ShempMyMcMalley Reviews

Nietzsche and the Nazis (2006)

Nietzsche and Naughty Nazis

[6/10 · 6 February 2012]

This is a documentary in which the camera barely pans or zooms and consists of Professor Stephen Hicks lecturing directly to the lens with varying backdrops and is intermittently spliced with historical photographs or art works from the time of the Renaissance. It's best broken down and seen in its three parts, as it's very dense and comprehensive, they include: 1) National Socialism (and Collectivism vs. individualism) philosophy and how the Nazis took over democratic Germany in early '33, 2) Nietzsche's background and works such as 'Beyond Good and Evil' and 'The Will to Power', and 3) arguments for and against how/if he influenced Nazism. The first part is an excellent and thorough explanation of how a country slowly fell into a horrendous situation. Moreover, a lot of the info on Nietzsche and his philosophy is good too, however, Hicks fails to mention how Nietzsche's sister Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche manipulated some of his last unpublished work, 'The Will to Power', changing lines, adding text and rearranging the chronology to appease members of the Nazi party. In the '60's, Mazzino Montinari and Giorgio Colli rearranged and put back chronologically what was Nietzsche's final work, seemingly, and maybe Hick's argument is from this reference edition, however, the fact he fails to even mention this relationship with his sister to the Nazis renders his argument philosophically weak. He argues in philosophical terms, so it is legitimate to henceforth critique it so; it is the Informal Fallacy of False Cause. I will be generous on this one with six stars just 'cause the first two hours are very interesting. The third could be called highly questionable.

Imperial Grand Strategy (2006 Video)

It's All about the Chomsky's....

[7/10 · 23 January 2012]

Yes, this is a couple of lectures and an interview in which production values leave something to be desired. I have read reviews of people writing they had a hard time staying awake or paying attention (is it really that hard to pay attention to someone simply speaking for awhile??), but the production is easily tolerable. Moreover, the content within is exceptionally informative (although sometimes a little dated) and supersedes the aforementioned faults. I heard everything just fine and was so entranced by Chomsky's substance (and occasional sarcasm) time went quickly and I was justly rewarded. This should be required viewing for every American as intellectual Chomsky challenges/questions modern media and written history with compelling examples (see one of his books to see just how believable and thorough his footnotes are). It is not a matter of bipartisanship or the right or the left, but a matter of imperialist (almost feudalistic) corporate and governmental enterprises pulling the strings of countries all over the world, sometimes creating oppressive dictatorships. Topics include Monroe Doctrine philosophy, currency control, Neo-Reaganites within the current administration, Geneva Convention violations and much much more. Watch this!!!

Karla (2006)

Leaves, it Alone

[4/10 · 26 January 2011]

Well, I have written reviews about people wrongly convicted, as in the movie "The Trials of Darryl Hunt" (a must-see), a scary discourse on a sometime court procedural. And now conversely, a comment about someone rightfully convicted. However, she didn't nearly get her due behind bars. So I guess that's not so "rightfully." Hence, I guess sometimes 'justice' (whatever that word means) - is like the wind and leaves. On any given day, it scatters about to and with the whim of the day.

As a movie, this has the feel of Lifetime or the Hallmark channel written all over it. It is basically Karla at her eight-year prison mark meeting with a psychiatrist and discussing events from her case in hopes of parole. We see everything in retrospect - as she and the shrink discuss it. Prepon is good and goes through the motions of what this unfortunate script requires. I recommend watching a documentary rather than this dramatization. It is better towards the end, but with all the movies available, unless you're ardently following this case - skip it.

Sidenote: With all due respect to the victims - this can be quite funny in a few spots, but only in the way tragedy borders on comedy. Megalomaniac-psychopath-sociopath-misanthropic Bernardo, GET this, actually thinks he's a rapper. These scenes when he is attempting to rap somewhat place you in a vortex and you're caught in a glazing gaze not knowing what to think or do. I laughed. But in the confusion of blowing leaves - it's not so easy to know what to do.

