The most common complaint I recall reading or hearing about when I Am Legend came to theaters was that it did not stick to its source material, Richard Matheson’s 1954 novel of the same name. It’s a good thing I don’t read much. 😉 Will Smith is Robert Neville, a scientist in the armed forces, …
Monthly Archives: December 2011
Way late review: Spirited Away
I’ve never taken LSD. After watching Spirited Away, one of my son’s favorite anime films, I think I know what it’s like to take LSD. Not that it matters all that much, but here’s the synopsis and a juicy Oscar tidbit: During her family’s move to the suburbs, Chihiro (voiced by Daveigh Chase) wanders into …
Way late review: Friday Night Lights
In Texas, there is only one sport that seems to matter, football. And if you’re an athletically gifted male in a Texas high school, I imagine you will play football, whether you enjoy the game or not. At least that is the impression Friday Night Lights leaves. Right from the start, the film makes it …
Way late review: Win Win
Netflix is normally fairly good at predicting which movies I’ll like and how much I’ll like them. Every once in a while it gets it wrong. Occasionally I find a movie I liked more than Netflix thought I would or vice versa. Netflix thought I would nearly love Win Win. Not so much. A struggling …
Way late review: Super 8
It’s hard to watch Super 8 and not get nostalgic. It’s also hard at times to stomach just how hard J.J. Abrams tries to mimic his producer’s (Steven Spielberg) previous work without a full appreciation for what made those films special. The line between inspiration and cheap imitation can be a fine one. Super 8 …
Way late review: Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands. The beginning of a long list of films directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. What is now becoming a bit tiring was not always so. It’s not hard to see why Burton’s knack for the odd and Depp’s desire to break free of the prison he perceived 21 Jump Street was …
Way late review: Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
It’s funny how our perception of celebrities often depends on when we’re introduced to them. Michael Jackson is pop genius to some, cultural oddity to others. Elvis was either skinny rock icon or fat Vegas crooner. The same can likely be said for Joan Rivers. To me she would likely be labeled the loud mouthed …
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Way late review: Back to the Future
Nostalgia heavily tints a movie like Back to the Future for someone my age. It’s not just another movie. It’s a phenomenon. Michael J. Fox. Huey Lewis and the News. 1985. As my son likes to say, “good times, good times.” Watching the movie always feels familiar and comforting. This time around I watched it …
Way late review: Terri
Terri is an indie flick about an orphan (Jacob Wysocki) who lives with his uncle (Creed Bratton, yes, that Creed), struggles to fit in at school and finds an unlikely friend in his vice principal (John C. Reilly). With a synopsis like that, it may be hard to believe that Terri never falls into sappy …
The lost Hoover Christmas newsletter of 2010
I forgot I put together this quick one page Christmas newsletter last year. My wife has been writing them and is doing it again this year. I actually don’t like these types of newsletters. They often do too much bragging or are just plain boring. Plus, with today’s world of over sharing everything online, chances …
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