JUNO Saturday, Jan 26 2008

I fell into the hype of this one.  I had to see it, because everyone said it was the greatest movie, EVAH!  After several threats of phyiscal harm and many attempts of escape I dragged my husband to this movie. 

I liked the movie, but I wouldn’t go so far as say it is the greatest.  I guess from the hype I expected to walk out of the theater knowing all the answers to life’s mysteries.  I guess I should look to deeper sources for such answers.

I think the movie played it on the safe side.  All the characters are likable, which is not necessarily a good thing.  Every movie needs a villian and even the drop out adoptive husband, played by Jason Bateman, was nowhere near being a good candidate to really hate.  Jennifer Garner’s charater was too sympathic.  There was just no getting around her martyrdom, which just made me roll my eyes instead of understanding her plight. 

The stepmother was the best, especially when she explained the truth about doctors.  I totally agree and I would put nurses in the same category, as well.  I would hope that my father would have the same reaction if I would have told him I was pregnant as a teenager.  Just enough outrage, but nothing along the lines of calling his daughter a slut.  The perfect balance.

JUNO, of course, is the perfect picture of the self confident pregnant teenager, if such a creature existed.  As much as I liked her, it was hard to believe that any teenager could remain that calm going through pregnancy and then giving up their baby.  I don’t hold it against the film, because if we want reality then we should live life and stay out of the movie theaters. 

JUNO is definitely a flat line movie.  There were no big surprises and no big emotional reactions, but it was a good movie.  So if you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon, then maybe you should start jumping.  You won’t miss that 2 hours at all and you might learn how a happy ending can make you feel.

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I Am Legend Wednesday, Dec 26 2007

I went into this movie, not knowing much.  It was date night and not much playing, so I took mercy on my husband and let him seem some action.  The movie did leave a lasting impression, meaning that I freaked out in the dark for a week or so. 

The movie has Will Smith all alone, or so you believe, in New York City.  Apparently, a virus has gotten out of hand and the people that are infected are dark dwelling, face eating monsters.  Will Smith, like in most of his movies, is hell bent on saving the world instead of himself.  I will let you decide if he was successful or not.

I will use the overused term, on the edge of my seat, because I was for most of the movie.  You knew something was going to jump out on the screen, but when was the big question.  So I was in a constant state of prepareness to not scream like the little bitch that I am.  I am nothing, but sophiscated at the movie theater, my high class event.  So yes, this movie was a thriller. 

There was one thing on my side, though.  The monsters and their pets, were less than life like.  Did they scare me, sure, but so did some of the Scooby Doo monsters.  I am a wimp.  This little fact helped my sleepless nights, after this movie, because how can someone be scared of a computer generated monster that can only scream and jump. 

Some purests will say it was not as good as the book, but once again I do not read, so I have no way to back that up.  The simple fact is that this has been done, and apparently it will be done again next year.  I think zombie killers are back up on the Hollywood idea board, so go out and see them before the classy vampires are next in line for their turn, again.  Hollywood is keeping true to their resolve to be green, recycling old ideas is a constant theme. 

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Golden Compass Wednesday, Dec 26 2007

We saw this movie about 3 weeks ago and I was just going to leave it at that.  Generally, it is a good movie and I enjoyed.  However, there is that nasty little problem of the author of the book the movie is based on.  I don’t mind people having their opinions and I don’t mind that he is an atheist.  The author has proclaimed that he is using this medium to get children to his side of this debate.  I find it underhand, and odd that he is claiming that religon is not allowing people their free will, when it appears he is doing the same thing.  Oh well, these things tend to work themselves out.  Besides, you only have to look as far as your Internet to find his mission and do with it what you will.

The movie was well done.  The fantasy characters were real enough, especially the bears.  I do love the bears.  I had a few problems with the simplicity of some of the storylines, like the souls being animals outside the human’s bodies and the witches.  I didn’t really understand the witches.  I am sure if I read the book, all of this would be made all clear.  However, if you read my profile you know I would rather have moving pictures do my thinking for 90 minutes than actually move my eyes back and forth on a page.  That doesn’t mean that I am some feeble mind that I would let a movie determine my life. I will file this movie under nice, but not buying the message.  I am not sure if I will see the next in the series, but who knows I may forget all this burrowing into my brain and planting ideas stuff and be on the train like everyone else wondering where the snacks are. 

If you were wondering, I couldn’t get into the Chronicles of Narnia.  Maybe I am on the wrong side.  Mmmmm…..maybe the brainwashing has already taken place.  Is that Kool-Aid?

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Heartbreak Kid Thursday, Nov 8 2007

I love a raunchy, immature comedy like the next 12 year old boy, but this movie was slightly disappointing.  It appeared to be along the same lines as Something About Mary, but it lagged in many places.  Where SAM had a riproaring laugh at every new scene, Heartbreak Kid took it’s time to get to the funny.  I would say there is only one scene that was totally unexpected and it was toward the end when Ben Stiller is attacked by a man of war.  You will have to see the movie to know what I am talking about.  I am not in the business of ruining film endings. 

