Tiptoe Through The Tulips

The highly anticipated sequel to the 2010 horror film “Insidious” might have broken records over the weekend opening on Friday the 13^th, but the low budget film has audiences feeling a bit underwhelmed. “Insidious: Chapter 2” finds the Lambert family exactly where we last saw them: on the verge of being murdered by the dark bride who has inhabited Josh’s body, played by Patrick Wilson. But instead of this happening, the family believes that someone else has murdered paranormal investigator Elise played by Lin Shaye and they decide to return to Josh’s childhood home where odd things start to happen. Sound familiar? Rose Byrne returns as Renai Lambert, the matriarch of the family who is trying to believe her husband Patrick Wilson, who promises that everything will be alright if they just ignore the ghosts that keep appearing. Barbara Hershey also returns as Lorraine Lambert, Josh’s mother, who is trying to remember more about her son’s past with the paranormal. While this movie wasn’t a complete disappointment, some of the plot elements just didn’t make any sense.

The flashbacks to Josh’s unexplained childhood was a high point in the movie, as well as the music and the new settings; however, the film’s downfall were the obvious flaws in the premise and the lack of scares caused by keeping audience in the dark by not showing what characters were seeing. Gone from the sequel are the infamous demon with hooves and his creepy rendition of Tiny Tim’s “Tiptoe through the Tulips.” Another odd thing was the PG-13 rating, which was no doubt in favor of getting a younger audience to drive the $41 million opening weekend sales. While there were definitely a few creepy moments that caused jolts, “Insidous: Chapter 2” failed to ignite both the fear and curiosity of the first film by basically repeating the story and adding time travel to the mix. The much campier approach didn’t really help either, with audiences laughing more than screaming. If the first film had shades of “Poltergeist,” the second is filled with “Psycho” references as the dark bride’s past is uncovered. It’s clear that the inevitable “Chapter 3” will introduce a new family and follow Elise as she tries to help victims from the Further.

Not Ready To Make Nice

Romantic drama “Silver Linings Playbook,” which was released as a film last year, was first a novel written by Mathew Quick that tells the story of Pat Peoples played by Bradley Cooper, a former teacher who moves back into his parent’s house following a stay at a mental institution. The details of his past slowly come back to his memory during his quest to “end apart time” with his estranged wife Nikki as he forms an unlikely friendship with Tiffany played by Jennifer Lawrence, a promiscuous dancer who lost her husband. Pat’s family is obsessed with the Philadelphia Eagles, so much so that his father’s mood often relies solely on how their season is going, forcing further complications with his mother. Pat spends a good deal of his time working out and improving his personality in order to win back Nikki, but as the story progresses it becomes clear that a reunion is less likely.

Although a great deal of the book’s premise revolved around football, readers don’t have to necessarily be diehard sports fans to enjoy reading about the tailgates, scores, and camaraderie of it all. And while Pat refers to his life as a movie, the book is not as light-hearted as the film with Pat being in “the bad place” for four years instead of eight months and his father played by Robert De Niro refusing to have a relationship with Pat and not the other way around. There is also the dance competition which Pat and the older Tiffany perform against children and not “Dancing with the Stars” knockoffs. The film initially opened as a limited release last September but slowly became a sleeper hit, grossing over $236 million worldwide due in large part to both Cooper and Lawrence’s critical reception and the success of their current franchise films. The movie went on to win several awards, including Lawrence’s Academy Award for her role while the novel has become a best seller.

Live Fast, Die Young, Bad Girls Do It Well

Foul-mouthed action comedy “The Heat” is being touted as the first all-female buddy-cop film to ever surface on the big screen, and audiences can’t seem get enough of it. Sandra Bullock stars as an uptight FBI agent who is partnered with a foul-mouthed Boston cop played by Melissa McCarthy. The duo must stop a Russian drug lord that is taking over the Boston area thanks to dishonest teens and dirty cops. Although it wasn’t the funniest movie in recent years, it’s just what this action-packed summer needed: a little comedy. Both McCarthy and Bullock’s timing were on point and the hot Boston heat serves as the perfect backdrop for a summer hit. Bullock’s performance was similar to her recent stints as a high-strung editor in “The Proposal” or as a neurotic assistant in “Two Weeks Notice,” yet these resemblances were overlooked by the laugh-out-loud moments fueled by her character.

