Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Ty gives ****1/2 stars

Title: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Directed by: Edgar Wright
Starring:
Michael Cera
Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Kieran Culkin
Chris Evans
Anna Kendrick
Brandon Routh
and
Jason Schwartzman
Release date: August 13th 210

Where to begin... Well this movie rocked. It was great and I loved it. This shout out goes out to nerds one and all. Whether you're into rock music, video games, or comic books or maybe even all three, go see this movie. Period. What did I like about this movie? For starters I liked that I knew this was a nerd movie before I saw it and since I consider myself a nerd, I went to to it because in some cosmic way I thought it was my nerd duty. I even wore my Oakley Gaskets and Converse, known as geek wear, because I knew I would look like every single ticket buyer, male or female, sitting with me in the auditorium. (I've been recently told that dressing like this doesn't make you a geek anymore, it makes you a hipster. See photos above. And yes that is Megan Fox wearing glasses.)
So what what is this movie about? It starts with a guy, Scott Pilgrim, played by Michael Cera (Evan in Superbad, Paulie Bleeker in Juno, Nick Twisp/Francois Dillinger in Youth In Revolt) who is a 22 year old jobless bass player for the band Sex Bomb-omb. (Emphasis on omb.) He's pretty much a loser who thinks he's awesome. I don't know if any guys out there can personally relate to Scott Pilgrim because if any idiot was watching the screen and decided to point and said, "Hey! That's me!" that probably wouldn't be the wisest thing to do unless you're a complete fool. Why? Because if you watch this movie in it's entirety you would start to realize how much of a loser Scott Pilgrim really is. He starts out by telling his bandmates that he's dating a high school girl. Not only a high school girl, but a Chinese, 17 year old, Catholic school girl (Think Go-Go Yubari but cute) named Knives Chau, played by newcomer Ellen Wong. As the movie slowly progresses, Knives falls in lust for Scott Pilgrim while his band mates, Kim Pine played by Alison Pill (Ella Gerard in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen), Stephen Stills played by Mark Webber (Dave Ednasi in Drive Me Crazy) look on in disgust, except for Young Neil played by Johnny Simmons (Chip Dove in Jennifer's Body) who thinks that it's kind of cool, while his sister Stacey played by Anna Kendrick (Jessica in The Twilight Saga) and funny gay roommate Wallace played by Kieran Culkin (Igby in Igby Goes Down) watch in complete horror.
Scott continues to date Knives and everything is peaches and cream until he sees her. Her being Ramona Flowers, played by the surprisingly talented Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Gwen Grayson in Sky High, Lucy Gennero-McClane in Live Free or Die Hard). This pink haired all-American girl, (Sidenote, Americans are cool because this movie takes place in Canada) who roller blades through Scott Pilgrim's dreams. Literally. I mean she really roller blades through his mind. It's weird. Americans apparently have powers we're not aware of. Anyways, Scott falls for this mystery girl and his life is so much better, especialy when he's not thinking about Knives, his band or that weird e-mail from one of Ramona's ex's saying that they are going to fight to the death. Yeah... So begins introducing the audience to the League of Evil Ex's. Ramona's evil ex's. From here on out, Scott Pilgrim must defeat all of Ramona's evil ex's in order to continue dating Ramona. One might think, "Ditch the B****" but Ramona surprisingly is actually worth fighting for. All the ex's are weird and strangly enough have super powers for no reason like, I don't know, being Vegan? Don't ask. The movie turns into a fast paced fight, fight, fight! That involves a lot of quarters spilt and if you ever watched or played a NEO GEO game, you know what I mean. The special effects in this movie are amazing and funny. When Scott slams his head against a tree, you literally see the word, "THUNK!" in cheesy Batman style lettering. Yes this movie is crazy, but if you've understood anything that I've written, you'll get this movie. It's supposed to be funny and geeky and it's not to be taken seriously. Have you seen the graphic novel it's based on? Black and white cartoon characters with big eyes that looks like a junior higher had drawn? Yeah, this movie has come along way baby from the comics.
So was there anything that I didn't like about this movie? Scott Pilgrim's a D-Bag. Some people say that Michael Cera is too, but I wouldn't know. I read that a lot of people are tired of him playing the same character over and over and he's always the lead when he does it. True. And personally I think if Michael Cera had produced this movie, the only reason why he would have done it was to make himself look cool by pretending to be an action star. Fail. I mean really, this movie is strange and random and because it's like that you see Michael Cera flying through the air and kicking it Kung-Fu style like he's Jet Li. (Which he's not. Special effects are amazing these days.) Also, the movie is too long. I understand a story needs to be told, but yeah, way too long. Should that stop you from watching this movie? Of course not. That just means watch it on your day off or when you have nothing better to do. Which is what I did, and while one might consider me buying a ticket and seeing Scott Pilgrim vs. the World as a seridipitious moment, I just say I saw one of the best pop culture movies of all time.

