Film: 1 Year, 100 Movies - August

I opened my movie list today not looking for an excuse as to why I so epically procrastinated at writing this post, but with one quick once-over it hit me. August was utterly underwhelming, especially considering the high that was Julception. My reigning them from that post still rings true, WATCH INCEPTION, it is still in theaters and it still needs to be seen by everyone. That being said, here you go. I swear September is coming soon, I swear.





8/11/10: The Extra Man
If you like Lars and the Real Girl you’ll probably like this. If you have no ideas what Lars and the Real Girl even in, you definitely won’t. This is one of those weird indie character studies that just keeps you wondering what the hell is going on the entire time. If you’re into that kind of stuff, I suppose this is as good as any.

Bottom line: Good for those who like indie character studies…and cross dressing.

8/12/10: Eat, Pray, Love
I was really stoked for this one. I love me some Julia Roberts and had heard nothing but good things about this book. What I forgot to take into account is that I heard from women how good this book is. I shouldn’t listen to women when it comes to recommending stories about love and self-discovery. This movie is terribly long and still manages to create underdeveloped relationships and an unresolved ending. For a women finally taking time to be single, Liz jumps from man to man surprisingly fast. I was looking for empowerment and got nap time.

Bottom line: Zzzzzz….

8/17/10: The Switch
You can read my official review here, but if you know the premise of this shit you probably already know where it’s going.

Bottom line: A story about hijacking pregnancy is not trendy, innovative, or funny.

8/18/10: Going the Distance
I feel confident enough that I haven’t said this yet, am too lazy too make sure of it, and take it back if I gave it to another film…best comedy of the year. This movie was amazing! The realism and hilarious ad-libbed dialogue are frickin’ genius. You know I’m serious since I just wrote a whole paragraph despite having an official review here.

Bottom line: Screw you movie-goers, this movie should have be making mad more money than it has been.

8/23/10: Piranha 3D
This is one movie you just can’t hate. All the gore and nudity you could want in just over an hour of flawless campy horror. I’m proud to say I say this movie in the theaters and I don’t care what any one thinks about it.

Bottom line: Go to happy hour, then to see this and LOL for days.

8/25/10: Takers
I was looking forward to Takers back in February when it was originally supposed to be released. When the date got pushed back, I got a little worried…apparently for good reason. This film has a commendable entourage of leading men but the execution just isn’t there. The ending is terrible and the action isn’t all that epic. There is really nothing I can find that should motivate you to see this one.

Bottom line: I’m waiting for the day Paul Walker doesn’t play the white man who saves the day.

8/26/10: Centurion
I discovered something about myself while watching Centurion, I hate any movie where I will never remember the character’s name when I leave the theater. I think that’s an understandable qualification for a film to be liked, so I’m okay putting that in writing. I don’t even know what this movie was about, honestly.

Bottom line: I don’t know who likes these kinds of movies, but it’s not me.

8/28/10: Vampires Suck
Not gonna lie, the chick who plays Bella does an EXACT impression of Kristen Bell as Bella. The problem with that though is that she bugs the crap out of me during Twilight so and hour of all that annoyance being exaggerated is even more annoying. This movie would be better if they didn’t drag imitations out through the whole film. The beauty of spoofs is short bursts of making fun of annoying crap, then moving on. Not making annoying crap even more annoying and continuing throughout the whole movie.

Bottom line: I’ve already forgotten this movie exists.

Total count for 2010: 73

Film: Legend of The Guardians The Owls of Ga'Hoole Review

It's hard to get everything right. Just ask movie makers. You think paying millions of dollars in production and distribution costs would up the standards of perfect...notsomuch. but that's why we love cinema, you never know what the hell you're going to get. An that, my friends, pretty much sums up what happened with this movie.

Legend of The Guardians The Owls of Ga'Hoole: GotchaMovies Review
Glorious Animation, Tragic Execution

Enjoy!

Film: Going the Distance Review

Here is my latest review for the [sadly] lowly anticipated Going the Distance. As you'll read this movie is amazing, so good in fact I categorized it as a movie I wanted to see for a second time right after the first, a feat not reached by many and usually with the words Christopher Nolan associated with it somewhere. There is a lot to be learned from this film, whose charm lies in its realism. And for any one wondering, apparently Drew thinks Justin is a good kisser, and no matter what you shouldn't cook non-kosher meat on a kosher grill...oops.

Going the Distance: GotchaMovies Review
Something To Be Said About Believability

Enjoy!

Food: Italian Sausage Rolls

In case you haven't noticed, the majority of my cooking efforts result in some kind of sweet treat. But, when I do actually buckle down and cook something "real" it almost always involves Italian sausage, pretty much my favorite thing next to chocolate, I really can't get enough. This recipe is inspired by my favorite Italian place, Jojo's pizza and their delicious sausage role. This version is a lot cheaper and healthier and did I mention DELICIOUS? Don't worry Jojo's this can't beat the real thing, but at least I'll tide myself over until my next visit.



Italian Sausage Rolls
Recipe by Desiree Roughton

Ingredients
*4 fully cooked Italian sausage links (suggested: Jenne-O Turkey Italian Sausage)
*1 tube reduced fat crescent roll dough
*Dipping sauce, I suggest a nice tomato alfredo especially if you get it from Fresh & Easy but a nice marinara would work as well
*Optional: dry Italian seasonings, garlic powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut each sausage link horizontally in half so you have 8 short pieces.

