We Bought a Zoo 1 star

Ouch!  This movie is painful to watch.  The story and the acting have the look and feel of a bad made for TV movie so please don't waste your money.  Matt Damon trudges on even though the words that come out of his mouth must make him cringe inside. This movie had a great cast (Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church, Colin Ford, and Maggie Elizabeth Jones) but it's script is a bunch of tripe that wasted all that screen talent.

Perhaps if you needed to take a child under 10 years old, they may enjoy seeing the animals.  They also might laugh a the dimwitted adults who seem to have the combined intelligence of a 10 year old.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 3.5 stars

If you read all 3 of the Stieg Larsson novels then you'll really enjoy this movie.  If you didn't read them, you might find it confusing but you'll still like the movie.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the first of the trilogy that will be released in the coming years.   Daniel Craig does a great job playing Mikael Blomkvist the magazine editor who is convicted of slander at the beginning of the movie.  An even better job is done by Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander. This is a difficult and intense role that would have spoiled the movie if not done well.  In the Swedish version of this movie Lisbeth was played by Noomi Rapace who did a phenomenal job in that role.  I didn't think anyone could do it better but I actually think Rooney is the better Lisbeth.  Noomi's american film preview is in Sherlock Holmes where she is in a minor role and gives a very forgettable performance.

I would definitely like to see this movie again in the theater because it is very well done and enjoyable to watch.  Even though I've read the books and have seen the Swedish version of the movie I still had a hard time keeping up with the plot and characters.  For those of you who are purists, they did deviate from the book but only to keep the movie from running three hours.  The only thing that they changed that I didn't agree with is at the end of the film.  The overall ending was the same but they did one extra thing that I didn't think enhanced the film.  This movie is definitely in my top 5 of the year.

Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol 3 stars

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is back and once again battling international terrorists.  This movie is done like all the other Mission Impossible movies with a crazy plot and lots of tension.  It's by the numbers and that's actually a good thing.  A lot of "on the edge of your seat" action with a little bit of humor thrown in makes this movie worthy of your movie dollar.   So sit down and strap yourself in for the ride.  His team of Paula Patton (Deja Vu and Precious), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, comic relief) and Jeremy Renner (The Town and Hurt Locker) are great in their roles and a pleasure to watch on the screen.

Movie Review: The Adventures of TinTin 2 stars

Steven Spielberg is directing again, that's the good news.  The bad news is that he directed a just okay movie.  Tintin is a cartoon character from Europe that is much loved in the old world.  It is not as well received over here.  The movie was just okay.  Some the action sequence made me feel as if I were watching someone play a video game.   I'm not sure if it was the freaky animation that I didn't like or the ho-hum story.  In either case it definitely wasn't work the $12 for 3D.  I thought that being an animated feature, the 3D would enhance the movie.  Like all the 3D movies I've watched so far this year, the added dimension did do anything for me.  Throw this one on the pile of movies in 2012 that were not worth the price of a ticket.

Movie Review: My Week with Marilyn 3.5 stars

This is another great movie on my "Great Movies that most people won't see" list.   Please put this on your Netflix cue or your Redbox watch list.    This is the type of movie that inspires me to see movies each week.  Michelle Williams does an academy award winning performance as Marilyn Monroe.   Newcomer Eddie Redmayne give a great performance as the young man fortunate enough to spend a week on the set with temperamental star.  In fact, every actor from the stars down to the bit actors all do such a great job you'll want to watch it over and over again.  I know that I do.

Movie Review: Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows 2.5 stars

This is a very easy review for me to write.  If you liked the first Sherlock Holmes then you are sure to like this movie.  I didn't like the first one nor this one.  My problem is with the story.  You are taken along with Sherlock and Watson on an adventure trying to solve a crime.  That's fine, but you are never given enough information to try and figure it out on your own as the story progresses.   You simply have to wait until the end of the film where they provide you all the clues you didn't get throughout the movie and must marvel how smart Sherlock is in figuring everything else.   Even with my unhappiness with the movie it was very well done.  Robert Downey Jr, and Jude Law give fine performances.

Movie Review: Descendants 3 1/2 stars

George Clooney stars in this independent film about a absentee father who must become the main parent when his wife is in a coma due to a boating accident.   Clooney has a poor track record with independent films.  They tend to be quirky but not very good.   This is an exception to that rule.  This is a very touching film.  You'll love all the characters in it and be hoping that everything turns out okay for this dysfunctional family.  All the characters seem real and you really feel sorry for the state the family is in and hope they can overcome it all.

This movie will be a contender for best picture this year and I recommend you watch it before it disappears.  Unfortunately, it is playing in only a few theaters.   Seems theaters want to show tripe like The Sitter and Tower Heist rather than truly well made movies.

Movie Review: Hugo 3 stars

Hugo is an excellent move and one that will be loved by all ages.  I watched the 3D version but I think that it would be just as good in 2D.  Directed by Martin Scorsese, this fantasy story takes place in a railway station in Paris.  A young orphan is the clock winder for the station and lives in the inner workings of the clock mechanism.  The only link he has with his deceased father (Jude Law) is a primitive robot that doesn't work.  The boy hopes that if he can get the robot the to work it will contain a message from his father.    He is caught stealing pieces of toys that he wants to use for the robot by a railway toy store owner (Ben Kingsley).

The movie starts slow but once Ben Kingsley and his daughter's characters are introduced the movie takes off.   If you want to take your family to a fun, family oriented movie this is the one to see.  I was sorry to see it end because the story was that good. 

Movie Review: J. Edgar, 2 stars

I was really looking forward to this movie.  One of my favorite actors pairing with one of my favorite directors.  How could it miss?  Wow, this one missed.  Actually, in their defense, the acting and directing was fine and what gave it the 2 stars it received.  The story though, was horrible.  Short snippets of stories covering the 50 years that J. Edgar Hoover ran the FBI.  Should have been interesting considering that those 50 years were one of great change and interesting pieces of history.  Unfortunately, the focus of the movies was that J. Edgar might have been gay (not that there's anything wrong with that LOL).  Each of the 20 or so short stories ended the same way.  A stolen glance, a secret touch, a longing look all telling us he might have been gay. 

