Coach Carter (2005)

Samuel L. Jackson as Coach Ken Carter

We decided to go for the cliche inspirational sports movie this time around. Coach Carter is rated PG-13 for violence, language, teen partying (aka underage drinking), and some drug material (one of the characters is a dealer on the side).

Dan -
I am a such a sucker for movies that are supposed to inspire people. What can I say? I like being inspired and seeing other people make changes that will affect the rest of their lives. Whether it is fictional or based on a true story, I get pulled in almost every time and become personally involved with the triumphs and failures of the characters. And doesn't everyone love an underdog story?

Have you ever noticed that many of the greatest sports movies have a lot to do with a great coach? This movie fills half of those requirements in that it has a great coach, and Samuel L. Jackson was really good as the coach in this. His intensity along with his propensity for yelling his dialogue is actually appropriate for this movie. I really bought into him as a tough coach who would have such high expectations. And he can be classy at the same time he is yelling. If ever there was a dude who epitomized the term BMF, it's this guy.

For anyone who actually considers watching the movies reviewed on this blog, this really is a compelling story. A coach who puts education before basketball is almost revolutionary. Suspending the games because the players weren't doing well enough in class even though they were undefeated is unprecedented. I know this is Hollywood-ized, but I feel it is almost an important sports movie.

Is this movie as good as Hoosiers or Glory Road? No. But it was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. I thought it was good enough for repeat viewing, so I bought it (albeit used). I liked that it seemed grounded in reality. When it came time for the final game, I really didn't know who was going to win. The editing is highly stylized and the soundtrack is filled with hip-hop music (which I don't necessarily care for), and there are some really distracting subplots. Take for example one of the stars of the team, Rob Brown, has gotten his girlfriend pregnant and is having second thoughts about having a baby. I think the point was to ground the movie in reality, but it had nothing to do with the rest of the movie. Sticking with basketball and the classroom would have really helped this movie along.

I give this movie 3½ out of 5 stars. Samuel L. Jackson and his methods make this movie more than I thought it would be.

The real Coach Ken Carter

Mark -
I feel like this movie has been made so many times, and this film is just another variation of something that has previously been done. I think it’s great that so many individuals have been able to overcome difficult situations, but just because one or two films have been successful with such stories doesn’t mean that all of the other studious should try to have the same success with their own film.

The specifics of the plot of this film are centered around the Richmond (CA) High School Oilers basketball team, a low income/high crime neighborhood, whose long-time coach is ready to retire, and hoping the school’s previous biggest star will agree to take the position over. Ken Carter (Samuel L. Jackson) agrees to coach the team, and immediately makes his presence known by having all players who wish to be on the basketball team sign a contract, stating that they will maintain a minimum 2.3 GPA, dress up on game days, and be respectful towards others. Through Carter’s hard work/my way approach he is able to transform a basketball team that had 4 wins the previous year into a team that would win every regular season game it played in his first season.

The most redeeming quality of this film for me is that there is a lot of emphasis placed on, and given to, the importance of education and its need for getting the students further in life. During a pivotal point in the film, in which the educational requirements and standards of Coach Carter are being challenged, I especially appreciated a statement made by Coach Carter where he is trying to stress the importance of accountability, a trait he feels is lacking or overlooked among professional athletes.

Finally I feel that this film was targeted too much at a specific type of audience, as is the case with most films made by MTV films. The environmental aspects of this film further accentuated by rap and hip hop music, considerable amounts of slang, and stereotypical behaviors. 3 *’s out of 5

My Random Thought For Coach Carter: Here’s a major problem I have with this movie trying to tie a past event into current events. The movie is about the 1999 Richmond team, but they make references to the character Ty Crane being the next Lebron James. That’s great but Lebron James was just entering high school at that time and was nothing of a star yet. If the writers decided to try and put things in a current context, as in the 2005 time frame which the movie was released, then the problem comes when they discuss Crane’s shoe-in to be the next number 1 pick in the NBA draft. Someone failed to do their research showing that the collective bargaining agreement which was entered for the 2006 NBA draft required all eligible players to be at least 19 years old at the start of the draft year. Sorry to whoever was trying to be clever, but clearly you were just trying to combine too many things and ended up with an inaccuracy instead.

