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Schizophrenia

November 18, 2013

My posts have always been so organized. I think I’ve come to realize that organization is one of the reasons I struggle to update my blog on a regular basis. Rather than just come in here and talk about recent stuff or what I’m feeling, I feel compelled to write out a complete movie review and well, quite frequently, it just doesn’t get done. So here’s to a new strategy.

This past week I watched The Heat starring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. My biggest takeaways from the film were that a) Sandra Bullock was really fucking good in Gravity and b) Melissa McCarthy is extremely funny but this might as well be a continuation of her character in Bridesmaids as a police officer. I can’t say I’m a big fan of Bullock’s work and this is more of the same, which is why her performance in Gravity is so special; it’s completely unlike anything she’s ever done–or, in other words: good. The Heat is funny though, thanks to McCarthy carrying the film, but she’s obviously being typecast (as many rising comedic actors are) and one has to wonder how long before fans start tiring of her schtick. Overall, The Heat was funny and enjoyable, and ranks amongst 2013’s funniest films in a year of mostly unremarkable comedies. 6/10

I also had a long overdue viewing of Derek Cianfrance’s (Blue Valentine) The Place Beyond The Pines starring Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, and Eva Mendes. One of the more highly acclaimed films prior to awards season, I actually found Pines to be quite disappointing. Mostly it just didn’t live up to the hype built from one of my friends constantly praising it and urging me to watch it. It’s a three part story that stretches over a roughly 17 year time period and certainly has the running time of an epic, clocking in at nearly two and a half hours. Naturally, it’s quite boring at times and the pacing makes it difficult to watch. Ryan Gosling is great, as usual, and Bradley Cooper appears to be turning into a pretty respectable actor. I wasn’t a huge fan of the story though. I couldn’t help but feel it was a bit contrived, especially the third act when everything ties together in a way that isn’t all that believable. Pines isn’t a bad film, but it’s an overly ambitious one, with a story that doesn’t quite deserve its epic running time. Definitely not the must see film people are claiming it to be. 5.5/10

I revisited Man Of Steel last night and I have to say my opinion of the film has dropped somewhat. I initially gave it a 7/10, which is a must see on my scale, and I can’t say it’s that strong of a film. That’s what’s difficult about reviewing films. I can’t imagine that people that criticize movies for a living can really get a full grasp on a film after one viewing. For me, Man Of Steel was a bit overwrought. The aspects I liked in my earlier review remain the same, but some parts of the film are increasingly tedious upon a second viewing. The Smallville battle is still epic. I mean seriously awesome. But the next part of the climax is a big WTF. I’m talking about when Zod is creating Krypton on earth and Superman is battling some ship over the Indian Ocean. I mean, what the hell is really going on here? For some reason, I remembered the finale being incredibly epic, but really there’s the Smallville battle and the final battle with Zod and a huge gap in between that just sucks. Also, now that Superman vs Batman has been announced for a 2015 release, you have to think watching this movie that the filmmakers really had no idea what they were going to do next. After seeing Superman go toe-to-toe with Zod and other Kryptonians–and all the property destruction those fights caused–it’s difficult to imagine a human–even one as resourceful as Batman–being a formidable opponent for Superman. The writers seriously have their work cut out for them.

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Bunch Of Movie Reviews Pt. 2 of 2

October 16, 2013

This Is The End – Up there for best comedy of the year with We’re The Millers. This ensemble comedy features most of the who’s who in the funny world: Jonah Hill, James Franco, Seth Rogen, Craig Robinson, Jay Baruchel, and Danny McBride, plus numerous cameos. Everyone is funny in their own typical way, but the coolest thing about the film is how the actors poke fun at each other and how the conflicts that arise may actually be legitimate. Do Jonah Hill and Jay Baruchel really hate each other? Not exactly a laugh riot like you might hope, but one of the better comedies of 2013. 6/10

Now You See Me – Perhaps the biggest surprise of 2013 so far, I found Now You See Me to be quite enjoyable. Four formidable magicians form an act together under the instructions of a mysterious fifth party and start performing astounding, controversial, and possibly illegal magic shows for very large crowds. The magic tricks in the movie are unique and interesting. The acting is good for the most part. The final act of the film gets a bit extreme though and lost me a little. Overall though, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. 6/10

