So this morning while I was finishing up at work, I checked my mail and saw the official mail from SWTOR…. Pre-Order is live! I was pretty excited to see that the rumors about it were true. Well, excited about it all except for that nice 150$ pricetag for the ultimate collector’s edition and that it sold out in less then an hour. Either way I might still try and get my hands on it even for that price at release. I tend to like most collector’s editions, especially those that boast the all powerful “early entrance” into the game. As of this evening I still couldn’t find the pre-order on some of the retailers the website sends you to, but I will be heading to Best Buy tomorrow to see if they have a boxed pre-order in the store. At least then I will still have the code and I can try and get the physical Collector’s edition when it goes live in store and likely still be able to DL the client for the head start as well. The thing about Best Buy’s is (well in my local area at least) they never do a midnight opening, and they tend to have enough of the special boxes that I can get there right at opening the morning of to get exactly what I want. So that’s the plan anyway.
So the next thing that caught my eye today was this next trailer for Batman: Arkham City, featuring the Penguin. He’s typically not my favorite villain, but with the voice acting here, and the way they are portraying him… Me Likey…. (Thanks to Gamespot for the heads up exclusive)
Periodic updates as much as I can this weekend with what I like from Comic-Con. So stay tuned!
Hall Pass (2011– 105 mins) O. Wilson, J, Sudeikis, J. Fischer, C. Applegate
There are slapstick comedies which you want to watch a ton, the ones like “Old School” which are classic, have a great cast, you quote them all the time, and they help the time pass quick and easy. They are the ones you call “classics”. Then there are the ones where they are funny, but they never reach that level of “classic”. All potential and not as much follow through. Now, look at the cast, just the 4 main pieces of the cast I listed above… go ahead look.. I’ll wait. Now say to yourself, “Self, with a cast like that, how can this movie be in any way, a LET DOWN?” Yep, sorry to say it just is.
The plot is simple enough. Two suburbanite couples, stuck in the riggers of married life decide to give the husbands a “hall pass”. Basically a vacation from married life for a week to get their act together and sew those wild oats that might have them resenting their life or wives. This is where we get all those funny lines we see in the trailers. The ones with Sudeikis and Wilson (and their croonies) out at bars making fools of themselves with lame pick up lines and generally acting like inept nozzles. As we all know with movies like this it’s just a means to the typical predictable end that the guys and girls all end up realizing what they had is the real thing they want and not the teenage angst trapped within them. It’s all just an excuse to set up the comedy in the middle. Unfortunately the directors don’t realize that the real humor is not seeing the two guys be inept. It’s when they are rapping off each other and just doing the self deprecating humor in giving each other crap. They do a great job of playing off each other on a variety of subjects and it’s the better part of the movie. Not with lame set ups and bar humor but them making fun of random stuff in both normal and grotesque ways.
It’s both a movie that left me wanting more out of the actors and wanting it to end 10-15 mins earlier then it did. I also got the feeling that someone else might be a bit better at the main part the Owen Wilson. Don’t get me wrong I love the guy as an actor and comedian but he just seems not right for that middle age dad part. I just didn’t buy him. Sudeikis was awesome and believable but something just seems off about Wilson’s role. As with a lot of comedies, a good watch for the 1st time and prolly would enjoy it on cable but not one of those classics Iwill run out and watch on a regular basis.
Verdict–> Simply it’s pretty funny. Plenty of good laughs but nothing strung together to make a great movie. The Farrelly’s and their fans are constantly looking for the next “Dumb and Dumber” but we keep on ending up lately with “Shallow Hal”. Go ahead and grab it today at the red box b/c there isn’t a whole lot of awesome comedies, but you will notice that there is just something missing from it all. That step just below a killer classic comedy. Good but not quite great.
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011– 118 mins) M. McConaughey, R. Phillipe, WH Macy, M. Tomei
“The Lincoln Lawyer” is about a lawyer, Mick Haller (McConaughey) who has the unconventional business practice of using his car (THE LINCOLN!— oh how clever) as his office. As with most courtroom drama’s he’s a pretty savvy lawyer and is good at what he does. Unlike most lawyer movies though he’s a complete scumbag. He’s not a likable guy and he only thinks of himself and money first. Haller then gets a big payday case dropped right into his lap. Big time rich boy/playboy/realtor Lousi Roulet is accused of raping a prostitute, in which he claims he is completely innocent. Plenty of things come up with his own investigation which make Haller question everything in his own life and the story of the accused playboy.
