List of 2009 movies - quality and money

Well it's that time of year again. The time when everybody creates a top 10 or best of list for 2009. And of course I will throw in my thoughts to the mix.

In terms of movies there isn't a lot to say. Most of the drivel from Hollywood is what we have been getting for quite some time now. Half thought out revisioned remakes of ideas done far better in the past. That goes for the revisioned comic books, movies, television shows and books that all hit the silver screen this year. But, against all odds there were a few movies that were actaully worth the money.

1. Watchmen - How could you not see this film? It was the rare exception of Hollywood taking a great story (from a comic graphic novel) and not revisioning it. The result was a beautiful and shocking twist on the concept of what is a superhero.

2. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - the kids are almost all grown up. The film continues the saga of Potter and friends, and it's still an interesting fresh movie several films into the series. The acting continues to improve and the story is modeled well after the books.

3. Angels and Demons - How can you go wrong with Tom Hanks and Ron Howard in a movie based on a Dan Brown book? It wasn't the DaVinci Code, but it sure beat the flood of films this year.

4. Sherlock Holmes - Yes I know it's not out yet. But I'm willing to bet on the acting ability of Robert Downey Jr. In addition his choices of films has been among the best in the industry. movie trailers can lie (and often do) but I'm willing to go with the talent and say this will make the cut.

And those are my top movies of 2009. But if you were wondering, here are the movies that made the most money (which has nothing to do with the quality of the film):

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - a movie only matched in its stupidity by the amount of CGI onscereen at any time. This is proof that hype can overwhelm quality if you throw enough money at a marketing campaign. $402 million

Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince - Number 2 on my list, it brought in $301 million. Proof that quality can make money too.

Up - Parents love to take kids to animated films. This one happened to be worth the time as well. $293 million

The Hangover - the surprise hit of the year. I never saw it, it seemed to sophmopric to me. But it brought in $277 million so there must be something to it. Likely to produce a sequel of some sort next year.

Star Trek - This revisioned make-over of the classic original television series was lauded long before it hit a single screen. But after seeing the film I found it more stilted than Shatner doing poetry. If this is the future of sci-fi I feel really bad for the next generation. $257 million. Revisionist sequel guaranteed.

A couple of other notable film revenues for the year:

Twillight: New Moon - just a question, has anyone over the age of 25 seen this film? No one I know over 25 has. $256 million and another film sure to come.

X-men Origins: Wolverine - Destroyed a great idea and character for big money. The only thing good about this film is the payday it made for Hollywood. But a sequel will happen to continue the pain. $179 million

Fast and Furious - Even Vin Diesel can't save a bad idea. Though it did make enough to guarantee Deisel will continue to star in a few more films. $155 million

GI Joe Rise of Cobra - Hype wins again. An insulting film that makes you want to see Wolverine again. Only exceeded in stupidity and boredom levels by Transformers. Sequel will happen even though anyone above 6 will cringe. $150 million

Angels & Demons - It made a respectable $133 million. Not bad for a sequel, though more was expected.

Terminator Salvation - Not the best continuation of the series. Christian Bale made a good John Connor, but the rest of the film was lazy and as bleak as the future it redises in. But the story ain't over yet. $125 million

Watchmen - Number 1 on my list only made $107 million. Perhaps it was just too much for audiences to take in. Especially compared to the low-brow low-quality films that topped the money list.

Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail - Love or hate Perry 2 things are true. He is the biggest boost to getting Black actors in movies since Sidney Poitier and he makes money. What will Madea do next? $90 million

Michael Jackson's This Is It - The last tribute to the King of Pop. $72 million and it really isn't even a film.

Land of the Lost - People went to see this? $49 million

Notorious - The worst thing about this film is it probably made enough money to spawn equally bad expoitive cash grabs. $36 million and I have to wonder how doing anything (including sleeping) wasn't better than the film.

