Real Movie Review-Movie Reviews, Movie Quotes, Movie Trivia

Director: Karyn Kusama

Starring: Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, Johnny Simmons, Adam Brody

I saw Jennifer’s Body in its third and final screening at the Toronto film festival and found it to be a pleasant surprise. This is a
comedy/horror in the vein of an American Werewolf in London, and this genre has more than its share of video store dust collectors. Two names give this one a shot of avoiding this fate.

One is Diablo Cody’s sparkling writing which though sometimes over the top, is interesting, amusing and at least makes us old geezers over 25, feel like we are in on the hippest new teen slang. Whether we are or not, how would I know? I haven’t spoken to a teen since the last time I got a 2am Big Mac at a drive through.

The other advantage Jennifer’s Body has is, well, Jennifer’s body. Hiring Transformers star, Megan Fox, has gotten this film a lot of attention and even more so when word got out on what a sexy role the sultry beauty would be playing. She looks good (pronounced in this case as goooooooood) and puts in a pretty solid performance besides. This girl may still have a future when she stops spouting off yawning filler dialog next to stupid alien warbots that somehow felt that they should earn some extra endorsement coin to cover travel costs by turning into the latest model year of cars sold on a planet 800 zillion years from where they’re from. Sorry. Guess I sprinted off onto a raving tangent for a second there.

Jennifer’s Body is the story of a couple of teenage friends. The applicably named everygirl is Needy (played by Amanda Seyfried), who finds herself torn between her sweet boyfriend, Chip (Johnny Simmons) and her hot, school ruling best friend, Jennifer Check sizzled up by the aforementioned Ms. Fox. The two friends head off to a local bar where Jennifer is hot to hook up with a visiting band. They both have a night of their lives, but not in a good way. All young women at this age are undergoing a lot of changes, but not usually as extreme as Jennifer who might also be some kind of bloodthirsty, short-skirted monster. Its up to Needy to figure out what’s going on.

With equal parts comedy, horror, gore and a little suspense mixed in, this film tries to do a lot, but never tries to take itself seriously, which in the end saves it from sinking into the crap pile. Some decent performers firing out Cody’s Juno-style dialog make this one worth catching.

Director: Louis LeTerrier

Starring: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, William Hurt, Tim Roth, Tim Blake Nelson,

Marvel is back up on the silver screen, and the formula of Spider-man/Ironman, etc., is in clear view. That’s not a bad thing, but it doesn’t work as well for novice director, Louis LeTerrier. True, he has the uber-talented Ed Norton to work with, but he is also saddled with what is without a doubt, one of comicdom’s most boring superheroes. The Hulk has limited power of speech, ruling out the snappy patter in the midst of battle, and his ability, which is simply being big, really strong and indestructible leaves his battles looking like a locker room scrap at the Mr. Universe competition. That being said, this is still a decent chase film and LeTerrier shows great pacing instincts for getting the action in, just as things start to lag, and slowing it down when it starts to get repetitive. That judgment was sadly lacking in the 2003 Ang Lee Hulk disaster. The CGI here is a little underwhelming, and the characters and script needed more zip, but this is still a solid action effort.

Ed Norton is Bruce Banner, who is on the run in South America, where he is trying to stay hidden from his single-minded nemesis, Col Ross, control his temper (I like the days without incident angle), and find a cure for his condition. This plan blows to pieces with one little accident and soon Banner finds himself back on the run, pursued by Ross and his aging super soldier, Emil (Tim Roth, looking unconvincing in the role, but what the hell, I like Tim Roth). Along the way, he meets his old flame, Betty (Liv Tyler) and experiences a big reduction in his days without incident number. You can guess where its all going, but getting there is a pretty fun ride, and it even features a cameo by original on-screen hulkster Lou Ferrigno, who also provided the monster‘s voice.

Don’t make me bored. You wouldn’t like me when I’m bored. Luckily, The Incredible Hulk didn’t make me bored, so it is saved from the scathing power of my keyboard. Norton is great, and this film plays like Ironman mixed with The Fugitive, though lacks the sharp dialog of both and Ironman’s lighter, fun moments. Fans of the green smashing machine will find this a more satisfying big screen treatment, and those who think comics should be restricted to Saturday morning papers will still find this film to be palatable enough.

