Sunshine 4/5 review by Chris (Joe)

Does it make me gay if I say that I think Cillian Murphy is the most captivating looking human ever? Probably. Oh well, that doesn’t really have much bearing on this review…but alas…


Sunshine



-Limited release-


IMDB synopsis:
A team of astronauts are sent to re-ignite the dying sun 50 years into the future.


Chris’s review:
The super team of Alex Garland (writer), Danny Boyle (director), and Cillian Murphy (star) has done it again. They have somehow done with the Sci-Fi Thriller genre what they did with the Zombie Horror genre. What is that you may ask? Remember 28 Days Later? Masterpiece of the Zombie Horror genre. And why? Because it transcended the constraints of its genre classification and was so much more. That is what Sunshine does in the Sci-Fi Thriller genre.

On top of that accomplishment, let me add that this is one of the most visually stimulating films I have ever seen. I literally sat with my jaw hanging open for 90% of the movie. It is AWESOME looking!

From the start you are along for a ride of epic proportion and you can’t help but buy in. Truth be told, my lovely Taryn doubted my excitement about Sunshine when we first saw the preview. After all, the premise DOES seem rather unbelievable. However, somewhere between the craft of Alex Garland and the vision of Danny Boyle, you suspend any disbelief you may have brought with you and completely lose yourself in the journey.

This ship itself that is transporting our hero team of scientists to the sun is amazing both in function and design. The visuals of the sun itself are stellar. I found myself surprised that Danny was able to do a movie of this scope. It wasn’t necessarily a big huge budget, special effects sci-fi movie, but it was both very futuristic AND very REAL feeling. Not quite what you would expect from the guy that shot the lo/fi brilliance of 28 days.

Another accomplishment that may or may not make sense is the way the characters are presented. In hindsight I think I would say the characters are somewhat simple. That would normally be a very bad thing in my opinion. Yet, the way they interact, and in this setting, the simplicity of the characters mixed with the glimpses of their emotional make up lends itself to you actually caring about them MORE than if they all had deep, well developed back stories. I’m not really sure how that worked out, but I really cared about these people, despite the fact that I knew next to nothing about them. I think that speaks to Alex Garland’s greatness.

Ok, I need to wrap it up. So, to conclude, let me reiterate the point that if you were impressed by 28 Days Later, that wonderful genre bending romp, you will certainly be equally impressed by the accomplishment of that same team in the Sci-Fi genre. Now, my totally lame, quotable critic one liners:
Sunshine really shines!
Sunshine is the kind of sunshine that won’t hurt your eyes to stare at.
The sun has certainly come up over Sunshine.
If you want to cure the rainy day blues all you need is some Sunshine.
Sunshine makes the sun shine in my heart and it makes me happy because it is so bright and shiny and I am getting a good kind of sun burn from staying out in the Sunshine too much and I love it.

Ok, maybe that last one isn’t too quotable…but come on newspapers, syndicate me, I’m so awesome! Look at how I can whip out those generic critic quotes to be printed on movie posters. Score!


Chris’s recommendations:
See this movie if…
-You are a fan of good, well written Sci-Fi that leans on strong characters and story over huge spaceship fire fights. Examples would be Firefly/Serenity, 12 Monkeys, etc.
-You like Cillian Murphy (another great performance), Danny Boyle (this stands shoulder to shoulder with 28 Days Later), or Alex Garland (he may be becoming a better screenwriter than novelist!).
-You want to go to the movies and get lost in an awesome adventure for a few hours. This movie plucks you right out of the theater and heaves you on a journey to the sun.

Don’t see this movie if…
-You are the kind of moviegoer that issues lines like: “oh, yeah right, like that could happen.” and “psssh, sure, that would have totally blown up before they could ever do that.” This movie does ask you to suspend SOME beliefs, but hell, do you REALLY believe in zombies? Come on, that is why movies are movies. Stop ruining it for everyone.
-Sci-Fi just isn’t up your alley. This is a GREAT Sci-Fi movie that transcends the limits of the genre, but I don’t think it is enough to convert a non-believer.
-Loud noises scare you. This movie has some SWEET sound effects and sound editing but it is VERY intense. Be warned!

