DVD Release Reviews for November 17th

Four Christmases - C+ (Don’t Bother)

Four Christmases was about 3 Christmases too long. From the very beginning the chemistry between Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon just isn’t there. The reported tension on the set of filming clearly came through as they weren’t remotely a believable couple. Vince Vaughn was miscast and the leading male role should have been someone with a more likeable personality. Even the families of both characters came across as very annoying and not very funny. With a star-studded cast like this one, the film should have been a huge hit. Being your typical romantic-comedy the plot is predictable and not very interesting. If you love Christmas movies then you may enjoy this film, otherwise go with a rom-com such as The Proposal instead as it is better in every aspect.

Bruno - B- (Wait for It)

This came very close to being a complete disaster, and in fact I almost turned it off after the first 15 minutes. The crudeness and number of people that it offends far surpasses that of Borat, and was almost to the point of being unwatchable at first. However, once it focused more on the people Bruno interacted with and less on himself, it became quite hilarious. Just like Borat, the opinions and reactions of some of the people filmed are easily the funniest parts of the whole movie. It’s not nearly as good as Borat as that was almost non-stop laughing the first viewing. It’s definitely not for the younger crowd, but is funny enough to be watched once. Although, also just like Borat one viewing will be more than enough.

My Sister’s Keeper - A- (Gotta Rent)

Anyone with a child, brother, sister or a heart will be thoroughly moved by this film. Cameron Diaz plays the mother of her child who is dying from leukemia. In an attempt to save her life she has a 2nd child that is genetically altered to be a perfect match to her cancer stricken daughter. Abigail Breslin and Sofia Vassilieva turn in such strong performances as sisters that it breaks your heart to see what they are both going through. The way the story plays out is very unique. It shows their lives at different points through each of their eyes. It helps you understand why the son is so distant, why Breslin is so hesitant to continue donating her body to her sister, and why the mother will do whatever it takes to save her dying child. Alec Baldwin and Joan Cusack also costar and play key roles in determining the fate of the family. If you want a heart-wrenching film that will bring you to tears there is no better choice then My Sister’s Keeper.

Star Trek - A- (Gotta Own)

Coming from someone who has never seen a single Star Trek episode or movie, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It was a great action-packed sci-fi film that also provided something that few of the other 2009 blockbuster summer hits did, a decent and intriguing story. J.J. Abrams (the mind behind Lost and Cloverfield) really grabs hold and makes it his own. Unlike most other space-themed movies, it doesn’t across as cheesy or fake looking. My only major concern with the movie was the casting choices. The 2 main characters, Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto were perfectly cast as Kirk and Spock. However, the choices for the rest of the cast kind of perplexed me. Tyler Perry, Simon Pegg, John Cho (Harold from Harold & Kumar) and Wynona Rider are just a few of the actors that play smaller roles. They weren’t necessarily bad in the roles, just really unexpected for a big-budget sci-fi flick. Even if you are not a Star Trek fan at all or have never seen anything Trek related this is still definitely worth a watch.

DVD Release Reviews for November 9th

Up - A+ (Gotta Own)

Pixar does it again by striking animation gold with Up, the story of a widowed old man going on one final adventure in memory of his wife. Up is fantastic in every aspect, from the animation, to the story to the individual characters. It’ll have you crying within the first 10 minutes of the movie, laughing throughout the entirety of the film and entertain you until the end credits. Like Wall-E, Ratatouille, and the dozen other films it is great for both children and adults and has to rank as one of the top animated movies of the decade. The best part of the movie has to be the “talking” dogs. I can’t imagine dogs thinking anything but what is portrayed in the movie. No matter what type of movie you like or what your feelings are towards animated films, you have to see this. This is a must-see, must-rent and must-own.

The Ugly Truth - C+ (Wait for It)

The ugly truth of this movie is that it is a complete waste of good actors and a potentially good script. It is overwhelmingly and unnecessarily vulgar to the point of greatly detracting from the film itself. None of the characters come across as likeable at all, and actually come to brink of just being annoying. It tries to be a romantic comedy except that it’s not really all that funny. There are some funny scenes, such as an updated version of Meg Ryan’s infamous diner scene from When Harry Met Sally, but they are few and far between. To go along with that the “romance” aspect of it is not remotely believable. It seemed like it could be your typical date movie, but its excessive vulgarity just make it ridiculous. It’s even more surprising considering all 3 screen writers are women and the film really disrespects women as a whole.

