The Woman in Black - 7 stars out of 10

The Woman in Black - 7 stars out of 10

It is not often that a movie can truly be considered "terrifying" but "The Woman in Black" left me quivering in my seat.  And based on the fact that I've never used the word "quivering" prior to this moment, I'd say that it left a pretty big impression.  This film is your standard haunted house/ghost story where the mystery is slowly revealed one piece at a time, but it is done incredibly well.  The key to this film's chills are its relentless sequences of intensity.  Many scary movies alternate terror with comic relief to give the audience a break but the only comic relief in "The Woman in Black" is the nervous laughter from people in the theater, trying to break the tension.  Other movies sporadically use short, scary scenes punctuated by "jump" moments, while the rest of the film is a dark drama to explain the plot.  This film's terror comes in the form of long, uninterrupted heart-pounding sequences of horror that escalate to the film's climax.  That 20-minute long sequence in the middle of the film where it's just Daniel Radcliff alone in the house with weird stuff popping out everywhere is merciless and had my body so tense that I was shaking.  It's an amazing, unending barrage of terror.  Although they use the same "dark figure suddenly appearing in the background" tactic over and over again, it is done in such an effective manner that each appearance becomes more frightening than the last.  Images like the rocking chair are used over and over again, but instead of losing their poignancy, the effect is multiplied each time.  The dull, gray-scale cinematography really sets the desired tone on the entire film.  And the fire sequence: WOW!  The film seems much longer than 95 minutes, probably because those frightening sequences feel like they will never end.  Radcliffe's acting was very good, though I had trouble believing that he was old enough to have a 4-year-old son.  Unfortunately, "The Woman in Black" has a much larger flaw.  The first 80 minutes were so good, but it was all spoiled by the final 15 minutes.  I don't know what the writers and editors were thinking, but the ending of the movie opens up several unnecessary plot holes that are never resolved or explained.  Why does Sam Daily see his son in the house?  Why does he get locked in the room?  Why doesn't anything happen to him?  Where does his son go?  And let's not forget the ending that just kills all of the film's momentum.  I can think of cheesy endings that would have been much worse than this one, but I also think that they could have done better and left things more open-ended.  "The Woman in Black" is a delightfully terrifying story that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish, but I wish that I would've walked out of the theater talking about the chills instead of the disappointing ending.

Saludos Amigos - 2 stars out of 10

Saludos Amigos - 2 stars out of 10

One would expect that Disney could make any subject matter interesting, even geography!  "Saludos Amigos" is evidence against this, creating a boring geography lesson that cannot even be saved by Goofy.  It has been forgotten (or ignored) by most Disney fans and marks a low point for Disney Animation Studios.  I understand that much of Disney's animation staff was serving in World War II and the rest of the animators needed something to do, but they could've come up with something better than this.  The four animated segments are tied together through live-action footage of the countries, but the quality of each section is hit or miss.  Of course the comedy of Donald and Goofy was entertaining but the plot still managed to be boring.  And Pedro the airplane?  What was up with that?  The watercolor animation and samba music of the Brasil finale is colorful, flashy, and exciting - why couldn't the entire film have been that way?  This sequence is the film's only redeeming quality, saving it from the dreaded single-star.  The only other thing that I gained from this movie was getting to meet José Carioca for the sequel "The Three Caballeros."  It is tough to justify watching this film when there are 50 better Disney Animated Films out there - I would only recommend this to the most dedicated of Disney fans.

[Pictured: Donald Duck and José Carioca

d José Carioca]

Babies - 1 star out of 10

Babies - 1 star out of 10

"Babies" has the potential to make some bold statements about circumstances creating behavioral characteristics or about the innate human nature shared by every person in the world... but it doesn't.  Instead of a comparison of how four babies from four different countries (two rural and two urban) develop similiarly/differently, we end up with 4 interspersed sets of unrelated footage that tell very little.  Any sort of narration would have been welcome to compare their lifestyles but the director attempts to let the images speak for themself... and they do not say much.  Occasionally the images are thematically related but generally are not.  David Edelstein of New York Magazine said it best - "Presents itself as an ethnographic meditation on the first year of life but is better approached as an 'oooooh' and 'awww' fest..."  I don't know what I expected, but it certainly didn't involve this much breast-feeding and crying.  I should probably think through these things first.  At least I learned one thing from this documentary: Think twice before watching anything entitled "Babies," especially if you plan to watch it while consuming your lunch (even more so if your beverage of choice during lunch happens to be milk).

