Fast & Furious 6

Fast & Furious 6 is a fun movie. Some of the fights and cars are cool. It's really clunky at the beginning, though, and the dialogue pretty much always sucks.

I don't know why I keep watching these movies. I guess I just like the premise. Cool cars and Paul Walker, yay? Maybe it's just because I've seen all the others, so I feel compelled to keep up with them. I figured this would be a good one to see in the theater, and that decision was validated right with the opening scene, in beautiful somewhere-or-other Spain. I was also immediately glad I brought ear plugs, since loud engines are the first thing you hear. I was a little confused that the opening title was "Furious 6," but I see now that was the original name for the movie. They probably should've changed the opening title. Just an idea.

Tai Chi Zero

Tai Chi Zero really only exists to set up Tai Chi Hero. It looks amazing, but it's super cheesy.

I saw a trailer for Tai Chi Hero, and it looked cool, so I decided to check out the prequel before I saw it. I read on IMDb that Hero was better than Zero, so I wasn't expecting much. The whole kitschy/cheesy/video game feel was kind of obnoxious. It wasn't my thing. I didn't like the pop-ups about the style, or the diagrams that showed up under people's feet. And I especially didn't like the part where it would say "That's Angelababy as Chen Yu Niang! She's a famous actress!" It really took you out of the movie, and I don't know who those actors are, anyway.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters

The plot was a little empty, but I tend to enjoy fairy tale movies, and this one was creative enough to be entertaining.

I wasn't expecting much from Hansel & Gretel. Roeper didn't review it. IMDb said it was okay, albeit gory, so I decided I didn't need to see it in the theater. The acting wasn't bad. I haven't been a fan of Jeremy Renner yet, and I've never heard of Gemma Arterton before, although apparently she was in Prince of Persia. It was cool seeing Peter Stormare as the sheriff, though.

I liked how the language was modern. They got to use a lot of curse words since it was rated R, and that worked well. 

The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby has a pretty uninspired plot, but the cinematography is great. It's a good way to find out what the story's all about, if you aren't familiar with it already.

I've never read The Great Gatsby, and I had no idea what it was about, so I was a blank slate coming into the movie. I was surprised by how long it took for Leo to make an appearance. I was like, "he is in this movie, right?" The opening parts with all the partying were kind of obnoxious and hard to follow. The camera was all over the place, and everything seemed a little shaky, a little off. Maybe that had to do with the 3D aspect (although I didn't watch it in 3D). Everything was kind of exaggerated and crazy, which was probably the effect they were going for, but I didn't exactly enjoy it.

I felt bad for Tobey, always getting pushed around by everyone all the time. I think it would've been interesting to do the party scenes with the music they actually would've listened to at the time. The rap music worked to get a "party" feel going, and it never felt out of place like it did in The Man with the Iron Fists (maybe RZA could take a note from Gatsby, or maybe rap music just fits partying better than martial arts), but it did feel like the only modern thing in the movie.