Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

PLOT: It's sort of a spoof of Walk the Line. It's the rise and fall of a singer throughout his career.
STARS: John C. Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Kristen Wiig, Tim Meadows
This movie follows the same basic plotline as Walk the Line but it's completely irreverent and inappropriate. There are a few good moments here and there but the best thing about the movie is the songs. The filmmakers have crafted completely original songs for this movie. The styles range from Johnny Cash to Bob Dylan to disco. They're great. Skip the movie and check out the soundtrack instead. (**)

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Made of Honor

Made of Honor

PLOT: A single guy's best friend runs off to Europe and comes back engaged. He agrees to be her maid of honor even though he's just realized he's in love with her.
STARS: Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan
This is basically My Best Friend's Wedding all over again. But this one is much nicer and more fun. Time is actually spent setting these two up as best friends who are very much a part of each other's lives. So when Patrick Dempsey realizes he loves Michelle Monoghan, you believe it. They all head off to Europe for the wedding, with Patrick coached by his friends in how to steal the bride. Humiliation ensues, as expected, with the requisite happy ending. I liked this one better than a lot of the other chick flicks that have been coming out lately. I think Patrick Dempsey is smart to be picking movies like this and Enchanted. That's where his bread and butter is. (Does anyone else remember Can't Buy Me Love?) This movie is fun and sweet. (****)

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The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

PLOT: The true story of how one of Jesse James' own gang members assassinated him.
STARS: Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Rockwell
I have heard so much about this movie, I was expecting to be blown away. I really wasn't. Affleck is Ford, he joins the James gang having idolized Jesse his whole life. He's let down though and plots a way to take him down. That part is easy to understand. I got lost in another part of the plot where Jesse is trying to track down certain members of his gang. Who was he tracking again? Who is secretly plotting with whom? And who is who exactly? It got a little confusing for me.
However, I am going to recommend this to anyone who is a Brad Pitt or Casey Affleck fan or if you're just a student of acting studies. These two are amazing. As Jesse James, Brad Pitt goes from confidence to suspicion to depression to resignation. Sometimes all in one scene and with few words. He can see the end is coming and yet he's powerless to stop it.
And Casey Affleck. He's not just the tag along little brother of Ben Affleck. If you've only seen him in Good Will Hunting or any other side kick role, you are missing out. This came out the same year that Gone Baby Gone came out (another great movie). He's so good. His Robert Ford has spent his whole life almost worshipping Jesse James. He doesn't just want to be like him, he wants to be him. But reality never holds up to our illusions. You can see the exact moment that Robert becomes disenchanted with Jesse. Robert is a man who longs for grander things and sometimes fools himself into thinking he's got it but ends up worse off than he ever expected. These two are the only reason to see the movie but they are worth watching. (***)

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30 Days of Night

30 Days of Night

PLOT: A small town in Alaska is attacked by a band of vampires during their 30 days of no sun.
STARS: Josh Hartnett, Melissa George
Again, it's a vampire movie...had to see it. I don't sit through too many horror movies. I'm not a big fan of being scared. This one had me on edge until pretty much the last 15 or 20 minutes. That's when I had a few problems with plot points and believability.
Now, the vampires in the movies are not of the Twilight type. There is a reason this is rated R. They have mouths full of the nastiest fangs I've seen on a vampire. They've been dormant for years and are now coming out to...take over the world? Have a snack? Not exactly sure why they were coming out at this particular point in time. But they decimate this little town. There is a small band of survivors that keeps moving closer to a big utility plant just outside of town where they think they will be safe. No surprise, they don't all make it.
At the risk of being thought completely deranged and psychotic, I have to tell you my favorite scene of the movie. It's an overhead shot of the vampires attacking the town. What you see is people running everywhere. It's hard to distinguish between the vampires and the townsfolk because it's dark and it's total chaos. But everywhere you look, there are huge puddles of dark red blood on the white snow. It's a massacre. I'm not much for gore, but I loved the way this scene was filmed. It was a great shot.
I'm giving this movies 4 stars. Scary movies are always better seen on the big screen.
(****)

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My Rating System

My Rating System

I've decided to give my movie reviews a rating. I at least like most movies but I wouldn't necessarily want to watch them over and over again. So here's the system I've come up with. Since there is no key with a "star" on it, I will use the asterick for my star.

1 star (*) will be for movies that are not worth your time. They are a waste of studio money and you will wish you had that hour and a half of your life back.

2 stars (**) will be for movies that I would only sit through if it happened to be on TV when there was nothing else on.

3 stars (***) are for movies that I would check out from the library or watch from Netflix. I might have been entertained but I didn't put in too much effort or money.

4 stars (****) are movies that I would go to see at the discount theater or maybe even pay matinee prices to watch. It's worth the trouble of finding a babysitter and even paying for tickets.

5 stars (*****) are movies that I would pay the full, $9.50 movie price to see. (That's saying a lot because I'm cheap, uh...I mean, frugal!)

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Underworld; Underworld, Evolution; Underworld, Rise of the Lycans

Underworld; Underworld, Evolution; Underworld, Rise of the Lycans

PLOT: Vampires are in a war against lycan (werewolves). The story is told from the perspective of one of the vampires.
STARS: Kate Beckinsale, Bill Nighy, Michael Sheen, Scott Speedman
I had to see these movies because, hello? they're about vampires. Plus, any movie that has a girl kicking serious butt gets a thumbs up in my book. Kate Beckinsale is great as a death dealer vamp. She doesn't look like the heroine of Pearl Harbor or Serendipity in this movie. There is a story line about her falling in love with a vamp/lycan hybrid but it doesn't rally dominate the movie. There are definitely inconsistencies here. The lycans are portrayed as so fierce and viscious it's hard to believe they haven't wiped out all the vampires. And the third movie brings back a character named Sonia who was only quickly referred to in the first. But when they showed her in the first, she was blonde and then she was brunette in the third. I know it's a small thing but really, how hard is it to go back and look at the first DVD and see that you need to cast a blonde? I loved the whole history and backstory for these movies. People who you think are good, aren't. Those who seem evil may not be. But I have to say my favorite thing about this movie was discovering Bill Nighy. I've heard his name hear and there but never really saw him in anything. Actually, I have and you probably have, too. He plays Davy Jones in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. You know, the guy with all the tentacles on his face? Yeah, that's the guy. Can't say his acting really caught my eye in those movies. But I feel like I stumbled upon a hidden gem in this movie. Whenever he was on the screen, I couldn't take my eyes off him. And not in the same way that I can't take my eyes off Colin Farrell or Russell Crowe. No, I just loved watching him act. He has an accent that seems to float between east coast upper class and pompous British. I'm currently looking through his movie archives to see what I can add to my playlist. But even without Bill Nighy, these are good movies. If you have any interest in vampires or that type of lore, I definitely recommend all three of these.

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