Seen any good movies lately?
I had thought before of starting a movie discussion thread, and have had some recent requests for it so here we go.
In case you have not used these sources before, I find the Internet Movie Data Base (IMDB) and Wikipedia are great resources for learning about movies. IMDB is great for quickly finding the movie rating, genre, actors, directors, etc., and cross-linking those folks to other movies they have starred in. Wikipedia provides some of the same information, but also contains full script synapses. You want to be careful when researching a movie on Wikipedia if you have not seen the movie yet. It can be helpful to scan the first paragraph where the overview is given, but most movie pages describe the entire plot and can be a spoiler.
Wikipedia pages are best after watching an intriguing movie, when you want to learn more about the subject. I learned from the wikipedia pages that Hostel caused controversy for depicting only decrepit parts of Europe, and Zodiac did not actually tell the end story of the suspected killer.
How do you watch movies? First run theaters, second run theaters, DVD, VHS, legal downloads, illegal downloads? We have had a poll on this topic, but it can be helpful to hear why or why you don’t use various distribution channels. Also, how often do you watch movies? I find I watch them in spurts, such as going weeks without watching any, then watching four or five in a week.
Do you subscribe to a DVD rental service, such as Netflix, Blockbuster, or Cleanflix? I have heard the cleanflix service is popular in southeast Idaho, but their editing can be heavy, removing entire scenes instead of just editing the worst parts.
So have you seen any good movies lately?
Some of my favorite movies in the past year have been 300, Apocalypto, Babel, and Zodiac.
A buddy rented Apocalypto via cleanflix, and when we talked after discovered some major entire scenes had been deleted. He said even the cleanflix version was disturbing enough though.
I have heard that “torture porn” styled movies might be waning now. These are movies like Saw I/II/III, or Hostel.
We find our summers at the drive-ins and recently saw “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” The entire family enjoyed it, but I think the best part of the drive-in experience is the snacks and atmosphere.
I do however miss the corny countdown clip between the double features that has dancing food and snacks. What ever happened to that?
We use Netfliz and love it! We have smallish kids (10 and 6) and it is much easier to get a movie in the mail than go to a video store. Plus we love documentaries and Netflix has tons of great docs and foreign films that can’t be found in this city. We also go to the movies, we did the Kids Movie Series at the Paramount this summer…12 kids movies for $8 and most of that money goes to your schools PTA if you buy from the school. So here is a CHEER for the Paramount.
Last movies we saw in the Theater:
Harry Potter OOP gotta love the boy wizard!
Owen Almighty..very funny
Some Favorite docs:
The Corporation….about out of control corporations.
The Future of Food…..about GMO’s and Monsanto
SuperSize Me…..what can happen if you eat McDonalds, how fast food is affecting our culture.
Fast Food Nation….a dramatization of a non-fiction book by the same name.
Born into Brothels….kids in India who are taught photography.
The 7-Up series, starting with 20 children from all social-eco backgrounds in England who were born in 1957. Filmmakers followed their lives from the time they were 7, every 7 years they would revisit the same people. So the first film 7-up is with the 7 year olds, each film after that is 7 years later, the last film was this past year when they all turned 50. Amazing stories.
Well that’s all for now, I like movies.
Regarding the Paramount and Centre Theaters, an extra kudos to them for giving free movie passes to local college students. Once a month ISU (and I imagine EITC) students can get 2 free movie passes to either theater, just go to the helpdesk in the Bennion student union building and show your bengal card.
Another great movie I saw this year was Lucky Number Slevin. It had Josh Hartnet, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Alex Kingsley, one of those movies you can’t believe how many A-list stars are in it. It was fairly violent, but the story was very rich and took some good turns. I loved “the kansas city shuffle”.
Best movies I’ve seen in the last year are:
1) Serenity - Quite possibly my favorite movie of all time. This was a box office movie wrapping up the far too short lived TV sci fi series Firefly. But you don’t need to have seen the series to follow the movie (I hadn’t) but once you’ve finished the movie you’ll want to go back and watch the series as I did. Its a Sci-Fi movie disguised as a western or is it the other way around? Essentially its about a group of space pirates (for lack of a better description - think Han Solo) who just want to make a living shipping supplies to people. An insane girl who holds the key to massive government conspiracies comes into their care and now they are on the run to protect her. Its very well done and very enjoyable. The director was Joss Whedon who you might know as the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
2) The Prestige - stars Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale. About rival magicians in the 1800’s who keep trying to one up the other. Its very well done and has a very surprising twist ending that in hindsight seems obvious but I didn’t see it coming. It was directed by Christopher Nolan who did other excellent films like Memento, Insomnia, and Batman Begins.
3) 300 - Worth seeing for the stunning visual effects if nothing else. Very violent and very gory if that bothers you.
I heard about Serenity and Firefly, thanks for bringing them up.
The Prestige was very awesome, involves a little Tesla action for those that know of the Tesla-Edison conflicts.
What was the other big movie about magicians? With the mean royal guy married to the magician’s childhood girlfriend? Ahh on tip of my mind here, had Ed Norton in it…
Joe Vandal, are you thinking of “The Illusionist”?
There you go, I thought the illusionist was also really good.
I saw Treasure planet on VHS and it was very good. I didn’t like all the updatings, but saw how it was made to appeal to a younger audience. I thought its portrayal of Jim’s fatherlessness and the relationship with Silver will speak to a lot of boys out there these days.
