across the universe [A-]

moviemcpeake snippet: wow. what a way to start my fall film festival. across the universe was fantastic, brilliant, poetic, wacky, fun, political, a true revolution. the acting was flawless and showcases that there are some brilliant young actors (that are not craving media attention). across the universe also renewed my love and appreciation for the beatles (not that i ever lacked appreciation for the great band). their songs turned into a unique love story that even people who despise musicals can fall in love with. my only complaint is there is a few forced minutes (felt pretty long and drawn out) which are filled with a crazed, trippy side show, but it did fit with the beatles song chosen so it wasn't out of context, the moment just took me too far the world i was enjoying. the ending was lacking for a film with so much passion and one character story flaw. but the film is risky and there were moments perfected with brillance so i was willing to overlook the scenes that flopped.

i would like to throw some kudos to the director, julie taymore. she also directed frida, which thrives from poetic movement, art direction, and music. in my book, that makes her a top contender to only have directed 6 films and two of them are brilliant AND be a woman. i am still giving a standing ovation to evan rachel wood, jim sturgess, and joe anderson. i hope to see more of them. predication...many oscar nominations for this film!

recommendation: see it, buy the soundtrack, memorize all songs, buy the dvd and have a blast singing your way through this incredible story.

into the wild [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: As I sit surrounded by taupe walls, white noise, and to do lists a mile long, it is not hard to understand how an internal passion drives the hero and villain of this film. Alexander Supertramp (Christopher McCandless)’s decisions will cause many conflicting feelings. Was he just a selfish young man with no regards for the people who cared about him, did he not care or think he was invincible, was he mentally unstable, was he incredible, was he brave, was he just running confused…

He was his own savior and his own worse enemy. He rescues and hurts. He was a black and white of himself. He was brilliant and yes, didn’t have to die but we are all fallible. There was something incredible about the path he chose, something that I completely understand but I am not sure I can explain. Was he arrogant? Of course. Was he human? Absolutely.

“It is easy, when you are young, to believe that what you desire is no less than what you deserve, to assume that if you want something badly enough , it is your God-given right to have it. . . I was a raw youth who mistook passion for insight and acted according to an obscure, gap-ridden logic. I thought climbing the Devils Thumb would fix all that was wrong with my life. In the end, of course, it changed almost nothing. But I came to appreciate that mountains make poor receptacles for dreams...“
-Jon Krakauer (author of Into The Wild)

“Two years he walks the earth. No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road…”
-McCandless

After reading the book, magazine articles, and now experiencing his journey on film, I cringe when people or editorials call this an adventure. An adventure is not something personally revealing, a struggle of good and evil or full of baggage and life. You cannot fit was Chris accomplished into a neat little adventure package. This was an epic journey for one’s survival and Jon Krakauer and Sean Penn captured his journey of enlightenment and fatality in the most poetic way imaginable.

recommendation: see it. read it. own the dvd (should be great extras) and then buy the soundtrack because eddie vedder kills it. it is the complete package.

the bourne ultimatum [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: what a rush! great summer film, great way to end the series, great freaking movie. i must say i finally got the summer blockbuster experience i have dreamed of...a great action packed, big budget, big effects film with a even better story and solid acting. this is it my friends the best summer blockbuster. so to end summer 07 reviews on this film just seems fitting.

recommendation: catch it on the big screen if you still can, buy the dvd asap

the color purple [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: all i can say is that this should have won more oscars. out of africa with meryl streep was fantastic and wonderful but this film had more emotion, passion, liberation, and pushed the envelope with a wide variety of topics. whoopi was so amazing, so incredible.

there are only 2 films i have come across that are great pairings with their novel counterparts. fried green tomatoes and the color purple. both films differ from the book and in some places greatly differ. however, they seem to compliment each other well, filled holes or showed you the other side of things that you wanted to know or see or read about.

recommendation: read the book, see or re-see the film, and then catch it on broadway.

GUEST BLOGGER: 300 [A-]

Take Gladiator, purge it of all character development and any subtlety, wash it in the same style we last saw in the dream sequences from The Cell, and feed it the same pharmeceutical diet familiar to Barry Bonds and Lance Armstrong, and you have 300. And it works. Really well.

