As I rarely have time for a writing a full length review, I'll list and write a quick review of the films I see in 2007. Movies take a long time to reach Japan, so for people outside Japan, these might make good rental choices.....or not! For people in Japan I'll hopefully give you an idea if you want to spend your hard-earned yen on these movies. Please comment if you agree or disagree with my reviews. I love feedback!
Check the logic part of your brain at the door and jump in with both feet to a fun little movie. This cast, featuring 3 Academy Award winners, is obviously there for a good time. It's all about a quest by Ben Gates to clear his ancestor of the charge of assassinating President Lincoln. The characters zip all over the world, a brief stop in Paris is followed by a tour of Buckingham Palace, then it's off to the White House and....well, to say more would spoil the fun. And that's what it is. It's an enjoyable film, with no deep meanings or message behind it. Worth going to see if you like treasure hunt type films.
|One thing I should mention is that I was suffering from a migraine when I went to see this film. It probably wasn't a good thing to see at that time.
A plague has wiped out the majority of the humans on the planet. It was supposed to be a cure for cancer, but in actuality it caused people to either die or become monsters. Will Smith plays Robert Neville, an Army Scientist who tried to stop the spread of the plague and then works on curing it in an abandoned New York. By day he roams the city, looking for game to hunt, and things to improve his life. By night, he sleeps in a fortress, safe from the creatures on the loose.
The special effects in I Am Legend are good, and it is really cool to see an abandoned, overgrown New York. The story just about lives up to effects. I would have liked more back story and sadly we're never really shown what happens to the people who become infected. However, it's not a straight sci-fi, nor a straight horror movie. If you like this sort of thing, or are a fan of Will Smith, then it's worth seeing, but if not, it can be safely missed. I enjoyed it, but then again, I like this sort of thing!
|An animated retelling of the classic story. It's a lot of fun, but I don't know how true it is to the original story. However, if complete adaptations are your thing, you'd probably want to stay home and read the original anyway! The story is quite simple. There's a king, his beautiful wife, a new drinking hall and a monster. The monster wrecks the hall, slays many people, and then runs away.The king offers a reward for anyone who kills the monster.Our hero Beowulf steps up, manages to kill the monster, but not its mother. And that dear reader, is all that I'm going to tell you!
This film was made by the maker of The Polar Express, a film I saw a few years ago and enjoyed. The animation techniques seem to have improved since then. At times I wasn't sure if it really was the actor on the screen or his doppleganger.
This is a violent film with frequent adult talk about sex, and of course, there are the naked* Angelina Jolie scenes, so probably not a good one for the kiddies. If this film interests you, it might be worth a look, if not, don't bother. I enjoyed it, thought it was a lot of fun.
*she's animated and you don't get to see much of her "naughty bits" so is she really naked?
The true life story of the race to find kidnapped journalist Daniel Pearl. This film shows the co-operation between the Pakistani and the US as they try to find his whereabouts. As they work frantically, his pregnant wife waits for news and tries to help as much as she can.
A beautifully told story about people in love, and a woman who rises above tragic events in her life. I'm told that some people find parts of it boring..I didn't.
Angelina Jolie gives an amazing performance as a woman stretched to the breaking point and beyond. Worth watching just for her performance alone.
Jason Bourne, the superspy played by Matt Damon is back in theaters and is coming home! The movie locations are all over the world, but sadly we don't see the nice parts of the cities he visits. We see the dirty, run down, dangerous areas. Of course, they could be more dangerous just because he's there!
This is a very well made action movie with a very serpentine plot. I think now that I've seen number 3 I should go back and watch the others! I probably should have re-watched the second one before seeing this one, but I couldn't. If you like action movies or Matt Damon, it's definitely one to see!
I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw Hairspray. I missed the original version, so didn't know any of the songs or the story. I'm not a fan of John Travolta, and the idea of watching him for 2 hours in a fat suit didn't do much for me. Having said all of that, I enjoyed the movie immensely. The reason? Newcomer Nikki Blonsky. This girl can sing, dance and she just glows!
The story is surprisingly deep. It's 1962 in Baltimore. Schools, swimming pools and TV shows are still segregated. Tracy Turnblad dreams of one day dancing on the Corny Collins Show, a dance show for teens. She runs afoul of the female star of the show and becomes friends with the dancers from the once a month Negro show.
