Oh, God! CR: #19

This week's review is another random choice. I'd only heard about it, but never seen. I was afraid it would be dated and old, like most movie before the 80's. But I was happily mistaken. This week's movie is the classic...

Let's Begin

PLOT

Jerry Landers is your typical grocery store assistant manager, he does his job very well, he has two kids, and a wife who all love him. Then one night, Jerry is given a letter requesting him to meet with "God". Obviously thinking it a joke, Jerry takes no mind to it, until he can't seem to get rid of the letter. He even tears it to pieces and it comes back brand new. He decides to meet with "God" and soon discovers that this is no joke. God has chosen Jerry, a hinted at atheist, to deliver his message that he is not dead and that there is hope, we have the tools to make the world better. When Jerry tries to give the message, the situation completely goes out of hand Jerry is left with some hard choices. He has to depend on his God-given abilities to help him get God's message out.

PROS

You might be reading this and thinking, "That seems like they"re making fun of religion!". Well you're somewhat right. While the film does poke fun at religion, it only pokes at what is wrong with it, and embraces what I like about religion. It never becomes a pro religious movie, it just tells you how it is, and has God explain things that make more sense that anything a "fake" christian could ever tell you.

There are many scenes where, like most people, Jerry is asking God the questions we all want to know. And he does answer them, and they make a ton of sense. The writers were obviously very religious, but they understand what their religion is actually about.

Gorge Burns is a perfect fit for playing God. He convinces you that he is God.

The courtroom scene is one of the best I've seen. It's a quiet scene that goes from chuckle comedy to thought-provoking ideas. And God's speech during this scene, let's just say I was falling asleep until He started to speak, even though he was talking very monotone.

The ending is bitter-sweet, more on the sweet side, but still bitter. It's realistic and makes sense.

CONS

The scenes without God aren't that entertaining. While they can be funny, they just aren't that interesting. While God is never far away from making an appearance, you're just hoping it would come sooner.

The movie is very dated. While only in the first 30 min. or so, it's still a problem.

CONCLUSION

I really enjoyed this film. While I'm not a religious person, this is the kind of religious movie I like. It's not afraid to poke fun at itself but it gets the religion it's in fact making fun of. Full of laughs and thought-provoking, this deserves the title of "Classic film".

RATING

WALK TO

The Avengers: NR #24

Well this is a HUGE and innovative week for Hollywood. This is the first huge superhero movie of the summer and the first time 4 different film franchises have been in the same movie together. I've been excited for this for a long time. It's been teased to us, it's been in our face for 3 years, and it's finally here. And I'm happy to say, like so many people have already said... YOU WERE WRONG LEON, HA HA!!! ...Sorry, I lost my cool there for a second. This week's movie is...

Let's Begin

PLOT

The Tesseract is a device of unknown origin that is a doorway to worlds not yet discovered by man, and Director of S.H.I.E.L.D, Nick Fury, has it until Loki, brother of Thor, steals it away. Loki intends to use the Tesseract to bring an alien army he's made a deal with to take over Earth in an act of peace (WHAT?!). With all hope lost, Nick Fury assembles a team of the greatest warriors and minds of our time. Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, The Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. They must defeat Loki, take back the Tesseract, and try not not to let their ego's get in the way.

PROS

Joss Whedon's writing and directing is what make this whole movie work. Whedon, creator of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Angel", and "Firefly" is a master of ensemble casts, giving them all something to do, and comedy. It all works perfectly here and everyone gets a moment to shine.

The writing style for the characters are no different than from their own movies. Iron Man sounds like Iron Man, Thor like Thor, and Captain America like...well you get it.

The ones that don't sound like themselves? Well they become awesome. Black Widow, who was boring and worthless in "Iron Man 2" becomes one of the most interesting and cool characters in the film along with Hawkeye.

The Hulk is done right in this film. They do something new with him, making it seem more like a threat to have him around then a God send. They even make it scary and sad at points. Until the third act of course. At that point, he becomes the most awesome thing that you have ever seen. My three favorite moments are all from The Hulk.