Oh yeah both the Prestige and Illusionists were great. I didn’t know about the Tesla connection before I saw the Prestige that was great, Tesla was awesome. I haven’t ever seen the Philadelphia Experiment that was suppose to be based on his real experiment. I meant Evan Allmighty in my first post, I was thinking of my friend Owen when I wrote that, oh well.
I also liked V for Vendetta, the whole Guy Fawkes theme was a trip.
Remember, Remember the 5th of November.
I forgot about V. That was an excellent film.
Many bash it saying it was a “hatchet job” against Bush and the war in Iraq. Fools they are though since the story was written in the 1980’s as a comic book and was adapted fairly faithfully to a movie just now.
Probably won’t surprise many to know I really liked V for Vendetta. Perhaps a case of life imitating art. It raises important questions, especially the tense moments of how an army should react when civilians all rise up against the government.
I don’t usually buy movies, but when I see the Illusionist on sale, I will be buying it. I saw it a couple of times in the theater. I liked Prestige, but disturbing is a word that comes to mind.
I usually rent movies from pay per view. It’s the same cost as renting and I don’t have to remember to take the thing back.
I don’t usually go to the Theater, because it’s rare that I come away thinking that my money was well spent.
Just saw a couple of movies, thought I’d comment:
Good Sheppard - It was a bit of a jumble for a bit, but in all, a pretty decent spy movie. If you rent it, watch the deleted scenes - there are a few key plot-points left out in the theatrical version. Matt Damon is incredible in this movie!
Hot Fuzz! - I loved Shaun of the Dead, but didn’t even get through his movie. Boring, uninspired, not funny. Maybe I’ll change my mind if I ever get around to watching the ending. Probably not.
Transformers - Best. Movie. Ever. Megan Fox + Huge Intergalactic Robots = AWeSOMe!1!!
Okay, “The Simpsons” really cracked me up; only one objectionable scene for those of us with kids (and how onjectionable can CARTOON full frontal nudity be???) I really got a kick out of it……
I’m glad to see Joe finally made a post for movie reviews! (I was one of the many suggestees)
Some of my recent favs are:
Disturbia - Pretty decent movie with some definate twists and turns. Worth a rent if you haven’t seen it yet.
I Now Pronounce you Larry & Chuck - Simply hilarious! Excellent comedy, although the middle kind of dragged on rather slowly. If you like Adam Sandler and all of his buddies that he has in every one of his movies, than you’ll love this flick.
Knocked Up - Excellent comedy! Very funny moments, although I though it was too long of a movie. They could have cut out a number of scenes to shorten it up and it would have still been great.
Premonition - not impressed at all. Just didn’t do it for me and the ending was just ridiculous! Unless you’re really bored and have rented everything else in the store, don’t bother with this one.
300 - I wasn’t real impressed with this one either. The CGI and special effects were top notch, but I didn’t care for the rest. Plus, almost every one of the good scenes were shown in the trailers. Great action, but that’s about it.
Has anyone seen Grindhouse yet? I noticed it got mixed reviews, but I can understand that as you really have to like the genre’ and style of these two filmakers. Most either love em or hate em. I for one am a big fan of both Rodriguez and Tarantino, so I look forward to this coming out on DVD real soon.
I saw The Number 23 with Jim Carrey. It was certainly different from his other movies, much darker. It was interesting to see how they kept arriving at the number 23 in so many walks of life, but some were quite a stretch.
It all wrapped up neatly by the end so some might like that. It was not very scary, but was suspenseful. I started it late at night intending only to watch a half hour, but ended up watching the entire thing at once.
THE SIMPSONS….
I want to see Superbad like, super bad.
Rented “Hot Fuzz” over the weekend. Pretty funny movie.
And the “Contractor” with Wesley Snipes. Had some good action scenes, but wasn’t that great in the acting department.
Black Snake Moan - Was so-so. Samual Jackson pretty much made that movie, he’s good actor in pretty much everything he’s in.
The Last Mimzy - Pretty good movie for the family. Could have been better, but worth renting.
The Astronaut Farmer - Decent movie, good storyline.
Zodiac - great movie based on the real zodiac killer back in the day. Great acting all around, worth a rent. Had some gruesome scenes, but not too bad.
Hills Have Eyes 2 - If you like horror movies, worth a rent to watch late at night with the lights out and surround sound cranked. Pretty gruesome and a disturbing rape scene. I had the uncut version so that scene probably wasn’t in the theatrical version. Not as good as the first one, but not too bad. Definately not for the kids.
forgot to mention….
if you’re looking for a good movie review site from all the top critics, http://www.rottentomatoes.com is a great site. Has trailers, and reviews on all past, present and future movies. Another great site to bookmark aside from the IMDB Joe suggested.
Another great movie for the kids and the whole family is Ratatouille. Very funny!
Just an interesting tidbit…
You ever notice how whenever there’s a chase scene or a scene with alot of driving, the road is always wet? Their won’t be a cloud in the sky, yet the road will be wet like it just rained. I don’t know if they do this to make it look more dramatic or to make the road look cleaner, or easier to spin out and slide around when their doing chase scenes, but the next time you’re watching an action movie (or any movie with a chase scene), check out the road to see if it’s wet. 9 out of 10 times it will be.
Most recent movies I have rented are:
Next - Staring Nicholas Cage…Pretty decent movie, although unbelievable at times and the end could have been better. Good acting and story though.
1408 - John Cusak and Samual Jackson. Pretty decent suspenseful horror flick. Not a lot of blood and gore, but some scary moments. Pretty good storyline. Worth renting.
1408 began life as a mere writing example in Stephen King’s On Writing. He thought it up to demonstrate good and better writing techniques. Then he took the mere example further into full storyline and movie. Amazing.
3:10 to Yuma was really good. All the men were straight and there were lots of good old fashioned gunfights!
Er, I’ve seen 3:10 to Yuma and you have no clue about the sexuality of anyone except the two main characters played by Christian Bale and Russell Crowe. No one else in the movie even interacts with a female and sex never comes up outside of the one scene with Russell Crowe.
I actually thought the plot was downright silly at the end as the logic behind Russell Crowe going along with Christian Bale instead of escaping which he could have done easily at any time was very very weak.
If you’re into oldies, check out “Ladykillers,” with Alec Guiness. Absolutely wonderufl dark comedy. I haven’t seen the Tom Hanks version. And I don’t plan on it, either.
I haven’t seen the old version, but I did see the Tom Hanks version. Very very funny, excellent movie and great cast!
Next with Nick Cage, Fracture with Anthony Hopkins, Ratatouille, and Meet the Robinsons were all very good.
Knocked up started funny but went lame fast and I couldn’t finish it. Reign over Me was another I could not finish. I’m sure Adam Sandler can do a serious role well, but this was not it.
Joe, the Sandman was good in Punch Drunk Love, and in Spanglish…both relatively serious roles.
Watched Confess, Hostel II, License to Wed, Mr. Brooks and SpiderMan 3 this weekend.
Confess: This came out in 2005, but I just noticed it on the shelf in Blockbuster. It’s about a computer hacker that uses hidden cameras to get back at his enemies. It’s got a great storyline and some decent acting. I wouldn’t say it’s great, but if you’ve seen everything else like I have, it’s definately worth renting.
Hostel II: If you like horror movies, this one won’t dissapoint. Better than the first, but that’s not saying much since the 1st one wasn’t that great. This one is so-so. It had a decent plot and definately some gory parts. It’s hard to find decent horror movies these days, but this one was pretty good. Plus Quentin Tarantino was the producer (which I happen to like his work), so it’s definately got his sick twist to it. Worth renting if you like this genre of movie.
SpiderMan 3: I’m never as impressed with sequels than I am with the original. (Hostel was the exception to this rule) The acting was ok and the special effects top notch, but they need to lay this one to rest already. The way the movie was hyped when it first came out, you’d think it was a great blockbuster. Not so much. It had it’s moments, but was nothing to brag about. Worth renting if you’ve got nothing else to watch
Mr Brooks: This was the best movie of the weekend, and one of Kevin Costner’s best, IMO. It’s a role he has never played before (serial killer) and he did an awesome job. The storyline was unique and different and I really enjoyed it. Very suspensful and great acting all around. The ending could have been a little better, but this movie is definately worth renting.
License to Wed: This was another favorite of mine over the weekend. I’m not a big fan of Robin Williams, but he did a great job on this one. Very funny movie and a must rent if you like a good comedy.
I watched the first Saw movie. It is a horror movie but with some definite gore. However, it was riddled with puzzles and required the viewer to think throughout the movie. It definitely commands attention and thought. That is refreshing in a horror movie from the mindless hacker movies of the past.
I agree with Mike’s statement. I’ve really enjoyed the “Saw” series. Imagine that….a horror movie with a plot, or one that makes you think….What a concept! And a very rare thing to find in the Horror genre.
I really enjoy the Saw franchise they have proven to be good and now with Saw IV it has managed to get even better. I have recently rented an old classic a little better than V for Vendetta, which stunk.. The title is “Moscow on the Hudson”.
Really George? You didn’t like V for Vendetta? It wasn’t as good as I had hoped it would be, but I still thought it was worth a rent. Had a good storyline and a nice twist at the end. Of course it could have been better, but I personally didn’t think it “stunk”.
I’ll have to check out Moscow on the Hudson.
Thanks for you input!
Went to the movies last night and saw “Dan in Real Life”.
Very funny movie with Steve Carell & Dane Cook. They’ll have you laughing out loud. It’s a romantic comedy and definately one that should be seen with your signifigant other. A great cast and a decent storyline. If you don’t catch it in the theatre, it is definately worth a rent.
oh yes, that Dan movie was great… loved the story and the acting was so much fun to watch.
It is nice to watch a movie where you don’t have to cringe at the language or cover your eyes, I brought my senior mother and my 13 yr. old daughter and we all laughed out loud along with the rest of the audience.
There was a proper message as well, actually several good messages, and we came away with some great lines to use in fun conversations…
That must have been a refreshing change to watch a movie and not have to cringe at the language. I’m not a prude, but I do get tired of hearing all the language and seeing the sex scenes in a lot of the films today.
What bugs me the most is adult language and humor in kids’ movies. I never rent the cleanflicks-style movies, I enjoy Saw and Apocalypto and such, but when I’m showing a movie to my kid and they throw in adult stuff it makes me mad.
Cat in the Hat - Did Mike Meyers really need to do the cross-dressing bit? Would the movie really have failed without that moment?
Cars - “She just wants me for my body” Really? Sure it was funny for adults, but is that what we want in kids’ movies?
Surf’s Up - the main character called the antagonist a “pecker-face”. Really? Did the movie depend on that phrase?
Shrek 2 - the part about Pinochio wearing ladies clothing, really was that the only joke they could come up with?
Transformers - I’ll admit this was my fault for ASSUMING this would be a kids movie, I did not check that it was a PG-13. I fell asleep in the first few minutes and woke up when the mom asked the kid if he was masturbating in his room. I jumped up and shut off the movie and earned my seven year old’s scorn for the day.
I enjoy these things when they are included in adult movies. I cringe and want to burn down all of Hollywood when these come up in supposed kids movies.
Meet the Robinsons was a great movie and had no adult jokes in it at all. It is possible to make a successful kids movie without slipping adult jokes into the mix. Why must they go for the lowest-common denominator and ruin kids movies?
I definately understand how you guys feel. The main reason they put the adult humour into the kids movies is so the adults can take their kids out to movie and not sit there for 90 minutes and be bored out of their skulls. And the majority of the time, the adult humour is so far over the childrens heads, that it doesn’t affect them anyways. Personally I like it. I take my kids to the movies all the time and if they didn’t interject adult humour into these most of these animated movies, I’d probably fall asleep during the movie.
I can only imagine how upset your 7y/o was that you shut off Transformers. That was the only rather risque part of the movie and even then it wasn’t that bad. I mean the comment his mother made fit in with what was going on with the storyline. And if you would have waited a few moments longer, it was all explained soon afterwards. That comment actually did have a place in that particular scene which turned about to be one of the funniest parts of the movie.
I do believe sometimes they go a little overboard in the kids movies. But with a PG13 movie like Transformers, things like that are to be expected. And personally I don’t even know why it got a PG13 to begin with. That was a plain PG movie at best.
When these types of issues come up in a movie that my kids are watching, it makes it that much easier for me to talk to them afterwards. It’s the perfect segway into speaking to your kids about sex, violence, bad language or whatever it may be.
JoseCuervo: So….How does the conversation with your 7-year old about masturbation go?
I say if a movie is based on a cartoon or popular children’s toy, etc. then there should be some restraint with the adult themes. I’m with Joe on this one.
When I was growing up, our dinner table conversations always had several “layers” going on at once (The age range of kids spanned 19 years.) So, as a child I didn’t get any of the “adult” talk that was going on. As I got older, I was able to understand more & more of what was being said & why it was funny, etc. It was nice to finally understand what my older brothers were talking about!
I think that you might be stressing about things that flew right over your 7 yr old’s head, Joe. Cross-dressing? Did it bother you when Bugs Bunny cross-dressed? You probably don’t remember Uncle Miltie (Milton Berle), but his cross-dressing was considered family entertainment back in the 50’s. Language & sexual situations I can undersand, but cross-dressing? C’mon.
I’ve talked to my sons & my daughter about masturbation, sex, drugs, etc. If you’re not a responsible enough parent to do the same, then I feel sorry for your kids.
Obviously you didn’t check out the rating when took your child to see Transformers. It’s not a cartoon and its PG13 (& since you obviously don’t know) that means “parental guideance for kids under 13″. If your going to take a child UNDER 13 to a PG13 movie, than you should be responsible enough to explain certain things to them.
I think you only compound the problem when you get them all excited to see a movie and then you turn it off right in the middle of it because of something you don’t like or don’t agree with. Instead of being a responsible parent and explaining the particular issue to them. You end up making them more curious and without giving them the proper guidenance and knowledge or even a simple explanation, it merely compounds the problem.
btw…I talked to my children about masturbation well before the age of 7. If you would do a little research on child development, you’d know that children, especially girls, discover their bodies at a very young age and that girls will start exploring their genetialia as early as 2-3 years of age.
The problem is, too many parents are too embarrassed to talk to their child about such issues and that’s sad. They’d rather put it off until their 15 or 16 and by that time they have already heard about it, (usually mis-information I might add) from their friends and the media.
just a side note….I’m not accusing anybody of being a bad parent here, only explaining how it works in our family. Everyone raises their children differently and I don’t claim to do any better of a job than anyone else.
I just think its our responsibility as parents to be just that….parents.
Good post Jose.
And Guest, if you have to ask somebody on the internet how to talk to your child, then you really shouldn’t be a parent. Talking to your children about such issues is part of being a parent. Unless of course you’d rather them learn about these things from their classmates in school.
What a bunch of smart alecks! The previous two posters, that is.
Go ahead and feel sorry for my kids. ( I don’t have any).
I don’t have to ask anyone how to talk to my child. If you want to teach your 7 year old about masturbation that is your business.
By the way I didn’t see the Transformer movie.
So your comments like I “obviously didn’t look up the rating” and I “obviously don’t know” what PG-13 means are irrelevant.
If you “would do a little research” you would realize this is a blog for exchanging opinions.
So JoseCuervo, your method of explaining how things work in your family is to belittle others? I’m glad I’m not in your family.
Guest: you were the one that came off as a “smart alecK” by asking Jose how he goes about discussing mastrubation with his 7 y/o.
For which he gave a very good reply, AND a sidenote at the end so as not to upset anyone.
So obviously you’re being a little overly sensitive regarding the issue. Especially since you don’t have children.
What I’d like to know is WHY you want to know how he approached his children regarding that topic, IF you have no children of your own? Seems to me you were the one stirring up trouble here by claiming posters are belitting you, when in fact no belitting was going on.
The way I see it is: don’t ask a question if you don’t want to hear the answer. Not to mention making a comment on a movie that you’ve never seen to begin with! Geez!
Anyway……….
Being a parent, I understand fully the importance of teaching children about sensitive topics at age appropriate times. That being said, I would rather be bored at a kids movie we can all enjoy as family fun, without the awkwardness of too mature themes and later explanations. We complain the media is saturating our kids with images of sex, drugs, being pretty and thin, you name it, but can’t sit through a kids movie unless it has adult humor? Sound like a double standard.