42 – For whatever reason, I wasn’t expecting much from 42, the Jackie Robinson biopic. Even so, it was still surprisingly boring. So boring, I fell asleep halfway through the movie and decided I didn’t care enough to finish it later. Harrison Ford is almost unrecognizable as Branch Rickey, but that probably won’t get him an Oscar nomination. I can’t put my figure on what was wrong with this movie, but Jackie Robinson deserves better. That much is for sure. 3.5/10

The Call – The Call was a solid suspense thriller with a decent performance from Halle Berry. I’ve seen better work from Abigail Breslin though. Worth watching, I guess, but nothing anyone has to see. 4.5/10

Pain & Gain – Wow, Mark Wahlberg, I thought you were a respectable actor. Dude hasn’t looked this cheesy since his days with The Funky Bunch. I got about 30 minutes into this movie and had no idea what it was about or where it was going. The Rock hadn’t even made an appearance yet. Really, really bad. 2/10

Curse Of Chucky – A solid return to the days when Chucky was scary. Before Tiffany. Before Glenn. Originally planned as a remake of the original Child’s Play, the film still takes place after the events of Bride Of Chucky and Seed Of Chucky. Unlike those films, however, Curse Of Chucky focuses on Chucky only and returns to the series’ scary roots, putting the humor aside for the most part. As far as fifth sequels are concerned, this movie is pretty good and probably deserving of a theatrical release. It’s certainly better than some of the stuff that gets released in theaters, especially horror films. Chucky looks as good as ever and is legitimately scary in this movie. Rather than shoving the psychotic doll down your throat, writer/director Don Mancini takes a more restrained approach, taking his time and building suspense before all hell starts to break loose. Dare I say it? With a modern look and 2013 technology on his side, this just might be the best Chucky flick to date. 6.5/10

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Gravity (2013)

October 12, 2013

Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
Director: Alfonso Cuaron (Children Of Men, Harry Potter & The Prison Of Azkaban, Y Tu Mama Tambien)

Astounding. Incredible. Those were my initial thoughts upon leaving the theater after watching Gravity, one of those groundbreaking films that will be mentioned for years to come as a visual effects pioneer. In fact, visually, Gravity just might be the most incredible accomplishment in cinematic history. It’s that good; and there’s never been anything like it. The film feels more like a 95 minute attraction you’d find at a high level amusement park. The only things missing are the seat belts and simulated movement. Otherwise, you might as well be in space with Ryan Stone, the rookie astronaut played by Sandra Bullock in the best performance I’ve ever seen from her. There are no moments in this film where you’re taken out of the experience. Everything is so wonderfully, beautifully, and accurately shot that you never question that these people are operating in zero gravity. Little touches like chess pieces and tear drops floating out of the screen towards you only add to the authentic, weightless movements of the human characters. The 3D seriously adds to the experience and I can’t imagine that seeing it without 3D is even remotely as satisfying.

The story here isn’t particularly profound. As one of my friends who walked out after an hour so eloquently put it: “one hour of running out of oxygen.” It really makes me wonder if we were watching the same movie. The visuals are so stunning, earth looks so magnificent in the background, and the film is so intense, that one hardly even notices how little plot there actually is here. And honestly, in a film like Gravity, it’s not that important. The overall themes of dealing with loss, lack of self worth, and so on, take a back seat to the real show: the terrifying experience of being lost in space with absolutely no human contact and no solid game plan for survival. Could you imagine being so utterly alone? In Gravity you barely have to. It looks so real and the experience is so personal, it might as well be your own.

Gravity should be showered with nominations come award season and should be a shoo in for most of the visual awards. Alfonso Cuaron has directed the closest thing to a masterpiece that I’ve seen in a long while. The amount of care put into the shooting of this film and the attention to detail is so tediously given, the final product is astonishing. A true feat. For a film that’s essentially about getting from point A to point B without dying, I’ve never felt so personally invested in reaching that final destination. An extremely impressive film and an absolute must see in 3D in the theaters.

