Archive for December, 2007
‘Juno’ Reviewed
Thursday, December 27th, 2007So, I saw the movie Juno yesterday. I honestly didn’t expect much of the movie. The only thing that really got me thinking that it might have potential was the fact that Michael Cera, who had a starring role in Superbad, which I thought was hilarious, was in it and I figured Juno would be equally funny. It had plenty of good jokes, I’ll give it that.
If you haven’t seen it yet, then be aware that the commercials — at least the commercials I had seen prior to going to the movie — gave a much different impression about what the story of the movie was going to be. The movie is about two uncool best friends in high school, a guy and a girl, who have a one night stand, and the girl gets pregnant. The commercials I remember seeing made me think the movie was about their relationship, and how they handle the pregnancy. But that’s not really what the movie is about. The movie is much more about the girl Juno MacGuff (played by Ellen Page) and how she deals with being pregnant and her decision to give the baby up for adoption. Michael Cera’s character, Paulie Bleeker, really has nothing to do with the whole process, as Juno herself finds a couple eager to adopt her unborn baby. That, to me, was rather disappointing.
That doesn’t mean the movie itself was bad… it just wasn’t the movie I was expecting. It certainly had its funny moments. I’ve told a couple people that the movie is like cross between Knocked Up and Napoleon Dynamite. That may not be the best description, but that was the first impression I got.
Since the story focuses primarily on the character Juno MacGuff, Ellen Page truly makes the movie. Her delivery of sarcastic quips and rebellious teen demeanor was one of the best aspects of the movie. J.K. Simmons performance as Juno’s father was also really good.
Juno was not my favorite movie, and I don’t believe I’d buy the DVD when it comes out. But, who knows, it took a while for Little Miss Sunshine to grow on me too.
Top 5 “Best Of” Lists For 2007
Tuesday, December 18th, 2007Since it’s the end of the year, I thought I’d just recap my favorite books read and movies watched (but not necessarily published or released) this year.
Top Five Books Read in 2007:
- Water For Elephants, by Sara Gruen [My Review]
- Planet of the Apes, by Pierre Boulle [My Review]
- Paycheck: Collected Short Stories Vol. 1, by Philip K. Dick [My Review]
- Slam, by Nick Hornby [My Review]
- Speaking With The Angel, by Nick Hornby (editor)
All that I can really say about these books you can see by clicking on them to read my respective reviews on them (with the exception of Speaking With The Angel, a collection of short stories by various writers, including Nick Hornby, who edited the anthology).
Top Five Movies Seen in 2007:
- The Departed*
- Knocked Up
- I am Legend [My Review]
- Live Free or Die Hard [My Review]
- Transformers
Beowulf [My Review]
Most of these I never ended up writing a review for. There were quite a few movies that could have made the list, including The Simpsons Movie, which could have taken the #5 slot instead of Beowulf. Knocked Up was easily the funniest movie I saw in 2007. I did see Superbad, which did provide a lot of laughs, but was not nearly as good a movie as Knocked Up.
UPDATE: I forgot that I saw The Departed on DVD in March of this year (though it was released in theaters in 2006) and that has to be the best movie I saw in 2007. So Beowulf has to be bumped off the Top 5 and joins The Simpsons Movie in Honorable Mention.
Top Five Four Movies I’m Planning To See In 2008:
- The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
- The Dark Knight
- Atlas Shrugged
- Revolutionary Road
- Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
This list is subject to change when I see more previews for movies to be released in 2008. But of the movies I am aware of to be released in 2008, these ones I am sure to go to see while they are still in the theaters. I will admit that my desire to see Atlas Shrugged is more out of curiosity, as the book is over 1,000 pages and the movie couldn’t possibly capture all the important details that make the story as good as it is. Still, I’ll see it, knowing very well that Hollywood could only butcher it. I am similarly skeptical of the new Indiana Jones movie. To be totally honest, I don’t expect much of it, but since I’ve seen the other three Indiana Jones movies, I have to see the new one. I plan to see the movie Revolutionary Road because I read the book not too long ago.
‘I Am Legend’ Reviewed
Sunday, December 16th, 2007Yesterday, I saw I Am Legend, starring Will Smith. My recently renewed interest in science fiction was apparently enough to cause me to see the movie on opening weekend. I had read a negative review a few days earlier that largely focused on what the reviewer said was unconvincing special effects. However, my co-author Mark Noonan spoke very highly of the movie, saying it was the best movie he’d seen in 10 years, and that it was an Oscar-worthy performance by Will Smith. I would say, at the least, he deserves to be nominated.
