lovers might think cats are smarter. This movie is based on an incredible true story and it is a great family movie when most family movies these days are a load of crap.

"Dolphin Tale" tells the story of Winter, a dolphin who gets it's tale caught in a crab trap. Winter is found by young Sawyer who follows the dolphin back to an animal hospital. Winter winds up having it's tale cut off to save it's life and Sawyer will get very attached to Winter. Sawyer will strike up a friendship with the dolphin and it is a sweet, touching friendship. Winter has a chance to receive a prosthetic tale with the help of Doctor Cameron McCarthy played by Morgan Freeman.

There is also a nice subplot about Sawyer's friend who is an older boy who gets called to Iraq for duty. That boy will come home damaged and his story will blend in nicely with Winter's plight. This movie has the requisite plot developments like the Mom who has to be convinced that Sawyer has to be a part of Winter's recovery. There is the little girl Sawyer's age, Hazel, who becomes his friend. The acting is very believable here to deepen the characters. Ashley Judd is good as the mother and Cozi Zuehldorff is very good and natural as Hazel. Also good here are Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr. and newcomer Austin Stowell who plays the older boy back from Iraq.

I was with this movie all the way and the movie choked me up a little from time to time especially when Sawyer's friend comes back from Iraq and gets introduced to Winter. Like I said I am a sucker for dolphins and I was sad and moved by Winter's plight. What happens when the doctor makes the prosthetic and what will follow seemed real to me. I was fascinated by how Winter tries to recover and how the prosthetic is fitted to make Winter adjust to it. You have to have a heart of stone not to be moved by this movie. The movie has a natural feel and never gets to be too heavy with sentiment. Nathan Gamble as Sawyer does a very good job here and he gives a relaxed performance and we like him.

"Dolphin Tale" was directed by actor Charles Martin Smith (The Untouchables) who starred in a nature, family movie just like this back in 1983. The movie was "Never Cry Wolf" and it is one of the best movies of it's kind. Smith knows the rythyms of these types of movies and he knows how not to cross the line into hokum. He gets great, natural performances by everyone and especially with the child actors. Smith was in a lot of the old Disney movies when he was a kid and he knows how to make this work. "Dolphin Tale" sounds like it will be a movie that adults will roll their eyes at but as an adult I grew to like it very much. It is an uplifting, inspring and sweet family movie in a good way.

'50/50'

2011-09-27T21:45:00.000-07:00

'50/50' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Will Reiser
Director: Jonathan Levine
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Anjelica Huston Bryce Dallas Howard, Phillip Baker Hall, Matt Frewer

"50/50" could have been a real disaster and it is amazing how strong it is and I was pleasantly surprised. The movie is based on a true life story and I think that helps it from becoming phony and maudlin. "50/50" is based on the life of Will Reiser who is a true life friend to Seth Rogen. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam who is based on Will and Adam at a young age is diagnosed with cancer. Rogen plays Kyle who is his best friend and has to adjust to his friend's disease. This movie might sound like a chore to sit through but it is funny, touching and kind of poetic.

Adam also is assigned a therapist to check in with from time to time to help him cope with the emotions he will deal with. Katherine is played by Anna Kendrick and Katherine and Adam will grow to like each other. I was worried about this movie from looking at the previews but "50'50" turns out to be a nice low key treat. The movie being based on real life events helps it immensely because there are no Hollywood cliches here. I never felt manipulated and the movie could have turned sappy with those phony moments that most movies about cancer usually have. Look at old movies like "Windy City" and "Dying Young", movies that were obnoxious and phony, to see what I mean.

I felt that the situations that unfolded during the movie seemed plausible and scenes with the doctors felt right and truthful. The movie is also witty with very funny laugh out loud moments. I also felt that the love story with Adam and Katherine was sweet and touching. They are both good people and we want them to grow closer to each other. I also was moved by the friendship between Adam and Kyle. I liked Anjelica Huston as Adam's mother but her character was a weak link in this story and sometimes just a little over-the-top.

So I like the love story a lot and it's strength and subtlety made this movie greater. I also love that the movie doesn't pull any punches and goes over the edge in it's humor. The movie doesn't play it safe and there are some very funny, good scenes that could have been in bad taste but turn out true and hilarious. I felt that this movie was truthful and felt real and that it didn't go for that dramatic, false ending. The movie has an ending that doesn't end in melodrama. I also had back up because I saw this movie at a sneak preview with an audience that had a lot of cancer survivors in it. After the movie almost all of that audience was in tears and I knew then that the movie completed it's goal.

The acting in "50/50" is really strong and all the performances were effective. Joseph Gordon-Levitt to me is on a short list with Ryan Gosling as the two best actors in their age range working today. I may be being bold here but Levitt gives an award worthy performance here. He is very natural here and his scenes that require a lot of emotions are played just right here. He doesn't over reach for effect and there is a scene here where he lets his emotions go and it is powerful. Seth Rogen is very funny here and his character could have been shallow but Rogen makes him very likable. Anna Kendrick is also sweet and likable here and she just has an easy going way about her and I never see her acting.

"50/50" was a rewarding experience that was touching, realistic, funny and sad with poignant moments that seem true. It is a very good mix of everything and I was with it all the way.

'Moneyball'

2011-09-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

'Moneyball' (PG-13) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Writers: Aaron Sorkin and Steve Zaillian based on the book by Michael Lewis
Director: Bennett Miller
Starring: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright, Kerris Dorsey, Chris Pratt

There is a brilliantly acted, directed and written scene in the new baseball movie "Moneyball" that is an example of why this movie is great. It is the last day before the baseball trading deadline. The General Manager of the Oakland A's Billy Beane is trying to trade some star players for cheaper, lesser known players. The speed, wittiness and execution of this scene of just talking on the phone is more fun and suspenseful than scenes in most action thrillers these days. For a movie that deals with baseball stats and strategy this is easily one of the most exciting movies of the year!

The power of that scene is also due to one of the best performances of the year by Brad Pitt as Beane. Equal to Pitt in what will be an under rated performance is Jonah Hill as Beane's assistant GM Peter Brand. "Moneyball" is based on the book of the same name and is about the 2002 Oakland A's. That was the season that Billy Beane became the GM of the A's and unloaded a lot of expensive and great players, dumped a lot of payroll and aquired cheaper players. With the help of Brand, who he steals away from the Cleveland Indians, he comes up with a new way to aquire good players that others have given up on. Brand is a genius with getting good players by exploring smaller stats like on base percentage. The result is a team that started to win, surprised baseball experts and changed the way the game was played.

"Moneyball" is a fascinating movie that hooks us right from the first frame. I have never seen a baseball movie that captivates us just by talking about baseball. The movie starts out with a brillant scene where Beane talks to all his scouts in a meeting. The scouts are really concerned in how they will replace stars like Jason Giambi and Johnny Damon. Beane is not worried because he feels that star players don't really guarantee winning. This is the first of many compelling scenes and the movie keeps up the greatness till the last frame. The movie is written by two masters of dialogue Aaron Sorkin and Steve Zaillian and this is the best screenplay of 2011 so far. Sorkin alone now has written the two best screenplays of the last two years with this and last year's "The Social Network".

The writing is smart and the dialogue is fascinating and even subplots like Beane's relationship with his daughter are deep and well played. This is not your typical baseball movie but it is one of the best written baseball movies I have ever seen. The movie does not give us a lot of basball action but there is an amazing and thrilling sequence in the movie. It is the point of the movie where the new and improved A's are flirting with history and a 20 game winning streak. This is a powerful and highly effective segment of the movie and it it extremely exciting and suspenseful. This movie never bored me and I love how the movie impresses us with dialogue instead of hokey, cliched, dramatic baseball scenes.

The acting from the leads to all the supporting actors are magnificent. The director is Bennett Miller and Miller is now two for two in creating masterpieces with sublime acting. He made his debut with the fascinating and powerful "Capote". He just lets the screenplay breathe and he never hits a false note in creating momentum and intrigue. Brad Pitt gives what is probably his most well rounded and complete performance of his career so far. With his work here and in this year's "Tree of Life" he is marking his territory as one of our best movie stars and actors. Equally great is Jonah Hill who works off Pitt so well, they have an amazing chemistry here.

I also love the deadpan performance by Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Manager Art Howe and the sweet and touching performance by Kerris Dorsey as Beane's daughter Casey. The scenes with father and daughter are touching, funny, sweet and subtle. There is a lot of funny moments, funny dialogue and baseball strategy and talk that sounds real. I have not read the book but this movie knows what it is talking about. This is the best baseball movie that has ever dealt with the strategy and logic of the game. Sorkin and Zaillian have obviously done their homework for they now have written one of the 5 best baseball movies I have seen.

"Moneyball" I guarantee will please people who love basbeball, I don't see how it can't. It is an adult movie that takes it's time to give us a smart story that also entertains us immensely. I do beat this dead horse a lot but it reminds me of a movie you would see in the 70's, the greatest era of movie making that there ever was in my opinion. Brad Pitt is doing what George Clooney is doing now, becoming one of our best liked movie stars. Also director Bennett Miller with this and "Capote" is a major new force in film making and I can't wait to see his next movie. "Moneyball" is an incredibly fun, compelling and entertaining movie that will become a new baseball movie classic.

'Straw Dogs' (11)

2011-09-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

'Straw Dogs' (R) (11) (2 STARS)

Writer: Rod Lurie based on 1971 screenplay written by Sam Peckinpah and David Zelag Goodman and novel 'The Siege at Trencher's Farm' by Gordon Williams
Director: Rod Lurie
Starring: James Marsden, Kate Bosworth, Alexander Skarsgard, James Woods, Walter Goggins, Dominic Purcell, Laz Alonso, Anson Mount

The 1971 movie "Straw Dogs" wasn't one of my favorite movies but back when I saw it as a teenager it affected me. The movie was co-written and directed by Sam Peckinpah who is probably the greatest director of violence ever. It starred Dustin Hoffman as a timid mathematician who along with his wife Susan George fend off attackers who are trying to break into their home to kill them. It included the rape of the wife who the movie makes out was something she asked for and kind of liked.

That movie was a neat little shocker that scared me kind of when I was 14 or 15 years old. I loved how quiet the movie was and then when the violence exploded I jumped and grabbed my blanket. Now it is 2011 and we are inundated with remakes of originally good movies. We now have movies that can't stay still, are noisy and have music scores hit us over the head. Instead of characters that are well written we have characters that are written as shallow morons. Now the original is not one of the greatest movies of the 70's though it shocked a lot of people back then with it's rape scene and violence. Compared to the original though the remake is superficial, dumb and shallowly written.

First of all the remake has been relocated from England to Louisiana so now the townsfolk are stereotypical redneck types instead of English cretins. The movie portrays the South in such a bad and obvious way I had to laugh and cringe. This is the fakest Southern town I ever saw and a lot of good actors are wasted here including James Woods as a blowhard ex high school football coach. The wife and husband here, played capably but blandly by James Marsden and Kate Bosworth, are a really dumb couple. The only saving grace is the subtle and effectively sleazy performance by Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood).
His performance is laid back, careful and on a totally different plane from the other actors who are given dumb roles. Skarsgard will soon become a movie star, mark my words.

The husband and wife here hire Skarsgard and his cretin friends to fix up their garage that is falling apart. The wife used to be involved in high school with the lead cretin. Predictably the bad guys will test the husband's manhood and become bullies. This leads to a rape scene just like it did in the original. Here the rape scene is not glorified but the screenplay lets it happen and then the after effects are never discussed or delved into. The wife never tells the husband because she is ashamed I guess. When the bad guys try to break in the house it is the result of such a stupid series of events and then the rape is pushed aside. In the original the couple confront what it has done to them. In the remake the rape is never mentioned and I felt offended by it.

I have a pet peeve with movies that have rape scenes just to cause a reaction and then never deal with it in the story. This makes the remake in my opinion a movie with just a rape scene that the movie is too chicken to explore what it has done to the husband and wife. The problem is here the couple are defending their house just because the screenplay says so and not for any sensible reason. The screenplay plays with us and manipulates us and I have no reason why the rape scene is included in this updated story. If you are going to shock the audience you can't wind up with a movie that ends with senseless violence. This just ends up as a movie with shallow and new ways to kill people that actually has been done to death by now.

P.S. For a better movie to pull your strings check out the original "Straw Dogs" from 1971 and a better though not good remake of "Last House on the Left".

'Drive'

2011-09-16T23:41:00.000-07:00

'Drive' (R) (4 STARS) (Highest Rating)

Writer: Hossein Amini
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks, Bryan Cranston, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac

"Drive" is one of those movies that might satisfy film geeks amd major film buffs instead of the normal movie going public. It is not a movie you will just like or not care for. You will defnitely either hate it or love it and if you are into crime thrillers and are an adventurous movie goer you will love it. It is a near flawless movie because for it's genre it never makes a false move.

"Drive" has moments of violence that you will not see coming and when those moments come you will jump in your seats. Also if you are squeamish when it comes to gore you might be putting your hands over your eyes a lot. The gore is not explicit and a lot is left to your imagination off screen but it is still right there. It is ten times more effective than a movie like "Saw" or those torture porn movies. It makes those movies look like a walk in the park. It reminds me of a Quentin Tarantino movie with it's moments of dialogue and steadiness punctuated with violence. I am a big fan of Tarantino but here director Nicolas Winding Refn may have trumped Tarantino.

The story of "Drive" is nothing complicated and it seems like your typical crime movie. Ryan Gosling plays a stunt driver who is also a getaway driver for robberies. He gets involved with Irene who is a woman in his building and Irene's son Benicio. Irene's husband Standard is getting out of prison and the Driver gets involved in a robbery that is tied to Standard. The Driver also has his friend Shannon set up jobs for him. Also tied into the story is crime boss Bernie played by Albert Brooks and I think I will never look at Brooks in quite the same way again. Add to this another crime
kingpin played by Ron Perlman.

All the actors do a great job at setting up their characters flawlessly and for a genre, niche picture that is hard work. This is one of the best casts of the year headed by who I think is the best actor of his age working today. Ryan Gosling has a lot of quiet moments in this movie where he has to act without words and it is a subtle and powerful performance. Brooks is great at playing against type probably for the first time in his career. Carey Mulligan as Irene is solid again, Bryan Cranston as Shannon is proving himself a great character actor in motion pictures and Ron Perlman is also great here and very funny. Also in a small role Christina Hendricks from "Mad Men" makes an impression here in a very small role.

"Drive" also has a look and feel of a 70's or 80's heist/car chase movie where the car chase scenes are not inundated with CGI effects crap. There seems to be no camera tricks and the chases are executed like they are done solely by real stunt drivers. The movie is so great at lulling you into complacency with quiet scenes that suddenly explode into violence. It might strike some as Tarantino like but to some maybe much better. The violence is scary, unsettling and effective and I advise you not to eat a heavy meal before you see this.

I also love the use of music in this movie from the loopy synthesizer score that reminded me of Tangerine Dream to the eccentric choice of songs. The movie has a simple story but the execution of it makes it seem more exciting than just that. Director Nicolas Winding Refn has an amazing career ahead of him and his direction is near perfection here. The movie left me breathless and sometimes on the edge of my seat. It made my stomach churn and I enjoyed the acting and pacing so much. Now this is not a movie for everybody and some will hate it. The fact is "Drive" has a goal and it achieves that goal to near perfection. To me it was a thrill ride and I cared about the characters more than I should have. "Drive" is one of the best movies of it's kind I have seen in decades.

P.S. I agree with Roger Ebert that ratings are arbitrary and I give "Drive" 3 1/2 stars but I will see it again and that rating might go up to 4 stars. Again for a crime thriller it is one of the best movies of it's kind I have ever seen and is easily one of the best movies of 2011, you will probably see it on my top ten list.

'Higher Ground'

2011-09-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

'Higher Ground' (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Tim Metcalfe based on memoir "This Dark World" by Carolyn S. Briggs
Director: Vera Farmiga
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Joshua Leonard. Dagmara Dominczyk, Norbert Leo Butz,
Nina Arianda, Bill Irwin, John Hawkes, Donna Murphy, Tarissa Farmiga

Religion has alwasy been a very provocative and controversial subject especially these days. Different people have different beliefs in a higher power and a lot of people struggle with their faith. There are also spiritual people who either don't believe in a higher power or just don't know. The powerful, beautiful and touching movie "Higher Ground" delves into one woman's struggle with her faith. I am not a very religious person but here is a film that moved me and made me think.

