Becky and I took the kids to see Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado on Saturday. The Yahoo website at Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium describes the movie as follows:

“Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium is the strangest, most fantastic, most wonderful toy store in the world. In fact, it’s a magic toy store and everything in it comes to life–including the store itself. The emporium asks only one thing of its customers–you must believe it to see it.”

The Review
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporiumis a strange kid’s film starring Natalie Portman and Dustin Hoffman about a magical toy store, its owner and employee. The film is is rated G, but be forewarned that kids under five will probably be bored during many parts of this movie. We noticed man of the little kids were really bored and wanted to leave the movie theater.

The movie is cute, but it’s a bit serious at times since the story itself is about a passing of the guard for the toy store. We all liked it and thought it was worth the trip. It’s definitely silly and at times a bit dull, but overal we all enjoyed it.

John – *** Worth The Trip
Becky – *** Worth The Trip

The Kids Review

Corban – *** Worth The Trip
Bianca – *** Worth The Trip
Conroy – *** Worth The Trip _________________________________________________________________________

Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Tune Into The Cool Car Guy Show Every Monday – Thursday 10AM – 11AM MST on CastleRockRadio.com

Becky and I went to see No Country for Old Men tonight at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado after reading the reviews at the Yahoo movie website about how great this movie was supposed to be. The Yahoo website at No Country for Old Men describes the movie as follows:

“Set in West Texas, a man on the run with a suitcase full of money is pursued by a number of individuals.”

The Review
No Country for Old Men is supposed to be a great movie according to the critics and the Yahoo website users, who all apparently have no taste in movies whatsoever. It stars Tommy Lee Jones and some other actors, including Woody Harrelson and it’s non-stop violence like Pulp Fiction or Scarface from start to finish.

You watch this crazy murderer go around killing everyone from start to end. It’s worse than the History of Violence and it’s a total and complete waste of time. By the end of the movie you’re numb to all the killing and the worst part is that the killer gets away and it ends. That’s it. End of story.

Another crummy movie produced by Hollywood whacko’s that is definitely not worth the price of admission. Our advice is to save your money and go see something else. Everyone who saw it in the theater we went to couldn’t believe how bad the ending was and how meaningless the film was, so we were not alone in this opinion. Save your money on this one.

John – * Don’t Bother
Becky – * Don’t Bother
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I went to see Lions for Lambs last night at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado with our friends Rod and Kimberly. The Yahoo website at Lions for Lambs describes the movie as follows:

“Two determined students at a West Coast University, Arian and Ernest, follow the inspiration of their idealistic professor, Dr. Malley, and attempt to do something important with their lives. But when the two make the bold decision to join the battle in Afghanistan, Malley is both moved and distraught. Now, as Arian and Ernest fight for survival in the field, they become the string that binds together…”

The Review
Lions for Lambs was worse than the low expectations I had for the film going into it. It started out half interesting with three different characters, a news reporter for a major television network played my Meryl Streep; a politician wanting to gain the White House, played by Tom Cruise; and a University professor of political science trying to have an impact on his students, played by Robert Redford. Each of these people saw the War on Terror in a different way and they were all trying to offer solutions to the problem on an individual level based on their roles in life.

Bring in two bright students from the professor’s class who joined the Special Forces to make a difference, instead of going on to Graduate School. They get shot down over Afghanistan on a covert military operation put in place by the aspiring politician. We learn about their goals in life to change the world and change America from the professor who explains their lives and the mistake they’ve made going into the military to another student in his class.

Fast forward about an hour or so and the audience sees the injuries of the two hero’s in the film and their fight for life with the enemy as they run out of bullets and are eventually killed in battle. The movie ends and the credits role with everyone leaving the theater feeling like they just wasted their time. Yes, that’s how stupid this movie really is. As our friend Rod put it, “It’s like it ended in Chapter 3 of Chapter 10.”

There was nothing to this movie other than some anti-war, anti-American hype. The message is given to us by three actors who can scoot around the world on their private jets, get every amenity in life for self-indulgence that they desire from the profits they make from films like this one and then complain about the problems with materialism and capitalism in America and abroad. It’s an amazing form of modern hypocrisy.

Lions for Lambs pulled in about $7 million over the weekend, so I wonder how much of that profit will go to pay for new schools in the inner city since the actors are so anti-captalism. I think we all know the answer. For all the talk about “action” in this film – there was none.

It’s a ridiculous movie that went nowhere and was a complete waste of time. We all know that politicians lie, journalists no longer report the truth, youth is foolish, but now we can add to that list that good actors don’t know how to pass on a terrible script.

John – * Don’t Bother
Becky – * Don’t Bother
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I took the kids to see Bee Movie at the Kerasotes theaters in Castle Rock, Colorado on Saturday. The Yahoo website at Bee Movie describes the movie as follows:

“Barry B. Benson is a graduate bee fresh out of college who is disillusioned at his lone career choice: making honey. On a rare trip outside the hive, Barry’s life is saved by Vanessa, a florist in New York City. As their relationship blossoms, he discovers humans are mass consumers of honey and decides to sue the human race for stealing bees’ honey.”

