New Trailer for 2012

Just saw the new trailer for the movie '2012'. Looks like Roland Emmerich is trying to recreate that 'Independence Day' magic. The movie is just going to be a marvel of special effects.

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810045661/video/14045555

Three movies in nine days, Nine movies in seven weeks

June is already setting up to be a better movie month than May. May is known for the big blockbusters but often the movies aren't well put together and are the cheesiest of the season. As June usually brings out the movies with slightly better acting with July and August bringing the better comedies. Here's a brief synopsis of the three movies I have seen over the past week:

The Hangover: HILARIOUS..If you have seen it, this is the only word describable for it. The movie is about four guys who go to Vegas, get drunk, wake up and have no idea what happened. All they know is there's a tiger, a baby, for some reason the have a police car, one guy is missing a tooth and the groom is nowhere to be found.

This movie has some insane scenes that you will leave you dying with laughter but it's mostly a good time just because we have all been wasted. We have all woke up trying to piece together a night with intermittent memories, some of us with no memory of what happened at all; and it's always a great time. But this is simply...THE Hangover...the ultimate of drunk nights...and it's the ultimate drunk night in the ultimate city for the ultimate drunk night. As my boy said after he saw it, LET'S GO TO VEGAS..definite must see.

Taking of Pelham 123: I always check out the critics reviews before I go see a movie. I don't always take stock in what they say because they review every movie for themselves. I think that all movies have a particular audience and that if you go in looking for something all you hope is that the movie gives you what you were looking for. This time the critics were spot on with this movie.

Everyone said that Pelham was basically character driven by the two main actors and it basically was. The movie revolves around hostage taker (John Travolta) and impromptu hostage negotiator (Denzel Washington). And after that...there's not much else that is memorable about the movie. The banter through the train radio is crisp and eccentric between each other and besides the random scenes with the mayor and the police negotiator there is nothing else to the movie. The main characters were great and drive the movie but I recommend waiting for DVD for this one because it's not a complete movie.

Away We Go: I have wanted to see this movie since I saw the trailer for it at Adventureland. It's an independent movie about an unwed couple expecting a baby but having no idea what to do or how to do it. The man is a scruffy insurance salesman with no particular aims or backbone and the woman has lost both her parents before she finished college and doesn't want to be married. Since the guy's parents are moving away they decided to visit a few different places (Phoenix, Tucson, Madison, Montreal, and Miami) trying to figure out a suitable place to raise the child. They learn something from each friend they meet and in the end decide that eventhough they aren't married or settled, they aren't any worse off than any of the couples who act like they have it all figured out.

There was an article in the Style section that declared that the theme of this movie was about a young couple who was having trouble growing up but I think it was more of an indictment of marriage in all forms. These two had no idea what they were doing trying to find a definition for themselves through other couples. What they eventually found out that the love they had for each other was enough and that same love could be used to raise a child. With some good laughs and good appearances by other notable actors, I recommend that you go see this movie. It's slow at times but if you are wondering about where you fit in life and the rest of it, take a peek. It's currently playing at Bethesda Row and the E Street Cinema.

May movies review

I usually do a review after every week of the movies but I have been lazy.  I went to see a movie every weekend in May and here is my view of them all:

X-Men Origins - Wolverine (05/01) - I went to go see this movie on a midnight show right after I hurt my hamstring running to first base in softball.  I wish I had a mutant healing factor...to heal my leg and my hurt expectations for this movie.  The movie starts with an uneasy scene in the early 19th century where Wolverine first discovers his powers and first meets Sabretooth, his brother.  They fight through every single major American war since the Civil War. After this the movie basically starts and nothing seems to run together afterwards.  The best part of the movie is the intial Weapon X fight with Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool.  The movie just disappoints all over.  The special effects are cheesy for a big budget film and Hugh Jackman loses his edge that he had in the previous three X-Men movies.  I think it was a mistake to even try this and I hope that either learn or do not to attempt to create the next adaptation, X-Men Origins - Magneto.

