Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

I didn't see any of the other Harry Potter movies in theaters but, I did watch them all on dvd recently on account of my boyfriend being very into them. They were pretty good. I have to say each individual story was quite good and the over all story running through them was very good and very strong. I liked how they depicted a regular school life for Harry and his friends along with the main story and obstical for that movie.

That being said Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix did not live up to the previous four movies. I understand that it was an extremely long book so there was a lot that had to be cut out but, in all honesty they cut out the stuff that made the movies so good. This one was way to focused on the big bad for this story. There wasn't enough of the everyday stuff that was in the earlier movies and that really made it drag.

The thing is because the core audience here is viewed to be a younger audience they were clearly trying to keep it as short as possible. However, the kids that read these books and watch these movies soak it up they would sit through a slightly longer movie. As long as they get more Harry they are staying glued to the screen.

Aside from that everything else about the movie was good. The actors held up their end of the deal just like they have each time. And the special effects where very good. One thing I really like about the effects in the Harry Potter movies is they don't push them too far and they don't use them in places that they don't need to. A lot of movies the effects look hokey even in other movies of this type that can be the case. That is not the case with these movies which makes them easier for me to watch. Generally I avoid movies like this just because I don't like the effects.

For this being my first Harry Potter theater experience it was decent. I paid full price and it wasn't a complete waste. I would have prefered matinee price but that would have meant dealing with all the little kids so I'm fine with full price. It's definitely worth full price if your a big Potter fan.

Loving Annabelle

Loving Annabelle is a movie that covers a lot of controversial territory. Not only is it about a teacher and student falling for each other but, it happens to be a female student and female teacher at a private all girl Catholic school.

It is the student (Annabelle) who pursues the teacher. I found it interesting how the teacher did several things to try and avoid situations that put them together. Yet at the sametime I think she did other things not because she necessarily was looking for something to happen between them but, because she was hoping to get Annabelle to stop being so rebelious.

The story was very strong and well written. The movie itself was put together very well. For an indie film with a very short shooting schedule it had very high production value. The one thing that really hurt the film was it's ending. Or lack there of. It needed a stronger more real ending. And there was plenty of room time wise for it because it was only 77 minutes long.

Some answers as to the shortness of the movie were given in the commentary track. Commentary that I was very disappointed in since the director barely let Ering Kelly (Annabelle) speak. And for the most part all the director could do was complain about not having enough time or money to do the things she wanted. I finally stopped listening to it because every scene I was really interested in hearing about was just more whining.

But that really had nothing to do with the movie. It was good and I would have liked getting to see it on the big screen. Thanks to the not so great ending though it would have only been worth matinee price at best.

Come Early Morning

It hasn't been my normal practice to blog about stuff I watch on video. However, due to recent life developments and the fact that things still don't always come to a theater that I can easily get to I have decided to change this.

Last year there was a lot of buzz about Come Early Morning. As a big Ashley Judd fan I was very interested in the movie. My interest in it was also peaked by it being written and directed by Joey Lauren Adams. Unfortunately the movie either went straight to dvd or it just got a really limited release.

Thanks to netflix I was able to finally see it. Normally I'm not much on the whole average life kind of movie. I just don't get into watching a person go through day to day life. However, this movie was really well written and had a really good story. There were a couple parts of the story that could have used a little more development because they just kinda left you wondering what was going on. And it would have given a little more depth to Ashley's story.

It was one of Ashley's strongest performances in a long time. I've never been disappointed in her but, it's nice seeing her get back to where she started. For those of you who aren't familiar she got her start in a small little film called Ruby In Paradise. She really is more than just a pretty face. And movies like Come Early Morning and Ruby In Paradise really show that.

I was very impressed with Joey Lauren Adam's writing and directing skills. I hope she continues to do more of both.

I definitely recommend seeing this movie. I would not have felt jipped if I had paid full price to see it.

Evening

To me the female cast alone is worth seeing Evening. I always find it interesting how little Claire Danes seems to work. I don't know if that's a personal choice or if Hollywood has for some reason forgotten about her. What I do know is anytime she is in a movie I look forward to it and when she gets to be in a movie with a cast like this one it is even more worth it. Considering the fact that both Claire and Meryl Streep were in The Hours and Evening was written by the author of The Hours that was even more reason to see the movie. Not to mention the story looked and sounded really good.

