Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part ll (2011)

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, is the final adventure in the Harry Potter film series. The much-anticipated motion picture event is the second of two full-length parts. In the epic finale, the battle between the good and evil forces of the wizarding world escalates into an all-out war. The stakes have never been higher and no one is safe. But it is Harry Potter who may be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice as he draws closer to the climactic showdown with Lord Voldemort. It all ends here. — (C) Warner Bros

Rating: PG 13 (some sequences of intense action violence and frightening images)

Genre: Family/Action Adventure

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon

Director: David Yates

Running time: 2:10

Kate says – 4 stars “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2″ is the grand finale we’ve all been waiting for with both a sense of anticipation and of dread. Anticipation, because we finally get to see the big conclusion and get closure on characters that we’ve come to love (or hate, depending on the character) over the last ten years. Dread, because with each scene we watch, we know that we are nearing the end of our time in the Potter world. We know these characters and we have a whole cache of remembered stories that factor in to how we feel when we watch this movie.  Visually, the film is gorgeous with each scene framed as if it were a photograph, with painstaking attention paid to every element and detail. What a perfect combination of  cinematography,  lighting, set design, sound (there’s a surprising amount of silence), and nuances in the expressions of the characters. The film takes its time and never rushes towards the finish, but with each scene we feel the urgency that the end is near. By the conclusion of the two hour movie, all questions are answered, and loose ends are tied up with a pretty maroon and gold striped bow. My favorite line (other than when Bellatrix Lestrange gets called the ‘B’ word) is spoken by Dumbledore from beyond the grave, “Words are our most inexhaustible source of magic.” Indeed they are J.K. Rowling, indeed they are.”

Ebert says – 3 1/2 stars “After seven earlier films reaching back a decade, the Harry Potter saga comes to a solid and satisfying conclusion in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.” The finale conjures up enough awe and solemnity to serve as an appropriate finale and a dramatic contrast to the lighthearted (relative) innocence of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” all those magical years ago.” (read full review)

USA Today (Claudia Puig) says – 3 1/2 stars “As masterfully directed by David Yates and superbly written by Steve Kloves, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, the final adaptation of J.K. Rowling‘s incandescent, absorbing novels, is the ideal culmination of a fantasy series that has artfully blended excitement, adventure and terror with humor, kinship and love.” (read full review)

Rolling Stone (Peter Travers) says – 3 1/2 stars “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 puts a triumphant capper on a decade of Pottermania…I dare you not to choke up, especially at the epilogue that takes us 19 years into Harry’s future. That’s the true power of the finale. These characters are ours now. What an exhilarating gift to watch Harry and Company go out in a blaze of glory and amazing grace. Note to Academy muggles: Get busy coming up with that Best Picture nomination you’ve denied all the other Potter films. Oscar attention must be paid.” (read full review)

Box Office Magazine (Pete Hammond) says – 5 (of 5) stars “After the underwhelming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I, a penultimate segment too dark and convoluted to entertain, Part II gets everything right to send off Harry on a cinematic high…Already a must-see for fans (after seven films, why stop now?), the film’s real feat is that it manages to stand on its own against the sky-high expectations of its base. With director David Yates’ eye-popping visual effects launching one brilliant set piece after another, this thrilling finale should add, oh say, another billion to the most successful franchise in movie history, one already worth more than $6 billion. But who’s counting?” (read full review)

Associated Press (Christy Lemire) says 3 1/2 stars “Oh, it’s dramatic, to be sure: gorgeous, somber and startling as the young wizard faces his destiny and fights the evil Lord Voldemort. But the end of this staggeringly successful movie franchise, an epic fantasy saga spanning eight films over the past decade, provides a necessary emotional catharsis for Harry and for us. Even those who aren’t ardent Potterphiles — who aren’t waiting in a line around the theater with their homemade wands and hand-drawn lightning scars — might find themselves getting unexpectedly choked up a couple of times.” (read full review)

Richard Roeper says – ‘A+’ ‘This is a masterful and worthy final chapter in one of the best franchises ever put to film.” (watch full review)

Other movie reviews by Kate

Related articles

• Emma Watson Shops SoHo While Harry Potter Already Breaks Records! (popsugar.com)
• Rupert Grint Exclusive Video Interview HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS – PART 2 (collider.com)
• Harry Potter in Pop Culture: 10 Memorable Mentions (popsugar.com)

Larry Crowne (2011)