The movie is based on a memoir by Carolyn S. Briggs and tells the story of Corinne played by the beautiful and graceful Vera Farmiga who is one of our best actresses. Corinne is a woman who has a major development happen in her life that changes her faith in God. After this major incident Corinne and her husband Ethan join a cultish community and feel a sense of belonging. The whole group is loving and supportive and have a strong belief in God but Corinne sometimes has a struggle with her beliefs.

It doesn't help that the women in this community are often shoved to the background and sometimes supressed by the men. They definitely have a more nurturing role in the group but Corinne sometimes doesn't buy into that role. Her best friend Annika is a major life force and close friend for Corinne and Annika supports Corinne in her struggle. Annika is played by Dagmara Dominczyk in an Oscar caliber performance and it is one of the strongest characters I have seen in a movie this year. There is a major change that happens to Annika that affects Corinne. The character is so strong and memorable that after this incident happens I couldn't stop crying during the movie for at least 15 minutes.

This is such a wonderfully written movie and no matter what your religion is and what your beliefs are this movie will touch your heart. That is because foremost it is a movie about life pure and simple, about family and about the struggle we all have daily with faith. These are memorable characters I will never forget and the movie is thoughtful, true and never felt false to me. The movie starts strong in the beginning and has us hooked, loses a little momentum at times but ends on a beautiful note.

This movie raises a lot of good questions for me about religion and faith. Is religion really as sexist as I think it is? In this story and others about religion I see a lot of woman being treated like second hand citizens. I was rooting for how Corinne and Annika battle this in their group and what develops between Ethan and Corinne in their marriage. If you struggle with faith and sometimes you can't feel God's presence does that make you wrong and a bad person? I like how this movie thoughtfully and carefully delves into these questions.

"Higher Ground" is the directorial debut of actress Vera Farmiga and it is one of the best debuts I have ever seen. She tells this story simply and carefully and lets the characters breathe. There is nothing fancy here but I always felt that the movie felt confident and assured. Farmiga gets great performances by her actors and she herself gives the best performance of her career so far. This is an actress that was so good in "The Departed" and "Up In The Air" and she has a graceful presence and beauty and her performance here is wonderful. There are also great performances by Norbert Leo Butz as Ethan and John Hawkes who is our best character actor working today.

I also love the unforgettable performance by Dagmara Dominczyk as Annika. This is a strong performance and Dogminczyk gives one of the best performances of the year. This is a performance that is so strong that her charcater is always on our mind even when she is not all there on screen. This is a movie that is patient, makes us think and touches us, even those of us that are not religious. Like all great movies it gives us a peek into a real life and we are there with it all the way. It also might spark a lot of discussions between families and church groups and it is a must see for not only religious people but also people that don't believe in any higher power. This is easily one of the best movies of the year!

'The Debt'

2011-09-15T17:45:00.000-07:00

'The Debt' (R) (2 STARS)

Writers: Matthew Vaughn, Jane Goldman and Peter Straughan
Based on film 'Ha-Hov' written by Assef Bernstein and Ido Rosenblum
Director: John Madded
Starring: Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain, Tom Wilkinson, Ciaran Hinds, Sam Worthington, Martin Csokas, Jesper Christensen

"The Debt" comes and goes and does a serviceable job of creating a little tension. It just isn't a movie that grabbed me. I felt I has seen it before and I probably won't remember it a week from now. It has a solid cast but I felt they were wasted but I do know I can't keep my eyes off of Jessica Chastain. Without her and Helen Mirren this is just a straight to DVD type of movie.

"The Debt" has a plot that tries to surprise us but I didn't feel surprised. It tells the story of three Mossad agents, two that are married to each other, as they try to exterminate the evil Nazi war criminal Dieter Vogel. He has killed thousands of Jews and the movie starts in 1997 when the retired agents are given information that might change things. The movie flashes back to 1966 when the three go after Dieter and this is the best part of the movie. The movie gets laughable and silly when it gets back to 1997 and concludes with a dumb ending.

Now the characters in their early years are not that well developed but there are some good shocks and action though. The characters are not well fleshed out and a promising actor like Sam Worthington does not register at all. The movie though is saved by the talented new actress Jessica Chastain who is on a roll now. She was amazing this year in "Tree Of Life" and "The Help" and will soon be seen in a lot more movies soon. She has a natural beauty and she does a lot with the little that she is given. We are witnessing a star and great actress in the making and she is the only thing in this movie that was interesting.

Helen Mirren of course is great as usual but what a bunch of over melodramatic and awkward scenes she has to wade through. The movie becomes a cheap thriller at the end and I didn't care about the characters after awhile. There is a wonderful scene in the middle when Chastain's character Rachel Singer tries to catch Dieter but it is the only scene that is very well handled. I have not seen the original film from Isreal so I don't know how close this remake is but enough with remaking foreign films that just came out a few years ago. The director is John Madden who rightfully won an Oscar for "Shakespeare in Love" over the over rated "Saving Private Ryan" but obviously his career has stalled. "The Debt" is nothing new and I was bored and disinterested most of the time.

P.S. For better movies on this subject check out the creepy and thrilling "Marathon Man" from 1976 with Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier. Also check out the campy and hilarious and wonderful 1978 film "Boys From Brazil" with Gregory Peck and Laurence Olivier. That movie was silly but it is ten times more entertaining and energetic then "The Debt". I think i might just check out the original movie, maybe it has a pulse.

'Warrior'

2011-09-09T20:24:00.000-07:00

'Warrior' (PG-13) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Anthony Tambakis, Cliff Dorman and Gavin O'Connor
Director: Gavin O'Connor
Starring: Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton, Nick Nolte, Jennifer Morrison, Frank Grillo, Kurt Angle

I am not a fan of Mixed Martial Arts as I am not a big fan of boxing. I like professional wrestling because I like the drama and interviews more than watching men kick the crap out of each other. I could never get into wacthing a live boxing match but I love the "Rocky" movies. I could never get into MMA but I absolutely had a great time watching the new and exciting "Warrior". I also was surprised how I wound up cheering by the end and how emotionally involved I was.

The story is standard, nothing new and full of cliches but so was "Rocky" and "The Fighter" and I was highly entertained and moved by both. This is not as good as those movies but it is surprisingly great. This reminded me of how everyone was surprised and moved by the iconic sleeper, 1984's "The Karate Kid". It has characters we grow to like and care for, it has superb and stirring fight scenes. It also has three great performances, one award worthy and two more that are star making.

"Warrior" tells the story of estranged brothers Tommy Conlon (Tom Hardy) who is a war hero and Brendan Conlon (Joel Edgerton) who is a school teacher. They are also ex MMA fighters who are both estranged from their father Paddy (Nick Nolte) an ex alcoholic who now is clean and sober. The father used to be a raging drunk and he left both boys and their mother. Later the father shows up to try to connect with both sons. There is an MMA tournament and both sons want to join it for different reasons. Tommy enlists his father to train him and Brendan picks an ex MMA legend to train him.

We know then from this plot description that there will be family drama and a lot of fights. What surprised me here is that after multiple fights I thought I would have started to get bored. I actually loved each fight and they are very well choreograped and extremely exciting. The director Gavin O'Connor directed the very fine hockey movie "Miracle" and he knows how to direct each fight here. He does a very good job at making movie goers who don't know anything about MMA able to follow the matches. Each match is different and exciting and we know what the final fight will be but I didn't expect it to be emotional and I didn't expect to cheer so much.

The emotional scenes between each son and their father also moved me and that was thanks to the great performances by the three lead actors. Nick Nolte is back in a big way with a very touching and emotional performance and I expected some false notes but Nolte was always on target. Joel Edgerton, who plays Brendan, is a very talented Australian actor who was very memorable in last year's fine crime drama "Animal Kingdom". Here he gets the more likable son role and he makes us care and he moves us. Tom Hardy, who was great in a small role in "Inception" and will soon get our attention as Bane in "The Dark Knight Rises", makes a great impression. He looks like a young Sylvester Stallone via Rocky Balboa here. He has a brute energy and intensity that jumps off the screen and he could become an amazing movie star.

The movie got me going and entertained me throughout its long running time. I was surprised at how much I loved the fights, how great the acting was and how touching the movie was. I was happy to see Nick Nolte back in full classic Nolte force. I fell in love with the screen presence, intensity and star power of Tom Hardy and I loved Joel Edgerton. I loved how Jennifer Morrison (TV's "House") took another thankless female role and made it a little better. I did want a little more of a sense of humor here and that was it's weakness, it gets too serious sometimes. Most of the humor comes from the MMA announcers and they are very amusing.

The movie does what all good underdog sports movies do. It gets us cheering and it has a story that touches us instead of giving us just a bunch of brutal fights. "Warrior" was a nice surprise and I got caught up in it. It will be intersting to see if this becomes a sleeper hit with movie goers and I hope it does, the movie earns it's cheers.

'Contagion'

2011-09-09T19:32:00.000-07:00

'Contagion' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writer: Scott Z. Burns
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Demetri Martin, John Hawkes

"Contagion" is a respectful homage to 70's type disaster and conspiracy thrillers. It is respectful but also too laid back with characters that are not memorable save for a couple of them. I never felt that the movie was building any momentum or suspense. The movie starts off well setting up it's story. Then it throws all these characters at us and the all star cast distracts us. The movie just lumbers along with no dramatic moments for a movie with such an explosive subject.

The movie starts out with a business woman from Minneapolis, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, who comes back from a business trip from Hong Kong with flu like symptoms. She comes home to her husband, played by Matt Damon, and then passes away. Then we see a Tokyo man riding a bus suddenly having a seizure. Then others start to mysteriously die and an obnoxious blogger starts to throw out conspiracy theories on how the deaths started. Then a few representatives from Disease Control and Prevention (Kate Winslet, Laurence Fishbourne) and The World Health Organization (Marion Cottilard) start to trace back where the virus came from.

I know that "Contagion" is trying to be an adult thriller that takes it's time telling it's story. It is a welcome throwback to films of the 70's that are slowly paced, want to set a mood of doom and have a lot of thoughtful dialogue. The dialogue in this movie sounds realistic and at the start the movie is a little scary and thought provoking. I appreciate what Soderbergh is trying to do here but he fails in getting us involved. The doctors and representatives have no personality and I was bored with them all. The Paltrow character is given no build up so Damon has to make us care about her and his relationship with her but the movie doesn't help him.

This is missing what some of those 70's disaster films had and that is suspense and personality. It is much better than recent films of it's ilk including the very bad and unintentionally funny 1995 film "Outbreak" but I wish it was more like a classic film like 1979's "The China Syndrome". I don't expect "Contagion" to be as great as "China Syndrome", one of the best movies ever made period, but I wanted more oomph.

I like the serious and thoughtful tone of this movie and I am glad there were no cheesy, over-the-top killing and gruesome deaths. I like that the movie explores it's subject in a serious way. I like the Matt Damon character and his daughter and there is a very touching scene where the father sets up a mock Prom for his daughter in their house. Those were the only charcaters I cared for and the other character that should have moved us, played by Marion Cotillard, isn't given a big enough piece of the plot.

I just found the movie dull and too respectful and too careful. I felt that the all star cast distracted me because their characters are so lifeless. There is an explosive and powerful scene where a shortage of medicine causes a scary riot. That is a great scene but the only one that startled me. "Contagion" needed more scenes like that one and people I cared about. The only positive thing from this movie is that it will make you think, just not about this particular movie's story.

P.S. For an example of a scary, suspenseful, terrifying and sobering look at a topical threat or disaster that is much stronger check out the 70's classic "The China Syndrome" which in it's time scared the crap out of everyone who saw it. In my top five of the best movies of the 70's.

'One Day'

2011-08-31T14:43:00.000-07:00

'One Day' (PG-13) (2 STARS)

Writer: David Nicholls based on his novel
Director: Lone Scherfig
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess, Patricia Clarkson, Romola Garai, rafe Spall, Ken Stott, Jodie Whitaker

"One Day" has something to me that can kill my enjoyment of a movie. That is a main character that I did not care for and like and who I feel did not deserve the love of the other main character. Jim Sturgess is a very good actor but his Dexter is a character who is selfish, arrogant and a bore. The problem is the movie's writing makes him so one note and superficial when he grows and becomes affectionate it feels phony.

"One Day" tells the story of Emma and Dexter who start to have a one night stand one day in 1988 and instead become friends. The start of the movie is promising even though the gimmick of showing the one day anniversary of meeting ruins the flow of the movie. We see Emma and Dexter's friendship grow over the years and we catch up with their lives almost every year from 1988 to present day. Of course they are friends and there is that unspoken love between them that they never act on.

Like I said the movie starts out well but towards the middle I realized something. I realized that Emma and Dexter are better as friends and that I didn't really like Dexter. Emma is too good for him and Emma winds up with a wannabe stand up comedian as a boyfriend and of course she doesn't really love him. I just don't understand that a sweet and beautiful and smart woman like Emma can't be given a really great guy to be with in the story. Of course that is done on purpose so Emma and Dexter can be together and that is what I didn't want to see. It also doesn't help that as each year progresses I felt the movie skipping ahead too soon.

Jim Strurgess is very good here but his character is really a jerk and he stays that way even when the movie starts to make him sweet. When a certain series of events and tragedies happen to Dexter I still felt that he was a cold person. I didn't believe he was changing even when a huge tragedy happens and when he is given a family. Critics are blasting Anne Hathaway about her British accent. It is not a perfect accent but Hathaway is so radiant, graceful and charming here I didn't mind. I like Hathaway's performance and the way she lights up the screen but that and her character are the only good thing going here.

P.S. There is an older movie with the same gimmick that is much better than "One Day" and that is 1978's "Same Time Next Year" with Alan Alda and Ellen Burstyn. Also better movies like "One Day" are "Rachel at the Wedding" with Hathaway and "Love, Actually". Also with the right romantic vehicle for Hathaway (which she hasn't been given yet) she could be as graceful and radiant as a young Audrey Hepburn. That is a huge compliment from me because Hepburn is my all time favorite actress.

'Our Idiot Brother'

2011-08-30T17:01:00.000-07:00

'Our Idiot Brother' (R) (3 STARS)

Writers: Evgenia Peretz and David Schisgall
Director: Jesse Peretz
Starring: Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Mortimer, Steve Coogan, Hugh Dancy, TJ Miller, Kathryn Hahn, Rashida Jones, Shirley Knight

I wish there were more people in the World like Ned, the lead character in "Our Idiot Brother" who is played by Paul Rudd. Ned is such a kind person and is so good to others. He means well but he is not too smart and sometimes he blindly tries to help others and winds up messing things up. I really think Ned is smarter than the others think he is but he is just a little naive. Ned has three sisters that don't quite understand him but I think Ned is one of my favorite characters in a movie in quite awhile.

Paul Rudd is Ned and he is the perfect choice because I really like Paul Rudd and so do a lot of movie goers. He is a very funny actor who is probably one of the best straight men in the business. He is always likable, charming, funny and one of those guys you just want to be friends with. I expected a comedy with a lot of dumb laughs but I did not expect a charming, touching and smart comedy. This is a wonderful screenplay that doesn't hammer us over the head with obvious jokes.

Ned has three sisters and I love how the story gives each one a distinct personality. The sisters are also played by three very wonderful actresses who are great here. There is magazine reporter Miranda, played by an unrecognizable Elizabeth Banks. There is bisexual sister Natalie played by the wonderful Zooey Deschanel. The last sister, Liz, is the most responsible one with a family and all. Ned stays with all three sisters at one point and interferes with his sister's lives. He doesn't mean to interfere but when he tries to help them he goes too far.

"Our Idiot Brother" has a lot of big laughs and they come from the dialogue and the characters and not cheap jokes. I actually started to care about Ned and his sisters. They all have their flaws but I liked everyone. This movie is also very charming and smart and I thought it would be mean spirited. This movie has a killer cast and Banks, Mortimer and Deschanel are three of my favorite actresses and they are all great here. I didn't recognize Banks and I was impressed by her in this movie, she is a really great actress. There are also some great supporting turns by TJ Miller and Kathryn Hahn.

The movie mostly rests on the shoulders of Paul Rudd and I think he is one of our best comedy actors. He is so easy to listen to, he always makes you comfortable and you always cheer for him. The solid screenplay and the top notch acting make "Our Idiot Brother" a surprise winner. I don't usually like cliches but this is a feel good comedy that brought a big smile to my face.

