By admin, on September 11th, 2011
 Steven Soderbergh has a lot of friends. Like really popular ones who just happen to be actors that will be in his movies. Even if its just a small role without many lines or much depth, someone like Kate Winslet or Marion Cotillard will do it. Maybe they like, owed him a favor or something? I’m not too sure because as I understand it (from a complete outsider’s perspective) this is not typically how Hollywood works. Not to say Contagion is an A-List disaster along the lines of Full Frontal or Ocean’s Twelve, but it is a film about a disaster that never seems to carry much weight. About an hour into it, I thought to myself “the entire world could be dead at the end of this movie…and I could care less.” And that is Contagion.
The basic story kicks off when Gwyneth Paltrow comes back from Hong Kong, and just like the evil bitch she is, spreads a disease around to different people in the US. Well, not just them. Apparently in Hong Kong she also gave a ton of tourists diseases who brought it back to their own respective countries. They mustn’t have renewed their subscription to GOOP.
Before we know it, we delve into several different storylines as different actors investigate or cope with the disease. From Kate Winslet who’s a doctor sent from the CDC to Gwyneth’s hometown. Or Marion Cotillard, a World Health Organization official or something who travels to Hong Kong to nail down patient zero and ends up getting kidnapped (and pretty much forgotten about). Faring the best out of all of these mini-stories is Matt Damon who is struggling to keep his daughter healthy after losing both his wife and his son and learning that he is immune to the virus. It helps that it’s the only story with a full arc and it was wise for Soderbergh to use it as the bookends of the movie.
Continue reading Contagion
By admin, on August 7th, 2011
WB has released another official photo from the Dark Knight Rises, possibly in an effort to thwart off all of the poor quality set pics that have been getting leaked. Seriously, is this movie shooting in people’s backyards? There are too many set photos. Save it for the release date, people.
The photo gives us our first look at Anne Hathaway, who hopefully isn’t going to be riding that motorcycle after the sun sets. Those shades are much too dark, Anne Hathaway. Be safe. And where is your helmet for God’s sake?
Continue reading Official Dark Knight Rises Photo Reveals Glare-Resistant SunGoggles©
By admin, on August 6th, 2011
 Rise of the Planet of the Apes is the prequel nobody was asking for. Especially after that Tim Burton-Marky Mark “re-imagination” thing that happened, one would think that would have killed the franchise forever. But it’s a new decade. A decade with motion capture. And somehow the movie that nobody asked for is a surprisingly fresh summer movie that’s more entertaining than it’s marketing lead on.
Make no mistake that the flick’s biggest achievement is not being downright laughable. Which is saying something given the commercials and trailers. Whenever a trailer popped up in a theater, the crowd burst into laughter at the scenes of the apes giving shifty eyes or just the thought of another installment in this series. (Would the Ape-raham Lincoln statue make a cameo?!) Fortunately, the motion capture and Visual Effects end up on the same level as Gollum (maybe even a level above, considering we’re dealing with recreating real creatures here) and it’s quite easy that you grow attached to the main ape, Caesar as he grows with the cognizance of a real child.
Continue reading Rise of the Planet of the Apes
By admin, on July 17th, 2011
 There are movies that don’t need reviews. Critics shouldn’t even bother reviewing the Transformers sequels. You know before you read them that the majority of critics are going to pan them. And no matter what they say, the movies are going to go on and make a bajillion dollars anyway. So what’s the point? Harry Potter movies are sort of the same way. Not in that there are robots running around with annoying teenagers. But on opening night you’re either already in or you’re out.
Along the way, the Harry Potter series has had some movies I’ve more than happily enjoyed revisiting (mainly Prisoner of Azkaban). There have been one or two I wouldn’t mind if I never turned on again, as well (Half-Blood Prince…you’re pretty, but you didn’t hold my interest like the book). If you’ve been keeping up with the series, I’m sure you have your own similar tastes and opinions. I think it would be hard for anyone to argue that we couldn’t have asked for a better closing to the series than Deathly Hallows Part 2 though.
Continue reading Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
By admin, on July 16th, 2011
There were a lot of movie trailers released this week. As a guy who stays up to date on movie blogs, most of them were expected sooner or later (Hugo, Sherlock Holmes 2). But one trailer, in particular, stuck out for a few reasons that already make it scream the words: “BOX OFFICE SMASH.”
