State of Play

Pancake Ratings

Remi: Edible (2/5)
Old Lady: Edible (2/5)

Rated PG-13

Remi’s Review
This movie was pretty bad. It just didn’t work out for me. The plot wasn’t very deep.

It was another one of those movies that just didn’t make sense for kids. It’s the typical bad-guy-good-guy movie. I can’t really review this movie. It just wasn’t good.

Rating 2/5

Old Lady’s Review
Russell Crowe was fairly expressionless but convincing as a reporter for a once thriving, now under new ownership newspaper.

The film was not as suspenseful as the trailer leads viewers to believe, but it was interesting. Interesting here is filler for mediocre because I have nothing really wonderful to write about the movie.

The plot was somewhat unbelievable, and the relationship history between Crowe and Affleck resembled that of Robin Williams and Stellan Skarsgard in Good Will Hunting. There was nothing original or realistic here except maybe the occasional “hold the press” scene that one only thinks happens in the movies.

We should have purchased tickets for the Soloist instead. Maybe we are heading back to watch bad comedies.  Sigh.

Adventureland

Pancake Ratings

Remi: Short Stack (3/5)   
Old Lady: Burnt (1/5)      

Rated R

Remi’s Review
This movie is based in the 80’s. They did a pretty good job at making it like that.

So basically there’s this collage graduate, who’s preparing to go to grad school. His family doesn’t have enough money for it. So he has to find a summer job. At Adventureland, he finds a job, also this nice girl. They get together and that’s basically it. It’s just very unoriginal.

It was not extremely funny. Some scenes were pretty good though. I noticed they never showed any roller coasters there except in the background a few times with no car on it. Just saying.

Not a very good plot. Okay movie.

Rating 3/5

Old Lady’s Review
Did these kids just graduate from high school or college? They seemed pretty young (translation = immature, awkwardly lanky, gangly) to be college graduates. Or maybe I’m really just ‘that old.’ But in my defense, Remi thought they graduated from high school too even after the movie was over. Regardless, where was all of that pot and alcohol post-mea college life?

This truly was a waste of a movie. It was pointless, slow moving and downright boring at times. If this is what life was supposed to be like, I never would have made it to the future.

The film was cast with a list of no-name actors. The lead, Jesse Eisenberg, was an exact replica of Juno’s Michael Cera. The poor lad will never act again for lack of originality. The boring folksy soundtrack mirrored Juno as well. After hearing the first strum of a banjo string in the opening song, I knew I might be in for a big disappointment.

Take a cue from the film and smoke a little ganja before viewing. Enough with these crummy comedies, it’s time to switch to action and suspense.

17 Again

Pancake Ratings

Remi: Short Stack (3/5)   
Old Lady: Edible (2/5)   

Rated PG-13

Remi’s Review
It’s nice to see Zac Efron in a good movie. High School Musical was awful.

It was okay. There were a few funny parts. But it really wasn’t as good as many comedies I’ve seen. But some scenes are just unbelievable. Zac is hitting on his wife, though this time he’s 17? How can you actually forget you’re 17 and you’re hitting on your wife?

It’s just very unrealistic. I wouldn’t pay for it at the movies. Wait for it to come out on DVD.

Rating 3/5

Old Lady’s Review
Would I want to be 17 again? Maybe if Zac Efron attended my high school. What a little hottie! Oh, that’s not appropriate – just keeping in line with the movie theme. It was a cute film.

What made it for me was his pretend-to-be father who isn’t even headlined on any movie reviews. Forget Matthew Perry, the has-been Friends star. Thomas Lennon is the man I want to meet. Geekdom to the maximum. Hilarious! Does my local Learning Annex have courses in Elf?

Pure entertainment but much little else. Even Thomas’ weird antics aren’t enough to get you to the theater.

Knowing

Pancake Ratings
Remi: Juicy (4/5)   
Old Lady: Short Stack (3/5)   

Rated PG

Remi’s Review
Knowing, from the trailer, looks like a thriller with all of these disasters and people dying and stuff, but all it was, was 2 hours and 1 minute of just 3 disasters. It was more of a horror because of these weird “whisperer people.” I mean Nicholas Cage is a great actor and all, I think he did great, but the movie could have been much better. For that I only blame the director.

I would see it again though; it’s these kinds of movies that catch my eye. There aren’t many action-disaster movies. I also love the actor, so if you do like Nicholas, see it.

My rating is a 4/5, or Juicy.

Old Lady’s Review

The main motivation for me seeing this film was Nicolas Cage. The one preview I had was a generic trailer that revealed little more than numbers. I did not expect this movie to be scary. I don’t do scary. There was a moment early on when the audience screamed in horror, me included.

This was another film portraying females as hysterical and stupid. Yawn.

