At the Movies

A haunted house makes no secret of the fact it is not pleased with its new tenants in this independent tale of paranormal horror. Katie (Katie Featherson) and Micah (Micah Sloat) are a twenty something couple who’ve just moved into a new home in San Diego, California. Katie has an interest in the paranormal and believes that malevolent spirits have been following her since childhood, though Micah is not so easily persuaded. However, after several nights of loud noises and strange happenings, Micah starts to agree with Katie that some sort of ghost may have followed them to the new home. After a paranormal researcher tells the couple he can’t help them, Micah decides to take control of the circumstances and sets up a series of video cameras so that if a spirit manifests itself, he can capture its behavior on tape. Once the surveillance cameras are in place, Katie and Micah bring in a Ouija board in an effort to talk to the spirits, a move that deeply offends the ghosts. “Paranormal Activity is the first feature film from writer and director Oren Peli.

This movie was made with a budget under $20,000, featuring only four actors, shot on digital, and using minimal special effects and makeup, is genuinely unnerving.  It achieves this by implementing the basic tenets of suspense. The film uses recognizable scenarios, identifiable characters, suitable pacing between the lulls and moments of shock and terror, organization of mood, atmosphere, and environment, and showing only what needs to be seen, leaving the rest a mystery. It’s truly brilliant!

“Paranormal Activity” sets itself up as the recording of true events, without ever overtly saying it is, of course, but strongly hinting at the notion, is entirely secondary to all of this.  It’s the same method used ten years ago with “The Blair Witch Project”, another authentically scary film that was frightening despite lacking its proposed accuracy, although this film takes it a step further by omitting any form of credits and allowing us to see more of the behavior of the haunting.

Writer and director Oren Peli excels magnificently at building suspense. Every time the film returns to the couple’s bedroom, where they sleep instead of whine or argue, it’s instantly drenched in fright. There’s palpable worry between the audience’s uncertainty of how far the movie will go and the slow build of the demon’s intrusions into Katie and Micah’s lives, complete with eerie sound design to hit you from all sides.

If you get hold of what this film is selling, you’ll certainly leave traumatized and good luck trying to go to sleep that night. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“Paranormal Activity” Official Website

This horror comedy focuses on two guys who have found a way to survive a world infested by zombies. Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) is a skinny scared geek, but when you’re terrified of being eaten by zombies, fear can keep you alive. Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) is a gun toting, zombie-slaying rough and tough southern guy whose single determination is to get the last Twinkie on earth. As they join forces with Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), who have also found unique ways to survive the zombie mayhem. Together they will have to determine which is worse, relying on each other or succumbing to the zombies.

This movie clearly redefines the zombie genre. The movie gets off to a commanding start with an introduction to this world as Eisenberg’s character explains the rules of surviving a Zombie assault. Director Ruben Fleisher shows outstanding promise with this film. For example, each time Columbus gives you one of his rules; you see an example of his rule in action, which is done brilliantly throughout the film. I liked how Columbus explains to the viewers in a background voice such as wearing your seat-belt, or the double-tap rule after you shoot a zombie make sure he is dead by shooting him in the head again. Trust me; this is not a wasted shot. The number one rule is to be sure that you can outrun the zombies by doing plenty of cardio, because the overweight and slow people were caught first by the zombies.

The use of sick, twisted, humorous violence seems to be a breath of fresh air and makes you wonder how this movie even got passed the censors. It’s a really fun ride that doesn’t let you down. The script is clearly, smart and clever and has a sense of irony that you can feel throughout the film. It takes the world that has been created very seriously and in a realistic approach, but injects the film with an outrageous sense of fun and humor, without playing directly for laughs and yet you always get a sense that the characters are intensely aware of just how messed up the world has become.

The casting for this film was spot on. Eisenberg does an excellent job of leading the film and creates a character that you both root for and can relate to. In just a few short films Eisenberg has really made a name for himself as an interesting young actor to keep an eye on. Emma Stone is great as the female lead in the film and comes off as one pretty tough chick, showing off a side that we haven’t seen from her in previous films. Stone has a unique quality and although she has played the love interest in films before, she really has a chance to do more here and show off her ability to be a leading lady. Her pokerfaced sarcasm fit the role wonderfully. Academy Award Nominee Abigail Breslin was very believable as a strong young girl growing up in this new zombie filled world. She is particularly convincing in a difficult scene that introduces her character early on in the movie.

Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson do a great job of playing off of each other. They seemed to be the most unlikely pair that you can’t help but watch their clever dialogue captivate on screen. It’s really amazing.

