Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009, U.S.)

I can essentially judge this one for itself and not by its book, since I barely remember the picture book.

Basically Flint thinks he's a genius inventor, but something goes wrong with all of his inventions. Sam wants to be a weather reporter but needs a scoop for her career to take off. When the island of Swallow Falls loses its main industry (sardines), Flint's invention that turns water into food takes off, Flint gets the recognition he wants, Sam gets her scoop, and Swallow Falls gets on the map.

This was a cute movie, but it wasn't the funniest animated movie I've ever seen. Some of it was a little over the top, some of it was gross funny (not my kind of funny), and some of it was actually funny. So overall, not bad.

Rating: 3.0

Shenandoah (1965, U.S.)

James Stewart plays a widowed farmer with many children who lives in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil War, and he doesn't participate in the war because he doesn't think it is "his" war. When his youngest son, Boy, is mistakenly captured by the Union, he and his whole family become very active in the war, searching for Boy no matter who falls in their paths.

Of course the scenery was beautiful, even if it was probably Oregon or Washington rather than Virginia. (You can't trick a resident of the Valley!) The writing was good, and it was really insightful on the subjects of war and peace, race and family, love and marriage, honor and duty. And James Stewart was just phenomenal, funny in a serious way, if that makes any sense. (I hate to compare him to Billy Burke in Twilight, but that's the closest thing I can think of.)

This is a really good western and "war" film. (I use quotes because it wasn't a war film in the sense that it had lots of fighting and action but because it was about war. Think Gone with the Wind-style "war" film.) I really liked this one.

Rating: 4.0

Little Ashes (2008, UK)

This was a beautiful film. It was about boys who were becoming men, artists who were finding their talent, liberal homosexuals trying to survive in Fascist Spain, lost souls trying to find love... and themselves. It really was beautiful. Fractured and hard to follow, but it a good way.

Javier Beltrán and Robert Pattinson were phenomenal. They're both talented actors, and they had a strange chemistry. Watching Pattinson change from a strange, outcast boy into a intensely passionate young man to an absolutely crazy, flamboyant artist was incredible. (On the other hand, he goes from a Spanish accent to an English accent when eight years pass, although he also does a French one on purpose later, so maybe it's a sign of his craziness.) Beltrán was steady as rock, gentle and sweet and fragile and poetic, for lack of a better word. When I looked for information on Frederico García Lorca, I discovered that the actor and the deceased poet looked shockingly similar.

They used what seemed to be archive footage cut into film, which I always find effective. I felt like I learned a lot from this film, although how accurate it was I couldn't say. I was familiar with Dalí's work, but not his life. And I'd never heard of García Lorca, but I found his poetry to be beautiful and his life to be fascinating and, of course, tragic.

The filming was (yes, you guessed it) beautiful as well. There is one scene in particular where García Lorca and Dalí are young and taking a holiday in Andalusia. It's nighttime and they're swimming in the moonlight together. The way they float around each other seems symbolic of the complicated dance they're doing in their relationship and the lack of clear definition in their lives. Amazing.

I wish I could describe how wonderful the acting and cinematography and writing and absolutely everything were, but there just aren't words. You could call this film "art." Art about art. Magical.

Rating: 4.0

The Last Drop (2005, UK)

Here I go again, following a certain Swede's career all over the place. I was really glad he brought me to this one. It wasn't at all what I thought it would be like. I thought it was going to be about a real World War II military operation. Instead, it was a heist film set during the war. Think Ocean's 11 with Nazis.

I don't know how historically accurate it was, but they did cut archive footage from newsreels and the like into it, which was neat. It was war, adventure, crime, comedy... everything mixed into one.

The one thing that was awful about this one was the sound mixing.
Gunfire and explosions were so much louder than dialogue and music, it was very hard to hear. On the other hand, the writing and acting were great. Billy Zane thought he was Indiana Jones, Alexander Skarsgård was pretty convincing as a German mocking Americans, and the camaraderie between the American soldiers was well played. I never do this, but I can't help it this time: watch this clip from about 0:55 to 1:55. It is priceless!

Rating: 4.0

Zoolander (2001, U.S.)

Ten points for guessing why I decided to watch this one, which is way outside of my normal taste. Yes, a certain Swede, who is in the movie for all of two minutes. But what a good two minutes it was... "orange mocha frappuccino!"

I was shocked at how good this movie actually was. Yes, it was ridiculously silly, but it wasn't the dirty humor you'd expect. Instead it was quite witty and satirical about the fashion industry. Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson make a great comedic duo, and the entire ensemble as a whole worked very well together.

There are many, many laugh-out-loud moments, both for a more intelligent viewer and the average dumb comedy viewer. I would watch it again, and that's pretty high praise for me when it comes to comedy!

Rating: 3.5

Generation Kill (2008, U.S.)

Here she goes again! I've been on an Alexander Skarsgård kick lately, and despite my apathy about Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Iraq War, the War on Terror, etc., I watched it. It took me a bit of time to get into the first episode, but once I did, I thought it was wonderful.

