croonies

Sate of Play

2009-06-29T11:25:00.003-06:00

2.5/5

This is an unexciting anti climactic suspense political film that accomplished very little. There was some good acting in it and that is about all the compliments that I can give. I saw it a little over a week ago and I had already forgotten that I had seen this very unmemorable film.

Ben Affleck, Robin Wright Penn, The Queen, and Russell Crowe really pulled together a mediocre story that was more than likely rewritten dozens of times. Oh and the beauty Rachel McAdams, she seems to appear in every film this year, stars as the internet guru journalist dork with no investigative skills.

All I can say is if you want to see it then go see it, but I am warning you that you will forget it.

Why I haven't seen Transformers 2

2009-06-27T10:44:00.001-06:00

I have thought long and hard about this post. I want to describe in detail the things that have led up to this moment.

I haven't put it a priority.

Sunshine Cleaning

2009-06-19T00:57:00.002-06:00

3.5/5

Watching the previews for this movie made it appear to be a comical look into a depressing reality, but it was not. It was a sad story of failure and misfortune, but somewhere amid all the tears, blood, and ashes was a hero. I know I'm talking sappy, but it was a real movie. Insanely well written, and driven not by the events, but by the amazing collection of characters. It delivered what I thought it would.

There were funny parts, but mostly sad parts with funny people. Definitely see this one.

Crank: HIgh Voltage

2009-06-09T10:05:00.002-06:00

1.5/5

I think this is the lowest ranking I have given a movie thus far. It was bad people. It did have one thing that was actually awesome, well awesome if you are a child of the 80's...Corey Haim. And Amy Smart is smoking hot as usual.

It was very much like a video game, which I guess they successfully accomplished, but I couldn't follow the dialogue. I felt like a retard. I wonder if that is how most lay-people feel when they go and see a psuedo complicated plotline with witty dialogue. They feel like they're crashed on an island and trying to find out why strange things are happening, and how to get off said island.

Fast & Furious

2009-05-28T08:54:00.002-06:00

I think I am now the king of the dollar theater. Those are the only movies I go to because I can't afford the real ones.

2/5

Well Fast & Furious was not good. There were some cool driving scenes, but it wasn't as good as Tokyo Drift. I know that isn't saying much, but Han was a freaking cool character. He makes a cameo appearance in this one at the beginning. Still as calm and cool as ever.

The show was about revenge which has some merit, but not much. They pull the ole switcheroo and the stall to keep the tension and to try to keep the audience guessing. I personally think the stall is a cheap gimmick that maybe worked once or twice, but now it's tired like an old grandma.

They use a lot more American muscle than in the previous installments; however, Brian O'Connor (Paul Walker) is still rice fueled.

The story doesn't hold up. for Example there are several instances where the pursuit of Dom (Vin Diesel) is outright dialogued as he is working in his garage at his house. Way to keep up the exhaustive search Feds. It was just too convenient and pretty predictable.

There was one interesting twist that led to 1.2 minutes of action, and then cooled to a chill, and I have to say that I really enjoyed the opening scene, which is basically the trailer.

This movie is worth a dollar theater viewing. Some of you may disagree with me, but then again I am the one writing.

no more free movies

2009-05-27T08:27:00.002-06:00

Redbox has changed their policy so instead of free movies every Monday, they offer a free movie every first Monday of the month. Maybe they saw my blog and realized all the hundreds of thousands of people I was reaching and based solely on my blogs performance decided they needed to make a serious change to policy.
Or they are finally feeling the crunch.

free movies

2009-05-04T17:50:00.001-06:00

All the people in tha house say "ya"
All the ladies in tha house say "hey"
All the lovers in tha house say "free movies"
All the free movies in tha house say "BT73H9"

Gran Torino

2009-04-27T12:24:00.003-06:00

3/5

I didn't have a lot of confidence for this movie going in, but maybe that is why it turned out to be better than I thought.

A hardened man who just lost his wife is learning to deal with life. It's racist, but there are some really funny parts which is surprising. I would have never expected to see humor in this one. It was just about a car in the end though.

FREE MOVIES

2009-04-27T10:08:00.001-06:00

Get your free movie on at RedBox.

4CW33N is today's RedBox code

Bottle Shock

2009-04-22T02:30:00.002-06:00

3.5/5

This was a blind pick. Mostly blind. We were in the mood for a non slow movie and I grabbed this. I saw the preview and wanted to see it, but couldn't let my cohorts know that I had any knowledge of the film.

Based on a true story of the rise of Napa Valley wineries. Modern experimentation with the wine let the Californians do pretty much whatever they wanted in terms of taste blending and re-casking. I don't know squat about wine, even after seeing this and Sideways, but I don't need to.

Jody Savin and Randall Miller, relative no-names, got this thing together and it turned out to be quite a pleasing film. It ranks a lot higher than established writer/directors on my scale.

It has the talent of Chris Pine (Star Trek, Green Lantern, Smokin' Aces) and is turning out to be quite a player in Howood. I knew he was good as a Tremor brother despite his other current features.