How does a film maker justify a rated G movie having a jealous male character listening to another male and female moaning and groaning out of his sight? Pan into the other couple, who are oohing and aahing over a flower garden? Now is that really necessary? Can’t recall the title, - that rabbit movie over the summer.
Anyway, this is a good thread. Gives me ideas for date night. Is it me or are movies just not the caliber they were 10 years ago? I think consumers are settling for less. Either that or we don’t get out of the house enough…..
I see it like comedy, you have some great comedians like Jerry Seinfeld and Brian Regan who can deliver the best comedy without going into blue material. Most comedians go blue because it is the easy route.
Some movies are perfectly entertaining for adults without using adult humor, such as Meet the Robinsons. Movie makers insert adult humor into kids movies because they are too lazy to make the extra effort of creating a high quality show that also entertains adults without exposing kids to adult ideas.
Obviously you havent seen Jerry Seinfeld’s Bee Movie. It stunk and was a waste of time, in my opinion. We took 4 kids to see it, aged 4 - 7 and none of them liked it.
I wouldn’t exactly use Jerry Seinfeld as your example. Even in his sitcom he touched on every topic from Masturbation to sex with multiple partners, to stealing, lieing, cheating and the list goes on and on. Definately not the best role model out there for young minds. But that’s just my opinion.
What I’m trying to say is even though he didn’t use foul language, the innuendo and topics he discussed on his show wasn’t void of adult humour.
Good point, I was thinking more of the stand up performances he gave than his sitcom.
I’ve fallen way behind in my movie postings, so here are just a few of the better ones I seen lately.
The Bourne Ultimatum:
I’ve thorougly enjoyed this series and this 3rd installment doesn’t fail to deliver. Great action, decent storyline and a must rent. If you liked the first two, you’ll enjoy this one as well.
Live Free or Die Hard:
I was rather skeptical going into this one, but was pleasantly surprised. Bruce Willis still has what it takes to make a good action movie and this one won’t dissapoint. Sure, some of the scenes are a little over the top, but that’s the movies for ya. We go to be entertained and wow’d and this one won’t dissapoint you actions fans.
Shoot em up:
This one was a little out there as far as the believability factor. But nevertheless it’s full of action and is a great flick to watch if you don’t want to think about anything and just watch mindless shoot outs. Believe it or not it had some decent acting in it, considering the “cheese factor”.
Pirates of the Carribean, At Worlds End:
I thought this one was better than the 2nd one, but it’s still the same old pirate movie that’s been told over and over. There’s not much new here. Although the acting was decent, it may bore most people as it did me. Worth renting if you’ve got nothing better to do.
Waitress:
I can’t stand “chick flicks”, but if you’re married or have a steady girlfriend, most of you know there’s no escaping them. I was pleasantly surprised with Waitress and would highly recommend it. Kerri Russel did a find job acting in the lead role and it had some very funny moments. Definately worth a look.
Rescue Dawn:
Christian Bale made this movie. Definately one worth renting!
The Kingdom:
Jamie Foxx & Jennifer Garner in a decent movie with an important message at the end. Great acting, suspense & drama.
Eastern Promises:
Viggo Mortensen & Naomi Watts did a find job in this Russian mob movie. Good storyline and a great twist near the end. Worth a look.
The Heartbreak Kid:
If you like Ben Stiller, you’ll love this movie. Absolutely hilarious with a decent surprise ending. Check it out!
Rush Hour 3:
Not much different than the previous 2. Worth renting for a laugh or two if you’ve got nothing better to do.
Stardust:
I was pleasantly surprised with this one. An all star cast did a fine job in this fantasy/Sci-fi flick. A definate must see.
Balls of Fury:
Stupid movie, but it did have some pretty funny bits. Don’t bother unless you’ve got nothing better to watch.
Superbad:
Surprise hit! A very funny immature coming of age comedy. It was a tad bit long for my liking, but it definately kept me laughing throughout.
I Am Legend:
Completely different from the book, but a great popcorn flick nevertheless! Great suspense and great acting by Will Smith. The ending could have been better, but a good movie regardless.
No Country For Old Men:
Awesome action flick! Great acting all around. Again….I wasn’t happy with the ending, but all in all, worth a rent.
Into The Wild:
Pretty decent movie based on a true story. The scenery & visual effects were incredible.
Well I’ll stop there for now. I’ve got dozens more, but will write more when I have the time. As you have probably noticed, I’m not a big fan of tv, and when I do take the time to sit down in front of it, its to watch a movie.
Wow! You have been watching some movies!
I took my kid and his friend to see Fred Claus last weekend. It was a cute premise about Santa Claus’ less successful brother. They geared it toward kids pretty well, with the exception of Santa’s assistant who wore a way-too-sexy outfit for a kid’s movie.
The problem was it was one of those where all the laughs are front-loaded, and the last half of the movie has no jokes and the audience is left wondering when it will end. I heard quite a few yawns. The siblings’ support group scene is a great time to visit the restroom.
I think Vince Vaughn is a great guy and a great actor, but I don’t think he’s such a funny guy. I’m going to avoid movies where he is cast as the funny guy.
