'And if ya don't know, now ya know N*gga'

As I sat watching the green load bar on my computer screen, a nerdy chick explained the woes of my Dell computer to me. She suddenly gasped when she saw a glistening object hanging on my wall. "You like Biggie?" she asked enthusiastically. She be frontin' bout my phat blingin' B.I.G. dawg tag dat I nab'd fo 650 tix at D and B's fo sho (Dave and Buster's fo' ya'll honkies). After affirming I was in fact a fan of Christopher Wallace and his rhymes about receiving fellatio from promiscuous strumpets around Brooklyn, she proceeded to divulge Notorious, the movie based upon the great Notorious B.I.G.

This was my first time hearing of this title, despite a teaser being out three months ago. Well I just watched the theatrical trailer and though it's no 8 mile, it'll definitely get more nods than 50's stank dirty, Get Rich or Die Tryin'. George Tillman Jr. is going from bringing a man out of racial ties (Men of Honor) to bringing a man out of the grave in Notorious. He's chosen Jamal Woolard to play the title role. Who? I'm asking the same question. It's his first time on screen and from the trailer, it may be his last. He's big, but Biggie he is not. In any case, this movie will show the life of Biggie, Puffy, Pac, and all the other East/West hoodlums when the rap industry transformed words in the studio to actions out on the street. This is a story that has been waiting over ten years to be told, this January we will listen.

Check the trailer out Apple or YouTube and tell us what you think.

The Curious Case of Brad Pitt.

It is truly amazing how far technology has come in such a short period of time. Lord of the Rings was an epic achievement but in just eight years, the visual level of Benjamin Button was remarkable. I will warn you that being a 2 hour and 48 minute film, it does start out a little slow. The visuals do not.

Although Brad Pitt will most likely never win an Academy Award (which is a damn shame) his performance in this film, while not incredibly demanding, was perfect. He was great and believable as an old man and you could really see the character change as his age did. Cate Blanchett was stellar as usual. Her best moments came when she is an old woman recounting her story.

The story itself was interesting enough but the way that it is told is what makes this movie great. Those watching will feel the similar style of Forrest Gump as that and this were both written by Eric Roth. The visual style was really director David Fincher at his best. Fincher and Pitt have given us Se7en and Fight Club, both with unique styles of there own, and Fincher continues to reinvent himself with this film.

I have no doubt that this movie will be up for Best Picture, and what it deserves the most is Best Makeup, Special Effects and Cinematography. When you see Brad Pitt at around age 21 you will almost not believe your eyes. I leave you with this, so far this year, Benjamin Button is one of the best.

Walküre

Nazis! Conspiracies! Cruise! Rejoice! 'cause Valkyrie has all three. Though they don't come together as they one could have hoped, Bryan Singer has succeeded in bringing something a little less Superman Returns and a little more The Usual Suspects. 

This is not a war movie, it's not about the horrific nature of the Third Reich or its controllers, the Nazis (or their awesome leather trench coats). All these are merely the backdrop to tell a story of the heroic acts of a courageous few that stood up to what they knew as evil. 

And evil Hitler was. Singer made sure to keep him out of direct lens focus to ensure the diabolical puppeteer behind the scenes to stay true to our image of the Fuhrer. David Bamber performed the role as it should have been. Another stand out was Clarice van Houten, Stauffenberg's wife. It was unfortunate she was given such a small role as not only was she the only one with an authentic German accent, she's a phenominal actress. The acting of all others involved was equally fitting. 

Where they all succeeded, they all equally failed. Near every actor, regardless of birthplace, threw all regard for authenticity to the dogs and gave their character an English accent. Even as these supposed Nazis are scheming against the Brits, they speak their evil doings in proper English. Tom Cruise apparently decided not to stoop so low and brought in nothing but his gold, ol' fashioned American tongue for most of the film. In the prologue, he speaks in German. If the entire movie was done in this way, it would have been far more historical and believable. Why Mr. Singer chose to allow so many different forms of English or the English language in general is beyond me. In any case, this mess of cross cultural Nazi slander gave Valkyrie even less credibility; it seemed these Nazi freedom fighters weren't German at all, but in fact Allied soldiers dressed up in swastikas.

