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04 Jan

The Bourne Ultimatum

Grade: A

The Bourne Ultimatum is the third Bourne movie, and it answers all those unanswered questions that have come up in the first two.  What I love about this whole series is that it’s smart.  The character of Jason Bourne is really a smart guy, and the people he is up against are smart, too.  That’s really their whole challenge, is who can out-smart who!  It makes for a very compelling story.

This part is just so right for Matt Damon.  He doesn’t have to say much, all of his acting is in his facial expressions – very intense, deep, and thoughtful.  Julia Stiles plays his de-facto side-kick, and she’s great, strong and decisive.  The whole cast is great – Joan Allen, David Strathhairn – terrific performances.

The chase scenes are amazing – so much action, but not too much.  This is a thinker’s action movie.  And though we have some resolution at the end, we can hope for a fourth Bourne movie.
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04 Jan

The Bourne Legacy

Grade: B

The Bourne series continues, this time without Jason Bourne (Matt Damon).  Instead we have Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner).  Aaron knows he’s a special spy, and he’s smart enough to get out of any situation, even one where he’s the target.  Edward Norton plays the insider who is targeting him.  It’s cat and mouse for a bit – while Aaron hooks up with Dr. Marta Shearling, a biochemist who knows all about the drugs that turn these people into super spies.  As a team, these two are quite savvy, leaving the possibility for many more Bourne movies wide open.  There are a few nods to the original character throughout.  Nice touch for fans of the franchise.
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04 Jan

The Black Dahlia

Grade: C

Brian DePalma directs “The Black Dahlia” based on a novel based on the unsolved mystery of a young actress’ murder in the 1950s. In true DePalma form it’s dark and twisty and the characters have a lot of depth. Josh Hartnett stars as the detective/boxer who takes on the case with his obsessed partner, Aaron Eckhardt. Scarlett Johanssen makes up a love triangle between them as a former mobster mol in hiding. The whole film is very stylish – loved the music, the sets, the costumes, the hair – the story is just difficult to follow. Performances are strong despite the stilted dialogue. Hilary Swank comes in as the “femme fatale” but something about her didn’t ring true for me. She’s too good to be bad, or is she just crazy? And they keep saying how much she looks like “the dead girl” and I didn’t see any resemblance! The pacing is good, the characters rich, but there’s a lot of confusion and “over-the-top” scenarios. The ending is just convoluted and silly.   A strong R rating, just for mature audiences.
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04 Jan

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Grade: A

I wish there were more movies like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel!  Stellar cast: Judi Densch, Dev Patel, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith and more all turn in wonderful performances.  The story is that a group of people, with no relationship to each other, find themselves moving to India to retire to a new “exotic” retirement community.  Of course, things aren’t what they appeared to be on the internet when they arrive.  But through a series of events, and some time to get to know each other, they form a kind of family of their own, and learn just what it is that makes them happy and comfortable.  Sweet, charming, touching, funny… this movie has so much going for it.  Highly recommended!
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04 Jan

The Beaver

Grade: B

It if weren’t for all of Mel Gibson’s personal troubles and issues that have been so prevalent in the media, I’d think that he would get an Academy Award nomination for his performance in The Beaver.  This may look like a comedy on the surface, or from the previews, but it is definitely a drama.  A heart-wrenching one.  Director Jodie Foster plays the wife to Mel Gibson’s husband, who is suffering from depression.  After she kicks him out of the house, he comes across a hand puppet, a beaver, who becomes his alter-ego.  His life dramatically improves, but he can’t handle the success.  Very thought-provoking, intense, with fine performances from everyone in the cast.
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04 Jan

The Bank Job

Grade: B

Based on a true story, set in 1972 London, the bank job is a crime caper drama.  When ordinary people get caught up in extraordinary circumstances things get way out of control.  What’s great about this movie is that you can’t predict anything that will happen.  I don’t know if anyone could have dreamed up the script if the events didn’t actually happen in real life!  Very compelling.  A little violent at times.
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04 Jan

The Aviator

Grade: A

All I can say is “wow.” Another awesome biopic, this one about the life of Howard Hughes. It’s often been said that there is a fine line between genius and insanity, and I think this sums up Mr. Hughes pretty well. The guy was just plain brilliant, and fearless – and yet strangely paranoid at the same time. Early scenes hint at the source of the neuroses, but I don’t know if anyone really knows for sure what went though the man’s head.

Martin Scorsese directed – I’m a fan, and this is the best I’ve seen from him. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Howard Hughes convincingly – a very strong performance, and he won the Golden Globe for it this year. Cate Blanchett plays Katharine Hepburn. Wasn’t as thrilled with her, seemed kind of caricature-ish. Story is tight, cinematography is beautiful. This is one of my favorites for 2004
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04 Jan

The Avengers

Grade: B-

Really this is a split grade.  I’d have to say that for fan-boys – those who love comic books and super heroes, they will love the Avengers.  It’s like a fantasy to have The Hulk and Iron Man and Captain America all together in one movie.  And that’s probably why this particular movie has broken all kinds of box office records!

However… for the rest of us… I have to say that The Avengers is just too loud, too long, and way too predictable for its own good.  When my favorite character is the bad guy, I know something is amiss.  For me it was like ego-central, each “hero” trying to outdo the other, in-fighting and flexing their muscles both literally and figuratively.  And then of course they get their acts together and finally save the world… but it’s not like we were holding our breath waiting for THAT to happen!

The one bright spot is Scarlett Johanssen as Black Widow.  There’s got to be at least one girl in the bunch, right?  She’s strong and smart and confident.  Girl power!

Of course there will be a sequel, and of course it will do well.  But will I go?  No, thanks.
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04 Jan

The American

Grade: D+

Cinematically The American is a beautiful film.  Shot on location in Italy and Sweden, it is beautiful to look at.  George Clooney plays the title character, a hit man on his last job.  He looks great, too, and his love interest in this movie is absolutely stunning.  Unfortunately, the movie itself is tedious, even boring.  It is long and drawn out – the story is thin at best.  There are several back-to-back scenes with no dialogue, just George doing his thing.  There’s not much character development, so we don’t even get to know these people.  Rated R for violence and nudity – not George’s.  Oh, well!
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04 Jan

The A Team

Grade: B

Liam Neeson and Bradley Cooper make up half of The A Team – based on the hit ’80’s TV series from Stephen J. Cannell.  All signs point to this being a movie series now – it’s fun, full of action, and has lots of storyline potential. Jessica Biel is the girl who starts out hunting this motley crew and ends up helping them.  The guys are just having a great time, and it shows.  Good escapist fare for the summer.
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