43. Mamma Mia

                  Pierce Brosnan should not sing.  I was really tempted to make that the entire blog. Just wrap Mamma Mia up to that one point. I won't but I did want to stress that Pierce Brosnan should NOT sing.  Not his thing.

                Mamma Mia that hit musical based on the music of ABBA.  The story about a young girl who is getting married and wants her father to walk her down the aisle. Except she doesn’t know who her father is. She has, however, narrowed it down to three men who could be the one. So she invites all three to her wedding unbeknownst to her mother, played by Meryl Streep.  What goes on from there is a lot of singing and a lot of soul searching. Oh, and it all takes place in Greece. I will say this, the beauty of Greece really comes out in the bluray edition of this.

                Mamma Mia can be entertaining at times. It's funny in parts. But musicals are just not my thing.  It does help that ABBA music is not the traditional music that you hear in musicals. I do admire the creativity to take the ABBA classic pop songs and turn them into a story. I also admire the talent of Streep who can pull this role off just as well as she can anything else. But still Pierce Brosnan should not sing. Plus it really bugs me that they never tell you who the dad actually is. 

Final Verdict: I would never own it, but doesn’t matter since my wife has deemed it worthy of owning. And in blu ray!

38. Robin Hood

               First off I’m just going to say that a lot of people that I have talked to did not like this movie. Then I’m going to say that I don’t know why? I guess if you were going into to it expecting the same old traditional Robin Hood story then you would be disappointed because that is not what you are going to get.

                This Robin Hood starring Russell Crowe and directed by Ridley Scott is the origin story of how Robin Hood became Robin Hood.  Crowe stars at Robin Longstride, an Archer in the King’s army. In a twist of fate and destiny common but talented Longstride takes the identity of Robin Loxley, the king’s right hand man and a knight of noble birth. When Crowe goes to visit the Loxley household he finds a town, Nottingham, in dire straits due to the heavy tyranny of King John. King John is played wonderfully by Oscar Isaac and I thought he was the best part of the movie.

     Yes, Robin Hood can drag some and it takes a while pick up steam but it’s an Epic Movie. One that is rich in characters, battles and wonderful acting. If you go into this one open minded and just wanting to “feast” on a movie then you will enjoy this movie. If you want the traditional men in tights movie then you won’t like it. Oh and it looks great in blu-ray

Final Verdict: Well considering that we just bought it, worth owning. 

Other Tidbits:

The blu-ray includes a director’s cut edition which gives you more back story about the kids who have run off to live in Sherwood forest so that you feel more of a connection to them when they make the smaller cameos included in the theater edition.

12. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

               Hands down one of the best movies of all time! I was so happy when the Magical Movie Box chose this movie for me.  It is one of my all time favorite movies. In fact it is currently number 5 on my all time favorites list. Yes, I am that lame that I have a top ten favorite movies list. The Goonies currently holds down the top spot!

                I can go on and on about this movie. I practically have it memorized. I can’t even begin to count the number of times I have seen it since it came out when I was a freshman in high school! Overall I think it is fair adaption of the beloved cartoon. The basic story is the same. A rat, 4 turtles, a shredder and some Pizza are all thrown in the mix.  So many funny moments and so many great one liners make it an outstanding film except….

                Allow me to rant and rave about what has allows bugged my about this movie.  Why in the world does Raphael get such a big part in this?! It is not fair at all! Donatello is by far the best turtle! In this movie he gets no love! They rarely even touch on the fact that he is a genius! The smartest of all the turtles! In the cartoon Donatello is constantly saving the day. But not here Raphael is the star. Whooppee! Not to mention Donatello get Corey Feldman to do his voice! But man you have got to love Turtle Power (best movie song ever!)

Final Verdict: Worth owning. Duh.

Other tidbits:

-If you notice in April’s apartment when she goes to answer the door there is an Elvis statue on the dresser by the door. It’s the same Elvis statue featured on Saved by the Bell that was broken when they had a party at Screech’s house. Now what other blog gives you that kind of info!

11. Legend of the Guardians:The Owls of Ga'Hoole

                Known for the longest time to me simply as “The Owl Movie”.  My wife has been dying forever for us to watch this movie and we finally got around to watching it. Brought to us by Netflix on stunning blu ray. Speaking of which, this movie is superb is HD, absolutely spectacular.

                So the movie. Well I really enjoyed it. It was directed by Zack Snyder who made the 300 movie (haven’t seen it) and based on the books by Kathryn Lasky. The story tells of the legendary Guardians. A group of owls who have sworn to protect all of owl kind.  But it has been years since Guardians had been seen or heard and their tale of legends are now believed by many to be myth. But no to our hero of the movie Soren.  A young owl who is kidnapped, along with his brother Kludd and taken away to be enslaved by a group of owls called The Pure Ones.

                The best part that I liked about this movie is that action actually holds up. The flight and fight scenes are top notch.  Just as fast and action packed as say Top Gun or Star Wars. The pure ones have an evil plan to trap and destroy the Guardians. This movie surprised me.  Once you get past the fact they are owls and it has music in it from Owl City it is really, really good. I got way into it. My wife has read all the books and said that they did a decent job adapting the first part of the story although there were a couple of big changes that it was hard for her to get around, but she said they probably made those changes to simplify and not make the story as dark as the books. I would recommend it. It might surprise you.  Besides that it is amazing in blu ray! 

 

Final Verdict: I could see me owning it if they make more movies. 

A Few Differences between the Movie and the Book Series (without giving too much away):

- The Pure Ones and St. Aggies' are two different groups of owls both with evil intentions

- Kludd's character is much more evil (if you can believe it)

- Soren doesn't find out until much later that Ezlryb is Lyze of Kiel

- Digger and Twilight are also orphaned owlettes not fully grown owls

9. The Green Hornet

                First I must give props to AMC theaters. I love it.  You can’t beat 5 dollars for a movie. Every Monday –Thursday before 4pm is 5 bucks. Then Saturdays before noon is 5 bucks. It’s a great deal. Never crowded. Never sold out. 

                So we ventured out on a cold Saturday morning to see the Green Hornet.  I am not a Seth Rogen fan at all. I haven’t seen most of his stuff because of the vulgarness of it so I didn’t really now what to think going into this. But I thought it was great. It was very funny, very fast pace. Now the script is a little loose. It has a lot of holes in it and some stuff doesn’t make sense. Like for instance they have the car The Black Beauty. In the Black Beauty they have everything.  Ejection seats, bulletproof glass, a fax machine and even a record player.  Are we really to believe that in all the bells and whistles in this car there is no wi-fi? Nothing that is able to handle a thumb drive?       

                The sidekick/partner/genius Kato that was made famous by Bruce Lee is now taken over by Taiwanese mega star Jay Chou.  In his first American role Chou does a great job here. His English is not that good but his charisma comes through and he was able to hold his own against Rogen. I was sad to see Cameron Diaz downgraded to “token pretty girl” I think she has way more in her and deserves better. BUT the absolutely best part of the movie was the opening scene where James Franco makes a cameo as an up and coming crime boss. Funniest thing I have seen in a movie in ages. I was crying. 

Final Verdict: Maybe not a buy it right when comes out but I can see myself owning it later when it's cheaper.  Worth seeing in theaters especially for 5 bucks.