Film Tops

Appaloosa is perfectly realized

MovieMad — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 17:54:45 +0000

A pair of lawmen (Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen) out to save a Western town from a rancher’s tyrannical reign find their bond, and their mission, tested by the arrival of a double-dealing widow (Renee Zellweger).

Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen are just brilliant and funny. Appaloosa is a truly and perfectly realized film of a genre (Western) that I’m growing more fond of every year. 2007’s 3:10 to Yuma starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, and HBO’s Deadwood have brought life back into the genre with invigorating and less sexist and isolating force.
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Tropic Thunder, rocks!

MovieMad — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 06:24:59 +0000

While shooting a big-budget war movie, a group of actors (Stiller, Black, Downey Jr., and others) are forced to become soldiers in a real-life conflict.

Simply, Tropic Thunder was the funniest comedy I have seen all year and perhaps in a very long time. Ben Stiller is a smart and talented writer, actor and director. He seems to know what’s funny without being to ridiculous and too slap-sticky. And Robert Downey Jr was just perfect. His “black” character was never offensive and totally funny.
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Actors who speak their minds are the ones I want to watch

MovieMad — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 17:58:31 +0000

I think those actors, TV or film, who don’t play the game and focus on the acting should be admired, not admonished. And yes, it goes without saying that there are unwritten rules that say actors should behave a certain way and kiss a little arse for reasons X, Y and Z, but staying true to the reasons you are an actor and to yourself in general is part of the risk and reality of living in this questionable modern, progressive world we live in now. And, most important to me, it’s reflected in the roles they choose and how well they play those roles. There is, to me, nothing worse than seeing a strong actor, let alone an exceptional one, have to regurgitate words from a thoughtless and poorly written script. Plus, solid acting and good writing makes even the silliest film more entertaining simply because I’m not distracted by writing that makes no sense or acting that’s painful to watch.
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Flawless, is almost flawless

MovieMad — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:58:48 +0000

A crime/drama set in 1960 London, where a soon to retire janitor (Michael Caine) convinces a glass-ceiling constrained American executive (Demi Moore) to help him steal a handful of diamonds from their employer, the London Diamond Corporation.

Flawless is a very well written, well acted and intriguing film save for the somewhat cheesy set up of how the story is recounted: a reporter interviews Moore’s character about her life story. It took something away, just a bit, from the film. But certainly not enough to classify it as anything but a very well done and entertaining film.
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Hellboy II: The Golden Army, was just OK

MovieMad — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 22:44:28 +0000

When the mythical world engages their campaign to take over the Earth, the U.S. government reaches out to the only department staffed to handle the potential catastrophe: The Bureau for Paranormal Research, who once again turns to the demon hero Hellboy (Perelman) and his teammates to stop a merciless dictator from carrying out his plan.

I saw the first Hellboy and didn’t much care for it, but the previews for the second installment seemed promising. All in all Hellboy II: The Golden Army was a very well made, visually impressive film but it’s one of those films that left me thinking I would have rather rented it.
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Trailer: The Spirit

MovieMad — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:12:26 +0000

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Trailer: Watchmen

MovieMad — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:06:31 +0000

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Trailer: Terminator Salvation

MovieMad — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:03:04 +0000

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Trailer: Brideshead Revisited

MovieMad — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:01:20 +0000

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Trailer: Brothers Gloom

MovieMad — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 05:54:50 +0000

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