reviewer

I was shocked when I heard the news about Michael Jackson. I can’t say I was a big fan for many years, but I certainly due respect his work and respect what he has done for the music industry. After all, I was around during the 80’s and was able to appreciate the incredible artistry he gave to music and dance as well as videos. His legacy will live on and he will definitely be remembered for many years to come.

No one can forget a true genius and Michael Jackson was certainly that. I feel sorry for him in his latter years and his children that were left behind without any real parents. Such a sad life is set forth for these kids and I can only pray for the best for them. Who is going to raise them? Will they wonder who their real parents are and will they miss or wonder what ever happened to their biological parents and the man that raised them? This is a very sad passing and tremendously an end of an era. RIP

In the latest single from Ciara “Love Sex and Magic” off of her third album “Fantasy” has a pop/r&b rythm to it and sounds like a fun song but it isn’t. Great song for the dance clubs, but after watching the video all I can see is that Ciara is not an artist what so ever. No real artist is going to expose as much of themselves as possible to get attention. There is a different between being sexy and being a tramp.

Justin Timberlake is once again teaming up with another female artist that wants to be a beyonce or janet jackson. Of course he’s going to say yes to it. All he has to do is show up and sing or rap a few words while the girl is shaking herself all over him. I think it is funny that Ciara can’t be her own person and is trying to present herself as a beyonce wanna be with the same hair and the same type of clothing and the same kind of suggestive moves. It proves to me more and more that when a singer does this kind of crap that they don’t have enough confidence in their own work to make it sell. The song could actually work on its own without being a sleeze in the video. What would have been cool is to have both her and Justin dance in the video instead of allowing him to touch her rear a million times and lick each other and so on. It would be a little helpful to have a rear to touch but it becomes laughable when a skinny tiny girl tries to portray herself as a hot mama. If you don’t trust your music and turn to a sleazy video then you will have to be at least a sexy woman. After watching the video to “Love Sex and Magic” i don’t care to hear it again on the radio. I feel as though the song is stupid and annoying and can become increasingly aggravating if it continues to be played again and again. Just a note for anyone that wants to be a singer….try singing and trust your work if your good. Otherwise you will just last long enough for 15 minutes to pass you by.

After all of the hype surrounding Twilight and everyone having long discussions about the film I thought I should take some time out and watch the movie. After all, so many teenagers were reading the book and were in hysterics when it came to the movie. The girls fell in love with Edward and started wearing the t-shirts and buying anything and everything Twilight.

I anticipated the film would be great. For how everyone talked about it I thought it had to be good. No one said it was a disappointment, right? Well, I must say there are a few things I would change, but after all of the hype I have to admit it wasn’t that bad. There were definitely parts that were too long and drawn out when they could have gotten to the meat of the movie much sooner. I thought the actors were rather goofy at first, but I can see why teens love the characters. Even with all of the silliness you actually can start to get drawn into the story. I imagine the book was very good.

All of the actors were relatively unknown. Smart move here, but I would have changed the main two actors. They were ok but there had to be better actors who could portray the parts better. These two tended to be a little too silly to me and sometimes corny.

The best part of Twilight was near the end when the family went out to play baseball. Though I didn’t understand why they kept emphasizing why they had to play in the rain. When the team of human killers came along is when the film started to take off. It regained my interest and I was also pleased that they were able to eliminate all potential horrific gore that sometimes ruins the film. The friction between the two vampire groups was very cool and the idea of the werewolves fighting the vampires is also interesting though Twilight lightly touched on it. I believe they are setting it up for the next edition of Twilight.

All in all, the film was ok. I can’t highly recommend it but I would recommend reading the book since it probably went into more detail of the storyline. Direction was alright but spent too much time with Edward and Bella (the main girl) staring at each other without explaining anything. And I have to gag when Bella appeared at school and was considered soooo hot that every guy seemed to desire her. Hence the name Bella which means beautiful. Gag again! Most new kids are harrassed when they show up at school so I just thought this was kind of ridiculous and annoying especially since the girl wasn’t beautiful at all.

Recently I watched the movie Changeling. This is a long and dramatic film about a boy who was kidnapped in Los Angeles. This film was apparently based on a true story. Changeling was directed by Clint Eastwood and starred Angelina Jolie. There was absolutely nothing wrong with this film other than the intense reality of it which made it sometimes hard to watch. While the LA cops go in search for Jolie’s son they find another young boy that seems to fit the description of her son, however, he isn’t. Throughout most of the film you go through the horrible emotional pain and anguish that a mother would feel if she lost her child. Jolie was incredible in taking you through the gut wrenching traumatic experience. When the police show up with the wrong boy and she confronts them they get angry with her and eventually put her in an insane asylum. There she found out how many other people were put through the same thing she was put through. One lady was put in for arguing with the police and another went in for fighting back after being beaten by a police officer among many other situations.

