The jet power sounds it out, “Heroes aren’t born… They’re built! And with high-octane fuel-efficient hot rod red, this one rockets up in a blaze of glory. He may crash a few times but that’s being more literal than you think. It’s all for a blaze of fun…”

This film starts off Marvel Studios’ line of hopes to become a major and sole production house for its library of characters and just before “The Incredible Hulk” hits theaters to revamp the unpopular predecessor in a few weeks. Though the Hulk shows promise, he’s been portrayed already and there lays the difference. Iron Man has never been an A-list comic hero at the same ranks of Spider-Man and so on, but the fundamental difference between any of a vast quantity of adaptations is that this is a character built rather than made or born and emphasizes that it’s the heart and soul that drives the most advanced of technological means. The film, like the suit, encompasses a complex and original storyline with heart to go along with its brains. Tony’s weakened heart has always been his Achilles heel, but it’s also what gets him out of trouble and inspires his re-build as this movie knocks off Hollywood’s summer season. The entertainment as opposed to the weapons industry will be looking at Iron Man’s flight stats against audiences hoping a strong summer season is possible after a somewhat bland spring. For the first time in a long time, a new and original hero to the big screen has blasted in the form of the first in a line of inevitable sequels.

His hand cradles a glass of Scotch on the rocks, as he rides in the back seat of a Humvee that’s rumbling across the Afghanistan desert and this all shows the power Tony Stark has. He’s the brilliant head of Stark Industries, the leading supplier of weapons to the U.S. military, and he converses comfortably with the soldiers who have been assigned to protect him during a trip to demonstrate his latest missile. They, in turn, are blown away with his high-flying ways, which in retrospect aren’t as high as they will be. “To peace!” he cheers with a raise of his glass but things soon go awry. The Humvee is attacked by insurgents and Tony is abducted into the hidden caves where all bad things must happen if it’s not a stone castle or base visible from space. While in captivity, with a battery attached to his heart to keep him alive, he’s ordered to construct a weapon of, assumingly, mass destruction. Is there any other with terrorists? Instead, with the help of the doctor who saved him he creates a suit of armor to become a weapon himself to escape.

Tony’s a changed man, and the changes to his life and company also bring its own share of enemies. His top executive with a shaved head and devilish goatee, Obadiah Stane, is appalled at Tony’s wish to cease making weapons. Stane insists, “What we do keeps the world from falling into chaos.” You know that old excuse.

In Stark’s mansion that’s carved into the face of a Malibu cliff, the electronics and neon lights of technology are slowly creating a progressive line of suits in the forms of Mark 1, Mark 2 and Mark 3. The moment Tony Stark climbs inside the streamlined, rocket-propelled suit with its perfectly intertwined pieces that lock together a new hero has come to the silver screen with metallic glory. Let us now call it, the platinum screen.

Iron Man’s original comic book that inspired the film took place in the 1960’s during the Vietnam War, and Tony Stark functioned as an anti-communist icon within the complex world of military and industrial spheres. Moving the film’s action to Afghanistan in the present day makes it just as relevant in its own way for a new time. The casting in this film is excellent and Robert Downey Jr. does an amazing job as this character because he is who says he is. Take a shot of the comic drawn Tony Stark and compare him to the filmed Tony Stark and there is no difference. You don’t stretch your imagination in any way to envision Downey Jr. as Tony Stark. Perhaps, Robert Downey Jr. is a cover for a hidden alter ego. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Pepper Potts who keeps Tony’s life organized and does a fairly good job finally returning to the screen in something a little higher in budgetary value since… ever. Stark’s best friend and Air Force colonel, Rhodey, is played by Terrence Howard and he’s just as bland as usual. Robert Downey Jr. and his nemesis Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane are the real stand-outs underneath their shells. Jon Favreau of “Made,” “Elf” and “Zathura” directing glory does an excellent job for his largest movie to date in scale. There’s a sense of story, humor and not to mention pure visual bliss in this film. The images and colors in this film are amazing and wonderful to look at, even in the areas of deserts which most would conclude to be the plainest and most uninteresting of scenes. Not so and a nod of congratulations to both production design and cinematography are deserved. The suit looks amazing enough to take your breath away and make you want one instead of the most luxurious of cars, but need I not forget, Tony Stark has exotic cars too!

