What's (not) Happening Where I Am, 31/03/11

So, today, Rabbit Hole and The Way Back were supposed to finally hit our cinemas on wide release, but earlier in the week they were both pulled. I suspect the reason has something to do with the fact that they are both in the World Cinema Showcase, which is touring the big cities from now until mid-May. I was quite looking forward to Rabbit Hole, but it seems like I'll miss it, as well as other movies like Rubber, Restrepo, Catfish, and Another Year, as these are touring with this showcase and will completely miss my tiny town. So with Rabbit Hole and The Way Back both being pulled from cinemas, there isn't really anything else to talk about. Because literally nothing is coming out.

As for DVDs there is only The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which I never got the chance to see before it hit the shelves as the suppliers brought it in to us late. But having not seen the second one, I don't feel any special need to watch this one.

Uhhhhh...so sorry about the lack of releases, and lack of blogging, I guess. It's been a tough day. I'm ready to curl up in a ball and go into hibernation mode. I've also been really slack with watching movies lately. Seen anything good, lately?

DVD--Machete

or: Killing people!!!

One word to sum it up: Violent.

Who knew that the fake trailer shown before Grindhouse would make a full length film? Well well well, amazingly, it did make a movie lasting 100 minutes. Machete. You'd think, from Robert Rodriguez's previous attempt at malevolent violence with Planet Terror, he'd go absolutely full on here. And, well, he did. You know a film really doesn't take itself seriously when five people get their heads chopped off in the first five minutes. But the problem is, even though you can't take the film itself seriously, the film actually seems to take itself seriously.

I expected a lot of fun from this film, which certainly came through in it's non-stop violence, but it all seemed so unhappy. Maybe I'm too young to get all the jokes or something, but this film seemed almost too set on trying to be good instead of awesome. I wanted awesome, not a bloody critical delight. Somehow, though, this film won positive reviews from the critics, which leads me to wonder how it got there. It's a good, entertaining film, but it's just not as outrageously funny as I had hoped it would be. However, Robert Rodriguez did a perfectly good job of capturing an old, grotty style of action violence which was pretty fun to watch. Heads were severed, bodies were chopped in half and that end fight was pretty damn exciting. Did any of it make sense? I can't say I got the entire gist of it, mainly because of all the characters coming in and out of it, but what did you expect from a movie like this?

The story is really messy, even though it seems perfectly straight forward on paper: Machete (Danny Trejo) was betrayed and set-up by his boss, resulting in his wife and child being murdered by drug kingpin Torrez (Steven Seagal). Now, in Texas, Machete resurfaces when hired to assassinate Senator McLaughlin (Robert De Niro), an extreme advocate against illegal immigration. Once again betrayed and set-up, Machete plots his revenge against the men who've wronged him with the help of resistance fighter Luz (Michelle Rodriguez), ICE Agent Sartana (Jessica Alba), and the shotgun-toting Padre (Cheech Marin). Yeah, it's pretty average material. Considering the Z-grade nature of the project, it is just right. Robert Rodriguez seems to have a lot of fun putting as much cheese as he can in this story. Which is cool, because cheesiness is damn entertaining to me.

The characters are all pretty interesting, even though the only really outrageous one is Machete. Danny Trejo, who has been a zillion straight to DVD movies which I've never even heard of, is a perfect fit for this character. He's a character of very little words, which makes him wildly interesting to watch as he runs around on his little mission. And of course, he and I have something in common: "Machete don't text". His support is okay, but again, with the quality of this feature, the acting doesn't really matter. Robert De Niro is back (again) and is still the best actor alive, even if he hasn't got the material to back that opinion up. Jessica Alba is perhaps a little more deserving of her Razzie win for this one than she was for The Killer Inside Me, and is pretty forgettable. Steven Seagal is in his first theatrically released movies in God knows how long. Michelle Rodriguez is Michelle Rodriguez, plain and simple. Lindsay Lohan was one of the people I really had a problem with, though. I don't know how her character had any relevance to the story at all. Then again, an appearance from actress Lindsay Lohan is always good.

