17 Again (Burr Steers, 2009)
A man disappointed with life (Matthew Perry) gets a second chance at being 17 and turns into Zach Efron (who is also gradually turning into Rob Lowe) and you know what? It’s okay.
Mr. Brooks (Bruce A Evans, 2007)
I managed about 20 minutes… what about you?
The Siege (Edward Zwick, 1998)
Islamic terrorists hold NYC under siege and the city is placed under marshal law. Human rights go out the window as torture and internment without trial arrive on U.S. soil, oh I see… this is the titular siege. Denzel Washington gives it a good run and Bruce Willis turns up the ham as the general who loves his country just a bit too much but, now that we know how this story ends in real life, the film feels irrelevant and rather fantastical in it’s belief that the FBI will be there to save us from ourselves.
Adventureland (Greg Mottola, 2009)
Fortunately all the jokes are in the trailer and, instead of another Superbad (2007), we are left with a genuinely touching drama with some great performances and plenty of truth.
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (Martin Ritt, 1965)
Pay attention 007, this is how it should be done. Richard Burton is on cracking form in this aptly uber-cynical Cold War spy thriller. A fantastic film from a fantastic book by John Le Carre.
Surveillance (Jennifer Chambers Lynch, 2008)
Okay so Bill Pullman, Julia Ormond, Michael Ironside and the far too infrequently seen French Stewart are always worth watching but once you see where things are headed (which you will do long before anyone on screen) it is hard to remain interested despite the high level of talent involved.
Friday the 13th (Marcus Nispel, 2009)
Lets be honest, there is no point in grumbling about a remake and the purity of the original etc if the film was preceded by about a million sequels and the original was a bit of a rip off in the first place… but there is plenty to grumble about when the film just isn’t scary in any way at all.
Bill Pullman has had an interesting career, no? He’s been in movies like “While You Were Sleeping,” but also strange things like David Lynch’s “Lost Highway” and “You Kill Me.” He’s so scattershot in his choice of roles that I almost kind of like him.
I would really recommend giving Mr Brooks another go, Kevin Costner really was just fantastic in that film. It might be a little slow to start off with. But I thought it was very interesting.
17 Again is on my to watch list.