I should start off this review with the fact that I'm a pretty big fan of Sam Raimi. Anyone who allows Gene Hackman to shoot and kill Leonardo DiCaprio is a genius in my book. Given that, I haven't been all that happy with his Spider-Man movies. Raimi does better when he's given more freedom and that just don't seem to be the case with his Marvel movies. So it was nice to hear he was coming back to horror, even if it's only in between Spider-Man sequels.
You really have to go into this movie knowing it's going to be classic Raimi. If you are expecting a straight up horror movie or something grounded in reality, then you'll probably be thrown off for about twenty minutes or so until you can get into the right frame of mind. It's a little disarming when you get your first sight gag because you may be unsure just how serious the movie is supposed to be. The movie does have a few issues where it's not quite sure what it wants to be. Still if you can't find humor in the idea of a highly agitated demon-filled goat at a seance, then this movie might not be for you.
For the most part the black humor worked for me. There were only a few exceptions where either the joke was telegraphed too far in advance or it felt setup. Having spent a considerable amount of time around anvils as a kid, I've never seen an anvil suspended higher than eye level. So it was hard for me to buy into the fact that the main character would have one just hanging around for no apparent reason other than to be a prop.
Speaking of the characters, Alison Lohman's character felt pretty real to me. Not overly good or bad, but more like a regular person. She was somewhat self-centered and made some bad choices that led to her getting cursed in the first place. What she did wasn't even that bad, although you can really judge a person by how they treat people they don't have to be nice to. On the other hand the gypsy wasn't some frail old lady who needed some help though. She was a vindictive witch, who apparently curses anyone for even the slightest wrong doing. Her reaction to theft or being denied something is extreme. It was the equivalent of burning down someone's house because of name calling.
I actually liked Justin Long's character. He was put in the very grounded role, which I'm guessing was supposed to be the skeptic. Still it was nice having the supporting character not spend the entire movie questioning everything or do the routine act of disbelief. Well there was disbelief, but there was also a sense of trust and respect. He even says at one point in the movie, if she believes it then it doesn't matter what he believes.
Overall this movie isn't going to change the genre. It was a welcome change from the seemingly endless parade of horror remakes where brutality is mistaken for originality. This had gross out moments and geniune scares that were in just the right amount. I think if Raimi had shifted more in either the comedy or horror direction this movie might have come off as too silly for its own good. It's the balance of the two aspects that really makes it work.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
From the Q: West Wing
So, when I was on maternity leave, I watched a lot of Netflix for three important reasons: 1) It became very important to hear adult voices in the apartment when my DH was at work; 2) In order to stay awake during the 3am feeding, I needed the TV on; 3) Daytime television sucks.
But, I wasn't really in the mood for movies. Instead, I watched My So-Called Life (actually, we bought it - I want to share it with my baby when she's a teenager and hates me) and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - two of my favorite series that were both cancelled after just one season. (Oh and there was some Big Love thrown in there, too. I'm not completely sure how I feel about that yet.)
But, I've also been re-living and re-loving one of my all time favorite shows: the West Wing. My mom loaned me her season 1 and that was all I was going to watch until I remembered that season ended with a helluva cliff hanger. So, into my Q went the remaining 6 seasons. And I have to say, I love this shit. I mean, I just LOVE THIS SHIT. I want Aaron Sorkin to write everything on television. Except for Supernatural - that's already perfect (come on - two HOT brothers who fight demons? Don't judge me.)
I will leave you with a quote from my favorite character, Josh Lyman: "I'm so sick of congress, I could vomit."
Kisses.
But, I wasn't really in the mood for movies. Instead, I watched My So-Called Life (actually, we bought it - I want to share it with my baby when she's a teenager and hates me) and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - two of my favorite series that were both cancelled after just one season. (Oh and there was some Big Love thrown in there, too. I'm not completely sure how I feel about that yet.)
