She's Out of My League

Jessie's thoughts:

3 pops

You know, this movie was actually quite a bit more entertaining then I expected it to be. It was incredibly predictable in some ways, but that’s to be expected with this type of movie I think. It was very funny in an extremely-awkward-make-you-squirm-in-your-seat type of way and it had me laughing through pretty much the entire movie.Jay Baruchel, Kirk, was perfect as the awkward geeky guy with the hot girl. You actually could almost believe that he could get a girl as gorgeous as Alice Eve, Molly. And T.J. Miller was hilarious as Stainer, Kirk’s best friend. He actually pretty much stole the show for me. Every scene that he was in I was just laughing the entire time. I don’t remember ever seeing him in anything before this, but he really needs to be in more movies.Overall, I think this was a great disposable comedy. It’s one of those movies that if you’re in the mood for a good laugh without a lot of deep, convoluted story-lines then it’s absolutely perfect. It was definitely entertaining and, although I probably wouldn’t see this one a second time, it was worth watching.

Adam's thoughts:

3 pops

So this movie was alright, especially if you like those romantic comedies. Be warned it’s a little raunchy, but if your girl doesn’t mind that and has a sense of humor that works with that then this movie is perfect for date night. I found myself laughing through the whole movie. A good sign. I’ve watched some funnier movies but this one held its own. The actors were perfect, and it really touched the hearts of those guys out there that are the "average joes” There were some new faces, like T.J. Miller who played a guy named Stainer. The dude was almost the funniest one of the bunch and I was glad to see some other comedians making their light. Jay Baruchel did a wonderful job in the spotlight and Alice Eve is just plain hot. I was impressed with both of them even if the film wasn’t everything.
What I didn’t like about the movie was you never had the usual structure. Usually a movie goes: guy meets girl, guy falls for girl, problem happens and guy and girl can’t be together, guy chases girl down. This one went through a bunch of hoops and several problems happened. And there was more then just the guy chasing the girl down. Now that isn’t so bad but I felt like the ending was rushed. It was too quick and chaotic to really be believable. I don’t usually watch movies to believe them but when you have the concept of the average joe getting with Miss Beautiful you tend to want something closer to realistic. Overall, though, if this is the only thing I can say bad about the movie then it wasn’t that bad at all.
Go see it, you'll laugh.
Now to go find MY hot girlfriend. I wonder if Alice Eve is available...

Top 5: Comedy

Jessie's thoughts:

5. Buffy the Vampire Slayer – I absolutely love this movie. I don’t know for sure that the exact classification is a comedy, but every time I watch this movie I laugh through like the whole thing. It’s got just the right amount of stupidity and cleverness to make it truly funny and enjoyable. Plus, Kristy Swanson was just awesome as Buffy.

4. Billy Madison – Adam Sandler as a spoiled rich kid that has to go back through each year of grade school. Need I say anything else? Adam Sandler is one of the most talented comedians ever. He’s amazing and I have yet to see a movie of his that I haven’t found hilarious, but this is for sure my favorite of his.

3. Superbad – This movie brought back so many memories of how high school should have been… except for the whole geeky boys that are incredibly awkward thing. But anyway, this movie was hilarious. I had to pause it at parts because I was laughing so hard that I was missing stuff. It definitely brought back the feel of high school and how you wish you could have ended things. Plus, who doesn’t love a 25 year old organ donor from Hawaii named McLovin? I mean, that’s just awesome.

2. The Hangover – Ok, this one is actually more of a tie with my number one. I couldn’t decide whether this or the other should be number one so I just kind tossed a coin and this is where this landed. I can’t even explain to you how bad my stomach hurt after I watched this. I laughed non-stop throughout the entire thing. And then, after it came out on video, I watched it again and laughed even harder because I knew what scenes were coming up. Awesome, awesome movie. Especially because all of us have had, or should have at some point, one of those nights where you wake up the next morning and think, “What the hell happened last night?”

1. Pineapple Express – If you have not seen this movie yet, what are you waiting for? This movie was the reason that James Franco and Seth Rogen are now my favorite actors. Who knew James Franco could be funny? Him and Rogen were just incredible in this. They had such good chemistry with each other and they just played off of each other so well. Such a great comedy, you really need to go rent it. Just be prepared to laugh for the entire two hours.

Alice in Wonderland

Jessie's thoughts:
5 pops

What can I say about this really? Tim Burton is a freakin genius and I absolutely love all of his work and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There are two of my favorite books so it’s no surprise that I loved this movie. It was exactly what I would expect from a Tim Burton version of this classic tale. It was a little bit creepy, had beautiful imagery, a little bit innocent and an incredibly unique take on a story that was not necessarily meant to be a fairy tale. The way that Lewis Carroll describes Wonderland was not the utopian version that you see in Disney’s first Alice in Wonderland movie. Tim Burton actually got it a little closer to the book with his darker, yet still beautiful, portrayal.

