Jeanie and I enjoyed it.

The plot kept us guessing all the way to the end - and beyond. While I usually prefer "clear cut," we were both intrigued with the ambiguity of "who (really) done it."

We also both agreed that Sharon Stone is a great villainess, and still hot.

We also liked the alternate ending, just because it so clearly showed how just a few changed/added words in a scene can so alter a story.

Some movies don't hold up well to the passage of time - after only a few years, they seem dated and stale. Even though this movie is twelve years old, this was not the case.

The film starred Marisa Tomei, Bonnie Hunt and Robert Downey and was directed by Norman Jewison.

It had some humorous moments, and had some fun plot twists. It was just the sort of sweet, romantic comedy that Jeanie and I favor for a date movie.

We both thoroughly enjoyed this romantic comedy starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew McConaughey.

We found it refreshing and cute, with some laugh out loud moments. We had just this weekend discussed how it seems like so many movies are just retreads of previous movies - it was nice to see a movie with a new story line.

The supporting cast was every bit as good as the stars, with interesting sub-plots of their own.

As an aside, I'm beginning to fear that Rotten Tomatoes is starting to take itself a bit too seriously. A few years ago, it seemed that the ratings was based on how enjoyable a movie was. Now, they seem to have slipped into the rut of rating movies on how "deep" or "important" they are. Too bad.

Yes, yes, I know that it was/is critically acclaimed. Yes, I know that George Clooney won an acadamy award.

I guess it was just too high concept, and too much work to follow. Any movie which requires a 16 page explanation on Rotten Tomatoes is more than my idea of two hours worth of mindless entertainment.

On the other hand, I did find reading that explanation to be quite interesting, as it does give great insight into the level of effort and attention to detail given in the making of the film. And I guess it did achieve one of its major stated goals - I've been thinking about it for a few days since seeing it, and talking about it around the only water cooler I have available - this blog.

I did also find myself agreeing with most of the movie's main themes... big oil is behind lots of bad stuff, poverty and limited opportunities can drive people to radical behavior, the lack of the existence of a large middle class is something which can be changed were the few with massive power and wealth willing to do so - which would ultimately encourage peace and stability, elements of the US government do not always act with the moral conviction that we hold ourselves to have, sometimes the US seems to take action to protect the short term interests of the US at the expense of long term interests (ours and/or the world's), all too often people with fantastic power and wealth are most concerned with increasing/maintaining that power and wealth - at any cost without regard to the greater good.

I guess it all boils down to one of my basic tenants... the world would be a really great place... were it not for people.

I still think that we are blessed to live in the United States, and that it is a great country. I also recognize that we can not fix all the problems of the world. Granted, some problems are caused by forces beyond our control - storms, fires, earthquakes, etc. - but ultimately, the majority of the problems on this planet are a consequence of man's inhumanity. I find myself becoming increasingly cynical of our system of government which seems to have strayed far from the vision of the founding fathers. I don't think the problem is the system, I think the problem is the people in power who have corrupted it for their own self interests. I find myself increasingly cynical of big business, yet I continue to suck from its teat, and to want more. I don't think the problem is capitalism, I think the problem is what we are willing to do, and to sacrifice, in pursuit of the almighty dollar. Every form of government and every economic system has its problems - and ours seems to have fewer than any other that I am aware of. It's just... if only we could all just act a little better, how much greater a country, and world we could have.

My first boss told me early in my career that my biggest problem was that I was too idealistic. He told me that it would prevent me from climbing to the top and inhibit my happiness. There are a very few people who end up achieving the great American dream because they are truly exceptional, sadly, many more achieve it by selling their soul to the devil. I may have (and still do?) rent my soul to the devil, but I don't think I ever have, or hopefully ever will, sell it - and thus, I'll never find myself at (or even near) the top of the heap.

Jeanie found it to be well acted and thought provoking. She said it was probably the only Woody Allen movie she ever really enjoyed.

I thought it was plodding. The only redeeming value I found - for the part I was awake for and what Jeanie related of the rest of the movie - was the exploration of / contention of the part that luck ultimately plays in our lives.

I don't discount that hard work, focus, practice, etc. can provide a strong advantage. As a former boss often said, "The definition of luck is when opportunity meets preparedness." The bottom line though is that luck still depends on opportunity. And opportunity, and therefore luck, is usually simply a matter of timing. Ultimately, some of us have good timing, and some of us don't...

I found it rather formulaic. Jeanie thought it was okay.