So being based on a book, there is naturally a ton of things I am sure they had to leave out for time and content sake. The problem with that sort of thing, is you end up with a ton of holes in the story that you have to either fill in yourself or handle with a passing comment. It’s not too much of a hole with LL but it seems that we are lead to believe that Haller is a complete jerk but about half way through the movie we forget about that, and then at the end are reminded a bit to just give us that nudge of hey look it’s also a growing in character story for him. I didn’t mind as much but it seems like a complete oversight on the screenplay writers to do the bait and switch a few times in the film. Don’t take that too much of a bad thing b/c the movie is entertaining. The story is a good courtroom drama, and satisfies you in that manner. However, unlike some of those courtroom dramas, say like “Few Good Men” or to stay with McConaughey “A Time to Kill” where in those we would love to see other cases with these lawyers in them, here with “The Lincoln Lawyer” we are fine with being done with Haller. We are happy to see the move over and how it ends and all, but we have no desire to see him again.
There are a ton of good bit parts and cameos in the movie, and everyone does a good job. Tomei is beautiful as ever as Haller’s ex-wife, Macy does his usual supporting thing well as his private eye, Josh Lucas as the A.D.A prosecutor, John Leguizamo as a bail bondsman, Bryan Cranston as a detective trying to convict the world of everything… the list goes on and on. I wasn’t disappointed with anyone’s performance, just a tad with the story as a whole.
Verdict–> A good watch and a decent movie. Not something I am going to run out and buy, but with the drying up of quality at the red box right now, I say it’s definitely one of the better newer movies in it currently. Pick it up if you like court dramas b/c as far as those go it’s a good original one at that. Not a bad movie for a comedy/drama double feature on a date night.
The last ten years or so the quality of kids movies has gone up quite a bit. From Pixar to Dreamworks, they continue to get smart writers and top notch animators. “Rango” is one such success story. Like all true successful kids movies in the past, “Rango” throws a ton of adult jokes in there so that we can laugh out loud along with our kids, even tho they have no idea of the real meanings behind most of the jokes.
The plot is a typical fish out of water story paired with a zero to hero story. “Rango” (Depp) is accidentally dumped into the desert after the car carrying his pet tank hits a bump sending it crashing to the ground. He wanders into the sleepy disfunctional town of Dirt where the water is dried out and the inhabitants are being menaced by a bunch of forces beyond their control. He stumbles into Sheriff-hood and takes it upon himself to right the wrongs and do the right thing.
It all becomes a combo of an old school spaghetti western action movie animated and slapstick comedy with a talking chameleon. I loved it. It only takes about 5 mins before you are smiling and laughing out loud and it pretty much continues the whole movie. I think even people without kids can enjoy it and should watch it. I am really hoping for a Rango 2 as well… with it making over 100 million I bet it’s not too far fetched to foresee it coming.
Verdict—> A great kids movie… Heck it’s a great anyone movie parent or not. Go ahead and pick this one up this weekend at the Red Box. It’s a top recommendation (especially b/c it’s quite the dry period right now in the box… not a whole lot of good new titles in there and it will be a few months before the summer ones will be hitting it as well) so go watch it now!
Fear not friends with the middle of the month here now and the free agent signings slowing down quite a bit, coupled with the fact the Canes are likely to not do much of anything other then signing Brandon Sutter (RFA) to a long term deal, this is likely the last anti-Rutherford rant I will have for a while.
