Hollywood Movie Reviews

Cars 2

2011-07-15T04:11:00.000-07:00

Star race car Lightning McQueen and his pal Mater head overseas to compete in the World Grand Prix race. But the road to the championship becomes rocky as Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

2011-07-15T03:53:00.000-07:00

The Autobots learn of a Cybertronian spacecraft hidden on the Moon, and race against the Decepticons to reach it and to learn its secrets.

Gulliver's Travels

2010-12-22T02:40:00.000-08:00

Travel writer Lemuel Gulliver takes an assignment in Bermuda, but ends up on the island of Liliput, where he towers over its tiny citizens.

TRON: Legacy

2010-12-22T02:35:00.000-08:00

Sam Flynn, the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn, looks into his father's disappearance and finds himself pulled into the same world of fierce programs and gladiatorial games where his father has been living for 20 years. Along with Kevin's loyal confidant, father and son embark on a life-and-death journey across a visually-stunning cyber universe that has become far more advanced and exceedingly dangerous.

The Bounty Hunter

2010-03-31T09:44:00.000-07:00

Milo Boyd (Gerard Butler), a down-on-his-luck bounty hunter, gets his dream job when he is assigned to track down his bail-jumping ex-wife, reporter Nicole Hurly (Jennifer Aniston). He thinks all that's ahead is an easy payday, but when Nicole gives him the slip so she can chase a lead on a murder cover-up, Milo realizes that nothing ever goes simply with him and Nicole. The exes continually one-up each other - until they find themselves on the run for their lives. They thought their promise to love, honor and obey was tough - staying alive is going to be a whole lot tougher.

Hot Tub Time Machine

2010-03-31T09:39:00.000-07:00

Hot Tub Time Machine is a 2010 science fiction comedy film directed by Steve Pink and produced by United Artists/MGM. It stars John Cusack, Lyndsy Fonseca, Crystal Lowe, Rob Corddry, Clark Duke, and Craig Robinson. In addition to Cusack, the film also features stars from 1980s films such as Chevy Chase, Crispin Glover and William Zabka.^[2] The film was released on March 26, 2010.

How to Train Your Dragon

2010-03-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

How to Train Your Dragon is a 2010 computer - animated fantasy film by DreamWorks Animations loosely based on the 2003 book of the same title. The film stars the voice talents of Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Gerard Butler, Christopher Mintz - Plasse, Craig Ferguson, and David Tennant. The story takes place in a mythical Viking world where a young Viking teenager named "Hiccup" aspires to follow his tribe's tradition of becoming a dragon slayer. After finally capturing his first dragon, and with his chance at finally gaining the tribe's acceptance, he finds that he no longer has the desire to kill it and instead befriends it. The film was released March 26, 2010, to highly favorable reviews.

Iron Man 2

2010-02-02T05:20:00.000-08:00

With the world now aware of his dual life as the armored superhero Iron Man, billionaire inventor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) faces pressure from the government, the press, and the public to share his technology with the military. Unwilling to let go of his invention, Stark, along with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and James "Rhodey" Rhodes (Don Cheadle) at his side, must forge new alliances -- and confront powerful enemies.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

2010-02-02T05:16:00.000-08:00

It's the 21st century, but the gods of Mount Olympus and assorted monsters have walked out of the pages of high school student Percy Jackson's Greek mythology texts and into his life. And they're not happy: Zeus' lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect. Even more troubling is the sudden disappearance of Percy's mother. As Percy finds himself caught between angry and battling gods, he and his friends embark on a cross-country adventure to catch the true lightning thief, save Percy's mom, and unravel a mystery more powerful than the gods themselves.

The Wolfman

2010-02-02T05:07:00.000-08:00

Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father, Talbot sets out to find his brother... and discovers a horrifying destiny for himself. Talbot's childhood ended the night his mother died. After he left the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor, he spent decades recovering and trying to forget. But when his brother's fiancée, Gwen Conliffe, tracks him down to help find her missing love, Talbot returns home to join the search. He learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline has come to investigate.

