October 24, 2009

  • Movies I've Seen Recently...


    Where The Wild Things Are  (2009)  B+

    The first thing I was thinking about after I saw the film adaptation of Maurice Sendak's children's book "Where The Wild Things Are" as directed by Spike Jonze, was who the target age group of this movie was. You'd think it's a kid's movie about big fluffy stuffed animal type creatures, but the melancholy nature of the whole film is something only a mature audience can really appreciate. Trying to describe this movie, I would say that it's an artsy, poetic, and endearing film about a child's imagination. I thought this movie really captured what it's like to be a child that escapes into make believe, because the real world can feel so lonely at times. Max Records does a wonderful job playing the trouble making, attention craving boy, who after going too far acting like a brat, runs away from home, and finds a fantastical island filled with these talking wild beasts. From there, we experience inventive adventures that a child would create, except that these beasts have social and emotional problems that's grounded in reality. One can even look further into how these "wild things" are actually representative of Max's emotions, personalities, feelings, and people he knows. "Where The Wild Things Are" is a thought provoking, imaginative, beautiful film, that's definitely worth experiencing.


    Black Dynamite  (2009)  B+

    As parodies about the blaxploitation films of the 1970s goes, "Black Dynamite" is definitely spectacular. The real strength (or weakness) here is the fact that this movie plays the genre straight, and makes it feel very authentic as a low budget poorly made B-movie of that era, complete with the over saturated color scheme look, lousy acting, the sounds / music of that era, gratuitous violence / nudity, bad editing, and an over the top plot hole heavy story (you won't believe the final fight scene). All these "mistakes" are what makes this movie funny. I admit that the humor of this film can feel a little too much like an inside joke, like being able to see the boom mic at the top of the screen, to cars catching on fire from a crash... just because. If you do get the jokes though, you'll find this movie to be quite hilarious and fun. If anything else, this movie has created a terrific action star, that you can imagine will be remade "for modern times" years from now. Black Dynamite as played by Michael Jai White is that action star, complete with a profile that includes formerly being in the military, a womanizer, a philanthropist, and a master of kung-fu. You know he is badass if he knows kung-fu. "Black Dynamite" is simply a very entertaining film worth checking out. So don't be a sucka, you jive turkeys. Ya dig it?


    The Great Buck Howard  (2009)  B+

    I think it's undeniable that John Malkovich is a fantastic actor, and he once again gets to showcase his talents in the title role as "The Great Buck Howard;" a character inspired by The Amazing Kreskin. From the larger than life personality, the catch phrases, to particular quirky mannerisms, Malkovich creates a character to remember. This movie also focuses on Colin Hanks' character Troy Gable, as a smart but unhappy law school drop-out, who is trying to find a life that will make him happy. That's something we can sympathize with, but is being a road manager for an entertainer who is past his limelight the path Troy should take? Troy is simply trying to find his purpose in life, and while this particular job is suppose to be just a stepping stone, he does get to see his goal reflected on Buck Howard's life. That's the basic theme of the movie, people doing something they are good at, even if the rewards are small. The story itself follows a period of time when Buck Howard is trying to resurrect his career, which I found very interesting to watch. Now even though this plot really isn't unfamiliar to many, you should be invested enough to want to see how it ends. I found "The Great Buck Howard" as directed/written by Sean McGinly to be quite a charming and entertaining film that's definitely worth watching.