For one, I hadn’t heard of it before watching the trailer. Weird, because the cast is literally filled with A-List names such as Jude Law, Kate Winslet, and Matt Damon. How’d that sneak by? Probably because it wasn’t a sequel or remake. Secondly, and most important to its box office success, Gwyneth Paltrow bites the dust at the 0:55 mark.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the trailer to Contagion
Continue reading Best Movie Ever Alert
By admin, on June 23rd, 2011
 I’ve seen a few movies this year, but have been really lazy about writing reviews. A lot of people have been asking what I thought about Super 8 though, and it’s tough to tell them in person because truth be told I was a little torn about it walking out.
Spoilers abound (sorry…)
Continue reading REVIEW: Super 8
By admin, on June 23rd, 2011
 Did you see that movie Moon? It’s a pretty cool movie! If you haven’t then it’s probably worth a rental. Source Code is director Duncan Jones’ (aka David Bowie’s son) second movie, and its good to see that he didn’t go too crazy with a bigger budget like some directors would. But that doesn’t mean the studio was entirely free to let him do what he wanted.
To back up a bit, I just started getting into the habit of reading screenplays on a regular basis. An early draft of Source Code was one of the first ones I read. It’s pretty incredible to see what changed from the draft I read to what was on the screen. I don’t want to get into details because in the end what really matters to the people buying the tickets is what’s playing on the big screen right now, and not what it could have been.
Continue reading REVIEW: Source Code
By admin, on March 30th, 2011
 The Adjustment Bureau is the rare case where I went into the theater desperate for a gripping tale of intrigue and action and left the theater wishing I had seen a romantic comedy. Now, I use the term rare rather loosely because let’s be honest, I’ve never felt that way. But make no mistake, The Adjustment Bureau doesn’t run on thrills and car chases. It runs on the pure charisma of its two leads.
There’s little, if any, actual action in the movie. The trailers, which make the movie out to be a chase between cat-and-mouse are rather misleading. But if you forget about the misconceptions of marketing for a second (or for like, 90 minutes) then you’re left with a decent movie that I’d probably catch on cable again. On a strange tangent, I re-watched Eyes Wide Shut this weekend. I bring this up because it’s also a movie that people hate because it was marketed as an erotic thriller and was anything but. (However, one could argue the marketing campaign for this flick was top-notch.) Point being, marketing is a tricky thing and can lead people into hating a movie even when its actually pretty decent.
As soon as Emily Blunt and Matt Damon meet, you pretty much want them to be on together just because it’s so damn entertaining to watch. In fact, this movie would have been 10x better if it were a romantic comedy about rearranging furniture. Just sayin’.
Continue reading REVIEW: The Adjustment Bureau
By admin, on February 21st, 2011
Yikes. Where to start with this one? Well, let’s start at the beginning. A very good place to start.
Continue reading REVIEW: Unknown
By admin, on January 22nd, 2011
I’ve been playing catch-up over the last month to get ready for all of the award shows that come around this time of year. (Stop calling me a nerd.) So, rather than write lengthy reviews of each one (I can be lazy…) here are some mini-reviews of the movies I’ve seen lately…
 The Rabbit Hole – 8/10
The Rabbit Hole is this year’s “stage movie.” In the same way that Doubt and Frost/Nixon both succeeded at being adapted from plays, this one does a pretty decent job at holding its own and feeling like an actual movie rather than many other play-to-film adaptations. (e.g. The Producers) But since it’s based on a play, make no mistake that this is a movie to see for the acting. And to some extent the dialogue. Because, duh, there’s so much of it being a play and all. That doesn’t necessarily mean any other aspect of the film has a fault. The cinematography is just as top-notch as Revolutionary Road and once the eventual theme of the movie comes into light, you can’t help but feel satisfied. More than anything though, this movie belongs to the actors. Specifically, Nicole Kidman who deserves the Oscar more than anyone else she will no doubt be nominated along with. Why this has been in limited release for so long is nothing short of stupid, but I highly recommend it for a night in when it comes out on DVD and you feel like watching something thoughtful.
Continue reading Mini-Reviews (Part 1)
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