Tag: three sentence movies

The acting in this was top notch, with three actors who are worth watching no matter what the project is (although I haven’t wanted to see Mama Mia). However, I thought the plot had many rather convenient trajectories which left me feeling a bit grumbly, like I went to see the Mona Lisa at the Louvre and instead they had a postcard posted for me to look at. It may be that when I pay $8.25 for a matinee, very few movies are that valuable and this, alas, wasn’t one of them.

Danny McBride did a good job stealing scenes in All the Real Girls and I was happy to see him in Tropic Thunder and Pineapple Express. Despite his presence here, this movie has some funny parts, but mostly is just so-so. If you are into martial arts of any kind, you may find this movie even funnier.

Though I like Ron Howard as a person (what I know of him) and am happy for his success, I mostly always get a little bored during his movies. This one was no different. Still, quite good, but during my bored period I wondered, “Was this really the best title that the author of the play could come up with?”

The pacing of this movie was slow, and I had time to contemplate a variety of things, one of which was not very nice and I won’t say it here. I would categorize this movie as “a nice movie.” It also contains a good message for people who are entirely sure they will never get over a former spouse or boyfriend.

ps. Alan Rickman is one of my “phone book” people. That is, he could read me the phone book and I’d be happy to listen.

Having just watched 960 minutes of a television show in five days, I figure I should give a shout out to Sports Night. I didn’t watch this when in was originally on TV, though I knew who Aaron Sorkin was and really enjoyed the movie The American President. I’ve spent other vactions watching seasons of The West Wing. Having some time on my hands, I figured I would get the series and see how it was.

It was good enough for me to spend over three hours per day watching it, causing me to avoid much of the “work” I had planned over my vacation. From the pilot episode, where Peter Krauss‘ hair was entirely too poofy, this show had zing and pop that kept me saying, “just one more.” The characters were well developed and likable and the plots nicely balanced the story development, the fluff and the nice big statements. And the writing is so intelligent. I expected it on the West Wing. After all, people working in the White House must have incredibly complex and thoughtful discussions on a daily basis, even under the worst presidents. But intellectual leanings on a show about a sports show?

I also appreciate the shout out Aaron Sorkin gives to those of us interested in the minutiae of life, aka “trivia“. Throughout the series, someone was always talking about some little nugget of information, for example the correct definition of the word montarily, or the curse of Thales. I admire television that is not afraid to be smart, even when you wouldn’t expect it from its characters.

Given how much I loved this director’s movie All the Real Girls earlier this year and given the favorable reviews when it came out, I expected to really like this movie. I didn’t. The cinematography is great–never has a decaying Southern town looked so good–but I was bored.

“Content of your character” movies sometimes come in surprising packages. Legally Blonde’s statement about sticking to what you know is right and being who you are rings strong and true. I can’t help wondering if the writer grew up to listening to Free to Be You and Me.

I’ve been avoiding this movie for years for unknown reasons. I like Drew Barrymore and fairy tale-type movies, but I just never could hit “play” on this one. Having seen it, I can tell you that I enjoyed it fine.

This was one of those “take your vitamins” movie in that I brought it home from the library and so I felt the need to actually watch it. It was one of the best movies I have seen all year with very good messages about hard work and fear of your dreams and the power of community. I especially enjoyed the twist at the end which I saw coming, but which played out in unexpected ways.