Inception (2010)

Holy cow. This lived up to all the hype that I had put on it based on the trailer. The acting was superb, the story was terrific, and the action was unbelievable. The most fun I've had watching a movie in a long, long time.

Cobb and Arthur (Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt) specialize in a very unique form of security/thievery. They do so by invading their subject's mind. However, Cobb has something else on his mind and that's seeing his kids again. Through a serious of events, Cobb is a wanted man in the United States. He decides to take one last job from a wealthy international businessman (Ken Watanabe) in order to get his past crimes erased and so he can see his children. The job he is intended to do is not as easy as it seems. Without getting into too much detail, because it will being to ruin the movie, I will say that things on this job go out of control. The main question is: Will Cobb see his youngsters ever again?

At it's core, this is a very basic action movie plot. Guy needs to do one more job to get out of the biz. It's where the story goes with that plot that I absolutely loved. All of the cast were terrific, but Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy really commanded the screen and took over when they were needed. I got bothered by one person leaving the theater early when I went so I will say this: Don't NOT leave/miss this movie. Watch it in theaters if you can, Blu-Ray if you wait. It's well worth it.

Alice In Wonderland (2010)

I was told you love this or hate it and yet I'm caught right down the middle. I really liked some parts of this, while others I didn't. Tim Burton just seemed a shade off his game on this one.

At age 20, Alice (Mia Wasikowska) is set to be engaged to her beau. Problem being, she doesn't want that. It's at that point when she notices an oddly familiar rabbit in a waistcoat. She follows him to a tree and, you guessed it, down a rabbit hole. While down in Wonderland (it's actually Underland, apparently I've misunderstood), she does not believe the sight of it. A talking dormouse, flowers with faces on them and the Bandersnatch that almost kills her...it's all too much to be real. When she meets the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), it's definitely got to be a dream. As her journey progresses, things start to seem familiar to her...as if she'd visited this place before but that couldn't be possible. Once she meets the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter), that's when it starts getting real.

I was very intrigued by the idea of Alice returning to Wonderland and this not being and exact copy of the 1950s animated movie. I mean it has the Cheshire Cat and the Tweedles, but there are many differences. The thing that threw me out of it was that it was clearly made with 3-D in mind. Tim Burton's got the talent to make a movie and have 3-D follow him, not the other way around. At least Avatar gave you the feeling of a movie first. The other thing, this is NOT appropriate for young kids. How it got to be PG, I have no idea. Still, I do recommend it, but my mind may change on later viewings.

Invictus (2009)

Clint Eastwood can direct a movie and there is no debate about that. While this was a good movie, it was definitely one of Eastwood's weaker efforts. Not for lack of trying though.

The film begins in South Africa circa 1994. Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) was released from prison after 27 years for opposing the country's segregationist rules of Apartheid and, between 1990-1994, Mandela develops a following and is elected president of South Africa. The country is still racially divided though. The evidence of this is country's rugby team the Springboks, led by Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon), and for now, they suck. But Mandela has hope that they will pull together and unite the country when they host the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Oddsmakers had the Springboks as a good chance to make it out of the first round, but that was it. Since it's a true story, nothing should be ruined for the viewer. For one tournament, the country can forget their troubles.

The "not for lack of trying" that I was talking about was the acting. Great performances from both of the leads which, not surprisingly, led to Oscar nods for Damon and Freeman. The problem with this was that I didn't feel the story was portrayed as inspirational as it clearly was intended. I say watch this, but don't expect the same work you saw from Eastwood in Mystic River, Unforgiven, or even Changeling. It just won't add up.

The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)

Yes, I am aware that most documentaries are one-sided, but none have ever told a single side of a story like this movie. It was still very entertaining.

Super-producer Robert Evans has lived the life that kids dream about when they are young. Be very, very business-savvy, become famous and have your pick of the girls. Evans narrates the movie himself, even imitating the voices of the other people he's talking about. His stories start with his disastrous turn as an actor in the 1950s and 60s...the only reason he got the gigs were because of his looks. He then focused on making movies and proceeded to buy the fledgling Paramount pictures and produce hits like Love Story, The Godfather, and Chinatown. Power struggles ensue and the 80s hit him with a jolt after he's busted for drugs. Evans is very open and honest about his long and successful life.

As much fun as I had watching this movie, I feel I maybe would have appreciated someone else talking about the Evans lifestyle. I know that's not what he or director Brett Morgen were going for, but I'm just saying. This movie was very good and any movie fan will like this look at a producer's life.

Avatar (2009)

I will say this right off the bat, the 4 stars for this movie are, for the most part, strictly based on how beautiful it looked. James Cameron knows how to direct a movie. Writing one, that may be another story.

Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) is an ex-Marine who has lost the complete use of his legs. He finds out his brother had worked on the Avatar project with a group of mercenaries, and Jake is subsequently asked to fill his shoes. The point of the project is to disguise various participants as the Na'vi, the native inhabitants of Pandora, in order to retrieve the unobtainable precious mineral Unobtainum (GET IT?!). While on Pandora, Jake meets Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), a warrior who is the King and Queen's daughter. As Jake and Neytiri slowly fall for each other, Jake is finding his allegiances torn between this new land and the people who paid him to use the Na'vi into giving up the mineral. Who should he trust? Who can trust him? One thing is for certain, Jake needs to save his own hide before anything else.

Picture Dances with Wolves, but much prettier...and minus Kevin Costner's ass. That's the basic plot of this movie. It's simplistic, singularly focused and full of political undertones. Maybe if Cameron had spent less time on the technology for the movie, he could have spent more time on the plot. That being said, the movie looked gorgeous. And the fight scenes were phenomenal. I have to recommend it based on those credentials.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

While this is proof that Heath Ledger's potential was immense, the movie as a whole was hit and miss.

The ageless Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) and his traveling band of mystical misfits, which includes his own daughter, take their show across England to try and make some money. Drunkards and roustabouts always tried to hassle the workers, but one wrong step and they traveled into the Imaginarium, where your dreams and nightmares come true. After one show, they travel by a bridge and noticed Tony (Ledger) hanging from the scaffolding. They pull him up and resuscitate him. Tony then joins the group and has a way with women in getting their money. As the show moves on, they begin to suspect that Tony is not who he says he is. Can they trust him, or is he just in this to further his own goals?

Terry Gilliam must do a big batch of acid before he writes a script because the movie just illuminates the eye. Unfortunately, the same can't be said about the plot of the movie. It meanders from point A to point B and gets the viewer lost along the way. After Ledger's death, Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell stepped in to finish the role. That part was written in wonderfully. Watch this for the imagery and the very good performances, not the story.

Mystery Team (2009)

The boys from "Derrick Comedy" made a movie. It's basically just a longer version of all of the internet shorts they've done in the past, and just as funny. I was laughing almost the whole time.

Jason, Duncan and Charlie (the "Derrick" guys) are three high school seniors who have never grown out of their adolescence. They are still trying to solve menial mysteries posed by kids half their age. That is, until a little girl asks the Team to find out who killed her parents. The mystery gets deeper and deeper and the Team continues to get out of their element, but still manage to collect all of the right clues. However, they are unaware of the consequences of their actions. They might have gotten themselves in way too deep.

I'll forgive the last 20-25 meandering minutes or so that seemed to get away from the heart of the movie, because I expected that from a movie like this. It's got some humor that may not be for all audiences, but it worked for me. Some smart and witty, some gross-out and sophmoric. Either way, I had fun.