After almost two years of speculation, controversy, and 3D conversions, Seth Rogen's The Green Hornet has finally been released in theaters. Now let me just point out (in case you haven't figured it out already) this is not your typical superhero movie. Heck, this isn't even a superhero movie to begin with. The Green Hornet doesn't have super strength, the ability to fly, or even super speed. What The Green Hornet has is Kato, who can be described as a more kick ass version of Robin, without the tights. Without Kato being in this movie, The Green Hornet would probably be a crappier version of Tommy Boy. But thanks to the entire cast of the movie, The Green Hornet is one of the best times I will probably have in 2011. Well, it was better than The Dilemma.
Britt Reid has always been an incredibly spoiled person, who's only satisfied by getting drunk and having one night stands every night. But when Britt's father James dies unexpectedly, he realizes that he hasn't done anything good for his life. But along comes Kato, James Reid's personal car worker and coffee maker. Britt, wanting to do something good with his life teams up with Kato to become undercover heroes posing as villans. And thus, The Green Hornet is born.
You may be surprised that I enjoyed The Green Hornet more than The Dilemma, but you have to hear why I thought this was better. First off, I found the movie to be very funny. Unlike The Dilemma, this movie isn't taking itself too seriously. There was nothing really serious in this movie at all. Not all of the characters in this movie were unable to be related with and hateable. In fact, the only person in this movie that was a very hateful person is in fact Seth Rogen, the main character. You could describe him as being a fat, spoiled version of Bruce Wayne. Kato is what Robin should be if he was on steroids and was a cool sidekick. So if you hate Seth Rogen as an actor or as a comedian, this is probably not for you. However, if you like awesome action comedies with cool sidekicks, then you may actually like this movie.
Now here's the one reason why The Green Hornet was postponed to a January release: 3D. Yes, because of 3D, we had to wait over a year before we can see this movie. Well let me tell you that this 3D conversion was one of the best 3D conversions I've ever seen. You couldn't actually tell that it was a conversion, due to the 3D (which was kind of unnecessary) looking just as good as native 3D. So if you do want to see a 3D conversion done right, then this is the movie for you.
So The Green Hornet won't be the single best movie you see in 2011, but it's sure one he'll of a fun time. It's a laughable, action packed movie that really makes you want some if Kato's awesome looking coffee. If you're coming here for plot and acting, then you will regret spending the money. But if you're looking for some mind numbing 2 hour 3D fun, then you might worship this movie. I'm not saying you should go see it, but I'm telling you that it's a very fun comedy. So if you got stung by something recently, it might've been Tje Green Hornet coming after you.
Ah, you'd think that the combination of comedians Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, and Academy Award winning director Ron Howard would be a match made in heaven, right? Well for some, probably. For me, not so much. It's a shame that The Dilemma isn't as funny or good as you'd expect from all of the trailers out there. It's not that the movie isn't funny, because I did chuckle a few times. But in the end, it's such a Dilemma that this movie didn't live up to expectations.
The film centers around two best friends/business partners named Ronny and Nick. The two men have terrific lives, yet are attempting to get a job deal going on. But things are put on hold for Nick as Geneva, Nick's lovely wife is seen having an affair with a man named Zip. As Ronny is trying to figure out whether to tell Nick, he is confronted with many other secrets, dark memories from the past, and to decide on what's the most important in his life.
Now I'm not saying that this movie was one of the worst movies of 2011, but it may be n my Worst of 2011 list due to the rating system I have. If you're going in expecting a funny comedy with a bunch of sexual and raunchy jokes, well you chose the wrong movie for that. I could probably describe this movie as a bromantic dramedy, rather than a raunchy comedy. This movie is more dark than it shows in the previews. I could compare this movie slightly to Jim Carrey's 1996 dark comedy The Cable Guy. You would go in expecting the typical Jim Carrey comedy, but you get a movie that is in fact very dark and a little bit haunting. Now this movie was far from being haunting, but the story is a bit dark as the movie progresses. Also in this movie, you learn that everyone has secrets that can hurt somebody, yet you don't know what to do with those secrets. Like the slogan for the movie says, "The Truth Hurts".
The problem with this movie is that it leads you to believe that it's something that it's not. Yes, I can consider this movie a comedy, but the laughs are kept very minimum. For teens that are big fans of Vince Vaughn and Kevin James, I wouldn't recommend this movie to them. It's not that it's not appropriate, I just don't think they'd understand the plot to much, or just get so bored that they would walk out of the theater. This was a movie made by a skilled director that was intended for mature audiences. Also, I believe that I myself am probably not the most mature person to see this movie, being 13 and all. That might explain why I didn't laugh too much in the movie. But maybe it's because the movie actually did suck. But who am I to be trusted with a Ron Howard movie. I hated The Dark Knight for a few years, anyway, but later found the movie to be quite spectacular.
