Upcoming Attractions!

Some movies I’m excited to see: Tangled, The Green Hornet, The Green Lantern, and Eagle. 

Tangled: Looks incredibly awesome. Who doesn’t love a good animated movie? I think it looks like fun for the entire family. Good comedy for both kids and grownups. My prediction: 5/5

The Green Hornet: The previews remind me a little bit of Kick-Ass, at least action-wise. Add to that the humor of awkward moments and I think you’ve got a winning combination. My prediction: 4/5

The Green Lantern: Ryan Reynolds. In a skin tight green outfit. I’m so there. My prediction: 4/5

Eagle: I just saw a preview for this on the big screen, nothing yet on tv. The basic premise for the movie is this: Channing Tatum plays a Roman soldier whose father led 500 men North of the wall in England and never returned. He took with him the symbol of Rome, a golden eagle on a staff. Tatum decides to regain his family’s honor by retrieving the golden eagle. He sets out from the Roman encampment with a slave, played by Jamie Bell. Yes, little Jamie Bell who played Billy Eliot, and he is all grown up.  Nicely done Mr. Bell! So, the movie chronicles their adventures and action ensues. I think the story will be well done and, if nothing else, the costumes were definitely well done. I seriously can’t wait for this one! My prediction: 5/5

Some movies I’m ‘eh’ about: Burlesque, Love and Other Drugs, Battle: Los Angeles.

Burlesque: Stars Christina Aguilera, Cher, and Stanley Tucci. I’m on the fence on this one. I’ve never seen Aguilera act, and if she’s anything like her fellow singers, she won’t be able to. At least not that well. I know Stanley Tucci and Cher will knock it out of the park, but Aguilera has the potential to bring the whole thing crashing down. And lets face it, being the central character in a movie is no easy task. I know they picked her because she has an amazing voice, can dance and is cute to boot, BUT can she act? That’s the big question. Other than that, the story seems done before and honestly, a little bit boring. Small town girl goes to Hollywood looking to become a star. She’s got talent but will anyone see it? Small town girl becomes star and gets swept up in the fame. Will she remember her roots or become too big for her britches? Yawn. Mr prediction: 3/5

Love and Other Drugs: Seems like just another romantic drama to me. Anne Hathaway meets a cocky young salesman (Jake Gyllenhaal) through a chance encounter at a doctors office. Leads me to believe that part of the drama will be a major illness. Um, Sweet November anybody? Now, our young stars will add something to an otherwise incredibly boring story. Jake Gyllenhaal is on my list of Potentially Legendary Actors (think Cary Grant and Clark Gable). He is, without a doubt, one of the most talented actors working today, and for this reason alone will I go see this movie. He will add something to the role to make it extraordinary. Anne Hathaway, while not nearly as talented an actress as her co-star, is still worth watching. She’s incredibly likable, ergo her character will be likable. I predict that the story will boring, but the characters/actors will make it worth watching. My prediction: 3/5

Battle: Los Angeles.: I don’t know much about this one since there were absolutely no dialogue in the preview. All I know is, there are alien ships in sky and the military was involved with them in a battle, ostensibly in Los Angeles. Visually, it looks like it would be amazing. Since I don’t know anything other than that, I’m a little skeptical. My prediction: 3/5

Movies I think will flop: Season of the Witch, Cowboys and Aliens.

Season of the Witch: Nicholas Cage has a spotty record. He has some hits under his belt, but he also has an equal number of misses. Does anyone remember The Sorcerer’s Apprentice? Anybody? Exactly. The movie takes place during the Dark Ages and already I have a problem with it. Nicholas Cage is not an actor that can handle period roles. Modern roles, yes, period roles, no. Some actors can pull it off with grace, like Orlando Bloom, James McAvoy, even Johnny Depp. So, with the way this movie is cast, I’m expecting a medieval set and modern acting characters. Which I don’t like. If you’re going to set it in a certain period, at least have the characters speak/act like they were in that period. Just a pet peeve. Anyway, I don’t have very high hopes for this movie. My prediction: 2/5, maybe 3/5.

Cowboys and Aliens: I saw the preview for it on the big screen the other day. I sat through it in stunned silence until the end when I burst out into laughter. I couldn’t help it. The premise is... well... you get the idea from the title. The worst part is who they cast: Harrison Ford, and Daniel Craig. Olivia Wilde (House) is in it too, presumably to add some eye candy for the male element. Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Iron Man 2) directs. Right now, it’s laughable. But, I suppose it has the potential to be really good. And I must admit, the characters did act/speak as though they were in that time period and not just modern people dressed in costume plopped down in a mid 1800’s setting. So, one annoying pet peeve averted. My prediction: it depends, either 2/5 or 4/5. (I do love a good alien movie.)

Predators

Release Date: July, 9 2010
Description: A group of elite warriors are hunted by members of a merciless alien race known as Predators. (via imdb.com)
Principle Actors: Adrien Brody, Topher Grace, Alice Braga, Laurence Fishburne
Directed By: Nimrod Antal
My Rating: 2/5

Predators is not about what you might think it’s about. Yes, it is another installment in the “Predator” franchise, but in this particular movie the title does not refer to the alien race. Instead, it refers to the men (and woman), that are subjected to the aliens.
It is hinted in the previews that the people are in some sort of game preserve. They are indeed exotic game, gathered for the benefit of the alien race, to be hunted. The one thing they all have in common: they themselves are predators. Each individual was “imported” because of their abilities to hunt and kill.

My hat’s off to whoever came up with the “men as predators” concept, because as lame as the movie may have been, it was actually quite clever.

On to the movie! It was lame. I give it a 2 out of 5. It’s not a complete and total fail. I mean, hey, Adrien Brody, the oddly sexy hero, is...well... oddly sexy. Normally I applaud his performances because he is actually quite a talented actor. And something about him is *very* appealing.... However, this is one performance that just doesn’t stand up.
Brody affects a voice that just isn’t natural, growling out his lines. There’s a time and a place for growly voice, but this soo wasn’t it. I know he wanted to come across as tough, but it was forced, so it just didn’t work.

The dialogue was laughable. Literally. I laughed at lines and places where I knew I wasn’t supposed to be laughing.

Really, the only part of the movie that held any kind of interest was Laurence Fishburne’s part and scene. His character was definitely interesting. He gave the role just enough sanity to keep the character dangerous but also just enough insanity to make him likable and maybe a little harmless as well.

Special effects and costumes for the aliens were good, but then again, they never would have slacked on that count. The alien camp site was very well done. It looked like any hunters camp I would imagine: same amount of creepiness, just different “animals.”
All in all, it’s a movie I would skip unless you are really bored or you have a thing for one of the actors.


Just for the heck of it: