Stephen King is... well, you know, Stephen King. He's written good books and bad books. Had great movies come from his novels, and really bad ones as well. He may not have the most impressive movie taste out there, but at least he's honest, and likes what he likes. So anyways, EW posts Stephen King's top 2006 movies, and guess what number one is.

"1. Pan's Labyrinth I happened to see this in July and was completely seduced by its beauty and emotional ferocity. Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Mimic, Blade II) directed, and to call this his best work isn't enough. I think this extraordinary R-rated fairy tale for adults is the best fantasy film since The Wizard of Oz. And while it's much darker than Wizard, it still celebrates the human spirit. Your Uncle Stevie thinks you will see this movie."

Score!

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Lack of posts because I haven't really been doing anything, just playing old RPGs over again (Final Fantasy V, Wild ARMs 2). That, and slowly knocking off the days until my birthday.

The other night I was bored and watched 'Just Like Heaven.' What a terrible movie. The only good line was towards the end, when Mark Ruffalo's friend says something like, "Someday, trust me, I'm gonna need help moving a body. When that day comes, I don't wanna hear any shit from you." Other than that, there's just an onslaught of plotholes and terrible dialogue. I generally like Mark Ruffalo, but Reese Witherspoon... sigh. She played the most unbelievable doctor in the history of both doctors and acting.

Rating: 2.5/10

However, 'Mary Poppins' was on TV the other day and I hadn't seen it in years. Now I remember why I loved that movie so much. A definite 9/10

Oh, and the 'Nip/Tuck' season(series, maybe?) finale wasn't very good at all, but did have a few good moments. The show has gone downhill since season 2, but for some reason I just can't stop watching it. This season gets a very solid rating of a 6.

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It's time for my monthly post about Pan's Labyrinth.

With a continuing perfect percentage on rottentomatoes (31 reviews), this movie may turn out to be pretty good. Also, the good news is it's opening 'everywhere' by January 19th, but maybe near me (you) sooner. Closer to that time, I'm sure the ratings will drop a bit, but it still seems to be going strong.

This movie looks so good! You can even listen to the mesmerizing score online for free here. Also, lots of pictures and trailers and crap here. I'm probably the only person I know exicted for this, but whatever. I'm a firm believer in the philosophy of a ruling class - especially since I rule.

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Until tonight I had a good deal of respect for AFI (American Film Institute, not the band). As usual, they announced the movies they think were the best 10 of the year. There's a jury or 13 people who debate about it and whatnot. Anyway, here's the list:

BABEL
BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
DREAMGIRLS
HALF NELSON
HAPPY FEET
INSIDE MAN
LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
UNITED 93

This is clearly some kind of joke. I have no desire to see Borat, but I don't even have a problem with that being on the list. I'm also glad Devil Wears Prada is on there, but does anyone else notice a significant gap? Obviously 'The Departed' should be on there, regardless of taste in movies and personal opinions. That movie was amazing in every aspect, and to be written off like this must be some kind of joke. I guess AFI plans on releasing their real list tomorrow, which replaces any of these movies, particularly Inside Man (...), with The Departed.

Oh, and I think 'The Queen' wasn't on there because it's not an American movie. If it was eligable and not on that list, I'd be even more upset, but...

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Apocalypto is an extremely intense action/adventure movie about, well, savages. The village where our protagonist Jaguar Paw lives is pillaged, and all the men are taken prisoner to the Mayan empire to be sacrificed, while the children are left to fend for themselves and the women are auctioned off. When Jaguar Paw escapes (in one of the better scenes of the movie), it's a brutal chase as he tries to escape and make it home (about a forty-eight hour run) in time to save his pregnant wife and child that he managed to hide in some sort of well.

What's so moving about this movie is that it shows the extreme depth of the family relationships that developed during that time. Mostly centered on JP (I like that), but also on how the Father/Son relationship is treated in other civilizations.

But the family bonds serve as a backdrop to the non-stop, brutally real, MacGyver-like shit that JP has to go through. Seeing everything from hearts being ripped out of chests, to a jaguar eating the flesh off a person's face, to a vicious Mortal Kombat-style uppercut, this movie has all the elements of a great action movie.

The one thing that lacks is the dialogue. Granted, it has to be basic, since it's all in subtitles and it's primitive speech, but... I don't know. Plus I don't know how I feel about the ending. It almost seems like Mel Gibson didn't know how to end his flick, so he just stuck something totally random in there. But don't let that be a turn off, the other 95% of the movie is fucking great.

And also, if you plan to see this movie, you HAVE TO see it on the big screen. Seriously. Most of the times the DVD is just as good but here... no.

Rating: 8.5/10

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The semester has been winding down, and this week is finals week. I have two tests on Friday, and both are pretty important (obviously?). I also have a DVD buying addiction, and have these movies in my possession, still unopened: Being John Malkovich, Amelie, and Cabin Fever.

Now, I've seen BJM and Amelie before, but not Cabin Fever. I bought it because it was like $4.50 at Wal Mart, and I kind of wanted to see it, and I figured that was close to the price of renting it anyway. So what does all this have to do with anything?

Tonight at about ten o'clock, since I'm doing all my studying tomorrow, I figured I'd finally get around to watching Cabin Fever. But then at around eleven, one of my friends said I should come to the library to study. I did. So in conclusion, I'm anticipating Cabin Fever to be so bad that I'd rather study than sit through its 90 minute runtime, even though I did buy it. Maybe it will be one of those things I always say I'll do, but never actually do.

In other very important news (so important that it's at the bottom of my post...), today I've reached somewhat of a milestone in my movie viewing quest. I've now seen 66/100 of AFI's 100 Greatest Movies (you can see my checklist here). That's two-thirds down (I round decimals down, shut the fuck up), one-third to go.

Most recent viewing: 'My Fair Lady'
Rating: 9/10
Notes: Yay Audrey Hepburn, though I got sick of her Dad pretty fast. Some pretty catchy songs, too. Also, some scenes dragged on a bit too long, but it gives time to take in the amazing costumes and scenery, so it's all right.

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For those of you who don't see me on a regular basis, know this: I have a red t-shirt that had REDRUM written on it. This is a reference to the movie 'The Shining.'

A few minutes ago I went to Wal Mart to buy some stuff, and the cashier said, "Why do you have murder written on your shirt?"

"Uh, it says redrum. It's from a The Shining."

"I know, I've seen the movie, that's why I said 'murder.' Why would you get that on a shirt?"

"I like the movie."

"But why would you wear that out in public, unless it was Halloween?"

I didn't respond. It's like, ok, so people shouldn't be allowed to get random items or words or trademarks or pictures from movies put on shirts because it's not a certain time of year? Hell, why don't we take away slogan expression on shirts in general, and only allow plain colored shirts to be worn, and on Wednesdays you can be creative and pick either plaid or stripes. YAY!

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