Category: Three Sentence Movie Reviews

I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed this film, which I was only watching due to the Vin Diesel Film Fest. My liking had to do with two main things aside from the presence of Mr. Diesel: 1) there’s actually a strong woman character in this movie, much to my surprise and enjoyment 2) when the monster part comes, it’s pitch black and so we never really see the monsters eat the people. This is apparently an overlooked movie, so perhaps my recommendation will spur you to seek it out.

The theme for August movies seems to be “a bit slow” and this one was no different. The other theme is, “quite good acting, with enjoyable actors” and this movie fit that theme too. I was amused at all the lines of dialogue that clearly served only to inform the non-rugby understanding public of what the heck was going on, but overall, I was mostly bored.

This was a gorgeous movie to look at and the acting was very good. It was clearly carefully composed, but somehow, it came off as a bit cold. I was drawn to the story and many elements were quite good, so I recommend it anyway.

Enough of making movie adaptations about Jane Austin’s works. Instead, why don’t we see something about the author herself? This movie was a bit slow, but packed with very good actors and so was fun to watch.

“I haven’t watched it yet, but I’m looking forward to the experience,” was always my reply when someone asked me if I watched Glee. And now that Matt and I have jumped on the Glee bandwagon, I can say that I–like 98% of all Glee viewers–love it too. I was looking forward to the singing and the dancing, but I had no idea it would be so funny.

Harrison Ford’s wattles were covered by a bandanna for most of this movie, which was quite a relief for this viewer. I found this to be a B movie with A list actors who brought their A game, making it a pretty enjoyable summer movie experience. The movie also thankfully connected the dots as to why Olivia Wilde was riding through the late 1800’s Western setting with her hair all about her, instead of pulled back into a nice bun, as would have been correct to the setting; this was driving me crazy for most of the movie and I thank them for clearing the matter up.

Just as I enjoyed this upon its release, so did I enjoy this re-viewing. I had forgotten, however, that it was a Farrelly Brother’s movie, as it doesn’t really fit into their famously gross boy humor style. Drew Barrymore is always a delight and I quite enjoyed Jimmy Fallon, who I think doesn’t get to act in movies any more after Taxi and several other “eh” movies.

Vin Diesel speaks only 53 words in this movie so I probably could have excluded it from the Vin Diesel film fest, but I have wanted to see this since it came out and so many people spoke well of it. It was a good Brad Bird movie, (and short) with great voice acting. I also enjoy the classic animation style, which fit well with the 1950s setting.

I greatly enjoyed* this modern/period piece, especially for the acting by Owen Wilson and all the 1920s famous people. I loved the costumes, especially the white sailor-style dress with the red trim worn by Marion Cotillard. It also included a good overall message about staying present and the present.

*In my mind, enjoying Woody Allen movies is somewhat along the same lines of enjoying commercials. A really well-done commercial is a joy to behold, but the entire time I’m enjoying it, I can’t forget that the only reason this bit of entertainment exists is to get me to buy something. It’s rather sinister. Similarly, I tend to enjoy Woody Allen films. I find them funny, and the period pieces tend to be beautifully staged, with much to look at. Still, the entire time I’m watching and enjoying these films, I have a general sense of “ew” because the man left his wife for his daughter. Ew. In a perfect world, people who commit such acts would not also continue to be talented in other areas, or I would just not see their films. But, alas, he still is, and I just can’t stay away and so I reluctantly pay my money, enjoy the film and then feel guilty afterwards.

Had I not read this cleverly structured book, this would have been an okay movie. But unfortunately, I had and found this to be a pale imitation of the drama and pathos of the book, which I recommend you read (even you men!) The acting was good, and I was gleefully delighted to spot Alba for the first time, but if you must chose between the experiences, I recommend you skip the movie and read the book.