The only way you won’t enjoy this film is if you find it impossible to either enjoy a comic book flavored film or you just can’t stand a guy in an overblown set of ski boots. Otherwise, Iron Man’s first film is a success with few flaws and like the development of Stark’s suit; this can be considered a first prototype that went through trial and error.

A sequel is certainly ironclad and is the right thing, and for Stark, the right thing for the first time in his life is done in theaters May 2, 2008, but rest assured, not his last.

David Howard: “What’s this?”
Bellman: “Junior bridal suite.”
David Howard: “Gee, I gave a guy a hundred bucks to get the best bridal suite in the house. Is there a senior bridal suite?”
Bellman: “I don’t know.”
David Howard: “But I gave him $100.”
Bellman: “I don’t know.”
David Howard: “Can I get into this room? Is there a big living room that goes here?
Bellman: I don’t know.”
David Howard: “Do you think there’d be a way to get one large heart mattress? I don’t think you can push those together.”
Bellman: “I don’t know.”
David Howard: “Not at all?”
Bellman: “I don’t know.”

Lost in America is a 1985 comedy film written and directed by Albert Brooks and to date may very well be his best work and yet undervalued at the same time though id did win a National Society of Film Critics Award, USA for Best Screenplay. It’s one of the best films ever around the concept of the American dream and decades after it’s release, just as the dream, it has survived the test of time.

Yuppies, David and Linda Howard are fed up with the corporate-suburban lifestyle after a promotion isn’t all that he had hoped. They decide to take their savings, sell their house and head out to see the country in a Winnebago. The plan goes awry when Linda loses everything while playing roulette at a casino in Las Vegas. Though their room is compensated for by a nice casino manager Vegas is a place for gambling and David Howard simply can’t find a deal to get his money back which results in an ugly argument that almost gets David beaten up by an escaped convict. Out of money and with nowhere to go, the couple ends up in Safford, Arizona, desperate for pennies and the thing they almost wouldn’t need to have, jobs. Brooks’ character unsuccessfully applies for a job at a local pharmacy and eventually resorts to a local employment agency. Obnoxiously reminded by a counselor about how he gave up a “hundred-thousand-a-year” job in advertising, David is placed as a crossing guard in a lawn chair. Linda surprisingly was luckier faster and got a position at the local Der Wienerschnitzel. Only days after beginning their pursuit of the American dream and getting rid of it by “dropping out of society,” they contemplate whether they should just go back to how things were.

The cast is superb in their respect roles from Albert Brooks to Julie Hagerty and Garry Marshall makes a minor role truly exceptional as the Desert Inn Casino Manager. The dialogue is to the point, simple and yet every line is somehow important and adds a hint of sarcasm, humor and value. There are very few flaws in this movie and the only one may be length because you just wish you could have seen more. There is bliss in the absence of success in this film and this absence is ironically created from the promotion of success.

So one of these evenings, enjoy a rare treat analyzing the getaway from the American dream, or quite possibly the American dream itself, while looking at the Hoover Dam to ponder, “Nice dam, huh? Do you want to go first, or should I?” Don’t lose this chance, a whole chance for hitting the road on DVD.

“When disaster threatens our world… only one family can make things right… Now, time is running out…”

The Simpsons are fairly surprised to find themselves in a movie when Homer can’t believe he’s “paying to watch something we can see on TV for free.” But unlike the Family Guy straight-to-DVD “movie” which was just episodes put together and later available on TV, The Simpsons Movie tries to do something a little different… “Eeexxxcellent…” 

The Simpsons-patented plot of everything possible involves the contamination of Lake Springfield when its rot and chemicals are enough to erode and melt a barge with a rock band playing the movie’s theme music. One! Two! One! Two! Three! Four! “Da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da!  The town’s lack of care is counterbalanced by idealistic Lisa, who goes door-to-door collecting signatures for her environmental crusade, only to get every door slammed in her face with one house even sailing away. Her live conference of “An Irritable Truth” gets answers but only leads to Homer’s undoing involving the re-polluting of Lake Springfield by his new pet pig and a leaky silo full of droppings which Homer helped fill, thank you very much!

