Today was a good one. I had a most pleasing do nothing kind of Saturday. I watched my beloved Packers beat the tar out of the Vikings which was awesome, I must say. Then I sat back and had a mini-movie marathon. So here's what I watched...
Pitch Perfect - A somewhat rebel wannabe DJ goes to college and has to stay one year and get involved in something before her Dad will let her move to LA to become famous. So she joins an accapella group and the comedy begins! Actually, this film wasn't so bad. It was lighthearted and there was singing so it's hard to hate it! And it had Rebel Wilson in it who is a quirky Aussie import who can be very funny. This is a good movie to watch when you just want something that's not going to make you think too hard.
Looper - Of course, I liked this movie - it has Joseph Gordon Levitt in it, for crying out loud! LOL But actually, it had a pretty good plot AND Bruce Willis. It takes place in 2044. Time travel has been invented but its immediately outlawed and is now used by criminals to get rid of their "problems" in the future. They send the bad guy back to 2044 and the "looper" is waiting for him. He shoots him immediately and dumps the body. Since the body is from the future, no one is really looking for him anyway. Well, there's a really bad buy in the future called The Rainman and he starts sending the loopers back to 2044. Meaning the loopers older versions of themselves are returning, getting shot and ultimately cutting off their own future. It's called Closing the Loop. So, this is what happens to Joseph Gordon Levitt except in the future he grows up to be Bruce Willis and, well, you know Bruce Willis isn't going to go quietly! He wants to get back to the future so to speak so he decides what he has to do is kill the Rainman in the year 2044 when he is only a child and then none of this will actually happen. Yeah, I know...it's hard to follow and it was at times but it all came around in the end and it was pretty exciting too. Not a bad film at all!
Detachment - I saved the best for last. I picked this movie up on a whim and I can honestly say this is one of the best films I've seen in a long, long time. Brilliantly written, brilliantly directed and brilliantly acted. Adrian Brody stars as a substitute teacher who tries to live his life unattached emotionally from anyone and anything. Through his time at a failing school, where the tests scores are so low they're impacting the very survival of the school, where some teachers are disillusioned and barely hanging on while others are still trying to make a difference we see how easy it is to become alienated and isolated from one another even when we are in the same room. In spite of his attempts, he cannot NOT feel and it's only when he faces his hollow self that he finds redemption. It's beautiful and brilliant. I think Adrian Brody is one of the best actors around these days and he's flanked by other great performances by James Caan, Marcia Gay Hardin, Lucy Liu and others. You cannot watch this film without thinking. And you cannot walk away without feeling. Brilliant!
So that was this weekends bunch of movie rentals! All in all, a very good Saturday!
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Movies, movies, movies...
Last night I kicked back and watched some movies that I'd been wanting to see for various reasons. Here are my reviews...
The Watch - Okay, one question - how can a film that has Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill not be funny? I mean, it's supposed to be funny. They meant for it to be funny. This film is not funny. Not in the least. I can't even think of one tiny little part that made me chuckle, even a little. The story could have been a good one. Four doofuses come together to start a neighborhood watch and fight crime in their neighborhood. But it takes a turn when aliens become involved, and there's an orgy, and peeing in beer can, and a side story about Vaughn's daughter and it all just goes to hell really quickly. Pass this stinker up. Even if it's on TBS at 3am.
TED - Okay, this is another movie that I have heard people raving about so I had very high expectations for this one. Seth McFarlane, he of many voices who is sometimes funny, is at the helm of this one and he is the voice of Ted, a teddy bear who comes to life when the boy who loves him makes a magic wish. Fast forward to the boy and the bear as adults and they are pot smoking, beer guzzling lovable losers who are struggling to figure out how an adult can have a teddy bear as a best friend and still be a responsible adult. Mark Wahlberg does a decent job as the grown up boy, mostly because he always has that "who me?" look on his face. I have to admit there were some funny parts in this film and it wasn't a total loss. All in all, TED was worth the rental fee.
