Coming Soon to a Theater Near You...

Here are the new releases you can look for your movie night!  The line up this week looks great.  I want to see all three films that are opening this Friday, how about you?

Brave (PG)

Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Meirda defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Meirda must rely on her bravery and archery skills to undo a beastly curse.  -IMDb

I am ridiculously excited for this movie!  How could you not love a kick-butt princess like Meirda?  She rides, she fights, she shoots a bow, and apparently she climbs mountains with her bare hands.  With Pixar and Disney teaming up for this endeavor, I don't see this being a box office flop.  The animation is as sophisticated as we have come to expect from Pixar film with the magic and whimsy of a good Disney film.

There has been a noticeable lack of kids films this summer, so Brave already stands out.  The action will appeal to boys, while a female heroine will appeal to the girls.  100 minutes of peace will no no doubt appeal to parents.  Victoria and I are going to see this tomorrow afternoon, so expect a review soon!

Abraham Lincoln:  Vampire Hunter (R)

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, discovers vampires are planning to take over the United States. He makes it his mission to eliminate them.  -IMDb

A... unique look at the 16th president of the United States brought to you by Tim Burton.  This is an adaptation of a popular novel that I saw in the bookstore a few months ago and put down laughing.  The trailers make me wish I had given it a second look.  Producers and directors are calling it a classic super hero origins story.  This has the potential to be weird and wonderful, so it may be worth a shot.

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (R)

As an asteroid nears Earth, a man finds himself alone after his wife leaves in a panic. He decides to take a road trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart. Accompanying him is a neighbor who inadvertently puts a wrench in his plan. -IMDb

"The final mission to save mankind has failed."  This sounds like an better suited to a doomsday tragedy film, but this is a comedy.  A humorous take on the very serious question, What would you do if you knew the world was going to end?  Starring the unlikely duo, Steve Carell and Keira Knightly,  Seeking a Friend for the End of the World seeks to answer this question.

Here is the list of what will be on limited release this weekend.

To Rome With Love (R)

A story about a number of people in Italy, some American, some Italian, some residents, some visitors, and the romances and adventures and predicaments they get into. -IMDb

It is worth mentioning that this is a Woody Allen film.

The Invisible War (NR)

An investigative documentary about the epidemic of rape of soldiers within the US military.  -IMDb

Grassroots (R)

After losing his job, a journalist reluctantly agrees to help his oddball friend with his bid to earn a seat on the Seattle City Council. -IMDb

What will you choose to see this weekend?  Happy watching!

Katelyn

Snow White and the Huntsman

My first thought leaving Snow White and the Huntsman was, "It could have been better, but it could have been much worse."  I liked the darker take on the classic Snow White fairy tale, and who doesn't love a princess that can fight for herself?  However, I think that this film did not realize its own potential.  There were moments of excellent symbolism that hinted at a deeper meaning, especially the scene with the White Stag.  I felt that the plot was under-developed and, at times, relied too heavily on the audience to not ask the question, "Why?"  You need a horse?  Oh look, there is one right by that rock!  Man, I really wish I could get out of here.  BAM!  There is the key to your escape that you have overlooked for the past ten years.  So what if I just broke out of imprisonment and the Huntsman just showed me how to use a knife like, yesterday?  I totally have the training to go into battle.


Visually, this film was very nice.  It was visually and thematically dark, with the exception of a few minutes in the middle, but it did not fall into the trap of being flat, as some 'dark' films do.  The whole palate drew on Snow White's physical description, "Skin as white as snow, hair as dark as a raven's wing, lips as red as a rose."  The contrast made the shots interesting and dynamic.  The battle scenes were sweeping and epic.  I cannot think of a single scene where I could not find something to look at.  The production values were easily the best part of the film.

There was one particular casting decision that left me wondering who even thought it would be a good idea.  I have made my opinions on Kristin Stewart's acting known before, but in case you missed it, I am not a fan. That being said, she was better in this one and only fell back on her default pained expression in a few moments where it was not appropriate.  What really confused me, was why she was even considered.  This film was full of British, Irish, South African, and Australian actors, with one random American--Kristin Stewart.  Her accent was decent, and had the happy side-effect of more deliberate line delivery, but could they really not find a single young British actress to play Snow White?  I will give her this, her performance was more emotive and did not often distract from the rest of the film.  She even smiled.

