Paranormal Activity Review

This movie has captivated audiences since its initial release. People have said it's the scariest thing they have ever seen. Their have even been reports of people running out of the movie theater crying.

Paranormal Activity is about about a couple who experience unexplained phenomena. Supposedly, the girlfriend, "Katie" is haunted by a presence that she can't explain. They try different methods of contact the presence, until finally the heed results.

Some of the ideas are fever clever and are a great way to instill a sense of fear in the audience. One example, is when the boyfriend, "Micah" puts baby powder on the floor to make sure that if something comes in there bedroom they will have proof. Then out of nowhere, you see footprints appearing, without anything making them. The movie has other instances like this that help it seem more realistic.

The acting was awful, since these are first time actors, they don't really know how to act. Some might think it makes the movie seem more realistic, but for me it just seems stupid.

One thing I didn't realize going into this movie was it was shot like a home made video. Micah, the boyfriend is filming the whole thing, trying to find evidence of "Paranormal Activity". So if you are the squeamish type, this moving isn't for you with all the shakes of the camera.

The most startling fact is that it was shot in one week for a budget of $15,000. To date, the movie has already made $100 million dollars in the U.S. alone, making it the most profitable movie ever made.

I personally didn't find it scary. I thought that it did have a few good scares, but nothing that great. What I think people liked about the movie is the fact that you don't really see whats happening, so it leaves it to the imagination.

This is the type of movie that is best seen with a group of friends. The audience reaction is really a key role in why this movie works. It's a good film, especially for the budget, but not the scariest movie ever made, as some would claim.

7.5 out of 10

2012 Review

From director Roland Emmerich (Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow) comes 2012, a disaster flick that might just actually happen.

2012 is based on the premise that on December 21, 2012 the world is going to come to an end. The reason being, that that is the last day on the Mayan calendar. Also, that the planets in our solar system are all supposed to be lined up in perfect symmetry next to each other, an event that happens only once every few million years.

Most of the movie is spent with John Cusack and Amanda Peet, following them on their journey to escape the crumbling world around them. While this does make for an interesting popcorn flick on the big-screen, it leads to one close call after another. It is fun to watch them overcome insurmountable odds, but its just so implausible it's laughable.

The reason this movie does appeal to me is the fact that it discusses what might happen on that faithful day in 2012. It makes you think about your mortality more than Emmerich's other movies. Their are several scenes in the movie where people are calling to their loved one's, knowing good and well that it might be the last time they ever talk to them.

The acting isn't bad, it's just mediocre. Two things worth noting is that Woody Harrelson plays a small role as a conspiracy theorist, who first tell Cusack about the impending doom. Danny Glover is also in this movie as the U.S. president.

While there are many theories about what will happen in 2012, it is interesting to see this movie and speculate what will could happen, if anything. It a standard popcorn flick with some very cool and extravagent close calls that Roland Emmerich has always been known for.

8.0 out of 10

Pirate Radio Review

Pirate Radio tells the tale of a group of guys who saved Rock' N Roll for England. The government didn't allow radio stations to play rock music, so a few DJ's decided to change all that. They live on a ship where 24/7 they broadcast rock music to the masses.

Phillip Seymour Hoffman, one of the stars of the movie, is the head DJ. Along with Rhys Ifans (The Replacements) and Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead) as two of the other DJ's.

I found this movie interesting for a few reasons. One reasone being, it is based on a true story. It is also exciting to know that this really did happen and it makes the movie feel a lot more enjoyable to watch.

Since this is a movie about Rock N' Roll, the music has to be phenomenal and it was. There were many times throughout the movie where they would be playing a song and the actors would be jamming out right along with it, giving you the sense that they really loved what they were doing. The music really is a great part of this movie; they play everything from Jimi Hendrix to The Beatles.

This movie isn't for everyone, the humor is a lot cruder than I thought, but I didn't mind it. The humor fits the movies, especially since about British music junkies in the 1960's. Some of the humor I found to be skewed more to British people since that is what the movie is depicting, but that could just be me.

It's a fun comedy with a lot of laughs. If you just feel like seeing something a little different, but know you want to have a good time than this is your movie.