New York, I Love You

2009-10-13T06:56:00.000-07:00

In the city that never sleeps, love is always on the mind. Those passions come to life in NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU - a collaboration of storytelling from some of today's most imaginative filmmakers and featuring an all-star cast. Together they create a kaleidoscope of the spontaneous, surprising, electrifying human connections that pump the city's heartbeat. Sexy, funny, haunting and revealing encounters unfold beneath the Manhattan skyline. From Tribeca to Central Park to Brooklyn, the story weaves a tale of love as diverse as the very fabric of New York itself.

Law Abiding Citizen

2009-10-13T06:53:00.000-07:00

Law Abiding Citizen is a thriller about a brilliant sociopath who orchestrates a series of high-profile murders that grip the city of Philadelphia - all from inside his jail cell - and the prosecutor assigned to his case who realizes he is the only one who can end the reign of terror. The plot focuses on a man who, ten years after his wife and daughter are brutally murdered, returns to extract justice from the assistant district attorney who prosecuted the case against their killers. His vengeance threatens not only the man who allowed mercy to supersede justice, but also the system and the city that made it so.

Zombieland

2009-10-13T06:51:00.000-07:00

In the horror comedy Zombieland focuses on two men who have found a way to survive a world overrun by zombies. Columbus is a big wuss -- but when you're afraid of being eaten by zombies, fear can keep you alive. Tallahassee is an AK-toting, zombie-slaying' bad ass whose single determination is to get the last Twinkie on earth. As they join forces with Wichita and Little Rock, who have also found unique ways to survive the zombie mayhem, they will have to determine which is worse: relying on each other or succumbing to the zombies.

The Stepfather

2009-10-13T06:46:00.000-07:00

Michael returns home from military school to find his mother happily in love and living with her new boyfriend. As the two men get to know each other, he becomes more and more suspicious of the man who is always there with a helpful hand.

Cloudy with a chance of meatballs

2009-09-20T01:53:00.000-07:00

In 2009, Columbia Pictures' and Sony Pictures Animation's "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" will be the most delicious event since macaroni met cheese. Inspired by the beloved children's book, the film focuses on a town where food falls from the sky like rain. Bill Hader will voice Flint Lockwood, a young inventor who dreams of creating something that will improve everyone's life. Anna Faris takes on the role of Sam Sparks, a weathergirl covering the phenomenon who hides her intelligence behind a perky exterior. James Caan plays Tim Lockwood, Flint's technophobic father. Andy Samberg plays Brent, the town bully who has plagued Flint since childhood. Bruce Campbell plays Mayor Shelbourne, who figures out that Flint's invention can put the town, and more importantly himself, on the map. Mr. T plays the by-the-rules town cop Earl Devereaux, and Tracy Morgan takes on the role of Earl's rule-breaking son, Cal.

Jennifer's Body

2009-09-20T01:50:00.000-07:00

Nerdy, reserved bookworm Needy and arrogant, conceited cheerleader Jennifer are best friends, though they share little in common. They share even less in common when Jennifer mysteriously gains an appetite for human blood after a disastrous fire at a local bar. As Needy's male classmates are steadily killed off in gruesome attacks, the young girl must uncover the truth behind her friend's transformation and find a way to stop the bloodthirsty rampage before it reaches her own boyfriend Chip

Whiteout

2009-09-07T03:53:00.000-07:00

A U.S. marshal (Kate Beckinsale), the only one assigned to Antarctica, must investigate a murder there within three days before the Antarctic winter begins. She crosses paths with a U.N. operative (Gabriel Macht), also investigating the murder.She must chases down suspects and finds more murders. Early in the story, Steko is attacked by the killer and left for dead in a storm. She saves herself but loses two fingers due to severe cold-related injuries.

For U.S. Marshal Carrie Stetko, things are about to get even more dangerous. The only law enforcement in this unforgiving territory, she has just been sent to investigate a body on the ice. Antarctica's first homicide. A shocking discovery in itself, it will plunge her into an even more bizarre mystery and the revelation of secrets long-buried under the endless ice--secrets that someone believes are still worth killing for. As Stetko races to find the killer before he finds her, winter is already closing in. In the deadly Antarctic whiteout, she won't see him till he's a breath away.

