Grade: A
| Delightful! This is the kind of movie that’s great for a fun night out – where you exit the movie theatre smiling! It’s a romantic comedy that’s actually smart – and we don’t get enough of those anymore. Will Smith is just so cute, and Kevin James is hilarious. Eva Mendez is beautiful, and not afraid to make a fool out of herself for the sake of comedy. A great cast, a charming story. |
Grade: D
| I’m not one for horror movies, or scary kid movies, so I really didn’t want to go to this one. But you know, this time of year, between the new year and Oscar time, our choices are really limited. Robert DeNiro is the dad, the adorable Dakota Fanning is the daughter. They lose their wife/mother and move to the country where we have to guess if they are living in a haunted house, or if the daughter has an imaginary friend come to life, or if they are being harassed by creepy neighbors. So, it’s a mystery. It’s not really scary – some of the “gotcha” scenes are broadcast pretty loudly so there’s no reaction by the time you get there. Some of the scenes are so cliché that you have to laugh. They set up for a sequel at the end, but I really doubt it will get that far. |
Grade: A
| Henry Poole is Here is one of my favorite movies of this year. I just loved it. Luke Wilson has the title role. We know he’s depressed, and as the movie goes on we gradually find out why. Meanwhile, he’s moved into a new neighborhood, and wants to be left alone – but his neighbors have other ideas. When next door busybody Esperanza sees a deity appear on his new stucco job, she sends over the church to test the wall. His other neighbor is a single mom (Radha Mitchell) dealing with a young daughter who is traumatized by her father’s abandoning her and refusing to speak.
The stucco wall starts to become important to various people in the community, and Henry is right in the middle of the whole thing, exactly where he doesn’t want to be. But then, as everyone deals with their own issues, they start to learn from each other, and support each other, and discover things about themselves they never would have known. This is a new genre for director Mark Pellington, who has done dark movies like Mothman Prophecies. But the whole movie is so beautifully written, so meaningful, so moving – it’s unexpected, and refreshing. The cast is first-rate. The movie was done on a total budget of $7 million – very small by Hollywood standards. I hope that it finds its audience and becomes a sleeper hit the way Little Miss Sunshine did. This is the kind of movie that we yearn for. See it, you’ll be so glad you did. |
Grade: B+
| Guillermo Del Toro, who directed Pan’s Labyrinth, directed Hellboy. The effects, the creatures, are all spectacular. That is reason enough to see this movie. But it also has a lot of heart. There are some pretty powerful messages about getting along with others, and being true to yourself, and how we are all connected. This is a fantastical world that Del Toro introduces us to, and one where we feel oddly at home. The character of Hellboy, played by Ron Perlman, is totally relatable, he just wants to be loved. The only downside for me is that there are several fight scenes – and they seem to go on and on and on. But that’s probably a plus for most of the males in the audience – teenage or otherwise. |
Grade: B+
| When a psychiatrist reaches a crossroads in his life, he decides to drop everything and travel the world in the search for happiness. Simon Pegg is the psychiatrist, and when he finds himself tired of doling out advice when he doesn’t feel like he has answers himself he ditches his life. His live-in girlfriend, Rosamund Pike, is supportive, until she finds her fears coming to the surface as well.
It’s a reminder to us all about adventure, saying yes to life, and recognizing what is really important to us. Highly recommended! I wish there were more movies like this one! |
Grade: C
| The title is taken from the bestselling book, but I don’t know how much of the advice from that non-fiction book made it into the fictionalized movie. Stellar cast: Jennifer Aniston, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Connelly, Bradley Cooper, Ginnifer Goodwin, Scarlett Johanssen, and more – must have been a big budget just on the cast. No special effects or amazing locations – just big name actors.
While the cast is appealing – the storyline is dismal. It basically plays out that women are needy and clueless and hopelessly romantic. And men are insensitive and selfish. There are several intertwined stories, the characters are all connected in some way or another. Some of the scenarios play cute and get laughs, they’re light and funny. Other scenes are painful and heartbreaking… and not necessarily meant to be so. There’s a lot to relate to, with so many characters going through typical relationship “stuff.” This time of year, that lull between New Year’s and the Oscar’s, there’s slim pickings at the theatre, and this is just one example. |
Grade: B+
| This is the 5th movie in the Harry Potter series, and as the characters (and the actors) are getting older, the themes are getting more mature. The movie is dark, a little scary even, the villains are more sinister. This one is rated PG-13. I have not read the books, though some people tell me that the books are better than the movies – which seems to be the case in most adaptations. But what is great is that you don’t have to have read the books to understand the movie. And you really don’t even have to have seen the previous movies to understand the current one out. Although I think you will enjoy it more having that background. The young actors are all very good in their roles. I look forward to the next two in the series! |
Grade: B+
| The fourth movie in the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire follows Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione into their 4th year at Hogwarts Academy. They’re more grown up now, at age 14, and the movie certainly is, too. This is the first Potter film to be rated PG-13, and it is a rating that is well placed. It’s more dark, more serious, more heavy than the previous three films. And there’s more violence. The characters are just as rich, and there are a few humorous moments – but overall this is much more of a drama than a comedy. Great story-telling, and the actors are wonderful. It does help if you’ve seen the other films, there is a lot of back-story where it makes it much more enjoyable if you know what went on previously. Looking forward to the next one! |
Grade: A-
| It’s the finale! And what a finale it is. After 7 previous Harry Potter films we’ve seen these kids grow up, the action culminate and the loose ends all tie up nicely in a final story that helps it all to make sense. You really have to be a Potter fan to enjoy this film – and if you are it is deeply satisfying. I haven’t read the books, but I’ve seen all of the movies. The problem for me is remembering the previous storylines in between the films because they pretty much pick up where they left off. It would be nice to have a little re-cap or something for us “old folks!” But other than that – it’s a worthwhile series, and a it has a cult-like following, hence the record-breaking box-office numbers! I can see some Potter marathons coming now that they’ve wrapped it all up. |
Grade: B
| I have not read the Harry Potter books, but I have seen all of the Harry Potter movies. I think it would be easier to see all of the movies on consecutive days to remember everything. If you’re new to the Harry Potter series, you really need to start at the beginning, you can’t come jumping in with The Deathly Hallows part 1 because there’s so much back story you have to know for it all to make sense. Since there’s at least a year in between movies, it’s understandable that only die-hard fans would be able to keep up with everything!
The movie is very well done, excellent effects, strong characters, amazing locations. And the actors have worked together, and grown up together throughout the series so they have a natural chemistry. One standout for me is Helena Bonham Carter as the witch Bellatrix – she’s so over the top campy, scary and fun! Highly recommended if you are a HP fan or if you want to know how the whole thing is going to finally resolve. We’ve got a lot invested in this series and it would be nice to see how it ends. We’ll have to stay tuned for Deathly Hallows Part 2! |
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