Overall Rating: *****
Tristan & Isolde @ IMDB

Synopsis:
Rome has fallen and the tribes of England are stuggling to form a stable alliance against the brutal Irish King Donnchadh (David O’Hara). Tristan (Thomas Sangster/James Franco), the son of an English baron, finds himself as an orphan after a brutal attack from the Irish prevents the signing of treaty his father drafted. Taken in by the fair-minded Lord Marke (Rufus Sewell), Tristan grows in to a skillful and brave knight. When Tristan is injured in battle, he is taken for dead and is set adrift for a burial at sea. His boat washes up on the shores of Ireland where he is found by the beautiful Isolde (Sophia Myles), Princess of Ireland. As she conceals him from her father, she also nurses Tristan back to health. What follows is a tormented love affiar, which is only complicated when Isolde is married off to Lord Marke in a devious plot to destroy the fragile alliance newly formed among the English tribes.

Before Romeo & Juliet there was …… Tristan & Isolde.

Review:
Ok, I know what all you guys out there are saying: “This guy’s gone soft and started watching chick flicks!” Its true I have seen a few more chick flicks recently than I care to admit. But they’re not all that bad. This one was particularly good. I will admit that I watched this movie mainly because I really like the Gavin Degraw song on the soundtrack. Not exactly the best reason, but when you have a Blockbuster Movie pass, it really doesn’t matter why you want to watch a dvd.
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Overall Rating: ****
A History of Violence @ IMDB

Synopsis:
Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) is a quiet family man that runs a diner in a small town. When two murderous thugs come in to the diner and start to attack a customer, Tom springs in to action killing them both. Tom is quickly elevated from average joe to hometown hero. The media coverage, however, brings Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) to town. Carl is a mobster claiming that Tom is really Joey Cusack, a hit man from Philadelphia. Fogarty’s persistence not only threatens Tom but his wife, Edie (Maria Bello) and their children. Does Tom have a real history of violence, or is he just a small town hero caught in a case of mistaken identity?

Review:
This was a pretty solid movie. I enjoyed it more than I thought it was. I wasn’t really sure what to expect. From what I’ve learned about David Cronenberg (the director) since I watched this movie, it seems that I got slightly lucky. Cronenberg has a tendency towards the graphic and perverse, but this movie was almost untouched by that particular problem of his. This movie is violent, not as much gore as you would expect, but still a lot. The thing is, the story requires it. Violence is at the core of this movie. It would be pointless if it didn’t look real.
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Overall Rating: *****
V for Vendetta @ IMDB

Synopsis:
In the near future, the end of the world has come and gone. A Third World War has ravaged the world and mysterious plague killed thousands in Great Britain. But through it all “England Pervails” as a totalitarion state under the leadership of High Chancellor Sutler (John Hurt). Using a mask of Guy Fawkes of the famed Gunpowder Treason, a vigilanty known only as “V” (Hugo Weaving) uses his amzing agility and strength to open the eyes of the British people. He is unwavering in his use of terrorist tactics until he meets a young girl named Evey Hammond (Natalie Portman). Will V succeed in saving Britain?

Remember, remember the fifth of November,
Gunpowder treason and plot.
We see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot!

Review:
A friend of mine said it best as we were leaving the movie theatre: “It’s rare that you see a perfect movie, and this was a perfect movie.” I can do little but agree with him. This movie was amazing and I could find nothing wrong with it. V for Vendetta is an adaptation of graphic novel/comic book series of the same name by Alan Moore. This movie was action packed, dramatic, touching and enthralling.
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Overall Rating: *****
{Proof} @ IMDB

Synopsis:
Katherine (Gwyneth Paltrow) , a brilliant young woman, is forced to put her life second to that of her father (Anthony Hopkins), a once brilliant mathematician who has lost his mind. Taking care of him consumes her life and she is never able to truly persue her own ambitions in mathematics. When her father dies unexpectedly, her life changes drasticly. Her sister, Claire (Hope Davis), returns to settle her father’s affairs and one of his former students, Hal (Jake Gyllenhaal), starts to dig through his old notebooks. As Katherine struggles to deal with her grief, Claire begins to doubt her sanity. Did Katherine inherit her fathers brilliance and his insanity?

Review:
When I picked this up at Blockbuster, I thought that it would be either and uber-geek movie or a sappy drama/romance masquerading as an intelligent film. I have to say I was wrong. It was neither of those things. It turned out to be quite a moving story about someone who isn’t sure about who she is. Its about someone who’s lived her life for someone else for so long that she’s not quite sure how to live her own life now that he’s gone. This movie is apparently based on a play and I am tempted to seek out this show.
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Overall Rating: ***

Movie Review: The Goblet of Fire

This is the 411 on the DVD release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Being the fanactic that I am, I ran out and purchased the 2-Disc Special Edition dvd. To tell the truth, I don’t think there is much special about the 2-disc edition. Its a decent set, but its not all that a special edition should be.

The big thing that bugged me about this set is the menu system. Now, typical dvds will have sections like special features, behind-the-scenes, deleted scenes, games, etc. This set, and all of the other Harry Potter 2-disc sets for that matter, have sections called Hogwarts, The Maze, or The Black Lake. Though I appreciate the novelty of this layout, it makes it impossible to find what you’re looking for. I couldn’t tell if deleted scenes would be in Hogwarts or the Maze. I guessed and got lucky.
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Overall Rating: *****
North Country @ IMDB

Synopsis:
A single mom, Josey Aimes (Charlize Theron), moves back home to Minsesota to be close to her parents and escape her abusive ex. To support her two children, Josey takes a job at the local iron mine, forced to hire women by affirmative action. But as soon as her job begins, she realizes that she just can’t go to work like the men of mine. Constant abuse and harrasments leads her to file the first class action sexual harrasment lawsuit in history. This is a fictional retelling of the real life crusade of Lois Jenson, who fought and won against Eveleth Mines in the late 80’s and early 90’s.

Review:
When I rented this movie, I thought it was a true story. I was a little surprised to learn that it was actually a fictionalization (if that’s a word) of a true story. To be honest, I rented it because I couldn’t find anything I really wanted to see. I new it had some Oscar nominations so I figured, what the heck. I’m happy that I did pick it. It was definitely a good movie.
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