nymovielover1961 Reviews

Charlie Bartlett (2007)

Fickle

[7/10 · 29 October 2009]

This movie is, as best I can say, full of heart, dry wit, drama, and great acting. The plot centers around a seventeen year-old kid named Charlie Bartlett (Anton Yelchin) who has been kicked out of every private school in his area. His mother (Hope Davis), who adds incredible comedy and soul to Charlie's story, then sends him to public school.

At first, Charlie is rejected as a genuine weirdo. Eventually, as he always has done in the past, Charlie finds a way in to the hearts and minds of his peers: medication. Setting up his 'office' in the boys' restroom, he gives out prescription drugs, but also what can only be called 'life advice' to anyone who lines up outside for help.

So many scenes of the film are just genuinely hilarious and charming: Charlie running through the streets high on Ritalin; Charlie in his jacket and boxers, above a raging party that halted to listen to him shout "My name is Charlie Bartlett and I am no longer a virgin!"; or perhaps, my favorite, Kar Dennings' simply splendid, slow solo of "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out" by Cat Stevens.

Like so many indie movies, I label this one as 'fickle.' You think you know what it's about, but really, there's thirty different angles. It could be about the struggle of the teenager who just wants someone to listen. Or maybe about how, like Downey says, "what you do in this life matters." Or maybe how you need to just do whatever it is that you want to do and be whatever it is that you want to be

The best part of the movie is easily the way that it shows so clearly the life of the modern teen. And I would know, as I am a teen at this precise moment. But, to me, the second best part was Anton Yelchin-- or really Charlie. Charlie charms everyone from cheerleaders, to the principal who disliked him for most of the film, to the cop that arrested him for assault. And he will certainly charm you.

Casper Meets Wendy (1998 Video)

I accept that this is a terrible movie

[3/10 · 29 August 2009]

This movie is truly terrible, but I cannot help but watch it over and over again. See, when I was a little kid, I used to request this movie every time I went to my Grandmother's house. She had it on VHS, and then, that was the only format it was available on, unless you wanted the movie in Portugese. I loved it dearly, and I still do.

The film is so bad that you can't help but love it. The acting (George Hamilton? REALLY?!!) is terrible. The plot is disgustingly stupid, and the scene where Wendy and Casper are getting pulled back through the fireplace is the worst moment in cinematic history.

And yet, it's good. To me, at least. Some people just can't watch a terrible movie and think, hey, this is really funny... in a weird sort of way.

On the whole, Casper Meets Wendy is not nearly as good as the original Casper, and it is terrible from every single angle. And I accept that.

Warehouse 13 (2009–2014)

The Plot Needs Some Spice, But the Idea Works

[9/10 · 28 August 2009]

Warehouse 13 is rather unique. While it does incorporate a certain X-Files-ness, it is in a different category altogether-- one that I have never seen. The show focuses on Pete and Myka, and of course Artie, as they work together to gather artifacts (from a range of times in history) with dangerous and mysterious properties. The concept is new to me, and very enjoyable. Still, I feel that the show is sitting on the fence between being about the characters and being about the artifacts. To make it work, I think that they might need to lean to one (most would probably say artifacts).

The characters still need more going on, if you ask me. Also, a twelve-year-old could figure out the resolution to the mystery half an hour into an episode.

In addition, the show desperately needs a better main theme. I myself am working on it... but I'm not really an expert on that. Or really on television-- I'd like to clarify that.

Angels & Demons (2009)

What a Let Down

[4/10 · 19 May 2009]

In today's world, we love adventure movies-- especially if they have to do with secret societies, hidden treasures, or myths that deep down, we all want to uncover. A slough of movies have come out recently to please this facet of the public's wants: Indiana Jones, National Treasure, and the duo of the DaVinci Code and Angels & Demons.

The craze of the DaVinci Code was well-deserved. The film had everything that adventure-seekers and movie-lovers alike enjoy. The plot was intriguing, involving, deep, well-researched, and, overall, very good. The acting was decent, more than decent for Sir Ian McKellen, but the peak was that most magnificent ending, backed by the beautiful score from Hans Zimmer.

