"Sunshine"

Well it has been a while since I’ve been able to review a good Sci-Fi movie, but I did find one. “Sunshine” has been out for a while, but I just recently got a chance to check it out, and what a pleasant surprise it was. If you are a Sci-Fi fan like myself, and have not seen this yet, I highly recommend it.

Hollywood has come up with thousands of ways to destroy all mankind, and yet some how always manage a way to save it, and while this story shadows that very premise, it is a little different, and that little difference is what makes it good watch.

The basic sustaining source of all life as we know it is our Sun. We are set perfectly in the solar system to where the Sun warms the planet, and allows plant life to grow, which is pretty much the basis of all life. In Sunshine, the Sun is dying. I don’t specifically remember the reason as to why it is dying, or even if they said why, but obviously without the Sun, Earth would cease to have life on it. Scientists figure out a way to rejuvenate the Sun, and send a space ship that has a payload of some form of “Fix it’ called Icarus. Earth loses communication with Icuras, and it is presumed lost, so they send Icuras 2, which is where the story begins.

As with all good Sci-Fi movies, everything that can possibly go wrong eventually does and the crew is left scrambling to some how find a way to save the mission, and of course save humanity as we know it. The Crew has too many actors to list on here, but they are some folks that you would definitely recognize from other projects, and they all do a fantastic job interacting with each other through thick and thin during the mission.

While all these things mentioned already help this movie along, I think the best part of this movie is its realism. Being a fan of N.A.S.A. and Space travel as it progresses in real life, I very much enjoyed how true to life they made things look and feel. If you have ever watched any of the shows about our planned trip to Mars, you automatically get the feeling when watching this movie, that serious planning was involved with every tiny detail to make it as realistic as possible. This is what made the movie a large notch above just your typical run of the mill Sci-fi flick. I also enjoyed the “2001 a space odyssey” type vibe I got throughout the entire film. There is this very tangible feeling of doom waiting around each corner if just the slightest thing goes wrong, along with this deep sense of un-knowing as the crew gets closer and closer to its destination. There is a hundred different twists and turns as the story unfolds, and I’m not about to ruin even a single one more then what I’ve already disclosed earlier, you will just have to watch it and see for yourself.

My rating for this movie is 8.5 out of 10.00

"The Notebook"

I’ve got an older movie for you to check out in case you missed it back when it came out in 2004. It’s called “The Notebook.” This book turned movie is definitely more along the lines of a “Chick Flick,” however it was so well done that I found myself enjoying the entire film. As I’m finding out quite often, there are these little gem movies that just continue to fly under my radar that I stumble across down the road and they end up making a great weekend rental.

Gena Rowlands plays Allie Calhoun. She is an old woman stuck in an old folk’s home towards the end of her days. The disease she is dying from has robbed her of her memory with the exception of brief snippets of time where she wakes back to the reality of her real life. For the rest of the time she doesn’t remember anyone or anything. James Garner plays the character of Duke. He visits Allie every day at the old folk’s home, and reads to Allie out of a book. The book contains the touching love story of two kids that meet and fall in love, but because of their different backgrounds (one rich the other not) they are forbidden to see each other. The broken hearted boy goes off to war, and sends letter after letter, but they all go unanswered because the mother hides them from the girl. Every once in a great while as Duke reads to Allie, this story manages to find that deep place still buried in her mind of her real life the way it was, but most of the time it is just a sweet love story she enjoys hearing.

The main part of this story is the actual kids as they fall in love, and end up being separated. Ryan Gosling plays the young man. Noah Calhoun. He has started to stack up a nice little list of movies, and his acting is very good in this one. Rachel McAdams plays the young Allie Hamilton, and her acting is equally as good as her counterpart. These two are wonderful together as kids, and later on as adults that meet again to re-kindle what was once lost. I’m afraid I can’t get much more into the plot of the movie because the story that leads up to the sad but very fitting, and touching end would be spoiled, and for once Hollywood got this ending right so heaven forbid I blow it by giving out TMI.

I for sure have to give a nice shout out to director Nick Cassavetes. While he has quite a few feathers in his cap, this is one of the more bright ones that are worth mentioning. The casting for this project is A+ across the board. The scenery, cinematography, pageantry and all around good shots in “The Notebook” is also top notch. As I’m sitting back trying to remember anything bad about this movie, I’m just not finding anything. Perhaps the story takes a little while to unfold and take shape, but with a good story line like this, it’s worth the wait. If like me you never even heard of this movie until now, or did hear about it, but didn’t watch it, go grab it for this weekend, you won’t be disappointed.

My rating for this movie is 8.00 out of 10.00

"Charlie Wilson's War"

Up next is a film I got to check out on the big screen a while back, but I just was never able to find the time to get a review up for it, but as of now I’m trying to get caught up here, so here we go.

Charlie Wilson’s War is not a movie that you can easily fit into a single category which is why I felt a little confused as I was watching it. On one hand you have the main character, Charlie Wilson (played brilliantly by Tom Hanks) who is this fun loving playboy type congressman, on the other you have this very strange time in history during which Russia had invaded Afghanistan, and somewhere in the middle the two stories meet.

