tháng 7 2011 ~ The Larsen Film Review

Let Me In (2010)

From a Danish film in the last review, we now turn to a Swedish film that got a Hollywood makeover... much like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is getting one this winter. The original film: Låt den rätte komma in was good [6/10] but not "great," I'm lead to believe that its success on the imdb top 250 and theme of vampires was enough for Hollywood to give it a green light.

The film is about a young boy, bored in his apartment complex who likes to sit and watch his neighbors. He notices a girl moving in next door to him and eventually meets her. We learn that she is a vampire and are pulled either to being compassionate of her necessities to survive, or to disliking the havoc she brings.

My biggest issue with the Swedish original was the boy, I didn't like the actors performance and he just annoyed me. In this version "Owen" [Kodi Smit-McPhee] was much better. The main girl... well they were good in both. This film actually won the Saturn award for best Horror film last year, pretty impressive, considering it isn't a slasher film and actually makes you think about love and friendship rather than making you jump.

Maybe having seen the original first ruined it a little for me, because it was good, but just not great.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1228987/

From what I have traced of my heritage I have more Danish in me than any other nationality, so it was pretty exciting to see that both the Golden Globe and Oscar for Foreign film were won by this film. It was also nice to see that it was actually a GOOD film.

The trailer... or maybe I should say teaser intro of this film shows African children following a Caucasian man in a Jeep on a dirt road. The film also opens with this Doctor working at a Red Cross aid station in Africa, so it was pretty safe to assume this film would take place in Africa. Well it doesn't, this is really meant to show that two fathers, both doctors, have to spend time away from their children back home as they work some length of a "shift" in Africa.

The story actually is about anger. Yes anger. Kids getting bullied in school, a boy losing his mother, children going through divorce, doctors making difficult decisions. Anger is an over simplification, but I can't easily remember a film that drew me in so much that my heart was racing wanting a father to fight back, wanting a kid to fight back. It might test your Christian principles of turning the other cheek.

I don't want to say too much, because if you watch a foreign film, than unlike more than a few of the past years, you should watch the Oscar/Golden Globe winner.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1340107/

I do remember this film coming out and through it was a kids film. It didn't peak my interest then, but for the sake of finishing a movie list [the modern 250] I gave it a chance.

Charlie Cox stars as Tristan, a young man set out to win the love of a girl by catching a falling star in a magical land. The star is Claire Danes, and no I'm not saying that her career is dying in this film, it is a fantasy were witches, kings, and this boy are all after the same prize for different reasons.

Michelle Pfeiffer plays a witch who is after the fallen star's heart because it restores youth, and Robert De Niro is a gay pirate who teaches Tristan to fight while helping them on their journey. This is indeed a kids film, not a bad one at that, but just not a movie made for me.

I could see watching this with my daughter some day [not soon], but for a watch by myself it wasn't all that great.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0486655/

Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Wahlberg star in a mid-90's film will little to do about sports, and a lot to do with teenage drug usage. I think I would have liked this a lot more if I would have watched it when in high school.

Jim [DiCaprio] and Mickey [Mark] are best friends and play on the high school basketball team together. They go to Catholic school and roam the streets on New York at night. They start with drinking and smoking and daring each other to jump off cliffs into the river, but this eventually leads to then getting mixed up in heroic in crack. Both characters go over the edge, start robbing stores and living on the streets.

A teenage angst film that I'm afraid I've outgrow. I'm afraid to watch The Beach again, a movie I gave a 10 in high school, and that I fear I would not feel the same about today.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112461/

Like I have been doing for several years now with documentaries, I am now starting to watch more foreign films. Films shortlisted by failing to get a nomination. With 80+ submissions [one each from most major countries] there are a lot to choose from. For an LFR first I'll plug my favorite blog to read, writer Dzong2 has a blog he just calls Foreign Films, and what he lacks in a creative title for a blog he makes up for in some extensive analysis on the foreign film race. Of his 9 predictions for the final 5, he ranked this one 4th, so I gave it a shot since it did not get a nomination.

The film starts out frantic, a busheling classroom is ignoring a teacher as she hands out milk to the class on the last day of the term. She is telling them a story about her daughter who drowned earlier in the school year and has a convincing argument that it was not accidental.

Her conclusions and revenge are shocking, enough to almost put this in a horror/thriller category. The problem with the film for me was the unbelievable reactions of the two kids. The film is kind of broken into three parts as we get "confessions" from multiple characters that all come together in a thrilling conclusion. I can see why this was not given a nomination, and even found it to be a strange submission in the first place. It was however an Asian Film finalist along with winner Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, and China's submission Aftershock.

Vote: 4/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1590089/

I have really been enjoying the Oscar documentaries and have been finding more and more of the short listed films from the last years. This one, which was shortlisted last year, but not a finalist projected to be on that final list by a number of Oscar predicting websites. It has the criteria for an Oscar nominee, well put together, high profile, and a clear message. But was lacking something...

The film is about Pat Tillman, a phenomenal athlete, who played professional football for the Arizona Cardinals. After 9/11 he, and his brother, decided to join the military. Without being rude toward the Army, let's just say that the majority of soldiers now are kids fresh out of high school looking for direction. These were not exactly the peers that Pat was expecting, and while on a tour in Afghanistan he was killed by friendly fire.

The enraging part of the film is that it was covered up. The US government went against all of Pat's wishes and held a public funeral which was heavily attended by high ranking officials, and the family was told that he was a hero and saved others in his battalion. Through amazing efforts the family was able to find out the truth, and this is their story. It is a sad a tragic story with the government coverup completely uncovered, but the problem is that the topic just isn't that big.

I liked the film, but two hours to get to the bottom of this was pretty slow and a little boring. I get it. It was wrong. The men responsible for lying and making him a hero have done much much worse things in their lives that they will have to answer for, and for that alone I just didn't find it all that informative or interesting. Just ok for me.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568334/

Not a pretentious film, but one that is embraced by pretentious people. I've read reviews with lines like, "Though not for everyone, it is a must see for anyone who treasures cinema." So... since this film made no sense to me don't know how to treasure cinema?

A film make in Thailand, spoken in Thai, and the country's submission to the Oscar Foreign Film committee for awards consideration. Winner of the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and The Best Film in Thailand. It is critically acclaimed in Asia, and probably would be a pretty good film if I understood Thai culture and was also Buddist.

But I'm not, and the film... which centers around Boonme, who is dying of what I believe is Kidney failure. There seems to be some form of dialysis or just emptying of his kidney's, but it is pretty clear he is about to die. While on his deathbed [figuratively, because he is still able to get around with some assistance], he recalls his childhood, past lives, and speaks with ghosts of loved ones who have passed.

I've read a lot about this film since, trying to understand it. The problem is that it is both hard to follow and full of metaphors. So there are scenes were a monk showers and puts on street cloths and this is supposed to be a metaphor about Thai society and so forth. Oh yeah, and the catfish performing oral sex on the princess was bizarre enough to make me tell everyone to avoid this one. If you want a bizarre foreign film check out: Dogtooth.

Vote: 2/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588895/

Another Happy Madison film, maybe it is the nostalgia of Adam Sandler films of the 90's that keep bringing me back. Honestly I don't know why I bother with films I know will be bad, sometimes to just have to see for yourself.

Adam Sandler plays a plastic surgeon who is scarred by a fiance early in life and who uses his wedding ring as a tool to get women. When he meets the girl of his dreams Palmer [Brooklyn Decker, beautiful and talentless], but she finds a wedding ring in his pocket he, he then has to create an elaborate scheme to convince her that he is about to get a divorce. He convinces his secretary Katherine [Jennifer Aniston] to go along with the plan as the lie gets more complicated at every step.

If anything, this is Sandler's first Romantic Comedy since Spanglish in 2004. Since then it has been potty jokes and gay jokes, so I will give him that he did something a little different and more mature. It is sad to me the last Sandler film I REALLY liked was Reign Over Me and he won't do that again because it didn't make any money. Would you make crap like this if you could gross $103million without really trying?

Vote: 3/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1564367/

I managed to get ahold of the blu-ray of this epic adventure film and I have to say it was worth the quality. A film starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman which has everything going for it... except the runtime. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Score, and not necessarily a stunning performance by the stars. A quality film nevertheless.

The film stars McQueen as the title character Papillon [pappy-yawn] who is a prisoner in France serving a life sentence for a murder he was falsely accused of. Much like The Shawshank Redemption we can never really be sure, and like Andy Dufresne escape is his only goal. He is deported to African, French Guiana to be specific, where he is put in a labor camp where officers have little remorse for killing prisoners by starvation, disease, or murder. On the sea ride he befriends Mr. Dega [Dustin Hoffman] a man hated by many because of his legal troubles with counterfeiting. Papillion makes a deal that if he protects him, that he will help them escape.

With the odds against him Papillion survives stints in solitary and attempt after attempt. The run-time of the film adds to the misery of solitary, a feeling you can't get if you rush a epic film like this. Even at 2 1/2 hours I felt the film was well edited and really enjoyed it.

Take the time to check this one out, it is arguably McQueen's best work.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070511/

The thrilling conclusion to the epic decade long movie series... lived up to the hype. Maybe the incompleteness of "Part1" helped set this one up for success... I don't know. What I do know is that all the action was saved for this film. Making a journey to the other side reminded me a little bit of the Matrix and Neo's return. Having not read the books I wasn't sure just how this was going to play out, which is pretty impressive for a long movie series where this only covers 1/2 of a book.

There are two things I didn't understand. Why did they think they had found the last horcrux? They thought there were 7 but knew they only had 4 or 5 at the time. If another was created inadvertently wouldn't that have made 8? Or did the person that told Harry somehow know and count this inadvertent one?

For having not read the books I was able to keep up thanks to re-watching the whole series in the preceding month. I doubt I would have given it a 9/10 if I hadn't.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1201607/

At this point I'm not a stranger to Chow Yun-Fat films. The Killer is probably one of his more popular roles and I just found it to be ok. So maybe I didn't go into this one with the most open mind. It does have to be one of the strangest movie posters I've seen. The baby is why too big for the role of "newborn infant" being a parent it is funny to see movies stretch the age/size of babies cast in films. This one is another left over from Action month but also part of the imdb modern 250.

It also features Tony Leung Chiu Wai as an undercover cop, I personally am a bigger fan of him than Fat from roles in films like Infernal Affairs and Hero. This is a pretty typical John Woo Hong Kong action film. The plot is a little strange like the poster. A division of the Triad gang has a hideout in the basement of a hospital, when the police move in for a raid they take the hospital patients hostage.