9

2009-09-07T03:48:00.000-07:00

When 9 first comes to life, he finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world where all humans are gone, and it is only by chance that he discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction. Despite being the neophyte of the group, 9 convinces the others that hiding will do them no good. They must take the offensive if they are to survive, and they must discover why the machines want to destroy them in the first place. As they'll soon come to learn, the very future of civilization may depend on them.

Gamer

2009-08-31T07:58:00.000-07:00

GAMER is a high-concept action thriller set in a near future when gaming and entertainment have evolved into a terrifying new hybrid. Humans control other humans in mass-scale, multi-player online games: people play people...for keeps. Mind-control technology is widespread, and at the heart of the controversial games is its creator, reclusive billionaire Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). His latest brainchild, the first-person shooter game "Slayers," allows millions to act out their most savage fantasies online in front of a global audience, using real prisoners as avatars with whom they fight to the death.

Kable (300's Gerard Butler) is the superstar and cult hero of the ultraviolent "Slayers." Kable is controlled by Simon, a young gamer with rock star status who continues to defy all odds by guiding Kable to victory each week. Taken from his family, imprisoned and forced to fight against his will, the modern day gladiator must survive long enough to escape the game to free his family, regain his identity and to save mankind from Castle's ruthless technology.

GAMER stars Gerard Butler (300, THE UGLY TRUTH), Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Amber Valletta (TRANSPORTER 2), John Leguizamo (RIGHTEOUS KILL, ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13) and Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer).

Game is a near-future action/thriller starring Gerard Butler (Kable) as the champion of an on-line game called "Slayers". Mind-control technology has taken society by storm and "Slayers" allows humans control other humans in mass-scale, multiplayer online game. With his every move tracked by millions, Kable's ultimate challenge becomes regaining his identity and launching an attack on the system that has imprisoned him.

In 2034, mind-control technology has taken society by storm, and a multiplayer on-line game called "Slayers" allows gamers to control human death row prisoners in mass-scale deathmatches. Any inmate who lives through 30 matches wins his freedom. Simon (Logan Lerman) controls Kable (Gerard Butler) the on-line champion of the game having won 27 matches and lived through them all, with his every move tracked by millions, his ultimate challenge becomes regaining his identity and independence by defeating the game's mastermind (Michael C. Hall) through launching an attack on the system that has imprisoned him.

Halloween II

2009-08-26T03:33:00.000-07:00

Michael Myers is still at large and no less dangerous than ever. After a failed reunion to reach his baby sister at their old home, Laurie Strode is immediately taken to a hospital to be treated by the wounds that had been afflicted by her brother a few hours ago. However, Michael isn't too far off and will continue his murdering 'Halloween' rampage until he gets his sister all to himself.

Inglourious Basterds

2009-08-18T22:10:00.000-07:00

During World War II a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as "The Basterds" are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. The Basterds soon cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl who runs a movie theater in Paris which is targeted by the soldiers.

Bandslam

2009-08-11T06:16:00.000-07:00

Teenager Will Burton lives in his head, and his head is filled with music. When his mother, Karen Burton, gets a new job in New Jersey, Will starts his junior year at a new school only to find the old cliques still apply, but rock-n-roll rules the scene. Perpetually a misfit, Will strikes up a friendship with like-minded outsider Sa5m (the 5 is silent). They are both surprised when the school's "it" girl, Charlotte recruits Will to help assemble a band to compete in "Bandslam," a battle of the bands that is "Texas High School Football BIG." Charlotte's ex-boyfriend Ben Wheatly is poised to win with his band Glory Dogs - Springsteen wannabes down to their hats. For the first time in his life, Will finds he is uniquely suited to not only participate in something, but to truly make a difference.

I Sell the Dead

2009-08-11T06:11:00.000-07:00

18th century justice catches up with a pair of grave robbers. With only a few hours to go before his date with the guillotine, Arthur Blake (Monaghan) tells his life story to Father Francis Duffy (Ron Perlman). Before long, Arthur spills the beans on how he got started in the grim corpse peddling business with seasoned ghoul Willie Grimes (Fessenden)

The Collector

2009-08-07T01:35:00.000-07:00

During a domestic jewel heist, a scruffy burglar (Josh Stewart) learns that the family members he thought were on vacation have been bound and gagged and are in the midst of being dismembered. As for the house, it's been booby-trapped with dangling fishhooks, razor wire, spikes on the stairs, guillotines, bear traps, and acidic ooze. The sicko responsible for all this is a hulk in an executioner's black mask, and that's all we ever learn about him. The Collector's only real "characters" are the not-very-baroque torture devices; the result is a sub-Saw knockoff that manages to be brutal yet monotonous, not to mention monstrously unpleasant.

