bookend's Film Review Thread - The Social Network, True Grit

[bookend57]

I've been gone, but haven't forgotten, been busy for a while, but i actually have a little time and energy to get a review or two up...

I Love You, Man [2009, John Hamburg]



The story of a man who, after proposing to his girlfriend realizes...he doesn't have any friends, none close enough to be in his wedding party anyway. I Love You, Man is about Paul Rudd, the awkward man who was always a girlfriend-guy and never a guy friend-guy, as he tries to befriend numerous men in hopes of finding his best man, enter Jason Segel, the mildly insane (for lack of a better term) character who isn't shy about anything and has a bit of a temper. The movie is made by the performances of Rudd and Segel because the plot itself is very simple, one of the better comedies i've seen over the past year and well worth multiple views, and don't forget..."shlap a da bass mahn!"

The Verdict: B - 83%
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[bookend57]

i have no idea why the text in my original post isn't showing up, sorry about that.
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[bookend57]

on an unemployed summer's day i have decided to go through and watch all my blu-ray movies and get reviews up for those, obviously this won't be done in one day, but will take a week or two, but i'm going to do it anyway because I'm only enrolled in one class over the summer and have plenty of time to kill.

Transformers [2007, Michael Bay]



When we learned Michael bay was the director behind this live-action shape-shifting film, we all knew what we were in for, and that's exactly what we got. Arguably Bay's finest achievement as a director (ouch) Transformers is the tale of a group of good robots sent to Earth to try and stop the bad robots from taking over the planet then the universe, pretty simple. And although, Transformers purists may be upset at things Bay changed/screwed up, the movie does a fairly good job at balancing Bay's ridiculous over-the-top action scenes and CGI effects with a solid amount of substance and although character development may be hard to come by in thsi summer blockbuster flick, Bay adds some drama, romance, and laughs into these action scenes. I enjoyed the movie personally a lot more than i know others, who say its a joke, and although its not a great movie i will admit, it is a decent film that packs on helluva punch.

If you were to toss out the entertainment factor this movie would probably get an "F", a "D" at best, but i take thsi into consideration when reviewing my films.

The Verdict: C+ - 72%


Forgetting Sarah Marshall [2008, Nicholas Stoller]



A film with a nice amount of laughs and that added in raunchiness for you older viewers , Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a spot on comedy and one of 2008's best. The story of a music composer who gets dumped by his superstar and long-time girlfriend, in an effort to cope with his lose (he doesn't handle it well, to say the least) he goes on vacation to Hawaii where he coincidentally ends up staying at the same hotel as...you guessed it, his ex-girlfriend, who is there with her latest boy toy, a world-famous singer....hilarity ensues. Forgetting Sarah Marshall is made not by its simplistic story line, but rather the admirable performances from all the players in this story, the actors solid performances really are what set this movie off...and Mila Kunis is sooo hot.

The Verdict: B - 82%
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[bookend57]

Iron Man [2008, Jon Favreau]



A summer blockbuster grand slam, Iron Man not only packs an expected punch with thrilling action scenes, but is also a very witty film exemplified by Robert Downey, Jr's stellar performance as Tony Stark and Jon Favreau's superb direction make this movie a must-see for comic book fans and non-fans alike. The story of billionaire weapons manufacturer Tony Stark who takes his company in a different direction when he is kidnapped and held hostage by terrorists. Really, Downey, Jr. makes this movie, he is absolutely spectacular.

The Verdict: B+ - 86%


Role Models [2008, David Wain]



Role Models is about a man who ten years into a job selling energy drinks to high school students realizes he hates his life and after his girlfriend of seven years leaves him he goes nuts and runs a giant truck into a statue, assaulting a police officer in the process. He and his work partner are sentenced to 150 hours of community service, which if not completed in 30 days they will then serve 30 days in prison. Role Models is a clever, yet crude comedy about life's hardships and the things we must change in our lives if we are to overcome those hardships. With a slew of well-developed characters the movie is made off of the audience siding with these lovable players.

