The Exorcism of Emily Rose

The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)

Attorney Erin Bruner (Laura Linney) always manages to keep her emotions in check when she's in the middle of a case, but she finds herself unraveling when she decides to represent a priest (Tom Wilkinson) who's conducted an exorcism gone horribly awry. The highly charged case, in which Erin battles an overconfident state lawyer (Aaron Douglas) who thinks he has a slam dunk, leaves her questioning her life choices, career prospects and beliefs

My Two Cents: I admit that turned it off because when it wasn't freaking me out it was boring me to death.

NetFlix Rank: Didn't Like It
IMDB Rank: 5/10

Shaolin Soccer

Shaolin Soccer (2001)

A soccer player down on his luck (he was unfairly injured by his nemesis during a match) puts together an unlikely group of players headed by kung fu phenomenon Stephen Chow. They plan to use Shaolin kung fu to achieve victory and win $1 million at a local soccer tournament. It's Karate Kid with faster feet as these underdogs battle entire teams of corrupt players!

My Two Cents: Its sparse moments of humor pique your interest just enough to sit through the long periods of surrounding blandness.

NetFlix Rank: Didn't Like It
IMDB Rank: 6/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Porter's Two Cents: Not as good as Kung Fu Hustle but it's still interesting and unique

NetFlix Rank: Liked It

Domino

Domino (2005)

Tony Scott pilots an intriguing action thriller based on the life of Domino Harvey (Keira Knightley), the offspring of actor Laurence Harvey and model Pauline Stone. Blessed with her mother's beautiful face, Domino eschews a career in the fashion industry for a life as a bounty hunter. The film's all-star supporting cast includes Mena Suvari, Lucy Liu, Christopher Walken, Macy Gray, Dabney Coleman and Brian Austin Green.

My Two Cents: True Romance w/o the romance, but w/ a spastic glitz that accentuates its over-the-top heroine.

NetFlix Rank: Really Liked It
IMDB Rank: 8/10

The White Dragon

The White Dragon (2004)

Gorgeous student Phoenix (Cecilia Cheung) sets her sights on Prince Tian Yang (Andy On) in Wilson Ip's action-packed romantic comedy. The prince can't resist Phoenix's charms and asks her out, but she proves to be fickle. After assuming the identity of masked super-warrior White Dragon, Phoenix battles a sword-swinging blind assassin (Francis Ng), and the two fall in love. But the heartbroken prince devises a sinister plan to break them apart.

My Two Cents: Not as stylish as House of Flying Daggers; Not as funny as Kung Fu Hustle; Cecilia Chueng is a poor woman's Ziyi Zhang.

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 7/10

Hustle & Flow

Hustle & Flow (2005)

Terrence Dashon Howard turns in a true star performance in director Craig Brewer's indie drama. DJay (Howard) is a pimp with aspirations of grandeur -- he wants to make it as a rapper -- but he soon discovers that fame isn't all it's cracked up to be. Offering strong characters and notes of sweet romance amid the urban beats of its central plot, this 2005 Sundance Audience Award-winner was produced by John Singleton.

My Two Cents: Gritty and gripping, yet stylish and sleazy; more "real" than 8 Mile, but still suffers from MTV-itis in spots.

NetFlix Rank: Really Liked It
IMDB Rank: 8/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Robert's Two Cents: This one completely blindsided me. Real, Stylish, Powerful, and on Purpose. Howard's performance is Off the Charts...

NetFlix Rank: Loved It

Matt's Two Cents: Starts a tad slow but finishes strong. Terrence Howard needs more leading roles.

NetFlix Rank: Really Liked It

Waiting

Waiting... (2005)

Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris, Justin Long and Luis Guzmán are just a few of the random employees at a Bennigan's-like restaurant (called Shenanigan's), killing time before their real lives get started. But while they wait, they'll have to deal with picky customers who want their steak cooked to order and enthusiastic managers who want to build the perfect wait staff. Luckily, these employees have effective revenge tactics.

