Recent theatrical viewings

[Rev. Powell]

BLACK SWAN: A goody-goody ballerina (Natalie Portman) must learn to tap into her dark side so she can dance the role of the seductive Black Swan; with the help of a free-spirited dancer (Mila Kunis) she does the job, maybe a little too well.  The backstage melodrama drags a little bit early on, but there is some wonderfully executed psychological horror on the back end.  4/5. 

[Rev. Powell]

TRUE GRIT: A fourteen-year old girl hires a rugged Federal marshal to track her father's killer into Indian country.  Nearly a perfect Western, with truly gritty characters and performances. 5/5.

[Rev. Powell]

TRUE GRIT: A fourteen-year old girl hires a rugged Federal marshal to track her father's killer into Indian country.  Nearly a perfect Western, with flashes of Coen Bros. humor and a truly gritty performance by Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn. 5/5.

[InformationGeek]

TRUE GRIT: A fourteen-year old girl hires a rugged Federal marshal to track her father's killer into Indian country.  Nearly a perfect Western, with flashes of Coen Bros. humor and a truly gritty performance by Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn. 5/5.

Hmm... I think you double posted by accident.

Anyways:

Tron Legacy: Saw it, liked it.  Already explained my thoughts on it in the topic about it.  Great techincal stuff, but has a weak story and some weak acting.  Still worth seeing.

[Rev. Powell]

THE KING'S SPEECH: Reluctant monarch George VI, who was terrified of public speaking because of his disabling stammer, gets through the most important radio broadcast of his time at the dawn of WWII with the aid of his Australian speech therapist and personal confidante. This inspirational historical drama has classical gravitas, wit, great performances, and a comfortable obviousness.  4/5.

The actual historical speech can be heard here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAhFW_auT20

[Rev. Powell]

THE FIGHTER: A small-time boxer from Lowell, Mass. gradually realizes that letting his dysfunctional family manage his career may be holding him back from reaching the big time.  Predictably, the human spirit triumphs, but it's an actor's movie: putative star Mark Wahlberg is overshadowed by great performances by Melissa Leo as his delusional mom and Christian Bale as his loser brother who's wasted his life since he knocked Sugar Ray Leonard down years ago.  3.5/5.

[Killer Bees]

My partner and I saw Black Swan last weekend.  It was a toss up between that or Unstoppable.  But he says Unstoppable is the kind of movie he prefers to watch on DVD and not spend all that money at the cinema.

I agreed with him (although I would have been happy to go see it by myself on the big screen), so we watched Black Swan instead.

It was a mind melt of epic proportions.  To my knowledge I've never seen an Aronofsky  movie but I've heard heaps about his weirdness and this movie lived up to the hype.  We both loved it and had much in depth discussion about it afterwards. 

My one and only criterion for movies is: "was I enterained?"  If the answer is yes, the movie itself doesn't have to be Oscar worthy or deep and meaningful. 

This movie for me is a definited "YES!". 

[Rev. Powell]

TANGLED: A roguish thief meets a girl with a mile of magical hair imprisoned in a tower in this Disney variation on Rapunzel.  Sure, it's a fairy tale acted out with animated Barbie dolls, but it's got the usual Disney humor, spectacle and charm; this forty year old man found it pretty entertaining.  4/5. 

[HarlotBug3]

SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD: A bass player must defeat a girl's seven evil exes to win her heart.  Funny, anarchic, very entertaining; at times this seems like something the Monty Python gang might have come up with if they'd been raised on video games and graphic novels.  4/5.

Was skimming. Couldn't contain my joy at this must-see being posted on my b-day 

[Rev. Powell]

ANOTHER YEAR: A year in the life of a happy, well-adjusted couple and their circle of miserable friends.  Typical Mike Leigh film: fantastic characterizations and performances--Lesley Mansfield should have got an Oscar nom for her portrayal of nervous, desperate Mary--coupled with little plot and an aggressive ordinariness.  3.5/5.

[Hammock Rider]

GREEN HORNET: Meh. Needs more Kato.

[JayJayM12]

The Mechanic:  When The Transporter isn't transporting, he trains young guys to be his sidekick in the assasination biz.  Sort of a Hitman and Robin scenario.

Actually, it wasn't too bad.  Nothing special, but worth the hour and a half or so.  The best part - it compelled me to go home that night and rewatch the original The Mechanic with Charles Bronson on Netflix streaming.  I've always been a fan of the original and enjoyed catching right after seeing the update.  The new one was actually fairly faithful, with it's own little twists, but it can't touch the original.  The opening, wordless scene is pure Bronson Brilliance!

[Rev. Powell]

BLUE VALENTINE: The story of a failed working class marriage, told from the tempestuous present with flashbacks to the storybook beginning.  Excellent, painfully believable performances by Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams; not a good date movie unless you're planning on breaking up immediately after.  4/5.

[JayJayM12]

BLUE VALENTINE: The story of a failed working class marriage, told from the tempestuous present with flashbacks to the storybook beginning.  Excellent, painfully believable performances by Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams; not a good date movie unless you're planning on breaking up immediately after.  4/5.

They oughta make more movies like that:  "Fellas, are you planning on breaking up with your girl, but you need the perfect movie to put her in the right mood?  Look no further than Blue Valentine.  So good, she'll be surprised if you DON'T break up with her afterwards.  Also, from the makers of Blue Valentine, coming soon to a theater near you, the new movie:  "Bi#$@, Get Your S&*t and Get Out", starring Anne Hathaway and James Franco.  Cameo by Mike Epps."

[BoyScoutKevin]

Gnomeo and Juliet" w/ the voice talents of Michael Caine.

No surprise from the title, but this animated film is based upon William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." What was a surprise, at least to me, was how surprisingly effective I found it. Funny. Emotionally affecting. And the in-jokes came fast and furious. There were in-jokes referencing . . .

Apple -- Elmer's Glue -- Elton John -- The Enchanted Tiki Room -- Fantasia -- Kermit -- Lassie -- Little John -- Little Richard -- The Terminator -- White Out -- William Shakespeare, etc.

It's only later that one notices the problems inherent in the film. Such as some of the scenes do little if anyting to advance the plot and storyline.

"Justin Bieber Never Say Never' a concert film w/ Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus.

I never see these films for the concert footage, I watch them for the backstage people, the backstage footage, the fans, the fans reaction.

While he certainly has talent, he is such a phenomena, it is hard to peg, even with this film, how much talent he has in regard to singers both past and present.

From the film, I would say, that he is such a phenomena, you couldn't put him in a smaller more personal venue, even though he looks better in such a venue, than he does in a larger more impersonal venue, where he tends to get lost.

The film also raised if it did not answer such questions as where does he go from here?How long will he be the flavour of the month? What happens then? And while I have seen a number of these concert films, the question I have yet to have answered is, while these films answer the question as to what tween and teen girls listen to in the way of music, what do tween and teen boys listen to in the way of music? That one I have yet to have answered.

Summary: While the film left several questions unanswered, I did feel the need to find out what is going on, and this film is the nearest I ever want to be to a Justin Bieber concert.

Next time: "The Eagle"