The Verdict: B- - 76%
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[Buckrock101]

Transformers was trash, total trash. Shouldn't warrant anything higher than a D. It had a ton of explosions and good special effects, but the writing was awful, the acting was poor, and Michael Bay's direction was not very good (funny that). It dragged like nothing else as well.
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[bookend57]

Full Metal Jacket [1987, Stanley Kubrick]



One of the best war films ever made, Stanley Kubrick's view of the Vietnam War turns into a classic film made by one of the most original voices to ever pick up a camera. The story of a squad of Marines who go through training and then are sent off to Hue City where the Tet Offensive takes place, the film is told through the voice of one private. A great depiction of what soldiers go through in preparation for war, and on a more personal level it is one of my favorite films of all-time and Kubrick is one of my favorite directors as well.

The Verdict: A - 93%
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Terminator Salvation [2009, McG]



A man who is chosen to lead the human race past an apocalyptic robot-controlling world. Its a very familiar story, and one that i am frankly getting sick of hearing about. There was nothing that sets Terminator Salvation apart from any other previous robots-taking-over-the-world film. With the exception of Christian Bale and Anton Yelchin the movie was acted very poorly and the script definitely didn't help make the film any better, the felt stiff and forced, the dialogue didn't flow and seemed, well, robotic. The only positive about the film is its great special effects and CGI (Arnie reincarnation). I went in not expecting much and i still left disappointed, i knew the film would have the heart and depth of the original, sequel, or even the third, but i was hoping i would be surprised, i wasn't.

The Verdict: D+ - 64%
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[bookend57]

I've added percentages to my grades to be more specific in the grading process and separate films with the same letter grade, also i will have reviews for Star Trek, The Dark Knight, and The Host up later tonight.
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the Host [2007, Joon-Ho Bong]



A mysterious monster suddenly appears in the Han River and runs a muck on the crowded shore, mauling anyone in his path and abducting two kids, one of which is the main character and is able to contact her irresponsible father, grandfather, aunt, and uncle from the sewer where this gigantic creature, spawned by chemical waste being disposed of in the river, has stowed her away. The film is the story of her family trying to rescue her from the clutches of this creature, who mysteriously keeping kidnapping more and more people and keeping them in this sewer. The Host has all the elements of a solid film, suspense, drama, humor, horror, action, and also uses well placed satire to drawn the audience in. One of the best monster movies i have ever seen personally, and that is one of my favorite genres to boot. the film also utilizes great special effects in scenes with the monster. It takes a bit of getting used to though, because it is a Japanese film, and therefore the voices are dubbed.

The Verdict: B+ - 87%


The Dark Knight [2008, Christopher Nolan]



[b]We've all seen it, and everyone here who has a review thread has this little flick reviewed, so i figured i through my review in there as well, and sadly, it isn't much different than anyone else's. The story of a city under siege thanks to an insane madman bent an taking over the city in the form of the mob and a courageous vigilante tries to stop him. The film is much more than your average comic book flick too, Director Christopher Nolan uses character development and has a very strong plot, something not often seen in comic book movies, but also uses breath-taking action sequences. The film is much darker and, well, evil than most people had expected, but thats because Nolan wanted to emphasize the crime portion of the film and the struggle Bruce Wayne goes through throughout. My favorite film from 2008.

The Verdict: A - 93%
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Star Trek [2009, J.J. Abrams]



A film that's not just for your die hard Trekkies, but also for those who are unfamiliar with the franchise. The film manages to please both the die hard fan as well as the newcomers whom don't have much previous knowledge about Star Trek, a feat not easily accomplished, and Abrams deserve much praise because of it. We expected plenty of visually appealing action sequences and fans were not disappointed in this aspect, but also the film delivered a lot of drama and humor and mixed them together very well. I felt that the movie was won more with the supporting characters rather than the main ones (though the performances of Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto were outstanding), John Cho, Anton Yelchin, and Simon Pegg (my personal favorite character) all played their roles very well and added a lot to the film outside of the drama between Kirk and Spock. Off the top of my head I can't think of a film from 2009 i enjoyed for than Star Trek.

The Verdict: A- - 90%
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