Song Of The South (1946)

James Baskett as Uncle Remus telling stories to the children.

We now present a review of Song of the South. We broke into the Disney Vault and found this unforgotten-but-hard-to-come-by film. It is not rated, but would probably be rated G as there is no foul language and the violence is in cartoon form and done for laughs.

Mark -
First things first... no we can’t tell you how we were able to get a copy of this film. I still don’t understand the debate of what makes this film so prejudicial, but I’m certainly glad that I have had the opportunity to view a masterpiece which so few are able to enjoy. If anything I would say that the camaraderie and friendship of the different characters should be commended for their interactions, especially considering this film takes place in the South long before the civil rights movements took place. Having said such, I understand that the complete version of this film has never been released in the United States, and it makes me wonder what parts have been cut out, which may or may not change my opinion.

The storyline of this film deals with Johnny who has just moved to his grandmother’s plantation with his mother, while his father returns to Atlanta to continue his job responsibilities. While Johnny is less than thrilled to have his family broken up, he soon makes new friends with two children on the plantation, Toby and Ginny, and is introduced to the renowned story teller Uncle Remus. The tales of Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Fox, and Br’er Bear are told, bringing to life some of the most vibrant and fun characters in any of Disney’s films.

The animation and music in this film are true gems. It was awarded an academy award for best music and original song for Zip A Dee Doo Dah. In the same year, James Baskett, who plays Uncle Remus and the voice of Br’er Fox, was awarded an honorary academy award for his portrayal of Uncle Remus, making his the first African-American to receive an academy award. Sadly Baskett passed away 4 months after receiving such reward, he was only 44.

If you are able to get as lucky as we were, and are able to view this film, I would certainly encourage anyone to do so. I hope that someday Disney will release this film again, as it deserves to be enjoyed by anyone who chooses to do so. To anyone whom this film may have offended I am sorry, but as was Walt Disney’s motto in life to "keep moving forward", I believe that Disney had a hope for segregation and racism to subside. As a last note it is somewhat ironic to think that the African-American stars of this film were not allowed to attend its premiere in Atlanta, again due to the segregation laws at that time. 4 ½ *’s out of 5.

My Random Thought For Song of the South: I am so happy that Disney came up with the splash mountain ride at their theme parks, allowing all who go on the ride the opportunity to enjoy the music and characters of Song of the South. I can’t help but wonder how many people truly understand the background for that ride though.

Dan -
I'm sure some of you did a double take when you saw the title of this blog post. I nearly did one myself when I found out we would be watching it. I seem to remember parts of this movie from when I was really little as I think we had a copy of a copy of a VHS tape, but it only had the animated parts. I did not remember any important details, and was only familiar with the Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah song that I had heard many times. It was something about a fox, a rabbit, and a fake animal made out of tar. And for anyone who thinks that Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is the first movie to blend animation with live action (which included me up until this point), this movie exists to prove you wrong. And Disney did it more than 40 years before Roger Rabbit!

Honestly, I was a little underwhelmed with this movie. I loved the animated sequences more than the live action ones, and the songs are really catchy and I was humming a few of them throughout the rest of the day. The live action stuff took a lot more time to get in to than the animation. It wasn't until Uncle Remus started telling his morality tales about Br'er Rabbit to the kids that I got sucked in. Uncle Remus really is the heart and soul of the movie and makes you care about what happens with each of the characters. He is warm, kind, compassionate, and it doesn't hurt that he's good with the kids.

