Month: September 2011

So this movie is a fictional yet real biography of the life of George W. I can say I didn’t like a lot of the pre-presidency years. That bored me. Sure he had an interesting party life, but I want to get to the nice political part of it all. The presidency! Yeahhhh! This seems to contradict with my thoughts in my last review of the Fantastic Mr. Fox. Oh well.

Bet you didn’t see this picture coming again so soon.

The story is also told out of order. Not even sure why. This can totally be a straightforward movie. Me being the type of individual who is hardly political, I also couldn’t tell you how much of this is real and how much is fake and how much is way over emphasized and blah blah.

Josh Brolin did a fantastic job. However the overall story line wasn’t as entertaining as I would have hoped. Maybe this is the kind of movie that is better 10 years later, when you don’t remember everything important that happens.

Damn it, Wes Anderson. I liked one of your movies. Are you happy now?

Oh you want more? Well, one thing that makes this film different is that it is stop animation, not live action. Because live action movies about foxes couldn’t be fantastic, like Mr. Fox is. It is quirky and lead by the great George Clooney, who seems to only be in more politically driven movies these days. Nothing wrong with it, but I want my George from O Brother and Men Who Stare at Goats. With that crazy whimsical look in his eyes. Not caring about the government. Leave that to Sean Penn.

I assure you he is not looking at a goat right now.

But the story is based off of a kids book, and does it give it justice! Probably more justice than the book. The story is so interesting, of a fox who cant stop robbing farmers, and coming out of retirement to try the biggest robbery in his life. Okay, so it has some Ocean’s Eleven element to it too. Damn it George, come back! It is hard to explain how good this movie. Thankfully the rating says what you should do. GO WATCH THIS MOVIE.

Damn it, he even has those crazy whimsical eyes as a fox.

4 out of 4.

Ahhh, a movie with a colon in the title! Operation: Endgame! And that’s not a subtitle!

This movie has one of the most interesting covers ever. Seriously. Look at it.

But don’t touch.

WHAT A CAST. Look at Galifianakis! Front and center? An assassin? Those other people I recognize too! How could this fail! Including Adam Scott, of Parks and Rec, and Party Down fame, and Brandon T. Jackson, or “Mr. Booty Sweat!”

Oh yeah. It can fail by not having much Zach in it. He is in a few scenes, and they are amusing. He is also feared by the rest?, but mostly because he is weird. The death scenes in this movie are pretty great/gruesome though. No guns are in the entire office building, so they are all caused by “ordinary” office objects. Stuff is very gruesome and bloody. Unfortunately some of my favorites die too early.

What is also funny is the dialogue by the men watching the video surveillance during this entire office war. They really do a good job of bringing a more comedic element to the action comedy. The plot fails though, seriously. Ending barely mattered. It was more about fighting and laughing. So I might watch it again, might not. Could go either way.

This Nine is of course not to be confused with the other 9. As you can see, this is spelled out, and the other is a number. I watched them on the same day. This was a mistake. Not watching them on the same day, but watching this at all. All I knew about this was that it was based off of a musical of the same name, about some other movie (8 1/2, don’t get lost now), and involved the director being with tons of different women. Unfortunately, in my mind it did not translate well from musical to movie of musical.

First off, this film was boring. It has no real way to hook people in who don’t already know the story or the movie its based off of. The songs are few and far between, while not to mention not being too interesting to listen to. It seemed like every character got their own song, and that was it. No real harmony. The main dude is Daniel Day-Lewis, fresh from his role as crazy oil tycoon in There Will Be Blood.

If you weren’t expecting a picture like this after that reference, we can’t be friends.

I could be wrong about not much harmony between singers, because I stopped caring while watching it. I heard a lot of songs didn’t even make it into the movie, including the song called Nine. What the hell? Seems like a poor judgement call. Other singers include Fergie, Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, and Penelope Cruz.

This thing is way too artsy, and way too boring for anyone but already lovers of the material to watch.

9, or by its other title of “Little Big Planet: The Movie” is probably the best looking “animated” movie I have seen on Blu-Ray. Too bad the ending sucked.

Only 10 voice actors were needed for this movie, because as expected, a post apocalyptic film wouldn’t have many characters (I’m looking at you Book of Eli). The main doll is voiced by Elijah Wood, who is much more enjoyable at talking to dogs than being a hobbit. It also features Jennifer Connelly and John C. Reilly.

“Why yes, I do enjoy the path my career has taken post LOTR.”

But the ending is not at all what I expected. Here is a spoiler! When 9 returned to the first room to see the video, he finds outthat the Machine is lacking a human soul. Wait a minute, aren’t all of the dolls made up of a human soul? Yes. Before 5 dies he says the other eaten dolls are still alive, but just in the machine. Huh.

Maybe it is just me, but how does that not make it seem like they were made to be sucked into the machine, so that he won’t be corrupt and can actually make a better future/rebuild the world? Instead, he somehow interprets all of that as a “This is how we can destroy the machine!” leaving just 4 stichpunks and some rain after they succeed. WTF?

Hmm. This is a movie I really wanted to like. Who doesn’t like Alec Baldwin, I mean, come on!

The story is the one as old as time…a divorced couple of about 10 years want to have an affair with each other. Lots and lots of old people sex. “Old people” being of course kind of a ridiculous concept here. In fact, you may even describe their relationship as…. Complicated! It was an interesting smorgasbord of actors/actresses who played their children (/children in law) including Jim from the Office and the Silas from Weeds.