There was one great Harrison Ford line: "I'm going to get my dog!" It doesn't make sense out of context like this, but if you watch the movie, you'll know it when you see it, and for an instant, you'll flash back to the Harrison Ford of the original Star Wars or Air Force One.

To me, it seemed to be just another thriller that wasn't very thrilling. It was better than watching TV re-runs, and since we re-upped for the Blockbuster Movie Pass program which in effect made the rental "free," I guess it was worth the price.

It had some pretty funny scenes along with an underlying sweetness that served as an interesting counterpoint to the low brow humor.

Not that it will make my "top 10" or even "top 50" movies, but definitely worth the time and rental fee.

that and we're both still getting tired early - Jeanie because the virus she contracted a couple of weeks ago is still hanging on, and me, well, who knows? What does getting tired have to do with watching movies? The bedroom. We can watch movies in the bedroom, whereas the DVR - which is about all we use to watch TV anymore - is in the living room, and it is so much more comfortable in the bed, especially when you're tired.

Jeanie enjoyed the movie. I thought it was okay.

I never read the story, so I don't know if having done so might have made the movie more engaging. The special effects were amazing. I think in the not too distant future, the difference between "real" and CG will be totally imperceptible. As things are, the effects are good enough that it doesn't take much willful suspension of disbelief to accept the reality of anthropomorphic animals and mythological creatures.

I was a bit disappointed at the amount of violence and gore in what I thought was supposed to be a children's movie. I think the film makers succumbed to a bit of trying to keep up with the Jones's, where in this case, the Jones's were the Lord of the Rings movies.

I think the themes of love, betrayal, courage, sacrifice and redemption were strong enough to stand on their own, but ended up being diminished by trying to add more sizzle to the film.

And speaking of excessive violence, why is it that hacking and killing are acceptable fare for our children, at least in the opinions of TV and movie ratings/acceptability authorities, but the mere suggestion of sex or nudity causes the work to be deemed inappropriate or gets it branded with a scarlet letter?

And, while I'm bitching (yes, that's bitching, not just innocent questioning), why doesn't Blockbuster or NetFlix include the "other" disc when they rent you the DVD? My guess is that in this case, I probably would have enjoyed the features on the DVD extras disc as much as the actual movie. But, the only way that I would have the opportunity to see them is to go out and buy, rather than rent, the movie.

Oh...

Second bitch/question answered I guess.

Just about every minute of this film felt like I had seen it before. This isn't to say it wasn't a pleasant, sweet movie with touching characters and some beautiful cinematography and a strong score. The acting was quite good, the casting also good. It just seemed like the whole estranged family, dad down on his luck, little girl, damaged horse with the heart of a lion, dreams really do come true thing has been done again and again.

The overall rating on Rotten Tomatoes, 63%, seemed high, but the reviews are right on the money. This would be a great DVD to pop into the player on a rainy day to watch with your kids.

It wasn't a bad movie, no fundamental problems or fatal flaws. There were some funny scenes, a couple quite funny. The story was sweet, if predictable. But, there lots of better romantic comedies out there if that's what you're in the mood for.

I kinda enjoyed this one.

Since this might tarnish my manly man image, maybe it was the painkillers...

Or, maybe it was the great music, beautiful sets and costumes, the wonderful acting, and the human elements that are as relevant today as they were 200 years ago.

The overall rating on Rotten Tomatoes was lower than what I would have given the movie.

I thought the acting was really good, the setting was beautiful, and the message meaningful. Was the movie "sweet?" Was it a "feel good" movie? Yes! And what's wrong with that?

My other flick for last night's double feature was Sin City.

I don't know if I wasn't really in a movie mood, or just happened to end up with two misses on the same night, but I wasn't wowed by Sin City either.

I found it interesting artistically/stylistically/technically, but overall, it was only moderately engaging. I've had no experience with graphic novels, so part of it could just be that I don't understand the genre. Even without that frame of reference, my guess is that the film did a brilliant job of capturing the essence of the graphic novel in a film format. I did think the movie was well casted, acted, directed, lighted, etc. The predominance of the use of black and white, with the very selective addition of color for just certain items in the frame was pretty cool. I liked the way the mini-stories wove into each other. It just seemed that the whole was less than the sum of the parts.

"Cabin Pressure: Designing The Aalta E-474"

The movie was just dull. The acting was fine, but the story never pulled me in.

This movie affected me more deeply than I would have expected. I don't know how much of the impact was related to my overall emotional state at the moment, but affect me it did.

