Reviews coming...I think:

I watched five notable films over the five-day Thanksgiving break. I already reviewed "WALL-E," but what about that "Minority Report" I promised. It'll be on in a few days; I just gotta, you know, write it.

As far as other films go, I saw the zippy, charming, surprisingly good "Four Christmases" in theaters over the weekend, as well as the powerful, undeniable "Mystic River" and the disappointing "Hollywoodland."

I'll review all four of these eventually. My December will be busy.

Essay Review: WALL-E (****)

Directed by Andrew Stanton
Cast: Fred Willard
Voice Cast: Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Jeff Garlin, John Ratzenberger, Kathy Najimy, Sigourney Weaver, Kim Kopf
Special Voicing Appearance: MacInTalk
2008--99 min.
Rated G (nothing objectionable)
Reviewed by The Teen Critic on November 27, 2008.

"WALL-E" is utterly astounding and remarkable, the best animated film I've ever seen, and that takes some meditation. Isn't the animated genre one that has spawned "Beauty and the Beast," "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," and "Toy Story?" Yes, and I truly believe that "WALL-E" is better than all of those, masterpieces though they are. This film redefines animation and brings it to a level that has never before been seen in the genre. It soars to new heights. No, scratch that--it creates new heights and has set the bar (for me, at least) for all animated films that come after it. It'll now be one of those movies to which one compares others, saying, "Such-and-such isn't as good as 'WALL-E.'"

The story is simple and straightforward, but aren't all of Pixar's stories? They are just engines to drive the message home. Here, the message is mildly disquieting, making this not just a "cute cartoon" or "kid's movie" in the normal sense. The movie has been criticized, even by its lovers, of being insulting to fat people, but I don't think so. What the movie is saying is much more insidious than that. The real message doesn't make the point of "WALL-E" much more different than say "2001: A Space Odyssey," "A.I. Artificial Intelligence," or "Minority Report" (and, for the record, just as good). It's more about one's meaning in society than it is about robots or outer space.

WALL-E is the only robot left on Earth, his job being to clean up the world's insane amount of garbage, piled up and practically looking like full-sized versions of N.Y.C. WALL-E (which stands for "Waste Allocation Load Lifter--Earth-class") is lonely, having not seen other robots for who knows how many years. He spends his days cleaning, gazing at the stars expectantly, and watching the 1969 musical "Hello, Dolly!" Having seen that film once on TCM, I can honestly say that WALL-E has more love for than I.

When a shuttle lands, dropping off EVE (Extraterrestrial Vegetation Evaluator), WALL-E is instantly smitten with EVE's curiosity and protectiveness. He falls in love so much, in fact, that in one scene his built-in windshield wipers clear off the grimy surface of his eyes to see the beautiful robot in front of him. Little does WALL-E know that EVE's directive is to find a living thing on the planet Earth and return to the ship holding its previous inhabitants. WALL-E has found one, and when he shows it to her, it acts as a homing device for the ship that dropped her off. WALL-E latches onto to the ship, follows her to the mothership, and gets caught up trying to return the humans to their original planet.

Wow, so maybe the plot isn't so simple, but it is ingenious and straight out of a Steven Spielberg film. It owes a lot to Spielberg's "E.T.--Extraterrestrial" and the aforementioned "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence." Both films were about lost souls (an alien and a humanoid) trying to find their respective places on Earth. WALL-E tries to fit in on the mothership as soon as he gets there. In my opinion, this film is just as outstanding and inherently disquieting as those Spielberg masterworks. Just compare Andrew Stanton's vision of a garbage-laden Manhattan to Spielberg's dark vision in "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" and you'll see many similarities.

"WALL-E" works as three different films in one. As a love story, this is as intimate and effective as any in the past few films. This romance is as realistic, if not more so, than the best live-action romance in this year's "Penelope." By the end, when EVE saves WALL-E's life during the climax, we no longer see them as robots but as real, human personalities. As a comedy, this is one of the best of the year. WALL-E is such a sweet klutz that the slapstick humor surrounding him works just as well as any in cinematic history. The supporting characters, especially the scum-cleaning M-O, are equally effective and nicely drawn out, their emotions giving way to true characteristics instead of caricaturizations. And, finally, as I said above, the sci-fi elements are perhaps the most striking aspect. Obvious comparisons to Spielberg's work, as well as Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey," are warranted, those comparisons to Kubrick's film well beyond Stanton's innovative use of "Thus Spoke Zarathustra."

In the last five years (since 2003's great "Finding Nemo"), there have been precious few great animated films--before "WALL-E," the best could be counted on one hand and still have two fingers left--but this film harkens back to the classics of yesteryear, creating affecting characters, tender romance, and brilliant humor. I have yet to give a Pixar film a grade lower than three stars (that being "A Bug's Life"), but I would give "WALL-E" even higher if possible. It not only ranks as the best animated film I've ever seen--or, at least, tied with the equally transcendent "Beauty and the Beast"--but one of the best films this decade and all time. I love WALL-E, and I love "WALL-E."