Pink Panther 2, Old Dogs, Halloween 2 (revisioned remake), SAW VI, Fame (revisioned remake) - I'm just amazed that none of these films, though all bad, did better than Notorious. I really hope that doesn't mean a trend of dead rapper movies.

Well that's my list, what do you think? Did I miss anything?

Movie Review: Watchmen

Well after months of anticipation the Watchmen film has finally been released. From the crowds that were at the movie tonight I believe I was not the only one looking forward to the movie. Which is shocking as I have never seen such a crowd for any film in 5 years.

But opening day crowds are not a guarantee of a good movie. So what did I think of it?

Visually the film is awesome. The sets are highly detailed, with everything you might expect to see on a New York City street, plus a few subliminal messages here and there. It's dirty and crowded, in fact you get the impression that the city, like the world of the Watchmen's 1985, is angry and chaotic. The images of Mars are breath-taking (and a bit of commedy if you pay attention to the last scene there).

The soundtrack though leave a bit to be desired. Honestly much of the music is annoying. Perhaps the only song that felt like a good fit for what was happening was Jimi Hendrix's Watchtower. Beyond that, the music can be jarring at times.

The plot can be summed up as roughly 80 - 90% of that found in the graphic novel. Huge portions of the film are exact translations of panels. Often the dialogue is a direct quote. So at times this is great, and at others it's a little awkward as it's just slightly out of touch with what you might expect.

A couple of other things that are important to keep in mind is that this is not a film for kids. This film lives up to every reason a R rating exists. Frontal nudity, of male and female characters occurs more than just once. Full on sex, virtually what you might expect from a porn movie is shown. I mean it. Naked bumping and pumping, everything but penetration for an extended 2 - 5 minute scene.

And violence. Lots of it. Against men, women, kids - in fact everyone in this world seems to have suffered and then doled out their own portion of pain.

But is the long film good? Yes it is. It keeps yur attention at virtually every step. In fact a friend that saw the movie with me stated that except for the length of the introduction (that gives a pretty clear background on how the superheroes rose and fell)the film felt like it wasn't overly long.

The acting was particularly good too. The casting was well done, as there seemed a natural affinity among our heroes. They may disagree from time to time, but its like an old friend that you forgive even when they are dead wrong and you are angry.

I felt that The Comedian, and Rorschach were the best done of all the characters. In both characters the wrongs of society shone the brightest. The Comedian with his jokes that won't make you laugh, and Rorsach with his intense and absolute belief in every wrong being punished absolutely. One line I particularly liked was the statement of Rorsshach in Prison

"You all don't seem to understand. I'm not locked up in here with you. You're locked in here with me!"

But no movie is perfect. And like any translation there are changes made. Some are good, but others just don't work. One of the key changes was to the ending. An alteration of how things happen and how various characters react. It's just too simplistic and empty. It beguiles the imagination. Truely it annoyed me.

Still a couple of minutes after the climax of the film is no great lost, except if you are more of a purist about the graphic novel.

Be warned, this is not a fun film. By comparison the Dark Knight movies are a Charlie Brown special. As bad as the Joker might be (a sociopath to be sure) it's nothing compared to watching the Comedian shoot a pregnant woman. Or the attempted rape scene in the film. Or the cold blooded passionate murder of a criminal (not to mention the crime he commited to cause the event). That's just a few of the scenes that will change the opinion of what is justice, and what makes a hero.

Overall I recommend this film. It's not for everyone. Especially if you want to feel uplifted about your heroes. But if you want to be taken through a trip of human flaws and the shades of grey that is right and wrong, this movie will take you there.

Secrets in the Watchmen movie

How could I not be a fan of the Watchmen graphic novel and not mention some of the extras that will be filling the movie screens this week? I am not talking about the action of the story, nor the conversion of scenes from picture to live-action. There is more going on than what you may first notice.

Like the plot of the story, what you see at first glance is not all that is happening. There are messages hidden in the whole film. If you know to look for them. And if you find everything you need Rorschach’s mask as much as he does (hell, I want that too).

They are little things, like with the Comedian. Pay close attention to the lighter he uses for his cigars. The lighter is more than just a plain zippo. There is an image of the Silk Spectre. Kind of says a lot about their past and relationship, or does it hint at something else? A flame burning but never revealed?

And speaking of the Comedian, let’s not pass up the answer to who shot JFK. Yes, we get the answer with absolute certainty. The only question is how good the good guys are. What is really the greatest good. And do you get the joke?

But then there is Ozymandias watching television. Actually watching every television program at once. What might the smartest man in the world watch if he could watch it all? How about porn? Yes it’s up there. So is the original 300 (a good movie I recommend), the Road Warrior, and Marvin the Martian destroying the world for a bit of cartoon play on action. In fact the theme of the movie is hit upon with scenes from the Day The Earth Stood Still and Fail Safe (a true must see film). And just for a touch of the real world, you can also see a few Youtube videos as well.

Of course the blend of our world and that of the Watchmen does not end at Youtube. If you keep a sharp eye out you will find that one of the super heroes has a copy of the Watchmen graphic novel tucked away. Talk about bending space and time, or a Nostradomus style prediction of the future.

These are just a few of the things awaiting in the world of the Watchmen. There are far more. You don’t need to be a uber-fan of the graphic novel to enjoy the extra bits placed throughout the film. Though that doesn’t hurt either.

This is a movie based on a graphic novel unlike any most have ever scene. It’s dark, and not the ‘justice wins eventually’ fun of the Dark Knight movies. There are messages and meanings everywhere.

Perhaps the question is are you more akin to the Comedian, Dr. Manhattan, Ozymandias, or Rorschach in your world view? Obviously these are my favorite characters. And I expect that Rorschach, who is the curiosity and almost the guide for the audience through the story, will have more to say in his mask than just the random movements it makes.

By the way, after you see the movie, try not to give away the ending to those that don’t know the story. Let them get put in awe too.

Studios in a fight mean movie success for 2009

There are dozens of ways to tell what a studio thinks of a film. In almost every case the most blatant actions of a studio tend to mean absolute confidence that a movie will bomb.

There are the cases were the director refuses to put their name on the film, which normally will be seen as a director Smithee film. That is a sign that the director could not get what he wanted or the studio overruled the final cut. Generally not a good sign.

There are the instances where major name actors with significant roles prefer not to attach their name to a project, even after all editing and filming are done. This can be far less sure a sign as one of the more famous examples is the lack of credit of James Earl Jones in Star Wars. Jones thought the film would be a bomb and declined to take credit, as if anyone could not recognize his voice.

But the bigger examples are when trailers are refused to be shown to critics and/or the public. Snakes On A Plane was completely viral, and when the critics (and public) saw the film it was understood why. Or when a film is scheduled to come out in January. The first month of the year is noted as the graveyard. A time when few are expected to venture to theaters due to weather and lack of cash from holiday spending. The worse the film, the closer to January 1st they open.

There are exceptions to the January rule, within reason. Cloverfield did quite well, in a field without competition or quality, though blockbuster it was not. But films like the upcoming Notorious are the prime examples of January studios expect to start their year with.

But one thing that you rarely ever see, are studios going to court to stop a movie from opening. And when the reason the film will be delayed is a question of who has the rights (and thus a cut of the money) you know what they are thinking. This is a cash cow, a blockbuster they must have a piece of.

The Watchmen is something the movie studios believe they have to have part of.

Currently Fox and Warner Bros. are fighting to prove who owns all the rights, or portions, for this film. It may potentially push back the March 2009 release of the film. And the only reason a studio goes through this kind of argument is because they know they will reap all the cost of litigation and more when the film gets out.