It's clear, with the over-the-top violence, messy storyline and barrel load of characters that Robert Rodriguez had fun making this film. I, for one, loved the style in which this film was made. The real problem was the fact that the movie wasn't amazingly fun to watch...it all seemed a bit dreary.

THE VERDICT: It shouldn't be taken seriously, but Machete tries very hard to be serious, which is precisely the problem with this otherwise violent, messy, Z-grade feature which packs some real punches.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

I like you, but I don't like your movies: Amanda Seyfried

When I was thinking about my chances of see Red Riding Hood, I could only put it down to one thing: I like Amanda Seyfried, and she is the prime reason as to why I'd see this. I've always admired Miss Seyfried, and usually always watch a movie which she's in. But then I had a little think. I don't really like any of her movies. And that got me thinking even further. Can Amanda be one of my favourite actresses even though I don't like any of her movies? Let's take a look at the movies of hers that I have seen, and I'll weigh up my options: to like or not to like?

Tier One: I actually do like this one.

Mean Girls is one of my favourite movies of all time. While Rachel McAdams is undoubtedly the stand out in this movie, Amanda does a brilliant job in her first feature film as the really stupid Karen. There's dumb, then there's so dumb air is the only thing in ones head, and then there is Karen. In an ethical world, we shouldn't really laugh at ones misfortune, Amanda makes Karen Smith kinda likeable, but still really stupid. Like, a lovable kind of stupid. And, without our Karen, we wouldn't have known that this wasn't true:

"So, you have your cousins, and then you have your first cousins, and then you have your second cousins..."

 And, of course, if all else fails in life, you can use your breasts to find out whether it's raining or not. Karen is like the forgotten heroine of Mean Girls.

Tier two - I don't mind you, but I could do without you.

Okay, I admit, I do like Mamma Mia! Well...I did. I haven't seen it in two years. But seriously, I watched it a lot back in 2008, and I could sing you every one of the songs in that goddamn movie. Oh, and you wouldn't want to try and beat me at ABBA Singstar, because I rock at that. However, because half of the cast can't sing, Mamma Mia! is a painful experience for many. However, Amanda can sing, even though she comes across as trying a little too hard. She's pretty sweet in this movie, as she is in any movie, which is probably why she has built up this persona as the 'sweetest girl on the block'. She's a likeable heroine for such an annoying story, and the fact that her and Dominic Cooper click so well makes it so much easier to watch. I did feel like she couldn't quite stand up to all the talent around her (The Streep, Pierce 'I can't sing' Brosnan, Colin 'King of the World' Firth and Eric off True Blood's daddy), but she made a good effort. And that's all we can ask of Amanda. No matter what everyone says, Mamma Mia! is still great fun.

Here's another guilty Amanda entry...I did quite enjoy Jennifer's Body, but only to a certain point. I would never watch this shit again. Ever. I mean, it has Megan Fox in it. She was horribly terrible in that film. Absolutely horribly terrible. Then there's lots of strange sexualized horror in there which doesn't make any sense at all, and the story is effing terrible. Plus, not being homophobic at all, but there's random lesbian kissing which doesn't make any sense at all to the story. And the end is bloody annoying. Even though everything is so goddamn awful, now I remember it, I really quite enjoyed it. I don't know how, but I did. And I believe that most of that enjoyment came from Amanda Seyfried, because out of everyone in the film, she was the one who could act the most. Not that she had much competition. This is quite a random film to have on her filmography, as it required her to go back to high school long after she'd left, but the fact that it was written by Oscar winning Juno scribe Diablo Cody does give it some credentials. Anyway, this, on paper, must be one of her worst flicks.

Tier three - Dear God, you suck!

