cinema
movies i've seen recently.
ENEMY AT THE GATES - the story of the battle of Stalingrad during WWII, and we are seeing the russian point of view against the invading germans. really liked this one. jude law did a great job, and i loved the isolated sniper v. sniper story in which we are shown, even though on most accounts this battle never actually took place. visuals reminded me alot of saving private ryan, and anyone who loves war-related movies should enjoy this one.
TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE NEXT GENERATION - for a horror movie, this one wasn't satisfactory. matthew mccaughnahey's character was great as vilmer, who was as unpredictable and senseless as the movie was, which ended up being its drawback. we have a quick set-up into rural Texas, and 2 characters are never really developed. Renee Zellwegger was fun to watch being chased around, but the girl opposite her was annoying and trite. unless you are a DIEHARD mccaughnahey fan, avoid this one.
AMERICAN HISTORY X - basically a rather racist edward norton gets out of prison and tries to stop his younger brother, edward furlong, from going down the same path of hate and violence he did. definately the best out of the ones listed here. "the best movie of 1998"?, i can't defend that, but definately as good as edward norton gets. in some ways, it sympathizes with individual situations where neo-nazi factions interact with blacks and other minorities. the group, the DOC, reminded me alot of a white version of the black panthers, but their beliefs involving hitler and everything surrounding the dictator were just wrong. powerful, intense, and gripping throughout the whole film, even smooth transitions between the present and past. recommended for anyone.
YOUNGBLOOD - Rob Lowe gets called up by a minor league hockey team, and quickly impresses his teammates, which include patrick swayze and keanu reeves. a love interest in the coaches daughter, and a rivalry with another tryout send this movie on its way. decent drama with a solid cast, if you likes sports movies though. nothing special, but a fun movie all around.
KINGS RANSOM - LOTS of people try to kidnap a millionnaire who is about to sell his company off. a comedy i thought overlooked in the theatres. substantial characters, with an odd-ball plot that makes this enjoyable. i've always found anthony anderson pretty funny, and am glad he landed a star role. well done whoever made this movie.
SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS - four friends go separate doing their various summer activities whilst shipping a pair of pants to and fro each other. initally i had my doubts, but in the end this movie was very engaging. i really enjoyed alexis bledel in sin city, so i expected just that from this movie, and she delivered. three of the girls stories i thought were very well written, save the blonde girls, who i found just confusing and merely just eye-candy. 3 out of 4 aint bad, so when youre feeling more lighthearted, check this one out.
KICKING AND SCREAMING - a man coaches his son's less than average soccer team against his father's coached team. will ferrell, in my opinion it hit or miss. anchorman, of course, is definately his best stuff, and old school was great for him too. however, Elf was horrible, and i've definately heard bad things about bewitched. with that said, i liked this movie, but i sensed hints of "anchorman" dialogue throughout the whole movie, something it seemed ferrell tried to capitalize on, knowing anchorman's success. he did a good job of it though, because the movie was enjoyable, a lot like the Little Giants as far as plot goes. don't go out of your way to see this, but if its on TV or something, go for it.
ENEMY AT THE GATES - the story of the battle of Stalingrad during WWII, and we are seeing the russian point of view against the invading germans. really liked this one. jude law did a great job, and i loved the isolated sniper v. sniper story in which we are shown, even though on most accounts this battle never actually took place. visuals reminded me alot of saving private ryan, and anyone who loves war-related movies should enjoy this one.
TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE NEXT GENERATION - for a horror movie, this one wasn't satisfactory. matthew mccaughnahey's character was great as vilmer, who was as unpredictable and senseless as the movie was, which ended up being its drawback. we have a quick set-up into rural Texas, and 2 characters are never really developed. Renee Zellwegger was fun to watch being chased around, but the girl opposite her was annoying and trite. unless you are a DIEHARD mccaughnahey fan, avoid this one.
AMERICAN HISTORY X - basically a rather racist edward norton gets out of prison and tries to stop his younger brother, edward furlong, from going down the same path of hate and violence he did. definately the best out of the ones listed here. "the best movie of 1998"?, i can't defend that, but definately as good as edward norton gets. in some ways, it sympathizes with individual situations where neo-nazi factions interact with blacks and other minorities. the group, the DOC, reminded me alot of a white version of the black panthers, but their beliefs involving hitler and everything surrounding the dictator were just wrong. powerful, intense, and gripping throughout the whole film, even smooth transitions between the present and past. recommended for anyone.
YOUNGBLOOD - Rob Lowe gets called up by a minor league hockey team, and quickly impresses his teammates, which include patrick swayze and keanu reeves. a love interest in the coaches daughter, and a rivalry with another tryout send this movie on its way. decent drama with a solid cast, if you likes sports movies though. nothing special, but a fun movie all around.
KINGS RANSOM - LOTS of people try to kidnap a millionnaire who is about to sell his company off. a comedy i thought overlooked in the theatres. substantial characters, with an odd-ball plot that makes this enjoyable. i've always found anthony anderson pretty funny, and am glad he landed a star role. well done whoever made this movie.
SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS - four friends go separate doing their various summer activities whilst shipping a pair of pants to and fro each other. initally i had my doubts, but in the end this movie was very engaging. i really enjoyed alexis bledel in sin city, so i expected just that from this movie, and she delivered. three of the girls stories i thought were very well written, save the blonde girls, who i found just confusing and merely just eye-candy. 3 out of 4 aint bad, so when youre feeling more lighthearted, check this one out.
KICKING AND SCREAMING - a man coaches his son's less than average soccer team against his father's coached team. will ferrell, in my opinion it hit or miss. anchorman, of course, is definately his best stuff, and old school was great for him too. however, Elf was horrible, and i've definately heard bad things about bewitched. with that said, i liked this movie, but i sensed hints of "anchorman" dialogue throughout the whole movie, something it seemed ferrell tried to capitalize on, knowing anchorman's success. he did a good job of it though, because the movie was enjoyable, a lot like the Little Giants as far as plot goes. don't go out of your way to see this, but if its on TV or something, go for it.