Sherlock Holmes

Ty gives **** stars

Title: Sherlock Holmes

Directed by Guy Ritchie

Starring:

Robert Downey Junior

Jude Law

Rachel McAdams

Release date: December 25th 2009

Sherlock Holmes is one of the greatest literary characters ever written and several films have been made starring Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but not quite like the modernization that Guy Ritchie (director of Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, and Rock'n'rolla) has done. This has scared some purists who have read the adventures of Sherlock Holmes from seeing the film, but I say don't let Ritchie's modernizing stop you. Though I have only read a few of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories, A Study in Scarlet, A Scandal in Bohemia, and A Sign of Four to be exact, I was able to deduct plot lines and see the simularites in Ritchie's film just from reading a few Sherlock Holmes stories. So how is this movie? I thought it was well written and well acted. Robert Downey Junior (Tony Stark in Iron Man, Kirk Lazarus in Tropic Thunder, Larry Paul on Ally McBeal) did an excellent job portraying Sherlock Holmes. Jude Law (Graham Simpkins in The Holiday, Sky Captain in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Inman in Cold Mountain) also did a fine job portraying Dr. John Watson as well. Rachel McAdams (Regina George in Mean Girls, Allie Hamilton in The Notebook, Claire Clearly in Wedding Crashers) was also excellent in portraying the character Irene Adler, and those of you who have read A Scandal in Bohemia will enjoy the references from the book to the movie. For the ones who are looking for an action adventure here will most definitely find one and it was enjoyable seeing the amount of time and energy that Guy Ritchie spent on detailing London circa 1891. Though the film seemed to drag when it hit a dry spell in the middle, the film redeems itself in the end. Some people have complained that Guy Ritchie's modernizing Sherlock Holmes was too much and took away from the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's character, but if one was to actually read Doyle's writings, they would see that like Sherlock Holmes, Richie is exceptionally observant to detail and this can be plainly seen throughout his film. Perhaps those people have seen Sherlock Holmes, but failed to accurately observe.

(500) Days of Summer

Ty gives ** stars

Title: (500) Days of Summer

Directed by: Marc Webb

Starring:

Zooey Deschanel

and

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

and other people that aren't as famous

Release date: July 17th 2009 (Limited)

