Surrogates

Bruce Willis stars as Tom Greer, an FBI worker in a world where people are linked to robots safely from their home while the robots do all the living. He accepts it, but secretly hates it. No worry about dying while your surrogate is out there. However, its discovered there is a weapon that can kill the person running the surrogate. Once discovered, Tom Greer realizes everyone is acting funny. Like they know something and are covering it up. Once Tom's surrogate is destroyed, he has to solve the mystery with his own human body. Dangerous.

This movie was predictable from start to finish. The action scenes were boring and old. I didn't learn or see anything I haven't in other sci-fi movies. Bruce Willis did a great acting job. However, the rest of the cast, even James Cromwell, didn't deliver. Ving Rhames's character was shallow and terribly developed.

Also, the movie was under an hour and a half. For a movie they promoted so much, it was too short-lived. It also had no lasting effect on me. Just a high-budget mess.

So unless you are a die hard Willis fan (pun intended), you'd be better off holding out and spending your money on a good October movie.

I rate this movie 5.4 out of 10.

Jennifer's Body

Another movie I didn't plan on seeing. OK, so we got Megan Fox, everyone's favorite girl for some bizarre reason, since there are a handful of actresses who could be her twin. Also, I think she's very overrated and looks like an angry person. (not saying she is, its how she looks) We got her half naked, killing "boys" and we got her saying she goes both ways. Wow, who cares. That + horrible movie = lame. Guys, if you want something like that, watch porn, you actually see things happen. Paying to see this movie for Megan Fox is paying to get cock-teased and having to suffer through a bad movie in the process.

Diablo Cody, I appreciate your efforts and creativity. However, showering your movies with your terrible lingo is infuriating. It isn't clever to refer to someone being jealous as 'being jello' and if they are being really jealous to refer to them as 'being so jello they are lime jello.' That's just one example of many. If you've seen this or Juno, you know.

Further, I wasn't sure if I was watching a satire on a horror movie, or just a horror movie. It wasn't scary, thrilling, or enthralling. It was predictable, lame, and just boring.

The story is Megan Fox eats boys for a reason they explain later. Amanda Seyfried, her nerdy friend gets scared and eventually tries to stop her.

It doesn't get any deeper than that.

I rate this movie 4.7 out of 10

17 Again

Well, never thought I'd watch this, but I did. The idea isn't original, nor is the presentation.

Starts out shallowly explaining how Matthew Perry's character's life got the way it was. From there he meets a janitor who asks him if he'd want relive his teen years and says yes. After some lame circumstances, he becomes Zac Efron. From there he now goes to school with his children and through that becomes the cool kid in school with morals (realistic) and gains a closer relationship with his kids and bettering them. Oddly enough, he gets closer to his wife/ex-wife.

The movie really has tons of plot holes. Especially at the end. It is delivered horribly as well. Thomas Lennon's side role makes no sense, either. The only plus I can give it is that maybe 2 or 3 jokes made me laugh.

This movie is good for people who love Zac Efron, and don't mind a watchable, yet awful movie.

I rate this movie 4.9 out of 10.

The Informant!

Matt Damon plays Mark Whitacre, an airhead yet genius type. You know, where they are unbelievably smart, but don't really pay attention to others. Not trying to confuse this with a lack of "street smarts" that the commercials show, because Mark has them.

Anywho, the story begins with Mark Whitacre talking of a man bribing his corn company for a few million dollars. This leads to an FBI investigation. The investigation quickly switches off of the bribe and onto a bigger thing that Mark reveals... price fixing. From there the chaos ensues. Mark actually does a decent job with helping them get film and tapes, yet he doesn't seem to be telling the truth all the time. I won't spoil the rest, you'll just have to see it.

The movie is really funny, not so much in physical humor, but in a lot of dialog and situational humor. Matt Damon really nails his part well. The supporting cast has that dry humor type acting which really works well with the movie.

The movie seems to drag on toward the end, but never really has you lose interest. The story, namely Mark Whitacre's lies, keep the movie flowing well and never allows you to guess what is happening next. (Unless you've read the novel)

I think it was a good change for Matt Damon, and a movie that was very worth seeing.

Don't expect too much laughing. You'll get enough though, and the story is worth it.

