Iron Man 2 (2010)

3/5

Iron Man 2 is not quite as good as Iron Man, mostly because it copied the first one and therefore lost the refreshing originality that distinguished that movie from all the other superhero movies. The plot is fairly simplistic (evil Russian physicist Ivan Vanko has a bone to pick with Tony Stark and creates a suit with electric whips to kill him) but it suffices for the genre. There are a number of dumb/inconsistent plot points that make the movie more preposterous and less believable than it already is (e.g., creating a new element by changing how protons, neutrons, and electrons interact; flashing a warning light 30 seconds before the evil drones are set to explode so that the hero can escape). And the tension during the action sequences was completely deflated because the movie basically turned into a straight-up comedy. Instead of caring that the explosions didn't kill the characters we got attached to, it felt like we were watching a CGI demonstration for July 4.

All that being said, the movie is quite enjoyable. It is far funnier than I remember the first one being. (That swinging doohickey was comic genius!) The jokes are well-timed and delivered with aplomb. The acting by all parties met my expectations, although Robert Downey Jr.'s smugness is now starting to get on my nerves a little bit. If you liked the first one, you'll surely like this one, but I'm not envisioning it blowing anyone's socks off. Don't be afraid to wait for it on DVD. Btw, don't bother watching the 5 second snippet at the end. Let me save you the trouble. He finds Thor's hammer. Now you can leave 10 minutes earlier without having to sit through the 9 minute 55 second-long credits. You're welcome.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1228705/

Letters to Juliet (2010)

3/5

Letters to Juliet is the prototypical romantic comedy, from the awkward meet-cute to the conflict between two loves to the cheesy finale. And quite frankly, the formula works. It was a light, enjoyable flick with charismatic characters and playful hearstring-tugging. The story follows Sophie (Seyfried) with her fiancé Victor (García Bernal) in Verona on a pre-wedding honeymoon in preparation for the opening of his new restaurant. Instead of spending time with Sophie, Victor ends up trying all the foods and wines from Italy on his own, while she begins to get involved with the "secretaries of Juliet." Strangers write letters to Juliet and attach them to a wall, and the secretaries collect them all and write back. Sophie finds one letter that had been lost for 50 years and writes back, only to have the original writer Claire (Redgrave) show up with her grandson Charlie (Egan) on a quest for her long-lost love.

As you can imagine (and visibly see in the trailer), the old woman finds her long lost love and the young girl starts to get close to the young boy. I'm sure you can guess how the movie will end, but the point of the movie is precisely that you get exactly what you want out of watching it. I could complain about minor details like the slow pacing, sloppy writing, and confusing camerawork time after time, but the technical details simply don't matter for this movie. The movie's charm is in its inhabitants, and their relationships with each other, and that is really something to cherish about this film. The people are friendly and funny (how Claire treats her grandson, how Victor talks about food) and their connections--while far from unique--are precisely what we want our own connections to be. And that is where this film succeeds; it gives us exactly what we want, and it does so in the beautiful country of Italy.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0892318/

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

2/5

Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is a mesmerizing acid-trip of a film, but little more. The plot follows the centuries-old Dr. Parnassus (Plummer) and his troupe of storytellers (Garfield, Troyer, Ledger) as they attempt to free the minds and save the souls of modern-day Londoners through his imaginarium. He must win over 5 souls before the devilish Mr. Nick (Waits) wins over 5 souls as part of a wager to save his daughter (Cole) before she turns 16. Yes, it's fairly convoluted and entirely fantastical, but it is precisely this freedom from rules and expectations that make this movie so exhilarating and captivating. Because it is so bizarre, you never know what happens next or how it will end--you are continually drawn along its winding trail until the very end.

But that is also one of the film's flaws. Sometimes it feels drawn out or scatterbrained. And while it keeps stringing you along, you get the sense that most of the questions you have about what exactly is going on will never be answered. As for the other technical aspects, this film is a mixed bag. The acting is competent (as far as I could tell), but the characters are all so unorthodox and otherworldly that it's hard to appreciate the acting that they're doing. Some aspects of the writing and story are fascinating, but the plot overall is unnecessarily tortuous and confusing. The movie as a whole feels like the work of a mad genius, someone so far ahead of everyone else's reality and so far ahead of modern technology that frustratingly incomplete ideas obscure the underlying brilliance. Either that or Gilliam is just crazy. Gilliam has made much better movies; this is nowhere near his best.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1054606/

The Princess and the Frog (2009)

4/5

Because of some middling comments I had overheard about the movie, I was not expecting to love Disney's classically animated The Princess and the Frog as much as I did, but it is an extraordinary film and a pleasure to watch. The plot follows a young girl in New Orleans named Tiana who wants to turn her dream of running her own restaurant into a reality. Prince Naveen, who was recently cut off from his rich parents, visits New Orleans and is intoxicated by the voodoo doctor's fortunes of wealth. He accepts the shadow man's offer of a future of "green," only later realizing that it meant he would be turned into a frog. He hops on over to Tiana, mistakes her for a princess, and kisses her. Unfortunately, it causes her to turn into a frog as well, instead of turning him back into a prince. The rest of the movie details their quest to turn human again and stop the witch doctor from taking over the town and sucking out everyone's souls.

The movie is visually breathtaking. The 2D animation is sharp and smooth--and quite a refreshing departure from the typical animated film of the late 2000's. The story is captivating from beginning to end. There are scares and triumphs, thrills and laughs, in the perfected proportions that can only come from years of cartooning experience. Granted, there are a few unnecessary scenes/side plots (e.g., the three frog hunters), but they add in some fun, excitement, and drama. The characters are intriguing and charismatic; they draw you close with their friendliness, warmth, and emotion. And the story unfolds like a puzzle that gets slowly put together into an awesome tapestry. The plot is not without a few predictabilities and the music is not without some repetitive or forced dynamics, but on the whole this movie has all the elements you remembered and loved about the best Disney movies of the 1990's.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780521/