The Goods - C+ (Don’t Bother)

I would characterize The Goods as a comedy very similar to Observe and Report. The stories are nothing alike; however both of them left me feeling greatly disappointed. It is quite raunchy and vulgar, to an unnecessary level, not a funny one similar to most of Judd Apatow’s films. The cast should have made this a home run as it stars Jeremy Piven and just about all of the minor characters from some of the great comedies of recent years such as Role Models, Knocked Up and Zack and Miri. It’s an hour and a half of non-stop one liners and attempted gags to try and produce laughs. Some succeed, however most fall flat. Piven almost tries to hard to be like Ari, his hilarious role from Entourage but just comes across as an over-confident jerk instead. Overall it has some laughs but can probably be skipped by most and seen on T.V.

Accidental Husband – B (Gotta Rent)

Accidental Husband is a straight to DVD (domestically at least, it was in theaters briefly overseas) romantic comedy. The main premise of the story is Jeffrey Dean Morgan gets revenge on Uma Thurman, a radio talk show host that convinces his fiancé to call off their wedding. The ridiculous part of the story is that his revenge consists of marrying himself to Uma with just a click of the mouse on his computer, just before she is to marry Colin Firth. The film tries to do a new take on the romantic comedy genre with a fresh new story, but it’s just as predictable as every other rom-com out there. Although the story itself is a little out there and the decisions that Uma’s character makes doesn’t make any sense, the film is light-hearted and fun enough to be a decent rom-com. If you can overlook the implausible storyline and just take it for what it’s worth then it would be worth a rent, especially considering it’s essentially a direct-to-DVD film.

DVD Release Reviews for November 3rd

Food, Inc. - A- (Gotta Rent)
Food, Inc. is a documentary that may do for Tyson products and other grocery meats what Super Size Me did for the fast food industry (more specifically McDonald’s. The harsh truths that Food, Inc. presents about the frozen food industry may make you think twice about buying those chicken nuggets, just like Super Size Me had a profound effect on McDonalds and the products that it offered. Like many of today’s documentaries, it does a great job at showing what goes on behind the scenes in the major corporations of the world. The facts aren’t exactly shocking considering everything that Who Killed the Electric Car, Maxed Out, and just about every other documentary of the 21st century has shown. Its one downfall is that it is very similar to Michael Moore’s documentaries in that it only shows one side of the argument. It makes all of the frozen food companies out to be evil corporations and that they have never done anything good. I’m not saying that they DO do anything good, however it would be nice to hear both sides of the argument.

G. I. Joe – B (Gotta Rent)
This is just another example of one of our childhood toys being made into a big budget action movie with no attention to the plot and all focus on how it looks. Just like Transformers, this presents some very cool and expensive action scenes with some very unique weaponry. The technology they come up with makes you believe some of the weapons could actually exist. The casting was much better than I expected. Channing Tatum and the rest of the Joes all play a very believable G. I. Joe. They try to tell you the background of a few of the characters, it seemed like they should have either done it for all of them or none of them. I think choosing just 2 of the characters and leaving the rest out to dry was a mistake. Overall it’s much better than I expected and definitely a guilty pleasure. The movie is pretty much just eye candy so don’t expect too much of a thinker. It is worth a rent, and you can expect a sequel due to the cliffhanger ending.


I Love You, Beth Cooper - B- (Wait for It)
I expect this to fall into the same category as films such as John Tucker Must Die and Fired Up. This will be a guilty pleasure for some, and hated by many. Its audience will definitely be pre-teens and teenagers. Hayden Panettiere plays the stuck-up wild child surprisingly well considering she comes across very sweet in her other roles. I felt like the main character was miscast. If someone like Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Mclovin from Superbad) or Jesse Eisenberg (Zombieland, Adventureland) would have been a much better choice. Paul Rust (the guy who does play him) is mostly just annoying rather than entertaining. The movie has its funny moments and is amusing at time. The rest of the time it’s just ridiculous and over the top. An example is Hayden’s boyfriend is an army man, who is supposed to be only 17, completely trashes Rust’s house and almost kills him, yet no one really cares. If you have teenagers get it for them, otherwise check it out if it’s a freebee.

Taking of Pelham 123 - B+ (Gotta Rent)
Pelham is a remake of a 1974 hostage drama starring Walter Mathau. It’s a good suspenseful thriller at times, however it has many unnecessary action scenes which detracts from its good elements. The film is obviously a Tony Scott film as the style of filming and scene transitions are almost identical to his 2 previous collaborations with Denzel Washington, Déjà vu and Man on Fire. The interactions between Denzel and Travolta were well done and kept you interested in what was going to happen. The random car chases and pointless accidents could have been removed completely. Also throughout the film Denzel is portrayed as a normal, calm and collected man (in fact Scott makes it a point that you know this). Yet towards the end he becomes more like his Man on Fire character who thinks he’s Rambo. I would say the movie is definitely worth a rent, but do not expect a masterpiece.