So on to the controversy. Mark talked about it a little already, so I hope this doesn't sound repetitive. Just to be clear I am a white male, so my perspective is exactly that and I could never understand all of the racist undertones throughout the movie. This movie appears to take place after the abolition of slavery. I am no historian, but for a movie that takes place in the South after the Civil War everyone sure seemed to get along much better than they likely did in real life. Johnny's mom is the one who is the horrible person with her treatment of Uncle Remus. The white family lives in the fancy house on the plantation while in stark contrast Uncle Remus and the other black characters live in poor accommodations. The movie just glosses over everything by making it look like everyone is happy exactly the way things are. It's a large fault that is hard to overlook with today's standards and sensibilities.

Now to discuss other things. I don't know why I found the dynamic of the three animated characters so appealing. Maybe it's because Br'er Bear is portrayed as a big dumb oaf. His voice just made me laugh. And so did hearing the motormouthed Br'er Fox try to explain logic to Br'er Bear about how Br'er Rabbit is trying to fool them both all the time. They just struck me as funny, as if they were all brothers who don't know how to get along with each other and get manipulated and fooled constantly. Br'er Rabbit reminded me a bit of Bugs Bunny and how he always had to use his wits to get out of any trouble. I also grew up watching Looney Toons as well as the old Disney animation when I was a kid, and this took me right back to those memories.

I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars. The animation is fun, and the songs are delightful and catchy.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Tom Hanks, Matt Damon, and Ed Burns

Here for your reading is our review of Saving Private Ryan. This is the first movie that both of us gave the same star-rating. It is rated R for intense, prolonged, and realistically graphic sequences of war violence, and for language. It is not for the squeamish or faint of heart. The violence does not exist for a gross-out factor, but is meant to accurately depict the ravages of war.

Mark -
It’s very difficult to write a review for a film where regardless of what you write it will never really do it justice. If nothing else this film has given me an even greater appreciation for the individuals who have fought for the freedom of this country and freedom around the world. I have no military experience myself, and as such I am certain that I don’t fully understand or appreciate the sacrifices as much as I probably should.

This film portrays events surrounding the invasion of Normandy and its nearby areas. After storming the beaches of Normandy, a small group of soldiers are asked to perform a locate and rescue mission for one specific soldier.

Its difficult, if not impossible, to not cringe at the realistic nature that Spielberg portrays in this film. There have been many films made about war, but none have shown the brutality in quite the same way as this film. It’s not only the images that are disturbing, but in order to capture the full effect, the sounds that accompany the images intensify each horrific scene.

I have no idea how this film got so lucky, but it definitely did with its casting. Each of the actors in this film plays their character remarkably, and you get the sense that each of them realized that there really were no true stars in this film, but that the entirety of it was for a greater good.

Although this isn’t a film that was necessarily enjoyable to watch, I’m glad that I have seen it, and have a little bit more of an understanding of the hardships that took place during WWII. I can’t imagine most people wanting to watch this film on a regular basis, and can support those who wish not to see the graphic nature of this film altogether. 5 *’s out of 5

My Random Thought For Saving Private Ryan: If you were to look at this one role in particular, its hard to image that Vin Diesel would become what he did after this film. Hard to imagine the possibilities of what may have been, just as it is hard for me to imagine that is actually 44.

Dan -
I should preface this review that it will further solidify my standing as a movie nerd. I am not ashamed to admit it, but rather have come to embrace it. I’d like to think it helps me understand movies better, but I could be completely wrong and I come across as an obsessive geek in the worst sense of the word. Either way I submit the following review.

I don’t know where to begin, so I will start randomly with my adoration of this movie. It is technically amazing in every way. The most memorable aspect to me is the cinematography. It seems like this was the first movie to introduce the shaky-cam technique, giving you the feeling that you are actually in the thick of the action. This is one of the few movies that it actually works but is not overused. I heard when this movie was first released that the opening sequence was so realistically portrayed that it was triggering post traumatic stress disorder for some veterans that had similar experiences.

