Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

Amy Adams follows up her stand-out performance from Disney's Enchanted with this indy romantic comedy. Amy does sing in this film but it does not compare to her singing from Enchanted as the critics would like you to believe. The real star of this film is Frances McDormand of Fargo fame and how her character, Guinevere Pettigrew, transcends her station in life for a day to affect the lives of those around her. This period piece is very charming and the fairy tale ending is satisfying. This is a perfect date night movie that is fun to watch and not just funny.

Click here to check out the official website.

Vantage Point

Peter Travis makes the leap from directing for the small screen to the big screen with this aptly titled film. The story is the repeated unfolding of the real-time assassination of the President while preparing to speak at an anti-terrorism rally abroad from the perspective of President, Secret Service, the tourist, broadcast media and the terrorists themselves. The format really works and the movie is non-stop action. This movie has one of the best car chase scenes I have ever seen committed to celluloid. See this movie!

Click here to check out the official website.

Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who

Let me start off by saying I was a luke-warm fan of Dr. Seuss stories when I was a child with my favorite being How the Grinch Stole Christmas. I loved the book, the Christmas cartoon special and the relatively recent live-action movie that also starred Jim Carrey as the title character. I saw this movie because I kept hearing that it was a lot of fun by some of my close friends even though the trailer did nothing to peak my interest at all. If I had my nephews or nieces with me I may have vicariously enjoyed this movie by seeing their reactions to it but ultimately my impressions of the movie were even less than that of the trailer. If you love Dr. Seuss then this may be worth seeing but it is a definite pass if you don't.

Click here to check out the official website.

The Bank Job

Jason Statham is back on the big screen is this "based on a true story" bank heist film. He is joined by Saffron Burrows whose last notable film was Deep Blue Sea. With Jason Statham as the lead actor you would expect this to be another over-the-top action film like The Transporter or Crank but he actually gets to act in this film and he delivers a good performance. Movies with corrupt government officials, sleazy bad guys and a group of likeable but down-on-their-luck bank robbers always makes for a must-see film for me. Check it out because you will be pleasantly surpised.

Click here to check out the official website.

Doomsday

Neil Marshall, the writer and director of Dog Soldiers and The Descent, has hit another home run with Doomsday. Doomsday is a hybrid of The Road Warrior, Escape From New York, and Resident Evil sans the zombies and shortage of fuel. Neil Marshall single-handedly reignited the British horror genre with his inspired and effective low-budget horror films which are destined to be the new cult classics, if not already. The action is non-stop and the violence extensive, visceral and crimson as it should be with crazed cannibals coming to devour you. I lucked in to a free midnight screening of this film with a co-worker and I can't wait to get back to the theater this weekend to ride the snake one more time.

Click here to check out the official website.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company Presents: The Bible - The Complete Word of God (abridged)

My return trip to the Reduced Shakespeare Company's buffet of comedy was just as rewarding as the night before - even if the crowd was a bit smaller. No Austin Tichenor tonight but the show went on fine without him. The crowd was slightly older but that did not keep them from laughing and participating in the humor. The highlight of the show was the reenactment of Noah and the Ark to the tune of Old MacDonald as audience members were brought on stage to play the parts of the beasties that lived to screech another day. I highly recommend checking our the RSC boys while they are still in town and delivering the comic gold at a theater near you.

Click here to check out the official website.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company Presents: The Complete History of America (abridged)

The boys are back in town this month with another of their hilarious productions coming to you live from the Lansburgh Theater. I was introduced to these fellows a few years back when they were performing The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) and All The Great Books (abridged) at the Kennedy Center. Austin Tichenor was the only returning face I recognized with his trademark rapid-fire delivery, ribald wit and vaudeville-like mania. This viewing is the first of two I will be attending this week and the boys did not let me down. From American History to the Bible, is there a subject out there that they can not tun in to comic gold? Hhhmmmm.....

Click here to check out the official website.

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom @ The Kennedy Center

My season tickets included attending one of August Wilson's 20th Century staged readings and I chose this one because of my love for the blues. I must admit that I did not know much about August Wilson or his plays and I feel the poorer for it. After attending this performance, I wished I had opted to see all ten of the productions because this one was just that good. The actors really sank their teeth in to their roles and brought the 1920s to life right before my eyes. I highly recommend checking out any one of these plays should you be lucky enough to get tickets.

Click here to check out the Kennedy Center's listing for this show.

In Bruges

The new indy catchphrase will be,"F*^king Bruges". This movie is about three assassins, Brendan Gleeson, Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes, and the aftermath of a hit gone wrong with the killing of an innocent and its repercussions. Not the subject matter that you would think lends itself to comedy but it does. The movie has its dramatic moments but the comedy shines through as the assassins must deal with being on the lamb in the Brigadoon known as Bruges. This movie has been relegated to the art-house scene when it so deserves a wider mainstream release to an audience that will only get to appreciate it once it is available from Netflix or the local Blockbuster.

Click here to go to the official website.

Iron Man Trailer 2 Online

For comic books fans everywhere, Iron Man is going to be the must see movie of the summer. This past year's San Diego Comicon had Iron Man as the convention logo so you knew there were high expectations for this film. Jon Favreau came to the convention and did not disappoint the fans. The rough-cut footage was awesome and seeing Iron Man outrunning fighter jets was a fanboy's wet dream. I dare any one to watch this latest trailer and not come away with at least a spark of anticipation for seeing this film. I think I will need to schedule an "off-site team meeting" with my staff on the day it comes out.

Click here to see the movie trailer or here to go to the offical website.