OSCARS 2009: November Predictions

Three months away...

Best Picture:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director:

Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
Gus Van Sant, Milk

Best Actor:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Actress:

Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case Benjamin Button
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Kristin Scott-Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actor:

Josh Brolin, Milk
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress:

Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Original Screenplay:

Happy-Go-Lucky
Milk
Rachel Getting Married
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Visitor

Best Animated Feature Film:

Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E
Waltz with Bashir

Best Art Direction:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Revolutionary Road

Best Cinematography:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Revolutionary Road

Best Costume Design:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
The Fall
The Other Boleyn Girl
Revolutionary Road

Best Film Editing:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Makeup:

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Synecdoche, New York

Best Original Score:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Revolutionary Road
WALL-E

Best Original Song:

"All Dressed Up in Love," Sex and the City
"Down to Earth," WALL-E
"I Want It All," High School Musical 3: Senior Year
"Rock Me Sexy Jesus," Hamlet 2
"The Wrestler," The Wrestler

Best Sound Editing:

The Dark Knight
Defiance
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Sound Mixing:

Australia
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Visual Effects:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Iron Man

Sorry...

I'm buying "WALL-E" tomorrow, at which time I will start my review over. It'll be on in a few days.

I may also offer up a review of this decade's best film, "Minority Report." Yes, it's even better than "The Dark Knight." It's a staggering masterpiece of sci-fi pop entertainment and the best of the genre I've ever seen. I'll get into it a little later.

COMING TONIGHT!!!

"24: Redemption," the TV movie leading up to the seventh season of my favorite show on television--ever. Jack Bauer is a great television hero. Can't go wrong. The fifth season is the best season of anything ever (except perhaps the superlative fourth season of "The X-Files").

TRAILER DEBUT: "Astro Boy"

This actually has potential. I'm loving the animation.

Essay Review: Tropic Thunder (****)

Directed by Ben Stiller

Cast: Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black, Jay Baruchel, Brandon T. Jackson, Steve Coogan, Danny R. McBride, Bill Hader, Nick Nolte, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Cruise, Reggie Lee, Trieu Tran, Brandon Soo Hoo, Jon Voight, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jason Bateman, Lance Bass, Alicia Silverstone, The Mooney Suzuki, Kathy Hilton, Mickey Rooney, Tobey Maguire, Kevin Pollak.

2008--108 min.

Rated R (pervasive language including sexual references, violent content, drug material)

Reviewed by The Teen Critic on November 22, 2008.

Ben Stiller is a genius. After months upon months of such viral marketing to rival that of "The Dark Knight" and "Cloverfield," Stiller surpassed expectations to make the most consistently funny movies I've ever seen. A satire of everything Hollywood above all, "Tropic Thunder" is gloriously R-rated, wholly ingenious, rip-roaringly funny, and shockingly smart all in one (I'll be using those types of seemingly hyperbolic adjectives in my other two reviews, so get used to it). Stiller, who directed the picture with the hand of someone like Steven Spielberg or Ridley Scott and cowrote it with buddies Etan Cohen and Justin Theroux, has simply crafted a potty-mouthed masterpiece that would make a good triple feature with "Dr. Strangelove" (which poked fun at the Cold War-induced paranoia movies of that time) and "The Princess Bride" (which satirized the B-movie fantasy films such as "Legend" and "The Neverending Story"), as a movie that skewers the Hollywood system in its every facet. From the uptight, Weinstein-like producer to the method actor who doesn't get out of character "until I've finished the DVD commentary," "Tropic Thunder" eviscerates everything in its path. It's unapologetic, blissfully so, and purely hilarious for its entire running time. In fact, the laugh-a-minute ratio is probably four or five successful comedic bits every three minutes. You do the math.

Director Damien Cockburn (what a great name, right?) is not having a good week. He's five days into filming his soon-to-be masterpiece, "Tropic Thunder," and already $100 million over budget. The film was destined to rejuvenate the careers of its three stars. Tugg Speedman has burnt out after the long-in-the-tooth "Scorcher" series and failed Oscar bait in "Simple Jack," about a mentally challenged farm hand. Jeff Portnoy ruined his career after starring in the critically acclaimed "Heat Vision 'N Jack" by starring in fart comedies, such as "Fart Club" and "The Fatties." And method actor Kirk Lazarus floundered in the recent failed "Satan's Alley" (call it what my friend called it: "Brokeback Monastery").

In attempt to assuage the guilt of making some of the most critcally panned films ever made, Cockburn takes the plunge and sets out to make the best, most expensive war movie ever made. When the biggest mistake happens--a $4 million explosion that goes off without the cameras rolling, in one of the funniest scenes this year--producer Les Grossman threatens to pull the project if Cockburn and screenwriter Fourleaf Tayback don't get their bleeping act together. So, Tayback suggests that Cockburn line the forests of Vietnam with tiny cameras and watch them as they make the film themselves. Cockburn is killed by a surprise landmine that isn't one of theirs, and of course, the actors just think it's an effects show (this leads to a tastelessly funny sequence involving a "prop head" that leaves you appalled but laughing your head off). When Tugg is kidnapped, the other actors start to catch on that maybe things aren't what they seem. Lazarus, disguised both in form and voice as character Sergeant Osiris, heads up a rescue mission with Portnoy, rapper Alpa Chino, and character actor Kevin Sandusky.

"Tropic Thunder" is unlike many other comedies, in that it never ever condescends to the audience. Controversy has surrounded so much of the movie, including the makeup for Robert Downey Jr. as an African-American general and the use of the word "retard" in a supposedly offensive way. If the tone of the film is hateful toward something, it's toward the conventionality of Hollywood. It's an amazing sight to see when a satire of American war films is made with the professionalism and gravitas of those films. Ben Stiller quarterbacked the project to his fullest capabilities and captured lightning in a bottle. He even hired the cinematographer John Toll, of "Braveheart" and "The Legends of the Fall." "Tropic Thunder" is a beautiful, gritty film to look at. Also production designer Jeff Mann, who did wonderful work on "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" and "Transformers," creates a brilliant environment. A film set within a film set is hard to do, I'm sure, but Mann puts it to great use.

Now, a note on some of the performances. Ben Stiller has seriously never been better in the role as Tugg Speedman. You really end up caring for Speedman as a person by the end, both as an actor (he's really quite good) and as a growing person. His performance, in my opinion, is one of the better ones this year. Jack Black is surprisingly two dimensional as Jeff Portnoy, someone who goes through an actual transformation by the end. Jay Baruchel and Brandon T. Jackson are fall-down funny as Kevin Sandusky and Alpa Chino, yet surprisingly good, too. Smaller roles, including ones by Nick Nolte, Matthew McConaughey, and Steve Coogan are successful and funny, too, if mildly underwritten.

But the performances that really put the film into perspective are those by Robert Downey Jr. and Tom Cruise. Downey Jr. makes for both a scarily good Australian method actor and a believable black general. Think of this as Russell Crowe meets Louis Gossett Jr. Downey is simply spectacular in one of the three finest performances so far this year (the others being Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight" and Angelina Jolie in "Changeling.") Not only does he make Lazarus believable, but he makes Lazarus in turn make Osiris believable. If that doesn't make sense to you, see the movie and then everything will come together. The role is one of the classic comedic endeavours this decade and should be up for an Oscar if the Academy is smart at all.

As for Tom Cruise, let me say this: His performance as Les Grossman is one of ribald tour de force. Yes, his hip-hop dances to "Low" by Flo Rida are silly, but no less intelligently played out. Grossman is just that, a vulgar spoof of the Weinstein brothers. Every other word is the f-word, adding twisted humanity to a character that easily could've been broad and unfunny. Grossman may be a horrible human, but he's still a human. It's scary how well Cruise plays this character. Watch his delivery of each line, as if it's physically painful to communicate with humans he finds to be lesser than he, and you'll see that it has completely rejuvenated Cruise's career post-couch-jumping.

"Tropic Thunder" isn't simply a satirical comedy; it's about the need to create something artistic. The movie they ultimately make, showcased at the Oscars sequence just before the credits, actually looks entertaining. The filmmakers and screenwriters set out to spoof Hollywood--and spoof it they did--but they inadvertently and lovingly reference it at the same time. In a country where something like "Meet the Spartans" represents the comedy that teenagers seemingly enjoy (I don't, for the record), "Tropic Thunder" is a success that goes beyond words, creating characters and situations. It's not smug with itself. And that's what makes it the comedic masterpiece it is. It isn't just a great comedy. It's Ben Stiller's Great American Movie.

It's not the end of the year yet, but...

...I've been dying to do essay critiques on "The Dark Knight," "WALL-E," and "Tropic Thunder." They are, in my opinion, the three best movies this year. It'll take something monstrous to knock them off the top.

Starting right now, extra-long, extra-awesome reviews of three majorly special films this year.

Review: Twilight (***)

Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke

Cast: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Billy Burke, Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Kellan Lutz, Peter Facinelli, Cam Gigandet, Taylor Lautner, Anna Kendrick, Michael Welch, Justin Chon, Christian Serratos, Gil Birmingham.

2008--122 min.

Rated PG-13 (violence, sensuality)

Reviewed by the Teen Critic on November 22.

Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series is second only to Harry Potter on the list of modern literary pop culture phenomena. There's a reason for that. The first book (the only one I've read) is provocative, sumptuous entertainment; anyone who claims it is only for the mid-teenage girl crowd is simply biased against a novel that is truly something special. More about one's inevitable mortality than about a girl and vampire falling in love, "Twilight" is one of the better teen-aimed books I've read in a few years.

The filmic adaptation, directed with a schizoid tone by Catherine Hardwicke, doesn't even come close to the book. At a mere 122 minutes (this could easily have been 145 minutes, considering the slower pace of the novel), "Twilight" is a tad too short for its own good. If lengthier, the tone could have been a little more balanced between effective drama and morbid comedy. As is, the tone is all over the place. But more on the flaws later.

