Final Review: Red Dawn

My favorite movie is Red Dawn, directed by John Milius. It stars Charlie Sheen, Patrick Swayze, Lea Thompson and C. Thomas Howell. It is set in the 80's and WWIII breaks out when the Soviets attack a small town in Colorado. I absolutely adore this movie for so many reasons. One, is that it gets you thinking. The survivors of this movie are high school kids and they go into the mountains and live off the land while waiting out the war. They decide to take action and form the "Wolverines" which was originally the name of their high school mascot. They become a force to be reckoned with and fighting vigilantes. It always makes me think about what I would do in their situation or if something similar happened in Alta Loma. This film illustrates the human instinct to survive with what you have. They do this and more in Red Dawn. I think that the acting and cinematography are phenomenal because I believe what's happening, I believe that they are going through WWIII and I believe that they are struggling. This movie means a lot to me and I truly enjoy it every time I watch it.  

                                              

Holiday Movie Review: Elf

Will Ferrell plays Buddy in Elf, directed by Jon Favreau. Buddy is a 6' 3" "elf" that crawled into Santa's bag at an orphanage when he was a baby. Santa decided to keep Buddy at the North Pole and Papa Elf (Bob Newhart), Buddy's adopted father, didn't tell him that he was human until he was 30. When Buddy finds out that his real father lives in New York City he passes through the Sea of Swirly Twirly Gumdrops and through the seven levels of the Candy Cane Forest to meet him. James Caan plays Buddy's dad, Walter Hobbs, and is shocked to find out he has another son. Buddy tries to adjust to human life buy getting a job in the mail room and falling in love with Zooey Deschanel's character Jovie. Ultimately, Buddy spreads Christmas cheer everywhere he goes and realizes his true identity. I enjoy watching this film during the holiday season because it provides comical relief to a time that can be stressful to any family. It is also one of the only Christmas movies that I own. It's not my favorite, but it has become my own mini tradition.

Suspense Movie Review: Psycho

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, Psycho is a psychological thriller, horror and suspense film. In this classic, Marion Crane, played by Janet Leigh, steals a large sum of money from her work and plans to start a new life with her lover, Sam. John Gavin's character later becomes somewhat or a hero when a drastic turn of events twists the plot while Marion showers at a road-side motel. The Bates Motel, run by Norman Bates, Anthony Perkins, and his mother is the center of the story and everything revolves around it. Perkins's magnificent performance and the film cause me to rate it a 9 in acting. Hitchcock's vision is portrayed in a spectacular manor, in my opinion. I give the cinematography a 10. Overall though, this movie gets a solid 9 and I highly recommend it.