Premium Rush - I'm going to go on the record and tell you that I am a huge Joseph Gordon Levitt fan. My husband and friends call him my "celebrity crush" and I guess their right. I will not let that slant my review of this movie. Premium Rush is about a bike messenger who is given a delivery in New York that has to be to Chinatown by 7pm. He has no idea what this small envelope contains but almost as soon as he picks it up there's trouble. Seems many people, especially a bad NY detective, want that envelope. There are many exciting chase scenes in this film. Bikes are flying through traffic at break neck speed and it did get my heart pumping to watch it. The story is good and the acting was even better but the director does this thing about jumping back and forth between times in the day to set up the whole story that it just becomes annoying. After a while I just wanted to see what happened and wasn't giving a damn about the whole set up. The ending, with Gordon-Levitt making the delivery with the aid of about a thousand messenger buddies, was handled pretty well and wasn't melodramatic. Overall, I enjoyed this film. Story was good and the pace was exciting except for the constant back and forth between times. Well worth watching though.
So that's what I did with my Friday night. I like having those nights when I can sit back and watch a slew of movies, one right after the other. A good way to spend an evening!
The Watch - Okay, one question - how can a film that has Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill not be funny? I mean, it's supposed to be funny. They meant for it to be funny. This film is not funny. Not in the least. I can't even think of one tiny little part that made me chuckle, even a little. The story could have been a good one. Four doofuses come together to start a neighborhood watch and fight crime in their neighborhood. But it takes a turn when aliens become involved, and there's an orgy, and peeing in beer can, and a side story about Vaughn's daughter and it all just goes to hell really quickly. Pass this stinker up. Even if it's on TBS at 3am.
TED - Okay, this is another movie that I have heard people raving about so I had very high expectations for this one. Seth McFarlane, he of many voices who is sometimes funny, is at the helm of this one and he is the voice of Ted, a teddy bear who comes to life when the boy who loves him makes a magic wish. Fast forward to the boy and the bear as adults and they are pot smoking, beer guzzling lovable losers who are struggling to figure out how an adult can have a teddy bear as a best friend and still be a responsible adult. Mark Wahlberg does a decent job as the grown up boy, mostly because he always has that "who me?" look on his face. I have to admit there were some funny parts in this film and it wasn't a total loss. All in all, TED was worth the rental fee.
Premium Rush - I'm going to go on the record and tell you that I am a huge Joseph Gordon Levitt fan. My husband and friends call him my "celebrity crush" and I guess their right. I will not let that slant my review of this movie. Premium Rush is about a bike messenger who is given a delivery in New York that has to be to Chinatown by 7pm. He has no idea what this small envelope contains but almost as soon as he picks it up there's trouble. Seems many people, especially a bad NY detective, want that envelope. There are many exciting chase scenes in this film. Bikes are flying through traffic at break neck speed and it did get my heart pumping to watch it. The story is good and the acting was even better but the director does this thing about jumping back and forth between times in the day to set up the whole story that it just becomes annoying. After a while I just wanted to see what happened and wasn't giving a damn about the whole set up. The ending, with Gordon-Levitt making the delivery with the aid of about a thousand messenger buddies, was handled pretty well and wasn't melodramatic. Overall, I enjoyed this film. Story was good and the pace was exciting except for the constant back and forth between times. Well worth watching though.
So that's what I did with my Friday night. I like having those nights when I can sit back and watch a slew of movies, one right after the other. A good way to spend an evening!
Monday, October 22, 2012
More movie reviews...
This past weekend I was a slug. I felt like I had a cold coming on so I stayed, was super lazy and watched movies. It was really hit and miss with movies I chose but here goes:
Dark Shadows -
Okay, okay, if you weren't a kid in the 70s this movie means nothing to you. I mean, it's not like Dark Shadows, the TV series, has had the benefit of being played in syndication the way shows like "The Brady Bunch" or "Charlie's Angels" has. It hasn't been given a chance to gain a new, younger following so, of course, it really only has an appeal to die hard Johnny Depp/Tim Burton fans and those of us who remember how much fun it was to pretend to be sick and stay home from school to watch the original. In those days, Barnabas Collins was the much misunderstood brooding vampire of Collinswood and, long before Edward Cullen, he stole the hearts of teen age girls and, I dare say, housewives everywhere. In the Tim Burton movie of the same name, Barnabas is reawakened in the 1970s and Collinswood, his beloved home, is inhabited by the ragtag remnants of his family. I can't say this movie was hilarious but there were some really funny moments and one liners that might have been funny only to a fan of the original. The plot, Barnabas returns to restore his family and the family fishing business to their rightful place, lagged toward the end but, overall, I actually like this one. I'm a fan of Tim Burton and his wild imagination and, yes, there were spots where the premise was thin...really thin...but it was weird and funny and nostalgic all at the same time. I'm glad I didn't blow money seeing this in the theatre but it was worth the rental.
Red Lights -
I saw the preview of this in the theatre and thought it looked good and then it never really went anywhere. Truth is, this is a pretty damn good movie! Sigourney Weaver plays a doctor of parapsychology who goes around debunking psychics. She's a non-believer. Her sidekick, played by Cillian Murphy, helps her "out" faith healers but he has something inside that makes him wonder if any of it could be true. Enter Simon Silver, played by Robert DeNiro, a blind psychic who comes out of a self imposed retirement. He went into retirement after rumors that he caused one of his detractors death but now returns for a few shows and agrees, for the first time, to allow psychic testing to determine whether he's a fake or not. This film has some great moments and even greater performances. And it has a nice twist at the end that I really didn't see coming. I don't know why this movie didn't do better at the box office. Maybe it was just a tad too sophisticated for the summer movie goers. I recommend this one!
Rock of Ages -
Oh. My. God. Do NOT under any circumstances rent this movie. Don't even watch it if someone gives it to you. This is the worst movie I have ever seen in my life and I have seen a LOT of stinkers. The music, hair metal music from the 80s, is okay. The performances are abysmal. I can still smell them and I watched them two days ago. The story is the same as A Star Is Born or Burlesque or any of that genre - small town girl moves to LA to be a star, meets a boy, gets a job, runs into trouble in the business due to her naivety, and in the end, saves the day. The lead girl/woman is the chick from the recent remake of Footloose and was on Dancing with the Stars - don't know her name, don't care. The boy/man is someone I've never heard of and probably won't ever hear of again. Alec Baldwin, wearing a very bad mullet wig, owns a joint that's supposed to the the hottest rock bar in LA. Russell Brand, in his own horrible hair, is his business partner/lover. (They sing a duet and kiss. Seriously.) Catherine Zeta-Jones is the Bible thumping wife of the mayor who turns out to be a past groupie of the main rocker character, Stacee Jaxx. I saved the best for last. Stacee Jaxx is played by Tom Cruise and it's the creepiest, weirdest, most unfunny, overtly perverted performance I have ever seen. Even for Tom Cruise! Put them all together, and you have the madness and bucket of vomit called Rock of Ages. Yikes!!
Cabin in the Woods -
I was looking for the movie Chernobyl Diaries but it was not available so my Plan B was Cabin in the Woods. I'm glad for it too! I was so pleasantly surprised but this unique take on the horror movie format of five friends going for a weekend to a deserted lake cabin! Seriously, I had no idea how entertaining this was going to be. It wasn't at all like I thought it would be and, unfortunately, I can't really give away too much of the plot without giving away the utter coolness of this film. You'll have to see it for yourself. Suffice it to say that there are some good scares and lots of screaming. The ensemble cast of mostly new names is excellent and the writing is really good. Very entertaining, enjoyable, scary yet funny and a really good time! I recommend this one too!
But trust me on the Rock of Ages thing....seriously. Trust me!