Jeanie had rented it a while ago while I was out of town, so I figured last night would be a good time to check it out risk-free so to speak, since we are still "renting" movies under Blockbuster's movie pass program which allows us to have two movies out at a time for one fixed monthly fee.

The music was absolutely amazing. I had heard a few of the songs before, but to hear them in the context of the play/movie added so much to them.

I find it so interesting that as a youth, for the most part, musicals drove me crazy. I just couldn't understand why in the middle of a perfectly good scene, the actors would break out into song. Now, I absolutely love them. No matter how good the acting, a strong song stirs emotion at a level way deeper than words / intellect.

The documentary on Disc 2 was really great, and the depiction of Jonathan Larson's life, struggles, determination, and ultimate tragic death on the eve of his breakthrough just added to the poignancy of the experience.

The fact that Jonathan and his peers were about the same age as me, and the setting in lower Manhattan made me feel that much more connected to the story.

I think the timing of watching this was good. I am truly going to try to embrace the messages of this movie - especially those embodied in the opening and closing songs and in particular:

There is no future
There is no past
Thank God this moment's not the last
There's only us
There's only this
Forget regrets
Or life is yours to miss
No other road
No other way
No day but today

Since Jeanie is away, one of the small consolations I find is getting to watch movies that I know she wouldn't really enjoy. Typically, these tend to be science fiction movies, although sometimes I'll throw in a fantasy or thriller.

Last night's indulgence was Serenity, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I was a big fan of the TV show Firefly, so it was a pretty good bet that I'd enjoy the movie. In an interesting surprise, the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes were overwhelmingly positive. I say surprising, given that the movie didn't seem to fare well in theaters. Maybe there were lots of geeks like me who meant to see the movie in a theater but never quite got around to it, but then eagerly watched it when it came out of DVD. The Firefly TV show seemed to have a similar fate - it didn't get much buzz in its original media presentation (broadcast TV) but gained significant popularity after being released on DVD.

If you were ever interested in the TV show, but haven't seen the movie, it is worth renting if for no other reason than the movie finally provides insight into reavers, although spending another hour and a half in Josh Whedon's wonderful world of Firefly is more than adequate to justify the price of admission. That, or you can read the Reavers entry on Wikipedia (is there any worthwhile information that can't be found on Wikipedia?).

It is billed as a comedy, but I think that is misleading. I have also seen it labeled as a romantic comedy or love story, but that doesn't quite hit the mark either. The blurb on the DVD jacket doesn't even get it right... the relationship between boy/daughter not really the key focus. The movie is more about middle age, corporate America, and the relationship between Topher Grace and Dennis Quaid's characters.

Regardless of how you categorize it, the movie hit close to home for me, with its themes of middle age, mergers, and layoffs. The insight into corporate America, and its exploration of right / wrong was fascinating.

I guess it is fair to call the movie a comedy, in the same way that one would categorize some of the Cohen Brothers movies as comedies. Maybe calling it a "deep comedy" would be appropriate or a "dramedy". And, by the way, my quibbling with the label does not imply that there weren't some very funny scenes. There were a number of times that Jeanie and I thought we'd bust a stitch.

The movie received a very strong rating from Rotten Tomatoes, and the reviews are generally consistent with Jeanie's and my sentiments.

Jeanie and I both found it to be a reasonably enjoyable, run-of-the-mill girl loves dog story.

I found the Rotten Tomatoes reviews to be reasonably consistent with my sentiments.

Jeanie and I both enjoyed it. It was the sort of light hearted romantic comedy that we tend to enjoy. While not a movie that we'll add to our video library, I think it was better than the overly harsh reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.

Broadcast TV has been weak lately, given prime time college basketball and a slew of reruns on the other networks. We also had a blockbuster gift card that was about to expire, so we decided to check out some flicks.

Our first selection was "Finding Neverland" with Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. Jeanie and I both absolutely loved it. We both believe that Johnny Depp is truly great actor, and he once again rose to the occasion. The rest of the acting was wonderful as well - especially the children's performances.

Our next selection was "Alfie", with Jude Law and Marisa Tomei. Rotten Tomatoes gives it a rating of "rotten" which pretty much aligns with our impression. It wasn't so bad that we stopped it mid-way, but given a mulligan, I'd skip it.

Our next selection was "The Incredibles." We had been trying for over a week to rent it, but it was always sold out. Jeanie and I enjoyed it, but were not blown away. We definitely weren't as impressed as most reviewers have been. It was creative, and had a sophisticated level of humor, we were just expecting something more akin to "Shrek" or "Shark's Tale."

