Juno, No Country, I Am Legend, Cloverfield -- Rhinotainment

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Date Posted: 06:46:39 02/03/08 Sun
Author: The Rhino
Subject: Juno, No Country, I Am Legend, Cloverfield

JUNO

Probably my favorite move in recent memory. After about ten minutes, I decided I had to initiate the Gilmore Girls rule which is to realize that teenagers do not talk like the characters on screen in real life nor are they anywhere near as intelligent. I haven't seen an intelligent teenager in ages! So I accepted them for the characters they were and I loved the movie from that point forward. Said intelligent teenager, in a bit of boredom, has unprotected sex with her best male friend and gets knocked up. After a struggle with the idea of abortion and then ixnaying it, she decides to find adoptive parents and have the little tyke. A very realistic emotional struggle materializes from there. Beyond that serious element, this is one of the funnier smart films in quite some time. My favorite line from Juno's dad, played by JK Simmons: "The next time I see that Bleecker kid I'm going to punch him in the wiener."

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

Welcome back, Coens. We sure missed you. After a dazzling array of debacles like The Man Who Wasn't There, The Ladykillers and Intolerable Cruelty, the Coen Brothers return to their original form and deliver an all time dark masterpiece. Josh Brolin (yeah, the Goonie who has turned out three excellent roles this year) plays a hard-nosed white trash hunter who stumbles upon a drug deal gone bad. There are several dead bodies and a seven figures of cash in a satchel. Brolin takes the satchel and prepares for the worst. The worst turns out to be Javier Bardem's bounty hunter, a villain so creepy that Hannibal Lecter cowers in fear. Bardem intimidates the shit out of anyone who crosses his path and an air powered cattle gun does his bidding, the coolest weapon in movie history. It's only a matter of time before he catches up with Brolin. Tommy Lee Jones, maybe the best actor going, is a sheriff on the case of both men and is struggling with the downfall of society and the evil that men do. And I don't give a shit what anyone says, that was THE best ending you could have for this movie. Pay no mind to the critics. I say give them the Oscar.

I AM LEGEND

I almost feel guilty when I say that I'm starting to enjoy Will Smith. I always knew that he had potential but he was always such a too charming goodie-goodie that I couldn't really back him up. But after his brilliant turn in The Pursuit of Happyness, I was on board. I Am Legend is his follow-up about a scientist who may be the last man on earth after an airborne virus that turns the living into ravenous zombies. Smith is immune thanks to his scientific skills. After setting a zombie trap so he can study their makeup and try to find a cure for the disease, the zombies repay the favor and set their own trap. And then the shit hits the fan. I really liked this film even though the zombies looked video gamey. Smith spends the majority of the film by himself and commands the screen. He's actually shaping up to be a great actor. Worth a rental.

CLOVERFIELD

While we are on the topic of the end of the world, it's the end of the world for NYC in this incredible flick. Introduced as if you are watching a top secret military video, the story begins with an amateur filming a going away party for his big brother who has taken a job in Japan on a handheld video camera. After fifteen rather boring minutes of set-up of the obligatory love story angle (the guest of honor is in love with his best female friend but it fell apart, girl brings another guy to the party, pot-boiling tension turns into melodrama, girl leaves party, guest of honor ruins his own party), there is a ground shaking tremor, and then another and another. The next thing you know there is an explosion and the Statue of Liberty's head rolls down Broadway. What the f*ck? A monster has risen from ocean and is now terrorizing Manhattan, dropping the big buildings and secreting crab-like monsters to take care of the fools on the ground. The remaining party-goers head off on a search for loverman's would-be girlfriend while the monsters nip at their heels. This is a visually stunning film. It's about as realistic looking as you could imagine and I would love to see a making of documentary (cross your fingers for the DVD). The acting is fine as the cast is smartly comprised of unknowns. If we had Tom Cruise or another huge star (like James Vanderbeek) then it wouldn't be as fun. Definitely worth checking out on the big screen.

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Replies:

Re: Juno -- Dog of War, 03:55:46 02/04/08 Mon