Knight and Day

So I decided to see this movie because it was the only new movie coming out along with Grown Ups which just looked horrible, plus I do like Cameron Diaz. Even though this movie looked similar to Killers that recently came out, I still wanted to see this one. The movie did not do so well it's opening weekend, coming in third to Toy Story 3 and Grown Ups and only bringing in $20 million which I think proves the point that Tom Cruise still hasn't regained his popularity with the movie-going audiences.

The movie follows the two after Cruise 'goes rogue' from the CIA and becomes entangled with Diaz and they must then stick together to clear his name.

The plot was somewhat believable and completely predictable. There were some funny bits in the movie, mostly the drugging sequences with Cameron Diaz. The dialogue was generic and the situational comedy wasn't original.

The movie was filmed nicely, although the action events were not smoothly edited and the CGI did not look close to being real. Also, I'm not sure if anyone noticed this but me, but the foley and sound editing in this movie was the worst I've seen in a long time. The foley sounds were so unnatural is was distracting....for me.

Cameron Diaz did a great job. She looked great and was funny in all of her scenes. Tom Cruise did an okay job. I think he thinks he's funnier than he is, but he did have a couple of funny parts. I really love Peter Sarsgaard but I don't know why he took this part, because the role was so minimal and had nothing to add to the movie. Chris Tucker, Adam Sandler, and Gerard Butler were all considered before Tom Cruise and I think that probably Sandler or Butler would have been a better choice.

Overall, even with the bad points of the movie, it was still entertaining. This would have made a good rental movie but I wouldn't recommend seeing this in the theater. If you like either Cameron Diaz or Tom Cruise, then go ahead and see it. They are somewhat funny and very pretty. "Nobody follow us or I'll kill myself and then her" -- Knight and Day.

Toy Story 3

So we decided to see this movie because hey we're all still kids at heart and it just looked oh so cute. The movie ended up dominating the top spot it's opening weekend, bringing in over $109 million. Here are a few other records this movie now holds;

Toy Story 3 is now the biggest movie to open in the month of June, ever! Beating out Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen which had $108.9 million.

Toy Story 3 is now Pixar's biggest opening movie, beating out it's previous top holders Up with $68 million and 2004's The Incredibles with $70 milion. 

Toy Story 3 came in just behind for the largest opening for an animated film ever to Shrek The Third who brought in $121 million in it's opening weekend.

Okay, so it's obvious without even scrolling down that this movie was more than likely at least cute and entertaining. Basically, that's exactly what it was.

This movie picks up with the toys dealing with their new futures after their owner, Andy, prepares to leave for college.

The plot changes through several different new and exciting locations which keeps the action entertaining throughout. They kept the main characters that everyone really loves and then added some new and funny new characters to keep up the humor. The story is very believable, in keeping with the previous movies, and has some real sentiment towards the end that ashamed as I am of this, almost brought some tears to my eyes.

The animation was beautiful in this movie. The colors were vibrant and the action smooth and flawless.

A lot of the characters really added a lot of humor to this movie. Tim Allen does a really great job as Buzz Lightyear, and even discovers some new hilarious accents along the way. The Ken & Barbie dynamic was ultra hilarious. And as always, the potato heads did awesome.

Overall, this movie was very enjoyable and quite humorous throughout the movie. I'm not exactly sure if I'd see it on my own, without the family, but I was quite entertained while I was there. "C'mon. Let's go see how much we're going for on Ebay" -- Toy Story 3

The Young Victoria

    So I had really wanted to see The Young Victoria, given my affection for period romance dramas and that British history is probably my favorite time period as a history major. I also really liked Emily Blunt in Sunshine Cleaning and My Summer of Love and just loved Rupert Friend as Wickham in Pride & Prejudice (2005). I was expecting to really love this movie and that’s just what happened.



     Queen Victoria is the longest female monarch in history and the longest reigning monarch, male or female, of the United Kingdom . This film is basically a dramatization of her ascension to the throne and pretty much centers around her relationship and love she shares with Prince Albert . It also revolves around her early political moves and relationships behind the advisors and courts that she chooses.


    The plot is actually very historically accurate with a few small dramatizations, which are understandable to add dramatic effect for the film. The plot feels like a story and has a genuine storyline throughout which makes it just awe-inspiring that the screenwriters were able to include all the elements of a great story and stay so true to historical fact at the same time. This is unlike other movies, such as The Other Boleyn girl, which takes pieces of historical fact and then speculates on the missing information and relationships. As a history major, I appreciate movies which either stay close to historical accuracy or at least give a disclaimer of their speculation, which is why I have issues with the movie Braveheart, however I digress. Queen Victoria was one of the most influential and longest running monarchs and only because she is also probably the least controversial that is why we don’t see that many films about her. So this story was really fascinating to me to seen adapted to the screen in this way while also staying true to history and not creating controversy for added suspense.


