Easy to like Easy Virtue

Okay, who doesn't love Kristin Scott Thomas? Whether you've seen her more sublime foreign films or just remember her unforgettable role as the secretly lovelorn Fiona in "Four Weddings And A Funeral," there are few actors with her talent and affectiveness on the screen--you can't take your eyes off her! Love or hate her character as a bitter, jealous, angry and cold wife/mother, you will love the way KST plays her. So what are we looking at here? Well, a rich British kid is off sewing his wild oats and tasting the sweet nectar of fast city living and lo and behold, he goes and marries a foul-mouthed, free spirited, independent American girl who races cars in Monte Carlo. WTF? Well, his country family's version of the modern WTF is to skulk around this woman noting her every move, criticizing her every comment while envying her clothes, hair, humor and openness at the same time. I was exhausted just watching this family try to decide how to react, but the American girl (played well by Jessica "I didn't know she had it in her" Biel) is SO endearing, fun and well-meaningful, you can't help but root for her. This film may sound serious, but there is hilarity in every scene thanks to the unfailing dryness and excellent timing of British humor (and there's a nod to raunchy American humor too). Either way, there are laugh-out-loud moments where I had to catch myself because I wasn't sure if I should be laughing (e.g. SPOILER ALERT: there is a situation with the family's pet mutt that is both shocking and funny). Oh, crap, did I mention how good Colin Firth is??? He is positively sublime as the henpecked husband and patriarch. He has few lines, but his presence throughout the film is strong, poignant and necessary to help viewers understand this family's wacky dynamic.

John Connor is finally an adult...

And he is back to stop Cyberdyne Systems. Not sure why other reviews of this flick were lukewarm because I thought it was solid. Come on people...we've waited over 20 years to better understand how Connor meets his dad and becomes the leader of the Resistance. So I sat there with major nerves and anticipation waiting for the dancing coke cups and popcorn kernels to chill out. Finally, after the insipid previews of movies I will never see because they scared the bejesus out of me (way to go, makers of the freakazoid"Orphan"), I was ready. And then the music started. Not sure if James Cameron had a hand in the producing that menacing Termninator song, but it is certainly recognizble and I was immediately comforted when I heard it as the opening credits ran. For the next two hours, the pieces of the puzzle were assembled through future and past flashes, there was a hot guy half-man/half-terminator thing, there was a hot girl pilot in the Resistance and of course there was Common (glad he's moving into acting). There were primitive terminators, a glimpse into what it will be like to be human when the machines take over, and there was a surprise of magnanimous proportions at the end. I thought the action was futuristic, the props were believable and even "cool" and the brooding Christian Bale/John Connor really was better than he had to be (borrowing that line from a fellow reviewer); meaning, this series has never required nor been afforded the luxury of great acting (Ahnold had three words and Linda's wide-eyes to the camera was expected but not Oscar worthy), so to see Mr. Bale show his acting chops was somewhat refreshing. Overall, this is a highly entertaining and thoughtful movie. I do wish Mr. Cameron had had a hand in it, though. I guess he got the girl then dumped the girl for another girl in one of his movies, so maybe he's done with this franchise because of the memories?

Demons and Angels

Ugh. Rent this or watch it for free on your pirated cable. I remember hearing an ad prior to the release of this film that went something like this: "Tom Hanks and Ron Howard have topped DaVinci Code in every way." I remember thinking that this was not a particularly difficult task given how sucky D'Code was. That said, there is still something off here. The loose mystery, the overacting, the faux scenery, the inability to stick to the plot and the poor casting (Tom Hanks should never have gotten this gig--GREAT actor, but he's not this character) make A & D a huge disappointment. I'm not sure it was better than D'Code because it just seemed so forced. LOVED Alfred Molina--but who doesn't, right?

Funniest movie since...

Well, let's admit, there are lots of funny movies out there and "The Hangover" deserves to be near the top of that list! People don't always mean that something is "laugh out loud" but I do mean it. My fellow moviegoers and I laughed so hard at the sacrifice pop-fly that we often missed the tag at third base that brought the runner home. Hey, it's summer...baseball fever is in the air. Anyway, back to this movie. Did I mention how funny it is? I must also say that I watched this movie with a dose of jealousy because I think EVERYONE should have an evening like the boys in this movie did--waking up with someone missing a tooth, a tiger in the bathroom, a random baby in the closet, a missing groom, a hospital wrist band and NO memory of what happened. Talk about your WTF moments...this redefines WTF! I also love how the scriptwriters and filmmakers stay true to the title--it's about The Hangover, not the night that caused it; so we don't have to suffer through the requisite "party" scenes (beer bongs, naked girls, sex with animals, a drunk person getting their hair cut by her drunk friends, etc etc) like we see in similar movies through the ages. Instead we get to skip all that and watch the guys respectively try to piece their good time back together to make sense. I will not spoil whether or not they get there or not, but I WILL say this: don't get up too soon after the flick. You might miss the fun, final scene. The rich and hilarious characters sprinkled throughout (including the main foursome) make this movie less of a dude-fest and more of a classic comedy you and your friends will watch, rewatch and quote over and over again in the future. I guarantee it! And could Bradley Cooper BE any cuter? Doubtful. Well, he IS a fellow Hoya, so it stands to reason.