Cast: Adam Sandler (Charlie Fineman), Don Cheadle (Alan Johnson), Jada Pinkett Smith (Janeane Johnson), Liv Tyler (Angela Oakhurst)
For complete list, see IMDb's Reign Over Me page.
I knew this movie about a man who lost his family in the September 11 attack would be a rough one to watch, but (fortunately) they didn't concentrate on 9/11 very much. In spite of the movie making me cry at the end, I think I cried more when watching the extra features, which discussed 9/11 more.
The cast of Reign Over Me is amazing. The story isn't quite as well done as I expected, but it's definitely a movie well worth renting.
Grade: B
Labels: 2007, Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, drama, Jada Pinkett Smith, Liv Tyler, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: George Clooney (Danny Ocean), Brad Pitt (Rusty Ryan), Matt Damon (Linus Caldwell/Lenny Pepperidge), Elliott Gould (Reuben Tishkoff)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Ocean's Thirteen page.
This is the movie they should have delivered last time. I definitely think that Ocean's Thirteen is worth seeing in a theatre, though the special effects weren't anything near those in Ocean's Eleven. The story in the third movie is much better than the second. Don't let Ocean's Twelve keep you from enjoying Ocean's Thirteen.
Definitely a fun summer action movie.
Grade: B
Labels: 2007, Al Pacino, Brad Pitt, comedy, crime, Don Cheadle, drama, George Clooney, Matt Damon, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 1:35 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Karina Arroyave (Elizabeth), Dato Bakhtadze (Lucien), totally amazing cast
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Crash page.
Wow... I was blown away by this movie. I've never seen a movie that confronts so many different types of stereotypes. Paul Haggis, who wrote and directed Crash did an amazing job at getting his point across. I can't imagine anyone leaving the theatre after seeing Crash and not thinking seriously about the issues addressed.
The tagline of Crash is pretty perfect: "You think you know who you are. You have no idea."
The characters are all tied together in ways that become apparent as the story unfolds and Crash is constructed very well. Many things in the movie caught me off guard and I think that it's great to bring these issues to the front of our consciousness.
This is definitely not a happy movie or one with a bright outlook. No movie that centers this much on prejudice could possibly be a happy movie. But movies aren't all about making you happy. Crash did exactly what it was intended to do - it brought out the horrible consequences of prejudice in our society and made everyone think.
I've really gone most of my life not seeing color or thinking in that way, which baffled Wayne (as some of you will remember). Crash made me (and I'm sure most people) very uncomfortable, which was the idea. I highly recommend this movie and hope that it can help people examine the problems with prejudice in our society.
Grade: A
Labels: 2005, Best Picture, crime, Don Cheadle, drama, movie, Sandra Bullock, Terrence Howard
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:20 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Don Cheadle (Paul Rusesabagina)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Hotel Rwanda page.
Wow... This movie struck me to the core. I thought I understood quite a bit about the wars and struggles in Africa, but I definitely had rose-colored glasses on where it was concerned. Hotel Rwanda was so realistic that I often found myself trying to hide from the screen and I cried at many points.
Terry George did an amazing job directing this talented cast. Knowing that many of the actors in the movie lived through this actual experience, it blows me away that they were able to act in Hotel Rwanda after going through such horrible things in real life. I can't imagine living through something like that once, let alone re-creating it. What they did is really impressive. I'm sure they knew that this story had to be told and were willing to put themselves through the horror in order to spread the word. I can't imagine how difficult that must have been.
Hotel Rwanda is definitely the kind of movie you want to see when you are doing something totally fun and uplifting that night (in my case, playing with my fiance's nieces). I would not recommend seeing Hotel Rwanda at night, since leaving the theatre to a dark night might prolong the depression caused by the movie, but it is definitely a movie that needs to be seen to be believed. I'm glad I saw this before the award shows and hope that everyone in the film is rewarded for their amazing performances.
Grade: A
Labels: 2004, Don Cheadle, drama, history, movie, thriller, war
Reviewed by Kat at the 1:55 PM show | 0 screams