The Big Year

Posted on February 26, 2012 by jley4

When this came out, I was turned-off by the negative reviews. But, I do have a soft spot for birding, so I figured I’d give it a try… Wow – what a pleasant surprise! I’m not sure what it was the critics didn’t like. The movie had an interesting premise, good acting, a few laughs and a lot of charm. The characters were multidimensional – we got to see them work to balance their love of birding with the loves of their lives, and the movie just had a real good balance and pace. It’s hard to find honest, uplifting movies that aren’t totally sappy. This one delivers.

One other thing I really appreciated; this movie respected the audience. It wasn’t filled with ridiculous gags you don’t believe, and it didn’t resort to making up bird species with silly names. The humor was thankfully reigned-in by honesty. And the little tidbits of truth thrown-in, like the Snowcocks in the Ruby Mountains (there is an established population of Himalayan Snowcocks only in the Ruby Mountains – and you can bet that any birder looking for species would seek them out), the trip to Atu, and the role the seasons & weather played in the plot… that is what made the movie. I just have to say “thank you” to everyone involved in this for making it right.

Shallow Hal

Posted on December 12, 2009 by jley4

Man, what a seriously dumb movie. Absolutely dreadful. If you’re able to sit through this, you ARE shallow. It’s so full of cliches and horrible dialogue it made me physically ill.

School of Rock

Posted on December 11, 2009 by jley4

On the 8th day, God created Rock! But man was not ready to Rock, and woman would not let him Rock, so Rock remained a secret. But, through a combination of perseverence, luck, and fate, man discovered Rock, and now the two will never be the same… Dude.

King Kong – 2005

Posted on November 27, 2009 by jley4

Sure, it was beautifully filmed and all, but I found it really one-dimensional. A movie that’s 3 hours long should have more than one storyline. Plus, there was almost too much action. I realize the movie was an action/adventure movie at its heart, but it should know when enough is enough. The action sequences just went on and one and on… like the insect thing at the bottom of the canyon. The movie also tried to say a lot of things without dialog. This can be a good thing, and is certainly better than having too much dialog (a problem with many other movies), but I thought the balance was off. There also wasn’t a lot of attention paid to small details in the movie. I can’t really explain it, it’s just a feeling I had. Still, with all those reservations, it was pretty good, and worth seeing just for the eye-candy factor.