Just trying to quickly catch up on reviews of TV shows and Movies I don't think I've covered yet. It's been a crazy couple of months (holidays, shows, Malcolm, etc)...so I've been a bit lax. Trying to get back on a schedule desperately.
Anyway...
American Pie Presents The Naked Mile -- After three hit movies, Universal decided to take this "franchise" the direct-to-video route. This second DTV Movie (making it part 5 in the series) is a marked improvement over the last one (which made my Worst 5 list last year if I remember correctly). Focusing on yet another Stifler, this one being the black sheep of the family (he's an innocent virgin), this film still has some tasteless silliness in it, an out of place appearance by Eugene Levy in some bizarre attempt to keep continuity and a sub plot involving a fraternity of midgets...but it also has some really funny bits (like the over-the-top raunchy opening involving Matt Stifler's accidentally killing his grandmother...won't tell you how, just see the film...it almost rivals Eugene Levy walking in on his son and the pie in the first film). Worth a rental if you've got some time and want to chuckle a bit (and like boobs as there's lots) and no prior knowledge is really necessary of the series.
Dreamgirls -- This year's Broadway musical turned movie is a huge step up from what we got last year. Engaging and energetic, this film is getting a lot of praise and its all deserved. Jennifer Hudson's standout performance as Effie White will have you in awe (especially during her big number "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"). The only "weak" bit is the insertion of a new song for Beyonce's Deena Jones that reeks of a diva needing a song because the best song in the show is going to the "secondary" character (see my above comment about Jennifer Hudson's Effie White). Eddie Murphy also reminds us he has talent beyond dressing in fat suits and latex boobs before Norbit opens. If you like musicals, you need to see this. One of the best films of the year.
Snakes on a Plane -- The title says it all. You get about 30 minutes or so of set up (Samuel L. Jackson is an FBI agent escorting a murder witness to a safe place away from gangsters trying to kill him) and then all hell brakes loose (the gangsters try to kill the witness by putting snakes on the plane). The last 20 minutes (just as Jackson utters his most famous line from the trailer) the film turns into one of the funniest films ever (watching Jackson and Keenan Thompson trying to land the plane was one of the funniest things this year). Worth a rental, but know what you're getting (remember its called Snakes on a Plane, not Schindler's List).
Children of Men -- This dystopian sci-fi thriller is not only one of the best depictions of a possible future to come along in a very long time, its (as of now) the best film I've seen from 2006. Clive Owen does an amazing job as a government clerk who gets involved in transporting a woman who may hold the key to humankind's survival (the movie's premise is that by the year 2027 all women will have been infertile for 18 years...meaning the human race is just waiting to die out). Moving and uplifting, this is a film that will make you think. Everyone should see it (especially since it does have parallels to what's going on in our world today...which may anger some who lean to the right on certain subjects).
The Prestige/The Illusionist -- Two films about magicians at the turn of the century (the previous ones) that have a lot in common and yet are vastly different. Both are amazingly well written and well acted and I can't wait to see them again. While we could have done without the "Usual Suspects" recap at the end of The Illusionist (the one that stars Edward Norton) since you should have seen the "surprise" ending coming a mile (or ten) away, we needed the one at the end of The Prestige (the one that pits Batman Christian Bale against Wolverine Hugh Jackman) if only to hammer home the "twist" (and its ramifications) even more.
Cars -- Pixar's streak continues with this funny film for all ages. Though there's some irony in a film that seems nostalgic for a time when small business was the way of the world being made by Disney & Pixar.
Beer Fest -- The guys at Broken Lizard bring us another really funny film (this one about a secret beer drinking competition) that has some odd bits that don't work (like one of the characters waking up like the main character in An American Werewolf in London or another where they kill off one of the characters in an odd way and then replace him with a twin brother). Worth a look if you like to laugh.
Beer League -- I gotta admit...I don't have time for movies that don't engage me after a while. This one took me ten minutes to give up on. It seemed like it was basically The Bad News Bears with drunken grownups.
Scoop -- Woody Allen brings us his annual film. This one, about a dead journalist who returns to impart a big murder story on a journalist student who then becomes romantically linked to the suspect, is better than most, but not as good as others (in the Woody Allen genre...let's face it...the man does deserve his own genre at this point).
You, Me and Dupree -- Having grown rather tired of Owen Wilson, I was very surprised at how cute & charming this film was. Don't expect more out of this story about a guy still holding onto his youth while essentially living with his newly married best friend. I do have one complaint...Wilson & Matt Dillon are no longer young enough to seem like they're just out of college...or grad school...or even a doctorate program. Younger actors might have made this more believable.
Nacho Libre -- My wife is a big Jack Black fan and even she was bored after 10 minutes. So back in the Netflix envelope it went.
Well, that's all for today. I'll be back tomorrow (or soon there after) with a catch up on TV shows.
Be seeing you.
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