Moneyball? Meh...Movie Review - Moneyball (2011)

I love baseball. I am a statistics freak. I've been known to keep a scorecard at baseball games. I have a formula that I use to determine weekly Major League Soccer Power Rankings and predict Major League Soccer matches.

I monitor RottenTomatoes.com to see the critics' consensus on movies to determine if I want to see the movie in a theater. Rotten? Forget about it. Ripe? I might consider it, as long as the subject matter interests me.

So out comes a movie, Moneyball. A story about Oakland A's General Manager Billy Beane (played by Brad Pitt), who has to figure out how to form a team with a limited payroll to compete against the big money clubs in Major League Baseball. He hires an economics major as his assistant (played by Jonah Hill) who has the ability to analyze statistics to measure the value of baseball players, thus uncovering "undervalued" players to form a team.

This method of scouting goes against the cultural norms of baseball scouting, providing a great backdrop for the movie.

This movie was ready-made for me.

Baseball? Check.

Statistics? Check.

Great actors? Brad Pitt? Jonah Hill? Philip Seymour Hoffman (playing Manager Art Howe)? Check.

A 94% ripe rating on RottenTomatoes.com? Check!


This movie can't fail!

I was completely underwhelmed.

Don't get me wrong. The movie is OK. The premise is good.

However, I couldn't empathize with the Billy Beane (or Brad Pitt's portrayal of him) in the movie. Maybe it was his ego. The movie tries to show Billy Beane's vulnerabilities, but came up short.

Jonah Hill's character, Assistant General Manager Peter Brand, was somewhat funny. I just felt like I had seen it before, the stereotypical shy nerdy smart-type who is trying to make his way amongst the grizzled veterans in the sport. And how many times do I need to see Jonah Hill do the uncomfortable high five in a movie? Seen it before.

Moneyball misses the mark as it tries to be too many things. Is it a drama about the conflicts of work versus family, or an "us against them I'll be proven right" story, or a biopic on Billy Beane as the trailblazer in the application of sabermetrics to build a successful baseball team?

The movie seems to run too long. Heavy on dialog, as would be expected, but short on the interesting banter I would have expected in the interactions between the characters.

My expectations may have been too high. I can take responsibility for that. But for me Moneyball was, well, meh...

Book Review-Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2010) by Seth Grahame-Smith

Make no mistake. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter isn't going to wow you with some heavy-duty, thought provoking prose. But what it will do is provide the reader a hell of a lot of enjoyment as the author, Seth Grahame-Smith weaves a vampire tale with an historical context, the life of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States.

The book begins in present day when the fictional author/narrator is given a set of secret diaries (kept by Abraham Lincoln from a very early age) by a vampire named Henry Sturges. The author then pieces together a chronological history of Lincoln's life, using the diaries as a guide, often quoting directly from them.

When Lincoln learns at a very young age from his father that vampires not only exist, but they killed both his grandfather and his mother, he vows to dedicate his life to killing as many vampires as he can.

Through life-threatening circumstances, Lincoln meets the vampire Henry Sturges (the same vampire who gives the author the diaries at the beginning of the book) who trains him in the art of vampire slaying. As it turns out, Sturges is a vampire who's philosophy is that humans and vampires can leave peacefully with each other. However, the vast majority of vampires in the United States at that time are part of a plot to take over the country, using the Southern United States' most powerful and influential politicians to that end.

And thus the story unfolds. I give Seth Grahame-Smith a lot of credit for coming up with a great plot idea, and then following through with an enjoyable story that weaves fictional and actual historic figures into a very interesting book. I may be stretching a bit by making this comparison, but if you have enjoyed the works of the author E.L. Doctorow and his ability to bring real-life characters and events into a fictional story (my favorite being Ragtime) and you like a good vampire story, then Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is for you.

I'm also pretty excited that the book is being adapted into a movie, produced by Timur Bekmambetov and Tim Burton, due out in the Summer of 2012.


Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Make no mistake. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter isn't going to wow you with some heavy-duty, thought provoking prose. But what it will do is provide the reader a hell of a lot of enjoyment as the author, Seth Grahame-Smith weaves a vampire tale with an historical context, the life of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States.

My full review: http://jiresell.blogspot.com/2011/09/boo...

View all my reviews

Movie Review - Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

I was in Pittsburgh this weekend visiting my Dad and my daughter Mallory who is beginning graduate school at the University of Pittsburgh.

