Forgetting Sarah Marshall

nine out of ten

I loved this movie! I know it was a bit vulgar, and perhaps I could only watch it in the company of only my husband without dying of embarrassment, but still, it was a really funny movie. I looove the leading actor in the movie, he's hilarious in "How I met your mother" and here as well. Plus it was set in Hawaii, and if you know me, then you know I'm biased to anything filmed there. I just wish they did away with all the nudity.

Vantage Point

six out of ten

This movie isn't bad, the problem with it is that it could have been way better, and I can't help but hold this fact against it. This is a movie about an assassination attempt on the life of the US President, told from several different vantage points. You have to figure out what's going on as the story pieces together from different points of view. Unfortunately I figured out the "twist" early on so the rest of it played in "color by numbers" format. Still, the acting wasn't bad, and it was an entertaining flick from start to finish.

What Happens in Vegas

Let me give you the premise: A girl and guy both fed up with life rush to Vegas, meet, marry while drunk and in the process win 3 million dollars which results in the ensuing divorce to become a bit more complicated. A judge freezes the funds and orders them to live together for six months which they angrily decide to do just so they can finally get that 3 million bucks. Can you predict how this will end? If not, you've never seen an Indian movie in your entire life. This is an American Indian Movie. If you like Indian Movies, then this is the standard Cheese-Plus Indian Comedic Romance. Break out the cheesy puffs and enjoy!

Meet Bill

Bill is a nice guy who gets walked all over by everyone in his life. This movie is about him coming to terms with that and figuring out what he wants out of his life. In the meantime he's volunteered to mentor some kids on the practice of his family banking business. One of the kids sticks and then promptly helps "change his life." Eh. The movie was mediocre, it could have been so much better. I didn't think it was very funny, or believable. And in my opinion, the ending, sucked.

Drillbit Taylor

This is a lighthearted comedy about an Owen Wilson character, playing himself as all Owen Wilson character's do. He's a beach bum trying to get a plane ticket away from where he is. Meanwhile a group of misfits keep getting picked on and decide to put an ad out for a bodyguard to protect them against the roughest bullies. Owen Wilson volunteers for a bit of cash, and then some, but ultimately things take a different turn. It's a silly comedy that I enjoyed only because I paid $1 to rent it. I recommend it on TBS or some other cable network, but if you like Owen Wilson, this one isn't his best, but not completely bad.

The Sensation Of Sight

This is a film about a man struggling to escape despair (PTSD) after witnessing one of his students commit suicide. The film follows him, the dead student's brother, and a random dude. Its an indie flick and I feel a) it was too incredibly slow b) trying really hard to be deep c) the characters, several of them like Dylan and his sister were so annoying I would get distracted when they got on the screen. Thumbs Down.

The Dark Knight

Well written. Well acted. Both beautiful and tragic in the same breath.

Things I loved: Christian Bale because he's just super awesome in so many many ways. Heath Ledger rocked it as the Joker, he left me terrified. The cinematography was amazing, the action sequences mesmerized me, and Michael Cain... how much does he rock?

Things I loved not so much: ***warning- spoilers**

They didn't do a good job showing Dent's transformation from DA to Two-Faced. I felt the transition was too quick as opposed to in the comic version where they allude to Dent feeling jealous of Batman and having evil tendencies in his heart of darkness.

Maggie Gyllenhaal might be better than Katie Holmes as Rachel but still, neither character really felt like they should've been the love object for two of the most eligible bachelors in town. Plus, I just felt the acting wasn't *that* great. I also feel that when she died, Batman's reaction was a little iffy.

The ending wasn't really one. Sure Joker is caught, but he's still there.... you know he'll escape. I wanted more closure.

The Bee Movie

six out of ten

This is a movie about bees and one bees quest to reclaim the honey exploited by the MAN! Its cute, light hearted and quite appropriate to watch with kids. I think I liked it because I saw it with a kid. On my own, not sure if I would have been intrigued.

Baby Mama

six out of ten

This is a movie about a 30 something corporate single woman who decides she wants a baby amidst her busy life but finds she cannot have them on her own due to deformed fallopian tubes. So she searches for a surrogate mother to carry her child for her. The surrogate mama and the bio mama live together and an odd couple sort of fiasco follows with a bit more of an emotional twist.

You have to go into this movie with the understanding that it will be somewhat predictable and the things that will make you laugh will be very obvious. If you are in the mood for a light hearted comedy that is fine. Just fine. Then this is a movie for you.

Harold and Kumar escape from Guantanemo

six out of ten

This is a HILARIOUS movie if you see it as a series of skits. As a whole its not really wonderful but I think the point of the movie is that its the sum of its part rather than the whole.

