The Film:

Iwanted to begin thisreview with a slant on how Don Juan Demarco is that rareexception tothe rule; a genuinely surprising and satisfying romantic comedy. Butit's tooaffecting and whimsical to merely be referred to alongside the likes ofschlocklike Fool's Gold (2008), Alex and Emma (2003), and FailuretoLaunch (2006). Okay, so I technically just did exactly that anyway.Atleast you got the point. Theoret...Read the entire review

THE FILM:

By dialing back the weed humor and bringing the action home for the holidays, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas earns fresh laughs despite its string-of-high jinks story. Stoners need not worry; pot still plays a central role in the plot, as does cocaine and a waffle-making robot, but the follow up to Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay finds new targets to lampoon - 3D movies, Christmas plays - and is more satisfying than the last outing.Read the entire review

Either the "Harold & Kumar" movies are getting progressively better, or I'm just warming to these idiots. Their inaugural outing, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, was intermittently funny but mostly slapdash, sloppily made and wildly uneven (the "Battle-shits" scene is the low point of the series, and maybe of modern film comedy). The follow-up, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, was a modestly more successful affair, its coarseness and rough edges made more forgivable by the surprisingly sharp sociopolitical satire smuggled in among th...Read the entire review

The original Harold & Kumar is a triumph, taking the elements of the average stoner comedy and tweaking them into a smart, self-aware satire. Despite gags like Kumar (Kal Penn) dancing around a park with an anthropomorphic bag of weed, or Harold (John Cho) being attacked by a rabid raccoon, the filmmakers used that heightened reality and goofy humor to poke fun at -- of all things -- racial stereotypes in America. The sequel is considerably broader, trading "heightened reality" for "full-on cartoon," taking the duo to Guantanamo and back, but it's reasonably funny; it's a noticeably lesser sequel, but not as bad as some. The premise for A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas suggested the series might be going back to basics, but the filmmakers can't resist the "bigger and better" sequel mantra, and the results are the weakest yet.

Three years after Amsterdam, Harold and Kumar are n...Read the entire review

The last sequel was titled "The Final Destination," but clearly New Line Cinema is run by a bunch of sneaky little liars. Thanks to a 3D boost at the box office and renewed interest in the slaughter of no-name actors, the franchise has been pulled out of retirement, revving up again with an all-new multi-dimensional gore show. While the thrill was officially snuffed out once the end credits rolled on the first "Final Destination," that hasn't stopped the producers from mounting a surprisingly snoozy fourth sequel.

On a tour bus heading to a corporate retreat with his co-workers, including friend Peter (Miles Fisher) and girlfriend Molly (Emma Bell), Sam (Nicholas D'Agosto) has a premonition about a terrible bridge collapse that kills most of the department. Freaking out, Sam c...Read the entire review

The Movie:

David R. Ellis, who directed Final Destination 2 before skipping out on the series for Snakes On A Plane, returns to the series for this fourth entry, simply titled The Final Destination, now being re-released on Blu-ray just in time for the fifth film to hit theaters. This one differentiated itself from the first three by playing out theatrically in 3-D, a fun novelty that New Line has wisely decided to carry over to the film's Blu-ray release (the previous Blu-ray release had a standard 3D option with it, this new Blu-ray release is more or less identical but includes a Blu-ray 3D option). But how does it hold up? Fans of the first three entries will enjoy this one as it really is more of the same, while those not previously sold on the franchise will probably find little to convince them.

The film follows a group of four friends lead by Nick (Bob...Read the entire review

The Film:

The Movie:

There are a lot of bad sequels out there but rarely does a follow up film suck as hard as Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. While the first movie might not have been the greatest movie ever made, it was at least an entertaining action/martial arts romp with some fun characters and a reasonably coherent storyline.

