Lepus Movie and Entertainment Reviews

House of 1000 Corpses

I would compare this movie to making a leftover casserole. You know how you have a lot of little things left over in your fridge, all of them taste really good by themselves, so you think "Ahh, whatthahell". Rule of thumb, when making a casserole, have a set ingredients list, or you will be screwed. Kind of like how Rob Zombie got screwed when he tried to make this well-intentioned but overdone movie. I can truly appreciate Zombie's fandom of horror movies, I consider myself a fan as well. And Zombie did pick from the best movies to use as the base for his creating. Texas Chainsaw Massacre (One and Two) , The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Pink Flamingos were some movies that Zombie borrowed heavily from, ESPECIALLY Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Not terrible, but if you've seen any of the movies listed above, you've seen House of 1000 Corpses.

2 and 1/2 out of 4 stars

Solaris

First 1/2 hour was very slow, and then I fell asleep. Probably improved the movie tenfold. The sleeping, I mean.

-1 out of 4 stars

May

Odd. Odd. Odd. OK, but Odd. Not much else to say about this. If you like ODD check it out.

1 and 1/2 out of 4 stars

Max

Being a Nazi-phile, this movie caught my attention. If it has John Cusack in it and its about Hitler, it can't be all bad, right?? Well, for once, I was right. Max is a great movie, even if your not a big Hitler-fiction/losley based on reality fan. Losely set in in Berlin around 1918 (I say this because some of the sets looked stolen from "The Donna Reed Show"), this movie chronicals the life of up and comming artist Max Rothman (Cusack), who loses his arm in the war and now sells modern art paintings to those that can afford them in the war-torn city. Rothman meets a young artist named Adolf Hitler (played wonderfully by Noah Taylor) and the two strike up an unusual friendship. While Hitler is compulsive, we don't see him as the monster that he is usually portrayed as. We see Hitler as a young man that craves acceptance anywhere he can get it, whether it be from the Army, that encourages Hitler's blossoming anti-Semitism, or from Rothman, a Jew that encourages Hitler to paint. Its sort of a "what would have happened if " type story. There are elements of the story that seemed a bit usless. Rothman has a mistress (Leelee Sobieski) that does nothing for the story but remind us that some women use too much eye makeup. With a little fat trimming, I truly belive that this movie should have been at least looked at by the academy, especially for the performance by Taylor. If you haven't seen this, don't delay....

3 and 1/2 out of 4 stars

Punch Drunk Love

Paul Thomas Anderson or PTA films always do pretty well in my book. Movies like Hard Eight, Magnolia and Boogie Nights are always ranked pretty high with me. However, Punch Drunk Love may have to be the exception. While I enjoyed the film, it didn't have as much punch as other PTA films have. There were funny parts, such as when Barry (Adam Sandler) tells off one of his many horrible sisters in Hawaii. Even though this was supposed to be a love story, there really wasn't much development in the relationship. I suppose that was the point of the movie, hence the title, but a little background couldn't have hurt. It didn't have the easy flow of most PTA movies, either. Very choppy and very random, those are the best ways to describe this movie. While choppy and random sometimes work, its done way to much and that makes what could have been an interesting movie into a confusing and strange one.

1 and 1/2 out of 4 stars.

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

One of Bravo's new gay centered shows, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy probably makes a lot of gay males angry. If one's only contact with gays was through this show, it would give them impression that gay males are only good for fashion, interior decorating and food preparation. However, its a pretty safe assumption that the average Bravo viewer is fairly familiar with homosexuality and homosexuals. Even though Carson, who is the most flaming of the bunch, has a tendancy to live up to the "fairy" stereotype, he gets in some great one liners and happens to really make the straight guys look good. Thom and Jai are in charge of interior design and "culture", and they also have a great taste and always pick out great stuff. Ted, who is my favorite, is in charge of foods and has great cooking tips. Kyan (Birth name? I don't think so) gives grooming tips to guys, which actually seemed to be very helpful to most of the subjects. Shaving tips seemed to be most helpful ("Its amazing the straight men that can't shave properly!") and knowledge of hair products (after viewing the show) seems very important. Even though the "Fab Five" do give their straigh clients a little gay injection, most times it really turn out nice. A fun show with good tips. I can think of worse ways to waste an hour.


2 and 3/4 out of 4 stars

Twister

This has got to be towards the top of my guilty pleasures list as far as movies go. This was on TV Saturday back to back, and I swear I watched it twice. I LOVE this movie. Not because of any ground-breaking story, plot or acting, but because the special effects are really cool and I really like Bill Paxton. Ever since I saw Bill in Aliens, I just fell in love with him as an actor and try to see everything he is in (which means I'll probably have to go see Spy Kids 3D.). Anyway, Bill Paxton is great in this movie and Helen Hunt is watchable, which is more than I can say for most of her stuff. If you haven't seen or don't own this movie, I really think it would be a welcome addition to any DVD collection. The special effects are great! I love tornado's and they seem so realistic on film, it worth a watch. Plus the soundtrack is AWESOME. Van Halen did two song for the film and they both rock. While its not ground breaking in the acting department, it most certainly is in the special effects. And since the tornado plays such an important role in the movie, the special effects count for a lot.


3 out of 4 stars

Countdown

Only 12 days, 17 hours, 51 minutes, 7 seconds to go!!!! If its not totally obvious, I CAN'T WAIT!!!!.