The Simpsons Movie 4/5 review by Chris (Joe)

As most people in my age group, I have loved The Simpsons for so very long. Needless to say, I was equal parts excited and nervous about the movie. Grab your spider pig and let us get going to Springfield!


The Simpsons Movie



-Now in theaters-


IMDB synopsis:
When Homer mistakenly pollutes the river with toxic waste from his "Pig Crap" silo, he causes the EPA to encase Springfield in a glass dome, and must save them before President Schwarzenegger gives the order for the town to be destroyed.


Chris’s review:
I’m not even sure why I am bothering reviewing this movie. Is there really anyone that is NOT going to see this? If so, you probably aren’t an American. Lets face it, The Simpsons is as much a part of the American culture as hating Mexicans. You damned racist Americans.

Anyway, my point is, I can’t think of anyone not going to see this movie. And why not?!? Just think of how much of your vernacular comes from that show. Think of how many episodes you’ve seen, those countless years of entertainment. Think of the many transformations of humor, the endless pop culture references, the brilliant satire, the stinging commentary. The Simpsons are part of us all.

So that seems like a lot for a movie to live up to eh? Well, the good news for all of us die hard fans is that they DON’T try to live up to their own grandeur. That would be a mistake of epic proportion. Instead, this is a good solid movie that was maybe just too big to be crammed in to a single episode. This isn’t the end all, be all. This isn’t the whole Simpsons universe rolled in to one giant epic. There really isn’t even anything so astounding as Maggie talking or Bart or Lisa actually aging. All it comes down to is a good, entertaining story with your favorite fictional characters of all time. And I happen to think it is damned successful.

A couple of nods are deserved. First, the cameo by Tom Hanks is VERY funny, and thus my love for him has only grown that much greater. Secondly, Al Brooks is maybe one of the best Simpsons guest voices ever due to his greatness as Scorpio, and he wins again here as Russ Cargill. He is brilliant.

So, that is all I want to say. I love the Simpsons and the odds were pretty good that I was going to love the movie regardless. But I do, really, honestly think they did a good job. It is really entertaining. So go see it, not that you needed to hear that from me. You’re probably already on your way there now. High five.


Chris’s recommendations:
See this movie if…
-I think this is obvious. See it if you like the Simpsons at all, or if you are currently breathing oxygen.

Don’t see this movie if…
-You are one of the 5 people left in this country that don’t have a warm spot in your heart for the funny looking yellow family.

Rescue Dawn 3/5 reviewed by Mike

It's refreshing to see a war film that isn't trying to cram propaganda down my throat. I'm getting rather tired of overly politicized movies, and I'm getting even more tired about reviewers who can only see politics in any movie they see. Thankfully, Rescue Dawn isn't trying to convince you that the Iraq war is a waste of time, or that Bush is evil, or whatever. It's simply an amazing story of courage and survival.

You may or may not be familiar with the story of Dieter Dengler, a pilot in the early part of the Vietnam war who was captured, tortured, lived in a prison camp, and then managed to escape. Director, Werner Herzog (the same guy who brought us "Grizzly Man") has told this story previously in a documentary on the subject, allowing Dengler to tell the story himself (Dengler also has a book recounting the tale). This dramatized version, starring Christian Bale and Steve Zahn, dramatizes the events of the capture and escape powerfully, even more so knowing that almost everything you see actually did happen.

Although Herzog already made a documentary about this story, Rescue Dawn seems to also function as a documentary on almost every level, which is good and bad at the same time. Very little time is spent setting up the characters and the situation. Just the basics are covered. The plane crash happens just a few minutes into the movie and immediately we're off and running. This creates a sense of detachment from the characters that I found hard to overcome. I never felt emotionally involved in the story. It definitely had that documentary feeling, like it was showing me the story, rather than getting me super involved in the story.

On the other hand, visually, this film puts you in the environment as good or better than any other movie I've seen. You can actually feel the mud stick to your legs, the dirt get in your hair, smell sweat and grime of the poverty-stricken villages... The film is shot in such a way that you so strongly feel like you are there, in the jungle, that it's hard to shake. But again, emotionally, I felt distant. I didn't really care for the characters, didn't feel like I got to know them or empathize with them. It was much more of that documentary feeling. Instead of the director saying, "here's this incredible man, feel for him and cry with him," it was more like the director was saying "Here is this story. Look at it. Look at the reality. This really happened. Look at it."

The performances are great. Steve Zahn surprised me with his performance as a prisoner who has just seen too much and can't take it anymore. Bale, as usual, delivers a perfect performance. The thing about Bale is that watching him is like watching a master musician who plays because he loves it, and for no other reason. The man is so thrilled by the art and craft of acting, he so completely takes on a role, that it's inspiring to watch. In this movie, he could have phoned in a Hollywood star style performance, and been all movie-star flashy, cool, funny, whatever. Instead, he comes across as a normal guy who's not especially noble or incredible, but just a guy, who's fairly arrogant, and somewhat selfish. He kept me distanced in that way, which, although kept me from being as emotionally involved as I could have been, definitely added to the realism of the piece. The writing helps, as well. There are no big hero lines, or cheesy close ups where he says some profound thought about the horrors of war. He's just a guy going through this crap. I also really enjoyed the music, which, at times was somewhat of a 20th Century classical kind of creepy, and at other times was what you'd expect from a patriotic war film, but incredibly scaled down, made more intimate, and quite touching without ever getting in the way.

This film sports some great craft, but done in a way to make me feel both distant emotionally and yet connected viscerally. This isn't a big patriotic, Go-America War piece, nor is it a Bush-bashing, war-sucks, down-with-America propaganda fest. It's simply the amazing and almost unbelievable experience of a small group of soldiers placed in horrible conditions, and how they dealt with it. Let it show you the horror of war, the triumph of the human spirit, or whatever else you want it to say. The interpretation is up to you.

See This Movie If:
-You're on the fence about documentary movies. This one isn't (there's definitely no narration or anything) but it rides the fence pretty well.
-You don't like war movies that bash you over the head with a political message.
-You appreciate good acting, or other craft aspects of filmmaking.
-You or someone close to you was in the war. This's some good perspective.
-(I wish I could give you some films to compare it to, but I really can't. This is a war film unlike any others. Suck all of the Hollywood out of your favorite war/prisoner escape film, and this is what you get.)

Don't See This Movie If:
-You need/expect nonstop action sequences
-You're on a first date
-You're so blinded by your extremist political affiliations that you can't see good cinema for what it is anymore without reading your own crap into it.

Ratatouille 3/5 reviewed by Mike

Ratatouille (stupid French words) is the latest offering from the Pixar gang, and of special note, is the latest offering from director Brad Bird, who is responsible for one of my all time favorite films, "The Incredibles," as well as tons and tons of awesome TV animation, but never has he done anything as so super-cute as this.

This film follows the story of a rat, who likes to cook, and is encouraged by the ghost of a dead famous cook. So thats weird. Then, this rat finds a kid with almost no cooking skill, and helps him by living on his head and controlling the kid as if he were a marionette by pulling his hair... There's also like this evil food critic, and, yeah, it's weird.

It's weird, man. It's a strange story. I just could not get into this story. Every 10 minutes or so, I just kindof backed up and said to myself, "really? This is what the movie is about?" Keep in mind, I'm not really in the demographic for this film. A lot readers of this website probably aren't either, but if you're a lot younger than me, you'll probably enjoy it a lot more than I did. That said, I think this movie is simultaneously more and less kid-friendly than previous Pixar entries.

I say more kid friendly because the humor isn't as layered as some of the other Pixar movies. Most of their films have this dual-layered humor that works on a kid level, and an adult level. Thats smart and awesome, but I felt that charm was lacking in this film. It's humor isn't juvenile in the sense of being stupid or dirty, but it's definitely aimed at a younger audience that doesn't need the complex irony and subtle nuance that you and I take for granted. Of course there are some feel-good lessons to be learned, but they seemed way more overstated than usual here, and it was almost distracting how nothing was left to subtext. Sometimes, characters just start spewing Sesame Street feel-good messages. The whole subplot with the critic... was it there as an add-on to bolster the "follow your heart" theme, or are they taking potshots at us movie critics? But doesn't every critic gush over everything Brad and Pixar have ever done? Just a few paragraphs away, my pants'll get all kinds of excited about how brilliant Brad's directing is. In any case, the lack of subtlety and complexity make it seem more kiddish by far than I'm used to seeing from this creative team.

