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Jimmy Carter Man From Plains (2007) [PG]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating:
Review-lite: (click for full details and complete review)
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Jimmy Carter Man From Plains [DVD](2007)
The post-White House activities of the 39th president are examined in this intimate documentary on Jimmy Carter from writer/director Jonathan Demme, focusing primarily on his 2006 book on Middle East politics, "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid." As Carter travels the nation promoting the controversial tome, the world statesman finds both admiring praise and harsh criticism from the American electorate. 126 min. Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital 5.1; Subtitles: English, French.
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The Kite Runner (2007) PG-13]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating: $13.25
Review-lite: By the final credits, the Marc Forster's adaptation of The Kite Runner provides ample topics for debate and analysis, especially into the motivations and emergence of the main character Amir from his shady childhood to adulthood. David Benioff's script is thought provoking and historically compelling landing the film alongside a number of others that utilized the elements of the Afghanistan invasion and subsequent rise to power in the resulting vacuum of the fanatical Taliban. Unfortunately, Forster's direction adheres too stringently to a balance of the acts and the narrative relies too heavily on coincidence and deus ex machina. In the end, fans of the novel likely will find the film less powerful than the book, and people learning from the film alone may feel they don't know enough about what's beneath the surface to comprehend the leading characters' true motivations. The film simply flies adrift too far too long. (click for full details and complete review)
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The Kite Runner [DVD](2007)
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The Mist (2007) [R]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating: $11.75
Review-lite: The ending aside, Stephen King's The Mist as written and directed for the big screen by Frank Darabont is a chilling and frightening examination of human nature run, quite literally, amok. With a star performance from Marcia Gay Harden, and themes regarding fear and the power of religious zealots, the film is packed with stuff to think about. Unfortunately, the ending, couldn't have just left well enough alone, instead it had to shock and then kick you in the gut. If you plunk down cold hard cash to see The Mist, consider doing the normally unthinkable and leaving just after the groceries at the check stand incident, you'll be glad you did, and you'll have gotten as much as this film really has to give without being kicked in the gut. (click for full details and complete review)
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The Mist [DVD](2007)
The Mist (2-Disc Collector's Edition) [DVD](2007)
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Shrooms (2008) [NR]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating: $7.00
Review-lite: Director Paddy Breathnach delivers a modestly scary, modestly original, teen horror film with the key difference being that the characters never know if what they are seeing is real or shroom-induced adding to their paranoia and fear. Some interesting camera effects are used to show the world through the tripping co-ed's views of the world. There is a good twist at the end and a set up for Shrooms 2 should there be one. Most fans of this genre will find Shrooms to be a bit better than average on some levels, but a bit derivative on most others right down to the mental institution for children as being a key scary place in the film. The acting is frightfully bad, however, turning many of the more horrifying scenes a bit campy. More of the 'trippy' scare angle, like the talking cow, would have tipped the balance favorably. (click for full details and complete review)
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Shrooms [DVD](2006)
"It's only a trip...it's only a trip," the American teens in this trippy terror flick keep telling themselves, after traveling to Ireland and taking (against a knowledgeable Irish friend's advice) some locally sprouting mushrooms. The stoned adolescents can't tell if the ghosts haunting their every move are just part of their hallucinations...or horrifyingly real. Lindsey Haun, Jack Huston, Maya Hazen star. 84 min. Soundtrack: English; Subtitles: Spanish.
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Wristcutters: A Love Story (2007) [R]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating:
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Wristcutters: A Love Story [DVD](2006)
After slashing his wrists over a bad breakup with his girlfriend Desiree, Zia winds up in a holding pattern in a bizarre afterlife designed for those who have committed suicide. Relegated to delivering pizzas in purgatory, Zia's life (or death, as it were) finds new purpose when he learns Desiree is stuck there too, sending him on a whacked-out road trip to find her. Pitch-dark comedy stars Patrick Fugit, Leslie Bibb, Shannyn Sossamon, and Tom Waits. 88 min. Widescreen; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital 5.1; audio commentary; "making of" featurette; deleted scenes; storyboards.
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