Movie Review: Gnomeo & Juliet and The Rite

Gnomeo & Juliet - Emily Blunt, Michael Caine, Jason Statham, Ozzy Osbourne, Patrick Stewart - ***
One of the first lines is "This story has been told...a lot. " And it has, but I think this is the first version featuring garden gnomes. The whole movie takes place on Verona Drive, in the backyards of a Mr. Capulet and a Ms. Montague who have dueling gaudy lawns decorated in gnomes and dominant color schemes, one red and one blue. Gnomeo is a strapping young garden gnome who mistakenly meets and falls in love with Juliet, a red gnome who is trying to show her father she isn't quite so fragile. With the help of a frog, a pink flamingo and a teapot, the two date and fall in love.

This movie is an hour and half long and at times really seems slow. On the other hand there is a cute happy ending and some delightful adult pop culture references (My favorite: two gnomes are glued on a pedestal. One looks at the other and says "I wish I could quit you.") Elton John music runs rampant and they redo some of his most popular songs to fit the gnome world. For Shakespeare fans, there are sprinklings of inside jokes. A gnome that is shattered to pieces is put together using Taming of the Glue, the Rosencrantz and Guilderstern moving van makes an appearance as well as Shakespeare himself. I had 4 year old Miller with me and we saw the 3D version which Miller did not like. I don't think seeing this in 2D would change how you felt about the movie. It is cute but I don't' think it has the universal appeal that Toy Story has and I can't see it being a major success here in the US. Overall I enjoyed the movie, but wouldn't recommend you rushing right out to see it.

The Rite - Anthony Hopkins, Colin O'Donoghue - ****It has been almost two days since I saw this movie and I still don't really know if I liked it. I was expecting a flat out horror movie and it was a slower, quieter psychological thriller. I think billing it as a horror movie was a big mistake and set expectations incorrectly.

The movie is about a young man, Michael Kovak, disillusioned by his family and life, who decides to enter the seminary because of the free tuition. He decides he doesn't want to be a priest though and when he tries to resign after completing four years, he is told he would have to pay back the $100,000 in tuition. He is offered one more opportunity; to go to Rome and learn to do exorcisms. Michael never hides his skepticism about the Catholic faith and even more so the exorcisms. Enter the amazing Anthony Hopkins as a village priest who has done hundreds of them. We follow along as Michael learns and questions the exorcism process. This movie is a character study and it is that aspect that I enjoyed. I related to his doubt and followed his journey with interest. Sir Anthony Hopkins is outstanding; no one can play creepy and trustworthy at the same time like he can.

Going into it expecting a horror movie makes for a very slow movie with a too quick ending. If you step back and look at it as a movie about a spiritual journey with some jumpy moments thrown in, the timing makes perfect sense and adds to the reality of the movie.

I think now that I have thought about this movie, I have enjoyed it but have hard time recommending it to others. I found it interesting and liked that there is quite a bit of fact behind the movie. Interested? Check this out.