2007 Round Up!

It's the end of the year, meaning it's time to look back and make lists!

Movies I saw in the theater (in chronological order):
Music & Lyrics, Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Death Proof, Transformers, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, I Could Never Be Your Woman, Live Free or Die Hard, Planet Terror, Disturbia, Hairspray, Knocked Up, Halloween, Resident Evil: Extinction, Enchanted, and I Am Legend.

A movie ticket is 8,75 euros x 16 movies = 140 euros in total! Err.. I don't really think most of these were worth all that money.. maybe some of my money.

Five favorite movies of the year (notice how I say favorite and not best, and putting them in order is almost impossible):
1) Knocked Up
2) Planet Terror
3) Live Free or Die Hard
4) Enchanted
5) Transformers

Five least favorite movies of the year (I'm not saying these are bad per se, I just didn't really enjoy them):
1) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
2) Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
3) Hairspray
4) Halloween
5) Death Proof

Ten favorite performances of the year (in alphabetical order):
1) Amy Adams (Enchanted)
2) James Marsden (Enchanted)
3) Justin Long (Live Free or Die Hard)
4) Katherine Heigl (Knocked Up)
5) Paul Rudd (I Could Never Be Your Woman)
6) Rose McGowan (Planet Terror)
7) Saoirse Ronan (I Could Never Be Your Woman)
8) Seth Rogen (Knocked Up)
9) Shia LaBeouf (Disturbia, Transformers)
10) Will Smith (I Am Legend)

Movies I wanted to see, but didn't get around to seeing (in alphabetical order):
2 Days in Paris, Across the Universe, Atonement, The Darjeeling Limited, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Gone Baby Gone, Good Luck Chuck, Into the Wild, The Jane Austen Book Club, Juno, Lars and the Real Girl, License to Wed, Live!, The Mist, My Blueberry Nights, The Nanny Diaries, Paris, Je t'aime, P.S. I Love You, Ratatouille, Saw 4, Southland Tales, Sunshine, Superbad, Waitress, Zodiac

Top Five movies I'm looking forward to in 2008:
1) Cloverfield
2) He's Just Not That Into You
3) Fanboys
4) How to Lose Friends & Alienate People
5) Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay

It was tough compiling the list of the top 5 movies that I'm looking forward to, because besides Cloverfield, nothing is really juming out at me.

Other movies I'm looking forward to in 2008:
27 Dresses; Adventureland; The Air I Breathe; All About Steve; All the Boys Love Mandy Lane; Be Kind, Rewind; The Box; Choke; Confessions of a Shopaholic; Drillbit Taylor; Definitely, Maybe; Eagle Eye; Forgetting Sarah Marshall; Four Christmases; Funny Games; The Happening; I Know What Boys Like; Leatherheads; The Life Before her Eyes; Made of Honor; Mamma Mia!; Midnight Meat Train; The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor; My Sassy Girl; Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist; Over Her Dead Body; Passengers; The Pineapple Express; Quarantine; The Ruins; Saw V; Sex & The City, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2; The Six Wives of Henry Lefay; Sleepwalking; Speed Racer; The Strangers; Sunshine Cleaning; The Time Traveler's Wife; Tropic Thunder; What Happens in Vegas

And that pretty much concludes my round up of 2007! Overall, I think it was an pretty okay year for movies. Some were really disappointing (like PotC: At World's End) and some were really surprising (like Disturbia). As is painfully obvious, I haven't seen any of the big award contenders so I really can't judge properly about the movies this year. I hope 2008 will be a great year, but at the moment I'm not expecting too much.

Review: I Am Legend

My sister really wanted to see I Am Legend. Of course, this was when she didn't know there were zombie-vampires (or Ubervamps as we like to call them) in the movie. Unfortunately for her, she only found out while she was already watching the movie. I purposely didn't warn her as payback for making me watch Harry Potter and the something something of the Phoenix something (no idea) over the summer.

This movie, based on the Richard Matheson novel of the same name, is about a man named Robert Neville (played with conviction by Will Smith), who supposedly is the last human living in New York. See, there was this virus, created to cure cancer (if only it were that easy), but instead of actually curing cancer, it turned people into Ubervamps. The virus spread and the Ubervamps killed the non-infected, and somehow Neville managed to survive all this. Now he has pretty much dedicated his life to finding a cure to reverse the effects of this virus, without much luck.