In addition to the beautiful imagery, the acting was incredible. I mean, yeah, it was just amazing. Mia Wasikowska was absolutely perfect as Alice. She had the innocent, somewhat naïve, but still strong thing absolutely down pat. Johnny Depp, of course, was incredible as the Mad Hatter. He is one of the very few actors that are actually able to become his character and not just play a part. However, I think he was for once given a run for his money by someone else in the movie. Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen was perfect. I mean, she was just amazing and I don’t really know how else to describe it. Anne Hathaway, though I doubted her at first, was also great as the White Queen. The casting was just incredible. They definitely had the perfect actors for this movie and the casting was a lot of what made this movie so wonderful.

I definitely think this is a must-see for everyone. I think that adults will enjoy it just as much, if not more, than kids. It is absolutely perfect for all ages. Even if you aren’t a huge Alice in Wonderland fan, I still think that you’ll like this movie simply because of the incredible imagery and acting in it. I do agree with Adam, however, on the fact that you don't necessarily have to see it in 3D. The 3D thing didn't really make too much of a difference to me and ultimately just gave me a headache. But, it was a great movie and will definitely be one that I add to my DVD collection as soon as it’s available.

Adam's thoughts:
4 pops

Okay the above score is 'interesting’ because we ended up seeing this movie in 3D and I’m not sure if the score should be adjusted based on if you see it in 3D or not. Burton did a fantastic job, as he always does, in turning a kid’s cute story and twisting it into something a bit more dramatic. It’s the classic story we all remember but far more interesting than before. The 3D was cool, but I don’t think you have to see this movie in 3D. Not like Avatar where 50% of the reason you watched it was for the 3D environment. No, Wonderland could be seen on the regular screen and you would get just as much enjoyment out of it. Depp was excellent as the Mad Hatter and he alone might be the biggest reason to see this movie. The man has an ability of playing multiple roles and in this he needed that skill. The special effects were well blended with the real actors making it seamless. The story still held on to its classic roots but was much more in depth allowing you to really feel like you were seeing it for the first time. All in all this movie is a must see and forking over the extra money to see it in the theater is definitely worth it. As far as whether or not you see it in 3D is up to you. I think movie companies these days stick the 3D tag on a movie just to earn a few extra bucks when in reality you don’t need it at all.

If anything you could always keep those big 3D Imax goggles and scare your neighbors when you get home.

Classic Movie Review: The Boondock Saints (1999)

To celebrate the 10th Anniversary of The Boondock Saints, there are a few theaters across the country that are having a special screening of the original movie on March 11th. If you haven’t seen this movie yet, you really need to go buy your tickets now! Even if you have already seen it, this is an incredible opportunity to see this amazing movie on the big screen once again so go get your tickets. Also, the sequel, The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, will be out on DVD March 9th.

Jessie's thoughts:
5 pops

The first time that I watched The Boondock Saints, I was astounded. This was one of the best movies that I had ever seen and yet it had been out for 5 years and I’d never heard of it before. It was such a well-done, unique movie and yet it was not a hit at the box office at all. In fact, it was not even on the box office radar. It wasn’t until after this movie came to video that it became such a big success purely through word of mouth.
Now, I have to say, one of the reasons that I love this movie as much as I do is because the acting is just incredible. This movie was such a low-budget film and yet you really wouldn’t know that from watching it. Norman Reedus and Sean Patrick Flanery play Murphy and Connor McManus and the first time that I watched this, I actually thought that the actors were Irish. They do the accents so well and you really, truly can believe that they’re brothers except that they don’t really look anything alike. Willem Dafoe, David Della Rocco and Billy Connelly are also big players in the movie and they’re amazing. I honestly don’t think there’s one person in this film that did not do an incredible job.
Plus, the movie really has everything that you could want in a film. It is definitely an action flick, but there is just the right amount of comedy in there as well. It’s funny enough that at times you will for sure be laughing out loud, but there’s not so much that it takes away from the more serious plot line. I definitely think that there’s something in this movie for everyone.
But, even though I absolutely love this movie, there are a couple of things that I didn’t really like but they are so insignificant that they really just don’t matter that much. I just feel like I have to throw them out there to be fair to this review. First of all, what two brothers do you know that dress identically all the time? I get that they probably did that so you would know that they are twins since it doesn’t ever actually say that in the movie, but it really is a little weird and it kind of got on my nerves just a little. And, as a friend of mine pointed out to me, it’s not super realistic on the way that it portrays the Catholic church. That really isn’t a huge deal to me since I’m not Catholic and I don’t really know that much about the religion, but you may want to keep that in mind if you are.
Other than those little things, though, this movie is amazing. It’s a definite must-see for everyone, I believe. Although, you might want to let the kids sit out on this one since there’s a lot of violence and a lot of language. It is for sure a cult classic that has made it’s way on to my favorites list and will be there pretty much forever.