8.5 out of 10

Jennifer's Body Review

This movie has been on the top of my "Must See" list for some time. The trailer looked very intriguing to me and it looked like it had everything that is needed for a great movie.

Thankfully it lived up to most of the hype. It is a dark comedy that stars Megan Fox, from the Transformers series, and Amanda Seyfried. The movie is about a girl named Jennifer (Fox) who kills boys. Her best friend, Needy (Seyfried) finds out what she is doing and tries to put an end to the madness.

Since this is a dark comedy from the mind of Diablo Cody, who wrote the award winning movie Juno, expect the quick witted humor we have all come to love from Cody. She truly knows how to write captivating dialogue.

I don't feel like this movie has as much universal appeal as Juno did because of the fact that the comedy is so dark, some people may be off put by that fact. But if you stick with it, I think that by the end of the movie anyone can find something enjoyable in it.

While I liked most of the movie, some of it felt very contrived. For instance, when she lures a boy over to a house, he tries to open the front door, but it is bolted shut. He finally climbs in through a window. He looks around until he finds Jennifer, then realizes that it's not her house. Some of the scenes did not feel all that fleshed out, which somewhat hurt the movie.

Some people might have a gripe that it stars Megan Fox. It didn't bother me at all. Either you like her or you don't, it's that simple. The movie did do a good job of showing off her assets, even though the film didn't have any nudity.

If you set your expectations appropriately you will have a good time, but you have to know what you are going in for before you see it. If you have seen Juno, it will help you to better understand how Diablo Cody thinks and how the plot might develop.

The highest praise this movie can be given has to be the great dialogue. It can't be said enough how creative it truly is. Their needs to be more films like it. Overall it is an impressive sophomore film for Diablo Cody, if her next film is anything like this one, I'm sure it will be a hit.

9.5 out of 10

Whiteout Review

Whiteout is about a U.S. Marshal named Carrie Stetko, played by Kate Beckinsale. She is stationed in Antarctica and is the chief security official in the frozen tundra. When a dead body is discovered, she is forced to find out how he died and ultimately track a killer in the process.

I was really looking forward to this movie. The trailer looked very intriguing, but in my opinion it's just another average movie. I was looking forward to seeing a lot of action and some mysterious elements as well. It had these elements, but not to my satisfaction.

Once Carrie finds out that she has a murder on her hands, she tries to find out more about the individual. She learns he was a geologist. He was stationed at another site with many more geologists looking for meteor samples. Once she finds out his identity, the phone just happens to ring. It one of the guy's co-workers who informs Carrie that she should come out to the base because there is something "really" important he has to show her.

When Carrie reaches the base, she finds him dead with the killer not too far behind her. She flees, ultimately getting back to safety. The scene itself just didn't feel realistic. They are in Antarctica, with winter approaching. The temperature is in the negatives with storms raging all the time. When she is outside, she attaches herself by rope to another series of ropes that keeps her from getting blown away in the storm. The series of ropes lead to all the buildings on the site. It is weird when she is running away from the killer attached to a rope and is trying to get to safety. The killer is also attached to a rope, which makes it even more laughable. There isn't anywhere for her to go but forward or backward and the whole thing just seems very contrived. There are two scenes where this happens and it just brought the movie down.

Kate Beckinsale's performance was ok at best. She didn't seem like she gave it her all. It felt like she was passive, not really there.

Another scene worth noting is that the last geologist that is alive comes to tell Carrie what his crew found in the abyss. While Carrie and he are talking, someone spooks him. He then runs away because he is afraid the killer is after him. Some scenes appeared totally random, while others were very predictable. During a few parts in the movie I was thinking to myself what the logical next step would be, and sure enough my outcome happened.

This movie felt like it was trying to take on too many genres. First and foremost it was trying to be an action flick, then somewhat of a suspense thriller with a few lines of comedic dialogue thrown in for good measure. It was trying to be too many things, most of which it was not.

The best part of the movie was Antarctica. It showed the beautiful snow-covered peaks, as well as what looked like to be the Aurora-Borealis. The name of the movie, Whiteout, works very well. The movie does a good job of showing the harsh conditions of living in the most isolated land mass on the planet.