Bella Swan is a confused teenager (the phrase seems all the more redundant as of late) whose mother and stepfather decide to move to Florida at an inopportune time in Bella's life. So, to compensate, Bella's mother sends her to her father's place in Forks, Oregon. She almost immediately makes a few friends.

Enter the Cullens and the Hales. They all live together under the roof of one Dr. Carlisle Cullen--as in, live together. None of the family members is related, so a few of them date each other, making their walkings-in awkward to look at for others (and making for some quirkily funny sequences). They are not a pleasant bunch to hang around, but Bella quickly befriends the most mysterious--and single--of the family, Edward. But Edward is not as he seems. He seems super-fast. He's uncommonly strong. His skin is pale white. What is he? Bella knows and hopes she's wrong.

On the surface, "Twilight" is so sappy that it could pass for a "True Blood"/"Everwood" crossover made for the SoapNet. Underneath, a pall of deep sadness lingers over the proceedings, as if none of the characters wants to be in their present position. The way Meyer wrote the book--and, to a lesser extent, the way Hardwicke directs the film--is to present the romance between Bella and Edward as realistic with a tinge of "Dracula" thrown in. This is simply a romance that cannot work as it should. Edward is a vampire, and there would be problems. "I would be the next meal," Bella says slyly.

First order of business is the flaws, and there are a few. The musical score used is awful and ranks as one of the worst this year. The tender scenes between girl and vampire are score with electric guitars and drums. The few moments the score does work are crane shots or the occasional action scene. The other stuff is dreck and should never have been released. It actually takes away from the experience at times. Also, as I mentioned before, the tone is all over the place, the film awkwardly positioning comedy within dramatic scenes and vice versa.

There are a steady, if not overwhelming, number of good things to be had, however, including some beautiful cinematography that never wavers below "amazing." Primarily made up of blues, blacks, and grays, "Twilight" is stunning to look at. The CGI, thankfully used in only a few scenes, is also top-notch.

Robert Pattinson is nothing less than excellent as Edward Cullen. Sure, he's a handsome guy, but his charms go beyond that. He's also a really good actor, and he makes Edward his own. Kristen Stewart nevers falters as Bella Swan, but she's good in everything (just see last year's excellent "In the Land of Women"). Stewart doesn't hold a candle to Pattinson, but she's solid anyway. Smaller supporting roles, such as Billy Burke, wonderful as Bella's father, and Cam Gigandet, snaky and creepy as James, are successes in their own right. The film, however, belongs to Stewart and, especially, Pattinson.

In a time of big, CG-infested movies, here is an entertaining, albeit flawed and uneven, supernatural romance. It works. "Twilight" may be far from a great film--couldn't they have tightened up the loose screws of the tone a bit?--but it's a lot better than last week's box-office smash, "Quantum of Solace" and deserves every penny it will get. It will get a lot of pennies, no doubt, and judging by this film, a sequel is welcome. Perhaps even better is to come.

Oscar Caliber Movie Trailers

I mean to say, trailers of movies that should get nominated.

I'll go the Globes route on this. Comedic and dramatic trailers (and animated).

Please comment!!

Drama:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Milk
Revolutionary Road
The Wrestler

Musical/Comedy:

Burn after Reading
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Hamlet 2
In Bruges
Pineapple Express
Tropic Thunder

Animated:

The Tale of Despereaux
WALL-E
Waltz with Bashir

Upcoming Review: Twilight

I'm seeing it tomorrow night. I'm actually really looking forward to it, despite the nearly awful reviews it is receiving. I'm expecting something faithful to the book, something sumptuous and provocative.

2008: A Rundown (so far)

Same as the last post.

Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight (****)
Andrew Stanton's WALL-E (****)
Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder (****)
Clint Eastwood's Changeling (****)
Matt Reeves' Cloverfield (****)
Stephen Walker's Young @ Heart (****)
Timur Bekmambetov's Wanted (****)
Jon Favreau's Iron Man (****)
Mark Palansky's Penelope (****)
Hammer & Tongs' Son of Rambow (****)

Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (****)
Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy II: The Golden Army (****)
M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening (****)
Hayward and Martino's Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! (****)
John Erick Dowdle's Quarantine (****)
Chris Carter's The X-Files: I Want to Believe (***1/2)
Ira Sachs's Married Life (***1/2)
Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind (***1/2)
David Schwimmer's Run Fatboy Run (***1/2)
Osborne and Stevenson's Kung Fu Panda (***1/2)

Pete Travis' Vantage Point (***)
Fumihiko Sori's Vexille (***)
Andrew Adamson's The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (***)
Michael McCullers's Baby Mama (***)
Craig Mazin's Superhero Movie (***)
Anne Fletcher's 27 Dresses (***)
Paul Weiland's Made of Honor (***)
Rob Cohen's The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (***)
Louis Leterrier's The Incredible Hulk (***)
Peter Segal's Get Smart (***)