“Zombieland” is wildly funny and entertaining. Its an extremely well done film that features smart direction and a great story. This film is rated R for horror violence, gore and language. This is not one for the kids.

“Zombieland” Official Website

In the near future, humans live in isolation and only interact through robotic bodies that serve as surrogates. When several humans are murdered when their surrogates are destroyed, Agent Greer (Bruce Willis) investigates the crimes through his own surrogate. After a near fatal encounter, Agent Greer’s surrogate is destroyed and forces him to bring his human form out of isolation and unravel a conspiracy behind the crimes. As the case grows more complicated, Agent Greer must enlist the aid of another Agent (Radha Mitchell) in tracking his target down. Jonathan Mostow directs co-screenwriters Michael Ferris and John Brancato’s adaptation of the graphic novel by author Robert Venditti.

Now, although the movie has extraordinary effects and awesome robots it’s really the storyline and strong performances from both Willis and Rosamund Pike who acts as his wife, that make the film worthwhile. As the story develops, we learn that there has been a gap between the two for sometime due to a tragedy in there past and they have both been using surrogates to sort of mask their pain. You really feel Greer’s pain through Willis’ performance and it is this emotional center that grounds the film. Once Greer is back out in the real world, and unable of using his surrogate, a scene where he tries to convince his wife to do the same is particularly moving.

Something that I found interesting in the film was that Bruce Willis plays his surrogate as a younger version of himself with a soft face and full head of hair but when he plays the real Greer it is the shave headed, weathered, present day Willis that audiences are used to. However in compare, most of the other actors portray the surrogates the way they usually look and are instead aged to play the host versions of their selves. Nevertheless, all the special effects are well done and authentic.

“Surrogates” captured the heart of the graphic novel and sci-fi films from the past in an original way that is fun to watch. Bruce Willis gives another excellent performance and it reminds me of just how underrated of an actor he really is. Maybe it’s because of his mega movie star qualities or his bigger than life personality that have overshadowed his work but film after film, even the bad ones which this is not, Willis is always completely believable and entertaining to watch. Whether it is action, comedy, drama or thriller, Willis always carries the film and grounds it in a way that makes you want to watch him and pull for him to triumph.

Though “Surrogates” is an extremely entertaining film to watch it seems to have a little bit of reduced and slow dialogue in some scenes. However, the action and brilliant special effects will turn your attention away from it. This film is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, disturbing images, language, sexuality and a drug-related scene. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“Surrogates” Official Website

Cassidy (Briana Evigan), Jessica (Leah Pipes), Claire (Jamie Chung), Ellie (Rumer Willis) and Megan (Audrina Patridge) are sorority sisters sworn to trust, secrecy and solidarity, no matter what. But their faithfulness is tested when a prank at a rowdy house party goes terribly wrong and Megan ends up brutally murdered. Rather than confess to the crime and risk destroying their bright futures, the girls agree to hide the bloody corpse and keep their secret forever.

One year later. Graduation Day. As they prepare to say goodbye to the house and each other, the girls plan one last bash on Sorority Row, confident their dark secret remains buried. But does it? As the party rages in the front yard, the bedrooms and the hot tub, the girls receive cell phone videos taken the night of Megan’s murder from an anonymous sender who threatens to forward the videos to the police. Then, one by one, the sisters and their unsuspecting boyfriends are stalked by an unseen killer.

Has Megan returned from the dead to exact her vengeance? Or was their secret discovered by someone else someone now determined to make them pay? Trapped, the girls race to figure out which of them let their secret slip, who wants them dead, and how to fight back as the bodies pile up and their beloved sorority house explodes into flames.

Don’t you just hate it when a classic film gets remade into something terrible? I know I do. “Sorority Row” is a remake of the 1983 classic horror thriller “The House on Sorority Row”.

The whole movie consists in the young attractive girls, and some of their male friends, being impaled by the killer while they try to figure out who the murderer might be. Has the dead girl come back to life? Is her old boyfriend, who was the target of the deadly prank, come out of his mental funk to take revenge? Is the victim’s younger sister to blame? Or is it somebody else completely? All of those questions race through your head during this flick.

There’s not much positive to say about the movie, other than that it avoids the excesses of gore so ordinary nowadays and cuts the number of girls in the killer’s sights from seven to five. The script is bluntly idiotic, with the revelations at the close so illogical that they’re more likely to leave you shaking with cynical laughter than with goosebumps. The direction for the movie is barely proficient, and the cinematography is mediocre at best, with many scenes poorly lit and afflicted with the hand held camera movement that turned my stomach. The score for the film tries to build suspense where there is none. The acting is horrible as well. The girls tend to italicize everything in a way that made me want to stand up and walk out of the theater.

