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MJB784
Hey, my name is Michael, I was born on July 10, 1984 and I have been a big movie fan all my life!
WHAT MAKES A MOVIE GREAT?: Every scene needs to be looked at in two different ways. One way is what the scene is about and the other way is how the scene is filmed. I think a great movie is when the story keeps moving along and the film making doesn't look aged.
WHAT MAKES A MOVIE MY FAVORITE: When I feel it's perfect on all levels of filmmaking.
REASONS WHY IT MATTERS WHAT YOU SEE:
1. Nobody knew what a movie was when they first saw a movie and they enjoyed it because it was filled with images they've never seen before. Then over the years, they lost the memories and didn't gain much knowledge since they started judging movies over what year it came out or what the genre is and all of the above have good movies and bad movies. So keep the memories from when you first saw a movie and gain the knowledge at the same time. That way it's a win-win situation.
2. You will never get your time back no matter what movie you see.
3. There's thousands of movies made and you won't see every one.
4. The winning team, in terms of movies, are not the majority. It's the one that paid the most attention.
I watch movies from nearly every genre: Action, Adventure, Animation, Biography, Comedy, Crime, Documentary, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Film-Noir, Foreign Films, Gangster, Horror, Martial Arts, Musical, Natural Disaster, Romance, Samurai, Science Fiction, Silent Movies, Sports, Spy Movies, Superhero movies, Suspense, War, Western
I ENJOYED EVERY MOVIE FROM THE FOLLOWING SERIES':
All three BATMAN/DARK KNIGHT's
All three GODFATHER's
All four LETHAL WEAPON's
All three LORD OF THE RINGS
All six MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE's
All five RAMBO's
All three THREE COLORS TRILOGY
All four TOY STORY's
Films I've changed my mind on:
Absolute Power (was: 5/10 now: 8/10), Adam's Rib (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), After Life (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), All of Me (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Amarcord (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), American Graffiti (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), The Animal (was: 7/10 now: 3/10), Annie Hall (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Apartment (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Apocalypse Now (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Arsenic and Old Lace (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Bananas (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Bank Dick (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Barbarella (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Batman Forever (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), Beguiled (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), The Birds (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Black Swan (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Blade (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Blood Work (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Bringing Up Baby (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Broadway Danny Rose (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Bronco Billy (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Buck Privates Come Home (was: 7/10 now: 9/10), Cape Fear (1991) (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Chain Reaction (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Changeling (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Cheetah (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Child's Play 2 (was: 5/10 now: 6/10), Cobb (was: 6/10 now: 8/10), Coconuts (was: 6/10 now: 5/10), Conan the Barbarian (1982) (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Coogan's Bluff (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Crimes and Misdemeanors (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Deep Red (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Deliverance (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (was: 5/10 now: 7/10), Die Another Day (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Die Hard (was: 5/10 now: 8/10), Dinosaur (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Dirty Dozen (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Doc Hollywood (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), Down to Earth (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Dr. No (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Dumb and Dumber (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), East of Eden (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Edge of Darkness (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Eiger Sanction (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), El Mariachi (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), The Enforcer (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Escape From Alcatraz (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Exorcist (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Fantasia (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Fast and the Furious (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), F For Fake (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Firefox (was: 4/10 now: 5/10), Fistful of Dollars (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Flags of Our Fathers (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), For a Few Dollars More (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Forbidden Games (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Forbidden Planet (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Freaks (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), French Connection (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Friends With Money (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Fun With Dick and Jane (2005) (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Gangs of New York (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Giant (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Godzilla (2014) (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Goldeneye (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), The Good Shepherd (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Good the Bad and the Ugly (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Grandma's Boy (1922) (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Great Muppet Caper (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Hang Em High (was: 6/10 now: 5/10), Heartbreak Ridge (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Hellraiser (was: 7/10 now: 4/10), High Plains Drifter (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Holiday (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Horton Hears a Who (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Husbands and Wives (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Inception (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), In Cold Blood (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Insidious (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Inspector Gadget (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), In the Navy (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), It Happened One Night (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), It's a Gift (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Jack (was: 7/10 now: 4/10), Jackie Brown (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Jezebel (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Jingle All the Way (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), King Kong (1933) (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Knowing (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), L.A. Confidential (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Last