In no particular order, I thought I’d share…5 Movies that I can’t wait to see this September. In no particular order…here ya go!
1.Contagion – Steven Soderbergh is a personal favorite, so when he’s involved, I’m involved. Add the cast of Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Bryan Cranston and more…and I know we’ve got a winner on our hands. Even if we don’t get a winner, it will still be fun trying. (September 9)
2.Moneyball – Brad Pitt in the story of the famed Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane. Add in actors like Jonah Hill, Robin Wright, Philip Seymour Hoffman to round things out and give us a really interesting baseball story. With the World Series just around the corner, this will be fun. (September 23)
3.50/50 tackles a tough topic with a bit of humor. It just may open the door for folks that normally don’t see movies where the main character has to deal with cancer. But this is a hip young cast that will keep everyone involved. A sleeper this fall. (September 30)
4.The Lion King in 3D – Ok, so this is not an original film this month, but it is a classic getting the 3D treatment that will be worth checking out. (September 16)
5.Killer Elite – Purely based on the acting talent involved, makes it worth my time. Robert DeNiro, Clive Owen and Jason Statham and an action plot make me excited to take a peek. (September 23)
Just From Theaters Prom Rated PG (Aimee Teegarden, Thomas McDonell, DeVaughan Nixon)
Prom, it’s the night like no other. The night that every high school student will remember, for better or for worse, for the rest of their life is explored in this new film from the folks at Disney. Believe it or not, this is PG and although it is very tame and unrealistic at times, it is good for the family to sit and enjoy. READ THE THEATRICAL REVIEW Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Big Happy Family Rated PG-13 (Tyler Perry, Loretta Devine, Cassi Davis, Shannon Kane)
New Tyler Perry has Madea helping her niece Shirley gathering her three adult children to pass on some distressing news. But unfortunately they can’t get past their own issues.
Also new this week… The 5th Quarter – Rated PG (Aidan Quinn, Andie MacDowell) 90210: The Third Season Bereavement – Rated R (Alexandria Daddario, Michael Biehn) Cougar Town: The Complete Second Season (Courtney Cox) – ahh the fun of Cougar Town Desperate Housewives: The Complete Seventh Season Detroit 1-8-7: The Complete First Season Hell’s Kitchen: The Complete Fifth Season – I’m a HUGE Gordon Ramsey fan, and Hell’s Kitchen is a blast. House: Season 7 iCarly: The Complete 3rd Season – it’s iCarly for goodness sake! Nikita: The Complete First Season Parenthood: Season 2 – I’m a huge fan of Erika Christensen. The Perfect Host – Rated R (David Hyde Pierce) Skateland – Rated PG (Shiloh Fernandez, Ashley Greene) Sons of Anarchy: Season Three Storage Wars: Season 1 – I’m newly acquainted with both Storage Wars and Auction Hunters – sign me up. UFC: Bad BloodThe Vampire Diaries: The Complete Second Season Wrecked – Rated R (Adrien Brody) And Finally
The 5th Quarter – Rated PG (Aidan Quinn, Andie MacDowell) What better way to kick off the football season, than with a football movie that is new, that you may never have heard of. This one deals with family, football and faith…not a bad combination. Sure it might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but take a peek at the trailer and see if it is something for you.
Pick of the Week Pick up Prom on DVD/BluRay combo pack. Then head to the TV aisle for the Hell’s Kitchen Season 5. Thanks!
Pop Popcorn, Do the Dew, and Bust out the Blu and remember to Save Me A Seat!
The Beaver – Rated PG-13 (Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, Anton Yelchin) Give this one a chance, and you won’t be disappointed. A great study of a man who speaks to everyone through a puppet; Jodie Foster delivers a truly hidden gen. READ THE THEATRICAL REVIEW
POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold – Rated PG-13 (Morgan Spurlock) I love Morgan Spurlock’s stuff, but this was never shown to me. Check it out on your method today.
Win Win– Rated R (Paul Giamatti, Alex Shaffer, Amy Ryan) One of my favorite theatrical releases from earlier this year, this is a truly great piece of filmmaking that is enjoyable from start to finish. Giamatti is incredibly solid and this story lets everyone flex their acting muscles.
Also new this week…
Bambi II – Blu Ray and DVD combo pack is now available.
Blitz – Rated R (Jason Statham) No, I haven’t seen this film…but it has Jason Statham, so I will when I can fit it in.
Brothers & Sisters: The Complete Fifth Season
Citizen Jane – Rated PG-13 (Ally Sheedy, Sean Patrick Flanery)
The Event: The Complete Series – The big NBC show last year lasted one season and I was a fan. Check it out all at once.