This remake is not so much aggressively awful as simply obsolete and redundant. This film is rated R. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“Sorority Row” Official Website

“9″ takes place in a world parallel to our own, in which the very legacy of humanity is threatened. A group of diminutive rag dolls, living a post-apocalyptic existence find one of their own, 9 (Elijah Wood), who displays leadership qualities that may help them to survive. The conflicted, but tough group includes 1 (Christopher Plummer), an overbearing war veteran; 2 (Martin Landau), an aged inventor; 5 (John C. Reilly), a hefty mechanic; 6 (Crispin Glover), a visionary and artist; and 7 (Jennifer Connelly), a brave warrior.

There are at least several malevolent creatures up against this group; namely, the cat-skulled creature from the short film, of which this film was based, a split-headed flying being that resembles both a bat and a manta ray in wing shape, and an insectoid creature with jointed legs and a pod-like body. So now 9 and the rest of the group must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they’ll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.

This film was one of the most interesting animated films I’ve ever seen. It is so unlike anything I have seen in an animated film. I mean I love the Pixar movies and the DreamWorks projects as much as the next person, but it’s nice to see some darker, edgier fare get a crack at the box office as well. As a long time believer that animation isn’t necessarily just kids’ stuff, seeing something this radically different is exciting, even if the plot doesn’t quite reach the same idyllic level as the visuals.

The first thing you notice about “9″ is its brilliant visual style. Director Shane Acker, who expanded on his own Oscar-nominated short, has imagined an entire fantasy world and packed it with enough detail that we can effectively get lost in it. I’m a sucker for movies that completely transport me to worlds that don’t exist, and this one does so magnificently. Not only is the post-apocalyptic world fully textured, but so are the dolls themselves. There have never been characters like these before, which makes them essentially interesting. Amazingly, given their cobbled-together nature, the animators have made them very communicative. On every visual level, the movie is extraordinary to look at. I strongly believe that “9″ will be a contender in the Best Animated Feature category at this years Oscars, its so detailed and attractive.

This film was pretty intense as well. The rating is PG-13 for a reason. Small kids might be horrified. A sense of menace and peril is effectively, excitingly conveyed throughout. Because the dolls are made of burlap and the machines are made of steel and metal, we know that one side is far more lethal than the other. The movie has several really strong action sequences that play on the idea of the dolls being created from such delicate material. 

This film looks so extremely vibrant and energetic. Those are two reasons to catch it on the big screen. Don’t miss it. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“9″ Official Website

Set in a near future when gaming and entertainment have evolved into a terrifying new mix. Humans control other humans in mass-scale multi-player games; people play people for keeps. Mind-control technology has taken society by storm, and at the heart of the controversial games is its creator, reclusive billionaire Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). His latest innovation, the first-person shooter game “Slayers,” allows millions to act out their most savage fantasies online in front of a global audience, using real prisoners as avatars with whom they fight to the death. Kable (Gerard Butler) is the superstar and cult hero of the ultra violent game. Taken from his family, imprisoned and forced to fight against his will, the modern day gladiator must survive long enough to escape the game to free his family, regain his identity and to save mankind from Castle’s cold-blooded technology.

It’s somewhat meaningless to talk about acting abilities in the movie when half the cast are meant to be emotionless. But I personally liked Michael C. Hall in this film. He presents us with a bad guy we can truly hate. He’s rich, cocky, extremely smart, in shape and evil. You’d just like to drop a bus on him. Gerard Butler didn’t given much emotional substance, and when he is, he doesn’t spend a lot of time on lingering pains across his troubled brow so I’ll give him a pass. Watching him run through this film and rain the set is more entertaining than you might imagine. I’ve also got to give honorable mention to Terry Crews, who takes a typical, over the top psychotic and turns him into an extremely likable bad guy, who I wish was featured more.

This film is a real action trip with more explosions than your mind can handle. It’s fast, mean, dirty and gritty. That’s just the way I like my actions movies. Though, the action on display in “Gamer” is sometimes blurred. There were action sequences that were happening to close together and it made it hard to focus on them.It was almost in an over the top manner.

What redeems the material is that it’s clearly intended not to take itself too seriously. The two directors play a constant game of trying to top one another in a manner that suggests that they dared one another to make each scene more unbelievable that the than the last. There’s even a lesser amount of substance here than in those horrible “Crank” movies, if you can believe that, but chances are you’re not buying a ticket in hopes of having deep thoughts, it’s meant to be watched with shock and awe. The only thing I walked away from this movie with was a sense of “what if?” The movie does, however, offer instant clarification on itself. Just as in the screen story where Gerard Butler is no more than a toy here in the hands of video gamers, this movie kind of strings you along for the ride.

