Lords of Dogtown

Starring: Emile Hirsch, Heath Ledger, & John Robinson
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Lords of Dogtown is a film about the legendary Z-Boys, who are credited with the creation of modern day skateboarding. The film chronicles the height of their success in the late 70's and their struggles in creating and rising to the top of a whole new industry. The story is terrific, written by one of the actual Z-Boys, but the way it was filmed was problematic. The beginning of the film is very choppy and confusing, honestly it's difficult to know who is who and what's going on until about the half way point of the film. The Z-Boys are the basis and stars of the film, but it's Heath Ledger who steals the show. He really had a gift for picking up on every mannerism and movement a person makes. People who know his character, Skip, say it's scary how much like him Ledger was. He was a truly gifted actor who would have been a legend. As for the film, it was interesting and a lot of information about a sport I always liked but never really thought much about. It's a bit confusing and shot in a weird style, but overall it really was pretty good.

In The Valley of Elah

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones & Charlize Theron
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

In The Valley of Elah is a true story, that follows the disappearance and murder of a solider, recently returning home from Iraq. Tommy Lee Jones plays that soldiers father, a retired Military Police Officer, who launches his own investigation, and he continues to be the best actor I've ever seen. Jones rightfully received an Academy Award Nomination for this role and really should have won. No matter the film, no matter if it's good or bad, Jones simply steals the show and makes it work. Charlize Theron was also terrific as the Detective who wanted to solve the case that nobody else wanted. In most things I've seen her in, I didn't like her, but here her performance actually rivals Jones's. This film is extremely well written and very methodical. If The Valley of Elah can't keep your attention and have you on the edge of seat, talking to the screen, than nothing else will. This is honestly one of the best written, acted, and important films I've seen in a very long time. This one's going on the must see list and you will defiantly not be disappointed!

Coming Soon...

Seriously... I can't wait! Generally I hate super hero movies, but I've always loved Batman!

The Day After Tomorrow

Starring: Dennis Quaid & Jake Gyllenhaal
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

In The Day After Tomorrow, the writers take a real life theory and magnify it by a billion, turning it into a apocalyptic special effects thrill ride. Something that is supposed to happen in thousands of years, happens in a couple days, with Jack and Sam Hall caught in the middle. While one is trapped in hard hit New York City, the other must track across the country to save him. Okay, it's a little cheesy and the acting isn't the best, but the special effects are some of the best I've ever seen. I like that it's based on fact and a look into a possible future, well beyond my lifetime and overall it was extremely entertaining. Many of my fellow reviews considered the film to be a warning on global warming, but that's really crazy. Unless you're Al Gore, you should see this movie for what it is. A bunch of smart writers having fun with a scientific theory that may or may not come true one day.

In Time

Starring: Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried, & Cillian Murphy
Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Time is money and money is time in Andrew Niccol's epic, In Time. In this film, human beings are genetically engineered. At the age of twenty-five, your clock starts ticking and your goal is to work in order to survive. The wealthy are immortal, while the poor die at a young age. The story is refreshingly unique and the film is done very well. Justin Timberlake stars, and shows that he's come a long way in a short time. When I heard he was starring in this film, I thought it would be another great idea destroyed by a cast of good looking people who can't act, but I was wrong. Timberlake shows he's got definite potential to be a big action star and that his n'suck days are way behind him. Cillian Murphy is also terrific as the timekeeper. What I love about Murphy is even when he's a good guy, he's still the guy you're rooting against. His personality makes him the perfect adversary in just about everything he does. In Time, is original, unique, fast moving, and intense. In a Hollywood full of re-makes, sequels, and uninspiring ideas that mimic one another, In Time is a breath of fresh air and was one of the most enjoyable and original films I've seen all year.

The Hunger Games

Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, & Alexander Ludwig
Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Hunger Games was everything I expected, but not more than that. I am a huge fan of the series, having read all the books months ago, but I've avoided the movie until all the hype died down, so that I could give an honest opinion, and here it is. The film was terrific, one of the best adaptation of a book I've read. Jennifer Lawrence was absolutely perfect as Katniss and if she doesn't get a ton of awards for the role, there is no justice in Hollywood. That's the good news, however the movie was far from perfect. Friends who went with me and had never read the books, found it to be slow, and didn't understand certain things. At times, I could see their point. Several major things were rushed or just left out of the film. This led to some confusion, and then there's Peeta. I love Josh Hutcherson and thought he was terrific, but the portrayal of Peeta wasn't accurate. He was nowhere near as likeable as he is in the books and he comes off looking like kind of a pussy. The end of the games was also problematic, as they changed a key point that I thought was pivotal going into Catching Fire. It will be interesting to see what they do to fix that before the next film. Overall I loved the movie and thought it was awesome, but if you didn't read the books, you might be a little confused by parts of it and see it as slow. Parts of the film that dragged on were explained through thoughts in Katniss's head during the book. Without knowing what was going on at those points, I could see how some audience members may have been bored with it. The movie and especially the books live up to all the hype and are well worth your time, The Hunger Games is something you are not going to want to miss.

