28 Weeks Later

Nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised by 28 Weeks Later. It opened with a bang both with the story and the zombies, virus folks, or whatever you want to call them. The movie really delivered a tense horror drama. It was the best of this type of movie that I’ve seen in a long time. My only gripe came about 2 minutes before the movie ended. I didn’t care for the ending, but it wasn’t enough to undo my overall enjoyment of the film.

Movie synopsis:

Six months have passed since the rage virus has annihilated the British Isles. The U.S. Army declares that the war against infection has been won, and that the reconstruction of the country can begin. As the first wave of refugees return, a family is reunited–but one of them unwittingly carries a terrible secret. The virus is not yet dead, and this time–showing no outward symptoms–it is more dangerous than ever.

Movie trailer:

Blood and Chocolate

I want to pan the film. It definitely had enough cheese for several macaroni & cheese dinners.

Yet, I have to say that despite all its flaws, I found the film mildly engaging. The story wasn’t too bad, and despite the some awkward editing and a general lack of special effects, all the actors seemed seriously committed to delivering this story. I have to give special props to Hugh Dancy though. He was so good, that at times, it seemed as if he was in a much better movie than the rest of the other actors.

Movie synopsis:

Ten years ago, in the remote mountains of Colorado, a young girl watched helplessly as her family was murdered by a pack of angry men for the secret they carried in their blood. Now, though she lives half a world away, Vivian Gandillon is still running. Living in relative safety in Bucharest, Vivian spends her days working at a chocolate shop and nights trawling the city’s underground clubs. During a chance encounter in an abandoned church celebrating the loup garoux (werewolves), Aiden unknowingly comes face-to-face with the real thing, Vivian.

The Jude Law version overly relied on the monologue while Michael Caine’s version was able to masterly intersperse a few moments of non-monologue to give the other characters just enough meat to have a little substance. Caine’s non-girlfriend, Gilda played by Julia Foster was slightly more than Alfie’s comments suggested. Law’s non-girlfriend, Julie played by Marisa Tomei, was simply plain. However, Caine’s looney live-in girlfriend, played by Jane Asher, was not quite as washed out as Sienna Miller as Law’s live-in. Asher seemed to be sleep-walking (I half suspected she was sniffing some of those cleaning products) whereas Miller embodied that quinessential “girlfriend from hell”.

I was totally blown away to see that the great Shelley Winters was the “older woman” for Caine. That was simply sensational casting. Nevertheless Susan Sarandon, not to play second fiddle to anyone, was equally sensational. I felt that Sarandon’s delivery of that crashing verbal blow to Alfie was brilliant - I think it exceeded Winter’s because we don’t see who’s sleeping in Sarandon’s bed.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of Caine’s version was the abortion scene. I found it emotionally gritty. Caine’s tears caused me to shed a few. Plus Denholm Elliot as the abortionist was another surprise in casting. Law’s version flirted with abortion but a switcharoo was played. The real anguish of Law’s movie was Alfie betraying his best friend.

Finally, Caine’s monologue at the end just worked. It made sense to ponder “what’s it all about” after his journey, whereas Law’s journey seemed like it needed a couple more laps.

‘The Incredibles’…

Pop in the second disc (Bonus Material) and choose the Setup option from the main menu. Wait about half a minute or so and a little “Omnidroid” spider robot will appear at the top of the screen. Press the Up arrow on the DVD remote to highlight it, then press Enter to watch an amusing sock-puppet version of the film. Surprise your kids with something they didn’t know was there. source

Little Black Book (2004) — Determined to learn the truth about her secretive boyfriend, Derek (Ron Livingston), Stacy (Brittany Murphy) becomes a bona fide snoop in this comedy. Associate producer of Kippie Kann’s (Kathy Bates) popular talk show, Stacy’s dying to find out about Derek’s past relationships. Helped by Barb (Holly Hunter), she gets the names of his ex-lovers and interviews them, supposedly for an upcoming show. But what she learns only adds to her confusion.

Little Black Book (2004) was a surprisingly good movie. It was nice to see a “chick” flick that was not just a cookie-cutter version of some earlier movie. My initial thought before seeing the film was how pathetic were they going to portray Brittany Murphy’s character to have her rummaging through her boyfriend’s Palm Pilot. However, despite all the “despicableness” of the movie it worked, primarily because there was some movement in the development of her character.

