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linanutshell
Reviews
Angels in America (2003)
blew me away
I don't like dramas very much. I'm usually much more content to watch comedies. Big musical theatre fan. This, however, is what I believe to be the best drama I've ever seen. And I've only seen the first half. The acting is incredible, from the experienced veterans (Al Pacino and Meryl Streep) to the younger, newer actors (Justin Kirk and Patrick Wilson). There isn't one performance that could be considered less than stellar. There are few scenes that don't play perfectly, and they usually seem to be planned that way. 10/10 for this one. If you're homophobic or uncomfortable with the topic of AIDS, you may be uncomfortable with the whole movie. Skip the (non-pornographic) sex scenes; watch the rest. It's worth it.
Bruce Almighty (2003)
charming
This movie is not a dramatic masterpiece by any standards, but it accomplishes its goal-- it makes people laugh. There are jokes for everyone, from nose-picking jokes for younger kids (not a recommended movie for that crowd due to language, however) to little inside jokes that only certain people will get. The people in the theater around me were gasping for air at some points. And yes, it does have a cute ending, storybook perfection, but it seems the only way to end it. I would definitely recommend this movie if you're in the mood for slapstick comedy (Steven Carell and Jim Carrey both are incredibly good physical comedians) and general all-around cuteness. It's worth seeing in theaters, if just to see Jim Carrey back in his element.
X2 (2003)
wow
I guess I'm not really the target audience for this movie. I'm a teenage girl who's not really into comic books or action at all. In fact, I only went because I got to choose where we went to dinner, so my dad chose the movie. That said, I loved it. The characters were well-developed, the plot was interesting but never too complicated to follow, and once you got in tune with how the directors think you could almost predict what would happen, although there was always a twist. The actors were all well-cast, both the younger ones and the older, and unlike many romantic comedies and love stories that have been coming out recently, there was definite chemistry where there needed to be. Let me put it this way: With about 20 minutes of the movie left, the movie stopped and an ad came on. We all left the theater, to find out that there was a big storm (the night before there were several tornadoes, so we were all kind of scared), and possibly a tornado near us. A little while later, my dad and I heard the sound come back on in the theater... so we went in and finished the movie. It was just that good-- we wanted to see the end rather than try to beat the storm home. (Which we did, by the way-- power was knocked out until 12 hours later in our entire neighborhood.) So yeah. See it. It's definitely one of the best movies I've seen in a long time.
A Walk to Remember (2002)
Better than expected, still not exceptional
I had no interest in seeing this movie when it first came out. It was only after I read the book by Nicholas Sparks that I decided to watch it. The movie was ok, but there were several changes from the book (for instance, Landon's parents are divorced, rather than his father always travelling). The acting was less than impressive-- Mandy Moore has a wonderful voice, but she really only shone in the two scenes in which she used it. In many of the scenes, she was sarcastic and not as pleasant and forgiving as she was in the book; I felt that it hurt her character when she acted like that (and when the script gave her those lines). Shane West was not bad, but it was hard to see that he was falling in love with her: it seemed more like, "Well, the script says I have to kiss her now, so I guess I will."
3/5 stars
**SPOILERS** At the end, Mandy Moore didn't seem weak or close to death as she should have, it just looked like she was walking slowly. They didn't even bother to change her makeup to a shade paler.
Grosse Pointe (2000)
Too bad it got canceled
I watched this show all of my 6th grade year, when it was on, even though I had to stay up until 10PM (which doesn't seem late now, but it was when I had a lot of homework and did it in the morning). I always loved it, despite its faults. Granted, it's no West Wing, but it never claimed to be anything it's not. Even if the WB won't bring the show back, I wish it would play some reruns, for old times' sake.