With Whedon being the master a comedy he is, you'd think the movie would be funny right? Wrong, IT'S ABSOLUTELY LAUGH OUT LOUD FALL OUT OF YOUR SEAT FUNNY. I missed a ton of dialogue because either I or the audience was laughing so long and hard. 

The action is fun and exciting. I found myself at the edge of my seat and staring in awe at many points.

CONS

All of my CONS are nitpicks that mean nothing when compared to the film as a whole, so just skip this.

CONCLUSION

This is what Summer blockbusters used to be. It has all of the stuff of big dumb action movies that we get every year, but what makes it different is the writing and characters. It makes this 2 hr and 22 min. movie seem like an hour and a half. You never want it to end. This was such a fun movie, I believe the audience was a big part, laughing and clapping along with the film. I love this movie and is a very promising start to this badass looking Summer.

RATING

RUN TO 

P.S. To understand the joke at the beginning, go to this link

http://my.spill.com/profiles/blogs/the-avengers-audio-review 

    

Rango: CR #18

This week's review, I will admit, was a bit of a scramble. I was hoping to see a movie in theaters, but that didn't work out. So I had to think fast, what movie could I possibly review that I want to see and want to give my opinion on? Then it hit me. But I decided to save that one for later. Then it hit me again, and now I'm reviewing that movie today. A movie that is on my Top 10 films of 2011 that I never reviewed, until now. This week's movie is...

Let's Begin.

PLOT

We see a lizard ( the Lizard with no name if you will) who dreams of being a great actor, but can only act inside his small container with lifeless cast members. But then, the Lizard is flown out of the car and into the dry, blistering desert with no water. The Lizard in search for water, soon arrives in the town of Dirt and makes a name for himself by lying about his fake heroic exploits. He gives himself the name...Rango. After, by total accident, defeating the hawk that has been terrorizing the town, he is named the new sheriff and sent a quest to find the missing water, which is basically currency out in the west.

PROS

The animation is absolutely amazing, even rivaling Pixar (possibly even better). There is so much detail in the characters, is almost creepy. 

The film feels like a western made for adults stuffed into a kids film. While it's pretty obvious where the kiddie parts come in, the western parts make up for it. It even has a story, villain, and twist that I never saw coming. They even use guns!

The action scenes (the hawk chase scene in particular) are awesome to watch and so much fun. There is so much stuff going on and it keeps you on the edge of your seat. 

This is a love letter to old Westerns. There are so many little references here and there to fill up an Edgar Wright movie. They even go as far as to make a certain character the "Spirit of the West."

The other villain, Rattlesnake Jake, is an awesome villain that I absolutely loved. He's mentioned throughout the film and is a near constant force of unknown fear. Until he shows up scares the crap out of you. He even has a Gatling gun for a tail!

The filmmakers aren't afraid to get trippy. What I mean is that at many points in the film, they'll have a dream sequence or questioning reality moment where it gets really weird and show an almost pretentious level of symbolic imagery. There is one key moment near the end that I'm not even sure is real or just a hallucination.

   

CONS

The comedy does not work. While I did get a couple of chuckles here and there, it's not all that funny and really seems out of place.

CONCLUSION

Rango is a terrific film that goes above and beyond the "Kids Film" label its been given. Action-packed and fun while also subtle and mature, Rango is another kids movie that the parent might enjoy more.

RATING

RUN TO

Super: CR #17

Good to be back from vacation...not really. Yes I missed last week due to an awesome family vacation. But I'm back, and ready to review a movie that has nothing to do with Earth Day. But this is a movie I have been interested in seeing. Was it what I expected? Find out below in my review of...

  Let's Begin

PLOT

Frank D'Arbo is not the luckiest or sane guy. Frank grew up rejected and with an obvious screw loose. But he does somehow manage to marry a recovering drug-addict, Sarah. But she is soon "kidnapped" (lured away more than anything) by Jacques, a very smooth drug dealer. Frank now has no one and is more alone than ever. But after watching some ridiculous Christian hero, "The Holy Avenger", he sees a crazy vision that convinces him that he needs to fight evil. How? With a ridiculous costume and wrench of course. He starts beating "EVIL" to near death and even gains a sidekick in the even more insane Libby, who only encourages the senseless violence.