Director: Doug Liman

Starring: Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Michael Rooker,

Bourne Identity director, Doug Liman has not lost his touch for fast-paced, cool, action film-making and the proof is in this exciting adaptation of Steven Gould’s novel. Hayden Christensen has finally got a hit that doesn‘t involve slipping over to the dark side. The imaginative story is far-fetched, but as far as the action genre goes, its not too ridiculous, though the characters could have had more personality and development. My main issue with this film, however, is that we are being dragged, with a ring clamped on our noses, through a disturbing, commercially-driven sequel set-up. This, of course, leads to an ending that resolves nothing and left me feeling a little ripped off.

Hayden Christensen plays David Rice, who, as a teenager, finds himself able to teleport. Soon, he is using this somewhat unusual skill to live a luxurious, jet-set lifestyle (without the jet), that gives us some nice world tour shots, but into his sparkling lagoon of decadent tranquility, ripples soon appear in the guise of a stern, white-haired authority figure, Roland (Samuel L. Jackson). David’s worriless consequence-free existence is shattered, since, as Roland says, “There are always consequences”.

Jumpers is an entertaining action effort that will please the adrenaline junkies, and shouldn’t put off discerning fans more than one would expect from a movie based on teleportation. The whole thing reminded me of a lighter version of Interview With A Vampire, with its secret world of those with special powers and their enemies. Just be ready for its ending that sounds like a cash register that hasn’t yet finished ringing, and probably won’t until the cash from another two movies is in the bank.

Director: Robin Swicord

Starring: Maria Bello, Emily Blunt, Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Maggie Grace, Jimmy Smits, Kevin Zegers, Marc Blucas

As both writer and director, Robin Swicord took Karen Joy Fowler’s novel and turned it first into a very clever screenplay and then, with the help of some very talented performers, made an entertaining movie. Watching it along with me, was an almost all female audience, most of whom looked old enough to remember when Jane Austen was on the best seller list. The dialog was strong and the characters were interesting and the film had a high energy level for a romantic drama, though the whole thing does play a little like a Penguin ad for the Jane Austen Classics Collection.

This story revolves around five women and one man who get together once a month to discuss one of Jane Austen’s books. Kathy Baker is Bernadette, a strong older woman living life by her own rules, who organizes the club to help her friend, Sylvia (Brennemen) get over a heartbreak. Sylvia’s lesbian daughter, Allegra (Maggie Grace) joins to support her mom, as does Sylvia’s friend, Jocelyn (Maria Bello), who brings along a young man she just met (Hugh Dancy), in hopes of playing matchmaker. A fragile, and strange, young married teacher played by Emily Blunt in a performance that still stands out in this very well-acted film, rounds out the group. As the group works its way through the Austen library, their own love lives parallel the classic writer’s storylines. I have only read one Austen book, but even for a literary neophyte like me, this plot device is apparent and entertaining.

No doubt about it, stamp Chick Flick on the box an send it off to off to Oxygen: The Women’s Cable Station for a bi-monthly airing. This is a chick flick, but it is also an impressive piece of light-hearted dramatic screenwriting and a forum for talented actresses (thosewhose last names begin with the letter ‘B’, it seems). Austen lovers, as well as fans of romantic drama will find this film well worth their hard earned pesos, and significantly better than this years’ earlier Austen effort, “Becoming Jane”.

Director: Jason Reitman

Starring: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Olivia Thirlby

This charming comedy/drama from Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking), won me over right from its animated opening credits. The dialog is cool and contemporary, though a trifle overdone. It tries sooo hard to be cool that it may have over 21 watchers wishing for sub titles, but it’s still damn funny. Young, but already a veteran actress, Ellen Page is magnificent as a confident, quick-witted teen girl, who still reveals subtle flashes of vulnerablibility. This outstanding character, along with Page’s masterful performance form the backbone of the film. She has some laudable back up from J.K. Simmons (Oz & the Spider-mans), and from Michael Cera (Superbad, Arrested Development), but her main support comes from an impressive script by Diablo Cody. Jason Bateman is bland (isn’t he always?), but ok in his role, while Jennifer Garner had little challenge as a simple, one dimensional “I want to be a mommy’ character, but both still do their jobs and help to create a very special motion picture.

Ellen Page is Juno MacGuff, a wise-cracking, mostly level-headed sixteen year old, who finds herself pregnant by her sorta-boyfriend, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera), who spends virtually all the film in some God-awful gold shorts, and an assortment of hoodies (which apparently are all from his own closet – hope those shorts aren’t). After some soul-searching, and an unsuccessful visit to an abortion clinic, Juno arrives at the unselfish, but difficult, decision to bear the baby for adoption to a caring home. She chooses the yuppie couple of Vanessa and Mark Loring (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman), to receive her burgeoning bundle of joy, but once the decision is made, she still faces the challenges of a teenager going through a pregnancy, while the Lorings get to know her, and prepare for parenthood. But things don’t go quite as planned.

