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Castor |
The big news of the week, of course, is the cancellation of Spider-Man 4 and the franchise reboot. You can find my post here.
More News:
- Sherlock Holmes 2 is being fast-tracked by Warner Bros to begin shooting as early as June (Entertainment Weekly)
- Peter Sarsgaard to play Green Lantern’s villain (Coming Soon)
- Daniel Craig in talks to join Cowboys and Aliens (Collider)
- Ivan Reitman will direct Ghostbuster 3 (MTV)
- Angelina Jolie will play the lead character in Kay Scarpetta adaptation (THR)
- Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan join cast of time-travel thriller Source Code (First Showing)
- Jenna Fischer joining Owen Wilson in comedy Hall Pass (THR)
- Kathryn Bigelow will direct Held by the Talibans (First Showing)
- Piranha 3D release postponed from April 16 to August at the earliest (LA Times)
- Bill Murray cast in Passion Play (Production Weekly)
- Michael Bay says there will less robots in Transformers 3 (LA Times)
Continue reading Movie News: Weekly Roundup »
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By
Castor |
Directed by Shane Black, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a 2005 dark comedy that was completely overlooked in the US, barely grossing $4.2M at the US box office, despite mostly favorable critical acclaim.
Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) is a petty thief who is mistaken for an actor while burglarizing some store in an hilarious beginning to the movie. He is sent to Los Angeles where he meets Gay Perry (Val Kilmer), a gay private detective (ah ah how clever) with whom he is supposed to get detective lessons for a role, and Harmony Lane (Michelle Monaghan), a struggling actress. Harry immediately falls for Harmony who he later recognizes as his high school crush. Everything gets awry when Harry gets entangled in some odd murder mystery while shadowing Perry. The three team up to solve the mysterious deaths and more hilarity ensues.
The structure of the movie is refreshing with Downey narrating the movie at various point in time. The movie sometimes pauses or jumps backward in time to let the narration enlighten the audience. There is a good amount of satire and mocking of numerous aspects of Hollywood and movie making that keep the film entertaining throughout. More than anything however, the movie is about story telling (hint: literally, watch the ending, I won’t say more).
Robert Downey Jr. is… Robert Downey Jr, in a good way. You know the quirky, fast-talking, super-smart guy we are used to. Only this time, he is not super-smart and a simple mathematical calculations toward the end of the movie goes hilariously wrong! This was a role that very few Hollywood actors could have successfully taken and Downey was perfect for it. However, Val Kilmer was the revelation of the movie. I haven’t seen him in so long. I never thought he could be that funny and show great nuance between being both a tough and queer guy! Both have great on-screen chemistry and are hilarious together. Michelle Monaghan is solid as the attractive yet down-to-Earth girl next door gone a bit wrong.
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is an hilarious and smartass dark comedy slash thriller that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Robert Downey Jr. was perfect in another role made only for him and the endless pop culture reference keep the movie entertaining all the way to the credits. At the end of the day though, the movie has a complex plot that is much about nothing.
B+
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Rating: 10.0/10 (1 vote cast)
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Castor |
I will just post some short reviews here instead of single separate one for each… Getting lazy 
Can you hear me now?
Eagle Eye (2008), directed by DJ Caruso and starring Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan, is a somewhat entertaining movie despite a quite implausible plot. A prototypical artificial intelligence-controlled computer system designed to detect threat to national security goes rogue without anyone’s knowledge and activates numerous citizens across the nation to accomplish the dirty work a computer can’t do. A classic summer movie, with plenty of action and little brain.
C-
Lakeview Terrace
(2008)
Well acted movie albeit a bit slow moving because of the lack of action until the last fourth of the movie. The movie basically is about the rising tension between two neighbors. The great thing is that the movie starts as if everything could be all right: Abel Turner, the antagonist played by Samuel Jackson seems like a decent guy although a bit rough on the edge. The new neighbors are definitely trying their best to fit in and please the weird creepy cop next door. Unfortunately, what seemed to be a “getting up on the wrong foot” case slowly turns into hatred and violence. Ending was a bit disappointing but what’s new… Anyways, worth watching if only for the great performance from Samuel Jackson.
C+
Traitor (2008)
Starring Don Cheadle, Traitor is an interesting and entertaining movie. Cheadle plays Samir Horn, a former US Special Force soldier who seemingly has turned into a terrorist and is blowing American shit up. Very good character development of the Samir character as we see him being emotionally torn apart by his undercover work. Another great performance by Don Cheadle and a movie that will make you ponder the potential cost of the war on terrorism.
B
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Castor |
Fresh off my mind, I can say that this movie was simply outstanding. The movie plunges you in its own dark atmosphere and makes you think what you would do given the same dilemma. The cast is exceptional with old-timer such as Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris to go with the fledging Casey Affleck. Acting wise, the highlights were Amy Ryan, the pitiful low-life “mother” of the kidnapped girl. I swear I would have punched her if I met her in real life, that how good of a job she did) and the always excellent Ed Harris, a police detective. They even accumulated more ugly weird-looking people I have ever seen to realistically enact the degenerate population of Boston. Given the settings, profanities fly on a constant basis. The plot is well constructed although slightly confusing as we get farther into the conspiracy. Surprisingly, the end is NOT what the audience wants although we know it was bound to happen. Gone Baby Gone is one of those rare Hollywood movies that is morally complex and intellectually engaging.
A-: Well-constructed, great cinematography, terrific atmosphere, excellent casting, Gone Baby Gone gives its audience a real moral dilemma. Overall Ben Affleck may already be a better director than an actor.
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