Moonrise Kingdom (Movie Review)

Set on an island off the coast of New England in the summer of 1965, Moonrise Kingdom tells the story of two twelve-year-olds who fall in love, make a secret pact, and run away together into the wilderness. As various authorities try to hunt them down, a violent storm is brewing off-shore -- and the peaceful island community is turned upside down in more ways than anyone can handle. Bruce Willis plays the local sheriff. Edward Norton is a Khaki Scout troop leader. Bill Murray and Frances McDormand portray the young girl's parents. The cast also includes Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, and Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward as the boy and girl. -- Rotten Tomatoes

~~

I have to thank the universe (and an old as hell giftcard) for this Sunday afternoon delight, because Moonrise Kingdom was just incredibly awesome. That was really all I could think leaving the theater yesterday - that the movie I had just seen was fantastic. 

From the first scene of the movie you're transfixed, not only by the scenery - which looks like it's been Instragramed (I mean this in the best way possible) - but by the characters as well, as all of them are so cooky and ridiculous. Sam and Suzie run away together after one quick meeting during a church play followed by a series of letters and even when you can't believe they love each other enough to go through the adventures they do, they show you how it's possible. All of the dialogue is witty and hilarious; I found myself bursting out laughing on multiple occasions, overcome by sheer disbelief at what had just happened. As I'm sure every review says, Bill Murray and Bruce Willis are so much fun to watch and do a great job portraying the weirdos they've been given. In the end it's a film of people who don't quite fit but are convinced that Sam and Suzie are the odd ducks. I loved it and I can't wait to buy it on DVD.

P.S. - Oh and Suzie is by and far the cutest little mini- Lana Del Ray I have ever seen! 

Resident Evil: Afterlife (movie review)

I don't love zombie movies. I don't hate them, but I don't love them. Like a lot of things in life my feelings are completely dependent on the movie itself. 

I did like Resident Evil & Resident Evil: Apocalypse. They had just enough action, blood, gore, and kick-ass female characters to keep me interested without over the top special effects and stupid dialogue. Resident Evil: Afterlife though? Boring, oh god so boring. If I hadn't been watching this with a friend of mine there were would have been many places where fast forwarding was required. Thank goodness I watched it at home so my snarky comments didn't annoy anyone but myself. 

Most of the dialogue in RE:A was blah and then the characters themselves weren't interesting. Plus I had so many damn questions throughout the movie I couldn't even enjoy what action there was. I mean, how do you have a huge weird hooded monster (with rusty nails and a big axe/hammer thing), kill it, and just never address it again? Or where it came from?

Sigh.

I'll probably still watch the next one (Resident Evil: Retribution is scheduled for September 2012) but definitely not in theaters.

Movie Review - Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

Sherlock Holmes has always been the smartest man in the room...until now. There is a new criminal mastermind at large-Professor Moriarty - and not only is he Holmes' intellectual equal, but his capacity for evil, coupled with a complete lack of conscience, may actually give him an advantage over the renowned detective. When the Crown Prince of Austria is found dead, the evidence, as construed by Inspector Lestrade, points to suicide. But Sherlock Holmes deduces that the prince has been the victim of murder-a murder that is only one piece of a larger and much more portentous puzzle, designed by Professor Moriarty. The cunning Moriarty is always one step ahead of Holmes as he spins a web of death and destruction.

~~

Let's be real with each other - this isn't a movie review blog for a reason. Mostly because I just don't want to pay the exorbitant fees necessary for the big screen. Still, in keeping with my friend's Jewish traditions, Christmas Eve seemed as good a time as any for a movie/Chinese food adventure. I wanted to see Arthur Christmas, but it wasn't in theaters any more (cause somehow that makes sense for a CHRISTMAS movie)! Instead the former roomie chose Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and I can happily say that even without seeing the first movie it was loads of fun.

Robert Downey Jr. rightfully steals the show as Holmes, with all the wit, combat skills, and 'urban camouflage' you could ask for. While I'm not the biggest Jude Law fan he also did a great job as Watson, the long suffering side-kick who's only goal really is to somehow get back to (or on at all) his honeymoon.  Sometimes I felt like the movie was overusing the trick of slow mo-ing the action beforehand, but it never got too annoying. There were plenty of laugh out load moments and I definitely want to go back and see the first.

Recommended, holiday or not :).

