dibot Blog

Under discussion:

Film Name  Production Year

Ninotchka  (1939)

The Return of the Living Dead  (1985)

Timber Falls  (2007)

I am so, so, so, so, so behind. Still. So, short and hopefully not sucky reviews.

Timber Falls was more than likely playing on the Sci-Fi channel one night and I just couldn't look away. A couple hiking in an unfamiliar area decide to stray from the path and then get kidnapped by some religious fanatic locals. When will people learn? Stay on the path! It's not particularly good, but I've seen worse. And the things the kidnappers want from them are sort of unusual, and thus, entertaining.

Ninotchka stars the lovely Greta Garbo ("Two-Faced Woman") and is supposed to be very funny. I thought it was kind of funny. But Garbo is brilliant as a stern Russian sent to Paris on business who finds herself falling for the man she should hate. Some bits were very good, but overall, I was underwhelmed.

I thought Frost/Nixon was very, very good. One of Ron Howard ("Angels and Demons")'s better films. This is partly due to the excellent performances by both Frank Langella ("The Tale of Despereaux") and Michael Sheen ("Underworld: Rise of the Lycans"), but Howard doesn't try to force things and lets the thing develop on it's own. The last interview is, of course, the best, and it's worth sitting through the entire film for.

The Return of the Living Dead is just a really entertaining zombie movie from 1985. I laughed quite a bit. Besides some zombie dance numbers, and some of the densest characters to grace a screen, we're also given gore, skimpy outfits and bad jokes. A lot of fun.

And then there were Wraiths of Roanoke. I don't know why I'm a sucker for Sci-Fi originals. It's just something we all have to learn to live with. I'm also a sucker for Adrian Paul ("The Heavy"). This movie is really bad. It attempts to explain the lost colony of Roanoke were attacked by Norse spirits. The story is okay, but the effects and pretty much everything else are awful. Poor Adrian Paul.

Under discussion:

Sleeping with the Enemy  (1991)

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past  (2009)

The Spiderwick Chronicles  (2008)

Terminator Salvation  (2009)

The Reader  (2008)

The Reader was my pick for Best Picture last year. I loved the style and the stillness. Kate Winslet ("Revolutionary Road"), David Kross ("Krabat") and Ralph Fiennes ("The Duchess") broke my heart. I had read the book on which this film is based years ago, but can't remember enough to compare. The story follows a young teen who begins an affair with an older woman. Years later, he sees her on trail as a Nazi war criminal. It's thought provoking and thoroughly depressing. I loved it.

Sleeping with the Enemy is one of those quick 90s thrillers we don't see much of now. Julia Roberts ("Duplicity") escapes from an abusive marriage by faking her own death. But then the husband discovers the ruse and comes looking for her. Entertaining but forgettable.

My love for Jennifer Garner ("Juno") and the little bit of charm left to Matthew McConaughey ("Tropic Thunder") after learning he doesn't wear deodorant got me through the mostly routine romantic comedy, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. As my coworker said, it was nice to see the three ghosts used in a non-Christmas fashion. But, though this role calls for that age, McConaughey is getting a little to old to play this romantic comedy role over and over. McConaughey is the consummate bachelor attending his younger brother's wedding where he starts to ruin everything. Garner is the one who got away. Wait to watch this on cable.

I freaking love Christian Bale ("The Dark Knight"). I don't care how many people he cusses out. Terminator Salvation is really more of a platform for Sam Worthington ("Rogue") than Bale, but Bale's still there trying to bring some seriousness to the ridiculous story. Of course, the effects are top notch and the machines look great, but the plot is so thin. And poor Bryce Dallas Howard ("The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond") just spends the whole time staring wide-eyed at the camera, barely speaking. A bit of a waste really. My husband disliked this more than I. He said this film killed the series.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is based on a series of children's books about a family who finds a portal to a magical world. When they move into a new house, Freddie Highmore ("The Golden Compass") finds a book that, when read, opens the gate. Then he must convince his family it's really happening. I got sucking into this film, even while fighting against it. The family tension is believable and the creature effects turn out pretty fantastic. By the end, I couldn't look away. It is a little dark for the PG rating though, so beware of that.

