Last movie you watched......

"And to think, in some countries, these glorious animals are eaten ... "

 

Put a little hairspray on it and let it sit for 10 minutes before you put it in with the laundry. The spot comes right out.

 

Is there anyone here that really enjoyed The Blind Side? I've recently gone through all ten best pic noms for 2010, and can't believe the hype this movie got. I'm not sure which is more offensive, the best pic nom for The Blind Side or the best actress win for Sandra.

Ignoring the fact that they treat most of the racial issues with kid gloves, there is one scene in particular that drives me absolutely nuts. The scene where the tutor is telling Michael that they bury dead bodies underneath the field at Tennessee. The story is about a family helping an underprivileged kid overcoming the odds, working hard, and finally realizing himself by improving his grades and becoming a stellar athlete.

Then, out of no where, a tutor tells a kid a ludicrous story about dead bodies and zombies, he acts scared, and decides he can't go to Tennessee! The zombies might get me! They make the kid look like a complete and utter moron.

The only truly touching scene in the movie is when Bullock goes to visit Michael's mother. I have to say, I didn't realize that Tim McGraw was in the movie until I looked it up on imdb.com.

 

I liked it. Was it predictable? Yes. Was it a lot more dull than I was expecting? Yes.

But, for some reason, I loves me some Sandra Bullock and when it's not Premonition or 28 Days, I generally like whatever she's in.

Now, what it best picture good? Eh, debatable.

But when you're opening the field to 10 movies, of course there are going to be one or two that maybe shouldn't have made the cut.

 

Watched "Shutter Island" last night. Very meh. I had a bad feeling about when a Scorsese/DiCaprio film was being released in February (the dead zone of the year) instead of November or December of 2009 (in time for Oscar consideration). I heard bad things about it. And, yet, I still expected more from a movie directed by Scorsese, starring DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley and Max Von Sydow.

 

I still haven't seen it, but I've gotten the impression that if you take 10 film fans, five hate that movie and five think it's one of the best films they've seen this year.

 

Probably a fair guess ... I just didn't think it broke any new ground for me as a thriller. The climax wasn't anything I haven't seen before and it definitely dragged at some parts.

The last line from DiCaprio was a pretty solid way to wrap it up, but the revelation wasn't as big of a payoff as the story built it up to be.

I did, however, like Scorsese's big "Fuck you" to everyone who panned the final shot of "The Departed." Those who have seen it will know what I mean.

 

The Runaways - All over the place. Tries to be a love story between Joan Jett and Cherrie Currie, but it's not. The band? Well, some scenes in the first act cover that only from Joan and Currie's perspective though. The actors that play Lita Ford and Sandy West are just extras even though their stories could've added a whole lot more to the film (put it this way, the film producers don't even let the audience know what happened to them in the credits. Joan, Kim Fowley and Currie are accounted for though.)

As for the acting, the guy that plays producer Kim Fowley is awesome, but they make him come off a lot better than he really is. Kristen Stewart nails Joan's blank, soulless personality. Don't think that's too difficult though. Dakota Fanning is meh.

 

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Greatness. A thrill a minute mixed with some intense psychological examination of sex abuse. I heart Noomi Rapace. Hollywood better stay away. Far away. No starlet I know will be able to pull off the Lizbeth character.

 

Watched "Gamer" tonight. Very interesting concept, a lot of cool kills but, overall, it felt like something was missing from the flick plot wise.

Decent rental if you're into Gerard Butler or that type of film.

 

Finally saw "The Reader" last night. Beautiful, heartbreaking, thought provoking movie. How Kate Winslett did not win Best Actress for this is a mystery.

 

HC & I went to see "Splice" this afternoon. Sarah Polley and Adrian Brophy, two talented actors take the Frankenstein story and apply some intelligence to the genre. Scary but not gory and pretty erotic.

Highly recommended.