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Mysterious Skin (2004)
Viewers be warned
I need to make this review personal, that way it can be more effective on the message. I warn everybody who is considering watching this: It is extremely disturbing. I don't think I've ever seen a movie this disturbing. If sexual child abuse, pedos, and watching as a young man sells his body to older men for money is up your alley, then you won't find it disturbing at all. I have been mentally affected by this movie, and it forever changed me. It showed me full frontal (not literally) how awful these crimes are. It shook me up and took me on a ride I will never forget. But it's not a horrible movie. Not at all. It tells a wonderful story of one boy who has been forever changed by one major event in his life. He can never forget it. It also meshes together the story of another boy who can't remember this same event, and tries putting together the clues to find out what exactly happened. The two stories collide for an unforgettable ending. I don't fully recommend this movie, but if you're curious enough, check it out. It's well made and the performances are pretty great. However, it may just sulk down your day. Again, extremely disturbing, but worth checking out if you think you can handle it.
(500) Days of Summer (2009)
A work of gorgeous art.
This film does absolutely nothing wrong. The dialogue is great, the characters and relationships are great, the direction is fantastic, and it's original because it does so many new things of its own that nobody else has done before. It tells its story with pride and dignity and stands for what it believes in. The characters are the same as well. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is top notch here; definitely the best role of his. When both him and Zooey were on-screen together, they were perfect. The chemistry was astounding. When Joseph was his own person, alone on the screen, he stood for something, he was a symbol. His speech in the meeting room of where he works proved that. It went through 500 days fast, but every day shown, you feel that you were with them the whole way through.
The Evil Dead (1981)
Extremely impressive - one of the best cult classics
It's awesome how much this film moved people. It became a phenomenon extremely quick and spawned 2 sequels. Running off of the extremely low- budget that it did, it was extremely impressive. The effects were great, the gore was satisfying, and the actors were great for the money's worth. This is a brutally putrid and oozing, gooey film. The gore and brutality of everything is so over-the-top that it's just satisfying as all hell. No moments were realistic in any way possible, and that is what makes this movie so much fun. Sure it had some flaws, and though I'm not completely bypassing those and giving it a 10, it's a great film.
Bad Lieutenant (1992)
Lacking on the story, but Keitel will blow you away.
This film is what everybody says it is: grimy, slimy, disturbing and the intense uses of drugs. It deserved its NC-17 rating; this is not for the faint of heart. Story is probably the only thing extremely lacking in this film, and though story is essential to great movies, everything else redeemed itself to earn a 7. The Lieutenant never has any pivotal moments of wanting to change, save just one brief scene. It doesn't have much to do with the nun either. Harvey Keitel's performance is outstanding and extremely believable. It's difficult to shine yourself in a light such as this, but he did it, and he had balls. So, for having a great lead role and having the courage to have content as intense as this movie has, I applaud it. It's not a masterpiece, but it's pretty damn good.
SLC Punk! (1998)
Good messages, but deliverance is flawed somewhat.
Skeptical was my first impression of this movie. It seemed as though it would just focus on a bunch of punks and how cool their way of life is. That's not wrong, but it's also not right. This is portrayed throughout most of the movie, but later on, Matthew Lillard's character changes and begins to think about who he is. It served as a great character development, but this is just one of the few great parts about the movie. In the ending, it was shown how talented he can be in a dramatic role. It's hard to see why he isn't in more roles like that. The comedy is lacking and that is what it was labeled under, so it was unimpressive in that factor. It had few chuckle moments. The style is also unimpressive. The pans and cuts are sometimes choppy and the story telling was sketchy at times. Most performances were up to par given the material, but there were still a few missing links. It's a nice, independent movie that can be enjoyed if the lacking parts are dismissed.