Although the R-rated comedy has some graphic violence that is reminiscent of 2008’s “Pineapple Express,” McCarthy’s crude language should take most of the blame. After stealing the show in 2011’s “Bridesmaids,” McCarthy’s popularity has increased dramatically making her a household name and this film only continues to prove it. The action comedy opened on June 28^th with $40 million, which is not too bad considering its competition. “White House Down,” the summer’s second failed action film about a terrorist plot against the nation’s capital, was unable to beat “The Heat.” Given the film’s success, a sequel is expected to showcase even more ridiculous anecdotes and incompatible awkwardness between Bullock and McCarthy. “The Heat” is drunk, crude, and hysterical with its funniest moments coming from the two leads physical comedy.

Born Again

Action-adventure “Bourne Legacy” continues writer Robert Ludlum’s saga of Jason Bourne played by Matt Damon, but replaces it’s lead actor with a new character that’s spices things up in the sometimes slow-paced summer blockbuster. Jeremy Renner stars as Aaron Cross, another member of the Treadstone Project working with the Department of Defense who is trying desperately to stay alive after his company starts targeting him along with every other hired assassin. This time around has much more Science with Rachel Weisz starring as Dr. Marta Shearing, a scientist working for Treadstone and responsible for creating the medication that the assassins take, which alters their chromosomes and heightens their senses, physical abilities and mental concentration. This movie takes place during the events of the past three installments, with Jason Bourne going rogue after losing his memory and ending all ties with his employer.

This causes Treadstone to wipe out the assassin project by getting rid of all evidence including killing everyone involved. While the beginning of the film was very slow-paced compared to the other movies in the series, the story started to pick up once Renner and Weisz came face-to-face. Edward Norton also stars as Eric Byer, an angry supervisor at Treadstone who will stop at nothing to cover up all evidence of the project. “Bourne Legacy” made nearly $40 million in its opening weekend on August 8, 2012 and continues to perform well. While Damon declined to make a cameo in this movie, his presence is still very much noted in the News coverage being watched by the characters. There are also plenty of familiar faces including Joan Allen as Pamela Landy. “Bourne Legacy” succeeds in keeping the original formula of the last three installments intact and adding plenty of new and interesting characters who can no doubt continue the series.

Hero/Heroine

The epic conclusion of Christopher Nolan’s “Batman Trilogy” made its premiere last week to record breaking sales, but was sadly overshadowed by a shooting at a midnight showing in Aurora, Colorado. “The Dark Night Rises” brought many new faces to the silver screen, including Tom Hardy as the film’s main villain, Bane, and Anne Hathaway as one of Batman’s love interests, Catwoman. Hardy reportedly put on 30 pounds for the role, portraying a massive, drug infused killer reaking havoc on Gotham City’s rich. Fans of the franchise were worried about Nolan’s choice for the famous Selena Kyle, but critics applauded the sass that Hathaway brought to the character, which was reminiscent of Michelle Pfeiffer’s stellar performance in the 1991 sequel “Batman Returns.” The final part of the trilogy takes place eight years after the last film, where the now crippled billionaire Bruce Wayne, played by Christian Bale, has stayed hidden inside his mansion after taking the fall for Harvey Dent’s vengeance and subsequent death.

After the city of Gotham is taken over by Bane who plans to set off a nuclear bomb if anyone tries to cross him, Batman is called upon one last time to defend the citizens who believe he is responsible for the death of their hero. Bane’s main motive is unclear as he tries the city’s wealthiest people, takes their money and frees the criminals who were kept behind bars under “The Dent Law.” Although the two hours and forty five minutes worth of film was a bit long, the final act was very pleasing to fans of both the comic books and Nolan’s representation of the caped crusader. As in most third installments, there were plenty of callbacks to the original film, but no mention of Heath Ledger’s joker, which was said to be left out in respect to the departed actor. Many other “Inception” co-stars besides Hardy were given roles in the film as well, including Joseph Gorden-Levitt as John Blake and Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate. But the news wasn’t all great, as a masked man shot up a Colorado screening of the film, killing 12 people and injuring over 50 others. Even in the wake of this terrible tragedy, “The Dark Night” was able to bring in a total of $30.1 million in its midnight showings, becoming the second highest grossing movie of all time.

If I Ever Leave This World Alive

Science fiction thriller “Prometheus” brought audiences back to the terrifying world of aliens and gave actress Charlize Theron her second consecutive blockbuster this summer after scoring with “Snow White and the Huntsman” the week prior. Previously helmed as a prequel to the “Alien” series, film creator Ridley Scott chose to portray this as a standalone film with some elements of the original 1979 “Alien” starring Sigourney Weaver. “Lost” writer Damon Lindelof was brought on to rewrite the script after it took several years for this story set nearly eighty years into the future to get off the ground. After a two year voyage in space, a ship named Prometheus arrives on a planet that is thought to be inhabited with aliens responsible for the birth of humans according to cave paintings found in various parts of the globe.

A team was developed with the help of a mysterious, ailing funder to find out if these aliens are alive and how exactly we are linked to them, but after the ship makes its landing it quickly becomes clear that these aliens are hostile toward humans. Noomi Rapace stars as Elizabeth Shaw, an archaeologist with strong beliefs in God and is desperate to find out if these aliens are truly the “engineers” she believes them to be. It was somewhat of a surprise to see “The O.C.” star Logan Marshall-Green cast in such a high profile role as Rapace’s love interest and partner. Theron plays Meredith Vickers, one of the funder’s employees sent to keep an eye on the crew and control the situation, but has her own agenda. The film tackles such issues as Faith and Science just as Lindelof’s ABC show did for six seasons. It was very interesting how Scott chose to develop the aliens in this film as they technically did not have to be replicas from his past films.

Theron was not the only familiar face on board the ship, as “X-Men: Origins” actor Michael Fassbender plays David, an android who acts as the ship’s butler and liaison to the project’s billionaire funder, ensuring that his dying wishes are granted. Fassbender gave perhaps the best performance of the film from his devious actions as a robot obeying his master to his immeasurable amount of knowledge; at one point he toyingly whispers “there is nothing in the desert and no man needs nothing.” This movie certainly echoed the original, but lacked character development and actual horror with the exception of a few scenes; whereas the original “Alien” had a cast of five, this one has nearly twenty. Just as in the footsteps of Theron’s previous hit, “Prometheus” made over $50 million in its first weekend after premiering on June 8^th 2012. A sequel seems imminent as the door is left wide open at the end of the film with so many unanswered questions and possibilities to go from here.

Forever Young

Fantasy drama “Snow White and the Huntsman” delivers an action packed take on the fairy tale starring Chalice Theron as the wickedly stunning Queen Raveena. In the year’s second film about the pale skinned beauty, this rendition of Snow White is much darker than Disney’s “Mirror Mirror,” which opened to less than stellar sales last March and starred Julia Roberts and Lily Collins. “Twilight” actress Kristen Stewart plays the titular role of Snow White who was imprisoned by her evil stepmother after she killed Snow’s father and took over the kingdom. After escaping the clutches of the youth-obsessed Raveena, the rightful heir to the throne becomes a target of the Huntsman who was hired by the Queen to capture her only later aiding Snow White in her journey to take back the kingdom.

Theron’s take on the evil queen was breathtaking to watch unfold from her obvious beauty to her crazed tendencies to suck the lives out of the women of the kingdom. But as the bodies continue to pile, so does her need to end the curse that her mother placed upon her when she was a little girl, which can only be broken by Snow White’s heart. It was a pleasure to see Theron back on the big screen after a noticeable absence and Raveena’s army of glass soldiers was a feast for the eyes as was her transition into a swarm of black crows. This is not your ordinary fairy tale as Snow White leads an army dressed in armor and wielding a sword. The soft, animal loving Disney princess is hardly recognizable under a coat of dirt and sweat. This story seemed much more real even in a land of magic and make believe and allowed viewers to escape into a summer hit, which is exactly what they have been waiting for.

Chris Hemsworth’s brooding no prisoners act provided some good laughs and there of course was an appearance made by the seven dwarves who were just as charming. With tons of fantastic fight scenes and enchanting CGI, this summer blockbuster aimed to please both sexes at movie theaters last weekend. “Snow White and the Huntsman” took in over $50 million in its first weekend, surpassing “Mirror Mirror’s” entire theatrical run. Not bad for a film that had many critics a little nervous, especially after recent bombs “Battleship” and “Dark Shadows.” And while Theron’s rein as Queen Ravenna is up in the air for a sequel that was left open at the end of the film, it seems unimaginable for moviegoers to return without her. Theron’s next film is Ridley Scott’s “somewhat” “Alien” prequel titled “Prometheus,” which has ideas from the original but stands alone as a separate story.

Matters Of Blood And Connection

Dark comedy “Dark Shadows” reboots the 1966 soap opera of the same name by bringing Barnabas Collins back to life and to the big screen to deliver a quirky, if not misguided, family adventure for the summer. The film was directed by Tim Burton, with whom Jonny Depp has worked with on numerous occasions including such movies as “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Edward Scissorhands.” Burton also re-teamed with Michelle Pfeiiffer twenty years after she starred as Catwoman in his film “Batman Returns.” Depp plays Barnabas Collins, a wealthy fishing pioneer who was cursed with becoming a vampire after a scorned lover uses magic and imprisons him for two-hundred years. Barnabas returns to his mansion in the 1970’s to find that his fishing business has suffered due to a new competitor: the witch, played by Eva Green.

