Movie reviews

King Kong: My expectations were too high for this movie. I didn't love it like Peter Jackson's previous films (Braindead, Meet the Feebles, the Lord of the Rings) but I did like it. I did feel that it was too overlong and needed to be trimmed by 30 minutes. The visual effects were awesome and the acting was decent (Jack Black) to phenomenal (Naomi Watts). The film didn't need a fucking Disney moment though (the scene where Ann and Kong play on the ice) or a fucking decade to kill Kong (didn't you think that it took too long to kill Kong?). A good film but it could have been great. B

Memoirs of a Geisha: Man oh man, was this movie boring at times! I absolute love Zhang Ziyi but her performance here was horrible. It was like a three year old speaking English. I never felt any connection to the characters and the performances were very only okay at best (though Gong Li was good). A film that was supposed to be directed by a Japanese director and spoken in Japanese. D

The Matador: This was a huge surprise for me. I knew very little about it but heard great things about its acting. This film contains Pierce Brosnan's greatest single performance ever (yes, take that BOND!). Some scenes were absolutely hilarious and Greg Kinnear and Hope Davis give admirable but Brosnan here is the man! After this film, you'll never remember him as James Bond anymore. B+

Munich: Good films stay with you for a while but are forgotten. Great films stay with you, follow you, speak to you, and haunt you. Munich is one of these films. When this film faded into credits I got out of my seat and waited in the hallway for my brother. As I waited, I stood there in silence trying to think about the film. I stood there thinking about the power that this film has over a viewer. It is like a fine wine where it takes a while for everything to seep into your mind. After a few sentimental and visual pictures (The Terminal, Catch Me If You Can, and War of the Worlds), this is the film the Spielberg of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind would direct. This is the Spielberg where he took amazing risks and it all paid off in the end. This is the first Spielberg picture to have a somber ending. It may not be my favorite film of 2005 but it is the best film of the year. A+