Mrs. Doubtfire

It seems like that insane things are acceptable when it's in the name of family, and that's certainly the case for "Mrs. Doubtfire." Robin Williams stars as a guy who hits the sad streak of losing his job and getting divorced (both for petty reasons IMO).  In order to spend more time with his children, who his ex-wife is too busy to properly care for but the court decreed he could only see them on one day a week, he takes the role of going undercover as an elderly English nanny.  Just in time too because his wife starts to see a new beau that looks suspiciously like James Bond.  Beyond the whole "father learns to love his family more" trope, the main reason to watch is to see when it'll all go south.  There are so many close calls with his cover getting blown, that eventually, all you want to know is how long he can keep up the facade.  The ending itself is surprisingly bittersweet, but it's a better turn from the cliche happy ending of the couple getting back together.  Robin Williams is at his comedic best, doing a variety of voices and mannerisms that define his fame. Despite his cover of a real supernanny, what with him NOT being one, his goof-ups are hilarious as well.
Overall, nutty fun involving Robin Williams pretending to be a woman with a small sappy center of going to the extreme for your family.

Let's recap:

Wholesome Crossdresser

vs.

Crossdressing for the lulz

Androgynous

MEN SHOULD NOT LOOK LIKE THIS!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2

Some may throw me into the street and grab their torches and pitchforks when I say this, but “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt.2” was only ok.  Like Voldemort in regards to his personal Deathly Hallow, I feel like the film had more potential, could’ve had more laughs, and should’ve been more satisfying.

I’m writing this with hopes that most who read this are already fans of the Harry Potter series, so those who hate, stand to the left and go back to your normal lives; this review ain’t for you.

What thousands of children/teenagers/young adults felt as the credits rolled

For a more entertaining (spoiler-filled!) review, go here.
For a more entertaining abridged version of the book, go here. (Seriously funny!)
For a nonfan's absolutely clueless perspective of the movie, go here

Father of the Bride

Don’t get me wrong, I think Steve Martin’s an amazing comedic actor. But while “Father of the Bride” is toted as one of his greater films, I find his performance only funny in the first half.  The 2nd half, he falls into the stereotypical role of sentimental father about to give his daughter away. In the first half, he’s completely bonkers in every reaction, sometimes over-the-top and sometimes just laughable because it’s not how normal people do or think.  It’s only after Diane Keaton talks some sense into her husband that he becomes a cool, level-headed guy again, even helping with a premarital spat the young couple has.  If anything, the side characters are the ones who seem to have the most fun out of it. The wedding coordinators are hamming it up to their full potential, and the little brother Culkin is unintentionally funny because of his mature demeanor.
Overall, still a funny film and can tug at your heartstrings.

Mental note: Not a good idea for anniversary gift. Women can get out of the kitchen nowadays after all.

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Nature has been found to inspire some of the most iconic monsters of our time; wolves begat wolfmen, vampire bats make Count Dracula's image more alarming and threatening, and tadpoles with see-through intestines inspired Satoshi Tajiri to make Poliwag. The film "Little Shop of Horrors" derives its monster's inspiration from Venus Fly-traps, having a more literal bent on plants with Venus in their name. 
The movie is based off a Broadway musical so the film is interspersed with songs which really help along the narrative of the story, although the "Greek Chorus Supremes" can be a bit distracting.  Rick Moranis and his co-star with a speech impediment/fake accent can sing surprisingly well.  One of the most enjoyable of these songs is Steve Martin's take on why people fear dentists; energetic, a bit creepy, but plenty of fun because Steve Martin's a loon. The real star of the show though is the puppetry skills that make Audrey II, the man-eating plant, really come alive.  In a sad sense of loss, you'd realize such simple yet elegant special effects are lost on a younger generation fed CGI images from any studio with the cash and a half-baked story.  But this plant is seriously a wondrous monster that not only menaces but entertains, singing some pretty amazing songs and having jaws that would make the famous shark jealous.
Overall, fun, crazy, and quite musical bit of film with a memorable monster that stands up amongst the greats, erm ingrains in the soil amongst the greats.

But voiced by a black guy.

