MovieMan8877445's Movie Reviews

Bridesmaids
Paul Feig, 2011



As funny as The Hangover and Superbad? I think not. Still though, Bridesmaids is a pretty decently funny flick to watch. Obviously I’m not giving it as much praise as everyone else has recently, but I think that may have been because of the hype I had been receiving before actually having the chance to see it. I will admit that I have seen it twice now as it was considerably better the first time, but it’s going to stand with some of my favorite comedies then it’s going to have stand the test of time – which undoubtedly I don’t think is going to happen.

I think one of my biggest problems with this was how it was getting marketed. Everything I saw advertising of the movie was that it wasn’t just your usual romantic comedy aimed at chicks; it was actually supposedly aimed more at guys. I didn’t see that at all. Sure, there was that same kind of dirty humor used in most comedies that come out today, but it just didn’t feel the same for me. The second time I went with a friend of mine, who happened to be a female, and she seemed to be laughing more than me. There was the occasional scene though that did have me laughing really loud, but it was only a few scenes in the movie. I guess when I really think about it, I shouldn’t have anticipated this to be anything other than a chick flick, but I did.

Kristen Wiig does give a pretty good performance, I guess, but then again I’ve never been a real big fan of her. To be honest, it was their butch manly friend Megan that had me laughing most of the time. All the scenes that actually had me laughing out loud were scenes that involved her. Melissa McCarthy gave my favorite performance of the movie. It was nice getting to see Ellie Kemper included in the movie, though. The Office is one of my favorite shows ever, so getting to see actors from that in work outside of that is always nice.

I have to point out as well that I thought it was a bit overly long. My attention was beginning to linger there towards the end, because I was losing interest in the movie. I feel as though they could’ve easily cut off about a good 10, maybe 15, minutes of the movie.

After all the hype I been told about it, by the time I did get around to actually watching it I was somewhat disappointed. I guess it is kind of hard for a comedy to live up to a lot of hype, but I had just expected more. So far, the start of the summer movie season for me just hasn’t been that great so far. I have no doubt that it’ll improve as the summer goes on.

The Hangover: Part II
Todd Philips, 2011



I’m pretty sure that back in 2009, The Hangover turned out to be the surprise hit of the year. After it came out, people just couldn’t seem to stop talking about it, myself included. So there was a lot that this one had to live up to. My biggest question before seeing this was how on earth were they going to do this without making it exactly the same as the first one. They did it in such a weird way, too, that I have no idea how it even worked, but somehow it did.

They basically had the exact same plot as the first one, but it was just in a different situation. I mean, they even had similar music choices as the first, all of which I noticed immediately. Yet, they changed just enough to keep it somewhat fresh and funny. Using the same plot as the first worked really well as a running joke the first time I saw it, but it was really lacking once I got around to seeing it again. Even though it does have a similar plot to the first, I can already tell by the second viewing that it won’t have the consistency. I can still, to this day, go back and still watch the first and enjoy it. I just don’t see that happening with this one.

The flow for this was just completely off, I felt. The first time I saw it, it worked because I didn’t know what was coming next, but the second time it just seemed to drag on. There was just something wrong with the pacing, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it was.

Galifinakis in this just didn’t do it for me as much this time around. I guess because this time, I expect much more out of him than what I got. The real star in this was most definitely Mr. Chow. He got the much deserved screen time this time around, because Ken Jeong is just freaking hilarious. Seriously if you don’t believe, just go check out his work on Community. Even though that show is already hilarious on it’s own, he’s just the icing on the cake to it.

I find myself somewhat confused on where they’re going to take the third one, though. There have already been articles out saying that it’s coming, but I just don’t know where they’re going to take it. I don’t see them letting Alan getting married, because you just can’t picture it. I guess I’m just going to have to wait to find out.

