Netflix Reviews #6

Limitless

When I heard that Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) and Robert DeNiro were going to be starring in a Neil Burger (The Illusionist) movie, I was excited. I loved The Illusionist and was excited to see what was next for Burger. This sci-fi thriller is pretty good. Not as good as I was expecting, but it was still an entertaining movie with an entertaining premise and a couple of interesting shots. I was surprised at how little the female cast had to do. They were just sort of there to motivate Cooper's Eddie but otherwise, they are nonexistent. I did like the effects that they used whenever Eddie used the drug. There was a frenetic feel to the camera work and I felt that worked to the films advantage even though it might be a little dizzying. So, in the end, its an interesting movie that works. Check it out.

7 out of 10

Buried

This movie was nominated for 10 Goya Awards, winning three of them. Then again, some movies that tend to win the festivals are sometimes over hyped. This movie was probably over hyped. It's not a bad movie, and surprisingly, its not a boring movie. It did keep me on the edge of my seat and the ending was surprising. I sort of had to remember to breathe during the last 5 minutes of the movie when Ryan Reynolds' Paul Conroy begins to break down. I have never seen anything by director Rodrigo Cortés, but I'm interested in his movies now. Now, don't get me wrong, the movie is all of those things I mentioned above, and Ryan Reynolds performance is surprisingly good... but there is something about this movie that makes me uneasy. Maybe its the premise, but I'm not sure its anything to do with the story, and more with the movie itself. For example, that scene with the snake. It seemed out of place and sort of throws the movie off in my opinion. Either way, some credit has to be given for actually being able to elicit an emotional response from those watching... unlike the next film...

6 out of 10

Blue Valentine

Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams star in this bore fest of a movie directed by Derek Cianfrance. There's nothing about this movie that made me feel anything for either of these characters. They are both extremely unlikable so it was hard for me to like them at all. It tells the story of this married couple and how they began and where they eventually ended up. Nothing new or interesting about it. People get fat and bald and bitchy and they fall out of love... happens all the time. This was just an uninteresting way to see it happen. If there are any redeeming qualities to this movie, its probably the performances by both Gosling and Williams, other than that... if you can, skip this movie. There are many better movies out there to watch.

4 out of 10

The Spanish Prisoner

I remember watching a David Mamet film a long time ago and thinking he was an incredible writer of dialogue. After that, I have tried to find most of the movies he has directed and some of the movies he has written a screenplay for and they all seem to have amazing dialogue. Glengarry Glen Ross is amazing and the underrated Spartan is also very good. This particular movie doesn't stray far from what has made Mamet what he is, a con movie. Campbell Scott is really good as Joe, the man who invents a "Process" that will earn his company a lot of money. He plays the mark incredibly well. You root for him all the way. Rebecca Pidgeon is also really good as the love interest, but my favorite character is the dodgy millionaire Jimmy as played by Steve Martin. It was surprising to see him in a role as this one instead of the quirky, funny guy that we are always used to. Anyways, if you like con movies with incredible dialogue, check this one out. Also, check out some of Mamet's other stuff as well.

8 out of 10

Your Highness

From the makers of Pineapple Express, this movie is a fantasy comedy about two completely different princes, played by James Franco and the hilarious Danny McBride, who go on a quest to save Franco's wife to be and McBride's sense of self worth. Look, this movie is dumb. It will not win any awards or be one of those movies that you will be watching 20 years from now, but for what it is, its an entertaining, raunchy comedy that pays homage and also makes fun of the fantasy genre. Justin Theroux is hilarious as the bad wizard Leezar and Natalie Portman is just okay as Isabel. Some of the jokes are just meh, but you can't help but laugh at most of it. And that is what I rate this one on. I wish Hollywood would make more comedy films for adults instead of the PG comedies that we normally get. Also, director David Gordon Green is someone to keep an eye on. I loved 2007's Snow Angels (not at all like you'd expect) and of course 2008's Pineapple Express.

6.5 out of 10

A Tale of Two Superhero Movies

Captain America: The First Avenger vs Green Lantern

The WWF versus the WCW, Citizen Kane versus Casablanca, Edward versus Jakob are some of the biggest rivalries in the histories of each respective genre (pro-wrestling, cinema and pussy chick boy-toys respectively). In the world of comics, DC Comics and Marvel are the big dogs in town. Sure, there are many independent publishers that are pretty damn good, but in the minds of most fans you are either a Marvel fan or a DC fan, there's no two ways about it. You can like both, of course, but one of them will be your favorite. Whether one or the other is better can be argued by those that know this world better than I.

