Aided Migration
Story
A bird would like to migrate with all of his fellow birds, but he is not able to fly. He catches a plane flight to take him, but ends up on the wrong plane. He meets a bear that is trying to take a vacation because he cannot sleep. The bear and the bird both find themselves on a plane going to a place they do not want to go, so they have to figure out a way to get the vacation they are looking for.
Synopsis
Although the film was light and playful, it seemed to lack a decent ending. I liked the idea of the two different animals trying to get the same thing, but the ending was what really ruined it. There was not a good message told by the ending and it was not necessary. With a better ending it certainly could have been a very good film. The animation was interesting and the concepts of the story keeps you intrigued. Aided Migration is a fairly clean movie aside from the ending so it is appropriate for all ages.
There is irony and humor throughout the short film, but this is not enough to make up for the lackluster ending.
Raw Score: 6/10
Sharon Movie? No
5/16/2008
Short Film Review: Aided Migration
Sharon Movie: Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Director: Tim Burton
Writer: Washington Irving (story) and Kevin Yagher (screen story)
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery/Horror/Thriller
Story
Heads will roll! That was the tag line and certainly it was true. There were plenty of decapitations in this retelling of a classic story about the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow. We all know the story about Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) who is sent to investigate the strange murders occurring in Sleepy Hollow and the Hessian Horseman (Christopher Walken) committing the murders. When Crane gets to the village he is immediately drawn into the action with murders happening on a daily basis. As Crane comes closer and closer to discovering the truth the job becomes more and more dangerous for him and the townspeople.
Everything Else
The directing by Tim Burton was certainly not his best work and after watching Sweeney Todd, Sleepy Hollow actually left a little to be desired. Even so, Burton provides another unique version of a classic story and keeps you entertained throughout. The character interactions usually seemed natural, but at times there were things that seemed odd; namely the reactions to murders and the headless horseman. The problem was most often the fact that there was not enough emotion, but this allowed Burton to keep the idea of decapitation lighthearted and even funny at times. With more emotion from the characters it could have been a much darker film which would not have appealed to as wide an audience.
The dark and foggy atmosphere created for the film keeps the mood mysterious and spooky, but often seems a bit over the top. The special effects did the job nicely, but there weren’t any standout, great effects. The story flows well even with the twists and turns as the viewers are slowly shown the truth about the murders in Sleepy Hollow and who the headless horseman is or rather why he is.
The acting on all parts was good with Depp (would it be a Burton film without him) and Christina Ricci as the stars. Christopher Walken does his crazy man performance as Hessian Horseman and the teeth were wild for sure. The supporting roles were not lacking good acting, but the acting did not stand out in Sleepy Hollow much because of its way of muffling the emotion involved. Even when a kid’s father is killed he seems to care very little about it. Overall, Sleepy Hollow is a balanced, well made film about the headless horseman.
The Real Deal
The first viewing of Sleepy Hollow a few years back was a lot of fun. Sharon was there and she of course liked it (or it would not have been a Sharon Movie) even though that may come as a surprise. This may be one of those movies that if seen in the wrong mood could be somewhat disturbing (heads rolling and all), but it was simply hilarious when viewing it in the right mood. This is the real reason it was a Sharon Movie for sure. If she had not seen the humor in it then there would not have been anything “Sharon” about it. It is also interesting that an R rated film is a Sharon Movie as this is often the first deterrent. The blood and gore along with language and decapitation was enough to give this one the R rating, but not enough to keep me from laughing at it. I recommend it to anyone who can find the humor in it and are looking for an entertaining and lighthearted movie.
Sharon’s Take
Sleepy Hollow is a movie that people might not expect to be a Sharon Movie. I really liked this film because it was suspenseful, and yet humorous at the same time.
The Short Version
Raw Score: 785,938
Sharon Movie? Yes
Dave's Movie Reviews is the place to find movie
5/15/2008
Short Film Review: No Bikini
No Bikini
Story
A little girl gets a new two piece swim suit for the swim school she is going to attend for the summer. Her mom tells her to be careful about the swim suit because the top piece does not fit very well. When the girl gets to the lesson she decides to not wear the top and everyone thinks she is a boy. For those weeks she gets to pretend to be a boy. Although she never tells anyone she is a boy, everyone makes the assumption that she is.
