Godfather Part II - ****
A masterpiece of filmmaking, cliche as f*ck thing to say, but it's true. Great performances and great characters all around, so many juicy bits of diologue. And everything else, the setting design, the cinematography, the music, it's all great. This may very well be better than the first, it has more humor and the character development is better, this one really expands on Michael and his relationshps, especially with his brother Fredo and his wife Kay. The acting is so great that you often feel like you know exactly what every character is thinking just from their expressions, like Tom, you always get that locked up resentment he has for Michael, for losing his position of power to someone else. But the Godfather movies as great as they are, the first time viewing will always have the greatest impact, because a big part of the fun is that suspense of a world where anyone can die at any moment, first time viewers will have a lot of fun figuring out who's gonna get whacked.
My only complaint? The Vito flashbacks were too few and far between, it left me wanting more.
The Rocketeer - ***
An entertaining homage to the pulp fiction comics and movie serials of the 30s and 40s, complete with mobsters, nazis, a Flash Gordan-ish hero, an Errol Flynn-ish villian and a Rondo Hatton inspired henchman. What more could you want? It's severe corniness actually becomes a strength because of what it was trying to achieve. It's also funny to note that throughout most of the movie the protagonist is just this lucky dumbass who ends up causing more destruction than anything, but in the end he kicks nazi ass and gets the girl. Cliche? Yes, but for this kind of movie that's actually a good thing. The movie never takes itself seriously, it's all in good fun, it takes a while to get flying, but it's a worthwhile ride.
Also, Jennifer Connelly is in it and she makes anything she's in a *** just for sheer hotness.
Except anything with Keanu Reeves in it.
My Favorite Martian - *
Dumb, messy and unfunny
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