Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)

Directed by: Mike Newell
Screenplay by: Steve Kloves

Genre: Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery
Running Time: 157 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Dark and difficult times lie ahead.

[IMDb]

Comments: I had originally planned to watch all of the Harry Potter films in a row, but after three straight I was a little burned out on our little wizard wunderkind. For whatever reason, I decided to throw in the fourth film this evening. Whether it was the break I took or simply the fact that The Goblet of Fire is a good film, I must say that I really enjoyed myself. This film, along with The Prisoner of Azkaban, are solid efforts and have me excited to see where the series goes. I don't know if I'll be diving into The Order of the Phoenix right away, but I am looking forward to it. An odd statement, I know, but it is what it is.

Also, it was really bizarre that Team Edward was in this. I didn't know that beforehand.

Game of Thrones - Season One (2011)

Game of Thrones (2011-????)

Created by: David Benioff and D. B. Weiss

Season: One (2011)
Genre: Adventure | Drama | Fantasy
Number of Episodes: 10
Episode Running Time: 60 Minutes
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Winter is coming.

[IMDb]

Comments: I really didn't care much about Game of Thrones until a few weeks ago, when all of a sudden I decided I was going to buy the first season on release day and dive right in. I have no clue why I did this, or how my interest was suddenly cultivated, but I'm glad I did/it was. Game of Thrones rules.

- I'll get this out of the way first: I love me some Emilia Clarke (who plays Daenerys Targaryen). She's just... yeah.

- All of the acting was great, but Peter Dinklage stole the show in whatever scene he was in. It's hard for actors of a "small stature" to be taken seriously at times, but Dinklage commands respect every time he's onscreen.

- The showrunners did a great job in casting Prince Joffrey. I haven't hated a TV character like him since Penny Johnson Jerald in the early years of 24.

- The plot was a little too fantasy driven at times for my taste - especially later on - but only because the first several episodes are so grounded in reality (sans the white walkers). By the end, there's zombies and dragons and black magic (all of which are fucking awesome, don't get me wrong), but they all feel out of place from what occurred over the majority of the first season.

- I know most people were happy with how the first season followed the book, but it made for a generally lackluster finale (particularly for someone who hasn't read the books). I felt like the show was building up to this gigantic war, but then the season just kind of ends (at least it ended on a good note, with a healthy dose of Emilia Clarke nudity).

- Game of Thrones is awesome. I'm saddened that I don't have HBO to watch the Season Two premiere in three weeks, and I'm even sadder thinking I'll have to wait until next March (?) for the show to be released on Blu-ray. I know there's 'alternative methods,' but fuck that. Maybe I'll buy the episodes on Amazon...

Act of Valor (2012)

Act of Valor (2012)

Directed by: Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh
Screenplay by: Kurt Johnstad

Genre: Action | Adventure | Thriller
Running Time: 110 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Theater

The only easy day was yesterday.

[IMDb]

Comments: Act of Valor is a film I had zero interest in seeing. However, I'm in my hometown this weekend due to a doctor's appointment I have early Monday morning, and my mother and grandmother were going out to watch the film this afternoon. I had nothing at all to do, so I had one of those "oh, what the fuck" moments and tagged along. All I was hoping for was a movie without a preachy message, and for the most part it wasn't.

- The best parts of the film are without a doubt the action sequences. The first "big" action scene where the Seals are on a rescue mission was awesome, and worth the price of admission alone. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there.

- The "acting" was terrible, cliched, and boring. Act of Valor also features the most laughably bad interrogation scene I've ever seen. Picture the craziest Jack Bauer moment (I like to think of that one time when he shot the bad guy's completely innocent wife in the leg to prove a point) and just flip it 180 degrees. The baddie in the film wilts under the silliest threat of being treated humanely and his family being left alone.

- I think what really annoyed me most was that the film is generally a recruitment video for the Navy, yet the entire movie plays out like a two hour Call of Duty gaming session. From the graphics to the first person shots during the action sequences, I found it all a bit shitty. Granted, I know it's difficult this day and age to recruit for the military, and if they want to take all the shitheads that I used to play against when I played COD back in the day, then I'm all for it.

- There's also some heavy-handed bullshit toward the end of the film designed to reel the audience in (and piss off those who know better). It pissed me off.