Synopsis
This was an interesting story and a well made film. The camera work was excellent along with the picture quality itself being top notch. The story was one which makes you think about whether the way our society works really makes sense if no one could really tell whether the girl was a girl or a boy. Either way you may feel about the topic the film explores it with an unbiased account.
The narration gives deeper insight into the child’s thoughts during the film, but may not have been necessary to still get all of the information we needed for a complete story. Nevertheless, the narration worked and was not too distracting. There was not anything offensive in the film unless you find the subject matter itself offensive, but it might give a young one a bad idea if you didn’t want your little girl to do the same thing.
A playful and lighthearted look at what is socially acceptable in our society and how people will draw conclusions from how people look rather than who they are inside. There was plenty of depth to get the gears rolling in your head if you take the time to think about it.
Raw Score: 8/10
Sharon Movie? Yes
Wristcutters (2006)
Wristcutters (2006)
Director: Goran Dukic
Writer: Goran Dukic and Etgar Keret
Genre: Comedy/Romance/Drama
Story
Zia (Patrick Fugit) and his girlfriend Desiree (Leslie Bibb) breakup and Zia decides to end it all by slitting his wrists. He ends up in a strange after life world designed for people who have killed themselves. As he learns to deal with the new misery he experiences in this world he learns that Desiree actually committed suicide as well and was looking for him. He and his new friend Eugene (Shea Whigham) set out to find Desiree in the vast world they are in. Along the way they find Mikal (Shannyn Sossamon) and she joins the group so she can hopefully find the “people in charge” because she feels she is there by mistake.
Everything Else
The directing of Wristcutters was solid in almost all respects. Although this movie was one which is not likely to have a wide audience, it was quite surprisingly good. The music is very fitting with most of the music made by bands that experienced suicide in one form or another at some point. This seems all to appropriate considering the world the story is set in is for people who have “offed” themselves.
The camera moves gracefully and the scenery is good, but there is not a lot to really stand out in those respects; it is just good clean camera work and location use. The real genius comes form the script and the directing of the character interactions. The dialogue is witty and made me laugh out loud a few times. The interactions between the characters is odd in a good way as they are not allowed to smile in the world they are in and everything is a little off. The flow of the humor with the romance and drama of the film works well.
The acting was great from Patrick Fugit especially. I liked him in Almost Famous and think he needs to start getting larger roles like this in more mainstream movies. Tom Waits makes an appearance as Kneller; he always does a good job and provides a little bit of humor himself. Shea Whigham holds his own as Eugene and makes for an interesting supporting role along with Shannyn Sossamon throughout most of the film. The acting was quirky, but fit the script and directing perfectly which is all you can really ask for.
The Real Deal
I did not expect Wristcutters to be any good to be honest, but I was pleasantly surprised. The story feels fresh and original and the dialogue stood out as being quite good. I also enjoyed the music how it was mixed in and the dry humor delivered flawlessly by the acting. There is enough language to get the R rating without the violence, but there was also some of that to go around. You have to see the comedy in it early on or the suicides may be a bit gruesome for you. Wristcutters was a refreshing comedy with enough romance and drama to make it more serious and yet keep enough humor to have me laughing throughout. This may be more of an artsy film than a mainstream one, but in my book that is a good thing.
The Short Version
Raw Score: 802,303
Sharon Movie? No
5/13/2008
NO RULES REVIEW: Memento
Memento (2000)
Raw Score: 913,872
Sharon Movie? No
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: Jonathan Nolan (short story Memento Mori), Christopher Nolan (screenplay)
Genre: Crime/Mystery/Thriller
The Skinny Version
Plot
It is a true work of art and was incredibly inspiring for someone that wants to make films some day. This is a movie that I was very glad to be able to see in the theaters. Leonard (Guy Pearce) is a man suffering from short term memory loss and is trying to track down the man who he thinks killed his wife. This movie was overlooked by many in the theaters because it was a movie with little advertising and it slowly grew into a big hit once the word got out. If you haven't seen it then you need to. Everything he does he tries to keep notes and tattoos about so that he can remember what he is doing. The movie pulls you into Leonard's life and attempts to share the chaos with you.
