One post, 16 reviews. Am I insane?!?

Hey-yo! Back with another post, getting to my roots about reviewing my DVDs (and now BRDs!!!). I've also watched a couple movies from HBO (now that the SO and I have the channel) and also rented a few movies from the library (which is amazing because of all the classics they have). So let's see if I can get through all of these without damaging my reputation, my computer, or my hands...

Almost Famous - Bill Simmons from ESPN said this is the movie of this decade. We'll have to wait until this decade is actually over to decide this fact, but it was an enjoyable movie about a young guy wanting to be a music journalist and his journey with an up-and-coming band. Rented from the library, loved the music, almost bought the BRD of the extended edition (just to know what happens in the extended parts).

Bananas - There's never a moment when Woody Allen let's the comedy stop, so it's hard to catch your breath from all the laughing. No words can describe the plot as it just comes from left field... or Howard Cossell's toupee. A good renter from the library, now if they only had Sleeper...

Coraline (BR) - Really cool story, and the 3D capabilities were nifty, if only because it's the only movie I have that can do this. Too bad we still have to wear the glasses that only a 10-year-old can wear...

Definitely, Maybe - Romantic comedy with Ryan Reynolds, a pretty good story that kept my attention, and the SO really loved Reynolds as a father. It even has a tearjerker moment near the end of the film. Thank you HBO, because I never had plans to rent or buy, and now I don't have to!

Diner - Pretty sure this could represent my fraternity boys and me. I would definitely have to be Daniel Stern's "Shrevie", and where did Mickey Rourke's face go? Did he leave it in Baltimore?

Enemy of the State (BR) - Even though I can't understand how Will Smith is a scientologist, this is a great movie and really started my whole belief system about the gov't and how it... ***(libel material "edited" by the U.S. Government)*** ... I mean, really scary.

Harry Potter and the...

*Sorcerer's Stone (BR) - Good start to the series, the actors look like babies, and it's so cheerful compared to the latest installments.

*Chamber of Secrets (BR) - Kinda forgettable, mostly because the series get much darker and better with Prisoner of Azkaban.

*Order of the Phoenix (BR) - Jumping around in the series, but this movie finally shows what Voldemort can do, and the sad ending reminds us that anyone related to Harry Potter is doomed!

*Half-Blood Prince (IMAX) - Wish the whole movie could be made in IMAX-3D (the last two movies should be), but the glasses were a little tight on the face, so luckily it was only 3D for 15 minutes...15 pointless minutes in 3D! Slughorn was not what the book described, and it was the first time I've seen an IMAX film stop in mid-showing (about 10 minutes left in the film... I know, it totally killed the mood). Can't imagine how big of a mark that'll leave on the digital print...

Harvey - By the end, I truly believed there really was a 6-foot, 3-and-a-half inch rabbit. Can't imagine anyone but Jimmy Stewart in that role... you hear that, Spielberg?!?

The Incredible Hulk - Another movie I never wanted to give money to, thankfully HBO had it on. Pretty fun movie, but nothing intellectually stimulating. Never saw the 2003 abomination (get it?) of a film, so I have to assume this was better.

Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House - Never thought I'd see this one, but luckily the library had it. Always enjoy a Cary Grant film, and this one didn't disappoint, as it appears this movie was a prediction about how the SO and I would act if/when we'd build our home. And the DVD came with a Hanna Barbera cartoon!

Step Brothers - Rented from the library, watched the first 48 minutes, returned it. Not much to be said about a terrible movie with one joke repeated over and over and over and... you get the point. Left a bad taste in my mouth, almost as bad as dog poop...

Wayne's World - It's Wayne's World! Party Time! Excellent! If I could only take one film with me to heaven, this would definitely be a finalist, a top-three in my all-time fave films. I'm not worthy!

So, you're probably thinking, "That was only 15." Well, the one movie I didn't review was The Dark Knight in BR. You already know what I think of this film from an earlier post, and I didn't feel it needed... it was amazing, awesome, rad, groovy, the greatest thing ever since sliced bread... with a cherry on top! The only problem was going back and forth between IMAX and non-IMAX shots. It became a little distracting by the end. But it was still cool!

And there you have it. 1 post, 16 reviews. And I still have my brain intact. If you'll excuse me, I have to qah[g0rq 8h3[gqh er[buenb[erbn[eiqbn[atib...