I don't have much to say about this one, a little strange but also original and a couple good Hong Kong stars doing their thing.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104684/

I have to say this is the front runner for the worst movie of the year for me. It was about the time that the opening credits were concluding that I realized this would be just awful. Written, directed, and starring Sylvester Stallone, and what does he know about writing scripts?

He called up all his buddies from action movies and basically gives them all cameo's while keeping the real action of a plot on Jason Statham and himself. Mickey Rourke comes across as a good actor in the wrong film, it was interesting to see a good actor alongside some really bad ones. Jet Li seemed to get the short end of the stick as Stallone made his character weak and incapable of fighting an decent bad guy. Stallone had to even come in and save his life at one point... which kind of pissed me off. Steve Austin was given too much freedom to be "himself" [read: his WWE persona].

This was an all around terrible film. From Statham controlling a machine gun on the front of a large plane, to bad one liners like "you'all better remember me at Christmas!" Amazingly there is a sequel scheduled for a 2012 release, and you will have to go to another site to read a review for it.

Vote: 1/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1320253/

Paul Giamatti won a Golden Globe for his performance as Barney Panofsky in a film about a man who lead a very colorful and exciting life. We start with Giamatti drunk and calling his ex-wife in the middle of the night saying mean things to her new husband.

We then flashback to his early 20's knowing that he ends up with an ex-wife and kids. The teaser of his current life makes you wonder just how things turned out the way they did. Then we quickly learn what type of personality he has.

I wasn't thrilled with the subject matter. A hairy neurotic guy that smokes, drinks, watches hockey, was a suspect in his best friends disappearance and fails with three marriages. The acting was good however, but the characters were a bit annoying... like Minnie Driver [where has she been the last 6 years?].

This might have been good enough to be an 8 based on acting performances. I wouldn't go around recommending this to anyone so I settled on a 7. It was the last Golden Globe film for me to watch and I put it off for a reason, it just wasn't something I'll remember in 5 years.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1423894/

An indie dramady made on a shoestring budget on a 30 day shoot that grossed $4 million. Starring Alan Rickman [Severus Snape], Chris Pine [Star Trek], Bill Pullman [While You Were Sleeping], and Rachael Taylor.

The film focuses on the rise of the Napa Valley and California as it competes against the best French wines. The term Bottle Shock means two things, the term comes from what happens to wine in transportation [like a transatlantic flight], and more obviously the shock of a bottle of wine actually being good.

Rickman seems like Snape out of character to me, his nuances and body language are the same out of make-up which is hard for me to disconnect from. Pine and Taylor have conversations that remind me of a cable sitcom. This isn't a compete slam because that means that it is an easy watch but most scenes just don't seem like realistic dialogue exchanges to me [just fake]. I wasn't a huge fan of Pullman's character but that doesn't mean he didn't play him well, it is pretty standard performance for him. The film in general just isn't constructed to be anything but cheesy.

Maybe my comments were a little mean, but I discourage you from going out and renting this film. If you want to pick it up from the library or happen to see it on tv or netflix it might be worth your time on a slow tv night. Take away Taylor bedding Pine's friend and this is a family friendly drama also.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0914797/

This is a "kinda" interesting film independently released in Britain with a number of stars you should know. It seems like a film for the MTV generation and was nominated for 5 Saturn awards winning one. Directed by Mark Romanek who is better known for his music videos, like Nine Inch Nails "Closer" and "The Perfect Drug" or Madonna "Rain" or Michael Jackson "Scream."

Starring Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley, and Sally Hawkins, the film is science fiction based but in reality is a romantic drama. The film starts by explaining how life expectancies continue to rise thanks to medial advances. We then go to a school in the middle of the country were children are given strict diets, sheltered, and have their vitals constantly monitored. We get the feeling they are being protected for some sort of experiment, honestly I thought this was an attempt to see just how old they would get when sheltered. We learn that they are protected so that their vital organs can be given to others when they get older.

The science fiction pretty much stops there and we are left with a pretty boring romantic love triangle. Garfield won the Saturn for his supporting actor performance, one I'm sure meant less to him than his Golden Globe nomination for The Social Network, and I think he should have seen an Oscar nomination instead John Hawkes. That is enough of a tangent though.

Almost a 6 for me, just average... but I also felt like it was a waste of time.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1334260/

You would probably be more familiar with David Cronenberg's other major film, The Fly. However, Cronenberg has been making science fiction/horror films for decades. Videodrome, The Dead Zone, Dead Ringers, and Naked Lunch are some of his other 80's horror/scifi films that made him so popular.

I had heard of this film, and with a recent HD release it was about time to check it out. The poster makes it look really cheesy, and honestly that is what I expect from Cronenberg. The film is about people that use telepathy to control other's minds. An inspiration for a familiar ability copied by X-Men.

Overall it was just ok for me, I feel saying I liked it more might be easier because I felt that I should have... but there were some parts that were a little stupid and I didn't really like Stephen Lack in the leading role. I did love the plot and idea behind the film. There are some cool scenes, there is one where a guys head explodes. This is credited with the most re-wound and re-played scene in VHS history. Don't ask me how they figured that out.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081455/

Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher star as Emma and Adam in this romantic comedy that doesn't try and dance around the topic of sex. They meet at summer camp as middle school age kids then again in college and just after. Emma fresh out of medical school working on her residency, while Adam works as an assistant on the set of the tv show.

The premise of the romantic comedy is that the two try and have a strictly physical relationship, as you expect there are problems with this and you can guess where it heads. An overall typical romantic comedy, save for the blunt sex discussion and father's drug usage. I would guess they were pushing the limits of their R rating.

Lake Bell was a little annoying as Lucy, I'm not sure why they had to make this character so annoying, it could have added depth to the story if she would have been a viable option for Adam. The same goes for Cary Elwes's character, the Doctor that tells Adam he will get her in the end. Why couldn't they make these two relationship a little more possible to actually make us question their decision? Kevin Kline was pretty good as the father, but I wasn't thrilled with the performances of Emma's roommates.

All in all not a bad romantic comedy, not one I'll be adding to my amazon wishlist though.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1411238/

Directed by Andrea Arnold an Oscar winner for the Live Action Short Film Wasp in 2003. Arnold took a cast of no name actors and put together a film that won the BAFTA [Best British Film] last year.

The film in some ways reminded me of Precious, partially because of the apathetic parent that seems to have a hate for her teenage daughter. Also, in a few small ways for the interaction between the mother's boyfriend and the daughter. Katie Jarvis [you wouldn't know her from another film] plays Mia. A teenage girl in what looks like a English "projects," she gets in fights, drinks, smokes, and looks for a way out of her current situation.

The really don't want to spoil the plot of this film, but you question the intentions of the boyfriend from the start and your opinion of Mia will change several times.

I look forward to keeping an eye on Arnold's next project. As a side note, for a British film with a lot of slang I was surprised at how little trouble I had understand the dialogue. A problem I have been encountering on films like Kes lately.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1232776/

It has taken me a while but I finally got around to watching the 5th documentary nominee from last years Oscars. I feared that this film would be artistic and boring but was surprised at how good it really was.

The documentary follows Brazil's most famous artist Vik Muniz as he travels to Brazil's largest landfill to document the workers. This film follows him as he spends two years in the landfill learning about the people that work there, and how they got into such a dire situation. He hires a handful of the workers that he takes pictures of to help construct the pictures out of trash by following outlines of their projections on a warehouse floor. They would be quick to correct me that it is not made from trash, but from recyclable materials.

I really think I would have give this an 8 if I hadn't already seen Recycled Life, an Oscar short with the same theme without the art. I liked this better than Exit Through The Gift Shop though, and believe it deserved the nomination more because he actually had a message.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1268204/

Before I give my opinion on Matthew McConaughey and his abilities let me say that there are probably a dozen actors that could have done this role well. McConaughey needs to thank his agent for finding him a good script and director because this could be his best film.

McConaughey plays a defense attorney that defends some questionable people. His office is the back of his chauffeured Lincoln. A fast talking, bargaining lawyer that seems to be one thought ahead of everyone around him. When Ryan Phillippe's character comes to him looking for a defense attorney you are just sure you are in for a twist given Phillippe's history of playing bad guys... which he does so well. Some predictable twists but entertaining nonetheless.

With McConaughey as the lead I almost passed on this one, but with Phillippe, Marisa Tomei, Josh Lucas, and John Leguizamo this is in fact worth your time.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1189340/

Everything you need to know about this movie you can learn from the movie poster: Jennifer Aniston is shocked that Jason Bateman decided to "use his seed" becoming her sperm donor. The movie is pretty one dimensional so you can pretty much just fill in the plot yourself. They are just friends, he makes the switch, she gets upset, they make up.

Did I really just spoil the film? You watch a romantic comedy like this not for the surprise of the plot but because you want to see chemistry between the leading characters. You want to see them fall in love and you want to be amused at the same time right? Well I did find Bateman funny a few times, but I found the boy even funnier. Aniston wasn't better than any random Friends episode.

I see why this one was a flop, there are better predictable romantic comedies to watch.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0889573/

I'm going to be meaner than I should in my review of this film and I need to tell you why from the start. I watched this film simply because it beat out The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for the Saturn award for the best Internation Scifi, Action, or Horror film. The saturn awards are geared at giving credit to films in genres overlooked by the Oscars and Globes and I felt this was a much weaker film. It is marketed as an alien action film but is in fact a drama so I don't think it should have been considered for the Saturn, but then again The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is more of a drama than an action.

The thing is this film is labeled as a SciFi film, even the opening credits are an alien attack. The poster makes it look like an action film. But these aren't the only reasons I disliked the film.

It is a drama centered around the two characters you see on the poster. A journalist and his bosses daughter who are traveling from South Mexico to America through an "infected" zone. They encounter little to no aliens and the film is centered around a budding relationship. It achieves so little in an hour and a half and the aliens are more of a distraction from the real plot than an addition.

Make in the UK but not a single actor has a British accent. Entirely in english and the winner of the foreign award, kind of a joke if you ask me.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1470827/

This is one of those movies that you really have to ask yourself, "is this even worth my time?" The first sign of a film being really bad is if you see a lot of commercials for it. That means that it is so bad they are afraid your family and friends won't suggest it, so they have to tell you about it as much as possible. Second is that it has Cameron Diaz.