Paper Heart

2009-08-07T01:34:00.001-07:00

Impish performance artist Charlyne Yi — yet another talent hatched from the Knocked Up comedy incubator — says she doesn't believe in love. In Paper Heart, the winsomely weird and original comic performance piece she co-wrote with director Nick Jasenovec, Yi travels across the country interviewing real fellow humans, looking for insight into what she's missing. It's more than possible that her attitude toward love is a posture — a stance of presexual girlhood as expertly chosen as her gum-colored thrift-shop wardrobe. Or not. This diverting riff is as much a spoof of film-school self-seriousness as it is a sincere art project, enhanced by Yi's great, homemade puppets.

Likewise, the romance that develops   unexpectedly between Yi and Michael Cera in the course of making her movie, captured by her "documentary crew" on camera (um, director Jasenovec is played by actor Jake Johnson), is another game of true-or-fake. (Yi and Cera were once actually linked in the past — I think.) In that way, the movie's hide-and-seek attitude toward truth mirrors the intricacies of one lover getting to know another — an arresting notion of the heart that's much more than paper-deep

The Taking of Pelham 123

2009-08-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

In The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, Denzel Washington stars as New York City subway dispatcher Walter Garber, whose ordinary day is thrown into chaos by an audacious crime: the hijacking of a subway train.

A Perfect Getaway

2009-08-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

Cliff and Cydney (Steve Zahn and Milla Jovovich) are an adventurous young couple celebrating their honeymoon by backpacking to one of the most beautiful, and remote, beaches in Hawaii. Hiking the wild, secluded trails, they believe theyve found paradise. But when the pair comes across a group of frightened hikers discussing the horrifying murder of another newlywed couple on the islands, they begin to question whether they should turn back.

Unsure whether to stay or flee, Cliff and Cydney join up with another couple, and things begin to go terrifyingly wrong. Far from civilization or rescue, everyone begins to look like a threat and nobody knows whom to trust. Paradise becomes hell on earth as a brutal battle for survival begins

Cold Souls

2009-08-03T20:53:00.000-07:00

Paul Giamatti stars as himself, agonizing over his interpretation of "Uncle Vanya." Paralyzed by anxiety, he stumbles upon a solution via a New Yorker article about a high-tech company promising to alleviate suffering by extracting souls. Giamatti enlists their service -- only to discover that his soul is the shape and size of a chickpea. His intention is to reinstate it once he survives the performance but complications ensue when a mysterious, soul-trafficking "mule" borrows Giamatti's stored soul for an ambitious, but unfortunately talentless, Russian soap-opera actress.

New Moon

2009-08-03T03:10:00.000-07:00

At Bella's 18th birthday party at the Cullens' house, she gets a paper cut, and Jasper attempts to attack her. The Cullens decide it would be better for Bella's safety if they left, so they get away from Forks, leaving Bella heartbroken. She finds solace in family friend Jacob Black, who incidentally is a werewolf. But before Edward left, he made Bella promise she wouldn't do anything reckless or stupid but, as he'd already broken his promise to 'be there for as long as she wanted him', she decides to break her promise. She goes cliff-diving, which makes Edward think she has killed herself, although it was purely for recreational purposes. So Edward travels to Italy, to provoke the Volturi so they will kill him. Alice finds Bella, and they begin a race to the Italian city of Volterra to stop him.

Movie Review: Aliens in the Attic

2009-08-02T19:55:00.000-07:00

Aliens in the Attic is a pointless but ultimately harmless family adventure that doesn't mentally assault the 12-and-over set. (Extra points for being 100 percent fart-joke-free). A band of scrappy space gremlins face off against a group of teen and tween cousins (including High School Musical's Ashley Tisdale) in a turf war over a Midwestern summer rental home. The E.T.s are after some kind of sci-fi device buried underneath the basement; the kids just want to make sure their clueless folks don't get tagged by the aliens' mind-control gizmos. The ensuing war of the worlds is waged with weapons as fearsome as a bubble blower, a skateboard, and a sort of anti-gravity grenade that, frankly, looks like a lot of fun.

