9.5.00

For the most part, I liked Space Cowboys, but Reg warned me beforehand that the orbital mechanics were farfetched. Whew. Since my orbital mechanics expertise wasn't as advanced as Reg's, I could only *feel* that there was something weird going on as we were snowballed on several leaps of reality. =) As I said, I did enjoy this movie about old guys who didn't make it into space the first time, but get a second chance since Clint's group's the only people who could fix the failing Soviet satellite. They went into space without answers to many questions, ones that I would not have lifted off without. I would've liked to see more training clips, more reminiscing, etc, but on a whole, it was definitely enjoyable.

The Replacements is the dramatic equivalent of Major League. I totally loved this movie about the scabs who were called in for their second chance at the pros when the NFL goes on strike. It was fun, goofy and cute. I could've done without the romance part, but even then, that wasn't awful. No need for the big screen, so go for the rental.

Ugh, The Cell was strange. Very weird, very trippy, very creepy. Visually interesting, nice costumes, sad story line, but nothing else was there. Psycho murderer strokes out before revealing where his latest victim is hidden. Enter Jennifer Lopez, a social worker who specializes in entering the psyche of people under the influence of a cutting edge technology that sends people in. Convinced by the FBI who have been tracking the killer without success, Lopez goes in and gets stuck. Vince Vaughn, Mr. Agent Man, goes in after her. Sick and wacky, the movie just became annoying after awhile. We spent a good part of the movie going, "What tha...?! Huh?! Wait, what?! Eww." Certainly not worth $9 nor the bad dinner we got at World Wrapps. Disappointing all around.

8.11.00

Hollow Man had some very disturbing violence that wasn't reinforced...initially it seemed random, but then I remembered the reasoning. I liked the concept...what would YOU do if you were invisible and didn't have to look at yourself in the mirror? I was expecting more of a moral struggle with this movie, but then found out that it was directed by Paul Verhoeven, who brought us Showgirls, which meant it was just going to be more visual than anything. And it was visually good...it's hard to show an invisible man on film and they did a good job of it, but they did a better job of making the plot invisible.

8.3.00

I *finally* saw X-men and loved it! Being a fan of the comic and the cartoon series, I wondered how they were going cram a storyline within 2 hrs and was worried it wouldn't work as a movie. Luckily there are people paid to do these sorts of things! Patrick Stewart was brilliantly cast as Professor X, as well as Hugh Jackman, who was excellent as the edgy Wolverine. Ian McKellan was also great as Magneto. I could've done without Halle Berry as Storm and I've always hated Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) and Cyclops (James Marsden). Anna Paquin didn't quite make Rogue come to life and Toad was kind of wasted. The fight scene between Wolverine and Mystique were exciting, the fx were cool. There were some plot holes but on the whole, I totally enjoyed myself. Definitely go see on the big screen...a hotdog and some popcorn wouldn't hurt. Can't wait to see the dvd.

7.15.00

Disney's The Kid was totally cute. The kid was adorable and stole alot of the movie. Bruce Willis was good as the nasty mean guy who is being visited by the 8 year old version of him. He's been trying to forget his bad childhood and as a result, has blocked off the kid in him. What follows is some predictable story lines...ie., the grown up helps the kid overcome certain events in his life, etc. Lily Tomlin is great as his patient assistant and like I said, the kid was terrific. While I liked htis movie on a whole, I didn't like how they tried to wrap it all up so the last 10 minutes didn't do anything for me.

7.13.00

Chicken Run was cute! Nick Park and company did another outstanding job with claymation. I actually started to root for Ginger to get freedom. Plot wasn't all that great, but the action was fun. Definitely better on the big screen but I'd rather see the special features on the DVD.

Mssion Impossible 2 - much better than the first one, the face cloning thing was overused and John Woo needs to get some new moves.

Gone in 60 Seconds - or the answer to "how big was Angelina Jolie's part?" Best thing about this movie was the cars.

Boys and Girls - snuck into this after Chicken Run, really wished I hadn't. Lame acting, even lamer writing.

28 Days - not long enough, Sandra Bullock slightly unbelievable as an addict, but overall enjoyable.

5.27.00

It's been awhile since my last confession...wait, that's not right. Actually, with Netflix making it SIMPLE to rent DVDs, I no longer want to watch movies in movie theaters. Seriously! Big screen movies don't have the extra features that're usually included with DVDs so unless there're special effects that one can only appreciate on the big screen, I'm sticking to DVDs.

However, I'm sometimes coerced into forking out $8.50 (they just upped it to $9! Jesus!) and I've seen...

