True Grit

Who: Bill
What: True Grit
Where: Turner Classic Movies
Why: A classic John Wayne movie

No performer defined the western film genre better than John Wayne. One of his most defining performances is the character Rooster Cogburn in 1969's True Grit, which earned Wayne his only Oscar.

When her father Frank Ross is murdered, young Mattie (Kim Darby) embarks on a search to find his killer. She is smart, tough and emboldened with, well, "true grit". On her quest, she learns of the aging, tough and gritty U.S. Marshall named Cogburn. Mattie seeks his assistance, but Cogburn has doubts. Nonetheless, Mattie's determination and stubbornness impresses Cogburn who finds that Mattie reminds him a lot about himself. Also looking for Ross's killer is a Texas Ranger named Le Boeuf (Glen Campbell), who joins Cogburn and Mattie. He also hopes to collect a reward for capturing the outlaw named Tom Chaney (Jeff Corey), who had earlier killed a Texas Senator.

John Wayne excels as Rooster Cogburn in all the character's irritable, hard-drinking, unclean, patch-wearing, anti-hero glory. You simply DON'T MESS with Cogburn. He is one tough SOB. Period. This was a tailor-made role for Wayne, then at the pinnacle of an extremely successful career. Adding credibility to their roles are Kim Darby and Glen Campbell. Darby continues to occasionally appear in movies and on television as well as teach acting classes. Campbell of course is a popular Grammy-winning country singer and its been said that Wayne personally selected him for the part of La Boeuf. He also sings the film's title song. Other performers of note include Robert Duvall as Lucky Ned Pepper, Dennis Hopper as Moon, and John Fiedler as a lawyer named Daggett, whom Mattie references throughout the story.

Wayne would return to play Cogburn in 1975's aptly titled Rooster Cogburn with Katharine Hepburn. A TV movie with Warren Oates as Cogburn titled True Grit: A Further Adventure would follow in 1978, and in 2009 it was announced that Joel and Ethan Cohen are planning a remake of the original movie which would more closely follow the novel upon which it was based.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Star Wars:  The Clone Wars
Where:  @ home on DVD
Why:  It was Jonathan's b-day present

**Warning - I will be spelling every single Star Wars name incorrectly!**  Ever since we went to Disney's Star Wars Weekends and saw Ashley Eckstein (the voice of Asoka), we've been The Clone Wars fans.  Thanks to DirectTV, we recorded all of season 1 of the animated series.  But the movie preceded the animated series, and I've always been curious about where Asoka came from.

Unfortunately, this movie doesn't answer any of those questions.  Asoka just shows up because Obi Wan Kanobi wanted another padawan learner.  Since Anakin turned out awesome, he's ready to teach again.  Asoka shows up and says she's here to learn from Anakin, not Obi Wan.  Well, he has no interest in a padawan learner.  He's a free spirit, he's reckless, he can't teach somebody. Nice switcher-o Obi Wan!

The Clone Wars is in full swing.  Obi Wan, Anakin and Asoka go from one battle to another. When to Jedi's rest or even eat or sleep?

Then Jabba the Hutt calls.  His son is missing!  Even though he's not a friend of the Republic (the good guys), helping out Jabba will be a great ally for later.  The Jedi's find Jabba's son right away, but he's very sick.  They need to get him back to Jabba alive, or he'll kill the Jedi's.  Also, the Empire (the bad guys) are trying to kill the Jedi's as well.  Count Duko (the main bad guy) has Jabba convinced that the Jedi's have already killed his son, and they are coming to kill Jabba as well.  Of course, the opposite is true.  Count Duko is the one who has actually captured his son.

Holy cow - Jabba is ugly, but his little baby son is adorable!  It makes me wonder, where do little Jabba's come from?!?  Think about that for a moment.

In typical Star Wars fashion, many droids are killed.  Red and blue gun fire is everywhere.  The clone troopers also fall dead left and right.  It's not bloody or anything, but those are still people dying.  It's kind-of graphic for little kids.  Although, also in typical Star Wars fashion, the Jedi win, and the bad guys loose.

The movie doesn't really end per say … this part of the battle is over, but there are many, many other battles to be won.  Stay tuned to Comedy Central for the continuation of the story.  Star Wars just keeps going and going and going!