Hero (2002) — The Qin King has long been obsessed with conquering all of China and becoming her first Emperor — which makes him the target of three legendary assassins. To anyone who defeats the assassins, the King promises great power, mountains of gold and a private audience with the King himself. Jet Li heads the stellar cast of Hero as Nameless, the enigmatic county sheriff who earns his audience with the mighty King. Zhang Yimou directs.

All I can say is that Hero (2002) was magnificent. While the movie was definitely eye candy with its brilliant colors and spectacular action sequences, it was above all, very elegant and noble.

Warriors of Heaven and Earth (2004) — Lieutenant Li (Jiang Wen) has abandoned his post within the Middle Kingdom’s Imperial army, and the government has assigned the Japanese fighter Lai Qi (Kiichi Nakai) to bring him back or kill him once and for all. When the two finally meet up, however, they realize that they must join forces to face an even bigger nemesis. But can they put aside their differences and stand together as one? Should they even trust each other at all?

Warriors of Heaven and Earth (2004) was good but not great. It’s a good rental. There were a few real comical moments mixed in with all the fighting.

Shaun of the Dead (2004) — Thirty-something slacker Shaun (Simon Pegg) (actually he was 29) has no clue what to do with his life or with his relationship with girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield). But when the unthinkable happens and zombies begin to roam the streets of London terrorizing residents, including his beloved and his mother, Shaun realizes he must act quickly to save Liz from danger and keep their relationship from spiraling out of his hands forever. But is it too late for heroics?

For some reason, I love zombie movies. Shaun of the Dead (2004) was really good. It managed to sustain it’s humor throughout while serving up a bit of gore as well.

Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks) is a man without a country; his plane took off just as a coup d’etat exploded in his homeland, leaving it in shambles. Now, he’s landed at Kennedy Airport, where he meets a beautiful stranger, Amelia (Catherine Zeta-Jones). But with a passport that nobody recognizes, Viktor is quarantined in the transit lounge until authorities can figure out what to do with him. Is he doomed to live in “no man’s land” forever?

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this movie. Tom Hanks was rather convincing in this role. The movie was a great alternative to my usual choice of sci-fi or action movie. It was slow-paced, thoughtful, yet highly entertaining as the majority of characters were interesting and likable. In addition, the movie was full of that over-the-top sentimality that only Spielberg can deliver. Yet, the movie managed to not make me want to gag and instead, warmed my heart. (Yes, I did shed a few tears.):wink:

In 1193 B.C., Prince Paris of Troy (Orlando Bloom) kidnaps legendary beauty Helen (Diane Kruger) from her husband, King Menelaus of Sparta, setting the two nations on a collision course for war. The Greeks, including Achilles (Brad Pitt), marshal their entire armada, sail to Troy and begin a decade-long siege. Eric Bana plays Hector, the leader of the Trojan forces, and Sean Bean is the wily Ulysses (of Trojan Horse fame).

At times I wasn’t sure whether I was watching some elaborate pissing contest or simply a bunch of men playing dress-up having a grand ole time. The casting of Orlando Bloom as Paris and Eric Bana as Hector was a stroke of genius. They were rather convincing as the brothers, Paris and Hector. Sean Bean also stood out as Ulysses. Diane Kruger was a good Helen but the ton of black eyeliner, ultimately made her less of a natural beauty. Brad Pitt gave an uneven performance. At times he was a little too aloof or carefree to be such a brutal warrior–he seemed to drift right out of character. One aspect of the film that ruined his character portrayal were the constant allusions to the quest to be remembered throughout time. The movie started and ended that way, everything Achilles said reiterated this theme, until his death. We got it, he wanted to be remembered (and he was), come up with some other dialogue please. But Brad Pitt was not nearly as bad as Brian Cox as Agamemnon. I never imagined Agamemnon as an old fart — maybe I will have to take another look at the Iliad. The fighting scenes were convincing and I think they should have left out some of the computer generated stuff since it wasn’t that impressive. At two hours and 48 minutes, the film could have replaced about 40 minutes of included material with 40 minutes of the gods. The gods actually provide some of the more interesting dynamics in the Iliad and add another level of understanding of the conflict. Their inclusion would have made the film more epic, although there was so much drama in the heavens that may be its own movie. Yet, it seemed sort of a cop-out to exclude them. All-in-all, Troy is not the best movie I’ve seen, but I was entertained enough to make it quite painlessly through the 2 hours and 48 minutes — a good popcorn movie.

