Re: A Sound Of Thunder
A Sound Of Thunder My Grade: B Plot: 9 A time travel excursion brings prehistoric dangers back to the present. I'm a sucker for movies that feature time traveling and/or dinosaurs. Acting: 8 For a cast of unknowns, the acting was pretty darn good. Ben Kingsley was the only actor I reconized in the movie, and he outshined everyone else. But then again, he should. After all, didn't he win an Oscar? Dialogue: 3 The movie was full of your typical sci-fi and evolution talk mumbo jumbo. It wasn't bad, just not very memorable. And there was little humor. Which was too bad, because humorous dialogue is always appreciated by me. Characters: 7 Ben Kingsley's character was very dislikable, which is good because he was playing the sort we're supposed to dislike. Everyone else was pretty much likable. No one's character really stood out, though. They were all pretty generic. But at least I didn't hate any of the ones I wasn't supposed to. Editing: 8 The movie moved along at the right pace. And everything made sense. The only problem with editing I have is with the special effects. Special Effects: 2 I've seen better effects in a television show. If I didn't know better, I would've thought this movie strictly made-for-tv. The effects were pretty bad for a theatrical release. So bad, it was a little distracting at times. Overall Rating: B Overall, A Sound Of Thunder was very entertaining. The effects were what kept me from giving it an A rating. General Comments: Given an A-list actor or actress and director, and some superb special effects, this could've easily been a summer blockbuster.

Wow, I saw a Sound of Thunder in the theaters and thought it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen. :oops: It had major continuity issues. I don't remember specifically what they were but I remember after the movie my mom, nephew and I were talking about it and we all noticed a bunch of inconsistencies. I was so disappointed because the plot of the movie sounded original and promising but the movie failed on every point. None of the cast stood out, the special effects were hokey, and I don't know, I just felt like it failed to deliver. I'm glad you liked it, Matt. :wink:

Re: A Sound Of Thunder
I think you just have to accept the inconsistencies and continuity issues in any movie that deals with time travel. I'm sory to hear you didn't enjoy it as much as I did, Pika. But like I said, I'm a sucker for movies with dinosaurs and time travel. :wink: Of course, if I paid good money to have seen this movie in a theater I would've been disappointed. I can't imagine how terrible the effects looked up on the big screen. :shock:

I didn't get around to posting my review of Pirates of the Caribbean 2 after I saw it on July 16th so here it is. Better late than never. :wink: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest My Grade: C Plot: 5 It was kind of confusing to follow. You really needed to have seen and remembered the first movie to get it. Dialogue: 6 There were a few funny lines, mostly from Johnny Depp. Most of it was pretty dull. Character Development: 4 They didn't do a good job of explaining who people were from the first movie. Editing: 5 It was a bit convulted and left too much unexplained, making the story hard to follow. Special Effects: 6 They were ok but nothing special. The pirates were nasty-looking, not cool or horrifying. Music: N/A I didn't even notice the music. Overall Rating: C I was disappointed in the first movie and felt the same way about this one. It was ok but not the type of movie I'd want to see again. General Comments: It was hard to understand what people were saying because of their accents. The movie didn't explain that the Black Pearl was a ship so you might not be able to figure that out if you haven't seen the first movie. They didn't go into Will Turner's story and how his dad ended up on Davy Jones' crew. I wish there had been more romance scenes with Johnny. At least he got one kiss, though.

Barnyard: The Original Party Animals My Grade: B- Plot: 5 The plot wasn't too original but it was cute seeing their version of what barnyard animals do when people aren't around. Dialogue: 7 There were some funny lines. Several times I could tell what the characters were going to say before they said it so it was a bit predictable. Character Development: 8 They did a good job of giving the characters individual personalities and matching them to the animal they were. Editing: 8 Good job with the editing. The story flowed along smoothly without jumping ahead or dragging. Special Effects: 8 Great animation and visual appeal. It wasn't as stunning as The Wild was but still very good. It was a 3-D/Claymation animation instead of flat drawings. The animals looked good except for the cows, whose udders looked like toilet plungers stuck on their bellies. The coyotes looked like a 3-D Wile E. Coyote from the Roadrunner cartoons. Music: 7 The music was on the country side and while that's not my favorite type of music, it wasn't unlistenable or stupid. Overall Rating: B This was one of the better animated movies I've seen this year. I don't think it's suitable for young kids. Probably better for tweens, teens, or older people. There's some violence in it--one of the animals gets killed by the coyotes. There isn't any blood in the scene but it could still be scary for young children. General Comments I had a problem with the movie sending mixed moral messages. They seemed to be pushing a message of becoming a responsible adult instead of hanging out and being cool with your friends and they didn't come down too hard with that theme, which was good. However, in other parts of the movie, they seem to allude to violence being the solution to a problem instead of reasoning with or outwitting your enemy, they steal vehicles 3 times in the movie, the animals portray drinking as being all fun and giggles, plus the movie has the animals evading the law, all of which isn't a good message for younger children. Maybe it's just me but young kids are so impressionable. I would want them to see only movies that show them how they should act and not give them the idea that bad behavior is ok or even cool.