Samurai (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Laura (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Lethal Weapon 2 (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Lifeboat (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Life of David Gale (was: 7/10 now: 4/10), Little Mermaid (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Lost Weekend (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Love and Death (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), M (was: 9/10 now: 7/10) Mad Max (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Magnolia (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Manhattan (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Manhattan Murder Mystery (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Matinee (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), Matrix Reloaded (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Mean Streets (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Megamind (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Milky Way (1936) (was: 5/10 now: 7/10), Millions (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Mission (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Mister Roberts (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Monster House (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), My Fellow Americans (was: 6/10 now: 3/10), Naughty Nineties (was: 5/10 now: 7/10), Never Ending Story (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (was: 6/10 now: 4/10), Nightmare on Elm Street 5: Dream Child (was: 4/10 now: 5/10), Night of the Hunter (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Night of the Living Dead (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), North by Northwest (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Oh Heavenly Dog (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Oliver and Company (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Once Upon a Time in America (was: 7/10 now: 9/10), One Hour Photo (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Open Water (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Our Hospitality (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Passenger 57 (was: 7/10 now: 4/10), Patch Adams (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Peter Pan (1953) (was: 7/10 now: 9/10), Pi (was: 10/10 now: 9/10), Planet of the Apes (1968) (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Play It Again Sam (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Play Misty For Me (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Psycho (1960) (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Pulp Fiction (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Purple Rose of Cairo (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Radio Days (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Raging Bull (was: 8/10 now 7/10), Rear Window (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Rebecca (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Rebel Without a Cause (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Road Warrior (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Rocky (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Rocky Horror Picture Show (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Run Lola Run (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Rushmore (was: 7/10 now: 9/10), Ruthless People (was: 6/10 now: 7/10), Saboteur (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Schindler's List (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), School of Rock (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Seabiscuit (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Serpico (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Seventh Seal (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), Shadow of a Doubt (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Shawshank Redemption (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), She's Out of My League (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Sideways (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Sinbad: The Legend of the Seven Seas (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Singin in the Rain (was: 9/10 now: 10/10), Sleeper (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Spellbound (1946) (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Spirit of St Louis (was: 9/10 now: 5/10), Spy Kids (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Spy Kids 2 (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Stardust Memories (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Stepmom (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Sunset Boulevard (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Survivors (was: 6/10 now: 3/10), Suspicion (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Suspiria (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Sweet and Lowdown (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Swing Time (was: 5/10 now: 8/10), Tarzan (1999) (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Terminator (was:9/10 now: 8/10), Thank You For Smoking (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), That Thing You Do (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), Them (was: 7/10 now: 6/10), 39 Steps (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Thunderball (was: 6/10 now: 5/10), Top Hat (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Trading Places (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Treasure of the Sierra Madre (was: 9/10 now: 6/10), UHF (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Unbreakable (was: 8/10 now: 5/10), Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (was: 8/10 now: 9/10), What About Bob? (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), What Dreams May Come (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), When Harry Met Sally (was: 7/10 now: 8/10), Where Eagles Dare (was: 8/10 now: 6/10), Wild Bunch (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (was: 8/10 now: 7/10), Witness (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Wolfman (2010) (was: 9/10 now: 8/10), World Is Not Enough (was: 7/10 now: 5/10), Yankee Doodle Dandy (was: 9/10 now: 7/10), Zelig (was: 7/10 now: 5/10)
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Shoot 'Em Up (2007)
What a terrible movie.
Why would such talented actors like Paul Giamatti and Clive Owen choose such a forced action picture with ridiculous action scenes? The entire movie is about murdering an innocent baby after his mom gave birth just so the killers can save a life with a bone marrow transplant. The opening action scene is already messed up since the imbilical cord after birth was literally shot off with a gun. The hero not only draws fire, but kills some characters with carrots?! How do you do that? Throughout the movie, he's seen eating or throwing carrots when not using his gun. That's basically all the story there is.
RoboCop (1987)
The only Robocop movie I like.
Taking place in a once futuristic Detroit where violence has gone up and robots are being tested for the latest in protecting the city is similar to director Paul Verhoven's Starship Troopers ten years later. The idea about a police officer who's been paralyzed due to a dangerous situation undercover where he's assumed dead only to be reprogrammed as a robotic killing machine is very cool. The robots were originally to replace the officers on duty, but turning a human being into a cyborg on the outside certainly makes an entertaining movie. There isn't a real ending to it though as it kind of just stops after the death of the last character and Robocop as a character is kind of repetitive, but I still enjoy this movie. Turning this into a series is tough because of how few things the character can do. This could explain why I haven't enjoyed another movie with him in it.