However, I also think it's less kid friendly in that that story seems a little inaccessible to a younger audience. Do kids really want to see a movie about a rat who cooks? Maybe they do. After all, I was captivated by "An American Tail" as a kid, so maybe this works. Just remember, I really felt this movie, although super cute, wasn't meant for me. I'm not the target audience here. You might be, though.

Regardless of whatever story and writing problems it may or may not have, one thing is true for sure: this is by far the best looking film Pixar has ever made. Of course the animation is top notch. The texturing was, quite literally for me, breathtaking. Pay attention to the water and hair effects and your brain will be blown away by how good it looks. On top of that, Brad Bird is simply a master animation director. His timing is perfect, and the camerawork (if you can call it that) is simply astounding. Brad's frame composition should be studied in schools. Actually, it is. I've seen more than a few animation students who study Brad's work, as well they should. This guy knows his stuff. If you're an animation buff, you have to see this. Plus, everything is so super cute.

The acting is pretty great also. Patton Oswalt (did you know he voiced the Frat Aliens on Aqua Teen?) does a great job in the lead role, and the rest of the star-studded cast does a wonderful job with their respective characters. It's fun to not know who the voices are ahead of time and see if you can guess whos who. You'll recognize almost every voice in this film. I will say that the score kindof got in the way for me, but for a kid-friendly movie like this, I think you need an overstated score.

So, I thought that in terms of story, Ratatouille was pretty lacking, but it's far and away one of the best looking computer-animated films I've ever seen. Like I said, I'm probably not in this movie's target audience, but that doesn't mean you might not love it. It's definitely worth a shot, and it's a great was to spend and afternoon relaxing.

See This Movie If:
-You're an animation buff or animation student.
-You're younger than me by quite a bit.
-The premise of the plot is interesting to you.
-You like lots and lots of cuteness.

Don't See This Movie If:
-You're not really an animation fan.
-You're expecting a brilliant follow-up to The Incredibles. This is like a whole different genre.
-Your favorite cartoon is "12 oz. Mouse."
-You think you're too cool for school.

Eagle Vs Shark 5/5 review by Chris (Joe)

I have never given a 5/5 when writing a review of a movie I just saw. In hindsight, there are a few movies that I reviewed the day after I saw them that got 4/5 that I would actually now like to give 5/5 (The Prestige, A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints). I know why I have never given a 5/5…I’m too stubborn. I always talked myself out of a 5/5 because I figured I couldn’t define a movie as THAT great after having just seen it. I am officially trying to break myself of that pattern, and it starts here. I’m shooting from the hip, writing with my gut, and giving credit where credit is due.


Eagle Vs Shark



-Limited release-


IMDB synopsis:
Eagle vs Shark is the tale of two socially awkward misfits and the strange ways they try to find love; through revenge on high-school bullies, burgers, and video games.


Chris’s review:
Eagle vs Shark is a movie from New Zealand. Made in New Zealand, cast in New Zealand, put together by New Zealanders. I love New Zealand. But, my love does not make me blindly follow all things New Zealand. In point of fact, all my love for New Zealand did with this film is get me in the door. I actually went in to it expecting to be disappointed. To be quite honest, I was REALLY only seeing it for Jemaine Clement. If you are in the know, you would recognize him as the bass playing half of the Flight of the Conchords, New Zealand's 4th most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy folk duo. For those of you less in the know, Jemaine is the funny glasses wearing fellow in the Outback Steakhouse commercials. Anywho, the whole point there was that this film is an indie film from down under. It is the story of a girl named Lily who has nurtured a crush on Jarrod for quite some time and finally works up the nerve to talk to him. This leads to them becoming an item and Lily traveling to Jarrod’s hometown to meet his family.

