Alpha Dog (2006): i thought it was a fun movie and i was surprised to find that justin timberlake was my favorite character, up until he had to act. it was a glorified made-for-TV movie about a big court case. the decisions are too stupid to be scripted and the entire affair hurts the logical soul. its definitely not worth buying, but if it shows up on your netflix queue… i won’t judge you for it [smile]. [**½]
American Gangster (2007): definitely fun, long, but my butt didn’t go numb. that’s saying something. plus, denzel is the shit. [****]
Babylon A.D. (2008): some parts were fun, some parts were funny, but overall, the message of racial equality is a little excessive. i understand that vin diesel might be the one to heal our racial divide circa 2050 but the metaphor of black and white babies playing was done by michael almost 20 years ago. that and the final plot hole is big enough to drive a semi through. NOTE: he is transporting her to america, not china; i don’t know who writes the movie info for this site. [***½]
Be Kind, Rewind (2008): i was surprised at how much i enjoyed this movie. it was an excellent commentary on the expanding culture industry and how two dumbasses can find joy in subverting it. [****]
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007): i saw this movie in the cinerama dome at los angeles? famed arclight theater. the screen wraps around and really immerses the viewer. however, the shaky cam is especially evident if you are sitting close to the screen. i noticed it in the “intimate” scene between bourne and marie’s brother. the camera shifts wildly while the two men are having a conversation. there is no excitement, no confusion, and it is completely unnecessary and desperate. the shaky cam is designed to draw the audience in, but its scenes like this that spit them out again. having said that, i liked the story overall and the fight scenes were well choreographed and edited, but slightly overdone. [***½]
Burn After Reading (2008): hilariously dark. brilliantly lighthearted! [****]
Cloverfield (2008): i thought it was a fun story once you get past the shaky camera. its only 84 minutes so it moves pretty quickly, and the format is kind of fun. and my favorite character gets away so how bad can it be? [***]
Coraline in 3D (2009): absolutely amazing in 3D. much like speed racer in IMAX, i don’t know if i could give it such an enthusiastic thumbs up had i see in it in standard film format. the 3D effects were used to immerse the audience in the story, instead of simply as a gimmick. well played. [****]
Daddy and Them (2001): what the fuck? but a totally engaging waste of a wednesday evening. who knew billy bob thorton could write? [***½]
The Dark Knight (2008): the 2 hours 30 minutes went by surprisingly quickly. i’m still looking forward to seeing it in imax.[****½]
The Golden Compass (2007): pleasant, but i think i’m done with serial movies. if i want a serial, i’ll watch television. maybe if i had read the books… [**½]
Green Street Hooligans (2005): although i love sexy brits as much as the next girl, elijah wood causes the film to fall flat on its face. those perfectly blue eyes can only carry you so far. at no point did i believe that he was ever capable of being a drunken football hooligan… yank or otherwise. [*½]
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007): although the book blew me away with its maturity and socio-political media commentary, i found the movie to be less inspiring. the film is focused on harry’s development and is therefore very narrative-based and loses the fantastical quality of the first 4. in addition, the satire and commentary were watered down (as expected from a “family” or summer blockbuster); so it kind of disappointed me from both ends. but it was a fine installment (episode) in the series. i’m still very eager to hear how the story ends… 8 more days… [***½]
I Am Legend (2007): kind of fun, not as scary as i had expected, and frankly less than intelligent with respect to the post-apocalyptic genre. there were some gaping plot holes but maybe, just maybe, they were supposed to be ironic. [***½]
Juno (2007): i laughed, i cried, i thought it was brilliant. how often do you get to see a feel-good movie about teen pregnancy? [*****]
The Mod Squad (1999): in order to enjoy this movie, you have to love the show. the music, the direction, the clothing was all a very modern throwback to the mid seventies. good times. what’s more, is that they were now able to go places the TV narrative could only imply… truth is, sometimes you have to fuck for information. NOTE: this movie should only be watched on TV. [****]
Mongol (2007): i think that this film has the potential to begin a major shift in american cinema and culture with respect to the asian male whose sexuality and strength have historically been minimized in mainstream culture. in short, genghis kahn is hot. [****½]
Natural Born Killers (1994): this movie made me what i am today… researching media and psychological development. thanks oliver stone! [*****]
Oceans 13 (2007): more eddie izzard: i just got home from the theater and i loved it. feel good heist films always make me feel good, and i think that the ocean’s franchise is really modernizing a classic. thus demonstrated by the oprah references. [****]
Pineapple Express (2008): its like a steven segal movie… on weed. [***]
Pumping Iron (1977): hilarious. oh governor. [***]
Shooter (2007): excellent vehicle for marky mark; not too emotional, but he’s good at playing the tortured soul. great guns, good shooting, and danny glover is a delightful ass. although i keep expecting him to say, “i’m too old for this shit.” [***½]
Sicko (2007): a friend of mine called this movie “sobering.” granted, moore is a genius regarding exposing faults and stirring emotional reactions. however, this skill stops at inspiring change. i don’t think that this movie will cause anyone to change the system, just more fuel to bitch about. it hurts to hear people quote moore’s film; they still refuse to do their own research, instead relying on a movie for their facts and information. at best, sicko will inspire a brain drain, as smarter americans realize that their skills will be appreciated more somewhere in europe, canada, or even cuba. [****½]
Son of Rambow (2007): enjoyable and entertaining! quite pertinent in the world of new media (the boys make their own movie) but a time piece set in 1982. i think i need to see first blood. [*****]
Stardust (2007): fun story. i liked the ending much more than the book, and although i’ve been told that the vfx were less than expected, i enjoyed it. [***½]
Suicide Club (2002): it was one hell of a film. a psychological thriller reminiscent of se7en: a cop goes crazy desperately searching for what inspires people to kill themselves. its bloody, gorey, graphic, and disturbing. admittedly, it seemed an appropriate blend of my early summer reading: lullaby, pattern recognition, and post global pop culture (e.g.the japanese version of a dr. frank n furter) with, what i assume to be, a distinctly japanese sense of philosophic irony.[****]
Superbad (2007): i haven’t laughed this hard in a long time. [*****]
Total Recall (1990): definitely a fun post apocalyptic thriller. granted i’m watching it about 17 years late but it makes recent projects like the matrix or futurama much funnier. ditto regarding last year’s viewing of kubrick’s 2001. [***½]
Tropic Thunder (2008): way better than pineapple express [****½]
Vertigo (1958): this was my first hitchcock movie and i was not impressed. granted, i am aware of my postmodern perspective on the film, but i felt that stewart was not a particularly likable character and i didn’t really care about his plight. ditto for kim novak. i felt that the dialog was often trite and remarkably unsubtle. furthermore, and this might be related to my extended viewing of ‘law & order’, i couldn’t believe him as a detective. how could novak not see a car following her by less than a block for days? it seemed to work when the ploy is revealed, but i couldn’t suspend disbelief from the start. how can one enjoy a movie without suspending disbelief? [**½]
You Kill Me (2007): it was a perfectly simple movie: man struggles with self, man meets woman, woman accepts man, interspersed with clever dialogue. definitely a fun sunday afternoon. [***½]
21 (2008): i thought the movie was rather painful, although the experience was fun as i attended with a bunch of my MIT friends and talked shit through the entire thing. not only did i find the entire lack of research amusing, but the dialogue was weak and desperate, and the characters were cliche… i don’t really have anything worthwhile to say about the movie, but the book was good… [**]