This movie reminds me of the movie Alexander with Collin Farrell.  Of all interesting things they could have shown you about Alexander the Great, they decided to make and 90 minute movie about the fact that he might have been gay (not that there's anything wrong with that LOL).

Watch this movie for the excellent acting but not for the story

Movie Review: A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas 1 star

I loved the first Harold and Kumar movie..White Castle.  Funny, raunchy, and Neil Patrick Harris as you have never seen him before....3 stars.   The second movie, Guantanomo Bay was raunchier, not as funny but the end where Kumar meets George Bush saved this movie 2.5 stars.   This last movie was horrible.  The only thing that gave it one star was that Neil Patrick Harris, in his very small part, was very funny.  That 5 minutes wasn't worth the other 85 minutes that is wasted.  This series is over for me and anyone else who watched their slow decent into nothingness.  I even spent $14 to see it in 3D which was a further waste of my money.

Movie Review: Margin Call 3.5 stars

Even if you don't care about the 2008 financial crisis you will be intrigued by this movie.  It has an outstanding cast that are perfect in their roles.  The standouts are Zachary Quinto (Spock in the last Star Trek movie) playing a rocket scientist working in an investment bank who discovers that the bank is bankrupt before the bank knows.  Kevin Space is terrific as head of the investment division having the make difficult moral choices.   Paul Bettany (Russel Crowe's imaginary friend in A Beautiful Mind) as the rocket scientist's boss and Jeremy Irons as the evil CEO.   If you skip this movie you will be missing some of the most powerful performances of the year.  The tension in this movie as the characters deal with their world crumbling around them is intense and allows the movie to seem 30 minutes long.  I wanted it to keep going so I can find out what happens to all the characters.  Every american should be required to watch these movies (best in this order) to understand why the economy is in such bad shape and who is responsible.
Capitalism:  A love Story:  Micheal Moore's very slanted view but he'll make understand the basics easy to take because he does it in such a humorous and painless way.
Inside Job :  This documentary will make you so angry you'll join the nearest 99 percent group.  Unlike Micheal Moore's slant on this subject, this is even handed in blaming everyone.  The most powerful part of the movie is the interview of economists who "missed" seeing the crisis.  They don't know when they start the interview that the interviewer knows exactly why they "missed" it.  Powerful stuff.
Too Big to Fail :  This one is a little slow but will also make you very very angry when you find out how the financial crisis unfolded, who did what, and what happened to all the bad guys (they made millions and are still in charge of the banks).

Movie Review: 50/50 3.5 stars

You want to watch this movie after the Ides of March to get you out of your funk.  This is the feel good movie of the season.  It's hard to imagine watching a movie about a man dying of cancer as being uplifting but this movie accomplishes that.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception) has cancer and his life is unraveling.  He is helped along this bumpy road by his slacker best friend played by Seth Rogan.  Of course, Seth plays the role of the lovable slaker in every movie he's been in.  He actually way overplays this role and because quite annoying as the movie goes on.  In fact, his performance is the only negative aspect of this movie.  If you don't get a chance to see it in the movies you need to put it on your "must see" list when it comes out in DVD.

Movie Review: Ides of March 3.5 stars

This movie had the most powerful performances of the year.  Everyone did a great job but particularly Ryan Gosling and Phillip Seymour Huffman.  It had a powerful story too.  Unfortunately, it was very depressing.  George Clooney is a Governor running for President.  Things start to going wrong in his campaign from the start of the movie and they keep going wrong until the movie is over.  I highly recommend this movie.  Just go in knowing that you will not be happy when you leave.  I don't doubt that this movie will be an Oscar nominee.

Movie Review: Drive 2 stars

This movie could have be, should have been one of the best of the year.  The story though is terrible.  I was hoping for the standard formula of the quiet guy gets poked with a stick by the bad guys until he beats or kills them.  That's the formula!  With great actors like Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan this movie should have blown everyone away.  Instead they give us a very depressing bit of tripe that we just can not swallow.  Anyone who sees this movie can't help but be disappointed.  Casting was a problem too.  They made "Mr. Whiner" Albert Brooks the menacing bad guy.  Really?  Albert Brooks a menacing bad guy?  Kirsten Dunst is more menacing than Albert Brooks.  All that bad is balanced by an incredible performance by the two stars.  Do NOT rent this movie when comes out.  I think that only a dozen people went to the theater and watch this movie but people will see Ryan Gosling on the cover and assume it's a good movie....it's not.

Movie Review: The Contagion 2.5 stars

This movie had a great cast ( Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet,etc) and a great plot at the onset.  Unfortunately, it felt like you spent the entire movie getting the plot set up, then it ended.    One minute the world it going to heck in a hand basket and the next, everything is fine and we can all sit in a circle and sing kumbaya.   Each of the stars had their own story that was told but none of them were very compelling.   This is definitely a renter at best.

Movie Review: The Debt 3 Stars

The debt is about three Israeli Mossad agents who search for a Nazi war criminal The Butcher of Birkenau.  Great performance and although the story was riveting at time, many times it was way too slow.  

It's hard to recommend this movie because it is just so depressing.  It's starts very sad and goes downhill from there.  Every time you think there may be light and at this very long and dark tunnel, all you get is more darkness.  Then the movie ends.....yikes!

What it for the craft of movie making and see some great acting but if you are looking for a fun night out this is not the movie to see.   See The Help instead :-)

Movie Reviews: My Idiot Brother 2.5 stars

Paul Rudd has made a career making movie that are not quite worth the price of a ticket yet not terrible either.  That's exactly how I classify this movie.   Excellent actresses in this movie, two of my favorites Elizabeth Banks and Zooey Deschanel.   It was kinda funny, kinda quirky, and kinda okay.  So, I recommend you wait until you have a Red Box free coupon code then watch this movie or wait for netflix.

