On August 29th, Goal II comes to the big screen in the United States. This is the follow-up to 2006’s Goal, which explored a young kid’s dream of becoming a professional soccer player and his rise to become part of Newcastle United.
Goal II picks up where the first movie left off, and sees Santiago Muñez‘ rise in Newcastle United get him noticed by another famous soccer team - Real Madrid!
Kuno Becker reprises his role as Santiago Muñez, as does Stephen Dillane as Glen Foy. Joining the cast is Rutger Hauer as Rudi van der Merwe.
Early press is positive, noting that the soccer footage is much more real and many scenes were taken directly from video footage of actual soccer matches. The movie also features cameos from several famous soccer players, including David Beckham, Zinédine Zidane, and Robinho!
If you’re a soccer fan or a fan of the first film, be sure to check it out on the big screen on August 29th, 2008!
In the meantime, you can check out some production stills and the trailer to whet your appetite after the break!
I had a chance to go see Tropic Thunder this week. After the advertising blitz and initial reviews, I was expecting to laugh my backside off. Hoping to, actually. Did that happen? Not so much.
Were there scenes that made me laugh? Sure. One-liners? Sure. But what set that off was the overwhelming feeling that they’d gone too far with some of the roles, some of the situations, and gone to extremes that didn’t need to be explored.
There’s something about movies that play on stereotypes and extremes for me. Sometimes, you can play with stereotypes and be really funny. Mel Brooks made his career out of it. Look at Blazing Saddles or Spaceballs. Classic comedies that use stereotypes to the hilt, and yet can transcend them.
Tropic Thunder was an ambitious project. Let’s make fun of the industry that made us all big stars, within the context of a movie within a movie. I get it. It’s a great goal. Unfortunately, I don’t think it lived up to the hype.
Did I enjoy the movie at all? Well, I did laugh in parts.
Funny enough, the “retard” scenes that got the movie in trouble with various groups around the world didn’t offend me. I really enjoyed the scene with Robert Downey Jr.’s character poking fun at Ben Stiller’s idiot action star where they discussed their “craft”.
Some of the shock value scenes like [spoiler alert!] Steve Coogan’s director character stepping on a landmine [end spoiler] were quite funny. It really set the tone for Stiller’s Speedman character.
Robert Downey Jr’s turn as Kirk Lazarus, decorated actor playing Osiris, was funny in spots. His line in the trailer — “I know who I am! I’m the dude playing the dude disguised as another dude!” — is just as funny in the movie as it is in the trailer.
And I thought Jay Baruchel stole the show as Kevin Sandusky. It’s great when the geek actor saves the day.
But Tom Cruise’s performance as Les Grossman, gross movie producer… Not so much. Cruise was pretty disturbing in how aggressive and inflammatory he was in a fat suit. (His dancing was particularly alarming.) Maybe that was the point. But the Animaniacs did the whole powerful, super pain in the arse movie company executive to a T already (back in the 90s) and made it funny. Cruise went over the line IMHO.
Matthew McConaughey as the eager buddy agent to Stiller’s Tugg Speedman character was a bit much. But at least I had some respect for him.
Even Jack Black as the Eddie Murphy drug addict character pushed lines for me. Not because it was disturbing, but because it’s been done to death already.
And why Nick Nolte was in this movie other than for set dressing is beyond me.
This kind of ensemble cast is almost a waste of talent. The Dark Knight had a strong, well known group of actors, and they all contributed to that great film. In Tropic Thunder’s case, it was a mish mash of actors thrown together that just never gelled.
One positive about the movie — the soundtrack. It included some classic songs, including:
Ball of Confusion (Temptations)
Run Through the Jungle (CCR)
The Pusher (Steppenwolf)
War (Edwin Starr)
Ultimately, this was just an ok movie for me. I was disappointed that it wasn’t funnier. I did laugh in spots, but the over the top moments overshadowed them for me.
So I’m just giving it 2/4. It was ok. Rent it if you’re interested. Or listen to the thousands of other people who’ve seen it and thought it was brilliant. I’m not one of them.
Until next time… Go see a movie!
–Fitz
p.s. My opinion wasn’t shared by many folks — seems everybody liked it. You can see some other reviews here:
In his travels around the world (Egypt, Morocco, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and finally Pakistan) he shows us that intelligent, reasonable people exist everywhere in the world, even in those places the media may tell us otherwise. It doesn’t matter if you are Islamic, Christian, Jewish, or any other religious denomination, madness is madness wherever you are.
This type of documentary is a great reminder of the great “War on Terror” debate. How do you declare war on an idea? These radicals, wherever they may live, whatever gods they may pray to, live among good people in their nations and do unspeakable things in the name of their organization’s goals. By saying we have gone to war with these insane people, we have legitimized their role in the world — if I blow stuff up, I get attention, and my drawing attention to myself and my cause, it will bring change. Unfortunately, it’s not always the kind of change we need.
Spurlock asks everyday people in the Middle East simple questions like what they think of the Islamic radicals blowing themselves up in the name of Islam. And the answers are sometimes interesting.
One of the most surprising things to me was the way the Hasidic Jews in Israel treated him at one point during his trip. They were physically pushing him away and out of their neighborhood and being verbally abusive. He was eventually helped out of the situation by Israeli police. But to see such intolerance even there makes me understand that there are radical Jews as well as radical Muslims, and though they may not be as violent, the potential for violence is there. Intolerance is scary stuff.
A telling quote from the movie was from Father Nabil Haddad of the Eastern Orthodox Church in Jordan. I’m paraphrasing a little here, but he said “What our American brothers and friends need is a cultural strategy. Without understanding each other, without mutual respect and understanding, there is no peace.”
I’m not a religious man, but amen to that.
One of my favorite segments was the one of Spurlock touring a Saudi Arabian mall. Nothing like beating you over the head with cultural differences in one of America’s favorite places to go — The Mall!
And his coverage of Afghanistan is heartbreaking. So much damage, so much money spent, but nothing to show for it. It all stays at the top. But beyond that, Spurlock as an embedded journalist was incredible. When the military tells you to get your butt back in the convoy, it’s time to go, no questions asked. They are still a war zone, and it looked the part.
Spurlock has done a good thing by raising the awareness of cultural differences in this “war on terror” so that we can see that it’s not the world that has gone mad, but a few misguided souls causing heartache for us all.
The ultimate question may not be “Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?” but will finding him make a difference or do we have to figure out what’s important to us as a people, as a world?
Watch it and give it some thought. It’s definitely worth the watch. Plus, it has some cool extras, including the history of Afghanistan done in animation.
This gets a solid 4 out of 4 for me. Was it enlightening and educational? Definitely. Was it entertaining? Yes, and even though I prefer flights of fancy to flights of fact, I think it should be watched by any American wanting another perspective on America’s role in the Middle East.
Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden is available for purchase on DVD on August 26, 2008. Check it out!
A few weeks back, Jean at Sizzling Popcorn was the winner of a contest I held at the Lair and one part of the “winnings” was a review of his site. It’s taken a while, but I’m finally getting back to that!
When I first started with Entrecard, I ran across Sizzling Popcorn’s initial incarnation as a blog and was impressed by the width and depth of some of the reviews there. When Jean got his own domain and retooled his site with the new look, I was even more impressed.
SP focuses on the breadth of movies in the industry — everything from Action and Adventure to Documentary and Drama, and everything in-between. Each review is rated on the SP system:
Sizzling Popcorn - a great movie that is bound for awards shows
Butter Popcorn - a great movie that may not be bound for the awards shows
Popcorn - a good, but not great movie
Kernel - not so good, but may be a renter
and Burnt Popcorn - which isn’t worth watching
Not only did the site revamp a few months ago change the look and feel of SP, but it gave it a lot more flexibility in terms of graphical layout, advertising, sponsoring, and so on.
Jean always gets the jump on new movies and movie news too — most recently, Jean got to see premieres of several movies and I was jealous!
I have to admit that SP is one of those sites I head to when I’m debating on seeing a movie at the theater or not. I don’t always agree with Jean, but more often than not we seem to have a similar feel for various movies. And it’s always good to get a second opinion.
So we at the Lair wish Sizzling Popcorn all the best and hope that Jean continues to do well with the site!
