#565 - Inception

Inception is the latest masterpiece by director Christopher Nolan. It seems that in order to understand the film's plot you need a doctorate from Harvard and an IQ in the 98th percentile. For some odd reason that's the thing that I love about it. Every aspect of the film is deeply intense and it is the type of film that you need to pay attention to every single detail of the plot and the actions of the film in order to know what is actually going on. The acting is superb by everyone. The main thing that most all reviewers will be saying is that the ending is the most essential part of this film and I agree the ending makes this film so intriguing that the entire drive home from the theater. I will not give away any of the details to the plot but all i suggest is that you pay attention don't talk and keep side blinders on your self and keep focus on the screen. I give the film 4.5/5 stars.

#564 - The Dirty Dozen

The Dirty Dozen is a war film from 1967 dealing with the days leading up to D-Day. The film is directed by Robert Aldrich who also directed The Longest Yard from 1974. The movie stars Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, and Donald Sutherland as many of the different soldiers appearing throughout the film. The story works well and the acting by all of the cast. The main thing is and I only blame the way it was typical for this to be acted was that when the members of the Dirty Dozen end up dying the some of the deatsh seem to overplayed by some of the actors. Otherwise this film is good and I give the film 4/5 stars.

#563 - 2012

2012 is one of the most epic disaster movies to date being that the film as the title implies deals with the Mayan prediction that the world will end in 2012. Now with a film of this nature there are certain things that are necessary for it to work and the film does all but one. They are that (1) good special effects, (2) emotional death scenes, (3) good acting. Now for point 1 the special effects are incredible. Every point in the disaster is marked by an effect that looks and even is made to feel completely believable. With point 2 there are scenes with emotion and death specifically when the massive tidal wave hits India and Washington Dc, I was almost in tears. Finally with point 3 the acting at points is good by specific actors but otherwise very poor. Specifically Oliver Platt, Amanda Peet, and Chiwetel Ejiofor have some of the best moments to use their acting chops and perform perfectly. Overall the film is good but lacks acting depth. I give the film 4/5 stars.

#562 - The Color of Money

The Color of Money is the sequel to movie number 534, The Hustler. Unlike the first film though this film has Eddie as more of a respectable man who decides to try and train a new kid to be a great pool shark. Now Paul Newman returned for this movie as Eddie but we have the addition of Tom Cruise as the mentored pool player which works as a good dynamic. As with my main compliant with The Hustler the whole film focuses on pool and to me pool is not that exciting of a game. The acting is great as always with Newman but it would have been nice if the film had a different focus. The one thing that surprised me though was that about halfway through the film Forest Whitaker shows up and as usual swept me off my feet with his style and classiness. It was nice to see him even for such a small part. Otherwise I give the film 3/5 stars because it was pool.

#561 - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Hitchhiker's Guide to Galaxy is a remake of the classic British television miniseries and stars Zooey Deschanel, Mos Def, and Sam Rockwell. The film's plot like the miniseries is about an Earth-man who gets a trip across the galaxy after the Earth is destroyed. The film is meant to be a comedy and a science-fiction film but it only comes across as a sci-fi film and the comedy aspect doesn't exactly go along well. The plot goes along well but certain points seem to jump ahead and I know it was part of the traveling system of the ship but it just seemed entirely rushed. The rest of the plot and such work well though. Being that my system can't give a 42 I have to give the film 3/5 stars.

#560 - Despicable Me

Despicable Me is a comedy from a subsidiary company of Unviersal Studios. The film stars Steve Carell, Jason Segel, and Russell Brand and focuses on Carell as Gru a high ranking super villain intent on stealing the moon. Unfortunately for the film's comedy aspect a large majority of the films humor seems to have been given away in the trailers and commercials for the film. This totals to about 60% of the humor and the other 40% does do a good job but it is not what sells the film. The film is not fully a comedy but it is also a change of heart story with Gru. As the film progresses it does a good of keeping parts of it from us. I did enjoy the film though but the promotions campaign should have been lighter. I give the film 3.5/5 stars.

#559 - Mission: Impossible

Mission: Impossible is a film from 1996 that stars Tom Cruise and is a film adaptation of the classic television series starring the late Peter Graves. The film is an all out action film that has a small portion of the film dedicated to the thriller aspect that this sort of film should have. The problem is that the film tries to show us everything that we need to know but we are able to piece together the major twist at the very beginning of the film. The acting is decent but the all out action film needs a boost of a better and less obvious story. I give the film 3/5 stars.

