The Horrible and the Hallows

BAD TEACHER
(COMEDY)

This film has the right title. Elizabeth Halsey is a bad teacher, but the good thing is she is played by Cameron Diaz. I think this is her best part yet!!! She drinks; she smokes, she is selfish, she is self-centered, she swears, she schemes. She should give up teaching and be a politician. Her rival Amy Squirrel (Lucy Punch) compete for Scott Delacorte (Justin Timberlake), a wealthy but nerdy substitute teacher. They fight for his affections in crazy, funny ways. The acting not important as the raunchiness!!! For the guys she washes a car like she's having sex with it!!! For the women, there is even romance believe it or not!!!

HORRIBLE BOSSES
(COMEDY)

Did you ever fantasize of killing your supervisor? Well in this movie, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis decide to kill their bosses with the help of “murdering consultant” Jamie Fox. Their bosses are egotistical Kevin Spacey, an unrecognizable Colin Farrell and Jennifer Aniston as a maneater!!!. It is gross and funny at the same time. The acting is good especially Aniston, who is playing waaay against type. Guest stars appear against type too, so get ready for that!! The plot is nothing new but the three leads act like real people in a stressful or drunk situation. Should you go see if only if you like the premise and comedy.

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS –PART 2
(FANTASY/ACTION)

You know that phrase ‘save the best for last’ applies to this movie. You should read the books (I haven’t), or at least seen most of the movies because they refer to many parts in the movie. If you thought the last movie was grim, it gets worse. Harry, Ron and Emma try to stop the evil Lord Voldermort with sad and tragic results. Severus Snape, played by Alan Rickman, has important role in this film. The production is top-notch even if you are not a fan. Quality and quantity has not lowered. It is an amazing film franchise achievement. Fans of the movie will love it; people who read the book will like it--even if there are changes in the movie. It is good in 2D or 3D.

Green Grit and Summer DVDs

GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD KNIGHTS
ANIMATED-2011

For those of you who need some more green after Ryan Reynolds: Finally, DC comics and movies are moving on to their other superheroes. This story is about a new recruit Arisia (Elizabeth Moss) and Hal Jordan (Nathan Fillion, Firefly, Castle) tells her stories about the famous green lanterns before them. It is very good and the animation is brilliant. It does have some disturbing parts, but it's still worth watching. It has great celebrities who offer their voices such as Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter) Kelly Hu (Hawaii 50) and Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy series).

TRUE GRIT
WESTERN/DRAMA -2010

Two things you should know before reading my review. First, I never saw the entire, original movie with iconic John Wayne in 1969 and second, I don’t like westerns--Italian westerns. This remake is very good for it feels like a real western--not a Hollywood western. Story is about a young girl named Mattie Ross (talented Hailee Steinfeld) who wants revenge on the man who killed her father played by Josh Brolin and gets help by Rooster Cogburn played by the great actor Jeff Bridges. Everyone does a fantastic job, and the cinematography by Roger Deakins is amazing. The Coen Brothers did fine jobs as with the movie “No Country for Old Men”. Remakes are usually terrible, but this one is very good.

Moony Robots, Goony Women

TRANSFORMERS 3: DARK OF THE MOON
ACTION/SCI-FI

I enjoy the Transformers movies, so I won’t give a bad review. Many people think it is too loud, or inane, but that’s why I like it. To me it is fun to watch. The third movie is the same as it ever was. The story is about Sentinel Prime, Optimus Prime’s mentor, who crashes on the moon escaping Cybertron in the war, and he has to bring him back alive to stop the Desciptions. Let’s face it, plot not really important, and acting is REALLY not important. What IS important are the giant robots beating the hell out of each other in big cities!!! They do that a lot in this film.

I heard it is better in 3D, but I loved it in 2D. This film's visuals, you have to see again, or on video to catch up on what you missed, because there is a lot going on in this movie. If you are an action-hound you will LOVE it. If you saw Battle: Los Angeles, it is something like that. The things that bother me is one, so much is going on, that you can’t tell the Autobots from the Descipticons, and second, Megatron is acting like Starscream!!! He is second to another powerful robot, but he is MEGATRON!!! He is evil, but in the last two movies they don’t show it in full force!!!

Humans are afterthoughts in this film, like Shia and Rosie (a model, of whom the best can be said is that, Megan Fox was a better actress). I have read this is Michael Bay’s last Transformer movie--too bad. Critics and fans say he is a hack. I wish I made a couple of billion dollars for being a hack! Whatever director replaces him, I hope they do a better hack job.

BRIDESMAIDS
COMEDY

Didn’t think I would see this movie, uh? Well I did. Female driven films are rare, and even rarer in summer blockbuster season. It works because it is very funny. There are gross parts in it, but it is funny and romantic too. The story is about Annie (Saturday Night Live Kristen Wiig) who’s best friend Lillian (Maya Rudolph another Saturday Night Live star) is about to get engaged. She wants her to be the maid of honor and she messes up in hilarious ways.