The Review
Bee Movie stars Jerry Seinfeld and it reminded me too much of a poorly written Seinfeld episode. Renee Zellweger’s voice in this is annoying, but the kids really liked this movie. It’s a kid’s flick, so it doesn’t really matter if Becky and I liked it or not. We both didn’t think it was a very good film compared to Shrek and other kid movies, but all of our kids loved it.

If you have kids they will really like this movie, but if you’re going to it as an adult, you’re better off waiting for the rental.

John – ** Rental
Becky – ** Rental

The Kids Review

Corban – **** Don’t Miss It
Bianca – *** Worth The Trip
Conroy – *** Worth The Trip _________________________________________________________________________

Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Tune Into The Cool Car Guy Show Every Monday – Thursday 10AM – 11AM MST on CastleRockRadio.com

Becky and I went to see American Gangster at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado on Friday night. The Yahoo website at American Gangster describes the movie as follows:

“Based on the life of drug-kingpin-turned-informant, Frank Lucas, who grew up in segregated North Carolina where he watched as his cousin was shot by the Klan for looking at a white girl. He eventually made his way to Harlem where he became a heroin kingpin by traveling to Asia’s Golden Triangle to make connections, shipping heroin back to the US in the coffins of soldiers killed in Vietnam. He soon made upwards of one million dollars a day in drug sales. Lucas was shadowed by lawman, Richie Roberts, who finally helped bring the kingpin to justice. The two then worked together to expose the crooked cops and foreign nationals who made importing heroin so easy.”

The Review
American Gangsteris a well done film with great acting from Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. It’s not as violent as The Godfather, Casino or Scarface, which are similar gangster, Mafia and inner drug world type films. The movie has substance and the story will keep your interest, especially since it’s based on the life of a real individual and not just a Hollywood creation.

American Gangster isn’t a great movie to the point that you absolutely have to see it at the theaters, but we both thought it was worth seeing on the big screen and would definitely recommend it. Beware that it is violent in parts and there are some naked people and drug use.

John – *** Worth The Trip
Becky – *** Worth The Trip

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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Tune Into The Cool Car Guy Show Every Monday – Thursday 10AM – 11AM MST on CastleRockRadio.com

Becky and I went to see Dan in Real Life yesterday at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. The Fandango website at Dan in Real Life describes the movie as follows:

“Dan Ashburn is a devoted single father and renowned advice columnist. When his entire extended family gets together for a reunion in a beach-front house, he unexpectedly meets Beth, the woman of his dreams. She is smart, funny, beautiful and she just happens to be his brother Lowell’s girlfriend. The man with all the answers finds that the hardest advice to take is his own.”

The Review
Dan in Real Life is a smart funny comedy starring Steve Carell that is totally far-fetched, but it has plenty of moments that make it fun to watch. It reminded me a little bit of Meet The Parents since so many parts of the film are ridiculous, but the story is fresh and different from totally stupid comedies like SuperBad and other comedies we’ve seen this year.

The critics are mixed on this film, but Becky and I both enjoyed it. The biggest problem that I had with the film was that so many of the funny parts of the movie were shown in the trailer for the flick. There were still plenty of laughs though to make it worth watching.

It’s a really quirky movie that is cute and a good date flick as a unique romantic comedy. Becky liked it more than I did, but we both thought it was worth the price of admission.

John – *** Worth The Trip
Becky – **** Don’t Miss It
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I went to see Rendition last week at the Kerasotes theaters in Castle Rock, Colorado. The Fandango website at Rendition describes the movie as follows:

“Post 9/11, Egyptian born chemical engineer, Anwar El-Ibrahim (Omar Metwalley) disappears on a flight from South Africa to Washington DC. He is shipped off to a third world country for interrogation after he is deemed a political prisoner. His pregnant American wife, Isabella (Reese Witherspoon) travels to Washington to try and learn the reason for his disappearance. Meanwhile, at a secret detention facility somewhere outside the U.S., CIA analyst Douglas Freeman (Jake Gyllenhaal) witnesses the unorthodox interrogation of a foreign national by the Egyptian secret police. The event forces him to question his assignment as he becomes entangled in the interrogation of El-Ibrahim.”

The Review
Rendition is a politically charged, far-fetched film that does a good job of bringing up the fact that the government can easily hide too much from its citizens, but beyond that it was kind of a so-so flick. The movie was disconnected and boring most of the time.

The acting was okay, probably not Reese Witherspoon’s best role. The characters were disjointed and it wasn’t believable given the power of the media today to expose things like abu-ghraib and blackwater. Plus, the primary story about the young girl and her bomber boyfriend all tied together wasn’t realistic at all.

The movie wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. We all agreed that it definitely was a rental and not worth the price of admission.

