no clue movie review: The Simpsons Movie

I must confess that I haven't been watching new episodes religiously like I used to, but I had to see this movie. The Simpsons tv show always delivers the laughs and makes fun of anyone and anything. I always enjoy myself when I watch an episode. And since the show is 18 years old, I have seen a lot of it over the years. I did have my reservations though to see if this would translate into a good movie or if it would feel like an overblown episode that I wished I'd stayed home and watched. I'm happy to report that this stands on its own as a fun movie.

I don't think the movie even needs for you to be a fan of the show. I think you will enjoy it more if you are. The plot is basically outrageous but involves Homer getting a pig and then getting the town encased in a dome from the government based on a pollution problem in Lake Springfield. I don't want to give it away, because there are a bunch of pretty funny scenes that lead up to it. The movie pokes fun at itself, at Hollywood, at the current state of government affairs, and many other things. I laughed quite a bit at this flick and it starts out right away. Homer and Bart deliver the biggest laughs understandably. But there are quite a few residents of Springfield in this flick that we've come to know over the years. Alas, not all make it into the flick. No Apu and some others are missing, but the show's been around a long time and they've built up a massive amount of characters, so it's hard to include them all. This movie has action, adventure, tons of laughs and the plot is definitely big enough to be made for the big screen. The 1 hour 27 minute running time don't seem to drag on at all. It moves along at a very quick pace.

What surprised me the most about this movie is just how touching and a touch of family drama it delivers. There are a few scenes that feature Marge discussing with Homer about their family life, their marriage and his constant screw-ups. I was shocked to see how nicely that fit in and made the film feel whole and not just another episode. Julie Kavner delivers some lines in such a heartfelt manner that you really believe that Marge is frustated and heartbroken all at the same time. It's more based in emotions and drama than in the normal slapstick comedy. I was thrilled to see these characters taken to a differnt place. Bart has a few scenes too where he questions Homer's ability as a father and that he doubts that Homer loves him. Homer even manages to show us that he truly loves his family and cares for them deeply even though he doesn't always show it.

Don't get me wrong, this is a funny movie. It's just that the little dramatic pauses give it an ounce of something else that make it translate into a bigger screen. They even manage to squeak in environmental issues in there for us all to chew on.

I highly recommend this movie and you will really enjoy it. If you are a fan of the series from any point in the last 18 years, you should go see it. You will not regret it. It makes you realize that these are timeless characters that were created and resonate with us for some reason. They are classics and this movie will definitely hold up to repeated viewing. Even if you're not a fan of the series, you would probably enjoy it. But I guess I have a hard understanding why you wouldn't be a fan at some point.

What are you waiting for?

for more info: visit the official website

come back soon, until then, i'll be at the movies....

no clue movie review: summer 2007 movies: mini-reviews

Since I haven't written in awhile, that doesn't mean I haven't seen any movies. I thought I would give some mini-reviews of a bunch of the movies I've seen since Spiderman 3. Here goes. Many of these are probably still in theaters.

Shrek the Third: This movie doesn't live up to the first 2. It has many slow parts and the funny jokes just don't hold up. To me overall, it seemed like it was trying to fit into an established mode with an established formula. I didn't like that. What worked so well about the first 2 movies is that they didn't seem formulaic. Very disappointed that this movie wasn't funnier.
more info: official site

Pirates of the Carribean 3: At World's End:I liked this movie better than #2, but it still didn't live up to the fun of the first picture. I liked the overall plot this time, not overly complicated compared to Dead Man's Chest, but still not as clear as Curse of the Black Pearl. It's like they decided they needed to do too much. I don't get that. Anyway, there are some way cool special effects and it brings the trilogy to a satisfying conclusion while leaving room for more adventures with Captain Jack Sparrow and company.
more info: at world's end site

Ratatouille:Is Pixar capable of making a bad movie? This wasn't my favorite Pixar flick, but it's really good. Funny, cute, heartwarming. It's a good movie that you can see with people of all ages. I went with my teenage nieces, my 5 year old niece, my Mom and brother-in-law. We all had a good time and enjoyed this story of a rat who just doesn't like to eat garbage and yearns to be a chef. It shows that everyone is different and showcases the importance of family and friendship. This shouldn't be missed.
more info: disney's official site

