Friends With Money (2006)

Synopsis: This movie is about four girl friends who are middle aged and all of them are married except for one. The story is told through the unmarried one, Olivia (Jennifer Aniston). Unlike her friends, she doesn't have a rich husband. Unlike her friends, she doesn't have a great job, or the fancy car and the kids who go to private school. What she has is a house cleaning job and rocky relationships with shit guys. This story is as much about Olivia finding herself as is about the other three woman finding out that they hate themselves and have completely forgotten what it means to be happy.

Should You Watch It? This movie is a bit of a dark comedy. These women are all going through some sort of crisis but it's funny because they're so miserable even though they have all these minor problems that other people would gladly take. There's quite a lot of talking, and stuff which might sour some people, but overall the dialogue is clever and the storylines are very well connected and thought out.

Things to Watch Out For: Jennifer Aniston plays something very different here. We always see her as being Rachel but she's definitely not her in this movie. Her portrayal of a woman finding herself is well done along with Frances McDormand who plays Jane. Jane is absolutely nuts. She feels that everyone in the world is trying to cheat her and she would explode at anybody that crosses her even if it's the most minor thing. It is quite a treat to watch.

Things You Don't Expect: The ending is quite the ambigous and although it might not seem like it at the time, it is a happy ending and gives everyone hope that they can turn their life around and that money and fame isn't everything.

Final Comments:
Story: 7.8
Direction: 6.0
Acting: 7.5
Cinematography: 6.0
Music/Sound: 5.5

Final Score: 6.8

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Synopsis: Alex de Large loves the girls, and he just can't seem to resist the ultra violence in futuristic Britain where everything has gone to hell and the only freedom exists in a person's mind and his willingness to take what he wants. Life is just peachy for Alex until he takes too much and kills an old woman. He gets convicted of murder and gets sent away for 14 long years. In prison, he takes a liking towards god and tries to reform himself until three years into his sentence when he comes across a new treatment to exterminate the crminial nature in a person through an experimental process. Alex volunteers and is "cured". Upon his release, he begins to see the world for the shit hole it really is.

Should You Watch It? This film is absolutely amazing. Forget the 1971 timestamp cause this movie is an instant classic that can't be dated. The deep political criticism spoken through an anti-hero whose completely nuts is a new way of looking at society. Stanley Kubrick has done a great job in showing you the psyche of a criminal and shows us how criminals are just a manifestation of the wrongs of society. Some of you may think that this film is designed to just criticise and preach but it really isn't. This film is deeply entertaining. It uses great technique for it's time and every detail has been thought of in order to create a futuristic Britain.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is really grim. It has some pretty graphic scenes containing murder and rape or both! It's important to associate these scenes with the music because Alex projects his mental state into the music that's playing while he's doing these things. And the music changes once he's out of prison and begins to see what a crap world it is. The imagery is strong in this film as well. Costumes and settings play an important role in showing us the mental state of Alex and his gang.

Things You Don't Expect: You will be surprised how fast two hours fly by! Haha no seriously though. You really don't expect to sympathize with Alex. In the beginning he is one bad ass criminal but in the end when he comes out of the program and you see what society has done to him, you really feel as if no one deserves to have live a life that's not their own. There are a lot of things worse than death and Alex experiences them all and his character should be remembered in film for a long time.

Final Comments:
Story: 9.8
Direction: 8.0
Acting: 8.8
Cinematography: 8.0
Music/Sound: 9.0

Final Score: 9.0

Blades of Glory (2007)

Synopsis: Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) and Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferral) are figure skating! That is until they get into a fight after sharing the gold medal at the 2002 World Winter Games. Subsequently, they get banned for life from men's single's figure skating. So what do they do? They decide to stick it to the man and join up and enter the pairs competition in 2006. Makes sense to me! They must now learn to put aside their differences and work together to learn a new routine, thwart the evil plans of their rival figure skating pair and show the world that they are still figure skating!

Should You Watch It? Do you like stupid comedy that draws its humour from random things? Then this movie is for you. This movie is funny, it really is. But it's funny cause it's stupid and over the top, and there is really nothing else to do but laugh when they do some of the things they do and say. The acting performances are all pretty expected, especially from Will Ferral.

Things to Watch Out For: Chazz is an alcholic and a sex addict. If that doesn't get your attention then this movie is gonna do nothing for you. Jenna Fischer plays Katie, whose Jimmy's love interest in this movie and she has been great in The Office and it's great to see her get some respect and play a prominent role in a feature film. Obviously, she was great. Alright fine, I'm bias but she was good.

Things You Don't Expect: This movie is on the brink of being surreal. Of course every movie is a dramatization but this movie pushes the envelope in terms of what audiences will accept as plausible. Haha, but it's the type of movie this is cause if you really thought you would see Will Ferral do triple axels then you are very much mistaken.

Final Comments:
Story: 6.5
Direction: 6.0
Acting: 8.8
Cinematography: 7.0
Music/Sound: 7.8

Final Score: 7.2

デスノート, Desu Nōto (Death Note) (2006)

Synopsis: Based on the popular Japanese manga; Light Yagami is a bright kid in highschool. His brightness is put to the test when he recieves a note book from a death god (shinigami) giving Light the ability to kill anyone he wants by writing the person's name and seeing their face. He begins to exact his vigilante justice and the world is better for it! But not everyone shares his enthusiasim, like his father, whose the chief of the Japanese police. His father hires the help of a super detective, L. Now it's a battle of wits as Light and L square off in a titantic duel which will shape the new world order.

Should You Watch It? This manga was extremely popular in Japan and internationally as well for it's deep and I mean deep storyline combined with great character development and exposition based around a clever idea. Having said all of that, this movie will definitely feel light (no pun intended) compared to the manga cause it just can't do what the manga did. But instead of trying to strip away major parts of the comic and making it true to the books, this movie takes the premise and the characters and shapes them into a two part film which has just as much action and twists. The movie doesn't really touch on the philosophical aspects of having a killer note but it does enough.

Things to Watch Out For: This is a logic movie and that means you need to pay close attention. Although, it's not as deep as the manga it's still important that the audience stays in tune with the development in order to not get confused. The cast is pretty well assembled to represent their manga counter parts. Especially Amane Misa and Sayu are very well done. Furthermore the CG of the death gods Ryuk and Rem are absolutely amazing. Another sign that Asian cinema is catching up to Western standards and even surpassing them in terms of story telling and dialogue.

Things You Don't Expect: The writers decided to cut out a lot of characters and still made it the story work. They completely took out Near, Mello, and Mikami. If you haven't read the manga then you have no idea what I'm talking about which is good! But for those of you who have read it then don't hold your breath waiting for those characters.

