Fright Night

Fright Night (2011)
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Colin Ferrell, and David Tennant
Directed by: Craig Gillespie
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Grade: A+

This is a remake of a movie of the same name from 1985. Although it was called a remake, it is really more of a sequel, with some of the same characters from the original movie. Teenager Charley Brewster (Yelchin) thinks that his new neighbor (Ferrell) is a vampire that is responsible for a number of recent deaths. When not even his girlfriend Amy (Imogen Poots) and his mother (Toni Colette) believe him, he insists the help of Peter Vincent (Tennant), a self-proclaimed vampire killer and Las Vegas magician, to help him take down Jerry before Jerry attacks him. I loved this movie! I haven't seen the 1985 version, so I wouldn't have anything to compare it to. However, I found this an exciting and even humorous movie. Anton Yelchin (probably known to most people as the teenage Kyle Reese in Terminator Salvation) is a very likable hero and Colin Ferrell is a very scary vampire. Overall, very enjoyable movie.

The Lorax

The Lorax (2012)
Starring: Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, and Danny DeVito
Directed by: Chris Renaud and Kyle Balda
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Grade: B

The film follows the basic plot of the book, but understandably adds much to the basic structure. Ted (Efron) is a 12-year-old boy living in Thneedville, a city where everything, including the plant life, is commercialized and plastic. Wanting to impress Audrey (Swift), he seeks out the Once-ler (Ed Helms), who he hopes can tell him where to find a real tree. The Once-ler tells him a story of his past, about how he made the first Thneed and the Lorax (DeVito) who warned him of the destruction it would bring. While the movie itself is enjoyable, the characters are one dimensional, the story seems a little rushed, and the message of saving the environment is not as subtle as in other movies, such as Wall-E. While it Wall-E, you barely noticed it, in this movie, it smacks you over the head with a brick. The movie itself is gorgeous and the characters are adorable, just a little lacking in the story department.

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve (2011)
Starring: Too many people to count
Directed by: Garry Marshall
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Grade: A

This is one of those ensemble movies and the "sequel" to Valentine's Day. This movie was good but it had SO many people in it that a lot of the characters didn't get the focus they should have gotten (especially Josh Duhamel). Michelle Pfeiffer and Zac Efron are Ingrid and Paul, a lonely record company worker and the young courier who delivers to her office. She receives tickets to the hottest party in town and promises them to Paul if he will help make all of her New Year's resolutions from last year come true. Paul's roommate is Randy (Ashton Kutcher), who hates New Year's Eve. He gets stuck in the elevator with Elise (Lea Michele), who is a backup singer for Jensen (Jon Bon Jovi). While Randy and Elise bond in the elevator, Jensen is trying to win back the heart of Laura (Katherine Heigl), whom he left before their wedding. She is catering the party that seems to connect everyone together (as these movies do). After his friends wedding and on his way to the party is Sam (Josh Duhamel), the son of the record company owner. After being in a car accident, he is forced to catch a ride into the city in an RV with the priest. While in the car, he tells the family the story of last New Year's Eve and the woman he met. The mysterious woman told him to meet her in the exact spot at the same time next New Year's, if he was still interested. Stan Harris (Robert De Nero) is dying in the hospital with only his doctor (Cary Elwes) and nurse (Halle Berry) to take care of him. He isn't interested in treatment or his family being contacted. He just wants to see the ball drop. Tess (Jessica Biel) and Griffin (Seth Meyers) Byrne are having a baby, which they decide has to be born that night because of a cash prize (which may or may not be $25,000) being offered to the first baby born in the New Year. The happiest night of their lives turns into a competition with another couple to win the money. Kim (Sarah Jessica Parker) and her daughter Hailey (Abigail Breslin) always spend the holidays together. But, for the first year, Hailey wants to spend New Year's Eve with her new crush (Jake T. Austin), kissing at midnight. When Kim won't let her do that, she leaves anyway, forcing Kim to chase after her. Finally, Claire Morgan (Hilary Swank) is the manager of the Times Square Alliance and in charge of making sure the ball drops. This is made difficult by a short in the ball, causing it not only to not light up all the way but not rise into the air. Now, she has to figure out how to fix the problem before it gets even more out of hand. Overall, good idea. I just think there was too many people and that took away from the stories that were really good. They should have just kept Josh Duhamel, Zac Efron and Michelle Pfeiffer, Ashton Kutcher and Lea Michele, and Sarah Jessica Parker and Abigail Breslin and it would have been a much better movie. Plus, the blooper reel at the end is one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

Instead of three pictures as usual, I'll put one of each pairing, because I couldn't pick the best.