'30 Minutes Or Less'

2011-08-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

'30 Minutes Or Less' (R) (2 STARS)

Writer: Michael Dilberti
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Straaing: Jesse Eisenberg, Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride, Nick Swardson, Michael Pena, Dilshad Vadsaria, Bianca Kajilich, Fred Ward

"30 Minutes Or Less" is not a bad movie but it kind of comes and goes without leaving much of an impression. It is a lazy comedy whose set up is not inspired and it's execution is weak. I like some of the performances even though the movie doesn't require quality perfromances. There are also two actors here who are fine but we have seen them do this kind of role over and over again.

"30 Minutes Or Less" stars Jesse Eisenberg as pizza delivery man Nick who is pretty much a slacker. Nick and his pal Chet hang out together a lot drinking beer and watching movies. One day Nick delivers a pizza to a couple of criminals who want to use Nick. They are trying to steal money so they can hire someone to kill one of their fathers. They strap a bomb to Nick and tell him to rob a bank and then drop off the money. The movie starts in separately giving us background on the criminals and then the two pals.

Some of the dialogue in the beginning has some witty one liners but there is nothing here that screams hilarity. There are a few car chases, the robbery of the bank that has one laugh in it. This could have been a wacky comedy like a warped version of "Dog Day Afternoon". The movie goes through the motions and there are no really funny scenes. I didn't laugh at all really, I just smiled a few times. There is really only the robbery and a lot of forgettable stuff. This is like one of those movies you might watch on cable late at night and then forget it in the morning.

The other problem is with the use of two actors in the movie that are given their same old schtick to do. I probably wouldn't have a problem with the way they are used if the movie was funny. First Jesse Eisenberg is being typcast as a fast talking nerd and I understand it but this movie is not doing Eisenberg any favors in not being typcast. Then there is Danny McBride who plays one of the bad guys. McBride in every movie specializes in using a lot of profane language and insulting everyone. It was funny in his first few movies and his HBO show but here it got on my nerves. It makes McBride look like he he can be only one dimensional and I know he is better than that. I did love Aziz Ansari as Chet and the comedic actor who is very funny on the television show "Parks and Recreation" is the best thing here.

So what you have here is a lackluster comedy that wastes all of it's talent. There is really no good reason I can think of on why this movie had to be made, the story is weak and the screenplay isn't funny. I was also dissapointed because the director Ruben Fleischer's first movie
"Zombieland had energy and a lot of big laughs. This movie drags and doesn't have one big laugh in it. The acting is good but I had another problem. The female characters are all weakly written and the actresses are given one note thankless roles. That is a problem with a lot of movies lately so 30 Minutes is just the same old safe comedy.

'Fright Night' (11)

2011-08-26T20:16:00.000-07:00

'Fright Night' (11) (R) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Marti Nixon based on 1985 film written by Tom Holland
Director: Craig Gillespie
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Colin Farrell, Toni Collette, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Imogen Poots, David Tennant, Sandra Vergara

The 1985 movie "Fright Night" was a wonderfully campy, fun and gruesome vampire movie. I am not a big vampire movie guy because I think there are too many and most are lame. The HBO show "True Blood" is my favorite vampire themed entertainment now, the "Twilight" movies suck and the best in my opinion is 1987's "Near Dark". I loved the original "Fright Night" and I am happy to report to it's fans that this remake is different but just as good, maybe better.

The remake is different in that it is very fresh, beautifully shot and youthful when the original was more camp. The remake made me laugh a lot and on purpose and the acting is fantastic. The acting is one of the things that is better in the remake. Colin Farrell gives a sexy, sleek and energetic performance as Jerry the vampire. He lives next door to Charley Brewster and his mother Jane. Charley believes that his next door neighbor Jerry is a vampire right away and now Jerry is hitting on his mother and his hot girlfriend Amy!

The movie takes place in Las Vegas and moving the original location to Vegas is a masterstroke. Come on, Vegas never sleeps and so don't vampires. This is one of the fresh and smart changes writer Marti Nixon gives this remake and why I love this movie! The original had a hammy but wonderful performance by Roddy McDowell as horror movie host Peter Vincent. Charley goes to Vincent to get help in fighting Jerry. The remake has British actor David Tennant and though not better than McDowell, he gives a fresh spin on the role and he is brilliant and funny.

Colin Farrell plays Jerry and he blows away the original's Chris Sarandon, who makes a very funny cameo appearance here. Farrell is one of our best actors today and he is now showing his brilliant grasp of comedy. With this and his Oscar worthy performance in "Horrible Bosses" he is on a roll! He is sexy, beautiful, funny, charming and sleazy here and I think his performance is better than it should have been. He has fun with the role and is smart in that he doesn't go over the top. I also like Toni Collette and Anton Yelchin as Charley a lot and them being cast made me grateful.

There is also another solid performance by Christopher Mintz-Plasse who plays Charley's nerdy friend Ed and Mintz-Plasse plays a nerd better than anyone. I loved the choice of Imogen Poots as Charley's girlfriend Amy and I look forward to seeing her again. She is sweet, charming and makes us glad that her and good guy Charley are together. As I mentioned before I loved David Tennant as Peter Vincent and there is a small, striking, funny performance by Sandra Vergara as Vincent's sexy girl. She is so good in such little time I want to see her again!

"Fright Night" is a lot of fun and it has what most vampire movies lately don't have, a good story. The vampire myth is so dependable because it is so sexy and intriguing and most vampire movies these days forget this. The movie is not balls out scary but it sure is more fun and effective than "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark". There are some great jolts, a great car chase and a lot of good humor. The acting is what makes this more than just a good movie. It gets the job of nailing the genre perfectly and while it is just a horror movie it is also one of the best movies of the summer!

'Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark'

2011-08-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

'Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark' (R) (2 STARS)

Writers: Guillermo del Toro and Matthew Robbins based on the 1973 teleplay
Director: Troy Nixey
Starring: Guy Pearce, Katie Holmes, Bailee Madison, Jack Thompson, Julia Blake

Guillermo del Toro was scared and influenced by a 1973 television horror movie called "Don't be Afraid Of The Dark". Guillermo describing the effect this movie had on him at a young age sounded fascinating. Then why does his remake make a very small impression on me and why did I feel bored by it? I want to see the original now because this remake left me cold and not scared at all.

"Don't be Afraid Of The Dark" is one of those child in jeopardy haunted house movies and I have seen a lot more of these stories done much better. It's a shame because the atmosphere and the feel and look of the old Victorian house the movie takes place in got me excited at first. Little Sally moves with her father and his new wife into a house where a famous artist once lived. Sally starts to see little demon gremlins that pop out to scare her and of course the adults don't believe her until it is too late.

The little gremlins that pop out look like exact versions of the gremlins from the 1984 movie "Gremlins". They look so much like those creatures that I was not affected by them at all and did not find them scary. In fact they made me and a lot of the moviegoers I saw the movie with laugh at them. If you want a better movie about gremlins then rent "Gremlins" again. The only thing I liked about the movie was the beautiful house where the story takes place. I don't know where they found this house but it is eerie, chilling and breathtaking! The production design saves this movie from being a laughable turkey.

I got tired of these little creatures terrorizing Sally and after a half hour of this movie I checked out. The set up is good but the follow up is dull. I expected more from this movie because del Toro loved the original and wanted to do justice to it with this remake. The movie's second half feels like it is on auto pilot. It also squanders a perfect opportunity to let the creatures loose on a busy dinner party in a later scene. This movie maybe made me jump twice and the spooky house then became less effective. The acting also does not show off Guy Pearce and Katie Holmes's finest hours.

I have seen about 15 movies like this one that are much better. I feel like it's target audience might be very dissapointed by this. When coming out of the theatre there was a survey going on and a girl about 18 years old said that the movie pretty much sucked and was terrible. This movie just didn't scare me and when a much better movie like "Paranormal Activity" rules the roost these days I expect del Toro to step up his game and he doesn't. Trust me, with this movie you don't have to worry about being afraid in the dark.

For much better movies about haunted houses and creatures check out one of my all time favorite chillers "The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane" from 1976 with a young Jodie Foster. Also check out the "Paranormal Activity" movies again and also 1984's "Gremlins" which at least has intentional laughs unlike Afraid.

'Another Earth'

2011-08-19T20:38:00.000-07:00
'Another Earth' (PG-13) (3 STARS)

Writers: Brit Marling and Mike Cahill
Director: Mike Cahill
Starring: Brit Marling, William Mapother, Matthew-Lee Erlbach, Flavor Flav

"Another Earth" is a provocative and highly original science fiction movie that is also a compelling pshycological drama. It also has a new actress to look out for much in the same way that Jennifer Lawrence was after "Winter's Bone". Her name is Brit Marling and she gives a very solid, wise, quiet and effective performance in a tricky role.

Marling plays Rhoda Williams who is a young female student who gets involved in a tragic accident that sends her away to prison for a few years. Rhoda's accident killed the wife and son of a composer and when Rhoda gets out she tries to reach out to him. Also as Rhoda gets out and tries to straighten out her life something strange has developed. Scientists have found a duplicate planet Earth where our doubles might reside at. Rhoda takes part in an essay contest to be one of the lucky ones to visit this duplicate Earth.

I loved the image of this duplicate Earth that director Mike Cahill displays in this movie. It is a haunting shot that gets stronger the more we see it. It always remiinds us and the characters what a wonderful opportunity this new Earth provides. This juxtaposition of the image in the sky with the drama going on in Rhoda's life is quietly powerful. Can we erase our mistakes and past hurts and heartache by visiting this new planet and living vicariously through our doubles?

Rhoda might get that chance if she wins the contest but she has grown close to the man whose life she has destroyed and she wants to stay and heal him. This dilemma is smartly played by Marling and we never see her acting. It is a raw and careful performance and Marling plays it like a veteran actress. The movie is quietly powerful, sad, haunting and it is a movie that will make you think as you leave the theatre. This is one of those movies that can create a great after viewing conversation over coffee with friends. I can't wait to study it again on DVD. This is an unique and wonderfully acted movie that is an original experience with a very promising writing and acting talent in Brit Marling.

'The Guard'

2011-08-19T19:51:00.000-07:00
'The Guard' (R) (3 STARS)

Written and Directed By John Michael McDonagh
Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle, Mark Strong, Liam Cunningham, Fionnula Flanagan

"The Guard" is a very funny and charming comedy where the dialogue is witty and so wonderful to listen to. It also has one of my favorite actors in Brendan Gleeson who is that actor that makes a movie special just because he is in it. Gleeson is paired up with one of our best character actors in Don Cheadle. Their chemistry together is magical and they sound wonderful together bouncing their lines off of each other.

Brendan Gleeson is Seargant Gerry Doyle who is very politically incorrect and probably doesn't think much before he speaks. He always speaks his mind without ever thinking of the consequences and some of his comments can be a wee bit racist and outrageous. Gerry is after a group of drug dealers who are disrupting his small town. He takes pride in his home and wants to catch these criminals. He is not too happy with being forced to work with black FBI agent Wendell Everett. He just doesn't like an outsider interfering with his work but the way Gerry speaks Wendell thinks Gerry might be a racist.

The movie is wildly entertaining mostly in the very funny and outrageous things that Gerry and the group of criminals say. I also love Cheadle's reactions to the ramblings of Gerry that sometimes make sense and sometimes don't. Cheadle has a classic line where he tells Gerry that he doesn't know if Gerry is really dumb or really smart. What I did love was that we do fall in love with Gerry and find him to be a good person. Brendan Gleeson is a great actor and when he does quirky comedy like this no one can touch him.

There was a similiar style of movie that came out in 2008 and was in my top ten list of that year that also starred Gleeson. It was "In Bruges" and it was written by playwright Martin McDonagh. The writer of "The Guard" is John Michael McDonagh and he is the brother of Martin. Both are extremely gifted writers who have a wonderful ear for funny dialogue. I hope Brendan Gleeson makes a movie once a year and I can't wait till the McDonagh Brothers make their next movie.

'The Devil's Double'

2011-08-19T19:24:00.000-07:00
'The Devil's Double' (R) (2 STARS)

Writer: Michael Thomas based on novel by Latif Yahia
Director: Lee Tamahori
Starring: Dominic Cooper, Ludivine Sagnier, Phillip Quast, Raad Rawi

"The Devil's Double" starts out promising but then devolves into a self indulgent mess. The subject matter is somewhat fascinating but the movie just became too dull for me and seemed to go nowhere. It is a shame that the movie crumbles in the end because Dominic Cooper gives a brave performance that could have turned out to be campy and embarrassing if performed wrong.

Cooper plays both Uday Hussein, the sadistic son of Saddam Hussein and Uday's college friend Latif. Uday convinces Latif, mostly through torture and threats to become Uday's double. This way Uday can escape danger if his many enemies try to kill him. Latif then is forced to take part in Uday's evil acts and excess. They include rapes, kidnapping children, taking a lot of cocaine and butchering men. I was very entertained by Dominic Cooper's performance and I found the beginning amusing but after awhile the story goes nowhere.

The movie is kind of a "Scarface" lite especially in the many shots of Uday inhaling cocaine and the over the top violence. The women in this movie are non existant especially the lead female role played awkwardly by Ludivine Sagnier. It is a thinly written role and every scene she is in doesn't gel with the reat of the movie. Dominic Cooper has been good in small roles until now like "An Education" and "Mamma Mia!" I was impressed with his work here and it could have been a camp performance but I felt he was very believable here.

Cooper's performance is very good but the movie fails him. After about 45 minutes I started not to care even when Latif's father is brought into the story. The movie just becomes monotonous with blood, gore and dull violence. In the end I didn't care what happened to Latif or anyone else because the movie never lets us in. The director is Lee Tamahori who showed so much promise with his first movie. That was one of the most powerful and gut wrenching movies I have ever encountered called "Once Were Warriors". This and his other follow up, the excruciating "Mullholland Falls". are a dissapointment coming from a very talented director. "The Devil's Double" wastes a lot of good talent on a pointless exercise in nihilism.

'The Change-Up'

2011-08-19T18:50:00.000-07:00
'The Change-Up (R) (1 1/2 STARS)

Writers: Jon Lucas and Scott Moore
Director: David Dobkin
Starring: Jason Bateman, Ryan Reynolds, Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin, Leslie Mann, Gregory Itzin, Craig Bierko

Not only is "The Change-Up" very dated and familiar but it is also unfunny, desperate and obnoxious. This is one of those smug movies where the film makers try to push vulgarity to the extreme and wind up being pathetic. This is a body switch movie which I think was a genre that died in the late 80's. There have been good body switch movies and very bad ones. "Big" is the absolute best and one of my all time favorite movies period. "Like Father Like Son" is the worst, that is until "The Change-Up" was made.

Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds play best friends Mitch and Dave. Mitch is a womanizer who has cheap sex with women and has no responsibilities and Dave is a family man with three kids and a wife. After peeing in a fountain and declaring they wish they had each other's life both wake up to find that they have just switched bodies. This is a plot that has been done to death but can be funny if it is given a fresh twist or a new energy. This movie has energy all right but only in I think setting a record for the most F bombs ever in a comedy.

This is a movie where the writers think that the characters saying the "F" word constantly is funny. This is a movie where women are called degrading names that I think no man has ever said to a woman in real life. This movie reminded me of those amateurish comedies made in the 80's. Most of the comedy is geared towards insulting women, Jewish people and children. All that I guess would be fine if that comedy was funny and this movie is never funny. The only thing saving this movie from being a worthless Zero star mess is the comic timing of Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds. They do a good job trading places and copying each other's comic style.

They try to make something out of this pathetic comedy but there is only so much they can do. This movie is extremely obnoxious, creepy and made me cringe most of the time. After I finished seeing the movie I wanted to run out of the theatre screaming. I was not having a good time and I felt very uncomfortable. There is a scene where part time actor Mitch stars in a soft core porno movie. This scene is one of the trashiest, awkward and most misoginist scenes I have ever witnessed in a mainstream comedy.

I do love vulgar movies that insult all kinds of people and try to shock people with so called gross out humor. I have loved "The Hangover", "Kingpin", "There's Something About Mary" so believe me when I tell you "The Change-Up" is not like those movies, it is ugly, embarrassing and painfully unfunny. I am also not a prude when it comes to nudity in a movie but there is so much unnecessary nudity in this movie. I felt that this is a movie made by adult men who just wanted to get each other off and wanted to see if they could out gross "The Hangover".

