A History of Violence- ( R ) Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bella

Into the Blue- ( R ) Jessica Alba, Paul Walker

Serenity- ( PG-13 ) Gina Torres, Adam Baldwin

Mirror Mask (limited) - (PG) Jason Barry, Dora Bryan

Buddy Boy ( R ) -Emmanuelle Seigner, Aidan Gillen

Lords of Dogtown ( PG-13 ) – Heath Ledger

Modigliani ( R ) – Andy Garcia, Omid Djalili

Robots ( PG ) – Robin Williams

Silver Hawk ( PG-13 ) – Michelle Yeoh, Luke Goss

Speak ( PG-13 ) – Kristen Stewart, Hallee Hirsh

Flightplan – ( PG-13 ) Jodie Foster

Dear Wendy (limited) – Bill Pullman, Jamie Bell

Dirty Love (limited) – ( R ) Jenny McCarthy, Carmen Electra

Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride (limited) – ( PG ) Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter

Hit – Starring Reese Witherspoon, Mark Ruffalo, Jon Heder

Landscaper David Abbott (Ruffalo) is being haunted by the spirit of the woman (Witherspoon) he is subletting from. In order to help her come to terms with her state of being, David attempts to reveal what happened to this mysterious woman.

I really enjoyed this supernatural romantic comedy. Everything about this movie made me laugh, and smile. The cast was well matched- although I didn’t particuarly enjoy Jon Heder because I feel he lacks in range- and the story was simple to follow. Mark Ruffalo continues to engage audiences with his charm, while Reese Witherspoon adds a touch of cuteness and sass to her character.

There is not much else to say about this film except it is a great date night movie. Bottom Line: Just Like Heaven is just that.

Best Scene: When David reveals to Elizabeth’s (Witherspoon) sister that he can communicate with Elizabeth’s spirit.

Rom-Com

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content.

Running time: 1 hour 35 minutes

The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D ( PG ) -Taylor Lautner, Taylor Dooley

Born Into Brothels ( R ) – Zana Briski, Ross Kauffman

Brothers ( R ) – Connie Nielsen, Ulrich Thomsen

Inside Deep Throat ( R ) – Gerard Damiano, Erica Jong

Jack O’Lantern ( R ) – Dave R. Watkins, Kevin L. Powers

The Longest Yard ( PG-13 ) – Adam Sandler, Chris Rock

Mindhunters ( R ) – Val Kilmer, Christian Slater

See Arnold Run ( R ) – Jurgen Prochnow, Roland Kickinger

Shackles ( R ) – D.L. Hughley, Kristen Wilson

Turtles Can Fly ( PG-13 ) – Soran Ebrahim, Avaz Latif

Miss (I cried something but it sure wasn’t wolf) – Starring really old people who do not look like high school students, Julian Morris, Lindy Booth, Jared Padalecki, Jon Bon Jovi

When a young woman is found murdered in the woods, a group of private school students decide to scare their peers by inventing a fictional serial killer called “The Wolf.” But when a real killer emerges, no one knows whom to believe.

Have you ever seen The Game with Michael Douglas? Well, Cry Wolf is a cheaper, younger, and horribly done version of the greatness that is The Game. I knew that I was in trouble when I entered the theatre on a Friday night at 9:35 and there were only 6 other people in the peanut gallery. And yet, I continued to watch the sad excuse of a horror film.

Why is this movie so bad? Let’s begin with an area that most people take for granted: sound. The sound editing and foley effects were all over the place. At one point in the movie, I thought the “DVD” skipped because there was a blatant pause in sound. Foley effects in the cafeteria scenes were way over the top, so much so, that I felt someone was having lunch right behind me – I consider this creepy, not artistic.

High school students should look like high school students. The actors were so old that I really did not understand why they didn’t decide to set the movie at a small catholic college. The average age of the actors playing the high school students is 24 with a remainder of 6. It makes me wonder if real high school students think these actors look old to them too????

And overall- the story was not interesting enough to keep the audience interested. The movie was too cliché and the ending seemed to be anticlimactic. Bottom Line: You will cry something if you see this wolf (most likely you will cry for your money back).

Horror

Rated PG-13 for violence, terror, disturbing images, language, sexuality and a brief drug reference.