Patricia Rozema's Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (***)
Marco Schnabel's The Love Guru (***)
Eric Brevig's Journey to the Center of the Earth (***)
Oliver Stone's W. (**1/2)
Moreau and Palud's The Eye (**1/2)
Marc Forster's Quantum of Solace (**)
Peter Berg's Hancock (**)
Doug Liman's Jumper (**)
Bryan Bertino's The Strangers (**)
Brian Robbins's Meet Dave (**)

Eric Valette's One Missed Call (*1/2)
Andy Tennant's Fool's Gold (*)
Roland Emmerich's 10,000 B.C. (*)
The Wachowskis' Speed Racer (*)
Kirk De Micco's Space Chimps (1/2*)
Friedberg and Seltzer's Meet the Spartans (1/2*)
Dennis Dugan's You Don't Mess with the Zohan (1/2*)
Uwe Boll's In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale (zero)*

*This is also the worst film of all time, in my opinion.

2007: A Rundown

Got this idea from Actionman himself, and because no one really knows what movies I saw last year. Therefore, I am listing, from best to worst and in sections of ten, the films I saw in 2007. Then I'll do the same for 2008 thus far, next post.

The Coens' No Country for Old Men (****)
Tony Gilroy's Michael Clayton (****)
Andrew Dominik's The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (****)
Jason Reitman's Juno (****)
Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (****)
David Yates's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (****)
Paul Greengrass's The Bourne Ultimatum (****)
Brad Bird's Ratatouille (****)
Gabor Csupo's Bridge to Terabithia (****)
Denzel Washington's The Great Debaters (****)

James Mangold's 3:10 to Yuma (****)
Terry George's Reservation Road (****)
Edgar Wright's Hot Fuzz (****)
Rob Reiner's The Bucket List (****)
Craig Gillespie's Lars and the Real Girl (****)
Julie Taymor's Across the Universe (****)
Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood (***1/2)
Frank Darabont's The Mist (***1/2)
Peter Hedges' Dan in Real Life (***1/2)
Marc Lawrence's Music and Lyrics (***1/2)

Michael Bay's Transformers (***1/2)
Jake Kasdan's In the Land of Women (***1/2)
Gore Verbinski's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (***1/2)
Stephen J. Anderson's Meet the Robinsons (***1/2)
Bob Shaye's The Last Mimzy (***1/2)
David Silverman's The Simpsons Movie (***1/2)
D.J. Caruso's Disturbia (***1/2)
Francis Lawrence's I Am Legend (***)
Andrew Fleming's Nancy Drew (***)
Peter Berg's The Kingdom (***)

Matthew Vaughn's Stardust (***)
Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3 (***)
Kevin Lima's Enchanted (***)
Tom Shadyac's Evan Almighty (***)
Hickner and Smith's Bee Movie (***)
Gordon and Speck's Blades of Glory (***)
Mennan Yapo's Premonition (***)
Antoine Fuqua's Shooter (***)
Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Thirteen (***)
The Pangs' The Messengers (***)

Kevin Munroe's TMNT (***)
Len Wiseman's Live Free or Die Hard (**1/2)
Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf (**1/2)
David S. Goyer's The Invisible (**1/2)
Steve Bendelack's Mr. Bean's Holiday (**1/2)
Chris Miller's Shrek the Third (**1/2)
Michael Polish's The Astronaut Farmer (**)
Mikael Hafstrom's 1408 (**)
Jon Turteltaub's National Treasure: Book of Secrets (**)
Tim Story's Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (**)

David L. Cunningham's The Seeker: The Dark is Rising (**)
Walt Becker's Wild Hogs (**)
Joel Schumacher's The Number 23 (*1/2)
Brett Ratner's Rush Hour 3 (*1/2)
Frederik Du Chau's Underdog (*1/2)
Kirsten Sheridan's August Rush (*)
Oliver Hirschbiegel's The Invasion (*)
Mark Steven Johnson's Ghost Rider (*)
Tim Hill's Alvin and the Chipmunks (1/2*)
Sean McNamara's Bratz (zero)
Hyung-rae Shim's Dragon Wars (zero)

Oscars 2009: Seen and Unseen

Things are winding down for Oscar season now. Major players next month, most notably my two personal most-anticipated of December, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "Revolutionary Road," and are finally having screenings for the press and being called modern cinematic classics. That I can't wait to see them is a given (I've mentioned it before), but the fact that I'm seeing both of them on two consecutive days is simply thrilling to consider. The early feedback is promising, as well.

Not many changes this week. Enjoy!