Adam's thoughts:
5 pops

What can I say? This is my all time favorite movie. You all know I have nothing but praise for it. If any of you have been a friend of mine you’ll know how much I like this movie by how often I recommend it. It is a must see for anyone who has never seen it. The movie went back to how movies used to be done. Not a whole lot of special effects just plain good acting and an awesome story. The acting was well done by the two main characters. There was chemistry there that you could see and feel. Besides Willem Dafoe is in this movie as a gay cop. That’s just awesome!

Troy Duffy wrote and directed this movie and you could tell he went for a style unlike anyone else’s. I agree with my cohort that it doesn’t portray the Catholic Church correctly. It doesn’t portray it at all! There is maybe ONE scene where they are in a catholic church and then the rest of the movie is about the two on there quest to rid the world of evil as God's hand. Who cares if it didn’t get the religion correct? It wasn’t about that. It was about good men fighting evil men because they should. The fact that they were Irish only gave it style. True, the brothers dressed a lot alike but I think this fact only unified their coolness. Don’t get me wrong though, I’m kind of a closet geek and if me and my little brother went on a mob hunt with automatic weapons I’d INSIST on wearing identical clothing and sunglasses. We’d also have to smoke.. That’s a must.

So this movie had its cultish quirks but I think it gave the movie the needed style to set it apart. Not to mention that the story and the acting make this movie top notch. The comedy comes in as realistic as possible. Think about it, you're out with some friends at a house, your drinking…. A LOT! There is semi-automatic weapons on the table in front of you, an annoying cat is licking up some mess on the table nearby, your pissed for being underappreciated at your job, you slam your hands on the table pissed off and oops one of the guns go off and the cat is dead. I could SOO see that happening in real life. All the comedy is well placed.

I really don’t have anything bad to say about this movie. No negatives at all. Go see it and if you don’t then you’re a dummy. Really… who wants to be a dummy these days.

Now I’m off to go buy a matching jumpsuit and sunglasses with my brother, Jake.

The Crazies

Adam's thoughts:
3 pops

I know that 3 out of 5 seems a bit average, but this movie was not that bad. It has some very good qualities. Especially if you like that survivor horror movie you get from most zombie flicks. But, that’s the problem. When looking at this movie I can not find any unique aspects to it. Granted, we’re not dealing with zombies which was a nice change but it still had that feel of the end of the world and people dieing and turning. There were still plots of a survivor being infected and the small group getting taken out one at a time. Now that doesn’t mean this movie wasn’t good. If you enjoy these types of gory movies then you’ll enjoy this one as well. The acting wasn’t bad and there were some heart pounding moments as far as a scary movie is concerned. I just felt when looking back at all the other movies of this genre that I wasn’t really seeing anything that wasn’t already done by another movie. Maybe I’m just spent on this kind of film. So in my opinion you don’t have to go to the theater to see this. But if it’s a rainy Saturday night with your loved one and you want to see a flick, this one is the one to rent. It's gory, it's action packed and it’s not slow at all. The movie takes on a pace that gets it right into the end of the world very quickly. The only other thing that disappointed me was it bought into that similar gimmick all movies fall into these days, a cliffhanger for a sequel. I don’t mind sequels but I also don’t think every single movie needs to be put in a series. I think that’s just a way for the movie producers to keep making money off the franchise. What happened to the good old classic movies that were one in the same? Also I’m tired of seeing re-makes. That isn’t a slam against this movie, though, because although it’s a re-make the, original is so damn old no one knows what it is and when it was made the budget was so low that the movie just wouldn’t be that enjoyable today. This one was a good choice to re-make. Well I think my rant for this one is over. Now time to go rock myself back and forth in a corner and paint my face with a crayon.

Jessie's thoughts:
4 pops

I loved this movie and I’m so not even going to pretend like I didn’t. It was very suspenseful, very creepy, fairly unique and incredibly entertaining. There was not one moment that I was bored at all. There were a few parts that were definitely cheesy and kind of stereotypical, but whatever, it was still good. And I just have to say that the use of the music was amazing and I loved that it wasn’t the typical thriller music that you’re used to. There were actually scenes that gave me goosebumps because the music just fit so well with what was going on.
Now, I’ve never seen the original of this movie so I don’t know how to compare this re-make with it, but I can definitely say that this was very, very well-made. For all of the zombie movie lovers out there, you’ll definitely want to see this one. The people aren’t actually zombies but they’re close enough. I think that this was definitely a good pick for a re-make. Unlike Adam, I love it when they re-make old scary movies as long as they improve upon the original and don’t make it seem like a spoof.
I think that if you enjoy the survivor, zombie-ish, almost post-apocalypse type of genre then you should definitely see this one and I really don’t think that you’ll be disappointed. If you’re not so into the gory blood and guts type of thing, though, this one probably is one you should skip. Alright, I’m off to go take the crayon away from Adam and slap him back into reality... again.