Treachery (2013)

Title: Treachery

Director: Travis Romero

Starring: Michael Biehn, Matthew Ziff, and Caitlin Keats

Rated: N/A

Released: 2013

Frozen (2013)

Title: Frozen

Directors: Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee

Starring: Kristen Bell, Josh Gad, and Idina Menzel

Rated: PG

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 4.5/6

Oscars: Nominated for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song

Plot: Fearless optimist Anna teams up with Kristoff in an epic journey, encountering Everest-like conditions, and a hilarious snowman named Olaf in a race to find Anna's sister Elsa, whose icy powers have trapped the kingdom in eternal winter.
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Good Overrides the Bad
Before this film's release there was a shitload of complaining about stuff like a lack of people that aren't white skinned. One person that worked on the film complained about how hard his job was as an excuse of why the characters were white and looked like they did. I will agree non-white characters as the ones that take center stage would've been awesome, but the stuff this film does right way overrides the bad. If a film can make me feel like bursting into tears multiple times it has done something miraculous.

Sing-Along Version
I went with a new friend to the Sing-Along version of the movie. I didn't sing just because I don't like doing so in public (though I did take voice lessons before so have sung in public in the past) and the friend was someone I just met. However, there was a little snowflake that indicated which words were being sung at the moment and that give me a great rush of nostalgia. Some children in the theater were dancing which was adorable.

Elsa is Just Awesome
I heard in the original script that Elsa was going to be the villain and that would've been fun to see. But Elsa in this film, aka the final version, is great. I can relate to her need for isolation and the fact that she has to hide who she really is. I have to hide things from my Dad who I live with and it's the same basic isolation (though, luckily, I have great friends I can talk to which isn't an option for Elsa). People have pointed out that Elsa's story seems to be an allegory for those in the LGBTQ+ community and I can see that very clearly.

Final Thoughts
This was an amazing film and I'm so glad I got to see it in theaters. From the trailers I couldn't see myself liking the character of Olaf, but in the movie I cam to love him and I think he's just so adorable! He's so upbeat even in the worst of times that I can't help but want to give him a hug. If this film wins both of its nominations I will be more than ecstatic. This movie and Tangled are my favorite films from Disney recently. The song "Let it Go" always makes me tear up so that's why I didn't sing that song in the Sing-Along version for that part.

Best of 2013 (Parts 1-3)

Here are my picks for the best movies of 2013!






Buy The Movies I Talked About

Gravity (2013)

Title: Gravity

Director: Alfonso Cuarón

Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, and Ed Harris

Rated: PG-13

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 6/6

Oscars: N/A

Plot:  A medical engineer and an astronaut work together to survive after an accident leaves them adrift in space.
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The Ride
Normally I am one to say that a movie has to be looked at differently than a ride. But this movie is different. The feeling of being the main character puts you in the movie. You, considering you are an average person, have never been in space and the likelihood is so little as not to be talked about. So Ryan Stone is the perfect character to get into the mind of as she isn't comfortable about being in space and so when the shit hits the fan (in this case debris hit the space shuttle) she gets scared as a normal person would in that situation. Stone's viewpoint makes for a very thrilling and tense ride.

3D is a Must
I normally don't like 3D. Or, if I do, I think there's not much lost if you view the movie in 2D. However, this movie is different. The 3D did make me feel like a part of the movie. I love when things fly at me from the screen and this movie does this too. It does it without being cheesy also! A scene in which space debris is flying at the screen had me pushing into the back of my seat even though I knew it couldn't harm me. Even though I knew there was nothing actually coming at me. I'd sit up in my seat saying I wouldn't flinch and then a second later I'd be pressed against the seat again.

Reality Hits Home
I have always found myself attracted to things involving the supernatural or aliens. However, it's always the horror stories that are supposed to take place in the real world that creep me out the most. I am not phased by Alien, but Psycho creeps me the fuck out. In this movie it takes place in the real world (technically slightly above it) and maybe this is why it really affected me. I have always been attracted to space and my Dad used to work at NASA. So seeing the visuals alone in this movie made me all happy inside, especially the slow first shot of Earth. I know there are things factually wrong in this movie (such as Stone's character being up there in the first place), but I found it easy enough to put things aside and be drawn into the movie. I think this affects me more than a movie such as Alien because it is supposed to be real.

