Movies 1/3-1/10
Yeh, this is a bit late, but you get what you pay for.
The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
Rating: 
When I sit down to watch an X-Files movie, I have certain expectations. The main expectation is that it will be “bigger” than the TV show. More freaky, or a bigger conspiracy, etc. than what you were used to seeing from week to week. This film totally missed that mark. It was basically another TV episode, but at least twice as long and more boring. I’ll still watch another X-Files film if they ever make one, but they better rethink what they are doing.
The Karate Kid: Part II (1986)
Rating:
The kids seemed to love the first one last week, so we let them watch the sequel. This is a bit more mature than the first, but they still seemed to enjoy it. We have the other two “sequels,” so eventually they’ll watch those as well. I always liked this one the best out of the four. If anyone remembers the “recap” at the beginning of this movie to remind folks what happened at the end of Part I, it was funny to hear J really getting angry that she had “ALREADY SEEN THAT PART!!!”
Blade Runner: Workprint (1982)
Rating:
Always a sci-fi classic, this version of the movie did not disappoint. It was lower quality at times than the other versions out there since this was the one shown early to audiences prior to release. It was so long since I had seen the original that I had to listen to the (great) commentary along w/ the film to figure out what the major differences were. If you are a huge fan of Blade Runner, you may want to check this out. If not, I guess I would suggest the “Final Cut” version.
The Machinist (2004)
Rating:
I can’t really remember how this ended up in my queue, so I didn’t really know what to expect from it. I find I enjoy many movies more than I might normally when I totally forget what they are about, lol. Anyway, this was well done, and owes much credit to Christian Bale actually dropping down to 120 lbs. for the film!! He is scary-thin… and it really helps you visualize the state of his character. Hard to believe he played Batman very soon afterwards.
Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002)
Rating:
These Spy Kids movies are much better than they should be. They are just plain fun to watch along with the kids. This one was half-way over and the kids were already asking me to go back to the computer and make sure Spy Kids 3 was in their Netflix queue.
The Princess Bride (1987)
Rating:
I’m always excited to see the kids pull this one back off the shelves for a weekend movie. It’s one of my all-time favorite movies when I was growing up, and both T and I are glad the kids have taken to it as well. I remember the first time J watched it a year ago. She kept running around the house for the next month saying, “My name is Enigo Montoya. You kill my father. Prepare to die.” Hilarious to hear from a 5-year old girl. Of course, we had to work hard to make sure she didn’t run around doing that at school/day care.
Eraserhead (1977)
Rating:
Ummm. This viewing was against my better judgement, but I didn’t have any Netflix discs in the house so I pulled it up from their “Watch Instantly” collection online. I actually had to watch it eventually since I’m slowly working on the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (this viewing finally pushed me past the half-way point… I have 500 left to see). I guess if you want to watch David Lynch, stick to something like Mulholland Drive or Twin Peaks. The crying “baby” from this film was in my head for hours… which was certainly intended, I guess. Weird stuff.
Ghost in the Shell (1995)
Rating:
I believe I added this to my queue back when Jon and Carl from work were trying to convince me of the greatness of Anime films. I’m still not a huge fan, but this one was actually pretty good. I might even watch more of this series in the future. By the way, this is not for kids! :)
The Border (1982)
Rating:
This was another Netflix “Watch Instantly” selection for the week. This film did not age well. I think it had a couple marginally good things to say about illegal immigration, but that’s a stretch. It seems like more of a Western done in a “modern” way (at least at the time). Don’t bother.
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