Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio (Cobb), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Arthur), Ellen Page (Ariadne), Tom Hardy (Eames), Ken Watanabe (Saito), Dileep Rao (Yusuf), Cillian Murphy (Robert Fischer, Jr.)
For complete info, see IMDb's Inception page.
What an interesting movie! I really enjoyed Inception and I'm glad it was the first movie I saw with a D-Box motion seat synchronized with the movie. There were some scenes the seat definitely improved for me.
I did have one HUGE continuity problem with this movie, which I won't mention, since I don't want to give anything away, but I think they really dropped the ball with the ending scene. If you'd like to know more after you've seen it, contact me and I'll explain.
For the most part, I liked that Inception was a fairly complex movie that entertained and surprised me quite a bit. It's a pretty long movie (2:20), but I think most of that is necessary for setting up the story and going deep enough into the complexity of the plot. I didn't sit there wondering when the movie would end and probably wouldn't have realized how long Inception took if I didn't know it was long heading into the movie.
If you like Sci-Fi action movies, Inception is one you should definitely see in a theatre. I'd suggest going for a theatre with perfect digital clarity and D-Box motion seats or the closest IMAX theatre. I'm sure both will enhance the experience of Inception greatly.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2010, action, Cillian Murphy, Dileep Rao, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ken Watanabe, Leonardo DiCaprio, movie, mystery, sci-fi, thriller, Tom Hardy
Reviewed by Kat at the 10:00 AM show | 0 screams
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: Kare Hedebrant (Oskar) & Lina Leandersson (Eli)
For complete info, see IMDb's Let the Right One In page.
I doubt I would have known about this movie if a friend didn't tell me I should see it and even if I had found out about it, I probably would have avoided it, since it looks too violent. There were definitely scenes where I wished they were speaking English or Spanish so I could close my eyes and still understand what they were saying, but most of the movie wasn't too gory.
The story of Let the Right One In is very interesting and only overly predictable in one area (which I won't mention). The cast is good and the story of a vampire that concentrates on the issues of trying to exist in society without concentrating on the sexual aspect is refreshing.
I definitely recommend renting Let the Right One In.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, drama, fantasy, foreign, horror, movie, sci-fi, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Clive Owen (Louis Salinger), Naomi Watts (Eleanor Whitman), Armin Mueller-Stahl (Wilhelm Wexler)
For complete info, see IMDb's The International page.
From the one preview I'd seen for The International, I had high expectations. I'm glad I saw how everyone was reviewing the movie before I got around to renting it. Had I expected it to be as good as it looked in the preview, I would have been a lot more disappointed. As it was, I still thought the characters were way too stupid at times. Considering how much they figured out, there were a few basic things that always seemed to shock them.
It was also a bit sad that the best part of the preview was the best part o the movie, so it wasn't as interesting as it would have been if you were seeing it for the first time as part of the movie. On top of that, The International just ends. I suppose part of the point of the movie is that nothing they do can change the way things work, but I was still a bit surprised by the end of the movie. I just looked at the screen and said, "That's it?"
Worth renting, but I'm not sorry I missed seeing The International in a theatre. It wouldn't have been worth rushing out to see immediately.
Grade: B-
Labels: 2009, Clive Owen, crime, drama, movie, Naomi Watts, suspense, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Liam Neeson (Bryan Mills), Maggie Grace (Kim), Famke Janssen (Lenore)
For complete info, see IMDb's Taken page.
I think Liam Neeson is a wonderful actor, so I'd see him in just about anything. Fortunately, Taken is a very well done movie and well worth watching in a theatre. If you have a chance to catch this before it leaves theatres (probably soon), I highly recommend it. If not, add it to your rental list.
This movie about a retired spy working to save his daughter is very well done. The story is well executed, the cast is great, and the movie kept me interested until the end.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2009, action, crime, drama, Famke Janssen, Liam Neeson, movie, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:25 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Tom Cruise (Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg), Kenneth Branagh (Major-General Henning von Tresckow), Bill Nighy (General Friedrich Olbricht), Tom Wilkinson (General Friedrich Fromm)
For complete info, see IMDb's Valkyrie page.
