REVIEW: Dream House

MOVIE
Dream House

CAST
Daniel Craig, Naomi Watts

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
September 30, 2011

DIRECTOR
Jim Sheridan

STUDIO
Universal Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 31 minutes




STARS
**






REVIEW:

A buddy of mine wanted to check this movie out, so I decided to go with him for the sake of a review. 'Dream House' is about a family that moves into this house, and everything is not what it seems. This film is one of the many horror flicks to have come out during this year, including 'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark' and 'Scre4m,' yet it's also on the continuing trend of not being scary at all. This is actually the first horror movie I decided to check out this year, ('Attack the Block' was a horror/comedy, so it doesn't count) so I had high hopes for it. Despite having extremely mediocre reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, (an 8%) I went in with a positive attitude just waiting to be chilled to the bone. I didn't jump once in this movie, primarily because all three of the "jump" sequences were given away in the trailer.

The huge twists of the movie were also given away in the trailer, so there was really no point in going to pay to see this movie if you have already seen the trailer. That's one of the reasons why this movie isn't that scary: because all of the twists are given away in a matter of two and a half minutes! There was a decent movie in here somewhere, but it was locked away and raped to death because of the one trailer released for the movie. If you want to enjoy this movie in the best way possible, DON'T WATCH THE EMBEDDED TRAILER BELOW! If you have seen the trailer, that sucks because you might have actually enjoyed 'Dream House.' It's not a terrible movie, but it could have been much better, considering the fact that this was originally rated R by the MPAA.
The acting in this film isn't as bad as you think it would be, believe it or not. Daniel Craig gives it all he's got, and he plays his twisted part quite well. Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts are also pretty good, but nothing special comes out of their performances. The characters do add a nice suspense into the story, despite the suspense already taken out by the trailer. I apologize for talking about the trailer so much, but it's the truth. Don't watch it, just ask a friend who has seen the trailer if it spoils the movie, where they will say YES. Enough said. Getting back to the cast, they were fine to see, but they weren't fantastic or Oscar worthy for the matter.

I wouldn't exactly call this movie a horror film at all. It's more of a mystery-thriller than a straight up horror flick. I kind of liked that about the movie, because it gives the viewer a thinking element needed during the hour and a half you'll be spending watching the film. There were some interesting twists in the movie that would have been great if, you know the rest. This movie is like a weirder episode of some dumb soap opera like 'All My Children,' where some twists are played out in a very interesting way. I swear there are only three jump scenes in this movie, yet they don't exactly matter because of the cheapness of them. There's no point of even having them because there's no addition to the film from the cheap scares. In fact, they were somewhat laughable to watch. When the little girl says "there's something outside, look over there," you know that in the next split second something will slam onto the window with everyone screaming in the end. Teens will like it because it makes them think of how crazy Daniel Craig's character might actually be. It's an intriguing concept with a good mystery element, but it could have been so much better.

The trailer spoiled it all, so if you saw it, there's nothing to see when you check out 'Dream House.' Once the twists of the movie have been unveiled, you know exactly what's going to happen in the end. That's why watching the trailer would be really stupid to do if you wanted to check this film out. The acting's fine but not great, the story is cool yet predictable, and the scares are dumb and very cheap. The mystery element of the flick was quite interesting, yet there was barely anything that can be put into the "horror" genre. Jim Sheridan not only directed 'Dream House,' but he is one of the most respected filmmakers in Hollywood. He was locked out of the editing room during post production on 'Dream House,' so I blame Universal for the mediocre marketing and the poor result of a film. If Sheridan was able to get the editing rights to his movie, then things might have actually been better than this.

If you want to see this, renting it with no knowledge of the movie is the safest route to go, because then you might actually really enjoy the movie. Any other way of seeing it is somewhat pointless. Why would you even want to watch a movie where you already know the important twists that are supposed to be kept secret? I knew the ending of 'The Sixth Sense' before watching it, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. 'Dream House' could have been a scary as s**t mystery. However because of the poor marketing/editing, and the small running time given, I have to say that I walked out legitimately disappointed. Boo! Was that scary? I didn't think so.




PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

The Big Year

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(WATCH AT YOUR OWN RISK!!)

REVIEW: Real Steel

MOVIE
Real Steel

CAST
Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
October 7, 2011

DIRECTOR
Shawn Levy

STUDIO(S)
DreamWorks Pictures,
Touchstone Pictures (Disney)

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 7 minutes




STARS
***1/2








REVIEW:

Damn, you just have to love Disney at this point right now. Not only have they been responsible for such movies as 'Toy Story' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean,' but they have also been very smart in terms of distribution rights this year. Sure their year started out poor when 'I Am Number Four' came out, but they still had Steven Spielberg and the DreamWorks crew on their side, releasing such films as 'The Help' and 'Fright Night' this past August. What's next up their sleeve you might ask, so here it is: 'Rocky' meets 'Wolverine' meets robots. It may sound very stupid at first, but 'Real Steel' somehow works around the cheesy premise to make an awesome action movie with the added bonus of a father/son relationship. (It's Disney, what do you expect) I had a fun time watching 'Real Steel,' and I believe that families everywhere will love it, despite its fair PG-13 rating. I would even recommend my Orthodox Jewish relatives to take my young cousins to see this movie. There may be language and some fairly intense fighting between the robots and (in one scene) humans, but I guarantee that this is a movie not to miss. 'Real Steel' is the best family movie out there, and without a doubt the best robot action flick of the year.


Charlie Kenton may be the biggest douche in the world. Sorry for the language, but it's the truth. Not only has he become greedy and obsessed with robot boxing, but he also abandoned his only son, now 11, and his ex-girlfriend, who is now dead. Now Charlie's son Max has to stay with him for the summer before papers are signed to give custody to Max's aunt and uncle. During a night of looking for robot pieces after losing an expensive battle, Max finds Atom, a second generation robot (this movie takes place in the year 2020, so second generation is from 2014) that is smaller than most robots fighting currently, yet can take a huge load of hits. Max seems to be the only person who has faith in Atom, so he gets daddy to train the bot, becoming an instant success. Robot battles and father/son issues make 'Real Steel' possible.

Hugh Jackman can either be really good or really crappy. In this movie, he plays a jerky jerk that has eyes shaped like dollar signs and a heart smaller than even the Grinch's. Despite having the growing urge to hate this guy throughout the two hour flick, you come to care for him in a weird way, because of how he bonds with the kid Max. Jackman gives it all he's got in this and for that; he is quite a fun character to see. Plus his fighting skills used for Atom look quite awesome. The young kid playing Jackman's son Max is quite excellent in this movie. Max is played by newcomer Dakota Goyo, and he is not afraid to do or say anything throughout. This kid is smart, witty, and potty mouthed. No f-bombs, but PG-13 potty mouthed (s**t, a**, etc.) is the way he goes. This is the character who tugs at the audience’s heart strings, and he does it flawlessly. The chemistry between Jackman and Goyo is a sweet yet dramatic side to the movie, giving the film the Disney vibe that it needs to have in order to succeed with its audience.

The supporting cast includes 'Lost' star Evangeline Lilly and Anthony Mackie from 'The Adjustment Bureau.' Lilly is a good presence as the obvious love interest to Jackman's character. She may be a clichéd role in the film, but she has a good screen presence and I enjoyed her for that. As for Mackie, he was just awesome in this movie. The role might not be as good as his role in 'Adjustment Bureau,' but it seemed that he had a very fun time making this movie, and I know that I had a fun time watching him play this sweet character. Overall, Spielberg and director Shawn Levy made very wise decisions in casting the characters in this fun movie.

