Casino Royale

Casino Royale: Ladies and gentlemen I give you the greatest James Bond movie ever. I can make this statement quite easily because I am not a fan of the Bond series to begin with. If you are like me and not a fan of the old corny James Bond dialogue or crazy, unrealistic gadgets this is the Bond film for you as well. The movie boosts some unbelievable chase scenes, especially the one early on in the film. Daniel Craig steps in to play the young James Bond on his first mission after becoming a double O agent, he does an excellent job (even “Bond purists” have come to like him). The action, the acting, and even the plot of this film are all excellent. A good plot……in a Bond movie….now that is refreshing.

“Pick it Up”

Murderball

Murderball: An excellent documentary about quadriplegics who play full contact rugby in their wheelchairs. This film was balanced perfectly. You have the element of competition as the USA wheelchair rugby team goes for gold in the Paralympic Games. This is mixed in with a funny/entertaining element of the people involved – truly showing quadriplegics in a new light. Also in the mix is the human element showing how much strength these individuals have both inside and out. This story touched a lot of emotions with me. I highly recommend renting this movie – I am actually throwing out the (* * * *) rating for it.


“Pick it Up”

Borat

Borat: Being one of the last people to finally see Borat, the movie had a lot of hype to live up to for me. The film lived up to the hype - no problem. As most know by now Sacha Baron Cohen plays Borat Sagdiyev, a man from Kazakhstan pretending to be filming a documentary for his country. What really is taking place is a glorified Candid Camera episode. Cohen constantly fools people into thinking he is making an educational documentary and then once the cameras are rolling so is the humor. There are a couple of scenes with outrageous humor (& nakedness), but it was the little detail and dialect Borat uses throughout the movie that made it so great. Make sure to watch all the deleted scenes the DVD provides as a couple of those are better than some in the movie, especially the massage. I am not jumping on the “greatest comedy of all time” bandwagon, but I am giving it an easy recommend…….which is very niicceee.

“Pick it Up”

A Good Year

A Good Year: Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott, the pair that brought us Gladiator, team up again to bring us a comedy/romantic movie – what gives? The main problem this movie had was a simple one, Russell Crowe is not a very likeable guy. He makes a great gladiator or cop, but silly slapstick humor is not his trait. Crowe plays an investment broker who only cares about money. After his uncle dies he inherits a vineyard in France. Can the fast paced city guy fall in love with the relaxing country life and the beautiful chateau? And what about that absolutely beautiful single lady who is always just waiting around in movies like this? Sure he can fall in love, but not before some failed attempts at humor that made want my money back. This story has been told before and in a much better way.

“Kick It on The Floor”

Quinceanera

Quinceanera: This small film made for less than 500k, is proof that the element of “story” matters most. There are no known actors in the film and the characters speak sometimes in Spanish and sometimes in English. Yet the movie works because of the strength of the story. We follow a young Mexican girl as she is about to have her Quinceanera (15th Birthday). All is good until she finds out she is pregnant. Her religious father wants her out of the house, because he finds her to be a disgrace to the family. She then finds “family” from an unlikely source.

“Pick It up”