Land Of The Lost

2009-08-02T01:52:00.000-07:00

Based on the 1970s TV show, Land of the Lost tells of a man and his two children who are trapped on an alien planet inhabited by dinosaurs, cavemen and reptilian creature
The dewy-eyed affection with which Americans regard Land Of The Lost, Sid and Marty Krofft’s shonky Saturday-morning staple from the early ’70s, ensured that a big-screen version was an inevitability. And, on paper, the show, in which a father and two kids are whisked into a parallel dimension populated by stop-motion dinosaurs, creepy lizard-men and gibberish-spouting primates, has plenty to recommend it. Dinosaurs are always good value, of course, and LOTL boasts a bunch of them, including a super-intelligent T-rex with a grudge named Grumpy. Plus, the show’s inherent cheesiness — a product of limited budget and the Krofft brothers’ trademarked wigginess — offers prime potential for broad comedy with a generous pinch of nostalgia thrown in. Sadly, then, director Brad Silberling’s amped-up adaptation falls short of expectations.

It’s a little hard to pinpoint exactly why. There’s nothing wrong with the cast — Ferrell, as disgraced paleontologist Dr. Rick Marshall, adds another puffed-up buffoon to his collection; Danny McBride is as reliable as ever in wiseass redneck mode; and Anna Friel adds both sex appeal and Northern grit as a plucky Cambridge grad ostracised for her faith in Marshall’s crackpot theories. There are some serviceable set-pieces and a couple of good gross-out gags — Ferrell unwittingly drained of blood by a disgustingly engorged bug, for instance — and it has the look of an expertly made big-budget blockbuster. The FX are state-of-the-art when they need to be, faux-shonky when they don’t — the villainous Sleestak are quite obviously men in suits, which is just as it should be.

The problem is, it spreads itself far too thin, trying to please so many demographics that it ends up not fully satisfying any. And as it turns into a mush of uneven tones — try explaining the scene where Ferrell and McBride are tripping balls on the local narcotic to an eight-year-old — the overriding impression is of a great deal of money not terribly well spent. You can’t help thinking that with a little more heart and a little less outlay it might have captured the kooky spirit of the Krofft original. As it stands, it’s adequate, in the sense that Night At The Museum or a Big Mac are adequate. But something definitely got lost in translation.

Antichrist

2009-08-02T01:39:00.000-07:00

After the accidental death of their child, a therapist (Dafoe) and his wife (Gainsbourg) — listed in the credits only as He and She — retreat to a cabin in the perhaps-haunted woods to recover. Eventually, they turn savagely on each other and bloody mayhem ensues.
Lars von Trier has joked that he retells one story, about a long-suffering woman and a manipulative man who dooms her, in a succession of genres. Breaking The Waves was a melodrama, Dancer In The Dark a musical, Dogville a small-town exposé. This, evidently, is his horror film.

Antichrist is almost an anthology of nods to earlier horror-art achievements. The prologue, staged in monochrome ultra-slo-mo with operatic score and snowglobe snow (plus hardcore sex), conflates scenes from Don’t Look Now, as a couple are too busy making love to notice their toddler taking a fatal fall. Then, in the ethereally creepy woods, He and She are assailed by nature (acorns pelting the roof like hailstones, fungus/leech growths) as in the undervalued Australian film Long Weekend (the cabin evokes The Evil Dead too). This long, creepy section is the film’s most simple and successful act: deep, dark forests are invested with magic and menace, and the stars (alone onscreen for 99 per cent of the film) deftly reveal how cracked their characters are in jittery domestic rows which foreshadow extreme cruelties.

