Corpse Bride - Movie Review

Victor lives in a small European village in the 19th century, where he is pledged to marry Victoria, a partnership arranged by their parents. The two only meet the day before their scheduled nuptials, and Victor performs disastrously in the wedding rehearsal. Later that evening, while he is walking through the woods and hopelessly practicing his vows, he puts Victoria's wedding band on what looks like a branch resembling a hand. Victor quickly discovers this was a big mistake; as he has put the ring on the skeletal finger of the enchanted Corpse Bride, who then whisks him off to a dark and mysterious netherworld where they are now married. Victor realizes that he has fallen in love with his true fiance Victoria, so he searches for a way back to his own world.

As expected, since this is a Tim Burton film, it's dark, odd and creepy. The stop-motion animation is amazing and very fluid. While I really liked his film "The Nightmare Before Christmas," this movie didn't do it for me. The plot wasn't compelling and was a bit dull. As an animated feature, a lot more could have been done to make it interesting, but the creativity wasn't up to par. It wasn't a complete flop, but I expected more from Tim Burton. If it wins the Oscar for best animated feature, it's because there wasn't any competition.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Voices of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Emily Watson, Tracey Ullman

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Four Brothers - ACE Train Movie Review

Four guys who don't appear to have much in common, in terms of either race or temperament, have one very important bond - all four were adopted and raised by the same woman, and they all love her as a son, and respect one another as brothers. When their mother is killed during a robbery at a grocery store, the four brothers come together for the funeral, but when they don't get straight answers about what happened to her, they begin looking into the crime themselves. The deeper they dig into the case, the more the brothers begin to suspect that the shooting wasn't an accident, and that powerful and unexpected forces were involved.

This film is action packed from start to finish. If you like guns, violence and blood, this movie is for you. Mark Wahlberg plays the role he was made for - a gun toting, pumped up thug who's not afraid to kick some a$$. The other characters fill the supporting roles nicely and provide some balance. The plot is good and touches on many disparate topics such as adoption, loyalty, gangs, family, murder and revenge. I thought Andre Benjamin (Andre 3000 from OutKast) did a nice job and could definitely have a career as an actor if he wants. Overall, the film wasn't exceptionally unique (hence 3 stars), but I liked it and thought it was worth watching once.

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Tyrese Gibson, Andre Benjamin, Garrett Hedlund, Terrence Howard

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Flightplan - Movie Review

Kyle Pratt is a successful aircraft designer who has recently been dealing with the traumatic death of her husband. After traveling to Berlin on business with her six-year-old daughter, Julia, Kyle falls asleep on their flight back to New York, only to discover that her daughter has gone missing. While not knowing where Julia has gone is troubling enough, even more disturbing is the insistence by the pilot and Air Marshall that no records indicate that the child ever boarded the jet. As Kyle becomes increasingly desperate to find her daughter, she must prove to the men in charge that her daughter did in fact board the plane with her, and that this turn of events is not a product of her imagination.

This was a good suspense movie. The plot was full of twists and turns so that you think you have it figured out, but the next scene throws a wrench in your assumptions. The fact that it took place almost entirely in an airplane made it a little less believable since none of the passengers seemed to witness anything that went on even though they were in such a small area. However, the acting was good and I believed most of what was happening which is important for a suspense movie to be credible. The ending was a bit rushed, but that seems to be a pattern for the movies I have seen recently. Oh well, still worth watching once.

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Jodie Foster, Peter Sarsgaard

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Dark Water - ACE Train Movie Review

A single mother whose messy divorce and subsequent battle for the custody of her five-year-old daughter is taking a heavy toll on her emotional well-being. Ultimately, the mother and daughter are able to relocate to an apartment, which, despite its excessively dilapidated interior, seems to be an adequate location for beginning a new life. Before long, however, what appears to be the spirit of a young girl begins to haunt them. No stranger to mental illness, the wary young woman brushes the visions aside as part of the inherent stress of making the transition from housewife to working, single mom. As time goes by and the apparent haunting does not subside, the apartment's new residents are forced to examine the history of its former tenants.

When I picked this DVD up in the video store, I was drawn to the cover and synopsis on the back thinking it was going to be a scary movie. However, it was a very slow moving movie that was more creepy than scary. The acting was pretty good, but the plot was not well thought out and the ending (which explains why all of the strange things had been happening) was not satisfying and didn't answer all of my questions. For some movies, that's OK, but in this film, it just seemed sloppy and amateurish.

Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Jennifer Connelly, John C. Reilly, Tim Roth

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Lord of War - ACE Train Movie Review

After the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, huge caches of Soviet weapons became available at bargain prices. As billions of dollars worth of Soviet military technology disappeared, it began finding its way into the hands of weapons dealers eager to sell it to the highest bidder. Dealers found plenty of buyers for guns and military gear in unstable Third World nations, who paid cash and didn't appreciate too many questions. Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) was one of those dealers whose exploits in the arms business quickly made him a very rich man, but also led to some unwanted attention from an Interpol agent who was convinced Orlov wasn't playing by the rules.

