The Exorcist: Even after twenty years, it's scary.

So why review a well known film that a person could safely assume everyone has seen? Well, the truth of the matter is some people have not seen all the movies that most film nuts would consider classics. I don't know how many times I've ran across someone who looked at me funny when I started discussing how the scenes between Yoda and Luke on Degobah changed my life (some of you are probably giving your computer screen that same look right now). Classic films can still work their magic 20 or so years after their theatrical release, and The Exorcist is certainly one of them.

Based upon the novel of the same name The Exorcist tells the story of how a young girl named Regan, daughter of a famous film actress, comes to be possessed by the devil and the attempts of her mother and two priests to rid her of the possession.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the film was the possession of Regan and the way she behaved after it happened. Aside from being able to spew more curse words than a sailor, she physically assaulted those people, such as her doctors, nurses and her mother, that were trying to help her. She also performed some acts that are too horrifying to discuss in this text. The fact that all of these things were being done, by and to a little girl, made the film all of the more intense. All of the actors gave terrific performances considering the subject and content of the film, especially Linda Blair as Regan. She had the toughest task to go from little girl to possessed hellion but she pulled it off. Director William Friedkin did an excellent job of building the tension and making the audience wonder whether Regan was just physically sick or if something more sinister was taking place. Even though the novel from which the film was made was based upon a real life event, the audience was left to ponder if what the film presented could happen. And that made The Exorcist all the more frightening.

Grade: A

Love Actually: the character's the thing.

Films with big ensemble casts are a tricky proposition. If a director spends too much time on a character no one in the audience really likes, then they will loose them altogether. If they do not spend enough time with a character the audience does identify with, then they will still feel cheated and might just start a blog where they rip said film (not that I'd know from personal experience or anything). But when it's done right, a film with a big ensemble cast can work wonders because there is one character that each individual in the crowd identifies with, Love Actually is that film.

The romantic lives of a number of different characters are explored in the film Love Actually. Be it the Prime Minister of Great Britain, a man with unrequited love for his best friends’ new wife or a housewife who fears her husband may be cheating, all of these characters (and more) must find a way to get, forget or deal with that most human of emotions; love.

The strongest parts of the film, aside from many genuinely funny parts, were the interconnecting storylines and characters. With all of the characters and situations they were in it would have been easy for writer/director Richard Curtis to loose control of the film and have it turn into one giant mess. Instead there was just enough of every storyline and character to keep the film interesting and entertaining. In fact, some of the individual storylines were so good that they could have been made into their own stand alone films. Most romantic comedies nowadays are too sickly sweet for their own good and seem excessively phony with endings that are too good to be true, but in this film the happy endings were actually heartwarming because the audience cared whether or not love would prevail. Jam packed with laughs and enough happy endings to make even a pessimist crack a smile, Love Actually was a top notch romantic comedy that everyone could enjoy.

Grade: B

The Bourne Identity: The spy thriller reborn.

Back before Daniel Craig donned the tux and became 007, the cinema world was suffering through Pierce Brosnan's smug take on the role. Not only that, but the Bond movies back then were loaded down with "death rays" and cliched villians and seemed almost laughable. Enter Matt Damon and The Bourne series, whose realism and emotional depth made the spy genre matter again. So much so that if you look at a Bond film now you can see the Bourne influences.

A man is pulled from the sea with two bullet holes in his back and a case of amnesia. He comes to discover that his name is Jason Bourne and he has a violent past. With the help of a woman named Marie he hopes to uncover the truth behind his extraordinary abilities, and the reasons the U.S. government is so anxious to hunt him down.

