Movie Reviews: Courageous Lions Sure Kill Dreams!

by Jack Garcia

More movie reviews!  That’s three consecutive days of movie reviews now and I’m sure you are getting tired of them.  But it’s like a sickness.  I just can’t stop watching movies!  Anyway, I saw The Lion King 3D a few weeks ago but completely forgot about it until now.  I think it’s because it’s not a “new” movie.  But the other three were all within the past week.  In fact, I saw Courageous just yesterday.  Now I can say that I’ve seen every movie currently playing at the theater I work at!  Is that impressive or pathetic?

The Lion King 3D AWESOME!

Who hasn’t seen Disney’s 1994 hit The Lion King?  I’m pretty sure the vast majority probably even owns it on VHS or DVD somewhere.  Yet Disney’s re-release of Simba’s story to the big screen—this time in 3D—was pretty breathtaking to behold!  The 3D was tasteful and really helped me to appreciate the beauty of the animation and the drama of the tale.  Featuring great voice talent (Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Nathan Lane and Whoopi Goldberg to name a few), spectacular songs by Tim Rice and Elton John and a score by Hans Zimmer, this movie is well worth a revisit!

Dream House AVERAGE

Daniel Craig stars as Will Atenton, a man who has left the city and just bought his dream house with his wife Libby (Rachel Weisz) and two young daughters.  Everything seems perfect, until they discover their new home was once the crime scene of a brutal murder.  The only one who seems to know anything about it is their neighbor Ann (Naomi Watts).  Things get even weirder as the movie progresses, and the final plot twist was completely underwhelming.  Dream House, written by screenwriter David Loucka and directed by Jim Sheridan, isn’t scary or particularly inventive.  It’s kind of like last year’s Shutter Island, just less good.

Killer Elite AVERAGE

Jason Statham plays Danny, a retired special-ops agent, who is forced to kill again when his mentor Hunter (Robert DeNiro) is taken captive by a sheik.  If Danny can assassinate three individuals responsible for the deaths of the man’s three sons, Hunter will be let free.  Things of course get complicated, especially since the leader of a secret military group (Clive Owen) is hot on Danny’s tracks.  The movie wasn’t fantastic by any means, but there was solid action that kept the movie going, especially one particular sequence where Statham manages to fight two guys off while tied to a chair.  Pretty cool stuff if you turn your brain off for a while.

Courageous ADMIRABLE

Alex Kendrick is the writer, director and leading actor of this Christian film about a group of cops who make a pact to become better fathers after Adam (Kendrick’s character) loses his daughter in a terrible accident.  While at times laying on the cheese in cringe-worthy doses—especially with a storyline involving a Hispanic man and his wife, who incidentally cannot act worth a hill of beans—the message was very spiritual and impactful if not subtle.  Overcoming my cynical inclinations, I found myself enjoying this movie greatly despite its flaws.  The film courageously campaigns for more Christlike parenting in the world today, and that’s something I can get behind.

You can read Brian's review of Dream House at his blog Addiction to Film.

Movie Review: 'Dream House'

Rating: 2/5
by Brian Kesler

'Dream House' has moments, no, flashes of good ideas. Unfortunately, the rest is abundantly stupid. Think 'The Shining' mixed with 'Shutter Island' and remove the eloquent dialogue, shocking performances, haunting photography, and delicious editing of each. That's this movie. I sometimes wonder how good directors can choose a screenplay bleeding with asininity. But, shockingly, not only is the screenplay a raging alcoholic of a mess, but the direction - from Jim Sheridan! of all people - is appalling.

Sheridan is known for his subtle and efficient directing, particularly in pulling thunderstorm performances from his actors. Daniel Day Lewis in 'My Left Foot' and Toby Maguire in 'Brothers' are two outstanding examples. Here, Daniel Craig doesn't have the psychological conviction of Jack Nicholson in Kubrick's 'The Shining,' nor does he have the bewildered curiosity and tragic heroism of Leonardo DiCaprio in Scorsese's 'Shutter Island.' There's a pitiful scene in which we can tell Craig is trying his little heart out to appear anguished and tortured, and instead he comes across as, well, someone trying to act anguished and tortured. There's no truth. Some actors seem like nothing but plot devices, such as Naomi Watts. Poor woman. She's not given a single piece of dialogue to showcase her talents. Even the way in which she's shot makes her seem like a prop. So, why did she do the movie? I'll never understand what draws big-name actors to such unsubstantial roles.
 
It's not necessarily the actors' faults they come across so amateur. The photography and the editing attribute to the incomprehensible scenarios. A scene in which a car with an unknown driver revs toward Craig maliciously is staged and edited so strangely, it almost came across as a Buster Keaton comedy. A game of cat and mouse between Craig and car, where car gets close to hitting Craig and Craig does pirouettes on the ice before landing haphazardly in the snow. The scene goes on quite a bit, and nothing ever happens except Craig getting in front of the car, the car revving forward, and Craig falling on his ass. Again and again. Why? It's silly, is what it is.

I guess I could tell you the story, but if you've seen a single advertisement for the movie, you'll already know a great deal of the premise and a major plot twist. This is why movie previews should be avoided. Something you may not know is that, despite what the trailer suggests, this is not a horror movie at all, or even that much of a haunted house movie. It actually becomes a really sloppy (the plot holes abounding) whodunnit mystery the likes of those two-dollar mass-market paperbacks you get at the grocery store. It doesn't start out that way. The film doesn't really know what it wants to be. It opens as a simple haunted house movie, tries to cross the border into psychological drama (the 'plot-twist' sequence is neither convincing nor enthralling), and ends up Victoria Holt wannabe, standing in the line at checkout reading sloppily bound pocketbook that was displayed next to the celebrity fad magazines, atrociousness. If a movie wants to satisfy my hunger for a whodunnit mystery, it better let me know it's a whodunnit mystery right from the get-go.

I could go on and on. The two little girls are not utilized effectively, and Rachel Weisz tries really hard to give a stunning performance from a role that denies her that pleasure. It really says something about a film when it is more invested in finding a way to end itself than exploring the characters it set out to study. Do yourself a favor: Netflix Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining,' and Martin Scorsese's 'Shutter Island.' I'm saving you money, time, your health, and your sanity. And, you might actually be entertained. 

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The Gleek Critique: "Asian F" Episode

Kurt apologizes to Blaine with some flowers.  Image property of Fox.

by Jack Garcia

Mike Chang finally gets a front-and-center storyline in tonight's episode!  His father is concerned when Mike brings home an "Asian F" (which is just an A-) and reminds him that he can't get into Harvard with bad grades.  He also feels that Mike would be better off dropping out of the glee club, since it's only a distraction.  But Mike's heart lies in dancing, and he just can't let it go.  So he decides to audition for the part of Riff in the school's production of West Side Story, leading to a touching moment with his mother who encourages him to pursue his dreams.

Mercedes' boyfriend convinces her that she is much better than Rachel and that she should fight to be on top.  And while it's nice to see Mercedes receiving support and gaining some new-found confidence, it's not so great to see her turn into a selfish diva.  She starts showing up late, giving excuses and generally snapping at everyone.  Finally she goes head to head against Rachel for the lead role of Maria.  And in an interesting turn of events, Rachel fears that Mercedes may be better than her and decides to run for student council president... which doesn't go over so well with Kurt.  But in the end, Rachel ends up with the role after all and Mercedes joins Shelby's new glee club.

Meanwhile, Will wonders why he hasn't met Emma's parents yet so he takes it upon himself to contact them and invite them to dinner.  However, he soon discovers that Emma hasn't introduced them yet because she is embarrassed of them.  Her parents are "ginger supremacists" who only like red-headed people.  They also have a tendency of mocking Emma for her OCD, something that Will will not stand for.  The visit has Emma reverting to some of her obsessive habits, and Will kneels down to pray with her as a sign that together they will overcome it.

