Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to everyone who reads this blog! I hope you all had a magnificent 2009 and have an even better 2010! Continue to read our blog for even more fun and interesting movie reviews. In the upcoming year, there will be MANY new and exciting movies coming out so be looking for reviews of all of these. Here is a short little list of the movies that I'm looking forward to the most that are coming out in 2010:

10. The Chronicle of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Dec. 10 2010)

9. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse ( June 30 2010)

8. The Book of Eli (Jan. 15 2010)

7. Step Up 3-D (August 6 2010)

6. Shutter Island ( Feb. 19 2010)

5. A Nightmare on Elm Street ( April 30 2010)

4. Dear John ( Feb. 5 2010)

3. Toy Story 3-D ( June 18 2010)

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I (Nov. 19 2010)

1. Alice in Wonderland ( March 5 2010)

Look for reviews of all of these movies and many more in 2010!

Happy New Year

-H

Orphan

When I first saw the trailer for Orphan I was very excited to see it. Then I found out what the ending to the movie was and decided that I could wait to see it because all of the surprise had been taken out. But then I decided to go ahead and watch it and was actually very surprised out how good it really was.

Orphan tells the story of a young couple who are trying to adopt a child after losing their third child. The couple goes to a girls home where the meet the charming and brilliant Esther. They eventually decide to adopt the young girl and they do all that they can to make her feel like she is part of the family. Initially she gets along with all of them, but as time passes it becomes apparent that Esther doesn't want to become part of their family because, by the time she's threw with them, they won't have a family at all.

The plot of Orphan is actually very smart. I found out the "twist" ending before hand and thought that it was pretty stupid. However, after seeing the movie, I found that my initial thoughts were wrong. The ending proved to be very smart and worked well the entire film. Even though I knew it was coming, the way the character in the film reacted to the shocking twist still surprised me and I'm positive if I hadn't known the surprise ending that I would have been absolutely floored by the ending. The film is very emotional, but I wouldn't necessarily call it scary. The aspect of the plot dealing with the death of the couples child was sad enough that it almost made me cry and many of the parts with Esther are very frightening. Every time Esther came on camera the scene automatically became suspenseful. The writers made her character absolutely terrifying. Her actions are horrifying, especially for a child, and it will make your skin crawl to see just how evil this young girl can be.

The acting in this movie was very good. All of the actors did and incredible job, but I must say that there were two actresses who were absolutely brilliant: Isabelle Fuhrman and Aryana Engineer. At twelve years old, Fuhrman out-acted every other person in this film. The young actress played the terrifying Esther perfectly. Being a die-hard horror fan, I've always wanted a truly terrifying female killer, and I found that killer in Esther. Fuhrman used her facial expressions to make Esther appear charming and sweet in one scene and then absolutely evil and insane in another. And her ability to fake a Russian accent for the entire film was absolutely incredible. The accent seemed realistic and made the film even scarier. Eight year old Engineer was also an amazing actress. Engineer plays the hearing-impaired daughter of the couple who is tricked into helping Esther kill. Engineer is hearing impaired in real life so this role was perfect for her. Even at eight she was completely believable and played her part incredibly. Her portrayal of fear towards Esther was beautiful as was her portrayal of love toward Vera Farmiga who played her mother. All of the actors in the film did an exceptional job, but these two young girls were just incredible.

Orphan is a film that sounds stupid when you first hear about it, but it turned out to be an incredible film. It wasn't necessarily scary, but the idea of allowing a child into your home and then that child trying to hurt you and your family is terrifying. Orphan is one of the best American horror films that has come out this year and I would recommend it to anyone who loves horror films.

-H

Jennifer's Body

Jennifer's Body is one of those films that you'll either love or hate. And to my surprise I loved this movie. Starring the beautiful Megan Fox and the quirky Amanda Seyfried, Jennifer's Body is quirky and scary and funny and gory. And it works. The movie has a simple enough plot: a indie-rock band sells their souls to the devil to become as famous as "the guy from Maroon 5." So to make an impression on Satan, the have to sacrifice a virgin. So they hold a mini-concert at a dirty bar in Jennifer (Fox) and Needy's (Seyfried) hometown. The band charms Jennifer and then their "magic" sets fire to the bar. In all the confusion, the lead singer of the band, Nikolai, played by Adam Brody, convinces Jennifer to get into his van. And after that night, Jennifer is just not the same. Young guys from the town begin showing up eaten and Needy notices that her best friend keeps acting weirder and weirder.

