This video  is a little on the old side, going way back to the release of Kill Bill, and I am totally on Quentin Tarantino’s side on this one. I watch some really graphically violent stuff as a kid and I handled it fine. Heck, my family often had to take me because most of the films I enjoyed were R-Rated (Thanks to my Granny for that 3-D screening of Freddy’s Dead and The Crow!). If kids can’t handle it, consider it a form of social Darwinism.

Pop.
2008, acronym(a poor one) for a piece of procrastination. An article, be that a game, a video, or website, that distracts the user from participating in more critical acts of being such as having a life.

Meet Bill(2007) Director Bernie Goldmann Melisa Wallack Writer Melisa Wallack Actors Aaron Eckhart - Bill Jessica Alba - Lucy Elizabeth Banks - Jess Logan Lerman - The Kid Timothy Olyphant - Chip Kristen Wiig - Jane Whittman Jason Sudeikis - Jim Whittman

Meet Bill (2007)

I decided to check out Meet Bill after seeing Eckhart as Harvey Dent in The Dark Knight. It is not like I didn’t admire his work previously, but I needed the Harvey Dent role to convince me to check out Meet Bill with its two directors (usually a recipe for disaster) and its atrocious poster. Of course once I was informed of the film’s casting I would even say I  was excited to see Meet Bill.

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The X Files: I want to Believe(2008) Director Chris Carter Writer Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter Actors David Duchovny - Fox Mulder Gillian Anderson - Dana Scully Amanda Peet - Dakota Whitney Billy Connolly - Joseph Crissman Xzibit - Agent Mosley Drummy Adam Godley - Father Ybarra

the X Files: I want to Believe (2008)

I don’t know what I was expecting to see going into the second X Files feature, but the word ‘more’ comes to mind. Chris Carter brings back the X Files after six years when the show ended with a whimper, and a whole decade since X Files: Fight the Future. I consider myself a fan of the X Files as it always suited my conspiracy nut sensibilities and I had been really looking forward to seeing Mulder and Scully together again for quite awhile.

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The Wackness (2008) Director Jonathan Levine Writer Jonathan Levine (screenplay) Actors Ben Kingsley - Dr. Squires Famke Janssen - Kristin Squires Josh Peck - Luke Shapiro Olivia Thirlby - Stephanie Mary-Kate Olsen - Union

The Wackness (2008)

I checked out The Wackness because of recommendations that came from numerous other film blogs hailing it as the sleeper gem of the summer. Of course I surmise most of these positive opinions come from New Yorkers who have an unhealthy nostalgia with any movie that ever mentions the big apple. Needless to say I don’t relate.

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Shotgun stories (2008) Director Jeff Nichols Writer Jeff Nichols Actors Michael Shannon - Son Hayes Douglas Ligon - Boy Hayes Barlow Jacobs - Kid Hayes Natalie Canerday - Nicole Glenda Pannell - Annie Hayes Lynnsee Provence - Stephen Hayes

Shotgun Stories (2008)

Shotgun Stories is the debut of writer/director Jeff Nichols, and is produced by David Gordon Green. In many ways you’ll find thematic similarities to Green’s Undertow. I’m a fan of Green’s work and I would have checked out Shotgun Stories based on his name alone. However, I checked this movie out based on the talents of Michael Shannon who’s performance in Bug should have received an award or two. The same can be said of his performance as Son Hayes in Shotgun Stories.

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Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008) Director Jon Hurwitz Hayden Schlossberg Writer Jon Hurwitz Hayden Schlossberg Actors John Cho - Harold Lee Kal Penn - Kumar Patel Rob Corddry - Ron Fox Neil Patrick Harris - Neil Patrick Harris

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008)

I really enjoyed Harold & Kumar Go to Whitecastle. Honestly, I did. It was a genuinely funny stoner comedy that took your road-trip and played on racial stereotypes for actual humor. Not to mention Cho and Penn have a great onscreen chemistry.

