Armored

I knew before I saw armored that it was likely I wouldn't enjoy it but unfortunately I was convinced to see it. Armored is a typical movie that makes no attempt of being a great movie, it just simply knows it will have some box office success and wants to make money. It is about a trucking service that transports precious, valuable items in high security armored trucks. Whenever there is an occupation of this sort, theft is always a desire. The basis of the movie makes sense although it is not great. The group of characters/actors involved in the robbery are not good and at times are annoying. It is the type of movie that you can sit and talk to the guy sitting next to you the entire time and you won't miss anything (I know form experience). The plot does not unfold well, although I wouldn't necessarily deem the film boring per se. The fact that director tries to create a moral dilemma and message in a dumb movie like this is laughable. It is definitely considered a walk-out movie for me and just google the ending. An awful movie that leaves a bad taste in your mouth. Don't see it; 0 stars from me (if i was feeling generous maybe I would give it 1/2 a star).

Previous Queue

Haven't been able to go out and see some of the movies I want to in theatres but here's what I've been watching at home.

Brick (2005)- Brick was a very intriguing and unique film. Going in, I was not quite sure what to expect out of it. It is about a high school boy, Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who will stop at nothing to investigate the vanishing of his ex-girlfriend Emily (Emilie de Ravin). Brendan is a loner but to get to the bottom of the case at hand he must get involved with all the social cliques in his school. Throughout the movie there is a very bizarre vibe; I can't really explain it. However the movie is fun to follow and unravels in a very interesting manner. Brendan is a fascinating character who cares about certain things a lot and is not afraid to stand up for these things. By the end we see the deep nature of all that happens. A good movie; 3 stars.

Good Night, and Good Luck (2005)- George Clooney writes, directs and acts in a wonderful docudrama. The film is based on the events during the cold war that occurred with the CBS news network. Newsman Edward R. Murrow (superb performance by David Strathairn) will not back down to fight against the propaganda of Sen. Joseph McCarthy who was accusing many Americans of being linked to communism. Nobody else was willing to debate McCarthy because they were afraid of being accused of being communists. Murrow and his news team had justice on their minds and stepped up to the plate on the issue. The movie takes you back in time as it it is completely in black and white; an interesting touch. Overall the entire cast was wonderful. The politics within CBS's walls reminded me of the movie Network, which was a film I loved. Good Night, and Good Luck is a great movie and also teaches a lot about the time period. 3 1/2 stars.

Half Nelson (2006)- To me, Half Nelson is a movie that was targeted to portray human feelings and psychology as opposed to a good plot. Ryan Gosling is tremendous playing an inner-city school teacher, Dan Dunne. In the classroom Mr. Dunne inspires his eighth grade history classes with interesting and heartfelt lectures and discussions.What Dunne preaches in the classroom does not show in his life outside of it. Dunne has a very severe drug addiction. After one of his students, a girl named Drey (Shareeka Epps), sees him smoking crack in the school bathroom the two of them develop a very close relationship. Drey, is able to understand and somewhat relate with her teacher's frustrations with life. The connection between the white, drug addicted school teacher and the hard on the edges, soft on the inside, inner city student is a very captivating one. The things I didn't love about the movie were the lack of action as well as the "so what" ending. I give it a high 3 stars (approaching 3 1/2) for its acting and ability to reach out to every individual who watches it.

Previous Queue

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007)- Before the Devil knows your dead has a really cool and fun story, and is depicted in a unique and compelling manner. It stars the always wonderful Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Andy Hanson, and Ethan Hawke as Hank Hanson who play brothers. Andy coaxes Hank into a seemingly simple plan to rob a small town jewelery store; the store was owned by there parents. When the "perfect" crime goes wrong there are consequences for the Hanson brothers. Although the plot of the movie is good, the major strong points are the directing (directed by Sidney Lumet) and acting. The way the scenes unfold, in a non-chronological order with constant jumping from the personal experiences and feelings of each individual character, kept the movie moving and suspenseful. Hoffman and Hawke were great as well as the rest of the cast. A really intense and fun movie. 3 1/2 stars.

