By the Numbers (2007 Dec 31)

In the wake of my recent statement that IMO 2007 was the worst year for movies since I started reviewing, I received a reader's challenge asking if I could come up with numbers to support that assertion. So I spent a few hours this past weekend ...

Rewinding 2007: The Top 10 (2007 Dec 28)

I have previously mentioned that I believe this to be a weak Top 10. Let me clarify: every movie on the list deserves to be there. They are, in my view, the ten best movies of 2007. However, the list as a whole does not stand up favorably to past ...

Opening This Week (2007 Dec 26)

It used to be that Christmas was one of the year's most prestigious days for opening a movie. This was the day when true Oscar aspirants bowed. No longer, however. Now, a few movies get dumped unceremoniously into theaters but, for the most part, ...

Rewinding 2007: The Performances (2007 Dec 24)

In recent years, I have taken to splitting my end-of-the-year comments into three sections. Before addressing the best ten performances of the year, however, I want to make a general comment about the overall quality of the 2007 product. This is the...

Opening Today (2007 Dec 21)

The theaters runneth over. No matter what your likes and dislikes may be, there's something out there for you. Virtually every genre is represented: chick flicks, romances, serious dramas, comedy, horror, music, adventure, action, family fare, and ...

"Special" Features (2007 Dec 20)

When DVDs first arrived in the late 1990s, there were three big selling points: superior audio and video (at least compared to VHS and laserdisc), more compact packaging, and special features. It's the third advantage of DVD that I want to discuss ...

Video View (2007 Dec 18)

New Movies on DVD: This is the last chance for distributors to get their movies onto store shelves before the holidays, so there are a fair number of late-summer, high-profile titles debuting this week. After today, things get quiet for a while. ...

The Empty Box (2007 Dec 17)

When I was a child, the two most unfriendly terms that came with Christmas morning gifts were "batteries not included" and "some assembly required." For the most part, my parents were good about having a small mountain of AA, AAA, C, and D cells ...

Opening Today (2007 Dec 14)

It's a busy weekend at the multiplex, in part because several films that have previously opened in only a few theaters are going wider. Two of those are Starting out in the Evening, an affecting tale of the relationship between an aging writer and a...

Clear Blu (2007 Dec 13)

Consider this to be my initial first-hand report on Blu-Ray, and its nature may surprise a few people. To start, it's necessary to note that for many videophiles, the fervor that accompanies adherence to a new technology or format borders on ...

Video View (2007 Dec 11)

New Movies on DVD: This week, it's pretty much all Potter and Bourne. Harry's fifth adventure, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, has arrived on DVD along with Jason Bourne's third, The Bourne Ultimatum. Since the Harry Potter films are ...

The Tarnished Compass (2007 Dec 10)

It has been widely reported that New Line Cinema staked a lot - perhaps even its solvency - on the success of The Golden Compass. Without applying any spin, the truth is that the movie underperformed. New Line may cheerlead about the film being #1 ...

Opening Today (2007 Dec 07)

To start with, I always mention September 11 when I write something on that day (usually a festival report from Toronto), so it's reasonable to note that today is December 7, FDR's "date that will live in infamy." (A.k.a. "Pearl Harbor Day." I am ...

The Nuclear Option (2007 Dec 06)

If the WGA strike was just about money, it would be over by now. In fact, money is only part of the equation. The other, more significant variable is power. The sides don't just want to settle; they want to win. They'll deny this, of course, but ...

Video View (2007 Dec 04)

In keeping with a schedule I recently revealed, I plan to write a short column every Tuesday remarking on some of the newest offerings on video. Each report will be divided into three sections: New Movies on DVD, TV on DVD, and Other Things of ...

Fun and Games (2007 Dec 03)

First, a Mojolingo update: Based on the advice of a reader, I blocked Mojolingo's IP address so they can no longer re-direct to ReelViews. This means anyone accessing through them is getting nowhere. I just checked and the proper link has also been...

Bad Mojo (2007 Nov 30)

Going forward, I'm going to use the Friday ReelThoughts to reflect on the week's new releases and make some general comments that are intended to be less "spoiler-ish" and less specific than the individual reviews. This week, however, there are only...