Alex & Emma (2003)

Posted on July 25, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

No matter how hard “Alex and Emma” tries, it’s still the same package but with new wrapping. It’s another recycled romantic comedy, with more recycled characters, but only with a different twist. Kate Hudson has a nasty habit of choosing horrible films of late, and Luke Wilson is no exception. In this vapid formulaic film, Luke Wilson plays Alex Sheldon, an author who released a book and is in debt with what looks like the Cuban mafia. Two Cuban thugs break into his apartment and threaten him, but then again they just could be thugs from another mafia. So, Alex has thirty days to write and publish a book and get them their money or else he goes bye-bye (death), so he hires a stenographer. Why not a ghost writer? Someone from the publisher to help? You figure he being an author he’d be able to type fast, but he instead hires a stenographer by posing as a law agency to which we meet Emma, a beautiful (despite how hard Hudson pretends to be plain), young and uptight stenographer who is convinced by Alex to write the book as he dictates it to her.

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Better Luck Tomorrow (2002)

Posted on July 25, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

“Better Luck Tomorrow” has the sentiment and heavy character depth of John Hughes combined with the violence, realism, and excellent dialogue of Quentin Tarantino, it reminds that though there is democracy in America, we haven’t progressed socially, we’re not willing to give Asian actors the lead role in a drama, or horror, only for action films. There is no stereotypical Asian in this film, and that’s what I loved about it. This is not by any means a negative portrait of the Asian culture, this is more of a human portrait of the Asian culture because despite the race, we’re human either way.

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Down with Love (2003)

Posted on July 25, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

“Down with Love” has the right intentions; it’s a throwback to the old Kim Novak and Rock Hudson romantic comedies from the sixties; the hip, groovy, fluffy as a marshmallow, and very colorful romantic comedies were sometimes very entertaining, and while “Down with Love” has all the ingredients of a satire, this is never sure whether it really is a satire or a spoof. A satire is an amusing jab at a topic, a spoof is making fun of a topic and unfortunately, “Down with Love” jumps from one genre to the other so constantly throughout the progression of the film that it makes your head spin. Barbara Novak is a brutal young go-getter, a tough ballsy female writer for a magazine, a female pioneer in a male dominated society who has written a book called “Down with Love” which breaks down and analyzes all the tricks men pull with women, but can’t get it published.

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Nicholas Nickleby (2002)

Posted on July 11, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

Nicholas Nickleby is an excellent unwilling hero of the story, who is given a large task of taking control of his family despite the fact of his young age and must become a man through some extraordinary situations. Charlie Hunnam whom I’ve seen in the underrated “Undeclared” and the muddled “Abandon” is great as Nicholas, the strong-willed, courageous, outspoken and humble hero who becomes a truly admirable savior to many of the characters. Hunnam whose ability I’ve doubted in his recent roles is great as Nickleby giving him a sense of power and courage and injecting a lot of likable traits in him. He’s a great character and a very memorable hero of the Dickens’ stories and for some reason his cruel uncle Ralph takes an instant disliking to him. He sees in him everything he’s not.

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Freaky Friday (2003)

Posted on July 11, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

The classic Disney film from 1976 is redone into this entertaining and funny remake starring the duo of Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Writers Heather Hach, and Leslie Dixon manage to take a creaky wheeled comedy and make it fresh, of course modernizing it, but also create a cast of genuinely likable characters that people will love. In this version Jamie Lee Curtis plays Tess Coleman, an uptight, strict, and anal mother who is very busy with her career. As well as her family and her upcoming marriage to her boyfriend Ryan (Mark Harmon), and her daughter Anna, who is a drama queen who is bullied in school, failing in class and is at war with her mother almost 24/7.

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The Order (2003)

Posted on July 11, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

What “The Order” suffers from is what many supernatural films suffer from: it has decent direction and interesting visuals but it’s end result is bland, boring, and devastatingly bleak. As well as being contrived and derivative. Crooked churches, secret organizations within the church, mysterious priests who have other connections, creepy looking children who are in the film just to be creepy, and characters that barely have any personality at all. Ledger plays Alex Bernier, a conflicted young priest whose mentor has just died and now the church is investigating his suicide. Alex is called upon by another priest (Peter Weller) who suspects that his mentor has been murdered now begins investigating his murder and hopes to bury his mentor in the church graveyard while discovering a mysterious cult that is tied to his mentor’s death.

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Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Posted on July 11, 2004 by Felix Vasquez

The sequel to the 2002 blockbuster, and based on the legendary storyline from the Spider-Man comic books, we see Peter Parker yet again juggling his life trying to keep it together while juggling two jobs, an education, his aunt, and his part-time job as Spider-Man. Peter who is still in love with Mary Jane denies his feelings for her despite her blatant hinting and keeps her at a distance. Meanwhile Harry Osborne, son of Norman who died at the hands of Spider-Man as the Green Goblin, is plotting his revenge on Spider-man attempting to track him down. But at a hero’s weakest times a new evil is always born and a genius scientist by the name of Otto Octavius has invented a new science where he can create a small sun which can be used as a substitute for electricity, but when something goes horribly wrong, his lab begins crumbling and explodes killing his wife and forever grafting his mechanical tentacle-like tools to his spine.

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