Hancock

Hollywood loves super heros. So do the rest of us, apparently. Here's another one (yawn). Again I know nothing about this franchise. The action is good, but meh, I just don't like the story. I'll try again next week when the next super hero film releases.

Hancock
2008, 92 minutes, directed by Peter Berg

Super Size Me

I've recently started watching Morgan Spurlock's "30 Days" documentary series, and found it relatively intriguing. It's a timely coincidence, though, that my Netflix DVD is Super Size Me, his documentary that launched his career, a film that I missed on its initial release.

Morgan's matter-of-fact reporting style is rather nice. Plus he knows how to mix in the right amount of back research along with his story arc.

Given the changes McDonald's "coincidentally" made after this premiered (elimination of Supersizes, flexibility in sides), this has to be one of the most influential documentaries of the decade. It's worth a viewing.

Super Size Me
2004, 100 minutes, directed by Morgan Spurlock

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I didn't intend it this way, but watching the Temple of Doom last week really helped psych me up to see this. It's been out a few weeks, but my wife actually wanted to go see it, and it's worth the wait to get to see a movie with her.

Since I had my realizations about the scripting in Temple, I had this one all figured out from the start. Who cares about continuity errors? Who cares how improbable the events seem? It's all about the adventure, the thrill of the hunt, the glory of knowing It's Out There. I'm sucked in. The commie accusations against Indiana genuinely make me angry. It's fantastic.

I think the thing I liked least was the obvious overtones of next-generation sequels, something the Last Crusade avoided in its concise wrap. Sure, I loved to see another Indiana Jones movie, but come on, George, we don't want you to milk this one 'til it's raw, too.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
2008, 124 minutes, directed by Steven Spielberg

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

As a child this was my least-favorite in the series. It just never seemed to fit. The graphics certainly haven't lived up well. Certainly worse than the move that preceded.

The whole story just seems contrived. I'd readily accept it if it was one of several movies filmed about the adventures of Dr. Jones, but as one of three (now four), it just doesn't seem significant enough. Far too much deux ex machina.

Maybe I've figured it out. This is a C-grade adventure film. I'd appreciate it on those merits, except it's bookended by two of the top films of the genre.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
1984, 118 minutes, directed by Steven Spielberg

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

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

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