Reviews by Matt

It may not have been the best idea to go see a movie while as tired as I was, but sometimes “you gotta do what you gotta do.” Though if you are reading this thinking “Well, he was tired, so he could not have liked it.” You would be wrong, and that is a testament to “Michael Clayton.” It is a movie that fought through my haze and really impressed despite a lack of sleep.

Michael Clayton (George Clooney) is a “fixer” for one of the most powerful law firms in the world. When the firm needs something covered up or handled carefully, they call in Clayton. For the past seven years, they have been working on a case between farmers and a pesticide company. When one of the firm’s best lawyers, Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) strips naked during a deposition, Clayton is called into fix things. What he uncovers could break the case for the prosecution and the firm would end up losing the case. The firm will stop at nothing to keep the information from being made public.

I have always been on the opinion that to play crazy is a hard thing to do. To do it right takes something more than just spewing gibberish and wearing shoes on your hands and pants on your head. Arthur is a manic-depressive and was on medication for it, but decided to stop taking it just as the big case gets underway. He finds out that the pesticide company knowingly killed 500 people with their product he becomes racked with guilt. Wilkinson does an amazing job playing crazy. Most of the time it is subtle and never way over the top. When he is once again on medication, you can see him for the brilliant lawyer he is. He knows what he has to do and does it despite what may happen to him.

Cooney has always been an amazing actor. He delivers in even when the rest of the movie does not. Here he has both a strong story and strong supporting cast to help him carry the movie. Clayton is a character who is used to cleaning up the messes of clients. He knows how to spin the truth in their favor. Now he is faced with the truth that hundreds have been killed and the company knew about it and did nothing. It is a complete role reversal for him. Now, instead of covering up the truth, he is forced to expose it.

Along with the job, Clayton is forced to deal with being a divorced dad and being in debt after the business he tried to start goes under before it opens. In the hands of Clooney, this goes from generic plot device used to gain sympathy to making the character more human. Clooney makes Clayton’s personal life matter to the viewer. No longer is he the man who spins the truth for the rich, instead he comes a man who is looking for a way out and a way to make his life better. This makes the fact that he takes on Arthur’s cause all the more dramatic.

Even through the haze of no sleep, “Michael Clayton” is a riveting and intriguing drama. In a big-budget special effect ruled Hollywood, it is refreshing to see a movie that takes the time to develop characters and make the story interesting instead of worrying about the box office business.

8 out of 10
R for language including some sexual dialogue.
2 hrs

Halloween is right around the corner and soon costume stores will be flooded with children looking for whatever the hot costume is this year. Another sequel to the mediocre “Saw” will be released keeping up the lame and pointless tradition that has made me want to punch a hole in the wall the past four years. Look at any news medium and you can find a list of the top horror movies of all time. Seeing as that is way to cliché and, more importantly, that I scare like a five year old, I bring you the top five horror/comedies of all time.

5-“Gremlins”



After Randall Peltzer (Hoyt Axton) brings his son Billy (Zach Galligan) a Mogwai named Gizmo for a gift, things turn bad when he breaks the three rules (do not get it wet, no bright lights, and absolutely no food after midnight) things turn bad. When Gizmo gets wet, he multiplies and when the new gremlins eat after midnight, they turn evil. The town is over run with evil gremlins causing all sorts of problems and reeking havoc. Now it is up to Zach, his friend Kate (Phoebe Cates) and cute little Gizmo to stop them before they take over.

What makes “Gremlins” so good is that it is a horror movie that the entire family can watch. Cute little monsters turn into green troublemakers when the rules get broken. Take out Gizmo’s cute and fluffiness and make the offspring a little meaner and this could have been a classic 80s horror movie. The movie has a lot of very funny moments, the best of which take place in the toy store near the end of the movie. Watch it, you will see what I mean.

