We're starting to get into the meat of things now. Reviews are getting longer, more thoughtful, and more in-depth. Hope you enjoy today's selection. It's not quite December 1st yet, and today's old reviews are:
Hairspray
4.5 stars
I rented this movie without having seen the play, and was thus apprehensive, but rarely have I been happier to set doubts to rest. Hairspray rocked! This movie definitely stands among the best movie musicals recently made--perhaps ever made. The energy of the music is infectious, especially the grand finale, and the story, while slightly campy, was chock-full of empowerment, positive social messages and good clean fun. The movie's high-energy dancing and non-stop humor kept me glued to the screen. (By the way, since when can Amanda Bynes sing and dance? No one told me that before! I'd probably have taken her much more seriously had I known, lol.) The adults all do very well, with John Travolta surprisingly NOT taking up too much of the screen (figuratively speaking), Queen Latifah her usual passionate self, and Christopher Walken once again showing his amazing versatility as an actor--I didn't know HE could sing, either! But the real stardom belongs to the young cast. Elijah Kelley's voice rocked, Nikki Blonsky completely blew me away, and I am secure enough in my masculinity to say I really enjoyed Zac Efron's performance as well. (Still not really a High School Musical fan, though.) Oh, and a tip of the hat to James Marsden, probably one of the best character actors in film today. All in all, one of the best films I've seen recently.
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Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
2.5 stars
Here's my dilemma. Usually I like musicals. Usually I like Tim Burton. Usually I like Johnny Depp. And usually I am not averse to movies that spray the screen with blood. But for some reason, despite incorporating all of those elements, this flick really didn't do it for me.
I think part of it was how dark it was. I'm used to Tim Burton movies not having a huge amount of color, but it seemed like the only bright spot in this movie was itself a bloodstain. Everything that wasn't bleeding was black, white, gray, or washed out.
I think part of it was the music. Stephen Sondheim is a genius, I'll never deny that, but the problem with genius is that it often doesn't work in ways non-geniuses can always relate to. Sweeney Todd's music wasn't horrible, its orchestration was freakin' fantastic, and both Depp and Helena Bonham Carter acquitted themselves pretty well vocally, but the songs, or most of them, came across like a cross between a Gilbert and Sullivan patter song and a lullaby from Satan: both too fast and too macabre to be truly appreciable.
I think part of it was how little story there actually was. What plot there is is conceptually brilliant, but all in all there isn't much to work with, and the side plot with Antony and Joanna felt like it got abandoned in midstream.
And I think part of it was Depp himself. He's a great actor and a better-than-average singer, but in this film, like in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the depth into which he became his character was more frightening and distracting than entertaining. Plus he looked like Edward Scissorhands grown up and barely ever changed his facial expression--a fact the movie itself mocked in the "By the Sea" episode. I know all of what I just described was done purposefully, and for many people it probably worked great. Not for me.
All that said, I think Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall did a good job dealing with over-the-top characters, and Sacha Baron Borat Ali G Cohen (whom I usually can't stand) should be commended for appearing in a movie that wasn't all about him. I am grateful that Hollywood is continuing to make musicals into movies, and I appreciate that many, many people love(d) this film. Good for them. I'm going to wait for Hollywood to make ones out of Les Miserables and Jekyll and Hyde.
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Hitch
4 stars
Okay, so the number of chick-flick rom-coms I will unashamedly watch has now expanded to three. I've got to hand it to Will Smith--he's really grown up. One day he's rapping about parents who don't understand, then he's punching aliens in the face, and then I turn around and suddenly he's a mature, versatile actor who hasn't forgotten how to do solid comedy. And not that Smith had to carry this film all by himself, either. Eva Mendes wasn't just gorgeous, she was sharp, too. Kevin James and Amber Valletta, both albeit a bit typecast, surprised the hell out of me by making their unconventional romance come to life. Hitch was REAL enough to make me actually believe in, relate to, and root for its characters--and these days that's hard to find, especially in a comedy. Further, while certain gags were a bit on the immature side, by and large the humor was tasteful. So often I will review movies based on the great potential they didn't realize, usually in favor of cheap childish laughs; I'm grateful to find one at least that took the high road over the low.
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The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior
0.5 stars (if that)
Here's what the people who made this flick should have done:
1. Watch the first Scorpion King--the lack of continuity between the two was ridiculous.
2. Remember in what period this story was set, and write dialogue accordingly. For serious, hearing "Guys" and "Okay" and "You've got to be kidding me" in a movie set in a pre-Christian civilzation was just jarring and laughable. And while you're at it, work on your ancient geography and culture.
3. Get your Greek mythology straight. The Minotaur, the underworld, black magic, gods and goddesses...all got mishmashed together like half-made applesauce. It was horrible.
4. At least make the action somewhat realistic and believable.
5. Get some decent actors. (And I'm not talking about personalities from the WWE. Just because Dwayne Johnson worked his ass off to transition from pro wrestling to decent acting, doesn't mean Randy Couture or anyone else can just walk onto a movie set and be a solid action hero or villain at the drop of a hat.)
6. Suck a LOT less.
That is all.
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Thanks again for reading. I hope you're enjoying these! Until next time, stay warm and don't eat too much leftover turkey.
FBS
