Mr. Pricklepants

Weekly Recap 3/26/10

DVDs Watched this Week:
The Good: Brothers, An Education, Twilight, No Country for Old Men, American Gangster, Charlie Wilson's War, The Princess Bride, Bloody Sunday, Christine, The Fabulous Baker Boys, The West Wing Seasons 1-2
The Bad: Sherlock Holmes, Phantom Punch, Wild Bill, The Men Who Stare at Goats
The Ugly: None

Trips to the Theater: None

Actors of the Week: Rachel McAdams, Josh Brolin
Directors of the Week: Catherine Hardwicke, The Coen Brothers

TRAILERS/CLIPS of the Week:
Eclipse. Whoever Bryce Dallas Howard replaced must be crying her eyes out.


You Don't Know Jack. HBO. Al Pacino. Kevorkian.

March 2010 Reviews 4 (Sherlock Holmes)

Sherlock Holmes 2 ½ stars I like all of these people. Robert Downey, Jude Law, Guy Ritchie. I like a lot of their movies, and I think they are very talented. So why does the combination of these men not make a good movie. It's not terrible or anything. It’s just not as stimulating as I wanted a retelling of Sherlock Holmes to be. The main problem is a tired script which is not smart and a script about Sherlock Holmes needs to be at the very least that. This isn’t a mystery, it’s a bloated Bond film set in the 1800s with Jude Law as the bland stable sidekick and Downey as the rogue hero who thinks he’s more charming than he actually is. I had a problem with Downey’s accent in particular as it is difficult to comprehend as he underplays every line in a low register. It’s maybe a good decision on paper but we still need to actually understand the things he is saying.

It also doesn’t help that this period in England’s history is so dull to me. It’s the same reason I don’t want to see The Wolfman. The wool suits, the hats, the horses and carriages, all of these things put me to sleep. These period films feel like museum exhibits and not movies. I'd rather watch Shanghai Knights. Director Guy Ritchie tries to add some juice to the proceedings with a very good bare knuckle boxing match a la Snatch, but it just reminds me how much more intricate and complex his own movies are compared to this junior high material.

The only genuine bright spot is Rachel McAdams who has a fantastic role and is fantastic as Irene Adler, Holmes’s former love. Irene’s an American, a criminal, and a lot of fun. The movie brightens whenever she shows up. She’s not acting like someone who is intelligent and clever. She is those things, even in a pink corset. And it may be the most beautiful she's been in a movie. I wish the movie was also intelligent, clever, and beautiful but it is not. The action is fun, and Holmes's moments of analytical exposition are enjoyable, but I wanted more.

The Men Who Stare at Goats 2 stars I expected to be disappointed. Psychic army warriors who apparently can stop someone's heart by concentrating. They practice on hamsters and goats. Sounds like a SNL sketch. For all of the massive talent floating around here (Clooney, Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges, Ewan McGregor) the movie is as forgettable as a cheese sandwich. These normally serious actors are trying to be funny. Trying is the right word. I think the movie's trying to be an offbeat Coen brothers movie. Trying is the right word again. Failing is another word. On a side note, for all of the complaints of American actors doing bad foreign accents, I think Ewan McGregor's American accent is one of the worst. He over pronounces every word. Don't bother with this one.

An Education 3 ½ stars I saw this very late in its theatrical run but I'm so glad I did. An Education is a gem of a coming of age movie set in 60s London. It stars the luminous Carey Mulligan who was nominated for Best Actress earlier this year. It's hard to pin down what makes the movie so good, but I think it might be the spirit of the thing. There's an inherent sweetness to the story. There are no villains, Jenny parents are conservative but very loving, and there are no hysterical tragedies. Jenny is getting an education in art, music, film, and life. The joys we all take for granted and replace with bad TV. The movie reminded how much I loved those things and how great it is to love them. The ending is wrapped a little too quickly for my taste, but I still think it's a special one. A great screenplay by the great Nick Hornby.

Brothers 4 stars A little less potent the second time around, but still pretty powerful. It's very sad that no one saw this in the theater, but I'm hoping people will check it out on DVD. I still find it amazing that such a great drama is basically made up of these three young actors, two of which aren't even 30 yet. It's just as rich and complex as anything more traditionally adult. No scene is false, and the climactic moments (particularly Natalie Portman's subtle acting choices during Tobey's big meltdown) resonate deeply. I still can't say enough about Jake Gyllenhaal who somehow graduated to manhood after Zodiac and Brokeback Mountain. He's not a kid anymore, and I put him up there with the best. His portrayal of Tommy is the most compelling.

