Rambaran’s Log

To all of you who grew up in the 80s: GO SEE THIS MOVIE!   Hot Tub Time Machine is a laugh out loud ’strictly-adult’ comedy which delivers on every joke.  Veteran comedian, John Cusack (Adam), and his compatriots played by Rob Corddry (Lou), Craig Robinson (Nick), and Clark Duke (Jacob), deliver solid performances in this over the top film which follows a bunch of middle aged high school buddies who somehow get thrown back to 1986 via a hot tub in an effort to correct the mistakes they’ve made in their lives.  Sounds ridiculous?  IT IS!!!  And that’s why this movie works.

Hot Tub Time Machine is a ‘time machine’ movie which makes fun of every ‘time machine’ movie we’ve seen.  The most popular being the “Back to the Future” series.  On that note, Crispin Glover who originally played Marty McFly’s dad in the BTTF series  is in this movie and what happens to him (or what should happen to him) will make you laugh and cringe at the same time.  It is absolute comedy brilliance.   There are some other ‘classic’ scenes which can NEVER be played on TV.  Let’s just say someone loses a bet . . . BIG TIME.

There are some ridiculously hysterical scenes in this film and I won’t ruin them for you (‘White Buffalo’), but if you’re someone who grew up with Alf, New Order, and a yellow hard case walkman, then you will definitely enjoy this retro trip back in time.   I guarantee you’ll be laughing your way out of the movie theater by end credits.    Hot Tub Time Machine opens in theaters March 19th.

If I have to sum up Shutter Island in one word, it would be: CEREBRAL.   Shutter Island will keep you guessing throughout its entire 2 hr. 15 min. runtime, which serves its purpose as a throwback to the ‘whodunnit’ mysteries of the 60s.   Master filmmaker Martin Scorsese does an excellent job adapting the narrative of Dennis Lehane’s 2003 novel for the big screen.    However, the film is no masterpiece in comparison to Scorsese’s earlier work (i.e. The Departed, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas).

The film takes viewers back to 1954, where U.S. Marshall, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio), is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a patient from Boston’s Shutter Island Hospital Prison, a place reserved for the clinically insane.   Once Daniels lands on Shutter Island, he is immersed in a world which is well beyond his control.   The facility is run by Dr. Cawley (brilliantly played by Ben Kingsley) who is not very helpful to Daniels’ investigation.   As Daniels uncovers more secrets about Shutter Island, we learn more about Daniels and his inner demons.

Shutter Island is not a horror film.  Although the trailers make you believe it’s a ‘boo!, gotacha’ type of flick.   The movie delivers an intertwined web of psychological thriller fiction which will keep audiences focused on the tidbits Daniels picks up through his investigation as his tries to solve the case.   The performances from the support cast are exemplary, as for the technical credits (film school material).   However, Shutter Island tries a bit too hard to be ‘The Shining’ when its not.   Does that mean it’s a bad film?  No, its not a bad movie, but its not that great either.   I do have some bias, as there are scenes of dead children in the movie which are difficult to watch.   I didn’t see the need for Scorsese to revisit this sequence in full detail, which turned me off from the film as a whole.   Don’t worry, its not graphic in any way, its just a difficult scene to watch as a father.

All in all, is Shutter Island worth the price of admission?  I would say if you like Leo and Scorsese, then you’ll enjoy the art of filmmaking.  If you looking for some popcorn entertainment for the evening, wait for this to come out for a rental and watch something better on the big screen.

After endless years of hype, the time has come for the release of AVATAR.  James Cameron’s science-fiction epic costing an estimated half billion dollars to put on the screen.    After watching 25 min. of footage screened by Cameron at Comic-Con earlier this year I was convinced AVATAR to be the next leap in filmmaking.  After watching the movie in IMAX last night, I can officially say that AVATAR is a 3D cinematic event everyone should experience.

The year is 2154, and from the opening shuttle scene you will believe it.  Jake Sully (played by Sam Worthington) is a paraplegic Marine war verteran thrown into the “AVATAR” program.   The program allows humans to control genetically bred alien clones of themselves to win the trust of an alien race called the Na’Vi.   The underlying reason is to win the trust of the Na’Vi and rape the planet of its natural resources (Earth is dying).   And so the advetnure begins!   I can’t tell you how much of a great thrill ride AVATAR was.   When you first arrive on the Na’Vi home planet, Pandora, you are immediately thrown into a strange new world of exotic (and alien) animals, vegetation, and scenery.  You really do believe Pandora exists, which is a technical marvel on its own as 70% of this film is computer generated.   I guess the question everyone is asking is if you do believe the Na’Vi as a living, breathing, alien race and not a CG version of the smurfs (the Na’Vi are blue).   I can assure you, you WILL believe.

I dragged my wife along for the ride.  She had no interest in seeing the film, but by the end credits she ended up loving the movie.   As for my expectations of the film, they were far exceeded.   I highly recommend this film for EVERYONE.  Even for those of you who hate science fiction films, you will find something to love in AVATAR.    As of this evening, the film has amassed 232 Million dollars worldwide over the opening weekend.  Looks like everyone has found something to love in AVATAR>