I felt like this movie hated women and that is sad because the beautiful Olivia Wilde and the funny and talented Leslie Mann are good here and I felt sad for both of them. Women are seen here as either sex objects or as bitches that need to be ridiculed and shoved aside. What is really pathetic is how the movie shoves vulgar jokes down our throat and then tries in the end to become touching and sappy like a badly written ending to a "Full House" episode. This is one of the worst comedies of the last decade.

'The Help'

2011-08-12T20:54:00.000-07:00
'The Help' (PG-13) (3 1/2 STARS)

Writer: Tate Taylor based on novel by Kathryn Stockett
Director: Tate Taylor
Starring: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Jessica Chastain, Allison Janney, Sissy Spacek, Ahna O'Reilly, Mike Vogel, Anna Camp, Cicely Tyson, Brian Kerwin

"The Help" surprised the hell out of me because it keeps getting stronger and I didn't expect to have such a great time. I groaned a little during the beginning because there were too many Southern stereotypes but by the last hour I was moved. I also had such a great time seeing so many strong female roles and some of the best ensemble acting of the year by amazing actresses.

The movie is based on a very popular novel written by Kathryn Stockett and I have not read it. I don't know if the book is stronger but I felt some of the writing in the movie was shallow in the beginning. The writing gets much better as the movie moves along and the acting makes the characters deeper and make the movie greater. The movie tells the story of Skeeter played by the very in demand Emma Stone. She strikes up a friendship with two black maids and starts to write an expose on how the help are treated by their rich monster clients.

The movie starts out too cute and I was fearing that this would be a light as air, quirky trifle. The movie gets serious as the two maids take center stage and that is when the movie starts to soar. The first maid, Abileen Clark is the first voice in Skeeter's expose. Minny Jackson is the comic relief and she is fired by a rich and mean woman named Hily Holbrook. Both maids want to be part of Skeeter's story which will expose the abuse these women take.

Now Skeeter is the primary character but to me the least interesting one. I have been gushing about Emma Stone lately and she is good here but I am glad she was not the main voice of the movie. I haven't read the book but the movie is driven by and given it's power not from Skeeter but from Abigail and Minny. I feel that Skeeter is just the mouthpiece for the story and I didn't care much about her relationship with her mother. Strangely sometimes I felt that Skeeter could have been dropped from the story all together.

The Skeeter character didn't take away from my enjoyment of the movie and I actually am very happy that Skeeter wasn't much of a factor. This could have been one of those white people save the black people and give them a voice movie. It isn't and I think the writing is strong here because Abigail is the true voice of the movie and she is an amazing character I will never forget. She narrates some of the movie and she is the guiding force of this movie.

There is also a wonderful antagonist for Abigail and Minny in Hily Holbrook. This is a delightfully nasty woman and villain for "The Help" to have. Next to Abigail and Minny this is the strongest written character. She gives this movie a wonderful obstacle for the help to overcome. The second half of the movie keeps getting stronger and I was swept up in the conflicts and drama. This becomes a classic women's picture and a very strong Southern potboiler. I was moved by Abigail's struggle and her finding her voice. There is also another strong subplot with another memorable character that I will never forget. She is Celia Foote and she is a life force and the third strongest character next to Abigail and Hily.

Another reason the movie gets stronger is due to the amazing acting by veteran actresses and some new actresses that will now become stars based on this movie. Viola Davis is one of our best actresses and her performance as Abigail is powerful and quietly so. Bryce Dallas Howard will no longer be known as Ron Howard's daughter. Her performance as Hily is makes what could have been a stereotypical villain into a deep and complicated woman. She gives a powerful performance and creates an evil and vain woman that Hannibal Lector would love. There is a powerful showdown at the end between Hily and Abigail that will cement Howard and Davis Oscar nominations. Jessica Chastain gives a breakout performance as Celia. She is funny and charming and makes you fall in love with her goofy and strange character.

There are also great performances especially by Octavia Spencer who is very funny and bold as Minny. You also have the great Allison Janney, Sissy Spacek having fun and the legendary Cicely Tyson making a small impact. The male characters could be a weakness here but I didn't care, I was too wrapped up in the women. You notice I didn't mention my favorite Emma Stone
because her role is the least interesting but she is fine as always.

I loved this movie more and more as it reached it's conclusion and it got stronger for me. I had so much fun watching great performances by great actresses and watching full blooded female characters. This is what I would call a women's picture and not a chick flick. Let's retire that debasing description and call this kind of picture a women's picture. I am not used to strong female charactars being on screen. I am usually used to the shallow and thankless roles women are given these days.

This is a movie I think men would like even though women will drive this picture to success. The men I saw it with were laughing in the right spots and seemed to enjoy it. It is a crowd pleasing movie and there is a very shocking and funny scene near the end that brought the house down. I never understood why men who are into women wouldn't want to watch a movie about women. Oh well, "The Help" is one of the best movies of 2011 and of the summer. What a breath of fresh air!

'Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes'

2011-08-12T19:36:00.000-07:00
'Rise of the Planet of the Apes (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Amanda Silver, Rick Jaffa and Pierre Boulle
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Starring: James Franco, Freida Pinto, Andy Serkis, Bryan Cox, Tom Felton, John Lithgow, Tyler Labine

There is something unique and deep going on in "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" for a simple action movie. This is a huge upgrade on the very dissapointing and horrible Tim Burton remake. The deep part of this movie is due to a very special performance by Andy Serkis and some seamless effects. This is a great movie to look at and it has what I crave from most action movies and don't get lately, simple, effective action I can follow.

This is sort of a prequel to the 1968 "Planet of the Apes" which is a decent movie but not one of my favorites. I like this movie much better and I hope they follow it with another after film. Simply put James Franco plays Will Rodman who is experimenting with a drug that he thinks can cure Alzheimers which is afflicting his father. He experiments the drug on a chimpanzee he names Ceasar. Will grows attached to Caesar as the chimp acts more and more human after using the drug. As the trial goes all wrong Ceasar is locked up with other chimps in a zoo like facility.

Ceasar is a combination of CGI effects and a wonderful and expressive performance by Andy Serkis who played Gollum in the over rated "Lord of the Rings" movies. Serkis as Gollum was the best part of that trilogy and Serkis does a commendable job of giving Ceasar human emotions and some great facial reactions. It is a brilliant performance even more so for what Serkis had to go through.

"Rise" has a great build up setting up the story and making us feel for Caesar. Then the movie lets loose with the chimps escaping out in the open and being shot at. There is some great action and we can follow everything. The other performances are fine but this is not a movie that is going to show off James Franco's acting chops. Also Freida Pinto is gorgeous to look at but what a thankless role she is given. I didn't even know she spoke or existed after awhile. That aside "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is an effective, pure action movie that entertains us. It is mindless, light and over before you know it and I had fun with it.

'Terri'

2011-08-10T09:03:00.000-07:00
'Terri' (R) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer: Patrick Dewitt
Director: Azazel Jacobs
Starring: Jacob Wysocki, John C. Reilly, Olivia Crocicchio, Bridger Zadina, Creed Bratton

"Terri" is that rare movie about teenagers and high school that comes along once in awhile. It is not sunny or phony but instead captures the darkness and uncertainty of growing up as a teenager. It has very funny moments but it does not hold back in showing the serious side of being an outsider in high school. It is a thoughtfully written movie that has wonderful and natural performances and characters we care about.

Terri is an overweight teenager who has to wear pajamas to school because they make him feel more comfortable. He is mercilessly picked on by bullies who comment on his weight and are cruel to him. He is given a lot of attention to by the school principal who invites Terri to join him every Monday before school to chat and spend some time with him. Terri notices another weird kid who tears out his hair from his head named Chad who has his own appointment with the principal and there are others and something dawns on Terri. Terri gets mad because he finds out the priincipal doesn't really care about being friends with Terri, Terri is just part of an outcast group of losers who also have weekly appointments.

Terri becomes friends with Chad and it makes sense because in real high school kids that are outcasts can find real friendships with each other and it makes them feel better about themselves. Terri also sees a very pretty girl who becomes part of a degrading sexual act and Terri is drawn to her hurt. They start to pass notes to each other and the pretty girl likes Terri because he is nice to her. Terri and Heather connect because they are both nice people and nice to each other. Also realistic is the relationship between Terri and his uncle who is in the early stages of dementia. Uncle James is a lot for a teenage boy, who also has to deal with bullies and growing pains, to also handle.

In a dark but perceptive scene Terri invites Heather over to his house to hang out. Chad shows up drunk and starts to ruin Terri's time alone with Heather. All three spend the night together and experiment with some alcohol and the conversation starts to get very adult. I loved this scene because in so many high school movies these days you would not get a real scene like this. Most high school movies are shallow and more interested in jokes and phony situations. All these characters speak like real kids who are trying to grow into adults.

"Terri" unfolds and gets deeper and the characters become real and captivating and I love the performances. I loved the high school principal who is also a nice guy and at first we feel like he is too nice and his motives feel phony but we realize he is genuine and is another outsider who can sympathize with Terri. The principal is played by John C. Reilly and Reilly is amazing again. This is one of our best actors and he is just fascinating to watch and listen to. There are great scenes between him and Jacob Wysocki and Wysocki as Terri is also amazing. He gives a natural performance and nails the character down flawlessly. There are also great performances by Creed Bratton (TV's The Office) as Uncle James, Bridger Zadina as Chad and Olivia Crocicchio (TV's Rescue Me) as Heather.

"Terri" is a funny, sometimes warm, dark and perceptive movie about teenagers and school and it is a movie that sucks you in. You care about Terri, love his kindness, his relationship with the principal and there is no phony ending that feels wrapped up but a realistic ending with no easy answers. The movie moved me and I loved it's laid back tone and realistic dialogue. It reminded me of my all time favorite movie about high school from 1986 called "Lucas". That movie nailed perfectly what it is like to grow up as an outsider in a place where popularity reigns and "Terri" does the same. "Terri" is easily one of the best written movies of 2011.

'Crazy, Stupid, Love'

2011-08-03T20:23:00.000-07:00
'Crazy, Stupid, Love'  (PG-13) (rental)

Writer: Dan Fogelman
Directors: Glenn Ficarra and John Requa
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Analeigh Tipton, Jonah Bobo,
Kevin Bacon, John Carroll Lynch, Marissa Tomei

I really wanted to like "Crazy, Stupid, Love but I was annoyed how the movie keeps taking great chances and ruining it with many fake scenes and an ending that is bad television. I actually cringed at the climax of this movie destroying some good performances and a chance at being a perceptive and realistic look at relationships. You have some likable actors but in Steve Carell and Julianne Moore they are given the type of roles each have done better before. You also have a sweet breakout performance by actress Analeigh Tipton and all is lost thanks to writer Dan Fogelman.

So why don't I want to pick on this movie and destroy it? Why am I rating a 2 star movie that fails worthy of a look on DVD or cable? I couldn't stand how the story wraps up and how many bad cliches pop up but I am a regular movie going critic and there was a lot I liked. "Crazy, Stupid, Love" starts off very well telling the story of married couple Cal and Emily who are separating. They have a young daughter and a son who has a crush on his babysitter and that forms another sub plot. Early in the movie Jacob sees a beautiful woman that catches his eye and he tries to pick her up and fails. Her name is Hannah and later on Hannah will figure in another subplot as she finally hooks up with Jacob. So now you have interlocking stories of love and writer Dan Fogelman connects them and I think he has seen too many bad sitcoms.

I love the characters in this movie because they are all decent and nice and even the womanizer and a home wrecker played by Kevin Bacon are decent. There are moments full of great writing and in the beginning I was liking what I was seeing. Though as the story unfolds it gets worse and worse with developments that are false and would never happen in real life. I felt that the characters were trapped in a maze and were pulled by strings. In the end they are not given any respect and the ending becomes a amateurish slapstick fest. I also hated the speech that Cal's son gives at his 8th grade
graduation ceremony. What happens during the speech and what is said is so fake and silly and that speech and the awkward slapstick ending made me cringe.

Now there are many reasons I would reccomend you check this out when it is released on DVD or when you run into it on cable. The movie is almost saved by two of our best actors working today in Ryan Gosling who plays Jacob and Emma Stone who plays Hannah. Their scenes together are the best in the movie and strangely better written than Carell's and Moore's scenes together. Gosling is an amazing actor and this is his first pure commercial romantic comedy. Check out his performance in the blistering drama "Blue Valentine" and then in this movie and you will see maybe our best actor working today. Emma Stone is going to be a major force and star and she just has that "it" factor that pulls you in and she always lights up the screen. These two actors, just based on their sex appeal and star quality, almost save this weakly written movie.

There is also a natural, amazing debut performance by newcomer Analeigh Tipton as the babysitter. Along with Gosling and Stone her performance is magical and her assured and captivating performance almost saves the movie. We are looking at a new major player in Hollywood equal to Hailee Steinfeld in "True Grit". I wish I could say the same for Steve Carell and Julianne Moore who get shafted here. Their scenes together are badly written and except for Carrel's early scenes with Gosling they are given stupid things to say and do. There are two movies in the same vein that showcased them better, "Dan In Real Life" for Carell and "The Kids Are All Right" for Moore. "Crazy, Stupid, Love" falls on it's face in the end and I have never seen a worse second half of a movie that started so strongly. I would not tell you to rush out and see this but if you want to see magical and electric performances that light up the screen then check out Gosling, Stone and Tipton in this movie. They are major game changers!

P.S. For much better romantic comedies starring these actors and better movies that "Crazy, Stupid, Love" resembles check out

"Love, Actually"
"Dan In Real Life" if you want to see Carell's best performance of his career so far.
"The Kids Are All Right"
"Easy A"

Speaking of Emma Stone, to me she has now inherited the throne passed on from Audrey Hepburn to Jodie Foster to Michelle Pfeiffer to Julia Roberts to Jennifer Garner to Rachel McAdams and now to Stone of actresses I have fallen in love with and you should too. Emma Stone like those actresses is captivating and amazing and the real deal folks!

'Cowboys & Aliens'

2011-08-03T19:44:00.000-07:00
'Cowboys & Aliens' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof, Mark Fergus and Hawk Otsby
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Paul Dano, Sam Rockwell, Keith Carradine,
Adam Beach, Noah Ringer, Clancy Brown

"Cowboys & Aliens" could have been such a messy and campy disaster but it is better than it should be. Many people laughed at the trailer for this movie and it is such a strange hybrid of movie genres. "Cowboys & Aliens" is actually a lot of fun, doesn't become too goofy and has a lot of great action scenes. Part of the credit should go to Jon Favreau's exciting and steady, serious directing and the straight faced and solid acting by Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford and the rest of the great cast.

"Cowboys & Aliens" starts off as a straight Western and if there were no aliens in the movie this probably would stand alone as a solid Western. Jake Lonergan, played by Daniel Craig, is found alone in the desert with a strange metallic contraption on his wrist and no recollection of how he got there. He is found by some townsfolk and taken to town where he meets up with various types including a doctor, a saloon owner, a sheriff and a very beautiful woman. Now the aliens come to attack and the loner has to team up with a Civil War veteran named Col. Dolahyde  and his wild, crooked son.

When the aliens attack for the first time all the townsfolk team up with Lonergan, Dollarhyde and the beautiful woman to fight off the attacks. When the aliens do attack the movie reminded me of the 1986 movie "Aliens" which is the best of it's kind. The aliens swoop down in spaceships and snatch people out of thin air with what looks like cables. I was happy to see that these abductions didn't look cheesy and that the aliens are really effectively scary! Daniel Craig is becoming a very solid action star with his steely blue eyes and Harrison Ford has a lot of fun. Also new emerging star Olivia Wilde is becoming a hot commodity. She has the most beautiful and piercing eyes which are hypnotic and I couldn't stop looking into them, I almost fell in a trance.

I also loved how the Indians, who are usually bad and fighting the cowboys, join them instead to both fend off the alien attacks. With "Ironman" and now this movie Jon Favreau proves he can direct great action, maybe he can teach Michael Bay how to direct. The cast is wonderful including the legendary Keith Carradine who was born to be in a Western and the great Sam Rockwell. I had fun and my eyes were glued to the screen with all the solid action and alien attacks. I was never bored and I was impressed by how the filmmakers admirably blend the Western and an Alien movie and don't shoot themselves in the foot.

