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Ratatouille

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Many movies falsly advertise theirselves to be the best of a genre, or best of the year in their commercials. But few back up those statements like Ratatouille does. Claimed to be Pixar?s finest, Ratatouille makes a bold grab at that title placed...
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Many movies falsly advertise theirselves to be the best of a genre, or best of the year in their commercials. But few back up those statements like Ratatouille does. Claimed to be Pixar?s finest, Ratatouille makes a bold grab at that title placed so ...(read more)far from reach by animated masterpieces such as Toy Story, the Incredibles, and Finding Nemo.

Ratatouille is discernable where many animated films have failed, it is unique. And what makes it unique? Its jaw aching humor? Its gorgeous animations and visual effects? Or could it be its complex script? All of the following are the right answer, but what really makes it stand out is its script. It actually has a story worth telling, an idea worth creating a movie around. One thing movies today seem to lack... worth!

It is not long before we are introduced to our main character, Remy, a rat who is not like his family. He has a great sense of smell, and will not eat garbage foods. He sneaks around an old woman?s residence as she sleeps and uses the foods from her kitchen to experiment wherever his nose takes him. And he is driven by the words of, Gusteau, a chef he sees on TV whos belief is, ?Anyone can cook.? Remy?s dreams quickly get him in trouble as he is separated from his family in downtown Paris. But he finds himself in Gusteau?s restraunt, not as successful as it once was. This is where we are newly introduced to our second main character, Linguini, a boy hired as a garbage boy who cannot cook for his life. He starts innocently mixing ingredients around in the soup, and when Remy sees him messing up the customer?s soup, he feels he must step in. So secretly he starts spicing up the soup, until Linguini sees him and they are both stopped in their tracks. The soup accidentally goes out, and the customer gives their compliments to the chef. And soon enough the two are working together, using Remy?s ability to cook, and Linguini?s ?ability to... appear human.? Although many conflicts arise from this point. Remy?s conscience to ?steal? food for his family, Linguini?s secrecy of his ?little chef?, and the restraunt?s rise back to the top as it once again becomes the target of critics all over.

Although Ratatouille has the story no other Pixar movie seemed to have, that is not all that makes it recognizable as one of the bests. The animation is stunning, and the lighting craps right on Buzz Lightyear?s chest. The new technology is just hard to comete with. The fur was no problem for animators, wet, dry, or hugged (harder than it sounds) all look just as they would in real life. The character design is also very well done, depicting how that character is supposed to be seen by viewers. Also a key factor leading to the movie?s many laughs.

What is a Pixar film without its comedy? Ratatouille has plenty of moments that leave you rocking in your seats laughing with the rest of the theater. Many surprise moments, like when 50+ rats swarm a health inspector, and a minute later you see him carried in tied up, and thrown into a vault. Every minute you get a good chuckle at either a facial expression or joke, then the movie leads you through a chain of events, jerking laughs from you one by one, leaving the whole audiance laughing in harmony.

Ratatouille seemed to have some pretty giant shoes to fill, but in the end, it need a size or two bigger for such a largely successful film. With everything needed to make a great family flick, clean humor, great animations; however, bringing in and meeting all new expectations with the script writing and visual effects. I highly suggest Ratatouille to any Pixar fans, or anyone who has seen an animated movie ever... See this film! It may be your last chance to see one of this grade-A quality for the rest of the summer.

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Posted jul 6, 2007 11:38 pm pt

Man of the Year

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Remember that cliche story? The one about the guy who had better moral values than all the politicians in the world combined, who attempts to rise up and become president? Well its back in Man of the Year. But does this one take a new approach...
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Remember that cliche story? The one about the guy who had better moral values than all the politicians in the world combined, who attempts to rise up and become president? Well its back in Man of the Year. But does this one take a new approach on the over used theme? Or is it just like the rest of them: unrealistic.

Man of the Year stars Robin Williams as Tom Dobbs, who hosts a talk show taking news and adding comedy. Very similar to the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, or the Colbert Report. And one day a member of the audience decides to stand up and tell him that he should run for president, and after a large fan follow up, Dobbs does what he feels the fans wanted from him, and runs for president.

Unlike most movies where a nobody tries to run for president, this one has a plot and reason why he actually becomes president. The apathy and laziness of voters has brought a new age of voting, and is now 100% computerized by a company called Delacroy. But a worker for Delacroy, named Eleanor Green, has found there to be a glitch in the system and reports it. But in fear of the company going under, the administrators deny there being any problem and try to keep this worker from being reliable by drugging her. Now she has to try and tell the only person that will believe her, the honest and good hearted, President Dobbs.

