Battle: Los Angeles

Battle: Los Angeles (2011)
Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, and Bridget Moynahan
Directed by: Jonathan Liebesman
SC=0 V=9 C=4
Grade: A++

I gave this an A++ for being awesome. This movie is one of the coolest action movies I've seen in a long time. I actually saw it twice in theaters. And Aaron Eckhart is one of the last people you'd think would be starring in an action movie but he's actually wonderful. Sgt. Michael Nantz (Eckhart) is about to retire when LA is bombarded with "meteors", which actually turn out to be aliens that are invading Earth for its water. Sgt. Nantz and his company (which includes Ne-Yo, Lucas Till, and a bunch of other actors) are sent into Santa Monica to find some civilians (Moynahan, Michael Pena, and Joey King, along with a couple of others) that are at a police station. But they only have 3 hours to do this before the Air Force levels Santa Monica, because that is where most of the aliens are. As the platoon heads into the area, fog is everywhere, no one can see anything, and I could literally feel my heart pounding. This is one of only a couple of movies that actually made me so nervous, I was nauseous throughout both times I saw it. But I would still watch it again. Very rarely does an action movie come out that has both heart-pounding action and loveable characters. And what this movie was lacking in plot (which was not much, I might add), it made up for with the characters.

Tron: Legacy

Tron: Legacy (2010)
Starring: Garrett Hedlund, Jeff Bridges, and Olivia Wilde
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
SC=4 V=6 C=3
Grade: A-

I was not excited to watch this movie, because I had never seen the first one and this one didn't look good to me either. But I was pleasantly surprised. This movie comes after the first one, starting when Kevin Flynn (Bridges) leaves his son Sam (Hedlund) to go work on his video game, Tron. Kevin disappears that night and no one knows where he went. 20 years later, Sam is a rebellious 27 year old that decides to look into his father's disappearance. He finds Tron and finds a hidden passage behind it. In the room behind the hidden passage, he gets sucked into the world of Tron, where his dad has been stuck for 20 years. He also meets his dad's "confidant" Quorra (Wilde), the only person that he trusts in this world, and they try to make it to the open portal to the real world before it closes...and before Kevin's evil alter ego, Clu (also played by Jeff Bridges), gets there first.

The Roommate

The Roommate (2011)
Starring: Leighton Meester, Minka Kelly, and Cam Gigandet
Directed by: Christian E. Christianson
Tagline: Murder can really ruin a friendship.
SC=6 V=7 C=4
Grade: A

This is probably not the best movie to watch the summer before you go to college, like I am, but whatever. This movie was really good! Sara (Kelly) is a small town girl who goes to a big college. She meets a couple of new friends on the first day (one played by Aly Michalka), but doesn't meet her roommate until that night. The next day, she meets her officially. Rebbecca (Meester) is sweet, but kind of seems odd. Sara shakes it off and becomes fast friends with Rebbecca. Soon, it becomes clear that all isn't right with this girl. By this time, Sara is too wrapped up in her new boyfriend, a drummer in a frat house band, named Steven (Gigandet). After a while, it is too clear for her to ignore: Rebbecca is obsessed with her. This movie was really cool, but make sure you're ready for a couple of creepy parts. Creepiest part of the whole movie? Leighton Meester can actually act. Who knew??

Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels (2010)
Starring: Jack Black, Emily Blunt, and Jason Segel
Directed by: Rob Letterman
SC=4 V=3 C=3
Grade: B+

This was another movie I wasn't interested in, but sat down and watched anyway. It is hilarious! The only reason I gave it a B was because the story was just OK. The dialogue was so funny. Jack Black is funny, of course. But my favorites were Emily Blunt and Jason Segel. I've liked Jason since he was on one of my favorite shows, Freaks and Geeks. I've only recently started liking Emily Blunt. But they were amazing in this movie! They were very likable and funny, just understated, although anyone would seem understated next to Jack Black's "in your face" humor. Gulliver works in the mail room and is content, until a new intern comes in and advances in one day. He realizes that he should be doing more with his life. In an effort to do this, he plagiarizes an article for his friend, Darcy, who is an actual reporter and is sent on an assignment to the Bermuda Triangle. Once he gets there, he is transported to another dimension and to an island where a lot of little people live. After a while, he is able to make friends with the people and live as their protector. But, trouble comes from another country and Gulliver actually has to step up and protect them...which actually goes better than you might expect. Don't be thinking you're about to see an award quality movie (although with Jack Black in it, you should know it most likely won't be), but for a good two hour laugh, this movie definitely does the trick.

