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Weekend movies: The half-fab four
Having crawled through Monster House, checked out Clerks II, gotten seasick at Lady in the Water and broken up with My Super Ex-Girlfriend, I found this weekend’s movies to be half successful. The odds were against any movie having a feminine word in the title.
Clerks II: Writer-director Kevin Smith returns to the characters that made him famous, as they find out that life still hasn’t begun at 30-something. Having disappointed fans with the mild Jersey Girl, Smith makes sure to pile on plenty of pop culture riffing and raunchy humor this time. A lot of the material works, like the hilarious Star Wars vs. Lord of the Rings debate, or any scene with the alluring Rosario Dawson. Some of it falls flat, like the obvious and overextended bestiality jokes. What resonates most, though, is the genuine love Smith feels for this crew, which reminds us that he can be classy and crass at the same time. GRADE: B+
Monster House: Well, someone has finally done it — Sony has beaten Pixar at its own game, if only just barely. Frame for frame, this riotous haunted house story tops Cars. Pixar’s movie has more heart, but it sometimes sputtered a little. This movie never does, as promising new director Gil Kenan’s “camera� runs wild, taking us on a dizzying ride like that’s like a Tales from the Crypt episode for the young and young at heart. It’s probably too intense for anyone not yet in second grade, but older kids and geeky/giddy adults will eat it up. GRADE: A
Lady in the Water: I already reviewed this Friday, so I’ll recap here with a one-word reaction: glub. GRADE: D-
My Super Ex-Girlfriend: One of the summer’s best story ideas (vengeful ex-girlfriend is a superhero) turns into one of the most disappointing movies. This film should have been a gas, but it’s mostly gaseous. Instead of developing his inspired ideas, writer Don Payne cheapens them with smarmy or obvious sex gags. Uma Thurman and Anna Faris do their best to make the film fly with appealing performances, but Ivan Reitman’s leaden direction keeps running it into the ground. GRADE: C
Did you see any of the movies this weekend? What did you think?
Permalink | Comments (2) | Categories: Reviews
Comments
By nb
August 1, 2006 9:26 PM | Link to this
My goodness! There are so many worse things than what Mel did. Don’t get me wrong. I think drinking and driving is very wrong. But why don’t the reporters write about the people in the spotlight that abuse their spouses and children, or sell drugs and get by with it everyday.I think the bigger issue here is the fact that Mel is a Christian. I think it made alot people upset that Mel made so much $$$ with The Passion! The nonchristians would love to crucify him for making a mistake!Everyone makes mistakes. Christians don’t claim to be anything but sinners like everyone else.We just know that because of Jesus Christ we will be fogiven and loved anyway. I think people should get over it I’m sure we have all done things we are’t proud of. The one big difference is, not every move we make could end up on T.V. I guess we should really consider ourselves lucky.By Karen
July 24, 2006 10:10 AM | Link to this
I didn’t have time to see any movies this weekend, but it sounds like I’ll be putting Monster House on my list to see! Thanks for the run down.