Short Reviews 2

Valentine’s Day

Director:
Garry Marshall

Writer:
Katherine Fugate

Cast:
Ashton Kutcher, Jennifer Garner,
Jessica Biel, Patrick Dempsey,
Jamie Foxx, Anne Hathaway,
Eric Dane, Topher Grace, many others.

Released: 2010
Studio: Warner Bros.
Box Office: $109,191,458 (as of 3/16/10)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 18%
IMDB Score: 5.7

Format: Theater

It suffered from trying to cover too many storylines. None of the characters were developed enough so that I could get past “Oh, that’s Julia Roberts.” or “Hey, he was in That 70’s Show.” The movie was entirely too predictable and cliched. Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner were terrible, but overall the acting was good.

Favorite Performance:
Bryce Robinson as Edison

Favorite Quote:
Franklin: Valentine’s day was a massacre in Chicago where lots of people were killed and they put a curse on the Chicago cubs.

Grade:
D

Dear John

Director:
Lasse Hallstrom

Writer:
Jamie Linden

Cast:
Channing Tatum as John Tyree
Amanda Seyfried as Savannah Curtis
Richard Jenkins as Mr. Tyree

Released: 2010
Studio: Sony/Screen Gems
Box Office: $78,782,986 (as of 3/16/10)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 27%
IMDB Score: 5.4

Format: Theater

I went into this one with pretty low expectations, and I got about what I expected. Channing Tatum cannot act. I have yet to see a performance from him that I would call passable. He really drug this movie down. Other than that, this film was an average date movie.

Favorite Performance:
Richard Jenkins as Mr. Tyree

Favorite Quote:
John Tyree: No matter where you are in the world,the moon is never bigger than your thumb.

Grade: C+

(500) Days of Summer

Director:
Marc Webb

Writers:
Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber

Cast:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom Hansen
Zooey Deschanel as Summer Finn

Released: 2009
Studio: Fox Seachlight
Box Office: $32,391,374

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 86%
IMDB Score: 8.0

Format: DVD

This one was very different from what I expected. Its about Tom’s and Summer’s relationship, but it doesn’t go through it in a conventional manner. It skips around in time and in mood. Its also not conventional in the sense that it doesn’t have a happy ending. (spoiler alert!) They don’t end up together in the end. I guess I just didn’t get it, but I didn’t like this one as well as the critics.

Favorite Performance:
Zooey Deschanel as Summer Finn

Favorite Quote:
Author’s Note: The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Especially you Jenny Beckman. Bitch.

Grade:
B-

Up in the Air

Director:
Jason Reitman

Writers:
Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Cast:
George Clooney as Ryan Bingham
Vera Farmiga as Alex Goran
Anna Kendrick as Natalie Keener

Released: 2009
Studio: Paramount
Box Office: $83,517,859 (as of 3/16/10)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 90%
IMDB Score: 7.9

Format: DVD

This is a movie about the art of firing people, but it’s also about so much more than that. It’s about finding out what are the important things in your life. Ryan Bingham is a “termination facilitator”, which means he gets hired by a company to come in and do their downsizing for them. He doesn’t decide who gets let go, he just gives them the news and sends them on their way.

He spends most of his time on airplanes or in hotels. Specifically American Airlines planes and Hilton Hotels. He is a very loyal customer and a member of their most exclusive clubs. He is on a mission to join another very exclusive club. The American Airlines 10 million miles club. His whole life revolves around getting those miles. One might think that his life is very lonely. He doesn’t see it that way. He gives motivational speeches about “unpacking life’s backpack”. About removing all unnecessary ties to people and possessions that just tie you down.

Along his travels, he meets another person like him. Alex becomes his one connection, his one item in the backpack that he doesn’t want to get rid of.

His life becomes threaten when the new college graduate in his company tries to revolutionize his job. She introduces video conferencing. His life is suddenly grounded. Ryan convinces his boss to let him take Natalie on the road to learn the ropes.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this film. It is very smartly written, perfectly cast, and superbly acted. I would highly recommend this to anyone.