Best Picture:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director:

Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
Gus Van Sant, Milk

Best Actor:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Actress:

Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Kristin Scott-Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actor:

Josh Brolin, Milk
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress:

Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Original Screenplay:

Happy-Go-Lucky
Milk
Rachel Getting Married
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Visitor

Best Animated Feature Film:

Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E
Waltz with Bashir

Best Art Direction:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Revolutionary Road

Best Cinematography:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Revolutionary Road

Best Costume Design:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
The Fall
The Other Boleyn Girl
Revolutionary Road

Best Film Editing:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Makeup:

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Synecdoche, New York

Best Original Score (Note: "The Dark Knight" was officially disqualified from this category last week. Maddening, I know. That score is perhaps among the greatest of all time. If it was able, it would win.):

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Revolutionary Road
WALL-E

Best Original Song:

"All Dressed Up in Love," Sex and the City
"Down to Earth," WALL-E
"Now or Never," High School Musical 3: Senior Year
"Rock Me Sexy Jesus," Hamlet 2
"The Wrestler," The Wrestler

Best Sound Editing:

The Dark Knight
Defiance
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Sound Mixing:

Australia
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Visual Effects:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Iron Man

Review: Quantum of Solace (**)

Directed by Marc Forster

Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, Jeffrey Wright, David Harbour, Jesper Christensen, Anatole Taubman, Rory Kinnear, Tim Pigott-Smith, Joaquin Cosio, Fernando Guillen Cuervo, Jesus Ochoa.

2008--106 min.

Rated PG-13 (violence, sexual content)

Reviewed by The Teen Critic on November 15, 2008.

In 2006, "Casino Royale" stood tall in my mind as one of the best action movies of the past few years. It was fresh, exciting, riveting, innovative, and (at 144 minutes) nearly epic in its execution. Daniel Craig, it seemed, couldn't go wrong as James Bond, delivering a brilliant performance and making a darn-good action hero at the same time. I gave it four stars as an action movie second only to "Mission: Impossible III," that year's best summer flick. With "Quantum of Solace," the tables have been turned. This is a brooding, indecipherable action film, every bit on the level of "Hancock" or "Jumper." Mind you, the film is a bit better than those, but it is every bit as disappointing.

Kicking off mere minutes after "Casino Royale," "Quantum of Solace" largely takes place in Bolivia, as Bond tracks down Dominic Greene, whose evil plan consists of thirsting sections of the country, then upping the prices and getting lots of money for it. Meanwhile, Bond continue's to find the killers of his one great love, Vesper Lynd (who was played so brilliantly by Eva Green). The "Bond Girl" this time around is the nearly emotionless Camille, played by Olga Kurylenko as a drone going through the motions. Even the kiss between them feels almost reluctant.

"Quantum of Solace" is not a good movie. It is a very skillful one, though, and the action scenes are almost at a "Bourne" level of excitement and tension. But couldn't director Marc Forster (who stepped so right with low-key dramedies such as "Finding Neverland" and "Stranger than Fiction," yet somehow steps so wrong with this film) made the plot even a bit more accessible? The bits above are stuck together from the tiny sections I was able to decode. I did not understand one bit of the plot, thus the action scenes were purely empty of humanity. You never got that with "Casino Royale."

Daniel Craig, again so good in the original, is utterly emotionless as Bond. This takes some sort of meditation to consider. Craig is good in everything (even last year's disastrous "The Invasion), so where does he go wrong? Easy: He loses all credibility when things are not blowing up and people are not getting shot. He nails the action hero. But at least the chemistry with Vesper Lynd goes beyond the physical realm; I never less than believed in the relationship between Bond and Lynd. His chemistry with Camille is nearly nonexistent. They spend half the movie arguing and the other half moping.

There is a problem with "Quantum of Solace," and that problem lies in the storytelling. Earlier this year, "The Dark Knight" surprised us with a labyrinthine plot that we could invest our interest in and not become confused. All of its trick were laid out on the table sooner or later, if not at the beginning, and the movie was a masterpiece for it.

I'm not sure "Quantum of Solace" has any tricks. As far as I could tell (which wasn't very far), the proceedings were utterly predictable. There were no "revelatory moments." At the same time, though, I had no idea what was going to happen, because I didn't know what had happened or how we got there. Or why. Or why I should have cared. What Bond is this? Agent 006.25?

Mini Review: No Country for Old Men (****)

"No Country for Old Men" was the best film of 2007, bar none. Every single sequence worked, every single performance resonated. In fact, looking back at my top 25 of all time (it was #12), It was definitely among the five greatest films this decade has shown. So terrifying a villain was Javier Bardem that it's hard to say who would win in a fight between him and the Joker (my bet's on the latter, but that's just me). Bardem is terrific in the role and deservedly won the Oscar for Supporting Actor. Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin (serving up some surprisingly intricate performances for such a hard-edged film) are equally effective and were snubbed of any golden nods in 2007.



The film is set in the year 1980. Vietnam veteran Llewellyn Moss is out hunting when he finds the bloody outcome of a drug deal gone bad. All of the drugs are missing, all of the people involved are dead or dying, and Moss is left holding a satchel of money and guns all to himself. On his tale are two people: Sheriff Ed Tom Bell, who finds the scene of the crime while on call, and the animalistic serial killer Anton Chigurh, who is after the money, no questions asked. As bodies pile up, Bell, Moss, and Chigurh enter a cat-and-mouse game with eachother (or would that be a dog-cat-and-mouse game?)