One scene that stands out to me technically speaking is where the rain begins to fall at the beginning of the mission to find Private Ryan as the men come upon their first battle. I didn’t notice at first, but each drop of rain coincided with a gunshot. It was faint at first with only a few drops and pops here and there, but as the rain came down harder the gunfire picked up the pace as well and you begin to hear machine guns instead of single shot rifles. This was simply masterful editing and sound mixing that deserved the Oscars they earned for it. While I didn’t get to watch this in surround sound, I did the next best thing and watched it with headphones (so as not to offend co-workers with the foul language and loud violence). It created such a close feeling that I almost felt like I was dodging bullets with the guys on screen.

I am a huge fan of movie soundtracks, specifically the scores of movies, and John Williams is one of my favorites. The guy has written some of the most famous movie music there is from Star Wars to Superman to Indiana Jones. There is not a whole lot of music in this movie and it is subtle when it does appear. Until the end credits. The track is called Hymn to the Fallen, it runs only during the end credits, and it is one of the most stirring pieces of music ever in a movie. It just seems like such a payoff to the emotions I felt throughout the movie.

This happens to be one (of admittedly many) movie that makes me cry. The strange thing is that each time I’ve watched it I cried at different parts. This time the emotion came just after the beach invasion when Private Mellish finally releases his own emotion and has a chance to relax. I thought of how I would react in a similar situation. Another time was when Medic Wade had been shot, everyone was trying to save him, and he begins to cry out for his mom.

This movie did an incredible job of getting me to feel just what the men of the movie feel. They question why they must risk their own lives for someone that they have never met and hasn’t done anything to "earn" his ticket home. From the anger of the men sent to get Private Ryan to the frustration and confusion of Ryan himself as he hears that he is supposed to go home I swear I felt every emotion the characters were feeling.

In addition to the unforgettable battle scenes, there are several quiet moments that give this movie the depth required to make it great. There is a scene right before the final battle where the men are sharing stories of their lives at home with each other and laughing about them. It seems unremarkable and almost out of place until I realized the point of it was to illustrate that these were ordinary people asked to do extraordinary things. I think of a similar scene in the church after finding the wrong Private Ryan. And in the brief exchange of a look between Ed Burns and Matt Damon before the first shots are fired of the final stand. No words, but an understanding that they will fight together against the enemy.

I give this movie 5 out of 5 stars. I still wonder how Shakespeare in Love could have won Best Picture over this movie. Without question this is not only the best movie about World War II, but it is the best war movie period. I saw this the summer I turned 18 and remember being completely affected by it. Having seen it a few times since then, I have grown to love and appreciate it more upon each subsequent viewing. This movie also helped me appreciate more fully the sacrifice made by the men and women of the Armed Forces.

The Eagle (2011)

Channing Tatum, Mark Strong, and Jamie Bell

We know what you are probably thinking: Finally these guys review a movie that is new enough that I can actually it find at a Redbox! Yep, we finally made it into the current year with The Eagle. It was originally rated PG-13 for battle sequences and disturbing images (dead bodies and gross wounds). The version we watched was unrated and we can only speculated that the "realistic" blood splatters as well as some of the more gruesome action we saw in the battle scenes were removed keep it from being rated R.

Dan -

I didn't know what to expect with this movie as we started it. I will say that I was very optimistic because the director, Kevin MacDonald, has made some pretty good movies like State of Play, The Last King of Scotland, and Touching the Void. This guy knows how to choose a compelling story and tells it well. Until this movie. It stars Channing Tatum as Marcus, a Roman soldier recently given his first command and on a personal quest to restore his family's honor. Apparently his father was commander of the mysterious Ninth Legion of Rome who marched into unknown and unconquered territory and were never heard from again. Oh, and he lost the prized symbol of the legion: an eagle made of gold (hence the title of the movie). It also stars Jamie Bell as Marcus' slave Esca, who comes from the geographical region that Rome is trying to conquer and where Marcus' father was lost. The two of them embark on the dangerous journey across enemy lines to retrieve the eagle, thereby hoping to restore honor to Marcus' disgraced family name.

