Django Unchained

Dark Comedy, Period
4 stars
Brutally violent, yet funny.  Jaime Foxx stars as a slave who agrees to help bounty hunter Christoph Waltz in return for his freedom as well as assistance with rescuing his wife (Kerry Washington) from plantation owner Leonardo DiCaprio.  Excellent acting, especially DiCaprio as we've never seen him before.  The violence is mostly gratuitous, with exaggerated exploding blood bags that can't help but make you laugh with how silly it is - typical Quentin Tarantino. But then there are some truly disturbing, brutal acts of violence as well. Very good, but not for the faint of heart.

Les Miserables

Musical, Drama
5 stars
Loved it!  Hugh Jackman stars as Jean Valjean, a man just released from prison, who raises the little Cosette (Amanda Seyfried).  Oh, there's lots more to the story, but why give it all away?   I loved that the stars sang the songs as they acted, rather than being dubbed over later - I found these performances so much more powerful, and less staged.  If they were off-key, I was too busy sniffling to notice.  I am not even an Anne Hathaway fan, but she made me cry at least twice.  I thought the singing was excellent (even Russell Crowe!); the acting was outstanding; the story is of course very moving.  For all the critics out there who didn't like it, they obviously don't like Broadway theater musicals, or maybe they just don't get it.  The audience at the showing I went to all applauded at the end - though I was too busy blowing my nose!  This film is for those who loved the famous musical, and those who never got a chance to see it.  Bring lots of tissues.  Bravo!

This is 40

Comedy
3 stars
Part funny, part depressing.  Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann (wife of writer/director Judd Apatow) play a couple approaching their respective 40th birthdays while raising two daughters and dealing with financial troubles.  Apatow films are generally too raunchy for me, but this one was OK in that respect save for one gross conversation regarding Mann's workout friend and her "nerve damage".  I wish I never even saw that scene - eew!  But when the film got really into their financial problems and Mann started questioning her marriage, it just got too depressing for me.  I was expecting a light comedy, and much of it was, but Apatow should stay away from the serious stuff.  Good for fans of Apatow.

Jack Reacher

Action, Dry Comedy
4 stars
Smart action thriller starring Tom Cruise as a former Military Policeman and brilliant detective and who comes out of hiding to assist in the investigation of a sniper shooting rampage.  Rosamund Pike (An Education, Wrath of the Titans) co-stars as the daughter of the DA (Richard Jenkins) who has chosen to represent the shooter. I thought this was a well done, very intelligent story.  However, it felt like a few details were skimmed over too quickly (such as why was Reacher demoted from the MP? among others); details that I assume were explained in greater detail in the book version.  I didn't read the book, but although Cruise does not physically resemble the title character, he has proven he can pull off fight scenes quite well, and be convincing as a highly intelligent character.  Very good film.

Guilt Trip

Comedy
3 stars
Cute light comedy where Seth Rogen takes his Mom (Barbra Streisand) on a cross-country road trip.  There are a few outtakes after the closing credits begin.  It's predictable of course, but good for a few laughs.

The Hobbit, 3D

4.5 stars
Fantasy, Adventure
Fun movie.  The first film in a trilogy(!) based on the single book of the same title.  Bilbo Baggins is recruited by Gandolf the Wizard to embark on a journey with a group of dwarves to help them reclaim their castle.  They encounter many dangers and strange beings along the way.  The New Zealand backdrop is stunning, the visual graphics are cool and I loved the close-ups of Gollum's face!  I read this book twice back when I was a teen, but my memory fails me.  From what I recall it seems to follow along closely with the book, and at about the same pace.  I did not experience the vertigo that some people have been experiencing with the 3D version.  I did think that a few times the camera moved too quickly when it was panning, resulting in a blurry picture - especially when they first encountered those giant wolves.  Fun movie.

Playing For Keeps

Chick Flick, Drama
3.5 stars
Predictable but cute.  Gerard Butler stars as a former soccer star who tries to win back the hearts of his ex-wife (Jessica Biel) and son.  Catherine Zeta-Jones, Uma Thurman and Judy Greer all play desperate soccer moms vying for his heart - or least into his bedroom.  Dennis Quaid co-stars as a strange character whose source of wealth and motives regarding Butler are unclear.  Cute but forgettable.

Killing Them Softly

Drama, Crime
3.5 stars
Very dark; Jim liked it.  Brad Pitt stars as a slick hit man called in to whack some thugs.  James Gandolfini co-stars as a profane pig of a man.  I really hated his character.  The acting is very good, but nothing we haven't already seen from any of these actors.  The film moves slowly for dramatic effect,  much like in the film Drive.  However, in Drive, at least there was some hope for the characters to have a better future.  In Softly, all the characters are losers, and whether they succeed in their schemes or not, will continue to be losers.  Too dark for me and lacking any wry comic relief.  But as I said, Jim liked it.

Rise of the Guardians

Family, Animation
4 stars
Cute.  All our childhood fantasy characters are reinvented for this fun filled adventure as the good guys try to stop the Boogie Man (Jude Law) from haunting children's dreams.  If you can get past all the characters being different from how you know them (Santa (Alec Baldwin) is a tattooed Russian, The Easter Bunny (Hugh Jackman) is a big tough guy, etc), it's really a fun story.  To give you an idea: I wanted to change my seat in the theater, but I couldn't find a good time to take my eyes away from the screen to do so.  Very cute film.