Opening This Week… 8.1.08

  

Jet Li in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

New for this week are a few movies, but there’s only one I think we’re even considering seeing… We’ll probably go for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor so check in this weekend if you need a second opinion before you decide to see it or not. We’ll probably go on Friday night. You can check out more info and the trailer HERE

Photo credit: ©Universal Pictures, via allmoviephoto.com

…………………………………………………………

Also opening this Friday: 

…………………………………………………………

Swing Vote 
“One ordinary guy is giving the candidates a reason to run.

Starring Kevin Costner, and a ton of other great actors like Stanley Tucci, Nathan Lane, Dennis Hopper, Kelsey Grammar & more… You can view the trailer here: Swing Vote Official Site

Add’l Info: Runtime: 100 minutes • Rated PG-13 for language

…………………………………………………………

The Midnight Meat Train
“The most terrifying ride you’ll ever take.”

 A New York photographer goes after a serial killer… I can’t say the name of this one without laughing. I’m sure my hubby will rent it when it’s on DVD, but I don’t think we’ll be paying money to see it in the theater… You can check it out for yourself HERE if you love horror movies and think this might be up your alley… Based on the short story by Clive Barker and starring Brook Shields, Bradley Cooper, Vinnie Jones, Leslie Bibb…

Add’l Info: Runtime: 100 minutes • Rated R for sequences of strong bloody gruesome violence, grisly images involving nudity, sexual content and language]

…………………………………………………………

In Search of a Midnight Kiss
“It’s not just another kiss.” 

This romantic comedy sounds like fun… about a guy who’s friend convinces him to place a personal ad after a particularly tough year… where he meets a woman who is bent on finding someone to be with at midnight on New Year’s Eve. You can check out the official site with trailer HERE

Add’l Info: Runtime: 90 minutes • Untrated • Grand Jury Award for Best Film, 2008 Florida Film Festival

Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang…

  
Robert Downey, Jr. & Val Kilmer in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang

 “SeX. MurdEr. MyStery. Welcome to the party.”

This is one of those movies that I knew as I was leaving the theater, I’d buy as soon as it came out on DVD because it was so clever and so hilarious. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a dark comedy about a small time thief named Harry Lockhart [Robert Downey, Jr.] who practically falls into a movie audition while trying to get away from the cops after a job gone bad, and due to the raw emotions of said botched job, he astounds the panel and is offered the role on the spot. Thinking it was as good a way out as any, Harry plays along and is sent to Hollywood where he’s paired up with a private detective to research his new role. He accompanies private eye Perry Van Shrike, a.k.a ‘Gay Perry’ [Val Kilmer] on a case that takes them to a party, hosted by an aging actor [Corbin Bersen] known for playing detective roles in movies, who has a vested interest in the movie Harry auditioned for. It’s at this party where Harry discovers his childhood love, struggling beer commercial actress, Harmony Lane [Michelle Monaghan] in and amongst all the potential murder suspects pertaining to the case. When they go to stakeout a client’s house so Perry can get incriminating pictures for his client, they find a body and from there the madness ensues. 

The dialog alone is worth seeing this flick – it just doesn’t get any better. Val Kilmer as ‘Gay Perry’ is hysterical and Robert Downey is in top form. This movie is fun, crazy, weird, gross and… did I mention it’s funny? 

4 out of 5.

Interesting tidbit, Director Shane Black wrote all the Lethal Weapon movies and to date, this is the only movie he’s directed… he did a great job, so I hope he’ll do more… 

Add’l Info: Released: Sep 14, 2005 • Runtime: 102 minutes • Rated R for language, violence and sexuality/nudity • Photo credit: John Bramley, ©Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. via allmoviephoto.com

Preview: Babylon A.D.

   

Vin Diesel in "Babylon A.D." out on Aug 29th

I had wondered what happened to Vin Diesel… and there he was on the big screen yesterday in the preview for Babylon A.D. It takes place in a post-apocolyptic Eastern Europe and is about Toorop [Diesel], a former veteran-turned mercenary who takes a high-risk job of transporting a ‘package’ from Russia to China. The package happens to be a girl with a secret. Babylon A.D. also stars Michelle Yeoh, so we can look forward to some great fight scenes I’m sure. And also newcomer to American film, Mélanie Thierry.

This movie looks like what XXX should have been [if you haven't seen it, consider yourself lucky... It was horrible] – darker, grittier… but it’s still not rated R, so hopefully the acting, writing, plot and pacing make up for the lack of other perks like gratuitous sex and violence [wink]. There’s definitely plenty of action, though. 

