Chimpanzee

4.5/5

I remember seeing Earth with my family while it was still in theaters. As gorgeous as it was, I felt it was just too huge to cram into a movie. The stories it tried to tell were cut short, forgotten, made forgettable and small. I wanted to see gorgeous captures of amazing creatures tell one story, one idea, show us one piece of the huge puzzle that made up this epic nature film. Disney Nature is finally moving the right way, with African Cats and now Chimpanzee. Tim Allen gets a little bit annoying with his personalization of the chimps, but eventually it becomes charming to associate character types with the chimp members. The shots of the forest are so mesmerizing and beautiful, I swear to god they put James Cameron to shame. Of course Oscar is lovable, just look at that poster. The story is generic perhaps, but the fact that it was captured on camera is astounding. It's really beautiful. Get over Tim Allen, and you'll watch a really powerful story unfold. It just goes to show that even the simplest story can be made beautiful with just a touch of organic love to it. And what gets more organic than nature itself?

The Cabin in the Woods

5/5

A new all time favorite. This was brilliance. Every funny, scary, suspenseful, sexy, anything moment was perfectly placed, thought out, written. There was not a moment out of place. I love the twists on character cliche's that kept our interest despite seeing them a billion times. I love the sense of safety we as an audience felt predicting every move as much as we could. I loved the originality of this organization. There's no way I can talk about this movie without ruining it for the audience. All I can say is that if there is a perfection to be found in a concept that seems too large to comprehend, this is it. Put this at the top of your list, not just the best movie of the year, but one of my new favorite movies of all time.

Lockout

3/5

Ya know, this was pretty awesome. It's definitely nothing to pay for, those of you with your optimum rewards card, and its not something I'd pick over other action movies out right now. But a lazy night in and this is what you get from netflix? It's enjoyable. The characters aren't grating on your patience. They're actually pretty fun to deal with. It's got some pretty bad-ass fight sequences, as well as actually some nice music to go along with it. That being said, my girlfriend and I loved it while our friend snoozed in the seat next to us. It was loud, campy, fun, and actually not THAT goofy. There wasn't anything too wrong with it to fault it, despite a lot of cliche's and a lot of silly moments that really added to the charm. Check it out, but hit up the rest of the movies or wait for it to hit Netflix.

The Raid: Redemption

5/5

Don't get me wrong. My favorite movies are still my favorites. But this might be the best thing I've ever seen. Perfectly paced action in a not ridiculous story. The uncanny realization that the movie is totally going to go where it's going. Gruesome violence that also keeps you tense rather than bored. This was BRUTAL. Roger Ebert had no idea what he was talking about giving this a one out of four. He said there's no story, there's ABSOLUTELY a story. He says there's no characters, there's ABSOLUTELY characters. People, I can't say too much. But this is wonderful. Go see it now. RIGHT NOW.

Mirror Mirror

0.5/5

I was seriously contemplating giving this a 0. But then I figured that I'll give any movie I dislike more than this that 0. New standard set, people. This was garbage. Complete crap. Julia Roberts needs to stop. This was one of the worst performances from her I've seen. This story was pointless and forgettable. Yes, Snow White was forgettable. Disney would be squirming in his grave. Remember the personalities of the seven dwarves? You sure won't from this movie. Remember the pretty colors and beautiful imagery? Again, not after this. The costuming is colorful, sure, but it's forced and annoying. This was a complete waste of time keeping my eyes open. Seriously, we almost walked out.