Some movies you just know are going to be bad from the trailer they release.

It was with this movie that I found out that AMC had stripped all but one night a week of student discounts.

Strike 1.

Then this movie was the only one not sold out.

Strike 2.

Then it started playing….

Strike 3.

The story is lame, predictable, and been done a lot over the past 10 years.  My Best Friend’s Wedding was the peak and this one ties The Wedding Date for the valley.  The stars appeared to be sleepwalking through the entire movie and at no point did I feel like the ending would be anything other than what it was.  As I was watching it, I thought I spotted a clue as to a neat twist; unfortunately, that twist never developed.

My advice: wait for it to show up on Lifetime; no need to give them any additional money for this trainwreck…

My fascination with superhero movies is well-documented, so are any of you surprised that I am reviewing Iron Man?

I thought not…

So what does one do when one finds themselves a part of a massive layoff?  If that person is me, then they go to the movies.  So I hit the 1:30 showing over at Regal Waterford Lakes after lunch with Rich.  Although I would have preferred AMC for this movie, Regal was right there without a big line.

As the movie started, I did have a nagging worry — had I hyped this movie up in my head too much?

No — I had not hyped it enough.

As disappointed as I was in the movies May 2007 delivered, Iron Man made up for that disappointment.  Robert Downey, Jr., was a perfect choice for Tony Stark.  Just as many can not imagine anyone other than Christopher Reeve as Superman or Patrick Stewart as Professor X, I can not imagine anyone else being Tony Stark.  Gwyneth Paltrow was also a good choice for Pepper Pots.

The story was a strong origin story, updated for today’s climate.  What I liked is something that other reviewers have pointed out:  The terrorists were a band of mercenaries from different countries, with no stated ties to any real groups.  That kept the plot from turning into Rocky IV.

Jon Favreau did a superb job in making the effects not look CGI.  In an interview with Ain’t It Cool News, he mentioned how he worked hard to make the CGI disappear.  For the dogfight, he sent planes up with cameras mounted so that the sun glares on the lenses would show.  The suit was real in many of the shots, with CGI in obvious sequences.

My advice: Solid story, solid casting, solid action — good for even those that do not like superhero movies — See it on the big-screen; I have 3 times and STAY PAST THE CREDITS!!!!

Well, if you read my review of the first one, then you know I was looking forward to this one.  I was afraid that they might have put too much hype behind the movie and that I would leave disappointed.

The story is more developed than the first movie and the humor is a little smarter in drawing parallels.  Ultimately this is a movie about friendship and how far you can go before it is destroyed.  It works because the guys playing our heroes are likeable.

There are parts that are funnier than the first and the rest is about the same.

My advice: if you liked the first one, you will not be disappointed — If you were missing 10 minutes of gratuitous naked females in movies, then why are you still here and not at the theater?

We have all been there:  madly in love with someone, thinking things are going great, and then…

WHAM!!!!!

You are left picking up the broken pieces of your heart as the one you thought loved you casually walks out the door.

Usually Hollywood shows this as the guy dumping the girl; not this time around.  This time around we see the guy getting the shaft, which has been more my experience.

So do I go see this movie by myself?  Nope — I go on a date — but we had fun.  We went over for a Sunday matinee at the AMC Altamonte and settled into our seats just as the trailers were beginning.  Some interesting ones — it was the first time I saw the full Get Smart trailer — I want to see more of that one…

The movie starts off in a way that I am sure my friend, Spaldy, will love:  Jason Segel (How I Met Your Mother), with nary a stitch of clothing.  Interestingly enough, we get three different scenes of him in full-frontal, but really nothing of the women, barely a boob.  Anyway, Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars) dumps our young, nude hero for some girly-looking rock singer; seriously, Richard Simmons looks more manly.  Segel runs off to Hawaii, where, surprise, he runs into Bell and her girly-man.  What follows is pretty formulaic, but good.  My date and I had a lot of laughs from this one.

My advice:  Don’t miss it amongst all of the summer blockbusters — it’s even a decent date movie, as long as your date is not a prude…

Over the years, I have found that Jack Black is a hit-or-miss actor.  When he hits (School of Rock, High Fidelity), it is great; when he misses (Saving Silverman, King Kong), it is not pretty.  So when I see him attached to a movie, particularly a comedy, I am cautiously optimistic.

Which leads us to this movie.

My friend, Spaldy, often talked about this as an idea for a movie, but she never got around to writing it.  I saw the trailer and thought it looked pretty cool.  So one afternoon, I headed up to the theater to check it out.

The premise sold in the trailer is that the videos in a rental store are messed up and they have to remake them.  What the movie is really about is more convoluted and ultimately depressing.  In reality, it is trying to be social commentary when we do not want it.  Even the lawsuit is stupid, since what happened in the movie would be considered parody.  I left the theater just feeling “Blah.”

My advice: catch it on TV; it has some funny moments, but is not worth the big screen treatment.