Totally Movie'd Out

I don't have the inclination or the energy to comment in details on all of the films of the past week, thus, a star rating and a few brief comments will have to suffice. There were just too many of them.

Mrs. Henderson Presents--***1/2 out of ***** (Judi Dench deserved her Oscar nod. Fun music and Bob Hoskins nude...neat.)
The Matador--***1/2 out of ***** (Pierce Brosnan's best work. Greg Kinnear was really annoying; and he was supposed to be, so kudos. A fun script.)
Team America: World Police--**1/2 out of ***** (Stupid and fun. The Kim Jong Il puppet was hysterical, "Herro!")
Basic Instinct 2--*** out of ***** (What was so awful about this? It was preposterous, but a great time. Sharon looked fabulous and David Morrissey was "this close" to getting an invite to my hottub party. What an ass! I loved the fact that they didn't completely deny that the first film happened, and that it has a very similar tone to the original. Fun movie!)
Into the Blue--**1/2 out of ***** (Paul Walker shirtless through the entire film...need I say more? I finally "get" the whole thing w/ Jessica Alba. She's hot and has a good vibe on film. Good for her. Typical story of this type, but beautifully filmed; and actually quite intense (in some areas) for a PG-13 rating (the mob-boat massacre, hello?).

Finally, well over a week ago, the other half and I found a used copy of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance. It's a Korean film and part of a trilogy; dealing w/ what else? Revenge. It contained horribly graphic violence, but somehow it didn't stand out or make me overly-squeamish; unlike a recent letdown by the name of Hostel. The film was gorgeous to behold. Truly a piece of art. The performances were incredible. I also appreciated that the movie kept you guessing as to who was "Mr. Vengeance". (next sentence is a spoiler!!!!) I adored the little girl, and was saddened and angry at her untimely ending. (you can read again!!!)Especially since the TV remote scene was a few moments before. That was easily the best moment in the whole experience; although I can't really say why. It worked. It was touching. The spastic jogging suit-wearing man near the river reminded me of a zombie (what a shock), thus making him a bit more eerie than was probably intended. What I most liked about the film was the message. Violence begets violence. Revenge is a never-ending cycle. Kill me, and my family will kill you. Then your family will kill my family member, and so on. I thought this was very powerful, thus I believed the nasty violence and torture within the film was justified and easier to take. We have plans to see Oldboy (the second in the trilogy; a film seen by friend Steve; he is the one that turned us onto this collection), and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (the final piece). I really recommend this film; but not for those who can't handle realistic, gruesome violence. Oh, also, the dog barking sequence was a fun moment. Good times. Revenge is neat, unless you're on the receiving end. My ears hurt.