Fantastic Mr. Fox

Fantastic Mr. Fox is a movie about a fox who has a bad habit of stealing chickens and turkeys and other birds. When Mr. Fox and his wife got married, he promised her that he would start a new way of life, get a real job, and stop stealing. But once they move into a new tree, he starts to steal again from the three biggest farmers in the town. After he begins to steal from them, he gets them upset and the farmers come after him and his community.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is a very cute stop motion movie. The animation is cute but something about it is really crude. With the recent improvements in animation, all animation appears very realistic and pretty. But Fantastic Mr. Fox isn't like that. It doesn't rely on pretty pictures like most animated films. It relies on the story and plot. The animals look real in some ways and sometimes they even look like stuffed animals. They're cute but also kind of savage and dirty, like real animals. Another great thing about the animation was the attention to detail. Everything worked and fit together perfectly and everything was very detailed, like the fur and paws.

The story is very good. It is well written and exciting, even intense at some points. Most animated are cutesy, but Fantastic Mr. Fox is more than that. Like most animated movies, Fantastic Mr. Fox has a point or life lesson. The lesson Mr. Fox learns is that he needs to stop caring so much about what he wants to have and more about what he already has like his wife and child.

The "acting" in Fantastic Mr. Fox is also very good. George Clooney is the voice of Mr. Fox. He does the voice very well and makes it sound like a fox. Meryl Streep plays Ms. Fox and also does a good job. But, I think, both Clooney and Streep got off easy. The script of Fantastic Mr. Fox gave them plenty to work with. The script was beautifully written with some truly hilarious lines and scenes. However, part of me doesn't think the movie was truly written for children. The director, Wes Anderson, is known for more crude and adult movies. But his venture into the realm of children's film worked very well for him, but he didn't completely leave the adult world. The animals in the movie deal with some adult situations like lying and stealing. And the animals do like to cuss, however they never actually say a cuss word. Whenever they cuss they actually say the word "cuss." It's cute, but not necessarily child friendly.

Fantastic Mr. Fox was nominated for an Oscar, but I think it was truly looked over by the public. Hardly anyone has seen this movie, but it's probably one of the best that came out last year. It's a fun and entertaining movie that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

-H

Oscars!

Well, it's official. The Oscars have been aired and there were some shocking wins and some shocking losses. Some great moments and some not so great moments.

Here is the list of winners for the bigger awards followed by some of my thoughts about the winners.

Best Picture: The Hurt Locker

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart

Best Actress in a Leading Role: Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Mo'Nique in Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Christopher Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

Best Screenplay: The Hurt Locker

Best Animated Film: Up

Well, I'll start by saying that I have only seen four of the ten nominees for best picture so I may have a bit of a bias in my opinions. The four I have seen are Up, Inglourious Basterds, Avatar, and An Education. I have not seen The Hurt Locker so I cannot say whether or not is deserved to win best picture. I don't know if it did or not, but I will let you know after I watch it. I have seen Inglourious Basterds and I feel that it should have won an award for something. I would have been ecstatic to see it win best picture and I would have loved to see Quentin Tarantino win Best Director. However, I must say that it does make me happy that Kathryn Bigelow one. It's about time a woman one for best director and hopefully her win will open the category up for even more female directors. The main thing, however, I think the Academy got wrong was the Best Actress award. I have not seen The Blind Side so I cannot truly make an unbiased decision, but I do think that it is almost disgraceful that someone could win an Oscar and a Razzie in the same week. I know it wasn't for the same movie, but it's besides the point. Sandra Bullock is not the best actress that was nominated. I truly feel that Carey Mulligan did an amazing job in An Education and, even though she wasn't even nominated, I think Diane Kruger was just fantastic in Inglourious Basterds. The Academy didn't get everything wrong though. Up winning best animated picture was one obvious yet exciting part of the night. Up was an amazing movie and it definitely deserved to win. Another appropriate win was Christopher Waltz who played a Nazi obsessed with hunting Jews in Inglourious Basterds. He was incredible and truly deserved to win.

The Oscars was a fun-filled night and both Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin were great hosts and made the night funny and enjoyable. Anyone who missed last nights show can catch up on all of the winners at imdb.com

What are your thoughts on the Oscars? Did the Academy get it wrong or am I just bias? Comment and let me know!

-H

Garden State

Zach Braff's film Garden State was an interesting movie. Not the typical movie you see. I'm not quite sure to describe it but I guess I'll try. The movie is about a young man whose goes back home after being away for nine years due to the death of his paraplegic mother. While there, he meets a young girl who is a chronic liar and who has epilepsy. Then he goes with the girl and his best friend on a search around the town for his going away present.

