Andy Stitzer

[***I'M EXHAUSTED AND HAVE TO BE UP EARLY IN THE MORNING, SO SINCE THIS IS A DOUBLE-CROWD REPORT I AM GOING TO CONDENSE 'THE FILM' WRITE-UPS TO HAIKU POEMS] Hope Springs 4:30pm Saturday, August 11th Regal Fenway 13 & RPX Theater Capacity: 250 (40% full; mainly older couples... like 50's+) Ticket Price: $0 (I had a rewards ticket) Concessions: small sprite, small popcorn ($10.25) TRAILERS: Skyfall - cool trailer, but calm reaction. Zero Dark Thirty - a 9/11 feature about killing Osama Bin Laden directed by JC's ex-wife? I'm not interested, and neither was the audience. Trouble With The Curve - trailer got some laughs from the audience, looks okay. This is 40 - got an excellent reaction from audience; lots of laughing and talking afterwards... good to see the reception to this trailer from an older audience for a change. Anna Karenina - why does Keira Knightly only seem to do period drama films now? Meh, no reaction... but it looks like it was shot in a cool way. Hit and Run - this trailer sucked and got a pity laugh from some people, no reaction otherwise. The Words - "Bradley Cooper again?" Waiting to see reviews on this film, but I have no faith in CBS Films. THE FILM: Meryl Streep's flawless. Tommy Lee Jones holds his own. Go see this movie. Experience - 21/30 Story/Writing - 15/20 Acting - 13/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 10/15 Direction - 8/10 Music - 9/10 (*I loved the Annie Lennox song they squeezed in before the end... great mood-setter) THE VERDICT: 76/100, B -and- The Campaign 10:30pm Saturday, August 11th AMC Boston Common 19 & Lie-MAX Theater Capacity: 215 (95% full; I originally showed up for the 9:30pm but that was sold out as well. And best of all, the audience was a very good demographic mix) Ticket Price: $12.00 Concessions: N/A TRAILERS: Silver Lining Playbills - great trailer and some talking, overall okay reaction. Hit and Run - "Bradley Cooper Again?!" Good reaction and lots of laughing... this trailer was a little different from the other I saw today, and got a much warmer reception. Fun Size - an awesome-looking, older-leaning raunchy comedy from "Nickelodeon Studios"?!?! It can't be!!! This looks way too awesome! And the crowd had a similarly awesome reaction to it. Boom - looks stupid, but got an excellent reaction... so goes the Happy Madison routine. Trouble With The Curve - this audience was certainly in the mood to laugh, gave a good reaction to this film (especially to the Dr. Phil line at the end). Life of Pi - I've never read the book, but the trailer looks mesmerizing. I think there were whispers between every person in the theater after this trailer. Argo - I'll watch anything Ben Affleck directs. This looks more mainstream and fun than some of Affleck's other movies, but got no reaction. Finding Nemo 3D/"Please turn off your cell phones" Announcement - very clever, funny ad. THE FILM: Both candidates stink. But that's usually the case. Makes great comedy. Experience - 24/30 Story/Writing - 16/20 Acting - 11/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 14/15 (a shot of Will Ferrell hitting a baby is amazingly put together) Direction - 7/10 Music - 5/10 THE VERDICT: 77/100, B

Watched TDKR a 3rd time tonight, first time on a non-IMAX/LieMAX screen. With regards to Bane's voice: I think it sounds much less like a megaphone/crummy dub job in a regular 2D-screen theater than it does with a high-quality sound system. Other things I noticed: - So much of the detail from the cinematography is lost on a regular big-screen presentation. Of course you're still watching the same movie, but those jaw-dropping visuals of Gotham don't have the same impact on a smaller screen as they do on IMAX. - Crowd was still strong. 252-seat theater was about 80% to 90% full for a 9PM screening tonight (at AMC Boston Common, where they had plenty of other showings). That impressed me. - A guy sitting next to me said "That's What She Said" during the Star Spangled Banner scene at something JGL's character says and about 20 of us sitting closely around him laughed uncontrollably through the rest of the national anthem (obviously to the displeasure of everyone else in the theater). That definitely lightened up the mood. - The movie still holds up well on a 3rd viewing, although I'm starting to identify discrepancies in the storyline... but those could be up for debate.

"I'm not afraid. I'm angry!"

I'd say sound mixing just wasn't very good. Nolan's skill--heck, maybe a trademark--is his choice to have loud music and sound playing during the more dialogue-driven scenes, the more dramatic scenes. But when you've got the rising action or climax, there's either little or no music. Think of the first time in TDK the Joker shares how he got his scars... probably the most suspenseful escalation of a score in the whole movie. However, when Harvey and Rachel meet their fates with the exploding oil drums, you can nearly hear a pin drop in the theater. He does the exact same thing in TDKR, but it doesn't always work. And then there's the whole "Bane's Loud Speaker" thing. It sounds less like the dialogue is coming out of his mouth and more like Christoph Waltz shouting into a megaphone off-screen. Horrible sound mixing. I mean, that sounded much better during the prologue pre-screening in December before they revisited Bane's scenes. But what's done is done.

