Who's in it: Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon and Balkan from the 9th gate); Susan Sarandon (Cloud Atlas); James Marsden (Cyclops); Liv Tyler (Steven Tyler's daughter.. still can't wrap my head around this one) Lowdown: An aging jewel thief with severe dementia (not unlike a lot of my patients) who's losing the ability to care for himself. His son decides to buy him a robot (voiced by Sarsgaard) to help with his ADLs. Though resistant at first, he slowly warms up to the little fella once he figured he could use it as his partner-in-crime. Musings: A quirky drama that is smart, engaging, and memorable. Entertaining through the first two acts then provides a resounding third act with an almost gut-wrenching turn. The movie also provides us with a peak into the future that doesn't include killer robots, alien invasion, or dystopian rulers. Trailer:
Bernie (2011)
Who's in it: Jack Black (my favorite panda); Shirley MacLaine (In Her Shoes); Matthew McConaughey (surprisingly not shirtless in this one)
Lowdown: Based on a true story about a beloved assistant funeral director who befriends a senile millionaire. When the latter was found dead, the whole town of Cathage, TX was surprised to find that their town favorite was the number one suspect.
Musings: A refreshing black comedy (see what I did there?). It's nice to see him act less than his obnoxious self. Hugely entertaining and smartly directed.
Anyone who spends time digging through the list of streaming movies knows that it is chock-full of garbage films; however, some of them are more deceptive than others. Take the following for example: The Innkeepers (2011)
Netflix blurb: "In this eerie ghost story, a venerable New England inn closes after a century in business, and the lodge's two remaining employees are determined to uncover the truth about longtime rumors that the majestic mansion is haunted." Thoughts: While looking for a good scare, I happened upon this one. The netflix blurb sounded interesting enough but I was terribly mistaken. Super slow, terrible acting, and ZERO payoff. Very little scare. Try Session 9 instead. The Host (2013)
Netflix blurb: "When an alien race implants a parasite soul named Wanderer into Melanie Stryder's body, she resists the takeover, Soon, Melanie and Wanderer become reluctant allies as they go on a quest to track down the men they love in this sci-fi thriller." Thoughts: Previews were decent and even used an Imagine Dragons track. But that's where the good stops. Awful acting. Twilight/Hunger Games wanna-be but the characters are not fully developed, and there is absolutely no chemistry. The Sorcerer and the White Snake (2011)
Netflix blurb: "After herbalist Xu Xian weds a woman who saved him from drowning, he discovers that she's an incarnation of the 1,000-year-old Madame White Snake. Desperate to escape his monstrous new wife, Xu Xian turns to the demon-fighting sorcerer Fa Hai." Thoughts: Story sounds promising, but execution is lacking. CGI is weak. I'd check out Ip Man or Jet Li's Fearless instead. Europa Report (2013)
Netflix blurb: "In this nail-biting thriller, a private space-exploration company sends six astronauts to determine whether Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, can sustain life -- and what they find terrifies and transforms them." Thoughts: Slow-paced and full of cliches. No chills, no thrills , and you don't get to see the "alien" until the very end. Oh, and the alien looks exactly like the Matrix sentinels. Go for Event Horizon instead.
Who's in it: Robert De Niro (you talkin' to me?), Cillian Murphy (AAR frontman look-alike, 28 Days Later, Inception), Sigourney Weaver (Alien, Ghostbusters II) Lowdown: A physicist and a psychology professor spend their free time studying/debunking supernatural activities. When a world-renowned psychic (whose harshest critic mysteriously died decades prior) resurfaces for one last show, the duo are licking their chops at a chance to discredit him. Musings: A supernatural thriller with 3 great performances. A last-minute plot twist sort of reminds me of earlier M. Night flicks. I guess that could be a good or a bad thing. If you like thrillers, I'd check this one out. Trailer:
Equilibrium (2002)
Who's in it: Christian Bale (Dark Knight Trilogy, The Anorexic Machinist, American Psycho), Taye Diggs (Rent, Private Practice), Sean Bean (LOTR, GoT) Lowdown: Story is set after WWIII in a society in which human emotions and expressions were blamed for the problems of the past. Citizens were forced to take a drug which inhibits emotions; and all forms of creative expression (books, paintings, etc) were banned. Bale is an officer who is tasked to enforce these laws. The story gets interesting when he accidentally fails to take a dose and begins to experience emotions.
Musings: Ahhh!! A must-see. The rebels-vs-dystopian-rule storyline is old news but the execution is excellent. The fight scenes are insane and the outfits are GQ-esque. This movie is a mixture of The Matrix, V for Vendetta, and Orwell's 1984 (without the book report that comes at the end). Lots of sci-fi and fight scenes for the men with just enough drama to keep the ladies' attentions for an hour and a half. Trailer:
Lowdown: Star-crossed lovers living on twin worlds with opposite gravitational pull. He lives in the ghetto below, while she lives on the filthy-rich side above. Basically love vs (social class difference + evil political system hellbent on their separation + weird Newtonian problems).
