Surf's Up

Like surfing movies? Like "Riding Giants"? Like CG animation? Like penguins? If you said yes to 2 or more of these, you will most likely enjoy this movie. I did.

We don't get many CG mockumentaries. This one sets the bar pretty high. There are some obvious references to one of the best surf documentaries of all time, Riding Giants. There are also enough beach and surf movie cliches to bring back some funny memories. This "cartoon" was good enough to earn an Oscar nom in for Best Animated Picture. Impressed yet?

Shia LaBeouf and Jeff Bridges play the two main characters. This is a very nice paring of voice talent with characters, and both have a unique sound. Zooey Deschanel and Jon Heder play the love interest and comic support perfectly. James Wood plays the Don King of surf promoters. Very funny.

References to other penguin movies of early and often. Both Happy Feet and March of the Penguins are spoofed here.

Watch this with someone who has spent time playing in or riding waves.

(500) Days of Summer

As the narrator points out early in the movie, this is not a love story. It is however a very clever tale of 20-something angst, self-absorption, and Relationship Theory 101. I'm guessing the people who liked Zach and Mira's porno and Away We Go will most likely like, or at least relate to, this movie also. To me, this is by far the best of the three. Perhaps it's a generational thing.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel make awkward chemistry, but that is the point. While they might have been very good for each other, there were not "right" for each other. No, that should not spoil things for you if you have not seen it yet.

My favorite character however was the supportive, beyond-her-years wise, younger sister. Chloe Moretz is great, as is her character.

Musically this movie is all over the place, and yet perfect at the same time. There are tributes to French, Swedish, and other European cinema stereotypes. There is out-of-sequence storytelling, and MTV editing. There are also some very smart split-screen scenes towards the end of the movie. These are my favorites actually.

Watch this movie with someone who will not be so put off by the negative beginning that they will miss best parts of the movie.

Yes Man

Could anyone other than Jim Carrey pull this part off? Few, very few. Maybe Robin Williams, maybe somebody less well known. But Carrey is still perfect for this. It is perhaps one of the best things he has done in a long time.

Zooey Deschanel holds her own here and pulls off a performance worth bragging about. How many others can you name that pair up with such a strong name as Carrey and don't get lost in the shuffle?

There IS a point to this funny movie too. It's all about moderation and making choices that make sense. Along the way there are some great slapstick one usually gets in a Carrey movie but also some very thought worthy drama.

We all know people who are extreme in their personality, one way or another. Watch this movie with one of THOSE people.