I Know Who Killed Me

Starring:

Lindsay Lohan......Aubrey Fleming/Dakota Moss

Julia Ormand......Susan Fleming

Neal McDonough......Daniel Fleming

Brian Geraughty......Jerrod Pointer

Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon......Agent Julie Bascome

Spencer Garrett......Agent Phil Lazarus

Written By:

Jeff Hammond

Directed By:

Chris Siverston

Release Date:

July 27, 2007

Running Time:

105 mins.

The reviews I read for this movie led me to believe I was about to watch the most vile, disgusting piece of trash ever produced. That, however, was not really the case here. The movie was confusing, and not the good kind of confusing, because you don't really get an answer in the end. Something just... happens.

I will say, though, that I'm glad Lindsay Lohan stepped out of her comfort zone (even though she is playing twins again) and did a thriller/mystery. Oh you thought it was a horror movie? It may be advertised as one, but it's not horror.

The basic premise is that Aubrey Fleming, a bright, sophisticated, good-natured college student is taken and abused by a really creepy man that has a thing for the color blue. Since other college students mysteriously vanished and turned up dead, everyone is worried. Flash to bad-tempered, poor stripper, Dakota Moss. There is an uncanny resemblance between Dakota and Aubrey (...), so when Dakota wakes up in a hospital bed, everyone thinks it's Aubrey. Despite Dakota's protests, everybody is under the assumption that Aubrey has just lost her mind. She also lost her leg and arm... Have fun trying to understand what I just typed.

The movie was entertaining, but by no means some sort of masterpiece of the genre.

Three Stars

Valentine's Day

Starring:

Julia Roberts......Cpt. Kate Hazeltine

Bradley Cooper......Holden Bristow

Jennifer Garner......Julia Fitzpatrick

Ashton Kutcher......Reed Bennett

Jessica Alba......Morley Clarkson

George Lopez......Alphonso Rodriguez

Bryce Robinson......Edison

Patrick Dempsey......Dr. Harrison Copeland

Hector Elizondo......Edgar Paddington

Shirley MacLaine......Estelle Paddington

Emma Roberts......Grace Smart

Carter Jenkins......Alex Franklin

Taylor Lautner......Willy Harrington

Taylor Swift......Felicia Miller

Eric Dane......Sean Jackson

Jessica Biel......Kara Monahan

Jamie Foxx......Kelvin Moore

Queen Latifah......Paula Thomas

Anne Hathaway......Liz Corynn

Topher Grace......Jason Morris

Katherine LeNasa......Pamela Copeland

Kathy Bates......Susan Moralez

Written By:

Katherine Fugate

Directed By:

Garry Marshall

Release Date:

February 12, 2010

Running Time:

124 mins.

Wow, that was a lot of typing. Obviously the general consensus was that this movie sucked. I didn't think it sucked, or was even that bad, but it could have been better. The movie tended to focus on Ashton Kutcher/Jennifer Garner the whole movie, when they were, like, the most boring characters.

I typically dislike Julia Roberts, but I think she was my favorite here. I was expecting something totally different, though, in the end, but the way it turned out was cute. I also loved Anne Hathaway, as usual, and Jessica Alba, Hector Elizondo/Shirley MacLaine, as well. Emma Roberts wasn't that bad, either.

I'm not going to attempt to give you a plot, since it's an ensemble cast, you really have to watch the movie to understand. Sorry. That said, this is going to be a really short review. As you can see. Because it's ending.

Two and a Half Stars

Rachel Getting Married

Starring:

Anne Hathaway......Kym

Rosemarie DeWitt......Rachel

Bill Irwin......Paul

Debra Winger......Abby

Tunde Adebimpe......Sidney

Mather Zickel......Kieran

Anna Deavre Smith......Carol

Anisa George......Emma

Written By:

Jenny Lumet

Directed By:

Jonathan Demme

Release Date:

October 3, 2008

Running Time:

114 mins.

I wanted to watch this because Anne Hathaway is a great actress and she was nominated for an Oscar for it (Although really, does that mean anything anymore?)