Based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller (Sin City), 300 tells the "true" story of the battle of Thermopylae where King Leonidas of Sparta and 300 of his best soldiers fought back the Persian army numbering over 2 million for 3 days by the means of strategy and sheer will. It's a great story, but here, plays more as a set piece for a theatrical bloodbath. The violence is brutal, as to be expected from both a Frank Miller piece and any movie involving ancient warfare. Amputations, decapitations, and impalings are frequent, satisfying the most bloodthirsty of summer movie viewers.

Technically, the movie is beautiful. The stone washed color hues combined with the well executed slo-mo shots and wide lens camera pans allow the film to straddle a line between historical battle piece and mythological dream without faltering, or ever suspending belief. It is truly an experience, a distinction many movies clamor to achieve, but rarely deliver. The only truly noteworthy performance is Lena Headey as Queen Gorgo, as she provides a calm intensity in a movie accented (appropriately) by overacting. She also is privy to the most satisfying kill scene, where every audience member not leaving their seat cheering should be checked for a pulse.

A summer blockbuster that both entertains and breaks new ground is rare these days. 300 delivers. There is something satisfying about a movie giving a viewer the same mindless joy they had as a 14 year old, yet being produced so well, the thought of classifying it a "guilty pleasure" never even crosses one's mind.

ocean's thirteen [B-]

moviemcpeake snippet: Enjoyable. Cute. Good. Typical ocean film. This one has the same trademarks, great ensemble (one of the best in films) and entertaining (though unbelievable) storyline. These films are easy to watch for an entertaining evening and great to beef up the dvd collection of lite and funs (can’t go wrong with that genre).

This third heist brings everyone (except the ladies – not sure how I feel about that) back to the screen all (even past villains) working some what together to ruin the new villain, Willie Bank played by Al Pacino. Yup, the ensemble just keeps getting better. Steven Soderbergh behind the helm creates the same feel, movement, and storyline development. The consistency of these films is impeccable but also its demise as everything is predictable, even down to the dialog.

Did I enjoy it, of course but I knew I would. That is the great thing about the Danny Ocean and his crew, they never change.

recommendation: catch another wave, wait for the dvd.

live free or die hard [A-]

moviemcpeake snippet: Ok, so I will admit, I can’t remember the much about the last film or quite frankly any of the John McClane series. But I have always loved a good action movie, so my intent was not to complete an obsession to a once beloved series with an aging actor (Rocky, upcoming Indian Jones) but to just enjoy a well reviewed action flick.

I am now an obsessed John McClane fan. I will be buying the box set dvds when they come out. I may even watch this one again while it is in the theaters. This movie was one of the best summer blockbusters. While I typically leave disappointed, this film had me jacked up on Willis adrenaline for a good 45 minutes. I had to talk myself down before the next film on my list started.

For 160 minutes I was having so much fun and so into the experience that I didn’t even let the little things bother me or take me out of the scene (which almost never happens). The film clearly had a much bigger potty mouth before it was edited for kids. Not often, but often enough you could see the lips of the characters form a much more appropriate word but what came out was the PG-13 allowed word. The bad guy was not impressive. He was not believable and had terrible lines, but the storyline and his sidekick chick played by Maggie Q (MI: III) was intense and awesome so I didn’t really care. So, more with the good – John McClane’s sidekick, the “I am so not that guy,” played by Justin Long (Herbie: Full Loaded) provided fun comic relief that John McClane plays against well. And of course, Bruce Willis. The man just looks good. Willis completely kicks ass and looks good doing it.

So by the time the credits rolled, I left the theater having McClane's Yippee Ki Yay fueling my adrenaline rush.

recommendation: get your butt indoors and live free.

guest reviews: The StubbornSerb chimes in.

GUEST BLOGGER: live free or die hard [B-]

First things first, I love John McClane. Easily one of my favorite movie characters of all time, I would probably be entertained watching him run around and fight an eagle scout troop with a squirt gun and tiddlywinks. Twenty years after its release, I still find the first film in this series the greatest action flick of all time. Fully aware of and frankly, embracing these biases, I'm reviewing "Live Free or Die Hard". The fourth entry in the saga finds the ever-hungover street cop with really bad luck [Bruce Willis] divorced, spying on a daughter that won't speak to him, and back at his strangely inconspicuous position as a NYPD detective. You'd figure that the man that has foiled three of the biggest terrorist plots in US history would've at least got the bump to Sargent... Sorry, I'll try not to think. Our underemployed anti-hero is given the task of picking up a hacker [the iMac guy] and bringing him into FBI headquarters for questioning after it becomes evident that a cyber terrorist attack of epic proportions is being levied against our great nation on July 4th [queue Old Glory waving while Credence blares]. Since this is not a philosophical work on the dangers of technological dependence, bullets fly, stuff blows up, and McClane's shirt mutates from white to a deep shade of swamp turd brown. Does he save the day, the country, and the obligatory member of his immediate family? Hahaha. Come on.