The basic message of the movie is to be yourself and to stand up for what is right. It's a fun, feel good time at the movies. See it!
This is an interesting little crime/yakuza/triad/revenge film that had so many possibilities, but squandered most of them. Jason Statham stars as Crawford, an FBI agent whose partner was killed by a yakuza hitman named Rogue. Crawford swears revenge and spends the next years hunting Rogue. Three years later, Rogue resurfaces and sets up a war between the Triads and the Yakuza.
Statham acquits himself well, and Jet Li is adequate as Rogue, but the plot has many twists and turns, making it hard to follow. There are too many double crosses and unbelievable fight scenes, making this one a good popcorn movie, but not a great experience at the theater. It's mildly entertaining, but not worth paying full price at the theater. For fans only.
Renee Zellweger is back doing her "slightly posh British accent" again, but not as Bridget Jones. She's Beatrix Potter, spinster, bane of her mother's existance, and artist. She takes her little book to many publishers, and is finally accepted by one company. The reason the company accepts her children's novel is revealed, as is her life in early 20th century London.
This film was rather sweet, the tale of a lost love and friendship was a good one. There's also a nod to protecting the environment, as Beatrix Potter was famed for protecting a good part of England's Lake District from developers.
Fans, and those new to the Potter stories alike will most likely enjoy this well done, but not exceptional bio-pic. Worth a look.
Sue Storm and Reed Richards are having trouble. They want to get married, but they don't seem to be able to tie the knot. The press follow them everywhere and comment on all facets of their lives. And to make matters worse, there's a strange guy on a surfboard causing disruptions all over the planet.
I never read any of the Fantastic Four comic books, so I don't have a strong feeling towards any of the characters. However, I will say that this movie is fun. It's silly, but quite a fun time at the movies. It is not Shakespeare, but it doesn't want to be either! Not a bad way to spent 90 minutes.
Danny Ocean and his gang are back. This time, they are out for revenge. One of the group was cheated in a deal and has a nearly fatal heart attack.
Willy Banks(Pacino) is opening a new hotel and Ocean's gang work on a multi-layered attack. They arrange for the Hotel Rater to have a different experience than he might wish, an earthquake to shake up the opening night and a few other surprises for the villian.
This movie is a bit like popcorn. Fun, not terribly bad for you, but not completely satisfying. Worth a trip if you like caper movies, or any of the stars.
On another note, it was a fun thing to see an old comedy hero of mine, Super Dave Osborne, in a serious role.
A movie based on toys that I never owned, is suprisingly fun. There are two types of robots, good ones and bad ones, and they come to Earth to have a fight. Okay, I'm skimming the story a little, but it was still the basic idea.The robots, for anyone who doesn't know, can transform themselves into other things, so they don't always look like robots. Isn't that neat? Well, yes it is, for a while.
There are a lot of laughs in this film, particularly in the first 2/3s, but after that, the laughs are few and far between. I thought about this on the way home from the theatre and postulated that the first half of the film is fun, and lighthearted, but the ending becomes quite a serious "war" between good robots, humans and the bad robots that it isn't fun anymore. It's too bad, because until the ending it was a fun movie.
I would still recommend this film to people who want to have a fun time at the movies. It's not Shakespeare, but parts of it are fun. Worth a look if the film interests you.
Two women on different continents arrange to do a house swap to escape difficult romantic situations. Kate Winslet is happy to discover a warm and sunny California, but Cameron Diaz is a little less happy to discover her cold and draughty English cottage. There are other benefits that aren't immediately apparent, like the brother of the English houseowner....
I enjoyed this film with one exception. Jack Black was terribly miscast. He was neither funny nor charming in this movie. He can be both, but was merely annoying here. I would have prefered Kate Winslet being matched with Eli Wallach's character far more.
This is a fun little movie, and fans of the three major actors will not be disappointed, but it could have been so much better. It was attempting to do a "Love, Actually", but is inferior in too many ways. See if you are a fan of the actors or there's nothing else on at the cineplex!
|A pretty good time travel detective story. A terrorist blows up a bomb on a ferry in New Orleans, killing over 500 people. It's up to Denzel to find the bad guy. What complicates matters is a woman's body shows up an hour before the bomb, looking like a victim of the explosion. When he searches her house, he finds his voice on her answering machine. Hmmm. It works, and it takes a bit of thought to pick holes in the whole time travel theory. So, overall, I enjoyed it. If you are a fan of Denzel or of Tony Scott (the director) it's worth seeing.
|An amusing story of a man who can't keep a job getting a job at the Museum as a security guard. The man (Stiller) has to survive the night when the creatures come to life in the museum.It has a few laughs and will probably entertain both parents and children. Not a great film, but an okay one.
|An okay comic book movie. Nicolas Cage is Johnny Blaze, a man who sold his soul to the Devil in return for his father being cured of cancer. In his adult life he's a stunt rider who meets up with an old girlfriend and the Devil again. He is forced to become the Devil's Bounty hunter.