Alright, alright. I get why a lot of people would dig Dear John. It has a sad story, I admit. It has a father with mental issues, which is the kind of character I always get attached to. It has that hot buff guy from Step Up. BUT IT'S WRITTEN BY NICHOLAS SPARKS. Therefore, it is awful. Before I launch into a huge rant on why Nicholas Sparks is the most annoying man to have anything to do with literature, I'll say this: how is it that this man can ruin our lives with his horribly schmaltzy pieces of work and still give us enough to get a wee bit emotional at the end of all his films? I hate myself every time I feel like crying at the end of a Nicholas Sparks movie. Which is why I avoid them like the plague. I thought Dear John would somehow be different, since it has such likeable stars like Amanda and Channing, along with back up from Richard Jenkins. Mind you, The Notebook had suck likeable stars as Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling and James Marsden, and it was still annoying. Dear John was just so boring. And to think that this was the film that knocked Avatar off the top of the box office. Do cinemagoers really like being bored like that these days? Amanda shone, though, which was the main thing.

Ah...it's like deja vu. Amanda seems to like her letters. First she stars in Mamma Mia! which opens with a scene of letter postin'. Then she stars in Dear John, which is like a romance told through letters. To round it all off she stars in Letters to Juliet, which is pretty much a film about letters. God help us when she discovers emails. I actually regard this one as a better film than Dear John, even though you could pretty much watch the trailer and know exactly what was going to happen in the film. But, like Dear John, this movie is bland. Just really, really bland. And totes forgettable. Because, since when were a whole lot of letters to someone who never existed in the first place an interesting plotline? Never. But when you have Amanda in the lead role, things just seem better already.

Chloe must be one of Amanda's better performances. The movie is pretty bland, and pretty awful (even though it has Julianne Moore and Liam Neeson in it), but Amanda's out of character turn as a high class hooker was actually pretty good. Even though I'm sure 55% of her performance is based on her being so good looking. Chloe is such a strange character, which I think Amanda played with really well. And this film managed to take all the sweetness out of her and make her a less than innocent being. Which was nice, considering that this is such a change of scene for young Amanda, but the rest of the film was pretty stupid, so it doesn't exactly offer fireworks and what not for her career. Though, to the minority of people who did check this Atom Egoyan flick out, she'll remain as the most memorable thing in this otherwise forgettable work.

What lies in the future for Amanda? Is she better than all of this?

I know that Red Riding Hood is a very present movie, but it's very futuristic for me since I'm waiting for the DVD release. But I've heard quite a bit of praise for Amanda's work, even though this looks like crap. Which is exactly why I thought of this post. She's always good, but her movies? No. Her next movie is one called Now, previously known as I'm.Mortal, which also stars Justin Timberlake, Olivia Wilde and Cillian Murphy. If it has Cillian Murphy in it, it has to be good. And I like the look of it's plot: a world where aging stops at 25 years old. Yeah, Nicole Kidman would like a world like that, too. Then she wouldn't have to use all of that botox.
P.S. Notice how Amanda is sitting in Cillian Murphy's chair? She's great, but not that great.

I think Amanda is still a pretty cool actress, but I'd place her well outside my most favourite actresses since her filmography isn't anything to scream about. But who knows? I think she could pick up an Oscar nomination before she retires.

What are your thoughts on Amanda Seyfried? Is she a yay or nay for you?

Lamb, Lamb, Lamb of the week...

Wazzup everyone? Just thought I'd tell you that the kind people from the LAMBcast (the podcast for The Large Association of Movie Blogs), Fletch, his brother (and special guest) Justin, James and Nick featured me as 'LAMB of the week'. That basically means they dissected my blog and offered creative and constructive criticism. I've podcasted for them for about three times before, and they were so kind with their criticism, I just had to share! Listen to the episode here...they talk about comic book and superhero movies (my favourite) for almost an hour! Great fun.

DVD--Due Date

or: Not the next The Hangover

One word to sum it up: Harsh.

