Transformers

Remember the mid-'80s cartoon show about two dueling groups of robots — the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons — with the power to transform into cars, jets, helicopters, motorcycles and such? Well, they're coming to the big screen in this live-action adaptation.

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

There were many surprises in 2007. Transformers was one of those surprises. The last time Micheal Bay had a summer release, he bombed with 2004's The Island. Transformers didn't bomb. In fact, it launched a new franchise. I'll be shocked if we don't see a sequel by summer 2009. Who knew giant robots from outer-space could be so much fun. Jamie says "8".

Other films directed by Michael Bay and my grade

The Island 6

Bad Boys II 3

Pearl Harbor 4

Armageddon 8

The Rock 8

Bad Boys 7

Delta Farce

Three suburban losers (Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall, DJ Qualls) kill some time over the weekend by shooting guns in the woods. Mistaken for Army Reservists, the trio is shanghaied by a tough-as-nails sergeant (Keith David), who ships them off to Iraq. However, the men mistakenly end up in Mexico and, confusing the area with Fallujah, help out the locals by engaging a bandit ringleader (Danny Trejo) in combat.

Like most of America, I've seen Larry the Cable Guy on Comedy Central and laughed at his red-neck humor. I've also listened to him on the Bob & Tom show weekday mornings while driving to work. He seems to be a talented stand-up comedian. However, a great actor he isn't. Worst yet, his stand-up routine doesn't translate well to the big screen. Delta Farce provided zero laughs...So Jamie says "0".

Richard Roeper: Top Ten of 2007

1. Michael Clayton

2. No Country For Old Men

3. The Lookout

4. Juno

5. American Gangster

6. Gone Baby Gone

7. Zodiac

8. Superbad

9. Once

10. Paris, Je T'aime

1408

Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is a guy who stubbornly refuses to believe in the paranormal. In fact, he's written two bestselling books debunking myths and rumored hauntings. His latest subject is a hotel room in New York City with a dark and infamous past. However, in his determination to prove that 1408 is not haunted, Enslin may just stumble into a real-life ghost story.

1408 delivers! This is one of the bigger surprises of 2007. John Cusack gives one of his better performances. Billed as a horror flick, 1408 is more suspenseful than gore-filled. The movie is simple...Cusack in a a hotel room with strange things going on around him. Jamie says "8".

Good Luck Chuck

Charlie (Dane Cook) is a single dude who doesn't have any trouble getting women — the problem is keeping them around. After getting intimate with every female he dates, they all eventually move on to find "Mr. Right," who never seems to be him. Once his reputation spreads as "Good Luck Chuck," every girl in the world tries to sleep with him, which isn't such a bad thing, until he thinks he finds his soul mate (Jessica Alba), who is the one person he can't go to bed with or he'll risk losing her forever to some other guy.

I've never seen Dane Cook's stand-up comedy act. I only know him as an actor. Last year's Employee of the Month got hammered by critics. I thought the movie was very funny and Dane gave a quality comedy performance as a slacker Costco employee trying to win the heart of a co-worker by becoming employee of the month. This performance combined with a supporting turn in 2005's Waiting made me anxious to see more of Dane Cook.

Ask, and I shall receive. Cook was in 3 films in 2007. I've seen 2 of them; Good Luck Chuck and Mr. Brooks. The 3rd was Dan In Real Life, which Cook was a supporting actor. The film received good reviews, however, I don't remember reading that Cook was the reason for the film's accolades. I gave Mr. Brooks a "3".

Simply stated, Good Luck Chuck wasn't funny. I don't know what the future holds for Cook. He may have the talent to be a big star. I hope he re-groups in 2008 and chooses better material in 2009. Good Luck Chuck gets a "2". It's difficult to give a lower rating to a movie that has Jessica Alba in it. She can't act, however, no actress looks better while giving an awful performance.