The Time Machine (2002)
I was disappointed overall, but it started out well.
The scientist creating the time machine was well played by Guy Pearce and the first half was entertaining as we see him trying to get his invention made. There's also a funny in joke within its own movie of Orlando Jones acting like a guide about the Time Machine and saying it's based on an H. G. Wells book and mentioning a remake in progress. During the next half, our hero goes to an unknown world with creatures that remind me of the planet of the apes and the pacing starts to drag. The story loses interest and the finale shows him battling the creatures while also finding a way back home. As you can tell over twenty years later, this wasn't a memorable movie. Not many have remembered that there was a remake and the original will still be the first thing that comes to sci-fi fans minds when they mention the title.
The Prestige (2006)
The entire story is a three part structure.
As expected from Christopher Nolan, he tries to manipulate the audience by being a 21st century Alfred Hitchcock. When I first saw this movie, I loved it, but in repeated viewings, I liked it. One weakness is the magician played by Hugh Jackman who creates a giant machine filled with light bulbs for cloning himself to outdo his previous partner turned nemesis played by Christain Bale in the hopes of becoming smarter and the better magician. The scenario for cloning himself should have happened once, but he decides to do it over and over which doesn't make sense other than the opening scene panning the top hats with the narrator saying, "Are you looking closely?" I don't think the pacing is as strong as some of his other movies, but I do like most of the story and the twists involving Christain Bale's doppelganger as well as the magic tricks.
Mulholland Dr. (2001)
Could someone explain this to me please?
The first half feels like a fairy tale for a tv show. The main character is an actress in Hollywood and dreams of success and stardom. Even the Cowboy who appears in her dreams would act like it's made for tv. He would say stuff like "Smart aleck" rather than foul language and the filmmaking is deliberately bright even for nighttime scenes. The Cowboy returns and says, "Time to wake up, little lady" and soon the rest of the movie has nothing to do with the first half. I haven't enjoyed any David Lynch movies. I'm not sure where the mystery of this appears or the significance of the Blue Box the camera pans to after the Cowboy tells her to wake up. I don't understand the ending where some of the characters were miniaturized. What was this?
The Mummy Returns (2001)
With the first sequel, Mummy Returns doesn't know when to quit.
The movie starts out quite good with a backstory of The Scorpion King being this evil warrior. We also reunite with the characters Rick O Connell and Evelyn, who are married with a young son of theirs. Of course, the boy is mischievous and creates a plot point to reawaken the Mummy and its many henchmen back from thr dead and how the Mummy is also interested in The Scorpion King being resurrected, too. The rest of the movie is pure chaos. There's way too many action scenes and fast pacing. The balance of calm and fast from the original is gone in favor for over the top filmmaking. I will say the visual effects are well done, but it's hard to get involved in the story and even the action scenes are hard to follow without breaks. I also don't think they did a good job bringing the Scorpion King back from the dead for its climax. The CGI of the Rock looks too pasted on the body of an artificial character and it doesn't move smoothly either. The body movements are sort of like stop motion animation even though it's clearly made on a computer without smooth shades of colors for the skin tones or giving the character free range in movement. The body moves so forcefully and seems stiff.
The Mummy (1999)
The remake of the 1932 movie is a really good demonstration of properly remaking a movie.
You don't have to see the original movie to enjoy this and while black and white cinema works for the bandages in the earlier movie, the color works splendidly for the deserted landscapes in the 99 movie. The action scenes are a lot of fun with and without special effects and the Mummy known as Imhotep is a truly menacing creature with body movements similar to the T-1000 in its relentlessness. The comedy in between works, too and so do the characters looking for the lost city for treasure before awakening the Mummy through the book of the dead. I will say some of the pacing is a little slow here and there and the blue liquid doesn't blend with anything in the climax. Otherwise, this is a worthy remake.
Death to Smoochy (2002)
I will say it was better than my expectations.
The trailer and word of mouth in theaters were bad and I had no desire to see it on dvd. Audience members said it was misunderstood and quite funny. So, years afterwards, I decided to give it a chance. The filmmaking was very colorful and stylishly done. The colors of purple, red, gold, etc were well lit and designed with the staging of the television show Rainbow Randolph and later Smoochy's show. There's also some nifty split screen edits and zoom in and zoom outs. Unfortunately, the screenplay is boring, repetitive and not that funny. The concept sounds like a one joke as an adult look behind the scenes of television shows for kids. Barney the purple Dinosaur is an obvious target for Smoochy, but there's not much to it and I found it boring. It wasn't as unpleasant as the trailers made it look, but not very special either.
