How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

I got a special request from Whitney to review Dreamworks' new movie "How to Train Your Dragon". Off the bat, I'm going to say go see it. I loved this movie. This has been the best Dreamworks movie for me since Shrek. HTTYD has a very interesting assortment of cast members ranging from Jay Baruchel as the misunderstood yet clever Hiccup, Gerard Butler as Hiccup's dad Stoick, to America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Kristen Wiig as the band of young dragon slayers. The story is set in a small Viking community near the sea, which is constantly harassed by dragons who come to steal their livestock and most of the time, wind up burning down half the village. In this village, Hiccup, the son of the village chief Stoick, is everything a Viking isn't. He's clumsy, he's not very strong and he doesn't have much of a talent for fighting. The one talent he does have, is the ability to understand dragons and befriend them, in particular Toothless, a very rare and curious dragon (a Night Fury). Hiccup and Toothless eventually form a strong bond which is contrary to the very nature of a Viking, whose natural enemy is the menacing and deadly dragon. Hiccup struggles to find acceptance in the village, among his peers and also with his father.

This high flying adventure is full of action, magic and a tiny kid sized portion of romance. There is an epic battle between the dragons and the Vikings, which is well done. I loved the different kinds of dragons and the dragon fighting school scenes. The ingenuity of Hiccup shows throughout the movie and what he lacks in physical strength, he makes up for in smarts and sincerity. I thought that his transformation from beginning to end was in some ways cliche; the young boy who desperately wanted to fit in, finally finds acceptance by standing out. In that respect, I think if you must have a script with an over-arching cliche, make it interesting, make it fun and make it memorable. How to Train Your Dragon hits all three points. The ending (which I won't spoil) caught me off guard but in a good way. It showed that just because it is a kids movie doesn't mean they have to make the ending overly fluffy. There are some good lessons to be learned in this movie, such as don't be quick to judge someone (or something) before you get to know them, be true to yourself, stand up for your beliefs and you'll never regret it.

I'm going to rate this movie 8.0/10 dragons.

Go see it!

The Karate Kid (2010)

The Karate Kid (2010): Starring Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, Taraji P. Henson

I saw the movie Friday night and it was fantastic. I gave a bit of a synopsis in the previous post so, I'll just give my thoughts on this post. I thought this was a very well made movie. There were quite a few kids in the audience, but honestly even if you are an adult, there are subjects in the movie that you can relate to. Being the target of a bully, is the main focus of the movie for young Dre and I have to say he did such a good job of emitting those feelings of fear and alienation. I know for most of the movie I cringed every time those bullies were around and the fight scenes were ridiculous (in a good way). The bullies also were very convincing with their incredible kung fu and parkour skills.

Jackie is known for his fighting skills and creating his own stunts, so we see that a bit in the film. I think Jaden stole the show entirely with how much he put into this role. He trained for months to play this part, and he sure played it. Learning kung fu unleashed something in Jaden that was both powerful and entrancing (especially the snake scene, you'll understand once you see). I really enjoyed the performance of the only real friend Dre made at school, and the girl he has a crush on, Meiying (played by the Wenwen Han). I thought Wenwen was fantastic and she surprised me quite a bit in her abilities muscially, and socially throughout the film. Jackie Chan was very good as Dre's Kung Fu master and he showed a vulnerable side I had never seen before. It added a new dimension to him, that I liked very much.

You really get a good sense of China, its ancient and modern beauty and the struggles for a foreigner in a new place. The movie overall is intense in its emotions, the fear, the joy, the sadness and the frustration that comes with overcoming an immense challenge. The kids in the tournament in the movie are so skilled and you won't be able to turn away. I just wanted to give you all a taste. I won't spoil the great parts of the movie but trust that this remake is moving and very fun. At the end, everyone in the audience was applauding, and I haven't been to a movie in a while that made everyone clap. Go see this!!!!

I rate this movie as a 7.2/10 Kung Fu Kicks!

The Karate Kid

Well my fellow moviegoers, this weekend I'll be seeing "The Karate Kid" starring Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan and Taraji P. Henson. I'm really looking forward to this movie. Firstly, who doesn't love Jaden Smith? The child of the amazingly talented Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, has proved that he does have some acting chops at such a young age. He starred in "The Pursuit of Happyness" with Will and I really enjoyed that movie. He's also starred in "The Day the Earth Stood Still," the remake of the 1951 classic, with Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly and Keanu Reeves. I look forward to his many, many movies in the future. Dre and his mom (played by Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson, from "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") move to China to make a fresh start. Soon, Dre is the target of the local bully at school and learns the art of Kung Fu to defend himself.

The other main character is the awesomely skilled marital artist Jackie Chan. I don't need to explain how great he is at flipping, jumping, kicking and creating all of his own stunts. He plays Mr. Han, the kind custodian who takes young Dre under his wings and teaches him the art of Kung Fu. He is the new Pat Morita, the new Mr. Miyagi. Like I mentioned before, I can't wait to see this. I know Jaden trained for months to be able to do the stunt work in this movie. If you didn't know already, the whole Smith family joined Jaden in China while he was filming. During that time Will Smith, flew home EVERY weekend from China back to L.A. to watch his older son Trey play football (apparently he's really good). That is one dedicated and (well-off) dad.

Keep an eye out for my review on "The Karate Kid" in theaters tomorrow (06/11)

Robin Hood > > ---------------> |((o))|

I just want to start off by saying..go see this movie! Director Ridley Scott has done it again, with this modern version of a classic tale. I overheard someone commenting a week ago that this movie is just like Gladiator but just in England. All I have to say to that guy is come on, just enjoy the film for what is it. Stop comparing it to Gladiator and just enjoy the experience (it wasn't really the same). Ridley Scott is joined again by Oscar winner Russell Crowe who stars as Robin Longstride a.k.a. Robin Hood. The setting of this movie is in the 12th century just at the end of King Richard the Lionheart's failed Crusades in the Middle East. Robin Hood was an archer in the King's army but through numerous twists of fate, he winds up at the home of a fallen soldier and meets the recently widowed and tough willed Lady Marian (Oscar winner Cate Blanchett). Meanwhile, trouble is brewing between the power hungry French King and a weakened England, and King Philip is presented with an opportunity to usurp the English throne. There is a TON of action in the movie (obviously) but I just wanted to note, that the action scenes were well done. There is a touch of romance here and there between Robin and Lady Marion and I appreciated how discreet it was at times but yet still powerfully engaging. They had such natural chemistry. I thought King John was played well by Oscar Issac. He really emitted the annoying and self-entitled air of the younger, jealous brother of the beloved Richard. There were quite a few comical bits intertwined with the more serious moments of betrayal, pain and the bloodiness of battle. Also, the villain of the film, Godfrey was played by the great Mark Strong. He's just so great at being bad. Overall, well done plot, great characters and a clean ending. I'm buying this when it comes out on DVD.
I'm going to give Robin Hood 9.1/10 arrows. Go see it!

True Blood Ultimate Fan Experience

Last night, in over 50 different movie theaters across the country, fans of True Blood, the hit HBO Southern vampire drama, got a little taste of the upcoming third season of the show. My friend Makeda and I had the opportunity to go to the Sugar Land, TX AMC theaters at 11pm. We had the red carpet experience, with a photographer snapping shots of every fan coming in, with a special True Blood backdrop. Once inside the theater, there were clips from both seasons, short interviews with the cast about new characters and a whole lot of fun. We watched the Season 2 Finale via satellite (there were some technical issues but they were fixed at the end, thankfully). After the finale was over, we tuned into a live chat with the director of the show Alan Ball and all of the castmates..except for Nelsan Ellis (who plays Lafayette, the feisty cook from Merlotte's Bar and Grille) because he was ill. We were shown a never before seen trailer with new bits of information for ravenous "Truebies". You can watch the live Q&A on True Blood's Facebook page.

 After that, once we stepped outside the theater doors, at 1:30am, we were greeted by the theater staff with lots of free goodies. A True Blood themed drawstring bag, a promotional poster of Season 3, a choice between the soundtrack to season 2 or a Sookie Stackhouse novel by Charlaine Harris, and finally to top it off, a bottle of True Blood for the road. I'm saving that for the June 13th premiere of True Blood at 9/8c. Even inside the bags, were mini promotional postcards of teasers for season 3. So overall, it was a very good night, and it was my first time winning VIP tickets for an event. The sweepstakes on Facebook gave away 50 free VIP tickets per city and winning them helped start June off the right way.

Hopefully, this little TV sidenote got some of you interested in this exciting young series.
I did get a chance over the weekend to see Robin Hood, starring Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett and I'll be reviewing that tomorrow. Right now I'm so tired from this extremely long day. I need to catch up on my rest. Thank goodness it's Thursday tomorrow.

So for now, so long and sweet dreams.