Predators

Predators (2010)
Starring: Adrien Brody, Laurence Fishbourne, and Topher Grace
Directed by: Nimrod Antal (no I am not joking, that is his real name...)
SC=1 V=9 C=7
Grade: A

The only other Predator movie I've seen is the first one and it was pretty good, even though it was needlessly gory. This one was so much better, just because I don't need to look out for gore every couple of seconds. There are a couple of scenes that are...gross, but, overall, a good movie. For comparison, I watched Predator once, I've seen this movie four times. Anyway, this time around, 8 elite killers wake up in midair, dropping towards a jungle, having no idea of how they got there. After they land (with the help of parachutes, of course), they reluctantly join together to try to find a way out of the jungle. But, soon, it becomes apparent that they might not even be on the same planet anymore and that there is no way off of this one. To make matters even worse, and they were pretty bad before, giant dogs/mutants run out of the jungle to attack and separate the group. After they are "called back", the group realizes that one of them is missing. (which leads to the creepiest scene in the movie, possibly one of the creepiest ever). After they find an "enemy camp", they discover that the mutant dogs and being on a different planet are not even close to the biggest problem they have...

Terminator Salvation

Terminator Salvation (2009)
Starring: Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, and Anton Yelchin
Directed by: McG
SC=1 V=6 C=3
Grade: A++

I love all of the Terminator movies (obviously) and this one definitely didn't let me down. I was so excited for this to come out and I saw it in theaters twice. This is the only movie that the entire thing takes place in the future. It starts in the year 2018, when the war against the machines is raging and the Resistance needs help. Some people believe the help they need is John Connor (Bale) and some people believe he isn't. Then a man named Marcus Wright (Worthington) comes along and meets two civilians who call themselves The Resistance's LA Branch. It turns out the older of these kids is a teenage Kyle Reese (Yelchin), who bears an uncanny resemblance to Michael Biehn, who was the first Kyle Reese. Kyle and the other civilian, Starr, are captured by Skynet because Kyle is number one on their kill list. Marcus is able to get free and find Connor. When he tells him that Kyle has been captured, John decides he has to get to Skynet Central as quickly as possible to find Kyle and save him before something happens to him. The writers had some fun, making sure to reference the movies before it with characters saying "Come with me if you want to live" and "I'll be back". But my favorite line of the whole movie is when John saves Kyle and Kyle says, "I won't leave you!" and John says back, "You didn't." Oh my gosh...goosebumps... Anyway, this is much more "kid-friendly" as it is only rated PG-13 as opposed to the R rating of the other movies. If you are a fan of the other movies, you will love this one. Christian Bale is outstanding as John Connor and Anton Yelchin is equally good as a young Kyle Reese.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, and Edward Furlong
Directed by: James Cameron
SC=1 V=8 C=8
Grade: A++

This is one of the few sequels that is actually almost as good as the first movie. They did everything right. (The fourth is great, too. If only they wouldn't have ruined their track record with the third...ick). This movie is about the second time Skynet sends a Terminator back, this time to kill John himself, when he is a kid. This time Sarah is in a mental facility because she tried to blow up Cyberdyne and she goes on rants about how the Terminators are going to come get us all. Also, this time, unlike the last time, the humans send back a Terminator to protect John, the same model as the one that was sent back to kill Sarah the first time. This Terminator (T-100) finds John just in time to save him from the T-1000, which is made out of liquid metal and can form himself into any person he's come into contact with...just peachy. John and the T-100 save Sarah from the mental facility, which of course freaks her out, because the Terminator that tried to kill her shows up with her son and says, "Come with me if you want to live". (which, along with "I'll be back" is one of the most famous lines from the first movie, said by Kyle). They barely escape from the T-1000 again and head for Mexico. But Sarah decides to change the future and kill the man most responsible for Skynet, Miles Dyson. When she can't do this, and John saves her again, they bring Dyson in on the plan and they all head to Cyberdyne Systems to take care of his research. But of course, since this is Terminator, nothing goes right and lots of explosions and gunshots follow...that's where it gets really good! Pay attention to Edward Furlong as John Connor. This was his very first movie.

