(500) Days of Summer

--PG-13-- This movie made me angry. I go to movies to escape and become engrossed in a fantasy world...not to be slapped with a depressing story about a man that loves a woman that is totally selfish and ignorant of how her decisions affect those around her. And to top it off, everything works out for her in the end. Not teaching her a damn thing.

What irks me more than anything however is that the movie was well made in every aspect. I have no complaints about the movie as a piece of art, just a major complaint about the message it is sending to an already self absorbed world.

A funny thing about it is that most people won't understand what I am saying. Most people will identify with Summer. They won't recognize that how she acts and behaves has a direct influence on others. That while she may have "covered her basis" by stating "I am not looking for a relationship" everything she did was contrary to that statement. Treating him like a boyfriend, doing "couple" things lead to mixed signals that can and did become emotionally crippling.

Anyway, I don't recommend this to anyone.



cah

Julie & Julia

--PG-13-- Nora Ephron made a legitimate Oscar caliber film. Who knew she had it in her? I sure didn't. The queen of RomComs has shocked perhaps us all. With a steller cast comprised of Meryl Streep(another oscar caliber performance), Amy Adams as the titular characters with support from the likes of Stanley Tucci(I love this guy), Jane Lynch and Mary Lynn Rajskub. The ensemble cast was top notch and they all lived up to what we as fans come to expect from them.

Beyond the acting we have a story that was compiled from two books and weaved together to make a hilarious, touching and inspiring film. Ms. Ephron finally transcended her reputation and may perhaps garner her first Oscar nomination. She wrote, produced and directed this beautiful film and is well deserving of all accolades heaped on her this upcoming awards season.

Now to the story...Julie & Julia follows two women as they embark on life changing adventures. Julie is a failed novelist that finds comfort in cooking fabulous meals for herself and husband. Julia is Julia Child and the movie begins with her arrival in Paris and how she becomes "Julia Child." Inspired by a self-obsessed friend Julie decides to start a blog about cooking all the culinary delights in Julia Child's French Cuisine book in one year. This process tries her patience and her sanity as she struggles to create what we discover is perhaps an insane idea.

Throughout the course of the film you will laugh, perhaps cry but definitely will leave the theater smiling as you consider the beautifully executed (in every possible way) film that you just watched. A must see for everyone. It is not a RomCom, it isn't even a comedy by today's standards. This movie makes you think back to comedies use to be...laughter without the need for "potty" humor and "gross out" tactics that are now used in today's comedy realm filled with the likes of the Farrelly brothers and Judd Apatow tripe.



cah

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

--PG-13-- I don't want to spend too much time on this movie, because it is what it is. And that is a summer popcorn thrill ride. So I will review it as such. You won't be bored, and there are only a few cheesy lines. Granted the acting is a bit weak, but the action sequences more than make up for the few and far between serious moments. In a movie that runs just shy of two hours, there is easily 1 1/2 hours of action.

The action sequences in my opinion never run too long. They are well paced and perfectly timed so you won't feel exhausted at the end of the scene and it will leave you wanting more...which you won't have to wait very long for. In fact the longest you have to wait between action scenes is probably 5 minutes.

To sum up, the movie is what it is...an adrenaline fueled thrill ride that is based on an action figure that has been around for half a century.


cah

Land Of The Lost

--PG-13-- The best part of the movie is the very last scene. Everything before it should have landed itself on the cutting room floor. To say anything more would be a further waste of time.

Adventureland

--R-- To start with the marketers of this movie completely misrepresented what it was about and the category in which it should fit. I distinctly remember watching the trailers and thinking that Adventureland was going to be another Superbad, Knocked Up type comedy. So, instead of watching a crude low brow comedy I was surprised to see a pleasant dramedy that had the same look, feel and flow as Juno.

Now, Adventureland isn't Juno, it isn't based on a pregnant teenager that is surprisingly well informed and mature for her age. No, this is about an over-educated kid working at an amusement park trying to earn enough money for graduate school...oh did I mention that it is based in the great bygone era of 1987! You have a couple of social misfits, mixed with an older musician that is living dangerously close to being a pedophile, a couple of misplaced intellectuals and your stereotypical arrogant pretty people that act dumb, and are dumb....Phew!

Okay...okay! I have given you way too much background on the characters. Part of the reason I found it so enjoyable is because I was taken aback at what the movie actually was. In short, this is a character story about a smart boy finding confidance and his relationship with an emotionally stunted, self-destructive, underachieving rich girl.