I watched TDKR a second time tonight, this time in AMC Lie-MAX. 654-seat auditorium, probably 80% full... 12:00AM showing, technically Monday morning, and this was the first non-sold out showing all weekend for the AMC Boston Common on their Lie-MAX screen. Honestly, 80% at this hour is pretty impressive if you ask me. The movie was so much better on a second viewing, mainly because I didn't have the Aurora shooting in the back of my mind. While I got the main gist of the story the first time, I think a second viewing was great to pay attention to the details. Everything from the characters' choice of words, expressions, and the sequence of events falls into even better shape. I know my biggest complaint about the film on my original crowd report was about Hans Zimmer's score, but it's actually been growing on me the last few days. Had I either seen TDKR at midnight on Friday or just waited a few days after the shooting to see it, I'm confident I would've given this film an A+ crowd report. With that said, I won't be adjusting anything; I'll only be saying that I enjoy watching this film.

The Dark Knight Rises in Tempur-Pedic IMAX 15/70 (SPOILER FREE) 8:45pm Friday, July 20th Tempur Pedic IMAX Theater at Jordan's Furniture Reading (*as I've said time and again the greatest place to experience a film) Theater Capacity: 500 (100% full; the theater sold out every single showtime through the next 3 days) Ticket Price: $12.75 Concessions: N/A TRAILERS: N/A FOREWORD: Before formally reporting on the experience I had tonight watching The Dark Knight Rises, I feel compelled to share my thoughts and feelings about the catastrophe that has affected movie-goers during TDKR's midnight premiere in Aurora, Colorado. Like many people, I'm a big fan of going to the movies. Whether a time to celebrate, reflect, learn, laugh, think, or fall in love, movies have offered an escape, simultaneously creating a sanctuary for people of every race, sex, age, or nationality, likely all under the same roof. In a statement released tonight by Christopher Nolan, I believe he eloquently captures exactly how I feel: -Christopher Nolan - July 20, 2012 Simply put, I've always believed the cinema was a magical place insulated from all the harsh realities of the world, but yesterday that belief was shattered and a little piece of me died inside. My fingers, soaked from the tears I've wiped away, can neither type nor convey the immense sadness I feel over the tragedy that's stricken our world community. I remain hopeful that people will demonstrate resilience to this horrible event, even if right now I privately shudder at the realization that this could've happened to anyone. THE FILM: To say I've been anticipating The Dark Knight Rises for a while is an understatement. Anyone who has checked my facebook statuses periodically since--well--pretty much Inception knows that I've been counting down the months, days, and minutes for this film's release. After delivering one of the greatest sequels of all time with The Dark Knight, there was no question that with Christopher Nolan at the helm The Dark Knight Rises was going to be an excellent movie. How excellent that film is, however, remained the question. Performance-wise, everyone delivers their A-game. Christian Bale, hot off his long-overdue Oscar win for The Fighter, gives his best performance of the Dark Knight trilogy. Michael Caine, who's never given enough screen time in these films by my estimation, really ties Bruce Wayne's story together arcing across all the films, and arguably gives the most emotionally resonant performance in the film. Although Heath Ledger's "Joker" is an impossible act to follow, I think Tom Hardy's "Bane" and the story surrounding him reveals the epic scope that trailers promised us when promoting this film. Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotrillard, and Matthew Modine are great supporting cast members (among others), but the real shining stars (even if only supporting ones) are Anne Hathaway and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I've described past IMAX features as "beautiful" when describing how they appear on a proper IMAX screen; however, it's hard to assign that adjective to a film that features so much darkness, grit, and terror. I will say that The Dark Knight Rises is one of the most vivid, immersive experiences I've ever had at a movie theater. There is an aerial flyover shot captured by an IMAX camera that I bobbed up and down in excitement over for how epic it was (*NOTE: I am a HUGE nerd for skyscrapers and skylines... Nolan just gets me). There are only two points of negativity I can think of right now regarding the film. First, the score. While there was some chanting and original music used in this, I believe that overall Hans Zimmer recycled music from the previous Batman films he worked on. This doesn't mean the music is bad--I <3 the other soundtracks--but you expect more from a capable, celebrated film composer like Zimmer. The second point of negativity is a personally uncomfortable one: the terror The Dark Knight Rises presents. During a special features video I watched on The Dark Knight, filmmakers who worked behind the scenes on the stories for all these films explained the psychology of their films and their intention of tapping into the very real fears of movie goers. Had I neither become cognizant of this intention nor had I waited until after the midnight screening opportunities to watch The Dark Knight Rises, I believe I would've had a much more enjoyable first impression of this movie. As it was with this very palpable sense of terror looming over the film like a storm cloud, witnessing some of the action scenes in this movie actually diminished the crowd experience for me... an unprecedented event in my years of going to the movies. So aside from the couple things I've nitpicked, The Dark Knight Rises was mostly the movie I'd hoped it would be. The brothers Nolan crafted a very clever script... incidentally, their funniest since Memento. The overall crowd reception seemed very warm with others and myself clapping multiple times throughout (yeah... I'm that guy, sorry). Seriously, there's no experience at the movies like that of a Christopher Nolan-directed picture with this slam dunk cast, visual perfection (kudos Wally), smart writing, and twists or turns aplenty. If you've watched Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, you owe it to yourself to finish the story and watch The Dark Knight Rises. Experience - 21/30 Story/Writing - 20/20 Acting - 15/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 15/15 Direction - 10/10 Music - 5/10 Bonuses - Award Caliber, +5 (sweep the tech categories, long overdue recognition for Nolan, and wouldn't be surprised by noms for Caine or Hathaway... or possibly Bale); Special Effects Caliber, +2 THE VERDICT: 93/100, A

