(DVD REVIEW) Country Strong

The first part of the Gweneth Paltrow double header, Country Strong proves to be a bit more of a Country "Song" than anything. Not really in a bad way, but in a way that I didn't expect. The movie does a great job of telling the traditional aspects of the Country Music genre...drinking, fighting, cheating, lies, women that are beautiful but tough as nails and men that seem a lot stronger on the surface than really are. Just like every good country song (and yes, there are some good ones), at some point those involved spin out of control...and some times they can right themselves.

Plot: At one point Kelly Canter (Paltrow) was on top of the world. She was the hottest act on the country charts (maybe in the world) until she was involved in an alcohol related on-stage accident that cost her more than her career...it cost her an unborn child. After being publicly shunned and grief stricken, Kelly goes to rehab for her alcohol addiction and to help her with the grief of the loss of her unborn child. There, she meets Beau Hutton (Hedlund), a "real" country singer that love the honky-tonk lifestyle and wants nothing more than to help Kelly get her life and career back to what it once was. When James Canter (McGraw), Kelly's husband and manager, takes her out of rehab early and sends her on a comeback tour she starts to slip. She is tempted by drinking at every stop and, as most addicts without finishing treatment will tell you, the temptation is great. This tour is designed to prove her strength as an artist and as a person....but when the goal is to PROVE strength, it is usually to compensate for greater weakness.

This movie was a lot darker than the original previews would indicate to the viewers. It shows some real pain in the characters. In the character of Kelly Carter, I often thought that the character was a weak person. A "cry baby" in a world full of adults. But by the end of the movie it is clear that she is a very disturbed person with little support and the weight of the world on her shoulders. I think it's a great movie and that you should rent it.

(Movie Review) A Chihuahua has more teeth and bigger bite than Shark Night

It’s easy to be critical. I admit that. It’s easy to walk into a theater, look at a movie screen, and say “that doesn’t look real”. We all do it. That being said, I try to watch movies with this simple motto in mind, “If I don’t think that I could do it better, I shouldn’t complain”. It is with that motto in mind that I can say that this movie had the most unrealistic writing, acting, special effects, directing, and overall execution that I have seen in a long time. It was horrible…and I could have done it all better.

Plot: When the college school year comes to an end, a group of friends decide to head down to a lake house in the Louisiana gulf area. When an accident leaves one of the friends in serious trouble the rest of the group must find a way to get their friend to safety. Unfortunately they are without radio access and there is no cell signal. Their attempts at taking their friend to shore are revealed to be even greater when the group discovers that the lake (saltwater) is full of sharks. They must find a way to get help for their friend and to safely get back to shore without getting into the water. Lives will be lost, friendships will be tested, and predators much more dangerous than sharks are revealed.

Now that you know what the movie is about, I am obligated to tell you to NEVER watch this movie. Really. It is so stupid. I lost precious I.Q. points while suffering through this train wreck of bad acting, bad writing, bad plot and horrible special effects. To give you a true glimpse of how bad this movie is, I will give you a brief *SPOILER* for a scene. A one armed man gets into a fist fight with a shark. I know that sounds like a set up for a joke of some kind…but it’s not. A guy with one arm walks into the water and begins to fight with a hammerhead shark. Possibly the dumbest scene that has ever been recorded to film and released to a mass audience.

Worth the admission? It isn’t worth the price of popcorn, let alone the price of admission. I can name 15 shades of off-white paint that I would rather sit in a corner and watch as it dries than to sit through this horrible excuse for a movie. Please save your money and your valuable brain cells. DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE.

Note: The only good thing was that I saw a few good previews before the movie started. The preview for  In Time was one that really stood out. This movie looks completely original and very interesting. Let me know if you plan to see it

(DVD REVIEW) The Beaver

So...over the past years if there is one thing that Mel Gibson has proven it is that he can play the role of someone that is Ape S*** Crazy! So, when I heard about him taking on this role I figured that it would be a fun and funny look into what makes someone like him tick and what it would be like to be in the mind of a "crazy" person for an hour or so. The movie, however, gives a lot more than that.

Plot: Walter Black (Gibson) doesn't feel "right". His marriage is falling apart, his relationship with his children is nonexistent and he has run a toy company that he inherited from his father into the ground. After he and his wife separate Walter goes into an even deeper depression. While near a garbage dumpster one night he finds a hand puppet of a Beaver. After placing it on his hand, The Beaver takes on a life of its own and begins to be the "voice" and the main decision maker in Walter's life. For a short time...this works GREAT. It allows him to communicate with everyone in his life in a way that he didn't think he could any longer. He hits a high point in his life! But once Walter feels that he no longer is in control, and he fights back, The Beaver proves that the only other thing that is waiting on the other side of your highest high point is your lowest low point.

This movie was really interesting. Its not really funny, but Gibson does a great job of showing the depth that someone suffering from serious mental illness if forced to struggle with. The movie is worth a watch. Check it out!

(DVD REVIEW) LOVE & OTHER DRUGS

I'm not one to seek out Romantic Comedy movies. While my wife and I make it a point to watch Serendipity at least once every fall/winter, I normally shy away from a "template" movie. One that is the EXACT SAME as a million other movies out there but has a different cast and title. Lucky for me, this was more like an UnRomantic Dramady.