After dinner Saturday night, my brother Tim and I decided to go see Rise of the Planet of the Apes. The early reviews had been good, and as a fan of the original Planet of the Apes series I was looking forward to seeing the movie.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes is excellent. The story revolves around a scientist named Will Rodman, played by James Franco, who is working on a cure for Alzheimer's Disease. As it turns out, he has a very personal motivation for doing the work, as his father, Charles Rodman, played by John Lithgow (and very well I might add) suffers from the disease.

The company that Will Rodman works at uses chimpanzees for their testing, and Will early in the movie ends up adopting a baby chimp his father names Caesar.

Caesar, through circumstances I won't reveal here, turns out to be very intelligent and the movie follows his growth into an adult, intertwining his life with Will Rodman's continued experiments with the Alzheimer's drug.

The screenplay is very well written. As this is meant to be a prequel to the Planet of the Apes, the plot line of how the apes become dominant, along with how humans will succumb to the apes is revealed. My brother Tim noticed subtle references to the original Planet of the Apes series, which provides clues to future events in the inevitable sequels to the current form of the movie.

I enjoyed the movie. I particularly liked the fact that even though there is violence, the injuries (and yes some deaths) are not gory. In addition, the movie makes a statement on how man can discriminate against other men (or in this case apes) whom they consider inferior and how there can be a price to pay for that.

My only criticism of the movie is that I felt the computer generated image of Caesar was a little unrealistic looking. I believe the intent of the creators was to have Caesar's features be more human than chimpanzee, but I was uncomfortable with it.

I also should add that Freida Pinto (of Slumdog Millionaire fame) looks great in this movie, playing Will Rodman's girlfriend, Caroline Aranha.

This is a great movie, well worth a visit to your local theater. I also was very pleased when the famous line from the original Planet of the Apes (1968) uttered by Charlton Heston's character, Colonel George Taylor was once again spoken in this movie. Do you know the line I'm talking about?

I will let you discover it for yourself in Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

New foursquare Badge! The 30 Minutes or Less Badge!

Sweet. Got another foursquare badge tonight!

It's the 30 Minutes or Less Badge. You get it by following the movie 30 Minutes or Less on foursquare, and then checking into a bank or pizza parlor.

The trailer for the movie looks pretty good. It stars Jesse Eisenberg and Danny McBride and is loosely based on a true story that happened in Erie, Pennsylvania in 2003.

I don't see a lot of movies in the theater, but I just might have to see 30 Minutes or Less, especially because it is directed by Ruben Fleischer, who also directed Zombieland, a favorite movie of mine.

Here's the details on the foursquare badge:

30 Minutes or Less

You're either eating a slice of pizza thinking about robbing a bank, robbing a bank wishing you were eating a slice, or robbing a slice while eating a bank. Either way, be sure to catch 30 Minutes or Less, in theaters August 12. Oh yeah, and #DontBlowIt.

Unlocked by jiresell on Sun Jul 24, 2011 at 7:08 PM at Bruno's Pizza in Liberty Twp, Ohio.

Movie Review-Bridesmaids (2011)

Kristen Wiig is a Star!

My wife Tammy and I just came home from seeing Bridesmaids. I was expecting a girl's version of The Hangover, and what I got was a very funny movie with a little bit of a love story thrown in.

Kristen Wiig plays Annie, who is the Maid of Honor for her best friend Lillian's (played by Maya Rudolph) upcoming wedding. Annie is broke and "down in the dumps" and is dealing with her own foibles (jealousy, lack of a substantive relationship, a bankrupt business...) throughout the movie. Throw in an odd and very funny group of women who make up the bridal party and you have a very entertaining flick.

Kristen Wiig has been great for years on Saturday Night Live. Her characters have been very fresh and creative. Her skills as a comedic actress translate in a wonderful way to the big screen in this movie. I feel like Ms. Wiig will use this movie as a springboard to a very good career in movies, in the same manner in which fellow Saturday Night Live alumnus Will Ferrell following his first starring roles in movies like Old School, Elf and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.

I have to give a special mention to Melissa McCarthy as Megan. She is over the top funny in this movie!

If you're looking to start the summer with a great comedy, Bridesmaids is the one to see!

I Think I Need to Get Out of the Prediction Game

I picked the Pittsburgh Steelers to win this year's Super Bowl.

I only predicted two of tonight's Oscar winners correctly. Aaron Sorkin for adapted screenplay (The Social Network) and a lucky guess on Natalie Portman for best actress in Black Swan. I didn't even see her performance.

