Quantum of Solace

As a huge Casino Royale fan, I really had my hopes up for this film. In terms of action, this sequel delivers. Unfortunately the storyline falls short. Casino Royale introduced a new Bond, allowing the ultimate womanizer to fall in love, and now we get to see the betrayed and pissed off Bond who's looking for revenge. Overall the story had some major holes, and I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the Russian actress playing a Bolivian woman undercover as a Russian (she's a chick playing a chick disguised as another chick!). I would still recommend seeing Quantum of Solace, if just for the hotness of Daniel Craig and his Aston Martin, as well as the ridiculous action sequences. I just hope that the next Bond installment features more of the car, less clothes for Craig, and gets back to spying (as opposed to just killing) and womanizing.

Role Models

If you enjoy raunchy comedy or just seeing kids cursing, this is the movie to see. Personally I don't mind sitting through an hour and a half of bad movie just to watch Seann William Scott, but laughing for the entire movie is even better. And with Paul Rudd you pretty much can't go wrong. Combine these two with McLovin, a violent disrespectful 10 year old, and some serious LARPing, and you've got comic genius. So for those who are not easily offended, I'm rating this as a Must See.

Scarface (1983)

This past weekend a friend and I decided to rent a movie classic that neither of us had seen. Although we keep up to date on current movies, we're way behind on older films. I mentioned possibly renting Sling Blade (I'd been rereading Tucker Max's I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell), but checking Rotten Tomatoes showed a running time of 2 hours and 37 minutes, and not looking for such a long movie, Sling Blade was vetoed. So instead we chose Scarface, without thinking to check the running time, which turned out to be 2 hours and 50 minutes. And unfortunately, it was a very boring and painful 2 hours and 50 minutes. My friend fell asleep for half the movie but I adamantly stayed awake, thinking I'm already halfway in, I might as well finish this so I can legitimately say, "Yes I've seen Scarface".

I am saddened to find out this was the 3rd "final" version of the film, as director Brian De Palma cut the film down twice when the MPAA gave the film an X rating, which was later appealed to an R rating. This reflects how long ago the film was made, as I didn't find anything about this film as overly gruesome or violent. Primarily I noticed the language factor as, according to IMDB, variants of the word fuck appear 226 times throughout the film. Even after cuts, the film was unnecessarily long and often dragged with unnecessary subplots and details.

The camera work was relatively poor and often shaky and was paired up with overly dramatic music, which wasn't proportional to the mood of the scenes. I was also disappointed with Al Pacino, whom I've always respected as an actor. Although he tried for a convincing Cuban accent, while standing next to true Hispanics (particularly Steven Bauer, who was born in Cuba), Pacino's Italian background is quite blatant, and even distracting.

I cannot believe how much this film is revered in American movie culture. I'm sure I'll get some flack for this but I just wish I could get those 3 painfully dull hours of my life back.

Recommendation: Waste of Time

Disturbia

I have been raving about this movie from the moment I walked out of the theater over a year ago, and I will continue to rave for many years to come. Disturbia is a brilliant mix of suspense, drama, teen romance and most surprisingly, humor. I'm generally not a fan of horror movies, particularly not of the gory torture genre that has emerged in recent years, so I'm happy to say that Disturbia is much more thriller than horror film. Director DJ Caruso effortlessly lightens the tension of this growing mystery with the humorous details of everyday life. He also manages to create what can only be described as one of the most intense scenes that I've ever watched within the first ten minutes of the film. Along with Caruso's direction, the success of the film is clearly the result of a talented ensemble cast, led by Shia LaBeouf.


Bad guy David Morse is the actor you love to hate. He flawlessly projects the reserved demeanor of your typical guy-next door psychopath, straddling the line between menacing foe to Kale (Shia LaBeouf) and charming gentleman to Kale's mother, Julie (Carrie-Anne Moss). Carrie-Anne Moss offers a refreshing performance as a loving mother trying to be understanding while maintaining authority over her troubled son. Also in supporting roles are Aaron Yoo as Ronnie, the quirky best friend, and Sarah Roemer playing the new girl in town and the object of Kale's affection, Ashley. The chemistry between the three young actors is incredibly natural and helps to ground Kale as a typical teenager who's just made some bad decisions while dealing with a difficult time in his life.