Under discussion:

Fido  (2007)

The Duchess  (2008)

X-Men Origins: Wolverine  (2009)

Obsessed  (2009)

Role Models  (2008)

I got into The Duchess mostly because it looks so beautiful. Kiera Knightly ("Silk") stars as another quirky period heroine. Ralph Fiennes ("The Reader") is cold and serious and just wants a son. The costumes are gorgeous and the landscapes are breathtaking so much so they overshadow the story and characters. Kind of sad really.

Role Models = hilarious. Paul Rudd ("I Love You Man") and Seann William Scott ("The Promotion") are almost outshined by their younger costars - Christopher Mintz-Plasse ("Superbad") and Bobb'e J. Thompson ("Columbus Day") - as they try to bond and put in their community service so as to avoid jail. Of course, they learn and grow along the way. But each step is more amusing than the next. See it.

I was quickly drawn into the colorful quirkiness of Fido. In a future where the dead won't stay dead, a collar has been invented to tame the monsters so they become useful household servants. A long boy befriends his zombie and his entire neighborhood must deal with the consequences. Very entertaining.

If you saw the trailer for Obsessed, you've pretty much seen the whole film. It's average. There is only one mildy surprising event in the film, but I won't spoil that here. A man flirts with a temp at his office and then has to deal with the repercussions of his actions. It's not so bad that it shouldn't be seen. You just shouldn't pay for it. Cable. Wait for cable.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine kind of got a bad rap before it even entered theaters, but I found it thoroughly entertaining. Hugh Jackman ("Australia") gives himself over to the role, making even the cheesy lines work. The audience I saw it with loved him. The effects are good. The fights are good. I've been told the backstory follows the comics fairly well. Just a really fun summer film.

Under discussion:

Newsies  (1992)

Kurt & Courtney  (1998)

He's Just Not That Into You  (2009)

Rachel Getting Married  (2008)

I freaking love Newsies and I don't care who knows it. The love may stem from the fact that I saw it first when I was younger, but it may just be Christian Bale ("The Dark Knight") singing and dancing about. Inspired by actual events, the story follows a group of newsboys as they go on strike when Joseph Pulitzer raises the price of the newspaper. It's still a lot of fun, but some of the choreography is meh and the film is, of course, cheesy. It's Disney after all. But I still love it.

I just got bored watching He's Just Not That Into You. There's no reason for this thing to be 2 1/2 hours long, unless it's trying to live up to the length of the title. A bunch of lessons on relationships, which we should really know already. Though the cast is filled with big names, I enjoyed Justin Long ("Zack and Miri Make a Porno") the most. But he's kind of my favorite actor right now. Maybe watch this when it comes on cable.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona seems like a return to form for writer/director Woody Allen ("Cassandra's Dream"). Two Americans go to Barcelona and get involved with a painter. Then his ex-wife, Penelope Cruz ("Elegy"), turns up to add even more spice to the situation. Cruz just blows up the screen every time she's on, totally deserving her Oscar. She's the best part of the movie. The worst part is the voice-over. But all in all, enjoyable.

Anne Hathaway ("Get Smart") gives an Oscar nominated performance (I'm still catching up on my reviews) in Rachel Getting Married, and she's very impressive. Hathaway stars as a recovering drug addict home for her sister's wedding. The movie is funny, uncomfortable, loving and sometimes painful - just like a real family reunion.

Kurt & Courtney is the infamous documentary that pretty much blames Kurt Cobain's death on Courtney Love. It's a fairly interesting movie, but seems a bit one sided. Love would not be interviewed for the film. Director Nick Broomfield ("Battle for Haditha") has created the perfect film for conspiracy theorists. I enjoyed it, but it's not great.

Under discussion:

Billy Liar  (1963)

The Spiral Staircase  (1946)

Wolf  (1994)

Clear and Present Danger  (1994)

Milk  (2008)

Over 30 reviews behind! This time, I'm blaming Facebook and all it's addictive applications. So the reviews will be short and sometimes sweet, but I'm going to try to catch up a bit today.