As many know, I am a fan of Shawn Levy. His previous work includes the 'Night at the Museum' series and the Steve Carell/Tina Fey comedy 'Date Night.' I'm glad Levy was able to direct this movie, because not only does it give him control over the storyline, it also gives him control of a better advertisement campaign. When Levy worked with 20th Century Fox in the past few years, the advertising to his movies never quite gave the actual plot of the film, just the very broad details of the movie. An example with this idea is 'Date Night,' believe it or not. What you may thought was a film about a married couple getting involved with criminals was actually about a struggling marriage taking the ride of their lives when they are accused of possessing a flash drive holding crazy pictures of the D.A. of New York. Watch the trailer and you'll know what I mean. Getting back to 'Real Steel,' I loved how Levy was in some ways given freedom in terms of creativity. The fight scenes are effective and awesome, as well as emotionally charged scenes between father and son. If Levy continues on this smart path, he may be considered to be one of Hollywood's best family/comedy directors.

The robots look incredibly cool in this movie, especially during the kick ass fight scenes. You might not have known that some shots of the robots were animatronics, with the rest being CGI. I loved the fact that they went down this path because it gives the film a bit of a 80s feel. The action scenes with the robot not only look cool, but feel very cool in the metaphorical sense. The audience at my Sunday evening show was really into the robot scenes and was even cheering at the end of some of the battles. The last time I remember an audience being so into a movie that they were cheering during it was when I saw 'The Help' a month in advance, and boy was that audience into the flick. Forget Optimus Prime ladies and gentlemen, these robots carry much more emotion than the alien robots, and these bots don't even talk! (Wall-E could talk, so forget about it!)

We, the people are in a generation where movies feature non-stop product placement. 'Real Steel' is one of the many movies this year where product placement is everywhere in sight. My sister, who went with me to the movie acknowledged this in a highly negative way, finding it stupid and unnecessary. Personally, I was just counting the names and laughing my ass off at the same time! There is one scene involving Max, Atom, and lots of dancing. During that scene, you have three cans of Dr. Pepper (great soda, BTW) just shining in your face, with each logo clearly facing the camera on purpose. This is just the least of the product placement, as during the final battle between Atom and Zeus you see numerous logos such as Sprint, Coca Cola, and Xbox 720. (Get the joke there?) If this movie had been nothing but product placements throughout the battles, I would have had a stupid but very fun time pointing out all of the ads. Some people will dislike this movie. If you end up being one of these people, then see the movie a second time and just laugh at all of the stupid ads the movie presents to its audience.

Fighting robots, a cheesy script, and a sweet father/son relationship make 'Real Steel' a very fun movie to watch. The acting is good, the fighting looks awesome, and your heartstrings will be pulled at least once. Your family won't have anything to see for about three weeks, ('Puss in Boots' and 'Johnny English Reborn' come out on the 28th of October) so you may want to take them to see this sleek flick, despite its PG-13 rating. Kids will enjoy the robot fighting and the presence of Max, and parents will not only enjoy the film, but they'll enjoy seeing their kids try to box after you walk out of the theater. My sister is a very tough nut to get in to, so it was nice to see her enjoy this movie disguised as a boy’s movie. Little girls out there, there were females aged 15 and younger in the show I went to, so I have a strong feeling that this really is a movie for EVERYONE. I also want to point out that this movie was released in the IMAX format, so if you have the choice between the two versions, I'd say go to IMAX because of the kick ass robots fighting on the huge screens, plus the added sound of the fights and the film's music. So if you're looking for a fun robot flick with humor, heart, and something for everyone, then do yourself a huge favor and see the wrath of 'Real Steel.’


 



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Johnny English Reborn


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REWIND REVIEW: Howl's Moving Castle

MOVIE
Howl's Moving Castle

CAST
Jean Simmons, Emily Mortimer

RATING
PG

RELEASE
June 10, 2005 (U.S.)