Check out my original review. http://rolandchang.blogspot.com/2009/12/brothers.html

American Gangster 3 stars I actually saw this at an advanced preview screening in rough cut form back in '06. I filled out a test screening card and everything. A lot of it is still underwhelming. Ridley Scott is great at designing a movie (the production design, the costumes, the lighting, all stunning) but sometimes the blood of the drama gets lost underneath all of the decoration (Kingdom of Heaven). A lot of it I blame on screenwriter Steve Zaillian who can write brilliantly (Schindler's List, Searching for Bobby Fischer) but can also write very poorly (All the King's Men, Hannibal, The Interpreter). Many scenes feel flat and lack rhythm. I wonder what the movie would've been like if it was all about Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) and not about Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe). The honest cop struggling with his personal life, yawn. The yuppie minded gangster from Harlem who went to Vietnam to get the drugs himself, now that's intriguing. But on DVD I can skip through the mediocre scenes, and I enjoy the movie a lot more.

Of all of the massive cast, surprisingly Cuba Gooding Jr. and Josh Brolin leave the strongest impressions. Also nice work from Carla Gugino (Watchmen) as Richie's ex-wife. It's a cross breed between The Godfather, The French Connection, and a lot of other gangster movies, but very rarely do they ever look as stylish.

And it has a great trailer.

Twilight 3 stars Watched the sequel last weekend, decided to watch the original again. Man is it better. I forgot how much Bella narrates this first film and her narration takes us straight into her head as she moves to a new town, to a new school, and to a new relationship with Count Chocula. She’s the lead character and we feel what she feels. We aren’t at a distance watching a whiny girl mope around about her break up. The movie has a nice sense of a real high school that isn’t over-lit or cliche. The kids seem real. Or at least they are people we don't mind spending time with. I particularly liked the scene where they go surfing. No one’s wearing a bikini and actually there’s no sun out. This isn’t an Abercrombie ad. Bella is just hanging out in the van, eating candy, talking with some friends. It’s the kind of simple hangout scene the second movie is lacking. Another good scene is Bella and Edward’s first date where he explains that he can read other people’s minds. He’s funny and witty and they really do have a nice chemistry. Nothing like the dead with lead conversations of New Moon. Edward is 10x more fun in this one. What happened over the summer?

There’s also more room for supporting characters like Bella’s mom and Bella's friends, which makes the world of the movie more complete and much more interesting than a random trip to Italy does. The story moves at a swifter pace and has a nice feel for what it would be like to be a teenager in this small Washington town. Even a melodramatic scene of Bella in the hospital telling Edward he can’t go avoids feeling too WBish. Or is it CWish. I really felt her desperation at the idea of them not being together and I cared about that. That seemed to capture the core of what this love story is about. Why didn’t that occur when Edward leaves in #2? What happened? I think we haven’t given director Catherine Hardwicke (Lords of Dogtown) enough credit for all of her strong decisions in that first movie. Twilight is a good movie about high school kids and vampires. New Moon is a drudge about trying to make these teens act like adults which they cannot pull off. I’ve never read the Stephanie Meyer’s books and I probably never will, but I have a feeling the sequels will go further and further away from being something I like. However, Father forgive me, this first movie is pretty good.

Jennifer Aniston: Your Movies Stink

In light of the assault for the past month by the countless ads and TV spots and trailers for The Bounty Hunter, I wanted to write this.

Jennifer Aniston starred in a very good movie called The Good Girl back in 2002. That was her last good movie and that was 8 years ago. She also starred in the massively successful Friends(a show I still like a lot) but that seems like another life ago. She is a likable celebrity and someone that women including my sister seem very fascinated by. She appears to be a nice enough lady, however, she has absolutely no taste when it comes to choosing movies to star in. If you are this popular, and you have the ability to pick any movie you want, why do you consistently pick terrible ones? Why at 40 do you still need to do romantic comedies? How many times do you plan to fall in love on film?

Has no one learned from the tragedy of Meg Ryan? She was the reigning queen of rom coms. I think she did the most for as long as any actress could. Most do a couple but then we get tired of you – Brittany Murphy, Hillary Duff. Where is Meg now? She’s going straight to DVD. The Deal, Serious Moonlight. Have you heard of these movies? I can’t remember the last one she had that went to a movie theater.

The Break-Up, Management, Rumor Has it, He’s Just Not That Into You, Love Happens, The Bounty Hunter. These are not good movies. Jen, who is your agent? You always play the same character and always look the same. I think one thing we don’t ask enough is can these actresses act? I don’t really think so. My cynical view says that all these women want to do is be pretty and likable. They don’t want to challenge themselves in their craft, they don’t want to do anything that might require actual acting. You know, creating a character that isn't you. And it’s romantic COMEDY. Is Jennifer Aniston particularly funny? Is Kate Hudson? Is Jennifer Lopez? No. Her atrocious The Wedding Planner is still one of the worst rentals I’ve ever been violated by.