'Captain America:The First Avenger'

2011-07-27T17:17:00.000-07:00
'Captain America:The First Avenger' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
Director: Joe Johnston
Starring: Chris Evans, Tommy Lee Jones, Hayley Atwell, Hugo Weaving,  Stanley Tucci, Dominic
Cooper, Toby Jones, Neal McDonough, Sebastian Stan

"Captain America:The First Avenger" is a breath of fresh air after the last few weak superhero movies and the horrendous "Transformers 3". This is what an action movie should look and feel like and I won't compare it to a classic but it reminded me of "Raiders of the Lost Ark". I am a little tired of the action movies and fantasies this summer. Everything is either so ordinary or so cluttered with bad action scenes that are a mess and make no sense. Here is an old fashioned action adventure and it is fitting that it is set in the 40's when movies were simply entertaining instead of over stuffed.

"Captain America" is part of "The Avengers" series of superhero movies coming after the fantastic "Ironman" and the so so "Thor". "Captain America" is probably the squarest of all these Avengers but the movie is almost as good as "Ironman" and much better than "Thor" and both Hulk movies. It tells the story of Steve Rogers who is a 90 pound weakling who enlists in the army. Steve is obviously too weak for the Army but through his determination and guts he is invited into a program run by Colonel Phillips. The Colonel does not see anything in Steve and thinks a joke is being played on him. Through a secret government experiment Steve is transformed into a hulking warrior and becomes Captain America. Captain America is born to fight a band of Nazis led by the evil Johaan Scmidt who will be transformed into an ugly and scary looking Red Skull.

One reason I love this movie is that I am a sucker for good guys battling Nazis. I also love that the movie is set in the 1940's and the look of this movie is beautiful. The cinematography is crisp, the art direction is meticulous and I love how Captain America uses his shield as a weapon. There are some compelling and rousing action scenes as Captain America uses his shield as a weapon. There is also a novel ideal here that most action movies in the past few years have forgotten, it keeps the action simple and you can actually follow what's going on. There are also some cool and awesome planes and flight sequences that are thrilling.

"Captain America" also thrives on what all great superhero movies thrive on, an effective and dangerous villain. While Steve Rogers is transformed into the beefed up and powerful Captain America, Schmidt is transformed into the manaical and creepy Red Skull. Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) is just right as Red Skull. He doesn't ham it up, he is effectively dangerous and he brings just the right amount of menace. Chris Evans plays Captain America and he is good but he doesn't command the screen and he is not as memorable as Robert Downey Jr was in "Ironman" and that cripples the movie a little. Tommy Lee Jones is as always great with his usual dry humor and coolness. Jones could play this role in his sleep and besides James Garner I can't think of any other actor that is as natural or as easy to listen to as Jones is. Hayley Atwell plays the love interest and she is attractive but like Evans she needed to make more of an impression.

So what you have here is a fun, old fashioned action adventure that has a great look and wonderful special effects and action scenes. You have the best villain out of any of the "Avengers" movies in Hugo Weaving and small, funny performances by Tommy Lee Jones and Stanley Tucci. The director Joe Johnston made another old fashioned superhero movie that I loved back in 1991 called "The Rocketeer" which I gave 4 stars to. That is a very under rated cult movie that also has Nazis as bad guys, some great cinematography and art direction and a sense of old fashioned fun. Johnston was the perfect choice to direct "Captain America". I also see a movie that is fun for the whole family to go to instead of this summer's crap that has been shoved down their throat lately.

P.S. If you stay in the theatre after the end credits you get to see a very amusing teaser trailer for "The Avengers" movie that comes out next year and teams Ironman, The Hulk, Thor and Captain America with a few others.

'Friends With Benefits'

2011-07-27T16:02:00.000-07:00
'Friends With Benefits' (R) (3 stars)

Writers: Keith Merryman, David A. Newman and Will Gluck
Director: Will Gluck
Starring: Mila Kunis, Justin Timberlake, Woody Harrelson, Patricia Clarkson, Richard Jenkins, Jenna Elfman, Bryan Greenberg

"Friends With Benefits" is a nice movie and that surprised me. When I usually call a movie nice it is not a compliment but in this case it is the movie's strength. The movie succeeds mostly on the good will and likability of it's two leads Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. Timberlake has become a comedy icon much to everyone's surprise with his wonderful appearances on "Saturday Night Live". Mila Kunis has lately become America's sweetheart much the same way that Julia Roberts was.

Timberlake proved he could really act in last year's best movie "The Social Network". Kunis held her own with the great Natalie Portman in last year's delightful thriller "Black Swan". In "Friends With Benefits" both prove they could do comedy just as well as drama. Both are extremely likable and what I loved most was the way they bounce lines off each other. They have such a winning and easy chemistry together. You want them to become a couple and for their relationship to last because you like them and believe they would be great together.

"Friends With Benefits" tells a story that was already told earlier this year with "No Strings Attached". That movie starred Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher as friends who don't want to commit to each other so they decide just to have sex. The earlier movie had a miscast Natalie Portman whose chemistry with Kutcher was terrible. Justin Timberlake is a much better actor than Kutcher and he just feels natural next to Kunis who is extremely adorable and sexy at the same time. "Friends With Benefits" has a better story and a much better cast. It tells the same kind of story about a couple, Dylan and Jamie, who meet through work, start to like each other but decide to just have sex because they don't have time for the emotional baggage that a relationship requires.

The supporting cast is also fun and likable including a very funny, small appearance by Woody Harrelson who now can start a wonderful career as a character actor. He plays a gay sportscaster and Harrelson fleshes out the role and has some classic lines that he delivers with cheer and energy. I also
loved seeing Jenna Elfman on the big screen. She is also likable and sweet as Dylan's sister and you feel that they are really family. There is also another solid performance by the best character actor in film these days Richard Jenkins. He plays Dylan's father who is in the early stages of Alzheimers and the movie starts to get a little serious. This subplot could have been maudlin and could have killed the movie's romantic momentum but thanks to the great Richard Jenkins I cared.

I expected "Friends With Benefits" to be a little raunchy and it has it's dirty moments but the movie is actually nice and light. It doesn't hit you over the head with bad romantic comedy cliches and bad, obvious jokes. It settles down and tells a story and it makes us care about Dylan and Jamie and all the people in their life. Timberlake and Kunis are extremely likable and the whole cast is engaging. You do know where the movie is heading and it is not a surprise but I didn't care. I had a good time and I was happy that I saw two very likable actors win me over. I wanted Dylan and Jamie to figure things out and I want Timberlake and Kunis to have very successful careers because they deserve it.

'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2'

2011-07-21T16:55:00.000-07:00
'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2' (PG-13) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer: Steve Kloves based on novel by JK Rowling
Director: David Yates
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Tom Felton,
Michael Gambon, Helena Bonham Carter, Warwick Davis, Jason Isaacs, Maggie Smith,
David Thewlis, Kelly MacDonald, John Hurt, Julie Walters

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is a very satisfying wrap up to one of the most successful film franchises ever. It is an all action, thrill packed answer to Part 1's moody, dark atmosphere and character development. Along with Part 1 it becomes my second favorite movies in the series next to "Prisoner of Azkaban". The movies get better as they get darker, let's say it is really about some unique kids growing up to be responsible adults. Take out the wizardry and magic and it is a simple coming of age story and a great one.

I have liked all but one of the Potter films and "Order of the Phoenix" got a 2 1/2 star review from me. That is not a bad batting average and it makes the Harry Potter films one of the best film franchises next to the "Mad Max" movies, the "Rocky" movies and the first three "Star Wars" movies. The first two Potter movies were cute, had more humor than the later movies but I wish they had a better director than Chris Columbus because,while very good, the movie's magic didn't match the magic of the books. I am sorry but the director of the over rated, horrendous "Home Alone" should not be directing Potter movies. The series became great with Azkaban which is the best movie of all of them but I couldn't have hoped for a better last two movies.

Part 1 was wonderfully dark with some beautiful scenes between the three main characters including a great kiss and dance sequence. The Potter movies succeed mostly on the rich writing by Steve Kloves who has done a great job of adapting the books. Kloves is one of my favorite writers and one of Hollywood's best and he adapts these iconic characters wonderfully. The directing gets better and David Yates does a great job in Part 1 setting a dark mood and getting us ready for the final battle. Part 2 is all action after a half hour of dull exposition and when it gets going it never stops. I love the sprawling and very well executed destruction of Hogwarts which is 100 times better than that horrible "Transformers 3" battle sequence. I also love the final battle where Voldemort and Harry use their wands to strike electric bolts at each other, I guess they are electric bolts.

Actually that final battle reminds me of the final battle in "Return of the Jedi" and to me Voldemort reminds me of the Emperor. Also "Deathly Hallows Part 1" setting up Part 2 is like the "Empire Strikes Back" setting up "Return of the Jedi". Though my favorite parts of the Potter movies are not the action and battles. I have loved seeing these three characters grow up before our eyes as I do watching the actors becoming mature and grow as actors. Harry is a good kid and we want him to over come evil. The movies are powerful because we care about the characters and we want Harry to fugure things out and vanquish evil. The dark Potter movies are better because there is something real at stake. I love the sly humor of the light Potter movies but I like the dark subject matter punctuated by humor more.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" could have used more humor but that is not the point of the movie. Part 2 is an action showcase that ends in a thrilling and fierce battle of good vs. evil. The Potter movies and books have been a wonderful shift in creating smart and intelligent material for kids instead of material that is dumbed down for kids. The wonder of a creative mind is a powerful tool for a child to have and the Potter movies enhance that tool. I like how Steve Kloves and most of the directors of these movies have captured what JK Rowling intended. I love the magic and darkness of the Potter movies, love the characters and Part 2 ends on a high note.

P.S. I was very impressed by an epilogue at the end of Part 2 mostly for how well they did with the make up and aging the young actors, it wasn't over done and cheesy. I only have one question and that is doesn't the epilogue hint at continuing the series in a new direction? Also I love how all the Potter movies have given all the legendary British actors rich work to do all these last ten years. Lastly, Hermione is my favorite character in all these movies and I think she is a great role model for young women, just saying.

'Horrible Bosses'

2011-07-11T13:12:00.000-07:00
'Horrible Bosses' (R) (3 stars)

Writers: Michael Markowitz, John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein
Director: Seth Gordon
Starring: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey,
Colin Farrell, Ioan Grufudd, John Francis Daley, Donald Sutherland, Julie Bowen, Wendell Pierce, Bob Newhart

"Horrible Bosses" is a vulgar male version of "9 to 5" and it is very funny mainly because of the writing and some flawless comic acting and line delivery. The movie weakens a little in the last half hour but I laughed a lot and I cherished the acting. The movie's plot is ingenious and surefire, three men fed up with their bosses who want them killed. The women in "9 to 5" had fantasies of killing their boss, these men actually try to have their bosses killed.

Nick, Dale and Kurt each have warped bosses and they all hatch a plot to kill each other's bosses. Nick is an executive in a fast rising company and is hoping to get a major promotion. The problem is that Nick's boss is an arrogant ass and terrorizes Nick. Dale is a dental assistant who is being sexually harrassed by his female dentist boss. Kurt's friendly boss passes away and the idiot, cokehead loser son of the old boss takes over and wants Kurt to fire all the fat people. The three men go get advice from a hitman played by Jamie Foxx who gives them advice on killing their bosses.

There are a series of very funny scenes dealing with the men trying to kill the bosses and they are all expertly played out by all the actors. Jason Bateman as Nick is becoming something special with his flawless facial reactions and delivery of dialogue. He is getting so great he is even surpassing Vince Vaughn as the master of line readings. When Bateman is in a good comedy no one can touch him. Like in a scene where Nick is being questioned about driving away from a crime scene there is a perfect reaction from Bateman and it is a small moment but something I remembered days later.

There are other special comic performances like Jennifer Aniston who has her best role and movie in years. She is required to carry out some very sexual scenes but she executes them perfectly, gets big laughs and never embarrasses herself. Jamie Foxx, like Bateman, gives one of the best performances in the movie and his facial reactions and line deliveries are just as flawless and special as Bateman's.
My favorite part of the movie is when the three men get together with Foxx and talk about the plan. Foxx's character's back story and advice is extremely funny and clever. Also the name of Foxx's character can not be told here but when his name is called in simple line readings all the time it is hilarious and I laughed every time. Kevin Spacey is also perfect as the arrogant boss of Nick and Spacey can do this role in his sleep but that doesn't make his performance any less special. Also funny is a unrecognizable Colin Farrell as Kurt's boss, Farrell is becoming a great comic actor.

The movie is stolen by someone who I predict will be a major comedy star and very soon. Charlie Day, from "It's Sunny in Philadelphia" is amazing and hilarious and his reactions and handling of the sexual harrassment material is flawless. He is the outraged character who has that perfect voice where when he gets mad he sounds like he is reaching puberty. Charlie Day gives a star making and wonderful comic performance and every scene he is in and every reaction he gives is comic gold. In the end of the movie when Day shouts at his boss and gets even it is a show stopping moment that will have the crowd cheering. I loved the small moments in this movie that were subtle more than I like the physical stuff. Though I loved the best physical comedy scene where Day tries to slide under a closing garage door.

This is a movie where if the acting wasn't so great it would have failed though the first hour of the movie is very well written. The special acting carries the day and Bateman, Spacey, Day, Sudeikis (the best use of him in a movie so far) and Foxx are comic perfection. I just want to watch the movie again for the acting and some of the brilliant dialogue and that is something you can't say about most comedies these days. It is not "Bridesmaids" funny, nothing will be for awhile now, but I liked it a lot.
It at least blows away "Bad Teacher" and "Hangover 2" for good comedy and you will have a fun time. Kudos to Charlie Day and Jason Bateman, these are expert comedy actors and possible future legends.

'A Better Life'

2011-07-11T11:37:00.000-07:00
'A Better Life' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writer: Eric Eason
Director: Chris Weitz
Starring: Damian Bechir, Jose Julian

"A Better Life" is a simply touching story of a father and son out of touch who through a series of events become closer to each other. There are no surprises in this movie and you know where it is going but the great, natural acting and powerful, heartbreaking ending make it work. It is also a much better look at our economy and the lower middle class who struggle in it then the phony and artificial "Larry Crowne". It also takes time to comment on our border situation and immigration but the movie never preaches.

"A Better Life" tells the story of father and son Carlos and Luis Galindo who live in a very small house in California. Luis's mother has passed away so it is now just him and his father and Luis goes to school when he wants to. Carlos tries to make ends meet working as a laborer for a friend and when the friend goes back to Mexico Carlos borrows money from his sister to buy his friend's truck. Then Carlos can get his own labor help and travel to jobs in his truck. Carlos worries that Luis is getting involved with gangs and that he is skipping too much school. Carlos picks a laborer from a group on the street and when doing a job the man steals his truck.

Carlos goes back home drunk and despondent and Luis learns of his father's fate and becomes concerned. Luis goes with Carlos to find the truck and the man who stole it. Carlos is striving to achieve the American Dream starting his own business with his own tools and truck. What becomes more important later is that Carlos and Luis will become closer as father and son. What happens on Carlos and Luis's journey is predictable in spots but the movie is always intriguing. The acting is also special especially by Damian Bechir as Carlos. It is a very quiet, subtle and solid performance and it is beautifully played by Bechir.

The movie reminded me of an older, foreign classic from 1948 "The Bicycle Thief" by Vittorio DeSica that I studied in film class. If you have not seen that classic you should check it out, it is something special. That movie dealt with a father and son looking for the man who stole the father's bike. "A Better Life" is similiar in storyline but that didn't bother me because I loved the performances, the realistic feel of the story and the beauty of the relationship between father and son. There is a beautiful, touching and powerful scene at the end where Carlos explains what he wants for his son in his future. It is expertly played by Bechir and it will probably make everyone in the audience cry. "A Better Life" is a   touching, very well acted and directed movie that makes us feel something.

'Larry Crowne'

2011-07-06T10:11:00.000-07:00
'Larry Crowne' (PG-13) (2 stars)

Writers: Tom Hanks and Nia Vardalos
Director: Tom Hanks
Starring: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Bryan Cranston, Cedric the Entertainer, Gugu Mbatha-Raw,
Wilmer Valderrama, Pam Grier, Rita Wilson, Ian Gomez

"Larry Crowne" has two of our most exciting movie stars so why is it so lifeless, flat and dull? The blame has to go with writer and director Tom Hanks who has made a movie that just falls flat with a screenplay that is amazingly shallow. Nia Vardalos is the co-writer so maybe that is it because she is not a strong cinematic writer even with her over rated "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". The story fails on two levels, as a romantic comedy and as a statement on going back to school late in life and our economy.

