Saccharine movies. You know the kind. The conclusion is foregone and you await the inevitable and unlikely twists and turns, improbable coincidences and plot devices, that will eventually produce the results that you expected because you have seen this type of film a hundred times before. August Rush is that type of film. As the film unwinds you can sit back and witness as many as a dozen contrived coincidences, designed wholly to play on the heartstrings of your emotion as the ending you predicted unfolds before your eyes.

The great thing about August Rush is, that you don’t care that you’re being played like an instrument, in fact you welcome the experience.

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With obvious nods to several video games, films of unrepentant violence both old and new, and a staunch pro-vegetable stance, Shoot ‘Em Up is a guilty pleasure with a capital “G”. Friday night was date night. If it surprises you that I would, after weeks of not having a chance to go out on a date, drag my darling wife off to see a visceral ballet of bullets and blood like Shoot ‘Em Up, then you severely underestimate how much I like Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, and Monica Bellucci.

In fact, it was on the strength of this cast that I was willing to forego many other theatrical offerings to make sure I saw this film opening night. And, wonderful husband that I am, I chose to share this singular honor with my wife. She’s a lucky woman. 😉

And so, after the last bullet is fired and the last shell casing has hit the ground with an ear-tickling ring, what advice can I give the contemplative film goer wondering if Shoot ‘Em Up is worth their $9?

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(If you don’t know anything at all about Jane Austen’s life there may be a few spoilers in this review)

In spite of an all-too-brief life, Jane Austen wrote six novels whose impact on the world of literature, and in modern times the world of film, have made her one of the most celebrated authors of English literature. One of the first to use free indirect speech in conjunction with her command of the use of irony, Jane Austens work not only survives as social commentary of her own times, but also speaks to generations of readers and film goers today.

The woman herself remains something of a mystery, causing much speculation regarding just how much of her life and her observations of those around her found their way into the unforgettable novels that she produced. This film, based on the book Becoming Jane Austen by Jon Spence, purports to shed some light on the illusive life and suspected love of Jane Austen.

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A mostly Non-Spoiler Review

Whew!!! I am so glad that it is over. The anticipation, the worry, the doubts, the fears…it is all over.

I had mentioned previously that I finally achieved some kinship with those who were longtime fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings novels as they waited and wondered just what Peter Jackson and company would make of their beloved books. I am a self-proclaimed HUGE Neil Gaiman fan and I have long thought of Stardust as his most well written novel. I know some have dismissed it as a ‘simple’ fairy tale and for a long time I tended to let that slide thinking that they might in fact be right on some level. Having read numerous articles on fairy tales written by Terri Windling over the past year or two and having been educated most profoundly by Guilermo del Toro about fairy tales on the extras to Pan’s Labyrinth (and believe me, that guy is a genius!), I finally feel that I have some weight behind what I have always suspected, and that is that writing an outstanding fairy tale takes a skill and knowledge that not every writer possesses. And Stardust is a masterpiece of the fairy tale tradition. It has so many layers and it resonates so deeply that even minor characters are ones you fall in love with.

Given my feelings about the book, there was really no way this film could live up to my expectations and there was no way Stardust the book could ever truly be made into Stardust the film.

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A Non-Spoiler Review

Through two previous installments, screenwriter Tony Gilroy and actor Matt Damon have brought to life Robert Ludlum’s singular creation: Jason Bourne. And through the previous two films they have proved that covert and clandestine spy thrillers can be gritty and tough and damn entertaining.

With The Bourne Ultimatum, director Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy) returns along with Gilroy and Damon to unleash the denouement on what has to be one of the very best movie trilogies ever made.

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