Movies #-4 and -3

Movie #-4, Dreamgirls

I will admit to being a bit of a sucker for the occasional show tune. The really good ones, if there are two or three in a show, will make me believe that I loved the entire thing. It's only later, when I think back on all the cringe-worthy moments and cheesy "Oh I'm just walkin' down this street / just sayin' hello to the people I meet" nonsense that I realize, hey! I only liked those two or three songs! The rest of the show was kinda crap!

This movie was really no exception. I felt like I was waiting for two hours to see the "I'm Tellin' You I'm Not Goin'" scene (see pic above), and while it was great, you can't build a whole movie around one great song. There are other pretty good songs and everyone in the movie is pretty good: Jaime Foxx, Beyonce and Eddie Murphy are good; Jennifer Hudson is slightly better. She should stick to her day job though, because she was markedly better in the singing scenes than the non-singing ones.

Movie #-3, Children of Men
Easily the most disturbing and terrifying movie I've seen in years. It's just remarkable, and it will not let you go after the credits roll. There are so many things to praise, I'm not sure where to start.

Michael Caine is charming and wonderful as a hippie living off the grid with his invalid wife.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is pretty. And also very good as a radical with his own agenda.

19-year-old Claire-Hope Ashitey should be cast in five movies a year, minimum. She is beautiful and really talented. The repoire between her character and Clive Owen's is easy and natural and totally believable.

Which leads us to Clive Owen, who is simply one of the best actors alive today. Period. He's becoming one of those guys I immediately think of when casting movies in my head.

I'm so impressed with the way Alfonso Cuaron continues to raise the bar every time he makes a film.