“Gamer” is rated R for intense action, strong violence and language. It’s worth a watch. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“Gamer” Official Website

Once upon a time in Nazi occupied France a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” , a group of Jewish-American guerrilla soldiers led by the cold-blooded Lt. Aldo Raine. They are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis.

“The Basterds” soon cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl; refugee Shosanna Dreyfus who witnessed the slaughter of her family by Colonel Hans Landa. Narrowly escaping with her life, she plots her revenge several years later when German war hero Fredrick Zoller swiftly takes an interest in her and arranges a famous movie premiere at the theater she now runs. With the guarantee of every major Nazi officer in attendance, the occurrence catches the attention of the “The Basterds”. As the relentless executioners advance and the conspiring young girl’s plans are set in motion, their paths will unite for a fateful evening that will shake the very annals of history.

Quentin Tarantino’s latest film is brilliantly executed. It’s violent fantasy of monumental proportions. It contains a couple of the best cinematic scenes this year plus one of the most brilliant portrayals of a villain I’ve ever seen.

One reason why this film works is because the director is a master storyteller who knows how to tighten up the suspense. For example, the very long scene in which two of the Basterds rendezvous with Bridget von Hammersmark at a small pub. There are not supposed to be any Nazis there, but a small group of them have shown up to celebrate. One of them just had a son born hours before. As the scene plays, we know that it’s possible the Nazis will figure out what’s going on. We also know that, if that happens, guns will start firing very rapidly. But what makes the sequence so tense is the fact that we know one guy just had a baby. That knowledge pulses underneath the scene, so that we’re not only worried that the Basterds will be discovered, but also that a newborn will never get to know his father, even if the guy is a Nazi. It’s little touches like that which make this film stand out well above the median and also, the film as a whole has a reminiscent tone of “The Dirty Dozen”.

The weakness of the film is also its strength. This is Tarantino. He is one of the greatest filmmakers alive. He insists on comedy, violence, and a blend of romance. Given his flair for dialogue and taste for black comedy, it’s no misfortune.  Instead of thrilling us with chases and explosions, Tarantino invites us to hang out and chill with a colorful array of characters.

Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine was great. He was perfectly ruthless. His southern accent was on point. Also, Eli Roth as Sgt. Donny Donowitz was amazing. Roth brought a very hard-boiled sense to his character. It gave his character more of an edge that played very well on screen. Diane Kruger is gorgeous as a double agent and Michael Fassbender proves again why he’s an actor to watch. He’s one of the few who manages to walk the line between comedy and drama with proficient balance.

But the best performance in the film go to German actor Christopher Waltz who relishes all of his carefully staged one on ones and easily upstages Pitt in his villainous role. It’s good to know that Quentin Tarantino can still impose shock and awe.

“Inglourious Basterds” is not for everyone. It’s rated R. My advice: Don’t bring the kids. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“Inglourious Basterds” Official Website

28 years ago, aliens made first contact with Earth. Humans waited for the hostile attack, or the giant advances in technology. Neither came. Instead, the aliens were refugees, the last survivors of their home world. The creatures were set up in a makeshift home in South Africa’s “District 9″ as the world’s nations argued over what to do with them.

Now, patience over the alien situation has run out. Control over the aliens has been contracted out to Multi-National United (MNU), a private company uninterested in the aliens’ welfare. They will receive tremendous profits if they can make the aliens’ awesome weaponry work. So far, they have failed; activation of the weaponry requires alien DNA.

The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe (Sharlto Copley), contracts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world, as well as the most valuable. He is the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. Ostracized and friendless, there is only one place left for him to hide. That place is “District 9.”

This was one of the best sci-fi alien thrillers I have ever watched. It was so imaginative. It did what big movies like “Independence Day” and “War of the Worlds” with a very low budget and time frame. This film had a excellent cast, many of which have never been heard of in the U.S.A. It’s very hard to make a movie like this so successful in a short amount of time. “District 9″ made its production budget back in the 1^st week at the box office. Wow.

Now even though this film had a lot of unknown actors it did, however, have one name in the producer slot that stuck out. It was none other that the great Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings, King Kong). I wasn’t surprised. This film had elements of Jackson all over it. It was a film of epic proportions. Director Neill Blomkamp did such a brilliant job of bringing this story to the silver screen. The special effects on the aliens looked incredible.