Final Comments:
Story: 9.2
Direction: 7.5
Acting: 7.0
Cinematography: 8.8
Music/Sound: 7.8

Final Score: 8.5

The Re-Animator (1985)

Synopsis: People say that there are two certainties in life: Taxes and Death. Well Herbert West has discovered a way to defeat one of them, and it's not taxes. He has created a serum that defeats death and brings about, well, re-animation to dead things. But it's not all great because when people come back to life, they come back without their brains. Well, their brains are there but....you know what I mean. Things go to hell when West decapitates his medical school's department head when that guy tries to steal West's work. I don't know why, but West gives him the serum and the head comes back to life and then owns West. The head and the body go to revive more bodies in attempts to take over the world! Well maybe not the world but definitely do evil things. And it's up to West and his fellow student Dan Cain to stop the madness!

Should You Watch It? Even for a movie that was made in 1985 they managed to do a great job with the gore and special effects. The dead guy holding his own head! That will never get old. The story line is pretty deep as well, not only dealing with issues of raising the dead but also with relationships and trying to defeat nature, and stuff like that. But seriously all you need to know that if you like horror and gore and nudity then yeah go watch it.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie uses Music and Sound pretty great. I heard that it took the soundtrack from Psycho which would explain it. But even the special effects was pretty great. There is a lot of gore ahaha but it's done all very well. Overall, all you need to know about this movie is that it's pretty grim and it doesn't skimp on anything.

Things You Don't Expect: The acting is pretty good in this film. I think this is a B movie but it's a really well done B movie.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.0
Direction: 8.5
Acting: 7.8
Cinematography: 7.0
Music/Sound: 8.0

Final Score: 7.8

Click (2006)

Synopsis: Adam Sandler plays Michael Newman who has all the potential to be a partner at his architecture firm but just doesn't get the promotion because hey! it's life. But he's sick of life! He's fighting back and he begins by buying a unversial remote to conquer his TV. But he gets more than he asks for when Morty, Christopher Walkin, gives him the blue doom. At first it's pretty cool. He can pretty much control his entire universe. The remote even has a learning function to do exactly what he has done before. But before he knows it, he's fast-forwarding through his whole life wishing for another chance.

Should You Watch It? Some people will just shrug this off as being another stupid Sandler movie but I assure you that he man has changed! it was evident in Spanglish that he was already a different actor seeking different roles. This movie is definitely it. It combines his natural talents in comedy and mixes it with a strong story line supported by an amazing cast which includes Kate Beckinsale as his wife. And her tight rockin' body will drive you crazy!

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is pretty deep and it's all about the journey is worth more than the destination and appreciating life and family and stuff like that. Okay now that we got that out of the way we can talk about more superficial stuff that people care about. The special effects in this movie are pretty great and pretty well done. The remote control poses some challenges and this movie was a lot more expensive because of the time travel involved, but they didn't skimp on it which makes it a lot better. Oh yeah! David Hasselhoff plays a pretty big role in this film and he's pretty great haha....of course he's great cause he brings his entourage of hot girls with no brains.

Things You Don't Expect: You will cry in this movie. I don't care if you're like some hardcore serial killer who hates kittens. You will cry cause no matter how much of a bitch we are inside, we still have that soft core for our parents and family cause you just can't hate people who will always love you unconditionally. Oh yeah did I mention that Kate Beckinsale is really hot?

Final Comments:
Story: 9.5
Direction: 7.5
Acting: 8.0
Cinematography: 8.0
Music/Sound: 7.8

Final Score: 8.2

The Birds (1963)

Synopsis: Melanie Daniels is a girl whose spoiled beyond all riches so when one guy, Mitch Brenner, tells her off in a bird store, she thinks that it would be fun to track him down in his mom's house in Bodega Bay and give his sister, Cathy, birds. That'll show him to be a bitch. Anyways so she gets to the bay and all hell breaks loose. Well, I guess you could say that if hell was filled with birds. They start attacking people and the crew I mentioned above, must convince other people in the bay that the birds are nuts, try to stay alive, and find out why the birds are nuts.

Should You Watch It? I heard a lot about this movie going in. I mean, I think most people who watch movies have heard about this movie. So I was expecting big things! Sure this movie was filmed in 1963 so the quality might be a bit low but man, I was shocked. Forget about the technology and the direction and whatever. Plain and simple, this movie is brutal. Don't get me the wrong, the birds are pretty great but it just doesn't make up for the 45 minutes of exposition mainly consisting of dialogue which has nothing to do with anything! It is the only thing to watch for the first half of the movie. So unless you really like bad dialogue, and I mean pretty bad, you should stay away from this movie.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie does have an interesting dynamic between the characters. Every character in the movie is after love and is afraid of being neglected. So Mitch likes Melanie, and Melanie likes Mitch but Lydia, Mitch's mom, doesn't like Melanie because she thinks Melanie is going to take Mitch away from her. Then there's Cathy who seems to like everyone but is afraid of her two love birds dying. Annie is the school teacher and she used to have a relationship with Mitch. So you pretty much learn that for the first 45 minutes and I guess there's really no way you can miss it cause they say it over and over again, but just incase.

Things You Don't Expect: Hitchcook suggested that this might be most terrifying movie he's made. I haven't seen the others that I have but I pray to God that he's wrong. It's just....bad. From beginning to end. Especially the end which makes no sense like everything else. There's just really no way to explain. Well bad or I guess it's innovative. Haha I guess that's better.

Final Comments:
Story: Fail
Direction: 7.0
Acting: 5.0
Cinematography: 7.0
Music/Sound: Fail

Final Score: Fail

The Host (괴물 Monster) (2006)

Synopsis: This movie is about a monster that gets created because some american dude made some other korean dude dump some sort of toxic chemical into the Han River. After a few years a squid mutates and then goes about terroizing the people around the Han River. The story follows a dysfunctional family who lives in a concession stand by the Han River. The grandfather, Hyun soo, the grand daughter, along with her father, Gang Doo try their best to get by. The story picks up when the Monster Squid comes out of the water and starts owning. In the end of the sequence the monster kidnaps and seemingly eats Hyun Soo. This begins a series of events that brings together Gang Doo's brother, Nam Il, a unemployed graduate, and his sister, Nam Joo whose an olympic bronze medalist in archery. The family gets quarantined by the military because they suspect that the monster has some sort of virus.

One night Gang Doo recieves a call from Hyun Soo somehwere in a sewer. He then goes to tell the authorities who only believe he's insane, a symptom of the virus. As a result the family escapes and takes the matter into their own hands and go on a hunt for the monster and save Hyun Soo.

Why You Should See It: Simply put, this movie is the dream and any person who likes movies or the entertainment industry in general should see this movie. It doesn't do anything new but it does everything so well. It ties together multiplie layers of questions ranging from simple nuances from the family all the way to government superstructures. In the end the product is one that will make you think and re consider this movie on many different levels making you want to watch it over and over again.

