Contagion

Last night I watched Contagion.  It is about a disease that is killing lots of people and how the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization(WTO) tries to stop it.

I thought that there were just too many stories lines and famous people for this movie to really work. I never really felt emotionally connected to any of the characters.  I almost felt like this is a propaganda(in the original sense of the word) piece for the CDC. Basically telling people, "If some new disease starts killing people, these are all the experts and the amount of work they are willing to put in to save the world."

I'm not really sure I would recommend this to anyone, it's not bad just not very interesting.

IMDB: The virus in the movie is based on an actual virus, but it probably wasn't as contagious.

Country Strong

Last night I watched Country Strong.  It is about an older country singer, Kelly, coming out of rehab and trying to restart her career.  It is a lot about dealing with drug addiction and the pressures of fame.  There are also two younger singers who open up for Kelly, who are trying to make it big without compromising who they are.

I liked it actually.  I'm not a huge fan of country music, but I do like musicals and this is a close to a musical you can get without being a musical.  I thought the actors did a good job singing and not  pretending to sing.  The story is pretty good, not Oscar quality, but it tells a real story not a pretty, glossy Hollywood one.

I would recommend this for people who like country music or a girls night where a romantic comedy is not appropriate.  Bring tissues.

Jane Eyre (2011)

Last night I watched Jane Eyre, which if you don't know the plot you need to get the book from the library.

I went into this movie expecting it not to be too good.  The story is a little too complex to really fit into 2 hours of film.  But this movie did a good job of getting the main points.  Unfortunately, you never really get why Jane Mr. Rochester fall in love, the movie more tells than shows that they are in love.  Plus it makes the characters mostly one dimensional because you don't understand what there motivation is.  But for all that I actually liked this adaptation. It was realistic, especially in the age difference between Mr. Rochester and Jane, which has always been a little sketchy.

I would recommend this movie to people who already know the  story and want to watch a realistic adaptation.

Daybreakers

Last night I watched Daybreakers.  It is about a dystopian world where almost everyone is a vampire and the few humans left are rounded up and farmed for blood, a la The Matrix.  The human population is almost gone so the vampires have to find an artificial blood source or they turn into monster-like creatures.  Edward is the top vamp blood researcher because he hates using humans.  A group of humans contact him and tell him of a cure.  Ed must figure out how to replicate the cure before all the humans are killed.


This movie is an interesting take on the vampire genre.  It shows the down side of be eternal and depending on humans that can be quickly turned into vampires eliminating their usefulness.  The creators thought through a lot of different issues with being a vampire, which was fun to see.  The plot was very predictable, you can tell what the end result is going to be, but that doesn't hamper the movie too much.


If you like the vampire genre, see this movie for a depressing look at how life could actually be.  Otherwise, you can probably skip this movie.


IMDB: Edward: "Yeah well, life is a bitch ain't it? Then you don't die."


PS.  School started so I haven't been able to blog as much.  I'll try to get caught up on what I've watched over the next few weeks.  Also since no one is reading this blog, I'm not going to add links or follow my format as strictly until someone reads it.

Miss Potter

Last night I watched Miss Potter.  It is a movie about the life of Beatrix Potter and the romance between her and her publisher.  Beatrix comes from a rich, upper class family in the early 20th century, who do not approve of her art, or her being an author, or her publisher.  She must choose between her family and what she loves.

I really like this movie, Renee Zellweger does a great job as Beatrix and the rest of the cast does a good job supporting her.  The story is so sweet and sad.  It gives you a taste of how extraordinary Beatrix Potter really was.  One of the things that this movie does well is bringing the drawings to life so you see what Beatrix does when she draws.  It is really well done and not over the top.

I would recommend this movie if you loved Beatrix's books as a kid or if you love a good love story.  It is a great family film as well.

IMDB:  "Factual errors: Norman actually proposed to Beatrix in a letter, and her parents never softened their opposition to the match."  But the factual liberties they took were not that out of character.

The Expendables

Last night I watched The Expendables.  It is about a group of mercenaries who are sent to a small island to take out a general.  During a reconnaissance mission they meet a girl who helps them, when they are discovered the girl stays behind and is tortured.  The team returns to the island to rescue her.

This is a typical action movie plot.  Every twist and turn is predicable and pretty much every cliche is there as well.  The movie just has too many super action stars to really do any of them justice.  Mainly there is a lot of bullets flying, knives slicing, and explosions.


If you like predictable explosions and the sound of gunshots, you'll like this movie if not get something else.


IMDB:  Arnold Schwarzenegger did his totally unnecessary cameo for free.

