World War Z

What did I get out of going to see World War Z? Well...
1) I can now officially say I've gone to the movie theatre to see a zombie apocalypse movie, so that's crossed off the list of pop culture things to do.
2) The certain knowledge that I would never survive a zombie apocalypse. Let's face it, I'm no Brad Pitt.
3) A chance to hold my wonderful hubby's hand for two hours. Crushingly.
4) renewed certainty that I am emphatically a rom-com kind of girl. Well leaving aside both the Marvel Universe and Middle Earth, that is, and even more so if both parties involved in the rom-com are men.
5) About zillion ore reasons to keep looking over my shoulder and to turn on lights before I go into any room.
6) and finally, proof that the allure of Brad Pitt is still a mystery to me. I will take a stern and aged Will Smith over unnaturally young-looking family guy Brad any day of the week.

will Smith from After Earth
 looking like a stressed  out
and aging soldier

Brad Pitt from World War Z
Convincing family man?

Not that I think Brad is a bad actor. I think he's a pretty decent actor. I just don't get all the hoopla is all.

All in all, The best part of the evening for me was spending it with hubs and having fun hanging out. I didn't hate the movie. I didn't love the movie. Given the choice of another zombie apocalypse or Iron Man? Or maybe Fili and Kili? I'll take a Tony Stark marathon, thanks, topped off by a helping of dwarves and hobbits before I venture into another zombie-fest.

Movie Review: Secretary

Director: 

Steven Shainberg

Writers: 

Erin Cressida Wilson (screenplay), Mary Gaitskill(short story), and 2 more credits »

Stars:

 James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jeremy Davies

So, first of all, when I watched this movie, I didn't realize it is ten years old. Not that it changes a whole lot, other than making the whole "We don't use computers here." a teeny, tiny bit less ridiculous. That makes Mr. Gray's character more eccentric and less full on crazy, I suppose. I doubt you could even run a paralegal office without a computer these days.

So anyway, the fact she has to type everything up on a typewriter is kind of essential to the plot, so I had to just suspend my disbelief on that and move on.

Maggie Gyllenhaal's character, Lee: Well, she played her well, but it took me a long time to warm up to her. She was a very washed-out, bland, weak woman, which was totally the point of her, and I can appreciate that Gyllenhaal played that aspect of her very well. I felt she stayed that way a little too long, though. When she finally stepped up, though, I was pleased to see she didn't for a moment hide what she wanted or hesitate to accept it. I liked that a lot. She grew from a frightened woman, full of fear and shame, into a strong submissive not even a bit uncertain about what she wanted or needed in her lover.

Mr. Gray was a dick. I wanted to slap him. Sure, okay, he was conflicted and uncertain and he had a hard time accepting that he wasn't actually a perverted predator, but it took him so bloody long and Lee had to go through so much torture at his hands (or, more to the point, torture from him keeping his hands to himself) that I just got mad at him and was actually pleased when she made up her mind to find someone else. That shouldn't happen in a romance story, no matter how kinky it gets. I shouldn't want the heroine to find someone other than the hero to be with. At the point I found myself hoping that Lee really did move on and find herself a man worthy of her surrender, I realized the story had become about her and her growth, and not about the romantic relationship. So I wanted her to find a man worthy of her who could keep her safe and happy.

She didn't.

She fought for the man she loved and eventually convinced him that she wanted what he had to offer and that she not only accepted him and loved him, but needed him to be what he was. So yes, she manned up and convince him. But he didn't deserve her. At least I wasn't convinced he did, and that's bad in a romance story and worse in a Dom/sub romance.

If you can't convince me the Dom deserves every once of that sub's surrender, I you're not doing it right. In the end, Mr Gray left me cold, and that was sad.

A few of the scenes I really loved?

The scene in the park when Lee is walking home form work for the first time, after Mr' Gray has told her she won't cut herself any more and she can walk home on her own. She talks about how she can't remember ever walking home alone, and how she doesn't feel alone because it feels like he is holding her as she goes. It might seem like a simple thing to agree to do what he told her to do, but for Lee, it was a very big deal to let him dictate those terms. That one scene showed the essence of the relationship, and I just wish he had lived up to her faith in him. He almost didn't, step up, and that would have been a tragedy.

Journey 2: Mysterious Island

Do you like eye candy? Do you want to see something that won’t make you think even for a minute? Do you want to just sit back and eat popcorn and look at pretty people trekking through the woods and getting sweaty?

Then have I got a movie for you!