Who knows who I might review next? 7 Miles Down? Reel Ninja?
I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but Colorado has had it’s own version of the Sundance Film Festival in Telluride for the last 35 years. I have to admit that I wasn’t aware of the festival until last year and this year it looks like an interesting set of films being shown.
The festival starts August 29 and runs through September 1st. Running shorts, documentaries, independent and foreign films, the festival attracts quite a number of submissions.
Every day is was jam-packed full of movie goodness. I’m sure this year will be the same.
Check it out if you get a chance. I hope to have more information as we get closer to the days of the festival (including an updated list of some of the movies I would attend if I had the chance!). Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend myself this year (family obligations), but I am planning on attending next year’s festivities!
If you plan on going, let me know… I would love to have some guest posts from festival attendees!
It’s no secret that I’m a science fiction and fantasy guy. Have been since I was first introduced to Robert Heinlein and JRR Tolkien many many moons ago… So it shouldn’t be too shocking that I’m a fan of the Stargate series. From the original movie with James Spader and Kurt Russell in 1994 to the TV series that began airing in 1997 and was on the air until 2007 (not to mention the spinoff Stargate: Atlantis).
Anyway… We’re big Stargate fans at my house. So when Stargate: Continuum was announced, of course I queued it up at Amazon to pick it up when it was released.
This adventure for the SG-1 team starts innocuously enough… Ba’al has been captured, and they think it’s the real Ba’al this time… So the Tokra are working their mojo when suddenly… I won’t spoil it.
Suffice it to say that the team, indeed the universe itself, is at risk in this movie. And in true SG-1 fashion, they get things back to how they should be by the end. Yay team.
This is one of the few movies in my recollection that discusses time travel in any scientific way that actually follows current thinking in the scientific community. And it handles it beautifully. It’s one hell of a scenario to contemplate. Alternate realities, altered timelines, and decisions made by those in power to ensure their own survival. It’s a brilliant story that utilizes all of the SG-1 cast beautifully.
Everyone is extremely sad that Don S. Davis died about a month before this movie was released. He will be missed by Stargate fans everywhere.
Now… A couple of things. And there are spoilers involved, so read at your own risk…
[Begin spoilers]
We were getting increasingly distressed when they a) killed Jack O’Neill, b) made everybody disappear, and c) apparently left Daniel Jackson to freeze to death. But it turned out to be ok. Everybody survives in the end.
The Grandfather Paradox is unbelievably cool. Cam not only saves his Grandfather, but helps history right itself. Gotta love that.
[End spoilers]
Ok… So what did I think of this movie? We liked it a lot. I’d give it 3.5/4. It wasn’t perfect, but it was really good.
First of all, let me say that I loved the first Mummy movie. And then came the second, and I didn’t love it at all. (CGI Scorpion Kings aside, it was a bad film with little redeeming value.) And now Rob Cohen has picked up for Stephen Sommers and I have to wonder… why?
If your favorite scene of a movie involves a group of CGI Yeti kicking a field goal with a Chinese soldier for the ball… something’s wrong.
Problem #1 - Luke Ford as Alex O’Connell. How in the heck could Rick (Brendan Fraser, whom I like) and Evie O’Connell have a son in College? Huh?
Problem #2 - Maria Bello as Evelyn O’Connell. I like Bello, but nobody can really replace Rachel Weisz, and she was wise (bad pun) to leave the franchise.
Problem #3 - There were NO mummies in this film!!!
Problem #4 - There is NO problem 4.
Problem #5 - There were NO mummies
If you’re in the mood for a good mummy movie, watch the first in this series. Or read Anne Rice’s Ramses the Damned. But skip this one unless you’re desperate, it’s on television, and it’s the only thing on.
Ok, really it’s not that bad. But it’s not very good either. I’d have cut about half of this movie out from the get-go.
Things I liked:
The Yetis. Yes, they’re kind of cheesy, but they were one of my favorite parts of the film.
The Battle at the Great Wall of China at the end. It dragged a bit, but at least it included the undead and some interesting scenes. (I really liked the planes flying across and mowing down the statue army…)
And Shangri-la. Whomever did the set painting for that scene did a great job. I would’ve moved there, but probably not have put a casino there like Jonathan was thinking of doing…
Thinks I didn’t like? Wow…
Father and son comparing gun cabinets was really forced. I got what they were after, but damn if they didn’t beat you over the head with it.