I have a few more to let you know about…
Dan In Real Life:
Since I work in an office type setting, “The Office” is one of my favorite shows on tv. And if you like Steve Carell, you love this movie. I think Steve is turning into quite the actor on the big screen lately. He’s turned in outstanding performances previously in Little Miss Sunshine, Bruce Almighty, 40 y/o Virgin and his performance in this movie really shines. It’s kind of “chick flickish”, but the comedy and the storyline are just incredible. It will have you laughing the whole movie. We really enjoyed it. And although we watched it in the theatre, I will most likely watch it again by renting it once it comes out on DVD. Don’t miss this one!
Big Nothing:
This movie stars David Schwimmer. Ok I admit it….I used to watch Friends when it was on tv. (just dont tell anyone!) And although I wasn’t really a big fan of David Schwimmer, his part in this dark comedy was very surprising and this movie is definately worth renting. I don’t recall hearing much about it when it was in theartres, but I came across it in Blockbuster and thought I’d give it a try. If you like dark comedies this one will not dissapoint. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie!
Resident Evil / Extinction:
To quote film critic Anton Bidel “If you are willing to leave your brains and good taste at the door, you may well find Resident Evil: Extinction to be a guilty pleasure of the purest genetic strain.”
If you like mindless zombie action flicks, this one was definately better than the first two. The actions scenes were pretty decent, but don’t bother renting if you’ve got something better to do.
Anyone seen “Juno”?
I liked Alien vs. Predator, the one where they are in Antarctica. I hated Alien vs. Predator 2: requiem. There was waaaay too much secondary character’s personal stories and way too little of the alien vs. predator stories and actions. Don’t bother with the second version even if you liked the first.
Thanks for the comment on the second Alien VS Predator. I’ve been meaning to rent that one because I really enjoyed the first one as well. Now I’ll wait to rent that one until I’ve got nothing else to watch.
I thought requiem was actually better than the first AVP! There was much more action and a lot more scenes where the predator is actually fighting aliens. Plus, the ending is more realistic and well thought-out. See it!
I saw “Juno” and while it was a cute movie, I don’t know that it is necessarily one of the best movies of the year. It is a story about a young (16) girl, bored in her small Minnesota town, who has sex once and gets pregnant. She tells her parents (who are way too nice and way too understanding) and they all agree that she should give the baby up for adoption. The adoptive couple is very nice, almost “perfect”…but not quite what they seem at first.
I was troubled by how her pregnancy was portrayed: she was so “cutesy” and the only nod to her physical condition was one scene where she complains about having to go to the bathroom a lot. Also, abortion really is never presented as a realistic alternative. Everyone is so happy and nice; instead of a cautionary tale, it is a big lovefest: isn’t Juno unselfish and brave? Uh, why oh why didn’t streetsmart Juno use birth control???
But I realize with its rating, it seems to be meant for a slightly older crowd, so maybe it is not intended to provide any warning or advice to teens….still wraps everything up in “too pretty” of a package when you are talking about a teenage pregnancy.
Jennifer Garner was awesome as the potential adoptive mom……….
Went to see the new Rambo over the weekend.
While not as good as the original (imo), this one won’t dissapoint in the action department. And while the acting left a little to be desired, the action itself was top notch and out of this world. It’s an extremely “hard R” rating, so I would not take any children or teenagers to this movie. The violence and war scenes are about as real as it gets.
I saw Rambo over the weekend as well. I can’t decide what was more disturbing, The incredibly graphic violence or the fact that I found such entertainment in it. Although it will never be considered a great movie it was entertaining and thats why I go to movies. I came out of Rambo with an adrenaline rush that I had hoped to get from Cloverfield. For me Rambo lived up to the hype (if there was any) but Cloverfield was such a disappointment.
I’ve got a few more reviews for you.
Saw IV: Can’t really decide if I liked it or not. If you’ve been following the Saw series you know the main pyscho character died in Saw III. This one gave you the story into what pushed him into doing what he did and what made him snap. Plus the story continued where it left off in the last movie, with them finding another tape inside his stomach while doing the autopsy on him. While not nearly as good as the previous three, if you like this type of genre and the Saw series, you may (I stress “may”) enjoy this film. I was rather disapointed myself, but like other series, they just aren’t as good as the originals.
The only series I was impressed with this past season, was Die Hard. They did an awesome job in this 4th installment and I was throughouly impressed. While a bit over the top, I still came out of the theatre cheering for the hero and finding myself completely entertained.
I only wish I could say the same about the Pirates of the Carribean, Rush Hour, Shrek 3, etc etc.
3:10 to Yuma: Incredible acting all around and a great movie. A lot of shooting and violence in this movie, so leave the young ones at home with the babysitter for this one. (although it was childs play compared to Rambo)
War: with Jet Li & Jason Statham. Great “popcorn flick” if you like martial arts movies. Lots of action, but the storyline could have been better. Did I mention lots of action?!
Mr. Woodcock: Had some funny moments, but didn’t do much for me. Don’t bother unless you’ve got nothing better to watch. Good for a few laughs.
27 Dresses: For a chick flick it wasn’t bad. Had some very funny moments and is a pretty decent date movie.
I’m really looking forward to seeing “Untraceable” this weekend. If anyone’s seen it, I love to hear what you thought. I was rather dissapointed that the critics didn’t give it very high marks.
Also, has anyone rented the Simpsons Movie? I used to be a fan of the Simpsons back in the day, but I just can’t imagine sitting through a 90 minute movie on it. It got pretty decent reviews but I’m still hesitant. If you’ve seen it, please let me know what you thought. It’s kind of like South Park. I used to really enjoy the tv series back in its heyday, but then when the movie came out, I was really dissapointed.
