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Reviews
Escape from Planet Earth (2012)
This Blue Movie is Golden
I enjoyed this movie from the first minute to the last. It is extremely well animated and well written. The jokes -- both physical, satirical and cerebral -- come thick and fast. It pays homage to other "alien" movies such as Planet 51 and Paul without plagiarizing them. I particularly enjoyed the fact that there was always something clever happening in the background, especially during the expositional scenes. The plot was simple, which was perfectly acceptable because it just needed a simple clothesline to hang the hi-jinks on. If you enjoyed the two previously mentioned movies plus Despicable Me and MegaMind, you're going to love this.
Parental Guidance (2012)
End of an Era
I am a fan of Billy Crystal, Bette Midler and Marisa Tomei, so when I saw all three were in this movie, I grabbed it off the shelf at Blockbuster. I had heard it received some bad reviews but thought, with those three stars, how awful could it be? It was really awful. The kids call Billy Crystal "Fartie" instead of Artie and the rest of humor hovered merely inches above facile. The set-up -- old school meets modern technology -- is a tired premise that should have been retired long before this movie was made. Billy and Bette were irritating and the kids -- who are usually cute and cuddly in this type of movie -- were not even likable; like their forced laughs at Billy Crystal's jokes, they too were pretentious and precocious. Unfortunately, that was part of the humor. This is the first time I have ever not found Billy Crystal (or Bette Midler) funny or Marisa Tomei an unsympathetic character. I cannot believe that Lowell Gantz and Babaloo Mandell gave this script a final polish. Does that mean they are losing their grip too? Frankly, the three stars should have turned this movie down. I lasted about 20 minutes, then bailed. Is this the end of an era for Billy and Bette?
The Dark Knight (2011)
Dark Knight's Nemesis
When I rented this movie it was called "Dark Nemesis" and is what I call a "TGFFF" movie: Thank God, for Fast Forward. In fact, this sucker is so bad, I fast-forwarded it to the max. The "monsters" are totally fake and cheap. They have wings and zoom around, but when they chase the heroes (who are on foot), they somehow cannot catch them. They have huge teeth but don't bite off heads, which it what you would expect.
The dialog is expositional and pedestrian: it tells us what we already know, then tells us again and again and again. I refer to scene on a bridge between the safe world and Shadowlands (which, in a voice-over at the beginning of the movie, we are warned is a "very bad place" where "monsters dwell.") Then this guy (obviously doomed to die) on the bridge tells our heroes the same thing . . . twice. Plus, just in case we are deaf or stupid, a sign on the bridge arch says, "Turn Back."
Later in the movie, the actors very slowly walk up and down this basement being stalked by a monster you never see (an over-used cliché) and they do this for maybe ten minutes.
Normally, I enjoy monster movies, but this one is a total waste of time. As for paying homage to other movies . . . I would say they plagiarized other movies and did it badly.
I gave it 1 out of ten because this rating has no minus numbers.
Doomsday Prophecy (2011)
Eric aka Joe
This was a bad movie made even worse by the lack of care and continuity. AJ Buckley plays a character called Eric Fox. However, in a scene in an SUV, he holds onto the door handle displaying a tattoo on the inside of his left wrist that plainly says "Joe." Now, either AJ (Joe) Buckley has the tattoo and someone missed it (make-up person and/or continuity person!?) or the character's left wrist is called "Joe" or the character has a thing for someone called "Joe."
This is about typical for this movie. which did not ask us to just suspend our disbelief but also our credulity. Oh yeah . . . the SFX were shamefully cheap and hokey.
Get Low (2009)
Get Low laid me low
I'd heard a lot about this movie, so I was anxious to watch it. The acting is excellent (as always from Robert Duvall and Bill Murray). The photography and recreation of the period is top notch. But, sad-to-say, the story is one-note and ultimately boring. There have been many grumpy- old-hermit-with-a-good-heart movies and this is simply one of them: grumpy-old-hermit-with-a-BIG-secret. I also shudder when I read the words "based on a true story" or "real life event" because movies should be real life with all of the boring bits taken out. Unfortunately, if this rule is applied to "Get Low," there is no movie. It dragged on way past the sell-by date for the premise and in the end, failed to deliver an exposition worthy of the wait. The protagonist had an affair with a married woman. That may have been a big deal back then in his community, but it's not sufficient reason for today's movie-going audience to schlepp through to the end. That's not to say I condone adultery. It's just not a sufficient "reveal" for the build-up in the movie.
Skyline (2010)
Great movie with a bad ending
I rented this movie despite all of the bad word-of-mouth because I love sci-fi and schlocky disaster movies. But this movie started to become interesting. Great premise. Big shock when the monsters come. Homage to the monsters in Matrix Revolutions and the denouement of Alien Resurrection. When the hero and his girlfriend are taken by the aliens, I thought, wow, they're going to kill the protagonist; it's going to be a downer ending. Great! That takes guts. Then they did kill the hero, but... they spoiled everything by having the aliens let the girlfriend live when they discover she is pregnant -- in the 50s the aliens wanted our women, now they want our babies?? -- and then the hero fights his reincarnation as an alien monster to save his girlfriend. GIVE ME A BREAK!!?? Sorry, guys, you blew it.
My Name Is Khan (2010)
Beautifully filmed first half - Awkward, stagnant, cheesy middle - Unforgettable Ending
I loved, love, loved the acting. Such a proud accomplishment for all involved. The setup hooked me and I went along for the ride as this love story unfolded. I believed the message, "racism kills," was strong and not far-fetched and the stellar acting drove the message through my heart....until....the long middle... when it began to look and sound like a rerun of "Forest Gump." I almost lost it when our hero got to Willhimena, Georgia and the set design was so obviously CGI. Okay, perhaps I could give artistic license to the director at this point. It's a good thing it was so superb in the beginning and end because when the story took our hero from one end of the U.S. to the other, and then back again, I wanted to stab my eyes out. All in all, it's a strong recommend if you can hang through the middle.
PrimeMates (2010)
It's about time someone talked about sex.
I went to see "Primemates," out of curiosity, at its West coast premiere. I wanted to see how a movie about four men, talking about sex, in one location, could possibly be entertaining. It's no easy task for any filmmaker. I was riveted. Rudy Luna is the type of writer/director whose type of work I've been dying to see.
What starts as a story grounded in scientific fact begins to slowly twist into a tragic, yet uplifting end about the emotional down side to biological evolution. The film festival audience that viewed the movie talked for nearly 2 hours, with Mr. Luna, discussing the validity of this film. There were high school students attending and they never left the theater. When asked how they liked "Primemates," the young men thought it was really good. The young women with them said nothing.
Altogether it's shocking to hear the real bottom line to sex. If we want to keep the human race alive, men must have sex wherever they can get it, regardless of the consequences. See the movie. You won't stop talking about it.
The Hangover (2009)
Funniest movie I've EVER seen
The first time I watched this movie with my sister and daughter. I thought we were going to get kicked out of the theater for disturbing the peace, we were laughing so hard. Three viewings later, I still laugh out loud and I can't wait to have a permanent copy in my home. The setup took a little long before launching into the action, but was necessary to give us a good look at each character with a lot of payoffs all the way. Over the top humor with an over the top premise kept the tone and pacing perfect. There were a few things that were unbelievable (leaving a baby in a car and a guy in a trunk in that Las Vegas heat?) but never interfered with the entertainment value. Bless the investors -- I'm sure they're dancing in the streets after this success!