Boys Don't Cry. God, what a painful movie. Don't get me wrong, the movie was great, the story was well done, glad that Hillary Swank got best actress...it's just that the movie was painful to watch, knowing that it was a true story. The rape scene, as all rape scenes are, was gruesome and awful...we all felt her pain. I don't want to start ranting about how people are so unforgiving and evil so I'll just stop here.

What else...sheesh, what an awful short-term memory! Stay tuned as I try to remember.

3.23.00

I was worried that Erin Brockovich this movie was going to suck but it didn't. Really liked Erin's boyfriend. No time now, more later.

2.27.00

I *hate* missing any part of a movie and we were 15 minutes late getting to Boys Don't Cry...luckily, while we were waiting in line to get our tickets, the woman in front of us said that Boys Don't Cry was a wonderful movie and that we shouldn't miss a minute so we saw Wonder Boys instead. It was odd. Still not sure how I feel about Tobey Maquire, there's something goofy about him and he could double for kd lang. The sexual tension between Michael Douglas and Katie Holmes was creepy and kinda like life imitating art. Struck a weird cord for me. I of course loved Frances McDormand, she's just a wonderful actress. So...this movie's about a college professor who, at one time, put out a critically acclaimed novel but hasn't done anything since. A comedy of errors follow as his student shoots his girlfriend's husband's dog. Ugh, really not worth rehashing...rent it.

1.17.00

Galaxy Quest KICKED ASS! When I first saw the trailer, I had no intentions of seeing this silly movie. But my friends told me I *had* to see it. Glad I did! Hilarious! Everyone was terrific, just totally fun. The parallels to Star Trek was scary but the only difference is that this is a spoof, while Star Trek fans *really* do that. Tim Allen is the aging Commander of an old TV series who gathers his old crew for another adventure. I won't say anymore since I don't want to give anything way. Definitely go see it on the big screen, worth it all.

FINALLY went to see Stuart Little, the cute story about a mouse who's adopted by the Littles and finds his place in life. Drama, comedy, wished the movie was a little longer. The behind-the-scenes on HBO was cool, hope the DVD has a ton of stuff. Definitely fun.

Liberty Heights is about life in the 50s through the eyes a smart-ass teenager. Desegregation is central to the storyline, as well as racial tension between the WASPs and the Jews. Thrown in the mix is Joe Mantegna, the numbers-running father who buys a new Caddie every year and Bebe Neuwirth, the free guilt mother. Funny, sweet...rental.

12.25.99

Toy Story 2 kicked ass! I was skeptical at first, wondering how they were going to top the first one but I should've had faith in Mark, an old friend of Liz's who worked at Pixar. In fact, we were invited to a pre-showing with the Pixar family, which made it all the more exciting. This sequel was fun, captured my short attention span and made me laugh hard. Definitely worth full ticket prices and hot dogs. I'm definitely going to see it again and will definitely buy the DVD.

The World is not Enough was almost enough for me. I was actually on the edge of my seat waiting for the plot to play out. I enjoyed it and had a good time of it...except for Denise Richards. I can't stand her, don't find her attractive nor can I find a bone of talent anywhere within a 5 mi radius of her. The movie, however, was definitely kept my interest. Pierce Brosnan is the perfect successor to Sean Connery's Bond, James Bond and actually gets injured! Big fx calls for big screen.

10.30.99

Fight Club is an exciting and often funny movie about a guy bored with life and starts a fight club where people meet to fight. As the fight club's popularity grows, more clubs open around the country and more members join, with it more chaos and vandalism. Edward Norton is terrific as the bored guy who changes his life by meeting Brad Pitt's Tyler Durden, a wild, no-holds barred man who does what he wants and when he wants. Norton draws inspiration from Durden and so I don't detract from the movie, the rest is an adventure. I could've done without Helena Bonham Carter, the absolutely creepy gf. She definitely spoils this movie FOR ME. This movie is so cool, I plan to buy this DVD when it comes out.

The Story of Us is a cute, but disjointed story of a couple going through a breakup without destroying their two kids. The dialog is eerily reminiscent of fights I've had with partners and hits a little [too] close to home. I wanted to see more of some scenes, less of others but hey, it was enjoyable. After The Deep End of the Ocean, I am *REALLY* sick of Michelle Pfeiffer's crying and her collagen-filled lips. Also, they should've fired the makeup artist. The men's makeup (Bruce Willis, Paul Reiser and Meathead) were way overdone and stupid looking.

10.19.99

American Beauty was hilarious! Dark comedy about a guy who's just fed up with his crappy life and takes it back into his own hands. Kevin Spacey is excellent as the middle-aged guy who tells it like it is and goes with his heart instead of what he's "supposed" to do. Great movie, definitely go see it or rent.