The Terminator

The Terminator (1984)
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton
Directed by: James Cameron
SC=5 V=8 C=7
Grade: A++

I know I have reviewed this movie before, but it was a long time ago, I just rewatched it, and these movies are just that awesome. This movie is about the first time a Terminator is sent back, in the year 1984, to kill Sarah Connor (Hamilton). Sarah is just a normal girl, but her son, John Connor, will change the world. In the year 1997, Judgment Day happened. A company called Cyberdyne Systems creates a new kind of defense network called Skynet, which makes everything defense related controlled by machines. These machines soon decide that humans are its only enemy and tries to kill them all. Judgment Day is when Skynet started a nuclear war, almost wiping out all of the humans. But, some survived. The survivors had to face a new horror: the war against the machines. One man taught them to fight and banded them together: his name is John Connor. And it is because of him that the war against the machines is won. So, the machines send back a Terminator (Schwarzenegger), a cyborg (metal on the inside, skin on the outside) that kills without mercy, to kill Sarah Connor, which will keep John from being born. But John is able to send back a soldier to protect Sarah. His name is Kyle Reese (Biehn). But can Kyle, a human, keep Sarah safe from a machine that won't give up until she's dead?

Ramona and Beezus

Ramona and Beezus (2010)
Starring: Joey King, Selena Gomez, and Bridget Moynahan
Directed by: Elizabeth Allen
Based on the books by: Beverly Cleary
SC=1 V=1 C=0
Grade: A+

I loved these books when I was little. Beezus and Ramona was my favorite. (I always had more in common with Beezus than Ramona). This movie is magical. And wonderful. And adorable. And any other adjective like that you can think of. Ramona Quimby (King) is, of course, the mischievous little girl from the books and this movie follows her misadventures more than how they affect Beezus, although Selena is in it quite a bit. Joey King is adorable; a perfect match for Ramona. She perfectly captures Ramona's adventurous spirit. Selena is great as Beezus, the exasperated but loving sister (I still have more in common with Beezus...just sayin...). Other standouts are Ginnifer Goodwin (ahh! favorite actress!) as Ramona's Aunt B, Josh Duhamel as Ramona's neighbor Hobart, Bridgit Moynahan and John Corbett as Ramona's loving parents, and Hutch Dano as the adorable Henry Huggins. Overall, an adorable and heartwarming family comedy about a sweet little girl just trying to "find her way in the world".

Catch and Release

Catch and Release (2006)
Starring: Jennifer Garner, Timothy Olyphant, and Kevin Smith
Written and Directed by: Susannah Grant
SC=5 V=2 C=3
Grade: A++

This movie is amazing. I know, it has Timothy Olyphant (I've seen almost all of his movies!!!) and most of his movies are amazing, but still. This one has Jennifer Garner, another one of my favorites (Alias anyone??). Gray (Garner), after the death of her fiance, has to move in with his old roommates, because she can no longer afford the house she and her fiance were going to stay in. These roommates are Dennis and Sam (Smith), but the house has also expanded to fit Fritz (Olyphant), who is the fiance's best friend who has come for his funeral, but also decides to stay and help Gray. They don't get along at all. Their relationship gets even worse after Gray finds out about Maureen (Juliette Lewis), who her fiance had been having an affair with for many years...it even turns out that he had a child with this woman. When the woman turns up at the house, can Gray find it in her heart to forgive her for what she did? Or will things get even uglier than they were before?

The Last Song

The Last Song (2010)
Starring: Miley Cyrus, Greg Kinnear, and Liam Hemsworth
Directed by: Julie Anne Robinson
Based on the novel by: Nicholas Sparks
SC=3 V=3 C=3
Grade: B

Okay, first of all, this is my favorite book...period. And if you've ever seen my other blog, you'll know I love books. It's an amazing book. The movie...not so much. The first part that was ruined was casting Miley Cyrus...even if this movie was written for her, she's just a terrible actress. I mean, look at the poster! She's even terrible at pouting, which used to be the ONE thing she was good at...okay, I'm done ranting about Miley...for now. The second part they ruined was the costumes. The clothes she wears aren't dark enough for the character, especially towards the end...and don't even get me started on the dress she wears to Will's sister's wedding...it's awful. So, the movie is about Ronnie, who is very rebellious and is sent, along with her brother, to spend the summer with her father in a small town on the beach. Ever since her parents divorced, Ronnie has been angry with her father, even going so far as to stop playing piano, because he taught her how to do it. Now, they are forced to live together, which doesn't go well at first, but slowly becomes better with the help of her new love interest, Will. But just as things look like they might be okay between Ronnie and her father, she learns something that changes everything. And just when she needs Will the most, Ronnie finds out that he isn't exactly what he appears to be either.