The Pros:

• Mercedes' rendition of Jennifer Hudson's "Spotlight" was very good, but my favorite would have to be her impersonation of Effie in the song "It's All Over" from the musical Dreamgirls.  She and the other members of the club sang all the parts and it was pretty neat in my opinion.
• Gotta love when Brittany and Mike sing and dance!  Brittany's "Run the World (Girls)" originally by Beyonce was full of great dance moves and girl power, and Mike's performance of "Cool" (from the musical West Side Story) was very very good.  I really thought Mike shone brightly tonight and proved that he really is a pretty good singer... and actor.
• Kurt quit being a baby and is happy for Blaine like a good boyfriend should be.  I loved when Blaine said, "You always zig when I think you're about to zag."  Very sweet.
• I liked the scene when Mike danced with his mother.  Priceless.
• Mercedes and Rachel did a great job with "Out Here on My Own" from Fame.  Too bad they hate each other...

The Cons:

• Finn's character has disappeared lately.  I would like to see him do... something.  I don't know.  Anything really.
• Double-casting is lame!  I would have liked it if the directors actually chose Mercedes over Rachel if they really thought she was better. Their decision was a cop-out.
• I always miss Sue when she isn't featured...

Movie Reviews: We Drew Straws, and 50 is Your Number

by Jack Garcia

Continuing with yesterday's post, today I am posting three more movie reviews!  I bet you are just riddled with joy.  Or not. Straw Dogs was already out a couple of weeks when I saw it, but both What's Your Number? (which I saw at the midnight showing, actually) and 50/50 just came out this weekend.  I saw the first two with Michelle, but Brian came with me to see 50/50.  You can read his review of the movie at his blog Addiction to Film.

Straw Dogs AVERAGE

James Marsden plays David Sumner, a screenwriter from LA who moves with his wife Amy (Kate Bosworth) to her hometown in the south.  Tension between Sumner and the locals begins to brew almost immediately, especially with Amy’s ex-boyfriend Charlie (Alexander Skarsgard) who still lusts after her.  The movie is a disturbing look at how far you can push someone, and involves a rape scene that is very unsettling—partly because it’s filmed in a sexy manner.  Kate Bosworth was the weakest component to this picture, in my opinion, because I never understood or really believed any of her character’s actions.  From what I hear, the original movie was much better.

What’s Your Number? AVERAGE

Anna Faris can be really funny, but sometimes she falls short.  I think in this movie she fell a little short.  While What’s Your Number? had quite a few laughs and chuckles, it wasn’t nearly as funny as say, Bridesmaids (the opening sequences are almost identical), which had me laughing in hysterics.  Faris plays Ally Darling, a woman who is concerned that she’s had sex with too many men, so she tries to look back at her exes and see if one of them might really be the one after all.  Her neighbor, Colin (Chris Evans) helps her out on her quest and I don’t think it’s a “spoiler alert” to say that the two fall in love.  It’s a chick flick, people.  We all saw this coming.  The movie, however, is pretty darn cute and both stars show lots of skin if that’s what you’re into!

50/50 AWESOME!

Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars in this dramatic comedy as Adam, a 27-year-old guy who discovers—quite unexpectedly—that he has cancer.  His best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen) does his best to keep Adam’s life happy, mostly by trying to get him laid after his girlfriend Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard) cracks under the pressure and leaves him.  His mother (Anjelica Huston) wants to take care of him, naturally, but it’s ultimately his psychiatrist-in-training Katherine (Anna Kendrick) who helps him to deal with everything.  50/50, written by Will Reiser and directed by Jonathan Levine, manages to infuse quite a lot of genuine humor into a pretty bleak subject and the result is a very real and relatable story of human mortality.

Movie Reviews: I Don't Know How She Abducts the Dolphin's Money

by Jack Garcia

I have seen a lot of movies within the past week and I have a certain friend who has been nagging at me to get my reviews posted... so here they are!  Well, some of them.  There are so many that I didn't want to lump them all into one gargantuan post, so I'll be doing them in groups.  Two of these four movies were just plain awful, one was really cute and one was flat-out terrific.

