Bubble

BUBBLE (2005) - June 10, 2007
A really low-key drama-murder/mystery set in a small town. The film consisted mostly of the three main characters either working or making small-talk, and was shot almost entirely with a static camera, and yet there was something oddly compelling about it. It probably helps that it was exceptionally short (73 minutes). It was also pretty well acted, which is impressive considering the cast consists entirely of non-actors. ***

Hostel: Part II

HOSTEL: PART II (2007) - June 9, 2007
A worthy follow-up. Though there was nothing that had me on the edge of my seat quite like the whole sequence from the original where Jay Hernandez attempts his escape, there were still parts of this film what were really gripping, particularly in the latter half. Roth does spend a good amount of time setting everything up and establishing the characters, but that's a good thing; if he put the characters in peril too quickly, it wouldn't have been nearly as effective, because the audience wouldn't have much invested in their survival. It was also interesting to find out a bit more about how the hostel is run and the types of people who use its services (I also liked the little twist where the two torturers each turn out to be the opposite of what the audience expects). Roth's direction was quite good, and it was really well acted. And I saw it with a really bad audience, so who knows, maybe I'd like it even more without a bunch of no-good hooligans talking the whole time. ***1/2

Ocean's Thirteen

OCEAN'S THIRTEEN (2007) - June 8, 2007
Though enjoyable and expectedly well directed, this was probably the weakest of the three films. Al Pacino was a good addition to the cast. I don't have much else to say about this movie, so... Yeah. I liked it. ***

Surf's Up

SURF'S UP (2007) - June 8, 2007
A surprisingly enjoyable cartoon, done in faux-documentary style, about a young penguin who dreams of making it big as a surfer. Considering how bad this looked, this was a very pleasant surprise. The voice-work was quite good, it was nicely animated, and though it's clearly a kid's movie, it didn't feel juvenile (like, say, Shrek 3). The whole fake documentary thing also worked very well. This wasn't exactly a Pixar-level classic (the gold standard for CGI cartoons) but it was entertaining and fun. ***

Duck Soup

DUCK SOUP (1933) - June 7, 2007
Though less a movie than a series of gags strung together loosely by a plot, this was basically enjoyable, though some of the jokes were funnier than others. It would probably work better with an enthusiastic crowd, as it generally feels more like a filmed comedy routine than an actual movie. **1/2

The File of the Golden Goose

THE FILE OF THE GOLDEN GOOSE (1969) - June 6, 2007
Yul Brynner is the highlight in this dated and otherwise unspectacular film about a secret service agent who goes undercover to infiltrate a counterfeiting ring. It actually starts out pretty well, but is dragged down by a really dull midsection in which Brynner follows up various leads in an attempt to ingratiate himself with the gang. It picks up again at the end, but it's really too late by then. But there's one scene which almost makes it all worthwhile: at the beginning of the film, Brynner's boss is trying to get him to replace an undercover agent who was murdered in the field. Brynner is undecided at this point, and asks his boss, "Was he able to take any of those bastards with him?" His boss replies, "No." Brynner thinks about this for a moment, and then says, "Hopefully I can do better," at which point he stubs out his cigarette. If that's not badass, I don't know what is. **

Ocean's Twelve

OCEAN'S TWELVE (2004) - June 5, 2007 (Second Viewing)
Well, this was probably slightly better than I remembered it being, but still an inferior sequel. It's superbly directed and looks very good, and it's enjoyable throughout. But unlike the first one, which was tightly plotted and focused entirely on one spectacular heist, this was a bit more meandering and episodic, and some of the sections worked better than others. It's still quite entertaining, though, and worthwhile if only for the look of it; it's pretty amazing that Soderbergh was able to make what is essentially a big Hollywood movie with such a unique sense of style. ***

Ocean's Eleven

OCEAN'S ELEVEN (2001) - June 4, 2007 (Second Viewing)
Wow! I remember liking this movie a lot, but it's even better than I remembered. For one thing, Steven Soderbergh's direction is absolutely perfect; Soderbergh is a great director and I think this is his best film. It's just such a good looking movie -- Soderbergh's command of the camera is pretty much unrivaled, and his use of music to accompany the visuals is always dead-on. The movie is really fun and fast-paced, and features nary a wasted minute. Plus there's just something inherently fascinating about watching a bunch of guys plan and pull off such an elaborate heist. Good stuff! ****

The Closet

THE CLOSET (2001) - June 3, 2007
Daniel Auteuil was quite good in this film about a man who decides to pretend he's gay so that he won't get fired. Though it wasn't quite as wacky as the premise would lead you to believe, it was well made and entertaining throughout. ***

The Untouchable

THE UNTOUCHABLE (2006) - June 2, 2007
Sweet Jesus. A meandering ordeal about a young actress who wanders around France, then travels to India in search of her father and wanders around there. That's it. Most of the movie consists of the main character walking around while the handheld camera follows her from behind. Jeez Louise. *

Mr. Brooks

MR. BROOKS (2007) - June 1, 2007
Kevin Costner was quite good in this film. And that's just about the only positive thing I have to say about Mr. Brooks. This was not a good film; badly made (by a guy whose last writing credit was Jungle 2 Jungle, and whose last directing credit was Kuffs), this was a stupid movie. About a wealthy serial killer who has William Hurt as his imaginary friend (and I suppose you could do worse than William Hurt as far as imaginary friends go) and who is blackmailed into killing again. The main problem with this film is that there are just too many things going on, and it feels slipshod. There's Mr. Brooks and his imaginary friend, there's his daughter (who, it turns out, is starting her own career as a serial killer), there's Demi Moore as a gritty cop who's trying to take down Mr. Brooks, deal with an escaped killer and her sleazy ex-husband, there's Dane Cook as a wannabe killer... It's just too much. Plus the whole thing as a really uneven vibe, like the director couldn't decide if he wanted to do a serious drama or something more tongue-in-cheek. There's also a pervading feeling of incompetence; the direction isn't outright bad, but it isn't good either. But hey... Kevin Costner was good. *1/2

Hustle & Flow

HUSTLE AND FLOW (2005) - May 27, 2007
Featuring a really impressive performance by Terrence Howard, this was a well made film about a pimp who aspires to be a rapper. Though Howard is clearly the standout, this is a really well acted film (even Anthony Anderson and DJ Qualls are quite good). The film also features some good writing and direction by Craig Brewer (and is certainly a step up from his last film as a writer, the decent but forgettable Water's Edge). ***

L'Enfant

L'ENFANT (2005) - May 26, 2007
A well made film about a young couple and their new baby, focusing mostly on the guy, a petty criminal who tends to make questionable decisions. Well directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, who shot the film in a handheld style that nicely complements the story (it was good, French New Wave style handheld, not ugly, shaky Paul Greengrass style handheld). Jérémie Renier was really good in the main role, as were all the other performances. That's two really good films in a row. Sweet. ***1/2

Volver

VOLVER (2006) - May 25, 2007
A delightful film about two sisters and their mother, who has apparently come back from the dead. This was really entertaining from start to finish, and featured some really good performances, particularly Penelope Cruz (!) who I guess is actually a pretty decent actress when she's not busy struggling with the English language. It was also a really nice looking film; the direction and cinematography were quite good. Almodóvar and his cinematographer do a really good job using the widescreen frame -- I also liked the use of stark colours. But really, the biggest surprise here is how good Penelope Cruz is. What's up with that? ***1/2

