sammi says

Warning: Do not go see this movie without a bottle of water.

"127 Hours," directed by Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) tells the true story of Aron Ralston, an avid rock climber who gets his hand trapped by a boulder that breaks free in a canyon. Ralston, played by James Franco is stuck between a rock and a hard place for 127 hours before he takes the plunge and cuts his arm off to free himself.

You probably remember hearing about this story on the news when it happened in 2003.... you know how it turns out, he cuts his arm off and survives...Despite knowing how this movie ends, it is so worth seeing.

The film moves at a pretty fast pace. The score by A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire) fits perfectly. The music, along with Boyle's direction kept me on edge and anxious the whole film, even before Ralston is trapped. Every move Franco made kept me guessing if this was the moment it was going to happen and what is going to happen next.

Franco's performance, the way he embodies this character that is absolutely hopeless was incredibly moving. I loved the moments where he was speaking into his handheld video camera, giving his last words to his family and examining his life. The use of flashbacks and hallucinations blended seamlessly into the narrative. It's not all doom and gloom. There's a scene where he is so dehydrated and incoherent that he hosts his own talk show, interviewing himself, which lightens the mood but also reveals a lot about his character and the life that he's led.

I had heard that viewers passed out or got nauseous during the amputation scene. I was skeptical about their reactions...I watch "Dexter," so I've seen my fair share of limb removal...Wow, was I wrong. There was a moment where Ralston breaks his bone and as I was watching with my mouth agape, this loud, disgusting noise involuntarily came out of me. Was it a scream? Was I gagging? I don't know, but it was pretty unexpected. My own ridiculousness made me start cracking up during one the most intense parts of the movie. Let's just say that the scene is as disturbing as they say. No matter how many scary movies you watch, seeing a man amputate his own arm and knowing that this 100% actually happened, is so much different.

This is one of those films that really makes you want to examine your own life. Not so much in the sense of what would you do in a survival situation, but about your priorities. He should have called his mom back, he shouldn't have acted like such a hot shot to his co-worker, the list could go on and on. Sure, he lost his arm but you get the sense that he gained so much more from the experience.

I left the theatre with sweaty palms, incredibly thirsty and a little overwhelmed. I really enjoyed the movie, but it's definitely not one of those movies you can watch over and over again.

Simply put, "Kick-Ass" kicked ass.

I wasn't thrilled by the trailers leading up to the release of the movie but it got an 80% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes so I figured I'd give it a go. I didn't really know what to expect, is it an action movie? Is it a comedy? Turns out, it was a healthy mixture of both.

The premise...Dave (Aaron Johnson), a comic book-loving high schooler who is mugged frequently, decides to take matters into his own hands and become a superhero despite his lack of superhuman strength, the ability to fly, or any kind of power other than a high tolerance for pain. He orders a scuba diving suit and transforms himself into Kick-Ass. He becomes a YouTube sensation and finds out that he's not the only civilian to take matters into his own hands. He encounters the father-daughter duo of Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and Hit Girl (Chloe Moretz) along with the dorky Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse).

Sounds pretty funny, right? It is hilarious but is also the most graphically violent movie I have ever seen. No kidding.

I'm not really into super violent movies but I didn't find the violence as disturbing as it probably should have been. It's done in such a ridiculous, tongue in cheek way that I was mostly able to laugh rather than cringe in horror. The goriest violence is perpetrated by the foul-mouthed, ten-year-old Hit Girl. She's not invincible and takes a beating a few times which should be really disconcerting, but again, you're able to suspend disbelief and just go with it. There's a lot of blood, limbs are chopped off, people are blown up and set on fire. I'm really not joking about the violence. But lucky for us, the comedy is strong enough to balance the movie.

Definitely go see the movie but be prepared for brutal violence and lots of laughs.

"The Runaways" was probably the movie most likely to disappoint, that didn't. The music is what intrigued me to see this movie; the actors chosen to play Runaways member's Cherie Curie (Dakota Fanning) and Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) scared me. Kristen Stewart is one of those actresses you either love or hate, there is no in between. I had not been aware of Kristen in her pre-"Twilight" indie movie roles and only started paying attention when she became a gossip-column fixture. I was not impressed with her acting skills in "Twilight," but since I've seen more of her body of work I want to blame her bad rep on the "Twilight" material and the character she plays.

If you've ever seen an interview with Stewart she seems like the most awkward, confused, twitchy person which can certainly rub people the wrong way. In a way, I think she almost has John Mayer-syndrome. We're so used to celebrities acting a certain way; having rehearsed answers to questions, to keep their opinions to themselves and basically have their guard up at all times. Like John Mayer, I think she says the first thing that comes to her mind and is more honest and real than most young actresses. She dresses like crap, doesn't smile at the paparazzi and generally doesn't enjoy her level of fame. I wouldn't expect a clothing line, perfume or ad campaign out of her anytime soon and that's sort of refreshing.