I Don’t Know How She Does It AWFUL

Sarah Jessica Parker plays Kate Reddy who juggles a busy business career and a family.  So how does she do it?  Well, she doesn’t.  She’s sort of a frenzied mess, and so is this movie by director Douglas McGrath and screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna.  It’s a comedy geared for women that is not once funny or particularly moving.  In fact, it’s really dull and has nothing interesting to say about the working mom, even though the characters talk and talk and talk and unnecessarily give interviews to the camera.

Abduction AWFUL

Taylor Lautner is the cute-as-a-button boy-next-door with a nice set of abs that has no business having a career as an actor.  An underwear model?  Sure, why not.  But an actor?  Hell to the no.  In Abduction he plays teenaged Nathan who discovers his baby picture on a missing persons website and soon finds himself on the run from bad guys and CIA agents… and the result is just a lot of second-rate action sequences and abysmal acting.  This movie by director John Singleton is so bad it’s almost funny, and it somehow manages to make seasoned actors like Sigourney Weaver look like they’d be better suited for community theater.

Moneyball AWESOME!

Brad Pitt stars as Oakland A’s manager Billy Beane who feels like it is impossible to put together a winning team on such a tiny budget when all of the best players get snatched up by teams who can pay them more.  He gets an idea—sparked by Peter Brand (played by comedian Jonah Hill showing great skill in a serious role)—to draft players based off of computer-generated analysis.  Although everyone thinks he will fail, he sticks to his beliefs and revolutionizes the game of baseball.  Director Bennett Miller does a fantastic job at delivering a powerfully motivating message without ever getting cheesy, and the performances are all top-notch.

Dolphin Tale ADMIRABLE

Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr. and Ashley Judd all star in this family-friendly film about a dolphin who loses her tail and the boy who never gave up on her.  Young Sawyer (Nathan Gamble) untangles the poor animal and instantly forms a bond with her.  The dolphin's story inspires many people with disabilities and helps Sawyer to come out of his shell.  There were brief moments in the film that felt overly silly or unimportant—like a crazy people-attacking pelican and a five-minute sequence of a toy helicopter zooming around the aquarium—but overall the feel-good film was heartwarming and very inspiring.

Read Brian’s reviews of I Don’tKnow How She Does It, Abduction and Moneyball on his new movie blog Addiction to Film!

Movie Review: '50/50'

Rating: 4.5/5
by Brian Kesler

'50/50' is an endearing film about real people and their struggle to come to terms with life's frailty. It's being touted as a comedy, and while it does have a heavy emphasis on comedic talent (including writer Will Reiser, and actors Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Anjelica Huston), it is ultimately a raw and complex story of human connection.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam, who's been feeling a little sick. He goes for a checkup, expecting some simple advice: exercise, eat healthy, etc. He waits patiently, nonchalantly, for the results. The doctor enters, sits, and - so riddled with technicality and inhumanity - absentmindedly discusses the diagnoses into a recorder, stoic and expressionless. You'd expect a doctor to give weight to such disastrous news by preparing the patient ... comforting them. But, in an attempt to avoid human interaction, the doctor merely tells his recorder, without a glance at Adam, that Patient 'A' has a malignant tumor in his spine.

Adam shouldn't have cancer. He's young. He's been living with his girlfriend for only a few weeks, he goes drinking with his best friend at night clubs, he avoids his needy mother and can't bear to see his Alzheimer's-ridden father. He's just started his career. He's a normal kid.