His business is not the only thing that is in trouble: his family seems to have had their misfortunes over the years and the remaining members live in the now broken down mansion with an alcoholic doctor. The new take on the old classic had some good laughs and remained visually stunning from the sets of the Collins mansion to the town itself, but the odd narration in the beginning of the story and some cringe-worthy jokes kept this film from being what it could have been: a classic. The story seemed to lose its focus by depending much of its time on one character only to move on to the next and forget about the last storyline. Those who are unaware of the original soap opera might have thought that this film would stick to solely vampires, but almost all forms of supernatural entities are present including witches, ghosts and werewolves, which just didn’t feel natural.

The usually likeable Eva Green decided to deepen her voice for this character, making her even less enjoyable than the character she was playing. Pfeiffer’s presence was noted as the matriarch of the Collins family and she remained extremely appealing and protective of her daughter and nephew. Burton’s wife, Helena Bonham Carter’s take on the alcoholic Dr. Hoffman was fun to watch unfold until she disappeared half-way through the film. Taking place in the 1970’s gave the film a great era of music to choose from including an on-screen cameo from Alice Cooper, who also performed. The movie brought in nearly $30 million at the Box Office in its first weekend, yet this was seen as a disappointment when considering how Burton’s past movies have done. Although this odd film felt more like a parody than a remake much of the time, it was still very entertaining to watch.

It’s Time To Meet The Muppets

It’s time to play the music, its time to light the lights, it’s time to meet the Muppets on “The Muppet Show” tonight. Long before the world of lovesick ogors, Sponge Bob Square Pants and voiceless mermaids there existed a show that relied solely on a group of puppets. In their first movie in over a decade, family comedy “The Muppets” brings audiences back to a time when the Muppets brought laughter to audiences across the globe. Jim Henson’s “The Muppets” first appeared on the show “Sam and Friends” in 1955 and have since created countless films and television series including “The Muppet Show” which aired on CBS from 1976 to 1981.

In the groups’ newest installment, Kermit the Frog finds himself a victim of fraud as he has unknowingly agreed to sell the original Muppet Studios to be knocked down along with each character’s trademark names. Now, with the help of Walter, his brother Gary, played by Jason Segal, and his girlfriend Mary, played by Amy Adams, Kermit must get the rest of the gang back together and put on one last show in order to raise the money needed to save the studios. There’s only one problem: “The Muppets aren’t famous anymore.”

The success of this film could argue otherwise as “The Muppets” brought in over $150 million after opening last November. With plenty of cheesy jokes and choreographed dancing, this film got its best laughs when it wasn’t afraid to make fun of itself. The movie’s story was written by actor Jason Segal who also won an Academy Award for one of the many songs sung throughout the film. Though Segal will not take part in the sequel that has already been announced, the Muppets have certainly made a comeback with this movie becoming the most successful film of the series.

The Lady In The Blue Dress

Daniele Radcliffe’s first post-“Harry Potter” film debuted this month and while the trailer made it seem like the horror flick would scare audiences into seeing it, the movie itself lacked any thrill. “The Woman in Black” centers on a young widower, Radcliffe, who is assigned to find the last will and testament of the former occupants of a secluded house in the early Twentieth Century. The unwelcoming townspeople believe that if you see the woman in black, she will appear to a child who is doomed to kill themselves. If it were not for the high pitch of the woman’s screams or the way she handles a rocking chair, there is truly little to fear about her.

Radcliffe’s character is also suffering from both the death of his wife during childbirth and his financial issues with his firm. He is forced to continue his search for the sake of his own son even after town’s children begin to die in front of him and reappear as ghosts. With so many opportunities to branch out the storyline and include other characters into the back story, this horror film chose to not stray too far from the most obvious plot. The movie does win points for its creepy use of old dolls and a visually stunning set, but this doesn’t make up for the writer’s lack of exploration even if the film is based on the Susan Hill novel of the same name.

The movie earned $20 million in its opening weekend with a budget of $13 million, making it an unexpected success for CBS Films. With a release in the UK following a week later, the film has gone on to bring in over $50 million worldwide. “The Woman in black” is plagued by a lack of mystery; as if the audience didn’t already figure out what was going to happen, the woman’s reasons for killing the town’s children is explained a mere twenty minutes into the plot. And if your hoping that a shocking ending could save this horror flick from being forgotten, don’t hold your breath; what could have been an interesting mystery turned out to be Radcliffe walking around a deserted home for ninety-five minutes.