Leatherheads

Leatherheads (2008)

It's 1925 and pro football is a floundering sideshow of a profession. Dodge Connelly (George Clooney) tries to change that by recruiting Princeton standout Carter Rutherford (John Krasinski) to the league, but Rutherford's All-American aura becomes threatened by muckraking journalist Lexie Littleton (Renee Zellweger).

My Two Cents: Clooney apparently overhauled the original script (penned by smarmy ESPN columnist Rick Reilly) so I cringe at imagining how much worse this movie could have been.

Drew's Rating: 4/10

Further Thoughts:

While I don't want to insult the greatness of the Coen brothers by comparing this garbage to their work, this movie took me back to two of my favorite Coen comedies, The Hudsucker Proxy and O Brother, Where Art Thou. Zellweger's cutthroat female reporter reminded me of Jennifer Jason Leigh's Amy Archer, who so callously sought to tear down the bumbling-but-inspired Norville Barnes in the former, and Clooney's conniving misfit basically followed the character blueprint he created for Everett, the semi-modern day Odysseus, in the latter.

Leatherheads is vastly inferior to both of those films.

The Crucible

The Crucible (1996)

A 17th century New England town is caught up in hysteria and corruption amid accusations of witchcraft. Arthur Miller adapted his own play for this feature film, which starts Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Scofield and Winona Ryder.

My Two Cents: Superb acting and a gripping story fuel a solid adaptation of the literary classic.

Drew's rating: 7/10

Sydney White

Sydney White (2007)

Show White gets a 21st Century spin when college freshman Sydney White (Amanda Bynes) makes friends with the campus misfits after her Kappa Phi pledge bid is sabotaged by the school's most notorious "srostitute."

My Two Cents: It's too wholesome to hate.

Drew's Rating: 4/10

Further Thoughts:

Whoever cast this gets an A+. And that makes me wonder: would it be worth what I imagine is pretty good money to make a career out of being typecast as a loser?

On, and why did I watch this? (1) I tend to like goofy high school/college comedies. (2) Sometimes I feel like I should watch movies that I assume are going to be terrible just so I can get my money's worth from my HBO subscription.

Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

Sweeny Todd (Johnny Depp) re-joins society after a lengthy prison sentence, only to find his wife dead and his daughter in the custody of the evil aristocratic Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman), who sent him away for a crime he didn't commit. With the help of haggardly co-tenant Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), Todd turns his barbershop into a venue to enact vigilante justice upon the wicked. Tim Burton directs this adaptation of the popular Steven Sondheim musical.

My Two Cents: How many times can I describe a Burton film as "typical Burton fare"? As many times as Burton and Depp can collaborate on projects like this, I suppose. I must admit: the singing made me uncomfortable

Alternate My Two Cents: Lost at least half a point (if not a full one) because Sondheim's goofy songs nixed the need for Burton's favorite composer, Danny Elfman. A Burton film without Elfman's mesmerizing melodies? Blasphemy!

Drew's Rating: 6/10

Further Thoughts:

Depp and Burton have only collaborated five times. Does that seem surprisingly low to anyone else? And if they ever made a movie about Jack the Ripper, wouldn't Helena Bonham Carter have to play a starring role as one of his victims?

Cloverfield

Cloverfield (2008)

A "going away" party turns deadly for a a group of twenty-something New Yorkers, when a seemingly indestructible behemoth lays waste to all of midtown Manhattan. One camcorder-equipped party goer documents the group's struggle to survive in this fairly inventive movie that stars no one you'll recognize.

My Two Cents: I couldn't get past the gimmick - as his friends face death at every turn in a city being laid to rubble, this numbnuts continues to use his camcorder - and this movie requires the gimmick.

Drew's Rating: 6/10

Further Thoughts:

Maybe it wasn't the gimmick so much as it was the character fueling the gimmick. These types of movies always seem to involve a goofy supporting role that fulfills two agendas: (1) annoying the piss out of you, and (2) dying a satisfying death. I won't address the latter, for those of you that wish to endure the refreshingly short running time spoiler-free, but the former holds true. This character, Hud, just sucked out the enjoyment for me every time he opened his mouth.

FYI

(1) NetFlix stopped doing the "$0.02 Reviews" feature well more than a year ago. But I liked it more than I like the "Leave Note" feature they have now, so I'm keeping the status quo here.

(2) I've decided to start writing my own plot synopses. Why didn't I do that from the start? For the same reason that I went more than 18 months without posting a review - I'm incredibly lazy.

(3) Since there's no reason to distinguish between my "IMDB rating" and my "NetFlix rating," I will now offer only one rating. Please remember that this rating reflects mu initial thoughts after seeing a film, and is likely to change in time (or even the following afternoon).

2008: A Year in Review

What better way to renew this blog?

Two points I'd like to make:

(1) The chick flicks are my girlfriend's fault.

(2) I used to go to the movies a lot more than I do now.

With that said, here are my categorical rankings of the movies I've seen*

Best of the Best

The Dark Knight

Bale was good, Ledger was better. Gyllenhaal was terrible, but better than Holmes (and I'm guessing it wasn't the worst perfromance of the year from that family).

Potential Oscar Buzz?

Changeling

It's Eastwood; it's glum; it's got everyone's favorite celebrity couple actress.

Just Sit Back and Enjoy

Iron Man
In Bruges
Quantum of Solace
Charlie Bartlett

A superhero, two Irish hitmen, James Bond, and Max Fischer-meets-Ferris Bueller. Movies don't always have to be "films," right?

Not as Pretentious as You Might Think

Smart People

The characters, however, define pretense.

Sequels That Mar Their Predecessors' Legacy

Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Starship Troopers: Marauders

Harold and Kumar was at least funny. Indy should have opted to kick it on a beach somewhere with a Holy Grail full of pina coladas. And I'm slightly embarrassed to admit I NetFlixed the last one.

Nothing in Common Except They Were Terrible

21
Cassandra's Dream

Granted, the latter had no chance. Woody Allen movies are predisposed to be "ho hum," and what are the odds that Colin Farrell appears in two good movies in the same year?

Because I Love my Girlfriend

Definitely, Maybe
Baby Mama
What Happens in Vegas
Sex and the City

Yeah, come take my man card, tough guy.

DEVELOPING...

*I'm using wide release dates as the qualification for "2008 Movies"

I'm Back...

Blood Diamond? Really?

I've seen a few movies since then.