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posters: just in / hottest selling / extravaganzas | capsules: previous | next]
Most Recent Movie Reviews:
review archive: 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008
(click a poster to purchase)
Movie Review of Never Back Down (2008) [PG-13] 110 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $10.50
In what could have been the heroic equivalent to The Karate Kid for the XYZ generations, unfortunately Jeff Wadlow's direction of Chris Hauty's screenplay Never Back Down starring Sean Faris, Djimon Hounsou, and Cam Gigandet "taps out" instead sacrificing principles, morality, and inspiration for street thug basal immorality, gang brutality, and way too much drippy perspiration. With a plot virtually lifted…err…updated from The Karate Kid, a high school kid, Jake Tyler (Sean Faris), is uprooted to Florida so that his little brother, Charlie (Wyatt Smith), can attend a tennis academy on a full scholarship. Their father was recently killed in a drunken driving accident, and their working mom, Margot (Leslie Hope) is doing everything in her power to keep the family afloat. The move is, theoretically, supposed to be good for Jake too as he's had trouble keeping his anger in check on the football field making his way onto YouTube™ a time or two. Unfortunately, the hope for the renewal for which Lesie was hoping, ends quickly when Jake's former reputation draws him into the world of underground teen fight clubs. The 'king' in Orlando is an extremely wealthy kid named Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet) whose father put him into karate lessons at age two. Bored with his life in the lap of opulent luxury, Ryan has taken up mixed martial arts and become the champion of the "Beat Down" competition for the past two years. Meanwhile, he throws gigantic parties had his father's mansion accompanied by organized fighting clubs. Ryan's girlfriend, Baja Miller (Amber Heard), catches Jake's eye in English class when he's the only one who seems to see that The Illiad might be about something other than Achilles and his blood-lust, leading her to be the one to bait Jake into attending one of Ryan's parties where he ends up getting the life nearly kicked out of him. To his credit, Jake, who really is a good, but troubled kid, tries to avoid the fight, but when Ryan slanders his father's name and then poses a difficult moral question, Jake unleashes his fury, only to get the swift end of Ryan's more well-trained, superior foot. Refusing to "tap out"—the modern form of saying "uncle"—Jake ends up unconscious and delivered to his bed badly beaten and bruised. He awakens to find every fiber of his being in pain and unable to find either the courage or the strength to return to school that day. …continued…or read the spoiler points…
Movie Review of Horton Hears a Who (2008) [G] 88 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $12.75
What a great idea to render Dr. Seuss's classic children's story into a CGI animated film at a time when the political landscape couldn't be more tolerant—that was unintentionally overly sarcastic. At its core, Horton Hears a Who the story is simple. An elephant named Horton, discovers a small civilization inhabiting a speck of dust which he catches on a pink clover and then nurtures toward a place of permanent survival. Sounds pretty good until the grown ups get involved. Yeah, grown ups seem to ruin everything don't they? Both in the story itself where a matronly self-important Kangaroo controls the peaceful jungle where Horton bides his time, and in the real world when grown-up political agendas clash with the simplicity of a children's story designed, it seems, to teach not only tolerance and understanding of all that which still mystifies us, but of each other "no matter how small."…continued…or read the spoiler points…
Movie Review of Semi-Pro (2008) [R] 90 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $6.50
Despite possessing a decent cast, Will Ferrell's film Semi-Pro, has to rank among his worst films ever. With a derivative story populated with mostly mediocre jokes, the screenplay by Scot Armstrong and directed by Kent Alterman, things start off slowly with yet another "It's all about how zany I can be" Will Ferrell's character intros followed by, unfortunately, a dull, lack-luster film. In effect, it's Blades of Glory on a basketball court, only not nearly as clever or funny. Will Ferrell plays Jackie Moon, the owner, promoter, and player coach of the Flint, Michigan Tropicals. Badly named and even more badly managed, the hapless ABA team sits poised on the brink of being dissolved as the ABA prepares for merger with the NBA. Well, Jackie's not about to sit and watch his team become a sizeable royalty check. No, he proposes instead that the best four teams at the end of the season should be the ones that get to merge into the NBA. …continued…or read the spoiler points…
