Movies Seen in 2009

[od0_ital]

Goin' by my LJ entries, here's what I've seen in theaters since '09 started.

Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*

I used a coupon to get into Frost/Nixon, which came with a copy of Lost in Translation on DVD.

I saw Watchmen twice, once for free and later with friends.

Austin was one of a couple of dozen cities that got Fanboys as a theatrical release, even if it was only playin' at one theater in the city.

I saw Star Trek four times in theaters, the first only four seats away from Leonard Nimoy. Two of the screenings were free, and the fourth time was in IMAX.

I saw Monsters vs Aliens twice, once for free & again with friends.

I walked out of Drag Me to Hell, but I think it should still count.

And each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.

[Temis the Vorta]

Netflix always makes this easy...for ease of scanning, I've boldfaced my recommendations.

In the theater: STAR TREK!!! Woo-eeeee!

Via DVD:

Zak & Miri Make a Porno - Worth watching but a tad predicable.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - Okay, but I found the ending too melodramatic.

Defiance - Errrr - definitely over the top and melodramatic.

The Eagle Has Landed - Great classic action flick but there's no way I buy Michael Caine as a German WWII soldier.

Bolt - Fun, but fairly formulaic.

Valkyrie - Better than you'd expect; Tom Cruise is more convincing than the aforementioned Michael Caine and I bet people weren't bitching their heads off about Caine with his quarter-assed attempted to disguise his Cockney accent when that movie came out, were they?

42nd Street - Sometimes old movies are surprisingly good, but this one, not so much. Busby Berkeley routines were still great tho.

The Sand Pebbles - A neglected classic and surprisingly modern feeling.

The Thin Man - Boring, couldn't finish it (go ahead and call me a troglydyte nyah).

Frost/Nixon - THIS one should have won the Oscar!

Baby Face - Terrific movie, holds up after many decades.

A Chorus Line - Someone should remake this someday; Attenborough really didn't get it.

The Wrestler - Good. Just what I expected.

Stagecoach - The kind of movie that shows you exacly why it has become a classic.

The Twilight Samurai - See it. It's not what you expect.

Doubt - Definitely see it. Not sure I liked the ending, tho...

Frozen River - Gripping, worth seeing. And didn't fall into the predicted patterns.

Role Models - Okay if you're in the mood for a big dumb comedy.

Of Human Bondage - Interesting to see Bette Davis's big debut. The film desperately needs to be restored.

Bram Stoker's Dracula - Saw it just to see how bad Keanu Reeves really was. Yeah, bad. It was a hoot, tho.

Smokin' Aces - Just wanted to check our our new James T. Kirk. Don't bother otherwise. Wotta mess.

Miracle at St. Anna - For frak's sake, Spike, TURN DOWN THE FRAKKIN' MUSIC!

The Kingdom - The usual action pablum.

Kiss Me Deadly - Fairly entertaining noir flick.

Milk - If Frost/Nixon didn't win, this should have.

Changeling - Hard to sit through; too disturbing.

To Catch a Thief - Sorry, Hitch, I fell asleep.

The Bank Dick - Shockingly, I've now learned that W.C. Fields really isn't funny in the least. People must have been desperate for entertainment to sit thru such boring crap. Guess it beat peeling turnips.

Cowboy Bebop: The Movie - Wow, anime isn't for me. Couldn't get thru 20 minutes.

Madagascar 2: Escape 2 Africa - Errr, well. The part with the penguins and the plane crash was funny, I guess.

Bottle Shock - Nice cast, James Tiberius as a surfer dude was fun, but way to predictable for me to give a frak about.

Fame - Holds up very well after all this time.

Burn After Reading - Just plain fun!

Kung Fu Panda - Labored. Was this really up for an Oscar?

Tropic Thunder - One of the funniest movies I have EVER seen!

Ok time to bite at some recommendations: first up-

1. Pathology [B] I highly recommend this. Despite some bad acting, it's a really cool story.

I'll be back with my revieeeeewwww....

[Vasquez Rocks]

Star Trek - A- (Fun film)

Role Models - B+ (I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this. I really didn't think I'd like it, but it was really good. Especially loved the ending.)

X-Men Origins: Wolverine - B (This film felt off. Some really good scenes mixed with some mediocre ones. Hugh Jackman was awesome again in the role and I really liked Liev Schreiber.)

Norbit - B- (I'm kind of embarrassed to admit that I liked this movie. I heard so much bad stuff about it, but I found myself laughing. It was so goofy and silly, but it worked for me. I liked that Rasputia was totally unlikeable.)