I really liked the Simpsons Movie. It was funny but had its moments that seemed to drag. It was just like a lot of their episodes. I really love the first 5 minutes and then it goes down hill from there. It is worth a watch though. There is plenty of funny and spider pig is priceless.
The first six or eight Simpsons seasons were the best, like Shakespeare. Then they lost some of their writing talent and switched to the less intellectual formula we see since and today. The movie seemed a lot like their episodes the past few years, so if you still like the Simpsons you’ll probably like the movie.
Chaos: with Jason Statham & Wesley Snipes….pretty decent action flick with a great twist at the end. Definately worth a rent.
MeetMarket: Pretty funny movie about single adults meeting in a Supermarket. It’s rated R so it’s not for the kiddies, but it had some really funny parts.
No Country for Old Men, a great movie with the worst ending. I still recommend watching it because of the suspense. Just be prepared for the last minute to be stupid.
I have to agree with you there. They made this awesome action flick and then it’s like they just forgot to write an ending to it! I left feeling I was completely robbed. The ending is everything… and it seems more and more movies are having difficulties with a good ending. This one just gave up and said why have an ending at all….lets just stop it right here and roll the credits. What a waste of a good movie!
Rendition: Decent movie that shows the racial discrimination that’s rampant in our govt today. The fact that they can take anyone they feel like away from their homes and familys, out of the country and torture them for information if they think their assosiated with any terrorist organizations. It makes me sick to me stomach to know that our govt performs these gestapo tactics in this day and age and there’s nothing we can do about it. Good movie.
Vantage Point - “On February 22nd, see if you can solve the puzzle”. That’s the advertising line for this movie, for they make no attempt to hide the fact that things are not as seem. Better prepare yourself – you going to keep seeing the same twenty minute sequence of this movie over and over again. That’s because it will be shown from a different character’s “vantage point” each time. So-So movie.
Jumper - I’ve decided to call February “direct to DVD” month when it comes to movie releases.. This one has the story of a TV show. I say that because I’ve noticed so many shows on television have what I call a “finite” story that is dragged on for months, if not years. You could go all the way back to “The Fugitive” for an example, but just off the top of my head, there’s “Chuck” and that “Heros” show. It’s the same basic storyline – somebody’s after somebody and each week, comes oh so close, but not quite. That’s what came to mind watching “Jumper”. It has good special effects but not much better than a TV show.
Rambo - Lots of blood and guts but a pretty decent show,
Rendition - This title I had to look up – one of the definitions is “handing over prisoners to countries where torture is allowed”. Oh, goody – a movie about torture! They’ve been saying this is the season for “feel bad” movies, well, we can start with this one. It’s also becoming full open season on President Bush and whole “war on terrorism”, so here we go again.
Try reading “No Country for Old Men.” I literally threw the book at the wall when I was done. Yowza.
Last weekend we watched “Rescue Dawn” and “Cloverfield”, I liked both of them. I find I like movies better the less I know about them beforehand. It’s probably because of having zero expectations, so my opinion can only go upwards.
Rescue Dawn I had no clue what it was about, just popped it in and started watching, my wife said it was something about a war or a POW. It’s supposed to be based on a true story, and I thought it was good.
I don’t think it’s spoiling to say Cloverfield is a monster movie. It’s filmed in shaky cam, kind of the amateur-style like Blair Witch Project, just the shaky-cam style only in case you did not like BWP. The first twenty minutes of Cloverfield are a little annoying, showing a New York City party of friends, but it establishes the relationships and why the people act the way they do when the monster strikes.
Babs……don’t even bother reading the book “I am legend”. What a complete waste that was! It was completely different from the movie for one. The first half of the book I got into, but then it suddendly changed to just complete chaos and utter nonsense that had nothing to do with the actual storyline. It just didn’t make any sense to me.
I threw that book against the wall!
Hey, CR67, add this to our list of “Books to Throw Against a Wall”: “The Ruins”. AHHHHHH.
I won’t say anymore. I don’t want to (wait for it. . . ) ‘ruin’ it for anyone. (Sound of rimshot).
Seriously, though, I flew through the book, found it very engaging and fast-paced, much like his (Scott Smith’s) earlier classic, “A Simple Plan”. And then. . . and then.
Thanks for the warning about “I Am Legend.”
Movies I’ve seen recently:
South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut. Its South Park so you probably either love it or don’t get it. If your one of the few who haven’t seen a South Park episode the movie is just basically a big episode with musical numbers. The show can be crude but its also one of the most intelligently written shows on TV because it almost always manages to see both sides of an issue and do so in ways that might surprise you. Take the mormon episode for instance - the episode is about a mormon kid who moves to town and meets the South Park kids. He tries to teach one of them about mormonism and the show goes on to relentlessly mock the history of mormonism. But throughout the episode the only nice and decent people are the mormon family. Everyone else is mean to each other and the families all hate one another. At the end, after being mocked by the South Park kid the mormon kid says something like “Even if I find out my religion is fake I don’t care since because of it I have a great family who loves me.” He then walks away leaving the South Park kid in stunned silence because he realizes the mormon kid is right.
Yup, I’m a big fan of SouthPark, I own all the dvds and all their movies (okay, there’s one I didn’t buy, because it was so lame. It’s title would not probably pass the censor here, and it sounded like yet another great offering but it was LAME-O…)
I saw “Mr. Brooks” recently, had a hard time getting through the first half (wanted to see Kevin Costner as a good guy, which he isn’t) but it got pretty good after that.
