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Reviews
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
First impressions good
I would give this 8.5/10. It's very, very good.
First and foremost this movie is more about Bruce Wayne than Batman. It's about Bruce learning to live in a world where he feels he has nothing to live for. It's about the demons of the past coming forward to haunt and exact vengeance for those wrongs, and how Bruce must learn to overcome them, and finally learn to live in the present and not the past.
Michael Cain gives an outstanding performance - heartbreaking, even. He has cared for Bruce since the day he was born, and he's seen the pain and suffering he has endured. It's clear Alfred cannot take much more of Bruce living in misery, and the tension between them is palpable.
When Bane arrives and they do their research to find out more about him, Alfred genuinely becomes concerned that Bruce is about to set out on a suicide mission. Worse still, Alfred believes Bruce wants to die in this way.
The rest of the movie is what you'd expect - lots of amazing action, typical, subtle Nolan humor is written throughout. Anne Hathaway provides some much needed distraction and is good eye candy. She also represents the counterpart Bruce needs to move on with his life, or end it.
Bane is an intense and charismatic villain. I hate to say it, but it will take reading the script or watching it a dozen times to understand everything he said. And for anyone that didn't think Tom Hardy was big enough? Well, there's certainly a shot early on that shows his impressive physicality. He's much bulkier and more ripped than Bruce ever was.
The fights between Batman/Bane are what most hardcore fans are looking forward to and they were done well. I won't spoil things too much, but I think they did a good job of showing that Batman is not the fighter he once used to be - age and injury have slowed him down a bit. He really is in a fight for his life when he encounters Bane.
The last 1/2 hour of this movie is brilliant, stunning, and has more twists and emotional resonance than most will have anticipated. It's gripping, heart wrenching, and bittersweet - all at the same time. A stirring conclusion.
Premium (2006)
Enjoyable in a melancholy kind of way...
An enticing film - you begin to watch and within minutes you want to know how it ends. I think there's something in all of us that always hopes for it to work out for the guy, to see him get the girl. While this movie delivers that in a sense, it doesn't leave you with a traditional happy ending.
While the lead male role was performed well I didn't feel like it was very emotionally connecting. Perhaps that's just a reflection of his character, always playing it 'cool' and never really letting you know what's going on in his head. The role didn't offer much chance for an emotional curve.
Opposite the lead male role there is Zoe Saldana's character, and seeing this movie after knowing she's been in two of the biggest films in 2009 you begin to understand why. An impeccably understated yet convincing and satisfying performance. Quite simply a grace to watch on screen.
The other aspect that stuck out to me was the music - I would love to have this soundtrack playing in my home.
This movie is like a little gem you hide away in your private stash, only sharing with someone special, and only then watching once every so often, yet thoroughly enjoying it every time.
Das Clown (1999)
Quirky and Fun!
I first saw this in college back in 2001 and thought it was one of the funniest short films I've ever seen.
Some people will find this movie funny, others maybe not. You just have to recognize that it's intended to quirky and over the top melodramatic. John Popper does a great job narrating, the sound fx were great, and of course the slideshow/bedtime story approach is an interesting combination. And then of course there's the evil spirits thrown in for good measure.
It's barely a ten minute film - take the time and watch it. It's worth it!
Halloween II (2009)
Intentionally trashed?
My first thoughts after watching this were that maybe Rob Zombie intentionally made a movie so horrible that no one would dare try to continue with a sequel.
The best thing about this movie is the look - really I thought the shots of Michael trekking his way through the fields and woods were beautiful shots. I like the grainy look, and the muted colors in many of the scenes. I kept thinking if anyone were to ever adapt an Edgar Allen Poe story into a movie this would be an appropriate look.
Malcolm McDowell was fantastic - his portrayal of such a disgusting excuse for a human being made me feel that he is the villain in the movie rather than Michael. By the end, I was rooting against Dr. Loomis.
The rest I won't even bother with - much of the movie just didn't make sense, whether it was the way a character acted or reacted, the dream sequences or the timeline. Watch it if you're curious, but don't have high expectations.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Sensational!
I had the fortune of seeing this at a drive in movie theater. Unfortunately I was also shooting a commercial for that drive in, but I did most of my shooting before the movie even started. It was a great experience. I did however, go to see it again in a proper theater environment. My cars speakers just weren't up to task.
I understand not everyone will 'get it', either the story or Christian Bale's voice, or all the unbelievable action sequences and chain of events. I think they forget that ultimately, this is a movie based on comic book characters. Everything about it is fantastical.
This movie is amazing on every level. Great writing, the performances are all convincing, the effects realistic, and the parallels to events in our own world jarring. The cinematography is beautiful, and the moral dilemmas, the personal struggles all relate to the events occurring in the film.
There are some who fail to understand the symbolism of Batman and what it means to Bruce Wayne. Why, they ask, would Bruce Wayne in this film want to lay down the cowl for good? Think about peace within yourself and what it means for those around you. How it affects the world around you. Therein lies the answer. Simple enough.
There are lots of things to appreciate about this movie - at the very least, just enjoy the exhilarating action scenes and suspense.
Be Cool (2005)
Watch Get Shorty. Throw this in the dumpster.
Without a doubt one of the worst movies of all time. Get Shorty (the predecessor by 10 years) is without a doubt one of the best and smartest comedies to come along in a long time. This movie tried way too hard to 'be cool' and it completely fell flat on its face. Was the whole thing supposed to be a joke and I just missed it? It's unfortunate because a lot of the cast members are great performers, but many of them felt miscast.
This movie has every stereotype in the book, every cliché, every bad ripoff of scenes from Get Shorty and Pulp Fiction and it does all of them horribly. How do you screw up clichés? Watch this movie and you'll have your answer.