While definitely a worthy, entertaining installment in the franchise, "Live Free" is not without its faults. McClane's exploits stray far into the superhuman (taking out a helicopter with a fire hydrant, jumping onto the wings of a Harrier jet, flying a military helicopter across three states without training). That's not John McClane. The charm of the first 2 movies was that although this guy gets a lot of breaks, and avoids certain death well over 50 times a film, everything he does can conceivably occur. He's not a steroid fueled Austrian immigrant Superman, he's Joe Six Pack, outgunned and reluctant, but willing because it's his job. I can look past these decisions as grandiose moviemaking. What I can't look past is changing the essence of the lead character. McClane usually enters these cinematic battles with two things: huge balls, and an incredibly foul, but witty mouth. Only the balls are here, albeit in spades. Several times during the movie, you can actually see the actors mouth dialogue much less kiddie friendly than the audio provides, an obvious result of the studio's decision to pursue a PG-13 rating after shooting had wrapped to appeal to a wider audience. This often leaves you feeling that you're watching the film on TNT instead of a theater cut. Even McClane's trademark cowboy cry felt somewhat altered. When making a Die Hard film, that's blasphemy.

guest moviemcpeake blogger

moviemcpeake has opens its doors to guest bloggers. the first guest blogger is the "stubborn serb" who has posted great tongue and cheek remarks on my reviews. he will bring a great balance to the site with more reviews on what i like to refer to is entertaining but fluff films. of course i will add my thoughts as well.


if you would also like the opportunity to be a guest moviemcpeake blogger, just send me an email (moviemcpeake@gmail.com). you must have a creative screen name and some writing skills. the reviews can be from 1 sentence to a thesis if you so desire. moviemcpeake reserves the right to revoke guest blogging privileges at anytime.


as always, enjoy the show!

jesus camp [A-]

moviemcpeake snippet: as far as documentaries go, this was perfect. the way they delivered the story and narration created the highly intriguing (and shocking) account of a group of people. the creators follow the preacher, becky fischer and her flock through a series of events, the annual "kids on fire" camp, and to another large and plentiful evangelical church. it is a rare documentary in that the polar extremes like it.

the premise is centered around the training of the new generation of "born-agains" and the impact they hope to have on our country. to quote, ted haggart (a george bush spiritual advisor who was recently released as leader of his megachurch because sexual misconduct), "if the evangelicals vote, they determine the election."

the directors seemed to tell and capture the story in the way that becky fischer and the born-again christians would be proud. the film showed their mission and members in a true light. perhaps this is what made the film so astounding. combined with the fact that the community featured lived in lee's summit, missouri near my hometown of kansas city.

this is one everyone should see to get an inside view of a religion that has over 80 million members. the most interesting thing is their focus which seemed to be to compete with the terrorist child training, abortion, converting others, and how global warming does not exist. it also featured mike papantonio as the religious moderator/commentary that i was previously unfamiliar with but thoroughly enjoyed his viewpoints. 2006 was a great year for the documentaries anchored by jesus camp and an inconvenient truth.

recommendation: experience and learn about the religion taking over america.

stomp the yard [C+]

moviemcpeake snippet: what can i say? i was bored the other night and it was available on onDemand. so with a click of a button, i was watching (and enjoying) this teenage flick.

the camera work took a little getting used to because of the slow/fast motion techniques they used but it was rather cool to see the dance moves and all of the stomping choreography. the music was straight from a dance club and the storyline had the same ingredients as the other teenage music/dance movie genre(drumline, bring it on, etc). the only difference is this one had more underground flare and special effects.

recommendation: if you are a fan of movies like drumline, you will enjoy stomp the yard.

