Rio 2 (2014)

3/5

Rio 2 is a lot like Rio, but with more blue birds. The movie brings back Blu (Eisenberg) and Jewel (Hathaway), now married with three kids: a bookworm (Stenberg), a daredevil (Gagnon), and a singer (Crow). They actually remind me of someone else's three kids, although those kids are much cooler than these birds =). They find their way back to Jewel's home, where she reunites with her father (Garcia) and a smooth-talking childhood friend (Mars). But their time together is about to be cut short (literally) when an amoral businessman has plans to destroy their rain forest home to make a profit.

The new characters all feel rather stereotypical, like clichés added in to fill a gap nobody cared was there. Instead of writing the story first, figuring out who was important and why, it felt like financiers and producers told the creative team to incorporate a celebrity singer and characters that fit mold x, y, and z. They were just stuffed in to an already crowded cast without much added value. Bruno Mars seems to have been brought in solely for his singing voice (although his acting isn't too bad), as he headlines almost all the songs.

All in all, the movie is still fun--it's actually a great way to spend the afternoon--but it's just not the same novel experience that the first one was. With its star-studded cast, it certainly has one or two famous actors or actresses you'll enjoy watching.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2357291/

Rio (2011)

4/5

Rio is an insanely fun adventure flick with a fantastic cast and delightful animation. The movie takes place in Rio, as you might expect, where a blue macaw (Eisenberg) is brought by an ornithologist (Santoro) to mate with a female macaw (Hathaway) and save their species. Unfortunately, the pair are stolen by exotic animal smugglers who want to take them out of the country and sell them to the highest bidder!

The best part about the movie is how beautiful it looks. The cinematography is inventive and liberating, letting us fly through scenes with its feathered cast. The colors are bright and the editing is fine-tuned. The Latin music feels authentic and invigorating. But the characters are generic and the acting is only adequate. I can't help but see the actors instead of the characters. The story isn't the most imaginative in the world, but the script is full of both terrific visual gags and hilarious witticisms. All in all, Rio is a whole lot of fun and a great way to spend an afternoon.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1436562/

Now You See Me (2013)

4/5

Now You See Me is a deliciously devious con/heist movie with an engaging cast of characters and compelling story. A group of four magicians (Eisenberg, Harrelson, Fisher, Franco) are brought together by a mysterious stranger to perform a series of grand illusions, with the ultimate goal of Robin Hood-esque bank-robbing. A local cop (Ruffalo) and Interpol officer (Laurent) chase after them, wondering the whole time what their true motives are. And what their final act will be.

What makes this movie so fun is the sense of wonder you get watching the actors perform. The movie is not so much about magic as it is about deception, manipulation, and subverting expectations. You don't really concern yourself with how the illusions were performed--instead you find yourself focusing on the misdirection and the acting. Eisenberg delivers arrogance to perfection (only to be outdone by Freeman's know-it-all cockiness). Franco endears with his youthful charm and innocence, making him the most sympathetic character in the whole movie.

Now You See Me is riveting from beginning to end, thanks to a well-crafted story and well-paced editing. But the film ultimately fails in the finale. The big reveal at the end is terribly unsatisfying. Quite frankly, the twist just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Yes, it is possible for everything to be explained as it was, but it is fantastically absurd and illogical. It feels as if it were written in an effort to confuse and surprise the audience, not in an effort to be true to the world it creates. But, strangely enough, none of that changes my enjoyment of the film. It is still eminently watchable and utterly delightful.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1670345/

The Social Network (2010)

5/5

David Fincher's The Social Network is a vibrant, invigorating film filled with excitement and possibility. The movie chronicles the beginning of the new digital era of human interactions. It is not so much about the creator of Facebook as it is about the unrelenting, self-propelled technology that everybody is trying their best to keep up with. It is a classic story of how we as a society deal with each other, how we share stories, how we reveal our emotions. It tackles betrayal, regret, and love. The plot itself is based on two lawsuits launched against Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg (Eisenberg). The first is by fellow Harvard undergrads Divya Narendra (Minghella) and the Winklevoss twins (Hammer) for stealing their idea, originally called Harvard Connection. The second is by best friend, co-founder, and CFO Eduardo Saverin (Garfield) for being written out of his share of stock options.

It is difficult to describe how compelling this movie is. The script is an absolute treasure. It unites fast-paced, witty, intellectual dialogue with important, ancient thematics. It is fresh and edgy and filled with electricity. The cinematography is beautiful and appropriately moody. The editing may be one of the most underrated aspects of this movie, but it is essential to its success. The story could have easily taken 3 hours, especially given Fincher's propensity for making movies longer than they need to be, but I'm thankful that they were able to edit it down to just 2 hours. It is expertly paced with only the essential ideas. And last but not least is the acting. It is spot-on. The characters are full and richly textured. You feel their pain and heartache and sorrow. You are enraptured by their vivacity and exhilaration. They are not just fascinating character studies. They are living and breathing people with the same unique talents and flaws that you love and hate about your friends and enemies.

And of course there is the subject matter. I wonder what it means that everybody who saw this movie went home and posted their thoughts about it on Facebook. People complained that this movie came out too soon: Facebook's role is still being sorted out. We are right in the middle of it and don't know how it will all play out in the end. But I think now is the best time to make and release this movie precisely because we are still in the thick of it. People said the same thing about 9/11 movies, but they remain some of the best and most memorable movies because they are tied to my memory of life events and contain universal themes. This movie is exactly the same. And while it may not have all the facts right and may be biased one way or another, it is a phenomenal story that is flawlessly told. It must be seen, and sooner rather than later.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1285016/

Zombieland (2009)

4/5

Zombieland is a zombie movie parody in the same vein as Shaun of the Dead, but shorter, funnier, and much more palatable to American audiences. It follows a ragtag group of humans in a world overcome by zombies and the magnificently creative ways in which they kill them. There are a surprising number of genuine scares, even though it is not a horror movie (although nobody told the other previews). But there are far far more genuine laughs. The writing is sharp, witty, and observant, using the absolute minimum to get the joke across (whether it's through quick flashbacks or jump cuts) while letting the audience build the remainder of the scene themselves. The characters are rich, well-acted, and compelling, but not particularly unique.

The special effects were fairly disappointing. The use of text, especially when the letters were treated as parts of the scene that could get knocked over or have blood splattered on them, was clever at first but quickly became way overdone. On the other hand, the use of slow-motion, especially for killing and destruction, was always awesome. The only disappointment is that there wasn't much more to the movie than what was in the trailer. All things considered, it's an immensely entertaining comedy with a bit of blood for the boys and a bit of romance for the girls. Definitely check this out.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1156398/