    The movie was filmed just beautifully and the set design and costumes were breathtaking. This film did win best make-up and best costumes at the BAFTAs and rightly so. It’s really amusing how the costumes are re-used in different movies produced in England and it’s also so interesting to see how and when each one was used. This movie was no different than others in that it borrowed pieces from Pride & Prejudice (2005), Becoming Jane, and Northanger Abbey to name a few. The sets and locations were grand and no detail was left untouched to really give this movie a feel as though it was being filmed during her reign. The soft filter was beautiful and really captured the feel of the movie.


    I must say that Rupert Friend was a main reason I really loved this movie. He was just so captivating and really made the movie that much more appealing for me. This is not to mention that he is also exquisitely handsome and versatile as an actor. He really pulled off being Prince Albert and gave us a deeper look into a very surface character in history and shows us his love for Queen Victoria while at the same time not making him seem too domicile. Emily Blunt also did really well with this role and I wouldn’t say she exactly captured the true essence of Queen Victoria , as she historically wasn’t described as being so lively and jubilant, but she really did make the character her own and gave us depth. I’ve also got to mention Paul Bettany who did such an amazing job as Lord Melbourne that I had no idea it was him until the credits rolled. He really captured that politician and gave him complexity and depth as did most of the other supporting actors in this movie.


    Overall I really enjoyed this movie. It was nice to see a movie about real love and power as opposed to the normal scandal and lust as is often the case with British Monarchs. If this wasn’t true to history, it wouldn’t be believable. All of the elements of the movie really came together and transported us back to the life of British Royalty during that period. I would recommend this to fans of British history or romantic period dramas. It really combines the beautiful filming and captivating love stories of both Pride & Prejudice and The Duchess and I think the fans of these movies would also enjoy this film. “Do you ever feel like a chess piece in a game being played against your will?” - - The Young Victoria

Light of Day

(I actually watched this movie several months ago but just found this review never posted )

    So I’m on this all-things-Joan-Jett-or-The-Runaways kick lately and so naturally I was drawn to Jett’s foray into acting with the movie Light of Day starring Gena Rowlands and Michael J. Fox. I really idolize Jett and love her beginning period back in the 70’s and 80’s and this film was from 1987 and therefore I was excited to see her off stage in a introspective role.



    The movie is written and directed by Paul Schrader, who also wrote Raging Bull, American Gigolo, and Taxi Driver. It follows the dysfunctional family life between the brother and sister duo of Fox and Jett and their mother, Rowlands. Jett plays a single mother who tries her best to raise her son while pursuing the rock n’ roll career she’s always dreamed of. Fox plays her devoted brother and adopted protector of Jett’s son. The movie follows the issues and tensions between the family.


    The plot was actually interesting and heartfelt. The characters were a little more complex than the average 80’s drama and each, especially Jett’s character, had an edge to them. The plot wasn’t extremely gritty and raw but it wasn’t sugar-coated and didn’t have the typical Hollywood ending which I enjoyed. I was also waiting for the plot to come out with a powerful message about parenting at the end, which thankfully it did not. It left it up the viewer to decide how they felt about Jett’s upbringing of her son.


    The movie had the typical 80’s cinematography of the era and was drowning with mullet haircuts left and right. Joan Jett sounded like Joan Jett when she was on stage in the movie and she looked like herself so the sound mixing aspect of the movie and stage scenes were awesome, in the opinion of a Jett fan. Interestingly, the movie was first slated to be the avenue for Bruce Springsteen to break into acting, which he later thankfully decided against so instead he wrote a song to go with the original title, ‘Born in the USA’. Obviously, he liked the song so much he kept it for himself and it became one of his biggest hits to date. So, he wrote another song and a new title was formed for the movie, ‘Light of Day’.


    Michael J. Fox plays his normal self although he’s a little less outgoing and charismatic in this movie than his normal upbeat self. Even with his mullet, he still played the part quite nicely. Gena Rowlands played a character we’ve all seen her play many times over, although at the time, this may have been one of the first. She of course plays the overbearing but loveable mother with ease. The real question comes down to how Joan Jett, bonafide rockstar, does with her first acting role. I really enjoyed watching her performance as this character was obviously written with her in mind. Nobody else would have been able to pull it off. She is always so genuine in everything she does, so it’s impossible for then same quality not to come through with her acting. She has an emotional hospital scene with her mother and pulls it off like a true actress.


    I enjoyed this movie even with the obvious 80’s-ness of the cinematography. It was entertaining and heartfelt at the same time. I would recommend to any Joan Jett fan who hasn’t already seen the movie, or even a Michael J. Fox fan, although he is somewhat subdued in the movie. Other than that, only if you like semi-cheesy 80’s movies, you should stay away. “Music is all that matters. One hour on stage makes up for the other 23” -- Light of Day.

Let the Right One In

    So, I saw this movie as another assignment from my movie exchange. I had actually remembered hearing something about this movie, in relation to the re-make that is being filmed by Cloverfield’s director Matt Reeves with Kick-Ass’ Chloe Moretz in it, when I got the assignment . I was definitely intrigued to see this movie, partly due to my love of vampire movies and/or my love of dark foreign movies.



    The plot is based from a book which is about a twelve year old boy, Oskar, who befriends a young girl who moves in next door. He is a loner himself and has to deal with bullies at school and a working mother. He finds a newfound sense of courage through his friendship with Eli even amidst a new handful of slayings that are taking place all around him. Soon he learns that Eli is actually a 200 year old vampire and his friendship is put to the test.


    The plot actually isn’t that suspenseful. It’s more subdued and about the relationship between the two rather than the action that takes place around them. I bet that this book was a really good read and it’s now officially on my infinite list of books to read someday. The two main characters are really well defined and their relationship is so interesting to watch. They both have motives and reasons for the things they do and the relationship pans out in a very believable way.


    More than the plot in this movie, I really loved the cinematography. All of the camera angles were well thought out and weren’t just stuck in a place to capture the action. There was just the right amount of CGI necessary for a vampire movie, but not too much as is done in some movies to flaunt the effects. There was a fair amount of gore in the movie, but it could’ve been much worse considering. It was really the plot and performances between the two young leads that made this movie memorable, more than the goriness of the killing scenes. The one part that was lacking was the sound editing. The score was so subtle that it was almost invisible in the movie. It felt as if there was no soundtrack and just natural sounds in the movie. I think it made the point that this was about the realistic relationship, but in order to stay entertained it needed some dramatic sound mixing in this movie badly.


    The performances were superb and these were two young Swedish actors! They both really pulled the movie off and it was really all about their relationship. I also liked the performance by Eli’s ‘dad’. I wanted to know more about his motivations when the movie was over.


    This was a great movie. It really left the viewer with a lot of interpretation to do, which is a nice contrast to a lot of fluff movies that spell everything out for you. It also didn’t focus on the dark gore associated with most vampire movies. It was just the right balance. It is a subtitled Swedish movie however and it does run a little slow, which I think is due to the sound editing. I really think this movie has great potential to cross over and especially now that it will be re-made for American audiences. I would recommend to vampire movie lovers and anyone who likes dark foreign movies. “I could stay and die or leave and live” – Let the Right One In.

A-Team

    So I saw the A Team as a part of Movie Mondays, partly because there was nothing else coming out and partly because I wanted to look at Bradley Cooper shirtless. I had also been looking forward to being able to compare this movie with The Losers, although it now seems so long ago I wonder if anyone even remembers that movie came out this summer? The A-Team came in second in it’s opening day weekend coming in behind The Karate Kid and brining less than half of it’s gross earning with only $25 million. In any event, I was entertained for the most part.



    The plot is fairly simple and follows a team of mis-fit Army Rangers with a highly successful mission rate during one last mission in Iraq when they are framed for stealing printing press plates and a billion dollars. They must then work together to save their name. (Much like The Losers). The movie includes the original characters, (apparently) Face, Murdock, Hannibal , and Mr. T/Boscoe.


    Now, the tv series was before my time, so I can’t recognize if the movie was in keeping with the series. I do know that the decision was made to include guns, killing people, and sex (?) in the movie which is a step up from the non-lethal non-gun non-sex tv series. Personally, I think this was a good decision because the audience has grown up and so should the movie. I hate ‘action’ movies where nobody actually dies. They’re all just knocked out in a harmless way. Let’s face it, this is not how things go down in Iraq so I agree with the decision to amp up the violence in the movie. The plot is simple but it does keep you entertained. Although there are a lot of players with different motives which was hard for me to follow in the beginning. When things started to come together towards the end, I then began to realize who everyone was and what their motives were. The plot in the end was semi-believable, although I highly doubt that automobile airbags nailed to a semi could really keep it afloat in a river.


    The cinematography was done nicely with fast paced editing and upbeat sound mixing. Bradley Cooper’s shirtless scenes were shot at the right angles and everything else flowed nicely. The only problem in the movie was the CGI and especially the final sequence. It was just ridiculously fake looking and should have been left out or the scale decreased. Because the effects were so bad in this final scene, the whole suspense and anticipated was removed. So the ending of the movie felt a little anti-climatic to me personally because I was removed from the action and suspense because of this awful effects sequence.


    The movie was actually quite humorous, due to Bradley Cooper, “Rampage” Jackson , and the guy from District 9. They had some really funny bits in the movie, especially Sharlto Copley ( the District 9 guy). I was actually quite surprised as I read he wasn’t an actor before being cast in what would become his critically acclaimed role in District 9 but he really held his own in this movie. “Rampage” Jackson is also apparently a famous UFC fighter and he held his own as well. I’ve been told his portrayal is different from the original but I can’t opine on that. Bradley Cooper was Bradley Cooper. Liam Neeson was not funny and was a little too serious for his role. Bruce Willis was actually considered for this role, and honestly probably would have been a better choice. On the plus side Liam Neeson, ages well and looked good on screen.


    Overall, the movie was entertaining. It wasn’t anything special, amazing, or memorable although it kept my attention long enough in the theater. It would make a great rental choice and my attention was kept in the theater. I have no idea how it compares to the series although it is more violent. I’d recommend to anyone looking for an entertainingly humorous action flick. “Are they trying to shoot the drones down? …No, they are trying to fly that tank” – The A-Team.

