Recommendations: November 16

I've missed a couple of these so I'm going to just quickly let you know what's come out in the last few weeks that I was planning on recommending. Because I'm going to do more than usual, I'm not going to spend as much time letting you know about the films - check them out on IMDb if you haven't heard of them.

Wreck-It Ralph -The latest from Disney, Wreck-it-Ralph is about a video game villain who sets out to become the hero for once.

Flight - The latest from Denzel Washington, this one's about an airline pilot who saves a flight from crashing. or something.

The Man with the Iron Fists - Somehow, Quentin Tarantino's name is being dropped a lot with this film, even though he's not credited as director, writer, producer, or anything really.  With an interesting cast, however, it looks fun and the trailers kind of make me think of an Asian-themed version of Sin City.

Skyfall - The latest James Bond.  I loved this movie, naming it as one of my favourite in the series.  Check it out now, if you haven't already.

Lincoln - Presumably, this one will be better than this year's other Abraham Lincoln-themed movie, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  This one's actually based on history and features big names like Daniel Day-Lewis and Sally Field, as Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as their son, Robert.

 The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 - The thrilling conclusion to the Twilight Saga this one... yeah.  Okay, I'm going to admit two things here: one, I'm planning on seeing this in theatres and I'm sure I'll enjoy it, and two, I'm really glad that this is finally out because (hopefully) it means we can stop talking about Twilight soon.  Right?

Anna Karenina - This one's only getting a limited release, but it still looks great.  Based on the book of the same name by the legendary Leo Tolstoy, I can't wait to see it.  I really enjoy Keira Knightley films, even the bad ones, and think that she's at her best when in costume dramas.

Silver Linings Playbook - Okay, so I know, I know.  I don't really like Bradley Cooper movies, and yet somehow I keep on getting interested by the trailers for his movies this year.  This one features Cooper as a man just out of a mental institute and Jennifer Lawrence as the mysterious girl that he meets.  I'm going to go into this with an open mind; it looks good, it features Jennifer Lawrence, and it's directed by David O. Russell.

Safety Not Guaranteed - A new take on time travel, this one's about magazine employees who interview a guy who placed a classified add seeking a time travel companion.  I love time travel fiction, so I'm sure I'll enjoy this one.

Ruby Sparks - Paul Dano's latest, this one is about a writer who writes his perfect girl into existence.  I'm pretty sure I've seen it done before, but Ruby Sparks still looked cute.

Brave - The latest Disney Pixar animated film, this one's set in the 10th century Scottish Highlands, and thus features Scottish accents, Scottish music, and an overall amount of cute.  Not the best from them, but I enjoyed it.

Savages -  Also new to DVD is the latest Oliver Stone flick.  Once again, not his best, but definitely not his worst.

The Amazing Spider-Man - Spider-man, Spider-man, does whatever a spider can.  This was fun and great, and despite my disliking of origin stories I really loved it.

Your Sister's Sister - I still haven't seen this one, because it only got a limited release when in theatres, but I'm really looking forward to it - it's about a guy, a girl, and her sister, and the awkwardness that can happen there.

Arthur Christmas -This was actually released in theatres last year, and is only just now being put out on DVD - as is often the case with Christmas movies.  Arthur Christmas is about Santa Claus' oddball son on an attempt to save Christmas and is really cute.  A good way to start off your Christmas season.

John Dies at the End - I've recently started this one and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about it.  It's a fantasy and is definitely interesting, but I'm really not sure if I'm enjoying it or not.  I will definitely let you know how I feel about it, but until I do maybe you want to check it out yourself?

Week in Review: July 9 - 14

Movies - This week we've reviewed  The Amazing Spider-Man, People Like Us, and The Spiderwick Chronicles.  The best of the bunch was Spider-Man, while the worst was Spiderwick Chronicles, but I doubt anyone is really surprised by that.

Books - Book of the week was George R.R. Martin's novella "The Sworn Sword," the second in his Tales of Dunk and Egg series.

TV - TV show of the week was the first season of Grey's Anatomy, which I will eventually be following up with the rest of the series.

Recommendations - There isn't actually anything out in movies this week that I think I'm likely to see in theatres - the recommendations were either for movies that I'm a bit iffy about or else are only getting a limited release.  The DVD releases were, for the most part, DVDs I haven't heard of before but they've all caught my attention - that, and American Reunion, which I already know to have been good.

Next Week - Next week, I plan on reviewing Diana Gabaldon's Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade, Magic Mike, and, in celebration of the new Batman movie, Batman Begins. I plan on re-watching the first two films in the Christopher Nolan Batman trilogy before catching the midnight show of The Dark Knight Rises, so look forward to those reviews.

Requests - Anything out there that you'd like me to review?  A book? A movie? A TV show?  Let me know in the comments and I'll try to get to it.

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, Martin Sheen, Sally Field, Chris Zylka

Director: Marc Webb

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Rating: A-

When I first heard that they were rebooting the Spider-Man franchise I rolled my eyes.  While the Sam Raimi trilogy had its fair share of problems I couldn’t help but feel like it was just a bit early to be rebooting the franchise – it wasn’t all that long ago that they were still discussing doing a Spider-Man 4 – and I didn’t really feel that it was necessary to tell another Spider-Man origin story.  At this point, everyone should know how Peter Parker became Spider-Man, it’s not that complicated of a story.  Despite my reluctance, however, I thoroughly enjoyed The Amazing Spider-Man.  There was a lot about it that sent up red flags, but it overcomes its challenges and really stands on its own as a film, suggesting that this new series might even be far better than its predecessor.