Star Trek (05/08) - This was the funnest movie I saw all month.  It was a non stop action fest from the very first minutes and it didn't let up for five minutes.  It had everything you wanted out of a summer action/adventure: gripping action sequences, beautiful women, great special effects, quick historical references...it was just great all around.  Plus we saw this movie in IMAX.  The sound and picture in IMAX make everything look and sound better. 

Angels and Demons (05/15) - After The Da Vinci Code and the first Chronicles of Narnia, this is probably the third book I have read in it's entirety and seen the movie.  I for one, do not like this approach.  The movie was completely boring...probably not because of the movie but because I knew everything that was going to happen.  It was just a wait for it, wait for it....does anybody like suspense in a movie?!?!?  So my new rule, either read the book or watch the movie.  I can't say anything else for it because well....read the book, it says it all.  They were pretty true to it and it's just the book in movie form and it was a good book.  Take from that what you wish.

Terminator Salvation (05/21) - BOOOOOM.  The sound system at Gallery Place was cranking.  Termintor was OK.  Most of the action was just big explosive action scenes reminiscent of the guy off of Tropic Thunder blowing his lid off of the pyrotechnics.  Christian Bale and the other guy did a good job.

UP (05/29) - Now this was the best movie of the month.  UP was well written and for a Disney movie it sure came with some adult feelings.  To warn you, you might just cry off the first ten minutes and I'm talking about men and women.  This beginning draws you in to the point you're like....Disney movie?  This is for kids?....Yeah, it's a definitely good movie especially in 3D (eventhough that will cost you more).

My ranking:

1. UP

2. Star Trek

3. Terminator

4. Angels and Demons

5. Wolverine

Midnight movie season is here!

Today is the 29th of April aka one more day of April aka one more day until May aka one more day until beginning of the movie season!

First up: Wolverine!

I originally created this blog because people know I love movies and I get alot of crap for going and not telling people I went. So here is the first official announcement. I will be going to see Wolverine at midnight in Silver Spring. Now, I know some of you are like, don't you have to work in the morning?!?! Well yeah, I do, and I will still be at my weekly Friday morning meeting downtown at 8 am sharp (and by 8 am I mean I usually get there right as the clock hits 8, terrible I know.) It's the summer movie season and if I make a statement like I can't wait till May, June or July for that movie to come out, I'm not going to wait an entire day either.

We have already made plans for the second movie, Star Trek with my favorite tagline: "This ain't your father's Star Trek" as evidenced by Zoe Saldana stripping in the trailer. Good thing for us is that movie is going to be shown in IMAX, on Thursday at 10pm in Alexandria at the Hoffman theater.

So, I'm telling you all. RALPH'S GONNA SEE A MOVIE this Thursday night at midnight and next Thursday night at 10 pm. Be there and get the momentary jump on everybody else. Besides, who would want to wait to see Zoe Saldana strip on a three story high movie screen? Thought not.

Same Fast, Same Furious...and don't you ever question my movie fanaticism!

The summer movie season has kicked off! Usually it's first week in May but I think you had to put this one in there.

Paul Walker and Vin Diesel are back in Fast & Furious. No, this is not The Fast and the Furious 4, it's Fast & Furious and that's for good reason. Because...it's the same movie as the first one. Fast cars, a bunch of chicks, a bad guy that is using fast cars for nefarious purposes and no story or plot line to follow.

I'm sorry for the people I didn't tell I was going. This movie had a personal hype rating of "Damn gotta see that" and I was going to cool it and watch it sometime over the weekend but my peoples wanted to kick off the season right. I was actually laying in the bed sleep when Aaron called and said they were up there. I initially gave it a 'meh' I'm going back to sleep in which I was then sent a text message

Aaron: "Mace says you don't deserve a blog"
Ralph: "Tell him fuck him save my seat"

Really now? NOBODY calls out my love of movies. I am the king of movies as I show everytime we crack out the Scene it on the Xbox and I beat everybody by like double. Yeah Berto got me once but the next game I punished him. Because that's what I do. I know movies.

So if anybody wants to call me out about my movie fandom, I challenge you to come over the crib (Fort Totten it's on the red line) and put your skills where your mouth is. That includes you too, Mace!

In fact, I'm calling out Mace right now. Come see me in Scene it get bust like everybody else. I'll beat you so bad, you won't ever feel right the next time you watch Top Gun. You'll be like "Damn, I thought I was Maverick....but it turns out I'm Goose".

I'll beat you so bad, next time they'll have to replace your name with mine when it comes to winning. You could be playing your little sister in Connect Four:

Mace: "Ralph wins"
Little sister: "Huh"
Mace: "Oh sorry. Ralph beat me so bad in Scene it, he owns all my personal accomplishments"

Yeah...challenge issued. Don't ever question my marriage with movies.

So for the rest of the movie rating....I can't give it a bad rating because it is what you thought it was going to be and I'm a firm believer that you should have the right expectations for a movie when you step in the theater. If you go a James Bond movie looking for believeable action scenes well that was your fault because we all know James Bond can run through 30 people shooting, not get hit while carrying a martini and never messing up his suit. In the same way, you know the F & F is just an orgy of intense dangerous races, modified rice burners vs. suped up American muscle, and hot girl drivers. So for the movie rating from my man Dennis Green: 'THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE" but saying that it could have been better. I mean suprise me with I don't know, a story or something.

I need a little bit more for my weekend so I'm thinking about seeing Adventureland maybe tonight or sometime this weekend. Anybody down?

We never saw the Tornado kick...

Last night we went to see "Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li".  For me it had a hype rating of 'watch if it's on TV and there's nothing on DVR' but Derk wanted to see it and I was sitting around doing nothing.  Like I said before, I will watch just about anything.

Everybody remembers Chun Li as the little Chinese girl in the Street Fighter games who does all the spinning kicks and made that crazy sound when she was knocked out.  You know, the one where the game designers confused the sound of agony with some incredible super orgasm....But for some reason, Capcom decided to make a B movie (Derk said it was a D) surrounding Chun Li's quest to find her dad.  I guess they thought if they put in a hot girl with some underdone fight scenes and a couple of the characters from the video games they 

could get an audience.

Well, I think they got the first part right cuz Kristin Kreuk (you might remember her if you watch Smallville, but I remembered her distinctly as the girl that "SCOTTY DOESN'T KNOW, SCOTTY DOESN'T KNOW" about in Eurotrip)

 was kicking ass.  But they bombed horribly on the second part.  I only remember Balrog, Bison and Vega in the movie.  Bison was nowhere as authentic as Raul Julia in the original movie, Michael Clark Duncan didn't have the nappy head, cutoff hoody or the boxing gloves, and unless there is a cage, I'm not feeling anything to do with Vega.  I knew this but Derk apparently thought it was going to be more so he was a little disappointed. 

The movie was horribly, agonizing to watch (besides Miss Kreuk) but about 3/4 of the way through the movie reel also decided how horrible it was and decided to melt.  And yes, it does make that sound LOL.  We got free complimentary free tickets and the movie also refunded us with about 30 minutes of our time, so I can't be mad.  

Hey, maybe if the movie had went on the rest of the gang would have showed up and we would have had some "Tiger Uppercuts" and "Hirukens" but I'm guessing the end would have sucked too.  So I'm going to match the movie with the hype.  Wait till it comes on TV, and after you have already watched everything else on your DVR.

Movie rating: 'Fail'

Johnny Depp vs. Christian Bale

Looks like a fun movie.  Johnny Depp is one of the best actors out there and he's going to be the coolest John Dillinger that ever lived.  Expect Christian Bale to yell obscenities or look darkly frustrated at least four times in the movie.  For the ladies, Channing Tatum will be playing Pretty Boy Floyd.  Directed by Michael Mann (Heat, Collateral, Miami Vice) who can do a pretty good crime drama.

Release date: July 1st, 2009

Competing movies: Ice Age 3

Hype Rating: Saturday maybe, I still don't see anything that tells me it will be great.