Fido

Sarcastic, incredibly politically incorrect, and sooo silly: everything I love in a good comedy. I love movies that are not afraid to be ridiculously silly. This movie is about a world, still stuck in the 1950's, where an outbreak has occurred and everyone who dies turns right into a zombie. But a scientist has invented a collar to put around the zombie's neck to prevent it from wanting to feast on flesh. Simply when the red light is lit on the collar it is domesticated, when it is off it wants to eat your flesh and brain. Oh it gets better, so 1950's I Love Lucy families have these zombies on collars as their pets and servants. One kid's zombie gets beaten in the head by an older women and her walker, so his light gets turned off and therefore he eats her. Then crazy antics and madness ensues. The movie is hilarious and so ridiculous. If you have can embrace your silly side I would rent this for a friends night, especially if board games are involved. B

Particles of Truth

To quote one of my favorite musicians John Mayer, "Fear is a friend that is misunderstood". That line in his song Heart of Life can sum this movie up. This is a beautiful art house type movie that anyone who watches it can relate to. It deals with fears. Fear of your past, fear of your future, fear of love, fear of not being good enough, fear of being alone, and most of all fear of facing yourself. The movie is written, directed, and starred in by Jennifer Elster co-founder of 75films. Gale Harold (Queer As Folk hottie) plays her germa-phobic love interest Morrisson. Both are struggling incredibly with the fears their parents and society have burdened them with and the struggle within themselves to see something beautiful. It shows exactly what the title promises, Particles of truth. Truth of life, no matter how much people try to avoid it. It's about being frightened and being a human being. It's the perfect impressionistic movie for a young person in their 20's, scared of where their life might end up. I suggest watching this movie alone, you'll get more out of it. It's not a fun filled movie nor a date movie. And I don't suggest drinking while watching it, it could become very depressing. But it is very well written, and very well acted. Movies like this one is the reason why I always wanted to be an actress, to tell a story, a little bit of truth, that can make someone out there recognize and feel....anything and everything. A+

Rush

Drugs, guns, and bad hair! It doesn't get much better than that. When I was little I always saw the cover of this in the video store and wanted to rent it, but being 9yrs old my mother of course gave me a big fat "NO". I finally saw this movie about a month ago and understood why my mother wouldn't let me watch it, it has explicit drug use and a very forceful sex scene. Besides all that, it is a solid story and I was not disappointed one bit by it. It lived up to my expectations, for 1991 this movie was very good. It stars Jason Patric (yes, from the lost boys) and Jennifer Jason Leigh, who play undercover narcotic cops trying to bring down the big dealer. While trying to go through all the amateur dealers to get to him they both develop cocaine and heroin addictions. It's a great examination of drugs and how they manipulate the mind. The movie makes you feel dirty, like you have had a long night of drinking and being passed out on a friends floor, and it makes you feel like you desperately need to take a shower. It is great acting by both actors, especially Jason Patric. You slowly get to watch him lose control and watch his sanity crumble. It's a really good movie in a time period where movies were incredibly cheesy. The movie is raw and doesn't have some young overpaid actor twitching up a storm and crying that they had a bad child hood like many of the drug movies today. They are normal people who get wrapped up in their job, they lose control like any normal person can. It has a good twist in the end that does not disappoint. It is definitely worth the rental and one of your movie nights. B

The Machinist

Boy was I wrong about Christian Bale! He is turning out to be one of the finest actor's of this generation. I always criticized him for swing kids and newsies, but he has a tremendous amount of talent that either I have just been noticing in the last couple years or he is finally getting the work that he can showcase it in.
The Machinist is a tiny film that sadly seems to have been missed by many. It's a dark film about the deterioration of man over a year of his life. In fact it begins towards the end of this particular year in his life and how it all completely unravels on him. He works in a dark factory, hasn't slept in a year, his only real connection is with a call girl named Stevie, and he is talking to man that everyone around him is trying to convince him doesn't exist. The real shocker of the whole deal is he is sooo skinny that he looks like a prisoner during WWII. The movie is very eerie and has you tangled in it's mystery the whole way. The only thing I was a little disappointed in was how quickly the very good ending was thrown at me. This movie has you the whole way but the end is just kind of tossed at you, and it is a very good ending. The writing of the movie is well done and the acting by Christian Bale is amazing. Just the fact that the man went down to 120 pounds to make the part even more realistic shows what kind of dedication he has to telling a story. I highly recommend this film if your looking for quality work! It is definitely artful and an incredible example of great story telling. A-