Lady in the Water

M. Night Shyamalans newest flick, Lady in the water, is advertised as a bedtime story for everyone. this is so close to being true. It is a fairy tale, but it's also a story based on a fairy tale, told with hitchcockian thrills. Throughout the first half, I teetered on the line of "liking" and "really disliking" it, until about 50 minutes in when i fell for Paul Giammatti's compelling performance as Cleveland Heep, the likeable superintendant who discovers a narf in his pool. for those of you not in the know, a narf is a mermaid like character from the fairy tale who tries to bring some sortof balance to a wartorn world. Heep learns of this tale from an old resident in his building, and with the help of a very decent supporting cast (Jared Hess, M. Night Shyamalan, Jeffrey Wright), he tries to put the peices of the puzzle together for the ailing narf. Bryce Dallas Howard gives a par performance as the narf, M. Night Shyamalan gives a very good performance as the writer and Heeps main accomplice, but it is really Paul Giammatti who brings you to tears as a small man with a huge heart. I liked how Shyamalan chose to do a different genre but was still able to incorporate his style into it. good stuff.

The King

most of the overhyped summer movies have dissapointed me this summer, so on an off day in denver, co, scott and i decided to see The King. I'd heard good things about it and two of my favorite actors are in it (William Hurt and Gael García Bernal) so surely i'd be able to appreciate it. I was wrong, i didn't like it, i loved it. So far this is the best movie i've seen all summer. i've been thinking about it since the moment we left the theater. The King is James Marsh's script about a troubled man (Gael García Bernal), recently discharged from the Navy, who goes to Corpus Christi, Texas, in search of the father he's never met (William hurt). When he tells his father who he is, he becomes an outsider in the community and soon finds himself manipulating his way back into his fathers life. Hurt plays pastor david sandow with an actors pallette, making him an easily relatable and memorable character. The supporting cast of newcomers (Pell James and Laura Harring) are also great as the pastors kids who serve as the golden calves in this story. if all of your friends are telling you to go to superman or pirates or a scanner darkly maybe you should go with them. if you're ready for a movie that will haunt your memories and stay in your thoughts for at least a few weeks, check out the king.

a midsummers recap

we've seen superheros, pirates, vice presidents and models, has this summers slew of blockbusters lived up to the hype? no. i'm pretty disapointed with the selection from the first half of this summer (especially with the blockbusters). They definitely delivered with CGI and time in the seats (all three blockbusters were over 200 minutes!) but they were short on plot, acting, and a few other things. here are my winners and losers from the first half of the summer:

(based on movies that came out from 6/1 to 7/20)

Best actor: William Hurt (The King)
Best actress: Meryl Streep (The Devil Wears Prada)
Best Drama: The King
Best comedy: Nacho Libre (what a surprise)
Best documentary: An Inconvenient truth
Best action movie: Superman 3
Worst actor: a tie. Matt Dillon (You me and Dupree) and Orlando Bloom (pirates of the Carribean)
Worst actress: Kate Bosworth (Superman 3)
Worst comedy: You Me and Dupree

What we have to look forword to:
1) little miss sunshine 2) talladega nights, 3) lady in the water 4) scoop, 5) world trade center, 6) miami vice
many of these are very iffy, im guessing that three out of these six will dissapoint!

pirates of the really long movie

while most other people were enjoying a late night in aspen, colorodo, scott and i were catching a 12:00 am showing of "pirates of the carribean". as most of you that read this blog know, my favorite time to see a movie is the minute it comes out, the first screening, the one with all the crazy people dressed up as pirates. that said, there were lots of people with fake parrotts on their shoulders and lots of "yars" being said. I enjoyed pirates of the carribean for what it was, a really long movie filled with outlandish adventure scenes and ridiculously long middle. a good friend of mine pointed out that the second movie in a trilogy never really has an end (think of x men, the matrix, star wars, etc.). They have a really long beginning and an even longer middle that seems to stretch through the course of falling asleep in your seat. johhny depp was fun and orlando bloom wasn't terrible, which really surprised me, so i guess all in all this 2 and a half hour movie about pirates was entertaining. id love me a sea shanty.

Global Warming Week

after seeing Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" and "Ice Age 2: The Meltdown", I've been thinking about one worldwide manifestation, global warming. An issue that's pretty huge but usually goes untouched in the mainstream media. To learn the basics of it you should check out "An Inconvenient Truth" which not only discusses the fundamentals, but also goes really in depth. I enjoyed it even though it's basically a two hour flash point presentation that's also a campaign video. You follow Gore through airports and luxury cars as he travels the world discussing an issue that he really cares about. He seems to be pushing himself into contention for the democratic nominee in 2008, we'll see what happens, but until then, if you're ready to learn about something that's really import go see this movie. "Ice Age 2: The meltdown" is a movie that I didn't want to see, but sorta fell in love with. This is another movie that discusses global warming but sorta does it in a different way. we follow a herd of random prehistoric beasts, searching for a colder climate as their old habitat slowly melts away. The characters are adorable, and i'm pretty certain when i say that anyone who sees this will enjoy it. good luck.

brandon routh=christopher reeves

in the past month or two ive seen many a decent movie that i really enjoyed strictly because of the effects. Superman Returns was one of those movies. I've heard a lot recently about how Brandon Routh was not a 'good' superman and how they didnt give him a lot of lines because he was not a proven actor. i for one do not believe this. go back and watch the original superman movies and you'll notice that christopher reeves also does not have a lot of lines. I think what it is that Clark Kents character says a lot with a few words, as does Superman. My one complaint with Brandon Rouths depiction was that his depiction of Clark Kent was a little dumpy, in the sense that he made him more of an oaf then he should have been. But I'm not sure if that was Bryan Singers vision or Brandon Rouths. Kevin Spacey was an excellent Lex Luthor, not as great as Gene Hackman but still great. Kate Bozworth had no spunk and was not a good Lois Lane. Other standouts, Parker Posey playing the role of fiesty Kitty Kowalski perfectly and James Marsden as Lois's love interest. This is a fun movie to watch.

meryl streep week

my opinion of meryl streep changed drastically a few months ago when i began to really appreciate her ability to add her own type of "depth" to the characters she plays. in the past week, i saw her exemplify that twice. First, as an oldtime performer in "a prairie home companion", and second, as a dark and callous anna wintour type editor in "the devil wears prada". I dont think of Cruella Deville and I don't think of sophies choice, i think of the character she's playing at that moment, and i like it.