- Despite my complaints, I do think it's important to remind the general population of the sacrifices people make to keep our country safe. Sure, a lot of people don't agree with the wars we've been fighting, but there's so much more that the military does that people are unaware of. The problem is that tributes like this require a certain amount of skill and craftsmanship so they don't come off false, and Act of Valor is mostly devoid of this. The action scenes are the only thing worthwhile about the film, and as result, I was really unimpressed overall. Pass.

Zombies of Mass Destruction (2009)

Zombies of Mass Destruction (2009)

Directed by: Kevin Hamedani
Screenplay by: Ramon Isao and Kevin Hamedani

Genre: Comedy | Horror
Running Time: 89 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned DVD

They're just like you... only dead.

[IMDb]

Comments: A buddy of mine at work has been on me to watch Zombies of Mass Destruction for some time. He was adamant that the movie itself wasn't the greatest, rather it was really funny and that made it better than it had any right to be. And I pretty much agree with him.

The main problem with Zombies of Mass Destruction is that behind all of the humor and violence, there's a definite agenda to show the audience how stupid right wing extremists can be. The main characters are an Iranian chick and a gay couple, so you can see where I'm going with this (plus the zombie outbreak is blamed on terrorists, so you can really see where I'm going with this). Granted, a lot of the humor comes from the confrontations between the main characters and redneck hicks, but director Kevin Hamedani takes things a bit too far and starts bashing the audience over the head with his opinions. The occasional jab here and there (aka subtlety) would have worked a lot better.

Beyond that, however, I enjoyed the shit out of Zombies of Mass Destruction. I legit laughed at a number of scenes, and the over-the-top gore was a nice touch. It's not something I'd urge horror fans to rush out and watch, but it certainly won't be a let down if you happen to select this film on Netflix some afternoon. That's my sound advice for the day.

Ghost Ship (2002)

Ghost Ship (2002)

Directed by: Steve Beck
Screenplay by: Mark Hanlon and John Pogue

Genre: Horror | Mystery | Thriller
Running Time: 91 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned DVD

Sea evil.

[IMDb]

Comments: I'm not quite sure why, but for some strange reason I've always wanted to watch Ghost Ship. The film's nothing special, but it was entertaining enough for the most part (as usual, once they start explaining everything, it goes way downhill). The dialogue (and by extension, the acting) leaves a lot to be desired, especially with a number of decent actors included (Julianna Margulies, Gabriel Byrne, and Karl Urban, to name a few). All of the characters are variations of horror cliches, but the abandoned boat provides an interesting setting - plus there's that hot naked Italian chick, so I guess there were a few positives... but not many.

District B13 (2004)

District B13 (2004)

Directed by: Pierre Morel
Screenplay by: Luc Besson and Bibi Naceri

Genre: Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Running Time: 84 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Welcome to District B13. Welcome to the future.

[IMDb]

Comments: This was really fun.

- I have no idea why the IMDb classifies this film as science fiction, unless they believe that white dudes doing those moves must be of extraterrestrial origin, but whatever.

- District B13 made me want to bounce around on my couch and recliner doing sweet parkour moves. (I didn't.)

- This movie has the great honor of being the first film I watched on my new Vizio 47" LCD 120Hz TV (I've upgraded from a Samsung 26" - let's just say the difference is slightly noticeable). I'm much more of "I'd rather just watch the movie" guy than a "I need the best equipment possible to watch a movie" guy (I'll have to explain the ghetto-rigged sound system I have sometime), but having this new, bigger TV is FUCKING AWESOME.

- District B13 is a good time. The action is streets ahead (Community joke) of anything else in the film, such as the acting and storyline, but it really works as a whole. I don't have the sequel, but I think I'll have to search around and pick it up soon. It will probably suck ass, but whatever.

Also Known As: Banlieue 13

Take Shelter (2011)

Take Shelter (2011)

Directed by: Jeff Nichols
Screenplay by: Jeff Nichols

Genre: Drama | Thriller
Running Time: 120 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

[IMDb]

Comments: And my streak of excellent films watched this weekend continues. Take Shelter is phenomenal. Michael Shannon is completely worthy of an Oscar nomination for Best Actor, though I'm not surprised this film wasn't recognized in the least (perhaps there's a limit on the number of films that can be nominated that Jessica Chastain starred in). (Speaking of which, I'm glad I didn't watch the show: pretty much every predicted winner won, yet again.) There's not going to be a lot in this review because I have to get up for work in a few hours, but Take Shelter is wonderful. Many feel that the end "cheapens" the entire viewing experience, however I found it a great and fitting end. The film truly moved me, and is really sticking in my mind. Seriously, Netflix the shit out of this.

The Tree of Life (2011)

The Tree of Life (2011)

Directed by: Terrence Malick
Screenplay by: Terrence Malick

Genre: Drama
Running Time: 139 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

[IMDb]

Comments: I don't think I've ever seen a film like The Tree of Life. It's absolutely fascinating (although maybe a little too fascinating at times), and I often found myself in awe of what I was watching onscreen. That isn't to say there's no fault to be found in the film, because there's some issues (at least to me), but on a whole The Tree of Life is simply breathtaking.

- The cinematography of the film is outstanding (I'm starting to run out of good adjectives to use). Malick's vision shines through, and I was enthralled by the images that populated my screen for two hours. His portrait of the 1960s was so real and alive, while at the same time making me nostalgic for my youth, yearning for the simpler days. That's quite the feat.

- I have no idea why Sean Penn was in this film. I could easily see all his scenes being cut out and the film taking place entirely in the 1960s. He added nothing to the experience of The Tree of Life for me.

- Normally, I would have watched the Oscars tonight, but I always get bored by them. This year, I especially wasn't thrilled with who was nominated (seriously, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close for Best Picture?), so I decided to spend my time elsewhere. It was totally worth it.

- Like I mentioned at the start, The Tree of Life is different from anything I've watched before. It's a little messy at times, but the movie is an unforgettable experience. Highly, highly recommended.

Moneyball (2011)

Moneyball (2011)

Directed by: Bennett Miller
Screenplay by: Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin

Genre: Biography | Drama | Sport
Running Time: 133 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

What are you really worth?

[IMDb]

Comments: This is going to be short and sweet, because, well, it's 2 a.m. and I'm tired.

- Moneyball was fantastic, and I'm not even a baseball guy.

- Brad Pitt was also fantastic, and it's cool to see him get an Oscar nomination for the performance.

- Jonah Hill was solid, but I failed to see anything Oscar-worthy about him.

- I generally don't like movies made so soon after the events they're portraying. There's something that feels false about the whole experience, mainly because everyone in them is still alive and says "this isn't at all what happened." However, movies like Moneyball and The Social Network are changing my mind. They're so good, I don't give a shit whether they're accurate or not.

- And I'm out.

The Dead (2010)

The Dead (2010)

Directed by: Howard J. Ford and Jonathan Ford
Screenplay by: Howard J. Ford and Jonathan Ford

Genre: Horror
Running Time: 105 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

The feeding begins.

[IMDb]

Comments: I'd heard a number of good things about The Dead over the past few weeks, so I decided to pick it up from Amazon with the money I made selling some items. I had hoped the film would live up to some of the reviews I read, and for the most part it did. The story works; it's about an engineer in Africa that survives the crash of "the last plane out" and ends up teaming with an African soldier to find his son. The pacing is a tad slow, as we navigate the hostile grounds with our two leads, but I didn't find fault in that approach. My main issue with the film was this amateurish sheen that covered everything - from the acting (the main star Rob Freeman in particular) to the direction and special effects, everything felt like it could have been done just a little bit better. Still, I enjoyed The Dead... but just not as much as everyone else.

A Serbian Film (2010)

A Serbian Film (2011)

Directed by: Srdjan Spasojevic
Screenplay by: Aleksandar Radivojevic and Srdjan Spasojevic

Genre: Crime | Drama | Horror | Thriller
Running Time: 102 Minutes
MPAA Rating: Unrated
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Not all films have a happy ending.