The Real Deal
Teddy Gammell (Joe Pantoliano) is a cop that is trying to help Leonard stay on the right path. Throughout the movie you have to try and figure out what is actually happening or what you believe to be true. This movie will mess with your head and keep your attention throughout. There is much more to talk about on this movie, but I will save it for the Deeper Thoughts blog. Great directing and I have to see every movie that Christopher Nolan makes now. I have yet to be disappointed. Memento is one of the truly great movies of the past few decades. I remember seeing this movie in the theater and ending up speechless at the end. I loved it. Here is the review of Memento directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Guy Pearce. This allowed you to get some background on the character and what he is thinking while trying to figure out what was actually happening or has already happened really. The idea is to bring you into Leonard's world where he does not know what is going on or why it is. 
Performance
Following was also a great film that altered the time of the movie only it was less meaningful for the story. In Memento the way the movie is edited to run backwards and forwards to the middle of the movie was incredible. Joe Pantoliano is always an interesting character. Maybe it is just his personality in real life, but he just seems goofy. This movie shows his strength in a supporting role. He seems like a nice guy, but sort of sleazy at the same time. Joe did a great job with the character of Teddy because you never know whether to trust him or not. I loved the creativity of the movie. After I saw Memento I wanted to see other films that Christopher Nolan had directed only to find one, Following. That is the whole point, but Joe Pantoliano makes this very easy for the viewer. Carrie-Anne Moss is Natalie, the girlfriend of the guy that Leonard seems to be after for his next John G. Carrie-Anne does a great job with making a character that is lost in all of the chaos and one of those people that seems to want to take advantage of situations. This is where the movie truly shined along with the writing that Jonathan Nolan did for this movie. The brothers worked hard to make this movie as true to the rare medical condition as they could. She has actually done quite a few things with Matrix being one of her larger roles before this film. She did a good job. 
Cinematography & Directing
Guy Pearce was already well known by many for L.A. Confidential. I did not even know who he was until after Memento. After I saw Memento, I wanted to see all of Pearce's films. Guy Pearce did a tremendous job with the part of Leonard proving his ability to act. He is very convincing as someone who does not know what just happened as weird as that sounds. He did not have to show much emotion in this film, but that did not keep him from giving a great performance. I have since been much less impressed with his performance in Time Machine and much more impressed with his performance in Factory Girl. Factory Girl was a more difficult role for him and it is definitely worth a look. The acting was very good overall in Memento.
5/12/2008
Review Blitz # 7
Walk Hard (Director’s Cut) (2007)
I have certainly let this one sink in enough to talk about it on a clear mind now. I liked it a lot, but still feel it could have been much better without all of the gross humor and unnecessary crudeness. This is something I have found others to simply not care about and certainly I can get over it fairly easily, but it never adds to the film in my opinion. Aside from that I found John C. Reilly to be about as good as a lead as I was expecting; he can do it, but he is better in a supporting role. I like the guy a lot and maybe some other movie could give him a better presentation as a lead. This movie made me laugh a lot though.
One note on my comments about the crudeness though you may have noticed that I watched the director’s cut so a lot of the crudeness may not have been present in the theatrical release.
Raw Score: 731,292
Sharon Movie? No
Charlie Wilson’s War (2007)
Still not sure exactly why I waited so long to see this one. I think it really came down to seeing the making of video at the theaters so many times that really turned me off. In the end though, I really liked this one and had to see it for the performances of Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tom Hanks, and Julia Roberts. They are all top notch and did their usual great performances here. I would have liked to see some decent special effects in Charlie Wilson’s War rather than the terrible special effects we received, but that was not the real point of the movie so I won’t hold it against them. The movie was funny, moved fairly quickly, and seemed like an accurate retelling of true events (as if I really know anyway). This all put together provided a good movie which should not be missed.