The subject matter of this film is shocking, disturbing and unbelievably based on reality. In that sense, this story is important to tell and fascinating to watch. However, the execution of the movie could have definitely been better. Overall, it's pretty dull and drags on without drawing you in. With the subject matter, it could have been much more interesting and engrossing. So, I would give it great marks for bringing a horrifying reality to the big screen, but terrible marks for writing and acting.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Jared Leto, Ethan Hawke

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

The Cave - ACE Train Movie Review

While on a dig in a Romanian forest, a group of scientists made a startling find - a huge church, dating back to the 13th Century, which was built over the entrance to a massive network of subterranean caves. Eager to learn what lurks within the caves, the scientists discover to their peril that a large part of the cave system is under water. Undeterred, the remaining scientists hire a team of American spelunkers who are trained in exploring underwater caves. Armed with new high-tech SCUBA gear that allows them to stay under water for a full 24 hours, the crew dives in to investigate the caves, but a mishap traps them in a cavern beneath the surface, and they soon discover they are not alone as strange and bloodthirsty creatures makes their presence known.

Bad acting + terrible writing + lame plot + chintzy special effects = skip this movie. I rolled my eyes and said, "Oh jeez..." more times than I can count. This is easily one of the worst movies I have seen in a long time.

Rating: 1 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Cole Hauser, Morris Chestnut, Eddie Cibrian

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Two For The Money - ACE Train Movie Review

A former college quarterback whose life plans changed when he suffered a career ending injury turns out to have remarkable skill at picking winning football bets. Eventually, he comes to the attention of a very successful business tycoon who runs a giant gambling operation. The tycoon brings the former quarterback to New York and introduces him to a glitzy, fast-paced, money-drenched lifestyle that he eagerly soaks up. When his magic touch begins to falter, the tycoon starts to turn on is protege. Soon, the two men are attempting to outwit each other in a high stakes game of chicken.

Matthew McConaughey and Al Pacino did a great job of bringing the chaos of a sports gambling operation to life on the screen. The writing was also very good and I was drawn into the film enough to be rooting for favorable outcomes that would help the operation succeed. While the characters were larger than life, they were humanized enough to seem real (it was based on true events, by the way). Rene Russo added to the film by being the voice of reason as the wife of Pacino's character. My only complaint would be that the ending was anticlimactic, but it could have been worse. I really liked the fact that the bonus features on the DVD included an interview with the guy that this film was based on.

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Al Pacino, Rene Russo, Jeremy Piven

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

The Constant Gardener - ACE Train Movie Review

Justin Quale is a British diplomat who has been given a new assignment in Kenya. Justin's wife, Tessa, is an activist with a keen interest in issues of poverty and social justice; Justin urges her to avoid getting too deeply involved in the people living in Kenya, who are constantly dogged by poverty, but she shows little interest in obeying these instructions. This isn't the only area where Tessa has disregarded her husband, as she's been unfaithful in the past, and begins spending time with a handsome doctor once they've settled in Kenya. One day, Tessa disappears, and is soon found dead; officials believe that she was murdered by the doctor after some sort of argument. However, before long Justin becomes convinced that there was a larger scheme that led to Tessa's death, and he begins digging into areas where he's not especially welcome, given his reputation as a man willing to let the wealthy and powerful do as they will.

This is a very powerful political thriller that will make you think about the pharmaceutical industry and drug testing in particular. I don't know if this movie was based on any sort of true event, but it was certainly believable and I wouldn't be surprised if it actually took place in one form or another. At the beginning of the film, you're kept in the dark about any wrongdoing that might be going on, but you are given tidbits of information as the movie progresses until the end when you finally understand the full extent of the atrocity. This is a heavy film that demands your attention, so don't watch it if you're in the mood for a relaxing, straightforward movie. The reward for watching is a thought provoking, well written film that will leave you wondering if this sort of thing could (or does) actually happen in the real world.

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Batman Begins - Movie Review

In the wake of his parents' murder, disillusioned industrial heir Bruce Wayne travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and turn fear against those who prey on the fearful. With the help of his trusted butler Alfred, detective Jim Gordon and his ally Lucius Fox, Wayne returns to Gotham City and unleashes his alter-ego: Batman, a masked crusader who uses his strength, intellect and an array of high tech deceptions to fight the sinister forces that threaten the city.

Not knowing the story of how Bruce Wayne became Batman, this was an interesting film. I liked the fact that Batman was just a regular guy who had extensive ninja training and access to the family fortune to be able to fight crime. Although a stretch from reality, it's much more believable than other super heroes who became super by some supernatural cause or exposure to chemicals. It was a very dark movie, both literally and figuratively. Christian Bale did a great job playing the emotionally injured Bruce Wayne who became Batman with a chip on his shoulder. It was good to see a "comic book" movie that was deep in plot and emotion. Oh, and I've got to get one of those Batmobiles - sweet ride!

Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Christian Bale, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Wedding Crashers - Movie Review

A pair of longtime friends who work for a law firm have a weekend hobby of crashing wedding receptions, where they load up on free food and booze and try their luck at seducing the bridesmaids. When the nation's Secretary of the Treasury announces his daughter is to wed, the nuptials are billed as the social event of the year, and the friends decide they must attend the reception. However, they make the mistake of getting involved with the sisters of the bride, and soon their romantic transgressions get them in very hot water.

I had high hopes for this movie because the previews looked hilarious. I will say that much of the film lived up to my expectations. Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn had great chemistry and their antics were very funny - I laughed a lot! The "crazy girl" and Christopher Walken's character added a lot to the film. However, there were a couple of storylines that seemed out of place and were left up in the air at the end - the horny mom and gay son. Those could have been left out and shortened the 2 hour movie by 20 minutes. The ending was too predictable and seemed very rushed. All in all, it's worth watching once, but it's not a modern comedy classic like "There's Something About Mary" and "American Pie."

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Christopher Walken, Jane Seymour

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Havoc - ACE Train Movie Review

Influenced by the hip-hop thug lifestyle and seeking to explore life outside of their insulated, culturally homogenized suburb, pretty young teenagers set their sights on East L.A. to experience the "gangsta" lifestyle firsthand. By the time the pair meet some true-life Latino gang-bangers and realize just how far out of their element they really are, it may already be too late to turn back.

The first half of this film was a meandering, seemingly pointless string of events. The second half of the film had a little more action, but I still failed to be drawn into the story. Essentially, it was a bunch of white kids acting hardcore and doing drugs. The rich, white girls crashed the party of a real gang, wanted to become members and bad things happened. The rich white guys went to find the gang-bangers to get revenge and bang - end of movie. There wasn't any real closure, not that I was so much into the story that I cared. This is one to skip.

Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Bijou Phillips

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Overview of My First 100 Movie Reviews

Below is a collected list of my first 100 movie reviews (in order of best to worst). The first column is my rating (out of 5). The second column is my answer to "Would I watch it again?" The third column is the name of the movie with a link to my original post.

4.5 - Yes - Hotel Rwanda
4.5 - Yes - Sin City
4.5 - Yes - The Aviator
4.5 - Yes - March of the Penguins
4.5 - Yes - Million Dollar Baby
4.5 - Yes - Cinderella Man
4 - Yes - The Jacket
4 - Yes - Saw II
4 - Yes - Oldboy
4 - Yes - Coach Carter
4 - Yes - Crash
4 - Yes - 11:14
4 - Yes - Stephen Hawking's Universe
4 - Yes - Murderball
4 - Yes - Murder on a Sunday Morning
4 - Yes - Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
4 - Yes - Hoop Dreams
4 - Yes - Hide and Seek
4 - Yes - Miracle
4 - Yes - South Park: The Passion of the Jew
4 - No - The Island
4 - No - Ladder 49
4 - No - Stevie
3.5 - Yes - The Machinist
3.5 - Yes - Eternal Sunshine of the spotless Mind
3.5 - Yes - Taking Lives
3.5 - Yes - A Lot Like Love
3.5 - Yes - Matchstick Men
3.5 - No - Kinsey
3.5 - No - Guess Who
3.5 - No - Madagascar
3.5 - No - Lords of Dogtown
3.5 - No - Bridget Jones Diary
3.5 - No - Assault on Precinct 13
3.5 - No - Troy
3.5 - No - Hostage
3 - Yes - Constantine
3 - Yes - The Ring Two
3 - Yes - The Motorcycle Diaries
3 - No - Ocean's Twelve
3 - No - Friday Night Lights
3 - No - Seabiscuit
3 - No - Mr. & Mrs. Smith
3 - No - Grizzly Man
3 - No - Melinda and Melinda
3 - No - Without a Paddle
3 - No - War of the Worlds
3 - No - Final Destination
3 - No - The Interpreter
3 - No - The Horse Whisperer
3 - No - Fantastic Four
3 - No - Pirates of Silicon Valley
3 - No - The Polar Express
3 - No - Beyond the Sea
3 - No - Close Your Eyes
3 - No - Chocolat
3 - No - Grosse Pointe Blank
3 - No - Team America: World Police
3 - No - The Haunted Mansion
3 - No - School of Rock
3 - No - Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
2.5 - No - Finding Neverland
2.5 - No - In Good Company
2.5 - No - Shall We Dance?
2.5 - No - Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason
2.5 - No - Monster-In-Law
2.5 - No - The Skeleton Key
2.5 - No - Downfall
2.5 - No - The Longest Yard
2.5 - No - Spanglish
2.5 - No - The 40-Year-Old Virgin
2.5 - No - Black Cloud
2.5 - No - Twisted
2.5 - No - Home on the Range
2.5 - No - The Upside of Anger
2.5 - No - The Passion of the Christ
2.5 - No - Wimbledon
2 - No - Dukes of Hazzard
2 - No - Sahara
2 - No - National Treasure
2 - No - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
2 - No - Must Love Dogs
2 - No - Raising Helen
2 - No - Trauma
2 - No - Fever Pitch
2 - No - Monster's Ball
2 - No - Final Destination 2
2 - No - Win a Date With Tad Hamilton
2 - No - Christmas with the Kranks
2 - No - Alfie
2 - No - The Wedding Date
2 - No - Alexander
2 - No - Open Water
2 - No - Imaginary Heroes
2 - No - A Very Long Engagement
1.5 - No - The Pacifier
1.5 - No - The Cat in the Hat
1 - No - Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous
1 - No - Napoleon Dynamite
1 - No - Criminal

Grizzly Man - ACE Train Movie Review

Timothy Treadwell was a self-styled authority on bears who, starting in 1990, would spend as much time as possible each year in Alaska, camping out near a grizzly bear habitat. While Treadwell claimed to love the bears and felt as one with them, he had no formal training in their behavior, and while familiarizing himself with the creatures he would walk within a few feet of them with a video camera in hand. To many, Treadwell seemed part man of nature, part conjurer, and part self-promotion expert, but the part that guided his kinship with the bears failed him in 2003, when he and his girlfriend were killed in a grizzly attack.

Timothy Treadwell was a freakin' lunatic which made for a very interesting documentary. The images he captured on film were amazing. He came within such close proximity to the bears that he got shots you won't see anywhere else. His unnatural relationship with bears was the hallmark of his eccentric life and ultimately led to his death. While he dedicated the last 13 years of his life to protecting bears, his actions while living among them might have done more harm than good. He "protected" bears in the largest protected bear sanctuary, so the threat of poachers was slim and his contact with the bears could make it dangerous for tourists who might have unwanted close encounters with bears who became less afraid of people. Toward the end, he seemed to go off the deep end and filmed himself cursing the National Park Service for enforcing rules that were made to protect him. Overall, this is a fascinating one to watch once and hopefully they won't make a movie about his life because the only person that could play Timothy Treadwell is Andy Dick as the similarities are uncanny.

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Timothy Treadwell

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

11:14 - Movie Review

11:14 intertwines five different storylines that all lead up to a series of events that happen one evening at 11:14. The audience is made privy to connections between the characters that they themselves are unaware of. The audience will see how various lies and deceptions lead to murder.

This is the first (and so far only) "major" movie for writer and director, Greg Marcks. What a debut! This is my kind of movie. It starts out with an event that is so surprising, shocking and intriguing that you are instantly interested in trying to figure out the details around what just happened. The rest of the movie provides little bread crumbs along the way until the end which wraps everything together and helps it all make sense. I don't want to give anything away, so go see for yourself.

Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: Yes
Starring: Hilary Swank, Patrick Swayze, Rachael Leigh Cook, Barbara Hershey

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.

Downfall - Movie Review

The last ten days of Adolph Hitler and his Nazi regime are seen through the eyes of Traudl Junge, Hitler's personal secretary. In April of 1945, Allied forces were bearing down on Germany and Hitler retreated to a secret bunker in Berlin for his final days. Hitler's closest associates urged him to flee the city as the German forces were grossly outmatched, but Hitler held onto the illusion that Germany would still win. He spends his final days ranting and raving to Junge, blaming all around him as he tries to understand where his leadership went wrong. Finally, Hitler and several associates determine that it would be better to take their own lives rather than face the Allies after Germany's certain defeat.

I was very interested in this film since it was based on the memoirs of the real secretary to Adolph Hitler. However, I'll never know which parts are fact and which are embellished to make a good story. I thought that 2.5 hours was a little long to tell the story of Hitler's last 10 days; there are definitely scenes that could have been trimmed to keep the movie under 2 hours. It was fascinating to see the bunker Hitler hid in while his troops (and German civilians) were being killed by the Allies. Even while it was clear the Germans had lost the war and their plan of world domination, Hitler was to stubborn and selfish to surrender and killed himself instead. History buffs would probably enjoy this movie, but it was a bit much for me and the fact that it was in German with English subtitles made it seem long and tiring.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Bruno Ganz, Juliane Kohler, Alexandra Maria Lara

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.