Cast: Angelina Jolie (Evelyn Salt), Liev Schreiber (Ted Winter), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Peabody)
For complete info, see IMDb's Salt page.
If you like action movies, Salt is a good choice. It was interesting and had some great special effects. There were some good plot twists and the story was entertaining. Is it plausible? Not really, but it's a movie. Since movies are designed to help us escape from every day life for a bit, I see no reason to expect them to play by the rules of what could/should really be able to happen. Salt was enjoyable to watch. I recommend seeing it on the big screen, since the special effects are well done.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2010, action, Angelina Jolie, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Liev Schreiber, movie, New York, Spy, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 6:35 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jack Black (Po), Dustin Hoffman (Shifu), Angelina Jolie (Tigress)
For complete info, see IMDb's Kung Fu Panda page.
To be fair to Kung Fu Panda, I have to say that I don't like live action Kung Fu movies (at all) and point out that perhaps that's a requirement for enjoying Kung Fu Panda to the fullest. I had heard such great things about the movie that I was pretty bummed I couldn't see it on the big screen. I did, however, see it on Blu-ray Disc on my pretty big TV, so it wasn't much of a downgrade. Though I'm glad I rented it, I'm not at all sad that I missed seeing it on the big screen. In fact, if I'd paid to see it in a theatre, I might have felt ripped off.
Perhaps the problem I have with most animated movies is that I compare them all to Pixar movies. I realize this isn't fair to the other movies, but Pixar has set the standard and this year's WALL-E was totally amazing. All other animated movies pale in comparison, but with all the positive comments I heard about Kung Fu Panda I expected it to be closer to the quality of Pixar's movies than it turned out to be.
That being said, I even enjoyed Disney's Mulan a lot more than I did Kung Fu Panda and I think Disney movies are a much more fair comparison. If you like animated movies and enjoy Kung Fu movies, I'd definitely recommend renting this one. If not, you might want to consider putting it pretty low on your rental list.
Grade: C+
Labels: action, adventure, Angelina Jolie, animated, comedy, Dustin Hoffman, family, Jack Black
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:45 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: James McAvoy (Wesley Gibson), Morgan Freeman (Sloan), Angelina Jolie (Fox)
For complete info, see IMDb's Wanted page.
I was bummed that I didn't get around to seeing Wanted in a theatre, but the special effects weren't quite as impressive as I'd expected from the previews. The cast is great and it's a good story. The idea of a guy who works in an office and is sick of his life finding out that he's the son of an assassin and has the same skill with special killing abilities really interested me and I think they did a good job with the story.
Grade: B
Labels: 2008, action, Angelina Jolie, crime, drama, James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Christine Collins), John Malkovich (Rev. Gustav Briegleb), Gattlin Griffith (Walter Collins), Jeffrey Donovan (Capt. J. J. Jones)
For complete info on this amazing cast, see IMDb's Changeling page.
Other than the fact that Changeling is based on a true story and that Christine Collins' son got kidnapped and the wrong boy was returned, I didn't know anything about the true story portrayed in this movie. Though I've seen many movies involving the corruption of the LAPD around the time the events of Changeling took place, I was still blown away by the things the police were able to get away with doing. The fact that Changeling is based on a true story really blows me away.
Renting Changeling would have definitely been fine and was my original plan. A friend really wanted to see it before it left the theatre, so we checked it out on the big screen instead. I definitely highly recommend renting Changeling or seeing it in a theatre. In spite of all the blockbuster movies that have opened up recently, Changeling is still in theatres.
Angelina Jolie really shows her range in this movie, which she doesn't always get to show in her action movies. A Mighty Heart and Girl, Interrupted also display Jolie's talents very well, but Girl, Interrupted was almost 10 years ago and although I thought it was a good movie, A Mighty Heart didn't do very well.