The Amazing Spider-Man follows a young Peter Parker (Garfield) during his high school years.  Following a break in at his childhood home his parents go on the run, leaving Peter to live with his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field).  Some years later as a teenager Peter finds his father’s old briefcase, which contains papers describing his work in engineering a regeneration serum that enabled humans to take on animal characteristics – a science pursued by the elder Parker’s colleague, Doctor Curt Connors (Ifans), in order to regenerate his amputated left arm.  Peter seeks out Connors in an attempt to learn more about his father by sneaking into Connors’ lab at Oscorp, where he is bitten by a genetically altered spider.  This gives Peter the spider-like abilities that we’ve come to know and love in Spider-Man, increased agility and strength, an ability to crawl up walls and on ceilings, and precognition, although not the ability to create web – rather this Spider-Man’s web is a synthetically created biocable that Peter makes.  Peter’s change causes problems between him and his aunt and uncle, culminating in Peter storming off following a fight with Uncle Ben.  While looking for Peter, Uncle Ben is shot and dies – an event that leads Peter to seek out his murderer for retribution.  As he is embarking on his new found vigilante identity, Peter also embarks upon a relationship with Gwen Stacey (Stone), the daughter of police captain George Stacey (Leary).  Disaster then strikes when Connors tests his serum on himself, turning him into a giant, mutant lizard, who wants to wreck the city to shit.

Let's start by saying that this is an amazingly acted movie.  The Amazing Spider-Man brings to the table a huge celebrity presence, one that isn't really seen in the earlier movies.  While Andrew Garfield isn't a huge name yet, pretty much everyone else in major roles in this movie is, from Gwen Stacey and her father to Uncle Ben and Aunt May.  I really liked the way that Peter Parker is portrayed in general; rather than being a borderline cheesy, heroic figure, he's as screwed up as the rest of us and doesn't necessarily make the right choices.  Rather than being all about making the better decisions, he's all about pursuing revenge for his uncle, and only becomes a hero when circumstances force him to do so.  I also really liked the portrayal of Gwen Stacey and the way that she is attracted to Peter before he becomes Spider-Man; it's nice to see that despite the fact that he's awkward he's still desirable without superpowers.  My favourite character, however, probably has to be Denis Leary's George Stacey.  There is something about Captain Stacey that is just so a Denis Leary character, and something else about him that is so completely the opposite of a Denis Leary character.  It was really fun to see him step out of his usual niche and even better to see him be the voice of reason.

Moving beyond that, there was also the great special effects.  Despite it being a superhero movie, the CGI is used somewhat subtly and therefore doesn't look fake; this is best seen in both the portrayal of Spider-Man himself and the Lizard.  In the case of the Lizard it's awesome that even in Lizard form you can still see Ifans' characteristics.  The story was also great and did a lot to set up a grander Spider-Man story, much like Batman Begins did.  The Amazing Spider-Man is based on the premise that there is going to be at least one sequel, and that you are most definitely going to see it.  While some of the story is concluded at the end of the film, the whole thing isn't and some aspects that are portrayed as having been major elements of the film in the trailer are really only hinted at.  By the end of the film you're sitting on the edge of your seat, already eager for the next one.

Recommendations: July 6

The Amazing Spider-Man - This should have been in my recommendations for last week, as The Amazing Spider-Man was actually released on Tuesday.  This is a reboot of the series and focuses on Peter Parker's origins and high school years.  While I really wasn't eager to see a reboot of the series (no matter how bad Spider-Man 3 was), I thoroughly enjoyed The Amazing Spider-Man.

Savages - Oliver Stone's latest movie, Savages follows two pot growers (Aaron Johnson and Taylor Kitsch) after their shared girlfriend (Blake Lively) is kidnapped by a Mexican drug cartel, causing them to seek out retribution.  While Kitsch's movies haven't exactly done well, I usually enjoy Stone's movies so I'll be checking this out.

Treasure Planet - It's the 10th Anniversary since Treasure Planet was first released, so Disney's releasing a special edition of it.  Based on the book of the same name, this animated film takes the classic story and sets it in space.  You can't go wrong with that.

Born on the Fourth of July - This is being re-released as part of Universal's 100th Anniversary, just in time for both the Fourth of July and the release of Oliver Stone's latest movie.  This is one of my favourite Oliver Stone movies, so be sure to check it out - although, perhaps not as part of your Fourth of July festivities, as it isn't exactly pro-America.

Barbarella - The 1968 cult film is being released onto Blu-ray this week.  Barbarella stars a much younger Jane Fonda in the titular role and the film follows her on her very sexual journey to find Durand Durand (after whom the band Duran Duran would be named).  Everything I've read about this movie suggests that it's both really bad and really good.

Through the Door - The first book by Canadian Jodi McIsaac Through the Door tells the story of Cedar McLeod as she is plunged into a world where the Celtic myths are all real.  I first heard about this book through a Facebook ad, where it was compared to a Diana Gabaldon novel; I've since also heard it be compared to Stephen R. Lawhead.  If you like magic this definitely seems like something to check out.

The Kite Runner - This is a really intense novel, following the life of Amir from his childhood in Kabul to his adult life in the US.  Amir's life is chronicled against the tumultuous events that have shaped Afghanistan in the last thirty years.