Rise of the Planet of the Apes

I (Hanna) have never seen a Planet of the Apes movie before this one. Regardless of that fact, I could still pretty much tell where this movie was going, based on the title alone. That being said, this movie was a whole lot of build-up and not a lot of action.

It begins when a scientist rescues an orphaned chimpanzee named Caesar from a lab (in which they test brain cell regenerating formulas, in the hopes of curing diseases such as Alzheimer's), and raises it basically as a child. After one single attack on a human, Caesar forced into a sanctuary for apes (an adaption that he does not easily take to). As the film goes on, he gets angrier, as well as smarter, and is the brains behind an all-out ape revolution. For the most part, this film is a lot of talking and not a lot of action. I personally was expecting a much more exciting movie, and was overall disappointed. If you're going to go see it, go mainly for the special effects. The apes in the movie are extremely realistic, which makes the movie feel a bit more plausible. The end showdown between the humans and the apes, set on the Golden Gate Bridge, was a great finale to the film, but didn't entirely make up for the lack of action throughout the rest of the movie. Basically, I did not hate this movie, but wouldn't necessarily give it the rave reviews that many people are giving it.

Maddie's thoughts: "I actually thought that there was enough action in this movie... mostly because I was afraid what apes fighting humans would look like, goriness-wise. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. They (the apes) were cute at first but then they just got mean, and it was all Draco Malfoy's (Tom Felton) fault. If I had to give this movie a grade, I would give it a B-. I can't pinpoint why I didn't enjoy this movie; I just didn't. I did not hate it but would not plan on watching it again. The only thing I came away from this with was a fear of apes taking over the world."

Mr. Popper's Penguins

I (Maddie) love penguins.

I have always had a love of penguins. I particularly fell in love with penguins after reading the book Mr. Popper's Penguins as a child.
I was really excited when I heard that this book was going to be made into a movie; I even re-read it before I saw it in theaters, hoping it would live up to my expectations. Unfortunately I was disappointed with this adaption. It didn't stay true to the book at all, with the exception of Mr. Popper and eight penguins. Some parts were funny, but the mildly amusing humor didn't ultimately redeem this movie for me

Hanna's thoughts: "I was not a crazy fan of the book like Maddie was, so an adaption that was 100% true to the book was not something which was very near and dear to my heart. However, that aside, I still was not a fan of this movie. In a nutshell, penguins create mayhem, there's potty jokes galore, and Mr. Popper goes into a crazy depression in which he completely isolates his family. If you must see this movie, borrow it from a friend. Don't bother spending your money on this one."

Requiem For A Dream

I'm not even quite sure where to begin on this one. I guess I'll start by saying this:

This movie was easily the most disturbing films I have ever watched in my life.

The tricky thing is, is that I can't exactly pinpoint why. I knew going into it that it was a movie mainly about different kinds of addictions, and how those addictions destroy the intertwining lives of the four main characters. I knew it wasn't going to be a happy movie, let alone with any sort of happy ending. Still, I'd heard so many good things about it, so I thought "What the heck? I'll watch it. It's just a movie."

The best way to sum it up is this: It's a movie that should be seen, but not re-watched. I honestly don't think I will ever sit through it again. There's just something so real about it; maybe it's the fact that there's so many people in the world with self-destructive addictions and this is a window of what it's like to be in that position that makes this one of the scariest films I've ever seen. This is the kind of thing that is happening every single day.

The film itself is incredible. The performances are so believable. The music, as most people know, is beautiful. The editing is brilliant. For all intents and purposes, this is a four star movie.

A four star movie that, if I can help it, I will never watch again.


*Once again, this was another movie that Maddie did not view. It was never given a rating but should not be watched by anyone under the age of 18.

Memento

Christopher Nolan is the bomb.

I (Hanna) have been a Christopher Nolan fan since Inception (I know, I know... me and every other person on earth). Naturally, I was interested in seeing some of his earlier works, to see if they even remotely came close to the league that I have placed Inception in. Now, I love a movie that leaves you scratching your head at the end, thinking, "What on earth did I just watch?" If you're like that as well, then by all means... watch this movie!

I don't think I'm capable of explaining precisely why this movie is so complex. But in a nutshell, the main character Leonard (who has has anterograde amnesia) is investigating the events that lead to his wife's murder. His amnesia is what complicates things. To help him recall things that he has learned, he tattoos the facts on his body (which helps at times, but confuses Leonard on more than one occasion). Also, to give the audience the same sense of confusion that Leonard feels, the story is told in backwards chronology. Each scene begins with no indication of the preceding events, so a second viewing is probably very much in order as well.

So basically, it's not a movie that you're gonna be able follow if you're playing Angry Birds while watching it.

I highly recommend this if you're a fan of mind-benders, psychological thrillers, or mysteries. It's a dark and gritty movie, but completely brilliant and overall, a very enjoyable (if confusing) movie experience.

*Maddie did view this movie due to it's R rating for violence/rape.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II

Oh, where to begin?

I (Hanna, although I'm sure I speak for Maddie as well) had extremely high hopes for the final installment in the Harry Potter series. Going to the midnight premiere was something that I was eagerly anticipating, yet at the same time, dreading. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan, also known as a 'Potterhead'. I've been a huge fan of the books/most of the movies for years now, and to be completely honest, I wasn't ready to see the series come to a close. However, despite my sadness at the saga ending, I think this movie did the final installment justice. Gorgeously filmed and impeccably well-acted (will someone please give Alan Rickman an Oscar already?), this movie was one of the most heart-wrenching films I've ever sat through. Maybe that makes me pathetic; I'm not sure. All I know is that I was in tears (sobbing, not just a few stray tears) 40 minutes from the end of the movie and I didn't really let up for most of the remainder of the film. Even once the credits started rolling, and even once I was driving away from the theater... I was still crying. In case you haven't noticed, it was a very emotional night for me. There really isn't much else to say without giving things away, but I will end with this: I loved this movie. There are already whispers of the movie series being remade, and all I have to say on those rumors is this: The bar has been set (almost) unattainably high. This was an absolutely perfect ending to a flawless series. Thank you J.K. Rowling and David Yates.