I don't know where to start with this movie. I liked it, but don't think it's particularly great mainly because it has a rewatchability factor of zero. The first part of the movie has Neville wandering through a desolate New York with his dog Sam, going about what seems like their daily routine. I mean, he actually goes to the videostore and comments that he's halfway through the letter 'G' by now. IMHO, the only reason this part of the movie actually works is because of Will Smith. I can't think of any other actor who would be capable of carrying a movie like this all by himself. His talent and charisma makes this worth watching. Try to think of any other actor who could appeal to a broad audience and make this film open with $77 million in its first weekend. Smith rocked his part, because I could actually feel his despair and loneliness. While this movie may not be in my top 5 of the year, his performance definitely is.

The second part of the movie features the Ubervamps. I have to say, that scene where Sam wanders off in the dark and Neville goes after him is terrific. That was really scary. I've heard a lot of complaints about how bad the CG Ubervamps look. Their look never really bothered me. It bothered me more why they needed Dash Mihok (Romeo & Juliet, The Day After Tomorrow) to play the lead Ubervamp. It seemed kinda pointless since the lead Ubervamp doesn't actually do that much. Overall, I don't think this part of the movie is as bad as people make it out to be. That is, if you don't compare it to the book. I didn't know anything about the book when I watched the movie so I didn't have anything to compare it to. Afterwards, I did a bit of research and now I do feel this part is somewhat disappointing. In the book, the title comes from the fact that Neville is a legend to the vamps and they fear him. I didn't get the impression that was the case in the movie.

Actually, my biggest problem with this movie concerns the flashbacks. I feel we didn't get enough of them. Something was missing. Maybe a flashback or two showing how New York turned out the way it did and why (and how) Neville survived?

Overall, I enjoyed this movie for the most part, mostly thanks to Will Smith and his dog. A 3,5/5.

Trailer Park: Enchanted & I Am Legend

I don't watch a lot of trailers online, so this feature will mostly feature (hee!) trailers that were attached to movies I've recently seen. Keep in mind that I live in The Netherlands, and that the trailers attached wont necessarily be the same as the ones in your country. In this post I'll combine the trailers that were attached to Enchanted and I Am Legend.

Enchanted
The Best Friend Forever and I like to play 'Guess the trailers' (read: which trailers will be attached to the movie we're seeing). Normally, we're pretty good at it, but the trailers attached to Enchanted kinda left us scratching our heads.

Bee Movie
A trailer for a movie that's already in theaters? Uhm.. okay? Even though I've seen a lot of advertising for this film, it's actually the first time I saw the trailer. I was amused by the part where the bee tried to fly through the window over and over again. However, this is not really my kind of movie as I get pretty annoyed by just hearing Seinfeld's voice.
To be viewed: on TV, when nothing else is on.

P.S. I Love You
This romantic dramady starring Hilary Swank looks really cute. So apparently her hubby (played by the delightful Gerard Butler) dies, but he left her messages that are supposed to help her get over his death. The trailer features a nice, catchy song and I see that Gina Gershon, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lisa Kudrow co-star. My interest is definitely piqued.
To be viewed: on DVD

National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets
This is attached because it's a Disney movie right? I liked the first one. The second one looks interesting, but I found myself mostly focused on spotting Justin Bartha. That can't be the point of this trailer right?
To be viewed: on DVD.. maybe

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
The BFF and I were most confused about this trailer being attached. Doesn't seem really appropriate for the target audience in our opinion. Since we were sitting in a theater filled with teenage girls, I'm guessing that is the target audience. Anyways, I thought Elizabeth was a good movie, but do we really need a sequel? Honestly, I'm not really interested in this one at all, but might give it a chance for Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush.
To be viewed: on TV


I Am Legend
I saw this one with my sister and we didn't play 'Guess the trailers.' I actually didn't give it much thought which trailers would be attached. A rarity! I guess I was too tired from Christmas shopping.

