What Happens In Vegas – Review

I checked out the movie What Happens In Vegas. Starring Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz, this film is a winner. Joy McNally (Diaz) and Jack Fuller (Kutcher) both decide to go on a spontaneous trip to Las Vegas after being dumped and losing a job, respectively.

The two coincidentally meet after accidentally being booked for the same hotel room. After a night on the town, they find that, in their drunkenness, they spontaneously got married. When Jack hits the jackpot at a casino, the “what’s mine is yours” clause of marriage goes into effect. The plot centers around what they must do in order to divide up the money, as prescribed by the court.

Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz work wonderfully together in this film. Their chemistry is apparent and makes for a very enjoyable movie. The scripting was great and the plot is fast-paced. This is a movie full of one-liners and quirky comments. I’d highly recommend it as a good date movie.

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Story Of My Life

No, I’m not using a cliché here in preparation to tell you about some negative thing that always happens to me. The title of that post would be something like “A Day Late And A Dollar Short.” But seriously, I really am writing the story of my life. Over the past few weeks, when I’ve had the chance, I’ve written a few pages at a time in reflection of my life thus far. I started at age 3, which is as far back as I can go with any sort of tangible memories, although obviously they’re vague. 50 pages later, I’m at 5th grade.

Why am I doing this? Well, several reasons. First off, I just really like to write. Secondly, I’m a very nostalgic person. I like writing and thinking (but no, not living) in the past. It’s kind of theraputic personally. Of course I realize no one would want to read it. That’s not at all the point. In fact, even though I’m pretty darn honest and open here on my blog, I held absolutely nothing back when it comes to filing through my memories, so there are very few people, if any, who I’d probably ever let read this anyway.

I know another common cliché goes something like, “If your life was a movie, would anyone want to watch it?” Honestly, probably not. And I’m okay with that. I’m doing this for me. I’m sorting out memories, dealing with past regret and conflict, and just want to remember every little detail of my life. Maybe my kids or grandkids will enjoy reading it someday. It’ll also be interesting personally to see my perspectives of things and the way I think today, decades down the road.

Iron Man – Review

I went to see Iron Man last night. Robert Downy, Jr. stars as Tony Stark, a genius inventor who’s come up with numerous revolutionary military solutions for the United States’ defense and war use. After hostile forces kidnap him from the military convoy he’s riding in, the only way for him to live is for him to build a super intelligent rocket system to be used by the enemy against the United States. He instead builds a computerized suit of armor and becomes Iron Man.

The plot in this movie was action-packed and fact-paced. Downy shines in this role and gives the movie an edgy tone. The special effects, explosions, and other CGI were well done. I’ve always gone into the superhero movies of the past few years thinking I won’t like them, but have always ended up impressed. This movie was no exception. For great action and suspense, check this one out. Oh, and stick around after the credits for a bonus scene and lead-in to Iron Man 2, scheduled for release on April 30, 2010.

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Made Of Honor – Review

I went to see Made Of Honor the other night. The plot of this movie is pretty simple.

Tom (Patrick Dempsey) and Hannah (Michelle Monaghan) became best friends in college. Almost ten years later, after becoming absolutely inseparable, the two part ways when Hannah goes to Scotland for a six week period.

While she’s gone, Tom realizes how much she means to him and wants to tell her when she gets home. However, he’s horrified to find out she’s met a man on her trip and plans on marrying him. She subsequently asks him to be her maid of honor in the wedding. The plot unfolds around Tom’s plans to convince Hannah he’s the more worthy man.

This was a lighthearted comedy that was filled with smart humor and a great storyline. The character development is somewhat stagnant, but this was overall a great film.

Overall Rating:

Prom Night – Review

On Saturday night, I checked out the movie Prom Night. Let me just cut to the chase here. It was bloody awful. And no, I’m not turning British. I say that because it was both bloody (albeit fake) and awful. Brittany Snow stars as Donna, a contender for Prom Queen. We learn in the beginning of the film that one of her high school teachers became obsessed with her. He was fired after acting inappropriately and subsequently subject to a restraining order from her family. As a result, he killed her entire family as Donna watched in horror.

Flashing back to the present, her and her boyfriend Bobby (played by Scott Porter) descend on their prom at a historic local hotel, just as her aunt and uncle, with whom she now lives, find out that the killer has escaped from prison and is on the loose. As predictability would have it, he shows up at the hotel and, through a series of poorly-orchestrated scenes and events, systematically kills her friends as they go back to their rooms one by one for different reasons.

The plot is boring, stagnant, extremely predictable, and just overall terrible. The supposed gory stabbing scenes reminds me of the blatantly fake and outdated shower stabbing scene in the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock classic, Psycho. I’m telling you, it couldn’t have been made much worse. Honestly, I’d go so far as to say I’d be embarrassed to have had any part in this film.

Oh, and tell me this: What’s up with having older actors play teenagers? It’s not just in this movie, but it’s so obvious in this one. Brittany Snow is 22 years old, which isn’t extremely noticable, but come on, Scott Porter is 29 and it shows! That’s just another thing to add to the list of things that were fake or not believable in this film.

I also saw editing flaws. For example, there’s a scene where the couple is talking on the side of the dance floor (Side note: What’s up with the dance floor? It looks like something out of a ridiculously-overdone bubblegum-pop music video. Completely unrealistic) and as they’re chatting, the music cuts out and you hear nothing. Then it starts again once they walk back on the floor. I thought it was some weird technique, but no, it’s not.

There’s no plot in this movie, just people dying (in as many phony ways as possible). And I was even more surprised to learn that this is a remake of the 1980 film by the same name? Apparently it starred Jamie Lee Curtis and Leslie Nielsen. Interesting. From reading about it, it seems like a typical ’80s slasher film, but I bet it was better than this.

I found myself (as well as my friends and the rest of the audience) laughing through many of the supposedly scary parts. It was one of the most poorly-made movies I’ve ever seen, period. I wish I could somehow give it negative stars.

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