The final installment of the Batman series has finally been released. It was the most anticipated movie of the year, after the huge success of The Dark Knight a few years back. Personally, I’ve been excited about the release of this movie for a long time, and couldn’t wait to see it. When I finally did, I was slightly disappointed in the result, but I’ll get back to that in a minute. The movie takes place years after the events...
Read MoreIf you liked 2002’s Spider-Man, you’ll probably like the recently released The Amazing Spider-Man, mostly because it’s pretty much the same movie. Sony decided to reboot a franchise that arguably didn’t really need rebooting (they could have just replaced the cast and kept going), and it especially didn’t need rebooting because they didn’t veer much from the original movie. They changed a few things, such as replacing Mary Jane with Gwen Stacey (but they are pretty much the same character...
Read MoreIn the past week, the Utah Jazz traded for Mo Williams and Marvin Williams. They traded away Devin Harris, and are likely to scrap CJ Miles, Josh Howard, and Raja Bell. Does this make the team better overall? I think it does, and I’m happy to see that Jazz making a few moves in the off season. I don’t think these trades alone make them a ton better, but hopefully with Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors maturing and playing more...
Read MorePrometheus is directed by Ridley Scott, who was made famous when he made Alien in 1979. Since then he’s directed such hits as Gladiator, American Gangster, Thelma & Louise, and one of my personal favorites, Matchstick Men. Although he was made famous by science-fiction movies like Alien and Blade Runner, it’s been decades since he’s directed a science-fiction film. Now in his mid-70s, he’s finally gone back to his roots with Prometheus, which a prequel to the 1979 film that...
Read MoreWes Anderson has been making movies since the mid-90’s, and his style has pretty much stayed the same. A lot of critics count that against him, but I say if something works, stick with it. He was starting to waiver a bit with his last two live-action films, “The Life Aquatic” and “The Darjeeling Limited,” but made a huge turn-around with “The Fantastic Mr. Fox.” For those of you who don’t know Wes Anderson’s work, he is probably most famous...
Read More21 Jump Street is the funniest movie I’ve seen in a while. I have never liked Channing Tatum, but he and Jonah Hill were perfect together. The movie begins in high school, where Tatum plays the popular jock and Hill plays the nerdy kid with no friends and no date to prom. Seven years later, they meet up again in the police academy and become best friends and partners. When they finally graduate from the academy, they are underwhelmed by...
Read MoreAfter sweeping the Jazz and Clippers and seeming like they’d easily win another championship, the San Antonio Spurs lost in six games to the Oklahoma City Thunder. I just want to say that I really thought the Spurs would win that series in five games. I clearly don’t know much about basketball… I’m glad to see that a small-market team like the Thunder can make it to the finals, and will likely win an NBA championship. It’s good for the...
Read MoreThe Avengers is basically Iron Man 3 with some Captain America, Thor, and Hulk mixed in for good measure, which isn’t a bad thing. Everyone has their moments, but ultimately the filmmakers (Joss Whedon of TV’s Firefly) were smart in understanding that Iron Man is everyone’s favorite. The idea of putting all these superheroes together is kind of ridiculous, even if it was built up in the other films. That said, it works pretty well and The Avengers is surprisingly...
Read MoreMy wife and I recently watched the series “Downton Abbey,” an acclaimed British television program that was featured on PBS in the United States. It has won numerous awards, including about 12 Emmys last year, but I’m not sure it’s worth all the hype. If you haven’t seen it, it’s about a large english estate in the early 1900s and deals with the lives of the residents and servants and how they interact and co-exist. It is interesting to see...
Read MoreI’m a Dr. Seuss fan. I loved reading his books as a kid, and as an adult, I’m looking forward to reading them to my son. But I don’t think they have translated well to the big screen in recent years. ‘The Cat in the Hat,’ ‘Grinch’, and others aren’t my favorites. Most of the time, I feel like the movies don’t quite capture the Seuss magic. Another issue is that trying to convert a short children’s book into a...
Read MoreWith the NBA season coming to an end soon, the Jazz’s playoff chances are still up in the air. I’m still not sure what to make of the team, as they’ve look amazing at times, but have lost to some bad teams as well. They played great early in the month, but have cooled off since. I’m still hopeful that they can turn it around and make the post season, but it will be difficult. The key for the Jazz...
Read MoreAfter a long hiatus, Mad Men, a show that won the Emmy for Best Drama four straight years, has finally returned. If you’re not familiar with the show, it follows the lives of the employees of an advertising agency in the 1960s. At times great, it can also be slow and boring at times. It’s interesting, but I’m not sure it’s worth all the hype. The dialogue and acting are top-notch, but sometimes you’ll watch an entire episode and wonder...
Read MoreMany Americans simply can’t afford health insurance in today’s economy. This leaves a lot of people scratching their heads about what to do about insuring their families and themselves. There are programs that can help individuals and families if you make under a certain amount of money each year. Read More…
Read MoreIf nothing else, we learned in February that the Jazz have a lot of young talent, and could have a bright future. While the young guys aren’t ready for big-time minutes yet, they’ve shown glimpses of greatness. Enes Kanter has been a great rebounder all year, but he’s starting to learn how to score in the paint, play better team defense, and run the floor. He has a motor the never stops, and I’m truly excited to watch him progress....
Read MoreEddie Murphy is back! Sort of… While Tower Heist is the funniest live action role Murphy’s had since the mid-90s, that isn’t really saying much. Still, Tower Heist was surprisingly fun to watch and had some really good moments, a lot of which involved Murphy, but more of them featured Matthew Broderick. The best part of the movie, however, is Casey Affleck, who manages to steal every scene in every movie he’s in. You probably remember him best from Oceans...
Read MoreEvery time Woody Allen releases a movie, there are always a bunch of critics who proclaim that “Woody’s back,” as if he’s gone somewhere for 50 years. The truth is that he was probably overrated in the 70s and 80s, and is probably underrated in the 90s and 00s. He’s always made good, funny movies, and Midnight in Paris is no exception. Owen Wilson stars as a Hollywood screenwriter who longs to write a great novel and move to Paris....
Read MoreHugo is the first family movie Martin Scorsese has ever made, and only the second PG rated movie. Like Woody Allen, Scorsese has made a bit of a comeback in the last few years, making The Aviator (one of my all-time favorites), the Departed (good, but overrated), and now Hugo, nominated for best picture. I didn’t see Hugo in the theater, and they say it’s really made for 3D. While I can’t speak for that, I can say that I...
Read MoreSteven Spielberg is back with two movies late last year, and I saw one of them. I’m not sure, but it feels like Spielberg has lost his touch. He hasn’t made a really good movie since 2002’s Minority Report, and some of his most recent movies have been disasters (see Indiana Jones 4). Tintin is a bit of a return to form for Spielberg (although it’s his first animated feature), and it certainly has it’s moments, but overall it feels...
Read MoreI have to admit that I wasn’t too excited about this movie, but it’s January and there’s not much to see, so I checked it out and was actually pretty impressed. Nothing about this movie is believable in any way, but if you can forget about that for a couple of hours, you’ll probably really enjoy this film. Starring Sam Worthington (Avatar, The Debt) as a man who stands on a ledge for most of the movie, and Elizabeth Banks...
Read MoreAfter almost a year of waiting, 30 Rock is back on Thursday nights, and the first four episodes are some of the funniest the series has ever produced. If you have never watched, or have tried but just couldn’t get into it, now is a good time to try again. Last season had it’s moments, but overall wasn’t great. The writing lacked punch, and the show often came across as too smart for its own good. It felt like it...
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