Chaos Theory - Frank Allen has lived his whole, well-ordered life by numbered lists. In fact, he makes his living that way, as an efficiency guru. But when he misses the ferry one morning, en route to a speaking engagement in the city, it unleashes a series of events and revelations that cause Frank to question the order in his life. Instead, he embraces chance and chaos. A promising set up, with a few good laughs along the way, seems to get abandoned for standard romantic dramedy about half way through.

Watching Season 1 of The Invaders. I have not seen this show since its initial run so besides vagues memories of the series trademarks and the theme song its been a rediscovery process. The show holds up very well and it is a kick seeing guest stars from the original Star Trek showing up here. Its like they walked from one set to the next.

City of Men - The follow-up to Fernando Meirelles' stunning 2003 film, City of God, about drug gangs in the Rio favelas, City of Men tells the ongoing story of Ace and Wallace, who've managed to stay alive amidst the violence raging around them, but then find themselves sucked into the middle of a gang war. Not as powerful as City of God, but still a compelling, raw and visceral film.

eljay "Over the weekend, I finally got around to watching "Monster". Wow. Charlize Theron's performance was incredible and the story, while intense and, at times, thoroughly depressing, was very compelling."

When I watched Monster some time ago, PBS was running a documentary on serial killer Aileen Wuornos at the same time as the movie. When I switched channels, it was showing the courtroom scene where Warnos loses it and starts ranting. Then when I switched back to the movie, they were showing exactly the same thing! That was a really weird coincidence. The resemblance and mannerisms to the killer were really quite extraordinary. Charlize is an excellent actress.

Bella - Nina and José are two damaged souls whose lives are changed when they spend a day together after Nina is fired from her waitress job at the Mexican restaurant where José is the chef. A beautifully produced, soulful and heartfelt little treasure of a film, well written, well acted that will put a smile on your lips and perhaps a few tears in your eyes.

Atonement.


Very slow, very slow. My wife fell asleep. I tried to convince myself to hang in there (It did get nominated for many acadamy awards) but I just thought it was horrible. The ending was anti climatical.

Big Boo from me.

Revolver - After spending seven years in solitary confinement, during which time he came to learn how to conduct the ultimate con, Jake Green sets out to get revenge on the man who put him in prison. It isn't long, however, before Jake finds himself falling victim to the master con artist of his own life: his ego.

I expected great things from a film written and directed by Guy Ritchie...which made the disappointment of this clumsy and almost desperately artsy mish-mash of a movie even more jaw-droppingly shocking. Watching Ray Liotta strut about in bikini underwear did not improve the situation one bit. What a piece of cr@p!

Paranoid Park - A security guard at a Portland rail yard is found murdered and police suspect the skaters from a nearby skateboard park have something to do with it. Director Gus Van Sant reveals the story behind the mystery slowly, dreamily, with minimal dialogue and plenty of visual style.

Delirious - Steve Buscemi is a low-rent papparazzo prowling the sidewalks and red carpets of NYC in a quest for a "shot heard 'round the world," when he hooks up with homeless Michael Pitt, who offers to toil as his assistant in exchange for a place to stay. But when Pitt's boyish good looks catch the eye of a rising pop music starlet, his fortunes take a dramatic turn, much to the dismay of his erstwhile employer. Director Tom Dicillo (Box of Moonlight, The Real Blonde) has his mojo back with this hilarious, and unlikely, rags to riches fable that manages to send up everything from the Hollywood star system, trashy celeb magazines, publicists, reality tv and Elvis Costello. Great soundtrack! Be sure to check out the Kharma music video in the extra features!

I thought this re-make was a pretty good Western although the ending was a little unbelievable which I can't discuss as it would be considered a "spoiler".

Stop-Loss - A soldier returns home to Texas from the war in Iraq to a hero's welcome and an order that he has to go back for another tour. But he's seen too much, lost too many friends, so he chooses to run instead. An intimate portrayal of the often unseen price soldiers pay.

The Band's Visit - When an Egyptian police band en route to a concert at a new Arab cultural centre gets stranded in a remote Israeli town, they rely on the good will of the locals to tide them over until they can get to their proper destination. A low-key, gentle comedy that keeps its story on a human level rather than poking the traditional tensions between Arabs and Israelis.

A Scanner Darkly

I have been saddened by Philip K. Dick adaptations. Bladrunner was a gong show, IMO. Total Recall missed the point, but was at least GOOD. minority Report took the character names, a slight bit of the idea and went a totally different way. And the fact that his work somewhat influenced at least the first Matrix movie... well, that was good ;)

A Scanner Darkly, on the other hand, was in the helm of someone who, although he DID NOT get it, still felt it. Linklater believed in the source, and believed in its quality. He created something true to the story. A lot of the dialogue was taken straight from the book.

He missed the point in a fair few places, mostly by how he didn't tie things together, and I think the animation added to the "druggy" feel of everything, but also somewhat detracted from the purity of the paranoia in the story.

In the end, it's far from a movie for everyone. It's not a mind **** like some people think, at least not for me - There's such a heart in what he writes and the perspective he puts into things. It all made sense in some sort of odd/weird/crazy way. But again, NOT for everyone.

Sleuth (2007) - At an isolated country estate, a man and his wife's lover engage in a deadly battle of wits.

This minimalist, dialogue-driven film - set in a single location - isn't great but it is curiously compelling.

Penelope - An heiress is cursed to never find a husband, because of her pig's nose. Until James McEvoy is hired by a less-than-ethical reporter to woo the heiress and get photos of her horrible disfigurement; instead, he falls in love with her. A harmless, family-friendly fairy tale with a warm heart and a few charms.

Emotional Arithmetic (2007) - a Canadian production, filmed in the Eastern townships of Quebec, starring Susan Surandon, Christopher Plummer, Gabriel Byrne, Roy Dupuis, and Max von Sydow. Directed by Paolo Barzman.
"a story of redemption, healing, and reconciliation, ignited by a reunion of three war survivors"
Amazing cast and story, well-written and directed, and so beautifully filmed.
One of the best movies we've had the pleasure of watching in some time!!

The Bank Job - Martine needs the help of government agent Tim, her lover, to get drug-smuggling charges against her dropped. Tim has been handed the task of making discreetly disappear some very sensitive and compromising information being held in a safety deposit box in a Baker Street bank vault. He agrees to help Martine if she can find someone to rob the bank and steal the information in exchange for keeping whatever else they take. Martine convinces her financially-strapped friend Terry - who convinces his equally broke friends - to hit the bank. No problem...except that some rather unsavoury characters victimized by the theft are anxious to regain possession of their dirty little secrets, even if it means killing Terry and every one of his friends.

Very loosely based on the true story of the 1971 "walkie-talkie bank job", this is a decent if somewhat pedestrian heist flick...but it's a damned sight better than Revolver, the last Jason Statham film we watched!

Very loosely based on the true story of the 1971 "walkie-talkie bank job", this is a decent if somewhat pedestrian heist flick...but it's a damned sight better than Revolver, the last Jason Statham film we watched!
We enjoyed this movie - but agree that it was a bit "pedestrian". It was good, but could have been a lot better. Not sure if it was the script, or the timing, or the chemestry between the actors or what.

Perhaps Stratham will be redeemed with his role in the upcoming Death Race.

I thought it lacked a bit of cohesion, as well as the crisp pacing and "snap" that make movies such as "Lock, Stock..." and "Snatch" so enjoyable.

21 - Under the guidance of one of their professors, a gifted group of card-counting MIT students take on Vegas...but will Vegas let them get away with it?

Very formulaic and mildly entertaining.