The Ascent (2010)

Mundane Mountain

[3/10 · 13 November 2010]

I watched this late one night while staying at a hotel in Vientiane, Laos. Needless to say, there wasn't much else on to watch. It played on Star Movies - a Fox movie network and a subsidiary of News Corporation.

I have to say I do indeed have a lot of respect for independent writer-director-producers of film (the budget was approx. $1.5M), but this movie just doesn't work. It says in the 'Fun Facts' that this movie was to be shot in Alaska. However, it was shot near Austin, Texas - and suffers as a result as the mountains shown on screen don't match the ferocity in which the characters speak and act around them, at times laughably so. Hence, the movie would've been better if the setting at least matched the story - or brought a twink of an eyebrow at least.

What follows is quite a trite plot, notwithstanding the problems with the setting. It centers around Emily (Josie Davis), a mountain-climber guide, and her emotional struggles a year after her fiancé's unfortunate early demise. As it happens, she is meant to take a crew of people up a deadly mountain on the one-year anniversary of her fiancé's death. Surprise! They are the naughty outlaws that are responsible for his death. While climbing the mountain (hiking is more like it - there would be no possible need for a guide), they take her hostage and force her to take them to some gold that she and her fiancé had previously found. What follows is at best an illogical and clichéd-to-the-max story - filled with flat and uninspired over-acting and dopey dialogue. It is one of those movies that is so bad, it's fun to watch and laugh at. However, on this budget, I think they did somewhat of a good job.

Ergo, I give it a more-than-fair three stars.

Light Sleeper (1992)

Slight Sleeper

[7/10 · 6 August 2008]

***1/2 Written and directed by Paul Schrader, the screenwriter of 'Taxi Driver', there are similar themes in 'Light sleeper' that echo its predecessor in its urban isolation of the protagonist and the city as a sewer environment. Willem Dafoe is wonderful as a coke dealer on the verge of chartering new territory; he's trying to make sense of his past, as exemplified by his chance encounters with a former flame (Dana Delany) in which he so badly wants to cling, and plans for his future as his boss is moving on from the business. This is a character driven story, and the characters are well-drawn. Willem Dafoe's John Le Tour is a more mature Travis Bickle, past-his-prime, darkly contemplative and endlessly writing in journals trying to find meaning or direction. After beating his cocaine addiction 2 years before and adjusting, can he readjust again, finding semblance? However, as others have mentioned, the film should've ended with him harmoniously? between two Chinese paintings, leaning back on the bed. After that, studio meddling had to have ensued, as the sugary conclusion does not fit. Separate Note: Would some company already release 'Blue Collar' by Paul Schrader and with Richard Pryor already?

eXistenZ (1999)

Are You Game?

[6/10 · 1 August 2008]

'eXistenZ' was released about the same time as 'The Matrix' and comparatively, would best be described as the more indie, strange and surreal. In addition, it is prototypal sci-fi, sure not to disappoint as it raises questions about the nature of reality and technology in such a way that you will most likely leave the film with a somewhat profound idea(s) or thought(s) you didn't have before, and well, that is an admirable goal for a film. Did I say this movie was strange (And that is fine with me.)? Indeed, as players of the organic game system leave existence and enter 'eXistenZ' through a port in their backs connecting to their CNS; finding a Chinese restaurant in the middle of the woods and ordering a dish of lizards, reptiles and other assorted bony oddities and then fashioning a gun and utilizing it from the dish, is standard fare for this game. Of course, at times the viewer doesn't know if they're in the game or not in the game. Or as Character Ted Pikul says, ""Are we playing the game right now?" Well, are we? Or we playing the game within the game? And on and on....An interesting film worth a couple hours.

After Hours (I) (1985)

New York, New York!