notes on a scandal [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: finally, a film worthy of review. the story is intensely dark so you will not be getting a feel good jubilation from me but wow what a great story. the leading actors, cate blanchett and judi dench are fascinating, stunning, and repulsive. how blanchett lost the oscar to jennifer hudson, i will never know (well i do know and it is what makes the oscars so frustrating). the onscreen vulnerability of blanchett and dench portraying two lonely, desperate women was truly captivating and a must see during the week as you are recovering from the summer blockbuster weekends.
as the audience you are taken down two paths, one with barbara’s (dench) obsession with sheba (blanchett), the new teacher at school that befriends her. the other path follows sheba’s obsession with her young art student. as the film progresses, their secrets and actions continue to spiral out of control and each woman screams a self destructing cry for help right before our eyes.
the supporting cast, including the set and wardrobe blends perfectly with the story and provide a colorful backdrop to dench and blanchett’s performances. even if you are not into intense films focused on muddled relationships this film is a must see if only for the strong and perfectly delivered female performances.


recommendation: rent now, watch now.

the pursuit of happyness [B-]

moviemcpeake snippet: i am in an "ehhh" slump for films right now. we should have seen shrek this weekend but elected to stay home and watch our netflix rental instead. an "ehhh" means that nothing is bad about the film but i didn't want to jump on my couch tom cruise style and profess my love for the film i just experienced. and right or wrong, that is actually what i am always seeking is the couch jumping film experience. the film that inspired me to start sharing reviews (like the hours, sideways, moulin rouge, etc).
so in my pursuit of happyness, i got an "ehhh" experience but hey! i even stayed awake through the whole movie so it wasn't bad. however, something or some things were lacking. i can't put my finger on it. the story was already created as it was based on the true story of a man (chris gardner) who went through all odds to pursue his dream. so how did the script not capture the magic of one pursuing a dream? it ended up being a feel good fictional movie instead of a powerful, inspirational film. or maybe i am just too corrupted on my opinion of the financial industry and corporations that i didn’t buy into when it seemed that it wasn’t about a lifelong dream but an escape to a world that was centered around the fancy car that crosses his path. which i know is not what his dream and life was about. the film also leaves out important details that make moments unrealistic, even though it happened. the dvd extras missed a great opportunity to load itself with extras on chris gardner, his son, and more on his life, instead of just one little clip/interview about the making of the film. i didn't read his memoir but i am guessing it captures the essence of his story better then will smith and this film.

recommendation: rent it for a lite summer fix or pick up the book instead

spider-man 3 [C]

moviemcpeake snippet: if you liked 1 and 2, you will really like 3. if you enjoyed but not impressed with 1 and 2, you will feel the same after 3. spider-man 3's storyline was the most interesting and had the most potential out of the three. the movie still didn't execute like i would like a big hype kick off the summer blockbusters to do. i don't know why but i just didn't like tobey maguire’s performance this time, thankfully the new goblin and spidey’s rival, portrayed by james franco, was the hero of the day with better acting, stealing the scenes he was in, and then getting the better ending. the action was too choppy which i felt was done to hide the lack of details and make the computer graphics blurry and not enough explaination on how certain things occurred. but the black suit WAS sweet which help make me not frustrated that we braved the crowds for a solid c movie.

recommendation: see it on the big screen if you are only going to see it once

moviemcpeake survey of the month

what summer blockbuster are you most excited about? (post a comment)

• 28 weeks later
• harry potter
• live free or die hard
• pirates of the caribbean
• spider-man 3
• the bourne ultimatum
• transformers
• other?

an inconvenient truth [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: this film gets an A on message alone. i am a sucker for the environment and the new planet earth series on discovery HD (plug for this awesome tv series). however, there are some things this film could have done better. most of gore's facts make sense, are compelling and make you want to send out mass emails about recycling and doing all the little things possible. some points during the film get confusing or hard to see the conclusion he is trying to make. i wish at the end there would have been a larger focus on the little things. the film briefly skims over it in the credits and points you to the website which has great information. it would have been more powerful if they stated things like if American replaced just ONE standard light bulb with the new CFL light bulbs 27 billion pounds of carbon dioxide would be diverted from the atmosphere each year. don't you want to go get the CFL light bulb now?

recommendation: must see and react

the holiday [C]

moviemcpeake snippet: so i didn't listen to my friend stacy. she said that this movie was not really that great. too much cameron diaz (enough with the underwear booty shake), not enough kate winslet, and jack black and winslet had no chemisty. all true. i just couldn't help myself as i love winslet and michele likes to watch romantic comedies so i was hoping we had a winner. yet again i walk away disappointed in this genre (and a bit disappointed in winslet although she still is the meryl streep of our times)...actually i fell asleep and michele says it ended decent.

