The Break-Up

Film: The Break-Up
Director: Peyton Reed
Year: 2006
Quick Glance:
A couple's relationship dissolves
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The breakup a film more famous for the "break up" with Brad and Jennifer, turns out to be a pretty fun flick. Although the film was fun, it was almost like watching two people dig them selves deeper and deeper. Like a horror film, i felt like shouting out several times "watch out!", "dont do that!" But in the end the break up ended and it was neither happy nor particularly sad. Over all the film was funny with laughs, but under the facade was a story of the pain of breaking up. It made me think about my relationship and reflecting on the problem parts of most relationships. And in the end no matter how many laughs, the film was about loss.

This film did an excellent job allowing the underlying sadness about break ups and loss to be maintained although the film was pretty lighthearted. It was not your typical love story, if it could be considered a love story at all. And in the end you hope for the best, but you know no matter what, it was over.

Click

Film: Click
Director: Frank Coraci
Year: 2006
Quick Glance:
The man with a remote controls the world.
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Click is one of those films that I generally avoid in the theater. These silly films put together with cheesy morals are just about as filling as a bucket of popcorn. But wait,....there is a review, does that mean that the afor mentioned film reviewer, myself, actually stooped so low to see the film. Yes. and my only excuse is i was bored. The film was just about what i expected, except it was also a great deal of fun. Despite the stupidity, and the cliches, and the plot holes, the film was just fun to see. Normally Adam Sandler's humor is not my own, but this time, i really did have fun. I didn't stop once during the film to wonder when it would be over and instead couldn't wait to see what was next.

The film is the story of a man who gets a remote that gives him power over things in his life. He can pause time, rewind, fast forward. Of course, Adam Sandler's character does not use his powers wisely and learns in the end, he doesn't need the remote to make his life happy, it already is. Awwww, ok. Still it is cool some of the ideas they come up with how they use it. Of course, while i was sitting there, i kept thinking of ways i could use my remote. The first one would be to pause and take a nap. LOL

Over all the film was fun summer fluff, and i enjoyed it as such.

Superman

Film: Superman Returns
Director: Bryan Singer
Year: 2006
Quick Glance:
Superman comes back... what else is there to say?
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Its a bird, its a plane, its .........Superman! There is no superhero more iconic than the man of steel himself superman. After some out of the world soul searching, superman has come back to earth and is preparing to pick up where he left off in Metropolis. Unfortunately, one of the things that superman doesn't have control of, Time, has taken its toll. Lois Lane, for whom superman has a soft spot, has moved on and Lex Luther, the arch Nemesis of superman, has been concocting evil plans. Superman makes a stab at fixing both of these two things as well as diverting a number of local disasters after his return. Neither Lois or Lex end up how Superman would like, instead leaving a nice big hole for superman and perhaps, baby superman.

The actually stage of the film was quite unique. The filmmaker managed to invoke the nostalgia of the 1930/40s era while still embracing the current time period. In a way, he managed to make the new look old, but so barely noticeable that it just feels right. The colors are also tinted slightly to push the film back to a day when film had slightly different coloring.

While well filmed and fun to watch, i did find that there were some parts where the story became slighty slow and sluggish. The sappy parts with Lois and Superman felt long, drawn out and awkward. There were moments when I began wondering it would be over. Still despite my impatience, the film was a fun summer film.

Chinatown

Film: Chinatown
Director: Roman Polanski
Year: 1974
Quick Glance:
A private detective stumbles into problems bigger than he can handle
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Set in Los Angeles, Chinatown is part noir, part mob, and part city planning. Apparently, LA is in the middle of a drought and those in power have opted to send the valuable water elsewhere. However, with this scheme, a few people die, and Jack Nickleson's character is left untangling the mystery. Although the ending is pretty climatic, one finds herself feeling disappointed in its anti-climatic feel. At the end, i was left with a feeling of both confusion and ambivalence.

The story follows a complicated plot line, which makes it difficult to follow. Some of the conclusions that the characters come to, are a little unrealistic or thin based on the number of clues together. One is left wondering if there are holes in the plot or whether she didn't pay close enough attention. All in all, while watching the film, I felt like i was missing out on key points. The film is long and drawn out and relatively boring, despite the number of deaths, disappearances, twists and turns. Additionally, the title "chinatown" is never made clear, leaving the viewer once again puzzled.