So what has our fearless leader/GM done to the team since we last spoke. We got 2 major deals and one minor re-signing. The minor re-signing was bringing back RFA Derek Joslin with a 2 year 700K deal (I predicted no more then 750K– holy cow I got one right!). Not a bad signing, he’s decent, and I liked the strides he took last year in his development. This pretty much filled up their defensive core for this season… or not… The Canes went out earlier last week and signed FA defenseman Tomas Kaberle (33 years old!), to a 3 year 4.25 mil cap hit deal. I don’t want to bash this deal too much. I have always felt he was a great offensive defenseman, who moves the puck well ESPECIALLY on the power play. He took some heat in the playoffs b/c he was mostly invisible and didn’t do a whole lot the whole time he was in Boston, but I don’t really care about that. His numbers as a whole last year were fine, and he is a very durable player. He’s only had one year where he missed more then the 10 or so game range. Sure the argument can be made that he doesn’t play physical (true) enough to even get hurt but he’s a true PP quarterback and 10x the PP player then our current point man Pitkanen (Sucks). This whole deal would have been A O K if only THE CANES DON’T NEED ANOTHER 4 MILLION DOLLAR DEFENSEMAN! I would have rather seen them sink 4 million into a stud forward we can root for and see put up 30+ goals. Passing is fine if you have some guys to put it in the net. The Canes currently have 3 guys max for this.
Next the Canes seeing they have an over abundance of D men and also just happening to get a phone call from Joe Corvo’s agent asking for a trade to a “contender” (really Joe? you are gonna pull that crap?), they pulled the trigger on a deal to move Corvo. If I told you this you would think… Oh wow, Traded Corvo, the last time they did that they got 2 players back from the Capitals and a 2nd round pick! So what did they get this time? They dealt Corvo to the Bruins for a FOURTH ROUND PICK. You have got to be FU@#$%$@ kidding me Rutherford. A 4TH ROUND PICK???? This has got to be single handedly the worst GD deal you have made in at least a week (I am still furious at them picking up Ponikorovski or else I would have said longer). He continues to make complete and bone head moves for this team with no eye to the future and the good of the franchise. I don’t care one iota if keeping Corvo around a few weeks puts them over their precious self-cap. The bottom line is this, you don’t trade a top 4 D man on a whim and a prayer for a 4th round pick. It’s insane and just dumb. All he had to do is hold onto him for a week or two and work the phones and you could EASILY have gotten something like a useful 2nd line forward, and or a 2nd round pick plus for Corvo. Instead we give away useful parts for nothing and look even more like laughing stocks to the already laughing SE division opponents.
So now the Canes have 2 4 million dollar men on the blue line, neither of which can play one minute of actual defense. I guess the Canes are planning on scoring a ton of goals and letting Cam Ward face 45 shots a night, hoping they win more then they lose with that strategy. They now are just under the NHL salary floor and with the eminent signing of Sutter, they will get there with no problems. As always (lately), I am just frustrated with another roster blunder that Rutherford has made. I would have been fine with the whole Kaberle thing, if they just got something to show for Joe Corvo.
Until they do something else stupid (and we know it’s coming)
Barney’s Version (2010– 134 mins) P. Giamatti, R. Pike, D. Hoffman
Barney is one of those typical Paul Giamatti characters. He’s impulsive, he smokes and drinks a lot, and he loud. We first meet Barney in his 60’s and he seems utterly annoyed with himself and his life currently and suddenly we are thrown into a series of flashbacks and forwards to tell his tale. Initially it can be a bit confusing as we get a TON of way back story (leading to the over 2 hour run time), but as the whole tale unfolds his life seems to make more and more sense to us and seemly to himself and those around him. It takes his whole life to be understood fully as well. He’s not just a gruff old coot but one who enjoys many things in life. From beautiful women, to beautiful art to a beautiful hockey game. To the casual onlooker Barney could be just that crass jack-ass that he comes off as.
There is one major metaphor for Barney which director Richard J. Lewis (mostly known for TV directing) gives us a few times, sort of as a nudge nudge wink wink and I caught it and loved it as well. Barney is seen a few times cutting onions in his kitchen. When told by his wife to put them in his freezer for a few mins to avoid the crying effect, we later see that he does not listen. First we have the onion representing Barney. The nasty on the outside but full of intricate layers person on the inside. And then we have his unwillingness to put himself in the freezer to tone himself down. See, toning himself down is like keeping yourself from living life to the fullest, and that’s not something Barney is willing to do to himself for anyone. It bites him in the butt at times but ultimately everyone learns Barney is an onion just trying to be happy and live his life.