I was getting this and Green Lantern mixed up since I knew little about either. This one is not a comic book remake, it is a TV show made into a movie starring Seth Rogen in his most annoying role ever. Couple that with Diaz still thinking she can make entrances like she did 13 years ago... your 39!

So Kato is his sidekick that is really the hero of the film. Rogen's character is a rich brat and just plain annoying. Need I say more?

I felt I had to watch it, but I'm not sure why. Don't have the same feeling.

Vote: 3/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0990407/

Like Nowhere in African I watch this foreign Oscar winner while watching all Oscar winner for the last decade. I've seen in on several Top 100 foreign film lists as well as in the 1001 Movies to See Before You Die book. I understood the premise but I was fairly disappointed.

Several years ago I watched a film called Joyeux Noel, a foreign film based on true events were troops in the middle of the war met from both sides of enemy lines on Christmas. They spent the following day burying their dead before continuing the war. Very interesting. This film however lacked the dialogue and drama I was hoping for.

When new troops get lost in the fog they find themselves in the middle of the battle in the morning. Only one man survives the initial attack after they realize their horrible location. The other side sends several men to see if their are any survivors and the two men on the movie poster here end up stuck in the middle. They call in UN forces to diffuse the situation and the movie becomes very political.

I found this film to not be as "deep" as I had hoped the men didn't do more than say "you started the war!", "no, you started the war!" back and worth. Skip this one.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0283509/

This is a first for the LFR, a 2nd review of a film. At the same time my previous post on this film said I would re-review it around this time. Interesting enough though I found that I gave it the same 6/10 even when I understood what was going on.

The film explains the meaning of the Deathly Hollows but it really is just the first half of a book. So the conclusion of the film fits seamlessly into Part 2. I'm not sure would have been done to make this film much better though, you can't change the story and this is just 1/2 of a story.

The part I found disappointing though is the lack of action. A series I have come to take as action/adventure/fantasy was really just a drama for this film. The magic was limited and the excitement was minimal. I was also amazed at just how much I forgot in less than a year since I didn't understand much the first time around.

I would suggest you be ready to watch Part 2 very soon after watching this one.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0926084/

The best film I have seen in a little while, and a good example of why it it worth checking out older foreign films. This story is very complex and has many elements that make it worth watching. I like a film that takes a while to explain the plot to someone. An Oscar winner, and one that is on a number of my top movie lists... as it should be.

The film is about a Jewish family that leaves everything they own behind and move to Africa. Wealthy in Germany as a lawyer the husband is the first to leave and goes to manage a farm. He then sends for his wife and daughter but comes down with malaria. He requests that his wife bring some essentials and leave behind the china and expensive clothing. Instead she brings all things unnecessary and spends her money on a dress in the train station. Their love is constantly tested throughout the film in a very realistic fashion, how many people would love each other in a completely different environment? She constantly questions his decision to move to African until they learn of what is happening to the Jews back home.

This is a good example of a "perfect" Oscar film one would say. The committee is older and loves WWII centric films, but I say a good film is a good film. I welcomed the subject matter and felt the film had less to do with WWII and more to do with relationships. I highly recommend this German subtitled film, and expect I'll watch it again some day.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0161860/

Even though we are a few weeks away from western/war movie month I wanted to watch this western film because I happened to have the opportunity to see it in HD.

Directed by Walter Hill and starring all 3 Carradine brothers, the Keach brothers, and the Quaid brothers. I found this one appropriate to watch sooner than later since it pairs David Carradine and Hill AGAIN. Having recently watched Death Race 2000 and Cannonball! in June.

Maybe that made me more critical since I didn't like those films and do not have the highest opinion of Carradine as an actor. Before watching this I didn't realize that Randy Quaid [Cousin Eddie from the Christmas Vacation and other Lampoon films] was Dennis Quaid's older brother. I didn't see the resemblance. I like Dennis, but his role was so minor it really isn't worth mentioning. The only real role that caught my attention was James Keach as Jesse James. He was really good and the only part of the film I really cared for. It was pretty cool that this is based on the Younger/James gang and from what I can tell is a pretty good telling. I would say I like this more than The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford even though I gave them both a 6/10.

I sure hope won't top the rest of western month.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081071/

It might be important for me to tell you that I can't write a review for a part 6 of a series of 8 films without spoiling the previous films. So if you haven't seen the earlier films and intend to do so I'll do my best not to "ruin" anything.

This is one of the films that I boosted my rating on after watching the other 5 in a short Harry's mission needs to be and get a sense that we can see a light at the end of the tunnel and understand how this is all going to have to end.

For the acting side I felt that the three main characters really come into their own and mature a lot. Full of action and with some emotional scenes this one is probably my 3rd favorite in the series.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417741/

I remember watching the Oscars and seeing the scene of the tsunami in this film. I thought I had seen a critical scene... well not really. I had the perception that this would be an action film, instead I found that the tsunami scene alone was nominated for visual effects and that is about all the movie was good for.

On paper this was a highly anticipated film. Directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Matt Damon, while targeted at an awards season release. A year ago it was on most people's radar as a best picture candidate. Then people actually started watching it, and no one spoke about nominations again. So what is so bad about it? I still gave it a 6/10 so don't think it was a BAD film. It just wasn't good.