This movie isn't something that I would see again and again, but in a few months when it comes out on DVD and my parents rent it, I might have to watch it again to give myself a second opinion. The cast was good, but not terrific. The movie was funny, but not hilarious. The story was interesting, but not grabbing to some audiences. I had more laughs in the previews than I did in the entirety of the movie. When I saw the movie, the audience total in the theater was about 8 or 9, (due to it being a morning show) but I barely heard laughter in the movie at all. Not to mention that the only parts that I laughed at were parts only shown in the trailer. (Yes, I even laughed at the controversial "gay" joke) I can't control you going to see the movie, but I would strongly recommend saving the $20 on going to see this in the theater and wait for it on DVD. So to close off this review, the real Dilemma o this movie is that it's one of the most disappointing movies I've seen in 2011 so far, and I haven't even seen The Green Hornet yet! But hey, people have different opinions, so some of you who are reading this review might actually enjoy The Dilemma. I'm just one of the people who didn't like it.
Ah, it's about freaking time! Yes, I've finally been able to see my very first R rated movie. Nope, it's not a movie like The Hangover or The Matrix; instead, it's the critically lauded The King's Speech, starring A-list British actors Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter. Now for the average 13-14 year old, they wouldn't have ever heard of this movie. But since I'm the absolute movie freak, I was all over this movie when I saw the trailer. But I thought that I had no chance of seeing this movie because o the R rating stamped on this movie. That is, until my grandparents saw this movie and found it completely appropriate for a teen like me. So after much talking about it, my parents allowed me to see my first R movie, which of course made me excited. And luckily, this movie did not disappoint me as it was funny, important, very historical, and for the most part, incredibly sublime.
As the rise of World War II was emerging, King George V needed a successor for when he died. Luckily, he had two sons; David, the eldest of the two sons, and the supposed successor, and Albert or "Bertie", who ever since he was a kid suffered a massive stuttering problem. So after the King dies and David is going to marry a divorce' American woman, it's up to Albert, or now called King George VI to help his country in one of the world's darkest hours. But to do so, he must overcome his stuttering problem with the help of Lionel Logue, a kind yet strict speech therapist that possibly may be the one key to regaining peace in England and guiding the country into the biggest war in recent history.
So from the preview I knew that this movie was bound to be terrific. And the other critic and Sundance buzz only made me even more excited. But after seeing this, my mom and I turned to each other and said the word "Fantastic", and I knew that the movie exceeded both of our expectations. There's really nothing that I disliked about this movie. The movie is such a powerful experience into one of the world's most horrific moments, and take us to the experience of how one Prince, soon-to-be-king changed the world with his many famous speeches. Believe it or not, this movie isn't just a historical dramedy about King George VI, this is also a redemption, coming of age (somewhat), and life changing movie that teaches people to overcome your fear and problems, even if it takes one other to help you do so. The King's problem was a massive stuttering problem, which he gained from being picked on, teased, and being afraid to stand up in front of a crowd. Yes, you can probably guess what will happen in the end, but it's what's in between the beginning and end that is what this movie is all about. Now let me talk about what makes this movie one of the most engaging and powerful movies of 2010, possibly this decade.
The main thing that I think helps this movie soar above grounds is the acting. Colin Firth, who I've only seen in Nanny McPhee and Mamma Mia! was apparently muzzled out of an Oscar win last year due to Jeff Bridges' performance in Crazy Heart. Now this year it might (probably will be) vise verse, since Colin Firth is absolutely terrific with his portrayal of King George VI. His performance is both funny and very believable. He captures the tragedies and hard times that the King had before/when he was appointed to the top. But believe it or not, Colin Firth, in my opinion was not the best performance in this movie. It actually belonged to Geoffrey Rush as Lionel, the speech therapist. Even though he might not win Best Supporting Actor, due to Christian Bale in The Fighter, the Academy should consider Mr. Rush as winning the award. He is what filled the movie for me. He was the extra delicious frosting/cherry put on top of the cake. The other performances, including Helena Bonham Carter as the King's wife made very good and very believable characters that also helped spark up the movie. Not to mention that it's nice to see Ms. Carter play something other than an evil and fantasy-esque character like Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter movies.