Sex and the City 2

So I had wanted to see this movie because I was a fan of the show, more or less, and did really enjoy the first movie when it came out. I was a little hesistant however because the premise of this movie seemed a little bit sketchy and the last movie seemed to tie things up so well. I'm also nothing like the girls on this show and so the fashion/girly aspect wasn't a major selling point either for me. I did end up seeing it in the theater however and well . . . read on.

So the plot is super basic. Everyone is all dramatic about their current state of their relationships, as always. It's then decided they will all vacation together to the Abu Dhabi.

Okay, so the plot was apparently very weak and a lot of it felt really forced and unnatural. It tried too hard to incorporate too much into the story. It also gave too much problems and subplots to each of the characters. It's okay to have one of the characters be happy and not facing a dilemma in the movie. There were some great one-liners thrown in a couple of times, but the dialogue just didn't seem that well thought out. It just seemed like this movie was put together in a hurry without really smoothing it out first.

Well of course the sets and costumes were super lavish. Almost over the top. It's crazy to think that these characters would wear and live in these kinds of places in real life. But it is a nice escape and Carrie and Big's new apartment was ultra gorgeous. The soundtrack was in keeping with the first movie and there wasn't any real problems with the cinematography.

So the girls did the same they've done this whole time pretty much, except they're getting older but their characters really haven't caught up with them, which was a little unbelievable. I don't think they really did a bad job or anything, I think it was just major plot problems and based on this, the franchise should've ended with the first movie.

Overall, it was semi-entertaining but it seemed to go on forever with long periods of not-so funny moments. I think die-hard fans will like it because their judgement will be clouded by all the pretty shoes and clothes, but underneath the plot is just weak, and not to mention the way India is treated in the movie. So, I was dissappointed because I did enjoy the first movie, but I came in to this one with low expectations. I would recommend to the fans of the show only. "There should be a law against hiring a nanny that hot." " There is, its the Jude Law" -- Sex and the City 2.

Get Him To The Greek

So I was totally stoked when I heard about this movie coming out. 1) I love love love Forgetting Sarah Marshall and 2) Infant Sorrow is my most favorite fake band of all time. I decided to see this movie right after seeing Killers in the theater and pulled a double feature, that I payed for later. I'll come out and say it now that it was totally worth it!

The movie is a spin-off from the character of Aldous Snow, lead singer of the rock band Infant Sorrow, originally featured in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which also had Jonah Hill in it but as a different character. In this movie, Jonah Hill works for a music label and must accompany Snow on his way to a reunion performance at the Greek theater and only has 72 hours to do so, which isn't as easy as it sounds with the last remaining real rockstar.

The plot was inventive and interesting. The characters were really well written, especially Aldous' character, which is obvious since he got his own major movie deal as a spin-off from another movie. There were so many great quotable lines from this movie because the dialogue was really well written, although I have a feeling the funniest parts were probably ad-libbed.

The movie's cinematography was really great for this type of movie. I really loved the different camera angles and editing used based on the different types of drugs they were on at the time basically. The editing was fast paced and kept up with the movie and the action. The soundtrack was awesome, there was 19 great songs written for this movie and I've now purchased the soundtrack! The tabloid/news media montage in the beginning of the movie was amazing and really inventive.

The humor from the movie definitely came from the actors, and it wasn't all just Jonah Hill and Russell Brand. Puff Daddy, or Sean Combs or whatever he's called this week, was actually really funny. From his lines in the trailer, it looked like he was going to just have this semi-funny cameo. But he actually had a big role and was a lot funnier in the movie. Rose Bryne, plays Jackie Q, Aldous' model/singer girlfriend and she was super hilarioius, especially in her fake music videos. ( Emily Blunt was actually signed on for this role but then backed out, I think she would have been even funnier :( )Elisabeth Moss who plays Jonah Hill was also pretty funny in her role. There was also a super amazing awesome cameo by, yes none other than Kristen Bell. Just made the movie that much cooler!

I had a really great time watching this movie. It was some really great rated R humor. Much like Forgetting Sarah Marshall or even The Hangover, but on Rock n Roll steroids! It was just constant action and humor pretty much throughout the whole movie. When you think about everything that was put into this movie, i.e concerts, music video shoots, etc, it's amazing it was all done so well. Russell Brand actually filmed the concerts scenes at his own sold out comedy tour which is just the coolest thing ever. I really love Russell Brand even more than before now. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys this type of rated R drug/sex/Rock N Roll humor. "Sneeze and clench, sneeze and clench" -- Get Him to the Greek.

Killers

So I had actually been looking forward to this one as it looked really funny in the trailer and I do really like both Katherine Heigl and Ashton Kutcher. It was a tough decision between seeing this movie when it opened or Get Him to the Greek, which opened the same weekend. So I saw them both! I did see this one first and it was a part of the movie club. Surprisingly, this movie came in third overall, behind Greek and Shrek Forever After.

The plot is very simple. A simple organized girl meets the man of her dreams while on vacation and they soon fall in love. Later once they are married, she finds out suddenly that he is really employed by the 'blah blah blah with a license to blah'.

