Block Party (2005) - 2/5

Block Party (2005)

I had high hopes for this movie w/ Dave making some good observations and being open minded and showing others doing the same.

The 'Broken Angel' couple is probably the highlight of the movie but it has little to do w/ anything else Dave did or intended.

The concert brought everything back down to a disappointing level.

The Thin Red Line (1998) - 3.5/5

The Thin Red Line (1998)

I actually watched this a while back and just realized I hadn't blogged about it. It's not too fresh in my mind now though.

It's a very powerful movie: strong images and characters.

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) - 3/5

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

The companion movie to "Flags of Our Fathers" - very similar in some ways and, of course, very different. Again, great film processing.

I didn't feel the connection too strongly. Saigo was a great character though.

I think this is probably a better film than I'm thinking - I think I'm just a bit burned out on the war/battle movies at the moment.

Muppets from Space (1999) - 1.5/5

Muppets from Space (1999)

Maybe my standards for these movies are too high... though the first one was really good.

Thin in most respects.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005) - 3/5

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

The action was pretty good and the battles wd have been incredible if I cd have prevented myself from comparing them to LOTR.

The story was good, but I didn't buy into it all 100% as far as a love story or his commitment to his family, people, religion, etc.

Mostly I think Orlando Bloom just cdn't pull it off IMO.

Rush Hour 3 (2007) - 1.5/5

Rush Hour 3 (2007)

Same jokes as the last two and probably worse action/fights. It felt formulaic and forced and the action felt a lot like Hong Kong action.

Flags of Our Fathers (2006) - 3.5/5

Flags of Our Fathers (2006)

Good story and action. The film processing they used was great as it gave the color tone a great feel for the battle scenes.

It's tough not to compare this movie to others and in some ways it falls a bit short.

Ultimately, this movie had a hard battle to win me over b/c I read the book which was great and the movie can hardly compare.

The Butterfly Effect (2004) - 2.5/5

The Butterfly Effect (2004)

This movie is tough to get a handle on. I watched the director's cut which was recommended to me.

I really liked the idea and story, but it wasn't put together very well. A lot of the directing and writing seemed to come from the mind of a junior high student: pretty cliche, unbelievable and unjustifiable.

SPOILERS

Anything w/ a "time travel" type idea is cool to me so that helps, but that's about all this had: change something in the past and everything changes. Like "Sliding Doors" and other movies that show different possible timelines.

I usually rather a movie not explain the technical stuff b/c that just gives you a chance to disagree. However, in this case: how did reliving thoughts allow him to time travel?

There were so many shots that were just cliche like walking thru the halls of the institution w/ "crazy people" walking around and the different punk/goth students and frat boys, etc. It was just distracting.

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (2005) (V) - 3.5/5

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (2005) (V)

I thought this was a well-done version of a biased documentary. They presented the arguments and didn't really seem to hide their stance (Heck, even the title implies they have something negative towards WalMart).

However, the did it in a classy way so that you want to try to see their side and give their arguments some credit.

I was afraid this movie was going to focus too much on low wages and poor benefits which is hard to blame on WalMart. They're just giving us what we want: low prices at the cost of our economical future and local jobs, etc.

They wd pay a higher wage if fewer people were willing to work there. They wdn't run local businesses out if local residences didn't shop there, etc.

I'm not fan of WalMart and I don't shop there. I don't think their policies (from what I understand) are generally illegal (though they have lost more than their share of law suits on not paying employees for overtime, EPA violations, etc.), but I'd have to say they are somewhat immoral.

The several former WalMart managers they have in the movie describe the practices and many are clearly wrong and illegal. Who's to say they are accurately telling the truth, but if they are...

The biggest thing about this to me is that people shop there thinking they're getting a good deal when really the cost is just coming from somewhere else: higher taxes to pay for subsidies paid to WalMart, lost jobs to overseas factories, lower quality products, larger drain on social programs, etc.

Mystic River (2003) - 3.5/5

Mystic River (2003)

This movie had a lot going for it and it went pretty well for the most part.

If kinda felt like a good attempt to copy a Scorsese movie... almost there, but never got 'big' enough.

The premise was good and the acting was very good. A well made movie that kinda got a little loose at times.

SPOILERS

The twist was cool, but I expected it too much. Laura Linney's speech about "you cd rule this town" - a lot of people seem disappointed w/ this, but I thought it was good.

The shunning of Celeste at the end was out of place to me.

Sean's reconciliation w/ his wife felt a bit forced and fast. I did like, however, the mirrored aspects of his wife's silence and Brendan's brother's silence. Kinda like each of their counterparts had to figure something out to get them to communicate... or something. Not sure it worked, but...???