World War II dramas have always interested me and Valkyrie is very well done. I'm not a huge Tom Cruise fan, but he did a very good job in this movie. The rest of the cast is also wonderful. In spite of all the information available and the many documentaries, I didn't know much about this particular plot to stop Hitler, so I found Valkyrie very informative and entertaining. I definitely recommend renting this movie if you don't catch it in a theatre.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, Bill Nighy, drama, history, Kenneth Branagh, movie, thriller, Tom Cruise, Tom Wilkinson, war
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:25 AM show | 0 screams
Cast: Francois Cluzet (Docteur Alexandre Arnaud 'Alex' Beck), Marie-Josee Croze (Margot Beck), Andre Dussollier (Jacques Laurentin), Kristin Scott Thomas (Helene Perkins)
For complete info, see IMDb's Tell No One page.
As long as you're okay with reading subtitles (or understand French), I would definitely recommend Tell No One. The story is interesting and had me guessing about many aspects of the case throughout the film. The cast is amazing and the movie held my attention until the very end. I figured out portions of the story, but never fully put everything together until it was spelled out and that's rare for me in a movie.
I recommend renting this one and dealing with the subtitles. It's worth the trouble!
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, drama, foreign, Kristin Scott Thomas, movie, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:30 AM show | 0 screams
Cast: Christian Bale (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Heath Ledger (The Joker), Aaron Eckhart (Harvey Dent/Two-Face), Michael Caine (Alfred Pennyworth), Maggie Gyllenhaal (Rachel Dawes), Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox)
For complete info, see IMDb's The Dark Knight page.
This movie is as good as everyone else is saying it is. Go see The Dark Knight (preferably in IMAX, so it takes over almost your entire field of vision) in a theatre! I thought the switch back and forth between the scenes filmed for IMAX (which take up the entire IMAX screen) and the rest of the movie. Due to the fact that the film was very well remastered for the IMAX screen, the difference is not as drastic as it would seem and most of the scenes that were filmed in IMAX are the scenic skylines, Batman flying in, etc. Fortunately, a couple fight scenes and the one big chase scene were also filmed in IMAX and those are amazing!
I've heard a lot of people talking about Heath Ledger getting the Oscar this year and I can definitely see why he would. So far, I haven't seen a performance I'd rank higher this year. I don't see as many movies in a theatre as I used to see, but I do still rent a lot of movies. One of my friends argued that he didn't think Heath Ledger should win, since he's dead. Although I don't think the fact that he's dead should increase his chances of winning, if Ledger had the best acting performance of the year, he deserves the Oscar. Can you imagine anyone wanting to win the award this year if they didn't actually do a better job than Ledger? They'd always be thought of as the one who won the Oscar, since Heath was dead. That makes no sense to me. Award the best performance whether the person is alive or not at the time of the awards ceremony.
The costumes, makeup, scenic design, orchestrations, acting, ... are all wonderful. I'm sure if you love Batman you've already seen The Dark Knight at least once, but if you've somehow missed it, go see it now. It's great!
There are also many amazingly funny lines in The Dark Knight, which I won't ruin for you. Enjoy!
Grade: A
Labels: 2008, Aaron Eckhart, action, Christian Bale, comics, crime, drama, Heath Ledger, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, movie, mystery, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Kevin Bacon (Sean Nokes), Billy Crudup (Tommy Marcano), Robert De Niro (Father Bobby), Minnie Driver (Carol Martinez), Dustin Hoffman (Danny Snyder), Ron Eldard (John Reilly), Jason Patric (Lorenzo 'Shakes' Carcaterra), Brad Pitt (Michael Sullivan)
For complete info on this amazing cast, see IMDb's Sleepers page.