Billy Liar was the last of the flimspotting Angry Young Men marathon. A young man with dreams of becoming a screenwriter fantasizes his way through a day of his humdrum existence. Again, though I can respect the quality of the filmmaking, I just did not understand the character motivations. I'm starting to think it's because we don't really have a class system in America and so I can't really grasp the pain of the working class in Britain.

Sean Penn ("All the King's Men") totally deserved the Oscar for his turn in Milk. He transforms into Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to hold elected office. The film doesn't show Milk's entire life, but begins when he moves to San Francisco. And though it focuses on the politics, it's also a bit of a love story, showing how Milk's relationships were affected by his running for office. Very well done film. Moving with lots of food for thought.

The Spiral Staircase is a tense little thriller that relies more on shadows and suspense than jump-out scares. The plot involves a series of murders in which all of the victims have been handicapped in some way. The heroine has lost her voice and we watch her navigate a dark, scary house unable to call for help as the murderer stalks her.

Harrison Ford ("Crossing Over") really is the epitome of action star. In Clear and Present Danger, he plays CIA agent Jack Ryan who must uncover a plot that goes all the way to the presidency. And though much of the time Ford is embroiled in office politics, he makes it look tense. And then it's time to kick butt and he's good at that too. Some of the computer stuff is dated and seems silly now, but for the most part, the film holds up.

I remember really liking Wolf when I saw it upon it's initial release. It's still entertaining, but now dated. Jack Nicholson ("The Bucket List"), who looks the part and I think is the inspiration for Wolverine's make-up in X-Men, stars as an aging editor who's bitten by a wolf and then begins to change. Along the way, he bites a very smarmy James Spader ("Shadow of Fear") and they both inappropriately sniff Michelle Pfeiffer ("Stardust").

Under discussion:

Kung Fu Panda  (2008)

Revolutionary Road  (2008)

Hamlet 2  (2008)

Hotel for Dogs  (2009)

American Teen  (2008)

American Teen is an interesting documentary following a group of kids as they go through their senior year of high school. It doesn't get too in depth on any of the four main kids, but gives enough that I remembered why I'm glad high school is over. Intercut with the teens interviews and clips of them in their daily activities, are cartoons symbolizing their hopes and fears. I enjoyed the movie, but I didn't love it. Some of the scenes felt too scripted to be a real documentary.

Hamlet 2 has several laugh-out-loud moments, most of which come at the expense of Steve Coogan ("Tropic Thunder")'s pride. Coogan stars as a failed writer/actor who now teaches high school drama and must write a great play to save the program from cancellation. No cows are sacred in this movie and that mostly adds to the humor. Sometimes, though, it's too over the top. A funny movie, but not the year's best comedy.

I was really entertained by Kung-Fu Panda. Jack Black ("Tropic Thunder") voices the title character, a dreaming, over-weight panda who is inexplicably chosen to be a kung-fu hero. The film has a good message, if you believe in yourself, you can do anything. And the animation is really good.

Revolutionary Road seemed to get the most press for reuniting Kate Winslet ("The Reader") and Leonardo DiCaprio ("Body of Lies"). They play a married couple in the 50s who realize that their dreams no longer coincide. This is a really depressing movie. The acting is mostly good, except when DiCaprio starts channeling Jack Nicholson for no reason. And just when the film has dragged you down so far, Michael Shannon ("Before the Devil Knows Your Dead") busts in for some much needed shock and humor. It's worth seeing. Just take some anti-depressants first.

Now, Hotel for Dogs, on the other hand, is a super cute story of two orphans who start a home for stray dogs. Pretty much just like the title implies. I thought the story was sweet. But my husband said it was dreadful and that my pregnancy hormones were influencing my reviewing skills. I told him that he better get used to this kind of thing. Because once we have a kid, we're going to be seeing a lot more movies like this.