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: Until he was downsized, affable, amiable Larry Crowne (Tom Hanks) was a superstar team leader at the big-box company where he’s worked since his time in the Navy. Underwater on his mortgage and unclear on what to do with his suddenly free days, Larry heads to his local college to start over. There he becomes part of a colorful community of outcasts, also-rans and the overlooked all trying to find a better future for themselves…often moving around town in a herd of scooters. In his public-speaking class, Larry develops an unexpected crush on his teacher Mercedes Tainot (Julia Roberts), who has lost as much passion for teaching as she has for her husband. — (C) Universal Pictures

Rating: PG – 13 (for brief strong language and some sexual content)

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Starring: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Cedric the Entertainer, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Taraji P. Henson, Byran Cranston, Wilmer Valderrama

Director: Tom Hanks

Running time: 1:38

Kate says -  3 stars “In this summer full of loud, fast-paced, action-filled, 3-D, special effect laden movies, it’s nice to be able to go to a movie to relax, be entertained and leave feeling  peaceful and happy. ‘Larry Crowne’ is a calm, gentle movie, which relies completely on the charm, talents and likeability of Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. It’s a rather harsh world we live in these days, and Hanks provides us with an escape from the sometimes depressing realities of life by focusing on a story with goodness and optimism. This movie feels like a throwback to another era, when Capra was king with his wholesome, feel-good movies which showed the value of unselfishness and hard work. Some may think this movie is too sappy and sugary sweet, but I say it’s just what the doctor ordered.”

Richard Roeper says – ‘A-’ “Corny beyond belief, but a welcome relief from the summer noise. Hanks is at his everyman best…A thoroughly enjoyable summer romance.” (watch full review)

Box Office Magazine (Pete Hammond) says – 3 1/3 out of 5 stars – “This charmer about late middle-aged renaissance is pertinent for these times and a perfect summer comedy for grown-ups looking to escape robots and superheroes. Flashing their superstar wattage, Julia Roberts and Tom Hanks (who also co-wrote and directed) make a dream team and should prove a slow but steady draw despite the monster competition.” (read full review)

New York Post (Lou Lumenick) says – 3 stars “It’s been quite a few years since we’ve seen a vehicle for a pair of Oscar winners — Hollywood prom king and queen Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts — as disarmingly modest as “Larry Crowne,” a romantic comedy about a newly downsized cook and the unhappily married community college teacher who changes his life. “Larry Crowne” isn’t for anyone looking for edgy entertainment…But if you’re looking for a movie you can take your parents or young children to without fear of embarrassment or the need for endless explanations, this is the one.” (read full review)

Chicago Tribune (Michael Phillips) says – 1 star “The best romantic comedies have a blithe, take-it-or-leave-it spirit. “Larry Crowne” has the opposite. It’s the neediest movie of 2011, and one of the phoniest.

Ebert says – 2 stars “Larry Crowne” has Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts and a good premise and a colorful supporting cast, but what it doesn’t have is a reason for existing. The screenplay carries blandness to a point beyond tedium. At some point the sinking realization sets in that Larry Crowne was born a nice guy, will always be a nice guy, will find few bumps in his road and is destined for a happy ending. We watch not in suspense but in envy.” (read full review)

Related articles

• Video: Larry Crowne’s Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts Talk Parenthood and Making Work Feel Like Play (popsugar.com)
• Video: Tom Hanks Plays The Newlywed Game With Julia Roberts and David Letterman (shoppingblog.com)

Super 8

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: In the summer of 1979, a group of friends in a small Ohio town witness a catastrophic train crash while making a super 8 movie and soon suspect that it was not an accident. Shortly after, unusual disappearances and inexplicable events begin to take place in town, and the local Deputy tries to uncover the truth – something more terrifying than any of them could have imagined. ~Paramount

Rating: PG 13 for intense scenes of sci-fi action and violence, language and some drug use

Starring: Joel Courtney,Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler, Ron Eldard, Noah Emmerich, Zach Mills, Gabriel Basson, Ryan Lee, and Amanda Michalka

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Director: J.J. Abrams

Producer: Steven Spielberg

Running time: 1:51

Kate says – 3 1/2 stars ” Super 8 is a good old fashioned sci-fi suspense thriller that’s a pays homage to an earlier, more simple time in American cinema (think E.T., Close Encounters, Stand By Me, Goonies).  This movie has a great story packed full of innocence, adventure, humor, suspense, young love, a scary monster, government secrecy and the plain and simple love of movie-making. Super 8 is written and directed by J.J. Abrams (Star Trek, Mission Impossible 3, Lost) and produced by none other than Mr. Movie, Steven Spielberg. While watching Super 8, I felt something that seems to be missing in most movies these days, a sense of joy wonder at the whole movie going experience.  Even though Super 8 has it’s fair share of action and special effects, Abrams somehow doesn’t let that over shadow the characters and their relationships.  The young cast of actors is refreshing and surprisingly good. And to top it all off, it’s NOT in 3-D!”