DIRECTOR
Hayao Miyazaki

STUDIO(S)
Walt Disney Studios,
Studio Ghibli

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 59 minutes






STARS
****









REVIEW:

It's official: Japan is the animation capital of the world!  What's even more crazy about me making this assumption is that this was my first Anime movie outside of the 'Pokemon,' 'Naruto,' and 'Yu-Gi-Oh' franchises.  I've always heard that Hayao Miyazaki was a fantastic director, being at the helm of such recent classics like 'Spirited Away' and 'Ponyo,' but I just never got around to watching one of his films.  October 7, 2011 was the start of Yom Kippur, which is 24 hours of fasting and redemption from Hashem (G-D) for the new year.  My father was at synagogue, my mom out with a friend, and my sister also hanging out with a friend.  Just looking for something to do, I look to see what was on Starz at around 6:00, and sure enough I found something.  'Howl's Moving Castle' was the movie I chose, and I'm sure as hell overwhelmed by my super wise choice.  With the American voice talents of Christan Bale, Jean Simmons, (R.I.P.) and Billy Crystal included in the package, 'Howl's Moving Castle' is a magnificent animated flick.  It might actually be one of the best animated movies that I've ever seen, believe it or not!  Let me just tell you now before you get all angry at me that I'm not a huge fan of 'The Wizard Of Oz,' though it is still a good family movie.  The reason why I mention 'Oz' in this review is because this movie is 'Oz' for teenagers, or anyone who loves fantastic cinema.  'Howl's Moving Castle' is a sublime animated tour-de-force that should be watched by everyone for many generations to come.

Sophie is an 18 year old girl hat maker who has just been cursed by a powerful witch known as The Witch of the Waste, turning her into a weak 90 year old women with no chance of surviving on her own.  Just by the fate of luck, Sophie meets Howl, another powerful magician with dark secrets on his shoulder and a convenient way of traveling around the world.  The transportation? A huge ass moving castle run by a kind demon named Calcifer, who knows more about Howl than anyone does.  With the aid of a young apprentice named Markl and a moving scarecrow only known as "Turnip Head,"  Sophie will travel throughout the world to reclaim what is rightfully hers, even if that means risking her life against demonic demons out to get every witch and wizard alive to fight in an unnecessary war going on at the same time.

We are in the era where almost every kids movie out there is either using CGI, adding the dimension with 3D, or combining both to make a cool looking kids movie.  The rare examples of kids/animated movies being released using hand drawn animation include this year's 'Winnie The Pooh' and 'The Lion King 3D,' which only worked because there was nothing else playing for kids during the beginning/middle of September.  The film uses hand drawn manga animation, and it looks absolutely spectacular the moment the first frame of the movie hits your TV.  Hand drawn animation is never supposed to look as real as a Kodak picture, but you'll find it hard to ignore how detailed some of the animation looks, including the moving castle and the shocking look of the wrinkly, 90 year old Sophie.  The vision of this world is nothing less than extraordinary, and I now believe that Miyazaki may have the most creative mind of any movie director in history.  That may be a bold statement coming from a 14 year old teen who enjoys many others such as Tim Burton and Steven Spielberg, but Miyazaki has ways with his movies that make them so creative and unique that they pull you in just by looking at a poster. 

The voice casting in this movie is quite incredible, despite not having the biggest names in Hollywood.  The most famous name out of the all star cast is Christan "Batman" Bale, who plays the wizard Howl.  I have never seen or even heard Bale be such a friendly soul before, especially after his rant on the "Terminator" set years ago.  In this movie he voices a character who is the combination of David Bowie in 'Labrynth' and a really really really nice wizard, like Dumbledore or Mickey Mouse.  You can also add "bad ass" to the combination because that is exactly what Howl is: a beautiful soul with the touch of a bad ass.  Another voice in this movie who can be highly praised is Billy Crystal as Calcifer, a talking flame of fire who controls Howl's Moving Castle.  Crystal at first is unrecognizable, but once he gets into his tantrums you know exactly who it is: MIKE WAZOWSKI!  The two leading men prove to be powerful additions to the movie, but what about the leading ladies?