Esma's Secret

ESMA'S SECRET (2006) - May 24, 2007
Anchored by a really excellent performance from Mirjana Karanovic, this was a low-key but engaging film about a mother and her daughter in post-war Sarajevo. It was well directed and was quite entertaining throughout despite being almost entirely plotless. ***

Meet the Robinsons

MEET THE ROBINSONS (2007) - May 24, 2007
About a plucky orphan who winds up traveling into the future, this was a silly but mostly entertaining film. What really stands out in this movie are the visuals; it looks nicely cartoony, and wisely avoids the creepy realism of stuff like the Polar Express and the Shrek movies. And then there's the 3D, which is easily the best use of 3D I've ever seen. The illusion of depth is completely convincing, and it never feels gimmicky or over-done. I'm generally not too crazy about 3D, so I was surprised to find that it actually did enhance the experience. ***

Waitress

WAITRESS (2007) - May 23, 2007
A cute romantic comedy about a small-town waitress stuck in a loveless marriage (whose husband seems like a jerk even compared to the usual jerk husband/fiancee seen in these types of romantic comedies) who finds out she's pregnant and begins to fall in love with her doctor. Keri Russell is very good in the lead role, but it's Nathan Fillion who really steals the movie (in a role that's way too small) as the doctor she falls in love with. How is he not a big movie star yet? I don't get it. He's the second coming of Tom Hanks, as far as I'm concerned. The movie was also well directed and quite entertaining, though I do have some qualms with the ending. ***

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END (2007) - May 23, 2007
That was long. Very, very long. It started out pretty well, with the main characters trying to recruit a band of Singaporean pirates to assist them in rescuing Jack Sparrow. But then not a whole lot happens, and the movie spends the next hour or two setting up the many plot threads leading up to the action-packed finale. There are double crosses, and triple crosses, and probably quadruple crosses -- I was basically able to follow it but it certainly seemed unnecessarily convoluted. Much of what I liked so much about the first one (the fact that it was just a relatively simple, fun swashbuckling adventure) is completely absent from this film, replaced in favour of a much more epic feel. And then there's the whole ending sequence, which is LONG and seems to be compensating for the relative lack of action in the mid-section. Couldn't some of this action have been spread out a bit? The film is well made and looks very good, but I just had a hard time maintaining my level of interest for the entire three hours. **

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST (2006) - May 21, 2007 (Second Viewing)
Well, I think I liked this better the second time around. It probably helped that I knew how long it was and where it was going. It also helped that my expectations were somewhat lower. Anyway, I enjoyed it. I still think it's too long and not nearly as good as the original, but it's well made and fun. ***

Summer '04

SUMMER '04 (2006) - May 20, 2007
A slow-paced and typically European "art-house" type of film, about... not much of anything, really. There's a couple, and their kid, and his girlfriend (and it took me at least ten minutes to even figure out those relationships) and another random guy, and some stuff happens. The direction was quite good, and it was well acted, but man was it slow. **1/2

Shrek the Third

SHREK THE THIRD (2007) - May 19, 2007
Well, that could have been better. After the first one, which was quite enjoyable, and the second one, which wasn't quite as good but still okay, the series has finally worn out its welcome. I can't quite put my finger on what went wrong with this one, other than to say that the whole thing is a bit stale at this point. **

Total Recall

TOTAL RECALL (1990) - May 14, 2007 (Umpteenth Viewing)
Ah, now THIS is an action movie. They don't make them even remotely like this anymore. Arnold Schwarzenegger is at his wisecracking best in this film about a man who discovers that he's been living a double life, and that he's really a secret agent on Mars. Gleefully violent, the film earns its R rating in a way contemporary action movies don't even dream to do. There are few people who can direct action as well as Paul Verhoeven (and it certainly isn't by shaking the camera and cutting a million times a second). Good stuff. ****

28 Weeks Later

28 WEEKS LATER (2007) - May 12, 2007
If I had telekinetic powers, I think Jaun Carlos Fresnadillo's head would have exploded by now, because I've been sending him some pretty bad vibes. He is a horrendously bad director. By all accounts, this should have been a pretty good movie -- the performances were good, the screenplay was okay and it had a solid enough premise, but man... the direction. It feels like, at film school, his teacher said "Here are the different types of shots: there are extreme close-ups, close-ups..." at which point he immediately stood up, "Alright! I've heard enough! Time to go make me a movie!" I swear, I think 90 percent of this film consisted of close-ups. As for the action, it was probably more like 100 percent. Sweet Jesus, don't even get me started on the action scenes, all of which were unrelentingly terrible. I don't think I've ever seen such badly directed action scenes; they were a complete and utter mess, a chaotic mishmash of images and sounds without even a hint of coherency. Each shot can't be more than a few frames, and it's just an unpleasant, confusing visual assault. And so shaky... Jesus. And I don't mean "we shot this handheld" shaky, I mean "let's shake this damn camera as hard as we can without breaking it" shaky. Even Paul Greengrass looks restrained in comparison. I can imagine someone might defend the film by saying something like "it's a chaotic situation, and the direction/editing-style puts you in the heads of the characters." Well, unless the character is an ADD-afflicted, crack-addled seven-year-old in the midst of a seizure, that simply isn't the case. And even if that were the case, why would I WANT to be in the head of that character? What's pleasant about that? What's enjoyable about watching a barrage of sounds and images and having to struggle to figure out what's even going on? I need to go find Fresnadillo so I can spit on him. *

Reeker

REEKER (2005) - May 10, 2007 (S)
Hmmm... That wasn't so good. It started out well enough -- it had a pretty generic setup (a bunch of teens get stuck in the middle of nowhere when their car breaks down) but did a reasonably good job of building tension. The tension builds, but then... nothing happens for a while. And then when stuff does start to happen, the director makes the odd choice of not showing the villain at all, and making it look like people are getting killed my a menacing cloud of gas. Finally, more than an hour in, we get to actually see the bad guy, but it's sort of too late by then. And then there's the twist ending, which sort of made sense but seemed more like a twist for the sake of having a twist. The film was essentially well made, but was undone by the absence of a compelling villain, and a lengthy mid-section in which not much happens. **

Away from Her

AWAY FROM HER (2006) - May 9, 2007
About a woman who gets Alzheimer's, goes to live in a retirement home, and winds up falling in love after basically forgetting about her husband, this was a well made film. It was very slow-paced and exceptionally depressing, but it was a good film (Sarah Polley does well in her debut as a writer/director, though it does occasionally seem like she's trying a bit too hard to be profound with her dialogue). If nothing else, the movie would be worthwhile if only for the performances, which are uniformly excellent; Gordon Pinsent, in particular, gives a really phenomenal performance as the husband who has to watch as his wife falls in love with another man. ***

Weekend at Bernie's

WEEKEND AT BERNIE'S (1989) - May 7, 2007 (Umpteenth Viewing)
Ah, Weekend at Bernie's... From a decade that brought us some pretty wacky comedies, this is certainly one of the wackiest. About a couple of guys who decide to pretend that their dead boss is still alive, I still really enjoyed this movie despite having seen it about a million times. It helps that Jonathan Silverman and Andrew McCarthy have very good chemistry together. Where's Weekend at Bernie's 3? ***

The Desperate Hours

THE DESPERATE HOURS (1955) - May 6, 2007
Humphrey Bogart (in one of his last roles) is very good, as usual, in this film about a group of three escaped convicts who terrorize a suburban family. Though perhaps not quite the crackerjack thriller I was hoping it would be (it actually moves at a fairly deliberate pace) this was still a well-made and enjoyable film. **1/2

Spider-Man 3

SPIDER-MAN 3 (2007) - May 5, 2007 (Second Viewing)
Well, I enjoyed this just as much the second time as I did the first, so I have to say that I'm a bit puzzled about the lukewarm reception this movie has been receiving from the critics. No, it's definitely not as good as the second one, and maybe not even the first, but it's still a smart, well-made, better-than-average summer blockbuster. It's long and there's a lot of plot crammed in there, but it never feels muddled. People also seem to be complaining that it's too dramatic ("everybody cries"). But what? Would they rather have another bland, explosion-filled snooze-fest? Well, whatever. I liked it. ***1/2

Lucky You

LUCKY YOU (2007) - May 2, 2007
About a professional poker player dealing with his estranged father and his new girlfriend while trying to raise funds to enter the world series of poker, this was a decent film. It was well made and very well acted (Eric Bana in particular was really good) but it was a bit on the long side and somewhat cheesy in parts (the romance with Drew Barrymore wasn't very well done). But the stuff with Eric Bana and Robert Duvall was quite good, and even though I only know the basics about poker, I still found the poker scenes to be pretty interesting. **1/2

Spider-Man 3

Spider-Man 3 (2007) - April 26, 2007
Sam Raimi needs to direct all superhero movies. A few other directors could also be allowed (Bryan Singer is good too), but really, Raimi has proven to be the perfect comic book director. He just gets it. He's great at action, and just as good at drama; he also knows how to blend the two without one ever overwhelming the other. And while this film probably isn't quite as good as Spider-Man 2, that's a pretty hard movie to top. ***1/2

Next

NEXT (2007) - April 25, 2007
What's the deal with Nicolas Cage? 2007 isn't even half-way over, and he's already been in two really bad movies. I'm not sure which was worse, this or Ghost Rider. About a guy who has the power to see two minutes into the future, who falls in love and gets caught up in a plot to destroy L.A. by a bunch of generic Eurotrash villains. Where do you even start with this cheesy movie? There was the dialogue, which was pretty much atrocious. The special effects were shoddy (putting it kindly). Nicolas Cage's power is completely illogical (how does he decide which moments to replay? Is it like time travel? It doesn't make sense). Much of the mid-section of the film is dedicated to Cage's romance with Jessica Biel, which is just gross (the fact that he's sporting the old pedophile hairdo doesn't help). Well, it wasn't all bad I guess. The performances were okay, with the exception of Julianne Moore (playing a tough-as-nails cop who apparently spends her free time pushing target dummies and then shooting them in the chest), who gave a surprisingly bad performance and who was clearly phoning it in. There were a couple of reasonably enjoyable sequences with Cage utilizing his power, and the film was competently directed by Lee Tamahori (though I will never understand how he went from the excellent drama Once Were Warriors to stuff like this). But, just... Blech. **

Vacancy

VACANCY (2007) - April. 21, 2007
A really effective, suspenseful thriller about a couple who check into a seedy motel only to find themselves unwitting participants in a snuff film. I really liked this movie; it spends just enough time setting up the characters so that we're rooting for them, and then proceeds to progressively notch up the tension, barely letting up until the credits roll. Nimrod Antal's direction and the cinematography were really good; this was a really nice looking film. Antal is up there with Fincher as far as making a dark scene look really good. The film features a perfect running-time (just under an hour and a half) and is really entertaining throughout. This was just a tight little thriller; it may not be all that original, but it accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do, and it does so stylishly and effectively. ****

Grindhouse

GRINDHOUSE (2007) - April 13, 2007
This was a bit disappointing. Featuring two full-length films, one by Robert Rodriguez and one by Quentin Tarantino, neither of which were all that great. Rodriguez's film - Planet Terror - about some kind of zombie infestation, was pretty mediocre, but then it's Robert Rodriguez so I wasn't expecting much. It was Tarantino's film, Death Proof, which was truly disappointing, as it was easily the weakest of all his films. Its main problem was that it felt disjointed, with two unrelated groups of girls being victimized by Kurt Russell's Stuntman Mike (who was easily the best thing about the whole film). The first batch of girls talk a lot and then get killed, and then the second (completely unrelated) batch of girls talk a lot and then almost get killed, and then get revenge. That's about it. It was decent enough I guess (especially compared to Rodriguez's film) but certainly not up to Tarantino's high standards. As for Planet Terror, it started off enjoyable enough, but quickly grew tedious with its unending action and explosions. Towards the end it started to feel less like a film, and more like being forced to watch someone else play a bad videogame. ** for Planet Terror, **1/2 for Death Proof, and overall: **1/2

Hot Fuzz

HOT FUZZ (2007) - April 12, 2007
Though not quite the instant classic that Shaun of the Dead was, this was a really fun, sporadically hilarious and always entertaining send-up of buddy-cop action films. It actually was a pretty good parody of the overblown, Michael Bay style action film, particularly towards the end. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have really good chemistry together and are both quite funny, and the film contains a number of genuine laughs. Where else are you going to see an old lady get jump-kicked in the head? ***1/2

Knocked Up

KNOCKED UP (2007) - April 11, 2007
An enjoyable but way overlong romantic comedy about a one-night-stand that leads to a pregnancy, and the wackiness that ensues. Seth Rogen and Ketherine Heigl were both good in the main roles, and the film was pretty funny in parts, but man was it long -- well over two hours, which is just overkill for a movie like this. The parts were Rogen hangs out with his friends were the funniest parts of the film (with a bizarre Total Recal reference being the clear highlight); I wish there had been more of that stuff and a lot less of the stuff with Heigl's romantically dissatisfied sister. **1/2

Cabin Fever

CABIN FEVER (2002) - April 8, 2007
Though not as good as Eli Roth's follow-up, Hostel, this was still an entertaining and reasonably effective horror film. About a group of teenagers who head out into an isolated cabin in the woods only to get infected by some kind of flesh-eating virus. The main problem is that the characters never really become people we care about, despite a reasonably lengthy portion at the beginning in which not much happens. It probably doesn't help that the performances, for the most part, aren't the best. The film looked good though; it was well directed by Eli Roth, and did feature some fairly effective sequences, particularly towards the end. ***

Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny

TENACIOUS D IN THE PICK OF DESTINY (2006) - Mar. 31, 2007
A silly but enjoyable film about Tenacious D -- Jack black and Kyle Gass -- and their quest to get a magical guitar pick. The film is rarely laugh-out-loud funny (though it does have its moments), but it's entertaining throughout. There are a lot of songs, but they're all actually pretty good. ***

Hard Candy

HARD CANDY (2005) - Mar. 30, 2007
A really tense psychological thriller about a teenager who meets an older guy (a pedophile) on the internet and proceeds to mess with him in increasingly sinister ways. David Slade's direction and the cinematography sometimes verge on being over-stylized (lots of stark colours and close-ups), but never do. In fact the film is really well directed; the tension starts to build pretty much right from the start, and stays consistent all throughout. I liked the use of sound -- there was almost no score, just a sort of low ambient sort of humming (I have no idea how to describe it) which really helped sustain the level of tension. It also helped that both Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page were really good, as much of the reason the film works as well as it does is their performances. I've heard this being compared to Audition, and I think that's apt, but I liked this even better, because it takes the best part of that film and pretty much makes a whole movie out of it. ***1/2

Cheap, Fast and Out of Control

CHEAP, FAST AND OUT OF CONTROL (1997) - Mar. 29, 2007
I should probably watch this again, as for whatever reason I just wasn't in the mood to watch a film and I was barely paying attention. I was sort of watching it but not watching, so I don't think it would be fair to give it a rating or say if it was good or bad. It seemed pretty good though, so maybe I'll watch it again at some point. NO RATING

Blades of Glory

BLADES OF GLORY (2007) - Mar. 28, 2007
An insipid comedy starring the once-hilarious, now-terrible Will Ferrell. Sporadically entertaining but mostly boring, and containing a few chuckles but nothing more, this was a sub-par comedy and yet another bad movie in a year that's already had so many. About a couple of figure-skaters who circumvent their ban from skating by teaming up, the film had a surprising amount of capable performers (Will Arnett, William Fichtner, and Craig T. Nelson, among others) and yet still pretty much sucked. The problem here (or at least one of them) is that aside from a few reasonably funny moments, the film just aims so low. And I don't know, maybe it succeeds in what it's going for -- I'm sure there are a lot of people who will love it, but I think I'm too old for this movie by at least a decade. *1/2

Pitch

PITCH (1997) - Mar. 28, 2007
A sort of mediocre documentary about a couple of guys who attempt to sell their script, first pitching it to anyone they can at the Toronto Film Festival, then heading down to Hollywood to attempt to sell it there. The film starts off okay enough, but it quickly becomes apparent that there's not really enough here for a feature-length film. It's repetitive, and by the end I was really sick of seeing Kenny and Spenny pitch their stupid script (it just seemed to be the same thing over and over -- they pitch, they bicker amongst themselves, they pitch, they bicker, they pitch, they bicker, and on and on until the end credits finally roll). It might have made an enjoyable 15 minute short, but at 81 minutes it was just too much. **

The Great McGinty

THE GREAT MCGINTY (1940) - Mar. 24, 2007
An enjoyable comedy about a crooked politician's rise to power. Preston Sturges' first film as a writer and director, this wasn't quite the classic some of his later films are, but it was still quite good. The dialogue was expectedly enjoyable, and the film was entertaining throughout (plus the film never wears out its welcome at a brief 82 minutes). ***

Shooter

SHOOTER (2007) - Mar. 21, 2007
A silly, overlong but essentially entertaining film, featuring Mark Wahlberg as a sniper who is framed for an assassination, who then slowly gets his revenge. The film absolutely wallows in hackneyed cliches; I don't think there's a single element here film that felt fresh, from the shadowy government cabal orchestrating the conspiracy to Wahlberg himself. The dialogue also tends to veer into hokey territory more often than not. But there were some good sequences, some nice throwbacks to action films of the '80s, and the film was reasonably enjoyable throughout. **1/2

Tarnation

TARNATION (2003) - Mar. 21, 2007
Dreadful. Absolutely dreadful. This thing starts off badly and just gets worse and worse; it's a baffling, aggravating endurance test which is so aggressively and annoyingly boring, I was seriously considering walking out, which I never do. It's a pretentious mess. It's annoying because there's probably a passable film in here somewhere, but it is completely and utterly obscured by Jonathan Caouette's wildly overactive editing style -- he probably throws in every editing gimmick iMovie is capable of, from multiple split screens to numerous crazy visual filters. Caouette is not a director, and he's not a filmmaker. To call him that would be an insult to filmmakers worldwide; he's just a guy with a cheap camcorder, a computer and an overblown sense of "style." He's a guy who thinks he is making Art (and failing miserably) with no regard for entertainment value or even whether or not his images meld coherently in any way. He is a charlatan and a poseur, and if there's any justice in the world he will never be allowed near a camera again. ZERO STARS

You Shoot, I Shoot

YOU SHOOT, I SHOOT (2001) - Mar. 21, 2007
This film has taken what seems like a relatively foolproof premise (a hitman recruits a director when he is hired to kill someone and film the murder) and squandered it. The main problem here is how ridiculously broad everything is; subtle is not a word in this film's vocabulary. Everything, from the dialogue to the characters to the performances -- even the direction itself -- is way over-the-top. The film just tries way too hard to be funny, with every action being "comically" overblown, and every actor mugging furiously for the camera. The film is short, at least, and it's never completely boring, but it was just far too silly. **

Punch-Drunk Love

PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE (2002) - Mar. 17, 2007 (Eighth Viewing)
Sweet Jesus. I had almost forgotten what a mind-blowingly, stunningly, earth-shatteringly awesome movie this is, having not seen it since its theatrical release. Wow. I can't even put into words how great this film is. First and foremost, there is Paul Thomas Anderson's direction, which, really, is perfect. Even with only four films under his belt, Anderson has proved to be one of the best directors out there (if not the best), and he's in peak form here (not that he ever isn't). Anderson's use of the widescreen frame is stunning, and the film really does look phenomenal. The cinematography, everything... Every frame looks good, really good. Then there's the music and the sound design, which is also quite perfect. The performances -- Adam Sandler will almost certainly never again give a performance this good, and Emily Watson is equally excellent. What else can I say about this movie? It truly is a masterpiece, and a strong contender for my favourite film of all time. ****

Dead Silence

DEAD SILENCE (2007) - Mar. 16, 2007 (S)
A reasonably well made but essentially mediocre horror film about a sinister ghost ventriloquist and her sinister dummies. A big problem here is that it's hard to be too scared of a ventriloquist's dummy, so some of the scenes that are supposed to be scary come off more silly than anything else. I liked the intro and the conclusion (though it got a bit over-the-top towards the end), but the whole mid-section was a bit iffy. It was basically just the main character wandering around a small town trying to solve the mystery behind the dolls, which wasn't all that interesting. Every now and then Donnie Wahlberg popped up and livened things up considerably -- he stole every scene he was in as a somewhat eccentric detective who always seems to be shaving. The film was clearly directed by James Wan -- stylistically speaking it looked a lot like Saw, plus he pretty blatantly stole from himself, as the film's conclusion is really similar to the one from Saw. **

Premonition

PREMONITION (2007) - Mar. 14, 2007
A cheesy film about a woman who inexplicably bounces back and forth in time, jumping around in the days surrounding her husband's death. This was a movie that didn't seem to know what it wanted to be: at times it was a cheesy thriller, and at times a cheesy drama. It was mostly a drama, and the parts where it would suddenly become a thriller were incongruous and jarring (not to mention silly and over-the-top). The film was competently made and featured some good performances, but it wasn't good. It was bad, in fact. **

Dirty Pretty Things

DIRTY PRETTY THINGS (2002) - Mar. 12, 2007
A well made film about an illegal immigrant in London, working two jobs, who finds himself drawn into the organ black market. Chiwetel Ejiofor and Audrey Tautou were both quite good in the main roles. I have nothing else to say about this film. So... yeah. ***