Adventureland

Last night I watched Adventureland.  It follows James' summer working at a rundown amusement park.  He meets an eclectic group of fellow workers there and falls in love with a girl, Em.

I thought this movie had some great caricatures of people.  The owners of Adventureland are especially funny.  The pervasive drug and alcohol use are what drives this movie, but I didn't really like it because even though it showed some of the downsides, it never really condemns it use.  Drug movies are not my favorite.  However, it is really funny and the plot is good.

I would recommend this movie if you like off beat comedies.  I would also recommend it if you have worked at amusement parks or had a bad summer job.  There is a lot of drug and alcohol use and sexual references, so if that offends I would skip this movie.


IMDB: The character Em nervously touches/fixes her hair 55 times throughout the course of the movie.  However, I think that it's just Kristen Steward and not actually good acting.

Offside

Last night I watched Offside.  It is about girls in Iran who try to sneak into soccer games, where they are not allowed.  When they are found out, they are sent to a holding area and guarded by boys their age.  Together they find out that they have more in common than not.

It was an interesting movie.  I felt like there was a story here, but there wasn't strongly presented.  It seemed like we should have focused on one girl and shown more before and after the game.  The plot wasn't really strong enough, neither was the acting or cinematography.  It felt like they were just giving information and not actually telling a story.

I wouldn't really recommend this movie, but it's not a total waste of time either.

IMDB: All of the actors are non-professional, and you can tell, not that that's a bad thing.

The Kids Are All Right

Last night I watched The Kids Are All Right.  It is about a lesbian couple with two kids.  The kids want to meet their sperm donor, who throws a wrench in their relationships.  All of them must figure out how they relate to one another and what is important to them.

I liked this movie.  It isn't the typical Hollywood family drama with snappy lines and cut and dry relationships.  Each character is multidimensional and has flaws.  There is no clear villain or hero, just people trying to figure out how to live with one another.  The script is well written including the awkward conversations and pauses.  It feels like this family could actually exist.  The actors do an amazing job displaying their emotions without going over the top with them.

I would recommend this movie to people who enjoy family drama and good acting.  I would also recommend it to people who are in or are curious about lesbian relationships (hint: they are just like any other relationship).

IMDB: The actor that plays Lazer, Josh Hutcherson, is also going to be in Hunger Games.  Yay!

Men Who Stare at Goats

Last night I watched Men Who Stare at Goats.  It is about a journalist, Bob, who is trying to find the truth about a group of soldiers who claim to have psychic powers.  These include reading minds, walking through walls, and killing with a look.  Lyn, a member of the group, leads Bob on a journey to discover both the origins of the group and what has happened to them.

This movie was just weird.  They never really established whether we are supposed to believe that these men had actual psychic powers or if it was a combination of luck and LSD.  Either way is fine, but I kind of like it to be a little more clear.  It kept me from really entering into the movie.  There were some funny parts, but I couldn't really get into it.

I would recommend it to people who are interested in psychic powers or who like weird movies.  I would also recommend it if you like the principal actors as they do a good job in this movie.

IMDB:  This story is supposedly based on a true events.  Again weird.

Captain America: First Avenger

Last night I watched Captain America: First Avenger.  It is the latest in the Marvel Comic movie line.  It is about a boy, Steve, who wants to join the US army during WWII.  He is too small to join the army until an experimental program comes along that gives him superhuman strength.  He wants to fight the Nazi "bullies" but the brass won't let him.

I enjoyed it.  It was fun and actiony.  The plot was good and the acting was compelling.  It made me excited for The Avengers next year, which is basically why I wanted to watch it.  However, at the beginning of the movie the reason Steve is chosen for the program is because he is not a bully but the main conflict at the end is not about this struggle.  He just does what we have come to think a hero should.  I thought that it should have resolved around the conflict of torturing one of the characters (being a bully) or choosing not to and not getting the information.

I would recommend it for comic book fans, superhero fans, or people who are looking forward to The Avengers.

IMDB: I thought that the woman playing Peggy was Clare Danes, turns out it's Hayley Atwell.  They look a like.

Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Last night I watched Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.  It is the third movie in the Narnia series.  It is about three kids who leave our world and enter the magical world of Narnia.  They go on a quest with Caspian (from the last movie) to collect all seven swords to defeat an unknown evil.