Favorite Performance:
Anna Kendrick as Natalie Keener

Favorite Quote:
Ryan Bingham: Never get behind old people. Their bodies are littered with hidden metal and they never seem to appreciate how little time they have left. Bingo, Asians. They pack light, travel efficiently, and they have a thing for slip on shoes. Gotta love ’em.
Natalie Keener: That’s racist.
Ryan Bingham: I’m like my mother, I stereotype. It’s faster.

Grade:
A-

Short Reviews 1

Where The Wild Things Are

Director:
Spike Jonze

Writers:
Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers

Cast:
Max Records as Max
James Gandolphini as Carol
Forest Whitaker as Ira
Paul Dano as Alexander

Released: 2009
Studio: Warner Bros.
Box Office: $77,233,467

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 73%
IMDB Score: 7.5

Format: Theater

I was really excited when I found out that they were making a movie of one of my favorite books from when I was a kid. Then I heard that Spike Jonze was attached to direct. I hadn’t seen any of his films, but I knew that he had made some well liked movies. Then I learned that Maurice Sendak, the author of the book, was actively involved, and I became even more excited. Then I saw the previews on TV, they looked really good and I got even more excited.

I saw the film on opening weekend and I was slightly disappointed, not because it was a bad film, but because I had such high expectations. It was a little darker than I thought it was going to be. The cinematography was exceptional. They used real suits for the wild things and CGI’d in the faces later.

Favorite Performance:
Max Records as Max

Favorite Quote:
Carol: Hey King! What’s your first order of business?
Max: Let the wild rumpus start!

Grade:
B+

The Blind Side

Director:
John Lee Hancock

Writer:
John Lee Hancock

Cast:
Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Tuohy
Tim McGraw as Sean Tuohy
Quinton Aaron as Michael Oher
Jae Head as S.J. Tuohy

Released: 2009
Studio: Warner Bros.
Box Office: $248,953,327 (as of 03/02/10)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 69%
IMDB Score: 7.7

Format: Theater

This is a case of a movie taking an inspirational story and turning it into a cheesefest. What Michael Oher and the Touhy’s did really is exceptional, but what the makers of the movie did was play it up a little too much in my opinion.

Quentin Aaron did a good job playing the shy Oher, but Sandra Bullock is the one getting all the attention. She is nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards. I thought she overacted and her southern accent was off. That one line that was in all the previews where she says, “You can thank me later.” just grates on my nerves.

Favorite Performance:
Quentin Aaron as Michael Oher

Favorite Quote:
Leigh Anne Touhy: If you so much as set foot downtown you will be sorry. I’m in a prayer group with the D.A., I’m a member of the NRA and I’m always packing.

Grade:
B+

Paranormal Activity

Director:
Oren Peli

Writer:
Oren Peli

Cast:
Katie Featherston as Katie
Micah Sloat as Micah

Released: 2009
Studio: Paramount
Box Office: $107,918,810

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 82%
IMDB Score: 6.8

Format: Theater

First of all, I don’t like horror movies. I just don’t go see them. I can count how many horror movies I’ve seen on one hand, but I had to see this one. I waited and waited for it to finally come to my theater and I went to the first midnight showing. Holy crap! This was the single scariest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I’ll never watch it again.

It was shot for $15,000. That’s it. It took one week and one camera. If I didn’t know that the footage wasn’t real, I would totally believe that it was. If you want to see it, I would see it with a group of people because seeing their reactions really adds to the experience.

Favorite Performance:
Katie Featherston as Katie

Favorite Quote:
Micah: So you’d think a psychic would, uh, be on time. You know, like he could foretell if the traffic was going to be bad?

Grade:
A-

The Hangover

Director:
Todd Phillips

Writers:
Jon Lucas and Scott Moore

Cast:
Bradley Cooper as Phil Wenneck
Ed Helms as Stu Price
Zach Galifianakis as Alan Garner
Justin Bartha as Doug Billings
Heather Graham as Jade
Ken Jeong as Mr. Chow

Released: 2009
Studio: Warner Bros.
Box Office: $277,322,503

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 78%
IMDB Score: 7.9

Format: Theater/Blu-ray

The Hangover is by far the funniest movie I’ve seen this year. It’s one of the funniest movies of all-time. It’s right up there with The 40 Year Old Virgin as my favorite comedies. I don’t think I’ve ever so hard in my life. It’s so good, I saw it 3 times in the theater. I now have it on Blu-ray.

