My Week in Movies (April 11-17, 2009)

Okay, this will cover a bit more than this week, but whatever. Get over it.

Movies Purchased
Not much purchased this week, but it was all Blu-Ray, so that makes large quantities more financially difficult.

Tell No One (Blu-Ray)
This one was just fantastic. The French really know how to thrill, apparently. Basically, a man's wife is killed and eight years later he gets an email proving she's alive. The whole movie keeps you guessing right up until the end. There is even a great little twist. I thought it was a solid, exciting thriller that any fans of the genre should see.

Slumdog Millionaire (Blu-Ray)
I've felt divided over this one for a while. When it was first released, I really wanted to see it, but as the expected backlash started to occur my mind changed. In the end, I realized that I love Danny Boyle, and need to give him a chance (also, it was supposed to look great on Blu-Ray). I was somewhat underwhelmed. I figured I would either love it or hate it, but I ended up just liking it. It is a good solid film, but probably my fourth favorite Danny Boyle movie (28 Days Later, Trainspotting, and Sunshine currently lead). I don't think it deserved ALL the acclaim it received, but you should all check it out and decide for yourselves.

The Matrix: Tenth Anniversary (Blu-Ray)
A Blu-Ray version of The Matrix that allows you to pretend that the sequels never happened? Sign me up. The movie looks great on Blu-Ray, and the effects still don't look dated. I'm sure most of you already know whether you like this film or not, so if you do, pick this up. If not, just move on.

Movies Rented
My place of employment no longer accepts my mail, and my apartment has no outgoing mail, so my Netflix access is slowed a bit.

Resident Evil: Degeneration (Blu-Ray)
Alright, didn't have high hopes for this one, but I like the Resident Evil games, so I decided to give it a chance. It was basically what I expected. Creepy, lifeless CG character in action-packed situations. If that's what you're looking for, this is the uncanny valley at its finest.

The Flight of the Red Balloon
Kind of an odd one. A movie inspired by The Red Balloon, but in the film they talk specifically about the original movie. Ignoring that, the film is a solid examination of modern Parisian family life and its effect on a young boy. Busy mother, loving sister living far away, sweet nanny, a bad tenant, and one red balloon. Clearly this movie has it all. The film has a subtle touch of magic (both narratively and cinematically) that makes the whole thing simply beautiful. But, really, the most important thing is that I love Juliette Binoche, and she does not disappoint in this film. If you were to ask people who are not cinephiles (read: movie geeks) what they think French films are like, they would likely describe this type of film exactly, so really it's up to you to decide whether French films are your thing or not, I can't help you.

Donkey Punch
Oh good God! Why?! I should have listened to the dozens of reviews that said to avoid this movie, and not the one review that said it was great. I know it's meant to be a cheap exciting thriller, but it's really a tired concept excecuted poorly with ridiculous amount of scenes meant to be shocking. Recoil in fear.

Movies Watched

Observe and Report: See posted thoughts.

Adventureland: See posted thoughts.

Sunshine Cleaning
Not too much to say about this one. It was an enjoyable enough movie. The comparisons to Little Miss Sunshine are apt, but it's not as identical as some may claim, although Alan Arkin is basically the same character. I say rent this one if you're up for a good funny feel-good movie.

Matrix Reloaded
I was given this movie as a gift, and after watching The Matrix on Blu-Ray, I decided to give it another chance. It was exactly as disappointing as I remember it being. Oh well.