Friday, April 24, 2009

The Donald's Movie Reviews

If you've read my blog for any length of time, 1) I thank you, and 2) You know that I rarely see any first-run movies. So, when I offer a movie review, it's really more of an exposition of my thoughts than true cinema critique.

With all the rain last weekend, the kids and I rented six DVDs. But we only got around to watching three of them. Being a cheapskate, I stayed up late to watch the other three before I had to return them on Wednesday and Thursday. The titles were: Fighting With Anger, Cowboy Up, and Must Love Dogs.

The first, a Willie Nelson indie project, receives two thumbs down, if only because I have as many hands. From 2007, it must've gone to DVD faster than you can read to the end of this sentence. If there was a plot, it was too subtle for me to discern, and multiple martial arts sequences bore me to sleep (except for [the next President of Texas] Chuck Norris', because they're campy). I like Willie, been to several of his concerts, but this movie just sucked.

Cowboy Up was better. I don't watch 24, but I do generally like Kiefer Sutherland. Having enjoyed Splash and Roxanne, I was surprised that Darryl Hannah didn't have a tush scene - I thought it was in her contract. Oh well. And Molly Ringwald was also in the movie, if it makes any difference. Basically an examination of family dynamics and exorcising old demons, set against a backdrop of bulls and blood in the rodeo arena. Maybe I missed it, but certainly Chris LeDoux and Garth would've been right at home in the soundtrack. Extra points for cameos by Donnie Gay and Pam Minnick. As a result of watching this movie, I may have to head up to Justin this weekend to get me a PBR shirt at the western outlet store.

Now, I'll probably take some heat for Must Love Dogs. Yeah, I suppose it's a bit of a chick flick, and no, I'm not going to turn in my man card. Great cast: Diane Lane, John Cusack, Elizabeth Perkins (Big), Christopher Plummer (The Sound of Music, Dragnet), and Stockard Channing (Grease). I've enjoyed and tended to identify with Cusack's characters in The Sure Thing and Say Anything, and felt the same about this movie. Diane Lane, like Robin Wright Penn in Message in a Bottle, shines as a non-slutty, intelligent, beautiful woman. Yeah, I'd watch a movie any day with Lane or RWP over one with Pamela Anderson, and no, I'm not turning in my man card. Anyway, I liked this movie - two thumbs up.

For the record, I have never seen Terms of Endearment or Steel Magnolias.

4 comments:

todd said...

So, I guess you liked Mama Mia too?

So Sassy said...

Must Love Dogs gets credit for its mention of Dr. Zhivago (you have seen that?). And hey, any man that will admit that he can enjoy a chick flick is hot where it counts...with women. Who cares what other guys think.

an Donalbane said...

Thanks, Sassy! Maybe there's hope for my love life yet...

I think my folks had the Dr. Zhivago soundtrack on reel-to-reel tape when I was a kid, but I've never seen the film, even though I'm vaguely familiar with the plot.

Guess I'll have to rent it at the Family Video store.

Can I get extra credit for having visited Moscow and St. Petersburg?

My office colleagues had mixed reactions to MLD. One agreed with my assessment, while another posted his 'too clever by half' reference to Mamma Mia.

todd said...

You go, Sassy-boy!