Movie Reviews & More
The Incredibles (2004)
I saw the previews for this last year, and I remember thinking, “The previews for these Pixar films haven’t been good for a couple of movies now.”
The humor in the preview was more situational, and I wasn’t laughing out loud.
But when it came to the movie, that all changed. As you can see, I gave this my highest rating. This movie was hilarious. Situational and traditional humor. I love it’s subtle commentary on marriage and the daily grind. But this is just a start. This movie’s richness just keeps going from there.
If you thought Nemo was spellbinding how realistic it was, here is my argument. Wow, realistic and pretty. But really, I want to be taken away to a world of many different textures and colors that is created, and not based on reality. A fantasy world. This it, and brings it good.
Granted, I had like no expectations for the movie, but what an adventure. From start to beginning I was riveted and entertained. I never had to think once, everything made sense, and it was just so entertaining, and beautiful. So beautiful, from the glass and mirrored surfaces, to the jungles and trees, to the grandiose rockets and designed battle fortresses, to the water, everything was so amazing. The design of all the sets and characters and the sequences, I could go on and on, and get lost in adjectives about great this movie is. Even the retro final scenes with the flat graphics with how colorful and inventive, down to the last drop this movie excelled.
See it. If you don’t like it, you stink. I am not biased here because this is super hero based, this movie is just amazing and is Pixar’s best movie to date.
Blade Runner (1982)
Oy, this movie. Jeeze. How stupid.
The only reason I didn’t give it a half star, was that Christine said that this movie was enormously popular when it came out, and it was cool too.
I can imagine, and that is about all I can do.
A Ridley Scott film, starring Harrison Ford, this movie is about Harrison, who is this cop guy, set in the future that kills these things called “Replicants” or fake humans. The Replicants were used for slave labor on other planets before they because too smart and started causing trouble. Well, the whole movie kind of revolves around, “If one of these replicants wanted to live beyond its set lifespan, what would it do?”
Anticlimatic, hard to empathize, really really dated story and effects, and a really stupid ending, I can’t think of one reason to recommend this movie. I just hope some more people will leave comments and bash it a little.
Spongebob Squarepants (2004)
I wasn’t sure about this movie. Whether it was even going to be worth the drive to the cheap theaters some Tuesday night. But Christine and her girls love Spongebob, so they bought the movie and we got to watch it.
I liked it. I wouldn’t watch it over and over again, but I liked it. There is this peculiar feel to this type of animation. It isn’t classic at all, in fact every time I see an episode I am reminded of Ren and Stimpy with all of the over exaggerated emotions and their gritty bodily effects.
But there were some very funny lines, some were in previews, some you’ll just have to watch the movie to see. I liked the use of live motion blended in with the animation, it wasn’t clunky but fit the tone. I just didn’t really care for the scene with David Hasselhoff whisking Spongebob and Patrick away to the middle of the ocean.
If you are in a silly mood, and enjoy good animation (this was good animation, it wasn’t that highly stylized corner cutting crap that is out there today) then check this out. If you are the type of person that is easily offended by naked starfish butts, or have small children, I wouldn’t recommend this. I don’t think that the humor is so much “adult” as it really isn’t for children under the age of like 7-8.
Ocean’s Twelve (2004)
I loved this movie. I don’t barely even remember the first movie when it was redone in 2001, but I remember liking that one too.
It was hilarious. Perfect off the wall dry humor. Perfect cast to deliver it. What a growing cast it was. Bruce Willis and Catherine Zeta Jones joined in this time around, as well as many other notable stars. It seems to be kind of perpetuating itself.
The only reason I didn’t give it a perfect score, was that some of the things were just a bit unbelievable, or time lapsed too quickly. Like how they set up jacks underneath a house to raise it so quickly, and the zip line into that house with the key code cracker.
But Clooney and Pitt were awesome as usual, and Casey Affleck, Don Cheadle, and Scott Caan provided great backup characters. Twists, turns, and the team of 12 American’s who tell the French to go and kiss it. What else could you want in a movie? I’m done. I’m fa-clemnt.
Shark Tale (2004)
I sure do see a lot of movies in this area of the alphabet, I wonder if there is a study on why that may be, I NEED SOME ANSWERS!
Shark Tale. About Will Smith who is a small fish in the big ocean who wants to be better than he is. By a stroke of luck, and a little lie, he convinces his whole city that he can kill sharks. Then he hooks up and makes friends with a timid shark with the voice of Jack Black. Together they further this lie to the breaking point. Finally Smith realizes what he has and admits his mistake and everyone lives happily ever after. Also starring the voices of Angelina Jolie, Robert DeNiro, and Renee Zellwegger.
I thought this movie kind of sucked. I am not the type to sit and compare to the other films of the same genre, even though it is a little weird that I think this is the second time Dreamworks has released a full length animated film of the same idea right after Pixar. Shark Tale is different from Finding Nemo in that Nemo had a ton of realism in it’s characters and surrounding. This film is more an illustrative interpretation.
So, for the very least you should see this movie for the imagination. But that is it.
I laughed, hard, five times in the movie. I didn’t chuckle otherwise. It was just kind of cheesy humor, and nothing very inventive.
So, this won’t touch anything done by Pixar in creativity, only go see it if you marvel at how these films are done, which I do.
After the Sunset (2004)
I liked this movie. It was entertaining. It was probably recycled from a bunch of movies about great thief / cop stories, but who better to play the two antagonizing roles then Woody Harrelson and Pierce Brosnan.
Also starring the gorgeous Salma Hayek, this movie is about Brosnan, who is a huge jewel thief and Harrelson who is an FBI agent. Brosnan steals one of the Napolean diamonds right out from underneath Harrelson’s nose, in what is a great fun action sequence involving Brosnan driving an SUV through metropolitan streets with a remote control, and that furthers a great rivalry of hate and love.
Brosnan escapes with his partner, Hayek, to a remote island where they retire. Until Harrelson tracks them down seven years later. Brosnan finds out about another Napolean diamond on a cruise ship that is stopping at his island for a week and Harrelson is trying to stop him. A ton of funny scenes and great interaction from the always funny Harrelson and Brosnan, in the end after a lot of backstabbing, they both get what they want.
If you like Pierce or Woody, or like to laugh, see this movie. If you get hung up on originality or get offended by lots of skin by beautiful women, then pass. But I think it is always worth it to see the crazy ideas and technology that is involved in some of these jewel heists.
Harold and Kumar Go To Whitecastle (2004)
I tend to like these type of silly movies. College aged movies that are silly and a little grotesque in humor. But this was pretty stupid even for my standards. I was hoping for a level of funny silliness like “Dude, where’s my car?” but no such luck.
Harold and Kumar have limited small character fame as “That Indian Guy” from Van Wilder and “The Asian guy who invented MILF” from the American Pie movies.
They are both at college, looking for some fun, and after smoking up determine they need some White Castle and all sorts of random things happen. But even though I can take random, like a “Road Trip” or “Eurotrip” movie, but this didn’t even make sense.
It was bad enough to not even barely write a review. I laughed a couple of times, but that was it. And even though I didn’t find a movie like Dodgeball funny, I could appreciate it. This, just sucked. Don’t see it.
