Archive for the ‘Movies’ Category

• The Wind that Shakes the Barley

  Date: 2009.12.02 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  

  Wow! What an incredible movie! This is a story about two brothers who take up arms against the British during the Irish War of Independence and how they then become involved in the Irish Civil War that follows. It is a very sad movie and I imagine quite representative (I don’t know – I’m not Irish) of the repression the Irish suffered under the British. A truly a griping film that shows us how regular people can be driven to commit great acts of cruelty and violence to achieve an end that many people would consider “good”.

  To me, war is a force of nature like a hurricane, earthquake or a tornado. We have no control over its destructive power, where it goes, how many lives it will ruin or how long it will last. War corrupts and destroys everything it touches. I hate war with all my fiber because it is so evil and terrible. This movie shows these effects on the lives of the characters and how twisted everything becomes as a result of the war.

• G.I. Joe – Rise of Cobra

  Date: 2009.12.01 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  This was a ridiculous movie, but in a good way.  The plot, acting and special effects were so over-the-top.  It is the sort of movie you have to watch when you are in the mood for big explosions, silly costumes, stilted dialogue and want to kill some time with mindless entertainment – like flying over the Atlantic Ocean at 33,000 feet.

  

• Transformers – Revenge of the Fallen

  Date: 2009.11.20 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  If I told you a movie would have more robots, more explosion and more fighting, you’d say “sequel”.  But what if I told you the movie also dropped all the affable charm, humor and innocence of the first movie?  You’d probably skip the film.  Or you’d probably be like these stars wondering where their movie went?

  

  I wanted to like this movie since I really liked the first movie a lot.  So many things came together in the first movie to make it an enjoyable summer entertainment.  Unfortunately, some producer decided the sequel needed more robots and less people, so the movie ended up flat like a can of Coke left out over night.

  I guess what really irked me were the dumb Skids and Mudflap robots.  Why would an alien species of machines talk like 13-year-old boys complete with homophobic posturing and putdowns?  It is hard to be entertained when animated things are putting you down in a not funny way.

• Vicky Christina Barcelona

  Date: 2009.03.26 | Category: Movies, Personal, Spain, Travel | Response: 1

   

  

  Park Guell

  After sitting around on our coffee table for about two weeks, we finally took the time to watch Vicky Christina Barcelona.  This was a very thoughtful romantic comedy and I enjoyed it for many reasons.  One, it dealt with complex relationships in a mature and honest manner.  Because there was truly no “right answer” on how to live your life, I thought Woody Allen did an excellent job leaving the ending ambiguous and true to the story – one could read the ending two ways depending on what one believed the “right answer” was for the protagonists.  Two, it was fun to watch the various characters play the neurotic, over-analyzing Woody Allen character – mostly Rebecca Hall, but Scarlett Johansson and Kevin Dunn also got in on the fun, too.  Three, I see why Penelope Cruz won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.  Her presence on-screen was mesmerizing and invigorating.

  However, the best part of the movie were the lovely shots of Barcelona.  Barcelona is one of my favorite cities in the world and Woody Allen showed a lot of the great sites – Ramblas, the Gaudi architecture, the beaches, the beautiful Spanish sun.  For anyone who knows and loves Barcelona, this film is friendly reminder of this wonderful corner of Spain.

• The Happening

  Date: 2009.02.10 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  I watched this film the other night after it had been sitting around on my coffee table for at least a week (I am so swamped right now).  M. Night Shyamalan definitely understands how to tell a suspenseful story – put broken people in a bewildering, disorienting situation and then slowly crank up the tension and raise the stakes.  As a horror or suspense film, it worked OK.  There also were some beautiful shots – I distinctly remember a scene with Zooey Deschanel’s dress blowing in the wind against a backdrop of the green fields.

  It is always a little sad when the actors you grew up with, or were considered to be heartthrobs,  start to hit middle age.  Both John Leguiziamo and Mark Wahlberg were playing roles that showed they are starting to hit the middle of their careers – they were both fathers and teachers.

• Lost Boys: The Tribe

  Date: 2008.12.23 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  This movie shows everything that is wrong with Hollywood – I think the only people who would be pleased with this movie would be 15-year-old teenage boys.  They so ripped off Supernatural, all the way down to the creaking sound of the dog opening – so lame!  Oh, Corey Feldman, how low have you gone?  Everytime this guy was on screen I was LMAO.

• Forgetting Sarah Marshall

  Date: 2008.12.05 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  I liked this romantic comedy.  I normally do not like these types of movies, but it was recommended by a friend and I am glad I watched it.  It was a thoughtful, adult movie about a guy who gets his heart “broken in a million pieces” and how he moves on.  The dinner scene is absolutely hilarious for anyone who has gone to that awkward dinner you never thought would happen in a million years.

   

  I think the real star of this movie was Mila Kunis.  Can you say drop-dead gorgeous?  Her hair, make-up and lighting were perfect and she had a role which suited her professional persona.  I look forward to seeing more of her.

• Quantum of Solace

  Date: 2008.11.28 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  Saw this movie on Friday when everyone was out shopping (or shooting themselves - you take your pick).  I really enjoy Daniel Craig as the latest incarnation of James Bond and like the physical aspect of this Bond.  There are very few gadgets and these movies tend to be about leaps, fights and other physical feats.  Not to give away any spoilers, but the movie starts off in typical Bond-fashion: very thrilling and gets the action moving with good pacing between action scenes and plot development and Bond being roguish.  In general, the film is good with the climatic confrontation between Bond and the villains at the end being a bit tedious.  Surprisingly, the famous James Bond theme music is not shown until the credits.

  After watching this movie, I get the impression the studio is retelling\reimaging the Bond storylines with Quantum being the new SPECTRE. I am not sure if this is the case, so we will have to see.

  

• Indiana Jones & Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

  Date: 2008.11.21 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  This movie was barely watchable, I wish I had those 2 hours back.   Talk about milking a franchise to the very end!

   

  I mean, how old is Harrison Ford these days?  When you have a head full of gray hair, its time to hang up the bullwhip and fedora.  Oh, and how much money did they give Cate Blanchett for that dismal performance?  Not enough, ’cause she had the worst “Russian” accent ever!  And don’t get me started on Spielburg & Lucas – can they even write a story that doesn’t have aliens in it?  Puh-leaze – Indiana Jones fights Nazis, not ET.  Talk about a lack of immagination.

  Just to show I am not a complete snob, to this day I still like Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.  I think it is the most slapstick and funny of the series.  How can you beat a banquet scene where they serve bugs, eyeball soup and monkey brains for desert?

• Dark Knight

  Date: 2008.10.31 | Category: Movies, Personal | Response: 0

  Saw this movie in an IMAX.  Can you say awesome experience?!

  

   

  I am sure a hundred people have said this before, but Heath Ledger’s performance was incredible.  He completely stole the movie from Christian Bale.  I totally believed the Joker was bat-@#%t crazy and I love the scene of him the hospital wearing the nurse’s uniform.  Totatlly over-the-top!