At the helm is director Mathieu Kassovitz, the man behind the movie Munich, which was excellent, so I have high hopes for Babylon A.D. I know a lot of people don’t like Vin Diesel, but I like him. His choice of roles has been questionable for a while, so hopefully he can redeem himself. I am a big fan of the original Fast and the Furious [fast cars, sexy people... fine for what it is and Diesel was a great 'anti-hero'] and Pitch Black – a great sci-fi movie. I also enjoyed the sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, even though it was a little hokey here and there, and the villain could have been so much better [Colm Feore, a great actor, but in this case he looked like an accountant, not a power monger that wanted to dominate the Universe to me]… but it did have Judi Dench, Thandie Newton and Karl Urban, which balanced things out for me.  ;)

Okay, enough of my ‘babyling’… hee hee [sorry, couldn't resist!]… here’s the trailer: Babylon A.D. Official Site

Add’l Info: Release Date: Aug 29, 2008 • Runtime: 90 minutes • Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality • Photo credit: Guy Ferrandis ©Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation via allmoviephoto.com

Preview: Eagle Eye

Shia LaBeouf & Michelle Monaghan In "Eagle Eye"

“If you want to live you will obey.”

Eagle Eye looks like it could be really good if you like thrillers. Jerry [Shia LaBeouf] and Rachael [Michelle Monaghan] are both caught in an assassination plot, where they are used by a mysterious woman who seems to know their every move. When they realize they’re both being set up, they race against the clock, working together to figure it all out before it’s too late… 

View the trailer here: DreamWorks’ Eagle Eye Official Site

Directed by D.J. Caruso, the same guy that gave us Disturbia [with Shia LaBeouf and Carrie Anne Moss] Two for the Money [with Al Pacino, Matthew McConaughey, Rene Russo and a bunch more people I won't bother listing here] and Taking lives [with Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke and Kiefer Sutherland]. I saw the latter two, which weren’t bad… I may check out Disturbia before this flick comes out. 

Add’l Info: Release Date: Sep 26, 2008 • Runtime & Rating: TBD • Photo Credit: Ralph Nelson. (c)2008 DreamWorks LLC. All Rights Reserved

The X-Files: I Want to Believe

 

David Duckovny & Gillian Anderson reprise their roles ad Mulder and Scully in 'The X-Files: I Want To Believe"

 

So, after reading a few reviews online by regular people [I don't trust 'critics'... ironic, huh?], I decided I did want to see The X-Files: I Want To Believe movie that came out yesterday. And it was just like those folks said… it was like a 2 hour episode of X-Files the TV show, 6 years after the show ended. Where I was at a loss was, I didn’t watch the last two seasons, so there were some blanks for me, but I won’t say what they are, so I don’t give anything away. This really wasn’t all that thrilling. It was mainly a drama with a little suspense thrown in, but in classic X-Files style, they also give you plenty of creepy weirdness and a hint of humor…

X-Files – To See or Not To See?

My husband and I were avid X-Files fans for the first 7 or so seasons… and then they lost us when Mulder left. I like Robert Patrick, so we watched for a while, but the plot lines got more twisted and convoluted and they gave no answers to any of the major story arcs [or they didn't make any sense], so we’d had enough and didn’t bother with the last 2 seasons. Season 5 was the show’s best season in my humble opinion – and Scully had the best hair around that time [yes, it matters! lol].

Scully's hair from the first X-Files movie

So… Why make an X-Files movie now – 6 years after the show ended? 10 years after the last movie? I’m not sure I care enough about the characters anymore to bother paying the $20 for 2 tickets – for a matinée. I’m conflicted by my own ‘going in blind’ policy. Maybe if I read more about it, I’ll know for sure if I want to bother or not… It’ll be a gametime decision whenever we decide to go to the theater this weekend. We may just see The Dark Knight again instead. 

Or, we wait a week – which doesn’t do you much good if you’re looking for a review from me… but if it’s gone next week or only has a couple of showtimes, then you know nobody’s going to see it. If it has the usual number of showings, it means it did well and people are liking it for the most part… although, that litmus test doesn’t really speak to how good the movie really is – plenty of great movies bombed at the box office, only to have more success on DVD as word of mouth spread. 