The concept of the film is that a woman Cécile De France [an actress with a very pretty face that I look forward to watching in 2003's High Tension this coming horror month], sees the light after hitting her head in the tsunami wave. Meanwhile Damon plays a man with the ability to speak with people beyond the grave. As he looks for stability in his life we have a 2nd plot of her trying to cope with her experience. The film seems to be building up to something for a solid to hours but is a let down in the end. I don't know what I expected but it was just... eh... that's it.

I definitely wouldn't suggest this film, and a 6/10 is pretty generous because there weren't any major flaws that bugged me enough to give it less.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1212419/

Ironically I watched this on just after "The Vikings" and found it to be a sci-fi action film where a man from another planet finds himself on Earth at the time of the vikings.

James Caviezel plays the hero Kainen, an actor I recognized but couldn't put my finger on. You will remember him as Jesus from The Passion of the Christ. The heroin that he falls for is played by Sophia Myles, an actress I recognized as well but can't really place in any previous films.

Kainen explains to the people that he has brought an creature, "from his land," and helps instruct them on how to defeat it. Definitely not like any other movie I've seen, I really thought the acting was good for the most part and was surprised that I had to be suggested this film and had never heard of it. If you are looking for a good action/sci-fi film check this one out.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462465/

I just kinda had this one left over from action movie month. Not a film from the action book, but an adventure/action from the 501 Must See movie book that actually looked pretty interesting. A pairing of Tony Curtis and Kirk Douglas that probably helped lead to the casting of the two of them together two years later for Spartacus.

The film starts explaining the regular viking raids made on England and we learn of an heir to the throne that has been smuggled off with a special necklace. Tony Curtis plays this man, a viking slave that has the nerve to stand up to the viking prince. The two battle it out through the film as they are forced to team up in a battle eventually squaring off.

I expected Douglas to be the good guy, and in this film he is quite the opposite. Old, but color, and a pretty fun watch. I wouldn't really care to see it again, therefore I won't suggest it. Worthy of the top 50 adventure films nonetheless.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052365/

Kate Winslet and Judi Dench split starring roles in this film about the biographical film about the novelist Iris Murdoch. Winslet plays Iris as a college age woman who meets her eventual husband, John Bayley [Hugh Bonneville]. Dench plays Iris from the point that she starts to get Alzheimer's disease, Bayley is then played by Jim Broadbent. I watched this film since it won an Oscar a decade ago for Jim Broadbent's performance. Sure you would assume that Winslet or Dench, both nominees, would be the reason to watch this film, but it was in fact Broadbent that shines the most.

So why did I not like this film? For starters it as depressing. I didn't need to see a film about a woman that loves herself and her writing more than her husband. Interesting that this screenplay was written by John Bayley... Too much Winslet boobs, I didn't need to see her swimming around topless over... and over... and over. So sure, I get it, she is a free spirit. It didn't help that I got the feeling that Bayley regretted his life with her after a scene that probably won Broadbent the Oscar.

Anyways, I can definitely see why this is one of those supporting actor wins that gets ignored. not worth your time.

Vote: 4/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0280778/

Part 5 of the Harry Potter series is where I got lost the first time I watched this film. The first four films can really be watched and enjoyed without having seen the others, and without having to remember anything from the previous films. This one is the first were someone like me got lost. I saw the movies as they came out, without reading the books. So the two year gap didn't help.

With Lord Voldemort back we learn about the resistance. The ministry is slowly being taken over by death eaters and most evil character in the series [in my opinion] Dolores Umbridge [Imelda Staunton], comes into play. As she makes an attempt to usurp Dumbledore as the head master at Hogwarts.

Watching this one in succession of the first four films I felt I had a pretty good grasp on the characters and running storyline. Much better than watching it the first time. For example I had forgotten who Sirius Black was. All that being said it was just ok for me. I didn't dislike it and would only watch it again if watching the whole series.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373889/

My favorite Harry Potter movie out of the first 7. Directed by Mike Newell and featuring some of the most entertaining magic in the entire series. The tri-wizard's tournament comes to Hogwarts and when someone puts Harry's name into the cup he is forced to compete alongside Cedric [Robert Pattinson] representing Hogwarts.

A difficult time for Harry as his classmates consider him a cheater and is foreshadowing to difficultly he will face with his classmates in later films. The tournament has Harry fighting dragons, rescuing friends from mermaids, and navigating a freaky labyrinth. Some of the most significant events of the series happen in this film, and it has the most action in the series to this point.

Of all the movies, this is the best candidate for a standalone film. If you haven't seen the entire series you will be able to get enough of it to enjoy it.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0330373/

After a short break between part two and three we see a real difference in the three main characters' ages. The directing change to Alfonso Cuarón made for a change from the slapstick comedy of wizardry to the artistic shots of a tree changing with the seasons.

In this adventure we meet some pretty important characters Sirius Black [Gary Oldman] and we learn about dementors. We see the first signs of a potential romance between Hermine and Ron and Harry gets his Marauder's map and learns that the dark lord went to school at Hogworts.

The books start to get bigger with this movie, and the movies start to approach two and a half hours. Unlike the next few movies this one seems to leave out a lot of stuff from the book, I know this because my wife explained a lot of stuff while we were watching it. For that you have to blame the screenplay writer [Steve Kloves], and since they kept him around you can see how much better he did with the later films.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0304141/

Unlike the first film, this Chris Columbus takes a turn for the more mature. The villains are a little more difficult to defeat and the story gets much more complicated. We introduce Dobby and learn a lot more about the dark lord. We get yet another professor of the dark arts.

