Les Miserables

Andrew Lloyd Weber was at his height during my teen years I pent many an hour listening to Phantom of the Opera and Les Mis on CD. It wasn't until a few years ago that I finally got to see the stage production of Les Miserables. it was so totally worth the wait. Then the theatrical version came along. It looked good, but coming off the high of watching the stage production, I wasn't sure it would quite live up to the hype. Thankfully, this movie delivers a compelling version of Victor Hugo's masterpiece. It downplays the humor a bit, but it is compelling and moving experience. All the stars performances were utterly amazing. It would be difficult to chose a fav, but I think that Hugh Jackman has the edge here. The visual effects are. Perfectly integrated into the scenes, enhancing them, but staying subtle so as not to disrupt my suspension of disbelief. For any fan of Les Mis, this is a must-see.

THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Awesome! 

The Great Gatsby

When I first heard about Gatsby, I wasn’t interested. but then I heard it was directed by Baz Luhrman, my ears perked up. I loved his version of Moulin Rouge, so I was excited to see what he'd do with Gatsby. Perhaps I was expecting it to be more like Moulin Rouge, but boy was u wrong to be excited. What a waste of time this movie was. It was a painfully slow buildup to more slow. Way too much time was spent on exposition, and the movie was way too long at over 2 hours and 30 minutes. The music was good, but the dance scenes were a chaotic mess that did not flow well together at all. Honestly, I fell asleep for about 30-40 minutes (which is rare for me) and was happy that I woke close to the end of the movie. Don't wast our time on this one.

THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: WTF?

Star Trek: Into Darkness

I loved rebooted Star Trek movie released in. 2009. So naturally, I was awaiting the sequel with great anticipation. Of course, I was also skeptical: could they match the great mix of action and story while remaining true to the Star Trek legacy? The answer is mostly yes. Star Trek Into Darkness is a fantastic movie and a worthy successor to the original. More action and a great story that honors the Star Trek heritage. 

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

For me, the only part that really made no sense was when "young" Spock calls old Spock for advice. WTH? Spock is a rule follower and loci gal, and calling his other self is neither of these things. The only other small issue I had was the final fight scene. First they beam down Spock, he gets his ass kicked, so then they beam down Ohura, why?! Spock should have been able to beat Kahn on his own. 

Other than these minor issues, the movie was fantastic and a must-see for any fan of the rebooted movie series.

THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Awesome!

Oz the Great and Powerful

Many people across the world love The Wizard of Oz, so to take on this prequel Oz the Great and Powerful is truly a challenge. I went into this movie with skepticism, but came out a believer. I was convinced almost as soon as the curtain went up with the gorgeous opening title cards that captured the era and the spirit of Oz perfectly. The storyline is great, it honors the original Oz and its characters while expanding upon each in a fresh way. The movie has a good pace throughout. The visuals were amazing, fitting of such a magical world.. Some scenes did seem a bit obvious they were on sets, but I find it forgivable in this instance since the rest of the movie was spectacular. Nice action, excellent characters and performances throughout. A must see, especially if you have children.
THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Awesome!

Lincoln

Daniel Day Lewis was pretty fantastic as Lincoln and Sally Field portrayed a Mary Todd very well. However, this movie was a bit overhyped. While it seems pretty authentic in the portrayals, I just had a hard time swallowing the Lincoln "Yoda moments" where he just surreptitiously sits down and starts spouting off a famous quote. Felt a bit too contrived. Perhaps it really happened that way, but the way it came across in the movie was lame. The movie captured an interesting time in the history of our country and Lincoln's life, but it feel like a drag. Although I'm not sure what could have been cut, it probably could have been about 30 minutes shorter and still had the same effect. The CG was beautiful and conveyed the time period very well. It rarely seemed noticeably as it mixed with the live actors. Bottom line is if you are a Lincoln fan, you will love it and if you're not, well, wait til it comes up on your Netflix queue.
THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Meh.

Iron Man 3

Wow, what a letdown. Iron Man 3 is easily the worst of the trilogy and possibly the worst movie Marvel has made since Daredevil. It starts out slow and goes, well slow, most of the movie. If you're looking for heavy action, look for a different movie. The visual effects were amazing. The story itself wasn't bad. The performances were good. But it just wasn't as action packed nor as good as it could have been. The last 30 minutes have some great action scenes and and feel more like the first Iron Man movies than the first 1 and a half hours.

SPOILERS AHEAD...
That and, they completely wasted the talents of the very esteemed Ben Kingsley. They relegated The Mandarin to nothing more than a farce, a joke. This is one of Iron Man's top arch enemies and he's turned into a doped up actor that is a patsy for the real bad guy?! You fucked up Marvel, plain and simple. Then there's the trip to Tennessee and a whole 30 minutes Tony spends befriending this kid, which completely stops any momentum the movie had going.
THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Bah.