dibot Blog

Under discussion:

Saturday Night and Sunday Morning  (1961)

Beast of Bray Road  (2005)

Australia  (2008)

Twilight  (2008)

Recount  (2008)

Australia. Wow. It's three hours. It's an experience. I ended up liking it, but the first 45 minutes were so much like Tideland that I threw up a little in my mouth. And, at first, the child's voice-over drove me crazy. I fought through it, and was rewarded with a shirtless Hugh Jackman ("Deception") and some really gorgeous scenery. The film is definitely too long, and I had to remind myself that Nicole Kidman ("The Golden Compass") really can act. She spends the better part of the film running around with her mouth hanging open like Bella in Twilight. I did end up involved in the story, but the film was a bit of a let down. I've seen Baz Luhrmann ("Moulin Rouge") do better.

Thank you Sci-Fi Channel for The Beast of Bray Road. Based on actual werewolf sightings in Wisconsin, the story follows a new sheriff as he tries to catch the beast terrifying his small town. It's cheesy and ridiculous and I loved pretty much every minute of it. The acting is okay, but the actors seem to be giving it their all. This is a fun one for a rainy afternoon.

So, this podcast I love, filmspotting, is planning an Angry Young Men marathon, and I'm trying to get ahead of the game. But two movies in, I am not digging it. Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is about this factory worker who is having an affair with a married woman, trying to woo a pretty young woman and also drinking as much as he can. He's kind of a jerk. Albert Finney ("Before the Devil Knows You're Dead") is amazing in the lead. Watching him was pretty much the highlight of the film. I think I just don't like mean people. So, I respect the film for it's portrayal of his bleak existence, but I'd never watch it again.

Ah, Twilight, how do I love thee. I think director Catherine Hardwicke ("The Nativity Story") handled Twilight pretty well. It is a freaking long book cut down to a two hour movie. The film focuses on the love story, which is most of what the book is about. Robert Pattinson ("The Summer House") is super hot as Edward. And Kristen Stewart ("Jumper") is super serious as Bella. They both run around with their mouths open a little two much, but maybe they had colds or something. Anyway, the look and feel of the movie is right on, very gray and cloudy. I had a lot of fun watching this, and I hope the series finds it's legs with the next entry.

I caught Recount on HBO while I was in a hotel one day. And I found myself riveted. It's a chronicle of the weeks after the 2000 presidential election, and, for something that could be so dry, it's surprisingly engaging. There are more names than you can shake a stick at in this film, but Kevin Spacey ("21") really sticks out and made me remember why I think he's a good actor. Though definitely biased in favor of the Democrats, this is an interesting look at how politicians and lawyers run things.

Under discussion:

The Day the Earth Stood Still  (1951)

The Strangers  (2008)

The Deaths of Ian Stone  (2007)

Forgetting Sarah Marshall  (2008)

Strangers  (2008)

For some reason, I thought The Fall was a foreign film. It's not. It's just a beautiful, tragic story of a little girl in the hospital and a young man who tells her stories while they heal. Only it's way more. It broke my heart. I cried and laughed and enjoyed the visual delight of the stories. See it.

A classic sci-fi film, The Day the Earth Stood Still, is about to get the remake treatment. This version has a polite, well-dressed alien in the form of Michael Rennie ("Assignment Terror"), trying to save the Earth from itself. The movie gives an interesting look at how an outsider might see our world. It also shows how humans are easily led to distrust what they don't understand, outsiders of nay sort. I hope the remake can capture at least some of this.

I really loved Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Jason Segel ("Knocked Up") stars as a musician who's actress girlfriend dumps him. Then he goes to Hawaii to try to get over her, only she's there, too. It's sweet sometimes and seems like a real relationship. But it's also hilarious. Often with the main people, but the side characters are all memorable and funny as well. And the mock CSI is brilliant. Can't wait to see this again.

Writer/director Bryan Bertino's feature debut The Strangers The Strangers (2008)is a mesmerizing nightmare. A couple find themselves in a remote cabin tormented by three masked strangers. Liv Tyler ("The Incredible Hulk") and Scott Speedman ("Adoration") are really the only two with any screen time, and they are totally believable. The colors of the film are great, warm and dark. The atmosphere is creepy and leads us in slowly so that we buy into the terror on screen. I can't wait to see more from Bertino.

An After Dark Horrorfest movie, The Deaths of Ian Stone is one of their better offerings. Mike Vogel ("Caffeine") stars as a young man who wakes every day in a slightly different life, only to be hunted down and killed by mysterious clawed shadow creatures. The effects are quite good. And I enjoyed the mythology and slow build to the reveal of why this is happening to Vogel.

Under discussion:

Look Back in Anger  (1958)

Safe Men  (1998)

Day Watch  (2007)

The Haunting of Molly Hartley  (2008)

The Haunting of Molly Hartley seems to be getting terrible reviews, but I enjoyed it. The story revolves around a girl whose parents sold her soul to the devil when she was a baby. On her 18th birthday, she'll become evil. But then the mom has second thoughts and tries to kill her. The story starts slow and just builds and builds on the creep factor. A couple of scenes stuck in min mind long after the movie ended. However, the climax is pretty rushed, especially coming after all that build up. The end of the story is very satisfying. Plus, the film has prep school and secret societies. Two of my favorite movie themes. Definitely worth a rental.

I didn't know anything about House until it was time to watch it, at which point, someone mentioned it was a Christian-based horror movie. So I spent much of my time trying to puzzle that out. I wish I hadn't known going in. In fact, I probably shouldn't be mentioning it here, but it does help the end make a little more sense. Anyway, besides the end, the movie is not much different than any other horror movie. Two couples take refugee from the rain in a creepy inn where the owners are weird, to say the least. Then they get trapped inside, and all their seedy secrets are revealed. The editing is ridiculous and the acting terrible. I wish I could say this is a good movie, jut it's just not.

Based on a play, Look Back in Anger has Richard Burton ("1984") snarling and yelling all over the place. I can't say I really understood all the character motivations. Burton lives with his wife and a roommate in a small London flat, and then the wife leaves because she can't take the emotional abuse, and Burton takes up with her friend who he seemed to hate before. It's not visually exciting, but Burton is so good it's almost impossible to look away as his eyes burn through the screen.

Safe Men is a consistently amusing comedy starring four greats: Sam Rockwell ("Choke"), Steve Zahn ("Strange Wilderness"), Mark Ruffalo ("Blindness") and Paul Giamatti ("Fred Claus"). Rockwell and Zahn are performance artists who get mistaken for master safe crackers. Hilarity ensues. Some of the movie is laugh out loud funny, but all of it is entertaining. Check this one out.

Day Watch is the sequel to the Russian hit, Night Watch. The story picks up pretty much where the other left off - a group of good super naturals and a group of bad super naturals try to maintain the ancient balance of power. Only one group is ready to tip the scales. The visuals are again fabulous, ant the mythology interesting. I don't know if I liked it better than Night Watch, but it's definitely a good follow up. It could also stand on it's own. I'm anxious for the third installment.