Emily Mortimer and the late Jean Simmons portrayed the main character Sophie at two different stages in the twisted spell casted on by The Wicked Witch of the Waste.  Mortimer plays her when she's all young and at 18, being a pretty princess of sorts who doesn't want the life that her mother and sister have.  After the spell is casted on, Jean Simmons takes the vocals as the weak, old version of Sophie, who's desperately trying to survive.  I liked how in some scenes you see the transformation from one version to the other, and not only do you see the animation change, you also hear their voices change.  It's quite stunning when a team of professionals can pull this off, though it's much easier now than it was in 2004 when the film was originally released in Japan.  The voice talent itself is fantastic, Simmons providing for almost three quarters of the movie.  Basically all of the voice talent in this movie is superb, with no weak link to be found anywhere.  Sublime animation plus great voices equal an awesome animated spectacle of wonder and excitement.

In the years that I have been reviewing movies, this is by far the best animated movie out of them all.  Don't hate me for dissing Toy Story 3,' despite its awesomeness and tear jerking moments.  Rarely has a movie ever made me feel like a little kid eating a bunch of healthy sugary sweets at snack time during school.  This film is what I like to call 'The Wizard Of Oz' for every teenager of many generations to come.  The voices are fantastic, the animation is phenomenal, and the story is very creative and somewhat original.  The opening 20 minutes of the movie had my jaw hanging inches away from my carpet, because it felt as if my wildest dreams were stolen and projected onto my TV with the help of awesome anime and the "I'm not wearing hockey pants!" dude. (Epic Batman reference, hope you got it)  If you have Starz as part of your on demand selections and you have nothing to do at the moment or you are at your local library and they have this movie on the shelf, do yourself a favor and WATCH THIS MOVIE!  I am screaming at the top of my lungs to everyone I know (not really) that they must check this movie out.  Now I am telling you that if you're looking for a fantastic animated flick that's not exactly for kids, then start howling like a wolf and check out the awesomeness of 'Howl's Moving Castle.'

REVIEW: Restless

MOVIE
Restless

CAST
Henry Hopper,
Mia Wasikowska

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
September 16, 2011

DIRECTOR
Gus Van Sant

STUDIO
Sony Pictures Classics

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 31 minutes





STARS
***1/4







REVIEW:

Another day, another cancer movie.  I'm not saying that in any bad way, because this weekend gave us the fantastic '50/50,' a movie that I strongly recommend you to check out.  This film has been delayed for about eight months, with Sony wanting to screen this movie at Cannes back in May.  Anticipation for this film was fairly high, being directed by Gus Van Sant, of the award winning films 'Milk' and 'Good Will Hunting, as well as starring Australian favorite Mia Wasikowska from 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'The Kids Are All Right.'  Going into this movie, I had no idea what to expect.  Reception is mixed on this one, so it was kind of a mixed bag for this 91 minute drama.  With the added fact that I was the ONLY PERSON in the auditorium on a Sunday afternoon, my excitement for the movie dropped a bit.  Despite these worries and disappointments, I still had my eyes glued to the screen with my mind open like a book.  If there's any way to describe this film to a movie buff, I'd say that it's "The Art of Getting By with Cancer."  Don't worry, that's a good thing.  This movie wasn't like 'Art' because it was predictable, short, and unoriginal."  I give my comparison between the two because of the sweet, light hearted relationship between their two teen leads.  I doubt that this movie is going to get a lot of business, due to the lack of marketing and the mixed reception.  Howevder for what it is, 'Restless' is a real, touching, and sweet cancer/coming of age movie.  Any teen will find it hard to not compare to the chemistry between Hopper and Wasikowska.

Enoch Brae is a teenage guy with a huge dramatic past.  His parents were killed in a car accident, he was kicked out of school for unknown reasons, and most of all, he can talk to Hiroshi, the ghost of a Kamikaze fighter pilot.  Just for something to do, Enoch crashes the funerals of complete strangers from all over town, on the verge of getting into trouble with the law for it.  But alas a miracle comes Enoch's way, and her name is Annabel.  Annabel is a sweet, optimistic young lady who turns out to be a terminally ill cancer patient.  With only three months to live, (they say this in the trailer, so it's not a spoiler.)  Enoch and Annabel spend every waking minute making each day the best day of Annabel's life.  Fortunately, Enoch and Annabel's relationship blossoms into something more than everyday teen love.