"No Country for Old Men" is flawless, simply put. I have watched it more than four times and cannot find a mistake anywhere. The cinematography, by the great Roger Deakins, is beautiful, the film and sound editing are perfection, and the lack of a musical score allows for additional tension: there is no falsified lead-up to the violence.

"No Country for Old Men" is undeniably nihilistic--containing few hopeful scenes (if any)--and has a maddening ending for anyone who likes convention. But in my opinion, the ending is nothing short of brilliant. It's a chilling and unforgettable capper to one of the great movie-going experiences of the past ten years. As for it being nihilistic, one can't blame that on sibling directors Ethan and Joel Coen. The original source material--the short story by Cormac McCarthy, previously thought unfilmable due to the writing style--is exactly the same. What the Coens have done is stayed almost creepily faithful to McCarthy's masterful story. It's a perfectly balanced film, containing shocking violence and dark, morbid moments of humor, and a brilliant potboiler to boot.

Mini Review: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (****)

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is a great musical. But it's also a veritably creepy horror movie and an effective human drama. But it's mostly a musical. That Tim Burton was even able to pull this off (after the poor reception to the 80s film version and a late-90s direct-to-cable release, the Broadway smash was thought to be unfilmable from then on) is a testament to his talents as a director of quirky, dark, strangely funny works. "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is among his finest, a dark, grim, almost savagely intimate classic of both its genres.

Benjamin Barker is a barber whose marriage comes to an abrupt halt when his wife and child are stolen (yes, stolen) by a ruthless politician. He's sent to prison on false charges of treason and sedition. Upon his return, Benjamin has changed his name to Sweeney Todd, given into depression and given up on hope. Soon, a rival barber by the name of Signor Adolfo Pirelli arrives in town. Sweeney simply won't have it, so he and local piemaker Mrs. Lovett cook up a scheme: Kill people, cook their remains, and bake them into pies.

Overall, "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is Burton's most nihilistic and unbelievably savage film yet, but it's still a twisted delight to watch. As with most of 2007's films, the cinematography is beguiling, it's use of blacks and grays contrasting nicely with the red blood. Interestingly, the blood gives the film a morbid beauty.

This is Johnny Depp at his finest. Yes, he's showy and brilliant in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" trilogy, but his role in this film is the most effective in a long time. Equally powerful are Helena Bonham Carter and Alan Rickman, both utterly snubbed for their roles. But the very best in the film was Borat--ahem, Sacha Baron Cohen in the cameo role as Pirelli. Cohen's a force of nature.

All in all, as you will see with my long-delayed Top Ten of 2007 later this month or early next month, "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is one of Burton's masterpieces and one of the best films last year.

Mini Review: There Will Be Blood (***1/2)

Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" isn't the masterpiece that some critics claim it to be, but that doesn't mean it's bad. In fact, it's amazing film in its own right. But there are major quibbles to be had with the ending. It's fortunate, then, that its lead performance is so mesmerizing, brilliant, groundbreaking, and nearly earth-shattering in its utter believability that it makes up for any inconsistencies or sudden drop-offs. Also, the cinematography is simply wonderful the whole way through, and the filmmaking by Anderson is some of the most exquisite in recent memory.

Daniel Plainview is not a likable guy. He didn't bat an eye when his best friend is killed on his watch, so obsessed with the oil business is he. Instead, he finished the mission he was on and immediately takes in his godson, H.W. Ten years later, he and H.W. are making lots of money in the oil field. Unfortunately, when a spitfire preacher named Eli shows up (claiming another name and identity completely), Daniel is close to breaking point. As his specialty is intimidation (he repeatedly makes death threats to sell oil rigs), he tries to scare Eli into shutting down his cult church gathering.

For about 145 minutes, "There Will Be Blood" ranked as one of the greatest films ever put on cinema. I was so utterly enthralled by this large section that it was almost painful when the movie gave up in the last quarter to a silly overreaching ending that comes to a complete halt when things should be heating up. It's too bad; the movie could have been a masterpiece.

A word on Daniel Day-Lewis: This is the best performance of the first seven years of the millenium. Although Heath Ledger later beat him out by somehow being even better in "The Dark Knight," Day-Lewis' performance is something for the history books. No, really. Books on acting would be remiss to forget Daniel Day-Lewis when talking about great, cinematic performances for the age.

The cinematography by Robert Elswitt, which one the Oscar last year, is utterly phenomenal. Visions seep into the memory and never let go (pick a sequence and it can be dissected for hours). Although I personally believe that Roger Deakins was robbed from his deserved win for the underrated masterpiece "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," that doesn't mean that the cinematography for "There Will Be Blood" was worse. It just showcases that 2007 was a history-making year for great cinematography. "There Will Be Blood" may be flawed, but it is an interesting must-see for future directors. Or actors.