I can say I don’t think it was the best movie I’d seen in 10 years, but it certainly was a good performance by Will Smith, who has come a long way since his days as the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
I have not read the original story by Richard Matheson, though I suspect I will get it soon. (I’ve put it on my wish list if any of my readers wants to get it for me) I’m actually really interested in the book now, as well the previous film adaptation, The Omega Man, starring Charlton Heston.
Anyway, I wasn’t totally put off by the special effects and I also thought the movie didn’t simply degenerate into a typical action movie. Will Smith largely has to carry the movie by himself and the action that does take place fits the story, and doesn’t seem arbitrary like in the latter two installments of The Matrix Trilogy, (where there was hardly a scene that didn’t have a special effects-infused fight sequence) or even in Live Free or Die Hard (with some ridiculously unrealistic scenes, including one involving a fighter jet) so I would say there was a good balance of true acting and action.
I Am Legend definitely won me over. You can’t help wondering what that kind of isolation must feel like, and I think if anything, the movie should have spent more time on that, and less on the zombies. I imagine the DVD release will have plenty of bonus features, including deleted scenes, that will be worth seeing.
Prince Caspian
Sunday, December 16th, 2007Of all the movies I’m looking forward to seeing next year, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is the one I’m looking forward to seeing the most.
Posted below is the official trailer for the movie:
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqzYukVDqy4 350 350]
The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta
Thursday, December 6th, 2007I decided to read The Abstinence Teacher by Tom Perrotta after attending a reading and signing of Nick Hornby’s. During the Q&A he mentioned this book as one he’d recently read and had good things to say about it — so I gave it a chance. I could tell from reading some short reviews of the book before I started it that it had an agenda, but I gave it a shot anyways. The story itself reads like an after-school special, and is hellbent on portraying abstinence education as grossly misleading. The book’s portrayal of evangelical/born-again Christians is equally unflattering and misleading. The author, Tom Perrotta, seems to want readers of his book to believe that evangelicals are all weak hypocrites and fanatics with a unified mission on par with the Crusades to covert all nonbelievers at any cost while at the same time using their faith as a crutch to cover up their unhappiness.
It was amusing to read the part when Ruth Ramsay, the sex-ed teacher who begrudgingly teachers the abstinence-only sex education curriculum (which has been forced upon the school as a result of the threat of legal action) expresses her disgust over the false or misleading statistics she’s been told to give to her students, and proceeds to advise them to visit the website of Planned Parenthood for more “accurate” information — as if Planned Parenthood doesn’t have it’s own agenda that is harmful for young people.
The story went back and forth between the lives of the main characters, and the various burdens of life that define them. Ruth Ramsey being the sex education teacher who is responsible for the first controversy which starts the story. Then there’s Tim Mason, a born-again Christian who belongs the church which is the story’s antagonist. He is also the soccer coach for the team his and Ruth’s daughters play on. He is responsible for the second controversy which moves the story, when he leads the soccer team in a prayer following a hard-fought victory. Both had issues with their kids and their formers spouses, which certainly added a lot of depth to their characters.
The novel’s ending left open a lot of loose ends, but wasn’t as effective as the endings to Hornby’s novels. Hornby’s novels don’t have Hollywood-esque ending that artificially tie all the loose ends together. While the ending of Hornby’s A Long Way Down really sparked my curiosity about where the characters would continue to go. I didn’t have that same curiousity when I reached the ending of The Abstinence Teacher.
“I am Beowulf!”
Sunday, December 2nd, 2007“I am Ripper… Tearer… Slasher… Gouger. I am the Teeth in the Darkness, the Talons in the Night. Mine is Strength… and Lust… and Power! I AM BEOWULF!” - from Beowulf
This weekend I went to see Beowulf at my local IMAX theatre.
‘m sure I was supposed to read the story Beowulf in high school, but probably managed to avoid reading it, or completely forgot. Anyway, it looked like it was going to be a good movie when I first saw a preview for it. When I found out it would be playing in 3D at the IMAX theatre, I knew I had to see it there.
It was really exciting to experience the the movie in 3D. Some scenes were fantastic in 3D, others were harder to appreciate because the speed of the action made it hard to appreciate the 3D, and sometimes it even got a bit blurry.
Still, if you can see the movie at an IMAX theatre, go see it there.
If you can’t, don’t worry, the movie certainly can stand on its own without the 3D. The computer animation is incredible. The plot and drama are captivating throughout the movie. I wish I could compare it to the story, but I don’t remember it even if I did read it in high school.