It’s just sad to see how much my opinion changed on this so much just after two viewings. The first time I saw it, it probably would’ve been a point to even a point and a half higher than this, but I doubt it’s going to stand the test of time. Sadly, it’ll probably just end up being another funny movie to watch once. Maybe if I give it a few months before I watch it again then it’ll be better watching it the next time.

+

Ha, I totally missed this. I surely will, mark. I'm going to try to come back on here some more.

X-Men: First Class
Matthew Vaughn, 2011



I was always looking more forward to seeing the origin story of Magneto, but after how bad Wolverine did, I was worried that I was never going to get to see it. I now know that this essentially was an origin story for Magneto. If they ever would’ve made one for him, it would’ve turned out exactly like this because it would’ve had to include his relationship with Charles in it anyways. This just completely exceeded my expectations for it, though – my expectations for this were already pretty high to begin with too.

Fassenbender just completely stole the show all together, like there were moments where I even forgot that McAvoy was even in the movie. He’s just rising up my list on actors to be on the lookout for, which is surprising because I’ve actually only seen him in like three or four movies. I was somewhat distracted throughout the movie though, by the gorgeous Jennifer Lawrence. I could just stare at her for hours. I do kind of wish Azazel would’ve gotten some more screentime throughout, though. He just has the coolest power, though, and I wouldn’t mind seeing a baby Nightcrawler in the sequel.

They got the period down perfectly, I thought. Everything in the movie just screamed of sixties, a time that I honestly wouldn’t have been too upset to live through. They incorporated the historical events in there so well. The Cold War was one of my favorite things to learn about in U.S. History, so it was nice seeing those even portrayed throughout the movie.

The part that stands out the most for me though, was the actual Cuban Missile Crisis. It’s the first time where we really see them use their powers to their full potential and it’s just done so well. To be honest, though, I wasn’t expecting that ending. It seems like they rushed to get everything in there so quickly at the end like they weren’t going to have more time to play it out better. Everyone knows there’s a sequel coming, so I just don’t understand why they rushed it so suddenly the last fifteen minutes of the movie.

Even though Stan Lee didn’t get a cameo, which I can totally understand why, there is another very noticeable cameo that had me chuckling when it popped up.

This is, as of right now, my favorite movie of the year and truthfully the first actual great movie we’ve gotten so far. Actually this is probably the best X-Men movie so far, in general. I can’t believe they were actually able to top the second, but they did. I feel as though I could just watch this over and over again and it wouldn’t ever turn out bad for me. I look forward to seeing where they take it with the sequels and what characters they’ll bring in. Let’s hope Wolverine 2 can live up to this quality, but I have my doubts that it won’t.

+

Super 8
J.J. Abrams, 2011



It was over a year ago that we received that first mysterious trailer for Super 8. A car crashing into a train causing a giant explosion, but there was something on that train. So from there on, the hype had begun. It wasn’t until the beginning of this year that we received a full trailer really showing what it was supposed to be like, homage to early Spielberg films – which it was. As I was watching it there was just a huge tide of nostalgia that just hit me constantly throughout.

Abrams really catches the feel of the seventies and of early Spielberg films, which is what I thought he was trying to go for. Everything looked so authentic of the seventies, except the song that played at the beginning - I swear that sounds like a recent song. Nonetheless, it still captures it perfectly for me. Of course, as you should expect Abrams does throw some of his usual stuff in there, like the blue lenses flare for example.

As I was leaving the theater, I was hearing complaints about the story from friends of mine. One of them even said that “it reminded them too much of a Stephen King book”. I on the other hand saw it as more of a modern version of E.T. with elements from different films thrown in all around. Also, The ending for me just screamed Spielberg, and I thought it was a wonderful way to end it.

As far as my first viewing goes, I caught numerous Spielberg references throughout. The entire ploy with the monster plays out just like Jaws, which I loved. At first I was upset because I had been waiting so long to see the monster, but making you wait towards the end to finally see the monster really ends up paying off. Another quick reference I noticed was when the electrician was on the forklift in the trees. The way that shot was done reminded me so much of Jurassic Park and I loved that they included it.

I was a bit deceived on what I thought it was going to end up being like. I was hoping for more of something like E.T, where the boy and alien have a special bond; whereas, it ended up being more like Cloverfield. It’s definitely not a bad thing per say, but it just wasn’t what I was expecting.

I thought the little boy did a superb job, ranking in the same ranks as Henry Thomas for me. Once again though, I was not expecting it to be more of a love story between him and the girl. Though all of theses deviations from what I thought it was going to be originally be like, actually made it better, I think. It kept it from being just a re-hash of older films and let it be something original, even if it does still have elements of previous films.

I also want to point out that the mini-film that played during the credits just added so much more to the experience for me. I’m so glad they decided to include it.

Seeing this last night just really brought me back to my childhood. It actually might not deserve as high of rating as I’m giving it, but there’s just such a strong nostalgia to it for me that I have to. I see myself being able to watch this over and over without getting sick, as it is with most Spielberg films for me. Abrams really nailed the Spielberg feel that I think he was going for.

Green Lantern
Martin Campbell, 2011



Through the slew of mediocre reviews this was receiving, I was very skeptical of seeing it. But ultimately, I was offered to go with a friend for free so I figured why not. The only real thing I had to waste was time, and I wasn’t really doing anything when he asked. This is a real summer film if I’ve ever seen one. By that I mean there wasn’t really much to it at all, other than the action of course. Surprisingly enough, it was even slightly lacking on that as well. I do understand that it is a starter film of a series, so I’m not incredibly disappointed about the lack of much action.

When I first heard that it was going to be focusing on two worlds I was interested to see how it was going to play out. I saw Thor previously this summer, and I thought they handled it quite well, with a good half of the film taking place on another planet. I was expecting something similar in this, but instead almost the entire film takes place on earth with only about fifteen minutes of the film taking place on another planet.

Ryan Reynolds did a decent job at playing the superhero role, though I’ve never read a Green Lantern comic. My only problem is that he played Deadpool, another comic book character, in Marvel’s Wolverine. There has to be some sort of conflict of interest there, but then again after how poorly it did, I don’t think we’ll be seeing him as Deadpool again.

I can’t really find much to say about this at all, because I honestly can’t find anything good or bad to say about it all. It was just a mediocre action film fun to watch, but not something I can myself going back to watch over and over again. At least it’s not the worst film of the summer yet – that title still belongs to the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean, which was completely pointless to make in the first place.

Bad Teacher
Jake Kasdan, 2011



It looks as though this is going to be the summer of R-rated comedies. Seeing as how those usually turn out as the best, I’m pretty happy. I wasn’t really expecting much out of Bad Teacher, though. The trailer had me laughing, but I thought it was going to end up being one of those movies where the funniest bits get shown in the trailer. I was pretty surprised when I found out that first thought was wrong. Don’t get me wrong though, it wasn’t great by any means.

I thought it was incredibly funny, but I find it to be that hollow kind of humor that just won’t stick upon re-watches. I’ll have to see it again to test this of course, but I have a strong feeling it’ll just end up being one of those cases.

I like Jason Segel a lot, so I’m to the point now where I’ll pretty much check out anything he’s in. I find him to be incredibly underrated because he hasn’t quite hit it big yet, though he’s surely making his way up there. I don’t know what happened with Timberlake, because I hated his presence all together. I was actually starting to appreciate him more after his performance in The Social Network, so I have no idea what happened with him.

I guess I shouldn’t have really been expecting all that much, but the ending was incredibly predictable, too. That didn’t shock me too much when I figured it out, because they weren’t really going for something predictable. Actually, the entire movie was pretty much predictable, but still fun to watch nonetheless.

It’s definitely a funny film that you should check out, if you’re in to this kind of humor of course. It’s just going to end up being quick laughs that aren’t really memorable to you at all. I have higher hopes for the other R-rated comedies coming out later in the summer – like Horrible Bosses or 30 Minutes or Less. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if they turn out any more memorable.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Michael Bay, 2011



After the atrocity that was Revenge of the Fallen, I’m sure pretty much everyone had given up all faith on Michael Bay. Then out of nowhere, there started to be some positive buzz coming up before its release. Now while I’m unsure if it was quite as good as some of the early buzz had said, it’s far better than it’s predecessor. After first viewing it I was even thinking it was better than the first for a minute, but that’s disappeared after letting it sink in.

One of my biggest problems with it was the pacing was just bad. Maybe because it was after midnight, but the movie felt like it was dragging until it got to the final hour. Even there though, the pacing wasn’t done too great and the giant action-filled conclusion felt like it was dragging. If you’re going to make a movie of this length, then you might want to find someone better at editing.

Of course though, it delivers on the action that it promised. The final hour just being Bay getting to completely annihilate Chicago, and while that is entertaining to watch, it’s not going to be something that I’m able to watch over and over.

I didn’t get the chance to see it in 3D, which is something that I’m somewhat upset about. Everyone that was going to the midnight showing was going to the 2D showing, and I didn’t want to see it with my friends. I’m sure I’ll probably end up getting dragged to see it again with different friends in 3D.

I will say that Rose Huntington-Whiteley did a far better job than Megan Fox. For someone who’s never acted in her life, she already did better than someone who’s been doing it for years now.

While it was very enjoyable to watch things get blown up, it still is nothing more than a summer film. The incredible average and predictable storyline is to be expected before watching it. If you’re willing to give Bay another chance after Revenge of the Fallen, and is willing to just enjoy some decent action, then I’d say check it out.

Silent House
Chris Kentis and Laura Lau, 2012



When I first heard about this, I found out the main selling point for the film was that it was one continuous shot for the entire film. This was my main reason for seeing Silent House actually, because I wanted to see if this could work out or not. I don’t know how they managed to do it, but somehow the film managed to work in the end with no cuts whatsoever.

The story was pretty simple and cliché for a psychological horror film. Basically it’s about a girl (Elizabeth Olson) who gets trapped in a house with some presence that is trying to kill her. Along with her in the house are her father and uncle, who don’t seem to be much help in getting out of the house.

I was hoping that it would be something new and fresh in its plot, but sadly it was not. I predicted the ending within the first ten minutes or so of the movie. I was hoping that I was wrong and they were going to pull a fast one on me, but that never happened. I don’t know if I would have gone to see it in theaters had I realized it was an American remake of a foreign film. Most tend to turn out incredibly bad, and this wasn’t much of an exception.

Elizabeth Olson seems to give a pretty convincing performance, showing much more talent than either of her sisters. She did extremely well for having to act for an hour and a half straight without a break. I have heard numerous great things about her other role in Martha Marcy May Marlene too, but I have yet had time to actually get to see it.

It was a decent attempt at trying out something new, but in the end the movie just ruined this attempt. I feel it would’ve been so much better had they tried this on a movie that a little more thought was put into. I read some other reviews saying that no cuts made the film seem boring and to drag on, but this is something I didn’t feel while watching it. The film actually flew by pretty quickly for me, if anything it just made me feel like I was more into the movie.

2012 has been a really eventful year for film. It was the best year for film since at least 2007, a vast improvement over the past couple of years for film. Some big franchises ended with a bang, while others are just beginning. Some Independent films hit it big among the mainstream audience. Many bigger directors made their returns with new films. All in all, here is my top 10 favorite of the past year.

Some of the runner-ups: Looper, Brave, Ted, Prometheus

10. Silver Lining Playbook

With The Fighter being one of my favorite movies of 2010, I was quite excited to see this one. I am a fan of both Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence. These are probably the best performances I have seen from either of them. I think with a couple of more viewings I could even end up liking this more than The Fighter.

9. Flight

For me, this was the biggest surprise of the year. I have never been a big fan of Denzel Washington or Robert Zemeckis, and the trailer did not seem to interest me in the slightest. I was sure I was not even going to see this one, but after all the positive reviews it started getting I ultimately decided to give it a chance. I am sure glad I did because I ended up being presently surprised. Washington gave one of the best performances I have ever seen from him and the supporting cast were all on the top of their game as well.

8. Cabin in the Woods

This was one of the best movie theater experiences I have ever had. While it may not be the most well made film, it is by far incredibly fun and original. It reminded me a bit of Scream with the overall tone of the film. I honestly do not know how the final 20 minutes of the film even worked because it was so ridiculous.

7. Lincoln

Spielberg seemed to fix the pacing issues he had with last year’s War Horse, which was quite a relief. As big of a fan as I am with him, I would love to see him return to his roots with live action adventure films. Daniel Day-Lewis gave an incredible performance as the 16th President of the United States.

6. Argo

Ben Affleck returns for his third directorial feature with this one, and he just seems to improve more and more with each passing film. Directing is something he should have done from the beginning instead of jumping into acting.

5. Moonrise Kingdom

Wes Anderson’s new film keeps the same tone that has seemed to work for him for over a decade. While with most directors, the consistency would probably get old after awhile, he somehow keeps it fresh with each film. While this one was not as good as some of his past films, such as The Darjeeling Limited, the bizarre storyline always keeps the film interesting the entire way through.



4. The Dark Knight Rises

While it may not have lived up to all the hype, and had some big plot holes, I still loved it. Christopher Nolan worked hard to turn a mediocre script into a well-made blockbuster. Pfsiter’s cinematography is gorgeous as usual and Tom Hardy delivered an excellent performance as the masked mercenary Bane, though it made have been hard to make out what he said some of the time. I thought it was a perfect ending to a trilogy that I admire very dearly.

3. Django Unchained

Quentin Tarantino is back with what is possibly his most ridiculous film yet. With that though, comes his most fun film yet as well. He ups the violence even more with his new film, something I was not even sure was even possible. The entire main cast gave great performances. Samuel L. Jackson actually acts for the first time in years and Leonardo DiCaprio plays the villain perfectly. I would say it has some of the most memorable characters I have ever seen in one of Tarantino’s films. Something that did seem to holding the film back was some weird pacing issues in the editing, which I have now learned probably has to do with Tarantino’s long time editor Sally Menke dying in 2010. Even with that though, I can say that I have already seen it 3 times since it was released.

2. Zero Dark Thirty

I was never that big of a fan of The Hurt Locker nor am I big fan of films centering around the Middle Eastern war, so I had never expected to like this one. After all the glowing reviews it started receiving though, it started to gain my attention a bit and I was finally interested in seeing it. I can honestly say I am very glad I decided to do so because it was just simply amazing. I was hooked every minute of the film, all leading up to what I would call one of the best climaxes I have ever seen. I was on the edge the entire climax even though I already knew how it was going to end. Honestly, with more viewings I could see me end up liking this even more than The Master.

1. The Master

I was always a big supporter of Joaquin Phoenix, so I was ecstatic when I found out he was finally returning to acting after taking a few years off. I got even more excited when I found out it was a Paul Thomas Anderson film. Phoenix returned with a bang; probably the best performance of his career. I would love to see him get what he deserves around the award season, but I doubt that will happen anymore when he is competing with Daniel Day-Lewis. Anderson always makes these real meticulous films that work so well. I would love to see him not take so long in between films, but I guess quality takes time to perfect. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams deliver stunning supporting performances as well.

Enjoyed reading your thoughts on TROPIC THUNDER...really made me want to see the movie.

Loved your review of this film and agree with just about everything you've said here. I was curious if you ever saw the television remake with Jack Lemmon and George C. Scott? It's almost as good as the original.

I have not actually, but I'll have to check it out. It's been awhile since I watched the original, I think it is about time for a re-watch of it.