Stuicide

I love movie trailers. It’s my secret addiction. I don’t do it too often, but I’ll go on a spree of finding movie trailers for hours on end. I love the snack portion of entertainment that they give you. 2-3 minutes and they are trying to hook you. You can get a feel for the different characters and the way the director is. A well cut trailer will sell me on a movie I may not normally see.

I love movies more than any other type of entertainment, I have close to 300 dvd’s. Not a ton compared to some other people I know, but a good selection of movies that have captured my attention. I also dig the hour long tv shows like BattleStar Galactica, Heroes, and Lost. They make for mini-movies and you can flesh out a lot over the course of 20 episodes or so of 1 hour shows.

Stories are about a journey. Whether physical or mental, it’s about a transformation. Changing perspectives, coming full-circle. Ending up right where you began, but everything is different. The great movies are ones about self-realization, or Sport movies where they hook you with the underdog story. I don’t care how many times I see the same Sports movie stuff, I love it.

If anyone starts talking about the ending of a movie that ruined it, I just think about… how was the journey? Was that interesting? Did the characters evolve and change their perspective in any ways? Of course in some movies, it’s all about the conclusion. Figuring out the problem that you spent 2 hours trying to see who murdered who or what not.

One Sport Movie that has a great journey and a not so great Destination is Friday Night Lights. They fall one yard short of the touchdown, of the state championship, of greatness. But it’s ok. They played their hardest against a bigger team. They lost their star player at the beginning of the season. I liked that movie a lot.

Ok so I know my rambling was semi-incoherent but it’s a blog so deal with it. I’m trying to get back in the swing of things, because I love blogging, I just wish I had more free time.

The Pursuit of Happyness

Who would have thought that the lead for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air would be able to have such a productive movie career. Of course… the same could be said about Tom Hanks and Busom Buddies. Ok, Ok, back to the preview.

Will Smith stars in a movie based on a true story, of a single father who’s trying to raise his son. He works hard, but his job doesn’t pay very well. He meets a guy on Wall Street who is a stock broker, and he realizes that if he was one, then he would have money as well.

He scores an unpaid internship with a stock company and is trying to be a licensed broker. All of this happens, while he’s getting kicked out of his apartment and is homeless with his son. It’s got some emotional parts to it and I’m sure will make you sad in the theaters.

The overall tone of the movie is determination and dedication. My favorite quote from the movie is “If you want something. Go get it. Period” which is said from father to son. Along with “Don’t anyone ever tell you, you can’t do something. Not even me. Alright?” As much as this movie is about overcoming the odds, it’s also a story about a father and a son. His son is his motivation. His fuel for success. That’s what keeps him ticking and pushing forward.

Will Smith sports a new look for the movie, appearing older and more like an average kinda guy than you’re used to seeing him.

Release Date: December 15th

My recommendation: 4 out 5

Children of Men

Children of Men is the story about life in the near future where due to some unknown reason, women stopped giving birth. Hope seems lost since the world can’t repopulate.

Clive Owen plays a guy who, like the rest of the world, has just stopped caring. From what I could gather from the preview, riots start breaking out when the youngest human on the planet died.

Clive gets kidnapped by [what I think] is an ex-girlfriend of his. They need his help to get a young girl to a boat so she can go to the Human Project. He doesn’t care at first, but when he finds out she’s pregnant, he regains hope. She’s the miracle that the world needs, however the world is so hostile these days that she needs to get to safety before they can tell anyone.

I think this movie looks amazing and  the story is unique and gripping. Clive Owen has always been one of my favorite actor’s from King Arthur to Inside Man to Sin City, he’s always been solid in his performance. Definately something that is going to raise some eyebrows and be a hit.

Release Date: December 25th

My recommendation – 4.5 out of 5.0

World Trade Center

World Trade Center is about 9/11. But it’s not the usual look at who caused it or why the caused or how they caused it. It’s about the reaction.

It’s about ordinary people, doing extraordinary things. You can really see the depths of people during tragic events. It’s easy be good during happy times, it’s during these moments that you define who you are. What I love about this movie is it’s a story of hope, courage, and survival.

Is it too soon for this movie? Maybe, but I think because it’s still a sensitive subject for us that it makes the emotional aspect of this movie stand out even better. Oliver Stone does a good job by not doing any shots from the planes or anything like that. He shoots his shots from the perspective of the main character’s. They are from the street, you didn’t see a plane, you see a shadow of it. You hear the trembling.

When the heroes go into the building, they don’t go charging in like it’s nothing, they are scared. They walk in cautiously. I really think this movie is going to be amazing for the pure fact that it’s true, it’s uplifting, and it discusses one of the darkest days of American history in a new light.

Release Date – August 9th

My recommendation – 5 out of 5

School for Scoundrels

This is the movie that makes Jon Heder a legit actor. After Napolean Dynamite he was typecast. Sure he did a few supporting roles and ended up in Benchwarmers. But he still played the same kinda guy in that movie.

He gets to be a badass for some of this movie without making it look fake. I love the premise. The student faces off against his teacher for a girl.

Who ever would have thought that Jon Heder would be competing with Billy Bob Thornton for a girl? Not me. That’s why it would work.

It’s not going to be a giant blockbuster hit, but it will be a good solid comedy. The supporting cast is great, Ben Stiller, Horatio Sanz, Matt Walsh, and Michael Clarke Duncan.

Release date – September 29th.

My recommendation - 3.8 out of 5