Overall, it is mediocre. It's one of those movies that really isn't that good or bad, just average.

7 out of 10

Gamer Review

Gamer, a movie staring Gerard Butler of 300 and The Ugly Truth fame, is about a man trapped in a game controlled by another human.

This movie isn't for everyone. As the title implies, people who like games- or more specifically video games- will find some enjoyment out of this movie.

The movie takes place in the not so distant future. The world is in utter chaos, with the prison system on the verge of collapse. Michael C. Hall, known best for Dexter, plays billionaire software mogul Ken Castle. He has created this virtual reality where people can vicariously control every movement of another human being.

Castle has created two worlds, the first called Social, which is what it sounds like, a place for people to get together and mingle with each other. They can be anyone they want to be and live out any fantasy they wish. When I first saw this, it made me think of an application for Sony's Playstation 3. The application, called Home, allows you to create an avatar and be who or whatever you want. But in Gamer, it is taken to the extreme. All Social really is is a place to have sex and show gratuitous amounts of nudity. I understand the message that they were getting across, but it served no purpose whatsoever.

The second world, Slayer, is where most of the movie takes place. The players that are in Slayer are death row inmates who have an opportunity to be set free if they win and stay alive. They must win 30 sessions to be free. No one has beaten it before. Instead, most of the people die in over-the-top ways, with a good number of head shots, might I add. Gerard Butler's character, Kable, has won twenty-seven matches, with only three more to go. The matches consist of Kable shooting people in various way, a-la the video game Call of Duty 4.

While this movie is supposed to appeal to gamers, it does to some degree, while also failing miserably. The movie carries along with it the stigma that is attached to people who play video games, that it is only kids or fat adults that don't have anything better to do with their lives. There also is a dance number in the movie. I have no idea why it was in there, but I guess it was supposed to add some comic relief. It just didn't fit the style of the movie.

If you are someone who likes to play video games, then this movie might appeal to you more than just the average moviegoer. It had some good action scenes, as well as everything else in between. Overall it just another movie with a lot of killing.

7.5 out of 10

The Time Traveler's Wife Review

A couple of days ago, I had the pleasure/displeasure of seeing The Time Traveler's Wife, a movie starring Eric Bana as Henry the Time Traveler and Rachel McAdams as Clare the Wife, based upon the book by Audrey Niffenegger(yes, that's really her name). Just walking into the theater gave you a feeling about what this movie was going to be like. The place was crowded with dates and mothers and daughters (or, in my case grandmothers and granddaughters). And all of a sudden I knew I was walking into a sap story.

The movie itself isn't really that bad, and the story was relatively strong....but the script just kept slipping. I didn't really care about Henry and Clare until the very end of the movie, where, SHOCKER, something goes wrong.

The movie starts off focused on Henry and his time traveling ways, the first time he traveled, some of the rules of traveling. One thing that is not explained however, is why Eric Bana's wig is so bad. It was so bad I wanted to reach through the screen and rip it off his head. It made my head itch just looking at it, but I think you get my point. Eventually he meets Clare, who he has apparently met before when he was older, but he didn't know it when he meets her in the future/past. It was moments like this in the movie where it started to make no sense. My grandmother had to turn to me several times during the movie and ask what was going on, and when I attempted to explain it, it really made no sense.

There were other moments like this, where Henry would just abruptly travel and leave Clare behind for long amounts of time and you would just feel so depressed and sometimes even slightly bored. Other things in the movie just go completely unexplained. For instance, it doesn't explain why in one scene we see Henry beating the crap out of some guy while he's wearing what appears to be denim short shorts and a pink t-shirt with lace trim and screaming "GODDAMN HOMOPHOBES!"
Towards the end of the movie, you begin to feel that ominous feeling that things are starting to go downhill, when the vibe in the room begins to change. And when Henry finds out he's going to die when his daughter turns 5, I heard the woman next to me whisper, "Oh shit..."

And then when that big, horrible moment does come, all around me I heard sobs and gasps and even my grandmother was bawling her eyes out.

What the movie really comes down to is a sweet, sappy love story that at times doesn't really make sense.
I would wait to rent it.
6.5/10