I (Maddie) remember when we rented The Sorcerer's Stone; I was only five years old, so I don't remember everything about the film. It didn't really spark an interest in me... little did I know.
It wasn't until 2007 (when I was twelve) that Hanna and I got into the series. Ever since then, I was (and still am) hooked. Since then I wondered what the final film would be like, and this did not disappoint. David Yates did an excellent job in adapting J.K. Rowling's epic finale. I was enthralled for every moment, unable to break my focus. Emotionally, this one is a roller coaster for sure. This movie balances comedy with action and drama perfectly. Ultimately the saddest thing of all is that the movie series is over. I'm just happy that I got to be a part of it.

Braveheart

Mad: This is the first time it's ever taken us four sittings to watch one of the movies on our list.

Hanna: Yeah, this is a bloody long movie, literally and figuratively. I'm sure if we had've watched it all in one sitting, as opposed to over the course of eight days...

Mad: That's cause we were watching it with our older sister Amanda (who is going to Scotland in about two weeks)!

Hanna: And she couldn't focus on it for longer than fifteen minutes!

Mad: Well, I had trouble focusing too.

Hanna: Why? I thought it was pretty interesting.

Mad: Some parts of it were interesting, others I almost fell asleep during...

Hanna: Well, despite its lengthiness, I did enjoy it. Although I have to be honest, I've heard about the "great love story" but I didn't really buy it. William Wallace and Murron were one of the most awkward on-screen movie couples I've ever seen. They knew each other for like two days, and all of a sudden they were desperately in love.

Mad: It's called true love. And by the way, if she really was his one and only true love, he shouldn't gone  impregnated the king's daughter.

Hanna: I don't think that was cause he loved her; I think he was kind of flipping the bird to the king.

Mad: Yeah, I guess so. Changing topics, I get to be the one who talks about gore. I can proudly say that I only turned away once!

Hanna: It really wasn't that bad. You're a chicken.

Mad: You're a chicken.

Hanna: Let's revisit Alien.


Mad: Anyways...

Hanna: Let's talk about the acting. Did Mel Gibson pull off the Irish accent?

Mad: Well, I had to ask you if it was real or not, remember?

Hanna: I do. And I guess he was fine at the part, I just don't like him. And especially not his mullet.

Mad: The storyline was good, but it was history, so what can you do?

Hanna: Well I'm no historian, but I did do a bit of research on what in this movie is true, and surprisingly most of it was (give or take a few tweaks here and there).

Mad: So, in a nutshell...


Hanna: Braveheart consisted of long scenes, exciting battle sequences, one of the most awkward movie couples ever, and one awful mullet.

Alien

"Is it just like, a free-for-all in space???!"

This is what Maddie exclaimed about 30 minutes into Alien. Maybe it's because we weren't paying very good attention for the first chunk of the movie, or maybe it's because the sound quality of the dvd made the actors sound like the adults from Charlie Brown, but it just seemed like the crew had no rhyme or reason to their endeavors. "Oh, let's just go down into this deep, dark pit on a mysterious planet and start poking one of these creepy-looking egg thingies! It's not like it'll leap onto my face and somehow shove it's baby down my throat!" As I said, we may have missed a few crucial details as to why all this took place in the first place.

Anyway, carrying on, the movie then continues to document the perilous next few days of the crew of the ship Nostromo, as they bring the alien (which has now attached itself to the unfortunate crew member's face, as well as impregnated him) onboard. The alien bursts from the guy's chest and then begins to terrorize the crew as it rapidly grows larger, picking off the members one by one until only one is left to destroy the now fully-grown and terrifying monster.

"Wait, wait, WAIT!" Maddie chimes in. "It's not that simple! First, I had no clue why they were in space to begin with (even though I was paying attention, or at least, was really trying!!!). It was hard to hear. Secondly, don't they have to like, talk to NASA before they land on an unknown planet? Thirdly, well, it was really gross that the alien just CAME OUT of the guy's chest during dinner! I mean, it's dinner! After that, the rest of the movie was just filled with suspense of when the alien would attack! Like the scene where the guy was trying to find that cat (that caused so much trouble) and the scene went on for so long, and you thought the alien was gonna jump out at any moment. I was just waiting on the edge of my seat, my blood was pumping, and I screamed like I never have done in a movie before."

I can't deny that the suspense was intense in some parts (not gonna lie, I screamed too and I would consider myself a bit tougher than Maddie when it comes to jump-out scenes). This was definitely not a bad thing for me though! I already enjoy suspenseful movies to begin with, but watching them with Maddie makes it 100x more enjoyable. Her scream... enough said.

"I don't know how you convinced me to watch that movie." Maddie continues. "You know I hate scary movies. Scary, intense, jump-out, bloody movies!"

Obviously Maddie was not a fan. I, however, enjoyed it and would certainly watch it again. One thing that Maddie and I did agree on was that the graphics (for the late '70's) were impressive. There are a couple of moments that, in this day and age, are somewhat laughable, but for the most part we were both pleasantly surprised.

Final conclusion: I thought it was an excellent horror/suspense film. And Maddie? "I respect it for what it  is, even though it is not my cup of tea."