I never believed one second of this movie and the writing is so conventional and phony. Tom Hanks plays Larry Crowne who is a mid manager at a Target like store and is a popular employee but has never been promoted. He is called in and his bosses inform him he is being laid off because he never went to college. He decides to enroll in community college and so far the movie establishes what it is trying to be. It is going to tell a serious story about a man in his 50's going back to college to better himself. He takes a few classes including the best part of the movie, an economics class taught by a hilarious George Takei.

He also takes a speech class taught by a pretty much miscast Julia Roberts. She hates her teaching job, has a lout of a husband and drinks a lot. Of course since she is Julia Roberts and Hanks is Hanks you know a romance will start. So you have a romantic comedy and a socially concious movie. The social part is weak in that I never felt that any of Larry's classes seemed real. Julia Robert's character has to be the worst teacher I have ever seen and her class the worst I have ever seen taught. Her class plan is like no other speech class I have seen and I have taken a few. In the end I couldn't see any way that Larry learned anything from this class. I also never felt by the end of the movie that larry became a better person either.
Now the romantic comedy part is even more dissapointing considering you have freaking Julia Roberts with Tom Hanks! There is the awkward first meeting, a meet cute later and then a scene where Crowne picks up his drunk teacher and gives her a ride home on his scooter. They go back to her place and kiss and it has to be the most awkward and dumbest kisses I have ever seen in a movie. Then when Julia Roberts has a witty one liner the movie's score drowns out what she says. Later, of course, Hanks and Roberts get together and I never felt any chemistry. They are totally wrong for each other and I never believed they were flesh and blood characters. I felt like they were sitcom characters and I did not root for them to get together.

The movie has not one real moment but there are some things that save it from being one of the worst movies of the year. I loved a subplot dealing with a very cute girl played by the engaging Gugu Mbatha-Raw. I actually wanted her and Larry to get together instead. Larry finds a scooter that will save gas and get him to work. He hooks up with the girl and her friends to form a scooter gang and she starts to fix Larry's cluttered life. She is the only real character in this movie that is stocked with cardboard sitcom characters even including the two main characters. I wanted a movie just about her because I was very bored with the two leads. Julia Roberts performance rises above the weak writing of her character. She is very funny but Tom Hanks is very dull in this movie and it is a weak replica of most of the characters Hanks has played in his career.

This movie wastes a perfect opportunity to be a winning romantic comedy with a message. How can you take two of our best movie stars and give them something that seems like it was written by a 14 year old. This is a by the numbers Screenplay 101 movie that drags along, has one cliche after another and has no pulse or comprehension of real life. Hanks is boring, Julia Roberts is wasted and you have a movie plot that can be seen on television for free much better on any sitcom. There is a better statement on going to community college on television called "Community" and it is extremely under rated. The comedy and romance are more real and fresh on that show and the characters seem like they connect. You know you are in trouble when your movie fails compared to a television sitcom.

If you want to see better movies like this rent a very fine little movie from 1983 called "Educating Rita" with Michael Caine and Rita Waters. Also for Tom Hanks as a writer and director check out the charming "that thing you do", a very fun movie that has way more life and charm then Hank's "Larry Crowne". Also you must watch "Community" on television which is a very funny show.

'Transformers: Dark of the Moon'

2011-07-05T21:26:00.000-07:00
'Transformers: Dark of the Moon (PG-13) (1 1/2 stars)

Writer: Ehren Kruger
Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington Whiteley, Tyrese Gibson, John Turturro, John Malkovich,
Kevin Dunn, Frances McDormand, Patrick Dempsey, Julie Whad good actionhite

I like the original "Transformers" movie and was shocked to find that I liked it. It is the only Michael Bay movie I like because it wasn't self indulgent and Bay actually directed a good action movie with a good sense of humor. I am not surprised that he has taken a pretty decent first movie and made two terrible sequels to it because he is Michael Bay after all. Bay thinks he has a science fiction epic here with a whopping 2 1/2 hour running time and an hour long battle at the end that made me want to run out of the theatre. This is a soulless exercise that is hard to follow and hard to care about.

"Transformers: Dark of the Moon" starts off actually pretty promising linking the first moon landing with the Transformers characters. That lasts ten minutes and then after that it is all downhill. The plot is basically just a battle of the Autobots vs. the Decepticons and Shia LaBeouf stuck in the middle of it. I forget Shia LaBeouf's character's name in the movie because there is no character development and they are all annoying. Also I can't really explain anymore plot because I checked out of this movie after a half hour. The movie ends on a huge battle and the destruction of the city of Chicago that gave me a huge headache.

I actually was impressed with how Bay captures the beauty of our city and without that quality this would be maybe the worst movie I ever saw. The problem was I loved looking at our great city but the battle is mind numbing and I couldn't follow any action. Bay is a terrible action director and he over stuffs his movie with too many explosions and hard to follow action scenes. The actors all shout, I couldn't care about anyone and I couldn't tell any of the damn robots apart from each other. The first movie was better because we got to know LaBeouf's character and the movie introduced us to each robot and gave them a sense of humor. Here the movie has not one ounce of humor save for the idiot parent characters. This is not a fun movie, it is depressing and too loud and dumb.

Michael Bay started this whole terrible trend in action movies and fantasies that I have repeated over and over again lately with my blog reviews in the last few years. I am sick and tired of these filmmakers throwing crap at the screen and action that has no rythym, clarity or thrills. Michael Bay thinks he is making an action epic here but his self indulgence kills this movie. Bay and others lately are coming off like they think movie goers are dumb so they can throw any crap they want at us and we will think we are being entertained. They think if we are not bombarded with wall to wall action we will lose interest. Movies like "Super 8" are the antidote to this, they make us care for the characters, set up suspense and action that we can follow. I try to make my blog speak for movie goers that just want to be entertained and are not too critical but I challenge any regular movie goer to find this appealing or entertaining.

At least the love interest in this movie is better and Rosie Huntington Whiteley is more beautiful than Megan Fox and she can actually act. John Turturro, John Malkovich and Frances McDormand all show up for comic relief but they all shout and come off the worst I have seen each one look in their career.
I only like the first ten minutes of this movie and seeing Chicago blow up on a huge screen but "The Dark Knight" is miles ahead of it in using Chicago as a location. There is not one entertaining frame of film in the whole mind numbing 2 1/2 hours. This is one of the worst action movies I have ever seen and it is one of the most boring and depressing times I have ever had at a movie.

On my negative reviews I would now like to add a new feature and that would be to give better alternatives to the movies I don't like. With "Transformers 3" I would suggest you check out the first "Transformers" movie to see how good this franchise once was and in theatres now "Super 8" would be a better movie to see because you will actually have a fun time. What a concept!

'Super 8'

2011-06-27T21:03:00.000-07:00
'Super 8' (PG-13) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer and Director: JJ Abrams
Starring: Kyle Chandler, Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Ron Eldard, Amanda Michalka, Ryan Lee,
Riley Griffiths, Gabriel Basco, Zack Mills

"Super 8" lovingly takes us back to the childhood action fantasies of the 80's and it is a respectful homage to Steven Spielberg's magical movies of that period. This has a little "Goonies", a little "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and a little "E.T.". It is never a rip off of these movies and starts to find an identity of it's own thanks to writer JJ Abrams and actors like Kyle Chandler and Ron Eldard. It also is very well directed, suspenseful and for once the creature when it is finally revealed didn't dissapoint me.

I love the overlapping dialogue involving the kids which is how real kids talk. Kids don't say something and pause to let another kid talk like they are reading a screenplay. Kids interrupt each other and don't let other kids respond or talk back. I love the performances by all the child actors especially Joel Courtney who plays the lead. He plays Joe who along with his friends shoot Super 8 short films and Joe does the make up. His father Jackson is the local sheriff played by the great and always dependable Kyle Chandler who is giving the best dramatic performance of any actor on television with "Friday Night Lights". He can be that movie star like Michael Keaton and Jeff Bridges (my two favorites) who are subtle and solid actors who you never see acting.

Jackson does not like Joe hanging out with his friends and their monster make up and foolish movies. The kids are filming a Zombie movie and they witness a train crash which is powerfully directed by Abrams. The movie looks like it is really taking place in the 70's and in that look it lovingly pays homage to one of my favorite Spielberg movies "Close Encounters" and it is a greatly played homage.
I also found the performance by Elle Fanning to be magical and I am looking at an actress that is making a statement. She plays Alice who Joe has a crush on and is playing the female lead in the kid's Zombie movie.   She has given good performances before but here she is mature, careful and graceful and reminds me of a young Jodie Foster. I love the scene where Joe applies make up to Alice and then when Alice is given a direction to cry on film we see the look of true love all over Joe's face.

'Super 8" has a great look, tells a compelling story with great characters and builds great suspense and terror. It is also beautiful looking and charming and it does well in paying homage to Spielberg's movies without seeming artificial. Some critics have complained that it rips off Spielberg's movies in a shameless way but I totally disagree. I have had a real problem with almost every action, animated, and superhero movie in the last 10 years with their numbing loudness, cluttered and confusing action and little character development. They all end in a jumbled mess and we stop caring about the characters. "Rango", "Kung Fu Panda", "Green Lantern", the Mummy movies, X Men movies, Sorcerer's Apprentice etc. all movies I don't care for at all. "Super 8" takes it's time, builds suspense, develops it's characters, sets a mood, specific time and place and in the end has a simple battle without explosions thrown at us without mercy.

"Super 8" takes us back to that magical era of the 70's and 80's where action movies and fantasies had a clear purpose. A time when movies created wonder, sturdy and likable characters and children who seemed real and talked like real kids did. The movie creates a magical nostalgia that made me feel like I was watching movies like "Close Encounters", "Back to the Future" and "E.T." for the first time. I want to see it again on the big screen with a big tub of popcorn, some twizzlers, a root beer and a full audience. This is miles ahead of any action movie or fantasy geared towards kids in many years. This is a movie for adults and kids and they will all love it equally. I wish more filmmakers would follow it's example and make movies that matter and that don't talk down to the audience.

'Tree of Life'

2011-06-27T20:16:00.000-07:00
'Tree of Life (PG-13) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer and Director: Terrence Malick
Starring: Brad Pitt, Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken, Sean Penn, Fiona Shaw

"Tree of Life" from the reclusive Terrence Malick can be a frustrating movie but Malick always makes the most haunting and beautiful movies of any filmmaker I know. "Tree of Life" has a middle section that is one of the best movies I have ever seen but it is bookended by a beautiful but frustrating beginning and ending. "Tree of Life" tells the story of the O'Brien family and the movie is set in the 1950's. The movie starts out with images of the creation of earth and they are surreal and breathtaking but they don't flow which I didn't mind. I only have a problem because I wanted to get to the heart of the material here which concerns the family.

Then the ending left me cold and frustrated when it looks like Malick is giving us a look at the end of the World where all loved ones meet at their final destination. I found it all haunting but then the movie gives us clips of Sean Penn, playing an adult version of one of the characters, walking by buildings on empty streets muttering something. I did not feel a sense of closure but maybe that is the point if this is Malick's vision of the afterlife. I had to see this movie twice to try to understand and enjoy more the beginning and end and still felt frustrated because the middle story is so beautiful and powerful. I love it so much that I felt even more that the beginning and ending took away from the power of the story of the O'Brien family.

Also at the first viewing I was annoyed by the narration which is mostly prayers recited by the main characters. Some say this is a very spiritual movie and some say it is very religious and I think it is very religious. I am an agnostic but that is not why I was annoyed, it just seemed distracting and maudlin. On the second viewing I changed my mind because I found great beauty and poetry in the prayers. Malick's story here is very personal and I think it is the reason the movie is so powerful. Malick  was obviously raised in a very religious family and the story is autobiographical. The most haunting, powerful religious experience I have ever encountered at the movies was "The Last Temptation of Christ" and this movie is equally powerful and religious.

The story of the O'Brien family deals with Mr. and Mrs. O'Brien played by Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain. Mr. O'Brien is a very religious man and tough minded father who takes out the frustrations of his career out on his kids especially his second oldest son played by newcomer Hunter McCracken.
We learn in the beginning that the oldest son has passed away and this is told to us in a powerful way and the movie starts to be amazing. Brad Pitt gives a subtle, powerful and solid performance and it is easily the best performance he has given in his career so far. Jessica Chastain is equally amazing, ethereal, beautiful and solid. This is a performance that can start the sky rocketing of a major acting carreer. If I was a casting agent and saw this performance I would sign this actress up in a heartbeat. Hunter McCracken, as the second oldest son, gives one of the most powerful and natural performances I have seen a child actor give on screen. He holds his own with Pitt and he never hits a false note.

The movie is also one of the most beautifully shot movies I have ever seen and that is true of every Malick film. In 1978 he shot in my opinion his best movie ever in "Days of Heaven" and "Tree of Life" is equal in every way to the beauty of that 70's classic. Malick uses two of the best technical talents in the business in Production Designer Jack Fisk and Director of Photography Emanuel Lubezki, two Hollywood legends. The middle story has some of the most truthful, real and hauntingly beautiful shots of kids playing and doing what they do naturally. You feel like you are really there watching real kids and the period recreation is flawless and majestic. I even saw my own childhood in all these shots. I love the family eating dinner at the dinner table and it made me ache to the days when we used to sit at the table with the family, eat dinner and let our dad talk about his frustrating day at work and scold us.

I love the middle section of the story dealing with the O'Brien's so much that I forgive all the things I find fault with in this movie. The Brad Pitt performance is one of my favorite performances of all time and you never see him acting. I fell in love with Mrs. O'Brien on my second viewing thanks to the beautiful Jessica Chastain and her subtle, haunting and graceful performance. I could see this movie over and over again for the family scenes and breathtaking cinematography and for the performances. I would probably fast forward through most of the beginning and tolerate the ending. Besides my problems with these parts I still find "Tree of Life" one of the best movies I have seen this or any other year.

'Midnight in Paris'

2011-06-27T19:18:00.000-07:00
'Midnight in Paris' (PG-13) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer and Director: Woody Allen
Starring: Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Michael Sheen, Kurt Fuller, Mimi Kennedy,
Carla Bruni, Marion Cotillard, Adrien Brody, Alison Pill, Corey Stoll, Tom Hiddleston

"Midnight in Paris" is easily Woody Allen's best comedy since 1984 and 1985 when he hit his peak with my favorite "Broadway Danny Rose" and "The Purple Rose of Cairo". Besides the thriller "Match Point" which is Allen's only great movie since "Crimes and Misdemeanors", Allen has been lost lately when it comes to his pure comedies. "Midnight in Paris" is for the Woody Allen fans who have missed the old Woody Allen who when he is at the top of his game is untouchable.

"Midnight in Paris" is also for the lover of the arts and it has something for lovers of books, art, movies and music. It is a pure delight for everyone and not just Woody Allen fans with it's charming storytelling, beautiful location work and incredible acting. This has a wonderful, big cast that has a ball playing real life artists. Owen Wilson is wonderful as Gil who with his wife Inez go on a trip to Paris. The couple meet up with another couple which include an insufferable bore, played wonderfully by Michael Sheen, who tries to one up Gil in telling Inez about  the history of Paris. Late at night Gil gets restless and decides to try out the Paris night life after midnight when something magical happens.

Somehow Gil is transported to 1920's Paris where he gets picked up in a car, travels to a hot night spot and starts to meet legendary artists. They include F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda, Salvador Dali, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Picasso, Alice B. Toklas, Gauguin, T.S. Eliot and one of my favorites filmmaker Luis Bunuel. The reaction of Owen Wilson is priceless and the actors playing these artists are all fantastic and what a cast! All in fine form are Kathy Bates as Stein, Corey Stoll as
Hemingway and my favorite performance by Adrien Brody who is hilarious as Salvador Dali. Gil goes back again, gets picked up by the same car and starts to fall in love with a woman named Adriana played by the beautiful Marion Cotillard.

"Midnight in Paris" is a pure delight and Owen Wilson surprised me by sounding like the typical Woody Allen like lead character. But Wilson also brings his own charm and he makes the character his own and it is one of my favorite Owen Wilson performances. The writing is sharp, funny and Gil's and Adriana's dance of flirtation is charming, touching and beautiful. This is also a movie that is a great history lesson and in a great way. I urge younger viewers to check this movie out instead of wasting their energy on mindless drivel like "Green Lantern" and "X Men: First Class", they will get more out of this movie. They will learn about the arts, laugh and fall in love with Paris. It is Woody Allen's best comedy in decades but it also has an appeal for non Woody fans especially if you like wit, beauty, charm and superior character acting.