There are a whole bunch of movies about either restoring family honor or keeping it in tact, and I honestly have a somewhat difficult time relating to that. My education and background teach about being an individual and doing things to make a name for yourself.  One man's actions are his own and he is not judged or held responsible for anyone else who has gone before him.  Not that there is any problem with these movies for being like that, I just don't relate. I think the closest I come to that is making the people I care about most proud of me, but how much does it matter when the person you are trying to make proud is dead? I don't know, maybe that's the same thing only said in a different way.

There were several parts of this movie that just didn't feel right to me. For starters Marcus just looks too contemporary for this movie, and doesn't quite have the skill to pull off a period piece outside of the 1900s. I don't know if it's a lack of maturity as well as a lack of ability, but I couldn't buy him as a Roman soldier. And the last couple of lines of dialogue also seemed a little modern and did not fit with the rest of the movie. At the end I just felt indifferent. To quote The Simpsons on how I would describe this movie: Meh. There has to be characters that one can actually care about, and while this movie tried to do that they ultimately failed.

Does it deliver anything close to the bar set by other Roman period pieces like Ben-Hur or Gladiator? No, but how could it? There is nowhere near the caliber of talent or story here to work with. The coolest scene is the battle at the beginning, and unfortunately the movie is just downhill from there.

I give this movie 2 out of 5 stars. I was mildly interested throughout, but it wasn't compelling enough in the end.
Mark -

A word of advice to any director or producer thinking of making another film about the Roman Empire...DON’T!!! As much as I, or anyone else, would like to view any film for its own story and standards, it simply isn’t going to happen. Any film based on the Roman Empire is going to be compared to the likes of Gladiator, Ben Hur, and Spartacus, and I don’t really think many people would want to have their film competing with such.

This film had doom written all over it well before Dan and I started to turn into Mystery Science Theater 3000 making smart-ass comments during the supposed serious and intense moments of this film. Predictability is one thing, but taking things to the level of ridiculousness and stupidity is another.

Channing Tatum and Jamie Bell were fine in their respective roles, but it is hard to believe that given the discovered truths and backgrounds of their characters that they would actually want anything to do with the other. Unfortunately, regardless of who was cast in any role for this film, their name or acting would not be able to save this film from its horrid demise.

Obviously I was not a fan of this film, and am grateful for Dan’s sake that it was a film from his netflix queue, and not something that he actually purchased. If you like slow, predictable, plot-hole ridden films, then this a film you will love. Otherwise, just wait til they show it on tv sometime and after 10 minutes you will probably give up on it; as you should. 1½ out of 5 *’s.

My Random Thought For The Eagle: Of all of the things that could have bothered me during this movie, there was one thing that stood out to me in particular. During the final battle between the Romans and the Seal Tribe, the Romans are equipped with swords, while the Seals have hatchets and similar weapons that appear to be made out of sticks and stones. What I still can’t figure out is why does a collision of these two weapons always create a very distinct metal on metal sound?

Vertigo (1958)

Jimmy Stewart rescuing Kim Novak

Here we have for review what many call a "Classic" movie. Vertigo is directed by the often imitated, but never duplicated Alfred Hitchcock. It was unrated at the time of its release, but would probably get a PG-13 for themes of death, murder, and suicide, as well as some light sexual references.

Mark-

I haven’t seen a lot of Hitchcock movies, but the ones I have seen I have enjoyed. I’ve known about the reputation of Vertigo for a number of years, and sadly just now got around to finally watching it.

James (Jimmy) Stewart plays John "Scottie" Fergusen, a retired San Francisco detective, who develops acrophobia after a horrifying on the job experience. Scottie is asked by an old friend to follow his wife after she has been displaying some bizarre recent activities, and is concerned for her welfare. Though reluctant to get back into any type of detective work, Scottie agrees to take the assignment after falling for the beauty of Madeline Elster (Kim Novak). Convinced that Madeline has become possessed by a former ancestor of hers, Scottie becomes more worried about her stability when Madeline’s reckless behavior begins showing signs of turning suicidal. After falling in love with Madeline, Scottie is distraught and severely depressed when his acrophobia inhibits him from being able to stop Madeline from jumping to her death.