Replay Value: The lack of replay value might keep Gravity from becoming a true classic, but with 3D televisions more and more common these days, maybe that’s not true.
Sequel Potential: None.
Oscar Potential: Gravity will be heavily nominated, probably in most categories, including Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Director. I doubt the script will get a nomination and I don’t think George Clooney is deserving, but this film should be a cinch for the Cinematography, Visual Effects, and Film Editing statues.
Nudity: None.

Grade: 9.5/10 (Phenomenal/Instant Classic)

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Bunch Of Movie Reviews pt. 1 of 2

October 8, 2013

I remember a time, a little over a decade ago, when watching movies, writing reviews, and updating my website were arguably the most important things in my life. I watched EVERYTHING and posted my reviews immediately. I worked at a movie theater too, so I prided myself in having reviews posted before most major films were even released to the public. I remember having a huge book of HTML code and even had my own domain names: http://www.mistamac.com and http://www.maccent.net — both of which are now completely defunct (although it looks like someone else has registered the former for a photography website). Even the free Geocities site that used to host my pages for free is gone from existence. For all the time and effort I put into those sites, I have absolutely nothing to show for it. It’s a little depressing.

Things have changed quite a bit in the past decade. Movies don’t play nearly as large a role in my life as they used to. In fact, by 2005, I pretty had no clue what was going on in film… that is, until Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins woke me from my slumber and reminded me just how amazing movies can be. Since then, I’ve been more aware of what’s going on in the movie world (and completely obsessed with all things Batman!), but my dedication to posting reviews of the films I’ve watched has been sporadic, at best. Since 2008, when I started this blog, I’ve had periods of consistency, but mostly I’ve been really lazy about it. From my experience, writing talent doesn’t stay constant without practice and the more removed from it I become the more often I sit in front of my computer with no clue how to articulate my feelings. I’ve started and trashed more blog posts in the past couple years than I can count and I continually lower the quality and length of my film reviews. Still, there is one thing I’m sure of: I enjoy going through my older posts and reading my thoughts once upon a time and I really like having a catalog of all the films I’ve seen and my ratings for each one. I’ve made it a goal of mine to update my blog at least once a week though, so that should increase my consistency for the foreseeable future.

With that said, here are all the 2013 films I’ve seen that I haven’t posted about yet:

We’re The Millers – This isn’t saying much, but this is arguably 2013’s best comedy so far. Nearing her mid-40s, Jennifer Aniston is still smoking hot and this movie showcases her sexiness more than anything else in her career. Also, Will Poulter gives a breakthrough comedic performance and I was pleasantly surprised (upon further inspection) to discover that he was the same kid that wowed me in 2008’s Son Of Rambow. Like most comedies, We’re The Millers gets ridiculous at times, but all in all, provides consistent laughs. 6.5/10

Elysium – A fascinating concept and the highly anticipated follow-up to Blomkamp’s District 9, Elysium is riveting, gruesome, and heartbreaking while exploring the social divide between the upper-class and everyone else. For a film that feels a lot like an epic picture, Elysium is very concise well-paced, keeping you on the edge of your seat through it’s entirety. Heading into awards season, Elysium is in contention with Star Trek Into Darkness as the best film I’ve seen this year. 7.5/10

Spring Breakers – Wow. Spectacularly bad. And I’ve only seen the first 30 minutes. Three times. I just couldn’t stomach any more and it’s not like I didn’t try. Even so, you should have some semblance of a plot within the first half hour and there is none here. NONE. As far as I could tell, this film serves no purpose other than to capitalize on the popularity of Vanessa Hudgens and Selena Gomez and exploit them by having them breaking bad. And while there’s plenty of nudity in the first half hour, don’t expect any from Gomez or Hudgens. I didn’t even make it far enough in the film to see James Franco, a former Oscar nominee, potentially tarnish his resume, but I can only imagine. This will be tough to top as the worst film of the year. Expect Razzie nominations for everyone involved. 2/10