Jet Li’s character isn’t a mummy… Why the heck does this movie have “The Mummy” in the title?
Too many explosions (for little effect), faces melting, and statues being broken. Why the high destructive count?
Little plot questions like… Why did the Emperor’s statue army have to go beyond the Great Wall to turn immortal? All the Emperor had to do was take a bath… Couldn’t he have just marched them all up there for bath day?
Anyway… I’m giving this movie 2/4. It was ok. It wasn’t great. It wasn’t horrible. But it was a waste of time about half the movie. Save your money and rent it if you’re that interested…
Scary part is they’re talking about another Mummy film already — one in Peru. Please don’t do it. (The scarier thought is that this movie made $45 million in its first weekend and so did The Dark Knight. Ugly mummies, Batman!)
This is another of Hayao Miyazaki’s great works of animated storytelling. If you haven’t seen any of Miyazaki’s works, they include Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and many others. He’s an amazing Japanese director who’s style and storytelling prowess seems to transcend language, because they’re magical in English too.
Kiki’s Delivery Service is the story of a young witch (Kiki) leaving home for a year to continue her training. She ends up in a large city and has a number of adventures as she learns about herself and meets some new friends along the way.
This movie was done in the late 80s in Japan and then dubbed over with American actors here in 1998, including:
* Kirsten Dunst as Kiki
* Phil Hartman as Jiji (his last voice-acting performance before his death)
* Janeane Garofalo as Ursula
* Debbie Reynolds as Madame Oku-sama
This is a great movie for kids — it has thrills as well as kind lessons learned, unlike many of today’s animated films.
Be sure to check it out — we as a family gave it a solid 3/4 (we liked Spirited Away much better — I’d give that 4/4 if I was reviewing it today). Soon we’ll be watching My Neighbor Totoro, which is another of Miyazaki’s great works!
Father to two daughters, with a wife serving in Iraq, John Cusack’s character is forced to deal with the situation all military families dread — the loss of a loved one in the service of their country. He can’t find the words to tell his kids their mother is gone. So they take a road trip to a major amusement park.
Along the way, we see the oldest daughter dealing with growing up too fast and protecting her sister. We meet Cusack’s brother, who opposes the war and appears anti-government. And we learn a great deal about Cusack’s character’s views on duty and belief in one’s self and country.
This is an emotional film that does a great job showing us some of what that situation might be like without choosing a side in the war. That war takes its toll is what the film focuses on, not whether the war in Iraq is a good or bad thing — whether we are prepared to pay the human cost for each life lost. One life has tremendous ripples. Imagine the thousands killed and wounded in the line of duty.
Powerful film. Great performance by John Cusack. Solid 4/4.
This movie was pushed hard by advertisers when it was at the theater. I seem to recall being bombarded by advertising to the point where we decided we didn’t want to see the film at the theater. I believe I added it to my Netflix list not long after it debuted.
Vantage Point is sort of a combination of Groundhog Day and 24. Yes, it’s an odd cross. And honestly, Groundhog Day never got annoying because it kept a sense of humor about it. When we got to the third rewind, my wife and I both looked at each other and said — “Is it possible to be bored and interested at the same time?”
The movie stars Matthew Fox, Dennis Quaid, Sigorney Weaver, and Forest Whitaker. Out of all of them, the only character I really cared what happened to was Whitaker.
About halfway through the movie, I was debating watching the rest and then it started wrapping itself up in the last 40 minutes or so. Almost like the filmmaker was editing the film and going “I think people are going to walk out soon unless we do something…”
This movie honestly didn’t do much for me. But I’m glad Forest Whitaker’s character survived, as it’s about the only thing that saved this movie from a 1/4 review. As such, it gets 2/4. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t like it much either.
fitz in 
Hey all!
Early press is positive, noting that the soccer footage is much more real and many scenes were taken directly from video footage of actual soccer matches. The movie also features cameos from several famous soccer players, including David Beckham, Zinédine Zidane, and Robinho!
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