Alan Rickman, Bill Pullman, Dennis Farina (Avi from Snatch), Rachael Taylor (hottie Aussie from Transformers), and some sideliners.

It was a fun movie. Check it out.

He's just not that into you

2009-04-22T02:24:00.002-06:00

1/5

Do not go see this movie with a companion.

You will both see the errors of the others ways. I could probably write 5 pages about everything that is wrong with seeing this movie with a significant other, citing examples from "The Screwtape Letters" and comparing Ben Affleck's acting to his brother's, but I am just going to say DON'T SEE THIS MOVIE.

Adventureland

2009-04-21T10:36:00.003-06:00

3.5/5

I really enjoyed this movie. It reminded me of Juno but I liked it better than I liked that catchy, witty, slang pile-o. On Juno briefly - I think it works when there isn't too much of it, but when Devil Coyote pads the film with overuse of sly banter, and I concentrate more on the one liners and could care less about the story, it's problematic and needs to be cut down a bit.

Onto Adventureland. We have Greg Mottola (dir. Superbad, "Arrested Development"), Bill Hader (SNL, Hot Rod, "Tim and Eric", [the man who coined the term "Super Badass"] etc.), Kristin Wiig (2nd Funniest woman), Martin Starr ("Freaks and Geeks" and other Apatow Prod.), Ryan Reynolds (Waiting, Smokin' Aces, The Nines, Just Friends), and Kristen Stewart (Panic Room, Twilight). It was all there. It's not like an Apatow film like the trailer leads us to believe. It's a real story with real things happening. It's not extreme in any way shape or form, but I can guarantee that most of the things that happen in the movie have happened to you.

Check it out. It's on the big screen. You won't regret it.

The Spirit

2009-04-21T10:10:00.002-06:00

3/5

I know there are a lot of haters out there, but this movie wasn't that bad.

People expected Sin City II, and they got punched right in the face by the Octopus. that prankster. The movie is exactly that - a prank on those people who are stupid enough. That's right I am calling you out. It is campy meets noir. Silly meets mystery.

It's not exactly like the original 1940's sections, some characters are combined or removed; like The Spirit's sidekick Ebony White, but they maintained the language, themes, and most of the stereotypes.

The art direction is done in the same style as Sin City...why? I have no idea. Will Eisner is the author of "The Spirit", but Frank Miller (dir. Sin City, authored: "300", "Sin City", "RoboCop 2, 3, &4") only scripted The Spirit. I hope all of his movies aren't strongly contrasted and in the style of The Spirit. It can get old. In this case I wish he had used a lot more color, like the old comics dot matrix used, but still use strong contrasts.

It was good. It's out on DVD and if you tune in on Mondays you can even get it for free.

Paul Blart: Mall Cop

2009-04-21T09:59:00.002-06:00

2/5

I must say that the fact that I went to the movie so late might have an influence on the rating, but it couldn't have reduced it by more than half a point.

This movie had some really funny parts, but for the most part the jokes were predictable, and therefore less funny. I can't say that Kevin James put as much heart into this one as he did into Chuck & Larry or his sitcom "King of Queens". I support Madison Productions in any way, shape, or form and I will say that you should see this just for the drunk scene. And to see the gay son Todd from Wedding Crashers as a normal person. It's hard to imagine I know.

It's in the dollars so it won't be too bruising if you don't like it. And it is going to be on TBS someday I know it.

free movies

2009-04-20T12:09:00.001-06:00

the code is M6FR97
Remember it only works at RedBox

free movie

2009-04-13T12:20:00.002-06:00

manic Monday movie madness.
1.Go to RedBox and hit the rent with a promo code. It only works at the location, unfortunately not online.
2.type in promo code:J89LA2
3.select movie
4.check out.
Repeat process with a different credit card.

Worldmark by Wyndham

2009-04-09T12:17:00.008-06:00

4/5

This is one of the best presentations I have ever been to. I am actually going to call it a theatrical play because everyone that participated on the Wyndham side was an actor.

They stress family values and the importance of "living". One thing that I did note was there was a lot of tragedy that surrounded the actors. Of course they were all of sound mind and body, but the people that came into contact with them were somehow injured, terminally ill, or deceased. It was a web of stories. Very well written to evoke an emotional response, a connection to the actors. It really reached out and grabbed you by the shirt, shook you around and said, "Hey man...do you realize that you don't have a lot of time left. Get it together."

My personal favorite was when Jim (we will go ahead and use real names) was really connecting to the audience. He said three years previous he was wasting away his life (implying that he was an audience member) and that he could not afford to take a vacation for the rest of his life, when his wife turned to him and said, "We can't afford not to."

Then they went on vacation and she got into a head on collision and was comatose for something like 7 days. Is that not heart wrenching? It's emotional and personal.

Intense!

If you want to get a free trip, tell me and I will refer you. You can sit through this theatrical marvel and even interact with the actors as you become the main part of the show, but don't get caught up. It's easy, but just remember that it's all a show.

Blindness

2009-04-08T13:39:00.004-06:00

3.5/5

The fact that it was a Brazilian crew and it was shot primarily in Sao Paulo makes this movie even better.