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Who:  Amber
What:  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Where:  cable
Why: I'm on a HP kick!

In my mini Harry Potter mania, I watched the 4th (I think???) movie, the Prisoner of Azkaban. This book/movie was probably the most suspenseful, both Sirius Black (the deranged killer on the loose) and Professor Lupin (the sucker who took over the Defense Against the Dark Arts job) aren't who they really seem.

Granted, if you read the books, it's not all the suspenseful, but if not, be ready to be surprised!

This movie was very long, and very intertwined.  Be ready for a long 'magical' going back in time sequence!  Oh that super smart Heromie, what will she get into next?

The big wizard news story of the year is escaped prisoner Sirius Black.  He's been there for 12 years, and he wants revenge on … guess who … Harry!  Seriously, Harry can't just can't catch a break.  12 years ago Sirius told Lord Voldemort where Harry's parents were hiding. Sirius is responsible for Harry's parents death!  Or is he …

Be sure to either read this book or see this movie.  One of the major characters is Buckbeak the Hippogrif.  When Universal opens Harry Potter Land next year, I believe Buckbeak will have his own ride.

Did I mention that magical people can willingly turn themselves into animals (awesome!).  So is that dog really a dog?  And how about that rat with only 9 fingers?  Is that a werewolf a person, or a killer werewolf?

Find this movie on ABC Family and check it out!

Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix

Who:  Amber
What:  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (HP5)
Where:  borrowed it from my friend Dawnita
Why:  I'm getting ready for the next Harry Potter movie

Hi, I'm 33 years old and I love the Harry Potter movies and books.

This movie was great, as they all are, but extremely long. It seems like it would never end!

This movie starts where the 4th movie ended. Cedric has been killed by Voldemort, who is 100% back. Unfortunately, only Harry has seen Voldemort, so nobody really believes that he's back for good. Everybody is pretty much in denial. Harry is annoyed and ticked off at everybody who fails to believe him.

Thankfully, the Order of the Phoenix believes Harry. The Order of the Phoenix is a group of all the 'good guys' who plan to fight Voldemort. Ron's Parents, Sirius Black, Lupin, Tonks, etc. They are all living and planning things together at Sirius's boyhood home. Harry, Ron, Hermione are all staying there for the summer as well. As usual, the adults don't really tell Harry much of anything, which also really annoys him.

Since Harry knows Voldemort is back, and most of his friends believe him, they decide to take action. They need to learn how to defend themselves, and fast. Harry creates the "D.A." (Dumbledore's Army), and they sneak around after classes, practicing spells and jinxes.

The big finale is a huge showdown at the Ministry of Magic. There is a random prophecy that Voldemort needs (for some reason …). Since the prophecy is about Harry, he is the only one who can retrieve it. I can't remember why Harry thinks it's a good idea to retrieve the prophecy, but he does. In a "we're friends till the very end!" moment, Ron, Hermione and 3 other friends go with Harry to help him. Voldemort shows up, along with his powerful Death Eaters, and the showdown begins! Spells, jinxes, broken prophecies and the death of a major character later … (should I tell you the ending … I think not!)

Grosse Point Blank

Who:  Amber
What:  Grosse Point Blank
Where:  @ home on cable
Why:  John Cussak (sp?) is always fun!

Martin (Cussak) and is a tough hitman, but he's a little messed up in the head. He has recurring dreams about his high school girlfriend, who he stood up on prom night 10 years ago.

Thankfully, his 10 year class reunion is coming up! And, he's got a hitman job to do around the same time, so he heads home to Grosse Point, Michigan.

His high school girlfriend Debi (Minnie Driver) is kind-of a moron. She seems stuck in the 80s, and she's pretty annoyed at Martin for ditching her at prom. Martin is pretty open and honest about being a hitman, but nobody seems to A) believe him or B) care. Martin and Debi hang out and have a great time at the reunion ... until another hitman shows up to get rid of Martin. Seems like his agency has decided that he's no longer needed. I think there was a back story that I missed or didn't really understand.

Debi finally realizes that Martin is a real killer (when she finds him sitting next to the hitman who came to kill him, and Martin is covered in blood) and totally freaks out!