I was so mad watching this movie.  I love the Narnia books, but I was quite ready to allow them to take a bit of creative licence with the books, especially this one that doesn't have quite a linear plot.  I was okay with the added plot device of having to collect the swords of the seven lords as a plot device to tie it all together.  However, the character development was very lacking.  The characters each have to face their "biggest temptation", which, for the most part, wasn't in character.  But the main problem that made me mad was that the visual effects were just not impressive.  The book was all about showcasing the beautiful, magical world of Narnia, where anything can happen.  The movie just wasn't magical, there wasn't anything that I said "Wow!  That's cool".  There is one scene where Lucy is looking at a book of spells and they could have done all kinds of cool visual effects with it, but it felt run of the mill.  They also didn't have little nods to the book, in that same scene Lucy walks down a hall and in the book there were scary masks on the wall, in the movie the mask were no where to be seen.  It's that lack of attention to detail that really sunk this movie, it could have been a visual effects dream but it missed the boat in favor of a plot that didn't work.

I would recommend this movie to fans of the other Narnia movies, just because it continues the story, but defiantly not to people who have read the book.

IMDB: Lost $50 million dollars, not surprisingly.

Big Fish

Last night I watched Big Fish.  A man, Edward Bloom, who tells tall tales about his life and his son, Will, who wants to separate the truth from fiction.  The story is told in a series of flashbacks from Edward's death bed.

This story is really about suspending disbelief to enjoy a story.  This is both true for the audience and for Will, who rejects his father because of the stories.  It kind of reminded me of Forrest Gump in that Edward seemed to have done everything, which is kind of the point, but still feels a little forced.  I thought it was fun, but it doesn't deserve the hype that it has gotten.

I would recommend this if you liked Forrest Gump or have a friend who likes to tell tall tales.  Or if you like any of the actors in it, because they did a pretty good job of not going overboard with the story.

IMDB:  This is the first movie that Miley Cyrus was in.  Marion Corillard plays Will's wife, Josephine; she also plays Mal in Inception, a better movie.

Earth

Last night I watched Earth.  It is about the split between Pakistan and India and the violence that followed.  The plot centers around a group of friends from different religion as seen from a young girl's perspective.

Although this is a Bollywood production, it really doesn't feel like it.  There were a couple of songs, but not really that many.  It was also very violent with some pretty disturbing pictures and descriptions.  I think it does a good job of showing what hate and prejudice against another group can lead you to do to your friends.

I would recommend this movie to people who are interested in Indian/Pakistani history or who want to be informed about genocide in our society today.  However if violent imagery affects you strongly, I would skip this movie.

IMDB:  Earth was banned in Pakistan and censored in India, which is a shame because this tragedy really happened in both countries by both sides.

Bend It Like Beckam

Last night I watched Bend It Like Beckam.  It is about two girls who love to play soccer.  Juliette is English whose mother disaproves of her playing soccer and ignoring boys.  Jess is Indian, whose family does not want her to play.  Jess sneaks away from her family to play on a women's team.  When her family finds out they are furious, expecially when it causes her sister's fiance to break off their engagement.

This is not the first time I've seen this movie.  I am no longer a fan of Keira Knightly, but in this movie she does a good job and the rest of the actors are great.  It's you typical sports movie, but the protrayal of Indian culture is especially good.  The writer did a really good job with the script; it has some great lines.

I would recomend this movie if you like sports movies or have middle school girls who like sports.  I would also recomend it if you want a feel good comedy.  The plot is not too deep, but it's fun

IMDB:
Jess: I'm sorry I missed that penalty, coach. 
Joe: It's okay, losing to the Jerries on penalties comes natural to you English. You're part of tradition now! 

Repo Men

Last night I watched Repo Men.  Remy and Jake are repo men for an artificial organ company.  If you become 3 weeks behind in your payment for your organ, they come and cut it out leaving you for dead.  Conflict comes when Remy gets an artificial heart and cannot pay for it.  He meets a woman with a lot of artificial organs that are past due and together they run from the repo men.

I did not like this movie.  I did not identify with any of the characters; they were very one dimentional.  The violence consisted of knife fights, trading punches, and cutting out organs.  None of which looked very cool.  The main characters seemed impervious to pain, cutting and punching each other and then getting right back up.  This could have been a more compelling plot, but poor acting and directing just didn't do it for me.

I really wouldn't recomend this to anyone.  It's not a very good action movie, nor gore fest.  Skip it and go see the Bourne movies.

IMDB:  Based on a book, called "The Repossession Mambo" which is reason enough not to see this movie

Adam

Last week I watched Adam.  It is about a man, Adam, with Asperger's syndrome and the woman who moves in upstairs.  Both of them move out of their comfort zone and start falling in love.  Adam's friends urge him to pursue Beth, while Beth's parents, including her kind of creepy Dad, urge her to break it off.

