Back to the Future II

BACK TO THE FUTURE II (1989) - April 30, 2009 (Umpteenth Viewing)
Though not quite as good as the original, this was still a superlative adventure movie, and extremely entertaining throughout. It does a really good job of feeling like a companion piece to the first movie, rather than the forced rehash that many big Hollywood sequels wind up feeling like. ****

Back to the Future

BACK TO THE FUTURE (1985) - April 28, 2009 (Umpteenth Viewing)
An all-time classic. Featuring performances, direction, writing and a score that are all near perfection, this is definitely top ten material. This, along with stuff like Raiders of the Lost Ark and any of the original three Star Wars films, should be required viewing for anyone who wants to make a fun adventure film. ****

Fighting

FIGHTING (2009) - April 25, 2009
Well, I fell asleep for probably about ten minutes in the middle of this movie, so I guess I need to see it again, not that I'm in any particular rush to do so -- the film seemed decent enough, if nothing particularly special. Terrence Howard was clearly the highlight, giving a performance that was definitely far better than the movie deserved. Also, for a movie called "Fighting" there really wasn't much fighting at all, though Dito Montiel's direction of the fight scenes was so terrible that the lack of them was a probably blessing in disguise. NO RATING

The Soloist

THE SOLOIST (2009) - April 21, 2009
A well made and very well acted film about a journalist who befriends a crazy street musician, this started out quite well, but then petered out a bit towards the end. The direction was good and Robert Downey Jr. was quite excellent as the journalist, but I found myself losing interest as the film went on. I was never all-out bored, though I did find myself almost falling asleep a couple of times, so... yeah. **1/2

17 Again

17 AGAIN (2009) - April 20, 2009
A surprisingly enjoyable body-switching comedy about a middle-aged schlub, on the verge of a divorce and with kids who don't particularly like him, who winds up being transformed into a 17-year-old version of himself. He quickly decides to enroll in his old high school, where it becomes pretty clear that both of his kids need his help. Anchored by an effortlessly charismatic Zac Efron (it's easy enough to see why he's becoming such a big star), the film is far better than it really has any right to be. ***

Crank: High Voltage

CRANK: HIGH VOLTAGE (2009) - April 18, 2009
An awesomely ridiculous film starring the perfectly cast Jason Statham as Chev Chelios, a man on a mission to recover his stolen heart. Chelios must contend with the scads of gangsters who stand in his way, as well as the insufficient power supply on his artificial heart. Like the first one, the directing duo of Neveldine and Taylor infuse the film with a wildly over-the-top style that, in any other film, would probably annoy me to no end. Somehow, though, it works perfectly here. The film starts out really well, runs of of steam a little bit, then recovers nicely by the time it comes to an end. It's pretty much complete insanity, but it's inspired insanity. ***

State of Play

STATE OF PLAY (2009) - April 15, 2009
A well made political thriller about a reporter who finds himself embroiled in a story involving a cheating congressman, murder, and a shady corporation. The film was well directed (I particularly enjoyed the riveting sequence in which Russell Crowe evades an assassin in a parking garage) -- it did drag a bit in the middle, but I was never bored. It did seem a bit more simplistic than other films of its ilk -- generally these types of films tend to have so many characters and plot twists that they get a bit hard to follow, which was never the case here. Though I suppose "it wasn't confusing enough" would be a pretty bizarre complaint. ***

The Midnight Meat Train

THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN (2008) - April 11, 2009
An entertaining horror film about a man who finds himself compelled to solve the mysterious disappearance of a woman around the subway in New York. It was well made and peppered with familiar faces, so it's a bit odd that it was given such a limited theatrical release. The film does feel a bit padded-out at times (it's adapted from a short story), and the use of CGI blood is as lame as ever, but aside from that it was pretty good. **1/2

Inside

INSIDE (2007) - April 11, 2009
Super dark (both figuratively and literally) and insanely violent, this was a really well made slasher film about a pregnant woman -- on the eve of delivering her child -- who finds herself under attack by an obsessed psycho, intent on stealing her unborn baby. The film sometimes feels like gore just for gore's sake (the movie is essentially just a procession of people coming to the house one at a time to get brutally slaughtered) but it's so well made that you almost don't notice. ***

