everyone's a critic
Managed to catch some decent movies this month that I've never heard; nice way to start the new year. So let's begin.
Night of the Living Dorks. You know me, sucker for crappy B zombie movies. (Perhaps redundant; seems all zombie movies are B movies nowadays.) Part of this one's charm is that it's German. It's not that great of a movie and it's pretty predictable, but as if one's expectations can be that high. But still, it was worth a laugh. Watched with a fellow zombie enthusiast and we had plenty of laughs. It's outrageous and unexpected dialogue helped make up for a lot of its flaws.
In all actuality, it's not much of a zombie film. It's mainly a goofy teen movie.. that happens to involve zombies.
Conclusion for average movie goer (CFAMG): One of those movies that's great to watch with a friend MST3K style, especially with the aid of whichever sobriety reducing agent you prefer. Definitely recommended for zombie and B movie enthusiasts.
Zombie films aren't exclusively what I watch; I actually watched a foreign romantic film. French, no less. Who would've guessed? (Certainly not me.)
Angel-A. Sadly I can't think of that many good reasons to watch this beyond "It's pretty to look at." I enjoyed it.. but I'm not sure how much I enjoyed the ending. To start with, it seemed to be a good movie about introspection; righting one's wrongs and putting forth effort to better oneself. Nice concept, I can support that. This pretty much came to head in the mirror scene in which a tear or two were shed on my part. But then it jumped from that to love a little too abruptly.
And therein lies my befuddlement. It went from being all about better oneself to seemingly being completely dependent on someone else. Now, maybe for those with more traditional views on love, this would be a beautiful thing. But for me it was rather difficult. He shifted from starting to rely on himself for perhaps the first time in his life to relying completely on her.
In any event, breath of fresh air compared to typical Hollywood movies. I don't feel this or any foreign film is necessarily superior to Hollywood, however, the lack of sex was very refreshing to me. I'm sick of how it seems Americans need 20 minute explicit make-out gropefests in order to figure out these two characters are in love. Softcore porn does little to further a story. The only thing featured in this movie was a quick peck on the lips, and you only see the back of whomever's head.
CFAMG: Good couples movie, or for anyone wanting to catch a romantic film, foreign no less, for whatever reason. Also good for anyone sick of how Hollywood portrays love and romance (I love you! Now let's dry hump.)
(According to imdb, if you enjoyed Angel-A you'll also enjoy Rush Hour 2. Wtf?)
Next, The Art of Travel. More often than not I'm likely to find criticism about this film, but I for one thought it was a rather enjoyable movie. Perhaps because I related to the main character. Seems lost, without a sense of direction, adrift, no idea what to do next. Just going where life takes him, trying to figure out one's lot in life.
Mainly where the movie went awry in my eyes was when Conner had an epiphany: "The art of travel is to deviate from the current plan." And thus he turned down going back home with his girlfriend. ...however, it was his plan all along to go witness that geyser. So going back home with his girlfriend would have truly been the deviation from the current plan. Retarded.
Still, it was an unexpected movie that looked interesting, provided a few laughs here and there, and was fairly engrossing.
CFAMG: Hard to say really, could be a variety of things. Netflix provides a preview, check it out. I suppose I would recommend it to others who also feel rather lost in life and without a sense of direction.
Lastly, Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains. Ha. A chronicle of the former president's tour recent for his book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid." I was really struck by how much I enjoyed this documentary. At one point I was so struck that I nearly cried; what struck me the most was witnessing such a presidential man.
After 8 years of Bush and then seeing this it was just.. wow. THIS GUY. THIS GUY has the true qualities it takes to be a president. Granted, I'm completely ignorant about Carter. However, where Bush seems so fake to the point that even his best smile looks like a contemptuous sneer, Carter seems so real. He just seems so damn sincere in all that he does, and he's nearly constantly genuinely smiling. Even now at 84 years old (!!) he's working and striving for peace. What a wonderful mission, and what better? Surprisingly inspiring documentary, definitely makes me want to check out his book.
(Also, Carter's 12 years older than John McCain, yet seems able to work a computer just fine. So wtf is McCain's problem?)
CFAMG: Recommended for those who wish to see someone actually act presidential. Plus it's interesting and mildly informative in its own right.
As a note, all but the one involving President Carter are currently on instant play.
Night of the Living Dorks. You know me, sucker for crappy B zombie movies. (Perhaps redundant; seems all zombie movies are B movies nowadays.) Part of this one's charm is that it's German. It's not that great of a movie and it's pretty predictable, but as if one's expectations can be that high. But still, it was worth a laugh. Watched with a fellow zombie enthusiast and we had plenty of laughs. It's outrageous and unexpected dialogue helped make up for a lot of its flaws.
In all actuality, it's not much of a zombie film. It's mainly a goofy teen movie.. that happens to involve zombies.
Conclusion for average movie goer (CFAMG): One of those movies that's great to watch with a friend MST3K style, especially with the aid of whichever sobriety reducing agent you prefer. Definitely recommended for zombie and B movie enthusiasts.
Zombie films aren't exclusively what I watch; I actually watched a foreign romantic film. French, no less. Who would've guessed? (Certainly not me.)
Angel-A. Sadly I can't think of that many good reasons to watch this beyond "It's pretty to look at." I enjoyed it.. but I'm not sure how much I enjoyed the ending. To start with, it seemed to be a good movie about introspection; righting one's wrongs and putting forth effort to better oneself. Nice concept, I can support that. This pretty much came to head in the mirror scene in which a tear or two were shed on my part. But then it jumped from that to love a little too abruptly.
And therein lies my befuddlement. It went from being all about better oneself to seemingly being completely dependent on someone else. Now, maybe for those with more traditional views on love, this would be a beautiful thing. But for me it was rather difficult. He shifted from starting to rely on himself for perhaps the first time in his life to relying completely on her.
In any event, breath of fresh air compared to typical Hollywood movies. I don't feel this or any foreign film is necessarily superior to Hollywood, however, the lack of sex was very refreshing to me. I'm sick of how it seems Americans need 20 minute explicit make-out gropefests in order to figure out these two characters are in love. Softcore porn does little to further a story. The only thing featured in this movie was a quick peck on the lips, and you only see the back of whomever's head.
CFAMG: Good couples movie, or for anyone wanting to catch a romantic film, foreign no less, for whatever reason. Also good for anyone sick of how Hollywood portrays love and romance (I love you! Now let's dry hump.)
(According to imdb, if you enjoyed Angel-A you'll also enjoy Rush Hour 2. Wtf?)
Next, The Art of Travel. More often than not I'm likely to find criticism about this film, but I for one thought it was a rather enjoyable movie. Perhaps because I related to the main character. Seems lost, without a sense of direction, adrift, no idea what to do next. Just going where life takes him, trying to figure out one's lot in life.
Mainly where the movie went awry in my eyes was when Conner had an epiphany: "The art of travel is to deviate from the current plan." And thus he turned down going back home with his girlfriend. ...however, it was his plan all along to go witness that geyser. So going back home with his girlfriend would have truly been the deviation from the current plan. Retarded.
Still, it was an unexpected movie that looked interesting, provided a few laughs here and there, and was fairly engrossing.
CFAMG: Hard to say really, could be a variety of things. Netflix provides a preview, check it out. I suppose I would recommend it to others who also feel rather lost in life and without a sense of direction.
Lastly, Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains. Ha. A chronicle of the former president's tour recent for his book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid." I was really struck by how much I enjoyed this documentary. At one point I was so struck that I nearly cried; what struck me the most was witnessing such a presidential man.
After 8 years of Bush and then seeing this it was just.. wow. THIS GUY. THIS GUY has the true qualities it takes to be a president. Granted, I'm completely ignorant about Carter. However, where Bush seems so fake to the point that even his best smile looks like a contemptuous sneer, Carter seems so real. He just seems so damn sincere in all that he does, and he's nearly constantly genuinely smiling. Even now at 84 years old (!!) he's working and striving for peace. What a wonderful mission, and what better? Surprisingly inspiring documentary, definitely makes me want to check out his book.
(Also, Carter's 12 years older than John McCain, yet seems able to work a computer just fine. So wtf is McCain's problem?)
CFAMG: Recommended for those who wish to see someone actually act presidential. Plus it's interesting and mildly informative in its own right.
As a note, all but the one involving President Carter are currently on instant play.