[I find it disturbing that Amazon is hosting the official site.]

Double Jeopardy should've been retitled to The Fugitive III. Ashley Judd was very believable as the wife who got big-time shafted by her husband. She bides her time and seeks revenge. Exciting and intense, but predictable. Still enjoyable and definitely worth the rental.

Stigmata was a creepy look into catholicism with all the superstition and creepiness of religion. Patricia Arquette turned in a good performance but disjointed story lines made it a rough ride. Some of the stuff they expected you to believe was a big stretch and I didn't appreciate the randomness of it all. Good fx, just freaky.

9.1.99

Holy moly, I haven't updated this since May?! Wow, I have some catching up to do! In no particular order:

The Sixth Sense was terrific! I was sufficiently scared like I expected to be with the Blair Witch Project. Bruce Willis was ok as a child psychiatrist who failed another boy and is desperate to help this one, but the one who really stole the show was Cole, the kid who saw ghosts. His range of emotions was impressive and was perfect as the vulnerable boy haunted by dead people. Recognize Cole's mom? She was Muriel in that wonderful movie, Muriel's Wedding. Definitely worth full ticket price.

I liked everyone in The Love Letters, I just didn't like the movie. Painfully slow but sweet, this movie revolves around an unaddressed, unsigned love letter that, when read by townspeople, completely changes the dynamic in their relationships with friends and strangers. As I said, I liked the cast, but the movie was just too slow for me and I spent the entire movie fidgeting. Rental.

The Thomas Crown Affair is just the type of movie I like...intricately planned heists. A very fun movie with Pierce Brosnan as the dapper rich guy (when is he ever *not*?) who steals astronomically expensive paintings under tight security and meets his match in Rene Russo, an insurance investigator. Pierce was perfect, but Rene didn't do it for me. Tried too hard to be a hard-ass but was too easily wounded by the mere, unsubstantiated suggestion of an affair or the cold hard truth. The crying and vulnerable side seemed very inconsistent with the confident, intelligent qualities that Rene had nailed down. [Disclaimer: Obviously, you can be intelligent and confident with a vulnerable side.] Gratuitous boob shots. Still fun, matinee if possible.

America Pie appeals to everyone who have suffered the indignities of high school. Four seniors aim to get laid by prom night. The antics of getting there will crack you up...or remind you of your painful past. Who actually gets some is not who you expect. No special fx, go for the rental.

Mystery Men was really cute. Superhero Greg Kinnear gets kidnapped by ever-repulsive Geoffrey Rush. The second-string heroes, part of the action but without the recognition or endorsements, springs to action. This little band of heroes mean well, but are a woeful match for professional bad guys. 70's TV references are entertaining. Another fun movie. Matinee for the big screen fx, but rental will do.

Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me is everything you expect from a sequel. This time, Dr. Evil takes a time machine back in time to steal Austin's mojo and defeat his enemy once and for all. Luckily, Austin's team have also created another time machine and sends him back to recover his mojo. New characters add flavors you just can't imagine. Definitely a classic.

Eyes Wide Shut was a 2 hour and 45 minutes snooze. The much hyped, Stanley Kubrick film didn't do anything for me, especially because it was centered around a topic I really hate: infidelity. After having faith in his wife's fidelity shattered, Cruise goes on a crazy path to have sex and get back her. No matter that Kidman's infidelity was a FANTASY (although she did admit that she was ready to leave her cushy life for this sailor guy). This movie had promise and it did have its moments but the ending was wrapped up in a neat, convenient package. It could've gone in so many directions but Kubrick chose a dead end. In an informal poll, guys liked it while women hated it. Rental if you can bear it.

Blair Witch Project was a terrific idea, one that's scaring the heck out of Hollywood. Make a movie under $100 grand, no fx, unknowns running around in the middle of the woods? The official site is http://www.blairwitch.com/ but it won't work without shockwave so I linked to the unofficial one. Liz says it's Road Rules in the woods. There are varying degrees of being scared: I wanted to be scared out of my wits, but I didn't find it scary at all. OTOH, a co-worker reaction to my being unscared: "What are you, the walking undead?! I was totally scared and my gf's crying next to me." Make your own opinion...I was scared for a total of 3 minutes.

South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut is as crude as you expect. Several shocking scenes just about fried my brain and the cursing gets way out of hand. Imagine Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny in a musical, with guest stars, Satan and Sadam Hussein. Scary? Yes. Funny? Definitely. Worth $8.50? Depends on how much you love South Park.

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