In the past month and a half, I have gotten to the theater a few times. My mother and I saw The Artist my first weekend in Austin and I took myself on date for Valentine's Day to see Big Miracle. A few weeks ago, on my first official visit to the Alamo Drafthouse since moving, I saw This Means War and I have also seen Wanderlust and John Carter.
That only counts as a few, right? :o)
I have to say, I was a bit disappointed with The Artist. It was getting such rave reviews and I just really was not that impressed. Set in the late 1920's, you see silent movie star George Valentin struggle to figure out what do to once the world becomes interested in talking pictures. For starters, the plot reminded me way too much of Singin’ In The Rain. My mom really liked it but I thought it was a little boring, maybe I need to see it again now that I know what I am getting myself into.
It had gotten decent reviews, but my love of all things Kristen Bell is the real reason I saw Big Miracle. Based on a true story, it is about a family of grey whales that get trapped in the Arctic Circle and the people who helped save them. The movie not only shows the story from the side of Greenpeace, but also the native Alaskans who want to use the whales to feed their people and the big oil company that wants to drill in Alaska. It was a touching story and one worth seeing when the movie comes out on DVD, as I think it is already out of theaters.
This Means War was, by far, my favorite of all the movies that I saw. I really do not understand why it got such horrible reviews. It is not going to win any Oscars, but it was a lot of fun and super funny. Chris Pine and Tom hardy were great as best friends fighting over the same girl, played by Reese Witherspoon. I am not a huge fan of Chelsea Handler, but she was really good in this role and perfect as Witherspoon's best friend. I just thought it was a great romantic comedy for the girls and had some kick-ass action for the boys.
David Wain's newest comedy, Wanderlust, was funny and definitely worth seeing, but not as good as Role Models, in my opinion. Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston play a married couple living in NYC. When Rudd's character loses his job, they must move to Atlanta so that he can work for his brother. On the way to Atlanta they happen upon a commune full of very interesting people. It includes all the actors you would expect to see in a Wain project (ie. Ken Marino, Joe Lo Truglio, Kerri Kenney, Michael Showalter, Michael Ian Black) plus a few new faces that add to the hilarity.
I also enjoyed John Carter quite a bit and do not understand the abysmal reviews for that either. The special effects were not spectacular and the plot was initially a bit confusing, but once you figure out who all the characters are it was a fun movie. It was made by Disney, so it has its cheesy aspects, but at the end of it I did not feel my money was wasted. I do have a soft spot for Taylor Kitsch (aka Friday Night Lights' Tim Riggins) but it was an entertaining action movie with a bit of romance thrown in.
Over the next few weeks, I am looking forward to The Hunger Games (of course) as well as Mirror Mirror, Bully and The Cabin in the Woods. The last one is a scary movie, which I am usually not a fan of, but it was written by Joss Whedon and has been getting great reviews. Also, I really will try to be better about posting now that I am more settled.
xoxo
c
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