Inspired by Isaac Asimov’s work, this techno-thriller stars Will Smith as Del Spooner, a mid-21st century Chicago cop investigating the murder of a scientist. Wary of technology, Spooner’s not the perfect man for the job, but he takes it on anyway, aided by expert Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan). When Spooner discovers that an android, Sonny (Alan Tudyk) may be the culprit, he realizes the entire human race could be at the mercy of machines.

I, Robot (2004) was a really great popcorn movie. The actor’s performances were pretty good for this type of movie. The movie visuals were stunning, including Will Smith’s pecs (wow). However, the soundtrack accompanying Sonny’s last walk was too over-the-top and I burst out laughing–I admit that I’m not really into AI lore or at least I don’t take it too seriously. Nevertheless, I, Robot is great rental.

Eddie Murphy talks to the animals once again in this well-loved family comedy. This time, it’s up to the good doctor to defend the habitat of a lone female bear, Ava (voiced by Lisa Kudrow), and introduce her to a suitable (if intellectually challenged) mate (voiced by Steve Zahn). Adults will enjoy the sly humor of Issac Hayes playing a possum; kids will love the world-class animatronics.

I watched Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001) because the kids wanted to see it. They love Raven and Kyla Pratt. We saw the first installment a couple weeks ago. Raven’s part was somewhat larger in this movie than the first, which the kids liked although Kyla was mostly m.i.a. I can’t really rave about the movie but it wasn’t too bad.

Tennis player Peter Cort’s (Paul Bettany) career is on the wane; his serves are far from scorching, and his returns are missing their mark. But a lucky wild-card entry into the most prestigious tournament of all, Wimbledon, just may be his last hurrah. Love finds him off-court when he falls for tempestuous American athlete Lizzie Bradbury (Kirsten Dunst). Can Peter chart this new course, or will he lose his way once more?

I just watched Wimbledon. The movie lacked any real depth although stars, Paul Bettany and Kirsten Dunst managed to shine despite the thinly constructed romance. The movie would have been much better if the reason for Dunst’s character’s attraction to Bettany had been presented earlier. In fact, most of the script’s attention seemed to focus on developing Bettany’s character with very little attention given to Dunst’s character. Nevertheless, it’s a good video rental but I’m glad I didn’t waste money at the movie theatres ($16,831,505 U.S. Box Office Gross) on this one.

From IMDB:

• Scenes for the film were filmed during the Wimbledon tournament 2003. The actors would walk out on court at the beginning or end of a match as though they were really competing. The officials and spectators were actual tennis officials and spectators, rather than extras. It is the only time in the history of the tournament that this has been allowed.
• Getting the actors to play professional-looking tennis proved much more difficult than anticipated. Eventually, it was decided to film them performing the strokes and digitally add the ball afterwards.

Comedy-meister Eddie Murphy portrays the titular San Francisco sawbones who accidentally regains his childhood gift for conversing with critters. Word soon spreads throughout the animal kingdom, and his clinic turns into a virtual zoo overrun with sheep, horses, birds, rats, dogs and a suicidal tiger, all looking for medical advice and creating comedic chaos. Celebrity voices include Albert Brooks, Chris Rock, Garry Shandling and Ellen DeGeneres.

The kids and I watched Dr. Dolittle today. The kids wanted to see Dr. Dolittle because it starred Raven-Simone of Disney Channel fame. The movie was not incredibly good but it wasn’t too bad either. There was probably a little too much profanity for a kid’s movie. I think the kids would have liked Dr. Dolittle more if the kids in the movie (Kyla Pratt and Raven) had bigger parts.

Director Takashi Miike fashions an explosive drama in Audition (2000). Shigeharu Aoyama (Ryo Ishibashi) has lived as a widower for too long and decides it’s time to marry again. But how will he find a wife? When a friend suggests he hold a fake audition to pick the right woman, he takes him up on it — only to realize that his choice may be a better actress than he bargained for.

“A better actress than he bargained for” is an understatement. (more…)