A blog about life, media reviews (mainly movies), and food reviews from our daily life experiences.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Hollywoodland Review
Christmas with the Kranks Review
Friday, December 05, 2008
Farce of the Penguins - So Much Potential, Yet...
Thursday, December 04, 2008
In the Land of Women - Not Your Average Movie
Friday, November 21, 2008
Some Research that Might Help You to be Happier
Thursday, November 13, 2008
The Enforcer Review
After reviewing the first movie of "Dirty Harry" and finding some major problems with the characters and plots (please see previous post), I wasn't sure how the sequels of Dirty Harry would be. However, I was curious enough to tape them when they were on TV. This movie "The Enforcer" is actually the 3rd in the series, and caused me to really start liking the series again. The first one left me skeptical, but Clint Eastwood does seem to really own this role, and the script writing is not bad at all. The clever comments and funny situations that Harry gets himself into and out of make for some good movie moments. In this movie, Harry gets a female partner (whom he doesn't quite trust) and itsn't thrilled about it. However, over time he grows to respect her and she proves to be a great partner for him. There are some great one-liners in this movie, and the acting is very well done in my opinion. Although Harry Callahan seems to be kind of arrogant and adopts an the-end-justifies-the-means mentality, movies like this make it hard not to like him anyway. Recommended if you have an interest in Clint Eastwood or good cop movies.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Incredible Hulk Review
Saturday, November 08, 2008
Cinderella Man Review
Saturday, October 18, 2008
What I'm Reading
Friday, October 17, 2008
The Outsiders Review
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
3:10 To Yuma Review
I'm not a huge fan of western movies. To me they have had their time in the spotlight, and just mention the character John Wayne and I'm sure about 7 westerns pop into your mind. However, this movie was recommended, and after watching it I was blown away by how well-done it was. The basic story is a poor farmer who has no respect from his son decides to help bring in a killer (Russell Crowe) for a $200 reward (and to earn respect from his son). The story is about his trek with the killer to the train that leaves at 3:10. This movie is very rich in character development and has some great action scenes as well. Russell Crowe was suberb in this movie, and for me I think it was one of the best movies I believe he has ever played in. Christian Bale also has a fine role. I was so impressed with this movie that I ended up buying it shortly after watching it. Great acting, great story, and a worthwhile ending. This movie has actually made me have hope that good western movies can come back. One note: although most of the bad characters in this movie quote the Bible, I didn't detect it as mocking Christians at all. People have been twisting the Bible and taking it out of context since it has been written, and I don't think that disproves it at all. As Romans says in chapter 3 verse 4 : "... Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar.. ". God's Word will continue to stand regardless of evil men misusing it. That being said, I found this movie fantastic and look forward to watching it again. Two thumbs up. Way up.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
August Rush Review
This movie was recommended to me by several people as a great heart-warming story with a wonderful music soundtrack. I have to agree with the soundtrack aspect. This movie really does have some great original music and is fun to watch. The basic story is that a boy was born due to the union of two musicians having a one-night stand. They get separated and kind of go on with their lives not realizing that the father of the girl has signed the kid off for adoption and to stay in foster care not wanting his girl to become a mother. Long story short - and I must warn you that spoilers will be forthcoming - the boy uses his musical genius to help find the musical genius of his two parents so that they are all reunited over the love of music in the end. The one thing I didn't enjoy about this movie was that I found it kind of slow to get started. It definitely had good plot development, yet I found it almost boring in the beginning as I'm waiting for the story to unfold. However, the acting was very good, and as stated before the musical score is one of the best I've heard in recent movies made. Recommended for all those who have even a passing interest in music.
Why the Internet is not responsible for the decline in printed press subscriptions
Monday, October 06, 2008
Wild Hogs Review
Shrek 3 Review
I have always been a fan of the Shrek movies. Not a die-hard fan where I wait in line on the opening day of the theatre release, yet still someone who likes to enjoy making fun of several Disney movies once in a while. So we got HBO for a few days on our cable box, and I was conveniently able to watch this movie and make a comparison compared to the other two (which I also enjoyed). My overall verdict? 4 Stars out of 5. In this movie, Shrek is about to become a dad, and he faces the fears that most fathers-to-be experience of how that is going to change his life and his wife's. Yet, even though this has standard Shrek humor throughout, I enjoyed this movie because it also had some creative moments and I never really thought "been there - done that" while watching the story unfold. Considering that this is the third movie about a green ogre that I have watched, I consider that impressive. I was also impressed by the new voice talents that they pulled in to play the characters. Shrek has always been top notch with hiring good voice actors, and they continue to impress. Great movie that has some unexpected twists and turns but overall is very well executed in my opinion.