When this movie first came out, I was discouraged to hear that many of the top critics gave it bad reviews. However, I decided to go ahead and watch it. And I'm so glad that I did. Jennifer's Body is not that bad of a movie. In fact, I would be willing to bet that one day it will be viewed the same way as cult classics like Rocky Horror Picture Show, which is referenced in the film. Jennifer's Body is not a serious movie. In fact, I wouldn't even call it a horror movie as much as a dark comedy. Not that it wasn't scary, because there were some very intense parts, including one scene where Needy meets Jennifer in the kitchen and Jennifer is covered in blood and gore. It just wasn't meant to be seen as a horror movie. It does not, in any way, take itself seriously. It is meant to make people laugh and it is meant to be stupid and corny and, to put it bluntly, completely ridiculous. Because it is. It is an absolutely ridiculous movie, with a ridiculous plot and outrageous dialogue, but it all works. It's surprisingly funny and entertaining, but it will also keep you on the edge of your seat.

But the plot wasn't the only ridiculous thing about this movie. Megan Fox as a cannibalistic demon, really? For some reason I don't think the picked Fox because she is terrifying. But she is gorgeous. And she does play a pretty awesome psycho. And, not to put down Fox, but it seems really realistic. In the movie, Jennifer could get any guy she wanted, even though she was a man-eating demon. Somehow, I think that even if the real Fox was a demon she could get almost any man she wanted. But anyhow, Fox was actually a pretty good actress. She plays the evil type well, and I don't just mean a demon. She was also pretty good in her role as the stuck-up cheerleader. Amanda Seyfried was also surprisingly good. Her emotions were expressed to the audience, so, watching the film, you knew when she was afraid, the majority of the film, and when she was happy, the minority. The chemistry between Fox and Seyfried was pretty incredible too. The two seemed to work really well together and they just seemed to connect. Adam Brody also had a small part in the film as the lead singer of the Satanic indie-band: Low Shoulder. He's only on screen for a brief time, but he does very well with the little part he was given. His character is a gentlemanly psycho and he plays the part exactly the way it should be played. He's charming, yet scary. And good-looking, yet completely insane. The acting wasn't the best that I've ever seen, however, it fits the funny and quirky style of the movie.

The script was also completely ridiculous, yet brilliant. The dialogue is littered with made up words that are supposed to sound like something a teenager would say. However, no teenager actually says stuff like "jello" for jealous or any of the other weird slang words. But it doesn't even matter because the fact that these words are so ridiculous makes the movie even more funny because it seems like the movie itself is aware of how stupid and hilarious it is.

Jennifer's Body is not meant to be a serious, thought-provoking film. It was made to become a cult classic. It was made to make people laugh and to just be fun. I think many critics have lost sight of the fact that a movie doesn't have to be serious and dramatic to be good. Movies weren't made to make people feel lousy and depressed. They were made to make people laugh to give people a source of fun entertainment. And Jennifer's Body succeeds because it does both of those: it makes you laugh and it is impossible to not be entertained by this completely insane and hilarious movie.

-H

The Virgin Suicides

The Virgin Suicides is the most depressing movie I have ever seen in my life...ever. The Virgin Suicides begins with a young girls suicide attempt. After she is revived, she is taken back to her house where her family tries to help her recover by throwing her a party. At this party, she appears upset and leaves to go upstairs. After several minutes, all the party-goers hear a noise from upstairs and the run outside to see the young girl impelled on a metal fence. This young girl's suicide leads to a horrifying chain of events that ultimately lead to the death of several young girls.

The Virgin Suicides is about four sisters who have survived after their fifth sister's suicide. The four girls are played by Kirsten Dunst, A.J. Cook, Leslie Haymen, and Chelse Swain. All four girls were very good actors and portrayed each sisters' personally beautifully. However, young Dunst's acting stood out. Dunst played the main character, Lux Lisbon, a promiscuous young girl who turns to comfort from sex and smoking after her sister's death. Dunst portrayed Lux amazingly. The character's personality was evident, but Dunst's personality shone through. Maybe it was because she was the only actress I recognized, but Dunst demanded the spotlight in every scene she appeared in and out acted all of her co-workers. However, Josh Hartnett also shone in his performances. Hartnett played the love interest of Lux Lisbon and he, like Dunst, played his character perfectly but also allowed for some of his own personality to shine through.