The good thing about Hollywood ageism is that these women with no talent are spit out of the system as new comers are ready to replace them and veterans continue to show them how bland at acting they are. You deserve to be replaced. There’s a reason why Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Jennifer Connelly, Laura Linney, Kate Winslet, Julianne Moore, Juliet Binoche, Catherine Keener, Helen Mirren, Naomi Watts, and Charlize Theron work regularly and will continue to do so. They make good choices. They make different choices. They might not be on the covers of magazines but they can out act you with their eyes closed. I’m tired of seeing your billboards and bad trailers. Go back to TV Rachel.

March 2010 Reviews 3 (New Moon)

New Moon 1 1/2 stars. Do girls really scream in pain uncontrollably night after night after they've broken up with a boyfriend? Many months after it hit the theaters, I finally saw New Moon on DVD tonight. Twilight is a lot of things but most of all it's this juggernaut box office phenomenon. Bella, Edward, and Jacob. I bet my mom's heard of them by now. For all of my doubts, I actually enjoyed the first movie. I enjoy a good teen romance just as much as the next giggling girl and the budding romance between Edward and Bella was sweet and likable. They themselves were incredibly likable. Now comes New Moon which should've been subtitled New Moon:The Break Up. It's a movie cliche, but there's a reason there are thousands of movies where two characters fall in love. That is an enjoyable thing. However, it is not enjoyable for anyone to spend 2 hours with people who have broken up. It's no secret by now that early on Edward has to leave with his family and Bella is beyond crushed. More like life threateningly devastated.

The first 20 minutes are strangely very awkward as Bella worries about aging(as so many seniors in high school do) and Edward worries about Bella liking other guys(aw, vampires are just like us). But for all their talk, there isn't much fun in this relationship. Can't we have some time where they enjoy being together? I guess it's hard to go get ice cream when one of you can't eat. They don't give into their physical passion(vampires just say no) but they aren't having many laughs either. One might ask, what is so great about this relationship? They both mope around about the impending doom of the future and argue about why Edward won't turn her into a vampire. All of their conversations are so heavy with long pauses and way too much seriousness. It's a whiny, angsty slog, and I was kind of relieved when he left. Bella is then depressed for many months and starts a friendship with Jacob the Native American werewolf. I kind of like this guy. He's nice to her and treats her well. He's actually around, and he's not 109 years-old. Edward is brooding, distant, and always whispering. Be a man and speak up!

Now to digress.

A couple of things that stick in my craw about Twilight in general:
1. If I was a vampire and was 109 years-old, I would not bother going to biology.
2. I would also not go for someone 90 years younger than me. Talk about cradle robbing.

The middle of the movie sags into tedium and this idea of vampires vs. werewolves and Bella in the middle isn't handled in any way that is exciting. It's all so soapy. CGI wolves growl and snarl at Jamaican vampires but that comes off as silly. Although thankfully nothing is half as silly as that ludicrous baseball game in the first movie. For my money I want the werewolves to win. They're the good guys. Bella on the other hand spends a lot of time looking like a deer caught in headlights. I think 3/4 of the movie she has no idea what is going on. A damsel in distress in a love triangle is not much of a protagonist to stick by.

The first movie is fine by itself. Girl falls in love with vampire and they end up going to the prom. That's a nice ending. That could've been it. This second part ends up in strange ancient vampire territory and eventually ends up in Italy with men walking around in bright red robes. One nice addition is British actor Michael Sheen(The Queen) who arrives to show these actors what real acting is. Everyone's taking everything way too seriously. He knows he's playing a vampire and that should be a little fun.

Sorry if I dumped on your love of Dracula's Creek, but this second part is just no good. I still like the Washington state setting, I still like the look of the movie, I still like Kristin Stewart who is lovely(she's particularly well lit in this one) and getting better as an actress, and the last moment is admittedly very well done. I bet theaters across America were filled with young and old women shrieking. But I just didn't want to spend so much time with this painfully serious teen couple while they moan and whine and make promises about forever. I think it can all be summed up by Bella's friend Jessica played by the much too talented to be in this Anna Kendrick. "You're depression thing, I get it. I'm totally, totally worried. But after a while it's like, you're still bumming? And I'm going through stuff too." That's absolutely right. Team Jessica.