Raw Score: 787,596
Sharon Movie? No
The Nines (2007)
The Nines would have been overlooked if it had not been for the review I read by Fletch over at Blog Cabins (thanks for your review). I liked The Nines a lot and it is becoming more and more apparent that Ryan Reynolds has enough talent to carry a lead role in a movie these days. With his last performance in Definitely, Maybe I was impressed and he certainly does a good job here in different characters throughout The Nines. I liked The Nines for its quirky style and the way things were mixed up with each story having the same actors playing different parts. I would recommend The Nines for anyone looking for something that is a little out of the ordinary and not very well known.
Raw Score: 765,293
Sharon Movie? No
The Jane Austen Book Club (2007)
Although The Jane Austen Book Club provided enough entertainment to keep me satisfied, the ending made me wish I had turned the movie off 5 minutes before it was over. Aside from the ending though it was fairly good and funny at times. It is definitely a chick flick and one that I would consider a Sharon Movie. The acting overall was good, but the scripting was not as good as it could have been and at times seemed unrealistic. Check it out if you are looking for a chick flick that has a way too happy ending.
Raw Score: 684,394
Sharon Movie? Yes
Dave's Movie Reviews is the place to find movie
5/10/2008
Short Film Review: The Dance Lesson
The Dance Lesson
Director: Philippe Prouff
Story
A man comes into a room and gives the viewer a dance lesson. For most of the film he shows each move and what it is called displays on the screen. After he gets through all of the different moves the disco ball, music, and lights start going and he dances.
Synopsis
When the film first got going I thought it was quite funny with all of the different moves and what they were called. I thought the film was going to make the dance into a story of some sorts, but in the end he just danced and it was hard to follow if there was really anything being said by the moves. It could be I just was not quick enough to get it. I will give it a second viewing some time I am sure. Still without the end being as good as I would have liked it to be the first half was good enough to make it well worth the watch. Playful and lighthearted with no dialogue whatsoever. There were just a couple of obscene dance moves that may not be appropriate for kids.
Raw Score: 7/10
Sharon Movie? Yes
5/09/2008
Sharon Movie: Singin' In The Rain
Singin’ In The Rain (1952)
Director: Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly
Writer: Adolph Green and Betty Comden
Genre: Comedy/Musical/Romance
Story
This is the story of Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) and his rise to the top at the time of talking pictures. Don made it to the top of his game, but the studios were switching from silent pictures to “talkies” and it was a rough transition. Don’s studio had to come up with a way to make their movies “talkies,” but without the annoying voice of Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) who was the current leading lady next to Don Lockwood. Thankfully Lockwood found a young woman named Kathy Seldon (Debbie Reynolds) who could sing, dance, and didn’t have an annoying voice. The only problem was how to get Lamont out of the movie and Seldon into the movie, but Lockwood’s friend Cosmo Brown (Donald O’Connor) had an idea.
Everything Else
The directing from Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly was quite good in Singin’ In The Rain especially for the time it was made; 1952. Usually I do not like musicals very much, but Singin’ In The Rain was entertaining and had enough story to keep it going. The music of course was good and the dancing to go along with it worked well. The scenes where the singing and dancing came out seemed to make sense which made it better than a lot of musicals which have song and dance coming out of nowhere.
The acting by Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds was good, but Gene Kelly’s character was so smily it was quite scary at times. Donald O’Connor provided a little comic relief often to otherwise dry scenes. Some of the comedy was a little over the top and cheesy, but it worked in a family fun, playful sort of way. Jean Hagen as Lina Lamont did an excellent job at being ridiculously annoying. I still hear her voice in my head (Argh!). Overall the movie had the right ingredients for a well made musical that had a good enough story, music, and acting to make it a great musical.
