Well....I wanted to love JUNO, given the press it's been getting and the preliminary award nominations. But I didn't. It was OK, made tolerable for me by the superb supporting cast. The heroine was annoyingly spunky, bright, and quick witted, thanks to the script. I wasn't drawn in to the film as I should have been because, despite what should have been inherently likable qualities in the lead character, I just couldn't get behind Juno, herself. Ellen Page did a credible job as Juno McGuff, but the character as written by Diablo Cody was just too cloyingly smart/cute for me.

It's a nice little movie. The audience clapped mildly at the close of the film. I nearly fell asleep a few times. It was decidely a mixed bag for me, but I have the feeling that a young audience will love it.

Also known as..."Alien vs. Predator II?" "Predator IV?" "Alien VI?" Ouch, it boggles the mind!

Well, I just saw the second installment of this unholy fanboy hybrid of two successful film franchises. And what do I want to say about it? Unoriginal, unimaginative, and ridiculously derivative of every previous flick in these bridged realities. The human characters are cardboard cutouts of the thinnest material. Their inevitable rising body count barely ruffles a feather as the so-called plot ensues.

Things pick up immediately from the end of the previous Alien vs. Predator flick as the small and plot-friendly remote town of Crested Butte, Colorado undergoes an explosion of Alien births that rivals the beginning of the post-1945 American baby boom. And standing tall to them all is one badass Predator Chieftain.

Several bloody mini battle set pieces ensue, with all of it ending in a Xeno-a-Xeno between Chieftain Predator and hybrid PredAlien on a hospital rooftop...and all of it feels just so damn pointless.

And the end of the flick itself? More derivative of the much more original RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD than anything else.

Will there be a AvP III? Maybe not. This flick does not end with a cliffhanger like it's predecessor. Let's hope the studio takes a hint and puts this monstrosity to its final rest.

My longer review can be read in my "blog" at my website.

I give "ALIEN VS. PREDATOR: REQUIEM," TWO-AND-ONE-HALF out of five cans of diet cherry vanilla Dr. Pepper.

Mike out

The other night, I read in an old Entertainment Weekly magazine that the live action film of Speed Racer will be released in May of 2008...has anyone else heard or seen anything about this?

I for one sure as hell hope that this is not true; not because I like Speed Racer, in fact, I could never stand it, but what I'm waiting for is the release of the live action Jonny Quest movie.

I've been waiting for a live action Jonny Quest movie for a long long time now and imdb has a 2010 release listed for it, but I do not know if it is the live action movie simply because I refuse to pay for the "gold" edition or whatever it is of imdb.

So anyways, I'm afraid if Speed Racer bombs that Jonny Quest, a cartoon that can be transferred to the live screen better then Speed Racer, will never be released!!

Death to Speed Racer and long live Jonny Quest!!

I just finished Season 1 of Heroes and begun Season 2 of Weeds, Season 1 of Dexter.

Heroes is considerably better than most TV, but still lacked something to push it into greatness.

Weeds is the wildest show out there. I don't find the characters all that realistic but I don't care-the show makes me laugh and think, what else could a viewer want?

Dexter I'm semi-disappointed with after all the raves from the board here. I think Michael C. Hall is fantastic and I love the premise but I really hope his sister and the captain show some intelligence soon, and that Doakes becomes less of a buffoon. I have only watched the first three episodes and like it well enough to continue but those three are irritating to the extent that I may ff through their parts.

OH MY!

Spoiler warning (just to be safe).....






What a black hearted musical. Surely SWEENEY TODD is the darkest piece of musical theater, ever. Certainly it's the darkest that I've ever seen. For those of you who enjoy your gore, this is a movie for you. For those of you who enjoy Johnny Depp (and who doesn't), this is a movie for you. For those of you who are Sondheim fans, this is a movie for you. And most of all, for those of you who love Tim Burton, this is THE movie for you.

There are a few short stretches that drag. They happen when Depp and Bonham Carter are not on screen. I was spellbound by Johnny Depp, even more than I usually am. Sasha Baron Cohen has a juicy part that's right up his alley, including his costume with bulges in appropriate places.

The look of the film is fantastic, contradictorily lush yet sublimely dark and dreary. It evokes the nastiest, bleakest, most foul aspects of 19th century London. While no one in the film has the voice of a true singer, they all sing well enough, and Depp, in particular, does a fine job. Keep in mind this is a musical first and foremost. Frequently everyone bursts into song, which can be disconcerting. But Burton handles it well. Sondheim's cynical, dense, intelligent lyrics are given their due, and with his unique musical pacing, Songheim's songs come at you fast and furious.

I grimaced and gagged in more than a few places. I suspect I may have nightmares about the ending.

I am not a big Tim Burton fan, but I liked SWEENEY TODD. He and Depp have created another grim, macabre masterpiece.

With the discussion of the boots of "THE KEEP" being talked about I thought it would be fun to talk about grey market media items and what we have seen or own. The big question is "WHY?" What makes us goout of our way to roll the dice and pick the damn things up? What are the attraction?

Imagine my surprise when hubby presented me, for Christmas, with another treasure! I received a brand new copy of "Artifact". Co-authored by FPW. I haven't had the chance to start this one yet........they "made" me work today....the nerve of them!!!! Anyhoooo....this book looks to be about an artifact found in the edges of the Caribbean. Another lost Otherness piece perhaps?

Not sure why they would ever make this movie...when I first watched the trailer I thought it was a joke, sadly..it is not.

http://www.apple.com/trailers/independen...h/trailer/

No, It Isn't

The amazing Philip Seymour Hoffman is paired with the equally amazing Laura Linney, both indie favs, in THE SAVAGES. They are brother and sister trying to cope with the impairment and ill health of their estranged father, played well by Phillip Bosco, also someone who never turns in a poor performance.

Most of you won't see this movie. Chances are it's such an indie that it won't play in your neighborhood. But if it should pop up in your area, and you are someone who enjoys a film about real people grappling with real life situations, do check it out. It's a joy to watch Hoffman work. What a guy. It so happens he looks like my brothers. He could take the place of either my older or younger brother and no one would know. That happenstance added a poignency to THE SAVAGES that touched me.

Indie lovers, this is a movie to see.