Let me get a couple of things straight:
1. This movie has been, and will be completely misunderstood by many of the people going to see it. I have seen so many write ups that just plainly get everything wrong.
2. This is NOT a New Zealand version of Napoleon Dynamite. Having, never seen that piece of cinematic abortion, I can’t say that definitively, but Taryn HAS seen it and assures me it is not. Some people may claim so, based on Jemaine’s character and the quirky nature of the film. But rest assured, any similarity is purely satirical and nothing more.
3. Though it will be billed as a wacky, quirky comedy and nothing more, this film is actually quite emotion and character driven. Don’t get me wrong…it is also hilarious, but it has a big heart and isn’t just trying to get cheap laughs out of you.

A couple of points, and then I should wrap this up, or else I’ll just ramble on. A girl named Loren Horsley plays Lily, the leading lady, and she is absolutely wonderful. I would be hard pressed to name another female performance to put above hers. If you don’t come out of this movie loving the character then you sir, are dead inside. Also, the craft of the film is quite special. For a low budget, indeed film made half of the world away, I was continually impressed with the cinematography. Additionally they take a bit of an unconventional approach by incorporating some stop motion animation, which at first seems somewhat weird, but ends up being a great little quirk that adds to the charm of the movie. Lastly, the ensemble cast made up entirely of people you have never seen before works wonders. Every character brings something to the table and every actor shows wonderful amounts of craft.

The close it down then, let me recommend this movie as strongly as I can. If you want to be thoroughly entertained, and take in some superb film making, go see this movie!


Chris’s recommendations:
Go see this movie if…
-You love a good, quirky movie, but also can’t stand something that is all filler with no substance.
-You liked movies like Garden State, Benny & Joon, Rushmore. This is in that vein and on par with any of those.
-You enjoy seeing what the rest of the world is doing with the film medium. This is a great foreign film; though technically it shouldn’t be defined as such…it is just plain great.

Don’t see this movie if…
-You think Napoleon Dynamite is the height of comedy.
-You cry easily…this movie packs a good helping of emotion to go along with its humor.
-You need characters that can be put in to boxes and defined by 2 dimensional character descriptions like “the lonely outcast nerd that finds out being different is OK,” or “the one time bully that has an eye opening experience and realizes the error of his ways.”

Transformers 4/5 reviewed by Mike

So, we're walking out of the theater, and my friend leans to me and says, "that was the best 80's movie I've ever seen." And he has never been more right.

If you're either too old or too young to have grown up with the Robots in Disguise, let me clue you in to the movie's premise: some kinda magic cube once created a species of giant robots called Autobots, until some of them turned evil, started calling themselves Decepticons, and now they're at war. Turns out this cube thingy is on earth, so guess where the battleground is. Back in the day, this was a great marketing campaign for action figures. Still is.


Anyway, the movie is about giant robots that fight, and it's directed by Michael Bay. If ever there was a movie that Michael Bay should direct, it's this one. Since all of his movies are actually just entries in the "most cars destroyed on screen" section of the Guinness Book, this works nicely. When it comes to craft, this movie is exactly what it should be. Cool cinematography, sweet action, jaw-dropping visuals and fight scenes, car chases galore, plenty of cheesy one-liners, contrived "meaningful relationship" moments, stereotype-driven humor, and the hottest chicks you've ever seen.

Be sure you set your expectations right. This is not a thought-provoking reinterpretation of the relationship of alien species to mankind, or anything like that. This is not Batman Begins for Transformers. This is Bad Boys 2. With giant freaking robots. This is every movie that "Hot Fuzz" and "Team America" made fun of. But with freaking gigantic robots.

Sometimes the robots use break dance moves when they fight.

If that makes you excited or makes you laugh, go see this movie right now.

I don't really need to spend any time analyzing the craft of this movie. It's Michael freaking Bay. It's technically great, and there's lots and lots of bit parts and cameos that are perfect and fun, Bernie Mack being one of my favorites. In fact, this is one of the funnier movies I've seen in a while. Shia Labeouf's comic timing and delivery is nearing genius levels. Megan Fox fills the "hot girl" role perfectly, as she has not too many lines, and is one of the top 10 hottest girls ever. Yes everything is cliche. Yes, the opening narration, mid-movie exposition, and closing narration are among the cheesiest lines ever written. But the entertainment value on this movie is so freaking high. This movie is just so damn COOL!

