Thursday, February 17, 2011

Cop Out



Holy not as bad as everyone says it is, Batman! I guess it's because everyone I talked to was expecting something totally hilarious, and by the time I saw it I'd talked to everyone else who acted like this is the worst movie ever made, but I enjoyed myself. The movie was definitely trying too hard to be funny, and Tracy
Morgan was getting on my last nerve (I've seen him BE funny before, so why was he acting like an unfunny guy trying to be funny in this movie?) but otherwise...you know, I've seen worse. And the ten year old in me kept giggling at things that the 29 year old me probably shouldn't have found funny. If I were ten, this would have been the best movie ever, but since I'm not...it wasn't bad. It was juvenile and immatiure and annyoing, but it had its moments and I've definitely seen worse.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Red and Case 39


Devil



I've recently seen two movies from two of my favorite directors, and it's given me a lot to think about. "My Soul to Take" is a movie by Wes Craven, who's been one of my favorite directors since I was a kid, and who's recently made movies that a lot of people don't like, which cause them to say he's "lost it" ("it" being whatever he had once that made his movies good to begin with). Since I like the movie, I don't agree with the,, but I can definitely see what people are talking about when they call the movie dumb, or incoherent or whatever they hate about it that makes them dislike it so much.

M. Night Shaymalan is another story. He burst onto the scene with "The Sixth Sense" (he directed "Wide Awake" previously, which is actually a good movie that deserves more attention than it gets, but "The Sixth Sense" is the movie everyone remembers Shaymalan for) and then made a name for himself as the director who always brings the "twist" ending. The problem with that, of course, is that when people come into your movies expecting a twist, they're wise to your game, and it makes it harder and harder to actually surprise them. The "twist" endings got more and more elaborate over time, and most people were pissed at the "twist" in the movie "The Village" (I liked it, of course). Then when he made a movie where he tried to do something different, drawing on folklore and fairy tales and exploring the nature of belief and doubt, everyone hated it (I of course loved "Lady in the Water"). Then he tried to return to the "twist" genre, giving us "The Happening" which remains the only movie of his that I've seen that I DON'T like. I haven't seen "The Last Airbender," but it's based on a beloved kids show with a cult following and so it pissed almost everyone off. Lately, people have been so annoyed with his ego and his overblown plot twists that they're all going back an complaining about movies that they all liked back when the movies first came out (I was around when "Signs" was in theaters, I remember how everyone raved about it, so they can't pretend they didn't like it now).

My biggest problem with M. Night Shaymalan isn't that his movies are BAD. I've actually enjoyed moist of his movies, even when they're pretentious and overwrought and sinking in their own melodrama (that's what finally killed "The Happening" for me in the end). I think he's got an ego the size of Rhode Island, but it would be hard not to, what with everyone going on about how brilliant he was for such a long time. When he's on his game, he can actually do a great job weaving complex plotlines together into a story that's fun to watch as it unravels. In "Devil," I think he's totally on his game. This movie was fun to watch from start to finish, and the twists add to the story instead of distracting from it or getting in the way. I think "Devil" is a true return to form and it reminds me why I liked Shaymalan so much, back before everyone got so sick of him. The man knows how to tell a story. Maybe he forgot that when he decided to spend all his time trying to pone-up himself, but when he sits down and tries to actually tell a story, he can do that better than a lot of other directors I know. That's what made me a fan in the first place. If he sticks to that, it will KEEP me a fan.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Saw: The Final Chapter



I believe this is the "final chapter" like I believe there's a Santa Claus, but I'm also not upset at the prospect of more movies. This movie had problems, but it's FAR better than the seventh installment of any film series has any right to be, and it still managed to bring the twists, turns, and suspense. I also loved the gore and cared about the characters, so I really enjoyed it.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

My Soul to Take



Everyone else hated this, so of course, I loved it. Story of my life. It's far from perfect but I think it does some really interesting things. It's a very experimental movie for Wes Craven to be making this late in his career. Of course, my friend Jes says "Experimental? Is that what we call it when it doesn't make sense?" so to each their own.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Dance Flick



This is one of those movies that is going to offend most people, and everyone is going to say that it's immature and juvenile (it is) and that it's not funny and blah blah blah. I'm used to that. Of course, I thought it was funny, but I've seen all the movies it's spoofing (I love dance movies) so I got a kick out of it, but you probably shouldn't watch it since most people didn't like it. It's rude, crude, and it does its best to offend everyone everywhere. I mean, the big dance number in the middle, "I'll be Gay Forever," which spoofs "Fame," made me laugh hystericaqlly, but I can see how it would piss off most of my friends. If that sounds like a fun time, then check it out.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Movie Marathon!






What I love about these four movies is that seeing them all together here makes me realize what a weird freak I am that I thought these four movies would go together in a movie marathon. But really, they do. I mean, three of them are love stories (yes, "Zombieland" is a love story, fuck off) and "Attack of the Giant Leeches" well...the less said about that movie the better. But it was fun to watch and mock anyway. So yay.