Recently Watched (beginning 11-15-12)
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- DirectorPhil LordChristopher MillerStarsJonah HillChanning TatumIce CubeA pair of underachieving cops are sent back to a local high school to blend in and bring down a synthetic drug ring.9/10 - Way funnier than I expected. Laughed a lot.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsJared GilmanKara HaywardBruce WillisTwo 12-year-olds, who live on an island, fall in love with each other and elope into the wilderness. While people set out on a search mission, a violent storm approaching them catches their attention.8/10 - Not perfect, but I enjoyed it. Some fantastic moments. Would watch again.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsDenzel WashingtonNadine VelazquezDon CheadleTroubling questions arise after airline pilot Whip Whitaker makes a miracle landing after a mid-air catastrophe.6/10 - A great Denzel performance, liked the adult themes, a bit long and a lot of addiction stuff.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsDaniel CraigRooney MaraChristopher PlummerJournalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for 40 years by young computer hacker Lisbeth Salander.1/10 - Watched only 20 minutes. I went in very optimistic but there was no way I was going to get over how completely contrived it was compared to the Swedish version. There's only one Lisbeth Salander.
- DirectorColin TrevorrowStarsAubrey PlazaMark DuplassJake JohnsonThree magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified advertisement seeking a companion for time travel.3/10 - Watched half. It seemed like they were making up the dialogue as they were filming it. Really bad dialogue, throw-away characters.
- DirectorSeth MacFarlaneStarsMark WahlbergMila KunisSeth MacFarlaneJohn Bennett, a man whose childhood wish of bringing his teddy bear to life came true, now must decide between keeping the relationship with the bear, Ted or his girlfriend, Lori.5/10 - Some laughs, mostly early. Mailed it in second half, formulaic.
- DirectorJohn Michael McDonaghStarsBrendan GleesonDon CheadleMark StrongAn unorthodox Irish policeman with a confrontational personality is partnered with an uptight F.B.I. agent to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring.5/10 - Started out ok, liked the old irish guy, but don cheadle's character rubbed me the wrong way, he had no personality of his own. Got wierd after a while, director made weird choices. End was ok.
- DirectorBruce A. EvansStarsKevin CostnerDemi MooreWilliam HurtA well-respected businessman is sometimes controlled by his murder and mayhem-loving alter ego.8/10 - Very well done serial killer mystery. --11/18/12
- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsGeorge ClooneyShailene WoodleyAmara MillerA land baron tries to reconnect with his two daughters after his wife is seriously injured in a boating accident.7/10 - Excellent performances, family dynamics. Enjoyed the nontourist hawaiian lifestyle, island-hopping, scenery. --11/25/12
- DirectorJohn HillcoatStarsTom HardyShia LaBeoufGuy PearceSet in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a trio of bootlegging brothers are threatened by a new special deputy and other authorities angling for a cut of their profits.9/10 - Awesome. Tom Hardy's Forrest Bondurant is one of cinema's all time badasses. Touches of humor and romance, poetry and violence. --11/26/12
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsMichael FassbenderCarey MulliganJames Badge DaleA sex addict's carefully cultivated private life falls apart after his sister arrives for an indefinite stay.3/10 - Was hoping to learn some slick moves from this guy, but nope, not that kind of movie. More of a depressing, creepy, long boring extended shots kind of a movie. With incestual overtones and a suicide scene. No thank you! 12/3/12
- DirectorDana BrownStarsLaird HamiltonLayne BeachleyDan MalloySurfers and secret spots from around the world are profiled in this documentary.8/10 - Pretty stoked on this. --12/6/12
- DirectorGavin O'ConnorStarsTom HardyNick NolteJoel EdgertonThe youngest son of an alcoholic former boxer returns home, where he's trained by his father for competition in a mixed martial arts tournament - a path that puts the fighter on a collision course with his estranged, older brother.10/10 - Pretty much everything I want in a movie. So good I sat through the entire end credits just letting it sink in. --12/17/12
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsChristian BaleTom HardyAnne HathawayEight years after the Joker's reign of chaos, Batman is coerced out of exile with the assistance of the mysterious Selina Kyle in order to defend Gotham City from the vicious guerrilla terrorist Bane.6/10 - Meh. Maybe the best of the trilogy for me, but still just another overly long, unremarkable action flick. I guess I'm not that crazy about Christian Bale as Batman, or Nolan as the director. --12/19/12
- DirectorAng LeeStarsSuraj SharmaIrrfan KhanAdil HussainA young man who survives a disaster at sea is hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery. While cast away, he forms an unexpected connection with another survivor: a fearsome Bengal tiger.9/10 - Which story is the truth, and which is the allegory? Whichever one you "want" to believe. "And so it goes with god."