First of all, I just wanted to say that I was disappointed with this movie. I thought that this movie was going to be beautiful, funny, artistic, and wonderful, but in my opinion it wasn’t. So what is this movie about? It’s a basic boy meets girl story. The boy, Tom Hansen, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Cameron in 10 Things I Hate About You, Tommy Solomon on 3^rd Rock From the Sun) sees girl, Summer Finn, played by the always lovely Zooey Deschanel (Jovie in Elf, Trillian in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Allison in Yes Man) at work. They eventually meet, eventually fall in love, eventually drift away from each other, and eventually break up. Don’t worry. I’m not giving away anything by saying that they break up. It’s stated in the trailer and happens to be told within the first 60 seconds of the movie. So what are the good things about this movie? Well Tom and Summer are a cute couple. Joseph Gordon-Levitt gets to play a normal, average smuck who falls for the pretty girl in the office. Zooey is adorable throughout the movie, which is what she does best, especially when she sings. The story about their relationship leading to a break up isn't actually original looking back at films like Annie Hall and The Break Up, but feels fresh and new. Talking to one of my students who saw this film in theaters and loved it, the reason why I think he enjoyed the film more than I did when I watched it was because he was empathetic to Tom. I believe that he had been in Tom’s shoes before and that he had fallen for a girl and been in a relationship and while he thought the world was perfect and everything was as it should be, she dumped him. Harsh and hard at the same time, but still very real and I believed that this film really spoke to him. Did this film speak to me? No. So why did I not like this movie? Was it because they didn’t get together in the end? No. That made the film more interesting. No, the reason why I didn’t enjoy this film was one, Tom was at fault in the first place for not listening. I know it’s always easier to see the solution when you are outside of the problem or if the problem is not yours to begin with, but the fact is that while my sister and I were watching this movie, we watched Tom fall in love and we also saw how blind he was to the situation at hand. Watching Tom with Summer is like watching a car wreck. It’s easier to see where and when the wreck is going to happen when you’re outside the car. This is sad but true. Second, I know its considered artsy and creative to jump around with flashbacks, and some movies do it better than others, but this movie is one that did not do the flashbacks as well. Also, having the flashbacks out of order sort of made the film confusing, especially if you weren't paying full attention to the movie, which comes to my third point. The movie was boring. I’m sorry, but it was. One of my great friends once told me right after he had read a short story that I had written, that when it comes to writing any great story, it has to have conflict in it. It doesn't matter what kind of story it is or how long the story is, it has to have good conflict. That was something I had to think about and I still think about it today, which has helped me come to this conclusion. All films are intended to entertain, in this case, entertain me and whoever is watching it. Sure, there are different types of films out there, from biography to documentary, but the sole purpose for a film isn’t to merely inform me about something I didn’t know, but to also entertain me as well. Though (500) Days of Summer might be about something I don't understand or have ever experienced, it should thoroughly entertain me in order to be considered a great film and this film failed to do that.

Zombieland

Ty gives ***** stars (That's the most he's ever given a movie so far)

Title: Zombieland
Directed by: Reuben Fleischer
Starring
Woody Harrelson
Jesse Eisenberg
Emma Stone
and
Abigail Breslin
Release date October 2nd 2009

Wow. This is the greatest film I've ever seen. It's marked as my favorite film made in this century. Does that mean anything to you? Only if you like zombie films. Will you be turned on to zombie films after watching this one even if you don't like zombie films? Maybe. This movie is freakin hillarious. Warning: If you do not like gore, foul language, and violence, do not watch this film. I cannot believe I have to write that warning because, well, IT'S A FREAKIN ZOMBIE FILM! Of course it's going to to have gore, foul language, and violence. For those who didn't realize that?! FAIL! Yes it is rated R. Most zombie films are rated R. That's the way it goes. People die in zombie films. It wouldn't be scary unless someone was eaten. So what is the plot of this movie? There isn't one. How are the special effects? Their aren't any. That is what makes this movie so great. What you see is what you get. What you pay is what you get, except this time if you paid to see the best and most perfect zombie film ever made, you're getting more than you moneys worth. A lot more. Buy your popcorn and candy and enjoy. Ty approves.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Ty gives ***1/2 stars

Title: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Directed by: Phil Lord and Chris Miller
Featuring the voices of
Bill Hader
Anna Farris
James Caan
Andy Samberg
Release date September 18th 2009
Computer Animated

