March 08 through March 5, 09

For those of you keeping score, of 87 seen this year that's
5 Way ups
23 Ups
37 Wobbly Ups
9 Wobbly
10 Wobbly Downs
3 Downs

Thumbs Way Up
Bank Job, The (69)
Dark Knight, The (82)
Milk (84)
Quantum of Solace (58)
Traitor (60)

Thumbs Up
Be Kind Rewind (53)
Bolt in 3D (68)
Coraline (81)
Definitely, Maybe (58)
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (67)
Ghost Town (72)
Godfather, The (100)
Hancock (49)
Horton Hears a Who (71)
International, The (53)
Iron Man (78)
Kung Fu Panda (73)
Leatherheads (56)
Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (66)
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (64)
Pineapple Express (64)
Pride and Glory (45)
Redbelt (69)
Seven Pounds (36)
Tropic Thunder (71)
Valkyrie (56)
Wall-E (93)
Wanted (64)

Wobbly Thumbs Up
Akeelah and the Bee (72)
Ali G Indahouse ()
Baby Mama (55)
Bee Movie (54)
Body of Lies (58)
Burn After Reading (62)
Changeling (63)
Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, The (63)
Confessions of a Shopaholic (38)
Eagle Eye (43)
Forbidden Kingdom, The (57)
Get Smart (54)
Godfather: Part 2, The (71)
Gran Torino (72)
Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour (59)
He's Just Not That Into You (47)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (78)
How to Lose Friends and Alienate People (35)
Incredible Hulk, The (61)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (65)
Last Holiday (52)
Longshots, The (52)
Love Guru, The (24)
Miracle at St. Anna (37)
Push (39)
Role Models (59)
Run Fat Boy Run (48)
Semi-Pro (46)
Slumdog Millionaire (86)
Smart People (57)
Speed Racer (36)
Step Brothers (50)
Street Kings (55)
Taken (50)
Vantage Point (38)
W. (56)
Zak and Miri Make a Porno (56)

Wobbly Thumb
Happening, The (34)
Lakeview Terrace (46)
Live Fee or Die Hard (69)
Max (56)
Max Payne (31)
Perfect Stranger (31)
Righteous Kill (36)
Rocker, The (50)
Shoot 'Em Up (49)

Wobbly Thumbs Down
Death Race (42)
Eye, The (36)
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D (57)
Max Payne (31)
Paul Blart, Mall Cop (39)
Soul Men (49)
What Happens in Vegas (36)
X-Files: I Want to Believe, The (47)
Yes Man (46)
You Don't Mess with the Zohan (54)

Thumbs Down
Babylon A.D. (26)
Meet Dave (44)
Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, The (31)

Street Kings

I felt like this one left a lot on the table. It had a big cast, Forrest Whitaker, Common, Hugh, Laurie, The Game, Keanu Reeves, The guy from Northern Exposure/Sex and the City, The Human Torch, Jay Mohr. Well, a bunch of people I recognize, anyway. There were some definite off notes, but there was lots of misdirection as well. I also liked the tone that it ended up with, though it had me worried on more than one occasion. I felt like with a little bit better acting (even Nicolas Cage instead of Reeves would have made a difference, much less somebody like Ethan Hawke or Ryan Gosling, not to mention the numerous losers in bit roles) and some better direction, maybe the addition of an overarching theme, this could have been Training Day or something close to it. Instead, it was more like Training Day 2 Electric Boogaloo. Not straight to video, but it might as well have been. But, it entertained me. Whitaker, Laurie and Common were very good and I like them. So there.

Vantage Point

This one was ok, but not great. I liked the idea of viewing the events from several differnt points of view. I also like the idea of the good guys choosing not to make retaliatory strikes against the evil guys. Those things appeal to me. I liked the cast. But, it was a bit overwrought at times. And there were moments of lameness. But, it wasn't terrible and I enjoyed myself.

Horton Hears a Who

I liked this one a good bit. It was funny, I laughed aloud more than once. Olivia laughed aloud a lot. It maintained is Seussian feel. It avoided the cheap shot of letting the bad guy get beaten up a the end, with Horton being magnanimous all the way to the end. Just good stuff. It also celebrates the value of all people, regardless of their size or power or whatever. I enjoyed it. The bridge scene was probably one of my favorites. Another one I will enjoy watching again on cable.

Last Holiday

There wasn't anything terribly wrong with this. It was probably the same genre as Mad Money but it was not quite the same stupidness to it. Queen Latifah is fun and I like watching LL Cool J, who can't help but be cool. I also liked Gerard Depardieu. Easy, non challenging. Not much there, but not offensive.

The Bank Job

I liked this a lot. First of all, it was a heist film. I like heist films. And while the robbers in this film are not particularly adept, it still had the cool factor of Confidence or Snatch without the high gloss of The Italian Job or Ocean's Eleven, all of which I liked, but, truth be told, the less glossy I like more. Second, the film takes place in England, which means lots of British accents. Always a plus for me, added value, if you will. It starred Jason Statham, whom I like quite a bit, from The Italian Job and Snatch. It also saw a very good performance by Keeley Hawes. She did a fantastic job as Statham's wife, in love with her man and frustrated about his burglary. The story was based on actual events, which lended a cool feel to it. All things considered, a very good movie I look forward to seeing again.

Be Kind, Rewind

I liked this one too. It was a good weekend for movies. It was not the simple, kinda stupid movie I expected it to be. It was about community and gave a little hout out to the value of community and the value of old neighborhood stores, even though they are doomed to change. I like Mos Def a lot, even though he usually plays himself. I also like Jack Black as himself when he has good material to work with. The Fats Waller bit was good here, and there were several cool shots, indicating Michel Gondry's participation in the project. I did not like Mia Farrow's small role, but other than that, it was all good.