The film is about a group of friends (and they’re the 3 best friends that anyone could have!) going on a trip to Las Vegas for a bachelor party. Phil is a teacher, Stu is a dentist (paging Dr. Faggot!), Doug is the one getting married, and Alan is Doug’s fiance’s brother. The guys start partying in Vegas and wake up in their room hungover. They awake to several strange things in their room. For example, a tiger is in their bathroom (tigers love pepper, they hate cinnamon), a baby (he’s jacking his little weenus) is in their closet, and they can’t find Doug anywhere. The premise of the movie is Phil, Stu, and Alan trying to find out what happened. Their adventure takes them to a wedding chapel, Mike Tyson’s house, and a run in with a naked Chinese man (toodooloo, mother fuckaaaaaaaaaaas).

I can’t stress enough just how funny this movie is. It is the single most quotable movie in the universe. Yeah, the universe. I always do a favorite quote at the end of every post, and I’m doing one here, but almost every line in this film is my favorite, so I’ve included some as I go along. Zach Galifianakis totally stole every scene he was in. He is one of the funniest characters of all-time. Yes, all-time.

Favorite Performance:
Zach Galifianakis as Alan Garner

Favorite Quote:
Stu Price: What do tigers dream of when they take their little tiger snooze? Do they dream of mauling zebras, or Halle Berry in her Catwoman suit? Don’t you worry your pretty striped head, we’re gonna get you back to Tyson and your cozy tiger bed. And then we’re gonna find our best friend Doug, and then we’re gonna give him a best friend hug. Doug, Doug, oh, Doug, Dougie, Dougie, Doug, Doug! But if he’s been murdered by crystal meth tweakers, well then we’re shit out of luck.

Grade:
A

Major Update 3

Now that the new semester has settled in, you can expect me to finish what I started around Christmas.

Milk

Director:
Gus Van Sant

Writer:
Dustin Lance Black

Cast:
Sean Penn as Harvey Milk
James Franco as Scott Smith
Josh Brolin as Dan White
Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones

Released: 2008
Studio: Focus Features
Box Office: $31,841,299

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%
IMDB Score: 7.9

Format: HBO

I had no intention of ever seeing this movie because films about the struggles of homosexuals are just not my thing. But alas, I came across it on HBO. I was pleasantly surpsised. I knew it had been nominated for the best picture Oscar and that Sean Penn had won Best Actor. The reason that I don’t like this movie more than I do is (I’m just going to right out and say it) this movie is very gay. Sean Penn and James Franco making out is not something I ever want to see again.

Favorite Performance:
Sean Penn as Harvey Milk

Favorite Quote:
Harvey Milk: How do you teach homosexuality? Is it like French?

Grade:
B+

Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire

Director:
Lee Daniels

Writer:
Geoffrey Fletcher

Cast:
Gabourey Sidibe as Precious
Mo’Nique as Mary
Mariah Carey as Ms. Weiss
Paula Patton as Ms. Rain

Released: 2009
Studio: Lionsgate
Box Office:

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%
IMDB Score: 7.6

Format: Theater

Its about a 16 year old girl pregnant with her second child by her own father. She is physically, emotionally, verbally, and sexually abused by her mother. She can’t read or write. She gets kicked out of school. Her family is on welfare. But she finds a glimmer of hope and clings to that and tries to get out of her situation. Precious is a very difficult film to watch. Its not for everybody. It impeccably acted and it would be the biggest travesty in Oscar history if Mo’Nique doesn’t win.

Favorite Performance:
Mo’Nique as Mary

Favorite Quote:
Mrs. Lichtenstein: You’re 16; you’re still in Junior High School; and you’re pregnant with your second child. Is that correct?
[No reply]
Mrs. Lichtenstein: Are you pregnant, again?
[Mrs. Lichtenstein huffs, exacerbated]
Mrs. Lichtenstein: What happened Clareese?
Clareece ‘Precious’ Jones: I had sex, Mrs. Lichtenstein.