Most spy thriller films tend to focus on action, be it hand to hand combat or exotic weaponry that the hero or villain employ. While The Bourne Identity contained a number of fierce fight sequences and an insane car chase, the main focus was on the story of Jason Bourne and his attempts to discover who he was. Bourne was not some suave secret agent that slurped martinis while spouting cheesy one-liners after he offed a bad guy. He was an intelligent, resourceful man looking to regain control of his life. To go along with having an uncommon spy as the hero the film also boasted a touching love story between Jason and Marie. Whereas in other spy thriller genre films in which the hero simply beds the lead actress because she was there, the romance between Jason and Marie did not feel forced. They came to care for one another and shared a terrific chemistry. The film had a heart to go along with the great action and intriguing story and was a distinctive entry in the spy thriller genre.

Grade: A

The Unborn: Creepy kids and a beautiful lead don't always make for a good film.

In The Unborn a young woman named Casey starts having bizarre dreams. In them, she is haunted by a creepy little boy and other weird creatures and images she does not quite understand. As she tries to discover the reasons for her restless nights she uncovers a hidden family secret that could forever alter her future.

Writer/Director David Goyer's tried to build the film around a believable/sympathetic character in Casey (played by Odette Yustman) and a religious myth in the "dybbak" which was haunting her dreams. Toss in some Nazis (yes, I said Nazis) and an exorcism and the film would seem to take of itself right? Well, not really. The rest of the characters were little more than humdrum by-the-numbers stereotypes one would expect to see in a film like this that failed to do anything but take up space (or be victims). Goyer also forgot to make the story original or even halfway interesting. Plot lines that should have been explored further were jettisoned in favor of more shots of Yustman in her underwear (not that most men would complain) or of her trying to convince people she was not going crazy. If he really wanted to blow an audience away, Goyer should have focused more upon developing those supernatural elements he had in the film instead of using them as nothing more than a crutch to prop up lame action sequences that seemed out of place, such as the ending.

Unfortunately, his attempt to make a new Exorcist for the 21st century failed to consistently deliver the thrills or chills one might have expected in a supernatural thriller, and The Unborn failed to be anything more than a half - realized attempt at supernatural chicanery.

Grade: D+

Bruno: Not as good as you would think.

Sacha Baron Cohen takes another satirical stab at the world, this time as Bruno, the uber-max fashion show host who is blacklisted after an unfortunate "velcro suit" incident in Milan. To regain his fame and celebrity status, he travels to America and tries everything (and I do mean everything) to get back on top.

I'm torn as to how I feel about Bruno for on the one hand, Cohen is once again able to show the insensitive and bigoted nature of people. One of the more shocking examples of this was the preacher who, while trying to turn Bruno straight, went on a diatribe on why even though women were (and I'm paraphrasing here) "a pain," man needed to be around them. Cohen also took a shot at American societies' obsession with celebrity. In order to promote himself and his new son O.J. (whom he traded an ipod to get), Bruno sets up a photo shoot and puts out a call for other child models to appear in the shoot. To sit back and watch the things the parents of these children are willing to put their 3 to 4 year olds through all in the name of getting the gig (playing with phosphorus and possibly undergoing liposuction) is both hilarious and horrifying.

However there were things which made this film less than equal to its predecessor Borat. Bruno, as a character, was missing the gleeful ignorance that Borat possessed and was not nearly as likeable. Borat's journey was one of self - discovery. As he traveled around the "U, S and A" he was able to grow as a character and, by the end of the film, had changed into someone better than the prejudiced fool he was in the beginning. Bruno, on the other hand, stayed the same throughout. The static nature of his character was due, in large part, to the vapid love story between himself and his assistant's assistant Lutz. As a result we never got to see Bruno grow as a character, he just tried to be "butch" and go straight in order to get himself into some awkward confrontations with people. Speaking of which, it seemed as though Cohen made Bruno more confrontational with the situations he got himself in as opposed to the way they geniuely flowed in Borat. I will admit that there were times in the film when I turned away from the screen beacuse I thought Cohen was going to get physically assaulted by his intended victim. Those types of situations can be funny once in a while but to base an entire movie around that setup makes for uncomfortable moments when the joke fails to connect, and that happened more than once in this film.

Bruno shows that Sacha Baron Cohen still knows how to make us laugh, but the joke is starting to run a little thin.