Valkyrie is based on a true story and it stayed very close to fact; near all events portrayed in the film are as they were 54 years ago. I would recommend reading up on the historical events that actually happened, they're quite fascinating. If not, just take my word for it, Valkyrie is near dead on. Though slow in some areas and unbelievable in others, for the shere historical value, Valkyrie should be on your list of films to see, it exemplifies the bravery and heroism of individuals needed then and now.  

Jokes aside...

'Whoa! The Joker? Why is he posting about The Joker? Wtf bro, didn't The Dark Knight come out like 5 months ago?' Yes, my dear observant movie goer, it did. The DVD however came out more recently. When? Well, the regular edition came out ten days ago, the special addition blu ray came out this week and an even specialer (sounds dumb but it is a word) edition will come out next week. I happened to pick one of those bad boys up today and guess what? Seeing the Joker's performance the second time is even better than the first.

As I was watching, I was counting down the minutes, scenes and lines until the Joker would make his way on screen. Heath Ledger makes this movie. Disagree with me? Give me your address and I will come to your house with a copy of The Dark Knight and make you watch it (by force if necessary) until your opinion has changed. From his introduction with the pencil trick, the 'Why so serious' monologue, the faulty remote mechanism, 'Hey! I wanna drive!', unstoppable force/immovable object... etc. Each of these scenes brought this movie to #4 on imdb, and if there could have been a spin off (Joker goes to summer camp?) I would bet it would do just as well as TDK.

Unfortunately, and for the good name of the franchise, there will be no spin offs. What there will be is the Academy Awards. If Mr. Ledger doesn't get our old pal Oscar, I'll bow my head to Mr. Langella (MAYBE Mr. Rourke) and then travel to each member of the academy's houses with a copy of The Dark Knight in hand.

The Wrestler

There has always been one thing that I could never figure out, why aren't all movie posters badass? In every movie there is always one scene or one frame of film that would make an awesome movie poster. The first thing that drew me to the film The Wrestler was the poster. The second was the trailer. The third was director Darren Aronofsky(yeah, that's spelled right). The fourth was Mickey Rourke.

Little did I know that it was gonna be number four, Mickey Rourke, that would make this movie what it is, an emotional story of a great, once-upon-a-time professional wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson. In the real world he's a normal guy with normal problems, but the adrenaline rush from the ring is what keeps him going.

The supporting characters of Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood both serve their purpose well but are not what's special about this film. Mickey Rourke delivers a masterful performance and truly brings the character and the film to life. This story is truly a character study and one that is done exceptionally well. Mr. Rourke will definitely warrant an Oscar nod for this but most likely will not be taking home the statue.

The Wrestler is funny, heartbreaking, and at sometimes difficult to watch. With the amount of high quality films being released over the next two weeks, this one is gonna be up there.

Anyone got a light? I got a light. ...

If you like High School Musical 3, Ne-Yo and/or Gossip Girls, then you probably won't like Gran Torino. If however, you're a God-loving American that hates rap, loves a nice tight hair cut and early morning dew with a side of Pabst, you'll love this movie. Clint Eastwood has brought to light all racial/gender/religious/age tensions in his newest film, Gran Torino. While the story was a bit unoriginal, the humor and racial taboos it brought forth kept it strong.

Eastwood's acting was, of course, phenomenal. Sadly, I can't say the same for about 95% of the other actors throughout the entire film. Granted, many were first timers to a big league movie like this, but come on, if you're on the same screen with Dirty Harry, man up. I will give props to John Carroll Lynch (Fargo, Zodiac, The Drew Carey Show) though, his role as trash talking barber was nothing short of hilarious. Everyone else could use some more practice - 4th period high school drama at least.

So the ending was a bit anti-climactic, the acting by most took near all sincerity out of emotional scenes (though not enough to keep a fat woman next to me from sobbing uncontrollably), and many scenes were useless and/or cheesy, but Gran Torino proves Clint Eastwood is still a bad ass. This movie touches on so many of the racial problems that are wrong with America and the story of one man's reluctant quest to overcome them. If that's not your thing, you can still hear ol' Clint call someone a gook.

- - - - -
Here's some food for thought. Gran Torino opening weekend brought in $271,720... from 6 theatres. That's an average of $45,287 per theater. For comparison's sake, The Dark Knight, the highest opening film of all time, had a per screen average of $36,283. BURN. Alright, alright you naysayers. Yes, it's probably true that if The Dark Knight was packed into 6 theaters there would be all sorts of fire hazards and riots/mass histeria and according to economics it probably could have made more than $45,287... but can we give Mr. Eastwood some credit? This is quite a feat.

Oh, and Frost/Nixon garnered over $60,000 per theater. Booya!


...And I'm bringin' it back, "How am I not myself?"

Certainty

When a Broadway show or play comes off the stage and onto the screen, it often loses the magic it once emitted. Doubt is no exception. Although the acting was phenomenal by all those involved, it failed to bring about the imaginative elements the play conjured up. Doubt, in this case, feels like nothing more than a filmed play; a great story but average movie.

John Patrick Shanley, the writer and director, created something to be remembered when writing Doubt and the play will always be at the top of people's lists of greats. The entire time I was in the theater however, I was thinking that this just wasn't a movie. It didn't feel right. The sets, character interaction and everything else about it just screamed stage. This is not to discredit the acting at all however. Hoffman delivered his usual emotionally charged performance. Adams and Streep were at the top of their game as well. Viola Davis will join the ranks of these Oscar nominees with her small but memorable role as Mrs. Miller. All these characters interacted flawlessly to create a very enjoyable show.

Doubt was an OK movie. After seeing the play and watching actors deliver a superb performance, I just can't say this movie was more or even as gripping and entertaining. Doubt will hit a wider audience than a play could, but maybe plays should stay on a stage.

Oscar/Contender

Before saying anything edlse, if Heath Ledger does not get an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, Frank Langella will.

Seeing Langella in Frost/Nixon was undoubtedly the best performance I have seen in a while, especially from someone who has seemingly come out of nowhere. Who is this man? Well, according to IMDB, he's 70 years old and hasn't had a large role in a large movie in... well, ever. This means nothing. He's been on Broadway quite a few times and in fact won a Tony for this same role. Every time he is on scene, spitting out Nixon'isms, the audience doesn't want it to end, it's really that entertaining. You will really believe you're watching Richard Nixon on screen, not someone trying to be him. In Frost/Nixon, Langella is Nixon. I said something similar about Ledger's performance in The Dark Knight; it's the kind of performance that really makes the movie. Alright, since this blog is about movie reviews, I'll get to that.

Frost/Nixon is exactly what the title entails: a true to life story of an interview between T.V. personality David Frost (Michael Sheen) and the former president, Richard Nixon (Frank Langella). Though it may help to have lived through this time period (late 70's) it isn't necessary to know the complete history of the Watergate scandal to enjoy this film. As said above, the magnificance of the acting and the unbelievable story behind this time and moreover, the life of Nixon, will pull anyone in - young or old. This movie is perfect. I challenge anyone to see it and say otherwise.

Btw, Michelle Rodriguez is a dog. A bulldog. Jordana Brewster, on the other hand is beautiful - her face glows.

No one on the corner has swagger like us.

Every few years or so, I go to a movie that I know nothing about. One of my friends says, “Hey somebody told me it was good,” or “My parents said it was great.” Now I know that might not be enough to make everyone go to see a movie, but most of the time, I believe them. On such occasions I have seen movie such as Eternal Sunshine, Garden State, and Crash under these circumstances.

Tonight, I saw Slumdog Millionaire. Going into the film I had little idea what it was about but a plethora of friends said I had to see it. They were right. This is one of my favorite movies of the year. I’m a big fan of Director Danny Boyle, from Trainspotting to Sunshine. This is a completely new direction for him (no pun intended).

