Page Updated on Sunday Nights - Last Updated 5/11/2008
Latest Movies are listed first.
Current Reviews
Speed Racer (PG, Family, Action) A-
A young race car driver who is actually named Speed Racer gets pulled into the corrupt world of automobile racing when he wins his first big race. There’s a lot more to the story which will be better for you to enjoy later, it was unusually complex for a kid’s movie but still very good. There were some scenes focused on Speed’s younger brother that I thought were too animated and could have been cut from the movie but the racing scenes were excellent. Official Site
What Happens in Vegas (PG-13, Romantic Comedy) B+
After getting fired from his job Jack Fuller (Ashton Kutcher) heads to Las Vegas were he inadvertently meets Joy McNally (Cameron Diaz) who has recently broken up with her boyfriend. After waking up married they decide to get quick annulment until one of them wins 3 million dollars. They each feel they’re entitled to the full prize so a judge orders them to live together for 6 months to give their marriage a chance to work. Living together cause a lot of problems for them which sets up most of the comedic situations. I thought this would just be another movie with a bunch of bad jokes and raunchy scenes but it was practically the complete opposite. The comedic situations were great and the story had a lot of substance to it. Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz had great chemistry and this is the first time I’ve thought he’s actually funny in a film. Official Site
Made of Honor (PG-13, Romantic Comedy) B+
A bachelor (Patrick Dempsey) realizes he is in love with his best friend (Michelle Monaghan) when she goes to Scotland for a month; the trouble is that she returns engaged and asks him to be her maid of honor. Even though the movie is very predictable the story was still good. Official Site
Iron Man (PG-13, Action, Sci-Fi) A-
Based on the comic book about a wealthy industry leader (Robert Downey Jr.) who builds an iron suit that lets him fly and shoot off bullets and missiles. The film shows how he came up for the idea for the suit and why he needs to play the role of a super hero. The story, special effects and all the action were excellent. Official Site
Hors de Prix – Priceless (PG-13, Romantic Comedy) B
In this French film Jean (Gad Elmaleh) meets Irene (Audrey Tautou) who mistakes him for a rich man. When she finds out he is not rich she leaves him but he’s still determined to pursue her no matter what the cost. The story was an original one but it felt a bit drawn out at times. Official Site
Baby Mama (PG-13, Comedy) B
A successful, single business woman (Tina Fey) decides to enlist the help of a surrogate mother (Amy Poehler) to carry her baby. She ends up with a surrogate mother that has a background completely different from hers and a troublesome boyfriend. The two actresses do a great job working together and the movie had a good story, it could have been funnier though. Official Site
Harold and Kumar: Escape from Guantanamo Bay (R, Comedy) D-
In this sequel after escaping Guantanamo Bay Harold and Kumar sneak back into the U.S. in order to reach a friend that will help them prove they’re not terrorists and therefore be able to travel to Amsterdam so that Harold can find his girlfriend. The first movie was much better than this sequel that lacked a substantial story and was just full of bad recycled jokes. Official Site
Deception (R, Thriller) C-
Jonathan McQuarry (Ewan McGregor) works as an accountant doing audits at various locations. While doing an audit at a law firm he is befriended by a lawyer (Hugh Jackman) that gets him involved into an elite sex club that eventually leads to a lot of trouble for him. It takes almost an hour before anything really happens. The second half of the movie is just another recycled formulaic story. Official Site
88 Minutes (R, Comedy) C+
A renowned forensic psychologist (Al Pacino) gets a threatening call indicating he only has 88 minutes to live. He then has to identify who the possible suspects are and how to stop whoever is threatening him. The psychologist is so well renowned that it reaches the point where it is hard to take his character seriously, it would have been better if the character was a more average person instead of some type of super star. The direction and musical score for the movie weren’t very good either. Official Site
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (R, Comedy) B-
Peter Bregger’s (Jason Segel) world comes apart when he finds out that his girlfriend (Kristen Bell) is suddenly dumping him and dating somebody else. He decides to take a vacation at a hotel in Hawaii but once he arrives there he finds out that his ex-girlfriend is also staying there with her new boyfriend. Except for the young religious married couple all the characters in this film were likable and had an important role to play in the overall story. The movie wasn’t too funny but it was charming in its own way. It was raunchier than it needed to be and there were some scenes that could have been deleted. Official Site
The Forbidden Kingdom (PG-13, Action/Comedy) D+
A high school student (Michael Angarano) gets transported to another world when he picks up a magical staff that must be returned to its original owner. Once the staff is returned the kingdom will be set free from an evil warlord. When he arrives to this world he meets a drunk (Jackie Chan) that helps him with his quest. They are later joined by two more people interested in freeing the kingdom. I usually like Jackie Chan but his acting in this film was really bad; the role of an older wiser mentor is not one that suits him. To make matters worse he provides the entire narration for the film which just felt empty of any emotion or conviction. It also seemed like there were some scenes missing since some of the characters suddenly change their attitudes and we are not shown why. Even the fighting scenes weren’t that great they just serve to showcase all the special effects. Official Site
Smart People (R, Drama, Comedy) C+
A widowed college professor (Dennis Quaid) that is embittered with his life and career meets a Doctor (Sarah Jessica Parker) that is interested in him despite his bad attitude. At the same time his brother (Thomas Haden Church) moves into the house where he helps his niece (Ellen Page) deal with her own issues. The acting in this movie was great but the pacing was too slow. So much time is spent showing us how smart these people are that it just brings down the entire movie. It also reminded me too much of the movie As Good as It Gets which was far better than this one. Official Site
Nim’s Island (PG, Family, Adventure) B+
A little girl named Nim (Abigail Breslin) and her Dad (Gerard Butler) live all alone in an island in the Pacific Ocean. When her Dad does not return from a trip she contacts her favorite action hero to come help her out, failing to realize he doesn’t exist and that she has instead contacted the book’s author, Alex Rover (Jodie Foster). While the movie is predictable the screenplay and Nim’s narration do a great job of letting us see things through Nim’s point of view and there’s a good subplot in the film too. Official Site
21 (PG-13, Drama) B+
A college student decides to join accept an invitation from his Professor (Kevin Spacey) to join a card playing team so that he can pay his tuition for Medical School. The purpose of this team is to count cards after having developed a complex system between themselves. At first everything is peachy and they are winning millions of dollars but other forces and their own internal bickering threaten to leave them worst off. It was interesting to see the system they used to count cards and the dynamic between all the characters was also good; the movie runs a little long though. Official Site
