Superman Doomsday

I guess this was recommended since I liked the Hellboy series. Not as good unfortunately. Pretty much a tiny bit darker version of what you saw most Saturday mornings. Entertaining but not anything special, even though I didn't know the deal with Doomsday until I watched this (well, I knew Superman died and eventually there are like 5 of him). A don't get me wrong, it was not bad, it was just weak. B-

Hellboy: Animated: Blood and Iron

See my previous post, swap the Thunder and Lightning to a vampire in a haunted house...that has a history with the Professor. Good stuff although not quite as cool as the Japanese folklore fights in the previous.

B+

Hellboy: Animated:Sword of Storms

To tell the truth the Hellboy movie left me sort of "meh" but if you think watching a demon summoned by Hitler but raised to do good fighting gods of Thunder and Lightning with an enchanted sword to prevent the destuction of mankind as we know it sounds like it could be good then watch this movie. If that sounds like something that you didn't think was cool on a Saturday morning cartoon then you should probably stick with a Jane Austen movie.

This film was good enough I promtly downloaded another one. Good stuff, very entertaining and better then I expected since I didn't really care for the life action film (the first one, I do plan on seeing the second). A-

Hogfather

So this is a movie about a world in which you don't fuck with Santa Claus. At times tedious or overly melodramatic it probably could be improved with about a half hour taken out. Otherwise it was actually quite good, certainly (to me) better then the book. Prachett has credits for "Muking About" in the film in addition to his credit for being the original author. If you like Harry Potter meets Peirs Anthony's Xanth world this is something for you (or a Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy but as a riff on Fantasy instead of Sci-Fi).

Anyways it's a pretty decent movie, a B+, tighter editing would have made it an A.

The Graduate

This is a film that I've wanted to see for a while, both because I wanted to see why it was such a big deal in itself and because I like the Simon and Garfunkle tunes associated with it. It was a pretty good film with very strong performances by Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft. I guess you'd say it was a romantic comedy with teeth. 

It's set against the backdrop of wealthy LA families and their kids who are "doing the right thing" going to school and meeting their families expectations. Eventually Hoffman goes all stalker and chases down the girl of his dreams (you'd be hit with a restrainging order doing what he did then now days), as well as breaking from the desires of both sets of parents.

It's interesting to me how strongly this film showed the culteral expectations of the late 60's on top of everything else. I also now understand how my grandmother could like all her awful furnature.

Anyways, it was a very good film, I consider it an A

The Rage in Placid Lake

This is an Australian film that I'd never heard of but Neflix wanted me to watch it. Of course I am always blindly obedient to my Internet based overlords so I checked it out. First it's interesting to see a non-Hollywood film that's done in English from the start. It's not a slickly done as a lot of films but I kind of enjoyed the change. Instead of focusing on the soundtrack etc you can watch the characters develop and interact, which is the point of the film.

In short it's about a guy graduating from high school. His parents are not the greatest but certainly instilled in him a sense of Independence. That added to his absolute fearlessness pretty much makes him an outcast. I can relate, although I certainly was a lot more fearful then he at that age. 

Anyhow, eventually he gets scared shitless (with good reason) and has to decide if he's going to force himself to fit in or live a questionable life on the fringes. 

This is a film I want to watch with my boys once they are old enough to "get" it, hopefully they won't think I'm a retarded father similar to the guy in the movie but oh well.

Definitely an A movie.

Princess Mononoke

This is a really great film, one where just about everyone makes the right choice as they see it but they are all in conflict with one another. I think that Mirimax/Disney dropped the ball on this, probably some execs figured that if Pixar could get adults interested in animated movies so could they but this is a bit strong for kids from a violence standpoint (although it does not glorify it like I expected, which I appreciated). Anyways, this was definately a good movie, I am one of the people that pretty much had never heard of it until I looked at IMDB's top films and that's too bad.

An A+

Brokeback Mountain

So everyone knows this film is about some gay cowboys. It's interesting to me that they make a point out of showing how manly one of the guys involved are, and really to me the central idea you get coming out of this movie is that these guys could have had a decent life if they didn't accept the fact that being gay was "wrong". Fellas, if this ever happens to you move the hell out of hicksville and make a home with the person you love, although I understand that's easier said then done. 

As a film the acting was superb, the direction solid and the landscapes a startling contrast to the plain or even ugly homes that people live in. I can see why someone would rather be out in the forests and praries instead of cooped up in their ugly little houses. 

A very good film, I'd consider it an A

Chinatown

Chinatown is currently listed as #52 of the greatest movies of all time on Netflix. That and the fact that it's one of Jack Nicholson's earliest leading roles made me interested in seeing this film. It's set in 1950-ish Los Angeles, which is interesting since the main focus of the movie is one of the same issues that is near and dear to anyone living in LA county now - water. Aside from that and stellar performances from both Nicholas and Dunaway this film is good but not great. The story is pretty much run of the mill and anyone that's watched a lot of movies has already seen the area around LA a zillion times. I guess it does not help that I was born there either, but it's hardly an exotic local. Since I watched this between the incredibly detailed Apocolypse Now and the beautiful landscapes in Brokeback Mountain the salt pans of LA county just don't hold up. Still it's got some great performances, is well paced and very interesting to see how social interaction worked in the 50's (where it was "ok" for a man to his his wife for cheating on her and cops took a business card as a form of ID).

I'd give it a B+

Lethal Weapon 3

See the Lethal Weapon 2 review. Add a chick and a hokey scene in a boat and you've got the idea.

Not a bad movie, just pretty uninventive. Worth watching, but not going to expand your mind.

B-

Apocalypse Now

I can understand why people discuss this film, but I don't understand why people consider it difficult to follow. It seems to me that most of the things delt with are archtypes that are pretty common across literature. I certainly found it more approchable then Heart of Darkness, which it was (loosely) based on. It's not a happy movie by any means but it's not as soul shattering as The Deer Hunter, a movie with a similar motif set at the same time. This movie certainly lived up to it's excellent reputation. The only (very small) gripe I have is that portions of the soundtrack have aged noticably.

A true A+ film

Bad Boys

This is a popcorn flick with a suprisingly deep look at how friendships work. Other then that there are a lot of explosions, some funny moments and a caper with plot holes big enough to drive a Mac truck through. Not a bad movie over all and it's interesting to me that Martin Lawrence seems to out act Will Smith, something I didn't expect. Anyways, worth watching if you are bored and want to see stuff explode but not much past that. If you are looking for a good funny cop film I recommend Hot Fuzz.

C+