Let's Go to the Movies

Well it has been a while. Moving will do that to you. But we are finally settled and I am starting to get motivated to write again. I have seen so many movies that I have not reviewed. It wasn't that they weren't good enough to review, I was just busy or didn't feel like writing. But we now have internet and my husband is playing with the NookColor we got yesterday so I have taken over his laptop. So on with the show. 

Theater Worthy

This rating kind of goes without saying. I loved the movie. I delayed going to see it a few days just because I didn't want it to be over. It was a great decision to split the last book. This movie was all the exciting parts of the last book. And they did a wonderful job of highlighting every climatic moment. I guess in a way it will never really be over. These movies will stand out in history. And even though I don't like watching movies more than once, every HP movie is good enough to be seen over and over again. What an epic journey. All I can say is, if you haven't seen it yet, go. If you haven't been keeping up on the series, catch up.  It is worth your time. It is amazing how true to the books they managed to stay

Well I don't know how many people have been reading about this epic movie series but certainly a lot has been written. I can't believe it has been ten years. That makes me feel a little old. But it was fun growing up on such a great story. I actually thought I would cry during the movie. I didn't wear mascara just in case. But they handled the deaths really well. They managed to keep some light moments along the way. I love a little humor in dark movies. The point was that these people could find hope when others failed, and the movie stayed true to that feeling.

It was interesting that Voldemort had such a large following when Harry had so few loyal to him. Surely there was a large amount of wizards that just decided to sit it out. Fear was enough to weaken the force of good. I really liked how they highlighted Neville in the movie. Since he could have also been the "chosen one" if Voldemort had tried to kill him instead of Harry, it was nice to see that he would have been strong in the face of Voldemort's siege.

They handled the major scenes so well, the white train station with Dumbledore was straight out of the book. The battle scenes were also exceptional, although I would have been satisfied if Bellatrix had suffered a little more.  A friend who didn't read the books was disappointed that Harry didn't deal a final, satisfying  blow to kill Voldemort. I liked that Voldemort was destroyed by his own pride. Harry didn't become a killer even for him.

I am glad to see that Emma Watson is moving on with her career. I am also in love with her hair and her decision to cute it to break her type cast mold, rather than going crazy like the Disney kids. I am excited to see her future movies and hope the other cast members can keep successful careers. I also loved Helena Bonham Carter. I always think she is amazing, she is great to hate as Bellatrix, but what was amazing is when she is playing Hermione after she drank the potion. She was so timid and felt awkward. She is so good.

I am still sad it is over, but what a great series! I can't wait to watch it again, and see how cute those kids were in the first one. I am so glad they were able to keep the whole cast for all of the movies, aside from, tragically, Dumbledore. What a wonderful ten years it has been with you Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Matinée

I heard someone describe this film as a mix of The Goonies, ET, and Jurassic Park. I have to agree. And they also had the similarity of a squat faced young blonde girl. I'm not sure why Steven Spielberg movies have that particular aspect in common. Maybe they remind him of a family member. Or he just has a different idea of cute children. But if you like Spielberg's earlier films, you will like this one. Overall it was a great mix of adventure, comedy and suspense. I didn't like how foul the young mouths were. I don't like swearing in general but it seems so much worse from kids.

This film had a lot of really good suspense. I even found myself jumping a couple of times, which is a rarity for me. I make a terrible haunted house date,  I just don't know how to jump and cling like a good scared girl should. But I think the secret of what was in the train was timed well, hints and glimpses all along the way.

Of course I loved seeing Coach Taylor from Friday Night Lights (Kyle Chandler). And Joel Courtney was a great young lead. His friends were cast really well also. They made the comedy of the movie. The little Cary with his braces and unstoppable retorts was hilarious.

Even though the story is about kids, I definitely wouldn't call this a family film. It is pretty dark but very enjoyable.

Matinée 


Well after taking a few weeks off, I am finally motivated to write again. Well work is really slow so why not. I went to see this on my vacation with my sister. I have to say it was my favorite X-Men so far. I thought the film was really well cast. I am a huge James McAvoy fan. Michael Fassbender was great as Magneto, and looked much more handsome than in Jane Eyre. The cast of first class students were all young enough and talented enough that Origins can become its own X-Men series. It was also fun to see January Jones, outside of Mad Men but still in the same time period. Well why not, it looks good on her.

The special effects were generally pretty good. There were a couple of moments, as when the young Erik sends the equipment of a lab flying, that could have been better but I thought they were good for the most part. I really liked getting to see Xavier as a professor, actually teaching the young mutants. It was made a really good sequence in the movie with some fun editing and split screens. I also really enjoyed getting to see why Erik and Xavier may fight constantly but still refer to each other as old friends. I feel like I understood Xavier a lot much in this film. Magneto was obviously jaded by the separation and death of his mother. This film showed a lot more of how he became so angry with such a strong vendetta. But I think the real mystery being revealed was Xavier. Yes he can probe peoples minds, but he not only sees, but feels what they went through. He truly felt everything Erik went through. He knew exactly why Erik became Magneto, yet still had the strength to stand against him. He also wasn't angry with Mystique for siding with Magneto. He can truly understand people better than anyone else.

It was strange to see Mystique and Xavier as children. They were so close in age, yet later in life seemed years apart. Even in the other X-Men movies she seems so much younger than him. But it was interesting to see their relationship, her own identity crisis and his part in it. The reason he often didn't understand Mystique was because he promised never to read her mind.