Things to Watch Out For: The main idea of the movie isn't really about killing the monster or finding Hyun Soo. It's about questioning society and human nature. Making us think about who the real monsters are. So as you are watching this movie pay close attention and really try to think about what the director/writer is trying to convey. If you pay close enough attention you will slowly begin to see how this movie makes us question all aspects of society and ourselves and seeing that there is a monster in everything.
The sub theme of this movie is gettign a second chance which is pretty clear and it does give the movie a nice circular feeling as the ending strongly resembles the beginning and does well in tying together the character development as well as the main plot.

Things You Don't Expect: This isn't a horror movie as the trailers would have you believe. Hell it's a boarder line thriller. So don't go watch it if you're expecting a scare fest. And it's rated 14A which means there is no gore, no violence and definitly no nudity. It might be a bummer for some, but if you want to watch a movie with all the things this one doesnt' have then just wait until April 6th when you can pay a visit to the Grind House.

Final Score: 8.5

The Good Shepherd (2006)

Synopsis: This movie follows the career of Edward Wilson played by Matt Damon through his career as a CIA agent beginning in the Second World War and ending right before America's involvment in Vietnam. The movie portrays the up and downs of Wilson's life as mirrored by the similar up and downs of the CIA. The movie discusses the nature of the CIA through it's secrets and counter intelligence and shows how much of a burden it is to be a "good" citizen, agent, and American.

Why You Should See It: If you have ever wondered what James Bond does with his time when he's not kicking ass, gambling, and/or having sex with gorgeous women then this movie is for you. This movie, in a sense, shows you the humanity of being a government agent. It shows you the sacrifice a man has to make in order to put country before everything else. If you like old school drama where a lot of people are talking in a lot of different ways then this movie is for you. This movie is all about cloak and daggers, smoke and mirrors, intelligence and counter intelligence, and every man's struggle when he puts work before family.

Things to Watch Out For: Matt Damon's brilliant acting. He again shows why he is Hollywood's Mr. Clutch when it comes to acting. His performance is brilliant as he portrays his character's development in a subtle yet effective way. This movie explores the intricate psychie of an agent who believes only in America and nothing else, as a result, putting everything other than the United States in danger. This movie is really really slow. Almost as slow as The Insider. And like The Insider the ending does not really justify the means as it is easy to get lost in the many turns this movie takes. Don't get too caught up in the details and just try to focus and enoy the big picture!

Things You Don't Expect: Because it's slow, this movie is really really really long! About 2 hours and 40 minutes!

Final Score: 7.5

John Tucker Must Die (2006)

Synopsis: This is pretty much another teen movie as it follows the path of a reluctant hero, Kate Spencer (Brittany Snow) fighting for recognition in her dreaded highschool. She makes three unusual girl friends when a common enemy to girls, John Tucker (Jesse Metlife), the most popular guy in school, breaks up with all three of them after dating all of them at the same time. The girls then use Kate's unpopularity to mold her into a girl that John will fall in love with, then crush his heart, making him feel what he has made hundreds of girls feel before. It's the standard story of a girl seeking acceptance and while finding it halfway through the movie, only to discover the more important aspects of life and the costs of popularity. As a result, she repents all the sins she and her friends did while at the same time spelling out the moral of the movie all with a nice feel good ending of course!

Why You Should See It: Just because the story is predictable, well pretty much all aspects of this movie is predictable, they still make it because people watch it. If you liked Mean Girls, which I did, then you might like this movie as well. This movie is funny no matter how many other movies it resembles. The twists and turns happen on que and expected but it doesn't make it not good! Some say that originality is dead, which I guess it's true in Hollywood, but it doesn't mean originiality equals a great movie. Sometimes we like watching predictable things. It's the same reason why we watch movies or shows over and over again.

Things to Watch Out For: Well other than the fact that Jesse Metlife will be the dream for any girl to watch, the dialogue in this movie is pretty funny and sometimes stupid. But it's stupid in a way that makes this film kinda great. They do a good job in recreating the awkwardness when it comes to talking to the opposite sex especially in highschool.

Things You Don't Expect: The sound track for this movie is actually quite good. Although it is just the standard rock music that plays during scenes but I thought it was still very well done.

Final Score: 6.5

Casablanca (1942)

Synopsis: It's hard to give a synopsis of this movie without spoiling any part of it because this movie's major selling point is the plot. But I will give a brief overview. This movie follows Rick Blaine, Humphrey Bogart, whose an exile from France after Germany occupied France in the Second World War. He now resides in Casablanca which is occupied by French Africa. This place is famous for it's port to Lisbon, which is in the America's, the only safe haven for refugees outside the Nazi's reach. Rick owns a saloon, the best one in town. Everything is going great until a flash from the past, an old love Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) comes back in his life. Things begin to fall apart politically, economically, and emotionally leaving Rick in the toughest situation he's been in and forcing him to make the toughest decision he has ever had to make.

Why You Should Watch It: If you have ever wondered where modern drama from all around the world, including Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese dramas get their ideas, this is the movie. This movie, which was filmed in 1942, has set the standard for all dramas. It resembles modern day dramas so much that it's either scary how revolutionary this movie was for it's time or it just shows how modern minds have lost it's creativity. Without praising every detail of this movie, cause that would take too long, lets just say that this movie has it all! Literary, it has everything.

Things to Watch Out For: The dialogue. It's a little fast at times but it's absolutely brilliant. I don't think I've ever watched a movie where the dialogue is better. Each sentence feels natural yet carefully constructed for each scene. The monologues and speeches are perfectly placed and delivered with just the right amount of gusto making you feel as if Rick was talking to you when he says: "Here's looking at you kid"!

Things You Don't Expect:There are two things. The first is the great acting. Sure there is a lot of over acting compared to modern day cinema but it was the style at the time. Everyone played their roles perfectly even the extras were pinpoint in their acting. The second is the music. After watching this movie you will automatically want to download the soundtrack. I did. And the scene where the French patrons began singing La Marseillaise in response to the German soliders. Moments like that jerk at your heart strings and make you forget why you hate France so much even if it's just for a moment. Viva La France!

Final Score: 9.2

Smokin' Aces (2007)

Synopsis: So there's this mob boss named Sparazza whose the most widely targeted mob boss ever. He's old and weak so his successor Buddy 'Aces' Israel decides to overthrow him by snitching him out to the FBI. As a result, Sparazza puts out a bounty for Israel's head attracting the best hitmen and mercenaries from around the world. This leads to the FBI wanting to protect Israel from all these crazy people coming to kill him long enough for Israel to be transported to the witness protection program. Israel doesn't make it very far before the shit starts hitting the fan and it becomes a mad dash to who can get to Israel first.

Should You Watch It? The direction is very well done as well as the cinematography style. It's very modern in terms of camera work and playing around with cuts. There are also subtle uses of speeding up and slowing down scenes for effect which work nicely in the few fire fights in the movie. The acting is fairly good even without the stars. Sure Ben Affleck is in it but he has a minor role. Oh and there's this chick in this movie that has the biggest motherf**kin' sniper rifle you will ever see. She literary destroys people from a block away. If you've ever played CS and you love the AWP, this chick makes the movie worth watching just by herself.