Would I not recommend this movie?  Eh, it depends on the person.  Me? That movie would have to be really bad for me to stay away.  You have to remember I am a mother of 2 small kids, if I have the chance to sit in a dark room, eating popcorn and able to watch a movie uninterrupted all the way through, it is all good.  However if you have to wait until this movie comes out on DVD, I wouldn’t beat yourself over it just wait until the kids are asleep.  Don’t worry about waking them up with your side splitting laughter, because it only comes in spurts.

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American Gangster Thursday, Nov 8 2007

In my mind there is nothing better than a good old-fashioned mob movie.  I love the small look into the mob life as seen through TV and movies.  The hierarchy, the codes, and “rules” that surround this society is truly interesting.  When I saw the previews for American Gangster, I knew I had to see it.  It was a new twist on an old genre, an African American gangster doing things his way, but still along the lines of the original gangsters.   

Frank Lucas came into his own when he witnessed the death of his boss and then current ruler of Harlem.  I found the conversation in the appliance store interesting, but it would only become apparent at the end of the movie.  As we weave through the rise of Frank Lucas and the life of the cop that would bring him down, only to defend him later, it became a parallel of good being not so shiny and evil being all that glitters.  The cop, played by Russell Crowe, was honest but had many faults.  There is his casting out among cops when he turned in almost a million dollar of unmarked bills, but his ongoing battle for his son that would come to the realization that his life was not the life for a  child.  His life was plagued with a revolving door of women, but a quest to be the only honest cop in a sea of cops only out for themselves. On the contrast Frank Lucas was a very well dressed gentleman that would have appeared to be more of a Wall Street Broker than drug lord.  One can appreciate his business sense, if only it wasn’t supply junkies with their next fix.  Lucas would corner the market with his Blue Magic and become more powerful and richer than the mob bosses trying to corner the same market. 

I liked Lucas over the cop and who wouldn’t?  Sure he murdered people in cold blood, but his calm yet forceful presence shows the power that he possessed.  People are drawn to power and charm; Lucas had both.  Crowe’s character (which proven by the fact that I have forgotten his name) was just another cop on the street.  One can come to the conclusion that good goes unnoticed while evil is noticed and loved by everyone.  By the end of the film, I would be impressed with Crowe’s character and would have rathered seen the after story that was only told in words across the screen.  Lucas will show us a lesson, also.  Evil does fall and to save itself will turn against it’s own kind.  It is part of the world they live in and it is a reason it is so brutal.  Every man for himself with no love for their fellow criminal.  

Both Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe are great in this movie.  Washington has the presence and style to play such a charming character and Crowe has the sense of the every man just doing what needs to be done.  I have never been a big fan of Crowe’s, but I will say that he impressed me in this film.  You almost forget that he is an actor playing a role instead of getting a peek at someone’s life.  Washington was a presence on the screen and I could have watched him all day.  You knew that he was always watching and calculating his next move on his rise to power. 

I highly recommend this movie, even though I felt it dragged in places.  The ending is a great payoff and the majority of the beginning is needed to give you the information you need to understand the ending.  Pay close attention to the beginning of the movie, because the rant that Lucas’ boss gives before he dies is a precursor to Lucas’ life and downfall. 

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K-Ville Monday, Oct 15 2007

This series started out slow and predictable, relying on the same old stereotypes that plague our city.  With each passing show the stories are getting a little better and more interesting.  The show is using the city’s uniqueness to add a different spin to the cop drama.   My hope is that the show will blend in with the New Orleans scene like CSI has with Las Vegas.  Disgarding the nasty stereotypes and using the city to it’s advantage. 

I heard one reviewer claim that only the Police Captain is attempting a New Orleans accent.  I say keep it that way.  There have been so many bad attempts at actors trying to sound like New Orleanians that if you can’t do it right then don’t do it at all.  There have been references made regarding  po-boys, hot sauce and Voo Doo which were not totally accurate, but I think we should give K-ville a little wiggle room.  Like any new series they need to find their groove and hopefully the one they find will be one that promotes a good cop show that is located in America’s most unique city.

K-Ville is not perfect, far from it, but I am willing to give it a chance.  The crimes have gotten more interesting since the pilot, which was mediocre at best, and hopefully the show will only continue to pursue interesting storylines that keep us interested not just because it is our city they are talking about.  It is a very big pill to swallow that one of the cops, Trevor Cobb, is a former residence of O.P.P. and I wish they could find a way to let that die.  However, at this point, I am willing to give K-Ville an entire season to prove to me that they are not here to portray the same old stereotypes.  Only, I hope they don’t mind when we laugh at them for the chase scene in the supposedly airport which was the cruise ship dock or the car chase scenes that seem to effortless switch from Westbank to Eastbank.  We, locals, can only take suspended disbelief so far until we fall to ground in side splitting laughter.

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