But, I've also been re-living and re-loving one of my all time favorite shows: the West Wing. My mom loaned me her season 1 and that was all I was going to watch until I remembered that season ended with a helluva cliff hanger. So, into my Q went the remaining 6 seasons. And I have to say, I love this shit. I mean, I just LOVE THIS SHIT. I want Aaron Sorkin to write everything on television. Except for Supernatural - that's already perfect (come on - two HOT brothers who fight demons? Don't judge me.)
I will leave you with a quote from my favorite character, Josh Lyman: "I'm so sick of congress, I could vomit."
Kisses.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Is it really possible that neither of us have seen a movie since June of last year?
Nah, I think we're both just losers.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
From the Aisle: Sex and the City
The men may want to ignore this review as this doesn't really apply to you at all. See, all women of my age are legally mandated to see this film, but since I only saw one of you in the theatre, I'm assuming the same doesn't hold true to men. And when I told my husband I was seeing this movie with my alumnae chapter, his response was, "Thank God for the sorority."
You will recall an earlier rant I had about one aspect of this movie (hint: Charlotte, baby, lack there of, etc.) and I have to tell you that while my gut is still strong on it, my resolve was a little neutralized when I was walking out of the theatre with a friend who has been running the gamut of fertilization problems and she said, "I'm so glad that SPOILER." So, maybe I need to back off my rage a little. Except that I don't want to.
Change topic.
Did you watch the show? If so, you will watch and enjoy the movie. It was major fun, all about the clothes (including the times SJP came on screen and people would yell out in the audience, "Christ, what is she wearing now?"), and all about the friendships. I enjoyed the hell out of it. Except:
1) I would never go back to a man that did that to me. Ev-Ah.
2) Samantha gained like 5 lbs or something. Hardly worthy of the shrieking reactions from her best friends.
3) Birds belong in trees - not on your head.
4) Miranda, it's been 100 years we've been watching this show. Unclench for the love of God.
From the Aisle: Kung Fu Panda
I saw this movie on Sunday and I highly recommend it to: people with kids, people without kids, people who like Kung Fu, people who don't like Kung Fu.
In so many of the favorite Kung Fu movies, we see over stylized fighting and camera work that comes off as cheesy (to me, a non-Kung Fu loving person), but when it's done in a cartoon, it's DELIGHTFULLY cheesy.
* Fun characters
* Witty dialogue
* Great voices
It's all there.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
From the Aisle: Baby Mama
I know that it's not in vogue to enjoy Saturday Night Live anymore, but I can't help it. My husband and I are both wild for it lately and it's for one reason alone: the ladies. Yeah, the men are funny, too, but more and more it seems like they are the supporting cast to the fabulous Amy Poehler, former staffer Tina Fey, and my personal favorite Kristen Wiig.
So, Saturday night, you would have thought we'd tune in to SNL. Instead, my honey and I went to a fantastically funny one-man show and then followed it up at our favorite brewery for dinner. After two drinks, we were ready for more entertainment, so after checking Moviefone, we hopped in a cab and went to see "Baby Mama."
In the cab, we were talking about upcoming movies... ie. we both want to see "Iron Man," he doesn't want to see "Speed Racer," which is shocking and weird. I mean, I married this man. And he REALLY doesn't want to see "Sex and the City" which women my age have to see by law.
I was saying to him that I'm really disappointed in the trailer for SATC because they first show the Chinese girl that Charlotte and Harry adopted because she can't have a baby... and then they show Charlotte pregnant. I was saying to Ed that I thought it would be more interesting, more brave, more right now if the movie showed the woman in her 40s with on-going fertility problems NOT able to get pregnant because that is the reality for so many real women in their 40s with on-going fertility problems. It would have been braver if the movie showed that YES you can be a mother in many different ways and that you don't have to give birth to a child to love it. It would have been affirming for a movie to show that a woman that can't conceive is not a failure as a woman. Maybe it's not what the core audience wants to see when they fork over their $10 (and Ed assures me it is not), but it's what I want to see, damn it.
So, we got out of the cab and went to see "Baby Mama." And it was really funny - we laughed our butts off. Amy and Tina play off each other beautifully. All the stereotypes (Tina's sister ABLE to have kids while she can't, Tina's mother being uppercrust, Tina's black bellman saying "you got baby mama drama") worked in non-offensive, very funny (although predictable ways). I really enjoyed the hell out of this movie.
Until at one point, the whole thing changed direction.
And without giving away too much, at the end, I turned to Ed and said "it's the same cop out" (referring back to cab convo) and then we argued about it for about an hour.
I will say no more about this, except one last comment. I will turn 34 years old this year and I would very much like to have a child or 2 or 3. And since I am not in my twenties, I worry. Any woman my age who has not yet had a kid, worries about her ability to do so. And I think it would be fucking awesome if a couple of movies that have me as their target audience would think about those fears and acknowledge them. A woman can be hero in many circumstances. And she can be a mother in so many different ways. And it would be really fucking nice if Hollywood knew that and decided to promote it. Because every time the 40+ woman with fertility problems MAGICALLY gets pregnant to ensure the "ahhhh" in the audience, it just reaffirms that the real women who struggle with this and DON'T get pregnant are in fact failures in the eyes of our culture. And that fucking sucks. And makes me want to put that $10 right back in my pocket.
So, Saturday night, you would have thought we'd tune in to SNL. Instead, my honey and I went to a fantastically funny one-man show and then followed it up at our favorite brewery for dinner. After two drinks, we were ready for more entertainment, so after checking Moviefone, we hopped in a cab and went to see "Baby Mama."
In the cab, we were talking about upcoming movies... ie. we both want to see "Iron Man," he doesn't want to see "Speed Racer," which is shocking and weird. I mean, I married this man. And he REALLY doesn't want to see "Sex and the City" which women my age have to see by law.
I was saying to him that I'm really disappointed in the trailer for SATC because they first show the Chinese girl that Charlotte and Harry adopted because she can't have a baby... and then they show Charlotte pregnant. I was saying to Ed that I thought it would be more interesting, more brave, more right now if the movie showed the woman in her 40s with on-going fertility problems NOT able to get pregnant because that is the reality for so many real women in their 40s with on-going fertility problems. It would have been braver if the movie showed that YES you can be a mother in many different ways and that you don't have to give birth to a child to love it. It would have been affirming for a movie to show that a woman that can't conceive is not a failure as a woman. Maybe it's not what the core audience wants to see when they fork over their $10 (and Ed assures me it is not), but it's what I want to see, damn it.
So, we got out of the cab and went to see "Baby Mama." And it was really funny - we laughed our butts off. Amy and Tina play off each other beautifully. All the stereotypes (Tina's sister ABLE to have kids while she can't, Tina's mother being uppercrust, Tina's black bellman saying "you got baby mama drama") worked in non-offensive, very funny (although predictable ways). I really enjoyed the hell out of this movie.
Until at one point, the whole thing changed direction.
And without giving away too much, at the end, I turned to Ed and said "it's the same cop out" (referring back to cab convo) and then we argued about it for about an hour.
I will say no more about this, except one last comment. I will turn 34 years old this year and I would very much like to have a child or 2 or 3. And since I am not in my twenties, I worry. Any woman my age who has not yet had a kid, worries about her ability to do so. And I think it would be fucking awesome if a couple of movies that have me as their target audience would think about those fears and acknowledge them. A woman can be hero in many circumstances. And she can be a mother in so many different ways. And it would be really fucking nice if Hollywood knew that and decided to promote it. Because every time the 40+ woman with fertility problems MAGICALLY gets pregnant to ensure the "ahhhh" in the audience, it just reaffirms that the real women who struggle with this and DON'T get pregnant are in fact failures in the eyes of our culture. And that fucking sucks. And makes me want to put that $10 right back in my pocket.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
