#1,820: The House on Skull Mountain
Sometimes old posts get stuck in draft form because they need more thought and revision. I have no idea why capsule movie reviews don't get published. These seem to be from December 2011.
-Hugo - Great 3D, and identifiably Scorsese, from the first shot, a long tracking through the station. Weird script though; characters exclaiming stuff in the same room instead of listening or talking to each other. Also, hints of a hated trope: Can't Spit It Out. That is, if one character would just speak up when they're a) in trouble and b) in no danger as a result of just using their words, so much trouble could be avoided, and so easily.
- J. Edgar - A perfectly good telling of the story of J. Edgar Hoover. If you've ever seen or read anything about him before, you've probably got the story down already. Saw it in the theater with a bunch of chatty audience. But they were a few guys in their 60s, so nobody had anything to say to them.
- The Lie - This seems like something that would be sold as a drama, but actually: pretty funny. Dark, and funny. Jess Weixler is great. Especially her reaction to her husband's terrible rock song.
- Real Life - Albert Brooks on reality TV. Really good. I love the nonsense presented as good science and sociology.
And of course:
- The House on Skull Mountain - a mostly black version of Dark and Stormy Night, or any other meeting for the reading of will in a spooky old house. Above all else, this was a movie that lives right on up to its title:
