No Country For Old Me

I'm not gonna lie... I thought it was good, but I didn't think it was that good. It's always disappointing when you really want to love a movie, and you expect to really love the movie because all your friends tell you how amazing it is and the entire world says it's a shoo-in for Best Picture, and then you finally watch it and when the credits start rolling you're forced to admit that it wasn't quite all you hoped it would be. I'll be rooting for "There Will Be Blood" on Sunday evening.

Blogger OD's on Popcorn, Checks Into Promises Rehab

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - I caught myself composing a mental grocery list during this incredibly long and convoluted movie. But you really can't blame me - Johnny Depp is barely even in it and that's the only reason I was there. Instead, countless plot twists that no sane person can follow are hurled at the audience every five seconds for pretty much no reason other than to detract us slightly from Keira Knightly's inflated upper lip. And that doesn't even work.

Black Book - Surprisingly entertaining. WWII thriller about a Jewish woman who loses her family, goes undercover for the Dutch Resistance, seduces a high-ranking Nazi officer, and lots of other things I won't go into in case you actually want to see the movie without me ruining it. Carice van Houten, who I'd never heard of before, is adorable and gives an amazing performance. Director Paul Verhoeven (of "Basic Instinct" and "Showgirls" fame) clearly knows how to titillate an audience. Don't bring the kids.

Spider-Man 3 - The Emo Peter Parker twist is so painful it's funny. It was like watching a joke movie half the time. I'm pretty sure people were high when they shot this film. You could cut twelve hours out and not lose any important plot lines. That said, it wasn't so terrible. I thought Spider-Man fans were a little generous with the first two movies anyway.

Girl on Film

When you're unemployed, you tend to go to the movies a lot. Why? Because it's 3 p.m. on Tuesday and you're in the mother effing MOOD, that's why! I wonder if I could subsist solely on theater popcorn? For what it's worth, I never add butter.

In a nutshell:

The Lives of Others - Excellent! Sort of a German Communist political dissonance love story/tragedy. I know my description sucks. Starts slow, but you'll be glad you stuck with it.

The Namesake - Pretty good! Illustrates the emotional complexities within an NRI (non-resident Indian) family living in the States.

Hot Fuzz - Not that funny! It's too bad, because I had really high hopes. Maybe too high. The movie has its moments, but ultimately it's a disappointment.

Blades of Glory - Funny enough! But still really dumb. But still funny enough to not make you want your money back. I mean, it's ice skating. And ice skating is funny.

V for Victory

As my moblog indicates, over the weekend I was in New York for a sneak preview of "V for Vendetta," the new comic-inspired flick written and produced by the "famous-for-a-few-bizarre-reasons-but-mostly-for-the-Matrix-movies" Wachowski brothers. And I'm thrilled to report that I absolutely loved it! Totally rocked. Great flick. There was a time where I'd have written a really long explanation of why I loved it, but this is not one of those times.

The film opens on March 17th and I hope you all have a chance to see it between Irish car bombs. Until then, you'll have to settle for the trailers and my brilliant opinion.

As we march forward into March (!!!!!), I hope you're all enjoying yourselves, hugging your pets, and saying nice things to the people you love. Oscars this Sunday!

PS- IRL, Natalie Portman makes me look like a cow. She may actually be world's first real pixie. A ridiculously cute one at that.

Celluloid Lane: Sin City

My, my. Where do I begin?

I've had unreasonably high hopes for "Sin City" ever since I watched that fabulous trailer. But it's not like graphic novels-turned-movies have impeccable track records on the big screen, so imagine my concern going into this.

For lack of a more eloquent explanation, "Sin City" freaking rules.

Remember the first time you saw "Pulp Fiction"? You were unnerved and at times downright repelled, but you admitted that it was the freshest, most original thing to be put into a theater since... ever, and you couldn't wait to talk about how amazing it was with everyone you knew? "Sin City" is kind of like that.

**UPDATE**

So I'm having a hard time explaining this movie, because it's exactly like reading a Frank Miller graphic novel panel by panel, except that the images move. So let's do Q&A instead.

1. Is "Sin City" a family movie?
- Heavens no. It's incredibly graphic and gruesome. I know YOU'RE into that, but don't bring the kids.

2. What's the plot all about?
- It's complicated. But if you're familiar with Frank Miller, "Sin City" the movie primarily reinacts 3 of his original stories: "The Hard Goodbye", "The Big Fat Kill", and "That Yellow Bastard".

3. Can I expect a love story?

- Yes.

4. Can I expect nudity?
- Yes.

5. Can I expect to laugh?
- Yes, although you might feel inappropriate when you do.

6. Does the all-star cast detract from the story at all?
- Refreshingly, no. No one character is the main star, it's more like a bunch of supporting roles. Great supporting roles. These actors are stoked.

7. I hear Robert Rodriguez directed "Sin City". What's his deal?
- Robert Rodriguez is a well-respected force in Hollywood (El Mariachi, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Spy Kids), but Frank Miller co-directed the project from start to finish. The collaboration kept the story eerily true to the comic. Quentin Tarantino guest directed as well.

8. Are we talking CG animation or live action?
- Almost all the live action was done with green screens and props, then the magic was painted in later. It's amazing.

9. But I'm not into comic books.

- I'm not either. It doesn't matter. This is cinematic history.

10. I was pleased to see lots of hot chicks in the trailer. Can I expect more of that?

- You sure can, my friend! But they'll also chop your head off. Literally.