Step Up My Grade: C Plot: 5 This isn't the first movie to integrate ballet dancers and hip hop dancers. Save the Last Dance had a similar plot. Dialogue: 5 Predictable. Nothing outrageously amusing or profound. Character Development: 5 The characters weren't very likeable. For the most part they were engrossed by themselves and we don't see much of their inner thoughts and feelings. They're pretty shallow people. Editing: 5 Editing was ok. Could have been a bit more streamlined or changed up because several parts of the story were like been there, done that already in this movie. Special Effects: N/A There weren't really any special effects. The dancing was ok but nothing spectacular. The dancing in Take the Lead was much better choreographed. Music: 4 Mostly hip hop. Definitely not my type of music. Overall Rating: C It was ok but there are other better dance movies. General Comments One thing I noticed right away was the first time the main girl and guy tried dancing together, she wanted him to do a lift. You never start with lifts in dancing, even if you're both accomplished dancers. You can get hurt if you do them wrong so you have to make sure you're an evenly matched couple and you have to develop some trust and timing between you. I personally don't like movies that suggest that you can get what you want by giving minimal effort. In this movie, the girl trains every day for a showcase she's doing and is totally committed to it. The guy is kind of sometimes into it, sometimes not. He quits on the girl before the showcase but then shows up for it and of course does as well as she does despite not practicing for it as long and as hard as she does. I think in real life you might be able to scrape by without giving much effort but you're not going to do as well as people who really work at getting what they want. It's no wonder that kids my nephew's age think they can goof off and still succeed in life. After all, that's the way it works in the movies.

The Covenant My Grade: D Plot: 8 Like many horror movies, the movie had a very interesting plot but fell short of delivering it. Dialogue: 5 There was a strange echo when the people were talking, like they were talking on a speakerphone. It was distracting and kept me from being able to pay attention to what they were saying. Character Development: 5 Many of the guys looked alike and they acted alike so I had trouble keeping track of who was who and who said or did what. Editing: 4 The storyline was very hard to follow. It included past and present events and skipped around a lot. I gave up trying to figure out what they were doing and why. Special Effects: 8 The special effects were pretty good. I would have liked to see effects used for other things than gratuitous violence, though. Music: 6 It was modern music, kind of on the metal side. It was nice for once to see a horror movie with contemporary music instead of the usual secular--"creepy chior", if you will--music. Overall Rating: D It would have been a better movie if it had been developed better. As it was it was disappointing. General Comments: The movie was boring but at least interested me enough to want to know how it ended. If it had been so bad I wanted to leave instead of watching it to the end, I would have given it an F. The overall tone of the movie reminded me of The Lost Boys, a movie about modern day vampires. I didn't care for that movie, either, but if you did like it, you would probably like The Covenant, too.

Very interesting. I went to three movies today and ended up seeing the best movie I've seen this year and the worst movie I've seen this year. The reviews are to follow.

How to Eat Fried Worms My Grade: D- Plot: 3 The plot was nothing new--new kid at school gets bullied, his parents don't understand his situation, he ends up one-upping the bully and making friends. Yawn, yawn. Been there, done that. Dialogue: 3 No particularly funny, deep, or inspiring lines. Mostly stupid. A few potty jokes. Character Development: 3 We know nothing about what Billy (the new kid) was like at his previous school. The kids in the movie were the worst child actors I've seen in a long time so they didn't pull off their roles at all. The kids call the principal of their school "Boilerhead" but never explain why they call him that. Editing: 3 The movie kept moving but didn't seem to go anywhere. We knew the kid would end up ending all the worms or there wouldn't be a movie. There should have been something else of interest going on. Special Effects: 3 There weren't really any special effects unless you count how they cooked the worms (microwaving one, putting on in the blender, making stew with one). Most of those techniques were overdone and not realistic. Overall Rating: D It's a shame the movie didn't stick to the story from the book, which was great. I'm so disappointed by how the movie turned out. Maybe kids would like the movie for the gross jokes but even they might end up being bored by it. General Comments: There was only one memorable line from the movie. The main character was very prone to throwing up and part of the deal with eating the worms was if he threw up, he lost the bet. The bully and his friends were talking about how the kid hadn't puked yet and one of them said it was because his mind was telling his stomach not to throw up. One of the kids said if you're going to throw up, you can't hold it back--"Puke has a mind of its own". Hmmm.

Accepted My Grade: A+ Plot: 10 I've seen lots of movies about college goof-off's who somehow hit it big but this one was wittier and more insightful than most of them. Dialogue: 10 The dialogue was never boring and had some very funny moments. Character Development: 10 Each character was interesting and their rapport with each other was outstanding. Editing: 10 The movie came out swinging and kept it rocking until the end. There wasn't a single dull moment. Overall Rating: A This was easily the best movie I've seen all year. I highly recommend it and I'll certainly be buying it when it's released on dvd. I have a feeling I'll be watching it frequently at home. General Comments The movie reminded me a bit of Revenge of the Nerds, where the outcasts from the popular fraternities (or in the case of this movie, the popular colleges) make their own fraternity. It also reminded me of an episode of Dharma and Greg where Dharma opens up her own cafe or bus stop (I can't remember right off which it was supposed to be). Basically she didn't sell anything. She just provided a place for people to meet and barter services to each other. One lady was giving massages in exchange for what services other people could provide based on their skills, etc. This movie was a college experience like that with students teaching each other the skills they knew. The great thing about the movie was it was hilarious on the surface but it also makes you take a hard look at the goals of education. Formal education is one way to learn but it's not the only way to learn.

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby My Grade: F Plot: 2 I guess the basic plot is Ricky Bobby is born, his dad takes off, and Rocky Bobby spends his life pushing himself to be great to impress his dad and prove he's good enough but finds out he really needs to prove to himself that he's good enough. Not an original plot and it was poorly done. Dialogue: 2 Pretty stupid dialogue, mangling of the English language by unauthentic Southern and French accents. Character Development: 2 Stupid characters who were a caricature of stereotypes. The movie found a way to pick fun at rednecks, foreigners, bimbos, rotten kids, corporate executives, celebrities and homosexuals. Editing: 2 The movie dragged on and on. It would could have been shortened. Overall Rating: F Definitely the worst movie I've seen all year. I seriously thought about walking out but didn't since I thought the story had to get better because it couldn't get much worse. Admittedly I'm not a fan of stupid humor or Will Ferrell so someone who is a fan of one or both may like the movie better than I did. General Comments I initially wasn't going to go to this movie because it didn't interest me but it's been playing longer than any of the other movies that started at the same time so I thought that must be because it was good. The one good part of the movie was Ricky Bobby's dad. He was funny and he helped Ricky Bobby through hard times in the middle of the film so he deserves credit for his role.

If anyone has any requests for a movie you'd like me to see and review, let me know. I might be choosing between three or four movies to see and if board members request one movie in particular, I'll choose it. :wink:

I'm going to drop the Music and Special Effects categories from my movie ratings unless either one is good enough to improve the movie or bad enough to take away from it. For most movies I see, neither category applies.

Monster House My Grade: B Plot: 8 It was an interesting story. They laid out the mystery part of the story well, giving enough clues along the way to make you want to know more and they wrapped up all loose ends at the end. Dialogue: 8 There were a few gross jokes but overall the dialogue was good, with some funny lines. Character Development: 8 We got to know the characters well and cared about them by the end of the movie. Editing: 6 It started slow but picked up momentum and ended strong. Special Effects: 8 The people were strange looking but the scenery and background items were excellent. It was an animated movie but like computer animation, not flat kiddie cartoons type animation. Overall Rating: B I thought it was a pretty good movie and I could see it becoming a Halloween classic for future generations. I wouldn't recommend it for younger children because it has some moderately mature dialogue and it could be scary for little kids. If kids can handle the cartoon movie "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" they can handle "Monster House". General Comments: The best friend of the main kid reminded me of Howie on Big Brother. I bet he looked and acted like him when he was a kid. One thing I liked about the movie is that some childhood themes are universal and don't change regardless of generation. Kids today face the same problems we did of parents that don't really listen, babysitter angst, the mean neighbor, etc. That's why I think this movie has staying power, because it will appeal to kids and families for many years to come.

Clerks 2 My Grade: D- Plot: There was nothing really wrong with the plot except that it could have been developed better. Dialogue: 2 I didn't like it. Way too vulgar and immature for my tastes. I think they were going for shock value instead of real dialogue. It detracted so much from the movie. Character Development: 3 The characters were pretty shallow and one-dimensional. Only the main character and his boss seemed to be believable characters with some depth. Editing: 1 Absolutely terrible editing. The camera tricks in one particular scene were random and made it hard to concentrate on the conversation. There didn't seem to be too much effort to forwarding the plot. In fact, it seemed like they were making up the movie as they went, letting it meander all over the place. It really needed more direction. Overall Rating: D- The movie wasn't a total loss. It could have been made to work. In fact, other people may like it exactly as it is. It was just too low-brow humor for me to enjoy. I like witty comedy, not stupid comedy. General Comments: One funny scene has two guys reciting dialogue from Lord of the Rings and they get into an argument with a Star Wars fan about which trilogy is better. I LMAO over that part! :lol: