State of Play
Crank High Voltage

Follow James St. James into the world of the club kids and see how far the rabbit hole goes. It is the the true story of how Michael Alig killed his drug dealer/roommate and almost got away with it.

Seth Green proves himself as an actor by playing James St. James. It is hard to believe the creator of Robot Chicken could pull it off, but Green has been in the game since he was ten years old.

Macaulay Culkin does a good job with the role of Michael Alig. He is working hard to shake the stigma of his childhood fame in Home Alone.

Party Monster was adopted from the book Disco Bloodbath. St. James serves a well written story of Alig’s rise as king of the club kids during the late 80s and early 90s in New York. While St. Jame’s love/hate relationship with Alig does not provide a non-bias opinion of actual events, it is an interesting version of Angle’s death and dismemberment.

There are few things on the shelf as good as Party Monster. The soundtrack is like no other. And you have to love a movie that has Marilyn Manson in drag.

The Spirit

When Kim takes a break from rehab for her sister’s wedding, she tries to shed her title as the family’s black sheep. Can she make it through a weekend of Narcotics Anonymous meetings and bad memories?

Rachael Getting Married debuts writer Jenny Lumet, who delivers a well written story. The movie boasts director Jonathan Demme who also gave us The Manchurian Candidate, Philadelphia, and The Silence of the Lambs.

Anne Hathaway does a good job with the lead role. Kim is a woman battling addiction, rejection, and family. This role is a serious departure from her other work in kid-friendly movies like The Princess Diaries, Ella Enchanted, and Hoodwinked.

Rachael Getting Married uses some interesting techniques to set it apart from major blockbusters. The movie is shot in a documentary-type style. The camera work is unlike Demme’s other films. The movie uses a musician jamming in the background to set the tone rather than playing a pre-recorded music track.

The movie wears a little thin toward the end, but still mildly entertaining. It will fill your drama quotient for a week, or month depending on your lifestyle. Rachael Getting Married is not a movie to kick up your heels and relax with. But it is a good pick if you are in the mood for a moody drama.

Observe and Report

The Day the Earth Stood Still
Doubt
Bedtime Stories
Yes Man

An alien comes to Earth with his robot bodyguard to evaluate the planets inhabitants. What will his evaluation lead to when he encounters a hostile military and environmental concerns?

The Day the Earth Stood Still is the 2008 remake of the 1951 science fiction original. While the message has been altered, the rest of the movie remains pretty much the same.

The original reflected the tensions of the time the movie was created such as the start of the Cold War and the Korean War. The message the alien gave to the world was it is not our concern what you do with your planet, but war is not the answer to your problems.

Remake also reflects the current environmental concerns facing our planet. The message has changed to Earth it is not your planet and humans must be removed to preserve it.

Klaatu, an emotionless alien sent to observe life on Earth, is the role Keanu Reeves was born to play. Jennifer Connelly does not do much better by churning out the same performance we have seen over and over.

The Day…has fairly good action sequences . It has a fresh perspective while it stays true to the original. It has runtime close to two hours that feels like three. The Day…is an interesting idea but may not be the best movie on the shelf.

Adventureland

Seven Pounds
Marley & Me
Slumdog Millionaire