My original review of Twilight. http://rolandchang.blogspot.com/2009/03/weekly-recap-32009.html

Fantastic Mr. Fox 3 1/2 stars. Some movies shine on the second viewing. Some movies are just better on DVD. I was somewhat lukewarm when I saw Fantastic Mr. Fox in the theater. Now I’ve basically watched it on a loop for the last 3 days. No longer having to focus on the plot as one does on any first viewing, I am thoroughly enjoying this world of foxes, possums, badgers, and whack bat. This is a very special movie most prominently because of the gorgeous stop motion animation. It makes everything seem a bit off and very, very funny. The design of those figures(particularly Mr. Fox himself) is awesome. You can admire the artistry so much more on a smaller screen. The detail of the fur and the characters' hilarious gestures are really something. You just want to reach into the screen and hug all of them. George Clooney is absolutely perfect as the voice of Fantastic Mr. Fox. It's uncanny how much his voice completely matches this 2 foot tall fox.

The entire cast is wonderful. Meryl Streep and Bill Murray are the only really big names, but my favorite characters are Kylie the handyman possum and Agnes who is going steady with cousin Kristofferson. The story does get a little convoluted about 2/3 in but I’d say ignore the story. Just enjoy the world where badgers wear ties, weasels are real estate agents, and your gym teacher is Owen Wilson as a polar bear. Wes Anderson may never make a film as good as The Royal Tenenbaums again(it’s shocking how much The Darjeeling Limited has soured me on him) but there is a lot of his greatness here. A genius touch is “cuss”. No one swears in the movie, certainly not as it is PG, but instead, they all say cuss. "You cussing with me?" "What the cuss!" It gets funnier and funnier as the movie moves along. This is a Blu-Ray I’m buying.

Ninja Assassin 2 stars. It should've been called Ninja Buckets of Blood. This is far and away the bloodiest movie I have ever seen with waterfalls of red flowing everywhere. It’s not necessarily the most violent as the action is not really to be taken seriously at all, but I’ve never seen more bad guys gush more blood. Don’t let the slick look fool you, this is a B-movie all the way. This is Van Damme/Seagal 1990s territory. Those guys are somewhat charismatic although mentally retarded as actors. But Korean pop star Rain is dull as dishwater with zero screen charisma and bad English that distracts at every single moment. British actress Naomie Harris(Miami Vice, Pirates 3) is completely wasted as the cop/love interest trying to find out who this ninja assassin is. The director is James McTeigue who was the first assistant director on the Matrix sequels. The first assistant director is basically the wedding coordinator on set. He runs the show from a crew level. But I don’t think that qualifies you to make artistic decisions. He directed the excruciating V for Vendetta as well. I think he has little to no style and has no clue about what makes an interesting story or interesting characters. Sure, the Mortal Kombat moments are fun in a Jackass sort of way, but then you have to actually sit through the rest of the movie.

The Princess and the Frog 2 stars. If you ever wanted to travel back to the early 90s and see a lost animated movie from that time period, this is the movie to see. I actually think that’s a bad thing. Pixar is ruling the world right now and in light of the beauty and ingenuity of some of those films, The Princess and the Frog feels like an antique. It’s old fashioned in the worst way. The drawings look dated, the songs are unmemorable, and the “wacky” talking animals feels like someone trying to make me listen to an old radio show. Watch Aladdin again. Watch The Lion King. Don’t watch this hand drawn, unfunny, unexciting snorefest.

The Bourne Identity 2 1/2 stars. It’s very rare that the first movie of the series is the worst. I have to say I don’t like this first outing. The movie suffers from one fatal flaw in that we all know who Jason Bourne is and he doesn’t. We're just waiting for him to find out. I just sat in the theater growing more and more annoyed with his amnesia. I know who you are, why can’t you figure it out! The direction by Doug Liman is spotty and uneven and a trip to a country farm house toward the end of the film puts the movie to sleep. Even the romance feels forced upon this damaged character.

The Bourne Supremacy 3 1/2 stars. The best. Choosing Paul Greengrass who had only directed a few independent films in Britain was a masterstroke. The muted lighting, the incredible editing, the pace, the music, everything hits its stride. The first movie seems like a first draft compared to this one. Particularly great are the fine actors Joan Allen and Brian Cox. Their scenes crackle with intelligence. Killing off a main character at the beginning was another great choice as Bourne should be a man on his own. That car chase through Moscow is a doozy.

The Bourne Ultimatum 3 stars. A bit less than the second one but not by much. Starting the movie immediately after the first one ends was yet another great choice. The cat and mouse game at Waterloo Station is an amazing puzzle of tension and release and that chase/fight on the rooftops of Tangiers is too much fun. Fighting with a hardcover book is a lot of fun too. The ultimate discovery of David Webb isn't as satisfying as one would hope but we're relieved that things are apparently over for him. Nice work from Julia Stiles who had a blip role in the first and second one. Cue Extreme Ways by Moby and roll the end credits.

Weekly Recap 3/19/10

DVDs Watched this Week:
The Good: Fantastic Mr. Fox, A Few Good Men, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip Season 1
The Bad: Did You Hear About the Morgans?, Ninja Assassin, Howl's Moving Castle, Red Cliff, Believe: The Eddie Izzard Story, The Bourne Identity, New Moon
The Ugly: None

Trips to the Theater: Green Zone

Actors of the Week: George Clooney's voice, Matt Damon
Directors of the Week: Paul Greengrass, Wes Anderson

TRAILERS/CLIPS of the Week:
Harry Brown. Michael Caine taking names.

March 2010 Reviews 2 (Green Zone)

Green Zone 2 1/2 stars. Paul Greengrass is a very good director. The last two Bournes(Supremacy still being the best of the series) and then United 93 which is maybe a masterpiece. You may not know his name but you'll certainly recognize the style. There's always the breathless hand held camera work and Matt Damon. The Bournes are exciting thrillers that are obviously fictional big budget summer movies. United 93 was as close to as I can think of a scripted film being nearly a documentary. With Green Zone he tries to merge the two together and sadly the recipe goes bad.

Despite the trailers (which are pretty confusing as to what the film is about) and despite the poster that makes no sense, the film is about WMDs. Does anyone know this? That's what the movie is about. The movie is set in 2003 and it follows the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Matt Damon is a Chief Warrant Officer in the Army and he leads his team to sites where WMDs are supposed to be. Yet they aren't there. Time and time again it's bad intel and he wants to know how and why.

It's a good setup but the movie is fighting with itself. It wants to be about what really happened but it wants to be a big budget blockbuster. It wants us to think that this is how it went down, but the action sequences make it feel unbelievable. It wants to be an entertaining thriller, but it's not and really can't be since all of the plot elements are very close to home. If this all sounds confusing it's because that's kind of how I feel. A big night chase through the streets of Baghdad is exciting but feels implausible. An Iraqi informant called Freddie gives a passionate speech about how he wants to save his country that is probably truthful but it feels too melodramatic. Though the inter-departmental fighting between CIA, Pentagon, and Army feels right on the money.

In the end, the movie collapses under its own ambition and for the things it wants to inform us of, it failed to make me care. The movie seriously sags in the middle and I was checking the time on my cell a lot. What hurts most is the main character Capt. Roy Miller. Damon is a good actor but he's got nothing to play here. Miller is a straight arrow righteous soldier and that's about it. It's strangely a role that Tom Cruise is very good at. A character that is driven, on a mission, uncomplicated, but ultimately kind of a dull guy. Ethan Hunt is not someone I want to hang out with. Other characters feel one dimensional and too easily good or bad. Even actress Amy Ryan(Gone Baby Gone) seems lost in this movie. It's so busy trying to thrust us forward with momentum that I started to disengage.

And let's face it, the WMDs were not there. We all know that now and that real life knowledge hurts the movie considerably. In a sense, we know from the beginning that Miller will fail. No matter what he does, he will fail, and who wants to watch that. The whole movie is a "we already know this". And since it's not dramatically moving, who the hell cares. A better movie about intelligence gathering in Iraq is Ridley Scott's Body of Lies. Even better but more of a character drama is Paul Haggis' In the Valley of Elah. Maybe there have been just too many films recently with soldiers wearing desert camouflage screaming things like "Clear!" and abusing Arabs. This is now two movies in a row from two directors I admire(Scorsese, Greengrass) that are mediocre to bad. Plus Wall Street has been delayed until September. It all discourages me from going to the theater for a while.


Precious 3 stars. I was reluctant to sit down and watch Precious but decided to rent it after the Oscars. Part of my reluctance was because of my annoyance with the title. During this awards season all I heard was Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. Why is that the whole title? Why isn’t it just “Precious”. It’s not Star Trek: Based on the television series created by Gene Roddenberry. It’s just Star Trek. And why is your name Sapphire? Do you strip along with writing novels? Get a real name. And a last name.

Hissy fit aside, Precious turns out to be a good film. It has a brutal premise. Claireece Precious Jones is a teenager in Harlem who is illiterate, very overweight, and pregnant with her second child from yes, her father. This is definitely no teen film. What helps is Gabourey Sibide who gives a heartfelt performance as Precious. She is hard not to like and hard not sympathize with. Mostly because her mother Mary beats out Amy Ryan’s character in Gone Baby Gone as the worst mother in cinema history. She’s so evil someone referred to her as demonic. I think Col. Hans Landa would tip his hat to her. It is a powerhouse amazing performance from stand-up/reality TV show host Mo’Nique. Her monologue at the end is astounding. She deserves her Oscar. It’s the role and performance of a lifetime. The other actress I need to mention is of all people queen diva Mariah Carey who is shockingly very good as Mrs. Weiss, a welfare case worker who interviews Precious and her mother. It is a strong performance as she is nearly unrecognizable with no make-up and no glamor. What a genius casting choice. However, the film community still does not forgive you for Glitter. I should warn you that the domestic abuse is intense, but there is hope. The movie earns it’s hope and I believed it.

