The Social Network Review

The Social Network:...a.k.a. The Facebook movie: In the fall of 2003 Mark Zuckerberg, a student at Harvard, sat at his computer in his dorm room and created a site that changed the way the world would communicate forever. If the story was that simple we would not have much of a movie and Mark Zuckerberg would not have been sued for 600 Million dollars by his best friend. The film opens up with Zuckerberg (played by Jessie Eisenberg) sitting with his then girlfriend at a restaurant on campus. The dialogue exchanged by the two characters is hilarious, fast paced, and insightful. We instantly have an understanding that Mark Zuckerberg has a yearning to be accepted. When he is approached with an opportunity to help develop a website for some classmates a light bulb goes off. Zuckerberg asks his best friend Eduardo Saverin to fund a new project of his called "The Facebook". Once the website takes off there are question marks on who deserves credit for what.....hence some major lawsuits. The movie jumps back and forth between the two lawsuits against Zuckerberg and to the time when he was creating the website. Eisenberg does an excellent job of portraying a young man who is emotionally disconnected from his friends and obsessed with creating something larger than life. He carries this film from start to finish and is ultimately the reason the movie works so well. The script is also superb, with humor laced throughout....I found this movie to be much funnier than expected. The score is done by Trent Reznor (yes, Nine Inch Nails Trent). The music supplies a dark undertone to the story and conveys the idea that something is being created that is larger than anyone expects. The only element I wanted to see explored more was the impact Facebook has had on society. This is an interesting and poignant story that is well told and entertaining......I think I will hit the "Like Button" on the film's fan page.

Rythemovieguy's Grade: B

If This Movie Had Parents they would be: War Games & Real Genius

Iron Man 2 Review

Why It's Worth Seeing: Iron Man is back and this time he brought some friends with him. The first film was a huge success with both fans and critics. Knowing this, the filmmakers did not change the formula too much, just added to it (this is not new Coke, it's Coke Classic in a bigger bottle). Tony Stark has come out to the public as being the man behind the suit. I find this refreshing compared to the typical "secret identity superhero scenario" we normally see. The U.S. military wants Tony Stark to give them the secrets behind the Iron Man technology, but Mr. Stark thinks this could only lead to inappropriate use. Meanwhile, in Moscow Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), the son of a scientist who worked with Tony Stark's dad is hard at work harnessing similar technology to use against Iron Man. Besides some spectacular action scenes the film is filled with perfectly written characters and witty dialogue. Sam Rockwell in particular shines as Justin Hammer who is working for the Defense Department. I must also note that Gary Shandling shined in his small role as Senator Stern (I'm a closet Shandling fan). Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson both pop up as characters that the comic book fans will enjoy even more than the casual fan.

Why It's Not: To be honest the movie does very little wrong. The only knock against it would be that the story and characters do not feel as fresh as they did the first time around. They did not take too many risks with pushing the Iron Man story-arc in a new direction.

Verdict: The summer movie season gets off to a fantastic start. This is a pitch-perfect summer blockbuster that mixes high octane action with fun, well written dialogue.

Rythemovieguy's Grade: B+

If this movie had parents they would be: Iron Man & Rocky IV

The Ghost Writer

Why It's Worth Seeing: Roman Polanski directs a political thriller starring Pierce Brosnan and Ewan McGregor. Early on in the film I thought this might be one of those plot lines that is difficult to follow, but in the hands of Polanski the story flows effortlessly onto the screen. McGregor plays a ghost writer hired to finish the memoirs of a former British Prime Minister (Brosnan). Shortly after taking the job, the Prime Minister finds himself under investigation for war crimes. As the ghost writer digs up facts about the Prime Minister, he uncovers secrets that are extremely classified, with indications of a major conspiracy. Suspense builds as the ghost writer now finds his life in danger.

Why It's Not: You might not want to support Polanski considering his bouts with the law.

Verdict: This is a near perfect thriller that gives off a "Hitchcock" kind of vibe. It has a smart storyline, it is suspensful, and the acting is spot on. I am a big fan and believe you will be too!!!