4-“Evil Dead” and “Evil Dead 2”





I combine these two because they are essentially the same movie. Both plots boil down to the same thing. In “Evil Dead,” five friends travel to a cabin in the woods. There they discover the Book of the Dead. When one of them finds and plays a tape of the professor who lived in the cabin speaking the Candarian resurrection passages from the book, one by one the friends begin to turn into demons. Soon Ash (Bruce Campbell) is the only one left and finds that the only way to kill a Candarian demon is total body dismemberment. Blood and gore ensue.

“Evil Dead II” is the same thing except this time Ash and his girlfriend are in the cabin the same thing happens. Hilarity along with blood and gore ensue.

If you have not seen these movies yet, then I just have one question. Why? These were the movies that gave the world the B-movie god, Bruce Campbell. “Evil Dead” is the more serious of the two. It is as if Sam Rami was trying to make a real horror movie. “Evil Dead II” is flat out hilarious. In one of the most memorable scenes, Ash’s hand becomes possessed and fights with it. After cutting it off and trapping it in a bucket, he replaces it with a chainsaw. (Now you know you are watching a great B-movie.)

3-“Shaun of the Dead”


Shaun (Simon Pegg) is a 29-year old store clerk who has nothing going in this life. His girlfriend, Liz (Kate Ashford) has just left him because she wants more then he is giving her. His best friend Ed (Nick Frost,) is a slacker who spends his days on the couch playing video games. The day he decides to get his life back together is the same day as the living dead invade. He must now fight off zombies and save Liz and his mother (Penelope Wilton) form the undead.

“A romantic comedy. With zombies” is how the poster describes it and there is really in no better way to describe it. The movie is just flat out hilarious. Shaun goes around killing zombies with a cricket bat, pool cues and even throws records at a few zombies. There is one scene that best sums up the craziness of the movie. Shaun and Ed are throwing records at two zombies. Shaun tells Ed to be careful, some of the records are rare. Ed begins to flip through and has to ask Shaun about every record "Purple Rain"? “No.” "Sign o' the Times?" “Definitely not.” “The "Batman" soundtrack?” “Throw it.” All the while the zombies are getting closer and closer. Zombie movie king, George Romero, was so impressed that he gave Pegg and director, Edgar Wright, roles as zombies in “Land of the Dead.”

2-“Grindhouse”



This is another two-movie entry. Thought this time, the movies were released at the same time and were shown back to back.

“Planet Terror” is first up on the bill. In a small town in Texas, after a deal gone wrong, zombie like creatures called “Sickos” get loose and begin infecting the rest of the town. Now those not infected, including El Wray (Freddy Rodriguez) and Cherry Darling (Rose McGowaen), must fight their way out of town and to safety.

In the stronger, “Death Proof,” Kurt Russell plays Stuntman Mike. He is a man with a car that is death proof. The only problem is you have to be sitting in his seat to get the full effect. He stalks and kills attractive women with his car.

America, I have to say, you missed the boat on this one. This was the most fun I have had at a movie in my entire life. These are a tribute to the 70s B-movies. They are supposed to be stupid, funny, gross and outrageous. The two movies combined for over three hours and not once did I check the time that is how much fun these movies are. Cannot say that about some 90-minute movies.

No. 1 is-DRUM ROLL PLEASE-

1-“Army of Darkness”


In the end of “Evil Dead II,” Ash is sucked into a time vortex and ends up in the 1300s. He is captured because he is thought to be a spy for a rival kingdom and as punishment he is thrown into a pit at the bottom of which lives a Candarian demon. After Ash kills the demon and escapes, he is seen as the one to find the Book of the Dead and save the kingdom from the Deadites.

This had to be my No. 1. It was the movie that got me into “Evil Dead” and the horror/comedy genre. The movie keeps the humor of the second alive and delivers claymation that is so bad, it is good. It is the classic example of a 80s B-movie. If you have seen the first two, then chances are you have seen this one and know just how awesome it is. How many other movies are there where the hero is responsible for raising the dead? “Shop smart. Shop S Mart.”

It takes almost noting to scare people. There have been tried and true methods that have been used since MGM’s monster movies in the 1930s. To make someone laugh takes real talent. This Halloween put down your copy of “Friday the 13th” or “Nightmare on Elm Street” and take a look at some of the best horror/comedies of all time.

Drew Carey replaced Bob Barker as the host of “The Price is Right” on Monday. I am here to say to all the “haters,” you need to give Drew a chance to prove that he is a worthy host.

I know you have fond memories of staying home sick from school and getting to watch Barker give away big money and fabulous prizes in fun pricing games. While getting to miss school is every child’s dream, being sick is not. Sitting in your favorite chair in front of the television watching “The Price is Right” was the best remedy for everything from a simple cold to chickenpox. For that one, glorious hour you got to forget your worries and that your throat was sore and you have had nothing to eat but saltine crackers for the past 12 hours. There is no way to replace what effect “America’s host” had on a sick child.

Even when you went to college, you still watched “The Price is Right” whenever classes would allow it. You would even plan your classes so that none fell between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. Just so you could watch the best game show in television history. You may have even wanted to plan a trip to California just to get on the show and hear “(Your name) come on down! You’re the next contestant on ‘The Price is Right!’” Admit it, it has always been your dream.

Heck, you probably had your pets spayed or neutered just because Bob Barker told you too.

You, like much of America, were saddened to hear that Bob Barker would be retiring from the show after 35 years. It was then that the speculation of who would replace him and how they would stack up to Barker.

I am sure you that you were confused to hear that Drew Carey was picked to host “The Price is Right” in season 36 of the show. With Carey taking over earlier this week, his time to be fairly judged has finally come.

Carey will never be as loved as Barker was and still is. Carey looks to be a more comedic role as host. He will take slight jabs at the contestants and their overzealous nature. Assuming they can hear him through their screaming, they will see that the shots he takes will all be in good fun. Carey will need a little time to learn how all the games work, but soon her will get over the initial pressure of taking over for one of the most beloved Americans ever and find his stride as host.

Carey has said that he will not be changing the show and has kept the 1970s-looking sets, and music. He will stay loyal to the Barker show that has helped rise generations of children. He even will keep Bob Barker’s famous closing line about controlling the pet population.

So, please give Drew a chance. He, no doubt, will do his best to keep the show the same way that millions have remembered it. He may not be as successful as Bob Barker, but then again, who could be?
I will end as Bob did for 36 years. Do not forget to help control the pet population, have your pets spayed and neutered.

One of the perks of my job here at the paper is that every so often, I am given the chance to see an advanced screenings. Last week dozens of, what I can only assume were radio contest winners, and I were treated to “Elizabeth: The Golden Age.”

“Elizabeth: The Golden Age” is a sequel to the 1998’s “Elizabeth,” this time the movie looks at the life of Queen Elizabeth (Cate Blanchett) when Spain was threatening to take over the English throne. Elizabeth was a Protestant and much of England was Catholic, so the threats on her life were very real. King Phillip II of Spain (Jordi Mollà) planned to have Elizabeth assassinated and put Mary Stuart aka Mary Queen of Scots (Samantha Morton) in her place.

Elizabeth is also feeling the pressure to get married. The rumors of her infertility are hurting her reputation so she begins to see suitors from kingdoms all over the world, but she has an eye for the charming (not Sir yet) Walter Raleigh (Clive Owen).

The story in the movie is not that strong. It seemed to drag on and the climax happens in the last 15 minutes and even then, it is not that thrilling.

What to should look for are the strong performances from Blanchett and Owen. They deliver the performances that save the movie from dragging on and remaining ultimately uninteresting.