Ebert says – 3 1/2 stars “Super 8″ is a wonderful film, nostalgia not for a time but for a style of filmmaking, when shell-shocked young audiences were told a story and not pounded over the head with aggressive action. Abrams treats early adolescence with tenderness and affection.” (read full review)

USA Today (Claudia Puig) says - “Super 8 packs the emotional punch of vintage Steven Spielberg with the spectacular effects and sense of mystery at which writer/director J.J. Abrams excels…The young cast — particularly newcomer Courtney and the impressive Fanning — is mesmerizing.” (read full review)

EW (Lisa Schwarzbaum) says – ‘A’ “Loving, playful, and spectacularly well made, Super 8 is easily the best summer movie of the year — of many years. And I make that declaration with full knowledge that the season has just begun. It’s been eons since a movie has conjured up such intense, specific feelings, images, memories, and nostalgic fantasies about American summertime youth — everyone’s American summertime youth, regardless of current age, nationality, sex, or climate.” – (read full review)

Rolling Stone (Peter Travers) says – 3 stars “What happens when a kid with a camera finds reality rocketing beyond his eeriest alien fantasies? For answers, catch Super 8, a retro monster mash with a child’s heart, a prodigy’s unstoppable imagination and FX dazzle to spare. Writer-director J.J. Abrams and producer Steven Spielberg have tapped their youthful cellu­loid dreams to craft the ultimate home movie, a creature feature built to scare you silly and maybe save the world.” (read full review)

Snide Remarks (Eric Snider)  says - ‘B+’ “Abrams is remarkably adept at the art of good old-fashioned storytelling — in addition to being a whiz at the technical side of moviemaking — and “Super 8″ is a reminder of how often those crucial elements are missing from big studio productions. You draw the audience in with a story that has a hint of mystery to it, you give them characters to root for and situations they can relate to, and you take them on a ride. It’s simple to explain, hard to execute. Abrams gets it.” (read full review)

~Kate

Related articles

• No Secret: J.J. Abrams’ ‘Super 8′ Is Thrilling and Great (time.com)
• Steven Spielberg and J.J. Abrams discuss how they met and reveal the true origins of ‘Super 8′ (insidemovies.ew.com)

Thor (2011) – movie review by Kate

Reel Reviews for Real People

Plot: The epic adventure THOR spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the mystical realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is The Mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. As a result, Thor is banished to Earth where he is forced to live among humans. When the most dangerous villain of his world sends its darkest forces to invade Earth, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero.– (C) Paramount Pictures

Rating: PG-13 (for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence)

Genre: Action/Adventure

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Stellan Scarsgard, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Kat Dennings

Running time: 1:55

Kate says – 3 1/2 stars (3 stars for the actual movie and the extra 1/2 star because I may have a teeny weeny little crush on the not so teeny weeny Thor star, Chris Hemsworth) So allow me to be totally unprofessional here for just a bit. I should just get this out of the way right here at the beginning of this review…

Holy cow this guy is gorgeous!

No joke, during this scene towards the beginning of the movie when Thor is cast down to Earth to live as a mortal, I could hear a collective female/male/gay/straight/young/old gasp reverberate throughout the theater. I think it would be safe to say that Thor, God of Thunder, left us all thunderstruck.

And those eyes…

hmmmm…uh, where was I? Oh right, a review.

It was actually really good. I did not have high hopes or expectations for this comic book-superhero adaptation, the first in a seemingly endless string of movies of this genre set to explode onto the screens this summer. I’m not really a big fan, in general. Thor, however, was fun, entertaining, lighthearted, fast-paced, funny, and visually impressive. The director, Kenneth Branagh, is more used to adapting the works of Shakespeare (Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Henry V, Love’s Labour’s Lost, As You Like It) than the works of Marvel comics. This experience works to his advantage , giving Thor a kind of Shakespearean intelligence and feel. Don’t let that mislead you, though.  Branagh balances the mix of action movie-love story-comic book superhero flick-smart drama with ease. It’s just as interesting for a 10 year old boy as it is for a 30 year old man or 40 year old woman. And this Chris Hemsworth guy, he’s not just delicious to look at,  he’s actually really quite impressive playing the part of Thor. The ‘real’ critics seem to agree with me on this one. They like him, too. Go see this movie!  I think you’re gonna like it!