The special effects probably cost a fortune, making the destruction and devastation scenes believable, but at some point I wanted the madness to stop. And once I saw a space ship appear hovering above ground, I really wanted the movie to end.

The end could not come soon enough even with you on screen dear Nick. I implore, please wait for the DVD.

Taken

Pancake Ratings
Remi:          Juicy (4/5)    
Old Lady:   Juicy (4/5)  

 Rated PG-13

Remi’s Review
Taken is a movie about this girl who’s dumb enough to let some stranger know where she lives and ultimately gets kidnapped. Her father is a former CIA agent and decides he’s going to try to save her. She is being made into a prostitute.

The movie didn’t look so good, but it was better than I expected. The action started pretty quickly, and it lasted well into the end. It didn’t have a great storyline, but some people just like the violence.

 

As for my rating, I’d give it a 4/5. It was okay, but not great.

 

Old Lady’s Review

Remi was not interested in seeing this film at all. In the movie’s defense, Taken combined three of my favorite elements: Paris as a backdrop, fast driven Audis, and an unassuming retired covert CIA operative, Liam Neeson. The only hesitation in seeing a movie with this theme was an unsubstantiated fear of someone kidnapping my own child.

The film was action packed from the get go. I honestly wasn’t ready when it kicked off and needed a bit more foreplay. There were moments where I truly was surprised by the hero’s violent actions, and there were instances when I found myself clutching at my own coat sleeves.

 

Aside from the love to hate pretentious, bitchy ex-wife and spoiled daughter with newfound step-dad wealth characters, the film was pretty good based on the action alone.

 

Neeson’s portrayal of an average Joe, less debonair James Bond-like character was refreshing. However, given the violence and mature themes, this film should be rated R.

Slumdog Millionaire

Pancake Ratings
Remi:          Flip worthy (5/5)    
Old Lady:    Flip worthy (5/5)  

   Rated R

Remi’s Review
The movie Slumdog Millionaire was a great movie. Jamal is an 18-year old man that airs on Do You Want to Be a Millionaire. He is beaten and tortured in India when he is accused of cheating. As the show goes on, he explains how he knows the answers. His life story is very sad, and it’s so realistic because these things happen to children everyday. It made me feel that I was lucky to be in this country. 

It’s one of the best films I ever saw. One of the first ones to not be a comedy. I would really recommend it to anyone except maybe some young aged children because there are some very devastating scenes.

 

Overall it was a great movie and I would totally watch it again.

 

Old Lady’s Review

Pure genius. Complete, thorough, and thoughtfully directed from beginning to end with no detail left unturned. The smart storyline kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end, eliciting a gamut of emotions throughout. 

The movie was well cast with a talented group of youngsters. The violence and thievery were integral to the plot and did not come across as gratuitous, detracting, or inappropriate even for a 12-year old.

 

The cinematography was amazing. The vivid imagery of present day India was hard to digest at times, but more disturbing was the realistic portrayal and exposure to the underlying assumptions of the human psyche. How is it that we as humans are programmed to judge individuals based on socio-economic circumstances when those on the opposite spectrum can equally lie, cheat, and be lacking in integrity? There is no difference or dividing line. But I digress.

 

In the end, what prevails is what is in the heart. Being true to oneself, taking action from the heart not for greed, fame, or fortune. Pure innocence.

 

The film humbled me.

Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail

Pancake Ratings
Remi:          Juicy (4/5)     
Old Lady:    Edible (2/5)  

Rated PG-13

Remi’s Review
Overall I thought it was a very good comedy movie. There were two storylines that didn’t quite make sense. One was of course a comedy, and the other was a drama. Some of the main characters of each plot meet in jail, but it wasn’t very necessary. 

I found the comedy very funny. Tyler Perry was a good choice for Madea’s character. Some of it was just plain dumb, but that’s what a lot of comedy movies have in them. It put a smile on my face.

 

So I would recommend it just for the comedy plot, but it’s not the best movie I’ve seen.

 

Old Lady’s Review

I thought this was supposed to be a comedy. We picked Madea for our first review simply because not much else was playing. Tyler Perry’s comedic ad-libbing and his on-screen bantering with Dr. Phil were the only highlights of the arduous hour and 43 minutes. I wanted more funny moments.

 

The film tried to bring together two stories, making for awkward transitions, unnecessary complexity and faux drama that was a complete distraction from the comedic value. Scenes dragged, and the disjointed storylines gave it a bad B movie feeling.

 

Fleeting humor sandwiched between an all too contrived and predictable Pretty Woman theme, seasoned with gratuitous marijuana paraphernalia (but no excessive foul language) make Madea a “wait for the DVD” pick. Just make sure not to turn it off or walk away when the credits start to roll. If you do, you’ll miss the best part of the film.

 

More on-screen Madea time next round Tyler Perry.