Everyone else in here does a good job. However by the design of the movi,e everyone other then his wife (Macha Grenon) are merely side characters meant to come and go in minor parts of the large picture. Even the fact that the majority of the cast is not given full names is in the effect that they are all pieces to his puzzle, part of “Barney’s Version” of his life. A good movie and good story wrapped up in a tad to large of a ball but enjoyable to the last none the less.
Verdict–> The movie is good, there is no doubt about that. However, like some long on running time dramas, it’s just not for everyone. To thoroughly enjoy this movie you have to enjoy Giamtti’s works, enjoy life long story driven dramas, and most importantly you have to know you are in for a movie that’s over 2 hours long. If you fit those criteria then go for it. I liked it and I hope you will too. Definitely worth the rental at the box tonight.
Kill The Irishman (2011– 106mins) Ray Stevenson, Vincent D’ Onofrio
Kill the Irishman is an entertaining true story of Danny Greene, something of a local folk hero from the streets of Cleveland. The man who the cops couldn’t get permanently and the mob couldn’t kill. He started off simply enough as a working stiff in the unions. His natural leadership,charisma and strength help high climb those ranks and eventually he goes from union leader to teamster to full fledged mobster. However, there is always the scraps with the law and the other ethnic mobs. Along the way he enures himself to the locals as a sort of local “robin hood” with his deeds and taking care of his own community.
The movie plays a bit like a lighter “Goodfellas” or “Casino”. It’s got some big names and faces but they don’t play too much of a prominent role to be gimmicky. It’s definitely an entertaining movie and one which keeps you interested the whole time. Stevenson does an amazing job of being part likeable, and part despicable at the same time, which is a good thing for a gangster genre film. You have times of each but ultimately you feel for the guy and want him to succeed. People like D’Onofrio and Walken while both decent in the movie, aren’t in it enough to make a huge contribution, but any more, then they could take away from the great job the Stevenson does as Greene.
Verdict–> The charm in this Indy could be it’s only fault. It’s not glitz or glam or polished in it’s look which could turn some people away.Yet, I did enjoy the movie and would recommend it to anyone who likes a good gangster type story with a bit of history to it, as the whole thing is advertised as “a true story”.
The Other Woman (2009–119 mins) N. Portman, S. Cohen, L. Kudrow
The other woman is a lesser known Indy drama about love, loss, and the fight of a woman to get over all of it. Portman plays a young lawyer named Emilia Greenleaf. She’s a smart attorney who grabs the eye of one of the partners and thus, they have an affair. After she becomes pregnant he leaves his wife and they are married. Unfortunately the baby dies shortly, just days after the birth, leaving both mother and father scarred and heartbroken. Yet, not only do they have to deal with this loss, they have another side of the family to deal with. William is Emilia’s difficult step-son, and with him comes his even more difficult mother (the Ex) Carolyne. In a way to get over some of her loss Emilia eventually tries to form some sort of bond with the boy despite all his mother’s best efforts to thwart such a relationship. It’s a slow, often difficultly dramatic tale, which overstays it’s welcome on a number of occasions.
We want to sit and watch and hope Emilia can fix herself and get over her loss in some way, but we keep getting new things thrown at us at every turn. After a few complications the whole movie starts to become tiring, heavy and tedious, almost forcing us to look at our watch hoping the resolution will get here soon. Alas, my friend, it’s 2 hours so the resolution is beyond another ton of time and ton more complications.
As for the actors themselves… Portman is decent here, a tad inconsistent but still believable as the grieving mother. She often comes across a bit childish, where she should be trying to be a bit older for the role, yet still acting as if she’s a teenager throughout. At times convincing at times bad. Scott Cohen as her husband Jack is a bit subdued and looks to be phoning it in at times as well. However there are two standout performances here. Both Charlie Tahan as the step son William, and Lisa Kudrow as the ex wife are excellent. Tahan brings naivety and emotion to the role as a son who is caught a bit in the middle of the families. Kudrow brings the sharp emotion and raw power to a woman who has been scorned by her ex-husband and wants to shield her son from everything negative in the relationship and the world.