[8/10 · 30 July 2008]

'After hours' is classic Scorsese. Young word-processing specialist Paul Hackett, bored of his job, meets a beautiful young lady and gets her number. Later he calls her and treks across town from his posh Eastside NYC apartment to SoHo, in a wry comedic, often nightmarish journey that seemingly won't end, with encounters from a bevy of odd and disenfranchised characters. 'After Hours' is a Kafkaesque nightmare, slightly noirish, and is embodied with Scorsese's signature flares with the camera. These include a P.O.V. shot for a set of falling keys from the keys' perspective and many other, better seen than explained. The direction tight, you may become exhausted with the plight of Paul in just this night. It is said that Scorsese took on this project after the studio shut down his production of "The Last Temptation of Christ" just a few days before cameras were to roll. Well, Paul Hackett, possibly, was to Martin Scorsese at that point: ineffectual in changing his circumstances. Through Hackett, Scorsese could seek to expel his disdain.

Fool's Gold (I) (2008)

Gold?

[2/10 · 21 July 2008]

Dear Powers That Be, Thank you for aptly naming this drivel 'Fool's Gold' as only a fool could find shine or worth in such. I had low expectations and they were met; thank you for making my movie going experience predictable, life sure is full of surprises; as circumstance crisscrossed coincidence a friend stopped by with varying taste in tow and this abominable turd fell into my lap. My lament, I kept inside, as I am a cordial host sometimes found serving lemonade on hot days, but now I must pontificate. Why Powers That Be do you make movies that you (we) know the outcome of, and everything about, before watching? Maybe with rising gas costs this is meant to be more efficient, so we can half-watch while we find ways to work more to make up the difference or find alternative means. No, that can't be. No chemistry, bad dialogue, predictable clichéd script, stilted performances make this sure folly. Thank you Powers That Be. Do you have the real gold?

An Unreasonable Man (2006)

Reasonably unreasonable? Or could these things go 'round and 'round?

[9/10 · 10 July 2008]

'An Unreasonable Man' sure maybe to some or to the sum, however, to badly paraphrase the quote at the beginning of the film, it's going to have to be that way when going against vast popular opinion or a country set possibly in ill-fated contemporary or foregoing ways. The unreasonable man should always be present in time, sound and communal ways: that way we can check ourselves and make sure the emperor has good threads and of course reason, too. That is the way it is has be; or should be. However, I guess it's not that way; and so it goes, but this is not a political diatribe, spread it where they or I may. This documentary, is one of reasonably objective, standard and possible edifying fare; it brings on opponents of the whole 2000/2004 election elicitation, and brings forth the questions or accusations or presumption that Nader had ruined the election for the dems in both respective races. It is a thorough documentary with footage seemingly inclusive of converse thoughts and events, but obviously biased. Even opponents seem to admit not a dime's worth of difference between our two parties. Nader states "and so when people say, 'why'd you do this in 2000?', well I'd say I'm a twenty-year veteran of pursuing the folly of the least-worst between the two parties, 'cause when you do that, you end up allowing them to both get worse, every four years." Very well said. Furthermore, In a supposed free-market, like cheese or milk, let the voter decide. What did Nader owe Gore or Kerry? Let the voter, or the faux-voter, decide, again! Some party's inability to provide the right H'ors deurves might be to blame. Whom did he owe any votes?

Conspiracy Theory (1997)

And the Oscar goes to...

[4/10 · 4 July 2008]

Spoiler Warning: Wow! The same guy that wrote the screenplay for 'Mystic River', 'L.A. Confidential,' and 'Payback' wrote this too? The fact that this trite, obnoxious, ludicrous movie ever got made is a conspiracy theory in and of itself. Earthquakes? There might be an easier way to kill the president. The stultifying ending was obviously tacked on by a studio executive to appease the masses, and the love story is completely inane. Oh yeah, it is tooooo long at 135 minutes. That is the problem with the studio Hollywood system, sometimes, or a lot of times, they like to tinker and add implausibilities; Brian Hegeland's script had to better than this, didn't it?

