Ananas

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - 9.5/10 After 4 viewings, this film still has the ability to completely catch me off guard. Even putting aside the phenomenal performances by Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey (who I am still shocked to realise half way through that this is the same guy who made Ace Ventura), even putting aside the breakthrough direction from Michael Gondry (who seems to flawlessly recreate the dream world), it's Charlie Kaufman's completely astute and nearly flawless script that really makes this movie what it is. The movie's soundtrack also clearly aides the film, with an eclectic mix of artists such as Beck, The Polyphonic Spree, ELO and the composition of Jon Brion, whose score for the movie really strikes a chord in some of the more emotional sequences. Still the best movie of 2004, and still a thumbs up.

While we're going down that road of Smallville cast members in a Superman movie, how do you feel about Erica Durance as Lois? I guess it's too early to tell (after only one episode), but I liked her. After three seasons of such a one dimensional Lana character (through no fault of Kristen Kreuk), it's refreshing to see Lois be the complete anti-Lana.

I'm sure Singer can do a great Superman, but you're talking about a generation that's grown up now for 4 years with Smallville. They're going to be confused as hell when they realize that there's no Chloe, no Lionel, and no Lex-Clark friendship in Metropolis. I'm just saying a Smallville movie will be better for continuity purposes. Am I looking forward to Superman? Of course I am. Would I rather see Welling and Rosenbaum on the big screen? Yes. ←

If we're including TV mini's, "Angels in America" is 352 minutes.

Of course Singer can do it. Did you see what he accomplished with the first 2 X-Men movies? If anything he's the perfect guy for the job. Gough and Millar are completely wrong for a Superman movie. They can do the teen romance version with Smallville, and the often soapy Spiderman, but a Superman movie is an entirely different animal, and Singer (and his writing team) has proven very capable in making straightforward comic adapted action movies.

Star Wars - Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back - 9/10 For a classic like "Empire Strikes Back", it would be foolish to expect anything other than 5 stars. Widely though of to be the best of the "Star Wars" saga, it's easily the darkest of the series. Mark Hamill really gives a crucial performance in this film (helped by the fact that he was a few more years mature than in "A New Hope"), and is able to establish Luke Skywalker as the most watchable character. The "Luke, I am your father" line is perhaps the most famous in movie history, and this is a classic that will be enjoyed for generations to come. Thumbs up.

Oh my god, Beatnik likes a former Angel cast-member. Armageddon~! No, seriously, I watched bits and pieces of it. I was busy watching Smallville, but I've heard it's a good show. My parents watched it and said it was a good show. I only tuned in because I heard David Fury is a writer on the show. Anyways, I might catch it next-week. We'll see. ←

On Wednesday ABC rolled out its new drama Lost, the story of a group of people who survive a plane crash. I for one had the same level of cynicism that I practise with all ABC shows, but this one is different. It has a cinematic level of 24-like coolness, only a much more solid cast (Matthew Fox, Emilie de Ravin, Harold Perrineau Jr, Dominic Monaghan, Ian Somerhalder, Daniel Dae Kim). I thought that the Pilot was fantastic, and very timely as the current (and embarassingly mediocre) version of Survivor transpires. So did anyone else catch this masterpiece? For those interested, it's on Wednesdays at 8pm.

Darklight - 4/10 As it's a made for TV movie, that's about as close to a poster as I can get. The first 30 minutes of this movie are pitiful. Just a bunch of horrible dialogues and cheesy action sequences thrown together. However, as the film continues, we get to see two things: 1) that the film really finds its footing in the second half, and 2) that Shiri Appleby actually can act (despite what Roswell and Swimfan may have indicated). The final action sequence is redeeming, and if a sequel were done with more of the same it may be very entertaining, but as is, this is just a bad movie. Thumbs down.

Johnny Cash - Personal Jesus *ducks* Actually, Iron and Wine's cover of The Postal Service's "Such Great Heights" is awesome.

Star Wars - Episode IV: A New Hope - 9.5/10 My all time favorite movie is also one of the most brilliantly made films ever. George Lucas used an obscenely low budget (due to his breakthrough vision in special effects) to craft a film that is both cost effective and visually impressive. It's also the prototype for science fiction and action/adventure films to follow, although the craft is yet to be improved on. Key performances by Alec Guiness and Harrison Ford in this one, before Mark Hamill truly takes over the final two films of the series. Thumbs up, although, did you expect anything different?

How the mighty have fallen... oh wait... How the annoying child actors who grew up to be annoying smug anti-Christian assholes have fallen. That's better.

Was The Passion good? I haven't seen it yet. The Punisher takes over the number one spot. If I recall The Punisher wasn't that big in theaters was it or am I thinking of another film. ←

By the way, were you dead on with the ending? ←

Wicker Park - 4/10 Such a tacky film need not involve such talents as Rose Byrne and Jessica Pare, but sadly it does. Matthew Lillard is proving to be surprisingly proficient as he gets a little older (this is really proving to be a big year for him) but there is little to be said for Hartnett and Kruger. There are tons of really mixed messages being sent in this film, and I think the director attempts to barrage the viewer with style in an attempt to make them overlook a general lack of plot development. This is like Secret Window in the sense that it's essentially a one performance movie; namely the performance of Rose Byrne as Alex. Other then that, there's little to be admired about the film. Thumbs down.

From what I'm hearing, it's quite crappy so go in expecting suckiness. ←

Sky Captain and the World of Tommorow - 7/10 The movie is kind of a mix of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, but more importantly it acts as a proper tribute to both those movies instead of failing to live up to the hype. Jude Law is terrific in his role, although it could be argued that Gwyneth Paltrow really stars (and does quite well herself). I really enjoyed the style of animation employed, and supppose the film was made for a fraction of the costs of making a live action version. The movie cost 70 million to make (salaries included), and looks like a 200 million dollar film. The plot isn't anything new, but it's clear that this type of filmmaking is ideal in producing imaginative visions at a fraction of the cost. Hopefully the studio gets their way, and we get a series of films, because this really feels like an Indiana Jones for the 21st century. Thumbs up. Without A Paddle - 5/10 I actually saw this film a couple of weeks ago, but I thought I'd pass along my thoughts now. While Dax Shepard and Matthew Lillard are both entertaining on screen, but it's become abundantly clear to me that Seth Green has stopped bringing anything new to his performances. This is mostly overdone stuff that seems to find its way into every teen marketed comedy. There are plenty of decent laughs, but most of all this is a comedy that manages to stay afloat for 95 minutes without really impressing. Thumbs down. Hoping to get to see Wicker Park tonight, but who knows really.

Other. Clerks.

Me likee. I'll check it out on iTunes, since I'm guessing the rest of that comp CD will probably be trash.

Henry was the only player that impressed me last night (and obviously one must bear in mind how little I know about the sport). As a North American fan I found it interesting to see DaMarcus Beasley in the lineup, even if he wasn't really a factor. Some great runs from Reyes, but he was ultimately uneffective. All in all not a bad match.