National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets
My feelings were pretty much the same as when I first saw the trailer.
To be viewed: on DVD.. maybe

Saw 4
Saw was a great movie, and Saw 2 and 3 were okay. I personally feel they should have stopped after #3, but since these movies keep making money for little cost, we will be seeing more of them. I do want to see this though. I'm kinda curious what kind of traps they managed to come up with. Plus, Scott Patterson is in this and he's always been good on Gilmore Girls.
To be viewed: on DVD

Cloverfield
I've seen this trailer about a dozen times before, but never on the big screen. I actually quite enjoyed seeing this in a packed theater. The reaction from the crowd was pretty good, though most had no idea it was Cloverfield as the title wasn't featured like in the US trailer. We didn't get the 1.18.08 flash though. I'm excited about this movie. I like monster movies, I like JJ Abrams and I heart Mike Vogel, so I will definitely be seeing this!
To be viewed: opening weekend!

Alien vs Predator: Requiem
Great, another trailer for another sequel.. I like the build-up of the trailer with the population count down. I don't have much interest in this movie though. I've never seen an Alien or Predator movie in my life (I do realize I said I like monster movies above)!
To be viewed: on TV, when nothing else is on

The Dark Knight
I don't know why I was surprised to see this one. Guess I didn't expect to see this trailer so soon in my country. Heath Ledger looks really creepy as The Joker, but I had already seen images of him online so it kinda lost its impact on me I think. The trailer is okay. I feel like I'm the only person who doesn't worship Batman Begins, but then again, I don't care much for Batman at all. It was good seeing Maggie Gyllenhaal though! I don't know how smart it was to leave 'Batman' out of the title. I actually heard people in the theater discuss if this was a Batman movie or not.
To be viewed: on DVD.. maybe

Review: The Fog (2005)

This movie kinda makes me mad I just wasted approximately 100 minutes of my life. I didn't think it could be that bad, yet sadly I was mistaken. I can't even give a decent summary of the plot. My viewing experience went something like this:

Uhmm?! Okay.. Tom Welling's acting has not yet improved. Selma Blair looks awesome! Boredom. Elizabeth! Boredom. Weak acting by Maggie Grace. Yay more Selma Blair! Elizabeth! Geez Tom Welling looks good from every angle. More boredom. Elizabeth! Elizabeth! WTF is going on? Why is Selma Blair the only person actually acting here? Elizabeth! More boredom. ELIZABETH! ELIZABETH! ELIZABETH! Stupid ending.

The only thing Tom Welling does in this movie is look good and say the name "Elizabeth" about 357 times. Maggie Grace was good on Lost, but I couldn't stand her or her character here. Actually, I was extremely bored everytime she was on screen. The only time I was alert was when Selma Blair appeared. She looked stunning and actually gave a performance. Welling and Grace are both incredibly bland as leads. According to imdb about a gazillion other actors were considered for their parts and I think any of them would have been an improvement.

For a horror movie, this is not scary at all. It was just boring. Good lord, I can barely recall anything that was supposed to be scary and I saw the movie yesterday! The script was weak. I mean, the constant repeating of the name "Elizabeth" alone is bad writing. You can't fill a scene with only that. The twist was interesting, but maybe a little more explanation would've been better. The fog itself looked pretty good and the cinematography was nice, but that and Selma Blair could not save this piece of crap. A 2/5.

AFI's Top 10 of 2007

So I'm feeling kinda mind blown right now. The American Film Institute picked its top 10 American movies of 2007. In alphabetical order we have:

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Into the Wild
Juno
Knocked Up
Michael Clayton
No Country for Old Men
Ratatouille
The Savages
There Will Be Blood

We have the usual suspects, Ratatouille, Knocked Up (yayness), and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly?! I haven't seen it though it looks very good.. but isn't this movie French? Or does it count as American because it's partly an American production?!

Review: Enchanted

After a long and frustrating day of Christmas shopping, and spending way too much money on a gorgeous tweed buckle tote (read: bag), the Best Friend Forever and I settled down in our favorite movie theater to watch Enchanted. When I first heard about this movie in its (pre-)production stages, I wasn't sure what to expect. Amy Adams starring as a princess-in-waiting in an animated/live-action Disney movie? I can't remember which part bothered me most: Amy Adams or the animation/live-action combo. However, when I saw the trailer (attached to a screening of Knocked Up), I leaned over to the Best Friend Forever and told her we were seeing this movie once it gets released. I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised both by the movie and Amy Adams.

Enchanted tells the story of Giselle (Amy Adams), who lives in the animated world of Andalasia and dreams of meeting her true love. She is rescued from a troll by Prince Edward (James Marsden), and they are to wed the following day, much to the dislike of Prince Edward's step-mother Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon). Queen Narissa, not wanting to give up her throne, throws Giselle down a magic portal and she ends up modern-day, live-action New York. There, she meets lawyer Robert (Patrick Dempsey) and his daughter Morgan, who help Giselle adapt to her new surroundings while she waits for Prince Edward to find her.

You'd probably have to be a real Grinch not to enjoy this movie. It's amazingly fun, optimistic and wonderfully acted by Amy Adams and James Marsden, who are both perfect for their parts. I couldn't stand Adams in Cruel Intentions 2, The Wedding Date or her guest-spot on Buffy, but I quickly warmed up to her and eventually fell for her enthusiastic, endearing and, yes, enchanting performance. No longer will I sigh when I hear about her involvement in future projects. This girl is a star. While everyone is praising Adams, Marsden should not be forgotten either. He has come a long way from Disturbing Behavior. I loved his commitment to his part, and without it, his character could have easily been overshadowed by Adams's grand performace. Marsden looks like Prince Charming and has the comedic timing needed to make his character come to life. The rest of the cast is great as well, but hardly as memorable. Susan Sarandon is actually barely in this movie at all.

Sure this movie isn't perfect. Personally, I could have done without the animated Queen popping up in several live-action sequences (that just looked kinda meh to me), but it won't stop me from buying this on DVD once I get the chance. Despite it being fairly predictable, I never looked bored at my watch once! From the musical numbers, the numerous references to other Disney movies, Pip the chipmunk, and the McDreamy-ness of Patrick Dempsey to the stand-out performances by Adams and Marsden, Enchanted is fun for the whole family. Definitely one of my fave films of the year. A 4/5.

65th Annual Golden Globe Nominations

It's that time of the year again.. while I hear Paul McCartney singing about simply having a wonderful Christmas time, I'm talking about the Golden Globe nominations. My reaction? It's a mix between being underwhelmed, confused and happy for my girl Katherine Heigl.

Below you will find a partial list of nominees and my thoughts.

Best Motion Picture - Drama
American Gangster
Atonement
Eastern Promises
The Great Debaters
Michael Clayton
No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood

Seven nominations for Best Drama? Seriously, seven! And the sad part is I have no interest in any of them except for Atonement. I've seen young Saoirse Ronan give a great performance in I Could Never Be Your Woman so I know she's a force to be reckoned with. I'm not surprised at all she got a nom for Atonement.. I've heard nothing but good things about her performance. The other movies.. I don't know. They're probably really great or else they wouldn't have been nominated. I haven't seen them, not just because of lack of interest, but most of them haven't been released here yet. I'm a little sad that Gone Baby Gone isn't nominated. I haven't seen it, but it's at least a drama I want to see.

Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Across the Universe
Charlie Wilson's War
Hairspray
Juno
Sweeney Todd

Knocked Up isn't nominated for Best Musical or Comedy. Yet, Hairspray is. Are Zac Efron movies really eligible?

Best Peformance by an Actor - Drama
George Clooney (Michael Clayton)
Daniel Day-Lewis (There Will Be Blood)
James McAvoy (Atonement)
Viggo Mortensen (Eastern Promises)
Denzel Washington (American Gangster)

Best Peformance by an Actress - Drama
Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth: The Golden Age)
Julie Christie (Away from Her)
Jodie Foster (The Brave One)
Angelina Jolie (A Mighty Heart)
Keira Knightley (Atonement)

The usual suspects seem to be nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress Drama. I'm surprised Jodie Foster got nominated for The Brave One though. I didn't think the critics liked this movie much.

Best Peformance by an Actor - Musical or Comedy
Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd)
Ryan Gosling (Lars and the Real Girl)
Tom Hanks (Charlie Wilson's War)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Savages)
John C. Reilly (Walk Hard: the Dewey Cox Story)

Best Peformance by an Actress - Musical or Comedy
Amy Adams (Enchanted)
Nikki Blonsky (Hairspray)
Helena Bonham Carter (Sweeney Todd)
Marion Cotillard (Môme, La)
Ellen Page (Juno)