This combination triggers a disaster the likes of which Springfield has never experienced putting itself at the top of the list as the most polluted town in history calling down the wrath of federal bureaucracy and leads to dire consequences for their fellow citizens. *Gasp* Yes, the Government succeeding in something! (The wrong way) As Marge is outraged by Homer’s monumental blunder, a vengeful mob descends on the Simpson household. The family makes a narrow escape and eventually finds peace on the run, but is soon divided. As the fates of Springfield, the splintered Simpsons family and the world hang in the balance; Homer embarks on a personal odyssey of redemption and the salvation of his hometown. It’s left up to Homer to save the world of Springfield from utter catastrophe which he helped create, thank you very much! 

The voice cast lends their talents to this enjoyable film at top-notch perfection. The animation of the film may not be the most advanced which may have held it back from an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Film but what it lacks in technological pioneering it is makes up for in originality, more than anything out there. This isn’t a showcase of animation skills but storytelling and comedic touches and The Simpsons Movie does its thing. It’s fresh and doesn’t recycle the same jokes and scenarios from the FOX television show on Sundays at 7/8C (Yes, we advertise in reviews too). It’s a cult classic and may as well be the model-American family to look up to. It does focus more on the Simpsons family alone rather than any extended look at secondary characters but with so many of them, where is there to draw the line? If they did, it would have been a longer movie, but quite frankly, that wouldn’t have been a bad thing. The plot is outrageous but creative and justly so for the movie version. Any criticism may come from comparisons with the television show but it stays true to the show format and was a great choice to make. Why should the Simpsons change for anything? They’re living in the format they shaped so why reinvent it when you can re-pollute it, with style.

So experience the greatest family adventure of all time (without illegally downloading a file version) and forget the reviews, don’t even read one and lead your sights onto DVD’OH!

“A driver don’t pick the cars… The car picks the driver… It’s a mystical bond between man and machine…” And once it’s stolen, the fate of a young driver is thrust into a war that long existed. “What you’re about to see is totally classified… Dear God, what is this?” And after moments of suspense, mystery and discovery, “We’re under attack! We’re facing war against a technologically civilization far superior to our own… Our enemy can take any shape… They could be anywhere…”

In Michael Bay’s Transformers, his touch for stylized action is apparent but the balance between special effects and that human touch that is never quite right in other films, still doesn’t balance out here. But not in the way you might think.

In God-like tones, the opening narration tells of an eternal battle between good and evil that long ago tore apart the planet Cybertron; its lasting legacy is a cube known as the Allspark, granting unspeakable powers to its possessor. The search for that cube has led to Earth, where the warriors of good known as the Autobots are destined for one final showdown against the evil Decepticons.

With this exposition aside, the rest of the film is an uncovering and emergence of this very back story to the cast of the film. They are slowly introduced and blown away by this robotic race on Earth from the deserts of Qatar, where the Decepticons go up against a squad of U.S. Marines; in the underground of the Pentagon, where Secretary of Defense John Keller (John Voight) and brilliant blond computer mind Maggie Madsen (Rachael Taylor) try to figure out which enemy of theirs is attacking… perhaps North Koreans? And in a quiet suburban neighborhood, horny teenager Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) has no idea that his new car is really an Autobot named Bumblebee. Damn and all he wanted was to seduce the opposite sex in the form of Mikaela Banes (Rachel Fox). To say all this is to give enough of a skeleton for the story of this film. It involves quite a few perspectives and perhaps a little too many characters.

Now as was said before: the balance between the human cast and adapted toy line was offset here with more of an emphasis on the humans. This bias is understandable: humans were responsible for the making of this film. In short, transforming action and plot should have happened sooner and the human uncovering of what’s explained in the beginning of the movie takes the entire movie. The cast are quirky and entertaining but they’re hardly enough to overpower the personalities and moves of what people really want to see: Transformers. The film gets a little saturated with uncovering the mystery of what the audience already knows and the entire romance between Witwicky and Banes could have been dealt with in a sharper sense. There hasn’t been a better need for a one-night stand leading into happily ever after. The problem here is throughout the movie, the evil existence of Megatron is always referred to but Megatron himself only comes into actual play in the last quarter of the film (after the humans discover him) to fight in the last battle. Is it his last battle? I won’t say.

Mitchell Amundsen’s cinematography fits nicely for the colorful metallic shells of mechanical beings but is somewhat strenuous for the presence of the human cast. Perhaps even he was thinking there’d be more robot-action than girl-on-boy action in pre-production planning. Michael Bay does what he does in this film. He has his own formula so why change it? It works for action yarns from the slow-motion to the camera moving past as the characters turn in desperation and awe. Peter Cullen and Hugo Weaving do great jobs as voice artists here in the roles of Optimus Prime and Megatron respectively. You never recognize the movie as coming from a line of toys or past animated series that influenced a film adaptation. It stands alone and doesn’t require you to know the former to know the latter. The sound is crisp; the special effects are entertaining and original with the look and feel of the film outstanding. It was nominated for three Academy Awards in relation to these categories and with a take of over $700million worldwide, a sequel’s planned for 2009 release, so you may as well watch this to get ready. You’ll be watching or will be invited to watch Transformers 2 either way. You know you wanna. Could the story have been condensed in some parts and emphasized more in others: definitely. But this shouldn’t deter you from this movie as it’s still an enjoyable ride… or flight depending on your Transformer.

So take a deep breathe and move away from the puzzles of a morphing toy or a Rubik’s Cube and Transform your evening into some popcorn excitement on DVD.

An entrancing and, more importantly, computerized nude temptress emerges from the dark shimmering waters of an underground lagoon and with an angelic voice begins to say a whisper of words, “Are you the one they call Beowulf? Such a strong man you are… A man like you could own the greatest tale ever sung… Beowulf, stay with me… Give me a son and I shall make you the greatest king that ever lived… This, I swear… You will forever be king, forever strong, mighty, beyond imagination…” It’s soon evident “A promise was made… a price will be paid…” A decaying yet solemn King Hrothgar proclaims, “She’s not my curse… not anymore…”

Robert Zemeckis has converted the epic poem about the warrior who slays the monster Grendel into swordplay between computers and storytelling. There have been about three mild adaptations of the source in the last nine years about a hero who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against beasts and demons but at this point, there may as well only be one.

In the Danish kingdom belonging to King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins), the king and his court have gathered to inaugurate a new mead hall, Heorot, to do what all did back then and do today, drink. The hall is eventually destroyed with brutality and waist-splitting violence by the wretched monster Grendel, the ugliest creature on earth… presumably… A reward is put into play for the defeat of this forsaken troll.

To this court comes the heroic warrior, Beowulf (Ray Winstone), of Geats. Unferth (John Malkovich), the King’s advisor, challenges Beowulf’s credibility. The slayer boasts a resume of slayings and triumphs, and why not, he’s Beowulf. He is the very model of a medieval monster slaughterer, making great amounts of money on merchandising, action figures, etc… presumably… When the king offers his queen Wealthow (Robin Wright Penn) as a prize for the slaying of Grendel, the hero immediately strips naked, ready to do battle and ready to do ‘it’ after… presumably…

The disfigured and high-tempered Grendel arrives on schedule to tear down the mead hall. There is a mighty battle of havoc which is rendered in gruesome detail, right down to injured skulls and severed limbs. What follows this battle is a list of pure political scandal in the upper ranks of the royal family. Extra! Extra! Read All About It! Is Hrothgar the father?! Is Wealthow making her king sleep downstairs?! Was there an exchange in Grendel’s lair? Did Beowulf say yes?!

It’s highly entertaining but a far cry of victory from being a classic. Zemeckis employs the same motion-capture technology that he first used in The Polar Express, to slightly better effect. You quickly get drunk with carnage when you’re engulfed in this mythical story with flesh-and-blood actors that are present in voice only. And yet, you don’t focus on the fact nothing is real as the presence of the A-list cast is faded away with the audience putting the actor’s out of past or real life context. You really get a chance to focus on the characters themselves, rather than the actors as with any live-action movie. The versions of the actors do truly resemble the real thing except in moments when it comes to the title character of Beowulf and his nemesis, Grendel. Crispin Glover surely doesn’t look like a complete monster and as for Ray Winstone, he doesn’t have a six-pack but that’s not much of a mystery if you know him. The effects are even better or just suit this time period more than Polar Express’ relatively modern setting. Polar Express had that extra holiday twinkle in its railroad tracks, giving it some magic where Beowulf has no excuse but to deliver on the tragic, an epic amount of action and an entrancing tale. It accomplishes this in bits and outbursts. It does venture off from its source material and it’s for the best but when you realize how far it did go, you wonder if they should have gone farther to fill the story even more. There are gaps of slow drama between action sequences. The story may in fact be too basic as there isn’t much motivation for the characters. At some points you just feel they do things for the sake of doing it without an answer to “why?” which may have also been the problem in the lack of audiences attending. The trailers gave no great motivation to watch so “why do it at all?”