Adventureland is a movie that I hope everyone can enjoy, not just for it's self effacing humor, or the nostalgia it might illicit, but for the overall story, direction and execution that combined to make this a film that stands out in its misrepresented category.



cah

Race to Witch Mountain

--PG-- Watching movies that star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson bring me back to my younger years when I would see a movie that starred Hulk Hogan. Not because the movies they make are similar, but because those two people followed similar career paths. The big difference between the two is that Dwayne is a former wrestler and actually makes decent movies. Hogan still wrestles and made movies that would make most people run away and hide.

I for one am glad Dwayne Johnson has dropped his wrestling moniker and has taken his charisma and good looks to such family friendly films as The Game Plan and now Race to Witch Mountain. For those of you that never saw the original which was made back in the early 80's, both movies revolve around two alien kids with supernatural abilities trying to locate their spaceship so they can return home. Both movies also feature an enemy that wants to capture the kids and either dissect them, or control them.

Now that the basic plot line is layed out Race to Witch Mountain is a fun light-hearted comedy that should entertain anyone that is in the mood to smile. It isn't particularly funny or witty, the acting isn't superb and the pacing of the movie isn't perfect. But even with those unspectacular facts you still will smile at Jack Bruno (Johnson) muddling through something that is clearly over his head. You can't help but smile at Gary Marshall's (Soapdish) cameo as a wacked out alien conspiracy theorist. Better yet is Carla Gugino (Spy Kids) playing this straight laced scientist that is trying desparetly to be taken seriously by both the scientific world and the sci-fi alien nut-jobs.

No, Race to Witch Mountain is perfect, it isn't a laugh a minute comedy, but it is a light-hearted family film that will entertain you and have you believing that aliens might just be real.



cah

The Last House on the Left

--R-- In a day and age when horror movies are a dime a dozen, filled with Saw XV's and Hostel V's it is rare to find a true horror film. To be clear I think a true horror film is one that terrifies you for its real life possibilities. Most horror movies made today are either supernatural and ridiculous or movies like Saw that celebrate depravity regardless of what could or would really happen.

The Last House on the Left is a truly terrifying film. The movie consists of a prisoner transport escape (plausible), teenagers making stupid decisions (plausible), rape of one of the teenagers by an escaped convict (plausible), surviving a gun shot wound to the back (plausible), power outage in a rural setting during a storm (plausible). All the key points to this film were plausible. Nothing was supernatural, the bad guys weren't heartless...just criminals trying to survive in a situation that calls for extreme measures.

Now all that being said, The Last House on the Left isn't the best horror movie ever made, but it is one that is based in reality and is entertaining enough to overlook its negatives. I will say that the rape scene is probably the most terrifying part of the movie, one in which averting your eyes would be beneficial. There is no need to watch a 17 year old girl get brutalized by a sociopath, however the scene was pivotal to the movie and a catalyst which allowed for survivors of this horrifying experience.

If you are a bit timid and tend to shy away from horror movies, don't go see this one. If you like movies like Saw you will probably not be disappointed however don't expect there to be complete depravity celebrating violence for violence sake. If you want to be scared and maybe teach your teenage daughter a lesson or two you will most likely enjoy this movie in all its horrifying splendor.



cah

Doubt

--PG-13-- With protest and only by request I am writing this review...I'll leave it at that.

The most controversial thing that has sprung up about this movie isn't about whether it was good or not. That fact was decided by earlier reviews and Oscar night. No, the real controversy is about whether Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman) committed the unthinkable act of molestation. With all evidence being circumstantial, Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep) is certain that the Father committed the crime and therefore must be ousted from the Parish.

The movie focuses on a sister in a patriarchal society, in a patriarchal religion standing up against her "superiors" and by any means necessary accomplishing that which she feels she must. This is the topic in which I would like to discuss. It doesn't matter whether I think he did it, or if you think he did it. What matters is if Sister Aloysius was correct with her flagrant disregard of church protocol and potentially ruining someones life without any real proof. We live in a society where everyone is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. But in a religion where reputation is perhaps more important than innocence the fact that she even hinted at accusing him of it, would scare even the most innocent of men in his position, away.