I definitely recommend adding Changeling to your rental queue if you don't see it in a theatre.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, Angelina Jolie, crime, drama, John Malkovich, movie, mystery, true story
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Mariane Pearl), Dan Futterman (Daniel Pearl), Archie Panjabi (Asra Q. Nomani)
For complete information on this great cast, see IMDb’s A Mighty Heart page.
This is a very well done movie based on the true story of Mariane Pearl and her husband Danny, a Wall Street Journal reporter. Danny’s life and death is a very compelling story and they did a very good job with it in this movie. There were times when Angelina Jolie didn’t even look like herself. It was a complete transformation. I can’t imagine anyone seeing this movie and not being touched by the horrific story. The fact that it actually happened is so sad and really blows my mind. It’s amazing what goes on in the world during times of war (which seems to be almost all of human existence).
I highly recommend renting this movie if you missed it in theatres, though it’s definitely a movie you can only watch when you’re prepared for a very sad story.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2007, Angelina Jolie, biography, Dan Futterman, drama, history, movie, thriller, war
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast:Matt Damon (Edward Wilson), Angelina Jolie (Clover/Margaret Russell), Alec Baldwin (Sam Murach), Tammy Blanchard (Laura), Billy Crudup (Arch Cummings), Robert De Niro (General Bill Sullivan, Director, Producer)
For complete information, see IMDb's The Good Shepherd site.
When you see people like Angelina Jolie take supporting roles in a movie, it's normally a good sign. The fact that Robert De Niro is producing, directing, and acting in a movie never hurts, either. The cast of The Good Shepherd is amazing. This story of how the CIA was formed is very well told. It's intriguing and kept me interested throughout the movie. Had it not been for the people who left (some to never come back), I wouldn't have noticed the length of this film.
I definitely recommend seeing The Good Shepherd in a movie theatre, even though it's definitely not a special effects laden movie.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2006, Alec Baldwin, Angelina Jolie, Billy Crudup, drama, Matt Damon, Robert DeNiro, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 3:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Gia Marie Carangi), Elizabeth Mitchell (Linda), Eric Michael Cole (T. J.)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Gia page.
Gia was an HBO movie, but I never saw it when it was on (I didn't even have HBO then). DVD's make catching almost anything very easy now.
Definitely a very slow movie, but there were a lot of interesting things that happened to Gia in her life as a drug addicted model. I wouldn't recommend it for those who want an upbeat or fast-paced movie, but it's pretty interesting if you can handle the fact that it's about an hour and 20 minutes of story stretched into 2 hours.
Grade: C+
Labels: 1998, Angelina Jolie, drama, history, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Brad Pitt (John Smith), Angelina Jolie (Jane Smith)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Mr. & Mrs. Smith page.
We only went to see this one in theatres because of the special effects and were surprised to find it much more entertaining than we expected. Like many people, we were a bit sick of the Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie relationship being in every magazine and figured it was just a ploy by their agents to sell a movie that wasn't any good. But, the special effects looked worth checking out.
Glad we did, since the movie was a lot funnier and more entertaining as an action movie than we expected. Definitely worth the rental if nothing else.
Grade: B
Labels: 2005, action, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, comedy, movie, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:00 PM show | 1 screams
Cast: Colin Farrell (Alexander), Angelina Jolie (Olympias), Anthony Hopkins (Old Ptolemy), Connor Paolo (Young Alexander)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Alexander page.
Since the story interests me, the cast was very well done (in spite of the fact that Angelina Jolie is only a couple years older than Colin Farrell), Oliver Stone was directing, and everything else seemed to be perfectly aligned, I had high hopes for Alexander. Apparently, that wasn't wise.
Seeing this movie on Thanksgiving before going over to dinner was not the best idea, either. Before we even touched food, we were already tired. Alexander is a LONG movie (even for those in the almost 3 hour range, it dragged).
They seemed to spend too much time on things that meant little to the story and not enough on some of the key interesting parts of the story. I definitely wished we'd waited till it was on DVD. Perhaps we could have fast-forwarded through the boring parts. And if not, we could have at least been multi-tasking.