On Sunday, we decided to go out to a movie. I selected "Hitch," seeking a nice light romantic comedy. We couldn't have asked for a better fit. Will Smith and Kevin James were both wonderful, as was the rest of the cast, the plot, and the score. The movie was very sweet, and there were a quite a few laugh out loud scenes. A perfect date flick.

The final movie of the set was "Being Julia." Jeanie indicated that she enjoyed it. Jeanie listed to it with the headphones, and I found the first few minutes the last few minutes to be tolerable, and the intervening nap to be wonderful.

We enjoyed them both.

Taxi was a mostly silly hour and a half diversion that had a few fairly funny scenes and some good transparent special effects.

Collateral was quite gripping and suspenseful, with some clever twists and more characterization than you might expect from a movie of this genre.

We spent most of Saturday and Sunday just lazing about the house.

We did take a nice walk through Park West with the doggies on Saturday. It was a beautiful day, and we really enjoyed the large naturalized plantings of daffodils that are at peak bloom. Every time I see a large planting of daffodils, I am reminded of the spring scene in Dr. Zhivago - which is one of Jeanie's all time favorites - and that makes me happy.

I also got started mending a number of drywall cracks that have re-surfaced. I believe that most, if not all, of them existed before we had the house painted last summer. I think the painters just did a shoddy job of repairing them. Rather than just slap a little more spackle into the cracks, I used a utility knife to cut a "v" out of the wall around the crack, then filled the void with Durham's Rock Hard Water Putty - one of my all-time favorites.

In the evening, we watched the movie "Cellular," which was an entertaining suspense / family in peril / unlikely hero formula movie. We also watched "Shark Tale," but I fell asleep in the middle (due to tiredness, not boredom) and ended up finishing it on Sunday. The animation and music in Shark Tale were fantastic, and its underlying theme of tolerance and acceptance is one which we all would do well to embrace.

On Sunday, I applied a finish coat of spackle to each of the repairs first thing in the morning, and then sanded them in the late afternoon.

We spent the middle of the day mostly reading and napping.

Sunday night, we watched "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow," which we both enjoyed. The movie was cool in its Flash Gordon retro style. I think I enjoyed the DVD bonus materials even more than the movie. I still can't quite get my head around just how much of the movie is CG effects, but the bonus materials definitely helped to illustrate just how little of the final product was "real." It is amazing to ponder how hard it must have been for the actors to create believable characters and situations when they had almost nothing real around them - just a giant blue screen stage. I also found the story of the Conran brothers to be extremely compelling. It is amazing to see the dedication some people have to achieve their dream, and I found myself somewhat envious of the passion that each member of the cast and crew had about their project.

While it is billed as a romantic comedy, and though it is both funny and romantic, it is not your typical romantic comedy - the movie actually has some deeper themes, and a darker undercurrent. It makes for both an enjoyable and thought provoking experience. I would NOT suggest this as a "date movie," or a movie to rent if you just want to snuggle and feel mushy after an hour and a half.

One scene now ranks as one of my personal funniest of all times. I laughed so hard and so long that I made myself wheeze.

If you like Carly Simon's music, the movie is worth watching just for the score.

As usual, I am avoiding providing a general review and will leave that to the experts. I was somewhat surprised at the overall low rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and I think some of the reviews provide too much information (spoilers), but if you want other opinions, I still think RT is a good place to get a fairly unbiased, broad perspective on a flick.

As usual, rather than trying to recap the movie, here's a link to Rotten Tomatoes. I must say that in this case, I really do agree with the Tomatoes and disagree with the green splats. All to often, I think people are looking for every movie to be an earth shaking, soul wrenching, life changing event. I, on the other hand, look to be entertained for my two hours and $4-$10. Give me a happy ending, and that's icing on the cake.

We did find it interesting that the movie was based (at least in part) on a real life man - Frank Hopkins - maybe. I also came across this site which contends that Frank Hopkins is a myth/hoax.

Regardless of what you believe regarding the reality of the existence of Frank Hopkins and his horse, we found Hidalgo to be a very enjoyable movie.

Jeanie had also been interested in Connie and Carla (I can't remember which name goes first, and I'm on an airplane at the moment), which definitely wasn't one I would have picked...

Lucky for me that I have Jeanie to pick movies to rent - it was marvelous!

It was written by, and starred, the same person who wrote / starred in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." I never did get around to seeing that, but given how much I enjoyed this movie, I'll have to add that to my future rental list.