Movie #597 ........................."The Vow"

Movie #597 "The Vow" =-- I really liked this one. Once again, the critics disagree with the public --- 28% on rottentomatoes for critics, 68% for audience --- but what do we know, right? We can't possibly like movies that are well done, well acted, and full of emotion. Ah, that's the problem --- the film makes you care about a relationship, instead of laughing at some potty mouth language and situations that couldn't possibly happen in a relationship! I just thought it took its time to show you how a couple would deal with the worst of possible challenges ---- yet, it shows that if you really have found your soulmate, you'll find him/her again and again and again. I like that idea. It's very comforting and hopeful. I recommend this, and no, it isn't like a Nicholas Sparks' film --- it's much better. If not, just to see Rachel McAdams do the unbelievable. She actually makes Tatum Channing's acting look good!




Gave it 4 out of 5 stars.
The Vow
(2012) PG-13
Rachel McAdams stars in this romantic drama about a newlywed woman who slips into a coma after a car accident and awakens with amnesia. Her devoted husband (Channing Tatum) must help her recover -- and he also needs to win her back.
Genre:Dramas

Movie #596 .........................."Take Shelter"

Movie #596 "Take Shelter" is a very highly tauted film of 2011, so I was waiting to see it for some time. I was very disappointed --- it is very overrated. It isn't very scary, it's too slow to sustain much suspense with me, and instead of being dark, like it says below, it is more esoteric. Okay, here's why I think the critics think so highly of this film--- they are seeing metaphors to our economic system --- here you have a family man from Ohio, trying to afford money to not only feed his family, but pay for extra help to deal with his little girl who is deaf. He is an oil digger, and then one day it starts to rain oil on him. At least he think it does ---- it is a dream, is it a prophesy, or is it really happening? I found it so slowly paced, that I couldn't stay awake through long passages of it ---- and I tried two times. I finally got through it, but I must say, what I liked best was Jessica Chastain,the wife. She is hard to look away from ---- she's that good. M. Shannon (the husband) usually is that good, and for the most part he is very competent here, but like all the films this year, the story doesn't work enough for him and he came across bland to me. I couldn't wait until the end and when it finally came, I was left wondering ------first, what was the last line he delivered? so that warranted a reshowing of the last scene ---- which helped me with the line, but not much with the meaning. It makes you think that there's no stopping the bad times we are headed for in weather, morals, and our economy. So you really don't need to see this one. Not much to it ---- the critics wrote better criticisms of the film, than the actual writing of the screenplay here.




I rated it 2.8 stars out of 5.
Take Shelter
(2011) R
Michael Shannon stars in this thriller as a small-town family man who, determined to protect his wife and deaf daughter from impending disaster, builds an impenetrable storm shelter in the safety of his own backyard.
Genre:Independent Movies, Thrillers, Independent Thrillers
This movie is:Dark, Suspenseful, Scary

Movie #595 ........................."Wanderlust"

Movie #595 "Wanderlust" --- let me start this critique by saying again how tough it is to make a good comedy. This is definitely an adult comedy, and it works in many ways. There are some very funny moments, mostly from the capabilities of the cast to be silly, odd, awkward and throwbacks to the 60s flower children. All of which I enjoyed. Some of it is crude, and there is a bunch of nudity here. That was all okay with me, too, but I felt the one drawback was the up and down of the story. Like most comedy routines, there are hits and misses. So there are gaps here, noticeable time where laughs aren't to be found or jokes fall to the floor with a thud -------otherwise, I would recommend it. It's bawdy and naughty, but hey, it's tough to find a good comedy, so you might want to try it out, esp. if you are a Paul Rudd fan. (this means that we sit through minutes of Paul Rudd just asking silly sometimes, going way past the stupid line, but we just laugh or applaud him anyway because he's got that boyish charm that takes you with him) Oh, I might add, it was very obvious to me why Jennifer Anniston was on board with this film --------it's out there (which she tends to like, and I do, too), she works well with Paul Rudd (I highly recommend Object of My Affection, an earlier movie with the two of them which shows their chemistry), and her real bf is hysterical in this one --- and what talent! He's a writer, too, besides playing a shaman in this film, and is that him really playing classical guitar? Made me wonder just how talented this guy is!