So what did I think about this film? It was cute. What made the film ever cuter was that my mom took me to go see it. She bought the tickets and the popcorn and we sat in the theater with our 3-D glasses on, all excited. It was great. The one question that people ask me about this film is, "What's this movie about anyway?" So I'll tell you. You start off with a nerdy kid who wants to be an inventor. Flint Lockwood to be exact, voiced by Bill Hader (Comedian for Saturday Night Live, Private Miller in Pineapple Express, Officer Slater in Superbad). As a kid, Flint always wanted to be an inventor and was encouraged greatly by his mom. Flint lives on a small island that was once known for catching and canning sardines. Then one day, people decided they didn't like sardines and stopped buying them, so the town went close to going under. Sometime growing up, Flint's mom passed away. Sad. So Flint is left with his dad, Tim Lockwood voiced by James Caan (Sonny Corleone from The Godfather part one and two, Ed Deline on the tv show Las Vegas) who is a very quiet and simple man who runs a bait shop. Tim never really understood Flint, so over the years he let his wife Fran take care of Flint but he really does love Flint, mostly by letting Flint do his experiments over the years. One day Flint invents a machine that will change everything and make his hometown, Swallow Falls, a great place again full of food and color. (Because the town is kind of gray and the water is kind of brown. Ew.) He invents a machine that will turn water into food! The machine has some name that no one can say because it's so long so we won't go there. Anyways, after a mishap that destroys the new amusement park that the mayor had built to put the town on the map again, fail, the flubberwhatever (food machine) is rocketed into the atmosphere above the town. Flint feels like he's failed yet again. Another person who feels like a failure is reporter Sam Sparks, voiced by Anna Farris, (Cindy Campbell in Scary Movie 1-4, Shelly Darlingson in the House Bunny) who was sent to Swallow Falls to report on the opening of the new amusement park. This was going to be her first story. While she was doing her piece, she kind of got run over by Flint. No pun intended. While she's off for a walk on the dock, indulging in her loserdom, she runs into Flint. They meet. They like each other. They feel sorry for each other. Until she realizes he was the one who ruined her peace, then anger happens, then comes dark clouds come, then comes the rain, but then... cheeseburgers? Instead of water drops falling from the clouds, it's cheeseburgers? Yup. That's how it goes. I won't give away the whole movie, but if you're older than five, you can probably guess how the rest of the movie is going to go. So was the movie funny? Adult funny? or just kid funny? It was both. This movie isn't Shrek by any means but it's good. It's really, really, really, original. I'll stress that. No other cartoon is like it. Being in the 3-D was cool. The 3-D effects wasn't as good as Monsters vs. Aliens, but it was better than UP! So should you regret not seeing it in theaters? Not really. Should you rent this movie even if it's not in 3-D? You can. If you really want to see it, pay the new release price. I don't think you or anyone would be disappointed by it. Should you buy it and watch it in 3-D and experience this movie in it's complete glory? I'd say, watch first, buy later, unless you really want to see food in 3-D and you're dying to see it, than this movie could be the best meal for your eyes that you've seen in a long time.

Juno

Ty gives **** stars

Title: Juno
Directed by Jason Reitman
Starring
Ellen Page
Michael Cera
Jennifer Garner
Jason Bateman
Release date December 25th 2007

So this movie passed me by when it first came out. A lot of people saw it. A lot of people loved it. I was like, "Okay... whatever." And never saw it nor did I think about this film until I came across it in the college library and the idea that I could see this famous film for free made me think about watching it. So I rented it and watched it and... it was cute. Not like, "That's a cute idea. Now get away from me." but cute as in... cute. I really enjoyed this film. It promoted adoption, so yay! If you have to read this review to find out what this movie is about... fail. What's wrong with you? Don't you read a newspaper or watch television? If not, here's the plot. 16 year old girl gets pregnant by the boy she lost her virginity to. Yup. That's it. And she gives her baby up for adoption. So if you're wondering, "Why would I or anyone waste their time watching a movie about this when I can look out in the neighborhood and see this?!" than you're missing the point. This movie is a story about one girls perspective about pregnancy. This film is funny and smart and I think really, really, true. I think when people look back at the decade between 2000 and 2010 and ask, "What style of films came out in this decade?" I would say honest ones. Truthful ones. Ones that weren't always about beautiful people living in a beautiful world, but actors portraying real people living through real life in a world that's different than your own. If you get a chance, watch Juno. Whenever you have a chance to see the world from someone else's point of view, I dare you to take a look. You might see something you've missed or see something in someone else's life that you've seen or felt in your own life. This film gives you one of those rare chances, and you get to see how one girl chose to give her baby to a mom who wanted a child for her own who couldn't have one. This film is about love. Self-sacrificing, unselfish love to a mom from one little teenage girl who got pregnant. Who wouldn't want to watch that?

