There is a small possibility I might manage to watch another 1 or 2 DVDs before the year is out, but it's iffy. At any rate, with these 4 reviews, my movie count is set at an ominous 66. So I almost feel like I need to watch 1 more to make it 67 or something. Considering I totally forgot about Larry Crowne (Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts), perhaps I'll make it. The Help seems to be in great demand (or simply not being returned there) and is not showing up at the RedBox I have been frequenting. So The Help might have to wait till next year. At any rate...Here's my backlog of movies I have watched. I actually reviewed two of them and then my Internet ate my blog post. Didn't have the desire to rewrite it at that time, but I suppose now is as good as any time to do them!
Friends with Benefits (Mila Kunis, Justin Timberlake) - More curious than anything to watch this and compare it to No Strings Attached (Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher). I think I like Friends with Benefits just a little more. Even though the concept for both is the same (sex without the attachment/relationship with it), the concept is truly set around what the movie title is. Might be hard to understand, but FwB really is the story of the friendship between Kunis/Timberlake and how they just throw sex into it, but remain friends. They have a fun friendship to see and they obviously get along well. It's cute with the quirky things they end up doing (e.g., the flash mobs). Portman/Kutcher really is just sex and nothing more. They're old friends, but they don't have the friendship like Kunis/Timberlake have so it really is just, well, no strings attached sex. Those two differences, for me, makes the difference in which movie I enjoyed watching more. I also felt No Strings Attached was a little too "heavy" towards the end and it sort of makes sense given the way the movie is set-up. It doesn't have the same cuteness or lightness that FwB has (no clue why FwB seems longer to type than No Strings Attached and hence the acronym for one over the other). With that said, neither is particularly that great for a RomCom, but I would recommend FwB over No Strings Attached. Grade: B-
Change-Up (Ryan Reynolds, Jason Bateman) - So not a family movie, a female chick-flick, or anything that I expected it'd be. Well, I didn't expect it to be a family movie or a chick-flick, but I didn't think it'd be so heavily on the side of male interest comedy. There is just nothing really appealing in it for a female, which is kind of weird (I suppose) given who the two actors are. With that said, I said it's quite on the male side because the movie is all from a male's point of view, which isn't bad, but when it centers around two males switching and a married man with a family becoming single and a single man becoming a family man, there are just certain male-ishy things that come about (e.g., suddenly being single and the possibility of sleeping with your #1). However, I will say, Bateman's character does not become a total loser and realizes that he really does love his wife and loves his life and wouldn't give up it up. In addition, Reynolds's character does learn to grow up too. So, I guess it's got that, but you gotta wade through a lot of bare breasts and some foul language and, well, yeah. Wouldn't recommend to most people. Grade: C-
Warrior (Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte) - This was good. I think I like it better than The Fighter, but I can't say the acting was as good as The Fighter. The acting in The Fighter really was superb. Not to say that Warrior's acting is really bad, but it's just not on the same level. I'd say it's more B-level acting. With that said, both movies sort of had the same storyline of forgiveness and how a messed up family can come together in the end (all in the climax with the final fight). The MMA fighting was interesting to see; the story did pull at your heart; and the ending was interesting to see how the family made up. I do think this one is more action based with the drama story, whereas The Fighter really is more a drama with the action in the background. It was a little predictable too given what the trailer shows you and how the movie sets up, but I liked it. Grade: B
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (Robert Downey, Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace) - I do believe I enjoyed this more than the first one, which is kind of amazing; however, I might need to rewatch it first before I make that an official statement! I enjoyed how this one was more clue-hunting and game play focused than the first one. I do think this does make the movie a little more "intellectual" for an action film, but that's what I kind of enjoyed about it. I even knew to make sure I note when Holmes took interest in something and I still would forget and go "Awww..." later on in the movie. I like things like that and the replay value of this movie is just as good as the first. Plus, I'm forever going to quote, "They're dangerous at both ends and crafty in the middle." Not to mention the next sentence, "Why would I want anything with a mind of its own bobbing about between my legs?" So funny! Best scene ever that whole lot. I laughed so hard. At any rate, I recommend it. I'm not sure why it's not doing as well in the theater. It did seem, to be fair, a little long in certain parts and there was something a little more "rough" about this movie than the first. There is a little less intrigue than the first since you know instantly who Holmes is after and who is orchestrating everything, whereas the first is sort of puzzles each time and in this one Holmes is more playing a game and taking clues one after another. It's different, but I think it works in both movies. I think Rapace did a great job and it was nice seeing her in her outside of Girl with a Dragon Tattoo (the Swedish versions). Grade: A- (perhaps a B+)
Well, the year is almost to an end, which means it's almost time for my 2011 Movie Recap, what I'm looking forward to in 2012, and what I hope to see in 2012 that came out in 2011. The "to watch from 2011" list is sort of long, but I guess I'll see if it's truly bad or not when I figure it out (somewhere around 15 movies right now). :)
With that, time for bed!
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