Monday, September 08, 2008
The Marine Review
Failure to Launch Review
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Facing the Giants Review
Wayne's World 2 Review
Saturday, August 23, 2008
21 Review
After being recommended this movie from some family members, we finally got around to seeing this 2 hour movie based on the book "Bringing Down The House". I own the book, but have never read the whole thing through, and although I liked this movie a lot, I have a feeling that it is VERY loosely based on the book (which is a true story). Basically it is the story of a M.I.T. student who learns to count cards in order to earn money to go to medical school. He hangs out with a professor at MIT and a team of students that work together in order to count cards and make thousands at the Vegas casinos. While some of this movie really seems unbelievable, it does make for a very interesting plot and Chrystal and I both really liked it. The soundtrack throughout the movie was very well put-together in my humble opinion, and I liked the way that it showed the corruption that money and greed can cause a young man. This movie illustrates the dangers of pride and greed and what that can cause in relationships and in life choices. It really did a good job illustrating the truth of Proverbs 16:18 (NKJV):
"Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall."
Although some of it was predictable, we both really enjoyed it and thought it was very entertaining. There were a few scenes that in my opinion would have been better left out, but overall I highly recommend this movie. Two thumbs up.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Collateral Review
Saturday, August 09, 2008
Regarding Henry Review
I actually have seen this movie several times, yet I don't think I have written a review of it yet. To me, this is one of Harrison Ford's best movies. He isn't an action hero, but this movie really shows some good acting and character development, without always being about special effects. The basic plot is a self-centered lawyer ends up getting shot in a robbery, and has to relearn who he is. He must learn to talk again, walk again, and love again and discover who he was before the shooting. As he discovers what his life and friends were like before the shooting, he really begins to hate who he was and this realization changes him for the better. Although this movie isn't perfect (there are a couple scenes that could have been edited out in my opinion), I do think it does a great job showing that sometimes the most important parts of our life get the least attention. As stated before, Harrison Ford does a wonderful job portraying not only an arrogant lawyer, but also a changed man who learns the true value of good family and faithful friends. This movie is a rare movie for hollywood. It is heart-warming and well done in my opinion, and if you haven't watched it yet - I recommend you check it out. 4.5 stars out of 5 in my opinion.
The Bucket List Review
This movie was directed by one of my favorite directors: Rob Reiner, who also directed classics like The Princess Bride, and A Few Good Men. The story is about two men who have both been diagnosed with cancer. One is a rich businessman who doesn't have much close family and thinks the world revolves around him (more or less), and the other one (Morgan Freeman's character) is a humble mechanic who has a large family who loves him, yet who feels like he never got to do everything he was hoping to before getting the tragic news of terminal cancer. The two characters end up sharing a hospital room and throughout getting to know one another, they decide to write a bucket list of all the things they want to do before they kick the bucket. These things include driving fast cars, skydiving, and few other things. Throughout this journey, they grow closer together and find more to life than they originally thought they possessed. Unfortunately, they really leave the question of where they will spend eternity out of the equation. To Rob Reiner's credit he does include a dialog between the characters about faith, yet the end result was kind of a "believe what works for you" outcome. Nothing about repentance, nothing about living for eternity rather than for the moment, and no mention of Jesus(unless used in blasphemy). On a positive note, the movie did show the value of staying close to your family and making an effort to restore broken relationships. All in all, it was a fairly good movie, yet it was sad due to not offering much hope of eternal life. I would give 2.5-3 stars out of 5.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Jumper Review
Chrystal, my sister-in-law Melody, and I just finished watching this action sci-fi flick and were pleasantly surprised how fun it was. We initially weren't sure about this movie, due to it being a superhero (sort-of) spin-off, yet it really kind of stood alone. Basically it is the story of a guy who can teleport to all different places, and begins to use the power to steal and abuse his power for evil. Through all this storyline (which isn't very deep to begin with), he is chased down by people that don't like his power and want him dead. One thing that really impressed me about this movie (realism aside) is how cool they made teleporting look. I mean if you have an ounce of imagination, you would enjoy just thinking about having the power to be anywhere at once, and this movie made it look very, very sweet. Almost worth re-watching, but definitely worth a good watch for an action, comedy, sci-fi flick that does a decent job blending them all together. One theme I took from this movie (similar to Spiderman 3) is that it is wrong to assume people will turn out a certain way just because others like them have made some bad choices. I agree with that idea to some degree but not completely. People have a sinful tendency to do wrong (bar-none). There is not one person I believe who is basically good. We do all have a choice to make, however. Through God's grace we can choose to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and live in His power doing good things, or we can go our own direction, live in sin, and ultimately end up in hell. This is a serious choice and one that everyone should consider. Left to ourselves we all are sinful, but Christ offers us salvation and hope to live a righteous life through His strength and power. I'll close with a couple verses from God's Word:
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment - Hebrews 9:27 NKJV
Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. Acts 3:19-20.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
In Good Company Review
I saw this movie was on TV, and since Chrystal had wanted to see this one, I decided to check it out. We watched it the other day, and I must say I was pretty disappointed. I haven't seen Topher Grace in too much other than Spiderman 3 and "The 70s Show", yet this movie is one I wouldn't consider his crowning accomplishment. Don't get me wrong, it isn't terrible, it just doesn't quite live up to the way I thought it would be. It broke out of the steriotypical romantic comedy to become a drama with slightly funny moments throughout. Dennis Quaid plays a kind of mean executive who has little patience for those who are younger than him in the business world. Topher Grace becomes his boss and is really looking for a mentor. So guess what? He picks Dennis Quaid and the two begin to work very closely together. One sad part of this movie involved Topher's character inviting himself over to Dennis Quaid's house just because he was so lonely and depressed that his wife left him. It really made me see how people need others in their life, and it made me grateful that I belong to a church with many friends who would care for me through tough times, so that I wouldn't have to invite myself over to a co-workers just because I was lonely. Having like-minded Christians who pray for you and support you in your time of need is something that many people just don't have. Back to the movie however. All in all I thought this movie lacked fulfilling character roles, and left me thinking that something was missing from the story. Maybe all it was trying to do was to portray real life in corporate America. However, that is a subject I don't need integrated into a "comedy". Too realistic and real-life, and not light-hearted enough. Two thumbs down in my opinion.
SHE SAID:
Well, I don't post very often, but I just want to warn people to not watch this bland-wait-it's-got-to-get-better movie!! I think Topher Grace is a good actor based on his previous roles, but this movie is not even sure what genre to call itself. I wanted to watch it because the previews made it look like a romantic comedy. Sadly, even the attempts at humor often fell flat. I will echo what Paul said about Topher desperately seeking community from his coworkers (because he has no friends). At 26 his career is so central that he often works Sunday's and goes thru a divorce. There are plenty of scriptures on the value of hard work, but when all you have is your career it's a very empty unfufilling life. Overall, there was slight chemistry between Topher and his love interest. Without giving too much away, Topher, does not lead as a man should in the relationship. Lastly, the movie abruptly ends without really tying the plot together! It's a movie that after you watch it, you might have to watch another movie to console yourself.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Con Air Review
I DVRed this movie the other day and finally had a chance to watch it from one end to the other. I found it pretty enjoyable for an action flick. Not that many people look to this blog for recommendations or anything, but I thought I would post what I thought of this movie. First of all, great all-star cast that play their parts reasonably well. You have Nick Cage, John Malkovich, and John Cusack to name a few. Nick Cage is the star of the story who gets sent to federal prison for killing someone in a bar fight. The movie does a good job showing how he is really a nice guy deep down and showing the admirable qualities of loyalty and care for others that are present in his character. Although this is an action movie, I liked the fact that it had plenty of humor throughout so that I won't blame this movie for taking itself too seriously. There are some pretty graphic violent scenes in this movie, but you generally don't pop in a movie with the name "CON AIR" on it expecting a movie that will make you and your family feel good before you fall asleep. It is a movie about cons, so in that sense, I can say it may not be entirely uplifting to watch, yet in another sense it still shows that even in bad situations (like Nick found himself in), things can work out OK (with God's help of course). It almost reminds me of the Joseph story. Joseph got thrown into prison, yet he still didn't let that make him a prisoner in the way he acted. He kept believing God and trusting that God would get him out eventually, and as the Bible says, he ends up becoming second in command to the king of Egypt, and God uses it to reunite him with his family. Well I won't say too much more about the "Con Air" or the way it ends, but if you want plenty of action and a fairly redemptive ending, I recommend that you check it out.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Reign Over Me Review
I watched this movie a few weekends ago, and actually liked it more than I thought. The story line is complex and the character development was really good (in my opinion) in this movie about college buddies that get reaquainted with one another after one of them goes through the horrible loss of his wife and children when they die in a 9/11 airplane. Adam Sandler portrays the withdrawn widower who lives a lonely life in the city trying to deny what happened in his life, and live a life of no responsibility. Don Cheadle does a superb job of playing his friend who isn't content to let Adam Sandler's character live a life disconnected and tries to genuinely get involved in his life by spending time with him and encouraging him to get professional help. What this movie does so well in my opinion is show how badly we all need people in our lives to help us see who we really are, and to grow through the life trial and temptations that we all face. I believe a church is probably the best instrument for that to happen in, yet in this movie, it was an old college buddy who wasn't content to mind his own business, but instead wanted to genuinely help his friend get through the grieving process. Throughout the story, Don Cheadle's character ends up learning a thing or two about his own life and marriage as a result of spending so much time investing his life in the life of his widower friend. I believe over all that this story shows the power of community to help us to grow and develop, and the only sad part about this movie, is that it didn't really show that the Author of Life, Jesus Christ, is the one who really offers genuine help and comfort in the midst of trials and pain. 4 out of 5 stars in my book.