Now, Tom Hanks is back-- with new haircut. He has been asked to help the Vatican save the lives of four of their cardinals, as well as the Vatican City as some antimatter (shockingly enough) from the Hadron Collider. The plot is simply odd, not so deep or involving, as it's mainly all centering around the geography of Vatican City, and that's not very interesting. The violence is not the good kind (meaning the kind that makes a movie great) but it makes the film less enjoyable and thoroughly cringe-worthy. Plus, there is no amazing moment of "Ohhhh..." for the audience, making it not nearly the smashing, amazing success that the DaVinci Code was.

Though Angels & Demons was the prequel to the DaVinci Code, it was not made first. Maybe because everyone knew that the only reason anyone would go see Angels & Demons is because the DaVinci Code makes it seem like it would be great.

All in all, not a good call from Ron Howard. Even by Paris Hilton standards, it falls short of gigantic expectations.

Important Things with Demetri Martin (2009–2010)

In a Word, Sleek

[10/10 · 27 March 2009]

In my wildest dreams, I never thought that in today's era of reality television absurdities like "I Love New York" and "The Bad Girls Club" and, who could forget, "American Idol," a Comedy Central show would be the one to restore my faith in television.

Important Things is a fresh gust of ingenuity and hilarity that emits from the mouth of the simply odd but genius host, Demitri Martin. It has all of things that were once great about SNL: hilarity, perfect duration, familiarity, and complete individuality. There are no sketches like Demitri Martin sketches. There is no style like Demitri Martin style.

And perhaps that's why this show is listed as 'awaiting 5 votes' for an official rating. Because people aren't sure what to make of Martin. Well, here's what to make of the show: sleek.

Down with Love (2003)

Frivolous

[5/10 · 15 February 2009]

Sorry, but this movie was boring, annoying, disgusting, and all-together not worth seeing.

I only watched it because it was Valentine's Day and nothing else was on TV. I soon wanted to gouge my eyes out.

For all the great movies that Ewan McGregor has done, he should not do anything where he is supposed to appear charming and smile. With his mouth closed, not bad. But when he went to that horrible, fake toothy smile, my dog even snarled in disgust. I adore McGregor, but not in this movie.

Renee Zellweger was not bad, but for the most part, it was the plot's fault. Set in the '60s, in New York, I thought I would enjoy this movie because I want to live in 1960s New York. However, a good feeling could not be associated with this film.

The characters were obnoxious, over-played, and completely unreal. I am all for unrealistic, but the one thing that is a constant, unchanging reality, is human behavior, and these characters do not exhibit the qualities that most humans do. For example, most people do not walk with their hand in front of them, swinging in a circle like a pendulum.

The odd screwball at the end of this movie was also unreal. It turns out that Zellweger's character has devised a brilliant plan to capture Catcher Block (McGregor) so that he will love her. Most people would consider what Zellweger's character does to be creepy and stalking.

Most people would not, or even could not, create an elaborate plan to snare the perfect man or perfect woman, just the way that person would want them. Most people would take that person as they were and shut up about it.

This movie was unreal, and disconnected from all good human emotions. After that awkward ending number, I gave up on Valentine's Day and popped in Doctor Zhivago.

In Bruges (2008)

I want to go to Bruges...

[9/10 · 15 February 2009]

...at least a little bit.

At times, 'In Bruges' will make you wet your pants you're laughing so hard, and at other times, it brings you so far into the depressed, self-loathing mind of Ray that you yourself are as melancholy and irritable as the character.

I believe that it is the sudden complexity of the hit-man character, which is very 'Godfather'-esque, that makes the film so absolutely irresistible. Like Bruges, you go to this film because it is poignant and beautiful, but at times gets boring. Or, at least, it should be boring. I, myself, was instead captivated by every moment, every frame, of 'In Bruges.' Wow. What can I say? Except that I have memorized the last few words, I can think of nothing.