Movie Review: Fright Night 1 star

Bring your sleeping bag to this movie if you go because it's a snoozer.   Absolutely nothing happens the first hour of this 90 minute movie.  Throughout the rest of the movie is equally as terrible as the beginning but, at least, something happens.

Colin Farrell did a great job as a vampire but they didn't give him anything to do but look creepy.  He does that anyway so I'm not sure if he was really acting.  They really could have made this an excellent movie.  The original Fright Night made in the 80's was a pretty good movie.  One of my favorite actresses Tony Collett was totally wasted in this movie too.

Avoid at all costs!

Movie Review: The Help 3.5 stars

The first of the 2011 Oscar Best Picture nominee's is here!   The Help is a wonderful movie.  Great story, great acting, and breath of fresh air after all the bad movies I've seen this summer.   The movie follows a group of poor black women who take care of the homes and families of a group of rich white woman in Jackson Mississippi.  It's funny, sad, motivational and disheartening all at the same time.  My daughter and I watched in a completely full theater that had faulty AC so it was very uncomfortable to sit there.  This movie is two and half hours long and we file like it lasted only 30 minutes and wished it would just keep on going.

You have to feel sorry for Bryce Dallas Howard (yeah, Ron Howard's daughter) had the role of a lifetime and she did an excellent job.  Too bad she had to place an unsympathetic fool.

This movie is a treat so don't miss it.

Movie Review: City of Life or Death 3.5 stars

This is a Chinese movie about the Japanese occupation of Nanjing (capital of China at the time) during WWII.  As you can image a very high body count and horrific images of the brutal way that the Japanese treated the Chinese.  What made this such a great movie was that they focused on around twelve character both Japanese and Chinese and how they dealt with the situation they found themselves in.  Very difficult choices were made on both sides leading to terrible repercussions.  Many times the choices were simply that they had to choose between two very bad paths that would lead to their death and the death's of others.

This is a very powerful movie.  At the end of the movie they showed pictures of the characters and when they were born and when they died.  You didn't find out until that moment that many of the characters died during the movie although you had no idea what happened to them until that point.  This should win the best foreign Oscar.

Movie Review: The Change Up 2 stars

Movies like this really make me question the sanity of my fellow humans.  No wonder the apes hate us so.  In this psychotic movie the humor really scrape the bottom of the barrel in raunchiness.  I'm no prude and I gave the first Jackass movie three stars so I don't mind a little raunch when it's well done.

In this case, the raunch is presented just for shock value and had really no point in this movie except to shock you.   That being said, the people around me were laughing like hyenas over what was going on in this movie.  Is this movie for you.  Well, ask yourself these questions:   Do you think a baby pooping in the mouth of his father funny?  Do you think an adult launching a stream of F-bombs in front of a 7 year old funny?   You get the picture.  I was embarrassed for the people around me and wanted to stop them and ask exactly what they found so funny.

The sad thing is that this movie had some real potential to be an excellent movie.  The premise is that two friends are polar opposites.  One (Justin Bateman) is a type A personality who works hard to do everything for his family while never finding any time for them in his life.  The other friend (Ryan Renolds) is an irresponsible slacker whose life is devoid of family or accomplishment.   Of course, what they find is that by meeting in the middle both their lives would improve.    If the writer had lost the raunch or, at least, toned it down and punched up the basic story they could have had a 3 to 3.5 movie on their hands.  All the actors did a great job with what bad materiel they had to work with but with the right materiel this movie might have been the best of the year.

Movie Review: Rise of the Planet of the Apes 3 stars

Yes, those damn dirty apes are back!   I enjoyed this prequel to the prequel to the original movie with Charlton Heston.  That means we have one more movie to go before we can get back to the original.  I think that this movie which explains how the apes got so smart and why they hate humans so much was well worth the cost of a ticket.  

Movie Review: Cowboys and Aliens 2 stars

Perhaps I just don't get this movie but I thought it was terrible.   It felt like the writer wrote a great script for a comedy and then the director said, "remove all the jokes, we are going to make an action movie".

The story, at least what we are told, is as ridiculous as it's name.  I don't want to give too much away but why the aliens are on earth is silly, why they are snatching humans is also absurd, this dialog makes you groan and Harris Ford's pathetic performance tells you it's time for him to retire and do geritol commercials.

The biggest plot hole is shared with the movie Super 8.   The aliens must be from and highly advanced society.  They have found a way to perform inter-stellar transport and yet, they are as dumb as a box of rocks.  It's not that they seem dumb because they are on a strange planet engaging strange creatures.   They appear so dumb that they would starve to death just because they forgot to eat.  If it was a comedy then the absurdity of such and advanced civilization being could be funny.

Movie Review: Crazy, Stupid, Love 2.5 stars

Just like the movies Bad Teacher and horrible bosses this movie is just so/so.  Ryan Gosling as the bar land shark is fantastic.  He plays this part perfectly and you want to see more of him.  His training Steve Carrell in how to present the perfect image is very funny and the best part of the movie.  Emma Stone as the girl Ryan can't get is also excellent and very funny.  She is an excellent actress who elevates every movie she is in.  Newcomer Aneliegh Tipton just about steals this movie playing Steve Carrell's conflicted babysitter.  Another excellent young actor Jonah Bobo plays Steve Carrell's son and he definitely does steal the show in a heart rendering performance.

In fact, all the pieces are here for an 4 star movie but where it goes off the rails is when Steve Carrell is interacting with Juliet Moore.  It's depressing and drags down the movie. I'm not sure why they went that way but their screen time was the worst part of this movie.  In fact, Steve Carrell's sad sack routine that we have seen over and over again gets old very quickly.

