We've seen quite a few movies in the past few weeks:

Mystic River - great cast, well acted, chilling/sad movie.
21 Grams - great cast, well acted, sad movie, Sean Penn's ass (no biggie). Good for Naomi Watts for unglamming herself and really getting into the role. Benicio Del Toro rocks.
In America - sappy, not-too-bad-but-definitely-not-too-good movie. Samantha Morton's always good, though, so that was a bonus. The little girls (played by sisters) were very good and cute as a button to boot.

Rentals:
American Wedding - Being movie loyalists to a certain degree, we felt compelled to watch the 3rd in the Pie series. It sucked so badly. We had to actually return the movie the very next morning just to get it out of the house.
Fast Runner (161 minutes with subtitles) - Like an Innuit soap opera but a really good movie. Fast Runner falls for woman already spoken for from birth and wins her hand in marriage by knocking the head of the guy she was to have married harder than guy knocked him in the head. Guy's evil family wreaks havoc. Guy's evil sister goes on Caribou hunt with Fast Runner, bewitches and has sex with him, becomes his 2nd wife--adultery, murder, etc. ensue... That's all I'll give away plot point-wise.
The Italian Job - Blech remake (not that I saw the original). Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron had nearly zero chemistry. Formulaic and predictable, but the Mini Coopers were kind of cool.
All the Real Girls - Not a bad little movie. Real girl hooks player and turns the tables. Zooey Daschenel is always good.

There were a few others that we watched that have just entirely slipped my mind. That must be saying something about the quality of the films or of my memory.

patt*

Patt***, how come I don't see _Stuck On You_ anywhere on your list of cinematic treasures?

I haven't gone to the movies since Christmas break, but I have watched couple of good discs at home:

_Beyond Re-Animator_: Don't let this third in the Re-Animator series pass you by. Nothig as outrageous as the severed head scene from the original, but it was a lot of fun.

_Tenacious D: The Complete Master Works_: I know that I'm like five years behind the time for only now exposing myself to Jack Black's band, but in case there's anyone in this forum who is less up-to-date than me I HIGHLY recommend this stuff. Smart, funny, infectuously tuneful, and pretty vulgar. As he was a metalhead in his youth, Sweet Meat should appreciate that they do a song about Ronnie James Dio.

That's all I can think of right now. Funny story about the Pie movie, Patt***. Serves you right for even considering that one.

Jeff.

PS I shed a tear at each of the programs mentioed above.

A woman with whom I work and her boyfriend are huge Jack Black and Tenacious D fans. They sent me an animation video for "F*** Her Gently." Pretty vulgar and clever. He was great in High Fidelity, Orange County (the movie) and School of Rock.

We saw Big Fish this weekend, being the Tim Burton fans that we are. It was a pretty gentle, quiet, subtle movie for being tall-talish in parts. We liked it, but it wasn't what I thought it might be (more over the top, noisier, bigger, etc.). The acting was very good. It didn't grab me like I thought it would; it more grew on me.

For Norm's 4th birhtday on Saturday, we watched Finding Nemo, which was really good. Just a sweet movie. And I'm a fan of Albert Brooks. Ellen Degeneres was good.

We saw Underworld with Kate Beckinsale and Scott Speedman (of Felicity--oy vey), and it was derivative and dopey not scary but kind of sweet. Not too bad but not good either.

Raising the rock horns in Meat's direction,
patt*

Please pass along a happy birthday IOU to Norm that entitles him to one good, free leg humping, courtesy of his Uncle Jeff.

It's the least that I could do after my birthday, when Norm let ME hump HIS leg.

I finally saw "Big Fish," and liked it quite a bit. No "Ed Wood," but a neat Tim Burton flick nonetheless. I'd admit that I needed to fight back the tears at the end, but I've totally ruined my credibility in that area thanks to my constant jabs at Sweet Meat.

We finally saw Lost In Translation and liked it. We had no-to-slightly-uncertain expectations going in because we heard from some folks that it dragged, that the characters are whiney, etc.

I thought that it was a neat portrayal of how odd it is to be living and working elsewhere and out of a hotel for what ever length of time.

And a movie wherein Bill Murray does karaoke versions of "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" and Roxy Music's "More Than This" and that ends with the Jesus and Mary Chain's "Just Like Honey" can't really be bad, can it?

patt*

Hello...I come by here from time to time and saw a comment about Mystic River. I just went to catch this in re-release this weekend. How did I feel about it? Great acting, particularly by Penn and Robbins. But the ending was not particularly satisfying. I'm not against a bit of moral ambiguity in a film - in fact I often like it - but the ending to me felt hasty. They had the parade, Bacon's character knew, and it ... just... ended. It kind of felt like they ran out of money, or like Eastwood got tired of editing and dumped what was left in the can for the last reel. Not bad but not what it could have been, either.

Hello, N. P. Cian!

Maybe I'll run into you in the town that's swell when you're there next month

I get what you're saying about the ending. It did feel a bit hasty, but for some reason, it also kind of fit as an underscore to the ambiguity and tension of it all.

We still haven't seen American Splendor or Thirteen and are hoping that they're re-released in our area.

patt*