The plot is formulaic. And not even algebraic formulas, but simple math 1+1=2. Plus one more = 3. Like that.

This quote sums up the movie while simultaneously poking fun at it:

Hank (the step dad) “I’m just looking to talk to you
You know, uhm… as a very concerned adult to a somewhat troubled youth.”
Sean (the teen) “Which one am I in that equation?”

Pretty much sums up this movie. Step dad makes good on his determination to be a positive role model for his new wife’s teenage boy before the kid is too old to fall for it.

Plus, you know, it’s 3-D and there are fun monster chases, a gold-erupting volcano, Jules Vern’s Nautilus submarine in living colour (Probably my favourite part of the movie, given my current steam punk kick) and the obligatory teenage crush, complete with sweet teenage kiss. (At which the two tween girls I took to see the movie squealed in disgust and covered their eyes, which they did not do when the comic relief character fell into the giant lizard egg full of amniotic fluid.)

So, predictable, numbered plot, pretty characters, morals handed to you on a plate. With garnish. A few laugh-out-loud funny bits, and a happy ending. Nothing particularly taxing or noteworthy. Nothing so horrifically bad I had to eviscerate it. Just a decent way to entertain two young girls without all the incessant giggling and squealing that happens when they hide out in their room listening to music and looking at Teen Beat magazines.  No sex, no violence, no bad language. (The hunger Games it ain't!)

I’ve spent worse afternoons.

If you’re curious, the first Journey was definitely better, from what I remember. Brendon Fraser is a decent actor, and cute. Dwayne Johnson has some great pecs and a brilliant smile. If he’s a good actor, this movie didn’t give him a real opportunity to show it, but then, neither did it give him enough material to flop, so whatever. At least he was nice to look at for two hours.

The girl was a pretty face and plot device. Her father, played by Luis Guzman, was ridiculous as comic relief; over the top, but heartfelt. I don’t know if one would expect more from him in this role, though, so he did a fine job. Both their characters were given just enough (contrived) action only they could do to make their presence on the island necessary. Bottom line: she was pretty and I laughed more at step-dad’s antics than at the calculated comic relief, but then, I usually do, so that’s me.

The best thing about this movie overall is that I was entertained, the tween girls were entertained, and the six-ish-year old boy and his father sitting in the seats behind us were entertained. ‘nuff said.

Who’s ready for an adventure?

The Evil Editor’s Movie Reviews

By Valerie Mann

Pariah

Before I get started, I’ll admit right up front I have a major addiction to going to the movies. Since my husband and I both work from home, getting out of the house to have some alone time is critical to my sanity and continuing to like my husband on a regular basis. Give me a dark theater for two hours, some smuggled candy and soda, and I’m a happy camper with recharged batteries.

I adore indie movies. Subtitles don’t bother me in the least. Foreign films are the bomb. Feeding my addiction are several theaters near my home that serve up a plethora of indie movies, including one that has at least two Bollywood movies at any given time. Don’t like Bollywood yet? You will when I get done reviewing a couple. They crack me up.

Anyway…

Today I saw Pariah. A Sundance Film Festival selection last year, it deals with a high school student, Alike (“Lee”), coming of age and finding the courage to deal with her lesbianism and her family's response to it. Her church-going, rigid mother (played by Kim Wayans, an amazing actress) and her police office father are both at different levels of denial about their daughter’s sexual identity, neither admitting it, both suspecting it, and most definitely fearing it. 

Without going into too many details, I will tell you what I didn’t like about this movie. As an evil editor, I look at plot carefully, and an ending has to satisfy me. The plot was predictable and exactly what I expected Alike would face when she comes out of the closet to face her closed minded parents. Then again, there are probably only two things that could happen—mom and dad deal—or they don’t. And some may argue with me that the ending was just okay, but the journey to get there was worth it, so the lack of imagination was forgivable.

What I liked about Pariah—Lee was never ashamed of her sexuality. Though facing rejection and fear, she never denied being a lesbian. She did hide it, as much to prevent her parents and sister from hurt, as she did to avoid dealing with their rejection. But there was never a time when she tried to pretend to herself that she was not gay. Another refreshing detail I appreciated was that the movie wasn’t geared toward Lee’s relationship with her straight classmates, but rather centered around the relationship with her family. The different ways they dealt with her coming out was predictable as well, but realistic.


The acting was very good, very realistic, without being over-dramatic. A serious topic was handled with care and sensitivity. Sexuality was integral in the movie, sex was not. 

My rating: B

Recommendation: Worth seeing if you can find it showing near you. Or rent it.