"Because at least in prison and at least in death, you know, I wouldn't be in ----in' Bruges. But then, like a flash, it came to me. And I realized, ---- man, maybe that's what hell is: the entire rest of eternity spent in ----in' Bruges. And I really really hoped I wouldn't die. I really really hoped I wouldn't die. ."

(This character is Irish, so you can just guess what those dashes are.)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

Decadent

[10/10 · 11 January 2009]

It is a sad tragedy that I had to beg my mother to go see this movie with me. Early this morning, I offered her up to three "benjamins" (after Benjamin Franklin) to go see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and, though she did not take the money, she considered it a steal.

The words marvelous, original, delightful, brilliant, decadent, heart-warming yet heart-wrenching, do not even begin to pin down what this amazing tale is all about. With some of the best character development I have ever seen, the almost three-hour long story is most assuredly worth it. At one point, though my bladder was more than full, I was pinned to my chair, desperate to find out what would happen next to the absolutely unique characters.

Brad Pitt's portrayal of Benjamin is completely complex and perfect, as is Cate Blanchett's Daisy. The way that they look at each other throughout this entire film assures that they really do love each other as much as F. Scott Fitzgerald intended, which is the entire purpose of acting, I think.

The plot and the message of the movie are simply impossible to put into words, but I suppose the closest thing is this: "You can be mad as a mad dog at the way things went; you can swear and curse the fates - but when it comes to the end, you have to let go."

Constantine (2005)

Why

[27 December 2008]

Am I the only person on the planet who thinks that Keanu Reeves is extremely, horribly stupid? Not only is he one of the most overrated, idiotic actors in the business, this movie is also overrated and idiotic.

Darkness is okay for a movie, but only if it has a really knock-out message. I don't believe that it does, so I count the dark aspects of Constantine as a downfall.

The plot line was weak, and just like the later Matrixes, the only leg that the movie stands on is it's special effects.

Please, Keanu Reeves, king of the dopes with surfer-dude attitude, go die in a ditch. I know that's violent, but he and this movie deserve the chair.

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

I Heart Billy Wilder

[10/10 · 17 December 2008]

You are all out of your minds if you gave this movie less than an eight. And if you hated Some Like It Hot, I'm convinced that you have no soul. If you hated something as masterful as The Apartment, then you have a hole where your heart should be. If you hate everything Billy Wilder ever did, you have no soul, heart, or brain-- you're just a retarded stick with opposable thumbs. In other words, I hate you if you hate Billy Wilder.

Wilder was and always will be one of the greatest writer-directors that Hollywood has ever known. Some of you are forgetting the purpose of film-- to take you away to a world that you didn't know and entertain you. That's what Billy did, only he made it funny, satirical, or both. Sunset Boulevard did get dull at points, but that's life. If you don't want movies to be somewhat real, go delude yourself and watch Teletubbies. Personally, I wish that someone would bring Billy back from the dead to make another movie and make all of the people who probably enjoyed Disaster Movie appreciate his brilliance.

So God, please send your son down here so that he can do that Lazarus thing and bring back Billy. We need him down here. With a new generation of Hannah Montana's that will marry Jonas Brother look-a-likes, I need Sunset Boulevard. Because it reminds me that Hollywood isn't perfect. It's real and imperfect just like the rest of life.

I Heart Billy Wilder!

American Beauty (1999)

An American Beauty of a Movie

[9/10 · 16 December 2008]

I don't want to boast, but I have seen every movie to win Best Picture since 'Wings' back in 1929, and this is probably my favorite winner in this century. 'American Beauty' is really a magnificent story, but it's more than that. It displays a dirty part of the world that we all know is there, but we just don't want to think about.

The dreary gray world that Lester Burnham lives in would make Tim Burton so very proud, but it's Kevin Spacey's ever creepy monotone voice that gives Lester his personality. The childish, stupid way that he changes himself to try and impress his daughter's alluring friend Angela is the focal point of most of the story, but not the main draw.