When a friend mentioned Sleepers to me, I was shocked that I'd never heard of it. I only listed the major characters above (and not even all of them) and look at that cast. How could I have possibly missed all information on this movie? Yes, it was just after I got out of college, I moved twice that year and got married, but that's no excuse for missing all information on Sleepers.
If you somehow managed to miss this movie, too, I highly recommend that you rent it. Definitely not an upbeat movie, but this story about boys who pull a prank that goes way too far, leading them to experience horrors in a detention center that scar them for life and the revenge they get 10 years later is very well done. The cast is beyond amazing. The story is gripping and heart wrenching. It's also never been proven either way, so it's possible the events in the movie actually happened. That possibility makes it much more horrific.
Grade: B+
Labels: 1996, Billy Crudup, Brad Pitt, crime, drama, Dustin Hoffman, Jason Patric, Kevin Bacon, Minnie Driver, movie, Robert DeNiro, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 9:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Nicolas Cage (Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider), Eva Mendes (Roxanne Simpson)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Ghost Rider page.
Ghost Rider looked like it was going to be so good from the previews. Fortunately, a few friends of mine saw it and told me to skip it in the theatre. It was worth watching on TV and it'd be worth renting, but seeing it in the theatre wasn't necessary. I didn't stop watching it, which is more than I can say of some other movies I recorded over the years, so it was entertaining enough to watch. Nothing super exciting or surprising, but worth seeing.
Grade: C
Labels: 2007, action, comics, drama, Eva Mendes, fantasy, movie, Nicolas Cage, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 9:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Nicolas Cage (Ben Gates), Diane Kruger (Abigail Chase), Justin Bartha (Riley Poole), Jon Voight (Patrick Gates), Helen Mirren (Prof. Emily Appleton), Ed Harris (Mitch Wilkinson), Bruce Greenwood (the President)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's National Treasure: Book of Secrets page.
I'd heard some good and some mediocre things about National Treasure: Book of Secrets. I have to say I agree with those on the mediocre side. This movie wasn't nearly as good as the original and I'm glad I didn't bother to see it in a theatre. It was worth watching at home while doing some other stuff, but if I'd given it my full attention I probably would have been bored at points.
The cast is still great and everything is well done, the second movie just seems to be missing something. I didn't find it nearly as interesting as the first movie.
Grade: C
Labels: 2007, action, adventure, Bruce Greenwood, Ed Harris, Helen Mirren, Jon Voight, movie, mystery, Nicolas Cage, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Diane Lane (Agent Jennifer Marsh), Billy Burke (Detective Eric Box), Colin Hanks (Agent Griffin Dowd), Joseph Cross (Owen Reilly)
I had fairly high expectations of Untraceable and was very sad I missed it in a movie theatre, since I thought it would be a lot better there. Now that I've seen it, I'm not sure I would have been able to tolerate it in a theatre. From the first act of the serial killer, I knew I had to look away until the end of the scene. I can tolerate a lot of violence in movies. I even watched Saw & Saw II. I can't handle violence towards animals, though.
From the ads, I expected Untraceable to focus on finding the killer and not have as much gore. I was completely wrong. The movie concentrated too much on the murders and not enough on finding the killer and the suspense aspect. I really don't like horror movies and the amount of gore was a bit more in line with a horror movie than a thriller for my tastes.
The story itself had a good basis, but I didn't think there was enough of a focus on finding the serial killer. Untraceable wasn't nearly as interesting as I expected. It's a good thing I watched it at home where I could do other things and not have to concentrate on the movie. It's amazing how quickly movies are released on DVD these days. Untraceable was released in less than 4 months. No wonder I go to theatres so rarely.
Grade: C-
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jodie Foster (Erica Bain), Terrence Howard (Detective Mercer)
For complete info, see IMDb's The Brave One page.
I'm not sure what I expected from seeing the preview of The Brave One a couple times when it was about to come out in theatres, but it wasn't as good as the movie I got to watch. I should have known from the cast (Jodie Foster & Terrence Howard tend to pick great movies) that it would be more interesting than it appeared from the preview.