Invincible Review
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Book Review of "The Summons" by John Grisham
Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
Greed can do all sorts of things to a person, and in the end cause him/her to hurt the ones he/she loves. This novel was an excellent story that helped to enforce that idea, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Highly recommended.
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Lucky You Review
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Dan in Real Life review
We got a recommendation from a friend that "Dan in Real Life" would be a good romantic comedy with a good amount of romance, yet something I (Paul) would enjoy watching as well. I personally am not into movies where the guys are merely there to add the romance factor and have no real function other than to sweep the main girl character off of her feet. Sure sappy love stories have their place, but I appreciate good romantic comedies that have some substance to the characters lives. We were not at all disappointed with "Dan in Real Life". This movie was great. The characters are well-played, and very true-to-life at times, and the story isn't boring at all and moves along very well. The main plot of the story is a guy named "Dan" who is the single father of three girls and also works as a newspaper columnist. Dan is just trying to do a good job as a dad to his three girls when he meets this intriguing woman at a bookstore and really hits it off talking to her. He thought all was going well, until he finds out that his brother is dating her. I won't go any further than that, but this movie did a wonderful job showing how awkward and weird falling in love can be (especially around your close family). I thought the family relationships shown in this movie were really shown in a great 3 dimensional way, and yet it still showed that the extended family cared about each and every person. Dan has trouble throughout with his feelings, but one of the characters wisely shares with him that "love isn't just a feeling, it is an action you take" (my paraphrase). I have to agree with that message, and hope that more movies like this one are released. Two thumbs up.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Jerry Maguire Review
Monday, January 28, 2008
Shattered Glass Review
Well as mentioned before, I haven't completely given up movies. I caught this great movie on TV the other night, and was pleasantly surprised how well-written and directed it was. It is the true story of a journalist by the name of Stephen Glass and a look at his career and how he was discovered to have fabricated some of his stories. It does a phenomenal job of showing how Mr. Glass was probably thinking in order to justify his false journalism, and how he really loved to just tell a great story and have everyone laugh and be entertained. The movie is very well-done in my opinion and very engaging as it shows the publications he writes for become more and more suspicious that he is making up his "facts". I was really drawn into this movie that shows how some people become so desirious for public approval and praise that they are willing to lie in order to be recognized. Watching this movie made me think about my own temptation at times to be hypocritical and to appear differently than I truly am -merely because I want people to think well of me. I do feel sorry that Mr. Glass felt the need to lie in order to impress others, yet I know that he isn't alone in thinking that that will make you popular and well-liked. However, people do want the truth in the long run, and fortunately in journalism that need is pretty emphasized. Although everyone wants to believe that they can get away with things that they know are wrong, I think Numbers 32:23 says it very well ....
"But if you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the Lord, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out." NLT
and the good news is contained in Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. NLT.
This movie gets two thumbs up in my view.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
What I'm Reading
Monday, January 21, 2008
What's been going on
Life is Beautiful - excellently done movie about the Holocaust. Very touching and worth watching in my opinion.
Picture Perfect - amusing romantic comedy with Rachel from Friends. Didn't watch all of it, but Chrystal really enjoyed this one.
Labyrinth - Old classic movie by Jim Henson. Kind of strange, but interesting if you like fantasy. If you don't like fantasy and fairy tales, you should probably skip it. Fun songs.