Up (2009)

Carl Fredrickson, a little boy and a dreamer who idolizes the adventurer Charles Munts. When he meets Ellie, who also worships Munts, they become close friends. However Charles Munts falls into disgrace, accused of forging the skeleton of the monster of Paradise Falls. He travels in his blimp to South America to bring the monster back alive but is never seen again. Eventually he Carl grows up and marries Ellie. They promise each other that they would travel together to Paradise Falls and build a house there. Many years later, Ellie dies and Carl, who's lonely, refuses to move from their house despite the offers of the owner of a construction company. When Carl accidentally hits a worker that damaged his mailbox, he is sentenced to move to a retirement home. However, he uses many balloons to float his house in order to travel to Paradise Falls. Adventure ensues.

Believe all the hype! This movie is a step above other recent animated fare, and Pixar has once against set the standard for children's movies. To be fair, most people who recommended this movie to me don't even have children, so it's safe to say that this is one that can be enjoyed by all ages. The only requirement is that you're a child at heart. Meet Carl Frederickson, a self-proclaimed recluse, and 78 year-old curmudgeon who is just as stubborn as he is lonely. Then, there's Russell, a chubby chatterbox, and boyscout who is one step away from completing his merit badge requirements. The remaining badge: assisting the elderly. To reveal any more information would be to spoil the fun. Part of what I enjoyed about this movie was the original idea: a house lifted from its foundation by an enormous collections of balloons. If you can suspend your disbelief long enough to get past that concept, then you have a real treat on your hands: animation so detailed that Carl has liver spots and you can see the wrinkles in the character's clothing; a surprisingly tender love story about Carl and his beloved Ellie; a delightful & colorful cast of characters; and a childhood sense of wonder at the serendipity of life. Be sure to stick around for the beginning part of the credits for an extra treat.

*****/*****

5/5 Stars

MacGruber (2010)

Ex-special operative MacGruber is called back into action to take down his archenemy, Dieter Von Cunth, who's in possession of a nuclear warhead and bent on destroying Washington, D.C. Based on the "Saturday Night Live" sketch, this action-packed comedy stars Will Forte as incompetent former special ops agent MacGruber. When he's called back into action to deactivate archenemy Dieter Von Cunth (Val Kilmer), MacGruber is on the case. Now, he must thwart Von Cunth's plans to destroy Washington, D.C., with a nuclear warhead. Kristen Wiig, Ryan Phillippe, Maya Rudolph and Powers Boothe co-star.

First of all, I am not a person who gets offended from crass humor. When MacGruber tries to let loose with it's R rating, it fails horribly. It really does. In those moments, it was like a 13 year old wrote it, and the entire time, they thought if the character said the "f-word" a bunch of times, that it would be funny. It really got old. But MacGruber still managed to be entertaining, because about half the time, they do a fantastic job making fun of MacGyver, and the film ends on a hysterical note. I wouldn't see it in theaters (but unfortunately I did), but it'd be a fun rental. And there were wrestler cameos up the wazoo at the begnning!

***/*****

3/5 Stars

Greener Pastures: Beer and Blackhawks in the South Loop

You're not what anyone would ever call a bandwagoneer. But come Saturday, you're probably going to have one thing on your mind:

Egg rolls.

That's good news, because Jimmy Green's, a slick-looking new South Loop sports den, will be serving them, which should give you all the mindspace you need to devote to ice-cold beer, crispy pizza and Duncan Keith's dental troubles, among other important issues of the day.

This is the kind of swanky, high-ceilinged, flat-screen-covered sports bar where you'll find tufted banquettes (but no college sports pennants), and where the polished black marble bar will have to somehow make up for the lack of a Pop-A-Shot.

You and a merry band of (possibly) well-bearded gentlemen will find a big booth in the back and order some mini tacos, saucy wings and Black Angus sliders—the usual stuff champions are made of.

But next week, when you pursue something more genteel than watching a Hawks-Flyers bloodbath, you'll find a place where you can kick back with a stout and a good old-fashioned South Side standby like a meatball sandwich, and maybe the occasional Rock Band Wii competition.

Just remember your mouthguard.

Jimmy Green's, opens this Saturday, 825 S State St (between Eighth and Ninth), 312-386-9000

Legion (2010)

An out-of-the-way diner becomes the unlikely battleground for the survival of the human race. When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity's only hope lies in a group of strangers trapped in a desert diner with the Archangel Michael (Bettany).

I liked it! A Lot! I don't understand the reviews. And I'm a tough critic! Maybe you need to have knowledge of angel lore and of the Archangel, Michael, and the enormous part he has played through out human history. I found the message profound and far more frightening than 2012 or Prophecy - which is, there is a price to pay for the greed, cruelty and hate that is taking over us and killing our planet. Free Will was a gift, it's sad to think that the Creator had such faith in us and WE are letting Him down, because we are standing on the edge on the abyss and the Dark Side does have us by the throat! I also found the setting apropos in its remoteness verses hordes of screaming people and exploding big city skyscrapers. And I found the actors right on! Paul Bettany is such a great actor. His portrayal of Michael is powerful and believable in his promise to protect us, and Kevin Durand's, Gabriel was heartbreaking, as he faithfully follows the orders of the Creator, even if it means destroying his best friend, Michael. I also liked Adrianne Palicki, she was good, but my favorite was, Lucas Black. I love actors that portray it all on their face, their eyes, their emotions. He's all grown up now from "Sling Blade" but still he continues to move you. I just wish we could see more of him in films, what a waste of talent. The down side of this movie for me was the "Night of the living dead" moment, but that was brief, and the guns, man uses guns, Archangels don't. But I think this was because once Michael chose to help man and fell from Grace, he lost his angelic powers. I say RENT IT! You be the judge! It's not to long and moves along at a nice pace, and yes it's scary! And Gabriel's horn is down right creepy as it heralds the end of mankind! Just RENT IT!