Changeling touched on several stories. Along with the disappearance of the boy and a new boy to replace him who wasn’t the right child, the focus went to the corruption of the police force in LA and a relationship that was developed between a heartstrickened mother and a preacher (played by John Malchovich) who was able to help people through using his own radio show. The story also touched on how boys were being abducted by a mass killer and the horrific way he would kill them.

Incredible film and it is definitely worth watching, but beware that this Changeling can be disturbing in some parts. I don’t think I could watch this film again, but it is an experience and a movie I definitely appreciate being made. Great acting, great directing, and simply great movie making at its best.

Boogeyman 2 was released in 2008 on dvd. It is the sequel to the 2005 boogeyman film. The original was a great and original idea that left you enticed in the story. It wasn’t one of the best horror films I have ever seen, but it definitely was worth watching and was entertaining. However, the sequel didn’t do the first film justice whatsoever. The sequel continued to refer to the first boogeyman’s main character as he left behind a journal describing his experience. Well, if they explained enough they would have remembered that the guy survived since he found out what killed the boogeyman. Of course, the boogeyman would return, but to say that he managed to kill of the main character that figured out a way to get rid of him was the wrong direction to take.

This sequel begins with showing a girl and her dog who end up getting attacked by the boogeyman. Apparently the main guy in the first film was the father to the girl and she kept telling everyone she found out who killed her father and of course no one believed her. She eventually got killed as her friend began to believe that the boogeyman existed. From there it got worse as she continued to harp on the same thing….the boogeyman exists and her friends keep telling her that he doesn’t. At this point I am sitting there thinking who cares. Why not try to figure out how to get rid of him. There was no thought about that and basically they all became victims of the boogeyman. This film was annoying and a waste of time. They took a great concept and turned it into something completely silly and annoying. The characters were intriguing and the acting was great as well. It became a little silly near the end as they seemed to anticipate the film to be a corny b film, but overall the actors did a great job in trying to save this sorry film. One of the most irritating things a horror film can do is try to shock their audience by not actually scaring them but making a loud sound to make you jump. I really hate that.

After the Academy Awards aired with very minimum surprises, there was much talk about the reaction of Angelina Jolie when Brad Pitt’s ex Jennifer Aniston was talking on stage. I saw when the cameras to a quick shot of Angelina laughing, but there was nothing wrong with her reaction from what I could see. After watching it back I didn’t see anything wrong. I heard stories that she was laughing at Jennifer and that there was a big gasp from the press when they noticed Angelina laughing. They tried to make a story out of nothing. Did the press realize that Jennifer was actually trying to be funny with the lines that the show gave her to say alongside Jack Black? Anyway, I think they should leave these two actresses alone. There’s no battle over Brad anymore as Jennifer has moved on to other relationships and Brad continues to stay with Angelina and raise their many children.

The Oscars will air tonight with much anticipation of great moments to occur. There have been a great amount of past moments that has aired on 30 minute shows promoting the anticipation of great moments for this year. The most talked about nomination is Heath Ledger’s supporting role in the Dark Knight. There is a lot of talk about if he wins what will happen. Will his 3 year old daughter accept or the mother of his child or a member of his family? No one knows.

Kate Winslet wasn’t nominated twice (best actress and supporting actress) like she was for the Golden Globes. Therefore, we can’t anticipate her winning two awards again, but it would have been great to see happen. Winslet is up against Angelina Jolie for the Changling, Meryl Streep for Doubt, Melissa Leo for the River, and Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married. There are three probable winners here with Winslet being the front runner. Streep and Jolie would be the other choices to win.

Best actor nominees consist of some great actors. Sean Penn for Milk, Brad Pitt for Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Mickey Rourke for the Wrestler, Frank Langella for Fros/Nixon, and Richard Jenkins for the Visitor are the nominees. The front runner is Mickey Rourke. Many want to see him win simply for the comeback story. Rourke is a great actor and had lost his quest for great acting roles until he was finally offered a good one. If he doesn’t win then we can anticipate an upset by either Penn or Pitt. These are all under-rated actors to say the least.

For the supporting category for the actors alongside Ledger are Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder, Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road, Phillip Seymore Hoffman for Doubt, and Josh Brolin for Milk. If Ledger doesn’t win the Oscar then expect an upset by Brolin or Downey jr. For actresses those nominated in the supporting roles are Amy Adams for doubt, Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Viola Davis for Doubt, Taraji P. Henson for the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and Marisa Tormei for the Wrestler. This category can go to any one of the choices. There is no stand out actress here and I think they could have gone further than the three main films they chose to nominate this year.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the Wrestler, Milk, the Reader, Frost/Nixon, and Slumdog Millionare are the choices for best film of the year. Milk or curious case will probably win. There could have been better choices for this category as well.