I liked the nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy a little better. Yayness for Ryan Gosling's nomination! I really want to see Lars and the Real Girl. John C. Reilly is a great actor, but I'm surprised by his nomination. Mostly because I have low expectations for Walk Hard. Personally, I can't stand Amy Adams. I've hated her in everything I've seen her in. I'm seeing Enchanted on Saturday and I hope she can prove me wrong. I haven't seen Juno yet, but after seeing Ellen Page in Hard Candy, I'm sure she's fab in it.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Casey Affleck (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford)
Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Charlie Wilson's War)
John Travolta (Hairspray)
Tom Wilkinson (Michael Clayton)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Cate Blanchett (I'm Not There)
Julia Roberts (Charlie Wilson's War)
Saoirse Ronan (Atonement)
Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone)
Tilda Swinton (Michael Clayton)

I'm happy Casey Affleck is finally getting the recognition he deserves. I knew John Travolta would get a nomination. A-List star + cross-dressing = nomination apparently. See also Blanchett, Cate. I'm always happy to see new talent like Saoirse Ronan and Amy Ryan getting nominated.

Into the Wild wasn't nominated in any of the major categories. I would've loved to see Emile Hirsch get some love. Ben Affleck as well for Gone Baby Gone. And Knocked Up should've been at least been up for Best Musical or Comedy.

I'll briefly walk through the TV nominations. How fast the mighty have fallen! No noms for Heroes, Lost or Desperate Housewives this year. David Duchovny and Californication get some love. I like David, but his new show not so much. Notably missing is THE OFFICE! I'm upset about this one. It's my favorite show! Steve Carell did get a nom, but no Rainn Wilson, Jenna Fischer or John Krasinski. >. Jaime Pressly from My Name is Earl and Katherine Heigl (Grey's Anatomy) were nominated. Both girls were very underrated before they landed their hit shows and I'm happy they've been getting recognition the past few years.

Katherine Heigl graces Vanity Fair

The talented, beautiful and amazing Katherine Heigl graces the cover of the January issue of Vanity Fair. As you can see, the cover is absolutely stunning. I cannot wait to see to see the rest of the photoshoot! But the cover alone makes this issue a must-have for any Katie fan. Katie has been a favorite of mine since her Roswell days. I started watching Grey's Anatomy because of her. I'm absolutely thrilled the show brought her the recognition she deserves. Katie delivers a strong performance every week. She was nominated for a Golden Globe and won an Emmy earlier this year. That's why I kinda have to laugh in disbelief at an article posted on my favorite movie site, JoBlo.com. The writer claims that Katie is ungrateful, because she thinks the Judd Apatow hit comedy Knocked Up is "a little sexist." As you can read on the Vanity Fair site, Katie says, "It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys. It exaggerated the characters, and I had a hard time with it, on some days. I’m playing such a bitch; why is she being such a killjoy? Why is this how you’re portraying women? Ninety-eight percent of the time it was an amazing experience, but it was hard for me to love the movie." I don't understand why the writer seems to think Katie owes her career to this movie. And she's not slamming it. She's simply stating her opinion. I can see her point of view. Her character kicked Seth Rogen's character out of the car and drove off. And the scene where Leslie Mann thinks Paul Rudd is cheating on her? Ugh. However, Knocked Up is actually one of my favorite movies of the year. Stop with the hating just because she dislikes certain aspects of the movie. Must we all worship at the shrine of Apatow?

And just for the record: I paid my 8,75 euros to see Katherine Heigl on the big screen again. She was a star to many people long before the movie got released.

Welcome to Did I Miss 60B?!

Well, here it finally is.. my little entertainment blog Did I Miss 60B?! Almost named 'Hello Hannah' after being brain-washed by a certain October Road commercial, but that url was taken. I'm glad, cause I actually really like the name Did I Miss 60B?!. It's a line from one of my favorite movies Elizabethtown. That movie is love.. but I'll dedicate a post to it some other time.

What to expect? Movie reviews.. however, most likely not of recent movies. Living in Europe is awesome, but it takes a while before certain movies get here. Though I did see I Could Never Be Your Woman a long time ago, and it's not even out yet in the US of A. Not that you're missing out on much. Sorry, Paul Rudd (You're awesome, though!). I just like ranting about something I've recently seen, or some of my all time favorites. I also like ranting in general.. about Hollywood, my fave actors, TV shows etc. etc. I mean, don't get me started on the 'Christian Bale is John Connor' rumors. You're a great actor, Chris, but you cannot be Batman AND John Connor. Mind: BLOWN! Nick Stahl is John Connor! Ugh.. I'm going to bed.