A Year of Movies

Week 23: June 4, 2010 to June 10, 2010
Total number of movies watched: 8

229. From Hell -- I've always been fascinated by the Jack the Ripper tales, and this was an interesting take on that story. Johnny Depp again creates a very rich character with his tortured investigator. A dark movie, but exceptionally well done.

230. Stargate -- I watched the extended cut version of this movie, and the extra material naturally made the movie seem fuller with more detail and the plot seemed to make more sense. While I've always loved this movie, I never had the opportunity to get into the TV series spin-offs. I don't know why. Perhaps next year, I'll try to catch up on the TV series I've neglected this year during my quest to watch a movie every day.

231. Scoop -- I'm not usually a huge fan of Woody Allen movies, but I did like this one. It was a funny murder mystery and I wasn't sure exactly how it was going to turn out in the end. An enjoyable cast with Hugh Jackman and Scarlett Johannson.

232. Up In The Air -- A unique romantic comedy / character study about a man who is most at home while on the road. George Clooney does another amazing job with this role and I was completely drawn into this movie. It has become one of my new favorite movies.

233. Bull Durham -- I decided to watch the three Kevin Costner baseball movies back-t0-back-to-back starting with his first. It is obvious that Kevin Costner loves baseball and of all the various movies I've seen him in, he sees most natural in baseball movies. A great romantic comedy combining sex and baseball --two great past-times.

234. Field of Dreams -- While a good baseball movie, it is more about the relationships between fathers and sons. I love baseball. I love having a catch with my sons. This movie really hit home with me.

235. For Love of the Game -- Another good baseball movie which focuses more on relationships than on the game. While pitching a perfect game, a man reflects on his imperfect life--and I found it interesting that the only time he could be 'perfect', was at the end of his professional career and perhaps despite that perfection, he realizes there is something more perfect waiting for him after baseball. A trilogy of good movies.

236. Smart People -- A funny movie involving smart people who act stupidly. What a dysfunctional family! While I did like this movie, I found the ending to be a little out of line with the rest of the movie. I didn't entirely buy the idea that the addition of twins to the dysfunctional family would somehow make the family LESS dysfunctional. Still, some really funny moments in this movie.

My favorite for the week? While I do like the baseball trilogy quite a bit, and Stargate would seem that natural pick, since I'm such a huge sci-fi/fantasy genre fan, I'm going to go with George Clooney's Up In The Air.