I suck at predictions. Based on my track record, I am not picking the Cincinnati Reds for this year's National League Central Division Champs.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

My Oscar Picks! Best Actors and Picture (and some random thoughts)

OK, some more picks:

Best Actress: This is a big guess, as I didn't see any of the actresses this year, so going with Natalie Portman, Black Swan based on my son Brian's review

Best Actor: Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network (tough pick over Colin Firth in The King's Speech and Jeff Bridges in True Grit)

Best Picture: The Social Network (True Grit is my second pick)

Rooting for Aaron Sorkin to win for Adapted Screenplay, The Social Network.

Finally, it would be very cool if Exit Through The Gift Shop would win for Best Documentary. One of the most original concepts for a documentary film I have ever seen. He has been invited to the ceremony, and as I understand it, can show up masked to keep his identity a secret.

My Oscar Picks! Supporting Actors and Director

Here are my picks for Supporting Actors and Director for tonight's Oscar broadcast on ABC:

Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit (loved Helena Bonham Carter in The King's Speech too)

Supporting Actor: Jeremy Renner, The Town (shout out to Geoffrey Rush of The King's Speech)

Director: David Fincher, The Social Network (Joel and Ethan Coen of True Grit could win)

Movie Review-Toy Story 3 (2010)

I've done my best to try to see all the movies that have been nominated for a Best Picture Oscar this year, but I'm not going to make it. I have The Kids Are All Right DVD is sitting on the counter via my Netflix subscription and I might get a chance to watch it before tomorrow night's Oscar broadcast, but I did recently watch Toy Story 3, so a review is in order.

Andy has turned 18 and is headed off to college. The Toys are accidentally donated to a day care center as Andy is cleaning out his room as he prepares to leave home. Woody, Buzz and the gang run into a gang of rogue toys at the day care center led by Lotso, a stuffed bear who accidentally was lost by his former owner and is jaded by the experience.

Typical of the Toy Story franchise, #3 is has a great screenplay, with very smart dialog between the characters. For those of us who have seen all three of the Toy Story movies, the ending is bittersweet, but ultimately works well as is typical of a Disney/Pixar production.

My son Brian is 20 and grew up with the Toy Story movies. Anyone with a son in the 17-20 age group will find this movie to have real significance as they have watched their sons grow up.

Movie Review-Inception (2010)

I realize Inception was released in theaters this past July, but having just seen the movie and based on the fact that it has been nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture I thought it would still be relevant to write a review.

This movie takes work to watch. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the concept of the movie is that a technology exists that allows a person to invade the human mind through another person's dreams. Cool concept and the special effects in the movie are outstanding, especially at the outset when Mr. DiCaprio's character, Cobb is explaining the concepts to Ariadne (played by Ellen Page of Juno fame) as he is recruiting her for a major corporate espionage effort.

My initial comment about "work" was based on the fact that one has to really concentrate on this movie as the characters work through multiple layers of their target's dreams to plant an idea which will lead to their final goal. It can get complicated. Don't multi-task while you are watching.

Ultimately Inception is a story of redemption, with a very interesting and heartfelt ending.

Is Inception a good movie? Yes. Does it deserve the Oscar for Best Picture? No. But definitely worth the effort to watch.

Movie Review-Exit Through The Gift Shop (2010)

My son Brian turned me on to the street artist Banksy a couple of years ago. His work is amazing.

He is well known for satirical street art with a purpose (social and political commentary). His work has shown up all over the World.

A book highlighting his work was published in 2007. Aptly named Wall and Piece, it highlights Banksy's work over the years. As you can imagine, much of his work doesn't survive, either having been painted over or washed off within hours of it appearing.

Exit Through The Gift Shop is a documentary film released this past summer (2010) that was meant to be a look at the street art culture through the eyes of Thierry Guetta (aka Mr. Brainwash) a Frenchman living in Los Angeles. He befriends many of the World's most famous street artists including Shepard Fairey, Space Invader and Banksy himself. They let him follow them as they create their art. Most of the time these are covert operations done under cover of darkness.

Ultimately the tables get turned when Banksy realizes that Mr. Guetta has no idea how to take all the footage he has filmed and put it into a cohesive story.

I missed Exit Through The Gift Shop when it was released this past summer. The film wasn't shown in mainstream theaters, but luckily it is now streaming on Netflix.

One of my favorite Banksy works!

Exit Through The Gift Shop is very entertaining, not only for it's revealing look into the street art culture, but also for the story of Thierry Guetta and his ineptitude as a filmmaker. It has been nominated for an Oscar this year for Best Feature Documentary.

A closing thought. Banksy's actual identity is not known. It struck me as I was watching the film that it was a hoax, and that Thierry Guetta was actually Banksy himself. Quite a bit of speculation on this matter has been published on the Internet. Makes the film itself even more interesting!

Movie Review-The King's Speech (2010)

I have a special affinity for movies that have an historical context.

My wife Tammy and I saw The King's Speech this past Saturday night (1/29/11).

A few things attracted me to this movie. First the reviews have been outstanding. Second was the fact it was based on historical events surrounding England's King George VI sudden ascension to the throne following his brother Edward's abdication in 1936. Third was that is stars Colin Firth, who was brilliant in 2009's A Single Man.

The movie did not disappoint. I was very impressed with Geoffrey Rush in the role of Lionel Logue, the speech therapist who helped King George VI overcome a debilitating stammer. The interaction between Mr. Rush and Mr. Firth in their scenes together were both funny and emotional. David Seidler, who wrote the screenplay, delivered a wonderful story by weaving the intimate relationship between King George VI and Lionel Logue with the events leading up to World War II.

As Tammy and I left the theater, I mentioned how beautiful Helena Bonham Carter looked in the movie playing King George VI's wife Queen Elizabeth. I am used to seeing her in roles such as Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter series and Marla Singer in The Fight Club. This role seemed like a departure from the typical roles I have seen Ms. Carter take on, and she was outstanding.

The King's Speech is a very good movie. I'm not sure it is the best of the 2011 Oscar nominees, but just like Chariots of Fire (another well-written and acted movie based in England) in 1982, it may just win Best Picture in 2011.

Book Review-Water for Elephants (2006) by Sara Gruen by Guest Reviewer: Dad

I haven't read Water for Elephants, but my Dad and wife Tammy have. Here is my Dad's review, sent via email to me this morning. He likes it!
Review Part 1:
To all family members by blood or marriage: 

I just finished an excellent book " Water for Elephants " by Sara Gruen. I highly recommend reading it. On my reading scale it is a high 5. It is available at the I-Pad bookstore. 
Dad 
Reading Scale ( Sometimes known as the SellBSscale ): 
5. Very compelling. I want to read it through with no break, but contradictorly hate finishing it. 
4. An enjoyable and delightful book. I will keep it on my I-Pad or home bookcase. 
3. A pedagogic somewhat historical book. A didactic treatise. Hard to read! 
2. It was OK, but I would rather read the dictionary, at night, with no light. 
1. Why did I waste my money buying it and the time reading it. 
-1. Any biography or autobiography about a movie or TV star or non-classical composer or singer.
Review Part 2:
To all relatives by blood or marriage:

That excellent book ( 5 ) I recommended, " Water for Elephants " has been made into a movie to be released in April. You can see a short preview on the website Rotten Tomatoes.
From The Ringermaster

Dad "The Ringermaster"

Movie Review-True Grit (2010)

Just got back from the theater after seeing True Grit with my Dad, my two sons and a friend of theirs. I'm a big Coen Brothers fan (Raising Arizona, Fargo, No Country For Old Men), and was really looking forward to seeing their new work.

I haven't seen the original True Grit (but I DVR'd it tonight on TCM), nor have I read the book. I knew a little about the plot going in.

Typical for the Coen Brothers, the screenplay was outstanding. There is definitely action in this movie, but it is the dialog that is the highlight. In addition, Jeff Bridges as Rooster Cogburn and Barry Pepper as Lucky Ned Pepper are outstanding in their roles. The best performance has to go to Hailee Steinfeld, who plays Mattie Ross, the girl intent on avenging the death of her father.

I learned something in True Grit by the way. When camping and sleeping outdoors, surround yourself with a rope. Snakes won't cross a rope!

I use Flixster to rate movies, and I gave True Grit 4 out of 5 stars! Go see it.

My DVR List

Thought I'd share the TV shows I currently DVR and actually watch:

Boardwalk Empire
Modern Family
The Walking Dead
ESPN College Gameday
Major League Soccer Playoffs
Survivor: Nicaragua
Eastbound and Down
Real Time With Bill Maher
Friday Night Lights

Now the books I have recently read:

I also just read (on my Kindle) "The Last Boy" (the new Mickey Mantle Biography) by Jane Leavy and "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson.

Finally the movies I just saw:

The Social Network (outstanding) and Up In The Air (very good)