While you may be wondering from that brief summary why this movie would be so great; I would agree with you that if it stopped there and nothing else happened, then this movie would really have been nothing to shout about. However, like I have written before, I don’t want to give away any real spoilers, and it would be a shame to not be able to experience the psychological twists and turns of this movie for oneself. While there were definitely some slow and dull moments during this film, the twists and revealing points of this film more than make up for any lull in the action. You truly have to stick with this film and give it a chance to completely develop and show its full potential.

We watched this film over two sittings, and I admit that I was very skeptical and didn’t understand any of the praise for this movie after just the first day. I was convinced that Hitchcock had made a film based on supernatural phenomenon, and I just couldn’t understand what he was trying to accomplish by doing so. After completing the film I understand the hype and praise, and join those who give such, mostly because I love films with a good twist in them.

For all of the praise and recognition this film now exhorts, I was shocked to see that the only two academy awards this film was nominated for was best sound, and best art/set decoration. It didn’t win either of its nominations, but it should go down as a film known for its great screenplay, and beautiful shots of San Francisco.

While this movie didn’t necessarily captivate me and keep me drawn in as much as Rear Window or North by Northwest, I very much enjoyed this film and loved the many wow factors that it contains. 4 ½ *’s out of 5

My Random Thought For Vertigo: Clearly everyone involved with this film had never heard of the appropriate age dating rule since they broke it any way you try to look at it. The rule clearly states that the youngest appropriate age to date someone else is half of your own age plus 7 years. Taking the real life ages at the time of this movie of Stewart (50) and Novak (25), or the characters ages which is an even larger difference, any relationship between these two is clearly outside the boundaries of appropriateness.

Dan -

When I was in college I took several film classes and I attribute them to exposing me to what many call the classics. I was introduced to Citizen Kane, The Bicycle Thief, silent film comedies starring Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, and Casablanca to name a few. I was also introduced to Alfred Hitchcock with the great Rear Window, which inspired me to see a few others of his movies like North By Northwest and The Man Who Knew Too Much. And no, that was not a deliberate choice to only watch Hitchcock movies starring Jimmy Stewart, which all of those previous three titles do. I was merely starting out with the movies that I had heard of at the time.

Hitchcock is known as the Master of Suspense and this movie further solidifies that title. Be warned that this is a slow burner, but once the tension builds you can't stop watching. I had no idea what would happen next or how it would end. I even had another jaw dropping moment when Kim Novak jumps to her death and Jimmy Stewart, paralyzed with fear, is powerless to stop her. Up until that point I didn't feel much into the movie, but then it changed dramatically.

Speaking of Jimmy Stewart's acrophobia or vertigo (as the title suggests), Hitchcock used one of the coolest camera tricks to illustrate the effects of it. The camera is physically moved backward while the lens is simultaneously zoomed in creating an illusion of greater distance than is actually present. The camera was also rotated to intensify the impact it has on the senses, making it literally dizzying as I watched.

Some of the sequences are a little dated and sort of took me out of the movie (the beginning chase and effects, the dream sequence), but I understood what the point was. The music score in this movie also kind of grated on me. Bernard Herrmann has done some really memorable film scores (North By Northwest, Psycho), but this one almost didn't feel right for this movie. I realize that may have been the point of it at times, but when the two leads are merely driving around San Francisco is there really a need for such a noticeable underscore? Don't get me wrong, it was very effective in the tense parts, but the rest could have been toned down a bit.

I wanted to love this movie, but I only ended up liking it a lot. I give it 4 out of 5 stars because it took me by surprise a few times, and because I could literally feel the emotions in the final scene from each of the characters in it simultaneously.

Side note: If you really want an in-depth analysis of this movie read Roger Ebert's review of the movie, but beware of major spoilers. It does help give this movie tremendous depth for shallow people like me, and it helped me appreciate it more.