prometheus review

this is just a brief review, mainly because i don't want to spoil the movie for anyone. so,we want to see prometheus today. i'm probably blogging about it too soon, because i'm still digesting the film. what i will say is that i liked the film. i'm not sure why people think it's going to be scary, because i didn't find that to be the case at all. really, i didn't even think that it was all that suspenseful either. it's an interesting story, to me, and i like how it was told. but what's got me wondering is why david does many of his actions. his actions seem malicious at times, and this doesn't make sense to me.

red state review

months back, i remember hearing about kevin smith making a new film, and it was definitely floating under the radar.  it was called red state. it wasn't getting a ton of press, although it seemed to have buzz from the film festivals. i saw smith on talk shows, and he was pretty vague about what the movie exactly was.  he was asked about the political connection to the title, and he sorta played it down, and played up how this movie was sort of a horror film.  outside of those initial press junkets, i didn't hear much about the actual movie.

flash forward a few months, and the movie has had some limited release, and i'm pretty interested to see it.  today, netflix announced that red state was now streaming and so i popped it in our instant queue.  we decided to watch it tonight.

now, i'm not going to tell you much about the movie, because it seems that smith has worked to keep it sort of a secret, and i'll respect that and not put out a lot of detail in this review.  if you want to talk specifics in the comments here, i'm game.

here's what i will say: this movie is not compelling at all.  i didn't find it that well made.  i barely even found it interesting.  i kept waiting and waiting for the movie to take me somewhere different, and it never did.  maybe i'm expecting too much of kevin smith.  for the life of me, i can't figure out why this movie is being billed as a horror film.  it's not eery, it's not frightening, the only horror is that the scenario of the film could be real.  and heather pointed out how much you ham-fistedly coming through a few characters at the end of the film.  real novice level writing there.

watch this film if you want.  just don't invite me over.

true grit review

tonight, we went and saw true grit. and, i've got more to say then in my last review, mainly because i was blown away by black swan, and true grit...well, didn't have the same effect.

overall, i enjoyed the movie. i think the actors all do a fine job, and i liked matt damon's quirkiness. and, some of the bit characters, the background people were really intriguing to me. the movie is also beautifully shot, although the snow seemed very cgi to me, and it bugged me.

two things surprised me: 1. josh brolin is in the movie a lot less than i expected. i haven't seen the original, so i didn't know how big or little that role is. the billing and commercials made me think it was a bigger role than it was. this isn't a bad or good thing, just and observation.
2. for being a coen brothers film, this was a pretty straight take. yes, there are a few strange bits, but overall it was pretty much a normal movie. i'm fine with them breaking their mold, but i guess i just expected something more dark or bizarre from them.

again, overall i think the movie was good and you should see it. you could probably wait for video if you're inclined.

black swan review

my take on black swan: wow. amazing movie. extremely well made. beautiful art.

weekend recap: inception & cyrus

this weekend was hot. so, we went to some movies. friday, we went and saw inception. it was really good. the visuals of the movie are stunning, and i found the plot to be interesting, as well as different than your usual hollywood stuff. i'd recommend seeing it, and i'm sure i'll go see it again. i also recommend seeing it on the big screen, just so you can take in the effect of the movie in a larger than life setting.

saturday was movieless.

sunday, brought more heat, and so we looked to escape to another movie. i hadn't heard much about the movie cyrus, other than it was get mixed reviews. the synopsis online was intriguing, and strange. so, off we went.

now, i will say that i enjoyed the film. john c. riley is a good actor, and he has a quirky sensibility about him. you don't expect him as a leading man, or as a love interest, and i think he pulled it off well enough. sorta. it's still a bit difficult to see john c. riley as a love interest, but in this quirky role i can move past it. and jonah hill and marisa tomei both play their respective roles well. cyrus wasn't a great film, and you could see it on video, but it's worth seeing.

bedtime stories review

so, this evening we went to see bedtime stories. now, i don't usually go to kid's movies, but we went with my brother and sister-inlaw and their kids (10, 7, 4).

honestly, i thought i might go nuts. you see, i don't have kids. and, i don't go to kid movies (as i already stated). i hate it when i go see an adult movie and there are screaming, squirming kids in there. this movie was made for them. fortunately, there weren't too many people in the theater other than us. a few other kids, but not too bad after the movie got started.

overall, i found the movie to be enjoyable. it was light-hearted and fun. it was also pretty cool how the stories sandler's character came to "life." yes, it was pretty transparent as to what would happen but it was enjoyable.

and, for a kid movie, i didn't think there was anything inappropriate or really questionable.