And some ‘real’ reviews…

Peter Travers (Rolling Stone) says – 3 stars “Hemsworth, an Aussie actor with a vocal command to match his heaving brawn, doesn’t just play the role, he owns it. I’m expecting both sexes will feel his impact.” (read full review)

Richard Roeper says – “A“ “Thor” is the most entertaining superhero debut since the original Spiderman.” (watch full review)

Roger Moore (Orlando Sentinel) says – 3 stars “Thor,” the first summer comic book blockbuster out of the gate, has a lot of that winking wit we’ve come to expect from our post-’Spider  Man” Marvel movies. It has a hunky, self-mocking young star, solid support from a couple of Oscar winners and the slick sheen that state-of-the-art effects can give you.” (read full review)

More movie reviews by Kate

~Kate

Normally, I have to pry myself out of bed on cold middle of January winter mornings like today. The alarm clock screaming at me at 6:20 comes way too early. The house feels way too cold. The thought of prying grumpy tired kids from their warm cozy beds seems way too daunting.  That’s how it is on a normal Tuesday.

Today, however, is no normal Tuesday. Today I popped myself right out of bed. I’m not sure, but I may have even had a smile on my face. Why?  It’s “Oscar Nomination Tuesday”, of course.  (See how I capitalized, italicized and quotation marked that phrase? That will give you some sort of clue about my Oscar fascination, which may be bordering on the unhealthy.)

Don’t tell my husband, but I have a life long love affair with the statuesque gold man named Oscar. Every year I make my friends and family fill out Oscar ballots in advance of the show, to see who can make the most correct predictions. I even have a gift basket for the grand prize winner, which usually just so happens to be me, but it wouldn’t really be fair for me to win my own prize basket so I graciously pass the prize on to the runner-up…after my acceptance speech…heehee…

Imagine my excitement when I realized that I could take my Oscar ballot routine to a whole new level. YOU!

YOU are my whole new level.

So humor me. Let’s see how skilled the Coffee Break audience is in making Oscar predictions. Pretty please take my Oscar poll. Vote for you you want to win.

It’s completely anonymous. You’ve got nothing to lose, so just do it, okay?

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences  2011 award nominations

Check out the rest of the nominations at oscar.go.com.

By the way, the hosts for this year’s show are James Franco and Anne Hathaway.

And don’t forget to mark Feb. 27 on your calendar. That’s Oscar Day, also know as Christmas in February at my house.

The Green Hornet (2011)

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: Driven by the murder of a close friend and the realization that his media empire is infested with ruthless heroin smugglers, Britt Reid, aka the Green Hornet and his human weapon Kato jump into action on a heart-pounding quest to rid the city of this mob once and for all.

Rating: PG-13  for sequences of violent action, language, sensuality and drug content

Genre: Action/Adventure

Starring: Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Tom Wilkinson, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz

Director: Michel Gondry

Running time: 1:48

Kate says – Well, folks, I’m on vacation at Disneyland at the moment so I haven’t screened The Green Hornet yet. I’ve collected a variety of reviews to help you decide whether this one is worth your while.

Ebert says – 1 star “The Green Hornet” is an almost unendurable demonstration of a movie with nothing to be about. Although it follows the rough storyline of previous versions of the title, it neglects the construction of a plot engine to pull us through. There are pointless dialogue scenes going nowhere much too slowly, and then pointless action scenes going everywhere much too quickly.” (read full review)

Pete Hammond (Box Office Magazine) says – 3 of 5 stars ” (The Green Hornet) is bright and loaded with pop culture references and moments to showcase Rogen as superhero-as-buffoon. Surprisingly it often works, and we can credit the irreverent tone set right in the opening sequence…Rogen isn’t the obvious choice for a comic book icon but he forces his personality onto this material with an ingratiating ease.” (read full review)

Michael Phillips (Chicago Tribune) says – 2 stars “In the wake of last weekend’s massacre in Tucson it’s suddenly, temporarily a little harder to laugh off scene after scene of obsessive gun fetishization and mass slaughter in a superhero vigilante lark…The script by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, tailored for Rogen in the title role, rides a streak of blase raunch and overscaled action smack into a series of walls, each spray-painted with phrases beginning with “Too.” Too much. Too numbing. Too coy. And ultimately too violent. This is a PG-13 picture very close to R territory.” (read full review)

Rene Rodriguez  (Miami Herald) says – 3 stars “This Hornet is a big, boisterous action-comedy — a funny, exciting and intentionally goofy summer movie that just happens to arrive in the middle of January. (Rogen) is perfect as the unlikely, mostly hapless hero — and Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Be Kind Rewind), an equally unexpected choice to direct such pulpy material, latches onto Rogen’s sense of humor. The Green Hornet strikes a deft balance of comedy and comic-book shenanigans that never wavers. The characters take what is happening seriously, but the movie doesn’t.” (read full review)