I rated it 3.5 stars out of 5.
Wanderlust
(2012) R
Economic hard times force a New York couple to pull up stakes and head for Atlanta, where their boorish relatives are ready to take them in. On their way south, they spend a night at a hippie-style inn and wind up considering a whole new lifestyle.
Genre:Comedies

Movie #594 ........................."The High Cost of Living"

Movie #594 "The High Cost of Living" was a good solid hit with me. I had never seen a love story quite like this one and probably never will. It's very indie in story and casting --- it's Zach Braff with a woman with a thick French accent --- film takes place in Canada. He's a drug dealer and she's 9 months pregnant wth a husband too busy to make time for her ---- a car accident puts them together, neither to be the same again. It's dark, and it's slow paced, focused on character development, but I found it very intriguing, wondering how the heck it was going to end. It's not a necessity to watch, but it does tackle quite a few subjects here that aren't usually tackled in the film world. Another hit for Zach Braff, in my estimation!






I rated this 4 out of 5 stars
The High Cost of Living
(2010) NR
Well-to-do housewife Nathalie eagerly awaits the birth of her first child, while elsewhere in Montreal, small-time drug dealer Henry plans his next score. One night, their contrasting lives become intertwined when Henry hits Nathalie with his car.
Genre:Dramas, Independent Movies, Independent Dramas
This movie is:Dark, Sentimental

Movie #593 .........................."Read It and Weep"

Movie #593 "Read it and Weep" was a fun movie I watched the other night so I could recommend it or not for my niece, and I would recommend it. I was also intrigued with the actresses (the Panabaker sisters from Naperville) to see what they did with this film, and they were fun to watch. I had seen a movie with Kay ("Custody") and was very impressed with her acting, so I wanted to check out what she's done other than that film ---- she IS talented and so is her sister. In fact, all the kids are really well done in this film --- my complaint is with the adults --- they act so stupid, esp. the father in this film. Overall, the film seems a bit uneven in parts, with some scenes way out of proportion and not believable, but I think it's supposed to be goofy that way. There's this muse of the girl that prompts her to do extreme things to get attention ------and by the end of the film, she has conquered the urges to be bigger than life. Good film, esp. for junior high and early high school (that's what it is about --- freshman year in high school. With a cute little love story, to boot. I recommend it for fun.





Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Read It and Weep
(2006) NR
The target of endless verbal abuse at school, 14-year-old Jamie (Kay Panabaker) documents her pain in a private journal. When she unwittingly submits the journal to a writing contest, Jamie becomes famous and very, very popular. Stardom comes at a price, however, and Jamie must judge the quality of her own character. Director Paul Hoen brings Julia De Viller's book to life in this screen adaptation originally aired on the Disney Channel.
Genre:Children & Family Movies, Movies for ages 8 to 10, Movies for ages 11 to 12, Disney

Movie #592 ........................."Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey"

Movie #592 "Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey" -- Dave and I loved watching this --- a wonderful journey from an 8 year old who made his first puppet out of his dad's coat to Elmo (and several other characters) and working with the best of the best. Such a tribute to Jim Henson and crew. If you are fond of seeing this type of documentary, then this is the one to check out. Well done and very complete story.





Rate 5 stars out of 5
Being Elmo
Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey
(2011) PG
Beloved by millions of children, Elmo is a global icon. However, few people know the soft-spoken man behind the furry red monster: Kevin Clash. Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, this documentary follows the Clash's remarkable career as a puppeteer.
Genre:Documentaries, Biographical Documentaries, Social & Cultural Documentaries
This movie is:Emotional, Imaginative, Inspiring, Heartfelt, Sentimental
Availability: Streaming (DVD availability date unknown)

Movie #591 ........................."Custody (of the Heart) t.v. movie

Movie #591 - t.v. movie "Custody (of the Heart)"

I rated it 4 stars out of 5
Movie stars Rob Morrow as a dad whose wife died when her daughter was 5 years old and he has been raising her since --- she is now in high school and her read dad has come back to take her away from him ---- and he hasn't even found the time to tell the daughter he raised that he isn't her real father. The daughter Kay Pannabaker is a wonderful little actress and I'm eager to see her in more stuff. The real dad is Denton, the plumber on "Desperate Housewives." This was a fun thing to watch when I was filing my scrapbook stuff today --- a notch above the t.v. type movies. Basically because of the story being pretty intriguing (although you probably have seen it before) and the acting.