Remember the hitman job that Martin has in Michigan. Could it be a good friend of Debi's? Will she finally realize Martin loves her, and give him another chance?

The Running Man

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  The Running Man
Where:  @ home off cable
Why:  Jonathan has never seen it, and it's a classic in my book

In the far future ... 2017 ... the world economy has collapsed. Sounds familiar huh? Well, in the late '80s, the year 2017 was far away.

The US has become totally controlled by the government, even TV. The most popular TV show is called The Running Man. It shows a couple criminals running away from "the stalkers" whose job is to kill them. Literally - kill them. People love seeing criminals killed by the stalkers!

Ben Richards (Schwarzenegger) used to be an Army military pilot. On a routine mission, the Army asks Ben to fire on some innocent people. He refuses and his Army captain knocks him out, and fires on the innocent people. Then he frames Ben, and he goes to jail for 2 years ... until he escapes!

Unfortunately, he doesn't get very far. Next thing he knows he's on The Running Man, along with 3 of his good buddies.

Richards is a tough dude. Unstead of being killed by the stalkers, he takes them out one by one.

This movie is a cheesy ball of goodness! Although, I highly recommend the short story by Richard Bachman (aka: Steven King). It's a fantastic read! Way better than the movie!

Live Free or Die Hard

Who:  Amber
What:  Live Free or Die Hard
Where:  @ home, I own it on DVD
Why:  It's a classic!

NYPD Detective John McClane (Bruce Willis) randomly receives a phone call from the FBI to drive NY hacker named Matt Farrell (Justin Long) down to Washington. Turns out there was a hack in an FBI computer system, so they would like to question all hackers who are on the "list".

Right when John gets to Matt's apartment, a group of men show up and try to kill John and Matt. Of course, McClane manages to get them both out, and kill a bunch of the bad guys in the process.

As it turns out, a group of terrorists have hacked into EVERYTHING - shutting down airports, traffic lights, social security, everything!

Thankfully, Matt knows enough about hacking and can help McClane shut them down. But not with out some crazy adventures! Since the hackers can see everything (there are cameras everywhere you know), they are making it extremely hard for our 2 heros. McClane kills more bad guys and gets him self out of unbelievable situations (seriously - they were a tad unbelievable).

The final straw is when the hackers kidnap Lucy, McClane's college age daughter. Yippe-ki-aye - let's go rescue her!!!

If you love action movies, then this is a MUST SEE. There are some great action and fight scenes. Did you know you can blow up a helicopter with a car? And Justin Long and Bruce Willis work really well together. Bruce Willis is an old school dude, and Justin Long is a young whipper snapper. But their banter back and forth is hilarious!

Blade Trinity

Who:  Amber
What:  Blade Trinity
Where:  @ home on cable
Why:  I like background noise

Seriously, the budget for this movie must have been unbelievable!  Everywhere you turn there is a famous person!  Wesley Snipes, Jessica Biel, Ryan Reynolds, Spence (from King of Queens), and Triple X (from WWE wrestling) is one of the vampire henchmen.  Awesome!

After killing human/vampires for 2 movies, Blade finds himself a wanted man by the cops and FBI. He's also still fighting an up hill battle with more vampires and their "humans".

But there are still some good guys around, the Nightstalkers (Biel and Reynolds). Blade joins forces with them to hunt the king of the vampires himself - Dracula. The vampire nation has awakened Dracula in order to use his blood to help them become hybrids, or daywalkers, like Blade. Man, those other vampires are so jealous of Blade!

Thankfully, Blade and a scientist have come up with a permanent solution. Some super drug that will kill all vampires (yeah, I didn't really understand how it would work). You know how you always hear that you should "kill the head vampire and all other ones would die". Well, injecting Dracula should kill all the other ones.

One huge vampire blood-kicking fight later and they are saved! Or are they ...

Honestly, if you've seen Blade 1 (great movie!) and Blade 2 (meh ...), then finish up the trilogy with Blade 3.  If you haven't bothered with the 2nd movie, then don't bother with this one.  Unless you enjoy seeing Ryan Reynolds shirtless, then by all means, check this out!!!