All this being said- DO NOT watch this movie with your baby brother. Also, you might want to just make sure you are prepared for extreme nudity and other very embarrassing moments that you might want to hide under a blanket and blush furiously.

Minus those scenes- great flick.

There Will Be Blood

seven out of ten

This is a very well acted movie by the great Daniel Day Louis set in the early 1900's about a man who finds his wealth through oil. The story shows him as he sets up camp to drill for oil at a small town on the West Coast after purchasing land on the cheap from the Sunday family whose son had come to tell Plainview of the oil that bubbled to the surface around their home. The movie trails Plainview and his adopted son, and Eli, the Sunday's son an ambitious pastor set on making his church an incredible creation. The story shows the characters of the two men and the story of their lives.

I liked the story and I felt gripped despite its length (2.45mins). However, I felt the ending was incomplete and I needed more. I dont want to go into it as not to spoil it but I was sad to see the lack of compassion that Plainview ultimately showed his son... This disappointed me.

Still this is a movie that will certainly make you think, and for that it is worth it.

Juno

seven out of ten

Perhaps I had too high hopes for this movie which got 100% positive reviews from Rotten Tomatoes. This movie is about a high schooler who gets pregnant and decides to give the baby up for adoption. It follows her dealing with pregnancy and also her interactions with the prospective adoptive parents. I thought she was kind of annoying. The baby daddy was not nearly as sympathetic to me as I think he was supposed to be. And Jennifer Garner did an okay job but every time I see her in anything, I always just feel her acting. I get taken out of the movie. The movie was okay. For a review that I agree with more read this.

Dan in Real Life

eight out of ten

This is a film about a widower with three girls and his struggle to raise them and possibly find love. Dan is an advice columnist but this aspect of his life is not focused on. The focus of the film is on a long weekend visit to Dan's parents for what seems like Thanksgiving with all the children coming home for one of those family scenes of heartwarming football games and giggles that just makes you feel all warm and mushy. While visiting his parents he goes to a bookstore and meets a beautiful woman with whom he shares one of those life changing conversations where he feels like this woman might be "the one"... unfortunately when he returns home he realizes this woman is dating his brother. That's the premise of the story and we watch how these different themes unfold. I thought it was a great film though I could have done without the Soundtrack. Never have I been that distracted by a soundtrack, truly horrendous, but otherwise a good film.

Premonition

three out of ten

This movie was a result of no other movies available in the dollar movie rental. This is a film about a couple who are growing apart but at the same time the wife wakes up each morning with premonition regarding her husband's death. At times she is in the future dealing with his death and at times she is in the present knowing that he will soon die and unsure what to do about it. This movie could have been interesting but it was simply an odd movie with a very "made for TV" feel. Sandra Bullock seemed truly bored and the guy who played her husband was also completely monotone. Very dull movie.

A mighty heart

eight out of ten

This is a film based on the true life story of Daniel Pearl and his wife's search for him in Pakistan after his disappearance. Jolie does an amazing job in this film showing a range of emotions and acting abilities I did not know she was capable of. The one thing I was curious about was the long periods of scenes where only Urdu was spoken. Sure, I understood it, but most people would not and I felt that some of those Urdu scenes were necessary to understand what was happening. But still, it was a good movie and I was pleasantly surprised by that.

We Own The Night

five out of ten

This is a film about a family of two brothers and a father, one brother and the father are high up in the NYPD [but are not corrupt] and the other brother helps a Russian mafia run their nightclub while he dates his girlfriend. The story unfolds when the police are seeking to trap some of the members of the Russian mafia which results in "bad brother" deciding to do the "right thing" and thus face the consequences that follow.

I thought the film was unrealistic and pointless. There was no twist, no clincher, it just went on and on and then it ended. Eva Mendez is gorgeous I will not deny you that, but I could not understand her point in the film. At one point I thought she might have a secret twist role at the end but she didn't, she was just his girlfriend who got a lot of screen time for apparently no reason besides she's beautiful....

If its on TV watch it... maybe...

Into the Wild

seven out of ten

This was an enjoyable film based on the true story of a boy named Chris who upon graduating college donates his trust fund to charity, burns his money and abandons his car and sets off on a two year adventure through the US with the ultimate goal of reaching the Alaskan wilderness and spending some time living off the land with tragic consequences.

I thought the movie could have been edited a little better as it went on about 30 minutes too long. I also felt concern that it glamorized his decision though it seemed that Chris may have suffered from some type of mental illness. Knowing that this kid is now idolized by many others I hope that others don't make the tragic mistake that he ended up making.

Gone Baby Gone

six out of ten

This is a film about a girl who gets kidnapped and the search to find out what happened to her. The film provides a very interesting concept and the twist at the end really does leave you thinking. I felt this movie could have been better had Casey Affleck not been the big star of the flick. I know many people rave about his acting abilities but personally I find his acting obvious taking me out of the film.

