Mesrine: Part 1: Killer Instinct (Mesrine: L'Instinct de Mort; Public Enemy Number One: Part 1) (2008)

The problem with real stories about criminals being told on film is that your main characters are scum bags. When it's an original screenplay, writers can massage the story to give the audience someone to root for. That's not the case with Mesrine. He's a complete a-hole and it's hard to care about the film when you don't care about the main character.

The direction and editing are very choppy, however the raw cinematography works. I wasn't very impressed with part 1, but I feel invested enough that I'll probably watch part 2.

Rating: C-

Winter's Bone (2010)

A drearier, less exciting cinematic version of FX's Justified. Jennifer Lawrence and the rest of the cast do a fine job in their roles. There is some great tension throughout the film, but for me there needed to be a couple more climatic events to win me over. Thanks goodness Justified got renewed for another season.

Rating: C+

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Stop motion or not, this film has Wes Anderson's trademark style all over it. If you're a fan of his, as I am, you will enjoy this Roald Dahl classic brought to life. You'll recognize the voices of all his usual cohorts. It's warm and safe family fare. Perhaps too safe?

Rating: C+

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

What a sweet ride! I could almost feel the wind whipping through my hair as I reached for the seat belt that wasn't there. If only "Gone in 60 Seconds" had half as much intensity as this movie did, it might have not sucked so bad.

The plot is much deeper than the previews let on, which plays nicely around the fantastic action. Some of the best car racing/chase scenes I've ever seen. I loved the direction, the way they captured the pure adrenaline of sitting behind the wheel of one of those tweaked out cars. Glad I saw it in a nice theater. Just a fun movie.

Rating: B

Monsters (2010)

One of the slowest alien movies I've ever seen. Almost nothing happens the entire film. We follow around a couple with very little charisma. The girl is passable as an actress, but the guy is community theater bad. There's potential in the plot and octopus styled creatures, but it's never fleshed out in any meaningful way. A real disappointment.

Rating: D+