Suicides was a very well-written movie. The pacing was perfect and the music built up suspense at the perfect rate. During the entire film I was left sitting on the age of my seat wondering what would happen next and I was never disappointed because something interesting always happened.

The Virgin Suicide is the most depressing movie I've ever seen, but I would recommend it to anyone. Obviously, the main plot is centered around teen suicide so I would only recommend it to mature viewers, but anyone who can handle the depressing plot should experience this movie.

-H

The Box

Written and directed by Richard Kelly, director of my favorite movie Donnie Darko, The Box is an action-packed thrill ride that will make complete sense to some people and no sense to others. The Box tells the story of a young couple who are going through a rough patch financially. Then, early one morning, a strange box arrives on their doorstep. Later that day a man shows up at their house and tells them that if they press a button located on top of the box then they will receive one million dollars, but someone, who they don't know, will die. They are given 24 hours to make their decision and *SPOILER ALERT* they eventually decide to go ahead and push the button. The rest of the movie goes on the show the consequences of their actions. By pushing the button, they opened the door to a number of strange and dangerous encounters with employees of the man who delivered the box.
The Box markets itself as a nice psychological thriller. However, as the movie continues it becomes more and more science fiction. And I'm not complaining. Without the sci-fi influences in the plot, it would have been a cookie-cutter drama about a young couple facing hardships, but by having alien encounters and sci-fi references the movie becomes so unique it will be remembered for years to come.

The acting wasn't the best I've ever seen, but it wasn't bad at all. Cameron Diaz and James Marsden both perform beautifully. There is a real chemistry between the two on film and they both portray the fear and confusion of the characters realistically. However, the acting was nothing special. And the other actors were not as convincing as these two. Most of the performances given by the actors with smaller parts seemed either unrealistic or very forced.

The Box was not an amazing movie, but it was better than I expected. Donnie Darko is the best science fiction movie I have ever seen, but I still didn't think that this movie could possibly live up to it. And I was right, it didn't. But it still is worth the watch. There were a few pretty disturbing parts and even a few parts that may make a few of you jump out of your seats. However, my favorite thing about the movie has nothing do with the acting or even the plot. My favorite thing about the movie was it's portrayal of the famous Arthur C. Clarke quote: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

-H

Becket

Becket is something of a lost classic. Nominated for 12 academy awards, including best picture, best director, best supporting actor and two best actor nominations. Sadly, the film only won one of these awards, that being the award for best screenplay based on another medium. All of the others were snapped up by the vastly inferior My Fair Lady. The story centers around the lives of two men, Thomas of Becket and King Henry II of England played by Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole. The two are best friends, until Henry names Becket as his new archbishop of Canterbury. After this, the relationship between the to men quickly goes downhill, until Henry II hates Becket and wishes him dead.
The story is well-thought out and well-paced. Even though the film lasts over two-and-a-half hours, none of it was fat that could have been cut off. My interest rarely dropped, even though the movie has very little action and is moved along mainly by dialogue. What held my interest was the acting of two of the greatest actors of their time, O'Toole and Burton. The two play their parts perfectly, Burton as Becket, calm and collected to the end, O'Toole as Henry, slowly going mad with jealousy as his friend puts God before others. It's the perfect coupling, with the two actors duelling both in the story and in their acting. I have to say that O'Toole won the acting duel. I could not imagine any other actor that could have played his part quite the way he did, portraying Henry's conflicting emotions: love for his friend, and hatred for what he sees as his betrayal. In my favorite scene, Henry drinks with four of his nobles. In one scene, within the space of a few seconds, Henry shows his anger and his sorrow without seeming either schizophrenic or crazy. Eventually, Henry tells his men, "Let us drink, gentlemen. Let us drink, till we roll under the table in vomit and oblivion." Then he will not have to worry about his conflicting emotions.
The writing is excellent, the direction is excellent, the acting is excellent, but what really sold me was Peter O'Toole's perfect portrayal of a conflicted man.