In the last three weeks, I have gone to the theatre a few times and saw X2, Matrix Reloaded, Matrix Reloaded (again), Identity, and Bruce Almighty. Each time, I didn’t really know that much about the movie I was seeing — I just bought the ticket and went to see it. Part of that with the Matrix involved not wanting to know what was coming up, and the others was just poor research. I hadn’t even really seen the original X-Men movie when I went to see the sequel. The last movie I went to see (before this set,) without knowing anything about it was Magnolia — and I thought that movie really sucked. I vowed then not to go see movies I didn’t know anything about, and yet I did it 4 times in the last month.
I’m not going to spoil the movies, but I’ll go through each of them here and throw in my two cents.
X2 was good, at least from an action/pretty-to-watch standpoint. I guess when I think of X-Men, though, I think of the cartoons and such where they’re in costume and kicking some major butt. These mutants, probably because they’re young and underdeveloped, were just whiney little teenagers. Iceman, for example, should be surfing on a track of ice and instead he’s all teen-angsty. The movie could have been like a Vin Disel movie, but instead it’s like an episode of Dawson’s. Ew.
Matrix Reloaded didn’t have the same ‘what the hell is going on?’ feel the original one did. That was the magic of the first film, I think — the first half of the movie, you didn’t know was going on, or what they were going to do next. This sequel tried to address some of these issues — filling in the characters, and the environment. It was still graphically stunning and the fight scenes are wonderfully done. They improved on the first movie greatly with the art of the fight scenes. But there was no awe like in the first one. And when they took things you thought you understood and broke them, it didn’t leave you wondering “how cool” … it was more of a “why the hell are they doing that?” feeling.
I’m trying not to read too much into the movie, but there are some good sites that are trying to analyze where this is going and why. But, as I said in my intro above, I’m not digging too deep into movies right now. I just want to be entertained. I’ll see Animatrix when it comes out, and I’ll be first in line to see Matrix Revolutions, but this is a total back to the future 2 … complete with hover[boards|crafts].
When Josh and Eric went to see Matrix 2 a second time, Tony and Ness and I went to see Identity. I didn’t know anything about this movie, except that it had a good cast. John Cusack is the lead character, but other well known faces show up. I thought this would be in line with Gross Pointe Blank and High Fidelity… Boy was I wrong. I don’t like horror/suspense flicks. I get too caught up in them, and they make me too scared/nervous/jumpy to the point it’s not really fun for me. This movie is a lot like Clue, only instead of a mansion they’re stuck in a rainstorm in a motel in the desert. Someone is always dying, and they’re running from scene to scene trying to find out whodunit. Although without a funny butler to narrate. It’s being called a new Psycho, but Vince Vaughn ruined the shower scene for me in the last Psycho remix. All in all, the movie was well done (because I was uncomfortable all through it,) although it’s getting flack its ending.
So, last night, we decided we needed a comedy. Bruce Almighty is a new movie with Jim Carrey, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Aniston. Jim’s life sucks, so he takes it out on G-d, and he replies “hey, you don’t like it, do it yourself” and gives him all these godly powers. He then does some funny and menacing things and messes up his relationship with his girlfriend. This is where what I wanted from the movie diverged from the main plot. I thought he would do a bunch of crazy things, mess up the world, and then have to fix them. Nooooo. Instead, it turns in a romantic comedy where he needs to win the love of his girl friend back. And I was sitting with Josh, Tony, and Eric. Not a movie for a demographic of four guys who are better suited for the other movies listed above.
What a disappointment! It winds up being a sappy romance, and it’s not even that overly funny (compared to other Carrey movies.) Unfortunately, and this is one little spoiler I’ll give you, most of the funny scenes you’ve seen in the previews are the only non-romance related funny scenes in the movie. There. I just saved you $7.
Tonight, I will watch and rip apart The Transporter on DVD. But, of course, before watching that I had to get caught up on my BMW films. I’m trying to decide if $4 for a DVD of those movies is worth it.
About