Now the big controversy about this movie is that it was rated R. And like many people who saw and loved this movie, I disagree with the MPAA's decision, yet I can see why they gave the movie the restriction rating. The movie was rated R for "some language", and that comes from a very important scene in the movie in which King George VI i screaming the f-word with encouragement from his speech therapist. Now this scene was so important to the flow of the movie that they couldn't hve cut it out at all. He said the f-word about 8-16 times in that scene alone, thus the R rating. But if teens are mature enough, and the school approves of the movie, schools could show this movie to teens 8th grade and above as one of those educational movies for school. The teachers could try to bleep out the many curse word uses, so the movie could be shown in school and the students wouldn't giggle to themselves that the adults are swearing. Hey, some middle schools around the country do show Schindler's List, so how is this movie worse than that? I have yet to determine that.
Well overall, The King's Speech is one of the must see movies of the new year. With drama, comedy, and history combined together with some help of superb acting, I believe that The King's Speech should take it all this year at the Oscars. Now The Social Network probably will win this, but this is one f those movies that the Academy loves to give awards to, so we'll see. I'll probably watch The Social Network once again to make the final thought, but for the time being I believe that The King's Speech should win Best Picture, since it was one of the most enthrilling and powerful experiences I had at the movies this past year. Now if you can excuse me, I'm going to listen to the actual speech given by the real King George VI one YouTube. That is, if I can find it. (I probably can)
As I've said before, I am going to take every 2010 release I saw this year, and narrow them down into my top 15 movies of the year, and my bottom 15 of the year. Here is that list below: Unfortunately though, I tried to add posters for all 30 movies, but this post was having some technical errors, so the posters for the listed movies are with the review I wrote for each one. Be warned that as I saw these movies a second time, I changed my mind from the rating I gave with the post, so please don't be that confused. Also, I'll probably be seeing a lot of 2010 movies that are still in theaters or in redbox and HBO, so look out for those reviews as well, but those movies, no matter how much I love or hate them will not be added to this list. Instead, they will be added to a couple of lists that will be under my 10 favorite movies ever list, and these lists will be updated every year, so look out for that. So without further ado, here is my top 15 and bottom 15 movies of 2010:
Now I know what you must be thinking: Why did Zach even chose to review this movie, let alone watch it? Let me tell you why; because it is a sweet, funny, heartfelt, and imaginative way to get inside the head of a curious 9 year old girl. Ramona and Beezus is quite possibly the sweetest movie that I saw in 2010, with humor, heart, and imagination to pull the audience all the way to the end. Sure the poster may seem that Selena Gomez of TV's 'Wizards Of Waverly Place' is the main star of the movie, but it's that little girl next to her, who plays Ramona from the title that steals the show. A young actress named Joey King plays the quirky 9 year old girl, and basically steals the movie with her performance. I can see a lot coming for this young actress, which shows that her performance along with the help of the supporting cast, director Elizabeth Allen, and the stories from the mind of Beverly Cleary make Ramona and Beezus THE must see rental for families and young girls alike.
So the plot goes like this: Ramona, a curious but trouble making 3rd grader deals with her friends, family, life problems, and here world of imagination. She tries to do the best she can, but everyone tends to laugh at her except for her sweet aunt, her car, and her one best friend. How will Ramona get through he hard, yet sometimes enjoyable life. Through the power of her imagination, she can be herself in that world and her real life.
Now from the previews this may just seem like any kids movie as an excuse to go see a flick. But let me tell you, as a soon to be 14 year old, this is a movie for everyone. Well, not for any other male teen out there, since I'm guessing they'll just think of it as a little girl's movie. But let me tell you that those guys who see this movie don't understand that it's just not their kind of movie. You have to have the right mind and the right heart in order to enjoy this movie. This movie explores the average little girl's mind by using her kind of curse words, her imagination to get through the day, and the problems she deals with, both with her family and her social life. And that's one of the best things about this movie: It explores the harsh times and the happy/funny times of life seen through the eyes of Ramona Quimby.
Like I said before, it's young Joey King who steals the movie from the rest of the ensemble cast, including Selena Gomez, Sandra Oh, and Josh Duhamel. I'm not saying that the rest of the cast wasn't good. In fact, they also contribute to the movie's sparkle. Other supporting cast members include John Corbett as Ramona and Beezus' loving father, Ginnifer Goodwin as Ramona's mellow and understanding Aunt, and Bridget Moynahan as Ramona's mommy. People shouldn't go to see this movie just for Ms. Gomez, since she's only in the movie for half of its initial running time of 103 minutes. The other cast, especially John Corbett help bring the movie to its highest points, and to some of its sadder sequences involving financial problems, romantic interests, and deaths. But this movie has the words, "Great Family Fun" written all over it. And that's exactly what it is.
