Hancock (PG-13-2008)

In the summer of superhero movies, "Hancock" flew under the radar with "The Dark Knight" and "Iron Man" getting all of the attention. While "Hancock" was not quite as good as either of those films, it certainly deserves some attention. Will Smith plays the titular Hancock, a superhero of sorts who is always drunk and lives in a broken down trailer. When trouble calls, he often answers, but "saves the day" while doing an immense amount of damage as he does not really care about collateral damage. When he saves the life of PR man Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), Embrey decides he is the right guy to rehabilitate Hancock's image and get him on the road to true hero status. This movie hits all of the right marks. It is funny when it needs to be funny, sad when it needs to be sad (almost gut-wrenchingly so in one sequence) and the action scenes are incredible. Will Smith and Jason Bateman have great chemistry and they make this story really work. While this is a more comedic turn on superhero movies, it is not as broad a comedy as you may think, nor is it a spoof. It has some great human moments and Smith does an excellent capturing the conflicted nature of this superhero. While the current commercials and even the DVD packaging lets you in on the one major surprise in the movie, I will not go into it here. I think it plays better if you try to avoid knowing. The language is definitely a little harsh for the younger crowd, so the PG-13 rating definitely applies. Overall, a very good action movie with a lot of heart.

Grade: B

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Transsiberian (R-2008)

Movies like "Transsiberian" are the reason I pay attention to independent movies. I had not heard of this one, but a co-worker mentioned it. After looking into it a little further, I gave it a try. Roy (Woody Harrelson) and Jessie (Emily Mortimer) are a couple traveling home from a humanitarian trip to China. Since Roy is into trains, they decide to travel on the famous Transiberian run, which goes from Beijing to Moscow. Along the way, they run into another couple (Eduardo Noriega and Kate Mara) and become friendly with them. They begin to find themselves in the middle of a mess involving drug trafficking and murder and have attracted the attention of a Russian detective (Ben Kingsley), who may have an agenda of his own. The storyline, the characters and the performances are all excellent. Ben Kingsley once again shows his ability to inhabit any role as he nails the Russian accent and mannerisms. Woody Harrelson is perfect as the somewhat overly naive and bubbly Roy, who is so mesmerized by the whole trip that he is oblivious to the sinister goings-on around him. Emily Mortimer does a nice job as the wife who finds herself getting attracted to the mysterious stranger, but quickly finds herself in way over her head. The story unfolds at a very nice pace, keeping you interested and involved with the characters as events transpire. "Transsiberian" is a very, very good film.

Grade: B+

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Rounders (R-1998)

"Rounders" is another movie that I am late to the game with. For reasons I cannot comprehend, I just saw it recently for the first time. Being a huge Edward Norton fan, I certainly should have gotten to it sooner. Matt Damon plays Mike McDermott, a former master poker player who is in law school trying to make a more straightforward living. This career choice was based on a night where he lost it all to Teddy KGB (John Malkovich), a local Russian mob boss. When his lifelong friend, Lester Murphy (Edward Norton) gets out of prison, he finds himself getting pulled back into the game, putting his current life in jeopardy. The performances across the board are outstanding. Damon shows the confidence and cockiness that would serve him well later in the "Bourne" series. Norton is perfect as the unreformable ex-con who can not let go of the ways that got him into trouble in the first place. Their relationship is reminiscent of Keitel and DeNiro in "Mean Streets" and Rourke and Roberts in "The Pope of Greenwich Village": the man trying to better himself while being dragged down by the volatile personality of someone very close to him. I've saved the best for last: John Malkovich is absolutely outstanding as Teddy KGB. His Russian accent is just slightly over the top, but that works perfectly and Malkovich, in only a few scenes, completely steals this movie. He is phenomenal in the climactic poker scene with Damon. I'm definitely sorry I missed this one for so long. Very good flick.

Grade: B+

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Apocalypto (R-2006)

My first observation about this movie is that Mel Gibson is one sick dude. He is fascinated with extinct languages and LOVES horrific, graphic violence. That said, he is also an amazing story-teller. I could almost see the progression here: Gibson to studio: "I want to make a movie about Jesus, but I only want to do the part where he is brutally and savagely beaten." Studio: "You're nuts, go do it yourself!". One huge hit later, Mel comes back. "Nice job, Mel, what's next?". "I want to do it again." "Apocalypto" is the very violent story of a Mayan tribal battle shortly before the end of the Mayan empire. The story is told through the eyes of Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) , a young warrior who is captured when his village is raided and unable to do anything when some of his fellow villagers are beheaded and offered up as sacrifices to the Mayan gods. When he gets the chance to escape, the film follows his chase through the jungles as he fights to survive and return to his very pregnant wife and son, who are hiding at the bottom of a deep hole. It is very beautifully shot and Gibson does a great job, once again, telling a story despite using a language that nobody speaks any more. Two minor critiques: The first "character development" part of the film seems like it is trying too hard to send the message that these tribal, primitive people are "just like us". One of the characters is complaining that his mother-in-law is on his case because she wants a grandson and is later the victim of a practical joke. Secondly, the ending has a couple of brief "Wow" shots that seem like the opening shots of an even more interesting movie. I'll leave it at that to not give anything away. Overall, a very good film.

