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Showing posts from July, 2011

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) PG-13

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Some people are certainly worn-out from all the Marvel Comics films that have been spewed out over the last decade, but I for one enjoy the majority of them. While this film is no Spider-Man , Spider-Man 2 , Iron Man or Thor , it's definitely better than the Blade films, the Fantastic Four franchise, The Punisher , Elektra , Ghost Rider and The Incredible Hulk . What really sets this film apart from a lot of the other Marvel films is the special effects and the production design. I'd say this film is on par with the original X-Men and X-Men: First Class . Obviously nothing special, but extremely enjoyable. I was very skeptical when word first got out about a Captain America film because director Joe Johnston (Jumanji, The Rocketeer) was attached. While Johnston does have some decent PG films under his belt, he's also behind the dreadful Jurassic Park III and The Wolfman . However, it turns out he may have been the right man for the job because of the squeaky clean scr

Inside Look: Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis

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Well, the highly anticipated No Strings Attached , err, i mean Friends with Benefits arrives this Friday. Young, up-and-coming stars Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis co-star in this conventional looking rom-com. Mila got her big break on the mildly funny "That '70s Show" all the way back in 1998. That in turn led to vocal work on "Family Guy" and "Robot Chicken," but she finally broke through in 2008's Forgetting Sarah Marshall . Timberlake however, as you all know, got his start in the music industry. Some people out there liked his music well enough, albeit not me. In 2006 he made the transition to acting. Was that a good choice? Probably not, but he does have one very good performance worth noting. In this segment we will break down their best five performances, so let's get to it. Mila Kunis : 5. Date Night (2010) -- She had a small role, opposite James Franco (Pineapple Express, 127 Hours), in this above average comedy. Kunis and Franco l

Horrible Bosses (2011) R

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I wasn't the only one highly anticipating Horrible Bosses arrival. While reviews haven't exactly glorified this picture, I knew it would be funny enough for my taste. This film obviously bolsters a terrific cast, but up-and-coming director Seth Gordon (The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, Four Christmases) added to the intrigue. As far as comedies go, this is an above-average attempt. While it's not ground-breaking, it has plenty of laughs to go around. I'm going to throw this out there right now; there will be some harsh language in this review as some of the characters and circumstances warrant it. There are some breakout performances to keep an eye out for, especially from "Saturday Night Live" veteran Jason Sudeikis (What Happens in Vegas, Going the Distance). We all know "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" star Charlie Day (Going the Distance) is extremely amusing, so that's nothing new. The film opens with three introductions. Firs

Insidious (2011) PG-13

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What we have here is the scariest film since the first Paranormal Activity . Don't take that the wrong way, this film isn't nearly as well-crafted or creepy. The first half of this film is legitimately chilling and mildly frightening, but the second half is equally outlandish. At age 23 nothing scares me anymore, but this film did make me jump a few times and had me on the edge of my seat. You have to take these films for what they are, they're intended to frighten younger audiences as well as most women. Director James Wan (Saw, Death Sentence) peaked with the first Saw film, but this film proves he can still direct an adequate horror film. He once again teamed up with writer Leigh Whannell (Saw, Saw II), which turned out to be a pretty good idea. Whannell also has a small role in this film, which garners some laughs. You have to give credit where credit is due, at least this film has some original ideas and isn't your typical possessed kid/haunted house film. This fi