recommendation: skip this one

running with scissors [C+]

moviemcpeake snippet: ehh. this film could have been fantastic because the storyline was already there from the great memories of Augusten Burrough. so what went wrong? i don't think the screenplay did a great job of setting the story up and then it felt like nothing that crazy ever REALLY happened (which is the biggest focal of the story). it was too safe. this film should have been an edgy, humorous absurd family film depicting the true story of Augusten's life. i know, i know, the book is always better than the movie but this book was so visually appealing (my mind was playing the scene as my eyes read the words) it seemed like an easy crossover instead it ending up only being another great showcase of annette bening's talent.

recommendation: read the book

the cave of the yellow dog [B]

moviemcpeake snippet: oh my god, how cute are these kids!?! this is just an interesting documentary film that provides beautiful scenery, culture, and moments of dialog. it does not give any background information but plops you into their lives and you follow them for the next several hours. it was relaxing and cute. recommend for a relaxing night for two and your dog ;)

recommendation: rent

welcome

So I decided instead of doing all the web development myself, I would use a free popular content tool. Basically moviemcpeake is finally becoming more interactive. I am in the process of moving everything over from the old site. The best part is now you can post your opinion as well, which is what I wanted all along. A space among friends to discuss serious and non-serious aspects of films.

For those of you that are new to moviemcpeake, I love films from independents to cheesy blockbusters. This site which started years ago was spreading the word on lesser known films. I stopped writing full reviews (too little time) and now write snippets, grade each film, and provide an easy to understand recommendation. So when you don't know what film you want to see next, come here first.


Please post your thoughts and fight for that little film that stirred your soul!

So as I have said before...grab some popcorn, sit back and enjoy the show!

2006 Film Awards

film of the year

little miss sunshine

honorable mentions

Last Kiss, The [A]
Volver [A]

Notes on a Scandal [A]
Friends with Money [A-]
The Queen [A-]
Babel [B+]

2005 Film Awards

film of the year

crash

honorable mentions

Capote [A]

North Country [A]

Batman Begins [A-]

Brokeback Mountain [A-]

Good Night, and Good Luck. [A-]

Match Point [A-]

The Squid and the Whale [A-]

Walk the Line [A-]

The Real Dirt on Farmer John [A+]

The March of the Penguins [B+]

Transamerica [B+]

2004 Film Awards

film of the year

eternal sunshine of the spotless mind

honorable mentions

Sideways [A+]

Hotel Rwanda [A+]

Million Dollar Baby [A+]

Garden State [A]

The Incredibles [A]

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban [A-]

Empathy [B+]

Maria Full of Grace [B+]

Open Water [B+]

Touching the Void [B+]

Undertow [B+]

We Dont Live Here Anymore [B+]

2003 Film Awards

film of the year

mystic river

honorable mentions

The Human Stain [A]

21 Grams [A-]

The Cooler [A-]

In America [A-]

Monster [A-]

Whale Rider [A-]
Big Fish [B+]

volver [A]

moviemcpeake snippet: Penélope Cruz was stunning, fantastic and this film was just heart-warming. A coming together of the women in the story. Really just charming and a shame it did not receive an oscar nomination for foreign film. I just fell in love with Penélope and this story.

recommendation: own it

little miss sunshine [A+]

moviemcpeake snippet: Loved it. Loved it. Loved it. Laughed hard and often. I was expecting a more Wes Anderson feel (dark and quirky), however it had a much brighter tone mixed with a deeper story that made you laugh at the absurdity yet in the end you found yourself loving all the characters. The best is no hollywood ending. The story was perfectly executed with a strong ensemble (including two oscar nominations). Although I know it can never win an oscar for best picture, it won my film of the year award (for whatever that is worth).

recommendation: own it

babel [B+]

moviemcpeake snippet: The international Crash that did not live up to the expectations or hype. I am not going to rip the film though because it still was a good film that redeemed storyline flaws through acting. Adriana Barraza. She was robbed her oscar for her portrayal of the Mexican nanny. The Tokyo story line seemed forced and its purposed only to add visual and sensory appeal to the rest of the desert. The film should be seen because of the intense scenes that grab you due to their absurdity and how accurate they portrayed human response, actions, and life.

recommendation: rent