Roll out crescent dough and sprinkle with Italian seasonings and/or garlic powder.



Roll each sausage piece in one crescent and seal dough with fingers.



Place on cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 min or until dough is golden brown. Make sure to check that dough is cooked all the way through.





Serve with tomato alfredo.



Enjoy!

Film: The Switch Review

I post this review in hopes that you will all forgo seeing this atrocity and spend your time doing your part to help the Arrested Development movie effort. Stalk Jason Bateman, hit up some forums, tweet your opinion because this movie is exactly the opposite of how awesome Batemen is. It's called The Switch, and it's definitely off. There was a lot of flack surrounding this movie and it's sad that Aniston's decision to speak up for herself was decimated by such an epic fail.

The Switch: GotchaMovies Review
The Most Expected Comedy Ever Conceived

Enjoy!...my review, not this movie.

Film: 1 Year, 100 Movies - July

As you can see, I'm back to my old self and posting a week and a half late. Luckily, I've been getting so ahead of the theaters that a lot of these movies are still out, and some aren't even release yet! I just got back from a week and a half of "vacation." I spent 4 days at a ridiculously intense marketing conference and then headed to Washington, DC for the weekend and walked about 39209 miles. Overall, it was seriously good times, and A LOT of information, but enough about all that...let's get to the movies. I was intensely tempted to blow off commenting on any other movie besides Inception because, well, nothing else really deserves it, but for my love of movies here is the whole list.





7/1/10: Cyrus
This movie has pretty much come (if you can say that) and gone by now and there's nothing sad about that. It's just another mundane and awkward character study with a weird cast. Each of the actors, including John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill, and Marisa Tomei, have talent, but this plot is just not good.

Bottom line: Watch Inception

7/6/10: Despicable Me
Haha, just recalling this movie makes me want to sing that bad ass hip hop song they made as a theme. This movie is cute, and definitely a winner for families. It's not Toy Story 3, but it's worth a trip. The characters are really cute and it's a nice spin on the traditional kids movie format.

Bottom line: Leave your children in the theater and sneak into Inception

7/8/10: The Sorcerer's Apprentice
You can read my official review here.

Bottom line: Wait for the video and go watch Inception.

7/11/10: Predators
I hate movies where crap coined "impossible" becomes ridiculously possible for no reason at all. This movie needs a huge "meh" stamped all over it. I'm honestly bored thinking about it. The acting is okay, the "twists" are stupid and predictable and the ending is unfinished.

Bottom line: Watch Inception.

7/12/10: Inception
*sigh* I'm so glad to finally be here. There is seriously a smile on my face. You've already heard that this is the most epic and intelligent movie to come out...ever. I have nothing bad to say. There are no holes, nothing left unexplained, just pure and complete creativity, action, and thought sewn together into an oral and optical masterpiece. I've already seen this 3 times and I'm ready for another. The way Christopher Nolan can imagine manipulation of time (Memento anyone) and piece everything so seamlessly together is a sign of utter brilliance. The acting is great, the story is great, and you end the movie wishing it would start again.

Bottom line: Watch Inception, then again, then rent Memento and watch The Dark Knight

7/14/10: Charlie St. Cloud
This is a solid film, especially if you are a fan of Zac Efron sans shirt. The story is all about grief, life, and moving on. It's not too sad or predictable and really does have a nice message about life and death. The plot really keeps your interest and is definitely worth seeing.

Bottom line: Watch Inception, then this.

7/15/10: The Kids Are All Right
Lesbians, no. Organic food, no. Mark Ruffalo, yes.

Bottom line: ^^^, watch Inception

7/20/10: Salt
You can read my official review here.

Bottom line: You know what to do.

7/24/10: The Last Exorcism
This movie isn't released until October, so I can't write about it until then. What I can say is that Eli Roth is the shit (not a necessarily reflected in this movie)

Bottom line: Watch Inception.

7/26/10: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
You can read my official review here.

Bottom line: Watch Inception.

7/27/10: Step Up 3D
I love the Step Up movies. What more do I need that hotties tearin' up the dance floor? Hotties tearin' up the dance floor in 3D?! YES! The 3D elements of this is surprisingly cool and the dancing is sick as usual. The plot does a nice job of stringing together the previous stories and is quite charming.

Bottom line: You should have seen Inception by now and if you liked the other Step Ups, you'll be into this one.

7/28/10: Dinner for Schmucks
I have no idea what anyone was trying to do when making this movie. It is really long, really dumb, and just an overall fail. There are some lol moments, but mostly just out of embarrassment. Steve Carell's character is COMPLETELY forced and extremely annoying and no one else in the movie helps his case.

Bottom line: Watch Inception again because you will much happier than if you watch this.

Total count for 2010: 65

Enjoy!

Film: Salt Movie Review

Here in San Diego, Comic-Con is in full swing. I went Downtown yesterday to work a Saw 3D preview for my internship. Tobin Bell, who plays Jigsaw, was the most legit celeb ever and I've gotta say sitting through a Q&A with cast and crew that couldn't hide their passion if they tried made me want to check out the whole set of movies and reminded me what makes the movie business so awesome and something I want to be a part of.

I have a new review for you all for the new Angelina Jolie, who added a little Salt to Comic-Con on Thursday, movie Salt. And in case you're wondering, her long-time beau Brad Pitt failed to make an appearance in the film or alongside at Comic-Con.

Salt: GotchaMovies Review
Salt Could Use Some More Spice

Enjoy!