A rich socialite Joanne Herring (played by a very sleek and still sexy Julia Roberts) convinces Charlie that aid needs to be brought to the afghan’s in the way of arms, and supplies, but in a subversive way in which the American Government can’t really be spotted as the one helping them out. Charlie proceeds to get the funds from the government, and permission from the Pakistani dictator of the time to help kick the Russians out of Afghanistan. Along the way are the funny stories of how Charlie hooks up with an outcast CIA agent Gust Avarkotos, (played by one of my up and coming favorite strange actors Phillip Seymour Hoffman) gets the intel needed to fight this undercover war against the Russians via the Afghanistan soldiers.

As I said before this movie is torn between a serious look at a strange time period, and almost a comedic at times story of how this stranger then life congressman figures out a way to help the situation. There were many classic scenes of dialogue between Tom, Julia, and Seymour that make the movie memorable, but then there are the scenes of Afghanistan during the incursion of the Russians that would make your blood boil, and your heart break.

Mike Nichols, the director of one of the funniest movies I have ever seen “Bird Cage,” I doubt highly doubt did this film single handedly considering Tom Hanks ranks as a director / producer these days, but he is listed as the sole director, so to him go the props. Charlie Wilson’s War is a fun and interesting film, with some very good acting by all involved with the project, and for sure is worth the price of the rental when the movie is released on DVD April 22nd 2008, or if you are big Tom Hanks fan, it is probably worth even buying to stick in the DVD collection.

My rating for this movie is 7.00 out of 10.00

'Perfume"

Next on the list of DVD’s is a strange little movie I found a while back that did not receive much fan fair that I can remember, and for one particular reason which I will explain later, I can understand why. This being said, it is a very interesting film none the less.

Perfume is set back in 18th century France when Vanity among the rich had ran rampant in almost every conceivable form. Jean Baptiste (played by Ben Wishaw) was born from a prostitute in the streets, and left for dead. By chance he was picked up by strangers and placed in an orphanage. For some reason Jean was given the talent of scent. He could pick out the most miniscule scent of anything around him in some instances in the movie even miles away being carried on the wind. Smell becomes his life. His first taste of perfume fascinates him and becomes his obsession. By chance he becomes the apprentice of a once famous perfume maker Giuseppe Baldini (played by Dustin Hoffman.) Guiseppe guides Jean in the art of perfume making after realizing his gift of smell, but Jean eventually figures out that this art form can be taking to a level the world has never scene, unfortunately it requires the captured scent of women but to capture each sent, the woman must be murdered. There are quite a bit more twists and turns to this movie but I simply don’t have time to get much deeper into them.

Director Tom Tykwer doesn’t have much in the way of an American movie track record, so I don’t really have anything to compare him to, however there are a lot of great aspects to this film. The cinematography is nothing less then spectacular. The costumes, the over all look of that time period, the acting, everything about this project are top notch with the exception of one thing. The ending. Oh dear Lord......The ending.....

Hollywood has butchered the endings of movies for oh I don’t know, since film was invented, but nothing can compare to this. The ending of this story is so ridiculously stupid that you absolutely MUST see it for yourself. After watching this very well put together piece, I was expecting a great but what I thought would be a predictable finish. What unfolded before my eyes still to this day has me baffled. I tried to put myself in the writers head if only just for a moment, and I wanted so desperately to understand what part of his brain fell out of his left ear as he put pen to paper, but it just did not add up in any way. I’m sitting here now trying to figure out how to rate this movie, and I’m still confused as to what to do. I recommend this film for two reasons. #1 - because until the ending it was very good. #2 - as I said before you must see the ending and see if you can figure out what I could not.

Taking the ending out of the equation, my rating for this movie is 7.5 out of 10.00

"Mr. Brooks"

I’ve got a long list of movies, and DVD’s that I am trying to get caught up on so I apologize for the lateness of this review, but if you have not yet seen “Mr. Brooks,” I think it is worth a look.

Kevin Costner has been one of my favorite actors throughout the years, but he is definitely on the hit or miss type. When I first heard that he was going to be playing the roll of a serial killer, I was very skeptical. I knew he probably had the acting chops for the job, but most of his rolls over the years have never really lent themselves to the “dark side” of the force. I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome.

“Mr. Brooks,” is a serial killer that wants desperately to just live a normal life. He is very well off, and in the film was recently voted “Man of the year,” but the dark side of him, or in this case his alter ego Marshall (played by William Hurt) constantly battles with him. There are many great scenes of dialogue between the two and makes for great suspense.

Brooks, finally decides that he must placate Marshall by killing his final victims, and then give up his secret life once and for all, but there are circumstances that happen, that make this almost impossible. I nosey photographer captures one of his killings on film, and now wants in on the act. To top things all off, he has a tenacious cop Tracy Atwood (played by Demi More who is constantly hot on his trail.

While Demi’s roll could have been cut completely from the movie as far as I’m concerned, I guess Director Bruce Evans figured what good would a serial killer movie be without someone trying to catch him. So be it. Her acting was basic at best, and will not be the road back to fame as she continues to slip down the slope of tabloid infamy.