Steve Martin also being the sort of antagonist was weird as well. He has always been a “jerk” but never in this light.

Only joke here is the pun on name for a soda fountain operator. Get it? Get it? Fuck you.

The best performances are of course from Baldwin and Streep, who are very convincing at their portrayals. They are great at these roles. Unfortunately just having well done acting is not the end all be all of a movie. It also has to be a bit more interesting. It is weird that when Streep is freaking out that she is sexing up Baldwin, she calls it an affair. She isn’t cheating on anyone, but Alec is. I guess she has a higher moral ground than myself.

Interesting story, because, hey lesbians! Yay lesbians! I am not saying Lesbians make a film automatically good. Heck no. Plenty of bad movies that try to get more money just because people like seeing chicks make out with each other. This is not one of those movies. This is serious! This is The Kids Are Alright! And I doubt many people have fantisized about the possibility of seeing Annette Bening and Julianne Moore kiss.

This couple has been together for a long time, over 20 years. They decided they wanted to have kids and have a sperm donor. They agreed from the profiles of one individual, and decided to both become artificially inseminated a few years apart, so that the kids will have the same dad, but each of the moms will give birth. They have never met the guy, of course, and never thought they would, until the brother made the older sister (now 18) collect the info to meet him. And of course, shit goes down.

He ends up having a relationship with the whole family, almost breaking them all apart. Poor Mark Ruffalo. If people actually started to yell at him, we now know he’d just go all HULK on them, but that may be a different movie.

RUFFALO SMASH!!!

I did NOT like the ending. However the acting is great on all accounts, and it was an interesting and newer story. Well made, but too real. If it was more fake I could have a better ending I think.

Hey readers! Do you want to feel super sad and upset? Do you want to feel raw emotion of anger and more sadness? I guess I am asking if you want to cry. Because then it is pretty easy to suggest the film, Rabbit Hole.

Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart give a great performance here of a couple who are dealing with the loss of their son. Both are taking different routes, experiencing with grief groups, and other quirks involving their sons things.

“Hey baby, I know one way we can forget about our dead child…”

Throughout the whole film you will sense the anguish between them, especially of Kidman here. Eckhart appears to be handling it a bit better, but it still doesn’t prevent him from lashing out in a few scenes where it is almost pure anger. In the movie, Kidman also tries to connect with the driver of the car that hit her child (Miles Teller), and how it is has affected his life as well. It provides PLENTY of awkward conversations that are just real.

The ending provides some hope, instead of leaving everything in taters and unsolved like a lot of these “Great films”. I have to sparingly watch this movie, but I know I will again in the future.

Alright! The long awaited Captain America movie that people would assume would not do well internationally. I mean, who cares about American Patriotism, outside of Americans and Terrorists who want to find its weaknesses? Most importantly for this movie is the last set up movie before every nerd boys dream, The Avengers, which if you missed, had a large preview at the end of Captun AMurrika.

Chris Evans plays the titular character, making this the 5th comic based person of his career. He was of course Johnny Flame in Fantastic Four movies. But he was also in The Losers, a graphic novel, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, a graphic novel, and the voice of Casey in the TMNT movie, originally a comic. This guy better love comics. The next closest person would be Ryan Reynolds, who is just trying to be in everything these days.

A lot of talk on the CGI used to display Evans before and after the serum. He looks weird scrany, but it wasn’t actual CGI but some other complicated method. It was actually his body the whole time though, so at least we get that. Movie was long enough with enough action in it to give the complete story, even his return to the present. It sucked knowing his relationship would never last. I liked how they showed his conquests throughout Europe, giving small detail, but leaving enough room for a Captain America 2 to take place during this time, pre Red Skull as well.

Speaking of Red Skull, how about that Hugo Weaving? How good is he at sci-fi, fantasy, action movies?

Multiple personality disorder is serious business.

Also this film does a good job of tricking you. You think one thing will happen, and not only do they do the opposite, they kind of tease the fact that you just guessed wrong. See: kid being thrown in the water. We also have Tommy Lee Jones as a big army dude, Hayley Atwell as a love interest, and Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark.

Black Swan, Pretty Popular, not for me.

Okay I get it. Natalie Portman. She can be a great actress. In this movie she is supposed to play this very sheltered girl trying to get into her “Black Swan side” in order to get the big part of the ballet she has dreamed about forever. The director thinks she is too pure. She must prove him wrong! Also, she has mental problems that she never knew about. (Well, that she ignored).

That sucks. But I feel like if a person does a good portrayal of someone fucked up, then they get academy award talk and chatter. People will say I don’t get it, but there was much to get. Everything that happens in the film is easily explained, and the transformation at the end is just a metaphor. Hard work alone doesn’t deserve a great review. I need to be interested, and I failed to find this interesting.

Mila Kunis kind of bored me too. She is supposed to be the wild child in this movie. She is, definitely way more than Portman. But I just didn’t see her as a ballet dancer. Also the lesbian scene creeped me out too. I think I was supposed to be, but I am pretty sure the concept was a big reason why a lot of people went to see it.

“Oh! Sorry I came in without knocking. Yeah…I’ll leave…right now…yeah…leaving…okay…gone.”