There were some good humorous allusions in this film as well. The reference to Xavier shaving his head, Xavier and Erik finding Wolverine only to have him tell them to. . . well to say it nicer than he did, to leave him alone. But I guess that makes Hugh Jackman the only person to make an appearance in all the X-men movies.

Overall I really enjoyed this movie. Great summer movie. If they do decide to make more X-Men Origins films, I won't mind.

Watch it if You're Bored

We went to see this movie last night with some friends. That is what made it fun and worth watching. This Pirates, what is it the fourth one, had nothing new to offer. If you like Jack Sparrow, there should be a Captain in  there somewhere, then you will probably watch this movie. This story line was different from the others I guess since they were searching for the fountain of youth, but that was the only real difference. It had nothing  new to offer. As I was watching it, I got a strange feeling that I had seen this movie, like three times already. I liked the mermaid/preacher story line. But I don't recommend spending money or valuable time on this movie.

I would say it is a good family movie, kids are the ones that will really like the comedy, but there is some graphic violence that I don't recommend for young kids. Not a whole lot to say about this movie. It is the fourth one after all so everyone pretty much knows everything there is to know about Pirates. I will say you will get exactly what you expect from this movie.

Matinée 
If you are a fan of the Fast and Furious movies, you will like this one. It was full of unbelievable action, crime, scantily clad women, and of course fast cars. (For a full list of the cars in the film click here) It had a bit of an Oceans 11 feel to it. But at least that meant it had a plot. But with this kind of action, it is just better on a big screen, but don't pay full price.

So honestly, as a movie lover, I have to say this movie, as a movie, was pretty terrible. I mean what was rotten tomatoes thinking? 79%?  Really? The critics must all be big Fast and Furious fans. Like I said if you are a fan you will like this movie. But as a film, it was terrible. What more can you expect from a movie that the best leading actor is Vin Diesel. The supporting cast carried the bulk of the acting talent. Ludacris, Matt Schulze and Sung Kang all did a great job. Tyrese of course did not. A lot of the bad writing came out through his mouth. His shining moment happened when he was driving the police car in the final chase. It was the first time he convincingly delivered his cheesy lines. Dwayne Johnson also had a few cheesy lines. He did what he could but his acting skills are not refined enough to cover up that much poor writing. Paul Walker had one moment where he wasn't terrible. When he found out that he may not have won the race against Dom fair and square his shock and disbelief were actually convincing. Much better than his reaction to finding out his girlfriend was pregnant, when he felt forced and underwhelming. He found out right after they were jumping from roof to roof, dodging bullets, and he didn't even freak out that her life, and the baby's, had just been in so much danger.

My favorite characters were Leo and Santos. They brought a delightful element of comedy. They formed the classic sidekick duo. Their inseparable bond was forged by the constant mocking of the other.  They made some great laughs. Dwayne Johnson got completely ripped for this movie. He was huge and finally got to show a little of his tribal tattoos. And this movie had the scene we were all waiting for:  Vin Diesel vs. The Rock. It was a great fight. It didn't last too long, though they managed to almost destroy a part of the building.

The opening bus crash was completely unbelievably. Their plan for escape was to flip a bus? And miraculously no one was hurt? That is just impossible and stupid. Then the whole driving off a cliff, falling hundreds of feet and coming out unscathed? It was a bit much, even for a Fast and Furious movie. It was kind of funny to hear all the gasps from the people around me as they drove off the cliff. It was in every preview I saw so it was interesting to hear so many people still surprised by it. You couldn't have possibly seen anything about the movie without knowing that part.

Obviously the best part of the movie was the cars, and in this one a sweet Ducati Street Racer.  The flash to all the nice extravagant cars at the end of the film was beautiful. Han's Lexus LFA made me drool.  And speaking of the end of the movie, looks like they are planning a sixth. It could be set in Berlin. As it just so happens Han and Gisele were in Berlin at the end of this film so they may be in the line up for the next one. Tokyo Drift was my favorite Fast and Furious so a little more Han is fine with me. Also looks like Dwayne Johnson may be contributing to that one as well. I will not be sad if Paul Walker and Jordana Brewster are done. I personally will not miss them. But  as long as they keep making Fast and Furious movies, people will keep paying to see them. And I will be one of them, though I will never line up for it on opening night.

Theater Worthy

Ok I have to admit, I was a skeptic. I didn't see the original movie, though I think that remakes have been getting better. I haven't had much exposure to Russell Brand. I was really worried that the comedy of this film would rely on being crude. It didn't. Russell Brand was hilarious.

The cast was great. The funny Russell Brand was joined by Helen Mirren, who I adore. Jennifer Garner also joined the cast. I guess she played her part well because I hated her character. Her comedy was in being despised. Greta Gerwig was unknown to me, but she was charming. She was a completely average girl. Her first couple of costumes were questionable. I got that she was eccentric, but she was dressing like a child from the 90's. And while she did grow up in the "Sister Sister" generation, she shouldn't still be getting fashion advice from her favorite childhood TV show.  Of course Russell Brand isn't known for his looks so a charmingly average girl was the right choice to play across him.

I was also worried that Brand would be another rambling Brit that just didn't know when to shut up. Again pleasantly surprised, he may have danced on the line but he never crossed it. I never wanted to yell at him to just get on with it. This movie was a great comedy with a little sentiment added in, proving that Brand can actually act, not just throw out witty retorts. Though he is best at that.

If you like slap-stick you will really enjoy this movie. Something to watch for, when Brand is in his garage looking through his phone, Katy Perry is in his contacts list. And pay attention, because this movie has some great quotable moments. I need to watch it again just to remember all the funny things he says. Great comedy. Highly recommend it.