Well that kind of movie experience would be more rare, except that I watch a lot more movies than the average movie-goer. If my friends and family are any indication (*who, by the way, I share all of my crowd reports with), the average person probably only sees 3-5 movies a year--I see 60 to 80. The reality is that movie-goers have become much more selective about the films they're going to see as A) ticket prices get more expensive, and B] websites like Rotten Tomatoes & Twitter dictate whether the film is even enjoyable to watch. The way I see it, my crowd reports serve a dual purpose: 1) They enlighten box office observers of a film's playability in front of a real crowd, not a critics circle. Between the crowds' reactions to trailers as well as their reactions throughout a movie, a crowd report enables the B.O. enthusiasts like us to better dictate/predict exactly how well a film can perform in its theatrical run. 2) For the more selective/average people that will only see a handful of movies every year, I think an A or A+ crowd report I've written will be the motivation they need to get their butts into the cinema seats and enjoy a really good movie experience. If there are a few 100+/100 reports out of a total of 50+ to 60+ annually, then I would say those movie experiences are more rare and, thus, all the more special. Moonrise Kingdom, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Avengers, and Titanic 3D were all special, A+ crowd experiences compared to the 30 times I've gone to see films so far this year.

I had no idea until I read your post that it was James Horner! How funny is it that the two films I immediately thought of were Titanic and A Beautiful Mind?! If it ain't broke, why fix it?

Yes, they have: And to that I responded with this. I wouldn't call it flawed, it's just different.

The Amazing Spider-Man (in Eye-Popping 2D!) 11:30AM Tuesday, July 3rd AMC Boston Common 19 & Lie-MAX Theater Capacity: 300 (roughly 30% to 40% full; couldn't get a good read on the audience breakdown because I got into the theater a bit late) Ticket Price: $6!!! (I need to see films before noon more often!) Concessions: small Coke Zero, medium popcorn ($10.50) TRAILERS: (*It's possible I missed a couple trailers because I arrived late... I would've loved to see a TDKR trailer & reaction) Bourne Legacy - great trailer, lots of action, no reaction from audience Here Comes the Boom - this looks like a total comedy rip-off of one of 2011's best movies--Warrior. Even so, the crowd gave a good reaction to this trailer. The Watch - this looks funny and got a great reaction from the audience... especially for Jonah Hill. Total Recall - sexcellent trailer! I'm officially really pumped for this movie. Not only is the three-boobied woman in it again, but also... well... hey, the three-boobied woman is in it again!!!!!! Tepid reaction from audience, the guy in front of me saying, "They're redoing this too?" THE FILM: Similar to the Batman franchise circa 1997, Spider-Man 3 left a bitter taste in many audience's mouths. Fortunately, Sony learned a lesson from Warner Brothers' choice some years back to reboot their franchise with some new talented blood (referring of course to WB selecting Christopher Nolan--> Batman Begins). Who better a director to reboot the Spider-Man franchise than a guy named Marc Webb? For those who don't know, Webb is the mastermind behind 2009's cult hit (500) Days of Summer, and although he lacks any other film work to his name Webb is near the top of my list of favorite directors working in Hollywood today. See The Amazing Spider-Man and you'll understand why. The Amazing Spider-Man (TASM) may give you deja vu as it reestablishes Peter Parker's origin story much like the 2002 Spider-Man film. However, this film dwells more on the back-story component to Peter by concentrating more on his youth and prescribing a very healthy dose of character development. Very similar to Batman Begins (in so many ways) and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, TASM successfully creates a personality for its protagonist that audiences can empathize with and, thus, root for later in the film when the opportunity presents itself. Andrew Garfield possesses the talent, charisma, and physique to pull off the Peter Parker/Spider-Man character effortlessly. His co-stars--Emma Stone, Sally Field, Rhys Ifans, Martin Sheen, et al--make for an A+ ensemble, which only adds to the film's laundry list of awesomeness. There's a very palpable chemistry between Garfield and Stone, which looking back I think was a bit forced between Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst. Like (500) Days, this film has a great soundtrack; however, the really definitive musical feature for TASM was its score. During several of the scenes, I felt like I was listening to a mash-up of scores from Titanic and A Beautiful Mind, and then some Alfred Hitchcock sounds in others (*keep an eye open for the Hitchcock homage). Also of note, the effects--they're great! While a lot of CGI was employed for the film, I was impressed by how seamlessly it intertwined with the real sets/locations (I especially liked a fight scene that takes place in the sewer). Thanks to its contemporary feel, great acting, fresh writing, beautiful music/song selection, stellar direction, and Grade-A special effects, The Amazing Spider-Man is a film I recommend without reservation. It's definitely a step above the previous Spider-Men and certainly enjoyable on a 2D screen (although I'd be lying if I said I'm not curious/anxious to watch it in IMAX or 3D). Whether you're a hormone-crazed teenager, a romantic comedy-loving cougar, an architecture enthusiast/Nolanite (***the Hearst lobby is the OSCORP HQ, I nearly died!), or just a casual filmgoer looking to watch something fun with your friends, The Amazing Spider-Man has something for everyone. GO SEE THIS, AND HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!! Experience - 28/30 (would've preferred a bigger audience) Story/Writing - 20/20 Acting - 15/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 15/15 Direction - 10/10 Music - 10/10 Bonuses - Special Effects Caliber, 4; Awards Caliber , 2 (at the very least it should sweep the MTV MOvie Awards) THE VERDICT: 104/100, A+

