Movies This Week (9/14)

I wasn't able to write up most of the movies that I watched in the last three weeks, but I managed to get these down. I watched Superbad (4.5/5), Balls of Fury (3.25/5), Jawbreaker (2/5), High School Musical (1.75/5), and Stardust (4.25/5).

Superbad (Theater) - Possibly the best movie of its genre - the teen movie involving teenagers attempting to get laid. The most popular example of this genre from the 1990's is American Pie while Porky's and Revenge of the Nerds are great examples from the 1980's. Superbad has managed to surpass all the previous teen sex comedies. It's hilarious and thoroughly enjoyable. It's also extremely vulgar, sometimes disgusting, and often ridiculous. In short, it's basically everything parents don't want their teenage kids to watch. Did I mention that Superbad is hilarious? 4.5/5

Balls of Fury (Theater) - Of the ridiculous sports comedies that have been successful in the last few years (such as Talladega Nights and Blades of Glory), Balls of Fury isn't up to the same standard - however it is very funny. Those people familiar with the humor of Thomas Lennon (Reno 911!) will find a familiar style of absurdity sprinkled throughout. 3.25/5

Jawbreaker (HD Cable) - An exclusive clique of high school girls accidentally kills one of their members during a practical joke gone wrong. Rose McGowan leads the other girls to cover up the death, but they are discovered by an unpopular girl played by Judy Greer. Rose convinces Judy to keep silent by transforming her into one of the beautiful and popular girls and sets up another of the girls (Rebecca Gayheart) for taking the rap. It's a bit subpar. 2/5

High School Musical (DVD) -This made for TV movie has had an amazingly positive reception from viewers and has an enormous fanbase as evidenced by the many fansites including the High School Musical Spot on Fanpop. Fans of the previously unknown actors like Zac Efron, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, and Ashley Tisdale have created numerous shrines on the Internet during the last several months. So, I had to find out what the buzz was all about. The Disney Channel produces several made-for-TV movies each year and Disney makes many more direct-to-video movies as well. Usually they are sub-par, able to earn money in the DVD arena but not in theaters. So, maybe they missed out on a cash cow here and should have released it in the theaters? Not on your life. This movie was pretty bad. It's essentially a remake of Grease (updated with cell phones, modern music, and a weird Disney-channel perception of what high school is like) that really could have learned something from the original. Zac is no John Travolta, and Vanessa, who has a pretty smile, is not even close to being a good actor. A fine example of a made for kids, kids movie and nothing more. 1.75/5

Stardust (Theater) - A great fantasy movie that breathes fresh life into fairy tales, Stardust follows the story of a young man who tries to bring back a fallen star to his beloved to convince her to marry him. He soon discovers that the star has landed in a magical land and is actually a beautiful (and strong willed) woman. As he journeys back to his home with her, others are out to capture or kill her for their own gain as well. The movie is full of witches, evil princes, pirates, fencing, magic, and unexpected humor. A great fantasy movie that will leave you feeling just like you did after watching The Princess Bride for the first time. 4.25/5