by Ethan Johnson
May 31, 2008
And... we got out more:
Iron Man: Well, it's like this: Iron Man was never my "thing", even back when I read and collected comic books. But I started to give in to the buzz surrounding the movie, and figured if it starred Robert Downey Jr, there's certainly a "floor" for my enjoyment of the movie. I did some horse trading with Mar, who agreed to drag herself out to see Iron Man in exchange for me dragging myself out to see Sex and the City. Mmmhmmm. We saw it TWICE in two weeks, and are threatening a THIRD viewing at the theatre. It's that good. OMG, quit reading this and go see it NOW. We're probably going to own the super-deluxe Blu-Ray DVD just on principle, despite not actually owning a Blu-Ray player. Watch and enjoy.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: It wasn't Iron Man.
Seriously: Go see Iron Man.
Anyway, I've been through the previous three movies, and after Raiders of the Lost Ark the momentum was difficult to maintain. Now that there's been a long hiatus, and I daresay this movie was largely unlooked-for, as Tolkien might say, the movie was reasonably entertaining but something of a shadow of its former self. It's entertaining enough that it's not a bad matinée feature, but seriously, after Iron Man everything else is "not exactly". Putting my bias aside, see it cheaply, but if you're not hell-bent on seeing every Indiana Jones movie ever made, it's OK to skip it.
Baby Mama: Still not Iron Man. But that's OK. What I was more concerned about was whether it would be the big-screen installment of the Liz Lemon Adventures Outside of 30 Rock. Mmmm, Tina Fey and Liz Lemon are One. Another reasonably entertaining movie, but one that probably would make a fine rental or even cable TV offering. We like-a the Tina Fey and wanted to boost her box office numbers. Oh - Steve Martin and Greg Kinnear co-star, not that anyone thought to advertise that fact.
Sex and the City: It still wasn't Iron Man. More seriously, I was quite finished with the series when it ended, so when the movie happened years later I wondered WTF they had to talk about anymore. Mmmm, they found a way to squeeze 2 more hours out of the story. Despite not really being in the mood to see this movie since it was announced, I thought they did a good job of tying the movie back to the TV series and picking up 5 years later. But the boom operator needs to be sent back to sound boom school. I lost count how many times the boom mic dipped into the picture. Amateur hour, man. And in scenes where a re-shoot wouldn't have broken the bank. Also, Chris Noth needs to be cast in a Batman-esque superhero movie. If you're a fan of the TV series, you're probably already at the theatre. If you hold out for DVD/cable, good for you. If you can avoid spoilers during that time.
Transformers: Movies like this don't lend themselves to high-minded critical analysis. Those critics who attempt this are, as we say in the crit biz, assholes. But keeping in mind that I was outside of the target demographic for this movie, I was left wondering who was supposed to be included in that elite inner circle. Teenagers? Maybe, but some of the movie is too childish even for them. Little kids? Sort of, but then the material gets too "mature", relative to what us fogeys might think is either of interest to, or appropriate for young children. Nostalgic adults? Kinda, but way too much cheese to sit through comfortably. There is an Iron Man connection, though: The CGI work helped seal the deal for ILM to get picked to do the special effects for Iron Man. Both movies, despite their premise, are rendered quite plausibly. Considering what a schlock-fest I expected going into this, believable CGI is an unexpected bonus. Rent if you must.
The Lost Boys: I can't believe I actually sat through this, considering how incredibly awful the - where do I start? - acting, plot, casting, production, acting - was. Kiefer Sutherland was the best of the bunch, for what that was worth. Hard to believe that Jason Patric went on to star in Rush, which proves that he is/was a better actor than this movie would have one believe. This movie really had no idea what it wanted to be. Horror? Comedy? Camp? Fail on all counts. Skip it unless you are compelled otherwise.
A Man for All Seasons: Yes, yes, oh my God, yes. Fantastic movie. Despite the historical quirks and/or glossing over of some of Sir Thomas More's less desirable traits and accomplishments (no mention of the heretics he burned), this movie deserves all of the praise it received and more. Stunning writing and delivery. You simply must see this movie in your lifetime. Full props to Mar for twisting my arm until I made time to see it. Another winner!
Thank You for Smoking: Aaron Eckhart is a chameleon, man. Considering he was the sleaze-wad husband in Nurse Betty and Erin Brockovich's SO, he cleans up well for this flick about a tobacco lobbyist trying to come to grips with being a role model for his son. It's an OK effort, but part of me liked it better when it was called Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Worth a look-see, if only to prove up that the fairly useless kid from Ultraviolet can actually act worth a rip. <EM>
