Ah, there’s nothing like week-old news. It’s sort of the reason I don’t read newspapers anymore; by the time I read them, I’ve usually already read the stories somewhere else online.
Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to report on every movie announcement that comes out in a week like some blogs do; a full-time job and personal life have that effect. But I do have an opinion, and sometimes I just have to share…
Part IV of the franchise brings back the original cast from The Fast and the Furious
Add newcomers Gal Gadot (pretty hot but in a small role), ruthless drug lords, CGI-enhanced car racing, some pointless faux-lesbian kissing and fondling and a plot with holes so big the truck from the intro - four trailers full of gasoline and all - could slide through sideways, and you have got Fast & Furious. What’s missing from the original is the anarchic energy that made it a kind of B-movie classic.
For hardcore fans of the franchise and/or tuned cars only. Fans don’t worry - this one made enough money and another sequel is already in development.
The summer movies have yet to arrive, but 2009 has already treated us with a few surprises. State of Play, the political thriller starring Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams, Helen Mirren, Robin Wright Penn, Jeff Daniels and Ben Affleck, is the best of the year thus far and could find its way into the Top Ten when all is said and done.
State of Play, based on a BBC miniseries, had the potential to be a disaster. After all, boiling down a complicated, six-hour drama-thriller into two hours - for American audiences no less - could have led to some major dumbing down. Thanks to superb direction by Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland, Touching the Void), smart writing by guys who collectively have written such films as Shattered Glass, Breach, Lions for Lambs, Michael Clayton and The Bourne Supremacy and excellent performances, State of Play is a taut, edgy and believable thriller that avoids such a date. The movie craftily merges political conspiracy with dialogue about the state of the newspaper industry, and even includes a fair amount of humor. All in all, it’s a masterfully crafted and executed drama-thriller.
DreamWorks Animation’s latest, Monsters vs. Aliens, is an attempt to combine the world of Monsters, Inc. and The Incredibles to make an action-packed comedy where… monsters battle aliens. The movie is also in 3D, and thank God for that; its visuals are its saving grace.
In Monsters vs. Aliens, a planet explodes, sending a meteorite to Earth. No, Kal El is not on board, but the meteorite does cause one soon-to-be-married bride named Susan Murphy to grow into a gigantic woman and get shipped away by the government to a special holding area for monsters. Her roommates include a scientist-turned-cockroach, a half-man, half-reptile creature, a gigantic, furry insect and a gelatinous blob that sounds a lot like Seth Rogen. When aliens invade to reclaim the power that Susan has absorbed, however, these monsters become humanity’s last chance for survival.