Land of the Lost Review – CG Effects Steal the Show

Movie: Land of the Lost * Trailer * Images * Official Site	In Theaters: June 5, 2009
Runtime: 93 minutes	Directed by: Brad Silberling
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, and for language, including a drug reference	Gecko Rating:

If you’ve seen the 1970s series on which “Land of the Lost” is based, you know it’s low-budget and cheesy. The movie has some cool special effects, but overall, the plot tries to re-create the cheesiness of the TV series. It doesn’t really succeed, which is saying something. Or saying nothing, take your pick. Still, the movie has a few moments that click.

Like the TV show, the movie tells what happens when three people are transported to a world of dinosaurs and pod people. Only instead of a scientist and two kids, it’s a scientist and two mismatched adults.

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Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Review

Movie: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian * Preview * Official Site	In Theaters: May 22, 2009
Runtime: 105 minutes	Directed by: Shawn Levy
MPAA Rating: PG for mild action and brief language	Gecko Rating:

I’ll say right off the bat that my kids liked "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" better than I did. I LOVED the first "Night at the Museum," and this sequel seems like a throw-away to capitalize on the first movie and showcase all the stuff in the Smithsonian. That said, there are a few things I like about it; namely, Amy Adams as the plucky Amelia Earhart.

Ben Stiller returns as Larry Daley, only instead of working as a night guard at the Museum of Natural History in New York City, he’s running a big corporation now and doing infomercials for all his products, like a glow-in-the-dark flashlight.

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Angels & Demons Review – A mix of talk and action

Movie: Angels & Demons * Clips & Trailers * Official Site	In Theaters: May 15, 2009
Runtime: 138 minutes	Directed by: Ron Howard
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of violence, disturbing images, and thematic material	Gecko Rating:

One thing people didn’t like about “The Da Vinci Code” was that the first part of the movie included lots of talking and explaining of the symbols and history. Still, it would be difficult to have a movie like this without the explanation, unless you’re a symbologist yourself and know what’s going on.

“Angels & Demons,” a sequel to "The Da Vinci Code" also based on a book by Dan Brown, includes quite a bit of explanation in the early scenes, as well. It’s kind of funny, because at one point, Tom Hanks’ character, Robert Langdon, looks at the Cardinals and says something to the effect of “Don’t you people even know your own history?” I had to laugh, because while I felt like Langdon was explaining a lot to moviegoers, it’s probably true that many Cardinals and priests don’t know their own history either.

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A Plumm Summer – DVD Review

Movie: A Plumm Summer * Official Site	On DVD: May 5, 2009
Runtime: 99 minutes	Directed by: Caroline Zelder
MPAA Rating: PG for thematic elements and some mild rude language	Gecko Rating:

"A Plumm Summer" is one of those sweet little movies that will probably fly under the radar of most DVD watchers. It’s a home-spun tale reminiscent of the live-action Disney movies of the 60s, only with an edge to it.

Based on a true story, the movie takes place in a small town in Montana, where kids wait impatiently to see a green marionette named Froggy Doo and his buddy Happy Herb on TV every day at 3 PM. All the kids LOVE Froggy Doo, especially Rocky Plumm (Owen Pearce), whose older brother Elliott (Chris Kelly), can’t understand the obsession at all.

When Froggy goes missing from the TV station one day, the FBI’s attempts to recover the missing frog go nowhere. So Rocky convinces Elliott to start their own investigation into the disappearance. With help from a cute neighbor Haley (Morgan Flynn), the group set out to find the frog.

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X-Men Origins: Wolverine Review (It’s all about Hugh Jackman’s muscles)

Movie: X-Men Origins: Wolverine * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: May 1, 2009
Runtime: 107 minutes	Directed by: Gavin Hood
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, and some partial nudity	Gecko Rating:

The best thing about “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” is the ending. So even if you don’t like the earlier parts of the movie, be sure to stay til the end. Two people in front of me at the theater actually got up and walked out in the middle. I thought, gee, it’s not the best movie I’ve ever seen, but it’s not THAT bad.

The movie takes us back to the childhood of Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). We know him from the first three “X-Men” movies, but he had a wild and interesting life before he showed up in those. Even as young Jimmy Logan in 1845, he had those spiky hands, only the spikes were crude, bony-looking things then, emerging whenever Jimmy got angry. His heritage included some daddy issues, and a half-brother named Victor Creed a.k.a. Sabretooth (Liev Schreiber), complete with fangs and all.