In 2009, Todd Phillips directed a movie called The Hangover. You know, it was just a small movie, and seemed to get plenty of positive reviews from the critics. Many people say that comedies just aren't funny any more, and most of them aren't, but when The Hangover came out...wow, now that was funny. Everyone really got a kick out of watching three men run around Las Vegas trying to find their groom-to-be best buddy. And hey, that movie was damn good. The pay off and everything...it was truly one of the funniest mainstream R-rated comedies to come out in ages. Last year, it seems like Phillips was trying to cash in on his success with that film by writing and directing Due Date, which again saw Zach Galifianakis in a strange role and had a couple of men running around to get to a certain point - this time, the birth of a baby. Instead of living up to the reputation he'd built up with The Hangover, Phillips proved that it's difficult to make a follow up just as great.

Taking a stab at road trip comedies like Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Due Date makes some fun by putting two unlikely companions together in a car to make the trip across America. Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr.) must get to LA in five days to be at the birth of his firstborn. He is about to fly home from Atlanta when his luggage and wallet are sent to LA without him, and he is put on the "no-fly" list. Desperate to get home Peter is forced to accept the offer of Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) to hitch a ride with him cross-country. Peter is about to go on the most terrifying and agonizing journey of his life.

The comparisons between this and The Hangover are almost inevitable. It's as if after the success of that film, Warner Bros. forced another comedy out of Todd Phillips and told him to make it in next to no time. The material wasn't brilliant, and could have used a couple more drafts before something decent came out of it. Luckily, they got two very likeable stars: Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis, along with some support from Michelle Monaghan, Jamie Foxx and Juliette Lewis. The only problem with having all this talent on show is the fact that there aren't very likeable characters to go with them. Robert's character, expecially, is absolutely horrible. Like, I'm sure he was just supposed to be mean for comedic effect, but he came across as just being horribly mean...everything he said was like a giant insult. Normally, a horrible lead character might be okay if it is backed up by a likeable one. While I admired Galifianakis effort, his character was just a tad annoying. Yes, they were an unlikely pair. But they were so unlikely that they just didn't gel.

Due Date just felt like the same kind of thing repeated over and over. One minute, you felt like Peter and Ethan were getting along. The next minute they weren't. One minute everything was fine. The next minute something terrible was happening. It just repeated this formula over and over, which came to be quite tiresome for me. There was actually a lot of violence and physical harm in this movie, and I felt like they may have been getting away from the point there. There wasn't a lot of happiness, or any memorable quotes, which are two things a good comedy just had. Instead, there were a couple of scenes which stood out and made me laugh quite a bit (both of which are in the trailer). The ending was nice enough, but a little of what I've come to expect from movies like these. Due Date could have really made use of it's lovely leads and it's gifted writer/director. But unfortunately, it was pretty obvious that this was just riding high on the success of The Hangover.

THE VERDICT: Due Date is an under-done, joyless ride, and a major disappointment. Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis remain likeable, though, even if their characters were not.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

Due Date review is coming tomorrow, but...

...I'm exhausted. Today has been exhausting. From crying for an hour straight (and then off and on during the course of the day) to working five hours on what may have been the busiest day I have ever experienced at work...I am emotionally and physically drained. I don't even know what the point of this post is, but this has been a day which set out to be perfectly normal (boring, if anything) and turned out to be a day which I will never forget for all the wrong reasons. Let's just say, something extremely unexpected happened today, and it made me think of a lot of things. Like how you never realize how something has shaped you as much as you have when it's gone. Or how fragile life is. Or how one moment could be the last memory you have of a certain person or thing. It all sounds very, I don't know, cliché or whatever, but it's something which I haven't really thought about until now.

 
So, I guess, there hasn't been much point in that paragraph long rambling, but I just needed to say that because...I don't even know. Just one of things, yeah? Anyway, got anything that might cheer me up? Anyone managed to see Sucker Punch (once my most anticipated movie for the year, ha) this weekend and wanna tell me about it?

Anything...please.

The Stylish Blogger Award

This little thingy is doing the rounds and I got tagged by Anna from Defiant Success and sorta tagged by Lesya from Eternity of Dream. What do you do in this thingy? You write seven facts about yourself and then tag seven people to do the same. Kinda like those chain letters that say "If you don't send this to ten people you will DIE!" Just without the dying part.