Firstly, it was incredibly realistic. It is based on a book written by Rolling Stone reporter Evan Wright, who was with the 1st Recon Marines in the first humvee at the tip of the spear during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Every detail was carefully researched. The slang the men used, their superstitions, their training, their relationships, their day to day lives, the moral issues some of them dealt with... so realistic.

Although Generation Kill is about a war and a moment in history, it is more about the men who experience it. This was definitely an ensemble drama, and the acting was phenomenal. Of course, I thought Alexander Skarsgård was the most brilliant of them all. (Note: I was so fascinated by this series that I watched all of the special features, and he was just like the actual Marine he played, as were many of the other men. In fact, on of the 1st Recon Marines played himself!)

You know I love a good score, but in this series they clearly made a conscious choice to avoid scoring the series so as not to take away from the realism. Instead, picture a convoy of hardened Marines driving through the desert in humvees, singing together, a cappella. Songs like "Teenage Dirtbag," "Sk8er Boi," "Come Sail Away," "King of the Road," "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys," "Fuck the Police," "Hot in Here," "Tainted Love," etc. The cast members did all the singing themselves, which further added to the realism.

I'm not going to say anything else about this series, because I don't feel like I can do it justice. The acting, the scenery, the incredible writing, the music, the shocking, gritty realism... And on top of all that, I learned a lot. This is an insanely good series. I found myself wishing there were many more than 7 episodes. I wanted to know what happened to these Marines after Baghdad, what happened to them in the time in between the scenes transferred to film, what happened to them after they went home. More than that, what happened to the Iraqi people they met in the line of duty?

Wonderful. I highly, highly recommend this series.

Rating: 4.0

The Court Jester (1955, U.S.)

I saw this film for the first time when I was 10 years old, and I loved it from that moment until this day.

Danny Kaye was a funny, talented man, and this one showcases his talent like nothing I've ever seen.

The basic plot is that the rightful kind of England, an infant with a purple pimpernel birthmark, has had his throne taken by an evil man. A group in the forest, led by a Robin Hood-type character, is trying to restore the throne to the baby. Somehow, a sweet and somewhat simple man named Hawkins (Kaye) ends up posing as the king's new court jester, to infiltrate the court. The princess falls for Hawkins, the king falls for Hawkins' partner in crime, the princess's maid is a witch who starts casting spells and poisoning cups. This is where one of the best comic scenes in history happens. "The pellet with the poison's in the vessel with the pestle. The chalice from the palace is the brew that is true!" But then one cup breaks, and we have to worry about the flagon with the dragon!

Add song, dance, more witty dialogue, and some classic physical comedy and this has to be one of the best comedies of all time. Like I said, I love it.

Rating: 4.5

Alexander (2004, U.S.)

Despite featuring one of my all time favorite actresses (Jolie), it took me six years to see this historical drama (one of my favorite genres) because I'd heard such awful things about it.

Let me tell you—they were right. It was like a historical documentary forced into fiction form, therefore combining the dullness that most people (though not I!) associate with history and the inaccuracy of fiction.

Let's see. A very human drama was told with a total lack of human emotion. I was able to infer that Alexander had a very troubled, complex, almost passionate relationship with his mother, yet it falls flat. The best example of a real, passionate relationship is Alexander's almost romantic friendship with Hepastian (one of his warriors) and even it is dull. The dialoge and physical blocking always seemed to stop right when you were about to grasp something important. In the same vein, you never get a clear idea as to character motivations. Why do these men do what they do?

As I hinted before, this is supposed to be an epic film, it should be an epic film, but it's just not. The music, however, if very epic. Which just reinforces the lack of epic-ness. To further reinforce this debacle, there is what I call "the red scene." I cannot even begin to describe. The whole film has been relatively slow and vaguely historically realistic, and suddenly there is a battle in India that turns into a massacre, and everything is awash in red. Not in an "oh it's bloody" sense, but in a "we used the filmmaker's equivalent of MS Paint and splashed red all over our film!" Utterly ridiculous.

For an epic, war-filled film, that was about the most exciting thing that happened—and I even saw the director's cut, "newly inspired, faster paced, more action packed!" What exactly was this inspired by? If this is faster paced, I hate to see how slow the original was. And action? There were essentially two big battle scenes, one of which was the red one.

I've always thought pretty well of Oliver, Stone, but I have to say I lost a bit of respect for him. He thought his film failed because audiences didn't like the very faint homoerotic undercurrents. Stone, admit that it was because your film was awful!

What did I learn about history? Alexander is supposed to be so Great, but from what I can tell from this film, he didn't even make it home from his conquering expedition, didn't actually rule Macedon (at least in person), and he didn't really "conquer" all the East (instead returning rule to local rulers). So is this historically inaccurate or is he remembered for the size of his dreams rather than his accomplishments? I don't know. I do know that the film Alexander will be remembered for the size of its director's vision rather than his actual accomplishment!

Rating: 2.0

Dear John (2010, U.S.)

