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Casting Crowns sings Who Am I at the Minnesota State Fair on September 3, 2009

Casting Crowns sings Voice of Truth at the Minnesota State Fair on September 3, 2009.

Casting Crowns sings Love Them Like Jesus at the Minnesota State Fair on September 3, 2009.

Casting Crowns sings Lifesong at the Minnesota State Fair on September 3, 2009.

The Skinny: A documentary about Philippe Petit, who famously performed a highwire walk between the World Trade Center towers.

The Good: I knew nothing about the movie going in, so I was blown away to learn about Philippe and how he dreamed of walking between the two towers since he was a little boy. The movie mixes interviews with Philippe and his friends in the present day along with photos and video of them planning the big event. It’s hard not to be inspired by his passion for his craft – and life – as he tells these stories like they happened yesterday. And the way he and his crew actually plan the twin towers event is something that makes fake heists like Ocean’s Eleven look like child’s play.

The Bad: The movie seems to drag a bit in the middle with back story details, and also glosses over what appears to be some interesting strained relationships with Philippe and his old friends and girlfriend. I wanted more of those juicy tidbits instead of the 17th and 18th person telling me how intense the planning of the tower-to-tower walk was.

The Ugly: The way my knees started to shake just from watching Philippe do some of his highwire walks.

The Bottom Line: A fascinating and vertigo-inducing documentary.

Score:

I was somewhat intrigued by a stop sign I pulled up next to a few days ago.  It had a spraypainted message that you can’t see very well in this pic, and it’s a shame for someone to go to all that trouble of sharing an inspirational message, and then spell believing as beliving. 

The Skinny: Kate Beckinsale plays a reporter who faces prison time unless she gives up a news story source.

The Good: Pretty decent performances by Beckinsale and Alan Alda, who plays her lawyer. And the story paints a pretty engrossing, grim picture of how a person’s rights can get thrown right out the window when the government wants something.

The Bad: This movie is apparently based on true events, and it’s clear that we as an audience are supposed to be absolutely blown away at how Beckinsale is treated during her interrogation and trial. Maybe I’ve seen too many movies, but I guess I already assumed a long time ago that if the FBI/CIA/government/etc. really wants some information from someone, they can do whatever they want until they get it. So the story didn’t exactly blow me away – it onlywhat might have meant to be fundamentally shocking in this movie didn’t get much out of me except a raised eyebrow or two.

The Ugly: Matt Dillon plays the prosecuting attorney, which I think we’re meant to hate. But after movies like There’s Something about Mary and Wild Things, I just can’t take him seriously. Even in a role like this, it still feels like he’s winking at the camera a little bit.

The Bottom Line: A decent watch, but the material isn’t “big” enough for the big screen. I might have taken it a bit more seriously on the Hallmark/Lifetime channel.

Technorati tags: Nothing But the Truth, movie reviews

The Skinny: Someone kidnapped Liam Neeson’s daughter!

The Good: Taken is one of those fantastic movies where the poster and taglines tell you exactly what you’re in for – no more, and no less. About five minutes in, it becomes clear that even though the film deals with some heavy topics, you aren’t going to need to wrestle with ethical and moral choices or give your brain too hard of a workout. You just need to know that Liam’s angry, and some bad guys are going be punched, shocked, stabbed and decapitated until he gets his daughter back. And although the film is ridiculous in its reality, Liam plays it so straight and so intense that it’s easy to just go along for the ride with him.

The Bad: The action sequences, which seem Bourne-inspired, needed some serious tweaking in the choreography department. I mean, I’m all for silly chases and gunfights, but when the bad guys are repeatedly within four inches of Liam and miss again and again (even with automatic weapons!), I start yawning again and again. On that note, someone may need to confirm this for me, but near the end of the movie, I’m pretty sure Liam gets shot twice and doesn’t seem to limp, bleed or have any side-effects immediately afterwards.

The Ugly: My paranoia after the movie was over. There are parts of the film that deal with women being sold into slavery in foreign countries, and I watched this movie on a plane to Mexico! So I probably left fingernail marks in Aimee’s arm the rest of the day…I was ready to punch anyone who even looked at her sideways.

The Bottom Line: Shift your brain into neutral, and enjoy.

Score:

Technorati tags: Taken, movie reviews

The Skinny: Mickey Rourke plays a has-been professional wrestler who tries to save the shambles of his career and personal life.

The Good: I haven’t seen many of Rourke’s films, but from what I read, this movie is more or less a testament of his life – that both he and the character he plays were once talented artists with promising careers, but pretty much lost everything. Rourke definitely sells the character and makes it believable, and I found myself really wrapped up in watching him struggle to stay relevant in the ring while trying to reconnect with his estranged daughter. There are also some really cringe-inducing wrestling scene that kind of makes me appreciate the “sport” of professional wrestling. (Note: I said “kind of.”)

The Bad: Speaking of daughters, Evan Rachel Wood delivers every line with the furrowed brow and “I’m almost crying” intensity of something you’d see on the Lifetime channel. She really started to bug me by the end, and as much as I rooted for her and Rourke to patch things up, I really just wanted her to go away.

The Ugly: Marisa Tomei shows up in this movie with another role to show off her acting “assets.” Yep, I imagine she had another heart-to-heart with her agent over this character:

Marisa: I’m looking for a role I can sink my teeth into. Something timeless, transcending the fibers of space and time and showing my depth, breadth and dimension as a woman, mother and actress.

 

Agent: I’ve got a movie here where you’ll take off your clothes a lot, but you won’t have to get naked with Phillip Seymour Hoffman.

Marisa: I’ll take it!

The Bottom Line: I think Rourke’s performance is pretty stellar, but a lot of relationship struggles are out of the movie cliche handbook, and not complimented well by so-so acting from the female leads.

Score:

Technorati tags: The Wrestler, movie reviews

The Skinny: Psycho truck driver Rusty Nail is at it again – this time terrorizing some young travelers on their way to Vegas.

The Good: This sequel doesn’t suck, and nobody’s more surprised than me! I was a fan of the original, and when Blockbuster had absolutely nothing good to offer this week, I couldn’t resist picking the sequel up. No one is more surprised than I am to say this: I have to give this movie a decent amount of credit because it managed to surprise me with some decent twists, as well as a few uncomfortable moments of peril that made me shift uncomfortably in my seat. Plus, it’s always a bonus in a movie when “that annoying guy” meets an incredibly icky fate.

The Bad: None of the original actors are back for this round, and the acting from this unrecognizable young cast is pretty atrocious. Perhaps even more disappointing, though, is the foreshadowing for the ending of the movie. It couldn’t be more blunt unless they put subtitles on the screen that said “The big finale will take place right HERE!”

The Ugly: I won’t go into too much detail, but there’s a scene where Rusty Nail stops someone from yelling for help in an extremely yucky way, then says something snarky like “Did you see how his jaw dropped?”

The Bottom Line: A lot more than I expected from a straight-to-DVD sequel.

Score:

Technorati tags: Joy Ride: Dead Ahead, movie reviews