I rate this movie 7.7 out of 10.

Tropic Thunder

Ben Stiller. Jack Black.... and Robert Downey, Jr.? Yes. (And Brandon Jackson, Jay Baruchel, Nick Nolte, Steve Coogan, Danny McBride, Bill Hader as well as Matthew McConaughey and Tom Cruise as you've never seen them before) This isn't your typical comedy.

The premise is 4 out of control ego actors are filming a movie about Vietnam, and after something goes wrong they are in the jungle for real. Only they don't realize it, til the adventure starts.

The movie starts out slow. But the dialog and Robert Downey, Jr. are classic from start to finish. Ben Stiller plays an action star past his prime trying to reestablish himself as a dramatic actor. He plays his character one-dimensionally beautifully, a far cry from his boring generic paranoid unlucky characters. Downey, Jr. plays an over dedicated actor to the point where he goes under surgery to make himself black to play a black man's role. Jack Black plays a drug addicted, Eddie Murphy in Nutty Professor, character.

The rest of the cast holds up. McConaughey is great as an air head, super dedicated agent to Ben Stiller, and Tom Cruise in bald/fat suit plays an egotistical producer. It's really great to see them do something different.

Overall, the movie is chunky, and has some lingering parts. But its well worth a watch if you have two hours to kill. It's not a movie you could watch over and over, though.

I rate this movie 7.8 out of 10.

9

Spoiler Alert: Contrary to popular belief, 9 is not a Tim Burton movie, he only produced it. He didn't create, write, or direct it. So it isn't a Tim Burton movie.

Moving forward, I expected a lot out of this movie. I liked the cast, I liked the premise. I liked the PG-13 rating. I kinda shied at the Tim Burton thing, hoping he didn't lay his creative thought on it too much as he's done enough like this. However, when purchasing my tickets, I realized the movie was only 79 minutes long (1 hour and 19 minutes). That really scared me.

After watching it, it rang true. The movie was just too short. Funny since the movie was based off of a movie short, titled 9, in 2005. The plot made sense. 9 rag doll creatures created from a scientist in attempt to save mankind from its complete destruction. Mankind had lost the war against its own robots it created (Terminator, Matrix, etc.). These puppet dolls don't know what they have got themselves into yet. However, the plot lacked solid character development. It lacked any intermediate scenes, transitions, or real explanation of most things.

The acting (voicing) was great. So was the animation. Elijah Wood and John C. Reilly really stood out. Not surprisingly. The animation was great, too.

Really, if they stretched the movie another 20-25 minutes, it would have been much better. Hell, it wouldn't be called stretching, since I feel shortchanged.

Watch it at a matinée price since you aren't paying for a full movie. Also, the commercial may have cool music, but the movie lacks it.

I rate this movie 6.0 out of 10.

Extract

Extract. Mike Judge's 2nd movie since Office Space. It was good to see him stick to the mold of Office Space, and stay far, far away from Idiocracy. Also, he went for a better cast: Bateman, Kunis, Affleck, Simmons.

However, the movie wasn't Office Space, nothing will be. But I can settle for a decent comparison. Bateman plays the owner of an extract company who has some crazy characters who work for him, he has a wife (Kristin Wiig) who he can't any loving from, and he has a lawsuit to settle so he can try to sell his company. Enter Mila Kunis and trouble erupts.

I'm not going to spoil too much, but the movie is pretty funny. It isn't a flowing funny, but its a consistent funny. Affleck isn't as funny as the commercials appear, either. Bateman is his responsible, yet he gets shit on character.

The movie isn't as good as I thought it was, but it was definitely watchable. The only upsetting part was that it could have easily been 300 times better, which was really disappointing. It was a let down.

I rate this movie 6.7 out of 10.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Hugh Jackman returns for the 4th (1st in chronological order) time as Wolverine. This time in an attempt to explain how he became the way he did. The movie starts out with Logan (Wolverine's name) as a boy, a few hundred years back, with his brother (eventually being Sabretooth, played by Liev Schreiber), and then shows a 15 minute or less, travel through time, since neither of them age. Showing from war to war (revolutionary, civil, world(s)) and how they fought for America. Then it turns to real time where they are part of a secret task force of mutants. Logan no longer wants to be part of that, so he takes off. They spend the time trying to lure him back once finding him, in an attempt to have him go through a process in which he gets an adamantium skeleton. Basically, they cause him hell through the whole ordeal, and he tries to stop them from all the bad things they were doing.