Not only was Braff the director of this film, but is also played the main character. And he did a surprisingly good job too. His character was a very calm, quiet, hurting man and Braff portrayed all of his emotions so well. It was almost beautiful. While watching him on screen, you could see the hurt and distress in his eyes. Natalie Portman, who plays, Sam, also did a fantastic job with her part. She was bubbly and giddy and exciting and fun to watch. You could feel her happiness coming through the screen and you could feel her pain when she was hurting. The two also had a strange yet intriguing on screen chemistry. They were a strange couple, not just the actors but also the characters, but they worked. Their relationship seemed realistic and they seemed like they truly enjoyed each other's company and that they truly had feelings for each other. Their chemistry made for a very interesting movie.

The movie was very strange. The plot was not the normal movie plot and for being a movie with such famous actors it all felt very indie. And there was also a strong resemblance between Portman's character and Clementine from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind which came out the same year. And I think that's one of the reasons I enjoyed the movie so much. It had a very indie and artistic vibe that made it really interesting to watch. It was artsy but not to the point where it didn't make sense or wasn't enjoyable. It was just artistic enough to really have a point and to hit close to home. It's just one of those movies where you know that it has some meaning behind it. Even if at first you don't know what that meaning may be. And it took me a little while to figure out what I think it means, but now I think I know. I think the meaning behind the movie is life is too short. You must do what makes you happy and reconnect with the ones who you love and who love you. And that's why I really liked this movie. Most movies these days don't have any true meaning, but Braff's Garden State is different. It means something and it's interesting and entertaining too.

-H

Shutter Island

Martin Scorsese's new film Shutter Island is number one at the box office right now and is well liked by viewer's and critics alike. It tells the story of a young detective who goes to investigate the disappearance of a young woman from an insane asylum on Shutter Island. Once there he realizes that there are some really strange things going on at Shutter Island. Including some medical experiments and dangerously insane inmates who are locked up in cell block C. The plot is a little strange but is very interesting and entertaining.

The young detective, Teddy Daniels, is played by Leonardo DiCaprio. This is DiCaprio's fourth movie with the famous director Martin Scorsese. Many say that this movie is one of Scorsese's worse. I cannot comment on that because I have only seen one other movie by Scorsese, The Aviator. But I do think that The Aviator was far worse than Shutter Island, because I actually liked Shutter Island. But anyway, Leonardo DiCaprio is an amazing actor as usual and plays the part perfectly, with extreme emotion and realism. The touching story also create a very emotional movie. DiCaprio, however, isn't the only great actor from the film. Ben Kingsly does an equally good job playing the lead doctor at the asylum.

Shutter Island is one part crime thriller and one part artistic statement. It teeters between mainstream thrills and drama and artistic flashbacks and dream sequences that are not only beautifully done, but are essential to the main plot, so pay close attention! There are also many shocking and thrilling scenes because, truly, there is nothing scarier than a crazy person. I wouldn't necessarily call Shutter Island a horror movie, but it does shock.

Since the movie is so new, I won't give away the ending. But I must say something. This movie is full of twists and turns that will keep the viewer on the edge of their seat and guessing till the very last shot. However, the ending is somewhat predictable. And when I say somewhat, I truly mean somewhat. While watching the movie I guessed part of the ending. However, J guessed another part of the ending. Together we figured out a good bit of the ending, but still not all. And that's one of the things that makes this movie good. You may be able to figure out part of the ending but I honestly doubt that anyone could figure out every last bit.

-H

Dear John

With Valentine's Day just a few days away I thought I'd write a review for a movie many couples will probably be seeing this weekend: Dear John. Dear John is about a young man in the military who meets a girl. The two fall in love and spend an amazing time together before he is deployed to Iraq, right before 9/11. The movie is based loosely on the Nicholas Sparks book by the same title which I haven't read, however, I've heard that the book and movie are a little different and many people who have read the book do not like the movie as much. I can't comment on that because I haven't read the book, but I did enjoy the movie.

I'm not usually a chick flick lover, but I have a special place in my heart for Nicholas Sparks books and movies. Dear John is no exception. The movie was extremely sweet and romantic and I'm sure most women will enjoy it. Men, on the other hand, may not like it so much. The movie is made for women. It's sappy and so romantic that many men will probably just sit and role their eyes while their girlfriends cry their eyes out: at least that's what happened when I went to see it. But, anyway, the movie itself was not amazing. But it did have so redeeming qualities. The plot was actually very interesting. Many romance movies are very predictable and at first glance this one appears predictable too. But Dear John actually surprises with a few twist and turns that will make almost anyone cry.

Another redeeming quality was the chemistry between Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried. The two were just amazing together. The way they looked at each other and the way they delivered their lines seemed so real, as if they were really a couple. The chemistry between the two whenever they were on screen together was just incredible. They both performed so strongly. They truly played their characters. They showed emotion and gave a tear-jerking and wonderful performance.

