Rate the Last Movie You Saw

[srboone]

Well, this weekend I had a choice of a whole bunch of movies to go see and I chose.....

Planes: I can't imagine that this even looked good on paper. Stock characters and storylines and substandard animation made for a blah movie. But the kiddies (who weren't really paying attention to the movie) seemed to like it.

2/5

My companion for this movie was my 7-year-old nephew who had never been to the movies before. So that limited my choices of movies. The movie may have sucked, but watching my nephew experience his first trip to the theater made it a 5/5 evening. (My sister was furious when she found out I was taking him to the movies on Friday; I just told her that since she told me at the last minute that she and her husband where going to San Diego for a couple of days, she didn't really have a choice. Unless she wanted to find and pay for a babysitter for two days. Zach is home schooled and has only "pre-approved" friends and playdates. She's pretty much kept him from the real world. It's sickening.)

[TJCams]

Well, this weekend I had a choice of a whole bunch of movies to go see and I chose.....

Planes: I can't imagine that this even looked good on paper. Stock characters and storylines and substandard animation made for a blah movie. But the kiddies (who weren't really paying attention to the movie) seemed to like it.

2/5

My companion for this movie was my 7-year-old nephew who had never been to the movies before. So that limited my choices of movies. The movie may have sucked, but watching my nephew experience his first trip to the theater made it a 5/5 evening. (My sister was furious when she found out I was taking him to the movies on Friday; I just told her that since she told me at the last minute that she and her husband where going to San Diego for a couple of days, she didn't really have a choice. Unless she wanted to find and pay for a babysitter for two days. Zach is home schooled and has only "pre-approved" friends and playdates. She's pretty much kept him from the real world. It's sickening.)

Wow - I know everyone is entitled to raise their kids however they want, but I would agree with you there - sickening.

[Sock Monkey]

Now You See Me-This movie had everything going for it: an interesting premise, a fantastic cast, and a decent director. The one thing that it lacked was a decent script. This is a movie that wants to be very clever and always two steps ahead of the viewer. Unfortunately, it isn't as smart as it thinks it is and eventually feels like a cheat. Suspension of disbelief is an understatement when it comes to this movie. Yes, in all heist films you have to believe that everything would work out perfectly as planned (a la Ocean's Eleven), but the scale that these heists have to be performed on is on such a large scale that it seems rather ridiculous that everything would fall in place. When the final twist was revealed, I think I actually groaned.

Now, as a "turn your mind off and just enjoy the show" it was definitely enjoyable. All the actors were great (though you have to wonder why Isla Fisher was in the movie at all, since her role was rather limited) and the movie does have a certain amount of momentum that pulls you through the end, hoping against hope that the script will pay off accordingly. Unfortunately, it doesn't.

I agree with my wife when she said she would have rathe watched The Prestige again.

Overall Grade: C-

[TJCams]

Now You See Me-This movie had everything going for it: an interesting premise, a fantastic cast, and a decent director. The one thing that it lacked was a decent script. This is a movie that wants to be very clever and always two steps ahead of the viewer. Unfortunately, it isn't as smart as it thinks it is and eventually feels like a cheat. Suspension of disbelief is an understatement when it comes to this movie. Yes, in all heist films you have to believe that everything would work out perfectly as planned (a la Ocean's Eleven), but the scale that these heists have to be performed on is on such a large scale that it seems rather ridiculous that everything would fall in place. When the final twist was revealed, I think I actually groaned.

Now, as a "turn your mind off and just enjoy the show" it was definitely enjoyable. All the actors were great (though you have to wonder why Isla Fisher was in the movie at all, since her role was rather limited) and the movie does have a certain amount of momentum that pulls you through the end, hoping against hope that the script will pay off accordingly. Unfortunately, it doesn't.

I agree with my wife when she said she would have rathe watched The Prestige again.

Overall Grade: C-

Good summary. I would agree.

After the twist was revealed - did you not want to watch it again and see those parts? I missed those the first time around, but watched it again to make sure.

re: Fisher - Yes it was a limited role, she played it well. I found her voice annoying at some points though.

[Sock Monkey]

Good summary. I would agree.

After the twist was revealed - did you not want to watch it again and see those parts? I missed those the first time around, but watched it again to make sure.

re: Fisher - Yes it was a limited role, she played it well. I found her voice annoying at some points though.

I almost felt the need to go back to check the scenes, but not in a "how did I miss that/how did the filmmakers pull that off" kind of way that you would after seeing, say The Usual Suspects or The Sixth Sense. It was more in the sense of "does it hold up under scrutiny". I didn't, because the movie as a whole left me cold. Does the twist hold up under a second viewing? Do the heists make any more sense?