Things to Watch Out For: This is Ryan Reynold's first serious role in a movie and he pulls it off. Sure he was in a similar role in Blade Trinitiy but his character was still too comedic to be taken seriously. Also, Alicia Keys makes her major acting debut and although her acting was called upon sparingly she did make the most of it and yes she is smokin'!

Things You Don't Expect: The intricate plot and storyline. When this movie sets up, it has a lot of back story and flash backs. I felt this slowed the movie down a bit too much but it did well in accumulating everything together for one big wreck which sorta happened. When all the mercenaries were coming I thought i was going to be a massive fire fight with everyone and that woulda been awesome. Well, that didn't happen, not because they skimped on it but because they decided to go another route by manipulating the plot so that some confrontations were avoided. At first I felt this was a budget cutting move and it did feel a bit like plot manipulation but the twist in the end does bring parts of the movie together nicely which makes the climax/ resolution pass as plausible. It was just surprising that what was precieved as a hardcore action movie turned out to be a drama in the end.

Final Score: 7.0

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Synopsis: This movie brings us into the lives of the Bennet family, a modest lower class family with five daughters in the Georgian England (late 1700s). The story follows the second eldest, Elizabeth (Keira Knightly), as she explores the pressures put on a young girl with the coming of age. The story begins when a new upper class citizen, Mr. Bingely arrives in town, followed by his close companion, Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen). Mr. Bingely immediately falls in love with Elizabeth's older sister, Jane. The movie then goes on to explore the complications of the marrying process especially when it comes to the upper class marrying down. As the title would suggest, this movie is all about how people's pride, rich and the poor, can influence other's lives and make the most natural thing, as two people in love, into a situation that is more unnatural and awkward. Elizabeth dispises people whom are overly proud and it leads to her disliking Mr. Darcy. But through his dislike and hate, she discovers more about him and in the process, more about herself, society, and the subtle way that everyone is proud including herself, and how everyone knows prejudice towards someone else.

Should You Watch It? Do you like drama, soap operas, melodramatic scenes, long speeches in weird english, and girls giggling? Then this movie is for you. This movie does well in bringing to life the daily life and pressures of young girls. Not only does it do a good job in re creating the authenticity of the Georgian Era through lush natural setting as well as era specific furnishings and etiquette. The story in itself is worth watching as the characters and their naunces are nicely interwoven into one another creating situations and drama which are dealt nicely by the director, Joe Wright. Of course the story is much more vivid in the novel it was based on by Jane Austen, but the screenplay does well in translating it to screen. The characters are very much alive and although Keira Knightly's performance is not Oscar level, she still does a good job in portraying someone she is definitly not.

Things to Watch Out For: The title of the movie should be playing through your mind as you watch this movie. This movie contains a lot of dialogue and it's the heart of the film. The characters are each proud in their own little way and each hold prejudice towards someone and these issues are all hashed out during the movie. The movie continues to try to educate the audience on how pride and prejudice was prominant in those times and how it made everything that the more difficult. But if you don't care about that kinda stuff then just watch ballroom scenes which were very rich and well done.

Things You Don't Expect: The music is very good. It's all classical all the time but it's perfectly placed throughout to add a nice touch to the authenticity of the movie as well as adding a boost during the drama. Also, this is the first movie where Keira Knightly's breasts are not electronically enchanced and she's better without it.

Final Score: 7.5

Match Point (2005)

Synopsis: Do you have to be good to be lucky? Or lucky to be good? That's the question this movie asks as it takes us on the journey of an ex tennis pro, Chris Wilton (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who falls in love with a beautiful girl then in favour with her extremely rich family. Things are going great for him until he meets Nola Rice (Scarlett Johansson), whom at the time was dating Chris's eventual brother in law, Tom. There is instant attraction between Chris and Nola and although Chris is a stand up guy and knows exactly what everything is worth, he can't resist as he falls into a viscious relationship with Nola which can and does only lead to bad things. The story uses a tennis game as an analogy to the different situations in life where the wealthy prosper by being lucky and the poo suffer byr being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Chris is engaged in the "tennis" match of his life as he tries to juggle his family, his great job, as well as his affair all at the same time trying to do the right thing, ifthere is such a thing in the world.

Why You Should Watch It: Other than the fact that Scarlett Johansson gets half naked three times in the film which should be enough to encourage anyone! But for the girls who read these reviews, which I don't think there are many, Jonathan Rhys Meyers can do quite a lot of persuading as well. You might remember him from such movies like Bend it Like Beckham, and well...that's all I can remember. He puts up a good performance and so does his counterpart. The characters are deliciously interwoven and interact beautifully with each other. I have no personal experience with having an affair or being married but to me, it seemed like the writer, director, and actors were really engaged in their character and this movie is strongly character driven which is always a good sign.

Things to Watch Out For: Other than the tennis analogy this movie is set up like an opera which is obvious with the characters attending the opera quite frequently. There are many twists and turns and it all makes sense in the end. There are very few holes in the film and the movie does well in introducing items and motifs that come back in the end. So as you are watching this film, pay attention to camera shots that focus longer on a certain object or if you're ever wondering "what does this scene have to do with anything?" just remember it because it will pay off in the end.

Things You Don't Expect:Music in movies is important and most movies now settle for some generic orchestral score that gets composed by John Williams. This movie, however, takes a different approach as it runs with the opera structure and uses classic arias during the turning points in the film, much like in opera. This was handled very nicely and the director, Woody Allen, should be applauded for his different take on what music means for a movie.

Final Score: 7.6

Ghost World (2001)

Synopsis: Enid, Thora Birch, hates the world, and she hates it with a passion. We see her live a short period in her life right after high school. The story follows her as she goes through the motions of every day life while criticising everything and everybody. To her, the world is dead, and she has almost lost all hope in humanity until she meets Seymour (Steve Buscemi) who is so similar to her that it's frightening. The catch is that he's about 30 years older than she is and he, unlike her, has given up all hope in modernity and lives alone with his 1978 vintage records. That's pretty much all this movie has in terms of plot. It's pretty much about Enid's perspective on life and society and it's a grim one indeed.

Why You Should Watch It: Do you hate the world? Does the world hate you? Do you hate everyone in the world and the only person you ever thought you could always count on abandoned you for one of the losers you have always hated? If that's the case then come on down! The cinematography is very bland and at first the movie might seem a bit dull but that's exactly what the director, Terry Zigwoff was going for. This is the story of every outcast girl or guy who hates the world because they feel that they are better for it or that the world is just too fucked to even bother living in. It's a bit hard to categorize this film let alone pick out a few things in the film that makes you wanna watch it. It definitely isn't a film for everyone. It's slow paced, plenty of dialogue, plenty of walking, and the plot is driven heavily by filling in the gaps and trying to guess what the character is going through.

