Star Wars Holiday Special (1978)

The Star Wars Holiday Special.1
by hansonataint

Move over Manos: Hands of Fate, I have found a film even worse. The shocker...it is brought to you by non other then Mr. Star Wars, George Lucas. Riding high on the success of Star Wars: A New Hope, a project was rushed together for the 1978 Christmas season. In his defense, George didn't have a whole lot to do with it but technically it should be attached to his legacy--something I can only assume will haunt him forever.

The Star Wars Holiday Special aired just one time but continues to live on due to VHS taped recordings. The special is all about life day and Wookies but I couldn't really find a plot anywhere. Pay special attention to how far into the special you get before there is any english (not wookie) spoken. Try to make it that far before you go read the wikipedia entry--fascinating.

0 stars out of 5

Hotel Chevalier (2007)

Hotel Chevalier is a short film (13 minutes)that acts as a prologue for the feature length film, The Darjeeling Limited, which I plan on seeing in early release tonight. Instead of giving you a quick summary, you should fire up iTunes and download it for free from the iTunes store.

3 stars out of 5 (assuming it will add to The Darjeeling Limited)

Hot Fuzz (2007)

A hot shot cop gets shipped out of London to the uneventful countryside after doing his job a little too well. Of course things aren't exactly what they seem in the sleepy little village. The British crew from Shaun of the Dead are back with this buddy cop'ish romp. The main combo of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are better then ever. If you liked, "Shaun" then this is a no brainer.

4 stars out of 5

The Science of Sleep (2005)

After moving in with his aunt to start a new job, a young man (Gael Garcia Bernal) falls for the neighbor girl. The job turns out to be a big disappointment leaving him to dream about what could be. Artsy dream sequences become more and more prevalent as this film goes on until eventually I couldn't find the plot or even tell what was real. Maybe that is the whole point. While entertaining I would pass this one by.

2 stars out of 5

Thumbsucker (2005)

Despite being in high school, Justin in a chronic thumb sucker. This small independent film follows Justin (Lou Taylor Pucci) as he ditches one emotional crutch for others in his quest to become happy with himself. While entertaining I must have missed something about this film or what it is trying to say. Is it another teen angst movie? Is it about the dangers of prescription medication? Maybe someone out there can make sense of it--drop us a comment.

3 stars out of 5

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

Since December 17, 1989 there have been 400 episodes, 8800 minutes, of The Simpsons on television. In its prime, it was a pop culture sensation; probably bigger than anything on TV before. Not only as the most popular show on TV, but the best show on TV, The Simpsons could have made a movie in the summer of 1997, and it would've easily been a huge hit at the box office. Now it's a decade later. The Simpsons hasn't been the same for the last five seasons or so and it is merely a television mainstay than a television phenomenon. Yet this is time for The Simpsons Movie and it will easily be a huge hit at the box office. But the question going through everyone's mind will be "Is it actually going to be any good?"

Well, it actually is. WOO-HOO!!

Since Blinky the three-eyed fish appeared in that classic season 2 episode it is commonly known that Springfield is a horribly polluted city. But it isn't until 17 years later that the pollution has reached the point of a toxic wasteland. And the boiling point is completly one character's fault, who I shall leave nameless as I don't want to play spoilers. Along the way the Simpson family finds themselves in Alaska, and the fate of Springfield from the evil Environmental Protection Agency is in their hands.

The plot holds up enough. It is zany and unrealistic but it is, after all, a movie. And a cartoon movie at that, so it works very well. The story holds your attention throughout its 87 minutes which is just enough to tell its tale and leave you satisfied. Anything less and you'd want your money back, while 15 minutes more would've stretched the plot too thin and cause it to drag.