The plot was interesting enough to keep us guessing and entertained throughout. There was some forced character development and some unrealistic plot points, but this was a romantic comedy after all and not a serious action drama. The characters were funny, likeable, and most importantly believable. This kind of plot has been done before so there wasn't anything special or amazing, it did just give good set-ups and background for many humorous moments. It did also give us some super corny lines, but it didn't ruin anything really, and was needed, more or less, to keep up the believability in the plot.

I actually enjoyed the opening sequence editing, but I'm sure nobody else paid attention to that or even cared. The film quality was very nice and of high resolution. The sets were very pretty as well as the costume design, although I bet Heigl and Kutcher would pretty much look good in anything. The movie was well paced and didn't really have any lags in it.

The movie was definitely performanced based. Without Heigl and Kutcher, I don't think this would have been such a sucess. They really worked well with each other. Say what you will about Katherine Heigl, but she has superb comedic timing. She's really got the triple threat; she can do comedy, she's beautiful, and she can knock out dramatic scenes with ease as well. Asthon was looking as good as ever in this movie and played his part really well. He also provided a lot of the humor. The main comedy was definitely situational and physical comedy along with perfect timing and delivery of lines. Tom Selleck and Catherin O'Hara were also their funniest I've seen them in years. I also loved that Casey Wilson had a funny part in the movie, gotta support my SNL cast members!

Overall, this was actually a really good entertaining and genuinely funny movie. It's nice to see a movie that didn't need the R rating to be funny but at the same time wasn't too unbelievable or corny to make it un-funny. I ended up really liking this movie and there were some downright hilarious parts. I also really think its largely in part due to Heigl and Kutcher, I just don't think it would've worked with anyone else. It's even more surprising since they decided to jump past any test screenings and go right to the final cut. I'd recommend to anyone who likes just a good entertaining humorous movie. "I'm a robot sent down to earth to observe your dating habits" -- Killers.

Oldboy

So this was my second assignment for a movie to watch for the movie exchange I’m currently doing with a friend. I had to watch this movie over the course of two nights because of my extreme exhaustion and it’s a movie that you really need to pay attention to.











This movie is the second in a revenge trilogy from Japanese director Chan-Wook Park. The movie, obviously centered around the theme of revenge, follows Dae-su Oh who is mysteriously kidnapped and imprisoned in a room for 15 years without knowing why and then framed for the murder of his wife. He is then just as mysteriously released and given 5 days to either seek revenge or truth from his captor. He seeks assistance from a waitress in a café and then embarks on a surreal journey to discover the truth of his imprisonment which will lead him to places from which he can never return.










The plot was very dark and twisted but really brought a lot of questions to the audience to ponder on. The plot wasn’t straightforward and slowly revealed itself through the different scenes, flashbacks, and actions of the characters. There was a huge amount of symbolism in this movie and probably even more that was over my head. Although the plot doesn’t really deal with everyday situations, it does make you put yourself in the character’s shoes and you empathize with his feelings and actions. Even though the plot points are dark and heavy, its not sick and demented which is something I feared while watching this movie. Some of the subject matters are taboo but they’re essential to the plot.










This movie had some really great camera angles in it which I really appreciated. It’s nice to see dialogue shot with unique angles instead of just the standard alternation between mid and close up shots as we see in most movies. The movie flowed nicely through time and was only slightly confusing but I was aware this was going to be a movie that required my complete attention and it was necessary with this movie. The editing was done nicely and there is a fight sequence that was filmed in one continuous shot which was just amazing. I love it when movies to a Hitchcock-type shot like this, most notable the beach scene in Atonement. That was probably my favorite scene in the movie. The color correction of the movie was also centered on symbolism and went along with the tone of the movie. It was obvious that the director was very detail oriented when it came to the allusions and symbolism in this movie.










Unfortunately, the version I saw was dubbed and I really don’t see a need for dubbing in most cases. The dubbing was pretty awful in this movie and I would have much preferred subtitles. That being said, the actors did convey a lot of emotion with their facial expressions mainly and also body language. The main character did a fantastic job with his facial expressions and was able to express a lot of emotion in his face that did not come across from the dialogue. The female lead Mi Do was a little too animated and stereotypical but it wasn’t too terrible. I really enjoyed the villain, Lee Woo-jin, in this movie. He was cool and calculating at the same time. He was one of those cool bad ass villains. It was also nice to see his motivations and through his performance you could tell that his character really believed in what he was doing.










Overall, this was a very memorable movie. This is one of those movies that poses a lot of questions and leaves it up to the viewer to form their own opinion. This is not to be confused with one of those frustrating movies that purposely leaves loose ends, this movie just poses different ideas for us to think about. The end was also subtly left up for interpretation for the meaning of a smile/cry. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Japanese films or anyone would enjoy dark plot heavy foreign films. Be prepared though there is a small amount of graphic violence and a larger amount of sexual material. “Laugh and the world laughs with you. Weep and you weep alone” – Oldboy.

Curse of the Golden Flower

So I saw this movie as the first assignment in a movie exchange I’m currently doing with a friend. I had actually caught the end of this movie ages ago but didn’t really understand why things were playing out the way they were without seeing the beginning. For those interested, the first movie I assigned was Adventureland.











