One Paragraph Review: Sherlock Holmes

I rather enjoyed Sherlock Holmes despite its slow pacing and unexciting ending. In general, I love Guy Richie movies for the action and twists, and the fun ride they take you on. He's like a dumber (in a good way) British Quentin Tarantino without all the weirdness (in a bad way). Yet he really didn't add anything to this movie. It felt like it could have been directed by Joe Schmo. All that said, the dialogue and acting was just great. Robert Downey Jr. makes a great Holmes and clearly relishes the role. Not a great movie but this is exactly the sort of thing you purchase cable for.

One Paragraph Review: Julie and Julia

I had planned on retiring to the bedroom or the office (or anywhere else) when my girlfriend put on "Julie & Julia," but after peripherally catching the first 10 or 15 minutes of the film, I found myself engaged just enough to sit through the whole thing. It turns out that Julie & Julia is a quaint and charming little film, not really doing anything annoying while riding the strength of Meryl Streep's magnetic portrayal of Julia Child. Amy Adams is fun despite crying in every other scene and, if you enjoy cooking as I do, you'll find that the film's subject alone is enough to keep your interest.

One Paragraph Review: Caprica

I grabbed the 2-hour pilot/premier of the new series Caprica on DVD because Ronald D. Moore and David Eick's "Battlestar Galactica" was one of three TV series that I've really loved in the last ten or so years (the other two being The West Wing and The Wire). Being doubtful that they could re-capture the many things that made BSG so great, I actually had fairly low expectations. Luckily, however, I didn't give Moore and Eick enough credit - Caprica's pilot is great. Though it's thematically pretty dark - a tragedy being the catalyst for the show's major plot arcs - Caprica is packed with complex content, deep characters and distinctive style. Caprica City is at once a familiar town and foreign civiliation, and its polytheistic, futuristic populace is simultaneously alien and human. Of course, as a piece unto itself, the Caprica pilot lacks a measure of closure. However, as a springboard for a new series, the Caprica pilot is packed with quality writing, powerful characters, themes upon themes and loads of promise.

One Paragraph Review: Primer

I really can't form a coherent stream of thoughts about Primer. I mean, I love this film, but part of me thinks that it's just because I'm in awe of the way it so totally confuses me; but not in a convoluted or stupid way, in a way that has enough logic and math that I'm utterly convinced that it is possible to form a complete, accurate picture of what is happening but totally helplessly unable to do so. No, it's not just adolescent admiration - this film is fantastic, even if I can't fully wrap my mind around what is actually happening. It's a fun, complicated spin on a simple, unoriginal concept. Throw in the fact that it was made for a paltry $7,000 - probably the cost of Michael Bay's haircuts during a Transformers film - and you have a work that really deserves your attention.

One Paragraph Review: Up in the Air

I imagine there will be a lot of people who chose to hate on this film, being angry and impatient with its subtle honesty or frustrated with nothing blowing up and no quarrels between ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends (and no teen vampires, either!). But for those patient enough to really observe everyone in the film, Jason Reitman's desire to explore the human condition is here in full force. Up in the Air is a fantastic, flawlessly acted meditation on what it means to be "connected" with people in our modern world. This is one of those films that will have you reflecting on your life, and that of those around you, far after you leave the theater.

One Paragraph Review: 500 Days of Summer

500 Days of Summer is a fun and entertaining film that, for the most part, balances an off-beat attitude with a sense of honesty. The film is at its worst when it rehashes typical romantic movie cliches for no apparent reason, but at its best when it's making a point that most "romance" films don't (or can't) ever bother with. In the end, 500 Days of Summer does things just enough differently to make it worth your while, but is just enough like other love stories to prevent it from really being amazing.

One Paragraph Review: The Men Who Stare At Goats

I would have enjoyed this movie far more if I had opted to never see it, and instead just re-watched the promising trailer. Clooney, Spacey, Bridges, McGregor + absurdity = How can this possibly go wrong? Well, somehow it did, and it is a massive disappointment. It's hilarious for a few seconds at a time (most of which are included in the trailer), but those moments simply don't come often enough. Most of the film sort of trudges along, sometimes abandoning its direction and picking a totally different one. In the end, this film isn't consistently amusing, but feels too absurd to be taken seriously.

One Paragraph Review: Sunshine Cleaning

I can't call this a bad meal but it really wasn't anything to save in the recipe book. Sunshine Cleaning tells the story of a down-on-her luck young mother who gets into the business cleaning up crime scenes and dead bodies. There were a lot of "independent film" elements to the movie — indy sister, precocious and overly smart son, shopkeeper with one arm, Albuquerque, etc. — but I'm not sure the story wasn't anything you couldn't get from a good TV drama. And how many films can Alan Arkin play the quirky yet stable father? And how many of 'em have "Sunshine" in the title? This movie was basically an indie stew that just didn't taste that great in the end.

One Paragraph Review: Live Free or Die Hard

Bruce Willis rocks! Bruce Willis rocks when he acts like an overprotective father! Bruce Willis rocks when he evades French mercenaries who can understand English but can't speak it! Bruce Willis rocks when he defies gravity to take down a helicopter with a car! Bruce Willis rocks when he fights ninja chicks! Bruce Willis rocks when he's all bloodied up! Bruce Willis rocks when he takes on a fighter jet! Bruce Willis rocks when he takes a bullet to kill a guy!.....Are you sensing the main point of this movie yet?

One Paragraph Review: The King of Kong

This is your pretty basic low-budget documentary that tells an interesting story about an interesting event. The main characters are two guys trying to compete for the world record in Donkey Kong. The characters take themselves, and the competition, way too seriously leading to some extremely funny moments. Funny for the audience, I should say. The documentary is well put together, and the story is compelling enough to keep my attention. Overall, I recommend it.