Grade: B

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Lady in the Water (PG-13-2006)

Despite all of the negative hype and the Razzie Awards associated with this movie, I really wanted to like it. That negative press kept me from watching it this long, but with Paul Giamatti and M. Night Shyamalan involved, I just had to give it a chance. Well, I should have believed the hype. While it was not nearly as horrible as I had heard, I did find it to be slow and sort of uninteresting for a "fairy tale". Giamatti plays a superintendent for an apartment complex who finds a mysterious woman (Bryce Dallas Howard) in the complex's swimming pool. As it turns out, she is a "water person", a people who live in the water and never seem to have any contact with "land people" any more. For her to survive, he must find a way to return her to her native land and, for some reason, it is not as simple as bringing her to a body of water and dropping her in. The steps he must take are so convoluted and so mysterious that you just stop trying to follow them. One of the major issues with this film is that Shyamalan is somehow convinced that whispering equals drama. As in "The Village", so many of the scenes involve characters whispering to a point where you can not even understand what they are saying. Giamatti is as good as you would expect him to be, but the material does not make this one of the performances you would mind missing. Somehow, Shyamalan found a way to take an interesting, fantastical concept and keep it from being even remotely interesting.

Grade: D-

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Feast (R-2005)

"Feast" is sort of a tongue-in-cheek, does not take itself too seriously horror movie. While it is not a spoof or a straight comedy, it is definitely not trying to scare you too much, either. The thought occurred to me during this movie that makers of thrillers owe a tremendous debt to Agatha Christie. So many of these films follow the basic framework of her story "Ten Little Indians": a group of people are isolated and cut off from the rest of the world and then killed one by one by someone or something. In "Feast", it is a group of people in a bar who are not even given names, but are referred to by their character types ("Hero", "Coach", "Bozo", etc.). They are attacked and trapped inside by these vicious creatures of unknown origin. As with the formula, they are picked off one by one while the survivors try to find ways to defeat these monsters. At times, it tries too hard to be amusing. Some of the creatures "hump" their victims, which just comes across as silly, and there is even a "creature sex scene". What made me think this might be a fun flick was one scene in the trailer: "Hero" is yelling at the bar patrons and telling them what they should be doing. One of the patrons says "Who the Hell are you?". He responds "I'm the guy who's gonna save your ass!!" and is immediately ripped apart. Unfortunately, this is the best line/attack in the film and it happens very early. It is all downhill from there.

Grade: D+

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The Abandoned (R-2006)

This one had a lot of potential. Marie Jones (Anastasia Hille) was rescued from being murdered by her father as an infant and was adopted. She was raised in America (the "incident" was in Russia) and is called to return to the place of her birth. Once there, she meets the brother. They both find themselves in their birth-home being haunted and tormented by...themselves. Initially, this came off as a pretty cool concept. Her brother informs her "what happens to them happens to us" and she finds when she hits her ghost with a shovel, SHE feels the impact. However, this interesting novelty wears off pretty quickly and some of the horror falls flat. I found myself bored for extended portions of the movie and just didn't care where it was going. The concept seems to be that they were destined to die when they were babies and they were brought home to fulfill that destiny. That premise worked much better in "Final Destination". I mean, if it was your destiny to die and "death" cannot be denied, why did they get to live 40 years before "death" came looking for them??? It seems that if a violent death is your destiny, "death" is not going to wait 40 years to collect the debt.

Grade: D

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Deception (R-2008)

"Deception" is a pretty entertaining movie. It has good performances from Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor and is a decent story of double crosses. There is only one major problem. Almost the same exact material was recently done with Clive Owen and Jennifer Aniston in "Derailed" and that was a much better movie. Ewan McGregor plays Jonathan McQuarry, a very mild-mannered accountant who meets Wyatt Bose (Jackman), a hot-shot lawyer, during one of his audits. Bose is a much more polished, confident man who befriends McQuarry and introduces him to a world of sex and power. Bose gets McQuarry into "The List", a sex ring where very beautiful women are at his beck and call. McQuarry finds himself in love with "S" (Michele Williams) and also the prime suspect when she turns up missing. Bose is not quite the man McQuarry thought he was and McQuarry is now knee-deep in a plot to embezzle millions from one of his clients. Some of the "deception" is more straight-forward than in "Derailed". This is not quite as twisty as that film (although I think it tries to be). If not for the very good performances by the leads, this could have been a "so what" film, but Jackman seems to really enjoy the polished, ruthless Bose and chews up the material nicely. If you have to choose, however, see "Derailed". It is a much better movie.

Grade: C-

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Step Brothers (R-2008)

Will Ferrell is back and, arguably, better than ever. Maybe John C. Reilly manages to get the best out of him, because they have developed great chemistry. Forget the silly over-the-top sports movies, Will, this is your game. That's not to say that "Step Brothers" isn't silly or over-the-top, it is both, but it works very well here. Ferrell and Reilly play Brennan and Dale, two 40-year old men who still live with their parents. When Will's mom (Mary Steenburgen) marries Dale's dad (Richard Jenkins-who comes close to stealing this movie), they all move in together. Initially, Brennan and Dale go through many of the same distrust and rivalry that you might expect to see in children dealing with suddenly being faced with a new home environment. The comedy comes from these men acting much like children while speaking with the foul language of the grown men they are. Their scenes together are hilarious with some extremely classic moments, including a sequence where the parents insist they find jobs, so they go on several interviews and make sure no one would possibly hire them. There is also a great subplot with Brennans's more successful younger brother (Adam Scott), who has a hilarious family dynamic. After seeing "Tropic Thunder" recently, I thought I had hit the peak of comedy for a while, but I do believe "Step Brothers" may have surpassed it. This is the Will Ferrell I became a fan of.

Grade: B+

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School for Scoundrels (PG-13-2006)

Imagine "Napoleon Dynamite" in the business world crossing paths with Billy Bob Thornton. This is the main premise of "School For Scoundrels". Jon Heder continues his geeky nerd role as a man with absolutely no confidence hoping to get up the nerve to approach his dream girl. An acquaintance (David Cross) tells him about a class he knows of that helps guys like him build up their confidence. As you would expect, Billy Bob Thornton plays the teacher and the school is more about how to "take what you want" than it is about gaining confidence. As Roger (Heder) starts to apply his lessons and even finds himself making some progress with his dream girl, "Dr. P" (Thornton) decides that he should go after this girl himself, which sets up the rest of the film as master and student go head-to-head for the affections of a lady. It is a pretty straightforward comedy. Both Heder and Thornton play the characters you would think they would play. The movie works and is entertaining, but nothing special. It is fun to watch Heder start to realize he is in over his head, only to decide he doesn't necessarily have to lose to this guy. Michael Clarke Duncan has a funny part as Dr. P's sidekick, who seems to really enjoying punishing the students when they do not do well on their tests.



Grade: C



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The Strangers (R-2008)

If atmosphere alone can make a movie, "The Strangers" is that movie. That is not to say the film is devoid of content, it is just that the atmosphere is executed so perfectly that it makes this movie completely work. Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman play a couple who return home from a friend's wedding who find their night going real bad. The tension builds slowly but effectively as pretty much nothing happens for the first 25 minutes, yet you find yourself being drawn in. When a stranger knocks on the door looking for someone who does not live there, the tension moves up another level as "things that go bump in the night" becomes a device for ratcheting up the terror. "The Strangers" torment the couple until they are afraid of their own shadows with just the hint of possible harm. At the one hour mark of the movie, you see, these strangers really haven't hurt anyone, but you are right there with the characters wondering what these people are up to and how far they will take it. Liv Tyler carries much of the screen time and does an excellent job conveying the horror she is feeling. "The Strangers" definitely makes for an increasingly creepy night of movie watching. One disclaimer: The film opens with a blurb about how it is "Inspired by True Events". The term "inspired" basically means that the events as depicted in the movie are completely made up. The movie did not need this "sell". It completely stands up on its own.

Grade: B

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Tropic Thunder (R-2008)

I have been chomping on the bit to see "Tropic Thunder" since it hit the theaters and I was not at all disappointed. "Tropic Thunder" is extremely politically incorrect, but is brilliantly funny. The basic plotline is that a group of actors making a war movie find themselves captured by a real warlord and don't have any idea that this is not part of the movie they are shooting. Robert Downey Jr. is quickly re-establishing himself as one of my favorite actors and pushes the boundaries of "good taste" by playing a method actor so embroiled in "the method" that he has his skin darkened to play one of the black soldiers in the unit. His black/white duality makes for some hilarious material as he insists on staying in character, making his "actually black" castmate very uncomfortable. Jack Black plays a "sell-out" comedy star looking to re-establish his acting credentials. When his recovering addict character finds they have been captured by drug runners, he finds his loyalties torn. Finally, you have Ben Stiller as the action star, who is returning to his roots after making an "Oscar grab" by portraying a mentally challenged man (this is the source for much of the most politically correct but completely hilarious material). Joining this trio is an unrecognizable Tom Cruise as the self-involved studio head, showing Cruise has a great sense of humor and possibly resurrecting his career after some of his off-screen antics turned some people away from him. Cruise just about steals this movie. I was also totally amazed that Nick Nolte continues to find ways to play his "mug shot photo" and, yet, manages to turn in great performance. His role here as the Vietnam Vet whose book the movie they are making is based on is completely hilarious. Of course, if you do not like politically incorrect humor, you will definitely be turned off by this movie and will think less of me for liking it so much :)!

Grade: B+

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Meet Dave (PG-2008)

Eddie Murphy catches a lot of flak for "selling out" and becoming a family movie guy. "Meet Dave", in particular, was met with a groan and mostly ignored by the masses. Well, believe it or not, "Meet Dave" is actually a pretty funny flick. Yes, the concept is silly. An alien race of very tiny humanoid creatures lands in New York in a spaceship that is a robotic form of the ship's captain (thus the tagline "Eddie Murphy IN Eddie Murphy in "Meet Dave"-UGH). Murphy, however, manages to make the most of the material and comes up with a family movie that has plenty of laughs. Those of you without kids that might consider checking it out should be warned: The humor is very juvenile, so it probably plays better with children present. Even with that, there were enough funny moments to keep the parents entertained. No, this does not match up to some of Murphy's early work ("Beverly Hills Cop" and "48 Hours"), but it was funnier than several of his more recent efforts. My advice: Going in with lower expectations helps. You may be pleasantly surprised, as I was.

Grade: C

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Eden Lake (R-2008)

"Eden Lake" is one of those really pleasant surprises that keep me watching movies. Just when you start to think they just can't do the horror thing right any more, this gem from England comes along to show you it can still be done and done very well. The framework of the story matches a lot of classic horror films: A young couple goes out to the lake to have a romantic weekend getaway. Their peace and tranquility is shattered by a rude group of young thugs who are hanging out at the beach one day. When the boyfriend (Michael Fassbender) confronts them and asks for some quiet, the couple become the targets of this gang and a weekend of pursuit and agony begins. It is interesting to watch as the girl's dress slowly becomes as black as Bruce Willis' "white" T-shirt in "Die Hard". The film was very well-made with good, believable acting by the couple and the group of thugs, who find themselves getting deeper and deeper into a web of horror that transcends the normal bullying they are probably used to. You get a good look at the mentality of gangs, where a psychotic leader can bring them down to his level before they even realize it is happening. Although I am sure there are bits and pieces you can point to as unbelievable or just stupid on the characters' parts, the movie comes off as completely realistic. While it is a very little known film (I'm not even sure how I stumbled upon it), it is a must for horror fans.

