Love Actually - 9 stars out of 10
"Love Actually" is a great romantic movie whose concept of intertwining stories has often been imitated ("Valentine's Day", "New Year's Eve") but rarely executed with this much success. It is a perfect blend of comedy, drama, cute moments, and valuable lessons. These ten London love stories are separated enough that they are believable but related loosely enough that they can all believably culminate in the end. This film is unique because each love story displays a different side of love. Whether it is love at first sight, an unspoken love from a distance, the love between a father and his son, the love for a departed spouse, lust over a younger woman, or a sister taking care of her sick brother, every facet of love is explored. The ensemble cast was perfectly distributed. Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman, Billy Nighy, Laura Linney, LIAM NEESON - need I say more? Lรบcia Moniz and Martine McCutcheon are the perfect love interests (and make it easy to pick my two favorite love stories), while Rowan Atkinson is the perfect comic relief in a cameo that brilliantly suits his personality. Meanwhile, Emma Thompson taps into an emotional side beyond any of the other all stars. "Love Actually" has those moments that you'll never forget, like when Andrew Lincoln shows Keira Knightley the wedding video or silently explains everything with his signs and when everything works out to the Beach Boy's "God Only Knows," you will surely have chills (and maybe a few tears of happiness). I love that the film's opening narrative about seeing love in an airport terminal becomes unexpectedly significant at the end in an "Oh yeah!!!!" sort of way. The film has some trashy stuff (nudity and some f-words) but if you can get past those, this will become a great "watch whenever I'm lonely" movie.
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Birdmen: The Original Dream of Flight - 6 stars out of 10
Birdmen:
The Original Dream of Flight - 6 stars out of 10
“Birdmen: The Original Dream of Flight” is a visual experience that brings the first-person perspective of BASE jumping to those of us who will never be brave enough (or willing to risk our lives) to experience it. The documentary provides a decent history of man’s attempts to fly but quickly gets to wingsuit flyers. Most interesting is the dedication of these BASE jumpers and their acknowledgement that every jump could easily end in death. While the content was not anything earth-shattering, the first-person views of the jumps along the sides of mountains, over towns, and through canyons make it worth watching.
“Birdmen: The Original Dream of Flight” is a visual experience that brings the first-person perspective of BASE jumping to those of us who will never be brave enough (or willing to risk our lives) to experience it. The documentary provides a decent history of man’s attempts to fly but quickly gets to wingsuit flyers. Most interesting is the dedication of these BASE jumpers and their acknowledgement that every jump could easily end in death. While the content was not anything earth-shattering, the first-person views of the jumps along the sides of mountains, over towns, and through canyons make it worth watching.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Parker (2013) - 4 stars out of 10
Parker (2013) - 4 stars out of 10
“Parker” is pretty much what you expect from a Jason Statham action film. His character is really cool, he’s being pursued by a hott girl, and he kicks butt in the end. Probably the best part of the film comes early on when Statham is introduced as a nice guy who only steals from those who can afford it, but will destroy anyone that does not do what he says. The story kept me interested enough to keep watching and find out what happened in the end, but some of the acting was so bad (particularly the gang that he’s hunting down) that it was tough to stomach at times. I was glad to see that this was more than a “save the victim, kill the bad guys” film, with a fairly complex heist plot (times two) that was well thought out. It isn’t “Ocean’s Eleven,” but it created an interesting subplot to Statham’s killing spree. The blood was a bit overdone, particularly the knife through the hand and several injuries that characters unreasonably survived. Jennifer Lopez, she was pretty unacceptable. With performances like “Selina” on her resume, this was a large step down. I am annoyed that they found some lame excuse to make her strip down to her underwear (just because she’s J-Lo) and the only thing that she added to the story was that dumb character that spoils the hero’s plan by doing some boneheaded thing at the end. “Parker” is a below-average action film that is fun to watch but won’t do much for your absorption of good film content.
“Parker” is pretty much what you expect from a Jason Statham action film. His character is really cool, he’s being pursued by a hott girl, and he kicks butt in the end. Probably the best part of the film comes early on when Statham is introduced as a nice guy who only steals from those who can afford it, but will destroy anyone that does not do what he says. The story kept me interested enough to keep watching and find out what happened in the end, but some of the acting was so bad (particularly the gang that he’s hunting down) that it was tough to stomach at times. I was glad to see that this was more than a “save the victim, kill the bad guys” film, with a fairly complex heist plot (times two) that was well thought out. It isn’t “Ocean’s Eleven,” but it created an interesting subplot to Statham’s killing spree. The blood was a bit overdone, particularly the knife through the hand and several injuries that characters unreasonably survived. Jennifer Lopez, she was pretty unacceptable. With performances like “Selina” on her resume, this was a large step down. I am annoyed that they found some lame excuse to make her strip down to her underwear (just because she’s J-Lo) and the only thing that she added to the story was that dumb character that spoils the hero’s plan by doing some boneheaded thing at the end. “Parker” is a below-average action film that is fun to watch but won’t do much for your absorption of good film content.
Sunday, November 10, 2013
A Borrowed Life (Final Sale) - 4 stars out of 10
A Borrowed Life (Final Sale) - 4 stars out of 10
“A Borrowed Life” is an interesting story but very much has the feel of a made-for-tv movie. It all seems very low-budget and the acting is sometimes a bit overdramatic. ...And upon further investigation, this IS a Lifetime Original Movie. When your movie features Robert Carradine (the father from Lizzy McGuire), you know that something is up. It definitely isn’t as bad as what typically comes to mind when I think of the “Lifetime” brand but it just can’t compete with “real” movies. The film strikes an interesting dynamic as the main character must fight against the very thing that saved her life. It is an interesting concept but would have been more effective with different actors and a different script.
“A Borrowed Life” is an interesting story but very much has the feel of a made-for-tv movie. It all seems very low-budget and the acting is sometimes a bit overdramatic. ...And upon further investigation, this IS a Lifetime Original Movie. When your movie features Robert Carradine (the father from Lizzy McGuire), you know that something is up. It definitely isn’t as bad as what typically comes to mind when I think of the “Lifetime” brand but it just can’t compete with “real” movies. The film strikes an interesting dynamic as the main character must fight against the very thing that saved her life. It is an interesting concept but would have been more effective with different actors and a different script.
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