Dead Letters

Plot: A writer rents a cabin in order to finish his second novel and meets a group of strange characters.

Starring: C. Thomas Howell, Geoffrey Lewis

Review: A completely pointless film. I saw some promise with this film. This could have served as one of those character driven indie films where the lead character learns something about himself and then finishes his book. The acting was great (a great vehicle for Howell); however, by the end of the film I was confused. It didn't really have an ending. Does the writer finish his book? What did he learn about himself? He didn't seem to learn a thing. It just ended up being a well acted student film project. It was just a bunch of vignettes that didn't add up to a full story. There wasn't even a character arch with the writer. Maybe if it had an ending, I would've liked it more. But it didn't, so I don't. It's a shame too, because I was rooting for this film to be a good up turn for Howell's career. At least it shows some nice acting. The music was great though. I'd love to own the soundtrack.

Rating: Writing-D

Acting-A

Directing-C

Music-A

Cinematography-B

Editing-D

Costumes-B

Art Direction-B

Hair-C

Makeup-C

Visual Effects-C

*1/2- Stars

The Princess and the Frog

Plot: Based on the story "The Frog Princess" by E.D. Baker, a young African American woman in Jazz Era New Orleans kisses a frog who claims to be a prince, and then turns into one herself.

Voices by: Anika Noni Rose, Bruno Campos, Keith David, Jenifer Lewis, Oprah Winfrey, Terrence Howard, John Goodman

Review: A sweet, classic fairytale story that harkens back to another time of Disney, the time before computer animation & 3D effects. Being Cajun myself, I really enjoyed the jazz music, the use of the setting of New Orleans, and the use of Voodoo as the magical element in this story. This revamp wasn't racist or pc, it was actually done very well. You never know how Disney is going to treat minorities, given the fundamental belief system of the original Walt Disney. I enjoyed this movie. I understand why it got the Oscar nods and am not surprised it didn't win. It shouldn't have, but I'm glad it was nominated. This film had a really good message about what's really important in life, true love. To be honest, I got teary eyed watching this film. I think it's because the actors were very good and honest in their portrayals. They didn't overact. Anika Noni Rose is amazing. That voice. I'm very happy they went for talent over popularity. I will admit that I got a bit tired of all the music and found myself fast-forwarding through a few. The only great music moments were the intro song and anything sung by Rose. A great family movie. When I say family movie, I mean just that. It's not a laugh out loud riot like Finding Nemo, but it's a nice straight-forward fairy tale done in a very mature way.

Awards:

2010	Nominated	Oscar	Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song Randy Newman For the song "Almost There".
			Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song Randy Newman For the song "Down in New Orleans".
			Best Animated Feature Film of the Year John Musker Ron Clements

2010	Nominated	Image Award	Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture Anika Noni Rose
			Outstanding Motion Picture

Rating:

Voice over-B

Writing-A

Directing-B

Music-B

Animation-B

Cinematography-B

Editing-B

**1/2 Stars

Clash of the Titans

Plot: A demi god named Perseus sets on a dangerous mission to stop Hades and his minions from destroying earth.

Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Alexa Davalos, Izabella Miko, Hans Matheson, Liam Cunningham, Pete Postlethwaite, Elizabeth McGovern, Danny Huston, Alexander Siddig, Agyness Deyn.

Review: What a bastardization of Greek mythology! The original needed an update for one reason only, the Kraken looked like a giant, clay stop-motion animation crab. Our new technology allowed for some incredible visual effects, including a very scary Kraken. Everything else should've stayed the same because you shouldn't change mythology. The Ancient Greeks were arguably our most advanced, intelligent civilization of all time, so what makes you think (you Hollywood) that you can tell a story better than they? The answer is you can't. I'm not going to go into what they changed because they would contain spoilers. I entreat everyone to rent the original movie. It is far superior if you can get past that giant crab. I will comment on the acting, pace, etc. Here are a plethora of great actors listed in this cast yet I don't remember many of them because you sliced and diced their roles to mere scenes. Sam Worthington you ham. It was as if he had wandered off the set of a cop drama and ended up in this movie. He was way too modern in look and mannerisms. Everyone else felt like ancient people or divine beings except for him. This movie is called clash of the titans. So where were the titans? The entire story was left out of the film. You can't just leave an entire chunk of a story out and expect a few lines of dialogue to fill that void. You need to show it. The entire driving force of the movie lies in the "Clash". The final sequence was such an incredible letdown because there were way too many battle scenes up to that point that the final scene was anti climactic. This was an unintelligent film made for thirteen year old boys.

Rating: Writing-F

Acting-C

Directing-C

Music-B

Cinematography-B

Editing-F

Costumes-B

Art Direction-B

Hair-C

Makeup-A

Visual Effects-C

BOMB- no stars- Worst movie of the year so far

The Blind Side

Plot: True story of a wealthy, white Tennessee family taking in and adopting a poor African American teenager who eventually gets drafted into the NFL. True story of Michael Oher.

Starring: Oscar winner Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Quinton Aaron, Ray McKinnon, Kim Dickens, Oscar winner Kathy Bates.

Review: A unique sports film told from the point of view of a woman, the adopted mother of Michael Oher. This is a great family film, but I still don't understand the Oscar win. It was nominated for Best Picture. Why? It was certainly above average and unique in terms of narration for a sports film, but it wasn't Oscar worthy. There is only one reason Sandra Bullock won Best Actress. She'll never be nominated again. She just doesn't pick roles that challenge herself enough to be nominated. She was good in this role, but she wasn't exceptional. She didn't do anything different than what I've seen her do in plenty other movies, including Hope Floats. The role where she really stood out was her role in Crash. Carey Mulligan of An Education got robbed. Now that I got that out of my system, I will step off my soap box and get back to the review at hand. Oh, never mind. There's really nothing more to say. It was happy, moral, and touching. It wasn't artful or that original, but it was a solid blockbuster film and an above average sport's film. Definitely give it a look. I do recommend it. I might watch it again. We own it now because my husband really liked it. It was good, but I'm not standing up about to do a wave for it.

Awards:

Academy Awards, USA
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2010	Won	Oscar	Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Sandra Bullock
	Nominated	Oscar	Best Motion Picture of the Year Gil Netter Andrew A. Kosove Broderick Johnson

Image Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2010	Nominated	Image Award	Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture Quinton Aaron
			Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture Sandra Bullock
			Outstanding Motion Picture
			Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture (Theatrical or Television) John Lee Hancock

Rating: Writing-B

Acting-B

Directing-B

Music-B

Cinematography-B

Editing-A

Costumes-A

Art Direction-A

Hair-A

Makeup-B

Visual Effects-B

**1/2 Stars

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

Plot: A cop descends into more and more corruption after he becomes an addict. Sister film to the ‘92 film Bad Lieutenant

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Eva Mendes, Val Kilmer, Fairuza Balk, Xzibit, ShawnHatosy, Jennifer Coolidge, Tom Bower, Brad Dourif, Michael Shannon, Vondie Curtis-Hall

Review: Dark, searing, twisted morality tale that takes you deeper and deeper into one corrupt cop's life. With everything from low crawling camera motions to hallucinogenic iguanas, this film is one part addict story, one part cop drama, and one part Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. It was a twisted, bumpy, fun ride that I never want to take again. You find yourself rooting for a man you shouldn't root for, which makes you either want to have a drink or take a shower when the movie's done. It was, however, very well made. The camera, music, and city of New Orleans all served as secondary characters. Eva Mendes was wonderful in a very complex, vulnerable role I've never seen her in before. Nicholas Cage was crazy good, which is not something I say often about him. Val Kilmer is always good no matter what role he plays. I don't want a drink, and I've already taken a shower today. I guess Project Runway will have to wash the Bayou stench off me.

Awards:

Independent Spirit Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2010	Nominated	Independent Spirit Award	Best Cinematography Peter Zeitlinger

Rating: Acting-A

Writing-A

Directing-A

Music-A

Cinematography-A

Editing-A

Costumes-A

Art Direction-A

Hair-A

Makeup-A

Visual Effects-A

*** Stars

Gentleman Broncos

Plot: A comedy about a famous author stealing a teenage writer's novella and publishing it.