The action here is almost non-stop, and the reason why it’s the best on-screen action of the summer is because it actually supports the theme. This film has lots of explosions and shootouts and stunts and amazing special effects. Blomkamp knows how to assimilate those things in the service of a story. We care about what happens to Wikus. We care equally about what happens to the aliens or “prawns”. The mayhem here is not self justifying; it is an essential ingredient to a film that’s about both political and personal survival. Some of the set pieces will loiter in your memory much longer than those awful accelerator suits from “G.I. Joe” ever will, particularly the big finale which almost has a “Transformers” like element to it.

With brilliant special effects and emotionally wrenching in some parts, “District 9″ has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly compelling sci-fi classic. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“District 9″ Official Website

After it seems as if she’s left his life for good this time, Tom Hansen reflects back on the just over one year that he knew Summer Finn. Despite being physically average in almost every respect, Summer had always attracted the attention of men, Tom included. For Tom, it was love at first sight when she walked into the greeting card company where he worked, she the new administrative assistant. Soon, Tom knew that Summer was the woman with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life.

Although Summer did not believe in relationships or boyfriends - in her assertion, real life will always ultimately get in the way - Tom and Summer became more than just friends. Through the trials and tribulations of Tom and Summer’s so-called relationship, Tom could always count on the advice of his two best friends, McKenzie and Paul. However, it is Tom’s adolescent sister, Rachel, who is his voice of reason. After all is said and done, Tom is the one who ultimately has to make the choice to listen or not.

This romantic drama had some of the most original dialogue ever. It didn’t follow the order of a romantic comedy or drama. It didn’t really rely on clichés to get it from A to B. But it also wasn’t so straight forward that it seemed to be dumbed down for the audience.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel were really fantastic to watch on screen. I thought they played magnificently and didn’t really need to carry much dialogue to get me into the story. I really enjoyed watching them interact.

The camera simply loves Deschanel’s Summer and it’s easy to see why Tom would fall so hard and pine so deeply for her. The actress seems so confident with charm and her unassuming, dazzling smile, her sparkling eyes, bouncy laugh and natural beauty. Director Marc Webb goes out of his way to capture all of these aspects and more, causing us to fall in love with her too, which helps us identify with Tom. I felt a lot of empathy for the character.

Clever, charming and desperately romantic, the film presents as honest a look at love as possible. With the exception of a few scenes in which Tom seeks advice from his 12 year old sister, which felt as though they’ve been lifted from a bad situation comedy. There’s a genuine quality to the film that will have you smiling at the memory of your first love, as well as cringing at the thought of unsuccessful romances. More than anything, “(500) Days of Summer” is an effective introduction on falling in love and how to continue to exist it after it.

An offbeat romantic comedy/drama, “(500) Days of Summer” is refreshingly honest and quite charming. It’s rated PG-13 and well worth the watch. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!

“(500) Days of Summer” Official Website

Based on the popular toys, cartoons and comics, “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” revolves around an international co-ed force of operatives who use high-tech equipment to battle the infamous Cobra organization, an evil terrorists group headed by a Scottish arms dealer known as Destro. Can the G.I. Joe unit stop the evil organization before they plunge the world into complete and certain chaos? And who is really controlling the mysterious Cobra organization?

This is not the G.I. Joe you remember from childhood. Sure, the names are the same and well used in this flick, but this is not the “A Real American Hero”. This is something completely different altogether. This film took away from something that could have been much better. If this film had better casting, acting, and a healthier story it could have been huge and more lucrative for the studio! But, instead we got something that doesn’t really pay homage to the source material at all. “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” is a fast paced popcorn flick that is meant to get your heart pumping.

It was very difficult for me to follow the storyline in this movie. There were too many horribly crafted special effects for my eyes to focus on. Esthetically this is not what I would expect from a flick of this magnitude. This movie moved way to fast. It should have been more drawn out and stayed true to the base of G.I. Joe. Those “accelerator suits” looked too outlandish and flat out bizarre.  That was a terrible idea to throw those suits into the film. Their not true to the mythology of G.I. Joe. The only time in this franchise’s history you hear of them is in this film! It seems like the people who put this film together are rewriting this history of G.I. Joe. The only characters that resemble any kind of likeness to the originals were Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.

Now that I have said my piece on what made the film bad, there was something good that came from watching “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra”. The film showed me how far we have come as a society. What I mean is we have come to accept different races and ethnicities. In this movie, characters that were one race when the franchise was developed are now a different race or ethnicity. The G.I. Joe unit seems to be more diverse now, hence the acronym Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity. This is not the G.I. Joe from your childhood. You may come out of the theater with conflicting thoughts.

This film is rated PG-13 for strong violence and mayhem. Take care, enjoy, see ya at the movies!   

“G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” Official Website