Casablanca (1942)
There are many classic scenes in this movie.
The question is not whether it's a great movie. The question is if it's the greatest or one of the greatest. While certainly the best movie of 1942, I don't think it's a perfectly made movie or my favorite Bogart movie. Some of the dialog in French has no subtitles and I don't think every single scene plays like the best part. There are definitely memorable characters and situations at Rick's Cafe and outside the cafe. Notice the classic scene of Rick reading the letter Ilsa wrote to him in the heavy rain while he and Sam are waiting for the train to arrive. The voice over of Ilsa and image of the ink dribbling down the page is a terrific idea for filmmaking and narration, but in the next scene, the two characters are perfectly dry when boarding the train with an inch of water on them. The songs performed by Sam are legendary, too and so is the last scene involving the relationship of the two leads. By the way, my favorite Bogart movie is The Maltese Falcon. That's a perfectly made movie, but Casablanca is my second favorite Bogart movie. Some of his others I find overrated not because of him, but because of the story and pacing being forgettable.
Dial M for Murder (1954)
I find it entertaining, but not much more.
On the positive side, I find it superior to the remake A Perfect Murder which had dumb characters and odd situations (for example, the victim and her husband live in a giant mansion with only one phone across the house for her to walk to?). I liked the story and characters, but it's a little too light for Alfred Hitchcock. I'm not blaming the fact that it's in color. I'm referring to the shades and that the ending is blah. I liked Grace Kelly's performance and the main scene when she gets to the phone at night leading to the twist in its story. Also, Ray Milland plays it so laid back and kind for someone plotting murder. Other Hitchcock movies like Vertigo had a more mysterious look in color than this and the music isn't memorable, but I do enjoy the idea of a woman with an unfaithful husband planning to kill her and having it lead to a memorable sequence shown on the posters and front covers of dvds and blurays. I don't know why he filmed it in 3-D. I watched a re-release of this at the Chinese Theater in 3D and while the presentation popped and looked sharp, it wasn't a story or vision in mostly one setting that needed 3D. Coming back to Vertigo or Grace Kelly's other Hitchcock movie Rear Window, imagine the logic in those pictures filmed for 3D where the audience sees only as near or far as the main character is seeing for a stronger effect.
The Shining (1980)
I can't get into most of this movie.
Artistically, the camera angles and key sequences of horror are quite good, but the running time is too long. There isn't a need for this to reach over 2 hours and 20 minutes. The character Jack Torrance slowly loses his mind and isn't even writing a book just as his son Danny is slowly having hallucinations in his mind of various characters and deaths. This is good stuff, but it just goes nowhere after. The scene in the bathroom with the deformed old woman being imagined by Jack was scary and so was the axe chopping scenes with Scatman Crothers and Shelly Duvall as the wife. However, the ending doesn't make sense that these characters knew each other through a photograph in the final scene or the purpose of Jack Torrance losing himself in the Overlook Hotel. Why would he keep writing the same phrase in different alignments over and over also?
Misery (1990)
There wasn't much to talk about.
Supposedly, the book is hundreds of pages long and Stephen King says it's almost autobiographical because of how many obsessed fans he has. The story starts out quite well as an injured author is taken into a cabin in a snowy town by none other than his number one fan Annie Wilkes. She wants him to write another novel, but doesn't want him to leave. Annie goes from being sweet and pleasant to being a deranged woman. The problem with the story is, that's expected when characters are trapped in a cabin and there's no way out. If he left, there would be no movie. The idea is similar to two people socializing at an isolated location in the movie Psycho, but Marion Crane wasn't famous and there were other characters afterwards investigating the murder. We are not given other big characters or goals for the audience. I do enjoy the performances, though.
Man of Steel (2013)
There wasn't much Superman in this movie.
The first act was quite good. I enjoyed seeing Krypton and spending more time on the planet than other Superman movies. Inevitably, due to the safety of newborn baby Clark Kent, he had to leave and is adopted like the earlier movies. Unfortunately, there's no action for a long time. This is more about being Clark Kent than being Superman. He doesn't officially become the title of the movie until the last 20 or so minutes. Nothing memorable happens in between and I realize that the series has told us basically everything you can about Superman. He is a more repetitive character by force due to hid strengths and weaknesses than Batman and Spider-Man. He is invincible except with kryptonite, becomes stumbling, bumbling Clark Kent by prentending to be a human character working at Daily Planet while in love with Lois Lane and that's about it. He has fulfilled all he needed to.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
There was no need to make a third Terminator movie.
