William

Just as its maladjusted main characters become New York City’s finest cops, Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg’s buddy comedy, The Other Guys, found itself on top this Sunday. It passed Inception—arguably the season’s best blockbuster—as the weekend’s highest grossing film, winning America’s hearts along the way and leaving its minds largely untouched.

Effectively a brainless action movie that successfully pokes fun at brainless action movies, The Other Guys delivers what audiences expect from a Ferrell vehicle, although many of its scenes twist jokes in surprising directions. It’s a tactic that may make you to like this movie, even if you’ve grown to hate Will Ferrell, but viewer be warned: some of this flick’s treats come with extra helpings of raunchiness.
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There’s a lot to like about Inception, the newest blockbusting thriller from director Christopher Nolan of The Dark Knight fame. It broadly succeeds as an action movie and a psychological drama, packed tight with suspense, special effects, and terrific performances, all of which is packaged in a thought-provoking if not entirely consistent plot.

The story itself should pose few obstacles to adult’s enjoyment of the film, that is unless they bring children along, mostly because youngsters will be asking questions throughout the movie like: “What’s going on?” and “Is this a dream now? Still?”
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A friend of mine suggested that Eclipse was the perfect name for the latest Twilight installment, because the longer and closer you watch, the greater your chances of irreparable eye damage. Many people harbor strong feelings about the teen-vampire saga—some negative, many more positive—but love or hate the Stephanie Meyer’s series, it poses few actual dangers to viewers middle school age and older.

Arguably Eclipse’s most threatening elements are angst-ridden dialogue, excessive close-ups, and a softcore agenda of Mormon-inspired values, but the film also offers rewards including some surprising humor and of course, improbably good-looking actors.
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There’s been some positive news this week related to Jonah Hex, Warner Brothers’ recent released heavy metal western. First, MTV reports that the oral prosthetics Josh Brolin wore to play the film’s disfigured title-character forced him to quit smoking. Second, the movie is expected to do so poorly at the box office, there’s minimal risk of a sequel.

Rumor has it turmoil behind the scenes of this graphic novel adaptation matched its violent content, and while it still met its target release—even with the head writers quitting last year—what slumped onto the screen this week has the worst trappings of a rush job.
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A special logic runs through The A-Team—an adrenaline-stuffed cinematic adaptation of the lovably silly TV show that made Mr. T famous in the ’80s. It’s a logic that says Gandhi would want you to body slam a man, as long as it’s for a good cause.

Aside from a few references to the power of non-violence movements, the movie relies on face punching, wild stunts and sexy stars for its thrills, many of which push the limits of PG-13. At an hour and 58 minutes, it also tests the audiences’ attention span, but the spectacle ultimately does more to numb the mind than bore it.
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Ripped from your local paper’s funny pages, Marmaduke the movie turns cartoonist Brad Anderson’s hulking Great Dane into a live-action mutt, who talks via computer generated lips. The effect is poorly done, but the film explicitly targets the young, mostly uncritical theater-going demographic, so short cuts and shortcomings are pretty standard.

And if you’re eager to see the movie because you love the cartoon, be prepared: Marmaduke is heavy on the themes of a big dog eating stuff he shouldn’t and a big dog wrecking things, but updates the benign, ’50s sense of humor with a more contemporary, fart-centric brand.

As the goofy, earnest voice of the canine lead, Owen Wilson delivers most of the dialogue and jokes, as well as the movie’s more insightful points like: “the dog park is a lot like high school.”
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So similar are early scenes from Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time to a certain animated Disney classic that it’s disconcerting when no chorus of “Street Rat” breaks out as soldiers chase an orphan, soon-to-be-prince through an open bazaar. And though it’s not entirely fair to call the latest collaboration between mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer and the world’s most famous animation studio a live-action Aladdin for teens, it wouldn’t be too great of a leap.

Yet while Prince of Persia owes plenty to various sources—including the popular video game that inspired its name and a chunk of its plot—the movie’s stars make it entertaining.
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