Social Network

M: Winner of the golden globe, Social Network is obviously a good movie. But the "best," well, not to me. Although it is well made, and makes you think about whether or not you would want to be the inventor of something like facebook, and therefore one of the richest and most influential people in the world (I wouldn't) it also had some things that bugged me. It was intriguing and sad to see what success did to friendships and trust. It was also sad to see some of the unnecessary drug and promiscuity they threw into this movie. I hope that, like much of the movie, this stuff was not true, and only invented by the writer to soup up what would have already been a really interesting movie. Maybe I am naive. And that's another thing, I don't like movies too much that are "based on a true story." From my understanding, the Social Network is very loosely based on a true story. I don't like it when something is presented as a truth, but I am not sure what is true and what is false. For example, did you know that Mark Zuckerberg has had the same girlfriend since before he invented facebook? The movie really did him a disservice. I think I will have to spend some time on Wikipedia now so I have a better idea of the true story (assuming Wikipedia is accurate). This is the year that if you mention facebook, you will win an award. Although this movie is pretty good, it shouldn't win the Oscar. 3 stars.

V:  First off, I thought Jesse Eisenberg did a fantastic job.  I wouldn't be surprised if he got an Oscar.  Other than that, I wasn't super impressed with the movie.  It focused a lot on sex and drugs, which while obviously offensive, just wasn't the point.  The development of facebook and the interactions between the people involved in the lawsuit was the interesting stuff.  It was a pretty good movie.  I'll never want to watch it again, though.  I found the music loud and annoying, and some references too obvious. 3 stars

Flipped

M: What a cute, fun story. In my opinion, a fantastic must-see PG movie. Madeline Carroll was so good. Just a sweet, innocent story of a childhood romance, told in a distinct and personal way. I really liked it. 3 1/2 stars

V:  This is a gentle story of kids discovering love.  It is told in he said/she said fashion, which is fun, but for me grew a little repetitive - especially since they were retelling the same situation.  But it's a small complaint.  It is a good little movie. 3 stars

Ladyhawke

V: If you watch this in 2011, you will be bugged by the synthesizer music.  It really doesn't fit with the whole knights in armor thing.  Maybe this is how A Knight's Tale will seem in a few years - but at least they punked up their hair and accepted the fact that they were being anachronistic.  Anyway, the story is alright.  The knight is out for revenge.  Matthew Broderick is his old quirky self.  Michelle Pfeiffer is gorgeous, as always. This movie is okay. 2 1/2 stars

M: Pretty funny, sometimes unintentionally so, movie. It takes place in mid-evil times, but has a spunky synthesizer soundtrack. You've got to love the 80s. And, on a related note, it will help you with this movie if you love the 80s. 2 stars

The Other Guys

M: So, this is PG-13, while the King's Speech is R. I don't get it. This was way more offensive. I can just envision the guys writing this, one turning to the other to say, you think that was ridiculous, listen to this. And so the movie goes, each moment more ludicrous than the last. A few funny parts, mostly involving Will Ferrell, but mostly just inane and insulting to all things normal. 2 stars

V: Really quite dumb with a few accidentally funny things and a few actually funny things.  We mostly laughed in disbelief at how they could have decided that their characters would do and say such things.  And sometimes, I think the actors were just ad-libbing.  I thought it was funny how the super tough guys jumped off a tall building and then (of course) landed (splatted) on the sidewalk below.  Seriously, that was kind of funny.  Do you want to see it now? 1 1/2 stars

The King's Speech

M: Colin Firth is officially amazing. Loved it. It felt real. I was transported, and it felt effortless. The best performance I have seen all year. Geoffrey Rush was also fantastic. No explosions, no schemes, but a fantastic show with outstanding acting. A must see. 4 stars

V: What a wonderful film! Great acting, great filming, great music. I would recommend this to anyone. It is rated R, as you've probably heard, because they say the f-word a few times. But it's all in good fun. No really, it's pretty funny. It's not meant to be offensive. Loved it. 4 stars

Harry Potter 7.1

M: I am going to say that this may be the least good of the Harry Potters to date, at least in my book. That is not a huge knock, because it has been a great series, but this just didn't have the story line to make it a great movie. It is a good half-a-movie. Very good special effects that are worth seeing. And some good acting by our now grown friends. 2 1/2 stars

V: I am a huge fan of the books and the series. I really liked this movie. It had great suspense. It caught the frustrating dreariness of the first half of the 7th book which takes place largely in the forest or some other wilderness, hiding and waiting and wondering what to do. The scene where Harry tries to bring a little cheer with some music and dancing was great. It's not the best one yet, but it was nicely done. I really enjoyed it. I think it was necessary to break the 7th into 2 movies, it will not rob the conclusion by rushing through it. Because of this movie (with all its waiting and hiding and agonizing) - the conclusion will be more satisfying. 3 stars