Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Naughty but funny...

I saw Step Brothers on Saturday. It was so disgusting in parts (I cringed at the "balls on the drum set" scene)...but I laughed at every damn joke in it! Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly are the step brothers of the title, and they hate each other at first. It's hilarious to watch two overgrown boys battle each other. I was afraid that the only funny scenes had been in the trailer, but there was a lot more! It was sort of a guy flick, but that's okay. A movie called "Step Sisters" would not have worked- really, has anyone ever seen two women fighting over a drum set, wrecking a house, or trying to bury each other?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0838283/

Monday, July 21, 2008

Bring on The Dark Knight!

I finally watched Batman Begins- so I'm ready for the sequel. I liked it, though there was too much of character intros and not enough story. Once the action really starts, though, it was pretty awesome! I think I like Christian Bale better than all of the other movie Batmans. He really looks the part of the brooding billionaire/crime fighter.

Downside- Katie Holmes added nothing to the story. She can't act. I'm glad she was replaced for the sequel.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Mamma Mia!

Four stars!

I loved ABBA as a kid. I had to bite my tongue to keep from singing along.

The story is a bit lightweight- girl is getting married, invites the three men who could be her father without telling her mom they're coming, chaos ensues...but it was a fun, joyful two hours in the theater. Most of the cast could sing really well.

Great cast! Meryl Streep was at her best, and it was a hoot to hear her singing ABBA songs. Pierce Brosnan was the only cast member who really couldn't sing well, but he made up for it with charm. Colin Firth seemed a bit Darcy-like at first (hey, he can never fully escape that role), but the character loosened up through the movie. And Christine Baranski and Julie Walters stole the show as Streep's pals. The younger leads were good, too. And the chorus (a Greek chorus, hee!) was perfect!

The scenery was beautiful. I so want to go to Greece now!

Most of the best ABBA songs were here (if not actually sung, they were instrumental versions). They weren't just thrown in. They actually fit in with the story- like Money, Money, Money and The Winner Takes It All. When Streep sings Slipping Through My Fingers, I almost started crying! Baranski nearly brought down the house with Does Your Mother Know. And of course, I wanted to sing along with Mamma Mia! and Dancing Queen.

Friday, July 18, 2008

DVD watching!

I have a lot of time on my hands while I'm house sitting this week. I brought along a bunch of DVDs to watch. Tonight I watched Atonement. Tomorrow night I'll watch Sweeney Todd. I plan to watch Batman Begins...so I'll be prepared to see The Dark Knight! I also plan to watch Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World for the millionth time.

Tomorrow I'm going to see Mamma Mia! in the theater. Dark Knight will have to wait- it will be too crowded!

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Another summer movie down!

My nephew wanted to see Hancock today, so I went with him. It was pretty good- a bit slow in parts, but Will Smith was great as usual. It wasn't very funny. The previews made it look like a comedy. There were a few funny bits, but it takes a bit of a serious turn. It was a different kind of superhero movie!

The previews didn't interest me much. I've already seen The Dark Knight preview about six times! I think the summer movie rush is about over. I hope the preview for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will attached to something I want to see. There's not much left!

Monday, July 7, 2008

Disney/Pixar does it again!

WALL-E was great! Easily the best Pixar movie to date. Great story, characters, visuals. Very little dialog! The movie presented a rather depressing future, with Earth becoming so polluted that humans have to go into space- where they are so pampered by machines that they get fat and lazy. Yikes. I loved WALL-E, the little garbage compactor-bot left on the ruined Earth in the 28th Century. He meets the probe EVE, who is sent to find life. He follows her back to the colony ship, and has an adventure in trying to bring the humans home.

I also loved the slight dig at big-box stores like Wal-Mart- the Buy-N-Large corporation of the film controls everything. The world leader is a CEO instead of a president or prime minister.

WALL-E's obsession with the "ancient" movie Hello, Dolly! was amusing.

There was a nice little short at the beginning. I hope it will be on the DVD.

Not sure I'll go see Hancock- the reviews have been mixed, but word of mouth is pretty good. I may wait a while for the crowds to go down.