Eleanor's Secret *Movie Review*

Seven-year-old Nathaniel goes to spend the summer vacation in the seaside villa that belonged to his old aunt Eleanor. Nathaniel's parents inherited the villa and Nathaniel also received a gift in his aunt's will: a whole library of old books. The inheritance doesn't much interest him until he discovers that the books are inhabited--Captain Hook, Alice and even the Wicked Fairy all live inside. These tiny heroes of children's literature need Nathaniel to protect them and all he has to do is to read the magic inscription in the library to keep them alive. But Nathaniel still has problems with reading and before he can decipher the inscription the books are sold to a secondhand dealer. Nathaniel, now shrunk by the Wicked Fairy to the size of the storybook heroes, must try to save his tiny friends and their stories.

So I'm not sure what it says about me that I went out of my way, way out of my way, yesterday to go to the free viewing of this movie at the National Gallery of Art. This original showed up on my radar due to the Free Things to Do in DC blog and once I realized it was about books/reading I was hooked. I probably should have been deterred when I saw that it was a kids movie, but it is a foreign kids movie, which in my opinion usually means it's more suitable to be enjoyed by people of all ages.

It was so cute to walk into the auditorium at the Gallery and see all the kids with their parents!

When the movie began I was hit with two things right off the bat- 1) the film's artwork was very interesting to see, with its very obvious tie to the illustrations in picture books, and 2) Nathaniel's sister was a brat! (she redeems herself in the end, but still!) The movie is rated for 6 years old and up I think, but I did notice some of the younger children pop up with cries of being afraid, so keep that in mind if you're interested in taking your kids to see this. Eleanor's Secret didn't quite hold my attention, I think the storyline's a little slow in places, but it is a kids movie, and if you're looking for something inspiring to watch then this movie definitely fits the bill. I think as we age we forget how scary reading can be if you don't pick it up immediately. Nathaniel is an incredibly sympathetic character, one the viewer is rooting for right from the beginning, and when he's combined with funny renditions of well known childhood literary heroes, the whole thing hits just the right emotional notes.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs up.

Monster House (Movie Review)

I realize this isn't a book review, but I saw the end of this movie yesterday and I find myself simply compelled to write something about it.

***SPOILER WARNING***

(I'm not kidding, spoiler warning, I go into specifics of the storyline and the ending)

***YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!***

I have to say, this movie is not for kids! I understand that 'kids these days' are more mature and possibly can handle this kind of horror better, but this story line was just not appropriate!

By the time I start watching the movie, the 2 kids are already trying to 'put to sleep' this house, which is apparently tormenting the neighborhood by stealing toys and tricycles and things from children as they pass by. As you can imagine, the house does not take this lying down and there's scary wooden teeth things, pipes that suck children away, and then all of sudden rising water that almost drowns the 3 of them while pushing them out of the house.

This was all scary enough, but still seemed in the realm of possibility for a kids movie. What really bothered me was the story line behind why the house acted like this. The owner of the house, Mr. Nebbercracker as a youth visits this traveling side show and falls in love with the Giantess. Apparently the Giantess has been kept captive by this show, tormented by the visitors, until Mr. Nebbercracker steals her away to marry. He buys her a plot of line, promises to build them a house and take care of her - at least until the worst happens.

One Halloween a few kids, being as thoughtless cruel as some kids can be, come by and start throwing eggs at the house and she just get's infuriated at the injustice of it. But when she tries to go after the kids Mr. Nebbercracker stops her - or at least he tries to. She knocks him down, loses her balance, stumbles backward, hits the cement machine, and falls backward into the newly dug basement of the house and gets covered by the cement that falls in afterward (crazy right?). Well Mr. Nebbercracker decides to finish building their dream house, though as he says 'Constance never left', instead remaining, embodying this house and tormenting the neighborhood.

Now does any part of what I've just described sound like a kids movie? HELL NO!

From here on out the movie focuses on all of them, the kids and Mr. Nebbercracker, coming together to try and destroy this house - to let Constance free. It's filled with action and some pretty neat affects, but this is just too heavy to be part of kids movie shown at 3 in the afternoon on Cartoon Network! I would not let my kids watch this! Like it just seems completely ridiculous to me that this movie is marketing towards an age group that is not prepared to handle content of this nature. It's just mind boggling to me.

I realize that this is a ridiculous rant and I probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but I'm just putting it out there that movies for kids were better when I was a kid. They managed to be appropriate while still being fun and adventurous. Where did that go?