The Fox and the Hound - 7 stars out of 10

The Fox and the Hound - 7 stars out of 10

There aren't many people that claim "The Fox and the Hound" as their favorite Disney film, but this hidden gem delivers a powerful emotional punch in a friendship-based story (as opposed to Disney's standard love story).  I think that this has become one of the "forgotten Disney movies" because it lacks the catchy, memorable songs that are often associated with Disney's greatest films.  Can you even name a single song from this movie?  While watching the movie, I couldn't hum the melody of any of the songs that I had already heard.  Still, they did a beautiful job of writing music for the legendary Pearl Bailey that perfectly fit her role as Big Mama.  I like Buddy Baker's hillbilly music that properly sets the setting of this film, though it fails to establish a memorable theme like "The Lion King" or "Beauty and the Beast."  As an adult, it is difficult to watch this film without seeing its strong overtones of racism, but it enhances the film's theme that society dictates what groups of people are "allowed" to be friends.  Disney films are always darker when viewed from an adult perspective, but "The Fox and the Hound" is overwhelmingly sad as childhood innocence is thwarted in order to keep Tod and Copper in their proper societal places.  This film's cast is packed with celebrities: Mickey Rooney, Jack Albertson (Grandpa Joe from Willy Wonka), Pat Buttram (Mr. Haney from Green Acres) as Chief, Paul Winchell (Tigger), Pearl Bailey, John Fiedler (Piglet) as Porcupine, and Corey Feldman (Mouth from The Goonies) hilariously plays Young Copper.  That's quite a list.  The amazing thing is that every voice is perfectly suited for their character on screen, with one exception: Kurt Russell's voice doesn’t seem to match the look of Copper's character.  I would say that they should have cast Young Copper differently to better match Russell's voice, but Corey Feldman is so hilarious that they should have just found a deep voice for Adult Copper.  The story itself has many dramatic moments, but none as poignant as the final image before the movie fades away.  "The Fox and the Hound" is a quality Disney film that is worth a watch but is often overshadowed by its fun-loving counterparts.  There may not be any princes or princesses in this film, but you'll definitely want a pet fox by the time that it concludes.

Rango - 4 stars out of 10

Rango - 4 stars out of 10

"Rango"s animation is impressive but this Western's plot moves at a lizard's pace and the script leaves something to be desired.  This film's problems begin with characters that aren't very likeable.  I felt an overwhelming sense of "I don't care" from start to finish and only kept watching because the animation was so realistic.  The voice acting is average - don't get mad at me, Johnny Depp fans.  I love his acting too, but it's because he is so much fun to watch.  His voice acting is good but when you eliminate his visual mannerisms, you lose an entire dimension of his acting.  There are a lot of other big names in this cast (to the extent that I got excited just reading all of them) but none proved to be very memorable.  I am still trying to figure out who the target audience of this film is.  There is a lot of clever innuendo (thespians...) but it’s not enough to appeal to adults without kids.  The whole prostate sequence (don't read into that too much) was really funny and I really liked their stereotyped fireside conversation, but a lot of the script feels ambiguous.  Perhaps the movie was designed just for kids, but then I become very confused by the amount of language (which would also make this uncomfortable for parents to watch with young children).  "Rango" has its moments, particularly through its clever incorporation of well-known themes (The Magnificent Seven, Ride of the Valkyries, Blue Danube Waltz) into its musical score; unfortunately, its target audience is limited to preteens and this Oscar-winner can't offer much more than an impressive canvas whose quality of animation overshadows its story and script.

Hello, Dolly! - 7 stars out of 10

Hello, Dolly! - 7 stars out of 10

"Hello, Dolly!" is high class.  This 1890's period piece is delightful as Barabara Streisand lights up the screen with her incredible costumes and adorable disposition.  I can definitely understand the criticism about Streisand (at age 29) being cast to play a widow who has coped with her husband's death for many years BUT... she is so incredible in this role vocally and charasmatically that she is a perfect fit.  Despite mixed critical reviews, the film won 3 of its 7 Oscar nominations, though I cannot understand how it did not win for Best Costume Design.  The rest of the actors were well cast, particularly a young Michael Crawford as Cornelius, Walter Matthau as the grumpy Horace Vandergelder, a charming Marianne McAndrew as Irene Molloy, and E.J. Peaker as the obnoxiously lovable Minnie Fay.  The casting is complete when Louis Armstrong appears with one of the greatest cameos in cinema history.  If there was an award for Best Choreography, this film definitely would have won.  The dinner sequence is just plain impressive - rarely have I seen choreography that clean or creative.  And then when Cornelius and Barnaby start dancing along with the waiters?  Hilarious.  "Hello, Dolly!" is a solid film filled with happy-go-lucky music and memorable characters that will make you smile with every line - how could anybody resist?  And if that's not enough, this is the film that Disney-Pixar deemed appropriate to bring back humanity in their film, "WALL-E"!  You definitely can't argue with Disney and Pixar, so add it to your list!

The Thing (2011) - 5 stars out of 10

The Thing (2011) - 5 stars out of 10

I know that I am going to take a lot of flack for this, but I enjoyed the prequel to "The Thing" more than the original!  The original thrives as a mystery film but lacked the technology for the alien to meet its full potential.  That potential is realized x100 in this graphically horrific version of the same concept.  Like its predecessor, "The Thing" lacks character development and receives its low rating because I didn't care when characters died, nor can I list the name of a single person mere hours after watching.  But the alien is awesome and never gets old because it takes on so many different forms!  From the mini-arm-Thing to the bursting-out-of-your-stomach-Thing to melded-two-faced-Thing, every version is unique and scarier than the last.  The idea of a replicating alien is awesome but once that is discovered 1/2-hour into the film, there isn't really anywhere for it to go (except for progressively killing everybody off).  Like the original, it isn't the best story in the world but this film makes up for that with awesome imagery.  It isn't a must-see but something to be enjoyed by any fan of the original, especially as the ending bridges the gap between the two films.

The Informant! - 6 stars out of 10

The Informant! - 6 stars out of 10

Matt Damon steps forward in a comedic role unlike anything he's played before, further proving himself as one of the finest actors of our generation.  His monologues are hilarious, delivered with impeccable timing.  The downfall of "The Informant!" is that its transition from comedy to drama is too sudden.  What starts as a quirky comedy leaves the audience with a sour taste in the end.  The greatest aspect of this movie is a fun and feisty score by Marvin Hamlisch.  His score makes it possible for this serious subject matter to have a lighthearted feel and successfully brings out this movie's comedy.  If for no other reason, this movie is worth seeing for Hamlisch's score and Damon's monologues.