Serenity   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
sun 2005-oct-23 23:20:22 pdt   ...   permalink

After watching the Firefly series DVDs over the last six weeks or so, last night we went to see Serenity. It rocked.

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( a few thoughts )
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Definitely highly recommended, along with the series -- even to people who are not fans of science fiction. (Of course, I suspect that a good deal of my readership is comprised of bigger sci-fi fans than me, and saw both the series and the film well before I did!)

Primer   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low , spoiler_high
sun 2005-aug-14 14:19:20 pdt   ...   permalink

So friday night, we watched Primer. I had put it into the NetFlix queue based solely on Dominic's recommendation. He didn't actually say much about it beyond that he really enjoyed it, and that it's a low-budget indie film. I also found out that it involved time travel. That was basically all I knew before watching it. As I've mentioned before, I generally prefer to know as little as possible going into a movie.

Overall I loved it. Certainly it's not perfect, and there are aspects that I was a little disappointed by. But for me, those things were easily outweighed by the ways in which it's great.

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( some general thoughts )
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( don't read this part until you've seen the film! )
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So ... strongly recommended without hesitation. Just maybe with a few caveats.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
mon 2005-aug-01 15:32:14 pdt   ...   permalink

Saturday we went to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was great fun! Naturally it invites comparison to the 1971 film, though unfortunately I don't really remember that version all that well...

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( things I liked, and some comparison to the original )
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All in all, a very well done adaptation.

The Sting   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
tue 2005-jul-05 18:21:08 pdt   ...   permalink

Sunday night we watched The Sting. I had seen it maybe seven years ago or so.

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( fairly vague discussion of the plot )
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Anyway, you know, it's a classic and all that. It certainly deserves that status -- it's really well done. Paul Newman and Robert Redford are good of course, but Robert Shaw I thought gave an even better performance, albeit in a smaller role. Perhaps most worthy of note is that the script (and the film in general) still holds up as well as it does when compared to its more recent counterparts -- unlike certain other films from the 1970's, you don't have to point out how ground-breaking it was "back then".

My Big Fat Greek Wedding   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
tue 2005-apr-05 16:36:44 pdt   ...   permalink

On Friday night we watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It was good, and not really what I was expecting it to be like. Granted, going in I didn't really know much about it beyond the title; pretty much I'd just heard it was a good indie film (if perhaps a bit hyped for being indie).

Anyway, it does well what it sets out to do. Which is to say, I suppose, that it paints a strong picture of the main character's family -- a bit caricaturish, but you have to figure that that's the point -- and that it's a cute, fun, romantic comedy, if you're into that sort of thing. Which apparently I am.

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( really minor complaint )
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The Terminal   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
sat 2005-jan-15 18:44:48 pst   ...   permalink

Last night we watched The Terminal. It was cute... I liked much of it. But there were also a number of not-very-satisfying aspects.

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( what I found unsatisfying )
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But in any case, overall it was, well, like I said, it was cute.

The Station Agent   ...   movie reviews , spoiler_low
sun 2004-aug-01 00:29:49 pdt   ...   permalink

Just watched The Station Agent (rented the DVD). It was excellent! The characters are very real and compelling, and the acting is great.

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( what I liked )
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Plus it was nice that the fact that he's a dwarf isn't really all that central to the plot. In fact, I wonder whether the script was written to be about a dwarf from the beginning...