Blanchett reprises her star-making role in “Elizabeth.” She plays Elizabeth with the strength and conviction that a queen needs. She refuses to be pushed around and if you cross her you will pay the price. She seems almost untouchable, but in the scenes with Raleigh we see a more human side of her. She is sweet and kind to him. She is interested in him not only because he is charming, but also because he has traveled to the “new world” and is an adventurer. She is presented with any number of rich and powerful suitors who, should she marry, would provide powerful alliances with other counties. This is not what she wants and that is why she gravitates to Raleigh. He represents the “everyman” and someone she could love for their personality and not because of the result would be a powerful alliance.

Owen, as far as I am concerned, makes a star turn with his performance. I have always liked Owen because he is such an amazing actor, be even I was impressed with this performance. He has shown that he can do “period pieces” as well as movies like “Sin City” and “Children of Men.” He plays Raleigh with such charm and charisma. He flashes a smile and is instantly liked. He is, in essence, The Fonz for the 1500s. He treats Elizabeth both with the reverence of a queen and familiarity of an equal.

“Elizabeth: The Golden Age” suffers from a weakly written story and a plot that seems somewhat rushed as the movie closes. The saving graces are two stellar performances from Owen and Blanchett. They alone are worth giving this one a try should nothing else in the theaters seem worth it.

6 out of 10
Rated PG-13for violence, some sexuality and nudity.
1 hr 54 mins

I need to confess something to you dear reader; I have been putting this one off for a while. For the past few weeks I have been giving you reviews of television shows, not just because it is a lot cheaper than a movie, but because the movie climate of the past few weeks has, well, sucked. There was only one movie that I really wanted to see that was worth the price of admission. So instead of going out and wasting a review, I waited. Now that, beginning tomorrow, the movies get better, or at least more interesting, I decided it was time to step back into a theater, pay close to four dollars for a bottle of water (first and last time I will do that) and see one of those moving pictures I have heard so much about.

In “Eastern Promises,” Anna (Naomi Watts) is a midwife at a hospital. When a young pregnant girl dies during childbirth, Anna takes her diary to find out if she has any relatives. This leads her to a restaurant where she worked, which is run by Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl) a member of the Vory V Zakone, a powerful Russian gang living in England. Semyon says he will translate the diary, which is in Russian, and if he finds a name or address, he will let her know. As the movie progresses, Anna’s life becomes intertwined with Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), a driver for the gang and man who seems to be a gangster with a heart.

I have always liked Naomi Watts. She has done an amazing job in just about every movie she has ever been in. She and the monkey made “King Kong” good. She is an incredible actress and has found success in both big budget movies and in smaller, independent movies. In this movie she plays a woman who is very caring. She puts herself and her aunt and uncle in danger as she peruses finding out more about the mother of the baby. She knows that if the family is not found that the baby will end up in the foster care system and she would be stuck there all her life. Anna takes it upon herself to give this baby a better life.

Mortensen is an actor who throws himself into his character. For this role, he traveled to Moscow alone without a translator, read books on the Vory V Zakone, visited Russian prisons and even learned all his lines in English, Ukrainian and Russian. He does not just act, he becomes. He puts everything into his roles and it shows on screen. His character is a mystery. He is a murderer, but he also has a softer side he shows to Anna.

The violence in this movie is brutal. None of the gang members carry guns. As I found out the gun laws in Britain are stricter than the laws in the United States. All the villains use knives to kill. One scene in particular sticks out. Nikoali is in a bathhouse when two men attack him with knives. Besides being unarmed he is also completely naked. He is forced to fight them off with nothing to protect himself with. This scene is full of pure, raw and, pardon the pun, naked violence. He is cut multiple times, thrown all over the rooms and gets beaten within an inch of his life before the scene is over.
“Eastern Promises” was worth holding out for. It is well done in every aspect, both in front of the camera and all the behind the scenes work as well.

It exposes the lack of concern for releasing movies with heart and starring more than flash in the pan actors who are nothing more than tabloid fodder and will be gone as soon as the hype subsides. With nothing more than time wasting filler being released over the past few weeks, it was nice to finally get to a movie that is well done and worth the time. Thankfully we are out of the bottom of the barrel movies and finally we seem to be getting into quality movies.