Sister Aloysius acted in a way that portrayed a "by any means necessary" attitude. This kind of attitude is dangerous; they will lie, cheat, steal and in some circumstances kill to accomplish their end goal. What makes her attitude even worse is the fact that she had no concrete evidence, she was acting on instinct and experience. Two things that can lead to doubts. For instance, in the closing moments, Sister Aloysius with all her talk about certainty and doing what is necessary confesses to Sister James (Amy Adams), "I have doubts, so many doubts!" This startling confession proves that she acted in a manner that goes against reason and against all we as a democracy believe. Without certainty, without absolute proof, Sister Aloysius did all she could, to remove a priest that she simply did not like.

Do the "ends justify the means?"



cah

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

--PG-13-- I am torn...I don't know if this movie should be in the popcorn category, or the trash heap. My reasoning is if I throw trash cans up there I will have to admit I am ashamed I saw the movie, but the problem is why should I be ashamed? This is based on a video game franchise that has sold millions of copies for nearly two decades, additionally Jean-Claude Van Damme made an earlier film in this franchise back in the early '90's. So I just can't admit that I should be ashamed I saw this movie.

That just leaves popcorn, my problem here is I don't think it was even a popcorn worthy film. I saw this for another Monday morning early bird special with ten other people. Of those ten, six left during the movie, there was even a moment in which I wanted to leave...okay there were three or four.

Unlike the Van Damme version that was futuristic, cheesy and full of 1 : 1 fighting scenes, this Street Fighter incarnation was filled with story, and voice overs to explain "The Legend of Chun-Li." Which of course is the subtitle to the title Street Fighter. Ugh, the movie was filled with bad acting by Chris Klein (American Pie Trilogy), decent acting by Neil Mcdonough (Band of Brothers) and interspersed with mediocre acting by Michael-Clarke Duncan (Green Mile) and Kristin Kreuk (Smallville).

Oh Kristin! This brings me to perhaps my biggest hang-up...Kristin is not Asian, she isn't even half Asian. Since her character has a caucasian mother this could be explained away if they didn't cast younger versions of her character as Asian girls. Those girls at various stages of development looked absolutely nothing like the adult Chun-Li. Ugh!!! Huge casting mistakes, stupid directing, bad acting and limited action sequences mean I have to throw this movie onto the trash heap.





cah

Fired Up!

--PG-13-- I know...I know! So this is the story, I woke up late Monday morning...was bored...had no homework...nothing on TV...the showtime was perfect...and it was early bird $6 special. I also know that some of you won't care about my feeble excuses to why I saw this movie. But there might just be a few people out there that will secretly want to watch a couple of high school football jocks infiltrate a "cheer camp" and hook up with as many girls as possible.

For those of you, with that secret desire stashed away under that facade of a grown up, let me just say this...it wasn't bad. The movie is not about cheering, it isn't about hooking up with "chicks," or even about a creepy guy friendship. This movie is about change, and about how we all can have one idea of life and how if we try something else, for whatever reason, we might find a new joy and a new level of understanding about life, love and friendship.

Seriously, did you just read that drivel about life changing experiences? Who am I trying to kid? Let me just say that any movie which employs an alum of such awesome fare as Best In Show and A Mighty Wind deserves a viewing. John Michael Higgins is that alum, and he was pretty good, in an okay movie that gets firmly planted in the trash can department.



cah

The International

--R-- The International is a crime thriller that pits good vs. evil, big business vs. government, right vs. wrong. The movie definitely will leave you questioning the perils of capitalism and if fighting back against "the man" is even worth it. I know that this movie sounds heavy, one that seems too close to home to spend 2 hours at the movie for. Especially when you go to the movies to escape life and imagine living in an entirely different world. This movie won't let you escape the economic status of the world right now. Instead it will make you think about which bank holds your money, and what prè tell are they doing with it?

This film follows a somewhat "rogue" inter-pol agent, and New York ADA as they try and prosecute one of the worlds largest most influential banks. I know that The International sounds like a dramatic slow paced film, but I am here to emphatically state that it is not! In fact with heart pounding tension and acting that is top notch this movie is not just entertaining and insightful, but also one of those rare films that make you think about society, and what we as citizens can do to correct it.

This film is R, for its language and violence. None of the violence is gratuitous and the language flows easily with the script. In other words, yes there is a lot of shooting of guns and swearing, but if you are already desensitized to these types of movies, there is no reason why you won't enjoy this film. And as a bonus you might just learn something as well.


cah