I knew there would be a problem already when I read that James Cameron had nothing to do with it. The trailers didn't seem promising either as it didn't have anything memorable. The first two were not only well written and filmed, but were released when technology in real life was just starting to grow. These were made around the time of satellite TV, video games, computer games, internet, etc and a few years before dvd. By the time the third was released, it felt too "normal." Also, the villain wasn't memorable or with much desire to stop John Connor. She wasn't relentless like the terminators before her. There were a few good action scenes, like the freeway sequence, the funeral shootout and a fight in the bathroom, but the other scenes didn't stand out and neither did the special effects.
Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)
The first Die Hard movie I watched.
I know most people see each movie in order of their release date, but I was 11 years old when I rented this on video. I wanted to see a Die Hard movie since the series was as popular as Lethal Weapon movies were. I liked the movie, but wonder how I would've felt had I watched the series in order. The action scenes and story connections to the original Die Hard were very entertaining. The pacing was mostly smooth and I was entertained other than the fact that it was a little overlong. While I enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson's performance as Zeus, the purpose of him felt like an excuse to feel similar with Lethal Weapon, except Zeus is not a cop. He doesn't feel necessary other than his involvement in Harlem when McClane is forced to wear an offensive sign by orders of the criminal Simon. That's similar to the other Bruce Willis action picture Last Boy Scout where Damon Wayans was important to the story at first, but stayed as a "partner" for Bruce Willis even though he wasn't a cop or crook. I recommend the four Die Hard movies because of how cheerful Bruce Willis' performance is and the exciting action scenes plus alternate stories and locations John McClaine is forced into. Haven't seen the fifth movie.
Sideways (2004)
There is still a lot of laughs and heart to it.
The main storyline about this wine expert named Miles who wants to give his best friend a good time over at a winery over the week is charming. Their relationship is interesting because their behaviors are kind of polar opposite. The best man just wants a relaxing time with a strict schedule, the groom-to-be wants to go all out and end up with another girl (Sandra Oh) they meet on the way. Miles soon becomes interested in her friend, a waitress at a restaurant they were at, played Virginia Madsen. Of course, certain secrets will be revealed and accidents will happen. It's comedy starts out as dialog driven, but moves to a more slapstick tone. The character Miles also changes from a stiff character to a more chaotic one. There were a few slow spots, but this was a mostly well written and entertaining movie.
Hulk (2003)
I was very disappointed with the first Hulk movie.
The editing for the split screen sequences creating a comic book come to life was very cool. I also liked the CGI of the Hulk, but unfortunately, he wasn't in it very much. For a two and a half hour movie, he was on screen for about 20 minutes. It wasn't even about the Hulk. Bruce Banner (the alter ego) was looking for his long lost father mostly and was a scientist. The other characters were very flat and had no personality. There was way too much talk and the conversations weren't memorable either. I don't know the history of the Hulk character, but it didn't seem like the filmmakers did either. This reminds me of my disappointment with the early Batman movies from Tim Burton for not having much to do with Batman. The 2008 Hulk version was much better.
Monsters, Inc. (2001)
I was disappointed because the trailers were so much better.
I love the look of the world called Monstropolis and the various shapes, sizes and bright colors. I also like Billy Crystal and John Goodman's voices interacting well towards each other. Unfortunately, the story was flat and boring. Simply speaking, if the little girl didn't escape into their world, their would be no movie. There wasn't much comedy unlike the delightful teaser trailers and they basically gave all the laughs away in the main trailer. The little girl needing to be found was redundant and without much to it. The pacing was really slow and the rest of the characters weren't given much to do. The comedy was much better (and the pacing) in Monsters University.
Raging Bull (1980)
I like the movie, but don't love the movie.
I agree that the boxing scenes are wildly over the top exciting. I think the recreation of time from the 40s to the 60s are precise and so are the camera angles. I do not think the story is as good. Some of the pacing drags when Jake LaMotta is with his lover. The scene when they were playing golf was boring and some of the last act when he no longer boxes and has moments with his family were boring. It doesn't really have an ending either. The strongest parts were the boxing scenes, but the other parts were uneven. I do like most of it. I also like many of the scenes with Jake and Joey his brother.
Rango (2011)
Artistically, it's very well made, but the writing was familiar.
I love how realistic the sands, roads and buildings are. This feels like the crew went on location to film real scenes (maybe with live actors filling in for the CGI characters) and digitized in cartoon like characters with slight animation on the scenery to make the audience not know which was real or drawn. Unfortunately, nothing else was of much interest. The story is the same meandering tale of a guy (in this case lizard) who moseys into town and makes a name for himself. He also lies about said name and about his adventures in the past. Of course, the town is in danger and they need his help. Inevitably, he will go from zero to hero, but be a fraud until the big climax. None of the supporting characters stood out and neither did most of the scenes. This needed improvement.
Dirty Harry (1971)
I like Dirty Harry, but it isn't my favorite of the series.
The performances and action scenes are fine, but the more calmer scenes are uneven. A lot of the first half or so is slow despite Eastwood's strong screen presence and famous line, "Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya punk?" The energy picks up the more Scorpio is onscreen and Eastwood is refusing to cooperate. The shootouts are entertaining and so is the torture scene when Scorpio is being beaten up by someone else in a chair. The scene seems similar to what Alex goes through in Clockwork Orange (both released the same year). While slightly aged, I overall enjoy and recommend Dirty Harry, but feel Sudden Impact is his best.
Zoolander (2001)
I don't understand what's so funny about Zoolander.
I had low expectations watching the original because the trailer wasn't funny to me and word of mouth wasn't good. However, it picked up a strong following later, so after hearing from others how funny it is, I decided to watch it. While there were a few laughs at first, this was mostly forgettable and boring. I don't know how brainwashing a fashion model and having him kill the Prime Minister is funny. I don't understand how the personality of Derek Zoolander is funny. I'm also not sure why most of the music is 80s based or how the dialog of the main character repeating how good looking he is makes others laugh. This seemed like a forced imitation of the already comic impersonator Autsin Powers. Both act like the coolest thing and are on missions and have strange voices with catchphrases. I enjoy Ben Stiller, but this was mostly desperate. I did not see the sequel or care to.
Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
Shadow of a Doubt is good Hitchcock, but not great Hitchcock.
The story is quite intriguing: A recently released criminal visits his niece and surprises her and her family with gifts (including and engraved ring), but soon things aren't as they seem. There's a rumor that the Merry Widow Murderer is in town and there's an issue when the bottom of one of the wooden steps is broken, almost causing a serious accident for someone and the car is left overheated in the garage. Hitchcock does a really good job with the closeups, especially the reveal in the library when she's reading a newspaper heading, but most of the supporting characters aren't given much to do and the best scenes are in its last act. Not much mystery happens before, but the suspense improves slowly, but surely. I'm surprised Hitchcock considers this his best since there aren't as many powerful moments, but it was still a good story with good performances and some excitement.
Rope (1948)
I like the movie, but wouldn't consider it one of Hitch's best.
It's a little tricky telling an enjoyable story, especially with mystery, in one location. Hitchcock did a similar thing with James Stewart in Rear Window. Interesting that the first two movies Hitch and Stewart made together were in an apartment building. With Rope, the two guys murder an innocent college student they feel is inferior to them by strangulation with a rope and hide the body before inviting other people who know the deceased for food and drinks. This includes Roeper, a detective played by James Stewart. The movie is well acted and well made and there are some superb zoom in and zoom out or pan shots. I don't think it's great because there is no mysterious music and we know much too quickly not only who the villain is, but that they'll be caught. Another thing is that most of the visitors in the party aren't memorable. Stewart is good, too, but not a very memorable role either. Interesting that this was the first Hitchcock movie in color, the first featuring Farley Granger and the first with James Stewart.
The Faculty (1998)
The entire story is like a Goosebumps book or episode of the TV show.
The teachers are inhabited by aliens one by one and the teenage students are in danger. Inevitably, the parents don't believe them because if they do, there would be no movie. The visual effects are just ok. I don't think they stand out. Performances are also not special except Robert Patrick as the P. E. teacher. Of all the Robert Rodriguez movies he directed, but didn't write, this is the only one I didn't like. The screenplay by Kevin Williamson doesn't feel any more surprising than his previous year's I Know What You Did Last Summer. Nothing about The Faculty felt bad, but it didn't stand out for me either.