PROS

Rainn Wilson is great as Frank. He especially shines in the praying scenes, which seem funny at first, but quickly turn into star-making drama. He's also good at showing the "crazy" in the character.

You have sympathy for Frank. I don't know how, but James Gunn gets us to care for an insane killer. He is crazy and yet he has a code he abides by, think Dexter but socially unstable. It really kept my interest in the film.

The movie is very realistic. Now the closest thing you can compare this to is "Kick-Ass", which is over the top and wacky. This is not wacky. This is a dark movie where almost everything that would happen to crazy people going on a seemingly senseless rampage, happens. Except, of course, the cops arresting them with the piles of evidence and witnesses they had on hand.

The last 30 minutes of the movie are where the seriously dark stuff happens, and it was loosing me. Until the ending. The ending is very bitter-sweet, more bitter than anything. It made up for the disturbing kills and character development because it had a point to it. While most may not like how lack-luster the ending is, I thought it was a bold and impressive move on James Gunn's part.

CONS

The movie has a huge tone change before the bloody finale (the last 30 min.) It happens during a very disturbing and awkward scene that made me squirm in my seat. At that point, like I mentioned earlier, it started to loose me. It had the same problem has "Hobo With a Shotgun", it went way too far.

CONCLUSION

Now it may seem that I love this movie, seeing as how I only have 1 Con. But that tone change really did affect my enjoyment of the movie. While, yes, the ending makes up for it, it still doesn't make it less disturbing. But don't be fooled, everything before and after the finale is worth seeing. It's more of a dark-comedy that really is funny. I still really enjoyed this movie, and wouldn't mind seeing it again, it's just too dark for me to see it more than twice. If this interest you, by all means see it. But a fair warning, you are not prepared for how dark it is.

RATING

RENTABLE.

Exit Through the Gift Shop CR: #16

Well this week is different, I'm reviewing my first documentary! I was hoping to do this sooner, but those darn new releases had to get in the way. But than again, I have been going back and forth on how to review this, so I guess I should be thankful. I'm very excited to finally review...

Let's Begin.

PLOT

Space Invader's unique "Pac-Man" themed art

Terry is a french store owner in L.A. who has an obsession with filming everything he does. He never goes or does anything without a camera. One day, while on holiday, Terry meets his cousin, who just so happens to be the notorious street artist "Space Invader". Terry, by sheer coincidence, is sucked into the world of street art. He starts filming all kinds of artist, new, old, popular, unknown, you name it. But he still hasn't filmed the most infamous and at the same time famous artist of all time. Banksy. Also by sheer luck, Terry meets Banksy and starts almost becoming his friend. But as the film goes along, the focus turns from Street Art, to the original director himself.

PROS

This documentary does what all great documentary's should do. It gets you interested in a subject I didn't even care about (street art in this case) until I saw this movie.

The film is constantly moving, it never slows down and all the footage shown is not wasted. They even get into some pretty tense situations that keep you on the edge of your seat. 

The narration is not boring and can be pretty funny at times. The movie also doesn't rely on it to tell the story.

The focus of the film is Terry, and it never leaves him. While it would be hard to leave Terry since he is the one filming everything. But the movie never stays on one subject for too long, quickly going back to the interesting French man.

Banksy's editing is spot on. While I've basically been praising everything he did, I haven't praised Banksy himself. It's hard to believe he's never made a film before because he's so good at it.

The art shown in the movie is very cool and introduced me to a world of art I had always written off.

CONCLUSION

I know this is probably the millionth time I've had no cons, but it's true. I honestly can't think of one. Please don't let the "Documentary" name scare you away, I now it did for me. But I was thoroughly surprised by this film. It kept me hooked from start to the hilariously disastrous end. As the poster, says this is "The world's first Street Art disaster movie." Do anything in your power to see this. 