Gossip Girl: The Complete Fourth Season
Henry’s Crime – Rated R (Keanu Reeves, Vera Farmiga, James Caan) Interesting cast, love Vera Farmiga…but can this one make a fun night at home?
House of Fallen – Rated R (Corbin Bernsen, C. Thomas Howell) Ok, come on…Corbin Bernsen AND C. Thomas Howell how can you not check out this new horror/thriller.
NCIS: Los Angeles – The Second Season
NCIS: The Eighth Season
Off the Map: The Complete Series – ok, so I missed this…what better place to catch up than with the whole season at once.
Phineas & Ferb The Movie: Across the Second Dimension – so when this came to dvd, I asked my friend at Disney…is this just a collection of the series – he assured me it wasn’t. And then I saw all the ads for the film premiere. This is so much more than just the TV series.
Road to Nowhere – Rated R (Shannyn Sossamon, Dominique Swain)
Sexting – Rated R (Jason Lewis, Carly Pope) Umm….Ummm….yeah.
TNA: Sacrifice 2011 / Slammiversary 2011 – New TNA action for you to catch up on.
Tracker – Rated R (Ray Winstone)
UFC 131
WWE OMG! The Top 50 Incidents in WWE History – this is crazy..3 discs of fun…hello…
And Finally
Sympathy for Delicious – Rated R (Christopher Thornton, Orlando Bloom, Laura Linney, Juliette Lewis, Mark Ruffalo)
Mark Ruffalo has his directorial debut in a film that looks to intrigue. The cast and the pedigree behind this alone make it worth at least a peek at the trailer.
Pick of the Week
Win Win is one of the best of early 2011 in theaters and worth picking up. The WWE package sounds interesting and who can’t get Bambi II on BluRay / DVD combo.
Thanks!
Pop Popcorn, Do the Dew, and Bust out the Blu and remember to Save Me A Seat!
A Nibble of Fear Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) is a normal kid in a Las Vegas neighborhood that has popped up in the middle of the desert. He has changed his friends and is fitting in with a new group. But his old group of friends has a problem. One has gone missing and no one is looking for him. His old friend Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) wants to know what happens and needs Charley to come along and check things out.
Ed believes Charley’s neighbor, Jerry (Colin Farrell) is a vampire. Yep, Jerry the vampire – has a certain ring to it, no? But what Ed gets into is nothing like what he imagined. Now Charley must protect his mother (Toni Collette) his girlfriend (Imogen Poots) and everyone else in the neighborhood from Jerry’s clutches. Can he start to understand what he is up against?
Charley will need to enlist someone’s help in the battle, as he knows very little about vampires. So it’s off to the strip to enlist the help of Peter Vincent (David Tennant). Vincent has a show filled with illusion, and the dark arts. He is the expert Charley will turn to for help in facing down Jerry and keeping his friends and family safe. Who will survive?
Fright Night gives today’s kids a modern day setting for the “vampire next door” film. This isn’t a warmed over easy going film for the kids. This is a horror film with a bit of stylish feel. Sure, Farrell plays a vampire named Jerry that is running wild on this neighborhood. But don’t let the name fool you. Farrell’s Jerry is ruthless and as rough and menacing as anyone can imagine.
The cast is really what makes Fright Night work. With Yelchin out front battling Farrell it makes for a compelling pairing. And supporting them you have faces you know, even if you don’t know their names. Despite some glaring weird plot holes, the film just seems to work and have a certain “cool” factor that tends to be missing from most of these films.
No, Fright Night isn’t going to keep you from sleeping at night. But it will nibble on you just enough to get the goose bumps rising.
B-
Fright Night Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / DreamWorks SKG
Director: Craig Gillespie Cast: Anton Yelchin, Colin Farrell, Toni Collette, David Tennant, Imogen Poots, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Rating: R for bloody horror violence, and language including some sexual references. Runtime: 1 hour 46 minutes
Why don’t people just TELL someone when they like them. Had Ginnifer just opened her mouth, she would have been getting married. (READ THE THEATRICAL REVIEW)
Also New this Week
Dexter: The Fifth Season
John Carpenter’s The Ward – Rated R (Amber Heard, Danielle Panabaker)
Marley and Me: The Puppy Years – Rated PG
Ok, I know what happens in Marley and Me and the only way to do a sequel is to do a prequel…so this makes sense, I think.