The Priest said "you must be thirsty." Thirty was the tigers real name. Pi = the tiger. Awesome. Loved everything except it was a touch too long and the end could have been better. --12/24/12 - DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsBrad PittDiane KrugerEli RothIn Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.7/10 - More of what has become typical Tarantino, which I find entertaining, but not real satisfying. I liked the tension in the interrogation/basement scenes, the "interesting" casting choices, and of course the QT signature graphic scenes not meant to be forgotten, etc. But while it was worth the watch, a repeat viewing won't be necessary. --12/26/12
- DirectorMike McCoyScott WaughStarsAlex VeadovRoselyn SanchezNestor SerranoAn elite team of Navy SEALs embark on a covert mission to recover a kidnapped CIA agent.8/10 - Damn few! Despite a weak plot, some horrible dialogue, tolerable at best acting (albiet from actual Navy Seals), and deeper questions of military policy, this was pure action heaven. Nonstop, smart action filmed and edited masterfully, with battles and technology based on real missions. You could smell the military authenticity. And not just straight up war porn for the dudes; the letter storyline that bookends the movie is fantastic, and the Tecumseh poem is a brilliant touch that should make you forgive all that stuff I mentioned at the beginning. I will be watching this again come 4th of July. --12/30/12
- DirectorCurt MorganStarsTravis RiceMark LandvikJohn JacksonTwo years in the making, this film gives snowboarder Travis Rice and friends the opportunity to redefine what is possible in the mountains.8/10 - Great winter watch. Breathtaking scenery. Adventures with the back-country boarding crew. --1/1/13
- DirectorRian JohnsonStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittBruce WillisEmily BluntIn 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits - someone like Joe - who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.8/10 - If you think too much about it, the spoiler paradox will emerge. So you have to suspend your belief and just enjoy it. The hunting kids thing, and the kid actor were a little weird, and Bruce Willis shoot-out scene a little over the top, but I appreciate the film's originality and style. Joe should have said "Au Revoir" before "the end." --1/4/13
- DirectorJason MooreStarsAnna KendrickBrittany SnowRebel WilsonBeca, a freshman at Barden University, is cajoled into joining The Bellas, her school's all-girls singing group. Injecting some much needed energy into their repertoire, The Bellas take on their male rivals in a campus competition.7/10 - Not an Oscar-winner, but fun and very funny (especially Rebel Wilson and Elizabeth Banks). Plot could have been less annoying, and it got a little tired before the big finale, but the good outweighs the bad overall. The girls who played Aubrey and Chloe are gorgeous. --1/6/13
- DirectorBenh ZeitlinStarsQuvenzhané WallisDwight HenryLevy EasterlyFaced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love.9/10 - "The most important thing I can teach y'all... to take care of people who are smaller and sweeter than you are." I was tempted to turn it off by halfway but then it got magical. I could smell Louisiana. --1/6/13
- DirectorTony GilroyStarsJeremy RennerRachel WeiszEdward NortonAn expansion of the universe from Robert Ludlum's novels, centered on a new hero whose stakes have been triggered by the events of the previous three films.7/10 - The bad: Lacked the mood and intelligence of the Bourne Trilogy, relied on "juiced" agents, somewhat confusing and thin plot, and had an abrupt ending with no confrontation. The good: Renner was badass, Marta was hot, the motorcycle chase scene was sick (if a bit long), and it was overall good enough to stand on it's own if you don't compare it head to head with Matt Damon's films. --1/7/13
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDaniel Day-LewisSally FieldDavid StrathairnAs the Civil War rages on, U.S President Abraham Lincoln struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on his decision to emancipate the slaves.8/10 - A masterwork of acting, shakespearian in ways. Loved Tommy Lee Jones. Glad they didn't dumb it down. Inspires greatness. Want to see again. --1/10/12
- DirectorJonathan DaytonValerie FarisStarsPaul DanoZoe KazanAnnette BeningA novelist struggling with writer's block finds romance in a most unusual way: by creating a female character he thinks will love him, then willing her into existence.2/10 - Not at all how I would have written it. Good premise but poorly written. Really annoying, unrealistic behavior. Zero chemistry between two people supposed to be in love. Don't believe the hype. This was a bore. Elliott Gould's beard though. --1/11/13
- DirectorStephen ChboskyStarsLogan LermanEmma WatsonEzra MillerCharlie, a 15-year-old introvert, enters high school and is nervous about his new life. When he befriends his seniors, he learns to cope with his friend's suicide and his tumultuous past.9/10 - "I feel infinite." A literate coming-of-age film set in the early nineties. Perfect, almost. Despite patches of weak dialogue, it was a well done homage to the kind of teen movies that define a generation. It was like a dark John Hughes movie. ¨We accept the love we think we deserve.¨ There was also a lot of something you don't see to often anymore - people just being nice to each other. And great music. Nice to see a film make the music important like they used to. Good stuff. "I just really want a milkshake." --1/11/13