Whoa! What was that? Maybe my brain is...

THERE IS NO SPOODAWG, ONLY ZUUL!!!

Wait, where did that come from? I gotta get outta here! Later!

Once you get the itch, you better get some lotion for it...

After the Transformers debacle, I started thinking about what other DVDs I could get rid of.

You remember, I watched Transformers a couple weeks ago. Realized it's a piece of garbage. Want to sell both copies.

Well, I decided that there might be more DVDs to get rid of, especially as the SO and I move into our new apartment this week. And it seems there might be more than one DVD that could be leaving the collection.

Of course there's my two copies of Transformers:

Getting rid of these because I no longer can stand to watch that movie, let alone believe I used MY money to buy these.

There's also:

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

Not a film I ever bought. Think it might be one that Suzy got from an ex. Too bad it's Full Screen! And if I'm going to own a Terminator movie, it'll be either the original or T2. Simple as that.

The Dark Knight: Target Special Edition

This is another one of those cases where I wanted another version but ended up with a different version. Well, I bought this special edition DVD first, but I really wanted the special edition from Circuit City... which I ended up getting a week or two after this initial purchase. And because I want this on BR, the SO will kill me if I have three copies of this film.

Duck Soup

There's nothing wrong with this film. I consider it the greatest comedy of all time, and everyone who's anyone that thinks about doing comedy either for fun or for a living will give this film all the respect it deserves. Everyone has copied the gags and one-liners from this film and put it in another production. So I love this film. It's just that I bought The Marx Brothers Silver Screen Collection, and that means that this film is a part of that set. So I have no need for two copies. See the trend?

Donald Duck in Mathmagic Land

The SO loves this feature, as it shows Donald learning the importance of math in everything that we do on a daily basis. It really is a cute film, but it also is a part of Walt Disney Treasures: The Chronological Donald Volume 4, 1951-1961. I sound like a broken record with this post, but it's not my fault. I already had the Treasures DVD and the SO wanted to get this DVD because it was an exclusive DVD for members of the Disney Movie Club.

A double feature: National Security and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton

These are the SO's, and again, I think they're from an ex. So I don't believe she'll miss these one bit. And I'll be glad to rid them from the collection. What's so great about them is they are stored together in the DVD case for Devil's Advocate.

Yeah, I cared so little for these movies that I put both of them in a case for which I don't actually own the movie.

And finally...

The original Star Wars trilogy

Now hear me out on this. I haven't truly decided if I'm going to do this or not. But here's what I'm thinking...

So I bought the original trilogy when it first came out as a set with a bonus material DVD.

Then they came out with the movies as individual DVDs that had both the original theatrical version and the special edition (i.e. Lucas' slaughtering of his own original vision for the films) in one case.

The original set I bought only had the special editions of the films. In theory, then, I would not have the need for the special edition only DVDs.

But there are two drawbacks to this. One, the artwork on the covers are different among the two sets of trilogies. And two, I never planned on opening the set with both versions of the film. It just seemed symbolic to keep those sealed until the moment in time when I would show these films to any future progeny of mine. I still have the original VHS copies, so whenever I wanted to avoid any special edition changes, I could pop those in.

Therefore, I'm still hesitant to sell those (as you can see in the first pic I left them separate from the "definitely selling" pile) but if I was desperate for money (or if the SO finally did snap and want to kill me) I would be willing to part with them and keep the other set plus the bonus material DVD. I am definitely, 100% not selling that away.

So there you have it. DVDs that I'm willing to sell or get rid of. A crazy new era has dawned, and I'm just trying to stay afloat. Later!

"Have you gone berserk? Can't you see that man is a ni?"

Sometimes you have a movie that you choose because you're in the mood for a particular genre, or sometimes it's because you haven't seen a particular film in a long time.  Or sometimes you watch a movie because the recent passing of an actor makes you want to watch any and every movie with him or her in it, no matter how small the part.  And that's how I came up with watching Blazing Saddles.

Although Dom DeLuise has passed away over a month ago, it still seems like he should be here, making even the tiniest part in a movie the stand-out performance.  And that's pretty hard to do in a film like this.  From the start, I could tell the SO was not into it.  Maybe it had to do with the use of the word "ni" in it.  Or maybe because it's just flat out funny!  Yes, there's a lot of use of the "ni" word, but somehow it reminds us of how stupid our ancestors were in the degrading term of an African-American, especially when he's the hero of the movie.

