1. Everybody's Fine - "fine" being the key word to the whole film. The plot of the film is a sad one - A widower has all 4 of his kids cancel their weekend visit with him. Their lives are too busy to be bothered, so instead he decides to visit them. He is an old, lonely man that talks to strangers - which is extremely irritating (I would totally be one of the people ignoring him) but also quite sad. It just reminds me that I don't want to get old. It is a shame that the film has such an amazing cast - it is like throwing talent in the garbage. The film was predictable trash - of course Kate Beckinsale's character was going through a divorce and Drew's character was lying about her financial state & that mysterious baby. I get the theme of "not telling" i.e lack of communication amongst family but in the end the story fell flat. (on a side note - does anyone else think that Sam Rockwell sounds exactly like Owen Wilson? Seriously...just close your eyes and listen.)
2. Surrogates - Let's face it...Bruce Willis is getting old. Has everyone seen the trailer for Red? It is about a bunch of retired (i.e. old) assassins who go back to work - i have to admit that I am intrigued - Helen Mirren is sure to be our next kick-ass action heroine (haha). Watching this trailer is where it hit me...Bruce Willis is portraying a grandpa? When did that happen? In Surrogates, his old age is obvious but and even worse...creepy. The film has a great concept, it just isn't executed well. It explores life after technology has taken over - so humans can buy surrogates to live life for them. So it is about never growing old, never getting hurt and well, never leaving your house. I guess what made Bruce so creepy was his surrogate - because while everyone looked better as their surrogate (I like how they added age spots, sagging skin and wrinkles to the beautiful Radha Mitchell and Rosamund Pike "human" versions, while their surrogates were pretty much what these gorgeous actresses look in real life), but Bruce was the opposite (his surrogate looked like a plastic doll while his "human" version was just plain ole' Bruce) - that is a strange dichotomy. The film became really awful during the "action" sequence - it was incredibly cheesy, almost like an SNL skit. It was predictable (i.e technology is bad!) and poorly acted. It gets 1/2 a star for featuring Boris Kodjoe (from the highly anticipated Undercovers - JJ Abrams new spy series!).
3. Defendor - I have been a fan of Woody Harrelson ever since he did his happy dance on Will & Grace. I also love Kat Dennings, so obvi I was excited for this film. It wasn't really a bad film, it just didn't live up to its potential. It is a super hero film, just with hero who isn't exactly "super" - he is just an average guy (who is a bit delusional). Parts of it were amusing - like how he uses his "super powers" of squirting lime juice in the eyes or unleashing a jar of hornets on the villain. But most of it was predictable and obvious - "Captian Industry" = evil (that isn't very creative). So, while I appreciate the "different" super hero story - they could have taken the idea much further and the film could have been funnier.
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