I've been a fan of Shia LaBeouf since the Even Steven days, but this is the first film where young women everywhere realized that Shia is more than just the oddball comedian; he's actually kind of sexy. But even beyond realizing that little Shia has grown up well, Disturbia only continues to highlight LaBeouf's exceptional acting talent. Of the three films LaBeouf starred in during 2007 (Disturbia, Surf's Up, Transformers), he was quoted as saying that Disturbia was his favorite simply because it was so character driven, and I have to agree wholeheartedly. LaBeouf effortlessly portrays a myriad of emotions as a teenage boy dealing with the emotional upheaval of losing a loved one, followed by the mental toll of living under house arrest.

Overall, I can't say enough good things about this movie. I laughed, I swooned, I jumped, and for a solid minute I think I forgot to breathe. For those of you that insist you can't handle scary movies, I have to insist that this film is worth it. Invite a bunch of friends over, watch it in the middle of the day with all the lights on; whatever you need to do, this is a must-see.

Recommendation: Mary's Favorites

The Marine

As the WWE's first independently produced film, The Marine lives up to expectations. The dialogue is cheesy, the acting is sub par, and the plot holds major flaws. However, 90% of the sets and vehicles in the film explode, the girls are hot (Kelly Carlson of Nip Tuck fame, and lesser-known Abigail Bianca), the fighting is intense, and the guys are mostly drool-worthy (if you're a fan of the jacked up pro wrestler type physique). If simply looking for mind-numbing entertainment, The Marine satisfies.

Recommendation: Mary's Favorites

Hancock

I went into this movie not expecting much; just hoping for something entertaining enough to keep me awake after a long week of work. And although there were some disappointments, I got exactly what I wanted. Overall the dialogue was hilarious and the story was solid. I'm a fan of all three major actors in this film, and they lived up to expectations. Although the real scene-stealer was Jae Head, a young actor who plays Aaron, the son of Jason Bateman's character. He was absolutely adorable in every scene he was in.

The main factors holding Hancock back from being a major favorite were the effects and the directing. A lot of the film's stunts revolve around Hancock's ability to fly and unfortunately the blue screen effects were just too obviously fake. Although I can overlook bad effects to a certain extent, it's impossible not to notice the color differences between Will Smith and the background he's supposedly flying over. I was also really disappointed to realize that Hancock's director is Peter Berg, the same man behind The Kingdom. Although I have some problems with the overall plot of The Kingdom, it was still a great film. Berg didn't live up to that standard in Hancock, mostly because of an overuse of closeups on characters and poor camera angles. With the quality of actors in this film, the audience can easily pick up on the characters' thoughts and undertones without resorting to camera spins and closeups that detract from the flow of the story.

Despite these drawbacks, Hancock was still a fun and entertaining film. My friend and I walked out of the theater satisfied and re energized. Will Smith brings his usual charisma and comedy, while Charlize Theron lends her Oscar-winning talent to a lighter character. Ultimately, if you've seen every other comic book, super-hero movie out there and you still haven't had enough, there's always Hancock.

Recommendation: Entertaining

Rating System

It has been suggested that I use a rating system with my reviews. I can appreciate the value of this as it is a clear representation of how much I enjoyed the film, but for some reason I've always had trouble assigning a number on a scale. So instead I will begin to include recommendations with my reviews. The following scale of recommendations will be used:

- Mary's Favorites: These are movies that I absolutely love, and can watch over and over again. I will be the first to admit that these favorites are usually purely entertainment movies, often falling in the action or comedy genres. These are the type of films that I pop into the DVD player when I don't want to think, or late at night when I can't fall asleep.

- Must See: This is pretty self-explanatory. These are movies that for some reason blew me away and I highly recommend that everyone gets around to watching them at some point.

- Entertaining: These are the movies that you're gonna walk away from satisfied, but you're not gonna be raving about them for weeks to come. If you've already seen all the Must See movies that are out, these are still worth going to see.

- Wait for the DVD: These are movies that have some merit, but simply don't warrant the expensive trip to the theater. A lot of comedies fall into this category, since they're fun entertainment, but without any big special effects, you aren't losing anything by watching them on the small screen.

- So Bad It's Good: There are certain movies that are made to be watched with large groups of friends. Movies that don't require you to pay close attention to every word, and that practically require you to make fun of everything that is happening on screen. Most commonly these are horror movies, but can include any genre. One shining example is Dragon Wars: a horrible film with literally no redeeming qualities. The only appropriate setting in which to watch this movie is with your loud and obnoxious friends who can turn anything into a joke.