Bang Bang You're Dead

Starring: Ben Foster & Tom Cavanagh
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Bang Bang You're Dead is a film based on the high school production by the same name and it is easily one of the most powerful and life-changing movies I've ever seen. This film is 11 years old and talks about bullying in schools, how it's a huge problem instead of harmless fun, and how it changes students lives forever. Some students become withdrawn, others depressed, some suicidal, and in the rare cases homicidal. This film follows a bullied student, named Trevor, who is on the edge of becoming all four when his drama teachers asks him to be in the play, Bang Bang You're Dead. It is a play inspired by Columbine, that takes place inside the mind of a school shooter, who is haunted by those he killed. This leads to the main point of this film, will the teacher and play save Trevor or push him over the edge? On a personal note, I was pretty small and got bullied at school, until I hit puberty. This is the first film that was actually able to express all the emotions I've had inside of me for so long. Trevor expresses every feeling and emotion that comes along with being a victim and feeling helpless. By the end of this film, I was crying like a baby. It is honestly one of the most powerful and important films I've ever seen and I only wish that someone would have shown it to me when I was in school.

P2

Starring: Rachel Nichols & Wes Bentley
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Movies derived from naturally creepy places and situations should be the scariest movies of all-time. Unfortunately, most of the time they are way too predictable to even be entertaining and that was the case with P2. A woman gets trapped in her office parking garage, on a holiday weekend, and is being stalked. Sounds interesting, but it wasn't. This film has got to be one of the slowest moving "thrillers" I've ever seen. The acting was actually pretty good in this film, but everything that happens, you know it's coming sooner or later and there are no surprises what so ever. Like I said the acting was pretty good, so it's not a total piece of shit, but it's slow, predictable, and just a really weak story. I usually love the "it could happen" type of films, but if P2 really did happen, no one would be surprised or really care all that much.

Beyond The Mat

Starring: Terry Funk, Mick Foley, Jack Roberts, & The Rock
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Adult professional wrestling fans aren't stupid, we know wrestling is fake and the outcomes are pre-determined. What none fans don't realize is why we like it. It's the drama, the pageantry, the cheesy stories, the costumes, and most of all the action. Yes, it's pre-determined and choreographed, but you still need to be charismatic and athletic, and night after night these guys put their bodies on the line just for our entertainment. People have been killed and paralyzed doing this, so to anyone who says it's not real and takes no skill, I point to this documentary. Beyond The Mat looks into the lives of these guys outside the ring and show the ancient Terry Funk, whose body has been ravaged from years in the ring. He can barely walk anymore, but still has to get in there and has to do this because it's all he knows and what he loves. Jake "The Snake" Roberts is also featured and he talks about how eight years on the road with WWE made him a neglectful father, a bad husband, and a drug addict. Roberts says between the pain and the constant moving around he could never have done it without drugs! Finally, they look at Mick Foley AKA Mankind, Dude Love, Cactus Jack and show how he's this normal family man and while his family knows it's for show, how much they worry. In the last 30 years, hundreds of pro-wrestlers have died under the age of 45, most of them due to the physical trauma they've put their bodies through or the dependence on drugs that has resulted from it. If those were NFL or MLB stars instead, there would be massive reform and congressional intervention, but the truth is no one cares about these guys, except of course their families, friends, and fans. Beyond The Mat is important because it shows just what these guys put on the line and just how little the people at the top care.

Chain of Fools

Starring: Steve Zahn, Salma Hayek, & Elijah Wood
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Chain of Fools isn't your typical laugh out loud movie, but it is a unique film with an interesting story and a chain of awesome guest appearances. Picture Ocean's Eleven, but instead of criminal masterminds, imagine the crew was just a bunch of idiots who fell into the perfect crime, and you'll understand what this film is about. Steve Zahn plays the lead and was terrific as the barber whose always in the wrong place at the wrong time. He wasn't my favorite of this unique cast of characters however, that award goes to Elijah Wood, who was hilarious as the emotionally scarred teenage hit man. Seeing this little guy, who Scotty could have beaten up, as the big bad hit man was just hilarious. Wood even attempts to grow a mustache for the role and fails miserably. On the surface this is a strange film and as you watch it, it gets stranger, but at the same time, it gets better and better. This is the kind of film you won't see very often, but watching it definitely has its advantages.

Captivity

Starring: Elisha Cuthbert, Daniel Gillies, & Remy Thorne
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Saw meets Hostel in this entertaining, but painfully predictable film. Elisha Cuthbert is the difference between Captivity and the dozens of lame horror movies produced every year. Don't get me wrong, Captivity is full of gore and has a ridiculously stupid storyline, but it's not that bad, and Cuthbert is the reason. The veteran actress, best known as Kim Bauer and The Girl Next Door, is very methodical with every move she makes and that really manages to keep your attention. The maze of traps, moving walls, and pitfalls were also really cool, but outside of that and Cuthbert, Captivity is your typical gore fest, with zero character development, and a chilling story that really doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I liked it for the little things, but overall, there's nothing special here, just another lame horror movie, that happened to land the right star.