This movie was the latest movie from director Yimou Zhang who also brought us the beautiful House of Flying Daggers and Hero. I own and love Hero so I was expecting a lot from this movie which follows the imperial household ran by Emporer Chow Yun-Fat who is slowly poisoning his wife and The Empress. This sparks family rivalries, coups, and dark secrets all set against the beautiful backdrop of China during the Tang Dynasty.










The screenplay was also co-written by Zhang which just adds to his immense talent. The plot was highly connected and complex. It incorporated each of the characters and was in line with believable actions from each. I’m not sure if any of this was based on fact or not, but it is certainly plausible that this would happen. The plot and subplots in the movie all help to form the tone and message of the movie; power vs. loyalty/family. The message transcends time and culture easily and the plot brings the message to the forefront. The characters are already very well developed, with the exception of the youngest son who plays a pivotal role but has very little screen time or dialogue.










The aspect that made this movie amazing was the set direction and cinematography. I don’t believe anyone would argue that this wasn’t one of the most beautiful movies ever filmed. It’s definitely up to par with Hero for me, but has a different tone and atmosphere to it. This was reportedly the most expensive set ever built in China at the time in 2006, and possibly still is. The sets were just breathtaking. They could’ve just filmed the sets without any plot or dialogue and I would’ve been thoroughly entertained. The Imperial house was amazing and so beautiful. The attention to detail was very noticeable and just commands such high respect. The epic battle scene took 20 days to film and the result is just awesome. The yellow symbolism that is used throughout the movie was brought to the helm in the battle scene and it was just one of a kind. I could write many more paragraphs about the set direction but will keep it to a minimum, or try to. The cinematography was also in keeping with the set direction. Beautiful smooth camera movements were used to mimic the beautiful sets and the choreography was just awesome, as is now common place in Asian films.










Chow Yun-Fat and Li Gong as the Imperial couple really held the story up and gave the best performances of the movie. The rest of the supporting cast also did a great job, except Ye Liu who played the Crown Prince Wan and seemed to be stage acting with exaggerated facial expressions and body movements. The point when he finds out who is lover really is, his reaction is almost laughable. That being said, it didn’t really take anything away from the movie because everything else was done so nicely.










I had seen most of this movie before it was assigned, but I’m glad I was able to watch it again and really take it in. Its just so beautiful that it will transcend to any audience. It is a foreign language film, but it’s not hard to follow. For those who haven’t already seen it, I would recommend to anyone who loves beautifully filmed movies. “What I do not give, you must never take by force” – Curse of the Golden Flower.

Ink

So I saw this movie as the third assignment I was given in the movie exchange I’m participating in with a friend. This movie I was warned was a low budget indie movie but was promised to deliver a nice payout. The movie is from writer/director Jamin Winans which is pretty much his latest indie venture from four previous films. He produced, composed, and edited among other things to get this film made. It was premiered at a film festival with good reviews however no studios ended up picking up the film. It then gained attention as a popular download.











The film is a fantasy story that revolves around a daughter, Quinn Hunchar, and her father, Chris Kelly. During the night, two opposing forces work to influence the dreams of the sleeping world, unbeknowest to them. The storytellers comprise the good force and influence happy dreams while the incubi are on the evil side and bring on the nightmares. A lost soul, Ink, captures the young girl during the night in order to bring her to the incubi as a requirement for his transformation to become one of them thus leaving her physical body in a coma. The storytellers are then set on a quest to bring the girl back to her physical body and must help the father overcome his own issues along the way.










The plot is obviously very heavily involved in the fantasy world created by Winans. The plot was easy enough to follow and when you got down to it, basically it was good versus evil trying to save the innocent child from the evil captor. The movie walked right on the edge of being demented and scary but didn’t cross over. Instead, it was a dark fantasy that was created somewhere inbetween The Labrinyth and Donnie Darko. I liked how the story wasn’t about creating a new fantasy world (i.e. Lord of the Rings) but was rather about the story of fate vs. free will and the fantasy elements were used as tools. The characters were mostly one dimensional but this was to be expected. The reasoning behind a lot of the elements were unclear but again I felt the film was more about the story at hand rather than the world that was created.










Okay, it’s extremely important to note that this was a low budget film. That being said, there were some really nice elements in the movie and some things that should have been left out. The cinematography would not have been acceptable for a larger budget film, but given what they had to work with it is understandable. First, the villains or incubi, were done really well. They were extremely memorable and creepy without being psychotic and demented. The visual effects were done nicely with these characters as well. The fight sequences were also done nicely and used motion effects and a great score to mask the fact that the sequences were really cheap. Without the motion effects or music, the fight sequences would have been laughable. The way the storytellers popped on scene from light flashes was decent although could have been left out in my opinion. The makeup on Ink did not need to be seen close up like it was. I understand that his appearance was a direct result from his pride, shame, and guilt, but they could’ve left his face under the cloak and only hinted at his appearance. There was some really great editing in this movie and there was some really bad editing. Most of the action sequences were done really well and had some great jump cuts, especially when the pathfinder is chanting and the cuts go with the beat of the scene. However, when there were straight dialogue scenes, the editing was bad and distracting. It was as if they were just cutting back and forth every two seconds and not editing with the scene. It came across to me as if they were trying to hard at some parts with the editing. Jamin Winans also composed the score to the movie and at some parts, the score was really amazing and worked well with the movie. Overall, it was artistic and apparent what was trying to be done. Some areas could have been re-focused but given the low budget, it was nicely done.