Friday the 13th (2009)
Not very good
I, like a lot of people, am starting to get tired of these horror movie remakes. But they'll keep making them, because I'll keep watching them. Maybe one day I'll be surprised when a really good horror film gets made.
This movie felt like it took too many elements from Saw and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake (same director?).
It's pretty par for the course as far as Friday the 13th movies go. Lots of hot, dumb, blond chicks that make easy targets, the douche bag guys and the stupid stoners.
I really didn't like the hostage situation - Jason doesn't seem that smart, and that girl looked way too normal for having been in that hole for 6 weeks. Jason must be a good host. She doesn't look at all malnourished or dehydrated! Finally they started developing two of the characters and then went nowhere with their story. The cute brunette, and the guy who was looking for his sister. It was obvious their characters were supposed to have something, but it seems like they abandoned that idea in favor of another kill, which was really, really unoriginal. That, and the guy could have made a good nemesis for Jason. But they kept them in the realm of typical cardboard cutouts. What a waste.
This movie was fun enough to watch but ultimately it's just another slasher that I'm not even sure should be called Friday the 13th.
Freddy vs. Jason (2003)
Fun movie - not supposed to be scary!
Saw this 6 years ago in the theaters and loved it. Now I'm watching it on TV so I decided to throw my 5 cents on here.
This could never have been a scary movie. Maybe if you were a little kid, but otherwise, no, not scary.
It is a fun movie with some great one liners and a halfway plausible premise for a world where the boogeyman kills you in your dreams and Jason never dies. Some of the actors were terrible, some were actually pretty good.
For starters, a good actor cannot save a movie from bad writing. Jason Ritter and Monica Keena aren't bad actors, but their characters in this movie are stereotypical - by their very nature the role of being in a 'horror' movie means they're going to get some bad lines and ridiculous situations. That pretty much guarantees campy performances! Seriously does anybody take a role in a horror movie expecting to win an Academy award? Now Kelly Rowland and the stoner dude definitely are not good actors! The fight scenes were fun, a good dose of humor, some hot girls, and a couple horror movie icons duking it out? What's there to complain about?
Alpha Dog (2006)
Great Cast, good film.
Just watched this the night before I'm writing this and I have to say I enjoyed the film, but felt it was too long.
This is an excellent example of how stupid kids get caught up in a lifestyle they don't know and don't understand. Watching the white, suburbanite gangster wannabe attitudes made the characters get on my nerves. Especially when you see what kind of environments they grew up in yet they still lived the way they did. It seemed to me these kids had a choice. All I could keep saying to myself throughout the movie was that these kids were really stupid. The only exception is Emile Hirshs' character. Obviously the other characters followed his lead, and he knew how to manipulate them. They did his dirty work and paid the price, so it was extremely gratifying to see in the end that he is paying his dues.
I thought there were some great performances - Emile Hirsch is always a standout, Anton Yelchin was great, and Ben Foster was very intense. His performance was unnerving! I thought JT was good, not great. I didn't feel like his character was much of a stretch - it was a fairly stereotypical character. JT has talent, and this was a good starting out role. I'm sure he'll get better with time. The rest of the supporting cast was fine. Although I still don't think Sharon Stone is a good actress.
The movie dragged on a bit with all the partying. The exposition was provided early on and they did a good job developing the relationship with Zach as the movie went on, but I felt like overall the movie was about 20-25 minutes too long. All in all, a tragic story about dumb kids getting in way over their heads and the horrible price they paid for their actions.
Crime + Punishment in Suburbia (2000)
Strangely haunting and beautiful
The 3 best aspects to this film are the acting, cinematography and soundtrack.
This film just made me a big fan of Monica Keena and Vincent Kartheiser. Both delivered dynamic and intriguing performances. Monica Keena's character is transformed throughout the film and she's able to convey that arc with great subtlety. Vincent Kartheiser's character was also conveyed very well, not overdone like so many other goth/nerd characters are portrayed.
The cinematography was great - visually compelling imagery and an unsteadiness throughout that lends to the feel of uneasiness with what is happening to the characters. It lends itself to the feelings, moods of not only the characters in the film but to the viewer as well. A great film engages the viewer and makes them feel as though they have been drawn into the world of the film.
Finally I'm a big fan of music and soundtracks that aren't cliché and don't dominate a scene. I'd love to get my hands on a list of all the songs used in the film.
The writing was decent, and many of the supporting actors played their parts very well - this easily could have devolved into overblown and overacted performances but nobody in the cast fell prey to that trap.
There's a strange morality to the story - one not easily discerned after one viewing. Of course there can be comparisons to the film "American Beauty" and while that one garnered all the praise and awards I believe this film is much more challenging yet far more fulfilling. It's more subtle and the answers aren't so easy to ascertain. I'll be watching this movie many times and I have a feeling I'll discover something new each time. Great movie!
No Country for Old Men (2007)
Understatedly Brilliant
For all of the mindless dolts that didn't like this because it left you to your own interpretations I say go watch Sesame Street. It's all spelled out for you on that show.
This movie gets better and better with every viewing. Outstanding cinematography, the subtle yet effective score and the superb acting of the three male leads, not to mention the supporting cast. The Coen brothers have done it again and crafted a wonderful film which will reveal more nuance and detail with each successive viewing.
I can appreciate a film where everything is neatly tied up at the end and we're left with no questions as to what happened with the characters in the story. But I love those movies which leave you with just as many questions as answers, and this movie leaves a lot of questions to ponder. I'll enjoy watching this over and over again. I liken it to a film like 'The Usual Suspects' - a film which I still watch and discover something new with each viewing.