Mini Review: Changeling (****)

Directed by Clint Eastwood

Cast: Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, Jeffrey Donovan, Michael Kelly, Colm Feore, Jason Butler Harner, Amy Ryan, Geoff Pierson, Denis O'Hare, Frank Wood, Peter Gerety, Reed Birney, Gattlin Griffith, Devon Conti, Eddie Alderson, Asher Axe, Lily Knight.

2008--148 min.

Rated R (violent and disturbing content, language)

Reviewed by The Teen Critic on November 4, 2008.

Clint Eastwood captured lightning in a bottle with 2004's "Million Dollar Baby," easily the best of 2004's impressive lineup. "Changeling" may not be the best film of 2008, but it is easily one of the best films of the year, due to a revelatory, quietly effective performance by Angelina Jolie that ranks as her best ever and cinematography so breathtaking one is lost in it for most of the running time. "Changeling" is a masterpiece of storytelling and true cinematic art. Expect this film to be high on my Top Ten of 2008.

Jolie stars as Christine Collins, a telephone operator whose son tragically goes missing during a long day at the office. She tells the police her story, and the police seem to believe her. When they find a boy who looks like, and claims to be, Christine's son, they return him to her. But she knows her son--knows that he's not been circumsized, knows that he does like movies, and knows that he is lying. The police, in their lack of common sense, do not believe her and at first appear to be covering up their mistake.

Oh, but there is so much more in its 148 minutes, which fortunately don't drag for one second. Eastwood has crafted a sprawling, intimate epic whose length is aided by an awards-worthy screenplay, top-notch performances across the board (no weak links as far as I could tell), and the aforementioned cinematography, which comes dangerously close to the heights reached by Roger Deakins's fine work last year in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" and "No Country for Old Men." If "Changeling" isn't the best of the year, its cinematography certainly is.

If Jolie is riveting, John Malkovich, Jeffrey Donovan, and Amy Ryan (in a slightly underwritten role that she sells all the way) are every bit her equal--especially Donovan, strangely believable with his Californian accent as Captain J. J. Jones. The ensemble is perfection personified.

OSCARS 2009: Old Faces and New

Not much change this week.

Best Picture:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director:

Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
Gus Van Sant, Milk

Best Actor:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Actress:

Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Kristin Scott-Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actor:

Josh Brolin, Milk
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress:

Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Original Screenplay:

Happy-Go-Lucky
Milk
Rachel Getting Married
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Visitor

Best Animated Feature Film:

Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E
Waltz with Bashir

Best Art Direction:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Revolutionary Road

Best Cinematography:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Revolutionary Road

Best Costume Design:

Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
The Other Boleyn Girl
Revolutionary Road

Best Film Editing:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Makeup:

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Synecdoche, New York

Best Original Score:

Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Revolutionary Road
WALL-E

Best Original Song:

"All Dressed Up in Love," Sex and the City
"Down to Earth," WALL-E
"Last Chance," High School Musical 3: Senior Year
"Rock Me Sexy Jesus," Hamlet 2
"The Wrestler," The Wrestler

Best Sound Editing:

The Dark Knight
Defiance
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Sound Mixing:

Australia
The Dark Knight
Defiance
Iron Man
WALL-E

Best Visual Effects:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Iron Man

Mini Review: Halloween (****)

Directed by John Carpenter
Cast: Donald Pleasance, Jamie Lee Curtis, Nancy Loomis, P.J. Soles, Charles Cyphers, Kyle Richards, Brian Andrews, John Michael Graham, Nancy Stephens, Arthur Malet, Mickey Yablans, Brent Le Page, Adam Hollander, Robert Phalen, Tony Moran.
1978--91 min.
Rated R (violence, language, nudity)
Reviewed by The Teen Critic on November 2, 2008.

John Carpenter's classic "Halloween" is drenched in the kind of suspense that few, if any, horror films today even dream of reaching. The music score is quite possibly the most iconic in film history, creepily showing up at moments of dread or unbelievable terror. That all of the horror film cliches are ticked off the hypothetical list isn't surprising--this film created those cliches. The POV of the killer, the going-to-the-place-where-you-heard-the-strange-noise scenes, etc., are all included but done so well that you forget you can predict exactly what's going to happen. Everyone knows the spare, no-subplots-given story: When he was 6, Michael Myers brutally stabbed his sister to death and was put into an insane asylum. Seventeen years later, Michael returns to his hometown to wreak more havoc.

"Halloween" is a masterpiece. There is no other way to put it. It's one of the great cinematic experiences and must be viewed in the dark on the namesake holiday (or the day before or after) for full effect. It is a film of sheer tension, one to give you nightmares, but it's also simply a great film. The performances by Donald Pleasance, as Michael's guilt-ridden doctor, and Jamie Lee Curtis, as the lion's prey herself, are close to flawless, while relative no-name Tony Moran plays Michael cold, calculating monster. The stark cinematography by Dean Cundey, the fluid filmmaking by Carpenter, the film editing that cuts from one scene to the next as slowly and methodically as Michael himself, and that irrepressible musical score--all aspects of "Halloween" make for a pitch-perfect filmic experience that ranks as the best horror film I've seen.