Movie Review Roundup
I didn’t write a review for every 2009 movie I saw, mostly because I didn’t get to them til DVD, so I thought I’d do short reviews and put it in one post. Some of these films I liked, some…well not so much, and one I loved. Theres about 10 more movies Ih have to see in the next 12 days which are, Taken, Coraline, 9, A Serious Man, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Messenger, Nine, Sherlock Holmes, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and Crazy Heart, so expect a couple of individual reviews and another one of these.
I’ll start with two films still in theaters:
The Princess and the Frog
Disney’s first foray into 2D animation in 6 years, that seems so close to being great, but there is just something holding it back. The story is average, the songs are average, and really only the animation and sound are superior to films made nearly 2 decades ago.
Grade: C+ or ★★½ (Out of 5)
Brothers
Brothers is second in the line of good war-themed films of the year, a genre that hasn’t been too good since 9/11. Tobey Maguire is haunting as Sam Cahill, a marine who was held in captivity and returns home to a family that believed he was dead and must deal with the demons in his head and the family that he does not fit in anymore.
The rest of the cast, including Jake Gylhenhaal and the lovely Natalie Portman, and along with a story that consists of Sams torture and his family dealing with the perceived loss of their husband, father, brother and son, makes for a captivating film.
Paul Blart: Mall Cop
I am one of the few who enjoy Kevin James. That said, this film is just awful and the fact that it made $180 million scares the shit out of me.
He’s Just Not That Into You
I went into this expecting nothing but the definition of chick flick, but in all honesty it has a solid point of view and the use of multiple stories rather than developing it around one or two characters helps drive home the points of the story. However, its nothing truly riveting.
The cast is surprisingly strong too, with Jennifer Connelly and Ben Affleck shining through the brightest.
Grade: B or ★★★ ½ (Out of 5)
Adventureland
Every year there is one indie-type movie that most people really like that I just can’t stand. Past examples like Napoleon Dynamite and Donnie Darko come to mind. For me, Adventureland is one of the most boring, grating films I’ve seen all year. I mean I love Bill Hader and Ryan Reynolds and Jesse Eisenberg have shown their quality in other films, but this entire film is just terrible, terrible, terrible.
Moon
An homage to 2001: A Space Odyssey finds Sam Rockwell playing Sam Bell, a technician on the moon hired to extract a special element that has saved the world’s energy problems. He gets in an accident, and is found…by himself.
I liked the tone and the story of the film and Rockwell is fantastic as Sam Bell and Sam Bell. Its a very slow movie that will remind you very very much of 2001.
Grade: B or ★★★ ½ (Out of 5)
The Cove
I’m not usually one for the documentary set but The Cove is something truly special. It simultaneously informs on the horrendous slaughter of dolphins in Japan while also compiling a compelling plot about the dangers the filmmakers went through to even be able to shoot the film.
The last 20 minutes of this film will find your hands on your head in sheer disbelief of horrors that are happening to these creatures. A must see.
Grade: A or ★★★★ ½ (Out of 5)
The Informant!
Steven Soderbergh is a work horse, as he delivers his 4th film in 2 years. The Informant! is a sly, funny look at a whistle blower at Archers Daniels Midland who is equally goofy as he is smart. Matt Damon shows his comedic chops in this pseudo comedy while also showing the slow destruction of his character.
Grade: B or ★★★ ½ (Out of 5)
The Invention of Lying
I love Ricky Gervais, so while I agree with most observers that he isn’t quite a leading man for film, he still is easily one of the funniest people in the world. The film includes a great cast and the story concept of a world without lying leads to some great stuff. I did have a problem with some logical elements in that if its a world without lying, people are still sarcastic which is essentially lying, but you can get past it.
There are some really touching scenes, and I think Gervais was at his best in those moments.
Grade: B or ★★★ ½ (Out of 5)
An Education
For a film that was getting a lot of Oscar hype earlier in the season, and is almost certain to get into the final 10, I didn’t see what all the fuss was about. That’s not to say its a bad film; I thought the cast was great and the story is fine, its just that when it was done, it just felt empty.
Grade: C+ or ★★½ (Out of 5)
The Men Who Stare At Goats
The first in the Clooney trio of films this year finds him as an ex-Special Forces Op who was trained in a governmental program studying mind control.
A weird amount of the details in the movie are true and makes for an interesting movie. However, it also makes for a film that is really all over the place and doesn’t particularly end well. I’ll call it even.
Grade: C+ or ★★½ (Out of 5)
