Heat (1995) - 3.5/5

Heat (1995)

Great acting and 'big' idea movie. The action is subtle and the relationships all around are tense.

I kept finding myself not knowing what I wanted to happen.

SPOILERS

Neil is ultimately able to walk away when he feels the heat, but it's not to save his own skin, but Eady's. It's a powerful statement on various levels.

However, it was unwise of him to make the side trip to risk it all. Not smart. And he sd have known that pulling the fire alarm wd attract a lot of attention. In some cases, that wd be fine (and the script called for it), but he sd have known the 'heat' wd come down.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006) - 3/5

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

I liked this movie, but I felt it was a bit thin.

SPOILERS

Each character has their own 'rejection':
the father: business
the grandfather: the retirement home, life and himself
the mother: her family
the son: society and eventually the Air Force Academy
the uncle: his boyfriend, society and himself
the daughter: potential rejection from others/society

They all feel that rejection and hate it and/or fight it. They all want to protect the daughter from the same, but realize (as in the Proust speech by the uncle) that it's the rejection that makes things great.

So they don't protect the daughter from rejection, but embrace their own rejection and join her in her's.

Good story, but an exaggerated and clumsy way to get there IMO. Still a decent movie.

Titanic (1997) - 4/5

Titanic (1997)

Good characters and good action/intensity.

The 'running through every hallway on every deck of the boat' during the second half got a little crazy, but the intensity was always there really.

It's probably b/c I'm getting older, but I'm having a harder and harder time w/ a couple of the cliche type ideas in movies like this:
- poor people are good, honest, fun and nice and rich people are evil.
- two people can meet, have feelings and fall in love and we sd want them to be together and it believe it's right w/in a couple hours to the extent that they are willing to give up everything and even die for one another.

This movie has flaws, but it's good.

Rocky Balboa (2006) - 4/5

Rocky Balboa (2006)

Given the history, they did a great job. It was quite a trip down memory lane for a lot of the story and I liked that.

I didn't think the 'goal' was as defined as I had liked. In the end, I was convinced it was a 'happy ending', but I wasn't exactly sure why.

SPOILERS

Rocky seemed to have issues w/ 'going toe-to-toe' and 'having a beast in the basement' and such that he needed to deal w/. I just didn't feel that it was clear that the fight wd deal w/ these things.

Also, they didn't deal w/ the whole issue of Rocky's eye problem and such that casued so many problems w/ him boxing in the past. I didn't mind at all that it was ignored.

Some Like It Hot (1959) - 3.5/5

Some Like It Hot (1959)

Another classic. Funny and original - still not copied much that I know of (not to the extent or as often as I wd expect given how good this movie is).

The story moves along well, but doesn't leave the characters behind.

Desk Set (1957) - 3/5

Desk Set (1957)

Good classic type movie. Good performances and interesting situations that still hold true today in a fashion.

The characters and time are great. Fun to watch.

Hepburn steal the show.

A note about my rating scale...

UPDATED (1.5.07): I wanted to change the slant of my ratings to be more like "how much I like this movie" as opposed to anything about a recommendation...

0-2 = Not worth seeing and probably not worth making notes for.
2.5 = I don't regret watching it, but I wdn't say it's worth your time.
3 = Pretty good, but there's still better stuff to watch.
3.5 = Decent movie. Might see it again.
4 = Good movie. I'd probably see it again. I like it.
4.5 = Really good, little things can't prevent a 5 so this cd be great.
5 = Dang!

Of course, the ratings are relative to what I'd expect/want from the movie. So while "Napoleon Dynamite" isn't the piece of film art that "Schindler's List" is, I can still give it just as good of a rating.

I don't have a checklist or equation to come up w/ the rating so one day I might give a movie a 3 where the next day I wd have given it a 4. I'm swayed by mood and who-knows-what. So my ratings might seem strange or inconsistent at times??? I guess I cd review them later and change my mind, but I don't intend to.

I wd change to 1-10, but it's too late now. That wd make searches easier since as of now if you search for "5/5" you'll also find "1.5/5" and the other "x.5/5" movies. Oh, well.

Deja Vu (2006) - 3.5/5

Deja Vu (2006)

A fun, intense thriller w/ some sci-fi thrown in there. You can't think too much during this, but there's no need to. It keeps things moving and intense most of the time. Just go along w/ the premise of everything and you'll be fine.

It's fairly dark too, but you secure w/ Doug Carlin taking command.

I think this movie was well done all around for the most part. I think the best part though is the maintained level of intensity for so long.

Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982) - 3.5/5

Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

Such a perfect continuation of the show as far as the story goes. The whole theme of Kirk getting old wasn't too helpful to me, but I believe the movie certainly needed more than just an extended ST episode story.

I think I appreciated it more now than in past years. I liked the tie-in's from "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... or the one." But also the ideas of ego from where Spock insists Kirk take command and that he has no ego to bruise. As opposed to Khan which had so much ego he it eventually cost him his life and the lives of those around him.

A lot of it is dated, but that's a given.

Also, Shatner's acting is... ya know.