Roger Ebert: Top 10 Films of 2007

1. Juno
2. No Country For Old men
3. before the Devil Knows Your Dead
4. Atonement
5. The Kite Runner
6. Away From Her
7. Across the Universe
8. LaVie en Rose
9. The Great Debaters
10. Into the Wild

Balls of Fury

This hilarious, outrageous comedy of a secret society that takes its clandestine Ping-Pong tournaments very seriously. Former professional player (Dan Fogler) immerses himself in this underground group, and his great goal is to beat archival Feng (Christopher Walken), his father's killer.

Balls of Fury is an awful movie. It tries to copy the formula of Dodge Ball; take a children's activity and place an adult life and death aspect to it. Dodge ball was funny. Balls of Fury is lifeless and un-amusing. Jamie says "0".

Christopher Walken is a great character actor. In the past I've always given my readers a list of a performers 5 best film's. However, because Balls of Fury is so bad, I give you...

The 5 Worst Films of Christopher Walken.

1. The Stepford Wives

2. Balls of Fury

3. America's Sweethearts

4. Blast From the Past

5. Poolhall Junkies

Smokin' Aces

Buddy "Aces" Israel (Jeremy Piven) is a small-time Las Vegas magician who suddenly becomes very popular after ratting out his boss, who has ties to the mob, to the FBI. After the Feds shuttle Aces off to Lake Tahoe for safekeeping, an army of assassins swarms the tiny resort town looking to cash in on a prize hit.

Smokin' Aces was released in early 2007. Many have forgotten it, but I thought it was the first good film of the year. Although the stylish violence has been seen before, the film features several great performances by the likes of Jeremy Piven, Ray Liotta and Alicia Keys (yes, the singer). Oh yeah, the film is funny to! Jamie says "8".

The best performance is given by Ryan Reynolds. Similar to Owen and Luke Wilson, Reynolds can make the most mundane dialogue funny. Check him out in Blade 3...he has some of the best one-liners I've ever heard.

Aces is directed by Joe Carnahan. He gained fame by directing 2002's low budget Narc, which also featured ray Liotta.

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

This fake biopic follows Dewey Cox (John C. Reilly), who struggles to become a major recording star.

Finally, John C. Reilly gets to be the head-liner in a big Hollywood movie. He's been Hollywood's second fiddle more times than an actual second fiddle. Reilly does a good job playing the Dewey Cox character. The film has a kind of "Forrest Gump" quality in that Dewey meets several famous rock-stars during his journey to rock-n-roll fame.

The problem with Walk Hard is that it is too serious too often. The film works best when Cox is shown interacting with his pet monkey and conversing with his brother's ghost. When Cox is contemplating his life near the end of the film, it looses steam and misses the note that was set all through the film. Jamie says "6".

The Top 5 Films of John C. Reilly

1. Boogie Nights (The best film of 1997)

2. The Aviator

3. Doloris Claiborne

4. Hard Eight (One of the best film's you've never heard of)

5. Gangs of New York

SUPERBAD

Seth and Even (Jonah Hill, Michael Cera) are two high school best friends who are about to graduate and move on to two different colleges. For one final school blowout party, the pair of nerds try to buy alcohol to get some girls drunk who will then hopefully sleep with them.

Although SUPERBAD supplied more than its fair share of laughs, it will most likely make my year end award list as "Most Over-Rated Film of the Year". Critics loved SUPERBAD for its throw-back to the 80's style of teenage comedy romps. The laughs are plenty but the screenplay doesn't have enough power to hold the film's 2 hour length. Jamie says "6".

300

During the ancient Battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and 300 Spartans fight to the death against Xerxes and his massive Persian army in an effort to inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy.

For those who passed on 300 thinking it was all special effects and nothing else...were dead wrong. Yes, the special effects were great but the screenplay was better. The themes of honor and loyalty play center stage in this action packed and bloody adventure film. 300 has a good chance at making my top 10 list of the year as well as being the most original film of 2007. Jamie says "8".

Bee Movie

Recent bee graduate Barry B. Benson (Jerry Seinfeld) isn't thrilled at having just one option for a career, namely honey. After he befriends a human woman named Vanessa (Renée Zellweger) who saves his life, he finds out that humans eat lots of honey and decides to sue humanity for stealing from bees.

Bee Movie didn't work for me. Jerry Seinfeld is the greatest comedian of my generation and his comedy has always been somewhat family friendly. Because of this the marriage of computer animation and his irrelevant humor seemed to be a perfect fit. I expected lots of light-hearted jokes for the younger crowds and lots of inside jokes for their care-takers. The jokes were lame and unfunny. There are only so many bee related jokes and I'm confident all are featured in Bee Movie.

The movie really went down hill for me when the bee colony let humans know they could communicate. This was followed by an awkward relationship with the Seinfeld bee and an adult voiced by Zellweger. Should sexual tension exist in a feature cartoon meant for children? Jamie says "3".

BREACH

Eric O'Neill's (Ryan Phillippe) dream of becoming a big-time agent in the FBI is finally coming true; he's been promoted to work with renowned operative Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper). But O'Neill soon realizes that he's supposed to spy on Hanssen — a suspected traitor within the organization.

Breach is a perfect example of less is more. Based on a true story, the film's producers could have added a car chase or a gun battle that would have turned it into a conventional spy thriller. Instead, they concentrated on the characters to supply the thrills and suspense. Phillippe and Cooper are both great in the lead roles. Breach was released in February of this year. If it would've been released around the award season, one or both of the leads may have had a chance of being nominated. Jamie says "8".

LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD

On the July 4th holiday, an attack on the vulnerable United States infrastructure begins to shut down the entire nation. The mysterious figure behind the scheme has figured out every modern angle--but he never figured on an old-analog fly, John McClane, in the digital ointment. It’s the beginning of the holiday, but New York City Detective McClane isn’t celebrating. He’s had yet another argument with his college-age daughter Lucy, and received a crushingly routine assignment to bring in a young hacker, Matt Farrell, for questioning by the FBI. But for McClane, the ordinary has a habit of exploding into the extraordinary--abruptly hurtling him into the wrong place at the wrong time. With Farrell''s help, McClane slowly begins to understand the increasing chaos surrounding him. An attack is underway on the vulnerable United States infrastructure, shutting down the entire nation. The mysterious figure behind the scheme, Thomas Gabriel, stays several moves ahead of McClane as he implements his incredible plans, known to uber-geeks like Farrell as a "fire sale" (as in, everything must go!).

Live Free or Die Hard is one of my favorite films of 2007. Like the previous 3 Die Hard flicks, Willis is great as John McClane. The action sequences are great...Even when he jumps onto a fighter jet from an exploding and collapsing freeway overpass. The movie is very fun and worked well as a summer release. Jamie says "8". The one disappointing aspect of the film was it PG-13 rating. They should have went for the R rating. Because of the PG-13 rating McClane couldn't say his signature line" Yippi-ki-A Mother$%@#er".

NEXT

Based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (Blade Runner, Minority Report), Cris Johnson (Nicolas Cage) can see into the future, an ability that makes him a target of the FBI , which wants him to help stop America's enemies before they strike. But what's more important to him: Saving his country or saving the love of his life?

My God...can it get any worse? I respect Cage's talent, but wtf is he thinking? He's an Oscar winner for God's sake! NEXT is an awful movie. Not only is it one of the ten worst films of the year...It's also one of the ten worst film's I've ever seen. Jamie says "0". Since 1990, Cage has averaged 2 movie releases a year. He is the hardest working actor of this generation. However, all of this work has gone to his head.

NEXT is directed by Lee Tamahori who gained fame with his first directoral effort Once Were Warriors...a very good flick. He also directed The Edge (Anthony Hopkins vs. The Grizzly) and Die Another Day, the Bond film that did in Pierce Brosnan.

The First TOP TEN List of 2007: Stephen King

Stephen King writes a monthly column for Entertainment Weekly called The Pop of King. He writes about all things pop culture. His writings are very entertaining. His list below is the first top ten list of the year.

10. In the Valley Elah (Haven't seen it yet...it received great reviews)
9. 28 Weeks Later (My grade:6...it deserved better)
8. The Lookout (My grade: 8...it has a good chance to make my top 10 list)
7. 3:10 To Yuma (It received great reviews...I found it boring... My grade: 6)
6. Little Children (This made my top 5 for 2006...rent this movie today!)
5. Children of Men (The best film of 2006 that no one seen...it made my list for 2006)
4. Breach (My grade: 8. It should make my list)
3. The Lives of Others (Haven't seen it yet...won the 2006 Oscar for best Foreign Film)
2. Gone Baby Gone (Haven't seen yet...Received good and great reviews)
1. No Country For Old Men (At press time...this is one of the 3 best films of 2007)

Rescue Dawn

Based on a true story, Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale) is a fighter pilot shot down during the Vietnam war. Taken hostage at a POW camp, Dengler arranges a masterful escape plan to get away from his sadistic captors.

2007 started out slow, but over the last month I've seen 5 flicks will will most likely make my TOP TEN list for the year. Rescue Dawn will be one of those 10. Bale is awesome as Dengler. Steve Zahn also gives a great supporting performance as a fellow captive. Jamie says "8".

Rescue Dawn is directed by Werner Herzog. He directed 2005's Grizzly Man, the documentary that taught us that crazy people shouldn't cohabitate with bears.

Christian Bale's Top Ten Films

1. Empire of the Sun

2. The Prestige

3. Rescue Dawn

4. American Psycho

5. Batman Begins

THE MIST

In this adaptation of the Stephen King novella, shoppers are trapped in a supermarket after it is enveloped in a strange mist filled with monstrous creatures. David Drayton (Thomas Jane) is just an unassuming artist, but when the terror hits, he rallies the other customers to defend themselves against the horrible beasts. Will these small-town folks be able to survive the assault and find out where that creepy mist came from anyway? Is it from the nearby military base?

The Mist was a pleasant surprise. What I thought was going to be a run of the mill horror flick turned into a commentary on group dynamics when said group is faced with an unknown crisis. What lurks in the mist? As ideas are presented by each member of the group and sides are chosen on how to defend themselves against the mist...Each person in the group begins to show their human flaws. Ultimately, those flaws become the means to their demise. The Mist is 2007's smartest horror flick. Jamie says "8".

The Mist is directed by Frank Darabont. This is not his first adaption of Stephen King material. Darabont also directed The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption.

Perfect Stranger

Desperate to solve the bizarre murder of a childhood friend, an undercover reporter (Halle Berry) creates several online aliases to lull the killer out of hiding. With her new identities in place, the nosy newswoman's Internet snooping leads her straight to the powerful CEO (Bruce Willis) of a major advertising agency.

Perfect Stranger might be the worst film of 2007. If it isn't, it's definitely in the team picture. Halle Berry is becoming a joke. Has an Oscar winning actress ever done less after winning the prestigious award? Although the plot is ridiculous, the film fails miserably because of Berry. Take away her performance in Monster's Ball, and I'm not convinced that she is a good actress. Jamie says "0".

James Foley directed this mess. Ironically, he directed 1992's Glengarry Glen Ross which is on my top ten list of all-time favorite films. Rent Glengarry today...you won't be disappointed.

Black Book

During WWII, Rachel Steinn (Carice van Houten) is a Jewish singer forced to flee her home. After a daring escape, she sets up a new identity for herself to avoid being captured and killed by the Germans. Rachel then quickly joins the resistance and infiltrates a Nazi stronghold. But when the underground's plans are betrayed by a traitor within its own ranks, Rachel becomes the number one suspect.

What do the movies Robocop, Total Recall, Showgirls, and Starship Troopers have in common with Black Book?...They are all directed by Paul Verhoeven. Is there another director with a more diverse catalogue of films? Black Book is based on a true story. I find this hard to believe because the protagonist escapes death more than James Bond. However, Black Book is a good flick. At over 2 hours it kept my interest. Jamie says "8"....it helped greatly that Carice von Houten had a certain quality that made it difficult not to pay attention.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) are allied with Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) in a desperate quest to free Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) from Davy Jones Locker; meanwhile, the Flying Dutchman--under the control of the East India Trading Company--wreaks havoc across the Seven Seas.