All in all, it was a decent cast (Hugo Weaving Ryan Reynolds, and Will.I.Am included). The story line was a little bit different from the comics, but hey, they had only 2 hours. If you liked the X-Men franchise, you'll love this movie, unless you are sick of it. Which I think most people were split between the two. I think this movie was set to further Ryan Reynolds in another spin off as well, and possibly Liev Schreiber, too. However, I'm not sure either will happen.

The storyline was pretty good, and well presented. The action was a bit unrealistic, and I'm saying this about a movie about mutants, which means something. But it is enjoyable, and you don't have to be a geek to like it.

I rate this movie 7.2 out of 10.

Gamer

From the people who brought you Crank and Crank: High Voltage, present Gamer. Modifying their over-the-top action style slightly to present a much more realistic (although still not believable) movie in which Gerard Butler, or Kable, a convicted murderer (although since everyone knows he's the good guy, he obviously didn't do what he was accused of), who's signed up for a real life video game. Basically imagine you control a real human in Call of Duty or Halo. His game player is a 17 year old kid who is great at these games. The two of them working together have managed to keep Kable alive for over 20 days. If he survives 30 days, he gets his freedom. Kable is a hero to the world as this is being broadcasted on PPV by billionaire Ken Castle, played by Michael C. Hall (of Dexter fame). He also has another project similar to as if the Sims were real. People get paid to be a Sim, and people pay to control them. Castle doesn't want Kable to win at all costs, but why?

Directors/writers Neveldine and Taylor present this in incredible quality and depth as to translating these video games to real life people. Real gamers will laugh and enjoy all the subtleties that are presented before them. The story is fast-paced, but it flows great. Its non-stop action.

There are tons of names in this from Ludacris to Kyra Sedgewick to UFC Star Keith Jardine, John Leguizamo, Milo Ventimiglia (of Heroes), Terry Crews, and blink if you catch him Efren Ramirez (Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite, and all other Neveldine/Taylor movies).

I would have to say I was quite impressed. This movie is ridiculous, but in a good way.

I rate this movie 7.8 out of 10.

Choke

Based on the book written by Chuck Palahniuk (author of Fight Club). This movie stars Sam Rockwell. He is a man currently working at a place that reenacts life in coloinal America. He doesn't take his job seriously and spends most of his time there hitting on women. At the same time, he is visiting his sick mother at the hospital on a regular basis, and she is getting worse and worse and is remembering who he is less and less. At the same time, Rockwell's Victor, is a con man, and goes to fancy restaurants, fakes choking, only for rich people to save him. He then prays on their kindness and his unfortunate situation into getting things from them. While visiting his mother he meets a nurse whom he fall in love with. Craziness ensues from there.

The movie was unlike most movies I've seen. Very off, but not in such a bad way. It was a limited release, I feel, for a reason, as most people wouldn't flock to such a movie. However, it fits its niche great. Rockwell plays his character well, and his mom is played by Anjelica Huston.

I'd recommend this if you are looking for a dark comedy, or if you are a Palahniuk fan.

I rate this movie 6.9 out of 10.

The Spirit

Ahh, Frank Miller's first movie since Sin City, however with him directing it. I thought this would be great. Plus Sam Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, and Eva Mendes in supporting roles.

I have to say the movie let me down. I enjoyed watching it from start to finish. However, this being Miller's first directed project with on supervision, he just didn't know what he was doing. The movie seemed rushed and there was little transitioning.

Gabriel Macht, played the lead, The Spirit. He was a cop who apparently died, but was saved by the afterlife. So he lives his life as a basically immortal savior to his city. He is also a womanizer. Macht does a charming job at his first lead role, and provides decent humor and action.

The movie, albeit justifed, seemed too much of a graphic novel brought to life, it was too jumpy as if the viewer was turning a page after each scene, instead of watching 1 masterpiece put together.

I'd say if you like these types of movie and are bored, give it a go.

I rate this movie 6.2 out of 10.

