Vacation

VACATION (1983) - Dec. 31, 2011 (Second Viewing)
About the various wacky misadventures that a family gets into on a cross-country trip to Wally World, this was entertaining and sporadically amusing, if not quite the classic that I remembered it being.  More a series of loosely connected sketches than a cohesive film, the movie definitely felt a bit uneven but was mostly entertaining throughout.  **1/2

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (2011) - Dec. 31, 2011
About a bunch of spy shenanigans revolving around a suspected mole in Britain in the '70s, this was a very well acted, handsomely made film that is probably a little too deliberately-paced for its own good.  Seriously, even by the standards of the paranoid thrillers of the 1970s that this film clearly took more than a little inspiration from, this is a slow-paced film.  It also doesn't do a particularly great job of fleshing out and getting us to care about the fairly sizable cast of characters.  However, the film is very stylish and does a great job of bringing the spy scene of the '70s to life, and is pretty much worth watching just based on that and the performances alone.  ***

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE - GHOST PROTOCOL (2011) - Dec. 30, 2011
Note to self: arrive at IMAX screenings at least an hour early.  Though I had to sit so close that the giant IMAX screen completely overwhelmed my field of vision, I still quite enjoyed this movie.  Proof that Brad Bird's talents definitely extend to live action, the film is very well directed and has some pretty spectacular action set-pieces (highlights include the much-ballyhooed Dubai skyscraper sequence, the car chase in a dust storm, and the fight in the innards of a car storage facility).  The film is briskly paced and well acted; my only real complaint is that Michael Nyqvist's villian is almost comically underdeveloped, and has to be one of the least memorable bad guys I've seen in quite a while.  ***1/2

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (2011) - Dec. 29, 2011
A disappointingly by-the-numbers adaptation of the book.  Though Fincher does a decent enough job of transfering the book to the screen while retaining his own sense of style (the film is unmistakably a David Fincher movie), the movie feels even more like a generic procedural on screen than on the page.  It feels like Law & Order: Sweden (only with much more rape).  It probably doesn't help that there are long stretches in which characters do research on the internet or in a library.  Even gussied up with slick visuals, watching people read a book is just not interesting (well, I suppose it worked for All the President's Men, but this is no All the President's Men).  **1/2

The Bodyguard

THE BODYGUARD (1992) - Dec. 22, 2011
An entertaining enough if somewhat cheesy and dated film about a no-nonsense bodyguard who takes a job protecting a famous singer.  It's decent enough, but there is definitely no mistaking this as anything but a product of the early '90s (it really hasn't aged very well).  **1/2

It's a Wonderful World

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD (1939) - Dec. 21, 2011 (Second Viewing)
Well, it took about an hour before I even had an inkling that I had seen this movie before -- considering that I only saw this movie about five years ago, that has some pretty disturbing implications on the quality of my memory.  Though this isn't exactly the type of movie that I'd normally revisit, it's well acted and quite enjoyable throughout.  ***

A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas

A VERY HAROLD & KUMAR 3D CHRISTMAS (2011) - Dec. 17, 2011
Another enjoyable, if somewhat forgettable Harold and Kumar film.  Seriously, I just saw it a few hours ago and my memory of it is already getting a bit hazy.  Still, it was entertaining throughout, the performances were good, and I did chuckle a few times.  Plus, I have to give it kudos for being one of the few films to realize that 3D is inherently gimmicky, and to just go hogwild throwing random stuff at the camera.  ***

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS (2011) - Dec. 16, 2011
Another disappointing Sherlock Holmes movie from Guy Ritchie, this time finding Holmes squaring off against his nemesis, Professor Moriarty.  Like the first one, the film gets a lot right, particularly the cast and the general depiction of Holmes and Watson: there's great chemistry between Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, and Jared Harris was appropriately sinister as Moriarty (though Noomi Rapace's character was seriously bland and almost competely superfluous).  But the story just isn't all that interesting, and I found myself getting pretty bored for long stretches.  I don't get it: Guy Ritchie is a solid director, and Sherlock Holmes is an amazing character.  Why are these movies so dull?  **

Shame

SHAME (2011) - Dec. 15, 2011
Another impeccably directed film from Steve McQueen, revolving around a man struggling with a sex addiction along with some pretty serious intimacy issues.  Features a much more straight-forward narrative than McQueen's last film, Hunger.  This is a seriously good looking movie, and is anchored by a great performance from Michael Fassbender.  The film is kind of cold, and you're always at a bit of an arm's length, but it's definitely well made and compelling throughout. ***

The Artist

THE ARTIST (2011) - Dec. 15, 2011
A really well made and kind of delightful movie about a silent film star who finds his celebrity waning after the advent of talking pictures.  Shot silent and in black and white -- a technique that could have easily come off as pretentious gimmickry, but which absolutely works here.  For the first hour or so I was quite enjoying it, but thinking it was nothing particularly special, however at a certain point the film becomes stunningly involving.  It helps that the performances are quite good, and that director Michel Hazanavicius does a pretty great job of making the endearing characters people we come to care about.  ***1/2

The Descendants

THE DESCENDANTS (2011) - Dec. 3, 2011
Wow!  I loved this movie.  If Alexander Payne weren't already one of my favourite directors, he certainly would be now.  About a man who finds out that his comatose wife (who is about to have the plug pulled) was cheating on him, this was pretty much perfection on every level.  First off, there's George Clooney, who gives what has to be a career-best performance.  He's still got that Clooney charm, but at the same time he manages to create a really distinctive character that feels pretty different from anything else he's played.  He manages to convey so much just in his reactions without even saying anything, and without ever overplaying it.  The rest of the cast is just as good, without a weak link in the bunch.  Payne also does a really great job of developing all the characters, and making even side-characters without much to do interesting.  Payne's wonderful direction is also pretty much perfect; stylish, but without ever calling attention to itself.  ****

The Muppets

THE MUPPETS (2011) - Dec. 3, 2011
A very charming, fun movie about a man and his brother (who, somehow, is a muppet) who decide to help bring the Muppets back together to save their old theatre.  The film does a really good job of being reverential to the Muppets while still being very entertaining in its own right.  Though the movie does feel a bit insubstantial, it's got a bunch of really catchy songs (too catchy), and it pretty much just puts a smile on your face from start to finish.  ***

The Brood

THE BROOD (1979) - Dec. 2, 2011
About a man whose wife is under the care of an experimental psychologist, and who begins to suspect that his daughter is at risk when people around him start getting killed by strange, child-like monsters.  The film seriously drags in parts (most of the scenes with Oliver Reed as the therapist feel like they go on longer than they need to), but the film is well directed by David Cronenberg, and definitely has its moments.  The ending, in particular, was completely insane (and distinctly Cronenbergian) -- it was pretty much worth the price of admission alone.  There was also a scene involving a teacher getting beaten to death in front of a classroom of horrified five-year-olds that had to be one of the more memorable things I've seen in a while.  **1/2

Kidnapped

KIDNAPPED (2010) - Dec. 1, 2011
About a wealthy family who, on the night they move into a new house, find themselves at the mercy of a group of criminals.  Yep -- another home invasion movie, but definitely a worthy entry in the increasingly busy sub-genre.  Effectively directed by Miguel Angel Vivas, who constructs the movie with a series of very long, elaborate shots (there's maybe ten shots in the whole movie) -- the film feels a bit show-offy at times, but ultimately the style really works.  There are some seriously effective sequences here (particularly one involving split screen towards the end), and Vivas does a good job of amping up the tension as the movie goes along.  ***1/2