Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2 - $6

Just a brief review today, August was busy as you can tell from my lack of reviews. To fill the void I'll have a guest reviewer post for you in the next couple of days. Stay tuned for that, the guest reviewer is someone a few of you know.

Onto the review at hand here, Kill Bill. It's a cop out to review both Volumes at once as they are different and distinct movies, but that's what I'm doing.

I saw Kill Bill back when it was first released and I really liked it then. I watched it again recently and was entertained enough to remember why I liked it so much the first time.

Kill Bill is a tough movie to define, it has a martial arts feel at times, classic western moments, cheesy action movie moments and lots of comic book type moments. All in all I found that it works as one coherent movie, though I know some people find it choppy and inconsistent. I liked the pacing of Kill Bill and I find the transitions between the dramatically different parts are affective.

Kill Bill is fun and extremely unique. Uma Thurman is great as the main character, The Bride and David Carradine is pitch perfect as Bill.

The writing is so cheesy it usually works but there were definitely times I laughed when I know I wasn't meant to.

Overall Kill Bill is worth checking out if you need some entertainment and you're in the mood for a unique action movie. I put Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2 on my 'Watch It' list and give the two part movie a value of $6.

Top 5 Comedies of All Time

Here they are, the Watch It Top 5 comedies of all time. I'll start from #1 this time just to mix it up.

1) The Big Lebowski

I LOVE this movie, it has grown better each time I've watched it. John Goodman puts in the performance of his life and Jeff Bridges is perfect. If you haven't seen this you've missed out on an epic movie. Full Review

2) Dumb and Dumber

Dumb and Dumber actually seems to get..well..dumber every time I watch it now, but I have to put it on this list, in fact I almost put it first. No movie has ever made me laugh as much as this one did the first 47 times I watched it. The Cam Neely (Seabass) cameo alone makes it worth watching.

3) The Darjeeling Limited

This one has had very mixed reviews but I was hooked from the opening scene to the very end. I laughed, I almost cried, I loved it all. Wes Anderson is one of my favorites in the writer/director field as you'll see by my choice for #4 on this list.
Full Review

4) The Royal Tennenbaums

I couldn't help but put 2 Wes Anderson movies on this list. I could almost have put another one but that would get silly. The Royal Tenenbaums is a brilliant comedy and like Anderson's other movies it got me right from the start. I think it's his attention to detail in the imagery and his great characters that I like best but I could also sit and just listen to the dialogue in this movie and still laugh.

5) Old School

Vince Vaughan, Will Ferrell, Luke Wilson...enough said.

Do Me a Solid? EVEN MORE UPDATED

UPDATE 2: It worked! Go to the LAMB and check me out, I'm #1 this week! Thanks to everyone who clicked the link and checked out the fast growing site that is the LAMB.

_______Original Post_________
Faithful readers, thank you for voting in such massive numbers on my poll to the right. Overwhelmingly you chose Comedies as the topic for my next Top 5 list, you will get your way in a post to come this weekend.

In the meantime how 'bout doin' me a solid and visiting the Large Association of Movie Blogs (LAMB) site? Each week the site posts the top 5 members who are sending visitors to the LAMB. It seems to only take 25 or so to get into the top 5 and I've never been there.

I'm a LAMB member and it's actually an interesting site to check out, so come on, at least once go check it out by clicking the link in the sidebar or clicking the picture below. I really want to get in that list.

- Tony

UPDATE: I've been told by the guy who runs the LAMB that I'm in a close race for first this week. One more click below everyone and I can win this thing! (Top 5 Comedies nearly completed, I will release it today)

El Orfanato (The Orphanage) - $9

I've said more than once on my site that I'm not a big fan of the horror genre. By that I mean movies like Texas Chainsaw, Saw etc... I do enjoy a good thriller from time to time though and the distinction to me is in what is being done to frighten me. I don't mind being scared of something mysterious or haunting, but I'm not fond of seeing disgusting gore designed to terrify me in a very simplistic way.

The Orphanage is exactly the kind of thriller I like. The story revolves around a woman named Laura who has bought the orphanage she spent her childhood years in prior to being adopted. Her and her husband intend to turn it into a boarding house for mentally challenged children while also living there with their own son, Simón.

In one of the movies' more eerie scenes Laura finds Simón talking to someone in a cave near the beach they frequent. Laura never sees anyone and assumes Simón is talking to an imaginary friend. That day Simón leaves a trail of shells that lead back to the house so that the friend he met in the cave can find it and come over to play. The next day Laura finds the shells in a pile by the front door and from that moment on she begins to hear and see things in the house that prompt her to believe that this imaginary friend of Simón's may not be imagined after all. When Simón goes missing Laura is convinced that the spirits in the house are to blame.

The Orphanage is beautifully shot and is frightening for all the right reasons. There is mystery and story to what is happening in the house and the fear the movie makes it's audience feel is a powerful fear of the unknown. There is a purpose to the horror as well as it adds to the story being told rather than being the only part of the story. The Orphanage even manages to give you an almost touching ending.

The Orphanage has an amazing tone and mood with imagery that makes it far more than just a horror movie. The acting and writing are great though I'm always left wishing I spoke the language of a subtitled movie especially when it impresses me. How much more impressed would I have been if I could understand the dialogue as it was intended?

This is a must see, I'm putting The Orphanage on my 'Watch It' list and give it a value of $9.

The Dark Knight - $8

I went into The Dark Knight with high expectations and it delivered - for the most part. This is a comic/superhero movie which, unlike the many others in this genre, tries very hard to also be a good movie and a compelling story. Director Christopher Nolan has succeeded in making a very good movie here and in a way he has transcended the genre while perfecting it at the same time.

I won't go into a big plot summary, since you've all already seen it according to box office numbers, but essentially you've got Batman saving people from the Joker and assorted other criminals while wrestling with his purpose and the question of whether he is actually helping Gotham in the long run. I like that Nolan has given the Batman story something more than it's other incarnations by focusing on moral dilemma's and Batman's own lack of innocence.

The Dark Knight works on a lot of levels, the effects are amazing but great effects alone never make a good movie. Dark Knight also gives it's audience fairly good writing which is the last thing I expect in a big budget comic book adaptation.

Everything you've heard about the acting in this movie is true, if a little over hyped. Ledger is incredible as the Joker and Bale turns in another great performance as Batman. For me Aaron Ekhart's performance as Two-Face/Harvey Dent stole the show a bit from the bigger names around him. The supporting cast is good as well and I agree with most that Maggie Gyllenhaal playing Rachel Dawes is an improvement on Katie Holmes. Thankfully though she's not different enough as to distract the audience. Normally using a different actor to play the same character is a huge distraction for me (Fresh Prince of Bel Air anyone?) but it worked here.

As I said, I enjoyed this movie. The hype is overblown for sure, especially when you look at it's IMDB rating, but it's still the best blockbuster to hit theatres in a long time. I still think Batman Begins is the superior of the two but I'm a sucker for origin stories. I'm definitely hoping Nolan doesn't stop with Dark Knight and continues to redeem the Batman franchise from the horrific Warner Bros versions.

The Dark Knight is on my 'Watch It' list and I'm giving it a value of $8.