I didn't expect the movie to be very deep, I expected a fairly standard revenge thriller, but The Brave One was definitely not typical. I don't want to ruin anything in the movie, but I really did not expect what happened near the end and it's always good when a movie catches me off guard a bit.
If you missed The Brave One in theatres, I recommend renting it.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2007, crime, drama, Jodie Foster, movie, Terrence Howard, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Dennis Quaid (Thomas Barnes), Matthew Fox (Kent Taylor), Forest Whitaker (Howard Lewis), Bruce McGill (Phil McCullough), Edgar Ramirez (Javier)
For complete information on this amazing cast and crew, see IMDb's Vantage Point page.
From what I hear, this movie wouldn't have been nearly as interesting if I'd seen the trailer, since they give something major away. Fortunately, I didn't see the trailer. I thoroughly enjoyed Vantage Point. It was a much more exciting movie than I anticipated from the brief blurb we read about it before deciding to see it. I'm very glad I saw Vantage Point in a theatre, since there were a lot of special effects from many different angles and I think the movie was a lot more exhilarating on the big screen than it would have been at home.
If you have time, try to catch Vantage Point in the theatre, even if you saw the trailer. It doesn't spoil everything and it'll still be a very entertaining movie. If you haven't seen the trailer, avoid it at all costs and see the movie. In spite of seeing the same event over and over (and over ...) again, I was interested in the plot until the very end and didn't get bored, since there was new information revealed as you saw the scene from the various vantage points.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2008, action, crime, Dennis Quaid, Forest Whitaker, Matthew Fox, movie, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jason Statham (Terry Leather), Saffron Burrows (Martine Love), Stephen Campbell Moore (Kevin Swain), Daniel Mays (Dave Shilling), James Faulkner (Guy Singer)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's The Bank Job page.
The Bank Job was just as interesting as it appeared. I always enjoy exciting movies based on real events in history and this movie was no exception. The Bank Job was very well done and kept me interested and entertained the entire time. I did keep thinking "Why didn't they do it this way?" However, I realize that this movie is based on real events, so the fact that the police do stupid things couldn't be prevented. If they'd done it my way, they would have never made a movie about it, since it wouldn't have been nearly as exciting, so I suppose that's the good side.
I definitely recommend catching The Bank Job on the big screen if you can. If not, add it to your rental list.
Grade: B
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:50 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Judy Kaye (Mrs. Lovett), David Hess (Sweeney Todd), Edmund Bagnell (Tobias), Benjamin Magnuson (Anthony), Lauren Molina (Johanna), Keith Buterbaugh (Judge Turpin)
For complete info on the great touring cast, see the official Sweeney Todd on tour site.
I had forgotten (until the show started) that they had set this revival of Sweeney Todd in an asylum. It definitely makes for an interesting backdrop for the show. The characters playing their own instruments was a bit more distracting for Sweeney Todd than it was for Company (which I missed on Broadway, but caught on PBS and will definitely own on Blu-ray DVD at some point) for some reason - perhaps that's because there are actual sets in a typical production of Sweeney Todd or because the set of this production kept being rearranged to make the different locations of the musical. Either way, I still really enjoyed the show. The cast of the tour of Sweeney Todd is great! It was really nice to finally get to see Judy Kaye perform in person.
The way everything worked out so well with the right cast members being available to play the right instruments (and having them delivered to them or getting to the right place on stage) was really impressive. The way the show was choreographed & organized was just as impressive as the show itself.
I definitely recommend catching the tour of Sweeney Todd, while it's still at the Ahmanson Theatre in LA, or as it makes the rounds throughout the country.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, crime, drama, musical, Stephen Sondheim, thriller, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:58 AM show | 0 screams
Cast: Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd), Helena Bonham Carter (Mrs. Lovett), Alan Rickman (Judge Turpin), Jamie Campbell Bower (Anthony Hope), Jayne Wisener (Johanna), Laura Michelle Kelly (Beggar Woman), Ed Sanders (Toby)
For complete info on this great cast, see IMDb's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street page.
As a huge fan of musical theatre, any time they're making a great musical into a movie (even if it's one that was already a movie, like The Producers), I worry that they might not do a good job. I go into them with open minds and have really loved what they've done with Rent, Hairspry, and many others. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is Sondheim, though... this raises the bar some, since I think Sondheim is probably the best musical theatre composer ever. His scores are always complex and many of the parts in his shows are challenging, which makes it more difficult to find a good cast for any production of one of his shows. I've always loved Sweeney Todd, though I've never been able to see a live production. I've seen the Original Broadway Cast on video (thank goodness they recorded it!) and that's it. I was very excited about the concept of Sweeney Todd as a movie.
I think they did an amazing job with Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street! I think that even those who don't generally enjoy musical theatre can appreciate the movie, but those who love musical theatre will really like this movie. I'll definitely purchase this one on DVD as soon as it comes out and I'm going to buy the CD, too. The cast is wonderful, the make-up, costumes, and sets were all very well done... Sure, a lot of stuff had to be cut out musically. That's always the case with a musical made into a movie, since they don't want to alienate the non-musical theatre lovers. The only song that I really missed in the movie version of Sweeney Todd was The Ballad of Sweeney Todd. They played the music from it at times, but never actually played the song. I expected them to use it in the credits (as they did with my favorite song from Hairspray, which they skipped in the movie), but they just played orchestral music, nothing with lyrics. Oh well, since that's the only thing I truly missed in the movie and I understand why it wasn't there, they did a great job. I'm glad that Johnny Depp got best actor for a musical or comedy in the Golden Globe Awards and that the movie won the best musical or comedy. The movie is wonderful and they deserve to be recognized.
If you haven't seen this, try to catch it on the big screen. It's still playing here at almost all theatres. Check it out before it goes away!
Grade: A
Labels: 2007, Alan Rickman, crime, drama, Helena Bonham Carter, Johnny Depp, movie, musical, Stephen Sondheim, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 5:33 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Denzel Washington (Frank Lucas), Russell Crowe (Richie Roberts), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Huey Lucas), Josh Brolin (Detective Trupo)
For complete info on this great cast, see IMDb’s American Gangster page.
I’ll see almost any movie with Denzel Washington, so I was sold on this movie from the start. After seeing American Gangster, I think I’m going to have to read the book, since the story really intrigued me. Real-life stories like this always grab my attention. The movie was very well done. It had an amazing cast and really made me jump in a couple points. It seemed every time I was ready for something bad to happen it didn’t and when I least expected it, *bang*… It always impresses me when a movie can do that throughout the story, since I’m not exactly stupid and normally I catch on quickly. The way American Gangster was directed, it kept me on my guard for the whole movie, which is rare.
The true story behind American Gangster interested me and the movie made me a lot more curious about the real story. I highly recommend seeing American Gangster in the theatre or renting it when it makes it to DVD, which doesn’t seem to take long these days.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2007, crime, Denzel Washington, drama, movie, Russell Crowe, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:30 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: Anthony Hopkins (Ted Crawford), Ryan Gosling (Willy Beachum)
For complete info, see IMDb's Fracture page.
I'm a big fan of Anthony Hopkins and have enjoyed Ryan Gosling in everything of his that I've seen, so I was definitely expecting Fracture to be a good movie. Fortunately, it lived up to my expectations. This movie about a man who kills his wife and messes with everyone's head at the same time is very interesting. I loved the way Ted manipulated everyone and everything around him in order to get what he wanted. Willy's reaction to being played was also very well done.
Fracture is an intellectual thriller, which seems pretty rare these days. I really enjoy movies that make you think and try to figure out what has happened to the characters in the movie. Fracture is a must see for anyone who likes thrillers that aren't spelled out for you in the first couple minutes. The movie completely held my attention and kept me interested. If you missed it in theatres, rent Fracture.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2007, Anthony Hopkins, crime, drama, movie, Ryan Gosling, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:14 PM show | 0 screams