Spin City: The Complete Fifth Season
Veggie Tales: Princess and The Popstar
WWE: Money in the Bank 2011
And Finally…
The Bang Bang Club – Rated R (Ryan Phillippe, Malin Akerman, Talor Kitsch)
A pretty powerful trailer, wish I would have got a chance to se this. Check it out for yourself. This story of four young photographers capturing images in South Africa looks solid.
Pick of the Week
Marley and Me for my daughter – I mean she sat through the first one so why not, right? And possibly The Conspirator as those historical dramas kinda to it for me.
Pop Popcorn, Do the Dew, Bust out the Blu and remember to Save Me A Seat!
So you need some money? You want to start up your dream business? Forget bank loans, investors and the like; you need to rob a bank. But of course, you don’t want to get your fingers dirty, so why not find someone to do it for you.
Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) is a pizza delivery guy. He can drive fast, gets to live the slacker lifestyle, and work on his terms. One night he delivers some pizzas to Dwayne (Danny McBride) and Travis (Nick Swardson). Only upon arrival, they are wearing monkey masks and knock him out. Nick will become their bank robber.
As Nick awakens, he finds a bomb strapped to his person and gets the orders to go rob a bank and bring the two monkeys the money or face the consequences. Nick starts on his mission and gets his best friend Chet (Aziz Ansari) to come along. The two aren’t bank robbers, and it shows.
Now will Dwayne get his money, or will everyone get blown to smithereens.
In general, this should be a funny premise, in a dark comedy kind of way. But instead, this movie that clocks in at about 83 minutes feels long and tedious.
There is great acting talent here the feels wasted. Eisenberg works and is good as the crazy pizza delivery guy that just doesn’t know what to do. McBride just swears a lot, something he’s good at, but seems a bit scripted out of being a much deeper character that has meaning.
Most of the film seemed very uneven and suffering from a lack of plot direction. One minute it wanted to be funny, and it usually succeeded. But when it went off the rails and tried the serious tact on things, it felt like it was stuck in a pair of cement shoes.
Maybe it was my expectations for the film; I’m a big fan of all that are involved with this film. But 30 Minutes or Less takes about 30 minutes too long to get less laughs than one would imagine with the talent involved. Sure I’ll watch it again as it goes through the film lifecycle, because I did laugh, but overall it’s a bit like cold pizza it addresses the hunger, but doesn’t truly satisfy.
Paul – Rated R (Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, voice of Seth Rogen)
From The Real Milwaukee Set
Ok, I’ve finally come to the realization that this is not about me. Though the side by side comparison is eerily similar. Anyway, the alien Paul meets up with some of the biggest alien fans!
Super – Rated R (Rainn Wilson, Ellen Page, Liv Tyler)
The names are good; but is the movie? Might be the right time to check it out on DVD.
Your Highness – Rated R (James Franco, Danny McBride, Natalie Portman)
There is a damsel and smoking…hence the double meaning behind the title…in case you are under a rock.
Also New this Week
Camp Hell – Rated R (Dana Delany, Bruce Davison) Ok, so how did this one get hidden to this point? A horror movie, in case you hadn’t noticed.
Fox and the Hound / Fox And the Hound II – The Blu-Ray combo pack is available know with all the glory of Hi-Def for you to enjoy.
Webster: Season 3 – Aww…I didn’t remember Webster being around that long.
And Finally…
Tactical Force – Rated R (Steve Austin, Michael Jai White)
The Texas Rattlesnake has got to be my and finally pick (one of Steve Austin’s nicknames, in case you didn’t know). Austin and Michael Jai White make me say…HELLO.
Pick of the Week
I’ve got to add the movie about me, wait…ok, I get it…Paul is not about me. Still it’s fun, and of course Mars Needs Moms might be fun to revisit with the animation it works with in about 5 years.
Pop Popcorn, Do the Dew, Bust out the Blu and remember to Save Me A Seat!
Dave Lockwood (Jason Bateman) is a family man. He’s a man that has moved forward with his career, he’s about to become a partner at the firm. He’s got wonderful family that loves him. Everything a guy would want; well most guys.
One guy who wants what Dave has is his friend, Mitch Planko (Ryan Reynolds). Mitch is the guy who has never grown up. Drinking, cussing, carousing and more every hour of the day, Mitch lives for the next girl, or his Tuesday night girl.
The two envy each other so much that in a drunken stupor one night they each cry out their wish to be the other. And of course, that is who they wake up as the next morning.
Now Dave is Mitch and Mitch is Dave. As is usually the case, the grass is not always greener on the other side and as each other Dave learns that is wife isn’t as happy as he had thought. And Mitch learns how much his Dad does appreciate them.