The King’s Speech

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: After the death of his father King George V (Michael Gambon) and the scandalous abdication of King Edward VIII (Guy Pearce), Bertie (Colin Firth) who has suffered from a debilitating speech impediment all his life, is suddenly crowned King George VI of England. With his country on the brink of war and in desperate need of a leader, his wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter), the future Queen Mother, arranges for her husband to see an eccentric speech therapist, Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). After a rough start, the two delve into an unorthodox course of treatment and eventually form an unbreakable bond. With the support of Logue, his family, his government and Winston Churchill (Timothy Spall), the King will overcome his stammer and deliver a radio-address that inspires his people and unites them in battle. Based on the true story of King George VI, THE KING’S SPEECH follows the Royal Monarch’s quest to find his voice. ~The Weinstein Company

Rating: R for some language (There is one scene of over the top, ridiculously funny swearing which is part of Bertie’s speech therapy. Without this scene, I think it would have gotten a PG rating.)

Genre: Drama

Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall, Derek Jacobi

Director: Tom Hooper

Running Time: 1:58

Kate says – 4 stars I’ll just start off by telling you that The King’s Speech is hands down the best movie I’ve seen in a very, very long time. I’ll also tell you that if you have to go out of your way to get to this movie if it is not playing anywhere near you, do it. It will be well worth your effort. This film is witty, charming, elegant, inspirational, intelligent, subtle, and above all poignant. In fact, I could use all of the flowery adjectives at my disposal in the online thesaurus, and I still wouldn’t be able to adequately describe the wonderfulness of  this movie. The King’s Speech will certainly garner a whole gaggle of Oscar nominations, and I predict Firth will finally get his long deserved best actor win this year.

I think Marshall Fine’(of Hollywood and Fine) best sums up the acting of Firth, Rush and Bonham Carter.

Firth is perfect here, his eyes almost bleeding with the terror he feels at any moment of potential embarrassment. As he waits to speak to a crowd, Firth perfectly captures the look of a man facing the gallows or otherwise feeling doomed. Yet he also finds Bertie’s temper and his spine, his compassion and his seriousness. And he has the stammer down expertly so that it feels like an organic and unwanted intrusion every time he speaks.

Yet Rush has the more difficult role and handles it expertly. He delivers Logue’s sly one-liners with expert timing and just the right bite. But Logue must spend more of the film simply reacting and thinking, calculating and calibrating. It’s a study in the ability to listen and be interesting at the same time.

Bonham Carter makes this a triangle – a sounding board and support for her husband, a brake on Logue’s excesses, always without raising her voice or anything more than an eyebrow, really. It is a controlled and effective performance, creating a character who both lives within and feels constricted by the demands of having married into royalty.

Restraint, in fact, is what makes “The King’s Speech” so moving. Here is a film about people who rarely get to express their feelings (not that they get to have emotional outbursts here). Yet they convey both the sense of repressed feeling and, ultimately, the sense of freedom and release portrayed by the relationships in this film.

Which means that “The King’s Speech” will make you laugh more than you imagine – and touch you more deeply than you expect.

Ebert says -4 stars “If the British monarchy is good for nothing else, it’s superb at producing the subjects of films. Director Tom Hooper makes an interesting decision with his sets and visuals. The movie is largely shot in interiors, and most of those spaces are long and narrow. That’s unusual in historical dramas, which emphasize sweep and majesty and so on. Here we have long corridors, a deep and narrow master control room for the BBC, rooms that seem peculiarly oblong. I suspect he may be evoking the narrow, constricting walls of Albert’s throat as he struggles to get words out.” (read full review)

Peter Travers (Rolling Stone) says 3 1/2 stars “It could have been a bunch of pip-pip, stiff-upper-lip Brit blather about a stuttering king who learns to stop worrying and love the microphone. Instead, The King’s Speech — a crowning achievement powered by a dream cast — digs vibrant human drama out of the dry dust of history.” (read full review)

Roger Moore (Orlando Sentinel) says – 4 stars “One of the best films of 2010 captures the funny, touching and inspiring relationship between the man who will become King George VI (Colin Firth) and the brash Aussie (Geoffrey Rush) who tries to figure out why he stutters, and to help him over it so that the free world won’t despair every time the stammering, stuttering George opens his mouth.” (read full review)

