GI Joe - No Longer the American Hero

We knew that it was going to be bad. So bad in fact, that the movie was not screened for reviewers ahead of time. This is a sure sign that the studio knows the movie will be trashed by reviewers. But we went anyway. We went fully knowing the experience would probably be grueling and mind-numbing. Dissapointed we were not, expectations were fully met.

To give you some history here, I, like many other men my age, grew up watching GI Joe every Saturday during my formative years. I used to marvel at the sheer number of bullets and lasers flying around. The truly amazing thing was that no one ever died, well at least none of the main characters. So, it was inevitable that I would pony up my ten dollars and see this train wreck waiting to happen. I imagine that for thousands of other 20 something guys, it was also inevitable, which is why this steaming pile of mediocrity has pulled in 98 million at the domestic box office at the time of this writing.

So, lets go over the plot...oh wait...there is none. We basically get explosions, followed by chase scenes, Dennis Quaid yelling at people, more explosions, missiles and subs, end credits. I generaly know the story of GI Joe, and I had NO CLUE what was going on. There was some secret NATO weapon (like NATO is developing weapons, they can't even properly deploy to Afghanistan), which is stolen, and has to do with the origin of many of the characters. Two soldiers, Channing Tatum, and Marlon Wayans, who were part of the unit protecting this weapon that was lost, get recruited into GI Joe to help recover it. GI Joe is no longer an American unit, it is an international team of supersoldiers. This is of course a nod to PCdom. They then proceed to chase these people all over the place, run in some cool suits and get the Eiffel Tower destroyed. Nothing about this is good, but it is fast paced and has lots of explosions.

As far as the acting.....well when your most well known star is Dennis Quaid, you know what you are going to get. The beautiful people look beautiful, and they were the right clothes, so at least it has that going for it. Dennis probably acted his roll the best of all the characters, being disgruntled and moody, but still hitting all the right lines. His knowing is half the battle was by far the best 3 seconds of the film.

So go see this with expectations set appropriately. You will then enjoy GI Joe for what it is. Of course, you could probably just watch the preview twenty times in a row and get a great series of action sequences, and know as much about the plot as I did AFTER seeing the film.

Detroit, AKA New Hollywood

Detroit has seen rough times before, but this time feels a little different. It seems that every day we are hearing about thousands of jobs leaving forever as the auto sector restructures. I have published a blog about General Motors bankruptcy on my other blog: American Life.

So, contrary to all the pessimism, there have been a number of announcements recently as it pertains to shooting films in Michigan. Several large movie studios are set to open next year, and a fairly big post-production facility will open in Downtown Detroit soon. Last year many films were shot here including Gran Torino and the upcoming release Betty Anne Waters. HBO is currently filming a new series "Hung" here as well. All of this of course adds up to jobs, so I enthusiastically welcome these companies to MI. I think they will be surprised to find a VERY eager workforce, and state and local governments that appreciate their presence and will provide a great place to make media. Please feel free to spend as much money as you want here. If there is one thing we have lots of it is empty space to film in and people to work for you. Again, Welcome!

Traitor - Review

I had high hopes for this movie. A post 9/11 story about a undercover agent who went over to the other side. Don Cheadle and Jeff Daniels, a hard look at Islam... I mean what more do you need for a good movie? Well in my opinion, quite a bit. First you need a plot that does not give itself away so very early in the film. The revelation, and you will know it when you see it, ruins the entire rest of the film, because you know exactly what is going to happen. In a thriller, this is exactly what keeps you watching, and if you know the outcome, you lose interest.

There are a couple of good plot devices used here. The first is when Don Cheadle basically gets Jeff Daniel's character killed to prove his loyalty to the terrorist organization. The second is when Cheadle puts all of the suicide bombers on a single bus so that they blow each other up. That was pretty ingenious. Other then that is it your basic thriller, when good guys chase bad guys around the world.

Don Cheadle does deserve credit, as does Guy Pearce, for they both played believable characters. Cheadle especially deserves credit for his tackling of the Islamic faith. The problem is that you feel it is all pushed on you a bit much, as if to say the entire point of the movie is to point out that true Islam is not violent. I know this to be true, but it was "mentioned" just a few to many times to be coincidental.

Overall, this is a good weekend rental. Hopefully you are up getting a bowl of popcorn when they give away the entire plot in the first 30 minutes. Even if you do see that, Traitor is an entertaining post 9/11 romp across the globe. The film does have its flaws, and a clear political agenda, but still entertains and is worth watching if only to see Don Cheadle play an excellent Samir.

The Day the Earth Stood Still - Review

So, I have to admit that I was sucked in. Those of you who know me know that I am a sucker for a sci-fi movie. IF I hear the words alien and movie in the same sentence I will do obscene things to watch the movie. So there I was on opening night, hoping for Keeanu to pull off Matrix glory, and instead I got a Speed 2 redux.

