This was based on true events, but I don’t think they dramatized it enough. Parts were pretty good, and it’s essentially a film about the evils of big business and the fact that in America corporations can throw money at anything to get what they want. Overall though, the ending just seemed kind of … blah. It presents a good message, but as an entertainment piece I found it startlingly unentertaining. Russell Crowe and Al Pacino both do very well for their respective characters despite the lackluster story.

This was kind of a depressing movie, but the story and characters provide an interesting glimpse into early-1970′s America. The Ice Storm is about a bunch of people who all hate their lives, so they experiment with various activities involving morally and socially objectionable behavior. The most interesting part of this film is that it captures a piece of the early film careers of several young actors and actresses who would later go on to have great success in the industry: Elijah Wood, Christina Ricci, Tobey Maguire, and Katie Holmes.

When this came out last summer, I heard mixed reviews ranging from “it sucked” to “it was pretty good” and all the way up to “it was the second best movie of the year (behind Transformers).” The truth is, it’s a pretty flipping unbelievable flick.

The special effects are one thing – and an amazing thing at that. But what struck me most about this film was how they were able to take such a highly improbable comic book character and translate him to film in a way that made him seem even the least bit realistic. As I was watching Tony Stark build a metal suit that could repel bullets and shoot fire using a pile of scraps in a cave somewhere in the mountains of Afghanistan, I didn’t even once question why I had gone to such incredible lengths to suspend my disbelief. That’s a credit to the filmmakers, who took something that should be very difficult to take in logically, and gave it credibility through a feat of fantastic storytelling.

If I wasn’t such a huge fan of the post-apocalyptic genre (and suicide in general), I might not have thought this was as fantastic as I did. But I did, because whenever you’re the last man on earth, or at least so long as you think you are, you can do pretty much whatever you want, and that would kick ass. Plus, if it was the end of the world, you could kill zombies and drive really, really fast. What more could a guy ask for? While several of my friends hated the ending, I thought it was sick-nasty. There’s an alternate ending on the DVD though, so check it out yourself and let me know which you like better.

What I thought would end up being just another action flick was actually fairly entertaining, but even the most thrilling of movies couldn’t have turned my attention away from Scarlett Johansson and the curve-hugging body suit she wore for most of the film. I can’t really say much more without giving away the entire premise of the movie, which coincidentally… IS the entire movie. Just trust me; it’s a pretty good movie.

I, Jay thought this was a pretty dern good pic. It had action, special effects that make you go “shwing!,” and of course, Will Smith, whose hot, ripped bod is revealed in several moments during the film. In fact I can actually say as a heterosexual individual that Will Smith had an overall sexiness rating that was slightly higher than his female co-star, who I don’t believe I’d seen in a movie before. Even though everything turned out okay, there was a good, original plot (which I am told was not really all that much like the book it was based on). It still managed to entertain me for quite a while, which is hard because I watch so many movies and I tend to begin self-mutilating… myself, if the movie starts to suck.