Aristocrats (02 09 08) – REVIEW
In Bruges (05 09 08) – REVIEW
Thumbsucker (06 09 08) – The cast for this is very interesting and probably the best part of the film. Tilda Swinton downplays her ethereality to be nurse and mother married to L&O: CI’s Vincent D’Onofrio. Vince Vaughn appears as debate teacher who wears big glasses and ugly sweater vests. Benjamin Bratt appears as cokehead TV star and is involved in the nastiest scene of the film. Finally, Keanu Reeves plays an eccentric, sometimes New Age orthodontist (very apt). The plot was alright, and it was sweet not anything spectacular. A likable coming of age story.
The Ladykillers (06 09 08) – Alec Guinness is creepy in this film. He seemed positively vampiric. I don’t know when I’ll get over his crazy teeth and manner. It was a decent plot and acting, but I do not think I really get entertained by these comedies very much, especially since I recently saw In Bruges.
Last Orders (08 09 08) – REVIEW
St. Trinian’s (13 09 08) – I assume I did not hear a lot about this movie because it seems to have gotten mixed reviews. It really was not that bad. Some of the comedy was a little too slapsticky to me I must admit: the humping dog, the pranks, etc. Some people would find Rupert Everett in drag for the whole movie tacky; I ran with it especially since Colin Firth plays opposite. With Russell Brand and the appearance of Stephen Fry. A few others I recognized include Fenella Woolgar, Amara Karan (The Darjeeling Limited), Talulah Riley, new Bond girl Gemme Arterton, and Mischa Barton which was kind of random, but appropriate and tolerable in this circumstance. Back to the Firth thing, it is cheap, but I loved all the meta Pride and Prejudice jokes they put in.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (14 09 08) – This is actually my first Judd Apatow related movie. While it was not too bad, I’m not running to see any other Apatow related movies soon. I liked Kristen Bell and Mila Kunis in this. Russell Brand stole every scene he was in. Jason Segel’s script and part were not too bad either, but I can really do without seeing his penis so many times in a movie. Okay overall.
The Bank Job (14 09 08) – My sixth British movie of the month! This was another really good one. It’s a clever and well acted heist movie set in the 1970s. I have no idea how true it is, probably not a lot, but the 70s art direction is nice and stuble enough. Refreshing from watching all the heist movies now with high tech gadgets. I’ve liked Jason Statham since I saw the Guy Ritchie films, and this is probably his best work since then. Really good heist movie.
Thank you for smoking (14 09 08) – Finally I saw this after it being in my movie queue for awhile. This was also my third film of the day because I have been knitting sleeves. Aaron Eckhart is very good in this; I hope he lands more good roles like this. Good cast and smart, satirical script.
Sex and the City (18 09 08) – I never followed the show; I’ve seen only a couple of episodes. I saw the extended cut version of the movie; I found the movie overall okay. I will say the best part is the eye candy for the fashion. I wanted half the stuff in the movie. The New York urban porn was nice too; something about snowing in NYC looks really good in film. One can definitely see why it’s like a cult show that they made into a movie; I like how it does explore the dynamic between female friends. Nothing too bad in the acting front really.
Lost in Austen – Fun.
The Family Stone (27 09 08) – This did nothing for me. I did not really feel for any of the characters, and the script just seemed to force all these family poignant moments. I like Rachel McAdams, but her character was annoying. I did not care for the relationship swapping halfway through. All “funny” moments were in the trailer. I guess I like some of the actors; Paul Schneider’s bit part was nice. I seem to watching lots of his films lately.
The Butterfly Effect (28 09 08) – Apparently, the critics hated this movie, but it made a lot of money. I can see how it has a wide appeal because I kind of liked it myself. Mainly due to my fascination with alternate universes, time travel, and chaos theory. The script is not that badly written, and I do like Ashton Kutcher more after seeing this. Not necessarily as a great actor, but the movie makes him look better than he usually does. Callum Keith Rennie even makes an appearance albeit for one scene. I would not watch this movie again though; it just seemed too violent for me. Quentin Tarantino movies are violent, but they are also funny. This movie had no funny moments and was quite sad and creepy for a lot of it. It was intense overall. For a moment towards the end, I thought they were going to go Hollywood and have a trite ending, but respect to the movie makers for having the ending live up to movie’s plot.
Iron Man (30 09 08) – Fun. I have been looking forward to this as I love a good summer blockbuster/ super hero movie. I have had a soft spot for RDJ for years. Someone said that he deserved this role, and honestly, he does. He’s this gem of an actor, and I’m glad he has finally found a vehicle and more opportunities to showcase his awesomeness. I like this cast. I hardly recognized Jeff Bridges in this role, and I like Terence Howard in anything. Coming off of Sliding Doors (below) and the grounded character of Pepper Potts, I did like Paltrow in this role as well. With her Spain travelogue show, I think I have to admit that I like the formerly known as fishstick. Even Paul Bettany’s voice is in this movie. Knowing that a lot of the dialogue was improvised makes me love this film even more. Looking forward to the sequels.

Total: 14.

Rewatched Movies:
Sliding Doors (15 09 08) – There are few movies I like to rewatch, and this is actually the first time I have rewatched this one. It won’t be the last time though; I have been thinking about this movie for awhile now. It came ten years ago; it’s very late 90s. The movie even features Dido’s “Thank you” which is a song that I liked way back then too. I have never been a fan of Gwyneth Paltrow, but this is the only one of her movies that I absolutely love her in. I can’t imagine the film without her, and her faux Britishness seems the most sincere here. I love the concept of this story, and the ending is bitter at first, but then very lovely overall. I hope one day I get chatted up on the tube by a guy like John Hannah’s character. Seriously, how did he go from this to being Brendan Fraser’s sidekick in the Mummy movies? He and Rachel Weisz were the only reasons I saw the first and second Mummy movies; they were pretty fun movies overall too, but even John Hannah can’t make me see the third Mummy movie. I digress though. I think Hannah is seriously underrated as an actor and a leading man as a result of how much I love this film. It’s very London and British, has an unconventional premise, and a really good romance. Now that I finally got a copy, I can be sad, be happy, and hope for a down to earth and funny guy like James.