This movie was a bit fun, but the Demon that the Ghost Rider is forced to chase just didn't seem that threatening in all honesty. Heroes tend to be only as good as the bad guys are bad in these kinds of movies so there wasn't much of a threat in this movie.
The cast was good without being great. However, it was fun to see Cage in a lighter role! If you're interested, take a look, if not, it's a maybe rental!
|I didn't want to see this film. Although I admit to liking Kevin Costner a lot in the past, I dislike Ashton Kutchner. However, I do ask my husband to go to a lot of films that don't really interest him, so I thought fair's fair and I went to see it with him.
The story is quite simple. A US Coast Guard officer loses his team in a failed rescue and as he recovers from his injuries he accepts a job teaching in the Coast Guard School. He tries to teach his students about the realities of life as a Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer. However, there is one student who is a better swimmer than everyone else and is really cocky. The teacher must try to make the student part of the team.
The Coast Guard is a worthy subject for a film. If this film is even 25 percent accurate then the men and women who work in the organization are amazing. However, this is not the film that it should be. Characters appear and vanish without reason, there's a romance that just doesn't ring true, and there are far too many loose ends.
I'm not saying that this is a bad movie. The rescue scenarios are gripping and the effects are okay. I'm just saying that this could have, and should have been a much better movie. If you are interested in the subject matter or the actors it might be worth a look, but I think it's not a film to rush out and see.
|I'm always deeply mistrusting of films based on a true story. I like my entertainment to be just that, entertainment. I don't like to learn from films. Having said that, I should report that I enjoyed The Pursuit of Happyness very much. This film tells the true story of Chris Gardner, a man who overcame poverty and homelessness to become a successful stockbroker. Chris lives with his wife and son in a small apartment. He tries to sell medical equipment while his wife works in a laundry to support them. The rent is past due, his car was booted then towed, and the government wants to take his money too. His wife leaves him, just as he is accepted into an internship program at a stock broker firm. Chris is left alone with his son. He has to move out of his apartment and has nowhere to go.
Watching Will Smith in this part was a relevation. He is so good. The bond that he has with his son (the actor playing his son is in fact his son) is believable. We believe, we know that this is a man who would do anything to improve his lot for the benefit of his son. I don't consider myself to be an emotional movie watcher, but was in tears for the last 20 or 30 minutes of the film. I recommend it to anyone interested in an underdog story, or a fan of Will Smith. The Fresh Prince has grown up!
|Let me get this off my chest. I was going to write a review which would have said that I've never seen a Martin Scorsese film that I've liked before this one, but upon looking at a list of his films I have to say that statement isn't correct. I've liked a few of Scorsese films, including Casino, The Aviator and Goodfellas. Let me add this film to this list.
The Departed moves quickly, darting here and there but always in believable ways. The story is convoluted, but it works. The two actors who play the undercover police officer (DiCaprio) and the undercover gangster (Damon) are wonderful in their roles. They are entirely believeable as police officers. Two cadets are assigned roles in the police department. One rises quickly and heads a special investigations unit, one becomes a mole in the mob. Both good guy and bad guy are sympathetic people, we care about them both. They are ably abetted by the supporting cast. I do have to give credit to Jack Nicholson for a great performance. I do not like him as an actor because I feel he rarely acts, in this film he did.
If this film has piqued your interest or you are a fan of the actors, it is definitely worth seeing. One caveat, it is extremely violent, like many of Scorsese's movies.
|Two friends and an enterprising girl they just have just met take on a house that may or may not have a monster living inside. It's a thrilling tale with heroes on the cusp of adulthood. It's a rare age to be shown in the movies, too bad, as it's a difficult one to live through. A little scary, but in a good way, for kids, it's also very funny. It's one of the few movies that manages to make a joke about the uvula!
Fun for older kids and young at heart adults! Great little movie.
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