My Two Cents: Not quite the Office Space of the service industry, but funny enough; My brother says it accurately depicts a restaurant.

NetFlix rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 6/10

Elizabethtown

Elizabethtown (2005)

Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom) is fired after causing his shoe company to lose hundreds of millions of dollars. To make matters worse, he's also dumped by his girlfriend (Jessica Biel). On the verge of ending it all, Drew gets a new lease on life when he returns to his family's small Kentucky hometown after his father dies. Along the way, he meets a flight attendant (Kirsten Dunst) with whom he falls in love. Cameron Crowe directs.

My Two Cents: Classic Crowe quest for self-discovery, set against a funny-sad backdrop that explores love, loss and life.

NetFlix Rank: Loved It
IMDB Rank: 9/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Porter's Two Cents: I loved this flick. Funny in all the right places and bleak in the others. Dunst was fantastically annoying. Great music

NetFlix Rank: Loved It

Matt's Two Cents: Well done in the mold of Garden State without going overboard with it. When depressed watch a Cameron Crowe movie

NetFlix Rank: Loved It

Red Eye

Red Eye (2005)

Terrified of flying, Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams) reluctantly hops a red-eye flight bound for Miami and buckles up for a bumpy ride. But her phobia morphs into terror when she learns that a fellow passenger (Cillian Murphy) has plans to murder the deputy secretary of Homeland Security -- and wants to use Lisa as part of the plot. Master of horror Wes Craven directs this psychological thriller set at 30,000 feet.

My Two Cents: Neither bad nor good, but definitely more enjoyable than an actual flight from Dallas to Miami.

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 6/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Robert's Two Cents: Bad Actors create bad characters that disrespect the audience in this contrived and insulting piece of trash.

NetFlix rank: Hated It

Matt's Two Cents: Rachel McAdams is nice, but not nice enough to save this one.

NetFlix Rank: Didn't Like It

Before the Dinosaurs: Walking With Monsters

Before the Dinosaurs: Walking with Monsters (2006)

Thanks to seamless computer animation and countless hours of research, this
fascinating program takes you back to a time when gargantuan fish, enormous
reptiles and ridiculously long sea scorpions ruled the earth -- and dinosaurs
were just a glimmer in Mother Nature's eye. Presenting a menagerie of
unbelievable beasts, this incredible journey spanning 500 million years charts
the evolution of some of the planet's most extraordinary creatures.

My Two Cents: There's something about watching prehistoric fish, giant bugs and lizards eat each other that fascinates and disgusts me

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: n/a

Rory O'Shea Was Here

Rory O'Shea Was Here (2004)

Although he has muscular dystrophy, Rory O'Shea (James McAvoy) refuses to surrender to the desperation of his life and instead embraces the potential in every day. When he moves into the Carrigmore Home for the Disabled and befriends the deeply bored Michael (Steven Robertson), a young man with cerebral palsy, Rory infuses his pal's life with renewed hope even as he struggles with his own demons.

My Two Cents: Powerful, funny and sad; Makes you feel guilty for taking life for granted, but not in a preachy way.

NetFlix Rank: Really Liked It
IMDB Rank: 9/10

The Upside of Anger

The Upside of Anger (2005)

Joan Allen plays Terry Wolfmeyer, a woman who's dumped by her husband (he lives the cliché and runs off with his secretary) and is left to raise her four daughters (Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt, Keri Russell and Evan Rachel Wood) alone. There could be a silver lining behind it all, however, when Terry hooks up with Denny Davies (Kevin Costner), a retired baseball player. Mike Binder directs this poignant drama.

My Two Cents: A bizarre ending caps off this skittish, dysfunctional, atypical chick flick, where incoherency somehow makes sense.

Alternate My Two Cents: Would work much better in terms of story and character development as a mini-series or HBO drama, rather than a choppy two-hour film.

