Horror, White Castle Burgers and Christmas.
Scream (1996)
My Rating: 8/10
The first of the teenage slasher blockbusters of the late 90s… it set the tone for sequels and parodies. And… it was extremely well written, it was tight and… the murderer didn’t need a motive. Finally. Just a murderer… or is it? I saw this movie twice – within a year – and the second time I was like, ‘who’s the murderer’? I didn’t remember who it was and I still had no clue watching it the second time. I’m not sure if this means the movie is not memorable (because it is) but at least it got me fooled twice so shame on me. The script, the directing, the poking fun of horror movies really made this movie worked. They nailed it. And I really enjoyed it.
I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
My Rating: 7/10
Good. Kinda unclear unless you really talk about it… it had some flaws which bugged me… but overall a pretty good slasher movie without enough slash. It hit all the beats for a horror movie, there were enough twists and turns to make you second guess who the murderer was… and it ended with a bang… or a slash… or a scare which of course leads to part II which I’m not in a rush to watch. Thrilling, fun, mysterious… a money maker. If you like teen-age horror flicks like Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, etc… this should be on your list. Well written and fun.
Harold and Kumar go to White Castle (2004)
My Rating: 7/10
It was funny! How else can I explain it? It’s about two guys who get high after work and of course get the munchies. And it gets specific… they WANT White Castle Burgers and will do whatever it takes to get some. Even if it takes all night! Even if they get side tracked by ‘Doogie Howser’ hitchhiking, get thrown in jail for assaulting a cop, getting bit by a raccoon and have to go to the ER, flying on a hang glider or riding on the back of a cougar. Their ultimate goal – to get a White Castle Burger!!!
Watch it when you’re high. It probably will be funnier than it already is.
The Family Stone (2005)
My rating: 8/10
Pretty good movie I must say. I’m a sucker for Christmas themed movies – especially comedies. I love em. The snow, the decorated tree, the warmth of the fireplace… the family. They did a good job incorporating the Christmas Holiday in this movie. I still do not like Durmont Mulroney at all. He makes no impact on the screen. Anyone can play the part. Too bad they don’t cast someone with more character to play the character. Someone who can give the character life. He has yet to do anything like that in any movie. From Angel’s in the Outfield to My Best Friend’s Wedding to Friends… he’s basically been blah… And unlikeable. Give me something to hold on to… Anyway, back to the movie. It started pretty basic, pretty simple, pretty obvious. It was on-the-nose, I knew what would happen BUT… the dialogue and character development was NOT on the nose. That was the best part of this movie. The characters that surrounded the boring Mulroney character, and the dialogue. Not that the dialogue was brilliant, it just was clean, tons of subtext, things didn’t need to be said to explain what was going on… it made you feel smart like “OH… the mom is sick and people are keeping it a secret.” Or from the very beginning – Those two guys are a couple – and they didn’t do anything like hug, kiss, hold hands… they just took Christmas presents out of the car and you knew! And of course when Rachel McAdams cried when she got the Christmas present… and Sarah Jessica Parker just says, “I just assumed…” I mean… perfect dialogue. Not brilliant… just right. And it was directed by the writer. Hmm… that’s a good sign isn’t it?
Anyway – watch the movie for a simple, feel good, Christmas themed romantic comedy.