It's clearly made in the early '80's so take that into consideration. :)

Click (2006/I) - 4.5/5

Click (2006/I)

This is a very touching and moving movie to me. Maybe b/c it's an idea that's close to my heart of not wanting to waste a minute (though I don't consider staring at the wall or other such 'unproductive' activities necessarily a waste if done properly and chosen for purpose).

It's powerful for me to see someone miss out on such important things as your kids lives.

I think they do a great job of building the story and intensity and consequences of his choices throughout the movie.

SPOILERS:

I felt the end was really powerful. I'd hoped he wd have said to his son either at his wedding or later at the hospital "You're fired." to make a point.

Also, I felt the ending after the 'reveal' was too long - I felt it lost the emotional steam it built up from earlier. I think they sd have just had him go home, grab his family and tell them he quit his job or something. No need for details really. I guess they felt they needed to lighten the mood at the end, but I wish I had been left/dropped w/ the feeling before he woke up. And the remote from Morty at the end wasn't necessary either.

Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) - 3.5/5

Joe Versus the Volcano (1990)

Such a fun movie and it really shows Hanks and his 'fun' best to me. He's great in "Forrest Gump" of course, but this, to me, is when he really settled in to a great style.

Meg Ryan is great too in all her roles in this.

I love this...

Luggage Salesman: This is our premier steamer trunk, it's all handmade, only the finest materials. It's even watertight, tight as a drum. If I had the need, and the wherewithal, Mr. Banks, this would be my trunk of choice.
Joe Banks: I'll take four of them.
Luggage Salesman: May you live to be a thousand years old, sir.

Reservoir Dogs (1992) - 4/5

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

A great movie that started a great trend and career of Quentin Tarantino.

I'm still left w/ the question of: Who shot Nice Guy Eddie Cabot?

If you haven't seen it and that's a spoiler, you probably aren't going to see it.

The Da Vinci Code (2006) - 2/5

The Da Vinci Code (2006)

Thin acting and a tough adaptation from the book. The theology is garbage, but the book does a decent job of making it a fun read. The movie only has time for the 'story' and such so it loses a lot.

A disappointment from Hanks and Howard.

Strangers with Candy (2005) - 1.5/5

Strangers with Candy (2005)

Pretty funny show, but weak movie. The story was very thin (at least on the show the overall story had a pretty funny premise).

It just felt like a 20 min show stretched over 90 mins w/ little more to it.

Kicking & Screaming (2005) - 2/5

Kicking & Screaming (2005)

Pretty much a let-down. Will Farrell is one of the funniest people IMO. However, playing a less silly character is harder for him to pull off. The silliness doesn't play as well and there isn't much else.

The story was predictable as you wd... predict, but I expected that.

There was a few good spots, but overall it's not worth it.

Over the Hedge (2006) - 4/5

Over the Hedge (2006)

Very cute and funny animated movie. A fairly moral and not too over-the-top environmental message too.

We're getting farther and farther away from a Disney-only animated movie world and starting to see more and more styles. I think "The Incredibles" might have been the biggest leap up to it's time.

Now we're seeing that type of jump in the animal animation world.

Anyway, this is pretty funny, very cute and quite clever in a lot of ways.

NOTE: This was the first movie my son ever watched w/ us. We hadn't tried before and were surprised he sat thru the whole thing.

Monster House (2006) - 3.5/5

Monster House (2006)

Good animation and very modern, technical technique. The story isn't the greatest, but that's not the point IMO. The kids are really good and funny characters.

They are CGI'ed over live-action acting which has to get a new name for that type of animation probably. It makes the action look more 'real' which isn't always the goal of course.

SPOILER:

Unfortunately I sorta guessed that Nebbercracker was trying to protect the kids, but I didn't know why. The idea that the woman was somehow joined to the house after she dies was a bit weak to me, but no biggie.

Miller's Crossing (1990) - 4.5/5

Miller's Crossing (1990)

Probably my favorite Cohen Brothers movie. The dialogue is so crazy rich I cd just read the thing. I use subtitles to make sure I don't miss anything and it's worth it.

The acting is right on and the camera work is pratically perfection.

This is a piece of art on film.

NOTE: My uncle is an extra in this movie. My dad has seen him in it, but I haven't. I usually forget to look for him. Apparently they pulled him out of the crowd to do a bit more in some scene that was later cut.

Casino Royale (1967) - 1.5/5

Casino Royale (1967)

Weak. Not a good spy movie and not a good spoof. Maybe in '67 it was better, but by today's standards, it doesn't hold up.

I'd seen it about 10 years ago, but didn't remember much.

Not much to say - don't bother.

Casino Royale (2006) - 3.5/5

Casino Royale (2006)

I felt the mood/feel of this movie was great: dark and tense. However, I felt the story was a bit thin and the action a bit small-scale.

I really wanted to like this one a lot and thought it had a lot going for it, but also some faults too.

The characters were pretty good, but...

SPOILERS:

Action - I felt it was too localized. The first action sequence of him chasing that guy. Who was he? Why did he want him? What was the point? I wasn't that tied into the action b/c I didn't know what the goal was and why. I felt most of the action was this way.

Characters - They were pretty good, but it always bothers me when they play cat-and-mouse w/ the villian. He's the bad guy, no she is, no this other guy new to the whole story is, wait...