Final Thoughts
This is a very moving movie. It is one where there was never a dull moment. While the movie was the right amount of time, it was so good it feels like I could accept the movie being even longer. Yes there are factual inaccuracies that may bug some of my readers, but the movie is worth putting those aside. In other words suspending your disbelief is easy enough. It's been a long time since a movie has moved me like Gravity has.

Carrie (2013)

Title: Carrie

Based on the Book (of the same name) By: Stephen King

Director: Kimberly Peirce

Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Julianne Moore, and Gabriella Wilde

Rated: R

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 4.5/6

Oscars: N/A

Plot:  A re-imagining of the classic horror tale about Carrie White, a shy girl outcast by her peers and sheltered by her deeply religious mother, who unleashes telekinetic terror on her small town after being pushed too far at her senior prom.
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Moretz's Performance
I was looking forward to seeing her. Previously the only other movie I had seen with her in it was Dark Shadows. Yeah, I'm one of the odd ones who hasn't seen any of the Kick Ass movies. Moretz plays Carrie in the way the character needs to be played in this movie. Moretz is at first a shy character and then she takes delight in killing those that caused her pain. Moretz can flow through these emotions with such ease that you never question the authenticity of her Carrie.

Bullying
Now Carrie is a character of King's that I connect to a lot. Even more so today than when I first read the novel. I was never bullied, or at least not to the extent Carrie was, but I was always the one in the background that no one noticed. I didn't get bullied to any great extent but it's not like remaining in the shadows helped my development. So I connected to the character greatly. Today I have to live with my Dad who reminds me of Carrie's mother. So when I watched the movie in the theater this week I really got Carrie. The message of anti-bullying in this movie is just as important today as it was when the book was first published.

Updates to the New Time Period
There are now cellphones, Youtube, and Facebook which are used to further along the plot in modern times. The famous scene where Carrie gets her first period now has girls recording the incident with their cellphones. Nowadays this is a great way to get news along. Later one of the girls uploads the video to YouTube which furthers along the plot in a realistic manner.

Final Thoughts
I haven't read the novel since high school and so can't make a good comparison between the two. I got a new copy of Carrie for my birthday and will be sure to read that in the near future. However, I don't like when people complain that this or that isn't like the original movie. No, it isn't. There are changes. Were people really wanting a replica of the original? Did people really want a shot by shot remake with little things updated for modern times? Because that did so well for the Psycho remake! This movie is a good adaptation and isn't a waste of time to watch. Everyone in the cast pulls off a good performance and there is emotion in this movie. If you are unsure, you can always wait until it comes out on blu-ray.
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Jobs Vlog Review (Parts 1-3)

revrezner and I talk about Jobs (2013) starring Ashton Kutcher.

The World's End Vlog Review (Parts 1 & 2)

revrezner and I talk about The World's End starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.

The World's End (2013) Ending

This post will be spoiler filled so if you haven't seen The World's End I'd suggest doing so now. I wouldn't want to spoil the awesomeness.

Now onto the main show:

As I said in my written review of the film (don't worry, the vlog with revrezner has been filmed and will be edited and released on the interwebs), the ending is both hilarious and sad at the same time.

It is hilarious because Gary King refuses to consider The Network's offer. He does his gag of never admitting that he's wrong. The funniest part of that scene, at least for me, is The Network giving up arguing with King and agreeing to leave. As The Network leaves it whispers, "Fuck it."

Looking at the conversation between Andy, King, and The Network brings up some good points in humanity's favor. Even though King is an idiot because he never admits he's wrong, the fact is that I found myself agreeing with his point that humanity should be free. King says it because he's shitfaced and he won't let an argument go. But, really, the only way humanity can thrive is if it is free.

If the world is going to be peaceful it should be because humans made it that way and not because some outside force made it so. This is why I think Stephenie Meyer failed in The Host by making the invading aliens into saints.

Humanity will probably never achieve world peace (all the sexist, racist, transphobic, ect. people out there that don't even seem to realize what they are outnumber the sane people), but I would never bow down to alien overlords that seek to manipulate and force the world into peace.

