A month of Netflix
I took a bit of a hiatus on Netflix due to being in Chicago for Christmas, and then having to go to Macworld my first full week back. But since then, I have been clearing out the queue:
16 Blocks - never saw this when it came out. I thought this was a decent little action flick -- it kept me entertained, at least.
Doomsday - I rented this because I thought it was about zombies. Turns out, it's Mad Max set in Scotland. Almost totally implausible and not really memorable, save for Rhona Mitra.
Casino Royale - I had only seen this once, so decided to watch it again. Man, is this movie awesome.
Resident Evil: Degeneration - now, this movie has zombies! Unfortunately, it's not very good. I will say that the "uncanny valley" is getting much smaller -- some of the hair and cloth in this movie looked incredibly real to me.
Brick Lane - good movie. Develops slowly, but the characterization is more complex than the average faire. And not really a "downer" at all, as some would have you believe. Recommended.
Ping Pong Playa - this little indie comedy wasn't super funny, but wasn't really that bad either. Some of the colloquialisms that the lead, Jimmy Tsai, uses are pretty funny.
Pineapple Express - I was really looking forward to getting this one, but was a bit disappointed. Some decent laughs and action, but I was expecting more. It held my attention more than the average movie, I suppose.
Ghost Town - I really liked this. Ricky Gervais is pretty darn funny (even if I don't really care for "The Office"). Good heart and message as well, even if the ending is a little predictable.
The X-Files: I Want to Believe - this movie is strange -- as in, I'm not sure why it was even greenlit. It plays like an extra-long episode of the show. And while I'm not a hardcore X-Files fan by any stretch, if this were an episode of the show, I think it would only have been an average one. Not terrible, but not super awesome either.
Batman Begins - another movie that I've only ever seen once. After seeing "The Dark Knight", I really wanted to see it again. It still holds up -- this movie is absolutely fantastic.
The Incredible Hulk (2008) - I never saw Ang Lee's version, so I won't make any comparison. I didn't strongly like nor dislike this movie. It was just sort of "flat", and I can't put my finger on the specific reason. Maybe this is why I'm not that much of a "Hulk" fan -- the character just isn't that interesting to me.
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - was really looking forward to this one, and it didn't disappoint. While it wasn't quite as funny as I thought it was going to be, the music is amazing, and the characters largely avoid the normal teen stereotypes. These are actual, real people on screen, with their quirks, flaws, etc. Recommended.
And there you have it. Isn't having 90 minutes per day to kill on the train wonderful?
-Andy.