2014

[7] I’m always on the lookout for a good monster movie, and Godzilla is one of the most legendary monsters in movie history, right? But he’s still not a sure thing. We all remember the Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich crap-fest from 1998, right? Well, thank goodness Monsters director Gareth Edwards takes the big lizard more seriously than they did. And thank goodness Edwards knows …

[6] A college fraternity moves in next door to a married couple with a new baby. Shenanigans ensue when the two households try everything they can think of to get the other party to move. Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne play the new parents, and the fraternity is led by Zac Efron and Dave Franco (James’ little brother). The cast have enough charisma to carry …

[7] The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was better than I was expecting. Unlike nearly all the Batman movies, the Spider-Man movies — both the Sam Raimi ones and these new ones from Marc Webb — succeed in keeping the hero upfront and interesting, the star of his own movie, you know? So I gotta give Spidey credit there. In fact, a lot of people are probably …

[3] Eleven years ago, young Kaylie and Tim saw their father murder their mother. By the end of that night, Tim would be put in an institution for killing their father and Kaylie would enter the foster care system. Cut to now: Tim is discharged from the institution, now a young adult. Kaylie is there waiting to take him home to the scene of the …

[6] Another installment in the Marvel movie franchise is never going to excite me. But if you want to be distracted for a while, Captain America: The Winter Soldier isn’t bad. The plot centers around conspiracy, betrayal, and assassination — far more compelling stuff than whatever mystical/magical bullshit Thor 2 and The Avengers were about. Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson are both pretty to look …

[7] I love movies. But unlike most other people who love movies, I don’t love Wes Anderson movies. To me they’re a case of too much style over too little substance. I never care about the story or the characters, and I’m usually more inclined to fall asleep than chuckle at anything. And while The Grand Budapest Hotel is probably my favorite Anderson flick so …

[5] If you love the Muppets, this eighth Muppet movie won’t disappoint you too badly, though it’s far from their best effort. Director James Bobin (Flight of the Conchords) and writer Nicholas Stoller return for their second entry in the franchise, after the great success of 2011’s The Muppets. This time, Kermet is replaced with the world’s most dangerous frog, a Russian gulag escapee named …

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