Basically, its a good plot told fairly well, but Casey Affleck's acting left much to be desired.

Black Snake Moan

seven out of ten

This is a story of two troubled souls. One, a girl in her twenties whose boyfriend is off at sea while she battles a lot of... issues. The other, an older man whose wife left him for his brother and is coping with the anger he feels. He finds the girl on his lawn one morning, nearly dead. He helps her heal and as he gets her help he learns she has a... reputation. He decides its his job to cure her and help her fix herself. What follows it the meat and potatoes of the film.

Its a good film, superbly acted and worthy of Oscar nods for Ricci though I'm unsure she'll be nominated so. Its not as deep as I thought it might be or as the movie thinks it might be, but its interesting, its different, and it does make you think.

The Holiday

five out of ten

OH MY GOSH. Where was the editor when this movie was made? Wait- better question: WAS there an editor? This was a movie full of the most unnecessary scenes. So many that at times I noticed I was completely tuned out. The movie has a good concept: Two broken hearted women switch homes and cross continents for two week holidays to get away from it all, in doing so they fall in love with others much better for them. I liked the scenes with the elder gentlemen that Iris (Kate Winslet) got to know better. I think movies that show kindness to our elders and respect for them gets major points in my book. Those scenes were quite endearing.

Music and Lyrics

seven out of ten

This is a classic romantic comedy with Hugh Grant and Drew Berrymore. I admit it, I think Hugh Grant is pretty cool and so this movie review might be biased in my like for it. I love the 80s references, I love the cute predictable romance that develops between the two as they come up with the music and lyrics to make a comeback to the music world. The dialogue was quite and it was definitely funny at moments but I think its a movie that worked because of who the actors were.

Eastern Promises

eight out of ten

Viggo and Naomi Watts did a great job acting and in part this movie is great because they did a great job. This is a movie about the Russian Mafia and a midwife whose life somehow accidentally falls into their orbit. I like this movie very much because it plays on one of my favorite genres (gangster movies) but its different from the rest with its own twists and plot line. I also like that its 100 minutes. It keeps the movie moving without boring you. One of the cons of this movie is the excessive violence. If you watch it, brace yourself or like me, look away.

Evan Almighty

one out of ten

Some signs a movie is absolutely heinous: 1) You check the time remaining every three minutes 2) You start surfing the web and try to tune out the noise 3) You drank three cups of tea but are feeling sleepy 4) You want to take the DVD and break it in half so no one else will have to suffer through the misery you just endured.

Evan Almighty: Absolutely heinous.

The Black Dahlia

three out of ten

With such a great cast you would think this movie would rock! Well if rock means how it sinks, then yes this movie was a rock. Its a fictionalized account of the 1940's sensationalized murder of a fledgling starlet whose murder remains unsolved. There were about ten different plots running through the movie. A corrupt cop, A love triangle, A murder, A crazy family and their issues, etc etc.... and they did not handle it well. It could have been good maybe, but I have a hard time figuring out how.

Thank You For Smoking

eight out of ten

This movies follows a cigarette lobbyist as he sets out to counter the negative media coverage on the side effects to smoking. Its a satirical comedy and its GOOD. It wasn't moralistic as i thought it would be (and I saw from the deleted scenes that it almost did become a moralistic flick but all of those scenes were cut thankfully). I think with any of the execs having a moral bone develop would have been unrealistic. The way they kept it, absurd leaving ones eyes gaping with shock at some of the things said and done... thats the way to help you remember this movie and perhaps think about it for some time after.

Ocean's Thirteen

Six out of ten

Its entertaining, it does the job. I wouldn't say its 100% believable or that I didn't roll my eyes at least twice. But its interesting, if you're going to see an entertaining Ocean's movie, it is what it is.

Kite Runner

seven out of ten

The book is better. That being said, this is an interesting movie and it shows the situation abroad in a way that makes it more real to those unaware of the reality. Still, the book is better and the movie brushes over some of the parts that made the book really come to life and touch my heart. I wouldn't say don't watch the movie, but I would say that the book is much more important.

AND- Im sorry but would it have been hard to give Amir the adult authentic hair? I knew just from looking at this dude he was Egyptian. I mean, a wig, how hard is this???

AND- I dont know if this will come out in the DVD but in one of the first sequences of the two boys sitting and talking... you can see that little Hassan has red and green braces. Hee!

Night at the Meuseum

five out of ten

I think my rating of this might be a little unfair. This appears to be a children's movie and so I shouldn't expect its humor and storyline to engage me particularly. However, the movie was marketed to adults as well and so it was a little disappointing. I guess I'll say that from an adult's perspective its not worth a watch but from a child who is between the ages of 8-12 this might appeal to them very much.