Anne's character, Kym, is the polar opposite of any other character she's played. Kym is... angsty, dark, and a recovering drug addict and an actress. She's released from rehab early so she can attend her sister, Rachel's, wedding. Kym is kind of devastated that Rachel's best friend, Emma, has already been chosen as the maid of honor. Kym throws a tantrum and Rachel lets her sister take Emma's spot. You may have Kym pictured in your mind, but there is so much more to her. When she was a teenager, she was left in the care of her younger brother Ethan, while high, and accidently caused his death by driving with him. And her family blames her. I kind of want to discuss whether or not it's Kym's fault or her family's fault, but I'm not going to go there. I don't really know what that could lead to.

There's some romance, though it's more of a character and family drama than anything else. There's a very long sequence of people at the wedding dancing that goes on for about ten minutes, where barely anyone speaks. I almost had to fast forward because I was falling asleep, but I didn't.

This movie definitely showcases Anne Hathaway's best performance to date. She makes viewers sympathize with Kym, whereas anyone else may make her too dark for anyone to like. Debra Winger and Rosemarie DeWitt also give great performances, and I'll be checking out more of their stuff because of it.

Four and a Half out of Five Stars

The Last House on the Left (2009)

Cast:

Sara Paxton......Mari Collingwood

Tony Goldwyn......John Collingwood

Monica Potter......Emma Collingwood

Garret Dillahunt......Krug

Riki Lindhome......Sadie

Aaron Paul......Francis

Spencer Treat Clark......Justin

Martha MacIssac......Paige

Writer:

Wes Craven (Original)
Adam Alleca (Screenplay)

Director:

Dennis Illiadis

Release Date:

March 13, 2009

Running Time:

110 mins. (theatrical)

114 mins. (unrated-this is the one I watched)

I've not seen the original The Last House on the Left yet, but I most likely will in the near future as I love Wes Craven.

First of all, I didn't really see this movie as being "horror." There wasn't any time when I was truly scared; to be honest, the film was just gross and made me depressed. Which, in all honesty I think was the point.

Sara Paxton, usually known for her lighter roles, takes a dark turn as a girl beaten, raped, and left for dead in the middle of a lake one night, after watching her friend get murdered.

The three killers and the main killer's son head off to safety at a couple's home. Little do they know that these are the parents of the girl they just supposedly killed. The couple, thinking that their daughter is staying over her friend's house, let them in since it's raining and they're obviously nice people.

Soon, Mari basically crawls onto her porch and rattles the rocking chair until her parents come out to save her.

The rest of the movie consists of "Oh my God we let in our daughter's rapists" to "We're going to kill their asses" to "Oh my God we're in the home of that chick we just left in the lake".

So, that said, it's very disturbing to watch, but definitely a worthwhile viewing, in my opinion. I'm sure the original is better, though.

Three and a half out of Five Stars.

The Runaways

Dakota Fanning......Cherie Currie

Kristen Stewart......Joan Jett

Michael Shannon......Kim Fowley

Riley Keough......Marie Currie

Stella Maeve......Sandy West

Scout-Taylor Compton......Lita Ford

Alia Shawkat......Robin Robins

Tatum O'Neal......Marie Harmon

Writer:

Cherie Currie (Book)

Floria Sigismondi (Screenplay)

Director:

Floria Sigismondi

Release Date:

April 9, 2010

Running Time:

106 mins.

I absolutely love The Runaways. Cherie Currie is my favorite member and I'm a long-time fan of Joan Jett. That said, I was very, very excited to see this movie. And I was not let down.

In the beginning the film takes on two narratives, one of Cherie and one of Joan. Cherie's begins with her getting her first period on the street and Joan's begins with her in a bar. '

Cherie enters her school's talent show, sporting a Bowie-influenced outfit, hair, and red paint across her face. Flipping off an unimpressed audience, she finally wins them over.

Joan goes to her first guitar lesson and is told that "girls don't play electric guitar." Needles to say, Joan is pissed off. More determined than ever, when she spots her chance in the form of manager Kim Fowley on the side of a club one night, she grabs it and doesn't let go. Teamed up with Sandy West on drums, the two begin to play.

They soon look for a lead-singer who presents herself as Cherie Currie, drinking a Mountain Dew on a bar stool in a club one night. She says she can sing and is told to come to a spot the next day to audition with a Susi Quatro song of her choice. There's then a sequence of Cherie dancing around her room to "Fever."