Kristen Wiig is just great as Annie. She is funny and tragic. Maya Rudolph is fun to watch too. Jon Hamm (Mad Men) is Annie’s sometimes handsome yet total jerk boyfriend. The late great actress Jill Clayburgh is in it too. I hope this becomes a trend in the summer, because women want to have fun at the movies too.

Here Come the Summer Super Movies

GREEN LANTERN
ACTION/FANTASY

I am very glad DC is expanding their superheroes besides Superman and Batman. Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) is an expert pilot who is reckless and aimless is chosen by Lantern Corp after Abin Sur (Temuera Morrison, Jango Fett ,StarWars2 Attack of the Clones) plane crashes on earth after wounded by an evil force called Parallax. Hal is transported to Oa for training, and he feels he is not up to the job. We all know he is and he proves himself in the end.

The movie is expensive and it shows. Some critics say it's cheesy, but I do not see it. It is entertaining as a movie as a comic adapted to the movies, though maybe not to the diehard fanboys and fangirls. Ryan Reynolds is good as Green Lantern but I don’t think Hal Jordan was reckless in the comics. Mark Strong as Sinestro is brilliant!!! He is Green Lantern’s mentor. His voice is eerie and you just know he will be a villain very soon.

Blake Lively (Gossip Girl) is hot as his love interest. DON’T jump up as soon as the credit come on!!! Stay a few minutes for a startling scene!! Some sequels get better, and I do hope this is one of them.

X-MEN: FIRST CLASS
ACTION/ADVENTURE

Here we go again. Comic book fans may feel different about the film than just a movie fan. I am judging it as a movie. It is about the beginning of Professor Charles Xavier (James McAvoy, Wanted, King of Scotland) and Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto (Michael Fassbender 300, and the TV show Hex), and how and why they started the X-Men. This is an intelligent version of the X-Men franchise. It has action, but is not action packed!!

There a lot of subtitles like a foreign movies!!! The two actors are amazing especially Fassbender. He is very INTENSE!!! There is a reason he is that way. The guy kills in unique ways and as much as tolerable for a PG-13 movie. Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) is evil as can be, and January Jones as Emma Frost just as wicked, sexy as Shaw’s mutant assistant. Hank McCoy/Beast (Nicholas Houit) looks like a furry toy. Jennifer Lawrence is good as Mystique, a shape-shifter who wants to be “normal.”. She is sometimes when the shapely actress tries to be a teasing teenager.

SUPER 8
SCI/FI

In the summer of 1979 in Ohio, while teenagers make a movie, a train crashes with something inside that was not meant to get out. The flick is like “The Goonies meet Alien”!!! There is a lot of drama in the popcorn film--very rare indeed, and Elle Fanning (Dakota Fanning’s sister) is very good as Alice, whom two guys have a crush over. Glynn Truman as Dr. Woodward is important to the story and he was excellent, even if he was only in it briefly.

It is not as good as the hype, but it was good as a teen drama that turned into action science fiction flick. J.J. Abrams (Star Trek---the reboot) is a good director and he keeps you guessing, but the payoff was weak. I can see why it made money, but I can also see it drop box office after one week.

Pandas, Pirates, Hanging Over

HANGOVER PART 2
COMEDY

If any movie advocates for staying sober, this one and the first one is it!!! Each time these guys get drunk outrageousness comedy follows. If you’ve seen “Hangover” you practically saw the sequel, only this time it is in Bangkok. The guys have misplaced someone and they have to remember what they did to find him. It is a lot more vulgar than the first but young guys love this stuff!!! There is a rendition of “Allentown” included that does not go the way singer Billy Joel intended. This movie is R-rated for a reason--not for kids!!! Some freaky situations!!! I hear there may be a third!! Guys, go to rehab!!!

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 4: ON STRANGER TIDES
ACTION/ADVENTURE/FANTASY

I am not crazy about this franchise but it is well made and it has Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow. He is Bugs Bunny – he gets into the incredible trouble and gets out with a smile. The story is about Sparrow who has a map to find the Fountain of Youth. Blackbeard played wickedly by Ian McShane and Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) will do anything to find the treasure. Keira Nightley and Orlando Bloom are not in this movie but Penelope Cruz is and she is a sexy con-artist who may or may not be Blackbeard’s daughter. It is a popcorn film for sure.

KUNG FU PANDA 2
ANIMATED/ACTION/FANTASY

I hate sequels especially bad sequels but that is not the case with this movie. It is about Po who has to find ‘inner peace’, finds out who his real parents are and stop the evil peacock Shen. Jack Black is very good voicing Po the Panda. He can be awkward but he eventually gets it right. Gary Oldman as Shen is just perfect. I don’t know how they made such a beautiful creature as a peacock so vicious is genius. The story, the animation is just great but it is a little sadder than the first and their maybe a third!!! This great for kids, teens even adults!!!