Smokin' Aces

writer/director Joe Carnahan blew critics and audiences away in 2002 with Narc, a gritty and dark cop drama/thriller. with Smokin' Aces, he blows up the world. Pete Hammond calls it "...Oceans 11 meets Pulp Fiction and sooooo much more." i wouldn't disagree. however, i say it's Ocean's 11, The Wild Bunch, Scarface, Pulp Fiction, Domino, Goodfellas, and Man On Fire thrown into a blender with Tobasco Sauce and Jack Daniels. the characters are twisted, the action doesn't stop, the laughs hit hard, and the bullets hit harder. the cast is great. Alicia Keys, Ryan Reynolds, Ray Liota, Peter Berg, Common, Ben Affleck, Andy Garcia, and Jeremy Piven as Buddy "Aces" Israel bring their A game in this film that is off the chains. warning! Smokin Aces is rated R, even in Canada (actually 18 A in Canada. but that means violence. for some reason nudity and sex doesn't bother the Canadian ratings folks, but violence does) and for good reason. get a baby sitter, or do not see it if you don't like violent movies or some of the stories in the Old Testament. i loved it. i don't know if that means i'm out to lunch, or i can appreciate different styles of art. i give this film all four aces in the deck.

love relentlessly...

is the title of chapter eight in Matthew Paul Turner's book Provocative Faith: Walking Away from Ordinary. here's a line i like, and i thought i'd share it with you: "Jesus wants us to show love with complete abandonment." (page 130) Turner is ultra-honest about his faith journey in this book. he also includes some interviews in some of the chapters with people. he tells his, theirs, and other peoples stories that we can relate to and learn from. it's an easy and enjoyable read. pick it up and read it. thinking about love, here are a couple things that have come to mind:

"...all you need is love. all you need is love. all you need is love, love. love is all you need..." (the beatles)

"...'love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength... Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." (Jesus in Mark 12:30-31, NIV)

"...i love you like a fat kid loves cake..." (50 cent)

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us..." (1 John 3:16, NIV)

Dreamgirls

the biggest compliment you can give a movie is that nothing was wasted. every shot, piece of set design, lyric, piece of music and dialouge, costume, look, movement, and interaction of characters in Dreamgirls helps tell the story. this is an amazing movie and is at the top of great filmmaking. Bill Condon wrote the screenplay and directed the film from a Broadway musical written by Tom Eyen loosely based on musical artists like Diana Ross, The Supremes, and James Brown. Jamie Foxx, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, and the rest of the cast turn in awesome performances that light up the screen. the Oscar buzz around this film is no joke, it deserves nominations in all the categories i can think of. this is the biggest competition i've seen for The Departed. that being said, i still give Marty and his crew the nod for Best Picutre. even with that being said, Dreamgirls is definitely one of the best films of the year.