Musings: Even though the Romeo&Juliet/Sharks&Jets/DannyZuko&Sandy love story is overplayed, this movie wrapped it up in a nice, shiny, physics-defying paper. So visually stunning that I pretty much just ignored the flaws. Watch if you're a hopeless romantic or if you want to see pee flow up. Trailer:
Half Light (2006)
Who's in it: Demi Moore (Ghost, A Few Good Men) Lowdown: A mystery writer hides away to a small fishing village to deal with a recent tragedy. While moping around, she somehow gets caught up in a creepy murder-mystery.
Musings: A moody thriller with an old-school, Hitchcock-ian feel to it. At times slow and feels like a lifetime TV movie, but they do just enough to keep you interested in the plot plus puts in a few twists to boot. Add another thriller to the list, but at least this one the ladies will probably enjoy. Watch if you've been wondering what Demi's been up to since Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. Trailer:
Ip Man (2008)
Who's in it: Donnie Yen (idk him prior and you probably don't either) Lowdown: A semi-biographical film loosely based on Bruce Lee's master. Set in war-torn China after the Japanese invasion, Ip man basically stands up against the Empire of the Sun (a la Tank Man). Musings: Another must-see. One of the best martial arts movie I've seen in a while. Beautifully structured and heavily character-driven. Filled with kick-ass kung fu and tear-jerking drama, this movie will make you want to see Ip Man 2 (which I will likely talk about in a future entry). Trailer:
Do you have a subscription to Netflix but have no movies to watch? If you're like my wife and I, you struggle digging through the pile of crap available for streaming. I figured I would start listing some movies that are not that "well-known" but enjoyable nonetheless. If you're done binge-watching Breaking Bad and Dexter, maybe you'd want to give these a try: TiMER (2009)
Who's in it:
Emma Caulfield (one of those demons from Buffy the VS), Desmond Harrington (Quinn from Dexter)
Lowdown:
Not to be confused with JT's movie In Time, this one is a sci-fi chick flick about a digital clock implanted on people's wrists that counts down to the moment they meet "the one." The lead character's device is blank which means that her soul mate has not yet received the device. Thus she goes on dates with TiMER-less men and coerces them into getting implanted, in hopes of finding Mr. Right.
John Cusack (from two of my favs, Serendipity and Say Anything), Jennifer Carpenter (our beloved serial killer's sister, Deb Morgan), Mae Whitman (Parenthood, Scott Pilgrim v world)
Lowdown:
A detective chases down a serial kidnapper/killer of streetwalkers for 3 years without any luck until his own daughter is abducted (mistaken for a hooker because of the way she dresses haha). It then becomes a race-against-time kind of thing because the villain either impregnates his victims or chops them up Dexter-style.
Musings:
Decent thriller with same-old storyline; however it still kept us entertained. Ending is a bit of a doozy! Also, be prepared for Stockholm syndrome galore. Watch if you're into thrillers or surprise endings.
Captain Jack Sparrow is a rare book dealer who is tasked to authenticate 3 copies of an ancient book (2 of which are forgeries). The rare book supposedly contains the secret to summoning the devil and gaining invincibility, immortality, and yadayadayada. Along the way he finds out he is not the only one who is after this ancient tome.
Musings:
Loved this one. Saw it a long time ago but had to re-watch because it was that entertaining. I've always had a fascination with the supernatural/good-vs-evil, and this one is not lacking. Mix in mystery and thriller and you've got a winner. Reminds me a little of how I envisioned the movie adaptations to The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons should have been (but weren't). Watch if you like mystery/thriller and was disappointed by the former 2 movies I mentioned.
Trailer:
Butter (2011)
Who's in it:
Jennifer Garner (half of Bennifer part deux), Ty Burrell (Phil from Modern Fam), Olivia Wilde (House), Hugh Jackman (wolverine, wolverine, and wolverine)
Lowdown:
A 10-year-old foster child finds her way into a butter sculpture exhibit and discovers a talent in sculpting. A David-vs-Goliath competition ensues between the child and the socially ambitious wife of the previous champion (well, 15-years-straight-champion).
Musings:
It's about a butter-sculpting competition. Or maybe it was a satire about politics. I don't really know, but it was an entertaining comedy. If not entertaining then at least memorable (read: how many movies about butter-sculpting are there?). Watch if you're into politics and comedy.
Trailer:
6 Souls (2013)
Who's in it:
Julianne Moore (Boogie Nights, Big Lebowski), Jonathan Rhys Meyers (MI 3, Match Point)
Lowdown:
It's about a psychiatrist who is introduced to a patient with multiple personalities who takes on the physical characteristics of those personalities. The doc soon discovers that the personalities are murder victims, which leads to her getting closer to becoming one herself.
Musings:
Similar to Identity but sans Cusack, so obviously not as good. Moody and sometimes hollow but at least it sticks to its guns (mainly, creepiness and good acting). A psychological thriller that deals with amnesia and split personalities (not unlike Identity, sorry spoiler alert for those who haven't seen the 2003 movie) that sometimes forces its twists and misdirections. Watch if you enjoyed Identity but hated Cusack.