Dark Shadows -
Okay, okay, if you weren't a kid in the 70s this movie means nothing to you. I mean, it's not like Dark Shadows, the TV series, has had the benefit of being played in syndication the way shows like "The Brady Bunch" or "Charlie's Angels" has. It hasn't been given a chance to gain a new, younger following so, of course, it really only has an appeal to die hard Johnny Depp/Tim Burton fans and those of us who remember how much fun it was to pretend to be sick and stay home from school to watch the original. In those days, Barnabas Collins was the much misunderstood brooding vampire of Collinswood and, long before Edward Cullen, he stole the hearts of teen age girls and, I dare say, housewives everywhere. In the Tim Burton movie of the same name, Barnabas is reawakened in the 1970s and Collinswood, his beloved home, is inhabited by the ragtag remnants of his family. I can't say this movie was hilarious but there were some really funny moments and one liners that might have been funny only to a fan of the original. The plot, Barnabas returns to restore his family and the family fishing business to their rightful place, lagged toward the end but, overall, I actually like this one. I'm a fan of Tim Burton and his wild imagination and, yes, there were spots where the premise was thin...really thin...but it was weird and funny and nostalgic all at the same time. I'm glad I didn't blow money seeing this in the theatre but it was worth the rental.
Red Lights -
I saw the preview of this in the theatre and thought it looked good and then it never really went anywhere. Truth is, this is a pretty damn good movie! Sigourney Weaver plays a doctor of parapsychology who goes around debunking psychics. She's a non-believer. Her sidekick, played by Cillian Murphy, helps her "out" faith healers but he has something inside that makes him wonder if any of it could be true. Enter Simon Silver, played by Robert DeNiro, a blind psychic who comes out of a self imposed retirement. He went into retirement after rumors that he caused one of his detractors death but now returns for a few shows and agrees, for the first time, to allow psychic testing to determine whether he's a fake or not. This film has some great moments and even greater performances. And it has a nice twist at the end that I really didn't see coming. I don't know why this movie didn't do better at the box office. Maybe it was just a tad too sophisticated for the summer movie goers. I recommend this one!
Rock of Ages -
Oh. My. God. Do NOT under any circumstances rent this movie. Don't even watch it if someone gives it to you. This is the worst movie I have ever seen in my life and I have seen a LOT of stinkers. The music, hair metal music from the 80s, is okay. The performances are abysmal. I can still smell them and I watched them two days ago. The story is the same as A Star Is Born or Burlesque or any of that genre - small town girl moves to LA to be a star, meets a boy, gets a job, runs into trouble in the business due to her naivety, and in the end, saves the day. The lead girl/woman is the chick from the recent remake of Footloose and was on Dancing with the Stars - don't know her name, don't care. The boy/man is someone I've never heard of and probably won't ever hear of again. Alec Baldwin, wearing a very bad mullet wig, owns a joint that's supposed to the the hottest rock bar in LA. Russell Brand, in his own horrible hair, is his business partner/lover. (They sing a duet and kiss. Seriously.) Catherine Zeta-Jones is the Bible thumping wife of the mayor who turns out to be a past groupie of the main rocker character, Stacee Jaxx. I saved the best for last. Stacee Jaxx is played by Tom Cruise and it's the creepiest, weirdest, most unfunny, overtly perverted performance I have ever seen. Even for Tom Cruise! Put them all together, and you have the madness and bucket of vomit called Rock of Ages. Yikes!!
Cabin in the Woods -
I was looking for the movie Chernobyl Diaries but it was not available so my Plan B was Cabin in the Woods. I'm glad for it too! I was so pleasantly surprised but this unique take on the horror movie format of five friends going for a weekend to a deserted lake cabin! Seriously, I had no idea how entertaining this was going to be. It wasn't at all like I thought it would be and, unfortunately, I can't really give away too much of the plot without giving away the utter coolness of this film. You'll have to see it for yourself. Suffice it to say that there are some good scares and lots of screaming. The ensemble cast of mostly new names is excellent and the writing is really good. Very entertaining, enjoyable, scary yet funny and a really good time! I recommend this one too!
But trust me on the Rock of Ages thing....seriously. Trust me!
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