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17 Again Review – Sweet and Funny

Movie: 17 Again * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: April 17, 2009
Runtime: 102 minutes	Directed by: Burr Steers
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexual material and teen partying	Gecko Rating:

I predict that Zac Efron is headed for mega-stardom, if he doesn’t implode from all the fame and fortune and paparazzi, that is. In "17 Again," he carries the movie admirably, and does so with sweetness, heart and humor. He’s only 21, but already has the "High School Musical" franchise, mega-hit "Hairspray," and a long list of TV roles on his IMDB page, dating back to a small role in "Firefly" in 2002.

But I love him in "17 Again," because whether he’s trying to woo his (now much older) wife or explain to his (now the same age) daughter about sex, you really feel like he’s using the opportunity of being "17 again" to his advantage, making up for all the stuff he hasn’t done as an adult. He could be partying, but instead, he just wishes to be his adult self again, now that he has all this newfound knowledge about life.

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Fast & Furious Review – Best Opening Scene Ever!

Movie: Fast & Furious * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: April 3, 2009
Runtime: 107 minutes	Directed by: Justin Lin
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sexual content, language and drug references	Gecko Rating:

 

After watching the opening scene of "Fast & Furious," my 14-year-old son and I both proclaimed it the Best.Opening.Scene.Ever!

The stunts are ridiculously awesome: The crew is stealing fuel from a tanker semi-truck hurling down the highway. They pull up behind the semi, turn their vehicle around so they’re driving backwards, unhook the trailer full of fuel and hook it to their own vehicle – all while moving down the highway at a fast clip.

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Monsters vs. Aliens Review – Awesome 3D Animation

Movie: Monsters vs. Aliens * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: March 27, 2009
Runtime: 94 minutes	Directed by: Rob Letterman / Conrad Vernon
MPAA Rating: PG for sci-fi action, some crude humor, and mild language	Gecko Rating:

There’s really only so much you can do with a kids’ movie these days. There’s usually an evil guy, a main character with issues, some kooky supporting characters, and a big crisis that needs to be stopped.

"Monsters vs. Aliens" has all of these elements, but what puts it a notch above most kids’ movies is the animation. The movie is offered in both 3D and regular versions. I saw the 3D version, and while most 3D movies don’t measure up, this one did. The filmmakers really made good use of the 3D, with balls (and sometimes slime) being thrown at the audience, planets swirling about, and an alien spacecraft filled with all manner of cool techie stuff.

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Duplicity Review – Julia Roberts and Clive Owen score with sexual chemistry

Movie: Duplicity * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: March 20, 2009
Runtime: 125 minutes	Directed by: Tony Gilroy
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language and some sexual content	Gecko Rating:

I’ve been excited to see “Duplicity” since I first heard about it. Not only does it pair Julia Roberts and Clive Owen in a movie with lots of snappy banter and intrigue (they did “Closer” together in 2004), but it also teams them with Tony Gilroy.

Gilroy earned a place in my heart with films like “Michael Clayton,” which he wrote and directed, and the “Bourne” movies, for which he wrote the screenplay. He also wrote the screenplay for “State of Play,” the upcoming crime thriller starring Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck.

The trio of Roberts, Owen and Gilroy works, for the most part, and Gilroy wisely plays up the stars’ snappy banter and cat-and-mouse chemistry.

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Race to Witch Mountain – Review

Movie: Race to Witch Mountain * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: March 13, 2009
Runtime: 98 minutes	Directed by: Andy Fickman
MPAA Rating: PG for sequences of action and violence, frightening and dangerous situations, and some thematic elements	Gecko Rating:

A bit of history first: There were two original Witch Mountain movies - "Escape to Witch Mountain" in 1975 and "Return from Witch Mountain" in 1978, along with a couple of TV movies in 1982 and 1995. So the franchise has a long history and a following among audiences who’ve seen those earlier movies.

"Race to Witch Mountain" isn’t so much a remake as it is a movie built around the concept of the early movies. In the first 1975 film, two alien kids land on Earth and fall into the clutches of an evil millionaire who wants to exploit them.

The new movie revolves around Jack Bruno (Dwayne Johnson), an ex-con cab driver in Las Vegas who finds two teens in the back of his cab one morning. Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) and Seth (Alexander Ludwig) are odd little people, talking in a robotic way and asking "Jack Bruno" – as they call him after seeing his name on his dashboard – to drop them off at a remote place in the desert.

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