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 7/10

My IMDB Voting History

I'm going to link this on the side column now that the IMDB has allowed users to make their lists public. Before bashing me for rating a movie higher or lower than expected keep in mind that these ratings sometimes capture only my initial reaction of a film's quality. But then again my initial reaction does often stick. So yes, I really do think Scarface is one of the worst movies ever made.

The Constant Gardener

The Constant Gardener (2005)

Based on John le Carré's best-seller, this tale of political intrigue centers on Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes), a member of the British High Commission based in Nairobi. When his wife (Rachel Weisz) is murdered, Justin refuses to leave the matter to his superiors and begins his own investigation. Not even the rumors of his wife's affairs will stop him from uncovering the truth -- a conspiracy much larger and more dangerous than he'd imagined.

My Two Cents: All propaganda aside, a well-done, well-acted story that says as much about love as it does corruption.

NetFlix Rank: Really Liked It
IMDB Rank: 8/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Robert's Two Cents: It deserves a great deal of credit, if only for its "artistry", unique structure, and some pretty wicked cinematography.

NetFlix Rank: Liked It

Lord of War

Lord of War (2005)

Lately, Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) has had some misgivings about his day job. As the world's leading arms dealer, he's embraced the glamorous profession so soundly that it's hard to let it go. The thing is, if he wants to dodge the cunning Interpol agent (Ethan Hawke) on his trail, he'll have to let go. Writer-director Andrew Niccol helms this taut action-thriller co-starring Jared Leto, Bridget Moynahan and Donald Sutherland.

My Two Cents: Downward sprial biopic ala Blow/Goodfellas, but proves truth is a little more compelling than historical fiction

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 7/10

BONUS BLOGGING

Porter's Two Cents: Cage's usual overacting works well. Well done but kind of preachy at end. Rest of cast did well and nice direction.

IMDB Rank: Really Liked It

Robert's Two Cents: Preposterously Asinine.

NetFlix Rank: Hated It

American Pie Presents: Band Camp

American Pie Presents: Band Camp (2005)

The guardians of good taste behind the American Pie franchise dish up a new recipe for ribald humor with this bawdy tale of teen shenanigans. As punishment for his offenses, Stifler's younger brother, Matt (Tad Hilgenbrinck), is sentenced to a summer at band camp. A chip off the family block, the junior horndog tumbles through a series of outrageous escapades involving hidden cameras, riotous pranks and, of course, plenty of female flesh.

My Two Cents: Hilgenbrinck plays Stifler almost as well as Seann William Scott, or at least the Stifler parody his career has become

NetFlix Rank: Liked It
IMDB Rank: 6/10

I, Robot

I, Robot (2004)

Inspired by Isaac Asimov's work, this techno-thriller stars Will Smith as Del Spooner, a mid-21st century Chicago cop investigating the murder of a scientist. Wary of technology, Spooner's not the perfect man for the job, but he takes it on anyway, aided by expert Dr. Susan Calvin (Bridget Moynahan). When Spooner discovers that an android (Alan Tudyk) may be the culprit, he realizes the entire human race could be at the mercy of machines.

My Two Cents: Works better as a popcorn flick than it does as a shallow, metaphorical masquerade of a cautionary tale.

NetFlix Rank: Didn't Like It
IMDB Rank: 6/10

Nathional Lampoon's Barely Legal

National Lampoon's Barely Legal (2005)

Thanks to a part-time job at a local video store, it's relatively easy for Fred (Tony Denman) to steal adult films for his friends Deacon (Erik von Detten) and Matt (Daniel Farber), who make money by selling copies to their horny high school clients. But when Fred gets fired and the porn supply runs dry, their only alternative is to make their own -- much to the ire of the local porn king (Horatio Sanz of "Saturday Night Live").

My Two Cents: I'm not really sure why I watched it. Amy Smart, perhaps? Not a saving grace. Not at all.

NetFlix Rank: Didn't Like It
IMDB Rank: 3/10