I have heard great things about this movie from my friends and it's won a lot of awards, so I figured Silver Linings Playbook had to be good, right? Wrong. This movie is crazy boring and painfully slow going. Perhaps it is because it's billed as a comedy. There is very little comedy here, mostly drama and way too much of it. The only saving graces are two: Jennifer Lawrence is hot and the last 30 minutes. Within that last 30 minutes are what the movie could have been and clearly where it hit its stride. Yes, I know some movies do need to take time to build up, but this movie spent too long on it and as such, they had to end it quickly or risk running over time.
THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Bah.

Fantastic. Hitch is well played by Anthony Hopkins, so much so that if I closed my eyes, I would swear that Hitchcock had come back from the dead to star in this film. Compelling and unusual just like the man himself. I liked the mini mystery within the movie as well as seeing the behind-the-scenes of the filming of Pyscho. Not sure how much was real vs. "artistic license", but it played well on screen and felt authentic through and through. If you are a fan of Hitchcock movies, you have to see this delightful romp.
THIS MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: Awesome!

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! 

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?

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.

Chadwick Boseman plays Jackie Robinson in 42 with a great balance of dignity, power, and vulnerability. Wow, I didn't recognize Harrison Ford at first as Branch Rickey! Probably one of his best performances ever. The storyline flowed pretty evenly throughout, except near the end some quick cuts and  sequences played out of order seemed a strange choice. Looked like they were trying to cram too much into the ending. However, this did not lessen the emotional impact of the story in any way. The CG stadiums for the most part were nice to look at, but a bit too obvious that they were shot green screen. Despite my few nitpicks, 42 is a fantastic movie and is not to be missed!
MOVIEDOOD RATES IT: AWESOME!

Prairie Home Companion: Netflixit. Quirky. Odd. Cute. Loveable Characters. Homey, folksy feeling. http://bit.ly/mYMFV

Gran Turino is now on DVD/BR: Awesome! Fantastic story, compelling characters. A must see! http://tinyurl.com/66fblk

Taking of Pelham 123: Eh. Not suspenseful. Crappy driving. A few outrageous moments. Anticlimatic. http://tinyurl.com/2l5dwa

Dances w/Wolves: Awesome! Stunning cinematography. Compelling. Moving. Funny. Beautiful. Moving. Long but worth it. http://tinyurl.com/7xd6h

P.S. I Love You: Awesome! Charming. Touching. Funny. Beautiful. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0431308/

We Own the Night: Bah! Boring. 1D characters. No emotional connection w/chars. Slow moving. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498399/

I Heart Huckabees: Eh. Philosophical weirdess. Crazy. Odd. Interesting characters. Catchy main theme. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0356721/

Dr. Horrible's Blog: Awesome! 3rd viewing & still rocks. Simple. Elegant. Gr8 songs & storytelling. Tragic. Fun. http://tinyurl.com/nyt4dm

Last of Mohicans: Sweet! Slow, deliberate build up. Great characters, great story. http://tinyurl.com/89cnw

DH Season Finale: Sweet! As always, mayhem and twists on Wistera lane. Nice cliffhanger this ep. :)

Angels & Demons: Sweet! Great adaption. Nice action and pacing. How I pictured it when I read the book. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0808151/

Okay I only saw the last 10 minutes of Grey's Anatomy Season Finale, and it was AWESOME! Need to start watching this show again. I miss it!

LOST: AWESOME! More revelations. More questions. More story. Someone we've been waiting to meet appears. Way to lead into the final season!

The Unusuals: Gets better every week! Quotable one-liners. Delahoy's storyline is great. Intriguing case this ep. The mortician rocks! :)