She gets to the audition location and is told that "we don't play this shit", meaning slow songs. Jett and Fowley write the famous "Cherry Bomb" right there on the spot, Cherie auditions, and the rest is fuckin' rock'n' roll history.

The events portrayed in the film are mostly as they happened in real lfie. The one thing that annoyed me was that of the presence of Robin Robins, the bassist. In real life, it was Jackie Fox, who didn't allow her likeness to be used in the film. Another thing is that The Runaways didn't break up after Cherie quit. In actuality, Jackie quit first and then Cherie, and Joan (now the lead singer), Lita, Sandy, and new bassist Vicki Blue, went on to record two more albums.

The acting is nothing short of fantastic. Dakota Fanning leads the film as the innocent yet startlingly fierce Cherie Currie, while Kristen Stewart attains Jett's trademark "cool" factor. Michael Shannon is also great as creepy manager Kim Fowley. I also want to give a special nod to Stella Maeve who played Sandy West and Scout-Taylor Compton who played Lita Ford. Both really channeled their counterparts and did a great thing with it.

The special features, while kind of sparse, are great. First there's a fantastic audio commentary with Fanning, Stewart, and Joan Jett. While the credits play, they all wonder why Sandy West, who sadly passed away from lung cancer in 2006, didn't have the film dedicated to her. Joan unofficially dedicates it to her on the spot, and it really is touching.

There's two featurettes, one called "Plugged In: The Making of The Runaways" (15 minutes long), which features interviews with Fanning, Stewart, Jett, Cherie Currie, Floria Sigsmondi, Michael Shannon, and more of the crew. The next is simply titled "The Runaways" and is a two minute "add-on" to the former featurette.

I bought the Blu-Ray, and the quality was astounding. The colors, especially black and red, are so deep and your eyes almost get lost in them. It really did an amazing job of looking like the 70's.

I will recommend this film to anyone who's: A fan of Kristen Stewart or Dakota Fanning, a fan of The Runaways, a fan of Joan Jett, a fan of the 70's, a fan of music, and/or a fan of film.

Five out of Five Stars

Source: Blu-Ray Disc

Foxes

Starring:

Jodie Foster......Jeanie

Cherie Currie......Annie

Marilyn Kagan......Madge

Kandice Stroh......Deirdre

Scott Baio......Brad

Sally Kellerman......Mary

Randy Quaid......Jay

Written By:

Gerald Ayres

Directed By:

Adrian Lyne

Release Date:

February 29, 1980

Running Time:

106 mins.

I rented this because I wanted to see Cherie Currie in her acting debut. She essentially played herself, except toned up a lot, and without a second chance at the end.

The main character Jeanie, played by a teenage Jodie Foster, is a typical high school girl. She's polite, but isn't afraid to be wild. She's part of a group of four best friends that "come of age" in California.

I was a little more underwhelmed by this movie than I thought I would be, and that's most likely because of two reasons:

1). I'm not a girl.

2). I didn't grow up in the 70's.

I feel like this movie is kind of dated... the dialogue, especially although that's understandable considering the specific audience appeal this film was most likely trying to go for. The colors are very earthly. It's not bright; it's brown and green and yellow, which actually adds to the viewing pleasure. You really get inside the relationship of the four girls, and that's great, or else it would be a boring movie.

Each of the four girls has something bad going on in their life: Jeanie lives with her divorced mother and wants to move out and live on her own. Annie is heavily into drugs, alcohol, and sex, and is abused by her father. Madge has very overprotective parents. Deirdre thinks she's above everyone else.

It's very much a teen drama. Parents = the enemy, fun = top priority. And the girls do have a lot of fun, but it eventually comes at a very high cost; one I won't spoil for you.

Obviously Jodie Foster gave the best performance; she can do no wrong! Coming in second, however, was first-timer Cherie Currie. Admitably, I am a huge The Runaways fan, so that probably makes me a little more than biased.

So, that said, I do recommend this movie to all teenagers. It serves as a good PSA for Anti-Drug and Drinking, if nothing else. (Note: I really enjoyed it; I realize that last line comes off as rude lol)

Three and a Half out of Five Stars

Source: Netflix