Don't let the somewhat poorly edited trailer fool you away from this movie. It's actually the younger family version of Diary Of A Wimpy Kid, not to mention more enjoyable. Though I can't wait to see the 2nd Diary Of A Wimpy Kid movie in March, (yes, this year) I'd surely love to see the rest of the Ramona Quimby books come alive on the big screen. I have personally read a couple of the Quimby books when I was younger, and I must tell you that they are good books for younger kids. It's not a movie for the teen guys like me. (yet, not like me) It's more of a movie for the faint of heart, the younger generation, and the adult/old generation, since it's a family movie, plain and simple. So do you think your family's messed up? You don't know messed up and funny until you meet Ramona and Beezus.
Action comedies can differ from time to time. Some can involve cops, like The Other Guys. Others can involve secret agents and spies, like Knight and Day, Tom Cruise's latest effort to score money and regain fans he might've lost in the past. This time, he brings along Cameron Diaz, his previous costar from Vanilla Sky. Now I've never seen a single Tom Cruise movie before, not even Mission Impossible, but like all moviegoers I started watching this with an open mind, hoping to kill 2 hours and have some fun. And boy, Tom Cruise delivered the goods for me, as Knight and Day was one of the most fun rentals I've ever had.
The synopsis is pretty standard for this kind of movie: an average American woman gets swiped off her feet by an undercover spy who is risking both of their lives for an everlasting battery. But if this battery gets in the wrong hands, who knows what will happen. Yeah, this sounds like a corny plot. But that's just what happens with 20th Century Fox, they send out trailers showing the main stars of the movie and some awesome and funny sequences, but don't explain what the movie's even about. But I don't care, this movie is still a fun ride.
Now like I've said I've never seen a Tom Cruise movie before, so I don't know if he's terrific at his game. However, after seeing this movie, I can surely say that he is hilarious. The way he explains every situation to Cameron (clueless in this movie) Diaz is funny to us and intriguing to both the damsel and the audience. Cameron Diaz plays her usual thing, the out-of-control damsel who either wants everything to be perfect or have a normal life. But in this movie, we see her get drugged, shooting weapons, etc., which makes it very funny to watch. The other cast are just the spies tracking the leads down, and a clueless teenager who invented the battery I talked about earlier. It's the main leads who make this movie very very fun.
Now the story may not be that original, and some of the casting may have not been cool to watch, but it's the funny jokes, awesome action scenes, and the main actors who help Knight and Day see it's light. It's not a movie where the plot is reliable, it's a movie where you just have to sit down and watch your mind melt for 2 hours, like this summer's The A-Team. (Which coincidentally they both came from the same studio) Now I would recommend this movie to anyone who loves action and comedy, but I wouldn't recommend this to people who aren't fans of the two main leads. See if you don't like Tom Cruise or Cameron Diaz, then you might as well rent something else to satisfy your appetite. So if you enjoy action, comedy, Tom Cruise, or Cameron Diaz, you just might want to check this out. I wish I got to go see this movie on the big screen, since that is what this movie was made for. So what time of day do you perfer: Knight or Day? Whichever day you perfer, then take that time of day to watch Knight and Day.
When you hear the name Robert Pattinson, the first thing that probably pops into your head is Twilight, where he plays the dreamy, sparkling vampire Edward Cullen. As this may be hard to believe, Mr. Pattinson here wants the Twilight Saga to end soon, since he wants to branch out into other genres. So his first attempt in doing so is Remember Me, a tragic yet compelling movie that is full of drama and tragedy that may have you crying at the end. You can probably call this movie a love story, which it is, but it's also a coming of age story, since the main character must overcome his loneliness and find his true place in the world.
SYNOPSIS (Courtesy of Fandango.com) Tyler, a rebellious young man in New York City who has a strained relationship with his father ever since tragedy separated their family. Tyler didn’t think anyone could possibly understand what he was going through until the day he met Ally through an unusual twist of fate. Love was the last thing on his mind, but as her spirit unexpectedly heals and inspires him, he begins to fall for her. Through their love, he begins to find happiness and meaning in his life. But soon, hidden secrets are revealed, and the circumstances that brought them together slowly threaten to tear them apart. Remember Me is an unforgettable story about the power of love, the strength of family, and the importance of living passionately and treasuring every day of one’s life.
