The Twilight Sage: Breaking Dawn - Part 1

Q: What’s the movie about?

A:  Bella and Edward (Kristen Stewart & Robert Pattinson-- like you don't know) get married and defy all possibility when she gets pregnant from his demon seed, which threatens to kill her.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A:  Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Billy Burke, Ashley Greene, Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone, Gil Birmingham, Sarah Clarke, Booboo Stewart, Alex Rice, Chaske Spencer, Kiowa Gordon, Julia Jones, Bronson Pelletier,  Alex Meraz, Anna Kendrick, Christian Serratos, Justin Chon, Michael Welch, Michael Sheen, Mia Meastro, Maggie Grace, MyAnna Buring, Casey LaBow, Jamie Campbell Bower, Christian Camargo, Mackenzie Foy

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A:  Proceed with Caution.  This movie is very weird, and the only reason you should see it is if you're a Die-hard Twihard, and you're going to see it anyway.  According to this weekend's box-office, that description accounts for a butt-load of you.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A:  Well it starts with a human marrying a vampire, followed by some teenie-porn, and finally concludes with what I'm pretty sure is a form of pedophilia between a half human-half werewolf and a half vampire-half baby, so yeah, it's just all very, very weird.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A:  "Everybody cries at weddings," one of Bella's cheesier lines, turns out to be kinda true.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A:  I'll tell you what it won't be up for, Make-up, special effects, screenplay, directing, cinematography... The clothes are pretty good-- mostly at the weddings.

Q: How is the Acting?

A:  Some of the lines are so bad, that I could actually hear the actors' inner struggle to get them out.  And that's why I have the utmost respect for these actors, especially Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, who have pauses and stares that make you keenly aware that this series could not have worked with anybody else in those roles.  Taylor Lautner still can't act.

Q: How is the Directing?

A:  Bill Condon is a great director, but there's no way to know that from watching this film.  Most disappointing for me are the warmer colors used in the cinematography, which are completely inconsistent with the look and tone of the first 3 movies in the series.  Even TV shows manage to look the same from week to week, and they sometimes have over 100 different episodes, using up to 50 different directors.

Q: How is the story/script?

A:  It starts with a wedding and then  strains to have anything to talk about for the next two hours, proving why movies are supposed to end with weddings.  There is some very strange and illogical drama around the now-defunct love-triangle-- which no longer makes any sense because Bella has already made a firm decision-- at the wedding.   The author tries her damnedest to find reasons to keep Taylor Lautner involved, but they all ring false.  And then there's some drama about whether or not Bella will survive her pregnancy, which is also kind of spoiled by the fact that the title includes the phrase "Part 1."

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1

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Fast Five

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: First of all, can you believe I saw this?! Got passes to a free screening and thought the poster looked cool, so I went to the 5th installment of The Fast and the Furious franchise, of which I've seen NONE of the the first four. So here's what I think it's about... There's this bad guy, and he befriended an undercover cop, but now the cop loves him, because he's dating the bad guy's sister, so he decides to break the bad guy out of jail, and now he's a bad guy, too. But really, they're both good guys.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Lucacris" Bridges, Matt Schulze, Sung Kang, Gal Gadot, Tego Calderon, Don Omar, Joaquim de Almeida, Dwayne Johnson, Elsa Pataky, Michael Irby

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! It's loud! And crazy! And I think the heroes died about once every five minutes if this weren't a movie. But it really is adrenaline pumping, and anyone who takes it as pure fantasy, existing merely for the purpose of outlandish action, is gonna love it.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Yes. At the acting. I haven't seen the first four, so I'm assuming this is meant to be a spoof.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: They destroy at least $10 million worth of cars, so somebody should be crying. Like all those people who just lost their jobs and got their cars repoed recently. Look out for yours, it's probably in there getting smashed to bits.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: I don't see how anyone could ever beat this in a vehicular stunt contest. I also think the guy who has to clean up the mess these guys leave in their wake should get an award.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Vin Diesel makes the Rock look like an Oscar contender. And Paul Walker is so bland, that most actors would have to be lobotomized to do what he does. But at least the girls are bad-ass.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Sometimes when I watch all the different angles Justin Lin had to get to cover the action scenes and explosions, I think he must have a lot of patience. But don't cast The Rock and Vin Diesel in the same fight scene. In fast motion, it's impossible to tell their bald heads apart!

Q: How is the story/script?

A: As a screenwriter myself, all I can say is, "How do they come up with this stuff?!" Oh, yeah, it's like this.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: Fast Five Trailer

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City of Men

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A big screen conclusion to the Sundance Channel series, "City of Men", which is a spin off of the 2002 movie City of God, this film takes us back to the gang wars of Rio de Janeiro's most violent neighborhoods, where two best friends (Douglas Silva and Darlan Cunha) are turning 18, becoming men, and being asked to make a final decision about whether they will join the gangs, or escape that deadly fate to make it on their own.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Douglas Silva, Darlan Cunha, Jonathan Haagensen, Rodrigo dos Santos, Camila Monteiro, Naima Silva, Edwardo BR, Luciano Vidigal... and introducing Vinicius and Vitor Oliveira as Clayton.

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. If you loved City of God as much as I did, you will be disappointed that this one isn't quite as good. That said, it does keep you entertained from the beginning to the end, including several high stakes moments. If you have been following the TV series, you should absolutely see how it concludes, but if you have not been following the series, don't let that scare you away, as I have not watched the show, and I had no trouble following the film.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Only if you're one of those people who laughs at funerals and death.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: No, but it will have you on the edge of your seat a couple of times.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Aren't we tired of talking about Awards yet? It's over! They're over!... Award season is finally over.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Most of the actors have perfected these roles over the course of playing them on TV, so the acting is good across the board. But I was particularly impressed with the little baby(ies) who played 2 year old, Clayton. He walked, he cried, he made cute little sounds when he lost his pacifier. It was a complex role, with complex emotions, and you think I'm joking, but when you see the film, you'll know that I'm not.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: I enjoyed how the director incorporated clips from the TV show, to show us the history of how these two friends have relied on each other like brothers since childhood. Seeing them when they were smaller and younger really drove home the importance of their bond. And the cinematography was beautiful and distinctly matched the original style of the series as spawned from the first movie.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: The story moves along, but the character's goals aren't strong enough, and I think that is the biggest problem with the movie. One of them wants to find his father, but his best friend plays down the relevance of that goal, making it seem less important than it is. The other character wants to be young and free, instead of having to deal with the responsibilities of his young wife and child. Not a particularly sympathetic goal. Somehow the character still manages to create some sympathy, because he's clearly not mature enough to be a dad. Also, the themes of whether to choose gang life or not, are not nearly as clearly depicted as in the original movie.

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