Finally!

July has been a rough month for movie watching and with all the traveling and everything else that has been going on I just haven't had the time to plop down and watch a bunch of movies. That said we made it out on Friday night to the $2 theater to catch Baby Mama, which wasn't nearly as bad as I expected.





Baby Mama (2008)
Directed By: Michael McCullers
Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler




Acting: (7) I haven't figured out what it is about Tina Fey, but she is awesome and to be completely honest I think she is one the prettiest women in Hollywood. I guess growing up in a small town we didn't have a bunch of Hollywood beauties walking the halls of our high school so Fey represents a more realistic view of the women I have met over the course of my life. While at times the movie fell into an extended SNL skit it was entertaining even though it was predictable.

Effects / Cinematography: (5) Nothing sticks out.

Plot: (6) Maybe predictable, but I generously gave it a slightly above average mark. There was some originality baked in there....somewhere.

Entertainment: (6.5) I was pleasantly entertained and it rated slightly higher than I expected.

Cumulative: (6.125) If I had spent $20 to see this I probably would have rated it lower, but having only paid $4.50 I feel that I got decent value. Worth seeing once.





Elizabeth (1998)
Directed By: Shekhar Kapur
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush, Joseph Fiennes




Acting: (7) Blanchett was decent although I think this is her weakest performance to date that I have seen. She is one of my favorite actresses too. Also the supporting cast was nothing special and outside of Geoffrey Rush no one else stood out. It should be noted that it is almost impossible for a movie with Vincent Cassel to be any good. I just looked on his filmography and I hope that when I get around to watching Brotherhood of the Wolf again he doesn't ruin that film for me as well.

Effects / Cinematography: (5) For being a period piece with extravagant gowns, etc. this was absolutely plain. The music and effects were completely average and the costumes come no where close to matching the likes of an Amadeus or a Gladiator.

Plot: (7) Interesting to the extent that I knew little about Queen Elizabeth prior to this movie.

Entertainment: (6)

Cumulative: (6.25) Blanchett and Rush make it watchable, but the rest of the film is average at best.





Serpico (1973)
Directed By: Sidney Lumet
Starring: Al Pacino





Acting: (7) Pacino is decent, but I don't think this performance was incredible by any means.

Effects / Cinematography: (5.5) Completely average nothing horrible, nothing great.

Plot: (6) True life story sure, but I wasn't that taken by it.

Entertainment: (6)

Cumulative: (6.125) Pales in comparison to all of the modern cop dramas. There was nothing unique for me in this film.

What Happens in Vegas

It was a slow movie week for me as we were busy during the holiday weekend and I haven't been able to finish a couple other movies. That said the wife wanted to see a movie on Thursday night and this was the only movie playing at the $2 theater that we had not seen.






What Happens in Vegas (2008)
Directed By: Tom Vaughan
Starring: Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher




Acting: (2.5) The amazing thing here is not that Ashton Kutcher was not very good, or that Cameron Diaz was her average self (I am not a fan, and I do not think she is good looking...at all), but how incredibly awful the supporting cast was. You may remember Rob Corddry from his role as Warren in Old School or how about the Gun Salesman in Failure to Launch. No? Neither one? Really? Well you will remember his performance here. As being absolutely horrendous. Maybe it was the script, but maybe it is him. Nothing that came out of his mouth was even semi-amusing and his on screen banter with the also atrocious Lake Bell (From "" oh yeah nothing because this is her first role in a recognizable movie) made Diaz and Kutcher look like Oscar winners. I almost wanted to run home and watch Just Married and Any Given Sunday to see if I truly mis-rated them all these years. Turns out that when you surround them with a horrible supporting cast they are still just average.

Effects / Cinematography: (5.5) Completely average nothing horrible, nothing great.

Plot: (2) I was generous when it came to plot, I mean what can be more original than people getting wasted and then getting hitched in Vegas.

Entertainment: (4) I laughed twice and once again was probably too generous.

Cumulative: (3.5) Let's just say I ran home and immediately watched Gladiator to purge all of this movie from my brain. I'm glad the wife was entertained by it (Even she wouldn't admit to it being good).