David Chokachi

Confessions of a Teen Idol is heading for its finale. This series lasted only five weeks. Most of the reality shows out there last between two to three months long. This show didn’t last very long and that’s disappointing. I must admit I find myself really enjoying this show. It gives an inside look into what the former teen idols have to go through in order to try to make back into the acting and/or music business.

One of my favorite scenes from tonight’s show was when one of the professional casting directors told the other how she thought David Chokachi (of Baywatch fame) was really cute. She couldn’t stop saying how cute she thought he was which I thought was really funny. He is the best looking one of the six and should find it the easiest to get work, but the others definitely should be able to find what they are looking for since they are talented individuals and didn’t get where they were by luck alone. They have talent and the ability to draw people into what they are doing which is probably why I like this show so much.

Christopher Atkins missed two episodes or rather an episode and a half. One show he had left so that he could go to a family members wedding. Another episode he missed going out to one of the challenges since he decided he was going to talk with some casting directors that will help him find work, but he returned midway through the show. When he came back nothing was said on what had happened. Did he succeed in getting work? Did they cast him for a job? Nothing was talked about and he just went out with the guys to their next challenge. I was curious to know what had happened.
Eric

Adrian Zmed left to go perform on a cruise ship that he worked for. This was what he has been doing to make money and he says he enjoys it. However, he desires to get back into television or movies. Once he returned he went with the other guys to finish up their challenge for the week. Eric Niles (from MTV fame) returned to the show at the end of last week’s episode after he left the week before after he got upset with one of the challenges. It’s weird but the show isn’t the same when one member is missing.
Jeremy

At the end of the show they announced the finale would be next week. That really bites. I don’t think these guys had enough time to progress and enough air time to be able to show Hollywood that they are available for work. This show was a great idea and they just need to come up with more stuff for the guys to do before calling it quits to set them off on their own. I also want to know what happens to them afterwards. Will Jeremy keep trying to get acting parts, will he turn back to drugs, or will he give up his acting career and get a different kind of job? I think it would be a cool idea to continue the show as they go their separate ways and stride to get work. Many stars have had their own reality shows so why not these guys? It’s an idea.

Kiefer Sutherland stars in Mirrors. This film is considered a horror and I don’t know why he decided to do this kind of movie. Kiefer can do a lot better than this kind of film. Mirrors was a good film but it could have been a lot better. The story line was good but somehow it fell a little short and didn’t completely deliver. I must add the ending kind of sucked. One of the most important things about any story is the ending. Mirrors didn’t have to end so abruptly, leaving you up in the air.

Mirrors is about a former cop (Kiefer) who has had to go throug rehab for alcohol abuse due to a bad experience while working. He begins trying to repair his relationship with his wife and family by taking on a job at an old building that had a fire. He becomes a night watchman to soon find out that the mirrors are alive. Eventually the mirrors can kill from any mirror located anywhere. Kiefer tries to figure out how to stop the killings and what exactly do the mirrors want.

Mirrors have a couple things wrong with it. There is too much gore for one. No need to show someone splitting open their neck or face. I’m not into that especially with a horror film that actually has a plot. It didn’t need to take this direction. With great acting throughout there was absolutely no need to turn to gore to make someone sick. The other main problem is the lack of its climax. It was unnecessary and silly. Then the ending was frustrating and didn’t make too much sense. If you see it you will know what I mean. I don’t want to spoil the ending.

Basically, Mirrors was ok. It could have been great which is frustrating since they had a great idea. The writer didn’t know how to exactly end the film. It could have been left on a good note but they chose a different direction. Bad decision.

Wanted stars Angelina Jolie, James, McAvoy, and Morgan Freeman. The direction was by Timur Bekmambetov who is a Russian director. Incredible shots were made throughout the film. Great dialogue and acting. I was very impressed with the movie and its full package. The only complaint I have is the amount of close up shots of people having their head blown off. It was like some of the video games I see nowadays. Very hard for me to look at and typically I turn away as I see the bullet about to penetrate the person’s head.

Wanted is full of action and sometimes silly action scenes but still very exciting to watch. Great car chases and fight scenes. This is definitely an action packed thriller of a movie. The lead actor, James portrays a wimpy office worker who is unable to confront his boss about her constant beligerant badgering along with avoiding confrontation with his best friend who is having sex with his live in girlfriend. He becomes a hero in his own mind as he develops the courage to face all of the people that have caused him problems throughout the past couple of years. He becomes trained to be an assassin just like his father who he is told died in one of his assignments.

If you want to see a film that will keep you at the end of your seat throughout then check out Wanted. I don’t know why it didn’t stay in theatres longer but it certainly should become a dvd favorite.