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)- Dog Day Afternoon is considered a classic movie and deservedly so. Sonny (Pacino) and Sal (John Cazale) step into a bank with plans for a short and harmless robbery. What could have been this short painless robbery turned into an all day, high stress, hostage situation and a media frenzy. Sonny, a homosexual, needs the money to pay for his wife Leon's (Chris Sarandon) sex change operation. Al Pacino is fantastic in his role as the brains of the operation. There are constant negotiations and demands going back and forth between the robbers and the cops and the confrontations are great scenes. A mass of people stood outside the bank watching as Sonny would periodically come out to rile them up. One must appreciate films that are set almost completely in one place yet can keep you engrossed and entertained. I really loved this movie; 4 stars.

Tell No One (2006)- Tell No One , or Ne le dis à personne in french, is based on the best selling mystery-thriller novel by Harlan Coben. Eight years after the murder of his wife, where he was the prime suspect but let off, new evidence pops of in the case that points to the guilt of main character Alexandre Beck (Francois Cluzet). The intensity heightens when Beck gets a number of emails that seem point to the possibility that his late wife was still alive. Tell No One is action packed and keeps you thinking throughout. There is also a lot of emotion in the movie. As with all good mysteries the ending is great. It is a truly captivating film and can, nay, should be seen by any type of movie viewer. 3 1/2 stars. (It is in French with English subtitles which just adds to it in my opinion)

Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are depicts the famous and immortal classic children's book by Maurice Sendak. Being that the book is rather succinct in pages and words, director Spike Jonze expands on it using his fabulous imagination. The movie begins showing Max, the protagonist, displaying some of his unique characteristics. Max he is very imaginative but also has a lot of anger. One night Max and his single mother get into a fight and Max runs away. After a tumultuous journey across the sea, Max reaches the island of where the wild things roam. He is soon after made their king and then "the wild rumpus" began. Through different experiences and occurrences we see the development of Max as a character as well as the monsters under his rule. The island and the wild things greatly resemble Max's thoughts and life in the real world. Jonze chooses to make a serious movie rather than a light children's film. He succeeds in bringing out the kid side of you but also makes you think. As Andrew Rosenfeld said, "I just couldn't stop smiling throughout the movie." The voice work and costumes were superb. Max (Max Records) was wonderful. Well directed and an overall good movie. I give it 3 stars because it just didn't leap out as an amazing movie; I expected to be blown away. I recommend it to true movie lovers but I somewhat understand why some people are calling it a bit boring and trivial.

Paranormal Activity

For all the hype given to Paranormal Activity, I was not as terrified as I expected. From a cinematic perspective the movie is very original and cleverly made. The whole film is shot on the couple's home video camera. The movie shows the story of a young couple, Micah and Katie, who after moving into a new home are experiencing bizarre and horrifying encounters with the unknown. During the night on the video camera we see subtle things that happen. These occurrences and demonic activities intensify as the movie progresses. I thought that for much of the time it was a little boring because there was a lot of build up for small things that weren't so scary. I must say though, by the end of the movie you are pretty legitimately scared. The movie is also made more scary because it is supposedly based on a true story (whatever that means), which always adds a real edge to a horror flick. I give it 2 1/2 stars because I just didn't get the thrill I anticipated. However, if you are looking to rent a horror movie I reccomend this over a lot of the other crappy horror movies out there.

It's Back!

Hey everybody, it has been a while but I am gonna try and resurrect my movie blog. I thought I'd start off with a new look to start things off on the right foot. I will hopefully pick up where I left off which was reviewing current movies while also discussing older, usually critically-acclaimed movies that I will be viewing. As you may have noticed there is a new gadget, the trailer of the week. This week's is "Where the Wild Things Are," can't wait until it comes out. Hope everyone votes on the new poll. Hope to be posting new reviews soon, so grab your popcorn and enjoy.

Previous Queue

Sorry this past queue took longer than usual to cover I have just been seeing more of the current movies in theatres leaving less time for movie watching at home. Composed of three stellar films this past queue is one for the ages. The three movies I viewed were Pulp Fiction, Mystic River and Kramer vs. Kramer.

Pulp Fiction- This amazing movie is a classic example of a motion picture that could only have been done by the magical skills of director Quentin Tarantino (nominated best director). The seemingly unrelated stories of two amateur robbers, two hit men, a kingpin and his wife, and a prize fighter are brilliantly interwoven in the unforgettable, action packed crime drama. It really is a fun movie to watch with a great cast including Samuel L. Jackson, John Travolta, Bruce Willis and Uma Thurman. 4 stars for an all time great.