The Fisher King - C+ (Not bad. Kind of weird at times and somewhat predictable, but entertaining.)

Lonesome Jim - B+ (Pretty good little indie flick. Similar in tone to Garden State and Elisabethtown. I've really been into these types of movies lately.)

The Miracle Match - C- (Forgettable sports movie. The actors did the best they could, but it was just too bland and boring. Surprisingly it came from the director and writer of Hoosiers and Rudy which I loved.)

Pineapple Express - B+ (Good comedy. Cool to see Franco and Rogen together again after Freaks and Geeks.)

Enemy Mine - B (I had fun revisiting this 80s sci fi movie after all these years. The alien make up was actually really good. I think they must have spent most of the budget on that cause everything else looked cheesy. The monster under the sand looked like it was from The Muppet Show. Still, the story was good. My favorite part was the stuff with the kid alien and Dennis Quaid.)

Be Kind Rewind - F (I rarely ever turn off movies, but I only made it through 40 minutes of this. I just couldn't take it anymore.)

Primer - C+ (This was probably one of the most confusing time travel films I've ever seen. The middle was really interesting, but by the end they had lost me. I'll probably watch it again to see if it makes more sense the second time around.)

Waitress - B (Nice little film. Rented it because Nathan Fillion was in it.)

Speed Racer - B (I really thought I was going to hate this, but it was actually pretty good.)

Cellular - C+ (Ridiculous plot, but somewhat entertaining.)

Sunshine - A (My favorite science fiction film of this decade.)

Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins - C (Totally predictable comedy. Not much laughs. I like the cast though.)

Drillbit Taylor - C- (Best part was the cameo by Adam Baldwin. The rest stunk.)

The Mummy (1932) - A- (First time seeing this and it was really good. Karloff's mummy makeup looked really cool. I had no idea what to expect, but the story was pretty interesting. Love these old Universal horror films.)


The Incredible Hulk - C (I'm probably in the minority, but I liked the Ang Lee movie much more than this. The battle between Hulk and Abomination at the end was pretty lame and I was close to turning it off a few times. I liked Ed Norton as Bruce Banner, but that was about it. Sam Elliot and Jennifer Connelly were way better than William Hurt and Liv Tyler.)

Raiders of the Lost Ark A+ (Classic film that I never get tired of.)

Vanilla Sky - B+ (What a weird film, but by the end it all made sense and I really liked it.)

Halloween remake - D (It took me two years but I finally broke down and watched this movie. It wasn't as horrendous as I thought it would be, but wow, what a mess. Right off the bat, the dialog was so over the top and ridiculous. I knew going in that they were going to make the Myers family white trash (which I hated), but this was way worst than I could have imagined. It was so laughably bad the way they spoke to each other. If it was toned down just a little it would have helped. The scenes in the sanitarium were my favorite parts and the kid playing Myers was really good. I would have loved to have seen the whole movie just focus on him. As soon as they switched to the adult Myers is where it all went down hill for me. The actress who played Laurie Strode was so bland and unmemorable. I was hoping Myers would kill her off which is the exact opposite feeling I had with the original. Danielle Harris would have done a much better job. They should have had them switch parts.)

The Wrestler - A (Great film.)

Slumdog Millionaire - A+ (Loved it.)

Mad Max - A
The Road Warrior - B+
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome - B+ (First time seeing all three of these and really enjoyed them. The first one is my favorite of the bunch.)

The Big Boss - B+ (Pretty good.)

Way of the Dragon - A (My second favorite Bruce Lee flick. Enter the Dragon is my fav.)

The Chinese Connection - A- (Awesome film.)

Game of Death II - C (I had no idea they made a sequel to the first one. It came with my box set. This was very cheesy, but entertaining. Interesting to see how they onece again splice in Bruce Lee.)

[Mr. B]

The stuff I remember particularly liking is bold... I know there is more good stuff in here I but my memory is not that good.

