Love and Other Drugs

Oh please. This is really about seeing Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway naked. That's the most interesting part of the film. It's a boring story with a very predictable ending. Hathaway has Parkinson's and uses a hard shell to hide her internal pain. Gyllenhaal is a charming playboy drugs salesman. They meet, she resists, he uses his smoldering puppy looks, yada. At points, it feels interminable. If these two weren't such good actors to watch, this would have been flushed. It was part Love Story (minus the preppie remarks), part Up In The Air lonely horny man meets woman who won't commit. It isn't so horrible a film that they shouldn't have made it- they just shouldn't have made it with such good actors because that made it almost acceptable. Skip it.

Megamind

This is the same old same old "Bad Guy is really a good guy", etc, and he falls for the cute woman who rejects him until he turns good. Oh yeah, you've heard it all before. But it is funny and so well done that you don't care about the stale plot.  Voice work is done by Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt and Tina Fey. Ferrell and Pitt don't sound exactly like themselves, so the audience is allowed to believe the characters. Tina Fey, on the other hand, makes no effort to not sound exacty like Tina Fey. It really stops the suspension of belief and makes you think "hey, that's Tina Fey". It's a peeve of mine- voice talent should not be readily recognizable. But little kids won't notice it is Tina Fey. And the other things about this film are so entertaining and fun that there is no reason not to see it. A word of caution- 3D is far more expensive- even at the matinee. So check out the price before you bring the neighborhood kids with you!

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

The usual cast of suspects returns for the third and final installment of the Stieg Larsson series. And it is going to get the same review as the others but perhaps harsher. First of all, despite the hoopla, the books are intricate, involved and have often unnecessary plot diversions- they are, in a word, busy. This movie also in the same frantic mode goes chopping from scene to scene with little explanation as to whom the people are or what their relevance is. The movie is like the Cliff's notes for the book. If you haven't read the book, you  may as well take a nap. And when that is the case, the movie is a failure. Since I read the book, I'll give it 2 stars. But truly, no movie should need an interpreter. And if it is going to acts as a summary then it should at least stick to the plot. Some major elements are left out- and they aren't small. Oh well. Maybe the American remake will do a better job.

Hereafter

The Hereafter- if you sit long enough in this dull and lengthy movie, that is precisely where you will wish you were. Matt Damon is listed as the star- but it is a crummy role indeed. He is only in 1/3 of the film. He has repetitive and annoying dialogue as a retired psychic. He plays a real psychic- he actually can communicate with the dead. Enter the requisite and predictable female who has a near death experience she needs explained. Then enter the saddest loss- a young boy who has lost his twin brother. You can actually write the ending yourself if you've ever seen a movie. It is not poorly edited- it is mostly overscripted. It feels tedious and pointless for 2/3 of the film. You don't have a lot of interest in these boring folks even though they are acting their butts off. When the end mercifully arrives, it is so contrived and so idiotic  that you can hardly believe it. The final 10 seconds are inexplicable. Oh well. See it at your own risk. I think part of the problem is that you honestly have been led to believe you are going to see a movie with Matt Damon in the film- the entire film. Nope.  But you'd be far better off  walking into the next theater to see Jackass 3D- not because I refuse to see it and won't review it, but because at least Jackass doesn't pretend to be art. On the upside, Hereafter isn't the worst film of the year because George Clooney all ready beat them to it.

Let Me In

This is a vampire movie. Make no mistake- it has violent and vicious moments. It is more of a literary movie in that it requires a little more thought than the average vampire flick. If you like somber themes with violence thrown in, then you might do better to rent the original Swedish version, Let the Right One In. The vampire is a young girl- she can never grow up despite her years as a vampire. She will never age. But she must have a companion- and that will be the child who is the loner who is bullied. He will be the best victim. And he will be her slave. But he will age and eventually she must find another. The Swedish version uses long winter nights and snow to contrast with the blood and the hiding. But the plot is the same. If you've never thought about how a vampire child would entice someone to be her caretaker in the human world, if you see this movie, you will. If you don't like dark movies with somewhat restrained action, this would never be the movie for you. But I liked both versions and would really recommend you try one of them. Or read the book.