The movie wasn't quite what I expected it to be. It was a good movie it just wasn't quite as moving as it could have been. The story also wasn't told the way it seemed like it would be. Also unfortunately Michael Cunningham makes a better novelist than a screenwriter. The movement of the story through the dialogue just wasn't what it should be for a movie. One scene I did find interesting was the one with Meryl and Vanessa. It was very much like the scene between Meryl and Claire in The Hours.

All of the performances were very good. Mamie Gummer who played Lila was very good. It wasn't until The Hours that I truly started to like Meryl. As my friend Liz Taylor's House and I later figured out it was because I never felt an emotional connection to Meryl. I must say that Mamie (who it turns out is Meryl's daughter) does not suffer that same problem. I was very much involved in her performance. Should she choose to continue in the industry I believe she could have a career very similar to her mothers. Although in this day and age it probably won't come with as many Oscar nominations as Meryl's.

I do wish that Natasha Richardson and Toni Collette had played opposite roles. I'm not a big Toni Collette fan and I would have prefered to see more of Natasha than Toni.

It'll be very interesting to see what if any awards nominations come from this movie.

Potential Spoilers Ahead:

From the previews and what I read I thought that it was about Vanessa telling this story of a weekend that changed her life to her daughters as she was dying. That isn't how it was. In fact Vanessa, Natasha, and Toni were rarely in the same scene. Instead it was that Vanessa was dreaming about that weekend as she laid dying. I didn't really care for that version of the story. There was really no need for Natasha and Toni to be in the story for the most part.

I did enjoy the story but they left out some very crucial information that I feel may have been better worked into the story had she been telling it to her daughters. I was left wondering why Ann and Harris didn't end up together. Was the tradgedy of Buddy's death just too much for them to deal with? Or did they just return to their normal lives thinking they would see each other again and then got so wrapped up in those lives they didn't see each other again?

Also when Lila comes to Ann's death bed I was left wondering how long it had been since they had seen or spoken too each other. I didn't know if they had drifted apart after Buddy's death. If perhaps Lila blamed Ann and Harris for his death or what. I found this a very odd question to leave hanging.

I also really didn't care for the side story involving Toni's character and her trying to come to terms with being pregnant. It felt very forced. As if they decided they didn't have enough story with just the story of Lila's wedding weekend. When in fact that was plenty of story and they could have fleshed it out and answered those lingering questions if they hadn't wasted so much time with the part of the story that took place in the present.

I paid full price for this movie and it was very much worth it for me. I feel most people would prefer it at matinee price though. I don't know if this will make since to a lot of people but, it really is more of a matinee movie overall.

A Mighty Heart

I didn't really have any expectations for A Mighty Heart. There's not really a lot you can expect from a movie like this since you don't know going in just how much information the film makers had access too. I was very pleased with the movie. It wasn't a sappy mess and it wasn't an indictment on our government or the Pakistani government. It really seemed to just be an honest picture of what everyone went through to hopefully find Daniel Pearl alive.

Angelina gave a great performance and the Oscar talk is completely warranted. Her portrayal of a woman who found more courage and strength in that horrible time than most of the world can find on a daily basis was moving. I don't think any one would have faulted her if for her's and her unborn child's health she had left Pakistan before learning of Daniel's fate yet she stayed there never giving up hope even for a minute. The scene when she found out that her husband had been killed was a monsterous gut punch. I always find those scenes to be the most telling of a performance and a story. It's not like the viewer doesn't know how the story ends. I think all American's felt the heartbreak of learning Daniel Pearl had been killed. So for the scene's in which that information in the movie is learned to have that impact shows how strong the movie is.

The only thing I didn't like about the movie were the few scenes that flashed back to random days in Daniel and Marianne's relationship. They did a perfectly good job of showing how in love they were and how strong their relationship was without those weird flashbacks that really just slowed the movie down a bit. Other than that the story and the movie were executed very well. The thing I liked best was learning just how much both countries worked together in an attempt to save Daniel.

I saw the movie for full price and it was definitely worth it for me. I recommend the movie and think most people would not consider it a waste at full price.