HALF NELSON.  Worthy of the acclaim. Yet another movie where a teacher learns life lessons from a student, except this time he’s a junkie. Thankfully, Gosling being Gosling, he doesn’t overplay that aspect of his character into melodrama. Part of me wanted a more satisfying resolution, but I'd line up to watch Ryan Gosling cut his toenails for two hours. How the fuck did they get both him and Michael Pitt to be awesome in Murder by Numbers and still have it suck?
HALLOWEEN (2007).  Zombified version. Didn't dig it, but I don't like remakes in general (and I can't stand his trademark trailer-trash B-movie dialogue). I'd been avoiding this one the same way I'd stay away from a death metal tribute to Dark Side of the Moon. Or Brett Ratner's Citizen Kane. Actually, the second and third acts that shadowed the original were decent, but the whole new first act turned me off. I prefer my memories of Michael as evil incarnate, not half-explained through childhood socialization. Also kinda weird that the actresses playing the high-school chicks with their titties flashing are both nearing 30.
HARD-BOILED. Before John Woo came west, this was his jazzy Hong Kong masterpiece, with its slo-mo violence ballet and the video-game body count – his trademark kinetic camera without the slick lighting and on grainier film stocks. And one of the best shootouts ever captured on celluloid, brilliantly staged in a hospital. The dialogue invokes the cheesy noir of the film's namesake, and the visuals have a very Michael Mann-type feel.
HARD CANDY. A really good effort for only a million bucks. I didn't see the trailer in advance, so needless to say, the second-act turn totally pulled my rug out from under. A very mature performance for a girl that age. Guess I'll think twice before pimping my photographic skills on MySpace anymore.
HAROLD & KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE.  I usually hate stoner comedies, but this pair are worth your time. The writing's sharper than most, even if they never really transcend bodily and ethnic humor, and the leads complement each other's personalities in a classic sense. Plus this movie is responsible for my all-time convulsive-laughter one-liner: the duo are about to tag-team a nubile cuckold when Kumar calls "shotgun anus."
HAROLD & KUMAR ESCAPE FROM GUANTANAMO BAY. More of the same, and they rehash (get it?) with slightly less success some of the funnier bits from the first, including an expanded Neil Patrick Harris role as a bizzarro version of himself, a sex scene with the anthropomorphic bag of weed, and another backwoods redneck encounter.
HATCHET. If you're a pure slasher fan, this is a return to form in many ways (and an indie success story), but I guess I was expecting something smarter, and it ain't that. The humor is more American Pie than Slither. Didn't care for the Hatchetface character, either.
HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY. A rare instance where I was excited for a sequel because I loved the original's characters' quirk and chemistry but was disappointed in its storyline. Ditto this time around. I'm also not a fan of Selma Blair in this role. Seth MacFarlane lends his voice to the ethereal Johann Krauss, a high point. It's almost worth watching just to see Abe getting sappy-drunk with Hellboy in one memorable scene. Almost.
HIGH FIDELITY. To me, these are both John Cusack's and Jack Black's defining perfomances as actors. It's also the most skillful "breaking the fourth wall" I've ever seen. It makes the viewer his confidant without being cheesy, even if it is sometimes played to comic effect. I see a lot of myself in the record-store snobbery and compulsive listmaking. And the scorned girlfriend character is played perfectly, both in the way she makes him work for her affections as well as her warmth when appropriate. Their relationship feels very "lived in," and Cusack's actions are completely realistic without resorting to romantic leading-man heroics. Based on the legendary novel by Nick Hornby.
THE HOST. I really liked this one, and am totally diggin on this New Wave of Korean Cinema. And I usually hate "monster" movies. Quirky and funny, cool CGI, and some good characterizations. Predictable spots, too.
HOWARD THE DUCK.  I need a bath and lots of soap. Maaaan, I remember even as a kid with no filmic taste thinking that it was pretty lame, but now, in my first viewing since then, good god that's one of the worst ever. 80s mall cheese at its worst. I probably overlooked so much of it because I had a wicked boy-crush on Lea Thompson at the time. Nice hair. I didn't know who Tim Robbins was back then, so it was a shock to see him in there potentially sabotaging his brilliant career. It had to have cost some people their jobs.
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