Like I said before, great movies begin with the Story. The idea behind this movie is an incredibly clever one. However, it could come off as cheesy to some, but it is the execution of the story that wipes that doubt away. Slumdog is a gripping, emotional story of lost love and destiny. It’s funny, heart wrenching, and everything you expect from a potential Best Picture film. All I have to say is that this is one of the best films of the year. It might not be what you expect, but you will be more than pleasantly surprised. Trust me.

Guns, murderers and crooked cops? I was made for this, bre.

The great thing about all the Fast and Furious films is that they don't take themselves too seriously. Justin Lin knows what kind of film he's making here: an action-packed, high-speed, sex-filled, mildly amusing blockbuster movie. Drew I will slightly disagree with you because Lin did direct Better Luck Tomorrow which is a good movie.

But I digest, or is it digress? Anywhoo, screenwriter Chris Morgan did indeed write Tokyo Drift, a storywise step-up from 2 Fast 2 Furious. On the other hand, he wrote Wanted a movie with amazing potential, and I don't want to be graphic but, the worst fucking execution of an idea I've seen in a long time, not since Ghosts of Mars (don't get me started on how good that could have been). Although, I am going to give Mr. Morgan a shot at redeeming himself by making Fast and Furious not take itself seriously.

Let me tell you a secret. I'm hoping Chris Morgan is the type of writer that needs to make 4 shitty movies before he gets to his great one. And I'm hoping that his great one is Gears of War, which he is writing for 2010. All in all, I'll be there to see Fast and Furious, I just hope I keep it under the speed limit when I take off from the parking lot after the movie's done.

p.s. I hate Michelle Rodriguez. If I ever met her, I would punch her in the face.
p.p.s. After I punched her, she'd probably beat the shit out of me. I think she was suppose to be born a man.

My pockets ain't empty, cuz! (He's back!)

First off, I would like to call out that my movie quality prediction qualities are in full swing when I said Australia would be nothing more than a ho-hum average flick. Yahoo me. What I really want to talk about isn't potential Oscar picks (though I do think Che will be up for one). I want to talk about the masterpiece that will be Fast and Furious.

Alright, I know, I know, nothing that Justin Lin has ever directed has actually been good. Tokyo drift had some cool scenes, but thanks to Chris Morgan, the plot was pretty sub par. Well they're both back but this time they have the original cast from the classic The Fast and the Furious. Will it be good? Probably not. Will it have unrealistic-testosterone-driven-action coupled with meat- headed-trash-spittin' disses and scantily clad women driving rice-burning, supercharged, ridiculously-painted, decal'ed imports? Yes.

Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez are back and sadly, the one named wonders, Tyrese and Ludacris have retired. Darn. After seeing the trailer, which you should check out if you haven't already, it's apparent that Lin has learned from the mistakes of Cohen and Singleton (the first two directors of the series). Let's hope Morgan can do the same. Even if he doesn't, I honestly believe Fast & Furious has the potential to reign supreme in sales with the younger crowd this summer when it hits theatres June 2009.

Crikey

First of all, it has been far too long since a post has made it's way on here. With Thanksgiving craziness and traveling around it has been tough to get a chance to post, but alas here we go.

Over Thanksgiving it has become a family tradition of seeing a "girly" movie. In the past years on Thanksgiving I have see Rent, Enchanted, and movies of the like. This year I saw Australia.

Now I did make a prediction on an earlier post that this movie would have a shot at being nominated for Best Picture, it doesn't. I also claimed that Hugh Jackman could win a Best Actor Award, he can't. That being said this is a good movie, not a great movie. An epic love story that only spans a two year time period.

The story was not all that unique. Basically Titanic lite. Girl upper class, Boy lower class, she needs his help and he helps. The interesting part of the film involves the story behind the Stolen Generations of the half Australian half Aboriginal children that were taken from their mothers and placed at a Missionary. It is an important part of Australian history that most of the rest of the world knows nothing about.

The visuals of this film were the strongest aspect of it. You can really see how much effort director Baz Luhrmann puts into his films. But like I said before nothing new story wise. Worth seeing but it is a long movie that easily could have been cut in half and been just as strong.