Beowulf was a slight domestic disappointment with only about $82 million in ticket sales but did respectfully conquer the lands overseas with about $113 million. The failure close-to-home may have stemmed from the lack of enthusiasm the marketing propelled compared to other live-action films. With live-action, a person’s always impressed with the seeming impossibility of such sets and costumes being created, so you’re instantly transported while in contrast to computers, everybody basically knows nothing is impossible. That’s not to say a good film isn’t a possibility, as long as there’s talent behind the keystrokes.

So sharpen your weapons and grab your steeds… or studs or babes… and battle against some enjoyable earth-soiling carnage and high-flying excitement alongside Beowulf on DVD.

He’ll dictate the question, “What’s the most you’ve ever lost on a coin toss?” And the very thing you may lose is the thing he cares the least of all about. “In the open country you can find anything… But every fortune leaves a trail…”

Joel and Ethan Coen come back to what they do best, photographing a simple story in the most simplistically beautiful of landscapes, such as they did in their other Oscar-contender, Fargo, but this time they introduce one of the greatest villains in years to the screen from the pages of Cormac McCarthy’s novel.

Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) is a tall, slouching man with a lank, black haired mop-top and a sadistic smile, who travels through Texas with a tank of compressed air killing people with a captive bolt pistol. It propels a cylinder into their heads creating a clear tunnel straight through, at first, an individual’s forehead.

Chigurh is one strand in the twisted plot. Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) is another. The major defendant is Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), a working class man living with his wife in a trailer, who while hunting, comes across the remnants of a drug deal gone wrong in the middle of nowhere which everything wrong usually happens. Almost everyone on the scene is dead with their vehicles scattered around with shattered windows and bullet-decorated doors. It’s so bad, a dog is even shot and that’s pretty bad on pure principle alone. In the back of one pickup are stacked plastic bags of drugs. Llewelyn realizes one thing is missing: the money which he finds in a briefcase next to a man he tracks down who made it as far as under the shade of a tree… the only shade in this country…

The plot involves Moss’ attempt at keeping this $2 million, Chigurh attempt to take it away like a pursuer in a nightmare and Sheriff Bell trying to interrupt the ruthless murder trail. We also meet Moss’ innocent but affected wife, Carla Jean (Kelly Macdonald); a smooth bounty hunter named Carson Wells (Woody Harrelson); the businessman (Stephen Root) who hires Carson to track the money after investing in the drug deal, and a series of hotel and store clerks who are unlucky enough to meet Chigurh but at least once, lucky enough to survive with the flip of a coin. But! He did give the man the freedom to call it…

No Country For Old Men involves elements of a thriller and a chase but is essentially a depiction of characters attempting to comprehend a certain type of character: the manifestation of evil. Chigurh is so evil, he is almost funny to watch when you know what’s coming and with the double-meanings in his speeches. “He has his principles,” says the bounty hunter, who has knowledge of him but even he has to ask Chigurh later, “Do you know how crazy you are?” This movie is a masterful summary of moral choices, immoral certainties, human nature and an irrefutable fate that was long ago decided. Roger Deakin’s cinematography is startlingly pleasant in its loneliness. When it comes to music, it seems Chigurh got there before us as the score is practically absent throughout the film. The seduction of No Country For Old Men exists in its pacing, silence and perfect dialogue and its quite often in pure silence and idling where the most drama is experienced. Javier Bardem deserved an Academy Award win for his supporting role along with his directors, Joel and Ethan Coen who took three for Best Adapted Screenplay, Directors and Best Picture of the Year. No Country For Old Men was also a official selection for the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. I know, fancy…

So remember once you start, there’s no clean getaway in commercial time as you’re one of the few witnesses of the events in this Country on DVD.

“This is Alison’s life…” A flourishing career in television… “This is Ben’s Life…” And it’s sad if it was planned… “Their story was supposed to be over after one night but eight weeks later…” She’s pregnant… with a baby?

We were once introduced to a 40 Year Old Virgin and it seems now Knocked Up takes us to a different unplanned couple to show us what happens after. A lot of familiar faces pop up behind and in front of the camera as they give birth to this film.