The mood changes when a fox pauses in the act of disembowelling itself and snarls, “Chaos reigns,” signalling a chapter called The Three Beggars in which the bereft parents are visited by the fox, a crow and a miscarrying deer (anti-Christian opposites of the Three Kings?) and She goes into Audition mode with acts of extreme sexual violence against her husband and herself. It risks gigglesome elements like the talking fox and made-up constellations, before provoking walkouts with video-nasty grue. Dafoe and Gainsbourg are wholly committed, though porn actors or prosthetics substitute for key close-ups. Dafoe inevitably recalls The Last Temptation Of Christ as he undergoes leg-piercing, entombment, stone-rolling and resurrection.

Like vintage Fulci (The Beyond) or Argento (Inferno), it breaks with reasonable storyline and leaves the natural world for limbo. After spending the film with only two characters, the sudden presence of huge crowds in the woods is startling, but more weird than meaningful.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

2009-08-01T21:00:00.000-07:00

Paramount Pictures and Hasbro, whose previous collaboration was the worldwide blockbuster “TRANSFORMERS,” join forces with Spyglass Entertainment for another extraordinary action-adventure “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra.” From the Egyptian desert to deep below the polar ice caps, the elite G.I. JOE team uses the latest in next-generation spy and military equipment to fight the corrupt arms dealer Destro and the growing threat of the mysterious Cobra organization to prevent them from plunging the world into chaos. “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” is directed by Stephen Sommers (“The Mummy,” “The Mummy Returns”).

Movie Review: Up - The Greatest Adventure

2009-07-31T10:14:00.000-07:00

WARNING! This review contains plot details revealed in the first 10 minutes of Pixar's Up

Pixar’s movies have always depicted fantastical worlds spun out of reams of boundless creativity. A rat who dreamed of becoming a chef, and who lived out that dream through controlling a guy by pulling on his hair. An epic battle between ants and grasshoppers. A city full of monsters, powered by the screams of children. A family of superheroes that try to defeat a spurned ex-devotee.

It’s in the context of these wondrous films that Up emerges as Pixar’s entry for summer 2009. Directed by Pete Docter (Monsters Inc.), Up is Pixar’s most ambitious effort yet. Pixar films have always expertly been able to imbue fantasy with real-world emotions, but with Up, Docter tries to create a world that is both distinctively ours, yet also a universe of its own. How well does he succeed?

Up tells the story of Carl Fredrickson (Ed Asner), a retired balloon seller whose wife has recently passed away. Carl’s biggest regret is that he never took his wife, Ellie, to visit her dream destination of Paradise Falls in South America while she was still alive. Determined to rectify this mistake, Carl fills his house full of helium balloons and the next morning, he deploys them out of his chimney, ripping his house off its foundation and sending it hurtling southwards. On the way to his destination, he finds that Russell (Jordan Nagai), a local Wilderness Explorer (this movie’s version of Boy Scouts) has stowed away on board, in an attempt to help Carl and win his “Assisting the Elderly” badge. Together, the two form an unlikely friendship as Carl tries to fulfill his quest.

Let it first be said that Up is thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end. There was nary a moment that didn’t engage, thrill, or pull (and occasionally yank) on my heartstrings. The first ten minutes of the film, which contain an utterly masterful montage depicting a romance from inception till death, is some of the best storytelling I’ve ever seen in my life, and calls back to Wall-E’s opening 30 minutes of dialogue-free greatness. As Giacchino’s sweet, yet plaintive score played in the background during that segment, tears came to my eyes and I felt the audience around me also cave in to the depth of emotion on display.

If there’s any flaw that can be attributed to Up, it’s that it tries to do too much. That opening 10 minutes is completely rooted in the real world, where real people deal with real joys and real problems (Ellie even discovers that she is infertile during this portion of the film). However, the film rapidly veers into a world full of flying houses, talking dogs, fantastical inventions, and exotic creatures. Tonally, it gets a bit muddy towards the end, as the film takes us from extreme pathos to manic whimsy in the blink of an eye (Yet how often can it be said that a film, especially an animated one, is too ambitious? A forgivable fault, to be sure).

I was also mildly disappointed that the film wastes an opportunity to be a serious meditation on the rigors of aging. Up begins by reflecting on how one copes with the loss of a loved one in old age, but for the rest of the film, Carl’s age is merely played for laughs; he’s spry, limber, even acrobatic when the film needs him to be, but his body also gives out just when a comedic beat is necessary. This reflects some of my broader problems with the film — namely, that Up sometimes doesn’t know what type of movie it wants to be.

