Angels & Demons stars Tom Hanks reprising his role as Professor Robert Langdon in the onscreen adaptation of Dan Brown’s bestselling novel. This next installment of Dan Brown’s literary work follows symbologist Dr. Langdon as he is summoned to Rome by the Vatican. The pope is dead, four Cardinals are kidnapped and their lives threatened, and a cylinder containing highly destructive antimatter is stolen. And all the authorities have to work with is a cryptic video, strange symbols and the expertise of the famed professor. This film is packed with mystery, thrills, twists and turns, and of course action violence. Ron Howard adds another worthy and completely entertaining film to his resume! Angels & Demons definitely has the potential to please any movie-lover.
I’ll be honest here; I am often easily excited about new movies. From the very beginning Ponyo claimed my heart; partly because of the oh-so catchy and fun theme song performed by Disney friends Noah Cyrus and Frankie Jonas. The story of Ponyo takes us into Japan for a modern-day Little Mermaid tale. Ponyo is a very friendly little fish with magical powers who meets a young boy, Sosuke, after a short time with her new friend Ponyo decides to become human, too. The animation in this film is incredibly beautiful; Miyazaki creates rich landscapes and adorably expressive faces in Ponyo. I cannot wait to see this film again and again. It was incredibly uplifting and silly and very smart. Children will love this tale, as will many more who appreciate the anime style of filmmaking. Ponyo will have you singing its’ praises; don’t walk, run to theatres!
Genre: Family, Anime
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Language: English
Year: 2009 (American release)
Oh, Coen brothers...
Fargo, based on true events, is a pitch-perfect tale of kidnapping-for-hire gone terribly wrong; the Coen brothers absolutely are brilliant storytellers. With a cast to die for, Fargo is a must see if you appreciate subtle humor and small-town police work. Frances McDormand is a sharp as ever playing the chief of police assigned to investigate a triple homicide. McDormand is accompanied by a superbly hilarious cast of wacky characters; including dim-witted criminals (Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare), a desperate car salesman (William H. Macy), and countless stereotypical Midwesterners. If you haven’t seen Fargo, please do; and if you have, see it again, and remind yourself how much you love this strange tale.
Genre: Comedy
Director: Joel Coen
Language: English
Year: 1996
**Spoiler Alert!!**
Knowing is one part lock-your-doors freaky, another part extremely creepy end of days bible story. What else can I say? Well. Let’s start with our familiar friend, Nicholas Cage; sure we’ve enjoyed his talents in the National Treasure movies (and more to come on that front I imagine). In this film Cage reprises his role as habitual hero/guy with a strained relationship with his father. The film begins with chilling images of a troubled girl in 1959 and takes you on a non-stop creepy adventure-thrill ride and finishes it all off with an ending that won’t disappoint! For a healthy dose of sci-fi doomsday action, be sure to check out Knowing.
Genre: Sci-fi, Action
Director: Alex Proyas
Language: English
Year: 2009
The House of Sand is a moving glimpse into the life of a young woman who finds herself stuck in a difficult situation. The setting is the Brazilian desert in the early 1900s; a young woman, along with her mother, follows her husband through the treacherous desert in search of a place to start their life. After the difficult journey, young Áurea soon finds that she is pregnant. And so the women must choose how to live life in the isolation of the sand. The House of Sand is a beautifully told story of the ever-enduring female spirit.
Genre: Drama
Director: Andrucha Waddington
Language: Portuguese
Year: 2005