Movie Review of 10,000 B.C. (2008) [PG-13] 109 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $13.75
With fine touches such as narration by the legendary Academy Award®-winning Omar Sharif and realistic, not overdone, CGI effects, Roland Emmerich delivers an enviable action adventure film with more power, heart, and imagination than Troy, Alexander, and Apocalypto all rolled into one. Featuring a lower profile cast than the aforementioned films (with the exception of Mel Gibson's Apocalypto), 10,000 B.C. literally rampages to life as Roland Emmerich's story of a small tribe of mammoth hunters who lose members to a war-like militia that captures slaves to toil in the construction of their god-like leader's gigantic heavenly pyramids. One member of the tribe, D'Leh (Steven Strait) rises up as the prophesied leader of not only his tribe but of all of Africa as he travels to rescue his kidnapped, life-long love, Evolet (Camilla Belle)—the blue-eyed beauty believed to be the future wife of his tribe's next leader. The story is timeless and while not terribly original sticks to the threads that tangled to make the greatest of Homer's legendary tales.…continued…or read the spoiler points…
Movie Review of Jumper (2008) [PG-13] 90 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $11.75
Imagine if you could will yourself into creating an instantaneous worm hole to any place on earth anytime you wanted to go anywhere you wanted? What would you do with such an amazing and awesome gift. With all due deference to Steven Gould's novel version of Jumper, the film adaptation with screenplay warmed over by three highly talented screen writers David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls, and Simon Kinberg and directed by Doug Limon, the resulting film is probably the product of two many disparate chefs spoiling the soup so to speak. On the one hand, you have a pretty intriguing concept and a 'newish' super power with immense possibilities, a pretty cool actor to play the lead in Hayden Christensen, and a 'devilishly' perfect actor for your villain in Samuel L. Jackson. Yet, on the other, you have a 'hero' who's not terribly heroic—he's got tremendous comic book super hero knowledge but zero super hero tendencies including little more than promissory note-leaving for vast sums of money he loots from bank vaults; who's not very strong—emotionally and physically, he's pretty weak in all respects; and who's not very bright—he failed high school algebra, cannot figure out what to do with his power other than zip around the world looking for the best waves to surf and girls to bed down, and cannot get to the bottom of his own life story until the last two, sequel-inspiring minutes of the film despite it being blatantly obvious to those not 'synaptically impaired' some 40 minutes into the film. Ah well, guess you cannot blame people for trying.…continued…or read the spoiler points…
Other Recent Reviews:
The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008) [PG] 97 minutes WIP™ Scale: $12.75
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008) [PG-13] 114 minutes WIP™ Scale: $13.00
Shrooms (2008) [NR] 84 minutes WIP™ Scale: $7.00
Fool's Gold (2008) [PG-13] 113 minutes WIP™ Scale: $7.25
Wild West Comedy Show (2008) [R] 100 minutes WIP™ Scale: $5.00
The Kite Runner (2007) [PG-13] 122 minutes WIP™ Scale: $13.25
The Eye (2008) [PG-13] 97 minutes WIP™ Scale: $12.00
Teeth (2008) [R] 88 minutes WIP™ Scale: $12.50
Over Her Dead Body (2008) [PG-13] 95 minutes WIP™ Scale: $9.00
Strange Wilderness (2008) [R] 87 minutes WIP™ Scale: $3.00
How She Move (2008) [PG-13] 98 minutes WIP™ Scale: $12.25
U2 3D (2008) [G] 85 minutes WIP™ Scale: $13.75
Rambo (2008) [R] 93 minutes WIP™ Scale: $6.00
Meet the Spartans (2008) [PG-13] 84 minutes WIP™ Scale: $5.75
Untraceable (2008) [R] 100 minutes WIP™ Scale: $9.75
27 Dresses (2008) [PG-13] 107 minutes WIP™ Scale: $9.75
Mad Money (2008) [PG-13] 104 minutes WIP™ Scale: $9.50
Cloverfield (2008) [PG-13] 90 minutes WIP™ Scale: $12.00
In the Name of the King (2008) [PG-13] 124 minutes WIP™ Scale: $8.00
The Bucket List (2007) [PG-13] 97 minutes WIP™ Scale: $13.75
The Orphanage (2007) [R] 100 minutes WIP™ Scale: $13.75
First Sunday (2008) [PG-13] 96 minutes WIP™ Scale: $3.00
Film Premiere and Award Photo Sets
archive:2008 • 2007
Listed in Order of Publication in the mEd database not necessarily chronologically...
