Movie Reviews: Transformers and Knocked Up

Movie reviews will be a recurring feature on the site. We love movies, although I don't really don't get to go much, and we'll post a review here from time to time. I got to go to the movies this past week, which is good since my wife and I are about to have our first child and we won't be going to the movies much in the future. First, i'll start off with, "Transformers".

Transformers

The DreamWorks Pictures/Paramount Pictures venture, "Transformers", was actually better than I thought it would be. Not by much, but better. First off, I don't think I was alone in the fear that Michael Bay directing this flick (you really can't call this a film) would be the kiss of death. Is this guy formulaic or what? Hollywood gives this guy a LOT of money to make movies. Bad movies. He's produced, or directed, such "classics" as, "The Island", "Pearl Harbor", "Armageddon" and "The Rock" (Which I did kind of like). For all the money this guy gets to use towards making movies, why does he use the SAME music in his flicks? It's THE EXACT SAME MUSIC. Maybe it's just a pet peeve of mine, but it's annoying. Back to the flick.

Maybe the flick was worse than I thought, my opinion might be a little skewed because I grew up loving the cartoon as a kid. Either way, it was cool as hell to see Optimus Prime and Megatron brought to life on the screen. Industrial Lights and Magic has done it again: They put together a special effects masterpiece. Don't pay your money looking for a well developed story in the expectation of really caring about the characters in this flick. It ain't gonna happen. But if you loved "The Transformers", the cartoon, as a kid, I think you'll enjoy this summer flick. If you truly hate Michael Bay's formulaic madness (the love story, the hot chick slo-mo shots, the "rah-rah" team scenes, someone giving their life for another or at least the attempt to do so, etc.) you might get a little annoyed at times, but hopefully you'll be able to overcome it.

Knocked Up

If you like comedies with "heart", then you'll love this movie. I have to say, I am a fan of the director of this movie, Judd Apatow. He was the co-executive producer of, "The Larry Sanders Show" and executive producer of, "The Ben Stiller Show". He also produced and directed, "The 40 Year Old Virgin". I thought this movie was better than "Virgin". "Knocked Up" never slowed down, I felt "Virgin" did, there was one funny scene after another. A few of them are classics in the making which you already probably saw in the trailers, but trust me, there are more funny scenes in the movie. It's not like other movies where all the funny parts are in the trailers.

Guys, you ever see a couple walking down the street and the woman is just way too good looking for the guy? Well, in this movie that scene gets taken a step further and have a kid together after she gets pregnant, from what she thought, after their one-night-stand. That's the movie in a nutshell. Seth Rogan, also In "Virgin", was great in this movie. He played the guy who got lucky with a woman that was way out of his league. The woman in question being Katherine Heigl of TV's, "Grey's Anatomy". Her sister in the movie is played by, Leslie Mann, the drunk driving woman who drives Steve Carrel home in "Virgin" and throws up on him in her car. Paul Rudd plays Mann's husband and is really funny in this and has a great chemistry with Rogan throughout.

Again, my opinion may be skewed since my wife and I have a child on the way, but judging by all the laughs in the theater, you have to see this movie. I definitely recommend this movie to all people/couples expecting children, some of the jokes in this movie will really hit home with you.

Hope you enjoyed your Fourth.