This movie may not be worth the price of a movie ticket but I highly recommend it for rental or premium channel watching.  Tipton and Bobo alone makes it worth watching.

Movie Review: Captain American: The first Avenger 3 stars

Another movie in the Marvel superhero franchise.   Chris Evans does a great job as Captain America.  The story of how he becomes a superhero is the best part of the movie.  In fact, I think this could have been a 3 1/2 star movie if they had made most of the movie about him becoming a superhero.  Where this really slowed down was during the action sequence where he was trying to destroy the evil villain.   I look forward to Captain America 2 and hope they focus on the man who becomes a superhero and how that effects him and the people around him rather than just making it a beat up the villain movie.   The best of the series was definitely Iron man 1.

Because of the excellent production value I recommend seeing this in the theater.

Movie Review: Harry Potter, Deathly Hallows, part 2, 3 stars

This was the last and one of the best of the Harry Potter franchises.  I'm not a big fan of the Magic genre but they did a good job with an interesting story that is well done.  If you are a fan you probably would give it a full 4 stars and I could support that.

Movie Review: Horrible Bosses 2.5 stars

This movie is disappointing because you could see how this movie could be much much funnier.  The movie was very funny when the employees (Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudekis) are interacting with their bosses (Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, and Colin Farrel).  The bosses were very funny and whenever they were on screen the audience was laughing.  When ever the three employees were on screen you could hear crickets chirp.  That's where this movie went wrong, it should have been all about the bosses and had them on screen most of the times rather than just cameos.  Jamie Foxx was also great as the murder consultant and he also wasn't on screen enough.   So, while this movie is not work $8 at the movies it should go on your rental list so you can fast forward past the slow parts.

Movie Review: Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon 3 stars

This was the the third of the transformer series and this one is as good as the first one.  Number 2 was a disaster and I'm glad they found their way in this latest movie.  They realized that it's not the robots that make these movies good, it's the humans and their story.  I thought it was well done and definitely worth your movie dollar.  In fact, this movie wouldn't be as good on the small screen so go out and see it in the theater.

Movie Review: Bad Teacher 2.5 stars

Was Bad Teacher a bad movie?  I would say it was more a disappointing movie.   Cameron Diaz was great as the bad teacher.  Not only was she a bad teacher she was just a bad person.  Her counterpoint and nemesis in this movie was character actress Lucy Punch.  Jason Segal as the gym teacher who wanted to date the bad teacher and John Higgins who played the principle had great characters that had a huge potential for comedy.

Unfortunately,  As we've seen in many movies this year, the writing was pitiful.  They had all this talent but didn't know what to do with it.  They flipped back and forth between making this an adult comedy (which worked) and a sophomoric teen comedy.  Of course, teens can't see this movie so that part was a waste of time.  Even when it was in "adult comedy" mode, there was long gaps between funny scenes.   Whenever you hit a funny scene you can tell the potential of this movie.   So sad that they wasted the talent and the premise to getting a hack to write the script.  This movie could have been this year's Hangover but instead it will be one of many bad movies thrown out to the public.

Movie Review: The Art of Getting by. 3 stars

For Father's day my daughter took me to this movie which we both loved.   The lead is played by Freddie Highmore who did such a great job in the horrible movie August Rush (1 star).   This is a very well done "coming of age" story.  Slacker played by Freddie can't get his act together and if he doesn't he won't graduate high school.  He is befriended by one his A list classmates and their relationship is what the movie is all about.  Well done by all in this movie and a compelling story.   The slackers whining about his life as he lives in the upper west side of NY gets old real quick but the rest of the movie overcomes that slight.

Movie Review: Green Lantern 1.5 stars

Ouch!  The dialog is so painful in this movie you almost yelp out loud after they say a line.   If the dialog wasn't bad enough, the entire story was boring, boring, boring.  Rather than wasting your money, if you want to have the same experience as sitting in the theater and watching this movie do the following:   Take a chair into your yard and stare at the lawn.  Watching that grass grow exceeds the excitement in Green Lantern.  That's not it though.  You need to get a neighborhood kid to poke you with a stick so you can feel the pain of the horrible dialog.

It's such a shame too that this movie is so bad.   I think Ryan Reynolds makes an excellent Green Lantern.  Peter Sarsgaard is always a great evil villain.  The special effects were well done.  Unfortunately, they hired a crew of four hacks to throw together a script together.   With a science fiction movie you can do ANYTHING so why they put together such a lame story show a lack of imagination and ability.

movie Review: Midnight in Paris 3 stars

It was a good movie weekend with two 3 star movies.  Midnight is a Woody Allen movie so if you don't like Woody Allen movies like Play it Again Sam, Purple Rose of Cairo, or Melinda Melinda then you won't like this movie either.   It's all talking, so it's the witty dialog that carries this movie.  If you can't sit through 2 hours of dialog them this isn't for you.  If you can, then you are for a treat.  Woody is in top form in this movie.  Owen Wilson is a the main character in Paris who finds himself whisked back to the golden years of the early 1900's where he can interact with likes of Cole Porter and Earnest Hemingway.  Great dialog and excellent performances.  I was sorry to see it end.

Movie Review: Super 8 3 stars

Super 8 is ET meets Goonies.  A cute movie that is worthy of your movie dollar.  Good special effects but mostly it was a good story that made the movie enjoyable.  Excellent performances from a group of young actors whom we'll see again as they grow up.  You have to ignore the plot holes and just sit back and enjoy.  It's nice to see a good Spielberg movie again.  If you enjoyed the movies I mentioned above you'll enjoy this movie.

Movie Review: Kung Foo Panda 2 2 stars

I guess this is the year of the bad sequel.   Another example of marketing over quality.   I enjoyed the first movie which had a good story and was funny.   This movie has a boring story and is not funny beyond a couple of slapstick moments.   Do not bring your kids to this movie!!!!   The movie theater I watched this movie in was filled with young families with young kids.   They were bored to tears (literally) and you heard a group laugh maybe twice.  I know that the parents who just plunked down $50 for tickets and popcorn didn't think it was a good value.   Just like with hangover 2, just sit home and enjoy the first one and skip the second, nothing there to see.