- Waste of Money: As a former movie theater employee, I've seen a lot of these movies. When you don't have to pay for something, you often lower your standards considerably. So in the event that you're getting a free movie, perhaps on a date or movie night with the family, you won't completely hate yourself for wasting time watching one of these films, but you will be glad you didn't waste the $10.

- Waste of Time: These are the movies that should never have been made, the type that you turn off the DVD or walk out of the theater before it's even over. With no redeeming qualities, there's no point in seeing this type of movie, under any circumstance. Even if you think, "oh I've loved this director's other movies", or it stars one of your favorite actors, just don't do it. Resist the urge and save your time.


Hopefully this covers the full spectrum of films that I have or will see, but if I find something that doesn't fit any of these categories, I'll be sure to update. And scroll down, I'll be updating my previous posts to include my ratings of those films.

Upcoming Movies

There are a lot of movies coming out in the next few months that I'm excited for, and a couple of them had trailers on Wanted, yay! Here are my thoughts on all of the movies that had trailers before Wanted.



The Dark Knight (July 18, 2008)
I have been excited for this movie since I saw the first teaser before Bourne Ultimatum last summer. When I first heard that Heath Ledger would be playing the Joker, I was sure that he was the most ridiculous casting choice. But having seen multiple trailers now, I'm in awe. I can't even wrap my mind around the fact that this is the same guy who played Patrick Verona and Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland (from 10 Things I Hate About You and A Knight's Tale). Of course this is bittersweet, as one of Ledger's last performances may be his best ever.


Eagle Eye (Sept. 26, 2008)
I've been a fan of Shia LaBeouf since the Even Steven days, and now that he's all grown up I'm just more impressed with every movie he does. Disturbia is hands down my favorite thriller, mostly because of LeBeouf brilliantly humerous performance. So of course I'm super excited for another action-thriller that teams LaBeouf with Disturbia director D.J. Caruso.


DEATH RACE (Aug. 22, 2008)
I can't even begin to describe how excited I am for this movie. I would see just about any movie if it involved Jason Statham with his shirt off. But beyond that, this movie looks to have everything that I want in an action film: fights, guns, crazy cars, racing, explosions, hot guys (Jason and Tyrese, yum), hot girls, and probably some cheesy dialogue. I have few requirements for a great purely entertaining action movie: hot guys and explosions. Since Death Race has both of these and all the other perks that I just listed, I'm counting the days till August 22!


The X-Files: I Want to Believe (July 25, 2008)
Unlike a few of my friends, I'm not super excited about this movie, and in fact may not even see it. I never watched the show, but did see the first movie. Of course I didn't really understand the first movie, so it wasn't a favorite of mine. But I will say that every time I've seen this trailer, I've gotten chills. And I am a huge fan of Billy Connolly, particularly as Il Duce in Boondock Saints, so I might get to this movie just to see him pull off another serious role.


The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (Aug. 1, 2008)
One of my friends commented that she felt like Brendan Frasier was starting to look old in this film, but personally I think he looks the same as he did 9 years ago in the first Mummy. I'm looking forward to seeing Rick O'Connell (Frasier) and Jonathan Carnahan (John Hannah) back in action, but I'm disappointed that Rachel Weisz will not be returning as Evelyn Carnahan O'Connell, with Maria Bello replacing her. I think this movie has some potential, particularly with Jet Li joining the cast, but I'm skeptical after The Mummy Returns didn't quite live up to the entertainment value of the first movie.


Swing Vote (Aug. 1, 2008)
I'm not really sure how I feel about this movie. It could be a refreshing commentary on American society today, or it could just be a predictable and boring waste of time. I was unimpressed with the music used during the introduction of the cast during the trailer, but it is a pretty good cast with a lot of well-known actors. I guess I'll just see what else is out that week and if I get bored enough to see this one.

Wanted

There are some movies that you go into knowing they are complete fantasy, versus those films that are grounded in reality. Sure it's unlikely that we'll suddenly enter into an ice age, causing flooding and freezing of the entire northern hemisphere (see The Day After Tomorrow), but these events are explained in a way that makes me think it's at least plausible. Wanted is a film where you go in knowing some ridiculous things are going to happen but there's still going to be a sense of reality. Because of this, I was somewhat put off by certain plot twists at first, insisting to myself that what just happened was completely ridiculous and there was no way to justify what just happened. But once I was able to switch my mind to the mode of fantastical entertainment, I really enjoyed the movie.