'Bad Teacher'

2011-06-26T16:58:00.000-07:00
'Bad Teacher' (R) (2 stars)

Writers: Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg
Director: Jake Kasdan
Starring: Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Jason Segal, Lucy Punch,
John Michael Higgins, Phyllis Smith

"Bad Teacher" wants to be a raunchy comedy with heart I guess. The problem is the movie holds back and is not raunchy enough. The movie becomes sappy in the end with a happy ending but the beginning promises a lot of raunchy laughs. It feels like the studio wanted the filmmakers to tack on a happy ending. This movie is very uneven and I didn't laugh a lot. The previews make the movie look raunchy like "The Hangover". The movie is not raunchy enough and holds too much back. The movie feels choppy and over edited and never finds a groove. The performances though are really funny and good here and the movie lets them down.

I like Cameron Diaz here and she can be really funny as you can tell if you take a look back at something like "There's Something About Mary". I think she is funny here but she could have been much better with a funnier movie. Justin Timberlake has become a comic sensation thanks to his performances on "SNL". He is great here playing a nerdy schmuck and there is a scene where he dry humps Diaz fully clothed in bed and thanks to Timberlake's facial reactions it is the funniest scene in the movie. Jason Segal is also good here but he is the heart part of the movie and when he gets together with Diaz it is awkward and part of the fake tacked on ending.

The movie though is stolen by the talented Lucy Punch who plays a repressed goody two shoes teacher. She is extremely funny here and the reason the movie doesn't get worse. Lucy Punch has given some great comic performances lately and I hope someone writes a comedy just for her. I was waiting for "Bad Teacher" to go all out and become super raunchy but it is too timid. It never develops into anything really funny and tries to become a sweet movie with heart. There is a movie out now called "Bridesmaids" which is hilarious, raunchy and goes all out and then surprises us with it's heart and well written story. That mix of raunch and heart can be done very well and sadly "Bad Teacher" doesn't know how to get the job done.

'The Green Lantern'

2011-06-26T16:35:00.000-07:00
'The Green Lantern' (PG-13) (2 stars)

Writers: Greg Berlanti, Michael Green, Marc Guggenheim and Micheal Goldenberg
Director: Martin Campbell
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Tim Robbins,
Mark Strong, Jay O'Sanders, Angela Bassett

I was surprised about one thing while watching "The Green Lantern" and that was how strong Ryan Reynolds was as the title character. I expected him to ham it up and be miscast and make the movie cheesy but he doesn't, the movie does it on it's own. This is a dim, ugly and flat looking movie and I expect 3D to make it look even dimmer. I wanted to check with the projectionist to see if they needed to change a projector bulb. The Green Lantern has to be one of the dullest and least interesting superheroes in my opinion. "The Green Lantern" movie doesn't help that opinion because the movie is very dull and not interesting at all.

The creatures and characters in the movie are ugly and grotesque and not in a good way. This movie reminds me a lot of the terrible 84 version of "Dune" with it's dark, grainy, flat look and badly made up creatures. Look at a movie like "Hellboy" or even "Star Wars" to find grotesque creatures that are done right with personality. I couldn't differentiate any creature from the next in this movie. "The Green Lantern" is boring and I wish it would have just turned into camp like one of my favorites, the 1980 version of "Flash Gordon".

The saving grace of this movie stopping from it becoming a turkey is Reynold's funny and energetic performance and the main bad guy. The villain in this movie is weakly written but Peter Sarsgaard is amazing with his performance. He fleshes out this weak character with a performance that is deep and complicated. He doesn't ham it up and over do it and that is refreshing. He even scared me a little and made the character menacing. The movie just can't be saved though because like countless of other movies these days the ending is all explosions and bad action in the end. There is no suspense and no feeling of threat or real danger. Also the love interest in this movie has to be the most boring love interest ever in any superhero movie though it is not because of actress Blake Lively. This is the weakest superhero movie of all the latest ones.

'Mr. Popper's Penguins'

2011-06-26T16:01:00.000-07:00
'Mr. Popper's Penguins' (PG) (1 1/2 stars)

Writers: Sean Anders, John Morris and Jared Stern
Director: Mark Waters
Starring: Jim Carrey, Carla Gugino, Clark Gregg, Madeline Carroll,
Dominic Chianese, Jeffrey Tambor, David Krumholtz, Phillip Baker Hall,
Ophelia Lovibond, Angela Lansbury

What an excruciating chore it is to sit through something insipid and unimaginative like "Popper's Penguins". This is a family comedy that insults families. This is a comedy that is super dull, unfunny and dumb. The movie is just wall to wall bathroom humor, penguins taking dumps and creepy CGI effects. I think I counted ten times where the penguins go to the bathroom and one time where they dance and that is the whole movie. You can tell when the penguins are computer created and it comes off cheap and creepy. Jim Carrey is not funny during any moment in this movie. This movie has taken one of our funniest actors and made him pathetic and unfunny. He is going down that Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy and Robin Williams trap. That is where they make all these cloying family comedies that are all poop jokes.

Jim Carrey's career will be ruined if he doesn't stop making these comedies. The Farrelly brothers or Judd Apatow or someone who can write raunchy, funny comedy with heart has to write something for Carrey. In Penguins he is neutered and stifled and it is very sad. He can't even succeed in independent movies like the lame "I Love You Phillip Morris". I miss the old Jim Carrey and penguin crap like Penguins is not helping me.

'Beginners'

2011-06-26T15:44:00.000-07:00
'Beginners' (R) (3 stars)

Writer and Director: Mike Mills
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Melanie Laurent, Goran Visnjic

"Beginners" took an hour to grow on me but it becomes a solid movie with two beautiful and understated love stories. The performances are also amazing here including the best performance of Ewan McGregor's career so far. The first hour of this movie annoyed me sometimes with it's quirky humor and cuteness. The movie is too light and choppy and starts to become a Woody Allen rip off. The music in the movie is the same type of movie Allen puts into his movies. The movie's style too closely resembles the style of Woody Allen's "Manhattan" to me. Now a lot of people who see this might have not seen that movie but I fear the ones who don't like Woody Allen movies might not like this.

The good thing is if you stay with this movie the second hour comes more into focus and becomes grounded instead of the first hour's episodic nature. I really began to fall in love with these characters and felt the writing becomes smart and touching. Ewan McGregor is really good here giving a subtly powerful and moving performance. Christopher Plummer is Oscar ready here in one of his best performances. He is charming, funny and also subtly powerful like McGregor. The breathtaking Melanie Laurent is wonderful here and is an actress to look out for. Her work is miles different here from her wonderful and brave performance in "Inglorious Basterds". She is beautiful but also can act and makes you feel for her character.

You want McGregor and Laurent to get together and make things work. You want the father and son played by McGregor and Plummer to understand each other more. I like McGregor's soul searching journey in the second half which is touching. He is trying to understand his parent's marriage and not letting the same thing happen with his relationship now. There are some wonderful flashbacks when McGregor's character looks back on his time with his mother. "Beginners" nicely settles down in the second hour and starts to get it's own identity. I grew to love the characters, absolutely love the performances and to start to feel something. I just wished the first hour wasn't so cloying and cute.

'X Men:First Class'

2011-06-26T15:17:00.000-07:00
'X Men: First Class' (PG-13) (2 stars)

Writers: Ashley Miller, Zack Stentz, Joe Goldman and Matthew Vaughn
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Starring: Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, January Jones, Nicholas Hoult,
Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, Jennifer Lawrence, Oliver Platt, Zoe Kravitz

I am getting sick and tired of these X Men movies and they are starting to over stay their welcome. "X Men:First Class" is a vast improvement over the headache inducing turkey Wolverine movie but that is not saying much. I like the cold style of First Class and what it tries to do with a story that plays out like a James Bond movie. I was with this movie the first hour until it did what every action and superhero movie has done lately. It becomes a movie that drops characters and style and becomes cluttered with explosions and action I couldn't follow. The action scenes here are the same old stuff with no originality. The movie becomes a waste of time because you know where the story is going and there are no surprises. This is a movie that becomes style over substance.

Now I do like a few things in this movie that don't have to do with the writing. I like the style of the movie and it's 60's setting and production design. I really like Kevin Bacon who is a wonderful and wickedly evil bad guy. There are also two stand out performances by two soon to be huge movie stars who can damn act. Michael Fassbender is solid and wonderful as Magneto, this actor is building quite a resume lately. He is an extremely good looking and sexy actor who can really act. Jennifer Lawrence has done amazing performances in movie after movie. She is an incredible actress who brings so much to her shallowly written character here. "Winter's Bone", "The Beaver", these are two of the best performances you will see by an actress today and she is the best thing here along with Fassbender. Then on the other end is the cold, stiff and bad performance by January Jones. I hate to say this but she alone pretty much kills this movie all by herself.

'Kung Fu Panda 2'

2011-06-26T14:58:00.000-07:00
'Kung Fu Panda 2' (PG) (3 stars)

Writers: Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger
Director: Jennifer Yuh
Voices: Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Oldman,
Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, James Hong, Michelle Yeoh,
Danny McBride, Dennis Haysbert, Jean Claude Van Damme, Victor Garber

I found "Kung Fu Panda 2" to be much more enjoyable and entertaining than the original. I am not a big fan of the first movie because I found it noisy, shallowly written and a knockoff of a Saturday Morning cartoon show from the 70's. Watch a "Hong Kong Phooey" episode and you get the same effect. The sequel has more heart, richly drawn characters and a killer cast of great actors doing sublime voice work. Dustin Hoffman is amazing, Jack Black is funny and I felt that the movie settles down and tells a story full of heart. The first movie didn't have much of a heart and just was wall to wall action. I had a much better time watching the sequel and wasn't bored like I was with the first movie. A sequel that improves on the original always makes me happy.

'The Hangover 2'

2011-06-26T14:41:00.000-07:00
'The Hangover 2' (R) (2 stars)

Writers: Craig Mazin ,Scot Armstrong and Todd Phillips
Director: Todd Phillips
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galfianakis, Ken Jeong, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha, Paul Giamatti, Mason Lee, Mike Tyson, Jeffrey Tambor

At first I was going to write a scathing review of "The Hangover 2" but it is what I would expect from a movie that copies the same set up of plot points from it's original. If you are only going to add more outrageous gross out humor that isn't funny then you are going to fail. Sorry folks the female prostitute that turns out to be a man isn't new or funny. The movie is funny only in smaller asides and quips by Galfiniakis. He is funny but the gross out gags are never inspired or funny, just gross. Ed Helms is also good because he is the only character that is likable. Now that wouldn't matter if this movie was funny like the original. Ken Jeong returns and was funny in the original but excruciating, annoying and not funny in this sequel.

The movie is also missing some female character that can bring something else like Heather Graham in the original. I only laughed when Galfiniakis said something funny and I really like Helms. The other problem is the movie brings back Mike Tyson but doesn't add any new funny cameos from any other pop icons. So what you have here are lame jokes, outrageous sight gags that are sick, icky and not funny and made me feel sick and uneasy. There is no fresh humor, just recycled stuff from the original that is notfunny or creative. The only funny sight gag involves a severed body part. Also when you have a great comic actor like Paul Giamatti as a gangster and give him a lame character that isn't funny you waste a golden opportunity. So the people who liked this sequel and think I am wrong and closed minded watch both movies later on and you might find I am right.

'Meek's Cutoff'

2011-05-23T19:17:00.000-07:00
'Meek's Cutoff' (PG) (rental)

Writer: Jonathan Raymond
Director: Kelly Reichardt
Starring: Michelle Williams, Bruce Greenwood, Shirley Henderson, Zoe Kazan,
Will Patton, Paul Dano, Neal Huff

"Meek's Cutoff" is a different kind of Western and I love how unconventional it is. There is a great impending doom being built up in the story but when it all ends I felt unsatisfied. The director is Kelly Reichardt and she is a bold new director who has been praised heavily. I didn't get the hype over her first movie "Old Joy" which didn't work for me. I didn't get or have any interest in the characters. But I loved Reichardt's next movie "Wendy and Lucy" with an earth shattering performance by Michelle Williams. With "Meek's Cutoff" I am back to the I don't get it "Old Joy" position.

"Meek's Cutoff" tells the story of a group of settlers in 1845 Oregon traveling in harsh conditions. They pick up another traveler, an Indian who seems to be dangerous and keeps this group on their heels. The lead male Meek is played by Bruce Greenwood and he is mean to the Indian. This is nicely balanced by one of the female settlers played well again by the great Michelle Williams. She is kind, feeds the Indian and sews a hole in one of his shoes. The Indian starts to lead the settlers but are they heading into an ambush by more Indians or are they reaching a dead end?

I do like that feeling of danger and Reichardt does an effective job setting that up. I like the Michelle Williams character but no other character registers and maybe that is the point. The major strength of this movie making it worth the rental on HD DVD is the excellent cinematography. It is not stunning but the location work is incredible making us feel like we are there back in 1845. It is not glamorous but the camera flawlessly captures the rustic, gritty part of that old West that many Westerns these days don't do.

I loved the look of the movie but I can't fully recommend it because the movie doesn't go anywhere for me and I know that is not the point. There are no easy answers and no final wrap up that comes to a complete end and I usually love that. I liked the movie when I was watching it but walking out of the theatre I just felt nothing. I felt like I was missing something vital and when a style of ending that I usually love leaves me cold I knew that the movie didn't affect me positively or negatively.

P.S. Check it out at home though because for the adventurous viewer it might be rewarding. In my opinion an unusual Western that is much more effective is 2005's "The Proposition" with a powerful performance by Ray Winstone, very powerful stuff.

'Everything Must Go'

2011-05-23T11:50:00.000-07:00
'Everything Must Go' (R) (3 stars)

Written by Dan Rush based on a short story "Why Don't You Dance" by Raymond Carver
Directed by Dan Rush
Starring: Will Ferrell, Rebecca Hall, Christopher Jordan Wallace, Laura Dern,
Michael Pena

"Everything Must Go" shows a different side of Will Ferrell that we have seen before. He has gone the serious route in a light way in "Stranger Than Fiction". This time he is in a more melancholy movie that might test a viewer's patience. The movie is not about anything deep and it takes it's time but Will Ferrell is amazing! His performance should definitely be looked at for award consideration.

"Everything Must Go" tells the story of Nick Halsey who is an executive who has just been fired. He is also a recovering alcoholic who relapses after he is fired and comes home to find out his wife has left him and left his belongings on the front lawn. She changes the locks and through a few freak events his car is repossessed. He is lost at first but a young neighbor kid comes along and Nick recruits him to help him. Nick wants to have a garage sale of his possessions and get his life back in order.

Nick also meets a pregnant wife who lives across the street from him. Her name is Samantha played by the wonderful Rebecca Hall. There is an attraction and connection there but at first everything comes off awkward. They develop a friendship and go to dinner but their relationship is rocky sometimes. As the movie settles down not much happens after the first half hour. This is not a very deep or great movie but I loved it for Rebecca Hall and the kid played by the appealing Christopher Jordan Wallace.

The movie affected me mostly by seeing how wonderful Will Ferrell's performance is. This is one of the best portrayls of a recovering alcoholic reminding me of my favorite portrayl of an alcoholic by Micheal Keaton in 1988's "Clean and Sober". That is the best performance ever and Will Ferrell is almost as great. It is a tender performance, subtle, impeccable and touching. I would love to see Ferrell balance his funny blockbusters with rewarding dramas like this. Yes he will be compared to a Jim Carrey or a Robin Williams or other comedic actors who have stretched with dramatic roles. We must not forget the fact that Ferrell can do this drama thing in his sleep, he has already accomplished it. What is so great is you will forget that this is Will Ferrell after about 10 minutes.

'Jumping the Broom'

2011-05-23T10:46:00.000-07:00
'Jumping the Broom' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Elizabeth Hunter and Arlene Gibbs
Director: Salim Akil
Starring: Paula Patton, Laz Alonso, Loretta devine, Angela Bassett,
Mike Epps, Romeo, Tasha Smith, Megan Good, Julie Bowen, DeRay Davis,
Gary Dourdan, TD Jakes

Getting ready for a marriage is such a strange, stressful and ridiculous
ritual. What with the rehearsal dinner, the preparation, who to invite. If the significant others haven't met the other's parents it can be humiliating also. This strange dance I think is the same between all races and I am always for the elopement strategy. The perceptive new movie "Jumping the Broom" does a good job capturing this though sometimes the movie is exaggerated for effect. This is an appealing movie with a good cast and characters, some we might not like but we understand.

