movies

It seems like the end of 2008 has been trying to recover from the horrors (both figuratively AND literally) of early 2008. There are many films that I actually want to see and some that I have already seen. Surprisingly, there are a few 2008 movies that I wanted to see (both from interest and both recommendations from friends). Let's start with those that I *have* seen.

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)--I can honestly say that this is one of the best movies that I have seen in a while. I mean....I have stopped watching movies seriously for a while now. This, of course, does not involve Wall-E, I consider it an animation, but that's another story. Anyway, I was very impressed with the storyline and how it managed to pull at me. I mean, of course I knew that they would somehow find each other, that he would win the millions and that by the end of the movie, the two would've experienced a lot of hardships that pulled her away from him again, and again, and again. I guess if I really thought about it, I would have realized before it happened that the last question would've had something to do with a cute little fact we heard once in the film...and that he would not remember, but luck pulled him through 'cause it's fate. BAH...it's cheesy as hell, anyone with half a brain would know that. However, it was well-filmed...and as hard as it is to believe, I fall for that kind of crap. It's like an eloquent car salesman that got me to buy a GM truck for....well, to buy a GM truck! Anyway, stabs at GM aside, I want to say that this film is so well-crafted and the story is so well-woven that it would be a waste if you didn't see it. As for how you see it, that's up to you.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)--I watched this. There were tears <.< yes...don't ask. There were heartbreaking parts. They touched upon some of the more obscure problems in a relationship and wrapped it up in a star-crossed (or in this case, age-crossed) lovers package. Nice. The storyline is strange, realistic seeming, but very surreal still. Now close enough to home for me. You know? I would pick Slumdog Millionaire over Benjamin Button any day. No matter what, I think Kate Winslet and Brad Pitt did a really nice job. I really like Kate Winslet, I think. This one won me over for costumes and picture quality....art? I don't know if there's a category for that for Oscars, but I that's exactly the thing I liked about it.

Changeling (2008)--This was an interesting movie. It's worth seeing, definitely. Although I have to say that Angelina Jolie's acting, in my opinion, was lacking. I mean....she's really good, it seems, in the action movies. Despite my hatred for the movie (for its lack of an intelligent plot), Mr. and Mrs. Smith was one of those movies that I would see just for the fight scenes. Anyway, it seems like her "broken" role was not the best I've seen. Although I have to admit I do not find those types of characters very convincing most of the time. I definitely have to say that other than "i will fight this" and some crying and "This is not my son!" "Where is my son?!" and "Give me back my son!", I didn't find anything too...original about her lines. I'd expect a real person to have a wider range of emotions and dialogs. I blame that, though, not on Angelina herself, but the people from whom the script came. I didn't like the ending, mainly because I was kind of led to believe that a conclusion will be offered, but not having a conclusion is not really to be blamed on anyone involved with the film. I think it was nicely filmed, but it was very clear-cut, not in anyway trying to be artful. not my preferred style, but well-directed.

WALL-E (2008)--I thought this was a surprisingly adorable movie for one that's targeted at kids. There's no doubt that a Pixar movie will be pretty, so let's not talk about that. I guess this one is a little closer to home than all the other ones. There was something in there that I loved about it, and it's possibly something that I love in my real life. Yes, I am biased. We most often are. Heh, I can't explain how much I love this movie and why, but I do know that it's the first animated movie I've found that I will love for a really long time. I also really liked the apple computer-like sound that he made when he charged and turned on again at the end of the movie.

Definitely, Maybe (2008)--You know...I guess this is another cheesy, yet interesting way to spin a love story. God, who would've guessed that adding a kid you had with another woman will help you with your love life? Abigail Breslin is a nice kid to see in this movie. Anyway...heartwarming, nothing that'll make one of my favorites, but it's a good movie nonetheless. I usually am not into these types of movies, so it's not surprising if it's a good movie and still won't make my list.

The Dark Knight (2008)--I didn't like this movie. I didn't like it because it didn't interest me. A better Christian Bale movie was Equilibrium. It was a nice movie, no doubt, but I don't know what the point was to it. Just like I don't see the point in movies like Spiderman, Batman or James Bond. Eh.

Doubt (2008)--the marketing of this movie is very interesting, but I got very bored of it after a little bit into the movie. It's boring, and I think that the point was very strained to become movie length. Eh. Not good.

The Reader (2008)--I want to see this a lot...I'm not sure where I'm going to get this.

The Lives of Others (2006)--I recently saw this at school because a really good friend of mine had to see it for a poli sci class. WOW, what a required movie! It had such good layering of details. It's like detail upon detail, upon detail of emotions and cleverness. It's a very thoughtful movie. It made me think about my life, as do most good movies do.

Wanted (2008)--angelina Jolie is much nicer in this kind of movie. She screams badass in these, why not do them? Anyway, the best part of this movie is hearing Morgan Freeman say "mothafucka"