All posts in Movies

Didn’t Enjoy a Christian Movie? Permission Granted.

I have a staggering confession to make.  I didn’t enjoy the movie Fireproof.  I wasn’t entertained or particularly moved by it.  I didn’t cry.  That’s saying a lot because I recently got misty-eyed at the end of a re-run episode of Full House.  Kirk Cameron didn’t revolutionize my marriage or inspire me to become a fire chief who makes good chili and inspires his men to be soft-spoken and wear dockers pants.  However, his idea of pounding the outside trash can with a bat is a good one that I plan to implement soon.  Looked like fun.  But, seriously, if my house was on fire and Mike Seaver showed up to lead the effort in saving my cigar collection from smoking itself, I would be more than a little concerned.  I’d probably ask him to call in a favor to Kurt Russell for assistance.

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Blockbusters I’m Looking Forward To

I’m a sucker for a good movie.  I like all kinds.  Comedy, drama, action, independent film, etc.  But there’s something about the big budget blockbusters that get me excited.  No deep explorations of the human condition.  No social commentary (hopefully).  Just pure escapist junk food for the senses.  I’m a total sucker for the trailers and media hype.  Here’s three I’m looking forward to.  Add more in the comments if I missed any.

Terminator 4

When I first heard about this one I was pretty skeptical.  But then I saw Christian Bale was playing John Connor, and I saw some hope for it.  The trailer looks great.

I like the gritty look to it and Bale will give it a little more realism and character depth. Either way, that “dundun dun dundun” gets me every time!

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Paul Newman – A Real Cool Hand

Paul Newman has died at age 83.  I thought I’d post a clip from one of my favorite movies, “Cool Hand Luke”.

It’s interesting to me that Newman has very few lines in this scene and the camera focus is rarely on him yet he remains the focal point.  Maybe that’s what they call “presence”.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVXKOb5EE7Y

Why I’m Mad at Curious George

I credit Curious George and Louis L’Amour with my love for reading. When I was a kid, Mom would take us to the public library. I was only interested in Curious George books. I would collect every one of those yellow books that I could find, bring them home, and devour each one.

I liked George because he got into trouble about as much as I did. I also loved the illustrations in the books. But, I always understood that the hero of the book was the Man in the Yellow Hat. He was the ultimate father figure. He was a safari adventurer. He was confident. He always corrected George when he did wrong, but he was also incredibly patient and understanding. He knew George was only a silly monkey and didn’t expect him to act like an adult human. He also loved George, but he loved him as a father not as a friend. He also had great fashion sense. He wore that yellow outfit before anyone else knew how cool it really was.

Recently I watched the Curious George movie. I was more excited than my kids were because I still really dig Curious George and the Man in the Yellow Hat.  Boy was I disappointed.

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Movies I Don’t Understand

Movie that makes no senseI’m watching Johnny Mnemonic right now.  And I just don’t get it.  First, there’s the casting.  Keanu Reaves makes sense, I guess.  When you need a guy to act without personality, he’s your go-to guy.  But, Ice-T?  Isn’t he a rapper that moonlights on Law and Order?  His name makes no sense and has a hyphen in it, so he must be.

He makes me laugh when he’s not being funny.  That’s not a good sign.  He should do a movie with that other rapper/movie star with a funny name: Ice-Cube.  After all, you really can’t have Ice-T without Ice-Cube.

The thing that puzzles me about this movie is the whole premise.  We only use 10% of our brains, so they say.  Why not use the rest of the un-used space to traffic illegal information in an apocolyptic Mad Max world where all the buildings are rusting and everyone wears punk rocker clothes?  Makes sense, right?  Right?

Then there’s the random dolphin/brain hacker that can blow stuff up by shooting powerful brain waves out of a satellite dish attached to its head.  Don’t try to tell me that plot twist wasn’t conceived of after a few too many shots of tequila on a lonely night.

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Weekend Thoughts

Some interesting links and thoughts from this week…

  • Thanks for the feedback on what you’d like to see more of this year from Live.Awake. Heather and I are planning on doing some combo posts on topics like “How to Fight with Your Spouse” and “Maintaining Intimacy” and others. I’m planning on doing a combination of short quickie posts and longer articles both serious and funny (or at least idiotic).

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Two Movies I Can’t Wait to See

I love movies and I’m a total sucker for movie marketing and advertising.

It’s like my cynical side takes a vacation and I turn into a blathering 12 year old.

Here are two movies that I can’t wait to see and their trailers.

Have a great weekend!

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