#558 - The Patriot

The Patriot is a epic war film about the Revolutionary War starring Mel Gibson. The film is not historically accurate according to my sources on Wikipedia. The film has a solid plot though and works in well the very important characters that are required in a film about the freedom and creation of the United States. I am an American citizen and before reading that it was not fully accurate I was in complete belief everything was true. The acting is phenomenal and that is not just because all of the actors are great actors in their own right. Also I am well aware of Gibson's recent troubles but this film (made in 2000) is great but it needed some improvement though, perhaos more of historical accuracy. I give the film 4.5 stars.

#557 - Seven Samurai

Seven Samurai is a Japanese epic from the mind of Akira Kurosawa and takes place during the period of the Warring States of Japan. The film centers around a small mountain village who has a problem with bandits. They decide to hire a small band of samurai in order to fight back the bandits and keep their village intact. The film has a very good plot and it is easily made into a simple war film. The film does seem to drag on a bit but it all works out in the end and it allows us to learn more about the characters. I give the film 3.5/5 stars.

#556 - Street Kings

Street Kings is a thriller from 2008 starring Keanu Reeves as a cop who ends up being framed for murder. The film also stars Hugh Laurie and Forest Whitaker as Reeves superiors from internal affairs and the cops on the street respectively. The plot is well formed and the acting by everyone but Reeves is amazing. The problem is that Reeves has no facial expressions at all to convey any emotions. Being that Reeves is the main protagonist it ruined the movie for me I could not at all care about the character cause I could not understand what he was feeling. Everything else in the film is amazing though if they had cast someone else as the main character it would have been awesome. I have to give the film 3/5 stars for this.

#555 - Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny

Jack Black and Kyle Gass, the members of the band Tenacious D came out with a movie in 2006 called The Pick of Destiny. The film is basically a dramatization of the creation of their band and is meant to be a complete comedy. The movie is very funny and there are some nice cameos by famous rockers. First we have Meatloaf and the late Dio of Black Sabbath and then various other actors like Tim Robbins appear as well. The music by Black and Gass is amazing and I like that the music synced up perfectly to the action. I give the film 4/5 stars.

#554 - The Wedding Singer

The Wedding Singer is a classic Adam Sandler romantic comedy with him as the title role of the wedding singer. Now normally I don't say this about a romantic comedy but this film is heartwarming and the music is awesome. I have to admit I had the song Sandler writes for Barrymore stuck in my head for a bit and even was looking up it on a youtube video. The acting is good and the film is overall funny at points. I have to admit it is actually more sincere then funny though. I give the film 4/5 stars.

#553 - SLC Punk

SLC Punk is a film from 1998 which deals with the era of punk-rock and two dedicated punks from Salt Lake City. The plot is very poorly done. We are never told how old our main character is at the start then all of the sudden he becomes eighteen and then we are never given any sense of time during the film. Plus the acting is not great either the only thing that makes this film any good is that it utilizes one of my favorite film techniques the breaking of the fourth wall. I give the film 3/5 stars.

#552 - The Taking of Pelham 123

The Taking of Pelham 123 is a remake of a film from the 70s and the remake stars Denzel Washington and John Travolta in the leading roles. The film is pretty good but it isn't the greatest film I had ever seen. The acting is pretty good but for an action thriller the film is acting is superb. The action of the film is decent but the thriller portion was pretty huge throughout. There isn't much else to say about the film and everything I have said is neutral between both good and bad. I give the film 3.5/5 stars.

#551 - The Last Airbender

The Last Airbender is a film by M. Night Shyamalan based off the Nickelodeon series of the same name. I had watched the series before and the film slightly does the series justice. Shyamalan does the entire first season of the series and he omits some things in the script that down the road might bite him in the ass. For instance there is no mention of King Bumi of Omashu, The Warriors of Kyoshi, or Joeng Joeng (Aang's first firebending teacher) who all have importnat parts near the end of the series. My one other complaint about the film is that the dialogue and script seem very poorly written. There is way too much exposition in the show and we should have had more showing then telling. I give the film 3.5/5 stars.