It is a very touching romance and Asperger's syndrome is presented well, not as if Adam is weird and alien, but not tiptoeing around the issue.  I learned a whole lot about Asperger's from this movie without it being preachy.  However, the ending is just a little off.  There is one scene where both Beth and Adam act out of character, it's as if their was no growth in either of their characters during the movie.  It is especially noticeable on Beth's part.  I am okay with how the plot ended, but how they got to that ending was not in character.  But it's only one scene out of the whole movie, so it's okay.

I would recommend this movie for anyone who knows someone with Asperger's syndrome or who wants to know what it is like.  It is also a nice, nonstandard romantic movie.  The main reason that it is PG-13 is the F-word.  There is also some sexual content, made a little more awkward because Adam doesn't pick up Beth's emotions or needs very well and so has to ask and Beth has to be explicit, which is kind of cute in it's own way.

IMDB:  I saw this movie a couple of days before I saw X-Men, and I knew that Moira looked familiar, but I couldn't place her.  It took me 10 minutes before I made the connection, they are very different movies.

X-Men: First Class

Last week I watched X-Men: First Class.  This movie tells the story of how Magneto and Professor X came to be friends and then enemies.  It is set during the Cold War and in particular the Cuban Missile crisis.

I really enjoyed this movie.  There was a good balance of action, special effects, and character development.  I love getting the back stories of characters we know from other places.  The acting was good, the respect for the other movies was preserved, the alternate history was fun.  For an action movie, it told a good story.  Towards the end of the movie, some of the plot wrap ups felt forced, but maybe that was because I didn't want the movie to end.  I definitely think that they should make another prequel like this one.

I would recommend this move to anyone who likes the X-Men franchise or who likes action movies with a good plot.  I think this movie works best as a prequel.  Watch the other X-Men movies (maybe not Wolverine) to get a feel for the story and get familiar with the characters and then watch this one to see where they came from.  This film is PG-13 for all the usual action movie reasons, violence, sexuality, profanity.  But there are also a couple of scenes that are really hard to watch, including a coin slowly going through someone's head and someone else getting killed in an intense scene(it's a plot spoiler).  The most disturbing is Magneto pulling someone's metal filling out of their head; I couldn't watch.  So it may not be appropriate for people sensitive to those images.

IMDB: Jennifer Lawrence plays Raven/Mystique and I think she is going to be one of my favorite actors.  She was great in Winter's Bone, and she is going to be in Hunger Games, which I'm really looking forward to.

The Big Bang Theory Season 1

 Last night I watched a couple of episodes of The Big Bang Theory.  It is a TV show about a group of friends who are scientists and geeks.  Their foil is the pretty girl next door who doesn't really understand them.

I am also kind of a geek, so I got most of the jokes.  Sometimes, however, the jokes felt a little forced and there is very little character development.

I would recommend this TV show to people who are geeky and would get the humor.  I would also recommend watching a couple of episodes now and again if you are feeling geeky or it's on TV, but don't go out and buy the entire series.

IMDB:  won one Emmy (Lead Actor: Jim Parsons), and was nominated for 7 more and won one Golden Globe and was nominated for another.  So maybe it gets better later on?

Winter's Bone

Last night I watched Winter's Bone.  It is about a 17 year old girl, named Ree, who has to take care of her two younger siblings and her sick mother.  When her father puts up the farm as bail, she has to find him, dead or alive, to keep her family together.



Throughout the movie, I was surprised how much it resonated with me.  The film was set and filmed in southern Missouri, which is close to where I grew up.  So the scenery looked very familiar.  It could have also been that most of the actors were natives of the area and not professional actors, which lead to a real resonance with the characters. The actor probably knew or were just like the characters they were acting.  But mostly I think it was because the story felt so real.  This story could be happening right now.  The characters were just ordinary people having to do whatever they had to do to survive.  When Ree gets hit, she actually reacts as if it hurts instead of as if she was invincible because she is the main character.  She has to spend time recovering from her injuries.  When she has to do very tough things, she is reluctant and cries and acts like a normal human being.  I think that is what really sets this film apart: the realism throughout the movie.


I would definitely recommend this movie to people who like true stories that don't always answer all the questions, or have happy endings.  It does end satisfactorily, but not like a fairy tale.  Rated R for some drug material, language and violent content.  A couple of F-words, drug use, and beatings are present throughout the movie.  However I think the main reason to be wary is the general dark themes in this movie.  It is not easy to watch. 


IMDB: Was nominated for 4 Oscars and won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize.  It defiantly deserved it.