After a lifetime of dreaming of traveling the world, 78-year-old homebody Carl (voiced by Ed Asner) flies away on an unbelievable adventure, with Russell, an 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer (Jordan Nagai), unexpectedly in tow. Together, the unlikely pair embarks on a thrilling odyssey full of jungle beasts and rough terrain. Other voices in the Golden Globe-winning film include the renowned Christopher Plummer and Pixar stalwart John Ratzenberger.

This is one of the best animated films I've ever seen. The setup in the first 15-20 minutes about his youth, romance, and current situation was very well done and brought tears to my eyes. The adventure itself moved along and was at times exciting. I almost wonder if it would be too much for really young viewers, given the excellence of the animation and the degree you care about the characters and their plight. I think adults will enjoy this more than kids but the kids should like it. The talking dogs steal the show.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

When he's not busy breaking the law or trying to get close to his secret crush, Penny (Felicia Day), supervillain wannabe Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris) boasts about his exploits via his Internet video blog and dreams of defeating his nemesis, Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion). Conceived during the 2008 Hollywood writers' strike, Joss Whedon's quirky musical comedy originally debuted as an online miniseries.

Becky and especially Amanda, this one's for you. It's only 45 minutes long, but the tunes are catchy and at times the film is very funny. Neil Patrick Harris is excellent as the good/bad doctor. Trying to become a member of the villain's league, because he's not satisfied with his ability to get into the henchman's guild, Harris muses on-line in special glasses and big gloves about his plans for mayhem. Very clever and a fun watch. Did I mention the catchy tunes (...with my freeze ray I can stop the world)?

Valkyrie

Wounded in Africa during World War II, Nazi Col. Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) returns to his native Germany and joins the Resistance in a daring plan to create a shadow government and assassinate Adolf Hitler. When events unfold so that he becomes a central player, he finds himself tasked with both leading the coup and personally killing the Führer. Bill Nighy and Eddie Izzard co-star in this drama based on actual events.

When this came out, it sounded interesting but Tom Cruise often goes way over the top in his roles and I wasn't sure I'd like it. It surprised me how good a movie it is, since we know Hitler does not die in the attempt. Knowing it was reasonably fact based and these folks are doomed, it was very suspenseful and well done across the board. I'd recommend it to everyone.

Sunshine

The sun is dying and Earth's days are numbered in this sci-fi thriller helmed by Oscar winner Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire). With permanent darkness looming, scientists devise a plan to reignite the sun before the lights go out forever. To do so, a crew of astronauts is sent hurtling through space on an intense mission to determine the fate of the planet. Cillian Murphy and Michelle Yeoh co-star.

I may be the only family blog viewers who likes science fiction movies but I'll blog on this one anyhow. I'd never heard of the movie and rented it based on the description. Once you buy into the premise of flying to the sun to reignite it (kind of a stretch, but not for sci-fi) the movie really works. Good cast, real human reactions to the situations, and it moves right along. Maybe Becky would like it, don't know about the rest. Would like you hear your feedback if anyone else sees it. I liked it a lot.

The Dancer Upstairs

Augustin Rejas (Javier Bardem) attempts to find the mysterious Ezequiel -- the leader of a revolution being fermented by native people of a Latin American nation. But weighing equally heavy on Rejas's psyche is his attraction to the teacher (Laura Morante) of his daughter's ballet class. The affair provides solace to the emptiness of his marriage and his frustration in the search for Ezequiel, but it's not a cure-all. Directed by John Malkovich.

For anyone who thought they'd never watch Javier Bardem after seeing "No Country For Old Men" then you need to see this as the antidote. He plays an honest policeman and disillusioned lawyer finding a bad guy and trying to balance his life. It is a very nuanced performance and I though John Malkovich generated a subtle movie, regardless of there being some violence. I think if this had been made after NCFOM, Bardem would have been nominated for another Oscar, as well as Malkovich for best director. It's a compelling story, beautifully filmed, with some scenes so well done they'll stay with me for a long time. I suggest this for everyone.

Slumdog Millionaire

So this was the second in my movie marathon weekend and, I must say, was the one most-anticipated by me. This film was one I tried several times to see while it was in the theaters but n never quite made happen. It was also the movie that seemed to be THE movie to see this year, especially since everyone I seemed to talk to had seen it at least once, oftentimes twice, telling me that the second time was even better than the first.
I must admit that all of the hype both turned me off a bit and also promised to put more pressure on a film than it could ever live up to. But, I did want to see it and thought I'd stick with my Oscar nominated film choices for the weekend.
This was a good movie. Was it the movie of the year? Not in my opinion, but again, I had such high expectations for it that, had I seen it with the rest of the world several months back, I may have a more realistic take on it and perhaps may have been moved more than I was. (and if you do decide to rent this, I highly recommend also grabbing a cupcake from Crumbs Bakery and a glass of milk....helps any movie-watching experience!)
I liked this story and found the flashbacks interesting and intriguing, for the most part. The acting was solid, the story was interesting, and it did tug at my heartstrings a bit as well. I thought it was a tad long, but that may have just been because the giant Snowcap Cupcake was sitting in my stomach and making itself known.
Anyway, this is the story (for those of you who don't know) of a young man from the slums in India who has, by any standard, quite a shitty life. But the one glimmer of hope and joy in his life, from early on, was a little girl also from the slums, Latika. Throughout the course of their childhood and adolescent lives they meet and then lose touch several times, and on most encounters you see that neither of their lives are really getting much better. But finally, after an appearance on India's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire," their lives intertwine once more and it really is a pretty touching love story.
Again, good movie and definitely worth my time, but not life-changing or, perhaps, movie-of-the-year-worthy...but hey, that's just my little old opinion. And apparently I'm alone in it given all of the awards it won this last season! So, take this review for what it's worth. Mom and Dad probably will pass, I think Amanda has seen it, and I'm 50/50 on how you would like it, Debbie. And, since I have no good way to wrap up this review, I'll just say: The End!

Tenacious FBI agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) is assigned to pursue Samir Horn (Don Cheadle), an ex-Special Ops soldier who joined the Al Nathir terrorist organization. But as he closes in, Clayton begins to second-guess Horn's true intentions. An intelligent and exciting spy thriller that also examines the beliefs and motivations behind terrorism, the film co-stars Jeff Daniels and Neal McDonough.

I tend to watch and post about action/thrillers more than our other bloggers and am cutting back unless the film is really good. This film is really good. Don Cheadle is excellent as the person moving through a terrorist network with unclear motives. What sets this appart from most films of this sort is the reduced violence in telling such a tale (there has to be some to tell the story) and Cheadle's character's sincere adherence to the tenents of Islam. That faith propels and supports him throughout the story and sets this film apart from other hunt-for-the-bad-guy films. The cast is uniformly excellent and the script is first rate. If this were considered a drama and not an action film, Cheadle would get a mention for an Oscar. Other than Beckie, I don't know who else would like this, but it just might be all of you.