8/10
R, for strong brutal and bloody violence, some graphic sexuality, language and nudity.
1 hr 40 mins

Last year there was a television show that was critically acclaimed, but was, mostly ignored by the general public. The show was “Friday Night Lights” and the five people who watched it loved it. In an unprecedented move, NBC renewed the show for a second season despite the low ratings.

At the end of last season the hometown football team, the Dillion Panthers, had won the state championship. Coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) had gotten and accepted a college head-coaching job in Austin. Tami (Connie Britton), his pregnant wife, and his daughter Julie (Aimee Teegarden) stayed behind so Julie could finish high school. Meanwhile the team got a new coach and ex-quarterback Jason Street (Scott Porter), who suffered severe spinal injury in the first game of the previous season, has become an assistant. Quarterback Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford), star running back “Smash” Williams (Gaius Charles) and tight end Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) are looking to repeat last year’s success.

What I loved about this show last year was the fact that it was a show about a football team and not about football. It was more about the team and the people around them. Dillon is a small town and football means everything. When Coach Taylor lost one game last year, the town was calling for him to be fired. Then, when he accepts a job elsewhere, they are angry that he was so successful and just left them after they had won a championship. Football is everything in Dillon and the town rallies around the Panthers every Friday night as they play.

Last year the show focused a lot on Coach Taylor and his family as they dealt with the pressures of his job. This year, the show looks to focus on more than just the Taylors. The first episode of this season centered on Tyra (Adrianne Palicki). Someone who attacked her earlier is stalking her and she fears for her safety. Landry (Jesse Plemons) is her tutor and also has a crush on her. The two have become friends since he began helping her with her schoolwork and he hopes to take the relationship even further. When they go out to get some snacks, Tyra is approached by her stalker and he gets attacker her. When Landry comes out of the store he tries to fight off her attacker and smacks him in the back of the head with a piece of wood. The attacker falls to the ground dead. The next few episodes look to deal with this event affecting Trya and Landry.

From a few interviews I have read, I got the impression that they were going to stray from the formula of last year. The show will be moving away from football and focusing more on the personal struggles of the players and Dillon residents. It seems they are doing this because the show received no Emmy nominations and that if they do it this way, next year they will get some. This could turn out to be a really bad idea. Much of the charm of the show was the football and the players. It was interesting to see the practices and than at the end to the show see the game and how the personal struggles were left off the field and they came together for those two hours on a Friday night.

Even with these changes, the show is still one of the best on television. The critics love it yet no one is watching. I think that if given the chance, this show could be very successful. Like a “Melrose Place” or “Beverly Hills 90210” for the new minimum. The drama is there. The great cast is there. All it needs is you to start watching.

“Friday Night Lights” airs every Friday at 9 p.m. on NBC.

Sometimes I wonder who is making the decisions at the networks. Some of the shows are horrible, but nothing perplexed me as much as when, last year, ABC announced that they were developing a show based on a commercial. The buzz was immediate and opinions were made before the show had even started filming. Tuesday was the day that America got to find out if this is either the greatest idea for a show, or a really lame publicity stunt.

“Cavemen” is based on the popular Geico commercials (there is a sentence I never thought I would write). Joel (Bill English) Nick (Nick Kroll) and Andy (Sam Huntington) are three cavemen living in modern day Virginia (I think, judging by a weather map). The pilot revolves around Joel trying to get permission to marry Kate (Kaitlin Doubleday). He is invited to a country club for a Forth of July celebration and he uses this time to try to get her father to like him.

I give ABC credit; they tried something new. No one has ever used a commercial as source material for a television show before. The only problem is the commercial is a one-note joke about cavemen being stereotyped as stupid works for the short time span. You would think that the show would try to be different. You would be wrong. In fact, it relies on a single joke way too much. The cavemen have become a race and not just less evolved humans. There is a lot of use or plays on black stereotypes. They are better at sports (at least horse shoes) that the modern humans and are suspected of stealing the tip jar. They can dance better and are “wild” in bed. There is even a derogatory term for cavemen; “Cro-Maggers.” It is the same thing over and over again.

