Defendor

Let me be clear. This is not your average super hero movie. This isn't an action packed, explosion every three seconds, battle royal type of movie. It's about what a superhero could like in our everyday lives. It has nothing to do with super powers, but what a man can do with what he has been given. It's about what it might cost to have an impact on the world. Small acts of heroism can and do save lives. Defendor isn't the strongest, the smartest, the richest, the toughest man to challenge wrong-doers, he just happens to be the only one challenging. He doesn't do what is right because he can, he does what is right because he should. He is a man who has nothing and yet risks everything.

Arthur Poppington/Defendor isn't a complex man at all. He is more of a child than a man anyway. He sees the world as black and white. Where as adults fill in the blacks and whites with gray to help them cover up their own moral inconsistencies. In the normal world he feels weak and unimportant, but when he dons the backpack, helmet, and baseball bat he becomes the bravest hero his city has ever seen.

The movie is mostly told from the view point of Arthur (Woody Harrelson) telling a psychiatrist why he fights crime and so as we go throughout the recent history of his life with a few hints of his early childhood, we figure out why he's fighting "Captain Industry." His arch enemy is a drug dealer he personally calls Captain Industry, but he doesn't know who he is, where he is, or have any clue on how to defeat him. After he battles with a couple guys in an alley way caught beating up a young graffiti artist, he only survives by Katerina (Kat Dennings), a young and drug addicted teenager, scraping him up off the pavement and doing her best to take care of him. A new friendship starts to blossom as Defendor's tactics grow increasingly dangerous to catch Captain Industry. The closer he gets to finding the truth the more trouble he finds himself in. As the tension mounts all those around him plead with him to stop and to never again resume vigilantism. The law comes down on his head even though he only had the best intentions at heart. Without any support, he continues on his crusade.

Even though this movie could have been extremely cheesy, it ended up being the right mix if comedy and drama. Woody Harrelson is simply astounding. His portrayal of Defendor is both hilarious, and innocently dramatic. It is staggering how he can make a man-child like Arthur Poppington and turn him into Defendor. What makes this story so compelling is that the city doesn't need him. At all. For most of the movie it seems as if he is causing more harm than good. All we see is Defendor finding people that need his help and then watch him take on thugs who outnumber him, outmuscle him, outgun him, and simply outmatch him. And yet, he stands his ground. Time and time again. He can barely defend himself and here he is trying to save people. Arthur is an amazingly complex character despite people mistaking him to be simplistic.

With an excellent script, cast, and editing, Defendor definitely needs to go on everybody's "to buy" list. It's a great movie to just watch when you're out on a date, or just want to sit at home and relax. It delivers plenty of laughable moments along with a couple tearjerkers. In order to get the full impact of this movie, don't watch it with people who love to talk during movies or with a large group of friends that really only want background noise as they catch up on each other's adventures from the week.

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Hunger Games

Never has Hollywood experienced a movie quite like this. It wasn't because of the story itself but because of the rabid fans that followed the production of the movie like it was going to be their saving grace. Being the first movie in what is set to be the biggest franchise since Harry Potter, one would normally assume the first movie would be performing well enough at the box office. Instead, The Hunger Games has exploded into creating a fan base that rivals the very best of Harry Potter fans and Twi-hards. 

Based on the best-selling books by Suzanne Collins, Gary Ross directs an extremely talented cast, as well as one of the most powerful young actresses of our time. Jennifer Lawrence, who quickly rose to fame after "Winter's Bone" was released, plays the title character of Katniss Everdeen who volunteers herself as a participant in the yearly Hunger Games put on by the futuristic government of Panem in order to save her sister from certain death.  With the help of her fellow tribute, Peeta Mellark, played by Josh Hutcherson, the two of them battle for their lives against tributes from eleven other districts. With the odds never in their favor, they go through hell trying to find a way to survive an onslaught of attacks coming every direction, in a large variety of ways. 

After reading the books I was extremely excited about the possibilities of it being made into a movie. The book was so vivid I couldn't put the book down. From the very beginning I was enraptured by the young Katniss and her struggle to provide for herself and her family. She had little to nothing from the very beginning. The book was so detailed I was worried that the film wouldn't be able to explain everything and just be left with an incomplete story. While watching I had to revert back to the book to help explain what I was seeing on screen. There was so much information regarding the choices of the characters and details of the games missing that I had to fill it in from my memory of the books. I was worried that after so much hype the movie had received, it wouldn't live up to the standards that were set. People just might leave the theaters scratching their heads over what the heck happened. The more I ask people who haven't read the book if they understood what was going on, the more I am convinced that Ross, Collins and Billy Ray, took as much time as they needed in writing a phenomenal screenplay. It covered just about everything from the book, in just the right amount of time. There were many little tid-bits here and there that happened in the book but never were fully explained in the movie, but those were just for the fans to point out and have fun with. 