Collateral

Collateral (2004)
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, and Mark Ruffalo
Directed by: Michael Mann
Nominated for Academy Award: Jamie Foxx - Best Supporting Actor
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Grade: B

This was a good movie overall. The only thing I didn't like was seeing Tom Cruise as a bad guy. (Hello, Maverick? He can't be a bad guy!) This movie is about LA cab driver Max Durocher (Foxx), who is dedicated to his job. So dedicated, that he keeps his cab in perfect shape. After giving a ride to a pretty US Attorney (Jada Pinkett Smith), he picks up a mysterious man named Vincent (Cruise), who tells him he'll pay him hundreds of dollars to drive him around to different meetings through the night. At their first stop, a body falls onto the cab, understandably freaking Max out. Things go from bad to worse when he realizes that Vincent killed him and his "meetings" are other killings he's been hired to complete. While the two speed through the streets of LA, with Vincent trying to complete his job and Max trying to stay alive, a tough detective named Fanning (Ruffalo) is on their trail. The FBI thinks that Max is in on it but Fanning isn't so sure. Fanning has to try to find Max before either the FBI or Vincent kills him in order to prove his innocence. Great performance from Tom Cruise, as usual. Jamie Foxx is also great. Mark Ruffalo is almost unrecognizable in this role; I only recognized him because of his voice. Great cast, and good movie.

Inglourious Basterds

Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, and Christoph Waltz
Directed and Written by: Quentin Tarantino
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Grade: A

I love World War II movies. While this one wasn't a normal World War Ii movie (by any means), it was still good. Tarantino definitely isn't focused on being historically accurate. He is, however, focused on making a good movie. And he does that here. I didn't like it as much as Reservoir Dogs, this one was good, too. The movie starts out in Nazi occupied France, where young Jewish refugee Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) witnesses the slaughter of her family by Colonel Hans Landa (Waltz). Narrowly escaping with her life, she plots her revenge several years later when German war hero Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Bruhl) takes a rapid interest in her and arranges an illustrious movie premiere at the theater she now runs. With the promise of every major Nazi officer in attendance, the event catches the attention of the "Basterds", a group of Jewish-American guerilla soldiers led by the ruthless Lt. Aldo Raine (Pitt). As the relentless executioners advance and the conspiring young girl's plans are set in motion, their paths will cross for a fateful evening that will shake the very annals of history. Also stars Michael Fassbender as a German speaking British officer sent in to help a double agent (Kruger).

Zodiac

Zodiac (2007)
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr., and Mark Ruffalo
Directed by: David Fincher
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Grade: A+

I love movies about crimes...I don't know why...I'm not that violent... Anyway, this is one of the best I've seen, sticking very close to the real-life story. Paul Avery (Downey Jr.) is a star reporter with the San Francisco Chronicle. Also working in the office is Robert Graysmith (Gyllenhaal), a political cartoonist with a love of puzzles and no respect. A letter arrives at the Chronicle telling of two murders committed. In the letter, the person that wrote it took responsibility for both and sent a cypher to be published in the next edition. The paper doesn't take him seriously, which leads to more killings and more letters, from a man now calling himself "the Zodiac". At first kept out of the loop, when Graysmith solves one of the killer's cyphers and makes several guesses about the killer's next move, Avery starts sharing information with him. As they form a partnership, detectives Dave Toschi (Ruffalo) and Bill Armstrong (Anthony Edwards) start investigating the case when the killer crosses into their county. As many obstacles enter the picture and many years pass, it becomes clear to most of the people involved that the Zodiac will never be caught. While he is fading in the public interest, Graysmith is only becoming more obsessed. As his obsession grows and he gets closer to the truth, the more he is putting himself and his family in harm's way.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, and Simon Pegg
Directed by: Brad Bird
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Grade: A++

I have always loved the Mission: Impossible movies. The first movie is strictly an espionage movie, the second is just bad, and the third is more of an action movie. This one is much more like the third. Although I always like Tom Cruise and Ethan Hunt, the addition of Jeremy Renner as Brandt makes the movie even more exciting. The movie starts with Benji (Pegg) breaking Ethan Hunt (Cruise) out of jail in Russia. The other member of the team, Jane (Paula Patton), informs Hunt that she and Benji's original partner, Hanaway (Josh Holloway), was killed during a seemingly routine op by an assassin. This same assassin plans to sell the documents that she stole to an unstable terrorist. Hunt's team is given the mission (should they choose to accept it) to invade the Kremlin and find the file on this terrorist. But, during their escape, the Kremlin is blown up, which is blamed on not only Hunt but the entire IMF. The secretary of defense picks up Hunt and tells him that the president has initiated Ghost Protocol and the IMF has been disavowed. After their car is hit, Hunt narrowly escapes with the secretary's chief analyst, Brandt (Renner). As they try to get to the assassin before she sells the documents, it becomes clear that there is more to Brandt than meets the eye. Overall, great movie, my favorite M:I so far. I'm excited to see what will happen with Brandt if they make more movies.