[IMDb]

Comments: When any horror/exploitation movie creates a controversy over its subject matter, I'm almost always interested. For me, the crazier the better, and A Serbian Film certainly falls under the crazy category. I'd heard what the offending scene was, but I had no idea as to its context within the film. The US Blu-ray, while more complete than many international cuts of the film, is still not the full film. Two scenes have been edited for the release (although it's easy to pick out which scenes they are), but for the most part it doesn't hinder the viewer's experience. Sure, the final scene isn't presented 100% clearly, but anyone with half a brain can figure out who's who (I'm trying to be spoiler free here). Anyway, I found A Serbian Film to be more interesting due to wondering how fucked up the next scene was going to be rather than caring about the outcome of any of the characters. It's well made and well directed, but I can't say I was completely blown away by the experience. Unfortunately, A Serbian Film feels a little more shock than substance; at times shock is all I need, but it didn't fully work for me in this case. Still, it's an interesting viewing experience, so I recommend it for that reason alone.

Also Known As: Srpski Film

The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) (2011)

The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) (2011)

Directed by: Tom Six
Screenplay by: Tom Six

Genre: Horror
Running Time: 91 Minutes
MPAA Rating: Unrated
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

100% medically inaccurate.

[IMDb]

Comments: Well, shit. What can I say? I enjoyed The Human Centipede - the original film - for what it was: a horror film meant to shock people. It didn't really shock me, nor did it do much for me beyond ninety minutes of so-so entertainment and general silliness.

I didn't know much about The Human Centipede II when I found out that it was being released, but I was sure that I'd buy it as soon as it came out (which I did). Now that I've watched the film, I'm glad that I picked it up - it's a much better film that's very different from its predecessor.

Oh, and it's way more sick and graphic too, which I loved.

The Human Centipede II is a very "meta" film, as we see the end of the first Centipede in the opening seconds, only to pan out and see Laurence R. Harvey watching it on his laptop. Harvey is a grotesque, mentally challenged man obsessed with The Human Centipede. He works the night shift in a parking garage, attacking pedestrians on the way to their cars in the hopes of creating his masterpiece: a twelve-person human centipede.

I loved Laurence R. Harvey in this film. He never says one word throughout, but he has great facial expressions to go along with his odd body shape - all of which makes him effectively creepy. This is Harvey's first film; I could easily see him becoming a genre star (you know, the kind that are in twenty-plus D-grade horror films a year). Ashlynn Yennie returns as well from the first film, this time as herself. Let's just say she doesn't fare much better than her character did originally.

For the most part, The Human Centipede II is a completely different film from the original. And because of that, I liked it a lot more. It's a nastier, dirtier experience, and one that all of people who watch this only because of the first film's popularity will run screaming away from. For that, I applaud Tom Six.

A Horrible Way to Die (2010)

A Horrible Way to Die (2010)

Directed by: Adam Wingard
Screenplay by: Simon Barrett

Genre: Horror | Thriller
Running Time: 87 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned DVD

[IMDb]

Comments: There's a lot I liked about A Horrible Way to Die. Conversely, there's some shit that bugged me as well. There's no denying two things I loved though: that great poster (I love when a movie has great artwork), and the very cool horn score to the film. There's a section that plays a few times throughout, but mainly on the DVD's menu screen that I absolutely loved. I let the menu play in the background when I made this post just so I could listen to the 15 second clip on repeat.

There were times during A Horrible Way to Die that I wanted to strangle director Adam Wingard. The guy made a very "artistic" horror film, if you want to call it that. He employs the "shaky cam" aspect during the course of the movie, and it's not too bad except when there's something really intense happening onscreen - then it feels like Wingard let an elderly Parkinson's patient handle the camerawork. It's obnoxious and annoying. There's a lot of out of focus shots as well, where the camera drifts from a character speaking onto something in the background. It would be alright if used in small doses, except Wingard does it in every scene (or at least it felt that way to me).

I really liked the story itself. A Horrible Way to Die isn't much of a horror film persay, although there's certainly a few kills here and there. The movie mainly focuses on the main killer's ex-girlfriend, who attends AA while starting a new relationship. The film flips back and forth between her struggles while showing the killer escape from prison and kill some people on his way to find her.

Then the twist happens. I won't lie, I rolled my eyes as soon as it happened and docked the film a half star in my head. But then I saw where A Horrible Way to Die was heading, and I liked the direction (and the half star was re-awarded). In fact, I felt like the ending was rushed some, and Wingard could have taken some of that out of focus artsy crap out and devoted a little more time to the final scenes of the film.

