Movie #339 - The Kid

The Kid
1921 - Not Rated - 50 min
Director: Charles Chaplin
Starring: Charles Chaplin, Edna Purviance, Jackie Coogan, Carl Miller

This was a new one for me, a gift from a friend.  I think it might actually be the oldest (and shortest film on the wall).  I wasn't really sure what to expect, especially since I've never watched a black and white silent film on DVD before... kinda cool how long these films have survived, huh? And now we can just pop 'em into the DVD player.

Anyway, it's a really sweet movie and I liked it a lot.  Very simple and straightforward; a young mother makes an impulsive decision to leave her baby in a stranger's car because she can't raise him on her own.  The baby ends up getting found by the Tramp (Charlie Chaplin, obvi) who raises him as his own.  Things get complicated 5 years later when the boy takes ill and his mother finds him.  It was written, produced, directed, and scored by the star himself, a pretty impressive feat you wouldn't see in Hollywood today.  The movie's simple, only four billed characters, and maybe a dozen extras, and it gets right to the point without skirting around it: the Tramp and the Kid love each other like father and son, and will fight and fight to be together no matter what.

It's really touching and definitely an important piece of film history. And all that on a little disc.

Movie #338 - Kicking and Screaming

Kicking & Screaming
2005 - Rated PG - 1 hr 35 min
Director: Jesse Dylan
Starring: Will Ferrell, Robert Duvall, Mike Ditka, Kate Walsh, Musetta Vander, Elliott Cho, Dylan McLaughlin, Josh Hutcherson, Rachael Harris, David Herman

Will Ferrell does a kids' movie (kinda) and I just can't help but think it's hillarious.  I know not everyone is a big Ferrell fan, but I unabashedly am (except for Semi-Pro, which you will not see on this blog. Nope.) 

Here, he battles his competitive dad Robert Duvall by coaching the underdog pee wee soccer team (Duvall coaches the best team in the league).  Ferrell teams up with famed NFL coach Mike Ditka, Duvall's nemesis next-door neighbor, who plays himself. Genius.  He even coaches in his classic shirt, tie, and Bears sweater. Gotta love it.

Of course, the pressure sends Ferrell over the edge little by little, leading to scenes like the coffee shop throwdown and the butcher shop takeover (think chainsaw + half a cow). Some of its all for a cheap laugh, as is his usual style, but there's enough substance here to make this a feel-good comedy, more so than his others.  His relationship with his son develops nicely, as does his connection to his own dad.  And as he sees how interconnected the two relationships really are, he deals with it and makes the best of it.

Good stuff, all around. It's just cute and lots of fun to watch.

Movie #337 - The Karate Kid

The Karate Kid
1984 - Rated PG - 2 hr 6 min
Director: John G. Avildsen
Starring: Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue, Randee Heller, William Zabka

Even though it operates within a pretty strict plot formula, this movie is a classic for a reason.  A classic underdog story, a teen triumphs over his enemy by relying on himself.  Whether it's a ski race, a boxing match, or a karate tournament, this kind of story always inspires and empowers.  And this one staked it's claim on the hearts of many teenage boys decades ago.

Besides, who doesn't want their own Mr. Miyagi in their life?

Ralph Macchio is adorably hopeless when he first moves to California. And Elisabeth Shue is just plain smitten, which I can understand.  The two make a good pair, believable as they struggle to find common ground and deal with their feelings.  Classic teen romance.

Enter big jerk ex-boyfriend and Macchio's life is now a living hell. Thank God the building maintenance guy knows karate and needs his deck sanded, or Macchio would be up a creek.  It's fun to watch the training -- possibly the best part about this movie -- and the transformation Macchio undergoes.

Daniel-san is the kind of guy we can all get behind and relate to as well.  This works on every level and it's fun to revisit after all this time.

Movie #336 - Just Married

Just Married
2003 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 35 min
Director: Shawn Levy
Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Brittany Murphy, Christian Kane, David Moscow

This movie did two things:

1. I miss Brittany Murphy.
2. Secretly, I'd pick Christian Kane over Ashton Kutcher. Any day.

But Kane plays the "bad" guy (darn), so that doesn't happen.  Murphy chooses the goofy guy and their honeymoon implodes on itself.  What annoys me most about this movie is Kutcher's total ignorance.  Watching this objectively, basically everything that happens on the honeymoon is his fault.  He starts the fire with that stupid plug, he drives into the snowbank, he ditches her to watch a baseball game... She should go with Kane, but she's apparently crazy in love with Kutcher. The heart wants what it wants, I guess.

The first time I saw this, I thought it was just one of those slapstick kinda comedies, with a side of romance. But watching it again, I'm a bit irritated with Kutcher.  Maybe it's because I'm now married and have survived a honeymoon and would kill my husband if he did these things.  Murphy's just too damn nice to him and he's a giant tool box.

