Haywire

Haywire is a movie about a CIA agent that the CIA believes has gone rogue.  The best thing about this movie are the fight scenes with Gina Carano.  This is how females in action movies should fight and she does it by herself not backing up some male fighter.  They are fun to watch.  However the plot is pretty much B-movie predictable and the acting isn't anything to write home about.

I would recommend this to people who say that a woman can't carry an action movie, because they can't fight. I would like to see if Gina could have done better with a better plot.

The Hunger Games

Last night I watched The Hunger Games.  YAY!!!!  I finally got to see The Hunger Games.  It was one of the best adaptations that I've seen.  In a dystopian future, every year the Capital requires that each district send a boy and a girl between 12 and 18 to fight to the death in an arena.  It basically takes the violence and reality TV to their extreme.  Jennifer Lawrence is very believable as a reluctant action hero.

Just go out and see it.  You won't be disappointed.

50/50

50/50 is a comedy about cancer.  Which seems like a mistake, but it does so respectfully and really well.  It was funny and poignant and real.  The characters seemed like people you could actually meet and the acting was good.  Although it is a comedy, there are some pretty sad parts.

I would recommend this to anybody, especially since cancer is everywhere now.  It does have an R rating, so maybe preview it for those who don't like language.

Inglourious Basterds

Inglourious Basterds is one of my favorite movies.  It is a revisionist history of WWII.  A group of Jews are in Germany brutally killing any Nazis they see.  They hatch a plan to kill all the major Nazi generals including Hitler in a theater.  The main antagonist is the Jew Hunter, who is pure evil.  He is trying to find the Basterds.  The owner of the theater is a Jewish woman whose family was killed by the Jew Hunter.  (That's not really a good synopsis)

It has pretty graphic violence, but the acting is AMAZING!!!  And watching Nazis get killed is so satisfying.  So if you can stomach the violence I would recommend this movie.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World is a quirky comedy that mixes comic books, video games, and romantic comedy.  Scott starts dating a girl and to continue he must defeat her 7 ex's.  Each action sequence has action lines like comic book action and 1ups and coins like a video game.  It's over the top, but in a funny way.  The plot is almost secondary to the visuals.  I think it's one of those movies you have to be in the right mode to enjoy.

If you enjoy comic books or video games, I would recommend checking it out.  Or if you are in a silly mood.

Garden State

Garden State is a weird movie.  It is about a man who comes back to his small hometown and tries to figure out what to do.  he meets a quirky girl named Sam.  There is a lot of drug and alcohol use.  The plot also confused me and there really didn't seem to be a point or theme.

Apparently a lot of people like the randomness of the plot and the quirky characters, but just did get into it.  So if you like that kind of movie, go ahead and try it.

It's Kind of a Funny Story

It's Kind of a Funny Story is about a teenage boy who is suicidal and checks himself into the hospital.  Mainly its about how people with different mental problems are real people too with ups and downs and want to fall in love.  I enjoyed it a lot, especially the interactions between the characters.  They seemed really true to life.

I would recommend this to anyone who is suicidal or knows someone who is suicidal.  Even though the subject matter seems dark, it's actually really hopeful and funny.

Imagine Me and You

A predictable romantic comedy about woman who gets married, but on her wedding day sees the florist and falls in love at first sight. Chaos ensues when she invite the florist over for dinner and her husband urges her to pursue the friendship.  It becomes apparent that both the florist and Rachel are in love, but Rachel doesn't want to hurt Heck and so on.  What makes this romantic comedy stand out is that the florist is a woman and a lesbian.  In addition the supporting cast does a great job making their characters memorable and funny.

Recommendation: If you like romantic comedies, or lesbians, this is a fun movie.

Gattaca

SciFi at it's best: taking an idea and moving it to it's logical end with a compelling story.  In a future where your life is planned out for you based on your genetic profile, a "love child" decides to buck the system to be able to follow his dream into space. He finds a crippled man who has the genetic profile that will get him into space and together they work to outwit every genetic and physical test that is a part of daily life. It is fascinating all the work that goes into making sure no dead skin or hair or sweat or tears get anywhere. Just as Vincent is about to launch, one of his supervisors is killed  and at the same time Vincent falls in love with a fellow scientist both of which cause a lot of questions and investigations to start.

Recommendation: If you like Science Fiction, this movie is worth a watch.

Death Race/Death Race 2

Death Race: Pure action, racing movie. In a future world reality TV, racing, prisons, and the death sentence have collided to form a Pay-per-view race that pits convict vs. convict in a race to the death.  If you win 5 races, you are freed. A man unfairly arrested after the murder of his wife must race in the place of Frankenstein who is dead after winning 4 times.  If Jensen can win, he is free.  


Death Race 2 is pretty much the same except it shows how the death race started.


Recommendation: It is an action and explosion heavy movie, but a good way to waste a few hours.

The Help

Fun movie about the relationship between the black maids and their white employers during the 1960s.  It does a good job showing what it was like during that time without placing too much blame.  It maybe a little too much feel-good and too little call to action.  Service people are still taken for granted too much even if they are not just African American, but Mexican-American, Asian-American, and refugees.

Recommendation: Watch it and then think of who you take for granted, learn their names and at least ask them how they are doing each time you see them.

Drive

Drive is about a getaway driver that gets caught up in mobster money violence after trying to help the girl he is in love with stay safe after her husband cannot pay protection money and gets killed.  The plot isn't nearly as convoluted as it sounds and isn't nearly as interesting.  It's mainly an action/car chase movie, but Ryan Gosling plays it too stoically for me to identify with him or believe that the girl would fall for him.  And once Ryan starts killing people it gets very, very bloody.

Recommendation: If you like bloody action movies, this one isn't too bad.

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Very Dark, Very Disturbing.  It's a good adaptation of book.  More violence than the Swedish version, but less sex, which I guess is to be expected. I felt less connected to Lisbeth (and all the other characters too) than in the Swedish version.  This may be one of those movies I only watch once, even if it is a good movie.  i think i'll stick with the Swedish version for watching multiple times.

Recommendation: Be careful who you watch this with, and your emotional state because it is really hard to watch.

Hugo

Cute story about a boy who fixes the clocks in a Parisian train station.  He is trying to fix a machine that his father left him, which gets him into trouble with the station inspector and the toy maker who he steals parts from.  Other characters include the girl who helps him figure out the clue his father left, the flower girl the inspector is in love with, and an early filmmaker.  The plot is fairly slow, but the visuals are great and the 3d is done tastefully.

Recommendation: This movie is framed as a children's movie, but I think certain adults would like it more, especially those who like early silent films or who remember that time.