Sleath

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Slealth
Where:  @ home off cable
Why:  It looked decent

In the not-so-distant future, the Navy has teamed the 3 best fighter pilots together. Ironically, they are the 3 most gorgeous people in the world (Josh Lucas - man, he's got some great eyes, Jessica Biel and Jamie Foxx). At first, my thought was "Jessica Biel as a fight pilot, this is so lame!" But I've got to give her a hand, she was really believable. She was covered up the entire time. Even at a nightclub scene she has on the standard white navy uniform. Kudos Jessica Biel!

But, alas, the Navy is introducing a 4th member to the close knit team, a fighter jet piloted by a computer. Josh Lucas, the leader of the team, is leary of the new jet. He thinks you need emotions and moral judgement to fight in wars.

Of course, he's correct. As the jet "learns" combat manuevers from the super attractive human pilots, he learns some bad mannars as well. It also doesn't help that 'he' got struck by lightning!

Ok, seriously, this sounds like a horrible movie huh? Computer controlled jet, struck by lighting ... but this all happens with in the first hour. Then the movie gets really good. Jessica Biel has to parachute out of her plane into North Korea, and Josh Lucas has to crash land in Alaska, then attempt to save Jessica Biel.

Honestly, this movie is pretty good - if you enjoy action/adventure type stuff.

Pineapple Express

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Pineapple Express
Where:  rented from Blockbuster
Why:  We both wanted to see it

I'm a Judd Apatow, gross comedy movie fan.  This movie wasn't his typical lots of swearing, 'maybe this should be rated more than R' type movie.  It was really, really funny, but it wasn't openly funny.  It seemed like all the characters were just winging their dialog.  A lot of random stuff was said under their breath.  I think if I saw this movie a 2nd or 3rd time, it would be even funnier b/c I would hear more stuff.

Dale (Seth Rogan) is a process server.  He drives around and hands out court appointed papers.  It's an easy job that allows him to drive around and do the 2 things he loves:  smoke weed and listen to AM talk radio.  He's been recently buying weed from Saul (James Franco - almost unrecognizable from his Spiderman roll).  Saul was a weird character.  He seemed pretty intelligent, and he loves his grandma, but he's also a drug dealer and kind-of a moron.  Regardless, his Jaws t-shirt from the '80s and his Zumba pants.  (if you're a football fan, you know what I'm talking about!  Actually, they're not really Zumba brand, but they have that Zumba feel to them).

As Dale drives out to a big house to serve some papers, he sees a cop and a guy shoot somebody.  He freaks out, drops his weed (he's smoking 24/7!) and drives away (hitting the cop car in the process).  Unfortunately, the guy who murdered somebody was the head drug dealer in town.  Even more unfortunately, the weed he dropped was the infamous Pineapple Express weed.  Only one dealer in town had it - Saul.  So now Dale and Saul are on the run!  They can't go to the cops, because they are in on it!

The rest of the movie shows them on the run for the next 2 days, until the big showdown in a huge drug warehouse.  Dale and Saul are unlikely heros, but they manage to come out ok.  See this movie for the hilarious banter between Dale and Saul, for Dale's hilarious girlfriend, and even more hilarious father of the girlfriend!

One big bummer - that snazzy song from the previews is nowhere to be found.

Gran Torino

Who: Scott & Kerri, with some friends of ours
What: Gran Torino
Where: Showplace 16 Rockford IL
Why: We got a call, 'let's go to the movies' so we went!


I've been wanting to see this movie, but haven't had the chance to get to the theatre. I figured I'd have to wait til the DVD. I am glad we went.

This movie had a lot of funny moments, wrapped in a very serious film. Clint Eastwood plays a widower who does not get along with his neighbors, his kids, his grandkids, his priest.. you get the picture. Old Curmudgeon doesn't even begin to describe him. He's living in the house he raised his family in, and the neighborhood is now mostly Chinese Immigrants, but it's the gangs that are the real problem. He doesn't set out to be a hero, he really just wants to be left alone, and for people to stay off his lawn.

When the older cousin of the teenage neighbor (Tao) insists that Tao join his gang, things go bad. Tao is a quiet kid who doesn't know what he wants to do with his life, except he knows he doesn't want to be in a gang. There are no men in his life, his mom and sister are constantly bossing him around. He is very much in danger to being lost to the gangs, until Walt steps in.