Now this movie isn't a terrific, Oscar winning film like Titanic or Slumdog Millionaire, but some (including me can't deny that this is a good movie. The story is just your typical love, drama, an tragic story, but with another modern twist. Now this movie isn't a filmmaking breakthrough, or one of the greatest movies ever made, but it's a good drama a a nice, yet depressing way to spend 2 hours. With every romance comes dramatic tragedies. What that means is, if you hate sad movies, don't see this movie. This film is very sad the moment the first scene begins. You'll know this since the movie has moody yet somewhat powerful music throughout. But if you're a tough person who can handle anything, or has a girlfriend wanting to spend a Saturday night with you, then try to look for this movie, and you might actually enjoy it.
Now I would like to point out that Robert Pattinson accomplishes what he intended to do when making this movie: get away from Twilight. Yes, he's not just some pretty boy making out with Bella Swan and taking his shirt off every 30 minutes, he's slowly but surely becoming a serious actor. I can compare this step of acting to what ZacEfron did with Charlie St. Cloud, except this movie was made specifically for mature teens/adults, and not for screaming girls who just want to see a hot guy take his shirt off. I can see Robert Pattinson going places someday, well, as a serious actor, no less. It's not like will see Robert Pattinson in a romantic comedy with an actress his age. Oh shoot, I just gave many movie studios another crappy idea and another way to make what I call "lazy money". I just hope to see Mr. Pattinson in more movies like this, and establish himself as an actor and not as a teen heart-throb for the remainder of his acting career.
So overall, Remember Me is a good movie. It's one where you can relate to the characters as if they were friends or brothers/sisters of yours. It has drama, romance, and tragedy all blended together. This is also a very mature movie for mature audiences. Parents, even though this has one of the world's biggest teen-sensations, be warned that this deals with the reality of life, including bullying, love, and death. So if you have kids who love Twilight and love Robert Pattinson, don't let them get near this movie. Not only will they not understand this movie, they'll be exposed to adulthood before they even got to puberty. But other than that, Remember Me is a romance that I think shouldn't be missed. So, even when he's long gone from acting, how will you "Remember" Robert Pattinson; as the teen heart-throb, or as a serious actor? You decide.
Ah, here we are again. 20th Century Fox releasing a dumb movie about a tough action star or raunchy comedian working with something totally kid friendly. First it was Garfield, then Fat Albert, then Alvin and the Chipmunks, and now it's Tooth Fairy. Tooth Fairy takes Dwayne Johnson, who was once a tough wrestler/action star, who now stars in many crappy kids movies. But as hard as this may be, and it really is shocking for me to say this, but Tooth Fairy is actually one of his better kids movies, but it's not because of the main actor himself. I'm just going to save you some time on reading the synopsis, so I'll just summarize the summary: Jerky sports star becomes tooth fairy after telling little kid there's no such thing as one.
Now like I said, this movie was not a disappointment. This movie was not made towards critics and adults. This movie was made directly towards families who want to get to the movies, or in this case, watch on HBO. I believe that Dwayne Johnson is one of the worst actors in Hollywood right now. In every Dwayne Johnson movie I've seen, he is never a believable character. All I see him being for another few movies is just another tough wrestler/action star who takes on dumb kid roles that many actors could do much better. The only exception for Mr. Johnson is the hilarious Get Smart. Now getting back to the movie, it's not Mr. Johnson who is a good actor in this movie, it's the supporting cast. Julie Andrews and Billy Crystal are possibly the best part in this movie, even though those actors are probably in the movie for a maximum of 30 minutes. The rest of the movie is just a kid-friendly, unharmful movie, that families may or may not enjoy.
So to sum up my short review of Tooth Fairy, this movie was just okay. It's not terrible, and it's not teriffic, it's just decent family entertainment. On the plus side, it's better than Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. If there's nothing else you and your family can find on stars, this might be the best choice for you. I'm not saying that parents will enjoy the movie, but I know the kids will absolutely love it. Although it has a teribble story, special effects, and acting from the lead characters, it's saved by some of its corny jokes and supporting cast. So should you go see Tooth Fairy? If you're in a family with small children, it'll be better just to watch their reaction on the movie than just watch the movie itself. Overall, if you do watch Tooth Fairy on HBO, your kids will surely have a good time. As for the adults, well, at least the movie is free, right?
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