The way in which Adam handles his situation is intriguing. He doesn't wish to be a victim and refuses to let anyone treat him as such. He tries to laugh it off as funny, and suggests those around him do the same. He and his friend (Seth Rogen) shave his head with smiling faces, and use his cancer to score girls' sympathy and get laid. Only when he's in bed with a girl does he discover his ability for such pleasures of life no longer exist. Eventually, Adam becomes hostile and outraged. Why isn't anyone treating him like the victim he is? Why doesn't anyone care? His mother cares. She cares enough to call him everyday, offering to make him dinner. But, he never returns her calls or takes her suggestion. She cares too much. It's embarrassing. There's a psychiatrist too, played delightfully by Anna Kendrick (the girl that caught much attention in 'Up in the Air'). She's not really a psychiatrist, yet. She is working on her doctorate and Adam is just 'experience' for her degree. She follows everything she's been taught from her text books. She tries a little too much to show her patient she's doing everything her profession requires. She often touches Adam's arm or wrist. She doesn't do it out of genuine sympathy, she does it because she's supposed to. It promotes human connection. In a very funny scene, she practices different ways of touching Adam's hand and asks his opinion on which seems more genuine. She's not a terrible person, however. In fact, outside of the doctor's office, her interactions are heartfelt and loving. But, in fear of getting too personal, she backs off into 'professionalism,' which isn't what Adam needs. He needs a human connection with someone who understands him. The other cancer patients he sits with during therapy sessions are old men who were already on their way to the grave. Eventually, this inner turmoil and confusion culminates into a heartbreaking and shattering scene of self-torture and epiphanous despair.

As stated earlier, '50/50' is about tragic situations, the need for human connection, and the inevitability of death. But, don't ever think the film becomes sentimental or sappy. Each scene is handled with great care, in the way it is acted, directed, shot, and written. It is clear that director Jonathan Levine doesn't want this film to be about cancer. Any Lifetime Channel movie can be about cancer. Instead, this film is an intensely personal story of a young man trying to find himself through the midst of his own mortality. It is that distinction that allows the film to truly shine. When Adam goes into surgery near the end of the film and embraces his mother while sobbing pitifully, our own emotions are stirred, not because we know he could die, but because we've witnessed this relationship between mother and son come full circle. We've seen how opposed to emotionality Adam is toward his mother. His need to avoid her loving, yet smothering, touch. Only near his death does he release his pride and become a little boy who needs his mother desperately.

Box Office: 'Dolphin Tale' Outswims the Competition

by Brian Kesler

In a predictable turn of events, the inspirational family film, 'Dolphin Tale,' led the box office, albeit poorly, with approx $14.2M. 'Dolphin Tale' premiered at the third spot last weekend and, although jumping to number one, it still dropped 25.6% in terms of sales. All things considered, that isn't a good sign for the week's new releases.

Another 'inspirational' holdover from last week, 'Moneyball,' was second with $12.5M. This puts its total at $38.4M, ahead of 'Dolphin Tale,' and closer to its $50M Budget. Decidedly, the film is not the success 'The Social Network' was, but could see profits by next week.

Although extending its run a third week, 'The Lion King' fell from the number one spot, to the number three spot with approx. $11M. It dropped nearly 50%, undoubtedly due to the movie's release on blu-ray and that most people rushed to the theaters during its so-called 'limited two-week engagement.' The film had been hyped at that point, but its extension didn't seem to carry much advertisement, which could be another cause of the drop. It should be mentioned, however, that not only has the film entered the top ten box office successes of all time, but Walt Disney Pictures passed the $1 Billion mark over the weekend.

None of the new releases fared well. '50/50,' 'Courageous,' and 'Dream House,' all made about the same amount of money: $8.5M. That makes Seth Rogen's lowest debut. Even 'Dream House' paled in comparison with supernatural thrillers, which don't often do well anyway. 'Courageous' played in barely over 1,100 theaters, which means its per screen average is a success compared with that of its rivals. 'What's Your Number' proved Anna Farris still struggles for a fan-base with only $5.6M, and 8th place for the weekend. The film was a tremendous flop. In fact, it is the fifth worst opening ever for a movie in more than 3,000 theaters. With the exception of '50/50,' all new releases have decidedly low Tomato-Meter scores.

All other holdovers in the top ten fell at least 40%, making this weekend an absolute failure for Hollywood.

Box office results and more detailed analysis can be found at Box Office Mojo.