The Book of Eli - (47% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) Pick of the Week

In the not-too-distant future, some 30 years after the final war, a solitary man walks across the wasteland that was once America. Empty cities, broken highways, seared earth--all around him, the... In the not-too-distant future, some 30 years after the final war, a solitary man walks across the wasteland that was once America protecting a book and holding onto hope for a better tomorrow. Did I mention he protects the book with ass kickery and a cool ass sword/scythe thing?! Critics are calling the film uneven, and saying that  many viewers will find that its reach exceeds its grasp, but The Book of Eli finds the Hughes brothers injecting some fresh stylish fun into the kind of post-apocalyptic wasteland filmgoers have seen more than enough of lately.

The Spy Next Door - (05% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes)
A man (Jackie Chan) is forced to defend some neighborhood children who have been put in his care against spies looking for a stolen secret code in this Relativity Media family action film. ARE WE... A man (Jackie Chan) is forced to defend some neighborhood children who have been put in his care against spies looking for a stolen secret code. Consensus tells us the film is lacking a script funny enough to cover up for Jackie Chan's fading physical gifts, The Spy Next Door fails on every conceivable level.

The Lovely Bones - (35% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes)
You can check out our review of it HERE.

--Greg MacLennan

Greg and I are HUGE Ryan Reynolds fans. While he's commenting on Reynolds' acting chops, I'm ogling his steely abs--okay, while appreciating his comedic timing. Homedude has definitely been on the cusp of major stardom for many years now. Well, with the announcement of not only an alleged Deadpool spin-off and the massive money The Proposal drew in, it was also announced many moons ago that Reynolds will be taking on the (not quite as cool) superhero the Green Lantern. We're all for him tackling a major superhero movie and were actually pretty excited about this bit of news.

That is, until we tweeted this weekend that Gossip Girl's Blake Lively will be playing his love interest. Blech. Anyhoo...we can now totally override that vomitous feeling with the latest rumor swirling 'round that Peter Sarsgaard is in negotiations to play Green Lantern's villain,Dr. Hector Hammond, “the pathologist son of a senator who is seen as a disappointment in his father’s eyes” and eventually develops powers after contact with a meteor, which apparently include mind reading and mind control.

This casting news we can totally get behind. It's totally cool to see good actors as superhero villans--like Chrisoph Waltz battling Seth Rogen's Green Hornet.

The Green Lantern will be released June 17th 2011.

What do you guys think of Sarsgaard's casting?

--Darcie Duttweiler

Dear, Hollywood: 2009 wasn't the year either of us hoped it would be. Your summer blockbusters were ho-hum, your dramas were so-so and your comedies were bland. So many of your movies were just alright, but few were worth a second viewing. Here's five from 2009 that really stood out from the pack and give me hope that 2010 can be a better year for us.

5. Gran Torino
Even at 78, Clint Eastwood is tough as nails. Though his old ass barely looks human any more, I'm sure his character from Gran Torino could beat the hell out of me. A mature, modern-day western, Gran Torino is supposedly Eastwood's last foray into acting and it's a fitting finale to his career. Despite its serious-sounding story, Gran Torino is unexpectedly funny, and it has something more grown-up to say about redemption and the difference between revenge and justice.