Tao's mother feels Tao owes a debt to Walt (Eastwood), so she makes Tao work for Walt. Slowly Walt starts to warm to Tao, and especially Tao's sister, Su. In the course of events, Walt ends up saving both of them at different times from gang activity. Su and Tao do eventually befriend Walt, even against his will, he cares for them as well.

I do not want to give away the ending, it's very powerful, and in some ways shocking. But you leave that theatre with a "Wow." There was a lot of funny stuff through the entire film, I know when we watch it again on DVD, there's going to be a lot more dialogue we pick up on since there was such laughing in the theatre! But once you get to the end of the film, it was dead quiet in the theatre.

I'd heard this was a great film, although I think it's even better than I'd expected.

Freddy vs. Jason

Who:  Amber
What:  Freddy vs. Jason
Where:  @ home off cable
Why:  The 3rd movie in my horror movie marathon

This movie was cheese ball city - but if you are a fan of either Freddy Krugar (Nightmare on Elm Street) and/or Jason Voorhes (Friday the 13th), then you must see this movie!

The movie starts out with Freddy's back story.  They even show clips from his old movies!  Basically, the kids on Elm Street have forgotten all about him, so he's lost all his power.  His plan is to have Jason start killing people in Elm Street, then everybody will think he's back ... start to remember him, and *wham* his power will be resorted!  Then he can get rid of Jason, and continue killing kids himself.

Of course, the first to go are the slutty teens and the underage drinkers.

There is a quality back story with our main girl (somebody I've never seen before), her doctor father who works in a mental hospital and her boyfriend from 4 years ago who disappeared, who was actually in the mental hospital (although she didn't know that).

The kids and a young cop realize what is going on, and devise a plan to bring Freddy out of their dreams and into real life so Jason can get rid of him.  Let the serial killer showdown begin!

Who will win?!?  I'll never tell ... although the new Friday the 13th movie came out last weekend, so maybe that gives it away a little bit.

Pineapple Express

Who: Liz and Robert
What: Pineapple Express
Where: home
Why: we wanted to
Well, I have to be in the mood for movies like this and I sort of enjoyed it. The whole premise of this movie is this stoner, is about to serve a asubpoena to this guy and he watches the guy murder someone! This is after he has just picked up some new type of pot from his dealer. Well, it is all about trying to not be found by the guy who murdered the person and what happens to the stoner guy, ( I forget the names of the characters) and his drug dealer and the drug dealer’s drug dealer. It was such a farce because with all the shooting going on, people should actually be dead, but similar to a cartoon, these folks live and actually walk around! Without medical intervention- I mean this doesn’t happen in real life.
The funniest part of the whole movie was dinner with the stoner’s girlfriends’ parents. I really laughed out loud at that part, but the rest of it was just kind of stupid.
If you are in the mood to just laugh and put aside all normal ideas about the way things happen, then this movie is for you.

Zodiac

Who: Bill
What: Zodiac
Where: The Movie Channel-- offered free during January
Why: Portions of the movie were filmed near my hometown.

During the late 1960’s-early 1970’s, there were a series of unsolved murders in the San Francisco Bay Area. The suspect identified himself as the “Zodiac” through a number of taunting letters mailed to local police and area newspapers. To date, the case technically remains unsolved, although there is strong evidence of who was the actual culprit.

Zodiac follows the intense investigation by the police and newspaper reporters, focusing primarily on San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal), who takes an interest in the case after deciphering some of the cryptic codes in the killer‘s letters. Also covering the story is Chronicle writer Paul Avery (Robert Downey, Jr.). Early scenes alternate between the reporters and the investigators that include San Francisco police detectives Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and Bill Armstrong (Anthony Edwards), Vallejo Police Officer Jack Mulanax (Elias Koteas) and Napa County Sheriff’s Officer Ken Narlow (Donal Logue). The latter half of the movie follows Graysmith’s near obsession with the “Zodiac” as he writes a book on the case, in which he concludes the killer was a man named Arthur Leigh Allen (played in the movie by John Carroll Lynch). Allen was identified as a suspect and interviewed by detectives in 1971, but despite strong circumstantial evidence, there was never enough physical evidence to charge him with the "Zodiac" crimes. Allen died in 1992.

