Diary of the Dead (2007)

Romero has given his fans something to take to the grave with them, with five films that are generally contradictory and controversial phenomena. There was “Night” and “Dawn” which are still basically debated and adored, the once despised, but now appreciated “Day” and the rather sub-par “Land,” all leading into “Diary.” Romero’s newest output is a confusing fascinating beast. Never has one of his films completely divided fans before, and admittedly it’s a monster worth observing. It’s both despicable and brilliant, it’s hideous and yet quite apt. “Diary” continues splitting fans that both despise it and adore it for the very same reasons. But is Romero really just the observer here?

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I Am Legend (2007) (DVD)

Francis Lawrence has an incredible eye for details and visuals in all the movies I’ve seen from him. Even his worst movies have some of the best surreal stark visuals I’ve ever seen, and the man knows how to implement CGI to enhance his films instead of rely on them to provide entertainment. I just wish the man made better movies. What’s it going to take for this man to bring us something spectacular? As for “I Am Legend” it’s wholly unspectacular, but without a doubt one of my favorite guilty pleasures of 2007.

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August (2007)

augustThough depressing and frustratingly bleak, Jay Gammill’s “August” is an accurate portrayal of teen insecurity and a look at how some of us may never be happy with what we are and how we look. August is a boy plagued with low self-esteem and depression based around constant teasing by vicious bullies who torment him about a small imperfection in his jaw line. Though to many they’ll sit wondering why he’s putting so much emphasis on this small unnoticeable feature, Gammill points out how this small perfection means the world to him and decides how he lives his life.

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Doomsday (2008)

doomsdayMarshall is perhaps one of the most underrated, unnoticed, wildly creative directors of our time, and it sucks when I can watch something like “Doomsday” and frown that not many chose to see it with me. Currently one of my favorite directors in film, Marshall is 3 for 3 with a slyly tongue in cheek post-apocalyptic thriller that takes place during the end of a destructive disease called The Reaper which took most of the civilization in Glasgow. Closed off from society, the government’s plan to quarantine the country forever turned on them as the world suffered from over population and now the Reaper is back. “Doomsday” has elicited many comparisons to classics like “Mad Max,” and “Escape from New York,” and even fans of the film have agreed to these very apt comparisons.

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The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town (1977)

easter-bunny-is-coming12So I sat here trying to think of reasons why I liked “The Easter Bunny…” and then after about three hours of sitting still and looking into a wall, I realized that I was being a little too easy on Rankin Bass. Even in this day and age, there’s a certain charm to Rankin Bass and their stop motion creations. “The Easter Bunny…” has a great visual sense with character designs and pastels that are aesthetically pleasing and rather appealing to the eyes, and they’re always nothing short of superb when providing special effects, even considering the time these movies were made.

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It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown! (1974) (DVD)

ebcbOkay, so I don’t celebrate Easter, and I don’t particularly subscribe to the principles of Schulz’s comic and its strong religious themes, but it doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with “Easter Beagle,” yet another classic Charlie Brown episode involving the gang and, what else, Easter! While Linus creates another sentient figure out of a holiday called the Easter Beagle, anxiously awaiting its gifts and bounty, Marcy and Peppermint Patty try to grasp the concept of coloring eggs while wasting food in the most disturbing of manners. Believe it or not, Marcie can’t figure out that you have to boil eggs before coloring them.

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Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who! (2008)

HortonHearsAWhoWallpaper102Many people will reason for “Horton” that it’s a good movie because, it’s much better than the previous attempts. And frankly, I’m not buying it. Is “Horton” as bad as the previous live action attempts? No way in bloody hell. But is it good enough to be a classic? No way in bloody hell. “Horton” makes the right decision of using animation this time around and pumps the screen with skilled comedians and it pays off to a certain extent as the adventures end up rather amusing. As an animated effort, it has the right idea, it just doesn’t know how to compose Seuss without turning itself into another “Shrek,” and I prayed this movie would have sense enough to not aspire to appeal to that audience and yet it did.

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