Big

Thanks to the power of Netflix, I was able to see this Tom Hanks classic, "Big." For what it's worth, the film showcases the acting prowess of Mr. Hanks to have a childish mindset. While that may seem like an easy task, he is also able to convey the other emotions of the child beside glee; easy frightening, incredulity at subtle adult themes, even strange nostalgia (which can happen at age 13 believe me). Even though the idea of "not-my-body" is not a new theme, the writers try to make it interesting by making it quite a child's fantasy too. What kid hasn't thought about eating junk food for meals, filling their living spaces with naught but toys and other awesome stuff instead of tedious furniture, and hanging out with fun people (his boss is one of those "kid-at-heart" types and promotes Tom Hanks to unbelievable heights because they share the same ideologies)? The movie takes a strange turn though after he spends a night discovering the other side of an adult's night life...he grows up and forgets who he is. Just like Robin William's performance in "Hook" he forgets himself and almost gets too immersed in his new life. The real thing to keep the viewers watching at that point is to see if he's really going to keep going or go home to his kid-life.
Not too bad, but I wonder why nobody thought he had a mental disease. 

He totally invented the Insecticons too. "Can't you make em bugs" indeed.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

As is typical in movie trilogies, the third film always comes under the most scrutiny. People will inevitably compare the last in regards to the first and the second.
That being said, "Transformers Dark of the Moon" is an oddity to me when compared to its predecessors.
Good: It is TONS better than 2nd installment "Revenge of the Fallen," which was plagued by crude humor, pointless characters human and robot, and just scenes that did "nothing" for the story. "Dark of the Moon" had a lot less crude humor, and made more use of their characters and scenes than did ROTF.
The action was much more acceptable as well, surprisingly not only from the Autobots but from the human soldiers as well. It seems like years of fighting these metallic monsters have finally evolved past "shoot til it dead" as actual tactics have been developed. Decepticon redshirts didn't stand a chance. But of course, when it comes to rocking and socking, nobody does it better than giant robots with huge honkin' guns and swords.
Storywise, it feels more like what the 2nd movie should have been. Sam going to college? Whoop-de-doo. Government trying to cover up transformer presence on Earth? Pffft. Some kind of sun-destroyer that'll convert the planet to Energon? Meh. Main badguy is basically the Judas Iscariot of the Transformers mythos? Hmph.
THIS was a much more compelling story for sure. Sam tries to validate existence with finding a job AND maintain relationship with girl-that-is-not-Megan-Fox-but-might-as-well-be. Autobots actively working with government is a big plus. Somewhat noble intentions from the big bad despite evil actions? Slag yeah! Big bad a traitor with personal connections to the Autobots? Even. Better.
Also, full Decepticon invasion of major city where almost nobody survives? Dark, but much more realistic for supposed world conquerors.

However, there is still many many things about this movie that is full of sadness and pointlessness.
About the only scenes with Sam interacting with humans that are worth it is him trying to find a job, and him dealing with a Decepticon sympathizer/blind loyalist. Every other scene? Ranges from "painfully pointless" to "OMG why do they even NEED this in the movie?" Strangely enough, I find his interactions with the transformers in this film to be much more meaningful (Bumblebee and his connection = aaaaawwwwesome; he kills a high-ranking Decepticon with Za Bee...geez).
Even though the scenes with just the Transformers in it are mercifully more abundant than the previous two films, this movie still insists on crazyness happening on the human front, especially from a no-nonsense, meddling, government liason lady. Granted, Wash from "Firefly/Serenity" is in this film playing a German super-manservant to Agent Simmons and he's kind of awesome.
Pointless robot characters are surprisingly few and far in-between. Bless us all, no annoying, brightly-colored twins that steal Bumblebee's thunder! Most pointless bots boils down to Decepticon grunts with no names (who actually scan earth modes upon entry! yes!) and teeny tiny Autobots that surprisingly have a big damn heroes moment.
3rd act/climax? EXCEEEEEEDINGLY long. But at least it's not running and firing in the dessert like in ROTF. Final boss fight though? Thankfully lasts longer than 5 seconds.

OVERALL, pretty good. Not great, but not super-awful either. Much more of a solid movie than the first two, but that's not saying much. Recommend to watch on $1 DVD though. Fast-forwarding will be your friend.

Megatron has now adopted the look of the retired anime badass: raggedy tan/brown cloak. Heck, it's even on the toy!

For someone else's more in-depth review, go here
For a more entertaining (spoiler-filled) review, go here.

SPOILER!!