Film-Related Awards, Galas, and Celebrity Event Photo Sets
39th NAACP Image Awards • 2008 British Academy of Film and Television Film Award Winners • 39th NAACP Image Awards Nominee Luncheon • Orange British Academy Film Awards 2008 Photos • 2008 Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year Award - Charlize Theron • 80th Annual Academy Award Nominees Luncheon • George Clooney Holds UN Press Conference • (continued)
Film Premiere Photo Sets
Horton Hears a Who Premiere • Semi-Pro Premiere • 10,000 B.C. Premiere • The Accidental Husband Premiere • Filth and Wisdom Premiere • The Other Boleyn Girl Premiere • Cherry Blossoms - Hanami Premiere • Elegy Premiere • The Elite Squad Premiere • Fireflies In The Garden Premiere • Gardens Of The Night Premiere • Jumper Premiere • The Counterfeiters Premiere • Shine a Light Premiere • The Hottie & The Nottie Premiere • The Spiderwick Chronicles Premiere • Step Up 2 the Streets Premiere • The Eye Premiere • Fool's Gold Premiere • Over Her Dead Body Premiere • (continued)
Brand New Movie Posters Just In:
New Movie Poster Archive: 2007 / 2008 | TV Posters: 2005 2006 2007
New as of 14-March-08
Recent Movie Star Birthdays:
birthdays: last month / this month / next month / by month / alphabetically
[click star names to see tribute pages]
| 13-Feb | 12-Feb | 11-Feb | ||||||||||||
| Mena Suvari | Christina Ricci | Jennifer Aniston | ||||||||||||
(click photo to purchase) |
| (click photo to purchase) | ||||||||||||
| Also: Josh Brolin | Also: Matthew Lawrence Burt Reynolds | |||||||||||||
| 10-Feb | 9-Feb | 8-Feb | ||||||||||||
| Ziyi Zhang | Nick Nolte | |||||||||||||
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| Also: Joe Pesci | Also: Seth Green Mary Steenburgen | |||||||||||||
| 7-Feb | ||||||||||||||
| Related DVDs | Related DVDs | |||||||||||||
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Movies Now on DVD and Download:
DVD releases: Archive / This Week / Next Week
(click poster to purchase)
No Country for Old Men (2007) [R]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating: $13.50
Review-lite: Joel and Ethan Coen present their adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel No Country for Old Men, and while there are things that don't add up, an ending series of scenes that fail to deliver on the expectations amassed from the villainous Anton Chigurh's first Coen Bros.-worthy murder, plus an actual ending that comes from out of left field and provides zero resolution, there's still much to enjoy in the film. The dynamics of the situations and the characters' outlooks on everything provide grim reflections on a decaying culture and national ethos. Mostly, though Javier Bardem's portrayal of Chigurh will haunt you for days to come and have you looking over your shoulder every time you come in contact with a 25-cent piece. While a very good effort, No Country for Old Men is still no Fargo. (click for full details and complete review) • (click to purchase No Country for Old Men)
(click poster to purchase)
Bee Movie (2007) [PG]-- W.I.P. Scale™ Rating: $11.75
Review-lite: Jerry Seinfeld and company write and voice a morally complicated tale of a bee who finds himself longing for greater adventure than being a honey stirrer for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, while doing what most would consider the right thing—fighting injustice—he inadvertently nearly wipes out all life on earth. This might be way too 'heady' for little kids to wrap their minds around, especially ones whom we are trying to teach right from wrong. In the end, the lustrous animation is nearly wasted on a film where the protagonist has to resort to stealing to right his wrongs. (click for full details and complete review) • (click to purchase The Bee Movie)
Also This Week:
Black Book (Zwartboek) • Dan In Real Life • Hitman • Lake of Fire • Nancy Drew • Sleuth
Previously Announced Available for Pre-Order:
The 11th Hour • Before The Devil Knows You're Dead • Borderland • Crazy Eights • The Deaths Of Ian Stone • Enchanted • The Final Season • The Golden Compass • I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With • Into the Wild • Jimmy Carter Man From Plains • Lake Dead • Lions For Lambs • Love In The Time Of Cholera • Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium • Mulberry Street • My Kid Could Paint That • Nanking • Nightmare Man • Nina's Heavenly Delights • P2 • Reservation Road • Resurrecting the Champ • Revolver • The Seeker: The Dark is Rising • Shrooms • Southland Tales • Starting Out In The Evening • Things We Lost In The Fire • Tooth & Nail • Trailer Park Boys: The Movie • The Ultimate Gift • Unearthed • Walk Hard • The Walker • War Dance • What Would Jesus Buy? • Wristcutters: A Love Story
Movies Coming Soon:
Dynamic Calendar Jan 07 - Jun 09 with links to official sites, trailers, and reviews
Plain Calendars: 2006 / 2007 / 2008-09
Friday, 14 March
Doomsday • Funny Games • Horton Hears a Who • Never Back Down • Pride and Glory • Sleepwalking • Spring Breakdown
in limited release only: none
Friday, 21 March
in limited release only: none
Top 10 Hottest-Selling Movie Posters:
(source: our friends at
| #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 |
| The Dark Knight | Harold and Kumar 2 | Horton Hears a Who | Iron Man |
| #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 |
| Wall-E | Indiana Jones 4 | Semi-Pro | Speed Racer |
| #9 | #10 | ||
| Nim's Island | Chronicles of Narnia 2 |
Movie Poster Extravaganzas:
archive
Here we honor two film series as they began and then merged into one mega film franchise: Aliens and Predators then Aliens vs. Predator with a movie poster extravaganza.
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