Gosford Park (2001) - 2.5/5

Gosford Park (2001)

Like "Gangs of New York" - good acting, characters and setting, but nothing I really wound up caring about. They did a good job of really building up the reality of the house/people/servants/etc. That was great, but then they didn't do a ton w/ it.

SPOILERS

The murder just didn't really matter to me. The idea of the "who dunnit" in this setting is clever and original, but maybe not a great result.

The scene w/ the 2 sisters near the end was the best part of the movie, IMO.

The Simpsons Movie (2007) - 2.5/5

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

I was pretty disappointed. The first few mins were great (the "Itchy and Scratchy" cartoon), but there wasn't too much after that for me.

There were funny parts, but like w/ many TV-to-movie cases, it seemed like a drawn out episode w/o proportionally enough gags/jokes/etc.

The animation was technically better than the episodes (though I haven't watch the show in a while) which was fun to see.

Gangs of New York (2002) - 3.5/5

Gangs of New York (2002)

Great acting, characters and setting, but ultimately I didn't really buy into the story from Vallon/Amsterdam's point of view.

It was interesting to see it all w/in the backdrop of the changing America.

SPOILERS

I guess b/c he got so close w/ Bill that I didn't feel the revenge strong enough to really want him to kill him.

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) - 4.5/5

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

I might go back and give this a 5/5??? It's hard to say if it was better than the first b/c not only was "The Bourne Identity" great, but also it was new, fresh and original. This being a sequel kinda discounts some of that.

The story was good, but not as good as the first one to me. However, the action was probably better and I'd say in some cases the best. I feel confident in saying that this movie contains the best fight scene... ever.

Some great car chases too.

Very fun. Very cool. Just a great, great spy/action movie.

SPOILERS

The fight scene I'm talking about is the one in Tangier. I love the dimensions of it that it builds from the bombing to the chases to the fight. It really makes it long w/o drawing it out or getting old - just building in intensity.

Another thing that was pretty cool was that the majority of this movie's story takes place btwn the last two scenes of the previous movie.

This movie starts when Bourne leaves the Russian girls apartment. Then you have most of the movie. Then Bourne calls Landy in this movie near the end which is the last scene of the "Supremacy."

Nothing too big, but kinda cool.

Rescue from Gilligan's Island (1978) (TV) - 1/5

Rescue from Gilligan's Island (1978) (TV)

I thought it wd be funny to watch this after all these years... not so much.

I didn't realize this, but this TV movie was made 11 years after the show went off the air. Also, supposedly it was made as a pilot to another series. Bad idea.

Anyway, it was pretty bad.

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007) - 1/5

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007)

The first 2/3rds was pretty funny and not really offensive. Then it became the opposite: blatant, not funny and offensive.

The Cider House Rules (1999) - 3/5

The Cider House Rules (1999)

Well done and original, but a big heavy handed (not as bad as "Million Dollar Baby" though) about abortion at times.

There's a good story and acting and powerful subjects in here, but it's easy to see what side "they" are on.

SPOILERS

Mr. Rose's speech about the "rules" pretty much gives it all away.

They outrageous, them rules. Who live in this cider house? Who grindin' up those apples, pressin' that cider, cleanin' up all this mess? Who just plain live here, just breathin' in that vinegar? Well, someone who don't live here made those rules. Those rules ain't for us. We are supposed to make our own rules. And we do. Every single day.

Then he has Homer burn the rules... just like the aborted babies including Mr. Rose's baby from his own daughter. Does burning something make it really "go away"?

Consider the possibility that someone who maybe knows more than you wrote those rules.

Ratatouille (2007) - 3.5/5

Ratatouille (2007)

Another great movie all around for what it is: clever, cute, well done and respectable in content and form.

The story doesn't rely on cheap humor or pop-culture so it sd stand up to time. The animation is great, but more importantly the story and characters are strong.

Also, it's clean and non-offensive - that's not a given these days for a "kids movie."

It was a breath or fresh air in a genre that's risking becoming somewhat stale at times.

Out of Africa (1985) - 4/5

Out of Africa (1985)

This is just a good movie. The story is strong, the acting is good (Streep is dead on) and all the extras and minor characters are completely convincing.

Also, it's rather epic: it's a long story that isn't rushed.

I wdn't say it's the most "entertaining" movie, but it's a good story told well.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) - 3.5/5

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)

I'm not the biggest fan of the previous Potter movies, so saying this is my favorite isn't saying too much. But I did really like this one. It is a good story, not too complex and complicated by tangent storylines and characters.

Also, it didn't fall in to the same things that bothered me about the previous movies. The two main ones being: introducing major ideas as commonplace that weren't introduced in previous movies but sd have been if they are commonplace and, the main one, the seemingly bad guy is really a good guy. They just did that too much.

Anyway, this one was complicated enough to enjoy, but not overboard and did pretty much everything else well too.