Grade: B+

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Fred Claus (PG-2007)

"Fred Claus" is a sort of silly premise that still had some potential. Santa Claus (Paul Giamatti) has an older brother, Fred (Vince Vaughn), who is sort of jealous of the attention Santa gets and finds himself a bit of a loser and always in trouble. When he needs some money for his latest business scheme, he agrees to come work at the North Pole for a while and earn his keep. Of course, the standard Vince Vaughn character dropped into the orderly toy-making world of the North Pole generates lots of problems. This concept, although admittedly silly, could have actually worked if they let it breathe. However, they felt compelled to create a situation where Fred Claus needs to save Christmas. This is where a corporate efficiency expert (Kevin Spacey) comes in. He is at the North Pole to see if the whole Christmas thing can be done more efficiently elsewhere. He has his own agenda and pretty much makes sure he finds all kinds of issues with the North Pole. This is where the plot went off the rails for me. Are we supposed to believe that Santa Claus has some parent corporation that allows his whole operation to exist. Although Spacey is good, this part of the story is just forced to set up the heroic ending for Fred. There were definitely some laughs and the performances were good (full disclosure: I am a big fan of both Vaughn and Giamatti...oh yeah, Spacey, too). However, overall it just came up sort of flat. Part of the problem is that it did not really know if it wanted to be a family film or a more adult comedy. It was not a total waste of time, but I wouldn't exactly rush out to see it, either.

Grade: C-

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Space Chimps (G-2008)

"Space Chimps" wasn't a bad movie, exactly, but it wasn't a real good one, either. It is the story of a group of monkeys who are launched to find out if a "wormhole" in space is safe to travel through. On the other side, they find an inhabited planet where one of the creatures is using a space explorer previously sent out as a tool to rule the beings of hos world. Of course, when the space chimps arrive, they are faced with the choice of leaving well enough alone or helping to defeat this de facto leader. The humor is basically run of the mill. It is somewhat funny at times, but never really hits the mark. It is also now official that Patrick Warburton (Puddy from "Seinfeld") is being given way too much voice work in animated films. Sure, he has a cool, deep, cartoony voice, but it is so easily identifiable as him that you really can't get too into the characters he is playing. Younger kids may like some of the sillier gags, but, other than that, there is just not much to this movie. As mentoned earlier, it was not awful. It was just "there".

Grade: D+


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Wall-E (G-2008)

The one thing you know when you sit down to watch a Pixar film is that you are in for a visual treat. "Wall-E" is another amazing film to look at, but Pixar doesn't stop there: Their films, including this one, are extremely well-written, although not always this thought provoking. "Wall-E" is a robot designed to clean up an Earth that has become completely over-run with garbage. All of the people have left on luxurious space cruisers, hoping to return when the clean-up is done. "EVE", a robot who searches for plant-life, arrives one day and Wall-E is instantly smitten. There are no humans and, therefore, no dialogue, for about the first 30 minutes. When we finally meet the humans, they have become so mired in the life of luxury and automation that they hardly resemble humans. Their bodies have become totally obese from generations of totally sedentary lifestyles. The movie touts respect for the environment and reminds us that part of being human is getting up and actually doing some things. On top of all of that is a warm and funny love story as Wall-E and Eve strive to be together. While I was not quite as swept away as most of the critics, it had some great slap-stick comedy and delivered its message in a very entertaining way. I'm not sure it has the "re-watchability" of some of Pixar's classics, but it is a much deeper film.

Grade: B

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The Happening (R-2008)

M. Night Shyamalan's latest moves away from the late plot twist and move more in the direction of straight science-fiction. "The Happening" actually is more of an environmental cautionary tale, but is much better than the most extreme example: "The Day After Tomorrow". One of my favorite Shyamalan techniques is used in this film: He likes to take what most of Hollywood would consider a large-scale story and tells it through the eyes of one small group of people. This worked well with alien invasions in "Signs", a superhero movie in "Unbreakable" (possibly my favorite Shyamalan movie) and works well here in "The Happening". As the movie begins, an epidemic of senseless suicides is occurring, starting in New York City. The initial assumption is that terrorists have unleashed some sort of toxin into the city. As this phenonena spreads, it is considered to be a full-scale attack. Mark Wahlberg plays Elliot Moore, a high school science teacher in the Philadelphia area, who flees with his family when the epidemic begins to impact Philadelphia. They quickly find this is spreading faster than they can flee and begin to realize this is not a terrorist attack, but instead a response by plant-life to the threat that human beings pose. It is an entertaining movie and an interesting (if far-fetched) concept. Mark Wahlberg, who is usually very good, but his acting is just weird in this. He delivers all of his lines in some sing-songy tone as if everything he says is a question. A lot of the advertising makes a big deal that this is the first "R"-rated Shyamalan movie, but I'm not sure what the big deal is. There is little gore. In fact, the scenes that probably got him the "R" rating were probably the people jumping off of buildings early in the film. I am not shocked or offended that he showed this, but post-9/11, I found it to be that much more disturbing. If you have been avoiding this one from the bad reviews, you may want to check it out. It is not nearly as bad as you may have been led to believe.