Grade: C+

Red Eye: As if you needed another reason to fear flying!

A good cinematic thrill ride is hard to find these days. Either the thrills don't jump up and grab you like you are hoping for or you find yourself shaking your head as a plot twist so unexpected comes along that you cannot help but feel ripped off. Red Eye is not one of those movies, it's a film that actually delivers the goods and gives you the white knuckle experience.

While waiting to catch a flight back to Miami, Lisa Reisert meets Jackson Rippner. They share a drink and some conversation before boarding the same flight and eventually find themselves seated together. But once they are in the air Jackson reveals the true reason he seems to keep meeting up with Lisa. Unless she helps him in his attempt to assassinate the Head of Homeland Security, her father will be killed.

Although it started off looking like it would be another disposable romantic comedy, Red Eye quickly turned into one hell of an intense thriller. It dispensed with all of the unnecessary cinematic fat found in most Hollywood films and concentrated on keeping its plot, story and character development economical and yet so rich that by the end the audience felt like it had just watched an epic. Uber horror director Wes Craven did his best Hitchcock impersonation by first playing with the audience, making them believe Jackson’s good intentions, and then cramming them into that claustrophobic cabin where Lisa had nowhere to go and no one to call for help. In a movie that relied heavily upon two actors to carry the story and the action (and make sitting in a plane for a quarter of the film seem interesting) Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy delivered with performances that kept the audience engaged . McAdams as the strong Lisa, a woman who refused to be a victim again, brought depth and power to a role that could have been overshadow by that of Murphy, who conveyed the kind of cool hostility which made it hard to root against him. He was never over-the-top in his villainy, rather he subtly exuded evil via looks and gestures and that in and of itself was more chilling than anything most villians in other thrillers could do with guns and knives and a bunch of cheesy, throwaway one - liners.

Grade: B+

One Fine Day: A romantic comedy for everyone.

Ah, romantic comedies. Most men run and hide when they hear they might have to watch one of these things because, 1. There will be no extended action sequences and 2. Their wife or girlfriend will come away feeling cheated that their significant other has never done any of the crazy things the protagonist did in said romantic comedy to prove his love for the female lead. All in all, it seems like a no win proposition, but there are a few romantic comdies out there that (gasp!) everyone (including men) can enjoy.

Single parents Jack and Melanie have a problem. Their kids missed their school field trip so now they must tag along with their parents. But Jack and Melanie have important things to do so they decide to take turns watching over one another’s child. And as the day wears on, they begin to realize that there might be a romantic spark between them.

There were a number of things that made the film simply not another formulaic romantic comedy. First was the story, which moved at a quick pace and was absorbing. The audience was shown not only Jack and Melanie’s dilemma in dealing with their children, but the problems they faced at work as well. It gave the film a more realistic feel for Jack and Melanie couldn’t dump their kids off and go on with their days (a problem many parents, single or not, face all the time). Perhaps the best part of the film were the performances of George Clooney and Michelle Pfeiffer. Clooney excelled as Jack, the charming and immature father who had a laxed view on parenting while Pfeiffer was a hoot as Melanie, the single mom who wanted nothing more than to do everything by herself without the help of a man. Their chemistry on screen was undeniable and fun to watch. Altogether, this made One Fine Day an effective romantic comedy with more than enough laughs and happy endings for everyone.

Grade: B

The Day The Earth Stood Still: Not the crappy remake, the original

Remember that soap box I was on earlier about how remakes were just bad in general? Well, recently Fox decided that The Day The Earth Stood Still needed to be remade and decided to slicken up the timeless masterpiece with overwrought CGI, a story with more plot holes than you could count and the dude who played Neo in The Matrix Trilogy. Said remake turned out to be as putrid as day old sewage so my advice for you, gentle reader, is to check out the original, which is a classic.

A flying saucer lands in Washington D.C. and the alien onboard, named Klaatu, wishes to meet with every government on earth. He refuses to reveal the reason why he came until he can talk with the governments. After his request is denied he seeks to understand the people of earth and soon befriends a young boy and his mother. As the military continues to search for him he unveils his mission to a few, unsure if he will be able to deliver it to the world.

