Glee the 3D Concert Movie

Movie: Glee the 3D Concert Movie
Genre: musical
Synopsis: This movie shows us the cast of Glee in concert – as their characters from the TV show.  It also shows a lot of behind the scenes clips and has a lot of interviews with Glee fans about how the show has affected their lives.

My two cents: I almost skipped this movie.  I have not heard anything good about it; but I am a big Glee fan, so I gave it a shot.  I think it was a mistake to make it 3D . . . the 3D effects were definitely not worth the extra money and inconvenience.  Some of the production numbers were really good, some not so good. I was a little puzzled as to why it was the actors stayed in character for the concert . . . why couldn’t they let Kevin McHale walk around on stage rather than making him stick to his wheelchair as Artie (except for one number).  I did find it pretty interesting to see how Glee has helped so many people in their everyday lives.  Especially interesting was a “little person” who was on her high school cheerleading squad and was homecoming queen.  She explained how Glee helped her to see that she was not the only one who is different.  It was really pretty inspiring.

Bottom line: the music by itself was not enough to make me give this a thumbs up – but when you include the real-life stories of how Glee has affected kids’ lives, my thumb has to point skyward.

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Fright Night 3D

Movie: Fright Night 3D
Genre: horror
Synopsis: A remake of the 1985 classic of the same name. Charlie (Anton Yelchin) is a former nerd.  His ex-best friend played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse (McLovin’ from Superbad) futilely tries to convince Charlie that his new neighbor, Jerry (Colin Farrell), is a vampire.  When Charlie is finally convinced he enlists the help of PeterVincent – a vampire expert who headlines a Las Vegas show – to battle Jerry.

My two cents: I think I liked the original better, but this was still a damn fine vampire movie.  I was pleasantly surprised at how good Colin Farrell as a vampire. From soft-spoken guy next door to a lethal monster faster than you can blink your eyes.  If you like vampire movies, you won’t regret seeing this.  I did like the ending in this one better than the original.

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Captain America: The First Avenger

Movie: Captain America: The First Avenger
Genre: super hero
Synopsis: Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is the original 98-pound weakling.  He keeps trying to enlist in the army during World War II, but keeps getting a 4F. He finally gets in with the help of Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci).  In return, Steve volunteers to ne a guinea pig for Dr, Erskine.  The experiment not only adds about 6 inches in height and 100 pound in weight, but it also gives Steve incredible strength and speed.  Steve does battle with the evil Nazi scientist, Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving) who is tapping into mystical powers in an effort to conquer the world. Steve, as Captain America, goes on to become the first member of The Avengers.

My two cents: A bit of a disappointment. When it is compared to some of the other movies that have been setting up  The Avengers – like Iron Man and Thor, it felt more like a TV movie

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Genre: fantasy
Synopsis: The final showdown between Harry and the good guys and Lord Valdemort and the bad guys.

My two cents: I was actually a little disappointed.  I was happy that they really did wrap things up and their was a clear winner and a clear loser  . . . it just did not live up to my expectations.  I would say it was a good movie, but not a great one.

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Rise of Planet of the Apes

Movie: Rise of Planet of the Apes

Genre: sci-fi thriller

Synopsis: This is the story of how and why the apes gained the intelligence to take over control of the earth from the humans – a prequel to the original Planet of the Apes.  Starring James Franco as the scientist who developed the mis-guided scientist to experiments on the ape (Caesar, played by Andy Serkis) who is the catalyst for the ape revolution.

My two cents: A pretty good movie.  The thought of facing an angry ape is bad enough – but to face an angry and intelligent ape . . . The special effects are quite good.  The scenes of large number of rampaging apes had me squirming in my seat. I loved the way they showed the development of Caesar from an innocent fun-loving ape to an angry ape who felt he had been betrayed.  Definitely a movie worth seeing.

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Cowboys & Aliens

Movie: Cowboys & Aliens

Genre: sci-fi-western

Synopsis: Set in the Arizona town of Absolution in the 1870’s.  Jake (Daniel Craig) awakens in the middle of the desert with a strange wound, a strange looking metal wrist band and no memory of anything. Woodrow (Harrison Ford) is the local cattle baron who runs the town.  The two make an uneasy alliance to battle aliens who have arrived in a spaceship and are abducting humans.  Joining them to get revenge for the loss of her family is Ella (Olivia Wilde).

My two cents: This was certainly a new entry in the science fiction/western genres.  Although there are a lot of holes in the plot, I found the movie to be pretty enjoyable.  Harrison Ford is really perfecting the portrayal of a grizzled old man.

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Crazy, Stupid, Love

Movie: Crazy, Stupid, Love

Genre: romantic comedy

Synopsis: Cal (Steve Carell) is married to Emily (Julianne Moore).  When Emily unexpectedly tells him she wants a divorce, Cal does not know what to do.  Jacob (Ryan Gosling) is extraordinarily good a picking up women.  He decides to take Cal under his wing, give him a wardrobe makeover, and teach him how to pick up women.  Ultimately, Cal realizes what he really wants is to win back Emily.  There are several side story-lines, including a romantic triangle: Cal’s son has a crush on his babysitter, who has a crush on Cal.  The movie also has Kevin Bacon as a co-worker of Emily  who slept with her, Emma Stone, and Marisa Tomei. 

My two cents: I think that when it comes to romantic comedies Steve Carell is in a class by himself.  He can be a hopeless doofus of a nerd, but you still respect him and pull for him to win back his true love. Ryan Gosling is like a chameleon.  From “Lars and the Real Girl” where he was just a sweet but lost soul to “Blue Valentine” where he was a borderline psychopath with anger management issues to this role as a pickup-artist. 

This was the best romantic comedy I have seen in a while.  Definitely worth seeing.

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