It's even brought up that The Network hasn't been able to achieve peace without the methods shown in The World's End.

So I'm glad that King argued so fiercely for humanity's freedom, even if it wasn't his real intention to do so.

After The Network leaves Earth, the world ends. Every technological thing seems to go away. In the NBC show Revolution the electronics don't work because of nanites, but The Network just stopped humanity's technology in a bid to stop humans from causing problems for the rest of the universe.

When the world has ended, Andy gets back with his wife. Sam and Peter get it on. And King...doesn't change at all. Well, he drinks water now but that might just be because that's how the world is now.

I find the outcome for King to be the most heartbreaking. Over the course of the movie you learn that King has cut and was trying to use the pub crawl as a way to get what he couldn't in his youth. I've heard people bring up the theory that if the pub crawl went the way he wanted, that he would have committed suicide.

So King does succeed in getting to The World's End (but doesn't get to drink that final pint) and lives his fantasy of being in his youth. He takes the Blanks of his friends as they were when they were younger and goes to different pubs.

Why I consider this heartbreaking is that King is shown to be unable to grow and develop. He will be the same person to the day that he dies. While you should keep yourself young at heart, you also have to realize that sometimes growth is good. It might not be easy, but it will be for the best.

On one hand I'm glad that King is now happy (even if the world has ended), but also sad that he'll never grow or develop.

The World's End (2013)

Title: The World's End

Director: Edgar Wright

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and Martin Freeman

Rated: R

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 5/6

Oscars: N/A

Plot:  Five friends who reunite in an attempt to top their epic pub crawl from 20 years earlier unwittingly become humankind's only hope for survival.
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Great Humor
I am not a comedy person. Comedies are just hard for me to either watch or enjoy because I am confused on what is supposed to be funny about the movie or show I am watching. Hell, even in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy book series the humor was hard for me to pick up. No disrespect to the great Douglas Adams intended. In this movie, however, I was able to fully enjoy myself. In fact there was one scene, can't recall it now, where I laughed so loudly that people in China heard me and the dead awakened. But the nearly packed theater's audience was laughing too so I wasn't noticed. Though I was embarrassed for my outburst.

Ending Both Sad and Funny
I can't say much about the ending here as I don't want to spoil the movie for you. Suffice it to say that the final confrontation between Gary King and the robots (though the movie's terminology for them are Blanks) is hilarious. Throughout the movie King has been painted as someone who you can't argue with and that is played up to great effect in the confrontation. But after you leave the theater you start to realize the implications about King's arc and it made me a little sad. I might make another post talking about the ending so that I can talk without fear of talking about major spoilers.

End of the World
In the trailers it seems that reaching The World's End is an end goal to save the world. In the trailers the plot seems to be that if they reach the that pub then they can work on saving the world. While reaching that pub does bring along the final confrontation, King's reason/obsession to getting there isn't to save the world. I don't think he really cares about saving the world at any point during the movie, really. He wants to get to the pub to do something he couldn't when he was younger and to bring solace to himself.

Final Thoughts
Out of the few movies I've seen released this year, this is my favorite. I haven't seen Iron Man 3 or Man of Steel yet so I can't say for certain what my favorite movie of the year will end up being. For now, though, this is my number one. The humor is done extremely well and fans of the Cornetto Trilogy will be happy to note the presence of some returning gags. Being a fan of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost's works I had expectations that had to be met. They were.

Jobs (2013)

Title: Jobs

Director: Joshua Michael Stern

Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Dermot Mulroney, and Josh Gad

Rated: PG-13

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 1/6

Oscars: N/A

Plot:  The story of Steve Jobs' ascension from college dropout into one of the most revered creative entrepreneurs of the 20th century.
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Ashton Kutcher is Great
I hate this movie with a passion. I could spend hours repeating what I find wrong with it and passing out would be the only way I'd stop. However, Kutcher pulls off a great performance here. He is the only good thing in this movie. As with a lot of the cast members, he looks very similar to Steve Jobs. Kutcher plays a convincing egomaniac who doesn't make many lasting friendships. Indeed, the real life Jobs was not a very easy person to work with.