RATING

RUN TO

P.S. I may not have a review up next week, due to Spring Break vacation. I'm not 100% sure, but don't expect one next week. I promise I'll make it up to you guys! 

        

The Godfather review (April Fools)

This week, I'm reviewing one of the worst movies of all time, a movie that made me angry, a movie that bored me, a movie that should have never existed. I'm of course talking about...

Let's Begin

PLOT

Now, I didn't see this movie, and I'm too lazy to copy and paste the plot. I didn't see it because I watched the trailer once while listing to LMFAO on my I-pod, so I'm pretty sure I have a good idea about what this movie is.

CONS

The movie is OLLLLLDDDDDD. It looks like it was made in the 30's and that means it can't be good. 

The movie looks SO BORRRRRIIINNGGGG.

I have NO idea who any of the actors are. I mean whose ever heard of Marlon Brando or Al Pacino. It's not like they've been in anything that's iconic or referenced all the time. 

The movie has NO exciting or tense action scenes

The movie looks SOOO  serious, wheres cross-dressing Adam Sandler when you need'em?

CONCLUSION

I've never seen this movie, but I'm pretty sure I'm right, and none of my friends have seen it, so I know it's not worth it. I could have been watching Transformers 2 (the greatest movie EVAR) instead of this. 

RATING....

.....APRIL FOOLS !!!!! 

The Hunger Games: NR #23

Well It's time for this year's first HUGE movie (sorry John Carter, you just didn't cut the mustard), it's one of the most anticipated book adaptations, so big that no other movie was released this week. The movie that will hopefully launch Jennifer Lawrence's career. This movie was so big I even did a separate post about it (here's the link http://newandclassicreviews.blogspot.com/2012/03/speculations-hunger-games-1.html) It's no surprise, but I'm talking about...

Let's Begin...

PLOT

In the future, North America has been all but destroyed and replaced by an all powerful Capital and 12 districts. After a failed uprising by the districts, the Capital has decided that the best punishment is to hold the Hunger Games. A reality gladiator show held every year where one girl and one boy from each district between the ages of 12 and 18 are randomly chosen to fight to the death. Cut to years later where we follow  16 year old Katniss Everdeen. Katniss volunteers to take her sister's place. The other boy is Peeta. The Games have begun, who will win when all the world is watching.

PROS

I can not overstate the amazing acting abilities of Jennifer Lawrence. She pulls off the character of Katniss flawlessly, she's a cold loner but attractive and desirable. One scene that really hit home for me is when the games are just 30 sec. from starting, and her cheeks are shaking. I know that she'll become one of the biggest stars out there.

The movie decides to go for a more slow feel. It's a smart choice and and proves you can keep teenagers' interest if you're good enough. 

The movie is certainly more violent than any PG-13 movie I've seen. It really is a mystery how this got that rating, and that's a good thing.

This movie follows the book very well, changing things around for the better, at least most of the time it's for the better.

They find some very good ways to explain what was used as inner dialogue in the book. One way that was very fun were the commentators. I just wish they used a lot more.  

CONS

Slowness is a double-edged sword in this movie. While yes it gives it more time, they don't use that time effectively. Little things are over explained, while large factors and character motives are overlooked. One big emotional scene, that if you've read the book you know what I'm talking about, has no emotional residence if you've never read the book. I only felt bad when Jennifer Lawrence came in with her amazing performance.

The action scenes are filmed WAY too close and shake worse than Cloverfield. It makes death scenes less effective and impossible to tell what's going on during some of the more important action scenes. I can see the reasoning behind it (the big one probably being getting that PG-13 rating), but this is just unacceptable  

CONCLUSION

This movie was very underwhelming. While it's not terrible, which it really is not, it doesn't have the same impact as the book. While I know they had to tone down the violence and it's easier to do first-person perspective through a book, I just feel they could have done better. Now if you've read the book and have not seen this yet, go see it, you'll like it. And if you've never read the book, you'll probably love this even more. Let's just hope they learn from their mistakes in the sequel! 

RATING

WALK TO