What Did You Watch Today?

[therockbox]

Hulk: 6.5/10

Jennifer Connelly

A Hard Day's Night: 4/10

Raining Stones: 7/10

[FLiam]

Dude, Where's My Car - 7/10

Say what you will, this move has a reputation of being pants, but I love it, Seann William Scott is just brilliant and there are some real funny moments in this move. And then....?

Edited March 25, 2005 by Gooner4Life

[BlackFlagg]

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer - 7/10

[BlackFlagg]

American Psycho - 8/10

[Timmoru Suzuki]

Star Trek: Nemesis 7.5/10

A bit better than I remember, a good solid film. Better than Generations and Insurrection, but not as good as First Contact IMO. Good though, and a good turn by Tom Hardy as Shinzon.

[ROC]

Pulp Fiction - 10/10

[The Hardcore Canuck]

Mr. 3000 - 5/10

Resident Evil: Apocalypse - 3/10

Spider Man 2 - 2/10

Dodgeball - 6/10

[BlackFlagg]

Alien vs Predator - 5/10

Matrix Revolutions - 5/10

[BlackFlagg]

Hostage - 7/10

[BlackFlagg]

Robots - 7/10

[ROC]

For the movies I saw today, I decided to bring out the old pros and cons system.

Abandon - 4/10

Pros:

1. Stephen Gaghan’s direction.

The film’s look makes it obvious that Gaghan has major potential to be a good director, as several of his shots are very well done and the look of the film is quite excellent. Maybe his next effort, this fall’s Syriana, proves better for the man’s rising directing talent.

2. Gabrielle Union and her acting.

Ms. Union still hasn’t lost her hotness and her acting talent. Too bad the film doesn’t show her hardly enough to make her save the film.

Cons:

1. Stephen Gaghan’s direction.

Yes, I know I mentioned that as a plus up above, but several of Gaghan’s other shots are shoddy and even laughable by many standards. Certainly, toning down some of his shots will also help for Syriana.

2. Horrible supporting cast.

While Katie Holmes features the same charm that has made her appearance welcome in movies like The Gift and Pieces of April, her supporting cast in the feature is horrid. Benjamin Bratt is as wooden as he could be and nearly every member of the teen supporting cast, excluding the aformentioned Union, proves to be either horrid at their acting ability or not even noticeable enough to matter.

3. Weak plotline.

Whereas Gaghan’s last writing effort, Traffic, was tight and less filled with unrealisticness and predictability, the exact opposite proves for Abandon as predictable is the name of the game. It feels bland, undrawing, and ultimately weak.

Abandon is the very definition of “sophomore slump”. It’s a shame such a good writer fell this low.

Taking Lives - 4/10

Pros:

1. Angelina Jolie’s ultra-sexiness.

The film’s first and only real positive is the fact that Angelina Jolie hasn’t stopped being sexier than most every woman on the planet. Yes, that's not a real positive for the film, but rather a positive for her. And certainly if you’re a rabid Jolie fan, you’ll probably enjoy the flick just for her.

2. Kiefer Sutherland as a bad guy.

Sutherland is a slick enough cat to play nearly any role with the slyness and cunning required to be awesome. Unfortunately, for a movie that emphasizes him as the enemy, he doesn’t show up enough to bring on the charm to elevate the film.

Cons:

1. Predictability.

If you’ve seen a few suspense movies, you’ve seen this. Cliche story, cliche dialogue, cliche twist, and a cliche sex scene. All in all, it certainly doesn’t help being similar.

2. Ethan Hawke.

While I wil be the first after Beatnik to admit the talents of Sir Ethan, the man really isn’t convincing throughout the movie. The man plays a Nova Scotian, yet talks straight-up American? What’s up with that?

3. Did I mention you’ve seen this movie before?

Oh, I did? Well, that’s it for the review.

All in all, no matter how fiery hot Ms. Jolie still is, this is far too predictable for it to be anything other than a 4/10.

[Ananas]

2. Ethan Hawke.

While I wil be the first after Beatnik to admit the talents of Sir Ethan, the man really isn’t convincing throughout the movie. The man plays a Nova Scotian, yet talks straight-up American? What’s up with that?

←

[tristy]

Fight Club

8/10

I stand by my statement that this is Brad Pitt's finest role. He plays Tyler Durden to a fucking 'T' in this movie. Edward Norton is awesome in this movie. Norton just brings a shitload of talent to any movie he's in. Helena Bonham Carter reminds me of an ex-girlfriend. Haha.

Joe Somebody

6/10

I'm a Tim Allen mark. Fuck you.

I'm going to watch American History X & Angel: Season One now. ^_^

[Johnny Latino Heat]

Over the last few couple of days I saw...

The Incredibles: 8.5/10

One of the best animated movies ever, IMO.

Identity: 8.5/10

Loved it.

Scary Movie 3: 7/10

Funnier than the second, still the first is better.

Scary Movie 2: 5/10

The worst of the bunch.

The Waterboy: 7.5/10

One of Sandler's funniest, if I can say so myself.

Big Daddy: 7/10

Fun movie, but there are better ones out there.

Star Wars The Phantom Menace: 7/10

The worst SW movie out there, but still not bad.

[Timmoru Suzuki]

Forrest Gump 8.5/10

[ROC]

I like this pros/cons system dealy. I’ll keep this for my next batch of reviews.

House of Sand and Fog - 8/10

Pros:

1. The acting is phenomenal.

Simply put, the acting in this picture must be seen to be believed. Everybody, from Jennifer Connelly to Ben Kingsley to Shohreh Agahdashloo, steps up big in this movie to make it a very good film to watch. However, Kingsley gives the best performance in the movie, simply because of a touching scene late in the movie.

2. The emotinal ambience works perfectly.

With the film’s theme of tragedy and sorrow, the ambience seen through the movie works perfectly with the story. If anything, you might just tear up during this sad story.

3. There’s an original plot and dialogue.

The film also serves to show something not seen too much in Hollywood: originality. The film doesn’t feel any bit ripped from other films and it serves to elevate the film’s quality and content because of that.

Cons:

1. You WILL get depressed.

Seriously, don’t watch the movie if you don’t know what’s in store or if you want to avoid what’s in store. You will get depressed or at least sad. It’s that brutal of a movie.

Overall, it’s a very dark film that runs with its originality and acting. 8/10 for a movie deserving of all of its acclaim.

[Ananas]

Underdow - ***1/2 (7/10)

From director David Gordon Green ("All The Real Girls", "George Washington"), "Undertow" is the harrowing story of two children who are forced to depend on themselves after a horrible tragedy befalls their family. Jamie Bell ("Billy Elliot") leads the cast of talented yet more or less unknown actors as Chris Munn, a troubled young boy in a hopeless romance at the start of the film clearly lacking the approval of the girl's father. Frequently in and out of prison, his situation becomes all the more bleak when he and brother Tim (Devon Alan) find themselves on their own. Not only do the boys find themselves alone in the world, but also on the run from their uncle who is out to get a collection of gold coins inherited from their grandfather. Hopelessness is the key word in this film; the leads are put in an impossible situation, and nearly all of the people they encounter throughout their journey are equally hopeless. David Gordon Green has profound understanding of his characters here; he manages to bring the heroism out of the imperfect and turn a story of bleakness into an uplifting one. Great, if a little brief work can be found here from Dermot Mulroney, Shiri Appleby, Kristen Stewart, Eddie Rouse and Patrice Johnson. "Undertow" is just out there enough to be provacative, and just poignant enough to remain relatable. Thumbs up.

[Laice07]

8.5/10

Too bad they couldn't fix up the extended edition on the DVD since it did mae a great movie even better BUT there's some major problems in it that might take viewers off the film.

8/10

Dang that ending scene, and that great acting from Peter

Edited March 28, 2005 by Laice_

[Ananas]

Bride & Prejudice - ***1/2 (7/10)

"Bride & Prejudice" is the classic Jane Austen novel "Pride & Prejudice" retold on screen by Gurinder Chadha ("Bend It Like Beckham"). Instead of rehashing the old story and old setting, Chadha takes the story from 19th century England to 21st century India, and injects comedy, music and dance to make something fresh out of a story that has been done to death. Leading the cast is the enigmatic Aishwarya Rai, an enrapturing beauty who, while unknown to American audiences, may be the most popular actress in the world as the Bollywood industry's most bankable star. She has been rewarded many times for her work in the Indian equivalent to the Oscars, and once again gives a memorable and refreshing take on the Elizabeth Bennet character (renamed Lalita Bakshi for this film). Martin Henderson ("Torque") gives a surprisingly likeable performance considering some of the stars who have played the Darcy role before him (Colin Firth, Laurence Olivier), but the real star here is the director. Gurinder Chadha is absolutely wonderful at mixing cultures without any bigotry or one dimensional racial humour. In a way, she has the ability to do justice to both cultures instead of one, and the themes she explores make her work accessible to anyone. This is such a bright, new take on a classic story that it's hard not to love. Thumbs up, the first really good movie of 2005.

[Ananas]

The Jacket - ** (4/10)

A mix of dull thriller, dull drama and dull time travel film, "The Jacket" is a perfect example of how quickly intriguing concepts can go down the drain. John Maybury ("Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon") directs and Adrien Brody ("The Pianist") stars in a film that was both raked by critics and ignored by movie goers. When Jack Starks is aquitted of a murder on the grounds of insanity and is sent to an asylum, he is subject to a contraversial treatment, namely being straight jacketed and locked in a body drawer. It is here that he travels in time, meets Keira Knightley's Jackie Price and begins to put the pieces together on his death, which he now knows to be only days away. For a genre that was once on the cutting edge of cinema, the psychological thriller has taken a big hit in recent years. Often involving time travel, unecessary plot twists and wretched characterization, the genre has been humanized by horrible pictures such as "The Butterfly Effect" and "Secret Window". This film, although showcasing a talented cast, is no better. The funny thing is that back when these types of movies were new, they were highly unpredictable, but as time passed by and screenwriters avoided making any changes to the genre archetypes, they've become just as predictable as romantic comedy. It's sad to see when a film starring Adrien Brody and Keira Knightley can't pass on its charm, but this one is almost pleasureless. Thumbs down to a dull, dreary B-film.