MOVIES

Some thoughts on recent movies, both at the theaters and on dvd:

Predators: Predictable; follows along the original story path. I enjoyed it, although it isn't great. Adrien Brody was ok, and It is wonderful to see another Braga on the big screen. Some of the characters and dialogue was weak. It could have been a bit more scary or intense.

From Paris With Love: Overall, not very satisfying. It was as if the writer or director couldn't dcide if it should be a comedy along the lines of a Jackie Chan farce or something like a Bourne Identity. Travolta simply was miscasat, adn the sidekick was weak. Some of the action was decent. The writign was terrible, not much better than a highschooler coul have done, as far as I am concerned.

Book of Eli: Although reviews were generally disappointing concerning this movie, I actually like it. I thought Denzel Washington did a credible job, Gary Oldman is always pretty good, and Mila Kunis was fairly good. Ray Stevenson was solid, and I didn't even realize that Oldman's wife in the film was Jennifer Beals. Kudos to the set designers and location planners (or whatever they call them). Some aspects of the film were weak, but overall, I guess because of my liking for postapocalyptic stuff, I enjoyed it.

The Messenger: Solid, sad movie. Woody Harrelson was excellent.

Edge of Darkness: This title easily applies to Mel Gibson's personal life right now. The movie was ok, nothing outstanding, but not bad. Gibson is an older detective whose daughter is killed in front of him and everyone assumes that he was the target, but he starts discovering that she had secrets and had tried to expose the darker, sinister inner workings of her weapons research company. Kind of Lethal Weapon meets Silkwood meets Sixth Sense.

Robin Hood: Pleasantly surprised by the modern version of the prestory, though it was sappy at times. The boys resisted going, but in the end they seemed to like it. I enjoyed Cate Blanchett's Marion. Most of the cast was decent, in fact.

Daybreakers: Vampires rule. . literally. Decent movie.

Things We Lost in the Fire: Halle Berry and Del Torio were very good. Depressing, slow film, but very good.