Did You Hear About the Morgans? 2 stars. Oddly there is a common axiom that no movie with a question mark in its title has ever made money. It's kind of true. Also movies with the word "death" in the title do poorly at the box office. I want to say right off the bat that I love Hugh Grant. He is one of a kind in movies today. I think his comic timing is second to none and he is a movie star that radiates charm which not many do these days. Mark Wahlberg is not charming. I also like writer-director Marc Lawrence. Two Weeks Notice is good but I really liked Music and Lyrics. That being said, this one is pretty much dead on arrival. The pace and timing are off, the jokes aren't funny, and the premise is just stupid. New Yorkers witness a murder and have to move to Wyoming. How fun! I also prefer Hugh Grant as the confident cad(Bridget Jones) as opposed to the bumbling wuss(Mickey Blue Eyes). Here he's the second one begging Carrie Bradshaw(who is actually bright and likable in this movie) to take him back and later having a very unfunny scene with a bear. I don't want to see Hugh Grant in a cowboy hat playing bingo.

Capitalism: A Love Story 3 stars. I really like Michael Moore. I’ve liked every one of his documentaries. His feature film Canadian Bacon though, no. Even if I disagree with parts of them, they always make me think. Capitalism: A Love Story is not in the same league as Bowling for Columbine or Sicko but it’s still a good movie. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the biggest revelation involves companies taking out life insurance policies in a way that got my blood boiling. Not as funny as the other ones. Not as insightful, but still pretty good. I’m very grateful to have a job.

The Cove 3 stars. The Cove won the Oscar for Best Documentary about a week ago and like Man on Wire this documentary is more of a sweaty palm thriller with its featured players doing illegal acts recorded on film. This illegal act is a honorable one as they document the horrifying capture of thousands of dolphins in Taiji, Japan. They are herded by fisherman and effectively slaughtered in this small cove. You should see how red the water is after they do their business. Ric O’Barry was the trainer for the TV show Flipper and after spending 10 years creating this dolphin capture industry, and he’s spent the last 35 years trying to make up for it. What he does is enlist the special effects house Industrial Light and Magic to create hidden HD cameras so they can film in the cove. It is a guerrilla stealth operation that is tense as hell. If documentaries are meant to inform, this one has accomplished just that. I am not an animal lover nor a tree hugger. But this movie got me revved up to save some dolphins. Look for Heroes' Hayden Panettiere who actually goes to the cove and joins in the protest.

Akira 2 1/2 stars. I think I saw this on Beta back in the early 90s. Now on DVD I kind of get why it’s such a phenomenon. Those first 15 minutes are stunning. There is a cyberpunk beauty to great Anime and many consider this to be The Godfather of Anime. That being said, like most of Anime it does end up in real bizarro and puzzling sci-fi territory that pushes you further and further away as it goes. Those elderly children are creepy as hell and then things get very convoluted with government experiments and the seriously annoying repetition of every character screaming “TETSUO!” over and over again.

"Tetsuo!" "Tetsuo!"

Shut up!

Weekly Recap 3/12/10

DVDs Watched this Week:
The Good: Capitalism:A Love Story, Precious, The Cove, The Jerk("I was born a poor black child."), Porco Rosso, Push, The Hurt Locker, Mr. Baseball, Princess Mononoke, When Harry Met Sally..., Beverly Hills Cop, The Terminal, Minority Report(the last time Tom Cruise was cool), Ponyo, Body of Lies, Carlito's Way Bonus Disc
The Bad: Akira, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, 24 Season 7 Disc 1(I think I'm done with 24)
The Ugly: None

Trips to the Theater: None

Actors of the Week: Mo'nique, Jeremy Renner, Tom Selleck
Directors of the Week: Michael Moore, Lee Daniels

TRAILERS/CLIPS of the Week:
Tron: Legacy. Whoa.


Body of Lies. Underrated and overlooked. Ridley Scott, Leonardo Dicaprio, Russell Crowe.

The Hurt Locker (Full Review)

4 stars I wrote a short review back in the summer when it first came out, but I wanted to write a full one now that it's won the Oscar and you might be wondering what in the world is The Hurt Locker.

The Hurt Locker is about an EOD Team (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) in Iraq. They are a mobile bomb disposal unit in maybe the hairiest place in the world. Someone finds a device, they call it in, these 3 guys go and check it out. In many ways the movie is that simple.