Grade: C+

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Cleaner (R-2007)

"Cleaner" is not a bad way to spend an hour and a half, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it or rush it to the top of my Netflix queue. It was mentioned to me by a friend and once he mentioned the cast included Samuel L. Jackson and Ed Harris, I definitely wanted to check it out. Jackson and Harris are good, as you would expect, but the movie itself is just run of the mill. Jackson plays Tom Cutler, a retired detective who has started a "biological" clean-up business (crime scenes, suicides, etc.). After his latest job, he learns the owner of the house is missing and starts to believe the job may actually have been a cover-up of a murder. He turns to his former partner, Eddie Lorenzo (Ed Harris), who is still on the force, for help in getting to the bottom of it. Of course, the more he digs, the more he begins to find himself as a prime suspect. It is a decent mystery and an interesting concept, but the biggest plot twist in the movie is painfully obvious, to the point that I was thinking: If they go in that direction, it would totally ruin this movie. They did. It did not totally ruin the movie as I am a big fan of Jackson and Harris and they were both good, but it did knock it down a few grades. My recommendation: check it out on cable.

Grade: C-

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Quantum of Solace (PG-13-2008)

Daniel Craig returns as the best Bond since Sean Connery in this latest installment of the franchise. After "Casino Royale" re-booted the series with a new Bond on his first mission, "Quantum of Solace" takes place exactly where "Casino Royale" left off. It looks like Craig's Bond films will pay some attention to continuity and be connected, which is another great decision by the film-makers. After a great opening car chase, Bond is bent on revenge for the death of his girlfriend and finds himself matched up against "Quantum", an organization so secret that the various international intelligence agencies don't even know it exists. Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric) is at the forefront of this organization, which is fronted by an international ecological charity. In his quest to avenge his girl, Bond goes rogue, being completely cut-off from MI-6, and relies on his own talents to go after this organization. The movie has incredible action sequences, including a boat chase, a battle while hanging on ropes and quite a few other chase scenes and twists. Daniel Craig does a nice job again as a ruthless Bond who is cool when he needs to be, but emotional at the same time. This reinvention of the franchise keeps many of the classic elements, but does not feel compelled to include them all in each film (no gadgets, "Bond, James Bond", direct reference to martinis). At times, you miss them, but it helps make these movies more gritty and more realistic. As far as gadget goes, this film does include some cool technology in the office with touch-screen desktops and wall screens similar to what we've seen in "Minority Report". Having followed James Bond through the years, I love this direction they've taken. Bond is bad-ass and definitely comes off as someone you would not want to end up on the wrong side of.

Grade: B+

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Pineapple Express (R-2008)

"Pineapple Express" was a very pleasant surprise. Sure, I like the Apatow/Rogen films like "Superbad" and "Knocked Up", but when you watch a few of them, they are funny, but somewhat similar. "Pineapple Express" starts with some of the same themes, but ends up going in an entirely different direction. Seth Rogen plays Dale Denton, a process server who spends a good part of his time getting high. During his travels, he is pulled over on the side of the road and happens to witness a murder. Before long, he finds himself, with his dealer Saul Silver (James Franco), in the middle of a war between rival drug mobs. It is at this point that the film morphs from a stoner comedy into a buddy action film and the transition works perfectly. They are able to manage the action and comedy simultaneously without getting overly silly. I have to also admit that anything with Gary Cole (the boss from "Office Space" and broadcaster from "Dodgeball") gets my vote. He is one of the most under-rated character actors out there. Cole is the drug lord who is determined to find and kill Dale Denton. There is a good car chase about mid-way through the film and a great showdown near the end which finds our stoner heroes right in the middle of an all-out gun battle between the warring factions. Danny McBride, from "The Foot Fist Way", has a great role as Saul's drug-dealer buddy, who professes his loyalty while consistently selling out the duo to save his own skin. The only negative on this one is the final scene in a diner, which just takes entirely too long. At this point, the story has pretty much been told and just should have ended. Being a fan of both comedies and action movies, it is always great when someone can blend them together successfully and this one hits its marks.

Grade: B-

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Saw V (R-2008)

How many "Saw" movies does it take to ruin a franchise? Apparently, that number is 5. "Saw V" marks the moment the series has "nuked the fridge" (the movie equivalent to "jump the shark"-a reference to Indiana Jones surviving a nuclear blast by hiding in a refrigerator). "Saw V" follows the back-story of Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), who has been investigating the Jigsaw murders from the beginning. While this story is told in flashbacks (a way to keep Jigsaw himself (Tobin Bell) in the series), we are also following the story of 5 people trying to survive one of Jigsaw's games. The problem is we have no idea who these people are for a while and by the time they explain, we no longer care. The back-story itself showing Hoffman's relationship with Jigsaw and the murders only serves to remind you somewhat how good the earlier films in the series are. There is a pivotal scene where Jigsaw's ex-wife (Betsy Russell) is given a box, which contains her inheritance from him, but they never go back to that box and never explain what is in it. It is probably meant to be pursued in "Saw VI", but will anybody even care by then. This is one of those sequels that is bad enough that you start to question whether you really liked the earlier films in the series. "Saw" followers will see this any way (I did!), but it was really a waste of time.

Grade: D

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The Incredible Hulk (PG-13-2008)

"The Incredible Hulk" had the dubious distinction of being released in the same summer that "The Dark Knight" and "Iron Man" were released. If it did not have to stand up to that hype, people may have found that this was actually a very good comic book movie. Edward Norton takes over the role of Bruce Banner, who becomes the Hulk when he gets angry. As this movie opens, Bruce is on the run, in Mexico, trying to research and develop a cure for his duality. Gen. Ross (William Hurt) is determined to track him down to study his mutation to help develop a "Super Soldier" serum for the US Army. Ross has brought in a Russian Special Forces operative, Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), to assist him. When Blonsky gets a look at the Hulk in action, he wants to find a way to duplicate this mutation. The movie works on many levels as Banner is being pursued by Ross and Blonsky while trying to remain calm and find a way to be normal again. As the second half kicks in, there is plenty of action with great effects work, building up to an epic battle in the streets of New York between the Hulk and Blonsky. There are a few great cameos related to past versions of the Hulk, sometimes very quick ones. "The Incredbile Hulk" is action-packed with some great writing and acting and I actually think it gives "Knight" and "Iron Man" a run for the money.

