Hot Fuzz

--R-- Hot Fuzz was an uneven film. It started out well providing a quick synopsis of who Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg) is and in so doing painted a portrait of an almost super human police officer. The synopsis is quite funny and immediately following we are provided with a perfect portrayel of a man betrayed and downtrodden.

After the synopsis the movie is slow for the next hour. While there are several funny scenes amidst the slow down you the viewer will not escape the feeling of boredom. During this slower portion of the film it is however important because you are shown how maddening it must be and genuinely feel for him as an individual as he slowly descends onto the edge of insanity.

Right when you are as bored as you think possible (in a comedy) the truth unfolds and Angel comes back Commando style to claim victory over the town. This is the point when the movie takes on new life and you understand why the Brit's found it so funny. The next 30 minutes are non-stop action and comedy making the aforementioned boredom worthwhile.

If you liked Shaun of the Dead you will like Hot Fuzz. As typical with British cinema there is an inordinate amount of expletives, and if you know that you don't like British humor don't see this film, but if you do...you won't regret it.

cah

Fracture

--R-- There isn't much to say about this film so this is going to be short.

Anthony Hopkins playing the alleged murderer Ted Crawford as always did an admirable job, Ryan Gosling as ADA Willy Beachum did an adequate job. Gosling's whole problem was the eyes; he was playing an intense, anal retentive individual that was driven to be as perfect as he could be in every way. Throughout the film his eyes were distant, empty, some would say soulful...anything but intense, that fact bothered me throughout the movie.

In addition, within 10 minutes it was obvious what Crawford was doing and how he was going to get himself away with the murder of his wife. Furthermore, Crawford was a highly intelligent and very meticulous individual, how he didn't recognize the flaw in thinking about his double jeopardy notion confounds me. It was totally out of character for him and didn't make sense.

On the whole the movie was enjoyable and hard to watch in all the right places, it just fell a little flat for me, especially considering the remarkable leading cast it employed.

cah

Grindhouse

--R-- I went to see this movie to find out what Grindhouse theaters really were. My conclusion...just what I thought they were: B movies! I can appreciate the homage in which both Tarantino and Rodriguez were attempting, especially since I am sure there is a mass audience that has never before seen a B movie, gone to a "grindhouse" theater or to the drive-in to experience this kind of movie making. I just don't think they succeeded. To have succeeded in bringing back what the Grindhouse is suppose to be they shouldn't have taken the movie so seriously. In fact if you want to see a B movie with A-list actors watch Rodriguez's From Dusk 'Till Dawn. Save for the grainy film and missing reels that movie nailed what B movies are; far better than either of these films did.

Planet Terror

With Planet Terror what Rodriguez accomplished (save for the gratuitous blood splatter) was just a overpriced and over-hyped film. If we were suppose to be taken back to this cultish era of film we weren't. I mean the acting wasn't awful and cheesy, the cinematography was quite good, and the zombie story was actually fun and interesting. I was entertained without being annoyed. Simply put...I enjoyed it, but not enough to even consider seeing it again.

Death Proof

Death Proof, the second half of the "double-feature" directed by Tarantino didn't even have the typical cheesy feel of a B film at all. The main problem with it was the first 15 minutes. Those 15 minutes were torture and I was seriously contemplating getting up and walking out of a film for only the second time in my life. Thankfully I didn't. Once they introduced Kurt Russell's character the movie took on new life. In fact during the second portion of Death Proof it was quite good. I enjoyed the car chases, the dialogue was witty and the switch from hunter to hunted was worth the price of admission alone.

I can't recommend this movie to anyone, mainly because I don't think anyone I know would enjoy this unique twin bill, however if you would like to pay full price to see the last 45 minutes of the three hour film; feel free. In fact those 45 minutes was for me worth the torture of the first two and a quarter hours, but I only payed a few bucks at the early bird special to see it.

cah

Disturbia

--PG-13-- Let us be clear about this, I don't particularly like the title and making a movie that so closely resembles a masterpiece like Hitchcock's Rear Window...usually is a big mistake, and yes here comes the obvious but, in this case it wasn't. Director D.J. Caruso kept the film within itself, never trying to make it something it isn't. That is one of the reasons Disturbia is a fun, creepy paranoid driven thriller.

Young Shia LaBeouf is continuing to build his resume of solid work by playing the guilt ridden lead character Kale. David Morse the object of Kale's paranoia fuels that feeling by playing a character that can only be described as CREEPY! The rest of the cast does an adequate job and don't really do anything to add to or take away from the film.

