National Treasure 2 Book of Secrets

(2007)

Alexis says:

3 STARS

I liked this movie so much I watched it twice three days. OK, really there were circumstances that involved me watching this movie twice in three days but this movie was decent enough to watch over again and I think that seeing it the second time changed it from 3 to 3.5 stars, so it was worth it I suppose.

All of the same characters are back and facing more problems, this time trying to save Benjamin Gates (Cage) family name by uncovering the meaning behind a John Wilkes Booth journal entry. The story is overall catching and good, though I could have done without Diane Kruger's return and all of that romantic lovers quarrel stuff, but it sufficed.

There was hinting to making this a trilogy at the end of this film and I could live with that if all involved can make it at least as good as this one.

Todd says:

3.5 STARS

Look out Indiana Jones! Alright, maybe not, but this is a darn fine sequel. The worst thing that I have to say about it is that it was written with the exact same formula as the first one. But hey, it works.

So don't expect any great change in style here. What you get is a fast paced, well played, action movie riddled with historical intrigue and American folklore. Sure you have to be ready to check your sense of realism at the door, but that's O.K. if that's what you paid for (Am I right Die Hard fans?).

As a matter of fact, the action is faster this time around. The stunts are bolder. Anyone can steal the Declaration of Independence, but what about kidnapping the President. Sorry if that was a spoiler. The short answer here is that you should enjoy this movie, unless you're one of those uptight artsy-types who enjoyed Lars and the Real Girl.

The Jungle Book

(1967)




Todd Says:


3 STARS


This is a great movie for kids. It looks like some classics can stand the test of time. This is a fun movie that bounces along at a nice pace.


I never was a big fan of Disney Animation, but maybe having kids is going to change things. I think that this is a fun movie for everyone, but everyone should let their kids watch it. Trust me, there are much worse things for your kids to be watching.





Alexis Says:

3 STARS

I have seen quite a few Disney movies in my lifetime but this one escaped by under my radar until the Special Edition came out of the 'vault' (how lame can you get Disney?). We decided to view it in advance (way in advance) for our children. Fortunately, it was one of the better Disney movies I have seen. No princesses, or evil witches. No prince charming, no bad apples. The story was interesting and has made me consider reading Rudyard Kipling and the music wasn't half bad either. Even the animation, 40+ years old, wasn't too shabby.

The Patriot

(2000)


Alexis says:





2.5 STARS


I have now seen this movie twice and it isn't that I dislike it I am just not all that moved by it. The story is historical accurate enough and sad enough I just don't find myself caring about the characters the way I know I should. If I want an epic historical love tale starring Gibson in the future I think I will stick to Braveheart.



Todd Says:

3 STARS


For a semi-historical action/war movie (which may be my favorite genre) The Patriot is just O.K. I enjoyed it fine, I just feel like Mel is a bit melodramatic in parts, like the beginning, the middle and the end.

Sometimes Hollywood tends to overuse an actor because they can fill seats in the theatre, in my humble opinion thats how Gibson gets so much work. If Mad Max hadn't been so good, we never would have had to suffer through eight Lethal Weapon movies.

Anyway, take Mad Max out of it, and the Patriot would have been alot better. But the bottom line is: it's not a bad movie, I did enjoy it, and if you are one of those Detective Riggs fans then you'll probably love it.

National Treasure

Todd Says:

3.5 STARS

We saw this movie when it came out in the theatre and I really enjoyed it. When we watched it again I was worried that it might not be as good the second time through, but it was. Ben Franklin Gates is no Indiana Jones, but he would probably win on Jeapardy.

I thought that the movie moved at a quick pace, and covered a lot of ground without leaving you behind. It is also informative as well as entertaining, and hopefully people will be smart enough to tell the difference between fact and myth. The movie is full of both.

All in all, this is a good fun movie that almost anyone will enjoy. I know that some of the stuff is a bit over the top, but isn't that why we watch movies in the first place.

Alexis says:

4 STARS

Anyone else remember Valley Girl? (Maybe we should view and review that movie?) Well, ever since 1983 I have been mostly a fan of Nicolas Cage's, though on occasion he has been known to let me down (CONAIR??). Anyways, I really enjoyed National Treasure, I thought the stories of the Free Mason's building hidden messages into everything was pretty interesting and I thought that this movie was almost free of corny plotlines and dialogue and it reminds me of Indiana Jones, which I love. We had just come back from our trip to Washington, DC and Philadelphia when we watched this movie so I also got a kick out of seeing all the places I had just been (the Declaration of Independance doesn't really look like that, you should check it out at the National Archives).