The first 45 minutes or so of this film is enjoyable merely because it is just like watching Robin Williams do stand up. The only difference is that there is an attempt at a plot. Although it is very funny, it isnt really much of a movie. To top it off, once you continue watching, the subplot following Eleanor has genre splotches from all over. You get a few thriller/horror attempts, an action scene, and the romantic ties between her and the president seems all too convenient, and too much of a reach. Really makes you wonder what the hell this movie was going for. If it just had a disclaimer at the beginning that said it was Robin Williams doing political stand up, and they cut out the whole sub plot, then it would have been much more enjoyable.

Robin Williams is very funny, he is just able to be himself. And I know I am referring to this whole stand-up thing a lot, but this movie really is just a chance for him to do his normally amazing routine of imitations, weird voices, and hilarious jokes.
Christopher Walken has a decent performance, nothing special, just being himself. But his few narration scenes are well done. Not really a highlight of his career, and once again, as we have seen many times in movies such as Click, he has no intention of being the main actor of a movie. He must always have a large actor/comedian ahead of him, such as Adam Sandler, or in this case Robin Williams.

So where most movies with the, nobody-who-rises-to-be-president theme falls far short, Man of the Year falls just a bit funnier than the rest. Because of poor genre defining, just like most politicians, you dont really know what you are getting, with this sub plot it is a drag. But Robin Williams is there with a great two hour stand up routine to help cushion the fall of this movie. Overall pretty funny, but just not something I would recommend.

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Posted apr 30, 2007 5:00 am pt

District B13

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District B13 has no big-name actors, and is a French movie with English subtites. At first glance, most Americans would pass this movie up without thinking twice. But if that doesnâ€™t scare you away, then you are in for a nail biting...
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District B13 has no big-name actors, and is a French movie with English subtites. At first glance, most Americans would pass this movie up without thinking twice. But if that doesnâ€™t scare you away, then you are in for a nail biting experience that will leave you only wishing you learned Parkour as a kid.

First off, lets define Parkour: parkour ~
a sport/art that has been heavily popular in France. Usually taking place in urban areas; the goal is to get from point A to point B as efficiently as possible using only the possibilities of the human body. Overcoming obstacles with fluid motions, linked together by running.

District B13 stars actors that can actually perform Parkour, and everyone does their own stunts. The coolest part about DB13 is that every stunt that you see during the movie can actually be done. It is all real; sometimes may be exaggerated due to the camera angle; though is all really done.

The subtitles may be intimidating at first, but end up being perfectly fine, and donâ€™t take away from the overall experience. Alot of scenes do not even have any sub titles because of the immense amount of action scenes and parkour. Although when there were scenes of dialouge, the subtitles switched kind of quickly, but you donâ€™t miss you will not miss anything, because everything important will be more focused on, and alot of what you need to know is told on screen. In the end, dont let the subtitles scare you away. They donâ€™t effect the overall experience, and you probably wonâ€™t miss any of the story.

Going into this movie, I was not expecting to like it for its story, but just to enjoy the pure action. But I was pleasantly surprised; the story ended up being satisfying for a movie that was advertised soley on its acrobatic style.

The year is 2010, and the urban slums of District B13 have been rundown by gangsters with an abundance of drugs, guns, and money. This District has been walled off by police and higher authorities to avoid any direct conflicts. One of the people in B13, LeÃ¯to, has waged a war on the gangâ€™s leader, Taha. After an intense scene of LeÃ¯to avoiding Tahaâ€™s thugs, LeÃ¯to tries to turn Taha into the police. But to avoid a war with Tahaâ€™s thugs, the police let Taha go, and LeÃ¯to ends up in prison.

6 months have passed and a bomb was stolen from a government escort. Here we meet a cop named Damien, who needs LeÃ¯toâ€™s help to get into District B13, and secure this bomb that is set to go off in 24 hours.

The movie actually has a very interesting story, with a few good twists towards the end, filling in the small gaps where the intense action is not.

Overall, District B13 is an amazing movie, with over the top action scense accompanied with real stunts by actors who specialize in Parkour. But aside from being a great action movie, it is evened out with an interesting story. If the only reason you donâ€™t want to see movie is because of the subtitles, then go out right now, pick it up, and be prepared for an amazing experience.

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Posted apr 30, 2007 4:48 am pt

Flushed Away

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With the new age of animated movies being produces one after the other, there has been a fair share of quality ones, as well as some that dont quite cut-it. Does Flushed Away stay afloat, or go swirling down the drain?

Being that it...
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With the new age of animated movies being produces one after the other, there has been a fair share of quality ones, as well as some that dont quite cut-it. Does Flushed Away stay afloat, or go swirling down the drain?

Being that it falls in the category of an Animation-Comedy, it isnt very funny. Most animated movies has good jokes, humorous, that actually make you laugh. The movie is very random, with wierd characters coming on screen to make a stupid joke, which in its hopes to be funny... fails. This occurs many times with the slugs singing, which may be funny the first time, just isnt the tenth time around. The only real time I found my self entertained is when I listened closely for references to other movies. Because of the lack of humor in this movie, it really takes away from the whole experience. You are just left looking at the person next to you, wondering, Am I supposed to be laughing at this? (I sure as hell hope you are not watching this movie alone).

