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The
Incredibles – Nov 27, 2004
Wow, what an awesome movie! I
was laughing so hard I think the people behind us were annoyed. But what can
I say, knowing about super-heroish things, the whole movie rang true with all its quirks and subtle pokes about the life of
a super hero, and I couldn’t help but giggle at that fact that other people have had the same thoughts about being a
superhero as I have. I thought the ‘comic book’ish style, especially
in the end credits, was fun. I loved the message of teamwork and the characters
were wonderful, although I recognized the Bob’s boss’s voice and was yearning to hear him say ‘Inconceivable’. Believe me when I say Abra Pirata can identify with some part of each of the 'Parr'
family members. It was all-round the best movie I’ve seen this year, and I laughed the whole way through. The only thing that didn’t really make sense was Jak Jak’s power, I’m still not sure
what exactly it is.
Christmas with the Kranks - Dec 25,
2004
I went and saw
this with my parents in the evening of Christmas Day. This movie was really funny. Tim Allen plays a character a lot like his character in For Richer or Poorer,
and Jamie Lee Curtis is always the best housewife and motherly figure while still being fun and hip. The movie centers around the fact that their only daughter won’t be home for Christmas, and tired
of the bleak weather, Mr. Krank balances the books and figures that they can actually save money by going on a cruise to the
islands, but with the stipulation that they spend NO money on Christmas. Although
it’s easy for Mr. Krank to be a Scrooge, Mrs. Krank is tempted in hilarious ways throughout the movie. And it all comes back on them when they get a call on Christmas Eve that their daughter will be coming
home at the end of the day and she can’t wait to show her new fiancé what a spectacular Christmas her family always
has. This plot twist just makes the whole scene frantic and explode into uproarious
antics as the Kranks try to redeem their perfect Christmas in only a few hours. I
was laughing my seat off.
The Notebook - Feb
19, 2005
I watched this movie with my parents; my
mom had rented it for her birthday. I’m not a big fan of ‘romance
dramas’ - and this was definitely part of that genre. The best part about
it is how the story is told - a man reading to a woman with memory loss, and I came close to tears near the end when she forgot
who he was and James Garner started crying (I figure if James Garner is crying, I have a right to be teary eyed). If it was suppose to be a surprise somewhere in mid-movie that the lovers in the story were the man reading
and the listener, they didn’t do a very good job of hiding the clues; it was obvious from the beginning who the man
and woman were. The acting was good, a couple cute guys, but a chick flick none the less.
Troy
- Feb 19, 2005
Another movie
I rented with my parents. First comment I must make is that Hector is THE MAN
and was portrayed wonderfully; it’s just a pity he had to die. I read the
Iliad in highschool (about 5 years ago) and remembered the basic plot – which surprisingly does occur. I’m not so sure about the details – I started laughing when the people of Troy were trying to
get their Llamas to safety! For an epic film, I think they depended too much on the
big names of the cast to carry it instead of finding good acting talent (Case in point-while trying to find a pic for this
page, most all pics either had Pitt or Bloom in them). I liked the tension between the greedy, power-seeking
Agamemnon and the brooding, he-takes-all-the-credit Achilles. However it reminded
me too much of some movie star or athlete who wants to do things his way, but the manager is trying to tell him what to do. I found it quite pitiful how they tried to rectify Achilles’ character by making
him ‘fall in love’ with the Trojan woman and want to protect her at the end (He should have listened to his mother
and sought peace instead of glory, idiot fool). As for Paris,
I just wanted to slap him. Once again Orlando Bloom pulls off a brilliant portrayal
of a man who follows his heart instead of his head – however this time it gets his whole civilization into genocide. The best parts – besides any scene with Hector of course, was the appearance
of Odysseus as the conscience and just plain common sense guy.
The Terminal
- Feb 20, 2005
Tom Hanks will always be
one of my favorite actors, and when he teams up with Steven Spielberg, you know magic is going to happen. The basic plot is that Viktor lands in NY to fulfill the dream of his late father. However, when he is in the air, his country is taken over by rebels so that by the time he lands and goes
through customs he is not permitted to enter onto US soil because his country’s new government is not
recognized by the USA.
And so he spends a series of weeks (I don’t recall if it ever says how long his stay is) unable to leave the
terminal. The friends he makes and the experiences he undergoes are all unique,
fun, and definitely entertaining. (Hanks even revisits some of his physical comedy
from his earlier days). And to top it off there is the antagonist who is only
looking out for himself and will not show leniency to poor Viktor. Overall I
laughed most of the way through the movie and found it uplifting.
Finding Neverland -
April 13, 2005
I thought this was a great movie which
showed the importance and the reality of imagination and believing. Johnny Depp
was superb as J.M. Barrie. However, I was disheartened by Hollywood’s lust
for romance and made J.M. Barrie and Mrs. Davis would-be lovers, which is not how the true story goes. Of course ‘inspired by true events’ does not mean that what is portrayed are the true events,
but it makes people who don’t know the true story think Mr. Davies had a romantic interest in Mr. Barrie, when she actually
thought of him as an adopted son to her and Mr. Davies, yes they knew each other, he wasn’t dead when Mr. Barrie met
them in the park. A bit of him was actually the inspiration for Mr. Darling. - Okay, off my soap box now. The way
the imagination was blended with reality made you wonder at times if the scene was make-believe or real, for instance the
wild west scene, and at the end when Neverland is present in the Davies backyard. I
thought it a great movie, and it ended while a tear was in my eye. Johnny Depp knows how to act and he did it with all
his wonderous charm and eccentricity.
The Country Bears -
Apr 25, 2005
Tonya and I watched this when it was on
the Disney Channel. I don’t know what it is about comedies for children
that are just more hilarious than comedy’s for adults - but this movie is hurt-your-sides funny. Of course the mastery of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop adds the believable magic of talking bears to
this story about a ‘boy’, Beary, who is just looking for the one place he’ll fit in. His hero-worship of a has-been band, The Country Bears, takes him on a ride to find them all a place to
fit in. I was reminded of the Blues Brothers as Beary and Henry go around
trying to put the band back together, with plenty of star cameos and musical scenes.
There were so many reasons to laugh, and not all the jokes were corny, but lots of quick humor too. We even decide to steal some lines to jazz up our own writing (“O’er yonder, a monkey!”).
If you’re having a bad day, this is just the movie to cheer you up, and the kids will love it too.
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of
the Sith - May 25, 2005
You know you have to watch movies with big special effects budgets
in the theatre, and because it’s Star Wars just puts more priority on a big-screen viewing. I went and saw Star Wars III with Tonya and our future roommates Eric and Tara. The special effects were awesome as George Lucas always accomplishes and the bizarre creatures and alien
planets are all believable through Lucas’ perspective. I love the message
he creates through the films of synergy throughout the galaxy despite differences in alien races. I was amazed at the battle sequences, distraught by Anakin’s misinformed decisions, and felt pain
for Obi-wan as he watched his ‘brother’ fall. As always the droids
provide comical interludes to lighten the dramatic tone, and even R2-D2 gets to show what he’s made of when he takes
on troopers of the droid army. The only part that didn’t quite fit was
when Darth Vader, fully transformed, lets out a heart-breaking cry, which was more awkward than soul-searing (but perhaps
it was because he was no longer fully human). All around, it was a good movie,
full of action and adventure, and moral teaching. A great addition to tie together
a great story.
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