This is Not a Top Ten List

There are people who love dark, artsy movies and people who love explosive action flicks. Some like foreign movies and some watch movies so forgettably boring that they are halfway through a second viewing before they realize they've already seen it. I'll watch any of the above, but mostly I pick up overhyped Hollywood hits because they are guaranteed in stock. Here is a recent sampling:

Sideways
Terrible. Boring. Nonsensical. Guy about to be married goes on a bachelor party weekend to wine country with his sad friend. Guy sleeps around. Friend is sad. Guy tries to get friend laid. Friend is sad. Guy tries to cheer friend up. Friend is drunk. Wine is hard to make because grapes are complex, like people. Friend is sad. The end.

Finding Neverland
Awesome. Emotional. Beautiful. Johnny Depp is Edward Scissorhands good and Kate Winslet is not annoying at all - more Ophelia than Rose Dewitt Bukater. The movie is about Sir James Matthew Barrie and his writing of Peter Pan. The scenery is gorgeous and the characters are heroic and flawed. We could not turn it off.

Meet the Fockers
Funny, but not hilarious. It was better than I expected, but took a long time getting there. 45 minutes in we were already fidgeting, but overall I was surprised that I didn't find it more offensive. There were some very nasty scenes but nothing unwatchable like in American Wedding. I would give this a resounding meh.

Lemony Snicket
Jim Carrey. More Jim Carrey. More than enough Jim Carrey. We picked up this movie because I've read the books and thought they were imaginative and adventerous - three orphans and a Series of Unfortunate Events ranging from a fire that claimed their parents to a quest across leech-infested waters and a long climb up an elevator shaft. I wanted to see what a big budget and a big-name cast could do with the set designs and characters. Unfortunately, I had a hard time watching it because Jim Carrey kept bloviating all over my TV.

Moral: I need to rent better movies.