The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby, has been remade and reimagined once again for the 21st century. Based on the great American novel written by Scott Fitzgerald in 1925, this classic tale has been told and retold numerous times: in 1926 it was presented as a silent film, then in 1949 it was created as a black and white "talkie," and in 1974 Robert Redford and Mia Farrow gave the film a good run. There was a TV adaptation in 2000, and in 2002, there was a hip-hop version made. Now, in 2013, Leonardo DiCaprio and Toby Maguire gave the story new life. I read the novel in college for my freshman American literature class, and I think I recently watched some of the 1974 movie on television, very late at night. I was wary of another interpretation of the wonderful book – however, this film did not disappoint me. The producers, writers and directors did a decent job in capturing the atmosphere, character development and emotion of the story. The actors did a fine job, even Leonardo DiCaprio, seemed to rise to the occasion. I particularly enjoyed the music and the computer-generated graphics. These two modern tools gave the movie a unique and dreamlike feel that I felt remained true to the original novel. The music was a blend of 1920s jazz and current Jay-Z inspired, written and performed songs, all nicely done. The CGI enhanced the mood of the film, creating comic book like scenery, fantastic party scenes, and smoothed out action sequences. This all brought me deep into the world view of Nick, the narrator of the story. The visual and auditory effects entertained me from the beginning to the end, even though I knew the story. I especially liked the idea that the movie showed some of Fitzgerald's words and sentences as they were produced on the typewriter, floating and blending mystically with the atmosphere of the film. With all of that, what really made the movie is the classic love story. Definitely worth a read, and a rental!

Now you see me

Now you see me – now you don't! "Don't" as in DON'T BOTHER... I was sorely disappointed by this poorly acted and constructed movie. I was actually looking forward to watching this film. The previews looked like fun – magicians, bank heists, intrigue, and suspense. To the producer and director's credit, they did try to include these things, but unfortunately it all fell very flat. The acting was abysmal – and even Morgan Freeman sucked. Michael Caine was laughable. Woody Harrelson will regret this film no doubt... Mark Rufulo and "whatever" Eisenberg, I don't even care enough about them to spell their names correctly, were awful. The magician girl was bad, and the French girl was worse. To be fair, they had very little to work with. The plot had potential, but the script and the final product was atrociously shallow. We never really got to understand them or their real motivation. I never once empathized with the characters or rooted for them to succeed. They acted and looked like spoiled children the whole time, running around acting cool for no apparent reason. The "cool factor" got old very quickly. The idea that they were genius magicians never came across – their tricks, even with the use of special effects that digital film allowed, came across staged and lack luster. One trick with the stupid white rabbit had me gagging – come on! The writers could have/should have come up with something more original. If I had paid more than the four-dollar rental, I would've left the theater. As it was, comfortably in my bedroom, I forced myself to watch until the end. The writers attempted to tie everything up at the end, and answer all of the unanswered questions, but it was so far-fetched and poorly presented that I was happy when the final credits began to roll. Don't waste your time with this one!

Iron Man Three

I finally got around to watching Iron Man Three, I've been busy lately watching the end of Showtime series Dexter and season finale of Ray Donovan, as well as checking out some of the new Fall television shows. There sure is a lot of stuff on television/cable these days – most of it junk, but a lot of good stuff too. I hope to get back to the weekly movie review.

I was a little bit disappointed with Iron Man Three, I think that perhaps I'm getting a little bit too old for the summer comic book blockbusters. It was fun movie, I have to admit that and probably worth the rental, but it left me feeling rather tired and shallow. Part of the problem is that I really don't like Robert Downey Junior. The Tony Stark character is really just Robert Downey playing himself – I don't see or feel any real acting there. And unfortunately Miss Paltrow, I believe, is just a pretty face there for the million-dollar paycheck. She really doesn't have to do much of anything, great gig for her... The bad guys are okay, but predictable. The plot is old, predictable and seems to be to contrived to be anything but sheer entertainment, which maybe is okay for a summer movie meant for 12-year-old boys, but these days I'm looking for a little bit more content, acting and emotion. I want to believe that the characters can somehow the real or their problems somewhat connected to reality. I found little in this movie. The computer-generated graphics were great, but in some places the action goes by so quickly that my old eyes can not follow what's happening. The different Iron Man robots were fun, Jarvis the computer is perhaps the most interesting character – I'd like to see him grow more in the next film. Of course there will be another... So, if you're like me, and you wait until the fall to watch the summer blockbusters, this one is probably worth the rental. If you're not into comic book action movies, skip it.