Simply Amazing... "Paperman"

Wow...


The Story:

Chance and fate intervene to bring two souls together in New York city sometime in the past in an Oscar-nominated Disney short.


If you haven't seen this, take less than 7 minutes of your day and enjoy one of the best love stories you are likely to see this, or any year.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTLySbGoMX0


The animation is superb, and the story is told without dialogue, and none is needed.  All of the emotion is easily conveyed with the body language of the characters.

Very impressed.

I haven't seen the other nominated shorts, but this one easily won my heart, and I hope it wins.


Final Grade:  A+

Finally.... The Rock has Come Back....To the "Royal Rumble" 2013!

If you smellllllllllllllllllllllllll....
What the Rock...
Is Cookin'!!!!!



The Rumble.

For this lifelong fan of the WWE, there is no better Pay Per View than the Royal Rumble.  Every star shows up, and the main event, or at least the reason we all show up, regardless of when it plays, is the Rumble itself.  30 men enter, 29 leave over the top rope and to the floor until there is only one left standing.

That man gets to go to the Main Event of WrestleMania in April and challenge for the belt of his choosing.

This year, the Rock said he would come back and win the championship, the first time he's held it in a decade.

And you know what, it's like he never left.  He obviously still has a passion for the business.  I'm sure you can agree that the money is probably not bad either, but the man has nothing left to prove to himself or the fans.  The man has still got it, and at least until Wrestlemania, it looks like we get an extended dose of The Great One, so I'm quite happy.

I'll not spoil the outcome for the rest of the matches in case you haven't seen the PPV yet, or are just going to wait and see it later.

It didn't disappoint.

The 3 surprise entrants of the Rumble last night were great, especially the first one who came in at #2.

Hilarious as the crowd chanted "You've still got it" and he replied "I never lost it, baby!"

Probably my favorite moment of the night.

This marks only the second time in my life that I have ordered a PPV.

It didn't disappoint.


The Road to WrestleMania has begun, and I'm looking forward to taking the trip.


Final Grade:  A

Bored to Tears by "Pawn's Move"

When your budget is $ 27.00, you shouldn't expect too much, right?


The Story:

Jimmy works in a pawn shop.  One day they receive an ultra-rare stamp worth MILLIONS!  Then, the owner dies, leaving the business to Jimmy.  Jimmy gets some of the money up front, leaves town to get away from a gold-digging shrew, winds up in another town and starts working at a pawn shop.  He also meets a shy reclusive girl and tries to fall in love with her.


So if you remember my best of 2012 list, it had Courageous on it.  I remarked at the time that I was impressed as Christian movies were getting better with their budgets, acting, story, etc. etc.

Yeah, this is not THAT company.

This is a rambling narrative that destroys any goodwill you can try and muster for the flick as it goes along.

The dialogue is stilted and painful to listen to.  The acting is wooden, or nonexistent.  The characters bland and one dimensional.

No, one dimensional gives them too much credit.  Non-dimensional would be a better description.

Whoever those critics are at the top of the movie poster that declare this to be a winner film, well they are suspect in my opinion.

Amazingly, I did not shut the movie off, for reasons I still haven't quite figured out.  I'm guessing that I was hoping it would get over the hump and become interesting.

Eventually, it ended.  But to be honest, I don't even remember how it ended. 

I had given up on the flick long before the credits rolled.

Available to stream on Netflix as of this writing.

I recommend avoiding this stream and choose more interesting waters...


Final Grade: D-

What Was I Thinking? "Frankenweenie"

My dislike of Tim Burton films continues...


The Story:

Victor Frankenstein's dog gets hit by a car.  Victor is sad, then realizes that he could bring his dog back from the dead, and never have to be sad again!

These kids today...


So, despite my obvious loathing of Tim Burton films, I want to give the guy a chance.  I mean, it might be good, right?  Broken clocks are even right twice a day.

I absolutely despise this animation style, but thought I could suck it up for 90 minutes.

Well, 30 minutes into the film, I looked around the room and saw that everyone was either ignoring the film or looking bored and possibly angry that we were still watching it.


Message received, loud and clear.


If you like Tim Burton or this style of film (Nightmare Before Christmas) knock yourself out.  This film is for you.

As for me and mine...

Pass.

Final Grade: D-

I Had Absolutely No "Trouble With The Curve".

