Movie #211 - The Forgotten

The Forgotten
2004 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 31 min
Director: Joseph Ruben
Starring: Julianne Moore, Dominic West, Christopher Kovaleski, Anthony Edwards, Gary Sinise, Jessica Hecht, Alfre Woodard

This movie is totally creepy, but a bit overdramatic.  It feels a bit indulgent at times, and while it's thrilling to watch people get snatched up and thrown into the air out of nowhere, I can't quite wrap my brain around this. 

Julianne Moore's son is killed in a plane crash and she has trouble letting go of his memory, so she's in therapy with Gary Sinise.  Somehow, her son Sam starts to disappear from photos and other people's memories (like his father's for example).  Bad news for Julianne Moore, who's mind isn't as easy to wipe clean.  So what's happening? How is this possible?

SPOILER ALERT:
The whole thing turns out to be an alien experiment.  Their just messing with us to see if the bonds between mother and child can ever be truly broken.  Why? We're lab rats to them, but what's the purpose of this experiment? Is it just for funsies?  How cruel are these aliens, anyway?

It's an interesting concept, but it seems a bit overdone.  At its core, it's an indepth look at the relationships between mothers and their children.  But the whole thing seems needless. Maybe I just don't get it.... ?

Movie #10 - 300

300
Warner Bros Pictures
2007 - Rated R - 1 hr 56 min
Director: Zack Snyder
Starring: Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West

While Gerard Butler makes some fantastic eye candy, that's not the only reason I love this movie. It's fun to watch, the action is visually interesting, and the blood and gore are impressive (I love some good blood and gore once in a while). What also impresses me about this movie is how cinematically interesting it is. It looks like the comic on which it's based, which is artistically speaking pretty cool.

As for its accuracy, I can't really speak to either the comic book or the history it's based on. Haven't read the comic and I'm not Mike, so you got me if it's accurate. From what I hear, it's not bad. But I've got some questions about certain aspects of this movie...

1. Was Xerxes really an ancestor of Ru Paul?
2. Did all Spartans have six-pack abs?
3. Could they really fight dressed like that, without any armor at all?
4. Why on earth would they listen to some drunken teenage girls about prophecy?

I guess that about sums it up. Great, fun movie to watch. Just don't think too hard about it.