Nonetheless, as is usual for Pixar, Up does so much right that it’s easy to forgive these slight missteps. The performances are amazing: Asner is perfect as the cantankerous and deeply conflicted Carl Frederickson, but it’s Jordan Nagai as Russell, the young Wilderness Explorer, that steals the show. Nagai, a first-time actor, successfully manages to straddle the line between annoying and adorable, and his performance as Russell gives what would otherwise be a more ponderous movie a much-needed jolt of life. While Russell’s dialogue makes his character arc predictable, it’s infused with so much sweetness that it will still melt your heart.

And of course, the visuals, my God, the visuals. Pixar continues to reveal themselves willing to push the envelope with their visual wizardry, and Up is no exception. The balloon physics are so detailed that they occasionally appear photorealistic, and the vistas visited in this film are unmatched in their breathtaking beauty. Yet one of the things I was most impressed with was the character design for Carl Frederickson. With his square jaw, stout body, and grizzled face, Carl is an imposing figure, but the combination of his nuanced emoting and Asner’s performance make him an unlikely lovable hero.

In the end, I love Up because despite its flaws, it is ridiculously effective. Up transported me to another world and allowed me to experience that thrill of adventure, previously felt only in films as great as Raiders of the Lost Ark. But perhaps the film’s biggest achievement is the eternal truth that it speaks to: That to experience true love and friendship is one of life’s greatest treasures.

Brüno

2009-07-31T01:03:00.000-07:00

Borat trickster Sacha Baron Cohen returns to the big screen to offer yet another stinging dose of sociopolitical satire in this comedy that finds him assuming the persona of gay fashionmonger Bruno, the self-proclaimed "voice of Austrian youth TV." Originally conceived as part of Cohen's cult television series Da Ali G Show, the character of Bruno offered a cleverly costumed Cohen the opportunity to highlight the absurdities of the fashion industry by interviewing unsuspecting fashion icons and other haute couture hangers-on.

Comedy lightning strikes twice for mickey-take meister Sacha Baron Cohen when his gay Austrian fashionista runs amok in America. In this bargain-basement narcissus' never-ending quest for "celebrity", Bruno attempts to seduce a onetime presidential hopeful, adopts a black African baby and provokes a near riot at a caged boxing bout in Texas. Essential exposure of redneck prejudice skips hand in hand with elaborate candid camera-style con tricks. Borat buffs will know exactly what to expect.

Funny People

2009-07-31T00:56:00.000-07:00

George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is a very successful yet self-involved stand-up comedian who learns that he has an incurable blood disorder and is given less than a year to live. Ira Wright (Weiner is his actual last name) (Seth Rogen) is a struggling up-and-coming stand-up comedian who works at a deli and has yet to figure out his onstage persona. One thing these different men have in common is that neither of them have any close friends. One night, George takes notice of Ira when they perform at the same club and he hires him to be his semi-personal assistant and opening act at his performances. George and Ira form a close bond as George teaches Ira how to win the crowd and Ira helps the dying George find closure in his legacy. However, when George learns that his disease has gone into remission and an old flame (Leslie Mann) reenters his life, his recent near death experience inspires him to reevaluate what is important to him and what truly gives meaning to his life.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

2009-07-29T21:39:00.001-07:00

Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was. Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching.
Together they work to find the key to unlock Voldemort's defenses and, to this end, Dumbledore recruits his old friend and colleague, the well-connected and
unsuspecting bon vivant Professor Horace Slughorn, whom he believes holds crucial information. Meanwhile, the students are under attack from a very different adversary as teenage hormones rage across the ramparts. Harry finds himself more and more drawn to Ginny, but so is Dean Thomas. And Lavender Brown has decided that Ron is the one for her, only she hadn't counted on Romilda Vane's chocolates! And then there's Hermione, simmering with jealousy but determined not to show her feelings. As romance blossoms, one student remains aloof. He is determined to make his mark, albeit a dark one. Love is in the air, but tragedy lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same again.
Starring : Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Helena Bonham Carter
Directed by: David Yates

G-Force

2009-07-29T21:38:00.000-07:00

Armed with the latest high-tech spy equipment, a covert team of highly trained guinea pigs discover that the fate of the world is in their paws. Tapped for the G-FORCE are guinea pigs Darwin, the squad leader determined to succeed at all costs; Blaster, an
outrageous weapons expert with tons of attitude and a love for all things extreme; and Juarez, a sexy martial arts pro; plus the literal fly-on-the-wall reconnaissance expert Mooch,
and a star-nosed mole Speckles, the computer and information specialist.

