Frost/Nixon

This one had a long, slow start. I was a little put off by the make up and how the characters were put together to look almost theatrical to me, but I do cut them some slack since they were portraying specific, and recent historical people. The person who played Frost did an excellent job and the guy who played Nixon seemed to warm up to it. Or maybe I warmed up to him. Either way, about one third to the end, it picked up and went out with a bang. The film really captured some great moments, emotions, and psyches.

This was a Groovy Movie Monday flick.

Let The Right One In

A young boy. Cruel classmates. And a new friend comes along... This was a story about social isolation and survival. It was also about vampires and watching your back at night! I loved it. It is a Swedish independent film, Låt den rätte komma in, with a solid storyline and creative parallels. It's not often you get to see a horror film that could carry itself on plot alone. This one not only does that, but it does it along with a good dose of the creeps. There won't be many movies this year that I like more. We saw this one at the Dobe theater in Austin, TX at the Monday, January 19 matinee.

Cleaner

2007 w/ Samuel L. Jackson, Ed Harris

I didn't expect a lot from this, but the description of a man whose job was cleaning up crime scenes, and realized he had cleaned up evidence of a homicide, grabbed my attention. The start was so-so and seemed like it was going to sell itself on gore, but then the story kicked in and it did well through the middle. I liked it. The "who done it" aspect was strong and the movie was not too long - a quality in movies I like. It was ok to good.

Watched the DVD, finished January 2, 2009.

Trailer: THIS IS A SPOILER
http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi3049128217/

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

This was Disney's recent version that came out in 2005.

Beautifully filmed, beautifully acted, beautifully produced. Casting was right on. Lucy, the youngest sibling, was played by this great little girl who was talented (Her expression when she opened the spare room door and saw that foreboding and totally alluring, off-limits wardrobe for the first time was unforgettable) and totally adorable. You can't help but love her. The rest of the kids were equally as great. The story had depth, meaning, but stayed fun and fast moving. The fantasy was spectacular.

Watched this on DVD, Dec 31, 2008 and finished Jan 1, 2009.

Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cw89hYG71I