Movie Review: X-Men First Class 3.5 stars

I have really enjoyed all the X-men movies although I'm not necessarily a super hero movie fan.  You can see from my reviews that I do not find superhero movies very well done.  Two poorly done movies recently were Thor and Green Hornet were just paycheck movies.  Spend more money on marketing than script and you make money by ripping off the movie going public.

The X-Men have been a totally different experience.  They have all been well written with excellent casting and direction.  They are a pleasure to watch and even the worse one is better than another other super hero movie except Iron Man.

This movie is a prequel to all the other X-Men movies. Again, super story and great casting.  James McAvoy, Keven Bacon and Michael Fassbender were all excellent in their roles.   This one of the few movies this year that are actually worth your movie dollar.

Movie Review: Hangover 2 2 stars

You probably heard this review before because most people and reviewers who have seen this movie have the same reaction to it. 

It's the same as the first one except, less funny and more raunchy.   In fact, it follows the same script as the first one but since we have seen the first one it loses its shock value.  It's similar to Mummy I and Mummy II.  The kept the same script, just changed around some of the words and you have a new movie.....not really.

So, same group of guys have the same thing happen to them with the same result and ultimate outcome.  They even came up with an unfunny ending.  Where the singer was very funny in the first one they left that joke out of the second.  The photos of what really happened to the guys, found in a camera is the same as the first except since we know what's coming again, it doesn't have the same effect.

My recommendation is to skip the new one and just watch the old one again.

Movie Review: Brides Maids 3 stars

The movie Brides Maids is almost as funny as last year's The Hangover.  It's a bit raunchy but also very funny and touching in places.  Kristen Wiig is excellent as the sad sack Maid of Honor for her best friend.  Besides her life coming apart at the seams, one of the other brides maids are showing her up at every turn.   This is a well written movie chock full have a lot of laughs.  Well worth your movie dollar.

Movie Review: Win Win 3.5 stars

The movie Win Win is a small independent film that most people will never see and that's a shame.  It has wonderful actors who are perfectly cast in this quirky movie.   Paul Giamatti, the king of independent films plays a lawyer who has a good heart but gets tempted to do the wrong thing and ends up paying for it.  Even the minor characters in this movie are golden and the story grabs you from the beginning.  It's one of those rare movies where I'm disappointed that it ended because I wanted to know what happened to the characters in the future.

 Everyone needs to put this on their "must watch" rental list.  Unless you go to an independent film theater or it wins the Oscar for best picture you won't get a chance to see it.  It is well worth your movie or rental dollar.

Movie Review: Thor 2.5

Thor was pretty good but not great.  I wasn't expecting much from this movie and it lived up to my expectations. It was the typical super hero story with a little humor thrown in.  Thank goodness for the little bit of humor or this would have been a 1.5 movie. I saw it in 2D rather than 3D but just like Avatar, the extra D can't overcome a mediocre story and bad acting.  Definitely not worth the $13 3D ticket.  There's a bunch of superhero movies coming out so let's hope some decides to actually write an interesting story to along with the ever present special effects.

Movie Review: Insidious....2.5 stars

I really wanted to see Water for Elephants and to my surprise it was sold out for the 4:30pm Saturday show.  That's crazy, that show has never been sold out, but that's what happened.  So, I decide to see Insidious instead.  Without any flesh eating zombies in it, I wasn't too optimistic that it would be scary.   Well, for the first hour it did a pretty good job of making me jump out of my seat.  Certainly much better than the very boring paranormal Activity 1 and 2.  If those movies scared you then stay away from this one.   Unfortunately, with about 45 minutes to go, it became very lame.   It was as if they fired the first writer at that point in the movie and brought in another one that didn't understand the horror genre.   It's kinda worth your movie dollar if you follow my instructions:  When Patrick Wilson gets hypnotized, get up and leave the movie.  There's nothing left to see so go ahead and sneak into Hanna or Source code...you have my permission because you didn't get your money's worth from Insidious.   It could have been great if they just kept going with their first thought. :-)

Movie Review: Scream 4...2.5 stars

I didn't want to see this movie because I watched the first three and thought they were okay but not great.  After watching the first one, you get the story line formula.  The rest are just minor variations of the first.  My daughter told me that the fourth was worthy of my movie dollar so I went to see it.   It was not worthy.  It was the same as the first three.  With Scream (pick your number) you should be trying to figure out who the murderer is, but after thirty minutes I could care less and was just looking forward to it being over.   That's just me though.  If you liked the first three then you'll enjoy the the fourth.  Unlike other franchise movies where each rendition is not quite as good as the first, the quality for all the Scream movies has been pretty consistent.  There are "jump out of your seat" moments along with some humor.  I just don't think it's worth spending $10 on a ticket to see it.  Instead, it is well worth watching it when it comes to HBO or netflix when nothing better is on.

Movie Review: The Conspirator...2.5 stars

James McAvoy is one of my favorite young actors.  He elevates bad movies to okay movies just because of his acting skills.  Denzel Washington is another actor that has this same type of skills and power.  The Conspirator is a historical drama about the trial of the co-conspirators in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.  Specifically this deals with Mary Surratt played by Robin Wright who owned a boarding house where the assassination was planned.  James McAvoy reluctantly defends her although the evil government has the deck stacked against her.

Although well done and interesting, it is very slow moving.   If you don't find this topic interesting then you will bored and hate this movie.  If history interests you I think you will find that this movie does a good job of portraying the events fairly accurately.