The Bling Ring – Reminded me a lot of Spring Breakers, but slightly more watchable. Maybe it was because Sofia Coppola (Lost In Translation) wrote and directed it, or that Emma Watson starred in it, that I was able to make it through the whole thing, but unfortunately neither of these ingredients help the film at all. In fact, Coppola took a potentially interesting story–a group of teenagers breaking into celebrity homes for personal tours and to steal valuable items–and made it as boring and stupid as possible. Emma Watson is so bad in her role that I’m legitimately concerned about her acting future. There is nothing redeemable about this awful movie. 2/10

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox – DC has a very strong history with their animated feature films, but this is probably one of my least favorite. Focusing on The Flash, The Flashpoint Paradox finds the titular hero in a different timeline where Bruce Wayne is dead and Thomas Wayne is a gun-toting, murderous version of Batman and Aquaman and Wonder Woman are the villains. Any Justice League film that puts Bruce Wayne on ice is already off to a bad start. I can’t imagine this is the best Flash story they had to work with, but maybe I just need to give it another watch. 5/10

Don Jon – I was a bit surprised by how much of a focal point watching porn is in this film. I was expecting a light, humorous rom-com that was maybe a bit on the dirty side, but Don Jon is quite filthy and reality versus fantasy and porn addiction play the biggest thematic roles. Scarlett Johansson is as gorgeous as ever, but her character is a bit snooty and overly controlling and the film definitely argues for substance over style when it comes to relationship material. Regardless, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has to be considered a genius for writing and directing a film where he gets to make out constantly with Scarlett Johansson. Kudos JGL! Also, a surprisingly good acting performance from Tony Danza! Consistently funny and at times repulsive, Don Jon is a fun watch. 6/10

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The Wolverine (2013)

August 2, 2013

Starring: Hugh Jackman
Director: James Mangold (Walk The Line, Girl, Interrupted, 3:10 To Yuma)

I can’t say I was too excited to see The Wolverine, but with a lack of other options that fit our time frame and a girlfriend and mother that refuse to watch movies in 3D, it seemed like the obvious choice. After the disappointing X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006 and the travesty that was 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine–a film so bad it killed off an entire franchise before it even started–my interest in the continuing sagas of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine had pretty much evaporated. Fortunately, Matthew Vaughn breathed new life into the the X-Men franchise in 2011 with First Class and then The Avengers put everyone on alert, and the result is a pretty good solo Wolverine flick.

Interestingly enough, The Wolverine acknowledges the previous X-Men films–even the shitty third installment that includes the death of Jean Grey–and manages to bridge the gap between time periods and tell its own story, all while not totally sucking. That’s an accomplishment after the terrible origin film. Obviously Hugh Jackman is great as the title character and while this film doesn’t really challenge the actor’s abilities, it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing the role.

Setting the film in Japan was a good concept. I liked seeing Wolverine interact with mostly human characters in an environment you wouldn’t really expect to see in a film about a mutant superhero. It was a breath of fresh air in the comic book genre. Although, there was a scene that takes place on top of a train that while kind of awesome and funny, is pretty ridiculous for the human Japanese characters. The two Japanese lead actresses did a good job and Rila Rukushima was particularly awesome as Yukio. In fact, aside from a two hour running time that feels more like two and a half hours, The Wolverine‘s biggest weakness is in its villains. Viper is the main villain in the film and is played by a Russian actress that I’m unfamiliar with. Not only is the character a Poison Ivy rip off, but a white woman playing the lead antagonist in a film with a Japanese setting seems wildly out of place. Everything about her sucks: the acting, the concept, the motive. Ugh. The climax is a face off with the Silver Samurai that, well, is just bizarre. Wolverine fighting ninjas and yakuza? Awesome. Wolverine fighting mutants and old, Japanese men in robot suits? Crap.

Basically, The Wolverine is an enjoyable film that could have been much better with a different final act and more interesting villains. As it is, it’s still a step forward from the last film in the Wolverine franchise, and the mid-credits scene (the best moment in the whole film!) is reason to be excited about the future.