Transformers:Micheal Bay & an old 80's toy franchise? I didn't think that this would be a good movie. I thought it would be an overhyped piece of garbage. But I knew that I wanted to see it, because it looked like a summer blockbuster movie. I was pleasantly surprised. With a few nods to the old cartoons and movie, this movie delivers big time. It's got tons of humor, tons and tons of action and giant robots fighting with the coolest special effects. This was a highly entertaining movie and I can't believe I enjoyed it so much. I also think that this is a star making performance for Shia LaBeouf. I've always liked him since I saw him on Disney Channel's Even Stevens series, but he really is a good all around actor. I think he's destined to have a Tom Hanks kind of career which includes more serious roles and these huge blockbuster roles. Maybe more like Harrison Ford and Tom Hanks combined. We'll see.
More info: official site

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: I'm a Harry Potter fan and as usual the book is way better than the movie. This movie does deliver though and works at a good pace and manages to showcase the teenage angst that Harry feels at this stage in his life. It's a darker movie, so it's not good for little kids, but its tone matches what I expected after reading the book. The special effects are dazzling especially in the last 20 minutes. The performances are good and I think that the child actors that we've been watching grow up are getting pretty good. This wasn't my favorite Potter film, but it does manage to take a book that has enough material to make 3 entertaining movies, get to the heart of it and show us a conflicted, confused and angry teenager take control of his life. I plan to see this flick again to see the IMAX 3-D edition.
more info: warner brothers site & muggle net

And now I know that this movie came out in April, but I can still remember it like it was yesterday and I thought it deserved a blog entry since it may still be in some dollar theaters. It's one of my favorite movies of the year so far.

GRINDHOUSE: This Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez double feature was high octane non-stop in your face action. I loved this flick. The movies are bloody, high action, fast paced and just plain disgusting. They are highly entertaining and really get your attention. My favorite was Rodriguez's Planet Terror. It just rocked. The overall presentation though made this flick. Complete with fake trailers, missing frames and cheesy 70's music, I was transported to a gory broken down movie house with sticky floors and questionable patrons without having to go to a sucky old broken down disgusting movie theater. I know it wasn't extremely successful, but it is highly worth seeing and I hope you check it out.

That's all for now. More movie reviews on the horizon. I'll be back at the movies again soon.

no clue movie review: Spiderman 3

This summer's first must see in my opinion. Spiderman 3 directed again by Sam Raimi delivers on the blockbuster level and gives us a few characters to look at and work with. That's what I like best about the Spiderman movies. They always deliver some charcterizations and show us real people who just happen to have extraordinary abilities and how they deal with them. With that being said, this movie isn't without its faults.

The special effects are quite impressive. The Spiderman moves look cartoonish, but they have from the first movie. But it's a comic book movie. That doesn't really bother me. WIth this being the third movie, these Spiderman swinging effects get better and better but not realistic. It's part of the look of the movie at this point. But this character isn't doing realistic things, so what's the difference? I don't have any issues with that. The Sandman effects are quite impressive. The big fight at the end is out of this world, the fight with Peter Parker and Harry Osborn is quite exciting. The character of venom and the goo that is embodying this alien symbiot is way cool. All in all, the state of the art special effects are out of this world and worth the price of admission alone.

The charcters all have a backstory. In this movie, it almost looks like we're supposed to be rooting for the bad guys. They all have a hard luck angle, but it's almost a little too much sympathy. I'm glad to see it though instead of a bad guy just showing up and cackling. The Doc Ock villain from Spiderman 2 is still my most favorite though. It also seems that Raimi goes out of his way to show us the ugly side of fame and the ugly side of Peter Parker. Yes, some of it is the alien symbiot that he likes the feel of the extra power (power of the dark side pretty much), but its also the price of fame. Peter Parker starts buying into the fame of Spiderman and at times appears not just in it for the trueness of helping others in need. But remember, this is a college kid who had this power thrust upon him and he's bound to make mistakes which I really like. I wish they would've gone a little further exploring the dark side though. I'm sure that would've turned a few people off maybe if they went too far, but for me they didn't go far enough. I like that Mary Jane gets jealous of Peter and Spiderman as her career is sliding as an actress. Fame is fleeting I guess, right? It's also addictive. I guess that's the point of it all. You can let it consume you like Eddie Brock did and become Venom or you can confront it and overpower it like Spiderman does. One of the other things that you notice about the movie is its play to comedy. Noticeable in all the movies, this time it seems a little forced or inappropriate at times. I guess there is a formula for this success now too. I as a moviegoer also have relatively high expectations going into this movie which plays into this review as a whole.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie and it lived up to expectations mostly. I would highly recommend seeing the movie at least once. A good popcorn flick and that's about it. But its worth seeing it at a good movie theatre with a good size screen and good sound. We're off to a good summer so far. If they all are only this good, then I'll be a very happy moviegoer.

