Adnerb the Movie Nerd

Movie reviews from a middle school teacher's perspective

The House With a Clock in Its Walls

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Apple Rating:

I liked this movie.   This is a good one for adults to bring older children to.  The younger ones will find it spooky, and both adults and kids will find plenty to chuckle at.  The story centers on nerdish orphan Lewis Barnavelt (Owenn Vaccarro), who comes to live with his very eccentric Uncle Jonathan, played by Jack Black, and his uncle’s mysterious friend, Miss Zimmerman, played by Cate Blanchett.  They live in a deliciously creepy house full of furniture that moves, intriguing objects and secret rooms.  It turns out there is a mysterious clock hidden somewhere in the house, ticking away and counting down, which will cause the destruction of the human race if not found and stopped! Barnavelt discovers his uncle is a warlock and eventually talks him into letting him become an apprentice.  He hopes sorcery and magic will help him win friends. It doesn’t, but he unwittingly brings about impending doom by resurrecting a great evil.  However, his magical assistance to his uncle and his friend helps them face that evil. I loved the word play between Blanchett and Black, who clearly are having a good time making this movie.  Do not go if you are looking for true horror or a great script.  Do go if you want to watch an ambiable family friendly movie that has fun with the John Bellairs 1973 novel.

Ocean’s 8

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Apple Rating:

I liked this movie.  It is light hearted and fun.  Sandra Bullock plays Debbie Ocean, sister of the famous Daniel Ocean from three past movies (2 great and 1 terrible), who has recently passed away (although  there  are several jokes about the fact that no one is 100% positive that he actually is in his crypt).  She has been in jail for five years, apparently framed by her former boy friend and partner in crime, Claude Becker (portrayed by Thorin Oaken…er, Richard Armitage).  She’s had a LOT of time to think, and when she gets out, she is ready to pull off a seemingly impossible  (aren’t they all?) heist that involves stealing a necklace – worth an incredible $150,000,000! – from the Met’s Annual Gala and the neck of the self centered Daphne Kugler (Anne Hathaway).  Watching how she pulls this off with partners like Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Mindy Kaling and Rihanna is entertaining.  Director Gary Ross even throws in a few cameos from some of the original players of Ocean’s 11-13.  Hathaway makes a really good mark, one with more on the ball than you might think, and Armitage lightly oozes the charm as the boyfriend who may or may not be part of a revenge subplot.  The schemes are not as intricate and developed as the Clooney vehicles, but there are some good twists, some good performances and plenty of eye-catching fashion.  Ocean’s 8 may not be an intense ride like Dead Pool or Infinity War, but for a summer popcorn movie – It definitely fills the bill.