Grade: 5.5/10 (Recommended/Rent It)

Replay Value: Not worth owning unless you’re a die hard fan. I’ll probably never see it again.
Sequel Potential: Wolverine will be making his next appearance in 2014’s X-Men: Days Of Future Past.
Oscar Potential: None.
Nudity: None.
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 67% Audience: 75%
IMDB Rating: 7.2/10

Recommendation: Not really worth theater prices, but something that’s worth watching when it comes out to rent. I’d rank the X-Men films as follows: X-Men: First Class, X2, X-Men, The Wolverine, X-Men: The Last Stand, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

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Man Of Steel (2013)

June 21, 2013

Starring: Henry Cavill, Michael Shannon, Russell Crowe, Amy Adams
Director: Zack Snyder (Watchmen trilogy, 300, Sucker Punchy)

Quick Thoughts: What a spectacle. That was my first thought leaving the theater after watching Man Of Steel, which was probably my most anticipated film this summer. Director Zack Snyder can handle action. We know that much and those looking for a Superman that finally kicks some real ass, you’ll get it here. There’s plenty of super fights, massive property destruction, and a finale that is almost overwhelmingly heavy on action. It was enough to make me want to go back and see it in IMAX 3D.

Man Of Steel almost feels like you’re watching two films. The first half of the movie feels much like producer Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins while the second half plays out, well, like a Zack Snyder film. Much like Begins the first half of Man Of Steel switches between scenes of Clark Kent dealing with his unnatural abilities as a child and discovering himself as an adult. Unlike Begins, where you become quite invested in Bruce Wayne’s story, Man Of Steel seems a bit slow and I was pretty eager to move along to the Superman stuff. Also, the sequence on Krypton, in particular, is overly long and a bit confusing. The second half of the film feels a lot like an alien invasion movie. I kept thinking of Independence Day during the second act.

It’s interesting that DC took such a realistic approach with Superman right after The Dark Knight trilogy finished. Certainly, Snyder’s Superman would fit comfortably into Nolan’s Batman universe. Nolan has stated that he is finished with Batman, however, and Man Of Steel is supposed to be the first step towards an eventual Justice League movie; one that will likely feature a rebooted Batman. It’s all quite a mess and as a massive fan of DC Comics, I have to say I’m concerned.

Regardless, even with my ridiculous expectations for Man Of Steel, I’m pretty satisfied with the finished product. Henry Cavill is perfect as Superman, General Zod and crew are formidable first opponents, the action is amazing, and Russell Crowe is great as Jor-El. David Goyer took some liberties with the Superman mythos–notably on how Lois Lane and Superman first meet and Superman’s morality–but I thought these were handled delicately and actually made sense for modern (and more realistic) versions of the characters. Lois Lane is an investigative journalist, after all, and it’s always been pretty unbelievable that no one can figure out that Superman and Clark Kent are one in the same. With all the pressure from the crazy success of The Avengers and Marvel’s ridiculously smart blueprint for creating their cinematic universe, I’m nervous about DC trying to match it by rushing into a Justice League movie, but even so, I’m looking forward to Man Of Steel 2

Replay Value: I’m anxious to see it again in IMAX 3D.
Sequel Potential: Release date already announced and this character will eventually show up in a Justice League movie.
Oscar Potential: Maybe some visual effects and sound recognition.
Nudity: None.
Grade: 7/10 (Must See)
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 56% Audience: 82%
IMDB Rating: 8.1/10

Recommendation: The critics are way off on this one. 2006’s Superman Returns is a 75% and sucks. Man Of Steel blows it away and I think even the critics would agree with that. I’ll admit it didn’t meet my expectations, but this is still an above average superhero film and a great reintroduction of the Superman character.

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Flight (2012)

April 7, 2013

Starring: Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, Bruce Greenwood
Director: Robert Zemeckis (Back To The Future trilogy, Forrest Gump, Cast Away)

Quick Thoughts: Flight hit home for me a bit. Being an alcoholic myself–one that has been sober for nearly three years now–I couldn’t help but relate to the path of self-destruction that Denzel Washington’s character Whip Whitaker had created for himself: the complete lack of self-control, the walls his family has put up, the delusion, the denial. Of course, the decision to make this character the pilot of a major airline makes his story worthy of a film. Watching the movie, I was wondering how much of it was based in reality. Was it a true story? The answer is… not really. While Whip’s decision to invert the plane during the incredible flight and crash sequence was inspired by true events, the character of Whip Whitaker himself is a figment of screenwriter John Gatins’ imagination–or more likely, a loose translation of someone the writer actually knows.