"The last time God lost faith in man he sent a flood. This time he sent what you see outside. Are you saying this is the apocalypse I'm saying it's an extermination !" Legion is a sci-fi, religion based, action film. It has some similarities to both Constantine and Gabriel. I'm not saying you have to like those films to enjoy this one (I think this is a bit better than either of those), but what I am saying is that if you don't like the same subject matter (apocalypse, wrath of God, arch angels, etc.) don't bother watching this. "You know this is crazy....I don't believe in God. Well that's just fine Bob, he doesn't believe in you either." It has a very good ensemble cast. Very good special effects and stunts. Very good story, as well as action. Get the picture, I found the film very good. Is it a classic No, but it was enjoyable, and wasn't too preachy in doing it, which is what films of this type generally end up doing.. "Come, ye children, listen to me. I will teach you to fear the Lord." psalm 34:11

****/*****

4/5 Stars

Jisatsu sâkuru (2001) (Aka: Suicide Club)

54 high school girls throw themselves in front of a subway train. This appears to be only the beginning of a string of suicides around the country. Does the new all-girl group Desert have anything to do with it? Detective Kuroda tries to find the answer, which isn't as simple as one could hope.

Yes, this J-Horror is quite shocking, and does push the envelope in some respects, but at the core it's just another film concerned with technology and it's use as a villian/killer/etc. The acting is good enough and the direction is fine, but besides having a rather un-inspired central conceit, the bad guy is too obvious too soon and the characters never really figure it out, the writing has huge gaps regarding characters who are never explained, and the 'climax' song doesn't make any sense and turns out to be more of a throw away than what the heightened tension might make you believe. All in all, this could have been WAY better and had some interesting ideas that should have inspired a better final product.

I consider myself to be open-minded, and I found myself liking this enough at first - the plot is original and interesting to say the least... a movie about a suicide club? It displays the sort of trend following behavior exhibited by adolescents at that age and how susceptible someone can be to following along with the crowd. For that reason, and the themes underlying it, I liked it. On the surface, though, it felt, to me, empty - like there was nothing complex going on, and the story became increasingly more absurd, unbelievable and ridiculous as it progressed (minor spoiler: towards the end, a dance/singing scene with a supposedly gruesome murderer in a bowling alley ensues, and I didn't know whether to laugh for the sheer balls it took to make a scene like that, or the complete ridiculousness). I guess you should see it if you enjoy extremely disturbing, gruesome (for the sake of being gruesome), gory, ridiculous movies. I have to say that I was also disappointed with the ending. Suicide Club has its moments of originality and supposed ingenious, but I wouldn't want to see it again.

**/*****

2/5 Stars

Card Sharked: You've Just Been Carded

Cheek'd

As you might not know: you can be intimidating.

And in one of life's cruel ironies, all your money, success and machete-juggling skills won't do anything to change that.

So we thought we'd give you a heads-up on how your secret admirers will soon be getting in touch with you: introducing Cheek'd, now coming to a table near you.

Think of these business card-size introduction notes as a non-creepy version of those Craigslist Missed Connections ads. One day, you'll be entertaining clients at NoMI or holding court on the patio at Big Star. An elegant stranger sweeps by, nearly brushing against you while passing. She's gone in a flash. But you look down and, casually left behind on your table, there is what looks like an ordinary business card.

You examine it. There's a preprinted message. Maybe it offers a simple, suggestive "Hi." Maybe it's more direct: "Act natural. We can get awkward later." Or maybe it's downright exclamatory: "Feel free to stalk me."

You're intrigued, sure. But now things move into the please-chase-after-me phase. Instead of a name, you'll find a code and a website. You'll log in and find a brief profile and photo of your admirer, and if you want, you'll send a reply.

And like that, the hunted becomes the hunter...

A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)

Death stalks the dreams of several young adults to claim its revenge on the killing of Freddy Kruger. Chased and chastised by this finger-bladed demon, it is the awakening of old memories and the denials of a past of retribution that spurns this hellish vision of a dreamlike state and turns death into a nightmare reality.

Samuel Bayer directs this reinvention of Wes Craven's 1984 slasher classic about Freddy Krueger, a serial killer who crosses the boundary between dreams and the waking world to gut his victims with his razor-sharp blade-fingered glove. As Nancy (Rooney Mara) and her pals fight for their lives, they also uncover clues to a shocking secret from their past. Jackie Earle Haley takes on the iconic role of Freddy.

"A Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984) is a horror classic. Sadly, the remake can not have that said for it. "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (2010) is an okay movie. I won't say it is terrible or boring like many reviewers because it is not. However, if you are watching it, chances are you are also comparing it constantly to the original. In these comparisons, this film will always appear inferior. Jackie Earle Haley is a good Freddy Kruger. Sadly, he isn't close to being the iconic Robert Englund. Katie Cassidy's death is nowhere as bloody or violent as her counterpart in the original. There is no epic bloodbath like in the original's murder of Glen (Johnny Depp). There are no scenes that have that lasting appeal that the iconic imagery of Freddy's outstretched arms or licking of Nancy through the phone had in the original. Plus, I found myself looking for a strong adult character like the original had in John Saxon's character. Clancy Brown and Connie Britton were wasted talents in this one. This film was full of missed opportunities for horror greatness.


***/*****

3/5 Stars