TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

In a summer almost totally devoid of laughs, director Adam McKay actually produces a genuinelly funny film, probably the funniest movie of the year. Allen Gamble (Will Ferrel) is a kindhearted, sensitive and very gullible office worker, you know, the guy who does the paperwork. Terry Hoytz (Mark Wahlberg) is a hot-headed detective who somehow gets left out on every major case. They're both labeled the "other guys," proclaimed by the film's surprise narrator, rapper Ice-T (Law & Order: SVU). When 2 cops (played by The Rock and Samuel Jackson) die on a mission, Terry thinks he and Gamble should step up to the plate and find the inner cop in them thats dying to burst out. Of course Gamble only wants to stay in his desk, a dream of his, ever since his days as a college pimp left him feeling low. That doesn't prevent Terry from taking Gamble hostage, and the 2 together embark on a series of hysterical misadventures trying to solve an increasingly challenging cas...

Here's how the method works: I make predictions for the now 10 slots for Best Picture every June (when the summer movie season kicks off), August, when summers over and all the (supposed) critically acclaimed movies are coming out, then one more after the Golden Globes take place (probably the most accurate bet.) So I was a little off on my 1st part of predictions. "Eat Pray Love" and "Love Ranch" both got average reviews. I guess they got no "love." But "Toy Story 3" and "Inception" are both looking like very strong contenders. "The Kids Are All Right" is getting even heavier buzz then before. I've looked into a few more movies, seen a couple of trailers and am now ready to reveal my new (now full list) of predictions. Inception Toy Story 3 True Grit The Kids Are All Right Kick-Ass (I still think this is this year's "District 9" of the Oscars.) The Town (a "The Departed" like thriller with seve...

Wow. I've been anticipating this movie for EVER . The constant reviews flaunting: "It will change the way movies are made" and "Matrix meets James Bond" were very encouraging, even though I hadn't seen either of those films. I finally found someone who was interested in going and headed into the theater knowing maybe 5% what this movie was really about. Oh. My. God. Chris Nolan, the same dude who made every one's favorite sequel "The Dark Knight" 2 years ago returns with this modern masterpiece about dreams. I've seen at least 3 sequels already this year, and even though they were all great, I'm expecting what's going to happen because they're treading on familiar territory. IT GETS OLD, GUYS. "Inception" is a huge breath of fresh air that takes whatever you thought you knew about this film, turns it upside down and slaps you silly with something new at every corner. Alfred Hitchcock once said "If the audien...

I can't tell you low my expectations were for this film. Sure, who doesn't like Jackie Chan? And Jaden Smith was OK in "Pursuit of Happyness ," but it was is father who got the Oscar nomination after all. So why should this movie blow me away? There are 2 things I got to confess: 1. I haven't seen the original or any of its sequels. 2. If I was 6 years younger, this would probably be my favorite movie EVER. The first thing to love about this film is its excellent cinematography broadcasting the brilliant scenery of Chinese culture without being too stereotypical. I think it deserves an Oscar for it. Next we take into consideration Jaden Smith is 12. His acting skills haven't fully developed, but he makes the most of his underdog character's gawky attitude . His mother, Teraji P. Henson was great and Oscar-nominated in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and also good in the drama "Baby Boy;" this movie plays her strengths to th...

I have been so hyped about this movie through friends, TV, the enormous box-office numbers and of course the Internet that I was afraid I would walk in the movie and just positively hate it. Luckily , Pixar is too smart for that. Pixar has never once created a bad film (see my above blog post) but they have had a few not-as-good ones. Once you make a movie like "Toy Story" to start out with, it's hard to reach that bar. They've reached it and far above so many times now it's ridiculous. Now they're taking a break from originality (long overdue) and are churning out sequels (Cars 2 and Monster's Inc. 2 are due '11 and '12 respectively). "Up" was a beautiful blend of kiddie comedy and adult themes, and was one of my favorite films last year. It went on to win 2 Oscars and was up for the biggest of them all: Best Picture, which "Hurt Locker" took home as we all know. It was only the 2 nd time in history an animated movie'...

Wow this summer's films have been boring. I'd hate to be a pro-critic, I'd have 2 see movies like "Killers," "Sex in the City 2," and "Marmaduke;" all getting awful reviews from critics. I've only seen a handful of 2010 movies, not a single original-written movie I've seen or a sequel that has blown me out of the water seen yet. I plan on seeing "Toy Story 3" with a few friends this coming Saturday, non 3-D unfortunately. Then in July I'm not missing Christopher Nolan's ( Batman Begins, The Dark Knight ) "Inception." These, along with a few other films I've seen advertised look like (POSSIBLY) what (1/2) the Academy might choose come voting time: Love Ranch (with Oscar winners Helen Mirren & Joe Pesci ) Inception (they gotta repay Nolan for the TDK rob of Best Picture in '08) Toy Story 3 (maybe finally the 1st animated Best Picture winner, #7 on IMDB's Top 250) Eat Pray Love (with Os...

I saw 3 movies in the past weeks, and I'm here to share my opinions with you guys: Iron Man 2: A delightful mix of high-packed energy and witty dialogue , plus fine performances from Downey Jr. and the "Russian" actor Mickey Rourke, but still not as the good as the near-classic original. 8/10. Shrek Forever After: After 3 excellent films, this movie doesn't disappoint , but doesn't serve up nearly as many laughs as the 2 nd or original Shrek movie. Go see it though, if this really is the end of the iconic ogre- tastic franchise. 7/10. Babies: Can you say " awwwwww " for 80 minutes. A well done film that chronicles 4 babies growing up all over the world, and how each parent chooses to raise their babies in their own unique. No narration, dialogue is scarce, but I promise you you'll never be bored with this heart-warming documentary. 8.5/10. And that's all for right now! I'll be back later this month to review yet another sequel, t...