One Movie A Day Review Thread

Agree on that one Iro. I wanted Depp to take control of the movie and be the lead.

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Suspect's Reviews

I remember watching the film with audio commentary and Rodriguez outlined his idea for a couple of spin-off films starring Depp's character. They do sound more interesting than the actual El Mariachi trilogy - the first was a good piece of low-budget filmmaking, the next two have been pretty weak.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

I have not seen the movie, but it does look like a pretty good movie..

DAY 121: January 1st, 2009.

The Love Guru



Why is it that the films and the actors from films in the 80's and 90's seem to be so unfunny now that you want to stab yourself in the face with a fork? Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams and now Mike Myers. All these guys need new material and good scripts to get their careers back on track. Please do not go back to Austin Powers, that series has been dried up and The Love Guru is just a rejected character from other ideas. Mike, you're a funny guy, let's see it eh?

Jessica Alba does noting here, she is not funny and doesn't use her 'assets' to make me interested. I think she was actually relying on her 'acting' skills on this one. I never thought I would actually ever say this but, I was happy to see Justin Timberlake in this. He had some good moments of comedy, a lot funnier then Myers. Mike, the former N*Sync boy toy just stole the film from you.

Myers uses same old material, recycled and coming from a different 'approach'. You know how Goldmember used the same jokes as The Spy Who Shagged Me? Same stuff here, just in a different format. More short jokes at mini-me, more sexual innuendos with names and a wink at the camera here and there. Same old stuff we've seen before.

The scenes where the characters are playing hockey aren't even that good. They don't represent the game in any sense of realism. Guys are spinning and flipping everywhere. Usually sport scenes are thrilling, this one was a joke. The funniest bit involved the one and only VAL KILMER, who is in it for 5 seconds.

I guess if you think two elephants doing it is funny, then you'll enjoy this. for everyone else, just keep on keeping on.

What a horrible way to start the year off.

That was a funny review Suspect.

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I saw this for $5.00 the other day and I still didn't buy it I think it is a good thing

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I loved the old, recycled jokes in Goldmember, though. Myers made them work. I haven't seen The Love Guru, however, but it doesn't look particularly good (and I've heard pretty dismal things about it). Very nice review, sir.

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My Movie Review Thread | My Top 100

TUS, although I enjoyed reading your review, you'd earned a + rep from me after this.

In fact, the only, slight, disagreement I have with that sentence is that I feel like going further and just decapitating myself.

I had a sneaking suspicion that The Love Guru would be awful...

Me too. Only substitute the word "sneaking" with "rampaging" and the word "suspicion" for the word "certainty".

DAY 122: January 2nd, 2009.

Ghostbusters



LISTEN! Do You Smell Something?

Classic line from a classic film that has never gotten old no matter how many times I've seen it. Great cast, writing and direction make Ghostbusters not only one of my favourite childhood films, but one that I respect and still enjoy today. Besides, how can you not love that theme song?

The special effects still hold up today and the film doesn't really feel dated. The exterior shots of New York certainly put this film is a certain time period, but even those exterior shots give the film a classic feel good vibe. It's weird, but it does.

The trouble with comedies is that after time they can easily become stale, mostly because they are a representation of that certain mentally of time. All the scary movies will be lost on people years from now, because they are made for this current time and will become dated. The jokes in Ghostbusters surprisingly never get old. I still laugh at it years later.

It's easy to find people who don't like Ghostbusters, but it's hard to find people who've never seen it. So if you are one of these people, please go out and rent it, the climax is enough to warrant this flick a viewing.

DAY 123: January 3rd, 2009.

Ghostbusters II



This film goes into a pile of 'unfairly panned' flicks at it sits near the top. Sure, it's not as good as the original, I for one never really expected it to be, and it has one of the worst climaxes I've ever seen, but the rest of the film is rather enjoyable and it has it's fair share of memorable scenes. Has the climax been tweaked and the script a tad stronger, this film might have equaled the original.