Grade: B

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Get Smart (PG-13-2008)

I'm on the fence with big-screen remakes of classic TV shows and films. If something is done right the first time, why try to recapture that magic? If they do feel they need to do so, they have to get it right. Don Adams in the original "Get Smart" was perfect in that role. I would never think anyone could duplicate his success. I was right, but Steve Carell is the perfect modern-day choice to play Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, and does a very nice job in this film. The movie is very respectful of the original series with plenty of elements of the classic show sprinkled throughout the script, including almost all of Smart's catchphrases. Anne Hathaway does an admirable job as Agent 99, who thinks Max is a moron when she first meets him, but grows to love him. The plotline is not really important, but it basically follows the format of the series: Max is matched up against an evil plot by the group KAOS and must stop them, bumbling his way through the mission, while still managing to foil the plot. Carell plays it straight and the script does not go too over the top. It has plenty of physical comedy and sight gags and it certainly has its share of laughs. Being a fan of the original, I was very pleased not to find this an insulting cash grab that missed the point of the series. It hits its marks perfectly. I found this to be a pleasant 90 minutes of laughs. It will not go down as one of the great comedies, but it works.

Grade: C+

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The Invasion (R-2006)

It seems every generation gets its own version of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", the classic film which at the time was a metaphor for communism. After the original, you got the very good remake with Donald Sutherland. This latest version stars Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig and is the lesser of the three versions. The leads are good, the story is exactly what you might expect it to be, but it just isn't as good overall as its predecessors. The message in this one is sort of a rejection of the whole ideal of Utopia and the concept of "one united world". When the virus at the center of this one, which takes over its host and makes everybody "one", takes root, you have world peace, nations getting along and everything is "just great". The problem is that individuality and your own identity are gone. You are basically part of the global "hive". In that respect, I think it raises an interesting question: Every one thinks they want world peace and a "brotherhood of man", but at what price? Part of being human is the fact that we are flawed and take great pride in our individuality. What if that had to be sacrificed? While thinking that the original was a metaphor for communism, seeing Nicole Kidman front and center in this film made me wonder: Is this one a metaphor for Scientology?? To be fair, no one has implied any such thing, but it did cross my mind. Perhaps that made the film just that much more interesting for me.

Grade: C-

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Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (R-2008)

You had to figure a movie based on a popular series of dolls couldn't possibly be any good. Does anybody actually watch any of the "Barbie" animated DVDs? I didn't think so. However, instead of going for the quick buck, the makers of "Kit Kittredge" put together a good cast and actually seemed to pay some attention to the script. This is hardly a rave, however, as this was basically a "vanilla" movie: the story of a young girl (Abigail Breslin) growing up as the Depression hits and her family struggles to make ends meet. Kit is an aspiring reporter, so she strikes up some friendships with young "hobos" and wants to report on their plight. Meanwhile, there are a series of thefts in the region, all attributed to "hobos" and the evidence is starting to point to her new friends. Of course, she is determined to get to the bottom of this, turning it into sort of a "Nancy Drew" plotline. It is an "OK" family movie, entertaining enough that the parents aren't pulling their hair out and it is very straightforward. It is not the worst way to spend family movie night, but I can't recommend it beyond that.

Grade: C

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Asylum (R-2008)

If you are considering picking up this horror movie, take my advice: pick up "A Nightmare on Elm Street" instead. What? You say you saw that one already? Watch it again. "Asylum" is basically a pale imitation of Wes Craven's classic. On a University campus, there is a former mental asylum which has been converted into dorm space. As the story goes, the asylum used to be run by Dr. Burke (Mark Rolston). Dr. Burke was around in the 1930s and specialized in treating troubled children. Of course, his methods are barbaric and somewhat sadistic. It involves selective lobotomy using large pins pushed through the eye socket. The patients eventually revolt and kill him. Fast forward to modern times when a group of college kids learn of this legend and decide to explore the "unfinished" portion of the asylum/dorm. They soon find out that Dr. Burke is "still around" and can get into your thoughts, eventually killing you. (Gee, doesn't sound too much like Freddy Krueger, does it??). Dr. Burke even gets his own awful catchphrase: "Give me your suffering.". So, take my advice: Skip this and pop in "A Nightmare on Elm Street" instead.

Grade: D

Primeval (R-2007)

This may be the worst advertised movie ever. When it first came out, the ads and posters all boasted of a film about the most notorious serial killer of all time. Pictures of piles of bones adorned the posters. Only after it came out, did they come clean with the fact that this "serial killer" they referred to was a crocodile. Based on an actual crocodile in Africa, the movie is actually not bad. It follows the story of an American television crew sent to look for an file a report on this legendary crocodile, called "Gustave" by the locals. "Prison Break"'s Dominic Purcell heads the cast with Orlando Jones as the comic relief. The film actually follows two plotlines simultaneously. In the region where the crocodile is hunting, a civil war is going on, headed by a ruthless warlord, who calls himself "Little Gustave" (also based on a real person). Both stories are equally interesting and mesh together well. The crocodile itself is a little over the top: too big, too smart, etc. The movie mixes elements of "King Kong", "Jurassic Park" and, of course, "Jaws". While Orlando Jones' performance is fine, his character has way too many "funny lines" throughout the script. This is very similar to how Jeff Goldblum was used in "Jurassic Park 2". In the first one, Goldblum was the quirky guy who did not take himself too seriously. In the second, they decided he needed to have a funny line in EVERY scene. This is exactly what Orlando Jones does in this movie. Overall, it turned out to be a much better movie than I expected, although some of the silliness and obvious imitation of the films mentioned earlier keeps it from being a very good movie.

