Tag Archives: movie - Page 2

The Bad Review Revue

X-Men Origins: Wolverine: “It is Hugh Jackman’s misfortune that when they were handing out superheroes, he got Wolverine, who is for my money low on the charisma list. He never says anything witty, insightful or very intelligent; his utterances are limited to the vocalization of primitive forces: anger, hurt, vengeance, love, hate, determination. There isn’t a speck of ambiguity. That Wolverine has been voted the No. 1 comic hero of all time must be the result of a stuffed ballot box.” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past: “Above all, it will make you long for a day when studio movies about relationships feel like they are by and for adults who have actually been in one.” – Melissa Anderson, Village Voice

Obsessed: “I don’t mind that Obsessed, is mindless, overheated, undercooked trash. I mind that it’s boring mindless, overheated, undercooked trash.” – Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress

17 Again: “If you ever wondered what the High School Musical series would have been like without Zac Efron’s bad singing you have your answer in 17 Again” – Michelle Alexandria, Eclipse Magazine

The Soloist: “Just because The Soloist is about a homeless person doesn’t mean it should have pedestrian direction. But it does — pedestrian and clodhopping. …

What is remarkable is that Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr escape with their talent intact. They are the only reason to see The Soloist. They are sweet in a sour movie.” – Tony Macklin, tonymacklin.net

Where the Wild Things Are

A flickr set of the first photos from the Jonze/Eggers project Where The Wild Things Are.

Let the wild rumpus start!

Enjoy the trailer.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

The first time I’d ever heard of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was when my dad made a wood carving based on one of the characters holding up a plate to the sky. (Apparently my parents are better acquainted with popular children’s books than I am.)

Sony pictures is now making a Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs movie. (Check that link for the trailer.)

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs

I’m not convinced doing it in 3D is a good idea, but I haven’t actually seen any of the new 3D movies lately and so, I’ll save my judgement for now.

The Bad Review Revue

The Watchmen: “The good news is that you don’t have to stay past the opening credit sequence—easily the highlight of the film.” – Anthony Lane, The New Yorker

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li: “If you thought they couldn’t possibly make a Street Fighter movie that was worse than the 1994 Jean-Claude Van Damme camp-fest, you’ll be unpleasantly surprised.” – Ethan Alter, Film Journal International

Paul Blart: Mall Cop: “The last name Blart may be the funniest thing in the movie, so that’s a hint as to just how bad this shopping-center saga can be.” – Claudia Puig, USA Today

Miss March: “Forget waterboarding — just show Guantanamo detainees Miss March and they’ll say anything.” – James Berardinelli, ReelViews

Bad Review Revue

He’s Just Not That Into You: “Imagine an action flick in which the hero spends the entire movie chasing the villain without the satisfaction of smashing his enemy to smithereens.” – Manohla Dargis, New York Times

Friday The 13th: “Even Jason seems a little bored by it all. The scariest thing in the movie is the threat of yet another sequel at the end. I’d suggest a return to outer space. Much deeper this time.” – Kurt Loder, MTV

Confessions of a Shopaholic: “If there is a single bright spot in the financial crisis, it is the possibility that one day producer Jerry Bruckheimer will run out of money. In a more just world, this would have happened before he gave the green light to “Confessions of a Shopaholic,” a thin, largely unfunny comedy that marries lazy filmmaking with bad timing.” – Jessica Reaves, Chicago Tribune

Fired Up: “Oh, is this movie bad. The characters relentlessly attack each other with the forced jollity of minimum-wage workers pressing you with free cheese samples at the supermarket.” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times

Konflikt

Konflikt, (Conflict), is a 6 minute short film that re-enacts just about every boy’s childhood wargame fantasies—including the delicate operation of dealing with the dissonance that arises as one friend’s expectations don’t match the other’s imagination.

English speakers, be sure to turn on subtitles. Hit play or watch Konflikt on YouTube.

81st Annual Oscar Nominations

The Oscar nominations were just announced. Best picture nods go to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader, and Slumdog Millionaire. More after the jump.

Read more »

NFB Online!

The National Film Board finally went online today. Canadian classics like The Log Driver’s Waltz, The Cat Came Back, and Neighbours are now in reach of the people they were created for, Canadians! (you other folks from around the world are welcome too).

They’ve included links to various social networking bookmark sites and enabled embedding. Here’s a 2008 movie by Murray Siple, Cart of Darkness, about “a group of homeless men in North Vancouver who’ve
married their love of shopping-cart racing with their business of bottle picking.” (NSFW for language).

They still have some kinks to work out, like the embed code linked to the wrong video and it isn’t standards compliant by default (nobody else does that yet either)—but in general it looks like they’re on the right track.

Bad Review Revue

Bedtime Stories: “Bedtime Stories is not my cup of tea. Even the saucer. Fairness requires me to report, however, that it may appeal to, as they say, ‘kids of all ages.’” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Unborn: “About the only thing here that will haunt your dreams is the film’s final scene, which conveniently portends a sequel, something along the lines of ‘The Born: Jumby’s Revenge’. Now there’s true terror, my friends.” – Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times

Bride Wars: “If anyone asks you if you want to see Bride Wars, remember the right answer: I don’t.” – Connie Ogle, Miami Herald

Not Easily Broken: “The movie sinks beneath a great mass of clichés until the audience has no choice but to wearily raise its hands in surrender.” – Jason Heck, Kansas City Star

Saw V: “It’s not a good sign when watching someone stick their hand into a table saw is easier than listening to them recite dialogue.” – Sam Adams, LOS ANGELES TIMES

Seven Pounds: “It’s like if The Empire Strikes Back opened with Darth Vader taking a paternity test. And once you know — or at least suspect — both what Smith’s cryptic plan is and what the film’s title refers to, there’s little else compelling about this sluggish, self-righteous downer.” – Kevin Williamson, JAM! Movies

How to Hook Up Your Home Theater

Goofy Poster—How to hook up your home theater

This hilarious Jack Kinney style Goofy short, “How to Hook up your Home Theater”, isn’t new — it was released in 2007, shown in theatres before National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets, but it is significant because it recaptures the spirit of Disney in the golden era of animation. It aims particularly at recapturing the Jack Kinney classics like Hockey Homicide or a Goofy Gymnastics with a modern twist.

It’s available in the iTunes Store. Search for “How to Hook Up Your Home Theater”. It think it sells for around $2.

(via)