This movie is about a womanizing young man, Jamie (Gyllenhaal), who is happily floating through life. He lands a job as a pharmaceutical sales rep and persuades a doctor to let him "shadow" the doctor's daily rounds. While doing this he is introduced to Maggie (Hathaway). Maggie is in stage one of Parkinson's and catches Jamie's eye. After some chasing Jamie finally gets Maggie to agree to go out with him. They, both being attracted to each other and not wanting a serious relationship, agree to become a casual, yet recurring, fling. While lines are drawn, and both know what this "relationship" is supposed to be, it soon evolves into something larger. But when the weight of Jamie's job and Maggie's disease begin to put pressure on their budding romance, they soon have to figure out if this is "fight or flight".

I'm a sucker for both of these actors. Gyllenhaal has been a favorite of mine since Donnie Darko and The Day After Tomorrow, and Hathaway since The Princess Diaries. So I was kind of hooked from the beginning. But the movie was actually very good and surprisingly touching in some scenes. Watching the character of Maggie struggle with her illness and trying to cope with the severity of what is to come was very well portrayed by Hathaway. I would recommend this movie to anyone. Watch it!

(DVD REVIEW) LIMITLESS

Is there anything that Bradley Copper can't do....other than act? I mean, really, Cooper is not the best actor. Not by a long shot. That being said, there is a very specific role that Cooper was born to play. The cocky, smarmy, womanizing, likable jerk. This movie proves why this has become his bread and butter in Hollywood.

Limitless is about a likable loser named Eddie (Cooper) that just can't seem to bring it all together. He almost does from time to time, but in the end he always seems to fail. Relationships, jobs, writing his novel...everything. One day an old friend passes him on the street and they start to talk. Eddie tells him that he just cant seem to focus on what he needs to do. The friend offers him assistance. The assistance comes in the form of a little clear pill that opens your mind in a way that you never thought possible. It unlocks minute little insignificant memories that you may have had when you were 6 years old. It make your mind work in a way that allows to act less like a notebook and more like a supercomputer. When Eddie comes into a large amount of this "miracle" and starts making waves, he draws attention to himself. He starts being followed. He and those around him find themselves to be less and less safe. What happens when something gives you everything you ever wanted and then threatens to take it all away (and more)?

The movie is actually pretty good. It's not going to win an Oscar and will not go down at one of the greatest acting performances ever, but it is a pretty fun movie and offers a nice escape from the "everyday". Check it out!

(DVD REVIEW) Insidious

So. Why is it that I am so adverse to watching something after everyone I know says "go see it"? Is it because I am a rebel? Because I feel that I know what my tastes are in movies and I would watch it if I wanted to? More likely it is that I hate to feel like a follower and hate to be the last person to do something that EVERYONE else has. For a lot of those reasons, I put off watching some things (Hell, I STILL have not watch The NoteBook). But I decided to get over my issues for this one because it just looked too creepy to go without watching it.

The movie follows a family after a recent move to a new house. Not long after the couple and their two sons begin to settle in to the new house one of the boys, Dalton, mysteriously slips into a coma. After home care is established and, and the mom is settled into her new role as nurse, they start to experience numerous unexplained things. Very soon these annoyances begin to present themselves in the form of ghosts/entities. When the family decides to fight back and use unconventional methods to "find" their comatose son they open the door to a world that they are not prepared to deal with.

This movie was actually pretty scary. It had lots of "oh sh##" moments that had my wife and me squirming around in our seats. It's an interesting concept, a scary premise and a well executed thriller.

WATCH IT!

(DVD REVIEW) Take Me Home Tonight

For some reason I always thought that Eric and Donna would be the two that went on to do great things in Hollywood after that 70's Show was over. But Laura Prepon is barely making TV appearances and Topher Grace movies are often left with little to no audience (or being bashed by the audience that sees it - SpiderMan 3). So, while I always like what Topher does in film, I kind of rented this movie on a dare to myself. I wanted to see if it was chalked full of goobie 80's gags and squeaky clean teen imagery.....boy was I wrong (and glad I was).

Matt Franklin (Topher Grace) is a smart kid. Straight A student in high school, graduated from MIT, and now works at a video store. He's a little lost (as most of us are/were in that time). Most of his friends are moving on with their lives and he is stuck in a rut. In this rut with him is Barry Nathan (Dan Fogler), his best friend that skipped college and started selling cars for a luxury car dealership. After a string of events set them on a wild night in town, Matt is presented with finally getting to know his high school crush Tori, to prove to the rest of his ex-class mates that he is not the same kid in high school, and to prove to himself that he has something to offer. The only question is "what" does he have to offer.

This movie is NOT 16 candles. It has a LOT of cussing, a little nudity, drug use, and still has all of those fun 80's references that you really want in a movie like this. Anna Ferris plays twin sister to Topher's character and turns in a top notch performance. Everyone does a great job in this movie. It's a shame it never found a bigger audience.

WATCH IT.