DVD Review: The Blindside

Rated PG13 for some language, mild violence

Starring Sandra Bullock, Quinton Aaron, Tim McGraw, Jae Head, Kathy Bates

Teenage Mike Oher has lived a rough life, having grown up in the projects with a drug abusing mother and has recently been crashing on his friend's couch. His friend's father is a janitor at a Memphis Christian school and pleads with admissions to allow his son and "Big Mike" to attend due to their ability in sports. Impressed by "Big Mike's" size, the school let's him under the condition he gets his grades up so he can play football the next year. Mike has trouble in school though and we soon learn that he often spends his nights at the school's gym where it's warm and his only spare clothes are t-shirt he carries with him in a bag.

One night, Leigh Anne Tuohy (whose children attend school with Big Mike) and her family spy him walking in the rain and offer him a ride and a place to stay. Realizing he has nowhere to go, they decide to extend his stay and get him the help he needs to succeed in school (also helping is the school's science teacher who learns that Mike, who may appear dumb, has been paying attention all semester and while he can't pass written tests, he excells when given the chance to take them orally). Soon Mike becomes part of the Tuohy family, with the Tuohy's requesting for guardianship of him from the state and Mike qualifies for football - with the help of the Tuohy's he is able to become a star linebacker, gaining the attention of major state colleges.

While the movie comes off at first as a football film, it really is more of an autobiographical film about the life NFL linebacker Michael Oher who was a first round draft pick for the Baltimore Ravens in 2009. While Michael's story of rising up against the odds and succeeding is inspirational in itself, the Tuohy's also serve as a fine example of what we as people should strive to be, providing help and love to those in need regardless of their background.

DVD Review: The Informant!

Rated R for language

Starring Matt Damon, Melanie Lynskey, Scott Bakula, Joel McHale, Tom Papa

In the early 1990s, biochemist Mark Whitacre has been moving up the ladder at food industry giant ADM, having been brought over into the business side of things. After getting a call from a foreign competitor offering a cure to a virus that affect the company's products for the price of $7M - the exact amount that Whitacre also notes is suddenly missing from the company - he tells his boss Mick Andreas about it and the FBI soon get involved, tapping Whitacre's business home line in case the competitor calls again. While he's working with the FBI, Whitacre also informs them of unethical business practices that ADM and other international food industry giants are involved in, most notably being price fixing. Serving as the FBI's mole, Whitacre records hundreds of tapes in which company heads discuss and agree on various price fixes. Once it's learned that he was the mole though, the company fights back, digging up dirt on Whitacre that could not only cost him his job, home and luxuries, but also cause him to serve jail time as well.

Based on a true story, The Informant was quite interesting, most especially for me as it takes place in Decatur, IL (not far from me) and involves the food industry in the 90's (which was the industry my dad worked in at the time). However, presented in all the trailers as a quirky comedy, this movie was anything but. While there were some laughs, they were few and far between, as we watch a man get used by his government while he's lost in his own made up delusions.

Unless you like films based on true stories, feel free to skip this one.

DVD Review: The Men Who Stare at Goats

Rated R for language, some violence, brief nudity

Starring George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey

Bob Wilton is a journalist who goes over seas to follow the war in Iraq after his wife leaves him for his editor, however without having a way in to cross the border, he is stuck in Kuwait, waiting for a story. While sitting around drinking at the hotel, he stumbles upon a former Special Forces operator named Lyn Cassady - he heard about Lyn earlier, when he interviewed another man who claimed to have psychic powers. Lyn confesses that he was part of a top secret military group that formed in the '70s called New Earth, in which they trained men to become Jedi Warriors, using invisibility, remote viewing, cloud bursting, walking through walls and intuition. Wanting to hear more Lyn's story and report on it, Bob follows Lyn into Iraq and into an adventure through the desert as Lyn is on a mission that he doesn't know what the objective is.

While the movie had its moments that were pretty humorous, and presented an interesting story about a supposed psychic military unit, the movie was lacking something, despite the clever Star Wars references (which you'll like not get if you're not familiar with Star Wars).

It wasn't a terrible movie, but it wasn't great either - it was just okay. If you have time, check it out, otherwise, don't worry - you aren't missing much.

DVD Review: Julie and Julia

Rated PG13 for brief language, brief sexuality

Starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci

In 2002, Julie Powell is an aspiring writer but works in a cubicle at a government office in New York taking calls to lend an ear for hurting 9/11 victims. All her friends having successful jobs though and as she reaches her 30th birthday, Julie feels miserable as if she hasn't really done anything with her life, and to make matters worse, her and her husband have just moved into a tiny apartment in Queens above a pizzeria to be closer to his job. After hearing a shallow friend of hers has begun writing a blog, Julie quips that she could write a blog too, afterall, she is a writer! But what to write about? Her husband points out that she enjoys cooking, so why not write a blog about cooking? Julie likes the idea and decides that she'll cook her way through Julia Child's cookbook "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" in one year - 524 recipes in 365 days - and blog about her experiences.

As Julie goes about the year, her story is segmented with the story of Julia Child's time living in France and how she became the cook we all know her as.

In 1949, Julia and her husband Paul move to Paris for a government assignment of his, where they'll be living there for 4 years. Not wanting to work as a clerk at another government agency, Julia decides she should find a fun but useful way to spend her time. She tries hat-making and then an attempt at French lessons before she realizes that she loves to eat. Having a hard time finding a French cookbook in English, Julia decides to take up cooking and enroll in Le Cordon Bleu. She also meets a duo of like-minded women who are working on a French cookbook for Americans and teach cooking as well - Julia teams up with them, having to revise the entire book for publication and well, the rest is pretty much history.

As Julie cooks her way through the infamous book, she learns plenty of lessons along the way from Julia.

Based on true stories, Julie and Julia is a heartwarming and inspirational film. Meryl Streep is spot on as the famous cook with her mannerisms and quirkiness and I love the pairing of Streep and Tucci (previously together in The Devil Wears Prada). Jane Lynch also makes a brief appearance as Julia's sister Dorothy, and plays the part very believably as it's a nice change from the usual characters she plays.

If you're curious about the life of Julia Child or enjoy fun inspirational movies or food, don't miss this one!

21

Based on the true story of a few MIT students who learned how to count cards and make millions in Vegas, I found it to be a highly entertaining and fun movie and being semi-biographical, made it all the more interesting. Starring Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth and Laurence Fishburne. Rated PG13

Alpha Dog

Just screened "Alpha Dog."

it's basically about the drug world and some young adults that dig themselves a little too deep.

The one guy owes his 'boss' (the drug lord of our tale) some cash from a deal he made, but due to the deal going wrong, he refuses to pay. in turn, his boss gets him fired from his actual day job, resulting in the guy to go berserk. in a random sponteous event, the drug lord and his buddies kidnap the guy's 15yr old brother, who's more than thrilled to go with them, get away from his overprotective parents, and help his brother out. The druggies soon learn that because they're technically holding the kid for randsom, they could face life in prison. The kid's given multiple chances to just hop a bus and go home, no questions asked, yet he doesnt want to create anymore problems for his brother. Little does he know, it could cost him his life.

Considering it's based on a true story and told sort of like an episode of CSI or Law and Order - datelines/stamps and all - it was actually pretty decent with a pretty surprising cast. Yes, there's Justin Timberlake, all in tattoos, but there's also Bruce Willis, Sharon Stone and some other well known actors you've seen in other things.

Apparently this film was also pushed back multiple times by the FBI and police due to the fact that the drug lord guy was just found and apprehended not even 2 years ago (the story takes place in 1999) and is currently awaiting trial.