This is one of those films where the hero is quite the opposite. There’s no protagonist in this movie. I can’t imagine too many people rooting for Whip Whitaker. He’s despicable. Aside from his alcoholism, he also abuses drugs, womanizes, and is generally crude and overbearingly filthy in his diction. Perhaps we want to see him sink so low that he finally sees and admits the errors of his ways, but that’s it. About 90 minutes into the movie, I turned to my girlfriend and said: “This movie can’t possibly have a happy ending.” There is no light at the end of the tunnel for this person.

While I found Flight to be entertaining–seriously, the flight sequence is jaw-dropping–and the best depiction of alcoholism since Leaving Las Vegas, I did walk away with some serious questions. Whip’s flight crew is all too familiar with his antics. He’s sleeping and partying with one of his flight attendants (a fellow substance abuser) and it appears this is no secret to the rest of the crew, particularly a devoutly religious woman that has known Whip for years. My question is, knowing who this man is, why on earth would these people get on a plane that he’s flying? I understand enabling and co-dependent relationships–believe me–but I can’t understand constantly putting your own life and lives of passengers in immediate danger. This man is piloting planes drunk while reeking of vodka (as his co-pilot later points out). Who in their right mind is letting that happen? Also curious, Whip’s toxicology report comes back with a .24 BAC after landing the plane, getting extracted from the wreckage, and possibly transported to a hospital. In other words, during the crash, Whip was probably sporting a BAC over .3, which is well into black out territory. Of course, this is the portrait of a “functioning” alcoholic, but come on. And… my comments on the ending I will post below*.

Despite these concerns, I was still pleased with Flight and thought it tackled alcoholism quite well. The crash sequence is legendary and Denzel Washington gives another great performance.

Replay Value: Worth watching again for sure.
Sequel Potential: None.
Oscar Potential: Denzel received an acting nomination and Gatins a writing nomination. Surprisingly, the visual effects team was snubbed.
Nudity: Quite a bit during the opening sequence.
Grade: 7/10 (Must See)
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 79% Audience: 76%
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10

Recommendation: Highly recommended, especially to those who have dealt with alcoholism in their lives.

SPOILERS:

I felt like this movie couldn’t possibly have a happy ending and while I suppose I was satisfied with the way things wrapped up, I didn’t really buy it either. Whip Whitaker ultimately breaks down and admits the truth of his alcoholism–a scene that brought tears to my eyes–right on the brink of lying his way to freedom during his testimony. All he has to do is tell one more lie and he can go right on living his destructive life. So what sparked his change of heart? He has the perfect alibi: the woman he spent the night with before the crash has passed away, she’s a known alcoholic, and he can say that she drank the two bottles of vodka that had been found in the wreckage. But instead, he admits that he drank those bottles and suffers all the punishments that come with that admittance. Why? Do we really believe this man, that has chosen alcohol over the relationships of anyone close to him–wife and son included–would choose this moment to come clean? Presumably to protect the honor of a dead woman he had a casual sexual relationship with? I’m sorry, but this would never happen in real life. Alcoholics are incredibly selfish people and I really believe that 100% of alcoholics in that situation would choose to lie and protect their freedom. Perhaps the close call with extensive jail time would be enough to spark a change, but Whip Whitaker doesn’t take the fall there. Ever.

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The Croods (2013)

March 28, 2013

Starring: voices of Nicholas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds
Director: Kirk De Micco, Chris Sanders (How To Train Your Dragon, Lilo & Stitch)

Quick Thoughts: This movie kicked all sorts of ass. As far as kids movies go, The Croods is the nuts. Filled with great animation, memorable characters, stellar voice acting, and a surprising amount of quality humor, The Croods is spectacular family filmmaking. Nicholas Cage as the dim, over protective father figure gives his most inspired performance since Adaptation. Perhaps he’s better suited behind a mic? The Croods are definitely a family you can get behind rooting for and their adventure will have you laughing out loud the whole time and walking out with a smile on your face. I do regret not seeing this in 3D, however, as the trailersI saw in 3D for it looked awesome.

Replay Value: I will probably add this to my own collection and think it would be great for kids to watch repeatedly.
Sequel Potential: Remember this moment: The Croods is a fantastic animated movie that opened to $46 million. By 2018, we’ll probably be sick of this family.
Oscar Potential: Pixar’s Monsters University will probably be stiff competition for the Best Animated Movie Oscar, but The Croods would’ve been a shoo-in if it came out last year.
Nudity: None.
Grade: 8/10 (Excellent)
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 67% Audience: 86%
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10

Recommendation: Honestly, that 67% critics rating is absurd; The Croods is great fun for both kids and adults. The first must see film of 2013.

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Oz The Great And Powerful (2013)

March 24, 2013

Starring: James Franco, Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz
Director: Sam Raimi (Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2, Evil Dead, Spider-Man 3)

Quick Thoughts: There is way too much green screen going on in Sam Raimi’s Oz The Great And Powerful and the result is the film looks more like Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland than James Cameron’s Avatar and that’s not a good thing. You certainly don’t feel immersed in the land of Oz; it all looks quite fake. The acting does little to add to the believability, as four Oscar and Golden Globe nominees all do a great job of not taking their roles too seriously… and maybe they shouldn’t. But still, I don’t want to see Michelle Williams or Mila Kunis hamming it up. Having seen the Broadway version of Wicked last year, I know there is a way to continue The Wizard Of Oz story in a way that can still be embraced in 2013. I’ll take Elphaba’s origin story over this mess any day.

Replay Value: I’ll probably never watch it again… but it might have a little value here.
Sequel Potential: As a prequel to The Wizard Of Oz, obviously this property has plenty of legs.
Oscar Potential: There’s a chance for some art direction and make-up love, but I have a feeling this movie will be long forgotten come Oscar season.
Nudity: None.
Grade: 4.5/10 (watchable/wait for Red Box)
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 61% Audience: 66%
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10

Recommendation: A pretty cheesy offering. I didn’t see the 3D version so maybe the film looks spectacular that way; I doubt it though. I was excited for this movie but I lost interest before we even made it to Oz. All in all, a moderately painful experience.

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Safe Haven (2013)

March 6, 2013

Starring: Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel, Cobie Smulders
Director: Lasse Hallstrom (Chocolat, The Cider House Rules)

Quick Thoughts: I’ll admit to owning The Notebook, but nothing else that has been adapted for the movies in the Nicholas Sparks collection has struck my interest and half of the movies based on his books I don’t even remember coming out. Needless to say, I had no interest in watching Safe Haven and it’s 13% rotten rating had me absolutely dreading having to sit through it. But when you’re in a relationship, sometimes, them the breaks.

Well, Safe Haven certainly didn’t disappoint with it’s snail-like pace and uninteresting, predictable plot. The movie opens with Julianne Hough running away from an apparent law enforcement officer and settling down in a quiet town, hoping not to be bothered or recognized. It doesn’t take much running time to figure out who the real bad guy is and when the “reveal” does happen, it’s borderline insulting… but that doesn’t quite match what Safe Haven has in store for us later in film when the final twist is learned. I mean, Cobie Smulders (from “How I Met Your Mother”) had to be in this movie for some reason, right? Seriously though, Sparks takes the one touching moment he managed to find in his novel and then slaps the audience across the face one more time. Apologies for any potential spoilers here, but if you can’t figure this one out by the half hour mark, well…

I could go on listing reasons why I didn’t enjoy Safe Haven, but I didn’t want to waste my time watching it, so I’m certainly not going to waste too much time writing about it.

Viewings: 1
Replay Value: None, IMO
Sequel Potential: None
Oscar Potential: Zero.
Nudity: None
Grade: 2.5/10 (Horrible/Skip It)
RottenTomatoes Scores: Critics: 13% Audience: 71%
IMDB Rating: 6.2/10
Recommendation: Boyfriends, if you’re worried about seeing this movie, you should be! I’ve seen more painful movies in my day, but I’d bet Safe Haven is the worst film I see in 2013.

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