Zodiac

ZODIAC (2007) - Mar. 10, 2007
An interesting but very very long movie about the Zodiac killer, and the long investigation that followed. The film was almost always interesting on a visual level; Fincher is obviously a really good director, plus the film was shot digitally and actually looked good. The film really goes into detail with the whole investigation, which does do a good job conveying the hopelessness of the whole thing, but there's just so much. It almost feels like there's enough here for two films. It was good though, and it seems like it might be the type that improves on repeat viewings. ***

Bones of the Forest

BONES OF THE FOREST (1995) - Mar. 8, 2007
A really pretentious documentary about the natives in Canada, and forests, and... I don't know. It was just so pretentious, it almost seemed like some kind of parody (the director's name is Velcrow Ripper -- I think that says it all). I was asleep for at least half of it, so I can't really say much more. NO RATING

Fuck

FUCK (2005) - Mar. 7, 2007
A really one-note but essentially entertaining documentary about the word "fuck". Consisting mostly of talking heads, it sort of reminded me of the Aristocrats (though far less objectionable). It was okay -- I don't really know if the topic warranted the length, but it was never outright boring. **1/2

Remember the Night

REMEMBER THE NIGHT (1940) - Mar. 4, 2007
An enjoyable romantic comedy starring Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck (in their first of four pairings). About a DA who who decides to take the woman he's prosecuting home for Christmas after he realizes that she's got nowhere to go. Stanwyck and MacMurray were both quite good, and the film was well directed and well written (not too surprising considering it was written by Preston Sturges). ***

Kontroll

KONTROLL (2003) - Mar. 3, 2007
About the strange things that happen to a ticket-checker in the Budapest subway over the course of a couple of days (getting progressively stranger as the film goes along), this film sort of reminded me of stuff like Go and After Hours (particularly the latter). It was sort of strange going into this without having any idea of what it was about; I sort of figured it was going to be a thriller or a horror movie, which it definitely was not. I quite enjoyed it, though. It was a good looking film -- dark, but not unpleasantly so. It featured enjoyably quirky characters, and was entertaining throughout. ***1/2

The Number 23

THE NUMBER 23 (2007) - Mar. 2, 2007
A cheesy film about a man who reads a book about a guy obsessed with the number 23, and slowly finds himself becoming obsessed as well. It's a silly premise for a movie, and it just gets sillier as it goes along. The performances were all good, and the film was competently made, but after a while I had lost interest. *1/2

The Lives of Others

THE LIVES OF OTHERS (2006) - Feb. 28, 2007
A very well made but very slow-paced film about a writer in cold war-era Germany who finds himself under government surveillance by a man who slowly comes to identify with him, and who begins to almost live vicariously through him. The film features some really good direction and cinematography, and a couple of really stellar performances from Sebastian Koch and Ulrich Mühe. It was quite slow, though. ***

300

300 (2007) - Feb. 26, 2007
Jeez, what a disappointment! After the trailer, which was, quite frankly, awesome, this film couldn't help but disappoint. But even disregarding that trailer, this just wasn't a very good film. As a matter of fact, that's too kind: this was a bad film. The stylized visuals are surprisingly drab; with the limitless possibilities of the entirely CG backgrounds, you'd think the filmmakers could come up with something a bit less bland-looking (though I guess that's expecting too much from the guy behind the awful Dawn of the Dead remake). And I don't know if they had to cut out a lot of stuff from the comic, but the whole thing feels a bit disjointed -- it just sort of lurches from one scene to the next without all that much narrative momentum. Some of the scenes were better than others, but I spent the bulk of the film in boredom. The battle scenes were okay -- they were quite violent, though I don't think I've ever seen faker looking CG blood. The problem here is that they were too flashy for their own good (lots of quick cuts, quick zooms and jarring shifts from slow-motion to fast-motion to regular speed). Boo-urns. *1/2

Letters from Iwo Jima

LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA (2006) - Feb. 26, 2007
About the battle of Iwo Jima, this time from the Japanese point of view, this was a really well made but slow-paced film. The performances were all really good, and Clint Eastwood's direction was what you'd expect (very good). There were some scenes that were quite powerful, but overall I think Flags of our Fathers was the slightly superior film (and I didn't notice all that much overlap, but it would be interesting to watch the two movies back-to-back). ***

The Queen

THE QUEEN (2006) - Feb. 26, 2007
This was actually better than I thought it would be -- more than just a showcase for Hellen Mirren's performance (which was exceptional), this was a very good character study and a film I've found myself thinking of quite a bit since I watched it yesterday. Mirren is certainly deserving of all the accolades; she gives a really subtle, moving performance. It's probably one of the best I've seen in a while. The other actors, though not quite up to her level, were excellent as well. Michael Sheen in particular, as Tony Blair, gave a really good performance. It was also very well written and directed. ***1/2

To Live

TO LIVE (1994) - Feb. 24, 2007 (Second Viewing)
About the Chinese revolution as seen through the eyes of a working-class family, this is a really well made film by Zhang Yimou. It features some really excellent performances from both You Ge and Gong Li, though it's Li who really stands out, giving a truly phenomenal performance. Yimou's direction is of course, superlative. This is a really great film; it's moving and powerful and one of Yimou's best. ****

The Best and Worst movies of 2006

THE BEST:
10. The Proposition
9. The Descent
8. Little Children
7. The Fountain
6. Brick
5. Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles
4. Superman Returns
3. Little Miss Sunshine
2. Marie Antoinette
1. Children of Men

THE WORST
10. Miami Vice
9. Pulse
8. Poseidon
7. You, Me and Dupree
6. Invincible
5. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
4. The Benchwarmers
3. Silent Hill
2. The Hamster Cage
1. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning

Little Children

LITTLE CHILDREN (2006) - Feb. 21, 2007
About a man and a woman who begin having an affair, this was a very good film. Impeccably directed by Todd Field, the film was almost always a pleasure to look at. It was also really well written, and featured some excellent performances (Kate Winslet
deservedly got an Oscar nomination; Patrick Wilson probably should have got one as well). Good stuff. ***1/2

Ghost Rider

GHOST RIDER (2007) - Feb. 15, 2007
Cheesy. I think that's the best word to describe this movie. It wasn't particularly good or bad, nor was it ever outright boring, it was just cheesy. The dialogue was cheesy, the bad guys were cheesy, the special effects were cheesy (that flaming skull may look okay on the printed page, but on screen it just looks ridiculous)... Cheesy cheesy cheesy. **

The Hamster Cage

THE HAMSTER CAGE (2006) - Feb. 13, 2007
Oh the humanity! I haven't seen a film this bad in a long, long time. Sweet Jesus was it bad. I honestly cannot think of a single redeeming thing about this big, steaming, fly-infested pile of rhinoceros poop. This was a thoroughly unpleasant film filled to the brim with unlikable, broadly-drawn "characters" (and I use the word "character" very very lightly). It was badly acted (though to be fair, even the finest of actors couldn't do much with this material), blandly directed, atrociously written (I don't think there was a single line of dialogue that seemed like something a real human being would say, nor was there a single action performed by any of the characters that seemed authentic)... My God. It was just so bad, and so annoying. Every single moment of it felt contrived and phony; it almost felt like it was written and directed by some kind of creature from outer space, someone who had a limited amount of contact with humans and thus had only the most vague idea of how people really act and talk. I absolutely, positively hated this movie. No, I despised this movie. Is there a word stronger than despised? ZERO STARS

Hannibal Rising

HANNIBAL RISING (2007) - Feb. 10, 2007
I think I first suspected that this wasn't going to be a good movie when the bad guy -- I guess to make sure that the audience wasn't confused about how truly evil he was -- took a big, enthusiastic bite out of a dead bird, feathers and all. The clincher came at the moment when Hannibal Lecter put on a mask that bore more than a passing resemblance to the one he famously wore in Silence of the Lambs. You could just see the director furiously winking at the audience, "hey, remember how good Silence of the Lambs was??" This was a bad movie, witlessly directed by Peter Webber, and written without an ounce of subtlety by Thomas Harris. Everything about this movie was just so over-the-top, from the raw bird-eating bad guy to Hannibal himself. It probably didn't help that Gaspard Ulliel sneered his way through the entire film, giving a performance that can best be described as one-note (and that doesn't even begin to hint at the depth that Anthony Hopkins brought to the part). The film was also quite slow-paced, and I'm really not sure why -- it certainly wasn't to develop the characters, as they were about as fleshed out as the people in a straight-to-video slasher film. Blech. *1/2

Music and Lyrics

MUSIC AND LYRICS (2007) - Feb. 7, 2007
Meh. About a has-been '80s pop star who enlists the help of a spunky author when a popular singer asks him to write a song; they, of course, fall in love, have a fight, and then kiss and make up just in time for the end credits. Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore are both old pros in the genre and were expectedly charming. The film was competently made, it just wasn't all that interesting. It probably didn't help that pretty much every section of the film felt like it could use some trimming. So yeah, like I said: meh. **1/2

Children of Men

CHILDREN OF MEN (2006) - Feb. 7, 2007 (Second Viewing)
Awesome. Super mega awesome. This was just as good the second time as it was the first. Maybe better even. Everything about it is great: the direction (Alfonso Cuarón's use of long takes is absolutely stunning), the script, the cinematography, the acting (Clive Owen was robbed of an Oscar nomination)... It's completely riveting throughout. It really is rare that you get to see a film this good, one that reminds you what a truly great film is capable of. ****

Pan's Labyrinth

PAN'S LABYRINTH (2006) - Feb. 3, 2007
Well, that was a bit disappointing. Not that it was bad, but it wasn't exactly the movie of the year that some people are making it out to be. About a little girl in post-war Spain whose mother marries a brutal general, and who concocts elaborate fantasies to escape from the horrors around her. This was definitely a well made film; Guillermo del Toro's visuals were quite imaginative, and the whole movie looked really nice. It was also well acted and all that jazz, but I just never found myself all that drawn into the story. Good but not great. ***

Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse

HEARTS OF DARKNESS: A FILMMAKER'S APOCALYPSE (1991) - Feb. 2, 2007
An interesting documentary about Francis Ford Coppola's struggles in making Apocalypse Now. I really wish I had seen the movie before I saw this, as I'm sure I would have appreciated it more (plus the movie has essentially been spoiled for me). Oh well. It was still an interesting documentary. ***

Eyes Wide Shut

EYES WIDE SHUT (1999) - Jan. 31, 2007
Stanley Kubrick's last film, about a man who has one very strange night after he finds out that his wife almost cheated on him once. This probably wasn't Kubrick's best film, but even the K-man's worst film is better than most directors' best. I think it goes without saying that the film is visually a knockout. No one can beat Kubrick when it comes to framing and moving the camera, as well as his use of music to accompany the visuals. He also uses the old zoom lens a lot here, and is probably one of the few directors to actually use it really well. The performances are all really good, and even at over two and a half hours the movie doesn't feel long at all. It also seems like the type of film that will improve on repeat viewings, so hopefully I'll get a chance to watch it again soon. ***1/2

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures

STANLEY KUBRICK: A LIFE IN PICTURES (2001) - Jan. 31, 2007
A really interesting documentary about Stanley Kubrick, including his upbringing and all of his movies. It's long, but it needs to be (even at almost two and a half hours, some of his movies don't get quite as much time as you'd like). The film includes a lot of interviews and behind the scenes footage, and is really interesting throughout. ***

Babel

BABEL (2006) - Jan. 27, 2007
I can't help but feel a bit disappointed by this, the third film from director Alejandro González Iñárritu and writer Guillermo Arriaga (and apparently their last). That's not to say it was bad; it was very good. But after the mind-blowingly excellent Amores Perros, and the almost-as-good 21 Grams, a very good movie can't help but be disappointing. Featuring four stories linked by the shooting of an American woman in Morocco, this was a really well made film. The performances were also uniformly excellent. But the movie felt a bit on the long side -- somewhere towards the end, my interest started to wane (at 142 minutes, this was actually around 10 minutes shorter than Amores Perros, and yet it felt longer). Oh well. It was still quite good. ***1/2

The Killer is Loose

THE KILLER IS LOOSE (1956) - Jan. 26, 2007
A surprisingly effective thriller about a cop who accidentally shoots a criminal's wife, and then prepares for the worst when the criminal escapes from prison. Though the film is, for the most part, blandly directed by Budd Boetticher, it still manages to be quite tense in parts. I particularly liked the scene where the escaped criminal stops in at the house of a man he used to know in the army; I also liked the finale. Joseph Cotten was really good as the cop, as was Wendell Corey, who gave a nicely sinister performance as the determined criminal. ***1/2

Smokin' Aces

SMOKIN' ACES (2007) - Jan. 24, 2007
An interesting film from Joe Carnahan, which couldn't be more different from his previous film, the very gritty Narc. About a sleazy mob snitch who winds up with a million dollar bounty on his head, and the chaos that ensues when several hitmen and the FBI all try to get to him at once. The film contains a surfeit of characters, and moves at a really quick pace, rarely dwelling on the same scene for more than a couple of minutes (if that). It works, for the most part, though it does get a tad overwhelming at times. Carnahan's direction was good; it was stylish without ever becoming overbearing, which certainly would have been easy with a film like this. The characters were also developed a bit more than you'd expect out of a film like this. ***

Adventure in Manhattan

ADVENTURE IN MANHATTAN (1936) - Jan. 20, 2007
An enjoyable film about a cocky crime reporter who, while working on solving a string of robberies, winds up falling in love with an actress. It helps that the film has a runtime of 73 minutes, so it ends long before it has a chance to wear out its welcome. Joel McCrea and Jean Arthur were both good in the main roles. This wasn't anything particularly special, but it was enjoyable enough. **1/2

The Five Obstructions

THE FIVE OBSTRUCTIONS (2003) - Jan. 19, 2007
An interesting but somewhat slow-paced documentary about Lars von Trier's efforts to get Jorgen Leth to remake his 1967 short film, "the Perfect Man", five times, each time with different constraints. It's interesting watching Leth trying to solve the problems the various obstructions hold (for the first film, each shot could be no longer than 12 frames). It feels a bit long at times, despite being only 90 minutes, but it was never boring. **1/2

The Hitcher

THE HITCHER (2007) - Jan. 18, 2007
Someone needs to murder Michael Bay. He's a terrible director, and as this film confirms, a terrible producer. He stinks. This movie was competently made, but it was silly and tedious and only sporadically entertaining. About a couple who, while traveling across the country, pick up a hitchhiker who proceeds to terrorize them in increasingly ludicrous ways. The film's one bright spot is Sean Bean, who gives a gleefully sinister performance, and who livens up the movie whenever he's on the screen. That's about it, though. *1/2

Burden of Dreams

BURDEN OF DREAMS (1982) - Jan. 17, 2007
Well, this was certainly different from your average behind-the-scenes documentary; I doubt that much more than half of it was dedicated to the actual making of the film. It was slow-paced and sort of strange; the film was at its best when it focused on all the troubles that the crew encountered while trying to make the film in the middle of a remote jungle. **1/2

Curse of the Golden Flower

CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER (2006) - Jan. 10, 2007
Well, Zhang is one for three with his historical epics (Hero was the only really good one), so now that he's made his trilogy, I hope he goes back to smaller-scale dramas for good. About the power struggles within China's ruling family, this was a really, really good looking movie, but I found myself somewhat detached from the characters and plot. It looked so good, though. I really can't say enough about the visual style of this film. Yimou's direction, as well as the cinematography, are as good as ever, but the movie itself was unfortunately not quite up to that level. ***

A Night at the Museum

A NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM (2006) - Jan. 10, 2007
An innocuous but essentially entertaining film about a man who becomes the night watchman at a museum where everything comes to life after a certain hour. It's pretty much exactly what you'd think it would be. **1/2

Rocky Balboa

ROCKY BALBOA (2006) - Jan 6, 2007
Well, this is pretty much exactly what you'd expect out of the sixth Rocky movie; no more, no less. About Rocky, still mourning the loss of his wife, who strikes up a friendship with a young mother and her son, and who decides that he's got one more fight left in him. Stalone goes perhaps a bit overboard in referencing moments from the previous movies, and at times the film feels more like a series of "Hey! Remember this?" moments than an actual movie, particularly towards the beginning. Though Stalone has clearly had one plastic surgery too many and looks a bit creepy, he does manage to give a surprisingly good performance. And the fight at the end was actually quite good and was probably a highlight. **1/2

Children of Men

CHILDREN OF MEN (2006) - Jan. 5, 2007
Wow! This movie just completely knocked me out. I mean, I was looking forward to it, and hoping that it would be good, but... It knocked my socks off. It blew them right off my feet (what does that expression mean, anyway? Where did it come from? Anyway...) About a future where women have been infertile for 18 years, and where London is the last livable city on Earth: a police state on the brink of chaos. This was probably one of the best visions of the future since Blade Runner. Alfonso Cuaron's direction was absolutely perfect; the movie featured some really stunning visuals. The whole film was shot handheld, which gave it an appropriately gritty feel. Under a lesser director, this choice could have sunk the movie, but Cuaron and his cinematographer clearly know what they are doing; their handheld cinematography achieves that spontaneous, cinema verite sort of look without having that ugly jitteriness that plagues most handheld movies (Paul Greengrass being a prime example of this). Movies with this sort of look tend to feel like the director just went out and shot a ton of footage with the intent of sorting it all out in the editing room; that was clearly not the case here. Speaking of which, there were also some really long and really impressive shots in this movie. There was one towards the end, which starts outside a building and ends up in its upper floors, that really blew me away (in fact that whole sequence was incredibly well done, and really powerful). Aside from the visuals, the performances were all really good, particularly Clive Owen (if he doesn't get an Oscar nomination I'll eat my hat). The film was also really well written (despite the fact that there are five credited writers, which is generally a harbinger of bad things to come). This was just a really excellent, powerful and gripping film, one of the best I've seen in a while. ****

The Two Mrs. Carrolls

THE TWO MRS. CARROLLS (1947) - Dec. 20, 2006
About a painter who remarries after his first wife dies suspiciously; after a while his second wife begins to suspect that something isn't quite right. Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck were both really good. I particularly liked the scene where Stanwyck first realizes that something is wrong, and discovers Bogart's most recent painting. The film was well directed, and featured some nicely moody cinematography (which seemed to get moodier as the film progressed). ***

It's a Wonderful World

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD (1939) - Dec. 17, 2006
Another winner in the "lots of stuff happening in a short amount of time" genre, this was an enjoyable film about a private eye, on the run from the cops, trying to figure out who framed his client for murder. He meets a woman on the way, and of course they bicker a lot while falling in love. It's not the freshest story (even for 1939) but it was well made, and of course Jimmy Stewart and Claudette Colbert were both quite good as the couple. ***

Valley of the Kings

VALLEY OF THE KINGS (1954) - Dec. 16, 2006
About an archaeologist who, along with a woman he winds up falling in love with, seeks out a tomb in Egypt that will confirm a story from the Bible. There's quite a bit here that clearly inspired Spielberg when he made Raiders of the Lost Ark (there's even a character named Sallah, which could be a coincidence though I doubt it). It's hard not to compare this to that movie, and obviously it's not nearly as good, but it was still entertaining throughout and contained some good set-pieces (a carriage-chase through the busy streets of Egypt was a highlight). ***

Grand Central Murder

GRAND CENTRAL MURDER (1942) - Dec. 13, 2006
An essentially entertaining though pretty much forgettable film starring Van Heflin. About the murder of an actress, and the gathering of suspects that follows. Much of the film is told in flashback as the various suspects tell their stories. The film was reasonably well made and featured a good performance from Heflin. Thank you, Turner Classic Movies! **1/2

The Killing

THE KILLING (1956) - Dec. 9, 2006
Though not quite as excellent as some of his later masterpieces, this was still an exceptionally good film by Stanley Kubrick. About the planning and execution of a robbery at a race track, this was a really well made and entertaining film. Kubrick's direction was, of course, top notch, and the film featured some really striking high-contrast black and white cinematography. The non-linear narrative worked quite well, and is especially impressive considering when it was made. The performances were also really good; there are few people who can play tough guys as well as Sterling Hayden. ***1/2

Die Hard 2

DIE HARD 2 (1990) - Dec. 8, 2006 (Fourth Viewing? Fifth?)
Why can't they make action movies this good anymore? What's the deal? What's so difficult about it? Though the first one remains the superior film (it would be pretty hard to top that one) this was still a really good sequel. Featuring some really well made and violent action sequences, and a really good performance from Bruce Willis, this is definitely a classic of the action genre. ***1/2

The Pursuit of Happyness

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS (2006) - Dec. 7, 2006
Will Smith gives a really good performance in this otherwise well made but unremarkable film about a man struggling to raise his son and make ends meet while working as an unpaid intern at a stock brokerage. There's nothing wrong with the film, there's just nothing terribly memorable about it (aside from Smith's surprising performance). **1/2

Blood Diamond

BLOOD DIAMOND (2006) - Dec. 4, 2006
About a man who is separated from his family and forced to sift for diamonds, and who subsequently finds a giant diamond and hides it. He's then convinced by a diamond smuggler to dig it up and sell it. The bulk of the movie basically consists of the two men traveling across the country in an attempt to retrieve the diamond, and the many obstacles they encounter on the way. The main problem here is that the movie is seriously overlong, and feels that way for almost the entire running-time of the film. Several scenes feel either too long, or entirely superfluous. It also tends to be a bit on the preachy side (we get it, they've got it bad over there). It's well made and well acted (Djimon Hounsou gives a particularly impressive performance), but yeah, too long and too preachy. **1/2