The story begins with two separate and mismatched individuals in the forms of Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl) and Ben Stone (Seth Rogen). Alison is an up-and-coming entertainment reporter for E! living in her sister and bother-in-law’s nicely furnished luxury pool house. Will a promotion give her the chance to get a place of her own? Don’t get ahead of yourself. Ben Stone on the other hand lives with a few roommates, lives off a $14000 payment of legal compensation from childhood while watching movies with nudity and recording their findings for the creation of their own website profiling all of it. Yet, their idea already exists on the internet anyways. From the onset, you pretty much can predict he’ll need a real job and ambition may not be his strong suit.

One night Alison goes out with her sister, playfully meets and drinks with Ben Stone and a buddy of his. Once Alison is left alone with Ben, they party up the dance floor and shake their hips and slide their feet out of the club and back to Alison’s pool house. Right when’s he’s about to slide a condom on in the heat of passion, Alison blurts out the words for him to “do it already,” to which he responds to literally by dropping the condom on the ground. Things go well until he says the wrong things during breakfast and their out of each other’s lives for the next eight weeks when Alison suspects a pregnancy.

The remainder of the movie is a meandering of hatred and mixed feelings and the preparation of motherhood and fatherhood. But will it only be on weekends is the question for Ben when he just can’t get his act together.

Judd Apatow who, like 40 Year Old Virgin, directs this film falls short of the glory he found with a virgin. Katherine Heigl gives a sweet and believable performance as a woman juggling the demands of her potential career, motherhood and unnerving feelings for the definite father which she doesn’t know if she wants to be with permanently. Seth Rogen plays a stoner and sort of a chubby and overgrown slob but you never really fall in love with him, but rather the idea and intentions he’s supposed to be conveying. It’s not a storybook romance but it tries to be with modern values and unexpected situations. The movie does overstay its nine months a tad bit and doesn’t end premature or quite right either. A baby arrives at the end of about 130 minutes of screen time. This film may have used either scenes to be played out in a quicker pace or some shots just completely edited and cut down by about twenty minutes. It seems more could have just been in less. But don’t judge to harshly. Perhaps the editor had to get to the hospital himself. Even so, the movie does explicitly refer to quite a bit of sexuality, a little nudity openly but is heartfelt considering all that’s said and doesn’t make you feel so guilty after watching it. After all, sexuality is quite a big part of being knocked up. Any fear of being viewed as pervert diminishes after the film shows the doctor’s point of view between the legs when a woman gives birth. If you still get a smile and think you’re a pervert, you’re not, you’re just a psycho.

So how about one of these nights, you and your other grow up and curl up to find out where babies come from in Knocked Up on DVD.

Dewey Cox needs to think in a dramatic stance about his entire life before he plays because, “Once in a generation… There comes a motion picture experience so extraordinary that will change the world… forever…”

It seems Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story was a low point for the life of the musical genius. The film unexpectedly bombed in the box-office last December taking a little over $18 million in the domestic tally though it should prove a solid tune of competition in the DVD market.

Dewey Cox and is brother one picturesque day are out in the barn playing with machetes when he inadvertently slices him in half and shockingly, it’s fatal. The doctor observes: “It’s a particularly bad case of somebody being cut in half.” And I do concur. Life after that event is never quite right for Dewey, whose father turns up at every triumph to remind him, “The wrong brother died.” Dewey Cox develops into a musical prodigy who masters an instrument as soon as he picks it up. “Take My Hand” is the song that spawns the devil in the youth of audiences as they rampage in sex and sin as soon as they hear Dewey voice those words like a lullaby. Success hits hard as he walks fast and journeys effortlessly from one genre to another in order to stay on top of the charts. Soul music… Acid rock… Folk rock… He does it all.

And all the time Dewey (John C. Reilly) is on a downward spiral, tempted by Sam, the drummer in his band (Tim Meadows) who is always in a room with cute backup singers experimenting with drugs but warning Cox never to try them under any circumstance whatsoever! Tempting though isn’t it? Dewey always tries it and cycles through rehabs with his addictive personality. His marriage (with Kristen Wiig) is set to fall apart long before he makes it big as his wife believed in him but mistakenly knew he’d fail. Dewey swaps gals under his arms like memorabilia, even borrowing one man’s wife. Dewey soon falls in love with his backup singer Darlene (Jenna Fischer), travels to India with the Beatles, crosses paths with Buddy Holly and the karate-chopping Elvis Presley. His lead singer status on top of the music world leads to the threat of hitting rock-n-roll bottom as he continuously attempts to get out of the dark period he’s in while even forgetting his own son’s name.