Oliver Stone really disappointed me. He had amazing actors and could have done so much with a movie about Alexander. Instead, it seemed like a wasted 3 hours.
Grade: C-
Labels: 2004, action, adventure, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell, drama, movie, war
Reviewed by Kat at the 1:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Illeana), Ethan Hawke (Costa), Kiefer Sutherland (Hart), Gena Rowlands (Mrs. Asher)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Taking Lives page.
Somehow, I thought this would be a thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat (and perhaps had me hiding behind my eyes at times). It wasn't really that kind of movie. In spite of the great cast, Taking Lives only manages to achieve creepy, not amazing thriller or great suspense movie...
I didn't read the book, so perhaps this would seem more interesting if you had read it. Then again, it might just be even more disappointing in that case.
Not a bad idea to rent it, but don't have high expectations to be scared to turn out the lights or anything.
Grade: C+
Labels: 2004, Angelina Jolie, crime, drama, Kiefer Sutherland, movie, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:50 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Lara Croft), Gerard Butler (Terry Sheridan), Noah Taylor (Bryce), Ciaran Hinds (Jonathan Reiss), Chris Barrie (Hillary)
For complete info, see IMDb's Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life page.
I liked the idea that this time Lara Croft was on a quest to save Pandora's box. That treasure seemed like one that would lead to a really great. I really enjoyed this sequel. Like all movie fans, sequels make me a bit wary, since some of them have been so horrible. But, then there are the amazing ones (like Terminator 2). I think I actually enjoyed this Lara Croft movie a bit more than the first. Perhaps because they didn't need as much exposition in setting up her character.
I'd definitely recommend Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Cradle of Life to anyone who enjoyed the first movie, likes the game, or likes action movies with super-hero type stars.
Grade: B
Labels: 2003, action, adventure, Angelina Jolie, fantasy, Gerard Butler, movie, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 5:10 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Antonio Banderas (Luis Antonio Vargas), Angelina Jolie (Julia Russell/Bonnie Castle), Thomas Jane (Walter Downs/Billy/Mephisto), Jack Thompson (Alan Jordan)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Original Sin page.
This movie of mistaken identity, deceit, and scandal was one of the biggest surprises I've ever seen. My sister, aunt, and I went to see this in the theatre, since we wanted to see a movie and there was almost nothing else out. I don't think any of us really expected to enjoy Original Sin. We were in luck! Original Sin is a wonderful movie. Not only does the plot twist and turn often enough to keep you interested during the whole movie, but it contains one of the best done love scenes we've ever seen in a movie.
I wouldn't be surprised if you skipped this in theatres, since it wasn't marketted very well. It's definitely worth catching on DVD, though, so rent it and enjoy!
Grade: B+
Labels: 2001, Angelina Jolie, Antonio Banderas, drama, movie, romance, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:50 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Angelina Jolie (Lara Croft), Jon Voight (Lord Richard Croft), Iain Glen (Manfred Powell), Noah Taylor (Bryce), Daniel Craig (Alex West)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider page.
I'm not that big into video games or Playstation. But, my favorite video game of all time (on computer, I didn't have access to a Playstation at the time) has been Tomb Raider. I love the game! So, naturally, I was happy about the movie coming out. And unlike many others, I thought Angelina Jolie was a great person to play Lara Croft.
I didn't expect too much of the movie and perhaps that's why I was pleasantly surprised. I loved how much of the game they showed in the movie - that the training room (the lobby of her huge mansion) was actually used in the film. I think if you haven't played Tomb Raider many of the scenes would seem like a waste, but I was very happy with what they did with the movie. If they have a sequel, I'd go see it in theatres and that's saying a lot, since sequels tend not to be as good as the original.
Grade: B
Labels: 2001, action, adventure, Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig, fantasy, Jon Voight, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:50 PM show | 0 screams