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

For Once, a Remake Better?

[8/10 · 4 July 2008]

***MAJOR SPOILERS*** Crowe and the kid saw parts of themselves in one another, Bale wanted to please his son, or rather, have him look up to him--and maybe, just maybe--Crowe didn't want the kid to grow up as him--without a good or honorable memory of his father, also at the same time again, emphasizing with Bale too. Remember how Crowe said his dad died over a shot of whiskey, and his mom left after giving him the bible? Maybe this, and his father's legacy, was pivotal in his development as a "ruthless" gunslinger? I think the movie also presented a 'duality of man' theme that maybe sometimes depended on which side of the law and/or land situations these characters were in. Remember the man shot in the beginning who later had been found out to have "killed" the Navajo children, or Bale himself had shot many in the war. This also illustrates this 'duality' and shows that yes, we are all different, but not maybe all that far off. Crowe was so thwarted and angered by his attempt to do 'good' that he shot his gang. He fully realized the boy's, and the boy's father's dream by getting on the train and finally whistling for his horse. Thus, signifying the futility of it, as a manipulation, or false pride being a guide or reinforcement, while at the same time serving as the dream of this young boy. Crowe knows he will escape again, and this is the irony and tragedy of it

Next Stop Wonderland (1998)

Fish in Sea.

[8/10 · 3 July 2008]

(Spoilers) The best way to classify this film would be to say that it is an indie romantic comedy. Going into it, you already know who will end up with whom, as they encounter each other in a multitude of ways, as if fate is knocking on their respective doors. There is a lighthearted theme throughout of destiny versus random events, but that is just part of this talky, at times seriocomic and sardonic, and other times genuinely affecting and somewhat enlightening film. Furthermore, it doesn't matter that you know they will end up together; this is about THAT journey, about fish in sea, or singles in bars, and the painstaking, embarrassing and asinine things we'll do to seek that proverbial 'one' out. It is replete in imagery as well, half the time the characters are in what seems to be The New England Aquarium, including a little side story with a blowfish. Philip Seymour Hoffman is hilarious as Erin's activist ex-boyfriend, lost in his own little idealistic world too. However, in the end, boy meets girl, and they wander from Wonderland Station.

3 Women (1977)

Willie, Millie and Pinky!

[8/10 · 2 July 2008]

I have seen 95% of Altman's films, and I would say '3 Women' is in the upper-middle echelon of his body of work. Stylistically and thematically, it reminds me mostly of his 'Images' from '72. And as others have mentioned, Altman basically derived the film from a dream he had. And yes, this film is like a dream; from the almost Jungian imagery of Willie's murals that are archetypal and could possibly denote the collective unconscious, to the idea that Pinky is basically reborn after falling into the pool(Altman said the water in the movie symbolized amniotic fluid), we are in a virtual dreamscape. Identities are reaccessed, and seem to shift as a barren desert engulfs them. Maybe it is about the cycle of life, as each of the three women, seem to embody some stage, or step on the ladder of life? We are introduced to these characters in a nursing home (where people are again in water), and leave these character's lives, after Millie helps Willie give birth (symbolic possibly of Willie channeling or embodying Millie, or vice-versa) to a still-born. They all only seem to hang out with one man, that being Edgar, and in the end, live together a mesh of each other. But this is a dream. So one interpretation could be as good as the next. Or as irrelevant as the next. However, I wonder what Freud would think?

Heir to an Execution: A Granddaughter's Story (2004)

A Family's Story.