Superman Returns

SUPERMAN RETURNS (2006) - Dec. 3, 2006 (Second Viewing)
This was a really good superhero movie. It's definitely a very long film, but it didn't really seem overlong this time around... at least not by much. A lot of stuff happens, but I can't really think of anything major that could be cut out. The performances were all really good, particularly Kevin Spacey (as good as Gene Hackman was in the original, he can't touch Spacey, who is absolutely perfect as Lex Luthor). This is a really good looking film; the direction and cinematography are top-notch. There's enough action to keep things moving but not so much that it becomes overwhelming. Good stuff. ***1/2

The Secret Life of Words

THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS (2005) - Dec. 2, 2006
A slow-paced but never boring film about a factory worker who spends her vacation (forced on her by her boss) working as a nurse, caring for a burn victim on an oil rig. She is shy and doesn't talk much, but a friendship slowly forms between them. Sarah Polley and Tim Robbins both gave really excellent performances as the nurse and the burn victim, respectively. Basically a character study, the film works because the performances are so good, and because it's very well made. ***

The Holiday

THE HOLIDAY (2006) - Nov. 30, 2006
Well, I think that may qualify as too much of a good thing (there's a reason why 90 minutes is the standard run-time for a romantic comedy -- much more than that is generally just too much, no matter how well-made it is). This was almost two hours and twenty minutes, and given that it contained two completely separate stories, it basically felt like two different romantic comedies crammed together. It was well made, and certainly well acted, and I was never bored (I mean, there was nothing here we haven't seen a million times before, but I guess you have to expect that out of a movie like this), but jeez... Does a cheesy romantic comedy like this really need to be almost as long as the Godfather? I don't think so. **1/2

Apocalypto

APOCALYPTO (2006) - Nov. 29, 2006
I think I need to see this movie again; I had the misfortune of sitting next to a morbidly obese, miserable excuse for a human being who spent the entire duration of the film alternately breathing so loud he sounded like an asthmatic Darth Vader, and talking - not whispering, but talking - to the person next to him. So I basically spent the entire movie in varying degrees of annoyance. Which is really too bad, because the movie seemed pretty good; I've actually been thinking about it quite a bit since I saw it. Well anyway, I'll hopefully see it again and then I'll know for sure what I thought of it. ***

Suspicion

SUSPICION (1941) - Nov. 26, 2006
An enjoyable and expectedly well-made film by Alfred Hitchcock about a woman who marries a man and then slowly realizes that he's not who he seems to be. Cary Grant was quite good as the man whose motives may or may not be sinister, as was Joan Fontaine as his wife. Though the original ending clearly would have been better, it was still quite good. ***

Slither

SLITHER (2006) - Nov. 25, 2006
An entertaining horror comedy about a meteor that crash lands in a small town, and the trouble that ensues when an alien infects one of its residents. James Gunn, who wrote and directed this movie, and who also wrote the very mediocre Dawn of the Dead remake, did a much better job here; the movie is silly but enjoyable throughout. The film features some pretty good and very over-the-top gore, and is at times a monster movie and at times a zombie movie of sorts. The performances were good -- Gregg Henry was a scene-stealer as the town's sleazy mayor, and Nathan Fillion was his usual charismatic self as the hapless sheriff. Mark my words: within five years he'll be a big star. ***

Deja Vu

DEJA VU (2006) - Nov. 20, 2006
Well it's pretty hard to go wrong with a movie involving time travel, and this is no exception. About an ATF agent who, while investigating a ferry explosion, is given access to technology that enables him to see four days into the past, and to even travel there himself. Tony Scott has wisely chosen to tone down the way over-the-top style he adopted for his last couple of films, which makes this movie far more enjoyable than it would have been otherwise (as much as I liked Man on Fire, it could have been so much better if it weren't for Scott's overbearing and overwhelmingly distracting visual style). As for the performances, there are few actors out there more charismatic than Denzel Washington, who is at his best here (and who needs to act more). The film is maybe slightly overlong, but aside from that it was quite enjoyable. ***

The Black Dahlia

THE BLACK DAHLIA (2006) - Nov. 18, 2006
A somewhat mediocre film by Brian De Palma. De Palma's direction was probably the highlight, as the film was filled with his usual stylistic quirks. At the same time it almost felt like he was on autopilot, like De Palma-by-numbers. The film's plot was ridiculously convoluted, featuring so many subplots and twists that when the credits rolled I was left scratching my head, wondering what I had just seen. The performances were mostly okay; Aaron Eckhart was good, but Josh Hartnett was blander than usual, if that's even possible. Hilary Swank gave a good performance, and seemed to be the only one trying to affect a '40s accent, though I can't say I buy her as any sort of seductress (she looks as mannish as ever in the film). The film was very long, and while I was basically entertained the whole time, a shorter, less convoluted movie would have been nice. **1/2

I was a Male War Bride

I WAS A MALE WAR BRIDE (1949) - Nov. 17, 2006
A mostly entertaining though somewhat disappointing film starring Cary Grant about a couple of Army officers, one American and one French, who go on a mission and fall in love in the process. They decide to get married, but the only way they can move to America together is if Grant registers as a war bride. Wackiness sort of ensues, but not as much as you'd think. For one thing, all the war bride stuff doesn't even happen until the last twenty minutes or so, and Grant isn't forced to pretend he's a woman until the last five. It's almost like two movies in one: there's the first hour or so, in which the bickering couple slowly fall in love and finally decide to get married. This is the point where the usual romantic comedy would end. Then there's all the stuff with the couple trying to figure out how they can be together, and trying to get their paperwork in order (much of this section deals with the couple trying to overcome bureaucratic hurdles; it's not as wacky as it sounds). The whole thing felt overlong at an hour and forty minutes, particularly the latter half (one example of this is the sequence in which Grant tries to find a place to sleep in an army base, getting rejected everywhere he goes. It's almost ten minutes long and probably didn't need to be longer than two). It's not all bad, though. Cary Grant isn't capable of not being charming or giving a bad performance, so he was obviously quite good. Ann Sheridan was good as well. The film had quite a few funny moments, and was generally entertaining. It's just, all things considered, I was expecting more. **1/2

The Fountain

THE FOUNTAIN (2006) - Nov. 15, 2006
Well, that was surprising. After the unpleasant and over-the-top Requiem for a Dream, I didn't think Darren Aronofsky had a movie this good in him, but, well, here it is. Featuring a complex narrative which interweaves three stories in three different time periods, all starring Hugh Jackman. The bulk of the film stars Jackman as a doctor struggling to find a cure for his wife's cancer, but then there is also a story about Jackman as a Spanish Conquistador, and one about Jackman in the future, flying through space in a strange, snow-globe-esque spaceship. The three stories are all linked, though it is not immediately clear how (other than the fact that they all star Jackman and Rachel Weisz); the film is a bit puzzling, particularly the first half, but never in a bad way. It all comes together by the end in a way that is satisfying, if not entirely clear (this is a movie which makes you think, which is not a bad thing). It's all anchored by a really phenomenal performance by Jackman, which is particularly impressive seeing that he plays three characters who are all very different and yet the same. The film is really well directed by Aronofsky, who deftly weaves the three stories together, and features some really stunning cinematography by Matthew Libatique. The ending goes on for maybe a tad longer than it should, but that's a really minor complaint for an otherwise really intriguing, well-made film. ***1/2