For more info: official site

come back soon for more reviews, until then, I'll be at the movies....

no clue movie review - 300

I went to see the movie, 300, directed by Zack Snyder, today. I have to say that I enjoyed the movie immensely. It is ultra violent, highly stylized and a great action flick. It's not for history buffs. At least, I doubt that this is a true representation of acient Greece.

The movie is an all out action flick about King Leonides and the city of Sparta being overrun by the army of persians led by the God King Xerxes. The source material for this movie though is not a history book, but the graphic novel "300" by Frank Miller. I felt like the movie was an all out rush of adrenaline for me. So many intense action scenes featuring beheadings, mass death and sword fighting. I just felt a rush from scene to scene. It did seem to drag a bit toward the end and maybe could've been cut a bit more in the editng room, but I have a feeling they were leaving room for some soundtrack montages. But, all in all, I really enjoyed the film.

Again, no marvelous acting. This movie is about style. And it has a lot of it. It's got a very unique look to it. I've read it was shot with a lot of green screen elements and the backgrounds were added later. But it's more than that. Shot on film gives it a grain which usually doesn't happen with the modern green screen films of today. Many of those are shooting digitally, which gives them an intensely polished look. This movie isn't like this at all. He's playing with colors in the film to make the red capes of the Spartan men just pop off the screen. The other colors are very subdued. It makes for a very breathtaking look. He's also got the bodies of the men in the movie as part of the style. Miller's graphic novel had these intensely buff men of Sparta fighting the Persians and Snyder's film has that too. Which must of required tons of intense physical workouts all the time by the entire cast. But it does lend to the style of the film. It gives it this graphic novel come to life look.

The movie also has fantstic sound. I mean really big sound. It's amazing. See this movie in a good theater to take advantage of all the amazing rumblings, fighting noises, screams of the armies, thundering armies, etc.

Overall, I'd say I enjoyed the movie and would recommend it if you like highly stylized, violent films. It's not for everyone. But I liked it a lot. It was a good movie to release tension and just have a good time. I've seen a lot of films that require concentration lately with subtle story points, etc. This movie was the complete opposite. It has a very clear simple story and purpose. I just sat back and watched all the fighting, cool look and cool filmmaking on display.

You can find out more at the official website.

Come back again, and I promise to have more movie reviews coming. Until then, i'll be at the movies....

no clue movie review - fred's 2007 oscar picks

Well, I'm still watching some of the nominees (Babel, etc), but that won't stop me from trying to pick the winners. Again, this is a list of who I think WILL WIN. It's one of the tightest races in years that I can remember, so watch the awards tomorrow night. I will be watching.

Here's my picks:

Best Picture: LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
Best Director: MARTIN SCORSESE (The Departed)
Best Actor: FOREST WHITAKER (The Last King of Scotland)
Best Actress: HELEN MIRREN (The Queen)
Best Supporting Actor: EDDIE MURPHY (Dreamgirls)
Best Supporting Actress: JENNIFER HUDSON (Dreamgirls)
Best Animated Feature: CARS
Best Art Direction: DREAMGIRLS
Best Cinematography: PAN'S LABYRINTH
Best Costume Design: THE QUEEN
Best Documentary Feature: AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
Best Documentary Short: REHEARSING A DREAM
Best Film Editing: UNITED 93
Best Foreign Film: PAN'S LABYRINTH
Best Makeup: PAN'S LABYRINTH
Best Original Score: BABEL
Best Original Song: LISTEN (Dreamgirls)
Best Short Film - Animated: THE LITTLE MATCHGIRL
Best Short Film - Live Action: THE SAVIOUR
Best Sound Editing: LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
Best Sound Mixing: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST
Best Visual Effects: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST
Best Adapted Screenplay: LITTLE CHILDREN
Best Original Screenplay: BABEL

There's my ballot. Print your own at oscar.com

I'm off to watch more movies.