It was intense. It addresses some serious societal themes. It was a completely different movie than I thought it would be. It was shunned by critics for some unknown reason. Maybe they were expecting a 28 Days Later for the blind, I know I was, but it turned into something that was more human. More real.

Based on a book by the same name, it shows how degeneration and self deterioration consumes a helpless individual. That chaotic poison fills to the brim and spills out as insecurity and violence. Who was it that said, "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering."

Know, I do not.

The story fantastically bridges individual cases to a small population. The struggle of being capable, and for some human desire to have leaders, no matter the size of the scale. Maybe we are born with it, maybe we are brainwashed with it, and maybe we are incapable without it, but the film shows us the ugly side of the instinctual animals we all fear.

If you haven't seen this one, you should check it out.

Changeling

2009-04-07T10:24:00.003-06:00

2/5

That's right. This movie was pretty bad. I am definitely going to blame this on overhyping of what should have been hailed as a mediocre performance, a mediocre adaptation, and a mediocre of mediocrity.

In the first three minutes of the film I couldnt bear the horrible writing of J. Michael Straczynski (Every Babylon 5) and I am actually kind of worried about his adaptation of "World War Z" in 2010. He tried to show too much emotion in too short of time. Within those three minutes we are overwhelmed with this mother's overenjoyment of her oversized child.

As the story continues it just doubles back again. Okay the child is not yours, you are going to have to figure out some other way to get your point across. Blah, blah, blah. It does pick up briefly when the LAPD discovers the kid on the ranch, and when she meets Amy Ryan, but I was horrified that they would even attempt to end this one on a positive note.

"I have something that I didn't have before."

"What's that?"

"Hope."

Well this was hopelessly bad. I am going to blame it on the writing though. It could have been more intense, more emotional.

Free Movies

2009-04-06T12:43:00.001-06:00

The code this week is: TS473G
Remember this only works at RedBox and it only lasts until midnight CDT.

Rachel Getting Married

2009-03-31T12:29:00.002-06:00

3.5/5

This was a movie that was confusing to me. I have never lived in this strange world of addiction and never had to deal with someone who was. I'm sure it hit the nail on the head for those of you who have.

The acting was spectacular and very dramatic. Anne Hathaway did a superb job fighting off the illness and trying to grasp at a reality that was never really hers. I got the point though. She was everyone's reality without her participation. I can only explain what I just said like this; she is watching a play about her life, written from another point of view, a sane, sober point of view, and she can barely recognize the story is about her.

That's how the movie felt. There was a slow progression to her learning. Her new sober family, and sober friends and new sober life were off kilter a spec. Like pants that are slightly twisted. What she finally realizes is that the pants are on straight now and she had always worn them twisted and grown accustomed to that.

So there you go. The movie is about twisted pants and plays.

Free Movie

2009-03-30T10:17:00.002-06:00

Once again its manic Monday movie madness, and you all know that it comes with a RedBox promo code.
"So give me the code already," yells the one reader of the site.
"Okay."
89ZQJ3
Rememer it only works until midnight CDT.
Now go watch a movie.

Revolutionary Road

2009-03-26T14:47:00.002-06:00

3.5/5

Revolutionary Road is the road in which Frank (Leonardo DiCaprio) and April (Kate Winslet) Wheeler reside. I can imagine it brings back sweet memories for some while others have no real recollection of their childhood homes because they have blocked them out. I see suburbia as the latter. And Frank and April Wheeler show us just how wonderfully empty and hollow our "American Dream" really is.

The movie is real and really depressing. America has bought into the lie that a big home, a steady job and a family are everything you could ever want and everything you will ever need. "That's inventory control," as Frank so professionally dictates it.

Free Movies

2009-03-23T11:35:00.002-06:00

Hey its manic Monday movie madness to coincide perfectly with the off days of the tourney.

This weeks code is HG7W56 and remember it only works at RedBox

Now go and watch a movie.

How am I doing?

2009-03-23T03:12:00.002-06:00

I came up with an algorithm to calculate the winning percentage of any one team and their particular rival. It is limited right now, and I just came up with it today so I'm sure there will be some kinks to work out, but it is a more accurate projection than I have seen on ESPN. They run a game computer over 500 times before predicting the percentages. I have a simple formula, but some of the info is a little difficult and not readily available.

Stats is really what I need, but you can't find those bizarre baseball type stats anywhere unless you want to pay for them. The stats that match a pitcher against a batter during a thunderstorm or heat wave...those strange stats. We will see how I do.

Each team is pitted against the other team based on a scale of 1 (or 100 if you move the decimal point); therefore, both teams have an even fight at the 100%.

For example Syracuse has a .475 chance of winning, but OU has a .572 chance. Both teams are individually taken out of 100.

Zags: .529 vs UNC: .600

Duke: .596 vs Vill: .489

Xav: .444 vs Pitt: .580

Mem: .604 vs Mizzou: .442

Purdue: .418 vs UConn: .611

M. St: .556 vs KU: .553

UA: .337 vs L.ville: .649

I am still working on a handicap for some standard deviation or a predictive formula for the possibility of an upset. I cant have another Wake Forest next year.