Friday, November 24, 2006

CASINO ROYALE


CASINO ROYALE: Legendary super-spy James Bond (played for the first time by Daniel Craig) gets his humble (and by humble I mean incredibly ego-centric) beginnings in this prequel to the 007 series. On his first mission, Bond must beat a terrorist's money-man (Mads Mikkelsen) at a high stakes game of poker.

This is one of the best James Bond films made to date. It’s a very different kind of Bond... A hard, cold, realistic one. There are no crazy gadgets this time around… just guns and cell phones. Daniel Craig is fantastic as 007, and of all the guys to play this role, he is probably the most believable as an actual spy. Eva Green is also the best Bond girl to come along in quite some time… aside from being a beautiful face, her character feels full, emotional, and complex. CASINO ROYALE also features some great action sequences, which are handled with a kind of brutality and grittiness that's new to the Bond series.

Whether you're a fan of 007, or just looking to see a good action movie... this one is definitely worth catching in theaters!

Click here after you see CASINO ROYALE for a discussion!

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

STRANGER THAN FICTION


STRANGER THAN FICTION: IRS tax-collector Harold Crick (Will Ferrell) leads a boring, monotonous life until he realizes that he is the main character in a fictional novel. He seeks the assistance of a college professor (Dustin Hoffman) to help him find his author (Emma Thompson) before she kills him off...

STRANGER THAN FICTION is full of surprises. It marks a real departure for Will Ferrell, who doesn't play a loud, over the top, SNL caricature in this film. Instead, Ferrell tries his hand at a somewhat more earnest and serious role; one in which he’s practically the straight man. Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson and Maggie Gyllenhaal really provide the color in this film, and all give great performances. STRANGER THAN FICTION is not as layered or self-referential as ADAPTATION (2002), and there isn’t as much bizarre fantasy stuff going on as one would expect from a movie about a man living in a fictitious world… but it’s still worth checking out!

Click here after you see STRANGER THAN FICTION for a discussion!

Thursday, November 02, 2006

BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN


BORAT: Borat Sagdiyev, an ignorant, backwards character from Kazakhstan travels wide-eyed across the US to film a documentary and track down his true love... Pamela Anderson. Based on Sacha Baron Cohen's character from Da Ali G Show.

In the words of Borat, this movie is "very niiiice!" It's wrong in sooo many ways... and yet it's one of the only comedies I've ever seen in which I laughed the ENTIRE way through! Now, keep in mind that this film is not going to be for everyone... Sacha Baron Cohen is completely inappropriate, crass, and sets out to make fun of just about everyone he encounters. But the genius thing about this movie is that, in the midst of being juvenile and inappropriate, Borat exposes a seriously ugly side of our country that most of us aren't used to seeing. He pushes cultural stereotypes so far across the line that they become absurd!

Go see it!

Click here after you see BORAT for a discussion!