District 9

2009-07-29T21:34:00.000-07:00

Thirty years ago, aliens made first contact with Earth. Humans waited for the hostile attack, or the giant advances in technology. Neither came. Instead, the aliens were refugees, the last survivors of their home world.
The creatures were set up in a makeshift home in South Africa's District 9 as the world's nations argued over what to do with them.

Now, patience over the alien situation has run out. Control over the aliens has been contracted out to Multi-National United (MNU), a private company uninterested in the aliens' welfare -- they will receive tremendous profits if they can make the aliens' awesome weaponry work. So far, they have failed; activation of the weaponry requires alien DNA.

The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus van der Merwe, contracts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world, as well as the most valuable -- he is the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. Ostracized and friendless, there is only one place left for him to hide: District 9.
Starring : Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, Sylvaine Strike, John Sumner
Directed by: Neill Blomkamp

Julie and Julia

2009-07-29T21:31:00.000-07:00

Based on two true stories, "Julie & Julia" intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible.
Starring : Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci, Chris Messina,
Jane Lynch
Directed by:
Nora Ephron

The Ugly Truth

2009-07-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

Abby Richter is a romantically challenged morning show producer whose search for Mr. Perfect has left her hopelessly single.
She's in for a rude awakening when her bosses team her with Mike Chadway, a hardcore TV personality who promises to spill the ugly truth on what makes men and women tick.
Starring :
Katherine Heigl, Gerard Butler, Eric Winter, John Michael Higgins, Nick Searcy
Directed by: Robert Luketic

Public Enemies

2009-07-29T21:24:00.000-07:00

No one could stop John Dillinger and his gang. No jail could hold him. His charm and audacious jailbreaks endeared him to almost everyone -- from his girlfriend Billie Frechette to an American public who had no sympathy for the banks that had plunged the country into the Depression.
But while the adventures of Dillinger' gang -- later including Baby Face Nelson and Alvin Karpis -- thrilled many, J. Edgar Hoover made Dillinger America's first Public Enemy Number One and sent in Melvin Purvis, the dashing "Clark Gable of the FBI." However, Dillinger and his gang outwitted and outgunned Purvis' men in wild chases and shootouts. Only after importing a crew of Western ex-lawmen (newly baptized as agents) and orchestrating epic betrayals -- from the infamous "Lady in Red" to the Chicago crime boss Frank Nitti -- were Purvis, the FBI and their new crew of gunfighters able to close in on Dillinger.
Starring : Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Channing Tatum, David Wenham
Directed by: Michael Mann

The Proposal

2009-07-29T21:16:00.000-07:00

When high-powered book editor Margaret faces deportation to her native Canada, the quick-thinking exec declares that she's actually engaged to her unsuspecting put-upon assistant Andrew, who she's tormented for years.
He agrees to participate in the charade, but with a few conditions of his own. The unlikely couple heads to Alaska to meet his quirky family and the always-in-control city girl finds herself in one comedic fish-out-of-water situation after another. With an impromptu wedding in the works and an immigration official on their tails, Margaret and Andrew reluctantly vow to stick to the plan despite the precarious consequences.
Starring : Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Denis O'Hare, Malin Akerman, Mary Steenburgen
Directed by: Anne Fletcher

Bruno

2009-07-29T21:11:00.000-07:00

Bruno, a gay fashionista is the host of the top-rated late night fashion show in any German-speaking country--apart from Germany. Bruno’s mission?

To become the biggest Austrian celebrity since Hitler. His strategy? To crisscross the globe in the hopes of finding fame and love.
Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Gustaf Hammarsten, Josh Meyers, Robert Huerta, Gilbert Rosales
Directed by: Larry Charles