Despite the annoying characters Dobby, Prof. Lockhart [Kenneth Branagh] and Moaning Myrtle [played by Shirley Henderson]. I actually found this film to be pretty good. The main characters really start to come into their roles and the future of the series is solidified with this movie.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0295297/

In preparation for the final Harry Potter movie this month I went back and re-watched the entire series. I don't plan on writing extensive reviews for each film and will do my best to remember what came from each movie.

Having not read the books and watching the movies spread out over a decade, each one got more confusing and I was lost a little more with each to the point that last years made little to no sense to me. The first time I watch this film I was a Freshman in college and watched it alone in my dorm room. A kids movie with all due respect that I didn't think much of. The series is interesting in that the directing and acting matured with the films as the cast grew up.

Directed by Chris Columbus who is famous for Home Alone and The Goonies, the film has an immaturity to it as well. You get a sense that the bad guy Lord Voldemort is nothing more than a cartoon bad guy that poses little to no threat. The kids are new to magic it is almost geared for a young audience.

That being said, it was good enough to make 7 more, and to keep the same cast and director for the next film.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0241527/

The frontrunner for the worst movie of the year for me is this cinematic adaptation of Shakespeare's play. Nominated for an Oscar for Costume Design and greatly overlooked by the production company with respect to promotions.

Helen Mirren plays the main character, a magician who is sentenced to live on an uninhabited island for performing witchcraft. She raises her daughter there and argues with Djimon Hounsou and Ben Whishaw character about lord knows what. Sure I didn't understand the movie, I even read the cliff notes halfway into the movie to try and figure out what was going on. I just don't like Shakespeare movies like this.

I'm not at all surprised that this movie was overlooked and Russell Brand is just another black mark on this film and should be enough to detour anyone on the fence.

Vote: 1/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1274300/

I'm so so very tired of "homage" films labeled as indie or cult films. I really expected nothing out of this film. Honestly a little humor or good one liners would have been enough [kind of like Dead Snow or Army of Darkness]. The film was cheaply made, and it looks cheap.

Made along the lines of Grindhouse, and a homage to those types of film, but not exactly. If you saw Grindhouse you might remember there were two fake movie trailers, Machete and Hobo With A Shotgun... now neither are fake... So the idea for this film wasn't even that original.

Rutger Hauer was enjoyable to watch, he actually has a golden globe for a made for TV movie, and him running around with a shotgun was kinda cool. The supporting actors and script were just awful though. Gregory Smith as Slick was just terrible. The whole group of bad guys had such terrible lines that it was almost unwatchable. Last comment is the gore, I have a pretty high tolerance for gore from growing up watching lots of horror movies was even too much for me.

Not as good as people might be telling you, avoid it.

Vote: 2/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1640459/

I remember hearing about this indie hit several times but missed the dvd release and it fell out of my radar. After being nominated for a Saturn award I quickly went out and found it. The film managed to win several smaller film festivals for editing, screenplay, etc [not for overall picture though].

The film is Phone Booth meets 127 Hours, like Phone Booth it only has one film location... inside a coffin. And like 127 Hours it is about someone stuck in tight quarters. It enjoy the film you really have to put yourself in this guys position. We find out that Paul [Ryan Reynolds] is in the coffin somewhere in Iraq after his convoy was attacked. He is a civilian truck driver, not in the military, and he has been left with a lighter and cell phone... which does get reception. The entire film is his conversations with the people that put him in the coffin and are demanding ransom, family, and other he is trying to get a hold of to get out.

There are some intense scenes, like when a snake comes in a hole in the side of the coffin, or when the terrorists demand he makes a video using the phone of him being trapped. All in all not the most eventful movie, obviously. Not sure this was necessarily the most challenging acting performance that Reynolds is getting so much praise for... but it was in fact good. If you like the other two films I mentioned you might give this one a shot.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1462758/

Let's just say that I like Gene Kelly in musicals more than I like him in a wig pretending to be an expert swordsman. A selection to the 101 Action movie list, and definitely not my favorite version of the classic story. This film is overly cheesy and actually harder to follow than it should have been. I think they assume you have read the book because I was paying attention yet confused several times.

D'Artagnan goes to Paris to become a Musketeer, upon arrival he managed to get challenged to a duel by three separate musketeers on the same day. When Richelieu shows up with some cronies to take them in for illegally dueling, the four team up to take them out. A friendship is born and the team have to foil Richelieu's attempt to overthrow the king.

I don't want to waste my time taking about this one more, it just wasn't very good and I wouldn't suggest it to anyone.

Vote: 5/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040876/

The king of swashbuckler film, Mr. Errol Flynn. A man known just as much for his off camera adventures as on. A man charged with statutory rape three times, hence the term "In Like Flynn," he lead a very colorful lifestyle. Known best for his film The Adventures of Robin Hood, which was made three years after this one, but his role as Peter Blood really launched his career. This film was even nominated for 5 Oscars. I watched it because of its inclusion in the Action 101 book, but it is on numerous other lists I working on as well.

