Showing posts with label Josh Brolin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Josh Brolin. Show all posts

Hail, Caesar!

I'm not the biggest Coen brothers fan, but I liked "Hail, Caesar!" All the actors are good, it's fun to see how they used to make movies, and there are a lot of funny scenes.

I'm not a huge Coen brothers fan. I either haven't seen or haven't been that into most of their movies, although I did like The Ladykillers (what) and True Grit. But Hail, Caesar! just looked interesting on its own merit. Roeper liked it; the friend I watched it with had seen it already and didn't like it because it seemed too "disconnected." Maybe I was inclined to like it just to be contrary. I didn't really find it to be disconnected. Everything seemed to go together pretty well. And overall it's exactly what you're promised – a funny look at how they used to make movies back in the '50s.

Inherent Vice

 Inherent Vice is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. Josh Brolin, Joaquin, and Benicio all give standout performances. It's definitely confusing, it does drag on a bit, and the ending isn't completely perfect, but the humor is so refreshing and spot-on that I'm giving it 4.5/5.

Inherent Vice looked interesting from the trailer. I don't remember what Roeper said about it, but he gave it a B, so I guess he didn't hate it. I think Chris liked it more after thinking about it than he did right after he saw it. All that put together, and I still wanted to give it a shot, but I went in prepared to just enjoy the ride and not have everything wrapped up at the end.

I was surprised by how funny it was. It's subtle humor; they don't beat you over the head with it, but it's good. I'd say it's the funniest movie I've seen in a year, so that should count for something. I love that they shot it on actual film. It looks amazing; it has character without looking dated - although since it is set in the 70s, you could probably allow some dated-ness leeway. I liked how most of the women didn't look like they were wearing makeup. They all looked clean and natural. I'm sure they were wearing some makeup, but it just wasn't over-the-top like usual.


Sin City 2: A Dame to Kill For

Sin City 2: A Dame to Kill For has a striking visual style, an engaging plot, and fun characters and cameos. 

I liked the first Sin City, although I haven't read any of the comics. I didn't remember much about it, so I read the Wikipedia article on it before watching this one. I didn't think it really helped; it was just a jumble of names - X did this, then Y did that, and I couldn't even keep the names straight while I was reading it. I think it actually was useful, though.

I love the visual style of the sequel. I wanted to see it at the theater, but it looks like it's not coming to the cheap one. It's amazing how much it looks like you're watching a live comic, and all the highlights and color pops were great. I liked the noir-style narration.


Men in Black 3


MIB 3 was entertaining sort of from the perspective of "an episode of MIB," but they didn't have enough plot/ideas to stretch out for a full movie. Josh Brolin does do a great Tommy Lee Jones impression, though.

Someday I'll actually see a movie from 2013. I like MIB. Like every kid in the '90s, I liked the original. I even watched and liked the cartoon. I took a pass on MIB II, since it didn't look interesting and no one seemed to like it. Three got more favorable reviews (okay, Roeper liked it), and I like Josh Brolin, so I gave it a shot.

ETA: According to my records, I actually did see MIB II. I have absolutely no recollection of it, but there you are.

MIB 3 wasn't bad, I guess. It was what you would expect from an MIB movie. Will Smith did his usual Agent J. I did really like Brolin's Tommy Lee Jones impression. It was good. I didn't like Emma Thompson as Agent O. She just looked old. I didn't feel like there were enough interesting aliens. Some gross ones, but not interesting ones.

True Grit

I didn't have high expectations for this movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. I do love Westerns, or at least modern ones. The dialogue was good, and there was at least one surprise in the plot. There were about five too many instances of deus ex, however, and I was disappointed with the way it ended.

Planet Terror

It wasn't as bad as I was expecting. The gore was all cheesy, so it wasn't too disgusting. I just don't think I can appreciate this kind of movie. I always like Freddy though, and Rose was pretty. I liked the ending, too.

No Country for Old Men

Javier's weapons were pretty cool, but other than that, I don't see what was supposed to be so revolutionary about this.