Grade:
A-

Moon

Director:
Duncan Jones

Writers:
Duncan Jones and Nathan Parker

Cast:
Sam Rockwell as Sam Bell
Kevin Spacey as GERTY (voice)

Released: 2009
Studio: Sony Classics
Box Office: $5,010,163

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 89%
IMDB Score: 8.0

Format: Blu-ray

I was slightly disappointed by this movie. I thought I was going to like it a little better. Its still pretty good though. It about a man stationed on the moon at a mining outpost alone for 3 years with nothing but a talking computer for company. I’m not going to give away the plot because this is not one of those films that even if you know how its going to end the journey is still fun. This is another difficult film to watch because Sam Bell is the only character on screen for 99% of the movie.

Favorite Performance:
Sam Rockwell as Sam Bell (by default)

Favorite Quote:
Sam Bell: You look like a radioactive tampon.

Grade:
B

Avatar

Director:
James Cameron

Writer:
James Cameron

Cast:
Sam Worthington as Jake Sully
Zoe Saldana as Neytiri
Sigourney Weaver as Dr. Grace Augustine
Stephen Lang as Col. Miles Quaritch
Joel Moore as Norm Spellman
Michelle Rodriguez as Trudy Chacon

Released: 2009
Studio: Fox
Box Office: $595,752,416 (as of 1/31/10)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 82%
IMDB Score: 8.6

Format: 3D Theater

Never before has a movie looked so beautiful upon a screen. The world of Pandora designed by James Cameron and his crew is so breathtakingly mesmerizing and stunning, that I can forgive the film of all its storytelling faults. Avatar is perfectly suited for the big screen. It is a spectacle meant to be seen in 3D. Cameron spent over 10 years working on this film, because he had to invent the 3D technology required to fulfill his vision. It has paid off with Avatar now being the highest grossing film of all-time worldwide, and within the next few days domestically, passing Cameron’s previous movie, Titanic.

Avatar is the best film that I’ve seen in 2009. Not because of the acting nor the plot, but because of the experience. I got so wrapped up with what was happening on the screen that the movie seemed like it wasn’t nearly as long as its runtime.

It’s the story of a crippled ex-marine, Jake Sully, traveling to the distant planet Pandora to take control of an Avatar, a body of the native Na’vi. The humans are there to mine unobtanium, an expensive commodity back on Earth. Jake’s mission is to befriend the Na’vi and to negotiate their relocation from a rich unobtanium deposit. The story is very derivative of several other films, most notably Pocahontas. Following is a link to a very funny Mad Lib comparing the plot of Pocahontas to the plot of Avatar:

Avatar Mad Lib

As I stated earlier, I can forgive the film for being unoriginal story wise, because it presents that story in such an outstandingly original way. Zoe Saldana did a remarkable job as Neytiri even though her character is entirely motion captured. Really my only gripe is that Sigourney Weaver’s avatar looks too human and not enough like the other Na’vi.

Favorite Performance:
Zoe Saldana as Neytiri

Favorite Quote:
Col. Quaritch: If there is a hell you might want to go there for some R&R after a tour on Pandora.

Grade:
A

Major Update 2

I’ve seen nine more movies since I made the last post a couple of days ago, so I feel like I might be fighting a losing battle, but I’m going to stick with it and try to get completely caught up. Also I’ve decided that a few of the films are deserving of full length reviews, so they will have their owns posts scattered in.

Sunshine Cleaning

Director:
Christine Jeffs

Writer:
Megan Holley

Cast:
Amy Adams as Rose Lorkowski
Emily Blunt as Norah Lorkowski
Alan Arkin as Joe Lorkowski

Released: 2009
Studio: Overture
Box Office: $12,062,558

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 72%
IMDB Score: 7.1

Format: DVD

Here is an average film about two sisters who start a crime scene cleanup business. It features strong performances by all the leading characters. It was fairly funny and kinda sweet. I don’t really know what else to say about this film.