Grade: C

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High School Musical 3 (G-2008)

Let's face it. Do I really have to review this movie? If you are a "High School Musical" fan, you are going to see this movie. If you're not, you're not. Basically, this third chapter completes the high school careers of Troy (Zac Efron), Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens), Chad (Corbin Bleu), Taylor (Monique Coleman), Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel). Once again, Troy is being pulled in different directions as he tries to decide his future, Gabriella finds herself being pulled away from Troy and Sharpay plots to make sure she is the star of the senior year's big musical production. As much as this fits the same formula as the previous chapters in the series, everything is done on a much bigger scale on the big screen. The soundtrack gives the fans a whole new set of songs to enjoy, some hit the mark, some not so much. Zac Efron's performance has begun to stand out as he carries the most emotional baggage in the series and, in this one, you can see his acting has improved, possibly elevating him from being pigeon-holed as a teen heartthrob. Fans will love the movie, non-fans won't even bother, so this film exists completely in its own universe and is a successful completion of the trilogy. A couple of new characters are introduced, possibly to keep the franchise going. While I do not envision another movie, I could certainly imagine these new characters heading an "East High" series on the Disney Channel.

Grade: B-

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The Last King of Scotland (R-2006)

Forest Whitaker is simply brilliant as Ugandan President Idi Amin in "The Last King of Scotland". Whitaker captures both the charisma and the psychosis of the former Ugandan leader perfectly. The film uses the storytelling device of a fictional character, in the person of Dr. Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy). Garrigan has recently completed his education and is starting his career as a doctor. He shuns joining his father's practice and moves to Uganda, where he can make a difference. Around this time, Uganda undergoes a coup where General Idi Amin places himself in the presidency. At first glance, he is a "man of the people" who will use his power to improve the conditions for all of Uganda. Dr. Garrigan is instantly captivated with him and finds himself offered the position of Amin's personal physician. As the film develops, we see Amin become more and more paranoid and there are whispers of mass executions by his regime. Garrigan still believes in him and believes these stories are lies designed to undermine Amin. He slowly becomes aware that they are all too true, but it is too late as he learns he is no longer a free man. This is a very interesting study of a populist leader slipping deeper into madness, proving that "absolute power corrupts absolutely". Whitaker definitely deserved his Oscar for this performance.

Grade: B+

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Street Kings (R-2008)

"Street Kings" is a bit of a throwback film. It could easily have been released in the '70s with its theme of gritty crime and corruption in the police department. Keanu Reeves heads the cast as Tom Ludlow, a member of an elite group of cops headed by Captain Jack Wander (Forest Whitaker). This team of cops shirks the rules when needed to take down the bad guys. When one of Ludlow's former partners (Terry Crew) starts to talk to Internal Affairs, it sets off a chain of events that has Ludlow looking like a dirty cop who would do anything to protect his career. He also finds himself in a tug-of-war between Wander and Internal Affairs Captain James Biggs (Hugh Laurie), who are both striving for a Commander slot. Ludlow slowly finds himself getting deeper and deeper and more alone as he tries to get to the bottom of what is going on. This is a good old-school cop drama with lots of twists and turns. There were only two minor issues with the movie. First, I figured out exactly who the main culprit was going to be very early. While the film was still very entertaining, it took away from it just a little. The second was the usually amazing Forest Whitaker, who, while good, seemed to have a little trouble pulling off the "street cop" accent he was trying to get through. I have seen Whitaker pull off many accents before (most notably in "The Crying Game"), but in this one, it just missed the mark a little bit. The rest of the cast was solid down the line, including Reeves, who sometimes is accused of being too wooden. There is also a very good performance by the under-rated Jay Mohr.

Grade: B-

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Charlie Wilson's War (R-2007)

"Charlie Wilson's War" tells the story of Congressman Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks), who became obsessed with helping Afghanistan when the Russians invaded in the 80s. With the assistance of a wealthy socialite (Julia Roberts) and a CIA operative (Philip Seymour Hoffman), Wilson is able to convince Congress to fund covert ops to arm the mujaheddin, who were in the front lines in Afghanistan. Hindsight being 20/20, this film easily could have condemned Wilson and his cronies for supporting what has now become one of our greatest enemies, but the film actually plays it very straight and keeps it in the context of its time. Wilson, who starts out as a scotch-swilling, womanizing good-old boy from Texas morphs into a man who truly cares about the people being displaced in Afghanistan and also realizes that their plight is a huge front in the Cold War. The film portrays him as a heroic figure, which fits the times he was operating in. Only at the very end does the movie hint at what the future may bring as Wilson wants to continue funding for rebuilding of schools and public buildings and is rebuffed because the job there is done. Hoffman's character tells him a great Zen master story to explain to him that you never quite know whether the results of your actions can be considered positive or negative when viewed against the prism of time. The movie takes what could have been a stale review of back-room politics and tells a very entertaining story. Hanks and Hoffman deliver their usual great performances. Roberts is fine, also, but in a much smaller part. Ned Beatty does a nice job as a Christian Senator who holds the keys to getting the funding and needs some convincing that this is a noble cause to back. This is an entertaining, very fair portrayal of what has turned out to be a crucial time in this country's history.

