The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Film 50/50

There is so much to say. Where to begin?

Well, before I begin, let me give out a potential spoiler alert. I promise not to give away any major details regarding the end (you know...like who lives or dies...that sort of thing). But if you're anything like me, any detail is potentially a spoiler. Let's call this my way of recommending that you see this movie. I enjoyed it.

Okay. Now we can begin.

Sucker Punch (2011) Film 49/50

Guess which one is about to get sucker punched? That's right...the viewer.

Okay. Usually when a movie is this bad, I go to town dissecting it scene by scene. But I really have no interest in doing that with this one. The characters are one-dimensional. The plot is superficial. The only thing going for it is that it has the look and feel of Watchmen, but that film had far superior characters and story.

I won't lie. I didn't do much research into this film prior to turning on my television last night. I recall seeing the trailers for it way back when and thinking, "Okay. I'll probably see that eventually." I then promptly forgot all about this movie.

Let's hope I can completely forget about it again now that I've seen it.

In Time (2011) Film 48/50

So. In Time. A movie in which Olivia Wilde plays Justin Timberlake's 50-year-old mom. Record scratch! Say what?! And apparently no one looks older than twenty-five in this dystopian future except for Johnny Galecki. Go figure.

As if money weren't a great enough abstract, this movie turns time into currency. It brings an all new meaning to the term 'timeshare'...literally. And characters abuse time-themed idioms as if they were racing against the clock.

See what I did there?

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) Film 47/50

As mentioned in prior posts, I will see any movie starring Gary Oldman. Add an ensemble cast that features the likes of John Hurt, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Tom Hardy, and one would think it the recipe for the greatest movie of all time. Unfortunately, this one was a bit slow.

And I liked the book better.

Ah, well. They can't all be "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" meets the Silver Screen (the only instance I can think of where the film is equal to, if not surpasses, the quality of the text).

The Muppets (2011) Film 46/50

I watched this movie with my 3-year old niece today. It held her attention for about half of the film. She kept asking if the Walter muppet was Ernie. Clearly, I was the target demographic for this film. Not her.

As I was both "late to the game" and pleased in general with this film, I will keep this review brief. It was a sweet tribute to The Muppet Show (which I fondly recall as being the preferred method for determining my bedtime back when I was my niece's age). It had great references to both classic Muppet moments (from the show and various movies) and Sesame Street. It made nice use of cameos. It had some great jokes about movie gimmicks like using maps to illustrate change of location or that flowers in your suit pocket would probably get crushed after performing an impromptu song and dance routine.

Something Borrowed (2011) Film 45/50

Dialogue spoken during the scene pictured above:

KATE: What's this remind you of?
GINNIFER: Mmm...tastes like vanilla.
KATE: Uh-huh. Senior trip...
GINNIFER: Paris. That café!
KATE: Yeah!
GINNIFER: I love this coffee.
KATE: I loved that waiter. Remember?
TOGETHER: Jean-Luc!

No, wait. That's the dialogue from everyone's favorite General Foods International Coffees commercial. My bad. But for the record, that commercial is better than this movie. Want to know why? Read on.

Die Hard 2: Die Harder (1990) Film 44/50

Would you believe me if I told you I had never seen Die Hard 2 before this morning? I know! Me Neither! But here we are.

Somehow I'd seen Die Hard and Die Hard: With a Vengeance AND Live Free or Die Hard but skipped over the second installment of this soon-to-be quintology (which may even turn into a sextology...assuming that is indeed the term for a series of six and not going to result in some very disappointed Google searches). It was thanks to a recent conversation regarding the theme of "Christmas" movies that brought this missing link to light for me. Someone mentioned it taking place at an airport, and since I had no recollection of seeing John McClane duke it out against terrorists under a plane, I felt the need to remedy this oversight on my part. And so concludes "The Story of My Life Prior to Seeing Die Hard 2."

Onward to the review.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Book 13/50

I'm glad I read this before seeing the movie (and I still have yet to see it). Granted, this is pure speculation, but I don't think this book would be as entertaining/suspenseful had it followed the film. If I had known (for certain) who the mole was going into this, this book would probably not have held my interest for long.

So if you haven't seen the film, check this one out. I won't spoil anything on this one. Just know that most of the "action" takes place in flashbacks, which unfortunately takes much of the suspense out of those sequences. But there are some great characters being portrayed here: George Smiley, Jim Prideaux, and Karla.

I'll definitely check out the other George Smiley books...particularly the others from the Karla trilogy. As well as the Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy movie (and the BBC miniseries with Alec Guinness if I can track it down).