Favorite Performance:
Alan Arkin as Joe Lorkowski

Favorite Quote:
Lynn: How’d she die?
Norah: It was sorta a do-it-yourself thing?

Grade:
B-

Memento

Director:
Christopher Nolan

Writer:
Christopher Nolan

Cast:
Guy Pearce as Leonard
Carrie-Anne Moss as Natalie
Joe Pantoliano as Teddy Gammell

Released: 2000
Studio: Newmarket
Box Office: $25,544,867

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%
IMDB Score: 8.6

Format: Blu-ray

One of the more confusing films I’ve ever seen. It’s about a guy with a short-term memory problem who is trying to find his wife’s murderer. But the story is told backwards, from the end to the beginning, so the story can be hard to follow. Each scene is about the length of one of his memories, and the end of a scene corresponds with the beginning of the previous scene. Christopher Nolan, who also directed Batman Begins and The Dark Knight is one of my favorite directors.

Favorite Performance:
Guy Pearce as Leonard

Favorite Quote:
Leonard Shelby: I have to believe in a world outside my own mind. I have to believe that my actions still have meaning, even if I can’t remember them. I have to believe that when my eyes are closed, the world’s still there. Do I believe the world’s still there? Is it still out there?… Yeah. We all need mirrors to remind ourselves who we are. I’m no different.

Grade:
A-

Major Update 1

I’ve really been neglecting this blog over the last couple of months, but now that I’m out of school for a while I’m gonna review the 21 movies I’ve seen since my last update. These won”t be full length reviews but shorter ones hitting on the major high (or low) points of the film. They’ll also have 2 or 3 movies per post.

Adventureland

Director:
Greg Mottola

Writer:
Greg Mottola

Cast:
Jesse Eisenberg as James Brennan
Kristen Stewart as Em Lewin
Ryan Reynolds as Mike Connell

Released: 2009
Studio: Miramax
Box Office: $16,044,025

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%
IMDB Score: 7.3

Format: DVD

Here is another comedy following the Judd Apatow formula for funny. An everyman schlup, semi-loser James Brennan gets a summer job at the local amusement park and falls for one of his female coworkers. Ryan Reynold plays a Stifler-esque Mike Connell, an order guy who also works at the park. Kristen Stewart shows that she is actually a competent actress when not stuck in that Twilight garbage. Jesse Eisenberg turns in another good performance thats just proves to me again that he is one of my favorite up-and-coming actors.

Favorite Performance:
Jesse Eisenberg as James Brennan

Favorite Quote:
Sue O’Malley: What are you majoring in?
Joel: Russian literature and Slavic languages.
Sue O’Malley: Oh wow, that’s pretty interesting. What career track is that?
Joel: Cabby, hot dog vendor, marijuana delivery guy. The world is my oyster.

Grade:
B-

X Men Origins: Wolverine

Director:
Gavin Hood

Writers:
David Benioff and Skip Woods

Cast:
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine
Liev Schreiber as Victor
Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson

Released: 2009
Studio: Fox
Box Office: $179,883,157

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 36%
IMDB Score: 6.7

Format: Blu-ray

To me, Wolverine’s backstory was not something that I really wanted explored. Part of his awesomeness, was the mystery surrounding his life before the Adamantium skeleton was inserted. I’m sure it was explained in the comics, but the casual fan (like me) didn’t know anything about Logan, just Wolverine. This movie is full of cliches and all the big budget summer movies staples like slow motion action shots and tons and tons of splosions!!!!!!!!! But it never fully develops the intriguing side characters. Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool(who is also getting his own movie soon) who only had like 5 lines in the whole film. Is it just me, or was he in a lot of movies this year?