The movie, directed by Jake Kasdan, was co-written by Kasdan and the productive Judd Apatow. They do an interesting thing and instead of sending everything ridiculously over the top like a generic spoof, they allow Reilly to actually play the character. John C. Reilly has a pitch-perfect sense of walking the line between exaggeration and sentiment and creates almost a spin-off of his role from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby though in a better movie, difference profession and not so much of a cocky persona. As Dewey Cox he’s evolves more from farm boy to music god, racing past his supporting role along Will Ferrell in Talladega Nights. The supporting cast in this film isn’t incredible noticeable or outstanding but they aren’t meant to be. They’re professional, almost as if giving a certain respect to the fictional real-life people they’re portraying, bringing quite a bit of believability into their characters. Jenna Fischer, most notable from her secretarial job at NBC’s The Office plays a cute and sweet role that could very well rival Reese Witherspoon’s stance on stage in Walk the Line. At one moment, perhaps as a test of cinematography, a penis is showed on screen for no explicit reason and here is where the movie fails. If only some portions of the film were played as if a real Oscar-worthy biopic was being made, this film could very well be funnier. At times with Walk Hard, it seems the filmmakers were on the right chord but didn’t quite hit the right note making this movie. Even so, this movie’s worthy enough, especially considering John C. Reilly’s Golden Globe nod for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy this year.

So get down and blow him… some kisses as you walk hard along the relatively successful biopic of the fabulous Dewey Cox on DVD.

“This is the tale of an ordinary man who had everything… Until a man of power stole his freedom, destroyed his family and banished him… for life… And in his sorrow, a new man was born…” With wide, dark eyes of beauty Mrs. Lovett pleads for an answer from a ghost, “Benjamin Barker?” To her question, there is only one reply uttered in the third-person, “Not Barker, Sweeney Todd and he will have his revenge.”

It took 28 bloody years for Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street to shave his way from Stephen Sondheim’s Broadway as one of the bloodiest musicals ever to the big screen as one of the bloodiest movies of all time, but in a cheerful kind of way. And now thanks to technology, it has taken 3 months for it to jump to a small screen near you as Sweeney Todd is released onto DVD.

On the guided tour: In nineteenth century London lived a barber named Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) and his sweet wife and beautiful child. He loved them both but the vile, corrupt and Honorable Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) sentenced Barker on false charges to Australia, meanwhile capturing his wife and child. After Turpin ravishes the wife, destroying her life until death did them part, the girl Johanna grows up to become the judge’s personal prisoner.

As the film quickly opens, Benjamin escapes from prison and sails into London to redeem his dreams he had for 15 years of coming home to a wife and child. But he’s only in for an appetizer. He races through the streets to his former barbershop, where the landlady is still the pale beauty Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), who sells the worst meat pies in London
and tells him about the dreary fate of his family. He moves upstairs to his former shop, now a ruin, changes his name to Sweeney Todd and reopens his business but not before serenading his most treasured and cut-throat possessions and tools-of-his-trade.

But so maddening is his rage that he builds an entertaining bonus: a sliding chute that will drop his customers into the basement, head-first, after he slits their throats, so Mrs. Lovett can bake them some pies. More specifically: into some pies. Now she offers the most succulent meat pies in London; business bleeds with demand while some pleased customers go upstairs for their closest shave and a quick recycling.

Johnny Depp shared some blood and sweat for a sixth collaboration with the imagination of Tim Burton, the director of Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, Sleepy Hollow and Batman! And no team could have done it better as traces of Tim Burton are scattered throughout the production with the fantastically ghoulish, bizarre and yet romantic. The cast is superb as the perfect instruments to pull together the elements of the movie. The film isn’t a campy throwback or a musical fantasy but a glimpse into a realistic world if it were normal to sing with background tunes. Dialogue doesn’t uncomfortably jump from the main characters to some random musical number in the background with an excessive amount of dancers. The music is narrowed down to the main characters and this nicely balances the elements of a musical and a stand-alone film. That being said, you’ll probably need to enjoy musicals to enjoy this movie for the most part, though it does offer something different than conformity or a cookie cutter frame. They’re meat pies after all. It may not be a genre-crossing piece of genius for most but for the open, it’s just a visual masterpiece for your acoustic pallet. That’s still pretty good. You don’t think of it as a musical, but a film with tunes. A normal regular of Burton’s crew was missing with Danny Elfman having no spot in creating its music as that job was taken by the originator, Stephen Sondheim himself. Dariusz Wolski masters the area of cinematography, fresh from previous work on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