Movie Review: Hanna 3 stars

Saoirse Ronan stars in her third excellent movie in a row.  I saw her first in Lovely Bones then in The Way Back and now in Hanna.   It is best that you don't know much about this movie before you see it but basically Hanna has been raised for one thing, to protect herself against some unseen enemy.    A very interesting story, well acted, with a lot of action thrown in as well.  I believe that Ms Ronan could be the next Meryl Streep.   This movie is well worth your movie dollar.  In fact, I believe that you would be missing out by waiting and watching this at home on TV.  The movie sucks you in and would be better seen without distractions.  Eric Bana also is super in a supporting role as Hannah's protector/teacher.

Movie Review: Your Highness...0 stars because I don't use negative numbers

You would think that a comedy that had Danny McBride, James Franco and Natalie Portman would automatically be great but this movie is just the opposite.  I see this movie being an early favorite for the Razzies worst movie of the year.    I call this a paycheck movie because all the stars made tens of millions of dollars each for a few weeks work on a horrible movie.  If you were planning on seeing this movie, you can thank me for sacrificing myself to save you from suffering.   I spent most of the movie just trying suppress my gag reflex while hoping the movie would turn around.   When I thought it could get no worse they started a 5 minute routine trying to make child molestation funny.   Yes, a horrifyingly bad movie.

Movie Review: Source Code 3 stars

This movie has similarities to two other movies I enjoyed.  One was the movie Pandorium.  In this movie, as well as Source Code, you have no idea what is going on until facts are revealed to you slowly.  You are finding out at the same time as the characters what is happening to them.  The other is Deja Vu starring Denzel Washington were he was able to sort of travel back in time.  This movie starring Jake Gyllenhaal is as good as either of those movies.  It's best you don't research or read reviews that reveal too much.  You need to experience it and try to figure it out on your own.  That's the fun of this movie.  Don't over think it...just enjoy :-)

Movie Review: Paul 2 stars

I first caught the British actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in the very funny Shaun of the Dead.  One of my favorite zombie movies.  They went on to make two more movie that were all pretty lame (hot fuzz and run, fat boy, run) 2 star movies.  They keep their streak alive with the alien movie Paul.  I had high hopes for this movie because I thought the movie trailers were pretty funny but I was disappointed.    I thought they had a good set up with the "fish out of water" story of alien amongst humans.   Once again, poor unfunny writing shot this movie down.  They had excellent, funny actors in it, they just didn't give them very many funny things to say.   Seth Rogen is now on my list (along with Jack Black and others) that if he's in a movie the movie will not be any good.  Save your time and money and skip this movie.
 

Movie Review: Sucker Punch 1 star

Sucker punch looks great as a graphic novel movie in the genre of 300 and Sin City but looks is all it has going for it.  It is deadly slow and the fairly simple plot drags on and on.  The action sequences should have been the coolest part of the movie but it was as exciting as watching someone else play a video game.   What they needed was a writer that could rise to the occasion and provide an interesting story with twists and turns to keep the audience engaged.   I assume that after spending all that money on CGI effects that they didn't have any left to spend on a story so they let the geeks dream something up when they weren't coding.  A very disappointing film.

Movie Review: Limitless...3 stars

After seeing the coming attractions for Limitless I thought that I had figured out the whole movie.  I had already given it a bad review in my head before even sitting down and seeing it.  

Fortunately, this movie surprised me and was quite good.  Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) is a depressed slacker dude until he is offered a drug that will make him smarter beyond his wildest dreams.    Once on the drug, his life is changed, and he is living the good life.  Of course, there are down sides to the drug and his new life which causes him to flame out and crash.  That's all I'm going to tell you about the movie though.  It's very interesting to see what happens to him while on the drug and the lengths he goes to stay on top.  Once again, writing degraded this from a four star film.  There were plot holes that make you wonder "why did he do that?" or "why didn't he just do this?".   They are good questions and the answers are flawed writing that has him doing things that are convenient for the script but doesn't make sense to anyone watching.  It is worth your movie dollar though, just don't think too hard while you are watching it.  Robert De niro does a great job in an important but small role.   If you don't see it in the theater then put it on your "must rent" list.

Movie Review: The Lincoln Lawyer 3 stars

One of the "movie rules" I have is that if Matthew McConaughey is in a movie, the movie will be terrible (same goes for Jennifer Anston and Gerard Butler).  Except for Tropic Thunder and Fraility (be sure you see this movie, it's great) he has been in one horrible movie after another.  Those two movies show he can be a good actor when in a good movie.  He proves that again in the Lincoln Lawyer.  The is an excellent movie and he does a great job as a lawyer with questionable ethics defending mostly guilty people.  The story gets intense when he lands a client (Ryan Phillippe) who is charged with beating up a girl. Lots of twists and turns in the story to keep you guessing throughout.   The story is well done and most people will enjoy it.  What I found disappointing is that Marisa Tomei and William H. Macy talents were wasted in this movie. They had only minor roles that could have been played by any walk on character actor.   If they had written them better things to do and say this could have been a 4 star movie.

Movie Review: Cedar Rapids....3 stars

Ed Helms from The Office stars in this offbeat, coming of age story about a naive insurance salesman about to have his world turned upside down by attending an insurance convention.  Although it is a bit raunchy, the movie makes you care about Ed Helm's character Tim.  Tim has led a overly sheltered life but an honest one, where he truly loves what he does and genuinely cares about his customers.  His idealistic view is shattered by Dean Ziegler (John C. Reilly) who, at first, seems the opposite of Tim in every way but turns out to be very much like Tim in the treatment of the people he cares about.  While not nearly as funny as The Hangover, this movie has plenty of funny parts in it.  I believe that this is more of a guy flick than one that would be enjoyed by the gentler sex.  Except for some of the raunchy actions I believe it should be enjoyed by all though.

Unfortunately, hardly anyone will see this movie because it's an independent film with a limited release and advertising.  So, while everyone wastes their money seeing bad movies like The Adjustment Bureau, this gem sits unwatched.   Please put it on your rental list!

Movie Review - The Adjustment Bureau....1.5 stars

I thought this movie couldn't miss.  Based upon a good science fiction short story and starring two bankable stars in Emily Blunt and Matt Damon.  Matt played an up and coming politician whose actions sabotaged his chance of making higher office.  That's where the Adjustment Bureau came in.  They fixed everything that Matt broke so he would be a successful politician and make the world a safer place.  Along the way, he bumps into Emily Blunt's character who is his long lost love.  So, that's the premise, but those two main story lines are both poorly done.  The first is Matt and Emily's chemistry.  You don't believe they have undying love for each other.  In fact, I'm not sure they even liked each other.  Matt Damon was definitely miscast for this movie.  The second problem was the Adjustment Bureau.  In one scene they are omnipotent, all knowing, and all powerful beings and the next they are the Keystone Cops bumping into each other and entirely clueless.

This movie fails at both ways it attempts to portray this movie.  It's either a bad love story or a bad science fiction movie.  I think it's just plain bad.

Rango ..................2.5 stars

Rango the chameleon is forced to leave his cushy life in a family's terrarium.  He finds himself in a wild west town where water is used as currency.  He is an acting chameleon so he takes on the role of Sheriff Rango out to keep peace in his new found town.

Johnny Depp does a great job as Rango.  The movie is great for the first 45 minutes.  Well written and well done.  Then it hits the wall.  It seems like the writer ran out of witty lines for Rango and we are forced to sit through the last hour.  If only they could have sustained the story until the very end this would have been an excellent movie.

Take Me Home Tonight......3 Stars

Take Me Home Tonight is your typical "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back" movie.  No suprises along the way, just a funny coming of age story that most people will enjoy.  It does earn it's R rating though for language, sexual content, and drug use.  I found it very funny though and I thought the cast was selected perfectly for their roles.  You'll remember Topher Grace from "That 70's show" and I wish they would use him in more movies because I think he's an excellent character actor.  You don't have to see this movie in the theater.  I do recommend you put it on your rental list because it is a funny well done movie.  This movie has a excellent soundtrack of 80's rock and roll. 

Drive Angry 3D 2.5 stars.

This is a campy movie full of bad dialog and a ridiculous story.  It's all for fun though as Nicholas Cage, an escapee from hell searches for his kidnapped daughter.  Lots of violence and gross out scenes that are perfect for the 13 year old boy in all of us.   It should have been better written though to give us more "tongue in cheek" humor.  William Fichtner steals the movie in his role as the "accountant".  He is really Death sent by the devil to bring Nicholas Cage back.  He has the funniest lines as he tells people when he'll be back to see them.  Is this worth your movie dollar?  Definitely not, particularly not a $14 3D ticket.   The 3D doesn't make this movie any better so you should wait until netflix is showing it 2D.

2011 Academy Awards Winners

Who I think should win the academy awards on Sunday.  I don't do  predictions but the people who vote on this do not share my thoughts on what makes a good move or a good movie performance.  My low opinion of the academy members was once again validated this year by the numerous nominations for the movie "The kids are all right", which was a terrible movie.

The best actors and actresses were in the supporting roles this year.  In Supporting actress category, any of the actresses deserve to win and I would be happy with any of them.  Christian Bale also was incredible but I would be happy with any of his competitors except Mark Ruffalo who was in a bad movie.

THE LIST:
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Black Swan  Tied with Inception for best picture.  Everyone should see this movie
The Fighter  Great acting and interesting story but it comes in fourth.
Inception   Tied for first with Black Swan.  The most interesting subject matter of all the movies.
The Kids are All Right.  Absolutely horrible movie.  Don't see it, shun those that have seen it and might tell you about it. The movie "The Town" should be here instead...an excellent movie!
The King's Speech:  Excellent movie.  Great for the whole family.  Put this on you "must see" list.
The Social Network.  Very good movie but not good enough to hit my top 5
127 Hours:  A good movie but not great
Toy Story 3  You got to love this movie if you enjoyed the first two.  
True Grit  The performances were better than the movie but worth a look
Winter's Bone:  Excellent acting and a compelling story but very, very, very depressing.

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Annette Bening (The Kids are All Right)  Bad performance in a lousy movie
Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole):  Missed this one, I didn't want to see any more depressing movies after Winter's Bone and Blue Valentine
Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone)  Excellent job but doesn't come close to Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman (Black Swan)  The Winner by far.  An incredible performance in a great movie
Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine)  Excellent performance in a depressing movie.  Not as good as Natalie though

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Javier Bardem (Biutiful):  Didn't see this movie, from the reviews I've seen a very depressing movie
Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) He does a great job but the movie was good but not great.
Colin Firth (The King's Speech):  Winner by a large margin.  Colin Firth was perfect for this role.
James Franco (127 Hours):  A good job in a good movie but not great.
Jeff Bridges (True Grit):  Great job!  Second to Colin Firth but loses out still.

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Christian Bale (The Fighter):   Winner!  Incredible performance in a very good movie.
John Hawkes (Winter's Bone)  A good performance in a depressing movie.
Jeremy Renner (The Town):  Also a great performance but doesn't beat Christian Bale
Mark Ruffalo (The Kids are All Right):  A good performance in a lousy movie.
Geoffrey Rush (The King's Speech)  If he wins I wouldn't be disappointed he did an excellent job in a great movie.

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams (The Fighter)  Excellent job, tied for second with the other three
Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech) Excellent job, tied for second with the other three
Melissa Leo (The Fighter)  Winner!  Best of the bunch in a very strong field
Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit) Excellent job, tied for second with the other three
Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom) I didn't see this movie

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
How to Train Your Dragon:  Good but not as good as Toy Story
The Illusionist:  I didn't see this movie
Toy Story 3  Winner!

Achievement in Directing
Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan):  Winner!  Would be tied with Inception if Chris Nolan was nominated.
David O. Russell (The Fighter)
Tom Hooper (The King's Speech)  My choice for a close second place, wouldn't mind if he won
David Fincher (The Social Network)
Joel and Ethan Coen (True Grit)

Adapted Screenplay
127 Hours (Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle)
The Social Network (Aaron Sorkin) Second Place, I wouldn't mind if this wins
Toy Story 3 (Michael Arndt, story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich)
True Grit (Joel Coen and Ethan Coen)
Winter's Bone (Debra Granik and Anne Rossellini)  Winner! the best story of the bunch even if it was depressing

Original Screenplay
Another Year (Mike Leigh)  I didn't see this movie
The Fighter (Paul Attanasio, Lewis Colich, Eric Johnson, Scott Silverand Paul Tamasy)
Inception (Christopher Nolan)  Winner!  What an incredible story that I'm still trying to figure out.
The Kids are All Right (Stuart Blumberg and Lisa Cholodenko)
The King's Speech (David Seidler)  Second place

No Strings Attached 3 stars

This is a wonderful romantic comedy that was much better than I expected.   It is also raunchier than I expected.   It probably didn't need to be that raunchy.  Without it you would have had a funny and sweet movie that you could take a date to.   Now, you would have to gauge your date's tolerance for bad language and adult situation.  Both Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher do an excellent job, particularly Kutcher who could have looked silly next to the excellent actress Portman.  He more than held his own though.  Keven Kline also does a great job as Ashton's lecherous father. I absolutely loved it and would go see it again in a heartbeat.  It's been awhile since they made a romantic comedy this good.

The Mechanic 2.5 stars

Typical Jason Stratham movie.  He's tough, a loner, and beats the stew out of bad guys.  In this movie he doesn't do as much beating (which is why this isn't as good as his other movies).  Instead he focuses on inventive killing.   The story is pretty silly and without the bad guy beat downs that we have grown to love, this is just an okay movie.  

If you want to watch great Jason Stratham movies then rent The Transporter and the two Crank movies.  The latter movies are insanely great.

The Way Home 3 Stars

It's such a shame that such an excellent movie will be seen by so few people.  Ed Harris stars in a movie about a handful of men sentenced to years of hard labor at a Soviet Gulag.   They realized it's a death sentence so they decide to escape.  Unfortunately, when they escape they are in the center of northern Russia in the middle of winter!  They decide the must head south so they walk all the way to China.  There they find out that China is communist so they decide to walk to Nepal.  Once there they realize that they can not stay there so they walk to India.  If you think I might have given anything away, I have not.  This is a great movie and I highly recommend it to everyone.  It's a true story too!  Colin Farrell also stars and does a fantastic job as one of the escapees.

My Top 10 Movies of 2010 and Golden Globe Awards 2011

I thought that the golden globe nominees were all excellent movies and stars.  The only thing I would have changed is I would have swapped out Social Network with True Grit.   I thought the latter was much better than the former and deserved to be nominated.   Natalie Portman definitely deserved her award along with Mellisa Leo and Christian Bale.  Their performances were definitely far better than the other nominees.  I think that Leo Decaprio (Inception) and Jeff Bridges (True Grit) could have easily won best actor.  In fact, I was disappointed that True Grit was not nominated in any category.   I guess the Foreign press just doesn't get American westerns.

My top 10 films of 2010 in this order:
1.  Inception.
2.  Black Swan (a very close second)
3.  The Fighter.
4.  True Grit
5.  The King's Speech.
6.  The Town (Ben Affleck
7.  Toy Story 3
8.  Get Low (Robert Duvall)
9.  The Social Network
10.  127 hours.

Social Network won the best picture prize at the Golden Globes but it didn't even make my top 5.  The horrible movie The Kids are All Right is the most over-hyped movie of the year.  I gave that 2 stars as not even being worthy to rent for a dollar.  It's the kind of story that the left wing tree huggers love though so it's bound to get an award though.

Movie Review: The Green Hornet 2 stars

It's bad enough that the movie wasn't worth the normal price of admission but I had to see this in 3D (total waste of 3D) which cost me almost $12!    Seth Rogen wrote and stars as the Green Hornet with his sidekick Kato.  I thought Kato was the best part of the movie but everything else was a disaster.   Terrible story, terrible acting, a terrible villain in Christoph Waltz (outstanding Colonel in Inglorious Bastards), and special effects that seem to be there just to fill time but cost millions.   This is a "by the numbers" how to make a terrible movie.  Besides all the things that were bad in this movie then wasted millions of dollars on special effects and stunts that didn't enhance the movie at all.  I wonder if Seth Rogen is ever going to play a role where he is not the "lovable loser".  I had no love for this movie and it was definitely a loser.

Movie Review, I Love you Phillip Morris 2.5 Stars

This strange movie based upon a true story start Jim Carrey as a sociopathic homosexual who is a successful scam artist.  So this movie sets up like a gay "Catch me if you Can".  Unfortunately, he falls in love with the perpetual victim of scam artists Ewan McGregor.  The madcap adventure ensues both in prison and out.  The movie had some very funny moments but also big gaps were the humor just didn't hit.  Also, more than a few uncomfortable "Brokeback Mountain" moments.  This would make an okay rental if you were fans of the actors but realize it has a very hard R rating.

Movie Review: Country Strong, 2 stars

I had a decision to make.  Do I see the stinky Nicholas Cage movie or the stinky Gwyneth Paltrow movie.  Since Gwyneth is the better actor I went with Country Strong.   It was still probably the better of the two bad movies but it was still pretty bad.  Horrible acting by everyone but Gwyneth, the story was terrible and she was only on the screen around 20 minutes of the hour and fifty minutes of the movie.   You had to wonder what they were thinking when they made this.  When Gwyneth was on the screen it was a three star movie worthy of your movie dollar.  When she wasn't, which was most of the time it was barely a one star train wreck.

If you still want to see it, be sure to rent it so you can fast foward through all the bad parts and enjoy Ms Paltrow's wonderful performance.