Thursday, May 22, 2008

Se7en

This week's Netflix is new to me. I can appreciate a gritty crime drama, and I found myself liking this one quickly. The story starts immediately and draws you in, without resorting to shock shots for surprise. The story was solid, despite the fact if I saw the ending coming for an hour. It's horror without the stupid, even if it leaves me depressed with the world.

Se7en
1995, 127 minutes, directed by David Fincher

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Post Impact

Last month, in planning for a European vacation, I utilized our fancy new DVR's Dish Pass feature to record every show about Germany. In addition to the expected fare (Rick Steve's Europe, Smart Travels, Passport to Europe), it swept up a host of biographies on the pope, History's Misteries' "Nazi Ghost Train", and a cheesy little Sci Fi channel original called Post Impact. Why not?

Oh, you know what? I've seen the last 15 minutes of this movie - twice. I remember this SolStar
thing. Wow, what a disappointment. Maybe it will make sense this time. Or not.

Decent movie for lovers of third-rate action-based science fiction, which I guess means Sci Fi hit their mark.

Post Impact
2004, 90 minutes, directed by Christoph Schrewe

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Iron Man

The movie industry has been mining Stan Lee's long-gone creative years for content now for a decade. Some of them have been good, some of them have been awful. Of course I'd heard all the good things about this one. When I sat down at my local Alamo Drafthouse Thursday night, I had the highest hopes. Then it starts - and I'm disappointed. I think the art of the exposition is slipping away. It all seems kinds cheesy.....

.... but oh man, that's cool. The action is great, the tech is great, the plot warms up well after its creaking start. And I can say nothing bad about Gwyneth Paltrow with red hair and freckles. As the film ends, in a way I'm sad. I fear for the future of the series. This one ends so gorgeously, that I can't help but predict its downhill slide. But then, I'm again rewarded for always staying through the credits. Ok, there's hope.

Iron Man
2008, 126 minutes, directed by Jon Favreau