Claudia Puig (USA Today) says – 4 stars “Let’s say it without equivocation: Colin Firth deserves an Oscar for his lead role in The King’s Speech as the stammering King George VI. Even though we know how the movie will conclude, it’s the getting there that counts. It’s rare to feel sympathy for someone so privileged. Bertie comes off strikingly human, as close to an Everyman as someone of his status can be. There’s nothing particularly regal or admirable in his frustration and despairing tendency to want to quit.” (read full review)

Eric Snider (Snide Remarks) says – “A-” “The King’s Speech” is an enormously entertaining picture that proves you can make an enormously entertaining picture out of familiar elements. It’s the very definition of a movie with widespread grown-up appeal, perfect for snotty movie critics and regular people alike. The scenes between Firth and Rush — which I’m happy to say occupy most of the film — are nuggets of delight.” (read full review)

(Images from The Weinstein Company)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 – (2010)

Reel reviews for real people

Plot: In this seventh and final installment of the beloved Harry Potter series, Harry faces new troubles; he must collect all of the Horcruxes that the evil Lord Voldemort has left behind. He has no idea where these are and he has to destroy them all, even without the faintest idea how to do so. (Rotten Tomatoes)

Rating: PG-13  for some sequences of intense action violence and frightening images

Genre: Action & Adventure, Kids & Family, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Starring: Daniel Radcliff, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane

Director: David Yates

Running Time: 2:30

Kate says -3 stars “Here’s the thing about trying to review a movie so anticipated/monumental/beloved/era-defining as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, it doesn’t matter one tiny bit what any reviewer/neighbor/friend/co-worker has to say about it. If you’re someone who has spent the past 13 years immersed in the world of Harry Potter, measuring time by when the next book or movie comes out, then you are going to see this movie, even if it means walking barefoot through the snow, uphill both ways, to get to the theater. (Haha mom, are you laughing about that reference right about now?) If you’ve never read the 7 book series, and you’re perfectly content with catching the flicks years later if they happen to be playing on some movie channel on tv, then you’re probably not going to rush right out and fight the crowds to be one of the first 25 million to see it, even if reviewers give it 7 out of 4 stars.

That being said, here’s my somewhat irrelevant review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. This first of the two-part grand finale of the Harry Potter series is suspenseful and thrilling, and much darker and full of a pervading sense of gloom and doom than your typical kids movie. The special effects are so amazing that you often don’t even realize you are watching special effects, they’re that good. I don’t think it’s even possible to make a “bad” Harry Potter movie because of the attention paid to such detail and quality. This time the action leaves the walls of Hogwarts, and it’s enjoyable to see the kids out in the “real” world for a change, even though I missed the whimsical feeling of the magical Great Hall.

The movie drags a bit in the middle section where Harry and Hermione spend a lot of time doing not much of anything, waiting around for something to happen. It is important, however,  to note the “Part 1″ in the title. This movie serves as mostly as exposition and set-up for “Part 2″coming out next July. There is an incomplete, and somewhat unsatisfying feel to the film, and there’s no logical way of getting around that fact. The plus side, though, is that the audience is left anticipating the action and climax of the final film, which will surely complete the circle of Harry Potter life.Let the countdown to Part 2 begin.

*And as a final note, I must address the controversy of “the NUDE scene”, which seems to be causing quite a stir in my neck of the woods. (Several people have already gone to the local theater to get refunds for their tickets because they’ve heard there is a nude scene. I kid you not.) It’s true, there is a nude make-out scene, BUT it’s a nude scene where you don’t actually see any nudity and not much making-out happens. I’ve seen more nudity in body wash commercials on tv, and way, way, waaaaaaaaaaay more making out on this season of Glee. It’s part of a hallucination/dream sequence between Harry and Hermione, and all is covered in smoke and fog, and the characters have a somewhat ethereal CGI feel. It’s implied nudity, folks. Much ado about nothing

Ebert says – 3 stars “David Yates’ “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” is a handsome and sometimes harrowing film, and will be completely unintelligible for anyone coming to the series for the first time. My cluelessness didn’t bother me, because the film depends more on mood and character than many of the others…As we approach the end of a decade of Harry Potter, it’s clear how wisely (and luckily) the studio cast the series. Radcliffe, Grint and Watson have grown from children to young adults, still retain the qualities they had when younger, are practiced professionals and carry the series.” (read full review)

Michael Phillips (Chicsgo Tribune) says – 3 stars We have reached the semi-finals. Staffed with half the best character actors in Great Britain, ” Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1″ brings the seventh J.K. Rowling tale to market, reminding both fervent Hogwarts maniacs and the Potter-ambivalent of this series’ priorities, its increasingly somber tone, as well as its dedication to one of the rarest of all franchise qualities: actual quality.” (read full review)