Despite the original source material, it is unoriginal in every other aspect. The cavemen themselves fall into sitcom stereotypes. Joel is the straight laced one, Nick is the hip slacker and Andy is the loveable dope. Kate loves Joel even though he is different and hairy. The three cavemen are out of place in the world of the county club. It is all the same and it has all been done before.

Even with all this show has going against it; there were some funny moments. Nick is proud of his primitive heritage. He is constantly mocking the upper class county club crowd that Joel seems desperate to become a part of. Nick even takes a few hundred bucks off the club members in a game of horseshoes and when he loses it, makes it a “racial” issue.

That is not enough to make this show good. The concept is interesting at best and the raciest overtones are hard to ignore. The show, much like the commercials it is based on, is a one-joke wonder and burns out quickly. Basing a show on a commercial dooms it from the start. A joke in a commercial works because it is between 15-60 seconds long. After that it is over. A show cannot sustain a single joke for 21 minuets (including the actual commercials) and be successful. I guess I should be glad that they did not base a show around the Aflac duck.

“Cavemen” airs every Tuesday at 8 p.m. on ABC

Maybe it is was because I missed a lot of key moments because so many buses pass by my apartment that I might as well live in a bus station. Maybe it was the sheer disappointment in a show that promised to be much better. Maybe it is because my expectations for what to expect out of a television show have been raised. Whatever the reason is it took two viewings of NBC’s remake of the 70s television show, “Bionic Woman,” before I formed a coherent opinion.

When Jamie Sommers (Michelle Ryan) and her fiancé, Will Anthros (Chris Bowers) are involved in a horrible car crash, Will takes Jamie to the top-secret government facility where he works and “repairs” her. Her right arm, ear, eye and both legs are replaced with millions in the latest biotechnology. This forces Jonas Bledsoe (Miguel Ferrer) and the other members of the government project to figure out what to do with her. When she escapes the facility and returns to her life, they decide to see what happens.

What happens is the first bionic woman, Sarah Corvis (Katee Sackhoff) returns and is now after the people who made her. She starts by going after Will and Jamie. She almost kills Will and Jamie goes after her. Following a rainy fight on a rooftop between the two bionic women, Jamie tells Bledsoe that she “knows what she is capable of” and they are going to do this on her terms.

The hype surrounding this show was huge, thus making the pilot episode a huge letdown. One would think that a show about someone with superhuman powers, should have more action, well this one does not. I know what you are thinking, “but Matt, you loved ‘Heroes’ and that show has very little action.” Good storytelling and intriguing characters make up for the lack of action in “Heroes”. That is where “Bionic Woman” suffers, it has nothing to replace the lackluster elements.

I understand that this is the pilot episode and that there is a need to introduce the characters, but it was mishandled. Stringer character development and better balance between that and the action is needed for this show to succeed. Beyond the fact that the character has these super human traits, there is nothing that interesting about her. They try to make her relatable by introducing her younger sister, Becca, who her farther dropped off at her doorstep some time ago. She is barely in the show and adds nothing except a little mystery as to why, by court order, she cannot be on a computer with an Internet connection.

Not much is explained about the main bad guy either. All we know is that he is Will’s father, used to work on the same project that created Jamie and is now in a “supermax” prison 1,000 feet underground. There is no mention of a grand plan or what he exactly did to get put in prison.

“Bionic Woman” should not be written off so quickly. The upcoming episodes look to be more action oriented and could turn the show into something to watch from week to week. I am not ready to give up on it just yet, but if the show does not get better soon, this will be just another show that aimed way to high and missed.

“Bionic Woman” airs every Wednesday at 9 p.m. on NBC.