It seems that smaller roles like Joan Jett in "The Runaways" really suit Kristen Stewart. I thought she sounded amazing, had a kick ass attitude and was overall extremely likable and believable as Joan Jett. Even though the story is focused more around Cherie Curie, Kristen stole the show. I never once thought during the movie that Bella Swan was playing a rock star, whereas I had a harder time believing sweet, baby-faced Dakota Fanning was the over-sexualized, sultry, drug-ridden Curie. I don't think it was necessarily Fanning's acting that didn't work, but more along the lines of forever remembering her as the adorable brat in "Uptown Girls." During the more racy scenes I couldn't help but think, "You're just a little girl!!!" Which in retrospect, is probably what the audience is supposed to be thinking considering the real-life Curie was also only 15 years old during the Runaways rise to fame.

I left the movie feeling pleasantly surprised. The music was great. The hair, make up and costumes kept me interested the entire time. There were a few scenes that seemed too dragged out, but other than that, the movie rocked*.


*pun intended

A couple of weeks ago, Edward Norton started hitting the talk show circuit promoting an HBO documentary he produced, "By The People: The Election of Barack Obama." He said it was this amazing film and they were so lucky to have this all access pass to Obama and his staff during the 2 year journey to the presidency. I started to get really excited hoping to see what Barack's really like or to see the inner workings of his campaign. I imagined it to be the Obama equivalent to Clinton's election documentary, "The War Room," which I loved.

So on November 3, one year after Obama's election, "By The People" aired on HBO. I was expecting to get all those warm fuzzy feelings I had on election night, and let's just say that wasn't the case. Instead I sat through two hours of a jumbled mess. "By The People," directed by Amy Rice and Alicia Sam's viewed more like a college film project. I understand that it must have been overwhelming for these two to handle such a huge undertaking, especially when the documentary started off as just a profile of a young Illinois senator....they never expected him to run for president much less be granted access to his entire campaign.

To put it simply, "By The People: The Election of Barack Obama," spread itself way too thin. Documentary's still have to tell a story even though their subjects are real. "By The People" is basically a compilation of all the best footage captured over a few years. It shows the community organizers in Iowa before the caucus, Obama's top staffers and their roles, the drama with the Rev. Wright and Bill Ayers scandals, Michelle and the kids at home, Obama speaking to reporters, his history growing up in Hawaii and even some Hilary drama.

To me, the most compelling pieces of the film were the parts showing all the young people involved in his campaign. Ronnie Cho, for instance, who runs the community organizers state to state throughout the campaign, made frequent phone calls to his Korea-born mother to keep her updated on the progress. Or Jon Faverau, the twenty-something head speechwriter for Obama, who sit calmly through the different polls an adjusts Obama's speeches accordingly. It was very moving to hear Mike Blake, another young organizer, choking up when speaking of what it means to him, a young African American, to have Obama so close to the presidency. The film is called "By The People" and these young people along with all the community organizers, volunteers and inspired young voters are what made it possible for Obama to win the election.

The documentary would have worked much better if it was more of narrative and less of a highlight reel. "By The People: The Election of Barack Obama," can be seen at various times on HBO and also anytime On Demand.

2. Beware of Bathrooms
3. Wear a Seatbelt
8. Get a Kick Ass Partner
15. Know Your Way Out
17. Don't Be a Hero
18. Limber Up
23. God Bless Rednecks
31. Check the Backseat

These are just a few of the rules that one must follow to survive in "Zombieland." There is no more Los Angeles, Austin, or Phoenix...only Zombieland, according to the lone survivors of a zombie outbreak, caused by a mad-cow disease like virus. The movie follows Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), a college student and self-described loser who attributes his survival to the fact that he actually lived like a zombie his whole life; a loner with no strong ties to family or friends, spending his time indoors playing World of Warcraft and drinking Code Red Mountain Dew. Columbus discovers that when the whole world turns into the walking-dead that he actually longs for human contact. Luckily he ventures outside of his dorm-room and meets hillbilly-badass, Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) who is trolling the former United States in search of a Twinkie. It's Tallahassee's idea to only be referred to by their former hometowns and not their real names...knowing someone's name makes it much more difficult to eventually kill them or watch them turn zombie.

We see scenes of crazy zombie killings as Columbus and Tallahassee review their favorite "Zombie Kills of the Week." Tallahasse keeps an arsenal of weapons and likes to use a new tool (such as guns, farming equipment, a banjo) to keep his zombie kills exciting. Tallahassee says, "My mother always said I'd be good at something. I don't think she could have guessed that something would be zombie killing." As if things aren't already interesting enough they run into a couple of con-women sisters, Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). With not much else going for them, they all travel together to California to head to an amusement park, "You've just survived the zombie apocalypse, what are you going to do now?!" "Go to Pacific Playland!" Of course their trip is not without a few bumps in the road and a couple thousand hungry zombies after their flesh.

This film, directed by Ruben Fleischer, is nothing short of the ultimate movie-going experience. The film is equal parts comedy, gore, action and drama. It's so smartly written. My favorite part of the movie is the recurring theme of displaying the rules. Columbus introduces the rules in the beginning of the movie, but as it goes on you start to see the rules actually being utilized in the intense action scenes. The use of extreme slow motion makes the zombies with blood dripping from their faces even more disgusting. The movie delivers the most hilarious and shocking cameo in a feature film in a long time. Without spoiling it, let's just say that it had the audience screaming with laughter.

There is something fundamental that keeps people interested in zombie movies. Would you survive in this situation? Would you even want to survive? What lengths would you go to survive when you have absolutely nothing left? With the ever-pending threat of viral epidemics (Swine Flu anyone?) it makes people question if this could ever happen. Ok, maybe not people, but me. I always say I'm so fascinated by zombies because I want to learn how to survive in this type of situation. I am so intrigued and terrified by post-apocalyptic situations that I can't help but immerse myself in movies and books of that subject matter. I hate scary movies but I find myself wanting to watch movies like "The Mist" (worst ending of a movie, ever, by the way) and reading guy-books like Stephen King's "The Stand," and Cormac McCarthy's, "The Road" which happens to be coming out in theaters in November.

"Zombieland" does not disappoint and puts a light-hearted spin on a terrible situation. If you need anymore reason to see this awesome movie, watch the trailer and I'm sure you'll be convinced.

Friday night I saw, "The Informant!" directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring Matt Damon. I can't really explain why I wanted to see such a film on opening night but I thought the previews made it look funny and perhaps I fell into the trap of Joel McHale's self promotion on "The Soup," every week. Turns out, McHale's part isn't very big and is actually pretty serious.

If you're not aware, this movie is based on the true story of Mark "Corky" Whitacre (Damon), a corporate executive at a lysine (some sort of corn product) plant, ADM, in Decatur, Illinois, who rats out his entire company for being a part of an international price fixing scheme. I'd be lying if I said I understood all the business lingo and intricacies this plot deals with, but there were only a few parts that I had "Huh?" moments. The heart of the story is not about the actual crime itself but how Whitacre deals with the FBI, his co-workers and family through his years of undercover work in the 1990's.

Throughout all of these horribly dry business situations we're able to hear Whitacre's inner-dialogue which makes the movie. He quips lines about little anecdotes he's heard before or when meeting the FBI agent (played by Scott Bakula) how he thinks that they could probably be friends and go fishing together. Whitacre is portrayed as this lovable, well educated, family-man good guy, but as the movie goes on we learn that he is a compulsive liar among many other less-than desirable things.

This film is very subtle in its humor and is very dry. It kept me interested through all 108 minutes, but it probably isn't for everyone. Leaving the theatre, I could hear a group of 20-somethings in front of us complaining about how boring the film was and how one of them fell asleep. I don't know if they just didn't know what they were getting into, or what. Heaven forbid you see a comedy that has a little bit of meat behind it. There are also small parts played by comedians like Patton Oswald and Tony Hale if that makes you more interested. I thought Damon was fantastic and funny and I'd recommend the movie to a friend.

Last night I saw the new film, "Julie & Julia" directed by Nora Ephron based on the true story of blogger Julie Powell (Amy Adams) and her channeling of cooking hero, Julia Child (Meryl Streep). I really enjoyed it. I think it's great to see a movie starring women that isn't just for old ladies and isn't a Katherine Heigl-esque, rated-R, romantic comedy disaster. The movie intertwines the two stories seamlessly from 2002 with Powell blogging about her challenge to go through the 524 recipes in Julia Child's cookbook in a year to the 1950's telling Child's story of her start in cooking and creating the book.

Meryl Streep is of course fantastic as Julia Child lighting up the screen and putting a smile on my face in every scene. She portrays her in a such a strong yet charming way that you can really understand Julie Powell's worship of the woman. Amy Adams makes Julie Powell a likable, relatable character despite her hideous hairstyle. Powell's story takes place in 2002 and I was sitting in the theatre racking my brain trying to remember if people in 2002 actually had that hair cut. Upon reviewing the real Julie Powell's current blog (http://juliepowell.blogspot.com) it seems that these days she is anything but frumpy.

I was shocked and delighted to find out mid-movie that Jane Lynch plays Julia's sister Dorothy. If you're wondering who the heck Jane Lynch is, she's appeared in basically every funny movie and television show since the early 2000's, most notably, "Role Models." On another note, be prepared to be a little grossed out hearing the sounds of people eating and chewing. I know this should be expected in a movie all about food but mind you I watch TV while eating dinner to drown out the sound of my own chewing. I got over it, but for the first five minutes or so I was cursing the foley artists that thought that was a good idea.

There is one disappointing aspect to the film which you shouldn't read if you don't want a slight spoiler...

In the last five minutes of the movie we find out that Julia Child doesn't really care for Julie Powell's blog and it's actually portrayed that this perfect woman we grow to love and admire throughout the film hates Julie Powell. Powell gets over it but it left me wondering if Julia Child really hated Julie Powell or if she was just a 90 year old woman who didn't give a crap. I guess I'm not the only one who felt it was a little odd to put it in the movie and actually Julie Powell herself addresses the issue in the most current post on her blog. Either way, it didn't ruin the overall feel-goodness of this film.

So far the movie is kicking butt at the box office and holding its own against "G.I. Joe." I hope that this proves that female driven movies like this one can make money and are worth making!