The Watchmen is one of the more anticipated films of over a decade. The trailers for the film have been heavily viewed for over a year now. The storyline appears to be virtually the same as found in the graphic novel - which was groundbreaking on multiple levels. And the environment is perfect of a conversion from graphic novel to silver screen with the success of Iron Man, the Dark Knight, X-Men, and several other films in the past couple of years. [Not to mention the planned 4th Spiderman, Wolverine, Avengers, and several other conversions to be released soon.]

I have already said that I expect Watchmen to be astounding. From what I can garner it will be like no other film, not because of the effects but the story. It is a movie that will take movie-goers to a place few films have dared to tread. And the studios smell the money like sharks tracking blood.

If nothing else tells you that this will be a blockbuster, the court case should be the last motivation you need. Unless I am very wrong, this will be the movie of 2009. There is a prediction for the new year, and you don't need to be Nostradamus to see that.

The movies of 2009

With 2008 quickly coming to an end it's time to look forward to 2009 and the films we can expect to see. So far several of the biggest movies look to be no better than the fare presented to us in 2008. Hollywood seems to have forgone entertainment for quick easy bucks. But we can hope that at least this time they might gwet some of these retreads right.

What we do know for sure is that there will be at least 4 movies that are sequels, 4 that are based on comic books, graphic novels and/or cartoons. There will also be at least 2 movies based on video games. Originality seems to be dead.

Starting with cartoons and comic books we have Dragonball. Based on the original manga, this japanese sensation has taken the world by storm. Dragonball (in which I include Dragonball Z) is the most watched cartoon in the world, with an estimated 64 million fans across the world. That also puts it far above shows like Seinfeld, Friends, American Idol, Survivor and so many other television shows. So expect this to be completely screwed up, sadly. Even worse since Chow Yung Fat is in it.





All the better trailers got pulled. Sorry.

Next on the list will be Watchmen. I've discussed this previously. You will want to see this. From everything I can tell this is a near literal translation of the graphic novel, which means an experience that truly will be entertaining by definition.



Then there is GI Joe. A decent cartoon and previously done as an animated film before they became all the rage. This will be live action like Dragonball. The potential is there for a good film, though the characters and storyline are being changed. Instead of all Americans it will be international and include a bad guy that was a former American GI Joe. Thank Hollywood for that bit of tarnish.

Best I could find is a discussion of the cast if that helps. I hate presenting fan fiction instead of a trailer.



Then there are the sequels. Lots of them.

Wolverine is of course on top of the list. As one of the most popular X-Men ever, and as personafied by Hugh Jackman expectations are high. It looks like this group of writers actually read the source comic books and got it right.



Another talked about trailer is Fast and Furious. With the prior 2 movies being bombs, and with the assurance that Paul Walker cannot handle a film lead on his own, Vin Deisel is back. So is Michelle Rodriguez. Of course the fact that both have had problems being bankable may have more to do with this version. Does that mean it will be good?



Another sequel with lots of cars and following up a prior theme is Transformers 2. The first film was short on plot, full of holes, and stupid. But it made money. What can we expect from the first sequel (of undobtedly many more). This is possibly a fan made trailer. Can't be quite sure.



But I can be sure of this next trailer. Terminator 4: Salvation. With Christian Bale who is a very good actor. No more Governator though. Still it looks decent if not a bit gritty. This John Connor looks far better than the one in the 3rd film too. Should be quite the film, and a secure box office smash.



And more of a prequel than sequel is the new Star Trek movie. From what I have seen so far I am unimpressed. Maybe younger fans that have never seen the original might like it. Fans of Star Trek: Enterprise might like it. Fans of Voyager could like it. But not anyone else I think. Unless there is a lot more to the film than what the trailer hints at.



And then there are the video game movies. Honestly the video games today are more like movies than the movies. And of better quality. But occasionally we get something good. Here are the 2009 choices.

Halo

As best as I can tell this is what the movie may look like and contain. There are a slew of fakes out there but this seems authentic. And if it is real it starts kind of slow. But it definitely give the impression that if this is how the movie starts, it will just get really crazy and fast from there.



Then there is the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. Another good game with an interesting trailer for the theaters.



And then there is the classic game Legend of Zelda. While the movie is focused on the original game in the setting it seems to also have deviated quite a bit too. But there have been numerous versions of the game in the last 20 years so a bit of mixing is to be expected. This will likely be very family friendly with at least one love story in it for the ladies. Will it be worthy of the title?



Continued in part 2

Watchmen: 2nd movie trailer out

I've spoken about the Watchmen movie previously, and my excitement continues to build. A new movie trailer has come out which sets the tone of the movie quite well.



That got my blog pumping. If you don't see this movie, you must be dead. Ok, a bit extreme but I really think this movie is going to surprise and blow away people in hordes.

There's nothing more to say, the video clip has done it all.

Good news for Ryan Reynolds, Scarlett Johansson, and Marvel

Well a bit of good news is always a nice way to start the week. And to that end is the news that Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johansson got married. The couple was engaged recently, and thankfully their wedding was not the usual circus of paparazzi and media and rumors that tend to occur these days.

I wish the 2 of them the best. I hope that they can have a marriage like that of Paul Newman and his wife Joan Woodard.

In more potentially good news Marvel Comics is moving forward with their movie empire. With the success of the Incredible Hulk, and Iron Man (to say nothing of the success found in Spiderman’s and the X-Men’s 3 films) Marvel closed a deal top have Paramount distribute 5 of its next films. Those films will include the sequel to Iron Man, a film on Captain America, The Avengers and Thor.

Now I am happy to see that Iron Man will not only get a sequel, which we knew would be coming, but that Marvel is looking to get one of it’s biggest titles out – Captain America - even though they recently murdered him. It is interesting that in a time of war, and national conflicted emotions over these wars, Marvel has decided to highlight a character that was created by war and symbolizes the absolute belief that America is the greatest good in a bad world. Captain America is hardly a liberal, and considering how liberal Hollywood is their choice stands out.

Thor though is a movie I expect will do poorly. He just isn’t an interesting character by himself. Norse god, ancient misogynistic beliefs, and macho pig might all be terms that would easily describe him. And those are all elements that would prevent his acceptance by a wide portion of the movie audience. But given the right script and actor anything is possible. Though I think this will rank right up with the first Hulk movie.

Also a potential letdown is the choice of The Avengers. This team of super heroes could be like the first X-Men movie, and be good. But more likely is the failure of the movie and its ultimate similarity to the Fantastic Four movies. There are too many characters, with too many abilities to describe to an audience that has no clue about any of that. There is no theme that drives the plot for movie-goers without necessitating a big back-story. It’s just too much all at once. And most of the members of the Avengers just aren’t interesting enough.

The big secret may be that the 5th choice of Marvel will likely be the SHIELD movie. There have been 2 prior versions of Nick Fury so far, both have been abysmal. But they say the 3rd time is the charm. This could be the film that breaks Marvel’s back, or guarantees that future scriptwriters will give up on new ideas altogether.

Actually what am I saying? There really haven’t been any new ideas in Hollywood for almost a decade. Virtually every movie made in that time has been a retread of a book, comic book, television show or prior movie. Looking forward we have more Batman, Watchmen, Sin City, video games, television shows and such on the horizon. It’s really a shame that Hollywood has lost the last few brain cells they had.

Still I am looking forward to the Watchmen, Iron Man 2, Captain America, and HALO.

Watchmen - the clock is running

There are some things in life you just can’t miss out on. Your first kiss, turning 21, reading a great novel, and on and on. These are experiences you can’t live without, or if you do then your life just feels all that much more shallow and empty. And there are movies that fall into this group as well. In 2009 I expect that a film will be released that will be in that category.

Watchmen

If you have never read a comic book or graphic novel, you need to read this. If you have never seen a movie based on a graphic novel or comic book you need to see this (and what rock have you been under the last 2 decades?). This should be bigger than Spiderman, bigger than The Dark Knight, bigger than all of them.

