Week 53: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Ahh, the elusive week 53.  Yes, it does exist in our minds here on Two Sisters.  Read my week 52 review if you're interested in my long, drawn out explanation of why there is a week 53 in 2011.  Or don't that's fine too. 

For our last week of movies this year we went to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.  In my opinion it was a great movie to end the year.  I thought I would like it but I'm actually surprised by how much I liked it.  I can't stop thinking about it if that tells you anything.

So, of course this was a book made into a movie.  I just finished the book a week or so ago so I was super excited to see this one.  And I might add that it's a remake of a movie released in Denmark in 2009.  I was hoping to see the original version before I saw this one but I didn't get around to it.  If you can believe it it's a lot harder for me to watch a rental then to go to a movie. 

As I'm sure you know by now, I love seeing a book come to life.  I might be going on a limb here by saying that this was probably one of the best ones I've seen.  Meaning that the movie followed the book so well.  Of course there were slight differences but overall it did an excellent job of capturing the essence of the book.  Excellent. 

I might be slightly bias with the characters because I saw who was playing the characters before I actually started the book.  So I had those people in mind while I was reading.  But let me tell you they were perfect.  I'll start out with saying I love Daniel Craig.  When I saw him in the his first James Bond I was sold.  He's perfect in my mind.  (Did I say that out loud?  Sorry)  Since he's not American he was able to pull of a European character very nicely.  Very nicely.  And don't get me started with Rooney Mara.  She couldn't have been better at playing Lisbeth Salander, the girl with the dragon tattoo.  I really can't imagine a better Lisbeth. 

Since I read the book I was prepared for the more disturbing and sexual scenes.  But if you haven't read the book you might want to keep in mind that this is definitely not a feel good movie.  Also, take note of who you are going to the movie with.  This probably isn't one you want to go with your grandma.  It would be a good one to go with the man in your life.  It's a very male movie.  Lots of action, suspense and sex. 

I'm so happy this was the last movie of 2011.  I thought for a while there that 2011 would fizzle out in the end.  But it didn't.  And I'm glad. 

To Sum it up:  Wonderful casting, lots of crazy, sexual suspense all with European flare.

Stay tuned for our Top 5 favorite movies in 2011!

Week 14: Limitless

This week we saw Limitless.  Bradley Cooper plays the main character.  He plays a washed up writer with major writer's block.  He basically looks like a bum who hasn't taken a shower in weeks.  He runs into his ex-brother-in-law who gives him this pill that supposedly allows you to use the "other" 80% of your brain that us humans haven't tapped into.  Suddenly he can see clearer and knows how to fix all his problems.  And he ends up looking a lot better too.  Well, of course there are side effects and he gets into all sorts of trouble.  It's actually a little gory in some spots.

Really, it was a pretty interesting concept.  Although, there were some parts where the cinemotagraphy (not sure if this is the write word - Austin you would know) actually made you a little dizzy when you're zooming through the city at warp speed.  I guess it just added another element of interest.  And I thought Bradley Cooper was a good fit.  He was believable as a bum and he was beleivable as an uber-smart, put together guy.  Probably because he's not this major good looking guy but also a step above the guy next door.  In my opinion anyway. 

Robert De Niro was also in it as a high-powered exec who tries to use Bradley Cooper's character for his own use.  And the girlfriend was played by Abbie Cornish.  I haven't seen her in a lot before but she was good.  Nothing exceptional.

Overall, I think this was an interesting movie and made you think but it wasn't much more than that.  I did enjoy it though.

To Sum it up: Cool concept, a little disorienting but keeps you thinking.  

Week 12: Red Riding Hood

As Deb said, we saw Red Riding Hood this week.  It's sort of funny that we ended up picking this one because it's a new take on an old classic just like last week's Beastly.  But the difference was this was a good take.

To be honest, I wasn't sure I would like this.  I thought it could be a little hokey but maybe not so bad.  Turns out, not so bad.  Amanda Seyfried was good.  I thought she would annoy me more for some reason but she didn't.  The two male characters both trying to get the girl were played by two actors I hadn't seen before, Shiloh Fernandez and Max Irons.  I like it when you get unknown people sometimes.  That way you don't expect them to be a certain way. 

The movie itself kept you on your toes.  You were always waiting for something to jump out and scare you.  And the whole time you were trying to figure out who the werewolf was.  The story would keep pointing you in different directions making you think it was one person then change to the next.  I wasn't really trying to figure out who it was but I don't think I would have guessed even if I had been. 

Like Deb, I'm not sure what it was exactly that made me like this show so well but I did.  It wasn't spectacular but it was entertaining.

To Sum it up: Suspenseful, unique and ever-changing.