It's getting harder and harder for me to review movies based on Nicholas Sparks books, because I really find all his recent books (after about 1998) to be underwhelming. This book was one of my least favorite, but I think they did a pretty good job adapting it for the screen. They made the war part of the film more accessible and the feelings of the soldier more apparent.

You couldn't have cast two better people as John and Savannah. Channing Tatum is the actor to play the modern soldier. (See Stop-Loss, G.I. Joe, etc.) And I really like Amanda Seyfriend, which made her un-empathetic character less horrific, at least for me personally.

I'm not sure how true to the book it was. For instance, I don't remember John's father being such a strong character. He was a great addition to the story. I also don't remember the twists at the ending, though they could have been there. Said twists took a sappy romance and turned it into extreme melodrama. I think I'm over that phase of my life, because I was underwhelmed.

Rating: 3.0

Jumper (2008, U.S.)

When 15-year-old David is about to drown (while saving something that belonged to his big crush, Millie), he realizes he can instantaneously transport himself anywhere he wants. (In this instance he goes to the Ann Arbor Public Library, which I thought was amusing.) Eight years later, he's living in NYC and using his talent to rob banks. Suddenly a shadowy group called Paladins, who hunt Jumpers, start coming after him. For some reason he decides this is the perfect time to travel to Italy with his girl. There he runs into a British Jumper who tries to explain how foolish David is being.

There's a lot of action, a lot of very neat special effects as they jump from place to place, and a lot of beautiful settings (Tokyo, the Coliseum, the Sphinx...). They didn't overcome the lack of coherent plot and overall logic. Why were the Paladins exterminating Jumpers? Where did the Jumpers come from? Why take a girl you haven't seen in years on a trip to Italy when you're being hunted by bad guys? How does the Brit Jumper know about the Paladins and how does he track them? Why bother making David's mother a Paladin, and why does she have another child who is irrelevant to the plot?

It really was a neat premise and had fabulous special effects, but there is no escaping from poor plot. Fail.

Rating: 2.5

I Sell the Dead (2008, U.S.)

Of all the bizarre movies, I've ever seen, this one might take the cake. Even considering the other most recent (Kill Your Darlings). It's about a graverobber (adorable Dominic Monaghan) who is about to be executed for his crimes, and he's telling his story to a priest (who is played by Ron Perlman, not a very priestly guy). At first it seems like a sad story about a kid with a tough life, but then he and his mentor start digging up vampires and zombies and goodness knows what else. Meanwhile they have an ongoing competition with a rival graverobbing gang.

Basically, there wasn't much of a plot. They just go around robbing graves, which is often quite eventful, but when it's over, it's over. There's not much forward motion, just repetitiveness.

Even Dominic Monaghan wasn't enough to balance this lack of eventfulness. He was his adorable charismatic self, but not to the level you'd expect. The one thing that really stood out in this film was the score, which was eerie but whimsical—one Danny Elfman would be proud of. It reminded me of the Edward Scissorhands score, but landing more on the eerie side rather than the whimsical one. It fit the tone perfectly.

Still, I was underwhelmed.

Rating: 2.5

Kill Your Darlings (2006, Sweden)

A Swedish film made in the States in English. A dark comedy / drama about a guy with writer's block who essentially allows himself to be kidnapped by an insane woman who wants to help him find his muse. A story within a story about two suicidal people and their handler en route to Vegas to meet up with their celebrity psychologist, who is actually using them for a sick reality show.

Clearly, this was a bizarre film.

However, it was also quite good. Trying to piece together the overlapping stories definitely kept my attention, as did trying to figure the motivation of the characters. And on the note of characters, I have to rave about my primary motivation for seeing this film, which of course would be the opportunity to see Alexander Skarsgård playing a suicidal transvestite. I usually try to avoid sounding like a fan girl, but he really is something. His performance was so subtle, an especially glowing adjective when you consider he is a giant, masculine, 6'4" sexy Swede in a skirt and heels and nail polish and eye shadow and a wig, and he seems as fragile, awkward, sweet, and shy as a 12-year-old girl. He was just beautiful, and though I'm probably biased, I thought he stole the show.

As I mentioned before, I liked trying to puzzle out what was going on and why. In trying to search for an ultimate meaning (a very difficult task), I finally decided it was simply about two road trips, but it was also about many characters fighting through depression and trying to identify their reasons for soldiering on through life. I watched the making of feature, and everyone from the writer to the actors struggled to answer the question "What is this film about?" So I figure my interpretation is as good as any.

I must end with a closing note on the score, as usual. This one was unique, and yet it reminded me of something I can't quite place. It used a lot of vibraphone (or it may have been marimba) and had a sort of steady and upbeat yet depressing feel. It is so hard to explain in words, but it fit the plot and tone of the film to a tee. If I've said it once, I've said it a million times, but a fitting score can really make or break a movie. It wasn't the only factor, but Jon Rekdal's score sure helped make this one.

I'm ready for some more Swedish film now, please, Netflix! To be more specific, I'm ready for some more Swedish film featuring Alexander Skarsgård...

Rating: 3.5