Okeydokey, seven facts about yours truly:

1) I live in Dannevirke, New Zealand. It is a very small town which has like 27 different food places down the main street. So if you ever decide to come to Dannevirke (haha), at least you won't be short of food.

2) I can't drive manual cars. I've had my learners for seven months now, and could have got my restricted (so I can drive alone) a month ago. But I hate driving manuals. I literally have panic attacks every time I get in the drivers seat. Automatics are easier.

3) The three times I saw Inception were the best film going experiences I've ever had. There were three different reactions: The first time I was crying and there was hardly anyone there so there wasn't much of a reaction; The second time everyone started clapping and cheering; The third time (full house) everyone let out a huge sigh because, you know, the spinning top...The third time will always be my favourite, because all my friends were with me and that was my birthday present.

4) I'm the most paranoid person I know. Like, if I get a comment saying how good a post was or something I'll be like "THEY'RE LYING!" And if people don't comment I'm like "Oh right, they all hate my blog. I'm gonna cut this thing off now." I should really stop.

5) I am going to watch Sucker Punch regardless of the bad reviews. I mean, fuck, the trailer was so damn awesome and I want to see girls kick ass. I betcha it'll be really awesome.

6) In my recent drama assessment I played a hippie in a wheelchair. I think I did pretty well. At least, I hope I did.

7) My room is rather large. There are 100 different movie pictures on the wall. I have 10 big movie posters of The Social Network, An Education, Inception, Inglourious Basterds, The Hangover, (500) Days of Summer, The Town, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Zombieland and Kick-Ass. Plus an awesome framed pic of Humphrey Bogart.

Okay...seven people:

Andy @ Andy Buckle's Film Emporium
Rachel @ [film] girl, interrupted
Brandon @ A Place for Reviews
Nikhat @ Being Norma Jeane
Simon @ Four of Them
Liam @ Paracinematic Cinephile
Karla @ Oh, great. You get the girl, I get the coroner?

What's Happening Where I Am: Cinema and DVD releases here, 24/03/11

Cinema releases

Red Riding Hood - Before my recent crying experience at the movies in Never Let Me Go, I sat through four trailers for upcoming movies. I believe the first three were Water for Elephants, The Way Back and The Lincoln Lawyer. I was secretly hoping the last one would be something awesome like Sucker Punch or Source Code. But no, it was Red Riding Hood. I probably would have met this trailer with delight had critics smothered it with love, but with that 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I had to see the bad side in everything. It looks so Twilight. Like, sexuality reigns and scares sit hiding behind the trees. All I saw was lots of red hood, lots of boy/girl awkwardity and Amanda Seyfried with a thing on her head. Oh, and they kept going about some wolf. Possible reasons to watch this? Gary Oldman, an alright soundtrack and the boredom of doom. I do like Amanda Seyfried though, even though she makes some shocking films. "Who's Afraid?" I'm afraid for the day when I actually have to watch this on DVD.

World Invasion: Battle Los Angeles - Here's another case of "I like the actor but I ain't paying to see this crap". Roger Ebert hated it. Or he just had his period while he was writing the review. I'd go see this for Aaron Eckhart, and Aaron Eckhart alone. But I don't pay just for one reason like that. I just wait until they come out on DVD and I don't have to pay. I save money that way. The way I see it, I'd be paying a lot for this movie. First I'd buy the ticket. $15. Then I'd buy my Combo 3: Popcorn, Coke and Choc Dipped Ice Cream. $10. Then I'd also have to invest in some hand sanitizer because this movie looks really unhygienic. $4. And possibly deoderant because this movie looks really sweaty. $3.77. On minimum wage, it's hard to find $32.77 to spend on a cheap looking movie like this. Guess it looks like I ain't seeing this one.

