Terrible Plan! Movie Reviews

What I liked: Liked is definitely the wrong word for it but the scenes of the sinking of the Titanic were masterful. They were technologically impressive, apparently remarkably accurate, and emotionally gripping. The variety of ways in which different people dealt with a completely hopeless situation was both touching and thought provoking. Especially beautiful was the string quartet. In isolation from the love story, the sinking of the Titanic is a tragic reminder of the cost of hubris and the necessity of regulating emergency procedures and capacities. It carries similar gravitas as a war film. At the 25th anniversary of the film, I can appreciate how Titanic has impacted movies made later.  What I didn't: So here's the thing. I feel very bad for you if you died in the sinking of the Titanic. I feel less bad for you if you managed to get on a lifeboat on the Titanic and then decided to get off. I question all of your decision making and priorities if you decide to get off a...

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What I liked: This is the moment we have all been waiting for. After mistakenly watching the Christopher Reeves version and a  2000's remake , I have finally watched Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window. In some ways it really delivered. Others I felt like I had seen before. I really liked the girl friend's outfits. Granted she is a model, but I thought they looked like things I would like to wear when the vintage mood strikes. The crotchety nurse was funny and delivered some pretty sarcastic lines for the 1950's.The film is based on a book "It had to be murder" but the catchier title comes up when the nurse declares that she is not an expert in rear window ethics (I figured this out myself, take that internet).  I appreciated the creative use of flash photography and, true to form, Hitchcock really shone in the exceptional development of side characters we see only briefly. I liked the makeshift dog elevator and the flowerbed misdirection. I must also credit Hitc...

What I liked: This is an old 80's movie. That means it is full of 80's fashion and hair. It also means that it is old enough to star one of the characters from MASH, which was a bit disorienting. Full of dark humor and absolute randomness that would make Douglas Adams proud, Better off Dead is highly entertaining and moderately disconcerting. I think the film is best summarized by a quote from the movie "My grandmother...dropped acid...and kidnapped a school bus...full of penguins." None of these things actually happened, it is an almost convincing excuse made to the bicycle mafia, but really any of those things could have happened in the course of the movie. In amongst the mayhem some of my favorites were the bicycle mafia, the apparently sentient dinner mush, some actually very impressive one legged skiing, the Japanese drag racers, the space shuttle, the sword fight, the aardvark coat, and the geometry class. What I didn't: The whole thing plays out like high...

What I liked: This is apparently a classic movie. I had never heard of it before but Netflix kept telling me that I should watch it because it was classic. Ok fine Netflix you win. So as classics go this is pretty good. It comes in well ahead of Citizen Kane, Gone with the Wind, Lawrence of Arabia, and Dr. Zhivago. When it comes to black and white movies I am more of a Hitchcock girl liking things like 39 steps, The Lady Vanishes, and Charade. As you can infer from the title and poster it is an early romantic comedy which works out fine until they guy finally gets the girl. The premise is the couple is divorced and the girl is about to get remarried, they guy still loves her so keeps trying to sabotage her leaving. I thought the antics were ridiculous and funny. The backstory of the couple’s relationship is also absurd and entertaining. The girl was feisty and saw through the guy’s plans. I also liked the portrayal of the reporters and their different versions of the same newspape...

What I liked: The story telling was very interesting  and quite different from other movies I have seen. All we see is the inside of the jury room we hear nothing of the trial or anyone besides the jurors. I was impressed that the film was able to keep my attention and move a plot along with a single setting and an effective cast of 12. It is an interesting look into how we make decisions and what people actually notice. The jury was very diverse and fairly well represented all the stereotypical characters one would find in a microcosm. What I didn’t: I think there were several breaches of jury rules, like reading a newspaper and buying/bringing a switchblade to court. This and the complete little microcosm puts the film safely in things we should think about territory rather than let’s depict a court case territory. Who should watch it: This is a cultural literacy piece. Theoretically everyone should watch it or at least know what it’s about. Would I watch it again? Sure....

What I liked: the story is good and it is suspenseful and very interesting twists at the end that I didn't see coming. What I didn't: none of the characters are likeable, the plot drags at the beginning, and we were not invested in the romantic relationships neither of the relationship of the heroine to her late husband nor to her more recent love interest. Since this is a large plot element, we should be more interested in the outcome. I think this movie would have promise as an updated version where the heroine when is not completely useless and where you have some investment in the different characters. Who should watch it: people onto old thrillers. I put it in the same class as the sting. Would I watch it again? Not rewatchable: the surprise is the best part. But I would be very interested in an updated version.

What I liked: Several scenes- Bond handcuffed to girl riding a motorcycle being pursued by cars, motorcycles, and helicopters. Bad guy preparing to kill Bond and then discovering that actually they need him to unlock the Bond car. Several gadgets- stealth boat, giant boat chomper which appears to have excellent steering abilities on land, water, and air. I guess I feel like Miss Piggy summed up the movie nicely “I got the story! I got the story!” What I didn’t: Standard Bond dislikes. Why do Bond and the bad guys both know the same girls? Always? Why do neither of them feel particularly bad about offing said girls? Why has M not fired Bond yet? Why has Q not offed Bond yet? Where do the bad guys keep finding former Nazis? Shouldn’t they all be dead by now? Who should watch this: Solid Bond flick. Chase scenes not as good as Die Another Day or Casino Royale but overall lighter and funner. So I guess bond fans and people looking for a light action flick. Would I watch it a...

What I liked: it's the Jack Ryan character, he's pretty cool. That's really all this movie has going for it. Oh and the old school hacking. That was fun. What I didn't: it was boring. Boring boring. It took me three sessions to get through it. If I turn on a movie while folding laundry or grading, it has a good 30-45 minutes to get me interested enough to keep watching, that should be more than enough to get past the plot set up to the for stuff. If a film can't grab me in that time, there is a problem. Blah blah evil president, corrupt spies, bad guys. Been there, seen that done better. Also this is medium in Ryan's career, he is acting director of the CIA, should he really be running around asking under machine gun fire? I mean I like me some good explosions but maybe after all this time in  the CIA he would have meet at least one friend who is trustworthy and could come on adventures with him. If there is no other trustworthy decent agent in the CIA...