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Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer (2008) Director Jon Knautz Writer John Ainslie and Jon Knautz Actors Trevor Matthews - Jack Brooks Robert Englund - Professor Crowley Rachel Skarsten - Eve James A. Woods - John Daniel Kash - Dr. Silverstein

Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer (2008)

So I had the fortune last week  to check out the ‘premiere’ of Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer(a Canadian horror production) at my favorite cinema (Bloor Street) as a part of Rue Morgue’s Cinemacabre screenings. Not only was the movie itself a pleasant surprise, but I had the pleasure of seeing Robert Englund (Willy!!!) in the flesh.

Funny enough passersby of the lineup to get into this movie were under the impression it was for the Dark Knight.

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The Dark Knight (2008) Director Christopher Nolan Writer Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan (screenplay) Actors Christian Bale - Bruce Wayne Heath Ledger - The Joker Aaron Eckhart - Harvey Dent Michael Caine - Alfred Pennyworth Maggie Gyllenhaal - Rachel Dawes Gary Oldman - Lt. James Gordon Morgan Freeman - Lucius Fox

The Dark Knight (2008)

When I saw Batman Begins for the first time there were not a lot of surprises for me. Christopher Nolan is one of very few directors I can name where I feel guaranteed that I am going to enjoy their work. Not to mention I also had read the David Goyer script a good year before the release and was telling everyone I knew how brilliant a reboot it was going to be. Most ,if not all, did not believe me at the time. Of course after seeing Batman Begins I think most people will be going into The Dark Knight with lofty expectations.

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Speed Racer (2008) Director Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski Writer Andy Wachowski & Larry Wachowski Actors Emile Hirsch - Speed Racer Christina Ricci - Trixie John Goodman - Pops Racer Susan Sarandon - Mom Racer Matthew Fox - Racer X Roger Allan - Arnold Royalton

Speed Racer (2008)

There is a scene in Speed Racer where Spritle(Speed’s pudgy little brother) and his pet monkey eat a large stash of candy that results in a sugar high so intense that it involves Spritle playing air guitar to Skynrd’s Free Bird while speeding down a hallway on a golf-cart. That sums up my experience seeing the live action Speed Racer.

Speed Racer, based on the classic animated cartoon created by Tatsuo Yoshida, is a great return to the directing chair for the Wachowskis. To say this film is a perfect fit and plays to the Wachowski’s strengths would be an understatement. A great majority of the imagery from the Matrix is influenced by some form or another of classic manga style. So to see the Wachowskis adapting the classic cartoon Speed Racer is a match made in heaven.

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Wanted(2008) Director Timur Bekmambetov Writer Michael Brandt & Derek Haas and Chris Morgan Actors James McAvoy - Wesley Gibson Morgan Freeman - Sloan Angelina Jolie - Fox Terence Stamp - Pekwarsky Thomas Kretschmann - Cross Common - Gunsmith

Wanted (2008)

To say that Wanted is based on a comic book is not being completely fair to its roots. Having listened to Creative Screenwriter’s Q&A session on Wanted, I learned that Wanted is really only based on the first issue by Mark Millar as a sort of launching pad as it was the only issue produced when they began hacking out the script. So if you read the comic after issue one the stories veer off in completely different directions, and somehow follow along parallel at times. To elaborate may ruin the film.

James McAvoy stars as Wesley Gibson, who’s alarmingly similar to Thomas Anderson of the Matrix, but McAvoy portrays the account manager working in a dead end job (sound familiar?) who wants something more with a startling panache that obviously overshadows Reeves’s wooden acting. Wesley finds out that his father, who walked out on him as an infant, is actually a world class assassin who is part a secret society called ‘The Loom’. Oh, and someone just killed him. Wanted is a tale about finding more in life and being the master of one’s own destiny. You could argue(I certainly could) that Wanted is incredibly similar both thematically and visually but thankfully its original enough to enjoy on its own.

Wanted is a film with a ton of twists, so I can’t even speak about some of the characters without ruining a great deal of the story. Needless to say Angelina Jolie is perfect as your sadistic and sexy mentor and you even get to hear Morgan Freeman layout some F-bombs.

Timur is perfectly suited for this film after making Nightwatch and Daywatch (which are I believe the highest grossing Russian films of all time) and he’s clearly a visual director. If you want your Rated R action flick that doesn’t feel sugar coated and just happens to be a load of fun, go check out Wanted.

REVIEW SCORE