Get Low - SISSY SPACEK! SISSY SPACEK! Jesus, where has she been? Many moons ago I had this obsession with her after I watched Carrie. Like, I was so obsessed I even did a speech on her (and got into the finals, but didn't place because she wasn't a 'well known topic'). But basically, I savour any opportunity to see her on screen. This one looks interesting. There was all that Oscar buzz going around for Robert Duvall. Bill Murray...the guy from Zombieland, right? (Joking, I don't recognize him because of that role). Again, I'll patiently wait for it to come out on DVD. I mean, it's taken FOREVER to get here, what's four more months?

DVD releases

Due Date - Hell, Due Date was disappointing. I knew that it wouldn't be great with all the negative press it got, but I thought the pairing of Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis would get me through. I won't say much more...the full review should be up either tomorrow or the next day.

Machete - Danny Trejo, you sexy beast. Did you know that Lindsay Lohan is a part of this movie? She was annoying. I did quite enjoy this movie, as I am weirdly drawn to violence at it's most graphic, but it was a very joyless ride. Again, I won't say much more since the review for this should be up during the weekend.

The Ghost Writer - Read my full review here. Ah, this movie was just awesome. And since it probably won't rent this weekend, I may be able to get in another watch. Yeehee!

The American - I stupidly forgot to get this out. Oh well, it came out on DVD today instead of Wednesday, so it messed up my DVD watching schedule. Plus, I forgot to ask my sister to legally go get it for me (age restrictions, hate 'em). So what is this? An Italian style actioner starring the Cloon? It looks pretty serious. And pretty stylish. Whenever this goes on to 7 days I'll definitely give it a try.

DVD--The Ghost Writer

or: The Ghost who uncovers things.

One word to sum it up: Intriguing.

If I were to say 'Roman Polanski', people not so up with the film world (and his classics such as Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown) would probably only know one thing about him: that infamous rape scandal. In a way, that thing alone makes The Ghost Writer, his latest film, an even stronger one. You see, during the making of this film, he was put under arrest. He finished editing the film from a Swiss prison and continued making all the artistic decisions while he was under house arrest. And even though Polanski wasn't able to set foot in America due to extradition, he made this film look as American as it possibly could have been. With all these problems, Polanski managed to make a pretty flawless looking film, and perhaps one of the best films from last year.

It's based on Robert Harris' novel 'The Ghost', but it's also been called for the several similarities it has with the story of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. An unremarkable ghost-writer (Ewan McGregor) has landed a contract to shape the memoirs of Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan), the former UK Prime Minister. After dominating British politics for years, Lang has retired with his wife (Olivia Williams) to the USA. He lives on an island, in luxurious, isolated premises complete with a security detail and a secretarial staff. Soon, Adam Lang gets embroiled in a major scandal that reveals how far he was ready to go in order to nurture UK's "special relationship" with the USA. But before this controversy has started, before even he has closed the deal with the publisher, the ghost-writer gets unmistakable signs that the draft he is tasked to put into shape mysteriously forms highly sensitive material.

I admit, political thrillers aren't really my cup of tea. When I see those words, it's like someone hit the snooze button in my brain. The Ghost Writer, on the flipside, gave my brain a good rattling. While it could be a bore for someone, I found this movie rich and intense, directed by a guy who knows how to make a good thriller. What makes me mad is the fact that this film was completely ignored come Oscar time. For example, Alexandre Desplat did a far better job with the music in this one, but he got all the acclaim for his work in The King's Speech. His music here contributed to an old-style kind of theme that makes this a suspense nearly in the league of Hitchcock. It's the kind of movie that will keep you guessing until the very end. And the tension just builds and builds. Slowly, but surely. The final shot, to me, is an absolute killer.

Leading the film is Ewan McGregor, who has had a spot in my heart since he was Christian in Moulin Rouge!...and what a great leading man he is. He plays a character simply known as 'The Ghost', but he anchors the film with his likability and vulnerability. And he was a far better choice for the role than Nicolas Cage. Pierce Brosnan made amends for his singing abilities in Mamma Mia! by playing the PM figure Adam Lang just the way a good actor should. Kim Cattrall takes a break from Sex and the City to do what she was born to do: be a good actress. It was strange seeing her in a dramatic role, but she did it well. Even if her American/Irish/Scottish/British accent was a little off the mark. The standout of the movie? Olivia Williams, by miles. Gosh, I loved her in this movie. She was so quietly horrible, and she just stole the show with her characterization and skill. She's the second biggest reason to watch this film after the all-round awesomeness that makes this film a definitive must-see.