Running Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

The 13th Sign ( NR ) – Eric Colvin

Bratz: Rock Angelz ( NR )

Childstar ( R ) – Jennifer Jason Leigh

Empire Falls ( NR ) – Ed Harris, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Helen Hunt

Fever Pitch ( PG-13 ) – Drew Barrymore, Jimmy Fallon

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy ( PG ) – Mos Def
Hit or Miss: Hit. Home Movie Pick of the Month

It’s All About Love ( R ) – Claire Danes, Joaquin Phoenix

Madison ( PG )

Nobody Knows ( PG-13)

The Perfect Neighbor ( NR ) -Barbara Niven

The Revolting Dead ( NR ) – Shelley Delayne, Michael Falls

Rock School ( R ) – Don Argott

Today You Die ( R ) – Steven Seagal, Treach

Winter Solstice ( R ) – Allison Janney, Anthony LaPaglia

3-Iron ( R ) – Hee Jae, Seung-yun Lee

Crash ( R ) – Matt Dillon, Sandra Bullock

Dead & Breakfast ( R ) – Ever Carradine, Portia De Rossi

The Girl in the Cafe ( NR ) – Bill Nighy, Kelly Macdonald

The Holy Girl ( R ) – Mercedes Morán, Carlos Belloso

The Marksman ( R ) – Wesley Snipes

Nero ( PG-13 )

Smile ( PG-13 ) – Sean Austin, Beau Bridges

Thunderstruck ( NR ) – Stephen Curr

The theatre has seen many movies come and go this summer. Let’s take a moment to remember the hits and misses of the season.

Hits

1. Mr. and Mrs. Smith
2. Herbie: Fully Loaded
3. War of the Worlds
4. Wedding Crashers ~ the best of summer
5. March of the Penguins
6. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Please keep in mind that I did not see every movie this summer, but this is a compilation of the movies I happened to view.

Misses

1. Fantastic Four
2. The Dukes of Hazzard
3. Red Eye
4. The Cave ~ worst of summer

And there you have it. I am hoping that the fall / winter season of films will bring more promise. Movies to look forward to include: Flightplan, Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, The Legend of Zorro, Prime, Zathura, Rent, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Aeon Flux, The Chronicals of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Fun with Dick and Jane, The Producers, Rumor Has It…, Memoirs of a Geisha, among others.

Miss (big time) – Starring Cole Hauser, Piper Perabo, Daniel Dae Kim

Spelunkers explore a cave that has been uncharted. Once they are trapped inside the cave they find that they are not alone. Now it is a race against time to find an exit and escape the ultimate evil that is hunting them.

I found that this movie is a cheaper version of the film Alien vs. Predator. In fact, everything about this movie had Alien vs. Predator written all over it. Let’s do a venn diagram comparison to show how these movies are different and how they are alike. * Since I am not savvy when it comes to graphics on the internet, we will have to settle for a list of how they are different and how they are alike.*

Differences:

1. The Cave spelunkers don’t really have a mission as to why they are exploring this cave. They are just doing it for their love of caves in general.
2. The creatures actually fly.
3. There is no real back-story as to how these creatures came to be.
4. A single species of predator involved (only an P not an A and P).
5. If you are a victim of the predator, you will eventually morph into the predator.

Similarities:

1. B-list actors.
2. Both movies take place underground.
3. Both are just as good as The Vertical Limit.
4. Main goal for producers – to make a lot of money.
5. They fall into the same film genre- Horror.
6. Their predators kill people.
7. They both suck.
8. They rob young, poor people, like myself, who are looking for a smart and scary horror or thriller film.

When I see big budget movies like this being made it makes me sad to think that there is a really talented writer or producer out there who is just waiting to be given a chance. Movies like this will never give the young hopeful a chance because movies like this prove that people who see them are willing to throw their money away on crap. Aye. It is sad to think that I fall into that category, but at least I know that I did not actually pay for my own movie ticket. That being said… the bottom line is: Take a wild guess, what do you think?

P.S. Cole Hauser is the poor man’s Gary Sinise.

Best Scene: Who cares?

Rated PG-13 for intense creature violence.

Horror

Running Time: 1 hour 37 minutes.