Basically picking up where the first film left off, the movie begins with the death of Johnny Cage (Chris Conrad) when the evil Shao-Kahn (Brian Thompson) disregards the rules of Mortal Kombat established in the first movie and ports his evil minions to Earth. In a few days, his evil realm will basically gobble up our world and he will reign supreme. This makes it sound like we're pretty screwed, right? Well, thankfully we've got a few good guys to stand in Shao-Kahn's way in the form of Liu Kang (Robin Shou), Sonya Blade (a noticeably bra-less Sandra Hess), ...Read the entire review

I used to believe the 1998 smash, "There's Something About Mary," was the best thing that could've happened to the filmmaking duo, Peter and Bobby Farrelly. I now realize I was wrong. The boys have been chasing that success for over a decade, deploying the once enchantingly comfy Farrelly Formula time and again, looking for that elusive box office champion that could restore luster to their tarnished brand name. "Hall Pass" is quite possibly their least organic offering to date, coldly calculating shock value and emotional connection to piece together yet another feature film that'll make the audience shift from uncomfortable laughter to tender appreciation.

As two married schlubs with sex constantly on the brain, Rick (Owen Wilson) and Fred (Jason Sudeikis) are faced with fad...Read the entire review

The Film:

THE MOVIE:

Going the Distance is a movie that's wrong in all the big ways and right in all the small ones. Put simply, it's a fucking mess--tonally inconsistent, maddeningly illogical, only fitfully funny. But it can't be dismissed as easily as all that. There's a genuinely interesting picture lurking around its edges, one which occasionally bursts onto the screen and runs around for a while before the requirements of the formula at the movie's center shoves it back under the bed. That movie is worth seeing.

The topic at hand is the long-distance relationship, a situation universal and recognizable enough that it's a little shocking it's not been mined for romantic comedy before. Erin (Drew Barrymore) and Garrett (Justin Long) Meet Cute in New York, where he works at an indie record label and she's interning at a newspaper that is clearly the Times, even though ...Read the entire review

The Movie:

Remember the days when Will Ferrell wouldn't do so many forced, unfunny comedies and did films that tried to bring some emotional weight to them? Well, Elf might not have had much emotional gravitas, but of all the films Ferrell's done since leaving Saturday Night Live, this one is the one I find myself watching more than the rest.

Written by David Berenbaum (The Spiderwick Chronicles) and directed by Jon Favreau (Iron Man 2), Ferrell is the Elf in question named Buddy. Buddy lives at the North Pole and is a firm believer in Christmas, the feelings it brings and everything else associated with the holiday. Yet for his feelings and optimism,...Read the entire review

THE FILM

Ah yes, "Sex and the City 2." It's the high fashion, glass-clinking instruction booklet for life as a successful woman, catering to the needs of the staunchly female audience by presenting male choirs, erect penises, Helen Reddy karaoke, "Mommie Dearest" costuming, and a cameo by Liza Minnelli. Hey, wait a minute! I suspect nothing about "Sex and the City 2" directly concerns the same heterosexual high kick the adored television series celebrated; this sequel makes "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" look like "The Remains of the Day."

Two years later and it appears Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Mr. Big (Chris Noth) have hit a rough patch in their marriage, with the tactless writer wanting more to life than peaceful, reliable domesticity, agonized that her husband would rather spend time with his new HD television than with his jewelry-demand...Read the entire review

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As if you need a recap: in the Nightmare on Elm St. flicks, a scarred psychopath with razors for fingers hunts his prey in their dreams. Those who are slaughtered in their sleep also die in the waking world. So, I guess it...Read the entire review

The Movie:

Note: The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy was released as a boxed set by New Line awhile ago, and it contained the theatrical versions only. New Line has now released each title on its own, outside of the boxed set. There are no discernable differences between the discs in that boxed set and the discs in the individual releases - and yes, these are still the theatrical versions, not Jackson's extended cuts.

