Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)

Crazy, Stupid, Love is everything its title hints at except for one thing: stupid. This smart and lighthearted comedy is crazy in the context of love, but it does such a good job at tying up all the crazy knots that its colorful and busy plot line introduces and follows. 

The story follows Cal, a newly deemed cuckold after his wife, Emily, sleeps with David Lindhagen and asks for a divorce. This isn't the usual premise for a feel-good, romantic comedy; however, the grace comes in the form of a smug playboy, Jacob. Jacob helps Cal rediscover his manhood, all the while Cal yearns for his life with Emily. In the end, the audience is able to connect all of the stories together as the film manages to reach a happy, fulfilling conclusion.

This is one of the better comedies I have seen in a while. Given the cast, I shouldn't be too surprised, but the film obviously had a well written script. Another aspect of the film that I have come to enjoy since watching it in theaters is the watchability. The story never gets old, so experience it at least once. Conclusion: Watch It

Rating: 7.5/10

Super 8 (2011)

Every now and then, there is a film that draws you due to pure curiosity. Super 8 was one of those films. "What does the alien look like?" So essentially, you could say that Super 8 is a Cloverfield minus excessive found footage plus kids with a hint of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Except to compare Super 8 to either Cloverfield  or Close Encounters would be a crime. 

8 is a much better made film than anything Cloverfield had hoped to be. The plot hooks you in as it follows the awestruck kids as there small town and way of life is suddenly impacted by an alien and the army trying to cover up the tracks. Like Cloverfield, this film has the occasional suspense the viewer can experience when a camera is left at the scene.

Steven Spielberg has always had a thing for kids in his films and science fiction. So 8 follows the mystery and search for the other like Close Encounters, but also incorporates a kid-to-alien relationship like E.T. Overall, it was a pleasant viewing experience that had feel-good elements, thrills, and a satisfying conclusion. Conclusion: Worth A Watch

Rating: 7.25/10

Inception (2010)

When it comes to Inception, it's incorrect to call me a "hater" because I had such high hopes for the film. I thought it had all of the promise of special effects along with an engaging story, the formula for a great summer film. However, I was unset by something. This attempt at another The Matrix may have been better than the 1999 classic in many people's eyes, but it fell leaps and bounds short.

The story is based on the idea of sending professionals into the dreams of other people. Cobb, the protagonist of the film, who wants to lead a the normal family life he has been deprived of has been called to do one of the most ambitious and complicated dream extractions. Once he achieves this task (as they always achieve the impossible in films like these), Cobb can return to life. As he embraces his kids, there is that ominous top that spins just before the picture blacks out. the significance of the spinning top is that if it continues to spin, your in a dream. If it stops and falls, it is reality. So many people yearn for the answer to the ambiguous conclusion when in reality, the ending is not ambiguous at all. The filmmakers didn't happen to realize that though.

If you learn anything from this film, it is that Cobb spends just as much time in the dreamworld as he does in reality. Being reunited with his kids is a fitting ending to his story. Whether or not that reunion is reality or not, it simply doesn't matter as he is truly happy and to him, the dreamworld is almost like his reality. If he can hold his kids, whether real or imaginative, it does not matter to him. He wouldn't bother looking back at the top. Why should you? Conclusion: Disappointing 

Rating: 6.5/10

Splice (2010)

This is a sickening movie. Not Human Centipede sickening, but quite sickening. Headed into the theaters, I expected Splice to be an interesting, sci-fi flick about biological engineering. The result was a film about perverts playing God.

The actual combination of a human with other animals does make my spine tingle and I don't see why there is a point to that. However, a movie is a movie and I expected thrills from this. Instead, in Adrien Brody's comeback campaign, we got a film where he has sex with the humanimal and if that wasn't enough, the humanimal (I know it's named 'Dren', but 'humanimal' sounds better) dies, turns into a male, and rapes the female protagonist. The female protagonist is seen pregnant at the end of the film. I'm sorry, but that's disgusting. 

I don't recommend this film. To anyone. Conclusion: Do Not See

Rating: 1/10

District 9 (2009)

District 9 is one of the best and most original mockumentary that I have seen. 

The story follows Wikus Van de Merwe, an awkward office worker for MNU, who has just been promoted to evict the prawn from District 9. A little bit of backtracking, prawn-like aliens hovered overhead Johannesburg for several weeks until humans went up to get them out of their broken ship. So now, the prawns have settled in the slum-like District 9. With minor conflicts between the humans and prawns, MNU is forced to move the prawns elsewhere. The story picks up when Wikus is evicting several prawns and comes across a black fluid that sprays on his face. 

The fluid slowly turns Wikus into a prawn and he loses everything. Forced to cooperate with the prawns, he befriends prawn Christopher Johnson. Christopher had been working for many years to get a fluid that will repair the ship and allow the prawns to leave for their homeland. The two set to infiltrate the MNU headquarters to find the fluid container, only for Christopher to witness the brutal tests the humans have run on the prawns. 

As Wikus makes the full transformation from human to prawn, the question begs: who is the real monster? Though the prawns look like monsters, the humans in this movie are the true vile creatures in the galaxy. A sequel seems possible and would be welcome, but it is not needed. This movie is good enough to stand alone. Conclusion: Watch It

Rating: 8.25/10

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

For me, a movie needs have a certain element of extraordinary luck or believable fiction in order to achieve the purpose of entertainment. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button follows the ludicrous yet fantastical storyline of a man who ages backwards. This premise alone can be used for a novella, like F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1922 short story, or a feature length film just under three hours, like David Fincher's 2008 movie. Regardless, either way of storytelling introduces a curious concept.

What I liked best about the film was the setup and love story. To have Benjamin grow younger in the cultural hotbed of New Orleans was a nice touch, as he gets to meet all sorts of people. The character development of the others through Benjamin's intriguing perspective in the journal he left behind truly drove the movie for the first hour or so. What powered the story for the rest of the running time was his relationship with his childhood friend, Daisy. With the obvious age difference of an old man with a young girl, there was no romance, just pure friendship. As the two met half way, the romance took off. Benjamin was wise and Daisy no longer naive. 

To tell the entirety of the story in a short blog post would be an injustice to the film and all involved with the story. Simply put, love supersedes time. This simple message is engraved into a lengthy film, decorated with intriguing tangents, believable characters, and special effects and make up to make the entire work on screen as believable as possible to the eye. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett both deliver performances that their careers will be remembered by. If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend you watch it and I hope that this post was enough to whet your appetite. If you have seen the film, thank you. We can both share the touching, magical story that was so elegantly put forth on the silver screen. Conclusion: Must See

Rating: 9/10

I Am Legend (2007)

I Am Legend is one of those movies that will be remembered in this slew of apocalyptic movies. It's not because it was a well made film though. It's because of the story.

Imagine Cast Away in an apocalyptic New York City setting. It has the main character who has grown accustomed to desolate life, only accompanied by a sidekick they talk to who will never utter a word back. However, there is hope. The story opens up with a radio signal that there is shelter to the zombie-esque apocalypse. Robert Neville, a scientist, is searching for a cure in this NYC isolation. We learn of his life before the apocalypse through his dreams and flashbacks. He comes across other survivors, but in the end neither him nor his dog make it. Instead, if it's any consolation, Neville may have left his legacy with a cure. 

The story is richer and more developed than that of other apocalypse films. There is also no definitive solution to the problem, and in life, there rarely is. Conclusion: Worth A Watch

Rating: 7/10