I really liked the twist on the Queen's character.  If she was not so evil, I would feel sorry.  I wish that filmmakers would have explored her background more.  It appeared they did not have time to delve into the Queen and establish the superfluous, half-baked love triangle.  In the original fairy tale and the animated Disney film, the Queen is very flat.  Charlize Theron does a wonderful job reinventing the character.

All things considered, I do not think this film was a waste of my money and time.  I enjoyed it as a unique take on an old classic.  I do not think it will be listed as one of the great films of the summer, but it was a good time.  I rate this film a D+.

Katelyn

New this Weekend!

Yes, this comes a bit late this weekend, I know, but better late than never!  Here are the movies that are new at a theater near you!

Rock of Ages (PG-13)

A small town girl and a city boy meet on the sunset strip while pursuing their Hollywood Dreams. -IMDb

A small town girl and a city boy?  I don't know about you, but I am feeling some Journey coming on.  Not just Journey--this Broadway musical turned film also features music from fellow 80's rockers, Def Leppard, Foreigner, Poison, and Twisted Sister.  From what I have seen in the trailers, Rock of Ages promises to be big, flashy, and sexy.  The movie spot failed to do it justice, but the theater trailer intrigued me.  Hopefully, this film will love up to the hype.

That's My Boy (R)

While in his teens, Donny fathered a son,  Todd,  and raised him as a single parent up until Todd's 18th birthday.  Now, after not seeing each other for years, Todd's world comes crashing down when Donny resurfaces just before Todd's wedding.  -IMDb

This film seems like a mash-up of the standard wedding and dead-beat dad comedy plot lines with extra raunchiness thrown in for good measure.  Call me a prude, but I don't think sex and swearing make up for an unoriginal plot or make a film funny.  Based on its 24% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the critics seem to agree with me.

Here are the films coming out this week on limited release...

Marina Abramovic:  The Artist is Present (NR)

A biography that documents Serbian performance artist Marina Abramovic's preparations for a retrospective of her work at New York's Museum of Modern Art.

Something from Nothing:  The Art of Rap (R)

Ice-T directs this film documentary and interviews Rap talent including its founders, newcomers, and superstars.  This film explore's Rap's origins and what makes it relevant, 'living' art through interviews and performances by the entire cast.

The Weekend Line Up- June 1

Wondering what to watch this weekend?  Here are the new releases coming to a theater near you!

Snow White and the Huntsman
In a twist to the fairy tale, the Huntsman ordered to take Snow White into the woods to be killed winds up becoming her protector and mentor in a quest to vanquish the Evil Queen. -IMDb

 Snow White and the Huntsman, seems to be the headliner for this weekend's new releases.  Yes this is the second Snow White adaptation released this year, but it clearly takes a different direction than Mirror, Mirror.  As a sucker for a good fairy tale adaptation, this film intrigues me.  Though I do not plan to use this blog to intentionally bash a particular franchise or actor/actress, I do have opinions.  I, personally, do not particularly like Kristen Stewart's acting.  Hopefully she will make a good performance for a film that seems like an action-packed take on a tale that I have always found particularly gruesome.  It will be interesting to see Snow White as a strong. independent character who saves herself.  Expect to see me do a review on this one!  Rated PG-13.

On a side note, if you happen to be into Snow White, I recently read a book (not what this blog is dedicated to, I know!) called Fairest of All.  It is authorized by Disney and tells the Evil Queen's story.  It describes her descent into madness and how it affected her love for Snow.  I recommend it!

Piranha 3DD

After the events at Lake Victoria, the pre-historic school of blood-thirsty piranhas make their way into a newly opened waterpark. -IMBd

Seems like the standard Hollywood smut-humor-horror flick, now in 3D! or excuse me, 3DD.  Okay, if you are into that sort of thing.  I predict the majority of its sales will be in the teenage/early twenties male demographic.  Rated R.

Battlefield America

A young businessman who lands a community service sentence falls in with a group of misfit kids who need mentoring. With the help of a pro instructor, he works to get the kids ready for a big underground dance competition. -IMBd

As this seems to be an inspirational story and it is a musical, it is probably not releasing quite as widely as the two previous movies discussed.  Only one theater out of six or so around me are playing it, so be sure to check your theater ahead of time if you want to see this one.  Rated PG-13.

On limited release this weekend:

For Greater Glory

A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929); a war by the people of Mexico against the atheistic Mexican government. -IMBd

From the few TV spots of this I have seen on the History Channel, it looks interesting and it features a pretty strong cast.  I have not learned about this war before, so I would like to see it.  Unfortunately, I will probably not get to see it until it comes to DVD.  If it is in a theater near you, it may be worth a look.  Rated R.

If you see any of these movies, please comment and tell us what you think of them!  Happy watching!

Katelyn

P.S. Also coming this weekend:  Victoria's wedding!  Congratulations to the bride-to-be and her groom!

The Future

Well, ladies and gentlemen, Victoria and I have reached the end of our semester.  For this summer, Victoria and I have a couple of new goals and ideas for the blog and now we will finally have time to implement them.  First, we will change the way we post.  We will make our reviews shorter and more concise.  We will also try to watch and review movies in a timely manner, which was just not possible with school work burying us.  We will also be branching out into opinion and news pieces, like Victoria's pieces on Chick Flicks and The Hobbit.  About once a week, we will try to post a list of films coming out that weekend, along with any plans we have for reviewing within the next week.

So, that is the immediate future... let's talk about next semester.  Sadly Victoria and I will not be able to watch movies together in the fall.  More happily, the reason is because I will be studying in the UK!  Hopefully I will have time to watch and review movies there, but I make no guarantees.  Victoria will also be going through some happy changes, as she is getting married next week!  So you see, things will be different for us in the coming months, but we have no intentions to stop blogging so we hope that our readers do not stop reading.

If anyone has any suggestions for us or things that you would like to see happen with this blog, feel free to leave us a comment.  We truly value your opinion as we work to make this blog more informative and entertaining.

Katelyn

Dark Shadows

I went and saw Dark Shadows yesterday morning.  This film is based on an old 60's soap opera of the same name, and the style of the film greatly reflects this.  Before I review this film, I'd like to take a moment to issue a disclaimer:

I AM NOT A TIM BURTON FAN.

Movie Poster for Dark Shadows

However, I liked the film!  It managed to be an excellent mix between drama and comedy, and some of the humor was rather dark while other bits were quite light.  It meshed together well to create an interesting film.  The storyline was simple enough to follow but complicated enough to be interesting, and the film definitely sets itself up for a sequel in a couple years (big surprise there).  My one complaint is that I wish there were fewer sexual references/scenes, though other people may not be as bothered by those things as I am.

Even thought I usually can't stand Tim Burton, I feel like he didn't try to take this film to the next level of weirdness and creepiness, which worked out well for me, at least.  It kept to his style without being over the top, and for the type of film this was intended to be, his style worked perfectly.  The characters were decently believable (though, of course, greatly exaggerated), and there were several excellent actors.

Also, FINALLY there is a good, nice, intelligent character named Victoria!  Seriously, all the Victoria's are either evil, annoying, or dim-witted, so it's nice to see my name put to dignified use!

All in all, I'd recommend this film to anyone who likes Johnny Depp or Tim Burton, or anyone who likes dramatic yet funny vampire/horror-type films.  I rate this film a C+.

Cheers,
Victoria

PS: Katelyn and I hope to be making a post about our summer and fall semester plans in the near future.

How to Create a Decent Chick Flick

I have found that chick flicks often get a bad rap for being pointless, silly, and as far from life-like as you can get with live action and no special effects.  However, I think that there are levels of quality for chick flicks, and I have come across several of them that are actually pretty good films, even according to non-chick flick standards.  So I'd like to take some time to go over several things that can turn a silly chick flick into a good general film.

1.) Believable characters
Love at first sight hardly ever happens in the real world, and relationships have to be founded on much more than a single glance.  The characters in a good chick flick are believable; they are not flawless or wonderful people.  In fact, often the chick flick characters with the biggest personality glitches are the best ones.  Take, for example, the film Two Weeks Notice  starring Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant.  Sandra Bullock plays an organized, highly goal-oriented workaholic and Hugh Grant plays a spoiled millionaire who doesn't take anything seriously and can barely take care of himself.  These two personalities are meant to clash horribly, creating part of the plot of the film, but they also seem to complete each other in some way.  It works out into a lovely and memorable film.  The two personalities are also believable because both characters have normal faults (Bullock's being that she is often too serious about things and Grant's being that he is horribly irresponsible and selfish) and they come together in a way that would be completely normal for regular people (she works for him).  The believability is what makes this film work.

2.) Have a plot that doesn't center completely on romance.
I know that the point of most chick flicks is that the man and woman fall in love.  It's what happens in 99% of them, so it's not anything new.  In order to have a quality chick flick that isn't just the cheesiest thing you've ever seen, it has to have SOMETHING ELSE in it besides romance.  The plot of the film needs to be driven by something other than two characters longing for each other and all the things that stand in their way.  It's boring, it's old, and it's been overdone so many times that it's not even funny.  (I think the only film I'll allow to get away with this one is Sleepless in Seattle, but that one's a classic, the chick flick of all chick flicks.)  Films like The Notebook, while they are sweet and make you cry, are pretty darn boring.  You know they're going to be together in the end.  That's what those films do.  It wouldn't be a proper chick flick if that didn't happen, and everyone who watches it knows that's what's going to happen (if you say you really thought she was gonna go for the other guy, then you are just gullible or kidding yourself).  Chick flicks with plots that have something going for them other than romance tend to be much more entertaining to watch and also much more believable.  Usually there is something else going on that acts as a catalyst for the romance between the two characters, something that forces them together in a way they would not normally be together.  Being stranded on an island, having to pretend to date to avoid being deported, dating someone on a bet or for some sort of payment, or even an unlikely work pairing all form better story lines than just a simple romance.  10 Things I Hate About You (based on Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew) is an excellent example of this.  Sure, Kat and Patrick fall for each other in the end...that's expected.  But that wouldn't have happened if A) The characters did not both have pretty glaring personality flaws, B) Kat's father wasn't super overprotective and C) Patrick was not paid to take her out.  There's a whole other list of story lines in this film besides two people falling in love: the development of the sisters' relationship, the loss of the mother and dealing with the over-protectiveness of the father, Cameron's silent admiration of Bianca as well as her development into a character that the audience doesn't want to just slap, and especially the character development of both Kat and Patrick separately.  All the things that happen in the film help move it toward the denouement of Kat and Patrick falling in love, but they could not have fallen in love without the rest of the plot.

3.) Go easy on the cheese.
I know that in a chick flick, it's difficult not to include lines like "The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds"  (The Notebook), but really, lines like that don't help the movie.  It might make the girls sigh, but in the end it just makes everyone want to groan and roll their eyes.  Lines like that might sound good at first, but if you heard them in real life, you'd probably wanna puke.  Try for witty instead of gushingly romantic, those often create the best chick flicks (see Pride and Prejudice for proof).


4.) Cliches are only okay if used in a creative manner.
I'm not gonna go on a tirade about staying away from cliches.  Sometimes you really do need them (after all, aren't chick flicks kinda cliche in themselves??).  But try not to use cliches in a cliche way, if you catch my drift.  If your characters need to have a romantic, climactic kiss, please don't spin the camera around them while they stand on a hill in the bright, golden sunlight.  That's cheesy.  Perhaps they could have their climactic kiss in a hallway or standing outside a car (kisses in cars are also a horribly cliche way of doing things).  The climactic kiss in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days happens in a bathroom in Ben's parent's house - very not cliche.  Also, balcony scenes should be avoided unless there's a new and creative way to use it (I can't think of one off the top of my head).  Also avoid romance scenes in the rain.  Ugh, those are pretty bad.


5.) Make sure the film makes you happy...happy endings are a must.
I think at least 90% of all regular films have happy endings in some way or another.  Chick flicks basically require a happy ending...the point of watching a chick flick most of the time is to feel good, right??  So you can't have your characters hate each other at the end.  Some chick flicks get away with a sweet but sad ending (like P.S. I Love You), but most of them need a happy ending to hold it all together.  You can have a happy ending without being horribly cheesy.  After all, everyone expects that the characters will fall in love at the end, so it's not like that fact alone will start up the groan machine.  This is the point where even the best chick flicks sometimes fail.  The happy ending/fall in love/happily ever after moment doesn't have to be the biggest cliche of the film.  With a bit of creativity, it can be something unique.  I think 10 Things I Hate About You is a good example (though I won't spoil the ending for you...if you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about...her list and the guitar, or rather the idea of those things, is a pretty good ending).  


Overall, I must say that it is quite possible to have a really good chick flick.  So the next time someone wants  to watch one, don't groan and resign yourself to a horrible experience.  Instead, find some of the good ones and suggest one of those.  You might just share a valuable cinematic experience.  Who knows??