The thing I didn't like about the movie, however, was the ending. While it was realistic, it just left you without any answers. It made me feel almost like I had just wasted an hour and a half even though I loved the rest of the movie. The ending was just not fulfilling. Everything else about the movie was pretty good though.

Guys, if your girlfriend wants to see this, don't whine and complain. Take her. The movie isn't just a romance movie. It shows some cool scenes with the military and you even get to see a pretty cool explosion. And, also, if you take her to see this you'll definitely gets some brownie points because it is a real chick-flick.

Happy Valentine's Day!

-H

Oscar Nominations

Well, the Oscar nominations have been released! And some seem reasonable, and some not so much. So here are just a few of the nominations.

Best Picture:

Avatar

The Blind Side

Up

Up in the Air

Inglourious Basterds

District 9

The Hurt Locker

An Education

A Serious Man

Precious

Best Actor in a leading Role:

George Clooney in Up in the Air

Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart

Colin Firth in A Single Man

Morgan Freeman in Invictus

Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker

Best Actress in a leading Role:

Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side

Helen Mirran in The Last Station

Carey Mulligan in An Education

Gabourey Sidibe in Precious

Meryl Streep in Julie and Julia

Best Director

Quentin Tarantino for Inglourious Basterds

Lee Daniels for Precious

James Cameron for Avatar

Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker

Jason Reitman for Up in the Air

So, what do you think? What movies were missed and what/who doesn't even deserve to be there? Personally, I feel that Avatar doesn't deserve the Best Picture nomination or the best directing. It was a good film, but the story wasn't that amazing. Maybe The Hangover should go in it's place?

I also think that Brad Pitt deserved a Best Actor nomination for Inglourious Basterds. Why did he not get one? Who knows, but I do feel that he deserves one. But, I suppose it doesn't really matter what I think. What do y'all think about the nominations?

True Blood (Season 1)

Okay, so I know that this is a movie review blog and we don't typically write reviews for television shows. However, this weekend I had the pleasure of watching the entire first season of the hit show True Blood. True Blood is about a young girl named Sookie who lives in a small Louisiana town. At this time, vampires are "coming out of the coffin" and trying to live among people and drink a type of synthetic blood called TruBlood to survive. One night, Sookie meets vampire Bill outside of the bar she works at and the two begin a magical relationship.

True Blood is the grown up Twilight. Only True Blood has one thing that Twilight doesn't: vampires. Some of you may be saying, "Isn't Twilight all about vampires?" And my answer to that is NO. Not by any means. The vampires in True Blood don't sparkle in sunlight, they burn to a crisp. The vampires in True Blood don't hide away from humans, they live among them no matter how dangerous that might be fore them. The vampires in True Blood don't play baseball in an open field when a bunch of evil vampires are after them, they play Wii Golf. Well, that last one isn't very intimidating but you get my point. True Blood has True vampires. However, the dialogue in True Blood does resemble that of Twilight, but it's just so much cooler when it comes out of the mouth of a REAL vampire.

Another reason True Blood is MILES better than Twilight is the acting. Anna Paquin, Sookie, and Stephen Moyer, who plays vampire Bill Compton, are absolutely incredible. Paquin is a delight to watch on screen. She seems to really enjoy her role and her fear and anger and joy just flies off the screen. Moyer is also an extreme delight. He seems to sincere and he plays the vampire perfectly. Robert Pattinson has nothing on this man. Moyer is incredibly suave and sexy and alluring, just like a vampire should be. Nelsan Ellis, who plays Layfayette, is also an absolute joy who brings the comic relief in every episode so far.

The plot of True Blood is also very exiting. It has everything an exciting drama should have sex, violence, drugs, and murder. And it's not only vampire fans who'll enjoy True Blood. The story arch of the first season is actually more about a murderer (a human, I might add) than vampires or anything supernatural. However, there are many supernatural aspects to the show that I won't address in the review so I won't give anything away. But if you like murder mysteries or supernatural thrillers True Blood is the show for you. However, don't go into this expecting it to be like the light-hearted Twilight. True Blood is an emotional and dark show that was not meant to be seen by children due to it's extremely violent and sexual content.

The only thing I didn't really like about True Blood is how likable the characters are. Because as soon as you start to really like a character, they're probably about to be killed off. Oh, and one more thing, if you're squeamish about blood, do not watch this show.