The Plot Doesn't Care About Itself
Seriously, it doesn't. I love b-movies and even those kinds of films have a better idea of what makes a movie than this one. It gives you a plot point and then never mentions it again. The biggest example of this is Jobs' daughter Lisa. You see him thinking his girlfriend is cheating on him with a mutual friend, Jobs dumping his girlfriend when he thinks she's pregnant with their mutual friend's baby, denying that the baby is his, and then suddenly Lisa is on his couch.

The Soundtrack
I am not one to talk about music. As that's the case I usually don't talk about the soundtrack of a movie because it doesn't touch me or I don't feel I am adequate enough to talk about it. But for this movie I know enough to know that the soundtrack sucks. At first it was boring but by the end I was wanting to get out of the theater for the sake of my ears. I can't describe why I was so pained by the soundtrack, but I was. No, I'm not willing give it a second go to find out why I feel this way about it.

Final Thoughts
revrezner has said that this movie isn't accurate and has provided sources that also confirm this. So this film is neither a good movie nor is it something to see to find out about Steve Jobs. Aaron Sorkin is set to make a film about Steve Jobs that is supposed to be much more accurate than this crap fest. I would suggest waiting for this to come onto DVD/Blu-Ray if you feel you must see it. Even then I'd suggest renting it since you won't want to see it a second time.

Oscars 2013 (Parts 1-3)

I go over the actual ceremony and announce the winners.

Warm Bodies (2013)

Title: Warm Bodies

Based On the Book: Warm Bodies

Written By: Isaac Marion

Director: Jonathan Levine

Starring:  Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer, and John Malkovich

Rated: PG-13

Released: 2013

Personal Rating: 4.5/5

Oscars: N/A

Plot: After R (a highly unusual zombie) saves Julie from an attack, the two form a relationship that sets in motion a sequence of events that might transform the entire lifeless world.
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Love at First Sight
I don't believe in "love at first sight" in real life. Anyone that meets someone and then quickly gets married isn't doing the right thing. Until you really get to know someone it's infatuation and not love. However, in fiction, it's different. "Love at first sight", if done correctly, can add a nice level of sweetness to the work. For those who have read the book (I haven't, but I have read enough comments about this part in the book), you might remember a lack of this element in the original novel. But I still like R falling in love with Julie when he first sees her. Yes, it's unrealistic that a zombie (after eating so many humans) would be swayed to redemption by a pretty girl. However, it doesn't make sense that memories from a lover would sway a zombie. Because, really, R has probably eaten families before and it didn't make him change.

Two Main Types of Zombies
There are two kinds of zombies that are on different sides. First you have the "friendly zombies"/corpses that have conflicting feelings about killing and eating people. Mind you, usually they can't stop and eat people anyways because they're compelled to. The other kind are Bonies/Skeletons who are the real enemies of the movie. They resemble skeletons and are beyond saving. It is revealed, as the movie continues, that they think being like them is the way to go and will even attack corpses if their "utopia" is threatened.

Love Saves All
The cure for being a zombie seems to be love. Also the cure can be said to be to take notice of your surroundings. To not just do things out of habit, but to really experience life. While it is a really cheesey element of the film, it is actually a good life lesson if you think about it. Zombies represent consumerism/not having your own opinions and so zombies are really people that don't feel anymore. And I think a lot of people have the problem of being metaphorical zombies. So, readers, go out and really live.

Final Thoughts
I would've brought up this being a re-telling of Romeo and Juliet, but I don't care/remember enough of the Shakespeare play to really make the comparison good. Before you say I'm 'not educated' because I don't like the play: I have a BA in English with a Specialization in Creative Writing AND I don't think Romeo loved Juliet (so it's not a love story, it's all about infatuation in that department). But that's a whole 'nother blog post. For those interested in the comparison: R = Romeo, Julie = Juliet. Oh, and the balcony scene. Besides that, you can look it up yourself. All in all, this movie was funny and moving. It was a very good choice to see it on Valentine's Day with revrezner (my fiance). Before I saw this movie I didn't think a zombie could really be in love with a human, but now I do. Don't worry, there's no zombie on human sex.

Oscar Nominees (2013)

I talk about the Oscar Nominees.