This refreshing and original motion picture is helped by a cool soundtrack, some really funny lines and a great main character, who reminds me of Darlene from Roseanne, even though she once says she was “out dealing with issues way beyond my maturity level”. Let’s face it, no teenage girl, for as long as there have been teenage girls, has EVER admitted that anything is beyond her maturity level. Has never happened. Not once. Not ever. If ever does happen, I hope CNN covers it, because I want to know. This is a minor issue, however, that I am just using to make my own little joke. Juno is funny, but not silly and really is less of a comedy than it was marketed as, but regardless of whether you consider it to be a drama or a comedy, it is an excellent film that will be remembered longer than any film of 2007

Director: Steven Spielberg

Starring: Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw, Lorraine Gray, Murray Hamilton

Jaws was the 70s phenomenon that turned little known director, Steven Spielberg into a star. It became a well-deserved box office smash on the strength of great characters and dialog, and Spielberg’s masterful creation of tension and suspense, broken from time to time by some congenial humor. The acting is uniformly strong, but the young Richard Dreyfuss and the grizzled veteran, Robert Shaw were particularly remarkable. The screenplay, written by Peter Benchley, who also wrote the best-selling novel, is very strong, though the ending gets a little far-fetched in the true Hollywood fashion

Roy Scheider is Martin Brody, the water-fearing small-town sheriff of the vacation community of Amity. Life as a lawman is pretty quiet, until a mangled body is found washed up on the beach. Soon, Amity seems to be offering a different kind of seafood buffet, and Brody struggles to handle the problem, while dealing with the Mayor (Murray Hamilton) and business people, who are clamoring to keep the issue quiet and considering an offer from a harsh local fisherman named Quint (Robert Shaw) to take care of their problem. With some help from a visiting oceanographer, Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), Brody comes to a decision.

Jaws has held up well as an excellent motion picture over the 30 years that have passed since its release. Younger viewers who haven’t seen it, will enjoy it today and those who have seen it before, will be reminded of how good it is, upon pulling it off the forgotten shelf once again.

Director: Ray Lawrence

Starring: Laura Linney, Gabriel Byrne, Tatea Reilly, Sean Rees-Wemyss, Deborra-Lee Furness, John Howard, Eva Lazzaro, Maya Daniels

This is a slow-moving character-driven Australian drama that is long on acting but a little short on a story and takes way too long to get going. Lawrence’s direction is patient and effective and the moral debate raised by the story is interesting, but gets entangled by too many subplots and too many characters. It is still enjoyable but desperately needed a sharper focus to be a really good film.

Jindabyne is a small Australian town where mechanic Stewart Kane (Gabriel Byrne) lives with his young son (Rees-Wemyss) and his wife, Claire (Laura Linney) who struggles to get along Stewart’s meddling mother. Stewart and a group of buddies go fishing and come across the body of a young woman in the river. They decide not to return to report this until their weekend is over and this decision touches off a firestorm throughout the community. The story is further complicated by racism and past issues in Claire and Stewart’s relationship.

This is a good movie that could have been great, if they could have sharpened that editing knife and decided which story they were really telling. Still, it is well-acted, has a mood that this a little like a rural, Australian Mystic River, and has a story that begs discussion. Worth seeing? I thought so. Worth recommending? I’m less sure on that, but if this review has peeked your interest, then you will likely enjoy it.

Director: Nick Cassavetes

Starring: Denzel Washington, Kimberly Elise, Anne Heche, James Woods, Robert Duvall, Ray Liotta, David Thornton, Laura Harring, Eddie Griffin, Shawn Hatosy.

The United States spends per capitata on health care than Canada, yet Canada has universal health care and America doesn’t. How can that be? All that money goes into corporate coffers instead of where its needed. Here is a movie that puts this into a gripping story that gets preachy, but what the hell, if ever an issue needed to be preached about, this would be it. Denzel puts in a great performance as usual and has lots of back up in this one.

Denzel Washington is John Archibald, a working-class family man who has fallen on hard times when his son collapses with heart problems. This is only the beginning of his troubles, though; as he finds that he doesn’t have the insurance needed for a transplant. Time is running out and he needs to do something.

This is a contemporary film that tackles all kinds of issues and would probably have viewers ready to vote Paris Hilton for president, if she promised universal health care, but despite the sermon, this is also a good movie, but it will require you to either agree with the emotional manipulation, or overlook it. I think it is worth seeing either way.