While I really don't care for baseball, I do apparently enjoy a good movie centered around the sport.


The Story:

Gus (Clint Eastwood) is a scout for the Atlanta Braves.  The problem is, his eyesight is fading.  However that doesn't mean that Gus can't still do his job.  However, as a precaution, his boss (John Goodman) convinces his daughter (Amy Adams) to take some time away from her work and keep an eye on her dad as he scouts a top high school recruit in the Carolinas.  A rival scout from the Red Sox (Justin Timberlake) that Gus scouted for his team years earlier, arrives on the scene to check out the kid, and Gus' daughter!  Can Gus successfully scout the kid and save his job, or is he doomed to retirement?

First, it's nice to see Eastwood in any movies these days.  The man is a legend on the screen, and it's nice that he's still doing what he loves.  For the first time in awhile, he also steps out from behind the camera and lets someone else do the heavy lifting, so you know that has to be daunting to be the first guy to direct an acting AND directing legend in some time in your first time out!  Luckily for Robert Lorenz, he's actually been helping Eastwood for the last few years helming some of his features.

Then we have the plucky Amy Adams as Mickey, Gus' daughter.  While working her butt off to become partner in a law firm for the better part of a decade, she uses these few days off to try and reconnect with her father, and she comes to some realizations about herself and her father.

However, I will save the best for last, and say without a doubt that I am becoming a huge fan of Justin Timberlake, the actor.  He seems very at ease on the big screen, and his persona and demeanor carry him fairly effortlessly through the movies.  I enjoyed his Sci Fi flick In Time, really thought he was hilarious in Friends with Benefits, liked his work in the Social Network, and yes, he even did a great job voicing Boo Boo in the Yogi Bear movie.

So yes, all in all this movie was a very pleasant surprise for me from start to finish.  I went in with no expectations, and was very pleased with the movie I watched.

Could be a contender for the "Best of the Year" listing.

Recommended for a rental, and I could see adding this to the "Purchase to watch again later" pile as well.

Final Grade:  A-

Continental Drift Explained! "Ice Age 4"

Ice Age 4.

I can't believe there's been 4 of these!!!

The Story:

The gang gets separated from their family, and they will move heaven and earth (or continents) to get back home again.

Plus pirates.
Don't forget the pirates.


These reviews are essentially bullet-proof.   You're either watching them with your kids, getting them for your kids to watch, or ignoring them completely.

Odds are, if you fall into the first 2 categories, you already know what to expect from this franchise, and have either stuck with it, or have abandoned it one or two sequels ago.  If you're ignoring it, then no argument on my part would get you to watch this film anyway.

The animation is superb, as always.  I long advocated for any company to rise up and give Disney a run for their money.  Competition is a good thing.  It took many years, but we are enjoying a golden age of computer and traditional animation. 

While some of the films aren't the best, for the most part, every studio is putting out some quality films over the last decade.

The voice work is top-notch as well with no hugely distracting "names" that don't really fit into the tale.

Will there be another sequel?  As long as these things make money, I wouldn't doubt it.

Final Grade: B-

If "Looper" Gets Higher Than a D-... Then You Know I've Successfully Altered the Future!

Time traveling hitmen!

Mostly...

The Story:

In the future, time travel hasn't been invented  yet, but it will.  In the future's future.  But for now, folks in the past kill bad guys in the future and dispose of the bodies.  One day, they will kill themselves, and then enjoy 30 years of life until such time as they go back in time and are killed by themselves, thus closing the loop.

Got it?

Good.

The problem: our hero, Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) pauses long enough when Old Joe (Bruce Willis) arrives without the customary hood and bound hands and Joe hesitates long enough to not kill him. 

Old Joe has arrived to change the future, providing he doesn't stop himself from doing it in the first place.

I think I failed myself with this film.  I let the overheard hype of its greatness, plus the fact of Bruce Willis' awesomeness set me up for failure.

The movie was good, if not a bit rambling and long.  20 minutes trimmed could have tightened this film tremendously.

So yes, good, but not great.

The performances by Levitt and Willis are just fine.

The time travel conundrums posed in the film are fine, and the way to change the future is well done at the end of the film.

Recommended for a viewing, but I cannot endorse a purchase for this film at this time.


Perhaps that will change when I come back from the future and convince myself that this film deserves a higher grade.


Final Grade: B-