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: Cameron Diaz (Amanda), Kate Winslet (Iris), Jude Law (Graham), Jack Black (Miles)
For complete info, see IMDb's The Holiday page.
Jack black in a movie that has so many serious moments? Who would have guessed? In spite of that choice (great for the comic moments, sometimes not believable in the serious parts), I really enjoyed The Holiday. I thought it was a very entertaining and sweet story.
This story about women who are running away from their personal and professional lives and who find love where they least expect it is well worth watching. I definitely recommend renting The Holiday if you missed it in theatres.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2006, Cameron Diaz, comedy, drama, Edward Burns, Jack Black, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, movie, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Naomi Watts (Ann Darrow), Jack Black (Carl Denham), Adrien Brody (Jack Driscoll)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's King Kong page.
Seemed like the longest movie I've ever seen. I'm SOOO glad we didn't see this in a movie theater. If we had, I would have fallen asleep and wanted my money back for the time I wasted.
The first two hours were wasted with a ridiculous (and sometimes almost non-existant) plot and many scenes that were long and drawn out.
How in the world would they get King Kong into the theatre without anyone knowing so that he could break out and run through NYC? Granted, I didn't see the original, so perhaps this is direct from the original script, but either way it goes way beyond a little suspension of disbelief.
Grade: D
Labels: 2005, action, adventure, drama, Jack Black, movie, mystery, Naomi Watts
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jack Black (Dewey Finn), Adam Pascal (Theo), Sarah Silverman (Patty Di Marco), Mike White (Ned Schneebly)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's School of Rock page.
This was a fun movie. If you like Jack Black, then you really should check this out. It's funny and has some really good music. School of Rock is a cute movie about a guy who pretends to be a substitute teacher at a prep school when he's in urgent need of cash and ends up teaching the kids a lot about life in the process. Very entertaining and definitely worth the time to rent it.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2003, Adam Pascal, comedy, Jack Black, movie, musical
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:45 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Goran Visnjic, Jack Black
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Ice Age page.
The previews for Ice Age had me really excited about its release. Perhaps I'm spoiled by Pixar movies now, but I found that almost all the funny scenes were things I remembered from the previews. If I hadn't seen the previews, I think that those scenes would have been hilarious, but the rest of the movie would still be lacking.
My guess is that this will be very popular with those in the target group for the typical PG movie, but I was hoping it would have more for adults, as many animated movies do and the previews suggested.
Oh well, live and learn. Pixar movies in movie theaters - all others, wait for a while before assuming it's a good idea...
Grade: C
Labels: 2002, adventure, animated, comedy, family, Jack Black, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:50 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Colin Hanks (Shaun Brumder), Jack Black (Lance Brumder), Schuyler Fisk (Ashley)
I probably wouldn't have seen this in a theater if I hadn't gotten to see a free preview. I think free previews are great, since you get to see movies before they're released to the public, but doing that can definitely back fire. Since I tend to enjoy Jack Black movies, I was really looking forward to Orange County. Besides, I live in Orange County now, so I thought that'd be cool, too!
The opening credits already had me wishing I hadn't bothered. They almost made me sick. Too many weird camera angles and sweeping movements. I don't know if that will be changed in the official movie release, but even if it does, I'd still suggest waiting till Orange County makes it to HBO, which shouldn't be long.
In spite of a very good cast, this movie really didn't have much interesting. The story about a high school student who accidentally gets turned down for Stanford because of a guidance counselor's error is a hilarious concept. I don't know about you, but the guidance counselors we had in high school were pathetic. I'm not sure where they went wrong, but Orange County just didn't appeal to me at all.
There are definitely some funny parts, but on the whole I'd say that I can't imagine anyone not having something better to do with their time than watch this.
Grade: C
Labels: 2002, comedy, drama, Jack Black, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams