I spent last weekend mostly spending time in the movie theater. Exactly how I love spending my weekends! Here's my thoughts on the movies I saw this weekend.
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Ok, I like my vampire media. Just to give you an idea: I'm rewatching Buffy and Angel with the roommates, loving Vampire Diaries and True Blood, and read all the Twilight books. But I hated the first Twilight movie. Twilight was just a blue, poorly shot, poorly acted mess. The only way I got through that movie was with two glasses of wine. And I'm not the only one. While it racked in the dough, it scored a lackluster 49% on Rotten Tomatoes. I was abroad when it came out, so I completely missed the madness and didn't quite get it. Then I came back and fell into the books and now I'm one of the people who contributed to its $140+ million box office weekend.
I saw it Friday night and got in line for the screening about 2 hours before the show started. The line was stereotypically mostly young women, but there were a few groups of guys seeing it (to pick up young chicks? Fans of Taylor Lautner's abs? Who knows.) Watching it with such a fanatical crowd was really the highlight. The girls screaming when Taylor Lautner takes off his shirt, the one girl who let out a lustful "oooh my godddd" when Bella and Jacob hugged, and the chorus of "NOOOOOO"s when it ended - the mania totally makes the experience better.
The movie itself, not so great but not terrible either. It was way better than the first, overall. Shot better, marginally better acting, and the dialogue was way less clunky (see: "Hop on my back, spidermonkey!"). The best parts were when they weren't talking, though. The chase scene in the woods and the fight in Italy were really well done - I loved how they played around with time to show just how fast they move. The ending was a nice change from the book; it makes the audience want to see "Eclipse" all the sooner. And we don't have to wait long, "Eclipse" comes out June 30, 2010. If New Moon makes that much money in November, I don't even know what the next one will make as a summer blockbuster.
2012This movie clocks in at nearly 3 hours, but it did not feel like that at all to me. The beginning, where they're introducing the characters and trying to make us care for them, was slow and didn't really pull me in. But that's not why we see these types of movies is it? I went for the spectacle and boy did it deliver! The sheer scale of it all and immediacy of the diaster had my heart pumping. Plus, I LOVED that little dog. Yay, Japanese Shins! The deaths at the end seemed a little rushed and unecessary, but otherwise a pretty solid action flick to tide us over until the summer blockbuster season.
The Blind Side
I went in this movie expecting to come out a bawling mess. The trailer alone had me in tears! But, while it was emotional and touching and great story, it never packed that emotional punch that would have turned me into a weepy mess. It was a great inspirational family story. I wouldn't categorize it as a sports movie though, since there's a total of maybe 10 minutes of football footage in the film. The focus is on Mike and Leanne (Sandra Bullock) and how this relationship changed both their lives. They both put in great performances (Sandra Bullock for Best Actress?) and it was a really well paced movie that didn't drag its feet in the melodrama. It's gotten good reviews from the critics, and even as an A+ from audience exit polls on CinemaScope. If this movie can keep its legs and gross some big money, along with a big push from Warner Bros. I could definitely see Sandra Bullock getting some award recognition for the role.
Did you guys see any movies this weekend? What'd you think?
