NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN - I know what you all are going to say. "You're just now watching this movie?" Okay, that's a fair question. This movie was released right around Megan's due date, so obviously the timing was just off. We tried to catch it during it's re-release around Oscar time, but we missed it then to. I really wish I could have seen it in the theater because this was a great movie. There's nothing I'm going to say here that you all haven't heard already. The movie won Best Picture, and rightfully so. It's just great. I love Tommy Lee Jones in this kind of role. The slow-moving, old Texan whose set in his ways. In fact, his role here was eerily similar to his great performance in THE THREE BURIALS OF MELQUIADES ESTRADA, which came out a year or two ago.
At first I didn't like how the film ended. The total lack of closure was uncomfortable at first. But the more I thought about it the more I felt the end only made the film better.
The cinematography is great. The performances are great. The entire film is great. What else is there to say?
ENCHANTED - Jenny had been waiting to see this movie for a long time. So when it came out on DVD we quickly rented it and popped it in. This is the traditional Disney "Sleeping Beauty/Cinderella" story, only with a live-action twist. It's warm and fuzzy, cute and fun, all rolled up into a nice package. We liked it. Our only comment really (and this is not a criticism perse) was we simply expected it to be funnier. I was expecting a few more laughs, a little more slap-stick. But other than that we liked it. Amy Adams is great in everything she does.
10,000 B.C. - A few days after Jenny got back from China I took some "Dad time" and went to see this winner. I'm joking of course. What is it about Roland Emmerich that drives me nuts? All of his movies are laughably epic, but yet I keep going to see them. I feel like the rat in the cage that keeps trying to get the cheese...only to be zapped everytime.
Movies like INDEPENDENCE DAY and THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW are not that great if you watch closely. But boy, I get sucked in by those trailers. I'd say Emmerich is better at trailer making than movie making...which in this day and age is what counts for Hollywood studios I guess.
So here we are with 10,000 B.C. I'm sure the folks at the History Channel had to laugh at this one just as much as I did. Did you know the woolly mammoths were captured by the ancient egyptians and helped build the pyramids? Did you know that ancient Egypt was founded by the lost race of Atlantis? Did you know ancient civilizations in 10,000 b.c. spoke perfect English? Okay...okay...you get the point. The story is rediculous. A tribal warrior travels from central Europe to ancient Egypt to rescue his woman. Through his travels he encounters ancient tribes, sabertooth tigers, giant ostriches, and lots of mammoths. Like I said, the story is laughable. But I'd be lying if I didn't admit there were a few scenes that I thought were pretty cool. The stampede of mammoths at the film's finale especially. So overall, I would say this movie was okay. You know what you're going to get with Emmerich movies, and you know what you're not going to get. Of course you can always save your money and just watch the trailer. They're usually better anyway.
EASTERN PROMISES - One director I've really grown tired of over the years is David Cronenberg. Yet, I've seen his last two movies simply because of the actor who appears in them - Viggo Mortensen. In this film, Naomi Watts finds a diary along with an abandoned baby from a deceased mother. She soon suspects that the mother was killed by the Russian Mafia. The mafia (including Mortensen) play a game of cat and mouse with Watts over the baby and the diary.
I liked the movie more than I expected, and I think it was because Mortensen is so good in it. Very deserving of his award nominations. I'm still not a fan of Cronenberg, but I did like this one. Pretty good for a rental.
BEOWULF - I wanted to like this movie...but man, was this just a big laugh. Robert Zemeckis directed this computer animated version of the classic "Beowulf" tale, and in my opinion it's pretty rediculous. Zemeckis is going through a phase right now where he's fallen in love with motion-capture computer animation. Much like we saw in THE POLAR EXPRESS, Zemeckis creates a world here that looks beautiful, and really fits the gothic fantasy theme of the story. However, my main complaint with THE POLAR EXPRESS is the same as it is with BEOWULF - the people just look weird. Every person on the screen looks like they are cross-eyed, and completely void of emotion. It's just something I can't get quite past watching these two movies. Sure, they look great. But I've seen more facial expressions watching SUPER WHY with Ben.
Anyway, the story here quickly gets away from the classic tale, and goes off in so many directions that I just lost interest. Just didn't like this one like I thought I would.
THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD - Based on the book of the same name, this film details the final days of Jesse James. Brad Pitt's performance as James is pretty good, but I think someone else could have played him better. However, Casey Affleck's performance as Ford is great. Very deserving of the supporting actor nomination he received this year at the Oscars.
The film moves very slow, almost at a snail's pace at times. But the cinematography is so stunning to watch that you don't mind taking your time with it. The picture has almost a dream-like quality at times, which makes it very un-western like. In fact, everything about this film is un-western. This is not your typical Clint Eastwood western, or even 3:10 to Yuma. It's simply a drama that takes place in western times.
If one can handle the slow pacing of this film they will be happily rewarded at the end. Very good movie.
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