I thought the same thing about Fisher's voice! It's never bothered me before in her other films. Maybe she had a cold during filming or something? Eisenberg and Harrelson were great though!

[Sock Monkey]

Kill List-Interesting movie about a pair of hitmen hired for a job that goes from bad to worse. To go into any discussion of the movie would probably give away too much. Atmospheric and creepy, I have to say I enjoyed it. Grade: B-

[srboone]

Wow - I know everyone is entitled to raise their kids however they want, but I would agree with you there - sickening.

I actually like the homeschooling bit, but it's the social retardation that is inherent in the program that i don't like. The most successful HS programs are the half-n-half ones. They at least allow for some social activity.

[TJCams]

I actually like the homeschooling bit, but it's the social retardation that is inherent in the program that i don't like. The most successful HS programs are the half-n-half ones. They at least allow for some social activity.

Agreed on the social aspect for sure. When done right, homeschooling is effective.

[srboone]

Off to the movies we shall go,
Where we learn everything that we know,
'Cause the movies teach us what our parents don't have time to say!

This week, Insidious: Chapter 2: Actually it was AMC's "Red Door" event of I & IC2. Chapter 2, despite some deliciously creepy and unsettling set pieces, is not scary. Let me say that from the outset. It did make me jump a few times, but they were all "gotcha" shocks that seemed to have been put in just so IC2 would be considered a scary movie. What this movie IS, is a most ingenious second piece to the Insidious Puzzle. It slides nicely into place alongside the original. We've seen director Wan's sly handling of serpentine events in the orginal SAW, but never quite like this. Anybody going to see this film without having seen the previous entry will be lost. But those who have seen it and remember it will be too busy being astounded by this clever little film to worry about being scared. But it does leave you empty at the end.

Chapter 2: 3/5

Since I rated Insidious a 4/5, the Red Door Event gets 3.5/5

I'm glad I saw this as a double feature. Besides, I got another souvenir nerd tag for my collection!

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[Teriw]

I am kind of jelous even though it's not a very good movie. lol

[TJCams]

I hate it when the trailers, etc for movies call it scariest of the year, or whatever. I almost know it won't be! That said, I still find it very hard to find a truly scary movie (one that scares me).

[Teriw]

Theres no such thing as a scary movie, book or story. Not to me anyway. I just like the jump factor and gore or the storyline in general(sometimes)

[Sock Monkey]

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a fascinating documentary about an 83-year-old man who has dedicated his and, by extension, his sons' lives to perfecting sushi at his $300 per plate, 10-seat sushi bar. I put this on one night just because I'd been meaning to watch it for so long, but didn't expect to be so fascinated with the story. The movie doesn't delve deep into Jiro's or his son's life but reveals enough details that you can see the workings underneath. The only thing I wish they had shown was Jiro's wife's opinion of her husband's superhuman dedication to his craft. Well worth the watch, though it did make me feel lazy for only working 50 hours a week! Grade: A

Star Trek Into Darkness: This was everything I was expecting it to be: fast-paced, action-packed, and littered with plot devices. JJ Abrams once again brings the revitalized crew of the Enterprise together for another epic adventure. I enjoyed this. It was a worthy follow-up to its predecessor, though not quite reaching the bar that the previous movie had set. I can't say that the movie was darker than the first, but I do feel that it not as much fun. The comedy was toned down, which was a slight disappointment. The script also seemed way to complicated than it needed to be. A few times I felt that I was left wondering why so many hoops had to be jumped through to get to a certain point when a more streamlined approach would have worked as well, along with giving more time to developing some of the various subplots. I also wasn't surprised by any of the twists in the script. The script wanted to be clever but felt more like it was trying too hard. I enjoyed it though, and I want a third please! Grade: B

I also re-watched Eden Lake (with m y wife and mother-in-law, no less) and was once again struck by how good this suspenseful little flick is. Michael Fassbender is great in an early role and I dare you to not find Kelly Reilly a most adorable and sympathetic protagonist. The plot is nothing new, though it is all about execution and this movie nailed it. It also helps that the movie undermines your expectations as quickly as it plays to them. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommended this movie. Grade: A

[coderedx]

World War Z. I'd give it a 3/5.

I haven't read the book (and missed ordering the CD version, so I'm hoping they have some order cancellations!), but the movie was mediocre. There were some good plot points, and the acting wasn't bad, but it just mostly wasn't anything special.

I hear it has very little in common with the book. Here's The Oatmeal's take on it:
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/wwz

[Teriw]

It's a little more related than title but not much. Some of the stories are in there like the wall and africa...but thats about it. They threw in the idea that dogs could sniff them out but not the whole story of them being used for this.