[7/10 · 30 June 2008]

7/10 This is a pretty good documentary, directed by the Rosenberg's blood granddaughter Ivy Meeropol, it covers in more detail the relationship the trial and execution has had on the family, than on the the actual trial and evidence. It is clear and objectively shown that indeed it has had an arrant multigenerational effect and most likely will continue with the director's children. However, important in the film was the revelation of information contained in the 1995 opening of classified government documents (The Venona Papers) which pretty much proves Julius' guilt (guilty of passing secrets, but nothing supposedly as serious as atomic info) and exonerates Ethel. This is presented as a surprise in the film, although this information was revealed nearly a decade before the film had been made. We spend half the film getting to this point, whereas the film would've been much more effective and in-depth if it would've started off at this point. I only say this 'cause the degree to which the guilt, or degree of guilt affects this family's identity, is highly relevant and the major theme of the documentary. This, and Morton Sobell's incomplete answers to the nature of their guilt (he was their co-defendant!!) made the film seem a little more biased than it had to be. The film also in a way martyrizes the Rosenbergs, which is fine if they were innocent, but a sad and unavoidable manipulation if not. Overall, this is slightly nitpickish on my part and anyone interested in this era of history will not be disappointed.

Stealing Home (1988)

A good coming-of -age story.

[6/10 · 26 June 2008]

***/***** I remember watching this movie circa 1990 when I was about 12. Back then I thought this movie was great, so I rented it to see how my frame-of-reference would match up. However, I didn't like it near as much, but it is still a pretty decent movie for what it is. The "tell you how to feel" score is way too much, and if ever a film had too much sentimentality to it, this is that film. Nonetheless, there is something to be said of some of the themes and the way the coming-of-age story is executed. Mark Harmon stars as Billy Wyatt, a washed-up minor league baseball player who receives news that his childhood babysitter and friend Katie, has committed suicide. What follows is his journey home, complete with reflections on his past and his duty of respectively laying her ashes to rest. A lot of the story is in flashbacks, and we see how Billy has come to be--and what his relationship was like with Katie and others. One thing that bothered me, though, is that we were shown this background and story on Foster's character Katie, but we're never told why she killed herself? Overall, a mediocre 100 minutes of entertainment.

The Accidental Tourist (1988)

Taking off and Landing.

[8/10 · 26 June 2008]

Life is makin' Macon Leary leery. After the death of his son, he continues to write travel guides for the weary traveler, advising them in such a way that it feels they've never left home while away. In other words, Macon likes his comfort zones, as he goes through his middle-aged lassitude (similiar to Bill Murray's character in 'Lost in Translation' or 'Rushmore'). Hurt is exceptional here, subtly conveying with facial expressions and the like his inner turmoil. After this film, I had a new appreciation for him, as he proves himself a masterful actor here. As way leads to way, Geena Davis' eccentric dog trainer comes into the picture, and Macon finds himself landing in destinations he could've never predicted. The voice-over narration is great at communicating the metaphors of a man isolated, trying to control his environment and not always being as successful as he'd hoped. But that is at the heart of the film, that is, the fact that our best-laid plans seldom come to fruition.

Snow Angels (I) (2007)

Angels in Despair

[8/10 · 26 June 2008]

7/10 Green's films always kinda reminded me of Altman's films, in some ways, like the naturalistic dialogue and the meandering of it all. "Snow Angels" follows in that tradition, but in the least (as say compared to "George Washington"), whereas this is most encapsulated within conventional genre. I'd say it is about the 'slips' in life(each or most of the main characters at some point 'slip' and fall in the snow literally and at one point the Beckinsale character says in anguish that "life's a f*****' slip!") and their collisions with relationships. Upon a second viewing, I noticed there were about four 'I love yous' that aren't mirrored by who they're said to, and this further underscores some of these characters' anguish. The title (besides the obvious irony), maybe referring to the frustration of these characters, as when you make a snow angel, you put your hands above your head in a repetitive motion, as if to say "I don't know - (how to figure it all out)."

Reservation Road (2007)

Mixed Bag.

[6/10 · 26 June 2008]

***/***** This film had the potential to be truly excellent. The performances by Phoenix and Ruffalo are Phenomenal, and you can almost feel all the guilt, melancholy, loss and suffering vicariously through them as they are besieged by these feelings. However, the screenplay had some very contrived occurrences and coincidences, that kind of took me out of the film and at times left me wondering if I had accidentally stumbled upon the Lifetime Network. Ruffalo's character accidentally hits a young child, then decides to flee the scene. For him and all involved, tumultuous times seem to say, "I have a surprise for you today." Definitely worth the time if you are a fan of either of the aforementioned actors. Added to this, the cinematography is tiptop, with drowned-out color schemes and the like personifying moods and such. In closing, I would have a little reservation recommending this, but overall, it is probably a road worth taking.

Feast of Love (2007)

I'm not hungry.

[5/10 · 20 June 2008]

*Spoilers*: There are a few nuggets of wisdom to extrapolate from this film full of tired, retread formulas, clichéd characters and ridiculous, nonsensical twists and harbinger outcomes; the apex of this film is when Freeman gives his narration or he and Kinnear interact. Some of the preceding writing is pretty decent, unfortunately, the rest of the movie is buried amongst tired plot conventions and impractical character motivations. No better way to underscore this than in the ending where all the now sugary characters of shattered, debauched relationships come together to try to rescue the life of one of their crew. It is one of the most insipid and uninspired things I've seen in a movie in quite a while (you could see this 'surprise' coming a mile away, and why didn't they wait for an ambulance, as a football game had just ended with spectators walking around everywhere before trying to drive through it?). Overall, if you want to see a movie that writer/director Robert Benton made that was truly good, if not great, check out 1979's 'Kramer Vs. Kramer', or 1994's 'Nobody's Fool' with Paul Newman. For now, this feast has me bloated.

Another 9½ Weeks (1997)

Avoid at all costs!

[1/10 · 20 June 2008]

This is for any viewer that may go against their better judgment and watch this, 1: because the first one is pretty decent for what it is, or 2: 'cause Angie Everhart is uniquely attractive. (Quick capsule side-track - less than 3% of the world's XX-chromosomed inhabitants have naturally occurring blonde hair and redheads via genetic fusion will be gone by the year 2100, say some geneticists). I am a member of the latter category (and the first one too, actually). Heed my warning, even if the hottest woman in the world was in this movie, it has no redeeming value whatsoever. It is an incoherent mess of seemingly random scenes shot, and then edited blindly together in an attempt to make a story of it, I don't think an actual script exists. Children could make a better film than this.

Do yourself a favor and tour the stop signs or traffic lights on foot in your local area rather than watching this abysmal turd of a movie.

The Trials of Darryl Hunt (2006)

This is something that happens?

[9/10 · 20 June 2008]

This film is a sweeping, comprehensive and harrowing account of one man's nightmarish journey through a biased, racist and inept justice system. If you liked "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills" or "The Thin Blue Line," this is a movie for you. However, much of the injustice here, conversely, is racially motivated in nature, and like the aforementioned, heaping with negligence and corruption perpetrated by "the man." Not to be taken lightly at all, dear Darryl spent 20 years of his life in prison on the basis of an erroneous conviction. A 1994 DNA test exonerated him 1o years into his sentence, clearing him of rape and murder, yet, North Carolina's courts didn't want to hear it, and Hunt served another 10 years before finally being released in 2004. Truly horrifying. Why aren't some of these corrupt D.A.'s and policemen behind bars - for they took a life, or the better part of one? Overall, this film is fairly presented, is executed exceptionally well and profoundly powerful.

Which begs the question: how many more Darryl Hunts are really out there?

The Dog Who Stopped the War (1984)

A wonderful children's film!

[7/10 · 20 June 2008]

***1/2 Out of ***** While I am not concerned with the fact that this is an English dubbed version as some reviewers have mentioned, it should be noted, as it seems to reside in many Quebecois native hearts. However, this was a movie as a child that I was a fervent admirer of; keeping in mind now that it was made for children, I rate it on a relative basis. The story is of children on winter break building an awesome snow fort, and jostling back-'n-forth for control with weapons such as snowballs and other concoctions, as idle hands and free time equal winter break lessons. If I had children, this definitely is a film I would try and get them interested in, as the snow fort wowed me when I was young, and I think even children today would agree, albeit with Pixar and all the computer animation, maybe I am out of date and just don't realize it. In addition, the movie's message is wonderfully allegorical and a positive one at that, for children (and adults alike).

Body Heat (1981)

It's getting hot in here...

[9/10 · 20 June 2008]

(Possible Spoilers) 'Body Heat' is a complete success as an archetypal neo-noir, with all the classic elements. It is a virtual remake of 'Double Indemnity' of 1944, and in many cases, is just as good. It is said early in the movie that the stuffy and hot temperature can make people do crazy things, and this imagery serves the erotically charged indiscretion between Turner and Hurt very well (this film is what 'Basic Instinct' tried to be). Turner is sultry and seductive as the quintessential femme fatale and a good yin to Hurt's yang, a naive lawyer willing to do whatever it takes to get the girl. Also, possible more importantly, her husband's fortune. But as we know, the scheming noir protagonist's dream seldom takes hold and there are dire consequences. For when Hurt arrives at Turner's house early on, the camera focuses on her many wind chimes shuffling in the wind, as if to suggest that the bells have tolled for him. This film succeeds on all levels: story, acting, direction, dialogue ('Why don't you lick it off?') and the imagery is impeccable. Morever, this is a film that claims to be erotic, and actually pulls it off wonderfully, a rarity when mixed with brains too.

The Visitor (I) (2007)

Well worth a visit!

[8/10 · 16 June 2008]

9/10 (possible spoilers)'The Visitor' is the very well-crafted, slowly and subtly but surely powerful follow-up film to Thomas McCarthy's wonderfully moving, 'The Station Agent', and it is just as much a success, if not more so. Richard Jenkins is a revelation. It is good to see this character actor finally get a leading role in such a soon to be revered film. He plays a recent widower, set in his ways and the rut of his life, mired in malaise and unable to find his beat. Due to his job, he is sent to New York to attend some meetings/conferences and finds some illegal immigrants living in his apartment as a result of a real estate scam. What follows is an elegantly understated, unlikely friendship between he and three others, that if not for the scam, would've never occurred. Tarek and Walter become friends and share a bond as the foreigner teaches Walter the African drum. Troubling, however, is what Walter sees through Tarek and Zainab's eyes. They being Muslims in the post-9/11 New York, Tarek ends up becoming unfairly confined in literal xenophobia. What McCarthy is doing is using the Jenkins character as a microcosm of the state of this country now. Like Walter, the country loses its way when it shuts itself off from other people (and world opinion of America's geopolitics). On another note, I really liked the romance between Tarek's mother and Walter, pitch-perfect and truly heartbreaking. I definitely recommend!!

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

The Hulk of Summer Blockbuster

[6/10 · 16 June 2008]

You've probably read that the movie in some people's opinion is a glorified chase scene for two hours with not much substance and overblown CGI effects. Or you've read that it delivers and The Hulk (franchise?) has been redeemed and that the action scenes are awesome, the pacing good, and The Hulk's roar loud. I would say that the truth, or my opinion, lies somewhere in between. While the CGI is at times egregious and fakely applied, so much so it could possibly take you out of the movie, so is the whole premise of the thing. But it is a comic book movie, and if you can suspend your disbelief for that, it is not too much further a stretch to just take the CGI for what it is: that is, a part of a nicely paced, entertaining chase film, with moderate character development and substance, that happens to be incorporated with comic book characters. The good guys most likely win--barely; and in the sequel we'll find out if the proverbial 'beast' or 'mutant' will be reunited with his 'girl-next-door'. All the while a new villain is making devious and disastrous plans, for what else would a comic hero do if not?