Movie Reviews

Ok today I have two in theater and two DVD reviews.

First I went to Sherlock Holmes yesterday not expecting much. That was just from the previews, not even realizing that it is a Guy Ritchie film. It was, as the previews suggested a bit over the top on the action. Despite that it did work well with the story even if the action was only put in to up box office receipts. I liked this film. If you set aside the Holmes mystery angle, it all works on the strength of the main actors selling you on the story. Though I don't believe Robert Downey, Jr is particularly smart, I know him to be a brilliant actor and he played the part as it needed to be played to look smarter and translate well to the target audience.

All in all it is an action Holmes that is a fun ride as long as you are not looking for a hardcore thought provoking Doyle/Holmes mystery.

Avatar however... humans go to Pandora trying to take the unobtainable. The world is pretty, the female aliens are sensual and all their willowy assets are well displayed, but don't look for the story to be any deeper or smarter than that. Also don't expect the human or CG characters to be particularly expressive actors.

Rented Worlds Greatest Dad. Bobcat is as weird as he ever has been. It is an interesting film. You really have to be in the mood for a truely raw film experience to watch this one.

The Hurt Locker doesn't seem to flinch. However if you remotely human, you will. It is a good movie, however it is a bit dry. You follow a bomb disposal unit in Iraq as they count down the days to their rotation out. If you keep yourself well informed about the world around you, this will not surprise you, if not then it might open your eyes to a small segment of what is going on over there.

We also rented Observe and Report thinking it was a Paul Blart with a harder edge. Nothing could be further from the truth. Seth Rogen takes us on a bizarre (and often painful) journey of a mall security guard... er head of mall security. It is a dark and sometimes brutal comedy that makes Pineapple Express look somewhat tame by comparison. If you are a big Rogen fan, see it.