Anywho...

Simple plot, Hedy Lamarr (that's HEDLEY!)...

Sorry...Hedley Lamarr, the State Attorney General, needs land to continue building the railroad system in the old American West.  Of course, that land is located where Rock Ridge, a quaint little town of Johnsons (no joke, everyone there is a Johnson).  Hedley sends a gang of thugs to terrorize the town, killing the sheriff.  Well, Hedley suggests to the Governor that Bart, previously an enslaved railroad worker, should be the sheriff (knowing that the entire town would be opposed to the color of his skin).  Of course the town is up in arms over this, but soon they warm up to him when he saves the town from Hedley's thugs and Webster's dad (yes, that's Alex Karras who plays Mongo).  Bart also helps out Jim aka "The Waco Kid", an over-the-hill alcoholic who is still a sharpshooter but can't control his drinking or his shooting hand.  Together they try to control the chaos in the town.

But... Hedley plans one last attempt to get rid of the inhabitants of Rock Ridge by employing "rustlers, cutthroats, murderers, bounty hunters, desperadoes, mugs, pugs, thugs, nitwits, half-wits, dimwits, vipers, snipers, con men, Indian agents, Mexican bandits, muggers, buggers, bushwhackers, hornswagglers, horse thieves, bull dykes, train robbers, bank robbers, ass kickers, shit kickers and Methodists" into an ambush of the town.  With the help of the town of Rock Ridge and Bart's railroad buddies, they build an exact replica to fool Hedley's evil gang... and that's when all hell breaks loose, as the joke is released on all of us like a bunch of farting cowboys.

We are transported to a closed set in Hollywood, where Dom DeLuise is trying to get a bunch of flaming men (it's twue, it's twue) to do a dance number, when Hedley's gang and the people of Rock Ridge bust through the set!  WTF?!?  So the joke is this is a 1974 movie that takes place in 1874 with the characters' mindset from 1974... I know, it's crazy, but then again, it's Mel Brooks!  Of course Bart saves the day, defeating Hedey (that's Hedley!) and driving off into the sunset (in a limo...).

I love, Love, LOVE this movie.  Probably Mel Brooks' finest creation on film.  So many inside jokes, so much physical comedy, it has everything you want to make you laugh for a couple hours.  Clearly, it went over the SO's head (by a mile).  A movie that has Dom DeLuise, Gene Wilder, AND Harvey Korman cannot fail, and with so many quotable quotes, it's one of those movies that will always be funny.  So in the end, of course it's a keeper.  And thank you, Dom, for always being "on" even in the short time you were on screen and on Earth.  Later!

"I'm going out to get some popcorn and pink lemonade. I've just seen a three-ring circus"

So this weekend I couldn't get a break from the action of March Madness to get the SO to choose a DVD to watch.  But I did the next best thing:  movies on the DVR.  And this weekend I went with something that is tried and true.  I went with a comedy...starring Cary Grant...need I say more?  That right there tells me it's a winner, and of course I went with the first movie in which Grant shows off his comedic abilities with The Awful Truth.

If you haven't seen this film, it's pretty simple.  Husband comes homes after not being in Florida, wife comes home with singing teacher.  Husband gets jealous, they get a divorce and hilarity ensues.  Wife, Lucy Warriner (Irene Dunne), moves in with her aunt and becomes engaged to an Oklahoman visiting his mother in the big city (I believe New York, but don't quote me on that).  Husband, Jerry Warriner (Grant), still waiting for the divorce to be finalized, finds ways to mess up this new engagement.  The spin? Lucy and Jerry still love each other but don't know each other loves the other!  (Wow, there's some bad grammar for you... thank you, public high school out in the corn fields!)

For some reason, there's just something about Grant.  His good lucks, his voice, his charm, his comedic timing.  You're not really thinking someone like him is going to have the comedic presence, but he pulls it off, each and every time I watch one of his films.  And with this being the first of his films with his slapstick comedic style, I was blown away by how good he was even at the beginning.  And you know what this means?

Yep, I have to buy it now.  Somehow this Monday Review post has turned into a Future Purchases post.  And if I remember correctly, Borders had it as 30% off last week, which means that's not the case now.  So I missed the boat on that one.  But at worst case it's $15 bucks.  I can handle that, but I think I'll wait until I get another sweet coupon in an e-mail.