The film was not an action-packed thriller with a marauding group of alien invaders looking to conquer earth with their death rays. Instead, it was the tale of a peaceful alien attempting to teach the people of earth that their ways and methods of war and powerful nuclear weapons could ultimately lead to their destruction. Also the film carried a message about how man’s intolerance of those different from themselves and fear of the unknown were nothing more than destructive stupidity which needed to change. Far from being excessively preachy the films’ messages of tolerance and understanding were universal and timeless. There were excellent special effects and Michael Rennie’s performance as Klaatu was extremely convincing.

Grade: A

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind:Yeah, love is that complicated.

Let's be honest, everyone has had one of "those" relationships where you're never quite sure where you stand with your significant other. When the times are good, they are good, but when they're bad, it's like something your wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. But would you want to get rid of all the memories even after the good times stopped?

In Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind a guy named Joel falls in love with a girl named Clementine. Eventually though they split up and when Joel learns that Clementine has undergone a memory erasing procedure, so she doesn’t remember him or their relationship, he decides to do the same. But during the process, he realizes that he wants to keep his memories of Clementine and attempts to stop the procedure.

Jim Carrey’s performance as Joel, a self-doubting introvert, was human and terrific. It is such a switch from the way he usually acts that it elevated the entire film. He had great chemistry with Kate Winslet (who gave a good performance as the free spirited Clementine), and the rest of the cast was solid. The originality of the story along with the dialogue was another strong aspect of the film and screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (who scripted Adaptation and Being John Malkovich) deserves all the accolades he gets for this screenplay. Michel Gondry’s direction was top notch as he takes us into Joel’s mind and then proceeded to literally rip away at his memories using a myriad of special effects and photographic tricks. The best aspect of the film however had to be that it was a compelling love story. Not ripe with the sickly sweetness you would see in a Meg Ryan romantic comedy, this film gave you a picture of love, the good and bad parts, and made you realize that all those experiences you’ve had in dealing with it, makes you the person you are and to take them away would turn you into something less than a human being.

Grade: A

The Hills Have Eyes: and you need to know that this film has a nasty streak to it!

Horror films are a staple of Hollywood but recently some of them have taken on quite a rough edge to them. These uber-gore fest seem to be more concerned with inventing new ways to realistically crack a skull rather than make the audience freak themselves out by pulling the camera away just as the monster approaches its victim. The Hills Have Eyes is certainly one film that did not hold back and wanted to show you every nasty little detail of its gruesome universe.

On their way out to California, a family takes an unknown desert road in order to save time and wind up fighting for their own survival against a group of grotesque hill dwellers who have devolved into blood-thirsty monsters.

If a gritty, no-holds-barred, gore-fest is what you’re in the mood for, then The Hills Have Eyes is for you. This re-imagining of the original low budget Wes Craven classic was so intense and unflinching when delivering its visceral ferocity that even the most harden horror film fanatic might have to turn away at points. The absolute beauty in which the film was shot only heightened the grisly nature of “The Hills”. The desert became something of an alien landscape, further hindering the family and aiding the hill dwellers. Unfortunately the film spoiled its opulent look by failing to capitalize upon it and tell an equally stunning story. These characters and the film's plot have been done to death (not only because it was a remake) by a million other directors and writers. It seems the only way to put a unique spin on a horror film anymore is to see how bloody you can make it, damning the characters and story to the background or sometimes dispensing with them all together. There was no grey area in the film, there were good guys (Bobby, Doug, Brenda, etc.) and bad guys (the hill dwellers), but to make an audience take a journey with those good guys it would have been worthwhile to make them believable and human instead of cardboard and clichéd. That didn’t happen here so when you get down to it, The Hills Have Eyes was nothing more than a faux snuff film that some of the ADD generation can watch over and over again in order to see their favorite death scenes.

Grade: C-