The Haunting In Connecticut

I'm not sure if I made myself clear yet in any reviews, but I'm extremely critical of horror movies. Mostly because they have a shallow plot, and really are far from scary. Just some bad acting and special effects, and either jump camera tricks, or scary music to set the tone. I also don't believe in ghosts. So this movie being based on a true story interested me a lot. I wanted to see what it was all about.

To answer it plainly, wow this movie sucked. Not to mention, when matched up with the "true story," I found this movie wasn't very true at all, and neither was the story it was based on.

The acting was decent, surprisingly. The movie just didn't flow at all. It wasn't scary. The entire thing just seemed like a flash back to something that never happened.

Please don't see this.

I rate this movie 3.0 out of 10.

Slumdog Millionaire

What do we have here? Danny Boyle. Not everyone may know him, but he's a fairl established director. I'd go as far as to say he pulled a Neill Blomkamp before Blomkamp did with District 9. He used actors no one ever heard of, to deliver a fantastic and thrilling movie. However, they weren't as unknown, and some were even British, such as Dev Patel.

The movie basically revolves around a boy raised on his own in the slum being more successful than anyone else has in India's version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Seeing as he has no education this is very suspicious to everyone. Yet as he answers each question, it flashes back to his life experience involving how he knew it, esssentially telling the tale of his life.

It was wonderfully directed, written, and acted. It hit me, as well as many others, by surprise. The movie has also skyrocketed leads Dev Patel and Freida Pinto into immense fame.

If you like a good story, hell, a flawless story, please watch this movie.

I rate this movie 8.8 out of 10.

Push

I wanted to see this movie when it hit theatres, however it got little screen time by me. So I had to wait. I'm not going to say the movie was worth the wait, but it was very good.

The movie stars Chris Evans (he is who he is). Not a terrible choice, but he works. Also stars, Dakota Fanning as a teenager, Camilla Belle, and Djimon Hounsou. Everyone has their own abilities as well as many others in the world. Evans is a Mover, he can move things with his mind. Belle and Hounsou plays a Pusher, who can push thoughts into people's minds. Fanning plays someone who can draw the future. There are other types of characters, too.

The premise is that Hounsou is a member of an agency called the Division, who is after Belle and others because of what they can do. Evan's character, Nick is the boyfriend of Belle's character, Kira, and him with the help of Dakota Fanning's character, Cassie try to save her.

The movie sounds simple and dumb, but actually is quite intricate. The directing wasn't the best, but this was a great script if you are into sci-fi. Yeah, its not realistic, either, but the way its explained, if you realize its a movie, you'll enjoy it.

This actually surprised me as I expected it to be lame and cheesy once they got explaining everything, and it turned out to be the exact opposite.

If you like suspense, action, intricate twists and plots, you'll enjoy this. More likely if you are between the ages of 20-30. Just my guess.

I rate this movie 7.0 out of 10.

Watchmen

I'll admit it, and most should... the opening credits were probably one of the best parts of the movie. I'll also add this - I never read the graphic novel, so any differences wouldn't have bothered me. The characters were original in this one. They were acted beautifully, too. The special effects were fantastic as well. The movie flowed, as well. It was long, about 3 hours. (seems I always mention length) However, I didn't mind the length. I became engrossed in it.

The movie is about if super heroes really existed in our world. Basically an alternate reality of how things would be. However, all but 1 of these super heroes have no super powers. The movie begins with one of the heroes being killed, years after they were all retired. The movie follows around Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach character, named after the psychiatric ink blot Rorscach test because his mask had an everchanging ink blot on it. The mystery and action ensue from there.

The movie is made to flow like a graphic novel would. It also doesn't take itself too seriously using song choices at awkward moments to lighten to mood. Some people find that takes away from the movie, I find that it lets people know how the movie should be viewed.

I'm not a Jeffrey Dean Morgan fan by any means, mostly because he does girl movies, yet he played his character perfectly. Billy Crudup as Dr. Manhattan was awesome as well. However, Rorschach still takes the cake. Haley did an amazing job at making his character intelligent, deranged, energetic, stubborn, and psychotic all at the same time.

If you like comic book / graphic novel movies, I'd recommend you watch this one.

I rate this movie 8.1 out of 10.