First, I wasn't a fan of where they ended up after the first film. They saved the world, yet everyone turns their backs on them? It seems that the film needed a bit more substance, so they throw in the old torn relationship between Venkman and Dana, kind of weak for me. The climax is where the film really falls for me. This powerful villain loses because of singing, no lie people.

Other then those gripes the film has laughs, great special effects and is entertaining. I point to the toaster jumping scene to Jackie Wilson's High and Higher, it's so good. The ghost train? The pink slime, the statue of liberty? All memorable scenes.

The film is average, and really weak when you compare it to the original. I think it's a decent film that people should give another chance.

DAY 124: January 4th, 2009.

Stranger Than Fiction




It seems that every comedian has to dip their hands into the drama genre, Jim Carey, Adam Sandler, Robin Williams, Will Ferrel. Here is Will Ferrel in a drama, mixed with comedy, a dab of fantasy and some romance to boot. A well written screenplay is what people notice about this film.

Zach Helm in his first outing as a screenwriter hits it out of the park with Fiction. The whole concept of the film is interesting, not really original, but the way the film was written and how Marc Forster added his own bits here and there, the final product comes off as something people have never seen before.

Ferrel surprised me here, he leaves his goofy child in an adult body routine at home and finds a real character here,. Accompanied by Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifa, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Emma Thompson everyone with their own little quirks. They all work and deliver believable performances in this fantasy film.

If you haven't seen this one, give it a try, you might be surprised. It won't really blow you away or anything, but it will keep your attention cause it's a n interesting spin on things.

Thanks Suspect

DAY 125: January 5th, 2009.

The Salton Sea



I'm a Val Kilmer fan, so it pains me to see what he is doing today. You'd think that Kiss Kiss Bang Bang would revive two careers instead of one. Anyways, it took me this long to see this film and I don't know why. I should have seen it sooner because it is really well done. A tight script and actors who immerse themselves into the characters bring this film to life.

The film has two different distinct feels to it. The first is, obviously the first half, which is more of a comedic drug induced trip style of a film. Think Weirdsville or Trainspotting. Then all of a sudden we are brought into this film noir underworld and the story takes a turn, it hooks you in for the ride.

I won't go into details about the plot because any detail I give could give away the surprises. Upon first glance one character's actions and motivations may seem off, but when to think and pounder about them, what would you do in the same situation?

Kilmer does a great job of dual roles here, right off the bat he tells you he doesn't really know who he is anymore, he is lost within two identities he has created for himself. Vincent D'Onofrio disappears into his overweight no nose of a "villain" and Peter Sarsgaard gives us an honest and some times compelling performance as a tweaker who just wants to gave friends. You really feel sorry for this characters.

The film feels underrated to me, not many people know about it or even gave it a chance. You'll be surprised though, I sure was.

DAY 126: January 6th, 2009.

Philadelhpia



Tom Hanks in Philadelphia is honest, brave and heart breaking. The film manages to get me to be emotional no matter how many times I see it. The fragile and weak portrayal of Andy Beckett, with a strong sense of morality and honesty make this a really great performance. One of, if not the, best performance from Tom Hanks. The film itself doesn't rely on the performance, instead it has something to say and it says it proudly. It's not afraid of serious issues and it's truthful.

Most court room films tend to follow a formula and sometimes it can be a success, while other times it fails horribly, meaning it's pretty boring. Philadelphia isn't about anything other than humanity and life.

The film is in a way ahead of it's time, regarding issues in our society. Washington played the character of a homophobic lawyer, who eventually takes on the case and befriends Beckett. He represents us, who at the time were not fully informed of AIDS. Look at how for we have come now and tell me we are not Denzel's character.

Looking back there are many memorable scenes, the Opera scene is probably the most famous one that people seem to mention. It's slow, but it's touching and thoughtful.

Let's not forget the powerful score and soundtrack as well.

DAY 127: January 7th, 2009.

The Arrival



Here is an extremely underrated sci/fi flick that stars the recently deceased Ron Silver and in a role that's decent for a change Charlie Sheen. Wait, he plays an astronomer? Don't run away just yet, this isn't as bad casting as Tara Reid in anything other then American Pie. Here it works and the film is quite good.

If you've never heard of it, or vaguely remember it, don't worry. You're not alone, but I hope you give it a chance. It's not over the top with anything, specifically special effects. Instead it relies on the story and intrigue of the audience in the sci/fi genre. There's nothing really new here, but what it does give the audience is entertainment and a new world of sci/fi gadgets. Spinning ball of immense sucking power? How awesome is that?

written and directed by David Twohy, who would go on to make other sci.fi flicks Pitch Black and Chronicles of Riddick, shows his love of the genre here. Watching the film today, it still has relevance. With the state of 'global-warming' and us as humans destroying the earth, this film takes those notions and adds a little sci/fi spin to it. It works, what more do you need?

If you want to check out a good and painfully underrated sci/fi flick, look no further then The Arrival. But do yourself a favour and avoid the direct to DVD sequel.

DAY 128: January 8th, 2009.

The Arrival II

Why not eh? I tell you to avoid it and now I'm telling you why.

While the film is not totally terrible, it suffers from many things, one being that is was a direct to dvd flick which means the production values are pretty poor. The CGI aliens look terrible and the acting is something that makes you want to puke. It stars...that guy....from Starship Troopers. You know...the one who gets his brain sucked out. Brilliant scene.

The original surprised it's audience with how good it actually was, which is why it pains me to see this sequel try to continue the story. They do a pretty bad job at explaining some things and the whole mystery and sci/fi essence of the original is lost here.

I couldn't care less for the characters and the shoddy script didn't really help. At points I would be interested, simply because the original story is really good and they are branching off of that. Of course they do something stupid in the next scene and were back to square one.

DAY 129: January 9th, 2009.

CON AIR



Put The Bunny...Back In The Box.

Whoa, don't mess with that guy, or he'll kick your ass while his long hair blows in the wind. This is one of the 3 Nic Cage action flicks people refer to as...good? The Rock and Face/Off are the other two. Can someone say...guilty pleasure?

I've said this before and I'll say it again. I like Nic Cage, sure he's been in crap lately, but he's done some really good movies. This one is on the list of the good. Why you ask? Let's look at it here.

The villain is called Cryus the Virus.
Dave Chappelle plays from a plane onto a car with a message on his body. He remains intact upon impact.
M.C. Gainy drives a plane...and a firetruck.
Steve Buscemi has imaginary tea with a little girl and claims to have worn another's head as a hat.
Bubba from Forest Gump
Colm Meaney is amusing, as always.

With a list like that, what's not to like about this film? Sure it's not as good as The Rock, but look at the premise. It asks the audience to accept all these random improbably scenarios and we do. This defines popcorn flick.

DAY 130: January 10th, 2009.

Club Dread



As mentioned earlier with The Arrival, it's always nice to find an underrated film. Club Dread is the second mainstream effort from Broken Lizard, the first being the funny Super Troopers. As it is with Monty Python, you need to get the humour and find it funny. If you didn't like one of their films, chances are you won't like their others. It's the same comedy style in different situations and genres. This is why I love Club Dread.

Some people fault it for not knowing which direction it wanted to go in, horror or comedy. I think it played both of them extremely well. It parodied all the typical horror cliches. "Maybe it was the wind" and of course the typical, you can't kill the killer business. Which is taken to a hilarious extent.

Each character is clearly defined and is unique. The added bit of comedy is the inclusion of Bill Paxton...out of the blue. There is a running gag with a character named Yu and of course the ever so beautiful Britney Daniels. Meow.

It's beyond better then the Scary Movie parodies, which have driven far away from the horror genre spoofing. Club Dread gets the jokes, and using them, Scary Movie didn't and just tried to coat everything in sexual humour. I find that the film was unfairly criticized. A lot of people didn't get the jokes/humour. I think they were expecting another Super Troopers or basic spoof flick. As far as horror comedy flicks go, this is one of my favourites.