Always Short Movie Reviews
man has my movie watching declined. i've gone from probably 5 or so per week to the same per month. notable in this post is that i saw one of the movies in a theatre. at $10 per ticket, i'm reminded why i don't do that, but having been given a bunch of gift certificates recently, it sorta made it free. kinda sorta.
- Million Dollar Baby -- i get why it got all the awards now. they strayed from the expected hollywood plot and ending and made it real. it felt real to me anyhow. definitely 2 thumbs up (4 of 5 stars). my only complaint is that it was a bit long.
- The Virgin Suicides: classic. hadn't seen it in ages, so much so that i confused it with another movie at first. i give it a so-so rating. lets call it 2 out of 5. i'll wait another 15(?) years before i consider seeing it again.
- The Machinist: is the guy crazy or is he doing bad things? you make the call. this is no big-time film and had little budget, but it feels natural and i liked the way they played it out. a solid 3 of 5 stars.
- Monster In Law: predictable. but i still laughed a lot. and call me crazy, but jane fonda doesn't look half bad for an old lady. this one is good for anyone wanting a light-hearted movie and a stream of chuckles. 3 of 5 stars.
- The Wedding Date: predictable, part deux. yes, you know it was going to be sappy from the start, but that's ok. they throw in a few twists as it goes along and it ends with a fairly expected ending. a decent "chick flick", but i'm gonna have to give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.
- Crash: it had sandra bullock in it, so i had to give it a look. it wasn't at all what i was expecting. part of me liked the movie and how they treated racial tensions, the other part of me wondered why i watched it to the end. the movie simply had no plot that i could see... you just got to watch the lives of a half-dozen or so people and see how they interwined. it did have one good tear-jerker moment -- that is a warning for those that cry easily. despite sandra b, i have to give it 2 of 5.
- Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy: it didn't follow the book closely... get over it. however, it stayed at mildly amusing and never allowed the authors wit to come out entirely. sorry doug, no 42 for you. i'll give you the 2 though.
- Proof: you'll either like this movie or not. i heard comments from other folks saying to one another "i'll never let you pick the movie again". frankly i liked it. wasn't quite what i expected, but the feel of the movie worked for me and i enjoyed my time watching it. besides, a math geek band with a song called i which is 3-minutes of silence. heh. i give it 3.14159 out of 5.
- The Longest Yard (2004): despite my thoughts when it first came out, i did watch it. they strayed from the original in so many ways. it was fairly funny, but the changes were much too distracting for me. having burt reynolds play coach was a good call, but i think hollywood would have been better off letting the original stand. i have since rented the "real version" and will wash my mind of this movie. 2 of 5 stars. chris rock died, that has to count for something. no, i have nothing against chris rock... he can be funny as hell.
Posted by ac at September 26, 2005 06:09 PM