Friday, September 28, 2012

Angus (1995)



Number Rolled: 8
Movie Name/Year: Angus (1995)
Genre: Drama
Length: 90 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Director: Patrick Read Johnson
Writer: Chris Crutcher, Jill Gordon
Actors: Charlie Talbert, George C. Scott, Kathy Bates, James Van Der Beek, Rita Moreno, Ariana Richards

I love this movie. I must have said it nine times while watching the movie with my boyfriend and being my normal annoying self. I was 15 when this movie came out and, as a fat kid in high school myself, this movie was like a ray of hope that things really do get better.

Angus is a fat kid with the name of a cow. Insert him into high school with a big-eared dorky best friend, a crush on a cheerleader and a mortal enemy in the head quarterback and you have an instant 80’s movie. True, this movie was a bit too late to be 80’s but it’s better than it sounds. The humor and the dialog was all 90’s.

I think sometimes kids need this kind of movie. They need someone to say, “Listen to these words and live by them, fuck ‘em. Who cares what anybody thinks?” Too often I’ve been in situations where I couldn’t be myself simply because of the people around me. Too often I’ve seen someone not go for what they wanted because it was out of society’s norm or because they thought they were too fat, or too ugly, or too stupid. Movies like this actually show kids that it’s ok to be who they are, and they do it while making you laugh until you can’t breathe. To me, that’s an automatic 5.

Overall Opinion – 5/5

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010)



Number Rolled: 48
Movie Name/Year: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010)
Genre: Sci-fi & Fantasy
Length: 109 minutes
Rating: PG
Director: Jon Turteltaub
Writer: Lawrence Konner, Mark Rosenthal, Matt Lopez, Doug Miro, Carlo Bernard
Actors: Nicolas Cage, Jay Baruchel, Alfred Molina, Teresa Palmer, Toby Kebbell, Omar Benson Miller, Monica Bellucci, Alice Krige, Jake Cherry, James A Stephens

I had the good fortune to see The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in theaters, though I’d imagine many people wouldn’t find it to be such “good” fortune. Back when it came out the critics crapped all over this movie and, quite frankly, I think they’re morons. Then again, if I didn’t think they were morons I probably wouldn’t have started this blog to begin with.

Yes, there were some predictable parts, but hey – it’s Disney. It’s really kind of meant for the younger generation. In that case, you can’t judge it against movies made for people in or past their thirties. That’s like trying to compare Casablanca with Bambi. Both classics and both geared toward VERY different audiences.

I watched this movie today with my boyfriend and best friend and my best friend argued that he was sick of seeing the main character as the uber-geek with no social skills. I completely disagree with him. I think we have enough of those main characters who have the social skills any nerd would kill for. We have enough “normal” people who are the heroes. Marty McFly was a social kid before he went to the past to wind up getting hit on by his mom. The Doctor is an amazingly social man who always has no problem finding a cute female side-kick to help him navigate his TARDIS. The original Buffy was a cheerleader before she began kicking the asses of bloodsuckers for the good of man-kind. Even in The Sandlot, the kid who saves the day isn’t the nerd who has a bad relationship with his step-father, it’s the popular kid who everyone loves from the beginning. So, yes, we have a lot of movies that came out in the past few years where the truly socially inept nerd became the hero, but that’s after years of being overlooked by Hollywood as anything but the stereotypical Eugene in Grease.

Dave (Jay Baruchel) is the epitome of that nerd who has been teased all his life and hides away from any social situations for fear of screwing up. Getting thrown into a “save the world” situation is already difficult. Add to that the fact that you can’t even save yourself by talking to that beautiful blonde haired girl you can’t get out of your head? Terrifying! Personally, I feel when the main character has that many personal flaws, the story itself can lead to a deeper conclusion and greater development for our hero.

I happen to enjoy this movie a great deal, but I also acknowledge the flaws. The storyline itself is relatively predictable in certain areas. It’s a story that’s been told many times. However, I still found it was interesting to watch. There were scenes for everyone. Huge flame-throwing magical CGI moments, dragons and snakes, Tesla Coil music via science and not magic (youtube it), romance, car chases, betrayal and a LOT of humor.

Prepare to get One Republic’s song “Secrets” stuck in your head after watching this movie though.

Overall Opinion – 4/5

Monday, September 24, 2012

The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu (2009)



Number Rolled: 99
Movie Name/Year: The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu (2009)
Genre: Comedy
Length: 78 minutes
Rating: NR
Director: Henry Saine
Writer: Tom Konkle, Devin McGinn
Actors: Kyle Davis, Devin McGinn, Matt Bauer, Honor Bliss, Sujata Day, Todd Duffey, Edward Flores, Marty Fortney, Ethan Wilde, Jessica Kinney

My first thought when watching this movie was “It’s like Clerks if someone had given Dante a save the world mission.” Granted, it’s not as good as clerks, but the situation is what I was referring to, not the script.

I actually really enjoyed this movie. It was B quality, actually probably closer to C quality with a budget of 50 bucks, but they did nicely with the budget they had. It definitely had its gruesome parts. I’d probably rate it R because of the language and that gruesome bit, but it definitely appeals to the over-aged kid in me.

This is one of those movies I suggest people give a chance. It’s short, so even if you don’t like it you haven’t wasted much time. Give it a chance.

Overall Opinion – 3.5/5