Kramer vs. Kramer- Let's start by saying that in 1979 it won 5 Oscars (best picture, actor, actress in supporting role, director and screenplay). It was also nominated for another 4 but I won't list those out. The movie begins with Ted Kramer's (Dustin Hoffman) wife, Joanna (Meryl Streep) walking out on him and young son Billy (Justin Henry). Ted, a full time hard worker, must then adjust to life raising a son as a single parent. After some time Ted and Billy form a wonderful relationship. Soon after, though, Joanna returns saying she wants custody of Billy. The feel good father-son story then shifts to a brutal custody trial. Although it may be one of the weaker best pictures I have seen, it is still a beautifully done and captivating story. 3 1/2 stars.

Mystic River- Clint Eastwood knows how to manipulate movies to create what he wants better than any director in Hollywood. The film is the story of three childhood friends, Jimmy (Sean Penn), Dave (Tim Robbins) and Sean (Kevin Bacon) who meet up as adults investigating the murder of Jimmy's daughter. Eastwood perfectly develops the story taking us through the psychological thoughts and feelings of all the main characters. This gripping story throws you around keeping you transfixed and refuses to stop until the final credits. An unforgettable movie experience, 4 stars.

Random Review: The Sixth Sense (SPOILER ALERT)

I just viewed The Sixth Sense last night for the first time. i am not such a big fan of scary movies so at first i thought it wouldn't be my type of movie. however, the film was excellent. Bruce Willis is a great actor (and ten times better when he had hair). The little boy played the part perfectly. There were 4 scenes that really made the movie. The first was the famous scene of "I see dead people" (number 44 on afi's top 100 quotes behind if you build it they will come). the second scene is the twist when we found out he was dead the entire time (which was the 7th best twist behind 6 fight club 5 star wars 2 physco and 1 the usual suspects). The other 2 scenes i found really impressive was the scene where bruce thought he was having a conversation with his wife on their anniversary and the scene where he meets the boy at his house. both times the movie misleads you to think they had just had a conversation. however, bruce actually never talked to a single person besides the kid the entire movie. i would say the movie is 3 1/2 stars. I don't see how a person could give it less since the twist was amazing. if anyone actually saw it coming then i would respect their judgement but i am positive no one here had.

The Spirit

The Spirit is literally one of the worst movies I have ever seen in my entire life. There was not one good part of it except, of course, the moment it was over. Based on the graphic novel by Will Eisner, Frank Miller (in his debut as a solo director) tries to follow up a great comic book film which he co-directed, Sin City, with The Spirit. I don't even know where to start on explaining how bad the movie was and why. One thing I didn't like was that Miller seemed to be unsure of what genre to turn it into and how to display the book. The movie came off as a maybe a cop/crime drama, or action/thriller, or comedy but none were definitive. The acting was annoying especially by Samuel L. Jackson as the octupus as well as Louis Lombardi as the octupus' cloned assistants. Gabriel Macht was not terrible as the spirit but he wasn't very good either. The movie is about a former cop who rises form the dead to become a vigilante super-hero and protect "his city." This former cop takes on a new personna and name; the spirit. The spirit faces his worst and most powerful enemy, the octupus. The spirit will stop at nothing to kill the octupus. There are also other story lines; pretty much the movie is all over the place. Miller fails to develope the phycological complexes of the characters that he clearly attempted to show and this helped to bring the movie down even lower. The least you could have expected out of this movie would be that it is cool and exciting but it isn't really either of them. The only decent parts were the spirit's narrations at the beginning and end. Pretty much everything about this movie was terribly awful and I am emabarassed for anyone who had to do with the production of the film. A leniant 1/2 star from me.

Random Review: 3:10 to Yuma

3:10 to Yuma was the first western i have ever seen. I may be overrating it because I love the genre (i think, i ordered unforgiven from the library). I think westerns are like boxing, in that people don't appreciate them until you see a full one, and then they start rooting for their guy, and really get into it. The movie was about a group of 7 people (by the end there were 3), who had to take Ben Wade, the most feared man in the wild west, to a train in Contention that would take him to a prison in Yuma. Evans, played by Christian Bale (batman) was only guarding him because he needed the $200 to get his house back from the bank. wade's gang, led by sociopath Charles Prince, chase after them. the movie climax's at Contention, where Prince tells everyone that he'll pay anyone $200 who kills Evans. The movie is great, although the ending is unrealistic. Not only do Russel Crowe (top 5 actor in Hollywood) and Christian Bale act amazingly, but Ben Foster as Prince, and Logan Lerman as Bale's son, also were great. I give it 3 1/2 stars.