True Romance (1993)
Top notch thriller with several memorable moments
In the way the plot is laid out and flows, it feels like an extremely fun B-movie. The way everything is done however, makes it something more than that. The fun factor comes from how characters react to certain situations (not similar to how real people would react) and this makes them create a character for themselves. They're unique and memorable. The plot is so over-the-top and incredible that it doesn't need to develop itself; it already developed itself from the get-go. But as it develops itself, you find yourself thinking that your next guesses to what might happen will indeed happen. What's is grand is that the unexpected pops out of nowhere, and gives you a moment of joy. You realized what you just watched was not something to be analyzed for how well it was done, but how well it struck you. Though it is well-done, it needs no further glance because your instinct reminds you that it was; your brain realizes it in an instance. Maybe not Oscar worthy, but it's a fun movie to experience.
Natural Born Killers (1994)
A message for all, but not well put out.
Taking my first look at this movie, I felt it would be nothing more than a fun action movie; maybe adding something a little interesting and unique to get my attention, but nothing more. I was actually stunned to what this film turned out to be. It's a hit against basically everything in our American culture. How we have to have stories to go along with every crime, how it intrigues us to watch gruesome violence on TV and how we act as if death is a big deal even though it happens all the time. It pokes fun at all of us in a scene towards the end when our 'hero', played by Woody Harrelson is being interviewed by a very over- the-top Robert Downey Jr. I would appreciate these messages more if they weren't downplayed and introduced only towards the very end. For this reason, it just felt like a violent drama that felt the need to have some sort of meaning to it all to not be criticized just for the violent nature of itself. What made it stand out to me more was the interesting cinematography and clips of stock footage spliced into the film. It was a less subtle approach to keep our eyes on the screen and our attention, but I appreciated it for its uniqueness, nonetheless. Overall, this film brings itself slightly out of the crowd for having some interesting situations and unique characteristics, and for some over-the-top performances.
Dinner for Schmucks (2010)
Charming but slightly plagued
The thought of inviting people to dinner just so you can have a few laughs and make fun of them is extremely cruel, and you may think that that is what the movie is fully about. I can assure you that it isn't. If anything, it's motivating people to act outside of the box, to be themselves. The movie is really fun to watch and I can guarantee you won't regret seeing it. It's funny, it's charming, and it makes you smile. Heck, I smiled through a lot of the movie. However, it does have some bad sides. Like a lot of movies do. It was ridiculous how many bad things were happening to Tim. Also ridiculous that he wasn't acting like a normal human being would. I can tell you that if all of the things that happened to him, happened to me, I would either break down and cry or scream a lot. Or both. Then the more serious parts weren't serious enough. They added too much comedic relief in it and I didn't want that for those scenes. It's a comedy, yeah, but that doesn't mean every minute has to try to be funny. That's how movies get stale and lose your interest. This wasn't stale at all, but it didn't make me crack up. Steve Carell was very natural and a very believable character. He was charming and cool, but dumb as can be. His 'mousterpieces' were outstanding and funny at the same time. Never seen anything like it, probably never will again. Overall, this movie is really enjoyable and you can probably get past the bad parts if you're not a reviewer like me. Check it out if you want to watch an interesting, but at the same time simple, comedy.
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Honestly, not great
I'm not a big fan of the Hulk but I do enjoy myself some Marvel comics. I saw the 2003 version or whatever year it came out and didn't enjoy it much. I enjoyed this one more, but it still wasn't great. I dislike CG, so I hated the fact that the Hulk, the Abomination and more were CG. It looked really unnatural (not that they look natural to begin with) but still. The effects and action were quite unrealistic and silly. The acting was bad and I'm sad to say that Edward Norton just didn't do it for me in this movie. He's one of my favorite actors. Liv Tyler was confusing and the worst of the cast. She would whisper too much, yell too much, cry too much, and it was ridiculous. I don't think that Hulk fans will love this movie either. He only says 'Hulk Smash' once and he doesn't make many appearances anyway. However, it did have a greatly satisfying ending, and there were some cool action sequences in it. It's a very mediocre movie so stay away unless you're a big Hulk fan and HAVE to see it, or you're bored sometime.
Lost in Translation (2003)
A heart-warming movie with a great sense of meaning
SkullBallMovies review of Lost in Translation:
I watch movies to have a new experience, to enjoy the time watching it, and to get a feel of how I want to make a living in the future involving movies. Though I watch movies often, I rarely get one that makes me feel extremely good inside and takes the messages that the movie has to offer to heart. I have had struggles with finding myself and one line in the movie was completely true to me. 'The more you know who you are, and what you want, the less you let things upset you.' I've found myself recently and I know that if I saw this movie before I did, it would have changed me completely. This movie still greatly impacted me and I love it. This isn't a movie to analyze the plot and the direction and what not. It's a feel- good movie and that's the way I like it.
The Prestige (2006)
A Beautiful Lie
The Prestige is one of the most well crafted movies I've ever seen and it kept me thinking the whole time. Once I thought I understood it, something else came along and changed that. This lasted throughout the whole film and it wasn't frustrating, but extremely intriguing. Pacing was really good and I never lost interest. The story was actually very interesting to me and nothing like I've seen before. The ideas were brilliant and gave the movie the character and spirit it had. Completely original and didn't take from anything else. The performances were great and totally fit with the ending. (You'll see what I mean when you watch) The movie was a magician's act itself, and I would love to see it more than once.
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Fantastic on all levels
I came into this movie having a feeling I was going to be disappointed. I don't really know why, but that just happened. Boy was I wrong. It starts off with great dialogue and continues throughout the movie, with many instances of memorable quotes. The characters were fun but also very serious and believable. Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman had some funny moments together which was nice considering the rest of the movie was a hard drama. This movie also has some fantastic morals and metaphors thrown everywhere, and it may take a second viewing or more to find more of them. Just everything about this movie had me loving it, so I give it a perfect 10.
Kick-Ass (2010)
Extremely enjoyable, but over-the-top
Kick-Ass is one of those movies that really stands out. It's a superhero movie, mixed in with an over-the-top movie, mixed in with a bunch of clichés. Its plot made me interested in the whole thing, for the most part. It was over-the-top like I said, but the action was still really good. I could have done without the maiming and blood gushes but it was still good nonetheless. Another thing I disliked was the fact that everybody in the movie had some family issues. EVERYBODY had one or more family member die. It was ridiculous. It tried to make us care about their relationships when really it was overwhelming. The humor was meh and unimpressive. I chuckled a couple times but that was it. Also, too much comic relief. It may sound like I'm nitpicking or I hated this movie, but I didn't These are just minor complaints. The plot was very interesting and moved along at a good pace, the action was pretty well done, the characters were fun, and it was just a fun experience. 8/10
First Blood (1982)
"Who are they to protest me?"
This movie remains to be one of my favorite movies of all time for several reasons. It's an emotional, gripping, thrilling tale of a Vietnam veteran who comes 'home' to nothing and finds another war on his hands. He gets treated poorly by the local police squad and is forced to act out against them. It was at first shocking to see the way they were treating Rambo, especially because they knew that he had gone through so much from Vietnam. Sylvester Stallone is brilliant and gives Rambo this well known face and personality. In my opinion, he should have been nominated for an Oscar. This movie greatly surpasses the sequels and the most recent release. I highly recommend this film.
Revolutionary Road (2008)
Extremely realistic and moving
Movies like It's a Wonderful Life and American History X show us how grateful we should be for our lives and how we should respect other people. Revolutionary Road, however, shows us how frustrating life can be. I've wanted to see a movie that finally nailed this, and I think I got it with this movie. It shows us that giving things up for our dreams isn't easy at all, and sometimes we need to check to see that those dreams are realistic and easy enough to do. This was the whole theme of the movie and I couldn't have asked for it to be better. Leonardo and Kate were acting gold and were completely believable together. They made me believe that they were a real couple and this was a real situation. It's an extremely depressing movie but it tells a great lesson. Maybe one that we don't necessarily want to hear, but we have to hear it anyway.
Day of the Dead (1985)
Extremely graphic, but a well made movie
Being the third in the series of the "of the dead" series from George Romero, it's not surprising that to me, it's the worst one out of all of them, but it's still good. I absolutely loved Dawn of the Dead, so comparing this to that, it didn't par up at all. Not as much action, not as much humor, and way more gore. I like it most of the time (I'm not a gore hound) but this went way overboard. It was kind of sickening to look at. I would give this movie a lower score if I was comparing it to the others completely, but I'm reviewing it as its own movie. There's not too much action, so if you're looking for that, stay away. The zombies look as great as they ever have, the situation is better, everything just has a great end-of-the-world atmosphere to it. It's mostly believable and it works on all levels. The complaints I had earlier are why I'm giving it a 7. It's a well made movie, but it didn't get a place in my heart like Dawn of the Dead did.
Taxi Driver (1976)
A gripping drama
For me, this was a great movie that displayed how people can get sick of their surroundings and just make them lash out. It showed this at a great pace, but the one thing I can complain about is that I didn't feel an emotional connection to Travis. He never really showed his feelings until the end. He didn't lash out before that. He got a little angry a couple of times but it was understandable and nothing drastic. However, he truly showed his hate and anger toward the citizens and actions around him. He would write in his journal about how this place needs to be washed away. He had great reasons to think so and it showed in the city around him. He didn't seem quite unstable to me until the end again, however. He just seemed like a normal guy who knew that what was going on wasn't right. Still, this movie is a great gripping drama and deserves a watch.
Killshot (2008)
Decent thriller with great cast
Killshot started off to me like it was going to be a gritty action/thriller movie. Then it got into drama. Then into thriller. Then into action. It was all over the place, but only losing interest in a couple of parts. One of my favorite parts, sadly, were the opening credits. The music was great, they introduced each character nicely, and the animations were cool. The cast was great, and I was surprised to see Tom Jane in such a subtle role. Mickey Rourke was the center of attention for me, and him not being one of my favorite actors means that he did a great job in his role. It had a satisfactory ending and overall, it made me feel satisfied that I watched it. It's worth a rent or a see at a friend's house.
The Strangers (2008)
Thrilling and mildly realistic, but too goofed up
The Strangers is one of the more realistic horror/thriller films I've seen recently, but that doesn't mean it's one of the better ones. I really liked how it was built up before the strangers came and got us to sympathize with the characters before the strangers were even around. However, when they started showing up, they added in too many pop-up/jump moments. They were cheap scares and only left me wondering where they were going to pop up next. Other things I disliked were their reactions to things. At first, Kristin got freaked out because she thought people were there. However, once they started making a mess of the house, she only was nervous. Also, at the end, where they're tied to the chairs, Kristin starts screaming 'you don't have to do this' and yelling stop and don't and whatever. Then when the strangers start stabbing James she barely reacts, just nuzzles her face against his. This was upsetting. It was like she was saying 'oh better him than me first.' Still, it was thrilling and somewhat enjoyable. Check it out if you're bored sometime.
Son of Rambow (2007)
A personal to-the-heart movie
Son of Rambow was an extreme surprise to me. I loved it on so many levels. It brings back nostalgia and makes me feel like a kid again because I have always been fascinated with video cameras and I've always loved to make little homemade movies. Exploring and making a world for myself has also been a big part of me. Will has an incredible imagination and runs wild with ideas and creations of his own and makes the world his own little masterpiece. He befriends a troublemaker, Lee Carter, and they decide to make a movie together. People who want to see some big blockbuster CGI movie should stay away from this one, this is a movie all about creating your own adventures and stories. It's about the passion of movies. This movie, on a personal level, is one of my favorites. It's extremely touching and sentimental, and to tell the truth, I was teary eyed at the end. It brought back some fond memories of my childhood and I will always hold this movie near my heart. Perfect for anybody who wants to feel like a kid again.
Give 'em Hell Malone (2009)
Tons of fun!
Thomas Jane, in my opinion, is one of the most underrated actors of this generation. He's not in much, but what he's in, he takes the whole film to himself and writes his name all over it. He's pretty brilliant. This consisted in Give 'Em Hell Malone. He was Malone and no one could have fit it better. This movie in my opinion was the sequel to the 2004 Punisher I never had. It had a lot of similarities (his family died, he gets revenge, he kills a lot of bad people, he drinks whiskey, he lives in a mediocre apartment, etc) and had the same amount of enjoyability. This was an extremely fun movie just because of all of the action and humor in it. Everybody fit into the movie greatly and even though the story was mediocre and bland, I still cared about it because of all the fun I had watching it. It's the perfect length for anybody who wants to have a great time watching a violent, grindhouse-style, hilarious movie. 8 out of 10.
Inception (2010)
Extremely thought-provoking
What do our minds tell us when we see something we don't want to see? We wish they were dreams, just made up images caused by chemicals in our brains. Dreams are extremely powerful, and this was displayed in Inception with great force. It shows what can happen and what can't happen with our thoughts; things we want to see, things we don't want to see, and things we have to see. They also conjure up our imagination more than anything in our lives can force to do. We create our own little worlds and certain things happen in those worlds. All of this is pretty much explained in the film and it keeps your interest extremely well. All of the situations and different places and things that happened throughout the movie really showed how powerful dreams and our imaginations are. The performances didn't par up with the great story telling and production value but they were still great nonetheless. I highly recommend this movie to anyone to wants to think deep and to be taken into another world for 2 1/2 hours.
Best in Show (2000)
Decently funny and amusing
This isn't really one of those comedies that makes you crack up, it's one of those comedies that's fun to watch. Fred Willard was the highlight of the film being one of the commentators for the show and made me laugh with every line that came out of his mouth. Every character was defined and fun to watch but I disliked the couple with the braces. They would freak out over everything and it's supposed to be funny, but it really isn't, it just makes you feel bad that the dog has to go through that. The movie had a satisfying ending, where it wrapped everything up with every character. Overall, if you're wanting to see a different kind of comedy or you just want to spend an hour and a half exactly watching something amusing, check it out.
Quarantine (2008)
Suspenseful and scary
I've been wanting to check this one out for quite some time and I finally got the time to sit down and watch it. I wasn't expecting greatness, but I got a lot more out of it than what I was expecting. This movie actually made me SCARED. I haven't had a horror movie do that to me in quite some time. It was very suspenseful, and I constantly had butterflies or whatever you will call them, in my stomach. The gore was satisfying and not over the top; it made it feel realistic. The acting was pretty superb for a horror movie, usually they scream once and then just stay nervous but here they were having breakdowns and it was great. The only problems with the movie were the annoying camera angles (sometimes it was zoomed in at awkward places and it got blurry often) and the lazy and sloppy ending. It felt just thrown together at the last minute. It didn't make much sense and it was dissatisfying to me. If you're in the mood to actually be scared again, then this movie is for you. It's pretty good.
28 Days Later... (2002)
Original, but not my type of zombie movie.
28 Days Later might not be what you expect. Yeah, it's got a lot of action, but it's not your typical zombie movie. There aren't towns full of them, which is a change, for better or worse. In my opinion, it was an original change, but I wasn't all for it. It barely shows any gore or blood and when it does, it shows it for maybe 5 seconds. This was dissatisfying, but good for people who want to start out with a zombie movie that isn't guts flying all over the screen for 2 hours and still keeps an R rating. My favorite part about the movie was Cillian Murphy starred in it. He's not only a great actor, but one of my favorites. It sucks he's not in too much. He's an underrated actor just like Thomas Jane. What's really crazy about this movie is the zombies are moderately smart. They're full of energy and they usually know what to do. Also the military people turning on the main characters was a good choice, with the whole world ending and all, or whatever you want to think of it as. So to wrap it all up abruptly as to not make this review too long, it's great for people getting into horror movies, and great for people who want something a little different.