In the end, I really liked A Horrible Way to Die. Sure, there was some stuff that annoyed me, but for a low budget quasi-horror flick that I picked up for $10 on a whim from Walmart, I'm pleased. It certainly won't please everyone, and horror fans may find fault with a film that would be considered more independent/art house than straight up slasher. Still, I like enough of what I saw to recommend it.

Machete (2010)

Machete (2010)

Directed by: Ethan Maniquis and Robert Rodriguez
Screenplay by: Robert Rodriguez and Álvaro Rodríguez

Genre: Action | Thriller
Running Time: 105 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

He was given an offer he couldn't refuse...

[IMDb]

Comments: A few random thoughts:

- Jessica Alba CGI nudity is the bane of my existence. It's almost as bad as her acting.

- On the other hand, and even though her hair covers most of it, Lindsay Lohan's tig 'ol bitties are nice and fine. That whole Playboy shoot was shit, but no matter how coked out she gets, I still wouldn't kick her out of bed.

- And since I'm being all pervy, I have no idea who that naked Mexican chick was at the beginning of the film, but god-motherfucking-damn.

- Don Johnson FTW. I was really sad he and Cheech Marin didn't get any scenes together, being an old Nash Bridges fan.

- I liked the plethora of big names strewn throughout Machete, even down to Steven Seagal. It was fun. All the film was missing was a Michael Madsen cameo.

- Unfortunately, Machete's not as good as something like Hobo with a Shotgun, but it's still a really fun piece of work. In fact, the two would have made a great double feature for a Grindhouse 2. Dammit, now I wish they would've made a second installment.

Trollhunter (2010)

Trollhunter (2010)

Directed by: André Øvredal
Screenplay by: André Øvredal

Genre: Fantasy | Horror
Running Time: 103 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

You'll believe it when you see it!

[IMDb]

Comments: Outside of a few slow moments throughout the first hour, Norway's Trollhunter was a pretty cool movie to watch. The scenes where the group was out observing the trolls were great, despite the low budget and general goofiness of the trolls' appearances. When the movie shows the college kids not 'trollhunting' is when the movie tends to slow down, and I feel there's parts that could have been cut out to trim the runtime of the film. Still, Trollhunter was a cool ass movie to watch and it's definitely recommended.

Also Known As: Trolljegeren

Eden Lake (2008)

Eden Lake (2008)

Directed by: James Watkins
Screenplay by: James Watkins

Genre: Horror | Thriller
Running Time: 91 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Viewed: Owned DVD

A weekend by the lake, with views to die for.

[IMDb]

Comments: Two things come to mind now, as I've finished watching Eden Lake for the first time: 1) I hate kids, and 2) hot damn, this movie was really fucking good. The only thing that soured me on it was the ending. The last 10 minutes of Eden Lake really took me out of what had been a generally realistic film up to that point. Beyond that, the film was downright awesome. Kelly Reilly and Michael Fassbender (in a performance before he climbed the ranks of international superstardom) were great, and the film felt so much more intense because the antagonists are just a bunch of kids that we see throughout; there's nothing particularly "horror villain-esque" about them (outside of a few that are just straight fucked up). So yeah, despite the ending, I can't recommend this one enough to horror fans. It's great.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
Screenplay by: Steve Kloves

Genre: Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery
Running Time: 141 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Something wicked this way comes.

[IMDb]

Comments: Alfonso Cuarón certainly brought a lot more to the table in the third Harry Potter installment, at least in terms of the look and feel of the film. Sure, for most of the of the first hour, much of the mediocrity of the first two films carries over (sans Cuarón's artistic touch). But then, at last, we break from the mold and get to see an interesting and well-crafted finale. I'm still not sold on the series as a whole, but it's certainly a shift in the right direction.

I was saddened to see that Richard Harris did not return as Dumbledore due to his death in 2002. I knew that he had died years ago, but never really thought about it pertaining to this series until I saw Michael Gambon onscreen. I like Gambon and think he's a great actor; however, he just doesn't bring the warmth and wisdom to the role that Harris did.

I may start on the fourth Harry Potter film tonight after the Penguins' game, but who knows. I planned to watch this film last night, but ended up falling asleep at 7pm. On a Saturday night. Yep. I lead one hell of an exciting life.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Directed by: Rupert Wyatt
Screenplay by: Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver

Genre: Action | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Running Time: 105 Minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Evolution becomes revolution.

