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11/29/2009
Max's weekly recommendations for films you can check out at your local multiplex or on DVD.
Ok, let’s do a movie round up!
Surrogates – bland sci-fi, skip it.
Observe and Report – great dark comedy, if you like to wince while you laugh.
Capitalism: A Love Story – not one of Michael Moore’s best efforts. Watch Sicko instead.
Whip It – super cute! Who knew Drew Barrymore could direct?
Away We Go – if you’re expecting a baby, maybe you’ll get more out of this film than I did. It’s so-so, but takes itself a little too serious.
Couples Retreat – a funny film, if you’ve had ups and downs with your spouse (and who hasn’t?) it’s worth seeing this one together.
Year One – the worst ‘comedy’ of the year. The only funny thing about it is the people who made it thinking it would make anyone laugh.
Paranormal Activity – I just moved intoa new house, so hearing things go bump in the night after seeing this flick is a bit off-putting. I enjoyed the movie a lot, even though nothing happens. Sometimes, nothing is scarier than nothing.
Drag Me To Hell – a fun movie to watch with friends. Make no mistake, this isn’t a horror film, it’s a live action ...
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9/19/2009
Max's weekly recommendations for films you can check out at your local multiplex or on DVD.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine hits DVD this week, and It plays much better on the small screen than it did on the big.
With such strong characters and story, it's unacceptable that the special effects are so hit and miss. Some scenes look great but most looked downright silly.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine left me feeling disappointed. The film is its own worst enemy, sinking a good story and great characters under cringe inducing dialogue and lousy effects.
Jennifer’s Body is in theatres now, and I have a feeling it’s going to bomb. Not because it’s a bad film (it isn’t), but because it’s being marketed as a sexy horror film starring Megan Fox, but it’s actually a sexy smart horror comedy starring Amanda Seyfried.
OK, Megs is in the film too, but it’s Amanda that impresses, and Diablo Cody’s script that has me recommending Jennifer’s Body. A clever dark comedy in the vein of the seminal 80’s cult classic Heathers, I have hope that Jennifer’s Body is discovered on home video a few years from now, after Megan Fox is but a memory and Diablo Cody has won her second Oscar.
I'll post more films for you to check out next ...
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9/12/2009
Max's weekly recommendations for films you can check out at your local multiplex or on DVD.
From Mike Judge, the brains behind Beavis and Butt-Head, Idiocracy, King of the Hill, and the modern classic Office Space, comes his latest average joe comedy, Extract.
Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, J.K. Simmons, and yes, Ben Affleck are all hilarious in this smart black comedy. It’s not as good as Office Space, but it’s better than anything else in theatres right now, so check it out!
Tim Burton is one of the producers of the post-apocalyptic animated epic 9, and it’s easy to see why. Tim would feel right at home in the world of 9. It seems those dastardly machines have wiped out humanity, and only sock puppets have survived. Or something.
9 is heavy on action and light on story, which is too bad. Still, 9 is a visually impressive work, with excellent voice work and sound design that’s second to none. If you shop at Hot Topic, check it out.
I do have one question for you, faithful reader: How come machines are always turning against us in sci-fi flicks? After seeing the wrath of electronics in so many movies (The Matrix, The Terminator, etc) I’m starting to see their point. Maybe soon I’ll start rooting for ...
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8/29/2009
Max's weekly recommendations for films you can check out at your local multiplex or on DVD.
A few DVDs to tell you about this week, one so-so and one that’s almost excellent. (Sterling recommendations, no?)
First up we have director Greg Mattola’s Adventureland, his follow up to the mega hit Superbad. Mattola infused the super crass Superbad with certain sweetness, and he strives for something deeper with Adventureland. Unfortunately, he lets the film get in his way.
I enjoyed Adventureland in its more contemplative moments, but far too often these were interrupted by goofy hijinks that failed to make me laugh. Adventureland is half of a good film, but the ending is so ill-advised I don’t think I can recommend it. Buy the soundtrack, featuring songs by the Rolling Stones and Lou Reed, instead.
State of Play is based on a six hour British television mini-series, which I bet is pretty incredible. Our version attempts to cram all of those twists and turns into a two hour political thriller, so it makes sense some events feel rushed and some plot holes are never filled.
Still, if you enjoy political intrigue and are lamenting the death of the newspaper (old media) in favor of new media (the interwebs!) then by all means check out State of Play. ...
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8/22/2009
Max's weekly recommendations for films you can check out at your local multiplex or on DVD.
The alluring Alexis Bledel stars in “Post Grad,” a quarter-life crisis comedy about how hard it can be out here for a pimp. (Or how hard it can be out here for a college grad to find a job. Same thing.)
Bledel, so good as Rory Gilmore in the very smart TV show Gilmore Girls, proves with Post Grad that she can carry a film on her shoulders…it’s just too bad that film is Post Grad, an unfunny, predictable bore of a film.
I enjoyed watching Michael Keaton return to his more manic roots as Bledel’s father, but even Keaton and the fine supporting cast (featuring Jane Lynch and CAROL BURNETT!) can’t save this flick.
I’ve been revisiting the works of Writer/Producer/Director John Hughes since his recent passing, and I recommend you do the same. He had his hands many great films, all of which are worth your time.
A selection of his filmography:
As Director: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Uncle Buck
As Writer: National Lampoon’s Vacation, European Vacation, Christmas Vacation, Mr. Mom, Pretty in Pink, Some Kind of Wonderful, Home Alone, Career Opportunities
I'll post more films for ...
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