Impact, I respect you, your very passionate contributions to box office analysis, and your stellar administrative abilities on the box office forums over the years. But with that said, I think you are seriously off your rocker if you think A) Brave was well written; Brave deserves a couple Oscars; and C) Brave might be the darkest Pixar film by far. What exactly did you find "well written" about Brave? I think the story was flaccid. The more I think about it, it was a misguided ripoff of Dreamworks' Shrek and Disney's own Beauty and the Beast. And a week after seeing this, I don't remember a single moment or quote that'll last in my mind for years to come... aside from the old father lifting his skirt that says "Feast yer eyes!", but I really only remember that cause I saw it in the trailer about a dozen times. And that's not the kind of quote you expect to remember from a Pixar film. "To infinity, and beyond!" "Just keep swimming." "Anyone can cook." "I was hiding under your porch because I love you." "I don't want to survive. I want to live." THAT is good writing. Those are the kind of lasting quotes, themes, expressions, and messages that I expect out of a Pixar film; the kind of theme that'll resonate with audiences young and old for the rest of their lives. Pixar has dished out great writing before, and Brave (sadly) missed the mark. As for deserving a couple Oscars? That remains to be seen. Frankly, I was a bigger fan of Dr. Seuss' The Lorax artistically and will be rooting for that come awards season. And as for Brave being the darkest Pixar film by far? Please... not even close. Again, Impact, I respect you. I sincerely apologize for this diatribe, but I couldn't resist letting my opinion be shared and up for grabs to any other forum contributors who'd like to comment on the matter. - Andy Stitzer

^^ That's Jennifer Coolidge, better known as Stifler's Mom.

Magic Mike 12:01AM Friday, June 29th AMC Boston Common 19 & Lie-MAX Theater Capacity: 300 (50+% full; actually, there were two showings of Magic Mike at AMC tonight because the other one was sold out, which I was pretty stunned to see. Also, this audience was 90% women... it was like going to see Sex and the City in theaters if everyone in the crowd was 15-25 years younger.) Ticket Price: $12.00 Concessions: small Coke Zero & small popcorn ($0, thank you Stubs Rewards) TRAILERS: The Words - good cast led by Bradley Cooper, except this looks like a TV movie (CBS Films, go figure). Weak reaction. Katy Perry: Part of Me - this was a more elegant trailer than the others I'd seen and got some talking from audience. Pitch Perfect - at first this looked like Glee: The Movie, but in college. Then I saw Anna Kendrick was the lead, and that caught my attention. Finally, the fat British chick from Bridesmaids ("I didn't know it was your diary; I thought it was a very sad, hand-written book") she stole every scene in the trailer and got a HUGE reaction from the audience. I'm talking loud belly laughs; excellent reaction. Hope Springs - Meryl Streep. Tommy Lee Jones. Steve Carrell. Comedy. Great reaction; can't wait to see it. The Apparition - another paranormal horror film that got a few pity laughs, lots of talking, and a Harry Potter fan in the audience who screamed, "IS THAT DRACO?!?!" The Watch - funny, new trailer. Didn't realize this was a sci-fi comedy, but it looks great. Jonah Hill got the biggest laughs, no surprise there. The Campaign - this got a good reaction, especially after Will Ferrell punches a baby at the end of the trailer. THE FILM Before anyone asks me why I paid to see a movie about male strippers, please let me preface this report with my reasons for checking out Magic Mike (no pun intended) opening midnight. A) After Contagion and the Oceans' movies, anything directed by Steven Soderbergh will get me to the cinema; B] I work a few blocks from the movie theater and my shift ends around 11pm, so for a good crowd experience seeing midnight screenings is really my only option during weekdays; C) I already saw Ted a few weeks ago (excellent comedy, BTW); D) Channing Tatum impressed me in 21 Jump Street, so I officially don't see a problem watching his movies, however risque they may be. Good--now that's out of the way. Magic Mike is definitely one experience of a film. When you hear it's an R-rated film about male strippers, one of the first questions on everybody's minds is "will there be full frontal male nudity?" The answer is... well, sort of, but not really. Actually, there's equal parts gratuitous female nudity as there is male nudity, yet there is really only one shot in the film that could've made the men watching it squeamish. And the fact is that it's so subtle and humorously done, that most of the women in the audience had a delayed reaction to it. (LOL, you have to see the movie to know what I'm talking about... I wouldn't dare spoil it) All of the men acting in this film definitely prepared well for their roles. I'm not just talking about ab-workouts and choreography lessons, I mean stepping up their acting chops and giving pretty good performances (who knew stand-up comedian Gabriel Iglesias could act?!?!?!). And thanks to Soderbergh's direction, Magic Mike successfully veers into compelling drama territory more than raunchy chick flick land... stunningly, to the dismay of many of the women in tonight's audience... but only after the first hour. See, right from the get-go, Channing Tatum and Alex Pettyfer deliver "the goods" much of the audience was hoping for. Women were literally clapping, oohing & awwing at the screen, and one woman even held out some $1 bills in her hands, as if they were there in the strip club. That whole part of the Magic Mike experience we all got a kick out of. But true to the trailers' promise, the story is really about how Tatum's character wants to do something more with his life than the Magic Mike act and the deeper that story develops, the more gradually it lost the interest of some women in the theater (namely the 3 women behind me who provided commentary every 5 minutes). Twenty minutes in, they were like "Yeah, shake it honey! Oooooh." Then an hour later, they realized, "Oh wow! This is like a real movie." And then finally, when it ended, "That was terrible!" Well, contrary to the thoughts of a few women sitting behind me, I really enjoyed the film. Because, like they realized, Magic Mike is a "real" movie. And I wouldn't expect anything less from Soderbergh and their team. And it's kind of neat how personal a story it is for Channing Tatum, seeing how it's loosely/largely (?) based on his origins as a Tampa stripper... that definitely shows in his performance. I do recommend people--women and men--go see this movie because it is in fact a very good one. I'm really curious to see how the word of mouth and box office perform for this in the coming days/weeks; I don't really have a handle on what everyone's perception of this film is before seeing it, let alone after. Experience - 27/30 (would've been higher without the over-commentary from the women behind me) Story/Writing - 16/20 Acting - 14/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 7/15 (I think the low budget had a negative impact in these regards, unfortunately) Direction - 10/10 (Kudos, Steven!) Music - 9/10 THE VERDICT: 83/100, B