Roger Moore (Orlando Sentinel) says – 3 stars “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” is a brisk, bracing film of actors in close-up. The lead players have grown into the roles and of the Who’s Who of British character actors in supporting parts shine like never before, placed, as they are,  in both real-world London and a selection of desolate landscapes that match the gloom of this apocalyptic tale. Alternately funny and touching, it’s the best film in the series, an “Empire Strikes Back” for these wizards and their wizarding world.  And those effects? They’re so special you don’t notice them. The digital elves are the most lifelike the movies have ever seen.” (read full review)

Kenneth Turan (Los Angeles Times) says – 3 stars of 5 “Much of the plot of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” involves the attempt to find and destroy a series of Horcruxes, and if you haven’t a clue about what they are or why they’re important, you might as well stay home. There is something different, however, about this Potter movie, and that is the words “Part 1″ that end the title. Understandably distraught about “Hallows” being the last of the phenomenally popular J.K. Rowling novels, Warner Bros. has split the final effort into two films and is likely kicking itself for not having thought of that with the earlier books.” (read full review)

Eric Snider (Snide Reviews) says - “Was ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ split into two movies so that the franchise could make more money? Well, yes. But maybe not just for that reason. As it turns out, ‘Deathly Hallows: Part 1‘ is a quietly thrilling and artful chapter in the eight-part series. It doesn’t stand on its own, exactly, any more than the first half of a TV two-parter would, but it isn’t merely set-up, either. If you think of ‘Half-Blood Prince’ and the two ‘Deathly Hallows’ entries as a trilogy that concludes the Potter saga, ‘Part 1′ is a terrific middle.” (read full review)

Megamind (2010)

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“Good receives all the praise and adulation. Evil is sent for quiet time in the corner.”

Plot: Megamind is the most brilliant super-villain the world has ever known… and the least successful. Over the years, he has tried to conquer Metro City in every imaginable way. Each attempt has been a colossal failure, thanks to the caped superhero known as “Metro Man,” until the day Megamind actually defeats him in the throes of one of his botched evil plans. Suddenly, the fate of Metro City is threatened when a new villain arrives and chaos runs rampant, leaving everyone to wonder: Can the world’s biggest “mind” actually be the one to save the day? (Rotten Tomatoes)

Rating: PG  for action and some language

Genre: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family, Comedy

Staring: Will Farrel, Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller, David Cross

Director: Tom McGrath , Cameron Hood

Running time: 1:36

Kate says: 3 stars ” Megamind is one of those movies that kids will love, and that adults will find equally as entertaining. It’s got a feel good message, good vs. evil Superman-type story line to keep the kiddies happy. It’s full of  stand-up comedian banter, one liners, puns and impressions to keep the moms and pops happy. It’s fast paced and full of bright, colorful animation. All in all, a great way to spend a few hours.”

Ebert says: 3 stars “This set-up is bright and amusing, even if it does feel recycled from bits and pieces of such recent animated landmarks as “The Incredibles” with its superpowers and “Despicable Me” with its villain…Megamind” is an amusing family entertainment and gains some energy from clever dialogue and the fun Will Ferrell has with his character. I like the way he pronounces “Metro City” like “metricity,” for example. The 3-D is well done, if unnecessary. Nothing in the movie really benefits from it, and if you can find it in 2-D, that’s the best choice.” (read full review)

Owen Gleiberman (Entertainment Weekly) says – B+ “Megamind is less a satire of dastardly deeds than a nimbly spectacular comedy of ego...Megamind is too goofy-surreal to pack a lot of emotional punch, but it’s antically light on its feet, with 3-D images that have a lustrous, gizmo-mad sci-fi clarity. The movie is a burlesque on the layered identities of heroes and villains, who in Megamind share one big thing: They’re all superheroes of self-promotion.” (read full review)

Life as We Know It 2010

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Plot: Holly Berenson (Heigl) is an up-and-coming caterer and Eric Messer (Duhamel) is a promising network sports director. After a disastrous first date, the only thing they have in common is their dislike for each other and their love for their goddaughter, Sophie. However, when they suddenly become all Sophie has in the world after she loses her parents, Holly and Eric are forced to put their differences aside. Juggling career ambitions and competing social calendars, they’ll have to find some common ground while living under one roof.