At almost three hours, Zodiac covers a lot of detail and many years (1969 to 1991), but holds your attention. The period detail is impressive thanks to excellent digital photography and realistic computer-generated effects shots. There is some blood seen when three of the actual Zodiac murders are depicted early in the film, but these are more suspenseful than horribly graphic (it still may disturb some viewers). One way to approach the movie is by seeing it as an expanded R-rated version of Law and Order. So if you have the time and enjoy a good (true) mystery, Zodiac is highly recommended.

Smokin' Aces

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Smokin' Aces
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  Nothing else to watch

Ok - can somebody explain this movie to me?  I understand most of it, but the ending was a little confusing to me.

Backing up, this movie was really good.  I really enjoy movies with 400 characters, like this one.  Also, I dare you to find Matthew Fox.  He's in 1 scene for about 5 minutes, and I didn't recognize him at all.

Ok, so there is a super mega mob boss who is offering $1 million dollar to any hit man who can kill Jeremy Piven (he plays such a great scummy Vegas loser).  So there are 4 sets of hit men who are on the case, as well as the FBI, who really need Jeremy Piven to testify against this super mega mob boss.

The hit men are awesome!  There is a crazy guy who loves torture.  A master of disguise guy.  3 low life Vegas bail bonds guys (they are way out of their league).  A set of girls (Alicia Keys is one), and a set of 3 INSANE brothers (seriously, they are insane).  Throw in Ray Liotta and Ryan Reynolds, and you've got yourself a drool-fest!

All these players head to Reno to find Jeremy Piven.  And I'll stop there ... I don't want to give anything away.  Since everybody gets to Reno when the movie is only 20 minutes in, you know nobody will kill him right away.  So there are a million twists and turns.  And the ending ... well, I'm going to need a little help with that.  Somebody explain it to me!

Valkyrie

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Valkyrie
Where:  AMC Pleasure Island
Why:  Jonathan picked

Let me start by saying I had NO desire to see this movie.  I don't like war movies and I'm not a Tom Cruise fan.  I was going to split up from Jonathan and see ANY OTHER movie at the theater, but there was nothing!  Not one single thing I wanted to see.  So I sucked it up and saw Valkyrie.

And I actually enjoyed myself!

If you know your history (which I don't, and I knew this!), Hitler is not assassinated.  So you know from the get go that Tom Cruise's plan isn't going to work.  Yet the movie is still interesting to see how many people hated Hilter, and how many people tried to assassinate him over and over again.

This movie got a little heat because of how un-German Tom Cruise is.  However, the first 5 minutes kind-of clear up that fact.  It's hard to explain, but I actually enjoyed a 100% English movie.  No super fake accents or hard to understand dialogue.

What would've made this movie great for me, is to show a montage at the end of the real men involved.  For example, Tom Cruise was General Staffenburg.  I wanted to see who the real General Staffenburg was.  I love when "real story" movie actually show the real people at the end - like the football movie Invincible!

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspien

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  The Chronicles of Narnia:  Prince Caspien
Where:  at home - Jonathan got the DVD for Christmas
Why:  I've never seen it

Let me just start out with, I'm not a huge fan of Narnia or Narnia-type movies.  In fact, Jonathan saw this in the theater by himself, while I went to go see Zohan (by myself).

This movie wasn't half bad, it's just not my cup of tea.

With in the first 5 minutes, the kids are whisked back to Narnia, which I was happy about.  Why waste time in England?!?  Turns out Prince Caspien is in trouble (people who want to be king are trying to get rid of him and steal the throne), and he blows a magical horn to bring the kids to Narnia.

Once they are there, they realize that Narnia has gone to pot, and try to figure out what happened.  Turns out the land of humans (where Prince Caspien lives) have made the Narnian extinct ... or so they thought!

The 4 kids, and Prince Caspien (totally shocked to see 'real live' Narnians!) wage a war to regain their independence.  They are tired of hiding in the woods, pretending not to be alive.

One big war after another, everybody lives happily ever after.

If you were a fan of the first movie, then I recommend you check this one out.  If you haven't seen the first one yet, then this movie might not make any sense.