I need to add to this that William Hurt did a fantastic job as Brook’s alter ego. I think in the long run, he was the glue that put this movie into the watchable V unwatchable category. Do not mistake this for a movie of the year or anything like that, but if you like a good suspense physiological thriller, and have not yet had a chance to check this one out, rent it for a weekend movie.

When all is said and done, the hallowed movie critics (cough cough) were once again totally wrong. They blasted this movie clean from the water, when in fact it is a very watchable and entertaining movie.

My rating for this movie is 7.00 out of 10.00

"No Country for Old Men"

Well it is that time of year again. Each year rolls around, and I hear all the mutter about the possible best picture of the year. The Movie hits the theater, and the previews make me yawn, so I don’t go see it. The movie wins several Oscars, and again I yawn. Of course out of morbid curiosity, when the movie finally gets released on DVD I have to watch it just too once again say “I told you so.” No Country for Old Men,” is the exact reason I created my web site.

This is your typically garden variety shoot em up idiocy that Hollywood has produced a thousand times before. A drug deal gone bad, leaves a brief case full of money, a truck full of drugs, and a lot of dead bodies sitting in the middle of no where, with no one to cash in on either. A local bumpkin Llewelyn Moss (played by Josh Brolin) out deer hunting comes across the scene, and finds the money and takes off with it, trying to figure a way to get out of town before its owner tries to come claim it. Tommy Lee Jones plays the local sheriff Ed Tom. He finds the scene a day or so later, but now the drugs, and money is gone. Bad guy Anton Chigurh (played by Javier Bardem) comes looking for his money and wastes no time at all finding new and fun ways to kill people in his quest for the cash.

This story is not only boring in every way possible, but it leaves about 2 dozen pieces of the puzzle left out of the final picture. It leaves another dozen questions unexplained, and then in true Hollywood fashion, completely and totally destroys the ending. You are sitting their waiting for at least the tiniest bit of closure, and bang. The movie is over with at least a chapter left to tell.

While the brothers Coen have had some success over the years with a few watchable movies ( I use “watchable” loosely ) They both seem to bend over backwards to see just exactly how bad they can make this movie, sell it to the public, and then laugh in the face of the academy as they hand them the Oscar. Can you imagine the back stage scene with these two guys holding a handful of statues hysterically laughing at them selves as though they have (and did) pull of the biggest prank of the year.

There were a few scenes in which the key actors had some good dialogue, and other scenes that were just strange enough to keep your attention, but when it is all over with, I personally felt violated, and wanting to take a shower. There are no saving graces with this film. It was shot horribly, there was nothing but a bunch of bleak desert scenes, and the story line was a joke from front to back. Normally when a movie is this bad, I refuse to post a review on my web site, but the thought that a single dollar more is earned by people going to rent or buy this tripe, just makes me ill so I’m hoping to stop a few of you from wasting your time. If you do watch it, do not say you were not warned.

My rating for this movie is 4.00 out of 10.00

"10,000 B.C."

I got a chance to head out to the local theater this weekend and check out 10,000 B.C. This is a movie I’ve been patiently waiting to see, since I first caught a glimpse preview several months ago. As with all movies, I could care less about what the movie critics say about any particular film, and it never has any bearing on whether or not I go see a film, but none the less, I always have to hear about the critic’s opinions, via my brother before we go. To my complete shock and dismay, the critics for the first time in history, actually got this one right.

Steven Strait plays the main character in this prehistoric story. Other then “Covenant” I can’t really find anything else that he has been in. He is part of a small tribe that hunts Mammoths, for obvious reasons, food, fur, survival. A band of warriors from afar come and take many people from the his tribe, including his love from youth, and try to take them back to be slaves for a supposed God, and his “Project.” I don’t want to go into detail of the project itself, it will be much better for that scene to unfold in front of you without you knowing its coming.

Throughout this movie you get a sense that an epic along the lines of “300,” or “Lord of the Rings,” is trying to unfold, but some how it just never seems to get there. The scenery, landscape, set design, and of course the CG are all top notch, there is no disputing that in any way shape or form, but going back to how the “critics got this one right,” the story itself just seems to drone on as if it’s been done a hundred times before, which in fact it has. Bad guy steals good guys girl, good guy hunts down bad guy, good guy gets girl back. There just isn’t much else to the story line which keeps this very good looking movie from really taking off.

Director Roland Emmerich has a few feathers in his cap, but most are just about this level of quality. It seems as though most of the movies he has been involved with that were better caliber, was when he ended up being executive producer, and not director. That being said, there are a couple of films that are in pre-production with him as director that could certainly be interesting. “Fantastic Voyage” Due out in 2010. “2012” Due out in 2009.

Taking a look back now after seeing this film, I always stop and think, “Did I have fun watching this?” My answer is yes. There were plenty of great scenes to keep you interested throughout the movie, and because of this it is probably worth while catching this one on the big screen instead of waiting for the rental, but the story line just seems to keep this one from really being a great film.

My rating for this movie is 8.00 out of 10.00