Feedback is always appreciated, so thank you. By your grading system, my grade for the film is accurate: C, i.e. okay/mediocre. And anyway, I'm not only grading the movie, I'm grading the whole crowd experience. That's why I post exclusively in the crowd report section vs. the "Review That Movie" threads. I choose to watch movies under the best circumstances possible to maximize the overall experience, because at $10-$18 per ticket I'm paying for an experience. That's why I'd rate Snakes on a Plane opening midnight in theaters an A+ experience, and The Dark Knight four months after release playing at your local dollar theater a less-than-A experience. Besides, I've received far more praise for my crowd reports than negative feedback, and my current grading system--which was modified beginning January 2012 forward--is the culmination of all feedback from previous crowd reports.

Brave in 3D 12:01AM Friday, June 22nd Regal Fenway 13 & RPX Theater Capacity: <300 (15% full; there was also a 2D showing which must've had a bigger audience) Ticket Price: $14.00 Concessions: small Coke Zero & small popcorn ($6.00) TRAILERS: Finding Nemo 3D - funny trailer, no reaction from crowd; my friends and I are pumped for this though. Monsters University - laugh-out-loud teaser trailer, got a good reaction from the crowd. Wreck-It Ralph - this looks awesome. A few people nearby all said, "Bowser!" Good reaction. Hotel Transylvania - Adam Sandler. Andy Samberg... box office poison much? Luke-warm reaction. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - same trailer, but again it always looks great in 3D. - "Ba, ba ba... ba, ba na-na. Ba, ba, ba... ba, ba na-na." Every single person in the theater laughed hysterically at the minions. This may've been the funniest teaser I've ever seen. Snot actually came out of my nose I was laughing so hard! Best reaction. Ice Age: Continental Drift - another laugh-out-loud trailer, this one looks really funny. And that's kind of funny considering I have still never seen a single Ice Age film. THE FILM: Before Brave began, there was a short film called La Luna that played. It was a completely imaginative story about the stars and the moon with very little dialogue, much emotion, and another home run, feel-good short from that special studio. Brave on the other hand... Is it such a crime to expect nothing short of excellence when you pay to see a Pixar film? Like most people, I have an unspoken set of standards I expect to be met when I watch a film from the same studio that melted my heart when I watched Up, broadened the scope of my imagination with WALL*E, and made me truly yearn for my youth upon watching Toy Story 3. At the very least, I expected Brave to break some sort of new ground in story-telling, visual effects, or (dare I say it) move me in some way. Unfortunately, Brave does none of these things. My biggest fear when watching the Brave trailers was that this was in the same universe as Dreamworks' How to Train Your Dragon. In essence, I was concerned the fantasy, Scottish tale had been done before. In a way, Brave is kind of the same movie as HTTYD, sprinkled with a dash of Beauty & the Beast, low-brow humor in the vein of Shrek, and a fight scene that might very well be a shot-for-shot rip-off of The Lion King (*I need to re-watch both of these to be certain). Now is it a bad thing that Pixar would emulate those films when telling the tale within Brave? No, not really... after all, those are all fantastic movies. But the disappointing reality--the letdown--is that Pixar couldn't do the story in its own voice. Yeah, yeah, I laughed throughout and I empathized with the rebellious teenager against the parent(s) story, but I sincerely felt misled by the trailer, let alone the title. Brave is not a film about "bravery." In fact I think the film was much better-suited by its original title--The Bear and the Bow--because that's at least what the film is about. Unless you're less cynical than I, you will not cry during this movie. You will not be moved in any particular fashion, save for those who are in fact constantly at odds with mom and dad and decide to reassess their lives. While the animation is beautiful and certainly in the Pixar rolodex, it's not the finest animation I've seen lately and it's definitely not worth the price of 3D. My feelings after the film were mutually felt with the audience if the audible, "Meh. Good movie," vibe was any indication. It is a "good" movie, just not a Pixar-perfect one. Experience - 17/30 Story/Writing - 10/20 Acting - 12/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 13/15 Direction - 6/10 Music - 10/10 (I love bagpipes; that was a saving grace for this film... incredible score) THE VERDICT: 68/100, C

I thought I corrected this. The movie is a "C" on 'my' grading scale, not a D.101+ = A+85-100 = A70-84 = B55-69 = C40-54 = D<40 = F

Prometheus - IMAX 3D 2:00PM Friday, June 8th Jordan's Furniture IMAX, Reading Theater Capacity: 500 (20% full; I was told the 9:30PM showtime is sold out) Ticket Price: $11.50 Concessions: n/a TRAILERS: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - the trailer looks beautiful in IMAX 3D; got some talking from the audience. The Dark Knight Rises - we were told to take our 3D glasses off before the trailer (duh, Nolan hates 3D). The trailer and footage on the IMAX screen are unbelievable--there is honestly no comparison. TDKR needs to be watched in IMAX. THE FILM: Please consider these two groups. Group A Inception. Super 8. The Social Network. The Artist. WALL*E. Group B Across the Universe. Battle: Los Angeles. Where the Wild Things Are. Terminator Salvation. Both of these groups highlight films whose trailers were among the best I'd ever seen. Between excellent music selection, striking visuals, and a little magic, these trailers gave me goosebumps and commanded my attention. They gave me a sense of urgency to check out the films on their opening days.The Prometheus trailer(s) had a very similar effect... I knew I HAD to see this movie because of how good this trailer looked. The differences between Group A &amp; Group B are that "A" actually lived up to their promise, whereas "B" left me walking out of the theater feeling more than a little let down, asking myself "How could I have been so wrong about a movie?" I say with great sadness that Prometheus belongs to Group B. Prometheus looks astonishing in IMAX-3D; they definitely got that part right. The ensemble cast played their parts well, specifically Michael Fassbender; HOWEVER, I think he was extremely under-utilized in this film. If his android character, David, had shown as much emotional diversity in this film as he did in the "David's Birthday" promotional teaser (google it) then I think it would've pushed Prometheus a grade above. Additionally, I felt like the film presented far more questions than it does answers, which seems counter productive for a film whose plot point is to travel across the universe to have hard questions answered in the first place... if I write anymore I'm confident I will spoil the movie for others. I want to stress that Prometheus isn't a "bad" movie... it's just not the movie I really hoped it would be. Maybe the intention was to plant the seeds for a new/quasi franchise of films in this universe. If that's Ridley Scott's goal, then fine. Call me greedy, but I just wanted this to be more, really badly. At least the film looks beautiful in IMAX 3D. It's no Avatar or Tron Legacy in the visual department, but it certainly has its moments. Like the countless critics that have shared the same advice, I recommend only watching Prometheus if you have never seen another Alien movie. If you have seen those films and plan on watching this, then please don't set your hopes as high as I did. Experience - 15/30 Story/Writing - 7/20 Acting - 12/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 12/15 Direction - 7/10 Music - 6/10 THE VERDICT: 59/100, C

Ted 7:00PM Thursday, June 7th Regal Fenway 13 & RPX Theater Capacity: 250 (100% full; this was a special advanced screening of the film, and luckily my awesome roommate was able to get a few tickets to see this tonight. The audience had some old people but was mostly college-aged students... I knew or recognized about twenty people from my alma mater) Ticket Price: $0 (FREE!) Concessions: n/a TRAILERS: NONE! THE FILM: I've got the biggest grin on my face right now after watching Ted. Everyone in the audience tonight probably has a big grin on their faces as well. Why, you ask? Well, it isn't because Ted is the most original film ever made... far from it. It certainly isn't the funniest movie ever made, either (***but possibly the funniest movie I've seen in years). No, Ted was extra special to this audience for a simple reason: it's a 106-minute long love letter to Boston! Honestly, I don't think the Boston Chamber of Commerce or Visitors' Bureau could've done a more excellent job at highlighting every gem in this city. The architecture, the landmarks, the parks, the restaurants, the museums, even the freaking Big Dig... it's all in there! ... sorry for my digression, but I naturally regurgitate elation every time I see Boston on the big screen. Good Will Hunting. The Departed. Gone Baby Gone. My Best Friend's Girl. The Town. [smiling again, :-) ] Honestly, Ted is as much a showcase for Boston as Mrs. Doubtfire was for San Francisco. Anyway, Ted is hilarious. The trailers don't do the movie justice; this is a worthy debut feature film for Seth MacFarlane. The comedy writing is witty and equal-opportunity offensive. The exaggerated flashback style that MacFarlane uses famously in Family Guy makes its way into Ted (as expected), and produces equally satisfying effect. Something I was concerned about before seeing this was whether or not audiences would buy into Mark Wahlberg's character having a talking teddy bear as a best friend. Fortunately, the film quells these concerns very quickly (and comically) during the first five minutes. The acting wasn't bad, but it definitely wasn't Wahlberg's or Kunis' best (The Departed & Black Swan, respectively). For anybody excited to see Ted, it will surely be worth the wait. To any one out there that only makes two or three trips to the movie every year: this is the comedy you should go see. The cameo performances will surprise you. The fast-paced, pop-culture-laden jokes will keep coming at you. I don't want to say anything more or else I may spoil it. GO SEE TED! Experience - 30/30 Story/Writing - 18/20 (*2 points off for writing... I would've gone a different angle with the ending, but it still works) Acting - 11/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 13/15 (the bear looked legit) Direction - 8/10 Music - 8/10 THE VERDICT: 88/100, A

I'm watching a special screening of Ted this evening. I'll share a report later. Can't wait!!!