The only experience that I have with Mia Wasikowska is the 2010 3D fantasy 'Alice in Wonderland,' where she was awesome and a badass at the same time.  I have yet to see 'Jane Eyre,' which I've heard from many is a very good adaptation.  In this movie, Wasikowska plays Annabel, the cancer patient with a very limited amount of time left on Earth.  Her performance is far from Oscar worthy, no doubt.  However with all of the trampy girls in movies these days, Wasikowska plays such a sweet and innocent role that it may just be the best thing about this movie.  When you see her just ignoring death and living life to its fullest, it just makes you feel so pure inside.  She really makes this movie, without a doubt.  It's kind of ironic that I make the 'Art Of Getting By' comparison, because Wasikowska, an Australian, and Freddie Highmore, an English man, were the best parts out of those two movies.  Gotta love the foreigners, don't we America?  As for the male lead Henry Hopper, he was okay during the first half of the movie.  The second half however really showed a dark and more fascinating side of his character, which all the more makes the character very relatable.  As I have read, this is Hopper's first acting job, so it's no surprise that he's on a rough start.  I see a future with this guy; and if he's able to work with the director of 'Milk,' then I wouldn't be surprised if more directors start to present him with more roles. 

With every decent movie out there there has to be flaws.  I found that almost every time Hopper and Wasikowska were speaking an having nice conversations, Wasikowska's character Annabel says something involving her quickly approaching demise.  I found it to be a very annoying flaw in the script, because I don't know many people who just talk with people and out of nowhere infer that they are quickly dying.  It's kind of like Heather Graham in the Austin Powers sequel, 'The Spy Who Shagged Me.' (In my opinion the funniest Austin Powers film, but that's not the point right now)  Every time Austin said something smooth, Graham's character Felicity Shagwell says some dopey catchphrase/ line saying something like "I'm better off my feet" or "You can have me if you wanna."  Do you seriously expect me to sit around enjoying a movie and let a dumb line like this just pass over my head?  It just felt really cheesy that they had to have Annabel reference her death in every other scene.  Sorry to bore you with that, how about another flaw?  Oh here's one: Hopper's acting.  The first half/two thirds of the movie had Hopper walking around, talking to this Japanese ghost looked sad and mopey all the time.  He wasn't as much a cardboard cutout as any porn teen in a slasher flick, but for a guy being the son of Dennis Hopper, there is more to yearn for in his role.  Still, there was that strong second half to boost his acting skills o an "average."  I don't want to bore you anymore with my complaints, so let's end this review up on a high note, okay?

'Restless' is as real as a movie can get.  Sure it's very fluffy and mushy, but the acting between the two leads, as well as their charming chemistry together made this a very enjoyable experience for me.  People are really bashing on this movie right now, and this hasn't even made $20,000 at the box office yet.  Is it because you go in expecting a tour-de-force like 'Good Will Hunting' and walk out disappointed that you didn't get what you ordered?  I'd guess so, but I can see why they're upset.  I've never seen any of Gus Van Sant's previous work, but I've heard those were excellent, which explains why two of them got Best Picture Oscar nominations.  I would be disappointed if George Lucas went back into the superb Star Wars franchise and made prequels to them showing Darth Vadar's back story.  Oh wait a minute...  It sucks when a director steps a notch down from his previous work, but can't you just see a movie for what it is rather than what the director has not made.  This is a sweet, light, real movie that touched my inner soul.  I wouldn't see this again in a theater.  However when it comes on Starz in about a year, you can count me in on that.  If you like a pure sweet heart filled with good acting and a tear jerking final act, stay up late tonight, because when this movie's done, you're going to feel light on you feet and 'Restless' until you hit your pillow immediately after putting on your P.J.'s.






