Movie Reviews – June 2007

Here are the movies we saw this month:

Here are my reviews:

Over The Hedge

A group of critters that calls themselves a family wakes up in the spring and finds their world radically altered. The woods they live in have been turned into a housing development and only the tiniest patch of greenspace remains. And that area has been surrounded by a hedge. In the mean time a raccoon has set about stealing a bear’s stores but gets caught in the act. The bear is going to kill the raccoon but is talked out of it when the raccoon promises he will have it all back when the bear is due to wake up officially in another two weeks. The raccoon happens upon the other critters and shows them how to raid the subdivision for food. He is going to steal it and give it to the bear to save his hide. The fortune is regained only to be lost again and they are down to one day to make things right. Their desperate measures are hilarious. Generally I don’t think Dreamworks makes as good of movies as Pixar and this one proves the point. The exception for Dreamworks is Shrek. There are practically no laughs in the whole first half of this movie. But when they do start coming, they are pretty good. At the end when they are desperate to retrieve the food, they give the already hyperactive squirrel a caffeinated, high sugar beverage and you couldn’t ask for more. The gag is great.

Netflix – 3 stars

Shrek 3

When Fiona’s father croaks, he names Shrek the next king. Shrek protests and is told there is one other heir, Arthur Pendragon. Our hero goes on a quest to find Arthur but while he is gone, the evil Prince Charming takes over the kingdom of Far Far Away. Fiona and the other princesses are taken captive and a trap is set for Shrek upon his return. Bringing Arthur back with him, Shrek only just keeps Arthur from being killed. A similar fate doesn’t appear to await Shrek. Arthur proves to be a skilled negotiator and orator and saves the day, demonstrating his capability to rule. As mentioned in the “Over the Hedge” review I generally don’t like Dreamworks’ animated features as well as Pixar’s. One exception is the Shrek series. At times I almost thought I wasn’t watching animation, the technique has improved so much. Some critics have panned this movie, saying it doesn’t match up to the first two. But while a little different, I think it is just as good. This almost made 4 stars, but not quite.

Theater – 3 stars

A Prairie Home Companion

The Fitzgerald Theater has been sold and the new owner is going to tear it down and put up a parking lot. It’s the end of the road for the Prairie Home Companion Show. The movie opens on the evening of the last performance. While there is the thinnest of plots involving Guy Noir, the security man, a mysterious blond stranger, and the Axman, most of the movie features a fictionalized performance. I had hoped for more from this movie. Robert Altman directed it and there were tons of stars, many of whom I particularly like. If you like A Prairie Home Companion, you will probably like this movie. I never cared for the show that much. Garrison Keilor’s vocal style sets my teeth on edge. It is a little heart warming by the end however.
Netflix – 3 stars

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

This is the third in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. All the main characters have an agenda of their own. William is trying to get his father off the Flying Dutchman. Jack is trying to get out of Davie Jones’ Locker and maybe achieve immortality. The old captain is trying to get The Black Pearl back. Davie Jones is trying for redemption and reunion with his beloved Calypso. The East India Company is trying to rid the seas of Pirates. Arggh. There is a ton of swashbuckling, perhaps too much. There was so much of it that it became boring at times. The plot if that’s what you want to call the characters’ plans of action is so convoluted it is impossible to figure out just what is happening, let alone what is supposed to happen. But… The costumes and make-up are great. And there is a cameo by Keith Richards.

Theater – 3 stars

Reds

This was like seeing an old friend again. Warren Beatty and Diane Keaton as babies. This is the story of Jack and Louise Reed. It’s set in WWI and the Russian Revolution and follows Jack’s attempts at organizing workers and Louise’s efforts to be taken seriously as a journalist, all while the world is falling down around their ears. We have had so much negative propaganda about communism over the last 80 years that it is refreshing and startling to see the possiblity of it being possible in the USA. As something new and fresh, an unknown quantity. It clearly was something terrible to the capitalists, but the everyday guy was just discovering organized labor and communism is a logical extension of that. Jack has health problems and one has to wonder what might have happened but for those.

Netflix – 3 stars

Monster House

In this animated movie a kid lives across the street from a mean old man and his broken down house. The guy confiscates every kite, ball, or other toy that finds its way into his yard. When they try to recover something he hasn’t noticed yet, he takes them by surprise and the argument they have makes the man have a heart attack. Now they have not only the terrifying house to deal with, but the guilt of having killed the old man. After they take the old guy away, the house takes on a life of its own. It would seem to be haunted by his dead wife who was persecuted her entire life. The house goes crazy and with the help of two adjoining trees which it incorporates into its personna, it rips itself off its foundation and goes on a rampage. The old guy is not dead it seems but just hospitalized and returns in time to help the kids resist the house. The first half of the movie sets the stage and plods along, but when the house breaks free, so does the action. The rest of the movie is a roller-coaster ride.

Netflix – 3 stars

Scoop

When a prize winning journalist dies and jumps off the boat crossing the River Styx, he returns for a moment and tells a young journalist that one of London’s most eligible bachelors is the Tarot Card serial killer. This happens while she is in the transmogrification chamber of a two-bit magician played by Woody Allen. This is the scoop of her life and with the aid of Allen who reluctantly follows her posing as her father, she investigates the story. She falls in love with the socialite and has an affair with him that complicates the plot in oh so many ways. Throughout all this, the dead reporter keeps reappearing to give her a new clue here and there and keep her on track. Is the love interest really a killer? I won’t tell. As a mystery this is pretty average, as a Woody Allen movie you have to give him credit for turning another young actress into Annie Hall and suffer through lots of his tedious, bickering dialog, but you can’t argue that he has taken a novel approach here. On average, I came away from the movie with a positive attitude.

Netflix – 3 stars