Valentines Day

How in the name of anything holy do you manage to screw up a movie with such an amazing cast? The same reason no one reads this blog, poor writing. This movie has Julia Roberts, Aston Kucher, Jennifer Garner, George Lopez, Bradley Cooper, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Jamie Foxx, and Topher Grace all in a crappy movie.(There are more stars but I'm tired of typing)

The plot runs all over the place almost like Shortcuts but with none of the wit and none of the romance. The master of romantic comeday Gary Marshall has failed miserably here. Please don't rent this, but since no one really reads this blog, I'm assuming it's too late and you've already wasted your money. Sorry.

Son of Rambow

Made in 2007 this movie, like all well made independent movies, receive great critical acclaim, but made very little at the box office. To be honest this is one of my favorite movies in recent years. It is well made, the cast is great, and it's really funny and touching at the same time. It is set in the 1980's so it took me back a few years.

Will Proudfoot, played by Bill Milner, is the son of very religious mother and an overbearing leader of the local church. I'm not sure which religious affiliation they are intended to represent but it seems as though they are very much offended by modern technology, and anything to do with entertainment, especially television or movies. Will's father has recently died, and the church leader, brother Joshua has taken a keen interest in Will's mother and the boy himself.

However in school, Will has an encounter with the worst kid in school, Lee Carter, played by Will Poulter, and because of the incident Lee Carter tricks Will into helping him with a movie he's making. It turns out though Will has never seen a movie, he has a very active imagination and his Bible and schoolbooks are all filled with drawings. The two boys set off to make the movie together and bond well, becoming "blood brothers" in the process. Both seem to use the movie as an escape from overbearing parents or big brothers.

Ed Westwick plays Lee Carter's overbearing and abusive older brother and does a great job. Much better than the character he plays on television's Gossip Girl. I won't give away the ending but there are some great scenes in this movie, with wonderful cameos by a visiting French exchange student, and the music is wonderful. Definitely rent this one!

Away We Go!

A great little movie which received a lot of critical claim, but as usual not much commercial success. Verona and Burt are an oddball couple that are living in a semi-trailer/house when Verona becomes pregnant. Excited they decide to tell Burt's parents, played by Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels, but the parents have news themselves. They're moving to India!

The problem now is where does the young couple live since they had moved specifically near Burt's parents just for the very reason they might help with watching the grandchildren.

However Burt's parents, like most baby boomers, seem more into their own lives then helping to support their son, Burt. This leads to the couple taking trips to visit various friends and relatives in different cities to try and find the best place for them to raise a child.

The couple, played well by John Krasinksi and Maya Rudolph, venture from Phoenix, to Tuscon, to Montreal, searching for the perfect environment to raise their child. I won't give away the ending, but this a very funny, sweet little movie, with a great cast, and poignant moments. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it, but then again I wasn't expecting anything from it. Those are some of the best times to see a good movie, when you know nothing about it and you're pleasantly surprised. Definitely rent this one.

An Education

A great cast and a really good movie. However, this is just my opinion and don't take me literally. I know that sometimes when a movie is praised by everyone, you get kinda turned off. But this one lived up to the hype, at least for me.

Based upon a short novella and diary of a young English girl, it takes place in London during the 1960's and is perfectly cast. Carey Mulligan plays Jenny, a smart young girl who really never does anything wrong until she meets David (Peter Sarsgaard)who leads to this mysterious life filled with art, classical music, drinking, and trips to Paris. Her older boyfriend is so charming that even her parents approve of her weekly outings. I won't reveal too much, but the movie follows her "education" in culture and life from an affair with an older man. She is chided for her behavior by a protective teacher and her principal, but she ignores the well intentioned advice to continue with the relationship.
The romance goes well for a long time, and the acting of Mulligan is wonderful. She plays the part perfectly, and Sarsgaard does an adequate job as well. Some of the scenes feel awkward, especially the "intimate" moments, as we sense this girl is coming of age, but it works well, and plays out the way it would seem in real life. Whether you rent it on regular DVD or Blu Ray, definitely watch this one.

UP!

Okay, this is supposed to be a kids movie, right? So why the hell was I crying in the first 15 minutes of the movie? Cause it was sad as hell. This is a kids movie and is extremely funny but it sucks you in during the first 15 minutes with the story of Carl and Ellie.
They meet as kids because both share the spirit of adventure, and express an interest to go to South America and more specifically Paradise Falls. A brief montage of how they grow together get married, and find out they can't have kids all happens in the first part of the movie and leaves you feeling more depressed than happy. In fact, I'm sure children watch the movie and wonder "what the heck is going on mommy? Why are they sad? Why are you crying?"
Once you get passed this point you see the backdrop to the story and understand why Carl, now an old man, acts the way he does. He is a cynical old curmudgeon who through some crafty engineering manages to float his home out of the city and on it's way to Paradise Falls just as he had promised his beloved Ellie. Unfortunately he has a stowaway on board. Russell, a chubby little Wilderness Explorer who wants to earn his assisting the elderly badge.
The two of them travel to Paradise Falls where they encounter a rare and large bird, nicknamed "Kevin" by Russell and a cute and loveable dog name "Doug". I can't give away too much, but the four of them have a crazy adventure trying to keep Kevin safe from the clutches of Carl's boyhood idol, until the climatic scene aboard an airship at the end of the movie. It is a great movie for both kids and adults alike, and the voices of the characters, played admirably by Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai, and Robert Peterson are cast perfectly.

35 Shots of Rum - Rental

Great movie in any language, this is really the story of a father and his daughter. Lionel and his daughter Josephine, are inseparable and have been for years. Lionel is very protective of his daughter, but despite his overly protective nature, he allows her to date Noe, and carries an ambivalence towards the young man.

At a party for a friend of his that is retiring Lionel declines the 35 shots of rum he is traditionally supposed to drink for his friend. He doesn't perceive this as a celebration. Instead he sees the demise of his friend come to soon after retirement. Lionel is concerned about both himself and his daughter, and their future. I won't let on too much, but if you can read subtitles rent this movie. If you can't read subtitles you're either slow or dyslexic so either you won't enjoy the movie or you'll be reading it backwards and banging heads with the person next to you.

-M

The Princess and the Frog

A great movie whether you're a child, or just a big kid at heart. This one is in the tradition of the older Disney musicals like Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins, and the animation is similar. It doesn't get too detailed or look overly done. It is a simple tale set in New Orleans around the 1930's about a young girl Tiana who has a dream of buying her own restaurant.

She has been working 2 jobs for years to save up enough money, and when it seems she's about to achieve her dream, a voodoo witch doctor comes in and ruins it by meddling with a visiting prince. I don't want to give away too much, but this is a heartwarming movie, with great muscial numbers, a wonderful cast of characters, and some very moving parts both happy and sad. Definitely a rental and if you have kids, buy it. Of course you may end up watching it 500 times, but isn't that the case with every kids movie?

-M