Definitely, Maybe

Ty gives **1/2 stars

Title: Definitely, Maybe
Directed by Adam Brooks
Starring
Ryan Reynolds
Abigail Breslin
Elizabeth Banks
Isla Fisher
Rachel Weisz
Release date February 14th 2008

I picked this movie up because Rachel Weisz (Rachel in About a Boy, Evelyn Carnahan in The Mummy and Evelyn O'Connell in The Mummy Returns. Fortunately she did not reprise her role in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, so her character was portrayed by Maria Bello. Good career move for Rachel. Bad career movie for Maria. Fail.) was in it, and I have a big crush on Rachel Weisz so much, that I believe my wife will end up looking like her. So with that out of the way, on with the review. This movie was okay. I like Ryan Reynolds (Wade Wilson, AKA Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Hannibal King in Blade Trinity, or for those of you who are old school, Michael "Berg" Bergen on Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place.) Bergen. That's so cool. Anyways he's a cool guy and I'd be okay with the idea that when I grow older that I could turn out like him, especially in this movie where he plays a good dad. Everyones acting is good. It's good to see a film where Abigail Breslin (Sarah Davis in Raising Helen, Zoe Armstrong in No Reservations, and Little Rock in the upcoming film Zombieland, coming out this Friday, October 9th) isn't an orphan. Yes, all three films that I mentioned involves her parents dying with her and if she's lucky, siblings being the only survivors. Heck, even her small role in Princess Diaries 2: The Royal Engagement she played an orphan. Anyways, all three women in this film who could be her mom are incredibly hot, I mean extremely beautiful and attractive in their own way. ElizaBeth Banks (Beth in The 40-Year Old Virgin, Beth in Role Models. What's up with that? Maybe it makes it less confusing playing a character named after oneself?) plays Sarah Hayes who seems like the perfect small town girl. Isla Fisher (Gloria Clearly in Wedding Crashers, Denise in Hot Rod) is that girl from the big city who likes to try out new and exciting things, and Rachel Wesiz is that uber smart one who likes to sleep with her college professor. So what is this movie about? It was kind of confusing, so I'm going to uncomplicate it for you. This little girl whose parents are like separated asks her dad what her mom is like. Side note. She knows her mom. She lives with her mom sometimes. She just wants to know what her mom was like when her dad met her mom, not that her mom is dead or absent or that she has no idea who her mom is which for some strange reason this film seems to imply. So he tells a story that unravels as the film progresses about his past and the three women that were apart of his life and tells his daughter to guess which girl ended up being her mom. Weird? Yeah. Cute? Sort of, but not really because if a dad did this to his 12 year old daughter, she would probably be confused, then get bored, and then go to sleep. The end. Will you get bored and fall asleep? Not unless it's late and you have no interest in this film because you think that it's a chick flick and you have class the next day like my roommate, but even though all these things are true, he was interested enough to watch the first part of this movie. It will keep you interested enough to finish the film, which I guess is part of the point when it comes to the movie making business, but is it worth your 3 bucks or whatever you pay to rent a movie? Yeah sure. A dollar for each girl right? No, sorry. Bad thought. Anyways the question to ask is, "Will this movie change your life?" Probably not, but if you're just trying to find a movie that will entertain you and your girlfriend or your own boredom than sure why not. You'll watch it. You'll forget it. And...
................................................................................................................... what was I writing about? Oh yeah, that movie with Rachel Weisz where she's hot... Wait. That's every movie she's been in so far. So go rent one of those other films. I suggest starting out with The Mummy then The Mummy Returns. Chicks who fight with knives and do the splits. Oh Yeah. That's Hot.