However, the most important part of any animated comedy is always the laughs. By the looks of the last few seasons, that seems to be the biggest question mark walking into the theater. It may not be on the same level as a Season 4 episode, but it still delivers enough. Anything more would've been asking too much; you wouldn't demand a 40 year old Hall of Famer to play like his 25 year old MVP self. The Simpsons Movie may not be hitting home runs like the show did ten years ago, but it does have more timely doubles than strikeouts. Even if Homer has become too stupid lately, the movie doesn't allow itself to become "the Homer and His Crazy Antics Show." It has amount of stupid Homer comedy that we've grown to love without going overboard. Mixed in with great satirical jabs, sight gags, and funny one liners and the laughs come at you consistently. Plus, it's cool to see them do a few things that couldn't be done on TV. They hold from pushing the envelope too far, this isn't South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, but the spots are picked nicely and are great surprises.

The one thing that has always made The Simpsons something more special than your average animated comedy is its heart. You may laugh a little more at an episode of Family Guy or South Park, but there isn't the same connection to the characters that has made The Simpsons the best. The Simpsons Movie didn't forget the emotion either. Almost at the expense of most well-loved secondary characters (Flanders is the only one I can remember with a substantial role), it concentrates on the family unit. While I did want a little more Mr. Burns, I think that was the right way to go. A lot of time is spent on each Simpson family member. And in large part due to the always superb voice cast (one thing that hasn't dropped off in quality throughout the 18 seasons), we do care about their struggles.

Going in, I was so worried about this movie. As a huge Simpson fan I wanted to like this so much, but as a rational Simpson fan I was anticipating a disappointment. Luckily, the writers took their time for good reason and it actually is pretty good. Worth seeing for any devoted Simpsons fan (most Americans) or any casual Simpsons fan (everyone else in the world).

3 out of 5 stars

The UP Documentaries (1964-2005)

What do the things a seven year says tell you about their future? Do they drastically change or can you see that same little person when you revisit them in their teens, 20s, 30s, and 40s? Michael Apted has those same questions, and many others, in the making of this monumental cinematic achievement.

Back in 1964, a British television station set out to make a documentary showcasing the class differences in Great Britain. Their various teachers handpicked the lucky ones featured. There are kids in a state-provided boys home, from a crowded public school in a working class neighborhood, a farmer's boy in a school house, and upper class kids in posh boarding schools. You see what these kids think about eachother, love, and life at seven years old. Then seven years later they were revisited by Michael Apted (an assisstant on 7 Up) to see how they have changed and how they have stayed the same. And Apted kept coming back every 7 years until they were 49 in the latest installment, 2005's 49 Up.

For a society fascinated by reality T.V., The Up Documentaries present reality in its purest form. The thing that makes these so interesting is that these are just real people living their lives. There are no superficial scenarios that put them in competition for money or trapped with strangers or looking for love. They are regular people; you watch them go through puberty, go to college, start a family, get divorced, lose hair, get fat, and have grandchildren. Yet you can always see a little bit of the seven year old at each of them during any age.

While Up is a very fulfilling movie experience, it does take a major commitment. If you Netflix it, it takes up six discs on the queue, and they are pretty straight forward in style. There isn't a lot a stylish tricks to keep your attention (ie. This Film Is Not Yet Rated) or comedic relief (ie. Bowling For Columbine). You watch people talk with shots of them living their life interspersed in their interviews. But it is the people that hold your interest. You can watch and connect to particular people. As different things enter and leave their lives you feel joy for them or sorrow. When the credits role on each film you look forward to what has happened to them in the next seven years. And when 49 Up ended, I was left looking forward to 2012 to see what they are like at 56.

4 out of 5 stars (very interesting individually but as a whole... amazing!)

*on a sidenote; the other day I watched my first episode of the latest season of The Simpsons, and the entire episode was a parody of The Up Documentaries! A British documentary director visited Homer, Marge, Wiggum, Professor Frink, and Moe every eight years for his films "Growing Up Springfield." The episode even had the exact same music playing over the end credits. Needless to say, I was very excited about the coincidence.