Ok, sure, along the way there are some diversions from the funny, to the gross and everywhere in between. The big question is, will they get back to the people they were before or are they “stuck” in their new roles? And a second question, do they want to return to their old life?
We’ve seen the body switching movies before. Freaky Friday, Like Father Like Son, Vice Versa and the list rolls on. When you are dealing with this kind of comedy, it is essential to get funny people in the rolls, or the switch doesn’t work. Thankfully, for the most part, there are funny people involved in this film and you will find yourself laughing more often than not.
Call me a fan, but Jason Bateman has a way of delivering the goods when he steps in front of the camera. No matter what he is asked to do, it seems he always delivers the goods. Working with Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde and more only adds to the fun in this case.
There are a number of scenes that seem way out there and in fact derail this film from time to time. (Did we really need the poo to the face scene?) But overall with a decent script and some funny folks involved, The Change-Up is a straight on fastball to the funny bone.
Note: As I'm playing catch up from vacation...here is an abbreviated version of my Cowboys And Aliens review.
Cowboys and Aliens Light Up The Screen
Aliens have filled are silver screens for years. Will Smith fought them in Independence Day. Sigourney Weaver went toe to toe with them in the Alien trilogy. And we even had a friendly guy named ET that needed to phone home. But for boys of all ages, what could be cooler than Cowboys and Aliens? Heck it’s Woody and Buzz, only Buzz isn’t so nice in this film!
A mysterious man (Daniel Craig) enters a sleepy town not remembering much after being dropped in the middle of the desert. As he soon finds out, the person he was, Jake Lonergan, rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.
Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) more or less runs this town. He has the money and the influence to make everything in the town work to his advantage. Dolarhyde’s son Percy and others get whisked away by spacecrafts; the town bands together to make every effort to fight back. Now the battle begins; Cowboys take on Aliens.
I love, love, love the acting talent on display in this film. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford lead the way with the incredible supporting cast. As a team you will enjoy them. The visuals are stunning, coupling the old west with space age technology.
For this one, I have my hiccups with the aliens themselves. They came off a bit weird in behavior and style in the film. And the film itself tends to feel a bit long and overreaching.
Between the visuals in the film and the acting talent on display, Cowboys and Aliens light up the screen.
Cast: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, Paul Dano Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of western and sci-fi action and violence, some partial nudity and a brief crude reference. Runtime: 1 hour 58 minutes
Smurf this review, I can’t write bad things about the Smurfs…it’s just not possible. The Smurfs are back in the new film by director Raja Gosnell (Scooby Doo). But the question I have is why wasn’t this film made 15 – 20 years ago, but I digress.
The Smurfs are blasted through a portal only to find themselves lost in New York. And following them through the portal is none other than their archenemy Gargamel (Hank Azaria).
Lucky for the Smurfs, the individual that they find in New York is Patrick (Neil Patrick Harris) and his wife Grace (Jayma Mays). Although initially taken aback by the little blue guys and one girl, lest I forget Smurfette (Katy Perry). These guys are fun, hard working, and a good addition to their house, even during the most stressful job situation in Patrick’s career.
As Gargamel glides through clouds of steam to make his entrances a bit more interesting, he can’t seem to catch up the blue guys. But along the way he has created a special potion that will help him capture all of them and bring them home to help him conquer all.
Can the Smurfs find a way to get home through the portal that will reopen during the “blue moon”? Only time will tell who makes out on top, but Smurf waiting for the results, I'm going to tell you right about now…La la la la la la…
Yes, I think this movie is years removed from the time when it should have been released. But some of the humor does work with today’s kids. My daughter (now 7) said it was great, but scary at times. And that’s the review you should listen to if you are under the age of 13 or so, everyone older, listen to me.
Sure there was an occasional chuckle, but the film just didn’t work on the whole. Azaria is a really fun actor and he seems pigeonholed into a caricature of himself. And the lovable Jayma Mays brings some needed smiles and life to the film.
The digitally inserted Smurfs seem a bit awkwardly meshed in the big picture and a bit clunky overall. Sure it works when you are 10, but it should be quickly obvious that many have grown past Smurf age. And while it might still fly as a 30 minute bit, at nearly 90 minutes it’s a bit too long.
If you don’t expect much from The Smurfs you may be pleasantly surprised, but most will just end up throwing it on the Blu Ray player one day for their kids and everyone will be happy. The Smurfs are happy and that may be all that needs to happen. For now; Happy Smurfs, Happy
Cast: Hank Azaria, Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Sofia Vergara, Jonathan Winters (voice), Alan Cumming (voice), Katy Perry (voice), George Lopez (voice)