The story is... interesting, to say the most. A rat, Roddy is taken away from his known environment, a house in the suburbs, and flushed down into the sewers. He meets a girl as he tries to hitch a ride back home. But they run into trouble with a toad and a frog. Now they must save themselves, the city, all while Roddy realizes what he really wants in life is a family. In the end, youll be wondering why they thought itd be funny to make the villains grand scheme be based around the world cup.

Being from some of the makers and animators of Wallace and Gromit, the animation and effects were definetly good. It does a cool job using everyday items that humans use, to make different uses for them in the sewers. But that isnt anything we havnt seen before in movies like Nemo, Toy Story, and Monsters Inc. There is just nothing new that Flushed Away has to offer.

Although Flushed Away has some decent animation, it just isnt enough to save the movie. There is just too much wrong with it; the lack of humor, the half-assed story, and just overall, a poor viewing experience. Flushed Away falls short of the high standards set by other animated comedies such as Cars, the Incredibles, and Shrek. If you pass this one at Blockbuster, be quick to flush it out of your minds.

Final Verdict:
Even if your girlfriend wants to see it, DONT! Instead just break up with her.
Youll be better off not watching this movie.

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Posted apr 30, 2007 4:46 am pt

Shaun of the Dead

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Shaun of the Dead takes every zombie movie out there, and pretty much mocks them. But it does it with the perfect balance of humor and seriousness, creating what was actually a quality movie.

I went in not expecting much being that...
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Shaun of the Dead takes every zombie movie out there, and pretty much mocks them. But it does it with the perfect balance of humor and seriousness, creating what was actually a quality movie.

I went in not expecting much being that I assumed it was just a joke. But being that Hot Fuzz was coming out soon, I figured I had to. And I was pleasantly surprised; it was actually a really good movie, with pretty good acting, funny scenes and parodies.

The movie starts out with our main character Shaun, played by Simon Pegg, whos in quite a serious argument with his girlfriend, Liz. But to add humor to it, everyone is joining in on their personnal conversation, while Shaun is trying to chew munchies while his girlfriend is deep in conversation. Something that isnt really that funny, ends up being something to laugh about once it esaserbates into a very awkward situation (and dont worry, you will definitely know what esaserbates means by the time this movie is over).

So Shaun is just a guy, living with two other guy roommates, living a pretty boring and unfortunate life. 29 years old, dumped by his long time girlfriend, and he has a job with 17 year olds that he has no authority over. Not the ideal life.

So everyone starts getting really sick, and eventually turn into zombies, but it takes about half the movie for Shaun to realize this. These are some of the funniest parts in the movie, how he doesnt realize that everyone around him are living dead. He just follows his daily routine, and ironically misses many obvious clues to the fact that everyone has become zombies. Even to the point where they are touching each other, and he just looks past it.

So the plot goes on with more funny situations, and they have to go save his mom, save his ex-girlfriend, and get to a safe place which ironically ends up being at the pub, the reason his ex dumped him. So they voyage through hordes of stupid zombies, to the pub, and hold the fort there.

Simon Pegg does a great job playing the part. He may not be the funniest comedian, but being british, whatever he does is funny anyway. And his facial expressions and tone of voice is the funniest thing about him. He is also one of the writers. And I figure this works for the best, since im sure he knows exactly the type of humor he can do, because he nails the role right on.

Nick Frost plays the slob of a roomate, and best mate. He lives in the house without paying rent, all he does is play video games, weighing down ShaunÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s life, and tearing apart his relationship, but Shaun still loves him to death. He has a lot of funny lines, as being an ignorant guy who is just down to live life and have a good time.

The action scenes are less about action, and more so just about bringing comedy to be well fitting in the scene. And they do a good job. An unforgettable scene is when they are in the pub, and a zombie comes in, then randomly Queen comes on the jukebox. They then whip out pool sticks and start beating the zombie in the head, and everything is coordinated with the music. It ends up being very affective, will probably make you laugh, and is just a cool scene.

The only reason I could see you not really liking this movie would be if you think the humor in it is too stupid. And you put yourself in Shauns shoes, and think: How could he not realize everyone is a zombie! then you may not enjoy this film. But for the rest of you, Im sure youll love it.

Overall, Shaun of the Dead is a VERY funny movie, but is also a quality one. If you are a fan of zombie movies, a fan of comedies/parodies, or if you are just preparing for Hot Fuzz, definitely check this one out. Im confidant that you will be surprised at how Shaun of the Dead stays up there with some of the classics, just as I was.

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Posted apr 30, 2007 4:43 am pt

1.	Ratatouille
2.	Man of the Year
3.	Flushed Away
4.	Shaun of the Dead
5.	District B13
6.	The Matrix
7.	Nacho Libre
8.	A Night at the Roxbury
9.	Pan's Labyrinth
10.	The Prestige

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