"Jumping the Broom" tells the story of Sabrina who we first see being played by a man after they have slept together. She finally meets Jason who she runs over with her car but they are instantly attracted to each other. After just a few months they become engaged and Sabrina has found her man. As they prepare their wedding Sabrina and her parents have not met Jason's family. They all get together at Sabrina's upper class parent's home on the lake for the wedding. After that there are some interesting plot developments.

Jason's family is very blue collar so we know at first there will be many cultural differences. Jason's mom brings her best friend along and the rest of the family. Mrs. Taylor does not like the snooty and rich Watsons especially Mrs. Watson. The rest of the film deals with the wedding preparation and the uneasiness between the Taylors and Watsons. Something shocking develops that I will not reveal and at first I didn't like this shift in the plot. After a while though it made the movie deeper than just a fluffy comedy. There are many important moral questions here that are asked and I felt the movie handled them well.

This is a movie produced by the Reverend TD Jakes and that is why the movie deals heavily with morality. TD Jakes is like a quieter, less showy version of Tyler Perry. Tyler Perry's biggest problem is the campy and over the top melodrama. His movies while entertaining can be exaggerated and fake and it would have taken the morality and made it highly theatrical. It took me about a dozen tries for me to fully like a Tyler Perry movie. With Jakes it took me just one try with his very good movie "Not easily Broken" and now with this second movie he is batting 100 for me.

Paula Patton has such a great smile, she is strikingly beautiful but always comes off as humble. She does a great job here and I hope she gets more opportunities to be a lead in many more movies. Angela Bassett is great as always and I love Loretta Devine here who is funny and when her character does something evil we don't hate her. The supporting cast is fine and Laz Alonso as Jason is fine though there is no star potential there like Patton has. Actually Gary Dourdan (TV's CSI) has breakout star potential as does his co star Megan Good. They form a very sexy subplot and I actually wouldn't mind a spin off movie based on them.

"Jumping the Broom" has it's problem but it's humor is appealing and I liked it's frankness and how it deals with relationships and morals. This is a movie about family and I like the messages Jakes is supplying with his movies as opposed to the sometimes minstrel show by Tyler Perry. It has a wonderful actress in Paula Patton, two reliable greats in Devine and Bassett and two sexy, promising future stars in Gary Dourdan and Megan Good. It also does not waver in it's appeal even when it gets very serious.

'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'

2011-05-20T17:57:00.000-07:00
'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' (PG-13) (2 stars)

Writers: Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio
Director: Rob Marshall
Starring: Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane,
Keith Richards, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Kevin McNally, Sam Caflin

I admire the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies but I don't embrace them. When the first one came out I was surprised how good it was since it was based on a Disney theme ride (Remember "The Country Bears" movie?). The first one was fun thanks to the rip roaring old fashioned adventure and especially for Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow. Sparrow has become an iconic character in movies and deservedly so. Johnny Depp was amazing, funny and larger than life but the Pirate movies to me don't match his greatness.

The first movie was light fun but didn't deserve the cultural icon status it got. The two sequels were overlong, self indulgent and the action scenes were a mess. I don't get why the filmmakers think an action adventure fantasy needs to be over two and a half hours long! There was false ending after false ending and I couldn't follow any of the action. The fourth installment of the franchise is a step up from the two sequels but this gets old fast. There is nothing Depp does here as Sparrow he hasn't done umpteen times in the other movies. There has to come a time when a franchise has to end and this one has to end. A fourth or fifth movie in a franchise can be done very well, look at "The Fast and Furious" franchise. They came back this year and made the best movie in the series.

I don't need to explain the plot for it is basically Sparrow chasing after the fountain of youth. This time he teams up with an old flame Angelica played by Penelope Cruz who adds beauty but no personality here. Also in the chase are old adversary Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) and new adversary Blackbeard (Ian McShane). There are a lot of swordfights and not one is different from the other. The direction is cluttered, the tone is darker which I actually liked but fans might find too dark. The movie takes place at night in the dark 3/4 of the time and Depp has played out the Sparrow character, I didn't laugh once. The movie has some beautiful visual 3D effects but the story drags a lot of the time.

The only sequence I loved was when the mermaids show up. There is a breathtakingly shot scene where mermaids start to appear in the dark. The mermaids are beautiful and start to sing lulling the pirates to serenity. Then they turn out to be cannibal mermaids, the scene is too scary for kids but I loved it. That brings me to a very dull love story subplot where one of the young pirates falls in love with a captured mermaid played by the gorgeous Astrid Berges-Frisbee. The two though turn out to be boring and kill the story. Now a main reason I don't love the Pirate movies was because of the Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley characters. The two characters were dull and Sparrow should have had a bigger part instead of the supporting part. Think back to the other movies, you remember any of the other characters besides Sparrow and the villians? I didn't think so.

Now the filmmakers have replaced those weak characters with two new ones just as weak. I like this movie better than the last two because finally they make the Jack Sparrow character the main focus instead of window dressing. The only thing is the writers have not written a story that matches the greatness of Johnny Depp or the Sparrow character. The movie turns out to be serviceable but totally forgettable. The movie is way too long again and the action and adventure is uninspired. I also believe fans will find this the weakest, they will wonder where all the daylight and fun went.

'Bridesmaids'

2011-05-16T19:56:00.000-07:00
'Bridesmaids' (R) (3 1/2 stars)

Writers: Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumalo
Director: Paul Feig
Starring: Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Molly McCarthy,
Ellie Kemper, Chris O'Dowd, Wendi McLendon-Covey, John Hamm, Jill Clayburgh

The vulgar gross out comedy has been turned on it's ear with a little female empowerment! The boys usually get to play but now it's the women's turn in the brilliant, hilarious and touching "Bridesmaids". The movie has a great cast but the brilliant centerpiece of the movie is the amazing Kristen Wiig. She gives an awards worthy performance but also has co-written one of the smartest and funniest comedies in a decade.

"Bridesmaids" has to also be one of the best movies I have ever seen about friendship. The movie centers on the lonely and used Annie Walker who has a wonderful best friend in Lillian played by the underrated Maya Rudolph. Annie is also not lucky in business or in love. Her bakery has gone bankrupt and she is having a friends with benefits relationship with a louse wonderfully played by Jon Hamm. Her friend Lillian is getting married and now Annie is getting depressed.

Then Annie gets to meet the bridesmaids at a party and things get worse when she finds a rival for her friendship with Lillian. That rival is another bridesmaid, Helen Harris, and she is beautiful and so unbelievably sweet enough that you could get a toothache from being around her. In the first of a series of brilliant and side splitting scenes Annie tries to out do Helen in the congratulatory speech department. The other bridesmaids are brilliantly played by Ellie Kemper, Wendi McLendon Covey and Molly McCarthy.

Annie does find a romantic interest in a sweet and humble cop played very nicely by Chris O'Dowd. "Bridesmaids" is full of so many wonderful set pieces and hilarious scenes. What shocked me is how serious the movie can get and in a great way. This screenplay is so perceptive in it's look at friendship, love and committment. This is one of the best screenplays of the year and it is extremely funny and very touching.

Kristen Wiig has always been amazing on "Saturday Night Live" and is easily one of the funniest and most talented of this year's cast and of all the SNL casts in history. I was waiting for a big screen comedy to showcase how brilliant she is. When you are given lemonades like Wiig was given in so many movies like "Paul" go make lemonade by writing your own comedy. Wiig should be talked about heavily towards Oscar season but won't because Hollywood doesn't respect comedy performances. Her screenplay should definitely be nominated for it is the best comedy since "Superbad".

There are many hilarious scenes including one of the best gross out scenes since "Stand By Me" and "There's Something About Mary". All the women eat at a brazillian steak house and when they get dress fittings at a very expensive dress shop it is something special and extremely funny. My favorite scene had me crying buckets of tears something I have only done about five times in my movie going career. It is set on an airplane as Annie is given a pill to help her relax and then she is given a stiff drink. Her exchange with a flight attendant is priceless and right there if you don't believe Wiig is the Meryl Streep of comedy you definitely will after that scene and this movie.

There are more than a dozen side splitting scenes and the whole cast is pitch perfect. The movie is also stolen a lot by Molly McCarthy who plays the slob character Megan. She is not the typical large woman sterotype of comic character thanks to McCarthy and the screenplay. McCarthy also brings warmth and kindness to Megan making her a special character from the heart. But not only are McCarthy and Wiig brilliant, look at Rose Byrne's performance as the snooty Helen. It is a flawless performance and again like McCarthy she brings depth to the character as Helen becomes something more than first presented.

Add Ellie Kemper, Jon Hamm, Maya Rudolph, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Chris O'Dowd to this great cast and you have something special. I am not joking when I think Wiig should get awards love. Not only is she amazingly funny but when the movie gets serious she also gives one of the best dramatic performances of 2011. The movie has a lot of heart like the Farrelly Brothers earlier work and John Hughes movies. It is a side splitting, laugh till you cry comedy with deep and well written characters brilliantly played by a wonderful cast. Kristen Wiig is a national comedy treasure like Carol Burnett or Lucille Ball. I loved "The Hangover" but "Bridesmaids" I loved ten times more. I want to see this movie again, one of the funniest movies of the past ten years and the best commercial movie of 2011 so far.

P.S. Jill Clayburgh gives her final performance here as Annie's mom and I am glad I got to see her a final time. We will miss you!

'The Beaver'

2011-05-09T18:01:00.000-07:00
'The Beaver' (PG-13) (3 1/2 stars)

Writer: Kyle Killen
Director: Jodie Foster
Starring: Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence,
Riley Thomas Stewart, Cherry Jones

Yes, "The Beaver" carries a lot of baggage with it and it is not an easy movie to watch but it hit me like Thor's hammer. I guess it is how you can take the very offbeat, dark subject matter. Oh the movie does get very serious towards the middle but the screenplay is compelling and thoughtfully written.

"The Beaver" tells the story of Walter Black who is in a very deep depression when we first see him. He is becoming estranged from his wife and two sons. He is told by his wife Meredith to move out until he can come back and be there for his family. Walter finds a beaver puppet in a dumpster, wakes up the next day and starts to talk through his puppet. He talks to everyone, his wife, sons and co workers through this beaver puppet with an Australian accent.

So in describing the story of "The Beaver" you are probably thinking I am not going to see this weird, dumb sounding movie. What will surprise many who are looking for something challenging like me is how powerful and smart this movie is. This is not just a movie about Walter talking through a puppet. It is about how depression carries through generations of a single family. It is about a son trying to find acceptance from not only his dad but from a girl he really likes in school. It is about how a marriage can be challenged by a partner who can't cope with life.

After a little bit I even forgot about the plot device of the beaver for the movie starts to get deeper and goes off in different, wonderful directions. I love that the movie is not cookie cutter or simple, depression is not a subject matter that can be handled easily with simple answers. I love Jodie Foster and the fact that she takes on difficult subject matter to direct like this and movies like "Home For the Holidays".
This mirrors her acting career and Foster never acted in easy movies that were Hollywood manufactured. Now you know why she is one of my favorite actresses.

I love movies like "The Beaver" that a lot of people will hate but that I crave. I love being challenged, I like offbeat material that has no rythym. I like movies that look through life in a realistic way, life's problems are not handled like they are in a sitcom and most movies. I was also moved by one of the movie's messages that I also believe in. At first you might think the movie is awkward and fake for Walter bringing in the beaver puppet to cope with his depression. You think that a doctor would never prescribe something outrageous like this. I didn't mind it because I believe what Walter does. I am not a very pro therapist, psychiatrist, medication person. I think you can only help yourself because no one will ever know what is inside your brain, no one! Also no pill can fix anyone's brain and more importantly no pill can fix your life's problems.

Okay I will now get off my soap box and tell you what transpires in the middle and end of this movie that made me forget about the beaver gimmick. I loved how the movie looked at Walter's past, his father's depression and then at how his older son is also starting to feel the effects of depression. I loved the sweet, smart and well written love story between Walter's son Porter and a girl in school played by the wonderful Jennifer Lawrence. Lawrence again proves she is a special actress that will always be great and Anton Yelchin as Porter gives his best performance. Jodie Foster and Kyle Killen have taken a deep screenplay and made a great emotional and rewarding movie.

I will get to the elephant in the room and comment on Mel Gibson's performance as Walter. I really don't care what an actor says or does in his personal life short of rape and murder. If I cared about what an actor or a celebrity said or did in their lives I wouldn't be going to half of the movies out there. Mel Gibson gives a very brave performance and is very effective here. It did not matter to me about Gibson's private mistakes watching him here. I thought his performance was real and he takes what could have been a disastrous performance and turns it into gold. I also love that Gibson uses his Australian accent, something he hasn't used since 1982 in "The Road Warrior".

There are some very well written scenes between Walter and his younger son, Walter and his wife and also between Porter and Norah, the girl he likes. There are some powerful looks at depression, marriage and the relationship betwen fathers and their kids. At the end I even forgot how jarring the plot development of the beaver puppet made me feel at first. There is also a very powerful and well written speech by Norah at the end of the movie that is flawlessly acted by Jennifer Lawrence that blew me away and choked me up. As I am writing this review "The Beaver" has still got me thinking and getting emotional. I don't know how Foster has done it but she has made one of the riskiest stories into one of the best movies of the year.

P.S. Earlier in my review I mentioned Foster's acting career and the wonderful choices she made of challenging, offbeat, dark movies to act in. I also loved that she took those choices and transformed them into the type of movies she looks for to direct. I am suggesting some movies to check out that star Foster that a lot of people haven't seen and they are some of my all time favorite movies.

The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane (76)
Bugsy Malone (80)
Foxes (80)
Carny (80)
Five Corners (88)

'Thor'

2011-05-09T17:20:00.000-07:00
'Thor' (PG-13) (3 stars)

Writers: Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz and Dan Payne
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins,
Stellan Skarsgard, Kat Dennings, Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Tadanobu Asano

Thor is not one of my favorites of the DC Comics characters but the filmmakers of the movie "Thor" do a very good job. I wasn't expecting a movie that mixes Shakespearean tragedy with Greek Mythology. The movie is old fashioned, goofy fun without being heavy handed. There is also some very funny humor in the movie and a touch of class with the casting and director. "Thor" is a damn good time at the movies and the way a fantasy movie or superhero movie should be done.

The movie is effective and much better than the "Clash of the Titans" remake and the awful "Troy". Thor is banished from his kingdom by his father King Odin (Hopkins) for disrupting the truce between his father and the Frost Giants. He is sent to earth where he is run over twice, in two very funny scenes by a crew of scientists. I was very worried at the start of "Thor" because it seemed like it was going to be hokey and silly. The first 20 minutes of this movie are shaky and then things start to catch on fire after that. The movie has too much exposition and talk with some goofy special effects. Then I started to get comfortable with the look and the excellent production design by veteran great Bo Welch.

The special effects also become very cool, much better than the ugly, shoddy look and effects of the Titans remake. The movie also has a very good looking and charismatic lead in Chris Hemsworth. Hemsworth is very well built and great at action scenes but he is also funny and can act. The movie's ace in the hole is Natalie Portman who bounces back from "Your Highness". You know a movie is usually smart with Portman in it and her Jane Foster character is well written. She does fall in love with Thor but not blindly. The movie also has pedigree thanks to it's director Kenneth Branagh.

There were many great surprises for me that I did not expect in a superhero movie called "Thor". First with Kenneth Branagh at the helm you get some classic tragedy and Shakespeare influence. It was a masterstroke to get someone like Branagh to direct. He brings his Shakepseare background to a very solid story here about Kingdoms, families and honor. I also didn't expect a smart love story and a quiet scene where Thor and Jane sit under the stars and have a sweet conversation. Imagine a thoughtful moment full of good dialogue in a loud superhero movie?

The story leads to a very cool and explosive battle at the end that is fun, exciting and extremely well directed. The ending has it all in action, effects and goofy thrills. You also have some great supporting turns including the very funny Kat Dennings. "Thor" is smart, fun, sweet, exciting and gave me that feeling I got when I was younger and sat through awesome superhero movies like "Superman II", my favorite superhero movie. "Thor" and "Ironman" have the same kind of talent behind them, directors like Jon Favreau and Kenneth Branagh who take these stories seriously and that is very good indeed.

P.S. If you stay all the way to the end of the credits you will see more build up for the upcoming "Avengers" movie. I don't know what it all means but it is getting me intrigued and excited.