We can only hope this will be the last of this tired franchise. Jamie says "4". Depp, Knightley, and Bloom sleepwalk through the entire film. A "4" may be too generous.

THE KINGDOM

FBI Special Agent Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) assembles an eclectic team (Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper, Jason Bateman) for a mission inside Saudi Arabia to find and capture a terrorist responsible for a deadly attack on Americans. However, the agents find themselves strangers in a very strange land until a native police captain takes them under his wing and helps them navigate the deadly streets of Riyadh.

The Kingdom suffers from identity crisis. The The first and second acts are drama and mystery where as the third act turns into an action packed version of CSI on steroids. Jamie says "6"...strong performances all around.

Jason Bateman...Comedy genius?

FRACTURE

The good news: The man (Anthony Hopkins) who killed his wife confesses instantly, seemingly making a young Assistant District Attorney's (Ryan Gosling) life much easier. The bad news: The arresting police officer (Billy Burke) was having an affair with the dead wife, which complicates matters a wee bit, especially since there's no evidence that the murderer even did the job.

Fracture isn't that different from a made for t.v. movie. The only difference is Fracture has 2 great lead actors where as a made for t.v. movie would have Tom Selleck and Matt Le Blanc opposite each other. Hopkins and Gosling are good at the cat and mouse game of trying to out-wit each other. The audience knows Gosling will beat Hopkins in the end, and that is where the movie falls short. The audience knows the end without knowing the end because we've seen it all before. Because of the 2 leads, Jamie says "6".

Anothony Hopkins Top 5 movies.

1. The Silence of the Lambs

2. Legends of the Fall

3. The Edge

4. Bram Stoker's Dracula

5. Proof

EASTERN PROMISES

Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), who belongs to one of London's most feared organized crime families, meets a midwife (Naomi Watts) who unwittingly holds damaging information that could lead to unraveling the family's criminal network. Nikolai must make sure this doesn't happen without ruining the young woman's life.

Eastern Promises has one of the most unusual and memorable fight scenes in recent years. Come to think of it...its comparable to the Borat hotel wrestling scene. The fight in Eastern Promises is bloody and you get to see Viggo Mortensen naked instead of Borat.

If you can get by the thick (super think) Russian accents...Eastern Promises has some promise. Jamie says "7".

THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM

Still having no memory of who he really is or where he's from, superspy Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) goes on one last adventure to find himself … literally. With some help from his former co-conspirator, Nicky (Julia Stiles), Bourne must continue to evade CIA director Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) and spar with a mysterious figure from his past — the deadly Paz (Edgar Ramirez), who was trained in the same deadly secret program as Bourne.

Some critics complained The Bourne Ultimatum was simply a retread of The Bourne Supremacy. Who cares? When its predecessor was great...if it ain't broke, don't fix it. As long as the "Bourne" movies keep me on the edge of my seat like this one did...I hope the formula never changes. Jamie says "8".

Matt Damon's Top 5 Movies
1. The Talented Mr. Ripley
2. Saving Private Ryan
3. The Departed
4. The Bourne Identity
5. The Bourne Supremacy

AWAY FROM HER

A happily married couple, Grant (Gordon Pinsent) and Fiona (Julie Christie), face a crisis in their long marriage when Fiona is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and must go live in a nursing home. Separated for the first time in nearly 50 years, Fiona quickly develops a romantic attachment to a fellow patient (Michael Murphy), which a devastated Grant struggles to accept. The feature film screenwriting and directing debut of actress Sarah Polley (Dawn of the Dead).

When a film is described as "heartbreaking" I usually don't go see it. It's not that I'm against heartbreaking films. I'm simply not an emotional person. It takes a lot to get me teary eyed. In the past there have only been 2 films that brought tears to my eyes; Old Yeller and Terms of Endearment.

Now there's a third. Away From Her is an emotional weeper that is superbly acted and directed. Pinsent and Christie both deserve Oscar nominations as well as Sarah Polley. This film did not get a wide release earlier this year. Check out Away From Her this winter. You won't be disappointed. Jamie says "9".