Under discussion:

Yentl  (1983)

The Invisible  (2007)

Dan in Real Life  (2007)

Headless Horseman  (2007)

The Unborn  (2009)

By now, you know how I feel about creepy kid movies, so it should come as no surprise that I was super pumped for The Unborn. Sadly, it didn't live up to it's trailer or my expectations, but it didn't totally suck either. I enjoyed the premise, a twin who died in the womb haunting the sibling who lived. And then the mythology, maybe this spirit twin is a stronger presence that needs to be exorcised from our world, was also good. But the dialogue and terrible acting just brought me completely out of the story. The main girl, Odette Yustman ("Cloverfield") wasn't that bad, but her friend, Meagan Good ("Saw V") killed me every time she opened her mouth. I started dreading her appearance on screen.

Yentl has Barbra Steisand ("Meet the Fockers") as a Jewish woman who poses as a man so she can study the Torah. Of course, she falls in love with a classmate, Mandy Patinkin ("Choking Man"), and then all of weirdness happens while she tries to keep her secret. Plus, there's singing. I found it sometimes strange and often touching. Definitely worth watching.

The Invisible is kind of a lame thriller about a kid who gets beaten and left for dead, but his spirit is wandering about trying to get someone to find his body before he actually dies. It entertained me. Partly because I think the main kid, Justin Chatwin ("Middle of Nowhere"), is adorable. But the story is just okay and the acting isn't great. Except for Marcia Gay Harden ("Home"), of course. I say, if it's on, watch it. But don't go to any great lengths to seek it out.

You don't always know from a preview which Steve Carell ("Get Smart") you're going to get, but Dan in Real Life features the subtle and still funny man. The story is very sweet and very realistic. Carell plays a widower raising three girls. They got to a family reunion where Carell falls for his brother's girlfriend. Like all family situations, this movie features many classic moments, both tear-jerking and uncomfortable. Pleasantly surprised by this one.

I'm pretty sure that Headless Horseman is a Sci-Fi channel original. And, of course, I got sucked right in there. In a slasher take on the Sleepy Hollow story, a group of teenagers get stranded in a backwoods, inbred (typical) town where every 7 years, Headless comes looking for 7 heads to feed to hell. It's a weird backstory, and it might even have been more interesting, if the dialogue and acting hadn't been so bad. I realize that this a common complaint of mine. But I just feel that there are so many good actors and writers out there, why can't studios try harder to get better ones?

Under discussion:

Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering  (1996)

Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror  (1998)

Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return  (1999)

Children of the Corn: Revelation  (2001)

The Sci-Fi channel had a little Children of the Corn marathon, and, of course, I jumped right in there. In IV: The Gathering, a young Naomi Watts ("Funny Games") plays a medical student returning home just as the children in her small town start acting strange. There's blood and ridiculousness all over the film. It isn't the worst entry in the series, but even Watts couldn't save this from the terrible editing. The whole series just feeds into my love of scary kid movies.

Which is probably why I kept going with Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror. Excellent title. This movie gets closer to the worst sequel. And another young actress, Eva Mendes ("The Spirit"), pops up in this one. The story is more of a stereotypical slasher for the first half. A group of teenagers come through creepy kidville and then get stranded there. And murdered in gruesome scenarios involving farm utensils. Then David Carradine ("My Suicide"), I kid you not, turns up and the Children of the Corn mythology kicks in. The movie is unintentionally funny and I should have stopped there. But I just kept watching.

Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return, not so excellent title, continues the series downward spiral and terrible editing. Smoking crack before entering the editing suite is probably a requirement. The story has an orphan going back to the creepy town to find her birth parents. Of course, everyone there is super weird and warns her to leave. But does she listen? No. Does she have sex with a stranger in a barn? Yes. Should you watch this movie? Probably not.

But, I can't seem to stop myself. Children of the Corn: Revelation is definitely the worst movie in the series. And, I think, the last. This one has a young woman searching for her grandmother in this creepy town where the kids are all here one minute, gone the next and giggling disturbingly. And the editing is even worse. I didn't think it was possible. It's not just that it's too fast and belongs in a Tony Scott film. It's just disorienting and distracting. And gave me a headache. Just avoid.