Grade:
C-

Zombieland

Director:
Ruben Fleischer

Writers:
Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick

Cast:
Woody Harrelson as Tallahassee
Jesse Eisenberg as Columbus
Emma Stone as Wichita
Abigail Breslin as Little Rock
Bill Murray as Himself

Released: 2009
Studio: Sony
Box Office: $47,603,512 (as of 10/11/09)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%
IMDB Score: 8.4

Date Seen: October 6, 2009
Format: Theater

Zombie movies are typically not the kind of films I like to see. Boy, am I glad I decided to give this one a shot. I saw the trailer a while back and I thought it looked quite interesting. Then the positive reviews started pouring in, so I went to see it in the theater. Usually horror-comedies are not well received critically, and even when they are, they are not strong box-office draws. Zombieland is that rare critical and commercial success.

Jesse Eisenberg plays Columbus, a survivor who stays alive by adhering to strict set of rules. He meets up with Tallahassee and they set off in search of a Twinkie, possibly the last Twinkie in the whole world. In their search, they come across a set of sisters. But they are not typical sisters, they are con-women. They swindle the boys for their car and guns and set off. The boys catch up to them and they decide to stick together and head to Pacific Playland, an amusement park in LA that is supposedly free of zombies.

The main criticism for horror-comedies is that they are not funny enough nor scary enough. Zombieland plays much closer to the comedy side than the horror. Don’t get me wrong though, there is still plenty of violence and zombie gore. Just not any of the jump out from the dark, shocking kind of scary.

Jesse Eisenberg could play me in a movie about my life. He is one of my new favorite actors. My favorite part of the movie was whenever one of Columbus’s rules for survival was applied, it popped up on the screen in big bold letters that interacted with what was happening on the screen. Overall, the film was very funny, but the scene with Bill Murray was one of the funniest scenes I’ve seen in a while. My one gripe with the movie is that it is too short. With a running time of only 86 minutes, so much more could have been added to give the movie a slightly deeper plot.

Favorite Performance:
Jesse Eisenberg as Columbus

Favorite Quote:
Tallahassee: I’m not great at farewells, so uh… that’ll do, pig.

Grade:
B+

Recommendation:
If your not afraid gore, go see it.

Taxi Driver

Director:
Martin Scorsese

Writer:
Paul Schrader

Cast:
Robert DeNiro as Travis Bickle
Jodie Foster as Iris
Cybill Shepherd as Betsy

Released: 1976
Studio: Columbia
Box Office: $28,262,574

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%
IMDB Score: 8.6

Date Seen: September 21, 2009
Format: DVD

This was a hard movie for me to wrap my head around. Most films are made so that the watcher gets a sense of enjoyment out of it. I got no enjoyment from watching Taxi Driver. Martin Scorsese paints a bleak picture of a man consumed by loneliness.

Robert DeNiro plays Travis Bickle, a Vietnam veteran suffering from insomnia and looking for a job. He takes a job as a cabbie working the night shift. He travels through the city, going to places and picking up customers that the other cab drivers won’t. There are several shots of Bickle driving his taxi around the city past the pimps and prostitutes and drug dealers. His fellow drivers think that he needs some protection, so he buys several handguns that he starts to keep on him. He meets Betsy, a campaign worker for a senatorial candidiate, but after he takes her to a dirty movie on their first date, she rebukes him and this sets him off. He goes into a manic state and determines that he is going to kill the politician. I’m not going to give anymore of the plot away, but Bickle is the loneliest character I have ever seen in a motion picture. Everytime he tries to make a connection with somebody, they end up leaving him.

Scorsese’s masterful direction turns what is quite frankly a boring storyline into a suspenseful drama. I like how he develops Travis’s madness slowly over the course of the movie. It shows him alone in his apartment practicing pulling the guns out of their holsters and firing the empty guns at the TV.

I can’t deny that this is a very well made and complex film. I understand why the critics like it so well. I just didn’t enjoy it enough to recommend it to anyone else. I felt depressed when the movie was over.

Taxi Driver is listed as number 52 in AFI’s 100 Greatest Films.

Favorite Performance:
Robert DeNiro as Travis Bickle

Favorite Quote:
Travis Bickle: The days go on and on… they don’t end. All my life needed was a sense of someplace to go. I don’t believe that one should devote his life to morbid self-attention, I believe that one should become a person like other people.

Grade:
B+

Recommendation:
Don’t see it unless you want to watch a classic film or are in the mood to watch a depressing film.