[IMDb]

Comments: I'm sure a lot of people had the same reaction when they heard a Planet of the Apes prequel was in the works: a slight chuckle followed by a complete lack of interest. That was my attitude right up to the film's theatrical run, when I started hearing whispers that not only was the movie well-made, it was pretty fucking awesome. That wasn't enough to get me to see it in theaters, but I did end up grabbing the film when it was on sale a few weeks ago. And to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. Granted, most of the human characters outside of James Franco and Freida Pinto are horrible people, so naturally the audience cheers for the end of their race without even knowing it. But still, the movie is incredibly well done and worth at least a look, even if you're only casually interested. I've never seen any of the original Planet of the Apes films, but I'm a lot more interested now - all because of Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)

Directed by: Chris Columbus
Screenplay by: Steve Kloves

Genre: Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery
Running Time: 161 Minutes (Theatrical Cut)
MPAA Rating: PG
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Hogwarts is back in session.

[IMDb]

Comments: More of the same. That's pretty much the most concise way I can sum up my feelings on Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. While the main story is different, everything that occurs throughout feels reminiscent of the first film.

Sidebar: Fuck the people that live below me. I've had a somewhat long week at work, and I was really looking forward to sleeping in today (while this review was posted Friday night, I'm writing it on Saturday morning). But they decided to build something/hang curtains/who the fuck knows at 8am. Anyone who's read my bitchfests on this apartment before knows how incredibly thin the walls are here. Needless to say, it's like they're hammering shit in my room. My floor is vibrating. Fuck you, asshole neighbors. #firstworldproblems

Anyway, I can't say I'm really into the Harry Potter series so far, but then again, a) I'm 26 years old and b) I'd resigned to myself originally that I was watching the original films to get to the later films. Plus, next up is Alfonso Cuarón's installment, so at least I have something new to look forward to. But I think it's time to take a Potter-related break.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

Directed by: Chris Columbus
Screenplay by: Steve Kloves

Genre: Adventure | Family | Fantasy
Running Time: 152 Minutes (Theatrical Cut)
MPAA Rating: PG
Viewed: Owned Blu-ray

Let the magic begin.

[IMDb]

Comments: Well, here we go...

- I've never really had much of an interest in the Harry Potter series until recently. I don't know anything about the "Potterverse," I haven't read any of the books, and all of the early films seemed way too childish to really hold my interest (though I admit I was curious about the third installment, which was directed by Children of Men's Alfonso Cuarón). However, the last two or three films seemed much more entertaining (and were generally well-received by critics) - to the point where I wanted to see them. Unfortunately, I can't stand starting a series mid-way through, so I had to start at the beginning.

- When the last film was released on Blu-ray, I looked into picking up the complete series set. I really wasn't down with dropping $80 on it though. However, a few weeks ago I sold a few random out-of-print DVDs that I had no interest in (Anchor Bay's first and second season set of Titus and a few Something Weird DVDs) and an older iPod Nano, so I had over $150 to spend on Amazon. Thus, Harry Potter became mine (along with the second season of Archer, The Ultimate Matrix Collection, The Woman, and pre-orders for The Human Centipede II and The Dead - all on Blu-ray, of course).

- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was a decent film. It certainly serves as a good starting point, as the film introduces a number of characters and themes that I assume will carry on throughout the series. The problem with this is that it makes the film feel overstuffed and bogged down by everything that's going on. The two-and-a-half hour runtime feels extremely unnecessary, especially around the middle of the film.

- I was also less than impressed with the special effects. I'm entirely too lazy to go find the budget for the film, but knowing how successful the franchise was, I'd think they would have had a decent amount of cash. This is probably completely unfair, but The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring came out the same year, and it looks way better. (Completely unrelated: I also considered picking up The Lord of the Rings and Star Wars sets on Amazon instead of the Harry Potter series, but I already have those films on DVD and wanted to get something different with my Something Weird money. They will be mine though... eventually.)

- Despite a few flaws here and there, I still enjoyed Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Most of my enjoyment comes out of how well many of the characters are set up for future installments; I'm sure if this was the only film ever made, I'd have a lot more bad things to say about it.

- I guess it's time for Round 2... and goddammit, it's longer than the first film.