-H

The Piano

A few days ago I had the pleasure of watching Jane Campion's The Piano in class. It's not the kind of movie that I normally watch, being more of the action frame-of-mind, but I very much enjoyed watching this gem of a film. Ada McGrath(Holly Hunter) is a mute woman in 1850s Britain who is sent off to savage New Zealand along with her daughter Flora(Anna Paquin), as a mail-order bride to a land-owner there, Stewart played by Sam Neill. Once there, her new husband, in a bid to increase his land holdings, trades Ada's most prized possession, her piano, to his neighbor, Baines(Harvey Keitel). Ada is naturally upset, but when visiting Baines in order to give him lessons on how to play his new piano, he makes her an offer: sexual favors for the return of her piano.
The Piano is a success on many different levels. Jane Campion, the writer and director of the film, crafted one of the rare films that works as both an accessible story, as well as a layered, meaningful work of art and literature. Watching the film once will be entertaining merely for the well written story, but watch it again and you will see the layers that it has. Jane Campion began her college life with art school. Once there, she realized that she was trying to tell stories with her artwork and that film school would be a better fit for her. With that background in the arts, Campion has a special way of placing the scene in front of the camera(what film students call mise-en-scene) that creates an artistic image to be interpreted by the viewer. The film is a joy to watch because the placement of the scene and of the camera has meaning and beauty all of its own. The story that Campion wrote also is many-layered, portraying gender issues of the nineteenth century, family relationships, and exchanges of power. Many of Campion's films include a tactile quality to them, emphasizing the sense of touch and what it means. Some of the most powerful emotions in The Piano are conveyed by the feel of a piano key.
The writing and direction were not the only good qualities of this film. The acting done by Holly Hunter as the mute Ada is some of the best I have ever seen. Jane Campion, when she made this film, wanted her heroine to have a piercing gaze that seemed to reach down into one's soul. I don't know how Holly Hunter managed to pull that one off, but she did. Though her character is mute, she portrays more emotion in the performance without a single word than ninety percent of actors more well known. Holly Hunter really carries this film with her perfect emotionality. Harvey Keitel also does an above-average job as the at-first lecherous, later not so much Baines.
Overall, The Piano is a film that I would give both of my thumbs-up to, as well as a recommendation to anyone I know.

-J

Lost in Translation

Sophia Coppola's film, Lost in Translation is one of the rare films that come along and truly depict human interaction. Most of us are used to fairy-tale endings or tragedies. Either the main character fall in love, grow up, get married, and live happily ever after or they meet, fall madly in love, and then one or both of them die before they're even close to getting married. We are also all used to the wild and crazy adventures that people in movies find themselves them: they are either involved in some outrageous scheme or involved in some wild, hot affair or something else completely ridiculous.

Lost in Translation is completely different. It tells the story of Bob Harris played by Bill Murray and Charlotte played by Scarlett Johanson. These two characters are both in a very lonely and desperate place. Bob is a famous actor who has had to leave his family to make commercials in Tokyo. Charlotte is a young woman living with her husband of two years in Tokyo. Her husband is a famous photographer who has to leave her alone while he goes on business trips. Both Charlotte and Bob are alone, in a strange place, with no one to talk to and no one to connect with. So the two of them form a strong bond after the meet in the bar of the hotel where they are both staying. The movie shows how their bond grows over time and how the two become closer and closer to each other and closer and closer to falling in love.

*SPOILER* But nothing happens. They don't have any kind of affair, at least not physically and they don't have some kind of fantastic adventure. They just meet, talk, and then they leave. It's just so realistic it's incredible. Sometimes, I think, movies get to bogged down with all the adventure and glitz and glam. But Lost in Translation is something that could happen and it's something that probably has happened many, many times in real life. And that's what made it incredible.

Lost in Translation was also amazing because of an underlying metaphor. The phrase lost in translation refers to so many different aspects of the film. The obvious aspect of the film that the title refers to is the language barrier between the main character and the Japanese speaking people. Another aspect of the film that the title refers to is the barriers built between the main characters and their spouses. Both seem to have trouble communicating their desires to their spouses which causes trouble in their relationships. The third aspect of the film the title refers to is a barrier between the audience and the characters. In the final scene of the film, Bill Murray's character whispers something to Charlotte and the audience cannot understand what he says. Many of speculated about what the actual line may be but I don't think that it is really important. The ambiguity of the final scenes is open to interpretation which leaves the viewers intrigued and keeps with the realism of the film. In real life, things are not black and white and sometimes we just don't know what's going to happen. And that's what happen in the film. Because we cannot understand that line, we just don't know what's going to happen to the two characters in the future and we can only guess at what may come for the two of them.

Bill Murray and Scarlett Johanson both do a remarkable job at portraying their characters. Johanson portrays Charlotte as calm and collected. Her depiction of Charlotte's sadness and loneliness is beautiful and truly works as does Murray's depiction of Bob's sadness and loneliness. It appears that both actors truly dig deep within themselves and must use some of their own emotions to portray their character so realistically. Anna Faris also appears in a small role and is hilarious as usual.

Lost in Translation is an incredibly enjoyable film. It is a deep and emotional film that will stick with you long after seeing it.

-H

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.