Starring: Michael Angarano, Jemaine Clement, Jennifer Coolidge, Sam Rockwell, Mike White.

Review: Awkwardly hilarious, and I mean that in a good way. This movie made me laugh the same way Napoleon Dynamite did, out of nowhere and at the oddest moments. I love that. This movie was so original. The fact that it's an Indie film really worked with the script instead of against it. The B-movie quality of the special effects helped sell the comedy. Getting Sam Rockwell to play such a small role in an Indie film where he couldn’t be bought off with a fat paycheck, really speaks to how good the writing is. The movie within a movie is what sent it over the edge. The audience actually gets to see both the original story by the boy and how the author changes a few things and robs it of its meaning. It was funny, odd, original, and one of the few independent films I've seen with a happy ending. Be prepared for this odd brand of funny before you watch it, however. Pop in Napoleon Dynamite or The Weatherman to get you into that weird mindset if that helps. If you're into sci fi, trannies, Alan Rickman's accent, or just want to see a unique, funny movie, then Gentleman Broncos is for you.

Awards:

Independent Spirit Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2010	Nominated	Independent Spirit Award	Best Supporting Male Jemaine Clement

Rating: Acting-A

Writing-A

Directing-A

Music-A

Cinematography-A

Editing-A

Costumes-A

Art Direction-A

Hair-A

Makeup-A

Visual Effects-A-So B-movie cheesy, but it was supposed to be.

**1/2 Stars

Did You Hear About the Morgans?

Plot: A couple on the verge of divorce witnesses a crime and is sent away under witness protective custody.

Starring: Hugh Grant, Sarah Jessica Parker, Elisabeth Moss, Sam Elliott, Mary Steenburgen, and Mandy Jo Moore.

Review: A silly, little romantic comedy with a few breakthrough moments. I love Sarah Jessica Parker and thought she did a nice job with what little she was given. The little that she was given in the comedy department consisted of a Sarah Palin joke and a bear scene (both of which were in the trailer). In the dramatic department, there were a few great scenes of dialogue that gave you a peak into the inner workings of a marriage. That should've been the focus of this film. It should’ve been a drama. As for the romantic element, Hugh Grant gave her nothing. He was exactly the same as he always is in every film he's in: Daftly charming British gentleman who cannot keep a straight face. He should have channeled Edward Ferrars, a character he played in Sense and Sensibility. The sincerity of that character would've translated beautifully into this movie, making his character much more likable and given Parker & Grant a lot more chemistry. Cute film to watch with your significant other or if you’re a SJP fan.

Rating: Acting-C

Writing-C

Directing-B

Music-B

Cinematography-B

Editing-B

Costumes-A

Art Direction-A

Hair-C

Makeup-A

Visual Effects-C

*1/2 Star- That's for Sarah Jessica Parker.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Plot: Based on the Roald Dahl novel, a former thief returns to his raiding days, resulting in his having to save the neighborhood from three angry farmers.

Voices by: George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, Karen Duffy, Brian Cox, Adrien Brody.

Review: This movie is like an animated Ocean's 11 with animals. It was funnier still because Clooney also played Danny Ocean in Ocean's 11. Done in stop-motion animation, this film is a sight for sore eyes, my eyes being very sore from watching every single theatrical release with 3d glasses. This film was refreshing, funny, and smart. It was like animation for grown-ups. Nice job Wes Anderson. This was Wes Anderson's animated directorial debut. It was really amazing how he translated his live-action eye to animation. I think the magic lies in the fact that he didn't change his style at all. He filmed it as if it were live action. Even my husband, who wasn't very interested in the film, and was only passively watching, really enjoyed it.

Awards:

2010	Nominated	Oscar	Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score Alexandre Desplat
			Best Animated Feature Film of the Year Wes Anderson

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2010	Nominated	Saturn Award	Best Animated Film

Rating:

Voice over-A

Writing-A

Directing-A

Music-A

Animation-A

Cinematography-A-Gorgeous. There were times it looked real.

Editing-A

*** Stars