Things to Watch Out For: This film starts out as a criticism of mondernity and the pretentious nature of people in modern society. But that's only the surface as this film is really about what happens to someone when they don't live at all. An important quote in the film is when some random guy goes up to another random guy and says "You can't hit a home run without swinging the bat". It's a crude analogy but it's one that defines Enid's way of living her life especially when she's in art class. She goes around smashing everyone and everything without trying anything because she just assumes that it would not be worth it. She constantly talks to the few people that she bothers with assuming that they would always understand, and without spoiling the plot, let's just say that in life, there are no constants that we can forever rely on and if you don't adapt to the changes because of fear or whatever, then everything around you will change and soon you will eventually be left with nothing .

Things You Don't Expect: The entire nature of the film is quite unexpected but other than that uhh...Scarlett Johansson is in it again and this time she doesn't get naked or makes out with anyone.

Final Score: 6.8

Failure to Launch (2006)

Synopsis: Matthew McConaughey is back in his usual role as a confident athletic, cool, yet emotionally detached late 30s bachelor, Tripp. He sleeps around with women and enjoys life a bit too much to really care about the fact that he's still living at home. His parents eventually get fed up with him always slacking around the house and doing his laundry that they decide to seek an intervention. They hire Paula, Sarah Jessica Parker, to simulate a relationship in order to give Tripp the confidence he needs to move out. Tripp seems to be an open and shut case until Tripp and Paula inevitably fall in love leading to a series of events which are both comedic and emotional at certain points of the movie. A group of quirky support characters fill out a standard romantic comedy with all the twists and turns put in at all the expected places all wrapped up with a suffice ending.

Should You Watch It? If you liked How to Loose a Guy in 10 Days, then you'll probably like this movie. Even though this movie doesn't have as interesting of a plot, it's pretty much the same movie except with a different main actress. And although Sarah Jessica Parker does a good job in filing in for Kate Hudson, the story just isn't there to make this movie worth watching even though I am sure fans of Sex and the City would disagree. I have never watched Sex and the City, but I would think this movie probably resembles that series quite a bit. So, if you miss that show, or if you really don't have anything else to watch, or if you're maybe starving for some feel good drama that will never happen in real life, or maybe if you've just misplaced your copy of How to Loose a Guy in 10 Days and you really want to watch it, then this movie could be worth the view.

Things to Watch Out For: This is Sarah Jessica Parker's first film debut and despite the predictable story line and dialogue she still shows the audience why she's popular and why Sex and the City was so well recieved. There is no doubt that she is charismatic and there is no doubt that Matthew McConaughey is quite good looking himself. So if you do watch this movie, enjoy the hour and 30 minutes of two pretty good looking people making out and talking, and then making out some more.

Things You Don't Expect: This movie actually has a theme believe it or not. Yes it actually goes below skin surface. There are numerous times when the movie refers to the ol' leap of faith to buying a boat. It's kind of an interesting analogy and one worth thinking about. Well not really. But maybe it's worth a thought as you're taking a piss after the movie.

Final Score: 5.0

Laws of Attraction (2004)

Synopsis: Julianne Moore and Pierce Brosnan play Audrey Woods, and Daniel Rafferty, respectfully. as two of New York's best divorce attorneys. I'm not going to try to spare you the plot or story or twists because there are none. Everyone knows what's going to happen and it happens pretty fast. They fall in love reluctantly even though they are completely different people. Stereotypically different, painfully stereotypically different is what I meant. Then they obviously get pitted against each other in a case and one person screws up choosing work over love and then the story goes to tell us how important love is worth and spelling out the simple theme, that love is worth fighting for.

Why You Should Watch It: There is really no reason to watch this movie unless you are a huge and I mean huge Pierce Brosnan or Julianne Moore fan. Or maybe you just are....bored...and..no not even that should be enough...dammit! Not even Moore's clever portrayle of a insecure, yet beautiful woman underneath, is enough to push this movie into the bearable category.

Things to Watch Out For: If you're still reading this, still wondering if you should watch it, then the thing you should watch out for is yourself and how sad you are for wanting to watch this movie..sigh..yes I know I'm sad...dont' be like me!

Things You Don't Expect: The lack of humour. I mean there are scenes where I know I'm supposed to laugh, but the laughter just doesn't come! I don't get it! the only positive I can pick out of this movie is Frances Fisher. She plays Sara Miller, Audrey's mother, whose an aristocratic, high class, drug taking, rock concert going, wildly promiscuous dame. A very interesting and well acted character.

Final Score: Fail

Premonition (2007)

Synopsis: Sandra Bullock plays Linda Hanson whose husband, Jim, dies in a car crash on Wednesday. She goes to sleep then wakes up on the Monday before Jim dies. She thinks that her husband's death is all in her head but it's not! She begins to wake up on different days during the week, sometimes after Wednesday and sometimes before. She soon realizes that it's not her imagination and begins her quest to save her husband from his car crash. It's a race against time, fate, and herself.

Why You Should Watch It: This movie is really similar to The Butterfly Effect. In fact, the structure, cinematography, and theme of the two movies are so similar that it feels like it's done by the same director. The only difference really is that Premonition is more of a mystery/drama than a thriller. The story is very tight, and there are no holes. In fact, they make sure that there are no holes by playing a lot of the parts over and over again, so even if you miss it the first time you don't have to worry cause you'll see it again. If you enjoy solving mysteries along with the characters, going through the twists and turns, trying to feel what they feel and being in their shoes, then this movie is definitely for you.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is really really slow. The trailer might make it seem that it's pretty fast and frantic but it's not. There are long stretches of scenes where the director tries to get the audience inside Linda's head to get them to try to experience her mind's deterioration. It's hard to explain the theme of the movie without spoiling it because the theme is tied directly into the plot. But the main message of this movie is presented by asking the audience the question: why do we wake up every morning, and go through all the crap, the struggles, and the fights? Why do we do it? The short answer is that because we are living for a goal, a purpose. The long answer requires you to think about what those goals are why are they so important. It's a harder question to answer than you might think. And upon answering it, you might discover something about yourself that you have forgotten along the way, or have never known.

Things You Don't Expect: Like I said before, if you've seen the trailer, you might get the wrong impression. This movie is pretty much a drama with a supernatural twist. There are only a splash of thrills and a dash of action to round out plenty of dialogue and scenes involving Linda crying, or pulling her hair out.

Final Score: 6.5

Shortbus (2006)

Synopsis: Shortbus is a place where people go to discover and express their sexuality. This is the place Sofia (Sook-Yin Lee) goes to when she finds herself unable to have an orgasim despite all the best efforts from her husband and herself. To top it all off, she's a sex therapist, although she prefers the term, couples' counsellor. She hears about this shortbus from a gay couple who happens to have to the same name. The movie primarly follows Jamie, Jamie, and Sofia around as they go about trying to discover what is wrong with with sex lives while discovering that their sexual problems lie beneath deeper issues they have with themselves and the people closest to them.

