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What's Buzzworthy? Action Movies

BuzzSugar — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 14:00:00 -0700

The Transformers movie may not have been my cup of tea, but it's definitely not because I don't like action movies. I think there are some great ones out there, such as many of the James Bond films - especially the recent Casino Royale (which, by the way, I loved). I've also enjoyed the Bourne movies (The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy and I can't wait for this summer's Bourne Ultimatum) and Minority Report. Finally, of course, the Indiana Jones movies will always have a place in my heart.

Since summer is the time for action movies, what are some of your favorites? For this week's Buzzworthy challenge, just use Buzzsugar's cool bookmarking tool to bookmark your own and tag them with the phrase action movies.

I'll post some readers' picks here next week. You can also now make a list of your picks. Here are mine:

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To find out how to create a Buzzworthy bookmark, read more

Don't worry: TeamSugar makes it easy to bookmark and capture anything on the Web that you consider "Buzzworthy." If you already have a "That's Fab" button on your browser's tool bar, you can use that to bookmark your Buzzworthy items. If you don't have the TeamSugar bookmarking button on your toolbar, you can learn how to get it by watching this video.

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 09:15:24 -0700

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I'll sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue.

Casino Royale
Picking up where many Bond movies left off - including a 1967 spoof of the same name - Daniel Craig reinvents Bond as we know him, creating a sort of everyman hero. Sure, he's still smart and handsome, but he's also got a temper, is often klutzy, and at times makes poor decisions. Yet this only makes you root more for the gruff British spy with a "license to kill." Eva Green makes for a refreshingly unlikely Bond girl, while Judi Dench plays the tough, witty M. It's dark, funny and thrilling all at once. For a more in-depth view, check out my full review of Casino Royale.

Two more must-sees, so read more

The Holiday
Admittedly, this movie didn't break any cinematic ground, but as cheesy romantic comedies go, The Holiday (check out my review here) stands out for its stellar performances, if not its slightly absurd premise. Kate Winslet is a joy to watch as Iris, who swaps houses with Amanda (Cameron Diaz) so they can escape their love woes. What we get are very sweet and well-written scenes between Iris and her octogenarian screenwriter neighbor, plus plenty of adorable moments with a very hot Jude Law.

"Bosom Buddies" - Season 1
Just when you thought this New DVD Tuesday couldn't get any better, I toss you some Tom Hanks in drag. In this TV series from the early '80s, two enthusiastic young men are just kicking off their advertising careers when their building is condemned. A female friend offers to let them stay in her building, but there's a catch: The building only allows female residents! Oh, the awkward hilarity that ensues when the men adopt identities as Hildegard and Buffy in order to rent a room. Man, this show takes me back.

Casino Royale: Why the New Bond Is Better

BuzzSugar — Sun, 10 Dec 2006 10:05:09 -0800

To be frank, I never truly got into the James Bond movies of yesteryear. To me, they were silly, predictable, and, in many ways, laughable. Sure, it's interesting to see a young, dashing Sean Connery, since I've always known him as a kindly old uncle type. But the only other Bond I know more than just fuzzily is Pierce Brosnan, who's a little prissy and who, in my opinion, made for a flimsy 007.

These "eh" feelings toward Bond changed when I saw the new movie, Casino Royale. The film tells the story of James Bond's origins and how he came to be involved in this continuous string of spy adventures. Daniel Craig's Bond is interesting in that he's less suave, less debonair, and more coarse than most of the other Bonds before him. He bumbles missions, makes mistakes, loses his footing, and lets his pride get in the way. He's smart and funny, but not all the time.

According to Entertainment Weekly, the author of the Bond books, Ian Fleming, "never meant for Bond to be a hero. Said the author: 'I intended him to be a sort of blunt instrument wielded by a government department.'" In this movie, you definitely get a sense of that, so read more

Particularly interesting is the interplay between Bond and his "handler" (to use an "Alias" term) M, played by the ever-fantastic Judi Densch, who basically dismisses Bond's letter of resignation. I enjoyed relating to this Bond and feeling like it's a triumph for the "everyman" (er, a very tough version of the everyman) when he does succeed. He's one of us, we think. He falls in love and does dumb things and every once in a while throws out a zinger. I adored him.

The movie itself has a few flaws: It's rather on the longish side and a little more complicated than seems necessary. But the majority of the film is really interesting and enjoyable. It has a great balance of explosions-gunfire-beat-'em-up scenes and quieter, calmer, or tension-filled scenes. The female characters (with the exception of M, though Bond sometimes treats her like a nagging old aunt) are, as usual, either villains or victims. Having said that, however, the main "Bond girl," Vesper Lynd (Eva Green), is allowed a surprising degree of cleverness, wit, sass, and sensitivity. She is neither utterly ruthless nor a nincompoop nor simple eye candy. In fact, as far as appearances go, she is in some ways an unlikely choice: gangly, pale, and freckled, seemingly only a few years out of Britain's finest school for girls. I was consistently impressed with her ability to be sharp one moment and deeply vulnerable the next, and it's refreshing to see the writers/directors of a Bond movie allowing such traits in a girl.

It looks like that handsome Daniel Craig has reinvented Bond as we know it, creating a three-dimensional, complex character whose humanity makes us root for him. Or maybe it is simply those gorgeous, stunning, electric blue eyes. Whatever the cause, I absolutely cannot wait for the next one, Bond 22, which is already in pre-production!

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