While the premise is quite interesting, and could make for a good story, in this case it is abused by the acting and the plot. It really turns out that this is "Silent Spring" for the new millennium. While that is an OK idea, this is not how the movie was marketed and really not what is expected. Keeanu turns in a performance that is laughably forgettable. When the star of the movie is a automaton that never moves or speaks, you know you're in trouble.

About the only part played well is the role of Mr. Wu, played by James Hong. This is a touching role in which the character, sent ahead to scout Earth to see if we are salvageable as a species, confirms that we are a horrible species bent on destruction of our planet, but at the same time a loving and caring species like no other he knows. When offered the chance to leave his human form and live on, he demurs, saying he would rather die in human form then live again in his original.

Overall I would give it a 4/10, maybe worth renting if you were sitting around on a cold winter day and had nothing better to do. It's a shame really, it could have been the next Independence Day.

Brick - A Review

Number 9 in my series of the ten best movies you have never seen is a little indie flick called "Brick." There is a murder at the outset, and the main character Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) investigates and finds himself deep into a problem that is related and unrelated to him and the murder of his friend. The problem is a drug turf war/dispute. Not the traditional drug deal, as in inner city and gangster, but rather a deep dive into the suburban drug problem. The style of the movie is definitely film noir, with a heavy tilt toward integrating present day with some interesting historical context.

One aspect I really found interesting was the language that was used. All of the characters had very interesting nicknames including "The Pin" and "The Brain." Almost all of the dialogue takes place in this halting old style language, which lends itself well to the story. You really have to pay attention to the dialogue to understand what is being said and how it applies to the overall picture. I would highly suggest turning on subtitles for this film.

As far as characters go, I was highly impressed with two of them and how they were played. The first was the character of Laura, played by Nora Zehetner. She was the mysterious benefactor in much of the movie and she played the role very convincingly. Her demeanor and face fit the character perfectly, slightly demure and shy, but with intense intelligence behind the mask. The second was the character named Tugger, played by Noah Fleiss. The character is a slightly wigged out hitman for his boss. He convincingly plays the role of muscle, but also has a soft side the comes out at just the right moment. Great job.

Overall this film is definitely worth watching, as it tackles some contemporary issues such as suburban drug use and teen pregnancy in an interesting and unique way. you will probably also never see another move where a high school plays such an interesting backdrop. I almost referred to the school as an additional character. You have to love movies that take a new approach and are not afraid to try something. This one tries and succeeds.

Girl with a Pearl Earring - Review

To start off the blog, I thought I would talk a little about the movies that are on my "Ten Best Movies You Have Not Seen" List. I think this is an important way to look at movies, because we all hear about the blockbusters, but mostly the obscure movies stay that way, totally unknown. Hopefully this list will expose you to some movies that you may not have heard of. "Girl with a Pearl Earring" is number 10 on my list.

First off, this is a beautiful movie. The director, Peter Webber, does a excellent job capturing the feeling of a Vermeer painting and scattering it across the film. I often felt as if the entire movie was a painting, just in motion. I also thought that the lighting of the movie was excellent. There was often a soft glow that permeated the scenes, kind of like that light just before dusk. This really set off the scenery and the characters.

Scarlett Johansson plays Griet, a young maid, and does so with a reserved silence that shows her excellence as an actress. She must have less then 200 words of dialog, but they are used very well. The other actors are excellent as well, with Colin Firth playing an excellent Vermeer. Apparently there was a little confusion with regards to the cast, and both of these characters were cast after others dropped out. I was also impressed with the character of the rich patron (Tom Wilkinson). This is a characterization that I am not entirely familiar with, not being a patron of the art world. I was fascinated how beholden the artist is to this seemingly random individual. All in all a very well played film.

The real star in this film is the scenery, which is beautifully done. As previously mentioned, I felt I was living in a painting, especially the scene of Griet and Pieter walking next to a tree lined canal. A great example of how less can be better when it comes to dialogue. I tend to think that too many films have the characters blab just because they can. Highly recommended.

A Guy....check, Netflix...check = Blog!!

I don't know of how much interest this blog will generate, but hopefully it will be a forum for people to talk about movies and Netflix, and how it all intersects. I have been a Netflix subscriber for about 2 years now and have lived through some changes in service and lots of movies. I am not a heavy user of the service, I maybe watch three movies a week. But I do love movies and therefore thought it might be time to talk about it a little.

My goal here is talk about movies that I see, have seen or hear about and also the movie industry in general. I am not focused so much on gossip or stars, but more on the concepts of movies in general and how they reflect on current, future or past society. Hopefully this will spark some interesting conversation.

As far as my personal tastes, I enjoy the standard big action movies, but find more interest in the subtle drama. A good example is "American Beauty", which is in my opinion one of the best movies of my generation. I like to see a good explosion, but am more interested in plot and subplot, and especially setting. Backdrop, lighting and context are VERY important to me. Soon, I will do a review/discussion of the movie "Girl with A Pearl Earring," as this is one of the best examples of setting and lighting making the movie.

1st post coming soon...