Picking up where the second film left off, The Return Of The King basically begins when the ultimate battle for Middle-Earth is set into motion. Frodo and Sam, with Gollum leading the way, continue their quest which they hope will bring them to Mount Doom where they intend to finally destroy the ring. Aragorn leads his troops, vastly outnumbered as they may be, against an increasingly powerful Sauron to help Frodo do what he has to do with as little inter...Read the entire review

The Movie:

Note: The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy was released as a boxed set by New Line awhile ago, and it contained the theatrical versions only. New Line has now released each title on its own, outside of the boxed set. There are no discernable differences between the discs in that boxed set and the discs in the individual releases - and yes, these are still the theatrical versions, not Jackson's extended cuts.

Picking up directly where the first film in the trilogy left off, The Two Towers follows Frodo Baggins and his pals as they continue their quest to destroy the 'One Ring' and the evil wizard Sauron. The Fellowship finds themselves divided and on entirely different paths but they know they must end up at two different towers - Orthanc Tower in Isengard, where Saruman is holding out, and Sauron's tower fortress in Baraddur which is in a scary part of Mordor...Read the entire review

The Movie:

Note: The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy was released as a boxed set by New Line awhile ago, and it contained the theatrical versions only. New Line has now released each title on its own, outside of the boxed set. There are no discernable differences between the discs in that boxed set and the discs in the individual releases - and yes, these are still the theatrical versions, not Jackson's extended cuts.

Directed by Peter Jackson, The Lord Of The Rings - The Fellowship Of The Ring is the first film in the three part adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's classic work of epic fantasy. The movie introduces us to the core characters which will be developed throughout the three films in the series as we jump into the story that centers around a rather meek Hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) who lives in Mordor. Frodo's life changes forever when he inherits a ...Read the entire review

The Movie:

It's hard to believe that it's been 15 years since Se7en came to theaters. Following David Fincher's creative excoriation from Fox bosses for his take on the third Alien film, he moved over to New Line and with both a convincing story and three marquee "above the title" names in his cast, Se7en was a tour-de-force in suspense storytelling, combined with Fincher's proclivity for dark visuals that we've grown to love and admire in films like Fight Club and Zodiac.

From a screenplay by Andrew Kevin Walker (Sleepy Hollow), the film first starts by showing us Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman, Invictus), who is ...Read the entire review

THE MOVIE:

Seldom has an artist roared back from semi-exile with the wide-grinned schadenfreude displayed by Robert Altman in his vitriolic 1992 comedy The Player. Unable to get studio support after the (relative) critical and financial failure of the 1980 Paramount-Disney co-production Popeye, the maverick filmmaker spent the 1980s working on a variety of modest projects--stage plays, their film and television adaptations, an HBO series, and so on. When Vincent and Theo proved a minor, art-house hit in 1990, Altman found himself at the helm of a high-profile picture for the first time in over a decade. It is somewhat typical of the iconoclastic director that he took the opportunity to write a "fu...Read the entire review

It's funny, I was just remarking to a friend the other day that more romantic comedies should make Hitler/Zyklon B references. "Going the Distance," GET OUT OF MY HEAD! Of course, it's a brief joke in a film of eternal stupidity, but the fact that the director decided to leave in the improvised line speaks to the tenor of comedy this unlikable pile of junk is chasing. I'm sure there were heaps of Darfur and Hurricane Katrina jokes on the cutting room floor.

In New York City finishing off a newspaper internship, Erin (Drew Barrymore) is preparing to return home to San Francisco. With six weeks to go until her flight, Erin meets Garrett (Justin Long), a floundering record label lackey with a special deadpan way. The two spark up a relationship, knowing full well they will separa...Read the entire review

The Product:
Maybe we should blame Fight Club. Or the pathetic state of true "professional" boxing. Whatever the reason, post-modern pugilism - otherwise known as Ultimate Fighting or Mixed Martial Arts - has swept through contemporary sports culture, rendering almost all Rockys - Marciano to Balboa - irrelevant. The intense level of violence and brutality merged with a far less structured approach to the sweet science has turned an entire generation onto such furious flashy fisticuffs. While not necessarily a prime example of the format, the Undisputed movies have carved a commercial niche out of the whole nu-school beatdown ideal. The first film offered up Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames and Michael Rooker. Part 2 saw Michael Jai White and Ben Cross take up the square circle cause. Now, some eight years after the last installment, Part 3 follows ancillary prisoner c...Read the entire review

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"If I'm champion of the toilets, what does that make you when I kick the fucking shit out of you?"

Uri Boyka (Scott Adkins)Read the entire review

Ah yes, "Sex and the City 2." It's the high fashion, glass-clinking instruction booklet for life as a successful woman, catering to the needs of the staunchly female audience by presenting male choirs, erect penises, Helen Reddy karaoke, "Mommie Dearest" costuming, and a cameo by Liza Minnelli. Hey, wait a minute! I suspect nothing about "Sex and the City 2" directly concerns the same heterosexual high kick the adored television series celebrated; this sequel makes "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" look like "The Remains of the Day."

Two years later, and it appears Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Mr. Big (Chris Noth) have hit a rough patch in their marriage, with the tactless writer wanting more to life than peaceful, reliable domesticity, agonized that her ...Read the entire review

THE FILM

Valentine's Day is a time of romance, endearment, and devotion. "Valentine's Day" is a Garry Marshall film that's unpleasant, occasionally mean-spirited, and ripples with Marshall's prehistoric sense of humor. One's a dubious holiday intended to boost the power of passion (along with card and candy sales), while the other is an insufferable feature film that's miraculously saved by a few charming co-stars. I'm sure Marshall is a sweet fellow, but his movies have become clueless, klutzy abominations, with "Valentine's Day" an affront to the art of love, somehow roping in an all-star cast to help sell the pure ick.

It's Valentine's Day in Los Angeles, and the locals are gearing up for all the romantic potential of the day. Florist Reed (Ashton Kutcher) has proposed to hesitant girlfriend Morley (Jessica Alba); schoolteacher Julia (Jennifer Garner) is hoping to s...Read the entire review

Conundrum: As a big fan of the Nightmare on Elm Street series, I walked into Samuel Bayer's remake with the lowest possible expectations, and the result was about two-thirds of a pleasant surprise. I wouldn't say that this budgeted-up rehash is a great movie, or that it has anything on Craven's 1984 original, but at least Bayer keeps his gaze focused on the parts of the material that interest him. The longtime music video director went on record saying neither the Nightmare series or horror movies were personally interesting, and the result is a movie that throws up a clothesline plot and runs towards the finish line, spending as much time in the director's elaborately-envisioned dream world as possible. So, how much credit can I give Bayer for allowing the least amount of annoying teen gunk into his movie?

Take these kids, for instance. Instead of the lovely Heather Langenkamp, Johnny ...Read the entire review

Last year, Michael Bay's remake factory Platinum Dunes churned out a "Friday the 13th" reboot. While far from an inspiring slasher success, the update didn't outright offend, especially with a franchise that's already done a masterful job rendering itself hopeless. "A Nightmare on Elm Street" is a different story, as most (myself included) consider the 1984 original to be not only a horror classic, but also an imaginatively molded tale of lo-fi suspense. Again, the sequels have effectively torn away much of the original's allure, but Wes Craven struck gold 26 years ago with a unique genre idea, making a potential remake seem like an exceptionally pointless endeavor.

Something is killing the teenagers of a...Read the entire review

Waxing poetic about Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy almost seems like a moot point; it's achieved high-balled box office success, garnered a slate of Academy Awards, and left movie-goers spellbound by its whimsical, dark, alluring construction. After close to four years of hardcore development strains, the New Zealand director cranked out a series of adaptations on J.R.R. Tolkien's books that brought fantasy back to the modern era -- a period where the likes of Gladiator and Braveheart had reinvigorated the epic-scaled picture, bringing the genre back into the spotlight. The path to creating ...Read the entire review

"Everyone has a bad dream once in a while."

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This is anything but just another nightmare, though. Nancy (Heather Langenkam...Read the entire review