So, I guess check back this weekend or on Monday to find out what we end up seeing… If nothing else, I have La Vie En Rose and Monster’s Ball sitting in front of me from netflix to watch. I never did see Monster’s Ball, but ever since seeing Stay, and finding out the same director is doing Quantum of Solace, I finally have the desire to check it out. To be honest, Halle Barry’s Oscar speech didn’t help either [although I LOVED her dress...].  ;)

Cheers, 
Helena

This Week’s Previews [7.20.08]

When we saw The Dark Knight on Friday there were three new trailers that caught my attention: Watchmen, The Day The Earth Stood Still, and Terminator Salvation. Here’s the scoop on these three flicks…

_______________________________________________________________________________

Watchmen

Based on what the trailer says is the ‘most celebrated graphic novel of all time’ by Alan Moore, Watchmen is the story of an alternate 1985 in America where the cold war with the Russians is at it’s height and the age of costumed superheroes is over. It’s now against the law to play dressup and save the world… until one day when one of them is murdered. It’s up to former vigilante, Rorschach, and the retired superheroes to figure out why. Directed by Zach Snyder, the man behind the movie 300, Watchmen looks gritty and surreal and just as visually stunning. I can’t wait to see it. Cynical superheroes rock. ;) Check out the trailer here: Watchmen Trailers and visit the official site here: Watchmen Official Site

Update 7-30-08: I am so obsessed with the Smashing Pumpkins song they used for the Watchmen trailer [The Beginning is the End is the Beginning], to the point where I’ve been listening to it looped for DAYS [I'm weird like that]. Turns out, it was originally written for Batman and Robin back in ‘97. We happen to own that soundtrack, but at the time it didn’t do anything for me. I think with the visuals and pacing of the Watchmen trailer it hooked me this time around, and because of it, I can’t wait for this movie to come out. 

Add’l Info: Release Date: Mar 6, 2009 • Runtime & Rating TBD • Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. [still from HD movie trailer]

_______________________________________________________________________________

The Day The Earth Stood Still

This one is obviously a remake of the 1951 sci-fi classic – which I don’t remember seeing. Which is to say I may have very well seen it when I was much younger but if I only saw it once and it was more than 5 years ago, I probably don’t remember it. lol… anyway… the updated version starts Keanu Reeves as Klaatu, an alien visitor who brings along his giant robot to our beloved planet. But are they friends or foes? Also stars Jennifer Connelly, John Cleese, Kathy Bates, and Jaden Smith. From the preview I’m excited to see it. Check out the trailer here: The Day The Earth Stood Still Official Site

Add’l Info: Release Date: Dec 12, 2008 • Runtime and Rating: TBD • Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox [still taken from movie trailer]

_______________________________________________________________________________

Terminator Salvation

I’m a huge Terminator fan – I love the concept, love the creepy, evil robots, the drama and horror of it, etc., so I’m very excited to see what they’ve come up with for this latest Terminator installment. If Batman Begins is any indication, this movie is going to be incredible as Christian Bale is quickly turning into the ‘resurrector of tired franchises.’ From the trailer it looks like he and director McG have injected some much-needed edgy realism and credibility back into Terminator. We’ve been watching the TV show and it, too, has gone in that direction – more serious, great plot lines, cool effects and very dark in look and feel. This one takes place in the future, after ‘judgement day’ when John Connor is all grown up and is struggling to keep Skynet and the robots from wiping out humanity completely. Is he really the hero his mother’s been bragging about for the last 20 years? Or just a regular guy in a crappy situation trying to stay alive? We’ll have to watch it to find out. Check out the trailer here: Terminator Salvation Offical Site

Add’l Info: Release Date: May 22, 2009 • Runtime & Rating: TBD • Photo courtesty of Warner Bros. [Still taken from HD trailer - it's an image that is flashed so quickly you almost can't see it. When I found it and enhanced it, I got giddy... I love evil robots...]

The Dark Knight

“Why So Serious?”

For anyone living in a box lately, The Dark Knight takes place about a year after Batman Begins. This time around, Batman [Christian Bale] teams up with Lieutenant Gordon [Gary Oldman] and Gotham’s new District Attorney, Harvey Dent [Aaron Eckhart] – the guy many people believe – including Bruce Wayne – to be Gotham’s white knight in his fearless attack on crime, rounding up mob bosses and cleaning up the streets. Things are going smoothly until a psychotic bank robber, soon known to a terrified Gotham as ‘The Joker’ [Heath Ledger] gets the upper hand and unleashes a new kind of chaos and terrorism on the city. The question is – why? According to Dent, “you either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain.” 

Battle: The Good Shepherd vs. Breach

I thought I’d try something new and pit two similar movies against each other in a sort of double-review. It happens every now and then, different studios get the same bright idea and then duke it out for who can get their version out first – it’s happened a few times. For the first battle, I’m going for the Espionage/Drama genre with The Good Shepherd and Breach. Let’s meet the contenders… 

This Week’s Previews [7.13.08]

This weeks previews were all over the place in terms of genre and release dates. I’m going to put them all in one post vs. devoting separate posts to each… Here’s a quick summary of each with the current release date [we all know they change them at will, so these could be wrong next week for all I know...].

Jump to read about College, Clone Wars, Quarantine, The next Mummy and Death Race…