Hot Rod

February 28.

I rounded out the weekend of bad movies with the worst movie of all. Probably one of the worst movies ever made. "Hot Rod" was playing on Comedy Central and I stopped. I have no idea why, but I did. It's really not even worth examining why it was bad. Just know, Andy Samburg plays an aspiring stunt man and wears jumpsuits. 'Nuff said.

L.A. Without a Map

February 27.

The second bad movie I saw this weekend was "L.A. Without a Map." I saw it because a few weeks ago on a classic Howard Stern show he interviewed Vincent Gallo, who I hadn't heard of before. He was weird and funny and interesting, so, I added some of his movies to my Netflix queue. I got this one first and thought it was something I'd like.

American girl meets British writer while on vacation in England. He falls in, well he likes her, and follows her back to L.A. Sounds OK? It's not. The whole story moves so quickly it's completely unrealistic. The scenes would start in, what seemed like, mid sentence and I always felt like I was missing something. The American girl was played, poorly, by Vinessa Shaw, who although started her career in the kids soccer flick "Ladybugs," has gone on to be a pretty good actress.

I did like the Johnny Depp cameo. For most of his scenes he played a poster of himself in some Western and never spoke. I always read he took no money for his part. I also liked Vincent Gallo and Julie Delpy as the doomed couples best friends.

Cop Out

February 27.

My weekend of bad movies started with "Cop Out." I love Tracy Morgan and feel like I must have had some affection for something Bruce Willis did but can't really remember what. So, when my friend, Side Cap, wanted to see the cop-comedy I thought, OK. Plus I feel like I always see depressing dramas, mostly because most comedies look awful. And this one was.

I guess it played off a lot of older cop movies that I never saw. So, a lot of the references went over my head. There was a lot of gory, violence, which I don't ever remember seeing in the "Police Academy" movies. OK, I'm joking, I'm not saying it should have mimicked the PA movies, but this was supposed to be a light, funny movie.

The story wasn't very good either. The NYPD partners get suspended for a eight weeks for screwing up a drug bust, which puts a wrench in Willis' character's plans to pay for his daughter's dream wedding. (Do you see the holes yet? She hasn't paid for anything and the wedding is two months away? And he hasn't started saving yet?) So he plans to sell his rare baseball card, which gets stolen by a small-time crook who sells it to the same drug dealers that they were supposed to catch in the beginning. There's definitely something better to see out there.

The Hurt Locker

February 21.

There are some movies, no matter how much critics rave, I have to psych myself up to see. I've wanted to see "The Hurt Locker" since it was in the theater but just never got the energy to do it. So, I added it to my Netflix queue, then looked at it sitting near the DVD player for a few weeks. I could have just skipped this film, there are plenty of great movies I've never seen, but I'm really glad I didn't.

The movie was amazing from the first nail-biting scene. I avoid horror movies but was thinking the entire time I watched this that it was scarier than anything I've ever seen in a slasher flick. I don't know anyone serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, but I know this is actually happening now, and it made it more significant and meaningful.

I hear stories of soldiers returning from war and their struggles with everyday life, suicide, and depression and after watching this movie I don't know how anyone returning from war can cope with life in a "normal" way.

"The Hurt Locker" did an amazing job of putting the viewer into the situation and making us feel the danger and threat as the unit counts down the days until they go home. And these were the emotions I had from my comfortable couch. I can't imagine what it must be like for soldiers and their families.

You've Got Mail

February 20.

"You've Got Mail" is one of those movies I always stop at when flipping channels. It represents a surreal New York that doesn't exist. It's all good weather and smart people living in beautiful, spacious apartments. Oh well, I still like it.

If you're an old movie fan check out the pre-email versions that I also liked. There is the 1940 version, "Shop Around the Corner," starring James Stewart, where two shop employees in Budapest who hate each other fall in love through anonymous letters. And the 1959 version, "In the Good Old Summertime," starring Judy Garland. The musical take on the story is set in turn-of-the-century America and follows the same formula: Man and woman hate each other but fall in love through letters.

Breakfast at Tiffany's

February 20.

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" is one of my favorite movies, even if it is about a prostitute and a gigolo. I've probably seen it 100 times. I love Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly and George Peppard as Paul "Fred" Vargas. It's all 60s-Style and New York City. I remember seeing it, more than once, in a great, old theater in New York while I was living there. It was a great way to watch an old movie – the sound of the reel and crackling of the old film. Although there's nothing like a theater experience catching it on TV is OK, too.

My favorite scene is when Holly and "Fred" celebrate his story being published. They spend the day doing things the other has never done before, including drinking champagne before breakfast, taking a walk in the morning (Holly has walked in the morning but only home from the previous night), going to the library, buying something at Tiffany & Co. (the only scene actually in Tiffany's), and stealing something from a five and dime. I've always wanted to do that. (Not steal something from a five and dime, spend the day doing things I've never done before.)

The Blind Side

February 13.

With a Valentine's Day gift bag full of fruity Boba drinks in hand, my friend, who I call Boba, and I went to see "The Blind Side." She wanted to see the movie about a wealthy family who opens their home to a homeless teen because of the football and I wanted to see it because Sandra Bullock, who plays the mother of the family, Leigh Anne Tuohy, has been winning all kinds of awards and is nominated for an Oscar for the performance.

So, although this is a "football movie" because it follows the true story of the Baltimore Ravens' Michael Oher's life before becoming a pro player, there isn't much football in the movie – which was fine by me because I don't understand football anyway.

Boba and I agreed the movie was good but it was a little predictable (and not just because we knew Michael was going to become a professional football player and because his real-life adoptive family has been on numerous talk shows since the movie came out telling their story). It just laid it all on a bit thick. Still, the performances were good and I guess warm and fuzzy can be nice sometimes.

Crazy Heart

February 6.

Jeff Bridges will always be The Dude to me, but I have to admit he was great as Bad Blake, the faded country star. He's probably going to win an Oscar for the role, and he should. The character lived a hard, selfish life and now at 57 he's on the road playing small bars and bowling alleys (I was looking for Donnie and Walter while he was there) to a handful of people.

In addition to an amazing performance, he sang all his own songs, as did Colin Farrell who plays Bad's former touring partner Tommy Sweet. Tommy is hot (obviously), successful, and famous, which makes Bad look even more depressed.

Maggie Gyllenhaal (one of my favorite actresses), who played Bad's love interest, gave me hope for Bad's future. He seemed to want to change to be with her and was great with her son, Buddy.

I don't think there are any big twists, you can probably guess how the chain-smoking alcoholic turns out, but the performances are amazing. Robert Duvall, who plays Bad's father, only has a few scenes but they are full of wisdom.