The girl and father were the only good actors in this movie. Both were very likeable and there was something about the father’s voice which just came across so smoothly on camera that I was drawn to him. The rest of the actors in this movie belonged in a Xena Warrior Princess tv show. They seemed to believe their roles, but they came across as bad tv actors. I think they could’ve decided to cut back on the number of characters in the movie and invest in some additional quality actors.










Overall, this was an enjoyable film. It was almost like the student version of a Donnie Darko type movie. It really did seem to fit in the gap between Darko and The Labrinyth as I mentioned before. The film was not smooth because some areas were done nicely and others were sub-par. The premis and dedication in the movie is to be respected and I think this could be made into a really great feature film if given a bigger budget and with certain areas re-directed. I would probably recommend this to people who enjoy cult fantasy movies or low budget indies. “I choose to see you as the person you were intended to be instead of the person you have become” – Ink.

Shrek Forever After

So we decided to see this movie and make it a family fun night for the kiddos. I had enjoyed the first two Shreks, and forgotten there was a third apparently, so I was interested in this movie. I wasn’t really expecting much from it and it is an animated movie, but I’m glad we saw it and more importantly, I’m glad we saw it in 2D. Not to mention that it was still on top after it’s second week and has already grossed $147 million.







The movie is about Shrek, obviously. In this movie, he is going through a mid-life crisis, typical man, when he finds himself in a rut in his married life. He then makes a deal with the oh so sneaky Rumpelstiltskin to become a scary Ogre again for a day. Of course there was some fine print that he didn’t see and this caused the whole kingdom to belong to Rumpelsitskin and caused the space time continuum to alter making it so that Shrek never rescued Fiona, met Donkey, and also caused Puss in Boots to become extremely fat. Shrek must then work to reverse the spell before the day is over to set things back the way they belong.






The plot was actually interesting enough and created a lot of nice gags. There were nice funny parts spaced evenly throughout the movie, although there were some definite lags to it. I’m glad they decided to change it up instead of going with another boring sequel, such as Shrek the Third. I also liked how there were jokes that were really funny to the adult audience while going over the heads of the younger audience. This is really what the Shrek movies are famous for and kind of paved the way for this adult/child humor to co-exist in one movie.






The graphics were actually really amazing and very detailed. It was actually quite beautiful and I’m glad we saw it in 2D so we could really appreciate the details. The soundtrack, as expected, was rockin’ and flowed nicely with the movie.






Really, the funny parts were mainly centered on Donkey, Eddie Murphy, and Puss in Boots, Antonio Banderas. Shrek, Mike Meyers, added some comedy as well. But all the rest of the characters were pretty much filler. I’m glad that they’ve greenlit a spinoff movie for Puss in Boots, because he really contributed to a lot of the laughs.






Overall, this was an animated movie and it was a decent Shrek movie. I believe that the second Shrek is still my favorite, but this was a nice ending. I don’t think they should do any more however, just let it rest in peace. It was entertaining for the family and had some genuinely funny parts for the adults. Classic line, “and one thing led to another, and that’s when my donkey fell down your waffle hole” -- Shrek Forever After.

Macgruber

So I had actually really wanted to see this movie because I’m a huge Jorma Taccone, Kristen Wiig, and SNL fan. I loved the Macgruber skits on SNL and I really believe that Jorma and Kristen are true comedic geniuses. I’ll admit that I was afraid though because it could have been either a total bomb or super hilarious. I soon realized that I was pretty much alone in my wanting to see this movie and unfortunately the movie didn’t do that well on it’s opening weekend coming in #6 and brining in only $4 million. I believe this may be due to the R rating and the fact that it’s summer and the younger audiences won’t count for this one.















The movie is a spin-off of the uber hilarious skit from SNL which stars Will Forte and Kristen Wiig as a Macgyver type rag-tag team who attempt to disarm bombs with home-made devices, such as a paper clip and piece of gum. In this movie, Macgruber comes out of retirement to face his arch nemesis, Val Kilmer, who has recently acquired a nuclear warhead. Macgruber uses the help of Kristen Wiig and Ryan Philippe to attempt to bring down his rival and ultimately save the world.














Well I’ll start by saying this movie most definitely earned it’s ‘R’ rating and I would venture to say it’s the dirtiest SNL movie ever. While there were some just over the top moments, it wasn’t a gross-out competition or expletive fair. It seemed as though they saved up all the stuff they came up with while writing SNL that couldn’t be aired and used it in this movie. A lot of the humor was situational comedy and it was as if the best bits were used and the movie just went from bit to bit. The plot was semi interesting and actually had some really funny twists in it. I’ll come out and say this movie was hilarious and the whole theater roared with laughter at the funny parts so hopefully I’m not alone in thinking this. Most of the humor was obviously from Will Forte and Kristen Wiig, who are used to doing this on a weekly basis, and they really carried the movie. This script was excellently written and I really love Jorma Taccone, who is just so underrated. He directed and co-wrote this movie and is responsible for much of the SNL pieces and especially the musical pieces with Andy Samberg. He is one third of The Lonely Island, which if you haven’t heard of, you need to look them up now. A lot of the bits and jokes were actually very smartly written and I think this is just a great addition to his ever growing impressive resume. Okay, enough Jorma promotion.