Rythemovieguy's Grade: A-

If this movie had parents: Secret Window & All The President's Men

The Last Station

Why It's Worth Seeing: An extremely strong cast headed by Christopher Plummer as the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. Playing his confidant Vladimir Chertkov is the always reliable Paul Giamatti while Helen Mirren gives a spectacular performance as Tolstoy's wife Sofya. Plus we have James McAvoy playing Valentin Bulgakov, an admirer of Tolstoy sent to observe the relationship between the author and his wife. The strong cast is complimented by a strong story. It takes place in Tolstoy's later years, much after he has written Anna Karenina and War and Peace. There is a struggle between Tolstoy's confidant and his wife as to who should have the rights to his published works after his death. Meanwhile the Tolstoy movement is in full swing, yet Tolstoy's relationship with his wife of 48 years challenges the beliefs of the movement while giving us an understanding of what love is all about.

Why It's Not: All the actors are speaking English with an English accent, yet they are suppose to be playing Russians.

Verdict: This is an interesting and entertaining look at one of the world's greatest authors. The story is multilayer and filled with complex characters. It is a movie that gave me something to chew about.........and that is refreshing!

Rythemovieguy's Grade: B+

If this movie had parents: Shakespeare In Love & Doctor Zhivago

Shutter Island

Why It's Worth Watching: Leonardo DiCaprio teams up with Martin Scorsese for the fourth time and they do not disappoint. Ben Kingsley also pours in a fine performance as a doctor to the criminally insane housed on Shutter Island. Like many psychological thrillers, the plot will keep you guessing until the final few scenes. However what is different about Shutter Island and what I believe makes it standout, is that the revelation at the end is not the ultimate payoff. Instead, the revelation helps us relate to an already mysterious and tragic character.

Why It's Not: How many more movies can we see in a mental hospital. While the film supplies a couple of creepy moments, I would have liked to been scared a bit more.

The Verdict: You should not go in thinking this is some M. Night Shyamalan guess what is going to happen kind of film.....because it is not. The revelation at the end is a haunting understanding of the character being studied.

Rythemovieguy's Grade: B+

If This Movie Had Parents: One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest & The Game

Ryan's Top 10 of 2009

Top Ten of 09: James Cameron gave us his first movie in 12 years, J.J. Abrams rebooted the Star Trek franchise and Mike Tyson appeared in one of the funniest movies of the year. 2009 gave us many gems and unlike most years did not wait for the last month of the year to unleash them. Some of my favorite movies came out over the summer and early fall. Below I list my top 10 favorite films of 2009. As always I have included a second opinion as Jen is along side me for the nearly 70 movies I checked out this year (it would be no fun otherwise). Although there may not be a runaway favorite picture, it still proved to be a great year for cinema.

10. A Single Man

9. Star Trek (review)

8. In The Loop (review)

7. Where The Wild Things Are (review)

6. Fantastic Mr. Fox

5. Up In The Air

4. Avatar

3. 500 Days of Summer

2. Invictus

1. An Education

Jen's Top 10 of 2009

10. Crazy Heart

9. A Single Man

8. Precious

7. Fantasic Mr. Fox

6. Up In The Air

5. 500 Days of Summer

4. In Glorious Basterds (review)

3. Invictus

2. In The Loop

1. An Education

Youth In Revolt Review

Youth In Revolt: Michael Cera does play the same character we have come to know and love (awkward/nerdy), but he also pulls double duty as an alter ego that is a dangerous troublemaker. The awkward Nick Twisp (Cera) falls in love with a girl in another town while on vacation. His only way to get reunited with her is to somehow get kicked out of his mother's house. He would then have to live with his dad (played by Steve Buscemi) who has recently taken residency in the same town as his new love. To accomplish this feat he takes on the alter ego - Francois Dillinger. Francois supplies about 75% off all the film's humor. Without this change of character the film would have felt completely unoriginal. I felt the story as a whole felt a bit choppy, with a lot of scenes and smaller characters just thrown in for humor and not adding much to the plot. While some of the jokes are on the border of being stale, most still work rather well. I do not recommend going out to the theater to see this latest Cera fare, but when it comes to DVD - give it a spin!

Rythemovieguy's Rating: B-

If this movie had parents they would be: Fight Club & Rushmore

With a run time of 91 minutes

This film is rated R