Also, “Good Luck Chuck”. Ummm, not family fare in the least, the unrated version is a teenage boy’s dream movie. But it was funny.
“Frailty”. Now there was a thriller. (Old movie, I’m thinking this decade) and the ending was pretty intense.
Last night I broke down and watched both versions of “Hairspray”, in chrono order. Not deep, just light escapist fun.
Watching a lot of movies lately ‘cuz I’m laid up for a few weeks.
Yeah I also saw Mr. Brooks, my wife picked it. I wasn’t too sure I would last more than five minutes but it did pick up and get interesting. I think they should have ended it about one scene earlier than they did, with the daughter instead of with the wife (if you’ve seen it).
Not sure if I mentioned “Fracture” before but that was really good, quite a thriller mystery with Anthony Hopkins.
Oh, yeah, that daughter scene at the end caused me great grief. Quite the interesting movie. I’m a Costner fan, I even liked “WaterWorld”, and I really liked “The Postman”.
I’ve said I’m an apocalyptic afficionado, and “The Postman” was the first time I can truly say the movie was SO much better than the book.
Thanks for the tip about Fracture. I’ll look for that.
okay, I am a “b-movie” fan from way back; one of my favorites is “Race With the Devil” with Peter Fonda and Warren Oates, two guys on a road trip in the world’s largest RV, with their wives, when they encounter. . . devil worshippers!!! Some unintentionally hilarious scenes (wait for Warren Oates to say, “I don’t believe a school bus on a Sundee”. . . )
Tonight, TMC or some such channel is airing “The Blood on Satan’s Claw” and “The Brotherhood of Satan.” Same cheesy 70’s genre, I’m told (I haven’t see either one) but how fun to watch these old “drive in” pictures and be reminded of how fun it was to go to the movies and be truly scared, or at least, entertained, and not “gored” to death.
One of my daughters was a fanatic of “Mystery Science Theatre 3000″ because of all the cheezo ‘b’ movies they aired and shredded.
oh, I loved MST3000; it was awesome!! I also enjoyed JoeBob Briggs’ “Drive In” Movies; he would similarly “shred” these type of films…
Anyone ever seen the movie filmed in southeast Idaho in the 60’s? I can’t recall the title, but one of the main actors was a major player like Peter Fonda? It had to do with a project at the INL, and they would time travel into the future, they used a lot of local people as actors and extras. It was an environmental film. Anyone remember this one?
Joe, that movie was called “Idaho Transfer”. It was released in 1973. It was directed by Peter Fonda, and starred a bunch of not-so-famous folks, but Keith Carradine was in it.
You can look it up on IMDB. From that site:
“A crew of young researchers escape into the future to avoid the shutdown of their project. They find that some type of ‘eco-crisis’ disaster has de-populated the area around their lab (in rural Idaho) and, by implication, the nation or maybe the world. Stranded in the barren future, in their travels they encounter an abandoned freight train possibly full of corpses (maybe, it isn’t very clear). One of them travels further into the future and meets a family in a futuristic automobile, implying that that humankind has recovered from the disaster (or have they?)”
Just got done watching ‘I Am Legend’ and all I can say is wow. It was a great movie and dang if it didn’t make me tear up in a scene a little past halfway (you know which one if you’ve seen it) and then again at the end. I didn’t expect a zombie movie to be emotionally moving too. Will Smith gives a great performance and the movie does a great job of showing how he is gradually going insane being the last man on earth.
Here you go. Idaho Transfer on DVD. 12 copies avaiable:
http://www.amazon.com/Idaho-Transfer-Kelly-Bohanon/dp/B0000B0JIF
I saw Mad Money last night with Diane Keaton, Ted Danson, Queen Latifah, and the “red-stapler” guy from Office Space. It was pretty good, this is probably nerdy but did anyone else who saw this notice the obvious problem in their money-stealing scheme?
That’s funny, “the red stapler guy from Office Space”. That’s Stephen Root, and I adore him. He was also the station owner in “News Radio” sitcom, and he’s the voice of Bill in “King of the Hill”. In fact, if you check him out at IMDB you’ll find he’s been in about everything that matters, including voices in most of the cool kids’ cartoons, for the last 25 years.
He’s just incredibly funny.
As far as the problem in their money scheme, I spotted it from the promos, I thought. I figured there had to be more to it, but from what you’re writing there may not be.
okay, I am dying here: leave a spoiler alert or something, but please tell us WHAT IS THE PROBLEM in Mad Money???? I need to know; I probably won’t get to see the movie……
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*** SPOILER ALERT FOR MAD MONEY MOVIE ***
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The characters work in a federal reserve building where they destroy money. Banks send them money which is tattered and torn and mutilated, which needs be taken out of the circulation. This facility has a bunch of procedures to track the money in lockdown mode, maneuvering the cash to a shredder where it gets shredded into worthless garbage. The characters come up with a plan to steal the money before it gets shredded.
However, banks record the serial numbers of all cash bills sent to be destroyed, and the Federal Reserve keeps track of these serial numbers to know what has been destroyed and spotlight counterfeiting. The fatal flaw in their plan is that the characters are spending money which has been marked removed from system and destroyed, and they spend this money for many months. The problem is that this money is tattered and undoubtedly would be sent again to be destroyed, where the Federal Reserve would notice all the money coming back which had already been recorded as being destroyed. They would have undoubtedly realized the money had been stolen from their own facility.
Agree or disagree on this fatal flaw? My wife and I spotted this problem early on and the movie never addressed it, never overcame it. I