The Watch

What I liked:

• It has a good cast: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, Richard Ayoade, Rosemarie DeWitt, Will Forte, Billy Crudup, and Nicholas Braun.
• It has a decent soundtrack.
• There is a Christopher Cross "Sailing" ringtone.
• It is sometimes funny.
• It takes place in Glenview, Ohio.  In Bob's man cave there are Indians, Browns, OSU, and Blue Jacket memorabilia.
• There is a cameo from The Lonely Island's Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer.

The Dark Knight Rises

What I liked:

• Fantastic cast: Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Matthew Modine, Daniel Sunjata, Nestor Carbonell, Brett Cullen, Reggie Lee, Juno Temple, Will Estes, William Devane, Joey King, Liam Neeson, Cillian Murphy, Desmond Harrington,David Monahan, and Jillian Armenante.
• The Wire's Aidan Gillen and Robert Wisdom.
• I enjoyed Christopher Nolan's direction and interpretation of the story.
• This film was heavier on the story than on the action.
• Loved the ending!

2012 Emmy Nominations

My initial reaction to the Emmys-

-So happy for Lena Dunham and HBO's Girls on their nominations!
-New Girl gets some love!  Nominations for Zooey Deschanel and Max Greenfield!
-Surprised by all of the Veep love.
-Mayim Bialik gets an Emmy nom for her hilarious role as Amy Farrah Fowler on The Big Bang Theory.
-Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader (SNL) get nominations!
-Mad Men love for Jon Hamm, Elizabeth Moss, Christina Hendricks, and Jared Harris.
-No love for John Slattery.

The full list can be found here http://www.emmys.com/nominations

To Rome With Love

What I liked:

• Great cast: Roberto Benigni, Alison Pill, Judy Davis, Alec Baldwin, Carol Alt, Woody Allen, Jesse Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, Penelope Cruz, Ellen Page, Flavio Parenti, Alessandra Mastronardi, David Pasquesi, and Fabio Armiliato.
• Italy makes for a beautiful backdrop.
• There are some funny moments.  Baldwin has the funniest part by far.
• The stories teach interesting lessons.

Ted

What I liked:

• Seth MacFarlane showed some restraint.  It wasn't as juvenile of a movie as one would think.
• Fun cast: MacFalane, Mile Kunis, Joel McHale, Patrick Warburton, Matt Walsh, Bill Smitrovich, Patrick Stewart, Alex Borstein, Ralph Garman, Norah Jones, and Sam J. Jones.
• Giovanni Ribisi plays creepy so well.
• Ryan Reynolds!
• Tom Skerritt!
• It's funny and original.

The Amazing Spider-Man

What I liked:

• Andrew Garfield was a fantastic Spider-man.  He seemed like a natural high school kid who discovers that he has super powers.  He showed a range of emotion and really made you believe.
• Garfield had wonderful chemistry with Emma Stone.  I hope these two kids stay together a long time.
• Rhys Ifans was spectacular as usual.  
• The rest of the supporting cast was great: Denis Leary, Martin Sheen, Sally Field, Irrfan Khan, and Campbell Scott.
• Fabulous special effects.
• It was fun and entertaining.
• Spider-Man graffiti art.
• A shout out to Stouffer's Mac and Cheese!

What I didn't like:

• Peter Parker's backpack was there, then it wasn't, and then it was back again.  The continuity was off.
• The story line had some holes and wasn't very creative.

Grade: A-  

Savages

What I liked:

• Taylor Kitsch and Aaron Johnson were great.  Not only are they easy on the eyes but they can also act and play well off of each other.
• Laguna Beach makes for a beautiful backdrop.
• Respectable ensemble cast: Benicio Del Toro, Salma Hayek, John Travolta, Demian Bichir, Emile Hirsch, and Shea Whigham.
• Impressive special effects unless you have a weak stomach.
• Interesting story.

Your Sister's Sister

What I liked:

• The characters and the story lines felt real and modern.
• Emily Blunt, Rosemarie DeWitt and Mark Duplass are fantastic.  They make you believe in these characters in such a way that you can easily justify their actions.
• It's funny, charming and thought provoking.