Nerd in the 'Noke

The Way Way Back (2013), PG-13, 103 minutes - I saw the trailer for this film earlier this year but missed it once it was released.  I was able to catch it on the plane on the flight back from our honeymoon and it made two hours of the nine hour flight quite entertaining. The Way Way Back is a 'coming of age' story, but it manages to do so without seeming run of the mill.  It uses the same formula that made Little Miss Sunshine the darling of a film that it was: a great cast, funny dialogue (despite some very serious moments), and a strange family dynamic.  Bear in mind, these components make it difficult to mix correctly, but The Way Way Back gets it right. Duncan (Liam James) is on a summer 'family' trip with his mother Pam (Toni Collette), her boyfriend Trent (Steve Carrell) and his daughter Steph (Zoe Levin).  He's a shy kid and is completely out of place.  He doesn't trust or like Trent and feels increasingly outcast in this home away from home. ...

The third installment of my countdown to The Avengers is my review for Iron Man 2.  This was review was actually one of the earliest reviews posted here on my blog back in May of 2010.  I think I still prefer the first Iron Man to this one, but it was another strong installment in the franchise, and it further teased The Avengers. Iron Man 2 (2010), PG13, 124 minutes  - Iron Man 2 kicks off the 2010 summer movie schedule with a bang. It's bigger, louder, wittier, and more action filled than the original. Version 1.0 however, is still the superior story. Robert Downey Jr retains his role as Tony Stark/Iron Man in a film that sees the character struggle with even greater levels of fame (after his admission of being Iron Man at the end of the first film) and deteriorating health (his body has an adverse effect to the element powering the arc reactor in his chest), while trying to stave off a new threat to his 'privatized world peace'. Downey Jr continues to be the perf...

Cowboys & Aliens (2011), PG-13, 118 minutes - #5 on my Most Anticipated Films of 2011 list, Cowboys & Aliens is a Sci-Fi/Western mash-up directed by Jon Favreau that boasts a pretty hefty cast led by Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford. The movie takes place in Arizona back in 1873, when Jake Lonergan (Craig) comes to out in the desert with no recollection of what came before. He works his way into town where he has a scuffle with Percy Dolarhyde (Paul Dano), the arrogant, free-loading son of local tough guy prospector Woodrow Dolarhyde (Ford). Both are tossed in prison and are set to get shipped out of town courtesy of the U.S. Marshalls. Just as the carriage is about to take them out of town, the elder Dolarhyde arrives looking for his son. Then all hell breaks loose: alien ships buzz the main drag of the western town, shooting lasers, blowing things up, and abducting people. It's at this time that a bracelet-like object on Lonergan's wrist comes to life. He re...