Kung Fu Panda

Who:  Amber, Jonathan & Jonathan's family
What:  Kung Fu Panda
Where:  @ the in-law's house
Why:  Jonathan bought it on Black Friday

Jonathan normally has a semi prejudice for non-Disney/Pixar animated movies, so I'm surprised he bought this movie (granted, it was only $9) before we've even seen it!  I think the barrage of marketing finally pulled him in.  Plus that fact that is made tons of money this summer made me believe it was a "decent" movie.

This flick was 'ok'.  But it was your typical animated movie.  It was funny for the kids, and it tried to be funny for adults.  It had way to much childish chatter.  Plus all the A list celebrity voices ... totally unnecessary!  I mean, Angelina Jolie?  There were 2 female characters, and I knew she was a voice in the movie (b/c The Soup made fun of her), but I couldn't pick her out!  Why even pay her all that money to lend her voice.  I wish there were more oriental sounding voices.  This movie was supposed to be based in China.

Ok - on to the plot:  The Dragon Warrior is about to be picked for the first time in China's history.  Po, the fat, noodle-loving Panda (Jack Black) is too late to watch the ceremony.  He managed to light a chair on fire with a firecracker and blast himself right into the middle of the ceremony.  He gets picked on accident!  Oops - I didn't see that coming!

Of course, all the real kung-fu animals (who have been training all their lives to be the Dragon Warrior) are annoyed.  As Jonathan said, "and hilarity will ensue ..."

Did I mention an evil kung-fu warrior has escaped from prison?  This evil warrior wants to be the Dragon Warrior!  Oh no, Po, the fat Panda will have to fight him!  I can't imagine what will happen next ...

It was a cute movie.  I'm glad Jonathan bought it for only $9.  I kind-of hope he decides to sell it on ebay ... after I watch all the special features.

Australia

Who: Jaclyn
What: Australia
Where: AMC West Oaks (In the ghetto....)
Why: Hugh Jackman, hello?!

Let me preface this post by saying, this movie would have been a hell of a lot better if it had more Jackman and less Kidman.

This movie takes place during WWII when Australia was attacked by the Japanese after they attacked Pearl Harbor.

Drover (Hugh Jackman) is a stock-man and has to embark on one of the biggest cattle drives he's ever done when Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman), who has just inherited her husband's cattle ranch convinces him that they need to shake up the current beef monopoly in Australia... the Carney Cattle Company.

There is of course evil afoot when Carney and his people find out what Sarah is trying to do. She also finds out that one of the people who previously worked for her husband was also responsible for his death.

The kid in the movie steals the show. I'm not one for children normally but he was cute, though at times a bit cheesy. It was funny how he affectionately refers to Sarah as "Mrs. Boss".

It was a LOOOOONG movie. It probably could have been shortened, but it was still good. It looks like Nicole Kidman had some lip work done before filming. They drove me nuts through the whole movie because they just looked...off. And would it have killed the director to give Hugh a few more shirtless scenes? I think not.

Twilight

Who: Jaclyn
What: Twilight
Where: AMC Pleasure Island
Why: Needed to see what the hype was about.

This movie apparently was a best selling novel before it became a movie (I don't know, I never learned how to read and I live under a rock).

It's a story about a vampire family, the Cullens and a girl named Bella. Bella goes to stay with her dad while her mom and her new man go to spring training for his baseball team. When she gets to her new school, she ends up getting Edward Cullen as her lab partner.

Convinced he hates her, she becomes somewhat consumed with finding out what his deal is, and she finds out more than she bargained for....he's a vampire - duh.

Also, everyone at this new school is SUPER nice to Bella and not in a fake "we're really going to stab you in the back" way either. Which is SOOO not how life happens.

I liked it, but I liked it more once it was over. I'm not trying to be sarcastic...but if have you ever seen a movie where after it was over, you had time to reflect and wanted to see it again, you'll understand. The acting by Kristen Stewart (Bella) was pretty awful. I don't know if it was the character she was playing or just that she can't act.

I heard a lot of people were in an uproar about the lead characters they cast in this movie but I guess all book nuts will have an opinion about what they envisioned. Overall, I suppose it was an ok movie, but I still don't see what everyone was poopin' their pants about.