Sweeney Todd was undervalued at the 80^th Annual Academy Awards with only 3 nominations in Best Acting, Best Achievement in Costume Design and in Art Direction while winning in only the last one. This small tally was not due to a lack of talent but more succumbing to the large numbers of respectable movies of 2007 that aimed for the limited nomination-seats in each category for Oscar Gold. It did however go for Golden Globe Gold as it was nominated for the 65th annual Awards, winning two. The film won for Best Motion Picture in the Musical or Comedy genre and Johnny Depp won for his performance as Sweeney Todd. Tim Burton was nominated for Best Director and Helena Bonham Carter was nominated for her performance as Mrs. Lovett. The film has also been included in the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures’ top ten films of 2007, and Tim Burton also won their prize for Best Director.

So embark on a murderous rampage one of these evenings and try your blades and appetites at a tasty Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on DVD.

Pirates Laws says it so, “It consists of extravagant stunts and special effects along with action proving the makers still haven’t cut the scars deep enough for the salt water to hurt too much…” 

At World’s End carries on the style of the previous two and justifies bringing in such fine booty. But it’s the enormous talent behind the screen that brings the Pirates to life, from undervalued director Gore Verbinski, producing juggernaut Jerry Bruckheimer and of course the crew and captains: Geoffrey Rush as Hector Barbossa, playfully evil Bill Nighy as the voice of Davy Jones and of course the one that always reminds us we’ll remember it as the day we almost caught Captain… (A canon explodes dropping me in mud) …Jack Sparrow… 

After the overly cheesy Will, facially exaggerative Elizabeth and always cool Barbossa rescue hallucinating Captain Jack from Davy Jones’ Locker, they team up to do battle with the evil Lord Cutler Beckett and the East India Company, which has gained control of the heart following Captain Davy Jones and his Flying Dutchman and is systematically wiping the map of the pirate population and their associates. The multi ethnic Nine Lords of the Brethren Court must convene at Shipwreck Cove to debate how best to fend off Beckett and Davy Jones. At the same time, Ms. Swan is promoted to Captain, or demoted from God depending on how you look at it when you see it and Beckett ponders with the self-interests of Will Turner the significance of the Nine Pieces of Eight. Chow Yun-Fat contributes another heavily, exotic accented pirate playing the bird hating, Sparrow hunting Singaporean Captain Sao Feng.

And let’s not forget the sea goddess Calypso who was imprisoned by the very council that now may need her. If they set her free, will she kill them all, or help them defeat the mighty forces of Lord Beckett? But wait! There’s more! The Flying Dutchman can not sail without a captain. Dum, dum, dum… 

The number one complaint of Dead Man’s Chest was its overly complex storyline and that doesn’t change at world’s end. It has a story coming in from all angles, overlapping and passing each other, but really that only gives it an extra set of breathes to fill when you watch it again on DVD, looking for new things you missed. Even so, if you pay enough attention, you’ll understand the story (or stories) and if you don’t, you’ll know enough to enjoy the boat ride. The CGI is fresh and new and doesn’t recycle old fights or scenarios. The cast gives delightful performances with comedy all around even with Barbossa’s monkey Jack stealing a few scenes. The swordplay is breathtaking and the elaborate cloaks and boots seem too real not to have existed leagues ago in time. With every portion of the credits of the film filled such richness, vigor, vim, more simply frankly, Depp, the film has earned its spot as iconic from all corners of the world.

Clocking in at around 170 minutes, some may find it a little yawning for comfort but it is an epic. The previous two were timed around the same lengthy number so why disappoint for the final section of this chapter. If they cut it we’d be complaining about some subplots being favored over other ones. Lord of the Rings was longer and had far more that could have been left on the cutting room floor of Mordor. Yeah I said it! 

Will the Pirates finally hang their hats at world’s end? Well so far the franchise has grossed over $1.6Billion and with the third installment, it’ll top around $2.5-2.6Billion. Would you stop with that kind of treasure?

The satisfying thing about the third installment is that it ends right where it all began in the Curse of the Black Pearl: searching for a new fountain of life where X marks the spot May 24, 2007.