So, if you wanna see the best 80's action movie (filled with every cliche that entails) you've ever seen, go see this movie right now. If, when you were a small child, you watched shows like Transformers, Ninja Turtles, He-Man, or anything like it, and acted out stuff while you watched, go see it now. If you pride yourself on the collection of action figures you had when you were younger, go see this now.

See This Movie If:
-see above.
-you have no serious expectations for real emotion in this film.
-you know Bad Boys 2 was stupid, but you loved it anyway.
-You still play with action figures, and if you call them dolls, my Optimus Prime punch-action will destroy your face

Don't see this movie if:
-you're expecting a thought-out, deep plot with developed characters.
-you don't like cheesy 80's style action movies.
-Thats it. This one's pretty clear cut.

one of my few complaints is that MuteMath's cover of the old theme song isn't in the movie. check it out at www.myspace.com/mutemath

Live Free or Die Hard 3/5 review by Chris (Joe)

“Now I have a machine gun…Ho…Ho…Ho.” Awesome. It is time for John McClane again and my balls are ready to be rocked! Tune in below to find out if they were.

Live Free or Die Hard
(the most confusing title ever?)



-In theaters now-


IMDB synopsis:
John McClane takes on an Internet-based terrorist organization who is systematically shutting down the United States.


Chris’s review:
I am currently 26. So, I grew up pretty much smack in the middle of the Die Hard heyday. That pleases me because I like the Die Hard movies. They are = awesome. Needless to say, I was pretty excited to hear that Bruce would be back telling me he has a machine gun now, and that he was always more partial to Roy Rogers. However, my fears started to develop when I saw that this 4th movie would be rated PG-13 when the previous 3 were all R. How do you do a Die Hard movie without getting an R rating? Well, we found out with the fourth movie now didn’t we?

The lack of an R rating didn’t actually seem to be an issue, I have to admit. I didn’t feel like anything was really lacking as far as henchmen getting killed, or cuss words. Maybe an R in the 80s is only a PG-13 in our modern times. That was a pleasant surprise.

The main problem though is this: this movie didn’t have to be a Die Hard movie. What I mean by that is if you plucked out John McClane and insert random bad ass good guy you’d pretty much have the same movie. The plot and villain are both VERY generic and underwhelming, which felt like a bit of rip off because the other Die Hards have had such memorable villains. In this go-round we have stereotypical disgruntled ex Department of Defense employee that TRIED to warn the government about the weaknesses in their computer security infrastructure, but they ignored him. So what does he do? Well, he hacks the government and causes mass chaos, of course! ZZZZZZZZZ…that is it? That is the AWESOME plot that we resurrected the great John McClane for? As I said, the plot and villain are LAME!

BUT!…

For some reason, you almost don’t really care. Now I do say ALMOST because toward the end of the movie I was starting to get a little beaten down by the talentless hack that they had delivering the retarded lines as the big scary (tiny, not scary) evil, brilliant, bad guy. Still, up until the end, I was able to write off the short comings in the big scheme and antagonist. Instead, I was just so glad to see Bruce as John again doing things that John is good at (shooting, jumping, killing henchmen, driving, cussing, saying one-liners, etc.). Further, there are at least 4 or 5 REALLY great, instantly classic, action sequences. THAT made it feel like a Die Hard movie. There are big shoes to fill as far as memorable action sequences in Die Hard movies. Try and tell me you don’t remember John jumping off of a 35 story office building with nothing but a fire hose tied around his waist as the whole roof goes up in a giant C4 blast or blowing up a 747 with a zippo lighter just as it is taking off. Come on! Greatness. I think a couple of action sequences in the new movie CERTAINLY fall right in line with that strong precedent set by it’s predecessors.

All in all, I think you’ll want to see this movie on the big screen and you probably won’t regret the time or money spent. Just fight through the overly generic bad guy and his terribly boring evil plan and sit back enjoy John McClane proving that he really does Die Hard…or something…I don’t know, that sounded stupid.


Chris’s recommendations:
See this movie if…
-You are a big Die Hard, or action movie fan. You will have a good time.
-You like Justin Long in anything he’s ever done, because he always plays the same character, and he doesn’t divert from that pattern in this film. I don’t think that is really a bad thing…he’s funny.
-You are off work for the 4th of July and watching ambiguously western European thugs get shot by one hard ass mother f’er makes you feel damned proud to be an American…as it rightfully should.

Don’t see this movie if…
-All of the above do not apply to you.
-You’re the jerk off that sits in the theater during an action movie and blurts out “Oh, yeah right, like THAT could really happen” every 5 minutes. I hate those people…it is a freaking action movie…OF COURSE it couldn’t really happen…THAT IS WHY IT IS AN ACTION MOVIE! Ass.
-You’re in the mood for substance. You will be disappointed. This is a straight forward, in your face, blow stuff up, action movie…don’t make any mistake about that.

1408 3/5 reviewed by Mike

Stephen King stories have had a horrible time in the movie realm. With a few noted (and quite good) exceptions, most of his stories seem to turn into crap as soon as they get into the greasy pages of a Hollywood option contract. Fortunately, 1408 is a film that, while not really being the SAME story as the short story of the same name, is still a solid fright film in it's own right, without falling into the cheap gory junk that usually plagues the horror genre.

I make no secret about my man-crush on John Cusack (ever since I saw 'Better of Dead,' I knew he was awesome for all eternity) and here we see him step into the shoes of aging writer Mike Enslin. Enslin is somewhat of a paranormal investigator who writes books about supposedly haunted places. Of course, being a skeptic who, "doesn't believe in anything," he has never seen an actual paranormal event, and remains an arrogant Agent Scully. That changes when a mysterious postcard arrives in the mail from the Dolphin Hotel in New York, telling him not to go into room 1408. Obviously he tries to book the room, and even a gray-bearded Samuel L. Jackson can't keep Enslin away. Once Mike enters the room (notorious for a history of death and odd occurances), all hell breaks loose, quite literally.

Don't worry too much. The film isn't THAT scary (think of it as a long Twilight Zone)--it's more about Mike's personal journey, and dealing with his own past as well as his own beliefs. To me, this is both the strength and downfall of this movie. While the added backstory of Mike's wife and child is very touching and it created a horror that was very personal and very different from most haunted house stories, it lacked the sense of impending madness and the completely inhuman nature that the short story so masterfully created. The sheer amount of stuff that happened, and the level of weirdness just didn't seem that scary, it was more like a supernatural endurance test. Exploding walls, gushing water, and drastic temperature changes just aren't that scary to me. Also, certain plot elements are not explained at all (who sent that postcard? Don't tell me the ROOM did it...), but it's still a cool story, enjoyable, and worth my ticket price, even though you probably know whats going to happen (man, the ending to King's story is so much BETTER).

In terms of craft, the acting is top notch. Cusack does a marvelous job, and the movie is almost all him by himself, and that ain't easy. The supporting cast is great too. The camera work is spotty. Half the time, it's awesome, and you're just reveling in how cool the shot is, and the other half of the time, it's trying to be awesome and failing. The camera really gets in the way and tries to show off... it's like being in a band with a lead guitarist who never stops shredding, even during the quiet introspective bits.

All and all, the film evens out to an enjoyable experience. And it beats the pants off of the torture porn and slasher flicks that are flooding our theaters. Although 1408 isn't deep, it's ABOUT something, and it has real relationships at it's core--there's real emotions here, not just half-naked high schoolers running around trying to find which hallway leads to knife guy. If you like suspense films, haunted house stories, but hate the slasher stuff, go see this. There's nothing really that you haven't seen anywhere else, but it's done well, and it's a great flick to just go enjoy on an afternoon (or late night). However, as with most adaptations, I highly suggest you read the source material. Go pick up King's "Everything's Eventual" which contains the original 1408 short story, as well as more than a few other gems. Whether or not you should read it before or after doesn't really matter, that's a decision I leave to you, constant reader.

See this movie if:
-You like suspense/horror/haunted house stuff
-You're sick of slasher flicks and torture porn that doesn't value human life
-You like the concept of horror but are scared too easily to see most of them--this is a great thriller that isn't too scary.
-You like John Cusack
-I think it's a good date flick, anyone disagree?

Don't see this movie if:
-'Goosebumps' novels give you nightmares
-You just hate horror movies through and through
-Can't think of anything else. If you saw the trailer and were interested, you'll probably get what you expect and a little fun besides.