Movie Reviews, Opinions, and Theories

This was the first time I have seen this film. Ever since I saw Superbad, I have wanted to go back and see all of Jonah Hill’s films. This movie straight up sucked. I guess that it had it’s moments of funniness, but there were not many. Granted that this was not intended to win an Academy Award, but this film had nothing. No dialogue and no substance. I will probably never watch this movie again, and that is hard for me. Usually I am an easy grader on comedies, but not this time. This film gets an F.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall is one of the best comedies of 2008. That whole crew is hilarious. Jason Segel, Paul Rudd and Jonah Hill are in a league of their own. Russell Brand pretty much came out of left field with his role as an English pop singer that is screwing Peter’s girl. This is already among one of my favorite comedies. Initially I did not this Jason Segel could play the main guy in a film this big, but I was wrong. Definitely a classic. Make sure you catch it out, guaranteed laughs. I give this film a grade of a B+.

What happened to The Wrester for best film? Darren Aronofsky and Micky Rourke did an amazing job with this film. I thought this was the best film of the year and it was not even nominated under this category. What crap! At least give them best original screenplay, but they didn’t even give them that. Darren Aronofsky is one of the best young directors at the moment and he is still getting the shaft. Hey at least they know what is going on at Cannes, The Wrestler was the second American film to win there. If that is not enough, I don’t know what is.

Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna is his first war film. While many critics seem to have hated the film, I feel that it was a success. The film however did have it’s flaws, but Spike Lee still managed to turn a film that is out of his normal genre into a war film with an obvious Spike Lee touch. The story of the Buffalo Soldiers could be told by none other than this man. I never get tired of his films about Black History and racial prejudice. Many say that the film was too long, but I feel that it had to be this long in order to fit in the many stories of the film. I hope that Spike Lee does make another effort at another war film. Lee remains one of my favorite directors due to films such as Do The Right Thing and 25th Hour. I give this film a grade of a B+.

The Duchess starring Kiera Knightley was a film that takes place in the 1700s. Giorgianna is arranged to marry the Duke who is played by Ralph Fiennes. She has a rude awakening when she discovers that her new husband is having multiple affairs. She is under more stress when she is pressured by the Duke to produce a son. This film exhibited beautiful cinematography and great acting from Knightley and Fiennes. There are multiple love stories within the film which makes it interesting. The film is definitely worth checking out. This film gets a grade of a B-.

Role models stars Paul Rudd and Sean William Scot in a film of two guys trying to avoid jail time by being big brothers to two kids. This film was hilarious. The film had cameos from some of the guys that we have seen in Superbad and The 40 Year Old Virgin like Mclovin. Probably not the greatest film in the world, but it gets the job done. Sean William Scot plays his Stifler type role as usual, but it never seems to get old. Paul Rudd plays his typical sarcastic role and pulls it off. You can totally predict where the film is going, but it is heart felt and very funny. Like I said, not the greatest film ever but it gets the job done and is worth checking out. I give this film a grade of a B-.

The Wrestler marks the return of Mickey Rourke courtesy of arguably the best young director in Hollywood, Darren Aronofsky. His newest film is Aronofsky’s fourth film. Prior films include Pi, Requiem For A Dream, and The Fountain. With each film, he has reinvented himself thus making him a very versatile director. The Wrestler was one of the best films of 08 without hesitation. Mickey Rourke was amazing. There is no other actor that could have played this role better. According to Aronofsky, if he would have casted Nick Cage in this role, he would have received more financial backing. Thank God he chose Rourke and made the film for the purpose of great film making and money. This film was unbelievable, it gets a grade of an A.

It is pretty rare when I watch a film and think that it suck so bad that I will never watch it again. This was one of those rare times. Choke starring Sam Rockwell is the crappiest movie I have seen in a while. I was lured in to watching it because they were parading that it was written by the guy that wrote Fight Club; on of my favorites. My advice is do not watch it, lamest movie ever. I think Sam Rockwell is great, but he is not a guy that can be the anchor of a film. It is so bad that it is not worth discussing, this film gets a grade of an F.

In my opinion, Burn After Reading was the funniest movie of the year. I am so tired of hearing people complain about the film. I have heard people say how dumb it is, or that they just don’t get the idea of the film. I think that the film was brilliant and should have won for best comedy last night at the Golden Globes. John Malkovich is so damn funny in the film. What was so hilarious was the everyone in the movie looked at him like he was an idiot. The fact is that he is the only sane guy in the entire film. The whole cast was amazing. Pitt, Clooney, McDormand, and Swinton were awesome in the film. The Coens are amazing in what the do, they never disappoint. I give this film a grade of a B+.

Clint Eastwood knocks another one out of the park with Gran Torino. This is his second film of 2008 but this time, he is stars in the film. Clint Eastwood is brings back the typical bad ass son of a bitch attitude in which he plays a retired military man living in a predominantly minority neighborhood. He can’t stand any other races, however he is the only white guy left. Eastwood introduces comedy into the film, at least I think he does. The film had so many racial jokes however I could not help but laugh. Wether he is intending to be funny or not, it’s pretty hard to tell. Overall great film. Sadly though, I do not expect too much Oscar buzz surrounding the film. But I don’t care what the Academy thinks, so I give the film a grade of an A.