As far as my own standards go, it was a fun popcorn movie. It could have easily turned to a political drama, or a gross out gore-fest, and instead they found their balance between brutality, drama, comedy, and love. Not being a fan of the shaky "Bourne-like" camera style, they impressed me by being able to hide the brutality in some fights and yet still now what's going on. As well as show the sensitivity of the dramatic scenes. It's a nonstop, adrenaline pumping, ass-kicking kind of movie. Some of the moments I was looking forward to most were a little bit of a let down, but that's my own fault for having (some would say) high expectations. They still were able to show off the creativity of Collins' novel and give a sense that there was more to be discovered in reading the books.

Having multiple layers of stories going on at once and only seeing the story through Katniss' eyes made the movie take on a feeling of mystery as well. There was only so much information we were given, but in that absence we subconsciously came up with our own conclusions. Which only lead to in-depth conversations about the movie with whoever you went with when it's finished. There is a very strong love triangle in the movie that I wish would have been seen more of, but I understand that that story wasn't the main purpose in this movie. It wasn't about whether Katniss loves Peeta or Gale (Liam Hemsworth), it was all about what sacrifices people are willing to make to stand up against injustice, and cruelty. What are we willing to do to protect our own family.

This was an exciting movie that definitely needs to be seen on the big screen. Whether it's in 3D or not, it deserves the arena of a cinema. With this movie still holding the top of box office after more than two weeks in the theaters, it goes to show that the world definitely has been watching. I'll have to agree with most of the country when I say I would love to see it again. It's a great movie to go see with a bunch of friends just as a time to hang out and have some fun, but beware the friends who are die-hard "Hunger-fans." They may end up ruining the theater experience with their constant complaining of what was left out or how it didn't look like they had imagined. Just know this complaining audience members, Suzanne Collins, who you know as the author of the very same books you love and hold dear, also helped write the screenplay. She signed off on it. She approves. So shut up. 

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Going the Distance

Long distance relationships suck. I know. I'm in one. Out of the two years I've been dating my fiance, eleven of those months have been spent away from her. "Going the Distance" basically tells how frustrating and complicated long distance relationships are, and at the same time how rewarding they can be. All the while making you laugh until you just might have peed your pants.

Garrett (Justin Long) and Erin (Drew Barrymore) meet in New York while Erin is an intern at a newspaper publishing company and Garrett works for a record company. In the very beginning of the movie, Garrett is being dumped by his current girlfriend due to his ignorance of what women want and Erin is frustrated with the lack of accomplishment she is achieving through her internship. Out on the town to drown their sorrows, and through their mutual love for the classic game of centipede they meet at a bar and start the very long process of falling in love. They are both seeking something to fulfill that empty void and only intend on using each other to fill that space for a short time. What they get is something that they never wanted or expected.

With Garrett's ridiculously funny friends, Dan (Charlie Day) and Box (Jason Sudeikis) always at his side making fun of his strange relationship and putting it to the test, this movie never stops entertaining. Day brings all of this witty ad-lib dialogue straight from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" while Sudeikis uses his brilliant SNL comedic touch to add even more comic genius. While Erin is in San Fransisco she has her sister, Corinne (Christina Applegate), and her brother-in-law, Phil (Jim Gaffigan), to go to when she needs a good talking to. Another pair of hilarious actors on this side of the story promises that there will always be something to laugh at. With actors like this, I really have to wonder how much of the dialogue was made up on the spot. It had so much consistency to it and a natural flow that happens when a couple of comics from TV and movies sit down together that they must have just directed the conversation and let the actors have fun with it.

On either side of the story, both Erin and Garrett, never really receive encouraging support from those they love most. Through every scenario they are met with hostility and complications with little to no help from anyone. What makes this movie bearable to watch is the spontaneity of the characters, and the dialogue. I was able to guess the ending and dramatic moments here and there but what kept me on my toes was the hilarity of the dialogue. Dan and Box are so funny in the way that they interact with each other and towards Garrett. Corinne and Phil are very subtle characters but that subtlety balances so well with the wilder reactions from Garrett and his friends.

Jason Long is so much fun to watch because he has such a great way of making simple, awkward situations, extremely awkward. For instance, his friends tell him that he needs to go to a tanning salon to get rid of his "pasty white" skin so that he doesn't scare Erin away with his twilight sheen before he visits her. Being a normal man of New York he isn't experienced with a tanning salon. His confusion on how to properly go throughout the process is simply hilarious and ends up being the cause for more jokes down the road. What should have been a simple run to the tanning salon quickly became one of funniest moments of the movie.

The one thing that I didn't really like was the chemistry between Barrymore and Long. I love the both of them separately but together they just didn't make a believable pair. In this circumstance it was Barrymore that seemed to be the odd duck. Long is only four years younger than Barrymore but his baby face makes it look like he is actually ten or so years younger. She isn't that funny in comparison to the others surrounding her and with her character mostly complaining throughout the film, it's hard to cheer for her as much as Long.

This movie is very entertaining if you don't mind a lot of sexual jokes, cursing, nudity, and mustaches (Jason Sudeikis has a nasty one). It could be something to watch with your girlfriend while you're actually with her! If not, don't watch it. It'll make you sad and miss her even more. It's also not a good idea to watch with your mom either. It's just gonna get awkward.

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