Observe and Report

OBSERVE AND REPORT (2009) - April 10, 2009
A really well made film about a somewhat crazy mall security guard who takes the investigation of a mall flasher as an opportunity to make a name for himself. There's been a lot of comparisons to Taxi Driver, which definitely seems appropriate. In fact Jody Hill has clearly been influenced by Scorsese in more ways than one, as the visual style of the film and the use of music are quite Scorsesean (Scorseseseque? No, that definitely looks wrong). It definitely works, though I'm sure people expecting a straight-forward Seth Rogen comedy aren't going to be too sure what to make of it. ***1/2

The Foot Fist Way

THE FOOT FIST WAY (2006) - April 9, 2009
A super low-budget but well made film about a self-absorbed Tae Kwon Doe instructor, and the various shenanigans he gets himself into. Danny McBride was definitely good, though his shtick is starting to get a bit tired at this point. And since the film is pretty much all Danny McBride all the time, it kind of suffers from that a bit. But it was well made despite the obviously super-low budget, and it was pretty much entertaining throughout. **1/2

12 Rounds

12 ROUNDS (2009) - Apr. 7, 2009
A surprisingly boring film about a criminal who breaks out of jail and almost immediately sets out to get revenge on the cop who killed his girlfriend, by forcing him to embark on an increasingly elaborate set of tasks. The most disappointing thing about this film is Renny Harlin's shoddy direction -- is this really the same man who brought us classics like Die Hard 2 and Cliffhanger? The visuals are quite shaky, and worse -- they're bland. There is a ridiculous amount of action in this film (I don't think there's more than a minute or two of downtime between the big action set-pieces), but it's just not compelling. It's dull. The performances don't fare much better; Miles Jackson, in particular, is absolutely awful, and makes for a completely ineffectual villain. John Cena does the best he can with the material, but even Arnie himself would have a hard time saving this film. *1/2

The Promotion

THE PROMOTION (2008) - Apr. 6, 2009
About a guy who competes with a French Canadian (John C. Reilly, sporting a bizarre accent that I'm assuming is supposed to be Canadian) for a promotion, this was Steve Conrad's directorial debut (he also wrote the Weather Man). It's not quite as good as that film, however -- Seann William Scott was surprisingly good in the main role, but still didn't make for as compelling a protagonist as Nicolas Cage in the Weather Man. Also, Conrad's direction was good, but Virbinski's was better. I know it's not really fair to compare the two films, but they're so similar that it's hard not to -- this pretty much feels like a thematic sequel to that film. ***

The Weather Man

THE WEATHER MAN (2005) - Apr. 5, 2009
A really well made character study about a depressed weatherman, and his struggles to reconnect with his family and find meaning in his life. Gore Virbinksi's direction suits the material perfectly, and Nicolas Cage gives a surprisingly good performance -- it's a really understated performance, and Cage does a great job of conveying the character's inner-conflict without any of the over-the-top theatrics that he's been tending to fall back on recently. ***1/2

I Love You, Man

I LOVE YOU, MAN (2009) - Apr. 4, 2009
Essentially a romantic comedy between two guys (or a "bromance," as its been dubbed in the media), this was an enjoyable film about a guy who, after getting engaged, realizes that he doesn't really have any guy friends. It plays out pretty much exactly how you think it will (complete with fake breakup), but the always reliable Paul Rudd makes for an engaging leading man, and Jason Segel is just as good as Rudd's new friend. ***

Mr. Bean's Holiday

MR. BEAN'S HOLIDAY (2007) - Apr. 3, 2009
A cute film about the various shenanigans that Mr. Bean gets into when he wins a trip to Cannes. Like the first Mr. Bean film, it's not nearly as good as the best episodes of the show -- I think Bean is a character who works best in small doses -- but it was pretty much entertaining throughout, and was short enough that it never overstayed its welcome. **1/2

Knowing

KNOWING (2009) - Apr. 1, 2009
An enjoyable and really well made film about a man who discovers a complete list of every major disaster from the last fifty years in a time capsule, culminating in an event that will supposedly end the world. Alex Proyas' direction is expectedly stellar; the big disaster set-pieces, in particular, are incredibly well done. It gets a bit silly towards the end (WE HAVE TO SAVE THE CHILDREN!!) but it was entertaining enough that it wasn't really an issue. ***