Last movie you watched......

Thought that was pretty funny. I saw it when it came out (I went while visiting my cousins) and I didn't even get half of the references and that it was funny. I watched it again about a month ago and thought it was even funnier that the first time I saw it.

 

Got around to seeing Date Night. Thought it was ok. I thought they were funny, but the script was not great, did not give them a lot to work with. Mark Whalberg was also hilarious in it.

 

'Defendor' = OK
Seems like pretty familiar ground being covered.

 

Watched "Crazy Heart" last night. Bridges and Gyllenhaal are very good and the music is excellent, but the film itself is just OK.

 

‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ is bad.

I love horror films; the campier and more outlandish, the better. Yet even as I settled into the back row of my local theater on Monday, I dreaded the next 90 minutes — as if I was somehow compelled to see how poorly conceived of an idea it was to remake this perfectly fine 1984 film.

We’re treated to a boilerplate script, replete with screeching string music so contrived and predictable it worked better to prompt from the audience sympathy than it did a scare. I get it; these remakes of brand-name horror franchises have a built-in audience and big opening weekend to match. But it’s nothing more than nostalgia reconstituted and repackaged to make a quick buck — offensive in so many ways. The only redeeming value from this movie came from my acquaintance to the great Everly Brothers’ song “All I Have to do is Dream.”

No more than 45 minutes into the showing, the lone other person in the theater stood up and walked out. I should have followed.

As the film entered the dull final act, I hoped beyond hope something would redeem this lifeless and boring film. Found myself pulling for Freddy, whose character proved far more interesting than any of the patently unlikable teens (a.k.a. would-be-victims). I hoped for director Samuel Bayer (a former music-video director, natch) to turn the tables, have Freddy kill mopey heroine Nancy.

If only, if only.

 

'Iron Man' - Love it still. It's going to be hard for the sequel to match the first. I just hope, hope War Machine's story line and why Rhodes became it isn't butchered. But, it's PG-13 so it'll be butchered. Frick.

 

I saw The Hurt Locker without the hype and thought it was effing brilliant, FWIW. Maybe I've been spoiling it for my friends.

Some parts seemed contrived, but as someone who's had a lot of buddies over there and lives in a military town, I think it was the best fictional depiction of Iraq War soldiers I've seen.

Saw 7 of the 10 best picture nominees, and I can't think of a better picture last year.

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But on the subject, last movie I saw was a documentary on al-Jazeera, "Control Room." It's a tough one to get through but worth making it all the way, and it's even more interesting seven years later, when things are in a bit of a different perspective.

 

The Informant

A wholly-disappointing contrivance / waste of time.

 

HC & I watched "Doubt" the other night.

As you can imagine, great performances by Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. I must say Amy Adams is an annoying actor.

Always interesting to see how the filmmakers make the transition from stage to screen.

 

Passengers. Put my fondness of Anne Hathaway to the test. A less-than-rousing OK.

 

I loved Doubt.

The scene with the kid's mother was flawlessly executed by both of those actresses, screenwriter and director.

 

Anyone else seen Human Centipede? Anyone? I feel like I'm on a watchlist now that there's proof I watched it. Deranged German doctor wants to create a human centipede, surgically attaches mouths to asses and it only gets worse from there.