THE VERDICT: The Ghost Writer is an excellently made thriller which is both intriguing and intense, with some great performances from it's cast and brilliant direction from Roman Polanski.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

Reviews Round Up: Black Death, The Switch, Cyrus, The Poker House (post #500!)

Can you believe it? I'm at post number 500 already. I believe 100 posts ago it was Christmas Day. Anyhoo, here are some quick paragraph long reviews on what I have seen in the past week:

Black Death

Yeah, while America has just got this in limited release at the theatres, we in NZ have had this on DVD since November. It was sitting in the preview drawer so I decided to give it a spin, and surprisingly, I liked it. The film is pretty much set in the times when the bubonic plague was just starting, and through word of mouth it is revealed that there is a village with a woman who has the power to bring people back to life. A group of men decide to search for this village, but when they come to it, there's something more sinister about the place. This movie was pretty gruesome (I mean, one guy in the film literally gets ripped in half), and it sure held a few surprises. It wasn't at all perfect, but it was surprisingly interesting in many places. It was also extremely religious and more gothic horror than I expected. Maybe I should stop doubting the quality of films in that preview drawer.

What I expected:

What I got:

The Switch

One of the most popular kind of movie out there at the moment is the good old Jennifer Aniston comedy. Just after that another popular movie type is one about artificial insemination. Jennifer Aniston+Artificial insemination=POPULARITY! Not even. I thought that having Jason Bateman in this movie would make this LOL-worthy but lordy, I don't think I even laughed. This movie was so bland and too over dramatic. I still think Jason Bateman has credibility, though. As for the Aniston...well, this movie was better than such outings as The Bounty Hunter and Love Happens. Just one more thing: what were Patrick Wilson and Juliette Lewis doing in such a film? This movie had such a killer cast, and I must admit, Lewis was pretty funny (just not laughable funny) and definitely made a stand out. The end really pissed me off. Like, I could have pretty much guessed that from the very beginning.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

Cyrus

I kinda didn't feel Cyrus. I quite liked the movie, but it felt really slight. Like it felt as if I was going to forget it straight after the credits rolled. I don't like that feeling. However, I do remember it for the slightly strange relationship between mother and son Jonah Hill and Marisa Tomei. Jeez, that was beautifully played out by those two actors. John C. Reilly was brilliant and as confused as I was about these two, and I genuinely liked the way the characters interacted with each other. But several times during the movie I felt like switching it off and going to sleep (funny thing was, I finished watching this at 10.30pm-ish, and didn't end up getting to sleep until 12.30am). That's not saying it was a bad movie. It was just that the movie wasn't as witty or as electric as I had hoped it would be. The performances really got me through.

What I hoped for:

What I got:

The Poker House

Heard of The Poker House? I'm impressed. Haven't? Well, it stars Jennifer Lawrence, who recently got Oscar nominated for her performance in Winter's Bone, Selma Blair as her junkie mother and Chloe Moretz, who, of course, was Hit-Girl in Kick-Ass and is a part of the young taking over Hollywood. Basically, this was a precursor to Moretz and Lawrence's rise to stardom in 2010. Lawrence, particularly, was amazing. Here she plays a 14 year old who is living in a world of sex, drugs and near poverty, feeling like she ain't good enough for anything. Her performance is so heart breaking that it literally lifts the movie from the same old same old mould it has come from. It is based on the life experiences of actress Lori Petty, who wrote and directed the film quite well. I was surprised by this movie, as I thought it would just be an average thriller that came straight out of the preview drawer. Again, I should expect more from these movies. This one was brilliant.

What I hoped for:

What I got: