Jackass Number Two (2006)

I really got a kick out of the first one, so I was more than willing to see this one too. Somehow, in the space of four years, I've managed to slip out of the demographic...

I did actually laugh -- once so hard that I had a hard time regaining breath -- but not nearly as often as I rolled my eyes and/or winced. I don't think using a cattle brand on a bare ass is anything other than needlessly painful and I don't think that funneling beer into a willing rectum is anything other than stupid.

Fart mask, though? Comedy gold.

C-

Happy Accidents (2001)

Incredibly original story (OK, OK, I know there's a bit of resemblance to "The Terminator," but it's a whole different vibe) with fantastic performances.

Basic premise is that Ruby (Marisa Tomei) is a loser magnet whose luck seems to change with the arrival of offbeat Sam (Vincent D'Onofrio), who sweeps her off her feet in no time. Although he's a gentle sweetheart, several oddities keep Ruby off-balance and, as he opens up to her, make her wonder whether he's on the up and up or out of his mind.

The story's both smart and downright ridiculous -- but it never lost me for a second as Tomei and D'Onofrio are perfect.

A

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

So dang funny -- the best thing the Griswold clan has ever been in. We watch it every holiday season & quote it most of the rest of the year.

A-

World Trade Center (2006)

For the first time in my life, I was suffering through insomnia. There were three nights running during which I never managed to get more than 20 minutes of sleep at a time. On the third night of this torture, I stumbled in the living room and popped this DVD in. I seriously can't beLIEVE it didn't put me to sleep right away. It's certainly mind-numbing enough.

I think that if this were fiction rather than "based on a true story" about the WTC attacks, no one would pretend to like it. It's overly sentimental and boring for long stretches.

C-

The Lost Room (2006)

Very cool and immensely entertaining Sci-Fi channel three-part miniseries.

Basic premise is that a hotel room got "lost" a few decades back and all of the personal possessions that were in the room at the time (pen, scissors, key, watch, bus ticket, etc.) are now highly collectible due to the varying degrees of power each acquired. The room key, for example, turns any locking door into a portal to the room itself...which will, in turn, open into a either a place you concentrate on or a random door, if you feel adventurous. Some objects are a little less useful (like the watch that will hard boil an egg), but all are pretty nifty and I could see getting into researching and trying to track them down if they existed.

Peter Krause is his usual laid-back self -- a perfect tour guide as he's learning everything for the first time just like we are. Since his daughter (woefully untalented Elle Fanning) disappeared into the room, his investigation has a tinge of panic to it, a level of intensity I thought hurt the story rather than helped it. I'd rather he had the time to "whoa, cool" a little more.

I thought this had the potential to be Harry Potter magical -- discovering the powers of seemingly normal objects and figuring out how to fit their uses to a purpose is unbelievably interesting and probably inexhaustible. This would be one heck of a series and I'm hoping that's the plan since there were quite a few loose ends left at the end of the third installment. Maybe, in episodic format, Krause could allow himself to enjoy the ride a bit more.

A-

Mission: Impossible III

Less confusing than the first one, smarter and more exciting than the second -- the only reason I can come up with for why this was not a bigger success is that everyone was suffering from Tom Cruise fatigue when it hit the theaters. Now that he's quieted down, perhaps everyone can admit what a great ride this movie is.

The best of the franchise.

B+

The Architect (2006)

I love Anthony LaPaglia. I adore the way his Aussie accent sometimes slips out in the middle of a Without a Trace episode. I find his doughy body and sometimes shaggy hair kinda hot in a "Of course I don't want a manicure! I'm a guy!" way. And I usually enjoy his offbeat film choices, e.g. Winter Solstice, The Salton Sea, and Lantana. Anyway, I assumed that The Architect would be another quiet, beautifully acted, complicated movie that would be right up my alley.

Oh, boy. It's complicated, alright. There's a son deep in denial about his sexuality, but on the path to learn all about it from a suicidal black kid from the projects. There's a jailbait daughter who gets in over her head with first one horny guy than another. There's a mentally ill (read "incredibly annoying") unhappy wife who smashes things with little warning. And then there's the title character, played by LaPaglia, who's being asked to admit that his tenement design has made things worse for its occupants -- chiefly a mother who's losing her daughter to her upscale boyfriend's family because she's on a crusade to make her community safer.

It's so dreary and relentless and I really, really hated it and every single one of the characters.

D

An Inconvenient Truth (2006)

Even the ManBearPig skeptics will find it hard to dismiss the case presented in this film, the bulk of which is simply the "stand on a platform and narrate a slide show" presentation that Gore's been giving around the country for the last couple of years.

Gore is such a genial teacher -- so reasonable -- that it surprises the heck out of me that partisanship plays such a part in whether or not his message is heard. I don't, frankly, KNOW that the dangers are as severe as Gore says, but I do absolutely believe that HE believes it. I also believe that the personal changes advocated in this documentary certainly can't hurt.

Seriously. Stewardship is a concern of mine and should be for every fellow Christian. It's dismaying just how many of us prefer to be conservative in everything BUT environmental matters. How does that make any sense?

B+

The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

Probably the seventh or eighth time I've seen this film -- never gets old. Not even Margaret Sullavan's weird voice can ruin the delightfully tart dialogue. And, although it culminates on Christmas Eve, that's no reason to confine viewing it to the holiday season.

"You've Got Mail" was a remake of this classic and, while that movie's charming in its own right, I much prefer this version. I mean, it's not difficult to choose between 1) Jimmy Stewart as a hardworking, put-upon shop clerk with very little cash but a heart full of ardor and 2) Tom Hanks as the jerky owner of a small business-killing mega-chain.

A-