What I really like about this movie is that even though the cast is dominated by teenagers you never get the feeling that this is another stupid teeny bopper wanna be thriller. It is a legitimate thriller that all ages above 13 can enjoy.

cah

The Pathfinder

--R-- When I first saw the trailer for Pathfinder I wasn't all that impressed, but thought it looked fun enough to warrant my attendance. Boy was I wrong! The only thing that was worth while in this movie was the scenery. Now, I don't know where they filmed Pathfinder but the snow covered mountains in the rich dense forests off an ocean coast was breathtaking. Other than that the acting was atrocious, the story weak, and watching another movie about a peaceful Native American society ravaged by the big bad Europeans has gotten a tad annoying.

The worst thing about this movie is I was expecting a good action flick (in fact it was the only reason I went to see it), and even the action fell well short of what it needed. The action sequences were abbreviated at best, and focused far too much on the main characters facial expression as he was killing the destructive Viking invaders. The director tried to compensate for this by giving us brief glimpses of gore and blood splatter, this again did little to make this movie worth watching.

So...to wrap this up don't waste your money, and the time being spent to watch this movie would be better served if you took a nap.

cah

300

--R--The most important thing to note about this film is that it is not a comic book movie. It is however a graphic novel adapted to film. Is there a difference? In layman terms, yes...a comic book is typically portrayed as a caricatured version of reality, where as graphic novels are far darker and more of an anthology. So when adapting graphic novels to film they have to be taken more seriously than your standard comic book movie. The most notable comic book adaptations are probably either the Spiderman series or Batman Begins. The most notable graphic novel films would be Sin City, Road to Perdition and now 300.

300 is a flawless masterpiece! From start to finish you find seamless editing, striking costumes, as well as superb acting and many other remarkable assets. While 300 bills itself as an action film (which it is) it is also far more than that. With each significant role, you find that they all have a rich meaningful back-story which adds depth and color to these characters lives and the part they play in the battle against a Persian Emperor touting himself as a God. Whether the 300 strong Spartans survive or not doesn't matter, you understand their plight and the importance of their stance against corrupt politicians, tainted prognosticators and a maniacal emperor hell bent on world domination.

Is this movie going to win the Oscar for best picture? No, but this movie wasn't made to that end. A film like this is made to make money for its financial backers and by its director for the artisctic wonder of which it is.

cah

The Lookout

--R--The Lookout brings a new and fresh look at a heist film that beautifully intertwines the intricacies of psychological drama wrapped around the mental disabilities of a once gifted and beloved individual. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the titular character; a young man born into privilege and wealth as well as a gifted athlete who crashes his car into a broken down combine while trying to impress his girlfriend. This tragic accident kills two friends maims another and causes severe brain damage to Levitt's character Chris. This injury causes Chris to lead a life that is mundane and depressing, especially when compared to his previous existence.
Before I reveal too much of this magnificent film I would like to point out the surprisingly good acting by Jeff Daniels (Chris' blind best-friend), and Levitt's ever increasingly solid work is just a little of what makes this film worth watching. Not to mention that the cinematography, acting, directing and writing all combine to make this movie a potentially surprising film, especially come awards season.

cah

Blades of Glory

--PG-13--While watching this movie I knew that Will Ferrell wasn't acting any different than he does in all of his roles (save for Stranger Than Fiction) and that Jon Heder found another way to play the quirky weird character. Yes, while watching this movie I knew those things...they simply did not matter. As illogical as this film was, and as impossible some of the maneuvers they performed on ice were I was able to laugh from the moment the movie started to the second it ended.
Admittedly, I found the whole movie eerily similar to The Cutting Edge which was another pairs ice skating movie (that starred Moira Kelley and DB Sweeney). Even with the similarity to Edge and the creepiness of the premise, as I previously stated the faults that lay
in this movie are easily overshadowed by the hilarity of it's two stars, not to mention the excellent job of it's supporting cast. Jon Heder with his morality stance keeps the movie cleaner than any other Ferrell movie and not surprisingly the movie doesn't suffer from the lack of vulgarity.

cah

the one that explains it all

For a brief time in my scholastic endeavors I entertained the idea of becoming a film critic. After a semester or two I altered my major to behavioral science. Anyway...after I changed my mind about pursuing a career as a film critic I was talking to a friend that recommended I continue with my passion and publish my reviews on a blog. I have however decided to forgo publishing a full review and decided to focus more on a simple straight forward opinion about each film that I have seen. To make this easy for me and everyone else that might find their way to this page I will start from scratch and only comment about movies that I see in the future. If there is a film that anyone would like me to express my opinion on feel free to email me and tell me the movie. My goal is to have a written opinion about every movie I have ever seen. Since I have seen thousands of movies in my life this will be a momentous undertaking since I am starting from scratch. Happy reading and I hope my opinions fall on open minds.