The movie was actually filmed nicely. The quality of the film was pleasing and the plot flowed easily throughout the film. There was something wrong with the sound in our theater so I’m not quite sure how it was actually supposed to be in the movie, but I did love the 80’s music used in a lot of the sequences.














So this movie was carried by Will Forte and Kristen Wiig and without them, I don’t think it would’ve been that funny. If you like either one of them, then this movie is for you. Ryan Philippe was actually decent in this movie and helped to set the other guys up for a lot of laughs. Val Kilmer was unnecessary in this movie. He wasn’t funny and he looked really strange. I think they could’ve saved the money and gotten someone, anyone, funnier. Maya Rudolph and some famous wrestlers, apparently, made some cameos in the movie which were entertaining.














So this movie had a lot of potential to fail big time. It could have been a completely unrealistic stupid farce of a movie or even a gross-out movie, but fortunately it was neither of these. It was a lot of situational comedy and bits that were smartly written and turned out very funny. It was extremely graphic and for mature audiences only. Had this movie been knocked down to PG13, I think it would have lost all the humor and totally failed. This is a double edged sword however, because I believe it’s the R rating which made the profit suffer. It’s definitely different than other SNL movies but I really enjoyed it and had a lot of really good laughs from this movie. So despite the bad reviews/profits, I think this movie was a success. I would recommend to SNL fans and anyone who enjoys adult situational comedy. “Relax, this is just like Nicaragua .” “ Macgruber, I got shot in Nicaragua ” “ Relax, this is nothing like Nicaragua ” – Macgruber.

Robin Hood

So I thought this movie looked like it was going to be okay at best but I do love me some Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett. Alright, some Matthew Macfadyen and Mark Strong while I’m at it. It was also from the director of the hugely popular Gladiator and they were using the blue filter effect on the movie which I always enjoy. It was also basically the only movie worth watching that was being released this week so we decided to watch it as a part of the movie club. The movie actually came in a not so close second to Iron Man 2 and only brought in $36 million.







The movie stars the ultra dreamy Russell Crowe as the legendary Robin Hood and Cate Blanchett plays the character we know as Maid Marion. Also in the movie are William Hurt as William Marshall, Mark Strong as Sir Godfrey, and Matthew Macfadyen as Sheriff of Nottingham. The movie mixes fact and fiction to give us a fictionalized tale of Robin Hood’s life before he became the legendary character we know today.






I’m a history major so I like movies to either stay true to historical fact as much as possible or be very obvious that fictionalization is going on. I think this movie promoted itself as a historical period piece but it’s important to know that Robin Hood has never been verified as actually being a real person and most scholars believe he’s just a product of folklore. That being said, I wasn’t very upset with the plot of the movie. It used a lot of historical events in the plot and interweaved the legend in an interestingly believable way that hasn’t been done with Robin Hood in the past. Although there were some parts which were completely changed, i.e. King John’s battlefield death. However there was a brief look into the beginnings of the Magna Carta which was a nice touch. So history aside, the plot was semi-interesting towards the end and was unique for the normal Robin Hood tale. There was a huge amount of cheesy dialogue in this movie however and the plot points felt like a Hollywood formula for a screenplay. Tyrannical king, check. Love story, check. Mistaken identity, check. Secret plot, check. Final epic battle, check. The movie felt like it had about three endings and did really drag on in the beginning.






I did enjoy the cinematography though. Just about any movie with high resolution action filming and a blue filter will get my praise. The action sequences were filmed nicely and the camerawork was great. It was nice to see battle sequences with actual actors instead of 100% CGI. The editing was smooth and effortless. I believe the drag in the movie was due to the plot and not the editing. There were some really nice HD close up shots of the arrows being shot in slow motion which I really enjoyed.






The performances were okay but nothing Oscar worthy. I’m saddened that they made Matthew Macfadyen (Mr. Darcy) look so awful in this movie. I think it would have been just as acceptable to have a handsome Sheriff. The cheesy dialogue was not the actors’ fault and they were believable in their characters. The chemistry between Crowe and Blanchett was not there however and felt really forced. They are two really great actors but sometimes that chemistry just can’t be faked.






So overall, I’m on the fence on this one. It seemed to just sit right on the line between decent and bad. The cinematography was nice to look at but that was about it. I think the story and dialogue just wasn’t interesting enough to make this a good movie. The actors did a good enough job, but the movie was just too long and slow in the beginning. I would recommend this to anyone who has a lot of time on their hands with nothing else to do. It was just too slow and uninteresting to warrant two and half hours of someone’s life for me to recommend. “I need help with my chainmail” – Robin Hood.