Verdict–> Even a few decent performances cannot overcome the shortcomings of the film. At times it is an entertaining watch, but it quickly overstays it’s welcome and becomes more of a chore then an enjoyment. It’s not awful but just not one that I would recommend very highly unless you like very heavy convoluted family dramas. Lesser tier recommendation just a hair above most horror films and anything with subtitles.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010- 113 mins)
Narnia has been a place that has been loved by many hated by some, but always looked amazing on the big screen. In this installment we find Lucy, Edmund and their pesky cousin Eustace being brought back into the fantasy world. They are brought aboard the king’s ship “The Dawn Treader” and tasked with joining them on another fantastic quest. We find out that now King Caspian is headed to find what unrest is going on in Narnia at the “edge of the world” and to a lone Island of Evil. In typical Narnian fashion they encounter a huge manner of fantasy creatures including, dragons, minotaurs, dwarves, one legged pixies, and sea monsters.
What I have always loved about these movies is the way they translate the books underlying themes and are able to draw the viewer in to the whole world. They show the world just as I always imagined it in my mind from reading the books, and more importantly show it to us in a way that doesn’t confuse and let’s us get lost in the whole beauty. Narnia has always been about what can the children do more so then why can they do it. They blind us with story and make us even have faith in even the most minute detail. When a new ridiculous race of beings is exposed to us we don’t think “well that cannot exist”, we think “awe check that out how amazing”. I like this effect in the CG and love it more in storytelling.
The children reprise their roles well and their aging in real life mirrors the children in these later books very well. It’s a testament to their performances that they convince us they have matured in the same manner as the characters have. The only shame here for the films is that we have likely seen the last of the Narnia movies in their present incarnation. Disney has stuck a fork in the series and that’s a shame. We might still get lucky that there will be more from someone else in a semi “re-boot” (after all the other books keep going with the younger children as keeping the youth involved more with Narnia is a central theme), b/c there has always been plenty of love for these movies but this last one didn’t make what was expected. So while I am hopeful, I am not 100% optimistic about it. We can hope and have faith C.S. Lewis fans, maybe one day the next installment of the series might be made. Either way we have 3 excellent movies to watch and get lost in for now.
Verdict–> It’s an easy recommendation to make. If you watched both the first Narnia (Lion the Witch and Wardrobe) and Prince Caspian, OR just seen one or the other, and liked either or both of them, then you will like this one. It has the same production value and themes as the others so you will enjoy it. If you have not seen any of the others, I suggest you grab the 1st one on netflix first and enjoy it and then tackle the sequels. A great fun family movie that I give a high recommendation to.
The Company Men (2010– 104 mins) B. Affleck, Tommy Le Jones, C. Cooper
So many times when we watch movies, we get involved with trying to figure everything out. Some of those times while doing this we are trying to follow complex and convoluted story lines. Occasionally you get a film which is more of a story unfolding we are watching, rather then trying to be part of it or figure it all out. “The Company Men” is one such story film. It’s one that you enjoy b/c you are not so much involved and busy working with the plot as you are just sitting there and watching it all unfold. That’s a welcome change for a movie.
We spend the film following the “Men” whom all work for the same large corporation, in one year of their lives. Ben Affleck is the hot shot salesman of the year on the east coast who is abruptly let go in a downsizing. Chris Cooper is his immediate superior who is not sure if his time has come, and at his age it has made him quite paranoid at his potential propositions. And finally, Tommy Lee Jones is the best friend of the owner/founder of the company and also is his second in command. His affair with the company’s chief downsizing czar brings him increasingly close to the downsizing info and has him uncomfortable as to how his friend is running the company. The movie flows from the initial introductions to the key players to following them after the initial windfall of lay-off.
What starts simply as the bombshell layoff to Affleck then continues with the stunning fact that even a cocky hot-shot like him cannot find a job in this day. We get a ton of character development and growing but it’s not easy for any of them. I don’t want to go into more of it without spoiling it. Yet, take my word that it is a very enjoyable ride. It’s not always a happy one b/c it’s a realism movie with realistic often painful depiction of the job market but it still is a very well made, and well acted movie.
Verdict–> This is one that I thoroughly enjoyed. It’s not a movie I would watch a ton or break out at family gatherings, but I did think it was a very good movie. I put it on the top tier recommendation list for the next time you are at the red box.
