Grade: C
| Standard comedy. Uma Thurman is the Superhero, “G-Girl” and Luke Wilson is her boyfriend. They meet cute, date, and he’s blown away by her “abilities” until he discovers she’s just a little bit crazy. He’s really in love with his co-worker, Anna Faris – but dumping G-Girl is no easy task. Hilarity ensues – in the form of disaster and destruction and over-the-top hijinx. Silly, and a little stupid, but not terrible. |
Grade: B
| Romantic comedies are my favorite – and we don’t get enough of them anymore. Remember the Preston Sturges movies, or anything with Claudette Colbert? “Must Love Dogs” is not quite in that league, but it attempts to be. John Cusack has done enough romantic comedies to have the rhythm down. He’s charming, but flawed – endearing, and imperfect. Diane Lane is the romantic lead. This girl can do no wrong. She has this quality that really comes through on film – she was so good in “Under the Tuscan Sun” and “A Walk on the Moon.” She’s beautiful, but real, and that’s rare for a movie star. Then we’ve got Dermot Mulroney as the requisite cad so that there’s a triangle going on – but we don’t buy that one for a minute. His character is predictably slimy, and I think Diane would be too smart to fall for him even for a minute. Christopher Plummer has a nice turn as Diane’s charming Irish dad. And the always awesome Stockard Channing has a fun role, too. But there’s nothing really magical about this movie. It’s one cliche after another. It’s a by-the-book romantic comedy that doesn’t surprise us in any way. Still, it’s cute. Especially in a summer like this one where the pickin’s are slim! |
Grade: B
| Dame Judy Densch has the title role. The movie is based on the true story of a widow who bought an old theatre house in London during World War 1 and turned the place into a refuge for young soldiers. The shows weren’t just “girly” shows, they were uplifting and inspiring to these guys who saw battle every day. It’s a great story, with a strong cast. Wonderful costumes. Yes, some naked girls… and men, too! So if you’re sensitive to that beware! But it’s all done very tastefully and with a sense of humor. Fun movie worth seeing. |
Grade: C
| Kevin Costner is back. Maybe he didn’t go anywhere, I just haven’t seen him in anything lately – there was that movie with Ashton Kutcher that he did, something about rescuing people in the water… but I didn’t see that. Anyhow, this time he’s playing a bad guy. A REALLY bad guy. The kind of bad guy who goes around looking like a good guy and everyone thinks he’s just this normal businessman, active in the community, with a nice home, pretty wife, sweet daughter. But no, this guy has an addiction, a secret addiction… to killing! Yikes! You’d think that would be a hard secret to keep, but somehow Mr. Brooks manages to get away with it. That is, until he gets a little sloppy and someone watches him during one of his episodes. But then, that guy is pretty much a bad guy, too, so he’s in luck, and doesn’t get turned in.
When the sweet daughter comes home from college, under suspicious circumstances, Mr. Brooks has some hard choices to make. But, since this is a movie, and the story is propelled by drama, he makes all the wrong choices. Demi Moore is the detective who is on his trail, but who can’t get more than one step behind him. She’s going through a nasty divorce, to another guy who is bad in a different way – makes you wonder if there are any good guys in the movie? I guess the wife (Marg Helgenberger) is good, but with all this going on behind her back she has to be pretty stupid. Some very violent scenes – this is a HARD R. Not for teens… not really even for adults unless you like blood and gore – more a horror movie than a thriller. |
Grade: A
| After all the hype about “Brangelina” I was so curious to see Mr. And Mrs. Smith. And I was not disappointed. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have chemistry to spare! Wow! This is basically a romantic comedy with action sequences – never a dull moment. You’re either laughing or gasping! The dialogue is strong – some of the best lines I’ve heard in the movies this year. And I think you have to be married to appreciate a lot of it! There’s a lot of banter ala Tracy and Hepburn – smart and witty, and totally contemporary – it works. All in all, just a great night’s entertainment. Very fun! |
Grade: A-
| Morning Glory is such a fun movie! Rachel McAdams stars as the optimistic, determined new producer at a low rated morning talk show. Diane Keaton is delightful as the co-anchor who is jaded by the business yet up for a challenge. And Harrison Ford is the grumpy former newsman who is roped into the other co-anchor position that he feels is beneath him.
Lots of laughs, and warm fuzzies – I love this kind of movie where you can just sit back and enjoy the performances, the writing, the overall story. Very satisfying. |
Grade: A
| Moonrise Kingdom stars Frances McDormand, Ed Norton, Bill Murray and Bruce Willis. Directed by Wes Anderson, it has that campy feel he’s so famous for. This is a movie lover’s movie. Two misfit 12 year olds find each other and strike up a childhood romance. When they run away together, this affects the whole community. Everything about this film is visual candy: the costumes, the colors, and the sets. The story is touching, sweet, and funny. The acting is wonderful – the characters are believable and likeable. This is one of my favorites so far this year. Highly recommended. |
Grade: B+
| It’s worth it to go see Monster in Law just to see Jane Fonda back in action again. This girl can chew scenery with the best of them! And she certainly has fun as the title character in this movie. Jennifer Lopez is her future daughter-in-law/victim. The character is a little too saccharin to be believable – it’s like this girl can do no wrong, she’s perfect in every way, so why would a mom object? But it’s fun watching them tangle with each other. Michael Vartan is pretty much an after thought, a pretty face – it’s really the woman’s movie this time. And Wanda Sykes is excellent as Fonda’s assistant – she’s sassy and smart, an excellent foil for her boss. Requisite happy ending, and a sigh of relief at the end. One big happy family! |
Grade: C
| I don’t really know how to characterize this movie. It’s an animated film from Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis. We saw it at one of the theatres that was showing it in 3D, so that experience was kind of cool. The story is interesting, involving a haunted house that terrorizes some neighborhood kids. But in many parts I felt it was too scary for the PG audience it was intended for. Maybe the kids handled it better because it was animated – in live action I think they would have just cried. And in other parts it’s really too much of a kid’s movie for teens or adults.
The resolution scene is WAY too long – it could have been done in half the time. I also thought it was WAY too loud. Is that because I’m WAY too old for this movie? I hope not! Anyhow, all’s well that ends well – stick around for the end because the kids will see that no one was actually killed by the house so they won’t get nightmares about it. Neat and tidy, all ends tied up and everyone’s happy by the closing credits. |
Grade: C
| Cut to the chase: I would have liked this movie SO much better if anyone other than Tom Cruise were in it! That’s just the way it is – I’m sick of this guy, his ego, and his one-note acting. Sorry, but I can’t help it. The action seens were really well done, I have to give J.J. Abrams props for that. The storyline was pretty by-the-numbers. Why is it the good guy doesn’t just kill the bad guy when he has a chance? Doesn’t that drive you nuts? Because you KNOW the bad guy is going to get away and wreak havoc on the good guy’s life, girlfriend, fiance, wife, child, fill-in-the-blank. And you KNOW that one of the good guy’s bosses is really going to turn out to be in cahoots with the bad guys. Yawn. Seen it all before. I can think of many better ways to spend my time and money than with this tired old tale. |
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