The reason this movie won Best Picture is because of Wes Bentley. Though he has almost no other desirable credits, Bentley's portrayal of Ricky, the insightful, eerie next-door neighbor, lights the movie aflame. And that scene. That single scene that gained so much mockery over these nine years-- it's what got me. Something as simple as a white, plastic bag floating up and down in the air, that's all this movie needed.

Annette Bening gives a shudder-worthy performance as the fed-up wife. But more than that was the absolutely chilling and spot-on Frank Fits, played by Chris Cooper. There are no words for that performance. The look on his face when his secret is revealed is something that stays with you forever, but that you awkwardly will try to suppress from your mind.

The ending is something so truly poignant and beautiful, something that, in attempting to state that nothing ever ends nicely and nothing is perfect, made the movie perfect. And I mean that. I've gone over it and over it, but I cannot find a single thing about this magnificent film that I would alter. Not a single thing.

The Dark Knight (2008)

Why So Serious?

[10/10 · 4 August 2008]

I read one review on here that says that they couldn't stand the movie because of the way that everyone moves their lips. Others say that it was "painful to watch," and that the script was "cringe-worthy." However, I say that this movie deserves all the hype that it it stirring up. It is, at it's core, just an action movie. But somehow, it manages to come across as a much better Batman than it's predecessors.

Maybe this is due to it's all-star cast (which includes the much missed but praise-deserving Heath Ledger for his role as the Joker), but I don't think that the fact that such good actors are in the film is the only crutch the movie can stand on.

It contains a message that some people, perhaps the people who gave this film bad reviews, are to distracted by something shiny to notice. There are different kinds of villains, and just as there are different villains, there are different heroes. They come in all different shapes and sizes, and yet we need them all for a society to really function.

Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is the White Knight of Gotham. He is the best kind of hero because he doesn't wear spandex, yet he saves the day, he's a part of society, but he's not afraid to get his hands dirty. It's been three days since I've seen this movie, and I still feel a part of me die when I think of the fictional Harvey Dent being covered with acid while he had to hear the woman he loved say her last words. Before this movie, I knew Dent as Two-Face, and nothing more. But this film added depth to his and many other characters, one of the things that made it great.

The Joker, who we know from the other films as absolutely cuckoo, also gains a bigger back-story. We begin to really see the madness behind that madman in the Dark Knight. And, with much "sorry"s to Jack Nicholson, I must say that Heath Ledger's Joker was much better than I'd expected, and much better than any other Joker. For once, the bad-guy explains his thinking without monologuing! How they did that is even shock worthy.

As I mentioned, this movie doesn't lose all of it's action. The scene where Christian Bale blows up the truck and flips it over had everyone in the theater saying, without shame, "Whoa..." Yet, the action is on a level that no other action movies really are. The bomb triggers given to the passengers on the ferry boats conceal a thinly-veiled message to the viewers. "Are you willing to kill to save?" Of course, I believe that the triggers were really to their own boats.

All in all, the martyr that Batman had to become and the film that enveloped that message, will always deserve the praise that it claims.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

Stating it simply, a masterpiece.

[10/10 · 11 June 2008]

My father does not cry all too often. He's one of those big burly guys that will rip your head off if you even look at him the wrong way, but music gets his tear ducts "a-flowin'." And recently, Javier Navarrete's 'Long, long time ago' joined the ranks of the films (Field of Dreams, Monsters Inc., Casper) that can make him bawl like a little baby.

Unlike my father, I don't react to a great film by crying, I analyze the movie. What was the message it presented? Did it seem relevant to today's society? And finally, just for affirmation of my views on the film, How many awards did it win? Once you add up the message that sometimes, creating this imaginary world can be the best combatant against the cold, cruel reality that we barely survive in, and that this message can still be seen today, and, oh yeah, it won something like 3 Oscars, 64 other wins, and 58 nominations, and is listed as #56 on this websites top 250 films of all time, it's clear how big a presence this Spanish film flaunts.

Yeah, the subtitles are kind of a bummer, and I do think that director Guillermo del Toro should avoid doing any more Hellboy movies, but his dark masterpiece is one that will live forever as a film that reminded you of how much dreaming took away the pain.

Once (I) (2007)

Sheer Simplicity and Brilliance

[10/10 · 20 March 2008]

If you'll excuse me, the title of this comment is somewhat incorrect. What I should write, or type rather, is that the sheer simplicity of this film paves the road to it's brilliance.

I can say little about this film otherwise, besides the fact that it makes my heart tingle. From the gnawing feeling in my gut that these two, whose names are cleverly never exposed, are meant for each other, to the strange sensation that settles over me whenever I listen to the songs that so eloquently, poetically, and beautifully tell this tale, it is undeniably stealthy at worming it's way into your heart.

At the very core of this Irish masterpiece is the film-making strategy that the director and writer, John Carney, speaks of in the special features (which I have watched along with the countless times I've seen the movie). The methodical yet docile way of showing the world and melding of Marketa Irglova and Glen Hansard is an important and innocently metaphoric facet of the film.

Yet another amazing part of this movie is the music, obviously. My mother watched this movie with me the fifth time I'd seen it and her response was simply "This thing's got no PLOT!" I just said, "Whoa-- listen to the music." Not to sound to much like a Doobie Brother. The lyrics are, as best I can say, perfect in their loneliness. The use of acoustic guitar, and may I say PIANO, is flawless and endearing. The smart incorporation of a band into the plot in order to flaunt more musical diversity provides a new scope of the "musical" aspects to the movie. Overall, the music is a thing to marvel at and connect to, as we've all been there. Yet it's also something that smirks at the face of useless pop ballads, rap rants, inaudible death chants disguised as rock, the annoying twangs of country, and the meaningless beats of disco, dance, too-techno compositions, and junk like Fergie and Nelly Furtado. Songs like "Falling Slowly," "Lies," "When Your Mind's Made Up," and "Say It To Me Now" are in a category all their own: mind-boggling/life changing.

I cannot say more than I have about this piece of art, except that if I could draw on this document, I would put two giant thumbs up to everybody who had a single thing to do with this film.

The Apartment (1960)

"Cheese Crackers"

[10/10 · 14 March 2008]

The APARTMENT (1960) is, as best I can phrase it, a perfect melding of comedy, romance, drama, corporate climbing, mistreatment,stomach pumps, gin rummy, Jewish neighbors, Jack Lemmon, and Shirley MacLaine.

Every time that I am in a nasty mood, I sit down and watch this movie on my DVR. I immediately feel 110% better-- mood-wise. From the opening credits near Central Park (which I am desperate to see) to the ending words "shut up and deal", this movie is one of my top ten, and that's saying something.

As Robert Osbourne put it in his introduction on Turner Classic Movies, The Apartment "is at once touching and witty, perceptive, hilarious, heart-breaking and quite wonderful."

Let me state this as simply as I can: I am thirteen years old and still this film touches my heart. Jack Lemmon is incredibly sweet in this movie and is one of my favorite actors of all time.

For any strange person who hasn't seen this marvelous movie, here's a summary: C.C. "Bud" Baxter, a corporate climber, allows his employers to use his apartment for affairs with young women, and helps the woman he loves recover from heartache inside its walls.

Altogether, this movie is categorized as a MUST-SEE-MULTIPLE-TIMES, and I have one thing to say to any Apartment-obsessed IMDb user such as myself: "Be a Mensh!!"

John and Mary (1969)

An odd movie about an odd relationship, but kind of works.

[6/10 · 26 January 2008]

For most of the movie, quite frankly, I was so bored I dosed off about five times. Once the end of the movie neared, however, I started to like it. Of course, my DVR has a habit of only liking to record the first hour and twenty-five minutes of things, leaving me with the need to buy the movie just to skip everything and watch the last five minutes.

A brief synopsis of the film would be that Dustin Hoffman, an emotionally challenged, furniture designer, and Mia Farrow, a worker at an art gallery, meet at a bar, then have sex, and spend the next day in his apartment, talking and thinking about themselves and their past-loves. Eventually, she leaves, never learning his name and him never learning hers and, they eventually meet again when he tries to find her, but discovers her in his own home instead, and they begin to date (thanks to my television, I'm guessing, so don't take my word for it).

All together, the movie is strangely cohesive and an interesting view on the romance of two romantically blunt people.

Buy the movie and WATCH it, I know I have to.

Herbie Fully Loaded (2005)

WHY Michael Keaton? Why?

[2/10 · 20 January 2008]

This movie is, without a doubt, the low point of all Disney movies, and I've seen "Lady and the Tramp 2!" Forget the fact that it humiliates the history of the long-running and well-appreciated LoveBug films, this movie does not deliver like my five-year-old cousin said it would, not that I believed her.

Since Lindsay Lohan is in it, the image is, obviously, automatically shattered, but the terrible acting that she does ruins the movie also. Justin Long is better than this movie so dude, this is the time to spring for the time machine. But the actor who really made a severe downfall through this poor excuse for a film was Michael Keaton. He's a thousand times better than Lindsay, that's all I can say. I am a fan of his, but all I can say is that he must have spent all of his Batman money if he did this movie.

All in all, this movie doesn't deserve to be aired on television EVER AGAIN. After watching this "movie," I spent thirty minutes screaming "I want my life back!"

Juno (2007)

More interesting than every city in Alaska combined.

[10/10 · 18 January 2008]

I have seen this film three times now, and it never seems to get old. The first time that I saw it, I was just so excited that I was getting to see it that I only paid attention to the basic outline of the movie. The second time that I had the privilege of viewing this piece of art, I began to see how truly amazing the movie was. And the third time that I saw this honestly honest movie, I fell in love with it completely.

After getting home from the first viewing of this film, on Christmas Eve, mind you, I bought the entire album on my computer. All together, this movie's soundtrack is Juno. Kimya Dawson's songs represent the plot as well as Juno's personality to a T. Mott the Hoople is a great band, and Belle and Sebastian is a wonderful addition. The songs are truly individual and a beautiful part of this wonderful film.

The cast is brilliant, with Ellen Page, who really IS Juno, Michael Cera, J.K. Simmons, Allison Janney, and a hilarious appearance by the Office's Rainn Wilson, making the movie what it is.

All in all, this movie will make you laugh, will make you cry, if you're my mother, and will make you wonder how this movie is still amazingly neutral on the point of Pro-Life/Pro-Choice. It is unlike anything that you will ever see, and Juno deserves to win Best Picture, if you're asking me.

High Fidelity (2000)

High Fidelity, is an outrageous comedy that presents life, love, and job, of Rob Gordon, a self-destructive list-maker, dealing with all three.

[10/10 · 17 January 2008]

"What came first, music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns. Or watching violent videos and that some sort of cultural violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands, of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable or was I miserable because I listened to pop music."

From the opening words, High Fidelity will make you laugh and fall in love with it. John Cusack's best movie to date. While watching the movie, you'd never know that he wrote some of the screenplay and was a music supervisor for the movie- two very big accomplishments since the movie is so great for its sharp and endearing comedic aspects and the music that lies beneath them.

With artists ranging from The Chemical Brothers to The Vaselines, High Fedelity easily has one of the year's, and perhaps the century's, greatest soundtracks. The music knowledge displayed by both the people who pick the songs and the characters who exhibit them will make you feel so musically inadequate that you want to go out and by every record mentioned (even the Peter Frampton).

Besides it hilarious and precise writing, courtesy of Nick Hornby, High Fidelity offers a look into the inner workings of the male mind-- with everything from crappy-yet-not-crappy jobs, life-styles, list-making habits, and self-destructive love lives. Rob's love life provides the heart of the movie (letting old loves die and growing up), while his job provides his hilarity (with Barry, portrayed by Jack Black, and Dick), and his list-making seamlessly ties the whole thing together.

All together, the movie is nearly flawless, musically brilliant, and a work of art. Many call me crazy for loving it so much, but this movie will give you chills (even when Jack Black sings "Let's Get it On").