193. January 25/30, 2011 - Countdown: The Sky's On Fire (1998)

According to this film, the hypothetical hole in the ozone layer is going to kill us by cooking us to death as we hike in the desert (a valid danger, but not limited to times when there is a hole in the ozone layer) and by driving hoards of bugs into our homes (scarier when it was the Bug Man on Buffy the Vampire Slayer). This is fun to watch as a bad movie and definitely funny to think of as being taken seriously. Bradley Whitford looks a little like a tool with such short hair and John Corbett is sort of adorable as the Scientist Who Saves The Day.
My Netflix rating: 2 stars

192. January 28/29, 2011 - Little Children (2006)

Besides all of the actors being awesome, the most striking thing about this film for me this time around was the odd use of voice over. The invisible narrator is very nearly reading sections of prose right out of the novel. Normally I see voice over as a storytelling crutch (which, as my friend Adam pointed out, is what we're all taught in Screenwriting 101), but here I think it's a stylistic choice. The filmmakers know that they could convey those same things through dialogue or action and are choosing to create the tone of the film with the voice over. It's effective, but very strange.

Original thoughts are here.

191. January 27, 2011 - All the King's Men (2006)

This is not the Best Picture winning film from the 40s (though that is climbing higher on my Netflix queue) but rather the remake with Sean Penn, Kate Winslet, and practically every other actor known to man. It's okay, I guess, but very forgettable. Not exactly what the filmmakers were going for, I'd bet. Sean Penn's character makes me want to punch him - I was glad for the ending of the film. I'm hoping that the 1949 version is better.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

190. January 27, 2011 - The Craigslist Killer (2010)

Yep, it's a Lifetime movie. And yes, it's sort of overdramatic. But it also only happened a year or so ago. When real life events get turned into movies (even Lifetime ones) that soon, they're bound to be melodramatic. I will say that I find it hard to believe that his fiancee would be that dumb in real life. Please tell me that they hyped that up for the movie. Also, I'm offended that they put the killer in a BU sweatshirt - I know he was in BU Med School, but do you really have to remind all of us BU grads about that?
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

189. January 26, 2011 - Tron: Legacy (2010)

Giant. Waste. Of. Time. The visual style was not interesting in any way - if I wanted to watch an 80s video game for two hours, I'm sure I could find an arcade somewhere. Tones of black, gray, and blue are not visually exciting when that's all you see all the time. The bad guys were like the mutant love child of the Sith, the Cylons, and Cobra Commander and not in a good way. Cillian Murphy and Michael Sheen had great cameos, but that's all the good I can come up with.
My Netflix rating: 2 stars

188. January 25, 2011 - Iron Man 2 (2010)

This movie might be ridiculous and more far-fetched than the first one, but damn, it's fun! War Machine is so awesome; I don't even care that Rhodey steals the armor in a totally jackass move. And this may be the one time so far in my life where I don't hate Mickey Rourke. Oh wait, I didn't hate him in Sin City either - but these are the only two instances so far.

I saw this twice in the theaters, entries for which are here and here.

187. January 25, 2011 - True Grit (2010)

Okay, as you all know, I hate the Coen brothers. However, there are exceptions to every rule - I really liked this movie. It has all of the great things about a western, but without the nauseating, holier-than-thou, racist anti-hero that so often turned up in the classics (I'm looking at you, John Wayne). The girl was pretty good and Jeff Bridges was fantastic. Matt Damon felt a little unnecessary, but he wasn't annoying. Josh Brolin has never been my favorite actor - I don't love him here either. Thankfully, his part is small - it is the search for him that's important, not finding him.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

186. January 22, 2011 - Romance & Cigarettes (2005)

I don't understand why they chose to make this into a musical. If John Turturro (who wrote and directed - notice he has not written or directed since) had gone with a straight gritty comedy, this might actually have been worth watching. The story is pretty simple, but simple doesn't have to be bad. I just don't understand why everyone had to burst into song every five minutes. Especially the weird scene that included the women in bright red teddies. And Kate Winslet singing underwater - Titanic was in 1997. And she may have been underwater, but she certainly wasn't singing. Don't waste your time or your Netflix queue spot with this one.
My Netflix rating: 2 stars

185. January 21, 2011 - Finding Neverland (2004)

Though Johnny Depp isn't great with the Scottish accent, this is still a powerful and moving film - one that makes me tear up every time. I know that in real life there were questions about why JM Barrie was so close to the Llewelyn Davies boys (and that's addressed with a single, almost throw-away line in the film), but why do we all have to be so cynical? Kate Winslet is fantastic as always, though she got nominated for Eternal Sunshine that year, not this. Also, as I watched the movie this time around, I learned that Sylvia Llewelyn Davies, the mother of the inspiration for Peter Pan, was the aunt of Dame Daphne du Maurier, who wrote Rebecca and the short story version of The Birds.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

184. January 18/19, 2011 - Animal Kingdom (2010)

Australian family crime drama at it's height and still not all that interesting. The pace is too sluggish, the characters aren't engaging enough and the actors mumble way too much. I think that the acting was solid, but it was so hard to hear them that I'm not sure. Perhaps this is a sound mixing problem? Also, Guy Pearce shouldn't ever wear a mustache like that again. This has received a lot of critical acclaim but I just didn't see it.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

183. January 14/18, 2011 - Kick Ass (2010)

They weren't kidding when they said this was violent! And it's violent children on top of that. It's definitely a funny movie, not afraid to poke fun at other films or at itself, but it's also disturbing. Chloe Moretz must have been, what, 12 in this film? Such things should not be coming out of that young a child's mouth (and I worked in a middle school). I'm not a Nicolas Cage fan in any circumstance, so he wasn't a big addition for me. Overall, fun, but just meh.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

182. January 12, 2011 - The Horse Soldiers (1959)

Okay, I get that Gone With the Wind is Southern propaganda as much as this movie in Northern propaganda, but I think the attitude of Southerners toward the occupying Union soldiers is a bit more realistic in the former. Proper Southern ladies, for the most part, weren't subject to Stockholm Syndrome and didn't end up falling in love with the dashing Union army doctor. Please. I don't particularly love Westerns, but John Ford should stick to making those. John Wayne is less obnoxious when he's playing a cowboy (and that's saying a lot, since Ethan Edwards in The Searchers - kind of an a*hole).
My Netflix rating: 3 stars