Why You Should Watch It: If you have ever wondered how a guy can give himself a blow job, this movie is for you. If you have ever wondere what it is like trying to find a gay husband, this movie is for you. If you have ever wondered how gay people dress when they're not trying to fit in, this movie is for you. And finally, if you have ever wanted to see a gay threesome, this movie is definitely for you. This is by far, the most graphic, XXX movie I have ever seen. It's not a porn, because porn at least has taste. This movie is all about exposing sex for what it is; an awkward, uncomfortable, scary adventure and while it's part of human nature to desire it, all along the trip you're wondering if you're doing it right. This movie captures that feeling perfectly and the director, John Cameron Mitchell, has done a brillant job in showing the audience the true nature of sex.

Things to Watch Out For: The theme of the movie is tied in to the analogy that every person is wired a little differently and we have to find our niche to be able to light all the circuits in our body to make it roll. The movie suggets that most people accept a personality that they mold themselves to instead of defining one. As a result, not all the wires are hooked up properply causing a failture for that person to function fully. This failure can manifest itself in many ways, usually sexually, as suggested by this movie. This movie then goes on to show how we must find our own path and sometimes the best way to do that is in the dark, when all we can see if our inner self.

Things You Don't Expect: If you watch this movie you will see more penises then you will ever have to see in your life time, unless you're a doctor or something. This movie focuses on the male relationships mostly and as a result, well, lets just say that if you aren't gay, you need a hardcore stomach to watch this movie without puking. I suggest watching this movie hours before eating.

Final Score: 7.5

Annapolis (2006)

Synopsis: Jake Huard, James Franco, grew up always being underestimated, put down, and labeled as a failure. He has lived his life on a mission to prove people wrong. He gets his ultimate test when, despite his father's protests, joins the Navy Academy, Annapolis. He soon realizes that he's in over his head as he is far behind all the other recruits in terms of education, know how, and pretty much everything else that's needed to get by. But the thing he doesn't lack is heart and desire as this two strengths are put to the test everyday through the rigorous routine of the academy where everyone wants him to fail including Tyrese Gibson who plays Cole, the company's major. Jake soon realizes that life isn't all about fighting everyone around him, but fighting for what he wants. And if he is willing to pay the price to get it.

Should You Watch It? It seems that this movie tries to be too many things. One one hand, you have the perfect character that audiences love. The down and out underdog that has been behind all his life, desperately trying to prove himself by going after his dream and defeating all obstacles. The story unfolds over an annual boxing tournament in Annapolis where anyone can participate. This movie doesn't really do these two motifs justice as it tries to focus on the life and routine of being a naval student while throwing in the boxing on the side. As a result, the audience doesn't really get a complete sense of either side. But nonetheless, the story is written well enough to get away with it, and although the boxing is nothing compared to Rocky, there are still moments that makes your heart catch in your throat. Oh and if that isn't enough, Jordana Brewster whose the dream, is back as Jake's love interest as she plays Ali Halloway, an officer in the academy. She's uber cute and a flirt which is kinda out of character but whocares!

Things to Watch Out For: Everyone in their life has been told by someone, parents, teachers, bosses etc, that they can't do something or that they aren't good enough. This movie tells us that all those things are crap and if there is something you want bad enough, go get it. The main point of the movie is showing the audience that no matter your history, as long as you get a shot, it's in your hands to make it happen. But sometimes that shot comes at a price you have to pay by giving up your pride which is the only thing a person like Jake had growing up which makes letting it go the hardest thing he will ever have to do.

Things You Don't Expect: This movie isn't as hardcore as you might think. The cruel world of naval academies is softened compared to other movies like G.I. Jane. Granted the marines are a bit more challenging than a school but the feeling of grimmness just isn't there. It doesn't help either with such a smokin' hot officer like Ali either haha.

Final Score: 5.5

The Fountain (2006)

Synopsis: There are essentially three parallel story lines which follow three similar characters all played by Hugh Jackman. The three stories are all about finding the fountain of life which, according to the bible, grants eternal life to those who drink the sap from the tree. In each of the stories the character whose names are all a derivative of Thomas, attempts to find the tree in order to save his love. In two of the stories his love is a woman played by Rachel Weisz. The fountain of life takes on various abstract forms for each of the three stories and the act of finding them are also transformed into an abstract action rather than something finite. The abstract nature of the fountain and finding it makes this movie an art form where the audience must get invovled with it in order to discover the theme and message of the movie.

Should You Watch It? Well, this is a tough question to answer because watching this movie isn't very fun. Unless what you mean by fun is sitting around being confused for most of the movie trying to figure out what the hell it's trying to say by paying attention and analyzing ever little detail. If that sounds like fun to you, and I'm sure it does for some, then go ahead! Having said that, this movie is artistic, and it's very well done. It's just not very viewer friendly, unless you fall into the category of people I just mentioned.

Things to Watch Out For: Okay so if you are going to watch this movie then you have to know what to watch for. The point of the movie isn't about finding the fountain. Of course it's not haha that would be too easy. The point of the movie is showing people why living forever isn't important. The movie has a lot of imageries and metaphores about the importance of living your life to the fullest instead of focusing on extending it. That's the major theme of the film. There are small motifs in the film which are important as well. The movie tries to show us that there are many different ways to live forever. And while some may be abstract and just wishful thinking, a lot of it has to do with what your perception of living forever is. Each story is different as it shows us what living forever means to that character. I won't go into the details but you have to constantly remind yourself of these two important themes in order to get the most out of this movie.

Things You Don't Expect: Huge Jackman does a good job in attempting to shed his type cast history as he takes a drastic change in roles. This time he doesn't have claws or pieces of metal coming out of him. Nor does he expose his well chiseled body in any sort of inappropriate way. The music is very good. The orchestral score has a nice motif that recurs during the turning points of the film and does well in stimulating the audience.

Final Score: 7.0

满城尽带黄金甲 (Curse of the Golden Flower) (2006)

Synopsis: The emporer (Chow Yun-Fat) is a son of a bitch but he's one strong smart ass son of a bitch at that. He has made his way all the way to the top and has stopped at nothing in his way. But that's not what this movie is about. This movie is about revenge and oh man revenge is bittersweet indeed. This story follows his empress at the time, Gong Li, as she has been driven mad by her husband for years. But she's not putting up with any more crap no mame! She plots a scheme of revenge so great that it will throw the entire kingdom into turmoil. But like I said before, the emporer is a badass but he's smart, and his three sons are loyal. The stage is set as the shadow war commences between the emporer, empress, and everyone caught in between. Attacks are made in the dark, behind curtains, and the least of which, with a weapon you can touch. It's all about lies and deceit, trust and betrayl. The ultimate show down between, tradition, duty, love and hate.

Should You Watch It: The answer is yes. The movie might be confusing and there are so many holes in the storyline that you just pretty much give up half way. But what this movie does well and it does extremely well is recreating the lush settings of the Tang dynasty. The first scene of the movie hits you hard with brilliant colour combined with exuberant flare, not only in costume design but in the overall mannerisms of most trivial extras. This is characteristic of the director Zhang Yi-Mou. Just one look at this movie and you will see that he has not changed his style from when he directed Hero and House of Flying Daggers. This movie should have won the academy award for best achievement in costume but whatever. This movie makes everything else in the world look bland and mundane in comparison.

Things to Watch Out For: Not going to bore you with the theme of it all this time around because in this movie, it's not about the storyline or the theme. The storyline becomes predictable and trivial by the 30 minute mark because you just loose yourself in the film's setting and action. The major things to watch for in this movie is which version you get. It's important to choose the right one, and the traditional mandarin version might not be the default one right away. Sure the original is best, but unless you're hardcore mainland you probably won't understand most of the dialogue unless you're lucky enough to find it with subtitles. And that would be the best. But if you're like me, whose Chinese isn't very good, then perhaps the dubbed version is the better way to go. The voice acting is very well done, and although it will never sound the same, it does the job well enough for this kind of movie where dialogue isn't important.

Things You Don't Expect: This movie had a lot of positives and it was very well done but the only thing I really had a problem with was the acting. OMG I couldn't believe the amount of overacting especially by the veteren actors. I was shocked! It's a common style for these era pieces to be acted a certain way set by Chinese cinema, but this movie just had a western feel to it from the beginning and the Chinese style acting felt extremely out of place. Furthermore, the music selection was a very suspect one as well. They decided to go with a post-romantic European style which emphasis strong chorus like sounds which resonates through out the movie. This deviates from the traditional Chinese feel resulting in a unnatural product. Those things are minor and it does give the movie a more serious tone which is something the director was going for. I'm just not certain this was the right way to go about it.

Final Score: 6.8

Down in the Valley (2005)

Synopsis: Edward Norton plays a cowboy, Harlan, whose a drfiter wandering the San Fernando Valley. He seems like a smooth talker, a classic Western hero but it's obvious that there's more to him than meets the eye. His true nature starts coming out once he meets a high school girl, October Summers (Evan Rachel Wood). They fall in love instantly and begin a relationship despite the objection of Evan's hard ass father, Wade (David Morse). The relationship begins to escalate as Harlan's shady background clashes with Wade's authoritian views on life and his policy towards his daughter and son.

Should You Watch It? If you like Edward Norton you will definitely want to watch this movie. He does his magic again as he's able to bring to a life, a very complicated character with several mental disorders. He does a good job in making this character believable while making him a tradgic hero and a very likeable villian. Other than him, this movie doesn't really have much in terms of plot, action or twists. It doesn't really explain to the audience Harlan's background thoroughly and why he does what he does. This is probably a conscious decision made by the writer/director, David Jacobson.

Things To Watch Out For: This movie is really about Harlan and his condition. It's obvious that he has a problem but he doesn't live his life thinking that his problem is a problem. This sounds like a common symptom of people with this kinda disorder but Harlan has taken a step further and accepted this disorder as something else. The movie is about how anybody can be anybody they want. Perhaps this movie is a criticism on free will and how society restrains it with laws and tradition. Harlan doesn't live within these terms and tries to make himself into someone he believes he should be.

Things You Don't Expect: Even with Edward Norton, this movie is pretty boring and there really really isn't much content. Just didn't feel that they did enough with Harlan's character.

Final Score: 5.5

The Painted Veil (2006)

Synopsis: The tagline for this movie is "Sometimes the greatest journey is the distance between two people" and that's pretty much what this movie is about. Naomi Watts and Edward Norton star as a British couple who lives in China during a cholera outbreak. Norton plays Walter Fane, a doctor of infectious diseases who is stationed in Shanghai. Watts plays Walter's young misguided wife, Kitty. They marry in haste and before you can say "I do" they're in China. Kitty soon realizes that she doesn't really love Walter and that she just married him to get away from her structured life in Britain. She naturally has an affair, cause that's what people do when they're bored in China you see. Walter finds out but instead of divorcing her, haha, oh no this guy likes you to make things interesting, he brings her to a cholera outbreak zone in some rural place. Man, this guy holds one bad ass grudge. But in this small secluded area is where the story really begins as the couple are lost in a sea of confusion, disease, and war and the only thing familiar to them is their turmoiled past.

Should You Watch It? It's a bit slow paced despite the condensed yet effective prologue which sets up the major parts of the movie. But yes you should definitely watch this film if you wanna see two all star actors playing off each other beautifully. The setting is nice as there are gorgeous shots of the Chinese rural area. All this behind the desperate back drop of a cholera outbreak really gives this movie multiple dimensions which will keep the audience entertained through out.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is hella deep. Not only does it have a very interesting storyline with multiple layers of conflict and questions. it also has major underlying themes discussing the difference and similarities of duty and love. Are they the same thing? The answer to many people would be "no of course not, you're on crack! What kinda 18th century aristocrate are you?". Ah but be quiet my friend and watch this film. You might discover that love and duty might be closer than you think.

Things You Don't Expect: Edward Norton's character is kinda unbelievable. Not in a good way. This character was definitely hard to pull off and although he did a fine job like he always does, his character is a bit too static, but that's only a minor complaint.

Final Score: 7.2

The Skeleton Key (2005)

Synopsis: Kate Hudson plays Caroline Ellis whose a nurse who gets too attached her patients. She quits her job at the hospice because they don't care enough. So she decides to self own and go work for a woman whose husband is about to die from a stroke. The house you see if messed up, of course. And of course it has to be scariest house in New Orleans and just to make things interesting, the house is in a swamp! Oh yeah did I mention that the house is like over a century old? So she works in this house and of course there's a tale and of course the residents of this house has some sort of affliction because of this tale. Now before you stop reading this synopsis know that this movie takes a drastic turn from other movies even though the plot sounds so generic. And in a lot of ways it is, as Caroline goes to uncover the horrifying secrets of the house, but in a lot of ways it does things just a little bit different to make it a lot more interesting.

Should You Watch It? The best way to describe this movie is a combination of other movies. The storyline is very much like The Excorcism of Emily Rose while the cinematography is similar to the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Finally the movie has a very neat, albeit, predictable twist, and although it will never rival Saw for ending, the thrill scenes does more than make up for it.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is very American. Can't get more American than having it in the south but what this movie does so brilliantly is that it takes direction from Asian horror cinema and uses psychology, sleight of mind, and camera misdirection instead of the usual American shock and scream formula. The ending does require a lot of audience interactivity which might sour some people who hate to think during a movie.

Things You Don't Expect: Kate Hudson is pretty great in this movie and although she's not playing some girl looking for love in a comic way this time, she still carries over her cute charm to this film which makes you fall in love with her character and as a result, makes the ending all that more bitter sweet. New appreciation for her as a versatile actress is well deserved.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.5
Direction: 7.0
Acting: 7.0
Cinematography: 6.5
Music/Sound: 6.0

Final Score: 7.7

The Dreamers (2003)

Synopsis: This movie follows three communist loving hippies around Paris during the late 1960s when America was at war in Vietnam. Isabelle and Theo are citizens of Paris and they are brother and sister. They come in contact with Matthew whose an American studying French during the time. They become very close and share a life changing experience through movies, politics, and sex. But the plot isn't the main point of the movie. Isabelle and Theo are brother and sister but you don't realize that until super later cause they are very very VERY comfortable with each other and their relationship boarders on incest. Matthew is caught in between this peticular situation and can't get out because he himself is in love with Isabelle whose torn between the two most important people in her life.

Should You Watch It? This film is really about what happens to people when they live life vicariously through others. These three characters represent all the scholars and people out there that has a problem with everything and has something to say about every issue. Those people rarely ever do something about it and this movie criticises them by suggesting that those people really don't believe in what they're saying. Isabelle and Theo's relationship is a personification of what happens to people when they cling on the only thing they know because they are too afraid to go out into the world. The two siblings eventually latch on to Communism as their ideal utopian society because they hate facism but because they never really "lived" in the world they have no idea what Communism or anything else for that matter really means.

Things to Watch Out For: Eva Green is pretty great in this movie and she's pretty great being naked haha. She's the chick in Casino Royale and she shows why they picked her for that role in this movie.

Things You Don't Expect: There are a lot of nakeness in this movie especially of guys so be warned! hahaha. And the film is a bit artsy and it is a bit slow. I guess that's something you would expect but still. Some of the ideas are portrayed in a artsy yet realistic way which is fine and doesn't take anything away from the plot.

Final Comments:
Story: 7.0
Direction: 6.0
Acting: 8.0
Cinematography: 7.5
Music/Sound: 6.0

Final Score: 6.5

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Synopsis: Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) and Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet) are two love sick people who seem perfect for each other. But Joel wakes up one day alone in bed only later to find out that his perfect mate has erased him from her memory. In a tirade, Joel decides to have the same procedure done to him. But during the procedure, as his memories are coming to him in his dreams, he realizes that he doesn't want to forget Clementine and that he really in fact quite loves her. Now he has to run away with Clementine within his dreams to places in his memory where the computer can't find them knowing that even if he succeds in escaping with some memory of Clementine, he might never be able to get her to love him again.

Should You Watch It? This movie is pretty philosophical and artistic in many parts, especially during his dreams when he's running away with Clementine. There are a lot of abstract thoughts that the audience needs to discover by themselves. The movie jumps from beginning to the end and then to the middle making it hard to follow at first but it's actually the only real way to do a film like this. If you haven't figured it out yet, this movie has almost no action and it is something very different for Jim Carrey.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie goes pretty deep in asking the question of erasing a person from your memory is really the best way to go about things. It does this by not only by following Joel and Clementine but also the people who do these procedures. The director/co-writer, Michel Gondry, has a very interesting take on how our minds incorporates memories and emotions and how we are so rash in making our decisions and how confused our emotions make us.

Things You Don't Expect: This movie has a pretty star-studded cast which don't do much haha. Other than the two main actors, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood, Tom Wilkinson among others are all in this film very mainstream but kinda artsy.

Final Comments:
Story: 7.5
Direction: 8.0
Acting: 8.0
Cinematography: 7.8
Music/Sound: 5.5

Final Score: 7.6

Napleon Dynamite (2004)

Synopsis: Napoleon (Jon Heder) is a troubled young man. Although troubled might not be the best way to describe him. He's an outcast in highschool but he doesn't care. In fact, he doesn't care about very much of anything. He doesn't even care to open his eyes when he talks about something. Naturally he's considered a loser and to make things worse, his entire family, especially his uncle Ric is a real loser. So as you can tell it's hard for him to succeed in this environment. But things change when he meets Pedro Sanchez (Efren Ramirez) whose also a loser but a bit more ambitious about life. Pedro decides to run for class president and this is the stage when Napoleon will show the world his true self for better or for worse, but it's okay cause like I said before, he doesn't really care about anything and especially not about this.

Should You Watch It? This film is pretty quirky as you have to really buy into his family situation and see the world the way he sees it. It's difficult at times and there will be moments in the film where you'll be scratching your head thinking "this would never happen". But that's not the point. The point is that these things do happen and the story is what Napoleon does when they do. It's freakin' hilarious once you buy into his life and the people around him.

Things to Watch Out For: The support characters in this movie are so brilliant. His crazy uncle Ric to his brother Kip. They are freakin' weird and freakin so full of colour that it's a treat to watch. Even the secondary characters who seem just like extras have a lot of flavour and it really shows what kinda people they portray. It's great writing and better acting to be able to pull this off.

Things You Don't Expect: The many awkard and hilarious situations this movie has. It's also pretty slow and there are long moments of silence which some people will get and some people won't get.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.0
Direction: 7.0
Acting: 8.8
Cinematography: 7.0
Music/Sound: 6.0

Final Score: 7.2

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Synopsis: Policeman officer Nicolas Angel (Simon Pegg) is the most bad ass cop in London, no, Britain! has ever seen. In fact, he's so good that his department in London decides to put him in the safest village in the world, Sanford because Angel is making them look bad. But once he gets there, he realizes that not everything in the town is as slow as his new partner, Danny Butterman (Nick Frost). A series of gruesome murders compels Angel into action as he tries to connect all the dots and find out who the killer is before it's too late!

Should You Watch It? Take the best action movie you have ever seen. Got it? Alright! Now take the best storyline you have ever been apart of. Now add the best acting performances you have ever witnessed. How's it coming? Good! Now add in the scariest scenes from a movie which had you pulling the covers over your face. *shiver*. Oh yeah! add in some hardcore gore scenes too! Now wrap all of that up with a movie that was so funny it hurt your gut and you might be halfway to where this movie is. This movie is exactly what I just described. It takes the best from every kind of movie and not only puts it together, it smashes it together and shoves it down your throat and just when you think you can't take anymore, it brings on the dessert! And by the end of it you are just sitting there begging for more.

Things to Watch Out For: It's hard to point out all the things this movie does right cause it's pretty much everything. But this movie goes beyond the parody genre as it is something of a hybrid all on it's own and it switches between the genres seamlessly. One minute you'll be in a slap stick comedy, followed immediately with a creepy Resident Evil feel then suddenly compelled into a high speed car chase. This may seem impossible to do without making the movie feel choppy but somehow the director, Edgar Wright, pulled it off. If you are able to recognize these switches and get into them, it will make this movie all that much enjoyable.

Things You Don't Expect: The really really deep storyline and the theme. Beneath all the fun and chaos this movie is a great piece on society and laws. It asks the question: "Who comes up with the laws anyways?". This movie asks us to think about the things we precieve as being right and wrong. And maybe you might discover something right about something that has been labeled "wrong" and perhaps even something wrong that you've thought was "right".

Final Comments:
Story: 9.5
Direction: 9.0
Acting: 9.2
Cinematography: 9.5
Music/Sound: 8.5

Final Score: 9.4