I’m heaping a lot of praise in advance of this movie which is not normal for me. But if this is done right, you will never question why.

Here is the video that just came out.



The story is too big, and complex to explain in a single post. In fact if you were told about the movie or novel it would be a crime. The pleasure is going on the cruise.

I will say this. Rorschach is the man. And Ozymandus (I always spell it wrong) is smarter than Batman (if you understand that Bruce Wayne is the greatest detective ever – not that the movies show it).

Let me give you a taste of the man that would tell the world …



This is unlike any hero movie you’ve ever seen. This is a story 95% will never figure out ahead of time. Unless they completely screw it up, it’s a movie that will stand out from virtually every story you’ve ever watched.

The clock is running, the joke is on you. 2009 is not too far.

Watchmen, Wil Wheaton, Comic-Con - 8.2.2007.1

Well I have to give it to Mr. Wil Wheaton. He definitely knows how to get a point across on a blog. In a featured post Mr. Wheaton spared no emotions in denouncing the corporate execs that went to the recent Comic-Con. Minus the expletives, he hit the nail on the head.

Mr. Wheaton is upset at all the crappy ‘revisioning’ and ‘updating’ of great stories and movies that is the recent craze in Hollywood. I’ve constantly mentioned my distaste for virtually anything ‘revisioned’, actually I don’t recall any movie that modified or updated a great old concept with new, hip, modern ideas [Batman Begins may count, but it’s not quite right as it deals with the origin of Batman and not the Mr. Michael Keaton/Mr. Tim Burton version, nor the Dark Knight graphic novel they were somewhat based on]. That goes for every genre and has no connection to where the source material comes from.

Madonna’s American Pie sucked the life out of the original. The Hitcher, Psycho, The Honeymooners, Mortal Kombat, Flash Gordon, Dukes of Hazzard, and Starsky and Hutch are all great examples of screw-ups created with the ‘revisioned’ concept in mind. And that’s not the worst of it. Hollywood executives are so without ideas that they are not only making a movie of EVERY comic book character ever made (it seems) they are completely ignoring the storylines that made them popular. And for those movie studios without a comic book deal (yes there is one or 2) they are re-making movies for the 3rd time or more.

I know someone is saying 3rd versions? You have got to be kidding. Nope. An upcoming example is the new Invasion movie starring Ms. Nicole Kidman. Original movie – Invasion of the Body Snatchers – first remake was in the 80’s (as I recall) which was redone to create a heroine, and a back-story that were neither needed nor added to the story. The “new” movie tries to trick everyone with a shorter title (like we are all too dumb to figure it out) another twist to the back-story, another heroine that is now motivated by maternal desires and I predict will utterly fail as they miss the point of the whole damn original concept that made it worth being remade.

All of this is not lost on Mr. Wheaton. His comments on the ruined storylines for Daredevil, Electra, Fantastic Four, Captain America (done at least 2x on television), The Hulk (I can accept the television series, but the movie failed both the comic book and the series), Ghost Rider, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and many others rings pinpoint true. Hollywood exec generally have no clue what the draw is for these films and substitute their own ideas of what might pull an audience, and fail miserably.

The increasingly rare exceptions continue to be where an actual fan is involved. The Spiderman series, the first 2 X-Men movies, The Fly remake, The Lord of the Rings dutiful transition, are all part of a handful of fans dedicated to getting it right.

Which brings up the Watchmen movie. If you have read the graphic novels you probably get what it’s about. It’s intense, powerful and direct without having to hit you over the head. The fact that it is planned for a movie is fantastic. My expectation for Hollywood to get it right is low. I hope they get it right. But I can’t see an exec understanding the joke that is the Joker, or the paranoia of Rorschach. I can hope, and if the director is a fan we might just get lucky. We shall see.

This is what I think, what do you think?