Despite its Iraq War setting the movie has zero political agenda. It's not about policy or Presidential administrations, absolutely nothing like that. It's not even about heroism or tragedy. I think it's oddly about knowing what you want to do with your life and doing it. I'm getting ahead of myself.

Will James is the new Team Leader of the EOD Unit in Bravo Company and he is played by the fine actor Jeremy Renner. He was the villain in S.W.A.T., and he's had small supporting roles in North Country and The Assassination of Jesse James. James is a wild man. He's an adrenaline junkie who is seriously good at disarming bombs. He apparently has very little fear and that makes him even better.

The movie is somewhat episodic as there is no real plot. They aren't trying to locate some evil mastermind bomb maker or anything. The movie follows these guys during 39 days in Bravo Company. As for those episodes, most are great, some are amazing. My favorite is still the unbelievable sniper sequence about halfway into the film. The guys run into some British mercenaries led by Ralph Fiennes in a nice cameo. A sniper nails one of them and all hell breaks loose. It is a masterful sequence of agonizing tension. The opponents on either side are 500 meters away from each other but my goodness is this sequence scary. It felt like I was holding my breath the whole time.

The other unforgettable scene is the one with the burning car where James decides to take off his bomb suit since he'd "rather die comfortable." What makes these action sequences so good is the direction by Kathryn Bigelow. She deserves that statue. Despite popular consensus, action scenes are not about cool shots. They are about understanding what is going on so that action has impact. Bigelow chooses camera angles and edits them so that we know exactly where everyone is, where the bomb is, where the threat is coming from. We understand clearly what is going on and what bad may happen. And then she leaves us in that situation to squirm as the threat gets worse and worse. She's giving a clinic on action direction fundamentals. When the windshield wipers suddenly turn on, I jump out of my seat because all the time she's been making me focus on the wires.

Admittedly, the scenes 2/3 of the way in are not as good with James searching after a local boy at night. They do seem like a different movie. But when the whole thing was done, I realized the film was actually not an action movie, but really a character piece. It's an examination of this kind of person. This guy who is so singularly gifted, he knows it, and that's all he wants to do with his life. He'll probably die young and he won't have a good family life, but his purpose is crystal clear and that is exhilarating to him and to us. That last moment, James walking down the street, alone, in that bomb suit, 365 Days Left in Delta Company, we completely and undeniably understand who he is. Now that's great storytelling.

Don't blink or you'll miss cameos from Guy Pearce, David Morse("you're a wild man"), and Lost's Evangeline Lilly. I wish you could've seen it in the theater. Turn off the lights and pop in the Blu-ray for some mega suspense.

Iron Man Full Trailer

Oscar Picks 2010

Last year was a good Oscars for me. Slumdog Millionaire was my favorite film of '08 and it won everything. This year it's the juggernaut Avatar which I still don't like and which will probably win everything. Everyone's saying that The Hurt Locker(a very good film) might upset but I don't think many people have actually seen it.

Here are some predictions and personal picks.

Best Picture
Avatar - Will win. I hope The Hurt Locker upsets but I don't think so
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds - My personal pick. My favorite movie of the year
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart. Will Win. My personal pick. It's not just because it's about time. It's a great peformance
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side. Will Win. Ugh
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education. My personal pick
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Supporting Actor
Matt Damon, Invictus
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds. Will win. My personal pick. The other 4 actors are just filler for this category

Best Supporting Actress
Penélope Cruz, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air. My personal pick
Mo’Nique, Precious. Will win

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker. Will win. My personal pick. Unless Avatar's too strong tonight
James Cameron, Avatar
Lee Daniels, Precious
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

Best Original Screenplay
Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker. Will win
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman, The Messenger
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
Pete Docter, Bob Peterson & Tom McCarthy, Up
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds. My personal pick. I really, really hope he wins

Best Cinematography
Avatar
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. My personal pick
The Hurt Locker. Will win
Inglourious Basterds
The White Ribbon

Weekly Recap 3/5/10

Tarantino minimalist posters. http://www.collider.com/2010/01/26/minimalist-posters-for-the-films-of-quentin-tarantino/

DVDs Watched this Week:
The Good: Gentlemen Broncos, 2012, Up in the Air, Revolutionary Road, Quicksilver, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Sneakers, My Cousin Vinny, The Whole Nine Yards, Memento, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Primal Fear, Infernal Affairs 2 and 3, The Queen, The Informant!
The Bad: Dahmer, Numb, Napoleon Dynamite(3rd time and I can't)
The Ugly: None

Trips to the Theater: None

Actors of the Week: Jemaine Clement, Lynn Collins, Ben Kingsley
Directors of the Week: Hayao Miyazaki


TRAILERS/CLIPS of the Week:

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Gentlemen Broncos

March 2010 Reviews 1 (Gentlemen Broncos)

Gentlemen Broncos 3 stars. Out of the three movies made by the husband and wife team of Jared and Jerusha Hess(Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre, now this) I think Gentlemen Broncos is my favorite. Even despite its gay porn title. There is a lot of funny stuff in those first two films but it’s still hard for me to sit through them in their entirety. Sad since Nacho Libre had such a great trailer. Gentlemen Broncos is still flawed as it is way too concerned with props, costumes, and character hobbies(much like Wes Anderson), but it has the special bonus of containing the phenomenal Ronald Chevalier played by Flight of the Conchord’s Jemaine Clement. Chevalier is a renowned sci-fi writer, he wears leather vests, and he steals every scene he’s in. Rather than the high school kid coming of age and writing a story about his dad, I wanted the whole movie to be about Ronald Chevalier. His pomposity and theories on suffixes made me cry laughing. I hope Jemaine does more movies. For an 85 minute movie there is a lot of unnecessary elements like flying poison darts and gonad removal but it’s definitely worth seeing. I have never read a sci-fi novel and Lord willing I never will, but this movie about sci-fi novel writers is often hysterical.




2012 3 stars. Say what you will about Roland Emmerich, he can blow stuff up real good. He is a schlock director and all of his movies are indeed the same. Big budget disaster flicks with many characters who come together to save the world. ID4, Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow(probably his best), and 10,000 B.C.(a movie I hope to never see). Still, he can deliver the goods. It is a 2.5 hour earthquake and given the recent events in Haiti and Chile perhaps the images will be more disturbing than entertaining. But no doubt they are startling. If you ever wanted to see the city of LA die, this is the movie to see. Good actors like Chiwetel Ejiofor and Oliver Platt help a lot. John Cusack is surprisingly boring as a caring father and the lovely Amanda Peet is wasted. She really deserves her own TV show. Would've been bad in a theater. A fun time in the comfort of my home.

Everybody's Fine 1 1/2 stars. You know what I think. I think there are very few movies where the lead character is 60 years old. De Niro found the script and he said yes. And since he said yes, Drew Barrymore, Sam Rockwell, and Kate Beckinsale said yes. Too bad the script is terrible. Too bad it’s so packed with melodrama and clichés. Too bad it all feels like a television movie about being a distant father and trying to reconnect with his kids. One of the kids is on drugs and the father is having health issues? Boo hoo. Everybody's not fine.

Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant 1/2 star. You are bad. I know vampire movies are in but give me a break. The whole tone of the thing is off. John C. Reilly is a horrible choice for this supposedly charismatic vampire and the high school kids are so bland who cares. It’s not funny. It’s certainly not scary. What a mess.

The Damned United 3 stars. Peter Morgan wrote The Queen, The Last King of Scotland, and Frost/Nixon. This one is also written by him and he is becoming one of the most reliable quality screenwriters out there. I don’t know anything about British football clubs or about the greatest coach in England’s history Brian Clough. It doesn’t matter because the movie is so good I just got it. I got the passion, obsession, and a lot of the humor that I have never seen in any other film about soccer. I knows it’s football over there but we’re not in the UK. Michael Sheen gives another fine biographical performance(Tony Blair in the Queen, David Frost in Frost/Nixon) as Coach Brian Clough. It’s a fun film and maybe the best one about soccer I’ve ever seen. It’s not about the big game or about come from behind victories. It’s almost completely about coaching and that is bold. The fact that it's so compelling is all the more a great accomplishment.

Catch Me if You Can 3 1/2 stars. You guys remember this one? You should because it is very good, even better on subsequent viewings. It's definitely a film that can't be categorized. Frank Abagnale(Dicrapio) is a kid who impersonates pilots, lawyers, and doctors but that's not all it's about. Tom Hanks is the Fed after him but that's not what it's about either. It has a lot to do with Christopher Walken who is so good as Frank's dad. Every moment he has in this movie is wonderful. I don't know exactly what the movie is, but you should rent it again. Look closely for a supremely young Amy Adams and a brief cameo by Jennifer Garner. One of Spielberg's best.

Unbreakable 4 stars. Can Shyamalan ever make as good a film as Unbreakable? Bruce Willis has never been better as David Dunn, a university security guard who realizes he has never been sick in his entire life. It's a subtle and nuanced performance that is very un-Bruce Willis. Equally good is Sam Jackson with his whacked out hairdo and low density bones. This is possibly the most serious comic book movie ever and it feels like the film that has the most love for comics. The tone, the music, the lighting, everything is just right. The writing in particular is dead on. That scene where David's son finds a gun is amazing. That moment when he realizes he's lying on a pool tarp is awesome. Rent this one again.