MIB 3 Went to see this tonight but didn't feel like writing a whole crowd report. AMC Hoffman Center 22 (Alexandria, VA), 300 seats (95% full), 4:45PM, Today. THE VERDICT: B

Moonrise Kingdom 2:20PM Friday, May 24th Regal Union Square 14 (NYC) Theater Capacity: ~400 (80% full; possibly more, and 2 additional shows for today sold out) Ticket Price: $14.00 Concessions: Medium half coke/half cherry-flavored Freeze Frame, $6.25 TRAILERS: Hyde Park on Hudson - Bill Murray/Laura Linney comedy about FDR that I hadn't heard of before, but it looks funny. No reaction Anchorman 2 - Teaser trailer, but lots of laughs and some talking from audience This is 40 - very funny trailer, great reaction, and some talking from the audience. ParaNorman - weak reaction, probably not marketed to the right audience The Great Gatsby - beautiful trailer, I'd love to see this in 3D. Lots of talking from the audience. Seeking a Friend at the End of the World - good trailer but no reaction from audience. THE FILM: It's a total fluke that my 2-day trip to New York City coincided with the very limited release of Moonrise Kingdom, a film I'd been curious to see ever since witnessing its well-crafted, unconventional trailer. Judging by the pic's audience, the film was an instant pleaser for fans of Anderson's other works. Although I've only seen three of his other pictures, I have an immense respect for Anderson's quirky, muted style. The story is about a boy and a girl--Sam and Suzy (played by Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward)--who are viewed as outcasts by their friends and family. After a serendipitous encounter with one another, the young Sam and Suzy become pen pals and grow to fall in love. The picture not only centers on their attempt to run away together and be happy, but also captures the halfwitted attempts of their scout leader, island policeman, and parents to find and rescue them. As if the supporting cast wasn't awesome enough (Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand, et al), the music was spot-on, the in-your-face foreshadowing adding unexpected amusement, and the elementary special effects worked wonderfully, solely because you never even expect the story to become very high-stakes in the first place. Also, the romance between Sam and Suzy is especially endearing--hands down the best screen romance I've seen since The Artist. When you add everything up, Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom is one of 2012's best pictures. If you're in the mood for dry humor, romance, adventure, or 1960's nostalgia, look no further than Moonrise Kingdom. I think it'll be expanding nationwide in the next couple weeks. And for the record, there was an applause from the audience when the picture was over. Many people (myself included) even stayed through the credits to enjoy the soundtrack. Experience - 24/30 Story/Writing - 20/20 Acting - 15/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 13/15 Direction - 9/10 Music - 10/10 Bonuses- Originality +3, Music-Driven Story/Plot +4, Award-Caliber +5 THE VERDICT: 103/100, A+

Correct. Oh, BTW... The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel 4:45PM Thursday, May 17th AMC Boston Common 19 & Lie-MAX Theater Capacity: 196 (12% full; mostly retirees in the audience) Ticket Price: $8.50 Concession(s): Mini Pretzel Bites, $0 (Stubs rewards points) TRAILERS: Ruby Sparks - Paul Dano comedy looks funny, a little like Stranger Than Fiction. It got some talking from the audience. Safety Not Guaranteed - I'll watch any movie in the time travel sub-genre, so this caught my interest; the audience had no reaction, however. To Rome With Love - best reaction from the audience; you really cannot go wrong with a Woody Allen trailer paired with an older-skewing audience. Where Do We Go Now? - at first I thought this was an adaptation of "Lysistrata", but I couldn't tell. Some talking from the audience. The Intouchables - I'd heard about this film, but this was the first time I saw a trailer for Intouchables. This movie looks AWESOME! I even heard a couple guys in the audience say "THAT looks like a good movie." Beasts of the Southern Wild - another indie-movie trailer, this time things were paced really quickly and it was tough to understand what the movie's about. Looks like Where the Wild Things Are. THE FILM: This afternoon I spent a good two hours laying outside in the park soaking up the nice weather (finally), and naturally I was in a pleasant mood. So with a few extra hours to kill I decided to see an equally pleasant movie nearby at the movie theater. And nothing says pleasant like a Fox Searchlight movie about British people celebrating their golden years exploring a different world: India. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is exactly the film that its well-received trailer(s) have sold. Judy Dench, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, and friends all trek halfway around the world to a long-stay hotel geared "for the elderly and beautiful". The introduction of each character effectively sets up their impetus to go to India, and the goals each character look to achieve become quite clear as the film rolls along. Despite their maturity, it seems like each character embarks on a vision quest while in India and they even depend on each other to fulfill their journey. A few of the scenes were especially poignant, achieved by a combination of great performances, beautiful cinematography, and the appropriate musical composition. Despite the urban chaos that immediately surrounds the Marigold Hotel, there are many visually impressive sights and landscapes that fit into the movie beautifully. A few people clapped when the movie ended, I'm pretty confident we all enjoyed it. I recommend this film to anyone seeking a "pleasant" movie at the theater. Experience - 25/30 Story/Writing - 16/20 Acting - 14/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 13/15 Direction - 9/10 Music - 9/10 THE VERDICT: 86/100, A

Not at all. A lot of the film really is comedy gold. But I still think the movie could've relied less on offensive remarks and more on thoughtful comedy. At least with South Park they usually have a moral at the end of the story or a compelling story to justify their offense. Every film employs these aspects, some better than others. I could show you a list of small-budget, story-driven films that are shot/edited beautifully and merit an A+ on Tech Specs; conversely, there are plenty of big-budget films that squander their spending and just look technically bad. And whether they are comedies, actions, dramas, epics, fantasies, thrillers, or documentaries, a movie's a movie and each movie has tech specs.