Don't know what the SO thought of it as she didn't watch it.  Not sure she would have appreciated it, especially since it's a classic and she doesn't do well with that kind of movie.  It's okay, she can watch it with me when we get the DVD!  Oh, how I can feel the flames from her angry eyes right now...

Later!

"I'm perfectly capable of fixing my own breakfast. As a matter of fact, I had a peanut butter sandwich and two whiskey sours."

This weekend just didn't go as planned, in terms of movie viewing.  First, I wanted to watch Hoosiers, because the NCAA March Madness has begun, and I thought it'd be a cool way to tie in my two passions: movies and basketball.  Didn't even get close to removing it from the shelf.  Why?  Two reasons:  too much good live basketball going on this weekend, and the SO was sick.  What is she sick of?  Who knows.  Hopefully not basketball, because it's a long month of mid-afternoon score checking and late evening upsets.  Could it be that, dare I say it, she's sick of Indiana?  Already knew that, and I would have thought it would have happened sooner.

Nope, it's just a typical lung-congesting, nose-plugging, stay as far away from the SO as possible cold.  At least I hope so, or all this Vitamin C I've been taking will have gone to waste.  I did get the chance to get up early Sunday and check out one of the movies I had on the DVR.  I thought I should lighten the load (to free up for more recording of my crap... and the SO's as well).  So I went with the logical choice.  A movie about staying committed to the one you love, no matter how sick they might get: The Seven Year Itch.

To break it down, it's a classic Billy Wilder comedy.  Something lighthearted, somewhat dated, and yet universally true in its underlying themes.  Richard Sherman (and what appears to be most of NYC) has dumped his wife and child at the train station for the annual summer trip.  The men stay behind (I guess that's something you would do back in 1955) and commit all the debauchery they can endure, including drinking, smoking, and fooling around (if you know what I mean... I mean, they would get flirtatious with the opposite sex while the wifey is gone... exactly, up to no good).  Well, Richard swears he's not like the other men and plans to work all the time his wife and kid are gone.  He's not home two seconds before a blonde bombshell walks into his apartment building.  Marilyn Monroe.  Yes, that Marilyn Monroe.  She's apartment-sitting upstairs, above Richard.  And Richard goes into Mr. Hyde mode, thinking of a way to get her into his apartment, but then he regrets and forgets the silly idea.  But The Girl (the name of Monroe's character) almost kills Richard, but he's quick to forgive because he's infatuated with her.  Throughout the movie, he's going back and forth between doing what's right and what's wrong, always paranoid about if his wife is cheating on him while she's in Maine.  To say the least, Richard wises up, with the advice from The Girl, and heads to Maine to be with his wife.

As dumb as she may be portrayed in the movie, Monroe is one smart actor.  Not quite sure what it is, but she plays a very smart dumb character.  I've only seen her in one other movie (Some Like It Hot, another Billy Wilder film)  but it feels like Hollywood wanted to make her the dumb blonde, well before it was cool (I'm talking to you, Paris Hilton).  But would she still be the legendary icon she is if she were still alive?  Who knows, but I'm guessing because she's forever that young, beautiful blonde, America (and probably a good chunk of the world) will go ga-ga over Monroe.

I truly enjoyed the movie and was surprised at how short it ran.  It seemed like the movie could have continued on, like the film reel had accidentally stopped (the SO probably was dying, but for someone who's artsy-fartsy, she has a hard time watching classic movies... okay, classic movies that I want to watch).  Maybe because it never seemed like the movie had a climactic ending, in the sense of what movies have today.  Not to say it's a bad thing, but I wasn't ready for the end.

So there may be potential for that in the collection, but I think I would need to see it again to confirm this.  Too bad I deleted it from the DVR, but I'll try to catch it again.  Could be Monroe on the screen, or it could be that Richard gets more paranoid than me about things.  I should tell the SO at least I'm not that bad.

Maybe in the middle of the week, I'll get a chance to sit down and watch a DVD.  But with the SO under the weather, I'll continue to be the good guy and tend to her needs.  Aww, I know.  I'm a sweetie, but maybe it's so I can go to Best Buy next week!  I know, I'm bad.  Later!