Netflix:

Nowhere in Africa
Late Autumn
Something the Lord Made
Gonzo
Slumdog Millionaire
Blaze
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
A Scanner Darkly
King of California
The Conformist
Frost/Nixon
Repulsion
Sergeant York
Futurama: Monster Robot Maniac Fun
Baraka
Risky Business
Milk
Trekkies 2
Trekkies
The Postman Always Rings Twice
Moby Dick
The Final Countdown
The Sweet Hereafter
Grand Illusion
42 Up
Synecdoche, New York
Man on Wire
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
28 Days Later
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Who the #$&% Is Jackson Pollock?
Zatoichi: Vol. 1: The Tale of Zatoichi
Now, Voyager
Pinocchio
Sunrise
The Visitor
Hellboy
Chronos
Once
The Long Goodbye
A Simple Plan
Suspicion
A Bridge Too Far
Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder
Body of Lies
Burn After Reading
Eastern Promises
All This, and Heaven Too
The Asphalt Jungle
Face/Off
Standing in the Shadows of Motown
Appaloosa
Miss Potter
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
The Taste of Others
35 Up
Where Eagles Dare
Gentleman's Agreement
This Gun for Hire
Spanglish
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
Serpico
Fracture
The Rainmaker
Frisky Dingo: Season 1
Fail-Safe
Short Cuts
Written on the Wind
28 Up
Trouble in Paradise
The Dead Pool
Mildred Pierce


In the theater:

Star Trek
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Fast & Furious
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Yes Man
Valkyrie

[Starbreaker]

How is Synecdoche, New York? The trailer looked really good.

[od0_ital]

I will be goin' to south Austin in a few days to attend a free advanced screenin' of Away We Go, so that'll be added to the list soon.

[Starbreaker]

od0_ital wrote:

---

I will be goin' to south Austin in a few days to attend a free advanced screenin' of Away We Go, so that'll be added to the list soon.

Apparently this is one of those 'love it' or 'hate it' films. Can't wait to see what you think about it.

[Temis the Vorta]

Starbreaker wrote:

---

Apparently this is one of those 'love it' or 'hate it' films. Can't wait to see what you think about it.

Me too. That's definitely the kind of movie that requires personnel recommendation to get me interested.

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Add another to my list:

Zardoz (1974) - I enjoyed it very much and found it to be greatly underrated. Its plot and themes are actually quite straightforward despite the surface weirdness.

[Warp Coil]

In Theaters:
Star Trek
Angels & Demons

On DVD:
Hancock
Wanted
Eagle Eye
Jumper
Zach & Miri Make a Porno
Twilight
Let the Right One In
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Seven Pounds
Deja Vu
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

[Mr. B]

Starbreaker wrote:

---

How is Synecdoche, New York? The trailer looked really good.

To be honest I couldn't even tell you if I liked it or not. However, the premise was so "out there" and dare I say, unique, that it had no trouble holding my attention for two hours.

[zakkrusz]

Angels & Demons
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Gran Torino
Higurashi no Naku Koroni (When the Cicadas Cry)
Kara no Kyoukai: Mujun Rasen (Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral)
Naruto Shippuden Movie 2: Bonds
Night at the Museum
The Punisher: War Zone
The Seven Swordsmen
The Sky Crawlers
Star Trek
Sword of the Stranger
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann: Gurren-hen (Pierce the Heavens Gurren Lagann: Gurren Chapter)
Terminator: Salvation
Twilight
Watchmen
X-Men Origins: Wolverine

[Greg Cox]

In the theater:

UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS
WATCHMEN
MONSTERS VS. ALIENS
STAR TREK
TERMINATOR SALVATION

On DVD, my favorite discovery this year is SPIDER BABY, this bizarre black comedy from the 1960s. It's like the Addams Family, if the Addams Family actually killed and ate their visitors! It really has to be seen to be believed.

I'm looking forward to renting FROST/NIXON and LET THE RIGHT ONE IN as soon as I can take some time off from the book I'm working on right now.

[ialfan]

In-Theater or First Time:
Star Trek
Cloverfield
House
The Uninvited
Angels & Demons
Twilight
Phantom of the Opera
Drag Me To Hell
Harry Potter 3
Harry Potter 4
Harry Potter 5

Rewatches:
Star Trek II
Star Trek III
Star Trek IV
Star Trek VIII
The Dark Knight
Deep Impact
Blood and Chocolate
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
The Matrix
Star Wars V
Star Wars VI
Spider-man
Spider-man 2
Spider-man 3

[NileQT87]

Greg Cox wrote:

---

I'm looking forward to renting FROST/NIXON and LET THE RIGHT ONE IN as soon as I can take some time off from the book I'm working on right now.

Let The Right One In (Låt Den Rätte Komma In) was recommended quite heavily (once again, my beloved BuffyForums). It's a really interesting film and I am VERY picky about foreign cinema. It's definitely one of the more memorable new films I've seen in recent years actually. It's haunting.

Certainly a better vampire film than the God-awful, embarrassing Twilight series (it makes vampire fans embarrassed to be vampire fans).