Rating: PG-13 for sexual material, language and some drug content

Genre: Romantic comedy

Starring: Katherine Heigl, Josh Duhamel, Josh Lucas, Jean Smart, Christina Hendricks, Melissa McCarthy

Director: Greg Berlanti

Running time: 1:52

Kate says -2 1/2 stars “I will admit, watching a decent romantic comedy is a guilty pleasure of mine. It doesn’t even have to be very good and it will still provide me with a few pleasant hours of escape from the reality of life, which is usually decidedly not romantic comedy-like. I say thank goodness for that, but a real life running soundtrack for  my romantic-dramatic-comedic moments would be a nice touch.  Anyway, Life as We Know It is just what you think it will be, and that statement alone will be the best predictor of whether you like it or not. If you’re of the “I hate romantic comedy genre” then you’ll hate this one too. If you’re from the “Nothing like a good romantic comedy genre” then you’ll find entertainment is this one also. It’s predictable, it’s safe, it has it’s funny moments, it has romance, it has pretty people…Enough said.”

Ebert says – 1 1/2 stars “Awww. Their best friends are killed in an auto accident, leaving behind their cute little 1-year-old daughter, Sophie….Awww. Sophie is just as cute as most 1-year-old babies…Awww. This is really sad. Holly and Eric have to share the same enormous Atlanta mansion…Awww, this is never gonna work out. Eric is a tomcat on the prowl….So anyway, what happens in “Life As We Know It”? You’ll never guess in a million years. Never. You might just as well give up right now. I don’t like spoilers, so just let me say that Holly and Sam adopt Sophie and live happily ever after in the mansion. Awww.” (read full review)

Claudia Puig  (USA Today) says – 2 1/2 stars “Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel have an appealing chemistry, but Life as We Know It is tripped up by awkwardly fusing a familiar sitcom scenario with a tragic premise. Duhamel’s boyish charm and comic timing make the biggest impression. He has a winning sort of subtle self-mockery that works particularly well when the neighbors — male and female — fall all over him. It’s a spotty movie that at least attempts to ground its story in reality. The booze and weed situations, and the potty humor, provide silly slapstick gags while the story takes too long to reach its obvious conclusion.” (read full review)

Michael Phillips (Chicago Tribune) says – 2 1/2 stars “Compared to “27 Dresses,” “The Ugly Truth” and “Killers” …”Life as We Know It” does not crush your soul, does not turn Katherine Heigl into a shrill pain in the keister, only occasionally devolves into clumsy, poorly timed slapstick and outstays its modest but heartfelt welcome only by 10-15 minutes. I have a sinking feeling that me having had a not-bad time at “Life as We Know It,” which co-stars the appealing Josh Duhamel, means it’s destined to make less money than any of the above. For a film deeply into formula, both of the baby and the screenwriting varieties, it’s just scrappy and off-center enough to alienate a sizable portion of the audience. To which I say: Good for you! At times like these we must remember what that great, great Hollywood mogul Henrik Ibsen said: “The majority is always wrong.” (read full review)

Lisa Schwarzbaum (Entertainment Weekly) says – “D-” “In the business-as-usually-awful romantic comedy Life as We Know It, Katherine Heigl plays Holly, a dithering control freak of a single career girl (you’re shocked, right?) unprepared to take care of an infant unexpectedly left in her care. There’s something about Holly: She’s the most ridiculous, irritating, two-dimensional rom-com heroine since…Katherine Heigl’s last rom-com…Josh Duhamel (Transformers) plays last-name-only Messer, the caveman hero so wrong for Holly that he’s bound to end up sweetly wiping the poo from her cheek…witless, unfunny, unromantic product, a comedy as disposable — and stinky — as loaded Pampers.” (read full review)

Roger Moore (Orlando Sentinel) says – 2 1/2 stars “Uneven and sloppily sentimental,  “Life as We Know It” is still the best Katherine Heigl  comedy since “Knocked Up.”Credit her co-star, Josh Duhamel for that. As he has done in many a less worthy romantic comedy, he amplifies her charm. And she, in turn, brings out his sweet side. And credit the script, which gives her more to play than your average “Ugly Truth.” And as uneven as it is, “Life as We Know It” still goes down like comic comfort food, especially for anybody who’s ever dealt with parenthood.  A baby makes us grow up and changes our lives and as this film points out, that’s not just a diaper joke.” (read full review)

Eric Snider (Snide Reviews) says – “C” “Life As We Know It” stars Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel as two people who can’t stand each other but must raise a child together after the baby’s parents die. In the process of caring for the kid, they fall in love. What’s amazing is that despite everything I have just told you, “Life As We Know It” is NOT the single worst thing ever created by mankind…there’s clearly no reason to watch this movie, and I’m not suggesting you should. I was just glad it didn’t make geysers of blood spurt from my ears, that’s all.” (read full review)