Movie #335 - Just Like Heaven

Just Like Heaven
2005 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 35 min
Director: Mark Waters
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Mark Ruffalo, Donal Logue, Dina Waters, Jon Heder, Ben Shenkman

Oh, I love this movie.  Call me cheesy, but the premise is so touching and so sweet that I just can't help myself. As I told my sister while watching this, I wish I had been the one to write this love story.

Technically, it's another rom-com even though one of the members of this couple is dead from the beginning of the romance. (SPOILER ALERT) Or is she? As Jon Heder (a weird, socially awkward book shop employee) helps Ruffalo determine, there's more to Witherspoon's "haunting" than meets the eye.  So this romance takes place on two planes of existence, one that neither person understands. But the hope that they could be together keeps them motivated. And it's hard not to keep your fingers crossed that it will work out.

Even though rom-com rules say it will, you can't really see how since a movie like this hasn't been done before.  Sorta.  The premise is pretty original but the plot unfolds predictably, once you get the hang of where it's going.  I don't care though. Part of the reason you watch a romance is to see the two characters get together.  Predictable or no, I always applaud a good script/book that takes an unusual path to reach the usual destination.  This one keeps me interested. Love it.

Movie #334 - Just Friends

Just Friends
2005 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 36 min
Director: Roger Kumble
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Amy Smart, Anna Faris, Chris Klein, Chris Marquette, Julie Hagerty, Fred Ewanuick, Amy Matysio

Ryan Reynolds in a fat suit is the opposite of a good thing, in case you were wondering.  It's funny, for sure, but I much prefer the post-high school version of his character. Just sayin'.

This is a cute rom-com. High school best friends attempt to address their unexplored, deeper feelings for each other after 10 years apart.  Reynolds' new music career forces him to bring along Anna Faris (an Ashlee Simpson-like rock star) and lots of classic misunderstandings and misfires occur.  Faris is fabulous, as usual, embracing her crazy character and playing some of the worst music you'll ever hear.  Julie Hagerty plays the same character she always plays, the airhead/adorable woman who's too sweet to be annoying.

Reynolds and Amy Smart are a good match, with some decent chemistry, and they keep you rooting for them.  All in all, this has the right elements to make a good entry to the rom-com category.  Fun to watch, characters you enjoy, and an ending that pays off.

Movie #333 - A Few Good Men

A Few Good Men
1992 - Rated R - 2 hr 18 min
Director: Rob Reiner
Starring: Tom Cruise, Demi Moore, Jack Nicholson, Kevin Bacon, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Pollak, James Marshall, JT Walsh, Christopher Guest, Matt Craven, JA Preston, Noah Wyle

This is the first time I've watched this movie as an adult.  It was a favorite of my parents' so I had definitely seen it as a teen, but never really sat down and absorbed it as an adult.  Nor did I realize this is based on a play.  The style of the film and the scene structure makes a lot of sense knowing that.

Anyway, this really is a good damn movie. (SPOILER ALERT) It raises one of my favorite questions: Is it okay to sacrifice one to save many?  Nicholson's character things it is, Cruise and Moore don't think so.  As they dig to get to the bottom of this one, watching the chain of corruption climb higher and higher, this question gets asked many times.  The moral gray area is left for us to ponder, while the movie ends almost the only way it can.  He could get away with it, I guess, but not up against the unexpected powerhouse of Tom Cruise.  Really, who saw Cruise taking out Nicholson? Anywhere else, my money'd be on Jack.

Long story short, it was nice to enjoy this again with the ability to really process what it's trying to say.  Some outstanding performances here, but what I really enjoyed most were the questions it raised and asked me to answer for myself.

Movie #332 - American Psycho

American Psycho
2000 - Rated NC-17 - 1 hr 42 min
Director: Mary Harron
Starring: Christian Bale, Justin Therouz, Josh Lucas, Chloe Sevigny, Reese Witherspoon, Samantha Mathis, Jared Leto, Willem Dafoe

I must be some kind of sicko, because I think this movie is freaking genius.  And the gore is amazing.  Weird, right?  (SPOILER ALERT)

If you can watch this movie in the way the filmmaker intended you too, however, it has so much to say.  The general gratuitousness of the 1980's lifestyle, the dark secluded recesses of our minds that most of us don't indulge, the two-sidedness of the human condition, and the corruptness and idleness at the top of the corporate chain... Bateman's fantasies are blended seamlessly into the true scenes of the movie, so your experience is the way he'd like to tell it to you. He believes he's done these things, and by the end of the movie, you'll be confused about it yourself.

In fact, the "did he or didn't he" conversation happens nearly every time we watch the movie.  They never explain it in the film, but his friends' refusal to believe him and the whole "his victims are still alive" thing clears it up pretty well.  But as I said, the murder scenes are depicted so realistically, I can see where the confusion comes in.

Anyway. I love this movie, even if that does make me a little sick.