The Dictator 7:15PM Wednesday, May 16th AMC Boston Common 19 & Lie-MAX Theater Capacity: ~250 (98% full; nearly all seats full, people all ages over 17, and mostly male audience) Ticket Price: $11.50 Concessions: Blue Rasbery ICEE, $0 (Stubs reward points) TRAILERS: Seeking a Friend For the End of the World - the movie looks great, got some talking from the audience. The Campaign - this got belly laughs from the audience, definitely one of the better reactions I've seen for a comedy trailer. Ted - Mark Wahlberg recorded a special AMC announcement before the trailer laden with offensive curse words before laying an innocent, charming smile--this got a wonderful reception from the audience. The R-rated trailer was hilarious and got the best reaction from the crowd, one guy even clapped, and there was lots of talking that ensued. That's My Boy - this looks silly (Happy Madison, big surprise) and got the weakest reaction. Anchorman: The Legend Continues - this was a fun teaser, got some talking from the audience. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter - same 'ole trailer, lots of talking from the audience. G.I. Joe: Retaliation - I think this is one solid trailer, and I may even be one of the few people who saw/enjoyed Rise of Cobra. I'm getting a bad vibe from everyone else, though, because there was no discernible reaction for this from the crowd. THE FILM: The Dictator plays a lot like an over-offensive, contemporary, politically-charged version of Eddie Murphy's far superior Coming to America. I'll be honest: I laughed my butt off at several of the scenes in this picture, but a good chunk of the offensive humor also was lost on the audience and felt more "Happy Madison" than "Ali G" (if anyone understands the difference). Nobody sells satire today quite as memorably as Sasha Baron Cohen and like BORAT & Brüno before it, The Dictator takes some moments to identify several imperfections within American politics & culture. Still, I felt a little let down story-wise with some careless plot inconsistencies and juvenile situational humor. I was pretty sure Anna Faris was finished playing low brow Scary Movie-type roles, but The Dictator proved me wrong. My critiques aside, the audience really dug up the film. I was concerned about how offensive some of this material would be to diverse audiences like this one--I'm talking epic South Park episode offensive--but everyone seemed to love it. The black couple sitting in front of me were hyperventilating during several offensive remarks during a black man's funeral. The Asian college student sitting to my left slapped his knee at the countless outrageous jokes disrespectfully directed toward Chinese people throughout the film. And even I smirked (shamefully) at some anti-semetic remarks that made their way in the film, too. Whatever--The Dictator is exactly the movie you're expecting it to be. So if it's the kind of film that's on your radar, than I'm sure you're going to love it. And believe me, the experience is enriched by a large crowd like this one; go see this in theaters if you're going to see it at all. Experience - 27/30 Story/Writing - 12/20 Acting - 6/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 8/15 Direction - 7/10 Music - 7/10 THE VERDICT: 67/100, C

Marvel's The Avengers in LieMAX 3D 8:10PM Monday, May 7th AMC Boston Common 19 & LieMAX Theater Capacity: 654 (100%; almost entirely college-age students) Ticket Price: Free Golden Ticket + $6 IMAX-3D surcharge Concessions: n/a TRAILERS: Expendables 2 - "I'm back!" That Arnold quote immediately energized the audience. Great reaction, great trailer, and lots of talking from the audience. End of Watch - First-person crime drama starring Jake Gyllenhaal and company. Does look like Training Day and also got a lot of people talking. The Dictator - this trailer works with a lot of audiences, especially the helicopter bit at the end. LOL-reaction and lots of talking from the audience. The Dark Knight Rises - the trailer got total silence and commanded the undivided attention of seemingly every person in the audience; perfect reaction. The Amazing Spider-Man - this footage looks exceptional in 3D and on the big screen. I even heard several different people say "Wow!" toward the end of the trailer. Prometheus - best trailer ever, but it got a mixed reaction from people. Frankenweenie - the footage looks great (I'm a fan of dark stop-motion pictures), but this story seems a little too weird. Got some talking from the audience. THE FILM: The Avengers lives up to all of the build-up. The superheroes are given equal time in the spotlight; the 143-minute runtime moves at a proper pace; the story effectively makes use of the material set forth in the previous Marvel films (Spider-Men aside); and the spectacle achieves the epic proportions everyone hoped for. The film direction is applaudable--as widely publicized, The Avengers is superbly directed by a comic fan who does justice to the beloved material. Even after a post-production 3D conversion, the special effects employed in this film are among the finest I've seen in any movie. While Transformers: Dark of the Moon had its 40 minutes of eye candy as robots tore apart downtown Chicago and set a standard for special effects destruction of a downtown, Avengers brings it to a whole new level. I really couldn't tell if they shot some of these scenes over a green screen or on location; the aesthetic detail was that fine. There was a single sequence among the action toward the end that highlighted all of the different characters battling the villains that had every person in my row on the edge of their seat. Every actor/actress fittingly brought their A-game to this spectacular feature. As if their physical prowess wasn't impressive enough, the most surprising quality about Avengers was how funny each person was. Every character had a laugh-out-loud funny line or physically comical scene. And still, there were scenes of vulnerability for each of them that stressed the principles of the hero's journey--that our heroes must come close to failure before they can successfully overcome oppression. Everything about this movie was executed beautifully, and the sentiment was shared among my co-audience members. Each of my friends and I had a different favorite hero from the movie, which I felt reflected the equal screen time and awesomeness given to each character. I will most likely check this out a second time while it's still in theaters, and I highly recommend others check this out in 3D or IMAX (or even LieMAX). Visually, this is the most beautiful film to be released in 2012. Experience - 30/30 Story/Writing - 20/20 Acting - 15/15 Tech Specs (Cinematography, Editing, Effects) - 15/15 Direction - 10/10 Music - 8/10 Bonuses - Special Effects Caliber, 5; Award-caliber- 5 (This definitely earned Oscar nominations in every single tech category, and I'd even argue that Mark Ruffalo delivers an award-worthy supporting performance as Bruce Banner) THE VERDICT: 108/100, A+