Friday, December 30, 2005

King Kong

I really should stop reading film reviews. Everyone raved about the new King Kong movie. Giving the movie 5 stars. Yes, the movie does have amazing special effects, and yes, the art direction and scenery is amazing, but I felt the movie fell flat with the explanation of things. I know that in the movies we are supposed to suspend reality and to go into the fantasy of the movie, however, there were no attempts into explaning how skull island came to be. Where did King Kong come from? And what about the dinosaurs? I can suspend reality if there is some kind of explanation. And I really hate movies that end with the couple kissing. Can't we come up with a better ending?

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

3 hours??

I have this knack for selecting the worst movies on Netflix. You would think I would read people's reviews, but no, no, no. I insist on picking the duds. I watched 2 hours and 40 minutes of Magnolia the other day, and I just about had it, with that movie. I couldn't even bear to watch the remaining 20 minutes of it, in real time. So I watched it in fast forward mode. How bad am I, but seriously, did this movie have to be 3 hours and 8 minutes long? What the hell? The plot was so incredibly boring and the editing was equally irritating. I didn't think I could have picked a movie as bad as Girl Interrupted. I proved myself wrong.

Saturday, December 10, 2005

Why Wynona, Why?

I don't know why, but I subconsciously picked two Wynona Ryder films back to back on my Netflix queue. What the hell was I thinking? I saw ""Girl, Interrupted" yesterday. And all, I kept thinking was that I wish I could interrupt Wynona's acting and tell her that she over acts. Her voice, I find, is irritating. And she is always, in every movie, I've seen her in, this goody too shoes who thinks she wants to rebel, by sleeping with the wrong guy. Case in point, "Mermaids". I loved that movie, when Cher tells her character off, for leaving her little sister to sleep with that guy. And then, the little sis, almost drowns. It's great, how Cher rips it to her. Hey, whatever happened to Wynona? Where is she? Or has her career gone down the toilet after that shoplifting incident?

Wynona is one of those actors, like Keanu Reeves. Whatever movie they are in, they do the same kind of acting. I still think that whenever I watch the Matrix, I always wonder, what's Ted Logan doing in this movie?

Thursday, December 08, 2005

Recent Netflix rentals

I never saw the movie, "Reality Bites" so I thought I rent it to see what the hype back then was all about. Reality doesn't bite, this movie did. I could not believe I wasted 2 hours to watch Wynona Ryder whine about how devastating her boring life was. Not only that, Ethan Hawke was so cliche in it. In fact, the whole love / hate relationship he had been his character and Wynona's character was so cliched. Everyone knows, that at the end of the movie, they will be together. So boring. And I usually like Ethan, except for the movie Before Sunrise, and even worse, Before Sunset. Why do you have to make a sequel to an already uninteresting movie? Every time I am half way through a bad movie, I always watch it to the end, even though I already wasted an hour. I always feel that the movie has another hour to redeem itself. Only once, I didn't watch a movie in it's entirety, and it was this funny documentary about mullets. After awhile, it was like, seen one mullet, seen them all.

Netflix rocks.

I've been a Netflix member for some time now. It's such a great way to see films I missed when it was out in theaters. It's amazing how expensive it is to go to the movies these days. A ticket in New York City costs on average $10.75. Add in your date, concessions, and dinner, and that makes for an expensive night. It makes movie goers like myself wait for that special film to come out in order for me to justify spending that kind of money. I'm looking forward to "Memoirs of a Geisha" to come out on theaters. It has received rave reviews. I try not to read reviews before I see a film, to not bias myself, however, but it's hard not to hear some of it, with all the commercials and previews I've seen for this film. Other films out this season, that I'm looking forward to seeing is "XMen III". I was a big fan of the previous two movies, however, I think the first one was better than the second. I do also want to see "Pride and Prejudice", however, my boyfriend stated that it's a chick flick, so I'm going to see if my girlfriends will go with me. I really do adore period pieces. Among my favorites are "Elizabeth" and "Emma". The costumes, the sceneries, the attention to detail, makes for really beautiful art direction. It really allows you to peek into a world of the past.

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

I love films, not movies.

So my love of films, and my love for discussing films, has pushed me towards creating a blog so that I can talk to my heart's content about this subject matter. It wasn't until grad school that I really fell in love with good filmmaking and really appreciated the art of good story telling. I was sitting in a film theory class in grad school, and was introduced to the likes of Kieslowski, Manchevski, LePage. These foreign filmmakers were new to me. I knew the work of Tykwer and Almodovar, and was excited to be introduced to a wide range of films outside of the United States. However, some of my favorite films of all time are from my childhood, and therefore have a nostaglic place in my heart. Among these are, The Princess Bride, Goonies, Sixteen Candles, Breakfast Club, Jumping Jack Flash, yes people, I was a product of the 80s. I could watch these films over and over, and still be entertained. But, all of these films, at its core, had a great and unique story line. The love story set in the middle ages, pirate ships and the treasure hunt, teenage angst, highschool cliques, and spy mysteries. Somehow, even though I have seen these films numerous time, I always find myself laughing at the same jokes. Today, I become quickly annoyed and bored at Hollywood overproduced movies. It seems, there is always, a lack of plot, character, story, and above all too much special effects. But then again, I always like to be proven wrong.