A Few Movie Reviews......

After a Christmas time hiatus from all things internet, I am now back and refreshed. Since I saw a few movies over that time, I thought I would post a few reviews.

The Polar Express
An interesting film from Robert Zemeckis. I am still wondering why this couldn't have been made into a live action movie. The animation while wonderful, seemed completely unnecessary. Tom Hanks is a great actor and to make him come through a computer generated animation process is simply a waste of his great talent.

I did enjoy the film for the most part and it does have very nice feel, however I would have loved to see it as a realistically created live action feature.

6 of 10

Christmas with the Kranks
This movie is funny at times, but fails to reach its full potential due to many plot flaws which exist due to the fact that the adapted screen play strays from the great story on which it is based called "Skipping Christmas". As an aside...Why did they change the name? Skipping Christmas is a great name and a John Grisham bestseller....but Ben Affleck put out a movie called "Surviving Christmas" and the marketing people decided to avoid any confusion with a Ben Affleck movie. Not that I can blame them, but is "Christmas with the Kranks" the best they could muster?

Anyway, I was annoyed with the handling of some of the characters and their motivations. Their motives seem to get lost in the movie version and the characters seem to lack depth.

As for the comic aspect, some of it is funny...most of it is cliche'.

4 of 10

Lemony Snickett's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Jim Carrey is absolutely a genius of comedic timing. This movie, like the books, contains a very dark form of comedy. Jim Carrey pulls off the part of the villian (Count Olaf) with a flourish. Everytime he enters the frame, he is electric. You cannot miss a moment. The rest of the acting was also very good and this movie is a very entertaining retreat.

The books are quite off beat, as is this perfect adaptation. I hope people notice Jim Carrey come Oscar time for his excellent performance.

8 of 10

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
When I left the theatre, I liked this movie more than I do now. Although my like of it was very low even then. I guess I just have really high expectations from Bill Murray. Everytime he is in a film, I find myself wishing it was Groundhog Day, Stripes, Scrooged, Meatballs, or Caddyshack.....in other words funny. Bill Murray is funny in parts of this movie, but mostly his comic skills are wasted in a very melancholy mood movie. Wes Anderson has shown some skill with this type of film in the past, but does every film he makes need to be a mood piece about people stuck in mid-life crisis?

Watch this movie to see how the cronically depressed live and see comedy through a thin haze of melancholy.

3 of 10

Spanglish
I like this film. Excellent performances from Paz Vega, Adam Sandler, Cloris Leachman and Tea Leoni. The script is good and alive. While this movie covers some of the same ground as The Life Aquatic, it doesn't dwell in hopelessness. The movie actually ends with a realistic amount of hope.

7 of 10.

From the DVD rack...

2 Fast 2 Furious
I don't know why I skipped this one in the theatre. I actually liked it more than the first one. Lots of action and a smooth flowing plot. Very well put together. Paul Walker is just likeable. Although depth is lacking in these films, fun is always there. Lots of fun.

8 of 10

Dodgeball: A true underdog story
I loved this movie in the theatre, and after watching on DVD 3 times. It has already entered classic status. There is no telling how many times I will end up watching this masterpiece. To quote a line from the movie... it is bigger than "the World Cup, World Series and World War 2 COMBINED!"

Vince Vaughn is SO funny, Stephen Root is SO funny...Even Ben Stiller cracks me up as the slimeball White Goodman...(I love it when he says... "I am just White.... W-H-I-T (Pause for 10 seconds) Uh.. E )

If you haven't seen this....see it soon. It is a laugh out loud riot. Full of lines which will enter the lexicon and never leave.

10 of 10

That's enough for now.... I will be more BLOG present in 2005. It is my new year's resolution!