The Real Deal
No I don’t like musicals unless they are a little different from the norm, but Singin’ In The Rain at least had the song Singin’ In The Rain. I hate to admit it, but I thought Singin’ In The Rain was quite funny at times. It is certainly a classic and could be enjoyed by a wide audience so I have to recommend it to anyone looking for a good musical.
Sharon's Take
It was hard to choose which musical I wanted reviewed for Sharon Movie May. Sing'in in the Rain won over Brigadoon because I thought David would enjoy it more. Gene Kelly might not be the best actor, but he sure can sing and dance. Sing'in in the Rain is light and funny, two qualities that are often found in a Sharon Movie.
The Short Version
Raw Score: 823,292
Sharon Movie? Yes
5/08/2008
Short Film Review: A Half Man
A Half Man
Director: Firas Momani
Story
This short film follows a man that like the title says, is only one half of a man. This man works hard to carry out the normal daily routines of life, but struggles with everything because he is only half a man. He gets his daughters lunch ready for school and takes her. Eventually he ends up taking a shower and falling apart.
Synopsis
Although I did not care for the animation or claymation and the rough around the edges style of the camera work, over time I have thought more about A Half Man and found there to be plenty of deep meaning to it. A Half Man is about a man that is only half there or that is only half the man he used to be. He is disconnected from his family and is not able to do anything really which is why if he is only going to be half there he might as well not be there at all. In the end he falls apart literally, but it is meant to have meaning. Even with all of the deeper meaning to the film I found it unpleasant to watch and it could have been a lot better with a more lighthearted and fluffy feel to it; and it still could have had the same impact if not more.
Raw Score: 6/10
Sharon Movie? No
5/07/2008
Sharon Movie: Just Like Heaven
Just Like Heaven (2005)
Director: Mark Waters
Writer: Peter Tolan and Leslie Dixon
Genre: Comedy/Romance/Fantasy
Story
Dr. Elizabeth Masterson (Reese Witherspoon) is working overtime at her hospital and when she finally leaves for a dinner party; she gets in a car accident. David Abbott (Mark Ruffalo) is looking for an apartment and finds Elizabeth’s apartment for rent and moves in. Quickly David finds he is not alone in the apartment because Elizabeth’s ghost appears, but he is the only one who can see her. She will not leave him alone so he finally tries to figure out what happened to her. Together they find that she is still alive and is on life support, but when they find out she could be taken off life support they have to figure out how to get her spirit back into her body.
Everything Else
The story felt fairly original although I am sure you will notice the normal romantic comedy conflict and resolution situations here. The ending however had good enough excitement to make you forget most of the typical romantic comedy standards. Upon first viewing the story also flows quite well although with a second viewing after knowing what happens in the end it seems to lull in the middle.
The directing was clean with plenty of reasonably good camera work and a soundtrack which holds everything together, but the story and acting were what really made the difference. Mark Ruffalo and Reese Witherspoon were excellent together and the acting from both was great. Jack Houriskey (Donal Logue) was the friend of David Abbott; Logue did well, but had a rather small part with some humorous lines. Jon Heder even makes it into Just Like Heaven with a similar character to his Napoleon Dynamite. Heder needs to branch out of that role very quickly if he is going to make a name for himself other than Napoleon. He was still funny in Just Like Heaven though.
The Real Deal
I liked Just Like Heaven both times I saw the movie, but the second time was noticeably less exciting. It obviously does not have the replay value that other movies could have, but the romance and humor are still there. I guess it just seemed like there was something missing which makes the movie score lower on my scale than I would like for it to. It is good fun, but nothing too unique. The movie is quite clean in most respects so I could recommend it to just about anyone and obviously it is a Sharon Movie so here is her take on it:
Sharon’s Take
Romantic comedy is probably my favorite genre. I think Mark Ruffalo is the reason I really like this particular movie. In my opinion, he's not "movie star" attractive, but that and his acting make his character seem like an ordinary guy, which in turn made him attractive to me.
The Short Version
Raw Score: 745,394
Sharon Movie? Yes
Dave's Movie Reviews is the place to find movie