This summer we were presented with an interesting opportunity, two movies that came out that represent both brands. Representing Marvel, Captain America is one of their most important figures. Steve Rogers is a scrawny kid from Manhattan with a mighty chip on his shoulder who signs up for an experiment that gives him superhuman power. After beefing up, the Cap'n is sent to fight the biggest scourge of the 1940s... Nazis! Green Lantern, who represents DC is also an iconic character of comic lore. Hal Jordan is a brash, selfish and egomaniacal guy who is chosen by the power ring to become a part of the Green Lanter Corps. (a sort of intergalactic police force) in substitution of the previous owner of the ring.

These are both flagship superheroes for their respective companies but have both been mostly overlooked (not counting that terrible Captain America movie from 1990) in favor of the Superman's, Batman's, and Spidermans of the comic world. Now, I'm basically going to compare the two and see who wins.

Leading Role

I think Steve Rogers wins this one. Because, while I think Hal Jordan is the more interesting character, in the movies he is turned into a really whiny wannabe wiseass with daddy issues. He annoyed the hell out of me. While Rogers is a pretty tame character, Chris Evans really did a great job in giving this character life and made him feel bigger than mere reality. He definitely seemed like a hero to me. I thought Ryan Reynolds would have been fantastic as Jordan, and while he left a lot to be desired, I don't blame it entirely on him. I put most of the blame on the terrible screenplay that finds more time for his romantic life and his daddy issues than for anything else. Also, was I the only one completely surprised at how well Hal Jordan took the whole aliens exist thing?

Winner: Captain America/Steve Rogers as played by Chris Evans

Supporting Cast

This was a pretty hard one to choose as both movies have some really interesting secondary characters. Especially Tommy Lee Jones (channeling K from Men in Black) in full on sarcastic and wiseass mode. He steals every single scene he is in. I thought Captain America would have been pretty average without him there. As far as the villains go, Hugo Weaving as Red Skull was pretty kick ass. He was fantastic (as he normally is) and makes Peter Sarsgaard's Hector Hammond look like a blathering idiot (also with daddy issues... damn this movie).

Hugo Weaving makes what might have been the cheesiest bad guy ever into a kick-ass nazi killing machine.

Parallax is supposed to be this kick-ass villain but the movie doesn't really take advantage of it. The thing I loved about Green Lantern was his fellow Corps. members, or at least the ones we got to meet. Mark Strong as Sinestro is incredible and I'd have much preferred to have seen a movie about him than Hal Jordan. And I would have liked to have seen more of Kilowog as voiced by Michael Clarke Duncan.

And he's down for the ten count before the bell even rung.

In terms of the love interests, Blake Lively was definitely the highlight of Green Lantern as she was able to take some fondue worthy scenes and work them to the best of her ability. Her relationship with Hal Jordan seemed a lot more natural and thus worked better on film. Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell never really had that chemistry on screen and the relationship felt forced. Almost like she only fell for Rogers once he got big muscles and superhuman powers... talk about high standards.

Winner: Captain America

Plot

These are both superhero movies, so their plots are pretty straight forward. There are no M. Night-like twist endings. I thought Green Lantern's universe was a lot more interesting because it was different. But, I have to admit that it feels special to know that the Captain America universe is part of something bigger than itself. The idea that most of the movies Marvel Studios has released so far are part of what will be the Avengers movie makes it feel like I'm immersed in something bigger than just a single movie. It's a lot like Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. It's bigger than normal. You see the movies expecting to see easter eggs that will make you go 'oh snap' like seeing Captain America's shield in Tony Stark's lab. But here we actually get Howard Stark (Tony's father) as an important piece in the experiment that turns Rogers into the Captain. Of course, the main story is straight forward but its still performed a lot better than Green Lantern's. The biggest flaw I saw with the Lantern was that it took too much time away from something as interesting as the Corps. and instead focused too much on Jordan's daddy issues and his love interest Carol Ferris. Also, it is unquestionable that the Lantern's biggest villain was a flop.

I would have liked to have seen a little bit more of Hal Jordan and his interactions with the Crops. members. That would have been the true meat on this movies bones, but it failed at that and at almost everything else. The only thing that excited me about it was the possibility of a movie based a lot more on Sinestro.

Winner: Captain America

So basically, I believe that as a whole, Captain America as a whole is a much better movie than Green Lantern. It's not even a fair fight. Captain America is well done, with the atmosphere that screams USA in the 1940s but with the ship sailing straight towards 2012 and the release of The Avengers. Green Lantern gave us an interesting universe that is not explored in order to show us glimpses of Hal Jordan's whiny self and his uninteresting problems. In the end, its obvious which of the movies is better.

Captain America rating: 7.5 out of 10
Green Lantern rating: 4 out of 10

Gratuitous Blake Lively pic.