Cloverfield

Todd Says:

1 STAR

I very nearly hated this movie. No wait a minute, maybe I did hate this movie. Lets see, we'll take the Blair Witch Project idea, set it in New York, and throw in Godzilla for good measure. Stir well, and what do you get.... Crap.

I'm sorry, but 90 minutes of shakey camcorder footage, the first 25 minutes of a rather boring social gathering, just don't do it for me. I know what they were trying to do: refresh a worn out movie archetype. The problem is they used a gimmick (yes, I called it a gimmick) that has already been used on another worn out movie archetype.

You can still make a good monster movie without gimmicks. People will still go and see them. But what happened here I think is that they replaced decent writing with a poor gimmick. So my final verdict (if you hadn't figured it out yet) is that you don't need to waste your time with this one.

Alexis says:

1.5 STARS

**Spoiler Alert**

The biggest problem I had with this movie was the headache that evolved from watching it 20 minutes in. At first I thought it was just me but after the movie several of the people we viewed it with (7 in total) said they had also gotten headaches. One of the people who had seen it before fell asleep to avoid motion sickness. When I want to feel woozy, I take bumps at fast speeds in my car or go to amusement parks not watch movies.

I liked the gimmick, though if you are thinking Blair Witch Project they definitely have their own feel (comparing the two would be like comparing Neo in the Matrix to River in Serenity in my opinion). This video recording is the only evidence left of a monster that destroyed New York City. The monster was a let down, it is just a large alien (think Rampage with the exception that this monster has little aliens that jump off of it (think Pitch Black)) destroying everything in it's path. I also felt that New York, Manhattan to be exact, cleared out pretty fast for a city of 1.5 million people being evacuated on foot and by helicopter.

Oh, and I don't think those people would have survived that helicopter crash.

The Golden Compass

Todd Says:


2 STARS

Unfortunately this was one of those movies that I was hoping to be entertained with. I saw the trailers, I heard the hype, I even listened to the controversy. What did that get me? I just ended up bored and let down.

The story seemed too rushed to me. I have come to expect more story from these 'epic' fantasy sagas. The Golden Compass is based on the first book in a trilogy, I've heard that they're talking about making movies from the other two books, and I can't figure out why they don't try to develop their stories better. The books may be good, I don't know because I haven't read them, but the movie just flows like a jumble of action scenes sloppily edited together.

I found it hard to connect with any of the characters, who are thrown at you so fast and with so little explantion that by the time you figure out who is on whose side the credits are rolling. It was visually spectacular, I will admit that, but can good effects a good movie make, not alone.

I think I may read the book and see if any of it makes more sense. You must understand that I am a detail junkie. In the end I can not recommend this film very highly. If you wait a few months it will be on cable, and your in-laws will be over, and that would be a good time to watch it.

Alexis Says:

1.5 STARS

I was not at all impressed by this movie. I found some of the concepts to be cool in theory but the movie itself just did not work for me. I found the ending to be rushed (and really the whole fiml) and the movie leaned to heavily on a sequal explaining all that was left out of the film. The special effects were rather good though as well as Dakota Blue Richards performance.

Nine Months

(1995)

Todd Says:




2 STARS



This movie was pretty much what I expected it to be, which was a fluffy little romantic comedy about a guy trying to deal with parenthood. It was a bit over the top at times, but for the most part they held it together pretty well. There were some really funny scenes (I especially like the scene where Tom Arnold's and Hugh Grant's characters end up beating up Barney), and there were a few touching scenes. Robin Williams was rediculus, but I think that was the point.



At the end of the day, you could do worse with your choice of Romantic Comedies.




Alexis Says:


2 STARS

I am a small (5' 2") fan of Hugh Grant and this film introduced me to him. He has done far better but he has done slightly worse too. This movie isn't as good as say "She's Having A Baby" in dealing with men struggling to deal with pending fatherhood and in some aspects adulthood in general but it is a rather funny, charming comedy. I just felt that there was a little too much Jeff Goldblum and Tom Arnold in it for my taste.