Steve Jobs 10/10. I've never watched a movie twice in a row because I loved it so much and needed to pick up even more of the details. The script, direction, camera work, and acting are all absolutely top notch and award-worthy, IMHO. Maybe Sorkin's best writing of his career, and in tracing Jobs, the topic is as central to our modern world as you can get. Non-spoiler really: instead of a normal bio-pic, Sorkin opted to tell a story in three acts. So he has fictionalized the dialogue and last minutes before 3 key product releases in Job's career. But the scenes are absolutely informed by all the real facts and relationships of the dude's life. Can't recommend this movie more strongly, and watching all the "making of" bits, if you have access to them, are wonderful too. They made a lot of smart choices in how to make each of the acts and reflect their time periods and the meaning of the milestones, even using different film, totally different soundtrack, editing, etc. LA Times nailed it, but audiences didn't get it, apparently. http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-steve-jobs-review-20151009-column.html
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. 1 of 10. Awful, awful movie. OK, I saw it on an airplane and the audio was horrible. But with all the hype about Ben Afleck finally getting to play Batman? And somehow Wonderwoman appears. There were parts of the movie I picked up the in-flight magazine. Also took a bio break during the movie. Those were the highlights.
Nobody told me **** either. I knew absolutely nothing about it other than John Goodman was in a sci-fi movie by JJ Abrams and/or that other guy who I like, and I was most pleasantly surprised. Awesome flick, hopefully they don't screw up the sequel.
Room 7.5 / 10 Dragged just a little bit and probably too long, but really good. Streaming free on Amazon Prime While the credits were rolling and I was all sad a friend randomly texted me a link to Scott Stapp's unbelievable Marlins Will Soar song and it cheared me right up.
Everest Worth it to watch for the spectacular shots alone, even if it's not Imax. Solid performances though the story is fairly simple and doesn't attempt to really dig deeper into the character's backstories. And for whatever reason the emotional impact it was trying to reach felt flat to me. I think if I had known the story beforehand that would have helped when watching it, so I may need to give it a second go. Ironic because I didn't know the true story behind North Face, and thoroughly enjoyed that. Either way I'm just glad we've had some decent climbing movies and documentaries recently, and ones that don't rely on gimicky plot devices. 6/10 Pee Wees Big Holiday True to Pee Wee; lighthearted, whimsical, some good chuckles here and there. Fun movie. 6/10
Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates - 5.5/10 It had some funny moments, but was otherwise very predictable for these types of "comedies."
Conjuring 2 - 8/10 Loved the movie. Thought the first one was better because of the pace but this was a great movie. Wish they had more scary movies that had a good plot to it instead of cheap pop ups that you can almost guess are coming.
Watched "Eat That Question" today. 8/10 As a lifelong Zappa fan this was a well done retrospective of FZ's career primarily in his own words. You don't have to be a Zappa fan to enjoy the flick because his world view will surprise many who do not know much about the man other than yellow snow. He would be having a field day in today's political climate. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wQ3b_PU5W4A" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> He is sorely missed.
Dont get the hype for 10 cloverfield land. Id give it a 6.5/10 at best. Lethal Weapon 4- 8/10 Love this movie. Funny, over the top and entertaining. Chris Rock and Pesci just make it that much better. Also holds a special place in my heart as being the first movie ever watched on DVD when DVDs first rolled out. It was so cool to be able to rewind so easily to the parts you wanted to see again.
Didn't expect it to be Dazed and Confused or anything, so my expectations were low-ish. It was funny, and anyone who's been around a bunch of alpha-males could relate, but I gotta say it just OK. 7/12
A Better Life - 8/10 A real diamond in the rough available on Amazon Prime. I doubt this movie is very high on Trump's must see list.
Ghostbusters 6/10 Thoroughly enjoyed this though some of the dialog felt forced. IMO better than Ghostbusters 2 The Hunt For the Wilderpeople 8.5/10 Taika Waititi has great comedic chops as a director and Sam Neil and Julian Dennison are infinitely charming even if their relationship is a bit too idealic.