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SCHOOL REVIEW: Pay It Forward

MOVIE
Pay It Forward

CAST
Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt,
Haley Joel Osment

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
October 20, 2000

DIRECTOR
Mimi Leder

STUDIO
Warner Bros. Pictures

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 3 minutes



STARS
**1/4











REVIEW:

Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, and Haley Joel Osment: Three of the best actresses of the late 90s/early 21st century.  How could a movie about a life changing idea be bad?  Believe it or not, there are many reasons why the 2000 drama 'Pay it Forward' is a surprisingly disappointing film.  Imagine an idea where one person helps three people, then those three people each help three separate people, and so on and so forth.  Let me just point out that the first half hour of the movie is fantastic.  Kevin Spacey, who plays Haley Joel Osment's mysterious Social Studies teacher Mr. Simonet is captivating for about half of the film, before he turns into a moody, love crazy man who's falling for Helen Hunt, Haley Joel Osment's movie mommy.  If the movie had stuck on the same path as the film's first 30 minutes, then I might've given it a higher grade.  Overall, because of the unnecessary love plot, a confusing time frame, and one of the worst endings that I have ever seen, 'Pay It Forward' is not much of a good movie, and I found it really hard to fall into the gushy romance between Hunt and Spacey.

I'm surprised of myself that I have not reviewed many of the films that I have seen inn school over the years.  The only one that comes to mind is the Francis Ford Coppola film 'The Outsiders,' which I still loathe to this day.  That is the prime example of how a book is poorly executed on the big screen.  While this film isn't as bad as 'The Outsiders,' it is still a very disappointing and confusing movie that left me more mind numb than my first experience with 'Inception.'  The movie starts off with a scene involving a reporter and his car being destroyed.  After that, a "four months earlier" card pops up, bringing us to Osment and Spacey's first encounter in school.  Throughout the film we cut from the Osment/Spacey/Hunt storyline to the reporter storyline, believing that we are still "four months earlier."  It's not until about 15 minutes left in the film that we find out that we, the audience, have been jumping through a time stream so clogged, that we don't even know how long anyone has even known about the pay it forward idea.  I could tell that many classmates of mine were also confused by this aspect, so just know before watching the movie that you will be jumping throughout time until the disappointing final minutes of the film.

A lot of movies these days behold many clichéd romantic sub plots that are highly unnecessary for the film's main plot.  'Pay it Forward' is no exception to this "spectacular" rule.  In a movie that's supposed to be about a miraculous idea spreading among the world's citizens, we get a stupid romantic relationship between Helen Hunt's alcoholic persona and Kevin Spacey's straight yet dark teacher.  There is no way in the history of life that this relationship could EVER happen.  If there is a relationship between an alcoholic and a scarred teacher, then I apologize.  I'm just showing how surreal this romance is.  Sure, the actors did a fine job, Osment especially, but can't there ever be a movie just about one story rather than multiple stories all condensed into a two hour picture. 

In the year 2000, we were living in the generation of so many fantastic movies that everybody loved.  11 years later, where have we gone?  Is Hollywood just so dumb or afraid to make something new that all they can make are sequels, remakes, true stories, or stupid romantic comedies?  This is the prime example of how a fantastic premise can turn into a two hour drag fest.  The actors in this film are incredibly talented, so why did they end up making this forgettable film over a decade ago?  I don't know, but it seems that Osment will only be known as Cole in 'The Sixth Sense,' despite the strong performance he gives here.  I wouldn't recommend this movie to anyone if they dislike romantic plots and confusing time streams.  I will, however recommend this first half hour of the film to anybody who's curious to see what this movie is like.  Everything after the moment alcohol Hunt asks scarred Spacey out on a date is a complete waste of time.  The absolute worst thing about the film is the ending, where let's just say that Osment's career comes back to haunt him, asking "why was I in this movie?"  Everything ends so moody, which is one of the many reasons why 'Pay it Forward' was the most disappointing film of 2000.  Even in 2011 I can acknowledge that, since there was barely anything hitting the theaters in 2000.  Happy Late Millennium!