The Bounty Hunter Misses Its Target
March 19th, 2010 by Brian White
I just came home from a Wednesday night preview screening of The Bounty Hunter. One word quickly comes to mind. Cliché. The Jennifer Aniston/Gerard Butler romantic comedy, and I’ll use those two words loosely, is about as dull and predictable as they get. I felt my mind going gad during most of the screening. It’s not the worst movie I have seen so far this year, but it definitely won’t have me standing outside Best Buy on a cold Tuesday morning before the store opens to grab a copy on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘The Bounty Hunter Misses Its Target’
Okay, so Boba Fett wasn’t actually comedic as the intent of this film is, but he was cool and that’s something the film The Bounty Hunter is not. Starring Gerard Butler and Jennifer Aniston, audiences get to discover that Gerard Butler can be in a crappy film. Call it bad direction, call it bad acting, call it a bad script, heck, call it all three of those, because in the end, it really doesn’t matter. His work on this project was as flat as the Nebraska plains. Meanwhile, those same audiences get to rediscover that Jennifer Aniston is not an actress. 
Our Family Wedding is a tongue-in-cheek romantic comedy starring Ugly Betty’s America Ferrera as Lucia Ramirez, who is certainly not ugly in this new film. Quite the contrary as the beautiful actress sports charisma and talent on the screen. Also headlining the film is Lance Gross (House of Payne) who plays opposite Ferrera as her husband to be, Marcus. The two have made some drastic changes in their lives, some of which are being kept from their parents who know nothing of the inter-racial relationship. 
Let me begin by extinguishing the haste of all those who said this is another Bourne movie, just set in Iraq. BZZZT. Sorry, thanks for playing. We’ve got some great parting gifts for you. However, I can see how one would deduce such a theory based on the misleading trailer, but we’ll get to the nitty-gritty in a second. Green Zone reunites the former Bourne tag-team of director Paul Greengrass and actor Matt Damon. 
You read the title correctly. Brooklyn’s Finest has a total runtime around 2 hours and 15 minutes, give or take. It felt more like ‘give,’ because from its 12:15 start time to when I got out, it made me feel as if I’d been in the theater all day. There is one thing I’ve learned doing these reviews and looking at movies from a more in-depth perspective; anything goes. You can have big names and great acting, but if the story can’t carry the entertainment factor to the audience, it’s dead in the water. 
I’ve never taken acid, but if I did, somehow I’d imagine the experience to run similarly to Tim Burton’s vision in his latest release, Alice in Wonderland. The trippy film has its moments in this tale that is actually a sequel to the traditional Alice in Wonderland that we all know. Alice (Mia Wasikowska) is a young woman now, no longer the golden-locks innocent girl sipping tea that most are familiar with. 
Tim Burton and Johnny Depp continue their long collaboration that dates back to the early 90’s with a new version of Alice in Wonderland. The classic tale gets the big Hollywood treatment with great special effects, dashing duels, evil queens and a very crazy whacked-out Johnny Depp. Who can ask for anything more? But wait! I did not even mention Danny Elfman’s score! Check out my video review now! 
Remakes seem to be Hollywood’s cup of tea in recent years, especially in the scary movie category. We’ve seen the kick-starts of well known franchises in recent memory such as Halloween and Friday the 13th. 2010 is no exception as audiences can now experience the facelift version of George Romero’s 1973 cult classic, The Crazies. This time around Romero is out of the director’s chair, now helmed by Breck Eisner, and into the role of producer. 
Shutter Island may have been the best movie I have screened so far this year, but Cop Out was by far the most fun I have had at the theater in 2010. It’s laugh out loud hysterical at times and rather cliché at others, but there’s no doubt that the film strictly adheres to the fundamentals of a successful screenplay. Anyone who has studied modern day authors of screenwriting (Blake Snyder, Syd Fields, etc…) would be hard pressed to argue that Cop Out‘s plot points before Acts II and III are not vacuumed sealed airtight. 
I said this before, but this time I mean it. This may be the hardest movie review I have ever been tasked to write. That’s not because the movie sucked, quite the contrary, but because I was left with so many questions in regards to what I had just watched. And that’s a good thing! As I drove home Tuesday night from the preview screening I was left feeling both speechless and in awe. 
Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese once again collaborates with Leonardo DiCaprio after 3 successful films (Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed). This film is adapted and based off the novel by Dennis Lehane about an US deputy (DiCaprio) assigned to investigate a mysterious disappearance at a reclusive mental institution. Scorsese’s Hitchcockian approach to gothic horror is ripe with suspense and human drama. 
The latest in the string of children’s fantasy books adapted into big screen adventures is Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief starring Logan Lerman, Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman and Rosario Dawson among others. The film is directed by Chris Columbus of the Home Alone franchise. Some are calling it a Harry Potter knockoff, but here’s why I don’t think so. 
I first encountered The Wolfman at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con and being the werewolf fan that I am, grew excited with anticipation of its release. Little did I know at the time that it would be a full year and a half before this movie finally landed in theaters. It was, without a doubt, one of my most anticipated films of 2010. Notice I said ‘was.’ 
What’s more indicative of a romantic comedy than the title Valentine’s Day? Sure it’s sappy, and sure it’s formulaic as hell, but I just can’t shake the minority feeling that when I say compared to the handful of lackluster films I have seen theatrically these first two months of 2010, Valentine’s Day was one of the better ones. Rest assured, I’m pretty confident that by December of this year Valentine’s Day will be far removed on my Top 10 list, but for now let’s talk about how I believe this film succeeded and why a sequel has apparently already been green lit. 
It’s almost Valentine’s Day. Love is in the air. So what are you waiting for? Check out Chris Stuckmann’s video review for Valentine’s Day, the new romantic comedy from Garry Marshall director of Pretty Woman and Runaway Bride. This one interweaves the various romantic exploits of couples on Valentine’s Day, reminding many people of Love Actually. 
YouTube Video reviewer guru Chris Stuckmann is back on the scene with his latest look at the Channing Tatum/Amanda Seyfried romance Dear John, which opened nationwide yesterday. Dear John was directed by Lasse Hallstrom and adpated from the novel written by Nicholas Sparks. Find out why Chris says that Channing Tatum actually stands a chance of having his performance taken seriously this time around. I know…shocking! 
John Travolta had his heyday in the 70’s and his acting career seemingly died with disco. Then came a resurgence of the one-time heartthrob and his career was reborn in the 90’s. Recently, however, his career can be described as tepid with some of his works getting a warmer reception than others. Jonathan Rhys Myers on the other hand is still making his way up the fame ladder, getting closer to becoming a household name. 