The film is about a doctor who is falsely accused of treason after caring for some rebel troops. He is sold into slavery in the West Indies and manages to become the doctor for the governor on the island thanks to a lack of competent doctors on the island. When the French attack he leads a group of slaves to take one of their ships and leads his crew to a life of pirating, since they have no place to call their home.

The bad guys are a little over the top, but that is my only real criticism of the film. It is pretty good, not too long, and a good classic. I'm not sure I can give an exact reason for not rating it any other than 7/10, but I did like it.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026174/

Nominated for 8 Oscars, and winner of two in a dead category "Assistant Director," I guess they were REALLY good at getting coffee on the set. Back where there were 12 best picture nominees [and you think 10 is a lot right now], this film lost to John Ford's The Informer. A selection to the 101 Action Movies book, and one of the oldest in the book.

This film directed by Henry Hathaway, who is best known for his westerns like How the West Was Won. It stars Gary Cooper, at no significant point in his long career other than the year before Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, two decades before he won his first Oscar. The film is about the British military in India fighting rebel forces. Considered an adventure/drama in it's era but more of a war film by today's standards. The scenes of charging men on horseback and shootouts, explosions and sword fighting all make this an action film. The drama between the father and son and Cooper's character really make this a drama more than anything.

It is not always easy to pigeonhole a film into a specific genre, and this one has a little of everything. It was kinda boring at times though, and the supporting actors weren't the best. All in all a good Cooper film but I think he still has better ones.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026643/

This film was suggested to me by a friend, and since I've been on a Luc Besson kick in action movie month, I was sort of expecting this to be an action movie also. Besson having done films I just watched such as District B13, La Femme Nikita, and Taxi.

This film language film stars Jamel Debbouze [Dramatic actor from Oscar nominated films Outside the Law and Days of Glory] and Rie Rasmussen, a pretty girl who some say has had a pretty limited career thanks to a poor acting job in this film. Honestly it is impossible to tell if an actor is just reading lines if you don't know the language... because you are READING the subtitles. So I'm not sure how much truth there is to this. Debbouze is quite a good actor and plays a character he seems to be comfortable with, an immoral man in a lower class of society.

The films title is a play on words. Debbouze plays Andre who is ready to commit suicide because of multiple debts from multiple criminal "bosses," which standing on the bridge [which isn't very high], he meets Angela [Angel-A]. She promises to give him a chance, since he saved her life when they both jumped off the bridge. She has an incredible ability to make quick money and beat up bad guys and spends the movie turning his life around.

This is not an action film and I didn't claim to be, she is his guardian angel, and what starts as a comedy/drama turns into a romance as the movie progresses. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. You might give it a shot if you are a Besson fan, but it isn't all that special.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0473753/

Burt Lancaster and Dean Martin star in a drama about the chaotic operations of an airport in a snowstorm. The film which somehow made it in the Action 101 book but really has very little "action."

The film starts with Lancaster as the head of an airport in the middle of a snow storm as they attempt to continue operations despite a plane blocking a runway, picketers of a runway causing noise in a neighborhood on the path of the runway. His wife divorces him during the snowstorm for not attending a dinner with her [that I'm sure would have been cancelled due to weather in real life]. The action plot is that a disgruntled man looking to collect life insurance for his family bombs one of the planes in a scene that makes me wonder if the FAA made this movie.

Amazingly this movie managed to spawn three sequels and I would guess that this series lent some ideas to the comedy team behind Airplane! regardless of the parody being modeled around Zero Hour! This movie sucked, maybe it was good 40 years ago, but not now.

Vote: 4/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065377/

This is an interesting inclusion on the Action 101 book in that it proves that the book "101 Action Movies to See Before You Die" is NOT the 101 Best Action Movie films. This King Hu Hong Kong Kung Fu [that was a mouthful] is considered the pioneer of the entire genre. A pretty bold title, but is not considered King Hu's best or even one of the best Shaw Brothers films. So it made it in the book only for what it is, and not how good it really is.

With that said, I didn't dislike it, but it is a weak 6/10. I already can't remember much about the film 3 weeks after seeing it, leaving no lasting impression. The just average rating is because it wasn't bad... it wasn't really good but it wasn't bad. Bandits kidnap the governors son and the governor sends his daughter, Golden Swallow [no, not a James Bond character], to rescue him.

Not much else to say, the fight scenes were cutting edge, no one did wire fighting kung fu before this. But they aren't nearly as good as the films 10 years later by the same people.

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059079/

I have to say that this movie looked bad from the start, but since I loved Zack Snyder I had to give him a chance. I can't even say that I have much of an opinion either way of Abbie Cornish and Emily Browning. The two have been in a number of films that were just ok, but since their roles were pretty minor I couldn't base much of an opinion from them.

The film doesn't make a whole lot of sense. It plays out more like an attempt to do as much different CGI in as many different ways in one movie. The plot is confusing because we fail to understand what reality really is for these girls in an insane asylum. We start with the events that lead to "Baby Doll" being committed by her stepfather, then we are taken through a series of adventures as she attempts to steal the ideas necessary for making an escape. The adventures are like dreams that include the other girls from the asylum as they battle samurai, nazi's, and robots.

If you are looking for action for the sake of action while you shovel popcorn into your face look no further. If you are looking for a plot with good acting and action, keep looking.

Vote: 4/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0978764/

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