Dreamgirls (Film)

It's much more like an opera than musical. I'd guess about 5% of the film is spoken dialogue with the rest made up of song. Which wouldn't be so bad, if you cared for the music. I would strongly recommend taking a listen to the soundtrack and see if you care for the songs. If you do, by all means see this movie. If not, this will be a very long two hours. A very, very long two hours. The film is very well made and shot beautifully. I wished the songs were a lot stronger. The Dreamgirls are supposed to be representative of the hit Motown sound. Sadly, for me, none of the songs sung in the movie come even close. I give this one a D.

The Pursuit of Happyness (Film)

Okay, this does feel like Will Smith's overt bid for an Oscar. Given that, he's surprisingly good in this movie, real good. The trailers I've seen for this movie make it appear to be a rousing feel good movie. It's not. It's much more low key then I would have thought. There is a lot of adversity that he has to overcome and at times it feels like it's almost too much. The film does earn it's ending though. I give the film a solid B.

Blood Diamond (Film)

A bloody action picture complete with a social message about the evils of diamond companies and their acquisition of said conflict diamonds. The cast is terrific and the picture moves along at a nice pace. The action is sudden and at times very intense. There are moments in the film when the film comes to a screeching pause while characters pontificate about how evil diamond companies can be, those can feel a little forced. It's a minor quibble. I give this picture a B+.

The Holiday (Film)

A romantic comedy that wasn't nearly as annoying or as cutesy as I had feared. Yes, it's a little predictable and you can pretty much guess who is going to be hooking up with who just be looking at the poster. But the film is well done and while the story is split with half in London and the other half in Los Angeles, I never felt antsy waiting to see what was going on in the other story. Kate Winslet is marvelous and is the stand out performance with Jude Law being the other one worth mentioning. What is it with those British actors being so talented? With this movie you know what you're going to get, but it's made with skill and sometimes knowing exactly what you're getting is not necessarily a bad thing. I'd give this a B.