John – ** Rental
Becky – ** Rental
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I took Corban and Bianca to see The Final Season last week at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. The Fandango website at The Final Season describes the movie as follows:

“Baseball rules in the small town of Norway, Iowa. Its high-school team is the winner of many state championships, and the coach, Jim Van Scoyoc (Powers Boothe), is National Coach of the Year. When Norway’s high school must merge with another, he loses his job. Kent Stock (Sean Astin), who once assisted him, takes over the Norway team for the last season, but the odds are against Kent and the players.”

The Review
The Final Season is a great family film that we all enjoyed, except for Bianca who didn’t like it as much as we did, but she still watched the whole thing. It’s a good clean film and really shows the demise of the small town in America as States look to put profits over people. It’s an underdog film for sure, but it’s done very well with solid acting and a great story.

It’s a pretty low budget flick that is probably going to hit the rental rack soon, so make sure you add it to your list of rentals when it becomes available. I liked it more than Becky did, but she definitely recommends it as a rental.

John – *** Worth The Trip
Becky – ** Rental
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I went to see Into The Wild on Friday night at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado with our friend Donna. The Fandango website at Into The Wild describes the movie as follows:

“Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch), son of wealthy parents (Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt), graduates from Emory University as a top student and athlete. However, instead of embarking on a prestigious and profitable career, he chooses to give his savings to charity, rid himself of his possessions, and set out on a journey to the Alaskan wilderness.”

The Review
Into The Wild is Sean Penn’s latest movie that takes the audience into the world of a spoiled rich kid who gives up everything he has going for him to go on a self-centered trip into the Alaskan wilderness in search of an empty society.

Many people loved this movie, including a number of critics, but the best thing about this movie is the end of the film. It’s 2.5 hours long and you will go on a journey from the East Coast to the West Coast to Mexico to Alaska with some wonderful photography. I have to hand it to McCandless for the journey that he went on before he died, since he saw so many beautiful places, met a number of great people and had some incredible experiences.

Unfortunately, at every stop on his adventure people tried to have a relationship with him, convince him to contact his parents and he just threw them aside to continue his own personal quest. Our favorite character in this film is definitely Hal Holbrook who gives a tremendous performance. His character proves without a doubt, why this guy, who Sean Penn obviously admired so much to make a movie about him was such a jerk. McCandless never learned anything about relationships with people and putting others first instead of his own selfish ambition. How so many people can admire someone like that is beyond me.

For 2.5 hours we watch this guy blame his family for his non-existent personal problems instead of building a bridge and getting over his personal issues. This was ridiculous, especially since there are so many disadvantaged kids today growing up with drug and sex addicts for parents who would love the opportunities that this guy just threw away like a spoiled brat. It’s only at the end when he writes in his journal “Happiness Is Meant To Be Shared” that the light bulb went on in this guy’s life, but he discovers this too late. Too bad for him, but pride goes before destruction and he proved that well in his brief life.

In spite of the story, Emile Hirsch is amazing in this movie. This role could and should win him an Oscar. Even if the movie wasn’t that great, he made the movie. Penn did a good job directing the film, except that it was about two hours too long. We would recommend it as a rental, but you’ll probably shut it off if you’re sitting at home for 2.5 hours watching this movie.

John – * Don’t Bother
Becky – * Don’t Bother
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com

Becky and I went to see Michael Clayton at the AMC theaters in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. The Fandango website at Michael Clayton describes the movie as follows:

“Former prosecutor Michael Clayton (George Clooney) works as a ”fixer” at the corporate law firm of Kenner, Bach & Ledeen, and takes care of his employers’ dirty work. Clayton cleans up clients’ messes, handling anything from hit-and-runs and damaging stories in the press to shoplifting wives and crooked politicians. Though burned out and discontented in his job, Clayton is inextricably tied to the firm. At the agrochemical company U/North, the career of in-house chief counsel Karen Crowder rests on the settlement of the suit that Kenner, Bach & Ledeen is leading to a seemingly successful conclusion. When the firm’s top litigator, the brilliant Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson), has an apparent breakdown and tries to sabotage the entire case, Marty Bach sends Michael Clayton to tackle this unprecedented disaster and, in doing so, Clayton comes face to face with the reality of who he has become.”

The Review
Michael Clayton is a great flick from the opening scene to the end of the movie. The language is really harsh at times, but the acting by George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, and Sydney Pollack is fantastic. This is not a movie that relies on a host of special effects, but on a great story and solid acting.

It reminded me of an old time Alfred Hitchcock thriller that is low key and builds until the climactic ending. You’ll watch the entire film and it will keep you guessing. It’s also refreshing to see a character that works his whole life for a legal firm and has to step back and evaluate his life while questioning the choices he’s made. That was totally believable for a change, instead of the typical high-powered, ambulance chaser character who is supposed to care about the rest of us.

The worst thing about this movie is the totally lame movie poster. They should have hired a better artist for that one. Michael Clayton is getting rave reviews and it should. It’s different, interesting, exciting and it will make you believe that Hollywood can still produce a good flick with great acting every once in a while.

John – **** Don’t Miss It
Becky – *** Worth The Trip
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy

John is an auto consultant with JFR & Associates in Denver, Colorado and the host of The Cool Car Guy Show on Castle Rock Radio.com. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com