Overall I was pretty impressed with director Timur Bekmambetov's take on the story, although I have no basis for comparison of his work as all of his previous films are in Russian. I actually don't mind Angelina Jolie as the stoic assassin who can drive a car with her feet and kicks major ass, including that of Wesley (played by James McAvoy). Also male viewers will appreciate a rear nude shot of the pre-baby bump Jolie. I've mentioned before how much I love James McAvoy's voice and unfortunately that isn't the case for this movie. Although I think he nailed the American accent, his character Wesley is a whiney medicated nerd who is just watching his life go on without him. While I realize that Wesley needs to be an annoying wimp for the story to work, it isn't easy to sit through the first half hour or so of the movie. However, considering how far McAvoy is from the typical action hero, he manages to transform Wesley into the badass super-killer able to work alongside Jolie's Fox.

My chief complaint about this movie: James McAvoy wears too many clothes. In the last 20 minutes or so of the film, McAvoy emerges from the bathtub to show off an almost-action hero physique. He's clearly in shape and could easily kick my ass, but he's not so defined or bulky to completely contradict the meek and geeky persona of his character at the start of the movie. So yeah, I personally think the shirt should have disappeared much sooner.

Recommendation: Entertaining

The Happening

I only went to see this movie because I find Mark Wahlberg incredibly sexy at times, and I'm glad that I went in with low expectations. Despite a promising cast including Zooey Deschanel and John Leguizamo alongside Wahlberg, this was a huge disappointment, particularly as M. Night Shyamalan's first foray into R rated film.

We all expect a big twist from a Shyamalan movie, and at least a few moments that will make you jump. The Happening was lacking in both. I remember walking out of The Sixth Sense terrified of ghosts, and then refused to get out of bed at night for at least six months. Walking out of The Happening, all I could think about was wanting my money and that lost hour and a half of my life back. The only reveal that could potentially be called a twist came halfway through the movie and was just not exciting in the least.

As for the fact that this was Shyamalan's first R rated film, well he didn't really earn the rating. Cameras cut away before anything could become truly gory, and with a few extra seconds cut here and there, the movie could have easily been PG-13.

Overall, The Happening was just an hour and a half of watching people kill themselves in every way imaginable. The only entertaining moment came from an agitated young military man exclaiming, "Cheese and crackers!" in lieu of some other expletive.

Let's just hope Wahlberg doesn't disappoint as Max Payne, because that I actually have high hopes for.

Recommendation: Waste of Time

Atonement Review

I wasn't really that interested in seeing Atonement in theaters, despite the rave reviews. I think Keira Knightly is overrated and so far haven't fallen madly in love with James McAvoy. But I'm so glad I listened to the reviews. The film is phenomenal. The cinematography is just amazing and goes a long way in telling the story. I was delighted to find that Keira Knightly, who plays Cecilia, was not the main focus of the movie, whereas the movie primarily focuses on the her character's younger sister, Briony, at various stages in life.

For those of you who haven't seen the movie or read a synopsis, the story tells of how a young girl's interpretation of events causes irreparable damage in the lives of two people that she deeply cares about. The events in question are shown first from Briony's point of view as an onlooker, and then again with all the details such as dialogue and actions leading up to the critical moments. The story then follows the various characters over the years, with a particular focus on Briony and the evolution of her feelings on what she did.

I must say that James McAvoy is growing on me with every movie of his that I see. Although I didn't particularly enjoy Becoming Jane, mostly because the ending was just utterly depressing, but I did find McAvoy incredibly charming in the role. Watching him in Atonement only furthered my interest. You would never know from watching him in film that he has a gorgeous Scottish accent. Although I don't know much about dialects, I couldn't find any fault in the English accent he used in both Becoming Jane and Atonement.

Overall, Atonement is a tragic and moving story that illustrates how powerfully the consequences of our actions can affect those around us.

Recommendation: Must See

I'm starting a blog!

So last week I was getting ready to leave work when I got caught up in a conversation about movies. After about 30 minutes of discussion, it was pointed out to me that I have loads of ridiculous movie and tv trivia floating in my head that is just being wasted. And so I have decided to start a blog in which I will primarily review and discuss movies, with some television thrown in. And of course I may also visit other topics, but I would like this to primarily be about cinematic entertainment. I try to see at least one new movie each week and then often rent older stuff, so I'll be talking about both new and older stuff, as well as news about upcoming movies. Hooray movies!