J.K. Simmons

Megamind

Maxim and I went to the cinema yesterday, in hopes to see “Tangled”. But unfortunately it was in Greek only. We checked both Rio and K-Cineplex cinemas. Since we were out anyway, we decided to go for “Megamind“. Which, despite the 3D advertising, was in 2D. (Maxim prefers 3D, while I am a 2D man).

“Megamind” is a cartoon about superheros and about the fight of good an evil. It is somewhat original in the story though. While most other stories accept the fight between the good and evil and spend most of the time on the details, “Megamind” takes a different route. It explores the world after the fight of good and evil. And not just that, but the world where evil won the fight. I thought it was an interesting twist, even though it required slightly more talking than usual. And, as every kid knows, talking is boring. Bring on the fight!

The story is well balanced though. Surprisingly, there is still plenty of fighting and other types of action. Bonus points from me are for having a geek (wearing geeky t-shirts) and for the soundtrack that included AC/DC, Ozzy Osbourne, and Guns-n-Roses. I think that’s the first mainstream animation to ever do that. Kudos!

And while this flick wasn’t a jewel that by now everyone expects from Dreamworks, it is still a pretty good entertainment choice. Overall rating from me is a 4 out of 5. Not bad.

Burn After Reading

I went to see “Burn After Reading” a couple of weeks ago. I had a feeling that it should be rather good, because it was directed by Cohen brothers, who directed, produced, and wrote screenplays for quite a few good movies (“No Country for Old Men”, “O Brother, Where Art Though?”, “The Big Lebowski”, “Fargo”, “The Hudsucker Proxy”, and more). Also, the cast for this film was interesting – George Clooney, John Malkovich, Brad Pitt, and a few other names you know. And, of course, there was a cool trailer.

The film was excellent, but it wasn’t quite what I expected. I thought (based on the trailer) it would some sort of comedy action, with a bit of crime. And it sort of was. But. I don’t even know how describe it. It was funny but very sad film. Or a very sad film, which was funny. I guess that just doesn’t make any sense, but that what it was.

Overall, I really enjoyed it. Especially with all the good acting, interesting story telling, camera work, and even more good acting. An 8 out of 10 and strongly recommended.

The Ladykillers

“The Ladykillers” is one of the recent movies that I missed. I didn’t want to see it as the rating was a bit low and the title was vague, but when I learned that Tom Hanks is in it, I decided to watch it.

Directed by: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Genres: Animation, Comedy, Crime, Horror
Cast: Tom Hanks, Irma P. Hall, Marlon Wayans, J.K. Simmons, Tzi Ma, Ryan Hurst, Diane Delano, George Wallace, John McConnell, Jason Weaver, Stephen Root, Lyne Odums, Walter K. Jordan, George Anthony Bell, Greg Grunberg
IMDB raintg: 6.4
My rating: 6.5 [rate 6.5]

This film is a nice criminal comedy. It is a very styly one as well. The cinematography is excellent as is the acting. The story is interesting too. I wish there was more humor in it though. As it is, the movie can be seen as sad at some places. But a very good overall.

The DVD contained an interesting mini-film about the making of musical instruments. There were few intervies with the guy who was making all sorts of musical instruments for almost 30 years, and who made guitars for such famous people as George Harrison and Kurt Cobain. I found this minifilm surprisingly informative and educational.

There were also a few gospel songs which didn’t make it into the movie, but which were very fine aswell.