Grade: B+

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The Comebacks (2007-UR)

"The Comebacks" does for inspirational sports movies what "Scary Movie" did for, well, scary movies. David Koechner plays Coach Lambeau Fields, a lifetime coach of various sports who has the distinction of never coaching a winning team. He has given up on coaching and is working at a horse track when his old friend, Freddie Wiseman (Carl Weathers) approaches him with an opportunity to pick up his clipboard one more time as the coach of "The Comebacks", a lowly ranked college football team. Coach Fields takes the job and just about every inspirational sports movie is lampooned over the course of the next hour or so. Although most of the spoofs/references are played out through the story of "The Comebacks", they add the device of using a Sportscenter type show to squeeze a few more in. For once, this type of shoe-horning in movie references actually makes some sense and works. Overall, the movie is pretty funny. There is plenty of crude sexual humor, usually in the form of obvious double entendres. There is also a subplot set up early in the film about the coach's daughter (Brooke Nevins) being a world-class gymnast that is quicky abandoned. For a movie that did very poorly at the box office (and even worse with critics), I was pleasantly surprised. It is stupid, crude comedy, but it had enough laughs to keep me watching.

Grade: C

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You Don't Mess With The Zohan (PG-13-2008)

I have to admit it: Adam Sandler movies are a guilty pleasure of mine. Clearly, I am not alone as his movies generally tend to do well. "You Don't Mess With the Zohan" is the story of "The Zohan" (Sandler), an Israeli Special Forces legend who secretly yearns to be a hairdresser. After faking his death during a battle with his arch-nemesis, "The Phantom" (John Turturro), he takes off to New York to pursue his dream. This sets up lots of fish-out-of-water comedy as his unusual hairstyles and styling methods make him a sensation. Of course, this kind of attention can not be good for a man who does not want to fight any more. Inevitably, his enemies will find him out. Rob Schneider does his usual turn as one of Sandler's quirky supporting characters, playing a Palestinian cab driver who thinks he may have discovered that "The Zohan" is really alive. Schneider does a great job in these over the top roles and is very funny once again. Say what you want about Sandler, but he is funny and his movies tend to be entertaining. This one is very funny and is one of Sandler's funnier movies overall. Yes, it is stupid funny and low-brow humor, but it works. In fact, this almost seemed like Adam Sandler doing a Mike Myers type movie.



Grade: B-



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The Foot Fist Way (R-2006)

Here's the background on this movie: Jody Hill, the director, made this film on a very low budget, a la Kevin Smith and "Clerks". Somehow, a copy of the movie got to Will Ferrell, who loved it so much he bought the rights and got a distribution deal. Fred Simmons (Danny McBride) is a Tae Kwon Do instructor who has some trouble applying the eastern philosophies of the martial arts to his own life. He is a crude guy in a bad marriage, who idolizes Hollywood martial artist Chuck "The Truck" Wallace (Ben Best). The movie certainly makes the case that you should never meet your heroes as "The Truck" turns out to be quite the Hollywood mess: women and drugs are what he lives for and he is not exactly the best human being. The movie takes you on a journey with Simmons as his life gets more and more messy until he can figure a way to turn it around. McBride is pretty funny as Simmons and Best as "The Truck" is definitely someone you love to hate, but the movie itself doesn't completely work. Unlike "Clerks", the low budget actually becomes a bit of a distraction as some of the acting doesn't quite cut it and the production value looks sort of like a porn movie. There are a few really funny sequences, in particular the hotel room party with Chuck "The Truck", but it is not funny enough most of the time. Perhaps the appeal to Will Ferrell is that the character of Simmons is just the type of cocky jackass that Ferrell has made a career out of playing, so he must have related to it.

Grade: C-

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Forgetting Sarah Marshall (UR-2008)

"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is billed as being "from the guys who brought you "The 40-year Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up". You can certainly see a lot of the same elements here with the raunchy humor, but this one sort of misses the mark. Although there is some raunchy humor, much of it seems to be put in just to say this is a "raunchy sex comedy" (OK, I just used the word "raunchy" 3 times..oh, that's 4). Most of these scenes barely have any humor to them at all. Overall, the movie does have some funny scenes and is not a bad comedy, but something is off. The premise is that Peter (Jason Segel) is dating Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), a TV star who decides she would much rather be with rock star Aldous Snow (Russell Brand) and dumps him. Peter is devastated and goes to Hawaii to escape his sorrow. Unfortunately, Sarah and her new beau are also there and he can not avoid them. Some of the situations set up in Hawaii were just stupid. When Peter finds the hotel with no rooms available, the beautiful desk clerk, Rachel (Mila Kunis), decides she will let him stay in the most exclusive suite in the place, free of charge, of course. We all know a desk clerk has that kind of authority and no one will ask questions! As he is immediately smitten by her, you also have no doubt the two of them will end up together at some point. Most of the funny material comes from the supporting cast. Snow's attitude toward commitment and monogamy make for some funny lines. The maitre'd (Jonah Hill), the surf instructor (Paul Rudd) and some of the other hotel staff are much funnier than the main cast. There is also the break-up scene which starts with Peter in a towel and quickly moves to him totally nude, which is really more male nudity than I needed to see! Be warned, we are talking frontal nudity here. So, this is basically an OK movie with some funny moments but not enough for a recommendation. It is not awful, just not great.

Grade: C-

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