Movie Reviews

The Day the Earth Stood Still

I was one of those people old enough to have seen the first one. I really liked it, and think it's at the top of the crop of all the 50s sci-fi movies that proceded after that one.

That brings me to the new one. I was really looking forward to this one and thought it had a lot of promise.

I was wrong.

The director and the screenwriter apparently didn't know whether this was a remake or a redo. They referred to many of the points/scenes of the original and, in the beginning, looked really promising. Then, somewhere along the way, they forgot how to make a movie.

You know the part in the original, where Klaatu was supposed to prove to the world that he was who he said he was - you know - the part that had everything to do with the title of the film - when the earth 'stood still' for 30 minutes. It seemed like the director said to himself, "hey - we need to put that in somewhere" and they did. It didn't seem to fit and it didn't have the same meaning as it should have. It was just there.

And then there was John Cleese - - I love watching John Cleese - in the original, Sam Jaffe had the same part and it was a big part. In this one, after the initial meeting, they seemed to have forgotten to put the rest of his part in the movie, altogether! There was so much potential that was untapped, it was ridiculous,

Then there was the ending - really, that's about it. Every movie has its own pace. It builds at a certain pace, and everything falls into place evenly, as it's supposed to. In this movie, someone must have said to himself, "hey, this movie has gone on long enough - we need to end it."

And they did. - - out of pace altogether. One moment, Klaatu thought the human race was the scum of the universe, and then, all of a sudden, he figured they were worth saving. And Gort - the big robot - what a joke - it seemed like he and Klaatu had no real connection at all. What a joke, in my opinion!

They both had their big political statements to make. The first one was an anti-war movie  - this one was a global warming movie. However, it had no real sting. It just had a really big build up and then it ended. That was it.

And that wasn't even mentioning the fact that Keanu Reeves (who, in my opinion is rated far above what his real talent is) put in the worst acting job of his life.

If I were you, I wouldn't waste my money - I did and I'm sorry I did.

Perfect Stranger

Revolution Studios - 109 minutes
Bruce Willis/Halle Berry/Giovanni Ribisi

For those of you unfortunate enough to remember the TV show, Perfect Strangers, be rest assured that this has nothing to do with that.

This is an intriguing, sophisticated, suspenseful thriller, that kept my interest from the beginning, and then all the way through until the end. And rest assured, until you get to the end, it is not over. It has very good plot creation, character development,  and the 'picture' is great. Directed quite well by the well known director, James Foley, the package is exquisite, in my humble opinion.

Bruce Willis plays a suave ad agency owner, much like many parts he's played in the past - as a lady's man, with an unquenchable thirst for women. Halle Berry plays the part of a very self-assurred, writer for a major newspaper.  At the first, you don't really know this, but before the movie goes by 10 minutes, you know that she is the part, with a very good, believable portrayal.

This is not a movie for kids. There is quite a lot of off-color language (usually only one specific word, used as adverb, adjective and verb), as well as sexual interplay and innuendo. However, for adults who don't mind the previous things, this is a great story that, even though it does keep you going all the way through, is not an 'on the edge of your seat' or 'nail biter' type of thriller. It's more subdued, without being laid back. It rarely looses track and keeps you in it at all times. This movie brings you into it and takes you where it's going - it grabs your attention early on.

There are scenes that pop up several times during the movie, that, at first,  seem disjointed, and at one point, I figured it would just be a way to add validity to certain character traits, but it is much more than that. Don't worry - your questions will be answered.

Definitely a Go-See movie

Gross out Factor - 0
Profanity Factor - 7 - quite a bit, but not usually overly gratuitous
Sex Factor - .5 (no open nudity)
Interest keeper- 10 - it keeps you going all way through

Stranger than Fiction

Sony/Columbia Pictures - 113 minutes
Will Farrell/Dustin Hoffman/Emma Thompson

Warning - this is not your children's Will Farrell movie. But that's not a bad thing. Many (might I say most) typical Will Farrell movies are a little over the top with easy slapstick, teenage boy laugh humor. This movie has a heart. Many of the great laughs don't even come straight from Will Farrell.

This is a vary subdued, laid back, well thought out movie, that progresses much like a well-oiled machine. Every movie usually has a love story of some kind in it, but even within the well-thought out main plot, at the heart of this movie, is a love story. It's not gooey or gushy, but a straight-ahead, nerdy guy becomes a man (and yes, in this one it works quite well) and falls in love.

The concept of the movie (and main plot) is that Harold Crick (a stuffy IRS auditor) starts hearing a female voice in his head, and it has a British accent. Yes, understandably, for the comic factor, no one else can hear it, but it seems to know him, narrating his entire life, just as he's living it. It drives him crazy.

First he visits a psychiatrist, and then, from there visits a literary professor, all in an attempt to get hold of his life, which is being torn apart from end to end, due to this voice in his head.

It turns out, Karen (played by Emma Thompson) is a well known author, writing a book. Each sentence she types is what Harold hears in his head

 Of course, that, in and of itself is disturbing to him, but not as disturbing as what he finds out the author is going to do to him in the end of the book she's writing....

Gross out Factor - .5 (as they walk through a men's locker room, there are a few old man butts seen, very briefly)
Profanity Factor - .5 (just a handful of words to get their PG13 rating)
Sex Factor - .5 (just a little bit, (mostly kissing) to insinuate the concept that it would happen - but no nudity in this scene at all)
Feel-Good Factor - 5 - all in all, after leaving the movie, I knew inside that I had a really good time and felt good about having seen the movie. I'd recommend it to 99% of my friends. It was definitely worth spending all of the 113 minutes in the theater.